《Spy Mage System》


 Chapter 1

    Chapter 1: The Not So Lucky One


    Do you ever get any of those times where you feel as if the world is against what you do, how you do-almost your entire being? The world is nning and surveying each way your life could just turn in the opposite direction of how you wanted and how you expected things to be.


    If not, well, good for you.


    But it¡¯s not so good for me.


    My name is Connor Drails, a kid who isn¡¯t much of a nerd, or not much of not being one. I¡¯m a regr kid that is more of an introvert.


    I¡¯m a boy who just despises the presence of other people that seem to be all over not only my physical body, but my mental brain. The feeling of awkwardness drowns me, and it almost puts me in a bad mood. But that doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m some type of person who finds pleasure in being alone with no one to love you, or to care even about you.


    I have a friend, Greg Jimmons, who is much of a skinny guy that is a friend of mine, and he is a pretty fun friend to have.


    He mostly wears blue jeans, and gray Levi shoes that don¡¯t seem in touch with the outfit, being that he gets them from local retail stores. He is a guy who was tanned to where he almost has a tan-orange type of skin color, with brown hair.


    Today was a day that I most hated, the day of prom. Days and weeks and months of little snippets about the prom annoyed me already. But the day when it is, it¡¯s the only thing trending in Wolfpack School. People would rush up to me as if I give a care in the world asking: Do you have someone for prom?


    .....


    Just to tell you about my life: I¡¯m a sophomore, so I¡¯ve been here for at least a year. We moved from Utah to California because my dad got a new job as a cameraman for Hollywood. We would probably live in a better house, but my dad was very skeptical about the amount of money needed to pay the bills and all the stuff I care less to think about.


    I joined by the beginning of the year, and I¡¯m even happy to even have one friend. But I¡¯m quite not happy to find a bully though. I think it¡¯s normal for one to be bullied in high school, cuz nothing happened to me in elementary. The bully, Kirk Jexifan, always ate my lunch and squished into a mush that I usually had nothing to eat, but luckily, Greg has been supplying me with what I like to call ¡°emergency meals.¡±


    I guess they¡¯re not much of an emergency if they keep happening every time.


    The hall was like a stampede. Students rushed through the halls, going to their lockers and opening them. It was cramped and squished, almost impossible to actually move. Voices bellowed through the hall, as people squished by one another.


    I got to my locker 426, and I opened my locker. I saw that all my books were still there, and I sighed with relief. Sometimes some people know other people¡¯s codes, like Kirk, and they snatch my books for fun, as if it¡¯s just a normal thing to do to a normal person.


    Makes sense, totally.


    As I was getting my books for Science, I felt a tap on my shoulder, but it was a tap that continued at a rapid pace I recognized.


    ¡°Hey Greg, what¡¯s up?¡± I greeted.


    Greg was wearing a purple shirt, and the same old blue jeans with the white streaks, and he seemed to be having a face full of mischief that was asking to break out.


    ¡°Have you found anyone for prom?¡± he asked. My mood crashed even lower. I sighed and looked at him with a cross face, which didn¡¯t seem to do much at all.


    ¡°No,¡± I harshly replied.


    Greg seemed rmed by that but not for a long time, perhaps a few seconds.


    ¡°Why not?¡± he asked. I looked at him, but this time with more of a cross look than before, with my eyebrows leaning in towards my eyes. ¡°Cause I care less, I care less about prom, I care less about who¡¯s going with whoever. I don¡¯t even care if someone goes with a rat with two behinds,¡± I hissed, and I meant all that.


    ¡°You know your mom is gonna send you anyways, you know,¡± Greg said, crossing his arms as if he just aplished something massive, and worth reverencing.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be fine being alone in prom,¡± I said, sighing. ¡°It¡¯s not like I care anyways. We can alwayse back home, y video games, pretend I didn¡¯t waste my hours on something useless.¡±


    I smacked my door closed, and suddenly the room was much quieter. I was scared, but not too much at first until I turned my head around, as my eyes shook in fear.


    My brain froze still, as if the six foot-seven bully was using its powers to keep me immobile, transfixed, stiff at that same ce.


    ¡°Hello, Conny-Corn,¡± he said, his voice reverberating with the sound of fear and announcement.


    He walked closer, each step louder than the other, and nothing got me to move and even try to run, I stayed in my area. It was as if my brain epted this moment to be the end of me, where my story cut short from a single fist that would end my life.


    But then, something happened. As if some sort of energy was transferred in thest second, I felt my hand twist into a fist, and suddenly thrust towards Kirk. I closed my eyes, hoping I would wake up and find myself drenched in sweat in bed. But then I felt the bones of Kirk¡¯s face collide with my hands and burn from his cheek into my hand.


    I didn¡¯t feel like opening my eyes after that.

 Chapter 2

    Chapter 2: A Fight None Could See


    I was sitting in the principal¡¯s office with Kirk, whose eyes were boiling red. I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s from rage or the constant stream of tears streaming down his face. The walls were made of wood and polished to show confidence. The desk was instead rusted, adding to the atmosphere. Mr. Broll¡¯s papers, pictures, and other items appeared to be attempting an introduction.


    He was a bald guy, and the sun made that clear, reflecting off his head and shining it with a bright light.


    He had a beard that surrounded his lips, but there were no sideburns that led to figure where it came from.


    He had mean hazel green eyes, that squinted whenever he felt disgusted of anyone, or anything perhaps. He was wearing a green shirt tucked into his pants, with dress shoes that peeked out under the desk.


    ¡°So, I hear you two had a little brawl eh?¡± he asked, moving his eyes from me to Kirk, or at least I think so.


    He sighed, and took off his sses. He kept touching his bald head as if he was stressed more about something else than us. I guessed that due to the amount of pictures of his wife that he had on his desk.


    We stayed in silence, then Kirk blurted.


    .....


    ¡°It was him, he punched me first!¡± Kirk shouted, pointing the bore of his finger directly at me.


    ¡°You were about to punch me!¡± I barked back. ¡°Self-defense, ever heard of that?!¡±


    Mr. Broll didn¡¯t seem quite intrigued by our very loud, morous argument.


    ¡°Hush!¡± he shouted, as the silence took in its reign once again. ¡°I have no time for you nk-heads, so I¡¯ll give you this punishment. Both of you are having detention for the next two weeks.¡±


    My jaw almost dropped to the floor in shock. My eyes began to bulge. I never, ever got this bad of a punishment. Sure, he never punched me-but did you expect me to just deal with it?


    Many-many times he¡¯s assaulted people, and ya¡¯ll don¡¯t do nothing about it. But the second the bullied kid fights back, suddenly they¡¯re justified? The bullied kid has to suffer as well?


    I grabbed my backpack, and had no hesitation to barge into the door. I immediately went to Science ss with only seething anger to cope with.


    It was the end of the school day, and I was a little weary, but I remained furious about what had urred. Now here¡¯s where things get a littleplicated. As an introvert by nature, it wouldn¡¯t be much of an issue for me. It¡¯s simply what my mother would say. My mother is quite insane-if she finds out what happened, I¡¯m finished.


    Thousands of students rushed out of the school, getting on their phones, and still talking about this prom. I was even more vexed, but I just went on my phone to y a little game.


    Yes, I y some mobile games. There¡¯s nothing wrong with that, right?


    I began walking down the street, with cars whizzing by every second, and the breeze pping against my face. It was just what I needed after this tiring day. The sound of the city and horns crept into my ears, and I took a deep breath, trying to calm down.


    Now I had to take the short-cut, although I wouldn¡¯t prefer to, my mom gets suspicious whenever I¡¯m not home when she expects me to be.


    I went through this little sort of forest area, where trees were around me each and every second, crowding and almost protecting me from something I don¡¯t even know of.


    I looked around just as a quick thought, and then I returned. Then I looked back up again.


    This time I stayed looking, seeing two ck SUV¡¯s that were parked by each other. Suddenly, a bunch of men, and some women were walking out, ck suits and sunsses.


    I¡¯m not sure what was going on, but my curiosity vibrated in my head with excitement.


    I crept up to the next tree, making sure I wasn¡¯t seen by them. I kept my breathing to a regr pace, but my heart wouldn¡¯t have it.


    My chest felt like it was getting ready to blow up. I desperately tried to take a deep breath, many, many times but it seemed hard to do so.


    I continued to move my head slowly to where my eyes could gather what was going on.


    One of the women had brown hair that was tied, and rested on the person¡¯s shoulder. But I noticed, they weren¡¯t wearing suits, they were wearing some onesie. Slick ck from top to bottom, including the shoes as well.


    Was this some kind of Zumba dance or exercise?


    But then, I saw someone, actually someones in this case. There were these guys, they seemed to be in certain uniforms or so.


    They had rigid, scrunched-up gloves with no air to flee from the modification. They were wearing helmets, but the tiny stic that allowed them to see was very tinted. They wore expensive clothing: a gray vest with a tie and a dress shirt tucked inside their pants. The belt aided in the distinction between them.


    There were five and five of them each, and I wasn¡¯t sure who was the trainer here, but I was quite ready to figure it out.


    Figures out there were no exercising or dancing.


    Suddenly, one of the vests guys threw a punch towards one of the agent-looking guys.


    In a matter of seconds they all began brawling against each other, throwing punches and thrusting out their legs, as the sound of the collisions between their fists and legs, and the grunts of pain and effort stung my eyes.


    Was this a boxing match?


    I wanted to leave, but I wanted to see-I felt a certain disagreement in my body, only keeping there for the whole fight.


    Suddenly one of the onesie girls leaped and clutched onto one of the vest men, and did some sort of trick, taking one of her legs and flipping on it or something like that-either way, they both ended upnding on the floor.


    Except that guy was dead or knocked out, while the girl came out on top.


    They began to continue brawling, throwing fists at each other like a boxing match, until one of them(vest guys) dodged a punch and suddenly contained one of the agent men and suddenly mmed him into one of the cars.


    The ss broke and shattered and the front trunk of the car almost seemed misshapen.


    They must be doing wrestling live or something like that. I¡¯m not exactly sure, but I do have to say, it ain¡¯t a nice match.


    But then, something clicked, making me stop cold. Fear rushed up my spine once I saw someone taking out a gun, which the bore seemed to face towards my direction.


    Maybe some other guy wasing, and I just happened to be in that location. But then, the gun fired and the bullet punctured the tree I was hiding behind. My breathingpletely stopped.


    I needed to run, now.


    I quickly darted away as shots began to fire behind me, almost hitting me, but luckily the trees provided cover for me.


    I couldn¡¯t stop running, I shouldn¡¯t stop running, I wouldn¡¯t stop running, I can¡¯t stop, I won¡¯t stop until I get home.


    I looked behind me to see if they were chasing but the other thing that was chasing me were the constant bullets flying at me.


    Quickly I found my home, and I went up to the door, banging on it with fist of petrification. Finally, mom opened the door and looked at me. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± she asked.


    I couldn¡¯t find myself to speak, so I just went in and quickly rushed upstairs, still feeling like I was being chased.

 Chapter 3

    Chapter 3: Prom Problems


    I sat in my room, wondering what had just transpired. I was sure that the vest-wearing guys were agents and that fighting wasn¡¯t my problem.


    But shooting at me? Should I call the police this time? If I did, they would probably find me and try to kill me before help could arrive...if it ever did.


    I suddenly became aware of how it felt to be afraid¨Ctruly afraid¨Cfor the first time in my life. Now huddled under myforters, trying to escape from reality by soaking up all my shrilling tears with them.


    What should I do?


    Maybe not go down that road again, or not walk home from school anymore. In fact, I should inform my mother that she might be too concerned about my safety and not about the call she might get today regarding me.


    But I don¡¯t want to put my mother or father in danger.


    I continued to shrivel in my sheets, which seemed like the only safe ce for me where I could settle in and try to cry my tears of fear and shock away.


    .....


    I wish my uncle was here. No, he isn¡¯t deceased. He¡¯s a secret service agent for the White House who recently obtained a new job as the CEO of some sort of espionage organization, and I¡¯m not exactly sure what it is. His form is so alluring that women fall for him simply by seeing a reflection of him, and I know this because we¡¯ve met him previously but don¡¯t want anyone to know we¡¯re rtives outside of the rest of the Secret Service.


    Box-like shoulders with long arms, wearing a tuxedo or suit of some sort I believe, with sunsses with wires that went down inside the suit.


    Even though he was popr and could talk to people effortlessly, I couldn¡¯t. Instead of living in fear that bullets would dodge past my head again, like before, I wanted to be just like him: Living a life that people would gravitate towards and an ecosystem that supported me. Then, Mom walked into the room-noticeable relief exuberated from within me. Although she usually expressed anger through her bodynguage, this time she didn¡¯t seem fazed.


    She isn¡¯t the one to tell you if she¡¯s angry or not, she¡¯ll be in the nicest mood and then suddenly you¡¯re in trouble.


    ¡°Mom?¡± I asked, quickly trying to wipe the tears from my face quickly, and trying to hide my red eyes. ¡°Hello,¡± she said frankly. ¡°Have you dressed up for your prom yet?¡±


    I looked at the time, and it was 4:12.


    The prom started at seven.


    ¡°Mom, it doesn¡¯t start for three hours. That¡¯s literally 180 minutes,¡± I said and she scoffed in response. She hastily replied, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with dressing up early? There is a set time you¡¯re supposed to dress up for an event. That time is before the event actually starts! Now get dressed!¡±


    She closed the door, not hard, but to where my heart pounded once she closed it. I got up from my bed and began dressing up.


    While getting ready, I closed the curtains in case anyone was watching. I put on a tuxedo because it was prom. Even though I didn¡¯t have a date, at least I could be the center of attention. Maybe I could get lucky and find someone that way.


    I went downstairs to the living room, where my family keeps our devices, powered on myputer, and checked to see if Greg was online; he normally is. I don¡¯t have any homework because Iplete it during Study Hall ¨C a very useful ss session.


    Plus at least I know I¡¯m eating afterward.


    As always Greg was on and got my headphones plugged into the hole to send a message to myputer that the volume was now being transferred through the personal tool that was resting on top of my head.


    I started up the Discord chat, and soon enough he answered after what seemed to be a long moment of microphone adjustment, in which the deep and based sound of the movement red in my ears.


    ¡°Hey, you there?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, just paying my taxes after waiting for you to finish,¡± I said, thinking I said something sneaky. But Greg immediately cut the cord.


    ¡°What do you mean, I¡¯m already in my grave waiting for you toe online,¡± he said, and I couldn¡¯t say anything else, and I think it wouldn¡¯t be wise to do so.


    ***


    I went to an event even though I had no interest in it and didn¡¯t know a soul who would be there. My hair was slicked back with a ck rubber band so that it would appear to match the darkness of the party¡¯s atmosphere. The venue had changed since Ist checked ¨C now it was held in a run-down building with rusty walls. There was a poster dering the party as a ¡°Prom Party¡± decorated with rainbow colors, but it failed to add anything special to the dismal scene before me.


    Useless.


    Then you walk down the steps as soon as you walk through the door, and once you do, the party is on-and you may dance, chat,work, and engage in other activities that I never dared to do in public. The night was chilly and the moonlight was able to spread much farther than usual because of the rays¡¯ apparent choice of only a few buildings.


    Small red lights were the only thing left of Mom¡¯s Volvo as it drove away. I took a deep breath, steeling myself for my first obstacle: the door. It wasn¡¯t too difficult-I just had to push on the handle and open it. But as soon as I did, the silence from outside came rushing in.


    Seemed creepier than before.


    I was walking towards the stairs that led down into the basement, but then I heard something that stopped me in my tracks. It sounded like someone was walking around upstairs, but it was getting closer and closer to where I was standing. I wanted to run away, but I felt frozen by fear.


    But then, I felt something touch me, or in this case-someone.


    I quickly felt my neck seized by someone¡¯s hand, and I could feel it was a muscly one because the pressure of his arm was crushing against my bones. Air was blocked from entering the windpipe.


    My hands and arms flickered and iled around, panicking at the loss of oxygen that was moving through my veins and arteries.


    It was one of those vest guys or the agent cosy-looking fools that wanted to kill me, and now I¡¯m going to die because I witnessed a fight.


    Was this how it was going to end?


    This is how the story of Connor Drails, who was not loved or cared about by anyone who died after being choked to death on the gateway to prom.


    But then, I felt an energy flow through my body that seemed to be heating me, as my arms began to simmer into a glowing red.


    What was happening?


    I felt something shiver through my body, and my bones rose from their shaking position as if they had no control over it-as though it knew I was not deserving ofmand. My elbow rapidly pushed back, and I could feel the collision between the bones that shattered.


    As the choker cried out in pain, I quickly managed to free myself from his grip. Without a moment¡¯s hesitation, I threw a right hook into his face. Instead of him staggering back from the blow as I had expected, he came at me with renewed force and shoved me into the wall.


    I was speechless. I could only look at my hands and his body that was knocked unconscious back and forth, wondering what in the world just happened.


    But I needed to run and get out of here because more could being.


    I sped out the door and began running, heading towards the way back home. But then, I heard even more footsteps following behind me.


    Don¡¯t tell me.

 Chapter 4

    Chapter 4: A Fight Not Meant to be Seen


    I looked back and I saw two men, whose faces seemed to disappear into the dark and their bodies quickly speeding after me, and even their clothing seemed to be in tune with the night.


    I looked back forward and found myself meeting with another figure, which this time it was one of the street lights that were by the sidewalks, just there to share the light at that certain area.


    This could be a great time to see who they were.


    I ran quickly by the light and made sure to turn my head back to see their bodies reveal themselves in the light.


    The anticipation was too much, for there was just this amount of assuredness I was probably less scared figuring out who it was. Maybe it was Kirk¡¯s bullies or something like that, which now thinking about it would be quite the toll on that other guy that was brutally fisted by me.


    But then I found myself eating my own words, as fear boiled even more intensely inside of me once I saw who they were, what I exactly feared.


    It was the vest men.


    .....


    They were wearing hats that seemed to block the darkness from their faces, so it appeared as if they were men with no heads who were chasing me down the street. I panted as I ran while breathing hard, but now it was adrenaline that was in the energypartment of my body; all of those nutrients had been used up and I was simply running on emergency fuel. But I¡¯d rather die than be strangled by one of them again. The residual agony still stung my throat.


    I turned a corner right next to an alleyway where the moon didn¡¯t shine, so all the things that were probably in that alleyway now seemed to sink into the walls.


    I felt myself getting dizzy, my eyesight blurring as I continued to run. But I couldn¡¯t stop-my legs were stuck in this never-ending cycle of constantly hitting the ground and lifting off.


    Only if I could use this time to use that red strength thing again.


    But I wasn¡¯t feeling angry of any sort; I just felt scared and terrified-and the only thing I wanted to do was get away from these freaks.


    But then, I saw someone in front of me, I wasn¡¯t sure at first, but I shrieked and tried to move towards the right. My legs found themselves twisted from the quick turn, and I fell right down to the ground.


    I looked up, trying to get up but enclosed by fear I couldn¡¯t try to.


    But then, as he continued walking, his body shape was something I recognized. Box-like shoulders with long arms, wearing a tuxedo or suit of some sort I believe, with sunsses with wires that went down inside the suit.


    Uncle?


    I slowly got closer to try and see the body, and for a fact, I was not wrong. ¡°Uncle?¡± I asked, and he shot a quick look at me. His chest rose and declined, meaning he probably sighed.


    But then, one of the vest men began to talk.


    ¡°Hey, you!¡± they called out, taking out a certain thing I found myself wondering about, and still find myself wondering about.


    They looked like they were holding wands or scythes, with the tips glowing red. It looked like they were about to use fire or something simr that would spurt out of their wands. But then Uncle Bruce pulled out the same thing.


    Except it was blue.


    The vest men growled in annoyance, keeping it ready in their arms, and they took up a defensive posture that I didn¡¯t understand. ¡°I¡¯m not sure why you¡¯d risk your time chasing youngsters if that¡¯s the new trend,¡± Uncle Bruce said. The vest men grumbled with displeasure, and they shifted into a fighting stance that I don¡¯t know about.


    Uncle Bruce did the same.


    Then suddenly fire released itself and sped towards my uncle, who quickly raised his wand up, manifesting an ice wall.


    I was right! How did I know that?!


    My uncle then jumped, and he ordered ice to go towards the vest men, over the home-and dashing to them. They suddenly utilized their fire as some sort of rocket power to rise up to his level, ready to swing their wands at any moment. But my uncle was quick, and he blocked the swing with his powers of it and created a block of ice that would spawn in and push the vestman back down to ground level quickly.


    They rolled in pain and cried, groaning until they eventually went unconscious. Uncle Bruce melted the icy pathway and vigorously descended onto the ground.


    I could only stare in awe at him, knowing that he was a lot more voguish than I believed.


    He immediately looked at me and ran towards me, picking me up from the ground. ¡°You okay?¡± he asked me.


    ¡°I think I am,¡± I said, unsure if I was or not. ¡°Are you a wizard?¡±


    ¡°Everything will be exined in due time,¡± he said, as the wand suddenly disappeared into little kes of snow, before fully dispersing on the road.


    He turned around, but turned his neck towards me and stopped. ¡°Go home, alright?¡± he asked, and I nodded with assuredness.


    I quickly ran towards my house, still thinking about all that just happened in those five to ten minutes that I couldn¡¯t grasp or try to define.


    What was that?


    What were they doing?


    Why were the wizards able to cast spells from their wands? Why would the vest men try to harm me when I just witnessed them using their hands? It¡¯s not like I was going to call the authorities-I had just punched someone in the face at school! Tears refused to fall from my eyes but remained behind, being blown away by the wind that passed over my eyes.


    I needed to get home quickly.


    I shouldn¡¯t tell Mom about this either, because I¡¯m quite sure my uncle wouldn¡¯t want me telling them all those things I just sawing home from prom. All though it was probably best I tell her about those vest guys.


    But they¡¯ll try to kill her too.


    We don¡¯t have any guns or shotguns stored inside some secret basement or this and what not. We don¡¯t even have a basement, although we should. 2022 seems to not be the year for me I guess.


    I was close to getting home, I was only two blocks away from finally being safe inside my home.


    Once I made it there, I knocked on the door as hard as I could, because I didn¡¯t want those vest men seeing me again.


    Mom luckily opened the door and Dad was luckily in the living room, but he was sleeping instead so I wasn¡¯t surprised.


    Mom looked at me with confusion. She stretched out her neck and looked both ways, then looked at me who was still shaking in a bit of fear.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me the prom party was done, I didn¡¯t think it onlysted one hour,¡± she said, looking at me and back.


    ¡°Sorry, I thought it was two hours so I just decided to walk home to let you and-Dad sleep,¡± I fibbed, feeling such an intense burn in my soul to tell what happened. But I walked inside and Mom closed the door, and suddenly when the door closed, tiredness conquered my body,


    My eyes fell to the kingship of my weariness and I just walked into my room, feeling drowsy and almost drunk I face nted onto the bed, and suddenly sleep turned off my body.

 Chapter 5

    Chapter 5: Bing the Recruit


    Time in school wasn¡¯t exactly much different except I found myself sweating a whole bunch of times next to Kirk, whose breathing wasrge and heavy-very menacing. And being this is detention, no one was exactly here to watch us instead one came facing the desk!


    Therefore, I returned home by taking the longer route instead of seeing confronted by those hooligans and today finally felt like a regr day.


    I rang the doorbell as soon as I got to it, anticipating my mother toe and open the door, which is amusing because she has been opening the door for me when I was shaking in my bones. But this time, I felt more at ease, as if everything would turn out OK-and maybe everything would. Maybe strange things will no longer happen around my uncle as a result of this situation.


    For once, I felt at peace and ready to go back into my normal routine. I walked into the house and changed my clothes before going downstairs to y with Greg.


    The way it¡¯s supposed to be.


    But then I heard footsteps, walking quickly and getting closer to the door. Thest time I checked, my mom wasn¡¯t one to wear high heels anymore. So when the person opened the door, it took me a second toprehend that it was the same man-all over again.


    I let out an involuntary shriek upon seeing my Uncle Bruce in the house. ¡°Heya, Connor,¡± He said equipoised as if it waspletely normal that he would be here. I inquired about my mother¡¯s whereabouts; however, Uncle Bruce seemed very adamant that I didn¡¯t investigate further.


    .....


    As I sat down, he said, ¡°Come have a seat.¡± So I did-climbing over to the sofa in the living room. This time, I was perplexed not only by how he got into the house but also by why he knew my name.


    When he was getting ready to enter, did my mom give him the key or-what? He sat down on the couch with his right leg resting on his left and spread his arms across it.


    ¡°Would you like anything?¡± I asked politely after he saved me from a hoard of vest-wearing wizards. He seemed unfazed by my efforts but nevertheless humored me. ¡°Water will be just fine,¡± he said.


    ¡°No Gatorade or anything, just water?¡± I asked. His head snapped around and he appeared to be more receptive to my efforts than before. ¡°Gatorade would be great,¡± he added, turning his attention back to the piano.


    I opened the fridge, getting ready to snatch one of them from under, pulling them out from their pack. ¡°Which vor?¡± I asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s up to you,¡± said Uncle Bruce,ying his head down and closing his eyes. I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s an agent thing or something for the sake of observations. Then he turned his head back towards the piano, and I struggled to keep from snorting out a giggle.


    ¡°You y the piano, I take it?¡± Bruce asked, and before shutting the refrigerator, I paused. But I did walk towards him with the orange Gatorade, nheless.


    ¡°I used to, not anymore,¡± I said. Uncle Bruce nodded. ¡°How good would you say you were before you quit?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Well I could y a worse version of Mozart,¡± I said. ¡°Decided to learn some jazz.¡±


    ¡°Oh, jazz.¡±


    I was surprised that I even started a conversation like this, but I guess it¡¯s better than bottled-up anger. ¡°Yeah, and I¡¯d say I did better,¡± I replied slowly, ¡°But giving up is still an issue for me.¡±


    He looked at me with his piercing eyes and, in a soft voice, said ¡°Sit down.¡± I sat obediently; however, I felt uneasy by his abruptmand.


    He shifted his sitting position and then moved his right leg back onto the floor. ¡°Look,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯ve seen things you weren¡¯t supposed to see, and now you know that, right?¡± I nodded, knowing full well that I wasn¡¯t supposed to be seeing any of that stuff.


    ¡°I believe there is quite a bit to exin to you,¡± he added. He adjusted his formation again, this time with his back leaning and his elbows holding it in ce by mps on his thighs. ¡°If you would please close the drapes, that would be great.¡±


    I quickly sat down in suspense and excitement. Who knew the need for answers would be so anticipating?


    ¡°What you just sawst night and possibly the day before was us dealing with the TSA,¡± Uncle Bruce said.


    ¡°What in the world is that?¡± I asked, confused about all three letters. Must be some sort of acronym or something.


    ¡°The Teenage Spy Agency, except that I was dealing with the eighteen-year-olds. They¡¯re quite powerful,¡± he added. ¡°As you can see, I¡¯m the CEO of our field agency, the Youth Mage Protocol Academy. Webat unnatural phenomena throughout the world that no one is aware of. If they were to be known throughout the world, we¡¯d just try to figure out what¡¯s going on every day.¡±


    ¡°Chaos?¡±


    ¡°There will be a facade ofw and order, but realistically speaking, there will also be war. The TSA¡¯s primary goal is to take control of the stronger countries so that they can establish dominion over the weaker ones,¡± he rified.


    I was honest when I replied, ¡°Um, I think I¡¯m not following you here.¡± Uncle Bruce sighed. ¡°Think of the strongest countries you can think of,¡± he said. So, I looked deep into my brain toe up with some answers.


    ¡°Russia, China, United Stat-¡±


    ¡°There we go.¡±


    ¡°Why the United States?¡±


    ¡°It has the most powerful military in the world,¡± my uncle informed me. ¡°All of the weapons, devices and other resources they have might be useful for helping the TSA aplish its objectives throughout the world. That¡¯s a strong nation to rule over.¡±


    ¡°But aren¡¯t they spies, why would they want to take over a country, but also be kept in secret?¡± I asked. Uncle Bruce chuckled, but it intensified into augh, and I began getting a bit more skeptical.


    ¡°You have no idea what we can do, do you?¡± he assured, and that only made me a lot more skeptical. Uncle Bruceid himself back and he continued to chuckle.


    He adjusted his tie and stared right at me, giving me a feeling where I felt very, very ufortable.


    ¡°There are many powers that we can hold in our wands. Cloning, fire, water, ice, lightning, mind control, wind, body transferrence-¡±


    ¡°Body transferrence?¡± I stammered as the thoughts ran into my head, making me twitch in disgust.


    ¡°In some cases, it¡¯s very helpful,¡± he said. ¡°Sometimes it¡¯s not-at all.¡±


    ¡°So, why did youe here then?¡± I asked, still wondering how he got into the house. If my mom gave him the key to get groceries, wouldn¡¯t she be back by now? She is a quick one when she is getting groceries.


    ¡°Because as I said, you saw things you weren¡¯t supposed to be seeing, it¡¯s probably best for you to join us,¡± he said.


    Shock was the only thing that ran through my head. My jaw dropped in astonishment, unsure of what to say or do.


    Me, being a spy?


    And not like some regr spy. A literal mage?


    ¡°How am I supposed to be some wizard if I¡¯m a regr person?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You¡¯re not a regr person,¡± Uncle Bruce said. ¡°Remember when your arms seemed to be glowing red through your veins? And when you punched him he flew and knocked himself out on the wall. That is your special power, and you need to learn to control it. After all, if you do, perhaps you¡¯d be happy to take out those TSA freaks.¡±


    I looked at myself, and all I could do was to smile. Me, being a spy mage, and using powers to keep my home safe? Imagine what all the people would say about me, and my special powers? That would be amazing!


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯d love to!¡± I said, getting up in excitement. ¡°I would be honored to do so.¡±


    ¡°Perfect, because I¡¯d probably have to kill you if I didn¡¯t,¡± Uncle Bruce said. I stammered in confusion but tried to keep my mind out of it.

 Chapter 6

    Chapter 6: A Preview, A Test


    He out of nowhere showed up with a wand in his grasp, and the pieces of snow uncovered this. Then, as a particr whirlpool introduced itself, he suddenly requested and moved it in a round way.


    ¡°You¡¯re ready to go through entries?¡± I addressed, astounded by the unexpected appearance.


    ¡°All things considered, when you¡¯re an immediate individual from my genealogy, you end up with an additional gift ¨C maybe a truly outstanding one, simr to you,¡± he made sense of. ¡°I saw you punch one of those TSA officials.¡±


    ¡°I believe you expressed that in our discussion, Uncle Bruce,¡± I said.


    Uncle Bruce giggled. ¡°I know, and from this point forward, rather than calling me Uncle Bruce, you¡¯ll call me Mr. Drails after we get into this school, OK?¡±


    ¡°Better believe it.¡±


    ¡°As I was saying,¡± he said, making a sound as if to speak hurriedly. ¡°I don¡¯t know why you appear to have colossal strength when you¡¯re panicked or furious ¨C yet it works,¡± he made sense of.


    .....


    I gestured, however at that point my mind chose to pose me an inquiry that appeared to disprove Mr. Drails¡¯ theory.


    ¡°Why Mother or Father don¡¯t have it, except if they have and I¡¯m not mindful of it?¡± I pondered and proposed.


    ¡°Inconveniences that would be excessively trying for you kid,¡± he made sense of.


    ¡°When we go through this gateway, get into the dark limo before you.¡±


    He strolled into the gateway and disappeared while it was as yet open. My body seemed, by all ounts, to be too stunned to even think about moving. Be that as it may, ultimately I figured out how to grasp on myself and push forward, and being there were no entryways, I strolled through and ended up in amazement of what I saw.


    It exhibited itsplexity by conjuring rings to circle the structure andy on the asphalt, and it showed up much more refined and ready in the rich dark and gold variety it was wearing.


    There were men on top who didn¡¯t give off an impression of being spies or wizards. Truly, they gave off an impression of being upkeep staff. I¡¯m almost certain they weren¡¯t, however why should I say? I just showed up in two seconds. We entered the limo that was sparkling dark, with the gleam providing the limo with a kind of neatness I couldn¡¯t resist the opportunity to love.


    From the get go, no one was driving, and it appeared to be peculiar that no one would arrive at this area in any case, yet I paused. Unexpectedly, an entryway showed up external the vehicle, uncovering an individual wearing a dark suit and a white cap that was immovably put on their head. This individual had all the earmarks of being in the naval force.


    Despite the fact that they had no facial hair, it created the impression that they had shaved. When they got in, they started to drive.


    ¡°So do you all ordinarily use portals appreciate that all an opportunity to will puts, and didn¡¯t you say it was something just you had?¡± I asked him.


    ¡°Indeed, and I opened a gateway for him to ovee. You want to gain some significant knowledge about how this functions,¡± he said. ¡°Learning mage history and how it functions is vital while being a covert operative.¡±


    ¡°Is that all we will learn?¡±


    ¡°Indeed, obviously ¨C you won¡¯t remain here evestingly, it¡¯s solely after school you¡¯ll need toe, and utilize the remainder of your time there before you go to ss once more,¡± he said.


    ¡°So no rest for ying video games?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°You can do that, however just with apanion within the YMPA. Here you and there you are totally various individuals, and you want to ensure one doesn¡¯t influence the other,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    The limo¡¯s driver began to drive it past the structure prior to turning right. There was a draw up where it gave off an impression of being a lodging at the right corner. I didn¡¯t actually attempt to peruse the etchings that covered the opening. I just couldn¡¯t understand it, however it was in English.


    The limo unexpectedly halted and we escaped the vehicle. ¡°Okay now we enter the structure,¡± he said, opening the two entryways.


    The area was not in any way shape or form what I anticipated. Maybe there was an entire lobby or settlement of individuals. Understudies in ordinary garments strolled through the area, their wands helpful behind their backs. There were areas, each with its own arrangement of brilliant steps.


    There was a segment by the side of the lobby that had all the earmarks of being the lounge, and one more segment by the opposite side that gave off an impression of being the restroom ¨C yet I was more inquisitive to track down my uncle¡¯s office.


    ¡°What¡¯s higher up?¡± I inquired. He took a gander at the two steps then, at that point, turned his face down towards me. ¡°Those are where the sses are found. These two segments of steps have various kinds of sses. The one behind us is a greater amount of history kinds of ss, while the one before us manages battle.¡±


    ¡°Fascinating,¡± I murmured to myself, attempting to appear to be put resources into what he was talking about. Frankly, I wanted to go around the entire school to look at its captivating elements.


    ¡°OK, so what do I do now?¡± I asked, feeling a siphon of fervor inside my body. Mr. Drails chuckled as though he was arranging something, I suppose that is the way all specialists act.


    ¡°Follow me back into the vehicle, we have a more to investigate,¡± he said.


    More?


    There¡¯s more?


    This was at that point unusual, and considering that I just saw the primary floor of the school and am very much aware of what the subsequent floor resembles, you¡¯re letting me know there¡¯s something else?


    I speedily strolled with him to the vehicle, just energy flowing through my veins.


    We got back to the vehicle, and the driver was still there, fortunately, however Mr. Drails took out his telephone.


    His appearance moved to one of concern.


    He saw me and afterward back. Then he said, ¡°Hello, I need to actually take a look at something genuine fast, there¡¯s a circumstance at the White House.¡±


    Presently stress wasmunicated all over. Were the TSA already attacking ? How could it be that the subsequent I go along with, they¡¯re as of now arranging their full scale assault! I just arrived!


    I went within the vehicle, in spite of the fact that he didn¡¯t actually tell me to, yet that is the thing we were doing in any case. However at that point the driver got out, and presently I was truly bewildered.


    Then with no advance notice, gas erupted out from the sides, and out of nowhere the main thing I could see was smoke.


    Was the vehicle aze?


    Was the smoke noxious?


    Am I going to bite the dust?


    I rapidly pushed my hand to track down the handle and pull. Yet, when I did, the handle fell to pieces ¨C crossing an answer off in my mind.


    Then, at that point, I attempted to kick the entryway as hard as possible, my feet vibrating with each push. Presently I realize it isn¡¯t projectiles, however it is basically impossible that this ss can¡¯t somehow break from a strong kick.


    Another solution, checked off.


    What else was there to do? What else was there to do? However at that point, a thought flooded into my psyche through all the confusion. My fists, my mystery power!


    I made an honest effort in some way or another emphasize my energy on my clenched hands, or possibly that is the manner by which they do it in those kind of fantastical motion pictures.


    However, nothing felt like it wasing, maybe I was simply shutting my eyes ¨C nning for my demise toe and allowing my windpipes to encase in torment. However at that point, out of nowhere every one of the gas disappeared and the entryways opened and I dropped out.


    When I did, my vision obscured and I found it hard to concentrate as a matter of fact. However at that point, I saw Mr. Drails¡¯ body and the driver too, with what appeared to be a clipboard.


    ¡°All things considered, fortunately you got a F+,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Could require a smidgen of work. Perhaps I ought to have been had a go at opening the windows.¡±


    Iid on the floor in disgrace. How did I not consider that once? Well basically what I realized was that this would have been a lot harder than I expected.

 Chapter 7

    Chapter 7: New Friend, New Enemy


    So there was nothing else to really investigate, which was somewhat disheartening after practically kicking the bucket from certain gas as some imbecilic test.


    Mr. Drails said that it was intended to demonstrate the way that peril can happen whenever, and I trust that without a doubt. In any case, I just arrived, could never have done that when I was most likely returning home or if nothing else some timeter?


    I was so overwhelmed by the headquarters that I didn¡¯t actually attempt to contemte that.


    Additionally I never at any point got preparing to deal with these things. Since I saw three wizards battle, doesn¡¯t mean I can out of nowhere think straight when I am so near kicking the bucket.


    It was lunchtime, and it was for sure lunchtime at one o¡¯ clock, although twelve is the afternoon. Yes, for sure-lunch at one.


    I strolled in there, seeing a modest bunch of students with their te, conversing withpanions, and a verbal blistering a lot of them.


    Then, at that point, there was this one person, who had earthy colored hair that moved aside, and without a doubt he had a great deal ofpanions. Be that as it may, I think a great deal of thosepanions were admirers, frankly.


    .....


    I got my food, which really appeared as though they put exertion into it, and I went to the lemonade distributor, and I got my beverage.


    I like this food, essentially they serve their government operative mages great food and not anything that these secondary schools are bringing.


    I plunked down on a table that didn¡¯t have many individuals, and I began to perspire. Simply the sensation of being with others nearly caused me to feel debilitated. I got a handle on running of the cafeteria however I attempted, drove myself to remain in that equivalent spot.


    However at that point, somebody yelled to me, ¡°Hello!¡±


    Then, at that point, I halted chilly, just getting sufficient mental fortitude to turn my head. He was a man with ck hair that was positioned in a forward bearing, who was wearing those dress shirts with buttons as well as pants. He was definitely not a stout person, however he wasn¡¯t thin by the same token. His skin was practically simr to a milk-chocte tone, and he was by all ounts a really hopeful Hispanic.


    I could tell that as a result of the prompt grin he gave me, and those teeth were more white than snow.


    ¡°Hi,¡± I figured out how to say, yet my tongue continued to shudder, as though it was frozen of talking.


    ¡°So you¡¯re the new person here?¡± he inquired. I gestured, dazzled by how quick the news got.


    So I inquired, ¡°How could you be aware?¡±


    ¡°I just saw back there while doing the tests,¡± he replied, and out of nowhere his grin appeared to be more prodding than inviting.


    Extraordinary, I¡¯m going to be known as the youngster who bombed the vehicle gas test. I was beginning to reevaluate my choice.


    ¡°I¡¯m Tisiah,¡± he said, lifting his hand to wee me. I did likewise and shook it, and I answered, ¡°I¡¯m Connor.¡± He gestured. ¡°So what brought you here?¡±


    I ended up stuck between four corners not certain precisely of what to talk. Tisiahughed. ¡°You¡¯re a spy mage now, we can say these things toward ourselves now.¡± Presently the four corners were withdrawing and I was prepared to continue with what to say.


    ¡°Well I unintentionally strolled into you folks¡¯ activity or something with some vest folks, I¡¯m specting the TSA. Then, at that point, one of the TSA specialists attempted to kill me by stifling me, however at that point something urred and I just needed to run, and they were pursuing me. Then, at that point, my ¨C Mr. Drails saved me, and afterward selected me.¡±


    ¡°Goodness, that is an incredible presentation,¡± Tisiah said, gesturing his head. ¡°An incredible presentation. Gotten myself a touch ofpanions too.¡±


    I gesturedstly removed a piece from my burrito. When I took a nibble of it, I had zero control over myself to quit eating.


    ¡°Along these lines, what do we do after this,¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Break, just to get ourselves some activity then, at that point, sses, will you actually need to stand by till tomorrow to join. You just came here when it was lunch, so prompt you stand by till tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Huh,¡± I said, gesturing gradually this time. ¡°Appears to be legit.¡±


    Beneficial thing I won¡¯t have to stress over additional tests. Then, at that point, out of nowhere the ringer rang, and individuals jumped out of their seats, hustling their direction to the corridor to get out the way to one side where the field was.


    The field was enormous, with a b-ball court and a street too. There was security fencing with the goal that nobody could escape. That would appear to be legit, just so nobody promptly kills us while we¡¯re outside, clearly.


    As I was ncing near, I wound up seeing somebody, and they locked on, not taking a gander at whatever else. It was as if the world was simply substandardpared to this delightful construction of a human.


    She had light to-dark hair that moved in musicality when she strolled, with her fair skin that prospered, and her full flips with red lipstick on it. What¡¯s more, her body structure, her thin body with an enormous bend that couldn¡¯t resist the opportunity to get me invigorated.


    OK folks, I¡¯m as yet a kid. Expect things like this.


    Out of nowhere, somebody made sense of, ¡°Oh yeah, September.¡±


    I screeched in shock, in spite of the fact that I definitely realized that it was Tisiah¡¯s voice, just him appearing unexpectedly frightened me enough.


    ¡°September Carvery, quite possibly of the most preferred youngdy in the entirety of the school. In any case, she doesn¡¯t appear to acknowledge anybody that doesn¡¯t amodate her guidelines,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Most likely she¡¯d acknowledge Mchi.¡±


    ¡°Mchi?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°The person with earthy colored hair that is aside,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°The most well known and an incredible decent government operative mage. Or if nothing else everybody suspects as much.¡±


    ¡°All things considered, he¡¯d appear to be awesome on the off chance that he was that well known,¡± I expected. Tisiah shook his head. ¡°He¡¯s not awesome by any stretch of the imagination, yet all the same he¡¯s great, yet all at once not exactly amazing.¡±


    ¡°Have you worked with him previously?¡±


    He gestured, however it didn¡¯t appear to be a supporting gesture. ¡°He¡¯s great at battling, however he doesn¡¯t contemte the arrangement. He a greater amount of just ¨C puts it all on the line.¡±


    ¡°Yet again suppose that is the reason everybody likes him,¡± I assumed. Be that as it may, it appears to be legit.


    Tisiah shrugged. ¡°Additionally, I¡¯m very certain we ought to be plunking down, don¡¯t want to represent the entire break.¡±


    As he started strolling, I saw Mchi strolling towards the entryway. I attempted to stop him, however at that point he chanced upon him, and presently there was nothing left but to recoil in dread.


    Tisiah turned upward and he didn¡¯t appear to be flustered a lot, not by any stretch of the imagination the least bit.


    ¡°Watch where you¡¯re not kidding,¡± Mchi murmured. His eyebrows brought close down to his eyelids, showing he was very distraught ¨C and ideally wanting to allow the clench hand tomunicate everything.


    I would pee my jeans at the present time, however Tisiah just put his hands up saying, ¡°Sorry, you can go at this point.¡±


    Mchi peered down at him ¨C in a real sense since he was by all ounts six foot or somewhere in the vicinity, while I would agree that Tisiah as a little five-foot five.


    When he strolled by, Tisiah added something I presumably, no not most likely ¨C wouldn¡¯t do against a tall man like that.


    ¡°-punk.¡±


    In spite of the fact that being for the most part within the structure, Mchi strolled with eyes getting extremely frustrated and inquired, ¡°What did you just say?¡±


    Presently his folks behind him were drawing nearer, and Tisiah tracked down him in a terrible position, where he was beginning to go in reverse.


    ¡°Nothing.¡±


    ¡°No, no-say it!¡±


    Then, at that point, Mchi came in with a push, and Tisiah nearly tumbled down, telling areas of strength for how man was. I was even frightened of what was nned to happen to my new friend.


    Then, at that point, as though things weren¡¯t sufficiently terrible, Mchi out of nowhere sped in with a right, and thumped Tisiah to the floor.


    ¡°Say it again, b-¡±


    I bounced in and attempted to prevent him from punching once more, which some way or another worked. ¡°Quiet down, it¡¯s all alright,¡± I said. ¡°He said nothing, trust me, he said nothing.¡±


    Mchi saw me, eye to eye. It was a lot more frightening while he was checking you out. I just wanted to transform into Jello, however I kept myself.


    ¡°Be careful of who you¡¯re defending,¡± he said. ¡°Because sometimes you defend the wrong person.¡± Then, at that point, he left, with his folks following a whileter.

 Chapter 8

    Chapter 8: The Different Agencies


    It was the following day, being that it was the end of the week so, I had the option to rest within the YMPA HQ that evening. Apparently, you actually have sses even at the end of the week, however basically I don¡¯t need to do schoolwork.


    There were some preparation and weight training rooms, and on the off chance that I got sufficiently buff, perhaps I could give those a shot-gain some recognition while I do.


    I got a paper that got through the mail space that was in my room. From what I saw, I was having my mage history sses first before lunch, and after was the battle sses.


    First I was going to the Mage History ss, prior to going to the YMPA History ss, which should both be in a simr ss, yet you know ¨C they would what they like to do.


    We get to go to the standard schools on the work days just to learn typical things, despite the fact that I would like to realize those here ¨C I¡¯m not excessively certain.


    At the point when I entered the study hall, I ended up befuddled about what the very arrangement of this ss was. Rather than like a customary study hall, rather it was like I was taking school sses. Also, the amusing thing was I was quick toe.


    The seats were beginning from high to low, as the remainder of the even ground was for the instructor to talk. The educator was a man who had dark hair that appeared to interface with his stout facial hair.


    .....


    He wore a blue suit and dark dress shirt, with dark jeans and shoes. Appeared as though he was going to a conventional asion.


    ¡°Hi,e in and pick your seat,¡± he said. I gestured and chose to take the exceptionally front, just with the goal that I could see better.


    Then, at that point, others came in with their journals and all the stuff, despite the fact that I had nothing since I didn¡¯t have any idea, so it wasn¡¯t my shoring.


    Before long enough the unfilled tables were presently not empty and soon enough, September strolled in. You will scarcely believe, I felt like a pink channel promptly enacted once I saw her strolling towards her seat.


    However at that point in practically no time I saw Mchi with his pals, in spite of the fact that there were much more folks behind him presently visiting and snickering.


    I really need to ensure I avoid him.


    ¡°Alright, I believe everyone is here?¡± he asked, and no one responded, so I guessed he assumed.


    ¡°Alright, in case you guys don¡¯t know me as for the new person here, everyone give a round of apuse for himing real quick.¡±


    The praise was very soothing, yet in addition humiliating a lot. I thought back and attempted to track down September, yet I simply figured out how to move over to Mchi, and they were apuding gradually ¨C with grins painted on their countenances.


    I could help yet swallow.


    However at that point, I saw somebodye in the front entryway, and it was Tisiah, who didn¡¯t appear to be on par with what he was yesterday. He had a little injury near his eyeying on the highest point of his cheek.


    I recoiled at the sight, as he sat down by me. He actually had his huge grin, as though he wasn¡¯t simply molly-mmed yesterday.


    ¡°How was your test that you did?¡± the instructor inquired. I wound up with nothing to say. I bombed that test and it was absolutely impossible that I could let everybody know that. ¡°It was very simple,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s difficult for certain individuals to have an unmistakable psyche when in an odd circumstance.¡±


    Then, at that point, I heard a few mumbles which I trust were in energy. He gestured and afterward presented, ¡°Well I¡¯m Mr. Heimarch Robbs, and I¡¯m your set of experiences instructor about wizards.¡±


    He went to his work area, and got a book like the ones the understudies were conveying, and it was huge, presumably more than 800 pages. ¡°Here is your book, and we fortunately began with the very first version since Mr. Drails became Chief, as well as our new head, Head Arkin.¡±


    Please ept my apologies, there is a head too? I thought my uncle was the primary the entire time. It would be ideal if I could get into great terms with him.


    ¡°Presently kindly turn your pages to page 135 please,¡± Mr. Robbs requested, and we as a whole flipped our pages. ¡°Presently, could somebody at any point if it¡¯s not too much trouble, educate me some data concerning mages.¡±


    Somebody lifted their hand, and he highlighted them. ¡°Mages are people that were given powers to guard against unnatural animals that might have gone after development. However at that point, lords started to involve them as methods of force,¡± she said.


    ¡°That is right, any other individual?¡± he inquired. Then September raised her head, yet it appeared to have a little disposition shake to it.


    He highlighted her and she started to talk. ¡°There are a couple of lines of ages that have abilities through their wand, yet they have areas of strength for a that is totally in their DNA. We call them Advantages. The sort of advantage they have fluctuates, yet an extremely unique power could change the tide of the conflict. So they are generally the heads of a mage organization,¡± she said.


    I¡¯m so befuddled at the present time. Am I the one that has a Perk? In any case, that couldn¡¯t seem OK, Mr. Drails is the one in particr that has an Perk in my family, and he said somebody straightforwardly in his genealogical record is the main one to have it, yet why I have it?


    Perhaps I don¡¯t and a Perk is something different that I don¡¯t have any idea.


    ¡°Indeed, you folks are right,¡± Mr. Robbs said. ¡°Presently what were those offices, and that is the very thing that we will figure out today.¡±


    Unexpectedly when he turned around, I felt something contact me on the rear of my head. I peered down and saw disintegrated paper on the floor. I turned upward and saw Mchi and his folks giggling like a few youthful first graders.


    I wanted to elerate there and raking him over the coals, with the exception of I was unable to elerate and rake him over the coals.


    I remained and attempted to hold in my resentment, however you will scarcely believe, it¡¯s exceptionally enticing it just let it out.


    Mr. Robbs made a rundown beginning with one on the ckboard. ¡°We realize the first is what ¨C ¡± he said, as every one of the understudies replied, ¡°YMPA.¡±


    ¡°Furthermore, what¡¯s the other?¡±


    ¡°The TSA.¡±


    ¡°Those are the ones that are sitting in our nation, presently listen to this, the USA is the main country to have two mage organizations. Presently they don¡¯t have the foggiest idea what our identity is, however we positively know what their identity is,¡± he said. ¡°We are essentially the two heads of the two mage sides.¡±


    ¡°Two mage sides?¡± everybody mumbled.


    ¡°Indeed, we as a whole have our thoughts on what to do. Since quite a while in the past, the Peleponnesian war was begun in light of the fact that the TSA was envious of our power, being that were with the Spartans. Along these lines, they made Athens and Sparta do battle to some way or another debilitate us, however they lost, however at that point our realm declined and we needed to move elsewhere,¡± he said. ¡°Since that conflict, the TSA had one goal, to obliterate us by oveing the realms we worked for, hence debilitating us. We expected to stop that, and the others concurred. In any case, the TSA persuaded a few different organizations about the power and authority they might have in the event that they followed their methodologies.¡±


    I wound up separated in this data, for the most part in light of the fact that the historical backdrop of it was very fascinating. Mr. Robbs went to the board and startedposing a lot of abbreviations.


    ¡°So skirting ahead millennia, we made a gathering to where we mages could meet up and be an enlisted in armed force,¡± he said.


    ¡°NATO?¡± somebody inquired.


    ¡°No, but actually the EMO, the Environmental Mage Organization, and soon the TSA did the same, making the MSTO, the Mage Superiority Team Organization. Now, we¡¯re not sure what their ns are for other countries, but we know what they¡¯re nning to do in the USA. And we need to stop it before it goes into full effect.¡±


    I ended up detecting specific stakes that concerned me and skewered through my heart, realizing what was not far off.

 Chapter 9

    Chapter 9: The Test for Ice


    Time sped through those sses and lunch, as well as break. It was at that point time for somebat preparing, and that was the part I was generally frightened of.


    Now, it¡¯s more straightforward to plunk down and tune in and get together data about a specific subject and afterward go on your way. In any case, you need to learnbat by making it happen, and being that was unpracticed, I was preparing to assimte high measures of humiliation.


    Me and Tisiah went into one room, and the room began with a lift. Going down to the genuine ss, we wound up in an off-kilter region.


    There were no work areas or tables or anything. There were these stands with books on them, and others having their wands firm in their grasp.


    The room seemed to be a library, with the finished wooden tables and retires.


    There was a chandelier at the top that lit up the room, and the smell of the room was very reviving on the off chance that I really do say so myself. The room had a smell ofvender or like the breeze that flew through the room, every single corner.


    What I was frightened of was the educator. The instructor was an uncovereddy with a tattoo of a mythical serpent painted on top of it. She was wearing an orange robe that was sped by a brown belt. We were unable to see her feet as a result of the length of her robe.


    .....


    ¡°So you must be the new kid I believe?¡± she asked me. I nodded. There was a different set of students this time. Fortunately, no Mchi. Unfortunately, no September.


    ¡°Oh, hey Tisiah!¡± a female said. Suddenly I heard footstepsing my way, and I whirled my head back to see who it was.


    It was a youngdy, without a doubt shorter than me, however she had exceptionally smooth hair. She was by all ounts mixed, in light of the fact that her mocha shaded skin coordinated with her hair that appeared to be gotten together and afterward positioned into a solitary group that was twisted right down, despite the fact that it was more obscure than her skin.


    She had small hoop earrings and a quite lip-full of lip gloss. She was wearing a brown disguise shirt, and very ¨C exceptionally thin pants.


    ¡°Hey, sis,¡± he said, making me a bit less surprised. I guess that¡¯s his younger sister or something. Then Tisiah looked up at me and said, ¡°Nikki, Connor, Connor, Nikki.¡±


    I found myself with almost nothing to say. She looked at me and smiled. ¡°Hello,¡± I said. ¡°Well, first time to see you.¡±


    ¡°First time I guess to you, will this be the only time?¡±


    ¡°Well from the looks of it, not really,¡± I said. I could feel the sweat building up in my armpit hair. ¡°Also I didn¡¯t know you were Tisiah¡¯s friend. He also said you saved him from being beat up by Mchi,¡± she said. ¡°Thank you.¡±


    ¡°Ahh, no problem,¡± I said. ¡°I help friends, they help me, we help each other. It ain¡¯t no big deal at all, he¡¯s a good friend, and I¡¯m sure you are too.¡±


    I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea how on earth I had the option to talk for that long, I must¡¯ve been pausing my breathing.


    ¡°Alright, I think ss is beginning, better prepare your wand,¡± Tisiah said. I nodded, and sorted out, I have no clue about how to get my wand.


    ¡°Oh, wait,¡± Tisiahughed. ¡°You don¡¯t have any idea how to. Simply click the button that is on your yellow utility belt okay?¡±


    I did, and some way or another the button stretched out to a yellow wand, with its head cut into some kind of dragon that appeared to pull back to breathe out a surging flood of fire. I gazed in stunningness at its construction before the teacher started talking.


    ¡°Now, just to present myself I¡¯m Sensei Waine, and I have dominated every one of theponents of what the wand can do. Be that as it may, not every person can make it happen, as a matter of fact ¨C most can¡¯t,¡± she said as she strolled between the understudy sections.


    She in the long run strolled in the path where I was at.


    ¡°Each power requires an alternate measure of energy. One represents considerable authority in oneponent since they can deal with it well, and today could be that day for some of you. As a matter of fact yesterday we found out about a typicalponent we know of, fire.¡±


    The manner in which she articted it made it a lot more frightening than it previously was.


    ¡°Be that as it may, today, we found out about anotherponent, might anybody at any point think about what it is?¡±


    ¡°Water?¡±


    ¡°Close, however no.¡±


    ¡°Ice,¡± Nikki replied.


    Sensei Waine nodded and she got out her wand. I think everybody has a dragon as their wand, however I actually like mine.


    ¡°Now someone, exin to me what ice is,¡± she said. Many raised their hands quicker than she could blink. ¡°Jeremy,¡± she said, which I had no idea who that person was.


    ¡°It¡¯s the solid form of water,¡± he said. Sensei Waine nodded. ¡°Indeed, and the mages from the fifteenth century knew this, as us all do. At the point when one of the EMO organizations-the SMS ¨C was battling against one of the MSTO organizations, they found themselves in a specific circumstance where they were constantly pushed or some way or another withdrew back to their beginning stage. Their advancement was constantly restricted. Now they were for the most part, made of mages that could utilize water with their wands, however they realized they required something more grounded, and that was ice. Today, we are figuring out how to control ice.¡±


    Everybody mumbled as though it was a shock of some kind or another. Be that as it may, I was energized, I was siphoned. I just conversed with a charming youngdy, and now I was going to begin shooting out ice solid shapes from my wand.


    Tell me this ss isn¡¯t bomb.


    ¡°Now, I need you folks to sit down and attempt to consider yourself being in an ice world,¡± she said. ¡°With your wand, it will assist you with moving into that universe.¡±


    Everybody shut their eyes and sat down. ¡°When you do,¡± she said. ¡°You¡¯ll need to go after an ice precious stone this time,st for fire, you need to catch well-fire. But in any case, this one is a precious stone, and when you go after it, you¡¯ll need to ovee the ice beast that is in front of you.¡±


    ¡°So, what if we defeat him, but what if it¡¯s too much energy for us to handle and we can¡¯t control it?¡±


    ¡°On the off chance that you can¡¯t ovee the beast for longer than thirty minutes, well it¡¯s not so much for you. Furthermore, for the most part it wouldn¡¯t be ideal to utilize different powers without a moment¡¯s dy. You ought to pick the one your best at utilizing,¡± she said. ¡°Okay, now you ought to initially feel the temperature, and afterward the world will uncover itself.¡±


    She was right as a matter of fact about that.


    I could feel the temperature bringing down at a quick rate, and the chills started to shake inside my body. Then, at that point, out of nowhere when I opened my eyes I saw the sky dark, with snow pouring down from it.


    The breeze yelled and influenced through the area, and there was a major kind of incline that appeared to iste me and the thing over the slope.


    I took a gander at myself, and I was still in my equivalent dress. White coat, highly contrasting shirt, a yellow utility belt and white shoes which now I believe was a bad idea to wear at the present time.


    Where could the beast be?


    I kept my wand steady and firm inside my head, but the sweat felt like it was releasing my grip on it. I tried to ovee my fear, knowing this was some sort of dream, an alternate reality of some sort.


    I proceeded to walk, and I chose to go on the slope. But I chose to slither, in the event it was there.


    The snow fell on top of my body, however I moved. I, in the long run, arrived at the end, and my jaw dropped in shock.


    It was a beast, a sasquatch or some likeness thereof however with a wolf head and sharp teeth that could appear to break into my spirit.


    Its eyes were dark red, homicidal for triumph. I kept my wand set and prepared, however at that point soon sufficient, it saw me.


    I swallowed, however attempted to keep my dauntlessness taken care of.


    The beast started speeding towards me, its thunder vanquishing the air and reverberating out of sight. I attempted to consider something and I immediately pulled up an ice wall to obstruct it.


    Perfect.


    Then, at that point, I manifested ice blocks to help me on the way towards it, while still keeping up with a strategic position. Then, at that point, I jumped up, and gathered I could expect more than 1,000 spikes made of ice, and requested them towards the beast.


    They hit ¨C but broke. The monster¡¯s skin was way too strong and armored to be affected by my attack. Then, at that point, the beast sped towards me and dread strengthened in my heart, beating increasingly hard as it sped towards me. I couldn¡¯t regard myself as moving or naturally suspecting what to do, and soon enough its mouth opened, as I set myself up to meet the sharp finishes of the tooth to prate my skin.


    However at that point, I found myself awakening to the world by and by, while everybody was all the while shutting their eyes.


    ¡°Well, you¡¯re back quite early,¡± she said. ¡°I guess you beat him. What happened to your arms?¡±


    I stammered, looking down to see my arms. And they were glowing red, just like two days before.

 Chapter 10

    Chapter 10: An Assassin For Me


    Before long enough the day was prepared to end. It was significantly more straightforward to find out about how to battle by utilizing your wand, practically like a stick or some likeness thereof.


    Now, Iprehend the nuts and bolts of the second rate ss, you know ¨C exactly how to punch and kick. Likewise that ss was the mainbat ss to have a male teacher in this foundation.


    Mr. Drails advised me to head outside, and all the others left for the evening, so it was simply us and the person who drives us.


    ¡°So, how do you think your first time in those sses was?¡± he asked. I shrugged. They weren¡¯t awesome without a doubt, but I¡¯d say that I gleaned some significant experience of data.


    ¡°Fine I guess,¡± I responded.


    ¡°Well, at least it wasn¡¯t your worst first day,¡± he said.


    I nodded, but then something crossed my mind and I felt like-excuse me-I know this is the perfect time to ask him. I need to find out why I have a Perk but my parents don¡¯t.


    .....


    ¡°So you know that special power you said I have,¡± I asked. ¡°The Perk of great strength I believe. I have a question, why do my parents not have it, and no I don¡¯t want to hearplications.¡±


    ¡°Well, it isplicated.¡±


    ¡°And I know that.¡±


    ¡°So.¡±


    ¡°Just tell me how it¡¯splicated,¡± I said. ¡°I really want to know.¡±


    Mr. Drails sighed deeply and he looked at me with sincere eyes. ¡°Now, your parents really wanted to have a normal life, and they decided to give their power to me to continue somewhat of their legacy. But they gave birth to you before they transferred the power over to me,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s just the simple way, but don¡¯t you mention this to anyone.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m quite aware of that fact,¡± I said, feeling a bit relieved from the answer. It made sense, and I¡¯m not mad at them. I would do that for my child as well, because I wouldn¡¯t want to do this either-I think.


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ma drop you off okay,¡± he said. ¡°Right at the front of your house.¡±


    Then, he opened up a portal that rippled through and manifested into my view.


    ¡°I¡¯ll see you tomorrow, Connor,¡± he said, giving a small wave to me. I did the same and walked through, finding myself in front of the house once again.


    I sighed, thinking about all that has happened.


    I made new friends and I also made new enemies as well, but I felt sort of excited toe back once again.


    I knocked on the door but no one answered. Then I rang the doorbell and eventually footsteps came near the house. The door opened and Dad, with his ck hair seeming to be quite roughed up, looked at me. ¡°So, how was the chess activity?¡± he asked.


    I knew how to y chess a long time ago.


    Obviously this was Mr. Drails was involving that as a method for concealing for me being a spy, so I yed along. ¡°It was very enjoyable to be honest, to see the children have some good times with me and know specific strategies I do,¡± I said. ¡°I was not disappointed.¡±


    Dadughed as I came into the house. ¡°It is exceptionally umon to not be disheartened in that frame of mind of things. I nearly find it hard to trust you.¡±


    My heart started beating quicker once he said that. But then, at that point, he put his hand on my shoulder and said, ¡°But I know my child isn¡¯t a liar.¡±


    I grinned awkwardly and nodded my head, and he before long strolled off once again into the family room. I walked upstairs to my room, feeling like jumping on the bed and sleeping.


    ***


    Yet again it was school, and it felt a lot more peculiar once I got once again to the school. I additionally found myself exceptionally crunched by the developing crowd of students strolling through the corridor.


    When everybody at longst got into the building, they started to spread to their lockers and discuss things I didn¡¯t want to pay attention to.


    Then, at that point, as I went to my storage, I saw Greging my direction. I felt significantly better to see Greg by and by, after an entirely different climate from the YMPA foundation, in spite of the fact that I would go to just after school.


    ¡°Hey, Connor,¡± he said with a smile on his face, giving a certain resemnce to Tisiah. ¡°Hey, T-Greg,¡± I said. This wasn¡¯t a good sign, and being that I was a part of a spy agency, they could be watching me right now. I was almost about to break a barrier between my two identities.


    ¡°So, what happened on the weekend, you weren¡¯t answering my calls,¡± Greg asked. ¡°Did you go out somewhere?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, we actually did,¡± I fibbed, feeling shameful inside. Greg nodded. ¡°Well at least I can see you here again.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, nice to see you too actually,¡± I said, closing the locker door. ¡°Very nice to see you again.¡± We walked over to math ss which me and him have the same ss of.


    The day continued to pass by and everything seemed okay, as if nothing was going to happen. I still had lunch detention, but Mom still didn¡¯t know.


    It was almost the end of the day, just one more ss to go to. Science, which was ironic because this was whenst time things got wrong.


    As I was putting my things in the locker, my legs began to vibrate in certain snippets each time. I reached into my pocket, and I saw that it was someone I knew.


    Mr. Drails.


    I answered the call, and his voice seemed worried and frantic. What¡¯s going on?


    Right when everything is going right for once. No Kirk, no fights-nothing! Suddenly I¡¯m getting a call as if I¡¯m 911. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I asked silently, looking around at the students that were moving through the school like a stampede.


    ¡°You need to get into the YMPA school, right now,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯ll be safer there.¡±


    ¡°Where do I go so that I don¡¯t get seen by a thousand students?¡± I asked, a bit frantic myself.


    ¡°Go into the bathroom or something,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°We need you to go ahead and get to the school as fast as you can.¡±


    I hung up and I nced around, however there was somewhat disappointing. Awesome, this is my opportunity to run. I dashed through the corridors and over the corner, running straight until I putplete focus on the washroom sign.


    I immediately went right to go on the men¡¯s side and as I ran, out of nowhere an entrance brought forth directly before me, and I screeched once I went through there, not in any event, knowing whether I was at the academy or not.


    I was there, but essentially let me be ready to run into the entrance as opposed to making me nearly shout to death! Out of nowhere a lot of spies were by me, keeping their eyes out as they drove me within the building.


    When we got inside, Mr. Drails was simply strolling, or a greater amount of running down the steps, actually ensuring his tuxedo was still in its right position.


    ¡°Okay, what happened?¡± I asked.


    He took a gander at me with a sharp eye and said, ¡°A TSA professional killer attempted to kill you, but fortunately you weren¡¯t here at the moment. We killed him when we saw him, so fortunately nobody came to kill you. You will continue your sses here today, and we¡¯ll ensure somebody is essentially watching when they might be a threat to you, got it?¡±


    I nodded, feeling weighty in my heart.

 Chapter 11

    Chapter 11: Tiphe Session


    I was in my room-which was now guarded with a turret that clipped onto the window-thinking about what just happened.


    An assassin, to kill me?


    Me?


    It¡¯s not like I¡¯m some experienced agent that many fear of who I am, and what powers I can rain on them. I¡¯m new-new! I just got here two days ago, learning only the littlest thing aboutbat. I don¡¯t even have any wand powers!


    And they want to kill me?


    What am I of any importance?


    Maybe it¡¯s my perk, what I¡¯m able to hold inside of my DNA. But I don¡¯t even know how to activate it when I want to.


    .....


    I felt like letting tears out and allowing them to soak my bed, but no tears were even brave enough to slip out of my watery pupils. But soon the sses were going to start, so I needed to get ready and try to brush off the fear that was settling in my heart.


    ***


    As I was walking to the following ss, I saw somebody stroll towards me with his sister. The two of them had grins that were moured by their white teeth, and I couldn¡¯t resist the opportunity to grin.


    ¡°Hello, you OK?¡± Tisiah inquired. I nodded, but Nikki didn¡¯t appear to be persuaded.


    We strolled within the lift, going down to the actual ssroom. Fun truth, the actual ssroom is right outside. That¡¯s right, we were preparing to wand-fight outside.


    The teacher was a seriously terrifying one, with dark hair that became pink at the closures of the hair, and the hair was short to kid length. She wore those dark onesies that the youngdy agents wore. I could hardlyprehend how awkward it felt wearing those things, or perhaps it didn¡¯t-dislike I¡¯ll at any point be aware.


    Her name was Master Tiphe, and she was a harsh teacher, especially on the weaker kids, so I always felt I was going to get targeted by her a lot.


    ¡°Hello, students,¡± she said. ¡°You guys seemed a little flushed don¡¯t you say? How about you guys give about a hundred pushups just to get the energy going.¡±


    Everybody moaned, with the exception of me who was excessively frightened to try and talk.


    ¡°Gracious, so presently you all think you need rest. Is pixie dust a lot for you all to deal with?¡± she asked, with an exceptionally wide sneer all over that main possessed a scent like terrible news. ¡°I think you all need 100 more don¡¯t you say?¡±


    Everybody even moaned all the more but this time they got to the ground, resting their hands and setting tension against them, moving themselves vertical. My arms and legs weren¡¯t precisely prepared to begin working out, but I ain¡¯t attempting to get designated here.


    I tried my best to seem as strong as I could, but the sweat was giving it away, so I tried to wipe it-but my stability decided to fail.


    She started walking near me and I made an honest effort to do the best that I can with it, but it was struggling. Obviously my best isn¡¯t sufficient.


    This is awful, terrible, terrible. Terrible.


    As she came towards me, she halted and looked hard and long at me, or possibly I figure she did. It¡¯s kind of difficult to turn your head when your body is going all over in a level movement.


    ¡°You¡¯re that one youngster that was going to get killed right?¡± Master Tiphe inquired. I would reply but I felt like she definitely knew the response. Then, at that point, she added, ¡°I don¡¯t know why.¡±


    Then, at that point, Mchi and his young men, and soon different students started to chuckle as though some kind of social asion of giggling was being tossed against me.


    ¡°Hello, quiet it!¡± she spoke harshly to Mchi. I want to charge him and rake him over the coals, with the exception of I was not in the best spot to charge at him and rake him over the coals. He was as far as possible at the opposite side.


    Eventually we reached two hundred push-ups, and the students groaned in pain. Master Tiphe looked at us pathetically, then she returned back to her own area. ¡°Alright, now today we are going to learn how to handle two guys if you¡¯re wand-fighting. And it may seem like the same thing, but it¡¯s harder, much harder,¡± she said.


    Everyone seemed to be invested with interest, as she spawned some sort of yellow, virtual enemy toe at her.


    It held a wand and it rose up, getting ready to swing for a finishing strike, but being the person that she was-she immediately flipped it only using her wand.


    ¡°Now, watch me fend off against two of these guys alright?¡± she said. Two guys spawned right beside her on both ends.


    As she fought I noticed something she did, and I mean it¡¯s not a bad idea. She uses the enemies¡¯ wands against each other almost, barely trying to fight both of them.


    They end up taking each other out, or they¡¯re too dazed to actually defend themselves from her quick attacks.


    This seems like something September could do, and probably would do.


    ¡°If you try to fight both of them at the same time, it doesn¡¯t really help-because you have to defend your body from two things, and you¡¯ll end up being defeated. But use their tricks against their peers, same thing with three or four-or even ten,¡± she said.


    She began to slowly walk back and forth, looking at every student¡¯s face that were quite struck with awe and impressment.


    She spoke, ¡°Until the end of this current week, you¡¯ll work on fighting the two foes before we continue on. I¡¯ll show you various moves consistently before we step through our examination toward the week¡¯s end. In the event that you pass, you¡¯ll have a superior possibility being picked for a mission. Regardless of whether you failed your first test.¡±


    I felt my heart ascend into my throat, feeling a breeze of shock smack my face.


    On the off chance that you failed your first test-you were never going to be on a mission.


    How am I going to resemble my uncle, saving the world and assisting the residents with battling off against the TSA, not to mention the association of the MSTO, in the event that I¡¯m staying here for a really long time simply attempting to follow through with something? I have a Perk for the love of all that is pure and holy!


    I ought to be out there more than anybody.


    But this test is my opportunity, I can¡¯t fail it, I can¡¯t.


    Then out of nowhere, a blueprint of the ground uncovered itself to us, and afterward it brought down the field descending as though we were going into an underground room, despite the fact that we were.


    When wended, we saw the field change once more and close the opening shut. I have no clue about what on earth simply urred.


    ¡°Now, we will have groups of two, fighting off against the virtual foes,¡± Master Tiphe said.


    Abruptly, virtual sses shot down from the roof. ¡°Get those sses and ced them on. You¡¯ll be given your wand, besides there are no powers in them ¨C on the grounds that that would nullify the point of this example,¡± she said.


    She strolled into the center of the room and looked left and right.


    ¡°Everybody at the right of me will be in Group A, you folks will be on ground, attempting to prate the base OK,¡± she said. ¡°Ensure they don¡¯t see you, since that is the most effective way to finish a mission.¡±


    Then she nced over to one side, where Mchi and his mates, as well as others were at. Just to let you know there were twentyplete individuals in this ss, so we were no doubt going to part by ten.


    ¡°You folks are Group B, you all will be utilized as fortifications on the off chance that every one of them get out. On the off chance that the two groups are crushed, you folks lose. But in the event that you figure out how to kill everyone in the base, or figure out how to obliterate the bomb inside their mysterious control room ¨C you win, now put them on.¡±


    We did and when I did, I felt as though the universe I wasn¡¯t simply in was vanishing, and I was getting sucked into another world.

 Chapter 12

    Chapter 12: Mission Im-virtual-possible


    Exactly when we produced into the new world, we ended up inside a strategic vehicle or some likeness thereof. However, what got me the most was the aide. It was absolutely heartbreaking. The air was stacked up with smoke, and the smell was sticky. The roads had breaks in them at different ascents, making the sort of uncertain ground ¨C which could get a handle on the overallrge number of thumps.


    Signs held tight their posts. Vehicles were turned over their partner or absolutely finished. Additionally, there were little social asions of fire, which would get a handle on the flooding smoke.


    Everyone was in suits, with vests tied around them and their utility belts unfalteringly situated on their midriffs. One student turned, investigating the world and she was apparently incredibly overwhelmed.


    ¡°What could have happened here for something to appear to be this?¡± she asked, and someone else shrugged. I headed toward the singr near me, being bbergasted considering the way that I knew the person.


    ¡°Nikki?¡± I asked, with a critical load of confusion on my head. ¡°You were in this ss?¡±


    ¡°Without a doubt, clearly I¡¯m here,¡± she said speedily, in a perfect world not because of me. ¡°Did you not see me two segments behind you?¡±


    ¡°In light of everything, no I construe,¡± I said. ¡°Maybe in light of the fact that you were behind me, as you said so yourself.¡± She didn¡¯t seem, by all ounts, to be engaged. Out of the blue we were going towards a construction that appeared to be a shriveling elevated structure.


    .....


    The silver and blue paint gave off an impression of being rusted, and its windows had breaks seeming to be its destroyed presence. It was still pretty much as high as could be anticipated, but it looked horrendous.


    The vehicle stopped and everyone progressed out of the vehicle, with their wands advantageous in their grip.


    ¡°What¡¯s the objective again?¡± someone asked.


    ¡°To kill everyone inside the base or incapacitate a dangerous or something in some guideline room,¡± I got a handle on, believing that was adequate of an exnation.


    We continued to walk around the obliterated streets of the world, continuing to head towards the screwed as high as possible ascent.


    The little weeds watched out of the roads. Vehicles were consistently delivering before us, flipped or flooding with fire. The fire made the smoke almost block our field of view, but luckily it was a piece clear ¨C so we had the choice to see through the smoke.


    I stopped my breathing while at the same time walking around it, and I wound up wheezing for breath once I sorted out some way to move beyond the blinding gas.


    ¡°In this manner, I guess we¡¯re moving into the skyscraper,¡± Nikki said. ¡°Looks a piece frightening.¡±


    ¡°Almost certainly,¡± I agreed unobtrusively. Out of the blue, some sort of log showed up into the world, making a yellow-outlined box, with a dash of bolt moving and bouncing in a 360 degree development saying objective.


    ¡°So this is the secret base? Since it appears to be like one,¡± Nikki said. I replied, ¡°It¡¯s not the truth the construction ought to be ssified, it¡¯s what they are doing that is private.¡±


    The individual straightforward opened the entrance, but by then right by then ¨C something happened that roared in my chest, and immediately extended my heartbeat.


    I heard the impact of an impacting st reverberate high up, and I heard the groan of a flying vehicle ¨C A flying vehicle.


    I looked behind me and I saw the vehicle in the air wrecked aze, as the cloudiness of fire was hauling along it.


    Moreover, it wasing, all things considered, and at a high velocity. ¡°Get down!¡± I hollered, and I looked along the edge and dealt with Nikki to the virus earth.


    I shut my eyes in fear and withdrew, being prepared to feel my body being absolutely pancaked by the vehicle, and a short timeter returning back inside the virtual room.


    I opened my eyes hardly, and I could see the shadow of the vehicle that outperformed me, barely passing me and Nikki.


    We were safeguarded ¨C anyway the rest weren¡¯t. Unexpectedly the vehicle took another jump in its horrendous roll, and decided to take the rest of the gathering with it.


    I wheezed with nauseating trepidation, feeling like my heart nned to leap out from my throat. What in heaven¡¯s name essentially happened?


    Then, at that point, out of the blue, I heardmotions, and not the extraordinary ones.


    It seemed like sters or some kind of peculiar rifle that was going after us. I turned and saw men in suits and vests, with these metal-like rifles that had a significant drag, shooting out red shots at us.


    ¡°No, no ¨C no!¡± Nikki yelled, almost spouting with tears. Anyway by then, I heard somebody behind hermunicating, ¡°Get in!¡±


    I decided not to zero in on who said it, yet rather it was in all probability best to do all things considered.


    I bounced in, getting into the fundamental floor which was where there was a piece of Starbucks along the edge, and the natural shaded cover with legendary monsters that were meshed into it.


    There was a fragment that was disconnected by an entry of the lifts and the hall to the morning dinner room. I evaded behind a table, and the rest followed.


    The shots influenced into our room, giving us another obstruction of keeping away from ss.


    ¡°Crawl to the contrary side of the construction!¡± Nikki hollered. I got to crawling as speedy as could really be expected, yet I had two or three keeps from the predictable effects that kept on shooting the ss!!!!!!


    I made it there over the long haul, feeling like I ran a significant distance race, and whenever I cut out a potential open door to see who was with us, I saw it as someone I didn¡¯t expect.


    ¡°Mchi?¡± I mumbled to myself before they finally came to the contrary side.


    At the point when they did, the shooting stopped. Footsteps were powerless, it was hearable, and I could tell where they were walking. We were hiding behind a shadow around the corner, so I couldn¡¯t understand who was walking where ¨C anyway the footsteps made itprehended.


    Anyway by then, someone opened the entrance and began to progressively walk.


    The predictable advancement of the mags made me whimper, but I endeavored to hold it from liberating them. I wasn¡¯t endeavoring to lose.


    The individual walked progressively close and closer, with their footsteps getting more grounded each time, to a consistently expanding degree. Click-rattle continued to get more grounded the more they walked around us. I understood there was something that we expected to do.


    Anyway by then, as the individual thoroughly searched in his psyche, out of the blue Mchi advanced quickly onto his feet, and hit him with the butt of his wand. Then, at that point, he swung his wand with its top piece colliding with his skull and he dropped to the floor and disappeared in a very fizzle like construction.


    He looked at us with significant unwinding. I was enthusiastically breathing from being terrified ¨C you know practically nothing about how tiring that is.


    ¡°Okay, could we move,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Smaller guy, Connor I think, you stay behind us and watch for anyone that may be ending at us.¡±


    I motioned, and we got up with our wands firm in our grip ¨C well my hand was sweating so it was apparently sliding off.


    ¡°Disy,¡± Nikki mumbled, yet I would concur that I was exceptionally astonished. I¡¯d be dead right by then, and I question my Perk wanted to work here.


    We happened through the hall before we stopped by a faint entrance with white outlines that showed that this was the way to the means.


    ¡°Here,¡± Mchi mentioned and he opened the entrance. The means were metal and the handles were white moreover. We flooded up the means, and we obviously neglected to recollect that we were in a skyscraper, so we ended up running up a lot of advances.


    Nevertheless, as we were running, we heard footstepsing from up top. That suggested people were here ¨C and we were bound to be caught.

 Chapter 13

    Chapter 13: A Missile to Worry About


    ¡°Goodness,¡± Nikki said in a stressed tone. ¡°There¡¯s people up there.¡±


    ¡°As we didn¡¯t hear them walking down the steps,¡± Mchi said. ¡°We just got to sort out an arrangement.¡± Nikkiughed, ¡°That doesn¡¯t appear to be something that you¡¯d do best.¡±


    ¡°Well could you do it shortie,¡± he said boldly. ¡°Or on the other hand let Connor over do it for you, what about that. You are by all ounts more quiet in exceptionally warmed circumstances.¡±


    I know for a reality I¡¯m nowhere close to that title but I¡¯d like to keep that.


    I shifted focus over aside and saw that there was an entryway that prompted the 50th floor, which could be utilized to stow away or in the event they tracked down us, sneak on them with an assault.


    ¡°In here,¡± I rmended.


    We immediately shut the entryway and concealed by the corner. The strides started to walk nearer ¨C down, endlessly down. They were murmuring among themselves, but I was unable to hear any kind of clear words toprehend what they were referring to.


    .....


    Then, at that point, one of them halted, then, at that point, all.


    Then, at that point, somebody talked in a discourteous way, ¡°Really look at those entryways, Billy.¡±


    It was a piece entertaining since names were really fundamental, no sort of uniqueness to it. But then, he started to stroll towards the entryway at a high speed.


    ¡°He¡¯sing in here,¡± Nikki jumped. Then, at that point, he looked within the window, then, at that point, opened the entryway gradually. Mchi started getting tense and I could feel it ¨C he was going to aplish something stupid.


    He stomped out of the corner and fiercely thumped the adversary in the head.


    Briefly, the foes searched with sickening apprehension. But in a brief moment, they started to speed towards Mchi and it was inevitable before we needed to help him.


    I wasn¡¯t agreeable to getting it done, but I¡¯d like to pass actually.


    The adversaries got out their wands and in the long run we were all in battle. Two of them began hurrying towards me, and I yelled as one of them chose to do the first swing at me.


    I dove and tumbled down the steps, seeing them a piece confused from my unexpected move.


    Then started to dash their direction down the steps to where I was. I immediately got my wand and attempted to swing at them, but they were excessively quick.


    I dodged the blow and I took a stab at including a kick.


    My legs felt like they were isted from one another, and I didn¡¯t raise a ruckus around town next to me. I felt like a humiliation doing this.


    But then, as I swung ¨C and missed ¨C the foe behind me unintentionally hit hispanion, and I felt a tremendous liberating sensation course through my body. And afterward at that time, Nikki obviously jumped down from the rails and handled the foe.


    She snatched his dark hair and was continually pounding him with her clench hands in the long run before one of the means began their fall.


    The two of them fell to the floor underneath me and I realized I expected to get down these metal steps speedy and quick.


    I got my wand and I began speeding down the steps, prepared toplete the man. But then, he hit Nikki with his elbow, to keep her involved in her aggravation and afterward he came for me.


    He swung his wand, and conflicted into my wand. I immediately drove it away from me and attempted to go for the tackle once more.


    But then, at that point, as I did, I felt his hands some way or another grasp my body, but my force and body hammer me onto the ground.


    I felt a burning torment sting in my body as I cried. I think my back was broken after that. But I expected toplete him, since I¡¯m positive every other person was watching after they passed on.


    Unexpectedly, the man dropped to the floor. What¡¯s more, Mchi was holding one of those ster firearms that they had.


    ¡°Took you adequately long,¡± Nikki murmured. Mchiughed, ¡°One way or the other, you all nned to require years bringing him down.¡±


    I felt very annoyed by that. Me and Nikki filled in collectively and attempted to bring him down, and, surprisingly, then she was hit in a terrible spot, where she expected to pause and rest. So I needed to battle off against him, and if I¡¯m not mistaken ¨C I¡¯m still new here!


    ¡°Come on, perhaps we can track down something up here,¡± he said. He rested back on the wall and out of nowhere it slid out of the conflict, uncovering this vent-looking way. Maybe there was nothing toward the end.


    ¡°Well isn¡¯t unreasonably helpful,¡± Mchi said with augh. Nikki moaned.


    We strolled into the corridor that possessed a scent like iron, considerably less of a vent. But dislike I stroll through vents in my avable energy.


    Nikki shut the sliding wall behind us and we strolled through the corridor. We were approaching the finish of the corridor before we viewed that there had as a code.


    ¡°There¡¯s a code and nobody even figured out how to tell us?¡± Nikki grumbled. ¡°Not to mention Master Tiphe.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, I get it has something to do with her I surmise or the school, or anything, as a matter of fact,¡± I said, acknowledging how pointless that was.¡±


    ¡°Stand by, how about we attempt this,¡± Mchi said. He went to the code and distinctly took a gander at it, as though gazing nned to some way or another offer him the response.


    Then he arrived at his hand behind the codebox, and out of nowhere the entryway opened. ¡°How¡¯d you do that?¡± Nikki inquired.


    ¡°Just cut the rope behind it,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s extremely simple.¡± We looked forward, seeing an exceptionally wide and tall room with a major rocket that seemed to be the size of three school transports, overshadowing us.


    ¡°I thought they said this was a bomb,¡± I said. ¡°I don¡¯t have any idea what sort of bomb this is ¨C but it should be certainly disastrous.¡±


    ¡°As I didn¡¯t know that, virtuoso,¡± Mchi said quickly. ¡°How about we simply pick up the pace and disarm this explosive.¡± We strolled through and attempted to look around for the bomb, but it very well may be numerous things.


    There were a lot of researcher devices: Screens, PCs, analyzers, and, surprisingly, a candy machine. ¡°Okay attempt to find where the bomb on the rocket or rocket or some likeness thereof, me and Connor will attempt to check whether there¡¯s anything on the techonology hogwash,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°Okay, get to it,¡± Mchi expressed, scaling the stepping stool that was evidently there.


    We started to stroll through the screeners and we attempted to discover an association with the rocket of some kind or another ¨C but it was difficult to try and grasp anything.


    It was a lot of radars and a lot ofttices, and buttons that were less simr to consoles and more like beautiful cushions.


    ¡°You see anything?¡± I asked Nikki, and she shook her head. I nced around, walking through the paths of these PCs. But then, something urred, making me truly pant in dread.


    The adversaries were surging into the room.


    ¡°Gracious, no ¨C Mchi!¡± I yelled. But Nikki quieted my mouth. ¡°Do you believe we should pass on also?¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t for even a moment have the sters as he does!¡± I contended. I went over to the buttons and wildly pressed on a lot of buttons. Abruptly, we heard the rocket ¨C or rocket thing ¨C fire up.


    How did I respond?


    What on earth did I simply do?!


    ¡°Hello, yo!¡± Mchi shouted as the rocket started suspending. ¡°Switch it off!¡±


    I then acknowledged something, and it was amusing we didn¡¯t attempt to contemte that. The rocket was the bomb, and I just began it.


    Me and Nikki nced around panicky and started to look around ways of halting the rocket, but there were no leads. I peered down on those brilliant cushions and I started squeezing arbitrary things. Sweat poured in from my face. My hands shook in dread. But then, at that point, I took a gander at a switch that appeared to be inclining forward.


    Perhaps I just enacted it with the cushions.


    I took a stab at pulling it back but it wasn¡¯t moving as though it was stuck earth that had evaporated. But then, I saw a button and I squeezed it ¨C and in light of the battle that I had a go at pulling, it thumped me off the floor.


    The rocket halted and was pulled somewhere near some ziplines. I looked and there were no gatekeepers with the exception of the ones took out on the floor, potentially from the gas.


    Then, at that point, unexpectedly, the world started to break down into obscurity ¨C not certain where I, didn¡¯t know how, but rather I was happy when I saw when it showed: Triumph. I moaned in help as the virtual headset unexpectedly jumped somewhere far away from me.


    It made me yell a little, but I was simply happy that we won.

 Chapter 14

    Chapter 14: A School Assassin


    It was school by and by, and I was d to be back ¨C for the most part as a result of Greg, but more in light of Kirk. He wasn¡¯t here today since he was going out traveling to California, which wouldn¡¯t be shrewd, but essentially I won¡¯t get harassed or embarrassed by him.


    I put in my locker code and opened it, and saw every one of my books. The sensation of harmony coursed through my body, and I gave a major murmur in satisfaction.


    But then, at that point, Greg came up behind me and unexpectedly said, ¡°Hello.¡±


    Each and every time he does this, and I never appear to know when he talks. ¡°Jeez man, how long do you need to do this?¡± I asked him.


    ¡°It¡¯s a mark,¡± he said with augh. ¡°It¡¯s a regr thing for us.¡±


    ¡°Indeed you do.¡±


    ¡°Still,¡± he said. ¡°At any rate, I got to do a lot of errands when I get back home today, so on the off chance that you¡¯re right on time from that chess ss. You probably won¡¯t see me.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Well, great to know,¡± I said with a gesture. ¡°I¡¯ll be going to my group now.¡±


    ¡°Best of luck, schoolworm,¡± he said tongue in cheek, and snickered back and turned ahead with a cross artiction. It¡¯s not the very rudest thing at any point shared with me, but it actually kind of damages.


    Fortunately I don¡¯t wear sses cuz everybody would call me greater of a geek, albeit that is false. Not every person with sses is a geek, but that is the generalization nowadays.


    As I kept walking, I saw somebody behind me, somebody I¡¯ve never seen. He was a redhead, with a tan kind of coat that was wearing a white shirt, pants and boots.


    I kept walking at any rate, not taking any psyche to it in light of the fact that ¨C who might?


    I got to my number rted ss, putting my knapsack somewhere around my seat which was close to the front and at the actual right of the ssroom. The teacher, Mr. Barnaby was in his seat, putting his legs on top of the work area, perusing Ian Fleming¡¯s Gambling club Royale.


    Am I astonished?


    Off by a long shot, hees in and does this constantly, regardless of what book it is.


    When the students generally plunked down, he looked by the side and afterward put the book down. He stood up and gave a major apud as he talked.


    ¡°Hi, and wee back to Math ss ¨C ¡±


    Out of nowhere the Dad came on, as the students tuned in anticipation.


    ¡°Hi, might Connor Drails at any point kindly approach the important¡¯s office, bless your heart.¡±


    How did I respond this time?


    I got up and headed towards the entryway, with dread and disarray pulsating in my heart. I strolled over to where I was at previously, and afterward continued to escape the structure.


    But I looked behind me, and it was that equivalent fe that was behind me the first time.


    Perhaps a fortuitous event.


    I kept walking, seeing the fire engine that has been there starting from the start of my participation, and afterward strolled over the enormous entrance that introduced the segments of the sses.


    Indeed, the segments are structures and there are a great deal of subjects here.


    But then, at that point, as I shifted focus over to one side of me, I ended up stunned to see a simr individual!


    Once, no issue. Twice, certain. Multiple times was now beginning to concern me. I felt myself walking quicker, and a major cap of suspicion that was set firm on my head.


    But then, at that point, he was genuinely following me now, attempting to appear as though he was following through with something. Perhaps he was, perhaps he wasn¡¯t. But I was unable to take a chance with it, in the wake of seeing him ordinarily in my area ¨C that is totally something to see about.


    But he was quicker at walking than me, and as he kept on walking, I ended up discovering a certain something ¨C one thing that parted with it.


    He had a dark tool belt.


    One of the illustrations that Mr. Robbs instructed us that the TSA for the most part wore dark tool belts, and they were utilized to trick any adversary organization.


    I expected to run ¨C now.


    Promptly I went max speed and the individual chasing after did as well. I consistently took numerous pieces to check whether he was acquiring, and he was acquiring okay. I nced around and I got a region called the janitor¡¯s room.


    Rapidly I turned towards the room which was actually as far as possible over to one side, and I was precisely distraught about that.


    Out of nowhere I heard the breeze whip over my head, and I realized he was swinging his wand. But then, at that point, I heard him say, ¡°Creatures, assault!¡±


    Please ept my apologies what?


    I know he didn¡¯t simply say that.


    I thought back and there and observe, wolves were brought forth and were promptly pursuing me. They streaked their teeth, and I couldn¡¯t resist the opportunity to screech.


    Who is this man? He can bring forth creatures?! I immediately collided with the janitor room, thinking of myself as stumbling andnding myself inside the container where he held the water.


    Being that it was on wheels, the energy of my speeding body moved over to the container and it rolled, crashing through the entryway.


    I hit the stopping point and drove the container through the corridor in front of me.


    I sped through the corridor ¨C which fortunately nobody was here ¨C and I pid and I saw the wolves with teeth expecting to sink into my tissue.


    One of them mmed their head into the container and it spilled, pushing me out of my wellbeing framework. I immediately got up and started to run, but the wolves would have been a lot quicker than me.


    I immediately turned the corner to one side and had a go at confounding them, but it just got me a little space.


    I rapidly jumped into a room, some room which I have no clue about what it is, but I jumped in there and kicked the entryway shut while I was busy.


    But then, at that point, the wolves vanished and it was just him once more. He busted in, and I wound up cornered between a work area and seats.


    He strolled towards gradually, exhausted, but invigorated for the kill. He swung his wand, and I dodged, attempting to set out toward the entryway.


    Like that nned to work.


    I felt my shirt out of nowhere pull back, and felt the follower¡¯s hands drag me and toss me into the work area. I flipped over, pushing things over with me.


    Torment shot through my body, and I found it hard to move my muscles actually. I attempted to get my wand out, but I didn¡¯t put on the tool belt so I was left ¨C in a real sense unprotected!


    But then, at that point, he hurried over to me and put his knee on my back, and started to utilize his arm to stifle me out. He started to twist my body as though I was an omelet, an omelet that was getting killed by a man in those cattle rustler coats. But then, at that point, I heard a major bonk. Furthermore, I felt the grasp on my neck discharge and an unexpected drop to the floor. I looked behind me, seeing September with her blue wand. ¡°September?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Indeed it¡¯s me, and what on earth would you say you were doing?!¡±


    ¡°He pursued me.¡±


    ¡°Better believe it I know that, you weakling!¡± she murmured. ¡°For what reason didn¡¯t you kill him, for what reason would you say you were going around out of control?¡±


    I didn¡¯t want to respond to that inquiry.


    ¡°Come on, let me get you to your group. I don¡¯t believe it¡¯s ideal to go to that phony gathering they set up,¡± September said.

 Chapter 15

    Chapter 15: A Mission Given


    It was noon, and nobody appeared to catch wind of the assassin that attempted to kill me at school. Truly, it¡¯s likely best that they didn¡¯t on the grounds that they¡¯d presumably ridicule me for not killing him.


    Or on the other hand they could give September a well done for saving me, which is way less more regrettable.


    At the point when I got my food, I saw September eating with herpanions ¨C well she was eating, herpanions weren¡¯t.


    They were at the opposite side of the table and chatting with themselves, while she was just barely tuning in and partaking in her feast.


    I felt something wreck in my heart.


    I don¡¯t know whether this is on the grounds that I¡¯m extremely anxious, or it¡¯s the way that my heart was pushing me to tell her ¡®thank you.¡¯


    I wanted to approach her, but my feet were frozen at their ce, reluctant to try and do anything by any means actually.


    .....


    But my fortitude figured out how to dissolve the ice of my anxiety, and I strolled up, getting increasingly slow once I drew nearer.


    She before long tracked down me and gave me a look that didn¡¯t appear to be unfriendly but I was extremely deterred by that look. ¡°Might I at any point help you?¡± she inquired. My tongue frozepletely still, and I just kept on stammering.


    ¡°I simply needed to say thank you,¡± I said, after a snapshot of ceaseless stammering. I could feel the perspiration in my armpits moving down my side.


    ¡°All things considered, the pleasure is all mine,¡± she said. ¡°Is there something else that you need to tell me?¡±


    I stammered.


    But then, at that point, she said, ¡°as a matter of fact, I need to let you know something. Now, do you have any abilities in your wand yet?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°In any event, when we found out about water, earth, and gas?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°All things considered, it was presumably best for you to run,¡± she said. ¡°I was called to save you once they sounded the red caution in my room. I surged over and they let me know you were getting pursued by another TSA agent.¡±


    ¡°All things considered, thanks to God you came,¡± I said.


    ¡°But you want to figure out how to get power rapidly,¡± she said. ¡°You will not have the option to safeguard yourselves from them just involving your wand as a fighting weapon.¡±


    I nodded, not certain assuming that I was being addressed or educated. ¡°He had wolves, and it is basically impossible that you will fight wolves with your wand, so gain proficiency with a power speedily okay?¡±


    ¡°OK.¡±


    I left, feeling a smidgen more certain than previously. Essentially she wasn¡¯t genuine with me, and it wasn¡¯t simr to what she said I made a terrible showing, as a matter of fact ¨C she said I presumably ought to have been run. I surmise she thought I had power in my wand as of now when she found me getting gagged by him.


    My throat actually harms from that.


    Yet again but then, at that point, the Dad framework turned on, and I heard my name called but as well as September, Mchi, Tisiah, and Nikki. What circumstance was it that five students should have been called? We strolled over to the workce where Mr. Drails was at.


    We as a whole entered the workce, and Mr. Robbs gave all of us huge grins as we got close to him, expressing, ¡°Wee back students, or wee to the workce. Mr. Drails has a remark to you folks.¡±


    Then, at that point, Mr. Drails stopped briefly, considering what to say. He peered down at his work area, gazing toward everybody present in his office ¨C aside from Nikki. He nced back at us briefly, taking a full breath and said, ¡°A researcher that works for the public authority was grabbed by the TSA, and we¡¯re sending you all determined to save him. We don¡¯t know his whereabouts, but we found a base that was given a hypothesis of thest spot he was.¡±


    Mr. Drails stopped once more, hanging tight for our response. But there wasn¡¯t a lot of one since not a solitary one of us had an idea regarding what he was referring to. He atst, said, ¡°So you will go to this base and check whether it¡¯s valid. Furthermore, assuming this is the case, salvage the man and bring him securely to somewhere safe and secure.¡±


    There was a ton happening here:


    1) A researcher was captured by the TSA and we were sent determined to save him.


    2) It wasn¡¯t simply me ¨C it was additionally September, Mchi, Tisiah, and Nikki; and how Tisiah let me know what the TSA treats their detainees ¨C they torment them until they kick the bucket.


    3) This was the first time I¡¯ve at any point been essential for an undertaking where people were being grabbed by the TSA, particrly by a well known researcher whom they wouldn¡¯t give up effectively without causing him tonguish over what he knew.


    4) urring some ce in the wilderness was going.


    5) And this isn¡¯t an undertaking game where we will track down a fortune and win 1,000,000 bucks toward the end ¨C but all things being equal, we¡¯re putting our lives in extreme danger here to save another person, and truly, it could truly merit kicking the bucket for.


    6) This is reality, not a game...


    7) ... or a film.


    8) Or a book.


    I nced back at September, contemting whether she felt as terrified as I did as of now.


    She checked out at me and shook her head. So I took a gander at Mchi, and I felt his gaze, but I turned away as quick as possible before I visually connected with him ¨C not having any desire to have him ask me anything at the present time. He realized I would know practically nothing regarding what this mission involved, and regardless of whether I, I¡¯d in all probability have no responses at all.


    But it was hard for me not to take a gander at him, since he had areas of strength for such and I knew serious areas of strength for how was.


    I would never ovee him in battle except if I had a wand like him, but perhaps he¡¯s the main individual who can save me from being tormented by these folks.


    Furthermore, I was terrified of what could ur on the off chance that he was with me on this mission since who knows major areas of strength for how people are ¨C and if they had any desire to catch him as well, then they would certainly attempt to kill him.


    The main issue was that he wasn¡¯t with us yet. So I just took a seat at a seat close to Tisiah toward the edge of the room and paused ¨C stood by to find out where they¡¯re seizing him.


    ¡°Alright,¡± said Mr. Robbs after Mr. Drailspleted the process of making sense of what we will do today. ¡°You all are excused ¨C get some rest. Tomorrow, meet here at 5 pm and afterward withdraw. We will leave at 6:00 PM sharp.¡±


    We as a whole said thanks to Mr. Robbs and left the workce, going to our ssrooms to snatch some lunch ¨C but September didn¡¯t eat on the grounds that she had no hunger in any case. She investigated at Tisiah who just looked forward, gazing at nothing specifically ¨C presumably daydreaming. I contemted whether she felt as restless as I did about the thing will happen tomorrow since I was unable to quit envisioning what it should resemble out there. The TSA doesn¡¯t simply grab somebody and leave them there like you can go salvage them, correct? They torment them until they let them know things or whatever else they need from them. All in all, I don¡¯t know precisely exact thing happens to a casualty when they get captured by the TSA but I¡¯m certain it¡¯s something horrendous ¨C and that implies that they¡¯re most likely tormenting him some ce on their base at the present time, attempting to break him so they could get data out of him or make him talk.


    It was rming, that¡¯s what I knew. What¡¯s more, I was unable to envision myself truly being a piece of something like this on the off chance that it was actually genuine ¨C in light of the fact that this was the TSA we were managing here; these people aren¡¯t good. I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea why they were doing this and I don¡¯t know the full story of all that urred but I realize that there was more going on under the surface ¨C and I had an inclination that we shouldn¡¯t have be hanging around for this mission.


    I don¡¯t think it was an actual mission in the feeling of ¡®going on an excursion to an unfamiliarnd¡¯ type thing ¨C it wasn¡¯t simr to an experience journey where we need to ovee beasts orplete difficulties and set a mystical wand up to beat the bad guy.


    No, this was something else; something more vile and perilous than that. There was nothing about this mission that had a real sense of reassurance. I didn¡¯t figure anybody would have a good sense of reassurance about what could happen once we arrived, which implied that we ought to set ourselves up for anything ¨C including demise.


    I considered that I got my lunch and set out toward the cafeteria. As I passed through the entryways into the lobby, I saw September and herpanions traveling my direction ¨C every one of them four walking simultaneously like a bunch of lions lurking in the shadows prepared to go after without warning. I was terrified to see them, since they were taking a gander at one another as though they nned to fight or something to that effect. I could see Tisiah looking anxious but doing whatever it takes not to show it ¨C like he generally did at whatever point they came around to his area. Mchi had his clench hands held firmly, and Nikki just peered down at the ground.

 Chapter 16

    Chapter 16: A Castle Search


    Today was the day, and I felt horrendous and energized simultaneously. School appeared to pass so rapidly, and interestingly I maintained that it should go more slow. I thought I¡¯d be loaded up with energy and expectation for being on a mission.


    Later yesterday, Mr. Drails let me know that this mission could remove me from being boycotted for any missions. I murmured, and felt prepared to do as such. This would be an ideal time for me to utilize my Perk.


    But I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea how to control it.


    Well I know how to control it, it¡¯s simply I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea how to gather it. It simply urs in arbitrary circumstances, or when I¡¯m super truly frightened.


    It was the finish of school as of now and I ept I just came in only a couple of moments prior. Or if nothing else I suspected as much.


    I started to ce my books in the locker, actually attempting to keep the fervor consuming in me. Then, at that point, Greg strolled over to me ¨C remaining there as though I should say something.


    ¡°I know you¡¯re not kidding,¡± I said, and he started to chuckle. Iughed with him a piece. ¡°I will miss you,¡± I said.


    .....


    ¡°Miss me for what?¡± he inquired. I stammered, uncertain of what to say straightaway or how to uncover what is happening. ¡°Simply feels void without you some of the time,¡± I said. Humiliation just fell all over me. Do you have at least some idea how messy that sounded?


    Seemed like one of those men that like to give those unfortunate and ¡°child, you¡¯re not kidding¡± praises. ¡°Indeed, I¡¯m happy you have that impression,¡± Greg said, sounding a piece concerned.


    ¡°Better believe it, I presume.¡±


    ¡°All things considered, I¡¯ll see you tomorrow then, at that point, I got to go to my Mother, she¡¯s getting me today since we¡¯re heading off to some ce,¡± he said.


    ¡°What¡¯s more, where is that some ce?¡± I inquired. Greg shrugged. ¡°My Mother never told me yet.¡±


    ¡°All things considered, I¡¯ll see you tomorrow,¡± I said, feeling my voice disappear as he left. Perhaps I shouldn¡¯t have turned into a spy mage, in light of the fact that I would rather not lose mypanion or my loved ones.


    They¡¯re the ones in particr that consideration about me, and I would rather not lose that. I truly shouldn¡¯t have turned into a spy mage.


    It was 5 pm, and I understood what time that was. Mr. Drails got me through his entryway, but rather than showing up at the parking garage. I promptly ended up in his office.


    Nikki, September, Mchi, and Tisiah were there, causing me to appear to be elegantlyte. ¡°Okay,¡± Mr. Drails started to talk. ¡°The mission is soon to begin, now I know I said six o¡¯ clock, but I ept we can begin prior wouldn¡¯t you say?¡±


    We as a whole shrugged. ¡°In any case,¡± Mr. Drails murmured. ¡°We discovered some new data about the circumstance. I went to Washington D.C to sort out who was captured and it was in any case one of mypanions, Dr. Micheal Jones.¡±


    ¡°Yikes,¡± Nikki remarked.


    ¡°At any rate,¡± Mr. Drails proceeded. ¡°We don¡¯t know the hijacker¡¯s name, but I in all actuality do know he is from the TSA. He has smooth dark hair and no facial hair, just to tell ya. So on the off chance that you find somebody like him, simply capture him and we¡¯ll address him okay?¡±


    ¡°Indeed, sir,¡± we said.


    ¡°Okay, simply get some margin to say your farewells to yourpanions here since this could be the absolutest time we see you folks,¡± he said, as his eyes associated with mine.


    I felt as though tears nned to gush in my eyes.


    I took a gander at the others and they appeared to be a clenched down too, a significant number of them taking full breaths to quiet their feelings of trepidation.


    I was unable to bear to watch them, and I shut my eyes, recoiling at the contemtions. Projectiles, torment, torment, everything that mighte to me. I woke up, feeling soaked with sweat and my heart pulsating at a quick rate.


    ¡°Okay, so are you folks prepared?¡± Mr. Drails inquired. ¡°Better believe it, I think we are,¡± September dealt with serious consequences regarding us all. ¡°Alright, simply stroll through this entrance and your central goal will begin.¡±


    The entrance opened in a roundabout movement as we gazed at it, and afterward ourselves prepared for what was toe. ¡°Alright, how about we move!¡± Mchi said, changing his vest. We as a whole had vests and suits just to tell you, they don¡¯t feel awkward the least bit. But I can¡¯t actually express that for the youngdies in our group.


    ¡°Furthermore, recollect, report everything to me on the radio okay?¡± Mr. Drails requested. ¡°There is administration in this colder time of year wondend.¡±


    ¡°Winter wondend? It¡¯s just November!¡± Nikki grumbled. ¡°Some get colder than others I surmise,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Best of luck.¡±


    We strolled through the entrance and out of nowhere it shut right behind us. Mchi murmured, ¡°Darn, might this entryway at any point chill?¡±


    But then, at that point, he was totally overwhelmed with ¡°Goodness... that is enormous.¡±


    Furthermore, he was correct 100%. The base seemed to be an old pce, and it was tremendous. There were three levels, each with various segments, and a goliath tower. Furthermore, indeed, I said monster. It stood tall enough that even I could remain under its rooftop. It had a delightful n, and the snow falling around it made it seem to be an image postcard.


    ¡°Alright how about we move in,¡± Mchi said. We kept our heads low, attempting to mix in with the trees that were overshadowing us. There were monitors that were on the walls, ncing around and looking over the area.


    ¡°Something lets me know it¡¯s ideal on the off chance that we kind of ¨C slither,¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°Slither?¡± Mchi said. ¡°We¡¯re spy mages, not slugs. We really want to get into this base in some way, since slithering won¡¯t do a thing.¡±


    We kept on hunkering through the trees, ensuring nobody saw us. The bark was fortunately sufficientlyrge to totally cover our bodies, so we could take cover behind it.


    I looked aside and saw that one of the gatekeepers was going towards the left of them.


    ¡°Okay, we can move now!¡± I murmured boisterously to everybody. We began speeding towards the entryway the wall, but the wall appeared to be greater than expected.


    It was somewhere around twenty feet tall and there were no entryways that were close by.


    ¡°Uh, does anybody have an arrangement?¡± Nikki inquired. ¡°I don¡¯t believe we will make it here at any rate.¡±


    ¡°No we can,¡± September said. ¡°Mchi, bounce on me.¡± Mchi appeared to be disturbed. ¡°What, no ¨C jump on me.¡±


    He set himself up from her body to step on his back. But the subsequent she did, he moaned in torment. ¡°Darn, how much do you gauge!¡± he grumbled. ¡°You gauge 25o or something to that effect?¡±


    ¡°Quit being a weakling,¡± September reprimanded and she got around the wall. ¡°Okay everybody do likewise,¡± she said.


    ¡°Everybody needs to get on me?¡± Mchi argued. ¡°There is only such a lot of that I can bear!¡±


    ¡°Well your cutoff points are sufficiently not, so manage it,¡± September requested and he whimpered as we as a whole gotten on him.

 Chapter 17

    Chapter 17: A Discovery, A Reveal of the Enemy


    We eventually made it over, but the snow was really making us heavy, so it took much longer than we wanted. ¡°So what do we do now?¡± I asked. ¡°We never really nned to do anything.¡±


    ¡°We do like how we did in the game,¡± Nikki suggested.


    ¡°To kill every single person in this area?¡± Mchi said. ¡°That would take months.¡±


    ¡°No, but to find a secret containment room that could possibly be inside this castle. It may even be underground perhaps,¡± she said. ¡°It¡¯s possible.¡±


    ¡°She could be right,¡± September admitted. ¡°But that means we¡¯d have to get inside though.¡±


    ¡°Well of course,¡± Tisiah revealed. ¡°How else are we gonna find the scientist?¡±


    ¡°What if he¡¯s not even here,¡± I said. ¡°He might be somewhere else and right now we¡¯re just standing randomly in enemy territory.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Let¡¯s hope that¡¯s not true,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Let¡¯s get in.¡±


    We walked around thepound, trying to find a door to walk through in, but not showing. We walked over three corners and nothing was showing, there was only a fourth to walk through.


    But in the midst of our walking, we heard a clunk-a loud one.


    ¡°Something¡¯s under here,¡± Nikki mumbled to herself, though everyone else heard. Mchi sighed, ¡°Do you always have to state the obvious?¡±


    Nikki grabbed on the handle and pulled it up, revealing some sort of stairway that seemed to go into the dark.


    ¡°Well, who knew we¡¯d find something on the way,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Let¡¯s move.¡±


    We slowly descended the stairs until finally reaching the bottom floor. A few more steps led us into a hallway. We looked around, but didn¡¯t see anyone.


    ¡°Hey, where is everyone?¡± I asked. ¡°It¡¯s kind of strange that no one is here.¡±


    ¡°Unless, this is a trap,¡± Mchi muttered. Suspense intensified as we continued to wait for an attack, but no one ambushed us out of nowhere. ¡°Let¡¯s move, I guess...¡± Mchi ordered skeptically.


    As we moved further down the hall, we came across two soldiers guarding the end of the corridor. They were talking to each other when we approached, unaware of our presence. ¡°Okay, okay, move back, back, back, back,¡± Mchi whispered, and we hid behind the corner.


    ¡°How are we going to pass them?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure no one knows how to knock anyone out.¡± September cracked her knuckles.


    ¡°Well I¡¯ve been training for years now, so I¡¯ll try it out,¡± she said confidently. She held out her fist and punched the soldier in his jaw, knocking him unconscious. He fell backwards onto the ground without waking up. The second one, shuddered in shock, but then charged in for an attack. But September dodged it easily and kicked him hard in the chest. He copsed against the wall and slid down, dead. ¡°Yay!¡± September cheered sarcastically.


    ¡°Nice work,¡± Mchiplimented, while staring at the unconscious bodies. ¡°Wish I could do something like that. Anyways, let¡¯s see if we can find any intel around here.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure about that, it¡¯s just a hall,¡± Tisiah reasoned. Mchi then stormed over to him and said in a menacing voice, ¡°I know that. I¡¯m the leader here, so you don¡¯t have any say, understand? Don¡¯t say anything if it¡¯s not helpful.¡±


    Suddenly, Nikki rushed up and stood in front of her brother. ¡°What¡¯s your problem?¡± she barked. ¡°What makes you think you can speak to my brother like that?¡±


    This wasn¡¯t going well.


    I needed to do something fast. ¡°Whoa, wait wait,¡± I said, separating both of them with my hands. ¡°Let¡¯s focus on the mission right now, alright?¡± Mchi grumbled. ¡°Let¡¯s move.¡±


    We proceeded through the halls, finding nothing interesting except for a bunch of pictures on the wall. Some showed people, others were of weapons and technology. There were also several bookshelves lining the walls too. I found one book that caught my attention, so I picked it up and read the title: ¡®The History Of This ce¡¯. Interesting...


    ¡°Any idea why this ce is called Castle Winter Wondend?¡± I asked.


    September shook her head. ¡°Not really.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± I said, putting the book back on the shelf. ¡°Maybe that¡¯s what this building used to be called before it was turned into a TSA base.¡±


    We continued through the halls until we reached another staircase, which lead us to yet another level. This time, we went straight to the right instead of exploring the whole first floor. As soon as we entered the next section, it felt weirdly familiar. ¡°This almost looks like our section in the ssrooms, maybe this is where they hold their sses,¡± Nikki suggested.


    ¡°But this is a base, not an academy though,¡± I reasoned. ¡°I don¡¯t know what would be in here.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s search through these rooms,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Me and September will check the three ssrooms on the right, the rest check the ones on the left.¡±


    ¡°Sounds good to me,¡± Nikki agreed.


    ¡°Alright then,¡± Mchi ordered. We split off into groups and headed upstairs. I checked every single ssroom, but there weren¡¯t any desks or chairs, and there were no textbooks either. But as I rested myself on the wall, I felt the wall open up and I felt myself fall onto the ground.


    Rude.


    I looked around and suddenly I found something that I didn¡¯t even n to see.


    It was a big billboard, and I mean big like a wide tscreen-TV-billboard big. ¡°What in the world,¡± I muttered in awe. I looked up and I tried to find the first picture, which showed a scientist. It had a caption: ¡°Dr. M Jones.¡± The scientist that Mr. Drails was talking about! Dr. Micheal Jones wore ab coat with sses and a white mustache. I couldn¡¯t believe that we actually found him. Now all we had to do was figure out how to get to him.


    ¡°Wow, this is amazing!¡± I said to myself. But then there was a picture at the right, and it showed a man with slick ck hair with no beard, the man Mr. Drails was also talking about. His name was Demeitrus Rocke, and he was apparently one of the generals of the TSA armies.


    ¡°He kidnapped him?¡± I wondered to myself as I continued to survey the billboard. Then it showed an area of just grass.


    Literally, just grass.


    But the caption said something that didn¡¯t seem to match the picture, it said: BMO Base. It must be underground and this was just the top of it. But you¡¯d think they¡¯d show the inside, but it didn¡¯t matter. I needed to tell them this information. I got on the radio and immediately began talking to the team, telling them everything that I saw. ¡°Guys guys! Guys! Look, look! You gottae see this! This is huge! It says the scientist is located in a base underground, called the BMO I believe. The scientist was kidnapped by the guy Mr. Drails described, the name being Demeitrus Rocke. It shows his face! And I bet you he¡¯s in that base!¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Nikki shrieked on the radio,pletely sting my ears. ¡°Where is it? What¡¯s the number?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s room 360,¡± I told them. ¡°Come quickly!¡±


    They eventually appeared, rushing in like a crowd. ¡°Well, you found yourself with a lot of information, haven¡¯t ya,¡± Mchi chuckled. ¡°Alright, we just need to get out of here and-¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think anyone is going anywhere.¡±


    We looked behind us and saw the same guy that kidnapped Dr. Jones. ¡°Seems like you found a lot of information haven¡¯t you,¡± Demeitrus Rocke joked. ¡°To be honest I¡¯m quite surprised. You guys seem a bit too dumb to do much of anything really.¡±


    Demeitrus Rocke was wearing a long trench coat, simr to a military uniform, with a red tie wrapped around his neck. He had brown eyes and short ck hair, along with arge bushy mustache. He had a scar running from his eye to his nose. He looked a lot more different than he did in the picture, maybe it was an old one.


    ¡°You see, you¡¯re looking at a picture of me, when I just turned eighteen. I look fresh, don¡¯t I,¡± he said. ¡°Too bad you guys might not be alive to live at that age. Guards, take them away.¡±


    Two guards came up to us, grabbing me and pulling me towards them, while Nikki struggled to get free. This was going very wrong.

 Chapter 18

    Chapter 18: A Messy Escape


    The guards began to grab the others, apprehending them with their hands. They haven¡¯t gotten to me yet, meaning there was something that I could do. But what could I do? I didn¡¯t have any powers like they did.


    Well, I might as well give it a shot.


    ¡°Wait,¡± I yelled out loud, startling them. One guard paused in midair, frozen. The other stopped moving entirely. Both of them stood still and silent for a moment.


    Demeitrus Rocke looked at him in confusion. ¡°Do you want to ask for forgiveness for something?¡± he joked. ¡°I think it¡¯s toote to do anything really.¡±


    ¡°No, but you definitely won¡¯t forgive me for this,¡± I said, as I swung my wand at one of his guards. My aim was perfect, hitting him square in the forehead. He fell backwards and hit the ground.


    ¡°Now that¡¯s what I call magic,¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I replied sarcastically, rubbing my hand. ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here while we still can.¡±


    .....


    We began to run away from them. Demeitrus looked at us quite impressed, as he went on his radio and spoke, ¡°We got YMPA agents infiltrating the base, take them down while you still can.¡±


    We ran through the halls of the base, trying to find an escape route. But there were halls that continued to reveal themselves through every door that was open. We had no idea which way to go.


    ¡°We should split up,¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°No, that¡¯s a very bad idea,¡± September said. ¡°We¡¯re getting chased, so it¡¯s probably not the best thing to do. Now let¡¯s think, where would an exit be?¡±


    I answered, ¡°There has to be a way out of here, right? Well maybe, if we could just get past all of these doors, we¡¯d find our way out. First we should go through the door on the right, then the next one on the left, and then thest one on the right.¡±


    ¡°Well that¡¯s oddly specific,¡± Mchi said. ¡°But what other choice do we have, let¡¯s do it.¡±


    I felt very good about that idea, although there was absolutely no logic behind it. I mean, I had no idea about the castle a single bit, but maybe it could work.


    It was just a leap of faith.


    We went in that exact order through the doors.


    The first room waspletely empty, and the next room had some tables and chairs, but nothing else, but thest one on the left was a huge ballroom. It had a stage with a podium, and a few rows of seats.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t think that idea worked,¡± Mchi said. ¡°In fact I think it just made things worse.¡±


    And right at that moment, a bunch of guards stormed in the room from all doors at each corner. There were at least I¡¯d say about three hundred guards against the five of us.


    They all shouted, ¡°Freeze!¡± and ¡°Don¡¯t move!¡±continuously before they all surrounded us with their wands.


    ¡°Uh, I think it just got worse,¡± Nikki muttered silently. I was frozenpletely, not even sure of what I was trying or wanted to do. This was bad, bad, bad-super bad.


    ¡°Uh, anyone able to create a shield?¡± Mchi asked. ¡°It would be greatly appreciated.¡±


    No one answered a single thing, not even one word. But I saw Tisiah¡¯s expression. He felt like he could do something, but he felt as if it wasn¡¯t the best idea.


    He caught eyes with me, and I knew that despair and hope was speaking through my eyes. And he sighed, slowly reaching for his utility belt.


    He clicked the button and his wand popped out of the socket and he immediately grabbed it firmly in his hand. Suddenly, he began to cast a spell.


    ¡°Tisiah, no!¡± I screamed.


    ¡°What?¡± he asked, as he finished casting his spell. Suddenly, a wave of fire shot out of his wand, burning all of the guards that were surrounding us.


    The ballroom was raging with orange mes thatpletely devoured the room.


    ¡°Well, I guess that works,¡± Mchi said. ¡°But we need to get out of here quickly.¡± Everyone nodded in agreement, and we immediately began to speed towards the door.


    Once we sped through the door, we saw that there was a hall with decorations of a garden, and it had arge fountain in the center of it.


    ¡°Uh, which one should we go through?¡± September asked. ¡°We¡¯re not exactly in the best position right now.¡±


    ¡°Ya think!¡± Mchi hissed. ¡°We should take the right, because it may lead us somewhere, because the left looks like it may be the stairs.¡±


    ¡°All in agreement?¡± Nikki asked.


    But then we began to hear footsteps-a lot of theming our way.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think we have time to do that,¡± I said. ¡°Let¡¯s move.¡± We moved into the door and we quickly closed it before they could barge through. As we turned around, we gasped in awe of what we found.


    No, it wasn¡¯t outside. But it was something that could help us get outside.


    There were a bunch of cars that were lined up in the room, that was closed in by arge door that was probably seventy feet wide, just so that each and every one of these cars could actually get out.


    ¡°Oh, yeah,¡± Mchi said, rubbing his hands in anticipation. ¡°Let¡¯s get into one of these.¡±


    But then, we heard gunfire erupt behind the door. Bullets punctured the walls, and they flew through the area.


    ¡°Duck!¡± September shouted, and we all dove onto the ground.


    Bullets ricocheted off the cars and began to make these *ting* sounds that continuously reverberated throughout the room.


    I crawled through, trying to keep myself from getting shot by one of things-but dang, those bullets are fast! I hid behind an SUV, which managed to give me some good cover.


    Maybe we should use this one.


    I tried to get up and scout out the area for my team. But it was hard to, because they were busy hiding from the raging bullets.


    ¡°Hey guys!¡± I shouted, to get their attention. ¡°In here!¡± I quickly opened the door and I dived inside of the car. Soon enough the others got up and began to speed towards the car too.


    ¡°Who¡¯s driving?¡± Mchi asked.


    ¡°I am,¡± September said, which was surprising how quickly she volunteered. Once everyone got in, she fired up the car, and it roared to life.


    She pushed hard on the pedal, and she broke through the garage door, creating a big hole that could fit two cars at the same time if both of them wereing out.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s move, quick, before they start chasing us,¡± I said.


    We sped off, and we saw that the base waspletely engulfed in mes.


    ¡°I guess they aren¡¯t going to be happy about that,¡± I said.


    ¡°For a fact,¡± Tisiah agreed. But then inside the fire, we heard engine noises that roared louder. Then suddenly, muscle cars and trucks sped through the fire and were in pursuit of us.


    ¡°Uh-oh,¡± Nikki said. ¡°This is not good.¡± The muscle cars were super fast, like I mean, almost lightspeed if I do say so myself. They began to gain up behind us, movingnes back and forth while trying to figure out our maneuvers. They were catching up to us pretty quickly.


    ¡°Hey, look over there, it¡¯s a road sign,¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°Yeah, what does it say?¡± I asked. Tisiah looked at it, squinting his eyes while trying to figure out what the sign said. ¡°It says town up ahead.¡±


    ¡°We can go there once we get away from these TSA agents,¡± September said. Suddenly we felt one of the pursuers bump our car, and one of them tried to ram us from the side.


    ¡°Oof!¡± Mchi grunted as he took the hit.


    ¡°Shoot them!¡± September shouted, because she was too far away from her wand for it to be effective.

 Chapter 19

    Chapter 19: A Very Explosive Chase


    ¡°They¡¯re right behind us,¡± Nikki yelled, ¡°Perhaps I could follow through with something.¡± Nikki got her wand and looked through the window, attempting to get a decent sight of where the followers were situated.


    ¡°We have them!¡± Nikki yelled. She pointed her wand at the chasing after vehicles, and she began to take shots at them.


    ¡°Bring them down!¡± Mchi yelled.


    ¡°Right,¡± Nikki expressed, gesturing in understanding. She started to shoot these kind of spikes at their vehicles, and they started to make these *ting* sounds once they crashed into the cars. Windshields broke and broke, as the drivers inside dodged, attempting to safeguard themselves from the ss.


    ¡°Okay, yes!!¡± I cheered as Nikki proceeded.


    ¡°Let me jump in and have a good time,¡± Tisiah said, as he got his wand out. He immediately broadened his arm, and he started to do magic.


    ¡°Here¡¯s to trusting this works,¡± he said, as he recited. The muscle cars started to dial back as a result of the enchanted that Tisiah projected. Out of nowhere the tires busted, and one of them started to lose foothold, sliding and attempting to keep it on its wheels however it was not working. The energy pushed it over and it started to go into a rollover, a destructive one, with parts and ss shooting through the air. It did a total turn and arrived over on the ground.


    .....


    ¡°Well finished,¡± I said. ¡°Presently how about we leave before different ones make up for lost time to us.¡±


    When that¡¯s what I said, maybe it was the activator for level two.


    Out of nowhere trucks skewered through the muscle vehicle gathering, and they appeared to be quick and striking, as though they could smash us and totally take us out. ¡°All things considered, that ismentable,¡± I murmured.


    ¡°Not actually,¡± Mchi said, taking his wand out. He initiated it, and there was an enormous st that exploded all of the muscle cars, making them detonate and transform into a heap of garbage and pieces.


    ¡°Where was that quite some time in the past?!¡± September yelled.


    ¡°It requires investment to reload, do you have at least some idea how much energy that takes?!¡± he said, breathing vigorously. ¡°Forget about it,¡± September expressed quietly as she returned to driving. The fire from the detonating cars was all the while seething solid, and I could experience the intensity from as far as possible inside the vehicle.


    That is hot. That is really hot, as more sweltering than a broiler.


    However at that point, more trucks sped through the fire, around three or five of them that were on our tail.


    ¡°Good gracious,¡± I said.


    ¡°Not another,¡± Tisiah grumbled. However at that point there was one truck that was following us, that appeared as though it was from the public authority or something to that effect. I saw nothing like it, it was defensively covered and had colored windows and two miniguns that were positioned as an afterthought rather than mirrors.


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t look well disposed,¡± Mchi said. Out of nowhere it started to shoot, with the projectiles zooming past and through our vehicle. ¡°Get down!¡± Tisiah yelled.


    ¡°Why?¡± I asked, not certain of what was happening.


    ¡°Since they will attempt to kill us!¡± he answered.


    I moved the window down, and I nced through the window with perfect timing to see the driver taking shots at us with his own firearm.


    I shouted in dread as I saw the projectile flying towards my face, however I avoided it, and I scarcely figured out how to move.


    Be that as it may, out of nowhere, the driver elerated and he smashed us, making us twirl around and collide with a wall. The vehicle shook enthusiastically once we crashed, and felt as though my cerebrum was gone to jam.


    The front trunk was pushed onto the windshield, and the front of the vehicle was totally squashed.


    ¡°Gracious, wow, that damages,¡± Mchi pitifully expressed, hacking from the soil that was sshing on us. ¡°How about we leave before that truck shoots us into bits! Tisiah, open the entryway and let the other out!¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Tisiah said, opening the entryway and leaping out of the vehicle. I followed his model also, and leaped out of the vehicle. We as a whole did and promptly started to run. The truck started to speed towards us through the stormy timbend, and started firing with its miniguns.


    The snow grew up once the projectiles mmed into the snow as though it was soil. I stumbled on my own legs and fell on the floor, and I could hear the projectiles zooming in the air.


    ¡°Keep an eye out!¡± September yelled, and we as a whole made tracks.


    More trucks kept on pursuing us through the trees, and I could see one of the trucks beginning to self-destruct. Its tires exploded and it began to slip and slide in the snow, however it was past the point of no return. We were at that point near the entry of town.


    ¡°Come on, how about we continue to move!¡± September yelled. ¡°We can make it!¡± I said, however at that point I stumbled once more, and I failed miserably. Mchi helped me up, and I stood upstanding.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± I said. My group gestured in understanding. We started to move towards the wall of the entryways to town, when a truck cut directly before us.


    ¡°I¡¯ll divert it,¡± Nikki said. She raised her wand, and she pointed it at the truck. A boisterousmotion ejected and seemed like a cannon, and the truck detonated into pieces. Parts and ss flew all over the ce, and smoke swirled into the atmosphere. The driver was gone instantly.


    ¡°What was that?!¡± Mchi yelled. Nikki shared with him, ¡°That was a cannonball?¡±


    ¡°You sure that wasn¡¯t a RPG?¡±


    ¡°Indeed, I¡¯m certain.¡±


    ¡°Well that was less of diverting and a greater amount of killing for this situation,¡± September conceded.


    ¡°Presently how about we leave,¡± I said. We traversed the entryway and kept on going through the roads of town. There were just four now, however they kept on pursuing us through the roads of the town. We at longst happened upon a barricade that was obstructing the street, with a banner shaft that had a banner waving in the air.


    ¡°Wee to the city of harmony,¡± I read on it, which was peculiar in light of the fact that this was a disaster area. We got around the barricade, while the trucks just crashed through them, showing exactly the way in which solid they were.


    We continued to run, until we ran over another road obstruction. This one wasprised of stones that were molded and put into a straight line, framing a barricade. ¡°Indeed, that is simply lucky,¡± Nikki protested. ¡°Presently, we¡¯re stuck!¡±


    ¡°Expressing the conspicuous to the surprise of no one,¡± Mchi said.


    We nned to kick the bucket here, we were truly going to bite the dust here. The trucks sped towards us, most likely holding up to smush with their front. However at that point I remembered something. My Perk, on the off chance that I could actuate it, I could blow these trucks away. Be that as it may, how? I don¡¯t actually have the foggiest idea how to gather or call it. It simply happens when I¡¯m near peeing my jeans. Be that as it may, I was too frozen in dread to try and be moving, so I expected to think about some way.


    All things considered, perhaps in the event that I charge towards it and attempt to punch it, it¡¯ll some way or another actuate?


    ¡°Folks, simply stand by here,¡± I expressed, running towards the cars. I ran as quick as possible. I got increasingly close to the trucks, until I was right close to them. I charged towards them, preparing to punch them. When I pulled back my clench hand, I saw my arms turn sparkling red, with power jerking in my veins. I had a path of red speed behind my clench hands, and when I punched, maybe a vault of power was gathered, however at that point it started to rise and develop greater, it out of nowhere recently detonated.


    Indeed, it detonated.


    The sky just sparkled red, as though the sun was simply speeding towards Earth. The cars exploded, with entryways and ss flying all over the ce. The trucks were annihted, and the ground shook from the power of the st. Then, at that point, there was quietness. Quietness as though nobody was around any longer. When the trucks arrived on the ground, the top of the vehicle popped off, and the driver was tossed out of it. He arrived on his feet in the snow, however he was taken unconscious. The sound of metal pounded against the earth, making the trees shiver. I inhaled hard, totally stunned by what just became. The group watched as one with shock on their countenances. They didn¡¯t anticipate this by any stretch of the imagination. Mchi then, at that point, tapped on my back and murmured into my ear, ¡°I figure we ought to leave. Nikki made a vehicle for us so we can leave now before they call the police on us.¡± I gestured in understanding, and I helped every other person get into the vehicle, and we left the scene.


    I was as yet stunned by what I recently did, of the power that I held inside my arms.


    I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea what kind of Perk this was, however it was strong. So strong that it had the option to make the sky sparkle, and the cars promptly exploded. I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea how or why, yet I was only delighted to be alive. In any case, I was additionally worn out as though I haven¡¯t rested for three days or something, simr to it took every one of the supplements and energy from my body and just involved it in that punch. We kept on driving, still in shock and disarray of what urred before our eyes.

 Chapter 20

    Chapter 20: An Interrogation


    We continued driving through the town, where there were just citizens rushing through the streets, trying to see what urred back there.


    I¡¯m not exactly certain how far it came, but in light of what I saw ¨C what those individuals saw ¨C that appeared to go quite far.


    We were inside just some typical Grand Marshall, although Mchi keptining that she ought to have been picked a rich vehicle, like a Bugatti or Lamborghini or something to that effect.


    ¡°Hey, guys,¡± Nikki said. ¡°The time for this vehicle is running out, so I think it¡¯s best we stop somewhere so we can catch up on our information before we try to call Mr. Drails.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, in addition to I¡¯m ravenous, but I think everybody is heading to bed,¡± Mchi said. ¡°We wouldn¡¯t have the option to eat until morning.¡±


    ¡°Well that¡¯s if you¡¯re not in school,¡± Nikki said. ¡°Majority of us are.¡±


    As we were driving, we saw a diner that was by the side of us, and immediately our mouths started to water.


    .....


    ¡°Let¡¯s go in there,¡± Mchi said. ¡°We might not see another restaurant from here for another mile or somewhere in the vicinity.¡± We stopped in the lot, where there weren¡¯t many individuals which is most likely something worth being thankful for.


    I think we previously became celebrities an hour prior, so I didn¡¯t want to see them pointing fingers at me. We got out of our vehicle and strolled inside the diner, where we requested something to eat.


    Well, September did for us all. I¡¯m not picky, I just eat something on the menu in light of what the price is because my mother doesn¡¯t like to waste a lot.


    I sat down with Tisiah, but then Nikki started to move over to my side also, so she was currently sitting with us. I surmise she just wanted to sit with her brother. But then she said, ¡°I¡¯m so used to sitting opposite you.¡±


    Then how could she move here ¨C it¡¯s most likely nothing to stress over. We sat silent briefly, not certain of what to share with one another, then Nikki inquired, ¡°Connor?¡±


    ¡°Yeah?¡±


    ¡°How could you do that?¡± she inquired. I ended uppletely clear about what to say. ¡°I ¨C I don¡¯t know,¡± I said. ¡°I surmise I was just hoping for something good.¡±


    ¡°Well that would have neither rhyme nor reason,¡± Mchi said. ¡°There is no spell that causes that much destruction, and you realize that you needed to punch it. There was absolutely not a chance you were that desperate to survive that you tried to punch a truck ¨C a truck!¡± Mchi said. ¡°You have a perk, don¡¯t you.¡±


    I swallowed, not certain what to try and say. If I were to express something about it, that would just bring my parents into the mix to this and I don¡¯t want to say anything.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, perhaps, I¡¯m just not certain where from,¡± I said. ¡°I never realize that I could do that.¡±


    ¡°Heh,¡± Mchiughed. ¡°Then for what reason did you try to punch the trucks, there is absolutely not a chance you had that much boldness to punch those.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, OK!¡± I shouted, feeling a high degree of stress on my shoulder. I sighed as the gathering stared at me in concern. ¡°I just did it, and I did it, alright?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± Mchi muttered. ¡°Something is going on, and I will find out about it.¡±


    September strolled over with our food varieties, out of nowhere entering a presence of an exceptionally steamed conversation. ¡°What urred here?¡± she inquired. Mchi sneered. ¡°We suspect that Connor has a perk and he knows it, but he¡¯s trying to hide it.¡±


    ¡°Goodness, he definitely does,¡± she said. ¡°There ought to be not a ringly obvious exnation to hide it, that¡¯s a generally excellent thing.¡±


    ¡°But that implies he¡¯d be Mr. Drails¡¯ child because no one but he can have a Perk if his father has it, if not, he can¡¯t. Are you his child?¡± Mchi inquired.


    ¡°No, he didn¡¯t tell me ¨C ¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s yourst name?¡± September inquired. Before I actually might open my mouth, Nikki came to my protection. ¡°You folks shouldn¡¯t cross-examine him like this!¡± Nikki shouted. ¡°You ought to be happy that he even saved us.¡±


    ¡°Quiet, whiny child.¡±


    ¡°Who¡¯d you call a whiny child?¡± Tisiah asked, out of nowhere burning out of frustration.


    ¡°I did, got an issue?!¡± Mchi shouted, then nced back at me. ¡°What¡¯s yourst name?!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t bother him!¡± Nikki shouted.


    ¡°What is yourst name kid?!¡±


    ¡°Just shut your rambling mouth would ya!¡± Tisiah requested.


    ¡°What is yourst name?!¡±


    I felt such a feeling of stress and disturbance that I started to feel incited, and I felt as though my ears were steaming out of frustration, and my face trembling as though I wanted to shout ¨C because I wanted to shout, I truly wanted to. Their shouts and yelling continued to sink into my ears, and presently I couldn¡¯t stand it any longer.


    ¡°What ¨C is ¨C your ¨Cst ¨C name, Connor!!¡±


    Yet again I shouted and crushed the table as my arms sparkled red.


    Our food was obliterated, our table was broken to pieces and everybody just saw me in silence. I expected to get out at this very moment.


    I got up from my seat and strolled over to the bathroom, and I went inside a stall and locked it, trying to get myself together.


    I felt tears rush out of my eyes, and my breaths were quick but weighty. I couldn¡¯t stand it any longer, I felt tired and powerless, and I felt as though I was going to separate from every one of their questions.


    Mr. Drails made sure that I didn¡¯t tell them a single thing about our rtionship, but I was just so worried. I just ended up in a corner and there was no chance to get out of this.


    Out of nowhere somebody thumped on the entryway, not the stall, the entryway. It was September.


    ¡°Connor?¡± she inquired.


    ¡°Indeed?¡±


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± she inquired.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I replied. ¡°I feel a bit stressed I presume.¡± ¡°Might you at any point emerge?¡± she inquired. I sighed and gestured. I opened the entryway, and she took me by the hand and drove me outside.


    ¡°Is everything alright?¡± she inquired.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine,¡± I lied. ¡°Just a bit tired.¡± Septemberughed, ¡°I¡¯m not imbecilic. You just said you were stressed seconds prior. Is it true or not that you are certain you are alright? Is it true or not that you are afraid to tell us the response to something?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing. Just forget it.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± she said. ¡°All in all, would you say you are going to tell me what urred back there?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said. ¡°Just every one of the questions that you folks were asking was making me frustrated.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± she inquired. I sighed. ¡°It¡¯s something you can¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡±


    ¡°No, I mean, I don¡¯t want to talk about it.¡±


    ¡°But I don¡¯t understand, for what reason can¡¯t we know? Is it that you don¡¯t want to tell us or he doesn¡¯t?¡± she inquired.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said. ¡°I just don¡¯t want to talk about it.¡±


    ¡°If you don¡¯t want to talk about it, then don¡¯t. I won¡¯t ask you additional inquiries,¡± she said. ¡°We¡¯ll just leave it at that.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said.


    ¡°Furthermore, don¡¯t stress,¡± she said. ¡°We will help you.¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± I said.

 Chapter 21

    Chapter 21: cklist


    We strolled over to our table, well not a very remarkable table but where we were sitting. Mchi took a gander at me with exceptionally intense skepticism and said, ¡°Would you say you are prepared to uncover yourself now?¡±


    ¡°Just let him be,¡± September said. ¡°He saved us and there¡¯s not a ringly obvious exnation to pose additional inquiries. Let¡¯s call Mr. Drails so we can get out of here.¡±


    ¡°But we didn¡¯t actually eat,¡± Tisiahined.


    ¡°We¡¯ll go to a drive-thru or something,¡± September said. We got up from our seats and started walking, that is until the portal unexpectedly opened up out of no ce and I found my screaming once we fell through it and ended up outside the YMPA.


    I found myself not breathing in shock of what just urred, and trying to deal with what just happened ten seconds prior.


    Then, we saw Mr. Drails standing outside with a not exactly enthusiastic face.


    ¡°Indeed, this is quite the surprise,¡± he said.


    .....


    ¡°Mr. Drails,¡± I said, finally getting my breath back. ¡°It¡¯s so great to see you.¡± Heughed, but not in a way where it was cheerful. ¡°It¡¯s great to see you folks, but the news you brought with you is not exactly ster, follow me in.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Since I want to hear what you need to say,¡± he said.


    I followed behind him as he drove us to what appeared to be a gathering room, where he sat down at the top of the table. ¡°Presently, tell me what you have aplished in your mission,¡± he said.


    ¡°All things considered, we did find out that the foe was not using a lot of magic in their attacks,¡± I started, trying to lighten up the state of mind.


    ¡°Indeed, but I really want to hear an actual list of what you found,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    Nikki started, ¡°Connor observed that Demeitrus Rocke was the one that kidnapped Dr. Micheal Jones and that they might be shipping him to an underground base called the BMO Base.¡±


    ¡°The British Mage Organization, allies with the TSA,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Would appear to be legit, luckily another person will manage that.¡± ¡°Another person?¡± Nikki stuttered.


    ¡°Indeed, I will pick another gathering who will be taking consideration of the rest of the work,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m cklisting every one of you from being on additional missions for the next four months.¡± We as a whole wound up in shock with widened eyes and opened mouths.


    ¡°But, Mr. Drails,¡± I said. ¡°That¡¯s too lengthy!¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± he said. ¡°But, it should be done. You caught the entire town! A Good thing no one had the option to see you through that shining light that you some way or another did. You were thoughtless to think often about exposing us, presently this is on all the news all over the ce! You caused this Connor, and you will be punished.¡±


    ¡°But Mr. Drails,¡± I said. ¡°We didn¡¯t intend to cause this!¡±


    ¡°Indeed, indeed, you did,¡± he said. ¡°You tried to punch a truck, you obviously understood what you were trying to do.¡± ¡°Because we were cornered by a tremendous barricade of stones!¡± I contended. ¡°Did you expect us to die?¡±


    ¡°No, I expected you to call me! We can see where you are on the grid map, but we can¡¯t see your situation! If you truly required help, I would¡¯ve gotten you out of there, but no, you wanted to show everybody that you could do everything, and presently you make your entire gathering be cklisted. Congrattions, you screwed up!¡± he said, keeping everybody in silence. ¡°Presently leave my room.¡±


    ¡°But, Mr. Drails,¡± I said. ¡°Please, I beseech you! I¡¯ll do anything!¡±


    ¡°Anything?¡± he inquired.


    ¡°Indeed, I will do anything, please!¡± I said. ¡°I could be cklisted, but not them.¡± Mr. Drails sighed. ¡°What one does affects every other person.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°Indeed, I¡¯m unfortunately I can¡¯t permit you to jeopardize my other agents. All of you really want to return home and think about your actions, and what you did wrong,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ll transport you folks to your homes.¡±


    We went out of his office, as my team strolled out of frustration. ¡°Guys, I¡¯m so heartbroken, it¡¯s just that ¨C ¡±


    ¡°Stay quiet,¡± Mchi said, making the gesture. ¡°I don¡¯t like talking to jokesters. What¡¯s more, you¡¯re 110 percent one.¡±


    He left as Nikki followed him and the rest of the gathering also. ¡°Wait, Tisiah, you believe me right?!¡± I inquired.


    ¡°I do, and you would it be advisable for me,¡± he said and he continued walking through the corridor. ¡°Nikki, you know I was trying to save us, right?¡± I inquired. She didn¡¯t respond to me and continued walking.


    The one, in particr, that was behind was September.


    ¡°September?¡± I said, but this time a bit more silent. She stopped and turned her head at me. ¡°You know I¡¯m heartbroken, do you folks forgive me?¡±


    She sighed. ¡°My father was a street racer, made a bit of cash with the goal that we could at least survive. He needed to evade the police, the authorities, everything just so he could provide for us. I was so inspired by him that I wanted to work on a task that got such a lot of money flow just so I could help my father. My mother died while giving birth to me so he needed to teach my five brothers and me, while additionally trying to make money to help us. I just wanted to be like him.¡±


    Sheid back on the wall, looking down onto the floor. ¡°I got into fights at school and I beat up kids that tried to screw with me. What¡¯s more, that¡¯s the point at which I was invited by the YMPA. Not just did I hear that I could save lives using powers to defeat them, but when I graduated from this school, I could get such a lot of money flow by being a YMPA spy mage, and I could help my father.¡±


    ¡°But we¡¯re being cklisted for a considerable length of time, you can still graduate by then right?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°At the point when you¡¯re cklisted, you can never graduate!¡± she shouted. ¡°I¡¯ll be kicked out of this school once I turn eighteen. This work, just to leave. Presently I want you to hear this obviously.¡± She strolled over to me with her face trembling out of frustration. ¡°You are not permitted to be friends with me again! Ever! I don¡¯t want to see you at any point down the road, and if you even try to talk to me, I¡¯ll kill you myself.¡±


    I stammered in dread. ¡°I... I¡¯m heartbroken,¡± I said.


    ¡°Great,¡± she said and left.


    I stood there in shock, not knowing what to do. I felt such a weighty feeling in my heart, and I drooped onto the corridor. Tears poured from my eyes, as I wailed and cried. I expected to follow through with something, I truly expected to, but what?


    Perhaps I could try to convince him again, but he¡¯s just going to send me out again.


    I got up and started walking, and out of nowhere a portal opened up in front of me, and I wound up tumbling in the front of my home. I sighed, trying to wipe the tears away. I rang the doorbell, trying to keep a straight face once my mother came to open it.


    ¡°All things considered, you¡¯re back quitete, you really want to get to school quickly!¡± she said. ¡°You can go in these clothes.¡±


    ¡°They might get too dirty,¡± I said. ¡°I can change quickly.¡± She sighed as I hurried inside of the house, and approached my room. I could hear her express, ¡°Something about that kid.¡±


    I strolled into my room, but I didn¡¯t change but just couldn¡¯t stop thinking about what just urred. There was something I expected to do to substantiate ourselves worthy of doing a mission.


    Then, that¡¯s the point at which it clicked in my mind.


    We could just do the mission ourselves without his supervision, we just have to find a method for getting to the base faster before the other agents actually do. Technically going maverick, but the thing is that would most likely get us kicked out of the school. But if we can never graduate, then what¡¯s the point of staying in this school if we¡¯re not going to do anything with it. We had everything to gain by simply going for it.

 Chapter 22

    Chapter 22: A Wish to Convince


    After school passed, I immediately pre-arranged my discourse to tell them. At the point when Mr. Drails got me into the school, I nced around trying to check whether anybody was walking around the corridors.


    Nobody was, meaning that they were at lunch right at this point. I strolled over to the cafeteria and tried to look for them, looking left and right and ¨C peeking out sometimes just to check whether they were there.


    But when I turned my head back to the cafeteria, I saw two of them, Tisiah and Nikki. They were all talking amongst themselves and I felt like my temperament was instantly going to plummet once I came even two inches into their presence.


    I sighed and tried to publicity myself up, but it¡¯s difficult to do when they hate you forever.


    I gradually took my steps and went over to them, trying to practice the discourse that I arranged.


    ¡°Uh ¨C guys,¡± I said, and they turned around and checked me out. ¡°What¡¯s this imbecile doing here?¡± Tisiah inquired.


    Goodness, that hurt downright horrendous. But I kept myself together. ¡°Hey, guys I was thinking of an idea that might deny our cklisting,¡± I said. They took a gander at me and they started to chuckle, and they wereughing hard. Tisiah¡¯s face was red once I talked, and Nikki was at that point crying tears.


    .....


    ¡°Guys, I¡¯m serious,¡± I said. They stoppedughing. ¡°Goodness, you¡¯re serious?¡± Nikki said. I gestured my head. ¡°Indeed, the best way to do it is to show him that we can finish a mission in the manner in which he wants us to.¡±


    ¡°But he eliminated us from the mission, how would you expect us to get back?¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°We do the mission ourselves without his permission.¡±


    They fell silent, surprised by my suggestion. Their widened eyes sort of gave me a nice sentiment, I don¡¯t know why.


    ¡°That would get us kicked out of the school!¡± Nikki said. ¡°That would make things ¨C ¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m in,¡± Tisiah said. Nikki took a gander at him concernedly, ¡°What do you mean?¡± Tisiah turned back to her and sighed. ¡°What is there to lose? At any rate, it¡¯s not like we¡¯re going to graduate.¡±


    ¡°I suppose you have a point,¡± Nikki said. ¡°I¡¯m in too.¡± We as a whole gestured, but presently it was time to move on to Mchi and September.


    September was the one I was most terrified of.


    ¡°Do you have any idea about where Mchi is?¡± I inquired. Tisiah replied, ¡°He most likely went to that training ce where he generally just punches sacks to keep himself fit.¡±


    ¡°Gracious OK, I¡¯ll see you allter,¡± I said.


    I quickly went through the lobbies between the stairs on the left and I found the training center, where nobody was there except one man.


    Mchi.


    I strolled through the center and I saw him boxing with those punching packs, and each swing was so strong, I felt like it was almost better than my punch in that pursuit. ¡°Hey, uh Mchi?¡± I called faintly, and he checked me out. Out of nowhere, he took a swing at me, and I evaded it.


    ¡°You want to fight me?¡± he said. I shook my head. ¡°No, I never wanted to fight you, I just want to talk to you, alright?¡± He stopped andughed, and I could tell his boiling rage was pushing him to attack me. ¡°Listen, I know you¡¯re distraught but I can get us out of this,¡± I said.


    ¡°Being cklisted?¡± he inquired. ¡°How exactly?¡±


    ¡°I was thinking we just do the mission ourselves without his permission, and when he sees he does, he can repudiate the cklist and we will still get an opportunity to graduate,¡± I said. ¡°You in?¡±


    Yet again he saw me, started to stroll to his punching sack, then he thought back and sighed, then back to his punching pack and hitting the punching sack, then strolled gradually towards me in a menacing manner. ¡°OK, this is how it will go. I truly do need to say I was a bit impressed with your Perk, and I want to fight you. If you win, you don¡¯t need to tell me yourst name, if not, you need to tell me yourst name,¡± he said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re trying to say,¡± I said, a bit terrified. ¡°I¡¯m joining the arrangement either way,¡± he said. ¡°But since you¡¯re here, perhaps I can make an arrangement with you. You in, or chicken?¡±


    ¡°I surmise I am,¡± I said, trying to sound bold. ¡°Think of it as your rpense.¡± ¡°I will,¡± Mchi said, as he took off his boxing gloves and charged at me.


    We both fought with one another, trying to get a hit. I tried to evade and utilize my speed, but he was quick to such an extent that I couldn¡¯t catch him. I felt like I was getting no ce, and I realize that I was going to get hit. I needed to think of something, so I tried to throw him wobbly, and I threw a punch at him.


    ¡°Hold up!¡± he said, dodging my punch and throwing a punch at me. I tried to avoid it, but I was too sluggish. I got hit, and I felt my body ram into the wall behind me.


    ¡°Ha!¡± he said. ¡°You thought you could evade that, huh?¡± I stood up, but I was stupefied and dizzy. I strolled over to him, and I hit him upside the head, and I felt his nose break. He tumbled down, and I stood above him, breathing heavily.


    ¡°You want to fight me?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Indeed, I want to fight you,¡± he said.


    ¡°Then let¡¯s finish this,¡± I said. I put my fist up, and he got it and we started to wrestle. We were both fighting one another, and neither of us was winning. I was using my speed, but he was just too.


    I gazed upward and saw somebodying. It was Mr. Drails.


    ¡°Ok, Mr. Drails, I was just practicing with Mchi,¡± I said.


    ¡°That¡¯s nice, I just saw both of you and I was wondering what urred,¡± Mr. Drails said, a bit confounded, and left the entryway. ¡°sses are about to start soon,¡± he added, closing the entryway. We continued our fight, and I could feel the blood dripping down my face. I was getting tired, and I was losing.


    ¡°You know, I was just thinking, if you lost, you¡¯d need to tell me yourst name,¡± he said. I was getting desperate, and I tried to throw him shaky, but he didn¡¯t fall.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter at all to me,¡± I said. I pushed him against the wall and I hit him directly in the gut, and I heard a boisterous thud.


    ¡°Ow, that hurts,¡± he said. I punched him again, and he wheezed for breath.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t really matter to me,¡± I said, punching him again. Unexpectedly, he got a hold of me and threw me across the room. I fell to the floor and he stood over me, breathing heavily.


    ¡°You want to fight me?¡± he inquired.


    ¡°I want to fight you, I¡¯m not chickening out,¡± I said, and he hopped at me. I avoided it, and I had the option to get him by the neck, but I was too powerless to lift him.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll give you another opportunity to tell me yourst name,¡± he said. I held him tight and I hit him upside the head, and I felt his nose break again.


    ¡°Gracious, you want to fight me?¡± he said, grabbing my throat.


    ¡°I want to fight you,¡± I said, punching him in the face. He tumbled down, and I had the option to get him by the neck again. Out of nowhere, he hit my shin and afterward my thigh, and I felt my stability wobble as I tumbled down onto the floor, exhausted.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter to me,¡± I said. I gazed toward him and I saw that he was smiling.


    ¡°So you¡¯re saying yourself couldn¡¯t care less if you tell me yourst name?¡± he said. ¡°Ought to have been just saying that quite a while in the past. Presently what is it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s Drails, he¡¯s my uncle,¡± I said. He took a gander at me, and I could see that he was stunned.


    ¡°What, so you¡¯re rted to Drails?¡± he inquired.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said.


    ¡°So how would you have the Perk, since I thought you must be in his direct family line,¡± he said. ¡°That doesn¡¯t appear to be right.¡± He picked me up starting from the earliest stage and patted my back. ¡°You put up a decent fight,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯ve obviously been following your sses.¡± ¡°All things considered, I really do catch on quickly,¡± I said. ¡°Just didn¡¯t think it would be that fast.¡±


    We both left the training center, soon to get to our sses.

 Chapter 23

    Chapter 23: September


    When our sses finished, I tried to search for September. She appeared to have just gone with the wind, or just disappeared in my sights.


    You know, if I brought the team with me on this, I¡¯m pretty certain I¡¯d have to a lesser degree an opportunity to getpletely ¨C brutally killed by her. I looked around, taking through the lobbies and surveying up the stairs, but I couldn¡¯t find her.


    As I went downstairs, I saw a simr figure or some likeness thereof, but the face wasn¡¯t anything like it should be and I continued to look. Being that I checked the stairs the main spot left was the cafeteria, which not a lot of individuals were entering into.


    This must be the spot.


    I went into the cafeteria and tried to search for her, moving from one side to another before my eyes caught onto her, just sitting there.


    That¡¯s right, just sitting there.


    This time, however, my walk over to her was much slower-about two inches per step. I didn¡¯t want to frighten her, but I also didn¡¯t want her to terrorize me and ultimately kill me.


    .....


    But then she tracked down eyes with me, and they were filled with hatred. She took a gander at me sternly, her face seemingly to almost snicker, but the face didn¡¯t actually want to move.


    She thought down, and sheughed a couple of airy breaths, and afterward she took a gander at me ¨C as though I should be gone. She continued to chuckle after that, but thest one was more coarse, as if she were a bull or something.


    There was silence, a moment where she continued to stare at the work area vacantly.


    But then, she charged at me and held me by the throat, pinning me to the wall. My windpipes felt as though they were gradually crumbling by the moment, and my body started to shake a little.


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± she asked with a rough but destructive voice. ¡°What are you doing here?¡±


    ¡°To ¨C to ¨C to tell you something!¡± I said, trying to get her hands off me, but then she just shut in tighter and presently my pipes were crushing at a faster rate.


    ¡°You dumb little brainless kid,¡± she said. ¡°You didn¡¯t hear what I just said, did you?¡±


    ¡°I did,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s just I have an arrangement that could ¨C ¡± she shut in tighter, and presently, my body was beginning to il around, with my legs sliding across the floor in order to get out.


    My pipes gradually started to squish and squash, and my breaths felt hard and painful to get into.


    ¡°This is what happens when you don¡¯t listen to directions, kid,¡± she said, with a smile that widened with her bright teeth. Her eyes became red and she started to shake me, as herughs became menacing constantly.


    Then she punched me, straight at the side of my face and I dropped to the floor, trying to heave for breath. She peered down on me,ughing and smiling with her eyes bloodshot red at this point.


    ¡°Sept ¨C t ¨C ember,¡± I stammered pitifully. ¡°I have an idea, to possibly get us denied from being cklisted.¡±


    She peered down at me with her head turned sideways, with her frightening smile that was still painted onto her face, but then she snatched me by the neckline of my shirt and afterward generally sat me down.


    ¡°Alright, say your idea,¡± she said.


    I sighed. ¡°Alright listen, I was thinking we do the mission ¨C ¡±


    I started to hack, and my throat started to consume. September took a gander at me concerningly, which actually made me grateful for that.


    ¡± ¨C ourselves, and on the grounds that we aplished it, he¡¯ll likely renounce the cklist,¡± I said, trying to catch my breath.


    She sighed and sat down, as her eyes gradually became typical white, instead of the red that appeared to represent her thirst for blood. ¡°That would just ¨C get us kicked out.¡±


    ¡°But what is there to lose?¡± I said. ¡°We can show him that we are worthy of being official government agent mages, after this is our first mission.¡±


    I sighed and sat by September, still feeling a bit ufortable to do so except if she just turns psychotic again.


    ¡°I failed my first test ¨C yes I know ¨C so they said it was most likely umon that I was going to get any sort of mission until I did another test the next year, but I was fine with that. The main motivation behind why I¡¯m doing this is a result of you all. My mistake shouldn¡¯t have ruined your lives so I want to fix it,¡± I said.


    She took a gander at me andughed. ¡°Of course, I mean you are right, what is there to lose?¡±


    I gestured. ¡°For reasons unknown you were so elusive, in fact I at first thought I saw you walking through the lobby, but the face didn¡¯t look like ya, so I went away.¡±


    Out of nowhere, September¡¯s eyes widened and she took a gander at me and afterward she overviewed around, and afterward she took a gander at me again.


    ¡°OK, get under the table now,¡± she requested, looking this way and that.


    She got her wand out and she started to look behind the walls of the cafeteria.


    What was happening?


    Was this a joke of some kind?


    But then out of nowhere I heard fighting happening behind me. I shivered in dread and I had no real option except to run out and see. Also, when I got out, shock immediately sprinkled onto my face. I saw September and the other carbon copy tussling with one another, with her throwing extreme catastrophes for the face. Abruptly the individual threw September off of her, and quickly tried to bounce onto her feet. But then September thrusted her leg from the beginning she tackled the individual, and afterward they both crashed onto the ground.


    ¡°Let go of me!¡± shouted the individual, who was presently screaming.


    September held her by the neck, gradually crushing the neck to where she started to wince and gag. Her arms iled around the spot and her voice sounded distorted, scarcely being ready to try and say a word. ¡°Who aplish you work for?!¡± September shouted.


    The individual hacked and wheezed for air, and afterward gazed toward September with her dim eyes.


    ¡°I¡¯m not telling you anything,¡± she said with a chortle that gave me a shuddery feeling. ¡°Then don¡¯t,¡± September said, and she crushed her head into the ground, knocking her out. I took a gander at her with dismay, and September adjusted her hair. ¡°We definitely know where she was from, and she was definitely trying to kill me. I¡¯ve never seen assassinations so frequent like this year.¡±


    Out of nowhere, we heard footsteps and it was the rest of the gathering who wound up in confusion once they entered our presence.


    ¡°What on earth urred here?¡± Mchi asked, his face filled with shock and some curiosity.


    ¡°Somebody tried to assassinate September by looking like her, presumably so nobody knows,¡± I said. ¡°Indeed, that¡¯s what she said.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, did you tell her about the arrangement,¡± Mchi inquired.


    ¡°Yeah, I did,¡± I said. ¡°I think we got the entire gathering now.¡± Tisiah then said, ¡°So what¡¯s the arrangement?¡± And I ended up at a corner, mainly in light of the fact that I didn¡¯t think I was going to get this far.


    ¡°Um, I don¡¯t know, I surmise we got to design,¡± I said. ¡°Didn¡¯t think every one of you all were actually going to concur.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, since we have, presently we really want to perceive how we get to Britain and save Dr. Jones,¡± Nikki said. ¡°There¡¯s an airport here right?¡±


    ¡°Definitely,¡± Mchi said. ¡°But I don¡¯t think it¡¯s close to here.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps we¡¯ll think about this tomorrow,¡± I said. ¡°But until further notice, let¡¯s just get to ss.¡±

 Chapter 24

    Chapter 24: The nning


    When every one of our sses finished, we went to the secret hallway ¨C well just the hallway to where it prompted the entryway outside which nobody likes to stroll through mainly in light of the fact that they immediately get transported by Mr. Drails.


    ¡°Alright, when are we going to start this entire idea?¡± Mchi said. ¡°Is it going to be today?¡±


    ¡°Most likely not,¡± Nikki said. ¡°We¡¯d have to n ourselves in for a flight to Britain, in addition to we¡¯d require our passports and all that great stuff.¡±


    ¡°Alright, so we as a whole concurred we were going to Pornd International Jetport, correct?¡± September said. ¡°Not certain if they go to Britain a lot.¡±


    ¡°Well do we really want to get baggage, portable items?¡± Tisiah inquired. ¡°I kind of like stuff like these.¡±


    ¡°Well... it¡¯s most likely best to just take the clothes we have here and get there. Nikki can make a temporary dors for us or something to get us food or something,¡± September said.


    ¡°Yeah, so one question, how are we going to locate the base, and when we do and we get the scientist out of there, how would we return?¡± I inquired. ¡°They might bomb the ne or something as we¡¯re leaving.¡±


    .....


    ¡°To locate it is simple, I can easily just teleport us there in light of what the guide says,¡± September replied. ¡°But getting out will be hard.¡±


    ¡°We can continuously do a vehicle pursue again,¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°Furthermore, look where that got us,¡± Nikki added. Mchi then contended, ¡°We were running from trucks, not driving away from them, that would¡¯ve never urred if we continued driving.¡±


    ¡°The vehicle crashed!¡± Nikki shouted.


    The entire gathering listened to their argument with clear faces, uncertain what to do or what to say.


    ¡°Uh, guys ¨C I don¡¯t think we want anybody hearing us right now,¡± I said. They stopped but gave hostile ganders at one another.


    ¡°At any rate,¡± September continued. ¡°We¡¯re most likely going to have to find an airne or something, and Tisiah can assist us by using his new shield with powering.¡±


    ¡°I thought you could study a certain something?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°The main elements of nature, fire, water, ice, air, earth, and electricity ¨C but everything else is just what we call additional items. We for the most part relearn those consistently, just in the event that new studentse, but ones who previously picked their majors to skip their sses, or they join to change their major.¡±


    ¡°What if you have multiple main abilities?¡± I inquired. September sighed, ¡°That¡¯s the reason you pick a significant. Since some you are better at using than others, so the teacher would eliminate the other main powers from you with the goal that you wouldn¡¯t be tired from holding thatrge number of abilities.¡±


    ¡°Alright, nice session, presently ¨C as you were saying,¡± Nikki said, giving September the stage.


    ¡°Yeah, so it¡¯s most likely going to be attacked by their nes, but here¡¯s the beauty of being a government operative, you can sneak past them. So we just have to get on a ne and we ought to be protected,¡± she said.


    ¡°Along these lines, what if there isn¡¯t sufficient fuel?¡± Tisiah inquired. ¡°Appears to be pretty important.¡± September said, ¡°Then we just utilize our powers to make more.¡±


    ¡°Wait, we can do that?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Obviously,¡± she said.


    ¡°How?¡± I asked, feeling a significant burden of confusion on my head. ¡°Nikki can create a jerry can or something and put some in there, push us along.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t those thingsst for just an amount of time?¡± I inquired. ¡°How long do you think we¡¯ll have the option to fly with those?¡±


    ¡°All things considered, I think that we can just make a few longer ones,¡± she said. ¡°It¡¯s not like we have any limitations or anything.¡±


    ¡°But how are we going to get the fuel in the first spot?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°We just get it from some ce,¡± she said.


    ¡°You can do that?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°All things considered, I surmise we could get it from a tanker truck,¡± she said. ¡°Might be one down the street or so from the underground base.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think we need to stress over that,¡± Mchi said. ¡°The ne ought to as of now have fuel, and if not, she can just teleport us to one.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, that sounds great,¡± Nikki said. ¡°Where are we going tond, do we have a specific spot?¡±


    ¡°Uh, no,¡± I said, with a sigh. ¡°We¡¯ll just need to try and find a spot tond.¡±


    ¡°I can guide us,¡± September said. ¡°I know how to fly a ne a bit. My uncle is a pilot so I advanced some stuff from him.¡±


    ¡°You know how to fly everything don¡¯t you,¡± Mchi stated.


    ¡°I know how to fly a couple of nes,¡± she said. ¡°I know how to drive vehicles, too, and I can ride a pony. Anything else I have absolutely no clue.¡± Everybody gestured in agreement. ¡°So where would it be a good idea for us we meet?¡± Tisiah inquired.


    ¡°Could the parking lot of the airport?¡± I suggested.


    ¡°That¡¯s perfect,¡± she said. ¡°But how are we going to go there, we can¡¯t walk. Perhaps we¡¯ll meet here and afterward I¡¯ll teleport us to the Airport.¡±


    ¡°Why not teleport us to the base,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Indeed, it¡¯s too far, in addition to there are many spots with just a green field,¡± September exined. ¡°Let¡¯s just stick to that arrangement.¡±


    ¡°Could we just teleport into the ne,¡± Nikki said. September shook her head. ¡°We¡¯ll be eliminated when we even arrive there. Presently we really want a method for seeing the inside of the base. We really want somebody to find a picture for us.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I inquired.


    September said, ¡°We¡¯re going to require ayout for the base, so we really want somebody to go in there and find a guide or something. With the goal that we know where we are entering.¡±


    ¡°Alright, so you folks can return home, and I will try to aplish something genuine quick,¡± I said. Every other person gestured and waited outside, as my brain reminded me of who was to drop them off.


    I strolled up the stairs and expected to get to my room, but then as I was walking, I saw beside me and I tracked down Mr. Drails¡¯ office entryway open. I gradually strolled to it and looked through the room, and he wasn¡¯t there.


    I checked out the area, making sure that he wasn¡¯t there. Then I strolled through my first sight directly in front of him.


    I nced through them, and they didn¡¯t appear to be quite a bit of interest. Just a lot of papers and stuff, with nothing about this everyday life rted to our mission here.


    I looked behind me and I saw a cab. I opened it and I saw a lot of files that were lined up behind each other. I flipped through the files, and they were by all ounts mostly empty. One had a picture of a girl, with a big smile all over. Seemed to be my mother when she was more youthful, perhaps in light of the fact that it was or something else. I continued to flip through, but they were all empty.


    ¡°This is weird,¡± I said so anyone might hear. I turned to the next file and saw a name on it. It said: SEPTEMBER


    I opened it, and it was brimming with pictures of her, like the one I just saw. Figures out, they make a point to continue to humiliate pictures in your files. But why everything else was empty? Then I took a gander at a cab that was by me and I went to it, and I saw it was filled with old books.


    ¡°Goodness, this is interesting,¡± I said, flipping through them. But then, as I flipped through it, something caught my eye and made me stop all that I was doing, and it appeared to be more visible the more I viewed at it as though it was the main file inside that cab. I opened it and saw it, as a weighty stone of confusion and stress, and befuddlement crashed on me. My eyes widened in surprise and in shock. My hands shook from the excruciating pain and thought that I was seeing here.


    This couldn¡¯t be true.


    This couldn¡¯t!


    I dropped to the floor, too frozen in shock to try and cry tears from my eyes, to try and deal with what just went over my eyes. My breaths were quick but weighty, and I could scarcely hear my heart beating.


    ¡°What...what is this?¡± I whispered as I stared at the paper. I still couldn¡¯t believe that this entire time, my life was a lie.


    Thank you for reading the free chapters. Now, if you buy a chapter, just put in a paragraphment: ¡°SMS¡±. By doing so, you will get a shout-out at the end of that chapter. If you buy a chapter and also this book, not only will you get a shout-out, your book will also be shout-out as well.

 Chapter 25

    25 Truth and Bonds


    Out of nowhere, I heard footstepsing fast behind me and my first intention was to run. I quickly got up to my feet, but when I turned around, I saw Mr. Drails staring at me right there.


    I was dead without a doubt, and I mean without a doubt.


    ¡°Connor,¡± he said. ¡°What are you doing?¡± I couldn¡¯t find myself to talk, but that is until he taken a gander at what I was holding in my grasp.


    He appeared to be surprised himself, sighing as he gradually walked to me and gradually took the birth certificate away from me.


    ¡°All things considered, I suppose you found out,¡± he said, this time with an all the more weighty sigh as though it prompted a while back, which I¡¯m certain was a while back when I was conceived.


    ¡°Connor, if you can if it¡¯s not too much trouble, sit down in that chair please,¡± he said in a repressed voice.


    Yet again I did and he did something very simr, and he sighed, but this one was the heaviest of all.


    ¡°Your mother and I were acquaintances when we were in the YMPA back in 1992. I truly liked her, although I didn¡¯t know she felt something very simr,¡± he said. ¡°My friend at that time, Demetrius Rocke, additionally felt a simr about her.¡±


    .....


    Heid in reverse on the chair as though telling him this was at that point too much energy used to try and continue. ¡°At some point, we were determined to keep an eye on a Russian general. Your mother, me, and Demetrius were on this mission together, but we were separated from one another.¡±


    ¡°What urred?¡± I asked, with an apprehension that I didn¡¯t feel.


    ¡°We were trapped by these revolutionaries, and your mother and I were separated from one another. She was taken by the revolutionaries, and I was captured by the Russians,¡± he said. ¡°Demetrius was killed by the revolutionaries. I was tortured for a really long time by the Russians, but I got away. I immediately hurried to find your mother until I viewed as her, and I had the option to get her to safety.¡±


    I took a gander at him with my mouth wide open. ¡°So then, how did Demetrius escape, since he obviously isn¡¯t dead,¡± I said. Mr. Drails said, ¡°A year passed after the incident, and afterward one day he arrived as everybody thoroughly searched with sickening dread as though he was a zombie or something. We thought he was dead, but we were ted to see him. But he wasn¡¯t ted to see us he said we left him for dead and that we didn¡¯t try to help him. He was mostly distraught at your mother though, in light of the fact that they were both captured by rebels. Before long enough they got into a fight, using the most intense of their powers and tricks and almost blowing up the school. I can still recollect the students screaming with sickening apprehension. I realized I expected to follow through with something, so I tackled him, trying to stop him from killing everybody. But it was toote, soon enough explosions from the school continued to explode, and it destroyed around 50% of the town,¡± he said. ¡°We were kicked out of school.¡±


    I sighed in shock, not knowing all of this urred.


    ¡°Your mother and I supported each other at whatever point we could, and afterward we married ten yearster, in 2003. We were together for a considerable length of time and afterward we had you, Connor. But then, when we birthed you, Demeitrus started to hunt us. We hadn¡¯t seen him for a considerable length of time but he was still as rageful as could be expected,¡± he said. ¡°We tried to run from him but he generally followed us, and I realized it wasn¡¯t alright for you. I told your mother to get with my brother and to just live with him. To forget about me, and she did so. She married my brother, but she never forgot me. In fact, that¡¯s the manner by which you even know I was your uncle.¡±


    ¡°Except you¡¯re not,¡± I said. ¡°You¡¯re not kidding.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, I am,¡± he said. ¡°I have been your father since you were conceived, I still will be.¡±


    ¡°So why you sent me to conflict with him in the mission,¡± I inquired. He sighed. ¡°I thought you would have the option to kill him with your Perk, so there would be harmony amongst our family, but in light of the results: You weren¡¯t prepared,¡± he said.


    ¡°So for what reason didn¡¯t you tell me any of this before now?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Since I didn¡¯t want to ruin your childhood. I wanted you to have an ordinary life, and I was afraid that if you knew the truth, you wouldn¡¯t have the option to trust me any longer,¡± he said. ¡°But presently, it doesn¡¯t really matter to me what you think of me. I just want you to know the truth now.¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°No, I mean, I¡¯m happy you¡¯re my father, but I¡¯m distraught that you lied to me for such an extremely long time.¡±


    Mr. Drails stood up and he smiled. ¡°It was to your benefit. I wanted you to be a strong man with the goal that one day you could protect the world from evil.¡±


    ¡°But you cklisted me,¡± I said. Mr. Drails sighed, and he sat down.


    ¡°Indeed, I did,¡± he said. ¡°All I wanted you to do was to kill him, but perhaps you could be like me, be what I used to be. But perhaps not this way, most likely not. I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t tell you the truth, but I was afraid you would hate me.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t hate you,¡± I said. ¡°What¡¯s more, I won¡¯t ever will.¡±


    ¡°Great,¡± he said. ¡°Presently, could we take a walk outside, and I¡¯ll show you something.¡±


    I gestured and we walked outside, where the sun was shining brightly. The trees painted the grass with beauty and poise, and the birds chirped and sang in the air. I saw a littleke in the distance, and I heard a familiar sound. The sound of rocks hitting the water, and afterward a sprinkle. It was as though it was morning, although it was four in the evening. ¡°Along these lines, what are we doing?¡± I asked Mr. Drails.


    He smiled and pointed at theke. ¡°That¡¯s where I grew up, and that¡¯s where my parents died.¡±


    I wheezed in shock. I turned to him and I saw his eyes were brimming with bitterness and pain. I felt terrible for him. I felt terrible for all of this, but I couldn¡¯t resist. I realize that this was my family.


    ¡°I¡¯m heartbroken,¡± I said.


    Mr. Drails sighed. ¡°At least you met your mother¡¯s parents, luckily they aren¡¯t dead. My father was a psycho sort of, but your¡¯s mother was actually an exceptionally nicedy. I was actually stunned to perceive how she turned out to be,¡± he said. ¡°My mother was to a greater degree a revolutionary, but she was still a nice individual, and I¡¯m certain you¡¯ll meet her sometime in the not so distant future.¡±


    I gestured, knowing I wasn¡¯t going to be alive to see her that ¡°sometime in the not so distant future.¡±


    ¡°How¡¯s life been doing ya?¡± Mr. Drails asked me.


    ¡°It¡¯s been alright,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯ve had some promising and less promising times, but generally speaking, I¡¯m doing great. Though the school still feels a bit weird to me, and I¡¯m notpletely certain how I feel about the botched mission.¡±


    ¡°All things considered, I genuinely want to believe that you don¡¯t lose the feeling of what you were raised for,¡± he said. ¡°What¡¯s more, I genuinely want to believe that you find a method for forgiving me.¡±


    ¡°I as of now have,¡± I said.


    Mr. Drails snickered. ¡°Yeah, I suppose you have. I¡¯m just happy you figured out the truth. I know that I haven¡¯t forever been the best parent, but I¡¯m still your father.¡±


    I gestured. ¡°I know, and I love you,¡± I said.


    ¡°I love you too, child,¡± he said.


    I sighed and smiled. ¡°I will miss you,¡± I said.


    ¡°I will miss you too,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s nice to see you¡¯re not difficult to get alongside, though you¡¯d be an introvert like me.¡±


    ¡°Trust me, I am,¡± I said. ¡°I just need a little additional opportunity to get used to everything, and I¡¯m certain I will.¡±


    Mr. Drails smiled. ¡°All things considered, I think it¡¯s time to take you home so you can start doing your schoolwork for high school.¡±


    Before sufficiently long, he opened a portal out of no ce, not in any event, giving personal time to try and get ready to walk through.


    I wound up out and about that was about fifty feet from my home, and right at that moment ¨C a feeling of bitterness and satisfaction struck my heart as tears welled in my eyes. I quickly wiped them off before they could slide down my cheeks, and I walked home feeling entirely different than anticipated.

 Chapter 26

    26 Very Slow Timing


    Today was the day, the day when we do the mission without help from anyone else. I in all actuality do need to say, I didn¡¯t think I nned to get this far into doing this. However at that point once more, I didn¡¯t anticipate seeing that my uncle is obviously my dad. I can¡¯t fault him however, I¡¯d most likely do likewise.


    Whenever school was finished, I showed up with Mr. Drails at the entry passage of the academy.


    However, at that point, the others appeared with their utility belts. We chose to put on some TSA furnishes with the goal that somebody could prate the base and get us a guide to sort out where to look. It¡¯s most likely best to know where we¡¯re going.


    Everybody appeared to be a piece confused once they headed outside, however, we were making it happen ¨C no doubt... essentially. ¡°Alright, everybody prepared?¡± September inquired.


    ¡°Did you recollect the road?¡± I asked her. She gestured.


    ¡°Then, at that point, we¡¯re prepared,¡± I said.


    Before sufficiently long, our bodies felt as though they were disappearing from the world immediately. And afterward, we arrived in the city, taking a gander at the air terminal that was right close to us.


    The terminals were essentially 100 feet in front of us. ¡°How about we arrive, speedy!¡± Tisiah said. September sneered, ¡°Don¡¯t bother stressing.¡±


    Out of nowhere, she magically transported us within the air terminal, into a line of simply three individuals to register us with the ne.


    .....


    When our turn came, September enlisted us and we before long went up the elevator. ¡°I would agree that this is going without any catch,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°We haven¡¯t dealt with any issues yet from the safety authorities or anything.¡±


    ¡°How could we really desire to?¡± I asked. ¡°Oppose we¡¯re holding whatever would make theme after us. Additionally, September has instant transportation, so we can without much of a stretch hurry away from them without any problem.¡±


    As we went up the steps, we ambled over to where the containers were. We put our coats and everything in those containers, while additionally attempting to hold ourselves back from sweating.


    As I went up to the scanner, the woman advised me to stop, requesting me to situate myself on those strides. The woman wore a blue vest and she was dark, with red-inteced hair. Her body was very thin and light-footed, which caused me to feel like she could move around quick.


    Out of nowhere, it signaled and I felt a controlling flood of dread string me up in my body, causing me to feel tense. ¡°Sir, could you at any point kindly remove your utility belt?¡± she asked. I motioned and I took it off, deeming a flood of assistance.


    ¡°You also could like to ce the wand in there as well,¡± she said.


    That is the point at which I obtained it.


    How could she realize it contained a wand? I took a gander at her waistline, seeing a dark utility belt sped. ¡°Guys,¡± I expressed, checking out at the remainder of the crowd.


    Then, at that point, out of nowhere, time halted.


    I felt as though I was moving at typical speed, however, or perhaps I was only quicker than the whole world or something to that effect. Did this additionally apany my perk or something to that effect?


    I would be wrong, in light of the fact that the dark woman promptly drove me to the cold ground ¨C and at an ordinary speed as well.


    I immediately pushed her off of me and I attempted to rapidly get up. When I did, she immediately tossed two punches, yet, I avoided them rapidly. Then, at that point, I attempted to throw a speedy left hook with my right.


    Then, at that point, she instantly utilized her leg to hit my thigh, faltering my steadfastness, and afterward, she kicked me. I fell over the carrier line and arrived on the ground.


    As I looked, I saw her jump out of sight and attempt to spear me with her clenched hand. I presently mixed up onto my feet and set myself up for another assault. She threw a left punch and I held it, then, at that point, she tossed a right and I held it too.


    Perhaps I¡¯m following through with something!


    However, at that point, she kicked me in the stomach and I staggered onto the scanner. Then, at that point, she immediately tossed a catastrophe for the left cheek and stumbled onto the other transport line.


    ¡°Hah, you believe you¡¯re serious areas of strength for so you?¡± she said. ¡°I understand what you supported at our base in gstaff.¡±


    ¡°That was gstaff?¡± I asked. She attempted to toss a right however I smacked it and I threw a punch ¨C with the exception that I missed. She snatched under me and got me, body hammering me onto the ground. ¡°Indeed, that was,¡± she said. ¡°You¡¯re one of those young men that has the Perk, and I in all actuality do need to say, it very well may be the most grounded one we¡¯ve at any point seen. Strength so strong it can blow an entire town away.¡±


    I moaned as I attempted to get up, however, the agony in my bones consumed and strengthened as I attempted to move.


    ¡°In this way, if I somehow happened to kill you now ¨C I¡¯d end the bloodline of your family line, subsequently that is another Perkline annihted,¡± she said. ¡°What¡¯s more, I¡¯ll do precisely that.¡±


    ¡°Along these lines, what are you going to do?¡± I inquired. ¡°Use your wand and wound me?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re a sharp one,¡± she said. ¡°Be that as it may, yes.¡±


    As she raised her wand, I peered down and saw her legs. My bones felt excessively powerless and excruciating to try and move them, however, I¡¯d don¡¯t really want to boot the bucket here. With all the work that I could give, I kicked her lower leg, making her fall onto her back.


    ¡°What?!¡± she shouted. ¡°That hurt!¡±


    ¡°It should,¡± I said. She got up and I did, and we charged at one another. She threw a punch, and I obstructed it, however at that point she directly shot an impact of energy at me, which I figured out how to evade. However, at that point she kicked me and made me stagger back, stumbling me over the scanner.


    She bounced up and threw a punch at me, however, I immediately moved out of its way.


    I attempted to pull off a kick, however, she evaded it. Then, at that point, she immediately tossed a jab, and I obstructed it, however at that point she snatched me and struck me directly in the gut. Then, at that point, she tossed me, making mend on the ground.


    ¡°Well that is what I call a battle,¡± she said. ¡°A decent one where I win and you lose.¡±


    ¡°Whoever said it was finished?¡± I answered. I rapidly pushed myself onto my feet and we sped towards one another, me throwing the principal right hook.


    Be that as it may, she immediately evaded it and threw her very own punch, however, I obstructed it. Then, at that point, she tossed a kick, nheless, I immediately evaded it, and afterward, Iunched a right. Then, at that point, I figured out how to pull a slippery stunt with my wand: I made it seem to be a sword, and I tossed it at her.


    ¡°Hey!¡± she yelled as she dodged, avoiding it. However at that point, she immediately threw a punch at me, and I obstructed it.


    ¡°Guess what? I¡¯m bing weary of this,¡± she said. ¡°I don¡¯t have the murkiest idea why, however, I¡¯m only not in the state of mind any longer.¡±


    ¡°You would rather not fight me, are you too scared?¡± I prodded. However at that point, she got out her wand and pointed it at me.


    ¡°I¡¯m not terrified of you,¡± she said. ¡°I simply don¡¯t have any desire to battle any longer. So I¡¯m feeling free to end this.¡± However at that point, she appeared to freeze, and afterward, she dropped to the floor. Once more, time was moving, and I saw September with her clenched hands, peering down at her and industriously rxing.


    ¡°What happened?¡± I asked, confounded by the unexpected development of time.


    ¡°All things considered, when she utilized her other power, time gradually got quicker. Be that as it may, when she was going to punch you, time returned to normal and I immediately took her out,¡± she said. Out of nowhere, the safety guards checked us out.


    ¡°Hello, what are you doing?!¡± one of them yelled and they started to run towards us.


    ¡°We really want to get on the ne now!¡± she yelled. We started running, and the others before long found us with disarray spinning through their cerebrums.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Tisiah inquired.


    ¡°Somebody attempted to kill Connor most likely as a result of his perk,¡± September said. ¡°Be that as it may, presently the guards are after us.¡±


    ¡°Gracious, no,¡± Nikki stressed. Mchi rubbed his hands and we started to run. We went up the steps and soon enough, a gathering of five guards started chasing after us through the air terminal.


    Be that as it may, there was an issue, they all had dark utility belts.

 Chapter 27

    27 Airport Tussle


    ¡°For what reason are they pursuing us?¡± Nikki asked as we sped through the security framework.


    ¡°They¡¯re TSA specialists that are veiled as guards, everybody here might actually be a TSA specialist!¡± September said.


    We went through this lobby that immediately prompted the sitting area, where there were stuffed seats of individuals on their telephones, chatting with theirpanions, or quite recently gazing at us as we ran from the guards.


    ¡°Alright, in the restroom!¡± Tisiah said. ¡°We can separate.¡±


    We dashed through there, each taking our various paths. Mchi, Tisiah, and I immediately passed through the entryway subsequent to going through the lobby, and we halted ¨C wheezing for breath.


    ¡°Alright, simply keep the entryway shut on them,¡± Mchi said. However, right at that point, we were pushed to the ground once they got through.


    We got up rapidly, however, I was as yet bewildered from the fall.


    ¡°Give us Connor at this moment,¡± one of them said. ¡°You¡¯re not pulling off him.¡± Mchiughed, ¡°Indeed, you¡¯d need to traverse us before you eveny a hand on him.¡±


    ¡°Then, so be it,¡± one of them said.


    .....


    We charged at one another, me taking the one on the extreme left. The gatekeeper immediately threw a punch at me, however, I slid by the punch and got him close by ¨C utilizing as much exertion as possible to drive him into the slow down.


    Some way or another I did, and the entryway even broke also, so I found him tumbling onto thetrine.


    He got up and went on a totally freezing frenzy of punches ¨C making it difficult for me to evade every one of them.


    I immediately elbowed him in the stomach, then gave a speedy right to the right cheek, making him crush his head into the wall. He drooped down to the floor, oblivious.


    Mchi, Tisiah, and I were totally shocked. Yet at that point, more guards hurried into the restroom, around a few. Rapidly Tisiah got out his wand, and he tossed a spell at them. They were blown in reverse, and we immediately got out of the restroom, abandoning them. As some more came, I immediately energized my Perk ¨C however right at a gentle level ¨C and I punched one of them. In any case, the power was so strong, I took him out in a sh.


    ¡°Hold up!¡± I said. ¡°That was insane.¡± However at that point, the other kicked me in the stomach and I flew, falling onto the floor. I immediately got up, however at that point I was handled to the cold earth, yet this time it wasn¡¯t by a gatekeeper. It was by Mchi.


    ¡°Sit back and rx, we¡¯re here to save you,¡± he said, with a chuckle.


    ¡°Very funny,¡± I answered.


    I looked out and saw Tisiah shooting bolts at them, nheless, they avoided them.


    ¡°You all OK?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said. I and Mchi got up and prepared our powers, prepared to take on some other TSA professionals that may be concealed in the shadows.


    ¡°This is crazy!¡± Tisiah said. ¡°The entire spot is brimming with them!¡±


    I prepared my Perk, however rather than hitting them, I nned to stir things up around town and make every one of them impact out the washroom. I prepared it, with my energizing veins jerking in fervor ¨C and I hit the floor, causing it to emit with power.


    Everybody was staggered, and they generally impacted out of the restroom. Each and everybody of them was taken out, deadened, or downright stunned.


    ¡°How about we leave,¡± Mchi said. We immediately ran out of the washroom and started to track down September and them, just to check whether they were finished with their bundle.


    When we made it there, safety officers immediately got away from the washroom, with dread fuming in their eyes.


    ¡°What happened?¡± I asked. September answered, ¡°You used your Perk and they moved frightened ¨C ran off like a lot of infants.¡±


    ¡°I would most likely as well, to bepletely forthright with you,¡± Tisiah admitted. As we were talking, we heard: Trip to Ennd, kindly enter F3.


    As he said that September¡¯s eyes halted cold. ¡°Uh ¨C I forgot to sign us into the ne.¡±


    We as a whole took a gander at one another in stress, with no thought about what to do. ¡°Stand by, could Nikki at any point make us our tickets for good measure,¡± I said.


    ¡°Ideally the flight pulls off before they find out,¡± September said. We strolled to the line, feeling more restless and sweat-soaked the more we drew nearer to him. When we did, he saw us saying, ¡°Do you folks have a gatekeeper?¡±


    ¡°Indeed, we do,¡± Nikki said. ¡°They were quick to look into the ne.¡±


    ¡°Gee,¡± he murmured in his breath. Nikki gave him all our ¡°assumed tickets¡± and we strolled through the corridor into the ne.


    ¡°Did you pick the top of the line?¡± Mchi asked Nikki. She shook her head, and he moaned irritatedly as we returned to the mentor ¨C or economy-ss seats. I immediately sped for the window and plunked down, as the warm seat fitted me into an agreeable position. However, at that point, somebody came toward me and chose to sit by me. September moaned, and she took a gander at me ¨C who was all the while winding up intrigued simply by checking the ne¡¯s wings out.


    We were hours into our trip to Ennd, all however we weren¡¯t close by anyone¡¯s standards to arriving. Iid back and pondered all that urred through the previous months, contemting how much my life just changed right when I saw that battle. On the off chance that I recently strolled and didn¡¯t look my nose in there, I would¡¯ve never been a piece of something so astounding and unique. I couldn¡¯t resist the opportunity to grin. As I was naturally suspecting, I felt a little tap on my shoulder and I shifted focus over to one side of me seeing September. ¡°Hello,¡± she said. ¡°You OK?¡± I gestured, and I thought back up. ¡°You are apparently pondering something,¡± she said. Iughed, ¡°Something I do constantly.¡±


    ¡°Same,¡± she said as her voice became milder.


    ¡°Some of the time I ponder you,¡± I said, acknowledging what I recently said. ¡°Numerous things, obviously.¡±


    She took a gander at me and grinned, and I did likewise too. ¡°Trust you simply have an equivalent outlook on me,¡± I expressed, after a long murmur. We were unable to quit taking a gander at one another and we drew nearer as though there was a gravitational draw towards us like mas. Before sufficiently long, our lips met and we kissed each other delicately.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to be humiliated,¡± she said.


    ¡°I¡¯m not,¡± I answered. ¡°It simply feels exceptionally fulfilling to stun the one I like.¡±


    Unexpectedly, Mchi strolled towards us and took a gander at us, as though we were dubious or something to that effect. ¡°All things considered, hi,¡± I said, doing whatever it takes not to sound flimsy.


    You will scarcely believe, to kiss a youngdy that you truly like will resemble scoring that sweepstakes, it happens only very rarely! So the way that this urred, I¡¯m simply doing whatever it takes not to bounce and yell in energy.


    ¡°Hello...¡± Mchi said, sounding a piece concerned. ¡°All in all, would we say we are about to magically transport to the BMO base once wend?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, basically,¡± September said. ¡°We¡¯ll find a spot once we get off this ne.¡± Mchi gestured and he got once again to his seat, while September started to stroke my face, contacting me delicately with her fingers.


    ¡°Why you haven¡¯t attempted to converse with me since the battle?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Since I¡¯ve been in the middle of reasoning,¡± she said.


    ¡°Furthermore, on the grounds that you¡¯re frightened of me,¡± I said. ¡°I won¡¯t hurt you with my Perk, I guarantee.¡±


    ¡°You know, I was somewhat stressed,¡± she said.


    ¡°About what?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°I was stressed you nned to kill me,¡± she said. ¡°I had an extremely peculiar inclination about you when we were around there, and you involved your Perk interestingly.¡±


    ¡°Second, yet you weren¡¯t there to see the first,¡± I said. She gave me a dumbfounded re. ¡°So you had some awareness of your Perk quite a while in the past?¡±


    ¡°Not precisely, I coincidentally utilized it once,¡± I said.


    ¡°Coincidentally?¡± she said.


    ¡°Yeah, it was a mishap,¡± I said. ¡°Some TSA specialists in vests were attempting to kill me since I coincidentally saw their activity or something to that effect.¡±


    ¡°Amazing, that sounds insane,¡± she said. ¡°In any case, it seems OK presently, that is the way you were wee to the school.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said. ¡°That is the manner by which I arrived.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯tpletely ept that you made due,¡± she said.


    ¡°Neither can I,¡± I said.


    ¡°Indeed, I surmise we better get to the base and sort out what to do straight away,¡± she said. ¡°We just have 13 hours left until we arrive.¡±


    Iughed andid my head back again on the seat, gazing into the roof.

 Chapter 28

    28 An Expected Arrival


    We before long showed up in London, after an extremely extended rest. It seemed like two days rather than two hours. We escaped the ne, attempting to track down a spot to magically transport without anybody taking note.


    ¡°This spot is most certainly not fit to be magically transported anyce,¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°Would it be advisable for us we go out to the front of the air terminal?¡± Nikki inquired. ¡°It¡¯s conceivable through the group we can magically transport.¡±


    ¡°That is a hazardous move, however,¡± September said. ¡°We should get in a taxi and get dropped off at a ce or something, then, at that point, we can do that. Keep in mind, we are attempting to be the most circumspect we can be. We¡¯re about to take him out and take off without anybody ideally seeing us. We¡¯re attempting to get the ban repudiated with the goal that we can graduate.¡±


    ¡°High gamble, high prize,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Splendous.¡± We traveled through the air terminal, and down the elevator to the programmed entryways driving outside.


    Many individuals with their bags and portable items were strolling down the area and we nced around, attempting to check whether any taxi was there or something to that effect. Be that as it may, all things being equal, there was nobody around.


    Nobody, simr to maybe there was starvation of lookouts or something to that effect.


    ¡°We can magically transport at the present time,¡± I said. ¡°There¡¯s nobody here.¡± Every other person motioned and September murmured, getting out her wand and shutting her eyes.


    Before sufficiently long, we were magically transported to where there was just blunt grass. Indeed, in a real sense simply grass. ¡°Uh, this is the base?¡± Mchi asked, scratching his head in disarray.


    .....


    ¡°That¡¯s right, this is the BMO base,¡± she said. ¡°We simply have to track down how to get in, there¡¯s no entryway or section or anything. It¡¯s underground.¡±


    As she was talking, I saw some kind of wire that was under the ground that was traveling through the field. ¡°Guys, I see some wire, perhaps we can follow it and enter through it,¡± I said. ¡°Nice,¡± Mchi murmured to himself, scouring his hands.


    September and I followed the wire through the field, and soon enough we found an opening in the ground, which drove us inside. ¡°Here guys!¡± I yelled to the others that were gradually following us. ¡°We need to figure out how to get in, and quick.¡±


    We immediately went down the steps, and we saw a lot of wiresing from the walls, all over. ¡°Darn, what do they need just to control this entire spot, we haven¡¯t even entered the fundamental region,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°Perhaps it¡¯s a major underground fortification,¡± Tisiah rmended.


    ¡°It must be,¡± I said. ¡°On the off chance that it wasn¡¯t, why might they have put the entry so distant from the fundamental region?¡± As we were strolling, we saw two guards that were remaining there, with weighty breaths that kind of started a little trepidation within me.


    ¡°Stop!¡± one of them hollered.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± I expressed, attempting to conceal my apprehension. ¡°We¡¯re here from the TSA in the US, we were requested here.¡±


    The gatekeeper gestured and said, ¡°Follow me, please.¡±


    We followed him, and soon we arrived at a room with a PC that was connected to the web.


    ¡°What is this spot?¡± Mchi inquired.


    ¡°This is the war room,¡± the gatekeeper said. ¡°Here, you can get to the framework.¡± He gave us a couple of gloves and a headset. ¡°You folks can sign in also.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± I said, putting on the gloves and connecting the headset. ¡°Thanks.¡± I sat down in front of theputer and I logged in, while everyone else waited behind me. It wasn¡¯t hard to do so, the password was literally right under the keyboard. ¡°Let¡¯s see what information is behind here,¡± I said.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°It says that thest login was yesterday at 4:00 pm,¡± I said. ¡°Must¡¯ve been doing work.¡± Once I essed theputer, I saw a file called Meeting.4 pm. ¡°Click that,¡± September said.


    A screen popped up, showing a man with sses and a white coat. He was in a seat, not seeming to be harmed as other men began to walk into the room, taking their seats.


    ¡°Good afternoon,¡± he said, looking around the room. ¡°We¡¯re just waiting for one more person.¡±


    Suddenly, someone walked in and hate and disgust stung in our bodies. It was Demeitrus Rocke.


    ¡°Hello, gentlemen,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s been quite a while since we¡¯ve seen each other, hasn¡¯t it? Now, I hope this meeting is recorded. I¡¯m sure you remember me, but let¡¯s make it official. I¡¯m Demeitrus Rocke, or Mr. Rocke as you all know what to call me. Now, you know about our idea to capture Dr. Jones in hopes of finding the weapon.¡±


    ¡°Weapon?¡± we all muttered, staring at the clip.


    ¡°What is this weapon called?¡± one of them asked. Rocke chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s a cloning device called the Armonk. We don¡¯t know where it is yet, but we will soon. Dr. Jones was one of the scientists that was working on the weapon, and we need him to tell us where it is. I¡¯m pretty sure we can break him easily.¡±


    Then he suddenly looked at the camera as if he was talking to us. ¡°Now I know you YMPA kids are probably watching this, but trust me, we were expecting you. I¡¯m positive my guards already let you pass in just to see this message.¡±


    My heart stopped cold, and I looked behind me seeing the two guards with their guns pointed at us.


    ¡°You can¡¯t be serious,¡± I whispered to myself. We all looked around, seeing a lot more TSA guards behind us, just blending with the shadows. The clip ended right as they cocked their guns. ¡°Hands up!¡± one of them shouted.


    I turned around and saw a gun pointing at me. ¡°Put your hands up!¡± another guard said.


    ¡°Wait, wait, wait,¡± I said. ¡°Now you seem to underestimate us in what we can do.¡± I stood up, still holding my hands up. ¡°And you thought we¡¯d give you what you wanted without a fight.¡±


    The guard said, ¡°Don¡¯t move!¡± and shot me in the leg. The pain burned in my leg, and I felt a tear running down my cheek. I fell to the ground, and I tried to hold back my scream. I felt the blood rushing out of it, and I knew I was going to die.


    Suddenly, I heard a gunshot, and I saw the guard fall to the floor. Suddenly there was amotion behind me and I wasn¡¯t sure what was going on, but I heard Mchi yell, ¡°Run!¡±


    I tried to get up, but my leg burned even more in pain, and I couldn¡¯t stand. Suddenly, Mchi reached his hand out to me, and I grabbed it, feeling the warmth of his touch.


    ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go,¡± he said. Immediately we began to run through themand center before we rushed out into the hall. We ran and kept running until we found an elevator. As we got inside, I felt the warm glow of Mchi¡¯s hand, and I held onto it tightly.


    Pretty much, this was all nned!!!!


    Suddenly, September heard her radio click on, and we suddenly heard Mr. Drails¡¯s voice. ¡°What are you guys doing?!¡± he shouted. ¡°Did I not remove you guys from this mission?¡± September couldn¡¯t find herself to say anything, and she just shook her head.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ming, and once I transport you guys to the school, you¡¯ll have a big exnation to do,¡± he said, and he shut off. ¡°Oh, no,¡± she muttered, and she quickly pushed the button to close the doors.


    ¡°What can we do, how did he find us?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Mchi said. ¡°He just can¡¯t see us before he portals us back to the school again.

 Chapter 29

    29 A Personal Fight


    We booked it out of the lift and looked alongside us, seeing around four TSA guards on the right of us, speeding towards us with their wands like creatures. ¡°Come on, how about we move!¡± Mchi yelled.


    ¡°Along these lines!¡± I said, and I drove us to one side. We in the long run started to abandon up these steps with the four TSA agents still behind us, drawing nearer and closer. We came to the highest point of the steps, and we ran over another entryway. The followers started to utilize their wands, and I got Mchi¡¯s arm and pulled him back.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± he inquired.


    Out of nowhere, a bolt was sent over our heads, causing the walls to break into pieces as most of us dodged, and we hopped away from the wall.


    ¡°Are you insane?¡± he said. ¡°We could have passed on!¡±


    ¡°We nned to pass on the off chance that we didn¡¯t get down!¡± I yelled. We kept on belting it through the corridor, but presently we were being pursued by a lot more individuals. Presently there were around 8 guards that were behind us, utilizing their wands and terminating bolts at us.


    The bolts missed us almost, but they were stirring things up around town, making the floors break and disintegrate. But out of nowhere, we reached a dead conclusion, and we had to stop.


    Mchi took out his wand, and released a green light emission at the wall, obliterating it.


    It arrived on the folks following us, and it made another way for us to get away from this corridor. ¡°Rapidly, through here!¡± Tisiah yelled, and we raced into and into a more healthy ce, just to encounter one more arrangement of TSA agents. ¡°Don¡¯t even think about moving!¡± one of them howled, and he terminated a red pir at us.


    .....


    ¡°Safeguard!¡± Nikki yelled, and Tisiah immediately shaped a safeguard, deterring the shaft. ¡°How about we bring them down!¡± Mchi said. ¡°I¡¯m in the state of mind for some battling!¡±


    We as a whole gestured at one another, well everybody with the exception of me, because my right leg felt like jam so I won¡¯t have the option to do a lot. We started to progress on them, with Tisiah¡¯s safeguard actually safeguarding us, and the rest shot radiates at the agents.


    Before adequately long, we were in the field of battle, as the agents charged at us. Rapidly, I dodged a punch, and I fought back with a kick to the stomach.


    Utilizing my left leg, which being I¡¯m a right-given person, it didn¡¯t cause as much harm as you¡¯d need it to. Unexpectedly September magically transported behind the agents, and she wacked them toward the rear of their heads with her wand. ¡°Okay!¡± Nikki cheered.


    But then, at that point, we heard three strides behind us. We pivoted, seeing Mr. Drails running towards us, preparing to gather a gateway. ¡°God help us, run!¡± I yelled, and we immediately traveled through the entryway scarcely missing the gateway. We crashed through the entryway and ran.


    We kept on speeding through the base, and we were going to get to the nearby when unexpectedly, a man showed up before us.


    ¡°Hi, kids,¡± Demeitrus Rocke said.


    September¡¯s face was loaded up with rage as she charged towards him, but I got her arm, pulling her back.


    ¡°Don¡¯t,¡± I said.


    She saw me, vigorously breathing as though I was insane. But I pitifully grinned at her, attempting to cut her to quiet down. Her breathing turned out to be consistent and gotten as she took a gander at me by and by.


    ¡°You ought to pay attention to him,¡± Rocke said, with a terribleugh. ¡°It simply makes things simpler for me.¡±


    Out of nowhere, he took out his weapon and he shot me two additional times in the legs, thumping me to the ground.


    I cried in torment, holding my draining knees. I could feel blood dribbling down onto the floor, and I could see Nikki remaining above me, checking me out. ¡°Connor!¡± I heard September yell as she surged towards me.


    I attempted to quiet my breathing, and I looked as she halted, and she gazed at me, tears in her eyes. I felt the blood drowse my hands and stream onto the floor, and I saw the haziness approaching. ¡°Come on, remain with me!¡± she argued. She started to thumb her hands against my legs, attempting to stop the dying. ¡°Artless youngsters,¡± I heard him say.


    But then I heard strides and I looked behind me, seeing Mr. Drails sting through the entryway with his two assistants. But then, he saw me and frightfulness was depicted all over. ¡°Connor!¡± he yelled, as he sped towards me, lifting me up off the ground.


    I attempted to grin at him, but it was hard to rx. But then, at that point, Demeitrus Rocke distinguished him and abruptly his grin broadened menacingly. ¡°Hi, Bruce,¡± he said jokingly. ¡°How¡¯s the President work, I heard it¡¯s doing you admirably.¡±


    Mr. Drails took a gander at him with despise, and afterward he nced back at me.


    ¡°How might you venture to do this to me,¡± he said. ¡°You think you¡¯ve sought your retribution? I¡¯ll kill you for this.¡± Abruptly, he shot frosty spikes from his wand, barreling towards Demeitrus Rocke, who was grinning.


    Rocke immediately avoided the spikes. ¡°Despicable, presently I have your abilities now.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± everybody said. Then Nikki acknowledged it. ¡°Is he ready to adjust their powers at whatever point somebody utilizes it?¡± she inquired. ¡°Right,¡± he said. ¡°Presently,e on, battle me Bruce.¡±


    They took a gander at one another with wrath and fury starting up in their eyes, while every other person hurried back, giving them space. The two started to duel, with Bruce shooting ice spikes at him, and Rocke evading them, with the force of his wand.


    They battled, with shes sting between them. Rapidly, Mr. Drails utilized his entryway powers, but Rocke immediately countered it, and the two kept on engaging, every one going from each assault. Rocke sped towards Mr. Drails but then he sent off an entryway, and afterward produced the other one to the back of him.


    Rocke ended up amazing to the cold earth behind Mr. Drails. When he pivoted, he saw his wand m him in the face, sending him reeling in reverse.


    ¡°Pleasant move,¡± he said. ¡°But not sufficient.¡± Demeitrus Rocke started to manufacture ice and shoot it at him, and soon enough, Mr. Drails used his entrance powers to avoid them. He then, at that point, changed to his ice powers, formed an enormous mass of ice.


    Rocke sprung over it, and afterward pushed a major globe of ice at him. Mr. Drails immediately bowled in reverse and opened an entry, but Rocke had previously followed him through. The two of them showed up in the out of a simr entrance, but Rocke kicked Mr. Drails away from him.


    Mr. Drails was thumped back, and hended hard on the ground, which made him shout out in torment. But he wouldn¡¯t surrender. He then, at that point, utilized a lot of ice spikes and sent them towards Rocke, who evaded them without any problem.


    He impelled his foot towards Mr. Drails in the chest, and he tumbled to the ground.


    ¡°Thus, I trust that this is where you understand that you ought to have been never left me. I let you know that retribution wille your direction, regardless of anything. Atst, the day hase,¡± he said.


    My eyes broadened in shock, and outrage bubbled in my heart. I felt as though my adrenaline was controlling my body all things being equal, and my arms were presently erupting power sparkles, and I ran towards Demeitrus Rocke.


    He took a gander at me, and his eyes extended in dread, as my clench hand mmed into his stomach, sending him winging through the air and influenced into the wall toward the finish of the lobby.


    I looked into, seeing Nikki gazing at me. I immediately turned around to Mr. Drails wildly, attempting to check whether he was steady. ¡°Connor,¡± he murmured pitifully. ¡°You know how to utilize your powers?¡±


    ¡°Indeed, I do,¡± I said. ¡°Or possibly some time prior I did.¡±


    Mr. Drails grinned, his eyes totally open. ¡°Great,¡± he said. ¡°I thought you really wanted more work, but I surmise I was wrong. Presently,e here, so we can end this.¡± I helped him up to his feet and he both took a gander at Rocke, but something was wrong.


    Truly wrong.


    Out of nowhere, Rocke¡¯s arms started to sparkle red like mine, and power ignited in his fingertips. ¡°You board headed kid!¡± he yelled. ¡°You appeared to fail to remember I could adjust your powers, and presently, you¡¯ve met your match.¡±


    Out of nowhere he utilized his clench hands and smacked the wall, making a strong shockwave, making us fly through the air. I felt myself rise above the rail, and afterward I hit the floor with a noisy crash.


    I passed out, not having the option to feel anything in my body. Abruptly, control of my body was non-existent, and I felt like debris itself.

 Chapter 30

    30 Motives


    I awakened within a contained room, simr to a prison or some likeness thereof, with bars epassing me. I wasying on a bed, and there were tubes going into my arms. Out of nowhere, as though they were finished sucking on my skin, they withdrew into the roof, and I heard a signal.


    ¡°Hello, what¡¯s going on?¡± I inquired. I didn¡¯t know where I was, or the way in which long I¡¯d been oblivious. I got up from my bed and I started to nce around, asking why I was secured. There was a little table before me, with a seat, and an entryway that prompted another room. Unexpectedly I heard strides of a watchman or something like that, descending the corridor.


    ¡°Goodness, hello, are you alert?¡± he asked me.


    He wore extremely weighty defensiveyer, with thick boots and gloves. He likewise had a protective cap on, with a visor as well as a mouthpiece. He strolled over to me, and he bowed down, checking me out. ¡°You look conscious,¡± he said in a threatening voice, as though he was furious about something. I really want to believe that he isn¡¯t.


    He opened the entryway and promptly cuffed my arms, holding them tight, making me wheeze in torment. ¡°Try not to attempt to get away,¡± he said. ¡°Simply be a decent youngster okay.¡± He drove me through the jail, strolling down the lobbies, past numerous different cells. There were a couple of folks in there, all inparable garments. I thought about what befell them, and why they were here. We ran over the lift and we went in, heading up. The watchman pressed the button, and the entryways shut. Then background music yed, which was likely what I truly required right as of now.


    We appeared to be going all over simultaneously, it felt abnormal. When the entryway opened, I saw a room that seemed to be once ab. But there was nothing in it with the exception of two beds, a table, and two or three seats. I was taken to one of the beds, and the watchman removed my cuffs. ¡°Get in the bed, and take a stab at nothing entertaining,¡± he said. ¡°Try not to possess energy for that.¡±


    I went inside the bed and as I set down, chains out of nowhere grabbed my hands and held them down, keeping them controlled.


    The watchman strolled over to the entryway, and he put his ear against it. Then, at that point, he escaped the room.


    But right at that point, I saw the entryway open once more and this time, I saw Mr. Drails with one more watchman being requested to get on the bed. But he was less lenient to manage, and he just smacked him upside the head. The subsequent gatekeeper fell in reverse onto the ground, blood spilling out of his nose. Out of nowhere, the other one came in and pulled up a firearm, confronting straightforwardly at him. Mr. Drails gradually went into the bed, but he had no limitations on his wrists.


    .....


    I felt like we ought to have been exchanged spots, and we as a whole know that.


    Suddenly, somebody came in with a giggle all over, wearing an earthy colored cover with the cor dressed with fur. ¡°Hi, Perkies,¡± Demeitrus Rocke said with augh. ¡°I like calling you folks that.¡± He got a seat and plunked down, grinning at me. ¡°I was pondering when you would awaken,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s in a real sense ten AM, obviously I¡¯d anticipate that a small child should be surprisingly dynamic, but I don¡¯t im to know much about anything.¡±


    Heid back on the seat and moaned, then, at that point, checked Mr. Drails and afterward myself out. Then, at that point, Mr. Drails spoke, ¡°How could you get the adjusting power? Nobody has at any point seen or caught wind of that power, and obviously it¡¯s very overwhelmed.¡±


    Rocke grinned. ¡°Indeed, we should see. You¡¯re a fire mage, and your power is based around heat, right?¡±


    ¡°No, I¡¯m an ice mage, virtuoso.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, that¡¯s what I know. In any case, I was simply meddling with you. Fire and Ice are the two sorts of wizardries, and you can consolidate them, which makes for a few intriguing mixes. Some time in 2010 I tracked down a creation, where I could append each power known to man to this molecule, which I call the ADA-4. Every connector cell can hold four powers. Presently when it came to Perks, I must be a piece innovative. As you probably are aware, a great many people who gain another capacity have a little trouble controlling their new capacities. This made me believe that perhaps in the event that I could connect a capacity to a molecule, then perhaps I had some control over it better.¡±


    ¡°So how could you do the entire Perk framework, regardless of whether you understand what each Perk could contain?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Straightforward. I connected each capacity to a specific number of molecules. But listen to this, a power that must be initiated by utilizing a wand is a thing itself. Be that as it may, perkse from this one wellspring of which I found out. Thus, if you need to utilize a power, you really want to interface it to the iota that makes the perks. I did furthermore, that. I made myself that power, even open without expecting to utilize a wand. Basically makes me relentless,¡± he said.


    I was very dazzled with what he said, and I nearly wound up needing to study this. But then, at that point, an idea shot up to me. ¡°For what reason do you want the Armonk?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Indeed, a cloning gadget is presumably the best thing you really want. Envision making a limitless measure of men with Perks conflicting with the US. We¡¯d be relentless, and it¡¯s absolutely impossible that the military would face us,¡± he said. ¡°In spite of the fact that, Micheal Jones is making it very hard for me. He truly appears to cherish this development and simply doesn¡¯t have any desire to let me know the area, despite the fact that I offered him huge amount of cash.¡±


    I was very stunned, and I needed to concede, a piece of me needed to see this machine myself. But the possibility of Micheal Jones, likely getting beat up and examined made me shiver.


    ¡°So what are we doing here?¡± Mr. Drails inquired.


    Unexpectedly, Rocke stood up onto his feet as though to underline the significance of our participation. ¡°Since, I need to remove your perks and use it for the clones, on the grounds that envision. Gateways that could send warriors anyce, or strength that makes fields transform into graves. It would be awe inspiring, and it would make me a divine being!¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Mr. Drails inquired.


    ¡°I¡¯ll run over the US and show the Emotional that we, the TSA, are the unrivaled. I need to see all your persistent effort disintegrate Bruce, I need to see it consume. I need to see you take a gander at your US on fire, and perceive what our identity is,¡± he said, drawing nearer to him with a voice that kept on getting more obscure, and I started to feel frightened.


    ¡°So this is only a mission for retribution,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°I thought you were at that point attempting to do that by involving my own child as your pleasure of vengeance.¡±


    ¡°Kind of, but not precisely. The mark of this is to get the Armonk, and afterward use it to make a military, it¡¯s very clear,¡± Rocke said. ¡°Presently, remain still as these cylinders will go with you in my test.¡±


    Out of nowhere, tubes started to drop from the roof, as they designated the arms, legs, and head. They immediately started to suck out the blood, and soon, my body began to shake.


    ¡°Tragically, I¡¯d need to take all in all a piece of your blood to get enough for a multitude of men, but you can definitely rx, it¡¯s all going to be fine, trust me,¡± he said.


    The shaking deteriorated, and I felt like I was going to drop. I shouted in torment, and afterward I felt a sharp torment in my arm. My voice felt as though it was splitting endlessly, making it hard to shout. I started to shake more dynamically, and my vision started to blur.


    Then, at that point, I saw something brilliant, and I understood that it was the radiance of the sun radiating through the window. The cylinders withdrew back to their residence, and Rocke came checking out at us cheerfully. ¡°Wasn¡¯t so awful wasn¡¯t it,¡± heughed, looking very d for himself. ¡°I¡¯ll perceive the way you all are doingter.¡±

 Chapter 31

    31 Disttive Talks


    I felt exhausted and feeble simultaneously. I felt as though my bones were totally drained out of their life support. I was unable to move and I was unable to force myself to shout for help, since what was that going to do?


    I checked Mr. Drails, who looked tired too however he appeared to be considerably more dreadful than I was out. He turned his head towards me, as though he realized I was checking him out.


    He murmured, taking an extremely full breath. ¡°For what reason did you do this?¡± he inquired. ¡°In any case, you realized I took you off the mission, however you needed to do it. Look where that got you.¡±


    I was unable to force myself to talk, and to drown myself in my disgrace as it were.


    He moaned and took a gander at me indeed. ¡°You had yourself chance twice in the leg, and presently he has a piece of our Perks prepared to clone every one of his men with the Armonk. Is this what you needed?¡±


    The quietness was frightening, and very irritating on the off chance that I in all actuality do say so myself, however I actually couldn¡¯t force myself to talk. I started to ept that the deficiency of blood presumably diminished my boldness to talk. Albeit that sounds total hogwash, truly.


    ¡°Is this since I didn¡¯t let you know I was your dad?¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°You maintained that me should endure my fallouts, and I sure have.¡±


    That carried me to atst talk, and to talk with an electrical discharge.


    ¡°No, that isn¡¯t it,¡± I said. ¡°Who minds that you never let me know that you were my dad, that wasn¡¯t the issue by any stretch of the imagination!¡±


    .....


    ¡°Then what was?¡±


    I stammered, feeling the substantialness of confusion enter my mouth.


    ¡°I ¨C I, I didn¡¯t maintain that you should annihte mypanion¡¯s dreams,¡± I said. ¡°They truly needed to be true covert agent mages when they graduated, but since I followed through with something, they all got boycotted.¡±


    Yet again he moaned, yet I wanted to do as such. Maybe it was an effective method for letting out miserable breaths from your lungs.


    ¡°I get it, however they were still in your group,¡± Mr. Drails said, sounding a piece tired.


    ¡°I know, however they werepanions, and I believed that them should get their opportunity,¡± I said, feeling destroys roll at me. I attempted to hold them back from moving down my cheeks, yet the heaviness of disappointment just fell upon me and the removes burst. ¡°What¡¯s more, that¡¯s what I regard, and I would rather not ruin your life, yet I additionally can¡¯t hold on and watch individualsnguish simply over you to dispose of their lives on your head,¡± Mr. Drails made sense of.


    I sniffed and cleaned my nose with my sleeve.


    ¡°Indeed, we might in any case get an opportunity. We simply have to track down Dr. Jones and presumably he might let us know where it is so we can stop it,¡± I expressed, attempting to areas of strength for sound.


    Mr. Drails took a gander at me with a serious artiction, however in a supporting way. ¡°That is really not an impractical notion,¡± he said with a grin developing, ¡°Yet how would we track down him?¡±


    I moaned and thought briefly.


    ¡°Nikki,¡± I said. ¡°She¡¯s truly adept at pickpocketing, we can help her departure and track down the map to where he may be.¡±


    Mr. Drails gestured in understanding and expectation, however at that point he halted. ¡°How are we going to leave?¡± he asked, sounding rather incredulous.


    I shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea, you have no chains on you at this moment.¡±


    He shook his head. ¡°This bed is sand trap, yet in light of your weight relies heavily on how quick you sink. Presently this is one of the entire covert operative creation thingy-stuff, so if I somehow managed to move I¡¯d struggle with doing as such. Some other thoughts?¡±


    I murmured and checked out the room. I was almost certain there were no windows or entryways, however I recognized a couple of things that might actually work.


    ¡°Assuming I had some rope, I figure I could tie myself up,¡± I said. ¡°And afterward I could perhaps throw the bed over and haul myself out.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m worried I¡¯m not following,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    Once more, I moaned. ¡°All things considered, essentially, I¡¯m trapped in here,¡± I said. ¡°I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea how we could escape this dilemma.¡± I looked beneath and attempted to check whether there was whatever might some way or another assistance. Then I saw, the wheels were in sps, meaning assuming I were to energetically move around, I might actually break them into little pieces.


    So I got to shaking, and Mr. Drails sat back in the bed and snickered.


    The bed started to sway around, as the sps extended and break, until at longst the whole thing fell to pieces and tumbled to the floor. The bed started to move from the force, and I had the option to propel myself off and fall onto the ground. The chains severed as the bed went over to its side.


    I got up onto my feet, feeling fatigued from the constant moving I needed to perform. ¡°Alright, awesome. Is there a way you could do likewise for me?¡± he inquired.


    ¡°Yeah I think,¡± I said, energizing my Perk. I strolled over and I attempted to get the bed. ¡°Ugh, no decent. That is excessively weighty,¡± I said. I kicked the lock out of resentment, and it abruptly broke as though it was held with gum. The bed stirred into a nting structure and it started to move over to its side, simr to the final remaining one.


    I bounced up and snatched the highest point of the bed, and pushed it over to the opposite side. I began to get into position, yet before I could, I heard a voice from behind me. ¡°Hello!¡± it yelled, and I promptly realized it was the guards. ¡°Gracious, no, rapidly!¡± Mr. Drails yelled, and I pivoted to see him holding his hands out towards me. I pulled him off, and the guards confronted their wands at us, however we were at that point gone.


    ¡°What?¡± they said, as they nced around. The men abruptly started to shake, and they gradually blew some people¡¯s minds behind them, yet they saw nothing. In spite of the fact that, we were behind them. Mr. Drails utilized his entryway powers without a moment to spare in some way, and we ended up behind the entryway.


    ¡°OK, how about we move,¡± Mr. Drails said, and we went through the corridors. I continued to contemte how Nikki would be searching for me, or everybody would be searching for me. They likely weren¡¯t on the grounds that they were still in their cells, and Mr. Drails said that he nned to sit tight for them to be delivered, yet I wasn¡¯tpletely certain that they would be.


    We simply had to find the researcher quick and speedy.


    Out of nowhere, we saw a watchman in front of us, and we moved behind the corner. We heard his strides, and we stowed away as he cruised by. He strolled past the corridor and into another room, and we followed him. Before he turned the other corner, Mr. Drails took him out, and we moved behind the wall and paused.


    I looked over the corner and attempted to check whether there were any guards that were remaining there. Beneficial thing there wasn¡¯t. We kept on strolling through the corridor, attempting to take a gander at every cell to track down Nikki. Be that as it may, it just appeared to be different detainees, despite the fact that I didn¡¯t know whether they were from the YMPA or not. Perhaps from one of the Emotional organizations.


    Out of nowhere, we heard strides of numerous individuals strolling towards us. ¡°Where do we go?¡± I inquired. He nced around, and expressed, ¡°Behind here.¡±


    We remained by the corner, gradually sitting tight for their appearance. Whenever they were uncovered from the corner, we immediately utilized our fists, taking them out and dropping to the floor.


    ¡°For what reason don¡¯t we simply take the map ourselves?¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°We¡¯ll save them once we track down the researcher.¡±


    ¡°However, consider the possibility that they follow through with something?¡± I inquired. ¡°We would be past the point of no return.¡±


    He put his hands on my shoulder. ¡°You want to figure out how to quit stressing and soon to simply do however much you can to save others. Never stress over the most obviously terrible, on the grounds that there will constantly be awful. Be that as it may, it will continuously happen the more you consider it.¡±


    I gestured. ¡°Now, we should ept this map and attempt to track down Dr. Jones.¡±

 Chapter 32

    32 The Scientist¡¯s Truth


    We got the map and we saw it, attempting to sort out the arrangement of this spot. In view of the map, we chose to head towards the high level. There was a little lift toward the finish of the passage, so we took it.


    The researcher could be situated in the LG floor, yet it wasn¡¯t precisely a very remarkable savvy thought. On the off chance that anybody could go there, thinking that he is would be simple.


    We took a gander at the map of where to go straightaway, and we made a beeline for the west side of the structure. We went down a couple of floors, and we saw an open entryway that was marginally utched. ¡°What¡¯s prompting this entryway,¡± I mumbled to myself. I opened itpletely, and we wound up inside a room. It was dim, however we could see theyout of certain seats and work areas. ¡°Turn on the lights,¡± Mr. Drails requested. I attempted to track down the light switch, yet the haziness totally took my vision. That is until I felt a switch of some kind or another, and the lights came on.


    I checked out the room, and I saw a work area close to the back. On the table was a book, and it had a wide range of notes wrote on the pages. I checked out the room once more, and I saw one more entryway in the extreme left half of the room.


    ¡°No researcher here,¡± I said. Mr. Drails murmured as he went arms akimbo. ¡°We should continue moving,¡± he expressed, highlighting that entryway. We traveled through the entryway, and ended up tracking down sight of a gatekeeper. We quickly shut the entryway and remained by the corner, sitting tight for him to cruise by.


    I looked, seeing him turn left.


    ¡°OK, we should move,¡± Mr. Drails said. He pushed me forward, and we strolled into the corridor. As we were strolling, I heard stridesing towards us. I saw a way to the left half of us. ¡°Speedy in there,¡± Mr. Drails said, and we immediately shot within the room. Two guards walked around us, as my heart dashed into a quick rate as they strolled by the window. I gradually opened the entryway utched and looked outside, seeing the guards leaving.


    ¡°I can¡¯t help thinking about what¡¯s behind that entryway,¡± I said. Mr. Drails gestured. ¡°They may be monitoring something helpful there.¡±


    We continued, however ensured our strides were not bouncing off the walls. We arrived at the entryway, and I squeezed my ear against it. I didn¡¯t hear anything, so I opened it and ventured inside.


    .....


    ¡°It¡¯s vacant,¡± I said. Mr. Drails shook his head. ¡°This will be an exercise in futility.¡±


    We looked through the room, our strides making extremely clearly crashes as we kept on strolling. However, when I handled my foot on the floor, I heard the sound of metal. I halted cold and checked Mr. Drails, who likewise froze out. I pivoted and checked the entryway out.


    ¡°What is it?¡± he inquired.


    ¡°I assume I found a mystery secret entrance,¡± I said. ¡°Look.¡±


    I kept on squeezing my foot against the floor, and the sound kept on reverberating itself. I opened it and peered down, and I saw a flight of stairs driving downwards. ¡°We should go,¡± I said.


    Mr. Drails followed me down the steps. It was very frightful in the event that I really do say so myself, and my heart started to shudder a little. Yet, I attempted to keep myself engaged and fearless as I creeped down the steps. However at that point, I felt as though that all hurried away once I heard a moan. I screeched, rming Mr. Drails also.


    ¡°For what reason are you hollering?¡± Mr. Drails grumbled, getting my arm.


    I shook my head. ¡°I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea. I feel like I¡¯m being watched.¡±


    Mr. Drailsughed. ¡°Quiet down, nobody is watching you. How about we forge ahead.¡±


    We went on down the steps however the moans continued to rehash the same thing. I shivered at themotion. I felt a developing sensation of disquiet. I was apprehensive to such an extent that I shouted once I contacted the ground.


    Abruptly, the lights flicked on, leaving us cold speechless.


    I saw a person with a stubble facial hair growth with dark wavy hair that was in a seat with chains locked on his wrists. He wore ab suit and a white coat, and he looked pale.


    He raised his head and checked us out. He gazed at me, and I shuddered. ¡°Who are you folks?¡± he inquired. I stammered, excessively frightened to try and say a word. Mr. Drails took over for me, being that I was not actually at a steady position.


    ¡°We are YMPA specialists, attempting to save you from your circumstance that you might be in,¡± he said. The man gestured. ¡°So you¡¯re a piece of Emotional?¡± he inquired. ¡°Might you at any point get me out of here?¡±


    ¡°Of course, definitely,¡± I expressed, attempting to quiet my pulse to an ordinary rhythm. ¡°Just ¨C simply allow us a second.¡± I checked out the room.


    I saw a PC, and I got it. I put the PC onto the work area, and turned on the PC. The screen tapped on and there were records that hung by the side, conveying different data within their portfolio. I tapped the symbol that addressed itself as a mp4, and a video showed up on the screen.


    I saw a simr man binded in the seat ¨C like the one that was fixing his gander at us now and I saw a watchman stroll by him. I saw the watchman go to the opposite side of the room, and I saw the gatekeeper check out the room.


    Unexpectedly, Demeitrus Rocke strolled in. ¡°Hi, Dr. Micheal Jones,¡± he said in a dim and detestable voice. ¡°I hear you are a man of significance. I couldn¡¯t want anything more than to have you on my side.¡±


    The man shook his head. ¡°I won¡¯t ever join your side, ever,¡± he said. Rocke murmured, ¡°Well that simply makes things harder isn¡¯t that right? Let me know where the Armonk is.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Dr. Jones kept up with. ¡°You can kill me, however I won¡¯t tell you.¡±


    Rocke grimaced. ¡°Kill you?¡± he inquired. ¡°Is it true or not that you are certain you believe should do that? You are a significant man, and I¡¯m willing to offer you an arrangement.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t need an arrangement with you individuals. I believe that you should let me be and to bring me back home,¡± he said. Dr. Jones started to shake more in dread as Rocke drew nearer to him. There was a seat by the side that was unused, not long before Rocke hauled it out of its settlement and utilized it toy himself on ¨C organizing it looking towards Dr. Jones.


    ¡°You know those scale stylisticyouts that you used to have when you were a kid? Yeah, simply believe you should envision that at this moment, alright? Now, we are an association that has abilities that could kill countless men and you simply have a significant situation as a researcher to safeguard by not tolerating, or hearing my proposal by any means,¡± Rocke showed. ¡°Tune in, simply hear my arrangement. We will allow you to live. Consequently, you will let us know where the Armonk is, and you will do anything we request from you.¡±


    ¡°So you believe that I should annihte my country, just to live?¡± he addressed. ¡°I fail to understand how that is superior to death.¡±


    Rocke shrugged. ¡°Let¡¯s be real, I lean toward living,¡± he rmended. ¡°I¡¯ll give you an opportunity to think, OK?¡± He left as the guards then, at that point, got once again to their post. Then, at that point, the tape finished, and the researcher started to whine.


    ¡°Thus, they will kill you?¡± I inquired.


    The researcher gestured. ¡°I don¡¯t want to pass on, yet I would rather not deceive my country,¡± he said morally. Mr. Drails strolled over to him, and got the seat, ¡°Could you let us know where it is, and we can caution the president about what might be said about¡¯s to ur. Other than this work, I¡¯m a Mystery Administration Specialist, so I can let the president know this.¡±


    Dr. Jones shook his head. ¡°I can¡¯t let you know anything,¡± he said. Mr. Drails murmured. ¡°Thus, you¡¯d prefer bite the dust than get an opportunity to save your country since you¡¯re worried we will conflict with the US?¡± he inquired.


    The researcher gestured. ¡°Please ept my apologies,¡± he said. Mr. Drails murmured once more. ¡°Indeed, that simply makes things harder, doesn¡¯t it?¡± he said.


    Mr. Drails then moved over to the PC and switched it off. ¡°Indeed, there¡¯s one way we will find out, and you will not be alive to see your nation saved.¡±


    We progressed towards the steps however at that point in two seconds the researcher shouted out to us. ¡°Stand by!¡± he yelled, making us respite and pivot. ¡°What?¡± I inquired. ¡°You at longst decided?¡±


    ¡°There is a in ind that is by the US that we have control of. Despite the fact that I know its name, here are the directions. Just our PCs can see this ind, nothing else,¡± he uncovered.


    ¡°That sounds like a decent spot for a mystery base,¡± I said. Mr. Drails gestured. We got the directions that he gave us and we went on higher up, however at that point we heard strides rushing down the hidden entryway. Out of nowhere, a lot of guards epassed the region and started to keep their firearms pointed right at us.


    ¡°Try not to move!¡± they directed. Then, we heard weighty strides and we realized who was descending. Rocke grinned at us forebodingly as he showed up from the shadows. ¡°Who realized our adversaries could be so useful. You for all intents and purposes went about our responsibilities for us,¡± Rocke said.


    ¡°How could you know this?¡± Dr. Jones inquired. Rocke shrugged. ¡°It wasn¡¯t difficult to sort out. We just watched you as you were conversing with Drails. We have surveince cameras in the event that you know.¡±


    Heughed detestably. ¡°Guards, remove them.¡±

 Chapter 33

    33 The Scientist¡¯s Backstory


    As the guards approached us, we hurried back, attempting to keep away from capture however long we could. However at that point they got tightly to my hand, and promptly they bound it, leaving me no space to move my arm.


    ¡°Heh, so you got us,¡± I said. ¡°We¡¯re simply going to escape once more.¡±


    I was exceptionally uncertain about that, yet I attempted to show a boldness and assurance to our main goal of some kind or another. ¡°Dislike you folks are going to the cell at any rate,¡± the watchman said.


    What did he mean by that?


    Out of nowhere, he took out his wand and terminated a bolt towards the guards, as it copsed ¨C with the power pushing him to the wall.


    Out of nowhere, the guards took a gander at him with dismay, and afterward they got their wands out.


    The gatekeeper removed his cover, or for this situation, her veil. I saw September, washing her out as shock copsed all over. However at that point, four different guards eliminated their protective caps, uncovering themselves to be a piece of my group. My psyche was whirling with disarray, yet additionally alleviation.


    Demeitrus Rocke saw with sickening dread, his brain in a spin of befuddlement. Out of the ten guards, five of them werepromised. ¡°Get these fakes out of here!¡± he requested with an incited voice.


    The guards surged at us and swung their wands, yet September avoided the swing, thumping it to the side, and gripped the watchman¡¯s arms. She pulled the gatekeeper close and pushed him to the ground. Rapidly I swung my head behind me, seeing Dr. Jones¡¯ threatened face of disarray and I immediately dashed over to let him out of the chains.


    .....


    The thing is I had no clue about what on earth this seat was, or the way that I nned to free him.


    I attempted to concentrate on the design of the seat, attempting to sort out where any buttons were positioned that could some way or another retreat these chains. Nothing appeared to work. I attempted to move the seat, yet I didn¡¯t appear to be ready to move it. I then, at that point, saw that there were two enormous rings on one or the other side of the seat, and I chose to attempt to utilize those to pull the chain separated. I pulled the left ring and it moved somewhat, yet at the same sufficiently not. I pulled the right ring and it moved as well, yet all the same sufficiently not.


    I really wanted an option that could be more grounded than my solidarity to get these things to move. I nced around and saw an enormous stone sculpture, which I snatched and tossed at the chain. Be that as it may, it actually didn¡¯t work by any means, so I needed to go to my final retreat. I energized my Perk, as power shed and my veins changed into gleaming red. I punched the seat and power shot through it. The chains fell to pieces, and the seat tumbled to the floor.


    I went to the specialist and set him free from his chains. He got up onto his feet, cleaning himself disgustedly. ¡°Much thanks to you,¡± he said awkwardly. I nodded with a feeble grin that I was inly not in that frame of mind to give. I turned around to the remainder of the gathering and I announced, ¡°Come on, we should leave!¡±


    They tuned in and they noticed, jumping through the guards and picking up the pace the hidden entrance steps and into the lobby. We immediately raced through the orange corridors, heading for the exit. The guards quickly dashed after us, however we previously went through the leave, running out into the night air. We were protected.


    ¡°Utilize your entrance!¡± I shared with Mr. Drails, as he gathered an entry, and he took us back to the YMPA passage. We as a whole murmured in help as the sense that everything is good fell upon us.


    Mr. Drails set aside some margin to recover his breath by and by prior to talking. ¡°Dr. Jones, my government operatives will figure out how to conceal you some ce alright?¡± he said. ¡°Simply rx, they¡¯re great specialists.¡±


    Yet again I felt a deep satisfaction after that remark, yet I immediately changed my serious face to show a feeling of capability.


    ¡°Alright,¡± Dr. Jones whimpered, as he checked us out. He was shook and I could tell, and I mean like ¨C very shook. His legs were shudder, and his hands were vibrating in dread.


    ¡°Rx, follow us,¡± September said. I didn¡¯t know where we nned to take him, or on the other hand assuming that this would have been his extremely durable spot by any means on the off chance that being exceptionally legitimate.


    I figured he ought to remain at the YMPA only for the time being. We followed her and we advanced toward the front of the structure, and she pushed open the entryways, driving us outside.


    The breeze was blowing against my face, causing me to feel cold. We went down the road, searching for a spot to conceal Dr. Jones. Unexpectedly, Mchi inquired, ¡°Thus, how could you be tracked down by the TSA, Dr. Jones?¡±


    Dr. Jones was noticeably befuddled. ¡°How I was found, I¡¯d say it¡¯s a seriously extremely climatic story,¡± he said.


    ¡°Goodness yeah, I bet it is,¡± I said wryly. Dr. Jones made sense of in a quieted voice, ¡°All things considered, everything began when I was in line to get onto a ne. I nned to see apanion of mine in Ennd, we were dealing with the Armonk together. As I held up in line, I heard somebody talking behind me. I didn¡¯t know who, so I pivoted and looked, yet I was unable to see anybody. Then, I felt a sharp pain, and I turned upward and saw ady, holding a wand at me.¡±


    ¡°Hold up,¡± I expressed, going to check the others out. ¡°That damages.¡±


    Dr. Jones made a sound as if to speak. ¡°I wound up in a ne, yet not a business ne. It was one of the freight ones, and it was being utilized as a jail.¡±


    September nodded gradually. ¡°For who?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea,¡± he said, scratching his head. ¡°I actually don¡¯t, yet I was in one of the cells that were by the side of the ne. There were a couple of others in there, and they were undeniably tied up. My garments were shredded, and my skin was scorched. I feel that the individual who put me there was likely attempting to torment me.¡±


    ¡°Who was that individual?¡± Tisiah inquired.


    ¡°The man you folks call Demeitrus Rocke,¡± he said. Mchiughed, ¡°I¡¯m not precisely shocked.¡± The researcher cleaned his jacket subsequent to recognizing a little mess that was chosen it. ¡°He never acquainted himself with me, however I expect he¡¯s the person who set me up,¡± he said.


    ¡°Set you up?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Around fourteen days before I got a call from somebody unknown, saying that I had been found and that I ought to meet them in a bar,¡± he said. ¡°I asked which bar, and they told me, and I came there. At the point when I showed up, I was weed by a man in a dark suit, who called himself Mr. Dbon.¡±


    ¡°The head of the TSA,¡± I said faintly in shock.


    ¡°He advised me to plunk down, and he got me water since I don¡¯t drink,¡± Dr. Jones said. ¡°I asked him for what valid reason he called me, and he said that he needed to ensure I was who I said I was.¡±


    ¡°So he called to ensure you were Dr. Jones, for what?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea, he expressed something about having to know specific whereabouts of a machine,¡± he expressed, ncing around anxiously. ¡°I saw nothing he was saying, yet I could see he was dubious.¡±


    ¡°So then, at that point, what urred?¡± September inquired.


    ¡°Nothing, it was until I went to Ennd they seized me and I was on the ne,¡± Dr. Jones said, shrugging his shoulders.


    He moaned, and proceeded, ¡°I was taken to a little house, where I was kept in a cell. I was moved to many houses and structures and all around. And afterward Inded right at the base where I was saved by you all.¡±


    He took a fast look at us, and said, ¡°Yet that is sufficient about me, we should hit you up folks.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, we didn¡¯t actually have anything to say,¡± I said genuinely, and the remainder of the gathering concurred with me. We experienced this inn that was by the side of us. It appeared to be separated and deserted, with dark form contaminating the walls. ¡°This seem to be a decent spot?¡± September asked, checking me out.


    ¡°Indeed, why not?¡± Nikki upset. ¡°Send him to a gas chamber. Obviously not!¡±


    September moaned, checking her out.


    ¡°I¡¯m simply saying, it¡¯s the ideal spot to stow away,¡± she said. ¡°Nobody will need to enter here.¡± Mchi shrugged, checking the inn out.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine by me,¡± he said. ¡°However I think Dr. Jones would be the one to decide here.¡± We knocked some people¡¯s socks off confronting Dr. Jones. He mumbled as though he had a deficiency of words, and afterward he moaned. ¡°We probably might find anything worse than this,¡± he expressed, gesturing towards the inn.

 Chapter 34

    34 Another Chance


    We dropped off Dr. Jones at the inn, trusting no TSA agent was really going to track down him. However at that point once more, dislike they need to find him, they previously got the data.


    It was the following day, as a matter of fact it was the end of the week. I was magically transported to the school to the surprise of no one except for something felt wrong, awkward. I ept I¡¯m having a peculiar outlook on the mission or something to that effect.


    Or on the other hand perhaps the reality about the mission in front of us that we expected to prevent them from acquiring the Armonk. However, in any case, that would have been an exceptionally coarse mission. I don¡¯t know I was prepared for that.


    I strolled into the school, noticing the understudies that were walking around the corridors, continuing up the steps, and visiting among themselves.


    I started to wish I never attempted to do this.


    I started to stroll towards and up the steps, attempting to move through the surge of understudies. I started to go to my top of the line, Mr. Robbs.


    As I was going to enter, I saw Mchi leaving the ss, and he chanced upon me. ¡°Goodness, sorry,¡± I said. Now Mchi and me ¨C I would to some degree say ¨C arepanions, however he might in any case go ham on me any second.


    ¡°No, you¡¯re fine,¡± he guaranteed.


    Out of nowhere, a youngdy with very luxurious light hair took a gander at me and said, ¡°You know him?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Indeed, I do... ¡± I answered, looking at Mchi. ¡°Goodness, that is insane!¡± she said. She gazed toward him and grinned enthusiastically and afterward left. I could perceive Mchi was entirely awkward from that.


    ¡°Along these lines, for what reason are we going out?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Goodness, I don¡¯t think he told you,¡± Mchi said. ¡°He said that he needed to converse with us before we went to our sses. I had close to zero familiarity with it until September told me.¡±


    I nodded, as we pivoted and went on down the steps before in the long run entering ourselves within the workce.


    We sat down with the rest that were gottenfortable their seats. Nikki took a look at us and gave a speedy wave, as I did so myself.


    Mr. Drails took a gander at us definitely and said, ¡°Now we¡¯ve sorted out where the Armonk is found, and they are in all probability wanting to get it. We don¡¯t know how, but rather I¡¯ll ensure that another group manages this.¡±


    ¡°Another group?¡± Mchi asked overwhelmed.


    ¡°Indeed, you folks are as yet boycotted and are not permitted to be on any missions in four months. You ought to be happy I didn¡¯t remove you from what you did,¡± he said.


    ¡°Your meaning could be a little more obvious. We figured out the directions and found out where the Armonk is,¡± I said.


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t make any difference,¡± he said, shaking his head. ¡°You actually are boycotted.¡±


    I felt a strong st of outrage detonate in me, making me rush onto my feet and gaze straight toward Mr. Drails. ¡°After all that we achieved you¡¯re letting me know that we¡¯re actually boycotted?¡± I said.


    ¡°You folks actually slipped away when obviously you shouldn¡¯t, so consider this your discipline,¡± he said.


    ¡°Alright, tune in!¡± I yelled out of nowhere, feeling humiliated following, as the rest fell down peacefully. I turned around to Mr. Drails, who didn¡¯t appear to be flustered by my unexpected dissent.


    ¡°Tune in, Iprehend that we denounced any kind of authority and I figure out that, and I¡¯m requesting that you attempt to allow us another opportunity,¡± I said. ¡°We didn¡¯t mess up this one up.¡±


    ¡°You got caught,¡± he said.


    ¡°In any case, we got caught and tracked down the researcher at that equivalent base,¡± I added. ¡°Now we know where the Armonk is.¡±


    Mr. Drailsid back and murmured, focusing on his jawline thought. We as a whole taken a gander at one another, and afterward at him,though a few of us looked at one another a piece.


    ¡°Fine, now go,¡± he said.


    We left the workce with a liberating sensation influencing through our psyches. ¡°Along these lines, when do you believe we will go?¡± Mchi inquired. September shrugged, ¡°Most likely tomorrow or somewhere in the vicinity.¡±


    Around a couple of hours passed or somewhere in the vicinity, being that I invested the vast majority of my energy simply chilling in my room, not really seeing the time pse. Out of nowhere, somebody thumped on my entryway, frightening me a piece to where my hands had a little volt.


    I got up from my bed and opened the entryway, seeing that it was Tisiah. ¡°Goodness ¨C hello,¡± I said with a dryugh. He waved mockingly. ¡°Mr. Drails needs to show us something.¡±


    I nodded, and I immediately headed toward my bed, dressing it clean.


    ¡°Apologies, in the event that I appeared to frighten you by any opportunity,¡± Tisiah said. I¡¯m specting he saw my vibrating developments while I was repairing my bed. You will scarcely believe, when I¡¯m frightened ¨C you know I¡¯m terrified.


    ¡°All things considered, essentially you let me know this time,¡± I said, wending my direction towards the entryway.


    We traveled through the corridors, however at that point wound up moving into a whole unique way that was not known to me this time.


    We showed up at a corner close by Mr. Drails¡¯ office, and afterward Tisiah pushed on the wall, and it out of nowhere disengaged from the rest and moved aside, allowing us to stroll through.


    When we went through the corridor that was totally encircled by orange-earthy colored walls, we ended up in a middle of PCs, screens and a lot of professionals I¡¯m specting.


    ¡°All things considered, what¡¯s this?¡± I inquired.


    The rest were at that point there, which I started to view as a piece annoying. For what reason was it that they were constantly informed sooner than me? Am I not the one with the Perk they are explicitly attempting to kill ¨C I ought to the one know first!


    ¡°Alright, do you have at least some idea what we¡¯re hanging around for?¡± I inquired. Nikki shrugged. ¡°Not precisely certain, however I¡¯m certain really intrigued.¡±


    Then, at that point, out of nowhere, Mr. Drails showed up in the wake of apanying himself out the entryway that was evidently there. ¡°Alright,e in,¡± he said. We followed him within a room where it was a seriously fascinating inclination. The room was blue, which must be brought about by the Drove lights. There was a dark square shape table with twelve seats and a major tremendous screen that was changed with the table.


    ¡°Plunk down,¡± he said. We as a whole sat down by one another deferentially, as a sensation of interest started to kick within me.


    ¡°Now, for the most part I don¡¯t do this since this data is as of now inside the organizers that you ordinarily get while doing your central goal,¡± he said. ¡°In any case, being that time is very against us, we should be quick.¡±


    ¡°Along these lines, what does you came to tell us?¡± September inquired. Mr. Drails got up and afterward clicked a button that appeared to be underneath the table.


    Out of nowhere, the screen illuminated into life, giving us a diagram or map of a specific structure of some kind or another. ¡°This is the WFS Centralmand. It¡¯s on a in ind they called Port Manuel, that is around 500 miles from Florida,¡± he said.


    ¡°Why measure from Florida?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°At any rate, this spot is the most mystery ce it very well may be, and it holds an exceptionally valuable development to the US government,¡± he said. ¡°The Armonk.¡±

 Chapter 35

    35 ns


    ¡°Now here is the design of Port Manuel,¡± he said.


    He squeezed another button, and the screen changed to a satellite perspective on the ind. ¡°First we dare to the front, where the gatekeeper tower is found,¡± he said.


    ¡°What do you mean by monitor tower?¡± Nikki inquired.


    ¡°The watchman tower is there to get individuals far from the Armonk,¡± he made sense of, pointing at the red speck that was flickering on the map. ¡°Monitored by warriors are important for the tactical part of the WFS. They are prepared to safeguard the Armonk, and to annihte any individual whoes near it.¡±


    ¡°Be that as it may, they ought to acknowledge you,¡± I said. ¡°You¡¯re a Spy.¡±


    ¡°However, I¡¯m not in the tactical branch,¡± he said. ¡°I would have to get their consent first, and, surprisingly, then, I would need to show off my abilities.¡±


    ¡°How would you anticipate getting their authorization?¡± Nikki asked, inclining forward.


    ¡°Well,¡± he expressed, pivoting to confront us. ¡°We can¡¯t, so we will simply proceed to take it.¡±


    ¡°How?¡± I inquired.


    .....


    ¡°That is the reason we came here,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Now, if we somehow happened to take the Armonk, we could keep it some ce for some time prior to being gotten once again to its unique spot so we could fool the TSA into thinking the researcher lied,¡± he said. ¡°What¡¯s more, since we are not military, we wouldn¡¯t need to stress over the fighters halting us.¡±


    ¡°How could they not stop you since that is no joke?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°No, they¡¯re customary men with firearms while we have otherworldly weapons. It¡¯d be difficult for them to do a lot,¡± he said.


    ¡°Okay, so how would we get in?¡± Mchi asked anticipatingly. Mr. Drails strolled over to the front of the port, and quickly as he contacted, certain things sprung up, making specific groupings. ¡°In the first ce, we really want to enter the ind, and afterward we should involve our direction in,¡± he said.


    ¡°Utilize our direction in, what does that mean?¡± Nikki inquired.


    ¡°It implies we need to get the researchers to open the entryway,¡± he said. ¡°We¡¯d require military masks, yet we¡¯d in any case have to persuade them that we are who we say we are.¡±


    ¡°That implies we would require an ID,¡± September replied, getting a gesture from Mr. Drails. ¡°Be that as it may, we just need the ID briefly,¡± he said. Nikki grinned unhesitatingly, knowing what she was referring to. ¡°That will be simple. I can without much of a stretch make those Id¡¯s,¡± she expressed, taking out her telephone.


    ¡°Indeed, yet we really want to get into the structure first,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Hopefully we will track down the researchers and persuade them to help us.¡±


    ¡°Well we previously got the regalia and ID, what more would they need?¡± I inquired. Mr. Drails then, at that point, answered, ¡°Imagine a scenario in which they unexpectedly don¡¯t see an ID on us, promptly we would be captured or killed on the spot,¡± he said. ¡°They probably won¡¯t really ept that that we are who we say we are, and they won¡¯t ever let us inside.¡±


    We as a whole murmured in thought, however at that point Tisiah eximed, ¡°I know!¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I asked as us all blew some people¡¯s minds towards him in interest, particrly September.


    ¡°There is one individual who could make it happen,¡± he said. ¡°He used to be apanion of mine a long time back before you turned into the Chief, however now he¡¯s an authority agent,¡± he said.


    ¡°Who is he?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°His name¡¯s Devon Mentor. You could possibly track down him at the coffee shop close to us,¡± he said.


    ¡°Is he a hero or a trouble maker?¡± Nikki inquired. Tisiah murmured and afterward murmured snidely, ¡°No, he passed on as ofte. Obviously he is! He in a real sense is an authority spy mage!¡±


    Nikki frowned at him disgustedly, as Mr. Drails inquired, ¡°What else is there to do?¡± ¡°He simply knows how to do, you know, the ID kind of stuff. Visas, Id¡¯s, drivers permit, bank cards, thatrge number of types,¡± Tisiah expressed, checking out at Nikki with a conceited artiction.


    ¡°Okay, well on the off chance that he¡¯s a particrly extraordinary person, he ought to help us,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Tisiah, you go to the cafe or something and inquire as to whether he can help. We¡¯ll ideally begin moving tomorrow, however first we really want to get past the phases of this base.¡±


    He nodded. ¡°Okay, now once the researcher drives us to the Armonk, this is we¡¯re going to¡¯s specialty: I will apany you and Mchi, while September and Nikki stay here,¡± he expressed, highlighting the two youngdies. ¡°Then, at that point, when you get inside, we¡¯ll upy the guards, and you folks sneak in. Now, in light of this cloning machine, it very well may be quiterge so Nikki can utilize her powers and make some sort of interruption so we can get inside inconspicuous,¡± he said.


    ¡°In this way, where are we going to get away?¡± I inquired.


    Mr. Drails replied, ¡°We will flee our direction through a specific corridor once we get the Armonk, which ought to be decently soon. From that point onward, we¡¯ll advance toward the outside and afterward evade utilizing my gateway. Now assuming any guards are pursuing us, we simply need to ward them off. That ought not be excessively troublesome, right?¡±


    ¡°Indeed, they in all actuality do have shots and we¡¯re not precisely safe to projectiles so it very well may be risky,¡± I said.


    ¡°Yeah, however we¡¯ve done more awful previously,¡± Mchi said, putting his arm around me. ¡°We got two agents with Perks so we ought to be fine, don¡¯t ya think?¡±


    I shrugged, not exactly knowing how to answer. ¡°Of course, I surmise,¡± I said. ¡°Alright, now Tisiah, you can go get Devon Coach while most of you can return to our own undertakings.¡±


    We left the room and got back to the corridor, as Tisiah left. I felt something in my spirit that pushed me to go with him, so I tapped him on the shoulder once I found him. He turned around and took a gander at me, ¡°You want something?¡± he inquired. I shook my head. ¡°No, it¡¯s simply I believe it¡¯s ideal to follow you in contacting him,¡± I said.


    He smiled. ¡°Well OK then, at that point,¡± he said. We left the entryway and we started to stroll from the academypound, and down the road.


    ¡°How would you even know him?¡± I asked, inquisitive.


    ¡°Gracious, we met previously. He was a covert operative for the organization, and we were old buddies. He was basically the same as Mchi, simr to they were basically the same in character. In spite of the fact that, I¡¯d say he was superior to Mchi,¡± he said.


    ¡°Truly?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Well yeah, he had this situation about being a troublemaker, however I figured out he was really terrified of everything,¡± he said.


    I chuckled, ¡°Yeah, that sounds like Mchi a piece. Be that as it may, I suppose you know, we simply could do without to bring down our self image.¡±


    ¡°That is valid,¡± he said,ughing. The sky was dazzling blue, and the moring of the roads quieted my psyche, and I started to feel improved. It appeared to be that this day would be significantly more charming than yesterday. Individuals walked around the road, strolling through crosswalks and the thunders of running motors as every vehicle cruised by. The air felt significantly better and the sun felt warm on my skin, and I started to feel confident once more.


    I was feeling a chomped down recently or tired I surmise, however now I feel significantly improved. Before sufficiently long, in front of us was a cafe that was a bringing back home by a recreation area that was being delighted in by kids. Arge portion of the children my age were perched on the seats with their sweethearts or something like that. Ugh, secondary school.


    We entered the burger joint, which had white walls and a white roof, and I saw the enormous man who was the proprietor behind the counter. The counter was striped with red and blue, and the name of the cafe was ¡®The Limit¡¯. That is to some degree remarkable. ¡°Ay, you all need anything?¡± he asked, yet we shook our heads. We looked around for him, and I was persistently hanging tight for Tisiah¡¯s reaction or something, however he wasn¡¯t there.


    ¡°Well, perhaps he has something going on,¡± I expressed, wanting to find him soon.


    Out of nowhere, I heard a voice. The entryway opened and a man with fair hair, blue eyes, and a facial hair growth strolled in. His facial hair was very short and stuck all over, and he had a little mustache, and a scar under his left eye. When he turned his head towards us, his face illuminated, and he surged over to us.

 Chapter 36

    36 Attack on Port Manuel


    ¡°Tisiah!¡± he said, scouring Tisiah¡¯s dark hair. ¡°Haven¡¯t seen you in that frame of mind while. How have you been?¡±


    ¡°All things considered, I¡¯m doing okay,¡± he said. Then, at that point, Devon then, at that point, arrived at his sight towards me, and I could perceive that he could see that I viewed this as to some degree off-kilter. ¡°So who¡¯s yourpanion here?¡± he inquired.


    ¡°This is Connor,¡± Tisiah said. I waved my hands shakily for reasons unknown, and Devon snickered, shaking my hand.


    ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Devon,¡± he said. ¡°Seeing you is exceptionally great. So what have youe here for?¡± Tisiah murmured. ¡°All things considered, really, we really want some assistance from you,¡± he said.


    Devon nodded, and took a seat at the table with us. I sat nearby Tisiah, in light of the fact that as I said, a major contemtive person. I felt very damp with sweat in this present circumstance, and I was trickling water plentifully. ¡°Help? With what?¡± Devon inquired. Tisiah inclined in nearer, taking an overview of the area prior to making sense of, ¡°In this way, we¡¯re really slipping into a base so we really want some camouge. We simply required you to make an ID for us, just so things can go more straightforward.¡±


    Devon nodded, and thought briefly. ¡°Indeed, that is all in all an issue,¡± he said, scratching his jawline. ¡°I don¡¯t do that stuff any longer.¡±


    Tisiah murmured, ¡°Gracious, I didn¡¯t know that by any means, do you end up knowing somebody that can?¡±


    Devon shook his head, ¡°No, nobody does something like that any longer. The security has strengthened extremely, and on the off chance that you don¡¯t know anybody, then, at that point, you won¡¯t ever get in.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s security in hacking?¡± I inquired. Devon nodded his head, ¡°It¡¯s a sure chip that they enact all through every one of the PCs all through the whole nation, and it should prevent programmers from getting in.


    .....


    Furthermore, they worked effectively doing as such, as well. At the end of the day, I don¡¯t believe that any programmer could get in without knowing how to sidestep the security.¡±


    ¡°Alright, gratitude for aiding,¡± Tisiah expressed, getting up from his seat.


    However at that point, Devon got eyes with me and they started to broaden. ¡°Hello, you seem to be the person that was on the information, caused it to appear as though the entire town exploded or something to that effect.¡±


    Promptly I started to perspire, feeling a flood of apprehension gobble up my psyche, and I was unable to talk.


    ¡°You know, the youngster that got exploded,¡± he expressed, highlighting me. ¡°I don¡¯t think he was dead however, as a matter of fact, I think he caused it.¡±


    ¡°What are you referring to?¡± Tisiah asked, pivoting.


    ¡°All things considered I was a programmer myself, and I¡¯ve seen some peculiar stuff in my time, however I mean darn, that one was unique,¡± he said, looking me over.


    Tisiah took a full breath and ced his hand on my shoulder. ¡°Trust me, he isn¡¯t that person,¡± he expressed, attempting to implement a certain voice. ¡°Believe me.¡±


    We both got up from our seats and moved out of the corner, as we entered out the door and started to continue towards the academy once more.


    ¡°Did you tell him?¡± I asked Tisiah.


    As speedy as a discharging firearm, he dissented, ¡°No, I most certainly didn¡¯t ¨C I wouldn¡¯t agree that that to him, I could never do that!¡±


    ¡°Why he believed that it was me? Seeing the news, my face seemed to be coal! How is it possible that he could see me through the camera?¡± I inquired. Tisiah shrugged, ¡°I have no clue, all you ought to be appreciative about is that I let him know that you weren¡¯t the person, and that you were really guiltless.¡±


    The more I mulled over everything, the more I started to feel awkward. Yet again soon enough, we headed towards the academy, however the rest peacefully.


    It was the following day, and it was a Sunday, the day where we nned to take the Armonk for a couple of hours then, at that point, return it so the TSA would think it wasn¡¯t there. We previously told the news to Mr. Drails and he appeared to be disturbed, so we ended up just having to utilize Nikki to design us some tactical apparel and ID¡¯s in spite of the fact that they may not keep going long. We remained in his office, prepared to magically transport ourselves into Port Manuel.


    ¡°Uh, Mr. Drails,¡± Mchi called. ¡°Why not simply magically transport within the base.¡± ¡°Since we will require a card to pass through the doors, obviously nobody knows what it resembles so Nikki wouldn¡¯t actually have the option to make one,¡± Mr. Drails said, changing his uniform. ¡°Okay how about we move.¡±


    He gathered an entryway before us, as we as a whole took a full breath. This was all there was to it, this was our opportunity to keep the Armonk, and yet, we were additionally risking being killed by those men or getting caught.


    ¡°Stand by,¡± I said, ¡°how might we know when returning is protected?¡±


    ¡°When the TSA leaves,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    We made our strides towards the entryway, as the draw of the gateway started to snatch me, I felt my body start to drift. We out of nowhere hurried through the entryway, and found ourselves leaving into the front of the port. Stunningness promptly gripped our hearts as we checked the humongous port out. It seemed to be a jail: Lookouts overshadowing us with guards exploring the region, and enormous metal doors driving into the structure. The structure had a tan and dark variety design, and was I surmise I could say, fifty stories high.


    ¡°That is the structure,¡± Mr. Drails expressed, pointing at the port.


    There were around five guards with weighty weapons that were monitoring the front, and one gatekeeper with an automatic weapon remaining by the entry. Around two more were on top of the structure, one of them with their optics out, as well as a rifle pointed at the sky.


    We immediately ran towards the structure, however before we got excessively close, we heard an uproariousmotion that shut behind us. It was the entryway, and soon enough the guards that were watching the door continued towards us.


    ¡°Are you permitted to be here by the general¡¯s requests?¡± one of them inquired.


    Mr. Drails nodded and held up his identification, ¡°Yes sir, we¡¯re here to get the Armonk.¡±


    ¡°Why precisely?¡± one of them inquired. Mr. Drails made a sound as if to speak, ¡°The president maintained that us should research the weapon in dread that somebody might be after it, so we really want to remove it from the ind.¡±


    ¡°When is it withdrawing?¡± one of them asked, as he put his hand on the door.


    ¡°In 60 minutes,¡± Mr. Drails answered. ¡°Anticipate that it should be very soon.¡± And right then, at that point, we heard a weak thunder of a motor, of some ne or something to that effect. We looked into overhead however saw nothing and the sound faded away.


    ¡°It probably been a little stream, the sound of it diminished,¡± one of the guards anticipated, and they turned around to us. However at that point, a lot of nes shot through the mists and they started to speed towards us. ¡°Get down!¡± Mr. Drails yelled, as we as a whole sped and dodged under the rooftop. Projectiles poured down from the nes and the guards lit to fire back, however they couldn¡¯t hit any of us. Dust detonated starting from the earliest stage, fighters alive into the ground and walls.


    ¡°Everybody, remain low!¡± the gatekeeper yelled, as the men in the lookouts ran down the stepping stool and immediately got away, however the contender jets moved around and dumped projectiles once more, this time on the rooftop where we were stowing away. ¡°Get inside!¡± they yelled, and we sped inside the structure. The sound of nes kept on thundering among us, and the projectiles started to raise a ruckus around town, and the floor.


    ¡°Close the door!¡± one of them yelled, as Nikki immediately closed the door.


    We as a whole halted and I took a full breath, attempting to get on to what was happening. Then, at that point, it hit me, the TSA were going after today! They were attempting to take the Armonk, it was the main way it appeared to be legit.

 Chapter 37

    37 An Unexpected Rtion


    ¡°Is everybody alright?¡± Mchi asked, gasping for breath with his handsying on his legs. ¡°Yeah, I suspect as much,¡± I said. ¡°Would it be a good idea for us to begin moving?¡±


    ¡°Without a doubt,¡± one of the guards said. ¡°Before they start shooting through the structure!¡±


    We immediately rushed through the metal corridor, and went into a room. The lights were off, however we could hear the hints of gunfire outside. When I turned on the lights, we found it was the steps room. ¡°Alright, how about we drop down,¡± one of the guards said. We ran down the steps, and I guarantee you it was a great deal of steps, and soon enough, we happened upon a corridor with dark walls and metal doors.


    ¡°What¡¯s this spot?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Entrance towards the Armonk,¡± the gatekeeper said. ¡°We really want to continue to move now!¡±


    We hurried down the corridor and soon we came to a tremendous room with a long table and seats. We immediately moved towards the door that was on the short side of the table around twenty feet in front of us and we jumped through, and the gatekeeper shut the door behind us. It was one more corridor with a tan, reflexive floor with brilliant walls that sparkled in my eyes. Be that as it may, the corridor was inclining lower, and soon we came to a room with two dark doors, one on each side of the wall.


    ¡°OK, so what do we do in this present circumstance?¡± I asked, taking a gander at every door before we heard a vile voice talk behind us. We as a whole pivoted froze, as we saw Demetrius Rocke remaining behind us with agents close by like bodyguards. The bodyguards were wearing a tactical armor carrier with exceptionally stacked pants. ¡°You can do nothing really,¡± he said, with an exceptionally dullugh. ¡°You can¡¯t.¡±


    Rapidly the guards got out their rifles and yelled out projectiles, however at that point he rapidly prepared his wand and dumped two shots of lighting at them both, and they fell dead to the ground.


    ¡°How ¨C how could you do that?¡± Nikki asked, stammering on her words. ¡°Did you adjust to another power or something to that effect?¡±


    .....


    ¡°No, I never did really,¡± he said with an exceptionally lightugh this time. ¡°Gratitude for seeing, now agents ¨C take them out.¡±


    The agents charged towards us, as Mchi and September immediately sped towards them.


    Mchi went in for the speedy swing, however the agent got around it and thought of a punch to Mchi¡¯s face.


    September experienced one more and attempted to magically transport behind him as a stunt, however the agent hit her with his wand and wrecked her.


    ¡°You folks need to leave, now!¡± Mchi yelled. I saw them despondently, while preparing to bolt my direction to the dark door on the left. Rapidly we scattered, Mr. Drails and Tisiah getting away towards the right door, and me and Nikki to the left.


    We jumped through and pushed the door shut, vigorously taking in dread and shock. I was unable to deal with what simply urred, or what happened upon my eyes. I shuddered in shock and disarray, as I viewed at Nikki who appeared to be simrly situated as me.


    ¡°You alright?¡± I inquired.


    She nodded, however her activities were saying something else. She was grasping her chest, and tears were developing in her eyes.


    When I looked forward, I ended up significantly more bewildered, as a matter of fact ¨C captivated.


    The room was dull, however just a single light tried to please to a crossing point of two different ways: left and right.


    ¡°What is this spot?¡± Nikki pondered, as we gradually creeped ahead, watching out for any indications of development.


    We looked by us, and one of them prompted a door however the other to another corridor. ¡°What direction?¡± I asked her, however I just got pieces of words. She was frightened without a doubt.


    ¡°I, I surmise the corridor,¡± she said, in the wake of carving out opportunity to rx.


    We moved to one side and kept strolling through the corridor, which was significantly longer than the first. The corridor drove us to a right, and afterward to a left, and afterward to a left once more, and afterward to a right. The corridor possessed an aroma like metal, and it stung my nose the more we continued all the more profound through the lobby. We didn¡¯t appear to be going anyce. ¡°What is this?¡± I murmured in my mind, until quick strides reverberated through the corridor.


    Nikki immediately got her wand out hurriedly, and I got mine out as well, and we remained close to one another, prepared to make a move. Out of nowhere, a figure showed up in front of us, and in a split second Nikki developed a dart and shot at him, as he shouted in trepidation. Be that as it may, his voice soundedparative, incredibly,parative.


    ¡°Greg?¡± I asked, as the figure gazed toward me, and I could find an exceptionally powerless grin from the low immersion of light we were given.


    ¡°Connor, I suppose you tracked down me. What are you doing here?!¡± he yelled, running towards us.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± I asked him.


    ¡°Indeed, I am, however you actually haven¡¯t responded to my inquiry, what are you doing here?¡±


    ¡°What are you doing here?!¡±


    My dad sent me since he said that he believed me should meet somebody extraordinary, and that I could help or something to that effect.


    ¡°You¡¯re a government operative mage like us?¡± Nikki asked, as a little sh of energy vibrated in her voice.


    ¡°Indeed, in the FMA, the Field Mage Organization,¡± Greg said. ¡°Furthermore, you?¡±


    ¡°The YMPA,¡± I said. ¡°So is your dad like a piece of the military or something to that effect?¡±


    ¡°Indeed, in light of my spection you¡¯re most likely the extraordinary individual that he was discussing,¡± Greg said, dismissing the inquiry.


    ¡°What do you mean by me being an extraordinary individual? That didn¡¯t assist with responding to my inquiry,¡± I murmured. Greg vigorously murmured and scoured his head, as though he was worried about something.


    I wound up a piece frightened to hear what he nned to talk from his mouth straightaway.


    ¡°Alright, tune in ¨C there are two things I really want to enlighten you concerning OK, for the most part since I believe that was the general purpose of this experience.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I murmured in disarray.


    ¡°Just ¨C simply listen okay?¡± he argued. ¡°Number one, Mr. Drails is your dad.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Nikki screeched, as she immediately whipped her head right at me. ¡°How are you not astonished by this?¡±


    ¡°All things considered, I definitely knew this some time prior,¡± I said. ¡°Simply didn¡¯t think it was more right than wrong to let you know then, at that point, other than ¨C it changes nothing.¡±


    ¡°Gracious, goodness. Father previously let the cat out of the bag,¡± he said. In any case, that not too far off, surprised me.


    Father ¨C father?!


    ¡°What do you mean by ¡®Father?¡± I asked him, and heughed.


    ¡°I¡¯m your sibling Connor,¡± Greg said, and now the two of us ¨C me and Nikki ¨C were totally toppled with a thunderp of disclosure. ¡°You ¨C you are my... ¡± I stammered.


    Yet again the words struck me so hard, I staggered onto the wall, attempting to snatch my breath ¨C however the astonishment was consuming my entire whole mental stability.


    ¡°Indeed, I am, and I suppose you have something to do with us being gone after by a lot of nes at the present time?¡± Greg asked vacantly.


    ¡°Yeah, however some way or another the TSA is as of now inside the structure,¡± Nikki said. Greg¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°The TSA?!¡± he yelled, as he paced in stress. ¡°That is terrible, they could take the Armonk!¡±


    ¡°Huh, you know about this?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°The FMA is for the most part in rtions with the military, so we¡¯re permitted to know about these specific things.¡±


    ¡°So what do we do now?¡± I inquired. ¡°We were isted from our gathering pretty much a couple of moments prior. We really want to track down them.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, hopefully they¡¯re as yet alive,¡± Greg said. ¡°I don¡¯t think the nes were fundamentally required.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Nikki asked, in anticipation.


    ¡°It¡¯s conceivable that the ne assault was just an interruption,¡± Greg said.

 Chapter 38

    38 Cargo


    ¡°Follow me,¡± he said, as he ran through the lobby. We immediately attempted to follow him, yet I didn¡¯t know he was essentially as quick as a cheetah when it came to running. The lobby resembled metal walls, and the floor was painted with dark tiles, with dark markings on them that gave this corridor a shocking inclination.


    Obviously not the most ideal inclination by any means.


    Out of nowhere, we were directed to a liftmunity, with two lifts and one button.


    ¡°Thus, how precisely do you have any idea where the Armonk is?¡± I inquired. ¡°Did the tactical give you folks the area of it also?¡±


    ¡°No, yet I¡¯m the one in particr that knows in the FMA,¡± he said. ¡°Furthermore, obviously the TSA knows also.¡±


    A lift uncovered itself from us and we entered. Now you know how you have your floors introduced to you to pick.


    Yeah, it was that way ¨C however something was significantly more unique this time around. Greg squeezed the principal floor then the eighteenth, then the thirteenth floor then the fifteenth, then the fourteenth and the 11th and abruptly ¨C we started to go down.


    In any case, we went constantly down.


    As a matter of fact, it was very concerning in light of the fact that I was certain that we should be ascending to the 50th floor, yet rather maybe we were going down fifty stories.


    .....


    ¡°For what reason isn¡¯t it going up?¡± Nikki inquired.


    ¡°Since this code¡¯s utilized to go down to where the Armonk is contained in,¡± Greg said. ¡°We really want to arrive rapidly before the TSA even arrives at there.¡±


    The lift opened, and we wound up taking a gander at a sight that was presumably not as eagerly awaited. We saw the door open, the light sparkling inside, yet TSA agents were holding the Armonk that was inside a straightforward box. The Armonk seemed to be a mechanical hand, which would check out on the grounds that it¡¯s known as the Arm-priest.


    One of them took a gander at us and their eyes shot open, and they yelled, ¡°Hello, we have organization here!¡± As though it was coordinated, they gradually moved their heads to us, and they held their wands.


    ¡°OK, I believe we will have to battle through,¡± I said.


    ¡°Take these individuals out!¡± one of them requested. ¡°We don¡¯t require them making things harder for us.¡±


    Three of themshed at us, and we could charge at them.


    Rapidly I utilized my Perk and kicked the person hustling for me, he shot back, colliding with the ss. ¡°Folks, they¡¯re moving away!¡± Greg yelled. I saw him and afterward back, seeing the cargo ne they were stacking it on, gradually close.


    I expected to arrive quick!


    Rapidly I sped towards the ne that was gradually pulling pace, and I jumped ¨C dashing against the door shutting.


    When it shut, I discovered myself feeling a fix of momentment storm my body. I was separated from everyone else within the ne that was likely going to fly more than 30,000 feet in the air. What was I going to do once I moved it ¨C fly away? I can bounce extremely high, and regardless of whether I attempt to, I would simply break my bones.


    I expected to call Mr. Drails speedy.


    I peered inside, and I saw the agents signaling and talking among themselves, yelling requests of where to put the Armonk.


    I could grope the ne draw, and I could feel my body shiver from the inclination.


    Gradually I wriggled to the side of the ne, attempting to coordinate my heart beat however it was palpitating extremely quick. I looked to see what they were doing, and I saw Rocke neglecting the whole effort.


    My loathing and repugnance was over the top with this person. ¡°Alright, men,¡± Rocke said. ¡°I need three of you all watching this spot here, and don¡¯t for even a moment attempt to be tricky with this weapon, got it?¡±


    ¡°Indeed, sir,¡± they said.


    One of them inquired, ¡°Sir, what would it be advisable for us to do about those nes going after the base?¡±


    Rockeughed, ¡°Advise them to keep terminating, I need that kid with the Perk dead!¡±


    I really wanted to pant and cry from the words. They were attempting to kill me with those military aircraft ¨C which was beyond ridiculous. Perhaps it was an interruption too, or they simply needed me exploded into pieces. One way or the other, it actually wasn¡¯t great.


    ¡°We will return to the BMO base, so we can subside a little. Nobody will anticipate us in Ennd by the least,¡± Demetrius Rocke taught.


    I was epting he was conversing with the pilots, since he had his back went to them.


    He strolled into the cockpit, and the TSA spies then, at that point, went to their ces. I remained nearby corner, however leisurely looked to check whether anything changed.


    Nothing.


    I expected to quiet down, I expected to simply mitigate myself down, and attempt to pacify my mind. I expected to make an arrangement, yes ¨C an arrangement!


    That was the main thing I could do in this present circumstance. However, first I expected to converse with Mr. Drails and most of them.


    I immediately got the radio and exchanged into the right channel.


    ¡°Yeah?¡± Mr. Drails said. I murmured in help, ¡°Alright ¨C you folks are alive, now um, would you say you are folks OK?¡±


    ¡°Indeed, we will be, we tracked down Nikki this other person ¨C ¡±


    ¡°Indeed, this other person named Greg, he¡¯s mypanion from school and clearly an agent from the FMA, has he let you know folks?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°Let us know what? We just saw as one another, truth be told, where are you?¡± Mr. Drails inquired.


    ¡°I¡¯m inside a cargo ne holding the Armonk,¡± I said. Mr. Drails¡¯ voice totally flipped into rm.


    ¡°They took the Armonk?!¡± he yelled.


    My pulse started to throb significantly quicker, and I shushed him down. My voice was shaking wildly as I spoke, ¡°Indeed, yes ¨C indeed, yet tune in, in the event that you all can see as a ne or something, I can attempt to get the Armonk, kicked down the door and you can magically transport me within the ne, then, at that point, we rapidly return to the YMPA, and we¡¯ll see from that point.¡±


    ¡°How are we expected to view as a ne?!¡± Mr. Drails inquired.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea, I¡¯m in a real sense in a ne at the present time!¡± I said hurriedly. ¡°Tune in, simply attempt to find a kind of boat or vehicle, I simply have to know you¡¯reing!¡±


    ¡°OK, we¡¯ll do as such.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I expressed, clicking off the radio. I cleared off the perspiration that was streaming down my brow, and I saw back at the Armonk.


    There was a window that was right over the crate, and I knew whether I saw something in any event ¨C it must be them.


    Or on the other hand the tactical nes, could be conceivable.


    However at that point, I heard stridesing right towards me, and I felt my body stop super cold. I inhaled vigorously, yet quickly and I felt as though I nned to pass on. Cause perhaps I was! Then I saw him stroll into my segment of the ne and I realized it was inevitable before he saw me.


    Rapidly I jumped at him and I handled him, holding him down. He fell on the floor, and I took hold of his neck, and I began to stifle him out. He battled, shaking as though he was a hot seat and afterward he kicked me squarely in the leg, nearly causing me to lose my hold.


    ¡°Hello, hello, what are you doing?!¡± he shouted.


    I immediately covered his mouth tight, and he started to mutter in dread.


    I immediately progressed my leg over his neck, which I tell you is difficult, and I kept it there, attempting to fix it however much I could. I heard him begin to wheeze, and he was unable to rx. ¡°Tune in here, is there a code to the container?¡± I asked him.


    ¡°I¡¯m not letting you know anything,¡± he said gruntly. I pressed more tight, and he battled more earnestly and he started to pleadingly shout. ¡°Let me know now,¡± I said and he nodded.


    ¡°Alright, the numbers are one, eighteen ¨C ¡±


    I took him out right away, in light of the fact that I definitely knew the code from the lift, it must¡¯ve been something very simr.


    I let him fall down behind the crates next to me and I gradually got back to each of the fours, slithering gradually towards the Armonk. However at that point, I heard my radio snap on and I immediately sped towards the other corner morally justified.


    ¡°What urred?¡± I asked, concerned.


    ¡°We¡¯re by you all!¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°We found a cargo ne that was precisely the same, however the issue is that there may be some military aircraft behind us that might need to bring down the ne you¡¯re in.¡±


    I swallowed in dread.

 Chapter 39

    39 The Armonk Attempt


    were behind us, and I guarantee you ¨C it froze me to death.


    Out of nowhere, the TSA agents that were nearby the Armonk, exchanged their heads at the window and soon enough, yells and orders roared in the air


    ¡°Sir!¡± one of them called.


    Rocke immediately went out from the cockpit and inquired, ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Military nes are behind our tail!¡± the watchman said, and disturbance wasmunicated on Demetrius Rocke¡¯s face.


    ¡°Take shots at them with your wands!¡± he said. ¡°Man everybody to their stations!¡±


    Before adequately long, men immersed my part of the ne and unexpectedly started to open the base door. Out of nowhere, a draw of wind got me and I battled to keep myself behind the corner. Men kept on climbing into the segment, taking out their wands and terminating at them.


    I kept quiet the entire time, simply watching with dismay. The TSA agents shot bolts out of their wands at the dark and red military aircraft that were dragging along them, and they started to take shots at them, causing shes and sts.


    Then, at that point, the warrior jets started to go after the ne, and I looked as the window ss broke, and I dodged under the cases. ss showered through the area, and I covered my head with my hands, dreading for my life.


    .....


    Before sufficiently long, the warriors attempted to fly into the ne, and I felt the vibrations of the ne unexpectedly shake exceptionally hard to where I could keep my position. However at that point one of the bolts figured out how to crash into the ne, and I could see the fire from the effect, and I looked as the wing of the ne started to consume. It started to slip down to where I was unable to see it, however more participated in the assault. Bolts and gunfire showered through the sky, and I covered my head with my arms, and I shouted out.


    However at that point I mulled over everything, I could utilize this opportunity to attempt to get the Armonk!


    Rapidly I jumped up to my feet and plunged towards the Armonk.


    ¡°One, eighteen ¨C ¡± I stammered, feeling a significant burden of dread going through my body. I was unable to center, I was unable to fathom what the code was.


    I mean it¡¯s presumably best I simply bring the case and hop into the ne.


    Then, at that point, my radio tapped on and I addressed it quickly, ¡°Something urred?!¡±


    ¡°Come on, you really want to get in!¡± he yelled. ¡°Simply take the container with you!¡±


    He was thinking what I was thinking.


    ¡°OK, I¡¯ll be there in a moment,¡± I said, however at that moment I felt myself get hauled by the cor by somebody.


    Rapidly, I shook him off and I jumped onto my feet, seeing three TSA agents with their wands prepared to charge me. I swallowed, yet obtained my own.


    Then, at that point, they charged.


    They swung their wands, however I immediately halted it with my wand, then I raised mine and terminated at them. They fell back, dazed.


    I ran forward, tossing my arms around the Armonk, until one of them got me ¨C delivering my hold. They tossed me to the cold earth, and a sharp aggravation consumed in my shoulder.


    In any case, I wasn¡¯t surrendering.


    I got up and immediately utilized my wand to swing, and I hit the TSA agent who had snatched me in the jaw. He fell back, dazed. I went over to the one behind me, and I really do say ¨C he gave truly a battle. He swung tenaciously, whipping over my head to where it was difficult to sidestep any strike, and afterward he¡¯de at me once more.


    It took a great deal of work to evade his strikes in general, and despite the fact that I did ultimately figure out how to hit him in the stomach with the drag of my wand. In any case, utilizing that energy, he then whipped around and whirled, retouching into a roundhouse kick that hit straightforwardly at my face. I felt myself fall onto my back, moaning from the aggravation. However, once more, I got up, and this time ¨C I won¡¯t allow him to hit me once more. I swung my wand at him yet he avoided, and afterward I swung once more, yet he evaded once more.


    And afterward I swung a third time, and he evaded once more.


    Rapidly I utilized my leg and kicked his thigh, faltering his steadiness, and afterward I weed my wand down on him. He hindered, yet I cut my give over, and I snatched his wrist with both of my hands, and afterward I pulled him over me, hammering him onto the ground.


    I immediately hopped up and held my wand high over my head, and afterward I checked him out. He saw me in dread, and afterward took out, his head dropping and hungover.


    I inhaled vigorously, however now I could take it.


    I immediately got the crate ¨C however by and by, I was hauled back to the ground.


    Yet, this time by Demetrius Rocke.


    ¡°Hi, little fellow,¡± he said with a giggle. ¡°You are apparently lost don¡¯t you?¡±


    I got up and shouted as I ran towards him, yet moved out the way ¨C winding up tumbling.


    ¡°You make a respectable attempt to be a covert operative mage, yet with the exception of it ¨C you¡¯re bad at it,¡± he said. ¡°The way that you even have a Perk is irrational. You¡¯d think your dad would¡¯ve birthed somebody more brilliant than you, wouldn¡¯t you say?¡±


    Yet again I felt outrage bubble within me and I barreled towards him, however I felt myself lose my bnce by and by.


    ¡°Kindly, quit embarassing yourself,¡± he said, giggling. ¡°It¡¯s making me chuckle.¡±


    Irritation rose within me to a ce where I shouted, not in any event, caring the amount it hurt,stly gave a disaster for his face.


    His wand dropped from his hand, and it slid over to the Armonk.


    ¡°Thus, no doubt about it,¡± he said, clearing a portion of the blood off his nose. ¡°I can live with that.¡±


    We took a gander at one another, my face fuming with disdain, however his facemunicated with a tricky style.


    The pressure proceeded to climb, and rose significantly more as we started to trudd all around, trusting that the ideal opportunity will strike.


    Then, at that point, I swung my wand, however at that point he smacked it away, sending it taking off behind the cases. ¡°Look who doesn¡¯t have a wand now,¡± he said. ¡°Wee to the club.¡±


    Quickly, I swung my clench hand towards him however he immediately went the punch, and I gave one more ¨C yet he figured out how to dodge that one.


    However at that point I hit his lower leg and stomach, utilizing both of my legs in an opportune request, then I kicked him personally in the chest.


    He tumbled a little yet he actually kept his ground. He threw a punch, however rapidly my elbow manevered into a blockade, hindering his assault.


    He grinned at me, and I could have done without it.


    Then, at that point, he utilize my equivalent leg move however attempted to circle back to a speeding punch, yet that¡¯s what I obstructed, gripping his wrist. He utilized the other and punched me the stomach, however at that point I utilized my leg once more, this chance to kick him in the shin. I immediately added a quick punch, which I got his cheek.


    I was breathing vigorously, and I was perspiring. Yet, he didn¡¯t appear to be bothered by any means. Rapidly I threw a punch, however he evaded, making me just swing at the air, before he elbowed me toward the back ¨C hard.


    I fell forward and moved to my feet.


    ¡°How can it feel little fellow?¡± he shared with me. I yelled as I threw a punch, yet he manuvered aside, and snatched my body, tossing me all the way down.


    I gazed toward him, tears in my eyes, and I shouted at him. I got up to my feet, just to be met with a foot to the face, sending me to the ground.


    ¡°Get up,¡± he said. ¡°Try not to surrender, kid. I figure you can put a preferred battle about that. You have a Perk, however yet you battle as though you were recently conceived!¡±


    He kicked me once more, and I felt a stream of blood run down my face. I snarled and charged at him, just to get stumbled, and tumble to the ground.


    ¡°You will lose young man,¡± he said. ¡°There¡¯s is no way to bring me down.¡±


    What¡¯s more, right now, the motors of the ne detonated into a monster chunk of fire.

 Chapter 40

    40 A Perk Fight


    The ne sped down quicker to the ground, plummeting many feet quickly.


    I felt myself lift off starting from the earliest stage tossed to the cockpit of the ne, taking the two pilots out. The breeze whipped against the ne, and my face kept on squirming like coverings.


    I was frightened ¨C froze. Was this the way in which I nned to kick the bucket? Now I was truly beginning toment joining the YMPA. Perhaps it was best I just remained as a sophomore.


    I wouldn¡¯t approach passing¡¯s door in a short time!


    The ne ran towards the ground, and the wings plunged marginally, making the entire situation nt.


    Out of nowhere, the motors began to shake viciously, and the ne began to turn. The world zoomed around, and my grasp was ckening, however I clutched a seat, and some way or another figured out how to hang on. Then, at that point, I checked out along the edge, seeing a window by the side of me. I immediately kicked it, as it broke into little pieces, and I immediately leaped out of the ne.


    My head hit something hard, and I promptly convoluted, however I was unable to see anything. However at that point the ne influenced the ground and I felt an unforgiving st. I felt the pieces drop on me, keeping me contained and I was unable to move. Dust sneaked in my mouth, and I had to shut my eyes.


    I was caught. I woke up, and saw a seat over me, as I removed it from my way, and I moved to my feet. I needed to leave.


    Be that as it may, the Armonk!


    .....


    In spite of the fact that, it must¡¯ve been annihted in the ne ident. The ne was surging on fire, and in pieces, with ss depressed into the field, however there was no indication of the Armonk.


    However at that point I shifted focus over aside and I saw the container, yet it was totally unblemished. Totally!


    Obviously this container was me resistant, or st resistant or whatever verification. It should be obvious that it¡¯s as yet unblemished that I expected to get it speedy.


    Rapidly, I went within the ne and got it, yet additionally investigating the utlimately battered ne. The ne looked consumed and dark, and the seats werepletely broken, as was the floor, and the walls, and, surprisingly, the roof. I expected to dart out of here rapidly. However at that point I heard the moan of the meta being lifted and I thought back, seeing Rocke crawling out of the ne. His face had a dark ssh of debris on it, and his hands were dying.


    ¡°Hi, little fellow,¡± he said with augh. ¡°We¡¯re not finished at this point.¡±


    ¡°I sort of trusted we were,¡± I said, with an exceptionally apprehensive, and froze look all over.


    ¡°Give me the Armonk, kid,¡± he said. ¡°Except if you have any desire to kick the bucket from my hands, since trust me, I couldn¡¯t care less on the off chance that your five or not, I¡¯m getting that thing.¡±


    ¡°For what reason do you really want it so much?¡± I inquired.


    He wouldn¡¯t reply however, he¡¯d just barely walk increasingly close to me, with his breaths pulling this way and that in a threatening, and hungry way.


    ¡°Give the Armonk to me,¡± he said, with his hands open wide, prepared to grab it from my hands.


    Be that as it may, I wasn¡¯t giving anything to him.


    We before long started to go beyond the ne, where pisces and ss concealed within the wheat.


    ¡°Fine,if you need a battle so a lot, I¡¯ll give you one,¡± he said. He raised his clench hand, and it plunged into me, dialing back the sound wall as though it went into slow movement.


    I flew I¡¯d express many feet until I arrived onto the ground.


    The Armonk flew from my hands about at some point farther than me.


    Then, at that point, I turned around and saw him jump starting from the earliest stage take off prior to plummeting to me. I didn¡¯t actually know you could do that.


    ¡°When I adjust another person¡¯s powers, I know everything how they can manage it,¡± he said. ¡°100%.¡±


    ¡°Demonstrate it,¡± I expressed, expecting to extract some data from him.


    ¡°Try not to be senseless youngster,¡± he said. ¡°Now, I will take this, and you folks can manage this ne here, got it?¡± I shook my head, and I attempted to go after the Armonk, however he essentially snatched it.


    Theck of respect, man!


    He started to leave, and before long set himself to jump.


    I really want to aplish something speedy, before he pulls off it!


    Rapidly, I energized my leg and stepped onto the ground, making a shockwave that sent him onto his stomach.


    He moaned, and got up however at that point he saw me before him, my Perk charged as far as possible.


    One hundred, versus one hundred.


    ¡°You put your energy in every one of the wrong reasons,¡± he said. ¡°Number one, attempting to battle me.¡±


    In a split second, he threw a punch at me, however I leaped far removed.


    He growled, and he jumped once more, and afterward I did as well. We hit the ground, as an influx of soil spray up starting from the earliest stage, towards us. We both sidestepped, and he started to snicker.


    ¡°You believe you¡¯re quick,¡± he said. ¡°Presumptuous eh?¡±


    ¡°Could you keep your mouth shut, and perhaps we show with our abilities,¡± I returned back, really having a generally excellent outlook on that one.


    I quickly pushed my legs, and sent myself flying through the air. As Inded, I rolled and stood up, and I felt my body starting to sparkle. Before sufficiently long, an entire blow of what could be a bolt or lightning skewered out and barrled towatds Rocke. It hit the ground close to him, and it detonated into dust.


    ¡°I have been utilizing your own abilities against you,¡± he said. ¡°In any case, never have I seen something to that effect. You obviously know your powers.¡±


    The unexpected bolt st moved the airne pieces, epassing us to where it was by all ounts a ring of some kind or another. A ring containing us, with one award. The Armonk. I swung my clench hand and struck a catastrophe for his face, and he fell back, and the ne pieces started to move, as though it was alive. He moved back up to his feet, and charged towards me once more, tossing punches that I immediately needed to avoid, and sidestepping his kicks.


    It was hard, however I some way or another figured out how to keep away from his assaults, and soon enough, he started to tire. Then, at that point, I came in with the roundhouse kick, which he obstructed, however his knee sped.


    I snatched him by the neck, and I hauled his arms despite his good faith, and afterward I took everything that is in me and tossed him into one of the pieces utilizing a touch of force from my Perk. He crushed into it, and he tumbled down onto the ground.


    ¡°Ha,¡± he snickered, as he gradually ascended. ¡°You are by all ounts keeping down, however yet I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea why. Perhaps this is on the grounds that your powerless. You can never control the Armonk, in any case safeguard your cowardly country.¡±


    Outrage bolied within me. My hands shook in fierceness, and they sparkled brilliantly. My breathing was weighty and hazardous and I charged in, with a shout more than ever, and I threw a punch that got him right on the jaw. He shook in reverse, flying into the piece once more, however the power was so difficult, it even moved the ne and caused a path of sts, sending pieces of metal all over the ce.


    ¡°I will kill you,¡± he said, gradually ascending once more. ¡°Obviously, you are by all ounts in your mind, so I should end you here.¡±


    He inclined his head forward and started to vibrate his head. Out of nowhere,zers shot out of his eyes and prated through the wrecked bits of the cargo ne,ing appropriate for me. A st, a major st in a haze of hot, red fire gathered in a split second, sending me flying however the air, prior to arriving on the ground.


    My back throbbed, and my vision obscured. I attempted to get up however my bones were sizzled into sticks, and my body was consuming in torment. Blood hurried down my nose and my head, and conceivably my back since it was sshing my dark shirt. It dribbled down into the dirt, watering it with my blood.

 Chapter 41

    41 Ends of it All


    Fire raged throughout the area, and smoke swirled around me. I looked up and saw the ne parts falling back to Earth, and I heard Rockeughing. I saw him walking slowly towards me in the midst of the fire, and he walked with a smile on his face. ¡°Hope you¡¯re having fun!¡± he shouted, as he shot another station ofzers at me. He missed, but the force threw me back into the air, and I flew through the sky, until I crashed into a tree.


    I dropped down onto the floor, and the tree crashed down to the ground right after. I groaned, unable to move, and Iid there, and I tried to stand up but my body wouldn¡¯t listen. ¡°What was that?¡± he shouted, continuing to walk towards me. ¡°Maybe we should show with our skills?! Well I just did, and look at you now!¡±


    He grabbed me by my cor and my neck burned from the pain. ¡°Now listen here Connor, the Armonk is mine, and I¡¯m going to take it! You see, I have been working on this for years. And I¡¯m not gonna let some CEO¡¯s boy take it, so let this be thest words you¡¯ll ever hear.¡±


    He looked me directly in the eye and chuckled, as he raised his hand and brought it down. I closed my eyes, waiting for death. But then, I felt a shockwave and heat that blew me from the ground. I opened my eyes, seeing shining light and the Armonk flying through the air.


    Suddenly a portal fashioned itself in front of it, and sucked it up into its realm. Once I fell to the ground, I knocked out, not being able feel or see anything, and I felt consumed by darkness.


    ***


    Time had passed, and I was finally able to open my eyes, feeling a weird sensation from seeing the world after what could¡¯ve been days.


    I was in my room inside the YMPA, but something was contrastive about the ce. I was on my bed, yes. But, there were medical supplies by me, and one ced on the other side of my bed.


    Clearly I must¡¯ve been injured.


    .....


    My arms still felt weak, but they were still able to have a bit of mobility.


    Then someone opened the door and they peeked through it. It was someone with brown hair and soft, engaging lips, with soft peach skin.


    I have no idea who that is. Is this some sort of new person that¡¯s just being introduced to me, because then this is a terrible way to meet someone.


    But I was incorrect, and it was September instead, who just seemed to dye her hair different. I¡¯m sure no one knows why, but I wasn¡¯tining.


    ¡°Hey, you okay?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Well, I guess,¡± I said, very diffident.


    ¡°So how long ago have you woken up,¡± she asked. ¡°Well I think about a minute ago I believe,¡± I said, with a light chuckle. She joined in with me, and took a seat-grasping a stool from the desk and teleporting by me.


    ¡°You¡¯ve slept for a whole week just to let you know,¡± she rified, leaving a calm expression of surprise on my face.


    Never in my life was I ever going to think that I slept for a week. But nor did I ever think that I was gonna be a spy mage either, so I guess this is just a systematic thing now.


    ¡°Wow,¡± I said dryly. September continued to exin, ¡°We got the Armonk, thanks to your distraction. Nikki was able to make a momentarily clone, and Mr. Drails sucked in the one the real one, giving Demeitrius Rocke the fake one.¡±


    ¡°So, what was that blinding light?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± September said with a shrug. ¡°I thought you did that.¡±


    ¡°I thought of you guys did that,¡± I returned back. ¡°Are you sure Nikki wasn¡¯t the one that happened to throw a grenade or a shbang or something?¡±


    She shook her head, and I nodded. ¡°So maybe if I did, I don¡¯t even know I could do that,¡± I said, feeling the presence of unsettlement.


    ¡°Maybe its because that happens because you were scared, and your stress somehow transferred to energy and-I don¡¯t know, but I¡¯m just d you¡¯re alive.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t we all d were alive,¡± I chuckled, then winced, holding my ribs.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± she apologized.


    ¡°For what?¡± I asked. She chuckled, ¡°It¡¯s just something my family says whenever someone hurts themselves for some reason. Just happens.¡±


    I nodded slowly. ¡°Well thanks for doing so,¡± I said.


    ¡°Anytime,¡± she said with a smile. ¡°I really hope you do well,¡± she added. ¡°I would love to be on more missions with you.¡±


    For some reason, I bursted outughing, making my ribs burn in pain, which made me chuckle harder.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± I said betweenughs. ¡°Just remembering what you thought of me before.¡± She didn¡¯t seem too amused, especially from her sigh, but she tried tough anyway.


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry about it,¡± she said, trying to regainposure. ¡°First impressions, I guess.¡±


    We both became silent and the birds chirping gave a certain sense of finality to the silence.


    ¡°What do you think about me now?¡± I asked.


    She smiled, and she leaned over to me, and kissed me softly. It was nice, but I wasn¡¯t sure what to make of it. ¡°I think of you as a very strong spy,¡± she said, smiling.


    ¡°I guess that¡¯s true,¡± I admitted, though I felt a little uneasy. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of pain involved in being one.¡±


    September nodded, and she looked down at the floor. Then she looked up again, and showed her bright white teeth. ¡°That¡¯s why I have respect for you,¡± she said, leaning over and kissing me again. This time it was more passionate.


    When she pulled away, she looked me straight in the eyes. She caressed my cheek with her hand, and she gently rubbed my chest.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll be going now,¡± she said, as she stood up.


    ¡°Wait,¡± I said, grabbing her wrist. ¡°Can you tell me what happened to Nikki?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s back home to her family,¡± she said, and she smiled. ¡°Not sure why you asked.¡±


    Now I didn¡¯t want to feel like a bratty macho man or something like that, but I sensed a feeling about Nikki.


    ¡°Well, I thought she was gonna be here, because I have a feeling-¡±


    September nodded at a leisurely pace as if she knew what I was talking about. Maybe she did. I¡¯m not sure, but she then left the room, and I sat there alone, wondering about Nikki.


    Then I felt myself close my eyes, and drift off into a very calm sleep.


    We did it-we stopped Rocke in getting the Armonk, but now its back to being a regr boy again. But then, September opened the door again, and stood by the entranceway.


    She had a very enlivened smile dressed on her face as if she just got a pony for her birthday.


    ¡°What happened?¡± I asked, but she stayed quiet. But I had an idea of what happened, something that benefited all of us.

 Chapter 42

    42 A Friendly Talk


    Have you ever thought about your life, whether it¡¯s a lecture from your mom, sleeping, or sitting in the car bored with nothing to do?


    Or, let¡¯s say you did something like perform in your school band or theater, and you are just being congratted and adored by the audience, and you ever thought, ¡®I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d ever get this far.¡¯


    That¡¯s how I feel.


    After finishing a harrowing mission of trying to get the Armonk and retrieve back a scientist-which not to worry, he¡¯s been reunited back with his family-I just thought about it, and never in my life did I think I was going to be a spy mage.


    And not only did I participate in a mission with explosions and all types of crazy stunts, but I also made a lot of friends-lots of friends.


    September, one girl that I like and I¡¯m pretty sure she knows that, although nobody else does. Another one is Tisiah, who is probably the most optimistic person in this academy.


    Nikki, who is his sister and no joke looks very attractive.


    Then there¡¯s Mchi, one of the most popr agents in the school with a whole civilization of friends. I¡¯m sure I¡¯m just a fine acquaintance of his, but he easily snaps.


    Like I¡¯m super scared of him.


    .....


    I sorta have two dads, Mr. Drails and Dad. Funny thing you assume, but Mr. Drails is my dad, and Dad is my uncle.


    Figures out.


    Also, my best friend, Greg Jimmons-or Drails I guess-is my brother.


    Now to move on into the story, we just came back from winter break, and luckily I ended off my semester with all A¡¯s and two B¡¯s.


    Let me tell you, high school is not easy. I assume college is worse than high school though, so might as well be grateful for where I am right now.


    The hall was packed as usual, and the muddles of the student¡¯s voices stung my ears. I went to my locker and opened the doors, obtaining my books and papers for my first ss, math.


    Imagine starting your first ss as math, already just chewing your brain out.


    Then I heard footstepsing from the right of me, but they weren¡¯t Kirk¡¯s-because it sounds way more menacing when he walks.


    ¡°Hey bro,¡± Greg greeted.


    He was wearing a green solid color shirt, with blue jeans and some ck Airforces.


    ¡°Hey,¡± I greeted. ¡°How¡¯s the FMA?¡±


    ¡°You want to talk about those stuff inside of probably one of the most public ces in the entire world?¡± Greg asked.


    ¡°Well, wouldn¡¯t that be a park or a restaurant that would be super public?¡± I questioned.


    ¡°Either way,¡± he argued. ¡°Remember when that assassin tried to kill you?¡±


    I gulped at the feeling, as my heart began to pulsate from the fear of that time. My legs began to shake from the thought of it as if I was just running right there and then.


    Still running.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said, silently and brokenly. ¡°That was scary.¡±


    ¡°For sure,¡± Greg said. ¡°Also who was that girl that saved you?¡±


    ¡°How did you know?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Oh, you don¡¯t know my Perk,¡± he said, with a chuckle. ¡°I can do body transfers.¡±


    My jaw dropped in shock. I began to remember the time when Mr. Drails exined about that power when he was inviting me to the academy.


    I chuckled at the thought of it.


    ¡°There areyers to it, I can transfer to your brain and see what you see, and feel what you feel but I can¡¯t control you. Then the next is when I can take control of your whole body,¡± Greg exined.


    Disgust but intrigue rolled over my body. ¡°Wow,¡± I said with a hushed breath. ¡°That¡¯s different.¡±


    ¡°I even did the same thing with Devon,¡± he said. I turned my head back to him perplexed.


    ¡°You did what-¡±


    ¡°So about that girl,¡± Greg asked.


    I stammered in confusion about what I just allowed into my ears and finally spoke, ¡°That was a girl named September.¡±


    ¡°And you like her right?¡± he immediately said, without any sort of wish for more info!


    ¡°Greg!¡±


    ¡°Sorry-sorry,¡± he said with a smile, as he chuckled. I couldn¡¯t help but follow along as well. I sighed after the shortugh, then I responded, ¡°Yes, I do, but she likes me back.¡±


    Surprise formed on Greg¡¯s face, as he began to wheeze excited chortles. ¡°Someone likes you! Are you guys together?¡±


    ¡°No, she¡¯s older than me,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s just that one quickes and go feeling.¡±


    That was aplete lie, but I didn¡¯t want to sound creepy-okay? Cut me some ck.


    ¡°I kind of like that girl, uh-Nikki,¡± he said. ¡°She looks very good though, not gonna lie.¡±


    ¡°I can see how,¡± I said. ¡°You don¡¯t have much of standards so for someone like her-pretty sure you would.¡±


    Greg shook his head. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll see youter.¡± He patted me on the back and walked in the opposite direction.


    ***


    Soon school ended, and I was quickly heading towards the door to see the sky and feel the air, and then go home. As I opened the door, suddenly a portal summoned in front of me, making me trip inside the ck hole. I found myself dropping into the archway of the YMPA building, in front of Mr. Drails.


    ¡°Hello,¡± he greeted, and I nervously nodded.


    ¡°Hi,¡± I said, still nervous.


    Mr. Drails smiled with a little chuckle, then he said with a breath in between, ¡°Sorry if yournding here wasn¡¯t exactly the best, it¡¯s my honest mistake.¡±


    ¡°Ya think,¡± I hissed, as I stood up. ¡°I almost fell t onto my face!¡±


    He chuckled again. ¡°I know,¡± he said. ¡°That¡¯s why I came out to greet you. After all, it would somewhat help the pain right?¡±


    I sighed.


    ¡°I got you out early because I wanted to tell you something in my office, follow me,¡± he said, walking past me down the hallway.


    I followed him, as we walked through the halls and up the stairs until we reached his office.

 Chapter 43

    43 The New Contest


    He opened the door and he let me through the door, signaling me to take a seat. I did so, and he did the same, following with a sigh. ¡°Have you heard about the Wand Annual Contest?¡± he asked, looking at me.


    ¡°No...¡± I responded. I have never heard a single thing like this, and I¡¯ve been here for a month at the least.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s a contest that takes ce every year,¡± he began. ¡°It¡¯s a battle royale where there are twelve teams, and the winner is thest person standing.¡±


    ¡°What are the rewards?¡± I asked, curious.


    ¡°The reward is a ss off for over three weeks,¡± he replied. ¡°But that isn¡¯t the real prize. The real prize is the poprity and the respect that you get from winning.¡±


    ¡°Why does everyone want to win it?¡± I asked. ¡°I mean each ss is fun in its way, but if you win, won¡¯t people start to hate you?¡±


    ¡°And so what?¡± Mr. Drails said as he shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s apetition, and they will. But they just have to deal with it. Plus, who said it was going to bring you who¡¯s gonna win, anyway?¡±


    ¡°I guess,¡± I said, and I leaned back in my chair.


    ¡°Okay, so I¡¯ll give you a brief exnation of the rules,¡± he began. ¡°First, the contest is divided into four stages: the first stage is where you¡¯re dropped in the middle of nowhere, and you have to survive by yourself for three days. Then, youe back to the base camp and you have to build a shelter. After that, you¡¯re given a day to prepare your weapon. And finally, you have to fight your way to the center, where the final battle will be held.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Wow, can I get that pen and paper,¡± I asked.


    ¡°Sure,¡± he said, and he handed me a notebook and a pencil.


    ¡°So, you mentioned four stages,¡± I said, writing down the information.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± he replied. ¡°But only three are important. The first stage, where you¡¯re dropped in the middle of nowhere and you have to survive by yourself for three days. That¡¯s where you¡¯re tested, and where the true character of the team shows itself. The second stage is when you return to the base camp and you have to build a shelter. That¡¯s where the team starts to get stronger, and where the first battles begin. And the third stage is when you¡¯re given a day to prepare your weapon. This is where the weapons be more sophisticated and the battle begins in earnest.¡±


    ¡°Sounds like a lot of work,¡± I said, writing it all down.


    ¡°Yes, it does,¡± he said, smiling. ¡°But you¡¯ll make it, hopefully.¡±


    ¡°How do you know all this?¡± I asked, writing it down.


    ¡°Because I¡¯ve been doing it for years,¡± he said, and he paused. ¡°In fact, I¡¯ve been doing it for thirty-five years.¡±


    ¡°Even through all that drama?¡± I asked. Mr. Drails chuckled, ¡°I never said I quit my job being a spy mage kid, did I?¡±


    ¡°Well, no,¡± I admitted.


    ¡°Good,¡± he said. ¡°Now, I¡¯m going to tell you how you can beat them.¡± He looked at me intently.


    ¡°You have to have a n,¡± he said, ¡°and you have to be able to carry it out. You have to have a weapon that is capable of taking down the others. It has to be simple, yet effective.¡±


    ¡°Whoa, isn¡¯t this cheating?¡± I asked as I stopped him there.


    ¡°No, not at all,¡± he said, shaking his head. ¡°The game is designed so that there is an element of luck involved, and you have to use that to your advantage. Plus I told everyone this so no worries and they¡¯ve epted it.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I want to y,¡± I said, looking up at him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± he said, grinning. ¡°You¡¯ll want to, trust me.¡±


    ¡°Okay, so what¡¯s the n?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You need to get the most powerful weapon you can,¡± he said, and then he looked at me. ¡°You have to find the most powerful weapon you can, and you have to learn how to use it. You also need to get the best shelter you can, and you have to make sure that you¡¯re ready for the third stage. And finally, you have to be ready for the final battle.¡±


    ¡°So, what kind of weapon should I get?¡± I asked.


    ¡°That depends on what you¡¯re good at,¡± he said. ¡°You only use your Perk, so try to use something that may use your arms in some sort of punching motion, or maybe something with sharp edges. If you¡¯re strong, you can get away with using something heavier. But you have to be careful because if you¡¯re too heavy, you won¡¯t be able to move around quickly.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± I said, writing all this down.


    ¡°Oh, and you have to take care of your health,¡± he added. ¡°You can¡¯t die before the end of the game.¡±


    ¡°I guess I don¡¯t have much choice,¡± I said, putting down my pen.


    ¡°Well, there are other things you need to consider,¡± he said, as he continued writing. ¡°You have to be smart, and you have to be observant.¡±


    ¡°What else?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You have to be quick,¡± he said, and he stopped writing. ¡°And you have to be lucky.¡±


    ¡°I thought luck wasn¡¯t a factor in this game,¡± I said.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter,¡± he said, as he continued writing. ¡°You still have to be lucky.¡±


    ¡°You mean, like, you have to be lucky when you get your first ss?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Exactly,¡± he said, and he stopped writing. ¡°You have to be lucky enough to get your first ss.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Because,¡± he said, and he stopped writing again, which was bing very constant right now. ¡°You have to be lucky enough to get your first ss.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± I said, nodding. ¡°Got it.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± he said, and he resumed writing.


    ¡°What else?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You have to be prepared,¡± he said, as he finally put the pen down. ¡°Be prepared at all costs.¡± He emphasized on that and I nodded, as I got up. ¡°Well I¡¯ll see you soon, I guess,¡± I said, and I headed off to my room.


    As I walked back, I thought about what Mr. Drails had said. I knew I had to be prepared, but what exactly did that mean? Was it just a matter of buying more food, or something more important?


    When I reached my room, I sat down at the desk and opened up the journal, where I¡¯d written down all the things Mr. Drails had told me. I read over everything, and it didn¡¯t seem as though I could use anything in the game to help me beat the others. Then, suddenly someone busted into the room, smacking my door open and startling me to death.


    I nced down, seeing Tisiah down on his belly as if he was running from a pack of dogs. ¡°Hey Connor,¡± he said, grunting as I got up and helped him back onto his feet.


    ¡°What were you doing?¡± I asked, not even bothering to hide the annoyance in my voice.


    ¡°Nothing,¡± he said, and he tried to look innocent. ¡°Just going for a walk.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, okay,¡± I sarcastically agreed.


    ¡°Hey, are you excited about the WAC?¡± Tisiah asked, trying to change the subject. I looked at him with confusion, asking, ¡°WAC?¡±


    ¡°The Wand Annual Contest,¡± he said, and he grinned. ¡°We¡¯repeting against the guys who live next door to us. We¡¯re going to y them for the whole day tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Oh, yeah, I remember,¡± I said, and I smiled back at him. ¡°I forgot all about that.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s gonna be awesome,¡± he said. ¡°Everyone is pumped up.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, well, I¡¯m sure it will be,¡± I said, as I went to the window and looked out. I sighed, feeling a certain pressure from this whole thing. After a certain while, Tisiah asked, ¡°You okay, Connor?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± I said, and I turned around.


    ¡°You don¡¯t sound so good,¡± he said, as he sat down on the edge of the bed. He put his hand on me and smiled, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll be fine, man.¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said, and I tried to smile back.


    He nodded and he got up and left the room, closing the door behind him.

 Chapter 44

    44 Rude Awakening


    I woke up the next morning, feeling a thousand times better than I did before. Maybe it was because I wasn¡¯t feeling a bit weird about the whole WAC stuff. It felt just as bright as yesterday, I think. I got downstairs, and saw my mom in a blue dress, with her hair up in a bun. She smiled at me, and she asked, ¡°How are you feeling?¡±


    ¡°Fine as ever,¡± I said, grabbing the cereal standing on the counter.


    ¡°That¡¯s nice,¡± she said silently, barely enough to process a word.


    As I was eating she said something else, stopping me cold from taking another bite. ¡°So how¡¯s the chess club?¡± she asked.


    I felt likeughing at that point, but that wouldn¡¯t be the wisest decision. ¡°Fine, I believe,¡± I said.


    She nodded, and she went over to the cab, opening and hoarding spices between her arms and neck. I continued to follow her movements toward the pots.


    Are all moms like this? If not, then I must have a unique one.


    I finished my food, feeling a blob of digested oatmeal settle in my stomach. ¡°Bye mom,¡± I announced, waving my hand as a gesture.


    She did the same and I closed the door. I began to walk down the sidewalk, taking the longer path to the school.


    .....


    Y¡¯all know what happened when I took the shortcut.


    I saw something I wasn¡¯t supposed to see and I ended up here as a spy mage. It¡¯s an entire story.


    I eventually made my way to the school and soon enough, I was viewing Greg just waving his hand like a four-year-old seeing his best friend.


    Guess you can kind of say that¡¯s what it is.


    ***


    Time passed and now we were about to be in lunch now-which not to be rude-but it ain¡¯t exactly the best time in this school. Kirk usuallyes and bothers me, and I¡¯d always have to hide to eat my emergency meals.


    As I was putting things in my locker, Greg came up to me and asked, ¡°So how¡¯s everything going?¡± I shrugged, ¡°Fine so far I guess. Just heard about the WAC contest.¡±


    ¡°Oh, the Wand Annual Contest,¡± he said. Shock sshed onto my face. ¡°You guys have it too?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yeah, every single spy mage agency has it, it¡¯s a very fun test. I¡¯ve won about five times or so,¡± Greg said.


    Bro, I need advice from him.


    ¡°How?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You just win,¡± Greg said with a flippant chuckle.


    I wasn¡¯t exactly amused by his joke.


    ¡°You know what I mean,¡± I hissed and he nodded.


    ¡°Just try to be as secluded as possible, as well as observant,¡± he said, and he pointed at the floor.


    ¡°Observant?¡± I asked, and I looked down at the ground.


    Greg nodded with emphasis and said, ¡°You have to look for anything that seems out of ce, and that could give away your position.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s pretty vague,¡± I said, and I turned around to walk away. But then he quickly shouted, ¡°Wait, wait!¡±


    I stopped and turned back to him, and he said, ¡°Don¡¯t forget to be quick. If someone sees you, you have to be gone before they can say anything.¡±


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll keep that in mind,¡± I said, and I began to proceed my way towards the cafeteria.


    As I began to do so, I heard a notification belle from my phone. I reached it out of my pocket and I quickly scrolled to it, seeing it was Mr. Drails.


    I looked at the text, and horror was all I could think in my head.


    Suddenly a portal appeared under me, sucking me from the ground, and teleporting me inside his office. I was the first one there because it seemed as if Mr. Drails was waiting for the others.


    I looked around, trying to see if they wereing anytime soon. Instantly, Mchi opened the door and soon enough my friends poured into the silent, and eerie room.


    Mr. Drails leaned and had his hands crossed, as he began to speak with a sigh.


    ¡°Okay, remember the Armonk?¡± he asked. We all nodded, and he followed on as well. ¡°Alright, so we have a reason to believe that the TSA stole it, recing Nikki¡¯s temporary one with the actual one.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Mchi shrieked. ¡°There¡¯s no way that could happen.¡±


    Confusion rose in the room, as every voice began toin in amunion of wonderment.


    ¡°There¡¯s no way,¡± Nikki said. ¡°It would only be able tost for a certain amount of time, and that¡¯s it!¡±


    ¡°Yes, we are aware of that,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°But we analyzed the room and the box that it was in. Figures they froze it for a certain amount of time so that they use it trick us.¡±


    ¡°Figures out you have a weakness in your power,¡± Mchi said with augh. Nikki responded with a repelling expression.


    ¡°Not really,¡± I said. ¡°If she can freeze something and keep it contained for a longer time, it could be very useful.¡±


    ¡°So all of a sudden you¡¯re a scientist,¡± Mchi said, though I just rolled my eyes.


    ¡°Anyways,¡± Mr. Drails disturbed. ¡°We need to find where it could be, and luckily we just have that answer.¡±


    He opened a section in his desk, revealing a remote that activated a screen to slowly descend into position.


    ¡°You see when that explosion happened, there were two Armonk¡¯s in that explosion. We sucked in the real one, Rocke was left with Nikki¡¯s version. We made sure to put a tracker on the Armonk specifically, just for these situations.¡±


    Suddenly a screen popped up of a map, and although I wasn¡¯t sure what it was, I know it was a very big city or state perhaps.


    ¡°Now, from what I can predict, this person is in Russia.¡±


    ¡°Russia?¡± I asked, and I looked over to Nikki.


    ¡°That¡¯s where it¡¯s at,¡± Mr. Drails said, and it¡¯s in an unmarked area. He pointed at a building that seemed to be a cafe and looked back at us. ¡°You see, in a regr GPS this wouldn¡¯t show, but because of our advanced satellite, we get to find unmarked areas.¡±


    ¡°So we¡¯re going to travel to Russia?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°No, it would be too soon,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°We need to gain intel on them, so while you guys are participating in the WAC contest, we¡¯ll be searching to find who it is and which area they are.¡±


    ¡°Good to know,¡± Mchi said, and he nodded.


    ¡°You guys will bepeting against the other teams of the WAC,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Might wanna start setting up your teams before Saturday.¡±


    He then ported me back to the school cafeteria.


    I quickly studied the ce before I could find Greg who was sitting quite far away from everyone else at that same table.


    I rushed over to Greg, who looked at me concernedly. ¡°You okay bro?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine,¡± I said, trying to catch my breath. He continued to stare at me with a concerned look. ¡°So, you ain¡¯t gonna eat?¡± he asked.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m fine,¡± I assured. ¡°Just had somethinge up real quick.¡±


    ¡°Is it with the whole-¡±


    ¡°Yeah, the whole thing,¡± I said. I don¡¯t know what was going on with me, but my heart was hurting bad.


    I eventually caught up with myself and was ready to tell him. ¡°So you know the whole thing about the Armonk?¡± I asked, looking around the cafeteria to point out the cameras.


    They were in each corner of the cafeteria except the one that was by the door.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Greg nodded.


    ¡°It¡¯s been stolen,¡± I told him, as his eyes widened in a rude awakening.

 Chapter 45

    45 A Very Bad Assassin


    ¡°How, how did it get stolen?¡± Greg asked.


    I could only stammer the answer. ¡°I-the TSA switched out the real one with Nikki¡¯s version, by keeping it frozen and resetting its timer.¡±


    Greg scratched his head in confusion, ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡±


    I stutter in hindrance, iling my arms around that seemed to testify to my frustration.


    ¡°Okay, listen. They froze Nikki¡¯s version and reset how long it stays for and they took the real one, understand now?¡± I asked.


    Greg nodded, and then asked, ¡°So do you guys have a n?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but I don¡¯t think its best to exin that, being that someone might be listening-¡±


    I stopped cold once I saw someone staring at us with very intense thought. He was a new guy, with ck hair with a stubble beard, and ck sses that outlined his skepticalness.


    ¡°What?¡± Greg asked as he looked back, seeing that same thing.


    .....


    ¡°You suspect something?¡± Greg asked, turning quickly back to me. I nodded and continued to double-take back to him.


    He was still staring.


    ¡°Alright, listen,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯ma go to the bathroom, and you see if he follows me. If he does, knock him out or something.¡±


    ¡°Wait,¡± Greg said, stopping my train of thought. ¡°Lemme transfer real quick.¡±


    He closed his eyes and took heavy, deep breaths. He continued to stay that way until he opened his eyes.


    ¡°So did you get anything?¡± I asked, ncing back at him again.


    ¡°The man doesn¡¯t talk in his head,¡± he said. ¡°He must¡¯ve known or something.¡±


    ¡°Maybe because you said lemme transfer!¡± I hissed. ¡°We¡¯re going back to n A, watch.¡±


    I got up from my seat and began to walk towards the door, as intensifying fear began to climb inside my chest, and my heart began to pulsate.


    I headed out the door, and soon enough, I heard footsteps. Very slow ones, though.


    I wanted to look back but that would blow our cover, and that wouldn¡¯t exactly be the smartest move. I whispered to myself, ¡°Don¡¯t be scared.¡±


    Don¡¯t be scared...


    I proceeded into the bathroom, and I closed the door. I quickly went into the stall and got down to see if he came in.


    The door opened, and I began to whimper. Slowly he walked through the bathroom, each footstep slow and steady.


    Click-ck, click-ck.


    More and more he continued to search, each step getting slower and louder. Click-ck, click-ck. He continued walking, more and more.


    My heartbeat climbed in tempo. My breathing became quick. My blood was tingling in fear. My cries were shrill. My eyes were watering. My body stood still, frozen in terror.


    Then, he stopped, right where I was at.


    Then, he went to his knees and looked under the stall. He found me, and I needed to do something quickly. But all of a sudden, I heard a painful grunt of someone piling onto him.


    ¡°Greg!¡± I shouted, opening the stall.


    But I found myself befuddled, seeing September pinning the man down, and Greg rushing over to the bathroom.


    ¡°Where were you?!¡± I shouted.


    ¡°I was trying to finish my lunch,¡± he said. ¡°Sorry.¡±


    I sighed, disregarding his excuses. Then, September looked up at me. ¡°Do you know this guy?¡± I shook my head with great power into it. ¡°No, I don¡¯t, but he looked suspicious.¡±


    I gazed down at him, and he fixed his gaze on me, with anger and hatred seething on his face.


    ¡°Why are you here?!¡± September interrogated. The man now stared at September, and then back to me. ¡°What makes you think I can tell you?¡± heughed. ¡°I¡¯d die anyway.¡±


    ¡°So why keep your answer from us if you¡¯re going to die anyway?¡± Greg asked. ¡°It¡¯s simple logic.¡±


    ¡°Hush, young boy,¡± he hissed. September shook her head and pulled in tighter. ¡°Remember where you¡¯re in fool.¡±


    ¡°Sounds like Rocke,¡± I said. Then a full realization popped into my head. ¡°Rocke sent you.¡±


    ¡°Wow, you¡¯re a smart guy,¡± the man said with a very revoltingugh. September thennded her knee on his head, pinning him down from further hideousughs.


    ¡°Shush-¡± she turned into a hushed breath ¡°-you pig.¡± ¡°What does he want with you?¡± Greg asked me.


    ¡°To kidnap you so that you guys can have another one-on-one. He never got to finish you, but I know he wants to end you, kill you, destroy you in a ball of fire. Figures someone is gonna be holding your Perk instead,¡± he said.


    Suddenly, September plunged his head into the ground and knocked him out.


    I felt an unsettling feeling in my stomach. I couldn¡¯t process it, think about it, or even try to understand it.


    I was too petrified, too scared, and devoured in horror to even cope with it. He wants to kidnap me so that he could kill me in some ring and destroy me in a ball of fire.


    That quote alone will give me nightmares.


    ¡°So what do we do with him now?¡± I asked, looking over to Greg.


    ¡°We take him back to the school and lock him in the storage room,¡± he said. ¡°We can ask him some questions.¡±


    ¡°It might be safer at our academy,¡± September said. ¡°We can interrogate him without anyone knowing.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t have much time,¡± I said. ¡°Lunch is about to end and you need to get-¡±


    September immediately dipped out of our sight, I¡¯m guessing teleporting to the YMPA. ¡°So what do we do now?¡± I asked Greg. Greg sighed, ¡°Just continue with our day.¡±


    Mr. Drails took off the bag on the man¡¯s head, as he began to breathe heavily, trying to gather up his air again. ¡°Hello, Robert Damone,¡± he introduced, speaking with a scurry of speed.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± the man, Robert, asked. ¡°Where am I?¡±


    He was in a room where there were white walls, and a table between them, with Mr. Drails sitting on one end of the chair, and him on the other. I just waited by the corner of the room. It was just us three.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Mr. Drails said, and he started to scratch his head. ¡°We¡¯re not here to y games. We¡¯re here to hurtle you to the grave.¡±


    Robert huffed loudly in a seething smoke of anger.


    ¡°But before we do, tell us, where is Rocke?¡± Mr. Drails asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± he replied.


    ¡°So how did he tell you to kidnap him?¡± Mr. Drails said.


    ¡°He didn¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Then how did you know?¡± Mr. Drails asked. ¡°How can one man not tell you your mission and you somehow know? Maybe you wanted to kill Connor for yourself, to make him proud or something.¡±


    ¡°Of course not, there¡¯s no pride in doing that. He wanted to fight him one-on-one,¡± Robert corrected.


    ¡°So-how-do-you-know?¡± Mr. Drails asked, with a very grim sign of annoyance in his voice.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know!¡± Robert yelled, mming his fist on the table.


    ¡°Well, I guess you¡¯re going to die, then,¡± Mr. Drails said.

 Chapter 46

    46 A Hostile Call


    He smashed Robert¡¯s head onto the table and then used the tip of his wand to slowly sink into Robert¡¯s skin.


    Robert screamed in pain, and it was so genuine that I felt like I was feeling the pain for a second. ¡°Now you¡¯re going to tell me,¡± Mr. Drails said, with a smirk.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Robert repeated.


    ¡°Tell me!¡± Mr. Drails shouted. ¡°You may be a kid, but trust me, we have no mercy on any TSA spy.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know!!!¡± Robert shouted as tears began to speed down his face, and his eyes became red.


    ¡°Yes, you do!¡± Mr. Drails said as he grabbed his head. ¡°Tell me now, or you¡¯ll die a very slow death!¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Robert said, crying, as his eyes watered.


    ¡°Tell me,¡± Mr. Drails said, grabbing his head. ¡°Tell me now!¡±


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll tell you,¡± he said. ¡°I met face to face with Rocke, and he told me to kidnap you so that you¡¯d have to fight him one-on-one.¡± ¡°Good to know,¡± Mr. Drails nodded. ¡°Now is Demetrius Rocke in Russia?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Yes,¡± Robert said. ¡°Not him exactly, but one of his minions is there, why do you ask?¡±


    ¡°Just curious,¡± Mr. Drails replied. He got up and walked over to the room. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± he said, as he took out some button from his pocket like a remote and pressed it, it releasing gas and closing the door.


    ¡°What was that?¡± I asked.


    Mr. Drails chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s meant to make them forget about everything that happened the past twelve hours.¡±


    I felt my mouth stall in speaking anything. ¡°O-Okay,¡± I said.


    Once we went out separate ways, I came down the stairs, seeing Mchi look at me in a very intrigued way. ¡°So how¡¯d you get in trouble?¡± he asked once I came down to his level.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t,¡± I said.


    Mchi nodded. ¡°So, you got your team for the WAC contest?¡±


    I shrugged. ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡±


    Then with a smirk, he responded, ¡°Well I have my team and I¡¯m gonna make sure I¡¯m gonna win.¡±


    ¡°Oh, well good for you,¡± I said, giving two thumbs up-mostly showing I didn¡¯t care.


    But then he seemed to get very offended about that. ¡°Just because you have a Perk, doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m scared of you. You don¡¯t even major in a wand power, so all you can do is fight. And what isbat skills gonnapare against powers?¡± he said.


    ¡°I never-¡±


    ¡°Just for that, I¡¯ll make sure that you¡¯re not gonna win. Can¡¯t wait to see how you¡¯ll fare against my boys.¡±


    ¡°But I-¡±


    He switched his hand up to shut me off, and then he walked away. Confusion was bowling although my head.


    I just got a targeter on me by giving a thumbs up. I sighed and began to walk up to my room. I walked inside, looking at the room where the warm sun shone through.


    I never actually took the time to view how aesthetically beautiful the room was. I plopped onto the bed, just wanting toy down from the stress that came across.


    This Rocke-baby is starting to make me angry, in fact furious. I can never be safe from anyone because he wants to kill me so badly in a fight to show he¡¯s stronger.


    It has to be about my Perk. How would he be triggered by a kid that fought him and practically lost?


    He clearly doesn¡¯t want a person like me to be a challenge to him, and he wants me out before I even kill him. That could drive someone to an insane want to kill someone.


    But why in such a way? Maybe to show that he¡¯s stronger?


    Then all of a sudden, the phone in my room rang. I didn¡¯t feel very confident picking it up, but I got up from my bed and answered.


    ¡°Hello?¡±


    ¡°Hello, young boy.¡±


    Instantly, my body began to tense up and my body began to tingle. I didn¡¯t want to answer. It was probably best that I shouldn¡¯t.


    ¡°Don¡¯t act like I don¡¯t know you¡¯re there,¡± he said. ¡°You picked up the phone.¡±


    ¡°What do you want?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Perhaps to warn you about something,¡± Rocke said in response. At this point, I was more annoyed than scared. ¡°About what that you wanna kidnap me?¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Rocke said, busting outughing. ¡°What makes you think that? High school has not taught you well.¡±


    ¡°Why did you send someone to kidnap me?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t,¡± Rocke said.


    I felt a growl of anger build up in my throat. ¡°Don¡¯t act like you don¡¯t know what I¡¯m talking about,¡± I said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m not halfwitted like that. How would that make any sense?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t ask me,¡± I responded. ¡°You¡¯re the one that did it.¡± Rocke sighed in a sign of pure perplexity. ¡°Okay, so let¡¯s say I did it. How would you not just use your Perk and kill them right there? And even if there are students around you, you would just let them chase you to somewhere like the bathroom and kill them there. You shouldn¡¯t know that by experience.¡±


    ¡°A bunch of your agents was chasing me,¡± I exined.


    ¡°Still doesn¡¯t change the fact that you did it in public, and in full power, I must add,¡± he said. ¡°I didn¡¯t do it. Maybe it was the FBI that I was trying to warn you about.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± I squealed. ¡°Why did you tell me this?¡±


    ¡°Because I wanted to. You fought against me and managed to survive. I have all that I need, and I don¡¯t need to see you again,¡± Rocke said.


    ¡°But wait!¡± I called. ¡°But the man sent to kidnap said that you wanted to destroy me in a ball of fire in a ring. How are you gonna exin that?¡±


    Then the phone hung up.


    I mmed the phone back to its ce, heavily breathing. I fell back onto the bed, feeling an ample weight of confusion and fear lying on my head.


    I needed to take this out, to do something about this.


    Maybe a jog around the field or maybe the punching bad area or something at least. Yeah, that should do it.


    I got up from my bed and exited my room, walking down the stairs and through the hall to the training center. I opened the door, seeing the ce empty. I looked at the gray walls and the punching bags hanging on their chain threads.


    This should¡¯ve been a gym.


    I walked over to one of the cardboard boxes in the corner, where red and blue boxing gloves settled. I picked the red one up, acquired it to my hands, and went to the one closest to me.


    I began to punch and kick it. My body began to tingle and I felt the muscles in my arms begin to tighten.


    But, I kept hitting the bag. I was getting tired but I didn¡¯t stop, but I wasn¡¯t sure why. It was like my stress and frustration were fueling my stamina.


    The bag was in shreds, but I kept on going. I continued to pound the bag, while I felt the tension building up in my entire body.


    My arms were tensing up and my breaths were more breathless than the other. My fists began to burn as sweat began to roll down my face, and my legs wiggled from theck of energy.


    But I wouldn¡¯t stop striking-I kept going and moving and punching, screaming from the pain in my arms, but feeling a sense of not stopping-to pause myself from this pain, but I needed it-I wanted it-and I was gonna keep going to keep receiving.


    Then I heard a voice.


    ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± I shouted, seeing Tisiah staring at me there.


    He looked very concerned as he continued to stare at me, who was breathing at a quick pace as I was sweating.


    ¡°Hey, you okay?¡± Tisiah asked.


    I wasn¡¯t sure if I should respond or not. Was I okay? I¡¯ve been very worked up over this whole thing with Rocke and the attempts and everything.


    I was just tired of it.


    I was not okay. I needed some way for all this to end so that I could do this without having to worry about my life every single second.


    Tisiah nodded after my absence to speak. ¡°Just to let you know, Mr. Drails wants us.¡±

 Chapter 47

    47 A Meeting With the Team


    I must¡¯ve been so stressed or something because I slept somehow. I only woke up to hear someone banging on my door for some reason.


    ¡°Hello?¡± I shouted.


    Then the person-Tisiah-came inside of the room, with some sort of excitement pumping through his body.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± I asked, confused about the whole asion.


    ¡°I want to show you our team,¡± he said. ¡°After all, it¡¯s only a matter of time before the WAC contest starts tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guess,¡± I said with a very down voice. ¡°So, you gonna show me or?¡±


    ¡°Come to the gym,¡± he said. ¡°There we can meet and start training.¡±


    ¡°Sounds like somewhat of a n to me,¡± I responded, slowly reaching out from my bed.


    We went over to the gymnasium, where you had to go through the training center, and then enter through the door where it leads to the gymnasium.


    .....


    The ce had a very glossy floor, to where it seemed as if it was wet for some reason.


    There were about two other people there that I have never seen in my life before.


    There was the one boy with brown hair that was slicked back, with sses with very bold and ck sides. Then there was Nikki of course, and then another girl that had ck hair that only seemed tost to her shoulders, and very round sses to where it seemed more of an oval than a circle.


    ¡°Well, who are these guys?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Well meet Matt, and then meet Mari,¡± Tisiah introduced.


    ¡°Are they like brothers and sisters or something else,¡± I asked. Tisiah chuckled as he walked over to them.


    ¡°Sort of,¡± he said, before taking steps back to look at all of us like an official team, which I guess we were. An official team of WAC.


    ¡°Wee to the team everyone, I¡¯m very d to see you all here,¡± he said. Silence arose in the room. After a little chuckle, he followed, ¡°So we should start training right?¡±


    ¡°Preferably,¡± Mari said, and Tisiah nodded. ¡°Aright,¡± he said. ¡°But first we need to point out something okay, we all need to trust each other. I don¡¯t want any arguments that separates us okay?¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± Matt said, looking around.


    ¡°Now, how many of you guys can use your wand powers?¡± Tisiah asked, as the four of them raised their hands except me.


    I quickly joined in though. Do you know the ridiculement that I would be getting at every corner? Not trying to do that today, nope.


    ¡°Okay, what power do you major in?¡± Tisiah asked. ¡°I major in fire.¡±


    Matt chuckled, ¡°Well, I¡¯m more of an ice person, because it can really hurt like knives. But don¡¯t start trying to melt my ice alright?¡±


    ¡°But that could be useful, because I major in water,¡± Mari said. ¡°So if there happens to be no water, maybe you can help.¡±


    ¡°I thought you could make water out of thin air,¡± Tisiah said. Mari shook her head. ¡°I said that is possible, but I don¡¯t know how to do that yet.¡±


    ¡°Figures,¡± Tisiah said with a sigh. ¡°Okay, listen, here is what we¡¯re gonna do. We¡¯re first gonna talk to each other, just to know one another.


    ¡°But what is Connor¡¯s power?¡± Matt asked, as I began to feel very nervous. My suddenly rose in beat. Sweat poured down my face. My armpits began to sog up, staining my shirt.


    ¡°No worries, it will be a surprise,¡± I said, trying to cover up the shakiness in my voice.


    After quite some time at looking at me concernedly, they nodded. ¡°Okay, but we should figure out what ns to do though,¡± Mari said.


    Tisiah nodded, ¡°That¡¯s maybe a good idea, anyone got any ideas?¡±


    ¡°I think that one of the ns to keep ourselves alive would be forming a strong bond with each other, as we all seem to be very close. I¡¯m willing to take this n into action,¡± Matt said.


    Mari nodded her head before she turned in his direction and then began to talk. ¡°Do you have any hiding points?¡±


    Matt shrugged his shoulders before Tisiah looked at me and then the others. ¡°We should look for some ces where we could hide if needed,¡± Tisiah said, turning his head back towards Matt.


    ¡°We don¡¯t even know how the arena looks like, what if there are no hiding spots?¡± I asked, before I rose off the ground, ¡°Why don¡¯t we just make a new hiding spot, you know it should be a prettyrge building, so it could take a while to search for us.¡±


    ¡°It does sound like a good suggestion,¡± Mari said. ¡± I don¡¯t know about the arena¡¯s size though?¡±


    ¡°Hopefully, we could just make it small then,¡± Tisiah said, looking at me.


    I nodded my head before I looked at everyone. Then, in a p, Tisiah gestured for us to start moving to the training center. The ce was quite decked out to be honest, to where I could only stare intoplete amazement.


    Entering the training center, Tisiah spoke up as he pointed towards the training ces.


    ¡°Alright, so then, how do you guys train? Do you not like using your magic mixed in with fighting?¡± he asked, while we all were silent, contemting on a good answer. Cause, if you guys want, we could go to where we focus more on normal fighting, but you need to speak up because we only have one day left.¡±


    ¡°Well more of only a few hours until the fight tomorrow,¡± Mari said. ¡°I¡¯m more of abat depending person. Usually Matt takes care of the whole wand stuff, I just want to stand in the back and do my best in the fight, so I don¡¯t waste my time.¡±


    Matt and Tisiah nodded at that, as I looked at her and then at my wand. I took several steps closer to her.


    ¡°Though, I¡¯m more of the total opposite,¡± I said. ¡°I don¡¯t mind magic and fighting, but I would much prefer to use my wand. That is the best option for me.¡±


    Lord knows I¡¯m lying but let¡¯s just hope it doesn¡¯t turn into those situations.


    ¡°Okay, Mari, you use the punching bags. Me, Matt, and Connor will practice with our wands,¡± Tisiah said, before he ced his hand on my shoulder for a little bit to make sure what he was about to say would be good.


    I had onest look at Mari, and then smiled. Once we went to our separate section of the room, Matt immediately acquired his wand. Tisiah did the same, whereas I had to follow as well.


    ¡°So how good are you?¡± Tisiah asked Matt once they gripped their wands.


    ¡°I could be pretty ripped, I mean like we all are,¡± Matt said and then he grinned. ¡°I sometimes win a few duels against people. But I can¡¯t beat very many in a row.¡±


    Tisiah nodded his head. ¡°Well, maybe you might win this one, who knows.¡±


    Tisiah and Matt took a step back, as they began to stretch their legs backward for the thrusts. Tisiah saw me, and then acknowledged me with a whoa.


    ¡°Have you ever done this before?¡± he asked quickly.


    ¡°Wait, a minute,¡± I said, as I paused. ¡°Did you just say that I should go first?¡±


    ¡°No, I said ¡®whoa,''¡± Tisiah said, as I chuckled. Then, Tisiah and Matt charged at each other. I watched inplete amazement as Matt and Tisiah sailed towards each other with vigor. They punched each other hard before they raised their wands in the air and began chanting. The beams of magicunched into the air before they immediately fell back to earth and collided with one another¡¯s bodies, making arge thud sound.


    The room suddenly became silent as I stared wide-eyed at their ferocity on one another. It spiraled into my head that this match would be long and intense.

 Chapter 48

    48 Training Day


    The fight began with Matt and Tisiah quickly going towards each other in charge. The beams of magic flew directly to each other¡¯s bodies before they collided together and produced arge thud sound that reverberated throughout the gymnasium.


    After their sh, Matt¡¯s wand was knocked out of his hand by Tisiah as he approached him swiftly with a fist. With a clink, he slipped on the ground and quickly covered himself as if to protect himself from such powerful attacks. Then all of them stood there for about 5 seconds before beginning the next round.


    ¡°Okay, so you ain¡¯t too bad,¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°You too I guess,¡± Matt added.


    They charged again, but this time Matt was prepared.


    With a yell, Matt swung his wand and sent a beam at Tisiah, but his beam was easily deflected as Tisiah had arge shield surrounding his body. With a wild shrug, he grinned widely, as he held his head for a moment.


    As Tisiah made his way towards the ce where Matt was, he smirked.


    ¡°Heads up,¡± he said. He quickly readied his des with one hand, whereas the other was outstretched to make contact with Matt¡¯s face. Matt¡¯s body bowed forward from the swipe of the des. ¡°Just my luck,¡± he said with a low voice.


    Matt jumped back for a split second to avoid Tisi¡¯s swipe before quickly sending a beam of energy towards Tisiah. In the same moment, Tisiah was hit, his energy spread outwards from his body. As Tisiah¡¯s body flew several feet into the air and then fell helplessly to the ground, Matt ran towards him.


    .....


    ¡°Head the forecast,¡± Tisiah said, as he exposed his head to Matt.


    ¡°Head the forecast,¡± I echoed.


    Matt¡¯s eyes got wide when his beam was met by Tisiah¡¯s, where he quickly dissipated it before he started casting. Now there¡¯s a big difference between the way Matt and Tisiah push their magic energy. Matt pushes out the energy to create a wide beam. Tisiah kind of allowed his energy toe through consecutively with no hesitation.


    Suddenly, Tisiah swung his wand over Matt¡¯s head where Matt came in with the beam. Matt¡¯s beam met with Tisiah¡¯s in a narrow way which became very intense as they shot at each other in a sh.


    The two beams collided before they met with one another and produced arge explosion, producing arge rush of wind. They both fell back, sweat and exhaustion on their faces.


    ¡°I think we proved ourselves,¡± Matt said, breathing heavily. ¡°I mean, Tisiah was the clear winner, and mine wasn¡¯t that great.¡±


    Tisiah nodded, as he ced his wand in hand. ¡°Nah, I¡¯d say you were,¡± he said, with a grin.


    I couldn¡¯t resist, but Matt was good as well. He was able to produce strong sts at first, but then became a little defensive in the second round.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see how Mari¡¯s doing,¡± Tisiah said.


    ***


    After a long day of training, I went back into my room about a few minutes before I was gonna be portaled back to my home. So far, everything was fine. I mean, I was concerned about Tisiah and Matt¡¯s fighting styles since those two were capable fighters. Maybe I wasn¡¯t concerned and more of interested to watch. Once I entered my room, I went straight to my bed,ying down on it and turning my head towards the door. My face got heated up a few momentster, when I heard someone literallye into my room.


    I rocked my head up to see Mr. Drails inside of my room.


    ¡°There you are,¡± he said, as he closed the door. ¡°I was trying to see where you¡¯ve been, and well probably at the most obvious ce ever.¡±


    I chuckled.


    ¡°Anyways, there¡¯s something that we¡¯ve found out,¡± he said. I nodded and got up from my bed, following him to his office.


    I sighed, as I closed the door behind me. Nikki, September, Tisiah and Mchi was there once again, taking a seat. ¡°Hello everyone, I¡¯m sure you¡¯re excited to see what I have to offer.¡±


    No one responded, not even one person.


    ¡°Okay,¡± he said. ¡°We¡¯ve found a picture of Marcello from 2011 apparently, once we searched his files. It¡¯s the first time he signed in with the TSA.¡±


    The man was wearing a ck suit, with a white shirt underneath. He had a solid build, with short brown hair, which he shook his hand at the camera.


    In the first section of the field, Marcello was seen in was an area crowded with people. He had a wide-brimmed hat on, and he also had sunsses on. There were many chairs and tables set up there as well, decorated for the asion. There were many gs hanging from the windows in this area and on each of them was written different names that would be attending this event.


    The second one was a very narrow ce with people gathered near broken down tables in various seats throughout it. At first nce, it would make most people assume that this is some sort of temple or something like that, but if you look closer you can tell that these are supposed to be spectator seats for those who wanted to watch a game. A lot of them were worn out and ripped, though, but there were only a few that look like they¡¯re in good condition.


    The third picture was of a man writing with a ck pen against a white canvas. The man had short, brown hair and he was wearing square-framed sses.


    ¡°That¡¯s also Marcello, just to let you know,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°It¡¯s not much, but it¡¯s something.¡±


    ¡°Makes sense, so what does this have to do?¡±


    ¡°What you just saw was his regr spy uniform,¡± he said. ¡°Marcello was allowed to wear his own fit fot the TSA, just so he would be best when blending in on missions. For example-¡±


    He switched to another picture of Marcello who was still wearing the same fit.


    The ce looked like a festival, town, something. You could tell that this ce was in a ce withrge skyscrapers, but they were too far in the background, due to the angle and how obstructed the picture was.


    ¡°That must be very ufortable,¡± I said.


    ¡°Well, I walk around with a suit all day everyday, you¡¯ll learn to get used to it,¡± Mr. Drails assured.


    ¡°So do you think that he might be wearing his outfit once we find him in Russia,¡± September asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s somewhat of a lead,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    ¡°And if he doesn¡¯t?¡± Mchi asked.


    ¡°Look for any resemblences, just in case hees there with something else,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    ¡°What if he¡¯s just not there in general?¡± Mchi asked, raising his eyebrows. Clearly, he was serious about his thought that Marcello could¡¯ve just ran away and hid somewhere else.


    ¡°We¡¯ll keep looking,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Obviously. For now just get some rest. You can leave now.¡±


    We exited the room as portals summoned in front of us, and it led me back to my house. Everytime. I walked up to the porch and rung the door, waiting for someone to answer.


    My mom opened the door as a smile came across her face.


    ¡°Hey honey,¡± she said, as she came in for the hug. I couldn¡¯t help but to do the same, and I smiled once I felt her touch my back.


    ¡°Hey mom,¡± I greeted.


    I went inside the house, moving towards my room. I never felt so happy to be back inside my own home once again. Although, now think about it, my room looks a lot like the one at the YMPA.


    Suddenly, I heard a ding on my phone. I quickly snatched it from my pocket and looked at the message sent to me. It said: Picture.


    Yeah that¡¯s it. Just ¡°picture.¡±


    I clicked it, thinking it was from Greg or something like that.


    But I was wrong, very wrong. In fact, it was from one of my worst enemies, Demetrius Rocke. When I clicked it, I saw a picture of a redhead woman, maybe in the age of 30-35, who was wearing a suit. The woman had a nice, natural smile on her face. Her lips looked soft and gentle, and her eyes were blue crystals that shone brightly into my soul. Her hair was a stark, light brown color. It looked like she had it highlighted with a lighter hue, as there were little pieces of blonde mixed in with the red.


    Her hair was down past her shoulders and it looked nice when it swept over the left side of her face and stayed there. From what I could tell, she had put some kind of gel in her hair to keep it from looking too frizzy: the top part was all slicked down while the bottom curled gently over the rest of her body.


    When I looked at the subject, it said: Name: Cassandra Nelson. Age: 34 upation: FBI.


    I gulped in fear, now realizing the purpose of this message. This woman was the whole operation of finding me.

 Chapter 49

    49 The WAC Rules


    The time hade, the day hade, the hour hade for the WAC contest to begin. Groups and huddles of students showed at the archway of the YMPA, as Mr. Drails stood at the forefront of the area. The gathering had been overwhelming. There were so many people, and besides being a little ustrophobic it was also really weing. I didn¡¯t know any of them, but at the same time, I felt like we were all friends. It was hard to describe who these people were and what they looked like because the area seemed overcrowded. The only thing I could see of my surroundings when trying to move through the crowd was just how many people there are in this world; it¡¯s incredible, really.


    I looked around, trying to find Tisiah or Nikki. But all I kept seeing were the bodies of other contestants.


    But then someone touched me, and I quickly whipped my head backward, seeing none other than Mchi. ¡°Hello, Connor,¡± he said with a smirk.


    ¡°Uh, hello?¡± I returned.


    ¡°What happened to your teammates?¡± Mchi asked. ¡°They left you or something?¡±


    I wasn¡¯t very amused by hisment, not that the fact it was rude, but more of the fact that it was more dumb than anything really.


    ¡°Are you trying to get me to join your team or something?¡± I asked. ¡°Because it sounds like it.¡±


    Mchi chuckled ad shook his head. ¡°Not even in the slightest. In fact, I¡¯m rooting against you. And clearly that seems to be working against you.¡±


    He walked away, and as I looked behind him, I saw his friends that wereughing and possibly mocking me.


    .....


    My self-esteem is too low for something like this.


    Suddenly, Nikki came up towards me as my nervousness died down.


    ¡°So how are you doing?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°You seem a bit nervous.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m doing alright,¡± I replied. ¡°It¡¯s just that I¡¯ve never really been athletic before, so I¡¯m in the process of getting used to it.¡±


    Nikki smiled and nodded, eyeing me up and down as if noting his nervousness. ¡°I can see that,¡± she said.


    ¡°Yeah, I guess my nerves are getting the better of me.¡± Connor sighed in relief as he turned around to look at Tisiah who was off somewhere near a group of people standing together by the arches that led into the mirrored room where they would bepeting for WAC prize money¨Ca total $600 for the third ce.


    There was money prizes in this contest? I thought he only said two sses off for three weeks and poprity!


    ¡°Connor, I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re thinking right now,¡± Mchi began. ¡°But let me just tell you the fact that my team is the final boss battle in this contest.¡± He emphasized his point by cing his hand on my shoulder. ¡°We¡¯ve been working on it for months and months. We¡¯ve all sacrificed so much to get here¨Cand that includes our grades, our social life, and even some of us have had to give up a job or two to be able toe here today.¡±


    Mchi looked at Connor straight in the eye as he spoke with a monotonous tone of voice reminiscent of a viin from Scooby-Doo. ¡°I don¡¯t think I need to say anything more about how much this means to us.¡± ¡±


    ¡°Never needed to say it in the first ce.¡±


    Mchiughed and smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Connor, you won¡¯t have to go against the team in the final minutes.¡±


    He let a chuckle escape his lips. ¡°I¡¯ll even give you and your pals a free ticket out of the contest.¡±


    I tried to reply but Mchi didn¡¯t give him time to say anything else. He just walked passed him and continued on his way to wherever he was going.


    ¡°What was that for?¡± Nikki asked, as she rolled her eyes.


    ¡°Anyways, ignore him. He¡¯s just being a baby.¡± I shrugged. Then, I felt a tap on my shoulder, seeing Tisiah by the side. ¡°Oh, there you are,¡± I said, sighing with relief. ¡°Where were you?¡±


    ¡°Trying to find you!¡± Tisiah responded. ¡°Matt and Mari should be arriving soon.¡±


    And right at that moment, Mr. Drails began to speak. Mr. Drails began to speak as soon as we followed him through the school into a room, like an arena of sorts.


    The arena was arge, but dimly lit room with trees and caves and a bunch of wands sticking in the bushes. The entire area was cobbled together with rocks, just like Hogwarts.


    ¡°Wee,¡± said Mr. Drails in his booming voice as he approached me. ¡°To the WAC. Now, we have here two schools who will soon be fighting it out for the crown of WAC champions.¡±


    He gestured grandly to show what he meant.


    ¡°The first school is called the AMA, the Austrailian Mage Agents. Thank you for joining us here in the United States.¡±


    I was still trying to process what he said about the rules for the battle royale and how much time we would have left throughout thepetition, when he started speaking again. We were instructed that all contestants had to wear wristbands with a number on it so that our scores could be tallied during and after each round ofpetition¨Cjust like in a basketball game when one yer throws a score over to an official sitting at opposite baseline.


    ¡°The first round is going to start in just under two minutes.¡±


    He then began walking around, looking at all of us¨Chis eyes narrowing slightly before he continued on his way down one of the many other rows in the room. I was looking down at the Wristband before I felt something was wrong about it. There was this pink and red tint to it that looked like some dye had been put on it, like a kid would do when coloring a coloring book.


    ¡°Hey, you alright?¡± Tisiah asked. ¡°You look like you¡¯ve seen a ghost.¡±


    ¡°Nah I¡¯m fine.¡±


    ¡°You sure?¡± Tisiah asked. I nodded.


    Everyone looked around in awe, and fear began to sweep through the whole crowd of students. Matt and Mari finally found us, as we stood by one of the trees that had one wand sticking out inside of it.


    ¡°Okay, it¡¯s legit about to start,¡± Mari said. ¡°We need to make sure that we know what we are doing.¡± Matt nodded. ¡°Clearly it isn¡¯t a building, and from what I can see: there are caves that are around.¡±


    ¡°Not the best to go there though,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°We¡¯d find ourselves cornered. When the round starts, just run and follow me okay? We¡¯ll find some wands eventually.¡±


    ¡°Everyone, please remember that there is no real harming from this battle. The wands are not set to injure as they were before. This is just a means of testing skill and strategy,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    ¡°Well thank goodness,¡± Mari said with a satisified breath. All of a sudden, the lights shut off. Amotion spread through the area. ¡°Alright, on your mark,¡± Mr. Drails, who seemed to be speaking in a megaphone, said. ¡°Get set, go!¡±

 Chapter 50

    50 The Chaotic Beginning


    Students raced through the arena, climbing trees and obtaining the weapons before anyone else could. Everyone was grabbing their weapons and starting to run. Students were tumbling over one another, trying to grab the wands before anyone else could. I heard someone scream out in pain followed by other shouts of joy as they obtained a wand from the tree it had been sticking out of.


    ¡°Follow me!¡± Tisiah shouted. The four of us started to run. Tisiah was in the lead, with Mari following close behind. Matt was holding on to Tisiah¡¯s hand and I followed close behind Matt while Connor followed me. We ran through the arena, climbing trees and grabbing vines with wands sticking out of them before anyone else could.


    Well they did not me.


    I lied to them about my power, so it was best I was the one without the wand. It could at least cover for another day.


    The ce wasrge, and the tree¡¯s were tall. Running through the leaves, the rocks and the crumbling pirs, it was difficult to know where everyone was running to. We just had to run.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get some more wands,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°It¡¯s probably best to do so.¡±


    ¡°But don¡¯t we all have one?¡± I asked. ¡°We should find a ce to hide.¡±


    ¡°If we snatch most of the wands, many will be left defenseless,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Just follow me.¡±


    We followed him through the jungle-looking area, going past caves and crumbling pirs, before we reached a random area. This was just a random, random ce.


    .....


    We then took a break from running and Tisiah held up a wand. ¡°Who¡¯s gonna guard?¡± he asked. ¡°We need a ce to camp.¡±


    ¡°Camp?¡±


    ¡°Yes, camp.¡±


    ¡°I thought this onlyst for like a few hours,¡± I asked. Tisiah shook his head. ¡°The limit is one day, but this ce is designed to make it seem like a few days passed. It¡¯s already about to be nighttime.¡±


    We looked up at the sky and indeed he was right, the stars were out and it was getting slightly darker.


    But Matt didn¡¯t see it. ¡°Why does it matter to us?¡± he asked Tisiah. ¡°That the sun rises and sets,¡± I exined. ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for those time differences then we could simply live out at night, find safe refuge. And we¡¯ll run out of rations. We have to find a ce to hold up camp.¡±


    ¡°Okay, maybe a tree house or something?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°We¡¯d be blown to smithereens,¡± Mari said,ughing.


    ¡°I agree,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°We¡¯d be blown to smithereens. We¡¯ll need a new idea, okay? Anything that isn¡¯t going to cause immediate death.¡±


    ¡°I say caves,¡± Nikki spoke confidently, as she had all the confidence in the world. ¡°When it gets dark we can take shelter in the caves with wands poking out. It¡¯ll be safe and warm.¡±


    ¡°I agree.¡±


    ¡°Caves,¡± I said. ¡°Works for me.¡±


    We walked through the forest, still hearing little voices and brutal hits in the horizion. I felt scared, excited, and anxious, all at once. I didn¡¯t want to be part of this, but at the same time, I was having fun.


    We were all in the forest, holding tightly onto the wands. I was looking at the sky, now that it had gotten darker. It was gonna be hard to find a cave, because we didn¡¯t look like we were in the right ce to find such things, and everyone probably had a different idea of where a cave might be.


    All of sudden, I saw a monstorous mouth, with its tongue ck and void, as the pathway ahead looked to where there was no end. ¡°A cave!¡± Tisiah shouted in relief, clearly having seen the grand sight as brilliant as I had. We all ran towards the cave, grateful to be able to seek shelter in a cave that looked like a tunnel, and a pathway to a hidden treasure.


    We were finally able to rx even if it was just a bit.


    There was a bit of light from the moon, and Tisiah quickly created a fire, using some rocks to hold the fire in ce. ¡°Thank goodness we¡¯re in here,¡± Matt said, leaning forward. ¡°I was getting tired from running, and I was about to fall into a pit. This was the closest thing to heaven I could think of.¡±


    ¡°Think we can just remain here?¡± I asked. ¡°Just stay here until someone tries to get us?¡±


    ¡°Well, we¡¯ll need to be on guard for quite some time then,¡± Tisiah replied. ¡°In any case, one of us will have to make more turns to nab more wands. Until then, this ce is the best ce we can hope to make a base.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± I nodded. ¡°Makes sense.¡±


    The heat of the fire really made me feel warm, and I leaned forward, looking into the heat of it. It was rxing, to have a fire in a cave. It was indeed what we needed.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t we try to each take turns getting more wands?¡± Nikki said. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure we don¡¯t need to be moving out and in as one whole group just trying to find more wands, right? We need to also be able to guard our base as a team, right? I¡¯m gonna go first, okay?¡±


    ¡°Okay, no problem,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°I¡¯ll go second.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll gost,¡± I quickly responded, as silence filled the room.


    They all looked at me, and I looked back.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked, feeling a little embarrassed.


    ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t know,¡± Nikki said. ¡°I just think it¡¯d be a great idea to gost, totally.¡±


    All of a sudden, we heard footsteps, and we held still. ¡°Jeez, is that the time already?¡± Matt said, looking at the watch on his hand. ¡°It looks like night is soon bing day.¡±


    ¡°Why does that matter now?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°There are people near us, hide!¡±


    The footsteps got closer and closer, and as soon as it seemed someone was near, Mari spoke loudly. ¡°I see youing!¡±


    ¡°Hidden!¡±


    There was a bunch of rustling and we all hid underground.


    ¡°Poor people didn¡¯t realize we were here,¡± Matt said,ughing. We sunk back into the cave, holding our wands and trying to keep them away from the rocks and walls. ¡°I don¡¯t know if they realized that. Hopefully they¡¯ll think we left,¡± Mari said.


    ¡°This is the best ce we could think of, because nobody knows it exists,¡± I said. ¡°I hope so, because it sure will be hard to get it back.¡±


    Soon enough, morning came upon us. The sun shone directly at the forest, with a light wind carrying the scent of rainfall, and the flowers in the sky seem to blossom each second that passed by.


    We gotfortable in the cave, and I looked at the ceiling. It was absolutely breathtaking. I touched it, and it felt cold. The detail in this WAC contest is amazing! ¡°Okay, Nikki, go out and search for wands,¡± Tisiah ordered.


    Nikki nodded, and she left the cave with her wand gripped in her hand.


    At the entrance of the cave, there was a moment of awkwardness. We all looked at each other, waiting for people to say anything. For some reason everyone felt like they were going to regret what they were about to say or do for the next two hours. Eventually it got easier, but during that early moment when no one wanted to make a move on their own I could tell our tension was high and nobody really knew what we were doing with each other outside of this one cave.


    ¡°So, what do you guys wanna talk about?¡± Matt asked. I shrugged. ¡°I¡¯m not much of a talker, to be honest.¡±


    All of a sudden, we heard footsteps. We all looked at each other, and we could tell our tension was high.


    I was shaking. I was petrified.


    No one knew what to say or do next, but we stood there in utter silence for a good minute or two before we heard footsteps on the rocks outside of our hideout again! We clutched our wands tightly against our chests as they got louder and louder while approaching us! Slowly they got closer until they stopped. Silence froze the scene. Terror shook the cave.

 Chapter 51

    51 Ambush


    I gripped my wand tightly, my body shaking. I couldn¡¯t move, even if I wanted to. Mari was next to me, her hand gripping mine tightly. ¡°It¡¯ll be okay,¡± she whispered in my ear and then we heard footsteps. The sound made my heart stop and I couldn¡¯t breathe for fear of what would happen next. The noise got louder as the other people started getting closer and finally, they stopped where we were hiding in this abandoned cave.


    Silence froze us all for a minute or two and it felt like an eternity before someone said anything else.¡±


    ¡°Is anyone there?¡± someone called out from outside of the cave¡¯s entranceway, their voice echoing against the rocks that surrounded us on all sides.


    Suddenly, a group of men with curly hair showed up and we got our wands ready to fight. ¡°Hey, we found someone!¡± one of them shouted.


    ¡°Take them down!¡± Tisiah shouted.


    We charged towards them, as their faces widened at the speed we chased in. Mari thrusted her leg, knocking the person she was standing next to out of the way, and we all rushed in. I didn¡¯t have a wand, but I tried my best to use my fists to rece the wand. Seeing the man ahead of me distracted from the fight, I quickly swung my fist at his face. He ducked and dodged my punch, but I managed to hit him in the chest and knock him backwards. He got back onto his feet, clearly specifying I didn¡¯t do much damage to him.


    Without any sort of warning, he swung at me, and I easily dodged it with a side step. As soon as I did so he threw another punch at me, that I dodged. Barely this time though. I knew going for the face was not a good idea, so I needed to go for the stomach. I quickly gave a blow to his stomach, and he groaned in pain as he fell down to his knees. He was definitely in pain, but it wouldn¡¯tst long.


    ¡°Get him!¡± Tisiah shouted, and everyone went for him all at once, beating him down as I watched from behind them.


    He was still struggling when the others started to stab him with their wands and beat him until they were sure he wouldn¡¯t be getting up again.


    .....


    We all turned around at the sound of footsteps.


    Mari and Nikki were running towards us, carrying more wands!


    ¡°Nice work!¡± Tisiah said as they all entered the cave. ¡°They should be out by now.¡±


    ¡°What do they do to the people who are knocked out?¡± I asked. Tisiah chuckled, as the ground opened from under the guy and brought him down.


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said, getting my answer.


    But then, more footsteps began to echo near us and that only meant more trouble. ¡°Okay more people areing,¡± Mari said, holding her wand close to her chest and looking out at the forest as the footsteps got louder.


    ¡°How many of them areing?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Mari said nervously. ¡°Probably a lot.¡±


    The footsteps got even louder and everyone inside the cave had their wands out and ready for whatever they were about toe across. ¡°Hey, can I get some?!¡± I shouted to Mari, who quickly tossed me a wand from her side, giving me some more confidence and strength in me as she did so. ¡°Okay,¡± she whispered. ¡°I¡¯ll take over.¡± She smiled at me as she got up and stood in front of the entrance of the cave as the footsteps grew closer and closer.


    Mari stood there proudly with her wand out in front of her, trying to hold her ground. The footsteps began growing louder and louder until they stopped abruptly.


    ¡°You guys better be here somewhere,¡± a deep voice said from outside the cave.


    I gulped when I heard it. I wasn¡¯t sure what to do now; should I run or stay here? ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± Tisiah asked from behind me. Suddenly, we saw a whole team, of probably 20 people appearing in front of us. The leader was wearing a ck jacket, and he had his arms crossed on his chest as he looked us over slowly, scrutinizing us with his eyes. ¡°I thought you guys left!¡± he said after a few moments of silence. Heughed, and then turned to his team. ¡°We don¡¯t need them anymore.¡±


    ¡°Need us for what?¡± I asked.


    ¡°While you guys were in here, we continued to make teams to lead them towards you, slowly taking out all the people in the battle royale,¡± he said. ¡°Clearly we¡¯ve now met with our grinder, so there¡¯s no more point in us staying here anymore.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± I said as I put my hands on my head. I turned around and looked at my other teammates for some help but no one would meet my eyes as if they knew what they were going to do next.


    But all of a sudden, more footsteps came from the left, revealing another group led by a girl who was wearing a green jacket and had curly blonde hair. Her eyes widened in shock when she saw me and then she turned to her group and spoke softly into her ear, ¡°They¡¯re here!¡± she whispered. ¡°They¡¯re here!¡± she repeated louder than before as the whole team began rushing towards us!


    ¡°Oh, no,¡± Matt muttered. ¡°Run!¡±


    Immediately we booked it our of there, as they began to chase us with rage bellowing from their voices. ¡°They¡¯re fast!¡± I said, and it felt like we were running at top speed as we tried to avoid their stabbing wands which they used to try and kill us! We ran and ran as they followed us up the hill, trying to get to us. But as we made it out of the forest and onto the grassy in of the WAC contest, the path for them got smaller and smaller, to where they had to squeeze into a single line.


    ¡°Use your wand!¡± Matt shouted to Mari, but she quickly shook her head.


    ¡°Not yet!¡± she replied.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Tisiah said as he gave her a small smile. She nodded and then threw her wand at one of the people in the line who was about toe at us from behind. She hit him on the shoulder and he stumbled back a little bit before he stood back up, rubbing his head.


    ¡°Okay, we need to split up and nk!¡± Tisiah shouted, and he ran towards the group in front of us while Nikki and Mari went the other way.


    ¡°Take them down!¡±


    As we ran away from them, I was scared we weren¡¯t going to make it back in time to where our wands were waiting for us! It was like we were all being chased by a pack of hungry wolves! Fear rushed through my brain, and I felt like I was going to die. I was so scared I couldn¡¯t even think straight. My legs were shaking violently, and I couldn¡¯t focus on anything else except the fact that I was terrified for my life.


    I was so afraid I didn¡¯t even notice the grass beneath my feet as I kept running. Quickly, we found ourselves seeing the end of the wall, where we were gonna be trapped. There was no way out now. We were cornered.


    We were all going to die.


    ¡°Hah, no way to go now!¡± the man shouted,ughing. His team was surrounding us.


    I couldn¡¯t move. I couldn¡¯t breathe. I couldn¡¯t even think. I was frozen in ce. All I could do was look at the ground beneath my feet as the world seemed to spin around me. I felt like I was dying right there in that moment. They haven¡¯t even charged at us yet! Then, to make things worse, I saw Mchi emerge from that group, with a smirk on his face.


    ¡°Let me make the first hit,¡± he said with a sinister voice, and I could see his wand in hand.


    He raised it above his head and pointed it at me, and I could feel the fear rush through me as I heard the words of deathing from him.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to make you pay for everything you¡¯ve thought about me!¡± he said with augh.


    Then, he fired his wand at me and I felt it hit my chest. The power felt so intense that I felt like I was actually gonna die. Once Inded, I rolled on the ground, clutching my chest with tears streaming down my face. The pain was too much to bear. It was excruciating.


    ¡°Ahh!¡± I screamed out in agony, as I tried to get back up onto my feet but I couldn¡¯t. I was too weak to stand, and I justid there on the ground with my eyes closed, unable to actually move.

 Chapter 52

    52 To Find One Another Again


    ¡°Connor!¡± Nikki shouted, rushing over to me, quickly grabbing hold of me before the other person had time to attack me. ¡°Are you okay?¡± she asked frantically.


    I shook my head. I didn¡¯t know how to answer her at all! But then suddenly, another blow struck my arm, making me scream in pain as if I¡¯d been stabbed. ¡°Mchi!¡± she shouted, with such rage in her voice as if she was about tomit a murdering spree.


    To be honest, I was more scared of what was gonna happen next than the pain I had now.


    I turned my body over to see what was happening, and Nikki rushed in there with rage and fury flowing from every inch of her being. I wanted nothing more right now than for this woman to stop. To calm herself down. To take a breath and let it go and get rid of it because it felt like she wasn¡¯t even going tost much longer, not until she was eliminated.


    The others charged as my vision blurred, and soon after that, everything turned ck for a split second until my head finally came back down to the ground with a thud.


    Everything was blurry, and I tried to blink my eyes open as my body shook with pain and shock, but it didn¡¯t seem like any of it was working for me right now. I wanted to get up on my feet so bad but I couldn¡¯t. I couldn¡¯t move at all! And then, all of a sudden, I heard a loud crash.


    ¡°Nikki?!¡± I heard someone shout.


    I turned my head to see who it was, but all I saw were shadows. A blur of movement. Nothing to actually process, really.


    ¡°N-Nikki?¡± I said out loud.


    .....


    Suddenly, I heard her voice again.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay Connor,¡± she said, as she helped me up onto my feet.


    I looked around, trying to find her but all I saw were more people charging towards us. ¡°Quick follow me,¡± Nikki said, running into the forest where the other teams hadn¡¯t reached yet.


    I quickly followed after her while we both dodged the many stabbing wands flying through the air in front of us. She ran ahead of me with the speed of a cheetah, which made me realize how strong she was in a way.


    Slowly the shes of the wands and the whizzing of the powers slowly died down in volume, and there was no sound left behind except for the wind blowing across our faces.


    We kept walking until we finally got to one of the trees and stopped there for a moment before turning to look back to see what happened to those who chased us. We didn¡¯t know what had be of them; but they were probably gone, as if none of this had ever happened. Maybe that was just wishful thinking, but it felt nice to think that.


    As soon as I realized this, I could feel iting from within my chest as it began to pound, like I was being stabbed with a sword over and over again from my heart.


    The pain was still excuriating but at least I could move now since my strength seemed to have returned somewhat, thanks to Nikki. But right now, all I wanted was to get far away from here because I knew Mchi wasn¡¯t done yet. He would try something else!


    ¡°Let¡¯s keep moving,¡± Nikki said quietly. ¡°We can find some cave or something here.¡±


    ¡°Not sure that¡¯s a good idea,¡± I said, as I stared out into the distance of the ins. There were no signs of life out there besides us two standing in the middle of nowhere. What was I supposed to do? Stay out in the open where he¡¯d be able toe after us easier than ever? It was obvious that we weren¡¯t going to make it in time back to where we stored our wands.


    I sighed in confusion and worry.


    ¡°Do you think Tisiah and them are still alive?¡± I asked, sitting down on a tree.


    Nikki sat down next to me and sighed.


    ¡°I hope so,¡± she replied. She bit her lip and sighed again before continuing, ¡°It¡¯s just too bad we won¡¯t get to see them again for quite a tim.¡±


    I nodded sadly in agreement.


    ¡°Hey,¡± she said, as she wrapped her arm around my back and pulled me close to her so she could look me in the eyes. ¡°We¡¯re still alive.¡±


    I looked at her with a smile before shaking my head in disbelief. ¡°Are you serious?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± she said with a smirk on her lips, ¡°We¡¯re still alive.¡±


    ¡°For how long?¡± I asked. ¡°Clearly Mchi is goingpletely bonkers from this contest, and there¡¯s no telling when he might change his mind about letting us go.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯ll do that.¡±


    ¡°What makes you so sure?¡±


    ¡°Well...¡± she began to say before pausing for a moment. ¡°I know him pretty well. Well, know of him pretty well. He¡¯s a person that doesn¡¯t really spare anyone his anger or rage.¡± She sighed and turned her head towards me, ¡°But that¡¯s why I¡¯m here with you right now.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± I said with augh. ¡°Because you know him so well?¡±


    ¡°No, not really,¡± she said as she rolled her eyes, ¡°because you¡¯re the only person I trust enough to stand by me even if we did die today.¡±


    Iughed again, ¡°Really? After all this time?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± she said, looking me straight in the eye.


    I felt my face redden as I looked away from her. I had a feeling that if we did die today that I wouldn¡¯t be able to look her in the eyes anymore. She had such sparkling eyes, and it almost seemed more sparkling than September¡¯s. I felt super weird, but at the same time it felt good to hear what she was saying to me right now, because she never had said anything like that before to me, but now it felt like she was doing so out of desperation, which made me feel better about it.


    I looked at her again and smiled. She responded with another one back. But right at that moment, I heard very trudds of movement. I looked back, seeing someone that I really wanted to see since we ran our seperate ways.


    ¡°Tisiah!¡± I shouted, jumping up with excitement as I ran towards him while Nikki followed close behind.


    ¡°Connor!¡± he said happily, running towards us with a big smile on his face. He seemed like his usual self again. The Tisiah that always had a smile on his face, that was happy for everything life gave him and neverined about anything or anyone in it.


    ¡°How are you not dead?!¡± I asked, as we both stopped running and gave each other a big hug.


    ¡°Oh, it was a lot easier than I thought it was gonna be,¡± he said with a chuckle as he took a step back from me, ¡°I knew that you¡¯d be okay for some reason.¡±


    ¡°What made you think that?¡± I asked. ¡°Well, Nikki,¡± Tisiah said, turning to look at her with a smirk on his face, ¡°It was kind of obvious that you wouldn¡¯t let him kill Connor.¡±


    I felt myself blush as Nikki smiled and walked over to stand beside us.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said, trying to give a small smile.


    ¡°No problem, but unfortunately. Matt and Mari are out of thepetetition,¡± he said sadly, as he looked down at the ground. ¡°We had a little fun there for a while, but Mchi was just too fast for them to get out of the way and they lost their wands in the process.¡±


    I felt myself feel sad as well but I didn¡¯t have time for that right now.


    ¡°We need to find a way to take down their team, while still staying alive,¡± I said, taking a deep breath, ¡°It looks like we¡¯re not going to make it in time back to where we left our wands.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± he said, ¡°But there¡¯s not much we can do about it right now. If we try to leave now without our wands, then we¡¯re basically walking in there with our bare fists.¡±


    Nikki nodded. ¡°We need to get back to the cave and grab those wands, them we might have a chance.¡±


    Tisiah shook his head slowly while he thought about what Nikki had just said. ¡°If we do that, they¡¯ll just attack us again. They¡¯ll have to in order to take our wands away from us.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Nikki said, ¡°Which is why we have to make sure we get them before they do that.¡±

 Chapter 53

    53 Search


    We walked through the forest, fear pumping through our hearts as we walked. Who knew if Mchi was seeing me right now, waiting to strike us down with his magic wand? But as I looked around, it seemed that no one was out there and he wasn¡¯t anywhere in sight.


    As we walked through the forest and trees started to get thicker, I realized that it was starting to get dark out here. We were almost halfway to the cave now but I couldn¡¯t help but feel like we were going the wrong way.


    Maybe I was being paranoid.


    Darkness came over the arena, and it became pretty hard to see. It wasn¡¯t pitch ck; there was still light out there from the sun. But it still was hard to see because we were so deep into the forest and it was so dark in here already.


    I had been worried about us getting lost in the forest before, but now that we were here, it was actually a blessing in disguise for us. We could use it to our advantage, maybe it could help us in any sort of way to get ahead in thispetition, even if it was just to keep us from getting lost in the forest.


    Nikki was walking beside me, looking back at me every once in awhile, and sometimes evenughing at some of my funnyments she heard me make. Iughed with her every now and again as well, but it was clear that we both were getting along with each other. Maybe isn¡¯t wasn¡¯t gonna be so bad after all?


    We continued through the forest, walking until it was getting closer to night time. The sun was starting to set and the sky was bing darker and darker by the minute. The forest had bepletely quiet and dark around us, except for the sound of my own heavy breathing.


    Soon enough, we saw some sort of cave, which was just an opening in the side of a huge tree in the middle of nowhere. It looked like a small openingpared to the size of the tree that it was connected to. There was no other trees near it though. Maybe that was why it was able to stay hidden so well?


    Could this be the cave all our weapons are in, or is this just a coincidence? We don¡¯t really know what this ce looks like right now because we haven¡¯t really explored it yet; so it could be a trap for us. But as I looked around I didn¡¯t see anyone here, so hopefully this is just what it looks like...


    .....


    We all got close together, looking into the opening as we waited for our eyes to adjust to the darkness. We needed to make sure we weren¡¯t going to get ambushed before we even tried to go in there. As we got closer to the cave, we could tell that it wasn¡¯t big at all. It didn¡¯t have any walls, or a roof or anything.


    Ours had a roof, and I could tell based on the detail of the walls, but this one had nothing. I guess we should just be careful not to step on anything because there were no floors or walls or anything inside there. The only thing inside the cave was a small hole at the top that led outside of the cave, but there were no stairs leading up to it or anything else for us to use as adder.


    ¡°Let¡¯s search around, maybe we can find something,¡± Tisiah said, as we looked around at our surroundings. There was nothing here but an opening into the tree and then nothing but empty space above us as well. But we still had hope because there were no signs of anyone being here before us, so that was a good sign.


    We walked around, looking for anything that may have been hidden here. So far, we hadn¡¯t found anything besides the tree and the small hole in the top of the tree that we were looking at. It was starting to get darker out here, so it was starting to get harder for us to see, even though the area we were in was pretty well lit by the sunlight shining through the tree from the other side of the cave.


    ¡°Jeez, what is it with these caves?¡± Tisiah said while looking around, ¡°Are we just going to be wandering around this dumb ce for the rest of our lives?¡±


    Nikkiughed at him, ¡°Yeah, that would probably be nice if we could do that.¡±


    ¡°Well, if we didn¡¯t have Mchi searching for us, then I¡¯d be okay with just wandering around forever,¡± I said with augh as well.


    We heard a rustlinging from one of the trees behind us, and we turned our heads towards it to see what it was. Nothing moved for a while after that.


    I walked over towards the tree that it came from and put my hand on the tree, feeling something soft and smooth on the tree. It felt like it was leathery but I couldn¡¯t quite tell what it was until I touched it and I felt the smooth surface on my finger.


    I pulled my hand back quickly and looked at what it was I just felt on the tree. It felt like I just touched leathery skin and some sort of muscle or tendon. ¡°I hope this wasn¡¯t from a human,¡± I said. Tisiah shook his head, ¡°Definitely not.¡±


    We searched for about a few more minutes, but we didn¡¯t find anything else except for what was on the tree. Then we heard some rustlinging from another tree near us and turned our heads towards it quickly. But there wasn¡¯t anythinging out of that tree.


    It was just as dark as the other tree was though, so we couldn¡¯t really see anything past the opening of it anyway.


    ¡°Okay, we gotta get out of here,¡± Tisiah ordered, ¡°We¡¯ve been looking around for too long. It¡¯s time to go back and grab those wands before they do.¡±


    Nikki nodded and started walking out of the cave. I looked back at her, watching her walk back towards us with her hands in front of her eyes. ¡°I can¡¯t see anything, is there something in my eyes?¡± she asked, sounding a little annoyed with herself.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± I said, looking into her face as she walked closer to us.


    But before she could get too close to us, she tripped over a log that we hadn¡¯t noticed before and fell t on her face. Tisiah somehow bawled inughter, while Nikki just looked down at herself as she started to get back up onto her knees. She wiped her face off with her hands and got up again. She walked over to us, still rubbing her face with her hands.


    ¡°That¡¯s hrious!¡± Tisiah said through hisughter. ¡°I needed that.¡±


    But all of a sudden, we heard a number of voices in the horizon. ¡°Oh, no, we need to hide quick!¡± I shouted, as we all ran around the tree and into the cave. Nikki started to climb the tree but fell back down after a couple of seconds because it was too big for her to get up there.


    We heard the footsteps getting louder and louder as they got closer to us, but they stopped when they got to where we were hiding in the cave. I couldn¡¯t see them, but I could tell someone was near us by the footsteps they were making. But there were no voices anymore.


    ¡°Whoever you are,¡± Tisiah said in a low voice as he looked down from the tree top, ¡°We aren¡¯t going to be so easy to kill.¡±


    There was no response from whoever was out there. ¡°Maybe we¡¯re hearing things,¡± Nikki said, looking at me for answers.


    ¡°No,¡± I said, ¡°I know what I heard.¡±


    We heard footstepsing towards us again but they went around the tree that we were hiding behind. They kept walking towards us slowly and we heard them stop about five feet away from us. Sweat rolled down my face, as I held my breath tightly. But then all of a sudden we heard some footstepsing from the other side of the tree that we were hiding behind. They got closer and closer until we finally saw who it was that was approaching us.


    It was Mchi and he had a couple other people with him. I felt like screaming but I was too frozen in fear to do so, but I could hear Nikki whispering under her breath, ¡°I¡¯ll kill him.¡±


    They came closer and Mchi looked over at us with his head tilted slightly downwards and his eyes squinted. I felt a sense of dreade over me as I watched him and his group approach us slowly. ¡°Hey, do you see Connor and them?¡± Mchi asked.


    ¡°Who are they?¡± someone asked.


    ¡°The ones we fought!¡± Mchi hissed, and he was even closer now, ¡°They were in that forest where we were before.¡±


    The other three people with Mchi looked around but then they turned their heads towards us as well. Mchi had a wand in his hand which the tip shone bright in our faces.


    He didn¡¯t see us though, but he was going to soon enough, and he wasn¡¯t going to let us get away again without a fight this time. As he started to take another step towards us, I realized that we didn¡¯t have much time before he could see us if we stayed where we were. I took a chance and grabbed Tisiah¡¯s arm as hard as I could and pulled him close to me and Nikki as I got down on the ground on all fours. I covered my head with my arms, hoping he wouldn¡¯t see us with my body blocking his line of sight.


    ¡°You cane out now,¡± Mchi said loudly, ¡°I know you¡¯re here.¡±

 Chapter 54

    54 A New Ally, A New Deal


    Nikki crawled out from behind me and started walking towards Mchi as if she didn¡¯t care that he was literally going to end us. ¡°What are you doing?!¡± Tisiah loudly whispered, ¡°We don¡¯t have much time!¡±


    Nikki stopped right in front of Mchi¡¯s group and stood up on her feet again. Her face was red with anger as she stared him right in the eyes, and she held her wand at her side in her hand tightly. She had a small smile on her lips and she looked like she was ready for a fight.


    ¡°We¡¯re gonna die,¡± I sighed, looking around the cave as I realized there was no other way out of here but the way we came in.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care,¡± Nikki said.


    Tisiah whispered to her, ¡°They aren¡¯t going to kill us. Not without us escaping.¡±


    He looked to the side and then nced up, seeing the small hole in the top of the tree that led outside of the cave. There were no steps leading up to it though, so we wouldn¡¯t be able to climb up out of here that way either.


    I crawled towards the entrance to the cave and looked out into the forest in front of us, seeing a long stretch ofnd in between us and where we needed to go to escape. We would never make it across that distance without getting caught by Mchi. I looked back at the three people with him and they all had their wands aimed at us as they were walking towards us now.


    They must have heard us talking, which meant they were close enough for us to hear them as well now. Clearly this time. ¡°I don¡¯t think there is any hope of making it,¡± Nikki said, looking over at Tisiah with a worried look on her face.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Tisiah said, ¡°But we have to try.¡±


    .....


    I looked at Tisiah, wondering why he wanted to go back out there with those guys if he thought that there was no hope. But then, all of a sudden, shouts and yells came from ahead as if another group was charging.


    Mchi and his three other men turned their heads in that direction as they saw what wasing towards them. But I could see Mchi¡¯s face light up when he saw what wasing towards him and his group. He turned around quickly and started walking away from us and towards where I saw what wasing.


    ¡°It¡¯s another group, and crazy one as well,¡± I reported. ¡°We need to get out of this cave now.¡±


    We quickly slid away from the cave and ran away, as shes echoed through the forest. But it wasn¡¯t just one group; there were two different groups of people that were fighting each other. They were in two separate groups, but they were attacking each other with magic attacks as if they were trying to kill each other with those weapons instead of just trying to incapacitate each other with them.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s try and find that cave, clearly this was a waste of time,¡± Nikki said, as we continued on, hoping to get out of here before those people saw us and chased after us again.


    ¡°We should have just tried to run away when we first came in here,¡± Tisiah said, looking over his shoulder at us, ¡°I¡¯m telling you, there¡¯s no way we¡¯d make it.¡±


    ¡°So what?¡± I asked him, ¡°We still have to try.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Nikki said, ¡°But I¡¯m going to take the lead this time.¡±


    We all nodded as we all continued to run away from the cave, hoping to get out of the forest before Mchi or those guys saw us again.


    Time had passed and we still had not found a cave. It was now daytime as the sun began to rise on the grasnds around us, but there still were no signs of any caves around us either.


    ¡°I¡¯m so tired,¡± Iined. ¡°We¡¯ve been running for an hour now, and we haven¡¯t found anything yet.¡±


    ¡°There are caves around here though,¡± Nikki said as she took a quick break from running and pointed behind me into the forest.


    I looked at where she was pointing and saw some sort of opening in the trees behind me but I couldn¡¯t tell what it was yet.


    ¡°You think that¡¯s a cave?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s hope so,¡± Nikki said, taking another quick break from running as she stopped for a few seconds to rest, ¡°This ce is getting really annoying.¡±


    We walked towards the opening between those trees, and I realized that it was actually an opening between some tall trees. As we walked closer, I saw a huge rock wall with a bunch of cracks and holes in it that made up the entrance to a cave. I walked into the entrance first, and then Nikki and Tisiah followed me into the cave behind me.


    ¡°Well this is quite a grand entrance, never saw this with our cave,¡± Tisiah muttered, as he looked around at the inside of the cave and its surroundings.


    We walked a bit further in the cave before I noticed a small path leading away from us towards what seemed like another opening in the rock wall that I could barely see in the shadows of the cave. ¡°Look,¡± I said, pointing towards where I saw that opening, ¡°that looks like an opening to another cave over there.¡±


    Nikki and Tisiah followed me as we made our way over to where I pointed, and all of a sudden we heard someone approaching us from behind. We all turned around to see who it was as soon as they came into view. It was another person but I wasn¡¯t sure who they were yet because they weren¡¯t wearing a costume or anything that would let us know who they were.


    The person walked towards us with their arms held down at their sides as if they didn¡¯t want to be seen by anyone. They had brown hair that was cut short on one side and long on the other side of their head, and their eyes were blue like Tisiah¡¯s and mine.


    ¡°Who¡¯s this?!¡± Nikki shouted, having her wand gripped in her hand, ¡°I know you¡¯re one of the people who attacked me before!¡±


    The person stopped walking as they stared at Nikki, and then they turned their head around towards us, noticing me for the first time. They gave me a slight nod of their head, but they didn¡¯t say anything yet. I could tell that they knew who we were but they wanted us to introduce ourselves first.


    ¡°I¡¯m Connor,¡± I introduced.


    ¡°I¡¯m Rin,¡± he responded. ¡°I¡¯m just new to this whole WAC contest, but it¡¯s brutal. Is it okay if you guys can help me for some time of the match?¡±


    I felt a bit uneasy, but Nikki just rolled her eyes and looked over at Tisiah with a smirk on her face. Nikki shrugged her shoulders and turned her head to the side. She seemed like she waspletely unimpressed with his question and was probably about to get up and leave him here with us.


    Tisiah was looking at him too but he was just staring at him intently with his arms crossed over his chest as if he was trying to figure out what he was really thinking.


    Nikki walked closer to Rin and then turned to look over her shoulder at us, ¡°We¡¯ll help you out if we can. But you have to help us in return.¡±


    I could tell by the way she was talking that she thought he would agree to her offer. I wasn¡¯t so sure. He didn¡¯t seem like he was going to agree with her offer. He was just looking at us as he tried to figure out what was going on with us, but he didn¡¯t seem interested in joining in on anything else that was happening here.


    ¡°O-okay,¡± he stammered, looking back at us before looking back at Nikki again, ¡°I¡¯ll try.¡±


    Preview:


    ¡°Great!¡± Nikki said excitedly, ¡°We¡¯lle up with some sort of n.¡± She turned around and walked off into the cave with her hands behind her back, leaving Rin standing there alone with me and Tisiah.


    ¡°I guess follow us,¡± I said nervously, turning around to follow Nikki.


    Rin was walking a bit slower than we were walking but he quickly caught up with us as he started following behind us again. I looked back at Rin and saw him staring back at me with a confused look on his face as well. Soon enough we entered the deep of the cave, where there was a fire that was still swaying on the ground and crackling.


    Rin looked over at me with his brows furrowed, and I could tell he didn¡¯t understand why we would have a fire in this long cave when there were plenty of caves outside the forest that we could use as well.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Nikki said as she turned to look at us again, ¡°I want to use this fire to light torches. That way we can be even more prepared.¡±


    Tisiah gave a quick nod and then turned back around to stare into the fire. I was watching him as he stared into the mes. He was looking really peaceful right now; not like he was upset about anything.


    ¡°It looks sort of like the one we made with Matt and Mari,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Maybe its possibly here, or it¡¯s simr.¡±


    I could see Rin turn his head to look back at Tisiah when he heard him talking about Matt and Mari, but he didn¡¯t say anything for a few seconds. He just stood there quietly, not saying anything else.


    ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± Nikki said after she saw Rin¡¯s reaction, ¡°I think it is the ce. Let¡¯s search for the wands, then.¡±


    Nikki led the way through the cave as we searched for wands again. The cave felt more mysterious as we walked, like something was telling us to look over to our left or right every now and then, but we weren¡¯t sure what it meant. But we searched all over the ground for them anyway, as we knew we had to find them soon because it was getting darker in the cave with each passing minute.


    As I continued walking, I felt something, like a linear structure of a stick.

 Chapter 55

    55 Wand Search


    ¡°Great!¡± Nikki said excitedly, ¡°We¡¯lle up with some sort of n.¡± She turned around and walked off into the cave with her hands behind her back, leaving Rin standing there alone with me and Tisiah.


    ¡°I guess follow us,¡± I said nervously, turning around to follow Nikki.


    Rin was walking a bit slower than we were walking but he quickly caught up with us as he started following behind us again. I looked back at Rin and saw him staring back at me with a confused look on his face as well. Soon enough we entered the deep of the cave, where there was a fire that was still swaying on the ground and crackling.


    Rin looked over at me with his brows furrowed, and I could tell he didn¡¯t understand why we would have a fire in this long cave when there were plenty of caves outside the forest that we could use as well.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Nikki said as she turned to look at us again, ¡°I want to use this fire to light torches. That way we can be even more prepared.¡±


    Tisiah gave a quick nod and then turned back around to stare into the fire. I was watching him as he stared into the mes. He was looking really peaceful right now; not like he was upset about anything.


    ¡°It looks sort of like the one we made with Matt and Mari,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Maybe its possibly here, or it¡¯s simr.¡±


    I could see Rin turn his head to look back at Tisiah when he heard him talking about Matt and Mari, but he didn¡¯t say anything for a few seconds. He just stood there quietly, not saying anything else.


    ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± Nikki said after she saw Rin¡¯s reaction, ¡°I think it is the ce. Let¡¯s search for the wands, then.¡±


    .....


    Nikki led the way through the cave as we searched for wands again. The cave felt more mysterious as we walked, like something was telling us to look over to our left or right every now and then, but we weren¡¯t sure what it meant. But we searched all over the ground for them anyway, as we knew we had to find them soon because it was getting darker in the cave with each passing minute.


    As I continued walking, I felt something, like a linear structure of a stick.


    Wands.


    ¡°Hey guys, there¡¯s wands here!¡± I shouted, running over to where I saw them lying on the floor of the cave.


    Nikki ran over to where I was pointing at and knelt down to pick them up.


    ¡°These are wands!¡± Nikki said excitedly, ¡°How did you know?¡±


    I looked at Nikki and saw her grinning ear to ear at me. ¡°Well, I felt them when I identally stepped on them,¡± I exined, ¡°I thought it was just another part of the cave but I could tell that it wasn¡¯t.¡±


    Tisiah and Rin walked over to where Nikki and I were standing as we showed them the wands on the floor of the cave.


    ¡°Well,¡± Rin said, ¡°Let¡¯s see what we can do now that we¡¯ve got these.¡±


    Tisiah ordered, ¡°Let¡¯s rest for now since we found these. But since we got them, we¡¯ll have enough to fight the whole group.¡±


    We all nodded in agreement with what Tisiah said as we set our torches on the floor next to us. It was getting darker in this cave as we walked deeper into it, but I could tell by Tisiah¡¯s face that he wasn¡¯t really worried about that. Clearly he¡¯s not worried about a lot of things, I thought to myself as I smiled at him.


    Nikki, Rin and I were all sitting in a circle around Tisiah who was lying down on his back on the cave floor. He was taking a small break from walking and running around, which was understandable.


    ¡°This is what I needed,¡± I said with a relieving sigh, ¡°Now that I have these wands I feel like I have some power now.¡±


    Rin smiled as he leaned over to me and touched my arm lightly before he pulled his hand away, ¡°That¡¯s good to hear,¡± he said, ¡°Now you can actually be useful in this contest.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guess,¡± I responded, feeling a bit offended at Rin¡¯s remark. I don¡¯t know why, but it just made me feel like I couldn¡¯t do anything useful at all. It was frustrating to me, but I just let it go.


    Tisiah got up off his back and stretched out his arms as he looked towards the cave ceiling and startedughing loudly, ¡°Well then you guys have got this whole WAC contest figured out now.¡±


    ¡°Pretty much, I think,¡± Nikki said, ¡°I don¡¯t know about you two.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Rin said as he looked at Nikki and Tisiah, ¡°What do you mean? You¡¯ve figured out how to win already?!¡±


    Tisiah looked over at Rin and thenughed even harder than before as he looked at Nikki who was also smiling now, ¡°Imagine using all these wands at the same time, they would be blown away!¡±


    Nikki and Tisiah startedughing hysterically as they looked at Rin and then at each other.


    Rin looked at us all and then at Tisiah with an amused expression on his face, ¡°I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about,¡± he said as he looked over at Tisiah, ¡°although I think I have an idea we can somehow kill them at the same time. We just have to use our surroundings to our advantage and think about it carefully.¡±


    Tisiah stoppedughing and looked at Rin with an inquiring look on his face. Nikki stoppedughing as well and looked at Rin and Tisiah with a strange look on her face. I could tell she was confused about what Rin had said, but she was also starting to understand what Rin had meant. She just wasn¡¯t sure if she wanted to believe what she was thinking about right now.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Nikki said, ¡°so what do we do?¡±


    Rin walked over to where Tisiah was lying on his back and stood next to him on the ground as he looked down at him and gestured him to get up. ¡°See those trees above us?¡± he said. ¡°We can hide there and wait for them toe, then some of us can jump down intobat and use our wands at the same time.¡±


    Tisiah got up from the ground and walked over towards where Rin was standing next to him. Rin pointed his arm up towards where he was looking and then pointed to himself before he said something else that really made me wonder if he was serious or not. ¡°I can take on one of them on my own. I can take two of them at the same time if theye down into the cave with us.¡±


    Nikki and Tisiah both stared up towards where Rin was pointing to and they looked like they were starting to believe what he had said, ¡°Okay,¡± Nikki said as she looked at Tisiah, ¡°Let¡¯s try that idea.¡±


    Soon enough, it became sunset which meant this was the third day in a row, just in the WAC contest though. For most of the time we were just talking about how crazy everything has been, but it made sense in my head now. The more time we spent together as a group, the easier it was to get along with everyone. It seemed like the three of us really enjoyed spending time together and didn¡¯t want to be separated from each other ever again.


    I could tell that Tisiah wasn¡¯t really paying attention to what we were saying about everything. He seemed more worried, and just out there by himself in his own world. I wanted to go over to him and sit with him to make sure he was okay but I knew he wouldn¡¯t want me near him. It seemed like he just wanted to be by himself and have some time alone to think about his own thoughts and maybe clear his mind.


    I would think the same thing as well, I know I wanted some time alone as well, to think about how I felt about Rin and Nikki, as well as how I felt about all of this. I still wasn¡¯t sure what I was feeling or thinking about what we had been doing or what Rin said about using our surroundings to our advantage.


    ¡°Okay, it might be soon Mchi¡¯s team of like sixty might be arriving here soon,¡± Tisiah said, ¡°You guys ready for them?¡±


    We all nodded our heads at him.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Rin said, ¡°We¡¯ll be ready for them.¡±


    Preview:


    As soon as sunset had passed and night had begun, we all headed to the trees that Rin pointed out for us before we had gone into the cave. Based on Rin¡¯s info, they usually passed here at nighttime, but only a couple of them had actually entered the forest ande to the clearing where we were waiting for them. But now that we were in these trees, we were going to try to surprise them when they came to the clearing. We were going to attack them and hopefully win the WAC contest.


    It seemed as if it was only a gathering of maybe five and not much were there but it was only a matter of time before we could. The night came and the crickets added to the suspense. I took many deep breaths, trying to calm down and rx so that my body would react faster if there were any sudden attacks or anything else like that.

 Chapter 56

    56 Final Showdown


    As soon as sunset had passed and night had begun, we all headed to the trees that Rin pointed out for us before we had gone into the cave. Based on Rin¡¯s info, they usually passed here at nighttime, but only a couple of them had actually entered the forest ande to the clearing where we were waiting for them. But now that we were in these trees, we were going to try to surprise them when they came to the clearing. We were going to attack them and hopefully win the WAC contest.


    It seemed as if it was only a gathering of maybe five and not much were there but it was only a matter of time before we could. The night came and the crickets added to the suspense. I took many deep breaths, trying to calm down and rx so that my body would react faster if there were any sudden attacks or anything else like that.


    It was a very long time that went by as we were waiting there in the trees, watching as the stars began to shine through the forest¡¯s canopy above us. Soon enough, we heard the footstepsing much closer as I began to sweat and feel nervous inside as they came closer to us in the clearing. But before we could attack, I heard someone say something that sounded like they were giving the order to attack and it made me freeze.


    ¡°Alright everyone,¡± Nikki said, ¡°We¡¯re going to attack them now.¡±


    As she said that, Mchi¡¯s voice vibrated through the forest and we all froze cold as we waited for them toe into the clearing where we were standing in wait for them. The sound of their feet were so close now that it seemed like they were almost near us right then. We stood there for what seemed like ages as we listened closely for Mchi¡¯s footsteps, but they never came closer.


    Then all of a sudden, we say a head peek through the trees by the side of us.


    ¡°Hey, look we found another cave,¡± Mchi¡¯s voice echoed throughout the forest, ¡°This could be good.¡±


    I saw Mchi¡¯s face peeking through the trees as he looked around, but I didn¡¯t see any other faces. They walked through the cave, making silent footsteps, but Mchi¡¯s voice still echoed around us.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see any wands here, but that doesn¡¯t mean they¡¯re not here,¡± Mchi said.


    .....


    I could tell they were talking amongst themselves by the sounds they made as they walked deeper into the cave, but I didn¡¯t hear anyone say anything that sounded like they found anything else inside the cave.


    ¡°Should we attack them now?¡± I asked, not wanting to wait around much longer since they didn¡¯t seem like they found anything in the cave yet.


    Nikki nodded her head at me as she looked over at Tisiah who was standing next to me, ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s do it,¡± she said.


    The three of us jumped down from the trees, and started walking towards the clearing where we saw Mchi¡¯s group pass through it. They must¡¯ve gotten through the cave pretty deep inside since it was already dark out there. It was kind of hard to see because there wasn¡¯t any light on their faces yet.


    The three of us walked out into the clearing where we saw Mchi¡¯s team of five standing there looking around with their torches lit up in front of them.


    Fear raced through my heart, as I saw their faces clearly illuminated by the light of their torches now that it was darker outside the forest. We all knew that we were probably going to lose our lives right now, but it didn¡¯t matter to me anymore because I was feeling more like I wanted to die than actually win the WAC contest.


    I just wanted to be done with this whole thing and just go back to just what it was before this contest had started. But unfortunately, I knew that was not going to happen anymore. I couldn¡¯t just give up or go back home and forget about this whole contest that was taking ce right now. But at the same time, I still felt like I wanted to give up and just die now because I knew this was all pointless, but I couldn¡¯t let go of the disappointment Mr. Drails would give me.


    Suddenly, we saw them turn around and anger immediately struck on their faces. ¡°Well, if it isn¡¯t Tisiah and his puny teammates and some other kid,¡± he said, ¡°We have all of this because of you three. What do you have to say for yourselves? Did you think you¡¯d be able to take on five of us at once?¡±


    Tisiah stepped forward to the center of the clearing and looked up towards where Mchi was standing on a rock above him, ¡°Well, we¡¯ve been practicing our spells for days now and I think we are. Try us.¡±


    ¡°With pleasure,¡± Mchi said. ¡°After all, our whole group is behind you.¡±


    We turned around and we saw what we never expected to find at this time. The sixty teammates of Mchi¡¯s.


    ¡°Let¡¯s end this puny group,¡± Mchi said, with augh that seemed to echo all over the clearing, ¡°You have nothing but a few wands between you guys and death.¡±


    Mchi raised his wand as he pointed it towards us and said a spell that I don¡¯t remember ever seeing before. The moment he did, a bolt of lightning came flying towards me from his wand and hit the wall beside me, making me fall to the ground.


    ¡°You guys really thought!¡± heughed.


    But as he said that, suddenly more footsteps began to move towards the cave, and soon enough we saw them. But they were a different group.


    ¡°Rin, Rin!¡± they shouted, as they entered the cave. The group was led a by a girl who had brown looking hair. She had a green wand in her hand and it seemed as if she was leading the group inside the cave where Mchi was waiting for them.


    ¡°Meredith?¡± Rin muttered, as confusion spread through the cave.


    ¡°That¡¯s your group?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You guys actually kept him,¡± she, Meredith, said. ¡°Thank you, we were trying to find him. Who knew I could trust someone I haven¡¯t even seen.¡±


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter, because everyone is losing except me!¡± Mchi said. ¡°Attack.¡±


    Right at that moment, Mchi¡¯s group of sixty men and us including Rin¡¯s group charged at each other, as ice and fire rushed through the area around us. I came across one of Mchi¡¯s men, who quickly swung his wand. I quickly evaded the swing, while using my own wand to attack the guy next to him. But he wasn¡¯t able to block me as I knocked him out with a direct hit. I noticed Rin was also fighting off three people at the same time.


    But soon enough, everyone began fighting each other in all directions. All of a sudden, I felt the wind of another wand speeding towards my head. I dodged it swiftly, as a group of four or five men were fighting towards me as well. I blocked one of them as he tried to hit me with his wand, but it didn¡¯t work very well since he wasn¡¯t really used to fighting. He hit himself instead.


    I quickly went back and took out another man as Rin had already defeated the other two that were fighting him. Soon enough, one more man began to speed towards my direction.


    I needed to trick him using his momentum.


    Quickly I dashed under his swing, and jumped backwards as his wand flew over me. I ran forward as his body came forward as well and knocked him out with my fist. I went back and helped Rin with his fight against thest two men he was fighting and he knocked them both out with ease.


    All of a sudden, Nikki was knocked out of the air andnded on her head on the floor, rolling in pain and groaning. ¡°Nikki!¡± I shouted grivedly, as I quickly rushed over to her side.


    ¡°I¡¯ll keep them upied!¡± Rin said, rushing in with his wand.


    I nodded and looked back over to Nikki, who seemed so much in pain with her arms covering her head and her legs bent awkwardly underneath her. I began to run through the cave where Mchi was in order to try and help her get her up. But suddenly I was blocked by arge man who came towards me.


    ¡°You can¡¯t go in there now!¡± he said, blocking my way with his body, ¡°We need you to hold our back while we fight Mchi!¡±


    I sighed in frustration and stood still in front of him, while I tried to figure out what to do. ¡°Look,¡± I said, ¡°I know you guys are doing what you need to do, but I need to help Nikki right now!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s too dangerous,¡± he said. ¡°Stay with her, let us do the job.¡±


    I stood there for a while until I heard Nikki moaning again as she groaned in pain. So I decided to do as he had told me to do. I stood still with my wand pointed up towards the ceiling, but soon enough Mchi began to speed towards us, followed by the group of sixty men who came from the other end of the cave.


    ¡°Oh shoot,¡± I muttered. I sighed, as I prepared for the monstrosity that was going to fall on me. I got my wand out, ready to fight. No matter the cost, I knew I had to stop Mchi and his army before they attacked us again.


    Preview:


    But then all of a sudden, the sound of an arrow firing in our direction made me freeze in my ce. It was then I heard a loud thud as the arrow hit the ground next to me. An explosion of dirt sshed through the cave, as a huge man came falling through it right next to me with his eyes wide open as he fell onto the floor on top of me.


    The sound of footsteps wereing closer and closer, so I quickly stood up as I saw more explosions of dirt fly towards me as I saw two mene into the cave from different sides. The dirt explosion continue to brew, until I saw something fly in my direction from out of the cave and hit the wall behind me.


    I quickly turned around to see what it was as I saw therge man who had fallen on top of me being hit by three arrows right in his stomach and chest area. I quickly rolled out of the way, but suddenly arge explosion happened behind me and I rolled forward on my hands and knees as the ground began to shake under me.

 Chapter 57

    57 The Feeling of Aftermath


    But then all of a sudden, the sound of an arrow firing in our direction made me freeze in my ce. It was then I heard a loud thud as the arrow hit the ground next to me. An explosion of dirt sshed through the cave, as a huge man came falling through it right next to me with his eyes wide open as he fell onto the floor on top of me.


    The sound of footsteps wereing closer and closer, so I quickly stood up as I saw more explosions of dirt fly towards me as I saw two mene into the cave from different sides. The dirt explosion continue to brew, until I saw something fly in my direction from out of the cave and hit the wall behind me.


    I quickly turned around to see what it was as I saw therge man who had fallen on top of me being hit by three arrows right in his stomach and chest area. I quickly rolled out of the way, but suddenly arge explosion happened behind me and I rolled forward on my hands and knees as the ground began to shake under me.


    I stood up quickly as I looked towards where Mchi was fighting, but all I could see was darkness with bright shes of lightening around the area.


    And soon enough, the whole sky went white and I couldn¡¯t see anything as I closed my eyes, and the dirt dressed on top of me.


    My eyes clicked open, only seeing the dirt in my eyes.


    What happened?


    Was it a bad dream?


    Did I lose?


    .....


    But no, I could see sun above my head and there was nothing around me. I felt around for my wand but couldn¡¯t find it anywhere, but then suddenly it felt like something grabbed onto my shoulder and pulled me back up on my feet.


    I tried to see who it was, but from what I saw, it looked like Tisiah.


    ¡°Goodness sakes, what happened?¡± I asked, looking around. No one was there, except a bunch of piles of dust all over the ce.


    I felt around for my wand and finally found itying on the ground next to me with my wand in its ce. My wand waspletely broken into pieces and was lying there on the floor with shards of wood sticking out from its handle.


    I sighed in relief when I saw that my wand was okay and still functional even though it was broken. It felt good to use one, although they weren¡¯t exactly real.


    ¡°So is anyone else still alive?¡± I asked, confused and looking around. The sky was bright morning, but it seemed as if the entire ce was just dead. Then all of a sudden, we felt the ground open up, and descend us down.


    I found myself dumbfounded at what I saw. It looked like some sort of hospital, as every single contestnant was just in a bed, with their eyes shut closed.


    ¡°What,¡± I muttered, as we began to pass by the different people¡¯s beds, ¡°Is this ce?¡±


    Suddenly we heard footsteps behind us, and we turned around, seeing Mr. Drails walk towards us in a proud expression. ¡°Hello winners,¡± he said, ¡°You survived.¡±


    ¡°We won?!¡± I shouted, with surprise and shock rolling over in my head.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Mr. Drails said, with a calming smile. ¡°Good job.¡±


    I sighed, but still felt confused.


    ¡°You guys should go home now,¡± he said, as he began walking towards a different direction. Shock and amazement just came over me, and I felt such a feeling in my heart that just made smile.


    I didn¡¯t think we were actually able to do it, not at all. In fact, I expected us to lose in the first few minutes of the round.


    I guess I was wrong, luckily.


    ¡°Wow, we actually did it,¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°We did it,¡± I said, ¡°We beat Mchi and his team.¡±


    Then, Tisiah looked at me with sincere eyes and said, ¡°Thank you for being a very good teammate.¡± He nodded, as he looked towards the other members of our team who wereying on the bed, unconscious.


    ¡°Your wee,¡± I said, as I looked towards them. I saw that they were all fine, except for one person who was lying on the bed, who had a very bad injury on their arm.


    ¡°Alright, I guess I¡¯ll see you tomorrow, in ss,¡± Tisiah said, as we started to walk out of the room.


    I nodded as we went towards the door, but all of a sudden Tisiah stopped and looked towards me and smiled. I nodded back and he walked out of the door, as a portal manifested and sucked in him. I could only just smile, knowing that we were safe from Mchi¡¯s attack for now on.


    I slowly walked out of the room myself, as I began to feel tired and sleepy. This was just exhausting, super exhuasted from all the fighting we just had to do against Mchi and his team. A portal then summoned up, and I walked through, arriving home before I realized it.


    I quickly put my wand back in my utility belt and showed up home, where my mom was already awake and sitting at the table, eating a bowl of cereal.


    ¡°Hey sweetie,¡± she said, looking up at me. ¡°How has your day been, so far?¡±


    ¡°Great, thanks, mom,¡± I said, as I sat down on the chair across from her. She nodded, as she started to eat her cereal again. ¡°Hey, listen, um, there¡¯s something that I want you to listen okay?¡±


    ¡°Uh, okay.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, um, I was thinking you should sign off the chess club you¡¯re in,¡± she revealed with a sigh, as she took another spoonful of her cereal. ¡°Your finals ising up and I want you focus on your sses, okay?¡±


    I sighed, as she turned her head and looked at me. This is bad, like really bad. The chess club was the excuse needed to go to the YMPA, and now that she¡¯s gonna kick me out of it...


    ¡°Fine,¡± I said with a sigh. ¡°I¡¯ll think about it.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no any ¡®think about it¡¯, okay?¡± she said with a stern voice and a serious face. ¡°I know you¡¯re really good at it, but you know, it¡¯s not helping with your actual sses, so you should really focus more on those sses and forget for now.¡±


    ¡°Well I really like chess club, but yeah sure,¡± I said with a smile.


    ¡°Good,¡± she said.


    ¡°Okay well, I should get going,¡± she said. She stood up from her chair and walked towards me, wrapping her arms around me tightly. ¡°Make sure to do well on your finals, okay?¡±


    I nodded and smiled, as she pulled me into a hug.


    I was about to say goodbye, but then she kissed my cheek before she let go of me and left the house with a smile. I sighed in worry, as she walked towards her car that was parked outside of our home.


    I quickly went to the kitchen and grabbed a cup of coffee and drank it while I thought about what had just happened. That was the only way I could still stay as a spy mage, because there was no actual chess club. Now how am I gonna exin this to Mr. Drails?


    I shook my head from my worries and headed towards the bathroom, as I looked in the mirror and saw my hair all messy from my fight with Mchi yesterday. Then I looked back into my eyes, which were full of fatigue and tiredness.


    I must¡¯ve been beat down bad or something, because I didn¡¯t remember ever being this tired in all of my life. I sighed as I went to my room, put on my pajamas and climbed into bed. I looked at the clock and saw that it was only 8pm in the evening.


    Figures.


    This whole day or whatever it was, was thest thing I wanted to think of it, but there was nothing else that I could do at the moment. So I justid on my bed and tried to sleep before the morning came.


    Preview:


    It was the next day, and it was of course Saturday, but I was feeling way worse than I was wanting to feel. I was taking my shower, and I just felt angry. I ate breakfast, and I just felt angry. I prepared to go to the YMPA, and I still felt angry.


    I¡¯m not sure why though. It made me even angrier that there was no reason why I was mad, I was just mad. Once I got sent to YMPA, I saw Mr. Drails standing there, waiting for me toe.


    ¡°Hello, Connor,¡± he weed with a smile.


    ¡°Hello, Mr. Drails,¡± I said with a nod. His smile was very ¡°out there¡± and it was starting to get creepy.


    As I prepared to enter the building, Mr. Drails quickly stopped me with his hands. ¡°No need to rush now, just make sure you breathe in all the cheering alright. Be normal okay?¡±


    ¡°Why is this a pep talk?¡±


    ¡°Trust me, you¡¯ll see.¡±

 Chapter 58

    58 New Girl


    It was the next day, and it was of course Saturday, but I was feeling way worse than I was wanting to feel. I was taking my shower, and I just felt angry. I ate breakfast, and I just felt angry. I prepared to go to the YMPA, and I still felt angry.


    I¡¯m not sure why though. It made me even angrier that there was no reason why I was mad, I was just mad. Once I got sent to YMPA, I saw Mr. Drails standing there, waiting for me toe.


    ¡°Hello, Connor,¡± he weed with a smile.


    ¡°Hello, Mr. Drails,¡± I said with a nod. His smile was very ¡°out there¡± and it was starting to get creepy.


    As I prepared to enter the building, Mr. Drails quickly stopped me with his hands. ¡°No need to rush now, just make sure you breathe in all the cheering alright. Be normal okay?¡±


    ¡°Why is this a pep talk?¡±


    ¡°Trust me, you¡¯ll see.¡±


    He then moved out of my way, and pushed open the door as a gathering of students began to cheer for me. In fact, I think there were cheerleaders there.


    Everyone was pping for me, with smiles and nods. Even September, who didn¡¯t join, was smiling at me too. I gave a quick one back, as she came to me and gave an embracing hug.


    .....


    ¡°Great job,¡± she said, and I couldn¡¯t help but keep smiling. You know how there¡¯s those people that just put a smile on your face when you see them? That¡¯s how it felt.


    She then let go, as I continued to walk down the aisle with cheering and shouting rambling into my ears.


    I loved it, I adored it.


    I soon walked to the end of the aisle, as everyone began to disperse and the halls of the YMPA began to fill again.


    Then, a portal showed up at the end, as Mr. Drails entered through the portal. ¡°So, did you enjoy it?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°I¡¯m positive you did.¡± He chuckled, ¡°Me? I was the one who nned it obviously. That¡¯s what we do to every student who has won in the WAC contest.¡±


    ¡°That clearly shows,¡± I said with a chuckle. But then I remembered what my Mom said, and my smile immediately faded away.


    ¡°Hey, uh, Mr. Drails?¡± I said, getting his attention. ¡°Um, there¡¯s something that I need to tell you about.¡± Mr. Drails nodded.


    ¡°Well, my mom wants me to leave the chess club,¡± I said. Mr. Drails chuckled but said in a whisper, ¡°Listen, just because I¡¯m your biological father doesn¡¯t mean you have to talk to me about these things.¡±


    ¡°Not an actual chess club. Your lie, your distraction for me being here,¡± I said. His face folded into a frown. He sighed, ¡°Have you tried to-¡±


    ¡°Yes, I sort of tried, but she¡¯s my mother, I can¡¯t disobey her,¡± I said.


    His frown changed from a concerned to a more unamused expression. ¡°Well, how much time do you have left?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Well, probably a few days at best,¡± I said. Then it hit me, I was gonna die. No one could know about this whole thing. They¡¯d have to kill me!


    I felt myself tense up as I answered, ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but I¡¯m not sure what I can do at this point?¡±


    He sighed. ¡°Let¡¯s solve this thing first and then we can try to somehow figure out what to do next.¡±


    ***


    Soon enough, he called all of us. Mchi, Nikki, September, and Tisiah all came into his office. The only thing that was bothering me was probably the death stares he was giving me. ¡°Hello, everyone,¡± Mr. Drails said, as he sat at his desk. ¡°Now today, we¡¯ll be discussing a few things.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Nikki nodded.


    Mr. Drails cleared this throat. ¡°Now, we found some pictures of him, and based on what we saw, Marcello goes to all three cafes.¡± September¡¯s eyes widened, as did Tisiah¡¯s. ¡°This is most likely where we will find him though,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°The first cafe that was mentioned was the one he went tost, and he stayed there until about 5 pm in Russia¡¯s time zone, or in military time, seventeen o¡¯ clock.¡±


    ¡°Okay, so when are we gonna start the mission?¡± Tisiah asked. ¡°Tomorrow,¡± Mr. Drails said, looking at September who nodded again.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Tisiah said, as he looked towards me and smiled. ¡°I¡¯m ready for that.¡±


    ¡°Good, now I also want you to meet Nichelle,¡± Mr. Drails said, as he looked towards Nikki who nodded in agreement. ¡°You¡¯re going to go after Mchi. Then everyone else follows after.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± Nikki said with excitement, as September looked at me with concern. She then sighed, and turned towards Mr. Drails. ¡°Nichelle Harrison, pleasee into the office,¡± he ordered. After a few minutes, she showed up and I was not wrong about my theory.


    Her body form was quite exquisite, and I was always staring at her for this reason alone. Her body form was of course a super model type figure with curves in every right ce.


    Mchi leaned forward from his leaning position, and looked at her in awe, while she stood in front of him as if he wasn¡¯t even there. ¡°Introduce yourself,¡± Mr. Drails ordered Nikki, who seemed to be embarrassed at the moment.


    ¡°Uh, yes sir,¡± she said as she straightened herself up. ¡°Hi, I¡¯m Nikki. It¡¯s very nice to see you.¡±


    She didn¡¯t seem very ddened by her attempt, but it worked well enough for the moment. Mr. Drails shook his head in amusement and looked at September with a chuckling grin on his face.


    ¡°Why do I find this so funny?¡± he muttered to himself, and he looked back towards Nikki.


    ¡°Alright, so what do you want me to do?¡± Nichelle said, turning over to Mr. Drails. He sighed and shook his head. ¡°You will be working with Tisiah, over here,¡± he said, pointing at Tisiah on his other side.


    ¡°Him?¡± Nichelle asked. ¡°Not even Mchi or that other boy?¡±


    I felt honored when she mentioned me, the fact I was even worthy to be mentioned with the other two boys was something I never thought would ever happen. Although she never mentioned my name, her face told me all that she needed to tell me. Unless I was just assuming things, which would be very possible for me to do so at this point.


    ¡°Yes, with Tisiah,¡± Mr. Drails said with a sigh, before he continued on to say, ¡°Now remember the n is for you two to stay back and find Marcello. When you do, capture him, and then I¡¯ll help you guys return back here.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir,¡± she said, nodding her head slowly in agreement.


    ¡°Okay, it was nice meeting with you. Just get ready for tomorrow,¡± he said, looking at September again with a smirk on his face as if he had won something from September, who literally didn¡¯t do anything. Maybe it was meant for all of us, because Mr. Drails looked at all of us with a smile on his face as if he had done something great for all of us.


    We walked outside of the office as I began to walk down the stairs. But as I walked down the stairs, I felt someone touch me aggressively. I turned around, seeing Mchi, as he gave a blow towards my face.


    Preview:


    I blocked it with my hand as blood began to trickle down my lip.


    What in the world? Why?!


    ¡°You dirty fiend,¡± he said, as he clenched his hand into a fist and hit me again on my nose. I cried in pain, as blood began to flow out of my nose. ¡°You stole my victory,¡± he said, as he looked at me in anger with tears forming in his eyes. ¡°You stole my light, all that I worked for! You¡¯re evil!¡± He hit me again and again as blood began to pour out of my nose, my lips were also bleeding, as I tried to stop him from hitting me any longer, but he seemed not to care about that at all as he kept punching me.


    ¡°W-w-w-what have I done to you?¡± I asked, trying to get some air into my lungs. I tried to get up, but he continued to keep punching me relentlessly.


    ¡°What have you done?¡± Mchi asked, as he gave a sinister chuckle. ¡°You won, that¡¯s what you did.¡±


    I finally got up to my feet, as he gave a blow to my face so hard that my knees went out from under me as I fell back on the ground. ¡°Don¡¯t get up on me,¡± he hissed. ¡°You may have beaten me in that contest, but you¡¯d wish you hadn¡¯t.¡±


    I blocked it with my hand as blood began to trickle down my lip.


    What in the world? Why?!


    ¡°You dirty fiend,¡± he said, as he clenched his hand into a fist and hit me again on my nose. I cried in pain, as blood began to flow out of my nose. ¡°You stole my victory,¡± he said, as he looked at me in anger with tears forming in his eyes. ¡°You stole my light, all that I worked for! You¡¯re evil!¡± He hit me again and again as blood began to pour out of my nose, my lips were also bleeding, as I tried to stop him from hitting me any longer, but he seemed not to care about that at all as he kept punching me.


    ¡°W-w-w-what have I done to you?¡± I asked, trying to get some air into my lungs. I tried to get up, but he continued to keep punching me relentlessly.


    ¡°What have you done?¡± Mchi asked, as he gave a sinister chuckle. ¡°You won, that¡¯s what you did.¡±


    I finally got up to my feet, as he gave a blow to my face so hard that my knees went out from under me as I fell back on the ground. ¡°Don¡¯t get up on me,¡± he hissed. ¡°You may have beaten me in that contest, but you¡¯d wish you hadn¡¯t.¡±


    I used some of the stairs to get up onto my feet, as I could feel blood pouring out of my face from my nose. I wiped it off, leaving some stains on my sleeve. ¡°Every single time, I won, I was the best agent in the YMPA!¡± he shouted. ¡°I worked hard to get the respect, but now that you came. Now I¡¯ve lost many steps in my fame.¡±


    ¡°Why is this so personal?¡± I asked, but he didn¡¯t answer. He just kept huffing, as he gave a punch to my face again, as my face began to go numb and then I felt the blood gush from my nose.

 Chapter 59

    59 A Russian Search


    I blocked it with my hand as blood began to trickle down my lip.


    What in the world? Why?!


    ¡°You dirty fiend,¡± he said, as he clenched his hand into a fist and hit me again on my nose. I cried in pain, as blood began to flow out of my nose. ¡°You stole my victory,¡± he said, as he looked at me in anger with tears forming in his eyes. ¡°You stole my light, all that I worked for! You¡¯re evil!¡± He hit me again and again as blood began to pour out of my nose, my lips were also bleeding, as I tried to stop him from hitting me any longer, but he seemed not to care about that at all as he kept punching me.


    ¡°W-w-w-what have I done to you?¡± I asked, trying to get some air into my lungs. I tried to get up, but he continued to keep punching me relentlessly.


    ¡°What have you done?¡± Mchi asked, as he gave a sinister chuckle. ¡°You won, that¡¯s what you did.¡±


    I finally got up to my feet, as he gave a blow to my face so hard that my knees went out from under me as I fell back on the ground. ¡°Don¡¯t get up on me,¡± he hissed. ¡°You may have beaten me in that contest, but you¡¯d wish you hadn¡¯t.¡±


    I used some of the stairs to get up onto my feet, as I could feel blood pouring out of my face from my nose. I wiped it off, leaving some stains on my sleeve. ¡°Every single time, I won, I was the best agent in the YMPA!¡± he shouted. ¡°I worked hard to get the respect, but now that you came. Now I¡¯ve lost many steps in my fame.¡±


    ¡°Why is this so personal?¡± I asked, but he didn¡¯t answer. He just kept huffing, as he gave a punch to my face again, as my face began to go numb and then I felt the blood gush from my nose. I was tired, I was really tired of him punching me.


    I threw in a punch, but apparently I used my Perk too much or something, because he flew back, hitting his head against the wall of the stairwell, before he fell down to the ground like a lifeless corpse.


    .....


    He groaned in pain, as he pushed himself up on his hands and knees. ¡°You fool,¡± he said with a rumble in his voice. Fear choked against my throat and terror rushed through my veins. I didn¡¯t know how to fight this man who was now standing up slowly with a menacing re, looking as if he wanted to kill me at any given time.


    ¡°You know what,¡± he said. ¡°You clearly don¡¯t y any games. Fine, but you¡¯re gonna get a lot worseter.¡± He walked away slowly down the stairs and then vanished out of my sight as he went downstairs to the lower level where there were all those other students flooding the hall.


    I took a deep breath, then wiped the blood off of my face and tried to clean the blood off of my clothes with my shirt and handkerchief.


    It was the next day, the day where we¡¯d start the actual mission. Before we went home, the group including Nichelle, talked with each other for a little bit, while we were all gathered together outside of the academy. She wasn¡¯t a bad one, but she definitely had an attitude, as if she was better than everyone else at this school. We tried a bit of some training and she almost beat September, but then she got tired and couldn¡¯t even stand up anymore, while September could still go on with another round and ended up winning in the end.


    I¡¯m pretty sure she was salty about that.


    But we could clearly see she really was a fan of Mchi, even though he lost the WAC match in the first ce. So his whole rant about him being at the bottom of the barrel seemed a bit dramatic now.


    We met in Mr. Drails¡¯s office, where everyone was waiting for him toe in. I¡¯m not sure why he wasn¡¯t there in the first ce, but eventually he came in and sat at his desk, before he looked at all of us.


    ¡°Sorry, I was just filing for the mission¡¯s name,¡± he said, as he rubbed his head.


    Mchi sighed as he looked at him, as if he werepletely exasperated with him. ¡°Operation Marcello, how does that sound?¡± Mr. Drails asked, as we responded with a shrug. ¡°Alright, so Mchi and Connor, you¡¯ll be searching for the Soothing Cafe,¡± Mr. Drails exined, as we all nodded in agreement. ¡°Nikki and September go look for him at the cafe by the park,¡± he ordered, as we all nodded again.


    Mr. Drails looked at Nichelle, as she sighed and looked back at him. ¡°You and Tisiah will look at Basake¡¯s Cafe alright?¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Noints.¡±


    Nichelle sighed, but nodded her head in agreement anyways as Mr. Drails looked back at us all again. ¡°Alright, everyone ready?¡± he asked, and everyone nodded again in response. ¡°Alright then,¡± Mr. Drails said and then stood up to his feet and walked out of his office. ¡°What the,¡± I stammered in confusion.


    ¡°Why did he leave?¡± Tisiah asked, scratching his head.


    And right at that moment, six portals sunk right under us, teleporting us to our areas. I felt myself hit the ground, as if it were a fall of a thousand feet at least. It was extremely painful and I could see my whole body go into spasms. I groaned as I got up onto my feet, seeing Mchi up onto his feet as if nothing had happened at all.


    ¡°Well, that was painful,¡± he said, looking down at me in amusement as I groaned in pain again from my fall and injuries from earlier that night when I got punched by him.


    ¡°You just got up in less than a second,¡± I said, as I got up to my feet. ¡°Didn¡¯t seem painful to you.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t say I¡¯m surprised,¡± he said. We were in a busy street, with people everywhere around us as if they were watching us from afar. ¡°Well this is ufortable,¡± Iined, as heughed at me with his arms folded behind his head.


    I looked around us again and I could see the Soothing Caf¨¦ over there where Mchi was looking towards it with anticipation.


    ¡°Should we get going?¡± I asked.


    Mchi sighed and shook his head in disappointment before looking at me. ¡°Scout the area first,¡± he said, shaking his head as if he were disappointed in me once again.


    I sighed in response and walked over to the cafe with my hands on my waist and just looked around. Cars were moving through streets, people were walking around, some of them were even holding drinks in their hands as they walked along with their friends or lovers. There was a roundabout in the middle of the road, cars were moving around it as they passed through it and stopped at the stoplights nearby.


    I took a close look at the people though, trying to see if they had any weapons on them, but I didn¡¯t notice anything dangerous from them as I turned around to see Mchi doing the same thing as I was doing. ¡°See anything?¡± I asked, as he shook his head. He shrugged his shoulders as he gave me a quick nod in response as he looked at me with a smirk on his lips. ¡°You know, I¡¯d expect more effort from you,¡± he said, as he put his hands behind his head again.


    I looked around again but couldn¡¯t find anything out of the ordinary, so I started to walk along the street. But that was harder than anticipated, because there were so many people walking around and cars passing by so quickly it made it difficult to walk without bumping into anyone.


    ¡°Careful now!¡± Mchi yelled. ¡°I¡¯m not trying to have you die here.¡±


    I was trying to cross the road when I heard someone honk a car¡¯s horn in the distance, causing me to leap out of the way as I fell down on my backside.


    Walking in Russia is terrible, and I mean terrible. I finally found a small alleyway where there were no people passing by and I walked down it quietly trying to keep myself from being noticed by anyone else.


    I finally came out onto the street where there was no traffic or people nearby and I started to walk slowly, looking around and trying to find anything suspicious. And then it happened again, another car honked at me as I was about to walk past it.


    ¡°Sorry!¡± I shouted, moving back. But something was suspicious about that car. It was ck, sleek, and it looked expensive. The windows were tinted and you couldn¡¯t see inside of it from the outside. All of a sudden, it turned into an alleyway. I had to follow it and see what it was doing. I had to.


    Preview:


    I slowly followed them through the alleyway, where they stopped for some reason and I watched the ck car pull away and turn right onto the street where there were cars moving along slowly. I tried not to be in any of the mirrors, but they were so small that it was impossible to hide from them, so I walked as fast as I could in hopes of staying hidden.


    They began to pass the roundabout, and there was a red van waiting for them at the roundabout as they stopped for it to pass by, but suddenly another ck car pulled up. Soon about three more joined them and then they turned left into an alleyway with another car waiting for them at the roundabout to pass by them. Soon enough, they began to move to the right of the street, towards a private road leading to the main road of the city, where there was a lot of traffic with cars and pedestrians alike.


    I¡¯m positive I¡¯m miles away from Mchi right now and there¡¯s no way he¡¯ll find me out here. I need to call him about it, and tell him about what I¡¯m doing.

 Chapter 60

    60 Alleyway Troubles


    I slowly followed them through the alleyway, where they stopped for some reason and I watched the ck car pull away and turn right onto the street where there were cars moving along slowly. I tried not to be in any of the mirrors, but they were so small that it was impossible to hide from them, so I walked as fast as I could in hopes of staying hidden.


    They began to pass the roundabout, and there was a red van waiting for them at the roundabout as they stopped for it to pass by, but suddenly another ck car pulled up. Soon about three more joined them and then they turned left into an alleyway with another car waiting for them at the roundabout to pass by them. Soon enough, they began to move to the right of the street, towards a private road leading to the main road of the city, where there was a lot of traffic with cars and pedestrians alike.


    I¡¯m positive I¡¯m miles away from Mchi right now and there¡¯s no way he¡¯ll find me out here. I need to call him about it, and tell him about what I¡¯m doing.


    I quickly got the radio and clicked to the channel, getting a hold of him immediately as soon as he picked up. ¡°Hey, what happened?¡± he asked. I took a deep breath. ¡°I see about three to four ck cars following a red van to a street. They seem to be stuck, so we might be able to find them.¡±


    I heard him let out a sigh of relief in response. ¡°Okay, which street or whatever are you at?¡± he asked. ¡°I can¡¯t read thenguage.¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t Mr. Drails say he was gonna give us some invisible sses to enable us to convertnguages?¡± I asked, and Mchi sighed in frustration once again before he answered. ¡°I don¡¯t know why it¡¯s just that-¡±


    He suddenly stopped as fear and terror overwhelmed me.


    ¡°Look at that, just hit the side of your head,¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°Huh?¡± I asked, but he didn¡¯t reply right away. After a moment, he said, ¡°Just do it.¡±


    .....


    I touched it, although it was very peculiar about the whole thing, but then thenguage was converted into English.


    ¡°Well thank goodness,¡± I said, relieved of the tension that was gripping my entire body. I looked over to the street and read something written in Russian over it, but tranted into English it said: Hospital.


    ¡°What kind of name of a street is this?¡± I muttered to myself, as I looked at the building ahead of me that had an ambnce in front of it. ¡°Well maybe that¡¯s what it¡¯s talking about,¡± I muttered once again as I looked at the entrance of the building where there was arge sign above the entrance that said: ¡°Hospital¡± written on it.


    Just making it more obvious.


    ¡°Okay, just get here quick,¡± I said. ¡°Don¡¯t want to lose em.¡±


    I clicked off the radio and took a deeeeep breath, trying to calm my nerves down before walking up to the vehicles. They were at a red light, behind each other in a single line. I needed to be careful, because these were definitely not normal vehicles; they had their windows tinted so you couldn¡¯t see inside of them at all. Probably had a bunch of wands stored in there too.


    Suddenly, the light turned green and the group of cars began to move again, as I followed them slowly, so they wouldn¡¯t notice me and the radio in my pocket began to buzz.


    I picked it up and heard Mchi.


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m right behind you.¡±


    I turned around and shrieked, seeing him standing behind me,ughing. I quickly turned off my radio again and looked around me at the cars again before looking back at him and he sighed in exasperation before pointing towards them.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± he said.


    Soon enough, we followed them through the dangerous streets towards the hospital. But as we were doing so, we saw an alleyway and stopped cold.


    The vehicles were there. Mchi and I stood by the corner, as we heard the doors opening and closing continously. I took a peek and looked at the men. They were wearing ck suits, white shirts and had their hair slicked back and dark sunsses on their face. They looked scary, very scary actually and we needed to keep our distance from them and just observe what they were doing.


    Men piled out of the red van, but then thest one really caught my eye.


    He was a man with brown hair, with a well-structured face like those guys at school a bunch of girls fall over.


    He was wearing a gray suit, with a pink shirt and a ck tie, as if he was at some sort of fancy party.


    ¡°Marcello,¡± Mchi muttered in fear, as if he knew him well or something, but he was just pointing him out in case I couldn¡¯t see him which clearly I could.


    He got out of the van, as another man who had a moustache with short brown hair with a solid build.


    ¡°It¡¯s that guy in the picture,¡± I said, pointing at him.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mchi whispered back, as we both observed Marcello¡¯s movements closely. They both gave a hug to each other and then began speaking. ¡°Hello, Marcello,¡± the man greeted in a Russian ent.


    ¡°Hello,¡± Marcello replied in a British ent. I hate the man already. ¡°So, have youe with the Armonk?¡± he asked. ¡°Rocke seems to be in need of it, so he sent us over here.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been looking for it since the beginning,¡± Marcello replied. ¡°It has been quite some time now.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, well we haven¡¯t seen Rocke around here, so maybe you can find him before we do,¡± the man said as they both began walking towards the area where we were at.


    ¡°You should give us the Armonk, being that its probably the smartest thing to do right now.¡±


    Marcello just shrugged his shoulders and walked along the alleyway without saying anything as the two men continued walking away from us. The man just smiled and shook his head as if he was disappointed in Marcello¡¯s reaction. Marcello stopped walking as he looked around and then turned around.


    ¡°Okay, just slowly move to the other side okay?¡± Mchi ordered and I nodded.


    We creeped towards the other side, as the agents began to look around with their wands ready. ¡°Why should I?¡± Marcello asked, stopping in his tracks.


    ¡°Because you¡¯re not fit for these types of missions,¡± the man replied angrily in Russian. ¡°You¡¯re a bit too much of a coward for this sort of stuff.¡±


    Marcello sighed and shook his head again before turning around and continuing on his way towards the other end. He looked over his shoulder, as if he wanted to say something but couldn¡¯t, he continued on. ¡°How exactly am I a coward?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t need to exin myself to you,¡± the man replied. ¡°I just did.¡±


    The two men began talking once again before Marcello suddenly stopped walking again. He looked back towards the two men with a frown on his face and then turned back around towards me and Mchi, but before he could do, he turned back again. ¡°Perhaps, I was a bit too friendly with you on the phone,¡± he said in a calm voice that seemed as though he wasn¡¯t really bothered about anything that was happening. ¡°And that made you think I would be easier to kill.¡±


    Mchi and I both froze as we saw him pull out a gun and shoot two men in the head with a loud bang. The man chuckled. ¡°What makes you think that scares me. You just killed two men. So what? That doesn¡¯t bother me.¡±


    Marcello shot another man in the head before walking back towards us, shooting a fourth man in the head with an even louder bang than before, making me jump in fright.


    ¡°Now do you think this bothers you?¡± Marcello asked. ¡°There¡¯s only so much men you have.¡±


    The man looked at him with steaming anger. ¡°Give me Armonk!¡± he shouted angrily in Russian.


    ¡°I think not,¡± Marcello replied calmly as he walked back towards me and Mchi as we were frozen in fear.


    ¡°We should leave,¡± Mchi whispered in my ear, but I shook my head slowly as I heard a car approaching the area we were at.


    Preview:


    ¡°Go, go!¡± Mchi shouted as we hid behind a pole. But as we did, I saw four people behind them.


    ¡°Why are Tisiah, Nikki, September and Nichelle here?¡± I asked.


    Mchi was frozen in confusion and fear. Tisiah gave a wave at us, and I gave one back unsurely.


    The car pulled into the driveway, and it immediately stopped. Two men got out of the car, but they were holding wands ready to use them at any time, as if they were prepared for an attack from someone or something. But then someone came out of the car, and my heart skipped a beat from that.


    ¡°Rocke?!¡± September mouthed in fear, as Rocke got out of the car slowly with his sunsses on, looking around nervously like he was expecting someone to attack him. Marcello looked at him with some sort of envy, before turning back towards the men that were in front of him and raising his gun slowly to their heads.


    ¡°What are you doing young man?¡± Rocke asked. ¡°What have they done?¡±


    Marcello slowly turned around, still aiming at their heads as they raised their hands slowly into the air in front of them and began to slowly back away from him. Rocke chuckled, ¡°So I was expecting to see the Armonk from you I believe. It seems you¡¯re still a bit slow to understand why you need it.¡±


    ¡°How did you know? How did you know where I was?¡± Marcello asked angrily as he looked at Rocke.


    Rockeughed in return as he held his arms up in the air as he spoke in Russian, ¡°You have no idea how long we have been searching for the Armonk for, and your little self is simply not worthy of having it to yourself.¡±


    Then he said in English, ¡°Give me the Armonk and let¡¯s all be on our way.¡±

 Chapter 61

    61 A Brawl in Russia


    ¡°Go, go!¡± Mchi shouted as we hid behind a pole. But as we did, I saw four people behind them.


    ¡°Why are Tisiah, Nikki, September and Nichelle here?¡± I asked.


    Mchi was frozen in confusion and fear. Tisiah gave a wave at us, and I gave one back unsurely.


    The car pulled into the driveway, and it immediately stopped. Two men got out of the car, but they were holding wands ready to use them at any time, as if they were prepared for an attack from someone or something. But then someone came out of the car, and my heart skipped a beat from that.


    ¡°Rocke?!¡± September mouthed in fear, as Rocke got out of the car slowly with his sunsses on, looking around nervously like he was expecting someone to attack him. Marcello looked at him with some sort of envy, before turning back towards the men that were in front of him and raising his gun slowly to their heads.


    ¡°What are you doing young man?¡± Rocke asked. ¡°What have they done?¡±


    Marcello slowly turned around, still aiming at their heads as they raised their hands slowly into the air in front of them and began to slowly back away from him. Rocke chuckled, ¡°So I was expecting to see the Armonk from you I believe. It seems you¡¯re still a bit slow to understand why you need it.¡±


    ¡°How did you know? How did you know where I was?¡± Marcello asked angrily as he looked at Rocke.


    Rockeughed in return as he held his arms up in the air as he spoke in Russian, ¡°You have no idea how long we have been searching for the Armonk for, and your little self is simply not worthy of having it to yourself.¡±


    .....


    Then he said in English, ¡°Give me the Armonk and let¡¯s all be on our way.¡±


    Marcello kept looking at him with a frown on his face before slowly lowering his gun. Rocke walked over towards Marcello, who quickly shot two men in the head before turning around to walk away. The alleyway was filled with bodies, and the other five men stared in horror.


    Marcello moved over to the van and grabbed the box, which I vividly remember, and gave it to Rocke who chuckled, ¡°Ah yes, this beauty. We were after her for quite some time.¡± He then ced the box into the back of the car and mmed the door shut.


    ¡°Have fun. Let me know if you want to trade,¡± he said with a smirk on his face as he turned around and began walking back to his car. ¡°We¡¯re open to those types of things.¡±


    ¡°We need to go for that Armonk now!¡± Mchi said. I shook my head immediately. ¡°That¡¯s just suicide.¡±


    ¡°You wimp, I wonder how you even won that WAC contest,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m going in.¡±


    ¡°No!¡± September ordered. ¡°Stay where you are.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not the boss of me,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯ll be thanking meter.¡±


    He ran towards Rocke, as Nikki shouted, ¡°No Mchi! You¡¯ll get yourself killed!¡±


    Mchi ignored her and ran towards the van as Nikki followed him, as if she had forgotten that he didn¡¯t listen to her at all. ¡°No!¡± Tisiah shouted as he ran after her.


    Rocke turned around and found himself seeing Mchi with his wand, charging at him with speed. Quickly Rocke ducked the swing, which missed himpletely, and he fired off a spell at Mchi¡¯s chest, but he dodged it easily and kicked Rocke in the stomach. He rolled and then got up onto his feet.


    ¡°You kids again,¡± he grumbled, but then smiled. ¡°That must mean that Connor is here too, but I¡¯m not sure how many of you can handle me,¡± he said as he raised his arm towards Mchi¡¯s face.


    Suddenly, Mchi¡¯s wand began to glow blue and fire erupted from it as he shot three spells at Rocke. Rocke was shocked for a moment as he watched Mchi¡¯s wand begin to burn again and then he quickly dodged them and raised his wand to defend himself.


    Heughed in amusement as he continued tough. He then fired off another spell at Mchi¡¯s feet and then another one towards Mchi¡¯s face, but he was able to dodge these two too as they fell back and dodged another attack.


    ¡°I need to help him!¡± I shouted, but September shook her head. ¡°Don¡¯t be dumb like them!¡±


    I was about to run towards Mchi when I heard the loud sound of an explosion behind me as I was knocked down by something andnded on the ground as I covered my head as best I could to avoid falling into a puddle of blood and gore that had once been two people who had been standing right there.


    I got up again, seeing five of Rocke¡¯s guys charging at me. Quickly I prepared my Perk to be ready, and I swung a punch at them, but they dodged it as one of them used their wand to strike me across the face with lightning that sent me flying back into the wall before falling onto my back.


    I immediately got up, dusting myself off. The good thing about my Perk is that not only do I have super strength, I can withhold things as well. One of them charged at me, as I ducked a swing and threw in a punch that sent them flying, but as I turned around, I saw Rocke walking towards me with his sunsses still on as he chuckled once again.


    ¡°Now where were we,¡± he said as he began walking towards me slowly before mming his fist on the ground. The force sent me into the air, and I saw Nikki looking at me with a frown as I began to fall towards Rocke once again. I tried to prepare myself for the impact, but it never came.


    Then I felt September carry me down onto the ground again, and I looked up at her in confusion. She was breathing hard, and I could feel her heart racing as she pulled me into her arms, holding me tightly against her body. ¡°That was close,¡± she said.


    ¡°Aww, girlfriend rescue boyfriend, aww,¡± Rocke mocked. ¡°Pathetic.¡±


    He instantly shotsers out of his eyes, hitting September and me with several beams each before throwing out another set ofsers at Nikki who ducked in time. She looked up at me, worried and terrified as I looked back at her. ¡°He¡¯s crazy!¡± Nikki shouted. Soon enough, the five henchmen began to speed towards her.


    Quickly, she got out her wand, blocking a swing from one of the men¡¯s wands, before firing off a cannonball using her manifestation powers that sent him flying towards Rocke who barely dodged him.


    He shot another spell at Nikki that sent her flying backwards. She mmed into the wall, as dust began to fly everywhere from where she had mmed into the wall.


    Nikki quickly got up, holding her head as she began to cough up blood and rub her chest where she had been hit by one of Rocke¡¯s bolts. ¡°Nikki!¡± Tisiah shouted, running over to her as she struggled to get up on her own.


    Tisiah pulled Nikki into a hug as she continued to cough up blood.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Tisiah asked, but Nikki shook her head. Tisiah held her tight in fear as he looked around nervously for Rocke.


    He was nowhere in sight as the five henchmen charged towards them again. But Tisiah¡¯s eyes boiled in rage, as he threw himself forward and shot a st of fire from his wand at them, burning the five men as they were blown away from the force of it and fell back on their behinds, making meugh with delight.


    ¡°That¡¯s crazy!¡± I shouted in enjoyment, but then Rocke appeared over the corner.


    ¡°What the!¡± I shouted, as he shotsers from his eyes towards me, but I was able to dodge them all as they shot towards the ground. ¡°Young boy, we¡¯re not finished!¡± he shouted, running towards me.


    Suddenly, a huge explosion came from behind me as I turned around to see Tisiah charging at Rocke with his wand out in front of him.


    ¡°Oh, no-no-no-no-no-no-no-no!¡± I shouted in terror, as Tisiah and Rocke dashed and leaped at each other, as a big bright light formed in the middle and then exploded in a sh of light as it sent us flying backwards.


    I hit my back on the ground hard, and I heard my head make a loud thud as I slowly turned over to my side. My ears rang, and I rubbed my head to try to get rid of the ringing in my ears before slowly getting up on my feet. But as I looked up, I saw everyone groaning in confusion of what happened.


    But here¡¯s the thing though. What I didn¡¯t see was Tisiah or Rocke.

 Chapter 62

    62 A Friend to Miss


    Suddenly, the radio beeped. I picked it up and heard Mr. Drails speaking on the radio. I gulped.


    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s going on?¡± he asked. ¡°I checked the system and I don¡¯t see Tisiah, or the Armonk for that matter.¡±


    ¡°You have a system?¡± I asked. ¡°Anyways, we now know that Rocke has the Armonk, because Marcello was sent to give it to him. Then, we tried to fight him and get the weapon but then Tisiah and Rocke disappeared.¡±


    ¡°Disappeared?¡±


    ¡°Yes, disappeared.¡±


    I heard silence from the radio, as September and Mchi walked towards, while Nikki was being supported by September¡¯s shoulder.


    ¡°Okay, where¡¯s Nichelle?¡± he asked. My mouth hung low when I realized. ¡°I think she went with him too,¡± I said.


    Mr. Drails sighed. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll get you guys to the YMPA.¡± Soon enough, a portal summoned in front of us and we walked through.


    Immediately we went inside of his office, although he wasn¡¯t there.


    .....


    ¡°Okay, we need to take Nikki to the nurse right away,¡± I said. September nodded, ¡°On it.¡± Then she clicked out of our sight, and after a few minutes returned back into the office.


    After another few minutes, Mr. Drails arrived using his portal and then sat down on his chair.


    ¡°Sorry, I just got back from the SCR room. The System Check Room in case you didn¡¯t know that,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s not really of your concern, but that doesn¡¯t mean you can¡¯t know-anyways, what in the world happened there?¡±


    ¡°We followed these ck cars that were in line behind each other,¡± September exined. ¡°And we were led to where Mchi and Connor were, and we were right that something was up.¡±


    ¡°Same for us,¡± I said. ¡°There were three cars and a red van that apparently had the Armonk inside of there, and we followed them to a street called Hospital, and they went into a secret alleyway after that.¡±


    ¡°So how did you guys get into contact with them?¡± Mr. Drails asked.


    ¡°Well Mchi decided to jump in when we should¡¯ve waited longer!¡± September hissed. Mchi grumbled, as anger boiled in his voice.


    ¡°I knew we had to jump in, a few minutes earlier and we would¡¯ve got them!¡± he said. Mr. Drails sighed. ¡°You should¡¯ve told me what happened, so that I could get you guys here. Either way, you guys would¡¯ve been exposed.¡±


    I sighed. We ruined it again, just like the ameture spy mages we are.


    ¡°Although, this is a blessing in disguise for us, as we found out who has the Armonk,¡± Mr. Drails said proudly as everyone looked at him with a curious gaze on their faces. ¡°Now all we need to do is find Rocke, there he should have the Armonk with him,¡± he said as he looked down at his desk.


    He then looked up at us and smiled. ¡°You guys technically did your job. You¡¯ve found out who has the Armonk,¡± he said. ¡°Now I need to inform the council about what¡¯s happening, and then we can prepare for whatever might happen.¡±


    ¡°The council?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Well in a situation like this, it¡¯s probably best to talk to the rest of the EMO organization for this, so that we could solve this once and for all,¡± Mr. Drails exined as he looked down at his desk once again.


    He opened his drawer and pulled out a book that looked like one I had at home. ¡°Now what I want you guys to do is figure out where Rocke is, and then tell me where he is, so I could go get my people to deal with the situation,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Good job for now, you guys.¡±


    I gulped as he gave us a pat on the shoulder before opening up his portal to send us back out of his office and into our waiting room again. We walked through, and I felt so weird about it. We did well, and we were congratted for our effort. But we couldn¡¯t find anything about Tisiah and Rocke or even Nichelle. They were still gone and we needed to find them, fast before they got into trouble or got into any other problems.


    But who knows? Maybe they¡¯re all doing well?


    That would just be hopeful thinking, because that wouldn¡¯t be normal at all, since it was Rocke we were talking about here. I walked over to my room and plopped onto the bed, exhausted after what happened.


    ¡°We have to find them!¡± I shouted to myself as I leaned back against the headboard of my bed with my arms crossed over my chest in frustration.


    Tisiah was such a good friend. When I just came to this academy, he weed me, and ever since then we became best friends. He was always there for me when I needed him. No matter what it was, he was there, and I was grateful for that fact. He was one of my closest friends and I was so worried about him now.


    I couldn¡¯t stop thinking about him, wondering where he was and if he was okay or not. I was worried about him and Nikki as well as everyone else from now on.


    I got up from my bed and looked into the window, seeing the bright sun, but it didn¡¯t cheer me up at all. No, instead it just reminded me of everything that had happened so far today, making me think of everything else that was going to happen in the future.


    I sighed deeply as I looked around my room, noticing how empty it was and how I had nothing but time on my hands. Clearly I was bored, but I didn¡¯t feel like doing anything, because I had no idea what to do next.


    I walked over to my dresser and grabbed a towel that was folded neatly in the corner of it, setting it on my head and tying it up. That¡¯s how bored I was, but then suddenly I heard someone knock on my door.


    I quickly tied my hair up and made sure that it was secure before opening my door to see who it was that had knocked on my door. I saw September at the door and my mood brightened up, as I let her in my room.


    She looked around at my messy room as she sighed, causing me to frown. She looked up and chuckled, ¡°Oh no it¡¯s fine, I just was feeling a bit heavy.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Same I guess, since I was so worried about everyone else today.¡± She smiled as she walked past me towards the bed.


    ¡°Well, I am too,¡± she said as she sat down on her bed, while I took a seat beside her on the bed.


    ¡°So what have you been doing?¡± I asked. She shrugged andughed. ¡°Well you know me,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯ve been keeping busy.¡± She nodded to herself as if she was proud of what she did, but she didn¡¯t say anything else about it, and I nodded. ¡°Busy with what?¡±


    ¡°Training,¡± she said. She rolled her eyes as if she had done nothing but train today.


    Well, I usually just hang out here and talk to... well, anyone.¡±


    She smiled widely, but it didn¡¯t seem genuine to me at all. Well, you know, that¡¯s what everyone does, right? It¡¯s an academy for goodness sake. ¡± She nodded again to herself andughed a bit more.


    I frowned at her strange behavior, but she soon stoppedughing and sighed deeply. ¡°Just trying to cheer you up,¡± she said quietly.


    I nodded, knowing that she was probably right about me being a little bored. But why didn¡¯t she just ask me what I was doing? That could¡¯ve worked.


    ¡°Thanks for that,¡± I said as she smiled to herself again, and then she leaned over to me. Then she nodded her head before she got up from my bed and left my room.


    I looked around, but couldn¡¯t see her anymore. I sighed. I leaned back into the pillow in my bed, thinking of the things that she had done today to try and cheer me up. She¡¯s a nice one when she really cares about you, but when she doesn¡¯t, she¡¯ll be just like everyone else.


    Suddenly, my eyes closed as I fell asleep quickly due to boredom.


    Preview:


    I felt strange for no apparent reason as my eyes opened and I quickly nced around. Then again, maybe it¡¯s because I was sleeping. I reached out from my bed and, right at that moment, I heard a knock.


    I stopped cold, wondering who was at my door. I looked directly at the door as the intensity of wonder in my heart began to burn. ¡°Hello?¡± I shouted, still holding onto my nket. I shrieked, startled, and unsure of what to do as someone opened the door. But as I screamed, I suddenly saw Mchi, who was clearly perplexed by my frightened behavior or my acting ¡°surprised.¡±


    Why are you screaming like that?¡± he chuckled as I followed on with hisugh, letting out a sigh of relief. ¡°I-I guess I thought you were someone else.¡± I responded.


    ¡°What is it you want?¡±


    ¡°I want to show you guys something, and I think it would really help,¡± he said.

 Chapter 63

    63 Opportunity


    I felt strange for no apparent reason as my eyes opened and I quickly nced around. Then again, maybe it¡¯s because I was sleeping. I reached out from my bed and, right at that moment, I heard a knock.


    I stopped cold, wondering who was at my door. I looked directly at the door as the intensity of wonder in my heart began to burn. ¡°Hello?¡± I shouted, still holding onto my nket. I shrieked, startled, and unsure of what to do as someone opened the door. But as I screamed, I suddenly saw Mchi, who was clearly perplexed by my frightened behavior or my acting ¡°surprised.¡±


    Why are you screaming like that?¡± he chuckled as I followed on with hisugh, letting out a sigh of relief. ¡°I-I guess I thought you were someone else.¡± I responded.


    ¡°What is it you want?¡±


    ¡°I want to show you guys something, and I think it would really help,¡± he said.


    ***


    We soon started to meet at the training facility after he instructed us to do so. He took a chair from the gym and set it down next to a table in the room¡¯s corner so he could sit down. Mchi looked nervous as he shifted from one foot to the other. He kept ncing at the door as if he were waiting for someone or something to happen.


    September looked around the room, her eyes barely taking in her surroundings. She seemed unimpressed and disengaged as if she were only there out of obligation. She was tired, her eyes sunken and dark circles visible beneath them.


    ¡°What is it that you want to show us?¡± September tiredly asked Mchi.


    .....


    Mchi continued to type away on hisptop for a long time, not saying a word. Finally, he stopped and turned the screen around so we could see it.


    The paused video showed one of those ck cars from back in Russia, by the local cafe we were suspected. It was parked on the side of the road, the driver¡¯s door open. In the driver¡¯s seat was a man, slumped over and unmoving.


    All of a sudden, Rocke exited out of the car and went over to the front of the cafe¡¯s settlement.


    Rocke then looked around, as if he was trying to keep it secret although I can imagine he was, and then the clerk gave him something of some sorts, but it was hidden very well.


    Mchi then paused the video, and he then he zoomed in closely to Rocke¡¯s hand, where we saw something that was close to a diamond perhaps. It was small, but it shone brightly under the light. Rocke quickly put it away and then the video ended.


    We all looked at each other, unsure of what to make of what we had just seen. September was the first to break the silence.


    ¡°What... What does this mean?¡± she asked, her voice trembling slightly.


    Mchi didn¡¯t answer for a long time. He continued to stare at the screen, as if he was trying to find an answer there. Finally, he spoke up.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± he said slowly, ¡°but I think it means that Rocke is looking for something. When I checked, I researched something that may be need a diamond to power something up. But then I came up with the thing that they needed money maybe. But then I found this.¡±


    Mchi turned theputer around, as we began to see some sort of robot. It wasrge and imposing, with a single red eye that zed ominously.


    ¡°What is that?¡± I asked, my voice trembling slightly.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± Mchi said slowly, ¡°but it looks like Rocke is looking for something to power it up. And if I had to guess, I would say that he needs the diamond to do it. If you look here, there is a diamond-shaped cut over here and that looks about the same size.¡±


    I shrugged not sure what to say. September nodded and looked at me.


    Mchi sighed, ¡°We need to tell Mr. Drails quickly, right away.¡±


    ***


    After having to wait for at least fifty years before letting us in, Mr. Drails turned to face us as we entered his room. The moment he motioned for us to take a seat across from the desk, I felt the pressure of his gaze descending upon me.


    ¡°OK, so did you find anything useful?¡± Mr. Drails inquired. Mchi quickly grabbed hisputer and ced it on the desk. The video was revealed on there, and when Mchi pressed y, Mr. Drails¡¯ eyes widened even more as the video progressed. ¡°What exactly is he holding in his hand?¡± When Mr. Drails inquired, Mchi paused the video.


    Then September exined, ¡°We believe he¡¯s attempting to steal this form of a robot.¡± Mchi then brought up the screen, and Mr. Drails peered at it intently.


    ¡°Okay, so what gave you this perception?¡± he questioned. ¡°Because from what I¡¯m noticing, it could just be that they need money. We, too, conceal from the government in our ways.¡±


    Mr. Drails then enhanced the screen to view it very closely as his jaw slowly dropped in thought. September and Mchi looked at each other, wondering what he was thinking. ¡°This is not good,¡± Mr. Drails muttered under his breath. ¡°What do you think we should do?¡±


    ¡°I think we should figure out where the location is,¡± Mchi suggested. ¡°Howe you¡¯ve never found the location in the first ce?¡± September hissed loudly. Mchi raised his head. ¡°I¡¯d leave it to some of Mr. Drails¡¯s people to do that.¡± Mr. Drails began to cough withughter. ¡°Please provide me with the location so that we can confirm it. We won¡¯t be able to find it without the address. Anyway, how¡¯s Nikki doing?¡± ¡°She¡¯s still at the nurse¡¯s office, but the nurse is assisting her,¡± September exined. Mr. Drails gave a nod. ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll just give her a week or so to recover. You¡¯ll need to recruit new teammates.¡± ¡°Who would be that?¡± September inquired. Then my brain shed with an idea.


    ¡°We can get Matt, Mari, and Rin to help us!¡± I suggested.


    September looked at me with confusion, although I wasn¡¯t sure what else to say. It sounded like we were going to have to get new teammates soon, and I didn¡¯t want to leave my friends behind. We had just started working together, and it felt like we had just begun to understand each other¡¯s strengths.


    ¡°I just have one question,¡± September asked, before clearing her throat. ¡°Who are they?¡±


    I stammered, trying to remember all that has happened with them, which was quite a lot. Just remembering them continued to pop up the memories of the WAC contest. The three of them were so determined and had such great potential. I knew that they would be able to help us if we recruited them. ¡°Um, well, they¡¯re... Matt, Mari, and Rin,¡± I finally said. ¡°They helped me in the WAC contest, and you know how we won?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and I¡¯m proud of that,¡± she said, with a little smile.


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s because of them, so we could add it to our group,¡± I said. ¡°But there would only be five of you guys,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    ¡°I think that¡¯s all we need,¡± I said, looking at him confidently.


    Mr. Drails looked at us and sighed with concern. ¡°Okay, but I don¡¯t want to leave this team behind, but I also don¡¯t want us to be over our heads.¡± He paused for a moment before continuing. ¡°I¡¯ll think about it, but for now, we should focus on the task at hand. But just rest for now.¡±


    Mchi, I and September nodded with a little smile on our faces, as we left the office. We knew that we could count on Mr. Drails to think about everything and make the best decision for all of us. But that didn¡¯t stop us from continuing to work hard and try to find the location of the robot ourselves. We had a feeling-I had a feeling it was important, and we didn¡¯t want to let Mr. Drails or Nikki down.


    Preview:


    September sighed and looked at me, whereas Mchi did the same. It was only a matter of time before I followed. We all knew that we had to find the robot and stop it from being used for whatever it was intended for. Mr. Drails had given us the task, and we were going to do everything in our power toplete it.


    But where do we start?


    ¡°Anyone got any ideas?¡± Mchi asked. September shrugged.


    Mchi sighed, then I followed suit, until September¡¯s face brightened as if she had a sudden epiphany. ¡°Did you check the name of the robot?¡± September asked. Mchi shook his head no, so September took out her phone and started to type away; looking up any information she could find on the given topic. ¡°Let¡¯s try finding it on theptop,¡± Mchi suggested next.

 Chapter 64

    64 Web Search


    September sighed and looked at me, whereas Mchi did the same. It was only a matter of time before I followed. We all knew that we had to find the robot and stop it from being used for whatever it was intended for. Mr. Drails had given us the task, and we were going to do everything in our power toplete it.


    But where do we start?


    ¡°Anyone got any ideas?¡± Mchi asked. September shrugged.


    Mchi sighed, then I followed suit, until September¡¯s face brightened as if she had a sudden epiphany. ¡°Did you check the name of the robot?¡± September asked. Mchi shook his head no, so September took out her phone and started to type away; looking up any information she could find on the given topic. ¡°Let¡¯s try finding it on theptop,¡± Mchi suggested next.


    ***


    ¡°Ugh, this is so frustrating!¡± September eximed, mming theptop shut. We had been trying to find the name of the website for hours, but we just couldn¡¯t seem to find it. September was getting more and more frustrated with each attempt, and Mchi and I could only watch and try to help.


    September¡¯s frustration was mounting with each failed attempt, until finally she mmed it once again shut in exasperation. ¡°I can¡¯t find it! It¡¯s like the name of the robot is hidden or something.¡±


    Mchi and I met eyes, both of us thinking the same thing. ¡°Perhaps it¡¯s not on the website?¡± Mchi proposed. September shook her head in response. ¡°No, I checked every single page multiple times. Plus, I tried looking up the name of the robot on other websites as well but to no avail.¡±


    We all grew quiet as we brainstormed our next move; we had been stuck for hours with little progress made.


    .....


    Yay.


    Finally, September broke the silence. ¡°Maybe... maybe we should go talk to Mr. Drails.¡±


    ¡°I refuse to give up,¡± I said. ¡°September, we have to keep looking. There¡¯s still a chance.¡±


    She looked at me with disbelief and chuckled. ¡°We¡¯ve been searching for hours now- it feels like forever. And for what? Tisiah?¡±


    ¡°Tisiah is worth hours of our time,¡± I said solemnly as the feeling in my heart burned hotter.


    I felt like I was getting angry, but it was more of me being emotional. Tisiah was a good friend, and I wasn¡¯t gonna let him go like that. ¡°I¡¯m not gonna give up until we find him. So let¡¯s keep looking.¡±


    Mchi nodded in agreement, and September sighed before opening theptop back up. ¡°Fine, let¡¯s keep looking.¡±


    September checked the website one more time, but then she found a link where it said the word Cybertron.


    ¡°Cybertron?¡± she muttered. We looked with curiosity, along with Mchi.


    September clicked on the link, and a new website opened up. ¡°There it is!¡± she eximed. We all leaned in to take a look, and sure enough, the name of the website was Cybertron. ¡°Wow, I can¡¯t believe it,¡± September said breathlessly. ¡°We found it!¡±


    I let out a sigh of relief and grinned at September. ¡°Good job, we did it.¡±


    ¡°Okay someone, write down the address!¡± Mchi said. September quickly copied down the address and then we all got up to leave.


    ¡°We¡¯re finally going to find Tisiah,¡± I said as we walked out the door. September nodded, and I could see the same determination in her eyes that I felt in my heart. We were going to find our friend, no matter what it took.


    ¡°Wait, but what about Nikki?¡± I asked.


    September¡¯s face softened and she sighed. ¡°Should we wait until she gets better?¡± she asked. We all knew what September was thinking- it would be easier to find Tisiah if Nikki was with us. But we also didn¡¯t want to leave her alone and sick.


    ¡°We should tell her,¡± I said.


    ¡°You should,¡± Mchi protested. ¡°I¡¯m not sure she¡¯ll be too happy to see me.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell her,¡± September said with a nod. We nodded and chuckled, grateful that we had such a great friend like her.


    ¡°We¡¯ll find Tisiah together,¡± I said as we walked out the door. ¡°Just tell Nikki that okay?¡± September nodded.


    ¡°I will.¡± she said. And with that, we went our separate ways.


    ***


    It was lunch now and everyone was rushing to the cafeteria, but September still wasn¡¯t back. I guess she was still talking to Nikki. I looked around and sat at the usual table that me and Tisiah usually sat at.


    I miss him, I thought as I stared at the lunch that I didn¡¯t have an appetite for. Even though he was gone, hisugh still echoed in my mind. His smile that shined like the sun. I sighed as I felt a tear run down my cheek.


    I was so absorbed in my thoughts that I didn¡¯t notice when someone sat by me. It was Mchi, at least someone I know. ¡°Hey, are you okay?¡± He asked with a worried look on his face. I shook my head and looked down at myp, feeling very heavy inside. ¡°It¡¯s been really hardtely, I feel like I can¡¯t do anything right.¡±


    ¡°What makes you think that?¡± Mchi asked. I shrugged, ¡°I don¡¯t know, everything just feels so pointless now.¡±


    ¡°Hey, it¡¯s going to be okay. Why do you like him so much?¡± Mchi asked. ¡°As a friend, because he¡¯s the best one I ever had.¡± I looked up at Mchi and he gave me a gentle smile. ¡°He¡¯s always there for me, even when I got here two seconds after that small test. I just don¡¯t know how to function without him.¡±


    ¡°I get that, but you need to try. You can¡¯t let one person ruin your whole life. Here¡¯s what you gotta understand, this will happen a lot in your life. You¡¯ll lose people and it won¡¯t be the best, but you just gotta keep going,¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s kind of easy for you to say. You have many friends, like everyone adores you like crazy,¡± I said.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter how many friends you have, when you lose one it still hurts.¡±


    Mchi¡¯s words rung true, even though I didn¡¯t want to admit it. I sighed and nodded my head. ¡°I¡¯ll try.¡±


    ¡°Good, now anyways, I came to tell you that September told Nikki. Although she said somethings rather rude to me, it¡¯s all good now.¡±


    ¡°What did she say?¡± I asked with a raised eyebrow.


    ¡°Oh, nothing to worry about. You¡¯d flinch at one story I could tell you. Let¡¯s just say, I¡¯m not her favorite person right now,¡± Mchi said with a small chuckle. I gulped, I knew that Nikki could be ruthless when she¡¯s mad. ¡°But don¡¯t worry, I can handle her.¡±


    ¡°If you say so,¡± I chuckled. ¡°Just hope Tisiah doesn¡¯t find out.¡±


    ¡°Why? He¡¯ll just be happy that she¡¯s gone,¡± Mchi said. ¡°She¡¯s annoying.¡±


    ¡°No, he won¡¯t. She¡¯s his sister,¡± I said.


    Mchi¡¯s face froze and he stared at me for a few seconds before responding. ¡°Oh, I see.¡± I nodded with emphasis, making sure he knew how serious this was. ¡°Well, I¡¯ll keep my mouth shut then.¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± I said with a veryical smile.


    ¡°No problemo, now let¡¯s eat. I¡¯m starving.¡±


    Mchi and I began to eat and we talked about some of the crazy things we¡¯ve seen our mission. Although it was nice to have somepany, I still couldn¡¯t help but feel a little lonely without Tisiah. But as least Mchi was being nice enough, for once.


    ¡°So, how¡¯s your sses in school?¡± I asked.


    ¡°They¡¯re going great. I¡¯m getting all A¡¯s so far,¡± Mchi said with a proud smile. ¡°I¡¯m determined to get into a good college.¡±


    ¡°You mean besides Harvard?¡± I teased.


    ¡°Hey, a guy can dream right?¡± Mchi said with a wink. I chuckled and nodded my head. ¡°Well I guess at this point, anything is possible. Who¡¯d knew I¡¯d be a spy mage.¡±


    ¡°I guess that makes sense,¡± Mchi said. ¡°You¡¯re really smart.¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said. ¡°So are you, that¡¯s why you¡¯ll get into Harvard, I hope.¡±


    ¡°Oh, so now you¡¯re rooting for me,¡± Mchi said jokingly, elbowing me in the side.


    ¡°Yeah, of course. How could I not?¡± I said with a smile.


    ¡°You literally teased me of being dumb!¡±


    ¡°When?¡±


    ¡°¡®You mean besides Harvard?¡± he mocked in a high-pitched voice. ¡°Oh my,¡± I said, yfully horrified. Mchi rolled his eyes as I began to snicker. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I couldn¡¯t help it.¡±


    ¡°Whatever,¡± Mchi said, but he was smiling.


    It was refreshing to talk with him like an actual friend, and not an enemy. Maybe things were finally beginning to look up.


    However, I still couldn¡¯t help feeling a little lonely without Tisiah. But at least Mchi was helping, but it was Nikki that needed the most constion. She was taking it really hard, almost to the point of self-destruction. I had never seen her like this and it scared me. Everything just felt weird and uncertain without Tisiah. I missed him dearly, even though we only knew each other for such a short time. But in that short time, many things happened.


    Imagine how Nikki, who knew him all his life felt.

 Chapter 65

    65 Recruiting a Friend


    I was snapped out of my thoughts by the sound of footstepsing towards us. I tensed up, preparing for a fight, but it was September.


    ¡°Chill,¡± September chuckled, as if reading my mind. ¡°It¡¯s just me.¡±


    ¡°Oh, sorry,¡± I said, rxing a little. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± she said. ¡°Just was talking with Mr. Robbs from Mage History ss. He rmended a few good books on mage history if you¡¯re interested.¡±


    ¡°Well I mean, I ain¡¯t really attending sses after I won the WAC contest really,¡± I said.


    ¡°I figured as much,¡± September said with a nod. ¡°But he did say that if we¡¯re interested, he¡¯d be willing to us some books.¡±


    ¡°Heh,¡± I said with a nod. ¡°Figures.¡± September then took a seat next to me and began to munch on an apple.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s been up with youtely?¡± she asked.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± I asked. She chuckled, ¡°It¡¯s quite self exnatory, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°Oh, right,¡± I said with a nod. ¡°I¡¯ve just been hanging out with Mchi while you weren¡¯t here, and uh, not much else.¡±


    .....


    ¡°I see,¡± September said. ¡°Well I¡¯m d you two are getting along better.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said with a smile and a nod. ¡°He¡¯s not so bad, once you get to know him.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯m d you think so.¡±


    We thenpsed into silence as we continued to eat our lunch. It was nice to have somepany, but at the same time, it was a little awkward. Not sure why, but it was.


    ¡°So, what are your ns for after lunch?¡± September finally broke the silence.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°What about you?¡±


    ¡°Oh, I was just going to go to the library and do some research,¡± she said.


    ¡°Research on what?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Of course, the Cybertron thing. It¡¯s peaceful and quiet there, which is great for my concentration,¡± she added. ¡°I can check to see what I can learn about it,¡± she said. ¡°Oh right, right, right,¡± I said, snapping my fingers. ¡°I forgot about that.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± she said with a nod. ¡°So I guess I¡¯ll see youter then?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, see youter September,¡± I said as she got up and left.


    Once she was gone, I turned to Mchi and sighed. ¡°Libraries, huh?¡±


    He nodded. ¡°Never really liked them.¡±


    ***


    Time passed and now it was time for us to start talking with Mr. Drails. Mchi said we should wait, that we had to be sure, but I was getting impatient.


    ¡°I say we go now,¡± I said. ¡°The longer we wait, the more time Rocke can prepare.¡±


    ¡°Fine,¡± Mchi said with a sigh. ¡°But let me do the talking.¡± September chuckled, ¡°Who every said you were talking?¡± This caused Mchi to give September a withering look.


    We approached Mr. Drails¡¯s office and I could see him through the window, hunched over his desk, looking at something intently.


    ¡°He looks busy,¡± I said.


    ¡°That¡¯s because he is,¡± Mchi replied. ¡°But he¡¯ll make time for this, for sure.¡± He knocked on the door as Mr. Drails¡¯s eyes immediately lit up and stared at us.


    He motioned us in and we took our seats. Mr. Drails leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers. ¡°So, what can I do for you?¡± he asked.


    Mchi cleared his throat before beginning. ¡°We¡¯re here to talk about the Cybertron mission,¡± he said. ¡°The whole ¡®Save Tisiah¡¯ thing. We found the address.¡±


    Mr. Drails¡¯s eyes widened and he sat up straighter. ¡°You did?¡± he asked. ¡°That¡¯s fantastic news! Where is it?¡± Then September handed him the sticky note, where he looked with thought.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m not familiar with this area. Is it in the city?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I piped up. ¡°We think it¡¯s actually in the middle of nowhere. The address is very unfamiliar anywhere in the world to be honest.¡±


    ¡°Interesting,¡± Mr. Drails said, tapping his chin. ¡°But that doesn¡¯t matter. We need to go there as quickly as we can. I¡¯ll try and get the coordinates of the ce by tomorrow, so you guys can go there. Have you guys talked to your new teammates yet?¡±


    ¡°No not yet, but I¡¯ll reach them soon after this,¡± I said.


    ¡°Good, good,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°I¡¯ll be in touch.¡±


    And with that, we were dismissed.


    We walked out the door, as September looked at me with hope in her eyes. ¡°Just talk to them alright, I¡¯ll try to see more on the Cybertron with Mchi okay?¡± I nodded as we went our separate ways for now.


    I¡¯m not sure where Matt or Mari is. Once it ended, I never was able to find them at all to be honest. It was gonna be hard to find them to tell them the news, but I¡¯ll have to try. I began to walk through the halls, as students galore were talking andughing.


    It was really cramped, and the unpleasant sensation began to radiate through my body. I walked faster, as I wanted to get away from the people. I turned the corner and saw Mari, who was talking with some other girl.


    She looked very clean since the whole WAC contest, where she was more covered in dirt than before. It made me feel a little happy, as I saw herughing and joking around.


    I approached her and the other girl gave me a weird look.


    The girl was wearing some jean jacket, with orange hair and blue jeans. She also had on a backpack and high top converse shoes. ¡°Who are you?¡± the girl asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m a friend of Mari¡¯s,¡± I said, as she nodded. ¡°Do you guys need uh...¡± the girl said as she slowly walked away. ¡°I¡¯m gonna use the bathroom.¡±


    ¡°O-Oh, okay,¡± I said, as the girl walked away. I turned to Mari, who was looking at me with a weird expression. ¡°I didn¡¯t think you were gonna see me again,¡± Mari said. ¡°Why are you here?¡±


    ¡°I wanted to talk to you about something,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s kind of urgent.¡±


    ¡°Oh, okay,¡± she said. ¡°Go ahead.¡± I cleared my throat, feeling weird for some reason. ¡°So there were some things that happened and we needed new teammates. I was hoping you could join us on our mission.¡±


    ¡°What mission?¡± she asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s a long story,¡± I said. ¡°But we need to go save someone.¡±


    ¡°Oh, like the President?¡± she asked.


    ¡°No, but someone you may know from the WAC contest.¡±


    ¡°Nikki?¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°No, it¡¯s not Nikki. It¡¯s Tisiah.¡±


    Mari¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Tisiah? Oh no, what happened?¡± she asked.


    ¡°He, got kidnapped by someone from the TSA, we need to save him before it¡¯s toote,¡± I said.


    ¡°Oh my,¡± she said, as her hand flew to her head. ¡°That¡¯s terrible! I¡¯ll help you guys, of course.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± she said. ¡°Let¡¯s confirm it with Mr. Drails!¡± I held up my finger, ¡°Well, I was going to ask Matt and someone named Rin who helped us in the WAC contest.¡±


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s no problem,¡± Mari said. ¡°I know where Matt is. He¡¯s in the library studying for a test.¡±


    ¡°A test?¡±


    ¡°Not the academy test, but you know, his actual school test.¡± I nodded, as I remembered he was still attending school.


    ¡°So, should we go now?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Might as well,¡± I said.


    Preview:


    We began to walk over to the library, which I had no idea where it was, but I just followed Mari who seemed to know somehow. We walked for a while in silence, before Mari decided to talk again. ¡°So, how have you been?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Well, not too well I guess,¡± I said. ¡°I mean, I just found out that my friends and I are going to have to leave our homes and go on a dangerous mission to save a person who tried to kill me before.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s how it¡¯s always gonna be,¡± Mari said. ¡°It¡¯s hard most of the time.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± I said. ¡°But it¡¯s worth it.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it is,¡± she said. ¡°To save people and to keep them from destroying our way of life. It¡¯s what we have to do.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± I said. ¡°But it¡¯s still hard.¡± We finally arrived at the library, and it must be a very big one. The building was quite wide, very wide in fact.


    It had many different levels and a big sign that said ¡°Library¡± in big letters. ¡°This is the ce,¡± Mari said.


    The building had this brown and gray pattern and the structure was quite exhrating. It made me feel a little giddy, as I had never seen such a big library before. ¡°Let¡¯s go in,¡± Mari said, as she walked in.


    The ce was really just something else. The tiles when walking in were gold and the chandeliers were a bright white. It was really something to see. Then after about a fifty feet ahead was the actual library, with shelves upon shelves upon shelves of books. It was like a maze and I got lost just looking at it.


    Many students were there for some reason, as I saw them walking around with their books. ¡°This ce is amazing,¡± I said.


    ¡°Yeah, it is,¡± Mari said. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s find Matt.¡± We began to search, me taking the right and her taking the left. With every shelf hallway, I keenly looked through, trying to find him. But he was nowhere to be found.

 Chapter 66

    66 Conference Meeting


    We began to walk over to the library, which I had no idea where it was, but I just followed Mari who seemed to know somehow. We walked for a while in silence, before Mari decided to talk again. ¡°So, how have you been?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Well, not too well I guess,¡± I said. ¡°I mean, I just found out that my friends and I are going to have to leave our homes and go on a dangerous mission to save a person who tried to kill me before.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s how it¡¯s always gonna be,¡± Mari said. ¡°It¡¯s hard most of the time.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± I said. ¡°But it¡¯s worth it.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it is,¡± she said. ¡°To save people and to keep them from destroying our way of life. It¡¯s what we have to do.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± I said. ¡°But it¡¯s still hard.¡± We finally arrived at the library, and it must be a very big one. The building was quite wide, very wide in fact.


    It had many different levels and a big sign that said ¡°Library¡± in big letters. ¡°This is the ce,¡± Mari said.


    The building had this brown and gray pattern and the structure was quite exhrating. It made me feel a little giddy, as I had never seen such a big library before. ¡°Let¡¯s go in,¡± Mari said, as she walked in.


    The ce was really just something else. The tiles when walking in were gold and the chandeliers were a bright white. It was really something to see. Then after about a fifty feet ahead was the actual library, with shelves upon shelves upon shelves of books. It was like a maze and I got lost just looking at it.


    .....


    Many students were there for some reason, as I saw them walking around with their books. ¡°This ce is amazing,¡± I said.


    ¡°Yeah, it is,¡± Mari said. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s find Matt.¡± We began to search, me taking the right and her taking the left. With every shelf hallway, I keenly looked through, trying to find him. But he was nowhere to be found.


    Hall after hall I searched, to no avail. I was getting frustrated and Mari must¡¯ve noticed. ¡°He¡¯s not here,¡± she said.


    ¡°I know,¡± I said. ¡°But he has to be.¡± Just then, I heard a voice call out my name. It sounded like Matt. ¡°Connor!¡± the voice said again. It wasing from the other side of the hall, as we both looked in that direction, to see Matt walking towards us.


    ¡°Matt,¡± I said, as he arrived. ¡°Where were you?¡±


    ¡°I could ask you the same thing,¡± he said. ¡°But more importantly, what¡¯s going on?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, he is,¡± I said. ¡°He was kidnapped by someone from the TSA, we need you to help us.


    ¡°Of course,¡± he said. ¡°Anything for Tisiah.¡±


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go then,¡± Mari said. We began to walk back the way we came and I took onest look at the library, before we left. It was a ce I would definitelye back to, when all of this was over.


    ¡°So what exactly do you need me to do?¡± Matt asked. ¡°Inform Mr. Drails about our new team,¡± I said.


    ¡°How about the old team?¡± he inquired.


    ¡°They¡¯ll still be needed,¡± I said. ¡°However, we¡¯ll need to hire some new people.¡±


    ¡°Who?¡± he questioned.


    ¡°Well, we were thinking of you,¡± I exined. ¡°Perhaps Rin as well.¡±


    ¡°Rin?¡± he solicited. ¡°Who exactly is he?¡± I chuckled at my forgetfulness and exined, ¡°He¡¯s someone who helped us win the WAC contest while you guys were-you know-knocked out.¡±


    ¡°Ah, gotcha,¡± he responded. ¡°But I don¡¯t know if I¡¯m the best person for the job.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re one of the smartest people I know,¡± I said. ¡°I trust you.¡±


    He was silent for a few moments before replying with a simple, ¡°Okay.¡±


    We eventually made it back to the official YMPA buliding, our sights set on Mr. Drails¡¯s office. We walked up the stairs once we got in, making it towards Mr. Drails¡¯s door. Once we arrived, I knocked on it.


    ¡°Come in,¡± a voice said from the other side. I slowly opened the door, to see Mr. Drails sitting at his desk, with many papers spread out before him. ¡°Ah, Connor,¡± he said as he noticed me. ¡°Mari, Matt,¡± he greeted them as well. ¡°These are your new teammates if I¡¯m not wrong Connor?¡±


    ¡°Yes, they are,¡± I said as I gestured to them. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for the-you know-unfortunate events that urred.¡±


    ¡°Yes, quite,¡± he said. ¡°But it¡¯s in the past now.¡±


    ¡°So what¡¯s our next move?¡± Mari inquired.


    ¡°Well,¡± Mr. Drails said, slowly getting up from his seat. ¡°Analyze the video once again with the whole team again. You could try and find more information. This is an agent¡¯s life in danger, so we need to take this seriously.¡± We all nodded in agreement as Mr. Drails walked towards the door. ¡°Oh, and Connor?¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡± I said as I looked back at him.


    ¡°Good luck,¡± he said with a smile, before leaving the office.


    We all decided to head to the conference room, as it would be easier to look at the video there. If you didn¡¯t know, there is a conference that is right behind this building. It¡¯s like the bump of the infrastructure. The ce had arge gray table, with about fifteen chairs ced around it.


    The conference room was a long, rectangr room with arge gray table in the center. Fifteen chairs were ced around the table, giving everyone plenty of space to work. The walls were a light beige color, with several paintings hanging on them.


    The carpet in the conference room was a light brown color and it was quitefortable to walk on. The room also had arge TV, which was currently turned off.


    ¡°Okay,¡± I acknowledged, as Matt and Mari all took their seats. ¡°I¡¯m gonna go and get September and Mchi, just gotta go back to the training center and find them.¡±


    They nodded slowly as I exited the room, making my way back to the training center. Once I got there, I looked around and didn¡¯t see any sign of them.


    Uh...where were they?


    Maybe the library, but they couldn¡¯t be. I was just in the library and I didn¡¯t see them!


    But then, I heard a voice behind me say, ¡°Connor?¡±


    I turned around to see September and Mchi walking toward me. ¡°Hey guys,¡± I greeted them. ¡°I was just searching for you guys.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± September said, looking surprised for some reason. ¡°You found Matt and Mari?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said as I nodded. ¡°We¡¯re in the conference room right now. We¡¯re gonna go over the video again and see if we could find anything new.¡±


    ¡°Got it,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Let¡¯s go then.¡±


    I led them back to the conference room, opening the door for them as they walked through the room. Matt and Mari seemed to be quite surprised by Mchi for some reason, but then again, he was popr.


    ¡°So, this is Matt and Mari?¡± Mchi asked, seeming a bit intrigued. Mari began to tremble in excitement and I could only roll my eyes. ¡°Why is she doing that?¡± Mchi asked concernedly.


    ¡°She¡¯s just a really big fan of yours,¡± I exined, as Mari began to calm down. ¡°Anyway, take a seat and we¡¯ll get started.¡±


    We all sat down in our respective seats as I hit the y button in space. It showed the usual, Rocke getting out of the ck car and moving towards the cafe, but before it could continue, Mari paused.


    ¡°Is that the guy that kidnapped Tisiah?¡± Mari asked. Everyone¡¯s eyes widened in realization.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said, feeling a bit angry. ¡°That¡¯s the guy.¡±


    ¡°But why would he take Tisiah?¡± Matt questioned. ¡°It doesn¡¯t make any sense.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said, as I shook my head. ¡°But we¡¯re gonna find out hopefully from this video. We made some assumptions about what he was trying to do. We think he¡¯s trying to steal a robot called the Cybertron, and the reason why I say that is because-¡± I continued the video as he grabbed the diamond and then I paused. ¡°-of the diamond he grabbed, which if you look at the model of it, there is an opening to where it¡¯s about the same size.¡±


    Matt nodded. ¡°Do you guys have the address of where it¡¯s at?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said as I pulled out my phone, before looking at the address and then showing it to Matt. He then saved it on his phone before putting it away.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Mari said, as she hit y again. We watched as Rocke got into the ck car and drove off, and we didn¡¯t see it once again. ¡°So, where¡¯s Rin?¡± September asked. ¡°I need to get him real quick,¡± I muttered, realizing.


    But here¡¯s the problem. I have no idea where he is. Since the WAC match, I haven¡¯t seen him since then.

 Chapter 67

    67 Rin


    But here¡¯s the problem. I have no idea where he is. Since the WAC match, I haven¡¯t seen him since then. I quickly left the conference room and took a brief look around to see if he was there.


    It¡¯s like you see someone once, and you never see them again.


    Maybe he was in a ss or something, after all, it was one of thest hours of being here. I began to move towards the stairs, going to Mr. Robbs¡¯s room.


    ¡°Hey, do you know where Rin may be?¡± I asked, peeking my head through the door. ¡°I need to talk to him real quick.¡±


    ¡°Oh, Rin?¡± Mr. Robbs asked as he turned around from his desk. ¡°He just left and is probably about to leave. You just missed him.¡±


    ¡°Oh, okay,¡± I said, as I nodded. ¡°Thanks, Mr. Robbs.¡±


    ¡°No problem,¡± he said, as he turned back to his desk. I quickly rushed down the stairs, taking them two at a time. I needed to talk to Rin fast before he left the school.


    But when I got there, I saw that the parking lot was already empty. There wasn¡¯t a single car in sight.


    He must have left already, I thought, as I sighed in disappointment. But then I saw one person that was about two hundred feet from me to my right, and they were walking away.


    .....


    I began to sprint towards that person and soon enough, I caught up. ¡°Rin!¡± I yelled as I panted a bit. He turned around to see me and he had a surprised look on his face.


    ¡°Connor?¡± he asked, as he raised an eyebrow. ¡°Where were you?¡±


    ¡°I could ask-you-the-the-the same-the same question,¡± I panted out, as I put my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath. ¡°I¡¯ve been-been looking-for you.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± he said, as he scratched the back of his head. ¡°Sorry about that. I was just getting some air.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, well,¡± I said, as I took a deep breath. ¡°Something happened, it¡¯s quite a long story. Tisiah got kidnapped by someone from the TSA and we don¡¯t know where he is. We were just about to start watching the footage from one of the streetlight cameras, but we realized that we didn¡¯t have you. And I was hoping that you could help us out.¡±


    Rin sighed as he ran his hand through his hair.


    ¡°Who¡¯s in your team?¡± he asked. ¡°Mchi, September, Nikki, and Matt,¡± I listed off. ¡°Mari¡¯s with us too.¡±


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯m not sure who those people are. But I¡¯ll help,¡± he said, as he nodded. ¡°I¡¯lle with you.¡±


    As we walked back to the conference room, I began to fill Rin in on everything that has happened so far. He listened intently and seemed quite surprised by everything.


    ¡°That¡¯s quite a lot,¡± he muttered, as we walked into the room. ¡°I had no idea that any of this was going on.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said, as I nodded. ¡°It¡¯s been a lot to take in for all of us.¡±


    We entered the room and all eyes were set on Rin. ¡°Hey, guys,¡± he said, as he waved. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡±


    ¡°We were just about to start watching the footage from one of the streetlight cameras,¡± Mari said, as she hit y. We all watched as the footage began to y.


    Rin leaned forward in his seat, his eyes glued to the screen. ¡°Who¡¯s that guy?¡± he asked, as he pointed to the man in the ck suit inside the car.


    ¡°We don¡¯t know,¡± I said, as I shook my head. ¡°But we think that he might be a part of the TSA.¡±


    ¡°The TSA?¡± Rin asked as he furrowed his brows. ¡°What would they want with Tisiah?¡±


    ¡°Lord only knows,¡± September said. ¡°But the main guy is about toe out, Rocke.¡± Then Rocke came out of the car, and Rin shuddered in fear.


    ¡°That¡¯s Rocke?¡± he asked, as he gulped. ¡°He looks even scarier in person.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said, as I nodded. ¡°He¡¯s the one that has the Armonk.¡±


    ¡°The Armonk?¡± Rin asked, as his eyes widened in surprise. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s something we had to deal with before this,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s a long story.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± Rin said, as he nodded. ¡°How are we gonna find Rocke?¡±


    ¡°Well, September, Mchi and I searched, and based on that diamond that he took, we think that¡¯s for some sort of robot that he might want to steal because it¡¯s powered by that same shape,¡± I said.


    ¡°A robot?¡± Rin asked as he raised an eyebrow. ¡°What does that have to do with anything?¡±


    ¡°Well, by finding the address, we could spy it out and see if Rocke is there by any chance. We¡¯d see his minions if he was, and that¡¯s quite most likely,¡± September exined.


    ¡°So, we¡¯re just gonna go and stake out this ce?¡± Rin asked. ¡°It sounds kinda dangerous.¡±


    ¡°Well these things are dangerous,¡± Mari said. ¡°Gotta get used to them.¡±


    ¡°I guess so,¡± Rin said, as he sighed. ¡°But I don¡¯t think I¡¯m cut out for this.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°You¡¯re a good agent, I think...¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, it¡¯s just,¡± he said, as he shook his head. ¡°This seems like a lot for me, I¡¯m more of a stay behind and watch the cameras guy.¡±


    ¡°Well, we need all the help we can get,¡± I said. ¡°And besides, you¡¯re a good shot. You got this.¡±


    ¡°Alright, but if anything messes up, it¡¯s on you,¡± he said with a chuckle.


    ¡°Deal,¡± I said, as I held out my hand to him. He shook it and we all got up from our seats. ¡°Alright, everyone just goes back to your usual things, and we¡¯ll meet tomorrow here, okay?¡±


    As everyone began to leave, I pulled Mari and September back. ¡°What are you guys up to?¡± Rin asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m just telling them something real quick,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯ll be right back.¡±


    As soon as we were out of the room, I turned to Mari and September. ¡°Who¡¯s gonna tell Nikki?¡± I asked. ¡°I don¡¯t think I can do it.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll do it,¡± September said. ¡°You just focus on finding Tisiah, I¡¯ll tell Nikki everything.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± I nodded, ¡°It¡¯s soon about to be time to go home, so I¡¯ll just...go ahead and uh-yeah.¡±


    I turned around and walked away from them, my heart heavy with sadness. I had to find Tisiah, no matter what. I went up to Mr. Drails¡¯s office and knocked, indicating that I was leaving. I then walked outside of a building, as a portal opened up in front of me. I stepped inside of it and it whisked me away back to my home.


    I knocked on the door immediately, not feeling like being outside. My mom answered the door and I walked in, setting my bag down.


    ¡°Hey, Connor,¡± she said with a smile. ¡°Hi mom,¡± I said, giving her a quick hug. I then walked upstairs to my room and then sat down on my bed. I sighed, thinking about what I had to do tomorrow.


    It was going to be a long day.


    ***


    It was the day, the time to save Tisiah. I felt ready, fired up much more than usual. I knew the others felt the same, we had to save Tisiah at all costs. Even if it meant going up against Rocke and the whole TSA, a life matters, no matter what.


    I got up from my bed, at six in the morning, while my mom was asleep. Once I got ready, I was immediately teleported to Mr. Drails¡¯s office. September and Mchi were the only ones there at the time, but I was pretty sure more wereing.


    ¡°Good morning, everyone,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯re all wondering why I¡¯ve called you here.¡±


    ¡°No not really,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Matt and Mari, nor that Rinny guy are here.¡±


    ¡°Rin, Mchi,¡± Mr. Drails corrected. ¡°And they¡¯ll be here soon, I promised them this meeting as well.¡±


    ¡°Whatever,¡± Mchi mumbled. Then the door opened, and the rest came in. Mari and Matt looked excited, but Rin seemed very nervous.


    ¡°Now that we¡¯re all here,¡± Mr. Drails continued. ¡°I¡¯ll get to the point. The reason I¡¯ve called you all is that we¡¯re starting the mission to find Rocke. I¡¯ve scouted out the area and figured out that it¡¯s a museum in construction.¡±


    ¡°A museum. Howe this is not popr on the Inte or something like that?¡± Rin asked.


    ¡°That¡¯s a good question,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Not sure, but it is possible that maybe the TSA¡¯s doing.¡±


    ¡°Makes sense,¡± I said. ¡°But what¡¯s the n?¡±


    Preview:


    ¡°The n is simple, really,¡± Mr. Drails exined. ¡°You all will be going in undercover as construction workers. The second you see Rocke, kidnap him and then quickly tell me.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the n?¡± Mari asked. ¡°It seems a bit...simple.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°I just said that. Now when you get there, quickly go find a way to get some construction jacket. Nikki isn¡¯t here right now, so we¡¯ll have to do things the hard way.¡±


    ¡°Well that makes things much less simple,¡± Rin muttered, as Mr. Drails nodded. All of a sudden, he created a portal that led inside some sort of building that didn¡¯t look like a museum in construction.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll hope to see you guys soon here and ready,¡± he said. ¡°And be careful, the TSA will most likely be there.¡±

 Chapter 68

    68 CyberSearch (Part 1)


    ¡°The n is simple, really,¡± Mr. Drails exined. ¡°You all will be going in undercover as construction workers. The second you see Rocke, kidnap him and then quickly tell me.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the n?¡± Mari asked. ¡°It seems a bit...simple.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°I just said that. Now when you get there, quickly go find a way to get some construction jacket. Nikki isn¡¯t here right now, so we¡¯ll have to do things the hard way.¡±


    ¡°Well that makes things much less simple,¡± Rin muttered, as Mr. Drails nodded. All of a sudden, he created a portal that led inside some sort of building that didn¡¯t look like a museum in construction.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll hope to see you guys soon here and ready,¡± he said. ¡°And be careful, the TSA will most likely be there.¡±


    With that, we all walked through the portal. Once we were in, the portal closed. ¡°So, what now?¡± Mchi asked. And as he looked to the side, our eyes set on the sight. We weren¡¯t in the building in construction, but we were by it.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± I said, as I looked around. There was a guy in a construction hat and jacket walking around. ¡°But we need to find something and quick.¡±


    Slowly the guy began to reach Mari, but all of a sudden, she whipped her elbow back and hit him in the face. The guy grabbed his face and dropped to the ground.


    ¡°Oh, my,¡± Mari said, covering her face. But then September kicked him again, knocking him out. Mari looked at her in horror.


    .....


    ¡°What?¡± September shrugged. ¡°We needed some clothes, here they are. You put them on and just tell us on the radio what you see.¡±


    ¡°Why me?¡±


    ¡°Because you knocked him out.¡±


    ¡°You did!¡±


    ¡°Okay, this doesn¡¯t matter, just someone does this,¡± Mchi said. ¡°We don¡¯t have time for this.¡± ¡°Let me at least put it on in the bathroom first,¡± Mari said. She began to walk away behind the corner before she disappeared.


    ¡°Well, that was easy,¡± Rin said.


    ¡°Yeah, too easy,¡± I muttered. After a moment, or ten minutes I guess, she came back with the outfit on. ¡°Alright,¡± I said. ¡°We¡¯ll be over here while you scout out the area, okay?¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Mari said. She began to walk away before she turned back. ¡°And be careful, I don¡¯t want anything happening to you either,¡± I said.


    ¡°I will,¡± she said before she turned around and walked away.


    She took the elevator down, walking confidently before she began to make it towards the construction site. It looked more like a construction site than a museum. She walked in, looking around before she began to speak on the radio.


    ¡°Alright I¡¯m in,¡± she said before she began to describe the area around her. ¡°It looks like they¡¯re still working on the first floor.¡±


    ¡°Copy that,¡± I responded. ¡°Keep us updated.¡±


    ¡°Will do,¡± she said before she began to walk around. She looked around, trying to find Rocke or something I guess. It¡¯s hard to tell when someone is walking around looking like a lost kid.


    ¡°Try to survey the construction workers,¡± Matt said. ¡°They¡¯d most likely try to blend in.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Mari said before she began to walk around. But as she looked around, she didn¡¯t see any construction workers that stood out, or I think she didn¡¯t.


    ¡°You see anything suspicious?¡± I asked, over the radio. ¡°Not really,¡± she responded. ¡°But there¡¯s one thing I noticed.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    ¡°Well, it looks like they¡¯re almost done with the first floor. But there¡¯s something off about it.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± she said. ¡°It just seems...strange.¡±


    ¡°Well, try to focus on finding one of Rocke¡¯s minions,¡± Mchi ordered, over the radio. ¡°We¡¯ll worry about thatter.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± she said before she sighed. But as she began to walk around, she heard something. It sounded like footsteps, but not just any footsteps. These were heavy footsteps like someone was trying to be quiet but failing miserably.


    Mari tried to follow the sound, but it didn¡¯t seem to be near her. She was now in the midst of the site so now she was in the presence of other workers, but they didn¡¯t seem to be the source of the noise. The workers were too focused on their work to make any noise.


    That¡¯s when she heard it again, but this time it was closer. She looked around, trying to find the source before she saw something out of the corner of her eye. It was arge man, walking towards her.


    He was a construction guy, but he was probably seven feet with broad shoulders. He had a beard and was bald. He was wearing the standard construction guy outfit with a hard hat. But as he got closer, Mari noticed something else. He had a gun.


    ¡°Hey,¡± he said, in a gruff voice. ¡°What are you doing here?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m just looking around,¡± Mari said. ¡°Trying to see what to fix.¡±


    ¡°Oh, okay, okay,¡± he said in a soft voice. ¡°Follow me, I want to show you something.¡±


    Fear aroused in my body, and I could see it in Mari¡¯s eyes too. But she didn¡¯t have a choice, so she followed him. He took her to the other side of the construction site where there was arge hole.


    ¡°This is where they¡¯re going to put the pool,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s going to be beautiful.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s gonna be a pool by a museum?¡± Mari asked.


    ¡°Yeah, yeah,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s going to be great for the kids.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sure it will be,¡± Mari said, trying to keep her cool.


    ¡°Come on, I¡¯ll show you around,¡± he said before he began to walk away. Mari followed him, trying to keep up with his footsteps. I felt as if my legs were shaking as the suspense of the situation filled everyone¡¯s eyes, including Mari¡¯s.


    He took her to different parts of the construction site, showing her different things that were going to be in the museum. But as he showed her around, she noticed something strange. He would always go to ces where there were no other people. It was as if he was hiding something from everyone else.


    ¡°I¡¯m going in,¡± I said, speeding towards the elevator. September turned her head around and looked at me with concern. ¡°Connor, no!¡± she shouted, running towards me.


    But I ignored her and entered the elevator, pressing the button for the first floor. The doors began to close as September ran towards me, and it shut on her. I was led to the first floor, and rushed out, speeding towards the site.


    ¡°Connor!¡± I heard September¡¯s voice say, but it was getting fainter and fainter.


    I reached the construction site, quickly trying to run towards Mari. But then they got behind the cargo boxes that were like a thousand feet long, and I lost them. I tried to go around the other side, but when I turned the corner, I was met with a fist.


    I rocked back onto the ground, groaning in pain. When I looked up, I saw the construction guy who seemed very surprised. ¡°Oh, I thought you were from the TSA?¡± he said silently.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Mari asked as we both looked at him in confusion.


    ¡°The TSA,¡± he said, in a louder voice. ¡°They¡¯re the ones who are supposed to be inspecting the site.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I mean, someone¡¯s been stealing from the construction site,¡± he said. ¡°And I thought you were one of them.¡±


    ¡°First things first, where are you from?¡± I asked. ¡°The FMA,¡± he said.


    ¡°Oh!¡± I realized.


    ¡°So you¡¯re in on this?¡±


    ¡°In on what?¡± Mari asked.


    ¡°The FMA¡¯s been investigating the construction site for weeks now,¡± he said. ¡°After they heard about the construction of the Cybertron for the museum, they¡¯ve been keeping eyes on it for a long time.¡±


    Preview:


    ¡°But what does that have to do with us?¡± Mari asked.


    ¡°I was getting to that,¡± he said. ¡°We heard about your assumption Rocke may being for it, so half of the people here are from our organization. But we found some intel that those people that check up on us are from the TSA.¡±


    ¡°Wow,¡± I muttered. ¡°So what do we do?¡±


    ¡°Find them,¡± Mari said. ¡°And stop them.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± I said, getting up. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    We began to walk away from the area, and into the thick of the site. The smell of dust and metal filled my nose as we walked, and the sound of construction workers filled my ears. As we walked, I couldn¡¯t help but think about what September was screaming. She sounded so genuine about it. Maybe she was afraid that I might get into the same predicament we went through back in Russia.


    ¡°So, how do you n on finding the TSA inspectors?¡± Mari asked the big guy.


    ¡°Well,¡± he said, ¡°I was thinking maybe we could split up and look for them.¡±


    ¡°That sounds like a n, but do the inspectors wear something different?¡± Mari asked. The man shook his head, ¡°They¡¯re like informants. They don¡¯t want anyone to know they¡¯re there.¡±

 Chapter 69

    69 CyberSearch (Part 2)


    I looked down and saw Mari and the other guy rushing towards the crane, ¡°She¡¯sing, I think.¡±


    I then started to climb down the crane, making sure to avoid any sharp edges. ¡°Where were you?¡± Mari asked as she got to the top.


    ¡°I was, uh, following him,¡± I said as I gestured to the unconscious guy up at the top. ¡°What did he do?¡± Mari asked. ¡°He was someone from the TSA that was here,¡± I exined. ¡°He was going to hurt us, so I knocked him out.¡±


    ¡°Good job,¡± Mari said as she put her hand on my shoulder. ¡°But that means there are more.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± I said with a sigh. ¡°But we¡¯ll deal with them when theye.¡±


    ¡°You know, let¡¯s just question him and let him tell us where Rocke is and if possible, Tisiah,¡± Mari suggested.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s a good idea,¡± I said as I nodded. ¡°But we should probably tie him up first.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell the rest,¡± Mari said, as I began to move up thedder once again to where the guy was.


    I quickly ascended thedder and arrived at the top of the crane in no time. I then went over to him, and he almost seemed dead. I knelt and put my fingers on his neck, feeling for a pulse. And to my relief, he was alive and breathing. But he was still unconscious.


    .....


    I then turned him over so he was lying on his back and started to search him for any weapons. I found a knife in his back pocket, which could be useful. I picked him up and began to move down thedder, which was harder than I expected given how heavy he was.


    But I eventually made it down andid him on the ground. ¡°We need some rope,¡± I said as Mari looked around. Then she looked around at the big man and asked, ¡°Can you get us some rope?¡±


    He nodded and then went over to the nearby truck and rummaged through it beforeing back with a coil of rope.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± she said as she took it from him.


    Then she started to tie him up, making sure that he wouldn¡¯t be able to escape. Once she was done, she took a few breaths. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go, the team already knows where we are.¡±


    I nodded and then picked up the guy, throwing him over my shoulder. It wasn¡¯t easy, but I managed to do so.


    Suddenly, a portal opened in front of us and we ended up falling into Mr. Drails¡¯s office, whereas the others were already there.


    Why are we alwayste to the party? I thought to myself as I looked around.


    Mr. Drails was sitting at his desk, while the others were standing around, looking just at us. ¡°This doesn¡¯t look like Rocke if I¡¯m not mistaken,¡± he said as he looked at the guy I was carrying.


    ¡°No, it¡¯s not,¡± Mari said as she shook her head. ¡°But it¡¯s one of his minions. We could question him.¡± Mr. Drails nodded and then said, ¡°Put him in the chair.¡±


    I did as he said and sat the guy down in the chair. Then Mr. Drails slowly got up from his chair and came over, looking down at him. ¡°Wake up,¡± he said in a cold voice.


    Suddenly, the guy¡¯s eyes snapped and he looked around frantically. ¡°Talent...¡± September muttered under her breath.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked, confused.


    ¡°He has the talent of being a sleeper,¡± she exined. ¡°It¡¯s a rare talent that only a few have.¡±


    ¡°So, he can put people to sleep?¡± I asked, still confused.


    ¡°He can wake them up with just a calm voice,¡± September said. ¡°He¡¯s done it before.¡±


    The TSA agent looked around confused before his eyesnded on Mr. Drails. ¡°Who are you?¡± he asked in a shaking voice.


    ¡°That¡¯s not important, what¡¯s important is that I¡¯m gonna ask you a few questions,¡± he said in a cold voice. ¡°And if you don¡¯t answer them, then I¡¯ll make sure that you never wake up again.¡±


    The guy shuddered a bit, but anger infused his eyes. ¡°Go ahead and ask your questions,¡± he spat out.


    ¡°Where is Rocke?¡± Mr. Drails asked in a cold voice.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± he answered.


    ¡°Wrong answer,¡± Mr. Drails said before he hit him with a shockwave that sent him flying out of the chair and into the wall.


    He slid down, unconscious once again.


    ¡°Well that was helpful,¡± September said sarcastically.


    ¡°He¡¯ll wake up again,¡± Mari said as she looked at him. ¡°But it¡¯ll take a few minutes.¡±


    Suddenly the agent woke up again, gasping for breath. ¡°I told you I don¡¯t know,¡± he said in a shaking voice.


    ¡°Where is Rocke? And don¡¯t try to be dumb, because you were literally in a site that contains something he¡¯s trying to steal,¡± Mari said.


    ¡°I... I don¡¯t know,¡± he said again, looking down.


    ¡°Well, do you know where he could be?¡± Mari asked.


    The guy shook his head. ¡°I- I don¡¯t know anything,¡± he said in a trembling voice.


    ¡°Can you predict where he may be?¡± Mr. Drails asked. ¡°And I don¡¯t want to hear another ¡®I don¡¯t know.¡±


    The guy shook his head again. ¡°I don¡¯t know, I already told you that,¡± he said pleadingly.


    ¡°Fine,¡± Mr. Drails said with a sigh, before punching him in the face, knocking him out again.


    After a moment the agent woke up again, looking dazed. ¡°W- what happened?¡± he asked, confused.


    ¡°You tried to lie to us,¡± Mari said inly. ¡°Where is Rocke?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t-¡± He saw Mr. Drails¡¯s fisting towards him and he flinched, but Mr. Drails stopped just before hitting him.


    ¡°I suggest you start talking,¡± he said.


    ¡°And if I don¡¯t?¡± the guy asked, trembling.


    ¡°Then I¡¯ll make sure that you never wake up again,¡± Mr. Drails said with a chilly voice. ¡°And we will torture you until you don¡¯t blink again.¡±


    ¡°Uh...isn¡¯t that a bit too harsh?¡± I muttered, but no one heard me.


    ¡°Okay, okay!¡± he shouted. ¡°I¡¯ll talk, I¡¯ll talk!¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± Mr. Drails said as he let go of him. ¡°Now tell us.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know how you guys know about the Cybertron, because it¡¯s the only thing I can guess you guys were there for. It isn¡¯t here, yet. So Rocke was waiting until they were going to transport it from overseas in a cargo boat. But it¡¯s heavily guarded, and I mean heavily. If you get to Cuba fast enough, you should catch him,¡± he said.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Mr. Drails said, rubbing his chin. ¡°That¡¯s not a bad idea.¡± He looked at September and Mari. ¡°What do you two think?¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± September said. ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡±


    ¡°What about you, Connor?¡± he asked me.


    ¡°I-uh... I don¡¯t know,¡± I said, feeling a bit out of ce. ¡°I mean, I want to, but I get seasick easily.¡±


    ¡°Well you¡¯re gonna have to get over that,¡± Mari said. ¡°Because we¡¯re going to need all the help we can get.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said. ¡°Fine.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll go tell Nikki,¡± September said before she left the room.


    Mr. Drails looked at the agent who was now shaking in fear. ¡°You¡¯ve been helpful,¡± he said. Then he looked back at Mchi. ¡°Hand the prisoner over to my unique interrogating chamber, and please press the button.¡±


    ¡°O-okay,¡± Mchi said, seeming a bit creeped out as such a use for the button.


    After he left, Mr. Drails turned to look at me. ¡°You¡¯re going to have to be brave, Connor,¡± he said.


    ¡°I know,¡± I said with a nod. ¡°I¡¯ll try my best.¡±


    He nodded before he gestured for us to leave.


    As we walked out, I couldn¡¯t help but wonder what the ¡®unique interrogating chamber¡¯ was. And I don¡¯t think I want to know either. Unless it was the one where we questioned that ¡°Robert¡± guy. I hope it wasn¡¯t that one.


    Word from the Author:


    For those of you who came this far, thank you very much. But just something I wanna tell you, chapters will be re-edited and re-written many times in this book, so if stuff doesn¡¯t seem familiar or anything, no need to worry, it¡¯s the same book. If you want to give me any ideas about the book or some changes you would like, just email me at I know the email is weird, but it¡¯s a long story.


    If there is anything wrong with the grammar in this story, please make sure to point it out so I may fix it. I may forget to proofread or check my chapters for good grammar, so please make sure to point it out. I¡¯m a person that loves feedback and wants to improve, so help me improve my content for you to enjoy.


    I may be the author, but you guys can be too...somewhat. Tell ideas for some things like drama or plot twists etc., that could make my story more interesting for you and others perhaps as well. I would love to work with you on those things, and it really excites me to make a story out of your idea. So if you want to change anything in this story, or want to add something that could make it better. Just email me at, ¡°¡±, if I haven¡¯t already said that before.


    Thank you and have a good day.

 Chapter 70

    70 Nikki¡¯s Confession


    I went into my room and closed the door behind me, feeling very tried from all that has happened. At least our mission was a sess, somewhat.


    At least we got the information we needed, and we were now closer to getting to Tisiah than we were before. If I¡¯m beingpletely honest, I was a little disappointed that we didn¡¯t find him there, but at least we found a lead.


    I was so tired that I could barely keep my eyes open, but I knew that I needed to get some rest. I went over to my bed and plopped down onto it, not even bothering to take my shoes off.


    I was startled by the sudden knock at the door. I had been so tired that I didn¡¯t even hear ite up. I sat up and rubbed my eyes, trying to figure out who it could be. I slowly got up from my bed, my legs wobbling as I continued. I reached for the door handle, and with a bit of effort, I finally managed to open the door.


    ¡°Oh, September,¡± I said with a chuckle. ¡°I thought you were...someone else at first.¡±


    She nodded with a concerned face, and then she walked in as a rush of embarassment whipped against my face. September looked at me with a concerned face and then sat down. I could feel my face flush with embarassment, and I quickly looked away.


    September looked at me with a concerned face and then sat down.


    ¡°So, what do you wanna tell me?¡± I asked, clearing my throat.


    ¡°Well, Nikki wants to talk to ya, just to let you know,¡± she said.


    .....


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s fine,¡± I replied. ¡°I¡¯m d that she wants to talk to me.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not like she never wanted to in the first ce,¡± September said with a sly smirk. ¡°Here¡¯s the phone.¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said as I took the phone from her, holding it in my hand.


    I walked over to my bed and sat on it again. September walked out of the door, taking one breathless look at me before she left. I ced the phone in myp, waiting for it to ring.


    ¡°Hey Nikki,¡± I said into the phone after I pressed the button that turned the ringer on. I heard three long breaths before a voice slithered in the phone, ¡°Oh, hey Connor, how are you?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m doing pretty good, yeah,¡± I said back. ¡°How are you doing?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m okay, thanks,¡± she replied.


    ¡°So what did you want to talk about?¡± I asked her. That¡¯s when she sighed as if something was wrong, and it began to make me feel even more worried.


    ¡°Connor, I¡¯m just calling to ask you something,¡± she said.


    ¡°Okay,¡± I replied with a little nervousness in my voice.


    ¡°When I first saw you with my brother Tisiah, you may have not really noticed or maybe you did, but I felt something. My heart began to burn in excitement, and it was such a feeling that I couldn¡¯t exin. But now I¡¯ve realized what it was. I never really felt that feeling before.¡±


    ¡°What was it?¡± I asked, not knowing how to react.


    ¡°It was love,¡± she said. ¡°I don¡¯t know what it was, but I think you felt it too.¡±


    Confusion was now rushing through me. What did she mean? Was she saying that she loved me? No, she can¡¯t be saying that. It¡¯s impossible. There¡¯s no way that we would have feelings for each other.


    ¡°I think you¡¯re speaking to the wrong person, let me call Mchi. I¡¯m pretty sure you¡¯ve seen him plenty of times before,¡± I said, not able to speak.


    ¡°No, no,¡± she said as she shook her head. ¡°I think you¡¯re talking about the wrong thing too..¡±


    That sent shivers down my spine, and I could feel my heart starting to race. What do I do? What do I do? Do I go along with it? Should I say anything? I thought about how she felt about me, but I didn¡¯t want to get my hopes up too much.


    ¡°I-I¡¯m lost for words right now,¡± I said with my mouth hanging open.


    Here¡¯s the problem alright.


    I already like September, and she already likes me, but now Nikki¡¯s in the mix and it¡¯s making everything moreplicated. How will September react if she finds out that there is another girl who has feelings for me? And how would Nikki react if she found out? This whole thing is just making things confusing for me now, and there are a lot of questions that need to be answered.


    Maybe they wouldn¡¯t know that they both liked me at all, or maybe they¡¯d be upset at me for not telling them sooner? Or maybe they would both like me even more than they thought? That could be a problem too.


    ¡°Look, you need to rest from your injury. Trust me, alright. Everything will be fine,¡± I said, trying to keep the panic from entering my voice.


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll trust you,¡± she replied, sounding as though she didn¡¯t quite believe me. ¡°But you need to tell me more about your feelings for me. We¡¯ve talked plenty of times before, so this should be easy for you.¡±


    I hung up, and a feeling of dread came over me. Here¡¯s the thing, I suspected this a while back after the whole Armonk mission. And my prediction was right, so what do I do now?


    A knock on the door jarred me out of my thoughts. I quickly got up from my bed and went to answer the door. As soon as I opened it, I knew what it was from the concerned look on September¡¯s face. ¡°You guys done?¡± she asked.


    I nodded as she looked me up and down. ¡°Yeah,¡± I said. ¡°Sorry about that.¡±


    ¡°Yeah well...¡± she began before she let out a long sigh. ¡°It¡¯s probably best that way.¡±


    ¡°What way?¡±


    ¡°Oh, nothing. Just...don¡¯t worry about it,¡± she said with a shrug of her shoulders. ¡°Everything¡¯s gonna be okay.¡±


    I gave a nod as she walked back out of my door. ¡°Yeah, alright,¡± I said before I closed the door behind her.


    But then, I heard a ringe from my phone. I quickly rushed back over and picked it up from the nightstand where it hadnded after I hung up from Nikki. It was Mr. Drails.


    ¡°Uh, hello,¡± I answered.


    He wanted us in his office now.


    ***


    Mr. Drails looked up as we all walked in the room and gestured for us to sit down in the chairs in front of his desk. He looked at me with a curious expression as September sat down in the chair next to me and leaned against me.


    ¡°Alright!¡± he announced once Mchi took his seat. ¡°Now, me and others have searched for the port whereas it may be in Cuba as the TSA agent said it may be. We didn¡¯t see much, and I continued to question the agent. But then, I found this ce on an ind called St. Thomas.¡±


    I was shocked at this news, but not too surprised. There were many ces that the port could have been built in such close proximity to Cuba since it would be easier to settle there. ¡°Now, I got some people to scout out the area for you guys, being that Rocke wasn¡¯t there yet and here¡¯s a picture.¡±


    The screen rolled down to its position once again, and popped up a screen of a picture of a tropical ind that had water surrounding it. There were several boats on the shore as well as other boats docked in the port itself. ¡°This is St. Thomas, as you all know,¡± he muttered. Then he switched to a picture that showed a bird¡¯s eyes view of the port, where guards and armed men could be seen patrolling the area and keeping people away from the port itself.


    ¡°Now, these are all pictures from a satellite. As you can see there are three armed men at the front of the port and two at the back.¡±


    We all nodded at this, and then Mr. Drails continued. ¡°There are also guards inside the port itself as well as inside the building itself. If you move the camera backwards, you can see two watchtowers as well as an armed man stationed at one of them.¡±


    Mr. Drails paused again for a moment before he began to talk once again. ¡°We¡¯ve also noticed the skid marks on the road leading inside of the port. The path from the gate is pretty well worn out from the many trucks that go into it. But the main issue that we noticed was that there was some sort of white paint that had been sttered across the road in front, not sure what it was until we found this...¡±


    This?


    My heart began to race just thinking of the thought of it.


    Was one of Rocke¡¯s people already here? Did they already take the Cybetron?

 Chapter 71

    71 Surveince, Port, Details


    He zoomed in closer as we saw a figure running away quickly from the gate.


    ¡°Now, it seems like whoever was trying to get in there didn¡¯t seed since they ran away quickly. Perhaps it was one of Rocke¡¯s minions trying to search out the ce.¡±


    I didn¡¯t think that there would be anyone trying to find out about the port at all since it wasn¡¯t that big of a deal yet, but it seemed that it was probably someone else who tried to get in, probably knowing about the Cybertron as well and wanting to know if it was here or not.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be honest here,¡± Mr. Drails said with a sigh. ¡°This is going to be very chaotic. I predict about ten explosions at best, because look at all the explosives stored here.¡±


    He moved over to a different picture, showing a picture with 16 pictures of different storage rooms containing various types of explosive materials. I had to admit that I was a little intimidated by the amount of explosives that was being stored here, not gonna lie.


    I don¡¯t wanna die in a great ball of fire, not at all.


    ¡°So what do we do now?¡± I asked him with a nervous expression on my face.


    ¡°Well,¡± he began as he paused for a moment to think of how he should say it, ¡°We know how the ce looks, and now we need to discuss how were gonna get in.¡±


    ¡°When is that happening?¡± Rin asked.


    .....


    ¡°Now,¡± Mr. Drails said, as all of our eyes widened. ¡°Well you got everything set up didn¡¯t ya,¡± Mchi chuckled.


    ¡°It¡¯s gonna be exined in probably ten steps at the least,¡± Mr. Drails said as he looked over his shoulder and grinned at us all. ¡°Alright, here¡¯s how we¡¯re gonna do it.¡±


    We all sat in our seats as we listened to him exin his n out loud. ¡°First, you guys will make your way out to St. Thomas.¡±


    We nodded in response.


    ¡°Now once you guys reach the ind and are there, you need to stay low and keep an eye on everyone around you. The TSA is everywhere. That leads to the next thing, you need to find out if there are any TSA agents near your location and make sure not to get caught by them. Then find the cargo port, which the name is: Cargo Gate 2, which is located on the north side of the ind. That¡¯s where the Cybertron should be located.¡±


    ¡°Good to know,¡± Matt said.


    ¡°You guys will have disguises that will be designed by our cybeic department so that you¡¯ll be able to blend in with the ind¡¯s people.¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help but smile a little as he called it their cybeic department, knowing that it was made up by him. Never heard the term before? Well, I¡¯m sure you know what that means by now anyway, right? Heheh.


    ¡°Third, once you enter the port, find any other TSA agents inside and try to get rid of them. The reason why I say this is because we need you guys to get through that gate in one piece. Then find the Cybertron, being that¡¯s where Rocke is most likely to be found.¡±


    All of us nodded at this. We all had our roles here and we knew exactly what we needed to do to get the job done. ¡°Thenes the escape, the harder part, in which you all will need to get through those two towers on either end of the cargo gate and make your way out of the gate and make it to the ship.¡±


    I nodded again as he continued.


    Mr. Drails then showed us all another screen with a picture of two watchtowers located near the port. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you just teleport us here?¡± Mari asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s to make it seem you guys escaped on a ship, just so no one sees the whole portal teleporting you guys back here. Here¡¯s the first step to making it to the ship, make it to the ship without getting caught by those watchtowers.¡±


    We all nodded as we heard what he had just said.


    I noticed that Mari was smiling a bit too.


    ¡°Second, make it to the ship without getting caught by anyone. There¡¯s no time for mistakes.¡±


    ¡°Alright, good to know,¡± September said.


    ¡°Third, make it to the ship without getting caught by anyone. There¡¯s no time for mistakes,¡± Mr. Drails said again with a smile.


    We all looked at one another in confusion before September finally asked him about it. ¡°Why are you repeat-¡±


    ¡°Fourth thing, make it to the ship,¡± he interrupted her before he startedughing to himself. ¡°Yeah.¡±


    We all chuckled at that as well, and Mr. Drails then changed the screen back to the one he had previously with the pictures of St. Thomas.


    ¡°Now the fifth rule!¡± he said. ¡°Make-¡±


    ¡°Make it to the ship, we get it!!¡± Mchi hissed.


    Mr. Drails cleared his throat. ¡°Make sure to call me once you made it to the ship with Rocke and the Cybertron, so I can get you guys in here.¡±


    ¡°Oh my Lord,¡± Mchi whined, covering his face in irritation. Mr. Drails chuckled at this and continued speaking.


    ¡°Make it to the ship with Rocke and the Cybertron, so I can get you guys in here alright?¡± he repeated again for emphasis.


    We all nodded in response.


    Mr. Drails then pulled out a small map of St. Thomas that he had pulled from his pocket and began pointing out different areas to us on it before he closed it. ¡°Now, continue on with yourselves, tomorrow is a big day for you guys,¡± he said with a smile on his face as he stood up from his chair and stretched his arms up before he sat back down in his seat and grabbed a pen from his desk before he began to scribble down.


    He froze and looked at us, as if his eyes told us to move out of his office while we still had a chance. We quickly got up from our seats and walked out of his office, with me being thest one out of the room as I heard him close his door behind me as I left.


    ¡°Well this is gonna be hard,¡± Mari said with a sigh as she yawned.


    I nodded in response.


    We all began to make our way down the hallways of the building, until we finally made it back into the conference room where we were previously at, since it was probably best to discuss this. The smell of hand sanitizer whiffed into my face once I opened the door, but I didn¡¯t mind it too much.


    We all began to sit down and gathered around the table where there was a lot of information that Mr. Drails gave us in a quick hurry.


    ¡°Okay, so we know that Rocke wants to get to the port, but I have no idea how they n on getting out of the ind. Also, I don¡¯t know if anyone¡¯s been to this ind before,¡± September said.


    ¡°That is a very interesting fact,¡± Matt said thoughtfully.


    ¡°We need to be prepared, even though there is only one person of interest on St. Thomas, and that¡¯s Rocke himself,¡± Mari said, which Matt added, ¡°Don¡¯t forget that robot Cybertron thing either.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I was almost forgetting that.¡±


    ¡°Alright, so maybe we should focus on finding the getaway that the Rocke¡¯s team may be doing, seeing as we all know that the port isn¡¯trge enough to carry a whole ship back here,¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s better to find something then getting nothing,¡± I said. ¡°Maybe its a jetski or something of the sort.¡±


    ¡°Or a yacht,¡± Mari muttered.


    We allughed a bit at this for a little bit. Although that would be quite exhrating to ride back home on a boat like that, it would definitely cause some friction as well in the process.


    Matt spoke up next. ¡°Maybe there is a boat that is big enough to be there, and it would be a good ce to hide a robot that looks like that.¡±


    We all agreed with this. ¡°So, are you guys ready?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Ready as we¡¯ll ever be!¡± Mchi said, ¡°I¡¯m ready for these types of things, and to see them get executed wlessly, just because you know we will have done our very best work in every aspect of it.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s quite the confidence,¡± Rin said silently, not wanting to offend anyone in the process.


    ¡°I¡¯m ready for it,¡± Matt said. ¡°It¡¯s quite simple on our part, so we should be fine, seeing how we¡¯ve done it in the past.¡±


    ¡°Yeah!¡± September said enthusiastically. ¡°We may actually find Tisiah soon for once!¡±


    Everyone then chuckled at this.


    I nodded my head. ¡°Alright, we¡¯re set to go out tomorrow after our own school times right, around noon, yes? That¡¯s when we normally would leave school anyway.¡±


    ¡°The sooner the better,¡± Mchi said with a serious look on his face.

 Chapter 72

    72 Cargo Rush (Part 1)


    It was the next day, which didn¡¯t really feel different at all to be honest. I walked to school and there was no sort of feeling of fear or anxiety, in fact, I feltpletely normal.


    I walked into the school, seeing Greg waiting there as usual for me. As I walked up, I said, ¡°You know, you don¡¯t have to do that every time you know.¡±


    Greg said calmly as he began to walk towards ss with me. He seemed to notice my expression had changed for some reason.


    He asked, curious about my face. ¡°Did something happen?¡±


    I shook my head and sighed as he stopped walking in front of me and looked at me. ¡°It¡¯s not that big of a deal,¡± I said, but I could tell that it was a big deal from Greg¡¯s expression.


    ¡°You look different somehow,¡± he said. Now, I¡¯m not sure we¡¯re seeing the same thing. I was way more collected than the other days and I was even smiling a little bit more as well, but apparently he didn¡¯t see it like that at all.


    I shrugged and continued forward with him, but as I reached my locker, Greg stopped walking again and grabbed my shoulder with his hand. I looked up at him, and he chuckled. ¡°So I¡¯m expecting my thank you,¡± he said.


    ¡°For what?¡± I asked.


    Greg continued to look at me, as the realization finally came.


    .....


    ¡°You were that big dude from the construction site?¡± I asked confusedly.


    Greg nodded and began to chuckle even harder now.


    I smiled in embarrassment at him and shook my head lightly as he finally let go of me and started walking again towards our ss room. ¡°So was all that whole FMA thing a lie?¡± I asked. He shook his head, ¡°Of course not, but I never expected it to work this well.¡±


    I raised an eyebrow in response at him before he grabbed my shoulder and said, ¡°Don¡¯t expect your thank you.¡±


    Iughed and walked with him towards ss before we sat down together at our usual desks before he spoke again. ¡°I also heard your ns to get to Cargo Ship 2, just in case you know.¡±


    I looked over at him before I shook my head and grinned at him. He seemed happy to see me grinning again like that. ¡°Honestly, you¡¯re something else man.¡±


    He nodded as he looked down at his notebook and then nced up at me.


    I nodded in response and then chuckled a little bit at that before he spoke again.


    ¡°I know this is weird for me to say, but I¡¯m really proud of you,¡± he said with a serious expression on his face.


    I raised an eyebrow in response at him again.


    He looked down at his notebook again before he looked back up at me. ¡°Nothing...nothing.¡±


    ***


    School passed, and now it was time for the real deal to start. Before I could even breathe outside I was sucked into the front of the YMPA building, which was quite weird. Usually I would bending inside of Mr. Drails¡¯s office with everybody else, but not this time.


    Soon enough more portals showed up with Mari and the rest came out of them one by one with different looks on their faces as well. I was surprised that we weren¡¯t teleported into Mr. Drails¡¯s office with him but instead we were led outside into the back parking lot of the school before we could get inside.


    We arrived in our disguises, somehow.


    Mr. Drails looked around, for some reason, then he turned back to us. ¡°Alright, everyone remembers the rules and steps. Repeat each one if you do.¡±


    ¡°Make it to the ship!¡± we all shouted.


    Mr. Drails chuckled, ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m talking about. All right, here we go.¡±


    He opened up the portal to where it led somewhere that didn¡¯t look anywhere close to the cargo port. ¡°Good luck on your mission,¡± he said. We walked through the portal, as we arrived on a field, that seemed to be staring over the horizon.


    The sun was shining beautifully, with no clouds in sight at all and it was so bright out there that you could barely see anything in front of us but you could hear birds chirping loudly as well.


    ¡°Wow, this is beautiful,¡± Mari muttered in awe as she began to walk around, taking in the beauty of this world that she had never been to before.


    ¡°Yeah, but where is the cargo port?¡± Mchi wondered, before he stopped. I don¡¯t know why he stopped, but I was too afraid to ask him for some reason so I waited for someone else to answer for him.


    Rin began to walk around as well, taking in the beauty of the world around us as well, but he seemed nervous. ¡°Hey guys!¡± Mchi finally shouted. ¡°I think I see it over there!¡±


    He pointed out a little bit further from where we had been walking for quite some time.


    It seemed probably five miles away from where we were at now. The closer we got, the more you could hear a ship¡¯s engines as well as people talking, which made me feel like we were being watched. Probably if I¡¯m being honest with myself, but I didn¡¯t really mind it too much since I was able to rx more than usual like this.


    This ce was glorious and it was even better than what Mr. Drails¡¯s office had been like as well, being that this ce was so beautiful it took your breath away.


    We soon got closer to Cargo Port 2, but now you could see the guards standing there menacingly, pointing their guns at us as well as us pointing ours back at them. We all walked into the cargo port area, where they had two different entrances: one for small vehicles and one forrge ones.


    ¡°I really hope they ept these disguises,¡± Rin said quietly as he looked up at the guards that were now ring at us angrily as we continued to walk towards them.


    ¡°Card?¡± one of them asked. I immediately gulped, but before I could say anything he continued. ¡°Don¡¯t bother trying to lie to me, kid.¡±


    ¡°Kid?¡± September asked with a chuckle, which seemed to annoy the guards even more than before as they continued to re at us.


    I swallowed again before I replied, ¡°I¡¯m sorry sirs, but I don¡¯t know anything about kids being here.¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± The guard asked with a serious look on his face. ¡°And who are you supposed to be then?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ve been working here since the beginning, don¡¯t even,¡± Mari responded, which seemed to be very surprising to the guards.


    ¡°But how could you have gotten a job here already if it just opened a month ago,¡± the guard asked.


    Mari sighed, ¡°As I said, since the beginning.¡±


    The guards looked at us suspiciously before they turned back around and began to walk back towards the entrance they had been standing by. That was close, that was very close, but it could have gone either way it seemed. We still didn¡¯t know what was going to happen yet though, since the guards didn¡¯t even look happy with us as we walked towards the other side.


    ¡°Alright,¡± September said as we quickly huddled. ¡°Matt and Mari, you¡¯re a team, Rin and Mchi are a team, and me and Connor are a team.¡±


    Uneasiness fell upon me and the others in the process as I began to get an uneasy feeling about this. Why did we have to be split up into groups?


    Was us being a team altogether a problem? Everyone is safe together so why can¡¯t we do this? Was this really necessary?


    I was so confused at this point that I didn¡¯t know what to do anymore.


    ¡°Find any TSA agents and take them down,¡± September said. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    We all dispersed into our teams, as me and September began to walk towards the right. ¡°Okay, just tell me if you see anything wrong,¡± September said, just like always.


    I nodded my head as he kept walking beside me.


    Soon enough, we had gotten closer to arge room filled with lots of different boxes. The walls were red, like they were made out of bricks and the floor was all cemented down. There was no way for anyone to be sneaking into here without us noticing.


    ¡°What is this ce?¡± September muttered, walking closer towards it. I followed closely behind her as she stood at the entrance of the room as well as looking inside of it. She opened the door wide, and soon enough, we saw something we weren¡¯t nning to see.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s a lot of boxes,¡± September said in disappointment, but there was something else besides all of those boxes that made her look even more upset and shocked than she already had been at the fact that she had just found this room filled with boxes.

 Chapter 73

    73 Cargo Rush (Part 2)


    ¡°Bricks!¡± she shouted. ¡°Nothing!¡±


    ¡°Perhaps, we search inside of the boxes and find something. It may feature some info on finding the Cybertron,¡± I said, trying to calm down the nervousness that had started to rise within me after what we had just seen.


    But then, I heard footsteps speeding towards the room.


    My heart began racing with fear as I quickly turned around to see what was going on. I looked back at September with a frown on my face as she turned back around to face me with worry.


    ¡°Hide!¡± she shouted, running for the doorway, which was a little bit too narrow for both of us to fit through at the same time, especially if there was someoneing up towards us from the other end.


    We ducked behind these boxes that seemed erged, but that was definitely not the case because we couldn¡¯t even fit inside of them anyway. We crouched down, but we were still visible.


    Suddenly, the door opened and my heart froze.


    Footsteps moved, and I slowly rose my head up so I could see what was going on. A figure came into view in front of me.


    He was wearing a ck jacket with a blue shirt underneath it. He had long ck hair, which seemed to be tied into a ponytail. His skin was a very tan shade of white. He had ck eyes as well, but they were almostpletely ck except for a thin ring of yellow that surrounded the outside edge of each eye. His nose seemed like it was a little bit t as well as his cheeks seemed to be a little bit chubby but his lips were thin and almost straight, except for a tiny smirk that seemed to be on his face. He wore a pair of ck pants, which were ripped on the sides from the bottom of each leg up towards his knees.


    .....


    ¡°Who in the world is this...¡± September said.


    ¡°Definitely not a person who works here,¡± I whispered. Suddenly, the sound of three more men echoed through the room.


    Now, there were two more mening in.


    Footsteps continued to shift through the room, but one of them stepped on one of our boxes which made it shake as well as make quite a loud noise that startled us as well as made me fall over onto September¡¯s foot. She let out a yelp of pain as well as anger, which only made me fall off of her foot onto the floor.


    The men had now stopped at the end of the room.


    ¡°Oww!¡± September hissed.


    I nodded in response, which made her let out a sigh of relief and she bent over to help me up.


    ¡°Who¡¯s there?!¡± one of them shouted at us. They were now standing right in front of us with their backs turned to us, as well as facing away from the doorway where September and I were hidden.


    I didn¡¯t let a single voice slip from my mouth.


    ¡°Hello!¡± one of them shouted, which made all three of them turn around so they could look at us, but I could tell they were nervous, which made me wonder why they were there in the first ce.


    ¡°Is it possible there are YMPA agents in here?¡± one of them asked, as the other answered him.


    ¡°That¡¯s impossible!¡± another one answered him back. ¡°We would¡¯ve been notified immediately!¡±


    I wondered if that was really true.


    ¡°Let¡¯s check out this room,¡± the other guy ordered. ¡°Get to it.¡± Immediately they began to disperse into different directions so they could look for anything suspicious in the room.


    ¡°Hey,¡± one of them said as he noticed something on one of the boxes that had fallen over as well as stood up again. ¡°Maybe they aren¡¯t here.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± the other guy said, as the other one followed. Then the guy that found the box looked back, ¡°Maybe they¡¯ve been here.¡±


    I felt like justughing out loud right then and there as I thought about the three men that had been standing there so close to us but hadn¡¯t even noticed us hiding in these boxes that had been right in front of their faces this whole entire time!


    Luck I tell you, luck.


    ¡°Let¡¯s move,¡± September said as she stood up from me. We both stood back up and began to walk out of the room as we walked away from the other guys, who were now talking among themselves about where we could¡¯ve possibly went wrong.


    We were getting closer to the door, second by second, step by step, as we finally got close enough to the exit of the room that we began to hear them talking again.


    We were almost out of earshot before they realized we weren¡¯t there anymore, which made me feel relieved.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s just wait until theye out so we can charge at them,¡± I suggested, which made both of usugh out loud.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s probably the best idea right now,¡± Septemberughed.


    Our eyes began to meet, and suddenly we were bothughing harder than ever before.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡±


    We turned around to see someone in a ck suit with a ck utility belt, with about three other guys behind him. ¡°Oh boy,¡± September said, which made us stopughing. ¡°They found us.¡±


    We were both sweating and panting hard when suddenly the men came out of the room. ¡°Get them!¡± the suit agent ordered, as they all charged at us like calvary.


    Quickly, September got out her wand and sped towards them, but they quickly stopped when they saw iting towards them.


    The wand had now started to glow orange and I watched as it started to spin in September¡¯s hands as she swung it downwards towards them. It made a very loud noise when it hit one of the agents in their head and sent him flying through the air andnded onto his back with a thud on the floor before he even got a chance to stand up again.


    Then it turned its head towards another agent who was holding a gun that was pointed towards us, but suddenly it turned the gun upwards and fired at him, making him fly upwards as well into the wall behind him where he fell down on top of arge pile of boxes and fell back down to the ground.


    Suddenly, someone rushed towards me as fear and adrenaline flowed through my veins. But before he could get to me, I had already reached out towards him with my right arm and punched him right in his nose as he fell onto the floor, making him yelp out in pain. Then I got up and ran over to September who was still swinging her wand around trying to take out all of the agents in front of her so they wouldn¡¯t be able toe after her while she was trying to get out of here as soon as possible.


    Suddenly, someone jumped on her from behind her while she was still swinging her wand around in a full circle, which made her trip over and fall on her stomach.


    ¡°September!¡± I shouted, leaping on the man who was on her and grabbing his arms tightly with my left arm as my right hand shot out towards his face. I squeezed his face tightly as I kept it away from hers. He grunted out in pain while I pulled him towards me, making him fall forward onto me and onto the floor. Hended on top of me and I felt him squeeze down onto me tightly, making it harder to breath under his weight as I tried to push him off of me as I grabbed his arm and pinned it against the floor as I pushed my face down into his neck to choke him out and make him let go of his arms around my throat, but he just continued to squeeze down onto me like a vice.


    Suddenly, there was a loud explosion behind me and my whole body froze.


    Fire and heat seeped through the room, and I heard screaming all around me from people in the room who were now in a state of panic and panic all around me as I couldn¡¯t breathe from the pressure that he had put on me with his arms and shoulders pressed against my chest. My body felt numb, like I had just gone numb, and I couldn¡¯t move my body at all. It felt like I was in a dream and I couldn¡¯t wake up or move my body at all. I struggled with all my might to break free from his grasp but I just couldn¡¯t do anything at all, like it was too painful for me to try anything at all because it hurt too badly.


    Then suddenly, everything became quiet, and I could hear someone shouting loudly and running towards me.

 Chapter 74

    74 Cargo Rush (Part 3)


    Looking up weakly, I saw it was September.


    ¡°Come on, let¡¯s move!¡± she shouted, picking me up onto my feet. The room behind the door exploded, and fire was raging through every direction around us as we quickly ran towards the door. September pulled me towards her as we ran past the agents that were lying on the floor and had passed out from their own struggles.


    My chest felt heavy, like something was stuck in there, and it seemed like my breathing was being strangled by something that was wrapped around my throat and cutting off my air supply, but I just couldn¡¯t seem to drop to the floor dead.


    I felt dead, but my body was still pushing forward.


    We were close to getting to the door as we heard several agents run through it towards us from behind, but suddenly I heard another loud explosion and suddenly there were no more agents standing in our way or chasing us anymore.


    A big cloud of fire bursted through the building, and September dragged me through it. As we finally exited through the door, we ran down the stairs with smoke billowing all around us and fire spreading all over the ce from the burning building.


    ¡°Come on,e on,e on!¡± she worried frantically, as the fire spread all around her, but I just felt like I was frozen in ce and unable to move my body at all.


    We finally escaped onto the first floor, where shouts and screams from everyone bellowed through the floor, but we still ran for the door that led outside, as we didn¡¯t have time to stop anywhere else.


    After bursting out the door, I looked back, seeing the buildingpletely engulfed in mes and on fire from the top floors down to the bottom as several people screamed in agony from their burns that had been caused by the fire as it spread all around them.


    .....


    ¡°We need to find Matt, Mari, Mchi...Rin!¡± I shouted, coughing from the smoke as well as trying to gasp in some fresh air through my mouth.


    ¡°We will, we will,¡± September promised, I think. She was coughing just as much as I was from all of the smoke we had been breathing in from inside that building, but her eyes seemed more determined than ever before.


    But then I looked behind and saw something that kept me frozen in fear.


    TSA agents dragging Matt, Mari and Rin on their shoulders.


    ¡°Rin!¡± I shouted, and we darted towards them.


    They were about to get on one of those deck boats, whatever they were called.


    ¡°Hurry!¡± September urged, but I was already running as fast as I could.


    I leaped onto the boat just as it started to move and quickly got up, only to be tackled by one of the agents.


    I turned around and saw that Mari and Rin were both being dragged towards the other side of the boat by another agent, whom September was chasing after. The deck boat began to speed away, causing me to roll towards the edge.


    The same thing happened to the agent, who was now trying to get a grip on the slippery edge of the boat while still trying to hold onto Mari and Rin.


    I quickly got up and ran towards him, but he just swatted me away like I was nothing.


    I hit my head against the side of the boat and saw stars for a few seconds, but I quickly shook my head and recovered. He wasn¡¯t gonna take me down that quickly.


    I leaped up onto my feet and swung hard, hitting him in the face and causing him to let go of Mari and Rin. September quickly grabbed them and pulled them away from the agent, who was now staggering backward, holding his bloody nose.


    ¡°You got Matt?¡± I asked.


    She nodded, but then someone kicked her in the stomach and she stumbled back, losing her grip on Mari and Rin. The agent grabbed them and started to drag them away as September tried to get up.


    I quickly ran towards them, but another agent hit me in the head from behind and I fell to the ground, barely conscious.


    Then he rose his wand and thrust it towards me on the ground. I needed to do something, and quick! I kicked him in the stomach, pushing him back and causing him to drop his wand.


    I quickly got up and grabbed it, but before I could even think about what to do next, he had already tackled me to the ground. We struggled for a bit, but then he finally managed to subdue me and take back his wand.


    He got up and pointed it at me, but I quickly swept in with an elbow to the stomach and knocked the wind out of him. I then got up and ran towards Mari and Rin, but the agent grabbed me by the leg and tripped me.


    I tried to get up, but he just kept kicking me in the ribs, preventing me from moving.


    ¡°Stop!¡± September shouted, but he didn¡¯t listen at all. Wasn¡¯t like he was going to anyways. The boat was now in the empty ocean, as the boat began to shake and water started to fill up the deck.


    The agent just kept kicking me, even as I tried to curl up into a ball to protect myself. But then I heard a ssh and the agent stopped kicking me.


    I looked up and saw September holding the agent¡¯s head under the water, and after a few seconds, he stopped struggling and went limp. All the other agents except the driver, who was shaking vibrantly, were all unconscious on the ground.


    September got up and walked towards me, holding out a hand to help me up.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± she asked, but all I could do was nod in response.


    I was in too much pain to speak, but I managed to get up anyways. ¡°Mari, Rin, Matt, ya¡¯ll okay?¡± September asked, but Matt only rubbed his head while Mari and Rin nodded.


    But then all of a sudden, we saw other deck boats speeding toward us, and they looked like more TSA agents. But the thing was, Rocke was inside the boat directly behind us. And he had the Cybertron with him.


    ¡°September! What do we do now?¡± I shouted, but she didn¡¯t say anything.


    Then I looked at Matt, Mari, and Rin. ¡°Where¡¯s Mchi?¡± I wondered. Another boat came into view, and I noticed it at the same time. We turned to the right in surprise as we beheld another deck boat, this one with Mchi aboard.


    Surprise and revtion were frozen on our faces, as he looked back at the hoard of boats chasing us. ¡°What the,¡± he wondered.


    He then looked at us and saw the state we were in. ¡°What happened?¡± he asked, but I just shook my head. Now was not the best time to start exining things.


    ¡°We need to get out of here,¡± Mari said, and I nodded in agreement.


    Mchi then looked at Rocke, who was looking back at him. ¡°Take down both of them!¡± he shouted, and the bolts started flying through the air again.


    ¡°Get down!¡± Mchi shouted, and we all quickly got down on the deck as the bolts shattered the ss around us once more. September began shooting bolts at them, but they were just bouncing off the other boats.


    ¡°It¡¯s no use!¡± she shouted, as the bolts continued to fly past us.


    ¡°We have to do something!¡± I shouted. Matt began to shoot ice spikes at them, but they were quickly melting in the water.


    ¡°It¡¯s not working!¡± he shouted.


    I then looked at Mari and Rin. They were doing the best they could, it was only a matter of time before we were captured. I needed to use my Perk.


    I charged up my arms, feeling the energy surge through me. Then I released it all at once, in the form of two massive sts of water. They rushed towards the boats, as Rocke dodged it and some did. But most of them were caught by the wave and explosions erupted, flipping the boats over.


    The agents all shouted in surprise and pain, as they were all thrown into the water. The driver of our boat began to shake, and he jumped into the water. September looked back, and she quickly sped for the wheel.


    ¡°Keep defending!¡± she ordered.


    We all got back up and continued to shoot at the agents, who were all trying to get back on their feet. They were obviously dazed and in pain, but they weren¡¯t giving up.


    Then I saw Rocke, who was still speeding towards us with the Cybertron. ¡°Take them down!¡± he shouted. Then he turned his agents behind him, ¡°We¡¯re gonna do a little boarding.¡±


    Preview:


    We continued to speed towards them, bolts speeding through the sky. September was doing her best to dodge them, but they were quickly catching up.


    ¡°What do we do?¡± I shouted as Mari began to look frantically. Then Mchi steered towards us and began to shoot red bolts at them. Except these seemed different, much different. Suddenly, when one of themnded on a boat, the boat erupted in an explosion, sending pieces of metal and wood everywhere.


    ¡°Whoa,¡± I muttered, as I saw the other boats following suit. ¡°That¡¯s different, what is that?¡± I asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s a trick I use,¡± Mchi replied, as he continued to shoot at the boats. ¡°I can charge up my bolts and make them explode on impact.¡±


    ¡°Nice,¡± I muttered, as we continued to speed away. But Rocke was still behind us, and he was furious. All of a sudden, he jumped onto our boat as the other agents followed. ¡°Uh, oh,¡± I muttered.


    Mchi quickly leaped from his boat and got onto ours, leaving only two boats in the sea. ¡°So, I see you¡¯reing for the Cybertron?¡± he chuckled. ¡°You fools. You couldn¡¯t get the Armonk, now what makes you think you can obtain this?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t even try,¡± Mchi hissed, as he walked towards him. ¡°You have no idea what you¡¯re dealing with.¡±


    ¡°I think I do,¡± Rocke smirked, as he gestured to his agents. ¡°Now, let¡¯s end this little game.¡±


    The agents all charged at us, but we were ready. Mari was quickly shooting at them with little spits of water. Not sure how those are gonna do much, I thought, as I saw one of them get hit in the face. He yelped and clutched his face, as he dropped to the ground.


    Matt was shooting ice spikes at them, which were quickly melting. But he was still hitting some of them, and they were slipping and falling all over the ce. September was shooting bolts that were trailing towards the agents. But then they arrived atbat range.


    One of them swung their wand at me, but I quickly knocked it out of the way with my arm. Then I kicked him in the stomach, and he flew backward, hitting one of hisrades. After that, another one tried to shoot me with a bolt, but I ducked and punched her in the face. She was knocked flying backward and struck her head on the boat¡¯s edge.


    ¡°Someone, go for the Cybertron!¡± I shouted, as I fought off another agent. But no one moved, they were all too busy fighting. Then I noticed Mchi was standing in the middle of the boat, not moving. He seemed to be in a trance, and his eyes were glowing red.

 Chapter 75

    75 Cargo Rush (Part 4)


    We continued to speed towards them, bolts speeding through the sky. September was doing her best to dodge them, but they were quickly catching up.


    ¡°What do we do?¡± I shouted as Mari began to look frantically. Then Mchi steered towards us and began to shoot red bolts at them. Except these seemed different, much different. Suddenly, when one of themnded on a boat, the boat erupted in an explosion, sending pieces of metal and wood everywhere.


    ¡°Whoa,¡± I muttered, as I saw the other boats following suit. ¡°That¡¯s different, what is that?¡± I asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s a trick I use,¡± Mchi replied, as he continued to shoot at the boats. ¡°I can charge up my bolts and make them explode on impact.¡±


    ¡°Nice,¡± I muttered, as we continued to speed away. But Rocke was still behind us, and he was furious. All of a sudden, he jumped onto our boat as the other agents followed. ¡°Uh, oh,¡± I muttered.


    Mchi quickly leaped from his boat and got onto ours, leaving only two boats in the sea. ¡°So, I see you¡¯reing for the Cybertron?¡± he chuckled. ¡°You fools. You couldn¡¯t get the Armonk, now what makes you think you can obtain this?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t even try,¡± Mchi hissed, as he walked towards him. ¡°You have no idea what you¡¯re dealing with.¡±


    ¡°I think I do,¡± Rocke smirked, as he gestured to his agents. ¡°Now, let¡¯s end this little game.¡±


    The agents all charged at us, but we were ready. Mari was quickly shooting at them with little spits of water. Not sure how those are gonna do much, I thought, as I saw one of them get hit in the face. He yelped and clutched his face, as he dropped to the ground.


    .....


    Matt was shooting ice spikes at them, which were quickly melting. But he was still hitting some of them, and they were slipping and falling all over the ce. September was shooting bolts that were trailing towards the agents. But then they arrived atbat range.


    One of them swung their wand at me, but I quickly knocked it out of the way with my arm. Then I kicked him in the stomach, and he flew backward, hitting one of hisrades. After that, another one tried to shoot me with a bolt, but I ducked and punched her in the face. She was knocked flying backward and struck her head on the boat¡¯s edge.


    ¡°Someone, go for the Cybertron!¡± I shouted, as I fought off another agent. But no one moved, they were all too busy fighting. Then I noticed Mchi was standing in the middle of the boat, not moving. He seemed to be in a trance, and his eyes were glowing red.


    Rocke chuckled, ¡°I see you¡¯ve finally realized what¡¯s going on here. I¡¯ve possessed power from my adapting abilities to control other people. Have fun going against your worst enemy.¡±


    Suddenly Mchi sped towards me at full speed, and I had to use all my strength to stop him. We were locked in a battle of wills, as we tried to push each other back.


    ¡°You¡¯re not gonna win,¡± he growled, as he pushed me back.


    ¡°Yes, I am,¡± I muttered, as I put all my strength into it. Finally, I used my Perk and pushed him back. He hit the wall of the boat and copsed, as he reverted to normal.


    ¡°What happened?¡± he muttered, as he got up.


    ¡°I used my Perk,¡± I replied. ¡°Sorry.¡±


    He sighed and chuckled. ¡°We need to go for that Cybertron, and then take down Rocke,¡± he said. I nodded then looked at him, and he nodded. Me and Mchi sped towards the boat behind us that contained the structure, as the others continued to fight.


    Rocke saw using and tried to stop us, but we were too fast. We quickly boarded the boat and went for the Cybertron. But as we got close, Rocke appeared in front of us, blocking our way.


    ¡°You¡¯re not going to get this,¡± he hissed, swinging his wand and shooting a bolt at us. But we quickly dodged it and kept going.


    He tried to stop us again, but we were too quick. We finally reached the Cybertron and started to detach it from the boat.


    ¡°No!¡± Rocke shouted, as he ran towards us. But we were already done, and the Cybertron was now in our hands. But I think I must¡¯ve pressed something, because it¡¯s eyes began to glow, and it began to blink.


    Rocke froze in wonder and confusion, as the Cybertron slowly turned to look at me. ¡°Master...¡± he muttered. ¡°My name is-¡±


    I quickly turned it off, as Rocke¡¯s face began to mold into anger. ¡°Young boy, you have no idea what you¡¯ve just done,¡± he growled. ¡°You will pay for this.¡±


    He raised his wand and was about to shoot a bolt at me, but Mchi jumped in front of me and took the hit. He was momentarily frozen in ce, as Rocke smirked. ¡°I¡¯ll deal with you without him.¡±


    ¡°Mchi!¡± I shouted, but Rocke was speeding towards me, as I was trying to think of what to do.


    Then, I had an idea. I quickly put the Cybertron down and turned it on again. ¡°Cybertron, protect me,¡± I said.


    Its eyes began to glow, as it stood in front of me, shielding me from Rocke. He chuckled. ¡°I can deal with you easily,¡± and he shot a bolt right at the button, turning it off.


    ¡°There¡¯s a reason why we¡¯re gonna modify you,¡± he muttered before turning to me. ¡°Now as I was trying to do.¡±


    He quickly swung at me, but I ducked and punched him in the stomach. He doubled over in pain, as I turned the Cybertron back on. It immediately went on, but Rocke kicked the button and turned it off.


    Then he got up and dusted himself. ¡°You¡¯re already dependent on this weapon, it¡¯s only a matter of time before I break you,¡± he said. ¡°And then I¡¯ll have full control over the US.¡±


    He quickly swung his wand at mine, making a shing sound that made my ears ring. Then he kicked me in the stomach and I fell back, as he sent a bolt of energy at the Cybertron, making it explode.


    I was momentarily blinded by the light, as I felt a sharp pain in my chest. When the light faded, I saw him pick up a little chip, which must¡¯ve been Cybertron¡¯s power source.


    ¡°Time to finish this,¡± he muttered, as he walked toward me. ¡°Bye-bye now.¡±


    Heid his wand at my neck, with a smirk on his face that made my blood boil. I tried to move, but I couldn¡¯t. I was paralyzed by his wand.


    ¡°Anyst words?¡± he asked. Then all of a sudden, someone held him by a chokehold behind him. ¡°Mchi!¡± I shouted in relief, as he dropped his wand.


    ¡°You¡¯re not going to kill him,¡± Mchi said, as he tightened his grip on Rocke¡¯s neck. But then Rocke threw Mchi over his body, and he hit the ground with a thud.


    He picked up his wand and was about to shoot a bolt at Mchi, but I quickly got up and kicked him causing him to drop his wand. Then I punched him in the face, as he staggered back.


    But he quickly recovered and punched me in the stomach, pushing me back.


    Then he charged at Mchi, but Mchi quickly got up and punched him in the face. Rocke staggered back, as Mchi picked up his wand.


    ¡°Leave Connor alone!¡± Mchi shouted as he pointed the wand at Rocke.


    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t dare,¡± Rocke said, as he took a step back.


    ¡°Trust me, I would,¡± Mchi smirked. ¡°That¡¯s the type of guy I am.¡±


    ¡°Well then, I¡¯ll just have to kill you,¡± Rocke said, as he raised his wand.


    ¡°No!¡± I shouted as I leaped towards Rocke, but he ran forward at full speed.


    I already lost Tisiah.


    I¡¯m not gonna lose Mchi now.


    There¡¯s no way I¡¯m gonna let him die.


    Rocke was about to shoot a bolt of energy at Mchi, but I quickly got in front of him and took the hit.


    As I felt the energy coursing through my body, I knew this was the end.


    But then, something happened.


    The energy that was supposed to kill me, went into the Cybertron chip instead.


    And then the chip began to glow, as the Cybertron pieces began to bubble. Rocke turned around in confusion, as the bodies began to find one another and reassemble.


    In a matter of seconds, the Cybertron was back to normal.


    Then it turned to Rocke and its eyes glowed saying, ¡°Master?¡±


    Oh, no.


    Preview:


    ¡°Yes, I am your master,¡± Rocke said with a viinous smile of opportunity. ¡°Now, take these two.¡±


    The Cybertron obeyed and turned to us. ¡°Now, say your prayers,¡± Rocke said with an evil chuckle. Fear paralyzed me, as the Cybertron grabbed us with its metal hands.


    Mchi tried to fight back, but it was no use. The Cybertron was too strong.


    Then Rocke walked up to us and ced his hand on the Cybertron¡¯s head. ¡°Now, let¡¯s see what this thing can really do,¡± he said.


    Suddenly, the Cybertron brought back his fist and then propelled it forward with all its might.


    I could feel the deck boat shaking as the fist made contact.


    The impact sent us flying through the air and we hit the water with a loud ssh. Then I cked out.

 Chapter 76

    76 A Trade


    ¡°Yes, I am your master,¡± Rocke said with a viinous smile of opportunity. ¡°Now, take these two.¡±


    The Cybertron obeyed and turned to us. ¡°Now, say your prayers,¡± Rocke said with an evil chuckle. Fear paralyzed me, as the Cybertron grabbed us with its metal hands.


    Mchi tried to fight back, but it was no use. The Cybertron was too strong.


    Then Rocke walked up to us and ced his hand on the Cybertron¡¯s head. ¡°Now, let¡¯s see what this thing can really do,¡± he said.


    Suddenly, the Cybertron brought back his fist and then propelled it forward with all its might.


    I could feel the deck boat shaking as the fist made contact.


    The impact sent us flying through the air and we hit the water with a loud ssh. Then I cked out.


    ***


    My eyes began to tremble as I began to gain consciousness. I tried to lift my arm, but it felt like lead. I slowly opened my eyes to see a white room with no windows and a single table and chair. Where was I?


    .....


    I tried to get up but my arms and legs were tied to the chair I was in. Suddenly the door opened and a man walked in.


    Rocke.


    ¡°Hello, young boy,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°I see you¡¯re finally awake.¡±


    I tried to say something but the gag in my mouth stopped me.


    Rocke began to sneer, as he took a seat, making eye contact with me. ¡°Now, now, no need for words. You and your friends have been quite a nuisance.¡±


    I tried to struggle free, but he shook his head. ¡°There¡¯s no point, that is something I called Valence rope, a rope made with the strongest metal in the world. You¡¯re not going anywhere.¡±


    He then stood up and began to pace around the room. ¡°Now I¡¯m well aware that you have your questions and all. And I¡¯ll try to answer them, but in return, you give me some answers.¡±


    ¡°Where are my friends?¡±


    ¡°Whoa slow down, we haven¡¯t even started yet and you¡¯re already trying to advance the conversation. How about we start with an easy question, what¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°You should already know.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Connor. I know, I¡¯m being silly with you. But let¡¯s humor each other.¡±


    I sighed and shook my head.


    ¡°What are you trying to achieve with this weapon?¡±


    ¡°What weapon?¡±


    ¡°The Cybertron,¡± he said, his face molding into a serious expression.


    I shook my head. ¡°I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about.¡±


    ¡°You and your team have been snooping around on certain ces of the robot¡¯s whereabouts. So don¡¯t y dumb with me, Connor. Now, I¡¯ll ask you again, what are you trying to achieve with this weapon?¡±


    I remained silent.


    Rocke let out a sigh. ¡°You know, we have had quite the disagreements. Understandable, but in some way, we can help both of us.¡±


    ¡°Where are my friends?¡± I hissed at him, trying to break free from my bonds.


    ¡°They¡¯re safe, for now. But I need your help, Connor. Help me build this trust, so I can help you find your friends.¡±


    I shook my head. There was no way I could trust him.


    But then he said something, ¡°I know where Tisiah is.¡±


    I froze in shock. He couldn¡¯t be serious.


    ¡°Help me, Connor. And I¡¯ll help you.¡±


    ¡°How can I trust you?¡± I muttered.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have a choice,¡± he said, his voiceced with venom.


    I had to trust him. I had to, there was no other way. ¡°What do you want with the Cybertron,¡± he asked.


    ¡°You were gonna steal another weapon, there was no way we could let that happen. You already stole the Armonk, now you want another toy,¡± I said. He nodded thoughtfully as if he was taking in my words.


    ¡°And what do you n to do with this Cybertron?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll stop you.¡±


    ¡°Clearly that hasn¡¯t worked so far,¡± he said with a smirk. ¡°But I admire your tenacity. You and your team are quite the pests. Second question, who are these new agents you¡¯re working with? What happened to that one Nikki girl?¡±


    I shook my head, I wasn¡¯t going to answer his questions. He let out a sigh and walked over to me. ¡°You¡¯ve already started, no need to quit now,¡± he said in a soft voice. I chuckled, ¡°Betterte than never.¡±


    His smirk began to fade away into a frown. He then pulled out a knife and ced it against my throat. ¡°I¡¯m not ying games, Connor.¡±


    Fear froze me in my tracks. I couldn¡¯t move, I could barely breathe. He then pressed the knife harder against my throat. ¡°Don¡¯t try me,¡± he warned.


    I gulped and nodded. I had to answer his questions, there was no other way. He stepped back and walked back to his seat. ¡°Sorry for theck ofmunication, let¡¯s continue to the next question. Where¡¯s your brother?¡±


    ¡°My who?¡±


    ¡°Brother, Greg Jimmons. I know he¡¯s been helping you. So, where is he?¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know your friend you go to school with?¡± Rockeughed. ¡°You¡¯re a bad liar, Connor.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not lying,¡± I said through gritted teeth.


    Rocke sighed. ¡°Here¡¯s one thing you need to learn about liars. When you use them of something they did, and they deny it, they seemed to be very heated. If you used someone of something they didn¡¯t do, and they never did it, they tend to be calm.¡±


    Then he leaned toward the table.


    ¡°You seem heated and vulnerable right now, Connor. So, I¡¯ll ask you again. Where¡¯s your brother?¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    He sighed. ¡°Well, that¡¯s my end of questions. Now yours.¡±


    I nodded. ¡°Where¡¯s Tisiah?¡±


    He chuckled, ¡°That my friend, I¡¯m not going to answer.¡±


    ¡°But you promised.¡±


    ¡°I lied,¡± he said simply. ¡°But I¡¯ll give you a hint.¡±


    He then got up from his chair and walked toward me again. ¡°If you ever want to see your friends again, you need to find the Cybertron. Which I¡¯m sure you can¡¯t do, being the state that you¡¯re in.¡±


    He then gave me a final smirk before he walked out of the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts.


    I felt a rush of wanting revenge. He had taken my friends, he had lied to me, and he was going to steal another weapon.


    I needed to find the Cybertron, but how would I do it by myself? Maybe it¡¯s in this facility, whatever it was. But what location is this ce in?


    Then I began to think about it, the way the room felt wavy. The way the room moved was as if it was swaying in the wind. That could only mean one thing, I was on a boat.


    Arge one perhaps, but a boat nheless. This meant that this ce was in the middle of the ocean, which


    I looked around, trying to see any sort of sign of an escape. But there was none, the room waspletely sealed off.


    I then heard footstepsing towards the door. I quickly sat down, thinking it may be Rocke. As the door opened, I saw a regr TSA agent, who was probablying in to check on me. He was quite stubby, and his beady eyes scanned the room until they saw me.


    ¡°Hey, you okay in here?¡± he asked.


    I didn¡¯t say a word. He grunted and walked over to me. He then felt my pulse and looked into my eyes. ¡°You don¡¯t seem too hurt,¡± he said. ¡°You hit the water hard, but you¡¯re lucky you didn¡¯t hit your head on anything.¡±


    I still said nothing.


    He then sighed and walked back towards the door, but then I saw something. His utility belt. If I could click the button and take his wand, I could knock him out and cut myself from these ropes. But they were very strong apparently.


    Maybe I could break the chair.


    The agent then walked back over to me and said, ¡°I¡¯ll be back in a few minutes, just stay here and rest.¡± I nodded, and as he turned around, I pushed my leg out and tripped him. He yelped as he fell to the ground, and his head hit the hard floor with a thud.


    He was done, but now I need to get his wand. But I was tied up, there was no way I could reach it.


    I then had an idea. I scooted my chair over to him and used my foot to push the wand closer to me. I then leaned over as much as I could and used my teeth to grab it.


    I then quickly sat straight up and began to move as much as I could. The chair was way too still for its own good, but eventually, I was able to make it budge an inch.


    Then two inches.


    Then three.


    Eventually, I was able to make aplete tip-over, and I fell to the ground with a thud.


    But I was free, and now I had the wand.


    I quickly got up from the chair, with the wand held tightly in my hands. Now would¡¯ve been a great time to major in a power. I opened the door, seeing a gray hallway with a few doors on either side. I then quickly made my way down the hall, trying each door until I found one that wasn¡¯t locked.


    .....


    The one on the far left was thest, and I slowly opened it, seeing a small room with a window on the other side. There was a small bed in the corner and a table with a cup.


    I¡¯m not sure if this ce is a hotel or prison, but I¡¯m getting out of here.


    would make it very hard to find.


    But I had to try, I had to find my friends and stop Rocke from stealing the Cybertron.


    I needed to escape.


    But how?

 Chapter 77

    77 A Very Wavy Escape


    I looked around, trying to see any sort of sign of an escape. But there was none, the room waspletely sealed off.


    I then heard footstepsing towards the door. I quickly sat down, thinking it may be Rocke. As the door opened, I saw a regr TSA agent, who was probablying in to check on me. He was quite stubby, and his beady eyes scanned the room until they saw me.


    ¡°Hey, you okay in here?¡± he asked.


    I didn¡¯t say a word. He grunted and walked over to me. He then felt my pulse and looked into my eyes. ¡°You don¡¯t seem too hurt,¡± he said. ¡°You hit the water hard, but you¡¯re lucky you didn¡¯t hit your head on anything.¡±


    I still said nothing.


    He then sighed and walked back towards the door, but then I saw something. His utility belt. If I could click the button and take his wand, I could knock him out and cut myself from these ropes. But they were very strong apparently.


    Maybe I could break the chair.


    The agent then walked back over to me and said, ¡°I¡¯ll be back in a few minutes, just stay here and rest.¡± I nodded, and as he turned around, I pushed my leg out and tripped him. He yelped as he fell to the ground, and his head hit the hard floor with a thud.


    He was done, but now I need to get his wand. But I was tied up, there was no way I could reach it.


    .....


    I then had an idea. I scooted my chair over to him and used my foot to push the wand closer to me. I then leaned over as much as I could and used my teeth to grab it.


    I then quickly sat straight up and began to move as much as I could. The chair was way too still for its own good, but eventually, I was able to make it budge an inch.


    Then two inches.


    Then three.


    Eventually, I was able to make aplete tip-over, and I fell to the ground with a thud.


    But I was free, and now I had the wand.


    I quickly got up from the chair, with the wand held tightly in my hands. Now would¡¯ve been a great time to major in a power. I opened the door, seeing a gray hallway with a few doors on either side. I then quickly made my way down the hall, trying each door until I found one that wasn¡¯t locked.


    The one on the far left was thest, and I slowly opened it, seeing a small room with a window on the other side. There was a small bed in the corner and a table with a cup.


    I¡¯m not sure if this ce is a hotel or prison, but I¡¯m getting out of here.


    I walked over to the window and began to pry it open, but it seemed to be stuck. It led outside to some sort of balcony of a ship, meaning I was on the upper floor. I then heard footstepsing, and in a fast motion.


    Shoot.


    I quickly leaped down and rushed under the bed, just in time to see the door open. It was another TSA agent, but this one was different. He had a military haircut and looked like a hitman. My heart pulsated, my palms were sweating, and I was holding my breath.


    The man then looked around the room until his eyesnded on the bed. He slowly walked towards it, and my face began to sweat.


    He stopped suddenly as my breathing did and then slowly lifted the bed sheet.


    I was petrified.


    He then looked under the bed, our eyes meeting. I held my breath hoping he didn¡¯t see me in the darkness. But then he reached down, grabbing a fist full of my hair and yanking me out.


    ¡°What the-¡±


    I kicked his stomach as hard as I could and then elbowed him in the face. He staggered backward, holding his stomach in pain. I then quickly got up and sped out of the room, moving through the halls as fast as I could.


    I looked back and saw the hitman-looking guying after me, so I quickly turned around the corner and ran into another hall that led to stairs. I then ran down them as fast as I could, not looking back until I was at the bottom.


    The good news was that he wasn¡¯t close behind me, the bad news was he was still behind me. I quickly looked to the left and right, seeing no doors of escape. ¡°Got nowhere to go kid, do ya?¡± the man chuckled.


    I looked behind me, seeing a gun pointed to my face and a wand in his other hand. He then slowly began to walk toward me, and I was backed into a corner.


    ¡°Please, just let me go!¡± I yelled pleadingly. I had no power in this situation, and I waspletely helpless.


    The man then chuckled again and said, ¡°I don¡¯t think so kiddo,¡± as he grabbed me. I needed to do something quickly. But then, the man was shot with a bolt, sending him flying backward.


    I looked to see Tisiah standing there with a smug look on his face. ¡°Hey there,¡± he said. ¡°Been looking for ya.¡±


    A smile swept across my face as we rushed in for a hug. I was so happy to see him, and he had saved me once again.


    ¡°Come on, we gotta go before any more of these guyse,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°But it¡¯s so good to see you again.¡± Tears welled up in my eyes, and I nodded.


    He was right, we had to go. But even though everything that was happening was so fast, it was so good to see him. ¡°Do you know where the rest are?¡± I asked, and he shook his head. ¡°I might sort of have an idea,¡± he said. ¡°But we¡¯ll have to hurry.¡±


    I nodded and followed him as we made our way through the TSA ship, trying to find the others. But with each step, I couldn¡¯t help but feel like something was watching us. Like we were being led into a trap.


    We were beginning to arrive at more stairs that led down to what looked like the engine room. But as we walked down, I couldn¡¯t help but notice the eerie silence. It was too silent for our good. The engine room lookedpletely abandoned, and it made me shiver.


    ¡°Where is everyone?¡± I whispered to Tisiah. He shrugged in response, looking around.


    The ce smelled of oil and metal, and it was very dirty. There was dust and dirt everywhere, and the floors were greasy. The walls were dented and scratched, and there was rust all over the ce.


    ¡°Good lord, this ce is terrible,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Let¡¯s move back upstairs before the guards finallye back to their posts.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, what?¡± I asked. ¡°I thought there were no guards here!¡± Tisiah looked at me in disbelief. ¡°What do you mean, no guards? This is a high-security area!¡± he eximed.


    I then realized that I had made a mistake. I had led us right into the heart of the TSA¡¯s ship. We were in their most secure area, and there were probably going to be a lot of guards speeding towards us now.


    ¡°We need to find them now,¡± I said, as we started running through the halls. ¡°We need to find the others and get out of here before it¡¯s toote.¡±


    Tisiah nodded in agreement as we turned towards the stairs and went up, going to the right this time. We went up two flights of stairs before we finally arrived at a door. But as Tisiah went to open it, I stopped him.


    ¡°Look inside first,¡± I said. ¡°I have a bad feeling about this.¡± Tisiah nodded and looked through the peephole.


    ¡°It¡¯s clear,¡± he said, and I nodded. But then we began to hear more footsteps rushing in our direction. They wereing for us.


    ¡°Hurry!¡± I said, and Tisiah quickly opened the door. We rushed inside and he locked the door, ducking down behind it.


    I then looked around the room and saw that we were in some kind of control room. There were dozens of monitors andputers and even arge window that showed the engine room.


    ¡°What is this ce?¡± I whispered to Tisiah. But before he could answer, the door flew open and guards came rushing in.


    ¡°There they are!¡± one of them shouted, and we were surrounded.


    ¡°Well this doesn¡¯t look good for us,¡± I said, as the guards pointed their guns at us. ¡°What do we do now?¡±


    Tisiah looked around and then an idea seemed to pop up in his head.


    Preview:


    ¡°You got any water?¡± Tisiah asked. I shook my head, and he looked around the room until he found a cup. He then went over to one of theputers and unplugged it, before carrying it over to the window.


    The guards were still pointing their guns at us, and I could see the confusion in their eyes. They were probably wondering what in the world Tisiah was doing.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± I asked him, as he ced theputer on windows.


    ¡°Electrifying the sky,¡± he said, as he took the cup of water and poured it over theputer. Then he plugged it back in, and sparks began to fly.


    The guards shouted in rm as they were hit by the sparks, and they began to fall to the ground. I then rushed over to help Tisiah, and we unplugged theputer.

 Chapter 78

    78 Prison at Sea


    ¡°You got any water?¡± Tisiah asked. I shook my head, and he looked around the room until he found a cup. He then went over to one of theputers and unplugged it, before carrying it over to the window.


    The guards were still pointing their guns at us, and I could see the confusion in their eyes. They were probably wondering what in the world Tisiah was doing.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± I asked him, as he ced theputer on windows.


    ¡°Electrifying the sky,¡± he said, as he took the cup of water and poured it over theputer. Then he plugged it back in, and sparks began to fly.


    The guards shouted in rm as they were hit by the sparks, and they began to fall to the ground. I then rushed over to help Tisiah, and we unplugged theputer.


    ¡°Come on,¡± he said, as he grabbed my wrist and we started running out of the room. It was only a matter of time before more guards began chasing us, and we needed to put as much distance between us and them as possible.


    We ran through the halls, taking turns and going up different stairs. ¡°We should probably find a map of where to go you know, probably is the best idea,¡± I said.


    ¡°From who?¡± Tisiah asked.


    ¡°Maybe one of the guards?¡± I suggested, and he nodded. ¡°Okay, good idea.¡±


    .....


    We then split up, with Tisiah going to the right and me to the left. But the second I did, I saw a guard speeding towards me, tackling me to the ground.


    Tisiah turned around, seeing me in my state. I grunted as my breath began to waiver. The guard then got off of me and grabbed my wrists, dragging me to my feet.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± he said, but then Tisiah ran up and punched him in the face. The guard fell to the ground, and I took the opportunity to run.


    But then the guard got back up and grabbed Tisiah, holding him in a chokehold. ¡°Let him go!¡± I shouted, but the guard just tightened harder. ¡°You think you¡¯re so smart, don¡¯t you?¡±


    The guard then mmed Tisiah against the wall, and I could see the pain in his eyes.


    I had enough.


    I had to do something.


    I couldn¡¯t just stand there and watch as Tisiah was hurt.


    So I charged up my perk and punched the guard in the face with all my strength. He flew across the hall and hit the wall, unconscious.


    Tisiah coughed, trying to catch his breath as I ran to him. ¡°Are you okay?¡± I asked, and he nodded.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine,¡± he said. ¡°Check if he has a map.¡±


    I rummaged through the guard¡¯s pockets until I found a map of the ship. ¡°Here,¡± I said, as I handed it to him. ¡°Perfect,¡± he said, getting up. ¡°Let¡¯s find the prison. We may see the rest there.¡±


    We started running in that direction, but we were quickly stopped by a loud rm. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I asked.


    ¡°That¡¯s the rm for an intruder,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Somebody¡¯s here.¡±


    Somebody¡¯s here? Who could it be? And why are they here?


    We¡¯ll have to find out soon because it wasn¡¯t gonna make things any easier. ¡°Come on,¡± he said, and we started running again.


    We arrived at the prison to find it in chaos. There were guards everywhere, running around and shouting. TSA agents ran through the halls, and I could hear the sound of guns being fired.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I asked, but Tisiah just shook his head.


    ¡°No need to figure out,¡± he said. ¡°Let¡¯s just find the rest and get them out of here.¡±


    He then started running, and I followed close behind him. It was hard to keep up with him while also trying to dodge the guards, who seemed too busy to be seeing us.


    We moved over to the right section of the prison, and I could see the rest of our team. They were all in cells, and it looked like they were trying to break out.


    ¡°September!¡± I shouted as she looked at me. ¡°What are you doing here?¡±


    ¡°Trying to get out,¡± she said, as she hit the bars with her hand. ¡°Oh, Tisiah found you.¡±


    ¡°You knew this already?¡± I asked.


    ¡°He escaped and saw us, and we told him to find you first and he did,¡± September said.


    ¡°And now we need to find a way out,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°The exit¡¯s this way.¡±


    Tisiah opened the door, letting Mari, Rin, Matt, Mchi, and September out. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s move!¡± Mchi shouted. ¡°I want to leave this sea-sicken ce, it¡¯s driving me crazy.¡±


    We all started running, following Tisiah as he led the way. But then I saw somebody that I never expected to see, rushing towards us.


    We all stopped in shock, seeing Nikki in front of us. ¡°Nikki?¡± Mari muttered. ¡°What are you doing here?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m here to help,¡± she said, as she ran next to us. ¡°I heard about what happened on the news. I needed to do something.¡±


    ¡°And you just decided toe here?¡± I asked. ¡°You could¡¯ve been killed.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± she said. ¡°Anyways, I¡¯m getting Mr. Drails to get Matt, Mari, and Rin home. We five can take care of this.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Mari said. ¡°No, we¡¯re not leaving you guys.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s probably for the best,¡± September said. ¡°You guys can¡¯t help us here, and we don¡¯t want you to get hurt.¡±


    ¡°But¨C¡± Mari started to mumble. Then I came over, giving her a pat on the back. She seemed super emotional about it, and I felt really bad.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be fine,¡± I said, trying to assure her. ¡°You guys just need to focus on getting home.¡±


    ¡°And we¡¯ll take care of the rest,¡± Nikki said. ¡°I promise.¡±


    Mari sighed but nodded. Nikki got her radio and began talking into it, telling Mr. Drails our location. Instantly a portal opened up, sucking Matt, Mari, and Rin. ¡°Alright, you can close now,¡± Nikki said. ¡°We need to find the Cybertron.¡±


    She closed the radio and sighed, as the portal closed. ¡°This is going to be harder than I thought.¡±


    ¡°Tell me about it,¡± Mchi chuckled. ¡°But it¡¯s sure gonna be fun.¡±


    ¡°Okay, we need to find the Cybertron, if it¡¯s even here,¡± September said. Then I remembered what Rocke said: Find my friends, and I find the Cybertron.


    ¡°Is the Cybertron inside of the prison?¡± I asked.


    ¡°What?¡± Tisiah said as he turned to me. ¡°No, it¡¯s not in the prison.¡±


    I sighed. Rocke lied to me once again. I shouldn¡¯t be surprised, but I am.


    ¡°Then where is it?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°We need to escape this ce and follow this ship.¡± Nikki nodded, as she started to run again. Tisiah and September followed close behind her, and Mchi and I brought up the rear.


    ¡°Yeah, one thing, who was the intruder?¡± I asked. Nikki responded, ¡°Me.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I said in shock.


    As we ran, I could hear the sound of sirens getting closer and closer. ¡°We need to hurry,¡± Nikki said, but then we were surrounded by TSA agents, armed and ready to shoot.


    ¡°Halt!¡± One of them shouted. ¡°You are all under arrest.¡±


    ¡°Who do they think they are?¡± Mchi muttered.


    ¡°Forget it, let¡¯s just go,¡± Nikki said, as she turned and started to run in the other direction. But then, more agents showed up on that spot.


    ¡°That leaves us to fight,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Herees nothing.¡±


    Then the agents took out their wands, charging at us at full speed. ¡°I¡¯ll take the left, you take the right,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°Got it!¡± September said, as she ran to the right. Nikki ran to the left and I followed Mchi.


    We started sting at the agents, taking them down one by one. But there were just too many of them. ¡°Use your Perk!¡± Mchi yelled. I nodded, as my arms began glowing red and my eyes turned white.


    Then I started running at full speed, dodging everything that was thrown at me. I leaped into the air and did a flip, sting two agents in midair. As Inded, I punched an agent so hard that he flew into a wall and was knocked unconscious.


    I looked around, seeing that Mchi seemed impressed...and scared.


    ¡°Wow...¡± he mumbled. ¡°You¡¯re...scary when you do that.¡±


    I chuckled and turned back to the agents. But then I heard a loud bang echo in the prison. ¡°Young boy, I know you¡¯re here.¡±


    Rocke.


    ¡°Oh, no run!¡± I shouted, but then Rocke appeared, shooting a bolt at us. ¡°Duck!¡± September shouted, as she tackled me to the ground. The bolt hit near Mchi and he was sent flying into a wall.


    September and I quickly got up, seeing the smirk on his face. More guards began to pile up behind him, ready to attack. ¡°Well, things just got worse,¡± I sighed. Rocke smirked, ¡°Get those fiends.¡±

 Chapter 79

    79 In the Rocke of the Sea


    The guards began to run towards us, but then Nikki and Tisiah came out of nowhere and started sting at them. ¡°We need to stay strong!¡± Nikki shouted.


    September quickly rushed to the frontline inbat range, as Mchi got up. I stayed in the back, picking off agents that were trying to nk us. But there were just too many of them that were rushing towards us.


    ¡°I need help over here!¡± I shouted, as I was struggling to keep up.


    ¡°On it!¡± September said as she ran towards me, taking down agents left and right.


    It was probably best for me to use my Perk now.


    I charged it up, my arms glowing red and my fist vibrating. I punched the ground, creating a shockwave that took out a good chunk of the agents. I heard Rocke shout in anger, as he began to shoot bolts at us again.


    ¡°Watch out!¡± Nikki shouted as she pushed me out of the way of a bolt. It hit September instead, and she was sent flying backward.


    ¡°September!¡± I shouted, looking at her. She didn¡¯t appear to be that affected, but it was obvious that the pain stung. I red at him with fury in my eyes as I saw hisugh. I was going to make him pay.


    I charged up my Perk again, this time running full speed at Rocke. He tried to dodge, but I followed his evading ways and punched him in the stomach. He gasped for air as he flew backward, hitting a few agents in the process. Inded and charged up again.


    .....


    No one was hurting my friends, no more.


    He chuckled as he got up. ¡°Oh, you poor soul. Easily affected by someone else¡¯s pain.¡±


    ¡°Shut it!¡± I shouted as I punched him again, sending him flying into a wall. He hit hard and stayed down this time, barely able to even move.


    ¡°You¡¯re so affected you don¡¯t even know your own mistake,¡± he chuckled. ¡°I can adapt powers, and I have just used yours.¡±


    I stopped frozen cold in my tracks. He couldn¡¯t have...there¡¯s no way.


    ¡°That¡¯s right, boy. I now have your power,¡± he said. ¡°Tricked ya once again!¡± He then got up and started to run, as the agents followed. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± Nikki shouted.


    We all ran away the opposite direction, as I tried to process what just happened. Rocke...adapted my power. This could be bad. Very bad. He did it before when fighting for the Armonk, and now he did it again.


    I looked back, seeing him stomp the floor, making the ground shake. ¡°He¡¯sing!¡± I shouted. ¡°We need to hurry!¡±


    We all ran as fast as we could, but Rocke was darting after us, using my power. He was faster, stronger, and now had an extra power to use against us. This wasn¡¯t going to be easy...at all. ¡°This way!¡± Tisiah shouted as we barged through a door outside.


    I looked down, seeing the crashing waves below. ¡°Are you kidding me?¡± I asked, as I looked back and saw Rockeing towards us. He was about to use my Perk, and it wasn¡¯t gonna end well. ¡°No need to run boy!¡± he shouted.


    I looked back at Tisiah, who seemed to know exactly what I was thinking. ¡°Everyone, jump!¡± Tisiah shouted, as he jumped off the edge.


    Everyone else followed, and I was thest one. I took a deep breath and leaped off, as I felt the ground on the boat shake as I jumped. I felt the wind speed against my body as I fell, and then I saw it. The water getting closer and closer.


    I gritted my teeth, as I was about to hit the surface. Then the water hit, and everything went nk.


    ***


    But then I felt my eyes click open, and cold hands holding my body. We seemed to be on a boat, but I think I already know who made it. I looked up, seeing it was Mchi and his team.


    ¡°He¡¯s awake,¡± Mchi said, as he put me down. I looked over, seeing Nikki, September, and the rest of them.


    ¡°Oh, thank goodness,¡± September said, as she ran over and hugged me. ¡°I thought we lost you there for a bit.¡±


    ¡°What happened?¡± I asked as I looked around, seeing the empty ocean. The sky was bright blue and the sun shined brightly and I had no idea where we were.


    ¡°We¡¯ll exinter,¡± Mchi said, as he looked at me. ¡°But a lot of things happened to make things shorter.¡± I nodded, as I got up.


    Sorry this was short, because a lot of things happened, so think of this preview as the continuation.


    Preview:


    ¡°We¡¯ll go over the n on the way,¡± Tisiah said, as he walked over to us. The boat was quiterge, almost as big as a ship, but more like a kayak. ¡°We need to follow that ship, and see where they¡¯re heading.¡±


    We turned to see that TSA cruise-looking ship, still in the distance. It was a good thing we had this boat, or else we¡¯d be stuck here in the water forever.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get paddling,¡± I said when they all of a sudden began tough. ¡°What makes you think I made something that would require hard work?¡± Nikki chuckled, as she walked over to the controls.


    ¡°This thing is high-tech,¡± she said, as she pressed a button. The boat then sped away, almost making me fall. The boat I tell you was fast, and I mean like really fast. ¡°Hang on!¡± Nikki shouted as we all grabbed onto something.


    I looked forward, seeing the ship getting slowly bigger, as we were catching up to it. ¡°We¡¯re almost there,¡± September said, as she looked through a pair of binocrs.


    ¡°We should stop right-¡±


    She suddenly stopped as confusion folded onto our faces. ¡°Guys, I see a very tall building, and I mean a tall building.¡±


    We all looked through the binocrs, and she was right. In the distance was a building that reached the clouds. But the three letters on it scared me to death. ¡°TSA,¡± I muttered, as we all looked at each other with a worried look.


    ¡°What is the TSA doing with a building that big?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°I mean even ours isn¡¯t that big.¡± ¡°Because this building holds cargo, ours is an academy,¡± September said, as she looked at the building.


    ¡°Cargo?¡± I asked, as I looked at her. ¡°What kind of cargo?¡±


    ¡°Anything that the TSA stole, which the Cybertron may be in there,¡± Tisiah said, as he looked at the building. ¡°That¡¯s why we need to get on that ship, so we can get inside.¡±


    ¡°So why did we jump out in the first ce?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Because Rocke was going to st us to bits,¡± Nikki said, as she looked at me. ¡°Good thing we have this boat.¡±


    ¡°We need to get on that ship though so we could check through,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Make us adder real quick Nikki.¡± She nodded, as she went to the back of the boat, used her wand, and created a longdder.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that too risky?¡± September asked as she looked at Tisiah. ¡°What if it falls or breaks while we¡¯re midair?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯ll be fine,¡± he said, as he looked at her. ¡°I trust Nikki with my life.¡± He then reached out his hand as Nikki passed thedder to him. ¡°Ooh, this is heavy,¡± he grunted, as he struggled to hold it.


    ¡°Well hurry up!¡± Nikki said as she looked at him. ¡°They¡¯re getting away!¡±


    He then ran towards the side of the boat, and with a mighty heave, threw thedder onto the ship. We all watched as he climbed up first, then September went after. ¡°I don¡¯t like how this feels,¡± Nikki said, as she looked at me.


    ¡°Yeah, me too,¡± I muttered, as we both began to climb up.


    Mchi was thest, which he didn¡¯t seem too pleased about. But we all made it on the ship without any incident. ¡°That was close,¡± Nikki said, as she looked at us.


    We threw thedder down, and Nikki used her wand to make it disappear. ¡°We should split up,¡± Tisiah said, as he looked at us. ¡°So they don¡¯t find all of us at once.¡±


    ¡°Who said we were going inside?¡± September said, as she looked at him. ¡°I mean that¡¯s way too dangerous.¡±


    ¡°Look, we don¡¯t have a choice,¡± he said. ¡°Guards will being out soon to do their rounds, and if they see us, we¡¯re dead.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s right,¡± Nikki said, as she looked at us. ¡°I can make some disguises for us. Couldst for 30 minutes or so.¡±


    ¡°That should be enough time,¡± Tisiah said, as he looked at her. ¡°Now let¡¯s go before it¡¯s toote.¡± But then all of a sudden, the boat stopped.


    What happened?


    We turned around, seeing a huge dock. And on that dock were hundreds of people, all in uniform. ¡°Oh no,¡± Nikki said, as she looked at them. ¡°It seems we¡¯re already here.¡±


    We all looked at each other with worried looks, not knowing what to do. Then Tisiah stepped forward. ¡°We need those disguises now,¡± he said, as he looked at Nikki.


    She nodded, as she went to work. A few secondster, we were all in uniforms. I never seemed to think about how useful Nikki¡¯s majoring power is until now.


    But we didn¡¯t have time to waste, as the guards wereing our way. ¡°Quick, act natural,¡± Tisiah ordered, as he took the lead. We all nodded, following behind him as we acted as if we belonged there.


    The guards gave us a quick look and then turned back as we walked towards the stairs off the boat. ¡°So far so good,¡± Nikki whispered, as we all nodded.


    But then we heard shouting from behind us. We turned around to see that it was an argument between two guards. One of them was pointing at us, and the other one was shaking his head.


    ¡°Uh oh,¡± Nikki said, ¡°I hope they¡¯re not talking about us.¡±

 Chapter 80

    80 The Cargo Building


    ¡°We¡¯ll go over the n on the way,¡± Tisiah said, as he walked over to us. The boat was quiterge, almost as big as a ship, but more like a kayak. ¡°We need to follow that ship, and see where they¡¯re heading.¡±


    We turned to see that TSA cruise-looking ship, still in the distance. It was a good thing we had this boat, or else we¡¯d be stuck here in the water forever.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get paddling,¡± I said when they all of a sudden began tough. ¡°What makes you think I made something that would require hard work?¡± Nikki chuckled, as she walked over to the controls.


    ¡°This thing is high-tech,¡± she said, as she pressed a button. The boat then sped away, almost making me fall. The boat I tell you was fast, and I mean like really fast. ¡°Hang on!¡± Nikki shouted as we all grabbed onto something.


    I looked forward, seeing the ship getting slowly bigger, as we were catching up to it. ¡°We¡¯re almost there,¡± September said, as she looked through a pair of binocrs.


    ¡°We should stop right-¡±


    She suddenly stopped as confusion folded onto our faces. ¡°Guys, I see a very tall building, and I mean a tall building.¡±


    We all looked through the binocrs, and she was right. In the distance was a building that reached the clouds. But the three letters on it scared me to death. ¡°TSA,¡± I muttered, as we all looked at each other with a worried look.


    ¡°What is the TSA doing with a building that big?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°I mean even ours isn¡¯t that big.¡± ¡°Because this building holds cargo, ours is an academy,¡± September said, as she looked at the building.


    .....


    ¡°Cargo?¡± I asked, as I looked at her. ¡°What kind of cargo?¡±


    ¡°Anything that the TSA stole, which the Cybertron may be in there,¡± Tisiah said, as he looked at the building. ¡°That¡¯s why we need to get on that ship, so we can get inside.¡±


    ¡°So why did we jump out in the first ce?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Because Rocke was going to st us to bits,¡± Nikki said, as she looked at me. ¡°Good thing we have this boat.¡±


    ¡°We need to get on that ship though so we could check through,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Make us adder real quick Nikki.¡± She nodded, as she went to the back of the boat, used her wand, and created a longdder.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that too risky?¡± September asked as she looked at Tisiah. ¡°What if it falls or breaks while we¡¯re midair?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯ll be fine,¡± he said, as he looked at her. ¡°I trust Nikki with my life.¡± He then reached out his hand as Nikki passed thedder to him. ¡°Ooh, this is heavy,¡± he grunted, as he struggled to hold it.


    ¡°Well hurry up!¡± Nikki said as she looked at him. ¡°They¡¯re getting away!¡±


    He then ran towards the side of the boat, and with a mighty heave, threw thedder onto the ship. We all watched as he climbed up first, then September went after. ¡°I don¡¯t like how this feels,¡± Nikki said, as she looked at me.


    ¡°Yeah, me too,¡± I muttered, as we both began to climb up.


    Mchi was thest, which he didn¡¯t seem too pleased about. But we all made it on the ship without any incident. ¡°That was close,¡± Nikki said, as she looked at us.


    We threw thedder down, and Nikki used her wand to make it disappear. ¡°We should split up,¡± Tisiah said, as he looked at us. ¡°So they don¡¯t find all of us at once.¡±


    ¡°Who said we were going inside?¡± September said, as she looked at him. ¡°I mean that¡¯s way too dangerous.¡±


    ¡°Look, we don¡¯t have a choice,¡± he said. ¡°Guards will being out soon to do their rounds, and if they see us, we¡¯re dead.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s right,¡± Nikki said, as she looked at us. ¡°I can make some disguises for us. Couldst for 30 minutes or so.¡±


    ¡°That should be enough time,¡± Tisiah said, as he looked at her. ¡°Now let¡¯s go before it¡¯s toote.¡± But then all of a sudden, the boat stopped.


    What happened?


    We turned around, seeing a huge dock. And on that dock were hundreds of people, all in uniform. ¡°Oh no,¡± Nikki said, as she looked at them. ¡°It seems we¡¯re already here.¡±


    We all looked at each other with worried looks, not knowing what to do. Then Tisiah stepped forward. ¡°We need those disguises now,¡± he said, as he looked at Nikki.


    She nodded, as she went to work. A few secondster, we were all in uniforms. I never seemed to think about how useful Nikki¡¯s majoring power is until now.


    But we didn¡¯t have time to waste, as the guards wereing our way. ¡°Quick, act natural,¡± Tisiah ordered, as he took the lead. We all nodded, following behind him as we acted as if we belonged there.


    The guards gave us a quick look and then turned back as we walked towards the stairs off the boat. ¡°So far so good,¡± Nikki whispered, as we all nodded.


    But then we heard shouting from behind us. We turned around to see that it was an argument between two guards. One of them was pointing at us, and the other one was shaking his head.


    ¡°Uh oh,¡± Nikki said, ¡°I hope they¡¯re not talking about us.¡±


    But then they began to walk towards us, as sweat began to form on my brows. ¡°Quick, act like you don¡¯t know them,¡± Tisiah said, as he stepped in front. ¡°Is there something wrong?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, where¡¯s Demetrius Rocke?¡± he asked, as he looked at us. Nikki stepped forward as if to say something. But Tisiah quickly put his hand on her shoulder, stopping her.


    ¡°He should be inside the ship, I just talked to him,¡± Tisiah lied, as he looked at the guard.


    The other guard then stepped forward. ¡°We¡¯re going to need to see some ID,¡± he said, as he looked at us.


    ¡°Of course,¡± Tisiah said, as he pulled out a fake ID.


    They looked at it and nodded. ¡°You can go,¡± the first guard said, as he looked at us.


    We all let out a sigh of relief as we walked toward the building. Were they suspicious of us, why would they ask for our ID?


    But we didn¡¯t have time to think about that now, as we had to find Demetrius Rocke. And fast.


    The lobby of the building looked huge and very pretty. Marble floors and a big chandelier were hanging from the ceiling. There were also several guards posted around the room, who was watching everyone who came in and went out.


    ¡°This looks less like a cargo building and more of a hotel,¡± Mchi muttered, as he looked around.


    ¡°Yeah, no kidding,¡± I said, as I looked at the guards. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s move up.¡±


    We all began to walk towards the elevators when one of the guards stopped us. ¡°Where are you going?¡± he asked, gesturing for our ID.


    Tisiah quickly showed him the fake ID and the guard nodded. ¡°You can go,¡± he said, as he stepped aside. ¡°So you guys visiting someone?¡± he asked. Tisiah shook his head.


    ¡°We¡¯re here for business,¡± he said, as he pressed the button for the elevator.


    The doors then opened and we all walked through. But just as the doors were about to close, the guard stopped them. ¡°Hey, I forgot to ask,¡± he said, as he looked at us. ¡°What¡¯s your business here?¡±


    Tisiah then hesitated for a second, before he answered. ¡°We¡¯re here to pick up a package,¡± he said, as the doors finally closed.


    We all let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Clearly you¡¯re a spy,¡± I said to him, as the elevator began to move up.


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m just good at thinking on my feet,¡± he said, shrugging. ¡°That¡¯s what most struggle with in these types of situations.¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°Well, let¡¯s just hope we don¡¯t have to use our acting skills again.¡±


    ¡°Most likely,¡± he chuckled, as the elevator came to a stop.


    The doors then opened and we stepped out into a long corridor. ¡°Alright, what do we do now?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°Find the Cybertron?¡±


    Preview:


    ¡°I think that¡¯s a good ce to start,¡± Tisiah said, as he began to walk down the corridor. We quickly followed him after a few seconds. The ce seemed dark and abandoned. But as we walked further down, we began to see signs of life.


    We could hear voicesing from some of the rooms. It was very noisy as if it was a very important discussion-or a heated argument. But as we walked by, we tried our best to look inconspicuous.


    Then as we walked, we found another elevator. But as we got closer, we could see that the doors were slightly ajar. Tisiah then gestured for us to stop, as he looked keenly at the door. ¡°I¡¯ll check this room,¡± he said, as he pulled out his weapon.


    We all nodded, as we waited for him to give us the all-clear. But after a few seconds, he said for us toe in. We walked in and he turned on the light, revealing a bunch of boxes that were inside a gray room.


    ¡°This must be it,¡± Tisiah said, as he began to look through the boxes. ¡°The Cybertron must be in here!¡±


    ¡°It better be,¡± I muttered, as I began to help him look.


    We all then started to search through the boxes, but we couldn¡¯t find anything much. Boxes after boxes, but no sign of the Cybertron. But then as I was about to give up, I heard a noiseing from one of the boxes to my right.


    I stopped cold in my tracks, as I stared at the box. Did I really just hear that? Or was it just my imagination?


    I then slowly approached it and I could hear the noise again. It sounded like...a faint heartbeat.

 Chapter 81

    81 Running with Pieces


    ¡°I think that¡¯s a good ce to start,¡± Tisiah said, as he began to walk down the corridor. We quickly followed him after a few seconds. The ce seemed dark and abandoned. But as we walked further down, we began to see signs of life.


    We could hear voicesing from some of the rooms. It was very noisy as if it was a very important discussion-or a heated argument. But as we walked by, we tried our best to look inconspicuous.


    Then as we walked, we found another elevator. But as we got closer, we could see that the doors were slightly ajar. Tisiah then gestured for us to stop, as he looked keenly at the door. ¡°I¡¯ll check this room,¡± he said, as he pulled out his weapon.


    We all nodded, as we waited for him to give us the all-clear. But after a few seconds, he said for us toe in. We walked in and he turned on the light, revealing a bunch of boxes that were inside a gray room.


    ¡°This must be it,¡± Tisiah said, as he began to look through the boxes. ¡°The Cybertron must be in here!¡±


    ¡°It better be,¡± I muttered, as I began to help him look.


    We all then started to search through the boxes, but we couldn¡¯t find anything much. Boxes after boxes, but no sign of the Cybertron. But then as I was about to give up, I heard a noiseing from one of the boxes to my right.


    I stopped cold in my tracks, as I stared at the box. Did I really just hear that? Or was it just my imagination?


    I then slowly approached it and I could hear the noise again. It sounded like...a faint heartbeat.


    .....


    I then quickly opened the box and inside, I found something that made me smile from ear to ear. A bunch of pieces, with the chip located in a little section on the leg.


    I found it.


    ¡°I found it!¡± I shouted, as I held up the chip.


    Everyone then crowded around me, as they all looked at the Cybertron in amazement. ¡°So this is how it looks like?¡± Tisiah asked in disappointment. ¡°It¡¯s just a bunch of pieces.¡±


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not like we can put it together here,¡± Nikki said. ¡°We don¡¯t even know how to.¡±


    ¡°Well, I sort of do, but what we should do is take the whole thing. Nikki, can you make a bag for us to put this in?¡± September asked.


    Nikki nodded, as she got out her wand and started to make a big bag. Once she was done, we all put the pieces inside.


    ¡°Alright, now let¡¯s get out of here before-¡±


    Suddenly, TSA guards barged into the room, with their guns pointed at us. ¡°Freeze!¡± one of them shouted. ¡°And it starts again,¡± Mchi sighed. Everyone took out their wands, while I charged my Perk.


    ¡°Get them!¡± one of the agents shouted, as they began to speed toward us.


    But before they could reach us, we all started to fight back. Tisiah and Mchi were taking down guards left and right with their wands.


    They were even using their powers.


    Suddenly, one of the agents came up, swinging their wand at me. But I quickly ducked and hit them with an uppercut, sending them flying backward.


    I then turned my attention to the one to my left, who was charging fast toward me. I quickly side-stepped him and tripped him with my leg. He then flew forward and hit his head on the edge of the table.


    Ouch.


    I looked back and found the bag. I needed to get out of here with it so that they could be ready when the time came. But as I was about to make my move, I felt someone hit me from behind.


    I then quickly got up and turned around to face my attacker. It was one of the agents and he was pointing his wand at me.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t move if I were you,¡± he said.


    ¡°Oh, I think I will,¡± I said, as I quickly dashed to the side.


    He then fired a bolt at me, but I quickly dodged it and escaped out the door. The agent began to chase after me out the door as well.


    Once I was out in the hallway, I started to run as fast as I could. The agent was right on my tail and he fired another bolt at me. But I quickly dodged it and turned the corner.


    I came across some stairs and I quickly ran down them. But as I was about to reach the bottom, I felt someone grab my leg, causing me to trip.


    I then fell down the stairs and hit my head on the railing.


    I tried to get up, but I couldn¡¯t. I could hear the agenting down the stairs after me. I needed to get up now.


    I quickly got up and continued running. The agent was still right behind me and he fired another bolt at me. But I quickly sidestepped it and turned the corner. I came across a hall, as the screeches of my foot cried as I slid through the marble floor. I then quickly got up and started running again.


    The agent was still right behind me, but I was getting tired. I needed to do something. Wait I have an idea. So here¡¯s what I¡¯m gonna do okay:


    I¡¯m going to run towards that door over there, and as soon as I get close enough, I¡¯m gonna Perk up and use it. Then, knock him out into oblivion.


    I quickly shifted into high gear and made a beeline for the door. The agent was still right behind me, but I was getting closer and closer to the door, as he was getting closer and closer to me.


    But as I was about to reach the door, I felt him hit me from behind, causing me to trip and fall into the door.


    The door then opened and I found myself in a dark room. It looked like some kind ofboratory.


    As I got up, the agent smirked and he pointed the wand at me. ¡°Well, well, well. Looks like I got you now,¡± he said.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see about that,¡± I said, as I began to charge up my Perk.


    But before I could use it, he fired a bolt at me. I tried to dodge it, but it hit me in the shoulder. I ended up flying into the wall, as I felt the pain course through my body.


    I then tried to get up, but I couldn¡¯t. I was too weak. But then, the agent froze. He was just standing there like he was in a trance.


    Suddenly, his body began to convulse and he fell to the ground. September and the rest was behind him. Tisiah then walked up to me and helped me up. ¡°Are you okay?¡± he asked. ¡°Yeah,¡± I responded.


    Then, they all turned their attention to the agent on the ground. September then knelt and checked his pulse.


    ¡°Okay the guy¡¯s fine, let¡¯s go,¡± she said, as she and the others then quickly left the room.


    As for me, I was just happy that it was all over. And that I didn¡¯t die at least. But we need to return to the ship fast.


    But all of a sudden, the rm sounded. We needed to get out of here now.


    September and the others then quickly ran towards the exit, as I followed close behind them. ¡°I think they¡¯ve found us,¡± Mchi said, as he ran alongside me.


    ¡°No kidding,¡± I said, as we then made our way out of the hall. We found an elevator on the far left, quickly rushing in.


    September then hit the button for the top floor and we started to go up. ¡°I¡¯m not gonna lie, that was a close one,¡± she said.


    ¡°Yeah no kidding,¡± I responded, as I leaned against the wall.


    The elevator then came to a stop and the doors opened. We then quickly made it out of the elevator, arriving on the rooftop somehow. ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯re supposed to be here,¡± Mchi said, as he looked around.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter, we need to find a way off this roof,¡± September said, as she then ran towards the edge.


    We all then followed her and looked down. It was a long way down. ¡°Great, just great,¡± I said, as I began to feel lightheaded. ¡°Uh, maybe Nikki can make a parachute,¡± Tisiah then said.


    ¡°Good idea,¡± I said, as I turned to Nikki. ¡°Can you make a parachute?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± she nodded as she got out her wand. She made five parachutes in a matter of a second-somehow, I don¡¯t think she was using traditional methods.


    Preview:


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s put them on,¡± September said, as she and the others then strapped it around their backs.


    As for me, Nikki put it on me and helped me with the straps. ¡°You sure you¡¯re gonna be okay?¡± she asked. ¡°It¡¯s a parachute,¡± I chuckled, as I tried to act tough. But the truth was, I was scared.


    But I knew I had to do this. So, with that, we all jumped off.


    The wind sshed against my face, as I freefell towards the ground. But then, the parachute opened and I was slowly drifting down.


    As I looked up, I saw Nikki and the others following close behind me. And as wended on the ground, I let out a sigh of relief.


    We made it. But now, we need to find a way off this ind. If we were even on an ind anymore, that is.


    ¡°Okay, can we get a GPS up in here?¡± Mchi asked as he looked around. ¡°I think we¡¯re a little bit lost.¡±


    ¡°Good idea,¡± September said, as she pulled out her phone. She then started to type something in. ¡°All right, I¡¯m gonna see if I can get a signal,¡± she said, as she held up the phone.

 Chapter 82

    82 A Floridian Arrvial


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s put them on,¡± September said, as she and the others then strapped it around their backs.


    As for me, Nikki put it on me and helped me with the straps. ¡°You sure you¡¯re gonna be okay?¡± she asked. ¡°It¡¯s a parachute,¡± I chuckled, as I tried to act tough. But the truth was, I was scared.


    But I knew I had to do this. So, with that, we all jumped off.


    The wind sshed against my face, as I freefell towards the ground. But then, the parachute opened and I was slowly drifting down.


    As I looked up, I saw Nikki and the others following close behind me. And as wended on the ground, I let out a sigh of relief.


    We made it. But now, we need to find a way off this ind. If we were even on an ind anymore, that is.


    ¡°Okay, can we get a GPS up in here?¡± Mchi asked as he looked around. ¡°I think we¡¯re a little bit lost.¡±


    ¡°Good idea,¡± September said, as she pulled out her phone. She then started to type something in. ¡°All right, I¡¯m gonna see if I can get a signal,¡± she said, as she held up the phone.


    ¡°Good idea,¡± Tisiah said, as he then pulled out his phone.


    .....


    But as for me, I just stood there. I didn¡¯t have a phone. And even if I did, I probably wouldn¡¯t have service here anyway.


    But then, Nikki walked up to me and handed me her phone. ¡°Here, use mine,¡± she said.


    I smiled, feeling very weird from the sudden handout, but I took it anyway. ¡°Thank you,¡± I said, as I then put it in my pocket.


    Now, we just need to find where we are and maybe, we can find a way off this rock.


    Then all of a sudden, September smiled. ¡°Alright, I found something. But apparently, we¡¯re in Florida.¡±


    ¡°Florida?¡± Tisiah wondered as he raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m not really sure how that¡¯s possible,¡± September said, as she shook her head. ¡°But we are.¡±


    ¡°That means there are homes and food possible and I¡¯m super duper hungry,¡± Mchi said, as he rubbed his stomach.


    ¡°Yeah, me too,¡± I said, as my stomach then growled.


    ¡°Okay, Nikki can you make us a car or something to at least get us from this misty ce?¡± September asked as she turned to Nikki.


    ¡°Yeah, I can try,¡± Nikki said, as she got her wand out. She then started to wave and she got out of one of those Genesis luxury cars. ¡°Oooooooowe,¡± she said, as she then rubbed her behind.


    ¡°What happened?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I sat on a rock,¡± she said, as she then got in the car.


    I then chuckled, as I got in the passenger¡¯s seat. And as we drove off, I couldn¡¯t help but think about what just happened. ¡°This car feels good to drive,¡± September said, as she then turned to Nikki.


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s veryfortable,¡± Nikki said, as she nodded her head. ¡°It¡¯s why I specifically chose it. Because I sat on a rock.¡±


    ¡°You could¡¯ve gotten a booster seat,¡± Mchi said, as he then buckled his seatbelt.


    ¡°Yeah, I probably should¡¯ve,¡± Nikki said, as she then chuckled. ¡°But I didn¡¯t want to look like a child.¡±


    ¡°Well, you kind of are,¡± Mchi said, as he then crossed his arms.


    ¡°Am not,¡± Nikki said, as she then stuck her tongue out at him.


    ¡°You both are acting like children,¡± September said, as she then shook her head. ¡°But anyway, we need to find a ce to stay for the night. It¡¯s getting dark.¡±


    Mchi then yawned, as he then stretched his arms. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m pretty tired too,¡± he said.


    ¡°We all are,¡± Nikki said, as she then rubbed her eyes.


    ¡°All right, let¡¯s find a ce to stay then,¡± September said. ¡°Someone search up a hotel so we know where to go.¡±


    Nikki then typed something into her phone and a few secondster, she then nodded her head. ¡°I found one,¡± she said, as she then handed the phone to September.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s go there then,¡± September said, as she then put the GPS. I would like to know which hotel we¡¯re going to, but I¡¯m pretty tired too.


    All of a sudden, Nikki yawned and she then leaned her head against the window. Everyone was about to doze off into dreand, but I was still wide awake.


    I then looked out the window, and I saw the lights from the hotel in the distance. It looked beautiful, with golden walls and many windows.


    It looked like a pce, and I was in awe as we got closer and closer to it. Finally, we arrived.


    ¡°Okay, we made it, get up from your slumbers,¡± September said. Mchiined, ¡°We barely even slept.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I know,¡± September said, as she then got out of the car. ¡°But we¡¯re here.¡± We all entered the car, and we then looked at the hotel.


    It was even more beautiful up close. It looked like it was made for royalty, and I felt a bright feeling emanating from it.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go check in,¡± Nikki said, as she then walked towards the entrance.


    We all followed her, and the doors opened on their own. We then walked into the lobby, and it looked like something out of a fairytale.


    The chandeliers were beautiful, emitting light shining down on us. The floor was polished white marble, and there were many paintings on the walls.


    It looked like a very luxurious hotel, which I¡¯m positive it is, and I was in awe as we walked to the counter. There was a woman with blonde hair behind it, and she smiled as we approached.


    ¡°Wee to the Hennesy Pce Hotel,¡± she said. ¡°How may I help you?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯d like a room for the night,¡± Nikki said. ¡°We¡¯ll pay you tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± the woman said, as she then got a key. ¡°Here you go, room 1212.¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± September said with one of the fakest smiles on earth, and we then walked to the elevator.


    We got in, and it took us to the 12th floor. We then walked down the hall, which was filled with doors.


    We finally arrived at our room, and we walked in. It was a beautiful room, with two beds and a TV.


    ¡°Okay, this is our room,¡± Mchi muttered, as he then plopped down on one of the beds.


    ¡°Yeah, it is,¡± Nikki said, as she then yawned. ¡°Man, today was crazy, I¡¯m exhausted.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, me too,¡± September said. ¡°But at least we¡¯re safe now.¡±


    I sighed, as I then sat down on the other bed. It had been a long day, and I was ready to sleep.


    Like I never expected to be in a ce like this, in a hotel as luxurious as this. I never thought my life would take such a turn, but here I am.


    But the only thing in my head right now is Rocke, my obsessed enemy. I wonder what he¡¯s up to now if he¡¯s still following us.


    I then sighed, as I tried to push those thoughts out as Iy down. But all of a sudden, I saw a figureing over to me.


    ¡°Hey uh, Connor,¡± Nikki said, as she then sat down next to me. ¡°Can I talk to you for a second?¡±


    I sighed, as I then turned and nodded. ¡°Sure,¡± I said.


    She sighed. ¡°Remember when I said I liked you?¡± she asked, and I nodded. ¡°I know it may have been jarring for you, and I just wanted to apologize for not giving you time.¡±


    ¡°Well, you were injured and you were probably a bit on edge,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s okay, I understand.¡±


    She sighed in relief. ¡°Thank you,¡± she said. ¡°That¡¯s relieving.¡±


    But she stayed, and our eyes continued to make contact. It felt awkward but pulling at the same time, and I didn¡¯t know what to do.


    So, I just remained still, as we just looked at each other. And eventually, she got up and left. I could only just sigh, as I then turned back.


    I¡¯m not sure what that was about, but I just hope she¡¯s not going to be weird around me. I just closed my eyes and tried to sleep, as I hoped for a better tomorrow.


    But all I could think about was her, and how I felt when she was close to me. It was confusing and frustrating, but I couldn¡¯t help but feel something.


    I then sighed, as I knew sleep would be evasive tonight.


    It had been a long day, so I needed it. But my mind was racing, and I had a feeling that tomorrow would be just as eventful.


    Preview:


    Finally, my eyes clicked open the next day, and the first thing I saw was the TV.


    I then turned and saw that Nikki and September were both still asleep, but Mchi wasn¡¯t in his bed.


    I looked around and rubbed my eyes, as I then got up. I walked to the door and opened it, to see Mchi sitting on one of the chairs in the hallway. He seemed the same way I was, tired and disengaged.


    ¡°Hey,¡± I said, as I walked over and sat in the chair next to him. ¡°You couldn¡¯t sleep either?¡± He shook his head. ¡°Just woke up early, that¡¯s all.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, me too,¡± I said. ¡°I just feel really on edge.¡±


    ¡°I know what you mean,¡± he said. ¡°You must be mad Rocke has your power again.¡±

 Chapter 83

    83 The n


    Finally, my eyes clicked open the next day, and the first thing I saw was the TV.


    I then turned and saw that Nikki and September were both still asleep, but Mchi wasn¡¯t in his bed.


    I looked around and rubbed my eyes, as I then got up. I walked to the door and opened it, to see Mchi sitting on one of the chairs in the hallway. He seemed the same way I was, tired and disengaged.


    ¡°Hey,¡± I said, as I walked over and sat in the chair next to him. ¡°You couldn¡¯t sleep either?¡± He shook his head. ¡°Just woke up early, that¡¯s all.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, me too,¡± I said. ¡°I just feel really on edge.¡±


    ¡°I know what you mean,¡± he said. ¡°You must be mad Rocke has your power again.¡±


    I sighed. ¡°I guess,¡± I said. ¡°But it¡¯s not like I can do anything about it.¡±


    ¡°Well yes and no,¡± he said. ¡°In terms of changing his power, no. But in matters of defeating or killing him to be dark, yes you can.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s easier said than done,¡± I muttered.


    .....


    ¡°I know,¡± he said. ¡°But that¡¯s the options you got. And trust me, I would kill him in a heartbeat if I had the chance.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure he¡¯s searching for the Cybertron right now, so we need to stop him before he gets there.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s true,¡± he said. ¡°But we can¡¯t do much but fight him when hees.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said, as I then stood up. My bones began to cry out, as I then walked back into the room.


    I needed to rest, but my mind was still racing. I had a feeling that Rocke was searching for me. He would¡¯ve heard for sure that I had the Cybertron.


    And if he finds me, then I don¡¯t know what will happen.


    All of a sudden Mchi called me, and I then turned to the door. He then opened it and walked in, as he then sat on the bed.


    ¡°I wanted to talk to you about something that I¡¯ve been wondering for a while,¡± he said. ¡°When I heard Mr. Drails was your uncle, it still didn¡¯t make sense how you have a Perk.¡± I gulped, as I then sat down next to him.


    Oh no, what does he know?


    Mchi then looked at me with a stern look, as if he was trying to figure out something. My eyes began to bulge out, as I then tried to think of something. But my mind was drawing a nk.


    ¡°Well?¡± he asked.


    ¡°It¡¯splicated,¡± I said.


    ¡°How so?¡± he asked.


    I then sighed, clearing my throat as I then began to speak. ¡°Okay, so you know how my uncle is Mr. Drails?¡± He nodded. ¡°Well, my father used to be the CEO of the YMPA but then retired to have me, and my uncle came in,¡± I lied.


    ¡°Okay,¡± he said, as he then crossed his arms.


    ¡°Well, when my father retired, the YMPA was um... in a lot of debt,¡± I said. ¡°And my uncle was the one who saved it.¡±


    ¡°How?¡± he asked. I shrugged.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, he just did,¡± I said. ¡°But because of that, my father gave him the majority share.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± he said. ¡°But what does that have to do with you having a Perk?¡±


    ¡°Well Perk-holders usually are CEOs of a mage field, and if my father used to be one. That means I got it from him, duh,¡± I said, trying to sound as convincing as possible.


    Mchi then looked at me with a raised eyebrow, as if he didn¡¯t believe me. Then all of a sudden, September spoke.


    ¡°Hey, y¡¯all already waking us up, or what?¡± she said, as she then yawned and stretched her arms. ¡°I was having the best dream.¡±


    ¡°We just woke up, and yeah,¡± I exined. September nodded.


    ***


    ¡°Okay, we just need to find who made the Cybertron, a country perhaps,¡± September said. We all took our showers and freshened up, and we were just discussing at the table. ¡°That¡¯s not gonna be easy. We don¡¯t know where it came from,¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°There¡¯s gotta be a way,¡± I said.


    ¡°If we could just find out who made the Cybertron, we can return it to them, therefore making it hard for the TSA to do anything to us,¡± September said.


    ¡°I like that idea,¡± Nikki said. ¡°But how do we find out who made the Cybertron?¡±


    ¡°The website that we went on!¡± I shouted in excitement.


    Everyone looked at me as if I was crazy, but I quickly exined my idea.


    ¡°If we go back to the website that we found it at, we can maybe see who wrote it or who constructed it. It¡¯ll give us a lead at least,¡± I said.


    Everyone thought about it for a second and then agreed that it was worth a shot. September nodded in agreement and said, ¡°That¡¯s not a bad idea. Let¡¯s see on the phone.¡±


    September typed in the website on her phone and we all crowded around her to see it. After a few seconds of scrolling, she found a name. ¡°Dmitri Petrov,¡± she said. ¡°That¡¯s the name of the person who made this website.¡±


    ¡°That sounds like something from...Russia,¡± I muttered. ¡°The diamond, the whole encountering at Russia. Of course, it would be in Russia!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s really not a bad idea,¡± September said. ¡°We can fly out to Russia and try to find this Dmitri Petrov guy.¡±


    ¡°But what if he doesn¡¯t want to help us?¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°We can find something,¡± Mchi said. ¡°We¡¯ll offer to buy the Cybertron from him or something.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not a bad idea,¡± I said. ¡°Hopefully Nikki can construct ten full bags of money for us.¡±


    Nikki nodded her head in agreement and said, ¡°I think I can do that.¡±


    ¡°Well, it looks like we have a n. Get to Russia, and find the guy, and we¡¯ll go from there,¡± September said.


    ¡°But let¡¯s calm down first, just to get the heat off of us from the TSA,¡± I said. ¡°Since we can¡¯t reach Mr. Drails so maybe we can have a little fun here in the city.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, trying to meet somedies you know,¡± he said, which no one was impressed by.


    ¡°Oh, please, let¡¯s not go there,¡± Nikki said, shooting him a look. ¡°I think we should explore Florida and its ces before some whole nonsensees again.¡±


    ¡°I guess I like that idea,¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°Yeah, we should go to the beach and have some fun!¡± Mchi shouted. ¡°Might see some-¡±


    ¡°Beat it,¡± September said, cutting him off. ¡°We¡¯ll go to the beach and have some fun, but no ogling women like you usually do.¡±


    ¡°Usually?¡± I muttered.


    ¡°Aw,e on, it¡¯ll be fun,¡± Mchi said. ¡°And who knows? We might even meet somedies-¡±


    ¡°Beat it,¡± September said again, this time a little more forcefully. ¡°We are not going to meet anydies, and you are not going to ogle anything.¡±


    ¡°Okay, so should we rent a car or continue risking losing our car to the limits of Nikki¡¯s powers,¡± Mchi asked, getting a cross-look from Nikki.


    ¡°We can risk it,¡± I said. ¡°I think Nikki¡¯s power is getting stronger.¡±


    ¡°I agree as well,¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°All right, we¡¯ll risk it,¡± September said. ¡°But if anything happens, we¡¯re getting a new car. Renting perhaps.¡±


    ¡°Makes sense,¡± I said.


    ¡°All right, so we¡¯re all agreed,¡± September said. ¡°We¡¯ll go to the beach, then maybe eat afterward.¡± We all nodded in agreement, as I didn¡¯t think anyone was going to argue with that.


    Everyone dispersed in their directions, getting changed into their swimsuits and getting their things. I met up with Nikki, as we were going to the same ce.


    ¡°So how was your sleep?¡± I asked as we walked together.


    ¡°It was good,¡± she said. ¡°I had a dream.¡±


    ¡°About what?¡± I asked, curiously. Nikki chuckled as if she knew something I didn¡¯t.


    ¡°You¡¯ll see,¡± she said, mysteriously. ¡°All in good time.¡±


    I nodded slowly, trying to understand what she meant, but I couldn¡¯t. Nikki just smiled at me and said, ¡°You¡¯ll see.¡±


    Preview:


    Soon enough, we left outside the hotel as the crisp air sifted through our clothes. The sun was shining as we walked in the direction of the beach, which wasn¡¯t too far away. It was about a few blocks or so, and as we walked, I began to see more and more people in swimsuits.


    ¡°So what kind of dream did you have,¡± I asked, trying to make conversation.


    ¡°It¡¯s hard to exin,¡± Nikki said. ¡°But it was about you.¡±


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s all I need to know,¡± I responded, not wanting to hear anymore. If Nikki was going to have dreams about me, I didn¡¯t want to know. It would only make things weird between us. Soon enough, we were looking at the blue ocean and the sound of the waves crashing on the shore.


    ¡°It¡¯s so beautiful,¡± Nikki said, as we both stopped to look at it.


    Mchi looked around for a few seconds and then said, ¡°There¡¯s a hot dog stand over there. I¡¯m starving.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re always hungry,¡± Tisiah said. Mchi rolled his eyes. ¡°We¡¯ve been running non-stop and I¡¯m not justified in hunger?¡±


    ¡°Just saying,¡± Tisiah said, shrugging his shoulders.


    ¡°Whatever,¡± Mchi said, walking in the direction of the hot dog stand. ¡°You guysing or not?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t we already going to a restaurant?¡± September asked, following Mchi.


    ¡°I can eat two meals,¡± Mchi said, nonchntly.


    .....


    Tisiah sighed and followed as well, leaving Nikki and me alone.


    ¡°Guess it¡¯s just us,¡± Nikki said, looking at me. ¡°Ready to go in?¡±


    ¡°Nope!¡± I shouted. I¡¯m afraid of the ocean, so I was going to stay on the sand. Nikki looked at me, bemused.


    ¡°You¡¯re afraid of the ocean? After everything and you¡¯re still afraid of the ocean?¡± she said, chuckling.


    ¡°What can I say? I¡¯m andlubber,¡± I said, shrugging my shoulders. Nikki shook her head jokingly and walked away. I sighed, as I didn¡¯t want to go in the water, but it looked like Nikki was going to have fun without me.

 Chapter 84

    84 A Friend Iing


    Soon enough, we left outside the hotel as the crisp air sifted through our clothes. The sun was shining as we walked in the direction of the beach, which wasn¡¯t too far away. It was about a few blocks or so, and as we walked, I began to see more and more people in swimsuits.


    ¡°So what kind of dream did you have,¡± I asked, trying to make conversation.


    ¡°It¡¯s hard to exin,¡± Nikki said. ¡°But it was about you.¡±


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s all I need to know,¡± I responded, not wanting to hear anymore. If Nikki was going to have dreams about me, I didn¡¯t want to know. It would only make things weird between us. Soon enough, we were looking at the blue ocean and the sound of the waves crashing on the shore.


    ¡°It¡¯s so beautiful,¡± Nikki said, as we both stopped to look at it.


    Mchi looked around for a few seconds and then said, ¡°There¡¯s a hot dog stand over there. I¡¯m starving.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re always hungry,¡± Tisiah said. Mchi rolled his eyes. ¡°We¡¯ve been running non-stop and I¡¯m not justified in hunger?¡±


    ¡°Just saying,¡± Tisiah said, shrugging his shoulders.


    ¡°Whatever,¡± Mchi said, walking in the direction of the hot dog stand. ¡°You guysing or not?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t we already going to a restaurant?¡± September asked, following Mchi.


    .....


    ¡°I can eat two meals,¡± Mchi said, nonchntly.


    Tisiah sighed and followed as well, leaving Nikki and me alone.


    ¡°Guess it¡¯s just us,¡± Nikki said, looking at me. ¡°Ready to go in?¡±


    ¡°Nope!¡± I shouted. I¡¯m afraid of the ocean, so I was going to stay on the sand. Nikki looked at me, bemused.


    ¡°You¡¯re afraid of the ocean? After everything and you¡¯re still afraid of the ocean?¡± she said, chuckling.


    ¡°What can I say? I¡¯m andlubber,¡± I said, shrugging my shoulders. Nikki shook her head jokingly and walked away. I sighed, as I didn¡¯t want to go in the water, but it looked like Nikki was going to have fun without me.


    But then again, I just lowered my already high percentage of dying by refusing, so that was a plus.


    Nikki came back a few minutester, sopping wet and with a beach ball. ¡°Hey, you can at least y a bit of this at least,¡± she said, tossing the ball at me. I caught it and looked at it, then back at Nikki.


    ¡°What game are we ying then?¡± I asked with a smile, as I began to think of possible games we could y.


    ¡°Just throw it back and forth,¡± Nikki said, as she began to toss the ball. It soared through the air for like ten whole seconds, which was really long for a beach ball, but I managed to catch it.


    ¡°Nice catch,¡± Nikki said with a chuckle. ¡°You¡¯re not bad yourself.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a beach ball, no need to tter me,¡± I responded, as I threw the ball back. Nikki caught it and smiled.


    ¡°No need to be humble either,¡± she said, before tossing the ball back. ¡°After all, you do have some lineage for bragging.¡± I chuckled, as I caught the ball again.


    ¡°You make a valid point,¡± I said, before throwing the ball back. ¡°But I¡¯ll take my chances, thank you.¡± ¡°Suit yourself,¡± Nikki said, shrugging her shoulders.


    We continued to y catch for a few more minutes before Mchi returned back, eating a hot dog. ¡°Hey, you guys want one?¡± he asked, as he held up the remaining two hot dogs.


    ¡°Sure,¡± Nikki responded, before running towards him. She then took a huge bite out of one of the hot dogs, much to Mchi¡¯s horror.


    ¡°What in the world are you doing?¡± he yelled, as he dropped the hot dogs.


    ¡°Eating a hot dog,¡± Nikki said, before taking the beach ball again, this time throwing it at Mchi.


    ¡°Hey, watch it!¡± he shouted, as he caught the ball. ¡°That could have germs on it! You don¡¯t know where that¡¯s been!¡±


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s fine,¡± Nikki said, waving her hand dismissively. ¡°Besides, I¡¯m immune to all diseases.¡±


    Mchi sighed and shook his head before he walked back towards the hot dog stand. Nikki ran after him, leaving me alone. I¡¯m not sure how you¡¯re immune to all diseases, but whatever.


    I sighed, as I was getting a little bored, so I decided to go for a walk. I walked around for a bit before I bumped into somebody. ¡°Sorry about that,¡± I said, as I began to apologize.


    ¡°No, it¡¯s quite alright,¡± the person said.


    The person was wearing a white t-shirt and blue jeans. They had ck hair and brown eyes.


    ¡°Is there anything I can help you with?¡± the person asked.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m just out for a walk,¡± I said, as I began to walk away.


    Sweat and fear began to roll down my face, and I could feel an intense stare on my back. I turned around to see the person still there, but they were now wearing a ck hoodie instead.


    What?


    Who was that?


    And why did they change their clothes so quickly?


    I began to walk away again, but the person followed me. I turned around and shouted, ¡°Hey!¡± But the person didn¡¯t seem fazed, as they just continued to walk toward me.


    I then turned and began to run away, but the person was right behind me. I looked back, and the person was now chucking toward me. They were definitely from the TSA, and they were here to take the Cybertron.


    I sprinted as fast as I could, but the person was still behind me. I didn¡¯t even have it with me, so why were they chasing me?


    I then saw Nikki and Mchi in the distance and shouted for them to help me. Nikki looked confused, and then her eyes widened. She suddenly sped towards the person, and they collided.


    Nikki then got up and grabbed the person¡¯s hood, before pulling it down.


    ¡°Greg?¡± she asked, as she looked at the person¡¯s face.


    ¡°Nikki?¡± Greg said, as he also looked confused. ¡°I thought you were Connor, so I was chasing you.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not Connor,¡± Nikki said, as she began to walk away. ¡°Why are you here anyways.¡±


    ¡°I told Connor I was gonna help him, but it took longer than expected,¡± Greg exined, as he also began to walk away. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about that.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Nikki said. ¡°We could use some help, soe with us.¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± Greg said, before following Nikki and Mchi.


    I then sighed in relief. Thank the Lord it was Greg and not the TSA, because that would have been really bad.


    We then continued on our way, with Greg now in tow. Hopefully, he could help us out and not betray us. But would be unlikely, he¡¯s my best friend-my brother for goodness sakes, so I trusted him.


    Soon enough, we saw Tisiah and September who were in the ocean, swimming. ¡°Come on in, the water¡¯s great!¡± Tisiah shouted as he waved us over.


    ¡°No thanks,¡± I responded. ¡°Also, Greg¡¯s here, and he¡¯s gonna help us out.¡±


    ¡°Hey Greg,¡± September said, as she also got out of the water. ¡°It¡¯s been a while I guess.¡± Greg shrugged, ¡°Just been a few months, no big deal.¡±


    ¡°Anyways,¡± I said, as I pped my hands together. ¡°Someone might wanna tell him what our n is because I¡¯m pretty sure he doesn¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Oh, right,¡± Nikki said, as she facepalmed. ¡°Sorry.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I already know,¡± Greg said, as our eyes widened, and we all looked at him. ¡°I was gonna tell Connor anyways, but he ran off before I could.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I said. ¡°You just couldn¡¯t tell you, hey I¡¯m Greg?¡¯


    ¡°Well, I had to get there first, so that¡¯s why transferred to someone else¡¯s body,¡± Greg exined. ¡°But I¡¯m here now, so it doesn¡¯t matter.¡±


    ¡°Fine,¡± I said. Greg rubbed his hands. ¡°So, y¡¯all went to the beach after getting chased by a bunch of TSA agents. Smart, really smart.¡±


    We all then face-palmed. Maybe this wasn¡¯t such a good idea after all...


    Preview:


    Soon enough, our time passed on the beach, and we had to leave. But not before Tisiah gave us a wet willy each, which was gross.


    ¡°Okay, who¡¯s ready to eat?¡± Tisiah asked as he rubbed his stomach. ¡°I¡¯m starving.¡±


    ¡°We just ate like an hour ago,¡± I said, as I crossed my arms. ¡°Hot dogs, remember?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but I¡¯m still hungry,¡± Tisiah said, as he began to walk away. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go.¡±


    Nikki spawned in the same Genesis, as September hopped into the driver seat, and Tisiah got shotgun. I then turned to Greg and asked, ¡°Where¡¯d you want to eat?¡±


    Suddenly Greg¡¯s smile widened, and he said, ¡°I know just the ce.¡±


    We then got into the car and drove off. Greg told us to head to this ce called...uh...the name escapes me, but it was a really good ce.


    He then told us to park in the back, which we did. I looked up seeing the title: The Hungry Hungry Hippo.


    ¡°What is this ce?¡± I asked as I looked at Greg. ¡°It looks...weird.¡±


    ¡°The name is weird,¡± Mchi added, as he also looked at Greg.


    ¡°It¡¯s a restaurant,¡± Greg said, as he opened the door and got out. ¡°Come on, you won¡¯t regret it.¡± Mchi sighed as we all moved out of the car, and we followed Greg inside.


    I surveyed inside the ce and it was quiteforting, in an odd way. It was dark, with red walls and ck tables. The chairs were also a deep red, along with the booths. It gave a certain vibe, but I couldn¡¯t put my finger on it.

 Chapter 85

    85 A Little Situation in the Restaurant


    Soon enough, our time passed on the beach, and we had to leave. But not before Tisiah gave us a wet willy each, which was gross.


    ¡°Okay, who¡¯s ready to eat?¡± Tisiah asked as he rubbed his stomach. ¡°I¡¯m starving.¡±


    ¡°We just ate like an hour ago,¡± I said, as I crossed my arms. ¡°Hot dogs, remember?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but I¡¯m still hungry,¡± Tisiah said, as he began to walk away. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go.¡±


    Nikki spawned in the same Genesis, as September hopped into the driver seat, and Tisiah got shotgun. I then turned to Greg and asked, ¡°Where¡¯d you want to eat?¡±


    Suddenly Greg¡¯s smile widened, and he said, ¡°I know just the ce.¡±


    We then got into the car and drove off. Greg told us to head to this ce called...uh...the name escapes me, but it was a really good ce.


    He then told us to park in the back, which we did. I looked up seeing the title: The Hungry Hungry Hippo.


    ¡°What is this ce?¡± I asked as I looked at Greg. ¡°It looks...weird.¡±


    .....


    ¡°The name is weird,¡± Mchi added, as he also looked at Greg.


    ¡°It¡¯s a restaurant,¡± Greg said, as he opened the door and got out. ¡°Come on, you won¡¯t regret it.¡± Mchi sighed as we all moved out of the car, and we followed Greg inside.


    I surveyed inside the ce and it was quiteforting, in an odd way. It was dark, with red walls and ck tables. The chairs were also a deep red, along with the booths. It gave a certain vibe, but I couldn¡¯t put my finger on it.


    ¡°Nice ce,¡± Nikki said, as she looked around. ¡°A bit dark for me but nice.¡± But the ce was packed though, which was strange for a ce like this.


    ¡°Sit anywhere you want,¡± Greg said, as he walked up to the counter. ¡°I¡¯ll order for us.¡± Nikki rushed to him as he left, ¡°Hey, here¡¯s some money I made with my power. Just make sure you don¡¯t stay there for an hour.¡±


    Greg chuckled, ¡°I will totally, Nikki.¡± He then looked at us and smiled. ¡°I¡¯ll be back soon with the food.¡±


    We all sat down at a table, as Mchi looked around. ¡°I¡¯d say so far this day has been calm, but we¡¯re in a ce called ¡®The Hungry Hungry Hippo,¡¯ so I¡¯m not sure what to expect.¡±


    ¡°Well, just try not to be so out there just in case there are some agents in here,¡± September said, as she looked at Mchi. ¡°We don¡¯t want to cause any trouble.¡±


    Mchi crossed his arms and said, ¡°I¡¯ll make sure no one sees us, but if they doe close, I¡¯m not gonna hold back.¡±


    ¡°Just try to be calm,¡± I said, as I looked around. ¡°I don¡¯t want to die from getting a bolt at the neck, so try not to be so reckless.¡±


    ¡°I make no promises,¡± Mchi said, as he leaned back in his chair. Nikki sighed, as she looked at him and said, ¡°Just try, please?¡±


    Mchi shrugged his shoulders, as he said, ¡°Fine, but if anyonees chasing after us, all bets are off.¡±


    Just then Greg came back with the food and ced it on the table. He got Nikki a cheeseburger, me a bacon cheeseburger, September a BLT, Tisiah a buffalo chicken sandwich, and Mchi...something with tofu in it.


    ¡°They only do burgers here?¡± Mchi asked, as he looked at Greg. ¡°What kind of ce is this?¡±


    ¡°A burger ce,¡± Greg said, as he sat down. ¡°Just realized?¡±


    Mchi rolled his eyes, but then as he did, his face seemed frozen in horror when seeing the window. ¡°Guys, I think someone-some people found us to be honest with you, look.¡±


    He was pointing to the window, and when we all looked, we saw a ck SUV with agents in it. And they wereing out in piles.


    ¡°I hope those ain¡¯t TSA,¡± Nikki said, as she looked out the window. ¡°I rather not have to go through that again.¡±


    ¡°No, those look more like FBI, unless that¡¯s their disguise,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Don¡¯t look at them, maybe they won¡¯t see us.¡±


    Suddenly the door opened, and a man in a ck suit walked in. He scanned the room, and when he was done, he went up to the counter. He stood there for about ten seconds, and then he left.


    ¡°That was weird,¡± Greg said. ¡°He just stood there.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, that was really weird.¡±


    Then all of a sudden, multiple men in suits barged into the restaurant, and they were all carrying guns. ¡°Everyone down on the ground, now!¡± one of them shouted.


    We all quickly got down, and everyone began to scream. What-was-happening here? This didn¡¯t look good, not one bit.


    The men in suits continued to shout orders and wave their guns around. Everyone was down on the ground, as fear and terror filled the room. I had never been in a situation like this before, and I didn¡¯t know what to do.


    Then I heard more cars moving into the parking lot, and the sound of doors mming. More men in suits wereing into the restaurant, and they were all carrying guns.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± one of them shouted.


    ¡°None of your concern,¡± the man said, as he pointed his gun at the customer. ¡°Now get down on the ground, now!¡±


    The customer got down on the ground, wimping as heid down on the floor. ¡°We need to get out of here, now,¡± Greg whispered, as he looked at us.


    ¡°But how?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°They¡¯re everywhere.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll just have to make a distraction,¡± I said. ¡°Can you make a sort of distraction?¡± Nikki smiled wide for some reason, as she said, ¡°Oh, I think I can manage that.¡±


    Nikki then got up and started to head towards the restroom.


    ¡°Get down!¡± the man shouted, as he pointed his gun at her.


    ¡°I have to go to the restroom, is that a problem?¡± Nikki asked as she put her hands on her hips. Then she froze and looked at us. The man looked around puzzledly, as he said, ¡°What the-what did you do?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Nikki said, as she looked at us. ¡°But I guess I know who you are, agent.¡±


    Then she suddenly booked it out for the door, as the agents began to scream, ¡°stop, or we¡¯ll shoot!¡±


    ¡°Quick, let¡¯s move out the back door,¡± Greg suggested, as he got up.


    We all ran to the back door, as fast as we could. I looked back and saw that the agents were running out the door, as I heard the engine of the car roar. Suddenly, the Genesis car was vrooming towards the restaurant.


    ¡°This is not what I expected,¡± Greg said.


    The car crashed through in a mighty force, with ss and agents flying everywhere as Nikki stopped the car to a halt, in the middle of the restaurant.


    ¡°Get in!¡± she shouted, as she revved up the engine.


    We all quickly got into the car, as she vroomed away, crashing through the other side of the restaurant with ss and pieces spraying everywhere.


    ¡°Who were they?¡± I asked. ¡°One of TSA¡¯s allies, the LASM,¡± Nikki said. ¡°They have a lot of vehicles probably after us so we need to move.¡±


    ¡°Shoot,¡± I muttered.


    Suddenly, engines roared behind me as I froze in shock. Oh no, they were after us. I looked behind me, seeing about four SUV¡¯s behind us, with their lights on.


    ¡°What are we gonna do?¡± I asked as I looked at Nikki.


    She smirked and said, ¡°Drive.¡±


    She suddenly swerved the car into an alleyway, and I heard the sound of tires screeching. We were going so fast, and I was afraid that we were going to crash. But Nikki managed to shift gears, drifting into the busy street.


    The SUV¡¯s behind us were still on our tail, as Nikki weaved through traffic. I looked behind me and saw that they were still following us, as sweat dripped down my forehead. We were going so fast, and I was sure that we were going to get caught.


    Preview:


    But then Nikki took a sharp turn into an alleyway, and the SUVs crashed into each other, as pieces and ss shot everywhere.


    ¡°We lost them,¡± Nikki said, as she looked in the rearview mirror. ¡°But we¡¯re not out of the woods yet.¡±


    I looked ahead and saw more SUVsing towards us, as my heart sank into my stomach. This was not good, not good at all. She turned into a lead to a highway, as the organs in my stomach were churning.


    ¡°Hang on,¡± Nikki said, as she pressed down on the gas pedal.


    We were going so fast, and I was sure that we were going to crash. But Nikki managed to keep the car under control as we weaved through traffic. The SUVs were still behind us, but they were losing friction.


    ¡°Don¡¯t kill us now!¡± Greg shouted as he held onto the seat.


    Nikki just smirked and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I got this.¡±


    ¡°You better!¡± Mchi shouted. ¡°Unless I¡¯ma beat you when we get to heaven, girl!¡±


    Three SUVs were behind us, as Nikki took a sharp turn. I heard the tires screech, as my stomach lurched. She was able to keep the automobile under control and we were on our way to an exit.


    ¡°We¡¯re almost there!¡± she shouted, as she pressed down on the gas pedal.

 Chapter 86

    86 The Drift Hunters


    But then Nikki took a sharp turn into an alleyway, and the SUVs crashed into each other, as pieces and ss shot everywhere.


    ¡°We lost them,¡± Nikki said, as she looked in the rearview mirror. ¡°But we¡¯re not out of the woods yet.¡±


    I looked ahead and saw more SUVsing towards us, as my heart sank into my stomach. This was not good, not good at all. She turned into a lead to a highway, as the organs in my stomach were churning.


    ¡°Hang on,¡± Nikki said, as she pressed down on the gas pedal.


    We were going so fast, and I was sure that we were going to crash. But Nikki managed to keep the car under control as we weaved through traffic. The SUVs were still behind us, but they were losing friction.


    ¡°Don¡¯t kill us now!¡± Greg shouted as he held onto the seat.


    Nikki just smirked and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I got this.¡±


    ¡°You better!¡± Mchi shouted. ¡°Unless I¡¯ma beat you when we get to heaven, girl!¡±


    Three SUVs were behind us, as Nikki took a sharp turn. I heard the tires screech, as my stomach lurched. She was able to keep the automobile under control and we were on our way to an exit.


    .....


    ¡°We¡¯re almost there!¡± she shouted, as she pressed down on the gas pedal.


    ¡°Almost where?¡± Greg asked.


    But she didn¡¯t answer. Instead, she drifted into an intersection, sideswiping a car that honked its horn in anger. The SUVs followed behind us, as we were about to make our escape.


    We were on the highway now, and Nikki was driving like a maniac. And I mean a maniac, in the best way possible. She was swerving in and out ofnes, as the SUVs were trying to keep up with us. But she was way too fast.


    Honks and yells bellowed from the cars, but Nikki didn¡¯t care. She was focused on the task at hand, and that was to get us away from the agents. We were going so fast, and I was afraid that we were going to die. But Nikki had other ns.


    ¡°Hold on!¡± she shouted, as she pushed the pedal. ¡°Nikki, we¡¯re still trying to live now!¡± September shouted as she clung to the door.


    But Nikki didn¡¯t care, as she took us onto the shoulder of the road. The agents were right on our tail, and soon enough, agents peeked out of their vehicles with guns pointed out. ¡°Duck!¡± I shouted as I pulled Mchi and September down.


    Bullets rained on the car, as ss shattered everywhere. The back window blew out, and I heard a tire pop. ¡°We¡¯re almost there!¡± she shouted. ¡°Almost there!¡±


    ¡°Almost where, to death?¡± Greg hissed, as he covered his head.


    But she didn¡¯t answer him, as she took a sharp turn. I heard the tires screech, as my heart began to race. ¡°We need to shoot back!¡± Tisiah said as he pulled out his wand.


    Bolts raced out of his wand, as he aimed for the agents. The bolts made contact with the agents, as they shouted in pain. Then Nikki took us onto an exit ramp, sirens wailing behind us.


    ¡°We lost them!¡± she shouted, as she looked in the rearview mirror. ¡°But we¡¯re being met with some more!¡±


    We were now on the busy Floridian streets, bikers and cars honking at us as we weaved in and out of traffic. The SUVs were still on our tail, but they were losing oomph. Nikki took us down a narrow alleyway, as I heard the tires screech again.


    ¡°Is this your master n?¡± I screeched,tching onto the door.


    ¡°No,¡± she said inly as if this was child¡¯s y. ¡°This is just the beginning.¡± Suddenly, miniguns popped out of the trunk embedding into the pavement. ¡°Hang on!¡± Nikki shouted as she hit a button.


    The miniguns fired rapidly, with bullets speeding towards the agents. The agents tried to swerve out of the way, but they were met with a hail of bullets. I heard tires pop, as well as blown-out tanks.


    Gas tanks, oh boy.


    Suddenly, explosions birthed from the SUVs, as they were sent flying into the air. The agents tried to get out, but they were met with a wall of fire. I looked away, as I heard screamsing from the agents.


    ¡°We¡¯re not done yet,¡± Nikki muttered, as she pushed another button. As she did, I looked ahead, seeing more SUVs move towards us at f-a-s-t speeds. ¡°This is gonna get bumpy.¡±


    Nikki took us down a narrow alleyway, as she brought a big hole in the trunk. ¡°What in the world,¡± Mchi muttered. ¡°What is that?!¡±


    ¡°Missiles,¡± she said, as we heard a loud boom from the release of missiles. They spanned out, as they took down the SUVs in a big way.


    I heard another loud explosion, as I covered my ears. When I looked back, I saw a big cloud of fire rumbling towards us. ¡°Jump!¡± Nikki shouted as she unbuckled her seatbelt.


    We all jumped out of the car, just as it caught to the Genesis. The Genesis birthed a big explosion, as I felt the heat on my back. We all hit the ground hard, ss shattering around us.


    I looked back, seeing the whole road full of explosions and people in shock. ¡°Well, this doesn¡¯t look good, does it,¡± Mchi said with a sardonic smile.


    I slowly got up, looking at the horrid scene. People were running around like chickens with their heads cut off. I then looked back at Nikki, who was getting up as well.


    ¡°We need to get out of here,¡± she said. But then all of a sudden, more SUVs began to close up on us, leaving us surrounded. It happened in such a sh that I didn¡¯t even know what was going on.


    ¡°What do we do now?¡± September cried as she looked around in terror.


    Then, someone came out of one of the SUVs, and it was none other than Rocke. ¡°Ahh, causing havoc once again,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°All for this weapon that never concerned you.¡±


    ¡°We know exactly what your n is,¡± September said dully. ¡°And we¡¯re going to stop you.¡±


    ¡°Oh, is that so?¡± Rocke said mockingly as he expressed a shocking face mockingly. ¡°I¡¯m very scared to find out, to be honest.¡±


    Nikki stepped in front of us, as she red daggers at Rocke. ¡°You will never get your hands on the Cybertron.¡±


    Rocke shrugged. ¡°I think I might actually because in case you didn¡¯t know, your little friend Greg has it in his pocket.¡±


    We turned around, as Greg¡¯s face became boggled with confusion. ¡°What is he talking about?¡±


    Rocke chuckled. ¡°You see, we had to put a little camera in your room. Now, this was after you guys left apparently, and your friend transferred to one of the employees that had your key. And guess what, he took it.¡±


    ¡°I thought you guys identally left it there, so I brought it,¡± Greg said with a sobered face.


    ¡°And now we have it,¡± Rocke said as he held out his hand. ¡°Now, if you don¡¯t mind. I¡¯ll just take it.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I said, standing in front of him.


    Rocke looked at me with no sign of seriosity. ¡°Connor, I¡¯d prefer for you to not annoy me right now if you would please move out the way.¡±


    I didn¡¯t budge a single bit. ¡°No, I won¡¯t let you have it.¡±


    ¡°Fine,¡± he said with a sigh. ¡°If that¡¯s how you want to y it.¡±


    Rocke snapped his fingers, as the agents pulled out their guns, pointing them at us. But all of a sudden, we heard siren wails in the distance.


    ¡°What?¡± Rocke muttered under his breath. He then looked at us with a look of death, as he looked back again. Soon enough, police cruisers began to pile into the strangled street.


    ¡°Rocke, we need to go,¡± one of the agents said in a panic.


    ¡°No,¡± Rocke said. ¡°We¡¯ll deal with them, try to make it as if something happened okay? I¡¯ll deal with these fools.¡±


    Preview:


    The agent nodded, and suddenly they pushed a car towards one of the cruisers, creating a big explosion.


    I looked around, as the ce turned into a war zone. Police were shooting at the agents, as the agents were ducking behind the SUVs. Rocke chuckled, then looked at us. ¡°Well, you guys want to act tough, might as well,¡± Rocke said with cackle, as four other guys came behind him. ¡°Take down the others, I¡¯ll deal with Connor.¡±


    They nodded as they all charged at full speed. I then looked back at Nikki and the others, as they were holding their own.


    Rocke then charged at me with a swing, which I quickly ducked. I then uppercut him in the stomach, as he hunched over in pain. He then tried to clothesline me, but I quickly dodged it.


    ¡°I see, you¡¯re a fast one,¡± he said, throwing another punch, but I quickly dodged it. I then tried to punch him, but he quickly grabbed my arm. He then kneed me in the stomach, as I cried in pain.


    Then he charged up his Perk, or mine I should probably say, and he punched me in the stomach.


    I felt my body leap from the ground as I hit the asphalt hard. All the wind was knocked out of me, as I gasped for air.


    Rocke then walked over to me with a chuckle. ¡°Every single time, this happens. You¡¯ll never win against me.¡±


    ¡°Who said I was over?¡± I said, slowly getting up. ¡°I¡¯m not even close to being finished.¡± I got up weakly but with a look of death in my eyes. Rocke then scoffed, as he got into his fighting stance.

 Chapter 87

    87 The Fight of the Century


    The agent nodded, and suddenly they pushed a car towards one of the cruisers, creating a big explosion.


    I looked around, as the ce turned into a war zone. Police were shooting at the agents, as the agents were ducking behind the SUVs. Rocke chuckled, then looked at us. ¡°Well, you guys want to act tough, might as well,¡± Rocke said with cackle, as four other guys came behind him. ¡°Take down the others, I¡¯ll deal with Connor.¡±


    They nodded as they all charged at full speed. I then looked back at Nikki and the others, as they were holding their own.


    Rocke then charged at me with a swing, which I quickly ducked. I then uppercut him in the stomach, as he hunched over in pain. He then tried to clothesline me, but I quickly dodged it.


    ¡°I see, you¡¯re a fast one,¡± he said, throwing another punch, but I quickly dodged it. I then tried to punch him, but he quickly grabbed my arm. He then kneed me in the stomach, as I cried in pain.


    Then he charged up his Perk, or mine I should probably say, and he punched me in the stomach.


    I felt my body leap from the ground as I hit the asphalt hard. All the wind was knocked out of me, as I gasped for air.


    Rocke then walked over to me with a chuckle. ¡°Every single time, this happens. You¡¯ll never win against me.¡±


    ¡°Who said I was over?¡± I said, slowly getting up. ¡°I¡¯m not even close to being finished.¡± I got up weakly but with a look of death in my eyes. Rocke then scoffed, as he got into his fighting stance.


    .....


    As he was about to throw a punch, I quickly did something that I¡¯d even say is smart myself. First, I kneed him in the groin as hard as I could. Second, I quickly did an uppercut to his chin, which caused him to push back. Then, as he was about to recover, I quickly did a roundhouse kick to his ribs.


    He cried out in pain as he hit the ground. But he didn¡¯t seem to fazed to be honest, in fact, it seemed like it did nothing.


    ¡°You think that was clever?¡± he said with clenched teeth. ¡°I¡¯ll show you clever.¡±


    Then he threw a punch, quickly aiming for my face. But I quickly dodged it, then I grabbed his arm and did a quick elbow strike to his arm. But then he used that opportinity in a very impressive way, as he quickly used his leg to sweep mine.


    I then hit the ground hard, as he got my legs and suddenly as if he was some sort of wrestler, began to swing me in a circle. My vision blurred and I felt dizzy, as he then let go and I hit the ground hard again.


    He then chuckled, as he walked over to me. ¡°And we¡¯re here once again,¡± he chuckled, looking down at me. ¡°You¡¯re just too weak.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I muttered, trying to get up. ¡°I¡¯ll keep fighting, no matter how hard it is.¡± But then, he kicked me once again to the floor, as I groaned in pain.


    ¡°No,¡± he said, looking down at me with a frightening sight in his eyes. ¡°You¡¯re done.¡± But then as he said that, I felt my body suddenly heat up considerably. My face felt as if it was melting and my eyes felt as if they were about to boil.


    But as I opened my eyes, I saw something that I never expected to see. Blue fire moving throughout my body, as if it was alive.


    What is happening to me? Was this Rocke¡¯s doing or something else?


    Like I¡¯m telling you, I¡¯m burning ¨C and I mean it quite literally. The blue fire is now all over my body, and it doesn¡¯t feel good at all. It feels like I¡¯m being baked to death.


    First, my arms felt as if they were on fire. Then my chest, and then finally my entire body began to boil. I slowly got up, as Rocke looked at me with surprise and then smile. ¡°Well, this is a new one I can copy,¡± he said with a chuckle as the blue fire began to surround his body as well.


    ¡°What is this?¡± I muttered, looking at my arms. The blue fire seemed to be wiggling in excitement, and I was turned around, I saw him charging at me at full speed. Suddenly, he tackled me and we both sped through the entire street, crashing through a bunch of cars and finally crashing into a building.


    It must¡¯ve been an abandoned one because the amount of dust and debris that was falling on me was unbelievable.


    I then saw Rocke, as he was getting up slowly. The blue fire was still alive in both of us. I slowly got up. But I barely even got time to even process or even align myself, because Rocke suddenly came in with a thrust with his hand, shooting out a big st of some sort ofser that barely missed me.


    I rolled out the way, looking at him with anger. This was getting too dangerous, not just for me, but for everyone else as well. I had to put an end to this now.


    I quickly charged at him, but he rolled backward and exited the building. Thank goodness a wall of destroyed cars blocked both sides of the street because as I exited the building, he was already there waiting for me.


    He then smirked and said, ¡°Trust me, your time is done.¡± One after one, he sted as I moved, each one trailing behind me. I then saw my chance and quickly ran towards him, as he was about to st me again. But I quickly leaped over him and dodged it, appearing behind him.


    I kicked him in the back, but he quickly turned around and grabbed my leg. He then lifted me and threw me into the air, as I came crashing down to the ground.


    Windows broke, ss flew, and the impact was so great that a part of the ceiling came crashing down as well.


    I then got up, slowly but surely. But the screams of shock began to ring inside of my ear as if it was telling me to end this now. Rocke looked at me with a smirk and said, ¡°I know what you¡¯re thinking. You¡¯re wondering how I can copy your moves.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I said. ¡°You told me before, I still remember.¡±


    ¡°Powers, not your moves,¡± Rocke said. ¡°Seems like I still have some examples to perform.¡± He sted moresers at me at a closer range, and I quickly dodged them. But as I did, he quickly appeared in front of me and kicked me in the stomach.


    I fell, but then rolled back up, releasing some bullets of my own. But he quickly dodged them and then tackled me again. We both flew through the street, as I saw familiar buildings and scenery pass by thest time this happened.


    We crashed into the road, breaking and scrunching it together like paper. I quickly got up, but he did as well and we both faced each other. He then said, ¡°You¡¯re not the only one who knows your power.¡±


    ¡°But there¡¯s usually the better,¡± I said with a groan. ¡°And in this case, it¡¯s me.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll see about that,¡± Rocke said. He then created a giant blue fireball in his hands and propelled it at me. I spoke way too soon, didn¡¯t I?


    I then saw the giant fireballing at me at full speed, and I quickly got out of the way. But as I did, the fireball crashed into one of the empty cars, causing it to explode.


    The impact was so great that I was sent flying backward, but I quickly got up and looked at Rocke. He looked so bloodthirsty like some sort of animal that was ready to kill its prey.


    He then came at me full force, as I barely had time to react.


    When his fist struck, it was like a sledgehammer swung at my side. The impact was so powerful that it felt as if my body would copse beneath me. But I couldn¡¯t allow that to happen.


    I got up with my bones feeling like jelly and my muscles aching. But I had to keep going, because if I didn¡¯t, then everyone would be in danger.


    The ss shattered and metal bent as Rocke and I continued to fight. He was getting more and more aggressive with each hit, and I was slowly getting weaker.


    He flicked his wrist andunched another fireball at me, then suddenly he threw a second one at me. I quickly leaped out of the way, as more explosions sent more ss and metal flying.


    Out of nowhere, Rocke then summoned arge swordprising entirely of energy from what I saw. Shock coursed through my body, as I realized that this was getting serious.


    He then ran towards me with the de held high, and swung, releasing a wave of fire at me.


    I quickly ducked as the de whizzed over my head, and then I rolled to the side. But as I did, he quickly turned around and struck me with his swinging sword.


    The fire spread through my body, igniting my clothes and searing my skin. I cried out in pain, as I writhed on the ground.


    The fire ignited everything around us, as the buildings caught aze and the roads began to melt. The screams of people trying to escape could be heard in the distance, and the sirens of emergency vehicles quickly began to fill the air.


    But I couldn¡¯t focus on that now, because Rocke was stilling at me at full speed. I looked at him, fear and pain coursing through my body, and I knew that I had to end this now.


    I got up, my body screaming in pain, and I lunged at him.


    We both, determined, flew through the air, as we collided with each other in midair.


    Then as if time stopped, the world suddenly shuttered around us. At that moment, I could feel everything that was happening.


    I could feel the heat of the fire, the screams of the people, the cries of the citizens. Although it may look weird right now, this is for them. I was a protector of these people, thest line of defense against evil.


    And I will continue to fight, no matter what the cost, until justice prevails.


    No giving up, no matter what.


    That¡¯s my promise to them, and it¡¯s a promise I intend to keep. I want to protect my mom, my dad, and everyone.


    This is for them.


    I will not lose and I will not give up.


    That¡¯s my promise.


    Suddenly, a big outlier of light as we hit, and the sound of the world-shattering beneath my ears rang out, as the light engulfed us...


    Darkness.


    I couldn¡¯t see anything, as the darkness surrounded me. I felt like I was floating in aplete void, with nothing but the sound of my breathing.


    But then, I started to feel something else. A warmth emanated from my chest. It was weird butforting, and then I felt myself cking out.

 Chapter 88

    88 Wake-Up Call


    Pain, so much pain.


    I felt like I slipped on the treadmill 54889 times in one hour, or perhaps I¡¯m exaggerating. Who knows. I felt every single bruise, every single cut.


    I opened my eyes to see a blurry room and a few worried faces looking down at me.


    It seemed as if it was an apartment, and I was lying on a bed with a few people around me. It was very hard to see, not gonna lie. It was confusing.


    My hands felt like they were on fire, and my chest felt like someone had taken a hammer to it.


    My ears felt like they were bleeding, and my eyesight was still blurry.


    I tried to get up, but I couldn¡¯t. I felt so weak and dead.


    ¡°Hello...¡± I groaned. As my eyesight cleared, I saw September right in front of me with all the others. ¡°Hey!¡± Mchi shouted in excitement, as he came into my view.


    It was then that I realized what had happened. Thest thing I remembered was flying into Rocke at full speed and then cking out.


    .....


    The darkness must have been the time I spent unconscious.


    ¡°What happened?¡± I asked as I looked around.


    ¡°You practically headbutted with Rocke and then created a big shockwave, pretty much breaking the sound barrier, and then you dropped like a rock,¡± September exined.


    ¡°Is Rocke dead?¡± I asked as I tried to get up again.


    ¡°No, in fact, he got up immediately after he dropped,¡± September admitted.


    ¡°Figures,¡± I muttered as I finally sat up.


    The pain was still there, but it was manageable now. The ce looked like an apartment, with beds and a TV. I was in a bed, and the sheets were stained with blood.


    ¡°We had to patch you up as best as we could,¡± September said as she handed me a ss of water.


    I graciously took it and downed the whole thing in one go. As I did, I looked at Nikki who seemed to be stuck in an expression of concern and terror.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked as I handed the ss back to September.


    ¡°It¡¯s just when you were out, I just felt so helpless. I can¡¯t lose you, Connor,¡± Nikki said as she came over and hugged me.


    I was still in pain, but I tried my best to hug her back. Sadness fell over me and I felt a tear run down my cheek.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± I muttered.


    ¡°For what?¡± Nikki asked as she pulled herself away.


    ¡°For making you feel that way,¡± I sighed.


    ¡°It¡¯s not your fault. I just can¡¯t lose you, that¡¯s all,¡± Nikki said as she looked away.


    Mchi sighed. ¡°Now just to tell you, we¡¯re not with the YMPA. When we were captured, they took our radios so we¡¯re on our own. We have the Cybertron, but it¡¯s best we go ahead and make our way to Russia.¡±


    ¡°But why not get the radio and call Mr. Drails?¡± I asked. ¡°He can deal with the rest.¡± Mchi sighed, ¡°That¡¯s the thing. The boat is going to Russia it¡¯s already there. Luckily Tisiah confirmed that on that ship, there is a room where they carry the things they capture, so maybe our things could be there.¡±


    ¡°So when are we leaving?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Once we treat you from your injuries,¡± September responded.


    I looked down at my arms and legs and saw bandages everywhere. I guess they did a good job considering the circumstances.


    ¡°Alright, I guess that¡¯s so,¡± I said. We had a big responsibility here to do, but the problem wasn¡¯t that it was a big responsibility. But it was more of the fact that we were now by ourselves, with no help from anyone else.


    The only people we could rely on were each other, and that was it.


    Stress was already hovering over me like a dark cloud, and I knew that things were going to get worse before they got better. But I had to be strong. I had to be the leader that everyone needed me to be.


    Because if I wasn¡¯t, then who would be?


    Nikki got me another ss of water, and I drank it slowly this time. As I did, I felt my strengthing back, and the pain subsides.


    ¡°Alright,¡± Nikki said. ¡°How do you like my water?¡±


    ¡°Pretty good for something made out of a wand,¡± I said, making Nikki giggle.


    ¡°Well, you should rest up,¡± Mchi said. ¡°We¡¯ll leave soon.¡±


    I nodded andid back down feeling a bit more exhausted than before. But I was d that we were finally on our way to Russia.


    I just hoped that everything would be okay once we got there. I want things to be the same old same old they were. Who knows what my Mom is thinking right now? She¡¯s probably worried like crazy, and I don¡¯t me her.


    But I need to stay strong. For everyone¡¯s sake.


    And that includes my own.


    I don¡¯t want to fail anyone, not at a time like this.


    But I guess we¡¯ll just have to wait and see what happens when we get to Russia.


    I just hope everything goes as nned and we can get out of this godforsaken ce.


    And back to our lives once again.


    But I¡¯m only here because of my friends, nothing else. They were always supporting and cheering me on, even when I didn¡¯t think I could do it. They never gave up on me, no matter what the situation was.


    Now I¡¯ll do the same for them without a second thought.


    We¡¯re in this together, and I¡¯ll make sure we get out together as well.


    No matter what the cost may be, I¡¯ll protect them. And I¡¯ll get us all home safe and sound.


    That¡¯s a promise.


    Preview of the next volume:


    Let me tell you this once, and only once. Okay, doesn¡¯t matter how much but let me tell you this. Don¡¯t ever expect the normal, the average, or the mediocre when you¡¯re with us. You will always find yourselves in extraordinary situations, and that¡¯s just one of the many reasons why we¡¯re here in the first ce.


    We¡¯re now being hunted by spy mages from an evil agency and the FBI although I have not heard from them for a while. Now, it was the next day after I was just woken up from my very painful slumber.


    Well, it wasn¡¯t painful since I was sleeping, but my body was in a lot of pain. I feel like I just got run over by a stampede of bulls, and that¡¯s not even the worst I felt. My team, September, Nikki, Tisiah, and Mchi with me have decided to calm down andy low.


    In case you forgot, we had a very explosive fight in the street with blown-up cars,sers being propelled at each other, and a lot of screaming.


    Not a good sound to hear, and it¡¯s something I would not want to experience ever again. We were inside this apartment in Florida, and it doesn¡¯t seem like anyone is going toe for us anytime soon.


    I¡¯m not sure if the people who were after us have given chase yet or not. But I¡¯m pretty sure Rocke has already given chase after us, and he¡¯s probably the only one we have to worry about.


    Rocke is a very powerful and dangerous man. He¡¯s ruthless, thinks he¡¯s clever, and always gets what he wants. No matter who or what is in his way, he will stop at nothing to get to us.


    Especially me, Connor. He wants me dead more than anything, and I don¡¯t know why.


    I¡¯ve never even met the guy before until that one mission to get the Armonk, and we¡¯ve been sworn enemies since then, always trying to kill each other.


    It¡¯s a miracle that I¡¯m still alive, and I have my team to thank for that. They always had my back, no matter what the case was.


    I was sitting in the living room, on a sofa that felt quite warm and fuzzy, with a nket over me. I was still in my clothes from before, and they were starting to feel quite itchy.


    But I didn¡¯t change, because my bones felt as if I was a hundred years old.


    The apartment was a typical Florida type, with a living room, kitchen, and bedroom. The flooring was white with a few stains on it. The sink was white with a few rust spots on it. The ceiling was light blue with several cracks in it. There was an aroma of coconuts in the air.


    As I turned around, I saw September walking toward me.


    ¡°Hey September,¡± she greeted, caressing her brown hair. ¡°You still okay?¡±


    ¡°I guess,¡± I muttered, sitting up and stretching my arms. ¡°What about you guys? Is everyone alright?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re all good,¡± Nikki said as she suddenly arrived. ¡°We¡¯re not exactly sure what to do right now though, so we¡¯re just kind of rxing.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± I said as I got up from the sofa. ¡°Well, we can-maybe do something fun while we¡¯re at it.¡±


    ¡°Thest time we did that, we nearly got killed,¡± Mchi said as he entered the room. ¡°Couldn¡¯t even meet anydies, and we had to save ourselves.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s right,¡± Tisiah said, following him. ¡°It wasn¡¯t exactly the greatest choice.¡±


    ¡°But after that, they would have to leave once that fight happened,¡± I said. ¡°Maybe we could try to use as much time here safe as possible to reevaluate the situation ande up with a better n.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not like we have anything else to do,¡± Nikki said. ¡°We¡¯re just kind of sitting here waiting for something to happen.¡±


    ¡°Exactly,¡± I said. ¡°So, let¡¯s try to make the best of it.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± Tisiah said, ¡°but we should be on our guard. We do not know when they wille for us again.¡±


    ¡°Tisiah¡¯s right,¡± September said. ¡°Stay on guard, also anyone seen Greg?¡±


    Suddenly, Greg opened the door of his room, ¡°I¡¯m here,¡± he said. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re just trying toe up with a n,¡± she said. ¡°Good morning, by the way, have you been up long?¡±


    ¡°About an hour or so,¡± he replied. ¡°I was just trying to see if there was anything to find in this beehive of a ce.¡±


    ¡°And? Anything useful?¡± I asked.


    .....

 Chapter 89

    89 A Fine n


    Let me tell you this once, and only once. Okay, doesn¡¯t matter how much but let me tell you this. Don¡¯t ever expect the normal, the average, or the mediocre when you¡¯re with us. You will always find yourselves in extraordinary situations, and that¡¯s just one of the many reasons why we¡¯re here in the first ce.


    We¡¯re now being hunted by spy mages from an evil agency and the FBI although I have not heard from them for a while. Now, it was the next day after I was just woken up from my very painful slumber.


    Well, it wasn¡¯t painful since I was sleeping, but my body was in a lot of pain. I feel like I just got run over by a stampede of bulls, and that¡¯s not even the worst I felt. My team, September, Nikki, Tisiah, and Mchi with me have decided to calm down andy low.


    In case you forgot, we had a very explosive fight in the street with blown-up cars,sers being propelled at each other, and a lot of screaming.


    Not a good sound to hear, and it¡¯s something I would not want to experience ever again. We were inside this apartment in Florida, and it doesn¡¯t seem like anyone is going toe for us anytime soon.


    I¡¯m not sure if the people who were after us have given chase yet or not. But I¡¯m pretty sure Rocke has already given chase after us, and he¡¯s probably the only one we have to worry about.


    Rocke is a very powerful and dangerous man. He¡¯s ruthless, thinks he¡¯s clever, and always gets what he wants. No matter who or what is in his way, he will stop at nothing to get to us.


    Especially me, Connor. He wants me dead more than anything, and I don¡¯t know why.


    I¡¯ve never even met the guy before until that one mission to get the Armonk, and we¡¯ve been sworn enemies since then, always trying to kill each other.


    .....


    It¡¯s a miracle that I¡¯m still alive, and I have my team to thank for that. They always had my back, no matter what the case was.


    I was sitting in the living room, on a sofa that felt quite warm and fuzzy, with a nket over me. I was still in my clothes from before, and they were starting to feel quite itchy.


    But I didn¡¯t change, because my bones felt as if I was a hundred years old.


    The apartment was a typical Florida type, with a living room, kitchen, and bedroom. The flooring was white with a few stains on it. The sink was white with a few rust spots on it. The ceiling was light blue with several cracks in it. There was an aroma of coconuts in the air.


    As I turned around, I saw September walking toward me.


    ¡°Hey September,¡± she greeted, caressing her brown hair. ¡°You still okay?¡±


    ¡°I guess,¡± I muttered, sitting up and stretching my arms. ¡°What about you guys? Is everyone alright?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re all good,¡± Nikki said as she suddenly arrived. ¡°We¡¯re not exactly sure what to do right now though, so we¡¯re just kind of rxing.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± I said as I got up from the sofa. ¡°Well, we can-maybe do something fun while we¡¯re at it.¡±


    ¡°Thest time we did that, we nearly got killed,¡± Mchi said as he entered the room. ¡°Couldn¡¯t even meet anydies, and we had to save ourselves.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s right,¡± Tisiah said, following him. ¡°It wasn¡¯t exactly the greatest choice.¡±


    ¡°But after that, they would have to leave once that fight happened,¡± I said. ¡°Maybe we could try to use as much time here safe as possible to reevaluate the situation ande up with a better n.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not like we have anything else to do,¡± Nikki said. ¡°We¡¯re just kind of sitting here waiting for something to happen.¡±


    ¡°Exactly,¡± I said. ¡°So, let¡¯s try to make the best of it.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± Tisiah said, ¡°but we should be on our guard. We do not know when they wille for us again.¡±


    ¡°Tisiah¡¯s right,¡± September said. ¡°Stay on guard, also anyone seen Greg?¡±


    Suddenly, Greg opened the door of his room, ¡°I¡¯m here,¡± he said. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re just trying toe up with a n,¡± she said. ¡°Good morning, by the way, have you been up long?¡±


    ¡°About an hour or so,¡± he replied. ¡°I was just trying to see if there was anything to find in this beehive of a ce.¡±


    ¡°And? Anything useful?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Not really,¡± he said, ¡°just some old clothes and food that¡¯s been here for years.¡±


    ¡°Weird, well how about we go ahead and eat something, after its breakfast,¡± Mchi suggested, as all eyes immediately faced him with an angriness.


    ¡°What? I¡¯m just trying to be polite,¡± he said, holding his hands up in surrender.


    ¡°Yeah right, you¡¯re just trying to get us killed,¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°I am not!¡± he eximed. ¡°Why would I want that?¡±


    ¡°Maybe because you¡¯re an imbecile,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°Ouch, that hurts,¡± he said, clutching his heart. ¡°But you¡¯re probably right.¡±


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go ahead and find somewhere to eat then,¡± I said, trying to diffuse the situation. ¡°Mchi, you can go first.¡±


    ¡°Yes, let¡¯s go to Everdes Restaurant!¡± Mchi said as silence broke in. I nodded slowly, trying to not show my disappointment.


    The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, and it was clear that nobody wanted to go there.


    ¡°If that¡¯s what you want,¡± I said, trying to be optimistic.


    ¡°It is what everyone wants,¡± he said ¡°Trust me, that ce is good. And I mean good.¡± Now September nodded slowly, trying to not show disappointment.


    ¡°Okay,¡± she said, trying to be optimistic as well. ¡°If that¡¯s what you want.¡±


    ¡°It is,¡± he said.


    ¡°Fine, let¡¯s take our shower and get dressed up first, sheesh,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°Yes!!¡± Mchi shouted with joy, as he went back into his room.


    After we all got ready, we walked out the door and saw a beautiful day. The sun was shining as the fresh air, filled with the smell of salt water, hit our faces.


    ¡°This ce is amazing,¡± Greg said, taking in the scenery. ¡°Just beautiful.¡±


    Preview:


    When we arrived I found myself quite impressed with the exterior before we went in. The gold walls werepletely mesmerizing, and the restaurant looked very luxurious.


    ¡°Wow,¡± I said, my mouth agape. ¡°This looks amazing.¡±


    The restaurant¡¯s exterior was very luxurious and impressive. The gold walls were mesmerizing, and it looked like a very high-ss ce the thought of going in made me very excited.


    ¡°I know, right?¡± Mchi said, clearly pleased with himself. ¡°And it¡¯s even better on the inside.¡±


    As we walked in, I was not disappointed. The interior was just as luxurious as the exterior, if not more so. There were chandeliers everywhere, and the furniture looked like it was made of gold.


    ¡°This is incredible,¡± I said, my eyes wide. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen anything like this.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s pretty awesome,¡± Nikki said, looking around in awe. ¡°Where do you think we should sit?¡±


    ¡°How about over there?¡± Greg said, pointing to a table near the edge.


    We took a seat while Nikki and September went over to the cashier to start paying.


    ¡°So, when should we start moving?¡± Mchi asked. ¡°It¡¯s just us men right now, so we can say what we want.¡±


    ¡°I say tomorrow,¡± Greg said, ¡°We need to n this out first and make sure we have everything we need.¡±


    ¡°I agree,¡± I said. ¡°But we shouldn¡¯t stay here too long, it¡¯s only a matter of time before they suddenly arrive and st us into oblivion.¡± Mchi nodded, his face serious.


    ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± he said. ¡°So tomorrow, we move.¡±


    Then Nikki and September arrived. ¡°We¡¯ve decided that we¡¯re gonna leave tomorrow, just get this whole thing over with,¡± Tisiah said. September seemed disturbed by thatment, but Nikki just shrugged it off.


    ¡°We were literally just in a fight with the TSA and now you want to deal with that again. Look at what happened to you!¡± September shouted, pointing and me. I sighed, not wanting to remember what happened.


    ¡°It¡¯s not like we have a choice,¡± I said, my voice low. ¡°We need to get out of here. I want to go back home, and I¡¯m pretty sure we all do.¡±


    ¡°But how are we going to survive if we¡¯re constantly going to be hunted by fricking Rocke!¡± she argued, her voice getting louder.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said, ¡°but we¡¯ll find a way. We always do.¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t just rely on hope in these situations. Sometimes your brain needs to be in the mix for these situations,¡± September scolded, her arms crossed. ¡°If you want to get out of here alive, we¡¯re going to have to be a lot more careful from now on.¡±


    ¡°But being careful doesn¡¯t mean to be stuck in this hole, waiting for death,¡± Mchi said, his voice harsh. ¡°I¡¯d rather take my chances out there.¡±


    ¡°Chances Mchi, you¡¯re talking about chances! We¡¯re not ying some game here where if you roll a dice and it¡¯s a one you die, this is real-life Mchi. This is real life, and people are getting killed out there. We need to be smart about this, not rely on some dumb chance,¡± she said.


    ¡°I¡¯m not treating this like a game, I¡¯m treating it like my life,¡± Mchi said. ¡°And I¡¯m not going to hide in here like a little wimp.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s all you want. Big boy, power, big man,¡± September said in a mocking voice. ¡°You¡¯re just a big baby who wants to be the hero.¡±


    ¡°At least I want to save us, unlike you that cares only for your survival,¡± he shouted. ¡°We¡¯re leaving tomorrow and that¡¯s it! Nothing can convince me otherwise.¡±


    September stayed quiet, her face red with anger. Nikki put a hand on her shoulder and she reluctantly agreed.


    Then she stormed off in the other direction. This was bad, very bad. If we were going to get out of here alive, we¡¯re going to need to be united, not divided.


    I went after her, as she headed toward the bathroom. She went through the hall that led to the women¡¯s door, which would be a very bad thing. I don¡¯t want to seem like a weirdo or anything, but I need to talk to her.


    Quickly, I stopped her and she looked at me as if she had no energy to care, ¡°What?¡± she asked, her voice full of venom.

 Chapter 90

    90 A Little, But Very Heated Argument


    When we arrived I found myself quite impressed with the exterior before we went in. The gold walls werepletely mesmerizing, and the restaurant looked very luxurious.


    ¡°Wow,¡± I said, my mouth agape. ¡°This looks amazing.¡±


    The restaurant¡¯s exterior was very luxurious and impressive. The gold walls were mesmerizing, and it looked like a very high-ss ce the thought of going in made me very excited.


    ¡°I know, right?¡± Mchi said, clearly pleased with himself. ¡°And it¡¯s even better on the inside.¡±


    As we walked in, I was not disappointed. The interior was just as luxurious as the exterior, if not more so. There were chandeliers everywhere, and the furniture looked like it was made of gold.


    ¡°This is incredible,¡± I said, my eyes wide. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen anything like this.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s pretty awesome,¡± Nikki said, looking around in awe. ¡°Where do you think we should sit?¡±


    ¡°How about over there?¡± Greg said, pointing to a table near the edge.


    We took a seat while Nikki and September went over to the cashier to start paying.


    .....


    ¡°So, when should we start moving?¡± Mchi asked. ¡°It¡¯s just us men right now, so we can say what we want.¡±


    ¡°I say tomorrow,¡± Greg said, ¡°We need to n this out first and make sure we have everything we need.¡±


    ¡°I agree,¡± I said. ¡°But we shouldn¡¯t stay here too long, it¡¯s only a matter of time before they suddenly arrive and st us into oblivion.¡± Mchi nodded, his face serious.


    ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± he said. ¡°So tomorrow, we move.¡±


    Then Nikki and September arrived. ¡°We¡¯ve decided that we¡¯re gonna leave tomorrow, just get this whole thing over with,¡± Tisiah said. September seemed disturbed by thatment, but Nikki just shrugged it off.


    ¡°We were literally just in a fight with the TSA and now you want to deal with that again. Look at what happened to you!¡± September shouted, pointing and me. I sighed, not wanting to remember what happened.


    ¡°It¡¯s not like we have a choice,¡± I said, my voice low. ¡°We need to get out of here. I want to go back home, and I¡¯m pretty sure we all do.¡±


    ¡°But how are we going to survive if we¡¯re constantly going to be hunted by fricking Rocke!¡± she argued, her voice getting louder.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said, ¡°but we¡¯ll find a way. We always do.¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t just rely on hope in these situations. Sometimes your brain needs to be in the mix for these situations,¡± September scolded, her arms crossed. ¡°If you want to get out of here alive, we¡¯re going to have to be a lot more careful from now on.¡±


    ¡°But being careful doesn¡¯t mean to be stuck in this hole, waiting for death,¡± Mchi said, his voice harsh. ¡°I¡¯d rather take my chances out there.¡±


    ¡°Chances Mchi, you¡¯re talking about chances! We¡¯re not ying some game here where if you roll a dice and it¡¯s a one you die, this is real-life Mchi. This is real life, and people are getting killed out there. We need to be smart about this, not rely on some dumb chance,¡± she said.


    ¡°I¡¯m not treating this like a game, I¡¯m treating it like my life,¡± Mchi said. ¡°And I¡¯m not going to hide in here like a little wimp.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s all you want. Big boy, power, big man,¡± September said in a mocking voice. ¡°You¡¯re just a big baby who wants to be the hero.¡±


    ¡°At least I want to save us, unlike you that cares only for your survival,¡± he shouted. ¡°We¡¯re leaving tomorrow and that¡¯s it! Nothing can convince me otherwise.¡±


    September stayed quiet, her face red with anger. Nikki put a hand on her shoulder and she reluctantly agreed.


    Then she stormed off in the other direction. This was bad, very bad. If we were going to get out of here alive, we¡¯re going to need to be united, not divided.


    I went after her, as she headed toward the bathroom. She went through the hall that led to the women¡¯s door, which would be a very bad thing. I don¡¯t want to seem like a weirdo or anything, but I need to talk to her.


    Quickly, I stopped her and she looked at me as if she had no energy to care, ¡°What?¡± she asked, her voice full of venom.


    ¡°Listen, I know you¡¯re mad, and you have every right to be, I guess. But it¡¯s for the best, trust me. Why are you so worried about it anyways? Everything would go to normal,¡± I said, trying to reason with her.


    ¡°You don¡¯t get it, do you?¡± she asked, her voice getting louder. ¡°I want to keep everyone alive.¡±


    ¡°You weren¡¯t this worked up though,¡± I revealed, trying to get her to see reason.


    ¡°I know, but it¡¯s different now,¡± she admitted, her voice calmer. ¡°It¡¯s different.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s different about it,¡± I asked. I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s working, but at least she¡¯s not yelling.


    ¡°I just realized how short life is, and how easily it can be taken away,¡± she said.


    I wasn¡¯t sure whether tough or to sigh, but I just stood there, trying to figure out what to say.


    ¡°You¡¯re right, it is different now,¡± I finally said. ¡°But that¡¯s not the reason.¡±


    She chuckled, ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°I mean, the reason you¡¯re so worked up now is that you have something to lose, and it¡¯s not just all of us. It¡¯s about someone specific isn¡¯t it,¡± I said. ¡°Who?¡±


    September looked at me stiffly and then opened the door, going into the bathroom. I sighed, knowing that I won¡¯t be getting anything out of her now.


    I probably should¡¯ve just stayed in my seat, and minded my own business.


    But I¡¯m telling you, something is off and I can¡¯t put my finger on it.


    I just hope that whatever it is, it won¡¯t be the death of us. I returned to my seat, looking at Mchi¡¯s smirk. ¡°She probably escaped to the bathroom, didn¡¯t she,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°Like all wimps do.¡±


    ¡°What is your problem?¡± Nikki said, her voice full of anger. ¡°Can¡¯t you just leave her alone for once?¡±


    ¡°No one asked, Nikki,¡± Mchi returned, his voice just as harsh. ¡°No one asked at all.¡± Nikki also stayed quiet but she still seemed heated up with her face burning.


    This is not good, not good at all. If we don¡¯t find a way to get out of this soon, we¡¯re gonna be dead before the TSA even gets their hands on us. I looked at Tisiah, who was also looking at the situation with a worried expression.


    ¡°Thinking the same thing?¡± I whispered, to which he nodded.


    ¡°We need to do something about his,¡± he said, his voice low. ¡°But what?¡±


    I had no idea, but we need to think of something and fast. Otherwise, we¡¯re all cooked meat. ¡°Hey Mchi, how about you try and um, keep it less offensive this time?¡± Greg suggested, his voice surprisingly calm.


    ¡°No one asked you, nerd,¡± Mchi spat out, his eyes still on Nikki. ¡°No one asked anyone.¡±


    Greg wasn¡¯t burning in anger like the other two, but he seemed a bit startled. Mchi was going down in a spiral, and I didn¡¯t know how to stop it.


    ¡°Is there anything we can do?¡± Tisiah whispered to me, but I just shrugged.


    ¡°We need to stick together,¡± I said with a sigh. ¡°That¡¯s all we can do for now.¡±


    He nodded, understanding what I meant. I looked at Greg and he nodded, understanding as well. If we¡¯re gonna make it out of here alive, we need to be a team.


    Then September came back, her hair looking way worse than before. I don¡¯t know what she did and I don¡¯t think I want to know either.


    ¡°What took you so long?¡± Mchi asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm. September ignored, walking back to her seat.


    ¡°Are you feeling any better?¡± Nikki asked, her voice now gentle and full of concern. September simply nodded, and she sat down.


    ¡°Good to know,¡± Greg said. ¡°Good to know.¡±


    Mchi sighed.


    ¡°Okay, first thing in the morning we leave. Also Nikki, can you make us a fast sort of van so that we can move quickly out of here,¡± Tisiah asked, and Nikki nodded.


    ¡°Of course,¡± she said, her voice still gentle. ¡°I¡¯ll do my best.¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡± Tisiah said with a smile.


    Tension still filled the area, but at least we were making some progress.I just hope that it wouldn¡¯t be toote.


    Preview:


    We showed up back home after an exceptionally quiet dinner and I mean extremely quiet.


    The main sound that was made were the utensils nging on the tes and the biting of food.


    It was so abnormal, I wanted to slither out of my skin.


    We previously settled within the house, however I could see September, sitting on one of the kitchen counters, seeing her phone with a stressed artiction.


    ¡°Hey,¡± I said as I walked up to her. ¡°Anything to worry about?¡±


    ¡°About what?¡± she hastily returned, her voice a bit too high.


    ¡°Your phone,¡± I said, nodding towards it. ¡°You¡¯ve been looking at it for the past ten minutes.¡± ¡°And?¡± she responded, her voice still high.


    I sighed, knowing that I wasn¡¯t going to get anywhere with her. ¡°Fine,¡± I said, walking back. ¡°If you¡¯re mad at me, then I shouldn¡¯t really care.¡± She scoffed, and I heard her put her phone away.


    ¡°I¡¯m not mad at you,¡± she said, her voice now lower. ¡°But I¡¯m starting to.¡± I stayed silent, wondering what I did to deserve this.

 Chapter 91

    91 A Sudden Search


    We showed up back home after an exceptionally quiet dinner and I mean extremely quiet.


    The main sound that was made were the utensils nging on the tes and the biting of food.


    It was so abnormal, I wanted to slither out of my skin.


    We previously settled within the house, however I could see September, sitting on one of the kitchen counters, seeing her phone with a stressed artiction.


    ¡°Hey,¡± I said as I walked up to her. ¡°Anything to worry about?¡±


    ¡°About what?¡± she hastily returned, her voice a bit too high.


    ¡°Your phone,¡± I said, nodding towards it. ¡°You¡¯ve been looking at it for the past ten minutes.¡± ¡°And?¡± she responded, her voice still high.


    I sighed, knowing that I wasn¡¯t going to get anywhere with her. ¡°Fine,¡± I said, walking back. ¡°If you¡¯re mad at me, then I shouldn¡¯t really care.¡± She scoffed, and I heard her put her phone away.


    ¡°I¡¯m not mad at you,¡± she said, her voice now lower. ¡°But I¡¯m starting to.¡± I stayed silent, wondering what I did to deserve this.


    .....


    ¡°You¡¯re just so,¡± she trailed off, and I heard her sigh. Then, at that point, Mchi strolled in, extending his back. ¡°So what are we going to do meanwhile?¡± he asked, taking a gander at the two of us.


    ¡°I was just about to ask September,¡± I said, looking at him. He shrugged. ¡°Maybe we can find something on TV.¡± Greg then, at that point, strolled into the family room with the Cybertron holding the pieces. ¡°You know, we should use this,¡± Greg said. ¡°We¡¯re gonna need it.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s probably the best idea,¡± Mchi said. He took a seat on one of the chairs, and September followed suit.


    ¡°So we¡¯re just gonna sit here and do nothing?¡± she asked, crossing her arms. ¡°That¡¯s fine by me.¡± But then all of a sudden, we heard a knock at the door. And what I heard stopped me cold with fear.


    The knock came again, this time harder and more persistent.


    ¡°Who is it?¡± Mchi asked, his voiceced with fear. September was looking at the door with wide eyes, and Greg¡¯s face had drained of all color.


    ¡°FBI!¡± the person shouted, and we all froze. ¡°Hide!¡± Nikkimanded as we immediately rushed our separate ways. Where do I go, where do I hide?


    I nced around quickly, and tracked down the room before me. Perhaps on the off chance that I concealed under the bed, they wouldn¡¯t track down me.


    I immediately slithered under, heart beating in my chest. I could hear the entryway being busted open and weighty stridesing into the house.


    ¡°Where are they?¡± I heard one of the men say. ¡°We know they¡¯re here.¡±


    ¡°Separate!¡± another man yelled, and I heard strides hustling through the room and afterward out of it.


    Please don¡¯t let them find me, please don¡¯t let them find me.


    I heard footsteps getting increasingly close to the room I was in, and afterward they halted just beyond the entryway.


    The door handle turned, and the entryway squeaked open.


    ¡°Cassandra Nelson, FBI!¡± she shouted, and I froze. The person Rocke warned me about. Fear roze in my heart, and I had to fight the urge to scream.


    The footsteps came closer, until they stopped right next to the bed.


    ¡°I know you¡¯re in here,¡± she said, her voice cold. ¡°Come out now, or things are going to get ugly.¡±


    I stopped, not moving, not in any event, actually thinking about rxing my breath. Quietness kept on introducing serious areas of strength for itself, and I could hear her getting restless.


    ¡°Fine,¡± she said, and I heard her create some distance from the bed. ¡°Have it your way.¡± Out of nowhere, she started shooting out of control, and I needed to prevent myself from shouting.


    The projectiles tore through the sleeping cushion, and I felt one touch and grazed my arm. Torment and pain burned through my body, however I was unable to shout.


    I couldn¡¯t. I felt like crying, but the tears wouldn¡¯te.


    Please, somebody, anybody, help me.


    Out of nowhere, the shooting halted, and I heard her footsteps leaving the entryway. ¡°Actually take a look at this spot,¡± she said, her voice getting gentler and harder to hear. ¡°They must be here some ce.¡±


    The footsteps got increasingly soft until I was unable to hear her any longer. Be that as it may, presently arge number of footsteps were hurrying through the room, and I could hear them looking through everything.


    Please don¡¯t find me, please don¡¯t find me.


    ¡°I got something!¡± one of them yelled and I halted cold. Be that as it may, they never contacted the bed or anything, so perhaps he found something different.


    ¡°What is it?¡± another voice asked, and I heard footsteps drawing nearer to the bed once more.


    ¡°Nothing, perhaps I was-¡± then, at that point, he halted, and I heard him wheeze. ¡°Get the others in here now!¡± he yelled, and more footsteps hurried into the room.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± one of them asked.


    ¡°We have a dead body inside the sheets!¡± the man yelled, and my heart halted. No, no, no, this can¡¯t ur. This can¡¯t be happening. ¡°The individual body looks dead,¡± the man said. Presently disarray was hustling through my psyche and through my brain since I was almost certain I wasn¡¯t dead. Perhaps they were recently mixed up and mistaken.


    ¡°Check for a heartbeat!¡± another voice yelled.


    Who was dead?


    Who, on the off chance that not me, had they found?


    I heard them mishandling around for a couple of seconds, and afterward one of them said, ¡°The individual¡¯s dead.¡± I was so confused, with no thought about what was urring. Frankly, I was terrified. ¡°But, how?¡± one of them inquired. ¡°There¡¯s no blood.¡±


    ¡°Call an emergency vehicle, an ambnce!¡± another voice yelled. I heard the body being lifted up from the sheets, and afterward being put on the floor.


    ¡°What the-¡± I heard one of them wheeze and gasp, and afterward footsteps hurried out of the room. Dread kept on speeding through my heart, and I had no clue about what was happening. Then, at that point, I heard Mchi¡¯s voice go into the room.


    ¡°Connor, how about we move!¡± he yelled, and I heard footsteps running towards me.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± I asked as he snatched my arm and hauled me free from the bed. Nikki, September, Tisiah and Greg all went into the room.


    ¡°We really want to get away from here now,¡± September said.


    She opened the window, as Nikki quickly created adder. ¡°Come on,¡± September ordered, and we all began to climb down.


    When we got to the bottom, September looked at us and said, ¡°We need to find a ce to hide.¡± ¡°Maybe we don¡¯t need to hide, but perhaps just keep moving, how about that!¡± Mchi said, and we all began to run.


    As we were running, I couldn¡¯t help but to think about what had just happened. Who was dead? Will they trace it back to us? What would happen now?


    Quickly, Nikki made a vehicle which I believe was also a Genesis. Quickly, I hopped in the back seat with Nikki and Mchi, while September took the wheel. ¡°Go, go go!¡± Mchi shouted, and September hit the gas.


    I had never been so thankful to be alive in my life. As we were driving, I couldn¡¯t help but keep thinking about that. But it was probably best I didn¡¯t, so I tried to push it out of my mind.


    Even though, I still couldn¡¯t help but wonder...


    Who was dead?


    Preview:


    We were now on the road, with no absolute idea where we were even going. Perfect, just perfect. ¡°I think we need to find a ce to stay for the night,¡± Nikki said, and I nodded in agreement.


    ¡°But where?¡± Tisiah asked, and no one had an answer. ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure about the rest of you, but I¡¯m pretty tired,¡± Greg said.


    ¡°It¡¯s literally just 4 pm,¡± September said. ¡°Why would you even be tired?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean, ¡®why would you even be tired¡¯, who wouldn¡¯t?¡± Mchi argued, and I had to agree.


    We were now on the road, with no absolute idea where we were even going. Perfect, just perfect. ¡°I think we need to find a ce to stay for the night,¡± Nikki said, and I nodded in agreement.


    ¡°But where?¡± Tisiah asked, and no one had an answer. ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure about the rest of you, but I¡¯m pretty tired,¡± Greg said.


    ¡°It¡¯s literally just 4 pm,¡± September said. ¡°Why would you even be tired?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean, ¡®why would you even be tired¡¯, who wouldn¡¯t?¡± Mchi argued, and I had to agree.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not really tired,¡± Nikki said. ¡°I don¡¯t think any of us are, but we are stressed. We need to start leaving this ce.¡± We all nodded, and September began to drive again.


    After a few minutes, Nikki said, ¡°I think we should go to Canada.¡±


    ¡°Canada?¡± she asked.


    ¡°We can escape from the FBI there, although the TSA would still be following us. We can go to Russia from there without any disturbance hopefully,¡± Nikki said, and we all agreed.


    So, that¡¯s where we¡¯re headed now.


    To Canada.


    ***


    We drove for an hour, which I¡¯m quite positive we got nowhere, but it was still good to be on the road. We were making surprisingly good time, but our luck couldn¡¯tst forever. ¡°Hey, we need somewhere to stay for a bit,¡± Mchi said, ¡°I¡¯m getting a bit tired.¡±


    ¡°Thest time we did that, the FBI busted into our room,¡± September said, ¡°I think it¡¯s better if we just keep driving.¡±


    But immediately when she said that, a shing light shone behind me. I quickly turned around to see multiple headlights, that was following us. I couldn¡¯t see the body of the car and I wasn¡¯t sure how many there were, but it was enough to make my stomach drop.


    ¡°Uh, anyone sees this?¡± I asked, trying to stay calm.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± September said, her voice shaking, ¡°What do we do?¡±

 Chapter 92

    92 Night Find


    We were now on the road, with no absolute idea where we were even going. Perfect, just perfect. ¡°I think we need to find a ce to stay for the night,¡± Nikki said, and I nodded in agreement.


    ¡°But where?¡± Tisiah asked, and no one had an answer. ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure about the rest of you, but I¡¯m pretty tired,¡± Greg said.


    ¡°It¡¯s literally just 4 pm,¡± September said. ¡°Why would you even be tired?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean, ¡®why would you even be tired¡¯, who wouldn¡¯t?¡± Mchi argued, and I had to agree.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not really tired,¡± Nikki said. ¡°I don¡¯t think any of us are, but we are stressed. We need to start leaving this ce.¡± We all nodded, and September began to drive again.


    After a few minutes, Nikki said, ¡°I think we should go to Canada.¡±


    ¡°Canada?¡± she asked.


    ¡°We can escape from the FBI there, although the TSA would still be following us. We can go to Russia from there without any disturbance hopefully,¡± Nikki said, and we all agreed.


    So, that¡¯s where we¡¯re headed now.


    .....


    To Canada.


    ***


    We drove for an hour, which I¡¯m quite positive we got nowhere, but it was still good to be on the road. We were making surprisingly good time, but our luck couldn¡¯tst forever. ¡°Hey, we need somewhere to stay for a bit,¡± Mchi said, ¡°I¡¯m getting a bit tired.¡±


    ¡°Thest time we did that, the FBI busted into our room,¡± September said, ¡°I think it¡¯s better if we just keep driving.¡±


    But immediately when she said that, a shing light shone behind me. I quickly turned around to see multiple headlights, that was following us. I couldn¡¯t see the body of the car and I wasn¡¯t sure how many there were, but it was enough to make my stomach drop.


    ¡°Uh, anyone sees this?¡± I asked, trying to stay calm.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± September said, her voice shaking, ¡°What do we do?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± I said, trying to think of anything, but all we could do is drive.


    September turned the corner to a straight road, and soon enough it was all revealed to me.


    Dread jumped within my heart, and my hands shuddered in caution. I was unable to move, couldn¡¯t think, and could not attempt to reason what was urring. I was frightened. I was terrified. I was in a position of frightfulness. My eyes putplete focus on something that froze me, shook me, and stunned me.


    Five cars, with heads peeking out of them, followed us. And they had tasers, and other equipment that could bring us down in a second.


    ¡°What do we do?¡± Mchi said, his voice as panicked as a cat. September sighed, ¡°We drive.¡± She suddenly pushed on the pedal, and the car lurched forward. The wind howled as we drove faster and faster and it didn¡¯t feel like it was slowing down either.


    But it wasn¡¯t fast enough for those cars. They were going to catch up with us very soon. And even though we were moving as fast as we possibly could, we still had no hope against those vehicles behind us.


    We had to get somewhere fast. Anywhere fast. But where could we go? Where would it be safe? The only ce I knew for certain was Canada, but if we went there then it was inevitable we¡¯d be found by them again. But at least there we wouldn¡¯t be shot to death for sure.


    The other cars began to trail behind us, moving in on the sides and rear of our vehicle, but not trying to catch us yet. We all sat in silence in the backseat as we tried to figure out what to do. But we were so far from Canada, there was no way we were getting there in time before those other cars caught up to us.


    If we got rid of those vehicles, then we might have a chance to escape into the woods and try to hide from them somehow. But how could we get rid of them? I knew that if one of those vehicles had a gun on top of it that they might just start firing at us.


    ¡°Use your wands!¡± September said as Tisiah began getting his wand out. But as he did, his face melted into fear. ¡°Guys, it¡¯s not the FBI. It¡¯s the TSA, and more specifically, Rocke¡¯s men.¡± Fear rushed through my veins and my body stiffened with worry and anxiety. But the worst part was that there were too many of them for us to get rid of them all. They could just follow us until we ran out of energy and they could just pick us off like flies.


    Tisiah started shooting bolts at them at full speed, but they were so many and they were dodging them so easily that it was doing nothing. And as I turned around to see, the cars were starting to move in closer to us.


    ¡°They¡¯re going to surround us!¡± Mchi said, his voice full of terror. And he was right. The cars were starting to form a box-form-like structure. Terror shook the vehicle as we all realized that we were going to be captured.


    ¡°We have to do something!¡± September said, her voice full of desperation. But there was nothing we could do. We were surrounded and outnumbered. There was no way out. Fear shook my heart, and my mind was racing with thoughts of what was going to happen to us.


    They were going to kill us. There was no doubt about it.


    What could we do? What could we possibly do to get out of this situation alive? There was nothing. Absolutely nothing we could do.


    The only thing we could do was keep fighting, and wait for a miracle. But even miracles couldn¡¯t help us now. We were as good as dead.


    But then, Nikki did something, and I¡¯m still not entirely sure what she threw at them. It was a blur of ck, and it was going so fast I couldn¡¯t even see it. But whatever it was, it caught the men off guard and they were momentarily distracted.


    My heart brightened as I saw it, and my eyes widened with hope as I realized what it meant. Nikki had given us a chance. A chance to escape.


    And we took it.


    When it hit, the pursuing vehicle was pushed back at a high velocity, like at least fifty feet, and it hit another car head-on. The driver of that vehicle was killed instantly, and the other men were scrambling to get into formation.


    ¡°Keep shooting, keep doing what you¡¯re doing Nikki!¡± Tisiah shouted, as a feeling of bravery coursed through everyone and we all fought with newfound vigor.


    The other vehicles were trying to get back into ce, but we were already ahead of them and pulling away. September turned the corner, and we were now in an alleyway, heading towards the woods.


    ¡°What did you throw at them?¡± I asked Nikki, as September turned into another road. Nikki didn¡¯t answer but she looked at me with seriousness in her eyes that I hadn¡¯t seen before.


    ¡°It was a spell,¡± she said, finally. ¡°It was a spell.¡±


    No duh, Sherlock.


    But what kind of spell? And how did she know how to do it?


    ¡°I don¡¯t have time to exin,¡± she said. There were still three vehicles behind us strong, and they were still in hot pursuit.


    ¡°Well, make time,¡± I said. ¡°September, can you lose them?¡± But as I looked forward, I saw a roadblock of the same vehicles in front of us.


    ¡°Jump out!¡± Mchi shouted as we all jumped out of the car seconds before it crashed into the roadblock at high speed.


    The impact was massive, and the explosion sent debris flying in all ces. My bones felt destroyed, and I was sure that I had at least a few broken bones. But I didn¡¯t care. We were alive.


    For now, that was all that mattered.


    I slowly got up, as I looked at the others who seemed confused, and kind of shocked at the same time. Who knew a car could be so explosive, I guess we¡¯re just lucky.


    ¡°Come on,¡± Nikki said, as she started running towards the woods. ¡°We have to get out of here.¡±


    Preview:


    We were now in the thick of the woods, safe from the vehicles that were chasing us for now. We needed to find a way out of this city though, but where could we go?


    We were currently in the middle of nowhere. Nowhere! Not a single person around for miles. I didn¡¯t even see anyone anywhere near us for at least ten miles.


    ¡°Hey um, someone got the pieces?¡± Greg asked. Tisiah raised the pieces of the Cybertron and Greg noddingly said, ¡°Oh, nice work.¡± Then he gave us a thumbs up and walked away with his phone in his hand.


    I wondered what he was doing with it at this moment but didn¡¯t ask. He must¡¯ve been checking some social media or something.


    September said something into her watch, and the screen lit up and showed a map of the city with our location marked on it. We were right in the center of it, and there weren¡¯t any buildings close to us other than this warehouse. ¡°What¡¯s this ce?¡± I asked her.


    She put her finger on it and said, ¡°Abandoned warehouse.¡±


    ¡°What does that mean?¡± I asked her, not really knowing what she was talking about.


    ¡°Something I guess,¡± September returned. She then tapped on her watch again and said, ¡°I think we should head inside.¡±


    Nikki looked at her watch as well, and then looked back at us.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure about that,¡± Nikki fumbled with her words. ¡°It looks weird.¡± Mchi sighed, but I think he already knew that she wouldn¡¯t want to go into it.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me,¡± Mchi said, looking at Nikki with wide eyes and a disgusted face. ¡°You don¡¯t want to go inside? What¡¯s wrong with you?¡± He looked at her with shock and confusion, and his face became a mask of utter disbelief.

 Chapter 93

    93 Weird Wees


    We were now in the thick of the woods, safe from the vehicles that were chasing us for now. We needed to find a way out of this city though, but where could we go?


    We were currently in the middle of nowhere. Nowhere! Not a single person around for miles. I didn¡¯t even see anyone anywhere near us for at least ten miles.


    ¡°Hey um, someone got the pieces?¡± Greg asked. Tisiah raised the pieces of the Cybertron and Greg noddingly said, ¡°Oh, nice work.¡± Then he gave us a thumbs up and walked away with his phone in his hand.


    I wondered what he was doing with it at this moment but didn¡¯t ask. He must¡¯ve been checking some social media or something.


    September said something into her watch, and the screen lit up and showed a map of the city with our location marked on it. We were right in the center of it, and there weren¡¯t any buildings close to us other than this warehouse. ¡°What¡¯s this ce?¡± I asked her.


    She put her finger on it and said, ¡°Abandoned warehouse.¡±


    ¡°What does that mean?¡± I asked her, not really knowing what she was talking about.


    ¡°Something I guess,¡± September returned. She then tapped on her watch again and said, ¡°I think we should head inside.¡±


    Nikki looked at her watch as well, and then looked back at us.


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure about that,¡± Nikki fumbled with her words. ¡°It looks weird.¡± Mchi sighed, but I think he already knew that she wouldn¡¯t want to go into it.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me,¡± Mchi said, looking at Nikki with wide eyes and a disgusted face. ¡°You don¡¯t want to go inside? What¡¯s wrong with you?¡± He looked at her with shock and confusion, and his face became a mask of utter disbelief.


    ¡°Who would?¡± Nikki argued, ¡°Why would I go inside? I mean, we¡¯ve just seen a whole bunch of people trying to kill us. What makes you think they wouldn¡¯t be in here?¡±


    ¡°We would¡¯ve been dead already,¡± Mchi returned, but then he took a deep breath and sighed again before continuing. ¡°We wouldn¡¯t have made it here if we weren¡¯t so lucky,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯d prefer not to break that streak.¡±


    Nikki looked at him as if he was insane, but it seemed as if he wasn¡¯t going to budge. Then all of a sudden, agents rolled out from the trees like a wave of death, their guns raised and pointed directly at us.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move!¡± they shouted, but something was different.


    What¡¯s going on, what¡¯s going on? My heart started pounding like mad and my heart was racing with fear and anxiety. But then I looked at their vests, and that itself cleared up everything. ¡°Whoa, we¡¯re a part of the YMPA!¡± I shouted, as they all stopped moving and stared at me with surprise on their faces.


    Then suddenly a man with a suit and a tie stepped out from the crowd and. He was a little shorter than six with ck hair that was slicked back. He had a mustache that made him look like he had a walrus mustache, and he had ck sunsses on as well.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± he muttered thoughtfully, as his eyes focused on me for a few moments. Then he turned around, and gave a signal to the crowd behind him and they started walking back into the forest. ¡°Thank you,¡± I said breathlessly. I was scared to death, so I didn¡¯t know if he heard me or not.


    But then he turned back around to me and nodded his head slowly in greeting, as if he knew I could see him but I didn¡¯t say anything. My heart pulsated wildly in my chest as I watched him walk away and disappear back into the forest with the other agents.


    But then he stopped and said, ¡°Follow me please.¡±


    He had a weird voice, and it sounded almost like he was talking through a speaker instead of talking normally, but I was sure that that was just my imagination. I looked at September, who looked at me, then Nikki, who was staring at me like she had no idea what was going on or who I was talking about.


    We followed him through the thick trees that were surrounding the warehouse, and I could see that the inside of the building had been converted into some kind of living situation with bunk beds and couches that looked like they hadn¡¯t been used in years.


    The outside of the warehouse was quite... dingy, if I may use that word to describe it. There was graffiti everywhere and there were broken windows and boarded up doors everywhere that looked like they hadn¡¯t been used for years.


    ¡°What in the. . .¡± Nikki muttered under her breath.


    We all entered the building through a broken door, and we found ourselves standing on top of the metal staircase that went down into the basement. ¡°So where are we going exactly?¡± I asked, but the man said nothing at all. He just started walking down the staircase and motioned for us to follow him down into the basement where there were three rooms that were closed off with thick metal doors, each with an iron keypad and an old-fashioned key that was stuck in the padlock of the door.


    I wondered who had been locked up down here for all those years, but then I saw the names written in ink. ¡°Is this a prison?¡± Mchi asked, and then he chuckled darkly as he read through the names.


    Nikki looked at them too but she didn¡¯t say anything for a long moment and she just stared at the name that was on the second door. Then the man turned to us and gave a smile. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Captain Vance,¡± he said as he looked at each one of us in turn, as if memorizing our faces.


    ¡°You¡¯ve somehow, in some dastardly way, found our secret base. It¡¯s exactly finished, because we¡¯re still trying to figure out how to deal with our inte connection difficulties. But being that you are an ally of EMO, I¡¯d be more than happy to keep you guys here. If any problems are made with you, just tell me.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°You see, when any other person from EMOes, we treat you like students. The only difference is the sses you¡¯ll be taking which we¡¯ll see from your school history and we¡¯ll figure things out,¡± he said, still grinning.


    He then turned to September and said, ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°September,¡± she replied in a voice so low it sounded like it was being whispered from the bottom of her voice itself. He nodded. He made us introduce our names, but I¡¯ll spare you all of that because it was boring and really long. But he seemed to like our names anyway and gave us an even wider smile as he looked at us.


    Then, a girl walked by and my eyes widened like saucers when I saw her. It was a young girl who had short light-red hair and she had a ck shirt on with some sort of insignia on it that I didn¡¯t recognize. Her face was masterfully constructed so that she had a straight nose and sharp cheekbones with a straight jawline. She had her eyes half-closed and she seemed like she was either tired or bored but I couldn¡¯t tell which because she was walking so slow with her arms crossed behind her back.


    Her form was lithe and athletic with legs that were tanned and toned from swimming or something like that. I wondered if she had been training for sports like gymnastics or something because she seemed so agile and graceful in her movements.


    She walked up to Vance and gave a small salute with her hand to her forehead like she was a soldier or something.


    ¡°Thank you, um...guys, this is my partner and second inmand, Sergeant Yvonne,¡± Vance said, pointing his thumb to her as he introduced her to us.


    ¡°Is she like your age?¡± Greg asked, being that the man looked forty.


    ¡°No, in fact, she¡¯s about his age,¡± he said, pointing at me. Hope fluttered, and I thought it might burst from my chest at any second. But then again, Nikki and September also like me, so maybe they felt the same way?


    Then Vance continued to talk to Sergeant Yvonne, ¡°Yvonne, what¡¯s going on here?¡±


    Preview:


    ¡°Just a report,¡± she responded. Her voice was soft, and her tone was very low as well. It was hard to tell if she was tired or bored, but I figured it might have been thetter considering she was a soldier of some sorts.


    I could listen to it all day.


    ¡°Alright, we¡¯ll review it in my office. But for now, show them our underground base,¡± he said.


    I looked outside, seeing the mellow trees. Clearly doesn¡¯t look underground, unless there¡¯s another building inside of it. But it doesn¡¯t look like it¡¯s big enough to have another building inside of it either.


    ¡°Underground, sir?¡± I asked, but Vanceughed as he responded to me.

 Chapter 94

    94 Tour in the Underground


    ¡°Just a report,¡± she responded. Her voice was soft, and her tone was very low as well. It was hard to tell if she was tired or bored, but I figured it might have been thetter considering she was a soldier of some sorts.


    I could listen to it all day.


    ¡°Alright, we¡¯ll review it in my office. But for now, show them our underground base,¡± he said.


    I looked outside, seeing the mellow trees. Clearly doesn¡¯t look underground, unless there¡¯s another building inside of it. But it doesn¡¯t look like it¡¯s big enough to have another building inside of it either.


    ¡°Underground, sir?¡± I asked, but Vanceughed as he responded to me.


    ¡°You¡¯ll see soon enough,¡± he said as he winked at me, and then he turned to Sergeant Yvonne who was just staring at Mchi. ¡°Follow me,¡± she said, as she walked back the other way.


    As we did, we found ourselves heading to an elevator at the end of the hall. We walked in, and the smell of it was quite interesting. It smelled like pink lemonade or something of the sort, which wasn¡¯t bad at all because I really love that smell, especially mixed with some cologne or something like that.


    Don¡¯t call me weird. Don¡¯t you dare call me weird. I have every right to like it because it smells so good. And I¡¯m sure it does smell good, because the scent just lingers in my nose for hours afterwards. In fact, the cologne makes it better so don¡¯t say otherwise.


    Sergeant Yvonne punched a button on the elevator and we started to descend the elevator shaft which had a strange metallic sound to it that just echoed in the empty hallway. But once we were about halfway down, the elevator stopped and a man came out of a side room.


    .....


    He seemed like a student. He had a blue utility belt, which is usually yellow. But the ce looked almost identical to our YMPA hall, with stairs leading to different sections, and the bathroom to the side, and the cafeteria right by the bathroom, and the door to recess also at the same ce.


    Students galore moved through the halls, talking amongst themselves and eating their lunch or something like that, and we all took a step back as we watched them walk by inplete awe.


    Three girls that walked by looked at Mchi, and he shot one of those ¡®chad¡¯ looks at them. I sighed, because he looked just like an imbecile when he did that. But they just kept walking as if they didn¡¯t see him at all.


    ¡°You tried,¡± Greg said, patting him on the back but he didn¡¯t respond. Then he continued to talk as if nothing had happened, saying, ¡°Let¡¯s go in there.¡±


    He was pointing to the cafeteria, so we headed over there. Inside there were about fifty tables and chairs, all made from wood and iron with metal legs. There was no lunch being served, but the cafeteria was full to its highest.


    ¡°Yeah this basically the first floor of the new FMA school,¡± she said. ¡°Quite simr to yours I¡¯m sure.¡±


    Tisiah nodded, but she didn¡¯t respond otherwise. But then she took us to a room that had three different desks set up with three differentputers. ¡°This is where we work,¡± she said, pointing to all threeputers.


    The desks were made from metal and wood, and there were pictures of the earth and a satellite that looked like it was floating around. ¡°We track people on missions here,¡± she said, pointing to the pictures of earth and the satellite.


    I wondered who else was working here other than her because there were three other people working here too, but they were sitting on theirputers and reading some weird code or something, but they didn¡¯t even look up at us at all.


    Sergeant Yvonne walked past us, and then she went to a different room and opened it up to reveal a room full ofputers.


    My mistake I guess.


    ¡°Yeah, this is just another room full ofputers for the same thing,¡± she said, pointing to the three otherputers that were in a room that was about ten times bigger than ours.


    Theputer room looked like it was made from marble, and it was filled with dozens of different types ofputers. Desktops,ptops,books, all kinds of them were sitting here and there in different rows. The entire thing looked like aputer graveyard with oldputers that had been left behind just sitting there in the tables.


    ¡°Alright, let me lead you to our sses,¡± she said, with an exasperated sigh as she turned back to us. She led us out of theputer room and into the hallway where she started to talk again, saying, ¡°We have a variety of sses, and I mean variety, starting from general science sses that are taught by teachers who are no older than twenty-five years of age.¡± She paused for a moment.


    ¡°Why are you guys teaching science?¡± I asked.


    She chuckled, ¡°In case you didn¡¯t know, we are sort of the inventors. Therefore we teach science.¡±


    ¡°Ah,¡± Tisiah nodded as if she had just remembered something that she had been meaning to say but had forgotten for a moment.


    ¡°And as for our military ss,¡± she said as she took us back into another room that seemed quite far way. Mchi sputtered, ¡°You have a military ss?¡±


    ¡°Well I guess yeah,¡± she said. But then she continued to talk as if he wasn¡¯t even there, saying, ¡°We¡¯re more like soldiers than soldiers themselves.¡±


    ¡°Well what could be more soldier than soldier?¡± Greg asked. She chuckled, ¡°You¡¯d be surprised.¡±


    She then walked up the stairs as if she was in charge of us. The whole time she talked to us but not really, which was kind of strange. There were halls with about ten doors leading to different sses like biology or chemistry or some other stuff that I can¡¯t remember.


    ¡°These are our ss, and the doors inside of those lead to other ones,¡± Yvonne exined.


    I looked over them all and I noticed that some of them were marked with a green light and others had a red light. ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± she said with a smirk, as if she thought this would be funny, but I don¡¯t see the humor in this at all. ¡°It¡¯s actually meant for our teachers to see which ones are full of students and which ones aren¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Interesting,¡± I muttered as I walked into a ssroom that had about thirty desks and chairs set up in a circle.


    And I thought it was nice, until I noticed that there was a huge boulder that had a bunch of markings on it. Made the room feel off all of a sudden.


    I looked at Sergeant Yvonne who seemed like she wanted to say something but then stopped herself from it as she said instead, ¡°These are all empty desks.¡±


    ¡°Okay...and,¡± Nikki said, but then she trailed off, not knowing what to say.


    But then Greg said somethingpletely random, saying, ¡°I want to get an A.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not actually gonna be in these sses you know,¡± she said, pointing to Greg¡¯s head. Then she sighed, as if she was going to say something else but stopped herself once again. ¡°Yeah, so this is a new FMA base so...yeah.¡±


    She suddenly left us and moved downstairs towards another door. Then we walked up to the desks and sat down on them, but none of them were even close to beingfortable.


    ¡°Is this how sitting on one of these chairs feels?¡± Mchi muttered with his hands on his knees as he stared at his feet. He looked like a kid sitting at the principal¡¯s office, but I wasn¡¯t going to tell him that because he would be so mad.


    But it would be funny though.


    ¡°Okay, so how about we meet some new people,¡± September said, as if this was a good idea at all.


    ¡°But why are you smiling?¡± I asked her as she took a seat on one of the desks, and then she looked over to me. ¡°Well, it¡¯s new people.¡±


    I¡¯m an introvert, that is my worst nightmare. ¡°Uh, how about not,¡± I suggested, but Septemberughed and waved it away.


    ¡°Nah,¡± she said with augh as she looked up at the clock hanging on the wall which said five after nine. 9:05 for the people who are confused.


    Preview:


    After being shown our temporary rooms, we slept until the next day. My eyes fluttered as I began to wake up, noticing my body waspletely empty as if someone had removed all of my limbs except for one hand that was wrapped around my pillow. I sighed and then I opened my eyes.


    And there was Mchi staring back at me with those big puppy eyes of his. Fear struck inside my heart as I shrieked, ¡°Oh!¡± and then I leapt out of bed with a thud.


    But it wasn¡¯t loud enough for Mchi to hear it because he still didn¡¯t seem to notice me yet. He sat up and looked around the room with his hands on his chest and he said something in a sleepy voice that sounded like ¡°mmm.¡±


    After some time, I shouted, ¡°Over here!¡±


    He turned to my direction and yawned, as if he was too tired to even look at me or anything. But he turned to me and I noticed his eyes were bloodshot and his hair was sticking straight up like he was using a brush or something. ¡°Hey, uh just to let you know, Captain Vance wants us.¡±

 Chapter 95

    95 A Maistresse


    After being shown our temporary rooms, we slept until the next day. My eyes fluttered as I began to wake up, noticing my body waspletely empty as if someone had removed all of my limbs except for one hand that was wrapped around my pillow. I sighed and then I opened my eyes.


    And there was Mchi staring back at me with those big puppy eyes of his. Fear struck inside my heart as I shrieked, ¡°Oh!¡± and then I leapt out of bed with a thud.


    But it wasn¡¯t loud enough for Mchi to hear it because he still didn¡¯t seem to notice me yet. He sat up and looked around the room with his hands on his chest and he said something in a sleepy voice that sounded like ¡°mmm.¡±


    After some time, I shouted, ¡°Over here!¡±


    He turned to my direction and yawned, as if he was too tired to even look at me or anything. But he turned to me and I noticed his eyes were bloodshot and his hair was sticking straight up like he was using a brush or something. ¡°Hey, uh just to let you know, Captain Vance wants us.¡±


    ¡°Without being dressed?¡± I muttered in disbelief. You¡¯re gonna wake me up from my sleep and tell me to go somewhere without being dressed. This ce is different, but not better.


    ¡°Yeah, I guess,¡± he said, stretching his arms and back out before he stood up and yawned again. His hair fell down again and he grabbed it with his hand as if he werebing it back with his fingers, and then he left the room.


    ***


    We were led into this room, like some sort of gym but training ss at the same time. The ce had a huge mat on the ground with weights on top of it that looked like they weighed about a thousand pounds. It was just one big mess of weights and metal tes and ropes, all sorts of stuff you¡¯d need to learn to use in the army.


    .....


    A few people were already here and some were talking amongst themselves, while others were doing some stretches.


    But there was once space that was reserved for us, with this trainer there. She reminded me of Master Tiphe, but she seemed more forgiving.


    She had short ck hair that had a white streak right above her left eye and was wearing a pair of sunsses that were slightly tinted pink as well as a ck tracksuit that looked like it was made from rubber or something. ¡°So I see these are some new people correct?¡± she said, as I looked at Tisiah.


    He seemed excited, like real excited.


    ¡°Yes,¡± September responded, while she looked over at us. She then pointed at Tisiah as if she wanted to say something but couldn¡¯t find the words, and she said instead, ¡°He¡¯s our newest recruit.¡±


    Tisiah looked back at her in disbelief before he turned to us as if he wanted to say something else but then he decided against it, and instead he walked up to the mat as if he was going to stretch.


    ¡°Yes, all of you guys,e,¡± the trainer said. ¡°We can¡¯t train from miles away.¡± I gulped, but followed. You have no idea how nervous I am right now.


    She stretched her arms above her head before she twisted her body left and right. She then folded her arms behind her back and stretched out her legs before she bent over and touched her toes, looking back up at us. ¡°I¡¯m Daphne by the way,¡± she said before she motioned for us to sit on the floor, but she made it seem like it was normal for us to sit on the floor. ¡°But call me Maistresse.¡±


    ¡°W-wh-wh-what kind ofnguage is that?¡± Greg muttered.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You know, that¡¯s weird.¡±


    I shook my head in response to him. ¡°Must be French.¡±


    Maistresse nodded, ¡°That¡¯s right. And what do you call yourselves?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m Greg,¡± he said quickly.


    ¡°And you?¡± she asked, looking at me. I tried to speak but nothing came out of my mouth.


    She smirked, ¡°You are?¡± I nodded quickly. Sheughed loudly, ¡°Okay, good.¡± Confusion raced through my mind as I thought that she knew exactly who I was but then I remembered that she was from a different country and culture and stuff. Maybe she could figure out something from my movements or something.


    ¡°Okay, so what do you guys know?¡± Maistresse asked. We all looked at each other before September said, ¡°We know a lot of things.¡± She smiled at her own joke as she looked back at Maistresse. She chuckled. ¡°I¡¯d like to see.¡±


    Suddenly she took out her wand, and Greg shrieked in fear.


    ¡°All of you guys, against me,¡± she said with a smirk, while she raised her hand at us and started to chant words I¡¯ve never heard before. She started with Greg as she pointed her wand at him and shouted a bunch of words at him, but Greg wasn¡¯t affected.


    ¡°Uh, I¡¯m not sure what happened, did I miss something?¡± Greg asked. But then she swung her wand, hitting Greg square in the face and he was sent flying across the mat as he fell on the ground with a thud.


    He rolled onto his back as blood trickled down his nose from a cut that must have been made by her wand, which wasn¡¯t too bad. ¡°Now, as for the rest of you,¡± she said. She swung her wand at September, which she quickly ducked and the wand hit the mat next to her head.


    But it was when Tisiah was hit that I started to panic. I got my wand ready, preparing to block her attack. Quickly Maistresse lunged at me, but I was too fast. I blocked her attack with my wand, which made a loud bang as I struck hers, causing her to go flying backwards into the wall. ¡°Sorry!¡± I shouted in realization.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, it shows who has the most strength out of all you,¡± she said. All of a sudden, September¡¯s eyebrows lowered into anger and she walked up to me as if she wanted to fight me, but then Maistresse spoke up again.


    ¡°Wait, wait, wait,¡± Maistresse said as if she could sense September¡¯s anger and didn¡¯t want her to do anything dumb. ¡°Tisiah, you¡¯re up.¡±


    Tisiah nodded, and September touched my shoulder. ¡°You should¡¯ve beaten her up worse.¡±


    I gulped.


    Then Tisiah started to cast his spell as well as he did the same thing as September and cast another spell at Maistresse before she was able to react. He hit her right in the face with a st of wind and she flew backward through the air like a cannonball into the wall as well. But she wasn¡¯t done, because she fired a st of wind at his legs and Tisiah fell on his knees as he lost his bnce and fell on his behind.


    I gaped at this, because I thought it was pretty cool how Tisiah was able to block her attack like that, even if it didn¡¯t seem like it would be very effective. ¡°September,e now,¡± she said as she motioned for September toe towards her.


    September sighed before she walked over towards Maistresse, and then she raised her wand and cast her spell, which was a small burst of me that hit Maistresse¡¯s chest before Maistresse quickly kicked September in the face and knocked her down with ease.


    But September wasn¡¯t done, not yet.


    She pulled something tricky: a bomb from her pocket and threw it right at Maistresse, who quickly dodged it by moving her hand away from it, while also creating a shield that stopped the bomb from exploding.


    September stood up and smiled before she said with a smirk on her face, ¡°I¡¯m going to teach you a lesson.¡±


    Greg looked at her in shock. ¡°Where did she get that?!¡± he said with a gasp.


    Maistresse rolled her eyes, ¡°Where do you think?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not funny,¡± September said with a smirk. Maistresse sighed and grabbed her wand again as she started to cast a spell, but suddenly we were interrupted.


    Captain Vance was in there, and he seemed very amused.


    Preview:


    ¡°Wow, you guys are something else!¡± he said with augh as he walked over towards us, with his hair perfectlybed and his eyes bright. He looked at Tisiah as he walked past him, ¡°Not bad for a rookie.¡± He then walked over to September, and he looked over at her with a smile on his face.


    ¡°Such determination,¡± he said, as he went over to me and said, ¡°Such will.¡±


    Mchi stuttered, seeing we were gettingpliments from the captain himself, ¡°Watch this!¡± He sped towards Maistresse, who looked at him as if he was some kind of pest. He swung his wand at her while chanting some words at her, but she easily blocked his attack by using a shield that appeared out of nowhere as if it was made out of thin air. It probably was to be honest.


    He was reflected back into his own shield and then he ran back at her while swinging his wand again but she easily blocked it with the shield again, causing it to bounce back at him and hit him straight in the chest. He tumbled back and fell on the ground while gasping for air like he was choking.

 Chapter 96

    96 A Maistresse Lesson


    ¡°Wow, you guys are something else!¡± he said with augh as he walked over towards us, with his hair perfectlybed and his eyes bright. He looked at Tisiah as he walked past him, ¡°Not bad for a rookie.¡± He then walked over to September, and he looked over at her with a smile on his face.


    ¡°Such determination,¡± he said, as he went over to me and said, ¡°Such will.¡±


    Mchi stuttered, seeing we were gettingpliments from the captain himself, ¡°Watch this!¡± He sped towards Maistresse, who looked at him as if he was some kind of pest. He swung his wand at her while chanting some words at her, but she easily blocked his attack by using a shield that appeared out of nowhere as if it was made out of thin air. It probably was to be honest.


    He was reflected back into his own shield and then he ran back at her while swinging his wand again but she easily blocked it with the shield again, causing it to bounce back at him and hit him straight in the chest. He tumbled back and fell on the ground while gasping for air like he was choking.


    She quickly walked up to him before she pointed her wand at him and shouted a bunch of words at him but he just stood up and brushed his hair.


    ¡°What¡¯d you say?¡± Greg asked.


    She sighed. ¡°I was speaking French.¡±


    ¡°Oh, but what¡¯d you say though.¡±


    ¡°Nice try,¡± she said as she smiled at him. Then she pointed her wand at Greg and shouted more words at him before she hit him with another spell that sent him flying across the room like Tisiah did before. ¡°Ooh,¡± we muttered as he hit the ground.


    .....


    Captain Vance left the room, and Maistresse chuckled. ¡°Clearly some of you guys need more help than others.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, hopefully not me,¡± Mchi said, dusting himself off as he stood up, coughing and gasping for air like he had just run a mile or something. But then he looked at Maistresse with a smirk on his face. ¡°Better not.¡±


    ¡°Yes and no,¡± she said, looking back at us. She pointed her wand at us, and then suddenly she was standing on one side of us with her wand pointed at us as if she was ready to strike us down with her magic.


    ¡°Now, everyone needs to sit down,¡± she said. We all settled ourselves on the floor and stared at each other while she sat down as well, but I didn¡¯t think it was right for me to sit in front of her with my legs crossed so I sat with my legs crossed in front of me instead. Overthinking, yeah maybe.


    ¡°One thing we need to learn is about self-defense,¡± she said. September looked at her in confusion.


    Maistresse nodded. ¡°I know what you¡¯re thinking: you don¡¯t need to know self-defense because you have your wands. But, you always use your wands for offense only.¡±


    She paused for a second before she continued, ¡°I¡¯m not going to say that you should never use your wands for attack because they are useful in times of emergency but we need to learn how to block ourselves from other attackers. Yourck of self-defense may kill you someday.¡±


    Mchi looked unimpressed, but he didn¡¯t say anything else.


    I gulped as I thought about what she said, so I asked, ¡°Is there like a rule that states that we can¡¯t use our wands at all?¡±


    ¡°No, but some people take it into serious thought when ites to self offense. Your wands are almost incapable of doing so, but you should still use it thought for your offense,¡± she said, while she pointed her wand at me. I gasped.


    Sheughed, ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m talking about. Your wand strikes fear as well as a good weapon, but it¡¯s way too thin to be much of a helper. You need to exercise your body. Take hits.¡±


    Tisiah nodded in agreement before he said, ¡°Yeah, you should really take it seriously.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t see the point in it though,¡± September said with a sigh. ¡°You¡¯re still hurting yourself.¡± Maistresse returned, ¡°There is a difference between hurting yourself, and taking a hit.¡±


    Greg shrugged, ¡°I agree with September.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not that hard,¡± Mchi said with a shrug of his shoulders.


    But September shook her head slowly, while I could see Tisiah nod in agreement with Mchi as well. ¡°So, what are the ways to build your body to prevent those things?¡± Greg asked.


    She smiled. ¡°It¡¯s simple really.¡± She stood up and walked over to Greg and Tisiah, then she pointed her wand at them as if she was casting a spell. They both gasped as they looked up at her and they slowly stood up. I thought she was gonna destroy them to prove a point or something.


    She then pointed her wand towards the gym section, and Greg nodded in realization. ¡°Exercise, let your muscles build,¡± she said as she walked back over to us, ¡°And learn to block your enemy¡¯s attacks.¡± She looked over at Mchi and September and she sighed before she added, ¡°Learn to block the attacks of other people in general.¡±


    ¡°Alright...¡± I said, not sure what to say else.


    ¡°So today, you¡¯ll work on exercising. I will grade you based on how much effort you put in it,¡± she said with a smile as she walked back over to us, where she then proceeded to point her wand at September and then Greg. She raised her wand as if she was ready to strike them down. They both quickly stood up and started to follow her as she started to walk towards the gym section, which meant we had to follow them.


    We arrived, and there weren¡¯t many people which was quite a good thing. The three of us sat down on a row of mats near a pole as we waited for Maistresse to give us our orders. ¡°Alright, give me some sit-ups,¡± she said.


    We all sat down as Maistresse looked at us with a stern expression on her face. She was kind of scary to be honest, but we all did what she said as we started to do sit-ups. Iid down, taking a deep breath before starting. This was gonna be a long ss.


    ¡°This was harder than expected,¡± Mchi grunted, pushing himself up with his arms beforeying back down. I did my best not tough as he grunted again. You should¡¯ve seen the way he was moving though: his face was bright red as if he was running a marathon or something, and his body was shaking from his effort.


    Tell me that isn¡¯t funny.


    But I was no better myself; I was doing pretty badly because I was focusing on notughing. But then September spoke up from across the room, where she was doing her sit-ups as well:


    ¡°You should stop joking around,¡± September said with a strained voice as if she was in pain. I gulped when I heard that. These past few days September has been nothing but cross with me and now she¡¯s speaking to me in a cold tone, which doesn¡¯t really bode well for my heart right now.


    Maybe it¡¯s how she always is or something. Maybe it¡¯s the stress or something, I don¡¯t know but I felt a sharp pain in my heart and my stomach churned as if it wanted to rebel against me, and my breath became shaky. It felt as if I had asthma or something and it was going to kill me. I couldn¡¯t believe how quickly September had turned against me this past week...


    I¡¯m scared to think about how much she might hate me...


    My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest and I had to take a deep breath to try and focus myself. It was harder to exercise when thinking about all the bad things that have happened recently, but I managed to force myself to do my best.


    When we were done, Maistresse nodded as if she was satisfied with our performance, but we were too sore to even continue.


    Or at least I was. Greg looked energized like a little kid who had just won a game of ser, so he was the only one who didn¡¯t seem affected by his exercise. I gotta give it to him, he¡¯s not the most active person in ss but when ites to sports, he can do no wrong.


    Preview:


    After our training, lunch was announced. My heart leaped with joy as I walked through the door with my friends: Greg on my right, Tisiah on my left, September walking beside me as if nothing happenedst ss period. We walked inside and the ce was already full, which wasn¡¯t surprising because everyone wanted to have lunch as soon as possible since we didn¡¯t know when we would get another chance at it again.


    I mean, the ce was full. Mchi sighed as he looked around, looking rather displeased at the fact that he couldn¡¯t find a ce for us to sit. ¡°All these hungry fools can¡¯t even give us a ce to sit,¡± he scolded, looking over at us with an annoyed face on his face.


    I shook my head as I looked at him in disbelief. Then as I looked to the left, I saw a partially empty tableid out. ¡°Over there,¡± I pointed at the table with a smile on my face.

 Chapter 97

    97 A Little Lunch Problem


    After our training, lunch was announced. My heart leaped with joy as I walked through the door with my friends: Greg on my right, Tisiah on my left, September walking beside me as if nothing happenedst ss period. We walked inside and the ce was already full, which wasn¡¯t surprising because everyone wanted to have lunch as soon as possible since we didn¡¯t know when we would get another chance at it again.


    I mean, the ce was full. Mchi sighed as he looked around, looking rather displeased at the fact that he couldn¡¯t find a ce for us to sit. ¡°All these hungry fools can¡¯t even give us a ce to sit,¡± he scolded, looking over at us with an annoyed face on his face.


    I shook my head as I looked at him in disbelief. Then as I looked to the left, I saw a partially empty tableid out. ¡°Over there,¡± I pointed at the table with a smile on my face.


    We made our way over there and we all sat down at the table as we looked at each other and smiled, which meant we were back to our normal selves again. But then I heard some strange soundsing from the entrance and I turned around to see what it was.


    They weren¡¯t strange sounds, but more like screams from a group of boys, and a few girls viewing from the side. I¡¯m not sure if they were celebrating or fighting, but they seemed to be fighting...


    I looked back at the table where Greg was sitting and I noticed that he was looking towards the entrance with an annoyed look on his face. Then they shouted,ughing and shouting things like ¡®He¡¯s gonna kill him¡¯, ¡®I can¡¯t wait to see him die¡¯, ¡®I¡¯ll beat you up.¡¯


    Clearly they were jokes, but they were kind of bad jokes at that. They were being rude and immature, and dumb to add to that. ¡°Honestly, boys,¡± Nikki said, disregarding me, Mchi and Greg¡¯s presence, and not even acknowledging that we were there at all.


    ¡°Yeah...¡± I responded, keeping a bit quiet, while I noticed that September was looking at me with an expression on her face that could be described as pity or sympathy, but I¡¯m sure it was more than that, because it looked as if she was trying to say sorry about everything that had happened recently.


    Hope began to bloom inside of me again as I looked at September and Tisiah, who looked back at me with a confused look on their faces. ¡°What?¡± I asked after I saw their faces.


    .....


    They both shrugged as they looked at each other before September said, ¡°Nothing,¡± with a slightly amused voice in her tone. She then leaned forward and whispered something to Tisiah who then smiled and nodded in response before they both turned around and looked out into the hallway again.


    Then all of a sudden, the group of boys began to start walking towards us. I gulped, and I could feel my heart begin to pound faster inside of my chest as I thought about what was about to happen. What should I do? What should I do? What should I do?


    What was about to happen?


    I looked back at Mchi who had his arms folded on his chest with a frown on his face. I gulped as I saw the look in his eyes as they stared down at the boys who were walking towards us. I got a better look at them now. The man that seemed to be leading the back had blond hair, with dark brown eyes and freckles all over his face. He wore ck skinny jeans, ck sneakers with redces and a blue hoodie over a ck T-shirt with a skull on the front and the name ¡®Death¡¯ underneath the skull in white letters.


    I¡¯m already scared. The other guys behind him were wearing close to the same thing except one of them had brown hair and the other had green hair. And they had simr clothing. But it didn¡¯t really matter to me. They were all dangerous.


    My heart pounded in my chest like a drum as I watched theme closer and closer, while I got more and more nervous as they came.


    ¡°Hey, move out of our seat,¡± the guy in the lead ordered. None of us seemed intimidated except me and Greg, who seemed like he was trying to hold his breath as he looked up at the guy in fear. I¡¯m pretty sure he was soiling his pants.


    ¡°Were you guys here first?¡± she asked them as she looked at the two of them, while the guy in front was giving us a menacing look. His dark brown eyes glinted from under his bangs as they red down at us with an angry look on his face, and his jaw clenched in determination as if he was nning on killing us.


    ¡°No, but we wanna sit there,¡± he said, but then he stopped. ¡°Move.¡±


    ¡°How about not?¡±


    ¡°Listen here woman,¡± the man said, as shock rolled through our faces. ¡°I don¡¯t know how many times I gotta tell you to get out of our seat before I knock you out.¡±


    Gregughed as he shook his head in disbelief at the fact that this man was talking to September like she was some weak little girl, and he was probably right. Then Mchi stood up slowly, his arms still folded on his chest as he looked at the man with a look of disgust on his face.


    I gulped nervously as I saw Mchi slowly walk towards the man who was standing in front of us with a frown on his face. ¡°Okay, I wanna tell you this one time,¡± Mchi said. ¡°When we say we¡¯re staying, that means nothing is gonna move any of us from that seat.¡±


    The man looked at Mchi with no sort of fear, and then heughed as he took a few steps back before he sat down on the bench next to his friend with his legs crossed in front of him as if he was some big boss or something. ¡°That¡¯s what you think,¡± he said confidently with a grin on his face.


    Mchi didn¡¯t budge though. He kept on walking towards him as he continued to speak to him. ¡°We¡¯ll be here all day if we have too.¡±


    ¡°Fine, have it your way,¡± the guy said in an arrogant tone as he looked away from us and began to look around the area. But then, he quickly tried to throw a punch. But it never came as Mchi caught his hand before he could swing it in front of him.


    ¡°Hey,¡± Mchi said, holding the man¡¯s hand in midair as if he was holding it hostage, ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure you¡¯ll be in deep trouble if you hit me.¡±


    The guy looked at him, breathing heavily. He then kicked Mchi in the stomach but Mchi grabbed his leg and threw him off his feet as he fell over, which made a loud thud as hended on his backside with a gasp before he slowly got up and started to get ready for another attack.


    ¡°You can stop now, in case you don¡¯t know,¡± Mchi said with a chuckle. My eyes widened with shock as I saw the look of pure anger and hatred in the guy¡¯s eyes. All of a sudden, the guy got out his wand and suddenly, Mchi was sent flying backwards.


    He hit the wall with a loud thud before he slid down it with a grunt. I felt too scared to move or say anything as I just sat there in shock, my mouth still open wide like a goldfish. ¡°Now, as I said before, move,¡± the guy said with a menacing look on his face as he red down at us with anger on his face, ¡°or else,¡± he said as he started to stand up.


    September got up and we all followed, walking over to Mchi as he got up with a groan as we all stood around him with confused looks on our faces. ¡°You okay?¡± I asked him, worried about him after what happened just a few moments ago.


    He nodded his head and looked down at his bruised body as if it hurt him more than the rest of usbined. I wanted tofort him but I wasn¡¯t sure what to do for him after everything that had happened.


    ***


    An hour passed, and everyone was outside except for us. We got our food and we sat down, being the only ones by ourselves. The ce felt mellow, with music ying from the speakers that were hidden inside of the walls as if we were at a caf¨¦ or something. Mchi looked broken, sitting by himself with his elbows on the table and his face downcast as he stared at the food on his te without touching it.

 Chapter 98

    98 Decisions


    Concern filled my face as I looked at him with worry in my eyes. I didn¡¯t want him to be sad or anything after everything that had happened today, so I went and sat next to him before I said anything. ¡°Are you alright?¡± I asked him with a concerned expression on my face.


    He lifted his head from the te of food that he had in front of him, as he gave me a weak smile before he nodded his head. He then sighed deeply before he let out a smallugh. ¡°Yeah...¡± he said, and he let out anotherugh. ¡°It hurts though.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± I said softly as I reached out to touch his bruised face gently. His whole face seemed swollen as if he had a terrible ck eye, but he didn¡¯t look bad.


    September sighed in response as she shook her head with a worried look in her eyes, while she had her hands on her hips. ¡°Those guys were just fools,¡± she said with an annoyed tone in her voice. ¡°Fools, I tell you! They deserved that!¡±


    I looked at her with surprise as I tilted my head to the side with a confused look on my face as she continued. ¡°Deserved what?¡± I asked. September stuttered a bit as she looked at me before she sighed and muttered something under her breath. I sighed, but chuckled a bit.


    September was very worked up after everything that happened, so she was probably just overreacting. That was fine though because I felt the same way too, so she wasn¡¯t alone. I don¡¯t think they know we¡¯re from the YMPA.


    I chuckled lightly again before I shook my head and said, ¡°That¡¯s not true.¡± If they didn¡¯t know, howe they didn¡¯t question us on who we were or why we were here? It would be weird if they just knew everything about us without us telling them anything about ourselves.That¡¯s a stretch though. It doesn¡¯t really make sense if they just knew everything about us without us telling them anything about ourselves. Maybe they did, and they haven¡¯t revealed yet that they know who we are? It makes more sense that way.


    September shrugged her shoulders before she turned to look at me, as if she was going to say something.


    ¡°So, what do we do now?¡± Nikki asked suddenly as I could see a hint of worry in her eyes as well as Greg¡¯s and Mchi¡¯s faces.


    .....


    ¡°Just trying to find a way to get back to Russia, I¡¯m pretty sure the TSA boat is leaving by now,¡± Mchi said, sounding as if he had no emotion whatsoever. He was probably thinking about the fight that happened with those boys again.


    But right at that moment, I heard someone say, ¡°They won¡¯t be leaving until a week or so.¡±


    We turned around, seeing Captain Vance and Yvonne walking into the cafeteria. ¡°How did you get that information?¡± September asked, surprised.


    ¡°Well, after we checked your rooms, we saw something that was quite interesting to us,¡± Captain Vance said with an amused voice as he sat down in one of the empty tables next to us with Yvonne next to him as she looked around the room in confusion before she took out her phone. ¡°The Cybertron pieces.¡±


    Nervousness began to fill my face as I felt my heart begin to beat faster in my chest. ¡°It was something we were trying to prevent from being taken. At least I can confirm you all are actually from the YMPA so we feel safe enough to tell you now. One of our rogue agents, Dmitri Petrov decided to reveal our invention to the world. We believe he was trying to perhaps get rich off of it or something along those lines.¡±


    We were literally about to bring that robot to him and we almost brought it here for nothing. I looked at Mchi with fear in my eyes as he rubbed his temples with his eyes closed as he took deep breaths. ¡°So, do we just leave it to you guys?¡± I asked. Captain Vance shook his head. ¡°We need to destroy it, but Dmitri Petrov only has the thing to destroy it,¡± he said.


    Well that¡¯s just great, I thought sarcastically, feeling as if a giant weight was ced on my shoulders right about then. ¡°So, we need to start leaving soon?¡± September asked, sounding nervous.


    Yvonne and Captain Vance nodded their heads. ¡°I¡¯ll get a meeting set up for you guys with an agent that is going to be leaving tomorrow,¡± he said, and then Yvonne stood up with a confused look on her face as she took out her phone again. ¡°Is something wrong?¡± September asked.


    She shook her head, but she still seemed puzzled as if she didn¡¯t understand what she was seeing on her phone screen. ¡°Can we learn their name at least?¡± Mchi asked, looking around the cafeteria as if he was hoping for someone to walk through the doors at that moment.


    ¡°Might as well,¡± Yvonne said, putting away her phone. ¡°Her name is Vickie Cutter.¡± She nced at us with an amused look on her face before she continued, ¡°She¡¯s one of our best agents, so no need to worry.¡±


    ¡°Can we see a picture?¡± Nikki asked, with excitement burning inside of her. She had been so quiet throughout the entire conversation, which made me wonder if she was just as nervous as I was. I¡¯m pretty sure everyone is, but maybe not as much as I am.


    Yvonne took out her phone again and showed us a picture of Vickie, who looked like she was seventeen. She was a very mesmerizing one, with long dark hair that fell down her back and beautiful blue eyes with longshes. She had a perfect face that was covered by a pale-white skin tone.


    We all nodded our heads in approval and we were all starting to get more and more excited. Is everyone in the FMA pretty, cause I mean I might have to switch real quick.


    I¡¯m joking, of course, but that does make sense for this universe.


    Vickie looked at us and smiled at us before she put away her phone and then walked towards the entrance of the cafeteria as she nced around to see if anyone was there. But when she saw that nobody was in the cafeteria at that moment, she looked at us and left.


    Captain Vance nodded. ¡°We¡¯ll call you once Agent Vickiees back from a little mission.¡± He got up from his seat, followed by Yvonne as they left the cafeteria with their own guards behind them, and they both went upstairs into their office as we watched them go in silence.


    ¡°So...¡± I muttered. ¡°That¡¯s something.¡± Tisiah nodded his head as he agreed with me.


    ¡°I wonder what mission they¡¯re talking about,¡± Greg said with a curious look on his face as he looked at me and then at Tisiah.


    ***


    I sighed, once I plumped on my bed. This underground facility feels very enclosed and cramped. I never knew what it was like to live in such tight quarters before, but it doesn¡¯t seem like this is too bad of a thing to live here. But the sun would be nice to see again I guess.


    I got out of my bed and took out my wand and looked at it. I still have never majored in a power that I wanted to use with this wand, but I was still curious about them all. Ice would be nice. Or maybe some fire? Well I don¡¯t really know how fire works but I know ice is supposed to freeze things, which would be a good power to use.


    As I was contemting, I heard the door open, and it was Mchi.


    ¡°Hey Connor, Captain Vance wants us,¡± he said.


    We arrived at his office which was quite an interesting ce. It had a lot of fancy furniture that was worth a lot of money, so it didn¡¯t even surprise me that the room wasrge enough for Captain Vance and Yvonne to sit. There were red chairs that werefortable enough for people to rx in and a couch that was ck in colour with gold lines all over it.


    ¡°Nice,¡± Mchimented as he sat down on the couch. I followed suit as we were told to wait on a chair that was next to each other.


    Captain Vance then looked at us before he walked over to a bookshelf that was built into the wall next to him as he took out his phone and called someone. He put it back, and a few minutester, the same girl we saw before came into the room. She was probably 5¡¯6, which was not a bad size for a girl.


    Mchi was already tracking her from when he saw her picture on the phone screen, and he stared at her as if he was entranced by her presence. I could only scoff. ¡°This is Vickie Cutter, Vickie is Mchi and Connor, and the rest of them,¡± Captain Vance said with a smile on his face before he walked out of the room and left Vickie and us alone.

 Chapter 99

    99 The Pursuit of Fear


    When Vickie spoke, her voice sounded like the flowers that bloomed in springtime in a forest with its clear voice that could calm anyone that was around her at the moment. ¡°Hey, guys,¡± she said in a nervous voice. ¡°Just came back from a-¡±


    ¡°A little mission, we all know,¡± Mchi said. It almost felt as if we were investigating her or something like that, but we just came here to speak about the robot we would destroy. Vickie nodded her head in response to his statement before she sat down on one of the red chairs with her legs crossed. ¡°So, what do you guys need me for?¡±


    Mchi cleared his throat. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure you heard the news of that big incident some days right?¡± he asked with a serious face as he looked at her. Vickie nodded again as she folded her hands in front of her chest.


    ¡°We were unfortunately the causes of it I¡¯d guess I¡¯d prefer. We have this robot, well pieces of a robot, that this facility has thoroughly inspected. We need to take it back to the man named, Dmitri Petrov, or at least find him, which I believe you may pull up a photo of him perhaps if I¡¯m correct. Apparently, he only has the tool to destroy it from your captain¡¯s information. But, we are being actively hunted by the TSA and we need to hurry up and give this to him. Also, we have a bit of a personal thing to do while we¡¯re at it, and it¡¯s to retrieve our radios from the boat. We get that, we get back home,¡± Mchi exined. ¡°We can prevent chaos if you agree to help us.¡±


    Vickie sighed, sounding very reluctant about our request as she shook her head from side to side before she finally looked at us. ¡°That sounds very risky,¡± she said. Tisiah chuckled, ¡°An agent always goes for the risky stuff. That¡¯s what makes them the best agent.¡±


    She seemed stuck for words as if she didn¡¯t know what to say in response to that, but after a while, she got up from the chair and stood in front of us. ¡°Give me a day alright,¡± she said. All our faces plummeted downwards as we looked at each other.


    Mchi took a deep breath as if he was trying to calm himself down before he spoke up again. ¡°We will,¡± he said. She left the room with a proper walk that made me wonder if she had been taught how to walk properly when she first started her job as an agent.


    ¡°Well, we¡¯ll just have to wait a day I guess,¡± Greg said with an exasperated face as he rubbed the bridge of his nose with his fingers as he sat down on one of the chairs and crossed his legs before he stared at the wall in front of him.


    I didn¡¯t know how to feel about this whole situation as I looked around the office before I noticed the painting on the wall behind Captain Vance¡¯s chair. It looked like a school picture or something simr as I saw a young girl with brown hair that fell her back smiling at the camera with her eyes full of happiness as I stared at it.


    .....


    It looked like Vickie as she must have been when she was younger. The picture wasn¡¯t too old but it showed Vickie¡¯s features as it showed her face which was a little round but it was not an unattractive feature on her face as her skin was slightly tan colored.


    I could only sigh at this point as I knew that I had no choice but to wait until the next day.


    The sun began to lower down into the ground, and no its not the next day yet, calm down. It gave my room a certain light that made it seem like a cave rather than a room as the walls were covered in dark green and red paint that made the room look even more gloomy than it was before.


    If we had the privilege to change it, I would definitely have made it white or something that would brighten it up and make it feel less confined. But who knows, maybe I¡¯m just being overdramatic because I don¡¯t like this room that much to begin with. Then all of a sudden, I heard the door knock once again.


    Again? Who¡¯s knocking so many times?


    I went up to the door and opened it up to see Mchi standing there with his hands in his pockets as he stared at me. He looked nervous, very nervous, and he had bags under his eyes as if he had not slept in days. ¡°Hey, there¡¯s something you might want to see.¡±


    Quickly we headed towards the office once again, and Captain Vance and Yvonne were there, with a screen that showed the one face I never wanted to see. ¡°Rocke...¡± I muttered in fear. It was a video, which looking at the time was about a minute and thirty.


    Captain Vance yed it once again as we all watched it with our eyes wide open in horror as we heard Rocke¡¯s voice speaking to us. ¡°Hello, Connor,¡± he said with a chuckle in his voice. He was wearing a ck suit that was made of silk that made his body seem like it was glowing in the darkness of the video.


    ¡°How are you today? Are you still in Florida, maybe heading towards another area, or maybe even back at your YMPA?¡± he asked. My face moldened into a frown as I heard his voice, but I couldn¡¯t help but look at him as he smiled at me with his lips slightly curled up into a grin. ¡°Yeah, possibly,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°Or maybe, you¡¯re hiding with the FMA.¡±


    Our eyes widened at this statement, and Captain Vance stopped the video as he looked at us with a serious expression on his face. ¡°How does he know?¡± he asked.


    I could only stammer, but then he resumed ying. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure you¡¯re now shaking in your boots aren¡¯t you?¡± he chuckled again. I felt my heart beat faster as I tried to calm myself down, but I couldn¡¯t help but look at him with fear in my eyes. ¡°But I¡¯ll make a deal, and perhaps it may be for the best. Captain Vance, if you happen to be watching although this was hacked directly to your email, give me the Cybertron and I¡¯ll leave you alone.¡±


    Captain Vance seemed shocked by this statement, and he looked at me as if he was trying to figure out what was going on in my mind as he stared at me. ¡°Or, you don¡¯t and I kill every single one of your students, and you and their families will be the ones to watch.¡±


    Fear struck my heart as I looked at him with my mouth wide open. I didn¡¯t know what to do at this moment, and Captain Vance seemed just as shocked by this as well.


    Terror resembled in everyone¡¯s eyes as we all looked at each other before Captain Vance resumed ying the video again. ¡°Remember my deal, Captain Vance. Remember. I¡¯ll give it until the end of this week, just for my generosity.¡±


    Then the video ended.


    I was genuinely terrified at this moment, but Mchi seemed to be calmer than I was, but his expression looked as if he were in pain as if he had been punched in the stomach. Greg looked horrified as he looked at me, and then he turned to look at Captain Vance. ¡°We need to get you guys out of here soon,¡± he said. ¡°But we¡¯ll be here to assist you at any time.¡±


    ¡°Vickie needs to help us now,¡± Nikki said as she stood up from the couch she was sitting on. Greg and Mchi stood up from their seats as well. ¡°She needs to.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯ll take three days to start prepping the mission though,¡± Captain Vance said. ¡°For missions like these, we need to make sure that the higher-ups know about this.¡± Mchi sighed, and I could tell he was disappointed by this, but I understood where he wasing from as I was disappointed too. What if Rocke busts in here and kills us all?


    Stress was already beginning to affect me, and I knew it was affecting everyone else as well judging by how pale we all were looking. ¡°We can¡¯t leave Vickie a day,¡± Nikkiined, but I knew we would just have to wait until the following day.


    This is bad. This is very bad. I kept thinking about this over and over again. But it¡¯ll be okay, we¡¯ll all be alright...I hope. But there is so much going against us right now, especially when you add in Rocke¡¯s threat. We need to hurry up and prepare for the mission though, if we don¡¯t then we¡¯ll just be stuck here for ages. But what about Vickie though?


    I don¡¯t want anyone to die. Why does it have to take so long just to approve a mission? Why can¡¯t they just approve it right away? Maybe it¡¯s because they know we¡¯re in trouble or something like that? But that¡¯d even be more of a reason to let us out of this base already.


    In the YMPA, it usually takes one day or two to get approval for a mission unless it¡¯s really urgent, which was for me and my friends. Howe this is taking so long?


    I¡¯m beginning to wonder if it¡¯s because Rocke is making us go through all this trouble. Maybe they need to be careful or something? I don¡¯t know why they would need to be careful if we¡¯re just trying to help them out, but they could be making excuses so they don¡¯t have to lose their resources.


    I don¡¯t know, but it doesn¡¯t really matter right now since we have to do whatever they want us to do since Rocke has threatened us so much. Only time will tell.

 Chapter 100

    100 Lesson of Speed


    As the next day came, so did our training with Maistressee as well. She scares me. She is very scary because she has an intimidating stare that is hard to look away from, but she¡¯s also a lot older than me so that makes her somewhat eptable. As we walked in, something about the room changed. It was darker than usual, but not in a good way like it used to be before we had lights in there. She stood there with a smile on her face as she stared at us with her icy eyes as if she were examining us, and she could see us all naked. ¡°Hello, students,¡± she chuckled as we all stood there inplete shock at her behavior.


    We were all scared of her, but at least we knew that she wasn¡¯t a monster like Rocke was. Rocke was scary; there is no doubt about that, but at least he was honest with his intentions whereas Maistresse doesn¡¯t seem to have any real intentions as she just smiles, and smiles, and smiles, and smiles, and smiles, and smiles, and smiles.


    It¡¯s as if she has no emotion or feelings in her at all. She doesn¡¯t seem like a person at all, but an emotionless machine that just needs to exist for whatever reason it has for, which in this case is to train us, although I think she has other reasons for existing than that.


    We all waved slowly as she gave us a nod in return before she spoke once again. ¡°So, today we¡¯ll probably go back to our exercising strategy soon, but first I¡¯ll test your strength with your speed.¡±


    ¡°How?¡± Greg asked as he crossed his arms in front of his chest. ¡°You¡¯ll see,¡± she responded. Suddenly, she charged at him with her wand in hand as he jumped out of the way and got out of the way before she hit the wall behind him and made a loud clunking sound as we all groaned.


    She then turned around with no sort of bruises on her body or anything. The only thing that was changed was her hair was slightly disheveled as if it was blown about in the wind by a strong force. ¡°Okay, so you can dodge,¡± she nodded. ¡°You¡¯re pretty quick for a human.¡±


    I frowned as she said this. But all of a sudden she charged in September who jumped out of the way quickly with no hesitation as she got out of the way and made it clear that she could dodge her attacks if she wanted to. In fact, if I remember correctly, I believe September can actually dodge every attack Maistresse can throw at her with little to no problem as she can actually move so fast that Maistresse would never be able to hit her with anything at all.


    But all of a sudden Maistresse began to change her strategy a bit. Now instead of charging towards us with her wand out, she would just wave her wand around in front of herself and then suddenly move her arm forward with her palm facing outwards. We all stood there in silence as we watched her do this before suddenly a gust of wind blew in September who was standing in front of Maistresse as she began to fall down onto the ground.


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised,¡± Maitresse chuckled. She turned towards Greg as he got out of the way of the falling September who got up again with a grin on her face as she saw everyone watching her. ¡°What?¡± September asked. Maistresse chuckled once more. ¡°I thought you¡¯d predict my move,¡± she replied. ¡°I guess not.¡±


    .....


    ¡°I guess not??¡± September hissed as she red at Maistresse before looking at Greg again as he got out of the way of her next move where she used her wand to shoot a ball of fire at her. But Maistresse dodged it easily and made a big puff of smokee out from behind her as sheughed.


    ¡°Alright, enough of you. Mchi, you and Tisiah, all at once, attack me now,¡± she said. We nodded, although I felt weird about it, and we charged. Mchi swung his wand at Maistresse but she dodged it, but Tisiah was unable to do anything as he was pushed back by a gust of wind before falling down onto the ground. I needed to do something now, or I was going to look like a fool, and I didn¡¯t want to look like a fool right now because I would die in a second if I didn¡¯t do anything.


    I quickly charged up my Perk before I moved out of the way as Maistresse moved around me. Then I swung my fist towards her with as much force that I should muster, and I punched her in the stomach with my left hand while still holding my wand in my right.


    Maistresse fell to her knees as she coughed up a little bit of blood as she got up. ¡°Nice,¡± she said with augh in her voice as she stared at me with her cold eyes, ¡°but it doesn¡¯t do much.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked with a frown.


    Maistresse looked at me as if she were studying me before she began to speak. ¡°You think about power but not even the speed enough to use it properly,¡± she said with a sigh. I was shocked by this statement since I thought I knew my powers better than anyone else and I knew I could make good use of it. How would she know?


    I felt a bit angry at this statement, but I held my tongue as well as I stared at her with my arms crossed in front of me while I kept my mouth closed. She chuckled and got up, wiping her lips with a handkerchief from her pocket before she put it back in her pocket and continued walking in front of us again.


    ¡°Today, we¡¯ll go on the treadmills,¡± she said. ¡°You guys need to work on your speed and dodging, and not only those, but preparing for which attack they¡¯ll use.¡± I sighed and looked over at Nikki as she nodded with her mouth open, and then she looked back at Maistresse as if she were in awe of her.


    We went into the gym section, where there were five treadmills lined up against each other with some weights hanging above them as well as some weights lying on the ground as well as some free weights on the side.


    ¡°Get to it,¡± Maitresse said as she walked towards a chair and sat. I turned on the treadmills and looked at September, who did the same. I sighed. Was she still mad at me? She still seemed mad at me, but maybe that was just because she wanted to keep everyone in their ce and make sure everyone knows who¡¯s in charge here. Or maybe Mchi was the problem here?


    I heard footstepse towards us, and then a few minutester Greg walked towards us and smiled as he took off his shoes.


    ¡°Helps run faster,¡± he said.


    I winced a bit, ¡°Aren¡¯t you just gonna slip and fall?¡± He shook his head and replied, ¡°Nope, I¡¯ll be fine.¡± He walked over to one of the treadmills and started walking on it as he spoke. ¡°I do this all the time back home.¡± I shrugged worriedly as I saw him start running on it and going very fast before he stopped after only a few seconds and jumped off the machine onto the floor with a thud before walking towards us.


    ¡°Yeah, just like that,¡± he said with augh as he wiped the sweat from his brow with a towel he got from one of the machines before he sat on one of the chairs and put on his shoes. I chuckled and began running on the treadmill myself as Greg watched me with a smile on his face.


    I could feel the burn in my muscles and knew that this was going to help me train faster than normal so it wouldn¡¯t hurt so muchter on, but then September started running next to me as well with a smile on her face as she nced over at me and then started to sigh.


    Uh, is something wrong? Why is she sighing at me? What is she not happy about?


    Preview:


    She started running on her treadmill and she was really fast too, but she was going slower than usual though. ¡°Hey, uh Connor,¡± she said as I looked over at her.


    I looked at her with confusion on my face as she ran beside me for a moment before I could understand what she was saying. ¡°Don¡¯t tell Nikki this okay?¡±


    Oh no, oh no, oh no, what is she talking about now?


    She looked over at Greg who was watching us from the side as I slowed down my pace a bit to let her talk. September looked quickly to the right, seeing Nikki on the other side of the little group of treadmills. Then she turned back to me.

 Chapter 101

    101 Reveal


    She began running on her treadmill and she was super quick as well, however she was going more slow than expected. ¡°Hello, uh Connor,¡± she said as I investigated at her.


    I viewed at her with disarray all over as she ran close to me briefly before I couldprehend what she was talking about. ¡°Try not to let Nikki know this alright?¡±


    Good gracious, God help us, good gracious, what is she referring to now?


    She investigated at Greg who was watching us from the side as I dialed back my speed a piece to let her discussion. September looked rapidly to one side, seeing Nikki on the opposite side of the little gathering of treadmills. Then, at that point, she turned around to me. ¡°I know that Nikki likes you,¡± September said with a guileful grin all over.


    Uh, what?! She knows?!


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked with a disapprove of my face as I felt my face getting hot. September murmured. ¡°Don¡¯t bother concealing Connor,¡± she said with a grimace.


    I¡¯m so humiliated at the present time. ¡°OK, so what might be said about it?¡± I asked, attempting to figure out how to switch up the conversation before it deteriorates. ¡°All things considered, I know that we currently like one another, however I don¡¯t know which one you¡¯re not kidding.¡±


    I ended up cornered into responding to her, so I answered with a smile all over. ¡°I like both of you,¡± I said with a smile all over. September murmured and shook her head as I halted my treadmill and checked out at her with a confounded demeanor all over.


    ¡°Continue onward!¡± Maistresse hollered, viewing at me as though she were going to kill me at the present time. I immediately fired up the treadmill again while I escaped breath and got once more into a run once more. ¡°I don¡¯t know OK,¡± I told September who was all the while checking out at me with a disapprove of her face. September murmured and shook her head once more.


    .....


    I escaped breath briefly before I got once again into a sudden spike in demand for the treadmill once more. September was all the while taking a gander at me with a disapprove of her face before she at longst quit taking a gander at me and looked ahead. I had an entirely awkward outlook on this present circumstance since it was very off-kilter at the present time. I investigated at September and saw her taking a gander at me from the side and afterward she immediately turned away.


    Yet again time psed, and lunch happened upon us. I was apprehensive thest time that we went to lunch, Mchi got bodied. To the surprise of no one, the spot was brimming with individuals andmotion that made it difficult so that me might be able to hear what they were talking about or thinking about, so it was difficult so that me could hear anything around me. We got our lunch, and really tracked down a seat to sit today.


    Some way or another.


    ¡°Fortunately this time we now have our own seat,¡± September said as we strolled towards it while every other person continued to stroll towards their seats. She snickered a little, yet all the same not generally so much to the surprise of no one. We sat down, as I checked the cafeteria out. I never carved out opportunity to really make sense of what it was like. The break room was tremendous, nearly asrge as the exercise center. It had lots of tables, seats, and a wide range of various food on each table. It had a dark floor and walls that were painted dark with numerous works of art on them. I could see a fewpositions of renowned fights from the past on the wall as well as certain works of art of individuals aplishing something courageous, for example, an individual with a de fending off a few dull animals as they fell back onto the floor.


    The tables were various varieties and shapes, however every one of them had various types of food on them. There were treats that were molded like stars and moons as well as some that were formed like pies and cakes with bunches of various sorts of natural products inside them. This appeared to be more simr to a childcare than a government operative academy.


    ¡°Their food isn¡¯t terrible,¡± Tisiah expressed from behind me as I heard the smash of food on a te, however it didn¡¯t seem like it came from one of different understudies at the table close to our own. It seemed like behind us.


    I pivoted, and my body shook. It was that person with hispanions behind us, however I was unable to see their countenances from behind our table since it was excessively high up. ¡°Hello, you,¡± he said, pping his hand onto Mchi¡¯s shoulder while he took a gander at him with an underhanded smile all over that made me shudder.


    ¡°Could I at any point help you?¡± Mchi asked with an irritated appearance all over as he pivoted to confront the person who was remaining close to him. The person didn¡¯t appear to be entertained.


    ¡°Yeah, can you?¡± He snickered and put his arm around Mchi¡¯s shoulder and put his face near Mchi¡¯s ear and murmured something in his ear. ¡°Yeah, could you get off this seat?¡±


    Out of nowhere, September¡¯s face copsed into outrage as she gazed straight toward them. ¡°OK I maintain that you should pay attention to me intently okay? I¡¯ll just say this once,¡± September said with a furious appearance all over as she stood up before them and looked at them straight in the eye, ¡°on the off chance that you at any point contact him once more, I¡¯ll ensure that you think twice about it until the end of your life. We stayed here first, so we have need at the present time.¡±


    She put down while they took a gander at one another in treat briefly before the two of themughed uncontrobly. ¡°Who does thisdy think she is?¡± the personughed, pping Mchi¡¯s shoulder again as he headed back in the other direction and confronted the front of the cafeteria.


    I was flying off the handle myself, however dread actually stimted me. Be that as it may, I ought not be apprehensive, this isn¡¯t my battle, however I felt like it was some way or another. They have an issue? We should make an issue then, at that point, on the spot. I stood up and gazed them squarely in front of them.


    I heard them wheeze as I took a gander at them with a threatening re in my eyes that felt like it could char them. ¡°Create some distance from our table,¡± I said, as frightening as I could make myself sound while my voice reverberated all through the cafeteria. The fellow and hispanions looked stunned briefly before they generally leisurely created some distance from us, investigating their shoulder at me.


    ¡°Alright fine, we¡¯ll let you be. Be that as it may, this isn¡¯t finished, alright?¡± the person said before they generally convoluted and left. I murmured with alleviation and put down. Goodness, that was extraordinary.


    ¡°Connor, what are you doing?¡± September asked, taking a gander at me with her eyes wide as she held her hands over her mouth in shock. ¡°Going to bat for him,¡± I expressed, checking Mchi out. He didn¡¯t look excessively cheerful, however he nodded ordingly and afterward nced back at me with an irritated look all over as he feigned exacerbation at me.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine all alone,¡± he said, however I saw that he was still a piece furious with me from when he put down. That shouldn¡¯t have happen by the same token. What did I foul up, what did I say wrong? Perhaps on the off chance that I offered something else, he would¡¯ve felt different towards me.


    I felt like there was something that I had missed here and I would have rather not exacerbated this than it was at that point, so I just chose to remain silent. Then, at that point, out of nowhere, I saw Vickie stroll towards us, and she saw us as well. She immediately came up to our table and grinned at us.


    ¡°Hello folks,¡± she said. ¡°Now being the condition of our organization, I feel we ought to know one another. I definitely know your names, and I¡¯m all almost certain you know mine.¡±


    Nikki nodded, as energy went through her face, and she admired Vickie enthusiastically.


    Vickie smiled at Nikki as she said, ¡°So for what reason don¡¯t we get going by getting to know our characteristics, characters, something like that.¡±


    I recently started to understand how coordinated this spot is, yet I surmise that appears to be legit. There are lots of activities here and on the off chance that we as a whole don¡¯t have the foggiest idea what to do then, at that point, we¡¯ll have issuester on when we really start.


    ¡°All things considered, simply don¡¯t mess up,¡± Mchi expressed, putting down with his arms crossed before him and a disapprove of his face as he checked out at Vickie with inconvenience. ¡°Simply don¡¯t.¡±


    Simply that by itself nearly appeared to stop the inviting inclination, however at that point it began again by and by. Perhaps this was the perfect locations for me.

 Chapter 102

    102 Tennis Amok


    Vickieughed as she said, ¡°Well, if that¡¯s your answer then we¡¯ll go with it I guess.¡± September chuckled with her as well, and we allughed together for a moment before we got back into our conversation again. ¡°Yeah just don¡¯t mess up,¡± Mchi said, still looking annoyed as he took another bite of food while looking up at the ceiling and sighing deeply. I think after that fight with the boysst time, he¡¯s been very protective of his reputation and not wanting to do anything that will bring him bad publicity.


    ¡°I guess so,¡± September said in agreement before looking at me with a smile on her face. ¡°I¡¯m usually the leader of this group, being that I have the most experience in these missions.¡±


    ¡°How old are you?¡± Vickie asked.


    ¡°Eighteen, soon to graduate,¡± September said proudly.


    Nikkiughed a bit before she said, ¡°I¡¯m sixteen. Clearly I¡¯m too young.¡±


    ¡°Same for me,¡± I said.


    Vickie nodded and looked over at me, smiling before she looked back at September with a smile on her face. ¡°You¡¯ll get there soon,¡± she said, turning back to Nikki and smiling at her too before looking back at September. ¡°I¡¯m fifteen too.¡±


    ¡°I thought you were seventeen,¡± I said.


    ¡°No,¡± Vickie said with a chuckle as she shook her head, ¡°I¡¯m only fifteen.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Oh, my mistake,¡± I chuckled.


    Vickie nodded in agreement as she looked back over to September with a smile on her face. ¡°Wanna y some tennis?¡± she asked Nikki and September while looking at September first.


    September smiled back at her as she looked at me, and I smiled back at her while nodding in response as I thought, When did they have tennis? The YMPA has everything else except tennis.


    I¡¯m not good at it though, I think I¡¯ll just watch them for now.


    Nikki nodded her head as she said, ¡°Yeah that¡¯d be great.¡± Vickie nodded her head as she said, ¡°Okay let¡¯s go get some rackets and meet in the courts in five minutes.¡± Everyone nodded, except for Mchi who kept eating his food until finally he took a bite of food and chewed it before saying, ¡°Yeah fine.¡±


    ***


    We were led outside, and not the outside outside, but outside of the building, and there were certain paths and ces to go through. It¡¯s so much to describe, like there were sections where there were fountains, statues, ponds and more. And there were other sections where it was just trees and grass, and even a section where there were flowers everywhere. There were different types of trees and bushes, and all sorts of nts.


    I looked around at everything, and I was amazed that there was this kind of ce here. The walls were made of stone and there were different statues ced every now and then.


    It¡¯s like we were outside a big park or something. Then we walked up to a door that had a sign above it that read ¡°Courts¡± and opened it up to walk inside. It was a big room, with all the different kinds of equipment that one would need in tennis all over the ce.


    ¡°Wow,¡± I muttered in awe as I walked around the room to see all the equipment that was used for tennis and all sorts of sports. There were tennis rackets, different kinds of balls, and even a table tennis table with all different kinds of rackets on it for everyone to use.


    Vickie saw me standing there in shock with my mouth hanging open in amazement as she smiled at me while saying, ¡°This is our court gym, where we do tournaments like basketball, ser, football, tennis, badminton, all the good stuff.¡± September nodded her head as she said, ¡°Yep that¡¯s right.¡±


    We walked over to where we had to use the different rackets, and there were different ones that were all different colors with different numbers on them that were different colors as well. This ce was very hard on detail. Vicki grabbed a racket and began twisting it into my hand as she said, ¡°Here you go.¡± I took it in my hand and looked at it in wonder before she continued talking.


    But then I interrupted, ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m gonna...¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll be fine,¡± Nikki said. ¡°Have fun for once.¡± I chuckled a bit before shaking my head as I looked back at Vickie as she said, ¡°Come on it¡¯s a lot of fun.¡± I sighed, ¡°Fine, but don¡¯t start yelling at me when we lose.¡±


    September chuckled. Me, September, Greg and Nikki were going against Mchi, Vicki and Tisiah. Mchi was already giving me the death look and I gulped.


    September tossed the ball into the air, then hit it as she said, ¡°Ready?¡±


    I nodded my head as I took the racket from her. Vickie did the same and looked at me with a smile on her face before she threw the ball in the air and served it, as the ball raced towards our side. Quickly Greg rushed in front of me and tried to block the ball with his racket as he said, ¡°Come on!¡±


    But it was no use. The ball fell to the ground, and it was their turn. ¡°Yes,¡± Vicki rejoiced as she high-fived Nikki. Then Mchi served this time and Greg blocked his ball with his racket as he said, ¡°Nice!¡± It flew over to their side but Vicki came in with a leaping hit from the side of the court as she said, ¡°That¡¯s close!¡±


    They continued to y for a little bit as Vickie kept getting closer to our side of the court. Suddenly, as one of the balls sped towards our side, September zoomed and smacked it, knocking it down to their side before Vicki ran towards us to serve. But it was toote as September hit and we won the game.


    ¡°Yes!¡± Greg rejoiced, before he gave me a hug. He then pulled back and said, ¡°That¡¯s how it¡¯s done.¡± I turned around and looked at Mchi, who was just sitting there looking at me with an angry re on his face before he shook his head and sighed in defeat.


    ¡°Another game?¡± Nikki asked. All of a sudden Mchi¡¯s face lit up and suddenly a rush of confidence went through him as he said, ¡°Oh yeah. Let¡¯s y again.¡±


    ¡°Vickie smiled at me as she said, ¡°You¡¯re up.¡± I nodded, taking the ball that was passed to me before I looked at Vickie and asked, ¡°Are you ready?¡± I nodded, as I tossed up the ball. Now one thing about me you should know...I¡¯m a terrible server, especially when I¡¯m nervous. But now I had to get over that feeling, because it was not something that I wanted to do.


    But I needed to show Vicki I¡¯m a strong person, that I can get over this feeling. I don¡¯t know why but this had something to do with Mchi and his attitude towards me. My confidence is being cooked by his staring look, and now it was time for him to see what I was capable of doing.


    So I put my head up and looked straight ahead before I said, ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡±


    I threw up the ball, and I jumped high, hoping for an over-the-head shot, but as Inded, my foot slipped on the floor and I stumbled forward before I fell on my face as I groaned in frustration. The ball dropped down to the floor, rolling away from us as Vickieughed.


    Sheughed because she knew what had happened to me, and she knew I was scared to death about it too. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s okay,¡± she said. ¡°I know you¡¯re nervous.¡± I chuckled, getting up as Vickie passed me another ball as she said, ¡°I¡¯ll serve this time.¡± I looked at Mchi, who was looking back at me with that same re as he clenched his fists tightly while his jaw tightened before he growled loudly, ¡°You can¡¯t do it!¡±


    Vicki didn¡¯t seem to hear, but she tossed up the ball and served it towards our side. September rushed for the ball, and she hit it before Vicki got to it and hit it back before it fell to the ground. I sighed in relief as Nikkiughed at me.


    ¡°Good job,¡± she said. I smiled at her and nodded my head before I started to serve. I could try again, I thought. Maybe this time I would be able to get it over the and make a nice shot so Vickie could return it. Maybe this could work out better.


    Vickie smiled at me as she said, ¡°Okay.¡± I nodded my head as I got ready to serve again but then Nikki got to the ball first before she hit the ball towards our side before it bounced to the ground. It was Vicki¡¯s turn now, and she began serving.


    Preview:


    Eventually we were finished ying this game of tennis and went back into the court gym area where we got changed into our regr clothes that we were wearing now. I feel much better now because I was able to beat Vickie in the game of tennis even if only by a small margin. But my serving was still bad, and it made me very angry at myself because it was a part of me that I liked to use, and I wanted to do well at it.

 Chapter 103

    103 An Unfriendly Visit


    Eventually we were done ying this round of tennis and returned into the court exercise center region where we got changed into our customary garments that we were wearing now. I feel greatly improved now since I had the option to beat Vickie in the sport of tennis regardless of whether just barely. In any case, my serving was still terrible, and it drove me exceptionally crazy at myself since it was a piece of me that I got a kick out of the chance to utilize, and I needed to find real sess at it.


    I attempted to not allow it to influence me like that however my certainty was as yet gone from what happened before when I fell all over on the ground from being excessively apprehensive.


    Then, at that point, Greg strolled over to where I was standing and put his arms around me and murmured in my ear, ¡°You worked really hard today.¡± Truly, Greg some of the time causes me to feel like I¡¯m only a tad kid when he stuffs like this since he¡¯s in every case exceptionally sweet to me like this.


    I really wanted this, since I know he has good intentions by doing things like this.


    I murmured ordingly as he pulled back a little and said, ¡°You¡¯ll improve next time...I think.¡± My mouth broadened inplete shock as I checked out at him with wide eyes.


    ¡°What did you simply say?¡± I asked in shock as I saw him inplete shock. ¡°You¡¯ll improve sometimeter,¡± he said, leaving me there paralyzed while he left to join Nikki and September who were at that point wearing their customary garments as were we.


    ¡°In any case,¡± I murmured to myself as I shook my head, attempting to get once again into the right mentality. I looked over at where Vickie and Tisiah were at that point hanging tight for us under the watchful eye of we left the court exercise center region together. Be that as it may, as we did, out of nowhere, a caution sounded in my ear.


    I wheezed and nced around at each and every individual who nced back at me in disarray as the caution went off once more. ¡°Prepare your wands to battle agents,¡± the Dad framework expressed uproariously in a serious voice. ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Greg asked, sounding exceptionally stressed now as we as a whole gone to confront each other with confounded demeanors on our countenances.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea, however I don¡¯t believe it¡¯s great,¡± I expressed apprehensively as my psyche hustled. ¡°How about we go.¡± We as a whole trailed behind Vicki, who appeared to know where she was going since she had proactively driven us to the court. She most certainly knew pretty much everything there is to know about this spot.


    .....


    Be that as it may, out of nowhere, somebody¡¯s voice sounded in the Dad framework and promptly I knew what its identity was: Rocke. ¡°Hi understudies of the FMA,¡± he weed, sounding well disposed, which was abnormal for him. ¡°I genuinely want to believe that you are getting along admirably. Be that as it may, I¡¯m apprehensive you folks will endure since certain understudies who have dwelled in your academy and one who is in your academy have brought on some issues for me.¡±


    ¡°Is this the TSA?¡± I heard somebody say behind the scenes, however I was unable to tell what its identity was.


    ¡°Indeed, it is, on the off chance that you don¡¯t have the foggiest idea,¡± he answered. I swallowed, and I felt my heart start to pulsate quicker. ¡°I¡¯m very certain you know who they are, carry them to me.¡±


    ¡°No!¡± one of them yelled. ¡°We won¡¯t forfeit one of our partners for our lives.¡± Rockeughed, as he proceeded, ¡°I¡¯m certain all of you know what will ur on the off chance that you don¡¯t conform to my solicitation.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, we do, and trust me, we couldn¡¯t care less,¡± the individual said once more. ¡°It¡¯s inevitable before ourmanderes.¡±


    Rockeughed again, however at that point his voice sounded stronger again as he said, ¡°Well then I will be seeing youter.¡± Then, at that point, he cut off.


    rm moved throughout the room, and my heart throbbed quicker than ordinary, as out of nowhere it seemed like a seismic tremor was happening inside my body. ¡°We really want to go, we really want to go rapidly!¡± Nikki yelled, as we as a whole ran towards the structure. As we did as such, understudies went to us, stunned looks on their countenances as they expressed words to us, for example, ¡®run!¡¯


    Be that as it may, there was some aggression also from understudies, who yelled furiously at us and made statements, for example, ¡®Leave!¡¯ And as I thought back, I saw the fellow and hispanions grinning at us without really any indication ofpassion, however rather they were by all ounts snickering at us.


    The entire spot was tumultuous, with understudies yelling at us while understudies were additionally running towards us from every which way also. ¡°We really want to arrive at Commander Vance now,¡± Tisiah said as he ran close by us. I nodded my head as we started going through the group that was getting denser.


    We eventually arrived at the structure, rapidly advancing up the means and into the structure as we ran as quick as possible until we arrived at the highest level. We expected to get to Commander Vance¡¯s office, however it was packed with understudies who were yelling at us to move far removed or leave now.


    We continued to push past individuals until at longst we arrived at Vance¡¯s office door. ¡°Commander Vance!¡± September yelled, throwing her fists down on the door as she yelled, ¡°We really want your assistance now!¡± The door opened in a split second, and he guided us inside before he shut it behind him and locked it.


    ¡°Alright, you folks need to escape this spot now,¡± he said. ¡°Get to Russia, track down Petrov, and annihte the Cybertron. Immediately get it from your room and go alright? We¡¯ll protect you folks as you go. We as a whole nodded, as September got the Cybertron and before we went away from the room with Commander Vance driving us out of the room and into the fundamental corridors of the school where understudies were waiting around in disarray and frenzy as they yelled at us to leave before it was past the point of no return.


    He drove us into a lift that we had the option to use as it brought us down into the principal storm cer level of the school before we passed through the doors and stumbled into the floor until we at longst arrived at the leave doors which were then open for us.


    TSA agents were all beyond the school, with wands and firearms, as they saw us like they would shoot us on the off chance that we didn¡¯t stop where we were at the present time. ¡°Alright, move over to one side around there,¡± he said, pointing. ¡°There is a vehicle that you could use to leave, immediately arrive, go!¡±


    We nodded our heads before we started to run toward the path where he had advised us to go as we attempted to try not to be taken shots at by the agents. Out of nowhere a projectile hit a close by wall and broke the wood of it as the agents terminated at us from all areas. ¡°Keep low!¡± Vickie yelled to us as we dodged down and attempted to take cover behind an enormous vehicle as a projectile zoomed by us.


    One more shot was discharged at us and hit a close by building, sending pieces of blocks and substantial flying wherever as we kept on taking cover behind the vehicle.


    ¡°I¡¯m not prepared to kick the bucket!¡± Greg yelled as he hunkered down low as he took cover behind simr vehicle we were taking cover behind. ¡°Nobody is, however we are right here!¡± Nikki yelled as she hollered back at him, ¡°We have no other decision at the present time!¡± Mchi murmured boisterously as he stood up to escape the vehicle so he could check whether he could see whatever better that could end up being useful to us escape this wreck.


    ¡°I¡¯ll help some of em,¡± he expressed, taking out a wand and shooting bolts at them. He hit a few of them however not every one of them, since they had the option to get behind cover and stow away from him. Projectiles and bolts sshed through the area and hit a few things including the walls and windows of neighboring structures.


    Nikki snorted from the effect before she murmured boisterously as she stood up and moved behind some cover also. She shot a few electrical discharges own and brought down two agents before she dropped to the ground and moved behind cover. ¡°Follow me!¡± Nikki yelled, as we moved.


    Out of nowhere, as I thought back, I saw a multitude of FMA agents charge at them, as soon enough an all out war was before our eyes. ¡°What the...¡± Greg murmured faintly as he thought back with wide eyes, attempting to get a handle on how the situation was ying out. ¡°I have no clue about what¡¯s happening, however we need to move.¡±


    ¡°That is the very thing that we were doing,¡± Vicki said. ¡°We really want something to help us here.¡±


    September peered down at the Cybertron she was holding, and she grinned.


    ¡°You¡¯re not intending to utilize it are you?¡± Greg asked her, sounding stressed.


    She shook her head, smiling. He murmured in alleviation, however at that point his eyes augmented with sickening apprehension as he understood what she nned to do.

 Chapter 104

    104 Escape from the TSA


    She suddenly shot a bolt at the chip, as the robot reassembled and stood up in one piece. Then it turned to me. ¡°Master,¡± it said in a soft voice. Ipletely forgot I controlled this thing and froze for a moment at this unexpected situation.


    But then I took control of it, as it stood in front of me looking at me with its yellow eyes. ¡°Attack those agents that are from the TSA,¡± I ordered, and then I heard its voice say in a mechanical sounding voice, ¡°As you wish master.¡±


    Suddenly, it opened its rocket ster and shockwave flew out from its arm and sted right into the midst of them. The st was so powerful that several of them were knocked back andnded on their backs on the ground with dust exploding into the air from the force of the impact. Then the Cybertron started to move towards another group of agents as it shot its weapon once again and once more another st.


    Fear struck through my mind at this situation, as I wondered how much more I could take from the situation, but I knew I couldn¡¯t allow these agents to get away with trying to kill all the students. I couldn¡¯t.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Greg shouted as he was in shock at this situation as well.


    ¡°Buying us time,¡± I said, as I jumped in the vehicle. ¡°Come on guys,¡± I said, motioning for them to jump in the car. September hopped in the driver¡¯s seat with Greg getting into the passenger seat next to her. Nikki sat next to him, while Tisiah and Mchi sat on the back of the vehicle as they too climbed inside.


    ¡°Cybertron, over here!¡± I shouted to the Cybertron as it was now in the midst of battling against some TSA agents. Suddenly, it turned towards me and all of a sudden it boosted up from the ground with these rocket mes under, hopping up onto my roof andnding on it. It turned and looked down at me with its yellow eyes. September pedaled hard on the gas as she sped out of here at a speed faster than any vehicle could drive in a normal city.


    TSA agents looked at us in confusion as we drove away, firing several rounds of shots at us. I suddenly felt fear rush through my body as I saw a bullet fly right for me and m right into the windshield. Mchi shrieked in terror as he grabbed hold of me and held onto me tightly. I looked at him, and his eyes were wide in panic as he held onto me for dear life.


    ¡°Duck!¡± Nikki shouted, as suddenly two vehicles began pursuing us from behind, firing their weapons at us. They shot their weapons and hit us several times but luckily none of us were hit. ¡°Rocke is relentless!¡± Greg shouted in fear as we sped away from the TSA agents as fast as we could.


    .....


    But they were way too fast.


    Way too fast.


    The cars behind us were gaining on us quickly. They began shooting their weapons at us again and hit us several times. ¡°We can¡¯t outrun them,¡± Nikki shouted over the roar of the engine as we continued to speed down the road. Suddenly, they began to use their wands again. We were forced to take cover as they hit us again and again.


    But as I looked up, I saw someone with a wand. But they weren¡¯t shooting bolts. All of a sudden, as I looked up, my eyes widened as I saw a rush of ice spikes speed towards us, hitting us multiple times. But the car was able to move out of the way before any of the spikes hit us. ¡°They¡¯re using Ice spells on us!¡± Greg shouted in fear.


    ¡°Just realized?!¡± I shouted back in anger. Then I gripped onto Mchi¡¯s hand tightly with my own, squeezing his hand tightly as I felt my body start to shake uncontrobly with rage as we were hit again and again.


    We we¡¯re all gonna die weren¡¯t we.


    But then the Cybertron, suddenly seemed to shift although it¡¯s hard to tell from the thumps of the roof, and started shooting at them. The pursuing cars weaved from one side to the other as they fired their weapons at us while the Cybertron kept on shooting at them. Suddenly, I heard a loud boom as something exploded behind us, followed by arge boom that shook the vehicle as well, which then sent shards of ss flying around inside our car.


    ¡°Is the Cybertron doing that?¡± Mchi asked me as we were all looking back towards the car behind us.


    I nodded my head with my teeth clenched tightly. Suddenly, there was another explosion and our car was hit from behind several times, sending pieces of it flying through the air everywhere. Pieces and metal fragments were flying around us, and they hit us several times in the face.


    Nikki leaned forward and put her arms up to cover her face from the shrapnel that was flying around us. I wasn¡¯t sure if I was bleeding or not, but I did feel paining from my face and chest area. But we were able to avoid most of it by just leaning our bodies over to one side as much as possible so that we could avoid most of it from hitting us directly.


    Now thinking about it, I think more vehicles were chasing us after the amount of explosions behind us. But who knows, because everything was just so chaotic at this moment in time.


    I heard another explosion from behind us and suddenly there was a loud boom that made my head throb with pain, followed by another loud boom right behind us which caused me to lose all control over my body. I felt like I was a jellyfish, and everything was floating in the water, all of a sudden. My heart felt like it was about to explode from the stress of this situation. My vision blurred with tears running down my eyes as I began to see red everywhere.


    Why was this happening?


    I shook my head, trying to shake all of these feelings away. But I couldn¡¯t stop the tears froming out of my eyes as I felt a sharp pain on my chest from my heart which was beating so hard, that I thought it might explode out of my chest. But as I looked back, I felt my body tingle in a form that I couldn¡¯t control or understand.


    Then all of a sudden, Cybertron leaped from the car and sped towards the ground. Fear imploded into me as I saw what happened next.


    Suddenly there was an explosion which made everything shake violently, but then everything seemed to slow down like it was moving in slow motion for a moment as I saw Cybertron fall onto the ground, as a shockwave blew away the car from underneath it which then made everything fly apart even more. ¡°What in the-¡± Greg muttered as we all saw Cybertron flying back into the air again with another shockwave from below causing us to be tossed around violently, making our bodies flinch at what just happened.


    ¡°We need to get out of here now,¡± September said, her hands on the wheel as she was trying to control our vehicle with one hand while she used the other hand to control her gun which she had in herp.


    ¡°You think!¡± Greg shouted, grabbing onto Nikki¡¯s arm tightly as he held onto her arm tightly, but then he suddenly let go of her arm and turned to look at me. ¡°I don¡¯t usually do stuff like this in the FMA!!¡± he shouted, looking back at me with his eyes wide open in fear, shaking his head as he continued to yell out loud. ¡°But I¡¯m gonna have to use some of the stuff they taught us in the FMA to save us.¡±


    ¡°What stuff?¡±


    Suddenly, he got out his wand and suddenly he began to move it in a circr motion, and suddenly a circle of fire began to form, burning around him like an aura of protection from his body. Then suddenly it started to spin around him faster and faster and faster until it became blindingly bright which caused everything to start spinning around me for a moment too before I could evenprehend. Then he shot it, but he shot it through the roof of the vehicle and hit something.


    Then we could all hear the sound of a bullet being shot and then we heard several loud booms and then suddenly everything became silent as we all sat, with our ears ringing, covered in sweat and panting for air from how scared we were.


    ¡°That¡¯s one thing they taught me,¡± Greg said with a tired voice as he closed his eyes and leaned his head back into the seat.


    Vickie sighed in relief. ¡°Thank God.¡±


    No one was behind us, but we were still driving down the road, avoiding anything that was on the road.


    Suddenly, I felt a wave of dizziness wash over me and my body started to shake uncontrobly from it. I was on edge, and I mean on edge because I felt like everything was going wrong at this moment in time, and I didn¡¯t know why or how to control it.


    I must¡¯ve been scared or stressed out beyond my normal limits because all of a sudden I started crying in my seat with my eyes closed tightly from the fear that was coursing through me.

 Chapter 105

    105 Arguments


    We¡¯ve been driving for probably a few hours since that crazy situation with those TSA agents, and we were all in shock from what had happened back there. But now we were just so exhausted that we just wanted to stop somewhere and get some rest. Or at least I did.


    Greg seemed fine, as if nothing had happened. But I knew that he had to be feeling something more than just okay about the situation right now. He had to be feeling something very strong for it to affect him like this right now. Maybe he isn¡¯t showing it or maybe he is, but he was probably scared to death right now like me and everyone else in this car right now.


    ¡°So what do we need to do now?¡± Greg asked, as he looked at me with his eyes open wide with a slight expression of fear.


    I just stared at him with a nk look on my face for a moment as I tried to figure out what to say at this moment.


    But then Vickie responded, ¡°Get to the airport. We want to get to Russia as fast as we can, just so that we can get away from these agents.¡±


    ¡°Makes sense, but should we go there now?¡± Mchi asked, looking up at me as if I could answer him.


    I just nodded my head yes and looked back at him and said, ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Greg said. ¡°We just escaped from one of the craziest chases of all time, with this robot sitting by you, and you immediately want to get on a ne?¡±


    Silence filled the car for a moment before September spoke up and said, ¡°That¡¯s what I would do.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Why? That¡¯s dumb, that¡¯s insane!¡± he shouted, shaking his head as if he couldn¡¯t believe it.


    ¡°Well, because they¡¯re chasing us right now. So we need to go somewhere that¡¯s far away from here to get away from them,¡± September said. ¡°You don¡¯t want to end up getting killed in your own sleep by them.¡±


    ¡°Makes sense,¡± Nikki said, agreeing with her words.


    Mchi looked up at me as if he was begging me to agree with him and tell Greg to not be so stubborn. But Greg didn¡¯t seem to balk at anything anymore. He just shook his head in agreement with Nikki and Vickie as if they were right on the money with their advice.


    I wasn¡¯t sure what to do at this moment, but I felt like if I didn¡¯t agree with them, then they might be mad at meter for not taking their advice into consideration, which would make them even more mad at me.


    ¡°Okay, how about we vote then,¡± Mchi said, raising his hand into the air as if he was asking us a question in ss.


    Nikki raised her hand next and said, ¡°Okay, I vote we get on the ne right now.¡±


    ¡°No!¡± Greg shouted, looking back at her with a frown before turning back around to look at me.


    I looked back at him with my lips pressed together tightly as I tried to stay as calm as possible in this situation. I was already shaken as it is from the chase, but I wasn¡¯t about to tell him that.


    ¡°I vote we get on the ne too,¡± Vickie said.


    ¡°I say we will try to rest for now,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°What if they try to attack us while we¡¯re at the airport? What do we do then?¡±


    ¡°He has a point,¡± Mchi said, looking at Greg before looking at me.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Greg said, nodding his head. ¡°If they did that then we need to be prepared for that and be able to handle them. Let¡¯s just get to a hotel or something, it¡¯s three against two.¡± September took a big breath and sighed heavily.


    I could see the anger and frustration in her eyes as she stared at Greg in a re as she spoke up, saying, ¡°No, Greg. We can¡¯t. I¡¯m not gonna risk our team again.¡± Vicki shrugged. ¡°Maybe I can ask Captain Vance to send some agents to watch us, he might do so.¡±


    ¡°You never thought to tell us that?¡± Tisiah asked, as Vicki shrugged her shoulders, not saying anything in reply.


    ¡°We need to rest for now and let our adrenaline die down,¡± September said with a sigh as she closed her eyes slowly. ¡°It¡¯s for the best.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but isn¡¯t the FMA warehouse in a certain situation, if you know what I mean,¡± I said. ¡°They most likely already dealt with it. I¡¯m pretty sure they trieding after us before the Cybertron went Rambo mode. The Cybertron turned its head at me, like it was staring at me.


    Greg just shook his head from side to side slowly and said, ¡°That¡¯s not important right now. The point is to rest, and plus we didn¡¯t even think about buying a flight to Russia.¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah...¡± I muttered. Yeah, it was probably best we found a ce to stay, but it would¡¯ve been nice if we had gotten our ne tickets first and then go look for somewhere to stay. I felt like it would¡¯ve made things easier for us instead of having to find somewhere to stay right now, and worry about getting killed before we even get to pay for our ticket, which was another thing I didn¡¯t think about until now.


    But I was so busy trying to figure out a way of getting out of this crazy situation that I didn¡¯t think about that until now.


    Now I had time to think, and it was making me feel extremely tired because I knew that I had been pushing myself hard and I was getting exhausted from all of this stuff.


    ¡°Is any hotel close here?¡± Mchi asked, as he looked back at me with his eyebrows raised in a question mark. I shrugged, giving him the same expression with my shoulders and nodding my head. ¡°Most likely not,¡± September answered wryly, closing her eyes again.


    ¡°You guys are staying at a hotel,¡± Greg said with an angry tone.


    ¡°We already know that,¡± September said an annoyed voice as she sat back into her seat.


    ¡°Well then how about you find one for us too? We all need to work together here,¡± Greg said with a slight annoyed tone as well as a little bit of frustration in his voice.¡±


    ¡°Alright, how about we all calm down here,¡± Tisiah suggested, licking his lips nervously and looking back and forth between everyone before turning back towards me and asking, ¡°How about we just find somewhere to rest for now, like a garage or something. For now Nikki, just order us some ne tickets or something.¡±


    ¡°Why not just give them a fake one there,¡± Mchi asked, as all our eyes watered up from the exhaustion in this situation.


    I could hear Tisiah breathing heavily. ¡°Yeah probably for the best,¡± he said with a deep sigh.


    ¡°Let¡¯s just find a garage or something,¡± I said, a little frustrated at all the arguing that was going on between everyone right now. We were all tired and we just wanted to get out of here and find a ce to rest and figure out what we should do next. ¡°Yeah,¡± everyone said in unison.


    I felt a wave of exhaustion wash over me as I let out a heavy sigh myself as I closed my eyes slowly and tried to rx a little bit by taking deep breaths in and out. It was probably the best feeling, or I¡¯m just overexcited or something, but I felt a little better as I continued to take deep breaths and rx a little bit more.


    As I looked up, I saw one of those tall parking lots for hoarding cars, with cars everywhere, and trucks, and motorcycles parked in it, but all of them seemed empty right now as there was nobody here and I started to get excited because I knew that finding somewhere to stay in meant that I could sleep.


    Finally, sluggishness began to overtake my body as I looked over at the garage again and smiled as I saw that there was a huge sign out front of it that said ¡®Parking¡¯ and ¡®Garage¡¯ with an da-da-dum symbol on it and it was one of those old school garages that you would¡¯ve seen back in the day, the ones that you had to pull down those metal doors using these ropes that were tied or something like that.


    Doesn¡¯t really matter anyway, we can finally sleep in peace.


    September pulled into the garage slowly as everyone in the car began to get out of the car and stretch their legs a little bit as we all sighed in relief. ¡°Oh yes!¡± Nikki rejoiced, stretching her arms over her head as sheughed from a relief.


    As we all stood there and looked around, it seemed like this parking lot was mostly used by food trucks or something. I¡¯m not sure but, but it looked like the garage was open at the moment, which meant that we could go inside and use it for the night or something.


    And that¡¯s exactly what we did.

 Chapter 106

    106 Reflections


    September pulled into the garage slowly as everyone in the car began to get out of the car and stretch their legs a little bit as we all sighed in relief. ¡°Oh yes!¡± Nikki rejoiced, stretching her arms over her head as sheughed from a relief.


    As we all stood there and looked around, it seemed like this parking lot was mostly used by food trucks or something. I¡¯m not sure but, but it looked like the garage was open at the moment, which meant that we could go inside and use it for the night or something.


    And that¡¯s exactly what we did.


    ***


    To be honest with you, I¡¯m not sure if I slept in the car, or if I dropped to the floor and got knocked out, because when I woke up, my neck hurt. It felt as if something just snapped in my neck as if my body couldn¡¯t support my head anymore or something. Whatever it was, it hurt, and my neck was stiff as a board when I woke up, which was strange because I always wake up feeling refreshed after sleeping in a car or something simr.


    I looked around, seeing all the slumbered bodies around me before I turned my attention towards the window and saw that it was daylight outside of it, but no sunlight came inside of it, so it must have been nighttime. I sighed and rubbed my eyes before sitting up slowly and stretching my arms over my head as I looked around the car and saw that everyone else was still asleep.


    How was it that I woke up so much earlier than everyone else?


    I looked at the clock on the dashboard of the car and noticed that it was already past noon. So it wasn¡¯t nighttime, in fact it was almost evening time right now. So I guess it must have been a long sleep cycle. I stretched and moved my neck around, trying to ease the pain that I was experiencing.


    I looked around the car again before ncing at Nikki as she slept peacefully with her head tilted back and her mouth hanging out. Wow, she looks so peaceful as she slept with her eyes closed and her lips were slightly parted and her brown hair spread across her face like silk.


    .....


    It seems like everyone was really exhaustedst night from all the adrenaline and running around trying to escape those agents, so they needed a long sleep cycle like me. But then why was I the only one awake right now? It was almost like I got lucky this time by getting an early start on everyone else¡¯s sleep cycle as if they were giving me thest day of vacation instead of them, which made me feel like a kid about to start school again after summer break as I sighed in relief and sat up slowly as I rubbed my eyes once again.


    I looked around the car again to make sure no one else was awake and I could go out for a little bit to get some air before getting back into the car.


    As I got out, I looked around, seeing the bright sun shining above me and seeing how everything seemed so clean here. I¡¯m sure that there was probably some graffiti here somewhere, but it seemed like it was kept clean and maintained as well as the trash cans lined up next to the wagons at the side of the road that you could see off in the distance.


    I looked down the road that I was standing on and saw it was a main road as people drove down it quickly while others walked down it.


    Only if I had a life like them. It was definitely a mistake joining the YMPA, it¡¯s tiring to always be on guard 24/7 and trying to avoid getting killed by someone like those guys, but then again, I guess I¡¯ll take this over starving to death right now, and getting shot in the eardrum with a rubber bullet, or getting my hand chopped off with a chain saw while trying to run away.


    I sighed as I turned my gaze away from the people walking down the road and looked up towards the sky.


    It was beautiful.


    It really was. It was so clear and blue with a few puffy clouds in the sky that were white. They looked so serene and peaceful as if they weren¡¯t bothered by anything or anybody. I wish I could be like them, I wish I could be peaceful and calm like them as I breathed in deeply through my nose and let out a sigh.


    I took another deep breath as I felt the cool breeze touch my face as it felt refreshing as vines from the trees on the sides of the road waved slowly in the wind.


    I love how things look so natural and pure like this as if no one ever tainted nature at all.


    All of a sudden, I heard someone say ¡°Wow.¡± Fear pounced into my heart as I looked beside, me seeing Tisiah staring qiuckly at me while he looked up at the sky with wonder written all over his face as he continued to look at the sky as he muttered, ¡°Wow.¡±


    ¡°Yeah...wow,¡± I muttered a little bit, just agreeing with him as I turned my attention back to the sky as well. I closed my eyes slowly as I felt the warmth of the sun touching my face as the cool wind touched my body as well as my cheeks.


    I wish that life could be like this forever and ever, but who knows.


    As I opened my eyes back up, I looked down at Tisiah as he smiled brightly at me, causing his teeth to shine like light. ¡°Anyways, Nikki booked us a flight to Russia,¡± Tisiah said as he took his phone out of his pocket and showed it to me. ¡°It leaves in about three hours.¡±


    I stuttered in shock. ¡°Well that means we have to leave quickly!¡± I gushed in excitement.


    Tisiah nodded his head while looking up at the sky. ¡°Yeah, I know,¡± he said calmly before putting his phone back into his pocket and looking back at me with a smile on his face. ¡°We¡¯re waiting for you, ya know.¡±


    ¡°Oh.¡±


    Quickly I rushed inside of the garage and went inside of the vehicle where everyone was at, and once I took a seat, Cybertron turned his head towards me slyly and asked, ¡°You okay?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I responded as I looked up at the ceiling of the garage with my eyes half open as I sighed softly. ¡°Perhaps.¡±


    ***


    We arrived at the airport, and it was quite something to see. It wasn¡¯t all that special of course because I had seen a lot of airports before but, it was still interesting because it was just so different from what you would see in America or Europe for that matter. There was a row of parked cars on the left side of the road leading up to the airport that seemed to be used for parking the people who were flying out or flying into Russia, or something simr to that.


    ¡°Okay, here we are,¡± September said, getting out of the vehicle as we all followed her out of the vehicle. We all looked around and saw a man who was wearing a ck hat with an emblem on it that said ¡®Airport¡¯ on it as he looked at us with a smile.


    Weird.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s move,¡± September said. ¡°And let¡¯s hope we don¡¯t find ourselves in the same situation asst time.¡± We nodded our heads as we walked alongside her and went inside of the airport building to find a ce to sit down and wait for our flight to leave. We entered the first floor, with people with luggages and carry-ons infecting the area as people tried to get ces quickly before they were all too crowded and stuffy.


    ¡°This is gonna be really ufortable,¡± Gregined as we walked slowly through the crowd of people who were rushing around us to get to their gate or whatever it was called here, and then we finally found an open spot on the first floor where we sat down with arge crowd of people around us, some even sitting on top of each other just to save a spot for themselves as they smiled at us as if they wanted us to sit there too.


    ¡°I think we¡¯re at the right gate,¡± Nikki said. ¡°They said like E4 right?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure,¡± Vicki said.


    I looked up towards the ceiling to see if there was any signs above us as there weren¡¯t any, but then again, I didn¡¯t know what they looked like for international airports here either so, but I figured maybe they were somewhere else or something. ¡°So far, no sign of any...¡± Tisiah said, as his eyes widened.


    I looked at him and soon enough, everyone looked at him.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked.

 Chapter 107

    107 A Big Airport Problem


    ¡°The FBI,¡± he said, as I saw that FBI person, Agent Nelson and a group walking over the corner. ¡°Oh shoot,¡± Mchi said as he stood up from his seat. ¡°They found us!¡±


    As soon as he stood up, everyone got up from their seats and began to rush towards the other side of the airport in fear of being caught, or shot at or something else like that. However, there were already so many people in the way that no one could move fast enough and people were getting hurt, pushed or shoved over by other people in their panic to get away from the FBI.


    ¡°FBI!¡± Agent Nelson shouted, as she looked around.


    ¡°Go, go go!¡± September shouted, as we moved with the crowd of people. However, it seemed that there were so many people that it wasn¡¯t easy for us to get through the crowd, but it was even worse because we had to make sure not to get caught by Agent Nelson or her team.


    But I¡¯m afraid she did.


    Because as we ran, I heard her footsteps at full pace, and she was shouting, ¡°FBI! Don¡¯t move!¡± ¡°Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no,¡± Mchi worried as we booked it as fast as we could to try and get away from her.


    I looked behind me, seeing her and her team rushing at us at full speed, which was terrifying because I didn¡¯t know how long it would be until we got away from them. But luckily for us, they weren¡¯t that good of a runner after all, and we soon gained some space from them and were able to stop running while they had yet to catch up to us yet.


    As we all stood still, we could hear them yelling at us and swearing at us for stop.


    Then all of a sudden, bullets came out of nowhere and pierced through the air as they shot through the crowd of people that were running around. Or at least that¡¯s how it seemed, because when I looked down at Tisiah who was running next to me, his shirt was torn and covered in holes as if he were shot by one of those bullets.


    .....


    ¡°You okay?!¡± I shouted.


    Tisiah nodded. ¡°These people are crazy!¡±


    Soon enough, I saw Agent Nelson piercing through the crowd. ¡°Connor Drails!¡± she shouted. That¡¯s when I knew, she wasing for me. ¡°Meet us at the ne!¡± September shouted. ¡°But run!¡±


    I did, speeding my way through the scared crowd, as Agent Nelson kepting towards me, and I heard more bullets firing behind me from where she was shooting at me. But I didn¡¯t care because I just wanted to escape from here before she could catch up to me.


    But I needed to get her off my tail somehow.


    Maybe I could dodge her by ebbing myself to the left side and making a turn.


    I did so and was surprised that Agent Nelson followed me through the crowd of people, even though they were running so fast that you couldn¡¯t even see their faces anymore. They were more of whizzes, blurs, something like that.


    But when I turned around to see where Agent Nelson was, I was shocked. She was still following me and even closer now as I felt my heart beating in my chest as I ran as fast as I could. I quickly dashed to the side, going from left to right so I could try to lose her before she caught up to me again.


    But then I stopped, frowning as I looked back and saw Agent Nelson almost getting on top of me.


    What was she doing?


    She stopped too, looking down at her feet before looking up at me with a re on her face and then pulling her gun up at me. ¡°Don¡¯t move,¡± she said in a rasping voice.


    I shook my head slowly in disbelief as I put my hands up in front of me while shaking my head slowly and slowly. There was nothing I could do, because she was too close and I didn¡¯t know how I could get away from her if she were to shoot me with one of those bullets.


    But all of a sudden, someone with a ck suit with a red tie leaped on top of her, wrenching her arm back so hard that she was sent flying into the air andnding in a pile of trash bags on the ground in pain. I looked at him in shock, breathing heavily. ¡°Where¡¯s your friends?¡± he asked.


    ¡°They might¡¯ve went back or forward to find Gate E4,¡± I said with a frowning face as he nodded his head. He then turned around towards me and began to run in the same direction that I was before Agent Nelson stood back up again with her gun ready. But all of a sudden, the man kicked her in the leg and she fell back down on the ground in pain again before rolling onto her back as she held her leg up with her hands, wincing in pain.


    ¡°Lead me to them, I have a ne that can get you guys to Russia,¡± he said.


    ¡°Wait, who are you?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You know Demetrius Rocke,¡± he said, and I nodded. Then he said something that struck me,pletely shocked me in fact because it was something that made my heart race in my chest because of how much he had just said it all in one go.


    ¡°I¡¯m his son.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry what?¡± I muttered, looking back up at him with my eyes wide open.


    He smiled a little bit, holding back hisughter as he stood up from Agent Nelson and walked towards me with a hand outstretched. ¡°It¡¯s a long story, but trust me alright?¡±


    I nodded, because we needed to get out of here as soon as possible if we wanted to stay alive. ¡°Okay.¡± I said softly as he reached out to me and grabbed my wrist gently and pulled me with him. Here¡¯s the problem: I don¡¯t know where they are, because they could¡¯ve went anywhere and we could be heading to the wrong direction.


    But it didn¡¯t matter right now because we were safe from Agent Nelson, and that was what mattered most. But it mattered second, so we needed to find them, quickly.


    I walked next to him while he walked next to me and looked down at his phone as he pulled up an app and held it in front of him, turning it around as he swiped his finger across the screen. All of a sudden it led into an thermal camera, and confusion hit me as I looked at it with a confused face. It showed different images of people walking through different parts of the airport as I looked at it.


    ¡°We may find your friends with this camera. Come on,¡± he said. We ran forward through the still-rushing crowd, trying to stay hidden while we watched on our screens to see where they could be.


    But then suddenly we heard footsteps rushing at us from behind as I turned my head towards it, seeing Agent Nelson charging towards us while shooting at us.


    She still wasn¡¯t done?!!!!!!! How, did she not run out of bullets already?!!!


    We ran faster and faster as we heard more shots fired and I turned my head away from Agent Nelson as she was getting closer and closer to us. ¡°Oh, no no no no no no,¡± the man muttered, putting his finger on his phone screen and swiping it quickly back and forth until it was showing me another screen. It showed an airport map of some sort and showed Gate E4 with a green dot on it, and he nodded.


    ¡°Just ahead of here,¡± he said as we continued to run towards it as fast as we could until we got there.


    We then stopped dead still when we saw arge crowd of people in front of Gate E4 waiting for their flights. And in that line I saw the rest of our teammates, as they looked me with confusion.


    ¡°Follow me!¡± he shouted, as they all reluctantly followed him to where he was leading us to and through the crowd, pushing through them to make our way out of there.


    But as soon as we made our way out, the man stopped and looked behind him to see if that crazy agent was still following us. And she was, and now her team managed to catch up. ¡°We¡¯re gonna have to take a short-cut,¡± he muttered, looking at the window.


    Preview:


    Don¡¯t tell me, he¡¯s going to throw himself out of the window and make a crazy n to get us out of this mess?!!


    I turned my head back to him just in time for him to pull his gun out from his jacket and shoot the window, breaking itpletely before he jumped out of it with us following him through it, falling through the air until we hit the ground below and rolled over with dust everywhere around us.

 Chapter 108

    108 A Revealing Rtion


    Try not to tell me, he will hurl himself through of the window and make an insane arrangement to get us out of this wreck?!!


    I turned my head back to him with perfect timing for him to threaten to use his firearm out from his coat and shoot the window, breaking it totally before he leaped out of it with us following him through it, falling through the air until we hit the ground underneath and turned over with dust wherever around us.


    ¡°That was way less climatic than I expected,¡± September expressed, viewing at the messed up window above us as she moaned.


    I nced around to see where we were before I felt something pull at my shirt, and I peered down to see that Tisiah was checking out at me with stress all over. ¡°Is everything OK?¡± he inquired.


    ¡°Ought to be,¡± the man said. ¡°How about we get to the ne.¡±


    We trailed behind him, as slugs poured down from where we bounced, and soon enough I saw Agent Nelson hop down too. Gracious shoot, she followed us all things considered?


    But fortunately for us, she fell on her stomach onto the ground prior to getting up, taking a gander at us furiously with her weapon held up before her. ¡°Rapidly!¡± Greg shouted, as we as a whole ran for it while Agent Nelson started taking shots at us once more.


    The man who was helping us stretched out beyond us, pulling us en route until we got to where the ne was stopped at. The entryway was at that point open, and all we expected to do was to get inside. It was notrge but not so little as those private nes. ¡°Inside, fast!¡± the man yelled, so we ran into the ne prior to closing the entryway behind us and locking it too. The man took out a key and locked it with that too before he put it into his pocket and turned around to see what was urring outside.


    Agent Nelson halted, as the ne began moving, with weighty breaths, gasping sounds and beating hearts surrounding us as we as a whole plunked down and peered out the windows as we attempted to see what was happening beyond it.


    .....


    We got away, but I¡¯m very certain the FBI will not entirely settled to find us now that we managed to get away from their grasp.


    ¡°Well that was excessively close,¡± Nikki said enthusiastically. ¡°I don¡¯t think I want to rehash that.¡± Iughed, checking her out. ¡°I¡¯m almost certain no one does,¡± I added. But then September got up, filtering the ne prior to moving towards the man. ¡°Alright, one inquiry, who are you?¡± she asked, pointing right at him.


    The man didn¡¯t appear to be entertained nor precisely impacted by any opportunity. He got up from his seat and took a major murmur, then, at that point, strolled over to us with every one of our eyes fixed right at him. ¡°All things considered, being the condition of where we are and what might befall us, I should tell you,¡± he said.


    ¡°You presumably ought to have been let us know in any case frankly,¡± Tisiah remarked, but the man didn¡¯t appear to need his contribution with the shooting look he provided for him.


    ¡°As I was saying, here¡¯s who I am...my name is Fulton Rocke, and I¡¯m the child of Demetrius Rocke,¡± he said, as shock bursted through the room. ¡°You...you-you?¡± September asked, shaking her head. There¡¯s something off about something.¡±


    ¡°I know, I know,¡± Fulton expressed, taking a gander at us truly. ¡°My dad could do without me however much he could do without you folks. Clearly, I help him to remember you.¡±


    That¡¯s what he said, looking at me as a weighty inclination submerged within my heart.


    How might he seem as though me? Could he seem as though me? Is it safe to say that he nned to be like me? No way, this is iprehensible. He can¡¯t be like me since I¡¯m not awbreaker. All things considered, I surmise now I¡¯m a result of that insane Agent Nelson but she had no clue about what she had gotten her hands into.


    Fulton Rocke moaned too, sitting down back in his seat while he checked out by any means of us. ¡°Indeed, now that you know, we can begin arranging how ¨C ¡±


    ¡°How could you know about our trip to Russia?¡± September asked, unsettling her otherwise calm disposition as she plunked down on her seat again with a dislike her face.


    He chuckled a tad prior to murmuring and scowling too. ¡°Allow me to assist you with just enough confidential. Rocke really called me one day to find you folks for him, and he might attempt to invest more energy with me. One thing about my dad is that he usuallly doesn¡¯te clean, or there is a trick to it, so I¡¯m helping you folks all things being equal. But I continued to follow you folks where you were since that day you battled with my dad here.¡±


    ¡°Wow...¡± Greg mumbled, checking out at him with shock all over.


    I saw him in shock, but I actually could hardly imagine how he was the child of Rocke, and that he was sincerely attempting to help us. It nearly sounds mind boggling but of course, this person seems to be a truly decent person so I surmise he truly is attempting to help us. But what¡¯s that have to do with anything?


    I really want to keep my space from this person.


    ¡°Now, we want to arrange for how to track down Petrov,¡± he said.


    He stood up again from his seat and started to stroll over to me when out of nowhere I felt something on my brow and admired see Tisiah with a harsh look all over gazing right at me, his hand on my temple as I attempted to create some distance from it while scouring my head with a dislike my face.


    ¡°All things considered, does anybody know where he could be?¡± September asked as Tisiah let go of my temple and put down in his seat.


    I shook my head no, as I kept on scouring my brow with a befuddled look all over as Tisiah took a gander at me once more. ¡°Perhaps he could be some ce in or with the TSA of certain sorts,¡± Fulton expressed, putting down in his seat too while his fingers drummed in front of him as he pondered something.


    I viewed at him with disarray all over as every other person nodded in arrangement. ¡°Indeed, perhaps not the TSA,¡± Vicki said. ¡°But likely with another association in the MSTO.¡±


    ¡°Likely,¡± September expressed, checking Fulton out.


    He nodded, murmuring and gazing toward the roof while scouring his jaw. ¡°But what association works in Russia that is a piece of the MSTO?¡± he pondered resoundingly.


    Nikki moaned, getting up from her seat. She strolled towards him with her hands in her pocket and gazed toward him with her head shifted to the side a smidgen. ¡°Perhaps you ought to ask your dad,¡± she said with augh in her voice.


    Heughed as well as he scoured his jaw once more. ¡°Indeed, I could but I don¡¯t actually want to do that at the present time.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± I inquired. ¡°He¡¯d believe you¡¯re actually looking for us.¡± Fulton jumped at that, and he moaned prior to peering down at me.


    He put his hands in hisp and turned away from me briefly prior to turning around to us. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll see,¡± he said. ¡°Excuse me briefly.¡±


    He got up from his seat and started strolling towards the washroom, opening the entryway as we heard the sound of water running within it, and afterward we heard Fulton hacking a tad as he got in the restroom as well.


    ¡°He should be truly terrified of his dad,¡± September expressed, checking him out.


    Preview:


    After some time, Fulton escorted himself out the bathroom door again with a smile on his face. He looked at everyone with a serious look on his face before walking over to his desk and sat back down. ¡°Well, I got an answer, but he seemed very reluctant about it,¡± he said, leaning back into his chair and putting his hands behind his head.


    We all looked at him, wondering what his answer was.


    ¡°They aren¡¯t exactly in Russia, but they do deal with certain situations that seem to concern Russia or its uses inside of the country. And it¡¯s the BMO.¡±


    ¡°British Mage Organization?¡± Nikki asked in confusion. ¡°But they¡¯re all the way in Britain, what are they doing in Russia?¡± Fulton shrugged, putting his hands back down on his desk as if he didn¡¯t want to talk about it anymore.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s a question for your father,¡± he said with a shrug. ¡°You can ask him that once you guys return back to the YMPA. Haven¡¯t heard from him for a while haven¡¯t you?¡±


    Silence busted out in the room as we all turned to each other before we all nodded no.


    He sighed a little bit before standing up again and walking over to me. He put a hand on my shoulder, looking at me frowning as I looked back at him with confusion on my face. He took a deep breath before he let it out slowly as he rubbed his forehead with a frown on his face.


    ¡°I feel your pain a thousand times more,¡± he responded, with a gulp in his throat. He took another deep breath before letting it out slowly again before he looked at me seriously. His eyes were moistened with sadness and grief.

 Chapter 109

    109 Connections


    After some time, Fulton apanied himself out the restroom entryway again happily. He took a gander at everybody with a serious look all over prior to strolling over to his work area and put down. ¡°All things considered, I found a solution, but he appeared to be exceptionally hesitant about it,¡± he expressed, inclining back toward his seat and putting his hands behind his head.


    We as a whole seen him, considering what his response was.


    ¡°They aren¡¯t precisely in Russia, but they truly do manage specific circumstances that appear to concern Russia or its purposes within the country. Furthermore, it¡¯s the BMO.¡±


    ¡°English Mage Association?¡± Nikki asked in disarray. ¡°But they¡¯re as far as possible in Ennd, what are they doing in Russia?¡± Fulton shrugged, returning his gives over right in front of him as though he would have rather not discussed it any longer.


    ¡°Indeed, that is an inquiry for your dad,¡± he said with a shrug. ¡°You can ask him that once you all get once again to the YMPA. Haven¡¯t heard from him for some time haven¡¯t you?¡±


    Quiet broke out in the room as we as a whole gone to one another before we as a whole nodded no.


    He murmured a tad prior to standing up once more and strolling over to me. He put a hand on my shoulder, seeing me grimacing as I nced back at him with disarray all over. He took a full breath before he let it out leisurely as he scoured his brow with a dislike his face.


    ¡°I sympathize with your aggravation multiple times more,¡± he answered, with a swallow in his throat. He took another full breath prior to letting it out leisurely again before he took a gander at me genuinely. His eyes were dampened with trouble and sorrow. ¡°But you know, not every person is fortunate,¡± he proceeded. Yet again he tapped me before he unsettled his hair up a smidgen as I felt a tear structure in my eyes too. I was stunned that another person could feel the aggravation that I have felt such a long time ago when I believed that everybody had disregarded me, didn¡¯t ponder me.


    They sort of still do, but I was tormented by Kirk regr. Also, the main individual who thought often about me was Greg and my mother and father. But now, I havepanions and I¡¯m saving the world.


    .....


    Perhaps it was anything but something terrible that I joined the spy mage framework and went to work for the YMPA. After all it has gotten mepanions and some earing experience, which is presumably what I really want to escape this wreck I¡¯m in now.


    Fulton took a full breath before he left me and put down on his seat once more. But then, at that point, he got a tablet of some kind, as he gged us toe.


    We got up from our seats, Greg being the most intrigued, and strolled over to him. It showed a lot of pictures and representations of individuals, as he showed it to us individually.


    ¡°Alright folks,¡± Fulton started, checking us out. ¡°We will see these individuals and inquire as to whether they know about Petrov.¡±


    ¡°Yeah...one question,¡± September asked, making a sound as if to speak. ¡°Who on earth would they say they are?¡±


    Fulton grinned at her before he took out his tablet once more, showing her a lot of pictures as he showed her individually until he atst showed her Petrov¡¯s image. ¡°These are individuals he works with,¡± he said, showing her another image. ¡°I¡¯ve met him multiple times when I was in Britain.¡±


    September wheezed and her eyes erged as she gazed at the image with a serious look all over before she thought back up at him. ¡°So why you don¡¯t have the foggiest idea where he is?¡± she asked, folding her arms before her chest.


    He moaned a tad prior to gazing toward her and afterward down at the image on his tablet once more. ¡°Indeed, something urred and he double-crossed me, but it¡¯s a boring tale,¡± he said with a shrug. ¡°It doesn¡¯t exactly make any difference any longer.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m almost certain it does,¡± September said, folding her arms before her chest once more and tapping her foot eagerly on the floor.


    He snickered a tad prior to shaking his head a tad as we as a whole gazed at him. ¡°No it doesn¡¯t. But everything I can say to you is that he doubtlessly is being an informant for somebody or some association,¡± he said. ¡°Furthermore, we really want to track down these folks to check whether they could track down him.¡±


    He then looked to the rear of the page. ¡°First is an arms seller and previous Chief of CSS, Colombian Spy Administrations: Felix Quesada.¡±


    I raised my eyebrow at him in shock and inclined forward on my seat as every other person inclined in for a superior consider well. He was a seriously buff man, as you could tell from his strong form and earthy colored skin variety that he was Mexican drop or something to that effect. He had short dark hair and bruised eyes and he was wearing some sort of military uniform as well as some sort of dark veil over his mouth and nose and there were likewise a few swathes around his neck and shoulders as well.


    I didn¡¯t have a clue when he said he was a previous President of CSS, but now that I see him, I can perceive how.


    ¡°He¡¯s in Russia for some gathering with somebody I ept is likely not excessively significant in the event that beingpletely legitimate,¡± Fulton expressed, looking at the photos on his tablet while I gazed at him inquisitively.


    He kept, checking the following picture out. It was a man named George Greyson, who was likewise a previous Chief of CSS. Not certain in the event that he was previously or after Quesada, but they were the two Presidents of CSS sooner orter. He was extremely tall and had an uncovered head as well as certain tattoos on his neck and arms.


    That doesn¡¯t seem to be a man named George Greyson by any means, I pondered internally as I kept on checking him out.


    Fulton kept looking at the photos on his tablet while we as a whole gazed at them, sitting tight for him to get to the following picture. ¡°Last one is a data merchant: Jonathan Artisan.¡±


    I was extremely shocked when I saw Jonathan¡¯s image as he was a diminutive man with long white hair that covered his face except for his blue eyes that gazed back at me as I gazed back at him inquisitively. He was likewise exceptionally solid and had a tattoo on his neck, as well as another one on his right arm.


    ¡°In this way, we really want to track down these folks so we can track down Petrov?¡± Nikki inquired. Fulton nodded prior to putting his hands behind his head and reclining in his seat again as he grinned at us. ¡°The best anyone can hope for at this point is to hold on until we arrive on this ne,¡± he said with a murmur as we as a whole nodded in understanding.


    Some time psed and it was night, and the ne was all the while moving. I generally kept myself situated on one of the seats that were looking towards the opposite side. September was at the opposite side, but she was generally peaceful. Furthermore, she additionally was dozing on the seat that I was perched on with her eyes open. Greg was sitting close to me on the opposite side of the passageway from me, checking out at me sometimes.


    Out of nowhere, I saw Fulton strolling towards me and Greg. ¡°Hello folks,¡± he said in a quiet, relieving voice as we both turned towards him with wide smiles on our countenances as we weed him.


    He plunked down on the seat close to me and Greg moved over, so we could have somewhat more space on the seats. ¡°So how are you folks?¡± he asked, scouring his jawline with his fingers while we as a whole stayed there quietly briefly, pondering what we ought to express back to him.


    ¡°All things considered, fine I surmise,¡± I answered with a shrug as he gave me a confounded look.


    Greg nodded, giving a little smile as he scoured his jaw and put his hand back on the seat before us. ¡°It¡¯s been different recently but, soon enough all that will have returned to normal,¡± Greg said in a quiet voice as Fulton nodded in understanding.


    We both went to take a gander at Fulton and he nodded prior to turning away from us, gazing at different travelers as we turned around to one another and gave a little snicker together prior to turning around to Fulton who actually had his head down.


    The quietness filled in the ne as I gazed through the window of the ne checking out at the delightful sky that epassed us. ¡°I know how that feels,¡± Fulton expressed out of nowhere as I bounced in shock, gazing toward him in shock.

 Chapter 110

    110 Russian Arrival


    I nodded ordingly and gazed back through the window of the ne as he got up from his seat and strolled back towards Nikki, who was resting profoundly within her rest. He moaned once he contacted her prior to plunking down close to her on the seat and hanging over her to murmur something in her ear. She woke up and went to take a gander at him with anguid look all over before she let out a little giggle and murmured as he chuckled too before she got up and returned to rest.


    Iughed, but I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea what he shared with her, but I¡¯m certain it was amusing since she was snickering.


    I went to nce through the window once more and I noticed that we were arriving in Russia soon. I could see a few structures, as well as certain vehicles driving out and about but nothing else truly appeared to hang out in my sight until I saw a tall structure that had a few radio wires standing out of it.


    ¡°Building that?¡± Greg asked, taking a gander at the image with his mouth opened too.


    Yet again fulton took out his tablet, viewing at the image too before he murmured profoundly and went to take a gander at Greg who was all the while staying there with his mouthpletely open.


    ¡°That is the Russian Space Organization centralmand,¡± he replied with a murmur. ¡°They should have highly ssified technology there, as well as a wide range of examinations with space travel, weapons, that sort of stuff.¡±


    Greg appeared to bementing his inquiry after he heard Fulton¡¯s response as he glowered prior to checking me out.


    ¡°That is great to know,¡± I answered with a nod and a smile all over. ¡°So where are wending?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll see,¡± he said happily, taking care of his tablet as he rested back up against his seat, shutting his eyes as we as a whole settled down to rest for the following couple of hours prior tonding. It wasn¡¯t long after that when we atst arrived in Moscow. The ne was arriving in an extremely huge airport and the lights of the airport were blinding to me since we werendingte around evening time and it was dim outside.


    .....


    My eyes flicked open as we quit, making a boisterous noise when we did as people began to move off the ne and leave towards some sort of gate which I didn¡¯t have any idea what it implied at this point. I checked out the ne, as we got up from our seats to leave the ne with Greg being quite possibly the earliest one out of the ne.


    I stood up and started to stroll down the means of the ne as I looked down towards the ground, taking a gander at individuals who were all flooding the ground.


    This won¡¯t feel truly good, right?


    I pondered internally, taking a full breath and preparing to stroll down the steps with Greg right behind me.


    But then, at that point, I stopped when I noticed there were a few men with assault rifles remaining close to the gate who were very startling, with theirrge muscles that wobbled under their garments when they strolled.


    My eyes erged at them, which made them grin generally with their yellow teeth radiating through their grins. Disdain sped through my body, giving me a shivery searching my stomach as my face be flushed red from shame.


    They generally turned and started to gaze at me too, with one of them taking out his cellphone to snap a photo of me while I gazed right at them with wide eyes as I felt my face heat up considerably more with shame and dread.


    I then turned and ran back up the means of the ne, finding Greg simrly as he was going to stroll off of it. ¡°Those folks look dubious,¡± Greg noticed as I made up for lost time to him and grasped his hand to lead him alongside me, not expressing anything as we left the ne.


    The rest emerged, as Mchi started extending himself by strolling beyond the ne while making little noises as he did.


    ¡°Yeah, they look dubious,¡± I expressed back to Greg in the wake of seeing Mchi run past us to head off to some ce else on the ne, which I failed to see the reason why he needed to go there by any means, but I epted it was on the grounds that he did not know what was happening in this nation at this point.


    Being that is really reasonable, I contemted internally while proceeding to stroll in front of him towards the exit of the ne, while ncing back at Fulton and September who were descending the steps while they kept conversing with one another unobtrusively.


    Before long enough, Vicki, Tisiah, and Nikki atst went along with us on the ground. ¡°Okay!¡± Fulton yelled in the midst of all the noise. ¡°I have a distribution center a tad in front of here where we can rest and prepare some gear. Quesada is definitely not a simple person to fight.¡±


    I nodded, watching Fulton stroll in front of us through a gathering who were talking among one another in Russian and appeared to be very annoyed that they needed to sit tight for us to stroll past them as they scowled at us. I needed to give them a discourteous signal for making us stand by as we strolled past them but then, at that point, I reconsidered it and chose not to get it done.


    Whenever we had ovee this gathering who were gazing at us while likewise making an effort not to connect, we kept on strolling towards a little entryway in the structure close by with Fulton driving us while Vicki and Tisiah strolled next to him, abandoning Nikki and September to chase after us while searching for additional dubious men.


    ¡°The recollections, they¡¯re returning hard,¡± September said, seizing my hand while viewing at me as she pulled me near her while she held my hand. I couldn¡¯t resist the opportunity to gaze at her briefly before I started to pull myself away from her so I could hold her hand from behind and she could fold her arms over my midriff from before me while holding my hand in hers.


    Before long enough, as we entered through the entryway we ended up in the terminal corridors. ¡°The ride ought to be out there,¡± Fulton expressed, looking behind him at us while strolling down the passageway. ¡°We have a lift, but we need to track down it.¡±


    I watched him as he turned around and started to stroll a few doors down once more, pushing forward, then behind us as he strolled in front of us while we followed behind him until we arrived at a lift that he opened for us.


    When I entered inside it with the others, it started to move up so quick that I felt my body nned to explode.


    We once arrived at the top, opening to a helipad which in its ce was a helicopter that was dark and gleamed in the evening.


    ¡°Goodness, decent,¡± Mchi said with augh, watching us enter within the helicopter. ¡°So now that we¡¯re going to Russia, it¡¯s the ideal opportunity for us to find out about this new world.¡±


    ¡°Almost certain you all to some degree have,¡± Fulton said, shutting the helicopter shut. Within the helicopter was confined but captivating, with the seats being very awkward but particrly required to go anyce securely in this world.


    The seats had a delicate tan tone, with some sort of blue variety on the lower part of the seats with red shaded cushioning that was very agreeable too. The seats likewise had a little circr opening in the center where you could see out of which made it more straightforward to see out of and assisted me with seeing better as I watched Fulton plunk down on his seat on the opposite side of the helicopter.


    ¡°Indeed, that was while attempting to find another weapon from Rocke, which we actually haven¡¯t found,¡± Tisiah expressed, viewing at Fulton as he nodded back.


    I nodded my head alongside her prior to checking out the lodge once more. ¡°Maybe,¡± Fultonughed as we as a whole nodded back.


    I looked at the entryways as the lodge moved and it appeared as though it was kicking colder as we off to fly out of sight. It¡¯s interesting in light of the fact that we just got off a ne.


    But on the other hand I suppose that is exactly the way in which it is the point at which you get off a ne or while you¡¯re flying through the sky in any kind of vehicle.


    ¡°Okay, as I said previously, we are going to the stockroom with a lot of provisions that we can umte for tracking down Petrov. Then you can obliterate the Cybertron, and return to the YMPA,¡± Fulton expressed, viewing at everybody around him as he settled in his seat.


    He turned around and started to view at us as he kept on conversing with us in his profound voice which seemed like a snarl. ¡°This world has been substantially more not quite the same as what I anticipated.¡±


    I watched him peacefully and moaned profoundly prior to shouting out ordingly. ¡°What world?¡± I asked back.

 Chapter 111

    111 C.A.M


    Fulton grinned and turned his look back through of his window where we were peering down at the ground from our vantage overhead before he shouted out once more. ¡°This entire spy mage world. In those days, we battled against the most hazardous crooks in any general public, but now it¡¯s simply one more conflict like governmental issues,¡± he said.


    Yet again I grimaced ordingly and afterward turned towards Fulton. His voice had taken on a tone that appeared to be unique in rtion tomon. He appeared to be redirected from his normal self in some way. I was unable to ce it precisely but I felt like something was up and that something other than him just was being lost in his own contemtions and sentiments here.


    This just showed how little I had some awareness of the spy mage world too. I could see that it was more than whatever I initially suspected it was, and that it was undeniably more perilous than what I previously believed it to be.


    ¡°Basically we¡¯re attempting,¡± Vicki expressed, inclining forward towards Fulton and taking a full breath before she kept talking in a more enthusiastic tone. ¡°If you were to ask me, we¡¯re really taking care of business.¡±


    ¡°How?¡± Mchi inquired. ¡°We¡¯re essentially battling against them like we generally do.¡±


    ¡°But look the amount we¡¯ve done as such far,¡± Nikki expressed, pivoting in her seat while she removed her hands from herp to incline forward and take a full breath too. ¡°We¡¯ve done a ton.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re actually aplishing more,¡± Tisiah bragged as he loosened up her arms before him while sitting back in his seat.


    We as a whole gone to take a gander at him before Fulton shouted out once more. ¡°It would be ideal for we to show up soon,¡± he squirmed in his seat as he shouted out in a more energized manner than normal.


    He turned his head forward, then back towards us before he started to peer through his window at the ground as we kept on peering down at it as we hovered above it. We were starting to get higher out of sight as we flew quicker too and I had started to feel like I could hurl.


    .....


    Something about being in helicopters sometimes falls short for me right now by any stretch of the imagination. It feels excessively close in here for my loving and I would rather not be ill out of here or out of dread of levels. I peered down at the window with interest, seeing a construction of a long lodge that went endlessly down to the extent that I could see before it atst finished at an end and I saw the ground underneath it.


    ¡°Amazing, that thing¡¯s long,¡± I mumbled as I watched it go endlessly down.


    Mchi roared withughter and sat back in his seat while I saw him put his hands up towards the window before he inclined forward towards it to gaze beyond it briefly. He then, at that point, let out a murmur and went to take a gander at me with his earthy colored eyes, making me gaze back at him before he kept talking as he turned his consideration back towards the window with me too.


    ¡°Extremely lengthy,¡± he added.


    I nodded ordingly before I turned my head forward and gazed through of the window once more, seeing the world go by me as I made an effort not to hurl from this unexpected sensation of weightlessness that had happened upon me. But then, at that point, the sensation of dropping started to burden me as we drew nearer to the ground.


    ¡°We¡¯rending!¡± Fulton said as he announced to us.


    I investigated at him, seeing that he was correct and that we wereing in for an arrival. I thought back through of the window and saw the ground hurrying up to meet us. I shut my eyes as I felt myself fall, but then the helicopter halted and I opened my eyes once more. I epted in a full breath as I understood that we were on the ground once more.


    ¡°Okay,¡± I murmured to myself as I nced around.


    Nikki pivoted and pulled on the handle, opening the entryway on her side and opening it somewhat before she stood up from her seat and left her entryway. I did likewise as I went out, feeling the virus air all over and acknowledging how different this spot was contrasted with the one that we left in before that day. The air was cold to a great extent was no intensity blowing on it to keep it warm like there was in my reality, making it cold to where it made me shudder.


    I pulled my hoodie over my face, letting my nose and mouth be presented to the virus air before I felt somebodye up behind me and fold their arms over my midriff, embracing me firmly against their body while pulling me back so I was constrained into the man¡¯s chest as I clutched them too.


    I pivoted to see its identity as I understood it was Tisiah who had folded his arms over me, making me view at him while he folded his arms over my abdomen as he embraced me tight.


    ¡°It¡¯s very chilly,¡± he said. ¡°You don¡¯t do very well in the virus isn¡¯t that right?¡±


    I shook my head, as Fulton requested for us to follow him so we could begin heading into a structure that was close by before he drove the way.


    We trailed behind him while Vicki clutched my other arm as she strolled next to me while pulling me in nearer to her side so she could be warm as well...I suspect. It wasn¡¯t turning out for her very well however so I had an inclination she would presumably be ill soon enough.


    We as a whole followed Fulton, who drove us through a dull foyer with tall structures surrounding us, some with lights on within them while others had their lights off, making it more obscure than it very well may be in here.


    We were all quiet as we went on down the lobby, watching our strides as they repeated noisily with each step we brought down the dull corridor, tuning in for sounds that could end up being useful to us sort out the thing heading we were heading down or even where we were going here.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think a stockroom seems to be this,¡± Mchi mumbled from behind me as we kept strolling a few doors down.


    I nodded my head gradually ordingly and watched my strides, attempting to tune in for any noises that I could hear from around us as we went on through the dull lobby.


    ¡°It would be ideal for we to be drawing nearer soon,¡± Fulton guaranteed us as we continued to stroll peacefully down the foyer until unexpectedly he halted before us and opened an entryway before him with his hand.


    ¡°What¡¯s behind there?¡± I pondered to myself.


    As he opened the entryway, I started to see a whole of my idea of perhaps a whole office or something like that. It was an enormous floor of PCs and courts and essentially all that to do with the spy mage world with a lot of individuals staying to a great extent on their PCs or chatting on telephones or in any event, going into this room or that space for reasons unknown or another.


    There were a few workces down one finish of this enormous room, but most of this huge region was for the PCs with a couple of individuals to a great extent at most who appeared to be dealing with them, just talking delicately enough where I could scarcely hear their words.


    On the right side though...was noisy.


    There were a lot of individuals generally standing and conversing with one another with some in any event, yelling at one another to a great extent. There were individuals yelling out orders or demanding responses from others while others were sitting back with their hands held behind their backs and arguing in a simrly noisy tone. The air possessed an aroma like it was loaded up with synthetic substances, making my nose jerk.


    But then I saw something that made me halt abruptly and nce back at Fulton as he strolled towards me, not noticing that I had halted by any means until I heard him calling out to out me and saw his eyes gazing at me from the separation away from where I stood.


    I diverted my look from Fulton back towards the horde of individuals standing all around the room, seeing that they were all wearing white robes over themselves, seeming to be something that you could find at the airport in their brilliant varieties and sparkling focuses on them. It helped me to remember what I saw when I was in that ne recently after I had been taken shots at.


    The floor was covered with a light dark tone, making it seem to be a medical clinic or something almost identical. There were some love seats to a great extent and everything was perfect, even individuals were spotless trimmed and wore their hair short, with a couple of them with long hair down past their shoulders and backs, and most of them were men.


    There were a fewdies waiting around but the greater part of them were simply situated at PCs or conversing with others via telephone or sitting back with their arms crossed in theirps while disrespecting their partners. They had long and thick robes over them, simr to the one¡¯s that Fulton and most of them wore over their bodies.


    ¡°Amazing,¡± Nikki murmured without holding back as she came up close to me and remained adjacent to me, watching out of the room before she turned her head back towards Fulton who was all the while strolling towards us with the remainder of our gathering behind him.


    ¡°Indeed, this is the C.A.M Association,¡± he said. ¡°The one I developed.¡±

 Chapter 112

    112 Quesada¡¯s Bases


    Stunned, I diverted my head from Nikki to Fulton, seeing that he had at longst contacted us and now remained close to us rather than in front of us. ¡°You constructed this?¡± I asked him.


    Fulton nodded his head once and turned his head towards me while taking a gander at me from the side of his face, appearing to concentrate on my eyes as he shouted out. ¡°It¡¯s represents Focal American Military.¡±


    He went calm briefly as he let us ingest what he had recently said. I felt staggered by the disclosure and the unexpected acknowledgment that I was remaining here in this world while conversing with a man association with his own exposed hands...alone.


    ¡°We have wands put away in our weapon room, so we should go there first.¡±


    He strolled before us and began driving the way once more down an alternate way, seeing that we were now all following him while Vicki remained clutching my arm and pulling me alongside her. We trailed closely behind him, passing more individuals wearing robes or rxed dress as we strolled past them to keep strolling down the long way that appeared to have vast exciting bends in the road down it before we happened upon an enormous entryway where Fulton quit strolling and headed back in the other direction to check us out.


    He held on until we halted and watched every one of us from behind before he strolled back dependent upon us, taking a gander at me while he remained before me again before he got out a card that was in his pocket and held it out towards me. ¡°Take this card,¡± he trained me as he gave it over to me before he dismissed and kept strolling from us once more, causing us to trail not very far behind him once more.


    I took a gander at the card in my grasp and read it over. It read: Focal American Military Organization.


    ¡°Focal American Military,¡± I murmured to myself as I gave it to see the opposite side before I gave it back over to him who took it from my hand once more.


    Fulton said nothing more before he pivoted, making the way for the left half of all while he strolled within it as we trailed behind him in single record behind him before he shut the entryway behind him with an uproarious snap that repeated surrounding us.


    .....


    As the entryway shut behind us, a lot of elevated lights came on that uncovered a room that wasrge enough for 100 individuals to stroll in immediately while we as a whole remained there in shock prior to turning our consideration back to Fulton who was taking a seat at one of the tables that were made from ss on each side of him before we as a whole sat down at them peacefully.


    ¡°This is normally where we get our weapons, vehicles, data that is vital. It¡¯s given to us,¡± he said as he removed his card from his pocket and slid it across the table so that all of us might see. ¡°This card is your entrance key to go back and forth in here freely.¡±


    ¡°For what reason did you show it to me first however?¡± I asked him.


    He shrugged his shoulders before he copsed his hands together before him on the table before he responded to me.


    ¡°You know why,¡± he said.


    I nodded my head ordingly as I turned my eyes back towards the entryway, attempting to check whether there were any gatekeepers remaining beyond it before I understood there weren¡¯t any watchmen standing watchman over it whatsoever, which made me wonder where they were?


    ¡°Where are they?¡± Nikki asked as she turned her eyes back towards Fulton while she sat opposite him, copsing her hands together as she gazed at him. ¡°I don¡¯t believe it¡¯s really smart to allow individuals just to waltz in here.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s difficult,¡± Fulton told her with a shake of his head. ¡°I needed to make an exceptional room that would make it more straightforward for those individuals toe in and out.¡±


    ¡°A room?¡± Nikki inquired. ¡°Your meaning could be a little more obvious.¡±


    Fulton raised his head towards her, viewing at her with a slight grin all the rage as he talked. ¡°The room is loaded up with unique walls that must be opened from beyond it and shut from within it.¡± He stopped briefly as he watched me for a response.


    ¡°This spot is a mix of ab room, office, capacity, weapon room and significantly more. That is the reason I¡¯m giving you folks the card,¡± he said. I stammered, ¡°But you didn¡¯t-¡±


    ¡°Now,¡± he said. ¡°We really want to track down Felix Quesada, but I¡¯m not precisely certain where his whereabouts are.¡± Nikki shrugged her shoulders next to him as she made some noise. ¡°But you can sort out where he is.¡±


    I couldn¡¯t resist the opportunity tough without holding back at what they were talking about before I shook my head and thought about what he had recently said. ¡°Indeed, I have assembled a few hypotheses of certain sorts to perhaps assist me with tracking down him but, he¡¯s out of control,¡± Fulton shrewdly answered while looking directly at me with a stoic expression as though he was guessing what I might be thinking.


    I looked away at him to check out the room. But he then took out a remote, and out of nowhere, a screen sprung up on the wall as though there was a projector toward the rear of the room. It showed a guide with specks out of control.


    ¡°What do those specks depend on?¡± Vicki asked, looking out from behind Mchi as I kept on gazing at the screen where a few spots were hovered over in yellow while others were gotten out by lines getting through them in red. Fulton grinned at her as he answered.


    ¡°Those dabs address where we figure Quesada may be at the present time,¡± he nodded his head once as he made some noise. ¡°Those are his bases or anything you desire to call them at the present time.¡± He stopped briefly to investigate everybody before he talked once more. ¡°As a rule in this season, exactly in December, he normally goes to acquire the cash that he promises to give consistently to his family as a Christmas present.¡±


    Yet again mchi lifted his hand to shout out as Fulton nodded his head in acknowledgment. ¡°Thus, h-he does that consistently?¡± he inquired.


    Fulton nodded his head indeed before he answered. ¡°That is right.¡±


    ¡°Thus, we ought to track down him at one of these bases?¡± I inquired. ¡°But imagine a scenario in which he¡¯s not there any longer?¡± Fulton sat once more into his seat as he copsed his hands together before him.


    Vicki snickered delicately while checking me out. ¡°All things considered, in the event that he were not to be there, he would presumably be at home, doing some kind of Christmas festivity for himself with his family or something almost identical.¡± She put down with Nikki as Fulton gazed at me while I kept on ncing back at the screen of the guide of the spots where Quesada may be.


    There were somewhere around two dozen better ces disyed on the screen that seemed like they could be Quesada¡¯s headquarters or something almost identical. I turned my eyes back towards Fulton, seeing him actually gazing at me from the side of his face as though he was all the while guessing what I might be thinking.


    Nikki was all the while making some noise while gazing toward Fulton. ¡°Things being what they are, how has everything turned out?¡±


    ¡°All things considered, I worked with him for a smidgen before we chose to begin our own gathering here,¡± he responded to her while as yet checking me out.


    I nodded my head, grinning at him as I turned around towards the screen on the wall before me before I extended in thought. ¡°But then, at that point, me and Felix had a run in and a, he chose to do whatever he might feel like doing,¡± Fulton made sense of before he took out a little controller and hit a few buttons in favor of it and out of nowhere, the screen was gone as was the guide.


    Preview:


    ¡°First we¡¯re gonna hit up his first base,¡± he rambled on as if he was talking to himself about something that we might already know about him. He stood up from his chair before he turned towards us again.


    Suddenly, he hit the first button and it showed some sort of bird¡¯s eye view of this structured base with lots of carsing in and out of it and there was a building at the far end of it that was lit up from inside showing some people going in and out of it. There was this zipping sound of metal against metal that caused everyone¡¯s heads to turn towards it as they all listened to it.


    I watched as we were all silent before Fulton hit a few more buttons on his remote and suddenly, he switched to some sort Google Earth type stuff where you have those a bunch of different cities circling around a central spot as if they were connected to it by bridges or something. Suddenly, all the buildings on all the bases lit up one by one as they came in and out of it in this very busy way until there were dozens of lights blinking on and off with a steady humming sound from them that came from the base as it was on full power or something like that.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m not sure why they do that,¡± Fulton huffed out in disgust as if he couldn¡¯t stand to look at it anymore, hitting one button and making all the lights go ck and the screen went back to the bird¡¯s eye view of the first base. ¡°Now, I have the street of the ce so we can hopefully get there quick.¡±


    He turned off the screen and sat back down in his chair. ¡°But, we need to rest and just calm down for a moment because we¡¯ve been running around like chickens, am I right?¡± he said, with the full support of nods. He smiled, ¡°Perfect, but first let me lead you guys to our food court.¡±

 Chapter 113

    113 The First Base


    ¡°First we will hit up his first base,¡± he chattered as though he was conversing with himself about something that we could definitely know about him. He stood up from his seat before he turned towards us once more.


    Unexpectedly, he hit the first button and it showed some kind of higher perspective of this organized base with loads of vehiclesing all through it and there was a structure at the furthest finish of it that was illuminated from inside showing certain individuals going all through it. There was this zipping sound of metal against metal that made everybody¡¯s heads turn towards it as they generally paid attention to it.


    I looked as we were all quiet before Fulton hit a couple of additional buttons on his remote and out of nowhere, he changed to some sort Google Earth type stuff where you have those a lot of various urbanmunities surrounding around a focal spot as though they were associated with it by scaffolds or something to that effect. Unexpectedly, every one of the structures on every one of the bases illuminated individually as they came all through it in this exceptionally bustling manner until there were many lights flickering on and off with a consistent murmuring sound from them that came from the base as it was on full power or something to that effect.


    ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t know why they do that,¡± Fulton heaved out in disdain as though he was unable to remain to take a gander at it any longer, hitting one button and making every one of the lights go dark and the screen returned to the elevated perspective of the first base. ¡°Now, I have the road of the spot so we can ideally arrive fast.¡±


    He switched off the screen and put down in his seat. ¡°But, we really want to rest and only quiet down briefly in light of the fact that we¡¯ve been going around like chickens, am I right?¡± he said, fully supported by nods. He grinned, ¡°Awesome, but first let me lead you folks to our food court.¡±


    He strolled past us, as fervor went through my face. A food court would be wonderful after the running we had quite recently finished and finally taking some time to focus on that energy.


    We as a whole followed behind him as we went through this long passage where I noticed that our shoes were all standing out before us, staring back at us as I tracked with behind the others with my eyes thinking to and fro from my shoes to Fulton¡¯s feet as we as a whole strolled through the passage.


    As we strolled through the passage, there was a light toward the finish of it where I could see two different passages that fan out every which way but there were no lights within them. They were totally dull, aside from where I could see a few stages driving down to the base.


    ¡°When are we going to see the food court?¡± Vicki asked Fulton as she followed behind me with her arms got over her chest.


    .....


    Fulton halted and turned his head around towards her before he answered. ¡°Before long, Vicki, soon,¡± he expressed, winking at her as she smiled at him while Nikki recently snickered.


    Yet again he headed back in the other direction and kept on strolling as we as a whole followed behind him. But he was correct, it was soon in light of the fact that as we turned, our eyes managed with what gave off an impression of being an eatery that had a few brilliant lights bncing down above it while different lights draped down from the roof too.


    ¡°Ahh yes!¡± Mchi yelled, hopefully managing with a blissful chuckle. ¡°Food.¡±


    ¡°At longst!¡± Vicki expressed energetically as she looked as every other person did likewise. ¡°Okay, what do you folks need first?¡± he asked, as Mchi focused on his hands expectation of the food being served.


    Mchi smiled, ¡°Oh rapture... I¡¯m starving!¡±


    ¡°Me as well,¡± Nikki said with her own enormous smile all over as she kept on thinking to and fro among Mchi and Vicki.


    Vicki just remained there briefly as she considered what she needed to arrange first.


    ¡°I¡¯d take the Panda Express,¡± she said, as we as a whole mumbled in a shocked design before she proceeded, ¡°Or... a Panda Express!¡±


    She snickered uproariously as we as a whole turned towards her. We were all gazing at her unamused briefly before I pivoted and checked Mchi out.


    ¡°You could do without Panda Express?¡± I inquired.


    He shook his head, as she gazed back at us happily but immediately understood no one was precisely intrigued.


    ***


    We were taken to our transitory room as the time proceeded but now was the following day, the day to track down Quesada. Fulton called us from the room and into the weapons room, or anything you call it. We sat down as Fulton kept on keeping himself on his feet, and he appeared to be very worn out in his dress. He had changed into some pants with his standard cowhide coat over them that I¡¯ve seen him wearing many times as of now.


    ¡°OK, today is the day that we made our first step into tracking down Quesada,¡± he said as he took out a remote from his pocket and grasped it. Out of nowhere, the screen on the wall illuminated and showed every one of the bases that we had previously seen before we had begun this entire thing.


    ¡°First one, this,¡± he expressed, highlighting the first base on the screen. It showed the structures illuminating individually until unexpectedly they all went out without a moment¡¯s dy and the screen went dark for a couple of seconds before it gradually started to grow dim from obscurity to blue, then returned to the higher perspective of the base.


    He then pushed on one button and unexpectedly it was illuminated with individuals going all through it and the zipping sound of metal against metal once more. ¡°I disdain that sound,¡± I murmured.


    Nikkiughed from close to me, gazing toward me with a smile all over as she kept on thinking this way and that from me to Fulton as he kept on talking. ¡°We as a whole do, but this will be the mark sound of viewing as the base okay? How about we move.¡±


    We were driven beyond the base to a major van that was dark with dim colored windows, so you could scarcely see out of them. There were four seats on each side, but just two of them were involved by Nikki and I with Fulton taking the secondary lounge. ¡°Who¡¯s driving?¡± September inquired.


    ¡°No one, this drives itself,¡± he said, as episodes of air emerged from my mouth. I went to him, causing a stir while he grinned at me before he talked once more. ¡°Gina, take us to this direction: 62¡ã 42¡ä 0.000¡å N, 30¡ã 20¡ä 0.000¡å E.¡±


    A guide showed up on the screen inside the vehicle that showed a lot of lines circumventing it in various ways. ¡°Getfortable children,¡± he said with augh. ¡°Take in the scenery.¡± Out of nowhere the vehicle started to hurry away from us at a decent speed while I heard a boisterous shrieking noise of tires as we sped towards the directions that Fulton had given us.


    The van floated into a street that was loaded up with trees with green leaves and trees covered with red leaves, causing all that to show up as though it was shrouded in blood. But as we got increasingly close to the timberline, I could see structures showing up from behind the trees and a few different settlements that were by the side. As we drove, I noticed how enthusiastic the roads were, with vehicles ring all day long. The sound of motors passing by the vehicle some way or another felt unwinding and quieting, some way or another mitigating even as I kept on gazing at the structures that were showing up before us from behind the trees.


    The sun was at that point setting when we arrived at the directions that Fulton had given us and I looked as the structure uncovered itself to an ever increasing extent, until unexpectedly we were passing through a gate with the word ¡®Wee¡¯ written in a red textual style with white lettering on top of it as we pulled up to a vacant parking garage.


    ¡°Is this the base?¡± Greg asked, checking Tisiah out.


    ¡°Not precisely,¡± Fulton replied. ¡°It¡¯s not intended to be a base, but Quesada recently procured that way.¡±


    Greg nodded in acknowledgment before he said something different. ¡°So... how can you approach tracking down him? Is it true or not that we must go out there and track down him ourselves or would someone say someone is here going to take care of us?¡±

 Chapter 114

    114 Base-ic Problems


    Fulton grinned at him. He shook his head as he snatched the remote from Gina. I saw an entire pack of buttons on it. ¡°Not just is Gina, which is this delightful vehicle we are as of now sitting in, a vehicle but likewise a decent camera. I will watch you folks to track down him, and I¡¯ll let you know folks believe that should do with these ear pieces.¡±


    He ventured into his pocket and took out two little gadgets. He gave them to Nikki and me as he put his own on. He then, at that point, went to Vicki and Mchi. He grinned as he gave them to them.


    ¡°These are earpieces that will permit you folks to hear me as well as the other way around,¡± he said. ¡°Try to pay attention to me okay.¡± Me and Tisiah nodded as we both slipped the earpiece in our ears.


    ¡°OK, so I will give you folks a couple of decides that you really want to follow while we¡¯re here. First decide is that you all can¡¯t leave this region without my consent. Assuming you do, you will be shot immediately. The subsequent decide is that you all can¡¯t utilize your powers except if I say it¡¯s alright. Third decide is that assuming I advise you to run, you folks better run,¡± he said.


    ¡°Great rules...good rules,¡± Greg murmured, nodding his head.


    Fultonughed. ¡°I know, right?¡± he said, as he turned his consideration back towards the screen. ¡°Okay, now go!¡± he yelled, as we hurried out of the vehicle. The front of the structure was an earthy colored tone, but its sides had many shades of paint that appeared to have been pped onto the structure with no purpose by any means as they were various shades of variety.


    ¡°Okay, aside,¡± September murmured, as she highlighted the side. It was a little rear entryway that drove into a structure that had a few windows with blue shades covering them as we stepped in leisurely and cautiously to ensure there weren¡¯t any watchmen around or anything.


    As we followed September and kept an eye out, we advanced gradually towards where she was driving us. We stopped when we got to the entryway she was pointing at, since the entryway seemed as though it was made of a material of some kind. It seemed as though an extravagant entryway made of a metal of some kind or another.


    ¡°Okay, don¡¯t kick the bucket OK?¡± Mchi cautioned. I nodded in concurrence with him as he connected for the handle to open it. The handle turned without a hitch, which shocked me a piece, as I didn¡¯t anticipate that it should turn wlessly by any means. I hoped for something else of a more terrible quality for it to be put together with stic or something but not some metal that transformed without a hitch and effectively into an entryway.


    .....


    As we strolled inside, I saw a few steps paving the way on our right side and a corridor driving left, as well as an entryway toward its finish prompting a room that I was unable to see what it was. I strolled in leisurely and cautiously as I saw September connect for the light switch and flick it on.


    Nothing.


    It was a vacant room.


    ¡°Indeed, that is really useful,¡± September expressed wryly while Mchi glowered at her as Nikki and Vicki strolled over to check out the room with her.


    Me and Greg continued in as well as we analyzed all that was in the room. The walls were all white and in and there was some gear set up in better ces that appeared to be associated with PCs that were perched on work areas.


    ¡°Might we at some point utilize these?¡± Tisiah asked as he took out one of the seats on one of the tables that had a white seat on top of it with red streaks on it. ¡°Maybe,¡± September said. ¡°In the event that I could track down the power source.¡±


    ¡°This seems to be an office,¡± Greg remarked while he moved one of the seats around and tracked down an outlet under it. ¡°Here!¡± September went over and looked under the other one she had tracked down an outlet on. We then moved every one of our seats together, and Greg got down on his knee to look under the table that Tisiah pulled the seat.


    ¡°Here, take the attachment,¡± September said, as Greg took it, connecting it. Unexpectedly, the PCs clicked, showing various cameras in various rooms. ¡°This is a security room,¡± Mchi said, as he inspected the PC. He moved his finger over the mouse until out of nowhere there was an entire pack of data showing up on the screen showing various screens with various images from around the base, alongside every one individualsing in.


    ¡°We could find Quesada utilizing these cameras,¡± Vicki said.


    Me and Tisiah shook our heads as we approached check out at the minutes on the screen. They were all kinds of cameras and showed various things. Some were inside, and others were outside.


    ¡°What do you all figure we ought to do?¡± Greg inquired. ¡°You folks need to attempt to track down him with these cameras?¡±


    ¡°I think we want to find the ones that are outside,¡± Nikki said. ¡°The ones inside would be more enthusiastically to track down him in on the grounds that he¡¯s in the control room.¡±


    We then understood that they were every one of the cameras inside the base, and not outside where we needed to track down him. ¡°Alright, Connor and Mchi, find Quesada in that control room,¡± Fulton said. ¡°We want to hustle this along.¡±


    ¡°Gotcha,¡± I said, as me and Mchi left the entryway, and went on down the lobby. ¡°Hopefully no one upsets us,¡± Mchi said as we strolled down the passage that drove down to an entryway that remained before us with red lights glimmering close to it. ¡°Would it be advisable for us we go in?¡± Mchi asked, and I nodded.


    He nodded as he kicked down the entryway, with his wand firm in his grasp. At the point when he kicked down the entryway it drove a mad sound as it got serious the center of its casing. But when he kicked it hard enough, it fell to pieces and fell on the floor inside, making sparkles fall.


    It was a corridor that had a lot of pictures, maybe family on the wall that drove into the entryway. ¡°Keep your wand convenient,¡± Mchi murmured. He gradually continued towards the entryway as I reluctantly followed him into the room with my wand solidly gripped in my grasp. When inside, we saw three men sitting at three PCs while conversing with one another about how they were taking care of their responsibilities.


    ¡°Here,¡± Mchi requested, as we sped to the corner behind the room and took cover behind the wall, with me and Mchi remaining squeezed close against one another as we kept our wands in our grasp near us. ¡°One thing I believe that you should do approve?¡± Mchi inquired. ¡°Try not to pass on.¡±


    I nodded, seeing him, ensuring he had a grin all over before he started creating some distance from me, heading towards one of the PCs. Part of the gang on the PCs pivoted. ¡°Hello what are you doing here?!¡± he yelled, getting up from his seat. Out of nowhere he swung his seat forward and pushed it towards us with his foot as his hand connected for his wand.


    Once more I sped forward from behind him and held out my wand at him, as I centered my energy to control up my Perk by clicking my tongue and afterward shooting my energy out at him so quick it shot out of my wand quicker than I could flicker. The folks on the PCs flew from their seats onto their feet as they were terrified by the unexpected assault that urred in the room all of a sudden.


    The person on his feet let out a holler as his body shined. Out of nowhere the two others threw a punch at me while holding their wands up, while Mchi stayed taken cover behind the seat to shut out anybody¡¯s effort to contact him from the opposite side of the wall by holding his wand up with the two his hands over it.


    Rapidly I dodged the punch tossed at me by the third individual as he pointed it at my head from his left side, making me twist my knees while holding my arm out before me to hinder his right clench hand that he attempted to punch me with as well as to assist me with evading the punch that he was going for the gold with as I held up my wand and utilized my right arm to obstruct his clench hand prior to utilizing my right foot to kick him back in leg.


    I immediately sped behind the man, snatching his body before him and twirled him around with his arms stuck over his head as I secured him among me and Mchi. Mchi kicked part of the gang behind me in his stomach prior to kicking him back into the other person who was all the while attempting to punch me from behind while I was all the while twirling the other person around with my arms around his chest.


    I immediately brought down my head before the swing, with a boisterous bang as it associated with the rear of his head knocking him down into the wall as I brought my wand down against him making him tumble to his knees.


    ¡°Where is the control room?¡± I inquired.

 Chapter 115

    115 Meeting with a Quesada


    I looked back at Mchi who had kicked back another person who had been remaining behind me and examined his face of shock.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know...he for the most part doesn¡¯t let us know these things,¡± the man mumbled in dread while holding up his arms before his chest.


    I moaned as I then, at that point, heard a voice shout out, ¡°What¡¯s happening in here?¡±


    ¡°Good gracious,¡± I murmured as we pivoted, seeing a buff man with tattoos all over himself. ¡°Quesada,¡± I mumbled to Mchi who nodded in concurrence with me. He then set his wand back into his pocket and ran back towards me as I moved back towards where different men were remaining before the PCs who had now been knocked out.


    ¡°What are you folks doing?¡± he asked, his eyes loaded up with rage as he grabbed hold of my shoulders and drove me into a wall sufficiently that I fell into it from the power of his push against me. ¡°Oh...that hurt,¡± I mumbled.


    ¡°So you kids choose to meddle with my pack, my power, my men,¡± he yelled. ¡°You all truly have no clue about the thing you¡¯re not kidding!¡±


    I got up leisurely from the wall as I cleaned a touch of blood away from my nose from where I had hit it before during the battle. Out of nowhere, he connected for a weapon on his midriff as I connected for one of my own. The firearm that he pulled out of his midsection was colossal and long, while mine was exclusively about a portion of that size, but it was strong and lethal.


    I prepared to shoot it at him, but out of nowhere, he got thatrge stick by the side of the room, and as I shot, he diverted it.


    What on earth?


    .....


    What sort of abilities did he have?


    As I watched him shoot it back towards me, I bounced once more into a speedy position, and simrly as I hopped up onto the work area before me, I shot it back at him. But he additionally diverted.


    Now, I know I¡¯m not precisely a specialist, but this ought not be urring. It resembles he¡¯s an expert contender or something to that effect. A contender can¡¯t redirect projectiles with such ease like that except if they¡¯ve prepared themselves to make it happen or something to that effect. But even that is a stretch since there isn¡¯t a way a contender could at any point prepare for that reason, or even have a weapon like that in their control for that reason in the first spot.


    Some kind of problem with¡¯s him.


    Rapidly, I rushed at him, my clench hands prepared to hit him in perhaps a couple regions that ought to hit him, but he redirected everyst one of them. He unexpectedly kicked me in the stomach prior to hitting me hard across the face with his left hand while as yet having his right hand holding that enormous weapon of his.


    I felt myself going down to one knee from the power of the blow, but I immediately turned on my side and started to twirl around on my hand so that when I tumbled down into a roll, I came up and turned towards him as he had previously started off his shoe and now hauled his other leg out to kick me in the chest, hitting me hard enough that it knocked me to the cold earth, making me roll on my shoulder before I plugged myself and remained back up onto my feet as I threw a punch at him.


    ¡°Connor!¡± Mchi yelled in stress, as I threw a punch at him as he shot in reverse towards a wall.


    What?


    For what reason did I stop myself?


    For what reason didn¡¯t I only run for it?


    Out of nowhere, a major sh sent my body flying across the room and over towards one of the PCs as I crashed through it prior to moving across the floor and through an entryway which drove me into another room. It was exactly the same thing I ept as this one, but with the exception of no one was in it.


    I got up, seeing Quesada resting on the wall, his firearm looking towards me. Yet again he took shots at me two times more as I dodged behind a table prior to bouncing up on the table as he focused on me. As I got up, he started to stroll towards me as his hand came up to snatch me by the neckline of my shirt.


    ¡°Now, what did Fulton send you for?¡± he inquired.


    ¡°Please ept my apologies what?¡± I asked, confounded.


    ¡°For what reason did he send you folks?¡± he asked , his face looking annoyed at me for reasons unknown. He was going to pull me closer towards him when unexpectedly the entryway burst open and in came Nikki, September, Tisiah, and most of all grasping their wands.


    ¡°What on earth urred here?¡± Greg asked, as he watched me get pulled free from the table by Quesada¡¯s grasp on my cor. ¡°Sit idle!¡± September yelled, as Quesada halted. I took a gander at him with dread in my eyes, while he was peering down at me with disdain in his eyes.


    ¡°Try not to move,¡± September requested Quesada as he halted. I slithered from under the table, getting up onto my feet. Quesada checked out at me with scorn in his eyes while holding up his firearm towards me.


    September started to say, ¡°Don¡¯t contact him.¡±


    Quesada gradually convoluted, his eyes menacingly checking everybody out. The inclination in this room abruptly different from dread to outrage as they epassed him with their wands grasped high. Out of nowhere, they shot out energy radiates from their wands that shot out towards Quesada as he was going to take shots at them.


    But then, at that point, he avoided every one of them with his stick.


    ¡°How the...¡± Greg mumbled.


    But out of nowhere, I heard this, and this made me freeze up into dread. ¡°The FBI are here, you really want to go now!¡±


    We all froze as we took a gander at one another. ¡°We really want to leave,¡± Tisiah said, but then, at that point, we heard an entrywaybust from what could be the FBI. ¡°God help us, we really want to go!¡± I yelled. I kicked Quesada in the chest, driving him into the wall and knocking him out.


    ¡°OK, how about we move!¡± Mchi yelled, as Greg and I put him on our shoulders. We sped out the room and back down the corridor and out the entryway and back into the room we had first been in and kept rushing to move as distant as we could from where we came in.


    But as we went there, we saw warriors climbing into the room. ¡°OK, to one side!¡± Nikki said, and we ran right where she said. As we did this, I heard the hints of stsing from where we were heading down the other path.


    Then, at that point, I heard one individual that I unquestionably was not wanting to hear today. I nearly feel more terrified of her, as a matter of fact.


    ¡°Connor Drails, we know you¡¯re here!¡± she yelled.


    ¡°Gracious, no, no, no,¡± Mchi mumbled.


    ¡°Who is that?¡± Tisiah inquired.


    ¡°That is Agent Nelson,¡± Mchi said with a murmur of dread. ¡°We need to go.¡±


    But out of nowhere, men from Quesada¡¯s base started to show up at the party, with their quick firing rifles thundering through the air. ¡°Please!¡± Mchi yelled as he ran down the corridor once more.


    And afterward out of nowhere we heard gunfire from behind us as they were taking shots at us and pursuing us as we ran down the passage to the nearby. Mchi immediately shot a bolt, locking that entryway and making it so they couldn¡¯t receive in return until they would separate it or something like that. And afterward we took off once more, running into one more space with yet more fighters sitting tight for us in front.


    ¡°Goodness, no back, back!¡± Mchi yelled as we turned and hurried to thest entryway of all as I got anxious and frightened from all of this, not knowing how long it would require for us to leave.


    Gunfire kept on detonating, with the slugs going by us and stirring things up around town behind us as we went after the way to push it open to leave and frantically make tracks but then, at that point, out of nowhere there was a boisterous st or the like behind us which made us tumble to the ground.


    ¡°Gracious shoot!¡± Greg yelled as he fell on his rear and hit his head against a table behind him making him shout in torment. Most of us were additionally lying on our posteriors or sitting on tables as we watched Greg hit his head. ¡°I¡¯m fine...I think,¡± he mumbled.


    ¡°You think?!¡± Mchi yelled, while clutching his head with one hand.


    Then, at that point, we heard a voice yelling uproariously from beyond the room where we were, which was from the passage we had rolled in from. ¡°We really want to separate,¡± he expressed, taking a gander at us with his hand covering his mouth.


    Out of nowhere, men in dark suits came going through the entryway into the room, every one conveying a weapon and they were all holding hankies over their noses and mouths.


    ¡°Here!¡± they yelled. This was terrible, on the grounds that it really intended that there were many a greater amount of them than there were of us. They started to move toward us, running up behind us, while simultaneously firing their handguns at us to weaken us as they sped towards us.


    Out of nowhere, Nikki rushed at them from behind with a wand in her grasp and started to fire at them with it as they kept terminating back at her. As they did this, Tisiah hopped onto a table and started terminating at them with his own wand. The men were pushed back, as Mchi took a gander at me, his mouth hanging but uncertain what to say.


    ¡°Go!¡± he yelled.


    I posed no inquiries, and ran.

 Chapter 116

    116 Fulton and I


    I sped through the corridor, actually hearing gunfire burst through the base. Where do I go? What do I do? I thought as I turned another corner. I wouldn¡¯t stop until I moved as distant from them as could really be expected. There was some harmony and calm in front of me on the opposite side of the structure so I turned towards it and sped as quick as possible towards it without thinking back.


    I ran over an entryway, not certain what it was really going after, opened it and strolled inside where it was a flight of stairs prompting another level beneath me that drove downwards to the nearby and afterward another level underneath that which drove down considerably further.


    I¡¯m not even certain where to go, or which spot is ideal to go.


    I shut the entryway and went on down the means until I ended up in a long lobby with entryways opening each side of it. Some were open but most were closed. It didn¡¯t make any difference to me which ones I went through as long as I continued to move.


    I progressed forward until I ran over an entryway that was open toward the finish of the lobby and strolled in leisurely without pivoting or thinking back and looked around the bend as I moved toward it carefully and discreetly. As I did this, I saw that it drove into what seemed, by all ounts, to be a room.


    ¡°Okay...¡± I took in help, but then noticed a figure remaining in the entryway with their back to me confronting the wall across the room. It was a male figure wearing a dark robe with seemingly two enormous dark horns extending away from his head that was confronting me straightforwardly across the room as though they were gazing at me through the actual wall.


    I gradually strolled towards the figure in the room entryway until I arrived at it and remained there before him, actually checking him out. Out of nowhere the figure pivoted and confronted me and it was none other than Fulton.


    ¡°Goodness Fulton!¡± I murmured in delight at seeing him once more. But then he moved so he was now behind me before me and put his hands on my shoulders and maneuvered me into him so he could look at me straight in the eye as I checked him out. ¡°Where are the others?¡± he asked as I gradually turned around to confront him, my hands on his shoulders now as I attempted to pivot gradually while he clutched me with his hands on my shoulders.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said, but then, at that point, heard what seemed like strides drawing closer and Fulton out of nowhere driven me away from him and shot in reverse as he pivoted to confront the wall as though somebody wasing up behind me.


    .....


    Unexpectedly I saw an individual tumble to the ground.


    ¡°We need to move now,¡± he said, as I got up from where I had tumbled from the shock of being driven away from him and ran towards him to see who it was who was now lying on the floor with blooding from their head. It was part of the gang with the suits.


    ¡°Please!¡± Fulton expressed, checking me out. I nodded and followed him down the steps and through the foyers until he went over another entryway that he opened and went into seemingly an office or some likeness thereof.


    Truly, who on earth are these individuals?


    Unexpectedly, two men came surging down the passage towards us with their weapons focused on us but before they could discharge on us they halted when they saw Fulton remaining there with his wand close by. He shot out a bolt towards them but they evaded it with their wands, just for it to hit an image on a wall behind them rather than them, making it break.


    I expected to help him.


    Also, speedy!


    I energized my Perk rapidly and afterward brought off running a few doors down towards them. I drew near enough that I was going to get them by their arms before they pivoted and shot out energy radiates from their wands which struck me in the chest and pushed me back.


    Fortunately I had my Perk on, or I would¡¯ve been killed by them.


    As I flew once more into the wall, I was hit with another energy shaft that sent me flying once more into another wall and made me shut down briefly as I slid down onto the floor. ¡°Connor!¡± Fulton yelled, getting me up from the beginning he started to ran.


    Bolts and bars were flying by me as I ran towards Fulton while avoiding them all with my Perk still on. Fulton snatched my arm and started to pull me alongside him as he terminated his bolt from his wand at them. ¡°I don¡¯t know that is doing anything!¡± I yelled quickly, as bolts flew about us.


    Then unexpectedly one hit Fulton in the side of his head, making him shout out in torment as he tumbled to the ground clutching his head and sliding down the corridor in torment. ¡°No!¡± I yelled, getting him up starting from the earliest stage embracing him while he started to hold his head again with his hand over his mouth and nose, attempting to dispose of the aggravation.


    ¡°Gracious, that damages,¡± he said.


    ¡°Simply rx, remain with me,¡± I said. ¡°Simply stay!¡±


    But his eyes started to shut in agony and he rested on me, making me hold him up more immovably so he wouldn¡¯t fall over once more. The man started to stroll towards us, with their weapons confronting us. Then, at that point, one of them approached me and heughed. ¡°Rocke couldn¡¯t want anything more than to have you,¡± he said. ¡°Never at any point anticipated it.¡±


    I felt outrage fill me right now, thus I removed a stage back from Fulton and removed off running from them as they shot their wands at me and one hit my shoulder but I actually kept on running. But I expected to return to Fulton since he was harmed. And afterward unexpectedly I heard more gunfire as they ran up behind me.


    I pivoted to see them firing their handguns at me once more, making me evade to stay away from them while avoiding their bolts also. This was awful, this was terrible, this was terrible, I thought as I ran down the foyer back towards Fulton who was now actuallyying on the ground in torment as he started to gradually descend the corridor before me towards the ground as I bowed down.


    ¡°Now you atst choose to help me!¡± Fulton said cheerfully, and afterward started to giggle as I got him once more, supporting his head against my chest and holding him up as I ran again while evading the shots that were being discharged at us both.


    ¡°Try not to allow Drails to get away!¡± the head of those agents yelled boisterously from behind us as they kept on terminating at us from behind. ¡°We¡¯re here to get them!¡±


    What¡¯s more, unexpectedly I heard a noisy st from behind us which made me bounce with Fulton in my arms. We collided with a corner, moving away from the impact which made me drop him as I hacked out smoke from being tossed back by the st and shrouded in dust from the roof above us.


    ¡°You OK?!¡± I yelled at Fulton, who was hacking out smoke himself, but was likewise snickering cheerfully as he put his wand up to his mouth as though he nned to victory some smoke from it. ¡°Yeah,¡± he said.


    ¡°This is entertaining. But now we really want to find some way or another to leave.¡±


    Then, at that point, I heard the murmur something.


    Not certain what it was, but it appeared to be recognizable.


    But then, at that point, another uproarious st seemed as though it were a lot nearer to us than it was previously, taking us both leap in dread. But the murmur started to endlessly develop and soon enough, I understood.


    It was Fulton¡¯s vehicle. Out of nowhere, the wall burst from the vehicle and it crashed through it, banging through the passage and pivoting and shooting through the wall again as it caused it to detonate and afterward atst it got through the wall and rammed through the wall behind us the other way as I peered inside.


    It was the remainder of the group, Mchi, September, every one of them.


    We were saved.


    And afterward I saw Mchi¡¯s eyes go wide with fear as he saw what had befallen Fulton and myself.

 Chapter 117

    117 Whereabouts


    ¡°What befell you all?!¡± he yelled at us, escaping the vehicle rapidly as Fulton got up all alone and helped me out of my squatted position that I had arrived in after the st and raised a ruckus around town behind me with the vehicle and started hacking out smoke himself.


    I shook my head at Fulton ordingly as I held my arm against my chest as it hurt from where it had been hit by the impact from the st.


    ¡°Not excellent things,¡± Fulton answered. ¡°But we¡¯re as yet alive. Now how about we leave.¡±


    September switched from inside the structure onto the street before suddenly halting, as told by Fulton. ¡°Pause, do you have Quesada?¡± he inquired. September nodded and highlighted the back, but obviously since he wasn¡¯t toward the back, he must be in the storagepartment.


    ¡°Okay, second thing,¡± Fulton added. He got the remote and clicked a button, and out of nowhere, the whole base detonated with a major haze of smoke that covered every one of us from a higher ce.


    I hacked for some time before it was protected enough for me to inhale once more, thus did Fulton and Mchi and September. Fire seethed across the ground before the smoke gathered up. It was now protected enough for every one of us to inhale once more, so I hacked some more prior to making a sound as if to speak and afterward started hacking some more as my throat felt dry from every one of the sts around us.


    ¡°Gina,¡± Fulton said, as he tuned in. ¡°Return us to C.A.M.¡±


    The vehicle started to drive itself towards there out and about, as we as a whole moaned from the sts that had urred from those agents that were attempting to kill every one of us previously.


    The ride back appeared to be long and tiring for all of us, particrly me in view of my hacking fit, but it atst reached a conclusion.


    .....


    ¡°Thank heavens you¡¯re protected,¡± Nikki expressed, checking me out.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I answered, as I inclined forward in my seat. ¡°I simply trust ¡± Abruptly, Nikki inclined in forward and kissed me.


    ¡°Goodness, hello,¡± I said, bing flushed.


    ¡°You¡¯re alright?¡± she inquired.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I answered.


    ¡°I¡¯m happy,¡± she said. She inclined in much more forward, holding my cheeks and kissing me once more, and I could feel myself start to be flushed once more.


    ***


    We showed up back at C.A.M and straight into the room that we found out about this base previously. I sat down as Fulton then, at that point, got the remote, and sprung up the screen. ¡°Extraordinary, we now have Felix Quesada, which all things considered, is something to be thankful for,¡± he said as he grinned cheerfully.


    ¡°Indeed, hopefully it remains as such,¡± Mchi answered, grinning as well. ¡°So what happens next?¡±


    ¡°My cross examiners will address Quesada, while we center around the following man for the present, George Greyson,¡± he said, moving his thumb over the screen which raised another screen of data and images that were there on it. ¡°I¡¯ve gotten data that Greyson is in all likelihood working in an army instation some ce nearby.¡±


    ¡°Army instation?!¡± Tisiah said with a heave, getting up from where she had been sitting at first. ¡°How could somebody like that work in an army instation?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s an influential man,¡± Fulton said with a shrug of his shoulders. He then, at that point, progressed forward as he read further about George Greyson prior to turning around to the gathering of us cheerfully. ¡°Now, my folks have tracked down the location, but it won¡¯t be simple however,¡± he said with a murmur.


    I turned around towards Mchi who appeared to be annoyed with Fulton for expressing something to that effect as Fulton tapped on the screen, attempting to sort out what he could do about this base or even what he could do about this George Greyson.


    Inevitably, he quit tapping on the screen and turned around to us happily.


    ¡°I have a thought,¡± he said. ¡°Come on, all of you follow me.¡± He left the room and started to stroll down the passage prior to emerging into the lobby on the left half of the room prior to driving us down the corridors and through entryways and lobbies.


    He drove us to this room, where it was by all ounts thisrge electric box with a holder on one of those surveys. ¡°This is a creation called the Emanation Guide,¡± Fulton cleared up for us as he approached it and started to open it.


    Mchi was checking out at this with a disapprove of his face. I could perceive he had one or two serious misgivings. ¡°This can make clothing in view of pictures or your contemtions, and this will be required for this next mission.¡±


    ¡°For what reason didn¡¯t we use it for Quesada¡¯s base?¡± I asked Fulton, who shrugged his shoulders as he then put the image of George Greyson on the garments on his body and shut the crate with a bang. ¡°Since Quesada knows his representatives, so we would¡¯ve been gotten.¡±


    Unexpectedly, the crate spazzed and Futon emerged with Greyson¡¯s suit. ¡°Tada,¡± he said with a snicker as he remained there in it as it was made to seem as though he had long hair on his head and a facial hair growth and a mustache. ¡°Then you return inside and it will transform you back.¡±


    Yet again the case ignited, startling me by and by before Fulton returned out to his normal article of clothing. ¡°We will utilize this to get into the base,¡± he said with a smile. Mchi nodded with a grimace, but I couldn¡¯t resist the opportunity to grin from it all since this was a cunning thought, I contemted internally. ¡°Maybe,¡± he said, as yet looking doubtful about it.


    We as a whole gotten out of the crate as it covered once more into itself and returned into rest mode and Fulton drove all of us through the foyer again prior to driving us beyond this spot. ¡°Now, there is a spot for sports, so live it up for the present,¡± he said happily, but it appeared as though it was constrained.


    After a snapshot of quietness, September shouted out first, to the surprise of no one. He approached me and talked with a smile all over. ¡°Have a good time, Connor,¡± he said, drawing nearer to my face with his grin still there. I could feel my face begin to get hot as of now as he connected for my jawline but halted just prior to contacting my face, making him grin more extensive and chuckle. ¡°I genuinely want to believe that we bepanions.¡±


    I nodded, feeling truly awkward, but I likewise felt a feeling of fervor right now since I never realized how individuals acted around each other as of not long ago. Thus far, September appeared to be the one that was attempting to carry on like a grown-up among this gathering.


    We before long went into this building that was around fifty feet from the principal building, which was in these fields of green grass and trees and such, and were circumventing ying a few sporting events with one another until September shouted out once more.


    ¡°Goodness, this is simr to the Fma¡¯s,¡± she said, snickering a little at seeing the person who was attempting to make the ballnd in the container and miss. It was entertaining to watch. But Mchiughed very hard, and he strolled over to the person who was about the age of 27 or 28. He was holding the ball and shaking his head with a giggle at how terrible this person was at this game.


    ¡°Hello tune in, this is the way you make it happen,¡± Mchi said. He positioned his hands ready, holding his base hand on top of it and afterward pulled his arm down with his entire existence, sending it flying as high as possible out of sight to make the ballnd directly in the crate. The man thoroughly searched in stunningness, gazing at Mchi with his mouth open prior to pivoting to check out at September and most of us with a wide smile all over too.


    ¡°Is he with you all?¡± he inquired.


    We nodded, and I felt a touch of regard from that too, since he was so dazzled by how Mchi had made the ball go into the container. It was a shrewd thought too that Mchi concocted all alone. ¡°I¡¯m a sad games fellow, I¡¯m even more a programmer,¡± he said. ¡°I don¡¯t actually have the foggiest idea how to shoot a weapon.¡±


    Iughed, not due to the reality he didn¡¯t have the foggiest idea how to shoot one, but on ount of something different he had quite recently said. I snickered alongside every other person right now as September shouted out.


    ¡°You¡¯re a sad games fellow?¡± September inquired. ¡°In view of the manner in which you moved, you appear to know this well.¡± The manughed as though he was humiliated or something, checking out at Mchi happily.


    ¡°Goodness I¡¯m an expert by any means of that,¡± Mchi expressed, getting into the discussion with her. ¡°Allow me to tell you the best way to urately shoot.¡±

 Chapter 118

    118 The Tennis Game


    Mchi strolled over to the man, and he let him assume control over this game for himself while September and I began strolling once again to another area where there were more individuals ying tennis, and afterward I heard somebody shout out. I went to see somebody shouting while at the same time ying tennis, as though they were heaving and puffing with each swing, but as I strolled over to where this individual was remaining in their tennis gear, I understood it was none other than mypanion Nikki.


    How could she arrive so quick?


    How could she be wearing such a way for tennis?


    I could scarcely hold back myself from snickering when I saw her swinging at the ball and heaving and puffing like a man would aplish for his work. She didn¡¯t appear to notice me nor September, but of course I was undetectable to her as of now as well. It appeared to be that she was ying alone at first until I saw another youngdy leave behind thes to remain next to her and hit a ball next to her to make her run starting with one side of the court then onto the next side to try not to be smacked in that frame of mind by this ball.


    It was entertaining to watch it might be said that they seemed like two unique individuals aplishing something as various as they were. One youngdy was wearing tennis garments and one wasn¡¯t. One had a long twisted earthy colored hair style while one had a long dark one trim in her hair.


    ¡°Would it be advisable for us we go along with them?¡± I chuckled to September.


    September just shook her head no as she watched Nikki fit and puff like a man attempting to hit this ball towards the opposite side of the. The other youngdy was more centered around the game as she cooperated with Nikki, hitting this ball towards the opposite side of the court in an exceptionally high speed to where it was beyond difficult for Nikki to respond rapidly enough to hit it back at her.


    To and fro, ever changing it kept on going. It went so quick that my eyes were having inconvenience in any event, attempting to follow the ball. I¡¯m almost certain my eyes are prepared to simply drop out of the attachments and rest from all the moving that was going on. I¡¯m shocked Nikki is still even ready to clutch her tennis racket in this express she¡¯s in the present moment.


    Nikki was gasping like a creature in the wake of running as far as possible from one side to the next of this court, which wasn¡¯t extremely solid or expert without a doubt. It seemed more like a parody show than a genuine rivalry, but why should I scrutinize? I can scarcely stay aware of this game right now by the same token. I was perspiring vigorously this time too, so it appeared as though everybody was perspiring vigorously right now in this round of tennis. But Nikki was moving like a cheetah on the two sides, while I¡¯m getting depleted from remaining here for how long this game has been continuing up until this point.


    .....


    But I might in any case see that Nikki was gaining some headway too as she made all the more a move towards her rival as opposed to going around like she had been doing since she begun.


    Out of nowhere, Nikki hit the ball, moving it to the side up until this point, the other youngdy couldn¡¯t reach. Before long enough, the tennis ball hit against the mass of this court and afterward skipped off the ground and fell on the ground with a crash as the other youngdy gazed at it for some time prior to acknowledging she had missed it.


    Nikki bounced up in a yell of energy after she hit that ball in the court. Her face was red as though she was extremely amped up for ying this game and she fired bouncing all over in fervor when she understood she had cleared her path through this game.


    ¡°Extraordinary work,¡± I expressed energetically as I moved toward Nikki, who surged in happily to give me a major embrace. It was abnormal watching her y like that.


    Nikki couldn¡¯t ept it either as she clutched me in this embrace and roared withughter as she clutched September too. The other youngdy grinned, as she moved toward Nikki. ¡°Pleasant game,¡± she said. ¡°All in all, would you say you are folks new here?¡±


    I shrugged, uncertain whether to say OK or no to this inquiry.


    ¡°Indeed,¡± I said.


    ¡°Indeed?¡± she said.


    ¡°We¡¯re not new,¡± Nikki told me. ¡°We don¡¯t actually work here, but we¡¯re to some degree making a difference. But we are new to this spot assuming that is the thing you¡¯re inquiring.¡±


    ¡°Goodness,¡± the womanughed. Then September strolled nearer to her and asked something that never at any point ran over my psyche. ¡°How does Fulton treat you all at C.A.M?¡± September inquired. The woman scrunched her lips in thought, before she replied.


    She shrugged her shoulders prior to talking once more. ¡°He¡¯s a genuine darling to work for,¡± she said. ¡°I coexist perfect with him.¡± My eyes broadened. I didn¡¯t know what¡¯s in store, but clearly it wasn¡¯t so much that. ¡°He generallyes around and asks how I¡¯m doing.¡±


    September and I remained there paying attention to this discussion, while Nikki clutched my hand and grinned at me as though she had quite recently dominated the match of life or something like that. ¡°I figure he does that as a result of his dad however,¡± she said, her grin copsing into itself like she was looking at something different.


    Her words made my eyebrows raise and my mouth to open in dismay since I didn¡¯t know she realize that much about Fulton¡¯s father and what sort of individual he was. Rocke is in a real sense my most noteworthy foe and I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea what he¡¯s like. Truth be told I didn¡¯t know he had a child in the first spot!


    ¡°He said that his dad was like...a hero?¡± the woman said, chuckling and checking out at us cheerfully. We as a whole shook our heads now as Nikki¡¯s face dropped into dissatisfaction. ¡°Goodness, yeah...¡± I said, with a sluggish nod of my head.


    We let them be then, at that point, and made a beeline for another area where there were more individuals ying some sort of volleyball match-up along with a fews that epassed an area of lushnd, where the game was going.


    What¡¯s more, there was heat between those yers.


    There were these three young men on one side that were ying their round of volleyball, and it was clear they were exceptionally energetic about this game they were ying a result of how serious they were at every snapshot of this game.


    They were hitting these balls into the opposite side¡¯s hard to such an extent that it made me keep thinking about whether they were hitting them so hard on the grounds that they were attempting to obliterate this or perhaps they were attempting to obliterate their adversaries thusly.


    Somehow, I¡¯m very certain any harder would make that ball be aze.


    ¡°Look how they¡¯re ying,¡± Nikki said in amazement,peting for my focus, as I could hear the ball bobbing on their side of the court as they hit it towards the opposite side of the so hard that I contemted whether they were hitting it so hard in light of the fact that they needed to annihte it or something like that.


    But out of nowhere, I heard in my earpiece Fulton saying, ¡°Hello, I want you all in the weapons room.¡±


    We showed up rapidly, as considerations squeezed into my head, thinking about what he needed us for the present, and my contemtions were interfered with by him letting us know over the speaker to meet him in the weapons room right away. As we entered the entryway, I could see him, not certain in the event that he was energized or annoyed. He wasn¡¯t uttering a word, but his demeanor appeared to be saying something.


    Furthermore, that something was inly that he had some kind of n going on.


    Preview:


    ¡°Alright children,¡± he said with a frowning look on his face as we all came inside the weapons room, which was fairly empty except for this table that had a lot of different kinds of weapons on it. There were guns, knives, guns, swords and other things that I couldn¡¯t recognize.


    He never took this out before, but it seemed quite important or something.


    ¡°Now, as you guys were having your fun, which I hope you guys did, I talked to the FMA to see if they could find anything on George Greyson. Figures tomorrow morning, he¡¯s gonna be meeting with someone important I assume, and he¡¯s going to have a convoy with him. I tried to reach the YMPA, it seemed as if theirmunications were fried, but the FMA will be on their trail, and we will see how he is doing.¡±


    ¡°Have you questioned Quesada yet?¡± Vicki asked, gearing herself up to take on this mission that seemed rather dangerous in my mind.

 Chapter 119

    119 Heartbreaking Truth


    ¡°Okay youngsters,¡± he said with a grimacing look all over as we as a whole came inside the weapons room, which was genuinely unfilled aside from this table that had a variety of sorts of weapons on it. There were weapons, des, firearms, swords and different things that I was unable to perceive.


    He never took this out, but it appeared to be very significant or something to that effect.


    ¡°Now, as you folks were having a great time, which I want to believe that you all did, I conversed with the FMA to check whether they could track down anything on George Greyson. Figures tomorrow first thing, he will meet with somebody significant I expect, and he will have a guard with him. I attempted to arrive at the YMPA, maybe their correspondences were seared, but the FMA will be following right after them, and we will perceive the way he is doing.¡±


    ¡°Have you doubted Quesada at this point?¡± Vicki asked, outfitting herself to take on this mission that appeared to be somewhat risky in my psyche. ¡°Perhaps he can reveal some insight into what urred?¡± She was by all ounts very energetic about this mission as well, as I could see a touch of energy all over too.


    ¡°Indeed I have, he truth be told, proposed George Greyson. All he told me was that Petrov was in all likelihood some ce off thettice. He referenced a couple of spots, and I have individuals snatching those areas. But he let me know that Greyson ought to know which explicit base he¡¯s in,¡± Fulton said.


    I nodded, to some degree tolerating this data. It could truly assist us with disposing of Petrov in one go in the event that we can find out where he¡¯s stowing away. In the event that we find out where he is stowing away, we¡¯ll know precisely the way in which we ought to get things done straightaway. We could track down a spot to obliterate the Cybertron. Fervor worked in my body, and I felt like I nned to detonate at the present time. I had such countless inquiries in my mind that required responses. Like how could they arrive? For what reason is everybody assuming such a significant part in all of this?


    ¡°Now, make a point to prepare, on the grounds that tomorrow is a bustling day,¡± Fulton expressed, switching off the screen. It would have been, well... a bustling day tomorrow! Not certain the number of things I that could achieve with this bustling day, but I¡¯m certain I will make an honest effort to stay aware of all that is going on. That is everything I can do right now at any rate, since nothing remains at this point but to make an honest effort to return us once again to the YMPA.


    Back home.


    ¡°You folks can leave now,¡± he said with a very dasturbed voice as I got out of the room. ¡°I¡¯ll be here tomorrow, so ensure you folks are prepared.¡±


    .....


    We left the room and headed outside. Vicki and Nikki were all the while discussing everything that Fulton said to them, while I just remained there and tuned in.


    Nikki took a gander at me and said, ¡°I want to believe that we can make quick work of this secret.¡±


    I just nodded my head and moaned. ¡°Maybe we would,¡± I said. Now mulling over everything, I ought to converse with Fulton. I really want to figure out more about him, simr to what his rtionship with his father was like. Perhaps he knows what¡¯s the deal with everything in our lives and in his life too. He appeared to be vital and knowledgeable about the thing was going on.


    Furthermore, in the event that he was such a lot of like me, perhaps we could talk.


    Perhaps, he knows more than he¡¯s letting on. Perhaps he knows about this whole thing and can make sense of what¡¯s going on? It seemed like he had an arrangement to deal with everything, and I truly believed that we could have some kind of n that could end up being useful to us with all of this wreck as well. We really wanted assistance frantically and we were using up all avable time also. There was such a lot of happening in my mind at this moment, but I just couldn¡¯t sort out what was the matter with me. Everything was truly muddled up in my cerebrum right now on ount of all that had happened as ofte and the entirety of the stuff.


    He could know more, he could know more.


    I pivoted, moving the other way, contemting what I ought to share with him or about him. Pondering what sort of inquiries I ought to pose to him and so on and so forth. Furthermore, as I moved around, I heard Vicki pose Nikki an inquiry that made Nikki chuckle and blush quickly as they strolled off along with their voices gradually vanishing.


    I strolled towards the entryway we recently left, utilizing the card and opening the entryway and moving inside without saying a word. I needed to know what Fulton had been referring to seconds ago as well as what was the deal with him. I needed to know more about this whole thing, and I wouldn¡¯t hold on until tomorrow.


    I headed inside, seeing Fulton moving every one of the des and weapons from inside the other entryway and back within the room. As I opened my mouth, I found it harder to talk.


    Maybe dread was gulping my throat at the present time, making it difficult for me to talk or express anything as a matter of fact. My sincere like it was going to detonate, and I realized I expected to tell Fulton something, but I was unable to track down the words or the fortitude to talk dependent upon him about anything.


    ¡°Hello, um...Fulton,¡± I mumbled, bobbling around with the words as though they were trapped in my throat.


    He pivoted and saw me remaining there with this abnormal demeanor all over as my heart beat increasingly fast with each second that cruised by. ¡°Gracious hello, Connor,¡± he said cheerfully. ¡°You really want something?¡±


    ¡°All things considered, yes and negative,¡± I murmured, taking a full breath prior to attempting once more. ¡°I need to converse with you... about something.¡±


    Fulton grinned. ¡°Is that right? What is it?¡± He strolled towards me as though he was intrigued to hear what I needed to express, or possibly that is how it seemed to me.


    ¡°So you said that you were like me, as with your dad. What are you contrasting with me?¡± I inquired.


    Fulton appeared to be a piece upset from the inquiry, but nheless he replied.


    ¡°Your dad truth be told. I know that your dad concealed things from you, and he didn¡¯t actually need you in that,¡± he said. I stammered, ¡°What do you mean, my dad loves me. He was attempting to remain protected from your dad.¡±


    Fulton murmured. ¡°He didn¡¯t let you know everything, did he?¡±


    My mouth started to shudder and I started to feel cold all around my body, and a bump shaped in my throat making it challenging for me to talk. ¡°He let me know he needed to do it isted,¡± I atst managed to say. Fulton inquired, ¡°Do what alone?¡±


    ¡°Guard me,¡± I said. ¡°He just imed to be my uncle, but he was my dad.¡±


    ¡°But you scarcely saw him didn¡¯t you,¡± Fulton said. ¡°You know, our dad was to some degree the equivalent. I¡¯m 22 years of age, and I¡¯ve managed something like this. It¡¯s not the way that your dad needed to safeguard you. He could have done without seeing you, since it just brought him risk. My dad has never found him since he left you. Some way or another, but he hasn¡¯t.¡±


    No, he¡¯s lying.


    No, he¡¯s not lying!


    My heart beat so quick and hard that maybe bursting out of my chest were going. This was unimaginable. This couldn¡¯t ur. My father cherished me to such an extent. Regardless of whether he behaved like my uncle, it was inly for my assurance.


    ¡°That is the reason your father weed you to turn into a spy mage. To dispose of you, you could bite the dust in one of the missions. But after your trick back when those huge trucks from the TSA were pursuing you, and you delivered your Perk that in some way exploded the whole sky, he boycotted you. You were unable to continue any missions, thusly, it would be normal. You didn¡¯t need to pass on, he didn¡¯t need to bite the dust,¡± Fulton said.


    ¡°No,¡± I said, my eyes shudder as I attempted to conceal the tears from my face, but obviously it wasn¡¯t working a result of areas of strength for how a feeling that was in me at that point. ¡°You¡¯re lying!¡± I shouted without holding back with destroys running my face.


    ¡°How could I lie to you, I associate with you,¡± he said. ¡°My dad did likewise. Carry on like an uncle, select me, but being the man he was, he attempted to kill me during a mission effectively. The rest would consider it to be an assault, but it was a method for holding your dad back from killing him. Our dads are basically something simr. You know it.¡±

 Chapter 120

    120 The Convoy


    I didn¡¯t have the foggiest idea what else to say as of now, since it was so difficult for me to acknowledge these realities and sentiments in me at the present time. There was such an excess of happening in my mind that I just couldn¡¯t grasp the way that this could truly be valid and that my father had never adored me as a matter of fact.


    ¡°But you have me however,¡± Fulton said. ¡°We see one another. As a matter of fact, when you graduate, I believe you should work with me in the C.A.M association. Make our own office, make it the best. We don¡¯t merit our dads, we merit us. Consider it.¡±


    He got up and gone on with his work, as I remained there, lost and confounded. It was so difficult for me to see all of this. Maybe it was another person¡¯s life. Like my own life wasn¡¯t genuine any longer since these things had urred in my mind and in my life as a matter of fact.


    Fulton is attempting to do something to me, I know it! But what? For what reason would he say he is doing this to me? How could he do this to me? How could my dad do that to me? It simply has neither rhyme nor reason!


    I removed a full breath and strolled from Fulton and went inside my room. My room was radiant and splendid, with a PC that was by the side on a work area. I felt nothing like the brilliance in my room, nothing by any means. It was dull and bleak within me at the present time, but I needed to traverse this.


    I sat on the bed, and I could feel myself falling into an unfilled space within myself as my heart continued to pulsate increasingly fast in my chest. I would have rather not moved, I was unable to move, but I felt like something must be finished to fix this wreck at the present time. But how? How is it that I could fix this?


    I shut my eyes firmly as I pondered all that had simply urred in my psyche.


    ***


    Before long enough, the following day came, an opportunity to catch George Greyson. I attempted to not ponder Fulton, but it was hard not to on the grounds that maybe he knew a lot about me, despite the fact that he denied it without fail. Furthermore, the most terrible part about it was that I was unable to track down the words to express anything as of now.


    .....


    He called us into the weapons room by and by, which I feel ought to simply be designated ¡°YMPA Children Room.¡± Soon enough, the entire gathering showed up, looking stimted and cheerful after their days off, prepared for their central goal today.


    Fulton sat before the screen as we as a whole remained before him sitting tight for him to say something. His mouth opened and he talked gradually as though he was wondering whether or not to let us know he going to tell us. ¡°Are you all prepared?¡± he at longst sprayed out the words as though they were caught in his throat.


    We as a whole nodded our heads and viewed at Fulton as though he had recently said the world¡¯s most befuddling sentence ever.


    ¡°Alright, you folks know we will catch George Greyson, right?¡± he asked, as we as a whole nodded. He offered a fast go-ahead, then turned towards the screen once more and kept talking gradually as though he were battling with each word that left his lips.


    ¡°Indeed, we won¡¯t utilize the old strategies that we¡¯ve been utilizing previously, send you all there while I watch. Now the FMA will be there to help so you folks ought to be protected. In the event that you really want any assistance, tell me okay?¡± he said, as we as a whole viewed at him with an inquisitive look on our countenances as he grinned and shook his head at us.


    I remained there, squirming around with my fingers as though I was apprehensive as every other person went to Fulton with favors their countenances as they pivoted to view at me with this weird search in their eyes as though they could see that I was having an awkward outlook on this as well as another things.


    I noticed Vicki strolling over to me gradually, and I felt a little feeling better that she had chosen toe here and talk with me about something different other than this.


    She strolled over towards me gradually and grinned as she said, ¡°Hello Connor.¡±


    ¡°Hello Vicki,¡± I said as I offered her a grin as a trade off and afterward she gave a grin back to me. ¡°You alright?¡± she inquired.


    I nodded.


    ¡°Okay, everybody, to the vehicle. We should go,¡± he said. Everybody lifted from their seats and we as a whole advanced out of the room, as Fulton sat in the room and gazed at the screen.


    ¡°Fulton, you¡¯re not apanying us, are you?¡± I inquired.


    He shook his head as he kept on gazing at the screen.


    ¡°I¡¯ll watch you folks from here,¡± he answered.


    We as a whole viewed at one another and shrugged our shoulders as we advanced external the weapons room.


    We as a whole got into the van that we went into, and September chose to take the driver seat. I recently started to understand after this entire time, September is in a real sense like our driver or something, no big surprise Fulton would have rather not escaped the vehicle with us today.


    ¡°Okay, September, advise Gina to bring you all to this location: 862 K Road,¡± he said into his earpiece prior to going to us and saying, ¡°You folks be protected alright? Assuming you want anything or need assistance with anything make sure to me.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± September answered.


    She said the location to Gina, as the van pushed onto the street. I¡¯m truly trusting this van doesn¡¯t make us crash or any such thing since I would prefer not to bite the dust in that frame of mind in my fantasy life like this.


    I made an effort not to ponder Fulton any longer since it simply didn¡¯t seem like we could at any point talk again in any case. I saw the moring roads, thinking about how their lives were, how they helped fun, what their families resembled and all of this data that I just couldn¡¯t inspire myself to grasp as of now.


    I heard September talking into her earpiece prior to saying, ¡°OK Gina, we are here.¡±


    The van halted, as shock and dread went through my body right now since we were directly before an old structure that seemed as though it hadn¡¯t been utilized for a really long time.


    Furthermore, beneath was a line dance of trucks, vans, all the stuff that was positioned there. Troopers hurried through the whole convoy, piling up a great deal of speed as they got into position and prepared themselves for what was going to happen today.


    As I watched out of the van window at this scene beneath, I saw George Greyson in his typical red overcoat and pants stroll towards a white van that was stopped a couple of feet behind them.


    He looked without a doubt more seasoned than he did in the image we were shown by Fulton. Perhaps that would him say him was in his mid thirties now? It was difficult for me to tell however as a result of howparable his face seemed to his genuine self and how old he truly looked right now even with no scar all over or any such thing.


    ¡°That is him,¡± Greg murmured in wonderment, licking his lips as he directed out of the van window toward Greyson. ¡°He looks frightening.¡± I took a gander at him fairly upsettingly, and afterward at the others in the van as they generally concurred with Greg¡¯s assertion.


    As I watched Greyson stroll towards the van and stop as he put his hand on the window and glimpsed inside, I noticed something a piece unexpected about him inparison to how he searched in the photograph we were checking out.


    He had exceptionally messed skin, extremely messed skin.


    Before long enough, the convoy began moving.


    The absolute first vehicle went to one side, trailed by the following one turning right, trailed by the following vehicle turning right also.


    Thest vehicle in the line was a rescue vehicle, as it went to the right as well as the wide range of various vehicles transformed left as opposed to going on into the convergence as we were passing through.


    ¡°Follow Greyson¡¯s vehicle,¡± Mchi said. September went to one side where the white van followed the convoy, wobbling a piece as it went in the city.


    As the vehicles turned left, there was a vehicle that halted just prior to entering the convergence before us. I thought it was going on like every other person did but then it halted as the convoy passed right by it. We followed very intently behind it, but soon a greater amount of that dark vehicle started to heap in.


    The FMA, they were here.


    Now it wasn¡¯t simply us, but the FMA following them as well.


    Yet again the convoy turned right and drove along the principal street, where there were two vehicles that were holding up at a stop sign. However, they were not turning right like every other person had. They were hanging tight for their opportunity to take a left hand turn into a rear entryway between a structure and a few additional structures.


    The convoy made it past them and entered the back street, as we followed them into it with our own van following behind us. The convoy was going sluggish so we could stay aware of them.


    Before long enough, Greyson¡¯s white van took a left into another back street between certain structures as we followed them into that equivalent rear entryway. On the opposite side, three dark Escdes out of nowhere followed the van. But the FMA vehicles were behind us, prepared for an opportunity to assault.


    The van now left the convoy.


    Was this an endeavor to deceive us? Or on the other hand was this really the way in which they arranged it out? I contemted internally as the van proceeded with its excursion and we trailed behind it.

 Chapter 121

    121 Gunfight


    There was a vehicleing from the other way now so we needed to stop at a red light, where everybody went to look towards the other bearing at the light as they hung tight for it to change.


    As the light be green, everybody pursued the convoy once more.


    There was now just a single vehicle that had gone with Greyson previously, as every other person remained with the convoy. ¡°When would it be advisable for us we assault?¡± I requested the earpiece. After a couple of breaths, I heard Fulton¡¯s voice in my ear saying, ¡°In ten seconds.¡±


    I felt like this would have been a fascinating mission without a doubt! I felt a little apprehensive but likewise a little amped up for what was going to ur.


    Ten seconds came.


    Then nine.


    Then eight.


    Then seven.


    Then six.


    .....


    Then five.


    Then four.


    Then three.


    Then two.


    Then one.


    Now!


    The van halted as Greyson¡¯s vehicle halted before us simultaneously as the FMA vehicles did. We spilled out of the vehicle, the FMA drawing out their rifles. Yet again we were unable to draw out our wands on the grounds that the world would begin addressing, and I¡¯m making an effort not to have that once more.


    Nope, not today!


    The FMA spread out into a crescent before us, stowing away from in the middle of between certain trees that were bing on one side of the road while Greyson¡¯s vehicle was at the contrary side of the road. Rapidly the convoy spilled out of their vehicles, and gunfire bursted through the air as the troopers in the two gatherings started shooting at one another.


    When they did, we ran out of cover, shooting our own firearms at them and making a full scale battle with them and with us having the option to shoot out from cover too.


    I got out a solitary gun, which was the main thing I had. I didn¡¯t anticipate being requiring any SMG¡¯s or alternately AK¡¯s whatsoever today. I immediately moved to one of the FMA vehicles, but I chose to remain beyond it for a couple of reasons.


    I would have rather not had opportunity in that frame of mind by a wanderer shot that missed me or another person in their truck, and it would have been a lot simpler to avoid sight until this is finished. I kept on shooting my firearm as I dodged down behind a little tree for cover.


    As I took off from the battling that had begun around me, I noticed one of Greyson¡¯s men who was holding his side and tumbled down onto the ground while he was shooting at us. One of his projectiles nearly missed me, as dread jabbed its head through my heart as I remained there believing that he nearly killed me there.


    But fortunately I made due.


    I kept going around while I took shots at him, making him duck behind a vehicle as he started shooting at me once more. He gradually got up, faltering onto his feet as he pivoted and began shooting at me again from a distance away.


    As I discharged my weapon, he staggered away from the vehicle as he fell onto his knees and fell onto his side onto the ground. Should finally give him some closure.


    I fired my weapon and gave him a couple of times in the head just in case, then immediately headed directly back as I ran back towards where I hade from previously. As I ran over towards a tree, I noticed a portion of Greyson¡¯s men with their hands on their heads while they stooped all the way down.


    But where could Greyson have been?


    Yellow zes of slugs spread out every which way, as I pivoted and saw Greyson running towards me while shooting his firearm at us as well. His eyes were loaded up with outrage as he kept on discharging at me with his gun, which appeared to be very precise in light of the fact that I didn¡¯t notice even one slug miss me.


    However, indeed, they did, but they were near killing me.


    I was unable to remain this way, before I would be shot into hills of mush on the ground, so I immediately ran off into an irregr structure close by as he continued to discharge at me with his gun and I kept on shooting back at him with my weapon while going through another rear entryway with no one there.


    I was now fairly away from the gunfight, as I could scarcely hear the sound of shots ringing through my ears any longer.


    But Greyson was all the while following me, as I heard his strides moving toward me.


    I remained by the side of the back street, my tragic as I held my gun up and gazed at Greyson as he remained there with his gun in his grasp.


    My brain went clear as Greyson remained there and said in a serious tone, ¡°Ick the capacity to deal with this!¡±


    ¡°Well I surmise you¡¯ll need to set aside a few minutes,¡± I expressed, shaking with dread as I made an effort not to allow it to show all over as Greyson kept on strolling nearer towards me.


    ¡°You all aren¡¯t leaving alive,¡± he said, pointing his weapon at me but then at my head all things considered. I expected to follow through with something, and rapidly. But what? What could really be done? There wasn¡¯t enough time left for me to consider what I might actually do at that point.


    I was unable to shoot since I would have chance too, so that was not feasible. He was excessively close now. He was close enough to shoot me with his gun assuming he needed to. I nced around, his eyes positioned on me, drawing nearer increasingly more until he was right facing my face, as though he were looking solidly into my spirit.


    So I aplished something very unsafe.


    I dodged, as a shot went off and I tossed a right to his stomach as I clutched his belt and pulled him closer towards me as I hit him upside the head energetically. The sensation of his nose disintegrating into dust as blood spouted out from his nostrils and mouth was most likely what I had a best outlook on everything.


    He staggered back up, shaking himself as though he was knocked out from the punch. But he got back up and he pivoted as though nothing had urred. ¡°You¡¯re a seriously solid one, not going to like it, but you will not get to leave here alive. That¡¯s what you know, right?¡±


    I got his belt and pulled him towards me, and I punched him once more, this time on his cheek.


    He threw a punch towards my face, but I immediately dodged under it and punched him again on his left side as I pulled him towards me and pushed him against the mass of the back street. He shouted out in torment, and I folded my arms over his midriff and kicked him into a wall close by where I squeezed against him.


    But he was shrewd, I need to give him that.


    He managed to haul his gun out and point it at me where he pointed it right between my eyes where he crushed the trigger.


    Preview:


    The slug went past my head but didn¡¯t hit me or anything, as it skipped crazy behind me, and afterward I hopped on his back and grasped his throat tight as I held him in a tough spot. I dug my fingers into his tissue and pressed so close that it probably hurt a piece for him, but not enough that he would pass on.


    But all through that, some way or another, he tossed me over his back.


    My back hit the ground like a sack of potatoes while blood dribbled from my head and my side. He slithered away from me, taking out a weapon from his belt and shooting it at me like a madman.


    But he missed, and I got up from the beginning, his legs free from him and punching him over and over until atst I heard a noisy cry that he should have passed on in light of the fact that he had quit moving and fell onto the ground with blood spouting out from his mouth.


    I remained by the side of the structure, gasping vigorously as I saw himying on the ground before I gazed upward. Before long enough, I saw Mchi and the reste, and I could perceive that their eyes were loaded up with dread. They all came running towards me, but then halted when they saw Greyson lying on the ground close to me with blood spouting out of his mouth as his eyes werepletely open and inert.


    Mchi stooped down close to me with dread in his eyes while I took a full breath and attempted to quiet myself. But then, Greyson flickered. Then he attempted to get up, but September kicked his head, returning him all the way down. Then she put her foot on his chest and pointed the barrel of her weapon towards him while she said, ¡°You¡¯re dead.¡±

 Chapter 122

    122 Gunfight (Part 2)


    The bullet went past my head but didn¡¯t hit me or anything, as it bounced off the wall behind me, and then I jumped on his back and held his throat tight in my hands as I held him up against the wall. I dug my fingers into his flesh and squeezed so tight that it must have hurt a bit for him, but not enough that he would die.


    But all through that, somehow, he threw me over his back.


    My back hit the ground like a sack of potatoes while blood dripped from my head and my side. He crawled away from me, pulling out a gun from his waistband and shooting it at me like a madman.


    But he missed, and I got up from the ground, kicking his legs out from under him and punching him again and again until finally I heard a loud cry that he must have died because he had stopped moving and fell onto the ground with blood gushing out from his mouth.


    I stayed by the corner of the building, panting heavily as I looked at himying on the ground before I looked up. Soon enough, I saw Mchi and the reste, and I could tell that their eyes were filled with fear. They all came running towards me, but then stopped when they saw Greyson lying on the ground next to me with blood gushing out of his mouth as his eyes were wide open and lifeless.


    Mchi kneeled down beside me with fear in his eyes while I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself. But then, Greyson blinked. Then he tried to get up, but September kicked his head, putting him back down on the ground. Then she ced her foot on his chest and pointed the barrel of her gun towards him while she said, ¡°You¡¯re dead.¡±


    Heughed, but stopped when she pressed her finger on the trigger.


    ¡°Well you won¡¯t be dead yet,¡± she admitted with a chuckle as she put her gun away and stood up with her hands in her pockets. ¡°He¡¯s not dead either,¡± she told me with a smile on her face as she held her hand out to me and helped me up from the ground.


    ¡°Well let¡¯s put him in the van before someone shows randomly,¡± Tisiah said with her hands in his pockets too as we both picked up Greyson¡¯s body and carried it to t The van while September took cover behind a nearby car as she kept an eye on Greyson¡¯s body while he still remained unconscious.


    .....


    ¡°Okay, Greg, put him in the trunk,¡± Tisiah ordered as Greg picked up Greyson¡¯s limp body and walked towards the back of the van where we had put a trunk in there already.


    Greg opened it up, then he put Greyson¡¯s body inside of it and closed it up again as Tisiah sighed, saying, ¡°He¡¯s really dead.¡±


    ¡°He looks like he is,¡± Tisiah muttered, sighs pouring out from her mouth.


    We all stood there, looking at the corpse of Greyson and then at each other. We all sighed heavily with relief at this turn of events but also felt uneasy about what coulde next, so we all stayed silent, still looking at each other with fear. ¡°Let¡¯s get back to C.A.M,¡± September said.


    ¡°Yeah that¡¯s probably the best idea to be honest,¡± Tisiah said, sighing and looking out the window as September began to drive. The vehicle roared once it began to move through the streets, just like the thoughts that were racing through my mind. Most of them were fears, but some was hope too, though it was far and few between.


    As September drove through the streets of town, we could hear the sounds of fighting that were still going on from somewhere far away. But we had already left that area far behind us.


    Soon enough we arrived back to C.A.M, as a series of agents were outside of the building, as if they were awaiting our arrival. September halted the van, as we got out of the vehicle, getting out Greyson. ¡°Put him on medicine!¡± September said to the agents with a serious expression on her face as the agents looked at us with a frown on their faces. They opened up the back door of the van and slid Greyson¡¯s corpse inside, before shutting it up again.


    ¡°Alright,e on, put him in!¡± shouts began to bellow. Soon enough, Greyson was being put on a bed, rushing inside of the building quickly as I could hear sirens ring through the air around us as soon as we entered into C.A.M.


    Nikki came up to me, wrapping her arms around my neck tightly and pulling me close to her as she kissed my cheek and smiled. ¡°We¡¯re good, we¡¯re fine,¡± she said as she looked at me sincerely. ¡°Are you doing fine?¡± I could only stammer and nod as she let go of me, as I looked back at Greyson¡¯s body. I wondered what he would have done if he knew that he was really dead, and that his family and friends weren¡¯t going to see him again.


    But he was a bad guy, and we needed him to save the world a lot more. Plus it was self defense...right? Right? I mean...right?


    I wasn¡¯t sure to be honest, in fact I began to feel bad. Maybe he wasn¡¯t doing anything wrong, maybe he was trying to help people like I was.


    But then again, I couldn¡¯t say that for sure because of what he had done to so many people...the lives he had ruined. The possible things that probably could¡¯ve done with his power. But he was just a human being like me...he was just like me.


    After a few minutes to what seemed like hours, he was in bed. It was only right if I greeted him, as I went to him and sat on the bed next to him. I didn¡¯t know what to say or do, so I just sat there and waited. The room was white, with stripes on the wall and a singlemp that was hanging from the ceiling, giving off light and warmth.


    Suddenly, I heard the door open, seeing Nikki walking in as if she was a thief or something, but what can I say? I just sat there and stared at him, as I waited for him to tell me what to say or do.


    ¡°Hey Greyson,¡± Nikki called out, walking over to him. ¡°Are you alright?¡±


    His eyes were barely opening, as if death was trying to pull him out of bed. But he opened them slowly until he looked up at us with a confused look on his face. He was silent for a long moment before he spoke in a raspy tone, saying, ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Nikki asked again, her voice now more silent and stern like Greyson had just been caught for a crime he hadn¡¯tmitted, like Greyson hadmitted crimes that he hadn¡¯t been caught for.


    Greyson seemed to have a shocked expression on his face as he sat up in the bed and looked at her before he nodded slowly, saying, ¡°You guys...we¡¯re the ones.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sadly we were,¡± I muttered, as a wash of embarrassment washed over me, and I didn¡¯t even feel guilty for doing what we had done. Greyson stared at me for a second before heughed softly and said, ¡°You¡¯re right...I mean...we didn¡¯t want it this way...but it¡¯s for the greater good.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked, confused about what he was trying to say or imitate.


    Greyson began tough again, but this time it was more of a hystericalughter and then he said, ¡°You guys are heroes now, right?¡±


    I shook my head slightly in confusion, not knowing what to say. ¡°Well, we need you to tell us where we can find Petrov,¡± I said. ¡°Now being that we were not the greatest person, we expected you to attack us. Maybe we moved too fast. After all you are with the MSTO.¡±


    ¡°We were,¡± he chuckled as he sat back down on his bed and rested his arms on his legs as he said, ¡°I was...but that was only until we knew you guys wereing for us.¡± Heughed again as he said, ¡°That¡¯s when you showed up.¡±


    I felt confused and almost dumb not understanding what he was syaing or trying to imitate, so I turned around and looked at Nikki, as she seemed to be understanding him as she said, ¡°You mean...you wanted us to show up?¡± Greysonughed again before saying, ¡°You see...the TSA blocked us, made us look like betrayers to them. So they pushed me out, and reced me with Felix Quesada, I¡¯m sure you met him. He led the CSS to be pawns for the TSA, when we wanted to be a part of the designers, the creators of the whole n.¡±


    ¡°Whole n?¡± I asked. ¡°What¡¯s the whole n?¡±

 Chapter 123

    123 The True Intention


    But Greyson ignored and only winced in pain as he continued speaking, saying, ¡°But I was already told by someone who wanted me to meet up with them at this time...someone who knew our history and saw fit to help me get away from Felix so I could work together with you guys. We nned a convoy to show that we were working with you, because you guys would be suspicious about us agreeing to join your team.¡±


    ¡°But you got hurt now, I¡¯m pretty sure asking is the best idea,¡± I said.


    He chuckled. ¡°We¡¯re spies, we can¡¯t trust the other side. Espionage is a dangerous thing. We can¡¯t start running to you guys, asking for a savior while you guys kill us one by one.¡± I sighed and nodded, as he continued speaking. ¡°So we are going to make an alliance with you guys...but we have one condition.¡±


    I raised my eyebrows, as Nikki crossed her arms and said, ¡°And that is?¡±


    ¡°That I speak with your leader, and get an assurance that your team is not going to kill me.¡± He looked at me seriously before continuing, ¡°That¡¯s all.¡±


    I looked back at him and sighed. This guy seemed so serious about it, but I didn¡¯t want him to die. He seemed like he wanted to work with us, to stop the TSA. But what was the grand n? What did they want with me and my group?


    I looked at Nikki, then at Greyson again, as I looked back at him. He seemed serious about this and didn¡¯t want to die at all. ¡°Listen, I¡¯ll talk to Mr. Drails when I have the chance,¡± I said.


    Greyson nodded and smiled weakly again before he said, ¡°Thank you...thank you so much for this...¡±


    But I was already standing up, walking out the door and away from his room before he could continue talking to me. But I stopped, and turned back, looking at him with a frown on my face.


    .....


    He was looking up at me with a weak expression on his face as he said, ¡°And if I don¡¯t see you again...I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    I sighed and turned away from him, not feeling very sympathetic as I walked out of the room before going to another one where Tisiah was waiting for me. ¡°Hey you okay?¡± he asked, looking at me with sincere feelings. I nodded and smiled at him.


    But then he went quiet for a few moments and then began speaking, saying, ¡°I think Greyson is really serious about this alliance.¡±


    I looked up at him with confusion. ¡°You heard?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I was literally outside of this door,¡± Tisiah chuckled slightly as he said, ¡°He called you his savior or whatever. I¡¯m not sure if that¡¯s true or not.¡±


    I nodded, then I smiled at him and said, ¡°It is true.¡±


    Tisiah chuckled as if it wasn¡¯t true at all, which was a bit offensive.


    But nheless funny to be honest. I sighed and looked inside the room, seeing Greysony on his bed. Such a risky n he made, but what n was he talking about? What was the TSA nning? Thoughts ran through my head rapidly. He didn¡¯t want us killing him after this because he had been betrayed by Felix Quesada in order to keep working for the TSA and trying to bring them down. I could understand him, but he could easily be tricking us.


    I might as well trust him because of how badly I hurt him. Maybe he would have been tricking us if we had killed him. But what about now? It seemed like he wanted to work with us. Would he really want us to kill him? He pleaded for us not to, but that could be yacting as well.


    Then I heard him shout, ¡°Hey!¡±


    I turned around, and I slowly walked in, seeing him turn his head towards me as if he was going to say something important. ¡°Listen okay, if you want to find Petrov. Search for the TSA information broker, Jonathan Mason,¡± he said. My heart stopped cold. It was as if all of them knew what our list of people we were going to find was! I slowly sat down on the chair next to his bed as Tisiah sat down on his other side.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked.


    ¡°He isn¡¯t a broker for the TSA, that¡¯s like his side job. He usually finds information on things that the TSA are looking for or not. He¡¯s in Russia right now, probably trying to meet with Petrov,¡± Greyson winced in pain and said, but then his face changed to a smile as he said, ¡°But I can get you directions.¡±


    I looked at Tisiah and shrugged my shoulders. ¡°Give us an address,¡± Tisiah said.


    Greyson smiled and shook his head, looking at him with determined eyes. ¡°Alright, the address is this street in Russia: 1313 Calico Ave.¡± He sighed, and winced before he looked at us and said, ¡°I think you will find the address is an apartment building.¡±


    Tisiah and I looked at each other before we smiled and nodded at him, saying in unison, ¡°Thanks.¡± He chuckled as he looked at us. ¡°It¡¯s all in the sake of revenge,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°All in the sake.¡± We exited the room, knowing we had to tell the rest and Fulton of what we had found out.


    Then I noticed Nikki standing over by a door that led into one of the bedrooms, watching us leave and then I walked over to her with a grin on my face. ¡°Hey, I think we might¡¯ve found the location of where Petrov might be,¡± I said. Her eyes widened as she looked at me. ¡°Where?¡± she asked. ¡°What¡¯s the address?¡±


    ¡°1313 Calico Ave in Russia,¡± I replied as she went quiet and stared at me for a moment.


    Then she nodded slowly and said, ¡°That¡¯s good...but what does it mean? What kind of building is it?¡± Tisiah responded, ¡°An apartment building, or at least somewhere by it, I believe. We need to tell Fulton about this.¡± Nikki nodded, as she said, ¡°Let¡¯s go then.¡± We walked back to where Fulton was sitting at the table, staring off into nothingness again. He looked up at us as we came closer to him.


    He seemed as if he just woke up from a dream or something, with his eyes red and bulging as if there was a rat dancing under his eyelids. He took a deep breath as he looked up at us in shock as we stopped before him, but he didn¡¯t say anything. I sighed as I began speaking, saying, ¡°Fulton, we know where Petrov might be.¡±


    His eyes widened, as a smile began to stream across his face. ¡°Where?¡± he asked excitedly as he stood up. Then he pointed at Tisiah and said, ¡°Where is he?¡±


    Tisiah rolled his eyes and said, ¡°Calico Avenue in Russia,¡± but Fulton didn¡¯t seem to hear him as he said, ¡°We have to get there. Greyson believes that Mason is probably getting ready to talk with Petrov, but I¡¯m not sure why.¡± Fulton nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll get the FMA to see if they could spy on the location.¡± He turned back to Nikki and said, ¡°Nikki get in touch with them and find out if they can do it.¡±


    She nodded and said, ¡°Right away!¡± as she began walking out of the room.


    Then Fulton looked back at us and said, ¡°Greyson will be our guide. I want him medicated and patched up so that he could lead us. He could be leading us to a trap.¡± Fulton got up from the table and headed towards the door, as Nikki left to get in contact with the FMA, and I began following after him as Tisiah did too. But then Fulton turned around and said, ¡°I¡¯m d Greyson is alive,¡± he chuckled softly before continuing, ¡°He really helped us this time.¡±


    I chuckled a bit, but still felt a little suspicious of him, thinking that maybe he had betrayed us or something. But he was looking at me with a serious look on his face now. I thought about it for a moment, before nodding and saying, ¡°Okay,¡± as he began walking away from the door again.


    I wasn¡¯t sure what to do next, but Tisiah seemed to take some sort of sign that I was somehow heartbroken or sad about something. He walked over to me as we made our way out of the door and said, ¡°I¡¯m really d you are alright,¡± he smiled and touched my arm as he continued saying, ¡°You seemed really hurt before.¡±


    I smiled slightly as I nodded at him and said, ¡°Yeah...I guess.¡±


    ¡°But I don¡¯t think it¡¯s because of how much you hurt Greyson,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°In fact, I think that¡¯s what caused it. You have some anger built up inside of you. Is it because of something Fulton said perhaps?¡±

 Chapter 124

    124 Transformation


    I left cold speechless and gazed at Tisiah as he was strolling before me with his hands in his pockets as though nothing had urred. Then I immediately turned around to confront him, not understanding he was correct. ¡°He...I thought he was a miscreant, and I expected to safeguard myself, it¡¯s nothing.¡±


    But Tisiah viewed at me a piece critical about my case as he said, ¡°Well...it¡¯s great that you¡¯re fine with that now,¡± prior to getting some distance from me and strolling back towards Fulton and Nikki.


    I peered down at my feet for a couple of seconds as I felt befuddled and humiliated at myself. He was correct, I think. I don¡¯t know.


    ***


    I left to the outside, sitting on one of the seats that were there, ready to be utilized by somebody. I surmise that somebody was me now, as I sat down. I looked into, feeling the breeze pushed all over. I experienced the glow of the sun gleam on me, in spite of the fact that it was towards the night now.


    I could murmur to myself as I felt my body start to feel weighty, my heart started to sink as my eyes shut gradually. I could feel my muscles bing drowsy as I let my head fall back to gaze high up.


    I actually couldn¡¯t get a handle on the thing Fulton said about Mr. Drails, or how he didn¡¯t cherish me or couldn¡¯t have cared less about me. But that doesn¡¯t be sound valid, really. That wouldn¡¯t, he be able to went on missions with me, he attempted to save me from specific things. But imagine a scenario where it was to acquire his trust. Consider the possibility that it was all y.


    However, i was unable to quit mulling over everything. It isn¡¯t so much that I needed Fulton to not think often about me or something to that effect. But I just felt as he could have done without me like I figured he did or he figures he does. He behaves like we¡¯re siblings or something and that we see each other in light of his awful adolescence. But perhaps that is all nonsense he helps up to cause himself to have an improved outlook on things?


    I shut my eyes firmly and gradually let my head fall forward toy kneeling down. But then, I heard stridesing as I pivoted, seeing September advancing towards me. She viewed at me with an inquisitive look all over as she moved toward me with her hand expanded outwards towards me.


    .....


    I grinned as she halted close to me prior to grasping my hand and saying, ¡°It¡¯s truly good to see you up and fine once more.¡± I shrugged, not feeling a very remarkable push to say anything, as a matter of fact, and afterward she, said, ¡°I¡¯ve been consulting with Fulton about what we want to do straightaway, and it appears we will be going on a mission soon.¡±


    ¡°Allow me to figure, tomorrow?¡± I asked, and sheughed, exposing her teeth somewhat as she said, ¡°Well...yeah...we could go on a mission tomorrow.¡±


    I shrugged my shoulders again as she grinned and said, ¡°But it won¡¯t be like previously. This time we need to ensure that we catch Petrov. We¡¯re one bit nearer to our customary lives.¡± She nodded.


    However, i took a gander at her briefly prior to moaning profoundly as she said, ¡°Don¡¯t stress over it to an extreme. I¡¯m certain we will be okay.¡±


    ¡°Maybe,¡± she said. But out of nowhere, we heard it on the Dad framework. ¡°YMPA kids, kindlye within the weapons room.¡± I could perceive Fulton had various ns. But September just moaned a little and said, ¡°Seems as though we¡¯ll need to do thister.¡± Then she gave me one final grin before we advanced back inside the structure.


    We strolled over, being joined by the remainder of the group prior to returning, again into the weapons room. We strolled in and the screen was on, as Fulton checked out at us with a major grin. ¡°Yet again thus, I had Nikkie to chat with the FMA and as of now they are watching the region,¡± Fulton said, with Nikki nodding in arrangement. ¡°They will report back assuming there is any action.¡±


    We as a whole nodded our heads prior to taking a gander at Tisiah who moaned and said, ¡°Okay then...so what did you call us for?¡± ¡°In light of the fact that, when they went there, they saw a figure that was strolling within the loft. They followed his face sign and it was none other than-¡±


    ¡°Petrov,¡± Vicki expressed, energized in her voice. I noticed a look of outrage all over as he said, ¡°But consider the possibility that he¡¯s attempting to draw us in.¡±


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t know we¡¯re in any event,ing,¡± Fultonughed, but Tisiah¡¯s appearance was as yet harsh as he answered, ¡°Imagine a scenario in which he does. Imagine a scenario where he¡¯s attempting to lead us some ce. Imagine a scenario in which he believes us should be there so he can trap us.¡±


    ¡°We have the FMA on that at the present time,¡± Fulton said. ¡°Now, I want three of you folks to be behind me, with the goal that we can have numerous perspectives on the apartmentplex. These are vital folks, vital. This could be the subsequent stage to returning home,¡± he said, and I could perceive the fervor in his voice was evident too. He was by all ounts really d that we were returning home.


    Tisiah nced around at most of us, and afterward nodded prior to saying, ¡°OK.¡±


    ¡°Individuals who will be out there will be utilizing my little stunt,¡± Fulton said with augh. ¡°Okay, I need Tisiah, Nikki, and Vicki to be behind the screens. Most of you all will go about as gatekeepers for Bricyer. I got film of one of his watchmen, so you folks ought to have the option to borrow from the dress.¡±


    We nodded. Fulton then highlighted what might actually be the right or something, but Mchi, September, Greg and I left out of the room as energy poured all through my body. This could be it! This is atst urring! We are returning home!


    We showed up at the Emanation Guide, which actually terrifies me to no end when I think about it. Like an immense line has a sparkling green fluid coursing through it. It is gigantic as in it is something like multiple times as tall as I¡¯m. ¡°Well anybody want to go first?¡±


    ¡°Not me!¡± Greg fought boisterously as he waved his hands up high before him. ¡°I don¡¯t want to go first! It¡¯s like...scary!¡±


    ¡°Well you want to figure out how to get yourself together,¡± Mchi said. He got Greg by the neckline of his shirt, hauling him within that peculiar box thing that goes through the Emanation Guide. He was shouting something out but it was too clearly to even think about hearing as Mchi moved his hands through the shining fluid that filled the case.


    He entered, and after what sounded to be an agonizing cry of torment, it halted. Greg left, wearing a tuxedo which I suppose was like one of the gatekeepers or something to that effect.


    ¡°No way!¡± September shouted out, moving forward to glimpse within the container as Mchi waved his hand at her to let her see herself within it. She strolled inside, a spooky quietness filling her voice as she said, ¡°You got some serious valiance.¡±


    I nodded, in spite of the fact that I realized I would have zero desire to go through it. Once more, then the glimmering began, but Mchi immediately halted it before he started to talk.


    ¡°We¡¯ll begin with everybody going through it,¡± Mchi said, ¡°We really want to perceive how it requires for us to go through it. It¡¯s ideal assuming that we as a whole get it simultaneously.¡±


    I nodded in understanding, but I was as yet frightened to death however, now the way that we were all going to be in there, nope, still terrified. But imagine a scenario where this could really be the manner by which we would get back.


    We started going through it, and the green fluid started moving through the Emanation Guide trying to take us through it. The green fluid felt hot and abnormally warm as it moved through us.


    It seemed like a fantasy briefly before out of nowhere, the green fluid vanished from our bodies as we wound up beyond the Emanation Guide with our garments unblemished. The tuxedo felt agreeable as the dark silk covered my skin totally, causing it to feel decent against my body. I noticed that mypanions were all wearingparative outfits to mine.


    ¡°All things considered, we¡¯re prepared now I surmise,¡± I said with augh. ¡°We should not discuss that will we.¡±


    They nodded pleasantly. September talked into the headphone, ¡°We¡¯re prepared.¡±

 Chapter 125

    125 Finding Mason


    ¡°Awesome,¡± Fulton said. ¡°Now get to the van and drive it to this area: 1313 Calico Ave.¡± September nodded and set the headphone back on her head. She took a gander at us and said, ¡°Okay, get in.¡±


    September, Mchi, Greg and I started to move out of the room, traveling through the lobbies as we did as such.


    I felt like I had done this multiple times at this point but I didn¡¯t know why. We were going down the lift and we left out into a carport where I could see the van stopped there with the entryways open.


    Greg scoured his hands, taking a gander at the vehicle with his eyes practically enamored with it. I didn¡¯t have any idea what to say or what to do but I calcted that this is what was happening so I just tracked with as we moved toward the van.


    I gazed at the entryway, seeing it not far behind us as I pivoted and saw September getting steering the ship, turning on the vehicle before I might really settle myself in my seat. ¡°Dial back, we as a whole need to get in some way,¡± Mchi said, as September gave him a cross look prior to driving forward a smidgen all the more powerfully prior to going left on Calico Road.


    When we got onto the street, we were moving quick to the point that we were almost hitting each vehicle that was around us. Sounds and yells went over each and every side road and street as individuals hollered at us to dial back but it was very muchte by then.


    I could see that September was driving quite well and that she was doing whatever it takes not to collide with anything since she continued to turn on red lights on the off chance that she didn¡¯t care the slightest bit. But she said her dad was a skilled aplice or the like, except if I¡¯m off-base, and that should mean she is an extraordinary driver since she appeared to do it quite well.


    As she kept driving, I watched through of the window as I saw different vehicles moving gradually close to us on the streets while we drove at maximum velocity. Out of nowhere, September floated hard onto a parking garage, leaving slide denotes that might have been seen for a significant distance and making every one of different vehicles collide with one another as they attempted to stop.


    We at longst ground to a halt, and I could hear individuals shouting at us as we opened our entryways and ventured out. I would whine and take cover behind the vehicle to stow away from the shame, but we have something important to take care of and we can¡¯t simply go stowing away. We needed to do what we needed to do.


    .....


    We strolled over towards the high rise that we had been searching for. It was a major high rise, and it seemed like the greater part of the inhabitants were away on vacation or something to that effect. Vehicles were scarcely left, and there were a couple of elderly folks individuals who visited the home.


    ¡°That is all there is to it,¡± September said. ¡°We should go.¡±


    We started to stroll towards the high rise as we attempted to keep our eyes on the windows that were confronting the road. ¡°This spot appears to be scary or some likeness thereof, and where are the vehicles that were left here. Except if they left,¡± Mchi said. ¡°That doesn¡¯t be sound great, really.¡±


    ¡°Not the slightest bit,¡± I expressed, viewing at the windows as we strolled nearer to them. The structure had many windows on it, and there were around seven individuals sitting within it, simply sitting on sofas and eating their food from the cooler. We strolled over towards one of them, doing whatever it takes not to utter a sound.


    ¡°Hello I don¡¯t exactly...¡± he said, out of nowhere halting to an end. ¡°What?¡± I asked, and as I showed up, I looked forward to see a major line of left dark vehicles, with monitors before them. ¡°Oh joy,¡± Mchi mumbled, and I could feel the apprehension fill my body as we saw many watches all wearing dark tuxedos leave towards the structure as we got increasingly close to them.


    ¡°Alright, everybody remain cool-headed,¡± September expressed, checking out by any means of us. ¡°Remainposed.¡± I nodded my head in understanding while every other person appeared to be overreacting a smidgen. I realized we needed to remain even headed and simply manage this.


    We before long strolled onto the road, only a couple of feet from the gatekeepers who were out there before September moved toward them. ¡°Anybody got the eyes of Bricyer?¡± September asked, attempting to remain secret as she searched for a gatekeeper who knew what mason¡¯s identity was.


    After a couple of seconds, one of them stood up and said, ¡°Hello you!¡±


    I started to freeze up, hearing those two words in my ears. It was like I was in a fantasy; my heart was beating in my chest and I was frozenpletely still as I watched her stroll over towards this gatekeeper. ¡°Hello what?¡± September asked, changing her suit. ¡°Do you have any idea about where Weave is?¡±


    ¡°Sway?¡±


    ¡°Indeed Sway, he¡¯s ourmander. He said he nned to check something and we haven¡¯t seen him since,¡± he said. September nodded and I could see she was likely perspiring in her jeans since her face appeared to have an intensity upon it.


    She then shouted out, saying, ¡°I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea who you¡¯re discussing but on the off chance that he hasn¡¯t arrived, then you won¡¯t see him. Who¡¯s the second inmand?¡±


    ¡°The person by the limo,¡± he said. ¡°Joe.¡± September nodded prior to ncing back at us with a smile.


    ¡°Okay you folks stand by here,¡± she shared with the gatekeeper. ¡°We¡¯ll be back.¡±


    She strolled back to us, epting exceptionally full breaths as she talked into the headphone. We then heard her say, ¡°Okay, we should go.¡±


    ¡°We should go, what?¡± Greg asked, scratching his head and checking me out. ¡°Move in,¡± she said, nodding her head to the gatekeepers who were sitting tight for us. We started strolling towards them as they viewed at us with disarray as we did as such. ¡°Remain here, we¡¯ll actually take a look at inside to check whether Bricyer is getting along nicely,¡± she said.


    We started to stroll in through the primary entry of the structure with September right at the front while us all were toward the rear of her with Mchi driving the way. There was a work area forthright where a young woman was sitting, taking a gander at her PC screen andposing ceaselessly on her console. We strolled over to her work area as September made a sound as if to speak prior to talking.


    ¡°Do you have any idea where Bricyer is?¡± she asked the woman who gazed toward her as she talked. The woman nodded and answered, ¡°Yes he ought to be in the gathering room right now with his partners.¡± She pointed over to another room further inside the structure as we strolled around there, cautious not to stumble on anything.


    ¡°OK, so what do we do once we get in there?¡± Mchi asked, ncing around as he took a full breath. I was at that point starting to perspire from simply being so near such countless gatekeepers, and I started to feel wiped out in my stomach from it. ¡°Do whatever it takes not to look dubious,¡± September said, as we nodded our heads in understanding.


    We came to the room with no difficulty as we strolled within it. As we strolled in, the room was totally not the same as what I anticipated. Rather than the warm brown wooden floors, there were tiles that were blue and white; I thought they were cool at first but it immediately started to get more smoking as I ventured within it. The walls resembled that terrifying dark and white tone as well as the roof. The lights in here were white but they additionally had an orange shine to them also which appeared to match the walls and all the other things in this room well overall.


    As I peered down, I saw Bricyer, who was wearing a dark suit with a tie, and he was by all ounts extremely pale.


    He had a thick earthy colored cover around his neck with his hair covered under it while he scoured his temple with his left hand and gazed toward the roof in the room. Furthermore, before him was a man who had a buzzcut and a messed up dress shirt, with jeans and shoes that was restricted to a seat, with blood on it as well as on his hands too. The man was simply remaining there seeing nothing but gazing into space for seemingly a really long time on end with his hands bound behind his back while Bricyer took a gander at him menacingly.


    ¡°I believe that is Petrov,¡± Greg murmured.

 Chapter 126

    126 In the Hands of Custody


    I have no clue on how Petrov was at this point, or what he did, but he was looking at me as if he wanted me dead and was willing to do anything for it. He had his head covered in tattoos which looked like all sorts of horrible things and there was something about him.


    But he must¡¯ve done something to Mason or something, because there was blood on the ground beneath him and it looked like someone had beaten him up pretty badly.


    I began to panic as I could hear Mchi gasp for air while September put her arm around him, as if he was about to cry. Greg put his hands over his face in shame while I just stood there frozen, watching this scene y out in front of me as I tried not to breathe too loudly.


    Then I heard Mason ask, ¡°Where is the Cybertron?¡±


    I froze,pletely, no movement as I just stood there in silence with my mouth wide open. My eyes were so wide that they looked like they were about to pop out of my skull from this intense shock. ¡°You gonna tell me now?¡± Mason asked, his face so close to Petrov, I¡¯m pretty sure he could smell his breath. But Petrov didn¡¯t answer, in fact he didn¡¯t even move from his position at all as he just stared ahead at the ground in front of him.


    Mason scrunched up his lips, sighing deeply before he sighed again, almost whispering to himself.


    ¡°Where is it?!¡± he yelled, looking around the room as if Petrov would suddenly appear behind him. I felt as if I was gonna die right at this moment, based on how mad he seemed but I didn¡¯t care. I could still feel that strange buzz in my ears as my heartbeat started to race at a rapid pace.


    Mason turned back to Petrov, ncing down at his bloody hands before turning around and looking back at me. He had his eyes half lidded and his teeth were clenched together tightly while his fingers were balled up into fists by his side. Suddenly he threw a fast punch into his stomach, causing Petrov to cough and wheeze from the pain of it.


    I could tell he had punched him really hard because Petrov was hunched over in pain and he was making grunts and moaning. We need to get Petrov now, and quickly before he dies from Mason¡¯s raging fist, and we all couldn¡¯t do this without getting caught because it was impossible to not get caught around here!


    .....


    Mason grabbed Petrov by his neck and threw him into the wall so hard that I could hear it crack. The chair broke, leaving him hanging there helplessly. His legs kicked out desperately while blood poured from his face onto the floor below him as he struggled to breathe and he spat up some blood from his mouth.


    But then, I heard something that kept me frozen in fear.


    Sirens.


    ¡°It¡¯s the FBI again!¡± Greg rasped, looking up from his spot on the floor with tears in his eyes.


    Mason just kept holding him up by his throat while he spoke calmly, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter who it is.¡±


    The sirens got louder as Mason turned around to look at us with his hands still wrapped around Petrov¡¯s neck as his eyes glowed with rage. ¡°We need to get Mason now,¡± Mchi whispered to September, who looked back at him with a determined face.


    Then I heard her speak up, ¡°I can¡¯t let this happen.¡±


    She pulled out her wand, firing a bolt that sped into the room, causing Mason¡¯s body to go limp as he fell to the ground beside Petrov, who had stopped breathing as well as his eyes closed with deathly slowness as hey there motionless.


    Quickly, the guard beside me attacked, throwing me to the ground so hard that I felt my knee twist as I fell on my side while he pulled out a gun. I needed to do something, and quickly! I thrusted my leg at him, pushing him off before I stood back up and took a quick nce around me, noticing the window of the room was open.


    Then the guard swung his fist towards me, as I quickly ducked under his swing and kneed him in the groin before taking a quick step back and putting my hand on my wand. Quickly I swung my wand at him, making him let out a scream and fall to the ground, writhing in pain as he grabbed his crotch as he curled up into a ball.


    Now it was the next guard.


    The next guard seemed morepetent than the other one, actually thinking about which moves he should do, actually being a human being who made choices and knew how to fight rather than being a robot who just did whatever he was told. Quickly I ducked his punch, but then he threw another one that hit me in my stomach but didn¡¯t hurt me too much as I gritted my teeth but smiled back at him.


    I wasn¡¯t going down like that, but that was smart I do have to say. Pretty smart, but not smart enough as I kicked him in the groin so hard that I heard a loud ¡®thud¡¯ that followed the hit. The guard grunted in pain, but he didn¡¯t look done, nor was I, so I took another swing at him with my wand before taking a few steps back and swinging my arm towards him, causing him to drop the gun that he had gotten out of his holster and it flew across the room.


    The guard looked back, being met with the bottom of my shoe, flying at him so quickly that I knew it would¡¯ve hit him in the face had I not been able to move so quickly, making him flinch back and fall to the ground with a loud thud.


    But there was one more guard that was still standing, looking at me with confusion as he drew back the gun while he began to slowly move back, looking down at his gun before pulling the trigger but nothing happened.


    Then he began to look at me confusedly, until I pointed my wand at him and said ¡°Zap,¡± making him drop his gun and begin to curl up into a ball as he screamed in agony. I felt so bad about that but there wasn¡¯t time for sympathy right now as I ran towards the window, looking outside and seeing a row of FBI cars.


    ¡°We need to get Petrov and go now!¡± September said, ncing around for any more guards.


    I nodded in agreement but then I looked down to see how he was doing. He was breathing, but not much, barely. I had to get him out of here. I had to get him out of here as fast as possible! I picked him up, as we ran out of the door, ready to escape.


    But I don¡¯t think anyone was going to be escaping.


    SWAT officers with automatics faced their weapon at us, as Mchi, Greg and September quickly sped back from the door. But I could only stay. They were looking for me, and I was literally in their grasp. ¡°Don¡¯t move!¡± they shouted, moving towards me. I put my hands up, knowing I couldn¡¯t run from these guys.


    ¡°Get on your knees now!¡±


    I obeyed, turning around and kneeling down on my knees with my hands still above my head as they began to take me in handcuffs. ¡°So finally the culprit is found,¡± I heard, knowing immediately who it was.


    Agent Nelson.


    I turned around, seeing her with her ck coat and long brown hair, walking up to me as I heard her ask me, ¡°Is this it?¡± She asked me in a voice that was low and very threatening. I didn¡¯t want to say anything, as she continued, ¡°We¡¯ve been searching for you for months now.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure you have,¡± I said, sighing heavily.


    She stood up and walked around me so she could look at me from all angles, before she smirked, this time standing over me so she could look down at me. ¡°You have over thousand counts of attempted murder, with that little power or bomb you have stored in your body.¡±


    I was too scared to speak, feeling the coldness of the floor against my knees and elbows and my heart raced as I could feel it beat so hard in my chest. ¡°Your friends sadly escaped from us, but we¡¯ll find them eventually. Imagine what your mother would say if she saw you right now,¡± she said. ¡°I feel so bad for her.¡±


    ¡°Why do you want me so bad?¡± I asked, looking up at her.


    She scoffed loudly. ¡°I don¡¯t really want you.¡±


    ¡°Then why?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I was just ordered to spy on you, see what you¡¯re doing. But a little friend, or enemy I¡¯d say, of yours asked me toe after you. Now we have them on our side.¡±

 Chapter 127

    127 Nelson¡¯s Interrogation


    ¡°Rocke,¡± I mumbled furiously, as her eyes augmented. ¡°Gracious, so you know him as of now?¡± she asked,ughing happily.


    I scowled profoundly as she peered down at me once more. Then she grinned. ¡°Indeed I in all actuality do know him. Happy we both share something for all intents and purpose.¡±


    ¡°You won¡¯t ever track down answers in the event that you give me to him!¡± I yelled, gazing at her with a face brimming with outrage.


    She snickered. ¡°I¡¯ll simply need to see about that.¡± She then signaled with her hands for the watchmen to catch me, as they got me from the beginning, me away from her as she strolled back to her vehicle.


    I was scared to be in her care and what could befall me. They gradually strolled me outside, as the sun sparkled, forecasting of more torment that looked for me as well as a fate of hopelessness.


    Then I felt something hot trickle all over, and I gazed toward the sky, understanding that it was storming heavily. The dark mists were starting to group in, showing the sun¡¯s impression of its beams as it radiated through the mists and made the water drops sparkle like precious stones, while the raindrops began to fall like frigid sharp edges.


    Before long enough I was put inside the Smack van, with officials seeing me like a confined creature, and one of them holding my head down so I could peer out through the little window in the entryway as we drove away.


    ***


    Time psed before I was taken to the FBI Building, where columns of stopped Smack vansid, moving their headlights towards us as we sped through the roads, before we pulled up into the parking structure under the structure. Seems like the FBI is additionally in Moscow, shockingly, but I thoroughly considered they didn¡¯t have ward here in Russia.


    .....


    They then hauled me out of the van and started to walk me down certain means into an office room with many others discussing front of an enormous screen that was swung from the wall. There was a more seasoned woman who was wearing a tailored suit remaining behind a work area with two men sitting opposite her wearing suits of their own.


    The walls were white and splendid, and there was a long work area before them, with three seats.


    There were two additional individuals remaining close to the wall behind different people who werepletely wearing business garments and appeared as though they were legal advisors or something to that effect. They seemed to be normal FBI agents in films, but this was certainly genuine, for I had recently seen Agent Nelson stroll down certain steps towards the others and talk with them.


    There was a man wearing a dark suit remaining close to the woman in the suit, as the two of them strolled within the room.


    The number of individuals that worked here, since there must be no less than thirty individuals here.


    ¡°How much does she know?¡± The man wearing a dark suit asked Agent Nelson, who appeared to be responsible for me right now.


    Who can say for sure what?


    Considerations started to hurry through my head, going through the situations that I had quite recently been all through as well as the potential oues of what could ur straightaway. Then, we went down the steps, and there were little rooms that were for cross examination.


    I would be horrible at cross examinations, and I mean terrible.


    We arrived at one of the cross examination rooms and the entryway opened before Agent Nelson and her male partner strolled inside and shut it behind them.


    I sat down, my contained hands on the table as Agent Nelson plunked down, taking a gander at me with her hands behind her back, before she started to address me, seeing her notes prior to talking once more.


    ¡°I will cut to the chase,¡± Agent Nelson expressed, ring down at me with her puncturing eyes, which appeared to enter eptable into my spirit. ¡°For what reason did you make it happen?¡±


    ¡°Do what?¡±


    ¡°Cause the enormous st happened a couple of months prior?¡± she made sense of, folding her arms.


    I squinted briefly prior to shaking my head and talking. ¡°I didn¡¯t cause the huge st a couple of months prior!¡± She appeared to know I was lying or something, since she took out a couple of papers from her jacket pocket and started to show them to me, where she highlighted various pictures of me on a portion of the pages as she kept on talking.


    She showed that one picture, the one where the sky was red and brilliant when I utilized my Perk, grinning at me before she dismissed her head and took a gander at me with her eyes limited.


    ¡°We have reconnaissance film of you on that day when you caused a little st in gstaff,¡± she said.


    ¡°Allow me to let you know something okay? We know about what you did, so don¡¯t attempt to y with us, since, in such a case that you do...¡± A grin started to shape all over, extending until her eyes were shut firmly and her cheeks were starting to blush. Then she murmured and talked once more.


    ¡°I¡¯ll ensure that you decay in prison until the end of your life, and afterward you¡¯ll at absolutely no point in the futuree around,¡± she said, prior to reclining in her seat and putting her hand on her jaw. ¡°I will by and by make it so you can¡¯t utilize your powers at any point down the road,¡± she said with a tricky grin.


    I scowled at her prior to shaking my head. ¡°What powers?¡± I inquired.


    Sheughed, and I could see she was getting annoyed by simply checking her out. ¡°Good gracious! You know what power you have! We have all of your DNA now,¡± she said. I stammered, ¡°From where?¡±


    She shook her head. ¡°For a decent individual grades in school, you are exceptionally moronic,¡± she said, shutting her eyes before she started to talk once more. ¡°From your folks, from your blood tests we¡¯ve taken from the scene, and even from your body itself.¡±


    ¡°My body?¡±


    ¡°Your blood was on the ground, presumably from your clench hand or such, and we could constantly utilize it to make our statement,¡± Agent Nelson murmured, sneering as she saw me getting apprehensive, while her eyes augmented with outrage at me.


    She kept on talking, seeing me like a shark taking a gander at its prey, before she started to talk once more.


    ¡°Perhaps you¡¯re taking a gander at this in the incorrect manner,¡± she said. ¡°Assuming that you really have abilities, you could help humanity. You could. In any case, we could drop charges and you¡¯d seem to be a legend.¡±


    That would be awful, in light of the fact that then I would uncover about the whole spy mage associations, leaving them into ruin. How are we expected to safeguard individuals in the event that they find out? I felt my body shaking, shudder as I considered what I ought to do now.


    But what decision do I have? I have no different abilities but my superhuman strength that I¡¯ve been attempting to leave well enough alone from everybody.


    But her look, her look, her re was starting to cause me to feel as though my life would have been over soon on the off chance that I sat idle. She murmured, ¡°obviously, you¡¯re excessively obstinate. So you deny the way that individual would you say you wasn¡¯t, in light of what? What is the oue that woulde to pass for upon you in the event that you didn¡¯t say as much. Could you bite the dust? You would be in the assurance of us. Essentially nothing remains to be lost.¡±


    ¡°But nothing remains to be said,¡± I said, and annoyance ran over her face.


    Then she moaned. ¡°You will always be unable to utilize your powers ever from this point forward,¡± she said. ¡°We¡¯ll secure you, abandon you, to decay.¡±


    My heart sank as I realize that I needed to offer something at the present time. That was all there was to it! I had no real option except to do as such! But out of nowhere, I heard a knock on the window, as dread went through me. I started to shake as I heard stridesing increasingly close until the entryway opened gradually before a more established man wearing a white coat strolled in with a scar all over and a dark suit on his body.


    Rocke.


    ¡°Hi, Agent Nelson,¡± he said. ¡°I see you have my significant desire in your premises, you can leave now.¡±


    ¡°But-¡±


    ¡°Leave now,¡± he said, as the guardians immediately acquired their wands. Agent Nelson¡¯s mouth thundered, and afterward she stood up from her seat and started to leave with her two male partners, as Rocke strolled into the room happily.

 Chapter 128

    128 Rocke¡¯s Interrogation


    Rocke sat down on his chair, and looked around, seeming to be quite disturbed with how dirty the room was. He then turned to me, before sitting down on my right side so that we could look at each other as he began to speak. ¡°Pretty sure you haven¡¯t seen me in quite a while have you?¡± he asked, with a chuckle.


    Now I was a lot more scared. I wasn¡¯t gonna go to jail, but I had the possibility of dying, and Lord knows how Rocke wanted to kill me for some reason.


    I swallowed a lump of fear down my throat, before taking a deep breath and staring at him, trying my best to hold back all of my emotions that were bubbling inside of me, but Rocke moved in front of me, leaning forward with his hands behind his back and his elbows resting on the table as he spoke again.


    ¡°So, I¡¯m pretty sure you have something that I want if I¡¯m not wrong,¡± he said. ¡°I had to go to great lengths to find you. I had to hire Mason, Nelson, even my own son which I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve met just to get you. But unlike you guys, the FBI has quite some resources.¡±


    ¡°And this is important how?¡± I asked with an attitude that didn¡¯t show fear at all, though inside of me, I felt as if my body would shatter if he touched me now. Rocke chuckled and looked at me, no emotion at all, before taking out his pocket watch and cing it on the table. It was a beautiful gold pocket watch that looked extremely expensive.


    ¡°You¡¯ll tell me where the Cybertron is,¡± he said, nodding excessively, before looking at me as if he was trying to see something on my face. I had no idea what was going on.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said, and heughed as if that was a joke, probably because he thought it was a lie.


    But I¡¯m telling the truth! I wanted to yell out at him, but I realized that this could be a trap. What if he was trying to do something that would make me blurt out or something, reveal myself? He looked at me like a hungry lion ready to pounce on its prey.


    He leaned back in his chair as he put his hands behind his back and looked at me with his piercing blue eyes. But I was right. It¡¯s most likely with Fulton, but what if they already went to destroy the Cybertron, while I still couldn¡¯t tell them where it was? Would I die?


    .....


    I sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know where it is,¡± I repeated.


    He nodded, and all of a sudden got up, walked towards me, looked at me for a matter of ten seconds, until all of a sudden, he swung his arm and struck me hard across my cheek, making me fly back and hit the wall behind me, falling t on the ground with a thud as he took out his pocket watch from his jacket pocket and looked at the time.


    What¡¯s with people smacking others into the wall and breaking the chair? It¡¯s kind of dramatic if you ask me!


    I got up slowly and tried to stand up as he smiled at me. His smile made him look like a madman who wants to murder someone for no reason. ¡°I¡¯m not a fool, child,¡± he said with a menacing tone, looking down at me. ¡°I know why you don¡¯t tell me where it is.¡±


    I frowned before looking up at him. ¡°If I did know, I wouldn¡¯t tell you. You¡¯re just using it for evil, so I would digress to be used for your evil ways.¡± I said angrily. I knew he¡¯de after me now, but I had to stand up against him somehow. His eyes bulged in rage, his fists crackling and ready to punch me hard in the face again, but he sighed. He stood there with his hands behind his back again, leaning against the desk, breathing heavily in my face as his eyes began to look tired.


    ¡°You are a persistent boy,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°But young boy, I have something to reveal to you. The FBI has Petrov, and I¡¯m pretty sure you want to talk to him to know where it is too.¡±


    Very inurate, but ok.


    Rocke chuckled, walking towards the window and looking outside of the window before turning back towards me with a smile on his face. He looked like he wanted to strike me again with his fist or something as he sighed with exasperation. ¡°So if I have him, I know where it is,¡± he said.


    ¡°Then howe you haven¡¯t asked him?¡± I said, trying my best not to show fear or anger at all.


    He shrugged. ¡°I wanted to see if you¡¯d tell me, and if you wouldn¡¯t, then I¡¯d ask him.¡±


    ¡°Or maybe you know he doesn¡¯t know where it is,¡± I said with a chuckle, although it was quite fake to be honest.


    Rocke stood up straight, and his eyes began to shine as he stared at me again. Then he swung once again, this time hitting me on my chest with his palm so hard that I flew back again, hitting the wall once again and falling t on the ground once again.


    ¡°Okay!¡± I shouted. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you, but in one condition. I talked to Petrov. We have some personal things to talk about.¡± Rocke¡¯s eyes widened as if he was interested, viewing me in a different light now that he was curious. He took out his pocket watch again and checked the time.


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± he said.


    ¡°And I don¡¯t want anyone watching me,¡± I said. ¡°Don¡¯t follow mymands, don¡¯t get the location.¡± Rockeughed as if it was some sort of joke, shaking his head as if I was too naive. But he agreed anyway before putting away his pocket watch again and walking towards the door before pausing and looking back at me as if he was surprised that he even agreed, right before leaving the room.


    I got up slowly from the ground, feeling my body begin to tremble as fear began toe across my face. How did I even survive, how did I not break my nose? I touched my face and found my nose was slightly swollen already, but my skin wasn¡¯t broken either.


    I¡¯m surprised Rocke even agreed to my terms, being so smart as he was. It didn¡¯t seem like him at all. But I was d that he did.


    Soon enough, I saw two agents holding Petrov outside the room, before opening the door slowly and letting Petrov in the room with his hands behind his back. He walked inside as Agent Nelson stood outside of the door, looking at him with a sour face as she began to speak his rights, right before she left the room with her male counterparts and the two agents guarding the door behind them.


    Petrov entered the room and looked around as he slowly removed his hands from behind his back.


    ¡°The interrogator should be here by now,¡± he said.


    I actually felt likeughing.


    ¡°I am the interrogator,¡± I revealed, as he looked at me with confusion.


    ¡°You?¡±


    ¡°Yes, me,¡± I said, smiling.


    He began tough as he shook his head before sitting down in a chair right across from me.


    ¡°You want some candy or something?¡± he joked, cracklingughter as he looked at me with a smile on his face.


    I shook my head.


    He chuckled again. ¡°I¡¯m d the FBI isn¡¯t watching, because it would be embarrassing for me to be questioned by you,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°What can I use to destroy the Cybertron?¡± I asked, and he suddenly stopped joking. He stayed for a bit, licking his lips with a smile on his face before turning around and leaning back in his chair.


    He looked at me with a serious face as if he was remembering something that he had forgotten about long ago. ¡°Why should I tell you?¡± he asked. ¡°Rocke ordered Jonathan Mason to pretty much kill me to tell him where the Cybertron is, maybe to find you since he always rants about that. But I told him, he already had it.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked.


    ¡°When they raided the cargo port, they found this note from what one of the guards told me, that led them to the literal source of the Cybertron. Apparently they were too dumb to literally press the button to override the robot toe back to the Cybermade.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what it¡¯s called? Where is it?¡± I asked.


    Petrov sighed, ¡°Probably in the TSA ship, soon to leave from here.¡±


    Shock rushed through my body like a river as I looked at him with confusion. ¡°You mean they have the Cybertron right now?¡±


    ¡°Pretty much,¡± he said. ¡°Honestly you guys are brawns but no brains.¡± I took no thought to what he said, only to think of what it could possibly be, what they were going to do to it.


    I took a deep breath before standing up from my chair.

 Chapter 129

    129 Escape


    Out of nowhere, one of the FBI agents opened the entryway as me and Petrov checked him out. ¡°Hello, Agent Nelson needs you all moved,¡± he said, as disarray stumbled into our countenances and we both took a gander at one another briefly prior to standing up and leaving the room, passing by Nelson who gave us a phony grin as we went past her.


    ¡°Rocke did really,¡± she made sense of, as I now nodded in understanding as she drove us towards the lifts, as well as a few different agents in dark suits with their eyes covered with shades, while conveying assault rifles which they pointed towards the ground as they strolled.


    She shut the lift entryways, and quietness ran between us for a couple of seconds as we kept on strolling through the lobbies of the FBI working peacefully, before we arrived at another room where there were more FBI agents and many more agents that were wearing dark.


    How much was there?


    But something was off, they looked natural. Exceptionally natural, and I mean intimately acquainted. It seemed like I realized them but didn¡¯t know them simultaneously.


    I investigated at Nelson as she squeezed a couple of buttons on her telephone and entered a numbers prior to pushing it back to her hair. What¡¯s more, right at that particr second, one of the FBI agents gets out a wand, terminating a bolt at the ground.


    It was mypanions!


    The bolt detonated, making agents rocket in reverse into the walls as they shouted in agony and blood started to stream down their appearances while others shouted for help from all edges of the room. Disarray spread all through my face, and I attempted to search for Petrov.


    But all the smoke was obstructing my vision as I hacked out from the smoke that was upying the room, making me hack and splutter prior to dismissing my head from the smoke and hacking up more smoke high up. But then I saw a standing figure that was in the middle.


    .....


    Petrov.


    Rapidly, I ran towards him, as he thought back, covering his face and hacking viciously as he took off from me while I attempted to pursue him. But I immediately got him in the arms, handling him before I let him go and tossed my arms out before me, prior to pivoting and getting up to my feet as Petrov¡¯s eyes erged and his face turned pale.


    ¡°Come on,¡± I mumbled, getting him and hauling him through the smoke.


    Gunfire cried through the disorder, elerating my speed as additional shots hit the stopping points and agents fell onto the ground. ¡°Where are we going?¡± Petrov inquired. ¡°Some ce,¡± I answered. In the question of the bem, I may as yet hear a weak voice, a voice that appeared to quiet my feelings of trepidation, and a voice that showed my getaway from this.


    ¡°September?!¡± I yelled, following the voice. There was a corridor whose walls were simply smoke, as I went through it until I felt my back hit against an entryway. I opened the entryway and hauled Petrov inside, prior to closing the entryway behind me and turning around to see where this voice came from.


    There were steps driving down the stairs before me, as I kept on hauling Petrov down the means, going downwards while my hand was getting drained from hauling him down the steps, as I clutched him with my arm on his shoulder. Then I heard strides that appeared to be moving from the left.


    I followed it, trusting that I would see my group,stly I found them in a room with a wrecked window that had an entryway prompting another corridor that had more steps prompting another floor of the structure. ¡°Hello folks!¡± I yelled, as Mchi pivoted, seeing me as his grin extended. ¡°Connor!¡± Nikki yelled, running towards me prior to maneuvering me into her arms so firmly that it hurt. I grinned, scouring my face against her shoulder as her body shivered with alleviation.


    ¡°Hello!¡± Greg expressed,ing over and tapping me on my shoulder prior to embracing me into his chest as I returned the embrace. Then out of nowhere, an enormous figure ventured into the room, getting each of our eyes on the double.


    It was Jonathan Bricyer!


    He stopped briefly prior to removing his shades as his eyes met mine. ¡°Thus, you are the offenders that are doing this,¡± he expressed, taking out his weapon. ¡°Safeguard!¡± Nikki yelled to Tisiah, who utilized his wand to cover everybody with a safeguard as Jonathan discharged a few slugs at Tisiah¡¯s safeguard. But Tisiah just took a gander at him and shrugged prior to strolling nearer to him with his hands still outstretched towards before he shot his wand and shot Jonathan directly in his chest.


    He groveled as Tisiah strolled back to us with his hands outstretched. ¡°Seems as though you will not be requiring your firearm any longer,¡± he said as Nikki assisted me with getting up while we as a whole gazed at Jonathan who had now tumbled to his knees.


    ¡°How about we leave, we have Petrov, now we really want to return to Fulton¡¯s vehicle.¡±


    ¡°Fulton arranged this?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, he appears to truly think often about you,¡± September expressed, checking out at me happily.


    We strolled a few doors down together while Mchi and I hauled Petrov between us. I didn¡¯t know where they stopped, but I trusted they stopped some ce that was effectively avable to travel through, essentially not far away. We turned a corner and found them left right close to us in a parking spot with two different vehicles other than their own, while focusing on no individuals.


    ¡°Alright, we should move,¡± September expressed, moving towards the vehicle as I pushed Petrov within it, prior to following them and getting in on the opposite side.


    ¡°We want to get to the TSA boat,¡± I said. ¡°That is where we can obliterate it.¡±


    ¡°How could you request him inside from the FBI base camp?¡± Fulton asked, investigating at me in shock while September drove.


    I stopped briefly, prior to shaking my head gradually. ¡°It¡¯s a boring tale,¡± Petrov answered with a wheezing giggle, prior to hacking once more and checking out at me with concern.


    I shook my head, gazing at the window briefly prior to turning my head to take a gander at Fulton, who was driving as I sat in the secondary lounge. ¡°Do you have any idea where to find the TSA boat?¡± I inquired. Fulton thought back, quiet before he spoke, ¡°I have a thought of some kind or another.¡±


    He immediately switched gears to move into invert, pushing back the vehicle before he turned the wheel, floating the vehicle in a 180 to where the front was looking ahead.


    He sped through the roads, vehicles booming and sounding as he traveled through the road.


    We ran over a crossing point where he snapped the wheel to one side, as the vehicle inclined internal into the other path. I have never acknowledged the amount of an insane driver he was. My hands were slipping from the seat, scarcely ready to keep set up in the vehicle.


    The wheels shrieked as he turned paths, moving from left to right and in a without further ado coordinated manner. He arrived at the stoplight, as it was yellow, and right at that point, the pedal was destroyed by Fulton¡¯s push.


    He stepped it, as the driving force of the van thundered into a lion, as the speed prepared from its ce previously.


    We nned to arrive quickly going on like this.


    He immediately kept on moving, before he went to one side. ¡°I know we¡¯re in a hurry, but might you at any point dyed down, only a tad chomped so we as a whole don¡¯t pass on?!¡± Mchi screeched, but Fulton ignored him.


    As a matter of fact, I think he went quicker on the grounds that I started to feel air spread between my legs.


    ¡°Alright, this is the very thing that we do, we go in, we obliterate and we emerge,¡± Fulton said. ¡°But we really want to get our radios so we can call the YMPA!¡± September made sense of. ¡°We really want to.¡±


    ¡°Okay, so annihte the Cybertron and get your radios, then get back inside the van. We¡¯ll return to C.A.M, call Mr. Drails, and afterward get you folks home, alright?!¡± he yelled.


    We as a whole nodded, as we went on through the street, advancing toward ourst any desire for returning home.


    Preview:


    Soon enough, I saw in the distance a sign that could possibly mean the docks, sighing in relief as we drove further down the road, where we were finally able to see the ship we were looking for. I could still remember it, the big structure of the ship that seemed to be out of a science fiction movie.


    Ahead of us, we could see the ship had several trucks outside of it, moving around like a pack of wolves circling around it. Clearly I did not have any good memories, not by any chance at all. Fulton stopped the vehicle, looking at me with an expression of hope.


    I turned my head around to look at September as he looked out of the windshield as if trying to figure out how to approach this. ¡°Gina, try to find a camera inside of the ship in front of us,¡± Fulton said, still looking at me. I looked at him for a moment, before nodding and turning towards the side door. I pulled on it, opening it as I walked outside of it, looking at the door for a moment, before I closed it and soon enough the others began to get out of their seats to follow me outside of the vehicle.


    I turned around to look at Fulton as he stared at me with a determined face.


    ¡°You sure you don¡¯t want to join me?¡± he asked, staring at me with a cold and unreadable look in his eyes as his hand rested on the butt of his gun.


    I nodded, although a sad feeling came over me as I saw a sad expression on his face.


    He nodded, looking at me with a fake smile before he closed the door, as the camera showed up. ¡°Alright, ready?¡± September asked, walking beside me as she turned towards the others that were all getting ready to go towards the dock.

 Chapter 130

    130 The Dock Mission


    Soon enough, I saw in the distance a sign that could possibly mean the docks, sighing in relief as we drove further down the road, where we were finally able to see the ship we were looking for. I could still remember it, the big structure of the ship that seemed to be out of a science fiction movie.


    Ahead of us, we could see the ship had several trucks outside of it, moving around like a pack of wolves circling around it. Clearly I did not have any good memories, not by any chance at all. Fulton stopped the vehicle, looking at me with an expression of hope.


    I turned my head around to look at September as he looked out of the windshield as if trying to figure out how to approach this. ¡°Gina, try to find a camera inside of the ship in front of us,¡± Fulton said, still looking at me. I looked at him for a moment, before nodding and turning towards the side door. I pulled on it, opening it as I walked outside of it, looking at the door for a moment, before I closed it and soon enough the others began to get out of their seats to follow me outside of the vehicle.


    I turned around to look at Fulton as he stared at me with a determined face.


    ¡°You sure you don¡¯t want to join me?¡± he asked, staring at me with a cold and unreadable look in his eyes as his hand rested on the butt of his gun.


    I nodded, although a sad feeling came over me as I saw a sad expression on his face.


    He nodded, looking at me with a fake smile before he closed the door, as the camera showed up. ¡°Alright, ready?¡± September asked, walking beside me as she turned towards the others that were all getting ready to go towards the dock.


    We nodded and proceeded towards the dock in a quick pace until we made it to the doors of the ship.


    They were much, way bigger than I expected, but we could see several people in suits walking inside and out of it.


    .....


    We slowly walked inside as I looked around me, noticing a few other people walking around and staring at us as if we were criminals or something.


    Can¡¯t me them though, seeing that we¡¯re dressed like this and we had weapons.


    ¡°This ce is dark,¡± Mchi said, as I looked up, seeing the dark walls as the only light came from a couple of windows on one side of the room.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Nikki responded, looking around her in a bit of shock before she pointed towards a man sitting on a chair in front of a table. ¡°And there¡¯s no one around here.¡±


    We walked past the man towards another door which led into another room that was lit up more than thest one, which was more calming than before. Maybe it was the shade or something, but whatever it was, it made us feel more rxed.


    We could hear some noises from somewhere nearby that we could not seem to locate before we heard a voice speaking over an inte. Not sure what it was about, but it was definitely about something important.


    ¡°All this time and I never asked, what exactly are we looking for?¡± Mchi asked.


    ¡°Something called the Cybermade or something like that,¡± I answered, still listening to the voice over the inte.


    I paused for a second before we continued towards another room. The hall was quite bright and weing, unlike the first one. It was also very clean, as it seemed to have been cleaned many times in the past couple of days, although it felt like there was still dust in the air around us.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go left with Nikki, Greg with Connor, Mchi with Tisiah okay?¡± September said. We all nodded, as me and Greg moved to the right. ¡°Hopefully we find this soon,¡± Greg said.


    It¡¯s just me and Greg now.


    I nodded as well as we began to move inwards into the room again. The room was so clean that I didn¡¯t even have to look up or down in order to see where I was going, nor did I really have to look around me for danger since there wasn¡¯t much in this room except for a fewputers and some tables with a couple of chairs ced in front of them.


    ¡°Why does every room have so manyputers?¡± Greg asked, looking at the screens and tapping on one of them before walking into another room as I followed behind him.


    I paused for a second as he stopped before opening a door to another room. ¡°Ooh,¡± he muttered, rubbing his hands, before closing it behind him. I frowned at him and walked towards him while he pressed his fingers against his lips and tried to find something, although I couldn¡¯t see anything in the room.


    ¡°It looks like some sort of office,¡± I whispered while moving closer towards him to hear what he was doing. ¡°With a lot of boxes,¡± Greg added. ¡°Let¡¯s search.¡± Greg took the left of the room while I took the right of the room, feeling my heart racing as we walked towards different corners of this room, looking for something that seemed important that could lead us towards what we were looking for.


    But there were a lot of empty boxes if I were to be honest with you, so we quickly began to move into each other¡¯s direction so that we could talk without raising suspicion.


    I nodded as we looked around for a while until we found what we were looking for...I think.


    There were several stacks of boxes ced next to each other and on top of each other and above them was arge box that was simr to what was inside of some sort of, I don¡¯t know, a vault?


    We began to walk up to them and started to feel a little uneasy when we began to notice that there seemed to be some sort of locking mechanism on it that had several wires attached to it and that it was taped on. ¡°What is this?¡± Greg asked, tapping on the box and looking at it as if he was trying to figure something out.


    ¡°Maybe nothing,¡± I said as we continued to try and open this box while trying not to let anyone see.


    But something didn¡¯t make any sense at all, as this box was sealed tightly and I don¡¯t think we could have found another box like this in here. This had something for sure, and it seemed that there was something in here that was important.


    ¡°Maybe they left it there to keep anyone else away from it?¡± Greg said.


    ¡°Clearly,¡± I said, sighing in frustration as we continued to try and open this thing up. I felt a little relieved after seeing that there wasn¡¯t any sort of code needed to open this box as we stared at it with a certain thought, unsure what to do or what to think, but Greg began to press his finger into the small gap between the two locks. He turned his head as he pressed his finger and then looked at me with an expression of relief.


    The safe opened.


    We looked in it, and there was this small sort of, well, I don¡¯t know how to say it but...it looked like a map of something. We could see different coordinates that looked as if they were written there. ¡°I think this is the map of the ship,¡± I said, looking at Greg, who nodded as he continued to look at the map and tapped on it with his fingers.


    I sighed in frustration, moving towards a stack of boxes where there were severalputers attached to it. We still hadn¡¯t found the Cybermade, but it was a step in the right direction.


    We pulled out our radios and began to call September and Fulton to tell them that we were onto something. ¡°Hey, we have this map that could be of the ship,¡± I said. ¡°Okay,¡± Fulton responded. ¡°I could use the cameras to assist you.¡±


    I nodded and turned off the radio, walking towards one of theputers that were connected to this stack of boxes.


    ¡°Alright, let me see if I could pull up something,¡± I said to Greg, who was still searching like a dog for a bone that it can¡¯t seem to find.


    ¡°Close the door,¡± I told Greg, as he quickly got up, closing the door before I began to move my hands over thisputer. It opened up the home screen, revealing several icons along with a few different folders. The folders were locked with several numbers that I couldn¡¯t seem to figure out how they worked.


    ¡°Only if something would show up,¡± I muttered, thinking of a way out of this mess.


    I turned on theputer and noticed a notification that there was an update waiting for me in my system, but what update, I didn¡¯t know. I clicked on it, only to reveal an icon that looked like an eye that blinked several times and disappeared after a second before reappearing with a progress bar.


    Then I saw the name: ¡°Cybertron Info...¡±

 Chapter 131

    131 Confusion All In a Room


    ¡°Hello Greg, take a gander at this!¡± I yelled as he ran over, remaining close to me and taking a gander at the screen that was before us. I pointed towards it prior to pointing at the advancement bar. A grin went across his face, as heposed something into the PC.


    ¡°I assume I sorted out the code,¡± Greg said as heposed in the numbers that were disyed on the advancement bar, and out of nowhere, it sprung up as an organizer. My eyes broadened, as I took a gander at the envelope and noticed a little document that was set inside it.


    ¡°Is that a program?¡± Greg asked, viewing at me with an inquisitive artiction as he got the mouse and opened it.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea,¡± I answered, as he tapped the mouse and open up an envelope. What¡¯s more, try to keep your hat on, I was shocked, as I¡¯ve never seen any such thing.


    It had these projects that were unique in rtion to one another and appeared to be something totally different. ¡°These all should be for the Cybertron, which might give us signs about the Cybermade,¡± I said with a nod. Then I found this organizer called ¡°Cybertron.Info¡± which was a simr program I had found in the start of the PC.


    ¡°What is this?¡± Greg inquired.


    ¡°Data,¡± I answered, as I took a gander at him inquisitively.


    ¡°Is this something connected with this spot?¡± Greg inquired. I shrugged, seeing him prior to ncing back at the PC.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I murmured.


    .....


    ¡°Do you maintain that I should investigate?¡± Greg inquired. I shrugged, viewing at him as he headed toward my side of the room and started to tap on the console. He opened up a window, which uncovered a text input field and afterward a little image that was named as a ¡®cursor¡¯.


    ¡°Might you at any point show me what you¡¯reposing?¡± I asked, as he moved gradually to one side as heposed with his fingers on the keys, each letter showing up in a squinting line as heposed. Sooner orter, he halted and shut the program as he squeezed enter and afterward checked me out.


    ¡°Are you gifted at this stuff?¡± I asked, and he nodded andughed.


    ¡°Obviously, I¡¯m great with PCs.¡±


    ¡°All things considered, I get it doesn¡¯t damage to ask,¡± I said, turning my consideration back to the screen and ncing through the projects that Greg had quite recently opened. The projects showed an image of this kind of box that seemed to be a switch or some likeness thereof, alongside a few buttons that appeared to be utilized for something, despite the fact that I don¡¯t know what.


    ¡°What is that?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°That is the Cybermade,¡± Greg expressed, ncing back at me with a smile.


    ¡°A switch?¡± I asked, confounded by what he implied by that. ¡°Appears as though one I surmise,¡± Greg said really, grinning at me and afterward plunking down close to me.


    ¡°This is astounding,¡± I expressed, taking a gander at the projects and tapping on one of them. It showed a heap of data, conceivably on what it was or what it could do. It should be obvious that it has something to do with a switch, and I don¡¯t have any idea what that is. ¡°Okay, you find where it is on this boat,¡± I expressed, viewing at Greg as he grinned.


    He stood up and started to stroll towards the exit, while I remained behind and watched him leave, thinking about what this thing could mean.


    Also, now I was stuck here alone, attempting to figure out more data about this thing. I clicked another envelope, and it showed something I won¡¯t ever anticipate. I saw Rocke, conceivably when he was more youthful, holding this child kid.


    Fulton?


    My mind started to falter in disarray, as I stayed there gazing at this image, unfit toprehend the reason why I was checking a particrly old photograph out. I thought Rocke deserted him, perhaps on ount of his own egotistical reasons, but this demonstrates in any case.


    Rocke embraced him.


    Rocke cherished him, he adored him like a dad, simr to somebody who needed to safeguard him.


    Why I didn¡¯t see this? For what reason am I seeing this now? What else has Fulton been misleading me about? I felt a debilitated inclination in my stomach, as I understood that there was substantially more than I at any point envisioned happening in this boat, and that I¡¯d have to get my hands on all that to realize precisely exact thing was urring.


    But then I heard the radio snap, as I immediately got it. ¡°What?¡± I inquired. I heard weighty breathing but then I heard Greg say, ¡°I tracked down the Cybermade.¡±


    Shock and energy cleared my face, as I inquired, ¡°What¡¯s your area?¡± Greg stammered, ¡°In this kind of blue spot with a lot of boxes like capacity.¡± I nodded, ¡°I¡¯ll be there.¡±


    I changed to Fulton¡¯s radio. ¡°Uh is there any kind of blue stockpiling or something to that effect?¡±


    ¡°Um, yeah fairly. It is a capacity but there¡¯s just blue Drove lights, that is all there is to it,¡± Fulton said. ¡°Lead me there,¡± I expressed, traveling through the lobbies, attempting to recollect each and every detail that Greg had told me.


    I advanced beyond a few entryways until I atst arrived at the finish of the passage where I ran over a bunch of swinging doors that drove into some kind of step show or something to that effect. There were a ton of steps from each spot going down, and I contemted whether it was feasible to go down from one level of the boat ande to another without utilizing lifts.


    ¡°Alright, go to one side,¡± Fulton said, sounding invigorated as he sat tight for me to show up.


    I did as trained, advancing down the long stairwell. They appeared to extend always, as I strolled down them cautiously. When I arrived at down there, I sped towards the right, noticing that there weren¡¯t many spots that you could really conceal yourself away. But I managed to wind up in a dim corner, taking cover behind certain containers.


    ¡°Greg,¡± I murmured as discreetly as I could so no one would hear me, despite the fact that I¡¯m almost certain no one was there, since I was unable to see anybody anyce around me.


    ¡°Yeah?¡± Greg answered, sounding annoyed.


    ¡°Where are you?¡± I asked, as yet curious as to whether he was close enough. ¡°Behind the entryway virtuoso!¡± he scratched boisterously, and I investigated the corner, seeing his hand waving through the window.


    I immediately moved there, pushing against the wall and sliding under the entryway.


    ¡°Come on, pick up the pace! This is actually a major buzz-kill entertaining, we¡¯re with nothing to do here,¡± Greg griped, as I crept nearer to the entryway and peeped outside, seeing him hunkering low, prepared for something to ur. He was correct, it was with blue Driven lights that appeared to influence the shade of this room, but how much boxes were monotonous, as they arranged in lines and sections.


    There was no individual to be found, nor did I see something else that could be helpful to us.


    ¡°I figure we ought to look for it,¡± I rmended. Gregughed, ¡°As of now did, recollect?¡±


    He took out something in his pocket, and an amazing miracle, it was the Cybermade. I really wanted to cry once I saw it, not just was it valuable to stop Rocke¡¯s arrangement, but it was an image of atst returning to normal, whatever that implies.


    I removed it from his hand, looking at its surface, seeing that it had various numbers engraved into it, alongside two or three words. ¡°Are these the controls?¡± I asked, taking a gander at Greg, who shook his head.


    ¡°No, those aren¡¯t the controls,¡± he said, taking the gadget from my grip.


    ¡°Gracious,¡± I mumbled, returning it to his hands and searching for where I could put it. ¡°Perhaps they¡¯re simply something different?¡± I muttered.


    ¡°They could have something to do with it,¡± Greg said, setting the item onto hisp and squeezing a button that I hadn¡¯t noticed before. ¡°No doubt,¡± I mumbled, as he squeezed another key, making a red light flicker on top of the machine.


    The lights streaked, as though they were cautioning me of risk, prior to blurring off once more.


    ¡°How did we respond?¡± I asked, and Greg shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t have the foggiest idea but we really want to return this to- ¨C ¡±


    ¡°Hold up!¡±


    I halted cold as well as Greg, as we gradually blew some people¡¯s minds to the back, seeing three gatekeepers with wands pointed at us. Good gracious, gracious God...


    Preview:


    ¡°We can exin,¡± I started to speak, but the guard raised their wand, ordering us to freeze. We froze, afraid of getting shot in the face. ¡°Any tricks under your belt?¡± I asked Greg, and he smiled. All of a sudden, his eyes went nk as one of the guards suddenly smacked the other and fired a bolt at another.


    Both guards flew, hitting the ground hard, knocking themselves unconscious. One fell t on the floor, while the other rolled over the edge, falling down the stairs and disappearing somewhere far below.


    Then the guard fell to the ground, as Greg returned to his normal state. Body transference, what a handy tool, I thought, standing up slowly and grabbing the Cybermade from the table.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± I said, walking out of the room while Greg followed closely behind. We ran out of the doors, but soon enough more guards began to show up in front of us. ¡°Wait, back back!¡± Greg shouted, running backwards as bolts hit the walls around us.


    ¡°Run faster!¡± Greg yelled, and I did just that, dashing forward, heading straight for the staircase, hoping that we wouldn¡¯t run into any more trouble. But the guards were close behind, their footsteps dashing towards us, and I knew that we needed to escape fast.

 Chapter 132

    132 Computers with Answers


    ¡°We can exin,¡± I started to speak, but the guard raised their wand, ordering us to freeze. We froze, afraid of getting shot in the face. ¡°Any tricks under your belt?¡± I asked Greg, and he smiled. All of a sudden, his eyes went nk as one of the guards suddenly smacked the other and fired a bolt at another.


    Both guards flew, hitting the ground hard, knocking themselves unconscious. One fell t on the floor, while the other rolled over the edge, falling down the stairs and disappearing somewhere far below.


    Then the guard fell to the ground, as Greg returned to his normal state. Body transference, what a handy tool, I thought, standing up slowly and grabbing the Cybermade from the table.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± I said, walking out of the room while Greg followed closely behind. We ran out of the doors, but soon enough more guards began to show up in front of us. ¡°Wait, back back!¡± Greg shouted, running backwards as bolts hit the walls around us.


    ¡°Run faster!¡± Greg yelled, and I did just that, dashing forward, heading straight for the staircase, hoping that we wouldn¡¯t run into any more trouble. But the guards were close behind, their footsteps dashing towards us, and I knew that we needed to escape fast.


    We burst through the doors and into the corridor, finding ourselves surrounded by a group of guards. They all had weapons drawn, aiming at us from afar. I used my Perk and punched the ground, sending a shockwave that knocked everyone on the ground except for me.


    ¡°You got lucky,¡± Greg growled, picking himself up and firing two bolts at the nearest guard. I chuckled, as we continued running, passing the guards as we headed deeper into the ship.


    Eventually we passed through thest few corridors until we came across another set of double-doors, which seemed to lead further inside the ship.


    ¡°Here we go,¡± Greg muttered, opening both doors and entering the room, stepping aside so I could follow suit. ¡°We need to find September and the rest of them so we can destroy this thing,¡± I said, looking at Greg.


    .....


    ¡°So how will you do that?¡± he questioned, pointing at the door.


    ¡°Well...¡± I said, unsure of what to say next, as I remembered the map I received from Greg¡¯sputer.


    It was the same map I¡¯d seen earlier, but now I could actually read what it said:


    ¡°Look familiar?¡± I asked, showing him the picture.


    ¡°Yes,¡± he said, nodding and then looking back at me. ¡°Do you have a n?¡±


    ¡°Yes, destroy the Cybermade then find September and them, how about that,¡± I said, and Greg sighed. ¡°Okay, but we need to be careful though,¡± Greg said, as he ced the Cybermade on hisp.


    ¡°Why?¡± I asked, curious about what could possibly happen to us if we tried to do this mission. ¡°We¡¯re only going to be sitting here and doing it.¡±


    ¡°You are, I¡¯m gonna go find September and the rest of them. Work harder, not smarter.¡±


    ¡°Uh, I think it¡¯s the other way around,¡± I said, rolling my eyes.


    Gregughed, shaking his head. Then he opened a drawer, pulling out some wires and handing them to me. ¡°Plug it in,¡± he said, looking at me, as I plugged the ends into the socket. A small green light appeared on top of the box, indicating that it had sessfully connected to the console.


    ¡°Alright, I wish you luck,¡± Greg said, turning and leaving the room. I closed the doors after him and stood still for a moment, wondering what this meant for me. I was now alone, with no one to turn to for help, and with nothing else to use apart from the Cybermade.


    But I was gonna be fine, as long as I could use my Perk to my advantage.


    I reached into my pockets and pulled out two pieces of candy before chewing on them for a moment before swallowing them whole.


    Okay, first thing to do.


    I looked around the Cybermade, seeing nothing else useful within this room that could help me with anything. It seemed to be some sort of control room with blue lights andputers scattered everywhere.


    Maybe I can find something on theseputers, maybe they¡¯ll have some kind of secret information in them?


    I turned back and stared at the control panel, seeing the red light shing in the corner of my eye, as a blue light blinked on, which caused me to look at it immediately.


    I heard a crackle through my radio and then Fulton¡¯s voice came through loud and clear. ¡°Hey, you alright?¡± he asked. ¡°Somewhat, but I¡¯m trying to see how I can destroy the Cybertron on this router-looking thing,¡± I said. ¡°There¡¯s just buttons galore.¡±


    ¡°Oooh, maybe...¡± Fulton trailed, causing me to think about it for a moment until finally he spoke up again.


    ¡°The Cybermade isn¡¯t going anywhere anytime soon so why don¡¯t you take a break from all these buttons and just think,¡± he said. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the buttons.¡±


    I nodded, switching over to radio silence before walking over to aputer monitor that had a bunch of numbers on it that seemed to be blinking on and off at random intervals. What did that mean? I looked at it, but it didn¡¯t seem to be telling me anything important so I switched over to anotherputer monitor and found something different.


    It was the same folders from the otherputer.


    Excitement ran through my body, but I decided to put it aside for now so that I could continue trying to figure this out. If I just get to thinking too much and end up forgetting about what I¡¯m doing then I might, in fact, forget about it altogether.


    So instead I took a look around some more and saw that there were other things on theseputers as well.


    More info, more things, and a lot and a lot of words, all in alphabetical order. It seemed that there wasn¡¯t anything here for me to find out yet but it was better than nothing at least. But nothing told me how to destroy the Cybermade. You¡¯d think the TSA would have all the information on this, especially considering they¡¯re looking into it themselves.


    Maybe they have a secret ess key? I thought while looking around for one before realizing that it might not even exist. It would be so ssified that probably Rocke himself can¡¯t see it, let alone us.


    I sighed and sat back down in the chair, hearing a noise behind me. I turned around, but it was nothing.


    Silence.


    Just silence.


    Silence, silence...silence...silence...silence...


    Then an idea blew up into my head, and I started tough as I stood up and moved over to the control panel. There it was, there was the secret ess key, that was in some, some, some, some, some...there!


    The ess key was in the word ¡®secrecy¡¯, and with a little bit of effort, I managed to find out how to activate it. It began to load, and then a message appeared on the screen in front of me.


    ¡°The ess key has been epted.¡±


    Preview:


    Okay, okay, okay, this was working. It¡¯s working, it¡¯s working!


    I turned around and grabbed aputer chair and ced it against the side of the console as well as another one in front of the console for good measure. The loading screen continued, so I took a look around, finding a couple ofputer monitors nearby that were still running through their loading process as well as the chairs, and began to wonder what could happen next.


    I ced one of the chairs up against aputer monitor as well as another one beside it.


    But all of a sudden, my radio crackled. I picked it up, but froze once I heard the voice.


    ¡°Hello young boy.¡±


    I almost dropped my radio in shock, hearing Rocke¡¯s voice through the radio. ¡°So, I see you¡¯ve found a very important thing that connects to the Cybertron. Figures we could call that robot with the Cybermade, but of course you have it too.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, too bad I guess,¡± I said, swallowing hard and feeling my heart pounding against my chest. I nced at one of the monitors where a message was now appearing: ¡°The ess key has been epted.¡±


    ¡°So from what I see, you¡¯ve gotten the ess key epted. Now if you press continue, I¡¯ll kill all your friends that are here with me,¡± he said, and my heart dropped, before picking back up again as soon as I heard his voice again.


    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t dare,¡± I said confidently.


    ¡°Oh, I would,¡± he said. ¡°Now if you press Cancel, then you can save your friends.¡±


    Stresspletely befell my entire body, making it feel like my muscles were on fire as sweat dripped down from my face. What do I do? Do I press Cancel? No...no...no...he won¡¯t kill them...I know he won¡¯t kill them... He wouldn¡¯t kill them...


    I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down as I tried to think of what to do.


    ¡°You can¡¯t,¡± I said.


    ¡°No, I can¡¯t?¡± he asked. ¡°I can¡¯t kill them? Or is it that I can¡¯t kill them unless you press cancel?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I said, ¡°you can¡¯t kill them unless you press cancel.¡±


    ¡°Oh really?¡± he asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know about that.¡±


    I wasn¡¯t amused by any chance, but he did say that he wouldn¡¯t kill them so that meant that he was going to let them go, right? I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself, as my heart started to beat at an elerated rate again.


    I needed to keep him talking.


    I walked over to the otherputer monitor that had a loading message on it. It was probably downloading some information or something, and it would give me time to think of something to say.


    Rocke¡¯s voice continued to fill my ears: ¡°I don¡¯t know about that,¡± he repeated. ¡°They look ready to die.¡±


    I stammered in worry, before looking around quickly at my surroundings before continuing on.


    ¡°They look ready to die,¡± he said again.


    ¡°Okay, how long do I have to decide?¡± I asked, trying to sound confident in my voice.


    I heard a chuckle before his voice replied again: ¡°Why are you so curious about that?¡±


    ¡°Okay, okay, what if I were to-¡±


    ¡°Choose to bring me the Cybermade. You have ten seconds.¡±

 Chapter 133

    133 The Decision


    Okay, okay, okay, this was working. It¡¯s working, it¡¯s working!


    I turned around and grabbed aputer chair and ced it against the side of the console as well as another one in front of the console for good measure. The loading screen continued, so I took a look around, finding a couple ofputer monitors nearby that were still running through their loading process as well as the chairs, and began to wonder what could happen next.


    I ced one of the chairs up against aputer monitor as well as another one beside it.


    But all of a sudden, my radio crackled. I picked it up, but froze once I heard the voice.


    ¡°Hello young boy.¡±


    I almost dropped my radio in shock, hearing Rocke¡¯s voice through the radio. ¡°So, I see you¡¯ve found a very important thing that connects to the Cybertron. Figures we could call that robot with the Cybermade, but of course you have it too.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, too bad I guess,¡± I said, swallowing hard and feeling my heart pounding against my chest. I nced at one of the monitors where a message was now appearing: ¡°The ess key has been epted.¡±


    ¡°So from what I see, you¡¯ve gotten the ess key epted. Now if you press continue, I¡¯ll kill all your friends that are here with me,¡± he said, and my heart dropped, before picking back up again as soon as I heard his voice again.


    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t dare,¡± I said confidently.


    .....


    ¡°Oh, I would,¡± he said. ¡°Now if you press Cancel, then you can save your friends.¡±


    Stresspletely befell my entire body, making it feel like my muscles were on fire as sweat dripped down from my face. What do I do? Do I press Cancel? No...no...no...he won¡¯t kill them...I know he won¡¯t kill them... He wouldn¡¯t kill them...


    I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down as I tried to think of what to do.


    ¡°You can¡¯t,¡± I said.


    ¡°No, I can¡¯t?¡± he asked. ¡°I can¡¯t kill them? Or is it that I can¡¯t kill them unless you press cancel?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I said, ¡°you can¡¯t kill them unless you press cancel.¡±


    ¡°Oh really?¡± he asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know about that.¡±


    I wasn¡¯t amused by any chance, but he did say that he wouldn¡¯t kill them so that meant that he was going to let them go, right? I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself, as my heart started to beat at an elerated rate again.


    I needed to keep him talking.


    I walked over to the otherputer monitor that had a loading message on it. It was probably downloading some information or something, and it would give me time to think of something to say.


    Rocke¡¯s voice continued to fill my ears: ¡°I don¡¯t know about that,¡± he repeated. ¡°They look ready to die.¡±


    I stammered in worry, before looking around quickly at my surroundings before continuing on.


    ¡°They look ready to die,¡± he said again.


    ¡°Okay, how long do I have to decide?¡± I asked, trying to sound confident in my voice.


    I heard a chuckle before his voice replied again: ¡°Why are you so curious about that?¡±


    ¡°Okay, okay, what if I were to-¡±


    ¡°Choose to bring me the Cybermade. You have ten seconds.¡±


    Oh, no. Oh, no. Oh, no. Oh, no! Oh no! Oh no!


    My heart felt like it was going to burst out of my chest as I stood there for a moment with my mouth wide open in shock and fear before finally he said, ¡°Nine.¡±


    ¡°Wait no please no!¡± I shouted, tears filling my eyes.


    ¡°Eight.¡±


    ¡°No no no no no!¡± I shouted, tears streaming down my face.


    ¡°Seven.¡±


    ¡°Please, Please!¡± I shouted, dropping to my knees, begging him not to do this. ¡°No please no please no!¡±


    ¡°Six.¡±


    ¡°No please, I can help-¡±


    ¡°Five!!!¡± Rocke said, now shouting, as if he wanted to hear himself more than he wanted to hear me. ¡°Four!!!¡±


    ¡°No, no no no!¡± I shouted. ¡°You can¡¯t do this! You can¡¯t!¡± Anger and fear, hurt and confusion, sadness and hopelessness ran through my veins as I copsed onto the ground on my hands and knees while screaming out at him in pain. I banged my fist on the ground as regret began to roll in, fear converted, anger turned into hopelessness.


    But then suddenly I heard his voice again:


    ¡°Three!!¡±


    I snapped my head up and looked around, seeing nothing but ck and white squares on the screen, turning into gray ones until I could see the whole screen again. ¡°Please...Rocke, please...¡± I begged.


    ¡°Two,¡± he said, and I knew there was no hope, no chance, nothing at all of saving anyone at all.


    ¡°One.¡±


    The screen went ck and the lights in the room slowly came on again, as if everything had turned back to normal. My heart started beating at an elerated pace once more and my legs began shaking again with fear. ¡°Okay, okay, okay, I¡¯ll get you the Cybermade,¡± I said.


    ¡°There we go, took a some time,¡± Rocke said with a chuckle, ¡°but that¡¯s what you get for trying to act smart.¡±


    ¡°Hey, hey, hey,¡± I heard Fulton say through my radio before the radio clicked off.


    I pulled my radio back and looked at it, seeing Fulton¡¯s face through the screen. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± he asked. ¡°Nothing,¡± I responded. ¡°Everything¡¯s well so far.¡±


    I got up onto my feet, trying to calm myself down before walking over to the console once more to look at the message that was still on the screen. I grabbed the mouse and I clicked Cancel, which brought up another loading message on the other monitor that had a bunch of words in it again.


    This time it was longer and longer before finally another message appeared: The ess key has been denied.


    ¡°I¡¯ming Rocke,¡± I said on the radio, after Fulton asked me what was going on through my radio again. ¡°I¡¯ming for you.¡±


    ¡°To me actually,¡± Fulton said with a chuckle. ¡°Incorrect grammar.¡±


    I rolled my eyes, grabbing the Cybermade. ¡°Where are you?¡± I asked, as I started walking out of the door towards the other rooms. I didn¡¯t want to waste any more time than I had to so I moved out into the hallway. ¡°Where were you?¡± Rocke asked. ¡°Control room,¡± I responded, without bothering to even look at him or anything else along the way. He could just wait.


    I kept walking down the hallways of the control room until I reached one of the doors leading outside to the hall, then stepped out of it and started running down the hall towards another door, moving as fast as I could.


    ¡°Two rights left,¡± Rocke said, getting me thinking of something else as I came close enough for me to see the other door that led outside in front of me. I sped through the door, and moved thest right, seeing that it lead outside as well. Then I stepped outside into the dark night air where Rocke stood waiting for me.


    I could see him, with September, Tisiah, Nikki, Vicki, and Mchi all on their knees tied up, with a bunch of guards standing over them. Tears built in my eyes, not knowing what to do as I heard Rockeugh once more: ¡°That¡¯s more like it.¡±


    ¡°Here!¡± I shouted, holding the Cybermade up high to get his attention, before tossing it onto the ground in front of him. He caught it with ease and then looked at me.


    ¡°d is doing business with ya,¡± he said with a chuckle, ¡°and just so you know...¡± He paused before saying: ¡°I really don¡¯t care if you live or die. So might as well.¡±


    He raised his gun up at me, as shock went through my entire body, but then I heard another gun cock behind me. Who was that? I turned around, seeing someone I never expected to see.


    Preview:


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare touch him,¡± Fulton said to Rocke, his eyes burning with rage, but also relief and joy at the same time.


    ¡°It looks like you¡¯re not taking orders anymore,¡± Rocke said, pointing his gun at Fulton who quickly aimed his own gun at Rocke. ¡°So you betrayed me.¡±


    ¡°You betrayed me a long time ago,¡± Fulton said. Rocke sighed and shook his head, ¡°And you wonder why.¡±


    Mchi¡¯s eyes widened with his jaw open.


    Fulton¡¯s eyes mellowed into anger. ¡°Was that why you killed my adoptive parents, who loved me? Is that why you killed my mother, because I¡¯m trying to get revenge for those that I love?!¡± he shouted, ring straight at Rocke.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Rocke answered simply.


    All of us gasped.


    ¡°You act as if I care. You were a child that always kept me from doing the work of what I believe. You were simply a roadblock in my life, and I plowed through it,¡± Rocke said, looking at Fulton dead in the eyes. Fulton¡¯s eyes grew wider with anger.


    ¡°No,¡± he said softly, lowering his gun slowly and letting it hang loosely in his hands, his face showing disappointment at his own words.


    Rocke nodded his head slowly, ¡°You are right. I did betray you a long time ago, but for the better. And I¡¯m not afraid to plow through you again.¡±


    He raised his gun at Fulton, and my eyes widened. I needed to save him, but how? How could I save him? How could I save everyone?

 Chapter 134

    134 Once Again


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare touch him,¡± Fulton said to Rocke, his eyes burning with rage, but also relief and joy at the same time.


    ¡°It looks like you¡¯re not taking orders anymore,¡± Rocke said, pointing his gun at Fulton who quickly aimed his own gun at Rocke. ¡°So you betrayed me.¡±


    ¡°You betrayed me a long time ago,¡± Fulton said. Rocke sighed and shook his head, ¡°And you wonder why.¡±


    Mchi¡¯s eyes widened with his jaw open.


    Fulton¡¯s eyes mellowed into anger. ¡°Was that why you killed my adoptive parents, who loved me? Is that why you killed my mother, because I¡¯m trying to get revenge for those that I love?!¡± he shouted, ring straight at Rocke.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Rocke answered simply.


    All of us gasped.


    ¡°You act as if I care. You were a child that always kept me from doing the work of what I believe. You were simply a roadblock in my life, and I plowed through it,¡± Rocke said, looking at Fulton dead in the eyes. Fulton¡¯s eyes grew wider with anger.


    ¡°No,¡± he said softly, lowering his gun slowly and letting it hang loosely in his hands, his face showing disappointment at his own words.


    .....


    Rocke nodded his head slowly, ¡°You are right. I did betray you a long time ago, but for the better. And I¡¯m not afraid to plow through you again.¡±


    He raised his gun at Fulton, and my eyes widened. I needed to save him, but how? How could I save him? How could I save everyone?


    Fulton shook his head and lowered his gun slightly in response, and then suddenly there was a shot fired off in the room, and I had no choice but to do this. I ran and jumped, leaping in front of Fulton, trying to take the bullet away from him in one go. It was the only chance he had of surviving at this point in time.


    But all of a sudden, the ship started shaking. The ground began to tremble, the walls vibrating, and I fell backwards onto my behind.


    A secondter, the wall exploded, sending debris everywhere, hitting me directly on my backside as I struggled to get up again. There was blood sttered across the floor, and I saw Fulton lying on his side near it. ¡°Fulton!¡± I shouted, running towards him, struggling to lift him up. His hand slipped from mine when he tried to stand up on his own, and hey t on his back.


    I picked him up gently, cradling his body in my arms, as I stared up at Rocke. ¡°Mchi?!¡± I shouted. ¡°September?!¡±


    ¡°Connor!¡± Nikki shouted, jumping up from her knees, crying hysterically. She threw herself against my chest, hugging me tightly as she cried uncontrobly. ¡°You okay?!¡± she asked and I nodded, looking around. Soon enough, Tisiah, Vicki and the rest came.


    ¡°Fulton?¡± Vicki asked, kneeling down next to me. Her eyes widened with worry.


    I smiled at her weakly and held up Fulton¡¯s limp arm so they could see his pulse through the sleeve of his jacket. ¡°Get him out of here,¡± I said to Mchi. ¡°I¡¯ll deal with Rocke.¡±


    ¡°For the hundredth time?!¡± Tisiah said, rolling his eyes. I nodded to Tisiah. He sighed as they began to pick up Fulton¡¯s limp body, carrying him away as Nikki continued to cry into my shoulder.


    ¡°What is going on?¡± she asked. I put my hands on her shoulders. ¡°Nothing,¡± I said with a smile. ¡°Nothing.¡± She sighed and nodded, continuing to hold me as she cried into my shoulder until they finally came back with Fulton.


    I looked up as Rocke walked towards me slowly.


    ¡°It¡¯s funny, because you didn¡¯t give them the Cybermade,¡± Rocke said. ¡°Fool.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d rather kill you then get the Cybermade,¡± I said with such an intensity, I felt a shiver down my back at the words I spoke out loud to him.


    ¡°I can¡¯t wait to see that,¡± he chuckled. ¡°Remember, I still have your Perk.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± I said with a chuckle. ¡°But I know how to use it better.¡±


    He chuckled, and suddenly charged at me, but I was able to get out of the way easily. I quickly swung a punch, aiming it at the top of his head, but he ducked under it. Then he came back at me with a hook that caught me in my side. He swung a left at me before kicking me in the stomach and knocking me on my back.


    ¡°You¡¯re already rusty,¡± Rocke said with a chuckle, as he looked down at me with disgust.


    He picked me up by my cor and tossed me into one of the walls. I hit the wall hard with my side, which made me cough up a mouth full of blood that spilled down over my lips and chin. That hurt, not gonna lie, but I had to ignore it in order to keep going.


    I got up on my feet, picking myself back up off the ground with some difficulty.


    ¡°It¡¯s so funny how you still don¡¯t know how to fight,¡± Rocke said to me while I stood up. ¡°But I know how to keep going,¡± I said. We charged towards each other again, but this time I took a different approach. Instead of swinging the first punch, I shifted to the left side, grabbing his arm and using my weight to pull him off bnce with his arm. He didn¡¯t realize what had happened until I used his weight to throw him towards a table in the corner of the room.


    But all of a sudden, he jumped off the wall, and charged his fist towards me, catching me in the side again and knocking me back towards the wall once again. I felt a pain in my ribs that hurt badly and made me gasp for air as I pushed myself up off the ground again and kept running after him.


    I¡¯m not gonna stop, never am I ever going to stop, I thought to myself as I kept chasing after him. All of a sudden I tripped over something and fell to the floor with a loud thud, but then I quickly rolled and got up, grabbing hold of him by the neck before he could turn around and throw me into the wall once again. I felt him grab ahold of my arms and hold on tightly to me as we struggled to get free from each other.


    But then his eyes began to glow red, and I mean red, like that blood red, and then his eyes suddenly shifted and looked at me through different eyes that were ck, as if they were burning a hole right through me. Suddenly his arms zed red, and suddenly he threw me into the wall. But I crashed through these walls, and fell through them like they were nothing. And then I fell through them again and again, and each time they cracked more and more and more, until finally they crumbled away like they were paper mache.


    I finally stopped at what seemed like a kitchen but it was empty though. My bones felt like mush and mashed potatoes, which were scattered on the floor in front of me from when I crashed through the wall. My shirt was tattered to shreds from being dragged along the floor for who knows how long as it waspletely torn apart.


    I could see Rocke walking towards me, his eyes ming with evil, but also with satisfaction. He smiled wickedly as he watched me fall onto my backside in front of him as he moved closer to me.


    ¡°You¡¯ll never win against me no matter how much you try!¡± he shouted, looking at me menacingly, but also with joy at the same time. I noticed he was breathing heavily, as if he had just ran a long distance or perhaps even killed someone before he came here.


    I coughed again, spitting up blood from my mouth onto the floor. I needed to get up quickly! I got up from my feet, and charged up my Perk again, quickly before he threw in a punch, which caught me in the gut. I looked at him wide eyed as he stared down at me. Then he grabbed me by my cor and threw me against a countertop, which made me feel like I¡¯d been thrown into a brick wall, as I felt the pain in my back.


    ¡°You will never!!¡± he shouted again, his voice booming like a lion, as if it were going to crush my body from the inside out. His eyes began to glow once again, as if they were burning right through me. And then he suddenly opened his mouth wide as if to swallow me whole, but instead I saw somethinge out of his mouth that flew towards me in the air.


    It was a ze of red heat or something like that. I quickly stomped the ground, sending a shockwave that sent him flying the opposite direction towards me, as hended with a crash onto the floor next to me. I immediately turned my attention back to the thing flying in the air, as it continued to fly towards me andnded on top of me and covered me in this red fire or heat or whatever it was.


    I needed to get the Cybermade and run.

 Chapter 135

    135 Once Again: A Whole New Level


    However, as I was running from the kitchen, Rocke got up, and I can perceive you he burned through no time pursuing me.


    I went to the side simrly as he came running at me with a clench hand that was so quick it nearly looked as though it were moving in sluggish movement. However at that point abruptly it was moving at super speed and hit me square on my chest, which made me snort and tumble to my knees as the air was taken out of me.


    I moved something like 20 feet on the ground, covering myself in this red fire or anything it was that covered me from head to toe as I arrived in this ss case. However at that point abruptly this ss fell to pieces and tumbled to the floor as I kept on moving around in it.


    I atst halted and got up with a moan as I saw Rocke running towards me once more, as his eyes shined red once more.


    I yelled to myself, ¡°Get up!¡±


    I got up so as to dodge his punch, as I tossed one back, hitting him square on his jaw as he staggered in reverse a couple of steps. Yet again however at that point he quickly hopped forward, hitting me in the stomach as I multiplied over from the blow. He swung a punch at my head and finished a kick to my chest.


    I immediately kicked him in the thigh, breaking his development enough to finish a decent kick, however at that point he out of nowhere moved around and handled me from behind as I was going for my Advantage! He constrained my arms into a lock while I attempted to liberate myself from his hold, however he kept it secured while he started hitting me in my side with his clench hands!


    Out of nowhere, he bounced high out of sight, and his speeding clench hand sped towards me, and it seemed like it would crush squarely into my face, however at that point he took an alternate route and threw one more punch at me that hit me in my stomach.


    I hacked brutally as I battled beyond his control, however at that point unexpectedly he started to hammer his clench hand into my stomach again and again.


    .....


    Then, at that point, he snatched me, the breezeshing against my body, and he tossed me down, as I sped towards the ground at extraordinary speed, likely at around 80mph, thinking about everything that have urred, I could hear myself shouting as I flew through the air, as I collided with a wall and felt something pop in my left eye.


    I felt like I nned to drop from the aggravation, as my body was crushing me into the ground with my face first. I hacked savagely by and by as I gazed toward him while he remained over me, panting.He peered down at me with a mischievous grin, as his eyes shined red.


    ¡°You... won¡¯t ever win... against... me,¡± he said, grinning violently as he inclined forward towards me.


    ¡°You will never under any circumstance win against me.¡±


    I was unable to try and move, or do anything. I felt frail, skinny, defenseless... and that was all there was to it for me. He didn¡¯t have to clutch me to hold me back from getting away.


    ¡°I want to believe that you know that,¡± he expressed, peering down at me like some insect, ¡°since I will kill you.¡±


    Out of nowhere the words started to stream out of my mouth while I gazed at him:


    ¡°You... will... pass on... today.¡±


    And afterward right then, I felt a crazy intensity on my body once more, and I previously perceived what it was. My fire had gone to another level: Blue.


    Gradually I rose starting from the earliest stage, ascending in the air, as fire dragged along me like a cape, as though I were a phoenix of some sort. Furthermore, unexpectedly Rocke¡¯s eyes erged as he understood what had simply happened to him.


    He watched in dismay as my fire consumed with extreme heat from me as it epassed me from head to toe in blue fire. However at that point he did likewise, with the exception of his was as yet red. However, he ascended, crashing through the roof and spreading the word about it so that every one of them might see. Everybody in the docks had their eyes extended, shockposed all around their countenances, as they remained there in shock.


    Rocke¡¯s eyes red with red fierceness as he watched me fly up high towards him while blue zes dragged along me like a cape. ¡°This will be fun,¡± he mumbled, speeding towards me.


    Presently I never anticipated that this should ur, yet I must use by mind here.


    What do I am familiar with Rocke¡¯s battle abilities?


    1. He knows a great deal, truth be told.


    2. He¡¯s quick


    3. He realizes his fire Advantages


    4. He knows how to utilize them alright to battle somebody with it


    5. He knows how to battle overall.


    6. He gets a kick out of the chance to go over the top excess, particrly with regards to battling another person.


    7. He appreciates obliterating things that aren¡¯t him.


    8. He adores obliterating things that are him.


    So presently I know he will attempt to needless excess me and utilize his fire Advantage against me, in any capacity he can.


    Rapidly, I shot out a burst of discharge at him, hitting him in the chest however not hard enough to wreck him. It was even more an interruption for me to get up in the air so I can begin tossing fireballs at him with my left hand as I kept on flying towards him, shooting fireballs at quick speed.


    He was a decent dodger however, sidestepping each shot that I shot out, as he kept on moving at super speed. His eyes erupted by and by and he shot out a rush of shoot at me so I was unable to draw near to the point of hitting him with any fireballs. I could hear the yells of individuals at the docks, yelling in disarray, as I kept on flying through the air and shoot fireballs at him.


    He began chuckling manically.


    Then, at that point, out of nowhere he shot out one more flood of discharge at me, hitting me in my right arm, as I lost my bnce or I surmise for this situation, my flight. I attempted to get up yet I was unable to control myself alright to get once again out of sight. As I attempted to get once more out of sight, he got my body and tossed me against another wall, which broke it and sent me flying through the air.


    Rapidly I attempted to get my equilibrium right once more, as I gazed toward Rocke and could see that he had quit giggling briefly as he checked out at me with an underhanded grin all over. He shot out a rush of red res that hit me on the chest as I attempted to get out of sight.


    I expected to bring him down, and rapidly.


    I shot out a major st of discharge, yet he did as well, making there be a major blinding light that was developing as we shot. I endlessly attempted, endlessly pushed, yet he had the option to evade each one, as I could see that his zes were getting greater to an ever increasing extent, greater and greater, as he kept on avoiding all of my shots at him.


    Then unexpectedly I felt my body collide with something exceptionally hard that made a boisterous crashing sound followed by a noisy breaking sound followed by an uproarious crunching mor. I gazed upward and saw Rocke chuckling twistedly at me as he remained over me with his sparkling eyes and said: ¡°I win.¡±


    Unexpectedly the world became dim once more. I felt myself disappearing once more. Then unexpectedly my vision began to get back to ordinary when out of nowhere it hit me with a crushing weight as the agony of my wounds unexpectedly began to kick in at the same time. I felt myself flinch and moan in torment as I attempted to take my body off of the floor yet could do nothing however snort.


    ¡°I¡¯m not!¡± I yelled, as Rocke took a gander at me with skepticism, prior to chuckling once more.


    I checked out me at the scene and saw that I had crashed through the roof once more, and had some way or another arrived in the dock with a major wreck before me, with boxes and things all around the floor. Yet again however at that point abruptly Rocke started to chuckle uproariously at me, while the other dockborers on searched in shock at what had urred before them all.


    ¡°That was unimaginable,¡± he said in awe as he strolled towards me, ¡°You¡¯re most certainly a warrior.¡±


    I was unable to talk as I gazed up at him in sheer doubt, making an effort not to drop from the aggravation from my wounds. I just looked as he strolled increasingly close until out of nowhere his foot kicked me in my stomach, thumping me in reverse onto the ground onto my back, making my body roll across the ground until I atst halted when I hit one more stopping point with a noisy crash, making a portion of the cases behind me fall over.


    I turned my head and watched him stroll over towards me with an underhanded sneer all over.

 Chapter 136

    136 Once Again: The Battle of the Docks


    Rockeughed, ¡°I think you are. I realize you are, as a matter of fact.¡±


    He snatched me by the cor, and got me, simr to a cloth doll in his grasp. He began hauling me across the ground towards the edge of the dock, where the water was.


    Then unexpectedly I saw two enormous hands snatch him from behind and remove him from me while another huge hand got me by the shoulder and got me. I saw Mchi, cing him in a strangle hold while Tisiah got me onto my feet. Be that as it may, Rocke tossed Mchi over him, sending Mchi colliding with Tisiah, thumping them both to the floor with an uproarious crash.


    I took a gander at him and saw that he was ncing back at me in surprise.


    I shouted out as I kicked him in his chest, hitting him in the stomach and sending him colliding with the wall once more. Then, at that point, I immediately went to Tisiah and Mchi and aided them up while I investigated at Rocke who was stunning on his feet.


    He looked furious, and I mean like that insane furious. Though assuming you killed somebody¡¯s folks, or canine or something to that effect. In any case, I¡¯ve never seen that look on an individual¡¯s face previously, and truly not a look ought to be on any individual¡¯s face.


    I heard shouting surrounding us as they began running out of the docks towards us, yelling that we were enduring an onught, as they began to overreact.


    However, I was unable to try and get some margin to ponder that right now since I needed to get back home to my family, or, in all likelihood I could never pardon myself assuming anything awful happened to them or mypanions or family once more. I want to end this now, and this was the opportunity to. However, where could the Cybermade have been?


    ¡°Thus, all you kids will battle against me?¡± he asked, and out of nowhere, guardians ran from all bearings, heaping on by Rocke. Septemberughed, ¡°I approve of it.¡±


    .....


    TSA and YMPA, home against death, win against misfortune, and win against torment... we will battle against evil.


    We charged at one another, everybody with the exception of me and Rocke, since we could utilize our Advantages, and we conflicted. The sound of wands ringing through the air. My psyche was quiet now and every one of my faculties were uplifted, as I was zeroing in on utilizing my blue zes to go after Rocke in any capacity that I would be able.


    Rocke shot out a red impact of fire. I immediately bounced back, prior to dodging down low to try not to get hit by it. Then, at that point, I shot off a blue impact of discharge that shot past Rocke and hit a guardian. The docks were practically unfilled from all the terrified TSAborers, despite the fact that I would assume they¡¯ve all seen this previously.


    I immediately moved far removed as a red rush of fire shot towards me and hit me toward the back, tossing me forward to collide with the ground once more, as I got back up onto my feet and charged at him once more. Rocke checked out at me cheerfully, an underhanded grin. He got shooting going floods of red zes at me as I immediately avoided all of them. Then out of nowhere I saw another of his protectorse surging at me.


    He swung his wand, yet I immediately dodged it. Then, at that point, as he attempted to shoot it at me once more, I utilized my passed avable to shoot off one more impact of blue res at him and hit him right in front of him, causing his eyes to consume as he shouted in torment. I kicked him to the ground, which now I could zero in on the genuine danger here.


    Rocke¡¯s red zes were getting increasingly big continuously as he shot them at me from all points. I needed to think quick regarding how to manage this person. However at that point unexpectedly one of mypanions ran in and hit Rocke in his chest with an air shot, which made his red res shoot out up high briefly.


    ¡°No doubt Vicki!¡± I yelled, with a gesture. Then, at that point, I shot off one more blue impact of fire at Rocke which made his eyes re much more strongly than previously.


    Then out of nowhere we as a whole heard a noisy st, making every one of us look towards the docks. The boat was practically down the ocean, meaning the Cybermade was with it as well! Yet again we had very little time here however so we immediately moved once more into fight mode as Rocke kept shooting off red zes at us with his hand.


    I immediately moved to evade as quick as could really be expected yet couldn¡¯t exactly stay aware of them. Then, at that point, out of nowhere he shot off a red impact of fire at me indeed. I avoided that one much better, however it was still extremely hard.


    I could hear shouts surrounding us as we kept on battling with our wands against one another, while we evaded Rocke¡¯s assaults.


    Out of nowhere an impact of air dashed away from the side of the dock and hit Rocke in the back as I sped towards him, prepared to pursue the open door. He viewed at me in shock as I held my hand out to him. He shook his head in dismay, so I hauled him far removed of the air impact and terminated a blue impact of zes at him consequently, which made his eyes re as he backtracked.


    He got back up to his feet. ¡°Shrewd,¡± he said. ¡°Be that as it may, not adequate.¡±


    He shot out a red flood of res at me and it hit me in my right arm. Then, at that point, he shot off one more at me while I attempted to get my equilibrium back together once more. My arm consumed and I mean consumed, yet it wasn¡¯t terrible enough that it made me drop, or tumble down or any such thing.


    I gazed toward Rocke in shock again as I could see that his face had now transformed into this frenzied lunatic¡¯s grin once more and he charged at me at max throttle, not halting, yet not in any event, dialing back by the same token.


    I immediately utilized my right hand to shoot off one more blue flood of res yet he tossed his arm out before him in the nick of time and kept away from it as he charged right towards me at maximum speed too. I moved a couple of steps back, as dread consumed in my heart, yet I was unable to move back any further without abandoning mypanions.


    He then swung his wand at me from behind and hit me in the side of the head sufficiently to wreck me onto the ground, as he then, at that point, arrived on top of me with all of his energy in his right arm.


    ¡°It¡¯s been a good time, however I believe we¡¯re finished here,¡± Rocke said. Yet, out of nowhere, blood sttered from his head, as he tumbled to the ground and fell on top of me.


    I turned upward and saw Mchiing up short on me with a look ofplete help all over, alongside Tisiah who examined outright shock all over. I looked into, seeing Fulton with his firearm in his grasp, pointing it at Rocke whoy dead on top of me.


    Fulton grinned and brought down his weapon as every other person on searched in dismay.


    He then, at that point, strolled towards me as I attempted to get up starting from the earliest stage, Tisiah helped me up. ¡°You alright?¡± Fulton asked, and I gestured, however at that point investigated at mypanions.


    Mchi smiled at me while Tisiah viewed at me in wonder as though he was taking a gander at an alternate individual totally. ¡°What might be said about the Cybermade?¡± Greg asked, taking a gander at Fulton in dismay, as Fulton moaned ordingly.


    Then unexpectedly there was a boisterous thunder and we as a whole nced back at the boat with perfect timing to see it collide with the dock and break fifty. ¡°Well I¡¯m almost certain nothing about that will be working, nor should the Cybertron,¡± Fulton said. ¡°I figure we made it happen, you all.¡±


    A grin went across my face, as I took a gander at the sinking boat, and saw all of the TSAborers all racing to the boat to help.


    Then out of nowhere they generally halted abruptly and turned towards us. They thought this way and that among us and afterward immediately took a gander at one another as though they had acknowledged what had simply urred.


    ¡°Come on, how about we go,¡± Fulton said. ¡°Likewise, I got your radios.¡±


    ¡°You did?!¡± I yelled, destroys running my face, as I snatched his hand with mine. He grinned at me and gave my hand a crush prior to driving me back towards the others.


    Then, at that point, out of nowhere they began cheering, yet it was justifiably.


    ¡°We did it!¡± Greg yelled.


    ¡°I can¡¯t really ept that we truly got it done!¡± Vicki shouted out, as she embraced me firmly.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think anybody at any point anticipated that we should win this,¡± Mchi said, scratching his head. ¡°In any case, we did.¡±

 Chapter 137

    137 The End of it All


    Rocke sat down on his chair, and looked around, seeming to be quite disturbed with how dirty the room was. He then turned to me, before sitting down on my right side so that we could look at each other as he began to speak. ¡°Pretty sure you haven¡¯t seen me in quite a while have you?¡± he asked, with a chuckle.


    Now I was a lot more scared. I wasn¡¯t gonna go to jail, but I had the possibility of dying, and Lord knows how Rocke wanted to kill me for some reason.


    I swallowed a lump of fear down my throat, before taking a deep breath and staring at him, trying my best to hold back all of my emotions that were bubbling inside of me, but Rocke moved in front of me, leaning forward with his hands behind his back and his elbows resting on the table as he spoke again.


    ¡°So, I¡¯m pretty sure you have something that I want if I¡¯m not wrong,¡± he said. ¡°I had to go to great lengths to find you. I had to hire Mason, Nelson, even my own son which I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve met just to get you. But unlike you guys, the FBI has quite some resources.¡±


    ¡°And this is important how?¡± I asked with an attitude that didn¡¯t show fear at all, though inside of me, I felt as if my body would shatter if he touched me now. Rocke chuckled and looked at me, no emotion at all, before taking out his pocket watch and cing it on the table. It was a beautiful gold pocket watch that looked extremely expensive.


    ¡°You¡¯ll tell me where the Cybertron is,¡± he said, nodding excessively, before looking at me as if he was trying to see something on my face. I had no idea what was going on.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said, and heughed as if that was a joke, probably because he thought it was a lie.


    But I¡¯m telling the truth! I wanted to yell out at him, but I realized that this could be a trap. What if he was trying to do something that would make me blurt out or something, reveal myself? He looked at me like a hungry lion ready to pounce on its prey.


    He leaned back in his chair as he put his hands behind his back and looked at me with his piercing blue eyes. But I was right. It¡¯s most likely with Fulton, but what if they already went to destroy the Cybertron, while I still couldn¡¯t tell them where it was? Would I die?


    .....


    I sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know where it is,¡± I repeated.


    He nodded, and all of a sudden got up, walked towards me, looked at me for a matter of ten seconds, until all of a sudden, he swung his arm and struck me hard across my cheek, making me fly back and hit the wall behind me, falling t on the ground with a thud as he took out his pocket watch from his jacket pocket and looked at the time.


    What¡¯s with people smacking others into the wall and breaking the chair? It¡¯s kind of dramatic if you ask me!


    I got up slowly and tried to stand up as he smiled at me. His smile made him look like a madman who wants to murder someone for no reason. ¡°I¡¯m not a fool, child,¡± he said with a menacing tone, looking down at me. ¡°I know why you don¡¯t tell me where it is.¡±


    I frowned before looking up at him. ¡°If I did know, I wouldn¡¯t tell you. You¡¯re just using it for evil, so I would digress to be used for your evil ways.¡± I said angrily. I knew he¡¯de after me now, but I had to stand up against him somehow. His eyes bulged in rage, his fists crackling and ready to punch me hard in the face again, but he sighed. He stood there with his hands behind his back again, leaning against the desk, breathing heavily in my face as his eyes began to look tired.


    ¡°You are a persistent boy,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°But young boy, I have something to reveal to you. The FBI has Petrov, and I¡¯m pretty sure you want to talk to him to know where it is too.¡±


    Very inurate, but ok.


    Rocke chuckled, walking towards the window and looking outside of the window before turning back towards me with a smile on his face. He looked like he wanted to strike me again with his fist or something as he sighed with exasperation. ¡°So if I have him, I know where it is,¡± he said.


    ¡°Then howe you haven¡¯t asked him?¡± I said, trying my best not to show fear or anger at all.


    He shrugged. ¡°I wanted to see if you¡¯d tell me, and if you wouldn¡¯t, then I¡¯d ask him.¡±


    ¡°Or maybe you know he doesn¡¯t know where it is,¡± I said with a chuckle, although it was quite fake to be honest.


    Rocke stood up straight, and his eyes began to shine as he stared at me again. Then he swung once again, this time hitting me on my chest with his palm so hard that I flew back again, hitting the wall once again and falling t on the ground once again.


    ¡°Okay!¡± I shouted. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you, but in one condition. I talked to Petrov. We have some personal things to talk about.¡± Rocke¡¯s eyes widened as if he was interested, viewing me in a different light now that he was curious. He took out his pocket watch again and checked the time.


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± he said.


    ¡°And I don¡¯t want anyone watching me,¡± I said. ¡°Don¡¯t follow mymands, don¡¯t get the location.¡± Rockeughed as if it was some sort of joke, shaking his head as if I was too naive. But he agreed anyway before putting away his pocket watch again and walking towards the door before pausing and looking back at me as if he was surprised that he even agreed, right before leaving the room.


    I got up slowly from the ground, feeling my body begin to tremble as fear began toe across my face. How did I even survive, how did I not break my nose? I touched my face and found my nose was slightly swollen already, but my skin wasn¡¯t broken either.


    I¡¯m surprised Rocke even agreed to my terms, being so smart as he was. It didn¡¯t seem like him at all. But I was d that he did.


    Soon enough, I saw two agents holding Petrov outside the room, before opening the door slowly and letting Petrov in the room with his hands behind his back. He walked inside as Agent Nelson stood outside of the door, looking at him with a sour face as she began to speak his rights, right before she left the room with her male counterparts and the two agents guarding the door behind them.


    Petrov entered the room and looked around as he slowly removed his hands from behind his back.


    ¡°The interrogator should be here by now,¡± he said.


    I actually felt likeughing.


    ¡°I am the interrogator,¡± I revealed, as he looked at me with confusion.


    ¡°You?¡±


    ¡°Yes, me,¡± I said, smiling.


    He began tough as he shook his head before sitting down in a chair right across from me.


    ¡°You want some candy or something?¡± he joked, cracklingughter as he looked at me with a smile on his face.


    I shook my head.


    He chuckled again. ¡°I¡¯m d the FBI isn¡¯t watching, because it would be embarrassing for me to be questioned by you,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°What can I use to destroy the Cybertron?¡± I asked, and he suddenly stopped joking. He stayed for a bit, licking his lips with a smile on his face before turning around and leaning back in his chair.


    He looked at me with a serious face as if he was remembering something that he had forgotten about long ago. ¡°Why should I tell you?¡± he asked. ¡°Rocke ordered Jonathan Mason to pretty much kill me to tell him where the Cybertron is, maybe to find you since he always rants about that. But I told him, he already had it.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked.


    ¡°When they raided the cargo port, they found this note from what one of the guards told me, that led them to the literal source of the Cybertron. Apparently they were too dumb to literally press the button to override the robot toe back to the Cybermade.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what it¡¯s called? Where is it?¡± I asked.


    Petrov sighed, ¡°Probably in the TSA ship, soon to leave from here.¡±


    Shock rushed through my body like a river as I looked at him with confusion. ¡°You mean they have the Cybertron right now?¡±


    ¡°Pretty much,¡± he said. ¡°Honestly you guys are brawns but no brains.¡± I took no thought to what he said, only to think of what it could possibly be, what they were going to do to it.


    I took a deep breath before standing up from my chair.

 Chapter 138

    138 The Invitation


    It¡¯s been a few months since that whole-whatever happened two months ago. It¡¯s surprising but not surprising at the same time how I didn¡¯t even get another mission after that. I can still remember the death of Rocke, the blood sttering over my body. I still shake thinking of that to this day.


    But now that¡¯s all over, with nothing to worry about I hope. Now life is back to normal, with my family, my friends like Greg. Although Kirk Jexifan was still a big thorn in my life, it was a wound that I could manage.


    I¡¯m still worried about two people-September and Nikki-who both like me, or at least I like one of them at least. But the thing is September knows but does Nikki? Either way, I¡¯m not gonna try and worry about it.


    But one person I do still think about is Fulton, and what he said has never left my mind. I don¡¯t think Mr. Drails, my supposed father-who acts like my uncle-would ever treat me that way. But Fulton always tried to help me, so I still consider him a friend. And to work under his roof?


    That¡¯d be awesome.


    But yeah, I¡¯ve been thinking about somethingtely. I know how to fight, I know how to dodge punches and attacks, in fact, I literally have fought Rocke and all his TSA goons for months by now. I could efficiently deal with Kirk Jexifan.


    But the thing is that right now, he¡¯s on a trip with his family, meaning I need to prepare once hees back. If I beat him up, I would definitely be popr in school and now both sides of my life would be top-notch.


    Right now it was time for lunch, so I had my backpack and my books ready to put inside one of the lockers.


    I saw someone who wore a in-solid purple shirt, with jeans and shoes, with a tan that still worries me to this day. ¡°Hey Greg,¡± I said, doing my handshake with him, as we both entered the cafeteria.


    .....


    ¡°Hey,¡± he said back to me as he went to grab a tray from the food counter, which he put on top of his tray as he grabbed some food off the table before walking back up to me.


    ¡°How have things been?¡± he asked. I shrugged, unsure of what even to say at all since everything was going back to normal after two months of being abnormal.


    He pulled out some food and handed it over to me before I did the same and started eating. ¡°I guess it¡¯s been fine,¡± I responded. ¡°How¡¯s your time in the FMA?¡± Greg chuckled, ¡°Same old, same old. What can I say?¡±


    I nodded as I grabbed some more food as well.


    ¡°Oh hey, you¡¯re going out tonight?¡± Greg asked. I looked at him in confusion, as he stared at me, a little shocked and nervous as well as trying not to look awkward about it.


    I just nodded as I looked away from him a little. ¡°Going out where?¡± I asked. Greg shook his head. ¡°There¡¯s this party that one of my good buddies here is holding. There¡¯s gonna be all the girls there.¡±


    ¡°I care less about girls right now,¡± I said, sitting down on my chair, feeling ufortable for some reason.


    I kept eating as Greg sat next to me with his food still on his tray as well. ¡°You¡¯re missing out,¡± Greg said. ¡°Missing out!¡± I chuckled.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m sure you are,¡± I said.


    Greg leaned in closer to me and whispered, ¡°But you gotta try it once.¡±


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t have to,¡± I said back.


    He nodded in agreement. ¡°But you gotta try it once.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll pass,¡± I said.


    Greg just shook his head as he put his tray back on the tray stand. ¡°I¡¯m urging you, it¡¯s going to be with those crazy blinking lights, with hands wiggling around the entire ce, I¡¯m telling you, it¡¯s going to be-¡±


    I looked at him, giving him sight that I didn¡¯t really care about this conversation, and he sighed, realizing he wasn¡¯t getting anywhere with me at all. ¡°Never mind,¡± he said, getting up and leaving.


    ¡°See yater,¡± I said back to him, and then I just kept on eating. I¡¯m the worst when ites to parties, and I mean the worst ever in my life. All I ever do is sit alone with my friends, and just have a good time, without having to go around meeting girls and flirting with them, which is something I¡¯m not really used to doing anyway.


    Greg is probably the most outgoing guy you¡¯ll ever meet, hands down,, so it¡¯s not like he understands what I¡¯m going through. But he tries his best to help me in any way he can.


    I sighed as I finished my lunch off, still feeling extremely nervous about this party that was happening tonight. And now it¡¯s just a little bit after one o¡¯clock in the afternoon and I still feel really nervous about this party that Greg talked about, which means that there¡¯s no way I can go out like this. Maybe this could be the way I could be popr, but I would be embarrassed though.


    But hey, if Greg thinks this is something worth going to...well, who am I to argue with him? I still want to have fun and I¡¯m not too sure what to expect at this party but...whatever happens, is bound to happen, and if Greg thinks it¡¯s worth it...well...maybe...I don¡¯t know.


    Thoughts ravaged through my head for so long, my food was just freezing in the cafeteria when finally a voice came into my ears and startled me to attention as I turned around and saw it was Greg.


    And his smile was so big it made his entire face glow with happiness. I shrieked in fear as I saw him; he just grinned at me, seeing me like that, as he took off running towards me before he tackled me into a hug.


    ¡°What was that for?¡± I asked. ¡°To scare you of course,¡± he chuckled before sitting back down in his seat across from me.


    I shook my head as I grabbed a fork and started eating some more food while Greg sat there with a smug grin on his face as well. ¡°So have you decided yet?¡± he asked, and I sighed, looking down at my tray before shaking my head. ¡°About going out?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I said, sighing again. ¡°But only if youe with me.¡±


    ¡°Yes!!¡± Greg celebrated, his hands pping down on the table with such force that the whole table shook and almost tipped over. Heughed loudly while he continued pping the table before turning around to look at me with a big grin on his face again. ¡°It¡¯s at nine o¡¯clock at that park over there, with the...um...lights?¡±


    I looked at Greg with an eyebrow raised, and he just continued on.


    ¡°It¡¯s called the ¡®Light Parade.¡¯ You know what that means?¡± he asked, and I shook my head. He nodded back at me before taking another bite of food from his te and continuing on.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s basically where they put all these lights in the trees and on the ground, and it makes it so bright that you can¡¯t see anything except for, you know, the light.¡±


    I¡¯m in for something for sure. ¡°Trust me, it¡¯s going to be crazy!!¡± he shouted, but then he saw the look of doubt on my face and he sighed. ¡°Look, you don¡¯t have to go if you don¡¯t want to. But if you do want to go, you should really do it.¡±


    ¡°You wanted me to, I might as well,¡± I said, looking away from him at nothing in particr, because there really isn¡¯t anything to do here, so this conversation will end soon enough. And if it didn¡¯t then he would just keep on trying until I did.


    ¡°Alright,¡± Greg nodded before he brought out his hand for a handshake, and I took it with a sigh and shook his hand before he gave it back to me. ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting for you outside.¡± He walked away from me and he left me standing there by myself, alone once again, while my thoughts just kept on running through my mind all by myself as well.


    I nodded, now starting to regret what I might¡¯ve done already, and how much I would have regretted it if I had turned him down.


    I took out my phone and quickly looked at the time, it was now almost three o¡¯clock in the afternoon. The school was soon to be over.

 Chapter 139

    139 A Mission In Store


    Before sufficiently long, school finished and the time hade to begin getting to the YMPA. As I was leaving the way to the school, an entry summoned under me, making me fall into the gateway with next to no advance notice by any stretch of the imagination.


    Obviously, just somebody like Mr. Drails would do that.


    I showed up at the delightful sight of the gold block looking structure with the recreation area before it. I approached it and saw that there were a few lights sparkling in the recreation area from all sides of the structure, while there were a few different structures that epassed the recreation area too, which made the spot look very upied and enthusiastic simultaneously.


    The lights were making the spot look so lovely and splendid that the whole spot felt like it was sparkling with stars on top of it, causing the spot to feel significantly more enchanted than expected.


    ¡°Lovely isn¡¯t it,¡± I heard, as I pivoted, seeing Mr. Drails by me. How can he do that, in any case?


    ¡°Indeed sir,¡± I expressed back to him. ¡°The YMPA truly sparkles.¡± Mr. Drails grinned at me before he left me while I watched him return into the structure. ¡°There is a matter that I need to converse with you about,¡± he said. ¡°Another mission?¡± I asked, fervor going through my face.


    Mr. Drailsughed, ¡°Close.¡±


    I followed him into an enormous room with many seats in it as well as a few screens dangling from the roof too. ¡°Is this another room?¡± I asked, checking him out. ¡°It¡¯s where we currently examine missions, rather than doing the entire thing within my office,¡± he said, as I gestured in understanding.


    He plunked down in one of the seats as he put a little silver gadget in his grasp before he pressed a button on it before it began uttering a shrill sound as it illuminated at the same time. ¡°On the off chance that you would call Mchi and most of them, that would be perfect,¡± he said with augh. ¡°I can deal with this one all alone.¡±


    .....


    I gestured prior to leaving the room.


    It wasn¡¯t long until everybody came in that frame of mind, of them looking exceptionally apprehensive simultaneously. Nikki appeared to be very energized, though Tisiah looked terrified like, while the rest looked sort of restless about the circumstance within reach.


    Mr. Drails strolled into the room too and shut the entryway behind him before he took a seat at his own work area with his hands on top of it. ¡°Presently, I wouldn¡¯t agree that its a very remarkable mission yet ¨C ¡±


    ¡°Indeed!¡± everybody cheered, as a grin went across my face and happiness moved throughout the spot. ¡°We¡¯re going on an experience!¡± Tisiah cheered and bounced all over in her seat while Nikki was simply staying there with a smile all over too. Mr. Drails moaned and shook his head. ¡°This is certainly not a major mission, yet I believe that you should find intel on this spot.¡±


    He got the remote and tapped on a button that showed this kind of stockroom office. The soil was brown and mild, with some kind of tree that was standing out of a wall from some ce as well as a few enormous boxes with different trees in them too. The distribution center was creepy in itself, and I could perceive that nobody truly knew what¡¯s in store from the spot.


    ¡°What is this?¡± Nikki asked, while Tisiah inclined forward, while every other person just gazed at it in shock.


    ¡°This is Charlie, a distribution center that holds hazardous things like firearms, bombs, all weapons and codes that work all through the whole country, ideally the CSMO, the folks at Cuba. Presently this spot was gone after which we ept could be the BMO. Almost certain you know em,¡± Mr. Drails said, prior to investigating at Nikki.


    Nikki gestured. ¡°Definitely, we do,¡± she said with a gesture before she turned towards every other person, taking a gander at them all before she turned towards me as she took out her telephone from her pocket.


    ¡°We need to find who is responsible for this activity, since this might wreck the stockpile we want while battling this conflict against MSTO. Your wands need energy- ¨C power empowers you topletely y out your powers to its ideal. This was an assault to debilitate us. So I believe that you should find who is mindful, and who possesses it now,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    ¡°So where¡¯s the area?¡± I asked, inquisitive concerning what it resembled.


    Mr. Drails moaned again before he pointed at the screen. ¡°This is all there is to it,¡± he said as I investigated at it and saw that there were a few group remaining before an enormous metal entryway with a huge number above it.


    ¡°I maintain that you should figure out who is responsible for this spot.¡± I gestured as I stood up from my seat. ¡°We can¡¯t sit around idly here any longer. The area is around here in Cuba: Camag¨¹ey.¡±


    Every other person just took a gander at each other briefly before they started to stand up and prepare too. I nced around at them as I got up from my seat, feeling somewhat apprehensive also. ¡°We will begin the mission tomorrow, however everybody necessities to prepare and prepare when the opportunity arrives,¡± he said happily.


    I gestured and investigated at Nikki and Tisiah, who both gestured back at me. ¡°We will see you tomorrow then.¡±


    We left the room, as September came by and gave me a little kiss to the cheek. However at that point Nikki thought back with a face that caused me to feel shivery. Mchi saw me then, at that point, back at them. ¡°Kid you in for something,¡± he said with augh. ¡°You in for something.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m very mindful of that,¡± I said. ¡°We¡¯re going to the instructional hub right?¡±


    Mchi gestured, as we strolled over to the lobby on the left, where we headed inside and started to stroll down the long passageway to its furthest limit. There were a few entryways here, including one of them which had an entryway and a sign that said ¡°Preparing.¡±


    Exactly the way in which I know it. Nobody was in there likemon, which was totally fine by me, since I expected to discover a workable method for preparing myself without anybody around. That would be my main goal when we had the option to make it happen, so I wasn¡¯t exactly fretted over this one to an extreme.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take the punching packs,¡± Mchi expressed, strolling over to a bunch of boxing gloves which were holding tight the wall close to it. He put them on all fours me a grin as he gestured his head towards it. I gestured, prior to taking a gander at the opposite side thatprised of additional punching packs.


    I¡¯ve mulled over everything, I have never punched anybody in quite a while, not since I got my powers and have gotten an opportunity to prepare appropriately on the best way to involve my powers in a genuine manner as opposed to simply allowing my displeasure to run wild and punching anything I might see close by.


    In any case, essentially we got to some degree a mission. That would be adequate until further notice.


    I got several weighty sacks with loads inside them, before I clutched them briefly before I conveyed them over to a punching pack. These things were exceptionally weighty, and I mean weighty, to a ce where I assumed I must go to the rec center and do an exercises to make these things move.


    I began punching on it, moving my arm to and fro as well as unpredictable in a specific cadence as I zeroed in on the prospect of it. Be that as it may, with each punch, an idea, seeing Rocke struck me. It harms. Mulling over everything too was so difficult. I felt so miserable now and again that I assumed I nned to go crazy and snap or something like that. I don¡¯t figure I could at any point have the option to fail to remember it by the same token.


    Each punch.


    Each development.


    The idea generally appeared.


    It didn¡¯t prevent me however from beating on that punching sack. My clench hand hit the thing so hard that I could feel my arm harming from it, yet at the same time, I couldn¡¯t have cared less about it. Furthermore, I don¡¯t anticipate transforming anything by the same token.

 Chapter 140

    140 Light Parade


    It was now thirty minutes before the big party, and I already told my mom. She thought it was a part of my chess ss, although I¡¯m pretty sure I remember her saying to quit that ss. But who¡¯sining?


    I put on something that could somewhat work, or perhaps might at least grab someone¡¯s eyes. I wore an outfit that sort of supported the other: a green t-shirt and dark blue jeans, which I knew would be perfect for a day like today where it was very sunny and hot outside.


    I went outside, ready for my first day of my new life with my friends, or at least with my friend, Greg. I have not been to a party in such a long time, but who knows what may happen, so I¡¯ll have to keep an eye on him, even if he may have no ns to try anything with me, I know he is the type that likes to y with people¡¯s minds.


    My mom dropped me off at the ce, and the lights werepletely blinding in the night sky. The grass was blown, but it looked great as well with all the colors everywhere, and the decorations were very nice. The music was loud, and I could hear iting from the ce, which was a good sign.


    ¡°Oh boy,¡± Mom said with a winced face, seeing the ce herself from the car window. But then she smiled, giving me a thumbs-up before she drove away. I waved goodbye before I walked up to the ce with a smile on my face. There was a pathway that was filled with grass and trees, and I could see people dancing,ughing, and having fun. The lights were flickering like stars, and I walked towards the entrance.


    I stepped inside the door of the building.


    And when I tell you that the ce was crazy, I mean crazy, and I don¡¯t mean just like in the movies, where there was some sort of disaster that urred or something like that. There were many lights everywhere, and people were everywhere: some were dancing while others were just sitting around.


    The music was booming like a siren, and everyone there seemed to be having a good time at this point, although some of them looked really drunk already as well as stumbling around and slurring their words as they spoke them out loud.


    I couldn¡¯t stay here, I couldn¡¯t.


    .....


    Then I saw Greg walking towards me, his hands holding what seemed to be orange juice or something, and his face seemed to be smiling at me as he walked towards me with his eyes half closed. He looked like an older version of myself, wearing a ck shirt with a white button-down shirt underneath it which was unbuttoned with his hair slightly messy as if someone justbed it out and let it air dry for a moment.


    He sat down beside me at a table with a cup of juice as well as some sort of cookies or something.


    ¡°Hey, you came!¡± he shouted with a smile, before he started tough out loud, taking his cup and drinking the contents of it all at once in one gulp.


    I smiled back at him. ¡°Yeah, of course!¡± I said before I looked at what was inside the cup. It was orange juice, like I said.


    ¡°Why does everyone look drunk?¡± I asked, looking at one of them who were just talking loudly andughing loudly as they walked by us.


    He nodded his head in response. ¡°It¡¯s called the ¡®Cuban Special.''¡± Heughed loudly again and took a sip of his drink again, and it seemed to be working on him as well because he was feeling a bit better by now, while I still felt quite uneasy in my stomach.


    ¡°What is this ce?¡± I muttered, feeling uneasy at this point in time as Greg put his hand on my shoulder, looking at me with his blue eyes before he started tough loudly again.


    ¡°Everything...¡± he said queasily, and worry came over my face.


    ¡°Everything... what?¡± I asked him in concern.


    Heughed even louder. ¡°You¡¯ll see,¡± he said with a smirk on his face. He looked around, his eyespletely nk as if there was nothing, as if he was in the vacuum of space that was taking him away.


    I gulped in nervousness. What was he doing? He was acting like he had taken a shot of some kind of drug that made him see everything differently-but why?


    Fear rose in my heart as he slowly leaned to the side, looking behind him towards the kitchen area and the staff there as he looked around the ce again. Then he looked back at me with his head tilted to the side with his eyes wide open, like a deer that had just been run over by a car.


    Suddenly, he dropped.


    I shrieked in shock, unsure of what to do or what just happened . But then I saw Greg get back up on the ground whileughing out loud once more. He looked over at me with a wide smile on his face. ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± he said in a whisper-like voice as he pointed over to the people who were dancing, as if they were monkeys or something, or maybe puppies in the hands of some strange person who was just going to eat them for lunch.


    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± What did that mean?


    I needed to get him out of here, so I could get him to safety. This was no way to have a good time in this ce, I couldn¡¯t have a good time here. I felt so uneasy by now as if something was wrong with me. But what was it? I dragged him out of the building, andid by the stairs.


    ¡°Greg, you need to go home,¡± I said, feeling even more uneasy than before.


    He shook his head slowly in response. ¡°No,¡± he said slowly in response, but then he put his hands on my shoulders as if to hold onto me so that I wouldn¡¯t move or get away from him.


    ¡°Yes, you need to,¡± I said, looking at him with concern. He didn¡¯t seem to respond at all, and more of just stood there with a nk expression. ¡°What¡¯s wrong Greg?¡± I asked, looking at him. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± I asked, again-determined to get an answer out of him. ¡°Nothing!¡± he shouted, his eyes ring at me with anger. He was breathing hard as if an animal was kicking inside of his chest. Shock was written across my face as I looked at him. I have never-ever-seen him this bad, and I mean this bad.


    Like it as if he was off the deep end, with nothing but hate and emptiness inside. I almost cried just looking at him, but all of a sudden his eyes returned back to normal. ¡°Sorry Greg...¡± he muttered, looking at me. ¡°Sorry.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± I said to him, patting him on the back. ¡°Nothing¡¯s wrong.¡±


    ¡°A lot is wrong,¡± he said, looking at me. ¡°I¡¯m tired, I¡¯m afraid, I¡¯m stuck.¡± Confusion raced through my mind wondering-stuck of what? What was he afraid of? What happened to him?


    It must¡¯ve been personal because he clearly isn¡¯t doing well. He looked at me, tears building in his eyes. ¡°Remember when I was gone for two weeks?¡± he said, and I could remember thest two weeks, feeling alone. That¡¯s the initial reason why I wanted to be popr, so that I would have many friends.


    I know I didn¡¯t tell you guys this, but yes-this was the initial reason why I wanted to be popr.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m suffering from PTSD,¡± Greg said. ¡°Every time that I just take a shower or do something, I always get these visions. These visions, these-these-these visions that hurt me, every single time.¡±


    He began to breathe hard in anger, as if he was nowpletely engulfed in fury and hatred. ¡°Whether it may be some other mission, or just seeing you die. My own brother, dead from Rocke¡¯s meaty hands. He may be gone, but not in my life. And I don¡¯t know what to-to do about it...¡±


    He covered his face in shame and tears, but then he looked back at me. ¡°You know that orange juice that I supposedly had?¡± he said.


    I moved over to him, and patted his back, looking at him straight in the eye. I was speechless, unsure what to say or what to even do. ¡°It¡¯s going to be okay...¡± I said. ¡°If I can make it through, you can.¡±


    He continued to cry, and I¡¯m even surprised I didn¡¯t even begin to cry. ¡°I¡¯m soon to start therapy by this weekend,¡± he said. ¡°Hopefully I get through this. I just tried to hide it from you because I didn¡¯t want to make things weird between us. I didn¡¯t want you to treat me any different, but just how it¡¯s always been. Friends who stuck out for one another.¡±


    I nodded, and I hugged him, holding him under my arms as he began to cry out tears. I needed to stay strong for him, because that¡¯s what friends do.

 Chapter 141

    141 Camaguey Trip


    Today was the day that we began our ¡°little mission.¡± Excitement poured through my body as I dressed up for school, and put on some brown pants with a blue shirt underneath it as well as ck shoes with yellowces on them. I did this before I looked at myself in the mirror and smiled as I saw my own reflection staring back at me-a friend of mine who had always been there for me in times of need. A friend who always helped me whenever I asked for help and advice. A friend who always seemed to be there for me when I needed him the most.


    Greg.


    I walked out of the room as Mom gave me a kiss on the cheek before she smiled at me. Dad was already gone by now, which meant he had already left to get ready for work before he had left the house already with a cup of coffee in his hand. Once I made it to the front of the school, I waited to see Greg standing there, with his happy smile.


    He was there through the crowd, but he wasn¡¯t much of a smile, even though he looked like he had just seen a ghost and he didn¡¯t know what to do about it. But as he walked closer to me, I could tell that something was wrong by now because he looked so uneasy and afraid of himself as if someone just took his hand and cut it off of him.


    He didn¡¯t speak a word as we made it into school, as we went into the first ss of the day together-English ss. Now English is like the easiest ss because we always have a sub almost like, everyday. I would chat with Greg for the entire hour after doing like the easiest sswork of all time.


    But Greg didn¡¯t seem to want to talk, nor did he want to smile either, so instead he kept his eyes down as if something was eating him alive inside. He spoke when we had our lunch break, and then again when we were heading to our next ss, but not a word was spoken between us since then.


    Greg was acting weird-and I know that yesterday was a very heartbreaking encounter. I was hoping that wouldn¡¯t affect us, in fact-he hoped that wouldn¡¯t affect us. But yet he isn¡¯t talking, or saying anything much, and when he does-it¡¯s usually about himining about how bored he is and how much he wants to go home.


    You know this.


    I know this.


    .....


    He is not the same.


    But what can I do at this point? He¡¯s broken, he¡¯s scared, and he probably feels super weird now that he told me his problem. I knew I shouldn¡¯t have went to that party! I knew it!


    But it is what it is.


    ***


    After school was done, I was abruptly taken to the YMPA by a portal-like how it usually is, but I knew what it was for. The mission. I went inside of the room, whatever Mr. Drails called it as I was joined by Mchi, September and the whole bunch. Mchi looked pumped, but September was looking annoyed as she sat down in the opposite corner of the room with her arms folded and her head turned away from everyone as if she was annoyed by everything.


    Maybe she was tired.


    ¡°Hello, agents,¡± he said. ¡°Today is the day we go to Camaguey, to see what is going on over there. It¡¯s nowhere near the actual city-in fact, it¡¯s on the borders of the city before you enter into a different city.¡±


    I nodded, while feeling confused and nervous as Mr. Drails pulled out a map and spread it on the table. He pointed to where we needed to go and said, ¡°This is where the vige is located. That¡¯s where you¡¯ll find the warehouse, okay guys?¡± he asked, looking at us. I nodded.


    ¡°Okay, now get your gear ready, and make sure to keep your radios handy. That¡¯s how we actually keep track of you guys,¡± Mr. Drails said, pointing at September as she stood up and walked over to the other side of the room. She took out a small device from her pocket that looked like a cell phone and then began to tap it on the table. ¡°Okay, good,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ll get a portal over there. Now we don¡¯t know the exact location, but it should be up ahead of the vige. There is a hill where you guys should examine the area okay?¡±


    We nodded, and began to gather up our stuff as Mr. Drails left the room with a quick wave of his hand. September took out her radio, as we all did. ¡°So, is Mr. Drails gonna scare us again with his-¡± Mchi tried to finish before a portal opened under our feet.


    The wind blew against my face as Inded on the soft soil. What kind of ce was this? It was like a jungle, but yet it looked like it had been built up by people with concrete walls and buildings here and there with little huts around here and there-some even with animals in them-like chickens or pigs.


    I didn¡¯t think people still lived like this.


    The trees were standing tall and wide, as if they were trying to touch the sky and pierce through it with their leaves as well as their roots as they dug deep into the earth as they tried to im this ce as theirs. ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t expect this,¡± Tisiah said, getting up onto his feet, smiling at me as I stared at the tall trees with my mouth open wide as if I couldn¡¯t believe it.


    ¡°I guess we¡¯re not in Maine anymore,¡± September said sarcastically as she looked around. ¡°Let¡¯s move.¡±


    We began to move up the trail, as I looked around, and saw that this ce had some buildings around here and there but the streets werepletely empty of anyone or anything that might be here.


    ¡°This is just like back in the day when we did this in Maine,¡± Mchi said to us as he began to look around. ¡°Spy on some people, get info, all the fun stuff.¡± I chuckled, and September snickered a little as well. We began to walk down the street, and I began to see some people walking through here and there-some men carrying stuff on their back and some women carrying loads on their heads or shoulders-but no one seemed to be in danger of any sort.


    Only if they knew what we were doing.


    Soon enough, there was change in the elevation of the ground, as the floor began to rise-leading to a hill. The trail we were on led downwards for about fifteen minutes before we reached this small hill-which led to arge building that looked like a warehouse or maybe a storage shed as it was a long grey building made from concrete with some ss windows here and there.


    ¡°I think this is it,¡± September said, looking at it with a sense of determination. She then turned to Mchi and said, ¡°You and Tisiah will take this spot. Nikki will be at the left of the warehouse, and Connor and I will spy on the backside.¡±


    ¡°Why can¡¯t I be with Connor?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°Don¡¯t act like I don¡¯t know.¡±


    Immediately I froze in fear, but I looked at Nikki in a way that let her know that it wasn¡¯t okay to speak out of turn in front of a mission-especially one like this one-and I raised an eyebrow at her as if she had no choice but toply. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get to business.¡±


    September gestured for me to follow her, and I followed her and she made her way over to the side of the building where we would spy on the back of it from the hill behind it. We took out our binocrs and began to survey the area as we saw a lot of peopleing and going from there but nothing too much.


    ¡°Do you see anything?¡± I asked her, but nothing came out of her mouth. There were guards with ck utility belts that were there, with automatic rifles that were probably a cover. I assure you, if we attacked, those wands were going right out and we¡¯d be sted by bolts galore.


    ¡°Nothing so far,¡± September said with a sigh. She looked behind me and then stared back forward, her eyes keen on the warehouse. But all of a sudden, we saw a body move towards the back door.


    It was a woman, with brown curly hair that stretched down to her back. She was wearing a certain ssy sort of wear. She was wearing a white jacket, with a skirt that looked like it was made from thick cloth, but yet she had shoes on as well-a ck pair of shoes that matched the rest of her attire perfectly. She had a face that was soft and clean, with lips that were pink in color, a nose that was soft, and eyes that were like almonds. Her skin was fair, like the color of milk, and a chin that was strong and firm.


    She was blessed with an enticing look-but I knew that she wasn¡¯t good at all.

 Chapter 142

    142 A New n


    The woman seemed to notice me as she looked at me as if she was expecting me to say something-but she just looked away from me and continued walking until she reached arge window that had been ced. I saw that her shoes were high heels, so she was obviously very tall and she looked very elegant and sophisticated as she stood there and faced the window as if she was trying to see someone through it.


    ¡°Goodness sake!¡± I heard Mchi say through the radio. ¡°She is a good looking woman.¡± September sighed as she looked back at her, viewing her every move. All of a sudden, a guard opened the door and she walked through.


    ¡°She has just entered the building,¡± I said through the radio. Mr. Drails answered from back to the YMPA, ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll be activating the Kenophobe.¡±


    The Kenophobe is basically a device that pretty much captures everything in any location you want it to. Soon enough, a discussion was ring from our radios.


    ¡°Hello, madam,¡± a manly voice said. The clicks and cks of the high heels mostly took over the radio, but then I heard a woman¡¯s voice that was crisp and amusing say, ¡°What do we have on the Xeno?¡±


    ¡°Well, so far we haven¡¯t found it yet. The BMO is trying the best they can to finish the product,¡± the voice said. ¡°Well make it quick, have we found our missing piece?¡± No other voice responded to the question, instead moreptions of walking began to click inside our earpiece.


    ¡°We need someone with a very strong Perk. We¡¯ve been searching for some time, and we were gonna stick with the CEO of the JSA, but then we found one boy that has shown to have a very powerful perk.¡±


    ¡°Let me guess, the one on TV?¡± she asked. Right there, I froze in shock. Were they talking about me, about my powers? Are they hunting for me? Why? And how? I began to look at the back of the building in confusion as Mr. Drails¡¯ voice came through my radio again. ¡°Nikki, what¡¯s happening?¡± he asked.


    ¡°So far, they¡¯ve talked about the Xeno, apparently some sort of weapon or something that they need. But apparently they need a person with a strong enough Perk to help them,¡± Nikki reported, confused herself.


    .....


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°They said that they need someone who has a really powerful perk to help themplete the Xeno.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± he said, sounding thoughtful, ¡°Alright, continue listening.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ve decided to use the CEO¡¯s son, Masaru Kinu, as the fifteen-year old has shown himself to be quite powerful.¡±


    ¡°Where is he?¡±


    ¡°Japan,¡± the man said, making sure that we could hear him clearly. ¡°He¡¯ll be flying over tomorrow morning.¡±


    ¡°Alright, keep on listening,¡± Mr. Drails said in a deep voice. ¡°Keep an eye out for anything suspicious.¡±


    ¡°Got it,¡± Nikki responded.


    We continued to listen to the conversation as the woman talked about something and then I saw her pick up something off of a table. ¡°Masaru lives in the US with his parents, but he was visiting his grandpa, most likely meaning they¡¯re all there. We¡¯ve nned to set up apromised convoy to kidnap Masaru Kinu, and we should soon have the final product inpleting the Xeno,¡± the man said.


    ¡°Anything new?¡± Mr. Drails asked through the radio.


    ¡°Yeah, they¡¯re nning on kidnapping Masaru Kinu, the son of the one CEO from the JSA. They¡¯re going to set up apromised convoy and kidnap him?¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°Do you have a date?¡± he asked. ¡°No, sir,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Nor do we know who¡¯s nning this, but that¡¯s what we have so far.¡± I heard a deep sighing from the radio. ¡°Good, good job. Now guards are beginning to search the area, every report back into a group.¡±


    The radio clicked off, as I got up from my position. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go,¡± September said, as we walked down the hill and back to where the rest of the team were standing by now. ¡°They¡¯re nning on kidnapping Masaru Kinu.¡±


    ¡°What does that mean for them?¡± Tisiah asked. ¡°Why do they need him?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but nheless someone is in danger,¡± Mchi said, ncing at me as if I was going to say something, but I didn¡¯t say anything as I watched the back of the warehouse and wondered if they had heard what was going on. ¡°But let¡¯s just report back to-¡±


    The portal opened under us abruptly, the ground sweeping me from my feet, and I fell to the ground in pain. We were back in the room we were just in before we were sent to our mission, although everything looked like a blur. ¡°Good job,¡± Mr. Drails said, as we all looked up at him as if he was the one who had saved us. ¡°That was a close one.¡±


    ¡°What was that?¡± Nikki asked, getting up from the floor while I got up slowly as I began to rub my arms that hurt. ¡°You could have at least informed us before you opened your portal?¡±


    Mr. Drails chuckled, as did I as I rubbed my head from when it hit the floor so hard. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t have liked it if I did that.¡±


    ¡°Well, you didn¡¯t have to throw us under the bus,¡± Mchi said. ¡°My head hurts now.¡±


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter, right now we need to find when they¡¯re nning the kidnapping and who¡¯s nning this,¡± Mr. Drails said, making us all look at him with a serious expression as if he was going to tell us what he expected from us. ¡°And if they¡¯re nning this at any other point in time, then we need to figure out a way to stop it.¡±


    I nodded, looking at everyone else¡¯s faces before I began to speak. ¡°I don¡¯t know when they n on doing this. If it were me, I¡¯d want to get him before they do,¡± I said. ¡°Maybe we could get Masaru out before they even try to attack.¡±


    Mr. Drails rubbed his chin in thought, looking like a businessman as he spoke in a way that was like he had been thinking about this for some time now. ¡°Yes, that could be possible. I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s true though because if they¡¯re going to attack here then they have no reason to wait. So, it might be better to just go there first, grab Masaru and get out before anything else happens.¡± He looked around at us and said, ¡°So we need to get there and do our best to stop them before they can get him. Alright, but we need to find his location.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± September said, her voice cold as she stared at Mr. Drails with her piercing green eyes. ¡°We have to find out where they are.¡± She paused for a moment before she spoke again. ¡°Perhaps.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± Mr. Drails said.

 Chapter 143

    143 A Talk, A Suggestion, An Idea


    As we walked outside of the room, I suddenly felt a tug on my arm. I turned around, seeing that it was Nikki. ¡°Hey Nikki,¡± I said, as she smiled at me, her cheeks reddening from embarrassment. She always seemed like such a cool girl when I saw her, but then I saw her blushing when she looked down at me, as if she was trying to hold backughter.


    ¡°I was just wondering if you noticed that September was acting weird,¡± Nikki said, looking away from me as her blush grew redder as she kept on speaking. ¡°It¡¯s just...I don¡¯t know how to put it.¡± She took a breath as she nced up at me and asked, ¡°She¡¯s acting weird right?¡±


    Not gonna lie, September is acting weird. But I¡¯m trying not tough because she continues to blush furiously and keeps on talking like she doesn¡¯t notice. ¡°I know exactly what you mean,¡± I said,ughing softly at her. ¡°I think.¡±


    ¡°Like she seems so adamant on me and you not working with each other and I don¡¯t know why,¡± Nikki said, shaking her head, ¡°I don¡¯t know why she¡¯s being so weird.¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah, well I¡¯ll tell you something about that,¡± I said with a grin before I took a breath as I thought about it for a moment. ¡°September has some weird fetish for men who work with women and women who work with men.¡±


    Nikkiughed and shook her head before she responded in a teasing tone of voice, ¡°Oh?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m joking,¡± I said, hoping she actually knew I was. Nikki sighed, ¡°But the thing is, she opted to work with you though. You¡¯d think she choose Mchi because of experience but.¡±


    It was so hard not trying to wince, knowing why she was acting this way. I liked September, but Nikki also likes me, and September knows that, which is why she was trying to get us apart. That was just my opinion though.


    ¡°Well whatever it is, I don¡¯t know what¡¯s up with her,¡± Nikki said as she stared at me with her brown eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    .....


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what to say either,¡± I said, looking at her back. ¡°Maybe she thought it was best for me-oh!-so you know how you said how Mchi has more experience than all of us? Maybe she¡¯s trying to teach me, or sort of show an example of how to actually be a good spy agent.¡±


    ¡°I guess, because I really hope she doesn¡¯t know that I like you,¡± Nikki said, wiggling her fingers nervously. I winced more knowing that September already knew since we were in that FMA warehouse a few months back. That was somewhat of an experience.


    ¡°Here¡¯s the thing okay?¡± I said. ¡°All you need to do is to try and not act suspicious, then maybe we¡¯ll know.¡± Nikki nodded, looking around as if September was going to appear suddenly.


    ¡°How about we go outside for now?¡± I nodded, and she smiled as we began walking around the corner and out into the bright sunlight.


    The field was filled with people all around, ying ser or talking on the bleaches, and I just felt sort of sad. Everyone here looks happy and alive, but Greg-he wasn¡¯t in the best of ces, and I know I¡¯d be happy if he were here with me now. But there was nothing I could do about it, so I just shrugged it off and continued walking through the field.


    But it seemed as if Nikki knew that something was just off with me, because she soon spoke up. ¡°Hey...look, I¡¯m really sorry about this,¡± she said as she rubbed the back of her head as she walked beside me. ¡°About what?¡± I asked, as confusion popped onto her face. ¡°I thought, I thought-¡±


    ¡°No it¡¯s not about your situation, but it¡¯s about someone else,¡± I said with a sigh, ¡°And I think I know what it is.¡±


    Nikki stopped in her tracks as she turned to face me. ¡°What is it?¡±


    I nced around at everyone else before I began to speak again, feeling the tears beginning to form in my eyes from the sadness. But I kept it back, staying strong and well controlled. ¡°I think you¡¯re a good person, Nikki. And I think you¡¯re a great friend.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand,¡± she said, confused as she looked at me. ¡°I¡¯m not doing anything wrong.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not saying you are,¡± I said, ¡°It¡¯s that you¡¯re there for everyone, a good person who assists others.¡± I¡¯m not sure where I was going with that but, I felt a chill run down my spine as I felt my eyes begin to water from my sadness and pain. ¡°But there¡¯s only one person left in the world like you, and he isn¡¯t himself anymore.¡±


    ¡°Greg?¡±


    I¡¯m not sure how she got it right that easily unless it was a guess, but I nodded my head anyway. She sighed softly, and her face showed sadness as she began to speak again. ¡°I didn¡¯t know him like you did.¡± I sighed, ¡°He¡¯s off the deep end. Really off.¡±


    Nikki sighed and shook her head, but then she smiled and said, ¡°Yeah he is...he¡¯s still got that part of him though. The part of him that we all loved so much.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I said with a smile, looking around at all the people who were ying. ¡°It¡¯s just not here right now.¡±


    All of a sudden, I heard footstepsing from the side as if the person was heading towards us. I looked beside me, seeing Tisiah making his way into my view. ¡°Hey Tisiah,¡± I greeted, as he sat down beside me.¡± Tisiah nodded, before he looked at me. ¡°What y¡¯all so sad about?¡± he asked.


    I shook my head. ¡°Nothing, just enjoying the sunlight,¡± I said. ¡°Just thinking about who may have started this whole operation to kidnap Masaru. Trying to think what clues might be there.¡±


    ¡°Well there isn¡¯t much, there was a woman and a man in there for sure, but I¡¯m not sure exactly who,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Maybe we can see if we can find any sort of picture of that woman wearing that?¡±


    I looked back at him, as a thought swept through my mind. ¡°Maybe we can find a picture or something that may show a picture of her in the same sort of clothing.¡± But then Nikki asked, ¡°With what lead?¡±


    ¡°The warehouse-Charlie-was in Camag¨¹ey, correct?¡± I asked. ¡°So find some information based on that warehouse. Maybe we can see who the new owner is now, or maybe find some leads to it.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s a problem though,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°That was for the CSMO, so it would be secret.¡± I nodded. ¡°So then find the person whose responsible for stuff dealing with warehouses.¡±


    ¡°But who?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°Businesses, CEO¡¯s or at least the cab of that whole business,¡± she said. ¡°Maybe there¡¯s a mole in the CSMO. The CSMO owns that warehouse, so we need to find out who is also in charge of those things. Find the BMO agent.¡±


    ¡°Should we tell Mr. Drails?¡± Nikki asked, and I nodded.


    We moved from our seat on the bleachers and moved, walking inside of the building as thoughts ran through my head, trying toe up with a way to get that information from them. There was so much we had to do and so little time. I wasn¡¯t sure how much time we had until they did whatever they nned on doing to Masaru but it seemed like it was bad. So we needed to tell it as quick as we can.


    Once we reached there, I knocked on the door to Mr. Drails¡¯ office, as Nikki and Tisiah stood by my side as we waited. It wasn¡¯t long before he answered and we saw him smile when he opened it. ¡°Oh hey guys,¡± he said in a cheerful tone of voice as he waved at us inside of his office.


    ¡°We think we know what or in this case, who to search for,¡± I said. Mr. Drails¡¯ eyes opened wide. ¡°Continue,¡± he said. ¡°Now, from what we have thought, the CSMO owns the warehouse that Charlie was found at, and the CSMO has a business director most likely and people who work with that person. Now we have what may be a visual on the owner,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°We could try and see if there is a mole in the CSMO, and find that BMO agent.¡±


    Mr. Drails leaned back, closing his eyes as he thought for a moment. Then he opened his eyes and smiled. ¡°That is a brilliant idea,¡± he said. ¡°But then there¡¯s something that makes me think otherwise. Because only one person owned Charlie: Jonathan Ortega.¡±

 Chapter 144

    144 A Cemented Reign


    ¡°Who¡¯s he?¡±


    ¡°He was the person in charge of Charlie. I don¡¯t disagree with your im that there is a mole, but I don¡¯t think that mole took over Charlie or is nning the attack. I think the mole leaked information to the BMO, which then they took over Charlie and is nning the attack.¡±


    ¡°He was the person in charge of Charlie. I don¡¯t disagree with your im that there is a mole, but I don¡¯t think that mole took over Charlie or is nning the attack. I think the mole leaked information to the BMO, which then they took over Charlie and is nning the attack.¡±


    ¡°So what do we do?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll go tomorrow and talk with Ortega, see if he knows anything. We¡¯ve developed a new technology so now I can connect your earpieces with the volume over here through the radio. It¡¯splicated and makes no sense, but I want to let you guys listen to the conversation. I¡¯ll also get one of my guys to be there as well to film it for you,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    I nodded.


    ***


    It was the next day, and as usual, the dreadful morning of high school had dawned upon me. But anything¡¯s better than that time fighting Rocke. I went over to my locker, putting in the code as Greg came by me. He still was acting silent and weird, and it just made me sad to see him like that. He always seemed so happy but now he just seemed lost in this world where everyone else was having fun and getting along and enjoying life while he wasn¡¯t.


    I don¡¯t know what to do, I thought as I opened my locker door and put my bag inside before turning around and seeing him. He was still standing there, looking at me. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± I asked.


    .....


    He shook his head. ¡°Nothing,¡± he said. ¡°Nothing.¡±


    Now I¡¯m fed up. How are you gonna say that nothing is wrong but, everything is wrong? He had been so happy, but now he just seems like this shell of a person who doesn¡¯t want to talk and doesn¡¯t want to do anything. He¡¯s acting depressed and expects me to do what.


    He asks me to treat him like normal, but yet-he isn¡¯t acting normal! Why doesn¡¯t he just leave me alone then? But all of a sudden, I heard something caught me off guard, like really off guard.


    ¡°Hello Conny-boy, I¡¯ve missed you!¡±


    Kirk...Kirk is here? What¡¯s he doing here? I thought he was still on that trip, so howe he¡¯s here now? And why is he here? I wondered as I stared at him with shock and surprise on my face. ¡°Now you know how it goes, give me your money,¡± he said, sticking out his hand, showing me a wad of money that was in his hand.


    I didn¡¯t have any sort of money, but I didn¡¯t want to get pummeled by him, so I grabbed the wad of bills and put it into my pocket and tried to smile as best I could as he held out his other hand for me to shake. But then, Greg stood up in front of me and stuck out his hand.


    ¡°Give that money back,¡± he said, his voice menacing and dangerous, and yet Kirk just stared at him.


    ¡°Hey buddy!¡± Kirk said. ¡°You mind your own business.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t get to decide that!¡±


    I watched as the two got into a fight that started in Kirk hitting him right across the face. What was going on? What was literally going on? ¡°How about you leave my friend alone?¡± Greg said, adjusting his neck from the punch, as Kirk rubbed his cheek as he stared at me with a sneer on his face.


    ¡°Or else?¡± Kirk said as he stared at me and then looked back at him, smirking again. The hall was filled with a surprised crowd, with phones lighting up the hallway, as students stopped what they were doing as they watched the fight. I noticed a few teachers who were nearby watching as well as one who was sitting at his desk on the side as well.


    It was only a matter of time before this was broken up.


    But then, Greg sped in with a kick, hitting Kirk right in his gut as Kirk stumbled back before falling to the floor. Everyone in the hall was stunned, watching as Kirk hit the floor and then rolled over and over beforending on his back. Then Greg walked over, his hoodie over his head so that no one could see him I guess.


    Smart.


    But then he stomped his foot on Kirk¡¯s leg, and he rolled over onto his belly again with a groan. As I saw that, I thought, ¡°What was that for?¡±


    The crowd gasped again, and all I could do was watch as Kirk stood back up, walking over towards Greg again as I watched with anticipation and excitement-and fear to see how the fight would end. But Greg was my friend, and I needed to protect him, but I didn¡¯t want to get in trouble.


    But then Greg threw two punches, one right and one left, hitting him in his stomach and in his chest with a grunt as Kirk stumbled back again, falling on his backside again, and then fell onto his stomach again. Then to finish it off, Greg stomped on Kirk¡¯s chest. He bent over and looked at Kirk, ¡°Now get out of my sight before I beat you again,¡± he said before turning around and leaving the scene quickly as everyone watched on with astonishment and excitement at what happened in front of them.


    I looked at Greg with shock and wonder, as he whispered, ¡°Your wee.¡± He walked off again, as the teachers rushed over to the scene, asking what happened. They seemed concerned as they looked at Kirk¡¯s face and checked to see if he was alright. One of them looked at me and said, ¡°Why don¡¯t you get to your ss?¡±


    I nodded, walking away inplete confusion.


    I had no idea what just happened but that was unlike Greg at all. He would never do that to someone, nheless Kirk. Kirk was like the big man to be afraid of, but instead now-Greg beat him up, now giving himself the crown.


    But here¡¯s where I¡¯m worried alright. He had his hood on, knowing they would definitely see the videos and start pulling people for questioning. It was only a matter of time before I was called to the office.


    But what if they find him because of his voice, and he didn¡¯t even think to not change his pitch or not even speak at all. I¡¯m sure he¡¯s not gonna wear that hoodie anymore, but will they ever find out who Greg was?


    Honestly, I think I would rather get molly-whopped by Kirk than let Greg get a suspension, or get expelled. I know that Greg isn¡¯t exactly himself right now, but I don¡¯t want him to go away forever. Sure, we¡¯ll be friends outside of school, but he¡¯s my only anchor to actually thinking about attending school.


    That¡¯s why I wanted to beat up Kirk, so that I could finish it easily-with my Perk-and I wouldn¡¯t need Greg all the time. Greg¡¯s now getting the fame, but it¡¯s only a matter of time before I lose my chance and my friend.

 Chapter 145

    145 An Interview with a CEO


    I was still traumatized of what just came upon my eyes, but at least things in the YMPA will be better, and I knew that it was only a matter of time until we did more things dealing with Masaru, which was something I wanted to do in any case. But right now, I had to go through with what Mr. Drails had told us yesterday; he was going to talk with Ortega about the whole ¡°Charlie¡± thing.


    As we entered the room where all the screens were, we were met by three people that were in front of theirputers. I¡¯m not sure what they were doing, but all of a sudden the screen pulled up, as we saw a bright room with a brown desk. There was a man with white hair, dark skin, wearing a suit, and an older man with brown skin that looked like an Indian with a short beard. Both of them were standing up as Mr. Drails sat down in his seat.


    ¡°Oh, our earpieces!¡± Nikki shouted, as we all got our earphones.


    I plugged them into my ears, as voices began to make themselves known to us. ¡°Hello, Drails,¡± the man with white hair greeted, ¡°I¡¯m d you coulde.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± Mr. Drails replied. ¡°You know why I¡¯m here.¡±


    ¡°Yes, indeed,¡± the man replied, ¡°but I must ask you a question first. Have you seen anyone with ck long hair walk through the halls by any chance?¡±


    Mr. Drails shook his head, ¡°But what do I know? I¡¯m blind.¡± The man chuckled, and then said, ¡°But it doesn¡¯t surprise me.¡±


    Mr. Drails¡¯ eyes widened as the other man asked him, ¡°Do you know anything about Charlie?¡±


    ¡°Yes, in fact I came to talk to you about it,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Now, Mr. Ortega, we know that Charlie waspromised by the BMO recently correct?¡± Mr. Drails said as Ortega leaned back, nodding his head. ¡°Well then we can work on this together. Now we know that Charlie¡¯s being controlled by someone who knows a lot of information about what we¡¯re doing and is aware of the mission.¡±


    .....


    ¡°What mission?¡±


    ¡°We were building a weapon called the Xeno to help us, but somehow the BMO knew about our idea, and ended up stealing our weapon.¡± Shock went through all our faces. ¡°That¡¯s why they captured Charlie!¡± September said, looking at us, as we were all shocked.


    It made so much sense though, I couldn¡¯t believe it.


    ¡°They took our weapon,¡± Ortega said, leaning forward from his seat in front of his desk, as the other man leaned forward as well. Mr. Drails nodded, trying to hide his consternation, ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±


    ¡°So what do we do now?¡± the Indian man said with a stern look on his face as Ortega answered, ¡°We have two options. Destroy or steal it back.¡±


    Mr. Drails nodded, looking around the ce, ¡°And that¡¯s where youe in.¡±


    Ortega looked surprised, ¡°Me?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Mr. Drails replied with a grin on his face. ¡°I want all the folders and information based on Charlie and the Xeno.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Ortega asked, puzzled.


    ¡°Because I want to know everything there is about the Xeno,¡± Mr. Drails replied. ¡°And I know that you¡¯re the best at this. I want it to work, but we believe there is a mole that perhaps leaked the information in your cab of colleagues.¡± Ortega looked very disturbed, but Mr. Drails continued. ¡°I need your help to get this back.¡±


    Ortega looked shocked as he nodded his head and replied, ¡°Of course. Now do you have any leads?¡±


    ¡°Not exactly, but that¡¯s why we need your folders. We actually had a visual on who could be the mole, and maybe there could be a connection to one of them,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Now since it¡¯s your weapon, it would be best if you would assist us in getting the Xeno back. Because it would put a lot of people in danger of being in their hands. You know their intentions.¡±


    Ortega nodded, ¡°I see what you mean. You want me to use it to my advantage.¡± He paused for a moment before continuing, ¡°But it¡¯s going to take a lot of time.¡±


    ¡°Well, being that we¡¯re working on this together, it may help you to know the fact that they are nning to attack the son of the CEO of Japan-Takeshi Kin¡¯s son-Masaru Kin,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°We don¡¯t know when they n on doing this sadly.¡± Ortega looked horrifed andpletely disturbed, as Mr. Drails continued to talk, ¡°We have some information that might help us though.¡±


    ¡°What kind of information?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± Mr. Drails started to answer as he looked around the room with his eyes closed for a moment and then responded. ¡°We know they n on attacking when he¡¯s returning, so if you could find their ne ticket for us, that would be exceptional for us. We could help save Masaru Kin and find the leader behind all of this.¡±


    Ortega nodded, and began to fool around in his mouth, as he was thinking. ¡°I think I have an idea where their ne ticket is stored.¡± Mr. Drails looked at him and smiled. ¡°I hope we find this soon,¡± Mr. Drails said, looking at him with a determined expression, ¡°because if they have our weapon, then we don¡¯t stand a chance.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Ortega said with a smirk on his face. ¡°We¡¯ll get it back.¡±


    ¡°I hope so,¡± Mr. Drails said, getting up from his seat, ¡°and thank you for letting ming here today.¡±


    ¡°My pleasure,¡± Ortega said with a smile as he got up too. ¡°We¡¯re working together now after all.¡± Mr. Drails smiled and turned around, leaving the room and then walked out of the building with Ortega.


    ¡°Well that was interesting,¡± September said.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said inplete disbelief at what happened, ¡°I mean I guess he did what he had to do.¡±


    But all of a sudden, a portal opened and Mr. Drails walked out of there alone, and stretched his back. ¡°Well, that was something new,¡± he said, stretching out his back as he looked up towards the sky, ¡°I haven¡¯t been able to rx like that in a long time.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°That was rxing?¡±


    ¡°I do that all the time. It¡¯s my own ally,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure interviewing and interrogation is in yourbat ss.¡± I shrugged, before Mr. Drails took his seat, and sighed. ¡°Okay, for the rest of your time, I want you to train, understand?¡± September nodded.


    We left the room, as Mchi chuckled. ¡°This mission is getting better and better.¡± September nodded, agreeing with him.


    ¡°It¡¯s not a mission yet though,¡± I pointed out.


    ¡°Come on, it¡¯s definitely a mission,¡± Mchi said, as we walked down the hallway. ¡°It¡¯s a mission to stop a madman.¡±


    ¡°You guys are nuts,¡± Nikki said, looking at us with disbelief.


    ¡°But excited,¡± I said, as Iughed out loud. ¡°I am.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Nikki said as she looked at us as we passed her in the hallway.


    ¡°Well,¡± Mchi said with a grin as he put his hand on the door handle and looked at Nikki. ¡°Might as well get ready.¡± We walked into the training center, where no one was there once again. ¡°But here¡¯s where I¡¯m confused,¡± I said. ¡°They knew Charlie waspromised, so how did they not question their own cab of who could be a mole?¡±


    ¡°Good point,¡± Mchi said.

 Chapter 146

    146 A New Enemy


    ¡°Maybe they have,¡± Nikki said. ¡°And they haven¡¯t figured out much yet.¡±


    ¡°But Ortega seemed surprised though,¡± Mchi said, as we were sitting in the middle of the room on one of the benches as we talked. ¡°I mean I could believe he¡¯d be surprised if someone told him they knew about one of the people in his cab being a mole.¡±


    ¡°But no one did,¡± I muttered, as we were all thinking about this. ¡°No one told him that there was a mole in his cab.¡±


    ¡°So-hmm-maybe Ortega¡¯s the mole,¡± Tisiah said, as he came out of the training room. He was carrying a bag and seemed really happy about something.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked as Tisiah walked towards us and put his bag down in front of us on the bench we were sitting on. ¡°Yeah, for sure. He clearly could¡¯ve acted and pretended to be surprised,¡± Tisiah said, as he sat down and took out a couple of books from his bag and began to look through them.


    ¡°But that would mean he¡¯s working against us!¡± Mchi said with wide eyes. ¡°Exactly,¡± September rified, looking concerned at Mchi. ¡°But he gave Mr. Drails all the files though, so how would it be?¡± I asked, looking at them with concern.


    ¡°Well he¡¯s not trying to help us,¡± Mchi said with a frown.


    ¡°Why else would he give all the files?¡± Nikki said. ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯s bad.¡±


    ¡°Me neither,¡± I said, convinced, but still worried.


    .....


    ¡°He could¡¯ve wanted us to figure it out ourselves,¡± Nikki suggested as Tisiah began to look at me from over his books. ¡°That would be probably the most idiotic action ever,¡± Mchi said. ¡°The man could¡¯ve gave every folder except his own. He definitely has his own folder.¡±


    ¡°But I¡¯m positive every spy mage organization has info on someone,¡± Nikki said. ¡°How do we know some things about them?¡± Mchi shrugged, ¡°I¡¯m sold on my im.¡±


    ¡°Well it depends on what Mr. Drails once he looks over those folders,¡± I said. ¡°Otherwise all these theories are just vapor.¡±


    ¡°I think I that¡¯s why they¡¯re called theories,¡± Mchi said. Nikki sighed, ¡°No duh-Sherlock!¡±


    ¡°Okay, we are getting way too heated about this, we¡¯re supposed to be working together as an actual group,¡± she said. ¡°Let¡¯s get ourselves together-can we please?¡± I nodded, but I don¡¯t think Ortega is working against us. At least I don¡¯t think so. If he was, who knows how much of the EMO organizations arepromised. Out of the whole EMO, FMA and us could be the only trustworthy agencies!


    But all of a sudden, one of those guys who were on theputer-connecting us to see the entire thing-came in. ¡°Mr. Drails wants you guys,¡± he said, his voice soft and quiet. That¡¯s something new I guess.


    Excitement and wonder shone through my body as we approached the room, where Mr. Drails was waiting for us as we entered the room, and sat on the chair in the middle of the room. Mr. Drails seemed more serious now as he looked around the room.


    But up on the wall was someone we¡¯ve seen before: that one ssydy with brown curly hair with a white jacket, a ck skirt, a white-buttoned shirt that was tucked into her skirt, and the ck shoes.


    ¡°This everyone-is our mole. Maddie Cone,¡± he said, looking at all of us in the eye and continued to talk, ¡°She¡¯s our mole.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± Tisiah said as he put his hands together. Mr. Drails nodded, ¡°She is also the person in charge of taking over Charlie. Here¡¯s how I know. Me and others have looked into the files. She was actually the second-inmander under Ortega, and based on her files, she is one of the finest agents in the BMO.¡±


    ¡°And bougie,¡± Nikki added, smiling at me as she winked.


    ¡°Yeah, but that¡¯s not the worst part,¡± Mr. Drails continued to say, as I noticed a file that had been opened and read over beforeing back to her again, ¡°the worst part is that-based on her files-she¡¯s also a skilled assassin. She has killed numerous of people with high authority.¡±


    ¡°Oh, so like the President?¡± I asked, and looked at Tisiah, who shook his head with a smile.


    ¡°No,¡± Mr. Drails answered me, ¡°she¡¯s killed people at the CEO level and above. But she has the skill to do so to a president, but it would just bring too much attention to them.¡± I nodded. ¡°So how do we find her?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s also easy,¡± he said. ¡°Ortega tapped into their ne ticket, and they¡¯ve been scheduled to leave in five days. Being tomorrow is Friday, we can get there and get Masaru Kin to safety before they attack.¡±


    ¡°But we don¡¯t even know his location,¡± I said, ¡°and that will be really hard.¡±


    ¡°Yes, but we¡¯ll have to try to get him to safety,¡± he replied, as I nodded.


    ¡°And how will we do that?¡± September asked.


    ¡°We¡¯ll try and see his grandfather¡¯s owned houses, and we could find him there,¡± Mr. Drails said, ¡°but that¡¯s just my suggestion.¡±


    ¡°I like it,¡± I said, ¡°because I¡¯m pretty sure we have enough time before they attack.¡± Mr. Drails nodded and then continued, ¡°That¡¯s it for today, but tomorrow, we¡¯re going to save Masaru Kin. Alright?¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir!¡±


    ***


    Soon enough, the day at the YMPA ended and I found myself brought back into the silent neighborhood once again. Who knew silence would be so calming, and I could listen to it all day-if you could even listen to silence.


    I knocked on the door, and soon enough, the door opened as I walked in. ¡°Hello, my baby,¡± she greeted, kissing me on the forehead as Iughed. Something about mom¡¯s, it¡¯s just funny.


    ¡°Hey, so um-I wanted to ask you a question,¡± I said. Her eyes narrowed into thought, as if I was going to say like I identally assaulted someone to the hospital bed.


    Cough, Cough.


    ¡°Hey, um, Mom,¡± I said, looking at her and taking a seat on the sofa near the door. ¡°So, what if your friend changed or was something different like that, or maybe just was-I don¡¯t know-depressed.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯d say stay away from them,¡± she said. ¡°You don¡¯t want your day to be affected by that one person.¡± I nodded. ¡°But what if that person is your only friend though, and your day is better because of them?¡±


    Mom sighed, as she sat down.


    ¡°You know, the problem these days is finding the right friends. Imagine you were friends with someone who liked to drink or mess around, not focus on what¡¯s important. You¡¯ll be affected, you¡¯d want their life,¡± she said. ¡°Trust me, find a new friend that will help you in school, help you in your future as is a good example.¡±


    ¡°But I¡¯m too nervous to do that,¡± I said.


    She chuckled. ¡°You know how I found your dad? I was walking around in college, feeling lonely because my other friends had boyfriends and their significant others. I assure you, in college, everyone is looking for everybody. So I was in one ss, and I saw this man: a man who sat by another friend and only that other friend, who was in my row of chairs.¡±


    She scooted closer to me, as if she wanted to make it more emphasizing by being only two inches away from me.


    ¡°I kind of liked him, and he was not a bad-looking man, so I walked up to him. And-¡± sheughed between and then backslid into a little chuckle-¡°I still remember my first words with him: Hi, I like your shirt.¡±


    I chuckled a bit after hearing that. Then she turned to me and said, ¡°One thing about making friends, is to talk about something that rtes to both of you guys. It helps you understand each other, and know what each other is like. Your dad was a person that couldn¡¯t make me stopughing. He was broad, strong, handsome and to me-a angel in a wrestler¡¯s body. And look where my courage to move got us: with you.¡±


    I smiled, as she kissed me once again in the forehead, but this time it felt more personal. ¡°It¡¯s not about not finding a friend, it¡¯s about finding the perfect friend,¡± she said. ¡°There are many more that can rte to you. You just need to find them. Now go change so that you can eat.¡±


    As soon as she got up, a bulb in my brain electrified, and I immediately knew who the man in college she was referencing to.

 Chapter 147

    147 A Nice Visit to Japan


    Soon enough, school arrived, but I was still divided on whether to find a new friend, or to stick with Greg for a little bit longer. Don¡¯t get me wrong, I was trying to get other friends-but I¡¯d rather let theme to me than me actively trying to run away from Greg.


    That¡¯d make him feel worse.


    As I walked to my locker, I didn¡¯t see Grege to me, and I was instantly worried. Maybe he wasn¡¯t here today or something, I don¡¯t know. But all of a sudden, I heard cheeringe from all the way in the back of the hall. It was like they were chanting like they were in a concert or something-what was going on?


    I stepped out from my bubble, and looked through the hall. And I wouldn¡¯t believe what I saw. A whole hall as if this was the red carpet, as Greg walked through the hall and people were chanting his name. The girls were, but some of the guys too. I couldn¡¯t even believe it, because Greg is just a guy like every other guy, and not even a special person-so why would they cheer?


    Even thedies were beginning to eye him, their cheeks blushing red as if they smashed ketchup on them.


    ¡°You are so beautiful!¡± one of them shouted as she tried to get up on her tiptoes to get closer to him. ¡°I love you so much!¡± The girls began leaning forward like licorice, and they started screaming at the top of their lungs while pushing each other out of the way to get a better view of him.


    ¡°Why is he here?¡± a girl said, looking at me like I was crazy for not knowing why he was there-as if it was obvious why he was here. ¡°He¡¯s supposed to be my boyfriend!¡± The girls all went into hystericalughter as I turned towards her. ¡°No!¡± one of them shouted.


    I was horrified, because it seemed like these girls had gone nuts over him-even more than I had. As he walked up closer to us, his eyes were set on me and he stopped walking for a second. ¡°Hey...Greg,¡± I said, with a smile. But then, he looked at me with a disgusted face and all of a sudden, men began to stand in front of him like guards, pushing me away from him.


    He¡¯s my friend!


    .....


    He¡¯s my friend, isn¡¯t he?


    I began running up to him, but as I did so, another foolish guy came up and blocked my path as if he had some sort of wall built up from his hands. ¡°Make way for Greg!¡± the man shouted, as guys began to trail behind him like a conga line, which made me even more angry.


    I turned to the guy in front of me. ¡°Hey...hey...let me by...¡± I said with an annoyed face.


    The guy didn¡¯t listen. I looked in front of me, seeing an opening that led the pathway for me to slip through. I did so, but before I could reach Greg, another guy shoved me back from behind. ¡°Hey, no!¡± he shouted. ¡°You can¡¯t get to Greg yet.¡±


    Soon enough, girls went to the point of touching Greg¡¯s arms as if they were gold, and their screams destroyed my eardrums, making me feel like I was in the middle of a warzone. ¡°He¡¯s mine!¡± they yelled. ¡°No one can touch him but me!¡±


    But I didn¡¯t care about any of them; I cared about my friend.


    I looked at him, as he walked through to his next ss, smirking as if he was the king of the world or some celebrity, as the girls clung to him like leeches and tried to get a piece of his body as he walked away. I walked over to him, and as I reached out my hand towards his shoulder, he just stared at me like a deer in headlights and gave me a disgusted look.


    Tears now built up in my eyes, as I wiped them away.


    Why is he doing this? What did I do? Is he mad at me? What is he doing?


    He turned around as if nothing ever happened. I felt like melting to the floor, as I saw him walk into his next ssroom with all the girls following after him like he was their prince charming.


    ¡°Why does he treat you like this?¡± I said angrily to myself.


    Soon enough, the hall cleared as the bell for the one-minute bell rang, but I felt angry. I was angry but too broke to do anything, so I just kept on walking into the hallway like it was an illusion. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with him?¡± I said in frustration. ¡°What¡¯s going on? Why is he so upset? Does he hate...¡±


    I stopped, and I stood there-almost having a heart attack from what just urred.


    School ended, but my despair was just beginning, as I arrived at the YMPA due to Mr. Drails¡¯s portal. Immediately I made it into that room, which I don¡¯t know what he calls it, and the rest of them were there. ¡°Alright, you know what happens today alright?¡± he asked. ¡°We get to Japan, and we get there, and find Masaru. This is for the sake of not only his life, but many others alright?!¡± he shouted.


    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± we shouted.


    ¡°Make sure you have all your gear, and I¡¯ll make a portal for you to get there.¡±


    September immediately checked her utility belt, which she had a few things in: a knife and a sword which had a scabbard on her back that made her look like some sort of knight. Then she checked her boots, which had a pair of boots inside of them that made her legs look...like legs. They had metal on the outside of the boots, and she had a pistol on her thigh holster-like thing on the side. She checked her sword belt which held her knife and sword.


    But most importantly, her wand, which she kept in her pocket which had a very small red stone in its end-which looked like it was glowing slightly with magic.


    ¡°Alright,e on everyone!¡± Mchi said. ¡°Let¡¯s get this party started!¡±


    Soon enough, the portal opened as the sight of a path of some sort between two buildings stared at us, and the moment we all stepped through, the moment wended on the ground of Japan-a scene like from the old days shed in front of us. We all looked around, seeing all the houses of the Japanese people.


    ¡°Oh, this is a neighborhood,¡± Tisiah realized, seeing the homes of people as they began walking towards us, like we were the gue that had been sent down to destroy their home and way of life. ¡°These people live here!¡± September said.


    All of a sudden, this old man came up to us, speaking apletely differentnguage, as if we understood hisnguage whatsoever-but it was a very old-looking man who seemed to be about eighty years old and dressed in clothes that looked like they were from thete eighteen hundreds or early neen hundreds-as if he was a ghost from old times.


    ¡°Uh, we English,¡± Mchi said, pointing at all of us.


    The man nodded, and chuckled. ¡°Are you guys new here?¡± he asked, his voice bold but croaky at the same time, as he looked at us with eyes that were both ancient and youthful at the same time-as if they were seeing through time itself.


    ¡°Uh...¡± Tisiah began to speak, but he paused for a moment as his face became pale as he took a look around. ¡°Somewhat.¡±


    ¡°Where you trying to go?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Well, um-do you know someone by the name Masaru Kin?¡± I asked. His face looked disturbed, ¡°Those rich people?¡± He shook his head. ¡°Not nice people,¡± he said, his voice getting a bit louder and his face looking like he was going to spit on us for asking for them.


    ¡°Sorry...¡± I said with a weak smile.


    ¡°They live on that hill over there,¡± he said, pointing to a small hill on the horizion, ¡°you can¡¯t miss it.¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said. ¡°We appreciate it.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I heard Tisiah ask him with an annoyed tone of voice, as the man turned around and began to walk away as if he didn¡¯t hear us. ¡°Going on about what?¡± I asked.


    ¡°With the Kin¡¯s? They seem to have a bad rep,¡± he said, with an annoyed look on his face as he walked off.


    ¡°Why is that?¡±


    ¡°Not my business,¡± he said with a grunt as if it wasn¡¯t important at all. ¡°Let¡¯s get there before it¡¯s night.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s find a cab first,¡± he said, before we began walking through this small city square with little shops and other things that were used to keep the people busy and entertained.


    The ce was bright, with endless people walking about, and it was a very lively ce, as we walked down the main street, looking at the stores and restaurants. There were lights for every different shop, almost lighting up the blue sky as if it were a stage for some sort of y.


    ¡°There¡¯s got to be one here,¡± he said with a hand pointing at one of the storefronts. It would unlikely there would be, being that the ce was so cramped, but all of a sudden, someone came walking towards us from that direction as if they had been watching us walk by.


    The man had on a ck suit jacket which was made from the finest wool, as it shined and almost made me feel like I was inferior to him-probably was. ¡°Did anyone ask for a cab?¡± he asked, with an American ent-a very thick one.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said with a smile, looking at him. ¡°We need one now.¡±


    He nodded his head in agreement as he began walking away-as if he was taking his time on purpose to keep us waiting. ¡°Who was he?¡± September asked, with a concerned look on her face. ¡°He looked like he was in charge.¡±


    I shrugged my shoulders, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Did you see his face?¡± she asked. ¡°What was he in charge of?¡±


    I shrugged again, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    Soon enough, the man came back to us and began walking towards us. He had a big smile on his face as if he was trying to give off some sort of air of confidence in himself as if he was rehearsing this or something. ¡°Your cab should being soon,¡± he said.

 Chapter 148

    148 Kin¡¯s House


    All of a sudden I heard the growl of an engine behind me, as we turned around.


    ¡°A limo?!¡± Tisiah shouted in excitement, as she rushed to the window.


    The man gave a slight chuckle and nod to his head. ¡°You¡¯re not missing much,¡± he said with a smirk, as we all walked into the back of the limo that came flying down the road with its lights turned off and it had the driver in front of it.


    I sat down in the seat as we began to move, feeling like I was on top of the world.


    Who knew limos has such an elevation to their seats?


    The limo was quite fresh, with some leather seats that smelled like a nice perfume and they felt like they were made of real leather which made me feel good to be sitting down in them. The smell of the car was really nice of something like vani and butter as it drove us towards our destination, as we all sat back and enjoyed the ride.


    The ride was smooth and fast, and the car was like a dream. We started to move along this small road, with many people walking about and blocking the way. ¡°So where are you guys going?¡± he asked. ¡°To Zekeshi Kin¡¯s house or mansion or whatever,¡± September said, sounding very excited and filled with anticipation.


    He smiled, ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s what I figured. Let me tell you something, you¡¯re not going to like this mansion.¡±


    ¡°Like it looks bad or?¡±


    .....


    ¡°It¡¯ll make you jealous. We¡¯ve seen it plenty before, and it aggravates me every single time I see it,¡± the man said with a chuckle. ¡°Can¡¯t wait to see how y¡¯all would feel.¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t wait either,¡± Mchi said, as the car moved on towards our destination. The ride continued until we were almost there, and we began to move onto some sort of private drive with a huge mansion in front of us. And my goodness, I was aggravated.


    The mansion was beautiful in many ways: it looked like it was made out of white marble that gleamed in the light and stood up so high it seemed like it was going to touch the sky. It had turrets and balconies that went on for what seemed like miles on each side-but there was even more!


    The grass looked more alive than I was, as the flowers bloomed in so many colors that almost seemed to blend together as one single color that was so beautiful that it made you feel like you were in heaven. And the pirs, the pirs: they were massive and covered in gold with jewels at the end of them that were just glimmering in the light!


    The windows wererge and covered with ss, and even though I could not see through them because they were covered up by the white curtains, I could see the reflection of light, and the pool was glimmering, as it was filled with so many lights that gave the ce a sense of warmth as if it was always lit up like Christmas Day!


    I heard Tisiah sigh in amazement and I smiled to myself, looking out at the sight that we were now facing. ¡°Wow...¡± Mchi muttered, as he leaned on his window, looking at it from afar.


    ¡°Wow is right,¡± the man said as he drove us right up to the front of the mansion and parked the car there, ¡°That¡¯s Zekeshi¡¯s Mansion alright. We¡¯ll be parked here to assist youter in your journey.¡± I nodded.


    I gave them one more look, before we all got out of the car, and I opened my mouth wide and gaped at this mansion that was right in front of me.


    ¡°Alright guys!¡± September said. ¡°Try to stay calm.¡±


    I nodded and looked around, noticing the guards who stood at every entrance of the house. They had their swords drawn and they were all wearing some sort of ck uniform-with red trims that went around their shoulders and their heads were covered by some sort of cap.


    Were those ninjas?


    I know this man does not have ninjas as his bodyguards, there is no way, right?


    ¡°Let¡¯s get this party started!¡± Mchi shouted in excitement, as we all walked towards the entrance.


    A man in a red suit came forward towards us as soon as we began walking up to the doors, looking at us with an expression that looked concerned. His face wasn¡¯t too wrinkled, and he didn¡¯t have gray hair somehow, but he looked like he was 65. He looked mean as well, as his eyes were filled with contempt for us. ¡°May I help you kids?¡± he asked, but he seemed to be implying ¡®no¡¯.


    I smiled and gave him a polite look.


    ¡°We have something that may pretty much concern you actually,¡± September said. ¡°It¡¯s very important.¡± The man chuckled, ¡°Is it money?¡±


    I blinked twice before I responded, ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure?¡± he asked, tilting his head as he looked at me. ¡°Because I don¡¯t know what else is important that you have to offer me other than poor families who send their kids to ask for money, as if I¡¯m gonna change my answer.¡±


    ¡°No, it may consist of your grandson,¡± I said, feeling myself get angry as I felt my blood boiling within me as I looked him in the eyes. ¡°His name is Masaru Kin.¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± he said, raising an eyebrow as he began tough a bit. ¡°Like I didn¡¯t know that.¡± He chuckled once more before he gave us a serious expression. ¡°You don¡¯t have any business here.¡±


    ¡°We do,¡± September said with a re on her face. ¡°Important business.¡±


    Zakeshi Kin looked at us suspiciously before he opened the door, I guess signaling us to follow him. We followed behind him, and he led us into his mansion. It was just as beautiful inside as it was outside! We all stopped in our tracks at what we saw once we got inside of the building. The walls were a beautiful red, but there were many paintings on the wall of a very dark red color that stood out from everything else in the room. They were painted with different scenes from different wars and battles from different countries. The tiles were breathtaking, as they had been made out of tiles that had a ck color with different colors painted all over them which seemed to be made out of different kinds of jewels and rubies.


    The furniture was top ss: they were made out of leather, wood, and gold-which I thought was quite extravagant, since it looked so expensive. There were some bookshelves along the walls which seemed to be made out of the same material and they were lined up, holding many different kinds of books which were all written in differentnguages that I didn¡¯t know-but it looked like they had been handmade by hand with gold iys and jewels.


    This man must be a trillionaire or something, I thought to myself.


    There were several tables around the room which had different kinds of foods: fruits and meat, which looked amazing to me. The floor was tiled in ck as well, as it looked so hard that it couldst for thousands of years and it felt like it was just a piece of stone or something.


    I had never been in such a ce before-not even close to being in a ce like this.


    ¡°Okay, take a seat in one of these chairs if you¡¯d like,¡± he said in an annoyed tone, looking at us. ¡°I¡¯ve had enough of you children.¡± He gave us a sarcastic look before he walked out of the room. ¡°You can find your own table if you¡¯d like to.¡±


    ¡°No we¡¯re fine here,¡± I said, rolling my eyes.


    I took a seat on the chair, and my bottom feltforted, as if it were a king¡¯s chair. ¡°It¡¯s veryfy here,¡± I muttered, smiling.


    I turned to September and she looked a bit annoyed with Zakeshi Kin¡¯s attitude towards us, but she simply smiled as if she was just enjoying life. All of a sudden, a maid came into the room, looking at us with a stern expression on her face. ¡°May I get you anything?¡± she asked, looking at us.


    ¡°Yes!¡± Zakeshi Kin shouted, running into the room and speaking to her in an excited tone. ¡°Get my visitors some-uh-lemonade and make us all an omelet, being that this is quite the morning,¡± he said, still looking at us as if we were scum. ¡°Make it quick!¡± he said with a snort, and he went back into his room.


    The maid stood there for a minute before she finally spoke to us again, ¡°I¡¯ll be back with your entries.¡± Then he came back, now with only his gray vest, before he sat. ¡°Now what is the deal with my grandson?¡±

 Chapter 149

    149 Hotel Motel


    ¡°Well quite some bad things to be honest,¡± September said, looking down at her hands on herp as she spoke to him. ¡°We¡¯ve been going through some things recently, but we need your help to find out if he¡¯s okay.¡±


    ¡°Yes he is,¡± he said. ¡°He¡¯s in his room.¡±


    ¡°You really might want to get him out of here as quickly as you can,¡± Tisiah said. Zakeshi Kin looked at us confused, ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because he is in danger of getting kidnapped,¡± September said, taking out a picture of him from her bag. ¡°This is his picture.¡±


    Zakeshi Kin looked at the picture and then back to us with an expression of concern on his face. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s just business threats, the usual thing that happens,¡± he said. ¡°There¡¯s no actual threat.¡±


    September shook her head, ¡°No this is a bit more serious than that, we¡¯ve been warned about it.¡±


    He looked at the picture again, ¡°Do you think someone is trying to kill him?¡±


    ¡°No, but actually trying to use him,¡± September said, taking out another picture from her bag and handing it to Zakeshi Kin. He looked at it for a moment before he looked up at us again with his eyebrows raised. ¡°Use him for what?¡±


    ¡°ssified information we can¡¯t exactly tell you,¡± Mchi revealed, making me feel sick to my stomach for some reason.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Zakeshi Kin said, looking at us suspiciously. ¡°You look like you¡¯re telling me something that will harm my family.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Well because it might,¡± I winced, seeing the expression on Zakeshi Kin¡¯s face. ¡°But if you would just believe us-¡±


    ¡°It is too early for that!¡± Zakeshi Kin said. ¡°I don¡¯t believe for a single moment, and you expect to trust in the fact of something I can¡¯t know? You could be the kidnappers for all I care.¡±


    ¡°No, Mr. Kin, that would not be so,¡± September said. ¡°Not at all.¡± But he was not convinced, as he just rolled his eyes and shook his head. ¡°You¡¯ve had your chance now.¡± He said as he got up off of his chair. ¡°If you¡¯ll excuse me...¡±


    ¡°Mr. Kin,¡± I pleaded, ¡°You need to listen to us.¡±


    He turned around and looked at all of us, his face full of annoyance and anger, and I knew this was going to go nowhere good. ¡°I don¡¯t care,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m warning you, its-¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care. You guys are a bunch of kids who want to annoy me, and you¡¯ve seeded. Now get out!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll soon care,¡± September said, getting up from her seat, walking up to him and grabbing his shoulders tightly. I could tell she was trying to stay calm and act strong but she was losing control. ¡°We know you love your grandson very much. And want to save him.¡±


    He looked at September, but he wasn¡¯t bulging. ¡°Out,¡± he said once more.


    September stood there for a moment in shock, then slowly headed for the door, and we soon felt the grab to follow after her, and I saw a maid closing the door as we walked out of there.


    Zakeshi Kin stood in the middle of his room as we left, and I noticed there was a window open on his wall. He looked horrified and scared. I would be too. ¡°Well that was a bust,¡± Mchi said, as we got inside of the limo, and we began to drive off.


    ¡°Yes it was,¡± I said with a frown. I did not want this to end in failure. Not when we were this close!


    ¡°Let¡¯s just call Mr. Drails, so we can see what to do,¡± September said. But as she got the radio, only static was responding to her. I hope this isn¡¯t what I think it is. Is the signal cut off from Japan, is that why they wanted to attack him here?! ¡°Oh, no that¡¯s bad,¡± Nikki said, looking at September, who then gave her a re before she pressed the button once more. Still nothing wasing back. ¡°This is not good.¡±


    ¡°What happened?¡± I asked, concerned as well.


    ¡°There¡¯s no signal,¡± September said. ¡°None.¡±


    ¡°Alright, how about we get you guys to a hotel-a favorite of ours-and maybe a signal coulde back,¡± the driver said, looking at us, but I wasn¡¯t so sure he was right.


    ¡°Yeah that¡¯s a good idea,¡± I said. But there was an uneasy feeling deep inside my heart. Why would there be no signal? If the JSA works here, how do the agentsmunicate? Thoughts blundered my mind, and I didn¡¯t know what to think of it all.


    ¡°Well we can go there,¡± Nikki said, sitting back in her seat, as she looked at September and me with a worried expression on her face.


    The limo drove through the streets of Japan, but nothing changed; no different buildings, nothing new. It was still a ce I never really knew, and I wondered if it would be a good ce for me to live as a child. It seems crowded to me, but then again I was a child myself so that would make sense to me. But I could never imagine myself living here long-term for any period of time. It seemed like there was always something wrong with it; like it was too fast paced and people didn¡¯t have any patience in them anymore.


    After a few hours driving and seeing nothing but the same thing over and over again, we finally arrived at our destination, and I thought that I might have seen some different or even better than Mr. Kin¡¯s house. But instead it was quite the economic hotel, which looked like the one in New York City only smaller. It looked like a typical hotel; with white walls, and blue chairs on each side of the lobby floor.


    ¡°Well, this looks like a favorite,¡± Nikki said sarcastically, looking around at the lobby before she got out of the car with September following behind her.


    I stood up from my chair and exited as well, as Mchi and I walked over to Nikki and September who were standing in front of a veryrge man behind, who looked to be very annoyed at us for whatever reason. ¡°This is our room number,¡± September said as she handed the man the key card for the room that we would be staying at.


    The man nodded and looked at us, his eyes squinting as if he were angry or something. He was probably annoyed at us for just being there, but we didn¡¯t care; we just wanted to get inside and find some answers as to why no one could get a signal from Japan, so time was of the essence.


    He gave us the room, as we walked into the elevator, and then he turned around and made his way back into the lobby with the keys in his hand. ¡°This is our floor,¡± September told us once we were inside the elevator. The elevator smelled funky, like someone had recently taken a dump in there. It made me want to throw up in the corner, but I held it in because we were in Japan and I didn¡¯t want to ruin anything here.


    I¡¯d prefer not to embarrass myself, for one thing.


    The elevator stopped and opened right in front of the room doors; as we walked out, we could see that they were very simr to Mr. Kin¡¯s ce; the hallway looked like arge hall that had three doors down each side. There was also a room with a huge sliding ss door on each side of the hallway as well.


    ¡°Okay, now we¡¯re talking,¡± Mchi nodded, walking over to the doors and opening one of the two doors that led inside of the room. There was a small desk with aputer on top of it, as well as a small kitchen counter with a sink on it and a microwave in the corner.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s settle down and hope we can find a signal here,¡± September said as she sat down on the bed, which looked like it was made of cheap material with aforter on it, and Nikki and Mchi went to sit down at theputer desk, which I wasn¡¯t sure if it was the same type as the ones in the USA.


    ¡°Hopefully they got room service,¡± Mchi said, pulling out his phone and looking at it to see if there was any reception.


    I took a seat at theputer desk as well, and Nikki sat down beside me and turned on the screen to see if we could get anything.


    It turned on and immediately Wi-fi was connected, and Nikki sat there holding her head in her hands as she was trying to find any signal from Japan on her phone. ¡°Oh man,¡± Nikki said, turning to me and giving me a sad look on her face. ¡°Why doesn¡¯t it work on our phones?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯d think the SIM¡¯s card would do something,¡± Tisiah said, staring at Nikki, but then he pulled out his phone and opened it up as well. Nothing, nothing at all, not even the slightest hint of a signal on his phone. I began to get really nervous.


    ¡°This is really weird,¡± Nikki said, looking up at the ceiling with her eyes full of worry as she shook her head.


    ¡°Something is wrong,¡± September said.


    ¡°We need to try something else,¡± Mchi said, as he got up from his seat at theputer desk and went into the kitchen area and pulled out two bottles of water that were sitting in the fridge. ¡°Maybe this isn¡¯t Japan. Maybe its-¡±

 Chapter 150

    150 An Introduction to a Foe


    ¡°You think it¡¯s the BMO?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Could be,¡± he answered, and took both bottles of water out of the fridge, handing one to me and the other to Nikki as he walked back over to sit on the bed. ¡°It¡¯s possible.¡±


    ¡°But how would they know that we¡¯re here?¡± Nikki asked, looking at Mchi, as she took a sip from her water bottle and then put it back on the bed. I took mine as well and gulped it down quickly, getting a little bit of water in my mouth as well as my stomach.


    ¡°Don¡¯t have much of an idea to be honest,¡± I said honestly, as I walked over to the other side of the bed and took a seat next to Nikki, who just shook her head as she took a deep breath in and let it out slowly. ¡°Alright, well maybe we can call the JSA, tell him we need to get back to the YMPA,¡± September said hopefully, looking at me with a sad look on her face. She must have been thinking of the same thing I was thinking of; how were we supposed to get back to the YMPA if there was no way tomunicate with them?


    ¡°Listen, let¡¯s not worry right now and-¡±


    Suddenly, Tisiah stopped as he rushed over to the window. ¡°What?¡± I asked, following him. But as I looked down, fear crept into my heart sneakily, like an intruder; the way I had felt as if I saw a giant bear in front of me. But this feeling was different; more intense than before. ¡°What is it?¡± September asked.


    ¡°I think the BMO is here,¡± Tisiah said shakily, looking out of the window before he grabbed his wand and ran over to the window as well, looking outside with me. I didn¡¯t see anything; norge bears or wolves or anything that I would have been terrified by, but I could feel something in my body that tingled.


    ¡°Did they already enter the hotel?¡± Mchi asked frantically, turning around and looking at Tisiah and September with concern on his face as well as Nikki.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Tisiah answered nervously as he turned his wand on and pointed it outside of the window. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    .....


    ¡°We need to get out of here now,¡± September said.


    But soon enough, there was a knock on the door, and it wasn¡¯t the knocking sound that I had gotten used to; this sounded like someone pounding on the door with their fist. ¡°I don¡¯t like this,¡± Tisiah said nervously.


    ¡°Don¡¯t open the door,¡± Mchi whispered with fear, but there was a loud voice that came through the door in Japanese; I could tell from the ent that it wasn¡¯t Japanese, but anothernguage that I wasn¡¯t familiar with.


    But then, they kicked down the door with a boom, as BMO agents poured in, their wands pointed at us. ¡°Don¡¯t move!¡± one of them shouted, as fear and confusion raced through my mind, causing me to tremble as they walked in, with guns pointing at us. They were holding rifles in their hands that were pointed at us; at me specifically. I didn¡¯t know if I should be afraid or not.


    But then, our eyes widened in shock as Maddie Cone walked through the guards towards us. ¡°So you guys are the YMPA, not sure what I expected,¡± she said, as she pulled out her wand and looked at it curiously before she started to walk over towards us with her wand pointed at us. ¡°Now don¡¯t even try anything funny, because I¡¯ll be happy to kill you all.¡±


    ¡°Same with you,¡± September spat fiercely, standing up from her chair and standing tall as she faced Maddie Cone. ¡°And if you harm even one of our people here, you¡¯ll be sorry.¡±


    ¡°Maddie, please don¡¯t do anything dumb,¡± Mchi said desperately from the bed. ¡°I don¡¯t think that would make sense.¡±


    ¡°Why not, after all you guys are just an annoyance to me to be honest,¡± she said with a chuckle, as she looked at all of us with contempt in her eyes. ¡°And I can¡¯t say that I care about you either.¡±


    ¡°Maddie, please listen to me,¡± Tisiah spoke up nervously from behind her, but she simply turned around. ¡°We can talk about this perhaps.¡± Maddie Cone looked at us like fools, but she then shook her head and waved her wand. ¡°I told you not to say anything.¡±


    The BMO¡¯s then started to pull out guns and put them in their holsters as they walked around the room, looking at each of us carefully and cautiously. I looked at September, who looked at Tisiah, who looked at Nikki, who looked back at me. I had no idea what was going on. ¡°Tisiah,¡± I whispered, feeling like my body was burning up from fear, as I held my wand out in front of me, ¡°what is going on?¡±


    ¡°Just wait,¡± September said. ¡°Get them all into custody,¡± Maddie Cone said, adjusting her jacket like some rich woman, as she stood in the middle of our room. ¡°I want them out of here.¡±


    But all of a sudden, September stomped on one of the guard¡¯s feet, making him scream in pain before she followed with a hard elbow. I¡¯m not sure what she was nning, but hopefully she nned well enough. The other guard rushed towards her, leaving me alone and swung a punch.


    In a matter of seconds the man found himself falling onto the ground, crashing through the ss table.


    ¡°Stop them!¡± one of the guards shouted, but the other guards quickly followed suit and they all started to attack.


    Oh, boy.


    Quickly one of the guards shot towards me,ing in with a quick swing, which caught me across the face, sending me stumbling backwards a few steps. He then followed up by swinging again and hitting me square in my jawline. The pain shot through my head and I could taste blood as I spit out a few teeth before he grabbed my shoulders.


    I needed to somehow get out of here, get me some space between him.


    I kicked him in the stomach, and then he stumbled back a few feet. Then I finished off with a kick to the chin, sending him flying back and hitting his head on the wall. I looked beside myself, seeing September being mobbed by three guards. I needed to help her.


    I grabbed one of the men by his tie and threw him across the room into his friends before I charged towards the other two guards.


    One of the guards rushed in, throwing a quick punch, but I blocked it and then countered with a left hook to his head and sent him stumbling backwards. As soon as he was off-bnce I grabbed him by his cor and pulled him into the window. September looked at me breathlessly, ¡°Thanks.¡±


    ¡°What did you expect me to do?¡± I responded with a chuckle, as we looked back towards the other guards that were now fighting against our other friends.


    ¡°You were a lot more aggressive than I was expecting,¡± she responded.


    I looked back at Maddie Cone, who had an evil smile on her face as she looked around. ¡°I guess I have to do this myself,¡± she said, as she got out her wand. ¡°Oh shoot,¡± I muttered, as she ran towards September. Quickly, September grabbed her wand and quickly blocked the swing, sending her stumbling back from the hit. But I noticed that there was a bit of fireing from her wand as she struck out at September again.


    But this time she took a lower approach.


    She attacked September at the thigh, stumbling on her stability, but that wasn¡¯t enough to stop her from blocking her wand. But then suddenly she threw out another hit with her wand; this time at her shoulder de. But September didn¡¯t even flinch; as if she was terminator.


    But Maddie Cone wasn¡¯t done-not even close.


    Suddenly she came with a flurry of attacks at September, like some sort of a boxer who was trying to knock down a heavyweight champion. But September didn¡¯t even flinch, and when she finally did block one of her hits it caused her to fall forward onto the ground for a moment.


    ¡°Okay, so you¡¯re not bad, not gonna lie,¡± Maddie Cone said. ¡°Might have to turn up the heat a little bit.¡± Suddenly she sped towards September, throwing her wand in front of her and using it like a sword in her hand. September was quick to move, jumping over it and avoiding any serious damage at all.


    I could only screech in fear.


    September rolled onto her feet, her wand firm in her grip, and then started to counterattack. I had to give her props; she was fighting like someone who had experience. And then suddenly she blocked another attack before she countered with one of her own.


    Maddie Cone was slowly moving back, trying to dodge and weave each attack that September swung, but it didn¡¯t seem to be enough for her. But then suddenly she began to fall backwards, until she hit the ground andy there on her back for a moment before she got up.


    But she looked mad.


    And I mean mad.

 Chapter 151

    151 Escaping to the Help


    Suddenly, as September swung-Maddie swept under her arm, and before September turned around, a bolt struck her in the chest, knocking her into the air and causing her to tumble backwards. But quickly she recovered and then stood up quickly. ¡°What was that?¡± she asked as if she had been attacked by a swarm of bees.


    She struggled to get up, as Maddie Cone walked slowly towards her with a chuckle, looking at her like a predator looking at its prey. And then suddenly Maddie Cone fired off another shot that hit September right in the stomach. September grunted in pain and fell onto the ground.


    ¡°Now you see why you don¡¯t mess with me, don¡¯t you?¡± she asked with a chuckle. ¡°You¡¯re clearly not as smart as me.¡± She pointed her wand close to September¡¯s face, ¡°Now stay there while I call your friends out.¡± She walked away from September before she began to wave her wand around in the air.


    Suddenly she stopped and held it high in the air; as sirens began to wail in the distance. ¡°Move out!¡± she shouted to the agents, who froze and immediately followed after her. The knocked out guards were carried onto conscious guards¡¯ backs, as they exited our room.


    Our room was a messpletely, absolutely destroyed by what had happened. But I wasn¡¯t paying attention to that right now; I was still in awe of what had just happened.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± I asked September. She winced as she looked at me, coughing out a bit of blood before she wiped her lips, and nodded to me before she looked over to the other side of the room. ¡°Let me help you up,¡± I said, reaching out my hand. But as soon as I reached for her she grabbed me by my shirt and pulled me towards herself and kissed me on the mouth.


    I could only gasp for air before she broke off from the kiss.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± she wheezed, as I took a few deep breaths, trying to calm down from the adrenaline rush.


    ¡°What was that for?¡± I asked, trying to keep myself together. ¡°A sort of gift I guess,¡± she said, getting up. ¡°We need to get out of here, contact that JSA.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said. ¡°Hopefully those drivers are still there or something.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± Mchi said breathlessly, still lying in bed as he coughed and wheezed. ¡°But we can¡¯t afford to wait.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll get out of here,¡± Nikki said, picking up one of our fallen guns and putting it in her holster. ¡°We will.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s move before the police show up,¡± September said, looking around, but quickly she held up a hand. ¡°Wait a second,¡± she said, looking over to the window where the guards were just leaving with a few agents following behind them.


    ¡°We can jump out this window,¡± September said with a chuckle.


    No, no we can¡¯t!


    ¡°Are you insane?¡± I shouted at her in panic.


    ¡°What?¡± she asked, turning to me with a look of surprise on her face. ¡°Unless you want to take ten minutes just to get outside.¡± All of a sudden, she hopped out of the window, gracefullynding on the ground with ease. ¡°Come on, I¡¯ll help you out.¡±


    I looked over at Nikki and Mchi who nodded back to me nervously before I stepped outside the window myself, jumping down on the ground andnding on my feet with ease. Then I helped Nikki and Mchi out as we looked around and saw that no one had followed us yet. Tisiah soon followed, but he was a bit more harder to deal with, as he kept falling into bushes and stuff like that.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± I asked Tisiah, but he didn¡¯t respond-he was just walking around like a chicken who had been thrown into a bucket full of water. ¡°Tisiah, get a hold of yourself!¡± I shouted at him.


    ¡°Yeah, yeah,¡± he said, his eyes half-closed as he looked around with a lost expression on his face.


    I sighed loudly, as I grabbed him by his cor and pulled him back towards me. ¡°Are the drivers here?¡± I asked, and low and behold, the limo was still there. Quickly we rushed towards the car, as I opened the door, sitting inside.


    ¡°Come on,¡± I said as we all got in and sat down in the car.


    I looked over at Nikki and Mchi who both looked at me with wide eyes. ¡°Okay, take us to the JSA,¡± September said. The driver looked back with confusion. ¡°I know you guys are CSMO, no need to hide it, let¡¯s go.¡±


    The driver shrugged, ¡°Okay,¡± he said before he pressed on the gas and started to drive down the street. The police siren still red in the background, but hopefully that wouldn¡¯t be too much of a problem. One of the inhabitants probablyined about the noise, which was probably the reason why they called it in.


    I nced at September out of the corner of my eye and saw that she was sitting beside me with her arms crossed and a smile on her face. ¡°Alright, we need to tell the JSA and maybe they could warn Zekeshi Kin, and then he might see we¡¯re not ying,¡± September said, with a smile on her face.


    I turned my gaze back to Tisiah, who was now lying down on one of the seats. He didn¡¯t even bother to say anything as he slept soundly on the seat. He must¡¯ve been super tired. Soon enough we started driving to where there was absolutely no sort of sign of buildings.


    All mountains, trees, and snow were all that could be seen from the windows. There were also no signs of life except for the asional bird that flew past our windows, as we drove down the mountain and up onto the other side of it, which was a bit more t than usual.


    Then as I looked ahead I saw this big base, it looked like a castle of some sort, and it was huge, with walls as tall as a few buildings I¡¯d seen. ¡°This is definitely one of those bases,¡± I said with a nervous chuckle. The driver responded, ¡°This is the JSA base.¡±


    ¡°Oh, looks like a dark castle,¡± Nikki said with a concerned expression, as we drove towards it. ¡°A bit eerie.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said with a nod. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± It seemed like there was nobody home except for the asional guard walking around in front of the ce. The driver pulled into this sort of driveway to a gate, but this one was made of metal-not wood-and it was closed tightly shut. ¡°How do we get in?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± September said with a shrug. But then, a big camera popped out of the gate, as a green line scanned us, before it began to open slowly and we entered in slowly as well. As soon as we passed through the gates the camera slowly closed back up and returned to its original position on the gate.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s new,¡± I muttered, as we drove down the ramp into this big courtyard, which had these tall white towers rising up into the sky.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen this ce,¡± Mchi said quietly, as he looked around himself in awe. The driver parked, but he didn¡¯t get out.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± September said with a chuckle as we got out of the car and headed over towards the main door. We knocked, but immediately the door opened, but no one was behind it. I looked ahead, seeing a guy use his hand to open the door as surprise popped on my face.


    ¡°You guys must be from the YMPA, yes?¡± the man said. The man looked Japanese, as usual, but he was wearing a ck suit with a red bowtie, along with an odd pair of sunsses on top of his head. His eyes were a sort of grey color. ¡°I am Boliwa B, but you can just call me B.¡± He held out his hand to shake our hands-or rather, to shake Mchi¡¯s hand.


    ¡°Oh-yeah,¡± September said with a confused look. ¡°We need your help.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± he asked.

 Chapter 152

    152 Returning Back


    ¡°We believe the BMO cut off a signal, so we can¡¯t return back to the YMPA, so maybe you could help us,¡± September said, smiling as she said it.


    B suddenly grinned as he pulled Mchi into a hug. ¡°Yes!¡± he shouted, as he pulled back from Mchi and ced his hand on his shoulder. Was Mchi his son or something, the man was way too happy to see him or something, or maybe it was just how he was acting in general. ¡°Come on inside, I will exin everything.¡±


    We all walked inside and after we closed the door behind us-I was surprised by the fact that the door didn¡¯t open back up. ¡°We can actually activate the signal from our tech room. But being you guys are allies with us, I¡¯d perhaps let you guys in this visitor center for the night. It has beds, tables, food and everything. You guys should do just fine in here,¡± he said, grinning widely at us as we walked past the reception desk with our guards and Tisiah following behind us.


    We followed B into the visitor center which was basically a ce where people came to visit. No one was in there right now, which was maybe the reason why he allowed us to stay there for the night. ¡°Hey,¡± he called out loudly to someone as we passed by a couple of empty desks, ¡°I¡¯ve got some guests staying over.¡± A woman¡¯s voice replied from upstairs somewhere.


    ¡°Alright, well I guess this is where we¡¯re staying for now I guess,¡± I said.


    I saw on a red sofa that was about two feet from me, where Nikki and Mchi were sitting together on a couch, with Tisiah lying on a different sofa a few feet away from them. ¡°I¡¯m gonna go get some food,¡± Nikki said before she got up and walked off towards the kitchen area.


    ¡°Get us some too,¡± Mchi said, waving at her andughing as she left.


    I looked up from my seat, where I was looking down at the ground, when I saw B sitting beside me. ¡°Hey,¡± he said, and my heart jumped for a second, but then it slowed down when I saw that he was smiling at me. ¡°So, you¡¯re in good hands here,¡± he said.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked him, not quite sure what he meant by that statement.


    .....


    ¡°We have guards surrounding this entire base, in fact we got a bunch of cameras on those little signs that are across the street,¡± he said, pointing at some cameras above us. ¡°But I mean you guys are really important here at this base.¡±


    I just nodded my head in agreement.


    ¡°Oh, but what were you doing in the middle of the woods?¡± he asked. I wasn¡¯t sure how to exactly exin that, so I just shook my head. ¡°Okay then,¡± he said with a smile. He then looked up as he saw Nikki walk into the room with some food in her hands.


    ¡°Oh,¡± Nikki said with a bit of surprise after seeing B in front of her. ¡°Do you have some sort of an idea why you guys were in the middle of the woods?¡±


    ¡°Well, we were first trying to convince the father of the CEO of JSA-¡± B¡¯s eyes suddenly lowered in worry-¡°that his grandson was going to get kidnapped by the BMO for a new weapon. But being the punk he is, he didn¡¯t listen, so now when Masaru Kin is about to enter the airport, many are gonna die in kidnapping this one child,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°Plus we tried to find a signal to return back to Mr. Drails before we got attacked by them,¡± I said, pointing at Mchi and Tisiah who were still lying down on their couches as they were snoring.


    ¡°But now we¡¯re trying to get back to our base so we can return back home,¡± I added quickly. ¡°That¡¯s why we need you to restore back the signal.¡±


    ¡°Okay, no need to worry, I¡¯ll try and find a way to postpone the flight,¡± he said, cing his hands on his legs as he leaned back. ¡°It shouldn¡¯t take too long though.¡±


    ¡°I hope so,¡± Nikki said before she walked over to us. ¡°The signal should be restored soon, in about thirty minutes, then you guys can go. Tell him you sessfully did your mission, but you technically did,¡± B said.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± September thanked, giving him a big smile. ¡°Thank you so much!¡±


    B waved her off and got up from his chair before walking over towards Nikki and me. He held out his hand to shake our hand. ¡°It¡¯s all in stopping all of the MSTO,¡± he said. ¡°All of them.¡±


    ***


    Soon enough thirty minutes passed, as B rushed inside of the room. ¡°Good news, being the block was very weak, it took about thirty minutes, as I said, to restore back the signal. You guys can go back to the YMPA now.¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± September said, getting out her radio, as she turned to Tisiah and Mchi. ¡°Come on guys! We got to get back now!¡±


    Tisiah groaned loudly before he sat up, rubbing his eyes. ¡°Are there unicorns?¡± he asked. Confusion was written all over September¡¯s face, before she got out her radio and gave him a stern re. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure that he doesn¡¯t say anything like that anymore.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s hope so,¡± Nikki said, taking out her radio. ¡°Mr. Drails...yeah, our mission has ended, we¡¯re ready to go.¡±


    Soon enough, a portal opened up in front of Nikki. ¡°Alright, see youter B!¡± I shouted, waving at the Japanese man who waved at me before he left us.


    I turned to the others before we walked through the portal. ¡°Okay, so we got to the YMPA and now we have to tell him about everything we¡¯ve just done,¡± I said. ¡°Hope we didn¡¯t do anything wrong.¡±


    We walked through, immediately walking into that room again, where Mr. Drails was standing. ¡°Hello, agents!¡± he celebrated, pping his hands together as he stood in front of us. ¡°You made it back! Did you find out anything?¡±


    ¡°No...¡± I started to say, but I stopped myself when I saw a bit of anger in Mr. Drails¡¯ eyes. ¡°Joking!¡± I returned.


    I don¡¯t think that was a good joke, I thought to myself as I nced back at September. She shook her head with a worried expression. ¡°Alright where¡¯s Masaru Kin?¡± he asked. September sighed, ¡°The grandfather didn¡¯t believe us so we couldn¡¯t really-you know -get him. But then the BMO cut off the signal.¡±


    ¡°The BMO was there?¡± he asked with worry.


    ¡°Yes, and they seemed to know we were there. So when we booked a hotel to hopefully find a signal, we were attacked but luckily the CSMO drivers are very e-¡±


    ¡°The CSMO we¡¯re there?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± September responded. ¡°They were there. So, then we went to the JSA so they could override the barricade and return back the signal. And while doing so, we told Boliwa Base or something about what happened, and he was able to extend the flight. It would give us more time now.¡±


    ¡°Alright that¡¯s good, but one question,¡± Mr. Drails said before clearing his throat. ¡°Was Maddie Cone there when you guys were attacked?¡±


    Silence took over the room for a second, before September answered, ¡°Yes.¡± He nodded, his lips trembling in anger. ¡°That¡¯s it. She knew you were there, so she blocked off the signal so that no one would be able to help you, while she put you into the dirt,¡± he said. ¡°Maddie Cone is smart, not gonna lie.¡±


    ¡°But we¡¯re smarter-I hope,¡± Tisiah shrugged, holding his hands up in front of him as if he was trying to reassure himself that he didn¡¯t do anything wrong.


    Mr. Drails sighed and ced his hands on his head before turning around to look at us all. ¡°Okay, rest and we¡¯ll see what to do. Good job on surviving, I¡¯ll tell you what to do nextter,¡± he said.

 Chapter 153

    153 Rejection


    The weekend ended, and it was Monday, the most dreadful day of the week. Not only is it because its the beginning of the school week, but Greg. As I walked in the halls, Greg was literally talking to some sort of person every second, making a conversation out of nothing. His voice sounded like it came out of an old radio which had a broken speaker.


    And he didn¡¯t evene to me anymore, like how we used to.


    Girls went up to him, asking him what he had for lunch that day or what he did that weekend or something else dumb like that. ¡°Well I went to a partyst night and I¡¯m pretty sure it was the best one yet!¡± Greg said with augh,pletely not caring if anyone was listening to him talk about such an event. I couldn¡¯t help but feel envious that he was able to be that carefree while everyone around him had their eyes glued on him.


    It was like I wasn¡¯t anybody, I had be invisible.


    I sat down in my usual spot in the hall right beside our lockers, as I looked up at the clock that read nine fifty five AM. I looked at Greg, as men began to rush towards him like he was an idol of some sort of boy band or something. It was like he was the leader of something, and everyone just wanted to be a part of whatever it was he was doing or talking about.


    He was like the man in town, people just came to him whenever they had problems or just wanted some advice or some sort of information about the world. I felt bad for Greg in a sense because he had all these guys going crazy around him, but it seemed like it wasn¡¯t hurting him at all.


    But it was hurting me, and I couldn¡¯t help but feel alone right now as everyone around me had their eyes glued onto Greg while I was just left alone in this world that was going crazy around me.


    But as he walked, I looked at him, hoping he would stop by and just say hi. Just hi, so I could say hi back and maybe get him to look at me at least once on this day of that was Monday.


    But he didn¡¯t stop by.


    .....


    He didn¡¯t.


    He passed by me, not even looking at me, forgetting about me, as if I wasn¡¯t even there at all.


    I was done, I was done being this invisible nobody who nobody cared about or wanted. I walked over towards him, my hands boiling into fists before Greg finally turned and looked at me. ¡°Do you know him?¡± one of the girls asked, looking at me with disgust, her face twisting into a scowl.


    ¡°Who?¡± I asked as Greg looked at me like he was confused by who I was referring to. ¡°You don¡¯t know him?¡± the girl asked. Greg shook his head, and my heart dropped, wondering if maybe he forgot about me or something along those lines.


    ¡°You can move now,¡± she said, her eyes bobbing up and down judgmentally, like I was some sort of dog that she had to drag away from the corner so I wouldn¡¯t bother her anymore.


    I turned and walked back towards my spot in the hallway again, my heart feeling heavy, like it was too heavy for me to carry on my shoulders. And my head was heavy too; so much so that I could hardly keep it up as I walked over to my seat by my locker again.


    I was broken, I was broken down.


    I was a nobody again, and everyone in this school saw it that way too. They all saw me as a nobody, and they just let me go without giving me any help or anything in return for it.


    I was nobody.


    I was nobody.


    I...am...nobody...


    ***


    School eventually ended, and I was almost excited to go back to the YMPA, since I knew that September would be there as well. I wanted her to tell me that I wasn¡¯t a nobody anymore because I did my mission and got everyone out of trouble so we could get away from those BMOs who were nning on abducting Masaru Kinu.


    Alright, maybe I didn¡¯t do it, those sirens did.


    As soon as I entered the building, I was met by Mchi, Nikki and Tisiah who were all standing in a group waiting for me.


    ¡°Where¡¯s September?¡± I asked as I noticed that she wasn¡¯t with us anymore, as we walked into the room and made our way towards our chairs.


    ¡°She said she needed a minute,¡± Mchi answered me as I took my seat and waited for her to join us. Mr. Drails seemed to be a bit, almost relieved of something, like he had gotten rid of a terrible burden on his shoulders.


    ¡°Okay,¡± he said, cing his hands behind his back before he turned to face us and gave us a serious look. Then, September walked in as Mr. Drails¡¯s eyes lit up, smiling at her as she walked over towards us with a big smile on her face as well. She was wearing a bright smile that seemed to say ¡®Hey guys I¡¯m back!¡¯


    Well, she was.


    ¡°Alright, so the JSA managed to postpone by three days, and Zekeshi Kin has actually asked you guys to be bodyguards for him, being that an agency did call him,¡± he said. ¡°Hopefully he¡¯s grateful.¡±


    ¡°He better be,¡± September said, crossing her arms as she sat down in her chair. She looked over at us and smiled as if we were some sort of heroes for saving Masaru Kin¡¯s life and that was exactly why we were sitting there.


    ¡°So, I want you guys to go there and guard him until it¡¯s time for you guys to you know-go to bed for school,¡± he said, as September smiled wider, nodding her head enthusiastically in agreement with Mr. Drails¡¯s n.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Tisiah said with a nod, looking at Mr. Drails and then back to September. He sighed and put his hands up in front of him as if he was tired from all this business he had to do for Masaru Kin and the YMPA.


    ¡°Alright, so get your gear ready and just make sure that no one actually tries to attack them alright?¡± Mr. Drails ordered while looking at us, making sure we had heard him correctly before we nodded our heads in response. ¡°Okay.¡± Then he walked out of the room as we started to get ready for the mission ahead of us.


    ¡°Alright, everyone ready?¡± September asked, as she looked at us with her bright blue eyes while she held her gun in one hand and her radio in the other. ¡°Yeah,¡± Nikki responded with a nod, his eyes shifting around nervously. He had a gun in one hand while his other hand was holding his radio in front of his mouth. ¡°Yes,¡± Tisiah answered while holding his gun in one hand and his radio in the other as well.


    ¡°Okay, now just to wait for the-¡±


    Portals opened under us, sweeping us off our feet before wended in front of a mansion. I felt my bones tremble, my ears ringing as my eyes opened to see Zekeshi Kin standing in front of me. ¡°Hello...kids,¡± he greeted, looking at all of us, before he noticed September standing next to us and walking towards us.


    ¡°Well, at least you believe us now,¡± September said, getting up, cing her hand on her chest before turning around and walking towards Zekeshi Kin.


    ¡°I know you guys really helped me out here, thank you,¡± he said with a smile, before turning around to face me and Tisiah, giving us a weak smile. ¡°Anyways, make yourselffortable, we may have started off on the wrong foot,¡± he said with a chuckle, his face turning serious as he turned around to walk towards his living room where I noticed some chairs on the ground along with a table in between them with various guns lying on it as well as some ammo next to them.


    The man was packed-locked and loaded, it seemed like.


    ¡°So you really don¡¯t mind if we stay here?¡± Tisiah asked as Zekeshi Kin walked back into the room with a tray with four sses filled with ice. ¡°No, I want you guys to keep my grandson safe,¡± he said. ¡°Of course I don¡¯t mind.¡±


    Then suddenly, a boy that had a mop head came down, and he was about fifteen or sixteen or so. He looked scared, but intrigued at the same time. He was wearing a red t-shirt with these gray shorts and slides with socks in them.

 Chapter 154

    154 JSA Meeting


    ¡°Are these...¡± he asked as Mr. Kin nodded, smiling at his grandson while handing him a ss of juice.


    ¡°They are your new bodyguards,¡± Zekeshi Kin said with a smile as his grandson smiled shyly at us. I waved slightly, feeling a rise of embarrassment over me, wondering if this was going to work out or if he would try to kill us like the BMOs had tried to do.


    But I guess we weren¡¯t that bad or maybe he didn¡¯t want us dead because he waved back at me and walked over to me, shaking my hand. ¡°I¡¯m Masaru,¡± he said. ¡°I know, weird names but you know-Japanese heritage.¡±


    ¡°I think it¡¯s kind of nice to be honest,¡± I said, giving him another smile, trying not to show too much emotion about it as I looked over at his grandfather who just sat there and watched us interact with his grandson. ¡°I just have a normal name, Connor. I have probably the most simplest name out of my whole group,¡± I said.


    ¡°Well Connor is a good name!¡± Masaru said as his grandfather nodded his head slowly in agreement. ¡°So you guys are from Japan?¡± he asked curiously as if he had never talked to someone from there before.


    ¡°No,¡± I chuckled. ¡°Our CEO has a perk to get us a portal to different ces, so it¡¯s a pretty quick trip. But no we¡¯re not-I think,¡± I said,ughing to myself.


    ¡°You think?¡± Masaru asked, confused.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I chuckled again, thinking about it.


    All of a sudden, Mr. Kin¡¯s phone rang as he picked up, escorting into the other room, leaving us alone in his living room for some reason. ¡°So what¡¯s going on, I heard about me being in danger.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Your grandfather told you?¡±


    ¡°No, I just heard it.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± September chuckled nervously, looking down at her feet as she walked over towards us as well as her eyes darting around. ¡°Well it¡¯s just that...¡± she said hesitantly, as if she didn¡¯t want to tell him or something. ¡°It¡¯s not something you wanna worry about.¡±


    He nodded-but suspiciously-before he sat down, watching us intently. Then we just stared at one another, awkwardly for a moment before September started talking again, like she was trying to get through to us on how to say this without sounding too scary.


    ¡°Yeah...¡± September said. ¡°So, got anything to show us?¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah, you should go to my backyard,¡± he said. ¡°Your mind would be blown.¡±


    ¡°Say less,¡± Tisiah said, rubbing his hands. They walked through and out the living room, and as I got up-I felt him tug me a bit. I stopped. ¡°Yeah?¡± I asked silently, looking over at him.


    He nodded his head and put his finger over his lips. ¡°That girl that just talked to me, the brown-hair one that looks like it used to be blond, she kinda looks...¡± He nodded and started grunting excessively, and I knew what he was talking about, but the presentation was very concerning.


    ¡°So, can you tell her that I would like to have some time with her perhaps?¡± he asked, making his voice sound like he was high on drugs.


    ¡°Yeah, no problem.¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± he said, before getting up, leading me to the backyard. Once he opened the door, I looked around, noticing that there was a fountain that was made of a crystal that was blue in color, as well as a waterfall that was running from the top of the house into a pond with lily pads on it. The grass was strong and alive, as if it was growing at a rapid speed and I saw a white boulder with a stone tree next to it with little nts sprouting out from the top of it too.


    ¡°This is beautiful,¡± Nikki said with a smile, walking over to the waterfall and leaning over it. Tisiah was looking at his surroundings as if he couldn¡¯t believe where he was right now and just started smiling at everything around him while September just stood there looking at me with her eyebrows raised.


    ¡°Yeah, my grandfather is crazy rich,¡± he said with a chuckle, rubbing his hands together in front of him. ¡°Sometimes the JSA meets with my grandfather a few times, just to see how I¡¯m doing. Unintentionally, I¡¯m very well guarded.¡±


    ¡°I can see,¡± I muttered. ¡°You must be very popr.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± he said, smirking at me as he put his hands behind his back before he turned towards me with a serious face. ¡°I guess.¡±


    ***


    Time passed after he showed us all that he had, and pretty much did, which was way too much even for three people. Masaru went back to his room, while the rest of us were in the living room. ¡°He has way too much,¡± Tisiah said, shaking his head as I nodded my head in agreement with him.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I muttered under my breath as September walked over towards us as we sat down on the couch. ¡°Now, about Maddie Cone, we shouldn¡¯t just wait until Masaru leaves again,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Not now that they know we¡¯re here.¡±


    ¡°We should take them down while we still can,¡± September said, nodding.


    ¡°But what help do we have?¡± Tisiah asked, looking at all of us with his handsid out, looking like a sign that he was surrendering or something. ¡°I don¡¯t think we stand a chance against the BMOs,¡± he muttered under his breath.


    ¡°But we do!¡± I said. ¡°The JSA.¡±


    Their eyes widened, as realization came upon them, and then they just started looking at me with fear on their faces. ¡°You can¡¯t be serious,¡± September said, standing up as I stood up with her.


    ¡°But why not?¡± I asked.


    ¡°We¡¯re not a part of them, we can¡¯t just bust in there and start asking for some help,¡± she said. ¡°This isn¡¯t the YMPA.¡± I shrugged, ¡°We kind of did it with the FMA.¡± She sighed and nodded, rubbing her head with her hand. ¡°You tell Mr. Drails that so he can get us there.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said, taking out my radio, calling Mr. Drails.


    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± he answered as I looked at Mchi.


    ¡°You know the JSA?¡± I asked. ¡°Being that they are here, it would be best if we could talk with them. They could give us support with dealing with Maddie Cone.¡±


    ¡°Okay, let me find their coordinates,¡± he said. There was a moment of silence, and then all of a sudden, a portal opened under us. I felt myselfnd on the ground hard, almost like I was shot out of a cannon. When I opened my eyes I saw that everyone else was lying on the ground too.


    ¡°Every time,¡± Mchi muttered, as we got up, standing up.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe you did that to us again!¡± September said with her arms folded as I rubbed the side of my face. ¡°I mean it¡¯s fine and all but really...it hurts!¡± I¡¯m pretty sure Mr. Drails didn¡¯t hear through the radio, but whatever, it wasn¡¯t like it would change anything anyway.


    I walked up to the gate of the base, as the camera popped out once more, eyeing us before retreating back to its position. The gate opened and we walked through, and I saw the red door. ¡°Well, let¡¯s hope B treats us likest time,¡± September said, as we approached, but instead of walking through the door this time, it just opened by itself and we walked through it, entering the room and seeing the same thing-theputer monitors, the door next to it and the only exit.


    And of course-B.


    ¡°Hey, it¡¯s you guys again,¡± he said with a chuckle.


    ¡°Hello,¡± I said with a chuckle, as he moved out the way to allow us in, sitting back in his chair as he leaned over his monitor, typing away with a grin on his face. ¡°We need your help.¡± He didn¡¯t answer for a moment and looked up at me before going back to typing.


    ¡°About what?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Well, you know about Maddie Cone right?¡± I asked. He chuckled before looking back at us, ¡°Yes. After you left, we searched into why Masaru Kin was going to get kidnapped in the first ce, and that¡¯s when we found her.¡±


    ¡°We think we should take down her operation while we still can,¡± September said, as B sighed in realization, rubbing his chin. He looked at us for a moment before nodding his head. ¡°That¡¯s fine, but what do you need me to do?¡±

 Chapter 155

    155 Storming


    ¡°Well,¡± I said as he pointed at me and then pointed at Tisiah and then Nikki, ¡°help us think of a n.¡±


    He nodded as if that was the right answer, and he got up. ¡°Follow me,¡± he said, as he got up from his seat. He went into the elevator as we followed, before it shot down about two floors. Then as he opened up, my eyes burst with shock, as I sawputers with agents walking through, some of which had their hair cut short and some of which had long hair with beards and such. Some were even bald with a big nose and ears sticking out of their head.


    ¡°Alright, agents!¡± he shouted, as everyone paused. ¡°I want you to find where Maddie Cone¡¯s base is located here in Japan, I want her out of there.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± they shouted, as even more shock burst on my face, as I saw that many of the agents had red eyes or looked pale inplexion, with their hair either dyed or just really dirty looking with no sense of style whatsoever. Talk about being a spy mage, but I guess they all had to be that way.


    ¡°Has anyone got anything yet?¡± he asked, although no answer was given. I looked at the other agents that were here that weren¡¯t like him and noticed that some of them were pretty young. ¡°Sir, we¡¯ve found that there is a location-although we¡¯re not sure there is really any sort of base there, but it seems like they¡¯re preparing something.¡±


    ¡°Something like what?¡± B asked, as the person looked at him, scratching the back of his head awkwardly before pointing to the screen and scrolling through it to find what he was talking about. ¡°Oh,¡± he muttered before he turned back around.


    ¡°Right here.¡±


    I looked up, seeing a row of cars behind one another, and I immediately knew what was happening. ¡°The convoy is being set up.¡±


    ¡°I want agents there to scout the area, and arrest Maddie Cone,¡± B said. He turned over to us, ¡°Once they get ready, I want you guys to assist them, I hope one of you guys has a Perk.¡± No problem, no problem.


    .....


    ¡°You¡¯ll have to wait,¡± he said as I nodded my head in agreement. ¡°Once they¡¯re ready, we¡¯ll take out her convoy.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s hope so,¡± I said, as September looked at me, her mouth hanging open.


    ¡°Yes...we have to,¡± she said as Nikki looked at us and smiled awkwardly. ¡°So how do you want us to take them out?¡±


    ¡°Storm in like calvary,¡± B said, staring at each of us, as I nodded my head again. ¡°Take them out, and arrest Maddie Cone.¡± ¡°Yes sir,¡± Mchi said, rubbing his hands, as I looked over to Nikki, who just stood there with a nk expression.


    ¡°Now, go,¡± B said as we started moving towards the exit of the room. ¡°Get ready, I¡¯ll get the cars to set up.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± I said, as we exited the room, before B followed us. Once we got out of the base and onto the outside, I looked up at the sky, noticing that there was a moon in it that seemed like it had an eye on it. Weird to be honest, not gonna lie. Then B closed the door, as the silence took over.


    ¡°So when are these carsing?¡± Mchi asked, looking around, his eyes filled with anxiety as September looked at me.


    ¡°Soon,¡± I said, walking over to a bench and sitting down on it. ¡°They¡¯ll be here in a little bit.¡±


    ¡°I hope so, because we don¡¯t got-¡±


    All of a sudden, three or four Escdes piled into a line, as confusion spread all over our faces. I¡¯m impressed to be honest, not expecting them to pull anything off. But when the doors opened up and everyone got out, I saw that most of them were not like B¡¯s agents. They all had short hair with the exception of one or two people who had long hair, one woman who had too much long hair.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go,¡± September said. Now which car should I go into, I thought to myself, but instead I chose one at random.


    Once inside I saw that there were seats with arm rests, and they seemed like they could fit about ten peoplefortably, with the rest being able to stand if needed. September and Tisiah joined me, as we sat down on one of the seats, as everyone else went to stand by the door. As they were opening up the other door of the car-that was when I saw that there was another car that was following us.


    Now there were five cars that were assisting us, so that meant that there were twenty-five people altogether in the cars. Then again-not including me and Tisiah-there were six people total in this car, and it made me feel ufortable that I didn¡¯t have enough space.


    It was crammed like crazy, but it was worth it.


    Soon enough, the group of cars began to embark on the journey. ¡°Well this is just splendid,¡± Tisiah said, trying to shimmy through the space, as Mchi sat next to him in the seat, just as ufortable as Tisiah was. I felt bad for them both.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mchi said, coughing a bit, his eyes wide open as he looked at me and Tisiah. ¡°This is a little...ufortable.¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah?¡± he asked. ¡°You think?¡±


    We continued driving, now moving onto a highway, heading straight north until we passed by Tokyo and headed into Yokohama city proper. I noticed that there weren¡¯t many other cars moving around and I wondered why until we reached an area where all the buildings were being reced with a wall.


    I¡¯m pretty sure I went way past my bedtime, to be honest, but once we arrived at our destination I noticed that the wall didn¡¯t end-in fact it went on for miles, as if we had just driven into a gatedmunity or something. I wondered what we were doing here.


    ¡°Alright everyone!¡± someone shouted out from one of the other cars that had stopped alongside us, before he got out of it. Soon enough, agents piled out of the vehicle, each of them holding guns or wands as they moved into the streets.


    ¡°Alright everyone!¡± the person shouted again, before he got closer to us and addressed us. ¡°We got surveince in the sky, everyone needs to get into a position where you can¡¯t be seen. We need some inside people.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by inside people?¡± Nikki asked, as the man turned back to us, walking over to us with his hands on his hips and a frown on his face. ¡°What is it you need to be done?¡±


    ¡°I mean that we need people inside Maddie Cone¡¯s base,¡± he said as Nikki sighed and nodded his head. He had ck hair and his face was I guess brown, but maybe the dark was affecting my vision, or maybe I just didn¡¯t know him that well. ¡°We need someone in there who can spy on what is being nned and let us know.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± Nikki said, turning to us. ¡°Alright, we will!¡±


    ¡°Good, but don¡¯t get caught. Any guardes, knocking them out immediately,¡± he said, looking at all of us as he walked back and forth, his face nk and his eyes looking straight ahead. ¡°You guys know what to do?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I said quickly before I looked over at Tisiah who nodded his head in agreement. ¡°Alright, follow me agents!¡±


    Agents began to follow after him, as we approached this sort of hill, like a big hill that was surrounded by a fence. It was like a bunker of sorts, and then they stopped.


    ¡°I want three agents on the left side and three on the right, I want about three or four up on the trees,¡± he said, as agents began to speed towards their positions, jumping and climbing up onto trees and such. ¡°Don¡¯t get caught, anyone,¡± he said as the agents went off to their spots before disappearing into the bunker.


    The bunker looked very intimidating to be honest, with such arge figure, standing tall at the front of the building that was a very white color with no windows and only a few small ones on each floor.


    ¡°This is it,¡± Tisiah said, as he pointed to the building.


    The bunker was also very wide: probably about fifty meters in each direction and at least five stories tall. There were several different areas within it and I noticed that the left side of it was open, with a big fountain in the middle of it and some trees and a statue of an eagle with its wings spread out at the front of it. I knew that this must have been a nice area in the past, but now it was just used as a training area.


    I saw the rest of our team-my team-arrive as we looked at one another. ¡°Mchi, me and Nikki will go to the left side of the bunker. You and Tisiah go to the right, okay?


    ¡°Yes ma¡¯am,¡± I said with a nod, as Nikki and Tisiah nodded their head as well. ¡°We¡¯ll go in there,¡± I said with a nod as I looked up at the bunker¡¯s front door, which was big enough to fit a car through.

 Chapter 156

    156 The Meeting


    As I entered, I found it to be-let me say this way-very white. White walls, white floor-everything white with a small red stripe running across the wall that seemed like it was the emergency exit-it was pretty small but it did seem like it would be good if there was an emergency.


    There were a few guards wearing a bunch of ck vests like us, so luckily we blended. ¡°Alright, where do we go first?¡± I asked, looking around the ce.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± Tisiah said as he shrugged his shoulders, ¡°I didn¡¯t think there would be this many guards here.¡±


    ¡°You know what we have to do, right?¡± I said, as he looked at me confused, before looking at him and nodding his head slowly. ¡°We have to find Maddie¡¯s base. Okay?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, yeah,¡± he said with a nod before his eyes opened wide in realization. We walked through, as I continued to look around the area, and found out that we had to go through the first floor before heading up to the second.


    The first floor looked like a gym or something like that, with weights and benches and such all over the ce, but I didn¡¯t see any people in this area. It didn¡¯t look exactly important or anything useful, but there were stairs going downwards that led to what I thought would be another area, so we went down there instead of going through the gym.


    There was a sort of hallway with doors all around it;pletely overwhelming.


    ¡°Okay, check which ones are locked,¡± I said to Tisiah, who just stood there staring at me. I looked around me, wondering if this was really what I wanted to do. Then again-I wanted to find Maddie Cone¡¯s base, so it was worth it. Tisiah moved from door to door, opening them one by one as I looked around me in case any of these doors led somewhere important or something.


    As Tisiah was opening the next door-I noticed something odd: the door had a big red mark on it like a warning sign that read ¡®keep out¡¯ or something. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± I muttered, as I walked towards it, opening it up. It was dark inside-the lights weren¡¯t working-and there were about ten beds along the walls and about twenty cots lining one wall. I looked at Tisiah, who had an eyebrow raised.


    .....


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s just close that,¡± I said, closing the door.


    Then all of a sudden, I heard shuffling behind me. I turned around, seeing a guard who was walking by, dressed in ck with a gun on his shoulder and a ck mask covering his face. He didn¡¯t seem to notice that we were here-even though he had just passed us.


    ¡°Well that¡¯s creepy,¡± Tisiah said under his breath.


    ¡°Tell me about it,¡± I responded, as I followed the guard who had just passed us-he had long blonde hair and a thin face with ck sses that were covering his eyes-as he went through another door, opening it for us before he stepped in and closed it behind us.


    ¡°Are you guys going to the meeting?¡± he asked, and that really caught me off guard. ¡°Uh-yeah!¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Specifically requested us to do so.¡± The man nodded as we walked ahead, then he pointed to some stairs that were at the end of the corridor.


    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s take those,¡± I said as we walked over and began to climb up them. When we got to the top-which was about twenty steps high-he opened another door for us and we walked through. I saw a big oblong table that was a light wood, with brown chairs and screens stamped on the ceiling.


    Guards and men in suits came in, as I examined the scene. ¡°Seat over there,¡± I said to Tisiah, pointing to an empty chair as I sat down next to him. There were only six other people there who all sat next to me: three men and three women.


    ¡°Now what?¡± Tisiah asked, looking around at everyone in front of us. ¡°We listen,¡± I said with a smile, shortly before he smiled as well. ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re not here to watch,¡± I said with a smile as everyone turned to me, looking at me with confusion as I nodded my head. ¡°We¡¯re here to find out what is happening.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m confused,¡± he said, and I nodded. ¡°Me too.¡±


    But all of a sudden, I heard the loud click-cks making its way to the table. And soon enough, Maddie Cone revealed herself. She was wearing this ck sort of dress: not exactly a skirt, but something simr to that-like a robe or a robe-like thing that had a slit on the side and it was probably about two feet long. The robe seemed to be made of silk and it shimmered with every movement she made.


    Her shoes were glistening, with gold trimming around the edge and her hair was styled into this huge bun at the top of her head that looked like it had been done by some sort of expert hairstylist-her lips were also painted a deep red color and her eyes were piercing ck.


    ¡°Wow,¡± Tisiah said with a very confident nod, as everyone stared at her.


    Maddie Cone looked at us as she began to talk. ¡°Thank you all foring today,¡± she said in her smooth voice before looking at us with a smile on her face. ¡°Now, a few things to be exact. We know of our mission, the mission that will determine our lives and the effect it has on,¡± she said. ¡°Get Masaru Kinu, start up the Xeno.¡±


    They nodded, and I followed on as well, looking at Tisiah with confusion. ¡°What is this?¡±


    ¡°This is like an opening statement,¡± Tisiah said with a nod as he looked at me. ¡°It is meant to get people excited about what is going to happen.¡±


    ¡°Imagine, the BMO ruling-stomping over every single EMO organization there is,¡± she said a snicker, which caught everyone¡¯s attention. ¡°It will be a better world for everyone! A world without fear!¡± She smiled and her eyes sparkled with life as everyone else in front of us nodded their heads at her words.


    ¡°A world ruled by us,¡± she said, viewing everyone from left to right, as we all nodded our heads again. ¡°And now that we know our mission,¡± she said in her smooth tone of voice, ¡°Let me introduce myself.¡±


    ¡°I am Maddie Cone,¡± she began to say, as everyone stared at her. ¡°I¡¯m an BMO agent who is very passionate and experienced, as well very picky, and I want to talk to you about a potential threat.¡±


    ¡°Threat?¡± everyone murmured as I chuckled, sitting next to Tisiah in his chair.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Maddie Cone began again as she looked around the room before continuing her words. ¡°We have had reports of something that has been following us since we have been here,¡± she said as she pointed at everyone in front of us. ¡°The YMPA.¡±


    I gulped, knowing that was us, but yet no one knew. I could tell Tisiah was getting very nervous, but he still managed to keep his calm as he nodded his head. ¡°What do we do?¡± he whispered to me under his breath as I shook my head.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± I whispered back. ¡°Stay calm. Turn on your radio, but turn down the volume. We don¡¯t want anyone else hearing.¡±


    Tisiah nodded, as I turned on my radio.


    ¡°Now, we have had reports of some sort of terrorist activity,¡± she continued as she looked around the room, ¡°and I want to talk to you about it. This is not a joke. I want to talk to you about a threat.¡±


    ¡°About five agents from the YMPA were in a hotel, and while we almost apprehended them, the authorities came at the wrong time. And conveniently, the JSA just overrode our signal and that being so-they are probably lurking out, trying to find Masaru Kinu. Who knows, maybe one of you are here.¡±

 Chapter 157

    157 The Return back to the JSA


    That gave me a tingly feeling-not a good one, of course-as I looked around me and realized that everyone was staring at us, with fear and anxiety written all over their faces.


    ¡°We don¡¯t have much time,¡± Maddie said in a low voice as I heard people begin to move around, whispering and whispering about something. ¡°The only thing we can do is continue with our mission,¡± she said as everyone nodded their heads again, before she began to look at them one by one, as if trying to figure out who was YMPA and who wasn¡¯t.


    ¡°Now, another thing is that there is a whole team behind us, spying on this conversation right now. So, I want you guys to go out there and kill them all, okay?¡± she said calmly, as my eyes widened in fear, wondering how many agents she had on her side. But Tisiah didn¡¯t seem to notice; instead he was smiling at her with confidence andposure in his eyes.


    ¡°I want you guys to create groups, and hunt them. Kill them before they go for their flight. We need to get Masaru Kinu in his state right now,¡± she said, and my heart dropped into my stomach.


    ¡°How many agents are we talking about?¡± a man with a bald head asked from the table. He seemed to be in his thirties and wore sses as well. ¡°Seven to ten of them,¡± she said. ¡°That should overpower them enough. But I want to find this one girl, September Cavery.¡±


    All of a sudden, a picture of September lit up on the screen, and I felt my eyes widen at what I saw. The picture was grainy-it looked like a picture taken from far away and it was blurry at certain points-and there was something sinister about it all. ¡°Biggest threat to our entire operation,¡± she said, looking at each of them, as if wanting them to understand what she was saying. ¡°If we let this girl slip through our hands-she is going to destroy everything we worked for,¡± she said as she looked around at each of us again, and then she smiled and nodded her head. ¡°No one wants that.¡±


    The guards nodded.


    ¡°Now, start nning your groups, and don¡¯t go for Masaru Kinu yet. The JSA is busy with them and we only have so much resources, but focus on taking out her and her group.¡±


    ¡°Is she from the JSA?¡± someone asked, as I looked around the table and noticed that there was another man who had been quiet so far. He had light skin and ck hair that wasbed back and he wore sses like the bald man. ¡°No, but she is from the YMPA,¡± Maddie Cane answered, as the bald man seemed to be more confused.


    .....


    ¡°You should take her first,¡± Maddie continued as she looked at me. ¡°You should take her out first.¡±


    I¡¯m not sure why she was looking at me so much, but I felt my heart pound as my blood rushed through my veins.


    ¡°But she has friends,¡± someone said from the table, and everyone turned around to look at a woman who was wearing a brown jacket. She had short light-brown hair and she was wearing sses as well. ¡°She has friends,¡± she said again as she looked at me as well, ¡°so we need to take them out as well.¡±


    ¡°Yes, these people,¡± she said as she hit the remote again.


    Now it showed me, Tisiah, Mchi, and Nikki as well, all with me wearing this weird outfit: a long green jacket and a blue shirt. ¡°These are the people you need to kill,¡± Maddie said as she smiled.


    ¡°Oh, what¡¯s going on?¡± Tisiah said under his breath, while I sat there in shock at what was happening. ¡°I have no idea...but this is bad,¡± I responded, feeling my heart getting heavy, and I could feel my palms sweaty. ¡°I think we¡¯re being set up.¡±


    ¡°Now that you have your orders,¡± Maddie Cone said, as I saw her nce at Tisiah briefly. ¡°Get to it.¡±


    All the guards stood up from their seats, before they began to leave the room, while Tisiah stood up from his chair as well and he started to walk towards the door. ¡°We need to get out of here,¡± I said under my breath.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± he said. Quickly, we moved downstairs to the first floor, the floor with white walls and everything, and then we made our way through the lobby and out the front doors of the bunker. ¡°This isn¡¯t good,¡± he said as we walked quickly out the front door of the bunkers, as two guards watched us from afar.


    Tisiah pulled out his radio. ¡°Do not attack the bunker,¡± he said. ¡°Why not?¡± the agent asked, sounding pretty disappointed. ¡°Because we just heard they¡¯re nning to hunt us. And if we attack, we won¡¯t know any more information.¡±


    The agent sighed, and Tisiah shut off the radio, before he put it back in his pocket and kept walking down the stairs. ¡°Let¡¯s go, quick,¡± I said with panic in my voice.


    Soon enough we arrived at the hill, seeing September and Mchi over there. ¡°What are we going to do?¡± I asked nervously.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Tisiah said with frustration in his voice as he looked at September and the two others with her. Mchi sighed and shook his head. ¡°This is bad,¡± he said. ¡°And I mean very bad.¡±


    ¡°What are we going to do?¡± I repeated myself as I looked at him in worry. ¡°Hopefully the JSA will protect us,¡± he said, looking at all of us, while we looked back at him, with worried expressions on our faces.


    ¡°I really hope they do.¡±


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go!¡± I heard the lead agent say, as we followed him back to the line of vehicles, where he was waiting for us. ¡°This is our chance! We need to move out!¡± he yelled, and he turned to us. ¡°Everyone, get in your cars!¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± the agents responded back abruptly, making their way towards it, while we made our way to it as well. Soon enough, we got inside our cars, which were parked near the bunkers; they were the same cars that we had been using so far, so I was d that I was in one of them with Tisiah.


    ¡°Well, we¡¯ve been hunted before,¡± September said, grunting as she sat in the car, while I took the front passenger seat next to Tisiah and Mchi took the back passenger seat next to Nikki. ¡°But this is something new.¡±


    ¡°Well, that one situation with Rocke was um-terrifying,¡± Tisiah said with a shrug, while we drove down the hill, getting ready to leave the base. ¡°I¡¯m just hoping that everyone here will be okay.¡± September sighed, ¡°But she¡¯s really going for me here though.¡±


    I patted her on the back. ¡°Been there before,¡± I said, making her chuckle a bit, which made me smile.


    ¡°We¡¯ll be fine,¡± Mchi said with confidence as I turned my head to look at him; he was sitting in his car with his legs crossed over each other. ¡°We¡¯ll be fine. All we need to do is to keep Masaru Kinu safe, and just keep ourselves safe.¡± Nikki nodded, as we all did too.


    Eventually, we arrived at the JSA. The gate opened, as the cars went through, and then we parked in a row right in front of the main building of the JSA. As we got out of our cars, we saw several men standing by their vehicles in front of the building. ¡°I¡¯m tired, I¡¯m ready to go back to the YMPA,¡± Mchi said, stretching his back, while September stood by the side of the building with her hands in her pockets, as she looked up at the sky.


    We entered as B came out, seeing all of us. ¡°What did you find?¡± he asked. ¡°They know about you guys helping us, and they¡¯re now specifically hunting us,¡± I responded with a frustrated smile, as he nodded.


    ¡°Alright,e inside,¡± B said, as we walked inside the building with him. Once inside, we saw a few agents with machine-guns, just sitting in a room with one of them on the phone. ¡°So, you guys are being hunted by Maddie Cone?¡± he asked. ¡°We¡¯ve been through something like this before,¡± September said with a sigh.


    ¡°But the BMO are very smart people, and they always know how to track you,¡± B said. ¡°It¡¯s their specialty.¡± Nikki scoffed, ¡°An annoying one.¡± B sighed and worry came across his face, as I looked at September.


    ¡°So what are you going to do?¡± she asked B with her hands on her hips. He didn¡¯t respond immediately. ¡°You¡¯re going to help us right?¡± she asked. He nodded, but without an vocal answer, before he continued on his phone call.


    ¡°So this is bad,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°We¡¯re going to get everyone together,¡± B said as he hung up the phone, before looking at us again. ¡°And we¡¯re gonna make sure you guys or Masaru don¡¯t end up six feet in the ground alright?¡±

 Chapter 158

    158 Spying on Greg


    Soon enough we arrived home, and I wasn¡¯t actually toote, in fact-I¡¯d say I came right on time. But that meant another day of school tomorrow, and now I wasn¡¯t sad or heartbroken. I care less now when I think about everything that¡¯s going on at school; I mean it doesn¡¯t really matter anymore.


    I arrived at school the next morning, seeing every second of people passing by, talking to Greg and doing handshakes with him. He was definitely the new man in town in this school, but even then I was still not sure what was going to happen between him and me.


    I didn¡¯t want to give up on him, but I didn¡¯t want to see my friend turn into an enemy of mine, either; that would just hurt too much. Maybe I should try talking to him again... But what was I thinking? I shouldn¡¯t, not at all, because that would make him look weak to others. But maybe there was some middle ground here that could be explored. Maybe he had already done some things that might have shown that he had changed.


    Yeah, maybe I should just watch him around, see him do certain things. If I talk to him, he¡¯s gonna snap, I know it. It¡¯s just that he has been so good to me ever since we first met in this ce; I don¡¯t want him to feel like he has been wrong all this time for doing so.


    He came to me to be my friend, so maybe he¡¯lle through, even if I¡¯m not sure how to approach him now that I know the truth about him. I know it¡¯s my fault he¡¯s in this mess-well no one else¡¯s but my own-but I don¡¯t know what else to do besides wait for him toe back to normal.


    Besides, maybe since he¡¯s popr, I might be popr with him as well. Everyone has a choice to be a good person or a bad person; I can¡¯t stop him from doing evil things to me in this situation-even if it is his own fault-but I can choose not to let that ruin my life any longer.


    I followed behind him, watching him babble with those random guys I¡¯ve never seen before in my life. Some of them were probably from the basketball team, and they all just stared at him as if he was the coolest person ever in this school-and he did seem cool, not gonna lie.


    He then went towards his locker, as I went to mine-still watching him though-as he grabbed something and put it in his backpack. That¡¯s when he noticed me staring at him; he turned to look at me, with a frown on his face as he held the backpack by his side. I didn¡¯t say a single thing, nothing at all, I just continued watching him as I walked towards my locker.


    Once we were both at our lockers, he turned his head back towards his own locker and looked down at it with his eyebrows furrowed slightly.


    .....


    ¡°So, which girl do you like,¡± one of the guys asked at Greg, as disgust stung my face a bit. He was talking about girls!? What was he even thinking? Greg chuckled as the man joined him. ¡°You can basically pick and choose, because they are all over you,¡± the man said,ughing like a monkey. ¡°They love you.¡±


    ¡°Not true,¡± Greg said. ¡°It¡¯s like you¡¯re telling them that they¡¯re ugly or something.¡± The guyughed harder than before, although I could tell that he wasn¡¯t actually trying to be funny in any way whatsoever. ¡°No, because you¡¯re a strong person and beat up the biggest bully in the school, they wanna get protected themselves-you know what I¡¯m saying?¡± the man said, getting more excited as he talked about this dumb stuff.


    ¡°You know what you are?¡± Greg asked suddenly, and I jumped a bit at the question. ¡°A friend,¡± the man answered. Greg shook his head. ¡°You¡¯re a very loud extrovert,¡± Greg said, which disappointed me because I expected something much more... better.


    The man shrugged, ¡°It¡¯s just my thing.¡± Greg chuckled. ¡°I¡¯m not going to change who I am just because a bunch of girls want me.¡± I raised an eyebrow at that remark.


    ¡°No,¡± Greg said, shaking his head. ¡°I¡¯m not.¡±


    ¡°What about that new girl?¡± the man asked as Greg shook his head again. ¡°You¡¯re just friends?¡± the man asked, but you¡¯ve been talking to her for the past what-um-week?¡± Greg shrugged, ¡°She¡¯s a good friend, that¡¯s all.¡± The man shook his head, as he put his hands on Greg¡¯s shoulders. ¡°I thought she was into you!¡±


    ¡°Nope,¡± Greg replied with a shrug. ¡°It¡¯s not like that.¡±


    ¡°Then why?¡±


    ¡°I just don¡¯t really like her,¡± he said, shrugging his shoulders again. The guy looked confused. ¡°She¡¯s nice, and she¡¯s cool to be around... She¡¯s just not my type.¡± I gave him a re as I walked past them, while the guy just turned to stare at me as the bell rang.


    So here¡¯s what we learned: Greg has a friend who is quite annoying to be honest, Greg also has been talking to some girl for a week and has finally made his judgment, and three-he doesn¡¯t seem to very interested in talking to that guy.


    I wouldn¡¯t either be honest, but that¡¯s just me, and Greg ispletely fine with hisck of interest in talking to someone who is only there because of who they know. He also doesn¡¯t care about that girl that much either. But that doesn¡¯t worry me much to be honest, not really.


    But I just need to keep watching and just keep my eyes on them, especially Greg. It¡¯s just a matter of time until I get the answers I need. And there¡¯s still the whole Maddie thing too... that¡¯s probably gonna be the hardest part of all this.


    ***


    I arrived at the YMPA, as I entered the room, where the rest of the team were. ¡°Hey,¡± I said as September came into a hug.


    ¡°How¡¯s everyone feeling?¡± Tisiah asked with a worried look on his face. I shrugged and sat down on my chair. ¡°Tired,¡± Mchi said. ¡°I¡¯m not ready to die in my sleep by some BMO agents.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re better than them, trust me,¡± I said, trying to raise the spirits up, but I knew it wouldn¡¯t work. ¡°But it¡¯ll be okay,¡± I said reassuringly as they looked at me with disbelief on their faces. ¡°I¡¯m just being optimistic here.¡±


    ¡°I know, and that¡¯s my job,¡± Tisiah joked, getting up from his seat, ¡°but it would be nice to hear a positive word once in a while.¡± Heughed slightly, as we all looked at him. ¡°It doesn¡¯t get you anywhere,¡± Nikki said.


    Mr. Drails shook his head, ¡°Just get ready.¡±


    I checked all my things: my utility belt, gun, knives and swords, and my radio. All that I needed, and all that I had, was now prepared to go. I hoped this wouldn¡¯t be myst time, though.


    ¡°Alright guys,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Here we go.¡± He got out his wand, making a portal into Japan as I walked through it. Finally he didn¡¯t open the portal under us this time, because that was really annoying, not to mention dangerous if anything happened.


    I opened my eyes as I heard the hum of the engine of the helicopter around me. September had told me that when they arrived here, they would see the helicopter, so I wasn¡¯t surprised by this at all. Probably the JSA anyways to be honest, but what do I know, really?


    I watched as the helicopter flew through the clouds above us, and then itnded in a field below us. We then exited the helicopter, and we all saw B and Masaru standing beside each other on the other side of the helicopter.


    ¡°Oh dang,¡± I muttered. Masaru looked at us as the grass swayed from the air, but B was simply watching us with his hands in his pockets. It seemed that he wasn¡¯t going to approach us after all, so I just assumed he wanted to watch us instead of talk to us.


    ¡°Hey it¡¯s you guys again,¡± Masaru said, as I slightly smiled, knowing we would be talking soon enough. B stepped forward slowly, walking towards us with his hands still in his pockets as if he didn¡¯t want to touch us at all. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll see you guyster, but call me if you need any help,¡± B said, his suit flying in the wind, ¡°cause I¡¯m pretty sure that if you need any help then you¡¯ll call me.¡± Heughed slightly as he said thisst bit.


    ¡°I¡¯m positive about that,¡± Tisiah chuckled as well, and then walked up to Masaru with a hug. ¡°How¡¯s your dad doing?¡± he asked, and Masaru sighed deeply.

 Chapter 159

    159 A Terrible Drive


    ¡°He seems pretty worried and is probably waiting until Ie home.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll make it back,¡± Nikki assured him, ¡°and make sure you keep your dad in good shape while you¡¯re there.¡± Masaru nodded at that remark, before September patted him on the shoulder.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get you home,¡± she said. There was a line of ck cars that were waiting for him, as we walked towards the car.


    Mchi jumped inside in one of them, as I followed inside with him. One of the agents was already driving, but he looked at me with a bit of confusion on his face or so it seemed. ¡°Alright, mansion here wee,¡± Mchi said, shimmying down to aid back position, so that he could look outside through the windows.


    ¡°What are you looking for?¡± I asked as he shrugged his shoulders slightly. ¡°Just viewing.¡±


    We drove for a little bit, but not for too long in that matter of fact, but Mchi just kept looking out of the window and watching everything pass by. But then while doing that, we heard the growl of other engines, so we both looked outside to see some SUVs approaching us.


    What were those? They were driving really fast towards us, and I mean fast, not normal car speed fast... and then they passed by us, but they were following behind us! They kept on following us, and we were worried about it as the other cars began following us too.


    ¡°Uh, I think we have a problem, and I mean like a bad problem,¡± I said. ¡°Drive us in a different direction.¡± The driver nodded as he suddenly turned left at the intersection, driving away from the line of cars. And the vehicles followed us.


    ¡°It¡¯s the BMO,¡± I muttered as everyone turned around. Tisiah looked in fear, ¡°What¡¯s happening? Where are those vehiclesing from?¡±


    .....


    ¡°I don¡¯t know but we need to get out of here fast,¡± I said, as September looked back, knowing we were in trouble.


    ¡°But if we go back-¡± Nikki began before I shook my head, ¡°No! We¡¯ll just lead them right to the mansion!¡±


    Soon enough, two SUV¡¯s began to catch up on the sides, but I noticed that they had some men on top of them. So there were more than just them? They also had guns pointed at our car, which was pretty terrifying. ¡°Oh shoot, oh shoot!¡± I shouted.


    ¡°Duck!¡± September ordered, as bullets zed, shattering our windows and the front windshield. September covered her face as she leaned down in her seat. Quickly, Mchi took his gun out and began shooting back, and then Tisiah pulled his gun out and started firing at them. But it was pointless, as bullets continued to shatter windows and more ss fell down onto our heads and on top of us.


    The driver quickly pulled out his radio, shouting, ¡°We need backup, the BMO are currently behind us right now!¡±


    Then he began to swerve through cars, speedily arriving at an intersection, before he made a hard left turn, speeding down an alleyway with the other cars chasing behind us. ¡°We need better firepower,¡± September said, holding onto her head from her seat in front of me, while Tisiah did the same with his head.


    But all of a sudden, the driver jerked the wheel, steering towards the right this time.


    The SUV¡¯s behind us began to slide, losing their sense of direction before whipping back into position, almost crashing into a building as they tried to control their speed. We were still in the alleyway now, with trees and bushes around us as the other cars sped up, trying to catch up to us.


    Okay, this was good. This was very good.


    I rolled down the windows, being met with a bunch of bullets, but they all bounced off the sides of the car. I needed to charge up my Perk, so I could somehow send a shockwave to SUVs.


    But then the driver exited the alleyway, returning back to an open road, where there were still those two that were driving around us. ¡°He¡¯s turning around!¡± Nikki yelled at me.


    ¡°That means he¡¯s going to get out of this,¡± September replied calmly. The driver steered left and right, making us go faster than what the SUVs could. ¡°Get ready,¡± she said to me.


    I nodded, holding my gun tightly in my hands. But I had a better idea. ¡°Wait, just slow down a bit,¡± I said, as everyone looked at me in shock. ¡°Slow down?!¡± September screeched. ¡°Don¡¯t slow down.¡±


    ¡°No, slow down,¡± I said.


    ¡°Do not!!¡± everyone protested. I¡¯m pretty sure the driver waspletely done, but he was just listening to me now. He slowed down a little bit, and then the SUV¡¯s that were following us started getting closer to us again. I opened the door as Nikki¡¯s face melted into confusion, ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    ¡°Just trust me,¡± I replied, as I pushed one leg out. It was hard, feeling the road scratch the bottom of my shoes. It made this racking sound that sounded like someone using their bare nails to scratch a chalkboard.


    But I needed to do this, and not die in the process. I charged up my Perk, making sure the energy went through my leg, before I stomped. When I stomped, it was like a shockwave that spread from the ground and passed through the air.


    There were four SUVs around us, with men on top of them shooting bullets. Now, there were just sliding cars, because of what I just did. That¡¯s right... I stopped a whole bunch of cars in their tracks by stomping my foot down. Ground was being gained on them, and their cars were no longer moving at all as they slid along the road.


    The SUV¡¯s on top of us began to slowly fall down, and I saw men start falling from their seats too. They began to roll down, but soon enough, their bodies stopped rolling. I knew they were dead from that fall.


    I then nced at the driver who was sitting on his seat, looking at me with shock on his face and horror in his eyes. ¡°You guys are crazy,¡± he chuckled, as I nodded back at him, and then he smiled a bit. ¡°At least we got away from them,¡± Nikki said with a sigh, as she looked at us, seeing that we were alright.


    ¡°Let¡¯s just hope this gets us home safely,¡± September said, as she sighed.


    ¡°I think that¡¯s a safe bet,¡± Mchi joked, but I couldn¡¯t help but smile at that joke. He then pointed forward. ¡°You see those buildings over there?¡± he asked as Nikki nodded slowly. ¡°They¡¯re the ones that we need to go through.¡± He then smiled at me and raised his eyebrow. ¡°Oh and if you do something like that again, don¡¯t expect me to help you.¡±


    I chuckled, feeling good about myself. I battled Rocke, there was no way that was gonna scare me, and I didn¡¯t want anyone else to be scared either. I¡¯d be fine as long as they stayed back and let me do what I did best.


    The driver pulled out his radio, as he said, ¡°Threats neutralized. We can return back to the group.¡±


    I sighed as Iid back, watching trees fly by us.


    ¡°Well that was... different,¡± Nikki said softly as the SUV stopped in front of the mansion¡¯s entrance. ¡°But these BMO¡¯s are not ying. How did they figure out where we were?¡±


    I shrugged, as we got out of the car. But she did make a good point, these guys weren¡¯t ying around anymore. They had to be pretty sure that we were heading towards this mansion since they followed us here. But how? Maybe it was that helicopter, but that was the JSA¡¯s.


    Unless it was made to look like the JSA¡¯s.


    It would make perfect sense, considering they would have all that knowledge about us and where we are. Then again, I¡¯m not sure if that was true, but then again I thought about that helicopter and that possibility. It could definitely be true, and it probably was, considering the amount of men they sent here to kill us.


    We entered through the mansion¡¯s entrance, but we didn¡¯t enter into the kitchen this time around.


    Zekeshi Kin appeared around the corner, and as he looked at his grandson with pride, he began speaking rapidly to Masaru in Japanese.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I whispered to Nikki, as she turned to me. ¡°I have no clue at all,¡± I responded with a chuckle, and then she turned back around at Masaru who was looking at Zekeshi with a stern face before nodding back at him.

 Chapter 160

    160 The Thought of One


    ¡°So what happened?¡± Masaru asked as his grandfather left the room. ¡°You guys just swerved into a different direction.¡±


    ¡°There was some business that needed to be taken care of,¡± I responded shakily, as Masaru nodded slowly, but then he noticed I wasn¡¯t finished and tilted his head curiously. ¡°Uh, yeah... that was some serious business.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± September nodded. ¡°You have any video games?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, quite a lot of them to be honest,¡± Masaru said, as my eyes widened, knowing what he was talking about. ¡°I know you have a game system in your room right?¡± He nodded back at me. I felt my hands tingle in excitement, my heart pump, my mind racing as it felt like Christmas hade early.


    ¡°Yeah, follow me,¡± Masaru said, leading us up the stairs to my room as we followed behind him, trying to contain ourselves until we got there. And when we got there...only a picture could describe it best. A t screen TV was on the wall with a game system beside it. I looked around to see arge t screen TV hanging on the wall and a big red sofa facing it with an arcade machine between it.


    But then something reminded me, and I needed to tell September.


    ¡°Hey uh, September,¡± I whispered, as she looked at me. ¡°Yeah?¡±


    ¡°Uh, Masaru wants to um-have some time with you,¡± I said, feeling weird as I said it because it felt like I was saying something wrong or something that wasn¡¯t true.


    But then her face broke into a smile and she nodded. ¡°I know, but I don¡¯t know if I should because me and-¡±


    .....


    ¡°No worries, it¡¯s fine between us,¡± I said, trying to not sound awkward but failing miserably at it. She chuckled andughed, her cheeks red as she took my hand in hers. She then ced a kiss on my hand softly, making me shiver as I blushed with happiness at this moment.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s see what games you got,¡± Tisiah chuckled, but I knew what he was talking about. I¡¯ve never yed one of these before, but I¡¯m sure they¡¯re amazing games.


    Created with Sketch.


    Those were not amazing games at all.


    Like the games were with low graphics, which was more like a ck and white cartoonish type of look. You could say that it was like an early 80s cartoon or something like that, where the characters had simple facial expressions and only had simple colors like blue and green for clothing and other things in their world.


    It felt like the games had juste out on the market and not been on there long enough for the games to really evolve yet, so they were still very primitive.


    Either way, I was more worried about Masaru going out with September, I didn¡¯t like it. But it¡¯s not like I was really doing anything, that¡¯s between Masaru and September anyway. I was just a spectator, but it didn¡¯t feel right for me to do anything in particr to stop it.


    I went into the kitchen, opening the fridge to get a ss of apple juice. I used to like orange juice but one experience ruined it for me, and I¡¯d prefer not to focus on that memory, so apple juice was what I¡¯d go with today. I took a sip of the juice before looking over at the countertop where a bowl of apples were sitting in it, with some raisins beside them as well as oranges.


    But then I heard footsteps, as I moved my head back-seeing Nikki approach me.


    ¡°Hi, Connor,¡± she said as she leaned in and kissed my cheek. She then wrapped her arms around me tightly and hugged me before releasing me with a smile on her face. ¡°Did you see what I just did?¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°I won a match, finally,¡± she said as I chuckled a bit, moving my hands over her shoulders and back to hug her tightly again.


    ¡°Yeah I did,¡± I chuckled back as she smiled at me, letting me pull her close to me again as we held each other tightly. ¡°It was very...very cute.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a little embarrassing to admit,¡± sheughed softly. ¡°But I feel like you¡¯re a bit off. You talked to September about something, and your face was really troubled.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not,¡± I said, excessively shaking my head, but Nikki gave me a confused look and raised an eyebrow. ¡°It¡¯s not a big deal at all,¡± I said with a shake of my head again as she looked at me, as her eyes widened with realization and thought. ¡°Oh,¡± she said, nodding very slowly, before her lips formed into a smile. ¡°So that¡¯s why you¡¯re worried about her and Masaru.¡±


    I nodded slowly as she smiled at me. ¡°I don¡¯t want to see her get hurt.¡±


    ¡°Well we¡¯ll find out soon enough,¡± Nikki responded as she kissed my cheek again and then let me go. How did she know? How did she find out?


    ¡°I¡¯m d you¡¯re worried about her,¡± she said softly as she took a step back from me slowly before smiling and walking away from me, leaving me to ponder about it all alone. I was going to say something, but I couldn¡¯t, because I wanted to know what was going on between September and Masaru too. I wanted to know how she knew about that...and how she knew what was going on between them?


    I decided not to think about it, because it¡¯s not worth it, and it was just going to cause me trouble in my mind if I kept thinking about it. And since I already knew it was nothing, I figured that if anything would happen it would happen, but...what if it didn¡¯t? What if she had feelings for him too?


    Okay, I¡¯m gonna stop.


    I finished my ss, as I took a deep breath, as it felt like my thoughts were running around in circles in my head. The fact that I can¡¯t stop thinking about September was not good...but maybe it would be good for me to stop thinking about her...at least for now.


    I looked at the clock and saw it was twelve o¡¯clock already. That means it was 8 pm back at my home, so we had a little bit until it was time, but it wouldn¡¯t be long now before it was time for me to go back home and when I got there I would probably have to wait until the morning.


    But then I heard my radio click, hearing B on the other side. ¡°Yeah,¡± I said, picking it up. ¡°So the BMO chased you guys during our transport?¡± I sighed. ¡°Yes, precisely,¡± I responded, knowing exactly what she meant. ¡°But they couldn¡¯t get us before we got to the mansion.¡±


    ¡°Howe they didn¡¯t go to Masaru?¡± B asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but they seemed to want us more,¡± I responded, making B sigh. ¡°But they didn¡¯t catch us.¡±


    ¡°They may not have been after you or Masaru specifically,¡± B replied. ¡°They could¡¯ve been trying to figure out who you were.¡±


    ¡°Well now they do,¡± I said, as B sighed again. ¡°So we¡¯re just going to have to keep an eye out for them.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s why I have men stationed throughout the area,¡± B said as he clicked off his radio. I sighed once again, hearing B¡¯s voice in my head. It was like he had been waiting for this moment to have this conversation with me. He was right of course, they might not be after Masaru or me specifically, they could be searching for us.


    Now they possibly know our location.


    So I have to keep an eye out for them and make sure nothing bad happens to them while they search for us. But they only sent a few people after us, but weren¡¯t we the biggest threat to their mission. I don¡¯t think they were trying to distract us or anything, so I don¡¯t really see them being after us for that reason either. Maybe they are after us for something else, but what?


    Why would they send so little after us? What was the point, if they wanted us dead that much? Maybe we were more important than I thought?


    I turned off the radio and shook my head as I looked down at the floor, still trying to understand, but it felt like it wasn¡¯t any good. No matter how hard I thought about it, it still didn¡¯t seem like they would be after us that much.

 Chapter 161

    161 The New Mole


    Our shift of protecting Masaru was done, after what felt a bit scary but it was fine. I arrived back home, knocking on the door-just waiting for my mom to open the door. The sky was so dark, it was almost as if night had arrived a lot earlier than usual. It wasn¡¯t thatte of an hour though, so it was fine that I¡¯d arrived back home early, before midnight.


    Soon enough, Mom opened the door. ¡°Hello,¡± she said, kissing me on the forehead, before closing the door behind her as I walked inside and went straight to my room, feeling tired from all of the work we did today.


    As I did, I pulled out my phone-seeing a picture of me and Greg.


    Good times, good times.


    Greg and me were like chains that wouldn¡¯t let go of each other, even though we weren¡¯t rted by blood or anything, it was like we were two pieces of the same puzzle, which couldn¡¯t be separated or destroyed. We were inseparable, but now-that was starting to feel like fantasy, which made me wonder how long would it be until reality came to knock on our door and shatter the dreams we had built up together.


    But that was part of life, and it would always continue to happen as long as we were alive.


    Created with Sketch.


    I went over to my locker, as Greg with his colony of friends walked through the hall. It wasn¡¯t as crazy anymore, but people were still staring in the adoration of Greg, not to mention he had his colony of friends with him, which made some of the girls go into fits of jealousy. Greg seemed to having the time of his life, or something at least, and his eyes seemed to have a slight glow about them, as if he were glowing with happiness.


    They stopped at the corner as Greg leaned on the wall, looking up at the ceiling while his eyes stared at something only he could see. It felt like he was seeing something very far away, as his eyes seemed to be unfocused and not seeing anything in particr at the moment.


    .....


    He didn¡¯t notice me at all, and he didn¡¯t say anything-it felt like he wasn¡¯t in the mood to say anything at all. Maybe he was just thinking about something or something like that?


    ¡°Remember that one kid that you used to talk with?¡± one of the guys asked, as Greg¡¯s face confusedly looked at him, as his eyes focused on him suddenly.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Greg asked, as the man shook his head,ughing softly. ¡°No, not really,¡± he said as Greg shook his head and smiled softly. ¡°I think it was Connor or something like that.¡±


    ¡°He must be really annoying isn¡¯t he,¡± the man said, and I felt anger move through my spine. But I kept my cool, not letting any anger show in my face. ¡°I think he¡¯s just weird,¡± Greg said, shaking his head before he looked up at the ceiling. ¡°Never like him.¡± The guys murmured in agreement, but I shook my head and walked past them as Greg turned his head and looked at me as his eyes narrowed up a bit in confusion.


    Not sure what that was gonna do, but whatever. I just continued walking down the hall. It felt like there was something wrong about Greg right now-something seemed off about him-and it made me nervous about something. He didn¡¯t seem to like the friends he had, but he seemed to enjoy the fame. I don¡¯t me him, I would too, but at least he could enjoy both aspects of himself-his personality and his poprity-and not just one or the other.


    His personality was a person who was like me, or somewhat the opposite but this whole poprity has consumed him. I need to find a way to get him out of that, so he could live his life again in peace.


    And if not him, then maybe me. At least I would be his best friend again, instead of his friend who he barely knows or cares about. I had a feeling though that this would be easier said than done.


    But I will try my best to get him out of that mess he¡¯s in right now. He needs to find out for himself that poprity is not everything-he needs to realize that without someone to care about him he is nothing. Because that¡¯s how I feel like right now, but he doesn¡¯t realize it yet.


    Created with Sketch.


    I arrived back at the YMPA, seeing Nikki walk towards me as I entered the building, seeing her smile as she saw me. ¡°Hey,¡± she said with a smile, hugging me as she gave me a kiss on the cheek.


    ¡°Hey,¡± I replied.


    ¡°You ready?¡± she asked as I chuckled, pulling away from her as she let go of me and smiled.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m ready.¡± We arrived at the room, with me closing the door as Mr. Drails looked at us. ¡°Alright, before you go on your mission, I want to share to you some news that Ortega has found for us.¡±


    ¡°Oh, him,¡± September said, giving me a look as she put her hands in her pocket. ¡°Well what¡¯s he found?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± Mr. Drails started, before looking down at the floor as he spoke. ¡°Here it is.¡±


    It showed a picture of a man, and Mr. Drails chuckled and shook his head. ¡°Remember this man?¡± he asked, as my eyes widened. It reminded me of Rocke, back in Russia, where he tried some time ago to take the Armonk for himself but instead Rocke took it.


    The day Tisiah got captured.


    ¡°Marcello,¡± I muttered in fury, and everyone had the same look. ¡°He has been providing information to the BMO, which is how they found out about Charlie in the first ce. Maddie Cone wasn¡¯t the mole, he was,¡± Mr. Drails said, ncing at us with determination in his eyes. ¡°He was the mole.¡±


    ¡°Okay, so now what do we do?¡± Nikki asked, as we all stood there in silence.


    ¡°Now we go after him.¡±


    ¡°We go after him.¡±


    ¡°Yes, we do,¡± I said. ¡°Is he in Japan by any chance?¡±


    ¡°No, but in fact he is having the time of his life in Hawaii right now. He developed a new organization, BANE, which stands for Brotherhood of Assassins in New Ennd. And he¡¯s recruiting more members, which is why we¡¯re going after him.¡±


    ¡°So, he¡¯s living his dream?¡± Nikki asked, as we all nodded.


    ¡°That¡¯s right, apparently training a team of assassins in New Ennd is his dream,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Never expected that to happen, but it looks like he¡¯s doing quite well.¡±


    ¡°So, how do we go about finding him?¡± Nikki asked, as I shrugged.


    ¡°Well, I was told that he¡¯s been recruiting new members and training them in secret, so he¡¯ll be harder to track down,¡± Mr. Drails said, as I nodded. ¡°But he¡¯s in Hawaii, which means we can get him there easily. All we need to do is figure out a good way of getting him back here.¡±


    ¡°What about the rest of the BMO?¡± September asked, looking at Mr. Drails. ¡°Well, right now they have something else to worry about. Their mole is about to be exposed.¡± September smiled at this statement, as Mr. Drails smiled and nodded. ¡°Now we just need to make sure that happens.¡±


    ¡°And how do we do that?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°Well, we just need to keep an eye on the mole, and let him know that we¡¯re onto him,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Then we just need to wait for the mole to make a mistake, which will we be during their next mission. Assassinating one of the board directions for a business called Explore-Mel, which are taking in billions of revenue right now. One of their buildings are in Hawaii.¡±


    ¡°How does this-¡±


    ¡°Because Marcello is going to be there,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°He won¡¯t be able to help himself, so they¡¯ll most likely have a skilled team with him. And they¡¯re good enough to see through that.¡±


    ¡°So how do we get him?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°If they¡¯re so skilled, we¡¯re dead.¡±


    ¡°We have a n, a good one perhaps. One of my men will pretend to be their target, theye out and you guys capture them in their act,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°The perfect trick.¡±


    ¡°Well I hope it¡¯s perfect,¡± Mchi said, rubbing his hands together as if he was about to enjoy a feast of some sort.


    ¡°If you seed,¡± Mr. Drails said with a sigh and a smirk. ¡°Alright, get ready ya¡¯ll.¡± I nodded, checking my utility belt, seeing all of my weapons and items there. It made me feel confident that I was ready for the mission. And hopefully it¡¯ll be over soon.


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said to everyone. ¡°Everyone¡¯s ready?¡±


    September nodded.

 Chapter 162

    162 A Time in Hawaii


    ¡°Alright, everyone ready?¡± Mr. Drails asked, as I nodded. ¡°Then let¡¯s do this.¡± He opened up the portal that led to an alleyway between two apartments of some sort. I stepped through first, and Nikki followed, and then everyone else stepped through.


    As we were about to step into the portal, it closed, leaving Mchi falling to the ground. ¡°Of course, always with me,¡± he groaned.


    I turned around, seeing Nikki standing there with her hands in her pockets. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Nothing,¡± she replied, looking down.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine,¡± she said with a smile.


    ¡°Good,¡± I said, turning back to the others. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    ¡°This is how it always happens,¡± September said with a chuckle. ¡°The big guy falls first.¡±


    ¡°Hush would you?¡± Mchi hissed, before he grabbed himself and pulled himself up. ¡°Okay,¡± Mr. Drails said through the radio, now I put you on the street where my decoy will arrive. When hees, stay back until you see Marcello in sight, okay?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Yeah,¡± we responded, and I walked towards the other end of the alleyway. The other end where there were a few people walking down it as they talked with each other in hushed tones. ¡°So do we just look around or something?¡± Mchi asked, and I shrugged.


    ¡°Maybe try to look like you belong,¡± Nikki suggested.


    ¡°Yeah, like we¡¯re lost,¡± I added.


    ¡°Exactly,¡± she said with a nod, and we both looked at Mchi before he frowned and looked at the ground. ¡°Can we eat some food?¡± I asked as Nikki nodded in agreement. ¡°That would be the best way.¡± Tisiah nodded and Mchi exceptionally nodded in agreement, making him look at us as we nodded back. ¡°Then it¡¯s settled.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re really enjoying this aren¡¯t you,¡± I said with augh as I saw Mchi¡¯s eyes narrow. ¡°We just got here, but it is a good start,¡± he said, as I shrugged and turned my attention to the alleyway again. We walked towards the other end, seeing that there were many peopleing and going from the buildings, but there were only two people walking down the other end of the alleyway as they talked with each other and nced around every so often.


    Soon enough, we arrived on the street and it was pretty crowded with people walking by. I was able to see a few people in suits and ties, and a couple of women dressed in business casuals. There were a lot of people, and quite a lot of people who could be targets.


    ¡°See that food vendor up there?¡± September suddenly said, and I turned my head towards her voice as I looked at her. ¡°The one with the bright blue shirt?¡± She was pointing towards the direction she was facing.


    I nodded as I saw him walking around the cart he was setting up and setting a board of sausages on the stand. I nodded, feeling a bit excited, as Nikki did too as she looked at me with a smirk on her face. ¡°Yes, yes I see him,¡± I said as sheughed softly to herself before she took off running towards the stand.


    ¡°Whoa, wait up!¡± Mchi protested as he ran after her, while I followed along with Nikki, and we both made our way towards the stand where the sausage stand was being set up. The stand had the smell of cooking meating from it, and it was deliciously smelling to me as I could hear Nikki¡¯s excited tone.


    I looked behind me, seeing that Mr. Drails had given us a good spot for this to work out the best. We were surrounded by people who were walking around or walking their dogs down the streets of the city. It was the perfect but worst ce at the same time, seeing as there were so many targets here. I wasn¡¯t worried though, since my team was ready and prepared for anything to happen.


    ¡°Two sausages,¡± Nikki said happily as she stood there with her hand outstretched waiting for the man to give her those two. But as I looked around, I felt something wrong, seeing as this wasn¡¯t normal for us at all. There were too many people here, and there was something else too that made me feel something was off here as I looked at Nikki¡¯s happy expression as she waited for the man to give her those two sausages.


    And then I caught it. It was such a split second, but it was enough for me to notice it all. There were only two people who were walking down the streets, and both of them were carrying briefcases as they talked with each other and looked around every so often to check their surroundings.


    Those were the fake targets, but where were the assassins? And that was when I saw one of them standing in the crowd watching Nikki and me waiting for our order. They were about five meters away from me, and they seemed to be looking around with curiosity as they seemed to be looking at Nikki more than anyone else in this area.


    ¡°Guys...¡± I muttered, as an uneasy feeling rained upon me, but then Mchi tapped my shoulder to get my attention. ¡°Huh?¡± I asked him as I turned around, seeing him staring at something in the air before he pointed at something behind me. ¡°I think they¡¯re here,¡± Mchi said, as my eyes widened in shock.


    There were two motorcycles going for those two guys at a high speed, and as soon as they passed by them they turned their heads back and stared at them. They were dressed in ck leather jackets and pants as they both wore dark sunsses, and both of them wore ck helmets as well. Their faces were covered in tattoos, and as I looked closer, I could see that one of them was holding a pistol.


    ¡°Get down!¡± I yelled, and as I did so, I heard Nikki yell the same thing.


    ¡°What the!¡± Nikki yelled. The targets covered their heads, as me and Mchi ran towards them, as everyone else turned their heads to see what was going on.


    The motorcycle riders stopped in front of those two targets and jumped off their motorcycles and started to approach them quickly. But then, they immediately noticed us, and their expressions turned to confusion.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± The one who was carrying the gun shouted as he raised his weapon and pointed it at us, but before he could pull the trigger I ran towards him and grabbed his wrist to stop him from firing. Quickly I kicked him in his knee, making him fall to the ground in pain.


    I felt Mchi running towards me, as I turned around to see Nikki running towards him as well. The other rider was taking his time to draw his gun out from his jacket before he aimed at us as well. ¡°Duck!¡± September shouted, ramming into Mchi before a shot was even fired, pushing him back a few feet.


    Mchi got back up onto his feet with a grunt and grabbed the bike rider who was aiming his gun at him before he mmed the bike rider into a car which crashed against the wall nearby, making a loud bang. The gunshot had been loud too, as I looked around me and saw that some of the bystanders had stopped what they were doing to look at us in curiosity.


    Soon enough, more motorcycles began to arrive at the scene, and as the riders stopped their vehicles and got off, they immediately drew their guns out and aimed them at us.


    This was getting bad. But then as I turned my head, I found myself dodging an overhead punch, before I mmed into the person who threw it before Inded a kick right on the chin of the other person. They fell down like a sack of potatoes as I stood up and looked at the two men who were fighting me while they both held their pistols out.


    One of them tried to swing, but I ducked underneath it and mmed my fist into his face before I grabbed his arm and twisted it around before I mmed my knee into his stomach. He groaned in pain and fell to the ground while his partner stared down at me as he aimed his weapon at me again.


    ¡°I got you now you!¡± He shouted as he aimed his gun right at me. ¡°I¡¯m gonna kill you!¡± He shouted again before I dodged to the side, avoiding the bullet that was fired by the gun he was holding.


    They didn¡¯t seem very experienced, being they are good assassins, so I figured I should take this chance to defeat them if I could. My eyes narrowed in anger as I approached them quickly to get in their face so they couldn¡¯t aim at me.


    But then I noticed, as I looked behind me and saw a van that took our two targets.


    It was a distraction, but one that worked.

 Chapter 163

    163 A Bad Time in Hawaii


    And the two riders who were standing in front of us turned their heads back towards their targets, just as a bullet hit one of them in the chest before he copsed onto the ground while the other one yelped in pain. ¡°Where¡¯s a car we can borrow?¡± I asked, looking around, while Nikki shrugged her shoulders.


    ¡°I¡¯ll go find one,¡± Tisiah said before he took off running towards a car parked nearby while Mchi took a quick look at the situation around us. ¡°There¡¯s a Honda Civic that¡¯s right there,¡± I suggested, as all their heads turned to that, and then Nikki nodded her head quickly. ¡°That¡¯s it,¡± she said with a nod. ¡°Hurry!¡±


    Quickly, we spent towards the vehicle as I took the backseat as Tisiah and Nikki joined me. September took the driver seat, and Mchi only could settle with the passenger seat.


    ¡°Come on,e on,¡± September mumbled as she turned on the car, and immediately she drifted, leaving a pack of smoke behind her before she zoomed through the street. ¡°Alright, we need to catch up to them,¡± I said, feeling my heart wiggle from the speed. ¡°Can you tell where they went?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but it¡¯s not easy,¡± September grumbled as she took a turn that led us into an alleyway that was filled with many different kinds of motorcycles, cars, and even busses.


    ¡°Okay, okay,¡± I said before she turned a corner. Then she drove, making her way out of the alleyway, approaching the van. Quickly she drifted to the left, chasing the van towards an intersection, but when she got there, she turned right towards another street, only this time it was full of cars. ¡°Whoa!¡± she shouted, while the van we were chasing was still in front of us.


    ¡°Okay, try not to kill us alright,¡± Mchi said, but September shot a mean look at him.


    ¡°Hold on!¡± she shouted as she veered hard to the right before she pulled the car back onto her path. The van was moving like a snake, in a rhythm of left and right as if they were drunk, only it wasn¡¯t moving slow at all. It was moving at a high speed while the traffic seemed to be getting slower by the minute, while all cars on this street were still moving like normal.


    But all of a sudden, my heart dropped.


    .....


    The back doors opened.


    There were about ten men inside the back.


    And they had guns.


    ¡°Duck!¡± September shouted, as their bullets began to spray. ss shattered, bullets flew, and the windshield cracked all over as the bullets flew inside of us. September steered left and right, as the driver of the van followed her exact movements. ¡°Oh shoot!¡± Mchi shouted in shock, covering his head, while Nikki closed her eyes tightly as well. ¡°I can¡¯t keep up!¡± September shouted in shock, as she pushed down the gas pedal in an attempt to go faster.


    September continued to swerve through the streets, trying to dodge the speeding bullets. ¡°This is bad,¡± September said with a rough sigh, looking around, while she took a sharp turn to the right and then another sharp turn to the left before she took another sharp turn to the right again. ¡°I can¡¯t keep up with them!¡± she shouted in frustration.


    ¡°Just keep at em!¡± I shouted, feeling my legs wobble from the speed, but then suddenly we came across an open space and we could see ahead of us that we were approaching another intersection where the van would either have to turn right or left. ¡°Go left!¡± I shouted with all my might.


    She quickly swerved the car to the left, as the van quickly drifted to that same direction, before it turned left and continued down the road with us following closely behind them.


    ¡°That was close!¡± September shouted as she took another sharp turn to the left and then another sharp turn to the right before she turned to face them once again. ¡°One question, where is Marcello in all of this?¡± Mchi asked, making the thought make itself known my head, but then I shook my head and shrugged my shoulders at him.


    ¡°No clue,¡± I said, as I gripped the handle of the door tight as we were racing at such high speeds down the street.


    ¡°He has to be in that van,¡± Nikki said, scratching her head, as if she had a brain full of ideas that she could use to figure this out.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I replied, staring ahead at them in order to aim my gun at them while I thought of a n of what I would do next. ¡°Get to the side of them,¡± I said. ¡°He¡¯s possibly the driver.¡±


    September nodded as she began to push the gas pedal with a bit more force, while I tried to get a better look at who was driving it.


    ¡°Shoot!¡± I heard Mchi shout as he ducked down and covered his head from the flying bullets that were now hitting the car with a lot more intensity than before, causing our car to shake violently from every shot that fired at us. It was very hard to dodge bullets while try to gain up on them, as they were shooting from all directions, making it extremely difficult for us to dodge them all.


    I could see that we were getting closer to them, but so was the van which was driving at a high speed through the city streets with us trailing after it.


    ¡°Come on, we¡¯re making it!¡± I shouted, feeling the fear and suspense pump inside of me, as if I wanted to let out everything in my body that was holding back this overwhelming feeling of fear that was building up inside my heart.


    ¡°Yes!¡± Nikki shouted, as she kept her gun out as well, while she pointed it towards the van in order to shoot at it.


    She shot back, but it only reflected off of the van, as if it was a mirror.


    ¡°Shoot!¡± I shouted angrily at her, while she looked at me in confusion. ¡°Shoot it!¡± I shouted again with more force.


    She nodded her head in understanding and shot once again.


    This time the bullet hit someone¡¯s head as he ducked down and covered his head with his hands, and suddenly he fell off his seat onto his feet as he slid off into the backseat, causing him to fall onto the floor with a loud thud.


    ¡°Got em!¡± Nikki shouted with excitement as we were now gaining more ground on them as we raced down the street in pursuit.


    ¡°Come on!¡± I shouted, feeling the fear pump even more inside of me, as I looked ahead of us to see that we were going to be at the intersection soon, and that we had to decide if we should turn left or right. ¡°Okay, right here we can pit em,¡± Mchi said, leaning over to September, who was driving, and then he whispered something into her ear.


    Then suddenly they made a quick turn right and disappeared from our sight, only to reappear just a few secondster on another street where they kept driving fast with us following closely behind them.


    Soon enough we started to show up at their sides, almost at a good area to pit them. But not enough.


    But they seemed to know that we were close behind them, and they took another turn right before we were able to follow them down the street.


    ¡°Turn left,¡± I heard Mchi whispering into September¡¯s ears again, but this time they didn¡¯t listen to him as they kept driving down the street at full speed, their engines roaring loudly in front of us.


    I grabbed my gun and held it tightly in my hand, while I looked forward and focused on where they were going to be at any given time. ¡°Okay,¡± I said to myself. ¡°Okay...¡±


    We were now starting to catch up, and my chance wasing soon, as we could see them taking another turn right before we could follow them on another street where there was nothing around us.


    ¡°Now!¡± I shouted as I pointed my gun towards them, but they didn¡¯t seem to notice me as they kept driving fast down the street with no one around them. September quickly zoomed in, ramming into the tail of their van. I shot the tires at once, but then suddenly there was another van that appeared from nowhere and blocked my shot.


    The two vans collided with each other and exploded into a huge fireball of smoke as everyone inside of them flew out of the vehicles and onto the road.


    Shock was sted onto my face, seeing the van burn. The men inside were still alive, but no sign of Marcello. ¡°Stop the car!¡± Tisiah said, as the car stopped quickly, causing us to jump out and run towards the smoke. I felt the smoke st into my face, and the crunch of the pieces under my feet were loud as I stepped forward slowly towards the smoke that wasing out of the burning van.


    I took a deep breath as I felt the heating from the mes that were burning on my face. But then I heard faint coughing that came from behind as I stopped cold.

 Chapter 164

    164 A Terrible Time in Hawaii


    I walked towards the voice, hearing the silent groan, and then I saw Marcello lying on his back. He looked messed up, way different than when we met him from Russia, but he still had his eyes open. ¡°Marcello!¡± I shouted as I ran towards him, kneeling down next to him and grabbing his hand that was covered in blood.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± he asked, as eyes dazed, looking up at me with a nk expression on his face. ¡°You are not who I thought you are,¡± he said weakly as he coughed out blood on to my face.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± I said with a gentle smile, pulling his hand that was covered in blood. ¡°I¡¯m here to-¡±


    ¡°Wait, you¡¯re one of those guys with Rocke aren¡¯t you?¡± he said, now his eyes filled with rage, making me back away as he sat up slowly. ¡°You¡¯re working with him?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I replied quickly, shaking my head. ¡°I don¡¯t work for Rocke.¡± But he didn¡¯t seem to listen, because he kicked me in the stomach, making me stumble back. I fell to my knees, but not too bad to where I couldn¡¯t get back up, but my gun fell out of my hand, and itnded on the ground next to him.


    ¡°You¡¯re lying!¡± he screamed angrily, kicking me again. ¡°You¡¯re lying!¡± He screamed again, and then he began to stand up, but then he fell back down onto his knees. He seemed to be very injured, because he wasn¡¯t moving like he usually did.


    ¡°Marcello?¡± I said softly, kneeling next to him and lifting his head up so I could see his face clearly. He looked different from how I remembered him being, but I could tell that he was still Marcello.


    But then he pushed me back, and now he fully got up onto his feet again. ¡°Listen, I-¡± I protested, but he threw an overhead punch which I ducked under, and then he pulled me by my neck and pushed me backwards. My head mmed hard against the ground, making it feel like I was about to pass out from the pain that shot through my head and spine, but then I quickly grabbed his arms and began to push him off of me as I tried to get away from him.


    He wouldn¡¯t let go of me, even though I pushed him off with all my might, and then he punched me in the face several times, making me fall back onto the floor.


    .....


    ¡°So you want to kill my agents now?¡± he muttered. ¡°Rocke wants to kill my-my-agents?!¡±


    ¡°No, that wasn¡¯t-¡± I said trying to get up, but then he threw a punch at my stomach, knocking all the air out of my lungs again.


    ¡°I told you, that¡¯s not-¡± I said before he punched me again in the face.


    My face felt like it was on fire. But I couldn¡¯t fall down again before he beat me to a pulp again, and I felt a sharp pain in my left eye.


    ¡°Why?¡± he asked, dropping his arm. ¡°Why do you want to hurt me?¡± He asked me with a cold stare. ¡°Why did you try to kill me?¡± He threw a punch, but I quickly halted it with my hand before I kicked him in the stomach, making him back up with a gasp.


    ¡°Because you¡¯re going to kill me!¡± I screamed at him, making him cover his mouth in shock. ¡°You¡¯re going to kill me!¡± I screamed again, making him lower his hand. I then gave a hard blow to his cheek, then a quick left to his stomach, then a right uppercut to his chin that made him fall backwards onto the ground, holding his face in pain as he fell over onto his side.


    ¡°Try me,¡± Marcello said, returning back to his feet. ¡°Try me.¡±


    I took a deep breath, as I threw a right but he ducked, holding me by the throat. Suddenly by his sheer force he pushed me into the car, as some ss shattered into the air. He began to throw punches at me again, but I ducked every single one of them as he threw them at me like he was throwing stones.


    But then he kneed me in the stomach, and instead of breathing, wheezing was taking the wheel instead, making it harder for me to fight him off as he punched me over and over again until he had no more strength left in him. Then he fell down onto his knees, staring at me with blood dripping from his face and hair.


    ¡°Listen Marcello,¡± I said, feeling weary of all the punches, kicks, and punches he threw at me. ¡°You don¡¯t need to kill me.¡±


    ¡°Why not?¡± he asked with a cold stare as if he didn¡¯t even know who I was.


    ¡°Because I¡¯m not working for Rocke,¡± I said, wiping the blood from my face. ¡°Never have.¡± He looked at me with disgust, as if I was a piece of garbage or something that he stepped on.


    ¡°Then what are you doing here?¡± He asked with a serious look on his face.


    ¡°I¡¯m here to stop you from killing anyone else,¡± I said with a serious look on my face. ¡°We know you¡¯re the mole.¡± All of a sudden, Marcello¡¯s eyes widened-his mouth agape, but then he held himself together again.


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± he said calmly. ¡°I¡¯m not-¡±


    ¡°We found out that you were the mole for the BMO,¡± I said, pointing my gun towards him. ¡°Maddie Cone, recognize that name?¡± He was silent. ¡°You provided information to her about Charlie, and now they¡¯re ready to kidnap a child for their new weapon. Let me guess, they offered you money?¡±


    Suddenly, he threw a very quick, but harsh right, which I blocked with my arm and then pushed him away from me.


    ¡°You¡¯re going down,¡± he said coldly as he wiped some blood from his eye with his hand.


    ¡°You¡¯re going down,¡± I said back to him with a cold re. ¡°Now here¡¯s what you¡¯re going to do okay? You¡¯re going to surrender yourself as we get you to the YMPA. After we¡¯re done-well-that¡¯s on the YMPA to decide.¡± Marcello looked at me, breathing heavily with rage, as if I just killed his dog.


    ¡°Okay,¡± he said slowly. ¡°I¡¯ll surrender myself to you.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± I replied quickly with a smile, making him smile as well. ¡°You¡¯re actually pretty easy to negotiate with.¡± Marcello chuckled but then his smile faded away again, his eyes almost closed, as if he was thinking about something.


    ¡°Come on,¡± I said to him with a gentle smile as I grabbed his hand and began to pull him away from the car. All of a sudden, I heard footsteps running towards my direction. Through all the smoke, I saw September and the rest of the team, but they all stared at Marcello and me like they were in shock.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Tisiah asked as he ran towards us. I sighed, not feeling like exining much at all, and I nodded towards Marcello.


    ¡°Get him out of here,¡± I said quickly. ¡°He¡¯s not a threat anymore.¡±


    ¡°With what car?¡± Nikki asked, looking around, as if there was a car somewhere.


    ¡°We¡¯ll figure something out,¡± I said calmly with a smile, trying to avoid having to exin too much. ¡°We might figure something out...¡± The smoke was heavy and almost unbearable, and the smell of fire was itching my nose, making my stomach feel sick.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Tisiah asked Marcello as the smoke began to make him cough. ¡°We can¡¯t get out this way.¡± He looked at me with confusion and annoyance in his eyes as Marcello was coughing loudly.


    ¡°Juste here,¡± I replied as Marcello shook his head and then tried to cough as hard as he could, making blood spurt out of his mouth as it ran down his lips and chin. I looked around, seeing one of those Mitsubishi Ounder.


    ¡°Marcello,¡± I said softly as I grabbed him by the hand and began to drag him towards the car. ¡°Someone, open the door.¡± Marcello nodded and then started coughing again-he looked weak and tired already, like a dying man on his knees with his life slipping through his fingers. September nodded, as she quickly galloped towards the door, unlocking it and opening it wide enough for us to get into.


    ¡°Get in the back seat,¡± I said as Marcelloid his head against the seat and then closed his eyes, taking deep breaths and trying to hold the pain.

 Chapter 165

    165 Jealousy


    ¡°Alright, who¡¯s gonna call Mr. Drails?¡± Mchi asked. Nikki got out her radio, and as she began to call the number that Mr. Drails gave her, she said ¡°Calling Mr. Drails, calling Mr. Drails...¡± Then she continued to repeat that sentence over and over again until finally she got an answer.


    ¡°Yea,¡± Mr. Drails answered.


    ¡°We got Marcello, but some van crashed into them, causing the van to explode. I think your men died,¡± Nikki said, but only silence was on the phone, and then she said ¡°Hello?¡± But there was no reply from Mr. Drails.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Mr. Drails said as soon as he picked up the radio again. ¡°I don¡¯t know...where¡¯s your location?¡± Nikki pulled out her phone, and checked. ¡°We¡¯re in these coordinates: 43¡ã1¡¯42.33¡åN, 5¡ã17¡¯5.18¡åW.¡±


    ¡°Got it,¡± Mr. Drails said before hanging up the phone. ¡°Okay, a portal should being soon. Just stop the car.¡± Nikki winced, ¡°Yeah also, Marcello is not in good shape right now.¡± Mr. Drails sighed, and his lips smacked through the radio, ¡°I don¡¯t give a crap. Just hurry.¡±


    Nikki slowly pulled the car over and stopped the car as we came to a red light. Soon enough a portal opened up, and we walked through to the front of the YMPA, where we saw Mr. Drails. ¡°Here,¡± I said to him, as Nikki gave Marcello to Mr. Drails. ¡°We¡¯ll treat him, for now you guys need to get to Japan,¡± Mr. Drails said, looking at us, but then he noticed that Marcello was still breathing and then turned around to walk away, holding his hand over his mouth as he took deep breaths, as if he was trying to suppress a sneeze.


    Men rushed towards us, looking at the wounded Marcello, trying to figure out what happened-as I knew what happened. They rushed towards Marcello as if he had fallen into a volcano-and that¡¯s exactly what he had done. He had taken a lot of damage from us but more so from the smoke that made him cough so hard that he lost control of himself.


    He coughed for a long time until his breathing became more rxed but still shallow.


    ¡°Take him to the medical center,¡± Mr. Drails said, breathing out, looking exhausted after witnessing all of the events that happened today. ¡°You guys did great.¡±


    .....


    I nodded as I put my hands in my pocket and then turned around. ¡°But you guys need to get to Japan, it would be for the best,¡± Mr. Drails said, creating a portal, and he looked back at me before I left with a stern expression on his face. ¡°What do you mean ¡®for the best¡¯?¡± I turned around again, looking at Mr. Drails and then turning back around, walking towards the YMPA entrance.


    I nodded as we walked through the portal, before it closed the seal back to the YMPA.


    Created with Sketch.


    We were now in Zekeshi Kin¡¯s mansion, which now felt way more calmer than Hawaii. Iid on the sofa while Nikki came over to me and sat by me, giving me a kiss on the cheek, which was a really nice feeling after everything that had just happened today.


    ¡°Hey Connor,¡± she said with a smile, rubbing my cheek gently. I smiled at her and then gave her a soft kiss back. I slowly turned my head towards her so I could look into her eyes. ¡°Hey,¡± I said. ¡°How are you doing so far?¡±


    She bit her lip, ¡°You know I¡¯m not good at this stuff.¡± I nodded slowly.


    I chuckled slightly, but suddenly I heardughter echoing from the stairs. Then I saw Masaru and September walking down the stairs,ughing and chuckling like first graders, except they were two teenagers.


    Confusion ran through my head as I saw them walking down the stairs towards us with their arms around each other¡¯s shoulders. I tried to keep my cool as I kept a smile, as they walked into the kitchen, talking to each other, with Nikki smiling beside me as she watched them too.


    ¡°Connor,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°You okay?¡±


    I shook my head, returning back to reality, ¡°Yeah...¡±


    ¡°You sure?¡± he asked again, looking at me carefully.


    I nodded slowly, ¡°Yeah.¡± He looked at me for another moment and then walked away, going back into the living room.


    Nikki sat down on the other side of me as we both watched Masaru and September hug each other in the kitchen while talking to one another about some trivial matters that didn¡¯t even matter to anyone else but them-like when they would have their next date night.


    Iughed at myself as I realized that I didn¡¯t care much for their rtionship status and such, but it was nice to see them happy. Or at least I tried to, but just seeing September looking at him the same way she looks at me just-frightened me, in a way. She wasn¡¯t acting like my girlfriend but it felt like she wanted to be more than friends-like maybe she wants him in her life for something more, but it doesn¡¯t really matter anymore now since she has me, so I tried not to think about it.


    ¡°So I heard anything from Mr. Drails?¡± I asked Tisiah, who was sitting in front of me while Nikki was on my other side.


    ¡°Not yet,¡± Tisiah replied, looking at me with a curious look on his face. ¡°Who knows if Marcello survived.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I agreed, thinking about the explosion, and how it felt like my heart stopped beating when the mes roared towards us. ¡°I wonder what happened to the van though.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Tisiah said with a sigh, looking down at his feet. ¡°Pretty sure the fire department is on it though.¡±


    ¡°Probably,¡± I said with a chuckle, and then we both looked up to see September and Masaru walk out of the kitchen with two sses full of some juice.


    ¡°Here,¡± Masaru said as he handed me mine, and I took it from him and smiled at him. It was hard not to give him a dirty face, since I felt like doing it every single day since we met each other.


    I looked down into the ss of juice as Masaru held up his own ss, and then we both took a sip. ¡°So, how are you guys doing?¡± he asked while looking at us, with September nodding in response.


    I nodded back slowly as I sipped my juice and then looked over at Nikki who was looking at us with a curious look on her face. ¡°Fine I guess,¡± Nikki answered as Masaru cleared his throat, taking another sip of his juice.


    ¡°I guess?¡± he replied before looking at her with an annoyed look on his face. ¡°It¡¯s weird being back here.¡±


    ¡°It is?¡± I asked in return, drinking my juice.


    ¡°Yeah.¡± He nodded as he took another sip of his juice. ¡°Everyone looks off.¡± I chuckled and almost choked on that chuckle, because it sounded way more like a gag than a realugh. But it was funny, and I couldn¡¯t help butugh out loud at that moment. Masaru joined in and September followed as well, while Nikki just gave me a confused look as she tilted her head slightly to one side.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Nikki said with a smallugh. ¡°I guess we¡¯re all off.¡±


    ¡°Well what happened so bad today?¡± he said, as he started soothing September¡¯s arms. Now he was getting way too far, and somehow September is epting this, and that was weird too since it felt like he was touching her in a weird way or something.


    ¡°Well...¡± she said as she looked at me and the rest of the team. ¡°A certain person we were looking for crashed and kind of exploded. He may not have a chance of making it perhaps.¡± Masaru¡¯s eyes widened as if he didn¡¯t want to know anymore.


    He probably shouldn¡¯t, since we had no idea if he was dead or alive after the van exploded. We didn¡¯t know anything about that yet; but there were still possibilities that he might survive. It was just a possibility, though.


    ¡°Well that¡¯s okay,¡± Masaru said calmly, still soothing her arms. ¡°He¡¯s probably already dead.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± September replied in an awkward tone of voice.


    I mean I appreciate his honesty, but this could affect him as well, if he finds out the truth. It might be better if he doesn¡¯t know anything right now, while we were trying to help him escape from his situation in Japan.

 Chapter 166

    166 Troubles in the Cafeteria


    I was back at school, seeing Greg with his whole mighty colony of friends again, and I found myself thinking about what I had done yesterday. Not that it really mattered anymore now since we were back at school, but still-it did feel like a turning point in my life where everything just changedpletely.


    But I could notice something that was beginning to be very clear. He didn¡¯t like the friends he was having, which made sense; because who wants to hangout with people they don¡¯t even get along with? He wasn¡¯t that different from me-I just tried to keep up with him since we had been together for so long now, and it felt like Greg had no interest in hanging out with me since we were in our own little worlds.


    But I know he isn¡¯t interested in these conversations, and I also know that they are trying to get him interested in them. And that¡¯s when it hit me-these guys were just trying to make it seem like they are actually friends with Greg, so they could get closer to him and be more popr.


    Of course, who wouldn¡¯t try something like that? Well, actually-I wouldn¡¯t, because that¡¯s cheap. But if you¡¯re just a regr person-well yeah, it¡¯s probably better to try to get closer to other people and be more popr. Then the bell rang for lunch, as I got my backpack and began to walk down the hall to the cafeteria, and then I realized that I had no idea where I should sit today.


    I knew Greg was sitting with his crew of friends-which meant I should probably just go somewhere else and get my food. But then again, Greg probably won¡¯t be bothered with me being there or not. But then again maybe he would-but he probably wouldn¡¯t, since he¡¯s a moron for the most part.


    I made my way towards the bright cafeteria with white walls and ceiling, and as I stepped inside, the smell of food already permeating the air, as I found myself walking around looking at different tables until I found one that I liked.


    I walked over there with my lunch bag in hand, and then I noticed Greg¡¯s crew of friends sitting around him, all of them wearing their high school uniform: blue zer over their ck pants and white shirt. Their hair was all ck except for one guy who had red hair, and he was the one who seemed like their spokesperson.


    But then I heard them say, ¡°Isn¡¯t that the Connor person you always make fun of?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Greg said with augh, ¡°I made fun of him for not being good enough for me.¡±


    .....


    The boys began tough, as they began to spit at me these names: ¡®Connor person¡¯, ¡®Greg-no-friends¡¯, and ¡®Connor-who-doesn¡¯t-have-friends¡¯. Then they started making fun of me even more, as I found myself feeling upset about the situation; rage began to build up inside of me.


    But I needed to stay calm, just for now, while I thought about how I would handle this situation. But then it struck me as I realized that this is exactly what they wanted: to make me upset. I continued to look back at them, seeing how they continued to make fun of me and how they continued to make me feel like nothing.


    Then I thought of something; I decided to y along with their game, as I could see that they were just having a great time,ughing about how I am alone and have no friends.


    But then, Greg said something-something so rude and almost unforgivable about me that I still can never forget: ¡°If being annoying was a crime, Connor would be sentenced to a death penalty. He¡¯s worthless.¡±


    That¡¯s it.


    I¡¯m done ying spy on him, because this is beyond ridiculous now. They are treating me like some kind of criminal or something, which I obviously am not. This needs to end now. No questions, no answers-just finish it here and now.


    I walked over to where his group of friends were sitting at the table, as I saw that his crew was making faces at me while talking to each other andughing at me.


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯m done with this!¡± I shouted, not thinking or even processing, as I grabbed Greg by the cor and shoved him onto the table with my arm; then I stood there staring at him with my face twisted into an angry expression. ¡°You think you can say all that about me, and expect me not to do anything?¡±


    The men looked confused and almost scared, as if they could feel the rage building up inside of me.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± the guy with the red hair asked nervously. ¡°Greg-oh, Greg-you know exactly what I¡¯m capable of,¡± I hissed at him, as he continued to look at me with an expression that said he didn¡¯t understand what was going on.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t funny anymore!¡± I shouted. ¡°It never was!¡±


    Greg chuckled and shook his head. ¡°You think you scare me? That I¡¯m just gonna bow down to you as some sort of master. Clearly you don¡¯t know what I¡¯m capable of.¡± I looked at him, almostughing, as I put my hands on my hips.


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said calmly, still not understanding why he was making all of these faces andughing at me-which just made me even angrier now. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s get one thing straight. I have been your friend since I have been here! I was loyal to you!¡±


    Greg looked unfazed by my sob story, which just made me even angrier at this point, as he just kept chuckling away.


    ¡°I am so sorry,¡± Greg said as he continued tough at me. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have done that to you.¡±


    Then he just started to bawl inughter, as his friends stared at me with expressions that were way tooplicated to interpret; they were either confused or scared of me. But then Greg suddenly stopped, shaking his head, as he wiped away the tears from his eyes. ¡°What¡¯s your problem?¡± he asked with a confused look on his face.


    ¡°You are the problem!¡± I shouted. ¡°Always have been.¡±


    ¡°Might as well fix the problem then,¡± Greg said, standing up onto his feet, while his crew looked back and forth between him and me.


    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s do that,¡± he said in a mocking tone of voice. Then he started walking towards me as I took a step back from him and stood there staring back at him; I was still holding on to my anger in my heart. He stood face to face, probably three inches away from my nose. He was so close like this that he was almost in my personal space, as if he was trying to intimidate me.


    Heughed at me again as he brought his nose up to my face. ¡°You wanna fight me? Go ahead, do it now,¡± Greg said with a smile, as his friends began tough again. ¡°Do you know who you¡¯re messing with?¡±


    I was still furious with him, so I couldn¡¯t stop my body from trembling slightly; but I could tell that he didn¡¯t care about that as he keptughing. Then I saw him take his hand and reach into his pocket; then he pulled out something and threw it at me, as I instinctively ducked to avoid it.


    My heart sank as I watched the red object fly through the air towards me; I could feel my breath being taken away from me as I felt my eyes widen with fear-fear of what it could be. It was a knife that looked like it would be able to cut through bone and muscle with ease.

 Chapter 167

    167 The Truth


    Created with Sketch.


    ¡°Ooh, you seem pretty scared,¡± he said, with teeth over his bottom lip, as I looked down at the ground with my heart beating so fast in my chest it was hard for me to breathe properly. ¡°That¡¯s good, because you¡¯re gonna get what you deserve.¡± Greg sighed, and slowly nodded.


    ¡°You see, when I was diagnosed with PTSD, I thought about it for a few days. But the more and more I began to realize, you were the cause of it. Your crazy missions with your crazy enemy had done a lot of damage to me. I was never so scared any other day than the day Rocke kidnapped us in that ship. You broke me. I was too scared to wake up another day, and all you were doing was bringing me down. I fought Kirk so I could be popr, to gain the confidence I had back then. But instead, you and your dirty hands want to drag me back down, and trust me-I¡¯m not going down there again. Listen, our friendship was nothing but a toxin. Leave me alone, or I will make you do so myself.¡±


    I was too shocked-too astonished-to speak. Then the bell rang for the next period of the day-and everything stopped for me.


    I stood there in shock for a few seconds before I could evenprehend what had happened to me, as everything came into view before my eyes; I stood there with my mouth hanging open as I could barelyprehend what I had just witnessed happen. What he said. What he thought.


    What I did.


    It wasn¡¯t real.


    I don¡¯t believe that he could have done all of those things.


    He must be lying. There was no way he defended me because he wanted to be popr. There is no way he thought I caused him that much fear. He decided to help me in the first ce. But, we were technically brothers so he pretty much had to help me.


    .....


    But still...he was right. The missions were too dangerous.


    I had just seen Greg try to kill me because he was just trying to fit in with his friends by making it seem like we were enemies. That¡¯s not who I am anymore, though-I don¡¯t want to be an enemy with anyone ever again.


    I stood there trying to make sense of it all as my mind raced for answers. Tears rolled down my eyes as I dropped to my knees, as I started to cry uncontrobly and couldn¡¯t stop myself; it felt like all my energy had been sucked out of my body-and that¡¯s exactly what happened.


    I was alone.


    Created with Sketch.


    School ended as a portal opened and sucked me back to the entrance of the YMPA. I still felt the pain beating inside my heart as I walked inside. As I walked in, I looked up-seeing Tisiah walking towards me with such a smile, but then it was gone as he saw my expression and expression turned into something else.


    He rushed over and ced his hands on my shoulders. ¡°Are you okay?¡± he asked, but no words coulde out of my mouth, so he shook me slightly; then I could see that my eyes were watering and my body was trembling violently as he stared at me with a concerned look on his face.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine,¡± I responded, finally being able to speak again. ¡°Why do you ask?¡± He didn¡¯t say anything back as he looked at me with his soft eyes and tried to read the expression on my face. ¡°Nothing,¡± he responded as he looked at me, then looked down to the floor, and then back up at me. ¡°I just got a feeling that you weren¡¯t too well.¡±


    ¡°Trust me, I¡¯m fine,¡± I said with a weak smile, as I ced my hand on his shoulder for support; but it didn¡¯t feel like I needed the support at this point. ¡°I¡¯m just really exhausted right now.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I can tell. Well hopefully the news Mr. Drails might make your day better,¡± Tisiah said with a smile, and I returned one at him. These are good friends that support me, not Greg, who is still being an brickhead about the whole situation, but still-it doesn¡¯t matter right now.


    We walked into the room, where we saw Mr. Drails sitting down while looking on his phone, but he was smiling in an amused way as we walked inside and sat down on the floor next to him.


    ¡°So how are things going?¡± Mr. Drails asked, while still smiling on his phone.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Tisiah asked in response.


    ¡°Japan?¡± Mr. Drails said as realization came into everyone¡¯s heads, except mine-which was still clouded with confusion and anger.


    ¡°Oh yeah, well-it¡¯s been interesting,¡± Tisiah said as he started tough and shook his head, while Mr. Drails nodded in agreement. ¡°Yeah, now what I want you guys to do is to watch this interrogation. Hear the information just so that I don¡¯t waste my time and energy exining a five-page essay to you guys.¡±


    Suddenly a video that was inside Mr. Drails¡¯s special interrogation room popped up. Marcello was in the room by himself, but he didn¡¯t look like a criminal-he looked more like a confused teenager who had done something dumb that he wasn¡¯t proud of, as his head was down on the table in front of him with his hands cuffed together.


    Soon enough, Mr. Drails entered the room, holding a folder before he sat down. Marcello didn¡¯t looked intimidated by a slight bit, and even smiled a little bit as Mr. Drails pulled out a small recorder from his pocket and put it on the table in front of him, then he clicked it on. ¡°Hello, Marcello Forde,¡± Mr. Drails greeted with a chuckle, as his eyes wandered over to the recorder. ¡°I¡¯m Bruce Drails from the YMPA.¡±


    Marcello gave a nod as he looked at the recorder with a curious expression on his face. ¡°I¡¯m very sorry for your-um-BANE assasins that were killed in that explosion, I¡¯m very sorry for you.¡± Marcello continued to say nothing, but his voice sounded kind of like it was getting caught in his throat as he looked at Mr. Drails with an expression that seemed more like anger than sadness.


    ¡°But you know, that¡¯s how it is. The same thing happens to me,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    ¡°What does Rocke want with me?¡± Marcello asked, as Mr. Drails¡¯s eyes widened. Then he began tough as he looked at Marcello. ¡°We don¡¯t work for Rocke. In fact we worked against him?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean-worked?¡±


    ¡°Well, he¡¯s dead. Was shot in the head,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Unlucky person.¡± He shook his head sarcastically, then he chuckled at the thought of the whole ordeal. Then he put his hand on his chin in thought for a minute as he thought about something; then he leaned forward and put his elbows on his knees, as he began to speak again. ¡°So-what¡¯s going on here?¡± He asked as he pulled out a notebook from his pocket, as he began to take notes.


    ¡°Going on where?¡± Marcello asked.


    Mr. Drails was silent before he abruptly said, ¡°You know, you always had been the man who was hired-good at his job. First Rocke, now Maddie Cone.¡± Marcello¡¯s face suddenly changed into worry, and he nced down at Mr. Drails¡¯s notebook, which was starting to get filled up quickly as it was making some noises as the pen continued to write down notes on it.


    ¡°You were the mole that told about Charlie, which was a good ce for them to slow down their supplies and electricity. Plus, keep the Xeno weapon. You also told them about Masaru Kin, who would be a suitable boy with a Perk to make the Xeno into a reality,¡± Mr. Drails said, looking directly at Marcello¡¯s eyes, as he had a smug grin on his face; then he began to chuckle again at what he was saying as if it was a joke. ¡°Your BANE assassins havemitted over thousands of murders, probably more just under your orders. How do you get them anyways?¡±


    ¡°How is that important?¡± Marcello hissed, but then started to shake his head and frown as he looked away from Mr. Drails and towards the wall in front of him, as if he didn¡¯t want anyone to see him frowning so obviously. ¡°What do you want?¡±


    ¡°What do I want?¡± Mr. Drails asked, leaning forward. ¡°I want you to be my mole.¡±


    ¡°Your mole?¡±


    ¡°Yes, precisely,¡± Mr. Drails repeated with a wide smile, as he held up his hands in front of him with his palms out and nodded his head with a chuckle in his voice as if it was a joke.

 Chapter 168

    168 A Walk In Japan


    ¡°I want you to give us information, be an informant for us. Give us info on Maddie Cone and her ns,¡± Mr. Drails said, as Marcello took a deep breath, which seemed like it wasing from the pit of his stomach; then he slowly let the air back out of his lungs as he sighed heavily, but his eyes were narrowed into a re on Mr. Drails as he clenched his jaw tight.


    ¡°What do I gain out of this?¡± Marcello said.


    ¡°Money, and a chance for your students to work with us. You can be very useful, Marcello,¡± Mr. Drails said, staring eye for eye, as his grin got wider and wider; then he added, ¡°and we might even be able to help your students.¡±


    Marcello looked away from Mr. Drails for a moment, before turning back to look at him with another re. ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll see what I can do,¡± Marcello said. ¡°But-I will never forgive you for the murder of my students.¡±


    Mr. Drails¡¯s shook his head as he got up, then walked out of the interrogation room with a smile on his face. ¡°Ohe on, they¡¯re not dead yet,¡± Mr. Drails said with augh as he shut the door behind him. Marcello was silent, saying nothing but just looking up at the ceiling, as his hands were still cuffed together tightly with the chains rattling with the movement of his arms.


    Then the video ended.


    ¡°So that¡¯s that,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°We have a new ally I guess.¡±


    ¡°Exactly,¡± Mr. Drails said, looking at all of us. ¡°Marcello will bring us info on Maddie Cone¡¯s n.¡± September nodded in support as I did as well, while Tisiah shrugged as if he wasn¡¯t sure if this was a good idea or not.


    ¡°Okay then,¡± Mr. Drails said with a smile. ¡°You guys will go to Japan and keep Masaru safe. Today is thest day until the flight, so we need to prepare well.¡± I nodded and looked at the others, before we began to prepare.


    .....


    ¡°Well I never expected that to happen,¡± I said, and September nodded, while Tisiah sighed and shook his head, while they both began to pack their things up as well. ¡°We have more things to worry about,¡± Mchi said, loading his gun, while I nodded in agreement.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said, putting my backpack on. ¡°This will be interesting to say the least.¡±


    Then, Mr. Drails created a portal and soon enough we walked through into Japan, and then it closed. We were in front of Zekeshi Kin¡¯s mansion, as we were allowed inside immediately. As soon as the door closed, September went over to Masaru and immediately hugged him, as she held onto him with a tight grip and he looked at her with a look of confusion and worry before she released her grip on him.


    Then she turned around and smiled at me and Mchi as we walked up to them, with a smirk on our faces. ¡°Well well well,¡± I said with a smile.


    ¡°Hey hey hey,¡± Masaru added, as he came in with a hug as well, and he looked at me with a smile and then at Mchi before he let go. ¡°I¡¯m d to see you two again.¡±


    ¡°Me too,¡± I said with a smile as I looked at Masaru. ¡°Been quite a journey I do have to say,¡± I responded and Masaru nodded. ¡°Today is myst day with my grandfather and I do have to say, it¡¯s been quite the day.¡± I nodded as I looked around the mansion, and memories soon began to y inside my mind, as if it was yesterday when I first came here and met Masaru¡¯s grandfather.


    ¡°You remember your grandfather?¡± Masaru asked as his eyes widened slightly.


    ¡°Not much, but I do remember him,¡± I replied. ¡°Old...very old.¡±


    Masaru chuckled andughed before he sighed, then he shook his head. ¡°Well I hope you guys cane back soon.¡±


    ¡°Me too,¡± Mchi said before he smiled at Masaru as well.


    ¡°Well then-I¡¯ll be in my room if you need me,¡± Masaru said, as he began to walk up to his room. ¡°Wait,¡± September said, as Masaru stopped and slowly turned around. ¡°Can I join you?¡±


    ¡°Whoever said you couldn¡¯t?¡± Masaru responded with a smile as she rushed up with him up the stairs like an excited child. ¡°Come on.¡± They both disappeared up the stairs and into Masaru¡¯s room with a slightugh before they left us alone in the hallway.


    ¡°Well then,¡± I said, as I turned to Tisiah. ¡°I guess we sit here.¡±


    ¡°We should explore, or at least do something. Maddie Cone shouldn¡¯t be too much of a problem,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Let¡¯s see what Japan is like for once shall we?¡± I shrugged, looking at Mchi and Nikki, who were standing next to me and staring at me.


    ¡°Well, we could always do some exploring,¡± I said, as I looked at Tisiah. ¡°Why don¡¯t you go with them?¡± Nikki suggested.


    ¡°Yeah that sounds great!¡± Mchi added.


    ¡°Might as well,¡± I said, smiling. ¡°Maybe there¡¯s something interesting.¡±


    ¡°You should definitely find some food too,¡± Nikki said, pointing at Mchi and me as we nodded at her.


    ¡°I think we¡¯ll find something,¡± I said with a smile. ¡°Let¡¯s see.¡±


    Soon enough we walked out of the house, the sky bright and blue, with a warm breeze blowing towards us and causing our hair to flutter with its touch as we walked down the street and made our way towards the center of town.


    The city was bustling with life as we walked towards the center of it all; people were busy shopping in stores and walking through the streets, while other people were working at various buildings with small trucks driving down the road that had heavy machinery in them, which was used to lift things up and carry them in crates for people to buy and take home with them.


    The stores by the side were blooming with lights, the road filled with rolling wheels, which were also filled with people who were riding on them, some people were just walking on the sidewalks in between the buildings and on the road, and others were running past us on the street trying to make their way to where they were going; we walked through all of this while we found ourselves in the middle of it all without really knowing where we were going, until we found ourselves outside of an arcade that was packed with people that were ying games.


    ¡°Ooooh, say less,¡± Mchi muttered, rubbing his hands, while Nikki nodded and smiled.


    ¡°I know,¡± I said with a chuckle, as I looked around for a bit before looking at Mchi with a smile. ¡°Well what do you think?¡± I asked as I looked at him with a smile.


    ¡°Well I think I want to y something,¡± Mchi replied as he scratched his chin while he thought about it. ¡°How about we get in on the fun?¡±


    ¡°You guys can, I¡¯ll just look around,¡± I said, enjoying the breeze on me, before I walked away from Mchi and Nikki. I walked into the arcade and stood in the doorway of one of the games, looking at the shing lights and sounds. The sounds of the machines were loud and boisterous, which I liked because it sounded like fun.


    I walked around, seeing the fun the children were having, while some people were ying more intense games like Mortal Kombat or Street Fighter; however, these games didn¡¯t appeal to me in anyway so I wandered around looking for something else to do. But then I saw men in ck suits, very proper walking around.


    Weird.


    Very weird, but then again, I guess it¡¯s not too odd that there are people that work in ces like this. I watched the two men in ck suits as they moved around, checking people¡¯s wristbands as they worked their way through the crowd. But something, just something was off, I thought, but then I let my curiosity take hold of me and I watched one of them as he looked at someone¡¯s wristband with a stern look on his face as he shook his head a bit and walked away.


    Nope, nope, nope, nope, nope-I thought with a chuckle to myself as I watched him walk away and leave the game room. He seemed so serious and so stern, but then he did seem like he was about to yell or get angry. I should probably follow him. But then I turned around, and now there were three of those guys behind the game room, all standing at attention and staring at everyone walking into and out of the game room with stern looks on their faces.

 Chapter 169

    169 A Battle in the Graveyard


    ¡°Okay what is going on here?¡± I muttered to myself as I looked at them and then back at the game room door, where a man was standing with his arms crossed over his chest waiting for someone to walk in to y.


    I went back into the game room, looking at the shing lights and sounds as I saw the man waiting for someone toe in. Then, he shot a look at me and fear sizzled inside of my heart, and all of a sudden-in a matter of seconds, he began to start walking towards me, and now there was another person standing behind him!


    ¡°No wait! I don¡¯t want to y!¡± I screamed out loud as I moved backwards to get away from him, but then two other people came out of nowhere and grabbed my arms.


    This was bad, this was bad-bad, bad! Quickly, I kicked the one on the right of me on the thigh, which made him flinch; this was enough to get me free from his grip but not enough to escape from the other two guards holding onto my arms-they were strong!


    But then I saw that one of the men was looking away from me towards another room on the side, where two more people had just walked out of it. They were both dressed in ck suits like the ones that were guarding me, and they walked over towards the other two men-now four of us were in a circle!


    I needed to do something, now! I stomped on the ground, creating a shockwave enabling me to be free from their grasp. They rocked backwards, flying through the air with their hands grasping at nothing; they crashed against a wall with a thud as they hit the wall, then they fell down into a heap on the floor.


    That was a good start.


    Quickly I began running, but as I nced back, I saw them speeding like ostriches towards me with their guns drawn; they were firing bullets at me with every step they took as I dodged between them and their bullets. One of them aimed at me, and I jumped in the air just in time for his bullet to miss me by mere centimeters as it sailed past my head; Inded on a small tform as they approached me and opened fire again-but now they were too slow-I could see it in their eyes.


    I jumped off the tform,nding on a moving tform with another shockwave causing me to fall; I stood up and began running as they fired bullets at me again; however, I jumped off this tform too. Then I ran out the door on the side, making a beeline for the exit with the men chasing me at full speed.


    .....


    I got my radio out, quickly switching to the right one, before I spoke in it. ¡°Hey, Tisiah! I think they¡¯re chasing me!¡± I shouted, looking back and seeing them speed towards me, their guns drawn.


    I began running even faster, my lungs burning in pain from running so fast through the streets of this town; I had to get away from those men in ck suits because they wanted me dead-they were after me-and they would not stop until they had gotten me dead. The BMO found me, and it was only a matter of time before they found Tisiah, Nikki and Mchi as well if they weren¡¯t already dead.


    I could feel my legs burning as I ran faster and faster as I began to see the walls of the town pass me by until finally I saw an open space and ran straight for it.


    It led straight to these bushes or something, and I pushed them aside as I saw them allying in front of me on the ground. There were so many of them lying there-I don¡¯t think there were even enough of them to make up one man. Still I needed to run quick and fast, so I ran straight past them and kept running until I saw an old truck on the roadside.


    I leapt over it as I began running again; now my lungs were burning from all of this running-I needed to rest soon. As I looked up ahead of me, I saw a building-it was an old building that looked abandoned and forlorn in its appearance.


    I began running for it, then as I got closer, I saw that it was a graveyard. Maddie Cone¡¯s guys were still chasing me, and soon enough I was gonna end up in that same graveyard if I don¡¯t get away from them.


    ¡°Hurry up!¡± I cried out into my radio as I ran towards it, but then I heard Tisiah¡¯s voice on my radio:


    ¡°I¡¯ming!¡± he said in his worried tone.


    ¡°You better be!¡± I screeched inside of the radio, as I looked back to see them closing in on me.


    ¡°Hurry up!¡± I said in panic, but then a bullet shot past my head, missing me by mere millimeters; they were closing in on me like wolves on their prey.


    ¡°I¡¯ming!¡± Tisiah said in a panic as he finally reached me.


    ¡°You¡¯d better hurry up!¡± I replied as I looked back at them; they were now only about fifty feet away from me-and closing in fast.


    Tisiah ran past me as I moved back, watching theme at me. Then Tisiah came to a halt beside me as he drew his gun and aimed at them-I followed suit.


    ¡°Get ready!¡± Tisiah said in a low voice. Then the agents stopped in their tracks, and all of a sudden they got their wands out. It was serious business now, and I mean serious business because they were about to use their wands on us.


    I got out my wand but all of a sudden, Tisiah fired a spell at them first. Two bolts sped at them, as they began to roll into cover. ¡°Get to cover!¡± one of them shouted, as Tisiah dragged me behind a fence nearby, while they kept firing at us with their wands.


    We were both behind cover now, as Tisiah fired another spell at them. Two more bolts sped at them this time as they tried to get behind another fence.


    ¡°Okay, what is going on?!¡± I shouted, hearing the noises of bolts scarcely passing me, but I didn¡¯t know what was going on.


    Tisiah began firing his wand again at them as they began to fire back at him; they were not giving up. Smoke and dust billowed from each miss of their spells while their bullets whizzed by our heads.


    ¡°Quick, cover me!¡± Tisiah whispered, as he rose up from his position, firing his wand at them as they fired back at him; they didn¡¯t seem to have the upper hand yet, but if they keep this up-they would eventually get us-and we were still alive so far. I quickly punched the ground, sending a shockwave and knocking them back again.


    Tisiah turned his head to me and began firing at them again. ¡°Cover me!¡± he whispered once more as he stood up; then he fired again. The agents quickly began to roll themselves into cover as he shot another bolt at them; I watched as they rolled behind a car and then I quickly fired my wand at them too.


    We needed to end this quick and now, but how? We were way too surrounded, way too outgunned, and they knew it too. I needed to find a way to get them to give up so that I could escape with Tisiah and get out of here-but how? Then I heard footsteps speeding our way. I turned my head, seeing Mchi and Nikki making their way towards the warzone, carrying their weapons with them.


    ¡°Go back!¡± I shouted, but Mchi wouldn¡¯t hear me-he had no intention of doing so. He kept walking towards us with his gun raised as Nikki followed behind him.


    Then as he turned the corner, an agent saw him but Mchi shot immediately, aiming right at his head. The agent ducked just in time for Mchi¡¯s bullet to pass him by, but he fired a spell at him instead, sending a bolt of lightning at Mchi as he ducked behind cover once more.


    ¡°Oh, no!¡± I muttered in worry, now knowing they were cornered, but I still didn¡¯t know what to do or what to do with them. They had uspletely surrounded now; there was nothing we could do except wait for them to catch up and shoot us all dead. I needed to make a difference with my Perk, I needed to-there was no choice, there was no option anymore.


    I quickly got up from my position and ran towards the agents as they were trying to take cover again, but I quickly threw myself into their midst. I jumped and dove down, punching the ground and shooting out a big shockwave that broke the road, sending them rolling into the air and crashing back onto the road as dust filled the air.


    I stood back up, now breathing hard as I nced back at the agents; they had gotten back up now, but they were still shaken up from the shockwave I had given them. ¡°Come at me!¡± I said with a smile on my face as I started firing bolts of fire at them as they tried to take cover again; the bolts sped at them one after another, until suddenly there was silence.


    The graveyard was silent and filled with smoke, and my heart was the only thing I could hear, beating loudly in my chest as I breathed hard and fast. My heart was racing so fast that it felt like it would explode at any moment; my palms were sweaty as well from running for so long and all of these spells were cast at me.

 Chapter 170

    170 Yelling on Church Grounds


    I looked around, seeing all that happened, and then I sighed heavily before turning my head around to see Tisiah staring at me with his mouth agape; he must be feeling like this was all some kind of nightmare. I was covered in sweat as well and panted for breath. ¡°Okay, that was a lot,¡± Mchi said with a wheeze. All the agents were on the ground, knocked out or possibly dead. Pretty sure knocked out though, they looked it; if they weren¡¯t dead then it was only a matter of time before they were, especially when you¡¯re caught off guard by a spell that powerful.


    ¡°Okay, we need to get out of-¡±


    All of a sudden, we heard more agentsing our way, and guess who was with them: Maddie Cone. ¡°It¡¯s her,¡± Mchi said with a whimper, his face pale white with fear as he hid behind me and Tisiah.


    I didn¡¯t know what to do, but there was no time left now so it didn¡¯t matter what we did or what we should have done. ¡°We need to hide, now,¡± I said, as we began to book it into the field of the graveyard, with Tisiah leading the way with me right behind him and Mchi right behind me-so that we wouldn¡¯t get caught in their sights.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me,¡± Mchi said to me as we ran faster than ever before; the agents were catching up fast with us and soon enough they were all surrounding us, blocking our path of escape.


    ¡°You need to hide too,¡± I said to Tisiah as we ran further into the field of the graveyard. ¡°It won¡¯t work if all of you are captured.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not hiding,¡± Tisiah said defiantly as we continued running for our lives. But then bullets began to move past us at a quick pace, hitting the ground near us and making our footing even more precarious; we were getting closer to getting caught now.


    ¡°No we definitely need to hide,¡± I told him as a bullet passed by me, making me flinch at its proximity. ¡°We can¡¯t let them take us alive.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not hiding!¡± Tisiah said stubbornly as he looked at me in the eyes. ¡°I¡¯m fighting.¡±


    .....


    But as he said that, I saw a bolt zooming towards him at full speed. ¡°Watch out!¡± I shouted, running into Tisiah¡¯s way to try and knock him to safety as the bolt passed by us harmlessly.


    ¡°Whoa!¡± Mchi shouted, having just dodged another bullet.


    ¡°That was close,¡± Tisiah said as Inded on my feet; he seemed okay as well. There was this sort of church next to it that was white, with ck lines in the shape of an ¡®H¡¯ on the side of it, and the doors of it were shut tightly. ¡°Quick, there!¡± I shouted as we ran towards it, pushing Mchi out of the way in the process.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± he asked with worry as we came to the door of it and began to open it. Then we heard footstepsing our way and Tisiah pushed me into it first, followed by him and then finally Mchi-we shut the door behind us and hid inside of it, looking at each other as we waited for whatever was going to happen next.


    ¡°They¡¯re noting in,¡± Tisiah said as he slowly opened the door a little bit and peeked his head out of it. The agents were standing outside with their guns facing the church, so I guess that meant it wasn¡¯t safe yet. We were going to have to wait for a while and see if they decided to leave us alone or not.


    ¡°So what¡¯s your n now?¡± I heard Maddie Cone say. ¡°Go out in a ze of fire?¡±


    I didn¡¯t respond, only hearing Nikki¡¯s whimpers, along with Mchi¡¯s sigh.


    ¡°What do you want us to do with them?¡± Nikki asked nervously.


    I looked out the door as I heard her voice, seeing them talking among themselves now. ¡°We don¡¯t know what we want to do with them,¡± I heard Tisiah¡¯s voice say as he looked at me. ¡°We have no idea what we should do.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, you see a bit trapped don¡¯t ya think?!¡± Maddie Cone said, looking at us, but her words didn¡¯t really get through to us-we had no clue what to do or what to expect now.


    ¡°What¡¯s your n?¡± Maddie Cone asked again. ¡°What is it? Here¡¯s the n, you¡¯re gonna tell me where September is and then I¡¯ll go ahead and leave you guys.¡± I looked at Nikki, seeing her crying softly on the ground as she began to sob more than before. ¡°So tell me where she is.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s gone,¡± Tisiah said in an annoyed tone of voice. ¡°She left us.¡±


    Maddie Cone chuckled and shook her head, adjusting her small white jacket. ¡°You guys are terrible liars,¡± she said with augh, ¡°and you¡¯re all terrible fighters.¡± She turned her head towards the agents standing outside of the door and then she gave a nod before she went back into the middle of them.


    ¡°I¡¯ll ask again,¡± she said, looking back at us before she turned back around. ¡°Where is she? Where is September?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s gone,¡± Tisiah repeated once more, now looking a little angry as he said it. But then Maddie Cone began to unload a handful of bullets. ¡°Get down!¡± I shouted loudly, grabbing Mchi and Tisiah and shoving them both onto the ground with me. We heard several loud booms followed by screams and then everything went quiet.


    ¡°Now, I¡¯ll ask again,¡± she said after reloading her gun, ¡°where is she? Where did she go?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Tisiah said, but I noticed that there was some hesitation in his voice now-as if he was thinking about something else and not being entirely truthful. He wasn¡¯t really being truthful in the first ce but, but that was fine-he had a point and I knew that he did too.


    ¡°You¡¯re lying!¡± Maddie Cone said with rage in her voice. ¡°Tell me where she went! My patience-¡± she lowered down on this part-¡°is waning.¡± My heart raced in fear, not sure what to do or what¡¯s to happen next, but knowing that Maddie Cone was not someone you wanted to tick off. ¡°Tell me where she went!¡± she said again as she raised her gun up.


    ¡°We don¡¯t know where she went!¡± I shouted.


    She began to unload all the bullets again, still missing but they were very very close to me, so close that I could feel their wind against my face. ¡°I¡¯ll ask one more time,¡± she said once she finished reloading, ¡°where is she?¡±


    It was all silent now, and no words were spoken for quite a long time, until suddenly Tisiah stood up and stared at us with a determined look in his eyes. He stared at her through the window, but no words escaped his mouth, and he just stared back at us without saying anything else.


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe you,¡± she said with a sneer. ¡°You¡¯re lying. I know you are.¡±


    Nothing else was continuing to be said, and it was as if tension was slowly rising from this silence, except everyone was way too afraid to even say anything-nothing perhaps. Silence was the only thing that was speaking in this case, and it was making everybody really mad.


    ¡°I don¡¯t...¡± she muttered silently, turning her head away from us. Then she stood up and raised her gun up in the air, looking at it with disdain before pointing it towards us again. But all of a sudden, one of the agents walked over after looking quickly on his phone. He leaned over and spilled some words inside of her ear, and the next thing you know, all the agents began to escort themselves from the church grounds.


    What was going on?


    We¡¯re they nning something?


    Did something happen to them?


    I wasn¡¯t sure what to think or to even try and prophesy what even happened, but I hope it was for a good reason, or else I didn¡¯t want to think about what would happen to us if we got caught by them again. I hoped that this was the end of our time being caught by them, but I was also hoping that we weren¡¯t going to be arrested by them in the first ce.


    I looked out of the window as they walked away, seeing the church behind us, with no agents in sight anymore-we were safe now and there was nothing else for us to do but wait until everyone was gone.

 Chapter 171

    171 Back to the Mansion


    ¡°Okay, what in the world just happened?¡± Mchi muttered in thought, staring at the empty church grounds. We were safe, at least for the moment-but who knows what will happen in the future?


    I shook my head slowly from side to side as I looked down at the ground, trying to clear my mind of what just happened, not really wanting to think about it anymore. ¡°I have no idea,¡± I replied softly, my voice soft and husky as I began to breathe deeply again. ¡°We need to get back to the mansion.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure?¡± Nikki asked with uncertainty. ¡°Do you think it¡¯s safe?¡±


    I looked at her for a brief moment, seeing her face was a little red-from either the stress or the sun or whatever else was going on. ¡°It¡¯s the safest ce I guess,¡± I said with a sigh, not sure whether I should be happy about that or not. ¡°Maybe we can just hide in here for a while.¡±


    ¡°That sounds like a good n,¡± Tisiah replied, nodding his head in agreement with me. ¡°Tomorrow is ourst day before they begin their attack. After that, it won¡¯t be our problem.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said, looking at everyone, ¡°we need to make sure that we¡¯re ready for tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°How do you think they¡¯ll attack?¡± Nikki asked, looking at me with a little bit of worry in her eyes. I shrugged as I looked around, ¡°I don¡¯t know but at least the JSA can help us.¡± Mchi nodded in agreement, while Nikki looked back at me with a concerned expression on her face.


    ¡°We¡¯ll be alright,¡± Tisiah said with confidence as he began to open up the door of the church.


    ***


    .....


    Quickly, we arrived to Zekeshi Kin¡¯s house, knocking on the door. All of a sudden, Zekeshi opened up the door, and we rushed in. He looked at us in confusion as we zoomed up the stairs, following him into his room. There was a long table with chairs ced in front of it along with a few windows looking out of the wall.


    But I froze once I looked, my heart dropping. Masaru and September suddenly stopped their whole-um-course, looking at us as we walked into the room, before turning their heads towards each other as they began to kiss again-in front of us this time. I felt like throwing a punch at him, but I didn¡¯t-I just stood there and stared at him in anger as he continued to kiss her.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for interrupting your-¡± I started to say but Masaru interrupted me with his finger against his lips. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    ¡°The BMO found us, and Maddie Cone seemed to be looking for you September,¡± Mchi said, and I could see the disgust on his face, but I didn¡¯t really care about that right now.


    September stood up from the couch and walked towards us. ¡°Maddie Cone?¡± she asked quietly with confusion on her face. ¡°Her?¡±


    ¡°Yes, her. Something tells me tomorrow is gonna be a long ride,¡± Tisiah said, as September sighed, rubbing her forehead.


    ¡°Yeah...¡± she said, ¡°she was looking for me?¡± She walked towards the window and looked out of it as if something wasing her way.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Tisiah nodded, and I could hear the worry in September¡¯s voice, ¡°and if you don¡¯t want her to find you-¡± he paused as he looked at us- ¡°we have no choice but to keep you out of sight for a while.¡± September nodded as Masaru looked at us in confusion, not understanding why we were worried about what Maddie Cone would do next.


    ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± she replied, ¡°and I don¡¯t really want her to find me.¡±


    ¡°None of us do,¡± I said, still a bit disturbed, even though I could understand that she had to be cautious about Maddie Cone finding us again.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± September agreed with me, ¡°we¡¯re all here because of her.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s soon time to go, so before we go back home, we can talk to B,¡± Nikki suggested, looking at all of us, ¡°then we can tell him what happened and what we¡¯re going to do.¡±


    ¡°I have a feeling that tonight is going to be very interesting,¡± Tisiah said with a chuckle as he looked at everyone. ¡°Who¡¯s gonna tell him.¡± Silence filled the room, and then Nikkiughed a bit before she spoke up. ¡°I will.¡±


    ¡°You sure?¡± I asked with concern.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± she replied, ¡°I¡¯ll tell him about everything that happened.¡±


    ¡°And what¡¯s gonna happen tomorrow?¡± I added with a nod, seeing that we were all aware of what¡¯s happening tomorrow.


    ¡°Tomorrow...¡± Tisiah began to say, ¡°tomorrow is going to be interesting. We have no choice but to fight tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Well it seems there¡¯s gonna be more than one person we really need to protect,¡± Mchi said, as a feeling began to immerse in the room, but no one else seemed to think anything about it.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Tisiah replied, ¡°and I don¡¯t think anyone is going to be able to take care of it.¡± He nced at Masaru and then he smiled. ¡°Even you.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± he asked him in return.


    ¡°I mean that we¡¯re going to be fighting tomorrow,¡± Tisiah said as if he was telling him the obvious, and he just shrugged his shoulders. ¡°Let¡¯s just hope you get to your flight safely.¡± Masaru nodded, looking very worried, but no one else seemed to be talking about this other than Tisiah, and it was making me think about what we¡¯re going to do tomorrow.


    ¡°So,¡± September spoke up as she stared at me with concern in her eyes. ¡°I¡¯ll just...¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I nodded as she exited the room, leaving only Nikki and I there.


    ¡°It¡¯s going to be okay,¡± Nikki said with a smile as she took my hand in hers. I nodded, but I still wasn¡¯t really sure if I was going to be okay tomorrow. I feel like it might not actually be, but I still had hope that everything would work out well.


    ¡°You¡¯ll be fine,¡± she said with a smile, ¡°you¡¯ll be fine.¡± I could see the fear in her eyes as she looked down at her hands, but I still felt like there was a lot to worry about and we weren¡¯t really ready for it yet.


    ¡°You¡¯ll be fine too,¡± I said with a smile as she looked back at me with a look of concern on her face. She looked away from me and shook her head slowly. ¡°I hope,¡± she said, looking at me, ¡°that we all are.¡±


    ¡°So do I,¡± I replied with a nod. She smiled softly and turned to walk away, and I walked towards the window to see her leave the room as well. As I stood by the window, looking out into the afternoon sky, I could feel that this is all going to be very interesting indeed.


    And it¡¯s only going to get even more interesting as the next day came around.

 Chapter 172

    172 A Tussle


    As I walked out of the room, I heard footstepsing after me. I turned around, seeing September behind me, as she looked at me with worry in her eyes. I smiled at her and then walked over to her.


    ¡°Is everything okay?¡± she asked softly. ¡°You seem really worried.¡±


    ¡°Yeah...¡± I replied softly as I looked into her eyes. September looked at me, embarrassment all over her face, as she blushed a bit before she spoke up.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said, ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to get you all worried about me.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not worried about you,¡± I said with augh, ¡°but about all of us.¡±


    ¡°And uh...about um...Masaru,¡± she said, tingling her fingers, as if she wanted to touch him but couldn¡¯t bring herself to do it.


    ¡°What about him?¡± I asked her with a concerned expression on my face.


    ¡°Well, what we just did,¡± she said as her blush deepened, ¡°I just wanted you to know that I don¡¯t regret it.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m d that you didn¡¯t regret it,¡± I said, looking at her, ¡°I¡¯m d that you¡¯re okay.¡±


    .....


    September nodded as she looked up at the ceiling. ¡°Thank you,¡± she said softly, ¡°I appreciate that.¡± Then she looked at me again with a small smile on her lips. Anger built up inside of me, but I kept it under check, knowing that September needed my help right now.


    ¡°Well, we¡¯re soon to be out of here I guess,¡± I said, trying not to throw a punch, or kick, or something at Masaru. But we all needed to stick together, and that¡¯s all that matters, right?


    ¡°Yeah,¡± she said softly as she stared into my eyes. ¡°It¡¯s going to be a long ride back home.¡±


    ***


    I was in my room, back at home, just thinking about Greg. He thinks I¡¯m the cause of his PTSD, which is super wrong-I think, but he doesn¡¯t even listen. I don¡¯t know what he¡¯s thinking, and I just can¡¯t understand him.


    I guess that¡¯s what makes me so angry with him sometimes. He thinks of me as an enemy, or some pest, rather than someone who wants to help him. And I¡¯m not like that.


    But then again I guess he did save my life once. But I needed to get into Greg¡¯s head, open up his eyes, so that he sees that he needs help, not me.


    ***


    I was by my locker, seeing Greg once again with what seemed to be a bigger crew of friends. I¡¯m pretty sure I¡¯m probably one of the most hated people in this school, or something like that, but I just can¡¯t understand why Greg hates me so much. It¡¯s really weird-he thinks that I¡¯m the cause of his PTSD when it was really him that did all these horrible things to me.


    But he might not be wrong or something, and perhaps I did, in fact, cause his PTSD. Maybe I should say sorry to him, but that would be nonsense, right? He¡¯d just look at me and think that I was insulting him. But maybe he does think that way-he¡¯s been thinking of me as an enemy for quite a while now after all.


    Maybe-that¡¯s it.


    I will fight against him-and being my state of revenge, I would win against him. He gets what he deserves and I be popr, simple as that. But I might just get pulped by his friends, who probably are gonna try and show their loyalty, so I¡¯m not sure if I should do it.


    Should I, or should I not, I asked myself. I really didn¡¯t know how I could do anything right now. Greg just won¡¯t listen to me no matter what I say or what I do. He might even be more mad, and it would only be worse, but then again-he might not be so mad at all. He might even be fine with it.


    But then again, that¡¯s a long shot.


    But then the next thing you know, his crew of friends began to walk towards me, and I was starting to get scared. What were they doing? Why were they moving like that? They must be up to something bad for them to move like that.


    They began to surround me, and then a fist came from behind me and hit me on the back of my head as it connected with me. I felt as my ears were crying in pain as they rang, and I stumbled but still kept my ground.


    I felt a foot kick me from behind as it connected with my side and then the ground began to shake as one of them started kicking me in my ribs, but it wasn¡¯t enough for them to stop me. I saw students rushing to the scene and screams bellowing through the hall, as they began to speed towards the scene like a tornado.


    I had to run now because he¡¯s trying to kill me. The crowd began to form around us as everyone began to push their way through the crowd, which was forming in front of us. But I eventually got up, my breath heavy and down as the guys looked at me. ¡°A, is Connor dealing with too much?¡± the guys mocked, as they began to close in on me,ughing and calling me names.


    Then they began to take their fists and began to punch me in my face, in the ribs, in my legs.


    I needed to get out of here, but there was no ce to run, there was no escape. I felt my face burning as the pain intensified.


    And then it happened, and I could feel myself begin to lose consciousness as they kicked me all over my body, taking punches at my head. You know what, this was my chance. Instead of fighting Greg, I would fight eight people, but at least I¡¯d survive this one-on-one fight and get out of this ce alive.


    I could hear the screams of the students around us as they saw what was happening to me, but they were powerless against it all as well. But I wasn¡¯t going down like this-not if there was no other way out. Quickly, I got up from my feet, and immediately knew my next move.


    The guy in front of me had no defense, or any sort of barricade against his stomach-he¡¯s done for, and that¡¯s where I¡¯m headed for right now. The crowd was still screaming at me, but I just kept my pace forward until I mmed into him, knocking him back into the others behind him.


    Another guy came with an overhead punch that barely went over my head, but I returned with a quick jab, hitting his chest and causing him to fall on the floor with a thud as he cried out in pain.


    The guy next to him went for his head as I swung my arm with all my strength. The guy ended rising from the ground and speeding towards the ground, as if he had wings, as he fell back to the floor. The crowdughed as I kept on moving forward towards the other guy.


    I could hear moreughter now as I smacked another guy in his face and pushed him back into another guy before turning my attention to the next guy in line. A guy came forward with a punch towards me and I blocked it with my left hand and swung my right fist at his jaw with all my might.


    ¡°Whoa!¡± I heard someone shout, as someone began to speed towards me, trying to knock me back into the others behind me, but I knew this guy wasn¡¯t going to hit me in my face with all those others around him. So I ducked, using his momentum against him, and turned around to see who it was.


    He was right before me now with his hands raised in a defensive pose, and I could see he had no real defense against me if we fought one-on-one like this: he was clearly terrified of me. I walked towards him and stared into his eyes before quickly backing away from him as I readied myself for the next one.


    He barely even tried to push forward, or do anything of that sort, and he slowly stepped away from me before turning around and walking away from me. The crowd started to cheer as he walked away from me and I felt something in my heart breaking inside of me as they continued to cheer at me like monkeys.


    But then I heard footsteps walking towards me, and I saw Greg with rage in his eyes, with his fists balled tightly together as he came at me with a swift punch right in my face. And before I knew it, I was down on the ground.


    ¡°So, you wanna beat up my friends huh,¡± he hissed.


    ¡°You friends? I was your friend!¡± I shouted, as I got up back to my feet, but it wasn¡¯t enough-he kicked me right in my ribcage. ¡°Greg, stop!¡±


    He kept on kicking me and hitting me until eventually the crowd stopped cheering and just stared at us in shock.

 Chapter 173

    173 The Talk


    He kept on kicking me and hitting me until eventually the crowd stopped cheering and just stared at us in shock. But finally-finally, I got a hold of him, and held him in ce with a swift punch into his stomach, as he let out a small grunt of pain. ¡°You don¡¯t want to fight anymore?¡± He asked me, breathing heavily from the pain he felt.


    ¡°No,¡± I said quietly as he stood there staring at me. And then he did somethingpletely unexpected and pped me across the face with all his might. I felt as if the wind just ripped away my skin, but that didn¡¯t stop me a bit, as I grabbed his wrist with one hand, while pushing him away with the other.


    The crowd roared with apuse and cheers as he began tough loudly. I then pushed him into one of the lockers, but he tried to push against me, as he broke free of my grip. We then both turned our backs against each other and started to fight.


    ¡°Fight!¡± the crowd shouted. And soon we were at it again. He came with a fast swift punch, which was quite unexpected at the most, but then I came back with a swift punch towards his stomach, knocking him back and making him fall onto the ground again.


    ¡°Come on man!¡± I shouted at him as he struggled up to his feet again, while getting back onto his feet and beginning to fight back. Then he shot at me a wave of attacks, that I had to quickly dodge, until we were in a position where we had nothing but our fists against each other as we struggled with each other¡¯s grip of each other¡¯s hands and arms.


    The crowd was silent now, not cheering but watching in anticipation as we fought for our lives against each other. ¡°So you decided just to go murder-mode?¡± Greg hissed, but I didn¡¯t say anything, because I was trying to be silent and concentrate on fighting.


    I suddenly felt myself being punched right in the gut once again. My ribs began to burn with pain and my arms began to ache from the strain on them as we struggled for a hold over each other.


    ¡°Whoa!¡± everyone began to shout, as I began to push against him, trying to gain some sort of advantage over him-but it was useless-he kept pushing against me until eventually he knocked me into one of the lockers again.


    ¡°Greg!¡± I shouted, but he didn¡¯t listen, instead he continued to punch me as hard as possible, knocking me into one of the lockers over again-I tried to get up again, but I felt myself falling forward as I struggled to get back up. ¡°Greg!¡± I shouted again, hoping this time he would hear my cry, but he just kept on fighting until eventually he kicked me over into the locker, making me fall on the ground on the ground with a thud that echoed throughout the school hall.


    .....


    My bones felt as if they were ringing, and my hands were shaking, but I could still see straight as I began to struggle against him once more. But then I saw him holding one of his hands out to me, a smile on his face, saying ¡°Come on!¡±


    I needed to get up, I needed to! But I couldn¡¯t move. The pain was too much for me. My arms ached from the strain on them and I could barely move. The pain was too much.


    I felt my hand shake as I tried to grab his hand and get up. Greg looked at me in disgust as I came back onto my feet, but rage was the only thing on my mind, and I pushed him back against the locker before running towards him with a swift punch at his face that caused him to fall down onto the floor with a thud as he screamed out in agony.


    The crowd cheered as I felt a wave of glory over me, but then I heard the shouts of securitying at me, and I knew they wereing for me now. They grabbed me away from the scene, as I looked at Greg¡¯s numb body on the ground. What have I done, what have I done, what have I done?


    The security guards began to drag me out of there. I kept on struggling and fighting them off as they carried me out of the school halls.


    ***


    I was sitting inside of Mr. Broll¡¯s office with Greg. Greg¡¯s face was steaming with anger, his eyebrows narrowing into a V, while he looked at me like I was garbage that someone had just thrown outside his front door.


    ¡°What are you going to do now?¡± Mr. Broll asked us both as we sat in his office. ¡°You both are going to get suspended for a week, because you decided not to handle this problem like men.¡± He looked at both of us, looking very disappointed, but he also had a sort of weird sort of happiness about him that he wasn¡¯t really sure why he had.


    ¡°Well?¡± Mr. Broll continued after a long silence.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what to say,¡± I said, looking at Mr. Broll¡¯s bald head, ¡°I¡¯m really sorry for everything that¡¯s happened.¡±


    ¡°And you? Greg?¡± He said as he looked at him with a stern expression, as if he was about to give him a bad grade for not doing his work correctly. ¡°He hurt my friends, I¡¯m not saying anything,¡± Greg said, shaking his head, ¡°I¡¯m not saying anything.¡±


    ¡°I can understand your point of view, but there is one thing you need to remember: this isn¡¯t the Wild West anymore,¡± Mr. Broll said, shaking his head as if he was there himself, ¡°no one is allowed toe to school and threaten our students and teachers. No one is allowed toe to school and threaten their friends. This is why you are being punished and suspended for this.¡±


    ¡°Threaten?¡± Greg shouted. ¡°I never threatened him.¡±


    Mr. Broll shook his head, as he took a deep breath. ¡°We¡¯ve questions about hundreds of students. And they saw you send your friends after him. I¡¯m about the right amount of justice.¡±


    ¡°What he did to my friends was not justice at all,¡± Greg argued, throwing his finger at me, ¡°I did not threaten him or anything!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right, you didn¡¯t,¡± Mr. Broll said with a nod, ¡°but when your friends were about toe at him and beat him up, he didn¡¯t do anything.¡±


    I chuckled, knowing at least some man has some sense. ¡°He did a lot of things,¡± Greg lied, and I turned over in shock and disgust, ¡°he threatened me with a knife!¡±


    Mr. Broll shook his head once more in disbelief, ¡°We¡¯ve no evidence of that.¡±


    Greg shook his head as if he was about to argue again, but then stopped himself as he looked at me again. ¡°I never threatened you with a knife, you did that to me!¡± I shouted at Greg, pointing to myself, ¡°I didn¡¯t threaten you with a knife!¡±


    ¡°And you just want us to believe that?¡± Mr. Broll asked with a smirk on his face, but I felt like he was ying with me. ¡°From what I see, Greg sent his friends on you, but you decided to fight them instead of telling a teacher,¡± he said, mming his desk, ¡°this is why you¡¯re being suspended.¡±


    ¡°But what he did to me was worse than that,¡± I argued with Mr. Broll, ¡°he hit me in the face, kicked me in my ribs and then he hit me with his elbow in my face.¡± Mr. Broll nodded, but he still wasn¡¯t convinced, ¡°I can show you where it hurts if you want?¡± I asked with a grin, making Mr. Broll and Greg both look away in embarrassment and guilt.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Mr. Broll said, ¡°the fact remains that you threatened him, and you threatened him with violence. I¡¯m not going to take that lightly.¡±


    ¡°Well I didn¡¯t threaten him with violence,¡± Greg argued, ¡°I only hit him when he got too close to my friends.¡±


    ¡°Still!¡± Mr. Broll said, but then heid back. ¡°Now, I don¡¯t know what happened to both of you good friends, but you guys need to get it together.¡±


    Those words hit me very hard, because memories immediately popped inside my head, making me remember everything that had happened today. I saw the fight, I saw Greg¡¯s friendsing at me, and how they punched me and kicked me until I fell onto the ground.


    But also when Greg and Greg were good friends, when weughed, we joked around and went everywhere together. Now we weren¡¯t together anymore, and I didn¡¯t know what we were going to do now. ¡°I¡¯ve really admired your friendship, and being you guys are pretty good students, I¡¯ll make a deal with you. You guys talk it out like actual people instead of dogs, and maybe I can settle with detention,¡± Mr. Broll said, as I thought about his deal, but Greg and I just stared at each other without saying anything.


    ¡°How about if we go outside for a bit?¡± Greg said after a while of silence.


    ¡°What?¡± I responded, but Mr. Broll was giving me the eye signal.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be good for you two to get out of here for a bit, it will be good for you to clear your minds of all this anger and hate you have for each other,¡± he said. ¡°You guys aren¡¯t in the best of shape right now.¡±


    Although I did it grudgingly, I walked out with Greg to the outside of the door. I wasn¡¯t sure exactly what to say to Greg, but I didn¡¯t know how to exin everything that had happened, and that it was my fault for pushing him against that locker.

 Chapter 174

    174 The Forgiveness


    ¡°You know,¡± Greg started out saying, ¡°I¡¯ve never seen you act like that before.¡±


    ¡°Never?¡± I said, looking at him with an angry expression on my face.


    ¡°No,¡± he said with a shake of his head, ¡°I¡¯ve never seen you like that.¡±


    I looked back up to the sky as the sun shone down on us through the leaves of the trees around us. ¡°I guess I could say the same,¡± I said, turning my direction towards Greg.


    ¡°I guess you could.¡± Greg said in a low voice, ¡°I¡¯m sorry about everything too.¡±


    ¡°I guess you can say the same too.¡± I said in a low voice as well. ¡°For which?¡± Greg asked as he looked at me. I looked at him back. ¡°Both?¡±


    Greg¡¯s eyes widened for a moment and he began to smile as he took a deep breath, ¡°Yeah,¡± he said finally.


    I looked away from him and smiled back at the sun. ¡°It¡¯s just you seemed distant, changed. Silence in your mind.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what to do.¡± Greg said with a shake of his head. ¡°We used to do everything together. Everything seemed so much better than it is now.¡±


    .....


    ¡°That only happened because you found a new friend. Poprity,¡± I said. ¡°And it seemed as if it was your best friend, more than me.¡±


    Greg took a deep breath again as we kept walking forward. ¡°It¡¯s just hard to forget about that.¡± He said after another moment of silence.


    ¡°And what do you mean by that?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Back in Russia. Dealing with Rocke, the FBI, all those things,¡± he said, taking a deep breath. ¡°It just broke me.¡± I nodded, and then chuckled, ¡°I¡¯m sorry about that too.¡±


    Greg turned his face towards me and frowned. ¡°You¡¯re not sorry for anything.¡± He said as he looked back up at the sky again. ¡°I am, I really am,¡± I said as I looked at him, ¡°I¡¯m sorry for everything too.¡±


    ¡°But you¡¯re not sorry for pushing me against that locker?¡± Greg asked as he looked back up at the sky.


    ¡°No,¡± I said with a nod, ¡°I¡¯m not sorry for that. That was kinda funny to be honest.¡± Gregughed with me, as I elbowed him in the shoulder, but I could feel his body trembling under my touch as he held it against my hit.


    We kept walking as silence hung over us in the air. Finally Greg spoke up again. ¡°We used to be the best of friends. Now we¡¯re nothing but two people who are stuck on the same high school,¡± he paused for a moment. ¡°I don¡¯t want this to be like it has been between us.¡±


    ¡°Well when something is broken, the only thing it can be is fixed,¡± I said, and Greg nodded, although he looked upset about what I had said. ¡°Maybe this was the best thing that could have ever happened to us,¡± I said, although it hurt me as well. ¡°We¡¯ll be the best of friends again.¡±


    ¡°Maybe,¡± Greg said with a smile, then we went over and came into a hug, our bodies touching one another and our hands shaking slightly against each other¡¯s backs. And we didn¡¯t fight each other or anything anymore. We just let out all the hatred and anger that had been in our hearts for weeks.


    ¡°This feels much better,¡± I said, almost feeling a tear fall out of my eye, but Greg looked at me and gave me a sad look.


    ¡°But don¡¯t forget what we used to be,¡± he said with a shiver in his voice, making me shiver as well as I hugged him tight. And I remembered those memories of being together as we had our fights with each other.


    We left school together, and didn¡¯t even look back at anyone. We just left as if we were running away from the world.


    ***


    Today was the day that Masaru was going back home, and when the BMO was going to attack. Once I got into the room inside of YMPA, Mr. Drails immediately began to speak. ¡°Alright, this could be thest day of your mission,¡± he said, looking at each and everyone of us, ¡°you¡¯ve seen your mission so far,¡± he continued, and we all nodded as we had seen it all before, ¡°and now you have to fight against the BMO.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s hope it doesn¡¯t end up bing aplete war,¡± September said and Mr. Drails nodded, ¡°but let¡¯s hope that we can finish this mission sessfully.¡±


    ¡°I wish I could say the same,¡± I said with a smile on my face, ¡°but I think we¡¯re going to lose.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t think it that way,¡± Mr. Drails said, ¡°if we lose then we lose, but if we win then we win.¡±


    ¡°But what if we can¡¯t win?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Then we¡¯ll try to do our best,¡± he said with a shrug. ¡°We will definitely try to win. Now get ready.¡± But then all of a sudden, he created a portal under us as we dropped down onto what seemed to be a porch. ¡°Of course he does that,¡± Mchi said, but then realization came to our heads. We were in front of the JSA door.


    Not the mansion.


    Didn¡¯t we need to protect Masaru, why were we dropped here, and why wasn¡¯t he with us? We looked around, but then suddenly the door opened and a person came out of it. ¡°Hello?¡± We heard the voice call out from the doorway. ¡°Masaru is that you?¡±


    Not even close, it was actually B.


    ¡°Mr. Drails sent you guys right?¡± he asked, and I nodded. ¡°Good, because we need to finalize a n to stop the fake convoy,¡± B said, as we walked inside of the house. ¡°The convoy is going to take off from the base in less than half an hour,¡± he added.


    ¡°So we need to get to the base and stop them from taking off,¡± Mchi said with a frown, and B nodded as he looked at Mchi. ¡°Exactly,¡± he said. ¡°And we need to find where their weak spot is.¡± I nodded but confusion was still racing through my mind. ¡°How would they have a weak spot?¡± September asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± B replied, but he had a smirk on his face as if he did know exactly what he was talking about. ¡°I don¡¯t know how they would have a weak spot,¡± he said again. ¡°How about we let them take off, but then attack them once they¡¯ve just parked during the ride to their base? If they have any weakness then it has to be in that area,¡± B said with a shrug, and we nodded in agreement with his n.


    ¡°Perhaps that could work,¡± I said, ¡°but why do you have to stop them from leaving?¡±


    ¡°Because we need to be sure that they don¡¯t leave,¡± B said as he looked at me. ¡°They do, they get Masaru. If we don¡¯t stop them, then he won¡¯t be able to get to his family.¡± I nodded, thinking about how scared he would be, how scared he probably is now.


    ¡°Now, I need you guys to be careful,¡± B said as he turned to us, ¡°because the convoy will be loaded with weapons and stuff, and I don¡¯t want any of you getting shot.¡± We all nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll have our men ready for this mission because a lot of lives depend on it,¡± B said.


    ¡°I understand,¡± Mchi said with a nod, ¡°but who will be going? The JSA?¡± B nodded and looked at us. ¡°Or do you want one of us to go?¡± He shook his head as he looked at me. ¡°No, I need you to stay here for this mission.¡± We all looked at each other and shook our heads at this as well.


    ¡°Alright, well it¡¯s settled then,¡± he said as he turned around and walked through the hallway into a different room. We all followed after him until he turned to face us. ¡°We have thirty minutes to prepare ourselves for this mission,¡± he said and then opened the door.


    We stepped into the room and saw all the JSA members standing in there with their arms folded across their chest, looking at us with serious expressions.

 Chapter 175

    175 Getting Ready


    ¡°Well, they kind of look scary, to be honest,¡± Tisiah said, looking at them as we walked into the room, ¡°but I guess they¡¯re just here to help.¡±


    ¡°I think we should be more worried about what they might do if we fail,¡± I said, ¡°but they don¡¯t seem like bad people.¡±


    ¡°Well, of course not,¡± I said, looking at Tisiah, ¡°we¡¯re fighting together, aren¡¯t we?¡± He gave a smallugh as she nodded and smiled at me. ¡°We¡¯re fighting for the same purpose, to protect people, so we can¡¯t be bad people.¡± I nodded and smiled back at her.


    ¡°Are you sure?¡± I asked, looking at him in shock as he looked at me with a frown.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure,¡± Tisiah replied as I looked back at him, ¡°they¡¯re here for us, for our sake, and they¡¯re here to help us, not hurt us.¡± ¡°Well with them looking like that, I might as well run away,¡± I joked, and Tisiah smiled as he patted me on the back and gave me a wink.


    ¡°I guess so,¡± he said with a sigh. ¡°I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on with youtely, but I¡¯m d you¡¯re back.¡±


    ¡°What makes you think I wasn¡¯t in the first ce?¡± I returned to him as he chuckled.


    ¡°Well, you¡¯re too normal for that,¡± he said, but I knew what he meant. I was acting crazy, but I wasn¡¯t in my right mind. I wasn¡¯t there in my right mind any longer. But I knew that I needed to be strong and get my mind together before I went back home to deal with all the problems in my life.


    I nced at September and saw her staring at me as I smiled back at her. She smiled back at me and then turned around and walked into another room with the others as I took a deep breath and started to look around at everything in the room. The room was filled with a bunch of cameras,puters-you name it and it was in this room, but it was all working as well. There were tons of monitors in the room with information scrolling along them, and I figured that they were probably monitoring us right now and seeing who was on our team.


    .....


    I looked at the monitor closest to me and saw a map of the area around us as well as the convoy that was on a different window. I turned to the camera that was in the room with us and saw B talking to someone.


    ¡°So you see here,¡± B was saying as he pointed at the screen, ¡°this is our base where they¡¯ll take off from.¡± He turned to look at whoever he was talking to and pointed at something else on the map. There were cars and buildings that encircled the area, as if it was a whole canyon of the samepany and they were taking off from it. ¡°There are only ten cars that will be on this convoy,¡± B said with a smirk on his face, ¡°and those ten cars will take off from their base.¡±


    ¡°Would we follow them?¡± Mchi asked, and B nodded as he walked over to one of the other monitors that was on Masaru¡¯s house.


    ¡°Yes, because if we lose them, then we¡¯ll never get a chance to get to them,¡± B said as he nodded at something else on the screen. ¡°That is why we need to get them before they can take off from the airport.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mchi said, looking at everything around him in the room, ¡°so where is it?¡± B looked at another map and then pointed to it on the screen. It was a building in a city, which was nearby. ¡°That is where they¡¯ll park their car for a while and take off from there. This is a building that is close by the airport, so men would pour out from that building and so forth.¡± I nodded, almost overwhelmed by the amount of information they had and how organized they were about this mission.


    ¡°But why would they want to go to this ce?¡± September asked, with confusion written all over her face.


    ¡°They will probably go there for security reasons,¡± B exined, ¡°because if we attack them, then we could possibly lose them and have them escape from our hands. So we have to make sure that we get them there and keep them there until we are able to attack them.¡± I nodded again.


    ¡°That makes sense,¡± Mchi said with a nod, ¡°but how do we do that?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± B said, ¡°we¡¯ll need to get there before they can leave that building. So we have to make sure that they don¡¯t get away.¡± I nodded as B walked back towards us.


    ¡°So what do you guys think?¡± he asked, and Mchi looked up at him.


    ¡°What do I think?¡± he asked. ¡°I think that this is going to be a hard mission.¡±


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s see if you¡¯re right,¡± B said as he pointed at another screen. ¡°We got men that are surveying this area as we speak, and we got eyes on Maddie Cone so that we can arrest her once her n fails.¡± I turned around and saw that B was looking at the monitor that had Maddie¡¯s image on it.


    ¡°We¡¯ll get her,¡± Mchi said, and B nodded as he continued to watch the screen. ¡°Trust me, we will.¡±


    ¡°I hope so, because if not-we¡¯re all dead,¡± Nikki said, as the team turned around, looking at her. ¡°I know it¡¯s harsh to say it like this, but we have no chance against this convoy.¡±


    ¡°How could we not?¡± I asked, but then realized something. ¡°We don¡¯t have any weapons?¡± I asked. B shook his head. ¡°We do, but they have loads of ammunition, and we can only use our wands. But you don¡¯t particrly use wands against a gunfight,¡± B said.


    ¡°But how are you going to stop them?¡± I asked as B smiled and looked at us.


    ¡°It¡¯s not going to be easy,¡± he admitted, ¡°but we¡¯re going to do what we always do: we¡¯re going to fight for what is right.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s right about that, so when are we gonna start following them?¡± I asked, looking around at everyone. Everyone was silent as they thought about it. ¡°Well?¡± I asked again, and they all nodded and looked at me.


    ¡°We have ten minutes until they take off,¡± B said as he looked at the monitor with the map on it. ¡°We need to set up, and we¡¯re getting some intel on her speech as we speak,¡± B said. Unexpectedly, static began to re itself through the speakers, until I could hear Maddie Cone¡¯s voice faintly, ¡°... fools who have tried to stop me in the past.¡± The voice faded away as the static returned once more.


    ¡°That was weird,¡± Nikki said, looking at the speakers in the ceiling. ¡°I thought they¡¯d been disconnected.¡± B turned to nce at her as everyone started to look at one another with concern on their faces.


    ¡°Is that what she just said?¡± I proposed, as everyone shrugged.


    ¡°She said a lot more than that,¡± Mchi said with a frown as it filled the room with static again. But then her voice began to clear up once again, her voice sounding harsh and determined, ¡°Fools who have tried to stop me in the past, I have returned to take what is mine!¡±


    ¡°What are they doing?¡± I asked as everyone looked back at me with confusion on their faces.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Mchi said as he shook his head, ¡°but it doesn¡¯t sound good.¡±


    ¡°Alright then,¡± I said as I looked at the monitor with her on it.


    ¡°You see, the YMPA and its little goons have continued to intercept us on our way, hinder our victory, arrest our goal, prevent everything we¡¯ve worked for. But this time, we have something up our sleeve,¡± she said, and then continued with a smile on her face. ¡°So you fools of the YMPA,¡± she continued with a smirk on her face, ¡°I havee for you.¡± The room suddenly became silent as everyone waited for whatever was going to happen next.


    ¡°Uh...¡± Mchi muttered, as fear and marvel were the only thing expressing in this room, and everyone was staring at Maddie Cone¡¯s image on the monitor as she smiled at us. ¡°She looks pretty confident.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said as I turned my attention to B.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening now?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°It almost seemed like a deration of war.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I agreed, looking now at the ck screen, which had an image of Maddie Cone¡¯s face on it with some writing below it that I didn¡¯t understand, ¡°she¡¯s basically saying that she wants to kill us all.¡±


    ¡°And she just told us she would do that?¡± one of the agents said. ¡°Pretty much,¡± September responded, looking at us as she sighed, ¡°she¡¯s not going to stop until we¡¯re dead or she is.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s pretty scary,¡± I said as I looked at September. She smiled as I looked back at her and nodded her head. ¡°That¡¯s very, very scary,¡± she said. ¡°But we got her, we¡¯ll win.¡± I nodded, trying to feel confident, but I knew deep down that it was hard. We had a tough fight ahead of us.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go then,¡± B said as he turned around and walked out of the room, ¡°we need to get ready.¡±

 Chapter 176

    176 The Attack


    We were inside this weapon room, or some sort of locker room, where a bunch of agents got their utility belts, vests, and even guns as they walked out of the room. Some of the agents looked like they had guns strapped to their hips, but most of them had utility belts around their waist and vests on their backs as they walked into another room.


    ¡°I hope this works,¡± Mchi muttered as he watched everyone else prepare for the mission. He held a gun in his hand, and it was covered in what appeared to be gold and silver paint as he looked at it with fear in his eyes. ¡°I hope this works, because if it doesn¡¯t-we¡¯re all dead.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s try to be more positive about it. How about that?¡± September suggested, but none of us-or me was feeling that optimistic, as we stood there with our weapons strapped to our bodies.


    ¡°Are you guys ready?¡± B asked as we looked at him, and he nodded. ¡°Then let¡¯s move.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Nikki said as she stepped forward, and I could see that she was nervous as well. ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± B said as he looked at us, ¡°let¡¯s go.¡±


    ¡°On three,¡± Nikki said, ¡°three, two, one, go.¡±


    Everyone moved out of the locker room, heading towards the outside of the JSA building, into the pack of SUVs in the driveway. ¡°Which one you wanna get in?¡± Mchi asked me, as he pointed at one of them. I looked at all of them and then back at him with a frown on my face.


    ¡°How many are there?¡± I asked.


    .....


    ¡°Five,¡± Mchi answered as he shrugged his shoulders. ¡°Let¡¯s take the third one,¡± I said to him, as our team began to pile inside of the SUV. We all climbed in and waited for everyone else to get in before we closed the door and got in as well. Once everyone got in, B pulled off his sses and ced them in apartment on his utility belt before he turned to look at us.


    ¡°Alright, once we see the convoy, we don¡¯t fire until they reach the airport. Once they do, fire at will,¡± B said as he pulled out a gun and loaded it with a bullet before he put it back into thepartment and took out another gun and loaded it. He handed the other gun to Mchi, who did the same with his own gun. ¡°Make sure you keep your targets in sight as much as possible so that no one gets shot by ident.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir,¡± we all responded, as our group of vehicles began to move.


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure Masaru right now is crazy scared right now,¡± Mchi said, and I nodded, but then I turned to look out the window as I wondered if I was going to make it through this mission alive.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think anyone has ever seen anything like this,¡± Nikki whispered as she looked at me from the corner of her eye, and I nodded back at her. ¡°Yeah,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Imagine those people in the airport seeing these big line of cars. I would think it¡¯s the president.¡± I nodded. ¡°They would think that the president is here.¡±


    ¡°But then we¡¯d be in trouble,¡± I whispered back as Nikki leaned her head towards me slightly.


    ¡°That¡¯s why they¡¯re gonna try to get into the airport first,¡± she said, and I nodded as I looked out the window as we drove along. ¡°They probably have a ne already there,¡± Mchi said, looking outside, too. ¡°Yeah,¡± Nikki agreed.


    ¡°That would exin why they were so quick to leave,¡± B expressed as he looked out the window as well. ¡°I mean, they were probably told to get to the airport before anyone else.¡± We continued to drive for a bit, but then we heard on B¡¯s radio: ¡°We got eyes on the convoy!¡±


    Suddenly, the feeling in the room changed a lot more, and I felt like I couldn¡¯t breathe as B reached for the radio, and his voice filled the car. ¡°I see it!¡±


    ¡°Get ready!¡± B said over the radio as we drove down the road. B turned towards us with a smile on his face as he said, ¡°Remember, fire at will!¡± We went inside of this alleyway, and soon enough I saw it. The entire convoy. Trucks, vans, cars, vehicles with automatics on top of them, every single thing you can imagine, and they were all going to the airport.


    ¡°Follow the convoy,¡± B ordered. ¡°Do not fire yet.¡±


    The driver pulled the car into ane by the convoy, and so did other JSA cars, and everyone followed it as we got closer to the airport. ¡°Fire!¡± B yelled out over the radio once we were close enough, and suddenly everyone opened fire on the convoy. The air filled with bullets as everyone took aim at the convoy and fired at each of them as they shot back, but luckily for us, they were all driving.


    ¡°Keep firing!¡± B ordered. ¡°Keep firing!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re a good leader,¡± I said to B as I looked at him. ¡°We¡¯re gonna get through this.¡±


    ¡°You can say that again,¡± Nikki muttered as she looked out the window. Our SUVs weaved through the streets as bullets sprayed through the area, hitting a car that was in front of us and then spraying through the air to hit another car next to it. Then someone shot one of our agents through the window, but luckily it was the windshield that got hit and not his face.


    ¡°Get down!¡± B shouted, as the driver began to stray towards the otherne, hurrying through the road, but then we came to a sudden stop when a semi-truck almost crashed into our car. We swerved away from it as the convoy kept ongoing. ¡°Stay in yourne!¡± B yelled as he leaned forward to get a better view outside of the car window.


    One of the shooters from the cars with guns on top began to shoot towards the SUV on our left, but luckily they weren¡¯t able to hit us or hit any of our cars around us as we continued to shoot at them. I didn¡¯t know if they had a n or not, but I didn¡¯t want to wait until we were closer to them to get out of their way.


    ¡°Mchi, use your bolts!¡± September said.


    ¡°On it!¡± he responded. I saw him look at B before he reached for his back and pulled out a wand, with lightning shooting out of it. He aimed them and threw them out of his hands as the bullets from the convoy continued to spray towards us. The shots went through our car and shattered a window.


    I needed to help.


    I got out my pistol-ready to fire. First I needed to get out the guy on that gun up top because he was doing some damage. I pulled out my gun and began to fire at the man on top of the car while I ducked down below my window. As I did, I could see people begin to shoot at us again, and I began to worry about Nikki and Mchi and B inside of our vehicle.


    Bullets, shouts, screams and bangs wereing from all around me as I fired my gun at the man on top of the car while I kept moving back from it, trying to avoid being shot by anyone in the convoy.


    ¡°Gain up more on the first vehicle!¡± B said to the driver, who weaved into another roadway, riding up towards the white SUV upfront, which waspletely covered in bullet holes as I looked at it.


    ¡°Nikki!¡± I screamed as I could see her getting shot at through the window, but she didn¡¯t seem to notice anything as she fired back with her gun from her window. She turned over to me, and that¡¯s when I saw it. A helicopter that was in the sky.


    ¡°There¡¯s a helicopter in the sky!¡± I shouted, and B nced in my direction.


    He took out his binocrs immediately, viewing the helicopter that was hovering over us. ¡°Oh, no,¡± he muttered. Then he took out his radio, everyone-move away from the leftne, everyone-move away from the leftne!!¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I asked.


    ¡°RPG,¡± B responded, as fear pumped in my heart. RPG stood for a rocket-propelled grenade, which was a type of ammunition used in a rocketuncher that could blow up a huge section of a car. It could blow up half of our car.


    ¡°It¡¯sing towards us!¡± Nikki shouted.


    ¡°Go right!¡± Tisiah screeched. He swerved, but our other teammates weren¡¯t so lucky.

 Chapter 177

    177 The Brutal Attack


    Soon enough, the rocketnded, and a big ball of fire erupted-sending cars flying and sending people screaming. The rocket blew up in front of us, and we all had to duck down as it sprayed mes and smoke everywhere. Pieces and ss, and flipping cars filled the horrifed streets, and I could hear people screaming and yelling as they were trying to get away from the explosion. It threw me to the side of the car as B making our SUV swerve right in the opposite direction we were traveling towards it. It threw all of us back in our seats from the impact as I tried to grab onto something. My body was being tossed from one side of the car to another.


    Another onended.


    The explosion sent two cars flying, flipping like dominos in the air, and I could see them collide into each other before theynded on the ground. Pieces of the car shot out once theynded, and people were running in every direction, screaming.


    ¡°Stay in the car!¡± B said as he took out his binocrs and looked at the sky.


    It was a horrible, horrible sight. B leaned over in my seat and grabbed me by my shirt, pulling me up with him.


    ¡°Everyone okay?¡± he asked as he looked over at me. Everyone nodded their heads, but there was fear on all of our faces. ¡°This is bad. We need to pull back a bit,¡± B said, looking around, then he pulled out his cellphone.


    ¡°This is B,¡± B responded. ¡°What¡¯s going on down there?¡±


    ¡°We got eyes on them!¡± the man responded over the radio. ¡°We¡¯re sending in backup right now.¡±


    ¡°We need to pull back!¡± B ordered over the radio. ¡°We¡¯re in a crossfire here.¡±


    .....


    ¡°How far back?¡± he responded.


    ¡°Half a mile,¡± B said as he looked out the window at me. ¡°We need support over here!¡± He turned it off, as more of our SUVs began to size up on the convoy as people began to shoot at them with automatic weapons again.


    ¡°Keep going,¡± B told us, but I noticed that our car was slowing down as people began to look around and not really see what was happening because there was a massive fireball blocking out all the sun. But all of a sudden, all our radios began to static. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Tisiah asked.


    ¡°Hello!¡± Maddie Cone suddenly greeted, and I felt like screaming, because I recognized her voice right away. ¡°How¡¯s my shooting? It¡¯s kind of hard doing it from up here, to be honest.¡±


    ¡°That was you?¡± Mchi hissed, but Maddie Cone justughed, saying, ¡°Yeah, it was me!¡± Sheughed even harder as she said, ¡°You all should have listened to me in the first ce!¡±


    ¡°What do you want?¡± Nikki asked, still with her gun pointed out the window. She was holding back the shooters from the convoy with her gun, but she couldn¡¯t do much more than that as she ducked down low from all the bullets that were flying by us. ¡°For you to die, obviously,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯m quite aware you guys were listening, so I told you-I¡¯ming for you.¡±


    ¡°Not our men,¡± B corrected, and I looked back at him as I could tell he was scared too. ¡°You won¡¯t get away with this,¡± he said, trying to sound threatening as he gripped his gun more tightly in his hand. ¡°Well, being the state of your operation, I think I will,¡± she said,ughing through the radio, as everyone in our SUV ducked down. ¡°Oh, wait-that¡¯s right,¡± she said as sheughed more. ¡°You¡¯re not going to be around to see it!¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked, but she onlyughed more.


    ¡°Trust me, I have onest one just for you,¡± she said, but then she stopped. Then she got off of the radio. ¡°Why did she hang up?¡± I asked, but as I looked up-I saw it. The airport.


    ¡°Okay, agents, once the convoynds, everyone needs to attack,¡± B ordered through the radio, and I looked back at him with a shocked expression on my face.


    ¡°Attack them?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°Are you insane?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± B responded calmly. ¡°We have to attack.¡±


    ¡°Our men are gonna get annihted!¡± September said, looking up at B with worry.


    ¡°Not if we do it right!¡± he responded.


    ¡°B!¡± Nikki said, but he ignored her and took out his binocrs again. ¡°Trust me,¡± he said, looking at us with sincerity. ¡°We can do this. This is for Masaru-not us.¡± I couldn¡¯t deny it. He was right, so I nodded my head as he kept talking to us over the radio.


    ¡°Everyone knows what to do,¡± he said, and as I looked out the window, I saw some of our teammates in front of our car with guns aimed at the convoy as we began to pull away from them and head towards the airport.


    ¡°What¡¯s your n?¡± Nikki asked, but B didn¡¯t say anything at first until he looked up and smiled at me.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to draw them into my trap,¡± he said with a grin on his face, as we continued to drive into the airport as we were now surrounded by buildings.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± Tisiah asked.


    ¡°Just trust me,¡± he responded. Soon enough, we parked, and we began to storm out of our cars. ¡°Alright, go, go, go!¡± B shouted to all the agents, who began to storm the convoy of cars as I could hear gunshots and people screaming in every direction.


    I saw several members of the convoy shooting at us as we were being shot at too, but it wasn¡¯t like they had a chance to really fight back against us or really escape as they were being shot at all over the ce. The shooters wereing out of their cars with pistols aimed at us, while our teams were firing at them, too. The drivers of the trucks were now trying to run away, but they couldn¡¯t get anywhere as the agents shot at them while trying to escape into the airport itself.


    But then I heard a loud crash. It sounded like something had fallen or someone had been hurt, but then I saw an SUV fall over. It fell on its side beforending on its top as I heard ss shattering all around me as people began to scream in fear at the sound of metal crashing and ss breaking all over the ce.


    The agents who were on foot were trying to get away from the convoy as they ran for cover behind cars and trucks and anything they could find for cover as they ducked down.


    ¡°Everybody get down!¡± someone shouted, and then there was more gunfire as they began to shoot at us with automatic weapons. The agents got hit with bullets that were flying from all over the ce as I felt something hit my arm from where I was running behind a car for cover. I looked up and saw that someone was shooting at us from atop the building nearby as people began to run out of the airport entrance with their guns raised above their heads and pointed in our direction.


    ¡°They got BMO agents from inside the airport?!¡± Mchi shouted in shock, and I realized it was true. That meant that they had been nning this for a long time, which I knew B was aware of when he made his n to attack them in the first ce.


    ¡°Move back-back-back-back-back!!!¡± September shouted, and I could see that she was right as the agents began to move back. The BMO agents began to storm our front lines as bullets reflected off cars and windows as we kept firing our guns and firing back at them as the agents kept sting at us.


    ¡°They¡¯reing in closer!¡± Nikki called out.

 Chapter 178

    178 Defending Masaru


    ¡°Hold your position!¡± B shouted at us as I could see some of the BMO agents starting to surround our cars as we were surrounded by them, too. They began to fire at our cars from all over the ce as people screamed as we tried to figure out what to do next.


    I could see some of theming towards us as I heard more screaming and gunshots, so I tried to hide behind a car with everyone else while we were still under fire by BMO agents as we saw people running from them all over the ce.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here!¡± Tisiah yelled to me as he ran over to me, with Nikki right behind him.


    ¡°What about Masaru?!¡± I asked, and we turned. Then I saw it, the limo with Masaru in it. I waved both my arms high and wide, screaming, ¡°Go away from here!¡± But soon enough, the BMO agents were already speeding to the limo.


    Oh no, oh no, oh no...


    I ran towards them, charging up my Perk for this moment. ¡°Masaru!¡± I shouted, running right towards him, with Tisiah and Nikki following me. I was going to protect him if I had to, even if it meant taking out everyone else around me and possibly getting myself killed in the process.


    Immediately, three agents began to rush towards me, as I pulled out my gun and pulled the trigger on it. Then I looked back as Tisiah and Nikki both fired at the same time as they were rushing towards the three BMO agents with their guns pointed right at them. But soon the distance closed, and it was nowbat time.


    The first one that encountered me started with left hook, right hook, left hook, right hook, but then he pulled out a knife and started shing at me with it before I kicked him in the stomach and knocked him to the ground. I grabbed him by the cor as I pushed him to the ground so his face was on the pavement.


    Then I turned to the next one, jabbing him in the chest-thunk!-as he dropped to his knees and fell over. The third one came towards me and then he jumped forward at me with a punch right at my face. But then I moved my head and mmed his fist right into the ground and kicked his feet out from underneath him before turning around to take care of thest one of them.


    .....


    I pushed him up against the wall before kicking him right where the sun didn¡¯t shine, so he fell to the floor and curled up in pain. But then Tisiah and Nikki were there to kick him in the head as they dragged him away from me. I looked at Masaru, who looked horrified. I took his hand, getting him out of the limo.


    But then, more BMO agents were rushing towards us.


    ¡°Run for cover!¡± Nikki shouted as I ducked behind the limo. Shots fired through the air, so I took a quick nce around the front of it and saw that there was another SUV there, but it was smoking and still on fire and they had shot the driver dead.


    Tisiah and Nikki were firing their guns at the agents who were rushing towards us, and soon enough, we were all behind cover as we fired at them, too.


    Then one of them approached me,ing with a very quick right hook that made me stumble back but not fall down, while I saw a knife in his hand that was pointed right at me. But then I pulled out my gun and pointed it right at him, firing until the gun was empty, and then threw it down to the ground, quickly grabbing my knife from him instead. Then I swung it at him with all my might and watched as he fell on his back.


    He fell down, but then he picked himself back on his feet.


    My arms were aching with pain, but it was whether me or him was going to fall down first-I didn¡¯t know yet. And then he charged at me with another knife in his hands as I swung my knife with all my might and shed him right across his stomach before he fell back to the ground.


    Then the second one began to speed towards me, so I held out my gun and fired at him before he reached me, but he managed to dodge it by jumping forward at me with both his fists raised up, so I turned my head and ducked, which knocked him over onto his back.


    ¡°You okay?!¡± I shouted to Nikki, who was currently reloading her gun.


    ¡°I¡¯m good,¡± she responded while shooting at the agents. ¡°How are you doing?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m okay,¡± I replied.


    ¡°Good,¡± she responded with a sigh.


    The BMO agents had stoppeding our way for a moment because they were all either dead or being upied by the JSA agents that were defending their position. ¡°Masaru, you okay?¡± I asked him, but he was shaken.


    ¡°What in the world is going on?!¡± he shrieked, looking around in confusion as Tisiah and Nikki looked at us as they continued to hold their ground against the BMO agents who were firing back at them but not too hard since they were outnumbered and outgunned by our teams.


    ¡°You need to be kept safe alright,¡± I said, looking at him sincerely as I felt the adrenaline rush through my system and I began to shake with the intensity of it. ¡°So we need you toe with us.¡± He looked at me with fear in his eyes as I started to walk away from him. ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± I told him, ¡°we¡¯re just gonna make sure that you get back home safely.¡±


    He looked at me with worry in his eyes, but then he nodded his head as I started walking away with Nikki and Tisiah beside me. ¡°Just hide somewhere, I¡¯ll get someone to keep you safe alright?!¡± I said, and he nodded-getting up on his feet and running behind a building, with Tisiah and Nikki following after us.


    But then I felt it-the rumbling in the earth as arge tremor shook the earth beneath us.


    And then suddenly, a gigantic explosion went off somewhere near where Masaru was hiding as it sent everyone flying into the air as they all fell on their backs and crashed into cars and people. I couldn¡¯t see anything for a moment until I stood up and saw an enormous cloud of smoke rising into the sky over where Masaru was supposed to have been hiding.


    ¡°Masaru!¡± I screeched. I stopped in my tracks and began running towards Masaru.


    ¡°Connor!¡± Tisiah said, as he ran after me, but then we stopped once we reached the destination.


    ¡°Hello kids,¡± Maddie Cone said, holding Masaru by his cor. ¡°Just randomly found him here.¡±


    ¡°Give him back to us,¡± Tisiah demanded, pointing his gun at Maddie.


    ¡°Oh no,¡± Nikki said, ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡±


    Maddie began tough maniacally as she pointed the gun at them. ¡°Guards, kill them,¡± she said, then she pointed to two other agents. ¡°You¡¯reing with me and Masaru Kin.¡±


    No, no, no-


    ¡°Tisiah!¡± I shouted, running towards them and pulling out my gun before pointing it right at Maddie. ¡°I¡¯ll shoot you!¡±


    ¡°Go ahead,¡± Maddie Cone chuckled. ¡°It would make my day.¡±


    The guards started speeding towards with their fists firm and ready. ¡°Oh boy, here we go,¡± Tisiah muttered, as we charged towards them. One of the agents decided to choose me as a suitable opponent, first throwing a right at me, then a left, then a right hook before throwing a left hook at my head. Then I countered with a right hook, a right uppercut, and a left hook before throwing a right jab into his gut as he doubled over in pain, dropping his gun on the ground before I kicked it out of his reach before pushing him to the ground.


    The second one grabbed me by my neck as he pushed me up against a car, while Nikki rushed forward at them to attack them, too.


    His arms were firm against my neck, as sweat poured from my face as we looked into each other¡¯s eyes while they were struggling against one another. But then Tisiah jumped at them from behind as he threw a punch right between the two of them while Nikki kicked him right in his face so he fell down. Then Nikki pushed me out.


    ¡°Thank you-thank you,¡± I said, but Nikki shrugged her shoulders.


    ¡°You got this,¡± she told me, then she turned to Tisiah. ¡°You should go save Masaru,¡± she said before turning around and running away from me as I looked at her. ¡°Come on Tisiah,¡± I said. ¡°Maddie Cone is probably miles away by now.¡±


    ¡°But what car are we gonna use though?¡± Tisiah asked, and I looked towards the right, seeing a four-seat coupe. ¡°Perfect,¡± Tisiah said with a smile. Then he ran towards it.

 Chapter 179

    179 The Final Piece


    I ran after her to see Tisiah pick up the keys from the ground nearby as he looked towards me and grinned. Then he took out his phone and called someone as I grabbed my gun and approached him. ¡°Hey, B. Maddie has Masaru, we¡¯re gonna go get him,¡± Tisiah said on the phone. ¡°We¡¯ll be leaving from here soon.¡±


    I stopped as he ended his call. ¡°Tisiah...¡± I said softly as he looked at me. ¡°Where did you get those keys?¡±


    ¡°From the ground,¡± Tisiah responded with ¡°duh¡± nod of his head.


    I looked down at the ground as I began to notice there was blood on the ground all over. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± I said, feeling a bit nauseous.


    Tisiah nodded before climbing into the car. I looked around for Nikki first, but then she came running towards me with her gun pointed towards me. ¡°We need to leave!¡± she shouted, running towards us.


    ¡°Come on, get in, get in!¡± Tisiah shouted, as he entered, holding the gun out of the window. ¡°We gotta go!¡±


    ¡°Yes, yes,¡± I nodded my head before climbing in after them both. I turned back to see Nikki get inside of the car after Tisiah was already inside of it.


    ¡°Ready?¡± Tisiah asked, as me and Nikki nodded our heads. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± Tisiah said before revving the engine and driving off-so I held my breath as we sped out of there and headed towards where Masaru was supposedly still alive, with Maddie Cone nowhere in sight.


    ¡°How are we gonna find Maddie Cone?¡± Nikki asked, looking back at me from where she was sitting next to Tisiah in the driver¡¯s seat.


    .....


    I shrugged my shoulders as I looked out the window-watching the scenery fly by as Tisiah drove down the highway in a hurry. ¡°Got any sight of them?¡± I asked Tisiah, but then he shook his head no as he continued to drive us towards our destination.


    ¡°How are we going to find Maddie Cone?¡± Nikki asked again.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said, sighing with annoyance as I leaned back against the door, trying not to feel sick from how fast we were moving. ¡°Just try to see a white van,¡± Nikki responded, looking out the window herself to see if she could spot one of them.


    ¡°I¡¯ll try to see them,¡± she said after a moment, but then she shook her head no as she looked out the window once more. ¡°There¡¯s nothing out here...¡± she said quietly.


    ¡°Shoot,¡± Tisiah grumbled, but then he stopped. ¡°Wait, I see something.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I asked, as I saw a white van speeding through the highway. ¡°We got em,¡± I muttered in prospect, but then Nikki shook her head no.


    ¡°No, they¡¯re too far ahead.¡±


    ¡°Too bad,¡± I murmured to myself as we sped forward to catch up with it before stopping at a red light. Then Tisiah began to honk the horn as we pulled out behind it. ¡°Where do you want us to go?!¡± Nikki asked, as we all stared at the van we were chasing-it had been slowing down so we could catch up with it, and then it stopped suddenly at a red light.


    ¡°They¡¯re stopping?¡± I asked Tisiah.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± he replied as we caught up with them.


    ¡°What do we do?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know...¡± Tisiah said as he slowed down to match their pace. ¡°They¡¯re doing something.¡±


    But all of a sudden, two guys came from their windows with automatics in their hands. Fear crept up inside of me. ¡°Oh shoot,¡± Nikki mumbled, but then I felt the force of what seemed to be a truck hit us, and ss flew inside of the car. The world was rolling around, and I was beginning to see stars.


    ¡°Hold on!¡± Tisiah yelled out as the car started to skid sideways before crashing into a building. It threw me against the back of my headrest with an intense pain and pressure while it flung Nikki out of her seat with an intense thud and tter of her gun falling.


    I screamed, I shrieked, I screeched in fear.


    Then it stopped as dust and debris rained down inside the car, making me cough from the dust in my throat and lungs as I fell on the floor of the car-battered and bruised by the crash. I coughed some more until the dust cleared up. Then... everything went ck.


    Created with Sketch.


    What-what...?


    What happened??


    Where am I?


    I looked up, seeing the surrounding environment. It was as if I was in some sort of warehouse or something, and green was all around me. Leaves, trees, everything was green-green leaves everywhere.


    Where is everyone?


    Am I alone here?


    Where are Tisiah and Nikki?


    Where is Maddie Cone?


    I heard footstepsing closer to me, but then I saw that it was only a deer that had walked out of the trees. But then right then, I realized I was in Camag¨¹ey. I was inside of the warehouse, Charlie, and I strapped in this sort of chair that was like a ball sort of. Two cup holders by me, as I sat on the chair and there was a strap on my waist. Where were Nikki and Tisiah? Were they here?


    ¡°Hello, Connor,¡± I heard someone say, as I turned around and stared back. It was Maddie Cone who was now wearing a ck jacket, and this long but firm dress that stopped below her knees. Her high heels continued to reiterate through the room, and the wooden floor gave it the certain base to her noisy high heels.


    I stayed silent, fear and confusion just rattling through my brain. ¡°How are you today?¡± she asked, as she dropped to my elevation. She smelled ofvender and cashew wood, and I couldn¡¯t help but give into the fragrant smell.


    ¡°I asked you a question,¡± she hissed, and I cleared my throat. ¡°Fine,¡± I responded, trying to sound strong, but in reality, I was as demure as a mouse.


    ¡°Good, good, now you might be wondering why you¡¯re sitting here today,¡± she said. ¡°Well, figures, instead of Masaru Kin as our ultimate piece, we were tracking it down unintentionally the whole time. You.¡±


    ¡°Me, for what?¡±


    ¡°To finish what we started, Connor,¡± she said. And right at that point, I knew what she was saying. I was inside the Xeno right now, and what she intended to do to Masaru-she was now doing to me.¡±


    ¡°Wait-wait, what makes me so special?¡± I asked, trying to look at her as she sauntered away from me. She chuckled. ¡°Well, Masaru is capable of using nature to his will. Water, fire, earth-lightning, all the fun stuff. But he actually has an injury, so he can¡¯t even use it for more than three hours. And that¡¯s not even including using his full power.¡±


    But then I heard her return, and she stopped as she looked at me. ¡°You, on the other hand,¡± she said. ¡°Your power consists of energy, and I¡¯ve seen the damage you¡¯ve done with a certain percentage. Imagine the full power you can put into this. Yeah, I¡¯d prefer you. Now stay still.¡±


    All of a sudden, footsteps began to rumble around the room. I looked, seeing a bunch of scientists walking around, taking their positions. ¡°Hey Dr. Mord,¡± she said. ¡°Start it up.¡±


    Then, arms began to shake, and electricity was sparking all over my arms. More and more, my body felt like it was burning-melting into ash. Pain coursed through my entire body, and my eyes felt like shooting out, and my legs began to feel like licorice-bendy and unstable.


    I screamed loud in pain, but I couldn¡¯t do anything about it.


    It was too much-the pain-it was too much for me to bear, too much for me to handle. My muscles began to be so weak, and then-then...


    The electricity started to grow brighter in my veins. All of a sudden, my head rocked back, and the energy began to boil inside of me, but it was like an energy so powerful that it felt like it was going to explode any second. And then all of a sudden-a loud screech exploded inside of me-a screeching so loud it hurt to even listen to it.


    Make it stop.


    Make it stop!


    It was so painful-so intense-it was unbearable.


    Make it stop-make it stop-make it stop, make it stop!


    I tried to move my hands, but they werepletely stiff. I wanted to scream, but my voice felt shattered, and my throat felt like sandpaper-so raw and painful. I tried to move my legs, but they felt heavy and heavy, like it filled them with rocks or cement or something.


    Make it stop-make it stop-make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop!


    And then it stopped. ¡°Yes!¡± Maddie Cone celebrated. ¡°We now havepleted the Xeno. What¡¯s our energy levels, Dr. Mord?¡±


    ¡°We have one hundred and eighty-six point five million,¡± Dr. Mord said. ¡°It should be enough to make our test subject gopletely berserk.¡±


    ¡°Perfect.¡± Maddie Cone turned to face me as she dropped to my height again. ¡°Thank you for your service.¡± Then she snapped twice before saying, ¡°Guards, put him back into his cell. We¡¯re not too much in need of him anymore.¡±

 Chapter 180

    180 The Escape


    But then they pulled me up out of my seat, and I could hear them strapping me down into a different chair in another room somewhere else in the warehouse. It was dark all around me except for a small window up in the corner where some light was streaming inside from outside.


    Then a man walked in with a tray of food before setting it on a table next to me and walking away. I turned my head to see what the food was-bread with some kind of meat spread on top of it that was like chicken and cheese.


    So, not only was I trapped-I was used to finish the construction on the Xeno, and now I¡¯m stuck here forever, in this dark room. Where am I? What have they done to me? Why am I still alive?


    I stared at the food-stared at it until it disappeared, then stared at the wall-stared at it until it disappeared, stared at the ceiling, stared at the floor, stared at the chair in which I sat in. It felt so good to stare at it. So good to just stare at the empty air and not think about anything at all. But then I heard the footsteps returning.


    Did they forget something like that?


    But then, my eyes began to waver and everything began to go blurry, and then ckness overtook mepletely.


    ***


    I finally woke up, feeling as if I had just came out of the grave, or something like that. I blinked slowly as I felt the weight of the world on my shoulders. It felt heavy, like all of my bones were broken into little tiny pieces and now I had to reassemble them all in order to stand up.


    But then, I heard shouting-loud shouting that bellowed through the halls, through the walls, through the doors of this room I was in. The sound echoed throughout the entire ce as if it would never stop. But then I heard footstepsing towards me as if someone hade to tell me I could leave this ce.


    .....


    If only, though.


    Suddenly, a guard opened the door. ¡°What did you do?¡± he asked. Confusion raced through my head.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°We got YMPA agents outside of the warehouse, and you obviously did something. What did you do?¡± he asked, as he got closer menacingly, his hand out in front of him.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything,¡± I said. But then a second guard came inside and grabbed my arm.


    ¡°Yeah well,¡± he said as he led me out of the room and down a long hallway that was lit with the same greenish-yellow lights from before. ¡°We got a lot of things that don¡¯t add up in here,¡± he said as he held my arm tight behind me. ¡°We¡¯re going to interrogate you again, so just stay calm.¡±


    But then I heard him mutter something under his breath. I¡¯m not sure what he said, but all I know was that there was an opportunity here. I looked around, seeing a good time tounch my idea. Depends if it works, though.


    Well, here goes nothing.


    Quickly, I kicked the guard on the right of me on the thigh, shattering his stability and position enough for me to follow up with a powerful right hook. He fell to the ground as I took off running through the corridor. ¡°Get him!¡± someone yelled, as I ran down the corridor, turning left into the first avable hallway.


    Then I heard footsteps behind me, and I knew they wereing for me, but then suddenly a wall appeared right in front of me, cutting me off. I needed to find somewhere to hide, but where? I could hear them running towards me as they closed in on me from behind. But then suddenly the wall split apart into two halves like a giant piece of chocte cake had just been sliced in two, and then a big metal door slid open.


    I ran inside and mmed the door behind me just as the first guard came crashing through. Then the second guard followed behind him, and as I turned around and looked at him, I saw the guard was holding his stomach in agony as if he was in pain.


    He looked over his shoulder at me with blood pouring out of his mouth. ¡°You can¡¯t get away,¡± he groaned before falling forward onto his stomach.


    I took a deep breath after what had just urred. But who notified the YMPA about me and Masaru and-Masaru! I needed to free the rest, but where were they? I heard the footsteps of the guards outside the door, so I knew I couldn¡¯t stay here for too long.


    Where to go now? I thought to myself as I ran down the hallway towards a set of stairs that led up to a higher floor in this warehouse. I never thought that had an upper floor, but here we are. But as I ran, I began to hear voices-Maddie Cone¡¯s specifically.


    ¡°So you want your agent back, but I will kill him if you even think about storming this warehouse,¡± she said, her voice booming through the whole warehouse as she continued to speak to whoever it was she was talking to on her other end of the phone. ¡°And don¡¯t think that I won¡¯t kill him,¡± she continued, as she listened to her caller reply with some kind of answer that sounded like a yes.


    But that caller sounded very, very familiar.


    September!


    Of course they came for us, and they brought some backup with them too, probably some of their strongest agents or something like that. But I needed to find Masaru, and quick, before they killed him and any of the others here. I was just about to go upstairs when I felt something tug on my legs as if there was a rope attached to my legs pulling me towards the wall next to me. But then I heard something else-a ttering from the other end of the hallway, as if something fell off a shelf onto the floor.


    It was a key ring.


    It was my chance. I pulled on my legs and was able to move them freely once more. I ran to the end of the hallway, then turned right and went down the stairs, making my way towards the sound of something being destroyed upstairs. I ran as quickly as possible, knowing that it was not going to be long before they caught up with me.


    I rounded the corner and saw that the door leading into this room had been opened.


    I looked inside, and I saw a man working on aputer with a big smile on his face. Maybe I could ask him where Masaru Kin was, perhaps. But what do I threaten him with? I don¡¯t have my wand or gun, and even if I did, they¡¯d be able to trace it back to me easily enough. So what could I threaten him with?


    But then, I saw that he had a gun on his belt, meaning I had to be slick and fast, or else he was going to shoot me down like a dog right there. I couldn¡¯t let him take me alive. I had to get away before he shot me. But then suddenly the door began to close itself.


    Oh, no.


    The door began to slide closed, but before it did, I jumped on the side of the door with one of my legs, and then pulled on the other leg in order to gain purchase on the side of the door as well. It was enough for me to push off the door with my legs in order tounch myself off of it and towards him.


    I ran towards the man as he turned around to look at me with surprise written all over his face.


    He got up from his seat and tried to pull out his gun, but I quickly grabbed that arm, twisting it behind his back so he couldn¡¯t pull out his gun as he held onto me tightly. Then I grabbed his head and mmed it into the ground over and over again until he stopped moving. Then I grabbed his gun from his hand and pointed it at him as hey on the ground.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Masaru Kin?!¡± I shouted, and he stammered in fear as he began to sweat profusely.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to kill you!¡± I told him as I walked closer to him so I could look at him in the eye, hoping to intimidate him. ¡°I¡¯m going to shoot you right here, right now!¡±


    ¡°No,¡± he said during three hups.

 Chapter 181

    181 The Search


    ¡°Wrong answer,¡± I said, as I shot near his body-trying to drill fear into his heart, but also make sure he wasn¡¯t going to tell anyone what had happened here. But then I noticed that I¡¯d been shot myself, right in my left shoulder. It was only a flesh wound though, so I ignored it and kept on pressing him for information.


    ¡°Where is Masaru Kin?!!¡± I screamed, as I kept pointing the gun right at him. He stammered again as he tried to answer me. But then suddenly there was a crash upstairs as someone strong enough to knock it right off its hinges kicked the door in.


    Then two agents walked through it, each with their guns drawn and aimed at me as they walked slowly towards me, with a look of anger and rage on their face.


    ¡°Drop your weapon!¡± one of themmanded me.


    I was stuck, but I wasn¡¯t sure what to do. I grabbed the guy off the floor and put the gun to his head and shouted, ¡°Tell me where Masaru Kin is!¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know who that is!¡± he yelled back as he struggled to get free from my grip, but he was unable to do so because I was squeezing him with all my might. ¡°I¡¯m telling you, I don¡¯t know who that is!¡±


    ¡°Yes, you do. You kidnapped him back in Japan! He¡¯s here. Tell me now!¡± I shouted. ¡°Or this man¡¯s brains will be all over the floor.¡±


    ¡°Okay, okay,¡± the agent said. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you where Masaru Kin is. When you leave this room, move two lefts and two rights, okay?¡±


    ¡°Alright thank you,¡± I said, letting the captive go. Then he fell on the ground and tried to crawl out of sight as quickly as possible.


    .....


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go!¡± I said, as I turned around and walked towards the door, where the agents had kicked it off of its hinges. As I walked out of that room and down the hallway.


    I kept moving towards the stairway that would lead me to Masaru¡¯s location. Two lefts and two rights, I think he said, so I turned left, and then left again at the first hallway before turning right into a long hallway with no doors on either side of it except for one at the far end of it.


    When I got there, there was a small metal door.


    There was only one thing I needed to do, but hopefully it doesn¡¯t make too much noise. I took a deep breath and charged up my Perk, which caused my adrenaline to rush through my body like crazy. Then I shot my hands out to push against the metal door as hard as I could-and it began to bend under my force before breaking in half as it swung open inwards.


    Perfect.


    Immediately I rushed through, seeing a long hall of blue that was almost just mesmerizing. It was sort of scary, and all dizzy looking sort of. I walked down the hall, looking around to see this-weird ce. ¡°Masaru!¡± I shouted, hoping he could hear me from here, but all I heard was a groan from behind me.


    ¡°Masaru!¡± I shouted again, as I continued to walk down the hallway until I finally saw him.


    It was hard to tell from where I was standing whether he was actually conscious or not. He looked very pale and sickly-like they had not fed him anything in days or something like that. His ck hair was super messy and damp, and his skin looked pale as well-maybe from being locked up in that warehouse for too long without any sunlight. He was chained up to a metal chair that had some sort of straps and mps attached to it, so he wouldn¡¯t be able to escape easily.


    ¡°Connor...¡± he muttered, and I smiled. ¡°Hey, it¡¯s me,¡± I said, walking over to him, before grabbing his face with my left hand and bringing his face close to mine as I looked him straight in the eye.


    ¡°Hey,¡± I said softly as I took my left hand away and brought it up to his neck, trying to feel for a pulse or something like that. ¡°I¡¯m gonna get you out of here.¡±


    Masaru nodded, and I looked at the chains. I grabbed a hold of it and charged my Perk up, then grabbed one of the chains with all my might and yanked it towards me.


    Then it began to bend before snapping right in half as I pulled it towards me. The other chains came undone as well as Masaru¡¯s hands were freed. ¡°Okay, you¡¯re free now-¡± I said, before Masaru came in with a hug. His hands felt cold and dead, like they were barely even there anymore.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± he whispered as we held on to one another tightly for a moment before separating ourselves. He looked so pale and sickly, and his eyes looked so sad. ¡°Do you have an idea where Tisiah and Nikki could be?¡± I asked Masaru, and he nodded. ¡°I think I do,¡± Masaru said, taking a deep breath, before walking towards the other end of the hallway where there were stairs leading downwards. He grabbed me by my shoulders as he pulled me along with him, and we went down into a dark room below.


    ¡°They¡¯re down here,¡± Masaru said, and I gasped in relief when I saw Tisiah and Nikki in the same disgusting chair Masaru was in.


    But the sight of the dark room was terrifying. Chain-infected chairs that are in rows and rows, and the smell or rotting flesh that stung my throat, but at least Tisiah and Nikki didn¡¯t look that bad. ¡°Connor!¡± Tisiah shouted, shaking the chains on his chair, which was why Masaru had told me to get them out of there.


    I walked up to them and began to help them both get out of their chairs. Tisiah¡¯s eyes were wide with fear, and Nikki looked more exhausted than anything else. ¡°This ce smells worse than that warehouse,¡± Nikki said in between heavy breaths.


    ¡°Yeah, yeah it does,¡± I said as I helped Nikki stand up, before grabbing her hand and pulling her along. ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± I said, as I looked down at Tisiah in her chair, ¡°we¡¯ll get out of here. The YMPA is already outside of the warehouse. We just need to find a way to get out of here sneakily-¡±


    ¡°Hands in the air!¡± someone shouted.


    I turned around, seeing three BMO agents with their guns pointed at us, ready to shoot at any second, and I couldn¡¯t say anything in return because there were too many of them. Then I heard the click-cks, the loud ones that made their presence known. ¡°So you escaped,¡± Maddie Cone said, revealing herself as she walked down the stairs. ¡°Surprising.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± I hissed.


    ¡°Self-exnatory, to be honest,¡± Maddie Cone said with a chuckle, before walking closer to us. ¡°But now that you¡¯re all here together, it makes things so much easier.¡±


    ¡°You think you¡¯re just gonna capture us that easily?¡± Nikki said, but Maddie Cone nodded, making Nikki take a step back with a gasp.


    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Maddie said with a smile. ¡°It would¡¯ve been so much easier to capture all of you if you had onlye alone.¡± She then looked at me and narrowed her eyes. ¡°Oh, well, take them into custody. But follow me.¡±


    ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am,¡± the agents responded, as they began to pull us along by our arms while pushing us through the darkroom to get outside. There were many chains around this room that were attached to all sorts of things, and I could hear the sounds of chains breaking and things being moved around before the chain was freed and it fell down onto the ground.


    We walked up the stairs, and through the hall, where we returned to the lobby of the warehouse where there was a small crowd of people waiting for us-all of them were BMO agents. But outside of the warehouse was like a whole army of YMPA agents.

 Chapter 182

    182 A Not-So Working Deal


    ¡°This is Connor that you¡¯re talking about, right?!¡± she shouted. ¡°Let me make a deal with you.¡±


    She took out a gun and pointed it right at my head. ¡°I¡¯ll kill him and his friends if you guys don¡¯t leave right now,¡± she said, her face folding from her smile to the most grievous face I¡¯ve seen yet.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Masaru shouted in confusion.


    ¡°You¡¯re not gonna like the answer,¡± she said as she smiled even more. ¡°You want to know what this ce is for?¡± I turned and shook my head at him, hoping to shut him up so he didn¡¯t reveal anything to her. ¡°We use this ce for holding people like you.¡±


    ¡°Like me?¡± Masaru repeated, confused at her words.


    ¡°Nothing,¡± I responded to Masaru, shaking my head at him again. ¡°She¡¯s just crazy.¡±


    ¡°Crazy?¡± she chuckled. ¡°Determined is a better word, Connor.¡±


    She turned back towards the YMPA spies that were camping outside of the warehouse. ¡°Now, as I said, I will kill him and his friends if you don¡¯t get off of thispound,¡± she said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± someone-September through the speaker inside of the building-said, and suddenly everything got silent. ¡°Who are you?¡± he asked her. ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    .....


    ¡°What am I doing?¡± she asked him in a mocking voice. ¡°What am I doing? I¡¯m trying to save my friends, and I¡¯m trying to save humanity.¡± Maddie Cone sighed. ¡°You guys are just pathetic. This whole friendship thing almost makes me wanna kill him right now,¡± she said, as I gulped, wondering if she was serious or joking.


    ¡°You¡¯re not gonna kill me, though,¡± she said to me. ¡°No matter how much you¡¯d want me to.¡± She then sighed again. ¡°Not without me killing him though, so as I see it-I¡¯m the one who has authority here,¡± she exined back towards the agents outside, who looked confused at her words.


    ¡°And how are we supposed to trust you?¡± September asked her with a scoffing voice. ¡°What are you going to do? Give us some sort of deal that¡¯s going to make you look good?¡±


    ¡°Well, somewhat I guess,¡± Maddie Cone responded.


    ¡°You¡¯ll have to give us a better answer than that,¡± someone else said.


    ¡°I¡¯ll let you in on a little secret,¡± Maddie said as she looked at us and smiled. ¡°I don¡¯t need your deal.¡±


    ¡°Oh? Did you forget you¡¯re literally surrounded?¡± Mchi now asked hastily, getting into the conversation. ¡°Did you also forget you¡¯re not on the run anymore? If you want to get out of this alive, then you better give us a reason to trust you.¡±


    Maddie sighed once more than she looked at us with her scoffing expression still stered on her face. ¡°When have never been a woman of my word?¡± she said. ¡°Anyway, let¡¯s make a deal alright? Here is my offer. I give you your friends if you leave, and leave our weapon to ourselves.¡±


    ¡°Nonsense,¡± someone else said, shaking his head, but the rest of the YMPA spies began to huddle together to discuss things.


    ¡°That¡¯s not gonna work,¡± Nikki said to me with a sad face as I looked at her with a frown.


    I looked over at her as the YMPA agents started to talk amongst themselves, and Nikki looked over at me with fear. ¡°Time is ticking!¡± Maddie Cone shouted, and her British ent really began to show itself, which only made her sound more insane.


    ¡°Are we seriously going for this?¡± Masaru asked me with a confused expression as everyone began to talk amongst themselves again, with Maddie Cone looking back and forth at everyone¡¯s faces, still keeping her smile on her face. ¡°The gun is ready to shoot!!¡± she added,ughing evilly, and it seemed like she was getting her way because everyone else in the room looked at her and agreed with her, even September and Mchi.


    ¡°Okay,¡± someone finally said with a sigh. ¡°We ept your deal.¡±


    Maddie Cone nodded with a grin as I gulped hard in fear at the turn of events. ¡°Ah yes, you guys are very-very smart people, and trust me, this weapon is not even close to your concern,¡± Maddie Cone said, chuckling before she peered back at me, ¡°and don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not going to kill him.¡±


    But here¡¯s the thing-her hand was behind her back and the only thing behind her back was her...


    She suddenly pulled out a gun, and my eyes widened. ¡°No!¡± September shouted, but I needed to do something. I sped towards her at a rapid pace, pushing Nikki and Tisiah to get to Maddie before she could fire the gun and kill us all.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so!¡± she shouted as she raised the gun. And before I could stop her, I could hear the gunfire-and I knew it was my time to die. But then, I rammed into her and suddenly my hands felt free, and I had no idea what had happened to cause this, but I looked back to see that I was actually free and not chained anymore.


    I looked ahead, seeing Maddie Cone¡¯s gun about a few feet away from her, and I snatched it right out of her hand before I pulled it down in front of me and pointed it towards her face. Then I took a deep breath and tried to calm my racing heart as I stared right into her eyes.


    But she quickly punched me off her body, making me lose grip of my gun. I fell down onto the ground with a thud, seeing the gun fall on the floor before it slid away from us.


    I turned my head to look up as Maddie stood above me with a scoff on her face before she took a step back from me. She reached for the gun though, but I quickly mmed into her-trying to get her back onto the ground. ¡°Get off of me!¡± she shouted hastily, but she soon began to grunt in pain and hit me back as we fought with each other. ¡°This is nothingpared to what I can do to you,¡± she added as she pushed me off of her once more.


    ¡°Guards!¡± she shouted once she got up. ¡°Kill those kids!¡±


    The BMO agents began to storm towards me, but I looked at Maddie Cone. ¡°You¡¯re not gonna kill us!¡± I shouted, but then my words turned into a cry of terror as the BMO agents began to close in on me-the agents that were standing around the room began to walk towards us as well.


    ¡°Well, look around,¡± she said. ¡°I think I am.¡±


    But all of a sudden, a loud-Crash!!-rung, as the door smacked down onto the ground. YMPA agents filled the room, and now bolts were speeding through the room like darts. ¡°Get down!¡± someone shouted, and suddenly a grenade went off, making the YMPA agents cover their ears while some fell onto the floor from the loud noise.


    Maddie Cone was knocked back as well, but I was able to push myself up and look over at her to see that she was standing up and looking towards the door with an evil scoff. Quickly, I rushed towards her as she began to run, but someone else caught up to me first-Nikki and Tisiah ran up behind me as we all dashed for the door.


    The BMO agents that were trying to capture us were still trying to reach for us as we made our way through the hallways and past the doors until we began to catch up to Maddie Cone. But then she took another door to the left, as we chased after her, and we found ourselves in a hallway with a lot of doors on either side of us.


    ¡°Which way?¡± Nikki asked as she looked at the doors.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said as I looked at the doors too. ¡°I don¡¯t know where she went.¡±


    ¡°We have to find her!¡± Nikki said with a worried expression. ¡°She¡¯s gonna kill us!¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± I said as I looked at the doors again. But ahead, I saw her body speeding down the hall. ¡°She¡¯s over there!¡± I shouted, pointing my finger at her location, and Nikki and Tisiah nodded in agreement.


    ¡°We have to get her!¡± Nikki said with a determined expression. ¡°We have to stop her!¡±


    ¡°We will,¡± I said with a determined expression as we began to run after her. She was moving, no doubt about it, but we were catching up to her fast. We were almost there when suddenly she stopped in front of a door and turned around to look at us.


    ¡°You¡¯re not gonna get me!¡± she shouted.


    ¡°Well, based on the situation so far,¡± I said, ¡°I don¡¯t think we have much of a choice.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not gonna get me!¡± she shouted again.


    ¡°I¡¯m not?¡± I asked as I stopped in front of her. ¡°Don¡¯t be so naive.¡± But then, she got out her wand and instantly swung it, hitting me in the chest and knocking me back into the wall.

 Chapter 183

    183 Final Stand


    ¡°Ow!¡± I shouted as I fell onto the floor.


    ¡°You¡¯re not gonna get me!¡± she shouted again as she began to run away from us. Quickly, I got up on my feet and immediately we continued to hunt after her, but we weren¡¯t able to catch up to her this time.


    ¡°Come on!¡± Nikki said as she began to run after her. ¡°We have to keep up!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m trying!¡± Tisiah said. ¡°I don¡¯t know how she¡¯s running in heels!¡±


    She began to shoot bolts at us, but although she missed-she was pretty urate, and we had to dodge out of the way or be hit by one of the bolts. She moved through the hall at quick speed, but we began to gain ground on her until finally we caught up to her at the end of the hall.


    Maddie Cone turned around to look at us andughed in our faces before she continued down the hallway.


    ¡°She¡¯s fast!¡± I said as she turned another corner, making us follow closely behind her again. ¡°She¡¯s even faster than me!¡± I shouted as I began to jog to keep up with her pace.


    ¡°Just keep following her,¡± Nikki shouted as she tried to keep up with Tisiah who was wearing himself out just trying to chase after her. He isn¡¯t exactly the most fit for these things, but he¡¯s doing his best to keep up.


    Maddie Cone suddenly turned around, shooting another bolt at us, but we ducked out of the way. But as she ran, she came across a dead end-leaving her facing us. ¡°So, this is where we are,¡± she muttered with a chuckle. ¡°Little children have now boxed me in.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Don¡¯t even try to be smart,¡± I said, slowly walking towards her, my eyes narrowing as I began to look at her in a different light.


    ¡°Or what?¡± she asked me with a sneer on her face. ¡°You¡¯ll attack me?¡±


    I didn¡¯t say anything-mainly because I wasn¡¯t sure what to say so I just continued to look at her with a slight scowl.


    ¡°You can¡¯t,¡± she added. ¡°Because if you try to attack me now, I¡¯ll st you with my magic.¡± I chuckled, ¡°You¡¯ve been trying to do that since this chase.¡± She chuckled as she looked at all of us, ¡°But I have more tricks up my sleeve.¡±


    All of a sudden, she shot out something from her wand, and a dome of fire appeared above her head. ¡°What are you doing?¡± I asked as sheughed loudly at me.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been trying to do that all along!¡± she said as she ran away from us again. ¡°But I wasn¡¯t able to make it work before because you were too close.¡± Then she looked back at us once more. ¡°But now...we can have some fun.¡± All of a sudden, she began to shoot fireballs at us at an expeditious speed, causing us to run around the hallway while avoiding the fireballs that were hitting us like darts.


    ¡°How do you know how to do this?¡± I asked her with a chuckle.


    ¡°Trust me, it¡¯s beyond your understanding,¡± she sneered as sheughed and continued to shoot fireballs at us. ¡°But trust me when I tell you that these things are no joke.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I know they¡¯re not,¡± I said with a chuckle. ¡°That¡¯s why we¡¯re gonna stop right now.¡± Quickly, I got out my wand and went in for the swing, but she quickly raised her wand and pointed it at me and fired off another fireball, which I narrowly dodged in time and watched as it disappeared into a door we had passed before.


    She quickly swung the wand towards me, but I brought up my wand in time to make a sh. Our wands danced around with one another in a series of crashes, but eventually our hands began to hurt from the force of our strenuous fight, and I noticed that my wand began to crack from the force of her shots.


    ¡°Not bad!¡± she said as she suddenly shot forward towards me. ¡°But you don¡¯t stand a chance.¡±


    ¡°You sure about that?¡± I asked, as I kicked her in the chest, making her fall back against the wall before she quickly jumped up and aimed her wand at me.


    But just as she began to shoot a fireball, I grabbed her hand with my hand and twisted it behind her back. But she somehow-and I¡¯m still surprised to this day-returned with a move that got me over her back and down on the ground, but it was a move that got me knocked back into a wall with a loud bang.


    She was holding my wand in her hand now and looking at it with an expression of hatred in her eyes. ¡°You seem a bit tired-don¡¯t you think?!¡± she shouted like a crazed animal as she raised my wand high into the air. She pointed it at me with a fierce re in her eyes.


    Suddenly, I saw her face start to change as she began to lose control of herself. It looked scary, super scary as if she was some sort of demon or something. Her face began to contort, and her eyes started to glow red as they opened wide with a look of pure evil on her face.


    But I couldn¡¯t let that happen. I got up onto my feet once again, looking at her crazed eyes. ¡°Oh yes, you¡¯re done now,¡± she said, her neck tingling of some sort, and suddenly she began tough loudly. But it wasn¡¯t her normalughter that I had grown ustomed to seeing. This was an evilugh that was chilling. ¡°The fight is over,¡± she added whileughing maniacally.


    ¡°Or is it,¡± I heard, as I looked beside me.


    I saw September and Mchi with their guns facing towards Maddie Cone, who right now looked like a hyena, grinning andughing maniacally as sheughed loudly while waving my wand around. ¡°She¡¯s crazy,¡± I thought as I began to approach her slowly. She turned around and looked at me, and I saw that there was something strange about her eyes.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move at all,¡± September said, her gun trained on her face. ¡°You can¡¯t move.¡±


    She turned to face them, but suddenly she started to growl as a fireball was shot towards them, but Mchi quickly turned and shot at the fireball with his gun, sting it into nothingness. I was not even sure what in the world was going on right now as September grabbed her arm and forced her to the floor, while Mchi began to tie her up.


    ¡°What happened?¡± I asked September, as I got up from the floor.


    September sighed, ¡°I have no clue at all.¡±


    I nodded as I looked at Maddie Cone who was lying on the floor with a look of utter defeat on her face. She waspletely out of it now, but I was happy to see that September had finally managed to subdue her. ¡°You think I¡¯m gonna stay here, and allow myself to be apprehended by you fools?¡± Maddie Cone hissed.


    Suddenly, she pointed her wand facing the floor and she shot it. But when she did-Boom!-an explosion sent us flying backwards and then the roof caved in on us.


    When I opened my eyes, I noticed that I was falling through the air with a loud scream on my lips. And all I could do was close my eyes and pray for God to save me from falling to my death. Once I hit the crumbled floor, I knocked out cold for a short while until I began to wake up again.


    I tried to sit up, but found that my legs were stuck. It was dark, and all I could hear were my heartbeat and my breathing as I slowly became awake and began to think. ¡°Nikki!¡± I shouted, but there was no sort of sign or voice from Nikki or Tisiah. So I panicked and started to yell for them, but it felt like I was screaming through a long tunnel.


    I tried to shake off my dazedness and began to run around in the darkness to find anyone, but then I tripped and fell backwards. ¡°Help!¡± I screamed for the first time in my life. But I realized that no one was going to hear me no matter how hard I screamed. ¡°Help!¡± I screamed once again.


    But then I fell, as my eyes slowly closed for thest time.

 Chapter 184

    184 A Little Surprise


    When I woke up again, my eyes opened in a daze of confusion. I noticed that I was in a room-a hospital room. I think I was still in the YMPA, but I didn¡¯t really know where I was. But it seemed like my legs were still stuck, so I tried to shake them off as I looked down at my body and found that there was a sheet over my legs.


    ¡°Hello?¡± I muttered, looking around when I heard the door open. Then Nikki and Tisiah came into the room with their faces pale, and their eyes wide in fear as they stared at me with fear in their eyes. ¡°Nikki!¡± I shouted as she went to hug me, her eyes wetting with tears. But someone else came in, and it was Mr. Drails.


    ¡°How you doing son?¡± he said with a chuckle, but I could tell that he was extremely worried as he looked at us.


    ¡°Where am I?¡± I asked him with a hint of panic in my voice. ¡°Why am I here?¡±


    ¡°Because you suffered quite some injuries in Charlie¡¯s explosion,¡± he said with a sigh, then looked at Tisiah. ¡°Tisiah, why don¡¯t you get him some water?¡± Tisiah nodded as he left the room. Nikki leaned in closer and kissed my forehead, which made me blush because I wasn¡¯t used to this kind of affection.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, Nikki,¡± I whispered, then looked at Mr. Drails with a puzzled expression.


    ¡°So what happened to Maddie Cone?¡± I asked, moving my position to where I could actually see him, but my legs were still stuck, so I had to move slowly as I leaned forward and rested my head against the bed. ¡°What did you do to her? Did you kill her?¡±


    ¡°Well, the explosion killed her and the Xeno was destroyed,¡± Mr. Drails said with a nod, then walked away from the bed with a sigh. ¡°But that isn¡¯t important right now.¡±


    ¡°No it is important,¡± I said as I looked up at him with anger in my eyes, but he shook his head and raised his hand to silence me.


    .....


    ¡°You¡¯re lucky to be alive,¡± he said as he walked towards the door and then looked at me one more time before he left. ¡°I¡¯ll let the others know that you¡¯re awake now.¡±


    I nodded and sighed as Mr. Drails walked out the door, but then it suddenly opened again and Tisiah came in with a ss of water in her hand, but before she could walk towards the bed, I reached out and took the ss from her. ¡°Thank you,¡± I muttered, drinking it down quickly as it felt so good in my parched throat.


    Then Nikki looked at me with a look of sadness in her eyes, and she slowly walked over to me and held my face with both hands as she leaned in close and kissed me on the cheek. ¡°You okay?¡± she asked and I nodded. ¡°Yeah, just unsure of what my injuries were.¡±


    Nikki smiled as she ran her fingers through my hair. ¡°Well, you lost some of your hair,¡± she said with a chuckle and then looked at her hands while she saw me blushing.


    ¡°How bad?¡±


    ¡°Not too bad,¡± she chuckled, then hugged me and kissed my forehead again.


    I could hear her whispering to Tisiah. ¡°You should go now,¡± she added. ¡°Go on now-I¡¯ll take care of him.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°I¡¯lle backter.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, sure,¡± Nikki said with a smile, and then they both left the room. ¡°I¡¯ll see youter.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said with a nod, as they both walked out the door and closed it behind them. I sighed in thought of what just happened, and then noticed that I was feeling a lot better than before, and even my legs were free now.


    I sat up and took my wand out of my pocket. But when I did, I realized that my wand was no longer glowing. Clearly I needed to charge it up, but not knowing how I felt useless at the moment.


    So I decided to sit there and wait until someone came in to check on me. After a while, I started to feel a little tired, and I got up to get a pillow so that I couldy down. Well, at least I can go back to normal for a moment, but who knows?


    ***


    A month passed on, and things went on normally. Greg was normal, my life was normal, but everything was about to change for good-or bad-I wasn¡¯t sure which way it was going to go at the moment.


    I had finally gotten my wand back to working condition and was able to use it again. Greg didn¡¯t lose his friends somehow, and they became friends with me-making me a bit more popr, even if I was still a nobody to most of them.


    I was beginning to realize that being a nobody wasn¡¯t all bad. In fact, it could be fun. And what was really interesting was that even though I was starting to be part of the school crowd, there were still some people that didn¡¯t like me. But that¡¯s just how it is.


    I was at school one day, as I saw Greg and friendse over to me.


    ¡°Hey Connor,¡± Greg greeted. ¡°How you¡¯ve been?¡±


    ¡°The same way I¡¯ve always been,¡± I said with a chuckle, as I walked with him and his friends towards the cafeteria. ¡°How have things been with you?¡±


    ¡°Oh well,¡± Greg started, looking over at me. ¡°You know how it is, nothing new to tell you.¡± I chuckled as I looked around. ¡°I guess.¡± But then Greg sighed, as he looked at me. ¡°Maybe there is something to tell you perhaps,¡± he said. Immediately I stopped, as I turned around and looked at him, and his friends looked at him with expressions of confusion on their faces.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You¡¯ll see soon enough,¡± Greg said with a chuckle, but he wouldn¡¯t say anything more on the subject. I nodded, but now I was very curious-very curious, as this might be the only interesting thing to happen to me this year.


    Well, as I walked into the cafeteria, I found that there was no sign of anyone special from my ss, and I was beginning to wonder what Greg meant by soon enough when all of a sudden I heard a whisper from behind me.


    ¡°Hey Connor!¡± I heard the whisper again from behind me. I turned around quickly and saw a guy standing behind me with his hands shoved in his pockets as he looked at me with a smirk. It was Tisiah.


    ¡°Whoa, what are you doing here?¡± I whispered to him frantically, trying to whisper so that the others couldn¡¯t hear what was happening.


    ¡°I saw you go into the cafeteria, so I figured that I should say hi!¡± Tisiah replied with a smile, as his dark blue eyes sparkled with curiosity and humor. ¡°The YMPA and this school is separate, you can¡¯t be in here!¡± I shouted. Tisiah scratched his head. ¡°But Greg asked me to talk to you though. He said that he needs help because someone wanted to talk to you, someone you apparently know.¡±


    ¡°There is no one that I know that no one else doesn¡¯t know,¡± I said to him, then thought for a moment. ¡°Wait-you said that someone wants to talk to me?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what Greg said,¡± Tisiah replied with a smile, then he walked over to me as his hands went up in the air. ¡°Don¡¯t believe me, you can ask him.¡±


    I muttered, ¡°Is that the surprise he was talking to me about?¡±


    Tisiah nodded as he walked over to where his friends were sitting, and he pointed to Greg who was just finishing talking to someone who looked familiar to me, but I couldn¡¯t remember who it was. Tisiah and I sat down together and waited for Greg toe over. Greg looked behind him, seeing both me and Tisiah, and then smiled as he walked over to us with his friends.


    ¡°Hi guys,¡± Greg said as he came over to us.


    ¡°Hey Greg,¡± I said with a smile. ¡°So you wanted to tell me a surprise?¡±


    Greg nodded as he threw back his head slightly as his group of friends began to walk away, but then stopped and looked at Tisiah as he motioned for me to stay there. ¡°This is a surprise for Connor, not you,¡± he said with a sigh.


    ¡°Yeah right,¡± Tisiah said with a grin and wink.


    ¡°Anyway, some anonymous tip told me something that would prove to be a big danger to EMO in general,¡± he said. ¡°So including the YMPA and everyone?¡± I asked, confused by his statement.


    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± he said with a nod as he looked over at Tisiah. ¡°Well, now that you know, you might want to tell Connor what it is.¡±


    ¡°But you¡¯re going to tell him right?¡± Tisiah asked.


    ¡°No I just said you-¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not ready to tell him,¡± Greg said, as if I wasn¡¯t listening to their whole conversation, but I was paying attention because I really wanted to know what this was all about.


    ¡°That¡¯s why I was talking to you,¡± Greg added. ¡°Now, you have the right to refuse it or ept it.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m refusing!¡± Tisiah returned, as if he didn¡¯t have to ask.


    ¡°And now you know,¡± Greg said with a sigh, then he nodded towards me as if asking if I was ready to hear this. ¡°Well, here it is, Connor,¡± Greg said with a serious expression on his face. ¡°You know that I can¡¯t reveal this information unless you agree.¡±


    ¡°But why?¡± I asked with a gasp. ¡°You know I won¡¯t tell anyone.¡±


    ¡°You know I can¡¯t say anything,¡± Greg said with a sigh as he looked back at Tisiah with an apologetic look on his face. ¡°Sorry.¡±


    ¡°I guess that means that we¡¯re going to have to wait until tomorrow, huh?¡± Tisiah said with a sigh, and he looked at me.


    ¡°I guess,¡± I said with a frown, but then suddenly I realized that this could be a good thing-or a bad thing-depending on how you looked at it.


    ¡°Well, if it¡¯s good news then I guess it¡¯s good,¡± Tisiah said with a grin, as he leaned back in his seat with his arms behind him. ¡°But if it¡¯s bad news then we¡¯ll be stuck waiting for days.¡±


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not like there¡¯s anything else going on,¡± I said with augh, trying to rx my tense muscles.


    ¡°True,¡± Tisiah said with a smile, ¡°but we could always go out tonight?¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I asked with a gasp, as my eyes widened in shock. ¡°But the-¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, we can do that. There¡¯s a diner down the street and we can tell Connor then. How about that?¡± Greg said, as we looked at each other. I nodded. ¡°Fine, but this better not be some sort of trick.¡±

 Chapter 185

    185 Talking with Nikki


    It¡¯s been a month since ourst mission dealing with Maddie Cone. I do have to say; she was a crazy one-not gonna lie. But something has caught my eyes and grabbed me in thought. The surprise that Greg was supposedly trying to tell me, and allegedly it¡¯s a secret. I¡¯m gonna be honest with you, I have not the foggiest idea of what it could be. I¡¯m telling you-no clue at all.


    Was someone hurt?


    Am I in danger?


    To be honest, in every way I¡¯m always in danger-like people hunted me two times in a row. I need to start putting on a mask or something like that, because soon enough everyone¡¯s gonna be hunting me.


    It was scary getting hunted by the FBI and TSA, and then the BMO. Thank goodness those were in the past but I assure you, this mission-I¡¯m gonna get hunted somehow, I bet you.


    I wonder what our next mission was gonna be, being the fact that it¡¯s been a month. You might be like-oh, it¡¯s a month, so you have plenty of time to rest. Imagine you went on a dangerous mission: bombs flying, people chasing after you, fighting people, car chases, running chases, ne chases, boat chases-in fact, I¡¯m pretty sure swimming chases as well.


    And the viin was caught-or died being that happened to me since my two missions-and you now have a rest. Now you know how fast time flies, and now boom it¡¯s the next month. You¡¯re thinking-here we go again.


    But let¡¯s say it spared you, and you had another month.


    Now you got way too used to the way you usually expected life to be, and now there is a mission. You feel tired, and you would expect yourself to be energized! Either way, I shouldn¡¯t be rambling about useless things.


    .....


    Created with Sketch.


    I was at the YMPA, taking a deep breath of air, as the fresh air blew against my face. I had a deep exhale of air as I breathed in again and closed my eyes, feeling myself getting rxed, and my muscles rxing.


    I had been doing this every morning since the day that our mission dealing with Maddie Cone ended up going-crazily. And it really helped sometimes, but other times it was just irritating because it didn¡¯t take long to feel tired again.


    I sighed as I felt my eyelids growing heavy. As my breathing slowed down as my head started to be heavier and heavier. I walked inside as I looked up, seeing the beautiful sight of the ce. The golden stairs, the marbled floor, and the pirs all made the ce feel grand. The smell ofvender filled my nose as I took another deep breath.


    Then my head started to swim a little more as my eyes shut and my body began to grow heavy. Yeah, the tiredness was already kicking in. But then I heard a little squeal that came from the side.


    Nikki.


    She had her arms behind her back as she was walking away from me. She had this look on her face that made her look like a puppy. But her legs were still wobbling as she walked around.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re doing this,¡± she said with a giggle.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡± I asked as my eyes opened.


    Nikki smiled as she turned around and looked up at me. ¡°You¡¯re not even saying hello.¡±


    ¡°Oh, hey Nikki,¡± I chuckled as she went in for a hug, but I stepped away from her, not wanting her to ruin her hair by grabbing my shoulders. She did give me a little kiss on the cheek, though. ¡°Sorry I¡¯mte,¡± I said as I pulled out my wand from the inside pocket of my coat and ced it in the inside of my belt.


    ¡°So, how¡¯s Tisiah?¡± I asked.


    She nodded and chuckled as she gave a little elbow. ¡°How about you?¡± she asked, giggling slightly as she looked at me with a serious face. ¡°You¡¯re not getting any prettier, are you?¡± I gave her a cross look, but sheughed instead, then she ced her hands behind her back.


    Nikki shrugged as she walked around me. ¡°I¡¯ve been helping out here for a while now,¡± she said as she leaned back with her arms crossed over her chest. ¡°Helping out where?¡± I asked. ¡°Are you a part of something?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I actually am,¡± she said, smiling as she leaned forward again.


    ¡°Well, what¡¯s your role?¡± I asked with augh as I leaned back and took a step forward to catch my bnce.


    Nikki nodded as she walked closer to me. ¡°I¡¯m one of the clubs, theater perhaps,¡± she said. I looked at her with squinted eyes. ¡°Theater...?¡± I asked with a furrowed brow. ¡°Why do you have to do theater?¡±


    Nikki looked back at me with a serious expression. ¡°It¡¯s just something to do to pass the time.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guess,¡± I said. Nikki¡¯s eyes went down as if it embarrassed her of something, as she sighed. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± I asked. Nikki shook her head as she smiled. ¡°Well, might be bad for you-but remember Masaru?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said. Nikki stayed quiet-enough for me to know what happened. ¡°Well, I hope September is happy with him,¡± I said with a sigh. Nikki shrugged. ¡°Well, you at least have me.¡±


    She looked at me with soft and gazing eyes, and I couldn¡¯t help but smile, and give her a soft smile in return. Nikki leaned forward and kissed me on the cheek again. ¡°I guess I do,¡± I said with a chuckle, as she gave me another kiss on the cheek before turning around and walking away.


    ¡°Nikki,¡± I said as I ran to catch up to her and put my hands on her shoulders, and turned her around. ¡°Do you happen to have any idea where Tisiah is?¡± I asked with a frown, as she turned around and looked up at me with a serious expression.


    Nikki looked down and crossed her arms over her chest. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± she said as she looked down. ¡°He¡¯s not answering my calls.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± I muttered. ¡°He might be training or something.¡±


    She shrugged as she began to walk away. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Maybe you¡¯re right.¡± I sighed as I looked around the ce.


    I was hoping to find Tisiah here, but now it seemed like I would have to wait until he got back. Maybe he was in the office-but I wouldn¡¯t know that either because I didn¡¯t know where he was. I took a deep breath before choosing to walk into the training center, not knowing if I would find Tisiah inside or not.


    I walked through the door and saw the usual people walking around and training. The training center had white halls and a gray carpet, with a few training mats in the middle of the room, as well as a few tables and chairs. It was very lively in here, no doubt about it, with lots of people running around, swinging swords, and doing various exercises.


    Then I saw Tisiah standing in the corner, facing away from me with a scowl on his face and a wand in his hands. ¡°Hey, Tisiah!¡± I shouted, as he looked at me, but he didn¡¯t turn around or say anything.


    I sighed and walked towards him slowly until he finally turned around. He didn¡¯t seem very happy as he crossed his arms over his chest and sighed. ¡°So, let me guess, Greg¡¯s surprise?¡± he said, and although I wasn¡¯t thinking that, it made me feel better for a moment.


    ¡°Yeah. What¡¯s up?¡± I asked, as I took a deep breath, trying to look calm. But I was a bit nervous seeing Tisiah in such an angry mood.


    ¡°Nothing, it¡¯s just hard not to tell it you,¡± he said, dancing with his wand through his fingers, and then stopped in midair.


    ¡°You¡¯re making it hard not to tell me,¡± I said with a smallugh as I crossed my arms over my chest. ¡°What did he say to you?¡±

 Chapter 186

    186 The Surprise


    Tisiah shook his head as he continued to fidget with his wand, as if he was getting impatient. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter what he said,¡± he said as he raised his wand slightly as if he was pointing it at me. Then he lowered it back down as he sighed and walked away from me with a deep sigh of his own.


    ¡°I think it does, being that it¡¯s a surprise,¡± I said, but he rattled his head. ¡°Just be patient, would you? Just make it easy for me. You¡¯ll know after we¡¯re here, okay? Trust me.¡±


    ¡°Does it have to do anything with anything personal?¡± I asked, but Tisiah said absolutely nothing, only continuing to walk away from me.


    ¡°Well?¡± I said with a furrowed brow. ¡°Tisiah?¡± He still said nothing as he walked away from me. ¡°Tisiah!¡± I called out as he turned around with a sigh on his face.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± he said, looking at me with a sad face. ¡°It¡¯s just that I don¡¯t like surprises.¡±


    ¡°Well then, stop acting so surprised,¡± I said with a furrowed brow as he chuckled and walked away from me again with his hands in his pockets. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± I asked as he stopped in front of the training mats and crossed his arms over his chest with a deep sigh.


    ¡°Training,¡± he said simply as he looked up at me with an angry look on his face.


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you in the office?¡± I asked as I sighed and walked over to him, leaning against the wall and crossing my arms over my chest as well.


    Tisiah gave me an angry look. ¡°What is the point of me being in there? We¡¯re not supposed to talk to each other unless we¡¯re alone,¡± he said as he put his wand inside his utility belt and turned his head away from me. ¡°I thought that was just when we were talking about the surprise,¡± I said.


    .....


    ¡°Funny thing you say. We are talking about the surprise,¡± Tisiah hissed, and he wasn¡¯t wrong. ¡°What did Greg say?¡± I asked. Tisiah shrugged his shoulders before giving me a look of annoyance. ¡°We¡¯re supposed to be together all the time until we know what Greg said,¡± he said before turning around and walking away from me with his arms crossed over his chest.


    ¡°Well, if you need anything, you know where to find me,¡± I said with a shrug of my shoulders before walking away from him.


    ¡°Where would that be?¡± he asked me.


    ¡°My room, obviously,¡± I said with a bit of a rumble in my voice, which caused Tisiah to look back at me with a frown on his face.


    ¡°Oh, really?¡± he said with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Why would youe here if it was your room?¡±


    ¡°I want to make sure you¡¯re okay,¡± I said with a soft smile on my face. He gave me another angry look before turning around and walking away from me again.


    ¡°You just wanted toe here and make sure I¡¯m okay?¡± he asked. I nodded as I walked out of the door with a big sigh. I don¡¯t know what it is, and to be honest-I¡¯m not sure I wanna find out, but it seems like Tisiah really wants to avoid talking to me about this whole situation.


    I sighed as I walked down the hall and opened the door to my room. It was empty, so I sat down on my bed and put my hands behind my head and sighed loudly.


    Created with Sketch.


    Soon enough, time went and Mr. Drails portaged me back to my home, but I needed to get to the diner first. There I can actually see what the surprise is, and get some answers for myself. I walked down the hallway towards the diner, when suddenly a loud voice came from the end of the hall, calling my name.


    The diner was bright and white in this way: white walls, white ceiling, and white carpet. There was also a big window overlooking the main street, which was always filled with people who were just waiting for someone to eat at their diner. The chairs were red and a little old-fashioned, and there were booths and tables as well.


    I sighed before turning around and walking towards it. There was Tisiah, walking towards me with his arms folded across his chest. ¡°Hey, Tisiah,¡± I said with a smile as I walked towards him and gave him a hug, patting his back lightly before stepping back and looking up at him with a smile on my face.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Greg?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Right here,¡± I heard as Greg exited from where it seemed to be the bathroom, with his face full of smiles as he walked towards us with his hands in his pockets.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s sit down,¡± Greg said with a big grin as he sat down.


    I took a seat, taking a deep breath as I looked around. ¡°Remember when we were back in Russia? That wonderful time,¡± Greg said with a sigh. I nodded, unsure of where he was trying to get here. He took a sip of his water and then put it down.


    ¡°And this one guy-that one guy that always had his interest in you.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not talking about...¡±


    My face widened in shock as memories began to shoot through my mind, and just remembering him, I was almost happy, but also dreadful to hear. I sighed. ¡°What does he want?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Based on his studies, he¡¯s found that there was a certain uprising that was beginning to make its way towards the top. We may be in conflict with all of MSTO-but this certain war could determine the tide,¡± Greg said. I nodded, feeling a bit scared of what was toe. What uprising?


    What sort of war ising?


    What was about to happen?


    ¡°The first starting with a man named Dr. Mord, the man whose sister you killed apparently,¡± Greg added. I looked at him with a furrowed brow. ¡°What sister?¡± I asked, scratching my head. ¡°What-what sister did I-¡±


    ¡°Maddie Cone,¡± Greg revealed, and I took a deep breath. ¡°He-he was the-he was the-¡±


    ¡°Yes, he was,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Maddie Cone wasn¡¯t her real name but more of a-alias name sort of. It was to separate her ordinary life from her spy life. Her real name was Betty Mord. But that¡¯s not even what we¡¯re focusing on.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, what¡¯s more concerning than that?!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not about what¡¯s more concerning,¡± Tisiah answered. ¡°It¡¯s about how we can stop him before he gets to us, excluding you Greg.¡± Greg shrugged.


    ¡°Anyways, he¡¯s apparently trying to make a virus that would affect the military and perhaps the entire country, so that they would have less force when they try to start their whole grand n,¡± Greg said. ¡°We¡¯ll be working with the FBI-which I¡¯m not sure you exactly have a great rtionship with.¡±


    ¡°I guess,¡± I said, rolling my eyes.


    ¡°But I hope you can use this time to make amends,¡± Tisiah said. I shrugged. ¡°Are we working with the same task force?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we definitely are-being everyone else was too busy,¡± Greg said. I sighed as I took a deep breath.¡±I gotta deal with Agent Cassandra Nelson again,¡± I grumbled, rubbing my temples as I sighed heavily. ¡°This should be fun.¡±


    ¡°Well, the sooner you get started, the sooner it¡¯ll be over with,¡± Tisiah said as he scratched his chin and looked at Greg. ¡°We¡¯ll tell Mr. Drails,¡± Tisiah said, as he got up. ¡°And hopefully we can stop Dr. Mord before we end up with a pandemic in our hands.¡±


    Greg nodded and agreed with him, so I got up and walked out of the diner as well. ¡°I¡¯ll go ahead and get some work done,¡± I said with a sigh as I walked out into the bright sunlight.


    ¡°Yeah, you finish your homework,¡± Tisiah said, which caused me to look back at him as I smiled at him and shrugged my shoulders. I didn¡¯t have any homework or anything. But what was the MSTO nning? And why did they need an uprising?


    I began to walk home, still thinking about these things, but the questions wouldn¡¯t go away. And I knew that this would be a long time before I¡¯d be able to find an answer to them. But the more I thought about it, the more questions I had.


    Who was leading the uprising? Who, indeed, was Dr. Mord? And what was this virus?


    It was a long time before I got back home, and I walked in and shut the door behind me with a soft sigh, not even bothering to take off my coat. My mom was probably sleeping because Dad was busy speaking on the phone inside his office, so she¡¯d probably be there untilter in the day. I walked up to my room, and my stomach rumbled in hunger, so I walked to my refrigerator and pulled out some leftover food from yesterday¡¯s dinner.


    Ahh yes, the beautiful fragrance of mac n¡¯ cheese.

 Chapter 187

    187 Information


    It was lunch the next day, and most of my day consisted of just my regr sses. Greg¡¯s friends were of a very peculiar type-one minute talking about football and then the next second, chatting about the best fried chicken from KFC or something.


    Clearly, it was gonna be hard to make a full conversation with them, but at least Greg is somewhat of an anchor. One thing about Greg is that he can continue a conversation out of nothing. You could be talking about your favorite color and soon enough, a whole debate would arise in front of your very own eyes.


    If only that was me.


    But right now, this mission to stop Dr. Mord was the only thing that we should be talking about. Mr. Drails was going to be notified about this, and it was only a matter of time before this was a mission.


    As I got my food from the long line, I let them scan my ID and immediately began to search for Greg, and possibly Tisiah, if he was there again. I scanned the area, and enhanced on Tisiah and Greg on the far left of the cafeteria.


    I walked over towards them as I sat down, and with no time to waste-I asked, ¡°So have you told Mr. Drails yet?¡±


    ¡°The FMA are notifying him right now I hope,¡± Greg responded, chewing his food while he continued to eat it.


    I nodded in agreement as I watched the foode down the line. It wasn¡¯t as good as Mom¡¯s food, but it was pretty good for cafeteria food. ¡°So any new information?¡± Tisiah asked Greg. His eyes lit up as he put his chicken down. ¡°Yes, I do,¡± Greg countered, as he reached for a slice of lemonade. ¡°The FBI has decided to send in their special agents to help us on this mission.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good news,¡± I said, taking a sip of the water I was given. ¡°We should have support then.¡±


    .....


    ¡°But here¡¯s the catch, we won¡¯t know who they are until they get here,¡± Greg said. ¡°That means we may have to deal with an entire group of new people who we don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true, but we¡¯ve got Tisiah,¡± I said, nodding at him. ¡°And we got Nikki and September and even Mchi. One question, are you gonna be on scene with us whenever we do stuff?¡±


    Greg shook his head. ¡°I¡¯d be on the radio, because originally this was given to the FMA to solve, but you know how the YMPA likes to butt into things.¡± I shrugged-because he wasn¡¯t wrong, though I wasn¡¯t going to tell him that right now.


    ¡°So what about this Dr. Mord guy? Any information about him?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± Greg said, chewing on a piece of chicken before swallowing it, ¡°ording to what we found out through our sources, Dr. Mord¡¯s real name is Jacob Mord. And he¡¯s made a sort of mission codename.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s it called?¡± I asked him, and Greg cleared this throat, putting down his lemonade for a second. ¡°What¡¯s it called?¡± Greg asked me, looking down at me with a frown on his face.


    ¡°Uh yeah,¡± Tisiah said, as he looked down at me with a smile. ¡°What¡¯s the name of Dr. Mord¡¯s mission?


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s called ¡®the Storm,''¡± Greg answered. ¡°That¡¯s not even the name of Dr. Mord¡¯s n,¡± Greg continued to say. ¡°His n is called ¡®the Gathering Storm.''¡±


    ¡°What is this?¡± I asked, scratching my head and feeling my head hurt slightly. ¡°Why would he call his n ¡®the Gathering Storm?''¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Greg answered, shaking his head. ¡°That¡¯s what I was hoping to get an answer from the FBI.¡± I sighed heavily and took a sip of the lemonade I was given. ¡°You¡¯ve talked to the FBI?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Well, the CEO of FMA did,¡± he said, shaking his head. ¡°Apparently, they¡¯re working with the FBI to try to stop him.¡±


    ¡°Oh well that¡¯s great,¡± I said as I bit my lip. ¡°It seems like they¡¯re working together.¡±


    ¡°And it¡¯s only a matter of time before we start working together,¡± Tisiah said, talking about the YMPA, the FBI, and Agent Nelson again. He sighed as he shook his head. ¡°And I¡¯m just happy that you¡¯re on our side of things,¡± Tisiah said as he looked at me. ¡°I mean, that you¡¯re working with us on this mission.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, well, it¡¯s only a matter of time,¡± I said as I shrugged my shoulders. ¡°And when I do start working with you, I¡¯m going to have to deal with Agent Nelson.¡±


    ***


    ¡°Dr. Jacob Mord has bases all over the ce, from what we assume from Colombia all the way to Britain, being that¡¯s where his sister used to work at,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Wait, we¡¯re dealing with the BMO again?¡± Mchi asked.


    ¡°Of course not,¡± Mr. Drails chuckled. ¡°That¡¯d be absurd. But we sort of are, though. Dr. Mord is like his own team, with his own guards and many things, but the BMO will assist him in any way they can.¡±


    ¡°So, how do we find any information on ¡®The Gathering Storm¡¯?¡± September asked. ¡°There are document files that are held currently in one base that we know of,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°We need you guys to steal the folders. Now, a lot of our spies are on many missions, so the FBI should assist you. I got Marcello and his men to find the other bases for us in their own ways.¡±


    ¡°Anything we need to watch out for?¡± September asked.


    ¡°For a fact,¡± Mr. Drails said as he pulled up what seemed to be an overview of the base. The base was massive, with its ownb in the center and three buildings around it. There were red and white dots that infested in entire map, with arrows leading from one dot to another.


    ¡°Now see those red dots?¡± Mr. Drails asked. ¡°Those are the guards, and the white dots are the scientists. If you look closely, you can see the arrows are moving from the red dots to the white ones, and vice versa.¡±


    ¡°What does it mean?¡± Tisiah asked.


    ¡°It means they¡¯remunicating with each other,¡± Mr. Drails said. There are two big vans that soldiers stand by, so you¡¯ll need to wear a disguise. They¡¯ll ask for your ID¡¯s but Nikki should easily make your IDs for you in a second, perhaps.¡± Then he moved towards the middle of the base, where there was an older man wearing sses and ab coat. He had dark hair that was graying slightly, and he had a small beard.


    He also had a thick ring with a skull on it on his finger, as well as a ne with a cross on it. ¡°Is that Dr. Mord?¡± I asked and Mr. Drails nodded, then gestured at the man. ¡°That¡¯s him.¡±


    ¡°Now there are a few other scientists who are important in this mission,¡± Mr. Drails said, and he pulled up a few more pictures on theputer. ¡°The folders should hold each of their names inside of them, and we¡¯re not sure what their names are. But from what I can tell, two of them are his partners, while the other one mostly checks if it¡¯s ready to be mobilized or not.¡±


    He went back to the overhead view of the base. ¡°In the thick of the base, there are guards at every hall,¡± he said as he waved his finger around the ce, pointing towards various spots. ¡°In between those halls and thatb, there is a room with no windows or doors, and a single light inside of it.¡± He pointed towards that spot with his finger as I looked up at the picture.


    ¡°Now that room isn¡¯t important, it¡¯s the room adjacent to it,¡± he said. ¡°That¡¯s a storage with the files with it.¡±


    ¡°So when do we start this?¡± September asked, and Mr. Drails responded, ¡°Tomorrow. First, you¡¯ll meet with the captain-Agent Nelson before you guys make your way towards hisb.¡±


    ¡°Where is hisb in the United States?¡± I asked. ¡°Which state?¡±


    Mr. Drails looked at me and cleared this throat before he delivered, ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know that yet.¡±


    ¡°So how will we find out where hisb is?¡±


    Mr. Drails tapped his chin as he thought about something. ¡°You guys are gonna have to find it yourselves. The FBI is very good when finding their locations. Last known location of the files was in Las Vegas during movement, but who knows where it¡¯s stationed now.¡± I sighed as I rubbed my chin, and Mr. Drails nodded. ¡°You¡¯ve got a long journey ahead of you, so make sure you stay alive.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± September asked, and Mr. Drails gestured towards the map of the base.


    ¡°Well, look here,¡± he said as he pointed to several locations of the base. ¡°They have all kinds of weapons that can kill you instantly if you¡¯re not careful.¡± He pointed at one of them as he said this, but I didn¡¯t notice that this particr weapon was a methrower that had its nozzle facing outwards. ¡°If you¡¯re not careful,¡± Mr. Drails said as he shook his head. ¡°But look here.¡± He pointed at another weapon as he said this, and this one was an M1A1-D SOCOM automatic rifle, and its bay was extended from it, but there was no bullet inside of the chamber. ¡°And here.¡± He pointed at a third weapon, and this time it was a Minigun with two hundred fifty rounds for it, with a drum magazine on it.


    ¡°Oh boy,¡± I muttered.


    ¡°And all the guards will have those weapons on them, so as I said-long journey ahead of you,¡± he said.

 Chapter 188

    188 Meet and Greet


    The next day came and with no time to waste. Right after school I joined the inside of the room-which I still don¡¯t know what it¡¯s called. Mr. Drails looked up at us once he saw us, and he smiled as he said, ¡°Alright everyone! Now it¡¯s time to go over our ns for this mission.¡±


    We sat in a line on top of a few tables and chairs, while Mr. Drails took a seat on top of his chair as well as his desk, so we all had a view of him as he continued. ¡°Now we¡¯ve got two missions.¡± He gestured at September as he continued.


    ¡°The first mission is going to be stealing the folders that contain the information we need to find Dr. Mord¡¯sb.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the second one?¡± I asked and Mr. Drails chuckled, which made me blush.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s ssified for now.¡±


    ¡°Oh, yeah?¡± I asked, and he nodded before he continued, ¡°Alright, now let me tell you what you¡¯re going to do.¡± He pulled up a map on theputer as he said this, which made us all look at the screen at him and Mr. Drails continued to speak. ¡°As we discussed yesterday, you¡¯ll be traveling by yourself towards Las Vegas.¡±


    ¡°I thought that¡¯s where they werest seen,¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°Well, the FBI has just told me that they are still settling in Las Vegas right now. Figures out their base that we just saw on the screen yesterday-was in Las Vegas. But as I said, you¡¯re going to be meeting with the FBI. They have a little base in this location in Las Vegas: 1380 East Washington Boulevard,¡± Mr. Drails said and showed us a map of Las Vegas as he said this. ¡°Their base will be in that location in this area,¡± he continued as we all looked at the map, then turned our heads towards each other to get a better look.


    ¡°Well, doesn¡¯t look too small, I guess,¡± Nikki said.


    .....


    ¡°So this is where Agent Nelson is going to be at?¡± Mchi asked. ¡°She¡¯s probably hates our guts.¡±


    Then he turned towards me. ¡°Especially you.¡±


    I gave him a nasty look-because I already knew that, and there was no point in grinding it in. I get it, but that was in the past now. Who knows, this may turn out to be a good thing.


    ¡°Alright, make sure you have all your weapons. Also, the person who gave us this information should also be at that base right now.¡±


    ¡°Like the one who told us about the whole Dr. Mord thing?¡± Mchi asked and Mr. Drails nodded. ¡°Yes, so make sure you got all your weapons before I get to portal you guys out of here.¡±


    We nodded.


    I quickly got my vest and checked each pocket. Guns: Check. Stun gun: Check. Baton for some reason: Check. Then I checked my utility belt. Sword: Check. More guns, for some reason: check. Wand: Fully charged and-Check.


    ***


    The next thing I knew, I was standing up again, only now I was inside of a building that looked like a warehouse or a garage. I wasn¡¯t sure what it was, but Mchi had his arm over me as we entered inside of a room.


    The ce looked pack.


    There wereputers that were on the far left side, and a few that were facing against the screen. There were two levels, and the top seemed to be the captain¡¯s office. We came out of what seemed to be a yellow elevator. The floor wasn¡¯t tile, but it definitely wasn¡¯t carpet. It was like this ckish-gray stone that seemed to spread all throughout the ground with these white streaks that looked like lightning.


    I took a deep breath as I finally returned to Earth, then I shook my head as I rubbed my eyes. ¡°What happened?¡± I asked as I shook my head.


    ¡°You passed out.¡±


    I turned towards him and grabbed his arm as I felt my eyes close and my head fall forward. ¡°Oh,¡± I groaned out, then my vision returned as I saw him rubbing the side of my face with his hand as he asked me, ¡°What happened?¡±


    I looked into his eyes and saw that he was scared-not just of me passing out; but he was also scared of something else, so I gently ced my hands on his cheeks and I turned his head towards me.


    He smiled at me as I said, ¡°I don¡¯t know what happened.¡±


    ¡°We just entered inside of the FBI base,¡± he said. ¡°You passed out for like two minutes.¡±


    But as he was talking, I heard the loud boom of a woman¡¯s voice. A woman with straight ck hair with a gray streak in it; she was wearing a navy blue suit, with an earpiece in her right ear and a gun in her holster on her left side. She looked a lot different than thest time I saw her. She came into the room and stopped dead in her tracks when she saw us standing there with Mchi, still holding me up with his arm around my shoulders.


    ¡°Oh yes, I definitely remember you guys,¡± she said with a haste in her voice, then she pointed at me and said, ¡°Especially you. You know what you¡¯ve done. I will put you to justice someday.¡± Then she pointed at herself and said, ¡°I¡¯m Agent Nelson.¡±


    ¡°Um,¡± Mchi said as he pointed at me. ¡°We kind of know that.¡±


    Agent Nelson shook her head. ¡°Let¡¯s just pretend it¡¯s a new start, and we just met each other. So let¡¯s try again, shall we? My name is Agent Nelson.¡±


    ¡°Nellie?¡± I asked.


    ¡°No,¡± she replied, and then she nodded towards me and said, ¡°My name is Agent Nelson.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± I chuckled. ¡°My bad. I¡¯m Connor Drails, this is Mchi, this is September, Nikki, and Tisiah.¡± I pointed to all of them as I said the conga line of names. ¡°Ahh,¡± she said. ¡°So let me guess, Dr. Mord?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we¡¯re here so we can get ready to steal the files,¡± September said, which made me turn my head towards her.


    ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Agent Nelson said with an excited tone in her voice as she said this and her eyes grew wide. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re here for that. But I¡¯m so sorry I didn¡¯t get the message to you guys sooner.¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± I said with a shrug as I gestured at myself as I said this, ¡°I guess you could say it was a kind of sudden.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, so who¡¯s like the leader between you guys?¡± Agent Nelson asked. September rose her hand, but Mchi pushed it down as he said, ¡°I am.¡±


    She nodded in agreement as she said, ¡°Okay, good, but that means you¡¯ll need to stay back and guard the other students while we steal the files.¡± Mchi chuckled, ¡°We don¡¯t really have a leader, actually.¡±


    Agent Nelson seemed confused for ten seconds, but then she returned as she leaned back towards an agent. ¡°Could you please get their disguises for me?¡± she asked him, and he nodded and left the room. ¡°So why don¡¯t you tell me a little about yourself and why you want to steal those files? Do you have a n or something?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± Mchi said. ¡°We think we can find some information on where it could be located, or who¡¯s involved in it.¡± Agent Nelson nodded. ¡°Hmm, that makes sense,¡± she muttered. ¡°Well, I¡¯m pretty sure you guys know how much guards are in the front and back and all the fun stuff. Now, I¡¯m here to tell you how you guys are going to get the files. You¡¯ll follow my exact orders.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir-ma¡¯am,¡± Mchi muttered. Nikki looked at him, almost grinning.


    ¡°Well, first we need to get into this building-¡± She started saying as she held up her hands as she looked around the room and said, ¡°This is not exactly a warehouse or a garage-so let¡¯s just pretend it is.¡± She looked back at us all and continued talking. ¡°So we have to get into this building using whatever means necessary and then once we¡¯re in there, you¡¯ll see the lobby. There¡¯s the left and then the right. Go to the right, because the left leads to the bathroom and then refreshments.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I mumbled sensibly, but she red at me as she said this and then she continued speaking. ¡°Now, after that, you¡¯ll see a set of stairs. Take those stairs up until you see the second floor. You¡¯ll see two doors-one on each side of the hallway. Now there are three guards, and they will ask for your ID. Now I hear someone already took care of that, but if they ever find out you don¡¯t work for them, neutralize them in the most silent way you can.¡±


    ¡°After that?¡± September asked, which made everyone except me chuckle.


    ¡°You¡¯ll see a door,¡± Agent Nelson said as she pointed at it. ¡°You¡¯ll be able to see that there¡¯s a keypad beside that door, and that¡¯s where you¡¯ll enter the code: 3-2-1-2.¡±

 Chapter 189

    189 Heading Out


    ¡°Alright,¡± Mchi muttered.


    ¡°You¡¯ll then be able to see a set of stairs, and they¡¯ll tell you to go up those stairs. You¡¯ll see two doors on the way up-one on either side of the hallway. Those doors will be unlocked. And then once you get to the top floor, you¡¯ll see another door that you can open.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I muttered out with a sigh as I was now feeling nervous about the whole situation.


    ¡°That leads to a series of elevators,¡± she said, as she pointed to the picture, which had all four of us in it, going up a few floors before she pointed towards the picture and said, ¡°You¡¯ll see four elevators.¡± Then she pointed at another picture that was slightly bigger than thest one she pointed towards and said, ¡°You¡¯ll see an elevator in each corner.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± September said with a shrug as she rubbed her arm nervously.


    Agent Nelson sighed as she said, ¡°But you won¡¯t be able to take the elevator. You have to take the stairs again and then you¡¯ll see another door. After that, you need to go the hall and then to the left. Let me warn you, guards are all over these hallways, so you need to make sure you are not questionable.¡±


    Mchi nodded, and he looked at everyone. ¡°Alright, I think it¡¯s time that we start,¡± he said, looking at us. Agent Nelson nodded as well as he gestured with her fingers, causing agents to rush around the room to prepare.


    ¡°Follow me,¡± she said to us as she walked past us. We began to follow behind her as she went inside of the elevator. ¡°You guys have all your weapons?¡± she asked, and we all nodded as the door closed. It began to go up, making this humming noise that just disturbed the awkwardness that was circting inside of the elevator.


    ¡°So, how¡¯s your time been in the task force been?¡± Tisiah asked, trying to make somewhat of a conversation, but Agent Nelson only gave her a shrug as she looked at him and said, ¡°You know how it is. I¡¯m just doing my job.¡± Then she looked at the others as she said, ¡°Oh, by the way, we¡¯re on the top floor now.¡±


    .....


    Then the doors opened, as a ck helicopter showed itself with a glistening paint that seemed to reflect brightly off the evening sun-somehow. ¡°Ooh,¡± Mchi muttered in anticipation as Agent Nelson chuckled. A pilot was already in there, probably checking a bunch of things that I don¡¯t even know about.


    We continued to walk onto the roof of the building, and the doors automatically revealed themselves open to us to enter in.


    ¡°Okay, this is kind of cool,¡± Mchi said. ¡°I haven¡¯t been in a helicopter since-hey where is he anyway?¡± Right then, I saw the elevator doors open and none other than Fulton Rocke wasing out of that helicopter. Fulton looked strong and firm, as if the few months were really just blessings to him.


    He set his eyes on me, and a big smile came across his face.


    ¡°Connor!¡± he shouted in jubtion. ¡°It¡¯s been a while!¡±


    ¡°Fulton,¡± I said back with a smile of my own as I walked forward to meet him in the middle of the roof. ¡°How are you doing?¡± he said with a smile as he looked up and down at me, but then he noticed Nikki and September behind me. ¡°Hey, it¡¯s you guys again!¡± he once again greeted, this time with his arms open out as if he was weing everyone on board.


    ¡°Uh yeah,¡± I mumbled. ¡°This is September, Nikki, Mchi, and Tisiah. You remember them, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course I did,¡± he said. ¡°Wow, I thought I¡¯d never see you guys.¡±


    ¡°Well, I guess that¡¯s just life for you, I guess,¡± I said, and Fulton shrugged. ¡°Alright let¡¯s get inside shall we?¡± I nodded as we began to enter into the helicopter, with Agent Nelson, who didn¡¯t seem to be very ttered with Fulton¡¯s arrival.


    ¡°You¡¯rete,¡± she muttered, but Fulton simply shrugged as he said this, ¡°Yeah, well, there were some things that needed doing before we could go on a mission.¡± Then he smiled at us again as he said, ¡°But we¡¯re here now.¡±


    He got inside of the helicopter before it closed, and soon enough it began to lift into the air, causing my hair to be blown by the wind. We were finally going on a mission, and it felt amazing to have something going on in our lives.


    We all took our seats as the helicopter flew through the skies of the city. This was going to be an interesting day, for sure. We had four hours before we arrived at our destination, and I looked at the map as we were flying in the skies of the city.


    The city was littered with trees and bushes. There were no skyscrapers here in this ce. Everything was made of brick and stone and seemed to be old and rundown. But as the helicopter flew over a bridge, I noticed a structure that looked like an airport.


    ***


    A few hours passed before the sight of the base began to glint in our eyes. ¡°I think we¡¯re heading there,¡± Fulton said, and then he took out a smallpass from his pocket as he pointed it at us all and said, ¡°We should be able to see that in about five minutes.¡±


    I gulped as I looked at the map that I was holding.


    About four of our own helicopters were behind us, so I looked back at them and wondered what they would do when they caught up to us. ¡°Alright, agents,¡± Agent Nelson said inside of her radio once she took it out, ¡°It¡¯s time. Watch our spies, they¡¯re important.¡± She cut off the radio, her eyes immediately settling to mine, but then she suddenly looked away from me to look at someone else, but it didn¡¯t make any sense to me why she¡¯d do that.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I asked as I looked around.


    ¡°We arriving to Dr. Mord¡¯s base. Try not to die alright?¡± she said, taking out her phone, and she started taking pictures of everyone inside of the helicopter. ¡°Everyone, try to look calm and happy. Just act natural and don¡¯t make any weird faces or anything. We¡¯re going on a mission together.¡±


    ¡°Is this for some-¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t ask.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± Nikki mumbled, and we all stayed quiet as we continued to look around the helicopter as it made its way to our destination. As we came closer, we saw a bunch of buildings with various colors on them-green and blue ones, mostly. It was veryrge like a warehouse, with probably the width of this whole city dedicated to one thing alone-to store a lot of things here.


    As we reached thending zone of this massive warehouse building that seemed to be almost as tall as a skyscraper, we saw that there were more helicopters and a couple of ck vans parked along the side of the warehouse. We also noticed several people in ck suits and ties running towards us as wended our helicopter in the middle of the lot where all the other helicopters werending.


    We all got out of our helicopters, but the agents began to gather themselves in formation as they started walking towards the helicopter we arrived in. Once they did this they all began to look at us and give us a smile. ¡°Okay,¡± Fulton whispered as he walked next to me, ¡°let¡¯s just go along with whatever they say and everything should be good.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said. ¡°What are you gonna be doing?¡±


    ¡°What I do best,¡± Fulton said with a smile. ¡°Cameras.¡± I nodded, not quite understanding what he meant by that until he pointed to his eyes. Then I realized that he meant that he would be using his camera vision in order to scout out our surroundings. He took out his camera from his jacket pocket and began to use his eyes in order to capture all of our surroundings.


    ¡°See?¡± he said, pointing towards something out of our line of sight as he said, ¡°I¡¯m watching everything.¡± Then he put his camera back into his pocket as he said, ¡°Alright everyone, let¡¯s go in.¡±

 Chapter 190

    190 Finding the Lab


    Mchi and September, me, Tisiah and Nikki began to make our way towards therge base, while Fulton went ahead and used his cameras in order to get a better understanding of our surroundings. The sky and grass were just so dim and rxing: the grass swayed in the wind, while the sky was painted with streaks of pink and white as it began to glow brightly in the night.


    Then I saw a group of people in ck suits and ties begin to run towards us.


    ¡°Your ID please,¡± one of them asked.


    I looked at Nikki as she gave them five ID¡¯s, but she seemed to be a little nervous about it all, as she was ncing at her surroundings in order to make sure that nobody was suspicious. They checked them, and then gave them back to her with a smile. Then I noticed that there was a bunch of them guarding the front doors.


    ¡°They¡¯re checking our identification,¡± Nikki said as we walked up to her and asked her about it.


    Soon enough, we made it towards the front door¨Cand now the mission was starting to begin. ¡°See anything Fulton?¡± I asked inside my earpiece, and I heard his voice echo out of my earpiece as he said, ¡°No, nothing.¡±


    Then we entered through the front door and we were greeted by a bunch of agents who seemed to be walking around everywhere as they were giving each other high fives and stuff. The ce was white all over the ce: it was an all-white building that had a white tiled floor that went from the front doors to the back doors and then ended at the ceiling that went up and up until it was almost impossible for us to reach that ceiling.


    ¡°Okay, to the right,¡± September ordered, pointing that way, ¡°That way leads us to Dr. Mord¡¯sb.¡±


    Then I looked at Tisiah as he nodded at me. ¡°Alright,¡± he said in response as he began to lead us in that direction, while I watched the other agents who seemed to be checking out their surroundings while they talked amongst themselves.


    .....


    Once we reached the end of the white hallway we came across a room of stairs, with three guards that were by the corner. They were tall and meaty, their muscles popping from their armor, with two pistols holstered on their sides and one knife in their hands.


    They gave us a smile as we approached them as if they wanted us to do something, but we continued to keep our distance from them. Then one of them walked towards us, and he brought out his hand wide. ¡°ID,¡± he said, and I looked at Nikki once again, giving them our ID¡¯s.


    The guard checked them one by one, very¨Cvery carefully, but I didn¡¯t feel ufortable around them. ¡°Thank you,¡± he said once he handed them back to us. ¡°Please make your way up there,¡± he said as he pointed to the stairs that led up to a door with a padlock on it. There was a keypad by the side, and all we needed to was...oh, no.


    ¡°Uhh, anyone remember the password?¡± I asked, looking at everyone, but nobody replied back.


    ¡°What about the number code?¡± Nikki asked me, but she was just as confused as I was.


    ¡°I have no clue,¡± September replied in my earpiece.


    ¡°Uhh...¡± I said, ¡°I think it¡¯s something about the number...¡± Then I turned around in search for a hint of some kind. But I couldn¡¯t find anything in this ce: it was just all white everywhere, and there was nothing that would give me an idea of what we could do with the padlock.


    ¡°Wasn¡¯t it like 3-2-3-something like that?¡± Tisiah asked, scratching his head, and I turned around to face him in order to hear what he had to say. ¡°Yeah,¡± he said, ¡°It was like that.¡±


    I looked at Nikki who was biting her nails in frustration. ¡°Ummm,¡± she muttered as she looked at the keypad, trying to see a way to unlock the padlock. Swaet rolled down my face in concern, for this seemed like a very difficult mission to do.


    Then I turned to Tisiah as I said, ¡°Okay so what is 3-2-3-something?¡±


    Tisiah stared at me and nodded slightly for a second before he replied, ¡°It was something like that,¡± and then he pointed up to the keypad on the door. ¡°You don¡¯t remember?¡± he asked, but I shook my head as I replied, ¡°No.¡±


    I nced at Nikki as I said, ¡°So what¡¯s the number?¡±


    Nikki shook her head as well as she replied, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    As we were staring at the keypad, there was suddenly a click from behind us and then the door slowly began to open as we all stood there with our mouths wide open. ¡°Uh, who opened it?¡± I asked inside of the earpiece as I heard Agent Nelson. ¡°One of guys were able to hack inside of the door and open it. Now go up the stairs that are in front of you.¡±


    ¡°Yes ma¡¯am,¡± September said, turning around and leading us up the stairs. Then I saw another set of stairs that led to the top floor of the building.


    ¡°The top floor,¡± I said in order to keep track of our path as we climbed the steps, and then I looked around in order to see where I could see the ceiling of this ce. I noticed that there was something above the door that we came through before as it seemed that it was a control panel, with a bunch of buttons on it. ¡°Is this for opening doors?¡±


    Nikki shrugged her shoulders in response as she replied, ¡°I have no idea.¡±


    As we began to walk through the door we saw that there was a red light shing beside the door as it was blinking. ¡°Uhhhh, uhhh,¡± Mchi muttered, quickly closing it, ¡°This ce is rmed.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Tisiah replied. ¡°We have a code that we can use.¡± Then he pointed at the number pad on the door and gave it a push. ¡°What was the code?¡± I asked him, but he shook his head and replied, ¡°I don¡¯t remember.¡± Then he gave another push on the keypad and it clicked, making the red light stop shing and then it just went dark. ¡°Okay,¡± he said as he turned around and said, ¡°Let¡¯s just go down the hall. Maybe they changed to whole elevator thing.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± I agreed as we began to move through the halls, and it was all white all over again with just a little bit of red lights here and there on the ceiling that were illuminating the room. It was like an empty hallway with nothing in it except for those little red lights and all of these doors leading to different rooms.


    ¡°Okay she said ahead of the hall, and to the left right?¡± September asked, and Nikki nodded, and we all moved through this hallway as we kept our eyes on the walls in case there were any cameras that were spying on us or anything. We followed our leader, but soon enough I saw her turn towards one of the doors ahead of us as she put her earpiece back into her ear.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s see if this is it,¡± I said, as I opened the door. Slowly theb began to reveal itself, but no noise echoed from the room as I peered inside, but nothing seemed to be going on here besides for someputers and a desk in the middle of the room. ¡°Well,¡± I said in disappointment as I closed the door again, ¡°I think we¡¯ve found Dr. Mord¡¯sb.¡±


    ¡°But where¡¯s the folders?¡± September asked. Then her eyes froze as she looked at something that seemed to be on one of those tables. She walked over, picking up a ck tablet that was shining in the light. The screen was clear, with no dirt or little particles resting on top of the screen as it seemed to be clean, and September¡¯s eyes widened in surprise as she read a bunch of information that was disyed on the screen.


    ¡°This is where Dr. Mord keeps his records,¡± she said aloud as she nced at us. ¡°These are the folders!¡±


    ¡°But what is the password?¡± Mchi asked. ¡°Unless we can hack it and get us some information.¡±


    ¡°Exactly,¡± I heard Agent Nelson say in our earpiece. ¡°September, are you holding the tablet?¡±


    September nodded as she slowly walked towards our direction. ¡°Alright, you should see a green checkmark on the top. Click so we can start gathering information. But it needs to stay until it reaches 100%, so don¡¯t try to break it or let someone have it,¡± Agent Nelson said.


    But as I looked forward, I saw five guards with those rifles that Mr. Drails mentioned about. And they wereing right for us.

 Chapter 191

    191 A Video Call


    Soon enough, we arrived at the FBI base, as it was still nighttime¨Cthe moon was out and it was dark enough to hide in shadows as we walked inside the doors of the base. We passed a few agents who were already asleep or standing in front of their desks before one of them saw us.


    ¡°Okay, Mchi needs medical attention,¡± September said, once wended. Fulton looked at him with worry, but he shook his head as he sighed in relief. Then he told us, ¡°Go down to the second floor¨Cthere¡¯s a waiting room in the corner near the elevator. You can take the elevator down from there.¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said. Fulton smiled, ¡°The least I could do.¡±


    Something inside of mepelled me to just talk to him, see how things are going, so I asked him, ¡°So how is your job treating you?¡±


    ¡°Oh...it¡¯s fine,¡± he replied with a small smile.


    ¡°Really?¡± I asked with a slight raise of my eyebrows. He nodded and chuckled and then sighed, ¡°Well, it has its ups and downs.¡±


    I smiled back at him and said, ¡°Well that¡¯s what I always thought.¡±


    We reached the waiting room in no time and sat down on the chairs together. September went ahead to sit down by the wall and observe the room before she decided to speak up. ¡°Okay,¡± she said, ¡°the folder is on its way to the main server now. They¡¯re just waiting for confirmation that we have received it. Once it¡¯s confirmed¨Cwe¡¯ll get outta here.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯ll be over soon,¡± I said with a nod, but then I turned around to see Tisiah sitting down beside me with his knees together and his hands resting on them.


    .....


    ¡°You okay?¡± September asked him, and Tisiah nodded. ¡°Yeah...it was just really shocking at first.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Nikki replied with a smile.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Tisiah agreed as he nced at me with his brown eyes¨Cthey looked tired and worn out from the shock he must have felt. ¡°Well, good thing we got the folders,¡± I said, and Fulton nodded, ¡°but that wasn¡¯t what I meant. You looked really nervous there for a moment.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± Tisiah said with a blush, ¡°I guess I¡¯m just still in shock.¡±


    Then Agent Nelson came inside of the waiting room, looking as if she didn¡¯t care a single bit. ¡°So, based on the files we see, he is definitely working on the virus. The folder contained names of other scientists, the purpose of the virus and the virus name.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the name called?¡± I asked, getting up and moving closer to Agent Nelson.


    ¡°The name is called the ¡®Cobra Virus¡¯,¡± she answered as she looked at me with a serious expression. ¡°It is a deadly virus that has been developed by a few other people besides him. It can cause mental disorders, and it will slowly kill the host until the bodypletely shuts down.¡±


    ¡°Oh god...¡± I gasped out as I leaned against the wall. ¡°So it¡¯s like a slow killer?¡±


    ¡°Exactly,¡± she said. Fulton took a deep breath in surprise, but then he just looked at me with worry and sighed again. ¡°The Cobra Virus was used in the Middle East to wipe out entire cities with only one person infected with it. It could be used on any city or even just a few hundred people within a city to cause massive damage and death.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I gasped.


    ¡°So,¡± Fulton said, ¡°that means we¡¯re in real danger.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Agent Nelson said with a sigh. ¡°I mean we have no idea where they¡¯re keeping the virus now¨Cor if they¡¯re even keeping it.¡± Nikki stood up. ¡°What do we do next?¡±


    Agent Nelson smiled as she heard the question. ¡°We¡¯ll go through the list of those scientists and find the virus,¡± she said with a confident smile, ¡°we just have to be careful that it doesn¡¯t get out of our control.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Nikki asked with a frown.


    ¡°We have to be cautious about how we approach these guys,¡± Agent Nelson said. ¡°Anything we do could make matters worse.¡± I nodded, but all of a sudden¨Cone of the agents rushed inside of the room. ¡°What?¡± Agent Nelson said as she turned around to the agent, who had blond hair.


    ¡°Dr. Mord is on a video call with us.¡± My face folded into confusion and consternation.


    ¡°Why would he call us now?¡± Tisiah asked in surprise.


    ¡°I have no idea,¡± Agent Nelson replied with a sigh, ¡°we should probably just let him talk.¡±


    The agent nodded and walked out of the room, leaving us with Agent Nelson and Fulton. I could tell that they were both nervous by their bodynguage¨Cand it wasn¡¯t just them. We all knew what this could mean for us if we didn¡¯t act fast.


    ¡°Alright,¡± Agent Nelson said as she sighed and folded her arms over her chest. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    We walked over to the main foyer of the FBI base, as the screen showed his intimidating face. ¡°I hope I¡¯m talking to the FBI, would be kind of embarrassing if I didn¡¯t,¡± Dr. Mord quipped, but then his smile faded away as he looked at me with an intimidating re in his eyes. ¡°So you¡¯ve done it.¡±


    ¡°Done what?¡± I asked in a hushed voice as Agent Nelson held her hand up and put it on her chin, signaling for us to remain silent. ¡°Raided my base, and took our folders,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°I guess I can¡¯tin about that though.¡±


    I clenched my teeth as I saw his smile fade away. ¡°You think you got me?¡± I said in a low voice. ¡°Well think again!¡±


    He smirked and chuckled again as he shook his head. ¡°Oh,e on,¡± he said with a shake of his head, ¡°you can¡¯t be that naive. You¡¯re just a kid, right?¡±


    He licked his lips before speaking again. ¡°Now, you may have seen the Cobra Virus. You may have seen my scientists, but you don¡¯t know the location of the virus. This is revenge for my wife,¡± he said. ¡°What you guys did to her.¡±


    ¡°She tried to kidnap a young boy. You think we¡¯d stay back from that?¡± September hissed at him with a fiery voice. ¡°You¡¯re a sick man!¡±


    ¡°No, what happened was...unfortunate.¡± He looked away for a moment as his jaw twitched and clenched. ¡°Very unfortunate. And trust me, I¡¯ll do everything just to see you watch the world boil.¡± I felt like jumping inside the screen and punching him, but I stayed silent as he looked back at me. ¡°But you don¡¯t know anything. So keep your mouth shut and your hands off of that virus. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re all so eager to find it.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re not going to let you spread a virus for fun, Dr. Mord,¡± Agent Nelson spit fiercely, but then she sighed and said, ¡°But we¡¯ll do our best to find out where the virus is located.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Dr. Mord said with a nod as he turned around and faced off towards the camera. ¡°You go right ahead. But don¡¯tin once you find yourself on the ground, bleeding, crying for help, while your children are dying around you.¡±


    ¡°You moron...¡± Nikki growled in fury as she clenched her fists so tightly.


    ¡°So, now that¡¯s all settled¨Chow about you leave me alone?¡± Dr. Mord said with a smile, and then the screen turned ck before he hung up. Agent Nelson sighed and turned around as Fulton walked over to us and whispered to us, ¡°He¡¯s just trying to mess with your head.¡±


    ¡°Well, he¡¯s doing an insane job at it,¡± September said, shaking her head in surprise.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Nikki muttered as she nodded.


    ¡°Well...we need to keep an eye on him,¡± Fulton said as he looked at us with worry in his eyes. ¡°We need to find this virus and destroy it.¡±


    ¡°And quick,¡± Agent Nelson added as she turned over to a man who seemed quite geeky: he was wearing a pair of sses that had lenses thicker than my fingers, and he wore a ck sweater over a white shirt that was buttoned all the way up to his cor. He wore ck pants that were too short, and I could see his socks were ck with a white pattern on them.


    He seemed to be in his thirties and had dark-brown eyes, and he was tall and thin, but his hair was messy and had strands that stuck out here and there.


    ¡°Agent Max, find us on what you can in finding the that first scientist on that list,¡± she said and Agent Max nodded. ¡°I¡¯m going to need to pull up the other scientists¡¯ information too.¡±


    ¡°Right away,¡± Max said as he pulled out a small notebookputer from his pocket and started typing on it with his fingers. He looked up from theputer screen and sighed as he nced over at me. He looked back at theputer and soon enough the screen began to show a man.


    ¡°We¡¯re looking at a scientist named Robert Fletcher,¡± Agent Max said with an awkward voice. ¡°He has a PhD in physics from Princeton University.¡±


    ¡°A physicist?¡± Nikki asked with wide eyes. ¡°A physicist?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Agent Max said with a nod, ¡°he worked on the Large Hadron Collider project for ten years before getting fired.¡±


    ¡°I know what the collider is,¡± I said as I looked at Agent Max, ¡°I thought they got rid of him because of that.¡±


    ¡°They did,¡± Nikki said with a frown, ¡°but apparently he was working on some other projects as well.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Agent Max said as he shrugged, ¡°but we don¡¯t know what those projects are or what they are for.¡±


    ¡°How does a physicist get involved in a virus?¡± Fulton asked curiously.


    ¡°I think we¡¯re about to find out,¡± Agent Max said as he typed away at hisputer again. Then he frowned as he looked at us all again. The man seemed like he was in his 40¡¯s: he was quite tall and had dark-brown hair that was messy. He had dark-brown eyes that looked like they could pierce through anything, and he had a nice nose and big lips with a smirk on his face.


    ¡°I want everything on Fletcher, and I want to know his location,¡± Agent Nelson said as she pointed to the screen, and Agent Max nodded as he began to type away again.


    ¡°We have an address for him,¡± he said as he typed away at the keyboard again and then sighed. ¡°But we don¡¯t have any information about where he lives.¡± Agent Nelson paused before she looked back at him. ¡°How did you find an address but no information on him?¡± she asked, as she scratched her head.


    ¡°He has no criminal record,¡± Max said with a shrug, ¡°so we couldn¡¯t get any information on him.¡±


    ¡°I guess he¡¯s hiding somewhere,¡± I said as I looked at him with a frown.


    ¡°Well,¡± Agent Max said as he shrugged again, ¡°he doesn¡¯t seem to have left the country.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± Agent Nelson said, ¡°that¡¯s enough for now. We¡¯ll get in contact with you again if we need more information. You guys stay here, I¡¯ll contact Mr. Drails and tell him he¡¯s gonna have to make up a story foy y¡¯all.¡±

 Chapter 192

    192 A Quick Tour


    Fulton turned back to look at me as he took a deep breath. ¡°I hope Fletcher gives us some answers,¡± he said as he rubbed his chin, which I was close to doing the same thing myself.


    ¡°So what are you doing for dinner tonight?¡± Nikki asked, breaking the awkward silence. She was standing behind Fulton with her hands on her hips as she spoke with her eyes narrowed. I saw Fulton nce over at her as he sighed and smiled.


    ¡°I was hoping to get out of thisb,¡± Fulton said as he shook his head. ¡°I¡¯ll just call up some of my friends from high school and meet them for dinner.¡±


    ¡°Back in Russia?¡± I asked, and Fulton shook his head. ¡°No, they¡¯re here in Las Vegas. Hey,e-I want to show you the secret dorm rooms they have in here.¡±


    ¡°Wait, they have dorms in here?¡± I asked, as we quickly followed him, as we walked up to another set of elevators in the base.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Fulton said with a nod. ¡°And the cool thing is, they¡¯re disguised as offices.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Tisiah asked. ¡°Is there something to hide?¡± Fulton shrugged as he looked at all four of us, then sighed.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure...but I think the higher-ups are worried about something happening to the dorms.¡± Fulton pushed the button to get into the elevator as the doors opened and we all stepped inside. ¡°Maybe it could be used as a trick whenever this base gets raided or something,¡± he said with an expression, ¡°I don¡¯t really know.¡±


    We stepped into the elevator as the doors closed behind us, and we all felt a shiver run down our backs when we saw two men standing there with machine guns pointed towards us. They wore ck fatigues with a ck bandana covering their face and wore ck gloves with ck boots on their feet. ck helmets that were shaped like a skull covered their faces, and it almost felt like I was in the movie Aliens with that design.


    .....


    Fulton hit the elevator as we began to go down, and soon enough we stepped out onto the first floor of the base. ¡°Hey,¡± Fulton said as we all got off of the elevator and looked around us. The hall was just as long as it was on the second floor, but this time I could tell that it was more... industrial-looking with lots of pipes on the ceiling and walls that were white. It almost felt like we were in an old factory instead of an office building.


    ¡°Well jeez, we¡¯ve been walking for quite a while!¡± Tisiah spoke, as he looked at us with wide eyes.


    Fulton led us down the hall, and soon enough we came to another set of doors that were white and had a sign that said ¡®Secret Dormitories¡¯ on them in blue letters. They were like arge ss door that was made out of thick ss, but it didn¡¯t have any windows or anything behind it.


    Fulton turned around and sighed as he rubbed his chin. ¡°You know what they say,¡± he started, ¡°a ce for everything and everything in its ce.¡± Fulton chuckled to himself before he pushed open one of the doors and we walked inside. ¡°This is what the rooms look like.¡±


    The dorms looked nothing like rooms.


    I¡¯m telling you, they did not at all, but they were more like cubicles with no doors or windows that had been built into the wall. There was aputer console with a t screen TV on top of it that sat on top of a desk that had a white keyboard on it. ¡°They definitely do not look like actual rooms,¡± Nikki said with a chuckle, as she walked around one of the cubicles that had a desk with twoputers sitting on it and a couch that looked like it had been ripped out of an apartment¡¯s living room. ¡°It looks like they put two rooms together to make one.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re right about that one,¡± I said as I looked around, and my eyes widened when I saw what was next to the cubicles. It was a bathroom with no shower or tub in it but had a sink, toilet, and mirror that were made from thick ss.


    ¡°Where¡¯s the shower?!¡± I asked Fulton, who just sighed and rolled his eyes. ¡°And where are the beds?¡± I asked him, and Fulton just shrugged.


    ***


    The next day came, and I didn¡¯t really have the best sleep, so I was still tired when we started to get ready for work. ¡°Let¡¯s hurry up and get going so we can get started,¡± I heard Fulton say to me as I looked at him through my half-opened eyes. He was already ready and prepared, wearing his blue and ck uniform with a white shirt underneath and ck shoes on his feet. He had his fedora hat on his head and his ck sunsses on his face.


    ¡°What time is it?¡± I asked, my throat being hoarse and dry. ¡°It¡¯s still too early for this.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s 10:30,¡± he said as he took a quick nce at his watch. ¡°we¡¯re alreadyte for the meeting.¡±


    I groaned as I got up, feeling my legs twitch, but I made it up onto my feet with a groan. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s go.¡± I grabbed my bag off of my bed and slung it over my shoulder as we headed out of the door.


    We made it towards the main room of a FBI base, as everyone looked at us arrive, including Agent Nelson. ¡°Good morning, Agent Nelson,¡± Fulton spoke as he saluted her, and she just raised an eyebrow as she nced over at him.


    I looked at September as she waved at me. I didn¡¯t have back, being that I was a little cross, and I gave her a weak smile as I waved back. She just rolled her eyes as she looked at me before she turned back around towards Agent Nelson.


    ¡°Alright you guys,¡± Agent Nelson said as she put her hands behind her back, ¡°let¡¯s go to the briefing room and talk about what we have so far.¡±


    We made our way through theb, and we soon arrived at the briefing room, which was arge room filled with all the FBI agents who worked on this case and who were wearing their blue and ck uniforms just like Fulton and I did. ¡°Everyone take your seat please,¡± Agent Nelson said as she motioned to the chairs in front of her desk.


    Everyone nodded as they sat down, and I took a seat next to Nikki and Tisiah as I looked over at Fulton, who just smiled back at me.


    ¡°Now, we¡¯ve found Dr. Fletcher to be inside of an underground area, consisting of a lot of protection. We¡¯ll be sending an assault team to that area. But from Mr. Drails, some special agents might be there-which clearly I don¡¯t know which agency they are.¡±


    ¡°The BMO,¡± Nikki muttered in disturbance, looking at me in horror. Revtion ran through my head, because Mr. Drails did warn us, and that was the agency that was helping Dr. Mord. I gulped nervously as I looked up at Agent Nelson to see her looking back at me with a stern expression.


    ¡°So, I think you kids know what to do when that timees,¡± she said, and Fulton nodded along as he kept his eyes on her.


    ¡°Now we know where Dr. Fletcher is, but we also don¡¯t know why he¡¯s there,¡± Agent Nelson exined, as I nodded in agreement, ¡°and I¡¯m hoping that this leads us to finding him.¡±


    ¡°And that leads us to this,¡± Agent Max said from the other side of Agent Nelson as he pulled out some pictures and a map of Las Vegas from his briefcase. ¡°What are we looking at?¡± one of the agents with a ck but a silver line of hair asked, and Agent Max pointed at a spot on the map. ¡°That¡¯s where Fletcher is located.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the strip,¡± Agent Nelson said, pointing at another part of the map. ¡°This is where we have an apartment building in the area that has been rented out by Fletcher.¡±


    ¡°So we should get there now, shouldn¡¯t we?¡± Fulton asked. Agent Nelson nodded as she got up. ¡°Alright, guys get there-and find Fletcher. I want to know what he knows about the Cobra Virus.¡±


    Agents hopped out of their seats and they began to speed outside the door. They rushed to their lockers, pulling out their vests, which had a patch with their name on it on them, and they grabbed their weapons as well before they headed out of the building.


    I stood up as everyone else left, and Fulton grabbed my hand. ¡°Please stay safe alright?¡± he asked.


    I nodded. ¡°Is Mchi okay?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, he should be joining you shortly-I hope,¡± Fulton said with a smile, as he squeezed my hand tightly. ¡°Alright, go now.¡±


    Fulton walked over to his briefcase that was sitting next to the table as he opened it and grabbed a pair of sses from inside before he put them on. Everyone hopped inside of their trucks and SUVs.


    I hopped inside of the one that was in the middle, following after September, Nikki and Tisiah. Once I closed the door, the driver asked, ¡°You guys ready?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I hope so,¡± September said breathlessly, as she sat beside me, looking around at all the men in the truck with us. ¡°Is it always like this?¡±


    The driver nodded his head as he looked around us at all the agents in the truck with us. ¡°Always like this,¡± he said, and soon enough, the conga line of cars began to move out, making their way through the streets. From the apartment I saw, I¡¯m not sure how long it was gonna take to get there, but I¡¯m pretty sure things were soon to go down.

 Chapter 193

    193 Fletcher


    The city was bustling with cars and people, which I was quite sure that they were looking-just wondering why there were three ck Cadics moving through the streets of Las Vegas. I wouldn¡¯t me them, to be honest, as it was obvious that something was going on since there were so many agents from the F.B.I and Secret Service agentsing out of every building we drove past.


    I looked out the window as I could see a man standing out of a balcony who had a pair of binocrs hanging from around his neck as he was watching us drive by. He seemed to have a strange expression on his face as he watched our cars go by. I didn¡¯t get much of a look at him though.


    We continued to travel through the streets to what seemed to be hours, or perhaps maybe thirty minutes, before we slowly began to diffuse from the city. Mountains took up the stature of cities, and now there was only a house that asionally appeared as we continued down the road.


    ¡°How tall do you think this apartment could be?¡± September asked, and I shrugged-quite unsure of the answer myself. ¡°Pretty tall,¡± I answered, and September nodded as if she was disappointed with the answer I gave. The engines roared at the speed that we were ripping through the streets, being in the situation it was.


    The world could be saved by the quickness of these vehicles, but what was going to happen when we arrived? Was it going to be bad? I couldn¡¯t help but think that something might go down.


    It felt like forever before we finally made it into the city and arrived at our destination. The conga line stopped abruptly, and agents poured out of their cars, their weapons ready to unload bullets at any given time. ¡°Check your stuff!¡± one of them ordered, and other agents repeated in a sound of an echo.


    I checked my weapons: loaded and ready.


    My wand was hopefully charged, but being what my luck is-pretty sure not. ¡°You ready?¡± Nikki asked, and I nodded confidently but also hesitantly, because we were about to enter into an unknown situation.


    ¡°Alrighty then, follow me,¡± one of the agent said, putting on his helmet before he returned to his weapon. Agents began to make their way towards the door, which opened up before we got close.


    .....


    We quickly ran up the stairs, and once we were on the third floor, I began to get nervous. This was the first time we were going to enter into a secret hideout-or so we thought it would be-but now we were going to go inside of it. It was quite dark since it was nighttime, and everyone began to walk towards a door that led outside, but I could hear voices.


    We looked at each other nervously before we proceeded to open the door with a click of our weapons being ready. ¡°Clear!¡± one of the agents shouted, as another one made a certain gesture, and soon enough a shlight lit up the area.


    We rushed through the area, agents turning their heads to check every area but there was no one there. No one that was even hiding at the least. ¡°Are you sure Dr. Fletcher is here?¡± Tisiah muttered as he took a deep breath, making sure he didn¡¯t smell anything. ¡°This is strange.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± I asked as we made our way into a hallway, seeing nothing but empty rooms with furniture that had been broken down. ¡°Because, how is it that you find him here and then-Ipletely forgot.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I asked nervously.


    ¡°It¡¯s underground! We need to get to the basement!¡± Tisiah shouted, rming all the other agents immediately, and they started to run towards the stairs. I hurried behind them as well as the others did behind me, making sure I wasn¡¯t left behind.


    The agents rushed down the stairs as they checked every room on their way down; left, right and even the ceiling if possible, looking for any sign of life but they didn¡¯t find anything. Finally, we reached arge door which was marked ¡®B¡¯ for basement. One of the agents pushed the door open and led us inside the basement room where there were all these crates in piles which covered every part of the room with only a few beams of light shining down from the ceiling. There were wooden boxes everywhere, which seemed to contain some type of papers or some other thing that was worth more than money-and they were all full.


    ¡°Whoa,¡± I muttered, looking at the sight of these, as everyone began to walk through them, but no one seemed to know what they were doing here.


    ¡°Where is Dr. Fletcher?¡± Tisiah muttered impatiently, as we started to make our way through the boxes and crates in which he had been hiding all of his belongings. There were various items in here from clothing to books and all sorts of other things. But as I was walking, I could hear faint-very faint-noises. Footsteps, perhaps. They seemed to be running very fast indeed, and it was only a matter of time before they rushed up the stairs.


    I got my gun ready close by me, my heart now starting to feel a bit of fear pumping through my veins, but I told myself not to be scared because I needed to show that I was a real spy. The footsteps sounded closer now as I continued to make my way through the crates and boxes in which Dr. Fletcher had hid himself away from everyone¡¯s prying eyes, but I kept moving forward as I tried to ignore all these noises that seemed to being up from behind me and all around me.


    ¡°What is this?¡± Tisiah asked as he took something out from a crate that seemed to have been marked ¡®F¡¯ for Fletcher¡¯s name on it.


    But as he did, the footsteps got louder-and I suddenly stopped, scared, unsure-not even wanting to move a single bit. I turned around slowly, my eyes barely meeting the stairs.


    The footsteps got louder-much louder than before, oh yes for sure, as they made their way up the stairs and down the hall to where I was. They got even louder as I stood there, frozen in fear and unable to move as my legs began to shake uncontrobly as my breathing became heavy and I could feel my heart beat in my ears like drums.


    Then, peeking over the corner was Dr. Fletcher guards that looked like assassins. ck helmets with skulls on them, armor as dark as night itself, guns shining their glint over my eyes, and their footsteps as loud as explosions.


    ¡°Get down!¡± I shouted, jumping back and losing my footing, as my heart was beating faster than ever before. It felt like it was about to explode out of my chest at that point, as I fell backwards onto my backside. The footsteps became louder as they made their way towards me while I could feel sweat drip down my forehead and onto my nose and lips.


    Agents unloaded bullets through the entire room, shooting the lights, the ceiling, and everything that could possibly be in the way of these assassins, and I heard screaming all over the ce from Dr. Fletcher as well as other agents as they ran to get into cover, but there wasn¡¯t enough room for everyone to get under cover fast enough.


    ¡°Someone needs to get Dr. Fletcher!¡± an agent shouted.


    ¡°Got that!¡± I shouted-trying to get my bravery back on track, as I stood back up from the floor, now using the crates behind me as a shield to protect myself from these assassins that came closer and closer with every step they took. They stopped once they reached me and opened fire on me, but I stood strong even though my legs were shaking like Jello.


    ¡°You better get outta here,¡± another agent shouted before I could say anything else, as he grabbed my shoulder and pushed me towards the door as he let his gun go off to help keep the assassins back.


    ¡°Wait, we need someone to get Dr. Fletcher!¡± an agent shouted, and the importance of the mission finally hammered itself inside my head. I needed to get him because that was the purpose of this mission, and this mission wasn¡¯t going to be a sess if we didn¡¯t save Dr. Fletcher.


    I ran out of the room as another agent tried to make his way back in there but the assassins cut him off at the knees and down the stairs. Assassins that looked like soldiers from Call of Duty were making their way up the stairs, trying to block my way of getting to him. This was bad.


    Quickly, I ducked a punch that swung over my head in a rapid session, before I grabbed the hand of the assassin that was trying to punch me with his other hand and turned around him before I threw him into another assassin and then another one with a body m before I punched him in the face and sent him flying into a wall.


    The other one charged at me with a shout of rage, but I quickly shut it with a quick jab to the stomach, making him drop like a sack of potatoes and causing a small explosion from the force. ¡°Watch out!¡± another agent shouted as I was about to hit another one in the face with my elbow when he knocked me back and pulled me down onto the ground so we could be safe together.


    We rolled down the stairs as the two of us fell down them together in a tumble of bodies. We both got up at the same time and began to run towards Dr. Fletcher, who was cowering against the wall, as he had seen all this action that had just taken ce.


    ¡°Hands up, and don¡¯t move!¡± I shouted, but Dr. Fletcher¡¯s eyes were just at me-frozen and in ce, not wanting to move, not wanting to do anything that might lead to more harm or harm at all-and I knew that he was thinking about it in his head: ¡°Should I get up or should I stay?¡±


    ¡°Now slowly get up,¡± I ordered him, ¡°slowly!¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± he muttered as he got up from his position with his hands still up.


    ¡°Get on your knees,¡± I said, as he did what I said without a problem; but then he stopped as if he was something else on his mind. He took a good look at me, his hands trembling. I pointed it at him, knowing something was going to happen-something, something.


    Suddenly, I heard footstepsing quick.


    BMO agents.

 Chapter 194

    194 Three BMO Agents


    Three BMO agents rushed down the stairs, with their wands out-ready to st us. I turned to the agent beside me: ¡°Get Dr. Fletcher out of here, now!¡± The FBI agent nodded as he went over to get Dr. Fletcher. But my task was to deal with this threat, the three agents in front of me.


    I charged up my Perk, as my veins glowed brightly, making me feel more powerful than ever before-as I felt this was my time to show that I was ready to battle and that I was going to make sure everyone knew it.


    ¡°You better get out of here!¡± I shouted. ¡°I¡¯m warning you!¡±


    But they didn¡¯t listen, although I didn¡¯t expect them to. All three of them shot towards me, one of theming in with swinging punch, the next oneing in with a kick aimed straight for me, andstlying in with a right hook. I dodged the punch and kicked the other one in the gut which made him bend over in pain before I jumped backwards and pushed the guy with a kick that sent him flying into one of the other guys which caused a small explosion of dust around him-and a small firework of smoke in the air as he was sent flying into another wall before he dropped to the ground unconscious.


    Thest one came at me with another right hook but I stepped back and tripped him up. They were all on the ground, but they weren¡¯t done yet. They returned to their feet slowly, with a firm grip on their wands. This was a sign in itself, alone just saying they were taking it much more serious now.


    ¡°That was just practice,¡± one of them said, and a bolt shot out of his wand. Quickly I dodged, with the bolt making a little detonation of dust behind me, as it passed by.


    ¡°Not too good, is it?¡± another one said, as they all came at me again with their wands at the ready and their hands at their sides. ¡°You¡¯re dead meat,¡± another one said with a chuckle. One of them swung their wands with a powerful force, aiming for me, but I ducked and took them all with a head butt each before kicking out at one of them and sending him flying across the room into another wall before he fell over.


    The second agent hurriedly shot a fire bolt towards me, but it hit nothing but air as I ran up to him and delivered a kick that sent him flying into the other wall, where he also made an explosion of dust and smoke. But they still weren¡¯t done, as they slowly began to return onto their feet.


    ¡°How are you guys not dead?¡± I muttered furiously, as they stood up straight and walked over to me with their wands ready at their sides again, their hands ready to shoot their fire bolts or whatever else they wanted to use against me next. The first guy all of a sudden-just went wacko. Bolts galore shot out of his wand rapidly, each one getting closer to me before I was able to dodge it with a little bit of agility.


    .....


    Then he swung his wand, as I quickly took out mine which made a loud shing noise. He curved his wand towards my face, but I was quick enough to deter the attack, dodging it before it made contact.


    ¡°I think it¡¯s time you died!¡± he said, as he came forward again, swinging his wand for me once again before I grabbed it and turned it on him. I jabbed it against him, pushing him back enough to waver his stability, and then quickly jammed it against his chest, making him fall back again into the other agent which caused a small cloud of dust and smoke in the air around them as they fell on top of each other and made a small crater in the floor.


    The third one managed to kick me on the thigh,ing it with a hard blow to the jaw, causing me to fall over onto my back. They got back up onto their feet again and all three of them started shooting bolts at me again before I could take them out in a head butt.


    They shot firebolts, lightning bolts, ice bolts, wind bolts, and even lightning bullets and everything else they could use at me while I quickly stood up and tried to run around them to get away from them but they wouldn¡¯t let me run.


    It was like an arena of just a bunch of light, enough to give you a seizure.


    I rolled under a bunch-maybe four or five bolts that came at me-before I punched the ground. A shockwaveunched the agents away from the ground, so that they flew in a circr motion in the air like a tornado. They were still standing on their own though.


    But what did that matter now? It was time for action now-action that could end these three agents. I had enough energy in my fist to be able to go through them all at once if they weren¡¯t careful.


    They had no idea how close they were to dying.


    I quickly dashed forward with a full-body tackle at the first guy who was looking at me with fear in his eyes-the fear that told me that he knew that he was about to die. I rammed into him, feeling his bones crush into mashed potatoes and his blood wiggling vibrantly inside of him, sttering into his face like red paint all over it-his eyes now lifeless.


    He hit the ground hard; dead as a doornail.


    I ran up to the other two agents who were on the ground with their hands still up, before I grabbed the one closest to me and threw him against the opposite wall before I kicked him in the stomach, before I made a small firework of smoke in the air with his death before I turned around and kicked the other guy who fell to the ground. The man rolled until his momentum stopped his movement, his hands lifeless and immobile.


    I breathed heavily, my arms feeling like jelly, my veins felt as though they were filled with acid that had gone bad inside of my body. The three agentsy on the ground in front of me in a circle like a bunch of dolls thrown into a heap. Then I heard footsteps make their way towards the basement, and I soon saw Nikki appear.


    ¡°Connor!¡± she said, running over to me. ¡°Where¡¯s Dr. Fletcher?¡±


    ¡°An FBI agent has him, he should be inside of the vehicle,¡± I said.


    ¡°We should probably search for that agent,¡± Nikki said, and I nodded in agreement. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±


    We ran through the room towards the right where that agent left, as we ran through the hall, past the dead bodies of the other agents and the door that led upstairs. The sound of sirens were audible as we ran through the hallway, but they wereing from outside; meaning they wereing soon.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see them,¡± I finally expressed, looking and examining around the hall-trying to see anything. But then, we came across a corner and my heart stopped from what I saw: The FBI agent-dead on the floor, and the man beside him, Dr. Fletcher, with blood spilling on the tiled floor with a stained jacket of blood.


    ¡°Oh, no,¡± Nikki muttered, and nausea infected her voice, as she approached the two men. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the body of the FBI agent with his throat slit open as blood spurted from his body and all over the ground. ¡°Oh...oh,¡± she said, slowly moving back, ¡°Oh God... Connor?¡±


    ¡°Dr. Fletcher...¡± I said in disbelief, as my heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest as I took in what had happened. I turned back at her. ¡°Call the FBI team, we have a very bad problem here.¡±


    Three BMO agents rushed down the stairs, with their wands out-ready to st us. I turned to the agent beside me: ¡°Get Dr. Fletcher out of here, now!¡± The FBI agent nodded as he went over to get Dr. Fletcher. But my task was to deal with this threat, the three agents in front of me.


    I charged up my Perk, as my veins glowed brightly, making me feel more powerful than ever before-as I felt this was my time to show that I was ready to battle and that I was going to make sure everyone knew it.


    ¡°You better get out of here!¡± I shouted. ¡°I¡¯m warning you!¡±


    But they didn¡¯t listen, although I didn¡¯t expect them to. All three of them shot towards me, one of theming in with swinging punch, the next oneing in with a kick aimed straight for me, andstlying in with a right hook.


    I dodged the punch and kicked the other one in the gut which made him bend over in pain before I jumped backwards and pushed the guy with a kick that sent him flying into one of the other guys which caused a small explosion of dust around him-and a small firework of smoke in the air as he was sent flying into another wall before he dropped to the ground unconscious.

 Chapter 195

    195 A Horrifying Sight


    Thest one came at me with another right hook but I stepped back and tripped him up. They were all on the ground, but they weren¡¯t done yet. They returned to their feet slowly, with a firm grip on their wands. This was a sign in itself, alone just saying they were taking it much more serious now.


    ¡°That was just practice,¡± one of them said, and a bolt shot out of his wand. Quickly I dodged, with the bolt making a little detonation of dust behind me, as it passed by.


    ¡°Not too good, is it?¡± another one said, as they all came at me again with their wands at the ready and their hands at their sides. ¡°You¡¯re dead meat,¡± another one said with a chuckle. One of them swung their wands with a powerful force, aiming for me, but I ducked and took them all with a head butt each before kicking out at one of them and sending him flying across the room into another wall before he fell over.


    The second agent hurriedly shot a fire bolt towards me, but it hit nothing but air as I ran up to him and delivered a kick that sent him flying into the other wall, where he also made an explosion of dust and smoke. But they still weren¡¯t done, as they slowly began to return onto their feet.


    ¡°How are you guys not dead?¡± I muttered furiously, as they stood up straight and walked over to me with their wands ready at their sides again, their hands ready to shoot their fire bolts or whatever else they wanted to use against me next. The first guy all of a sudden-just went wacko. Bolts galore shot out of his wand rapidly, each one getting closer to me before I was able to dodge it with a little bit of agility.


    Then he swung his wand, as I quickly took out mine which made a loud shing noise. He curved his wand towards my face, but I was quick enough to deter the attack, dodging it before it made contact.


    ¡°I think it¡¯s time you died!¡± he said, as he came forward again, swinging his wand for me once again before I grabbed it and turned it on him. I jabbed it against him, pushing him back enough to waver his stability, and then quickly jammed it against his chest, making him fall back again into the other agent which caused a small cloud of dust and smoke in the air around them as they fell on top of each other and made a small crater in the floor.


    The third one managed to kick me on the thigh,ing it with a hard blow to the jaw, causing me to fall over onto my back. They got back up onto their feet again and all three of them started shooting bolts at me again before I could take them out in a head butt.


    They shot firebolts, lightning bolts, ice bolts, wind bolts, and even lightning bullets and everything else they could use at me while I quickly stood up and tried to run around them to get away from them but they wouldn¡¯t let me run.


    .....


    It was like an arena of just a bunch of light, enough to give you a seizure.


    I rolled under a bunch-maybe four or five bolts that came at me-before I punched the ground. A shockwaveunched the agents away from the ground, so that they flew in a circr motion in the air like a tornado. They were still standing on their own though.


    But what did that matter now? It was time for action now-action that could end these three agents. I had enough energy in my fist to be able to go through them all at once if they weren¡¯t careful.


    They had no idea how close they were to dying.


    I quickly dashed forward with a full-body tackle at the first guy who was looking at me with fear in his eyes-the fear that told me that he knew that he was about to die. I rammed into him, feeling his bones crush into mashed potatoes and his blood wiggling vibrantly inside of him, sttering into his face like red paint all over it-his eyes now lifeless.


    He hit the ground hard; dead as a doornail.


    I ran up to the other two agents who were on the ground with their hands still up, before I grabbed the one closest to me and threw him against the opposite wall before I kicked him in the stomach, before I made a small firework of smoke in the air with his death before I turned around and kicked the other guy who fell to the ground. The man rolled until his momentum stopped his movement, his hands lifeless and immobile.


    I breathed heavily, my arms feeling like jelly, my veins felt as though they were filled with acid that had gone bad inside of my body. The three agentsy on the ground in front of me in a circle like a bunch of dolls thrown into a heap. Then I heard footsteps make their way towards the basement, and I soon saw Nikki appear.


    ¡°Connor!¡± she said, running over to me. ¡°Where¡¯s Dr. Fletcher?¡±


    ¡°An FBI agent has him, he should be inside of the vehicle,¡± I said.


    ¡°We should probably search for that agent,¡± Nikki said, and I nodded in agreement. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±


    We ran through the room towards the right where that agent left, as we ran through the hall, past the dead bodies of the other agents and the door that led upstairs. The sound of sirens were audible as we ran through the hallway, but they wereing from outside; meaning they wereing soon.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see them,¡± I finally expressed, looking and examining around the hall-trying to see anything. But then, we came across a corner and my heart stopped from what I saw: The FBI agent-dead on the floor, and the man beside him, Dr. Fletcher, with blood spilling on the tiled floor with a stained jacket of blood.


    ¡°Oh, no,¡± Nikki muttered, and nausea infected her voice, as she approached the two men. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the body of the FBI agent with his throat slit open as blood spurted from his body and all over the ground. ¡°Oh...oh,¡± she said, slowly moving back, ¡°Oh God... Connor?¡±


    ¡°Dr. Fletcher...¡± I said in disbelief, as my heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest as I took in what had happened. I turned back at her. ¡°Call the FBI team, we have a very bad problem here.¡±


    ***


    Authorities came to the scene, and the apartment was now a crime scene, which meant that no one was allowed to enter the apartment without permission from the authorities. Nikki and I had been forced out of the building, since there were a bunch of people going inside and doing their job; trying to find clues that could help find out what happened to Dr. Fletcher and who had done this terrible act.


    My uncle wasn¡¯t going to be happy about this. I could hear him telling me that I had been careless and should have been more careful; or something like that. I took a deep breath, before turning around and seeing Tisiah making his way towards me. ¡°Well there goes our lead,¡± he said once he reached us, with September following behind him, who looked more anxious than ever.


    ¡°We don¡¯t know that for sure,¡± Nikki said as she nced over to Tisiah, before looking over at me and smiling gently. ¡°We still have other scientists on the list.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s pretty hopeful wishing,¡± September reported as she peered at the yellow tape, and then up at me with a look of disgust in her eyes as she went to turn around and leave but then hesitated as she stopped and looked at Tisiah again before turning around. ¡°Well at least it¡¯s hopeful,¡± I countered, trying to raise somewhat of some spirits, ¡°We still have hope.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not enough,¡± September said bluntly. ¡°We don¡¯t have enough time.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I mean that Dr. Fletcher could be dead by now,¡± she said. ¡°The guy who was guarding him might have killed him.¡±


    ¡°But why would he do that?¡± I asked. ¡°We needed him to give us where the Cobra Virus is, to stop a pandemic that could affect the whole world.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± September replied quietly, as she turned to look at us slowly, ¡°but we need to find him.¡±


    ¡°And how are we supposed to find him?¡± Nikki asked her, ¡°The guy isn¡¯t just going to show up at a hospital or something.¡±


    ¡°Maybe it wasn¡¯t the FBI agent, what if it was Dr. Mord?¡± I proposed quickly, and everyone¡¯s eyes widened as realization finally responded to their minds, ¡°If he wanted Dr. Fletcher dead, why wouldn¡¯t he do something like this?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not all,¡± I added with a sudden thought as I remembered something else about Dr. Mord. ¡°If someone had the power to reveal where your whole n was, the best thing to do-is to kill him.¡±

 Chapter 196

    196 A Talk with Agent Nelson


    September acknowledged in agreement, but her face was filled with concern and worry as she took a deep breath before saying: ¡°We should look for him.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s got to be around here somewhere,¡± Nikki agreed as she shook her head and began walking away from the apartment, towards the street, as she nced back at Tisiah and me. ¡°We can¡¯t let Dr. Fletcher die for nothing.¡± I sighed, ¡°He probably already escaped from the apartment building, and he¡¯s probably going to try to go after the others.¡±


    ¡°Well, we need to get back to the FBI base quickly,¡± Nikki said, looking at us worriedly, ¡°We need to tell them what happened here.¡±


    ¡°I think they already know what happened here,¡± I muttered in confusion, as I watched her begin walking away from me, with a serious expression on her face and eyes filled with worry. She began to pace around quickly, before she abruptly stopped and took a good look at me.


    ¡°Has someone told Agent Nelson yet?¡± she asked, looking over at me as she rubbed her forehead with her hand and began walking again.


    ¡°About what?¡± I asked as I watched her walk away again.


    ¡°About what happened here,¡± she said back in a quick tone. ¡°We need to get there quick!¡±


    ***


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, what?!¡± Agent Nelson screeched loudly once September told her the story, while she was seated in her office with the other FBI agents around her and the news on the TV screen. We were back in the FBI base, inside of Agent Nelson¡¯s office. Her eyes were filled with worry as she looked at September in shock. ¡°He¡¯s definitely going for the others,¡± she said, rubbing her chin, ¡°I don¡¯t know how he managed to get away.¡±


    .....


    ¡°He probably escaped from the building before we could get there,¡± Nikki said as she sat down next to me, ¡°We need to get to the others fast.¡±


    ¡°We do, call Agent Max would you Nikki,¡± she ordered faintly, as she held her phone out. Nikki nodded, as she picked up her cell phone and called Agent Max.


    ¡°Yes ma¡¯am,¡± he answered almost immediately, ¡°Yes, we¡¯ll be right there.¡±


    ¡°Where is he?¡± Agent Nelson asked, once Nikki closed her phone. ¡°In his dorm,¡± she responded back to her, as she rubbed her chin again.


    ¡°We need to move fast,¡± she said, ¡°We have a lot of people working on this case right now.¡± She sighed as she looked over at me, and then she got up and checked her watch-which in a matter of seconds, Agent Max showed up inside of her bright room. ¡°Who¡¯s the next person on the list?¡± Agent Nelson asked him promptly.


    ¡°Uh, from what I can see,¡± Agent Max said as he put on his sses. ¡°A scientist by the name of Bob Whitehead.¡±


    ¡°Bob Whitehead?!¡± Agent Nelson asked in shock, ¡°You mean Dr. Fletcher¡¯s assistant?!¡±


    ¡°I believe so,¡± Agent Max replied, ¡°ording to our information.¡±


    ¡°I want you to find where he is, and quickly,¡± she said as she looked at him. ¡°I want an address.¡± Agent Max nodded in a quick fashion, and he left the room. Agent Nelson sighed with a deep breath, before leaning back in her seat with her eyes focused on me. ¡°Mchi¡¯s alright?¡± she asked suddenly, as she noticed my eyes widen from her statement.


    ¡°Um...yeah,¡± I responded with a nervous smile.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it,¡± she said as she sat back down in her seat with a smile on her face, ¡°I knew he would be.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s a strong guy, very brave,¡± I said with a smile, and she followed after me, before turning around and facing me.


    ¡°You¡¯ve known him for a while?¡± she asked as she crossed her legs on her desk. As I nodded in agreement, I smiled at her and looked into her eyes. I shrugged and gave a little chuckle before she crossed her hands. ¡°I know you seem quite a bit scared of me, since I did sort of work with Rocke when searching for you, I still wonder who killed that body inside that bed,¡± she said with a little sigh, ¡°You have nothing to fear from me.¡±


    ¡°Well...I...don¡¯t know,¡± I began. ¡°I was just really worried about you.¡±


    ¡°Oh really?!¡± she said back with a sarcasticugh. ¡°Totally true, definitely.¡± There was a distinct sarcastic tone in her voice as she spoke. I could onlyugh with her at that point, but then I nced around her office and saw the other agents wereughing with us. ¡°So you were just worried about me?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I responded as I smiled.


    ¡°That¡¯s nice,¡± she said in a sarcastic tone once more, before she leaned forward and looked me in the eyes, ¡°Do you know what they¡¯re going to do if we find him?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked back with curiosity.


    ¡°What are we going to do with him?¡± she asked. ¡°We¡¯re going to arrest him and bring him in for questioning.¡±


    ¡°Arrest him?¡± I asked, as I shook my head from side to side. ¡°Why would we arrest him?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re going to interrogate him for information,¡± she replied with a smile. ¡°Who are we talking about?¡± I asked in confusion, as she leaned in forward, her voice lowering down into a serious tone once more.


    ¡°Who do you think?¡± she asked back with an even deeper frown on her face.


    ¡°Dr. Whitehead!¡± I eximed in realization, feeling a bit embarrassed by my slow encounter. Agent Nelson chuckled at my sudden realization before she gave a nod in understanding. ¡°I guess that means he¡¯ll be taken to some other location for questioning?¡± I asked her, as I looked around the room again. She nodded once more, then she leaned back in her seat.


    But then I heard footsteps rushing towards the office once again, and we all turned around. ¡°Agent Max,¡± she said, seeing his heart pounding. ¡°I found an address, but he¡¯s actually moving.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean? Like he¡¯s inside a car?¡± September asked and Max nodded. ¡°And there are other cars that are behind him. I think it¡¯s Dr. Mord.¡± Surprise and shock folded into our faces, before Agent Nelson grabbed her phone and dialed a number, as she spoke quickly. ¡°I need backup now.¡± She looked back at me and then at Tisiah and Nikki, as her eyes zed over into worry.


    ¡°I want you guys to get there and find them. I don¡¯t want Dr. Whitehead in this man¡¯s grasp.¡±


    ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am!¡± I said, as we booked it out of her office.


    ¡°Dr. Mord is working though!¡± Tisiah said and I nodded exceptionally with him, as we walked down the halls of the FBI base at lightning speed.


    ¡°He must have Dr. Fletcher¡¯s old research on that virus,¡± September replied with a serious face as well. ¡°We need to hurry up quick before we see a dead scientist again.¡± We quickly made our way to the garage, seeing a variety of cars that we could take. ¡°Which one do you wanna take?¡± Nikki asked September as she shrugged, and I pointed at a ck car in the corner of the parking garage. It was arge vehicle and I thought it was pretty cool.


    ¡°Yeah, this one!¡± I said as I opened the back door and helped her inside.


    ¡°Is this a Camaro?¡± Tisiah asked, looking at the slick colors that bounced off his eyes, as he nced from the back to the front of the vehicle.


    ¡°It¡¯s a Corvette ZR1,¡± I responded back with a grin, as he got in as well and turned his head from the back to the front. ¡°Well this thing is a beauty!¡± he said with a wide grin, as we pulled out onto the street and made our way out of the parking garage.


    ¡°This thing is awesome!¡± he eximed with a smile.


    ¡°You have no idea,¡± Nikki said with an impressed look on her face as she looked at the vehicle and then out of the windshield at the city around us. September pressed her earphone, before she spoke, ¡°Max, which street are they at?¡±


    ¡°Uh...street in Las Vegas,¡± he muttered as a bunch of keys were clicked in a matter of two seconds, before the car began elerating hard as I took a deep breath, and then Tisiah let out a yelp as I turned to him with a big grin.


    ¡°I know you guys can handle it,¡± September said back with an amused face as I looked at her. ¡°What¡¯s the street Max?¡±


    ¡°This street right here: ¡°The Strip,¡± Max answered back quickly, and we sped up to a hundred miles an hour in mere minutes. The wind was rushing through my hair and I held on tightly to the seat in front of me. September then turned to a quick left, drifting to an openne, and we elerated once again as she held on to her seat and grunted in pain. We had gone from zero to sixty in only three seconds or so, as we continued to drive down the highway.


    ¡°Any sight on them September?¡± I asked, as she continued to move through thenes. The engine roared as she moved, and each turn result in a little screech. ¡°Not yet,¡± she quickly replied, as she nced over to the side and watched the other cars on the road pass by us.


    ¡°Hold on!¡± she screamed as she steered her Corvette into the leftne, cutting off another car and forcing them to swerve around us, before she mmed on the gas and cut into anotherne.

 Chapter 197

    197 Saving Dr. Whitehead


    ¡°Alright, they are just probably about two thousand feet away from you right now,¡± Agent Max answered, as September began to pressure the pedal, pressing it all the way down. She was doing over a hundred miles per hour as she sped through traffic. ¡°What are you doing September?¡± Agent Max asked her back. ¡°There are cops up ahead,¡± she replied back to him as she nced up from her phone and held her eyes on the road ahead of her. ¡°I can¡¯t afford to lose them.¡±


    ¡°Just drive up there slowly,¡± he said back as she nced back at him for a quick second. ¡°And do not lose them!¡±


    ¡°And try not to get a ticket,¡± Tisiah added, and I chuckled at hisment, while September looked at him and smirked.


    ¡°I have never gotten a ticket before.¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah?¡± I asked her back with a smile.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never gotten a ticket before,¡± she repeated back with a wink, ¡°And it¡¯s not gonna be now.¡±


    As she drove, I began to see a bundle of cars that were ahead on the highway. There were these white vans that were circling around a G-Wagon. Dr. Whitehead must be rich or something, I thought as I looked at September¡¯s rear view mirror.


    ¡°Uh...yeah,¡± September responded back to me with a smile. ¡°He¡¯s got a nice car.¡±


    She pressed her earphone again. ¡°We got a sight on them, we¡¯re moving in,¡± she said, pushing the pedal to where she was trailing behind a white van, as we took a turn into anotherne to avoid hitting a cop who was waving at us to stop. ¡°Stay on them!¡±


    .....


    We quickly made our way through the city, as September continued to cut people off and keep pace with the white vans that were following Dr. Whitehead¡¯s vehicle.


    The white van slowly began to advance on Dr. Whitehead¡¯s side, as if it was getting ready to ram into the back of the G-Wagon and try to force him off the road. But suddenly Tisiah let out an exmation as he sat up in his seat and pointed at something ahead of us. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    ¡°What is that?¡± Nikki asked back with a confused look on his face, but we all looked ahead as well. There was a big yellow sign that read ¡®Warning: Traction Control off¡¯ with a picture of an old car above it that had a huge tire hanging out of it like a parachute, which meant that the tire was t and it could cause the car to go off the road if you didn¡¯t know what you were doing.


    September looked ahead of us at Tisiah as we saw that Dr. Whitehead was in danger of being pushed off the road and possibly into anotherne or possibly even going off the side of the highway altogether. We were less than fifty yards away from the van as we sped towards the white van that had its front bumper over the top of Dr. Whitehead¡¯s car.


    ¡°Tisiah, take out your wand and start shooting at them. It¡¯s getting too dangerous,¡± she said. Tisiah nodded immediately, before he reached his hand into his pocket and pulled out his wand. He took out the ck stone and flipped it around his palm before he held it tight in his hand. He gripped it with his fingers, as if he was gripping onto a tennis ball, and he squeezed it tight and focused on the van.


    We continued to cut throughnes, shifting behind cars, as Tisiah began to focus on the white van. He began to squeeze his fist tightly as he began to shoot a bolt.


    It flew in high speeds towards the white van that was dangerously close to the G-Wagon and Tisiah¡¯s attack managed to hit one of the tires before it exploded and the whole tire exploded as it blew out, sending shrapnel flying out from inside. The van swerved and veered into anotherne as it swerved wildly around other cars before it came to an abrupt stop.


    ¡°Yes, got him!¡± Tisiah shouted.


    ¡°Nice,¡± Nikki said with a supporting smile. But then, the doors of the other white vans opened up-and they were holding wands at us. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s the BMO again,¡± I muttered frantically, and our faces widened in shock and fear, as we were being attacked again by some sort of magical group of mages who wanted us dead.


    ¡°Max,¡± September said with her eyes locked on the van behind her, ¡°They¡¯re getting ready to fire.¡±


    ¡°Who is?¡±


    ¡°Those guards from the apartment building,¡± September responded, holding firmly on the steering wheel. ¡°We gotta get out of here!¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re ready,¡± Agent Max said back.


    ¡°Good,¡± September responded back and pressed on the gas as we sped forward through the streets of Las Vegas at over a hundred miles per hour. Soon enough, bolts began to quicken towards us, but before they could get to us, Tisiah let out an ¡®Ah!¡¯ and suddenly there were three big fire balls in front of us, as if we were sitting on three boulders.


    ¡°Oh shoot!¡± September proimed, as she quickly dodged the firebolts, by turning her car to the left and then making another right turn.


    Tisiah looked at her with wide eyes, as he let out an ¡®ah!¡¯ of his own and held his wand tight in his hand before he squeezed it and shot a fire bolt towards a white van that was in the rightne. He missed, but it was enough to make the van lose its footing, swerve, and m into the wall on the side of the road as it spun around and then it swerved back into anotherne to avoid hitting the guard rail, but it lost control of its wheels and began to veer out of control as it swerved back and forth and crashed into the wall once again. The van swerved one final time before it mmed into the side of a building and finally stopped.


    ¡°Dang!¡± Nikki said after the final blow of the van, while we drove down a side road and turned to avoid a bunch of cars that were parked on the side of the road. ¡°You did it!¡±


    ¡°I did,¡± Tisiah said proudly with wide eyes. September continued to make her way behind the white vans, but their bolts were rapidly birthing from their wands, before they finally managed to hit us as we dodged them one after another.


    ¡°Can you shoot?¡± September asked Tisiah, but she knew what Tisiah was capable of and nodded quickly back. Tisiah¡¯s eyes were wide with shock and fear as he continued to shoot fireballs towards us that came at us one after another before they were all blocked by a ball of fire that suddenly appeared in front of us, like we were ying some sort of ser game with magical fireballs.


    ¡°Oh shoot!¡± September screamed, as we dodged one after another before we were suddenly forced to swerve around a truck that had stopped suddenly and was blocking our way. We went past the truck with only inches between us as I held my breath, knowing we might crash into it. I watched with fear as we passed the truck with only inches between us, until we were back into the opennes again.


    The roads were punctured with fireballs, and the white vans were constantly moving left and right to block our way, but September swerved left and right as well as she continued to move down the side street that led to the white van behind us.


    ¡°Shoot!¡± September asserted as she saw another white van appear on her right side, with its tires squealing as it swerved around a bunch of cars that were parked on the side of the road. We were now side by side with one another, while still trying to protect the G-Wagon.


    The van regrly continued to merge towards us, making us cut away from thene into another, while it moved closer to us in anotherne, but Tisiah fired another fireball that flew straight towards it. The ball of fire exploded and caused shrapnel to fly out in every direction before it mmed into the windshield of the white van, which caused a crack and sent shards of ss everywhere, as we heard screeches all around.


    ¡°This is bad-bad-bad!¡± Tisiah shouted.


    September pressed the brakes and drifted around the swaying white van, as I looked behind us to see that there was only one white van left now.


    ¡°Whoa, how did they all escape?¡± I asked with wide eyes as I looked back behind me to see that there were still only two white vans following us. We needed to get to the G-Wagon and quickly, so we could get out of there before we had anymore problems.


    ¡°I think... I think... thatst van is damaged,¡± Tisiah said back with a look of relief as he took out his wand. ¡°I think it¡¯s gonna break.¡±


    ¡°Well let¡¯s give it the final blow,¡± September said with a smirk widening on her face, while she made a quick right turn and pressed on the gas again. ¡°We can get away now.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re in danger,¡± Tisiah warned back with wide eyes, ¡°There¡¯s still one van behind us.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry what?¡± she said, turning around. I did the same, seeing a white van speeding towards us at a great speed, their wands pointed towards our car. ¡°Oh, no-no-no!¡± September shouted.

 Chapter 198

    198 The Sudden Ambush


    She pressed the gas pedal hard and firm, hurrying away from the zooming fireballs behind us. Our car shook and trembled with every misced hit, before Tisiah let out an ¡®Oof!¡¯ and fell backwards on the back seat as we sped off and got away from danger.


    ¡°What happened?¡± Nikki asked with a curious expression as he sat up from the back seat where Tisiah fell back on it.


    ¡°We¡¯re safe for now,¡± September said, but then as he stared ahead, we saw one of the white vans ram into the G-Wagon.


    My eyes expanded as I looked at the collision, while September pressed on the gas again and sped off even harder, but she had to m on the brakes quickly because we came across another curve. She jolted us hard as she sped off again and turned the steering wheel in order to avoid the other white van that wasing down on our side.


    She then pressed on the brakes and slid to the side where we abruptly halted.


    ¡°Quick, we need to get to Dr. Whitehead,¡± September said as she got out of the vehicle. ¡°Yeah,¡± Tisiah agreed, running towards the crumbled G-Wagon. But as I looked behind, the BMO agents that were settling inside that white van quickly exited the vehicle-now chasing us.


    ¡°We got very badpany right now!¡± I said as Nikki looked back, too.


    ¡°Let¡¯s hurry!¡± Tisiah shouted as he ran faster towards Dr. Whitehead¡¯s car. Nikki and I jolted as we stepped out of the car and quickly ran behind Tisiah, as we saw two white vans approach us. ¡°Oh no,¡± I muttered in worry, and soon enough agents poured out of those two vans.


    But one of them was quite calm about the situation, with he had a ring with a red skull on his finger.


    .....


    ¡°Well, clearly the FBI knew my intentions,¡± Dr. Mord said with a chuckle, and he approached us with his wand held tightly in his hand. ¡°And they also knew that my intentions were good.¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± I asked back with a quizzical look.


    ¡°Listen, you get out of here. We¡¯re not letting you get away with this virus,¡± September said. ¡°No matter what you do, we¡¯ll find it.¡±


    Dr. Mord sighed as if he wanted us to understand his evil actions.


    ¡°Something tells me you¡¯re not, though,¡± he said with a little smirk. ¡°Agents, deal with them,¡± he said, as he slowly made his back to his van. The van Dr. Mord was drove away as the agents advanced towards us. ¡°This is bad,¡± Tisiah said, leaning into a fight posture. ¡°Very bad.¡±


    ¡°Wee to being a spy mage,¡± September said with a chuckle. ¡°Get ready.¡±


    ¡°Trust me, I am,¡± I said with a smile, staring directly at Dr. Mord¡¯s agents. Suddenly, they began to storm towards us at a fast eleration. I charged in, meeting with an agent by the far left. He came in first with a powerful swing of his wand, while I pushed my arm forward in order to block his blow with mine.


    I felt myself jolting backwards in pain as I gritted my teeth together as I focused on my legs so that I would be able tond safely after blocking the agent¡¯s attack. ¡°Seem a little shaken don¡¯t ya think?!¡± the agent shrieked manically, reforming his grip on his wand. ¡°You¡¯re dead!¡± He continued with a voice full of rage as he raised his wand in high in order to strike me again with an even more powerful blow this time.


    He swung-very hard-but I was able to evade the swing, but it was a dangerous and close one. I quickly returned with a counter that was strong enough to break his defense, but I didn¡¯t give him time to dodge my counter and hit him straight into the air as I pressed on the ground as hard as I could until he was forced out of the air and downwards towards the ground. He crashed with an enormous sound into a pile of broken white stones on the ground.


    The agent¡¯s wand hit the ground and cracked into two pieces before it rolled to a corner of the stone floor as I heard a moan of agony from him.


    One down.


    The other one came-and I could tell he was more experienced. He constantly moved back with each swing I tried to effect, always giving him enough room for me to move in-or try to move in-before he would counter my attacks with some kind of attack of his own. He was quite fast at that and it was hard for me to keep track of him as I tried to match his speed and keep up with him as I kept firing off spells one after another at him, but none of them ever seemed to do anything against him.


    I was growing exhausted as my arm felt heavy while I kept moving around him like a snake chasing its tail with every swing or attack that I sent. But then, he came in with a staggering chain of attacks that sent me flying into the ground, my body unable to keep up with my reflexes. My breath escaped me as Inded hard against the ground with my arms spread out in front of me in order to protect my face. I was out for a few seconds as I couldn¡¯t move from the impact-but when I did get up, I saw him slowly walking towards me.


    ¡°So this is the great Connor that Dr. Mord warned us about?¡± the agent chuckled, slowly making his way towards me. I staggered back,ying back on a white van. ¡°I¡¯m quite disappointed.¡±


    I chuckled, but a grand ball of fear rolled inside my stomach, causing it to grow cold as I realized that the agent was just getting closer to me. I managed to look up at him and notice that he had an extremely annoyed expression on his face as he stopped right in front of me.


    ¡°Well, maybe it¡¯s because I¡¯m going easy on you,¡± I said, well knowing that was only ten percent true. ¡°Or maybe it¡¯s because you¡¯re just too weak and pathetic.¡±


    ¡°Weak?¡± the agent hissed, and he moved back a bit. ¡°You think you¡¯re so much better than me? You think you¡¯re so much stronger than me?¡±


    ¡°I think I¡¯m better than you, yes,¡± I said back, charging my Perk up more, as I saw him charge his wand.


    ¡°Then why aren¡¯t you dead yet?¡± he asked, as he swung his wand. I dodged the attack with ease, but I could feel the fatigue in my body as I did so.


    ¡°Because you¡¯re slow,¡± I said back, as I ducked under his next attack. ¡°That¡¯s why.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not slow!¡± he screamed back, and heunched another attack. I blocked it with ease, but I felt my energy draining out of me with every movement.


    ¡°I¡¯m not slowing down, either,¡± I said back, and I continued to dodge his attacks. He advanced quickly towards me with his swinging wand, making me evade all around each area of attacks, until finally I found myself backed up against a wall. There wasn¡¯t anywhere else I could go without taking hits from him.


    I added in quickly a kick to give me space of escape, which worked, but it also gave him a chance toe in and attack me.


    His wand smashed through the wall I was standing on, sending rubble everywhere as I stumbled backward, falling onto the ground. But I quickly returned to my feet, storming him with punches that mostly missed him but kept him busy, allowing me to escape again and again as I began to feel even more drained and tired with each punch I threw at him.


    But then suddenly he was right in front of me again as he raised his wand high into the air-and began to yell. He shot a flurry of bolts that came speeding my direction, but I was able to dodge them all with ease and put up some defenses as I did so.


    ¡°How did you get so good at this?¡± he asked, panting as sweat poured from his head, making it look like he was out of breath from yelling so hard.


    ¡°Because you¡¯re bad at this,¡± I responded sneakily, and I felt proud of that one. ¡°Because you¡¯re not a good enough mage to have even made it past basic training.¡±


    I rushed towards him, closing the distance between us very quickly. ¡°I¡¯ve seen much better mages than you!¡±


    ¡°No you haven¡¯t, because you would¡¯ve already defeated me!¡± he returned, rushing towards me promptly as well, as we came in a blur towards each other with our fists raised high into the air as we charged with all we had at one another.


    ¡°You can¡¯t hit me!¡± I yelled as he ran towards me with his wand in hand-but at thest moment he changed the direction of his run towards me,ing in fast from the side while he swung his wand out towards me with an attack aimed directly for my head. But before his attack reached me, I jumped and quickly flipped in the air before I came crashing down on the ground behind him and kicked him in the back of his head with all my strength.


    The agent fell forward onto his face and rolled over on the ground as I stood over him, ready to strike again when suddenly he raised his head up and spat at my feet as he got back up slowly.


    I shook my head as I looked at him, almost feeling pity for him as I saw he got up again. He looked really tired and out of breath as if he had been running all day long and then running some more, which made meugh a little bit inside.


    ¡°You seem a bit tired!¡± I mocked loudly, as he slowly walked towards me, his breathing still heavy from all the running he did earlier. ¡°And not to mention, you look like you just lost your fight!¡±


    ¡°Shush up!¡± he snapped, and then he quickly closed the distance between us.

 Chapter 199

    199 Coming Back


    I swung his wand, but I did the same-and soon enough, our wands continued to dance with one another like swords, neither of usnding a hit on each other. But then, we both broke through each other¡¯s defenses at the same time with powerful blows that knocked one another to the ground, each of us rolling onto the floor for a moment before getting back up again with our hands raised in anger and frustration.


    ¡°Try me!¡± he shouted,ing in with a powerful swing before I rolled out the way, getting back up on my feet. I rested on the wall of the highway, looking at him as he approached me once again, but this time he was slower and weaker.


    We were evenly matched now-both of us trying to overpower one another with our magical attacks, but nothing seemed to work. He came at me with a swing that went over my head. I dodged and rolled, returning behind him fast enough to kick him, but that only sent me back towards where I had just been standing. I tried jumping over his swing next, but then he did the same thing-his sword-wand passed right over my head again.


    ¡°You fear me,¡± the agent remarked once again, as he got up off the ground from where he had just been kicked in the gut and swung around at me as I stood in ce on the side of the road.


    ¡°I would never fear you,¡± I returned to him, getting my Perk charged up and ready inside of my arms, but all of a sudden he threw a hard swing with his wand-knocking me in the face, knocking me down to the ground.


    ¡°I should have expected this from you,¡± he continued to taunt as I got back up on my feet, rubbing my eyes from the force of being hit in the face with the hard swing from his wand. ¡°I really should¡¯ve.¡±


    He rose his wand up and pointed it at me, as if he was going to execute me for my crimes or something. ¡°Well now you¡¯re going to die, and there is no person around to help you,¡± he said. But all of a sudden-sirens bellowed from far away meaning only one thing: The FBI wereing.


    The BMO agent looked in horror, as he turned back to his teammates. ¡°Hey we gotta get out of here,¡± he remarked, running away with hisrades to one of the vans that were parked, as I tried to follow them as well, but it was toote-the FBI had arrived. I turned around as they approached me, each of them dressed in ck military uniforms with big ck sunsses covering their eyes.


    I saw Agent Max making his way towards me, looking in worry.


    .....


    ¡°You okay?¡± he asked once he reached me, bending down and examining my face.


    I nodded my head up and down in agreement as I looked at the rest of my team members surrounding me.


    ¡°I¡¯m good,¡± I replied as Agent Max took me by the hand and helped me up from the ground. I was still rubbing my eyes from where I was struck in the face by the BMO agent with his wand. Nikki ran over to me and took a look, her eyes widened with fear but also relief, as she came into contact with my skin again and immediately saw that I was okay.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± I asked her once I noticed her eyes were locked onto mine in concern and concern for me, not for herself or anything like that.


    I nodded and soon enough September and Tisiah joined into the scene, as I got up onto my feet, still rubbing my eyes from where they got hit in the face with the swing from the BMO agent¡¯s wand.


    ¡°We¡¯re all good,¡± I remarked as Agent Max led us towards one of their SUVs. I sighed, feeling a bit dazed but alright in the end, as Nikki turned around towards me with her mouth agape. ¡°But I think Dr. Mord has Dr. Whitehead,¡± I said, as Agent Max looked at me with worry, which only added up more worry on my own face.


    ¡°Come on,¡± he told me as I followed behind him into one of their SUVs after Tisiah and September also climbed inside. The driver wasted no time and drove down the road, making his way towards the FBI base. ¡°We need to tell Agent Nelson now,¡± Tisiah said, looking at Agent Max worriedly, as I looked out the window of the car, watching the scenery pass by.


    ¡°We need to find him as soon as we can, but who knows where Dr. Mord already is taking him,¡± Agent Max said with gritted teeth, as I looked over at him worriedly, trying to hide my worry from him since I wasn¡¯t sure if I could handle it right now if he knew what was going through my mind.


    But then, an idea clicked inside my head.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t we use this to our advantage,¡± I said, turning to Agent Max. He looked at me with a perplexed expression as he asked, ¡°How?¡± I smiled as I looked at him, seeing his face that was screaming confusion, before I took a deep breath and replied, ¡°We can find the next scientist on the list while he¡¯s busy doing whatever with Dr. Whitehead.¡±


    Agent Max looked at me for a moment, but then his smile slowly began to widen, nodding in agreement, before he looked back over at the rest of our team members who were now in awe of what I just told them as well as they all started smiling too.


    ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± September said with a smile on her face. ¡°We could do that.¡±


    ¡°Alright, someone tell Agent Nelson we¡¯reing back to the base,¡± Agent Max said to one agent inside the vehicle, as I looked back out the window again and felt the car start to move as it turned down the road and onto the highway.


    I didn¡¯t know how long it¡¯d take us to get back there and if we¡¯d make it on time or not considering that we still had to think about Dr. Mord. Soon enough, we arrived to the FBI base as our car parked. We entered into base quickly, being met with Agent Nelson¡¯s concerned face, as she came over to us immediately.


    ¡°I was informed about your whereabouts,¡± she said, looking at us all as we got close to her and looked at her face filled with worry and concern. ¡°You think Dr. Whitehead was kidnapped by Dr. Mord.¡± I nodded in agreement as she sighed in worry. ¡°What¡¯s your n?¡±


    ¡°We find another scientist on the list while he¡¯s busy with him,¡± Nikki presented. Agent Nelson nodded in approval, as she turned over to Agent Max.


    ¡°Find the next scientist on the list quickly,¡± she said with a snappy voice. Agent Max quickly pulled out hisptop, opening up the list that was on the folder.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see here,¡± he said as he began to look over the names. ¡°We have Dr. Vance Jameson,¡± he said with a slightugh as he looked at us and pointed to a man in his early thirties with brown hair and blue eyes. Agent Nelson looked at it closely, as she slowly nodded in understanding. ¡°Find where his location is before Dr. Mord does,¡± she said.


    ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am!¡± everyone said, agreeing with her decision.


    ¡°I¡¯ll stay here and try to get more information on this,¡± she said as she turned around and went back into her office with her head down, looking like she didn¡¯t want to deal with this anymore, especially considering what happened with Dr. Whitehead. I looked at her close the door, before I turned over to Nikki.


    I felt something in me check on Mchi, being that he loves these types of stuff. He was missing out on a lot, and it was just sad to see him chained to a hospital bed. But for his own safety-for his own safety-it was necessary that he was there until he healed from his injuries.


    ¡°I¡¯m gonna go check on Mchi, alright?¡± I said to my team. September nodded slowly as I walked off, heading down the stairs and to the left hall where the hospital room was. I entered, looking at each door that was mostly empty before I saw one door. Mchi. I walked towards the door, opening it slowly to see Mchi¡¯s still body.


    ¡°Hey, Mchi?¡± I muttered with a little smile. ¡°How are you doing?¡±


    ¡°Terrible, you?¡± he said with a groan, which I shook my head no to as I sat down beside him.


    ¡°No,¡± I replied with a sigh of relief as I smiled softly at him. ¡°We¡¯ve had many fails during these missions, and I¡¯m afraid this next one is gonna be another one.¡±


    ¡°Well tell me everything that has happened,¡± Mchi said, shifting up a bit to his liking, before he turned and faced mepletely. His face was still bruised, but it didn¡¯t look that bad as it looked before with all the ck splotches all over his face and even on his neck where it appeared like it was shed open with an old de.


    ¡°Well, we haven¡¯t had much time to sit down and talk about everything that has been going on,¡± I began as I gave him my best smile, ¡°but I¡¯m sure once we get back we¡¯ll have time to sit down and chat about everything.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± Mchi said slowly as he took in a deep breath, before he looked over at me and nodded slowly with a soft smile. ¡°I¡¯ll wait patiently.¡±


    ¡°Hope so, because I know how you are-you are not patient at all,¡± Iughed as he shortly followed, before sighing to a stop. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about this.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be sorry,¡± Mchi replied with a frown as he took in a deep breath, ¡°I¡¯ll be fine.¡± He was probably trying to sound brave, but I knew that was just how he was-he never showed fear at all. He might be a hothead at some times, but he was still a brave agent. I had to respect that.


    ¡°I know you will be fine,¡± I assured him as I took in a deep breath, ¡°I just wish we could¡¯ve gotten more information about Dr. Whitehead.¡±


    ¡°Dr-who?¡± Mchi asked, making me realize he didn¡¯t know about that yet. ¡°Nothing,¡± I quickly responded, as Mchi nodded. ¡°Nothing at all.¡± I shrugged and sat back in the chair before Mchi turned back around with a smile on his face beforeying back down again and closing his eyes as I stared at him for a while.


    I smiled-looking at him. I¡¯m d he¡¯s joining us tomorrow-I missed him, even if he was kind of annoying at times. But now... he¡¯s back on track with this mission and that¡¯s all I care about right now.


    ¡°I should head back to the lobby,¡± I whispered as I stood up to leave.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mchi murmured softly as he looked at me with a smile, ¡°I know.¡±


    ¡°Good night,¡± I told him before I walked out and closed the door behind me.

 Chapter 200

    200 Getting to Hoovers


    It was the next day, and ready to find where Dr. Jameson is. I woke up from myfortable bed, that was in my office-dorm room, and stretched as I looked at the clock that was on my desk beside my bed. It read 5:00 AM.


    It was really early for me to be up, but I had to get ready for this mission since we were leaving at 6:00 AM to head over to his location, if we even had it. While I was making my towards the lobby, I heard someone catch up behind me.


    I turned around, and my heart rose with glee.


    ¡°Hey Mchi!¡± I said as he rushed in with a very embracing hug, which made meugh in happiness as I wrapped my arms around him as well, as I could feel his muscles were tensed up from excitement and nerves for this mission. ¡°We have to hurry.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, we gotta go,¡± he said as we moved up the stairs and into the lobby. As soon as Mchi¡¯s head barely showed, everyone began to p in jubtion of his return. ¡°Wee back Mchi,¡± September said as she went over to him with another hug, then pulled away after a moment as she looked up at him with her smile widening.


    ¡°Hey September,¡± Mchi said as he grinned, ¡°How are you?¡±


    ¡°Fine, you?¡±


    ¡°Could be better,¡± he said with shrug. ¡°But here we are.¡± Agent Nelson looked back and gave a quick wave, before she looked back to the screen. ¡°We found his location,¡± Agent Nelson announced. ¡°Who exactly?¡± Mchi asked.


    ¡°Dr. Vance Jameson,¡± I filled in for him, as Agent Nelson nodded, ¡°He¡¯s somewhere in Las Vegas.¡±


    .....


    ¡°How do you know that?¡± Nikki asked as she looked up from herputer as well as she stood from her chair toe over to us. ¡°Max looked into his whereabouts, and we noticed a pattern in his daily life,¡± Agent Nelson began once she came towards us.


    ¡°We looked at where he¡¯d be at a particr time of day and who he¡¯d be with,¡± I told her as she looked at me with a confused expression. ¡°We¡¯ve also narrowed down what he likes to eat for breakfast.¡±


    ¡°What location do you think he¡¯d be at?¡± I asked. Agent Nelson smiled as she snapped, catching Agent Max¡¯s attention. ¡°Pull up the security cameras to Hoover¡¯s, which is the casino we¡¯re going to go to first.¡±


    ¡°Yes Ma¡¯am!¡± Max replied. Agent Nelson then turned to look at the screen. ¡°I¡¯m gonna get some clothes and a weapon from our team car,¡± she said as she left the building. ¡°Hoovers?¡± I muttered in confusion, never hearing of that ce before. Mchi shook his head as well.


    ¡°It¡¯s one of the most prestigious casinos in Las Vegas,¡± September spoke up. ¡°They¡¯re owned by the Lobos.¡±


    ¡°Who¡¯s the Lobos?¡± I asked September and she shrugged, ¡°I dunno.¡±


    ¡°Me neither.¡± Nikki added.


    ¡°So you¡¯re telling us that he¡¯s somewhere at this casino?¡± I asked. September nodded.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be hard to find him since he¡¯s a secretive person, but we¡¯ll find him,¡± September told me. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± She immediately made her way towards the elevator, as we quickly followed after her. As we walked over to the elevators, the doors opened and September rushed in first, followed by Mchi, myself, and Nikki.


    ¡°Hey, where are you guys going?¡± Tisiah asked as he ran over to our side of the elevator, making his way in. The door closed and I felt like my heart was going to beat out of my chest with all the nerves that I had. ¡°This one should go well,¡± September said, looking at each of us, ¡°But you never know what might happen.¡±


    ¡°He could have friends with him,¡± Mchimented as I felt my heart rate go down, ¡°He might have an aplice.¡±


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s just hope for the best,¡± September said. We walked out of the ground floor and into one of the SUVs that were in the parking lot. It was ck and shiny, so it didn¡¯t blend in with the other cars that were there. September quickly got inside and the rest of us got in after her, Mchi sitting in the front passenger seat, Nikki sitting in the middle, and me in the backseat.


    ¡°Alright, is everyone in?¡± September asked, as I gave a thumbs up quickly. ¡°Great.¡± She quickly pressed a button and we began to drive away from the building. ¡°Tisiah, you can take the back.¡± I saw the back open up and Tisiah got in, ¡°I¡¯ll sit in the middle.¡± Nikki sat next to Tisiah and then Mchi got into the front, pulling out his wand and activating his magic.


    ¡°I can¡¯t wait to get my hands on him,¡± Tisiah muttered.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± I asked, feeling a bit concerned, especially after what happened yesterday.


    ¡°Connor Drails!¡± Tisiah said with a slight smirk, ¡°You¡¯ll see.¡± He seemed very happy. I felt a little uneasy at that moment, but then I remembered Tisiah had been there to save me since the beginning. But thatment was weird in many ways, and I mean really weird.


    ¡°That¡¯s not a very good thing to say,¡± Nikki spoke up.


    ¡°Oh, I know that!¡± Tisiah replied quickly, ¡°I mean it in a way that will benefit us all.¡±


    ¡°Yeah...¡± September agreed sarcastically, before she pressed her earphone. ¡°What¡¯s the address for Hoover Casino?¡± Silence was breaking inside of the SUV for a moment, before September nodded. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s go.¡± The car suddenly sped up and made its way towards Hoover Casino. I could see the streets through the windows. It was clear outside, so I could see some of the city lights and buildings, as well as other cars that were driving along the streets.


    ¡°We¡¯ll find him there,¡± September said to everyone, ¡°And once we do, we¡¯ll find out why he¡¯s there and who he is working with.¡±


    ¡°And where the virus is I hope,¡± I added on quickly, as we sped through the streets of Las Vegas.


    ¡°Of course, of course,¡± September said as we continued to drive towards our destination, ¡°You can¡¯t have a virus without a virus.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Mchi muttered in confusion. ¡°I guess that makes sense, but how is that important?¡±


    ¡°Because,¡± September began, ¡°If they don¡¯t have the virus, then they can¡¯t spread it to us.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Mchi said, ¡°I don¡¯t follow.¡±


    ¡°They definitely have a virus, meaning it has a location,¡± September exined, as realization came over us, ¡°We¡¯ll find him at Hoover and we¡¯ll figure out what¡¯s going on. We¡¯ll stop it.¡±


    ¡°Why is he there?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°It sounds like he¡¯s not supposed to be there.¡±


    ¡°Probably isn¡¯t, but he goes here every day. It would be a natural urrence,¡± I said, as Nikki nodded in agreement with me.


    ¡°This is an investigation,¡± September stated, as she drove carefully, ¡°We will find what he is doing there, and then we will deal with him ordingly.¡±


    ¡°Oh... so we¡¯re going to kill him?¡± Tisiah asked, his tone changing from happy and excited to more of an annoyed one. He seemed upset with the prospect of killing the other man. ¡°No,¡± September shook her head. ¡°I hope not.¡±


    ¡°We could torture him first,¡± Tisiah suggested. ¡°Then we could find out what he knows. Then we could kill him.¡±


    ¡°Torture?!¡± I shrieked in more concern, ¡°What did this guy do to you?¡±


    ¡°I-I didn¡¯t do anything to him!¡± Tisiah stuttered.


    ¡°Then why did you suggest that?¡± I asked him, and he rose both of his hands in innocence, before he let them fall back into hisp.


    ¡°I¡¯m just trying to help!¡± Tisiah cried, ¡°It would be the right thing to do!¡±


    Worry filled the room, and confusion raced through our minds, but after a moment of silence, we all agreed to keep going to Hoover Casino. There were no other options besides going and stopping the virus and possibly stopping the mysterious spy mage, who was trying to do whatever he was nning on doing.


    Soon enough we arrived to the parking lot, with the parking lot smelling like cigarettes and smoke.


    ¡°That¡¯s not good,¡± I said to everyone, as I saw the smoking area.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Nikki said, ¡°That¡¯s not good at all.¡± She began to slightly cough from the smell, before she took a deep breath in order to get over it.


    ¡°If the person we¡¯re looking for is here,¡± September began, ¡°We¡¯ll see him here.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Mchi said, as he was staring up at the building. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    We entered out of the car and began making our way towards the casino, still smelling the smoke-but at least it was as bad before we went in.


    ¡°What are we going to say?¡± I asked as we made our way inside. I saw a sign that said, ¡°Hoover Casino wees you to Vegas!¡± Trust me, Vegas hasn¡¯t been really weing these past few days, and this ce certainly didn¡¯t help.


    ¡°We¡¯ll just say that we¡¯re looking for somebody,¡± September began. ¡°If he¡¯s here, we¡¯ll find out what he¡¯s doing.¡± We made our way inside of the casino, and when we did-I felt as if my eyes werepletely just burst from the light, and I was blinded by the brightness.


    ¡°Ugh,¡± Nikki moaned, as she covered her eyes with her hands, while September covered her mouth with her hand to stop her from breathing in any smoke. ¡°This ce needs entire cleanup,¡± Nikkiined, as we made our way through the hall of gambling machines, slot machines, and different games.


    We began walking down a long hallway where there were games like poker, craps, roulette, ckjack, slots, and everything in between. Men rolled dice and hosting games everywhere that I looked, but I saw no sign of anyone in particr that we were searching for.


    ¡°Where do you think we should start?¡± Tisiah asked. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of people here.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s split up,¡± September suggested, as she continued to look around. ¡°Mchi with Tisiah, Nikki with Connor, and I¡¯ll just look for him by myself.¡± ¡°You sure?¡± September chuckled as she looked at me directly. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure I can,¡± she said with a very wide-but fake smile, ¡°If you¡¯ll let me.¡± I shook my head and rolled my eyes at her.


    ¡°Oh, I know you will,¡± I said with confidence.


    She walked away from me, while I watched her with a look of amusement on my face. She looked like she was about to lose it, but I had a feeling that if she did, she would probablyugh it off, or at least not make too much of it.

 Chapter 201

    201 Speeding Through Hoovers


    ¡°Make us some binocrs real quick,¡± I said to Nikki, who secretly got out her wand-quickly manifesting tworge binocrs. I took the binocrs out of her hands and put them on my head so that I could see everything that was going on around us. I clicked on my earpiece, making my way towards talking to Agent Max.


    ¡°How does Jameson look like?¡± I asked him, as typing echoed inside of my earpiece, I continued to walk through the hall of games and towards the entrance. I was feeling a bit dizzy as we walked, and it took a couple of seconds for my eyes to adjust. ¡°Okay,¡± Agent Max muttered. ¡°He is quite the man: a little taller than you are, maybe about two times your age, with a thick beard and a dark-skinnedplexion.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said with a low voice, as I looked around-searching for someone with that type of build.


    ¡°See anything?¡± Nikki asked, but I shook my head quickly, as I was still trying to search for anyone who looked like Jameson.


    ¡°How about you?¡±


    ¡°No, nothing.¡±


    I sighed as we continued down the hall, searching each and every row of gambling machines and slots to see thatplexion, which looked a little darker than Nikki¡¯s mocha skin, and that beard. It was difficult to find anyone who was tall, but then again, they didn¡¯t all have to be tall.


    ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± Nikki said, as she made her way around to the side of me. ¡°Maybe they aren¡¯t here at all.¡±


    I stopped walking and took off the binocrs from my head. But as I did, I saw a little sight-someone that looked super simr to him. Quickly, I threw those back onto my head, and there he was. Or at least I think there he was, because I had to make sure it was Jameson.


    .....


    ¡°There he is,¡± I said. ¡°I found him guys.¡±


    Nikki and me made our way over towards the scientist, that seemed to having a very brief drink, as well as taking a quick nce at the slots and gambling machines.


    ¡°Excuse me,¡± Nikki said, as she walked up next to Jameson, who was now facing away from her, and then turned around. ¡°I know its a bit weird seeing us kids around here. Trust me I¡¯m sixteen, so maybe not too much of a kid-but we need to take you in for questioning.¡±


    The man chuckled and shook his head, ¡°What kind of y-along is this?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not, trust me,¡± I added to him, as he began to look a bit more concerned, though still not really surprised. He nced over at me, and then looked back down at the table of slots.


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± he asked us.


    ¡°We¡¯re here to question you,¡± Nikki replied. ¡°Where¡¯s the Cobra Virus?¡± Dr. Jameson¡¯s face molded into fear, as he looked at two of us. ¡°What virus?¡± he asked, and I felt likeughing. ¡°Don¡¯t act dumb with us please,¡± Nikki returned, and I nodded in agreement. ¡°We know it¡¯s somewhere.¡±


    Jameson didn¡¯t say another word, and he slowly stood up and backed away from the table of gambling machines.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re-¡±


    ¡°We saw the list of scientists, so nothing you can do can really try and fool us, sir,¡± I said with a very wide smile, seeing Jameson¡¯s horrified face, while I continued to speak. ¡°Nowe on. We know what you¡¯ve done. Where is it?¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know anything,¡± Jameson said, but he still seemed to be acting fearful. But all of a sudden, he darted away from us and now we knew we had a runner. ¡°Get after him!¡± I shouted, as Nikki and me chased after him at full speed, as we went after Jameson. He seemed to go at the speed of light, but he had a little of trouble getting to the stairway, because it was a dead-end stairway.


    Quickly I shifted over the corner, as he suddenly climbed to the second floor on a rail, as I did. He hurried away from us, almost bumping and crashing to other people that were seeming to go the opposite direction. We did the same, as we maneuvered through the people-trying to get to him.


    ¡°Stop!¡± I shouted at him, but he didn¡¯t listen one single bit, and he kept running away from us. I think his foot had fallen out from under him, and he almost tripped and fell to the ground. He quickly got up again though and ran faster than before. ¡°Stop!¡± I shouted as we ran after him, but he didn¡¯t even acknowledge me.


    ¡°This is our only chance,¡± Nikki shouted, ¡°Let¡¯s jump over this rail.¡± She looked at me, as if she thought I was going to say something dumb or wrong. I shook my head at her, and she nodded, before she jumped up and over the railing. I looked back at the crowd of people around us, and I jumped up and over the railing.


    So now we were on the same story as him, and we were catching right behind him, as he was now trying to get away. We had to get close enough to him that we could tackle him down, but not close enough that we would get hurt in the process. But all of a sudden, he dodged towards the bathroom-then cut another corner, and he was heading straight for the emergency exit.


    I jumped up, as I wanted to catch him, but Nikki stopped me and shouted, ¡°Wait!¡± We both saw the emergency exit open and Jameson dart towards it. I needed to stop him quick! I charged up my Perk, and I transferred the energy over to my feet. I stomped hard, very hard, creating a shockwave that sent him down to the ground, and then I tackled him down to the floor.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move!¡± I shouted at him. He seemed in shock, and his eyes were rolling back in his head. But then he looked at me, staring directly at me and suddenly knocked me off of him. I fell back, seeing him get his wand and suddenly swing it. It hit Nikki in the stomach, sending her flying into the wall, while I quickly rolled away from Jameson.


    ¡°You¡¯re done,¡± I shouted, as I got up to my feet, ¡°And you¡¯re going to jail.¡± I was so angry right now.


    I got out my wand, as he swung his towards me. Now I dodged, but he advanced towards me with a flurry of quick attacks, and he was so fast-that I barely had time to react. The air was full of sparks and fire, as his wand zed, and it felt like my wand was burning hot. But his body was open, and I kicked him the chest.


    He stumbled back a bit, but he definitely wasn¡¯t done.


    Our wands danced with one another, shing and nging with such power that seemed to sound the entire bathroom. I jabbed him away from me to give at least a few feet. But then he charged-rushing in with a powerful kick that knocked me in the jaw, sending me crashing into the wall, and then falling on the ground.


    I couldn¡¯t believe he knocked me out like that. He didn¡¯t even give me a chance to fight back. ¡°Connor!¡± she shouted with worry as she ran over to me, ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    I took a deep breath as I saw Nikki staring down at me. ¡°Yeah,¡± I told her, ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± I slowly got up, but then she pushed me back down-looking directly at my face. ¡°I¡¯ll deal with him for you.¡± Then she turned around slowly, rage boiling on her face and I could tell Dr. Jameson was already contemting his life choices.


    Nikki first came in with a powerful swing, but it sort of backfired because he dodged it quickly. She turned around, just to see a wanding at her but she rolled backwards.


    Close call.


    They both charged at each other, their wands shing with one another before Dr. Jameson shoved her away-creating space between them. He then came in, ready to swing with a powerful force.


    But Nikki had other ns, and she rolled out of the way. Now to finish him, she swung immediately after she rose from the ground and sent him into the wall. He tumbled down,nding directly on his back.


    Nikki stood over him with her wand at his throat before she spoke up.


    ¡°Now, you¡¯re going to tell me where the virus is before I kill you right now,¡± she hissed, as I made my way towards her. ¡°Then kill me,¡± he muttered with gritted teeth, ¡°Kill me now.¡±


    I put my hand over my mouth. What was he talking about? Did he really think that she was going to kill him? ¡°Trust me, I will,¡± she said, her eyes wide and crazy,pletely off the deep end, ¡°I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m doing this.¡± She let go of his throat and got ready to finish him off.


    ¡°No!¡± I shouted, trying to stop her. But then I heard footsteps rushing towards us, and soon enough it was September and the rest of them-who looked in confusion at what happened, especially when they saw Nikki ready to kill Dr. Jameson.


    ¡°Nikki,¡± September said, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    ¡°He knows where the virus is,¡± she said with a shaky voice, ¡°I know it.¡±


    ¡°Nikki, calm down,¡± I said, touching her arm and pulling it away. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Let¡¯s take him in for questioning.¡± She sighed and calmed down, but her eyes were still trembling. ¡°I can¡¯t believe I did that.¡±


    ¡°We need to question him,¡± I told her, ¡°But if we hurt him, we¡¯ll be in a world of trouble. Let¡¯s go everyone.¡±

 Chapter 202

    202 Interrogation


    We got back to the FBI base, finally happy to have someone to find where the Cobra Virus is. Agents rushed out of the building to see the scientist. ¡°Did you get him?¡± an agent asked, and Tisiah nodded, ¡°Yes, we did.¡±


    ¡°Is he okay?¡± another asked.


    ¡°He will be,¡± Nikki replied. ¡°I¡¯m sure he will tell us everything we need.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s hope so,¡± the agent said as we exited from the SUV, with Dr. Jameson in handcuffs. ¡°You¡¯re making a grave mistake,¡± Dr. Jameson said to Mchi, who was by him. ¡°I know that you¡¯re all part of a n to overthrow the government.¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Mchi asked. ¡°Why do you think we¡¯re part of a n?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re trying to save the world!¡± he shouted, but rubbish was the onlynguage I heard from his mouth. ¡°You want to destroy it and enve us?¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Mchi asked again, and the doctor just kept shouting.


    ¡°We¡¯ve already helped you, so don¡¯t worry,¡± Nikki said to him. ¡°We¡¯re going to have you confess your information. Nowe with us.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± he said, ¡°You can¡¯t take me away like this.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Hush!¡± the agent ordered, and Dr. Jameson¡¯s mouth was kept closed. ¡°We have a lot more questions for you.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re going to make sure that you tell us what we want to know,¡± I said. ¡°Everything.¡±


    He was brought inside to the base, as Agent Nelson looked up-her eyes lighting up. ¡°Alright, put him inside the interrogation room. I¡¯ll speak with him,¡± Agent Nelson said, pointing in a certain direction, and the rest of us went there.


    The stairs saw us go down its steps before turning to the right, with a door leading to the interrogation room. We opened it, and Dr. Jameson sat down at the table with a pen and paper. Agent Nelson came out with a chair and sat down beside him. She looked at us, and we received the message to get out of the room.


    ¡°In here,¡± I said, going inside of a room that seemed to have onerge window, allowing us to look through it.


    Agent Nelson got out a file that looked prepared by her, and she didn¡¯t seem fazed by his t look. ¡°Dr. Vance Jameson, a scientist that used to work in the Department of Defense, but was fired for experimenting on people.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know who you¡¯re talking about,¡± he replied. ¡°I worked with them before I was fired.¡±


    ¡°Exactly...¡± Agent Nelson muttered, confused by his feeble words, ¡°You were fired for experimenting on people. You used to experiment with people.¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Dr. Jameson asked, his voice sounding weak and pathetic. She sighed, ¡°Anyway, you then found yourself hired by a man named Jacob Mord, which I¡¯m sure he gave you a good amount.¡±


    ¡°What does this have to do with anything?¡± he hissed. ¡°And what¡¯s this about an experiment? I never would have done anything like that.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re lying,¡± she replied. ¡°I can tell that you¡¯re lying. But that¡¯s not what I¡¯m here for. Dr. Mord was working on a virus-which I¡¯m first wondering what it¡¯s for.¡± Dr. Jameson was quiet, and Agent Nelson stared directly at him-not taking a single side-eye anywhere off, but just staring at him with cold eyes.


    ¡°What do I gain from this?¡± he asked, slowly shaking his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know who you are or what you are talking about.¡±


    ¡°We know about everything,¡± Agent Nelson said, and he shut his eyes tightly. ¡°You attacked one of our agents, plus you apanied someone on terrorism. You¡¯ll be going to jail for quite a long time, but we can work out something.¡±


    Dr. Jameson leaned back in his chair-although it was rock hard, his lips were curled up in the corners. ¡°You do not know who you are messing with,¡± he said. ¡°The people you are after will soon find themselves dead.¡±


    ¡°But you can stop that,¡± she said. ¡°We can lower your sentence to maybe twenty years if you cooperate, or maybe get you parole.¡± She paused. ¡°Plus, it¡¯ll be easier for us if we know about any other terrorists that have been set up by Dr. Mord.¡±


    He sighed and looked at her, his eyes directly at Agent Nelson, as though she were a pile of excrement on the floor. He smirked at her, and then looked up to the window. ¡°He wants to use it to attack certain agencies, to weaken them. The FBI was never his problem, it was other organizations that even you don¡¯t know of,¡± he said with clenched teeth, ¡°You cannot stop this...¡±


    ¡°Can you tell us anything?¡± Agent Nelson asked, still not taking any side-eyes off of him. She seemed to be in the middle of her own personal conversation with herself. ¡°What are those agencies?¡±


    My throat felt wiggly from uneasiness from the situation, but I saw the scientist not say anything, only continue to stare up at the window, not speaking.


    I turned around in my seat and faced the window, seeing the darkening clouds from the city below me.


    ¡°If you won¡¯t cooperate, then I have no choice but to send you to prison,¡± Agent Nelson said. ¡°But you have one more chance, one more. Here¡¯s my second question. Where is the virus.¡±


    He froze as if Agent Nelson¡¯s words were eating up his soul, his lips sealed shut.


    She spoke again, ¡°You need to answer my second question.¡±


    I turned around to see the look of annoyance on his face.


    He pointed his finger at Agent Nelson, as she slowly sat down in her chair-looking back at him with a confused expression on her face. She paused for a moment, as though she had forgotten something important.


    Dr. Jameson leaned back in his chair-the hard stic creaking under his weight-and smiled with his teeth showing. ¡°You wanna know, I want my sentence down to ten years, now you know why. I have a wife, a daughter, a sister, a niece, two nephews and a daughter-inw that I love very much. If I am sent to prison, then I will never see their faces again.¡±


    ¡°And what makes you think your virus will not kill them? What if it gets out of control?¡± Agent Nelson challenged, as the scientist took a deep breath and continued to speak.


    ¡°What makes you think it won¡¯t get out of control?¡± he replied. ¡°It has already been out of control, for quite some time. They¡¯ve already killed people in the past.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    He took a deep breath. ¡°What do you think happened when the virus first went into effect?¡± He stared at Agent Nelson, ¡°It was set to go off at a certain time and a certain ce, but it didn¡¯t go off, instead it was set off at a different time and location.¡±


    Agent Nelson stood back up, and walked over to the window, looking down at the city lights as I stood up too and watched her. ¡°It¡¯s only a matter of time before it bes a pandemic,¡± he said with a smile, ¡°and when it does, you won¡¯t be able to stop it, not if you¡¯re fighting with the lives of others. You can¡¯t win against it.¡±


    I could see Agent Nelson shaking her head, watching Dr. Jameson stare her down. ¡°Where is the virus, Jameson?¡± she said onest time, with a voice of rage and impatience, which I did not like at all.


    He turned around, sitting back on the bench in front of us, folding his arms, leaning his elbows against his knees. ¡°It¡¯s in a warehouse in Washington D.C. The address is this: 2512 6th Street, N.W. That¡¯s all I know.¡±


    ¡°And why did you set it off then?¡± she asked.


    He remained silent, staring out at the city. ¡°Dr. Mord¡¯s orders, I don¡¯t know them. Just have to do them. I¡¯m pretty sure you understand that don¡¯t you?¡± he said, chuckling like some cartoon viin, as she continued to re at him. ¡°What? Are you going to try and kill me?¡± he said in an innocent tone of voice.


    But she didn¡¯t respond to his cunning statement, instead just exited the room-walked out the door and mmed it shut. He was left in there in the smell of wood and oil, thinking about his own life and what he had done to those who were closest to him. She went inside our room, where we looked at the interrogation room.


    ¡°We¡¯re going to Washington D.C soon,¡± she said as she looked at the five of us. We were all looking back at her with fear and nervousness.


    ¡°We?¡± I asked, trying to hide the fact that I was freaking out.


    ¡°We are,¡± Agent Nelson said. ¡°We¡¯re going to stop him, but for now, let¡¯s get prepared before we get there. Alright?¡± I nodded, with the fear of what was just happening beating-pumping hard in my chest.


    ¡°And what if we don¡¯t stop him?¡± Nikki said as she shook her head.


    ¡°Then you will die.¡±


    Nikki¡¯s eyes opened wide in shock, ¡°Like you¡¯re going to kill us.¡± Agent Nelson shook her head exceptionally, ¡°No, like the virus is going to kill all of us pretty much.¡± I sighed, but it wasn¡¯t any moreforting than what she said. It was a terrifying thought. We walked out of the room, as my thoughts popped up everywhere I looked. How can we stop the virus from killing everybody? I felt so helpless. I didn¡¯t want to be this way. I wanted to be the hero, but I felt helpless and useless.


    There must be a way to stop Dr. Mord, somehow, I thought to myself as I looked around the room, trying to see if I could find anything that might help me. I didn¡¯t know what to think of it all. We were on a mission to stop Dr. Mord¡¯s n, but then we would also need to find a cure for the virus. But how could we do both at once? I sighed as I sat down on the bed. I just wanted to be able to go home and forget about all of this, but that was wasn¡¯t going to happen soon. It was a big problem that needed solving and there was only one person that could do it: Dr. Mord.


    Except he was our enemy.

 Chapter 203

    203 Riding Around


    Today was the day: the day where we would go to D.C and stop Dr. Mord. It was gonna be a long time between Las Vegas and Washington D.C, like how many hours...like a couple of days or so. Immediately, we made our way towards the lobby and Agent Nelson was there, and I could feel the intensity of the stare she was giving us.


    ¡°You guys know what to do?¡± she asked us sternly, but I couldn¡¯t tell if she was being serious or not. I didn¡¯t know if we knew what to do or not. I didn¡¯t know if it would be a good idea or not. We were so scared of what might happen if we didn¡¯t do the right thing. I looked at Nikki, ¡°Do we really know what to do? Like...do we have a n or something?¡±


    ¡°No, but we know our objective,¡± she responded. ¡°Find the virus which I hope Agent Max already has ready. It¡¯s just us five, September, Mchi, Tisiah, you and me.¡±


    I shook my head and let out a nervous sigh. Nikki kept looking at me with her eyes narrowed. She didn¡¯t have much to say to me, but she still looked mad at me for some reason. Or maybe it was me that had caused her to look that way.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± she asked me as if I was a kid who got in trouble.


    Iughed nervously, ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine,¡± I replied, shaking my head again. ¡°We¡¯re ready.¡±


    ¡°Now, here is the game-n, okay?¡± she said, looking at us while pointing to the screen. ¡°We¡¯ve checked out the base and its big, to be honest, and we haven¡¯t found anything yet, but we will. Dr. Mord is very smart so he will make sure of that. But we have one advantage over him.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    ¡°Surveince,¡± Agent Nelson said with a wide grin, as if this was a joke and not real life. Agent Max then typed something on hisptop and turned around and looked at us. ¡°The drones are fully loaded with sensors so we can monitor Dr. Mord¡¯s actions and movements, but also the entire base at the same time.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Ooh, nice,¡± I said. She nodded. ¡°There are five guards at each corner of the first floor, there are four guards on each side of the second floor, three guards on each side of the third floor, and only two guards on each side on the fourth floor.¡± She showed us the image on the screen and the path that she thought was correct.


    ¡°Use the shadows to your advantage,¡± she said, turning to us. ¡°The guards don¡¯t move as much as they did when we were stealing the folders from that oneb.¡± I sighed in relief, knowing what happened that day, but that didn¡¯t mean it was going to go well for us today. It just means that hopefully it would be easier to get past them and into Dr. Mord¡¯s office.


    ¡°There are a total of fourteen guards stationed around the entire base, but no other scientists except for Dr. Mord,¡± Agent Nelson continued. ¡°I have ess to his security system so we should be able to disable the rms if need be.¡± I nodded in agreement as Agent Max continued to move the screen through all the floors.


    ¡°I¡¯m gonna need another nap after this,¡± Mchi muttered with a deep sigh, leaning back in his seat. He was really out-of-it, but he still helped us out with our n and get us this far. We needed him and I knew he was tired, but he was doing something good here. ¡°Alright, get set up before we leave for Washington D.C,¡± she said, as we got up and headed over to our dorms.


    I checked my belt.


    Gun, knife, grappling hook, res, grenades, batons, and more-and my gun was loaded with armor piercing bullets. My wand was ready and charged, and I was ready for anything.


    This was going to be a dangerous mission.


    It wasn¡¯t just because of what we were about to do to Dr. Mord, but also the virus that he may hold. It will be super dangerous, but I¡¯m ready-I hope.


    I walked out of the dorm, heading up the stairs where everyone was ready. Next thing you know, Fulton ran up to me and sighed. ¡°Oh, Fulton!¡± I said with a joyous relief, looking into his eyes as he stared at me. ¡°You¡¯re okay!¡± he said, his eyes brightening in happiness.


    ¡°I am,¡± I replied as I gave him a hug.


    ¡°Well, ready for this?¡± he asked, and I nodded. ¡°Depends if everyone else is.¡±


    He nodded in agreement before he turned back to me, holding my hands. He then looked over at September. ¡°Are we good?¡± he asked her.


    She smiled back. ¡°We¡¯re good, let¡¯s go get Mord.¡± Immediately, all six of us made our way to the yellow elevator. We rose to the top floor, where the helicopter awaited us. ¡°Alright, get in everyone,¡± Fulton said as I made my way towards the helicopter. The wind blew against my face as I approached, opening the door, and got inside. I took a seat and strapped myself in. Everyone was in the same position I was, except for Nikki-who sat across from me, facing me.


    ¡°Everyone good?¡± Fulton asked as I was putting on my earpiece.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I responded, knowing that we were about to save the day.


    ¡°Okay, here we go-¡±


    The door closed as the helicopter began to fly forward and I felt the force of the wind hitting me in the face. ¡°This helicopter got some rocket thrusts behind it or something,¡± Nikki said as we chuckled a bit. Mchi shook his head with a little smile. ¡°Obviously, I think.¡± I looked down, seeing the town get further away from us-scaling down to little toys. The clouds arrived at our doorstep as we continued to rise to the sky. ¡°I¡¯m telling you, these people from the BMO are crazy people,¡± Nikki said, and I nodded in agreement.


    ¡°Tell me about it,¡± I said, looking out of the small window.


    ¡°First it was Maddie Cone, now her brother,¡± September said. ¡°We just woken a big family beast.¡±


    ¡°Who knows what the TSA are nning, because we haven¡¯t had to deal with them in a while,¡± I added, and silence filled the room. Tisiah sighed in thought, ¡°Yeah, kinda scared of them.¡±


    ¡°Super scared of them. They literally were hunting us-remember Demetrius Rocke?¡± Nikki asked, and that name made me freeze. I could still remember, and it hurt to remember.


    ¡°Yeah...¡± I muttered with a sigh, looking around. ¡°Yeah, I do.¡±


    The helicopter flew onward as we talked amongst each other. There were two windows, one on either side of the helicopter. I sat there looking out the right window, trying to see anything at all. I didn¡¯t even know if this was even going to work or not. We knew where Mord was; however, we didn¡¯t have the time to waste. We needed to go there fast and find him-bring him back.


    ***


    Soon enough sleep converted my body, and I woke up to hearing the pilot speaking. ¡°Hey listen, we¡¯re going to stop at one of the nearby bases in Ohoma real quick. We need to refuel the helicopter.¡± I immediately woke up, eyes clicking open as I got up, noticing everyone else waking up too. ¡°Hey, how ya¡¯ doing?¡± Fulton asked me as I pulled out the earpiece and took off my headphones.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± I responded. ¡°I think.¡±


    ¡°Maybe we can get something to eat while waiting for them to refill,¡± Fulton suggested, and Mchi shrugged. ¡°I¡¯m fine with that.¡±


    ¡°Of course you are,¡± Nikki hissed back at him, but I looked back at her curiously.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? You¡¯re usually the first person to be starving after a long flight.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Nikki started as she opened her mouth to say something. ¡°But Mchi eats all the time!¡±


    ¡°What does that mean?¡± I asked, confused by her tone.


    ¡°Nothing,¡± Nikki said, ncing away from me and smiling. ¡°It just means he¡¯s always hungry.¡± September looked at her suspiciously, as if she wanted to say more. As we approached down to the ground, I could see a bit H in a circle presenting itself useful for ournding with a few people waving their hands to direct us towards that target. The pilot flew us down towards that circle, and soon we were on the ground. The pilot immediately went over to an old man, talking into his headset and telling him to refuel us as quickly as possible.


    Slowly I exited the helicopter, feeling the wind from the des whipping my face, making it ufortable to breathe in. I pulled off the earpiece, hanging it around my neck as I walked over to where Fulton, Nikki, Mchi, September and Tisiah had gone, hearing footsteps walking up behind me.


    I turned around, seeing a man that was about 5¡¯10, with ck hair and some freckles on his nose. He had a ck jacket and pants, as well as ck shoes with no logo on it.


    ¡°We¡¯ll work on fueling up the helicopter, but just for safety measures for the FBI, we¡¯ll have to check your identification before we let you go anywhere,¡± he told me, opening a badge holder that read FBI. He checked my name against his list, then smiled and nodded. ¡°You¡¯re good to go.¡±


    ¡°Thanks.¡±


    He nodded to me as I walked away, but then stopped in his tracks. ¡°Onest thing-if anyone asks about this helicopter, it¡¯s supposed to be part of a delivery.¡± I nodded as I walked inside of the elevator, which Tisiah and Nikki shortly arrived with me. As soon as the doors shut, Tisiah nced back at me, his eyebrows raised curiously.


    ¡°What¡¯s that about?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°I guess they don¡¯t want anybody to know that they have this helicopter or anything rted to the case,¡± Tisiah responded. The doors opened and I found myselfpletely overwhelmed by how much was going on. The lobby had a pretty dim feeling, with tables all around and instead of a big screen, it was just a bunch of cameras watching certain areas of the base.


    I looked ahead, sighing at the sight. ¡°So where do we eat?¡±

 Chapter 204

    204 Backstory


    I turned around, seeing the elevator open with the rest of our team walking out. ¡°Well, they said that they should be done refilling by two hours,¡± September said as she encountered us. ¡°But if you want to grab something now, we have time for that.¡±


    ¡°Well, we need to get moving quick once it¡¯s time to go,¡± Fulton said, walking past us and leading the way. Being that we didn¡¯t get the memo, Fulton stopped.


    ¡°Y¡¯alling?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Oh, yeah!¡± Nikki said with realization, following him quickly as Tisiah and September followed behind them.


    I sighed at the group and walked behind them until I got to the front of the elevators. The door closed as I heard a voice speaking on the other side of the ss. ¡°Lunch time is now, so please make your way towards the cafeteria.¡±


    ¡°They have a cafeteria?¡± September asked, scratching her head.


    ¡°Somehow,¡± Tisiah said as the elevator made my stomach queasy a bit. He looked up, seeing me looking at him. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    ¡°This elevator is making my stomach feel bad,¡± I responded and then took a deep breath as I continued to look at the others. ¡°But I¡¯m fine though.¡± Tisiah nodded concernedly before the door finally opened and I stepped out, finding arge room with tables and chairs surrounding me.


    ¡°Wow!¡± Nikki eximed. ¡°This is amazing!¡± She was staring at one of the tables that was in the center of the room where food was spread around. ¡°I¡¯m ready to get myself a little something,¡± Mchi said, rubbing his hands so much that I could feel the heat from his hands, which were getting quite warm.


    .....


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe they have this stuff here,¡± Nikki said, holding some tes full of sandwiches, fruits, and drinks. ¡°Do you think they serve any meat?¡± I shrugged, actually taking notice to what she was saying, even though I didn¡¯t know why she was asking about meat.


    ¡°You like meat, right?¡± I asked her as we all made our way to a table and sat down. Tisiah looked at his sandwich and his face turned red. ¡°I don¡¯t think it has meat in it,¡± he said, inspecting it very closely, almost to the point where he was making me ufortable.


    ¡°It does have meat in it,¡± September told him before she took a big bite out of her sandwich, eating it as fast as she possibly could. She turned it back towards Tisiah, showing him the bitten-off meat that kind of relieved me a bit, since it was probably just a bit of ham and I could tell from the look on his face that he didn¡¯t really want any. He took the bite, eating it and nodding in response to what she told him.


    ¡°How is it?¡± Nikki asked. But Tisiah responded with a slight shrug, as if he didn¡¯t want it. I didn¡¯t eat mine yet, but his reaction was less than ster to actually convince me to eat it. ¡°Anyway, so based on what Dr. Mord said, he added a fact that he wanted revenge on you guys for some unknown reason. Why?¡±


    ¡°Oh, his sister,¡± Nikki said with a nervous chuckle. ¡°Well, that¡¯s quite a story, to be honest with you.¡±


    I nodded with her response, and Fulton sighed. ¡°What did you guys do? I just want to know what I¡¯m dealing with?¡± Soon enough I sighed, and everyone else sighed afterwards. ¡°Well, his sister-Betty Mord was an agent that was under the apparently fake name Maddie Cone. She attacked the warehouse that the CSMO owned, Charlie. The BMO were working on a weapon called the Xeno, and that was the ce they wanted to use it to test it out apparently,¡± September said, with Fulton¡¯s eyes piercing with interest.


    ¡°So then...¡± Fulton asked.


    ¡°We found out there was possibly a mole that leaked information about Charlie. Now, although it wasn¡¯t much of a mole, someone worked for Maddie Cone to get the information,¡± September said. ¡°But to run it back a bit, we found she needed someone with a strong enough Perk to actually charge up the Xeno, therefore,pleting its construction.¡±


    ¡°Mm,¡± he said in understanding.


    ¡°The sheep was going to be a kid named Masaru Kin,¡± September exined. Fulton¡¯s eyes lit up instantly. ¡°The son of the JSA C.E.O?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, and we had to spend a week trying to prepare him for the convoy attack that was happening. To fast forward, it didn¡¯t work,¡± I said. ¡°But then, I became the sheep for the BMO because I was apparently a better fit. But then things happened and fast forward, it ended up with us chasing her down. We then cornered her, and she seemed super overwhelmed. She ended up just blowing herself up.¡±


    ¡°So, how was it your fault?¡± Fulton asked.


    ¡°Once the police investigated the scene, they said that someone caused the explosion, and it showed not to be her supposedly, so Dr. Mord may have seen that and med it on us who were right by her.¡±


    ¡°Wow,¡± Fulton said, his mouth wide open in shock. ¡°Hmm-that¡¯s very sad.¡± He took a drink of his water. ¡°That must have been... devastating for him. That¡¯s why he wants to use the virus. Not because of the world, but you guys.¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s very selective-I¡¯d say more of all the EMO organizations, but it could cause a pandemic,¡± I said. ¡°There is a colossal risk of that happening.¡± Fulton nodded as he took a sip of his water, ¡°Very big risk, which is why we need to stop him.¡± But then, the PA system cackled back into life-as we heard these words: The building is now being in lockdown, intruders have made their way to the base.


    Silence aroused between the six of us, before Nikki muttered in fear, ¡°What...just happened?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but its not good,¡± I returned back.


    ¡°Come on,¡± Fulton said. ¡°We need to get ready.¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t go out there!¡± Nikki said. ¡°This ce is going to be like a war zone!¡± Fulton sighed as he got up to his feet, not listening to a word that came out of her mouth. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go!¡± he said. Nikki muttered before she went after him, muttering something about how she had no idea what was going on.


    Fulton was running as fast as he could towards the entrance, but we were still five minutes away from the front door when we heard a loud crash followed by screaming. Fulton stopped immediately once he heard the crash. ¡°What in the world?¡± he muttered, looking above and down. ¡°We need to move,¡± Mchi warned, getting my agreement as I looked up. The ss of the skylight above was shattering, with some light peaking through, giving us enough light to see that a figure was flying at us. ¡°What the-get down!¡± Tisiah shouted, as I dove onto the ground-hearing the machine gun-fire rain through the building.


    We were all ducking down behind different objects until we heard a loud thump in front of us. ¡°Everyone okay?¡± Fulton asked. We all nodded back, then moved to our feet slowly. ¡°The helicopter should be ready,¡± Tisiah said, looking at us.


    ¡°It¡¯s been only thirty minutes!¡± Nikki returned back frantically, fear pumping through my veins.


    ¡°Well, it should have enough time,¡± Tisiah said as I stared at him in disbelief. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± he said as he took off down the hall, hurrying as he ran towards the stairwell. I soon enough followed as he led us towards the outside, but right then and there, I knew that was a bad idea. I could see BMO agents with their guns and weapons, storming like a phnx outside of the base.


    ¡°Oh no, back-back-back!¡± Tisiah screamed, and I instantly turned back in the opposite direction.


    I wasn¡¯t trying to die here, not today! Not now! Not with so much left undone! I stumbled over my words as Nikki looked back at me in surprise. ¡°We can¡¯t fight them,¡± I said, as Nikki shook her head in disbelief. ¡°Then we need to run,¡± I responded to her, as we continued to speed through the halls, dodging through any potential battle areas. ¡°It will give them something to do other than hunting us.¡±


    We heard a loud crash, but didn¡¯t pay attention as we ran faster.


    But I heard a lot more footsteps than just us. I looked back and my heart dropped, and my eyes bulged in fear as I saw BMO agents hastening towards us. I felt like melting to the floor at that point, and my fear skyrocketed and my anxiety activated my sweat. ¡°Oh, no!¡± Fulton worried, ¡°They¡¯re chasing us!¡±


    ¡°We need to hold them back,¡± September said. ¡°I got you guys.¡± She suddenly stopped, as confusion struck my head, then she pulled out her wand and cast a spell. It was a wind spell. The wind began to blow from the stairs, and all the agents were pushed back and hit their heads on the wall, and then the wind blew again.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m joining you,¡± Mchi said, stopping as well.


    What was going on? ¡°What is this?¡± I asked.


    Nikki was looking back at me, but didn¡¯t answer until thest agent was knocked out. It wasn¡¯t fair they were protecting me, when I had-no to brag-the more effective power than them. I needed to help them as well, but-I don¡¯t know... it was almost like... like I couldn¡¯t-I could barely-no, I was going to help them.


    They helped me, and its time to return the favor.


    Soon enough, I stopped like them and began to speed towards the BMO agents like a rushing wind, with my hands raised in the air.


    I could do this.


    I was faster than them.


    I would win.


    I would not let them get me.


    I was a champion.

 Chapter 205

    205 The Wave of Terror


    I soon arrived towards the fight, as three of the BMO agents opted to challenge us. They ran towards us like lions hunting their prey, but I was ready. Mchi looked back at me, doing a double-take before he finally saw my entire presence. ¡°Connor?!¡± he asked. ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    ¡°Helping,¡± I responded with a smirk, the bravery and aplishment in me burning like a fire.


    But then Mchi screamed, ¡°Watch out!¡±


    But then, I felt the wind of a wand barely pass over my head. I rolled out of the way, my heart beating as if someone was just pounding it with a hammer. I got up to see a BMO agent with his wand firm in his grasp. ¡°Oh, we¡¯re gonna have fun,¡± he chuckled weirdly, ¡°I can already tell.¡±


    He shot off some lightning, which was met with a burst of mes that came from Nikki. Then another shot, but she stopped it. I wasn¡¯t too far away, and I kicked at him to throw him off-bnce. He rolled-but quickly got up to his feet. But there was enough space for me toe in with an effective attack.


    I came in, my fists ready to swing, before I approached. He swung first, but I knew that wasing. I ducked and came in with a hard punch to the stomach, adding another topping of a quick left. Then another right jab. Thest one being a final left hook.


    But instead of feeling the impact of his own punches, he just stared at his own body like he couldn¡¯t believe he didn¡¯t get hurt. How did he not fall, or even die from that impact. I needed to use my Perk, so I shot a quick st of fire-by charging my Perk-towards his chest and then another at his legs.


    But my shots missed, mainly because he dodged them like some sort of ninja. He came at me with a flurry of attacks that barely missed me, and I knew eventually one of them was going tond. I needed to do something, and quickly. I threw a hard punch at his chest, that sent him flying-but he againnded onto his feet.


    This man was crazy. He didn¡¯t even flinch or slip from my powerful attacks, butnded as if they were baby ps. Anger boiled through my arteries, and I went into attack mode. I charged and threw a hook kick. My opponent jumped over it, which would have been an easynding if I hadn¡¯t been on fire. Instead, he stumbled back a few steps before recovering himself.


    .....


    I shot out a few fire bolts at him, but he kept running-evading every fireball that slipped by him. He stopped, and a dashing wind caught me off the ground, sending me flying backwards and into the wall.


    ¡°Someone seems a little shaky, don¡¯t you think?!¡± he cackled, but I didn¡¯t take no damage from his pathetic words, though my ears were ringing slightly. ¡°I know what¡¯s happening.¡±


    He took his wand out of his pocket and pointed it at me. I readied myself, and then another st of fire flew towards me, only to be stopped by the wind. Who was doing the wind? I turned to see Mchi right by me, looking at the BMO agent that was staring at us like a hyena. ¡°Oh, this just got even better,¡± the agent said with a croaky voice.


    ¡°You okay?¡± Mchi asked me, and I nodded-although I felt like a bowl of jelly. ¡°Let¡¯s get him.¡±


    We looked ahead at him, and fired towards him at full speed. He swung his wand, sending a wave of water sshing towards us, but we dodged it without effort. Mchi approached, swinging his wand but only managing to get blocked by the agent¡¯s wand. They danced around with their weapons, not really making any sort of progress.


    I knew this was my time, so I jumped up and sent my fist towards the BMO agent¡¯s chest, only for him to block me with the tip of his wand. The impact knocked me back, but not before my fist hit him in the chest.


    He flew from the ground and crashed into what seemed to be a table with a school ofputers on it. ss shattered and sprinted through the air before he fell to the ground, but he wasn¡¯t done yet, and pulled himself up to his feet.


    ¡°You can¡¯t beat me!¡± he screamed.


    I could tell this guy was good at wandbat, but I could see right through that and had already prepared to fight fire with fire. ¡°Trust me, I have some help as well,¡± he said. He slowly, barely even able to move his trembling hands, reached for the radio. ¡°Hey, I need some backup over here,¡± he said.


    He practically called reinforcements, but there was no reply. I was ready to pounce at the next second-but nothing happened. He had stopped talking.


    I turned to see that Mchi was frozen, too, his hand still on his wand. All of a sudden, two agents sped up behind him as if they just spawned and now he had a few teammates. ¡°How about we make it fair,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°Get those two, the others will deal with that girl over there.¡± He was talking about September, which was enough to tell me this was getting worse.


    The two agents sped towards us, the one on the right choosing his opponent to be me.


    Wrong choice... hopefully.


    He swung his wand towards me-but I smelt that from a mile away. I jumped over and did a backflip, dodging the zooming swing before perfectlynding on the ground. If that was in slow-motion, that would¡¯ve looked sick. I came in with a quick jab, almost like a warning before I came in with a good kick to the jaw, knocking him out cold.


    I turned to see Mchi now fighting two agents himself. He was good at hand-to-handbat. They were a bit slow, so he had the upper hand in that area. I rushed towards him to help, firsting with a ram. That was enough to distance one agent from Mchi, and I could see his face twisted up with anger.


    ¡°You¡¯re not the only one that can fight hand-to-hand!¡± he screamed. The agent who had just been kicked away wasing for me. Oh, no. He grabbed my body and pulled it off the ground, before mming me down to the ground like some sort of wrestler. I felt the pain of all the air being squeezed out of me as he went to punch me in the stomach. I couldn¡¯t breathe... and then I could, because he wasn¡¯t hitting me anymore-I¡¯d moved.


    I got up to my feet before he could return another one, but he halted as if he froze-then turned to me.


    All of a sudden, he came with a powerful swing that only gave me only half of a second to duck and move out the way. But this was a perfect time to attack. I gave a quick jab to the stomach then a good right, but that was was stopped in his tracks.


    I threw another one for good measure, but he leaned from the punch before a kick to the chest came at me, making me stumble backwards a little before I could get my bnce back. I got to my feet, ready for anything. ¡°It¡¯s okay... we¡¯re gonna stop this together,¡± Mchi said with a calm voice. I nodded, taking a deep breath to calm my frantic brain before returning to the fight.


    I looked at the agent, trying to study his next move.


    But it was not what I expected at all.


    He started first with a long kick, that almost jabbed my ear off, then he threw a jab that I dodged by jumping out of the way. Then came an uppercut, but it wasn¡¯t powerful enough to knock me out, though it did throw me back a little. I spit out the blood that jiggled in my mouth, before returning my sight towards the encountering opponent.


    He came with a jump before he twirled with a kick that contacted by my eye. The contact and the force grabbed me from the ground and threw me through the air, making my neck hit on the ground with a crack. I couldn¡¯t breathe; all I could feel was a cold and hard floor under my face, while I coughed out some blood and dust in my mouth.


    I felt like I couldn¡¯t move...I couldn¡¯t even breathe. I wheezed and coughed, which were the only things that seemed to give me some sort of air, but nothing seemed to work. Slowly he walked towards me with a sly smile, I was about to die right here and now.


    Then I saw his face.


    Mchi!


    ¡°I got this,¡± Mchi said as he ran towards me with his wand. ¡°Stay still!¡±


    He gave a jolt of electricity to the man and made him fall down on his knees. The man tried to stand up but he couldn¡¯t, he was shocked so badly that it didn¡¯t even let him stand on his own two feet. He turned his attention to Mchi, who had a look of victory on his face as if he just won a fight.

 Chapter 206

    206 Helping Hand


    But the agent wasn¡¯t done at all, in fact-he just got even more furious, as if he was some sort of gori or lion.


    ¡°You think you won?¡± the agent muttered, the spit spraying from his mouth. ¡°I¡¯m not done yet.¡±


    He charged towards Mchi, holding nothing back a single bit, with his eyes full of hate.


    ¡°I¡¯m gonna beat you like a dog!¡± he roared.


    I just watched as Mchi stepped back. The agent was getting closer and closer to him, and I just hoped that he would survive this. The agent fired a gust of fire at him, but Mchi dodged the st and grabbed his wand in the air, firing it at the man¡¯s chest.


    I felt like my heart was going to burst out of my chest at that moment; I was so scared. Mchi shot another st, but the agent easily evaded it with a kick, but Mchi kept going, throwing himself at the agent¡¯s chest and tackling him on the ground, while he continued shooting out fire at his enemy. He kept firing, making the man scream out in pain and fall back, while he got up again and again. The agent¡¯s whole body was on fire, but he kept fighting back, dodging all the attacks that Mchi gave to him.


    Shock was the only thing on my face. I had never seen anything so terrifying and yet so heroic in my life. My heart was beating rapidly and I was feeling as if I was going to pass out. I thought that Mchi was going to get killed at any moment, but he kept on going with his assault. Then I heard the sound of a loud crack, followed by the agent¡¯s scream and fall to the ground, motionless.


    Mchi stood up and looked down at the agent lying motionless on the ground, with the same smile on his face.


    ¡°Is he dead?¡± I whispered, unable to move from my spot.


    .....


    Mchi nodded, before he turned to me with a look of relief and smiled. ¡°We did it.¡±


    I just shook my head and ran over to the agent. ¡°Oh...oh,¡± I muttered, speechless from the agent¡¯s lifeless body, which was covered in blood from his nose and mouth. ¡°He¡¯s dead...¡±


    ¡°We have to get out of here, fast!¡± Mchi whispered to me as he grabbed me by the wrist. But then, more footsteps decided to erupt behind us. I looked and saw BMO agents sprinting towards us like a charging army. ¡°This isn¡¯t good,¡± I said, looking at Mchi in fear. But right at that moment, the faint-but rising sound of a helicopter echoed.


    I looked beside me, seeing the helicopter as it is in the sky. The door was open and wide, with Fulton and the rest of the team¡¯s concerned face staring directly at us. ¡°September!¡± I shouted, seeing her finish one more agent off. She saw the opportunity of escape. ¡°We got to go, now!¡± I shouted at her, my hair swaying crazily from the wind.


    She didn¡¯t say anything, barely muttering confused words. But then she nodded.


    ¡°Jump!¡± Fulton shouted from the helicopter. I looked by the side, seeing the storming agents that were ready to take us down like pinballs. ¡°Ready?¡± I asked, looking at Mchi. He sighed and then nodded confidently, and I did the same as well as a certain confirmation. Quickly, I moved back, preparing my stance for the jump that I was going to find myself flying through.


    ¡°Jump!¡± Fulton shouted, and I ran-my legs almost flying through the air itself.


    But I grabbed hold of the ground, and I leaped with the wind pushing me and the air lifting me through the sky. I set my eyes directly on the sight of the team members¡¯ fearful but hopeful faces. I felt like closing my eyes, but the fear alone kept them open. I dared not to look down, not to take my eyes off of anyone in that helicopter. Them only. Them only.


    Closer and closer I came, but the wind was beating against me, making me feel as if my bnce was already wavering and stumbling. But I kept my eyes-only my eyes focused on them. Closer I arrived, closer I came, closer I reached towards the helicopter. And soon enough, my first step in the helicopter was made final-and I soon enough crashed inside the fullness of the flying savior.


    ¡°Yes!¡± Nikki cheered as I slowly got up from the rushing momentum that pushed me inside, making me crash into the wall. But only relief was what was going through my mind. Relief was coursing through my body, as I looked up at the team and at Mchi. ¡°Thank you, thank you!¡± Nikki said with a smile and a wave of her hand.


    ¡°We did it,¡± I said with augh and a sigh, knowing that we just escaped the storm of our own making.


    ¡°Oh, my goodness, are you okay?¡± Tisiah asked, as he approached with a worried face. I could only smile from the fact that we made it-but that meant Dr. Mord knew we wereing. How did he find out we were here. Was there some BMO base nearby. I had many questions that I wasn¡¯t sure I wanted answered.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s get out of here,¡± Mchi said, mming the door shut with all the remaining strength that he had. He slumped back onto his seat, and I felt like doing the same exact thing. Not gonna lie to you, the exact same thing, as we had been working ourselves to death in order to reach this point. It was finally over, and we were now free.


    ¡°We still have onest job,¡± Nikki said with a grin from ear to ear. ¡°Get to Washington D.C.¡±


    ¡°Oh gee, I didn¡¯t know that,¡± Mchi responded sarcastically, but he smiled in the end beforeying his head back, sleeping the sleep of the exhausted. I wasn¡¯t sure what the next step was, but I knew we would have to figure it out. We were alive, but that didn¡¯t mean we weren¡¯t at a crossroads.


    ¡°Is everyone okay?¡± the pilot asked us with concern in his voice, but it was more for his own benefit than anything else. After all, he was just as tired as we were, and he wasn¡¯t the only one who wanted to rest.


    ¡°Yes, we¡¯re good,¡± Tisiah replied, though we were far from being okay. ¡°Alright,¡± the pilot said as he continued flying the helicopter. We had probably an hour or two left until we reached Washington D.C, so hopefully it wouldn¡¯t be too long, and I would be able to rest up for what I had to do after that.


    Winds howled, the storm raging overhead and growing stronger by the minute. The rain fell from the heavens, beating down on us in the chopper like a thousand fists, shaking us around. The storm was like a living thing, and we were its prey. I looked out, seeing only clouds ahead of me, sifting through the air like butterflies through the shattering rain, dancing wildly.


    It looked so beautiful, but it was a bit scary as well from the beating rain, banging against the side of the chopper, as if trying to break it down into splinters. And what did it say about me? Did I ever have a chance to even stop it?


    The storm moved forward like a massive beast, closing in on us in the blink of an eye. But it passed overhead, as if it saw people-and it¡¯s rage slowed and calmed once it set eyes on us, and passed over for our sakes. I could sense the anger that came from it, the sadness, the torment, and it made me want to reach out and take hold of it and shake it for what it had done to me, but then I saw that it was far away, too far away to reach and fight, and I couldn¡¯t do anything but sit here and hope that my life would be spared.


    I looked at Nikki, who was sleeping beside me, and I thought about what she¡¯d told us, and realized that there was no going back.


    No going back at all.


    ***


    The sun rose higher in the sky, revealing that the storm had passed, and the chopper lifted off from itsnding site in the desert and began its journey to Washington D.C. As we neared our destination, the city came into view, a metropolis of millions of people who live there. It was hard to imagine how many people were living there. It was also hard to imagine all the cars that were whizzing along the streets at high speeds, but they were probably driving around in circles because they knew there wasn¡¯t any other ce for them to go.


    I looked up, seeing the giant Capitol that was standing high and great like a beast, a grand beast of America, towering high above all the other buildings, as if trying to steal their thunder and power. It looked like the sun had been caught by the building and it was hanging above us like a giant jewel in the sky, with a massive crown and a body made of shining metal.


    ¡°Whoa,¡± Nikki muttered in awepletely, looking at me with an excited face, almost as if she were trying to convey some secret message that she was too shy to tell me herself. ¡°It¡¯s beautiful.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s pretty awesome, huh?¡± I asked her.


    ¡°It¡¯s incredible!¡± She shouted, and I could see the joy in her eyes. Mchi looked outside but nothing seemed to spurt out of his mouth in excitement. Fulton, too, stared at the Capitol building with his usual dead-serious face, though he did nce at me at times, but I could tell he was still worried about me, even though he pretended not to be.


    ¡°Wow,¡± September said in a certain sarcastic tone. ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯ve been here twelve times exactly, just saying.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen anything like this before,¡± Tisiah said with an expression that said he was speaking from the heart. ¡°It¡¯s amazing.¡±


    ¡°It is,¡± I agreed. ¡°It really is.¡±

 Chapter 207

    207 The FBI Headquarters


    ¡°We¡¯re approaching the FBI headquarters,¡± the pilot announced to all of us, pointing out the window to a giant building which was so tall it seemed to reach the clouds. ¡°We should bending soon.¡±


    As we got closer, I saw a helicopter with arge red cross on it parked beside the building. ¡°I guess those are the medics,¡± Tisiah exined, and I nodded with him in agreement, although I hadn¡¯t really understood what he meant. There were two other helicopters parked nearby and we could see many men dressed in ck carrying guns standing on the roof of one of the buildings near the parking area.


    The FBI headquarters was a way bigger base than any of others were, and when wended I saw a huge field filled with helicopters and other types of military vehicles, along with tanks and other types of machinery. It was pretty impressive. I had heard the FBI were very active and aggressive, but this was my first time actually seeing it first-hand.


    ¡°All right everyone, we¡¯ll go in through the main building,¡± the pilot informed us, and we disembarked from the ne to be greeted by a couple of guards who were wearing dark sses.


    ¡°Do you have any weapons on you?¡± One of them asked us in a suspicious manner.


    ¡°Of course we do,¡± I told him, and I looked at Nikki and Tisiah. ¡°We¡¯re agents, we need weapons.¡± The agent didn¡¯t respond. I couldn¡¯t tell if he was expressing anything under those sses, or just acting. ¡°What¡¯s the matter? We¡¯ve got our weapons here.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s just that there are so many people out there, and thest thing we want to do is shoot anyone, right?¡± He answered in a low voice and pointed to some buildings far in the distance.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to worry about that. We don¡¯t want to shoot anyone.¡± I repeated in a louder voice so the others could hear. Some agents took attention to it by turning their heads towards me for a few seconds, and then they returned to what they were doing.


    ¡°There¡¯s a lot of people outside,¡± one of them finally said as he nced over to a building nearby where we could see people walking back and forth with guns and other things strapped to them. He continued to watch them for a few seconds, then turned his eyes towards us. ¡°If you¡¯ve got any questions, feel free to ask me.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Yeah, do you guys know about the whole Dr. Mord situation?¡± Nikki asked the man, and he nodded in response. ¡°Have you heard anything?¡±


    ¡°Yes we have heard a little, but we don¡¯t really have much information to go off of. We know about the virus that he¡¯s created and everything, but that¡¯s about it.¡±


    ¡°Does anyone know that we¡¯re trying to find the virus-like today?¡± Tisiah asked, using his fingers to emphasize his words. The man nodded.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve heard that you guys are trying to stop him.¡± He continued to speak while he was ncing at us for a few more seconds, and then he nced away. ¡°Follow me.¡±


    He walked away immediately as he quickly followed, and the excitement already began to burn inside of me like a fire-a very raging fire in this case, because it seemed that we were on the right track, and that there was a good chance of us finding this virus and stopping Dr. Mord before he could unleash it on the world.


    Or towards us at the least.


    We followed the agent through the city and out to an area where I could see some of the other agents doing what they were supposed to be doing: securing the area, making sure there weren¡¯t any problems, keeping things safe from the outside world. It was magnificent and so cool, it was like I didn¡¯t even want to blink anymore, because the more I watched them, the more I realized how amazing these guys were. They had all kinds of cool gear that looked like guns, and other stuff as well, and they seemed to be really good at what they were doing.


    We soon arrived at this sort of little building that served as a little section or office-and the door opened, immediately leading to an elevator, which led up into this massive room. The whole ce looked like it was made entirely out of ss or something like that, because there was only one solid wall in the ce, and the rest of it was all made up of theserge windows that overlooked the city and beyond.


    There were tables that hadputers resting on the counters, and papers that werezily organized on their tables. The men sitting at those tables were dressed in ck, with ck suits, and ck shirts underneath of their suit jackets-and their hair was cut short, like mine used to be back when I was younger.


    We don¡¯t talk about that.


    They all looked up from their work to greet us, and I immediately felt myself warm up inside, seeing their smiles and friendly faces. These men were my kind of people-I wanted to get to know them, but they seemed to be a little bit more secretive than me. I was a spy mage, and they don¡¯t even know that we exist.


    But then we entered a room that changed from the normal gray to the ck that suddenly changed the moodpletely. It was a sort of an office that looked like a fancy barber shop. The men here were dressed in the same clothes as the men downstairs, and they were sitting behind their own tables, with their ownputer desks, and they also seemed to be doing the same thing as the guys downstairs.


    But it was a very different ce-it seemed as if this room was more for our eyes. It looked more like a waiting room than an office, with lots of chairs that were made out of leather, with little cushions, so you could sit back and rx.


    But then, a man with silver hair walked up to us. His jaw was very out, and his sideburns were more visible than anything else in this room. He wore a gray suit with a striped tie, with gray pants that ended off with ck shoes, and he wore a white shirt underneath his jacket.


    He had this strange smile that was filled with power and confidence, and I could tell by the look in his eyes that he knew exactly what he was doing. ¡°You guys must be with Agent Nelson¡¯s task force,¡± he said, reaching out his hand.


    ¡°Somewhat,¡± Fulton said, reaching out his hand, but then pulling it back when the man didn¡¯t take it.


    The man looked at Fulton and smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t be scared-I¡¯m not going to bite.¡± And then he shook hands with Nikki, who was the first to shake hands with him. ¡°Yeah, with the Cobra Virus that Dr. Mord is trying to unleash,¡± he said, looking at each of us with a keen eye, as if we were some sort of threat or something. ¡°And you are?¡± He pointed at me.


    ¡°Connor Drails,¡± I said, extending my hand. He took it and shook it, then let go of my hand and nodded to Fulton.


    ¡°Alright, now Agent Nelson came to me by the phone, and told me that you all were going toe here from Las Vegas.¡± He pointed at Fulton. ¡°Now, we have scouted the area and it¡¯s filled with guards,¡± he said.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t we just bomb it?¡± Tisiah asked, as everyone¡¯s eyes looked at him in shock.


    The manughed out loud. ¡°Well, maybe that could work,¡± he said, rubbing his chin. ¡°But that¡¯s not the best option here. You see, they¡¯ve got an emergency response n, so they¡¯re not just going to let us walk in there.¡±


    ¡°I guess that makes sense,¡± September said with a confident but disappointed nod, like this was the end of the discussion.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± the man replied, looking around the room, ¡°but what I want to do is something different.¡± He raised his hand and made a fist. ¡°We¡¯re going to get our hands dirty. We¡¯re going to break into the ce.¡±


    ¡°What!¡± Nikki shouted, causing the rest of us to look at her in surprise. ¡°I mean, why?¡± She looked at the man and shook her head. ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me.¡±


    The manughed again. ¡°No, I¡¯m not,¡± he said, and then pointed at Fulton. ¡°You know how it is, I¡¯ve read your file. You¡¯ve made C.A.M from nothing, and turned it into one of the most helpful organizations in all of the world,¡± the man said, looking directly at Fulton¡¯s pupils, and then back at the rest of us. ¡°And you¡¯re going to use that skill set and turn it to breaking into one of the most heavily guarded buildings in the world.¡±


    Fulton smiled. ¡°You¡¯ve done your homework.¡±


    ¡°I guess you could say that, but I what I do know for sure is that this is the best way,¡± he said with a certain nod that proposed assuredness, like a judge passing sentence. ¡°If we blow our way in, they¡¯ll know who we are.¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± I said, thinking it over for a minute or two, ¡°it sounds like it¡¯s going to be a challenge to do this.¡±


    ¡°But it¡¯ll be worth it,¡± he said, scanning each of us closely, ¡°if we can make it through unscathed.¡±


    ¡°Unscathed?¡± I asked, trying to figure out what that meant.


    ¡°I know it sounds like an oxymoron, but it¡¯s not,¡± he replied, and then motioned to the other men in the room. ¡°This is my team. We¡¯re the best there is. This is going to work. We¡¯re going to get in there.¡±


    ¡°Why are you doing this?¡± September asked. She looked around at the other men and back to him. ¡°You¡¯re not here to help us? You just want to use our team to break into a heavily guarded building?¡±


    The manughed. ¡°Don¡¯t be silly, which by the way-I have not introduced myself,¡± he said, ¡°I¡¯m Captain Michael Briggs, with the FBI. And it¡¯s going to work because we have a n.¡± He turned to Nikki. ¡°Do you mind if I ask for a ss of water?¡±


    Nikki walked to the kitchen area and returned with a ss of water, which he drank from and then handed back to her.


    ¡°And so, Captain Briggs,¡± she said, ¡°what is our n?¡±


    ¡°Our n is simple,¡± he said with a smile and a nod, ¡°but first let me introduce you to everyone on my team.¡±

 Chapter 208

    208 Through the FBI Headquarters


    Captain Briggs began to lead us through the hall that was filled with pictures that disyed in every corner, and each of them was a picture of him standing beside some dignitary, whether it was a U.S. President, a World Leader, or a head of state. I thought I might have seen some of them before. Some were familiar. Some weren¡¯t.


    I noticed that the other men in his team were all wearing dark suits with a white shirt underneath and ties. They were clean cut and looked professional, but I didn¡¯t know how I felt about this man, Captain Briggs, and his team. I didn¡¯t know what they were nning and I was still very worried about how the situation was going to go down.


    ¡°How big is your team?¡± I asked questionably, hoping to hear an answer that would make me feel better about this group.


    ¡°Oh we¡¯re arge team,¡± he said, ¡°We have a total of seven agents with us, including me. I¡¯m also the leader of my team, and I take that very seriously.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good news, somewhat,¡± Nikki said as she looked around curiously, ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about this and I was wondering what was going to happen once you got there. There¡¯s no way we¡¯re going to be able to fight them off ourselves, are we?¡±


    ¡°Depends on how we n,¡± he said, slightly turning his head back, ¡°I mean, we have a n.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d love to hear it,¡± she said, her tone suggesting that she didn¡¯t really think it would help her at all, ¡°but right now I don¡¯t know what we can do against that many people.¡±


    ¡°Oh we have a n, trust me,¡± Captain Briggs said.


    ¡°It¡¯s just that the n is to break in there,¡± I said, ¡°and if the n is to break in there, then I don¡¯t know why we have to ask the question of what we¡¯re going to do once we get there.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Well,¡± Captain Briggs said, ¡°it¡¯s not aplete n.¡± He took us into a room filled with chairs and had us sit down. ¡°Have a seat, please.¡± We all did as he said. ¡°The first thing we have to do is gather more information on the building we want to break into.¡±


    ¡°What does that mean?¡± Nikki asked, sitting next to me. She seemed a little nervous about being in this man¡¯s office and with so many people around us.


    ¡°I mean we have to find out all the information about the building we want to break into,¡± he said, ¡°the one where the virus is being kept. We have to know theyout and the security of the building so we can n our attack properly. We can¡¯t go in there blindly. That¡¯s the first thing.¡±


    ¡°Good point, good point,¡± I nodded with him, ¡°and what are the other things you need to know?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± he said with a smile, ¡°the second thing is that it¡¯s very important that we gather more information about the virus itself. We need to know all about it, especially its weaknesses. Then we need to gather more information on the people who created the virus. The more information we have, the better chance we have of beating them.¡±


    ¡°Well we know that it¡¯s Dr. Mord, and we have a list of the scientists that worked with him,¡± I said to Captain Briggs, ¡°so that¡¯s a start.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, and we know that it¡¯s a virus that can infect animals and people, which is pretty interesting,¡± Nikki said, ¡°but how does it work?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± Captain Briggs said, ¡°the first thing is that it¡¯s a very simple virus, or a worm, as some might call it. It is very easy to create and spread. All it takes is to insert a single cell into another living cell and the cell with the virus will create new cells to do the same thing. So basically it spreads very quickly.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to be learning Science today...¡± Mchi chuckled, scratching his head, ¡°so how do you kill it?¡±


    ¡°It is killed with the use of a certain kind of radiation which breaks down the cells,¡± Captain Briggs told him.


    ¡°So how do you get that kind of radiation?¡± I asked. ¡°Are you saying we might find a cure inside of Dr. Mord¡¯s base.¡±


    ¡°I hope so,¡± Captain Briggs responded,ying back and sighing heavily, ¡°but I¡¯m not sure. What we need to do is figure out how to kill it once we get in there, and then get rid of it after we kill it. Then we have to find out all about it so we can keep ourselves safe from it. We can¡¯t let it escape and get loose. Thest thing we want is for it to start infecting people all over the world.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve given us a lot to think about,¡± I said, ¡°and I have to say that I don¡¯t think there is anything we can do right now, or at least not anything I can think of.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re probably right,¡± he said, ¡°but I¡¯m going to send a few men out tonight to check out the building where the virus is being kept and see what they can find out about it. By tomorrow, I hope we can finally start moving in. Stay tuned until tonight, because that¡¯s when we exin how we¡¯re going to invade it,¡± he said, looking at us with a smile, ¡°and how you might be able to help.¡±


    ¡°How could we help?¡± I asked him, wondering if he really believed that I was the person he needed. ¡°You already told us what we need to do.¡±


    ¡°Many ways, Connor...many ways,¡± he said, wiggling his pencil around, ¡°but most of all, you need to be able to help with the n to take over the building. It¡¯s all very simple really, but I want you to understand what needs to be done.¡± He then stood up, and so did everyone else, and took a few steps towards the door.


    ¡°Make sure to be back here by 6 pm, sharp,¡± Captain Briggs added before he closed the door.


    We all walked outside the room together and I looked at the others. I was feeling a little confused and didn¡¯t know what to do next.


    ¡°So what do we do now?¡± I asked. Fulton remarked nothing until he turned his head towards me, and sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± he finally responded, looking at each of us in turn, ¡°we can¡¯t stay cooped up in here forever. What are we supposed to do?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Mchi repeated.


    Nikki and I looked at each other. ¡°Explore,¡± Nikki said with a wide smile, which it was starting to look more creepy than normal, ¡°maybe we should go see the sights.¡±


    I nodded in agreement, but was suddenly confused by Nikki¡¯s choice of words. Why would we have to explore? I thought. I was hoping that we¡¯d just have to find our way out of the building. But since she¡¯d said that, I thought that maybe I should try and be brave about it too. So I stood up straight and nodded in agreement, even though I felt a little sick inside. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll go first,¡± I said, feeling slightly dizzy from the motion.


    Mchi walked beside me while Fulton followed behind. We went down the stairs and past the two agents standing guard, who were also confused as to what to do.


    ¡°Hopefully they have some snacks here,¡± Mchi muttered, causing Nikki to shoot him a look, but she didn¡¯t say anything.


    As we made our way through the hallways, we heard voices from down the hall. A group of people wereughing and talking loudly, probably getting ready to go out somewhere. As we got closer, I heard one voice speaking in particr.


    ¡°Do you know who else is going with us?¡±


    ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°That skull ring guy.¡±


    I knew right away what he meant and felt an icy shiver run down my spine. But I didn¡¯t say anything, I didn¡¯t want to say anything, I didn¡¯t want to be right, I just wanted to keep walking.


    We soon reached the end of the hall and could hear their voices clearly. It sounded like a small party of five or six agents that were talking before they headed out. ¡°Well, what¡¯s going on with them?¡± Nikki asked, her eyes focused on those agents. I shrugged, unsure of what to say, but I couldn¡¯t help but feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand up as we passed them by.


    ¡°We¡¯re all going to head outter,¡± one of the agents said, ¡°maybe catch a show or something.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, although I¡¯m scared about Dr. Mord,¡± I heard another one continue before their voices faded into silence, ¡°I don¡¯t know what his ns are anymore.¡±


    They were right though, because I was feeling the same way, but I didn¡¯t dare say anything as we walked down another hallway. We stopped as we heard a loud voice from a nearby room. The door was open slightly and I could see an agent talking into a telephone receiver.


    ¡°You¡¯re sure? That¡¯s great.¡± The voice continued, ¡°Okay then.¡± The agent then hung up and closed the door behind him. He walked out into the hallway with a smile on his face, waving to us as he went by.


    Had no idea what he was doing, all I know is that the FBI Headquarters differed greatly from I expected, and was definitely more crowded than I ever would have guessed. It was just like that big office in the center of the building we were staying in except instead of being a fancy room with lots of fancy furniture, this ce had been filled with people. There were people everywhere! In every hallway we walked down there was someone, or a whole group of people walking by. They all had stern faces, as if they were hiding something.


    Or maybe that¡¯s how everyone is these days...I don¡¯t know, but it made me feel uneasy just looking at them.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Mchi asked, turning his head towards me.


    ¡°I have no idea,¡± I replied, shrugging my shoulders, ¡°I guess they just like to have a lot of people around them.¡±


    ¡°Why do you think that is?¡± he asked.


    I shrugged again. ¡°I have no idea. Maybe it¡¯s just their way of dealing with things?¡±


    We came upon a doorway with several men standing around talking amongst themselves, so I stopped walking and looked inside. One of the men was talking on the phone while another man stood there listening to him speak. But then he turned and looked at me, with his nametag saying: ¡°Kellerman.¡±


    I continued to look at him, but he didn¡¯t utter a word, only stared back at me nkly. His expression wasn¡¯t threatening or anything; it was just a nk stare, like I wasn¡¯t allowed to talk to him or something. I turned back ahead, a bit creeped out from the startling look, and I saw Mchi doing the same thing.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said, shaking my head.


    ¡°Maybe he¡¯s just curious about what we¡¯re doing,¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I agreed.


    ¡°Come on,¡± he said, ¡°let¡¯s keep walking.¡±

 Chapter 209

    209 Board n


    It was 6 pm, the time to n or at least hear the n, so I sat down on a chair in the conference room with the others. Captain Briggs had been busy all day long, sending out a few men to check out the building where the virus was being held. Other agents other than my team were sitting there, but I didn¡¯t know them. I didn¡¯t even know their names. They were all staring at me, and I was staring at them.


    ¡°So,¡± Fulton began, ¡°what¡¯s the n?¡±


    Captain Briggs smiled at the question for some reason, and then turned towards me. ¡°The n is pretty simple, but we¡¯re going to have to do it in a hurry,¡± he said.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked. ¡°What¡¯s rushing us.¡±


    ¡°Usually throughout the day, guards switch positions. It takes 15 to 30 minutes, so we need to breach while they¡¯re distracted, but that¡¯s not going to be easy at all,¡± Captain Briggs said, looking at each of us, ¡°so we¡¯re going to have to be quick, and smart about it.¡±


    ¡°How are we going to do that?¡± I asked, still confused.


    ¡°We¡¯re going to have to sneak in and get the virus, and then escape without anyone noticing us,¡± he said. Mchi scratched his head as he looked up at the board. ¡°Why not go in and say FBI open up, arrest Mord and then-boom-we¡¯re done?¡±


    ¡°Dr. Mord may use some sort of trigger that may release the virus. We need to be precise about this, men,¡± Captain Michael Briggs emphasized, ¡°if we¡¯re not, we¡¯ll all die.¡±


    ¡°So we need to be precise?¡± I asked, ¡°how?¡±


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯m d you asked,¡± he said, ¡°I¡¯m going to give you a list of things to do. First, we need to find out which room the virus is being held in, then we need to break into it, and then we need to get the virus. After that, we need to find a way to get out of the building without anyone noticing us.¡±


    ¡°What happened to arresting Dr. Mord?¡± September asked as Tisiah nodded in agreement.


    ¡°Again, if we arrest him-he might trigger something that may release the Cobra Virus,¡± he said, looking directly at Tisiah, ¡°and then we¡¯d all die.¡±


    ¡°So we can¡¯t arrest him?¡± I asked, still confused.


    ¡°No,¡± he said, ¡°we can¡¯t arrest him, so we have to get the virus and leave the building as quickly as possible.¡±


    ¡°And how are we going to do that?¡± I asked.


    ¡°We¡¯re going to need help,¡± he said, ¡°and we¡¯ll have to work together, as a team.¡±


    ¡°Okay, so how do we find out where the virus is being kept?¡± Nikki asked, looking at him, ¡°or where it¡¯s being held in the building.¡±


    ¡°Good question,¡± he said, ¡°but I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve never been in this building before, and neither has anyone else, so I don¡¯t know what rooms are in here. That¡¯s why we got surveince on the base from other agents who have...been there before.¡± I sighed a bit in relief, as Captain Briggs walked over to his desk with hisputer zing light from the screen, ¡°the agents who have been there before will tell us where the virus is being held in the building, and then we¡¯ll go in and get it.¡±


    ¡°But what if we get caught?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Then we¡¯ll all die,¡± he said, ¡°so let¡¯s hope we don¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Okay, so what do we do now?¡± I asked, looking at the board. Suddenly, a screen dropped down as what seemed to be a certain drone focusing on a certain scene or part of the base. It was crowded, not gonna lie, with guards at every corner as if they were ying tag in the forest, and I could see them moving around as if they were in a maze.


    ¡°That¡¯s the entrance,¡± I heard a man say, pointing at the screen. ¡°It looks like a normal door, but it¡¯s actually a secret door.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand,¡± I said, looking back at Captain Briggs, ¡°why is there a hidden entrance to the building?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± he said, ¡°but I do know that the virus is being held in a room behind that door, and that¡¯s where we need to go. We got drones watching all of us. Now I made us some teams for certain situations.¡±


    He switched to a picture that showed headlines of certain groups. There were particrly three groups with these code names: Geronimo, Charlie Company, and Delta Team. Then there were two groups with code names: Falcon and Eagle.


    ¡°This is a map of the base,¡± he said, ¡°there are four entrances to the main building. Charlie Company will be the reinforcements, while Delta Team is going in first. Falcon and Eagle will be the drones in the sky.¡±


    ¡°Ahh, hence the name-mmm,¡± Tisiah muttered silently, as if he was certainly surprised, but yet happy that he was being included in the n.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Captain Briggs continued, ¡°we¡¯ve already determined where the virus is being kept and now it¡¯s time to go in and get it.¡±


    ¡°So I see we¡¯re an integral part of the n, and that¡¯s good,¡± Tisiah said, cocking his head to the side and smiling.


    ¡°Yes, by a lot. Based on your skills you guys have shown from the past mission of getting Dr. Jameson, as told by Agent Nelson, I think you got this. But first we need to put the teams for Charlie Company.¡±


    ¡°Alright...¡± I mumbled, feeling a certain beating in my heart that screamed uneasiness.


    ¡°In Charlie Company we have, Nathan, Bob, Owen, Patterson as well as Nikki, Tisiah, and September,¡± Captain Briggs remarked as four guys that had a concerning build came up as well as Nikki, Tisiah and September.


    ¡°Alright, now for Delta Team: in this team we have you guys,¡± he said pointing at me, Mchi and Fulton before continuing, ¡°And Agent Hanover and Agent Jones of the FBI who will be there to provide extra backup if needed.¡±


    ¡°Good to know,¡± Fulton said as he looked at me and Mchi who were right beside him, ¡°we¡¯ll be ready.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± he continued as he turned towards us with a look of anticipation in his eyes, ¡°let¡¯s go over what we have to do.¡±


    He wrote some things on the board with his pen, and then turned towards us once again. ¡°The goal is to get the Cobra virus, and then escape without being caught. Here¡¯s how we¡¯re gonna do it: We¡¯re going to use a rope to climb over the fence.¡± He wrote ¡®climb over fence¡¯ on the board. ¡°Then we¡¯re going to enter through that door which is guarded by men who will probably see us if they look our direction.¡± He wrote ¡®guard outside door.¡¯


    ¡°When they see us they¡¯ll yell at us to stop and that we¡¯re under arrest. Once they say that we should turn back,¡± he wrote ¡®turn back¡¯ on the board as we all looked at one another. ¡°Then boom! We tranquillize them,¡± he said with a certain act that seemed show some sort of surprise, ¡°then take them down with their own guns and get inside the building.¡± He wrote ¡®tranquilize guards¡¯ and ¡®get inside building¡¯ on the board. ¡°Now when we enter the building,¡± he said with a smile, ¡°we¡¯ll use these ropes and climb over this wall which will lead us into this room.¡± He wrote ¡®climb over wall¡¯ and ¡®enter this room.¡¯


    ¡°The problem is that this room is guarded by a guard who will probably hear us as we¡¯re climbing over the wall,¡± he said. ¡°So they are going toe, very-quickly.¡± He wrote ¡®guard heard,¡¯ then ¡®guard fast¡¯ and then ¡®guard fast fast fast fast¡¯ as he ran out of space for more words on the board. ¡°We will have to tranq this guard as well, but don¡¯t worry; I¡¯m sure we can handle it.¡± He wrote ¡®tranq guard¡¯ with some excitement as he drew lines across the board and then back down. ¡°Once they¡¯re down, we¡¯ll put on these gas masks to protect ourselves from their poison.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry-poison?¡± I muttered once hearing him, and seeing the looks of shock on everyone¡¯s face as he looked at us.


    ¡°Yes,¡± he said, ¡°we¡¯re going to put on these gas masks once we get inside the building because they¡¯re going to use a gas that is toxic to us.¡±


    ¡°I thought they said they wouldn¡¯t know we were here in the first ce,¡± Nikki questioned.


    ¡°The knocked out guards release a toxic gas after a guard is not in action. Now I checked and there is something wrong with that certain trigger, so it only works after two,¡± he said, and Nikki nodded but there was a particr look that she had that showed she was definitely without a doubt-worried, or concerned as we called it.


    ¡°That¡¯s bad,¡± Tisiah muttered to himself. I didn¡¯t know why but I knew that Tisiah was somehow excited that his idea of knocking out the guards woulde to life.


    ¡°Alright after that: once we¡¯ve knocked out all the guards we¡¯ll go down to this room where the virus is held, tranquillize all the scientists, grab the virus, then climb back out through the wall.¡± He drew some arrows across the board and wrote ¡®tranquilize scientists¡¯ and ¡®get virus,¡¯ and then he wrote ¡®climb back wall¡¯ in a very hurried manner.


    ¡°Once we¡¯re outside through the gate we¡¯re going to put these gas masks back on and then go back to the headquarters,¡± he said with a smile before turning back towards us. ¡°So who is going to be doing what?¡± I asked.


    ¡°That¡¯s all the Delta Team,¡± Captain Briggs exined, as my mouth dropped in shock of what he said. This is all just us that¡¯s doing all this-how is this in any way fair at all, I wondered? I was used to working with a team of people to make a n and then do it. I didn¡¯t expect it to be just me and four others against twelve guards and two scientists.

 Chapter 210

    210 Fulton¡¯s Warning


    We were done with the nning, and I found myself certainly less convinced than before, but I also found that I was not nearly as concerned as I had been before. Why? It¡¯s because we were going to be doing this in pairs; that meant that I would be with Mchi and Fulton, and they would be with me.


    But as they left, Fulton tapped my shoulder-grabbing my attention. ¡°Yeah?¡± I asked, but his face was worried, with a definite expression that almost made me worried myself. ¡°I need to talk to you about something,¡± he said.


    I didn¡¯t say anything, and he sat down by me with a particr speed that was much slower than usual. ¡°Listen, I know this may not be the best time, but I mean-betterte than never,¡± he said with a weak smile that made me-very, very weird. He didn¡¯t say anything, and only silence filled his mouth, so I was left wondering what he wanted to talk about.


    ¡°It¡¯s about your father...¡± he said. ¡°Again.¡±


    My face crumbled, and my face was still with no sort of particr movement. ¡°You¡¯re still on this nonsense with my father?¡±


    ¡°Listen, listen-please,¡± he said, his face looking at mine and his breathing was heavy, ¡°listen!¡± He breathed out before he continued, ¡°I¡¯ve seen what you see in him, I know how he makes you feel...and it¡¯s not right, not for you.¡±


    Huh?


    What does-what does that even mean?


    ¡°What does that even-what is that even supposed to mean?¡± I asked him straightly, not understanding what it was that he was trying to say to me.


    .....


    He was looking at me intently, like I was a stranger or something. ¡°I know what you see in him. A loving father who cares about you, with my father and everything. But trust me, he¡¯s not what you think he is.¡±


    ¡°How exactly?¡± I asked, shifting my position, wanting to get up and walk away from him.


    ¡°You know, he¡¯s not that great father you think he is. He¡¯s got different ns for you, and you can¡¯t, you can¡¯t let him do this to you,¡± he said. ¡°Get as far away from him as you can.¡±


    ¡°No, stop!¡± I said, getting up. He was still on this nonsense because of the trauma of his father, and now I couldn¡¯t take it. I was really getting sick of being told about him. ¡°No! Get lost!¡±


    He stood up too. ¡°You have no idea what you¡¯re getting into with him!¡±


    ¡°Then tell me, what is so dangerous about him. What does he want to use me for?!¡± I asked him, but Fulton stopped, and he was silent.


    ¡°Look at your hair,¡± he finally said.


    I looked at my hair and saw the colour of it change to a reddish-orange shade as it shimmered in the light. ¡°I¡¯m not changing my hair,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s beautiful!¡±


    ¡°Your eyes, they glow,¡± he said. I was silent at the statement, not knowing what to say. So what, it turned reddish-orange, so what does that even mean? And what did it have to do with anything?


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± I asked, but his face turned a bright shade of red, almost redder than my hair. ¡°You know what... nothing, just don¡¯t worry about it,¡± he said, leaving his hands up, with a look of fear and unease in his eyes as I stared back at him. He didn¡¯t say anything else.


    I thought he had left me alone with my own thoughts and the question of what he had meant by all this-but suddenly his voice cut through my head like a knife.


    ¡°You don¡¯t know the truth, you don¡¯t know who your father really is! He¡¯s not just a nice guy that cares about you!¡± he said. ¡°You have to get out of there, you have to get out now!¡±


    ¡°What truth? What truth are you talking about?¡± I asked, but he ignored me and walked away. I sighed as I looked at him, then I sat back down and shook my head, thinking he was a real imbecile. He was probably just jealous of my father.


    I felt my mind wandering off again, wondering why Fulton was so obsessed with my father and what he did. Why did he hate him so much? What had he done? Why was he so scared? But the real question was-was it true? Was he right, or was he wrong? Did I even care enough to find out? And more than that-did my father really do anything bad? Or was Fulton just making up some kind of crap just to make himself feel better about his father¡¯s absence?


    No, of course not...right? Fulton is not telling me that because it¡¯s not true. My father is not like that. He¡¯s not a bad person-he¡¯s not. He would never hurt anyone...hurt me...


    I started feeling uneasy again and the uneasiness kept growing and growing. I started feeling nervous as if I didn¡¯t want to be here anymore, but then I heard Mchi call my name. I turned around to see Mchi standing there in confusion as if I was crazy, although I¡¯m pretty sure I am.


    ¡°You good?¡± he asked while looking at me, and I nodded with a look of surprise. He was always very good at reading people¡¯s expressions and their bodynguage. ¡°Because-you¡¯re acting weird.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not,¡± I said, still looking down at the floor.


    ¡°You are,¡± he said, pointing his finger at me and staring me down. ¡°You definitely are, and I don¡¯t know why. Are you scared?¡±


    ¡°About what?¡±


    ¡°The mission?¡± he answered quickly, and I looked at him, confused.


    ¡°Why would I be?¡± I asked him, although I already knew the answer.


    He looked at me intently. ¡°Because it¡¯s dangerous.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s dangerous?¡±


    ¡°Everything,¡± he answered bluntly.


    ¡°Everything?¡± I asked again.


    He nodded. ¡°The mission is dangerous enough on its own without other factors being taken into ount,¡± he said in his calm, reassuring voice as if he was talking to a child. ¡°I¡¯d expect you to be somewhat scared.¡± I shook my head at hisment as I looked away from him, feeling slightly insulted at the way he had been talking to me.


    ¡°Why are you looking at me like that?¡±


    He paused, thinking before he answered. ¡°Because you¡¯ve never been like this before,¡± he said calmly. ¡°And I¡¯ve been working with you for a while now.¡±


    ¡°A while? You¡¯ve only known me for a few months,¡± I said, and his eyes widened, but then he shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s been almost a year, cut me some ck,¡± he said with a little chuckle, and I shook my head at him again, annoyed.


    ¡°Anyway,¡± he said as if trying to distract me from this conversation, ¡°the mission itself is dangerous. There¡¯s a high chance of death, but we¡¯re trained to deal with that kind of thing-but there¡¯s no guarantee that we¡¯ll win. But I just came here to tell you, we¡¯re gonna be alright-alright?¡± I chuckled at him but my face was not exactly showing the best expression for this situation, but it seemed to work, and he smiled back at me. ¡°We¡¯re gonna be alright,¡± he repeated and started walking away again.


    ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re right.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°I¡¯ll be fine.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m d that you know that,¡± he said, holding two thumbs up, then he walked away again as he waved at me, and I waved back. ¡°See you soon.¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± I said, and he nodded back to me as he walked away. I sighed as I looked at him, just how confident he was, how rxed he was, how he had no fear of anything. I had seen him kill people, and yet here he was, acting like it was nothing to him-like he was just doing his job like it was nothing out of the ordinary.


    I mean, you guys already know me, but I have never been a person who can handle stress very well. I have always had a hard time when ites to missions, and that¡¯s not even taking into ount how bad I am at dealing with people. Like I¡¯m telling you, I am bad, okay? It¡¯s a fact. But even though I don¡¯t handle stress well, I usually don¡¯t get scared too much...


    Not this time.


    I felt my heart beating faster as my mouth went dry and I felt dizzy, but not because of the mission-no, not that. It was something else entirely that was making me feel like this. But why? What was happening to me? Was it the mission? Was it because of what Fulton said to me?


    Maybe it was Fulton...you know what-whatever, I don¡¯t care... I didn¡¯t care about anything anymore. I just felt as if my mind was not working right and that I was getting sick and that I was going to faint...but that didn¡¯t happen, instead I just started feeling very uneasy again.


    I thought back to what Fulton said to me about my father-I didn¡¯t even know what it was all about and why did it make me feel so uneasy and scared? I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t know.

 Chapter 211

    211 Dormitory Search


    ¡°Alright, we need to find a hotel to sleep in,¡± Nikki said to us, constantly moving to avoid the constant arrivals of other agents. Tisiah nodded. ¡°I don¡¯t think they have any beds here, although it would make sense if they did.¡±


    ¡°Well I¡¯m not trying to sleep with a bunch of noise from a bunch of agents,¡± September said, smoothing her hair in frustration, ¡°and I don¡¯t want to get bitten by mosquitoes or any of that kind of stuff. We need a hotel room.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no way you would get bitten by mosquitoes,¡± Nikki said, shaking her head. ¡°That makes no sense at all.¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± September replied while shrugging, ¡°you never know.¡±


    ¡°Nikki,¡± Fulton said, ¡°I need you to find us a ce to stay. Now.¡±


    ¡°Oh, sure,¡± she answered before she took out her phone and began to search for hotels around Washington D.C. She was about to close her phone but then she suddenly stopped and looked up at it as if she had seen something interesting on it. ¡°Uh...no,¡± she said before closing it again. ¡°That¡¯s odd.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± asked Mchi who was leaning against a nearby wall, looking down at her as she looked up at her phone again. ¡°What¡¯s odd?¡±


    ¡°It says that there are no avable rooms anywhere in Washington D.C. for the next three days,¡± Nikki replied.


    ¡°Why?¡± I asked, confused as well with Mchi.


    .....


    She shrugged in response and just put it away, looking at each of us which my face was probably written with confusion. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± she said simply and walked away from us to look around again, which only added to my confusion as well. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± she said again as she turned around to face us with her hands on her hips and her head tilted down.


    I looked by the side and saw a man that was walking in our direction. I was going to say something, but I felt very ufortable about it as he came closer to us-and then I saw his eyes, which were pitch-ck and his nose that was long and pointed upwards like a cat¡¯s...and then his lips...they were long and thin...


    ¡°Hey, uh is there dorms here?¡± Mchi asked, as the man looked up from the ground and smiled, and I could tell that he was very happy that he had found somebody who could talk to him. He walked over to us, but he was wearing a ck suit that had a purple tie around it that was cut in the same style as the one Agent Nelson had worn.


    ¡°Yeah, there should be I hope,¡± he said with a smile that reached from cheek to cheek, before he returned, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, have you been here before?¡±


    ¡°Not exactly,¡± Mchi replied, ¡°but we¡¯re looking for somewhere to stay tonight. We are tired, so we decided to sleep here tonight.¡±


    ¡°Best idea, D.C¡¯s not allowing any hotels to allow people in for three days,¡± he said before he turned the corner and walked away.


    ¡°Well, he didn¡¯t tell us where to find the dorms though...¡± I muttered, looking at Mchi as he sighed, ¡°or even how to get there.¡±


    ¡°Oh well,¡± September said before turning the corner to see who else she could find, ¡°maybe if we keep walking we will find it.¡± I shrugged in response, perhaps we would, but I didn¡¯t really care either way. I just wanted to get out of this ce and just forget about everything...


    ¡°You alright?¡± Nikki asked as I turned around and noticed her looking at me.


    ¡°Yeah...I think,¡± I returned, not very certain, ¡°I mean...I¡¯m okay.¡±


    ¡°You sure?¡± She asked me, her eyes narrowing a little as if she didn¡¯t believe me. ¡°You seem a little...off.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I asked back, not knowing what she meant by that. ¡°I¡¯m not off at all... I think.¡± I was really starting to believe that I was off, though.


    ¡°You look pale,¡± she told me in response, ¡°and you seem a little agitated...and...well...you know...¡± She just gave me an awkward look like she had no idea what to say to me.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked back again in response. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± I didn¡¯t understand why she was acting like this...


    ¡°You just look like you don¡¯t feel too good,¡± she told me as we started walking again. I shrugged as we began to follow after her, making our way through the endless rows of agents that wereing towards us, all of them dressed in ck suits, many of which had masks over their faces.


    ¡°Maybe it¡¯s the mission,¡± Tisiah said with a sigh.


    ¡°You think so?¡± Nikki asked in response. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s that bad of a mission... we¡¯re just looking for a couple scientists.¡±


    ¡°A dangerous scientist that clearly wants to kill us for his revenge,¡± Tisiah added, which just made it feel a whole lot worse than before, especially when I thought of Dr. Mord and how much of a bad person he was. I wanted nothing more than to get away from him and to just forget about him forever-but I knew that wasn¡¯t going to happen. I sighed thoughtfully, just thinking about all that he did throughout this whole thing, and how much of a fool he was.


    ¡°Maybe you should take it easy,¡± September suggested as we made our way through the endless rows of agents. ¡°I can¡¯t even begin to imagine what your body is going through right now.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± I told her, feeling my legs burn from the amount of energy that was constantly draining from them-and the way that they felt like they were going to snap in half at any minute. I felt tired, tired of all this that was happening-but then again, I enjoyed it. I enjoyed being a part of these agencies and all the things that they could do...


    But at the same time, it was just so much that I felt like I couldn¡¯t handle anymore-but I could only think about this so much, because I had a job to do. My job was to fight the virus and help those that needed my help, but I couldn¡¯t let anything get in my way. It was so frustrating-just like Nikki had said earlier, I felt agitated and upset, like I wanted to break everything that I saw.


    But then I kind of wanted it to continue-to be honest with you, I was starting to enjoy this... I mean, just a couple of hours ago I was hiding in the shadows, scared for my life, afraid of what could happen next...and now, I was standing there with my hands on my hips, looking around at all the people who were running into danger without any care for their safety. I loved this-I loved every moment of it-it was the most exciting thing that had ever happened in my life.


    From regr kid to a spy-who has powers, yeah-it was an opportunity of more than a lifetime, and I knew that I had to make the most of it-I had to go all out.


    But at the same time, I couldn¡¯t let anything get in the way. Not even Agent Nelson.


    I couldn¡¯t let anyone stand in my way-especially not her.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± I repeated with a smile as I looked up and down the line of agents and nodded, ¡°I¡¯m doing just fine.¡± September shrugged before we began to go down some stairs, which then there was a certain sign on the wall that said ¡°temporary dorms¡±, which was the only clue that we would need for finding the ce where we could sleep for the night.


    ¡°I think we¡¯re here,¡± September said, with a voice that seemed pretty expecting, but I didn¡¯t know where we were going-not at all.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Nikki agreed as she looked at the sign that was hung on the wall.


    ¡°Now, do we go to the left or right...or both?¡± Tisiah asked as he turned to look both ways once he stepped onto the floor, which was covered in an old carpet of green and grey. The floor was lit withmps, which gave off an orangey glow that just lit up the ce. It was bright as heaven-but it still wasn¡¯t enough to light up the whole space as well as it should have.


    ¡°Maybe both?¡± I muttered in response as I looked at both halls, seeing if there was anywhere that we could rest. There wasn¡¯t any doors to either side of us that looked like they¡¯d lead to anything useful...but then again, I hadn¡¯t expected there would be. ¡°Let¡¯s try the left,¡± Tisiah said, making his way through that hall, while September and Nikki followed after him, and I stayed behind with them.


    Tisiah looked down the hall to where it turned around a corner. He sighed before he started walking down that hall, September and Nikki following behind him as we continued down that way, making our way through the halls and down some more stairs until we finally arrived at a door, which was marked with ¡°dormitory¡±, which meant that it was probably where we would be sleeping for the night.


    ¡°Here,¡± Tisiah told us as he turned around, holding the door open for us so that we could pass through.


    ¡°Nice...¡± Mchi said with a smile, which already preached he had some ns in mind already, which he obviously did. ¡°This is a nice room.¡± He said as he looked around the dorm-which was decorated in ck and white, with a few posters and paintings that hung on the walls-as well as a few couches that were ced around the room with a TV on the wall above them. There were two beds in the room-one on each side-as well as a closet that stood by itself in the corner of the room.


    ¡°We should be ready by the morning for sure,¡± Mchi said, looking up at every thing with a big smile that reflected off the walls, ¡°We¡¯re lucky to have a good ce to sleep for the night.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Tisiah said, nodding his head and cing his hand on his chin thoughtfully, ¡°But what about tomorrow?¡±


    ¡°Tomorrow?¡± Mchi asked, raising an eyebrow in confusion.


    ¡°We have another day ahead of us,¡± Tisiah said with a shrug, ¡°And we need to take down Dr. Mord.¡±


    ¡°Or at least steal his virus,¡± September said before taking a seat down at one of the couches that was by the wall, while Tisiah took his seat on the other couch, leaving Nikki and me standing alone. ¡°I don¡¯t think we should let him get away with all this,¡± September added. ¡°We shouldn¡¯t let him get away with all this.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± Tisiah agreed. ¡°We should get ready for tomorrow, because I have a feeling we¡¯re gonna need to be on our game.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not wrong,¡± I told him with a shrug.


    ¡°Alright,¡± Tisiah said as he sat up from his couch and walked over to Nikki and me, ¡°Let¡¯s get to bed.¡±


    ¡°Whoa, hold up-let me see if they got some food here real quick,¡± Mchi said, getting up and slowly making his way towards the fridge, which was on the far end of the room. I watched him go until he shut the door and went back towards the couch, ¡°You hungry?¡±


    ¡°Not really,¡± I replied.


    ¡°Me neither,¡± Nikki agreed.


    ¡°I¡¯m starving!¡± September said.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± Tisiah said as he stepped out of the line that was forming as we made our way to the beds that sat against the wall of the room, ¡°But it¡¯s toote for me to eat anything, so I think I¡¯ll just go to sleep. I¡¯m pretty tired.¡± He then made his way over to his bed, lying down on it and pulling the sheets up to cover his body.


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised a guy like you don¡¯t wanna eat,¡± Mchi said bluntly.


    ¡°Are you calling me fat?¡± Tisiah immediately asked, turning his head from his original position from when heid on the bed, ¡°Because if you are, I¡¯ll make sure to kick your-¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Mchi shook his head before turning his attention towards me, ¡°You wanna grab some food?¡± Tisiah said nothing, and he returned to his bed, staying silent in doing so, as he turned over onto his side, facing away from us.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m good,¡± I told Mchi as he turned towards me. ¡°But thanks for asking.¡±

 Chapter 212

    212 Making Our Way


    Now was the time that we were going to storm that base of Dr. Mord¡¯s. Themotion was sending through my nerves already. My arms were wiggling from the anticipation that was rolling through my hairs.


    We were in that same room before where Captain Briggs was telling us the n, using excessive writing and very interesting drawings.


    I looked by the side, and it seemed as if Mchi was waiting for this moment all his entire life. He was walking as if he just got married, with his presence spilling his joy and his charm all around everywhere. He took a seat beside me, almost creeping me out of how bright he was this day. I felt excited-but also very dreadful. Like,e on, you can still die from this mission.


    Now, I know you¡¯re probably saying something like, ¡°But haven¡¯t you been an agent for months now-you should expect this. But you gotta understand, every time you do a mission, you can die. That¡¯s the scary part. You can die. You die-you¡¯re dead.


    I still got Mom and Dad to worry about, as well as my uncle-or actual dad in this case-and I don¡¯t wanna die and lose them. My life feels prettyplete now that I have Greg and his buddies as friends, Mom and Dad, friends in the YMPA, and I also have Mr. Drails, which now thinking about it made me think about what Fulton imed.


    Did my father really love-no.


    No, we¡¯re not doing that again. Fulton is jealous because of my sess with my father. Rocke was a bad person-and that¡¯s not my fault. Honestly, I think Fulton is up to something to be honest and I mean really up to something. But I¡¯m not gonna waste my time in doing so, because I don¡¯t have any time to waste. I have a family to live for. I have friends to have fun with, and I have to live the best life I possibly can live with all these things in mind.


    As I looked up, Captain Briggs was walking towards the board with his marker firm in his grip. I could already tell I was in for a ride, so I sat down and braced myself. He began drawing the path that we were supposed to take from here on out. He had drawn everything as clear as day before, but I guess he thought we wouldn¡¯t follow his instructions correctly.


    ¡°So, it¡¯s pretty simple,¡± Captain Briggs began, ¡°The four of you will sneak into the base, find out what kind of security is on the ce, and make sure it doesn¡¯te back on you when you get inside,¡±


    .....


    ¡°You¡¯re forgetting one thing,¡± I said.


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Captain Briggs asked as he paused in drawing to look at me.


    ¡°We¡¯re not supposed to kill anybody,¡± I told him with a serious expression, ¡°So if wee across a scientist who isn¡¯t working for Dr. Mord or is even just an innocent civilian, we¡¯ll be forced to let them go.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re going to be fighting in there too,¡± He pointed out.


    ¡°We know,¡± Tisiah said, ¡°But we want to keep it low key-we don¡¯t want any people to get hurt.¡±


    ¡°So don¡¯t hurt any people,¡± he said with a few pauses in between, giving a certain look that was confused, but then it faded into something that looked like he was happy about the situation, ¡°Alright, good point. Now, is everyone ready?¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± everyone shouted, which I was certainlyte to the party, ¡°We are ready to go.¡±


    ¡°Alright then,¡± He walked away from the board, ¡°Let¡¯s begin the mission.¡±


    Agents rose from their seats, as Tisiah looked at me, and it seemed as if he was asking a question or wanting me to go first, but I didn¡¯t care enough to answer it. So I stood up from my chair, looking forward to the challenge-as well as I was trying not to get scared out of my brain-and started walking towards the door with everyone else behind me.


    When I reached the door, we turned our attention towards Captain Briggs, ¡°Ready!¡± We called to him.


    ¡°Alright!¡± he said as he began drawing on the board, ¡°Let¡¯s do this! I can¡¯t wait to see what happens.¡±


    I just had tough at how enthusiastic Captain Briggs was-he was the real deal! Soon enough, Mchi and Fulton caught up with me, with two other guys behind them. One of them was wearing a ck suit, with his head shaved and wearing sunsses. He was very short and thin, almost like a midget. The other was wearing a tan trench coat and a pair of ck gloves. He looked more like a kidnapper than an agent, but we were all professionals here.


    ¡°Ya¡¯ll ready?¡± Fulton asked me and Mchi, who were walking side by side.


    ¡°Sure,¡± I said, and Mchi nodded, ¡°Let¡¯s do this.¡±


    Once the door opened, someone shouted-though I have no clue who he was, he said: ¡°Delta Team goes in SUV 2!¡±


    ¡°Where is that?¡± Mchi asked, as we looked around, trying to find this SUV number two.


    ¡°It¡¯s over there,¡± Tisiah said as he pointed over our heads, ¡°By those trees.¡±


    ¡°Alright!¡± Captain Briggs yelled out again, ¡°Move out!¡± Fulton gestured as he turned towards us, ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go.¡±


    We followed after him as he lead the way to the SUV. There were two guys in front of us who were wearing suits that resembled Fulton¡¯s. We had to walk over to them since they were in the way, but once we got there, they were all smiles. They both had blond hair, which was parted in the middle and slicked down. They were both about six feet tall, and their faces were smooth and tan with dark eyes.


    I opened the door and focused on them, afraid from their weird sort of looks. I entered inside the car before I sat down, which the seat immediately warmed my body, which I didn¡¯t expect. A few minutes passed and the door shut behind me. Fulton was sitting across from me and Tisiah was right beside me as well as Nikki and September.


    ¡°We¡¯ve been in SUV¡¯s a lottely I do have to say,¡± Nikki chuckled as she put on her seatbelt, ¡°This will be nice and easypared to those.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t know,¡± I replied as I turned around in my seat, ¡°We¡¯ve never done this mission before, so who knows? It could be a little harder.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t wait,¡± Tisiah said as he looked at me, ¡°I¡¯m excited.¡±


    I¡¯m scared. I don¡¯t want to get hurt or die.


    We¡¯re all nervous about the situation. I didn¡¯t want to say anything that would make them worry more about me, but it felt like they knew. We all were worried about each other-though no one ever admitted to it.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Nikki continued as she put on her seatbelt, ¡°I can¡¯t wait either. This would be another sessful mission under my belt.¡± I nodded, feeling the excitement but also an uncertain feeling that was breathing inside of me, ¡°And I would love to do that.¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± Fulton began as he buckled his seatbelt, ¡°I¡¯ll be happy once this is done with and I can get back home.¡± He looked at Nikki as he held her hand tightly in his own, ¡°And I¡¯d love to get a good night¡¯s rest too.¡±


    ¡°Tell me about it,¡± Mchi added with such a base in his voice, that augh was shared amongst all of us. ¡°But I live for this.¡±


    ¡°Of course you do-you¡¯ve been doing it for years!¡± Nikki said which she wasn¡¯t wrong, ¡°This is your life.¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± Fulton sighed, ¡°I guess we better get going.¡± He looked around at us all again and gave a sort of serious expression. The SUV began to move as many began to exit of the garage, and into the bustling roads. The cars were moving quickly-they were going at a normal speed for this area-but they were still going really fast, which was making me even more nervous and afraid of being hurt. I was wondering how we would be able to catch Dr. Mord in time, and how we would be able to find his virus before anyone else did. I just hope we get to him before he does anything else-that we stop him before he hurts or kills anyone else.


    The roars of the engines rang inside my ear, and the vibration rumbled under my body. These cars be moving though, not gonna lie, they weren¡¯t too bad on the bumps and rough roadways-the SUV was surprisinglyfortable to ride in.


    As we moved out onto the street, I felt like we were driving faster and faster than normal-though, I was getting used to this because it was happening all the time.


    ¡°How do you guys feel?¡± Fulton asked me and Tisiah with a grin as he looked at us both. ¡°Fine,¡± I responded, but a weird feeling of digust or something sanctioned inside of me as I looked at him, ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡±


    ¡°Nothing,¡± Fulton chuckled.

 Chapter 213

    213 A Little Run to the Base


    Soon enough we arrived to the base, and we all looked out at the ce from the SUV window. We could see the building from where we were sitting and it was huge! And I mean: huge, as well as it was surrounded by trees that stood tall. It looked like it was surrounded by nothing but nature as if it were in the middle of nowhere.


    ¡°Well that¡¯s scary...¡± I muttered as I got out of the SUV, looking at Mchi, Fulton and Tisiah who followed behind me. Nikki wasst to get out of the car, looking at us all with a big smile on her face and a little bit of worry in her eyes. Soon enough, September exited from the SUVst, making her thest one out. She walked over to us as she ced her hands on her hips and looked at the building.


    ¡°Well now...¡± Nikki said as she looked up towards the building, ¡°This is where we need to be going?¡±


    ¡°Yes, alright Tisiah, September and Nikki, you guys get to your teams. Connor and Mchi need to stay with me,¡± he ordered bluntly. He had an authoritative tone in his voice, as if he was an experienced agent that had done this a thousand times before. ¡°Yes, sir,¡± I responded quietly, whereas Mchi repeated it with such a firm voice, ¡°Yes, sir.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± Fulton responded with a smile as he walked away.


    I sighed in relief and turned my gaze to September who was watching me, but then she smiled and gave me a quick wink. ¡°See yater,¡± she said with a smile, as I returned a quick one back, and she went over to where the rest of her team was standing.


    ¡°So, what should we do?¡± I asked Mchi.


    ¡°We need to find where Agent Jones and Agent Hanover is,¡± Fulton returned, looking around-seeming very unsure, ¡°They should be close by.¡±


    ¡°But how are we going to do that?¡± Tisiah asked as he looked around the base. ¡°We don¡¯t have a clue where to go.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Well,¡± Mchi replied, ¡°we¡¯ll just have to start walking around, and hope we find them.¡± Which then right at that moment, two footsteps echoed towards our direction, which we turned around to see Agent Hanover and Agent Jones walking over to us. They both had their suitcases and were carrying a few other bags in their hands.


    We were a bit startled from the iing footsteps, but my heart slowed down considerably once I saw them. They both were wearing those military or SWAT outfits you could maybe call them or something, with boots that came up to their knees-they were wearing ck gloves on their hands, as well as ck pants. The only color on them was a ck T-shirt underneath a ck jacket, as well as a ck helmet on top of their heads which had a visor that was up and over their eyes, so that you could not see their eyes. They also had these ck sses on that went all the way up to their noses that were covering their entire faces. Their eyes were concealed inside of these dark sunsses.


    ¡°Are you guys in Delta Team?¡± Agent Jones asked, and Fulton nodded in response-shooting him with a smile that instantly spawned on his face, ¡°Good.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m Agent Jones and this is Agent Hanover,¡± he began, as he took off his sunsses and looked at us all with his brown eyes. ¡°We have orders to start breaching in five minutes.¡± Mchi nodded, as if he wanted to be a part of the authority group, ¡°Understood, sir.¡±


    I tried not tough but it was too hard, because this man¡¯s appearance was too much of a stereotype of what a secret agent should look like. He was the stereotypical spy who looks like he¡¯s in a cartoon. And I was sure that there are secret agents like that in the world today. But I knew there were others that didn¡¯t really have such appearances-like Agent Jones.


    ¡°Alright, make sure your gear is ready,¡± Agent Hanover ordered strictly with a base in his voice that boomed like a speaker, ¡°we¡¯re going in!¡±


    ¡°Yes sir,¡± everyone responded and began to put on their equipment. They were getting dressed in camouge suits, which was a lot different than the regr camouge uniforms they had before. It was all ck and had pockets and pouches on their jackets-and it wasfortable. It had thick padding in it so it would keep you protected and warm in the cold weather.


    ¡°Well dang...¡± I said in a quiet voice, ¡°Now we¡¯re getting into the game.¡±


    Fulton put on his vest and strapped it. It was only me, Mchi and Fulton, plus Agent Jones and Agent Hanover, who were going in with the Delta Team.


    ¡°You know I think I can feel some sort of magic,¡± Fulton said with his back turned towards me and Mchi, who were standing beside him.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± I asked him as I stared at him. I felt like I could see him shifting his weight back and forth and making his body twitch from the side of my vision. ¡°Excitement, I think,¡± he said with a smile, and I could only give him a worried smile, since I didn¡¯t really know what to do, but then he put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed it tightly as he continued talking to me, ¡°Just keep your eyes open for anything.¡±


    I nodded with him, before he took it off. ¡°Alright,¡± Agent Jones said, using a gesture to give an order. ¡°Let¡¯s move.¡±


    Everyone moved as if they were on cue, and they entered the base through the back door of the building. The door opened automatically as if there was an electric eye or something that would activate the entrance once someone approached. I had my gun close in hand, the sweat rolling down my face, and the wind blowing in my face.


    ¡°Alright,¡± I heard Agent Hanover say as we made our way through the woods to the fence, ¡°let¡¯s go over it.¡±


    As I moved through, I could feel the crunch of the leaves under my foot as we continued to move towards the base, and the warm air heating my face, while my chest and heart began to beat faster and faster as I got closer. I began to feel the excitement rise as we got closer to the base, which was like a fortress, and we all walked up to the fence that had barbed wire at the top.


    ¡°Jones?¡± Hanover cued to him, his face directly at his eye, ¡°can you make sure we can climb over this?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll make sure,¡± Jones replied before going over the fence with a jump, and then he turned to us with a smirk on his face, ¡°I can do it.¡± Mchi sighed once he went next, ¡°Show off.¡± He grabbed hold of the fence, and used a lot more momentum to jump over the barbed wire, and hended on the other side with a smile. I moved closer to him to jump the fence, but before I could, Jones came back to me, and I could see him mumbling something.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked, wondering what he said.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got to let go of your gun before you jump,¡± he said as he moved in front of me so that I had no choice but to do what he said. I nodded before I touched the fence, feeling the weight and fear burn intensely in my heart, and then I let go of the gun before I jumped. I steadily climbed upwards, until my hands barely touched the barbed wire at the top of the fence.


    ¡°Hurry up!¡± I heard Jones shout, ¡°We don¡¯t have a lot of time!¡±


    I stopped, trying to breath and trying to understand. I needed right timing, right direction. I closed my eyes for a moment, feeling the sweat drip down my forehead. I took a deep breath as I opened my eyes and looked at the top of the fence, seeing that it was very high. ¡°Oh man,¡± I whispered, ¡°this is not gonna be easy.¡±


    ¡°Just climb over!¡± Hanover yelled at me, ¡°it¡¯ll be fine!¡±


    Soon enough, I pushed myself up-hopping over the fence to the other side, and then turning around to look at the base, seeing a couple men on top of the building, one with binocrs, and one with a rifle. ¡°Dang,¡± I muttered. Soon enough, the others hopped over the fence.


    ¡°Alright, there are two guards, tranquilize them-understood?¡± Agent Jones ordered, looking at me before taking a quick nce at Mchi. ¡°You too.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I replied as I got into position, trying to find a good angle so I could shoot my dart.


    Mchi nodded his head before he turned towards one of the guards with the binocrs. ¡°Got a shot?¡± I asked quickly, peering towards him, but then I saw Mchi nod his head and move forward as he pulled out his gun and shot the man through the head, then he turned back to me and shook his head, ¡°no.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I replied quickly as I moved closer to the second guard. The second guard was holding the rifle in his hands as he was looking in my direction, and then he aimed it in my direction as he looked through the scope of the weapon. He was a little ways away from me, but there was no way he wasn¡¯t going to see me as he pointed his weapon at me.


    I quickly took the shot, as the guard rocked back like an omelet, dropping his rifle, and then he fell onto the roof of the building.


    ¡°Nice shot!¡± Jones yelled out as he turned back to us, ¡°Alright everyone-let¡¯s move.¡± Immediately, Delta Team rushed in towards the window, with Agent Jones taking out the rope Captain Briggs talked about, and threw it into the building.


    I looked down at the rope before I grabbed it. It felt rough and rough like a tree branch or something that would hurt if you fell onto it. ¡°Let¡¯s get this rope,¡± I said quickly.


    We all moved up the rope like a fire escape before we hopped into the window of the building. We probably climbed like twenty feet, which isn¡¯t too badpared to mountain climbing, but when I looked down, I felt like I was going to fall, which scared me to death. Luckily, we made it inside the building and climbed down adder to a hallway with several doors in it.


    ¡°Alright, Hanover and Fulton-with me. You two will check the hallway,¡± Jones said quickly, as he reloaded his weapon, and then he pointed down the hall to the rooms that were in the hallway. ¡°Fulton and Hanover and I will check these rooms.¡±


    ¡°Got it,¡± Fulton said quickly before he turned to Hanover with a smile, ¡°let¡¯s do this.¡± They went to the left while I looked at Mchi, who seemedpletely clueless. ¡°I¡¯m too young for this,¡± he said, although the ironic thing was that he was almost eighteen, while I was only sixteen. I could tell that he was nervous and had butterflies in his gut.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be fine,¡± I assured him. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    We continued through the hall slowly, the shlight of my gun shining even part of the ce. The hall was quite masterful, and everything was very nice. It almost reminded me of a movie with James Bond. We were looking at paintings on the walls that had been done in past centuries. Then, we turned down a hallway where there was a door that had to be opened quickly, and so I pushed it open.


    But as I opened it, I feltpletely shocked at what I saw.


    I felt like throwing up, and just dying on the spot. I didn¡¯t know how to react or respond, and I just froze with my mouth open inplete shock.

 Chapter 214

    214 Searching Through the Base


    ¡°Good Lord...¡± Mchi said as he walked through theb filled with sagging bodies with their clothes hovering over them like air balloons, and then he looked at me as he started to gag, ¡°what is this?!¡±


    ¡°Oh God,¡± I muttered, staring at all the people. ¡°This¨Cthis is disgusting...ugh.¡± I stumbled back but managed to grasp myself on the wall, taking a deep breath that didn¡¯t seem to actually do anything at all, but it felt like my heart was beating very hard, which was extremely annoying. ¡°What¡¯s happening to these people?¡±


    ¡°What already happened to these people?¡± Mchi added.


    The room smelled like rotten eggs and sweat. It was like they were decaying, like a morgue where there was no hope of them getting up ever again. ¡°This ce looks like it¡¯s already filled with the virus,¡± I said, putting on my gas mask as I put my gun into its holster. ¡°And look at this.¡±


    I pointed towards one of the corpses that had fallen onto the floor. I kneeled over to it, its skin rubbery and feathery like a bird, but it had no feathers or fur on it whatsoever. Its eyes were hollow like that of a fish, and its nose had fallen off its face onto the floor.


    ¡°Let¡¯s keep going,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Before we be one of them.¡±


    I nodded agreeably, and I followed right after him, but I still couldn¡¯t believe this was actually happening. The corpses were everywhere.


    There were human bodies lying on the ground everywhere in theb. The corpses were so decayed and so disgusting that it made my skin crawl. There was even one person whose skin was transparent and was still alive¨Csomewhat.


    We moved out of the room to a sort of ce that had stairs ahead, but other rooms by the side of us with metal doors, and we ran through the area towards the stairs. We could hear groaning from behind every single door in the entire building.


    .....


    ¡°I feel so bad for those people,¡± I said, looking back at the rooms of people, and then I looked at Mchi.


    Mchi shook his head as he looked at me. ¡°It¡¯s not cool at all.¡±


    We continued down the hall as we saw another doorway that led to a huge room filled with tables and chairs, but when we reached the end of the hallway, we saw something that stopped our hearts in our chests: there were two soldiers standing there with machine guns pointed at us.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare move...¡± one of them sneered, but he looked at us withplete terror in his eyes as if he thought we were going to kill him or something. ¡°Don¡¯t move,¡± he said again as he grabbed his rifle with his right hand and aimed at us.


    ¡°Hey, hey can we all chill please?¡± Mchi said with a frantic smile, both of his hands up in surrender. ¡°I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on, but we don¡¯t want any trouble.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re going to be trouble,¡± the man said with a trembling voice. He cocked his gun and instantly my heart rate boosted in speed, and I got nervous and afraid. ¡°Just turn around slowly and keep your hands away from your sides.¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah, we¡¯re really going to do this.¡± Mchi nodded. ¡°Alright, here we go.¡± Mchi turned around and started to take off his jacket and he handed it to me as he went to his back and raised his arms and put them above his head.


    What was he doing?!


    Was he too scared of two guys or something?


    No, he has a n in mind, for sure. He wouldn¡¯t do anything trivial like that.


    ¡°Okay, we¡¯re good,¡± Mchi said quickly and I turned to look at him with my mouth open. The guard made his way closer until the barrel of the gun almost touched his back, but he still had his gun trained on us, and so he took a step forward and then another one, until he stood right in front of me.


    ¡°Alright,¡± the man said with his face in a grimace, ¡°just turn around slowly.¡±


    I nodded and I turned around very slowly, but Mchi just kept his hands raised even after turning around. He looked at me, then down at my gun, then to his hand.


    Ahh, I see what he means. Slowly I looked around¨Ctrying to see the best way to do this. The other guard was with me but was looking at Mchi, and keenly more than the guy apprehending him, and I had to say that he wasn¡¯t too good at this at all.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m going to lower my hands now,¡± I said, and I took one step forward. ¡°You should lower your weapon as well.¡±


    ¡°Hurry up,¡± the soldier said, not lowering his weapon.


    ¡°Okay, alright,¡± I said as I stepped towards him even more. ¡°I¡¯m right here.¡± I put my hand on my gun, and I tried to get closer to him. I needed to find the right time, the right moment, to get him off guard and pull my gun out and shoot him.


    ¡°Alright,¡± the guard said with a grimace, ¡°just don¡¯t try anything dumb.¡± But as I got closer, I quickly grabbed my gun and kicked him in the chest before turning to the other guard that was with Mchi and shot his hand, causing him to drop the rifle onto the ground.


    I looked over my shoulder and saw the first guard fall to his knees as he clutched at his wound. Blood started toe out of his nose and mouth. He let out a groan and fell forward, dropping his gun on the floor. ¡°Alright Connor!¡± Mchi said with excitement before grabbing his gun, putting it back into its holster, and looking at me. ¡°You¡¯re so quick! I¡¯ve never seen you do that before.¡±


    ¡°Now you have, alright let¡¯s deal with this one,¡± I said, mentioning the one I kicked, but before I could do anything else, the one that fell over began to groan as well, and then he began to crawl towards us while clutching at his chest. ¡°I¡¯ll kill you both!¡± he shouted with rage in his voice, but his voice got weaker as he kept crawling towards us.


    ¡°Don¡¯te any closer,¡± I said as I stood with my gun pointed at him. I stomped on his hand to stop his little advance as he cried in pain, and blood began to seep from his hands onto the floor. ¡°Justy there and bleed!¡± I told him with my gun pointed at him. ¡°Or you can tell me where the Cobra Virus is and maybe you might be able to use it.¡±


    ¡°Oh! I forgot about it,¡± he said as he cried in pain. ¡°I forgot all about it!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t lie to me. It¡¯s in this building,¡± Mchi said,ing over to him, ¡°so just tell me where it is.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know!¡± he shouted. ¡°I¡¯m telling you that I don¡¯t know!¡±


    Mchi looked at me and nodded, and that gave me more than enough. I put more pressure on his hand, the sound of cracking bones paralleling in the hall, and I made him scream with pain. ¡°Okay then! How about we make a deal! You tell us where it is, and we let you go. And your hand as well,¡± I said to him, pointing my gun at him, and he seemed to get more scared than ever before. ¡°Or we could just put you out of your misery.¡±


    ¡°Wait, please...¡± he muttered while looking at me, then at Mchi, before looking back at me again.


    ¡°No,¡± I said, ¡°I don¡¯t want to hear you. Unless it¡¯s about the virus.¡±


    The guard said nothing and looked at me, his crystal eyes seeping into my soul¨Cbut I didn¡¯t budge, I tried not to budge, but he was slowly beginning to worm his way under my skin. He was getting closer to me.


    ¡°I know you know where it is!¡± I shouted, but he said nothing with tears rolling down his eyes, ¡°so talk or I¡¯ll blow your brains out!¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± the man said as he swallowed the lump in his throat. ¡°There¡¯s a map in my belt, take it and that¡¯ll tell you. It¡¯s in the room F5, it¡¯s in the north wing.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± Mchi said as he walked over to him and grabbed his gun from the floor. ¡°We¡¯ll leave now. But you know we¡¯re not going to forget about you. You¡¯ve done some pretty shady stuff,¡± Mchi said before pointing at the other guard¡¯s rifle lying on the floor, ¡°and that¡¯ll give us a reason toe back here and arrest you.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s fine,¡± the man replied as he tried to hold back the tears, ¡°but just remember, I was doing my job.¡±


    I sighed as I looked at him, so heartbroken, and melted as Mchi grabbed the map and looked at it. ¡°Well,¡± I said, ¡°let¡¯s go then.¡±


    ¡°Hold on!¡± Mchi said, looking back at me. ¡°Connor? What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    I shook my head, not wanting to tell him, but something came over me, a force of emotion I didn¡¯t understand, and I let out a heavy sigh before saying, ¡°Nothing. Let¡¯s get there quick before something else happens.¡±


    ¡°Agreed,¡± Mchi chuckled in response, before running over to me and hugging me. I hugged him back as we both chuckled together.


    ¡°Come on,¡± he said once he let me go, ¡°we can¡¯t afford to waste time.¡± Quickly we ran through the hall, as Mchi looked at the map. ¡°Uh, I think we take a right,¡± he said, pointing to the right, before continuing down the hall.


    ¡°Well let¡¯s hope you¡¯re right,¡± I said as I followed after him.


    ¡°Connor,¡± he said as he turned around and looked at me, ¡°you okay?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I replied, ¡°just fine.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± Mchi replied as he looked at me again and smiled. ¡°Because you look really worried.¡± I shook my head as I looked at him, but we continued down the hall before we reached another stairs, which led up to F5, the north wing of the building. ¡°Well this will be easy now,¡± he said as we began to climb the stairs, but I felt my heart begin to race faster and faster as we approached F5, and we opened the door.


    ¡°It¡¯s in there,¡± he said as we looked at a map, but my heart began to race even faster, and I felt my knees shaking from fear.


    ¡°Alright, you ready?¡± Mchi said, looking at me with a smile¨Cmaking me smile back. But right then and there, I heard footsteps already rushing towards our direction. Who was that? I thought, but then Mchi¡¯s face lit up with a smile.


    ¡°Fulton!¡± he yelled, but then suddenly I heard another sound, like metal being ripped apart. I looked behind me, seeing Fulton and the rest of Delta Team rushing into the north wing, guns pointed towards us, as Fulton¡¯s eyes widened in shock as he stared at us.


    ¡°Fulton?¡± Mchi asked, confused by the look on his face, and then we all looked back at Fulton. ¡°You guys found it?¡± Fulton asked with surprise popped on his face, ¡°Where is it?¡±


    ¡°In the room right next to us,¡± Mchi replied as we turned back towards the room F5 was in. Agent Jones nodded as he approached us and sighed, ¡°Well then, we have to hurry, there isn¡¯t much time left.¡±


    ¡°No kidding,¡± Fulton said with a smirk.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go!¡± Agent Hanover shouted as we moved in quickly towards the room, guns pointed forward. Inside the room was a long table, with all kinds of bottles on it, but that was not what caught my attention. What did was that there wasn¡¯t exactly anything in there. It was just a long table with a bunch of bottles on it. I couldn¡¯t tell if the table was fake or not, because there was nothing inside.


    ¡°Um...I don¡¯t see nothing...¡± Fulton muttered as he looked around. I walked around the table, looking for something, but there was nothing here except for a few bottles. I walked around the table again, but there still was nothing.


    ¡°Yeah, there¡¯s nothing!¡± Fulton mored as he shook his head excessively, ¡°I¡¯m so stupid!¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Mchi asked as he grabbed one of the bottles on the table. ¡°You didn¡¯t find anything?¡±


    ¡°Nothing!¡± Fulton shouted, ¡°This is just a table and bottles!¡±


    ¡°Fulton?¡± I asked confused as I turned back around to look at him. ¡°Something¡¯s wrong, I can feel it.¡± Fulton chuckled with a crazed face as if I was a fool or something. ¡°Of course!¡± he hissed back, ¡°it¡¯s just another trap! He probably made use here and waste our time for nothing.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I asked, looking back at Mchi and seeing that he was confused as well.


    ¡°I¨CI don¡¯t know...¡± Agent Jones said, shaking his head unsurely, as if he didn¡¯t understand either. I could tell that he felt the same way as I did, because I could feel something. The only thing that was wrong is that I couldn¡¯t exactly figure it out. ¡°There¡¯s nothing at all!¡± Fulton shouted, but then he froze like ice once we heard a voice say, ¡°Because that¡¯s how its intended to be.¡±

 Chapter 215

    215 Begging


    Slowly he turned around, seeing Dr. Mord with five guards right behind him. ¡°How do you like my trap?¡± he asked with a dark chuckle, as if this was all a game. I could tell from his voice that he knew we were here and that he had nned for it.


    ¡°How..how did you...¡± Fulton muttered as Dr. Mordughed with a cackle in his voice, ¡°how did you know? You have to be cheating!¡±


    ¡°Cheating? How so?¡± Dr. Mord asked as he stood in front of the table, ¡°I am the one that is telling you that I made a trap that has obviously worked. Remember when you captured Jameson? We made a n to lead you guys here, and although we did try to kill you guys in between that time. Clearly you dodged those and fell right into this next trap. Great job.¡±


    I looked at him, anger boiling and circting inside of me. ¡°You sick little-¡± Fulton hissed but Dr. Mord rose up his hands with a certain calmness. ¡°Save your anger forter, clearly I don¡¯t have time for it,¡± he said, as he shook his head, ¡°because there¡¯s a much more pressing issue.¡±


    ¡°And what would that be?¡± Fulton asked as he tried to step back, but the guards stopped him. I looked at them, and they all looked like soldiers but none of them had a uniform on, and they were all wearing a blue band on their arm which I saw were filled with blue mes.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure,¡± Dr. Mord said with a smile. ¡°Maybe exacting my revenge which reminds me, where¡¯s the others uh-Charlie Company? You might wanna call them.¡±


    ¡°What sick n do you have?¡± Fulton hissed at him, as Dr. Mord continued tough while he walked around behind the table. He seemed almost like a showman or a ringmaster in the circus. ¡°Now that¡¯s just rude,¡± he said while shaking his head as got close to Fulton, ¡°I thought you were going to try and y nice.¡±


    ¡°What is your sick n?!¡± Fulton yelled out, his eyes turning red, ¡°I demand to know what it is!¡±


    ¡°Well based on how the tables are, in a figurative way, I think you have no power here,¡± Dr. Mord said, as he stood with his arms crossed. ¡°It seems like you guys have already been dealt with.¡±


    .....


    I was about to run over and get to Fulton, but he shook me off.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare,¡± Fulton hissed, looking back at me as I stood there with my mouth open. ¡°He¡¯s just trying to provoke you.¡± Dr. Mord shrugged, ¡°I sort of am. But dear Fulton Rocke, you don¡¯t concern me. In fact, I¡¯m quite impressed with you and your organization. From many years in the ground you rose it up to be one of the top organizations in all of the world. But I¡¯m more concerned about that of those two kids. Connor and Mchi. They¡¯re the ones I want.¡±


    ¡°Is this about your sister? Maddie Cone? How she killed herself?¡± I asked him and his face froze. ¡°She did not kill herself-you killed her,¡± Dr. Mord hissed at us, as he sat back down behind the table, ¡°and I will make it my life¡¯s work to see you both dead.¡±


    ¡°What proof do you have?¡± Mchi asked, as his hands started to sweat.


    ¡°I have a video,¡± Dr. Mord said as he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out an iPad.


    I gasped and leaned forward as I held out my hand for it, but he pped it away.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to touch it,¡± He smiled as he looked over at me. ¡°I saw what happened already. And you deserve to pay, no matter what. But I¡¯m not going to kill you with my gun-no, something much worse.¡± I gulped as fear took over my entire body like a rushing wind, ¡°I¡¯m going to do something much more horrible, and that is to make you watch as your friends die.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I asked, trying not to let my voice shake as I thought of what could possibly be done. ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll see,¡± he muttered as he looked at me, his eyes keen with revenge, ¡°and I promise it will be painful.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re sick!¡± I yelled as I looked around the room for help and saw the other agents.


    ¡°You don¡¯t understand what it¡¯s like to have a sister you love and then to lose her. She was the best person I ever knew and I loved her more than anything,¡± he said. ¡°She was like a mother to me, and you took her away. I respected her, I loved her. She was the best thing that ever happened to me.¡±


    I could hear his voice breaking, the sorrow that captivated him, the loss that consumed him, the hate that he felt for me, ¡°She was perfect, and you took that from me. I hate you dearly.¡±


    ¡°Dearly?¡± Mchi hissed. ¡°Don¡¯t give me that sob story and expect me to care.¡±


    Mchi should¡¯ve not said that.


    Mchi should¡¯ve not said that!


    ¡°You don¡¯t know what pain is,¡± Dr. Mord said, ¡°or you¡¯d never do what you did to us. And you have the nerve to say that to me.¡± He immediately walked over and all of a sudden, threw a hard punch at Mchi¡¯s face. The sound of what could¡¯ve been bones cracking almost made me puke, as Mchi stumbled back, but didn¡¯t fall.


    ¡°You¡¯re not going to stop me.¡± Dr. Mord was clearly enraged. ¡°No one can stop me from what I want to do!¡±


    ¡°We will,¡± Mchi coughed, blood sttering on the floor from his mouth as he started to stand up. ¡°You are going to pay for what you¡¯ve done, even if it¡¯s not in this life.¡± But then Dr. Mord threw another punch, this time harder as the blood spurt from Mchi¡¯s mouth, and he copsed again.


    ¡°It¡¯s toote,¡± he whispered as he started to pass out. ¡°I don¡¯t care what you do, I won¡¯t stop.¡±


    ¡°Stop!¡± I shouted at Dr. Mord as he looked at me, chuckling as Jones and Hanover looked in fear, knowing they weren¡¯t in control of the situation any longer.


    ¡°You¡¯re in no position to be ordering me about,¡± Dr. Mord hissed as he looked at me with contempt. ¡°None any single bit,¡± he added with a hiss, ¡°I know who you are, I know your name.¡± He took a step forward and I took one back.


    ¡°I have watched you,¡± he said, ¡°and I promise you will suffer.¡±


    He took a deep breath before turning over to Fulton. ¡°So, here¡¯s what I want you to do. Call Charlie Company on that radio of yours. Now.¡±


    Fulton¡¯s eyes widened and he immediately grabbed it and hit the button on it, and I could hear him call out, ¡°Charlie, this is Fulton. We need reinforcements.¡± He shut it off before looking up at Dr. Mord who smiled, ¡°Well, that wasn¡¯t so hard was it?¡±


    He started tough hysterically as he looked back at me with those dark eyes filled with insanity. ¡°Now, September, Nikki and Tisiah cane and then I¡¯ll beplete,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°Power. It¡¯s one thing better than money.¡± He looked over at them andughed hysterically. ¡°And they will have to pay for what they did, just like you.¡±


    The anger I had was too much for me to bear, and I just felt like speeding towards him with my legs barely hitting the ground, and rip his neck apart, but that would just make him more angry. So I did the only thing I could think of to do and I yelled as loudly as I could, ¡°Dr. Mord!¡±


    He turned to me with a smile, as if I was his only friend in the world. ¡°Yes?¡± he asked innocently.


    ¡°If you want me dead, then kill me,¡± I said with a shiver as I stood in front of him. ¡°Kill me now, but let these others go. I was the main one there. While I don¡¯t believe I killed her, I took her away from you. I¡¯m sorry and I¡¯ll pay for it, but don¡¯t kill any of my friends please...¡±


    Dr. Mord looked at me, but with no words exiting his mouth, he simply smiled. Then I heard Jones and Hanover gasp. ¡°It¡¯s toote,¡± he whispered as he started to pass out. ¡°I don¡¯t care what you do, I won¡¯t stop. They deserve it as much as you do, so no-I won¡¯t give mercy on them. I¡¯m going to enjoy watching them die slowly.¡± He said as he looked back at me with those eyes full of madness, but it was a different kind of madness than before.


    It was almost as if he had pleasure watching me beg, knowing he would have no mercy. And that was all I could do, beg. And while I was begging for my life, my mind started to wonder, if it wasn¡¯t toote, maybe I could have tried something else. But what? I had to do something before it was toote.


    I felt like my head was spinning as my mind thought of all the possible things I could do.

 Chapter 216

    216 The Need of Answers


    Dr. Mord looked around, as if he was waiting for something-Charlie Company-to arrive. ¡°Come out, Charlie,¡± he said with augh, but there were no wordsing from his mouth.


    Then he started tough hysterically again. ¡°The rest of your friends are taking a long time to arrive,¡± he said, checking his watch for some reason, but there was nothing there. ¡°They¡¯ll be here in a couple of minutes though.¡± He started tough hysterically again. ¡°That¡¯s all the time I need.¡±


    I was afraid, worried at their arrival.


    I didn¡¯t want to die. I was terrified of what Dr. Mord would do to them.


    Then I felt a hand touch my shoulder.


    It was Jones¡¯ hand.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll be fine,¡± he said, right by me with his face drenched with sweat, but still smiling. ¡°We¡¯re going to get you out of this.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t understand,¡± I said, but my voice was barely there. ¡°He wants me and my friends. You guys are not of his concern.¡± Jones sighed as he looked at me. ¡°We will soon,¡± he said as he looked at me, trying to reassure me.


    ¡°But we¡¯re going to get you out of here first,¡± he said, his voice shaking. ¡°He wants us all to watch your friends die.¡± He looked over at Dr. Mord and then back at me, ¡°Then we¡¯re going to make sure that¡¯s not the case.¡± As if he knew what he was going to do, he looked back at Dr. Mord.


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure that¡¯s gonna happen,¡± I said, feeling the pain and hurt-with tears starting to form in my eyes, ¡°you saw what he did to us.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Jones whispered, ¡°but we¡¯ll fight until the bitter end. We¡¯ll stop him from hurting anybody else.¡±


    ¡°I sure hope so,¡± I said to him as Jones smiled, wiping his face with his shirt before looking back at Dr. Mord.


    Then Dr. Mord smiled at us. ¡°I can¡¯t wait to watch all your friends die,¡± he said with augh before looking back at me again.


    I was surprised by how calm his smile was on his face.


    I was scared of the look in his eyes.


    ¡°This is so suspenseful, I love it!¡± Dr. Mord cheered with a crazed grin, ¡°But it¡¯s about to end,¡± he added with augh before looking at me and smiling again, ¡°And then I¡¯m going to make your friends die painfully. Oh the pain, oh the pain! It¡¯s going to be so good,¡± he said with augh before looking back at Jones and then Hanover who looked like they were about to cry.


    Then soon enough, FBI agents and September, Nikki and Tisiah rushed towards the room. But then they stopped, with shock sted on their faces and fear and terror twitching their eyes. Petrified and horrified, they stared at Dr. Mord with fear in their eyes, and they knew it wasn¡¯t over.


    I stood up as the agents started to take cover behind their backs and began to aim their guns towards Dr. Mord.


    ¡°Don¡¯t even try to shoot me because my guards here are way more advanced than the pawns guarding this base,¡± he said with a chuckle, and then he pointed at Fulton and said, ¡°If you would kindly tell Charlie Company toe in.¡± Then Dr. Mord turned his attention back to us, and then to the agents as he smiled at us with a wicked smile that seemed to go on forever. ¡°It¡¯s so nice seeing your faces again.¡± He said with a smile.


    Then I looked at him in fear as I felt my knees buckle.


    ¡°Come in, Charlie Com-¡±


    ¡°Only the three kids,¡± Dr. Mord ordered, ¡°And no one else.¡±


    The sound of someone pressing buttons came from the other side as I heard Fulton say, ¡°Charlie Company to Base.¡± Nikki looked at me with worry, and all I could do was cry, which was embarrassing to myself, but I didn¡¯t want to die either so I tried to put on a brave face and not look as terrified as I felt inside my head.


    ¡°I want September, Nikki and Tisiah toe inside now,¡± he ordered, as the three walked in slowly, their eyes wide and filled with fear as they looked back at me. They looked terrified of Dr. Mord and I felt guilty for being one of the reason they were in this situation in the first ce. ¡°Great...¡± he said with a smile, ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting for this moment.¡±


    I looked at them all and then at the agents who looked like they were trying not to make eye contact with Dr. Mord. ¡°Alright guards, bag these three and Connor and Mchi. Take them to the van,¡± he said, while looking at the guards.


    Then guards started to run over towards us with evil smiles on their faces.


    And I just knew it wasn¡¯t going to end well for us. Suddenly, a big ck bag came over my head and my visibility blurred, which made me panic even more as I couldn¡¯t see anything-or anyone. My vision went dark as the bag got tighter around my face and I started to panic more and more.


    What was happening?


    What was happening?!


    My vision blurred even more as the bag got tighter around my face.


    I couldn¡¯t breathe!


    I started to cry as I tried to take in air but nothing was working as my lungs started to feel like they were being crushed by someone. Then, I knocked out.


    ***


    Where was I?


    What happened to me?


    I woke up, feeling a light sway of what could be some sort of moving object. It wasn¡¯t a van-no-that would be quite concerned. It was as if it was on the sea, just moving-oh no. Am I on a boat?! I woke up, finding myself a room that was quite dark. Gray walls, a marbled floor, and a window by the side that seemed to be bulletproof ss. We were on the sea as the waves swept through the air.


    I was scared, worried-afraid for my life. What do I do?


    But then I heard the door open as I saw Dr. Mord walk inside of the room. Was this the time I was going to die like he predicted or threatened or promised or whatever you¡¯d call it? But then when I read his eyes, he was subtle, like a normal man. It was as if he was normal. Why was that so?


    Hopefully, this normal-ness allows him to let me go or something.


    He sat down inside of the chair, and he stared at me. ¡°Hello,¡± he said with a smile. ¡°I hope you¡¯re doing well.¡±


    ¡°I hope so as well,¡± I responded with a sarcastic tone I already regretted, but then I continued speaking, ¡°Why am I here?¡±


    ¡°Ohe on now,¡± Dr. Mordughed with a sly grin on his face as he crossed his legs, ¡°I would¡¯ve thought that you would have guessed why you are here. But I might as well tell you. I want you to describe how you got to my sister. That day you killed her.¡±


    I was silent...unsure of what to say or where to start, but then I opened my mouth to speak-and found it hard to get a word in edge-wise.


    ¡°I would love it if you started telling me how you got to her,¡± Dr. Mord said with an evil grin on his face.


    I nodded while looking at him, not sure where to start. I could still remember chasing her through the halls a few months ago. ¡°We were chasing her after our men surrounded Charlie, the base from Camaguey. Yeah, she was cornered once we caught her. She was crazy-like you,¡± I said to him, as I felt my heart racing for the second time in as many minutes. ¡°She was like a caged lion.¡± I said as my mind began to wander, recalling the scene before me in my mind.


    ¡°Her eyes were...red and mad. Fire burning in her eyes, lions roaring in her breath,¡± I mumbled silently, ¡°I remember that day like it was yesterday.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± he said, ¡°And then?¡± Dr. Mord asked, his eyes widening as I stopped talking, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, what do you mean?¡±


    ¡°Continue on, there¡¯s more,¡± he said. ¡°I know there is.¡±


    I nodded. ¡°She broke my wand, and we had a very challenging fight with her. Super challenging, it was as if-it was impossible to beat her. But then the rest came to the rescue, and then-she exploded.¡±


    Dr. Mord¡¯s eyes widened, confused and unsure as if he was confused of what I was exactly meaning by that. ¡°Exploded...¡± he asked with a perturbed face, ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    I blinked, unsure of what to say next, as he watched me closely with a raised brow in response to my hesitation. ¡°Exploded, unless you can¡¯tprehend that,¡± I said back to him, although a bit too feisty for my liking, ¡°It was a fireball-a very big fireball that took us all by surprise and knocked us off our feet.¡± I said with a confused expression on my face and feeling like I needed to stop talking now-it was getting hard for me to continue on.


    ¡°Heh,¡± he said. It was as if he was epting the fact, but I was almost sure he wasn¡¯t. ¡°That doesn¡¯t make sense.¡±


    ¡°It did at the time,¡± I responded as I shrugged my shoulders while frowning as I thought about the memory again and again in my mind, trying to recall every detail of what happened that day. ¡°She didn¡¯t want to get caught, what better way than to-¡±


    I felt a ringing pain on my cheek as Dr. Mord¡¯s hands pped against my face, causing me to cry out in pain and shock. ¡°Don¡¯t try to y innocent!¡± he shouted, ¡°I know your type of people! You¡¯re trying to pretend you don¡¯t know anything when you know everything!¡±


    ¡°I told you everything! You refuse to believe it!¡± I screamed at him, as if I waspletely someone else. I never knew myself to be this angry or this hot tempered at all. I never knew myself to be this reckless or this foolish... ¡°I know what happened that day!¡±


    ¡°I know that. But you¡¯re telling me lies,¡± he said, while looking at me like he didn¡¯t believe me in the slightest. ¡°You¡¯re lying!¡± he said again as he hit me again. This time with the back of his hand in my cheek so hard that it almost knocked me unconscious.


    ¡°You know what...maybe this can convince you,¡± Dr. Mord said. He suddenly pressed something and a part of the wall slid to a view of seeing Nikki on chains. She was in the air, chains holding her from up top and chains maintaining her at the bottom.


    I felt my eyes widen in horror and disbelief as I looked back at Dr. Mord with fear in my eyes. ¡°What is this?¡± I hissed as he chuckled as he looked at me. ¡°A person very important to you, Connor Drails,¡± he said as he smiled at me.

 Chapter 217

    217 The Disc


    I could hear the groans that came out of Nikki¡¯s mouth, the pain that wrecked me inside.


    ¡°You...you did this to her?¡± I asked him with my heart breaking at the sight of my friend being tortured in front of me. ¡°What is wrong with you?¡± Dr. Mord shrugged, ¡°I¡¯m not exactly sure. Maybe I just will do anything just to avenge my sister.¡±


    My mind felt like it was being torn apart into pieces as I stared at Nikki. I never thought she would be put in such a horrible position-such a horrific position at all! ¡°Let her go!¡± I shouted, my eyes widened with fury and hate. But Dr. Mord shook his head as he looked at me, his eyes burning with enjoyment and pleasure, as if it was something he enjoyed seeing me in pain and helplessness-which it wasn¡¯t for me at all, I felt so powerless and broken inside.


    It wasn¡¯t only the fact he was hurting Nikki, it was the fact that I couldn¡¯t do anything about it at all! I was stuck in this room, unable to help her out in any way. There was nothing I could do-nothing I could do at all!


    My fists clenched as I red at Dr. Mord who just looked at me with a smug expression. ¡°Tell me everything of how she died, and I said everything!¡± he said before defaulting to a shout. ¡°I told you everything!¡± I screamed loudly, my anger boiling inside as my heart ached more and more for the pain that Nikki was suffering right now!


    ¡°No! You tell me!¡± Dr. Mord yelled back at me, ¡°You tell me everything or she¡¯s dead! I promise you!¡±


    My eyes widened with confusion as I stood still as a stone, unable to understand his words as I looked at him withplete turmoil. ¡°Please... please let her go,¡± I said with my eyes directly at his, pleading with him, ¡°You have to let her go!¡±


    Dr. Mord grinned at me as he looked at Nikki while speaking back to me with an evil tone in his voice. ¡°You still won¡¯t budge even for your friends. I have to give you that much,¡± he said, before turning his face back to me. ¡°Now tell me how she died!¡± he yelled again at me in amanding tone.


    My mind raced as I tried to think about something-anything that would help Nikki get out of this wicked situation.


    .....


    But an idea-yes an idea! I got it!


    ¡°Wait! You have a footage of it right?¡± I asked. ¡°You just aren¡¯t clear about it because of the angle it¡¯s in right?¡± Dr. Mord slowly nodded, breathing heavily as his chest expanded and contracted. ¡°Ok, so you want me to tell you how she died, right? So what if I show you?¡±


    Dr. Mordughed as he stared at me, his eyes wide in disbelief that I would be willing to do that for Nikki. He took out his radio, and slowly walked away towards the ss separating the room we were in and Nikki, who was in chains behind that ss. ¡°What do you think, Nikki?¡± Dr. Mord asked, as he looked at Nikki who had an annoyed expression on her face.


    ¡°Please...¡± she muttered. Dr. Mord smiled in response. ¡°I think we can do that.¡±


    He clicked on his radio and said, ¡°Bring in the disc and tablet. The one with Maddie Cone.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Sir,¡± a female voice replied over the radio, before another voice said over the radio, ¡°We found it sir.¡±


    I turned my attention to the television screen where the tablet and disc were brought into the room by two men, both of them wearing blue hats and these vests that circled around their body, hiding the majority of their body from view. They ced both devices down onto a table and unhooked the disc from its power source and the tablet from its charger cord before handing them to Dr. Mord.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± he said quietly before they left, ¡°Let¡¯s watch.¡±


    The two men walked away and sat down on two chairs across the room while Dr. Mord sat on his chair while turning on both devices and pressing y on the tablet. The screen popped up in that same area, the hall we chased Maddie Cone through. She was running, and I could hear the panting from the clip, along with the heavy footsteps of everyone running after her as we chased her down the hall.


    ¡°Now watch as she reaches her hand out towards the wall...¡± Dr. Mord said as the clip yed out like it was moving slow motion. The clip started with the first view of the wall, where we saw that there were small marks that appeared and disappeared with no sound effect to be heard in the clip.


    It was as if it was happening again like deja vu-a terrible feeling in this case-that was showing upon me, the same thing that happened to me in the same way. I felt my blood run cold as I felt like my life was shing before my eyes. It felt like it wasn¡¯t just happening to me again; it felt like it was happening again all over again!


    I felt my heart throb wildly inside my chest as my hands started to sweaty, and I felt my breathing quicken in response. It reached the part where the rest of the YMPA team came in, and then right there-is where I saw it. ¡°Stop the video!¡± I shouted, as I saw Maddie Cone¡¯s wand glow and his eyes turn red.


    ¡°That¡¯s where she blows the building up!¡± I said, with a sliver line of hope rising inside of me. But then, something froze me cold. It then showed that I got my wand and stabbed her in the throat with blood spilling onto her hands as she fell dead, as she died a gruesome death right there in front of us all.


    My head fell back in utter despair and horror as I gasped for breath while looking at Dr. Mord with the most pathetic look on my face!


    ¡°No-that never happened at all, what?!¡± I pleaded, as Dr. Mordughed as well as his two colleagues. ¡°No! It wasn¡¯t like that! That¡¯s not what happened!¡± I said, feeling my face blush with shame as I felt tears fall down my cheek as I felt like aplete and total failure for being unable to save my friend.


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t like that,¡± Dr. Mord chuckled. ¡°So here we go. Who knew after all these years, I now finally see it. Maybe the tablet screen was too blurry or something.¡±


    ¡°No, this has to be some changed disc or something,¡± I said. ¡°Someone changed that, I assure you-this isn¡¯t the same disc you had before.¡±


    ¡°Wow, I¡¯ve never seen something more embarrassing my entire life, but here we are,¡± Dr. Mord said with a smile that recovered from intenseughter. ¡°You exposed yourself!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not funny! That¡¯s not what happened! You can¡¯t change what happened!¡± I yelled, my anger and rage getting the best of me. Dr. Mord shook his head before he sighed from hisugh.


    My eyes were wide with horror as I saw that Nikki¡¯s eyes were wide with terror as well, as her eyes shifted around in her head. ¡°Nikki...¡± I blubbered as I looked at her-in pain and agony, ¡°I¡¯m sorry...I¡¯m so sorry...¡±


    I fell to my knees with tears pouring down my cheeks, as I tried to calm myself down in my mind because I could hear Maddie¡¯s screaming as she died a gruesome death-her wordsing back to haunt me!


    ¡°Please... Please don¡¯t let her die...¡±


    I looked at Nikki, and she looked at me with wide eyes of horror and sorrow. ¡°This is what happens when you lie to me Connor, this is what happens,¡± he said, hovering over me as his breath burned my neck, ¡°And now she¡¯s gonna die!¡±


    ¡°No...¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s gonna die, Connor!!!!¡± he cackled as if he was a hyena, ¡°This is what happens when you lie to me, and now she¡¯s gonna die!¡± he said again before his lips touched my ear and I could feel him whispering into my ear, ¡°And this time, you won¡¯t be able to save her.¡±


    But then, all of a sudden-someone busted into the room. I think another crewmate based on context clues. ¡°Hey-a bunch of YMPA boats are behind us right now. I think they found us.¡± Dr. Mord¡¯s smile changed dramatically, and I felt like spitting in his face to mock him. He started to look nervous as his eyes widened with worry for his life.


    ¡°You gotta hide this tablet and disc somewhere else!¡± one of his associates said in a panicked voice, ¡°And fast!¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, I know the truth now,¡± he said before he turned his face at me, ¡°You have a lot of exining to do my boy!¡±


    I coughed loudly in response before standing up and getting into a fighting stance. ¡°Not anymore!¡±


    I lunged at Dr. Mord, but he was fast and ducked out of the way while grabbing my arm. ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± he said. ¡°You think you¡¯re going to escape?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m going to take you down,¡± I promised to him as he smiled as if everything was alright, ¡°You know what you did-and now it¡¯s your turn to pay.¡±


    ¡°Ahahaha! What¡¯s the fun in that? Now it¡¯s my turn to take you down!¡± He shouted.


    He took out his wand. I wish I knew how to use my wand now. This happens every time. But it would be cool if I did know how to use it like everyone else does. ¡°Try me,¡± I muttered at him with a smile, and he gave a smirk in response before he said, ¡°And how do you propose we do that?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been through all of these tricks now,¡± I told him before he lowered his head down. ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡±

 Chapter 218

    218 Damp Halls


    He charged towards me at a fast pace, his figure getting bigger by the second. Okay, I needed to back up-calm down, calm down-I could do this. I thought about all the fighting I¡¯ve done since I¡¯ve started this game with my friends in Las Vegas. This is nothing-nothing at all. I could do this easily-it was nothing. I just needed to keep my cool-just needed to keep my cool.


    He first came in with a strong swing with his wand, swinging left and right as I blocked each hit, ducking back into a crouch as he looked to strike at me with another shot with his wand.


    ¡°Oh yeah?¡± I shouted as he hit me in my upper left arm with the back of his wand and sent me flying back with a painful jolt of electricity that made my muscles twitch, but it didn¡¯t knock me unconscious, ¡°Is that all you got?!¡± I shouted at him, standing up again while striking him in the gut with my fist while sending him into the wall. ¡°This is nothing at all!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m so d you can say that,¡± Dr. Mord said with a smile as he smirked, ¡°I¡¯ll be d to show you exactly how easy it is to defeat you.¡±


    Soon enough, he charged towards me and I was already starting to regret my words. I needed to get back-back, back! He swung his wand but I quickly ducked under, before returning with a jab to the stomach that sent him back. Yes-yes! But then he went for the thigh, and my footing failed me as I stumbled back.


    I dropped to the floor-but rolled to get back onto my feet, before I prepared for the iing attack that was speeding towards at me at a faster rate than my beating heart, and I got my wand before Dr. Mord swung-creating a sh that almost sent me back into the wall. I knew he was getting faster but it wasn¡¯t working against him...but then it did...


    I looked at him in disbelief as I saw him back up a little before he looked to the side and gave a smirk, as if he had been expecting this all along. He swung again with his wand, and I moved my head to the left to dodge it-rolling to the side beforeing in with my own attack, my hands sweating with dripping fear and my wand barely in my grasp, my hands were shaking as I held onto my wand for dear life and tried my best to hit him-but...


    I didn¡¯t hit him and he was stronger than me, so I used the only weapon I had...My Perk.


    Quickly, I charged it up, as my veins glowed red, and Dr. Mord looked at me-but not in fear, but actually in excitement as if he wanted this to happen, as if he wanted the best of me. Well, the best of me he¡¯s going to get.


    .....


    I sped towards him with my fist ready before I released a shockwave that would hopefully push him away. But he took a knee as if he was getting knighted and somehow-he withstood the power of the shockwave that encountered him. ¡°How...¡± I muttered in shock, as if I couldn¡¯t believe my eyes.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t over yet,¡± he said while smiling with amusement, ¡°Your fight is far from over.¡±


    I began to pull back, unsure of what to do next-being the fact he somehow withstood that shockwave that usually knock people to their feet, so I could see him preparing for me again before I did my best to run away-but I didn¡¯t get very far because he shot out another st of light with his wand that was strong enough to knock me back.


    But I rolled, feeling my heart rate skyrocket as I looked back, seeing three more boltse my way. I rolled, hearing and feeling the debris shoot out of the wall, before I returned to my feet-and quickly stomped the ground. This time he didn¡¯t have enough time to actually get knighted by the queen this time, so maybe the shockwave would work against him this time.


    And then he swung his wand again with an attack that caused me to fly across the room. But I could feel the magic around me before I rolled and regained my footing again-but the force behind his attacks was too much for me to bear.


    I needed to get out of here, I needed to escape!


    But how? The exit was behind him and I wouldn¡¯t be able to run past him to get there if I tried-but wait, there was an escape hatch that led outside of this room. I saw it behind me, and maybe it might take me outside-or maybe somewhere else but best case scenario-in the torture chamber where Nikki was.


    But then Dr. Mord turned his head and looked at me with wide eyes of horror and sorrow as if he had known I was thinking of that door all along, ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± he said with a smirk as if he had known it all along, ¡°I¡¯ll never let you escape that easy!¡±


    I looked behind me as I heard the sound of a lock on that door unlock before Dr. Mord came after me with a kick to the chest that sent me flying into the wall, my wand falling from my grasp before I fell on my side and then copsed onto the floor.


    He took his wand back while standing over me, ¡°What an exciting show,¡± he said with a smirk as if he were about to start his next act of murder, ¡°I¡¯ve always wanted to y a game of tag.¡±


    I sat up from the floor and got on my feet as he readied his wand again before he charged towards me at a fast pace as I looked at him arrive, knowing I needed to get out of here-which right then, an idea finally made its way into my mind, and now I knew what I was going to do...I hope. I dived under the swing that came across me, and then I bolted towards the door.


    No turning back.


    No nothing.


    Just going, no stopping, and no listening to the booming footsteps that were chasing behind me. I smacked through the door and into the hall, which was pretty bright to be honest. There were lights swinging like monkeys on vines on the ceiling, as I ran through the hall-the wood sounding from each footstep that stomped on it.


    All of a sudden, in the PA, I heard Dr. Mord say, ¡°Connor Drails has escaped, if you see at anytime-bring him back to me now.¡±


    Fear pumped inside of me, and my mind raced as I continued to run through the halls. What do I do? Where do I go?


    No, first-I need to find Nikki, then find the rest of my friends. The YMPA were already here, so we can easily escape and maybe stop the virus while were-where¡¯s the virus anyways? It wasn¡¯t in that base in Washington D.C, so where is it?


    But before I even had a chance to choose any options, I saw a guard in this uniform, like a ck jacket with vest, approached me. He got out his wand, and I already knew he were BMO.


    ¡°Hey!¡± he shouted, before shooting a bolt speedily in my direction. I rolled under it, feeling the flying debris dash towards my direction, before I got up to my feet and bolted into another room-as if trying to lose him.


    The guard was on my tail now as I looked for another exit to run for. I found a room around the corner, as I moved towards the door, my legs barely touching the ground. I looked behind me to see that guard chasing after me, and he was gaining fast. But there were stairs that were on the left of the hall, meaning I could possibly escape that way.


    I dashed down the stairs, but so did the guard as well-before I turned to the right, hoping to lose him with my trick. But the trick didn¡¯t work, and the guard was now closer than before. Soon enough, I heard bolts speeding past me-whizzing past my ear at full speed-Woom!-as fear began to pump inside more than ever, filling through my veins and coursing through my body.


    I kept running until I could hear nothing except my breathing as I slowed to a halt, my hand clutching my wand tightly. My heart raced like it was about to explode out of my chest.


    But then I looked up, seeing a door that sat above some stairs, and I knew that was my temporary escape.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare move!¡± the guard shouted, but I ignored him-seeing my opportunity and taking it with no questions asked. Thunk-thunk-thunk-I made my way upstairs before I finally reached thest obstacle: the door.


    Figures there was another one before that.


    Suddenly, I turned around and saw a wand swinging in my direction. Whoop-I ducked under the swing, before pushing him with my wand, but his wand suddenly came to the rescue.


    ng-sh-cling, we continued to swing our wand, high and low-but I knew this wasn¡¯t getting any better.


    But all of a sudden, he kicked my thigh-thump-making me lost my stability. But then he came in for the grab, pushing me down the stairs.


    But I was taking him with me.


    We rolled down the stairs, thumping every single step before wended onto the ground.


    Quickly, I returned to my feet-but as well did the guard, and he took no time in taking out his wand.


    He shot a bolt-dodged.


    He shot another, evaded.


    But the third one sent me flying, crashing into the wall-as ss shattered and swept through the floor.


    I slowly got up, looking at the guard whose smile seemed satisfied but also wanting more. I was scared, fearful, afraid of what to do, what to say, what to think-and yet at the same time filled with hope because maybe I could find a way out of this mess. Maybe there was something to do to save myself from this situation that seemed so impossible, almost as if there were something that was missing out there that could save me from all of this nonsense.


    I stood there with my wand still clutched in my hands-while his wand was still ready to shoot off at any moment. He still had not lowered it from his shoulder; still had not lowered his wand; and still had not lowered his guard. He stared at me with those same cold eyes-eyes that showed me what I would see if I would cross this man-his eyes showed me death and destruction.


    But one thing he did not do at all was to guard the door.


    Quickly, I sped towards the stairs as the guard charged towards me, but it didn¡¯t matter anymore about defeating him-it mattered about escape.


    I slid under his swing that sped at a thousand miles per hour, and quickly returned to my feet as my goal once again thrived as I approached the door.


    I touched the door, and it opened-but my momentum was a bit too excited of finally escaping the damp halls, and I fell over onto my stomach.


    I slowly got back up, seeing the faint blue sky and the light that continued to shine on certain parts of the ship with each right and left direction.


    Where was I?

 Chapter 219

    219 Through the Ship, Lone at Night


    I looked around as I saw crewmen wander the ship, with shouts and orders bellowing from the air.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go men!¡± they shouted, walking around-carrying boxes as if they had ces to be, which was probably true. But I needed to find Nikki and free her. Who knows, he might¡¯ve already made his way towards Nikki.


    That was enough to get me moving, as I moved through the ship, but I still was very subtle and sneaky. I crouched behind a box, peeking each second to see any chance of movement I could make.


    During one of my quick peeks, I saw hiding in the darkness some stairs that led to a room.


    Perfect.


    But then a crewman walked in my direction, passing by the box before he stopped¨Cand my heart stopped in unison. He turned and looked in my direction and he began to start walking.


    Oh no..oh no.


    He walked and walked before he stopped, and my heart began to pump faster, fear coursing through my body and sweat dripping from my face.


    This was bad, and I needed to do something. But what? I looked back, and the crewman stood there¨Cas if he was waiting just for me.


    .....


    It almost felt like he was, and he was just standing there like a hawk¨Cpatiently waiting to strike.


    But then someone called his name or something, because he walked away as if I wasn¡¯t there anymore, and relief fell over like refreshing water. I got up and made my way towards the stairs, unsure of what to even do.


    Where to even go.


    Now if I remember, it was right by the building that I just came out of at full speed, and this building was right next to it. Unless it was a live video or something¨Cor maybe an illusion, I¡¯m not sure.


    All I know is that it was near the building, unless it was maybe the next room.


    I made my way inside of the next section of the building, and closed the door, mming it shut. I looked to the left and right, not seeing much of anything to be honest, but I heard voices in the distance-or so I thought-that made me uneasy with this area. Where would Nikki be?


    Hmm...


    I remember it was like a big room, with chains and a lot of things perhaps, but there was no door or window, so this was probably a dead end room, which meant that was a bad sign for me to move on to the next section of this building, because it might mean that there wasn¡¯t any ce for me to go but to turn around and return back to where I was before this room.


    I turned back around and walked in between two objects as they moved with me in front of it-which seemed odd for them to move that way. But then as I did, I felt the thump¨Cthe dislocation of the floor.


    Thump-thump. I rubbed the floor slightly as I looked down, noticing a trapdoor beyond my midst. I smiled, reaching down and seizing the handle before toiling to lift it up. I saw stairs that led down to some dark room, pitch ck, but I could still make out some things inside that looked like barrels and some crates, but it was hard to tell with my eyes adjusted to the darkness of the room-which looked almost like some sort of warehouse.


    I strode down, each step echoing louder than the other, until I finally reached the end of the stairs-where a small window allowed some light to seep into the room.


    I stopped dead in my tracks. I looked to the side, and I saw another door¨Can immense one that was twice in proportion to me, which was pretty intimidating to be honest. It looked like it was made from steel bars that were held together with iron and all sorts of other stuff that made up some sort of chain-which would make sense since this room seemed like a storage room of sorts.


    I opened it up, walking through the door to see a white sort of cockpit or control room, and then outside was the room that Nikki was chained in. My eyes widened and my heart leapt, seeing her in a cold cell with no windows or light-which was worse than I thought. Her face was pale, and she had this vacant look on her face as her eyes looked past me to nothingness.


    ¡°Nikki!¡± I shouted, with a voice that echoed like a dinosaur, as I stepped into the cell as if I had walked into some sort of tomb or tombstone, or just a graveyard of some sort.


    Her head turned towards me as if she saw someone who she recognized; which I¡¯m pretty sure she did. ¡°Connor...¡± she mumbled as she smiled at me, and I nodded. ¡°It¡¯s me, I¡¯m going to get you out okay?¡± I said with a smile that was twitching as if it was having a seizure, as I felt my heart sink deep into the pit of my stomach.


    She stared at me for a while as I stared at her as well. She stared at me for a long time and she did this as if she saw me as a ghost or something that shouldn¡¯t be there at all; which would make sense with the fact that she had been kidnapped or captured in some sort of scienceb that could¡¯ve been built by some mad scientist; and was built by some mad scientist.


    I ran back inside of the control room, and a group of red and green buttons filled the table. Which one was for which? I looked around until I found one that said, ¡®Open door¡¯ so I pushed it before it said something else and there was a small sound as the door slowly opened, letting me see adder that lead downwards towards Nikki.


    ¡°How do I release the...¡± I muttered, hoping to find something¨Canything that would scream ¡°release chains¡± at me, but it just seemed like everything was filled with metal and other stuff that made sense as far as being in a room filled with scientific things and equipment.


    But then I looked at the back of her chains; and noticed they were a bit loose. And not just that they were loose¨Cbut they werepletely rusted apart. And with that, an idea made it¡¯s way quickly into my mind. I opened the door quickly and I ran towards the chains, but as I came towards the chains they slowly began to be more enormous than anticipated.


    The chains started to snap against each other and they started to grow wider¨CI turned around in panic as they began to bend into something that resembled an ordion rather than just simple metal chains, as if they were going to copse in on themselves.


    ¡°Uh...Nikki,¡± I muttered worriedly before looking at her. ¡°Hold on.¡±


    I charged my Perk, slightly afraid that I might shatter my bones by doing this, but it was worth it if it meant I could get Nikki out of there quickly and safely.


    The chains began to bend into an ordion before they finally broke apart as if they had been built of rubber rather than metal¨Cas I stood over on of the chains and I thrusted my fist forward. It collided and the chains shattered as they fell down rather quickly onto the ground, revealing Nikki, who was looking at me with shock written all over her face, as if she was just surprised to see me in the first ce.


    All of a sudden she dropped, and just like that¨Cher face quickly returned to normal and her color seemed to re-arrive, as the blood swiftly circled in her body, and her heart seemed to beat in time with mine for some strange reason¨Cbut then her eyes darted over towards the broken chains as she sat there quietly¨Cas if she knew what wasing next.


    ¡°Connor!¡± she shouted as she ran over to me hurriedly and embraced me, without me even being prepared, and I felt her arms around my waist and her hands grabbing my shoulders tightly, before she started to weep in my arms like a little child¨Cand she didn¡¯t seem to care as she let herself cry on me as I held her tightly.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡±I muttered stutteredly, trying not to sound too nervous or anxious while she nodded and hugged me even tighter, before she wiped away a tear and nodded again in response. She pulled herself away from me and stared into my eyes.


    ¡°Yeah, we gotta go,¡± she said as she looked around, as she straightened her shirt. She brushed the dirt and dust off of herself before she wiped away a tear from her cheek, as if she¡¯d just been crying for hours and hours before I¡¯d made my way into the room. ¡°Before guards start checking.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, follow me,¡± I said, as she began to follow me out of the room, and then we walked quickly as we made our way out of that horrifying room of a jail cell. We went up the stairs before returning to the hall.


    ¡°We need to find the rest of them, and move in time to escape with the YMPA,¡± I said, looking around suspiciously, but also feeling rather confident that we could get away. I saw a door at the end of the hall, which had the number ¡¯13¡¯ scribbled in blue marker on the side of it.


    ¡°Maybe this could be it,¡± Nikki said as she looked at me and I nodded in agreement, before she turned the doorknob and opened it slowly, before we could see that it was just another storage room filled with crates and barrels-nothing else. I sighed as I looked at it, then quickly turned over to Nikki who sighed in response.


    ¡°Let¡¯s keep going,¡± I muttered to myself as I tried to put myself together before we began walking down the hallway again. I could hear the shouts of crewman just moving through the ship, quickly trying to rush to their destination. The YMPA boats were probably already catching up, ready to promptly make our escape, before the guards even knew what had happened.


    We walked for hours-or minutes-depending on how one looked at it; it may have been minutes being that we only went through one section of the hall, but it felt like hours as we made our way through several doors that had numbers scribbled on them: ¡¯12¡¯, ¡®2¡¯, ¡®7¡¯-and so on and so forth until I finally reached a door that had the number ¡®2¡¯ written on it as well as a number ¡®5¡¯ underneath it. I opened it up quickly and peered inside-but found nothing more than more rooms filled with supplies or other stuff.


    ¡°Dang it!¡± Nikki muttered, as she looked around and shook her head, before turning back around to me with an annoyed expression on her face as if she was about to punch me. ¡°I told you we need to hurry up.¡±


    I nodded and smiled at her, feeling relieved that I hadn¡¯t missed them yet. ¡°We¡¯ll find them!¡± I said reassuringly as she red at me. ¡°I hope so,¡± I added with a bit a worry as a side, feeling as if I could be in for quite the challenge if we weren¡¯t able to find the others any time soon.

 Chapter 220

    220 Chambers Worth Searching


    We moved out of the section of the building as I looked around-trying to see any more crewmen running through the ship. Figures it wasn¡¯t too hard, because everywhere was filled with crewmen.


    ¡°Wow, this ce is packed,¡± Nikki said anxiously, as we continued to make our way slowly to the next section of the ship, which was probably the other half of the ship, anyway.


    There was a big split, like a lower floor of the ship, before there were two stairs positioned on two sides that led back up to the main floor of the ship. And in between the stairs were more crewmen running about, carrying supplies and yelling at each other at the top of their lungs. ¡°Why do they yell so loud?¡± Nikki asked, shaking her head worriedly, but I didn¡¯t have any answer for her as I looked around myself and tried to figure out where we were exactly.


    We hade out into a wide-open area which had three massive stairways on each side of it. There were also more crewmen here, but they seemed to be rushing about with all of their might, so that they could make it to a certain ce faster than others-as if they were trying to beat a race or something.


    ¡°Okay, the section should be up ahead,¡± I said as we moved forward, as shadows from other people slowly made their way close to us, as if they were trying not to get lost in the crowd.


    ¡°Looks like everyone is moving about,¡± Nikki muttered worriedly, before she began to look around as she shook her head rapidly. Soon enough we arrived to the section, and relief washed over my head as I saw that it was empty, except for me. ¡°Good.¡±


    ¡°Now what?¡± Nikki asked as she looked around, still clearly nervous about this whole ordeal. Looking at her, I returned, ¡°We search.¡± Quickly making our way inside the building, we came across two halls backed up by some stairs and doors. ¡°Alright, we split?¡± Nikki asked. Immediately, I shook my head as she looked at me in surprise.


    ¡°I ain¡¯t trying to lose you again,¡± I said, shaking my head excessively. ¡°Not today.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll it has been the same day. It¡¯s getting to night,¡± she said, looking outside of the window.


    .....


    ¡°It¡¯s already night, I believe,¡± I said, before we moved to the right. Making our way through the hall, I checked each door-hoping to see any sign of prisons or any chambers of any sorts. The second one was a small room with nothing more than a bed with sheets in it along with a toilet in the corner of it-and it had a single window that looked out onto the sea.


    Checking through the hall, I saw more doors and checked the windows, which there still wasn¡¯t anything at all. Or at least anything useful. It seemed that all the windows led to nothing but water.


    ¡°Keep going!¡± I shouted as I moved forward quickly towards another door in front of me that had a number ¡®9¡¯ on it-as if we needed any more numbers to describe where we were now. But after checking through the hall once more, there wasn¡¯t anything there, so I made my way forward and opened the door.


    This one...this one was different.


    Instead, it led to a long hall-and a very long hall like it was just constantly moving away from me, and at first, I thought that it went downwards-which was strange because I saw that it seemed to go up instead, which confused me even more as I looked around myself.


    ¡°You found something?¡± Nikki asked, which she arrived and her eyes widened in confusion and shock, while she stared at me as if she¡¯d never seen me before.


    I shook my head and frowned as I began to look around myself and take in all of the details as I could. ¡°Interesting...¡± I muttered as I walked inside, feeling a sense of lost stability and wobbling, as my head felt heavy and my legs felt like jelly-as if I were suddenly not in control of my body anymore. But then I heard Nikki gasp behind me as I fell forwards.


    ¡°Connor?¡± she asked.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m fine-I think,¡± I responded, which I got up onto my feet and continued walking. Then, I saw a door at the end and it has as a sign: Chambers. There we go.


    ¡°Over here!¡± I shouted which I opened the door, seeing gates that locked in prisoners who were already sleeping. The room smelt like sweat and dirty socks and my stomach was already wiggling like there was worms under there.


    ¡°I see why this is used for prisoners,¡± Nikki said, looking around herself nervously as if she was going to be attacked any moment. Slowly, we moved forward-looking for any prison that could only have any of our friends, our team. As we searched for them, we found more rooms filled with different types of prisoners who were either sleeping or awake-but none of them were our friends.


    Worry began to wash over me, and fear and dread began to slowly seep inside of me. But I still held my head high...somewhat. ¡°Keep going!¡± I told myself as I looked at my surroundings carefully, searching for any more rooms that had anything inside of them at all. But then, all of a sudden-we heard footsteps speeding from a different direction, dashing towards our direction.


    ¡°Oh, no,¡± Nikki muttered, as she turned her head quickly to me and I took a deep breath worriedly, before we both rushed into a different room. But the problem was that we weren¡¯t quick enough to get into that room fast enough, which I soon realized when we heard some guards shouting as they ran past the door to get into a different room that we needed to be in.


    ¡°Oh shoot!¡± Nikki eximed nervously as we heard footstepse closer and closer.


    ¡°We need to run, now!¡± I said to her, as we began to book it the opposite direction. I could hear theming closer, their footsteps stomping like lions, their speed like light years, their presence like demons, and their anger like an explosion of fire. ¡°What do we do?!¡± Nikki asked nervously, as we began to dash past more doors and down more hallways, before she turned back to me as her eyes looked at mine.


    I needed to make a decision, and quickly.


    Very quickly.


    ¡°Go, find the others-I hold them off,¡± I said to her, as her eyes widened in fear and worry. But nheless, she moved away from me quickly and then continued to race forward while I stopped myself for a second. But then I saw it toote-there were guards approaching from every angle now, and their hands were on weapons and they were looking for me with their eyes-they were trying to kill me.


    ¡°Go!¡± I shouted at her.


    Soon enough, three guards approached me and their wands were firm in their grip. ¡°Hands behind your back, now,¡± one of them said. I felt like doing so, because I was already shaking in my boots-but I held my ground firmly. I kept eyes open, trying not to show any fear. Although in the end, tears were going to seep out of eyes from keeping it open to long anyway.


    ¡°Hands behind your back!¡± one of them shouted, ranging up immediately after their calm order. I still stayed firm, but less firm, unfortunately.


    But-firm.


    ¡°We will not tell you this again,¡± one of them warned. I nodded. ¡°I know, you won¡¯t.¡±


    Quickly, I charged up my Perk and stomped the ground, sending a shockwave that sent them flying, as a transparent outline that surged through the room emerged and flew, out the window. They screamed like little girls as they were sent into the water below where they were probably drowned as they tried to swim up to get away from me-and it made me chuckle wickedly.


    ¡°Easy,¡± I said, looking ahead of the hall hoping to see Nikki arrive with our friends. But she wasn¡¯t in the hall, and I don¡¯t think she was in the next. Instantly, I ran forward, thinking that she might have been captured by the guards who were sent away from me and I knew that we would have to rescue her or something-I don¡¯t know what else was possible at that time, but it was what I did-what I thought to be best for her life.


    After running through the hall, I came to almost a certain crossroads except there was an actual crossroads in front of me, which was guarded by two men standing over it with weapons in their hands ready to fight-they weren¡¯t going to let me pass easily.


    I needed to just do what I didst time. Use my Perk, send them away.


    But then they rushed towards me, with their wands ready to swing. Quickly I rolled under as the first swept over me, but not before the second man had fired his wand at me. It struck the floor but didn¡¯t do anything at all, so I used my Perk again and sent a shockwave out that hit him in the head and sent him crashing into the wall with a thump.


    As I rolled myself to my feet quickly and ran towards the crossroads again, it was then when I heard something-it was a scream.


    Nikki?


    The first guard suddenly returned to his feet, and just as I turned around-I saw him st a flurry of attacks at me, but I dodged each one as they flew at my face. I saw his eyes glowed as he seemed to be powered up by the attack-but I knew how to counter that as well. Quickly, I threw a hard blow at his stomach, as he lifted off the ground and then he flew up and away-being dragged from my power into the other end of the hall.


    As I watched him fly away into the distance, I felt myself begin to feel a sense of worry and panic, but it seemed to wash over me as if I were someone else-it felt like my body was no longer my own.


    I needed to find Nikki, or whoever that screamed. Quickly, I ran back to where I was originally headed, as I made my way to the end of the hall-hoping to see Nikki fine and okay and best-case scenario, with all of our team.


    But instead, it was something much worse.

 Chapter 221

    221 Prison Escape


    A guard was holding Nikki, throwing her around, keeping her intact in position, choking her to stillness, making sure that she could not escape his power.


    I saw her eyes widen as she saw meing closer. She tried to struggle but couldn¡¯t escape. ¡°Let her go right now!¡± I shouted, with my eyes bulging in rage, fear, and fury, as my hands began to shake and my legs were beginning to wobble like jelly.


    The guard chuckled wickedly as he threw Nikki around with his wand in one hand-not knowing what to expect from me or anyone for that matter. ¡°Oh dear,¡± he said sarcastically, as if he wasughing at my own thoughts of fear and panic-which seemed to wash over me again. ¡°Let me deal with you first,¡± he said with a cackled smile, as he threw another flurry of attacks at me and I ducked them as they flew over me. ¡°That was fun,¡± he said as his wand shot a bolt out at me-but I rolled under.


    ¡°No, not really,¡± I muttered, as I came in with the charge, swinging my wand before he ducked, returned with an attack that sent me back, but it only worked for a second as my Perk made him fall back and out of my way-as I kept charging forward until I got close enough to Nikki who was looking at me wide-eyed in fear-but yet-still kept her eyes on me in anger as well.


    ¡°Let her go!¡± I shouted again as my hands began to shake even more violently than before. The guard and I swung and our wands shed, nged, collided with every swing that we attacked with, but in the end, he got the best of me and shot a bolt out that hit me right in my stomach-not giving me any time to react or do anything.


    I felt myself rise from the ground, into the air before Inded with a loud thud, sliding through the ground before I halted, crumpling to the ground in pain as I coughed and then wheezed, gasping for air.


    Wow-that hurt.


    I slowly got up onto my feet, seeing the smirking man walk towards me, his wand glowing and ready. ¡°You know what you did?¡± I asked him, as my chest felt like it was burning up with pain.


    The guard chuckled wickedly at me and then raised his wand with a wicked smile on his face. ¡°Yeah, destroyed you, like I¡¯ll do again,¡± he said, holding his wand firm in his hand.


    .....


    This man is delusional.


    ¡°I think you¡¯re forgetting something,¡± I said, as my hands began to glow red again with heat and fire. I readied all my strength and threw two punches to the ground, sending a shockwave that ripped the floor, sent it towards him at flying speed, hitting him square in the chest. He fell back as I turned and ran to Nikki¡¯s aid-and then he quickly flew back into position before he fired another st out that struck me in the shoulder-which sent me back against the wall and then down on the floor in pain.


    I was still alive-but barely-and the pain was immense, like I was being stabbed over and over again with a knife inside me and I thought for sure that I would bleed out. I was gasping for breath now and was beginning to see ck around the edges of my vision, feeling myself growing weaker by the second.


    I couldn¡¯t go out to a guard.


    I won¡¯t go out to a guard.


    I readied my wand, putting my hand on the ground and slowly getting up, looking at the guard stare at me. But then I felt my legs wobble, stumbling down back to the floor. Although I caught myself, I felt a heat of embarrassment warm my face, making me blush even more as I could feel sweat drip down my forehead.


    This is not me. This is not what I am about to do.


    But suddenly, I heard the roar of an engine, as if it wasing our way was about to crash into this room. I looked behind me, seeing light sh inside of the room, which meant a boat was near. But suddenly, bullets sprayed from the boat, crashing their way into the room. The guard fell from a load of bullets, dropping to the floor, dead.


    ¡°Get down!¡± I shouted to Nikki, who was staring at the dead guard with wide-eyed shock on her face-not realizing that it was her that was supposed to be in danger from him. Bullets unloaded and ripped through the walls, frightening me as I curled over Nikki to protect her, taking cover myself under the table beside her as I closed my eyes and prayed that this was all just some sort of dream that I was having before I died from these wounds.


    But then it stopped, which I looked up, realizing the light re through the room, showing that the boat was no longer near us anymore.


    And then I saw someone enter through the light that shone through the door-a man. A tall man with a wand in his hands, with a magnificent structure, good posture-and a face that showed a lot of ss, poise, and bravery.


    ¡°Mr. Drails?!¡± I shouted in shock, as he revealed himself from the light, looking at us both as if he couldn¡¯t believe his eyes either. He took off his hat as he walked towards me-which gave him a very strong sense of authority. ¡°Are you guys okay?¡± he asked, and I nodded in response as well as Nikki.


    ¡°We¡¯re trying to find the others, but we couldn¡¯t yet,¡± I said.


    Mr. Drails nodded before he stretched out from his crouched position. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go quickly,¡± he said, with a determined expression on his face. I nodded as we got up and immediately dashed down the hall, searching for the rest of our team. I hope Mchi and them are safe, I really do, because I¡¯m feeling guilty right now for being so selfish and not thinking about them and what they could be going through at this moment in time-all because I wanted to save Nikki¡¯s life-but at this rate, if we don¡¯t find them soon-then they¡¯re probably all dead.


    The hallways seemed to stretch on forever. Everywhere we went, we saw a dead body or blood everywhere as if there was some war going on here instead of actual order.


    ¡°Did Dr. Mord actually do anything to you?¡± Mr. Drails asked.


    ¡°Interrogate me of how I killed his sister. The weird thing was that, when he got the footage of that time, it showed that I had stabbed her or something. It must¡¯ve been a deep fake,¡± I said, shaking my head, still surprised and confused.


    ¡°I see,¡± Mr. Drails said, looking at me strangely for a moment-not seeming to believe me at all but not saying anything more about it. ¡°Hopefully we can clear it up once we get back.¡±


    ¡°Did you guys find the virus or something?¡± I asked. Mr. Drails shook his head. ¡°But I think Dr. Mord can tell us, and he¡¯s on this ship.¡± We turned the corner, seeing prisoners rush through the halls, screaming and yelling, probably fighting, in fact. But we continued forward towards the sound of fighting until we came upon a group of people who were fighting against guards and they were all being forced back with guards using their wands to hold them back.


    ¡°Stay low,¡± Mr. Drails said, as Nikki nodded, before we crouched ans slid by the raging prisoners, inching our way through before we finally escaped the horde.


    We reached the end of the hallway and saw guards standing against another set of doors that were shut tight, not letting anyone pass through except for these men who were guards of some sort of prisoner block. But then by the side of my eye, I saw a few people that piqued my interest, showed familiarity, looked like...my friends.


    ¡°Guys!¡± I shouted in joy, as I rushed over to them, looking at their excited faces before I turned back to Mr. Drails. ¡°I found them!¡± I shouted at him, as him and Nikki rushed over to where I was, looking at them through the chamber, with excited but sorrowful faces. ¡°Finally, miracles havee,¡± Mchi rejoiced, as Iughed, looking at my friends before I smiled at them, showing that I was relieved that they were still alive-despite what had happened.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m going to get you guys out of here,¡± I said, looking at the bars, and charging up my Perk before I held onto it, pulling it back with all my strength, as it pulled back with me, bend like straws before it exploded in a thousand pieces. ¡°Be ready!¡± I said, as Mr. Drails nodded his head in understanding and Nikki readied herself by putting her hands on her hips in an action pose. She took a deep breath in and out as she began to glow a bright light green before she shot it out at the bars as they broke like ss-allowing everyone to get out of this cell.


    ¡°Perfect, alright let¡¯s get out of here and quickly,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    We ran through the halls before arriving to a door, which he opened, and then we pushed right through, and led to the outside. But right then and there, crewmen and guards noticed us.


    ¡°Oh, no, that ain¡¯t good is it,¡± Tisiah winced.


    Suddenly, like a pack of bison, they dashed at full speed towards us, with their weapons in their hands and ready to take us down, any moment now. ¡°Run!!¡± Tisiah shouted, as we sped through the ship. Bullets and bolts worked together, creating a symbolic friendship to st uspletely, explode us to smithereens.


    ¡°We don¡¯t have our weapons,¡± Mchi said, slowing down from his running pace slightly so we could catch our breaths-noticing that our enemies were closing in on us rapidly-which made us more than nervous since we didn¡¯t have our weapons or anything to defend ourselves with except me, with my Perk, unfortunately.


    But then, more guards began to arrive from the front, closing us in before we were surrounded by a greeting circle of men, guards, and crewmen that held their weapons at us, not showing any mercy, or any sort of grace.


    ¡°We¡¯re surrounded, bad,¡± September said with worry on her face.

 Chapter 222

    222 Battlefield At Sea


    I heard slow footsteps make their way towards us, as his posture revealed under the light. ¡°Wow, that was different,¡± Dr. Mord said with a very hysterical chuckle, looking at us all like we were crazy for even attempting such a feat in the first ce.


    ¡°You know you¡¯re not supposed to be out here,¡± Dr. Mord scowled at me, as I noticed Nikki and Mchi looking at each other in disbelief at what he just said-since it was obvious they couldn¡¯t even remember being in the cell block to begin with-since they both seemed as confused as anyone else around us here.


    He slowly walked towards Mr. Drails, whose face showed no fear at all, even though we all knew that he was cornered with enemies surrounding him on every side with guns pointed at him-but still no fear was evident on his face whatsoever. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure the boats behind us are ready to just blow us up, aren¡¯t they?¡± Dr. Mord said, but Mr. Drails responded with nothing, looking at him curiously instead of angering or flustering him in any sort of way-which seemed odd for someone who had just been surrounded by enemies for quite some time now and was probably on the verge of being executed for something.


    Dr. Mord sighed as he looked down at the ground, then came in for a sudden punch, which somehow Mr. Drails blocked. But in the process, guns cocked at his response, his quickness to act. I felt a sense of suspense tickle inside of me, wondering if he would be able to handle himself against Dr. Mord-who seemed much stronger than him at this point in time-and how well he would react to such a threat if it came down to it.


    Dr. Mord chuckled, and as if he just wanted a little revenge, he threw a punch across Mr. Drails¡¯s face, as he stumbled back-barely holding on. But then he clenched his fist again and pulled it back before he hit Mr. Drails again across the face-making him stumble backward again.


    ¡°Now, as we were saying. I specifically wanted to borrow your agents just for, uh-personal reasons, and clearly you wish to not cooperate, but anyway, now if you can call off these boats that are pursuing us sadly here, maybe we can work out a little something,¡± Dr. Mord said with a chuckle once again, as Mr. Drails looked at him with pure disgust on his face-with his lips slightly curled upward like he had lost all hope of ever getting out of here alive.


    ¡°You kidnap my agents, devise a virus to kill us all, and you expect me to believe you¡¯re going to work out something?¡± Mr. Drails hissed, and Dr. Mord reeled his neck back from the insult...sort of. Dr. Mord nodded with a smile, like some sort of toddler that showed her mother a drawing he designed.


    ¡°Yeah, yeah, I admit that was a bit of a stretch,¡± Dr. Mord said with augh that was very different from the one he had just seconds ago-now sounding more like an actual viin would sound like. ¡°Oh well, we¡¯re wasting time aren¡¯t we? Make the choice.¡±


    ¡°What choice, the choice that would endanger us all?¡± Mr. Drails spat at him, which made me very ufortable, and scared based on what Dr. Mord could and would possibly do, since this was definitely not normal behavior for him at all. He was always so professional and calm-not at all like this-and yet here he was now showing extreme emotions like he had been pushed over the edge.


    .....


    ¡°Everyone is already endangered,¡± Dr. Mord responded with a smile before he turned back to one of his guards before turning his head back to Mr. Drails. ¡°Well then? What¡¯s it gonna be?¡±


    Mr. Drails thought about it for a second and then sighed as he looked at us all before he spoke up. But as he did, a loud noise bellowed from farther away. My head turned, to see not much or anything at all. The noise continued to sound, and soon enough screams followed.


    ¡°What the...¡± Mchi muttered, and even Dr. Mord¡¯s face was confused-and possibly scared, since we could hear people dying around us now-which was strange for this whole situation since there were only about five of us here with no one else in sight that we could hear or see anywhere near us.


    Then all of a sudden, bodies from the YMPA began to rush towards us like an assault.


    ¡°Well,¡± Dr. Mord chuckled. ¡°Kill these six and then deal with the rest of them, we gotta bail.¡±


    ¡°Wait, what?!¡± Mchi shouted, as a guard pulled up his gun, aiming it at us. But then, a bullet whipped and shot through his head, causing his body to copse into nothing more than ash on the floor of the ship-along with everyone else outside. Dr. Mord looked in shock, as he stared at us then the agents right behind us.


    ¡°Guards, get them!¡± he ordered, as his guards immediately charged as if they were going to battle, which meant we were about to have some sort of shoot-out right here in front of us-and we were unarmed in the process. Soon enough, bolts began to speed through the air, dashing towards enemies, striking them in midair before their bodies were shot right out of their bodies with the impact of a bomb from their own weapons-that was firing on them.


    But a few guards and Dr. Mord looked at us, as if they were preparing for a fight.


    ¡°The rest of you guys need to find boat 4-3-2,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Let no one see you.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± September said, as we began to dash ahead. But I slowed down, seeing Mr. Drails face against the guards that were in front of him. The light gave a feeling, a sort of sentiment of danger and risk.


    ¡°Come on Connor!¡± Mchi shouted, as I slowly began to move then I booked it behind him.


    ¡°Connor!¡± I heard Nikki shout my name as she began to run past me with Tisiah at her side as well-while she grabbed my hand and pulled me behind them quickly while she moved with me by her side.


    Agents were fighting and battling galore through the ship, as if this was a battlefield on sea. ¡°Alright, where do we go?¡± Mchi asked, and I shook my head as we advanced up the stairs. ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± I said, looking around, then noticing some stairs that went up towards the deck above us-which meant that was where boat number 4-3-2 would probably be at this moment in time.


    ¡°This ce is legit a war-zone,¡± Nikki said. ¡°And Mr. Drails is all by himself, fighting with those guys.¡±


    ¡°He knows what he¡¯s doing, I hope,¡± September said, as we arrived to a very long hall that didn¡¯tprise battling agents, but rather led straight up into the bowels of boat 4-3-2.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Mchi said after we looked around for a bit and then heard another gunshot from behind us-which made me freeze up as we slowly turned around. Guards were right behind us, and they wereing at full speed.


    ¡°Well, this is bad,¡± September said with a heavy breath, as the guards slowly advanced towards us.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move,¡± one of them ordered, which made my heart freeze up when I looked at the guard¡¯s faces and saw they were dead eyes staring back at us all along with guns pointed at our chests-as if they were going to kill us all right there on the spot.


    I looked at September, seeing her with a worried face that was trying to despise a n. ¡°Wait, let me a make a distraction, then you get the boat up and running,¡± Mchi said to September, who looked back at him-then she nodded.


    All of a sudden, he turned ahead, looking at the guard ahead of him and with a smile he made a sense of a deration like this: Yeah, I¡¯ming. He sped forward with his wand out before she shot a bolt, speeding in their direction, before it hit one of the guards, who twirled like a top onto the ground.


    The guard looked up, and his eyes bulged with fear-but also fury.


    ¡°Get them!¡± he shouted, as they began to charge towards us.


    ¡°Go!¡± Mchi shouted to September who immediately booked towards the boat that right ahead of the ship.


    The first one came with a swing, which Mchi obviously noticed because he countered with a block. Nikki did the same, except she started with the swing and the guard blocked. As I approached my enemy, the guard seemed to be ready, or at least was preparing. He scooted back before he came in with the attack.


    He came in with a good swing, which I ducked before returning with two swings that were blocked. ¡°Dang it,¡± I muttered before I scooted back from his attacks that were shooting from every direction, as I moved in close and countered by hitting him hard in the stomach and chest with two more blows that forced him to bend over in pain-and then I shot him right off the floor by hitting him once more in the back.


    He rolled, and for quite a considerable amount of time before he returned to his feet.


    ¡°Nice, but I¡¯ve seen better,¡± he said breathlessly, which made me doubtful of his im. He came in with a swing that was immediately blocked, before I pushed it out of the way, and then followed with a hefty kick to the chest. He stumbled back,ing in with a swing that was blocked, but also locked in.


    Our wands tangled with one another, as we moved left and right and swung, before I pushed him back as he stumbled again. But all of a sudden, he came in with a good swing that knocked him by my jaw, sending me into the wall before I dropped to the ground.


    ¡°How do you feel now?¡± he chuckled, before I got up quickly and then kicked him in the face and knocked him out cold on the ground next to me. ¡°You got me again!¡± he shouted gleefully, while rubbing his jaw. ¡°Now you know how it feels when you get knocked out!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, yeah,¡± I muttered before turning towards the ship¡¯s exit.


    I heard the roar of the boat¡¯s engine, but it wasn¡¯t exactly the best time being that I was still dealing with this fool. The guard got back up and charged at me again, his arms iling back and forth as he ran towards me. He swung his wand and it collided with my own wand, and it pushed me back. All of a sudden, and swung came at my head and I ducked, feeling the heat and adrenaline of what just happened, before I returned with a quick kick that pushed it a few feet. He was on his knees when I kicked him again in the gut-and then he fell down on his face-before I turned away from him and dashed towards the exit stairs.

 Chapter 223

    223 Escaping at Sea


    But then he attacked me and tackled me to the ground. We rolled and rolled and rolled, before we stopped at the corner of the ship. I needed to get him off quickly. I punched him off before he rolled and returned to his feet, as I did the same.


    ¡°You¡¯re not leaving this ship!¡± the guard hissed, before he received his wand and lurched at me once again. He swung as I blocked, then he came with another, which this time I ducked, which was a close call. I returned with a hit, but the hit didn¡¯t actually hit, and his blocked and swung it out of the way before kicking me in the chest.


    I stumbled back, but held my ground as I saw him charge with another oscite. I ducked, then dodged the second, then the third before I kicked him in the thigh, making him wobble like a top. Our wands shed with each swing, moving it from side to side before I shot a kick at his calf, and he doubled down to the ground.


    But then I heard the loud roar of a boat, and I knew what wasing.


    ¡°Jump in, quick!¡± September shouted, as I rushed over and nced down, seeing the boat trail by us. I turned around to still notice the other guards battling my aplices. I needed to break that fight up, then quickly hop onto the boat.


    Let¡¯s go.


    I rushed over towards them, charging up my Perk and quickly putting away my wand, seeing guards were beginning to take damage from their battles as well as Nikki was now running towards me with Tisiah running after her as well. But the guards were pursuing them, at a very dashing pace, and I needed to stop them.


    Quickly I drilled the ground, firing a shockwave, storming in their direction. The guards suddenly flew and soared in the air, as the wood began to break and shatter, and soon enough-sections began to capsize and descend, and woodunched into the air.


    ¡°Well, that ain¡¯t good, is it,¡± Mchi said with worry, but then his eyes expanded as he turned towards me. ¡°Mr. Drails.¡±


    .....


    My eyes expanded with him as I looked at September, who seemed to notice also what he said. ¡°We need to get Mr. Drails quick!¡± I shouted, hopping onto the boat, as the others eagerly followed and went on the boat.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go, go, go, go!¡± Mchi shouted, as September sped off through the water at insane speeds, before heading up to where Mr. Drails was located. ¡°This is not good at all,¡± Tisiah muttered as we continued to dash through the sea, before arriving at Mr. Drails¡¯ whereabouts. I nced up, seeing him engaging in battle, before he turned around and noticed our arrival.


    ¡°Jump on, the ship is crashing!¡± I shouted, as Mr. Drails nced at us and then peeked back at the oing guards. But quickly, he made a portal that sucked them before he sped his way towards the edge of the boat. But all of a sudden, something-or in this case, someone-stopped him in his tracks.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare move,¡± I heard the voice threaten, as I looked up-seeing Dr. Mord¡¯s crazed face that seem to scream at me, spurting fear inside of me. I was scared just looking at him, nheless the safety of my father...somewhat or someway, he had gotten himself into this mess-and now it was time for me to help him get out of this one as well-before my father could die as well.


    ¡°You want your precious Mr. Drails to die? Or would you rather give yourselves away. Choose your pick!¡± he screamed, his voice trembling and stern, but also desperate for us to answer him and make the right choice here-but of course it had to be mine. I wasn¡¯t about to let this guy ruin my n or my family¡¯s life-at all cost.


    But, how was that choice any better?


    In the end, I¡¯m over here, going to die to pay for some mistake I never made, while the virus allows itself to make its way through the streets like some American citizen, terrorizing everyone ites across-or it may be the people of New York are already terrorized by it-while we¡¯re already at our wit¡¯s end trying to find out how to stop it or find out how to defeat it.


    But I don¡¯t want my father to die, that would be thest thing that I would want.


    Thest thing, and I mean thest thing, that I want is for anyone of us to die in vain.


    I would never want that for me or for my family or for anyone else here at this point in time-at least for me. I needed to make something happen, but what, some sort of n that¡¯s all of a sudden going to help us escape the situation, and possibly help us defeat the virus?


    Yeah, probably.


    I looked at the ship that was in front of us, seeing that it wasn¡¯t as damaged as the other side of the ship, which was good-in this case I guess. But maybe if we made a section of this area explode, it may somewhat catapult Mr. Drails into the boat if lucky, and then we move on our way to freedom.


    But that trick Imitted was still handling with the other side, shattering rooms, and annihting everything in its path.


    Could I employ my Perk, not to make it explode right where we are-of course not, but more of-speed up the process. Make it go quicker, so that we can slip away from Dr. Mord. Probably, probably not. But it¡¯s worth a try.


    ¡°September, move me closer to the boat,¡± I whispered to September, who nodded her head. Slowly, she advanced towards the boat. Slowly, my arms glowed as my Perk charged up, and tried to keep my cool, knowing that have to stop this somehow and someway quickly.


    I saw Dr. Mord with fear in his eyes as he looked at me, and I could tell he was seconds from leaping and tackling me into the water very quickly. ¡°No!¡± he shouted, by my arms were already iled back before I propelled them forward, making contact with the boat, as the cracks and little splinters of wood made their way towards their section faster.


    ¡°Oh, no,¡± Dr. Mord muttered as the boat slowly broke, and it was only a matter of time before the engine decided tomit suicide momentarily. Then all of a sudden-a big st of fire and fiery clouds bursted into the air, as everyone was risen from their feet immediately. Mr. Drails soared through the air like a bird, but his eyes were facing towards the boat, and he quickly descended at a speeding pace, a pace that hurriedly sped up as time continued to pass on, before he finallynded onto the boat.


    Fire raged from the ship.


    Screams of fear and agony bellowed from the ship.


    I couldn¡¯t even see the body or any sort of figure of Dr. Mord. It was as if he just disappeared, fizzled in the explosion, and a bittersweet ending was now at its end, knowing that he was just trying to avenge his sister, but his brain was too caught up, too obsessed, too revengeful to keep him in his tracks.


    It was sad, no doubt about it. And I now felt bad for him, almost pitiful. He wanted to avenge his sister, but he never truly found out about the truth. About her killing and exploding herself, the danger that she posed on us. He never knew, not once-and never again. I hope that one day he can finallye to peace with it all before he finally dies or disappears forever from this world into an unknown ce in the afterlife-whatever you wish for yourself when you depart from this mortal realm.


    But then, I heard a faint growl of an engine. A roaring engine.


    We were at sea. No road or anything, so it wouldn¡¯t be a car.


    ¡°Guys, I think they¡¯re chasing us,¡± I said, as September turned around and shock sted on our faces as two-three boats pulled up on us and pursued us, and they weren¡¯t that far. They were pretty close, not gonna lie.


    ¡°Oh, no, move!¡± Mchi screeched, as September pushed the pedal, speeding up the boat even faster-but they were getting closer and closer towards us-until suddenly Nikki took her wand out and fired off a bolt of lighting into them-and then she shot out a few more bolts towards the boats.


    They crashed into the water, creating little sshes that apanied the chasers behind us. They were fast, moving and moving, their engines roaring as they continued to advance, and fear and sweat poured down my head, which now shock and hopelessness, all of them, added to the mix.


    The mix of every negative fear there was.


    We¡¯re going down soon enough and then we¡¯ll be at the bottom of the ocean-at least I hope we won¡¯t be found soon enough or until we figure out a n B to get ourselves out of here-and back home safely where we belong-but is it even possible?


    ¡°Keep driving!¡± I shouted out loud as we continued on our path.


    I got out my pistol, and quickly I began to shoot at the guards behind us. I grunted with each shot, although it was drowned out with the sound that the gun released with every shot. But then a bullet came at me at full speed, and I screamed before ducking down.


    ¡°That was close...¡± I muttered, shooting an extra burst of bullets, before I rolled with a grunt out of the way.


    A few more shots.


    None of themnded.


    We were at sea. No road or anything, so it wouldn¡¯t be a car.


    ¡°Guys, I think they¡¯re chasing us,¡± I said, as September turned around and shock sted on our faces as two-three boats pulled up on us and pursued us, and they weren¡¯t that far. They were pretty close, not gonna lie.


    ¡°Oh, no, move!¡± Mchi screeched, as September pushed the pedal, speeding up the boat even faster-but they were getting closer and closer towards us-until suddenly Nikki took her wand out and fired off a bolt of lighting into them-and then she shot out a few more bolts towards the boats.


    They crashed into the water, creating little sshes that apanied the chasers behind us. They were fast, moving and moving, their engines roaring as they continued to advance, and fear and sweat poured down my head, which now shock and hopelessness, all of them, added to the mix.


    The mix of every negative fear there was.


    We¡¯re going down soon enough and then we¡¯ll be at the bottom of the ocean-at least I hope we won¡¯t be found soon enough or until we figure out a n B to get ourselves out of here-and back home safely where we belong-but is it even possible?


    ¡°Keep driving!¡± I shouted out loud as we continued on our path.


    I got out my pistol, and quickly I shot at the guards behind us. I grunted with each shot, although it was drowned out by the sound that the gun released with every shot. But then, a bullet came at me at full speed, and I screamed before ducking down.


    ¡°That was close...¡± I muttered, shooting an extra burst of bullets, before I rolled with a grunt out of the way.


    A few more shots.


    None of themnded.


    Worry already overtook me as we continued to speed down the sea, the waves crashing behind us.

 Chapter 224

    224 Running at Sea


    ¡°Nikki, shoot at em!¡± Mr. Drails shouted, and Nikki immediately took his word to action. She got out her wand, and soon enough, bolts shot out of her wand and sped towards the pursuers.


    Crash-ssh-the boats went as the bolts collided with them, and they capsized from the sheer force and recoil of the bolts. Drivers flew from their seats before they sshed into the water.


    ¡°Yes! Let¡¯s go!¡± Mchi rejoiced, but suddenly, more of them came on by.


    ¡°Well dang,¡± September muttered, as she started shooting with Nikki. Soon enough, the whole water was just aplete light show. Quickly, I got out my pistol and shot a few bullets.


    Some of them hit, but not particrly the ces I wanted to strike. They mostly just struck the edges or the body of the boats, but never particrly the ones driving them.


    I wish I could use my Perk in this case, but if I were to, I¡¯d kill us all. And I¡¯m pretty sure no one wants that at all.


    Quickly, I shot at them as they continued to shoot back, but knowing what was soon to happen, I ducked and weaved as they continueding.


    I shot back, but they only missed-probably hitting the already-exploded ship that was in the distance. But then, I shot a bullet, which one of them actually hit the man, as he fell down into the river, which then I moved to the next guy. I shot a few more bullets-which almost hit him, but he weaved instead and countered back with bullets that almostid me to waste-and fear burst brightly in my heart, now knowing the strength of his uracy.


    ¡°Shoot!¡± I shouted, unsure if I wanted to return to fight again-almost preferring to stay where it was safe, before returning with a few bullets myself but being the human I am, I got up and shot a few more rounds-a few more-before it hit the guy who rocked back and dived into the water after the devastating hit.


    .....


    But then, the two boats that were watching by seized authority in this situation, and they sped up quickly-making their way towards the side of our boat. ¡°Oh, no, another one¡¯sing,¡± September said, getting her wand and shooting back promptly,though each of them didn¡¯t hit the target much at all.


    They sshed into the water and soon enough they countered back, making September duck for her life, before she returned with a few more bolts. They went at lightning speed; the wind passing by them to reveal themselves true from the speed, before one of them collided with one boat.


    It decided to take leave with an enormous ball of fire, but the driver jumped in time, before he wandered in the sea.


    ¡°Let me help you!¡± Mchi said, before he took out his wand, then he fired bolts at the one boat, who was dodging and weaving each shot, before he began to advance, breaking the space between us before he shot a bolt. Although the bolt missed, it smashed into the water, creating a wave that almost sent us tipping over.


    ¡°Whoa, oh shoot!!!!¡± Tisiah shrieked, before the boat returned back to its stable form, but the changed nheless that boats were still on our tail. There needed to be a n, because, in this case-more boats are going to join the party, and we¡¯ll be surrounded by a bunch of BMO agents.


    And who knows what would happen next?


    I looked down at the water, seeing my reflection wiggle and an idea finally decided to pop up. I charged up my Perk, seeing it glow through my arms, before I then immersed my hands in the water. I felt the cold water suddenly warm up, then the waves began to form, and soon enough we began to gain speed, and we began to pull ahead of the boats.


    But they did something with their engines or something, because they were speeding ahead like crazy!


    ¡°Whoa!¡± I shouted, and fear already began to grow its epass. ¡°They¡¯re speeding up!¡± Mr. Drails sighed before he shot up his hands, creating a portal that instantly sucked them in, making them disappear, but more began toe.


    ¡°Oh, shoot,¡± Mr. Drails worried, which now there were a whole school of boatsing after us, but we kept our speed up through all of them as September kept firing her bolts back at them. She couldn¡¯t help me as she got out her wand and continued firing off bolts at them as they came at us faster and faster than us-and soon enough she was at her wits end-she even started throwing some fire balls at them which got rid of several of them-but it was not enough because we still couldn¡¯t stop ourselves from losing speed in this wavering boat.


    But all of a sudden, one of them began to close in very quickly, speedily, hurriedly in fact, as fear literally popped, and burst on my face and inside my heart. ¡°We got some-!¡± I shouted, before the boat collided and crashed into us, making me stumble and scatter down onto the floor, before I barely even got and returned to my knees, knees that were already wiggling and stumbling from the constant wavering and uncertainty of the boat.


    I looked up, seeing the man with his wand ready to fire and shoot at our heads, or our boat, and capsize us right into their hands.


    Not today.


    I shot two bullets, which they both missed, but it did force him to push away and escape and gain some space before he came in close and attacked again, this time with more force behind him as he came in like a beast that wanted blood or some kind of life taken from us all-his wand aimed right for us-and then I ducked my head and made sure it never hit me or us in this case.


    We ducked as it shot through our window, and Mchi looked ahead in fear and his eyes trembled and shook in worry, before he began to fire his bolts out like a machine gun-shooting at the boat in front of him with so much force that I could hear every bullet as they collided with it-but yet-they still came for us.


    Then the two behind us suddenly rose and lifted enough courage to confront us by the sides, making us now surrounded by two boats, ready to demolish us any second. ¡°We¡¯re held up on two sides!¡± Mchi shouted, as Mr. Drails looked back, his teeth gritted and clenched. ¡°Alright, September and Mchi, you guys are on the left side. Tisiah and Nikki, right side. Connor, keep them back there alright!?¡± Mr. Drails ordered. All of us nodded eagerly before we rushed to our stations.


    I charged up my Perk, feeling the energy rush through my veins before I looked ahead, seeing two more boats right behind me. But my courage turned and switched into shock, seeing one man that I didn¡¯t think would rise back from the dead.


    Dr. Mord.


    ¡°Uh, guys,¡± I muttered, looking at Mr. Drails. ¡°Dr. Mord is still alive.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s what??!¡± Mchi shouted in shock, looking over me and ahead, seeing two boats-one of them being driven by the mad scientist himself. ¡°Oh, no-no-no!¡± Immediately, I transferred to myser eyes, shooting and darting directly at him. But his boat maneuvered and dodged theser shot, moving to the side before returning to its position.


    I shook my head, and then continued to shoot more, only creating crashes and sshes of water as he continued to evade each shot, but I was determined not to stop shooting until he fell into the water or something like that because I wasn¡¯t letting him get away with it this time around-not when he was already up here trying to kill us all over again.


    He shot more bolts at me at full speed as the water shot up and sprayed at my face. My clothes were dripping with water and possibly blood, but that would not stop me even close. I continued to shoot and firesers at shattering speed, creating more crashes with the waves of water that apanied by the side of Dr. Mord¡¯s hurrying boat, which was already speeding up.


    Then he ducked suddenly, making me look over my shoulder to see the other boat was gaining too much distance between us and we were slowly losing speed.


    ¡°Uh, can we speed this up possibly?!¡± I shouted, as I looked at September, who was literallyunching on the pedal, only for her to respond with a sigh. She nced at me with a worried expression on her face.


    ¡°I¡¯m trying my best!¡± she said, continuing to operate the boat that was dashing at rapid speeds. But thesers were faster and I knew that I had to take him down, before things got considerably worse. So I continued to fire more shots at him while we sped forward into the open waters of the Antic Ocean.


    But then he finally turned his boat so that it was facing me directly-making me lose some steam because of the shock that ran through me. I panicked for a moment until he suddenly turned back around towards another direction where he began to dodge and maneuver away from me.


    I needed to use a different strategy, but what?

 Chapter 225

    225 Final Fight


    ¡°Hello Connor!¡± Dr. Mord shouted with his crazed voice, instantly striking fear inside of me, because I could tell that he was already trying to get inside my head to do his evil deeds. ¡°You look quite tired now, don¡¯t you?¡±


    He was definitely mad now.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you use your wand to fight against me?¡± Dr. Mord taunted me with his cruel tone of voice that seemed to make me shiver and quiver inside my skin. ¡°You too scared to now?¡±


    ¡°I have something better!¡± I shouted at him, still shooting out mysers that kept undeniably missing, only to crash into the water again and again until the water began to form a thick cloudy mist as it fell down upon me, making it difficult to see anything ahead or around me. ¡°That¡¯s better?!¡± Dr. Mord shrieked at me like some sort of bird, before he fell into some sort ofugh or cackle I couldn¡¯t bear to hear, but I continued to shoot out myser shots while avoiding all the other obstacles that he was throwing at us right now.


    Doing this wholeser shot game ain¡¯t gonna work anytime soon, but there was nothing else to do.


    Lasers was all I could do, because I can¡¯t do a shockwave on water, that¡¯s like trying to make tsunami onnd! There was something else that I needed to do, but what exactly? There was only one solution that would be super¨Cduper risky, but at this point, it had to be done.


    I put my foot on the back brim of the boat, feeling the wind and the air smack against my face brutally, but I didn¡¯t mind that. It actually felt in that matter, as I looked ahead and saw Dr. Mord¡¯s boat sprinting towards us at full speed, not holding a single thing back.


    I needed to do it, but I was scared, petrified to be exact, but I knew that this was what needed to happen for me to survive this whole situation, and maybe even save our lives as well.


    So I stood up on my feet, grabbing the edge of the boat was in while the wind pounded against my face and eyes, as I charged up my Perk and when it was done, I shot from the boat¨Cleaping through the air before I came crashing down onto Dr. Mord¡¯s boat.


    .....


    Well, somewhat.


    He suddenly moved out of the way, making my target the water instead¨Cbut somehow and someway, I clutched hold the brim of the boat¨Cnow swinging in the air.


    ¡°What, get off!!!¡± Dr. Mord hissed, as he began to waver and steer left and right. I felt myself sway like the grass in the field, except I was more of swinging by the cold water that was spraying itself at me, as I was in midair right now.


    I gritted my teeth as I clenched my hands into fists so that they wouldn¡¯t slip and fall off of the edge. ¡°You must like the roller coaster, don¡¯t ya?!¡± Dr. Mord chuckled and wheezed, before he fell into augh that made me feel dizzy and sick inside of my stomach.


    He was crazy after all.


    ¡°Well, we can do this all day! I don¡¯t need the others, you¡¯re as good of revenge as is!¡± he cackled, before speeding up and now steering more excessively to the sides, while I hung onto the boat like a baby kangaroo clinging onto its mother in the tree branches of Australia.


    I looked by the side, seeing an opening that could end this swinging cycle, as I began to reach for it slowly¨Cvery slowly before Iid my feet onto the door handle of the boat. Gravity continued to pull me, but I kept my strength even amid all the constant movement.


    Slowly, slowly, I pushed down and I could feel the release of the door, as it creaked open, giving me an opening to enter, while I lifted my head up to see the edge of the boat just inches in front of me. I could fall if I wanted to and right now it was very tempting to let go, but then I could be thrown out into the sea instead.


    I needed to get momentum and so I did, swinging back and forth before I made it closer to the door, just enough to reach, as my fingers opened up and stretched out as far as possible as I reached out for it¨Cand then I released.


    I released and flew into the door, entering with a loud crash before I looked up, seeing three guys apanying Dr. Mord. He suddenly looked back and shouted to them, ¡°Take him down!¡±


    This was bad.


    I needed to get to Dr. Mord before he reached to my team, but these guys were blocking the way, and as long as they were here¨Cthings were only going to get worse from here. I need to back up, stay calm, and just get through this as quick as I can. Quickly, one of them barreled towards me at full speed before he came in with a good swing. Immediately, I rolled under-appearing behind him.


    Clearly, this is gonna work.


    But suddenly, the guard blocked the hit, and slid it to the side before kicking me in the chest.


    I stumbled back, trying to keep my ground, before I looked up at him. His confident and sly smirk was stered on his face.


    But clearly, he hasn¡¯t seen me at my best.


    Straight away, we sted towards one another. He first started with a swing that shot over my head, giving me time to affect my technique.


    I shot forward with a hit, but he suddenly blocked and prevented it from its goal, and now I was back to square one. This time I came from the left, but he blocked that. Then a right, which he blocked, and at every single angle known to mankind, he blocked.


    Suddenly, his cockiness really began to simmer as he sprinted forward with a powerful swing that crossed my jaw.


    I flew from the ground, crashing into the wall before dropping to the floor. I felt my legs flutter as I began to slowly rise to my feet, seeing the two guards ahead snickering andughing, like I was some sort of amateur.


    Slowly, I got up, feeling the pain seethe through my body. But I still prevailed as I began to belt towards them,ing in with a good swing before the other decided to jump in.


    I obstructed his attempt, before swinging it out of the way in time to follow up with a kick to the other guard¡¯s chest.


    He stumbled back and blood spurted from his mouth-though I don¡¯t know why-while the other was dashing towards me at full speed.


    Not gonna lie, I didn¡¯t notice it-so it was quite the surprise when I managed to prevent the attack from bing reality, as his wand collided and shed with my own before I swung it to the side.


    I pushed him back a bit, to make some space between us. I looked at him dead in the eye, before he went again, barreling at full throttle towards me.


    That¡¯s not good, I¡¯m gonna need to push him back-and hard. He came in with two swings, which I blocked both-giving me enough time for my real attack. I charged up my Perk, letting the energy simmer through me before I finally swung hard.


    It struck the part under his jaw and he flew back, crashing into the cockpit of the boat.


    Now there was only one guard, and I knew that he would have been prepared for myst attack because he instantly sprang back and jumped at me from behind. I turned around quickly as he came in with an elbow to my head which I managed to deflect and dodge, before he rushed forward with another swing of his wand to the side of my face.


    But I ducked, feeling the wand pass over me and the wind whip against my neck, before I took a few steps back. The guard did the same as well. We stared at each other, and I heard my heart beating quickly inside of my chest, but I had to slow it and get a peace of mind, at least for now.


    I needed to breathe and calm down before I came in another attack, and maybe¨Cmaybe I could end this, but then he began to rush towards me again at full speed.


    This was it.


    This was it or else he would be able to attack me any moment now. He swung hard, his wanding for my hand at full speed. I closed my eyes, bracing myself for the blow. It came crashing through the air and struck against my wrist, but it was only an attempt as I turned around and he smacked himself in the face with my arm before falling to his knees in agony.


    I spun around and raised my arm back for a swing that was meant for him but he moved out of the way before I hit nothing but air and crashed into the side of a seat.


    I looked at him, seeing his face drool with sweat, but I got up to my feet slowly. Pain seethed through my body, but I kept my strength secured as much as I could, even if it felt like it was getting hard to breathe through my nose due to all the blood that was starting to seep through my mouth. But suddenly, the boat stopped, and I looked around to see what was going on?


    What happened?


    Then suddenly, multiple shlights shined towards the boat, as I covered my eyes from the blinding light. I couldn¡¯t even look around without blinding my eyespletely, and I even began to stumble as I inched forward.


    It was almost like a nightmare¨Cit felt so surreal that it couldn¡¯t be real. As if I was trapped in an illusion and this wasn¡¯t even happening in reality, but rather¨Cjust in a dream. But then, the light began to reveal the figure behind the shining brightness. YMPA boats.


    ¡°Oh my...¡± I muttered. I looked around, and it was just boats. Boats galore.

 Chapter 226

    226 The Next Case


    ¡°What the...¡± Dr. Mord muttered in shock before he turned to the window behind the cockpit. I felt as if my eyes were about to burst from the brightness, and I began to stumble before I gained myself to my feet. My entire body was trembling slightly from shock, and my head was hurting from this shlight attack. It was getting harder for me to see through it, as it was shing back and forth so quickly that I couldn¡¯t even concentrate.


    But then I felt the harsh tug on my jacket and I was thrown to the ground.


    I looked up, seeing that it was still that guard that didn¡¯t defeat, and now his goal was to defeat me.


    Oh boy.


    But suddenly, blood shot out of his head as he stayed there for a moment, then he dropped dead to the ground, copsing with a loud thud on the floor. ¡°Dr. Mord, please put your hands up, and don¡¯t even think about moving!¡± someone shouted in their PA system. We were cornered, but more figuratively-Dr. Mord was cornered.


    I rushed over to the window, hoping they would see me. But being that they had those helmets that looked like they could see through a slither of ss, I¡¯m not sure they did. Dr. Mord rose his hands up and stood to his feet, as the agents began to flood the boat, surrounding us and pointing guns at us.


    ¡°Connor, you okay?¡± one of them asked once they entered the boat, which I nodded back. The man nodded and put his hand on my shoulder, his eyes giving a certain impression of relief. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s get you back to the YMPA,¡± the man said, before Mr. Drails and the rest of my team entered the boat.


    Mr. Drails gave Dr. Mord a side eye that screamed disgust, although Dr. Mord didn¡¯t seem to mind it that much. The YMPA agents began to apprehend him, as Mr. Drails approached me with a certain expression of relief, even if it wasn¡¯t evident enough for me to read through it yet. He threw his arms around me in an embrace before pulling back away from me slightly so he could look me over with those piercing grey eyes of his.


    ¡°You okay?¡± he asked with a smile, and I responded before responding breathlessly, ¡°Yeah, I think.¡±


    .....


    ¡°I hope so,¡± Mr. Drails said, as he sighed before turning back at me. He smiled again, before he patted me on the back, ¡°Good job.¡±


    I smiled back in a weak manner before saying, ¡°Thanks.¡±


    Mr. Drails chuckled lightly and nodded before looking at Nikki, who seemed to be a bit disheveled with her hair messed up. ¡°I hope that we don¡¯t have to deal with that again,¡± he said. ¡°But we don¡¯t know where the virus is.¡±


    Right then, a smirk came across my face, as I turned my head and looked at Dr. Mord.


    ¡°I think we will soon,¡± I said before turning back to Mr. Drails. ¡°Where do you think that Dr. Mord got the virus?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s try and get back to the YMPA first, how about that?¡± Mr. Drails asked me, and I shrugged in response, unsure of what to really say.


    ***


    Two days have passed since that boat incident, but my head still kept racing about Dr. Mord. Where would the virus be? Was he holding it over our heads? Would he turn it over to the wrong people? If so, how would I know? Did he get the virus somewhere else? All these questions were dashing inside my head inside of the busy school halls.


    But soon enough, footsteps retracted me from my thoughts. I turned around, seeing Greg¡¯s wide smile. ¡°Hey Connor,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°How you doing?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m doing well,¡± I said, even though it came out as a very forced voice-like someone else was using my vocal chords. ¡°We got Dr. Mord, but we¡¯re not sure where the virus is though.¡± Greg nodded and then gave a very quick smile before he added, ¡°I knew that, I was told by Fulton.¡± My smile instantly changed into a disgusted frown. The thoughts he gave and the warnings he tried to fall upon me about my father. Rubbish.


    ¡°So, would you happen to know who has it?¡± I asked.


    Greg shook his head. Heid his arm upon the top of the row of lockers before he turned his head towards my direction, ¡°Nope, but it¡¯s definitely someone close.¡± He paused for a moment as he took a breath and then he continued, ¡°They¡¯re probably holding it over our heads right now.¡±


    ¡°Most likely, but perhaps something might change,¡± I said, before opening my locker.


    ¡°Very strange indeed, did Mr. Drails say anything?¡± he asked.


    ¡°No, it was quite normal the past two days. Maybe there was no virus,¡± I said, before closing my locker. Greg seemed disturbed at the thought, but maybe I was wrong.


    ¡°That would be great,¡± he said, as he seemed to be a bit depressed about it all. ¡°Let¡¯s hope so.¡±


    ¡°Trust me, I¡¯m hoping,¡± I said with augh, before my phone began to ring. There were three minutes to get to ss, so hopefully this call or whatever doesn¡¯t waste my time. But when I looked at the screen, it was not one of those important calls I was hoping it¡¯d be.


    It was Nikki.


    ¡°Oh, who is that?¡± Greg asked, noticing my intrigued face. I nced up and chuckled, ¡°Nikki. Apparently she¡¯s deciding to call me now for some unknown reason.¡± I answered and put it by my ear.


    ¡°Yeah, is there something?¡± I asked her, and her voice responded back as if she was scared for her life, or like someone was chasing her. ¡°Is school almost done for you?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Well, I have two sses and then I¡¯m done, is there a problem?¡± I asked her, now starting to get worried. ¡°Is there a problem?¡±


    ¡°Not exactly, but Dr. Mord says he doesn¡¯t know where it is,¡± she said, and my eyes widened and my mouth opened agape in shock. ¡°How doesn¡¯t he know?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± she said, taking deep breaths in between, ¡°But, he says he knows who has it.¡±


    ¡°He does?¡± I asked, feeling relief soothe my mind. ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°A rogue agent from the YMPA,¡± she said. ¡°A guy who was like-on the run or something. Matthew Lock. He works for the TSA now.¡±


    ¡°That means they¡¯ll be protecting him,¡± I said, feeling my heart pump at an unhealthy, rapid pace. Nikki sighed. ¡°Yeah, for sure.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m scared,¡± Nikki said, before sighing again. ¡°And Dr. Mord doesn¡¯t know where he is.¡±


    ¡°But we should,¡± I said, taking a deep breath to calm myself. ¡°Yeah... we should.¡±


    ¡°We should do what?¡± Nikki asked, cutting me off from my self-control session. ¡°You¡¯re being pretty vague here.¡±


    ¡°We should find him, get the virus, stop this uprising,¡± I said, as Greg¡¯s eyes began to widen in thought, realizing what I was suggesting. ¡°Yeah, we should definitely do that.¡±


    ¡°I think we should,¡± Nikki said with a sigh again. ¡°I¡¯ll call you when we have more details on the problem, just for now, hurry up with those sses.¡± I sighed, then added a quick nod. ¡°Yeah, I will,¡± I responded, before I hung up. Greg¡¯s eyes were wide in intrigue, and I could only just chuckle. ¡°Well...¡± he said with a smile.


    ¡°Well what?¡± I asked with a smirk and a slight chuckle.


    ¡°Well,¡± he started again with a smile on his face, ¡°I hope that we¡¯re able to stop the virus.¡±


    ¡°You heard everything didn¡¯t you,¡± I asked him, and he nodded with a very wide smile. ¡°Most definitely,¡± he answered, and I sighed as I put my phone away. He walked over towards me, probably to keep this not as open as it seemed. But that¡¯s okay, because this conversation was not for the ears of everyone else-just me and Greg.


    ¡°Matthew Lock, never heard that one before,¡± Greg muttered and I nodded with him, because he wasn¡¯t wrong, the name hadn¡¯t even been on any of the lists. It was new to us, but we could easily find out more about this man in question. But then again, Greg was in the FMA, not the YMPA. ¡°That¡¯s because you¡¯re in a different agency than me,¡± I returned quickly at him before I closed my locker.


    ¡°Well he might be a YMPA rogue agent, but I¡¯m pretty sure he¡¯d concern us,¡± Greg said with a shrug. I shook my head and chuckled, but Greg didn¡¯t seem to get the memo. ¡°And you say that we like to butt in to everything,¡± I said, adding augh in the end. Greg sighed and shook his head, and then looked up at me.


    He walked closer to me, and he began to point.


    ¡°This is a very important matter, Connor,¡± he said, and I nodded slowly-understanding that fact.


    ¡°I¡¯m aware of that,¡± I said with a nod and a slight smile.


    ¡°This deals with all of us, every single one of us. This is a n that is being executed by the TSA and their goons-in fact, all of MSTO. We don¡¯t even know their n. Maddie Cone, Dr. Mord, even Demetrius Rocke are connected to something, but we don¡¯t know what,¡± Greg pleaded to me, which it was starting to make sense to me and that Greg was right.


    ¡°This really matters Connor,¡± Greg remarked, sighing before he backed off. ¡°So it definitely has to deal with me. Anyways, as I was saying-Matthew Lock.¡± I nodded, before taking a deep breath, as Greg continued to speak. ¡°Does anyone have a location on him?¡±


    ¡°From what I¡¯ve heard from Nikki, not even close,¡± I responded frankly, and Greg gritted his teeth with tight pressure, before letting out a deep sigh. ¡°Well he must have been on the run,¡± I said, before thinking of something. ¡°He¡¯d be able to hide somewhere.¡±


    ¡°Off the grid would be child¡¯s y,¡± Greg said quickly, and I had to agree with him on that part, not gonna lie.


    ¡°But we can find him,¡± I said with confidence.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Greg said, agreeing with me again. ¡°We can find him. But he wouldn¡¯t be off the grid.¡±


    ¡°But being off the grid would work,¡± I said, my eyes erged to emphasize the point. Greg winced with his cheeks popping out like balloons, ¡°That would be very-very risky as a matter of fact. He¡¯d have to be somewhere more safe, more-secret.¡±


    He began to smile as his eyes lowered, giving off this crazy-mad scientist look that was making me way more ufortable than before. ¡°You thought of something-¡± I asked, before hepletely disturbed me as he said, ¡°Think of the most secret ce you could ever think of, or even imagine.¡±


    ¡°Um, an underground base?¡± I asked.


    He shook his head.


    ¡°A different country?¡± I asked.


    He shook his head.


    ¡°His house?¡± I asked.


    This time he gave a cross look. ¡°No, no-think, think!¡± he said, with his teeth blinding my eyes. I tried to think hard, but nothing would reveal itself to me. What? What else? Then, the idea shot up inside of my mind, and I looked at Greg who was now nodding with a very confident smirk.


    ¡°A private ind.¡±


    ¡°Yes, a TSA private ind. He¡¯d have to be there-it would bepletely under someone¡¯s name and no one would think of checking,¡± Greg said, and I nodded, now realizing the step that we just took. We¡¯re going to find the virus in no time.

 Chapter 227

    227 Lock¡¯s Whereabouts


    Matthew Lock.


    Hmm, interesting name. Almost sounds simr to Rocke. Hopefully, he¡¯s not as crazy as Demetrius Rocke, because that man was the devil in my life.


    The devil I¡¯m telling you.


    And I didn¡¯t even kill him. His own son did. That¡¯s how bad he was, but let¡¯s not talk about him. We have a more important matter to discuss. The MSTO is nning something, and the TSA is the leader.


    And this virus was going to be a weapon, a suitable weapon. But who are they even going to infect? The United States or us?


    If they infect us, well, that would slow us down by a lot in stopping them, and they¡¯d be able to take over the US. But if they were to infect the country instead, well, they would only have to face us.


    Unless it¡¯s both.


    Then they would really have their hands on things.


    All these thoughts continued to race through my head as me and Greg were heading out of the school. ¡°Alright, you know the n?¡± Greg asked me.


    .....


    I nodded, hoping that I was thinking of the right one. ¡°Good,¡± he said as he walked off into the distance, as I waited for the portal to just suck me and transport me to the YMPA.


    And indeed, that happened.


    I slid through the weird purple, green, and red colors before I found myself hitting the ground. Pain shot up through my neck and pulsated for a few seconds as I got up onto my feet.


    I sighed, epting it at this point.


    I brushed myself off from the dust that settled onto my pants.


    The building in front of me towered over the sky as I looked at it in awe. Surprises me every time. I wonder what¡¯s gonna happen today. I walked inside of the building, heading into the hall where junior agents surrounded the entire floor. But that was the least of my worries. In fact, that wasn¡¯t even a worry.


    I made my way towards the room that Mr. Drails, the CEO of the YMPA, usually gives us or tells us some info on or about our mission. I opened the door, seeing September, Nikki, Mchi, and Tisiah all sitting down in their preferred seats.


    ¡°Why are you always thete one?¡± September asked, and I chuckled in response, speechless in what to say, so I said nothing.


    ¡°He was in ss,¡± Mchi replied, and Iughed.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s get this meeting started,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Now I¡¯m sure you guys know about the man who seems to have the virus, correct?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, Matthew Lock,¡± Mchi added, which Mr. Drails responded with an epting nod, as did everyone else.


    ¡°Okay, so we all know what¡¯s going on,¡± Mr. Drails said, ¡°Now we¡¯ll go over some basic information about him.¡±


    The screen behind him blinked out a picture of the man, who looked pretty fresh-meaning that he was young for sure. He had brown hair that was slicked back, and his eyes were a shade of blue that seemed to almost glow with his confidence. He smiled in a way that was so charming that you couldn¡¯t help but look at him as if he were some sort of angel sent here to save the day. He wore a blue tailored suit with a blue tie, with ck shirt underneath, which seemed topliment his body very well.


    ¡°So you all know him now,¡± Mr. Drails said as he paced around the room, ¡°But what exactly do we know about him?¡±


    ¡°That he is and has been a rogue agent,¡± Tisiah said, but Mr. Drails suddenly shook his head.


    ¡°Not that information, but where is he, where is the virus he is holding,¡± Mr. Drails corrected, and Tisiah mouthed in realization, ¡°Where did hee from? That¡¯s what we need to know.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t know anything about that,¡± Nikki spoke up.


    ¡°So what you¡¯re telling me,¡± Mr. Drails said with an annoyed tone, ¡°Is that you have no idea where this guy came from or where he is?¡±


    Nikki sighed and nodded her head, and Mr. Drails nodded back at her as well, giving a few moments before he continued speaking again. ¡°Well, I¡¯m going to need you guys to do that, find him, and tell me.¡±


    ¡°Well, he could be anywhere, in fact-he could be a different person,¡± I said to him, which he shrugged, bncing the benefit of that thought, which I guess isn¡¯t a bad thing because we wouldn¡¯t be wasting our time going after a ghost.


    ¡°You may be right,¡± Mr. Drails replied with a small smile, ¡°And we can¡¯t do anything about it right now.¡±


    ¡°Well he¡¯d have to be somewhere secret, maybe off the grid?¡± Nikki suggested, but Mchi winced at the thought, as if it wasn¡¯t correct, but we were kind of in a situation where it was hard to get information on things.


    ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re probably right,¡± Mr. Drails said with a sigh. ¡°But that would be too easy, and veryzy in fact. He doesn¡¯t want to be off the gird.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean, he doesn¡¯t?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Not in that way but in a way where, he¡¯s hiding behind someone,¡± he said, which it was still not very clear, but I understood he was probably hiding behind someone like a front or an alias.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure I understand,¡± Nikki said to him. ¡°Like, if you could maybe give an example.¡±


    ¡°Well, think about what Connor said, a different person. He probably got stic surgery is under a name,¡± Mr. Drails said with a shrug, but then Nikki nodded her head and said, ¡°Yeah!¡±


    ¡°So if he did get stic surgery under an alias or a different name then he probably got some other things done too,¡± I added to the thought, but then Mchi shook his head. ¡°We¡¯d find him immediately. Maybe he¡¯s being protected by the enemy,¡± he said, which awareness revealed itself at that point.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Mr. Drails said with a nod, ¡°Well then, we¡¯ll take that into ount. But that still doesn¡¯t answer where he is.¡±


    ¡°But it gives us a possibility,¡± Mchi said with a finger that emphasized his point, ¡°And if he got stic surgery then he got it in a ce where he could live without getting noticed by any of us.¡±


    ¡°Well, I want you guys to start finding him, and I¡¯ll do my part on that as well. Report to me once you guys have any information,¡± Mr. Drails said, stating at each of us before he stopped at Tisiah, who was thest person in the belt of spies. He gave her a small nod before he continued to talk. ¡°Alright then, everyone,¡± he said as he gave us a quick salute and turned to go back into his office.


    ***


    Time at the YMPA passed on, and I was transported back to my home. Except I wasn¡¯t going home. I needed to get to Greg¡¯s house, and quickly, before it gets dark. I ran through the street and headed out of the neighborhood. He was a block or two away in his own neighborhood, so it wouldn¡¯t be long.


    Right?


    I sighed and shook my head before I shot my way in that direction. I looked to the sides, seeing cars moving through the streets and some parked and also a young couple that seemed to enjoy each other¡¯spany. That wasn¡¯t too much of a worry though, being that it had nothing to do with me.


    Stoplights emitted lights from their little own sockets, guiding traffic around. I was about to arrive at Greg¡¯s neighborhood, and his house was pretty close when entering the neighborhood.


    I made it to his house as I entered his gate and noticed something was a little different about it. But what?


    There was arge piece of wood on hiswn and a lot of small rocks all around the wood, as if there was a small river running through it. The fence itself was not damaged at all but I did not know how that got there. Seemed like Greg and his family were doing a bit of a makeover, if I say so myself. My house hasn¡¯t changed since I was born, probably except for furniture.


    I sighed and made my way up to his door before I knocked on it as I heard the sound of someone opening it from inside. It was his mother, and I do have to say-his mother was crazy tall. I almost felt intimidated, in fact, I did feel intimidated. ¡°Hey...¡± I said with a very nervous smile, but she didn¡¯t seem to budge at my amusement, and I didn¡¯t want her to think that I wasughing at her for being so tall and big. She was about six foot seven or so-very tall, especially for a girl-and she seemed to be very thin for her.


    ¡°Are you Greg¡¯s friend?¡± she asked.


    I nodded, looking at the giant with a bit of fear thumping in my heart. ¡°Well,e in,¡± she said, and I nodded as I gave a quick wave, just to seem friendly by any chance. But instantly, my face changed into a still face as I approached Greg. The living room was quite lively, as all the walls were full of pictures of Greg as he was growing up, with his friends, family, and even pets. There were so many pictures that they covered the walls all the way around him.


    There was a chandelier at the top of the ceiling that emitted light that all the way to the next room. There was a counter to the side, and the fridge behind it which there was a small counter that was next to the oven. Everything was packed, with pictures and pictures and more pictures on the walls and even in between the tables that sat in front of them. It was very colorful and filled with life and joy.


    He must¡¯ve had a good childhood.


    ¡°Alright, have you found any sort of information?¡± I asked. Suddenly, he looked up and smiled with a sneer that said nothing less.

 Chapter 228

    228 A New Threat


    ¡°Trust me, I did for sure,¡± Greg said. He got up, went to one of his pictures, and suddenly-he pulled it like a door and aputer was revealed behind the picture.


    ¡°What the...¡± I muttered in confusion, as he sat down and opened it up. On the screen was a GPS, or some sort of map.


    ¡°Now here¡¯s what I¡¯ve figured out, alright?¡± Greg said, which I nodded, baffled. ¡°I looked around for any private inds which I found multiple, which luckily all of them had security cameras.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    ¡°So, when I looked at all of them-I found certain things. Nothing special at all, to be honest. Regr things usually happened, and well, some other things that were very-wild in this case happened,¡± Greg said.


    Immediately, I knew what he was implying.


    ¡°But out of all of them, none of them had any sort of Matthew Lock settling in there,¡± he said, which I sighed, disappointed but also not really surprised.


    ¡°But then,¡± Greg suddenly remarked, as he began to flood through the keys until wended on a certain ind. Palm trees invaded thend, and green was the primary color of the entire ind.


    But what caught my attention more was the gigantic building-like some sort of embassy. Guards protected the front of the building, and cars went in and out of the entry.


    .....


    There were watchtowers ced probably a mile or two away from the building, with snipers that were watching closely.


    ¡°What ce is this?!¡± I shrieked, horrified by what I saw. Greg sighed and said in response, ¡°A new center for the TSA. They call it The Fillmore Center.¡±


    ¡°What does Fillmore stand for?¡± I asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s not exactly an acronym. Actually, it¡¯s named after one of the boardmittees of the TSA, Myron Fillmore,¡± Greg exined, and I nodded, understanding so far.


    ¡°Alright, so is this where Lock is?¡± I asked him which he gave a confident nod to, so I asked him again as if it were more of an assent rather than a confirmation of something: ¡°Is this where he is?¡±


    Greg¡¯s eyes moved from me to the map on his screen, before he replied: ¡°Probably.¡±


    I nodded and stood up from theputer. ¡°Well, what evidence do you have?¡± Greg said nothing, but switched to an angle inside of the base. It looked tall, very tall. The ceiling was probably fifty to sixty feet into the sky from the ground, and there were windows everywhere on the wall with soldiers inside of them. There were rows of lights on the ceiling of the first floor, and men with suits explored through the halls.


    Greg switched to another ce, a room this time that was smaller-almost ssroom size. There was a long desk, about ten feet long and three feet wide. But there was only one man, which another wasing in. ¡°Whoa, something¡¯s happening?¡± Greg said, his eyes inches away from the screen as I continued to watch what happened on the screen. One man looked like his hair was long to his Adam¡¯s apple, and there was some sort of tattoo on his left arm, which looked like an infinity symbol-but it wasn¡¯t. There was also a beard, which was quite thick. The other one entering the room-conference room maybe-looked vaguely familiar, vaguely familiar.


    ¡°Wait, is that...¡± I muttered, and I began to smile like Greg. The menacing smile of what looked like a mad scientist that had just discovered something revolutionary. Greg began to turn up the volume quickly and our eyes were glued-pasted on the screen.


    I took a seat once again, as the thick beard man opened his mouth.


    ¡°Hello, Matthew,¡± the man greeted. They shook hands briefly before Lock sat down in his seat. The man chuckled before he said, ¡°You wanted to see me, right? You said it was a matter of emergency, a very concerning emergency.¡±


    The man leaned in forward, as he appeared to be more interested in what Lock had to say than anything else.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Lock responded slowly before he said with an edge in his voice: ¡°The YMPA has Dr. Mord.¡±


    The man¡¯s smile disappeared in seconds as heid back, his face as concerned as he feared. ¡°They have Dr. Mord?¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Lock said. I just realized how slick Lock¡¯s voice sounded. Like a smooth cat that was purring, but very sly as well. It was quite unusual and very unnerving to me, in my opinion. ¡°I¡¯m afraid that he might spill, Mr. Bane,¡± Lock said.


    ¡°Mr. Bane?¡± Greg whispered in wonder, which I thought the same. ¡°Who is he?¡±


    ¡°Dr. Mord most likely already did,¡± Mr. Bane said, looking at his watch. ¡°He definitely already did. The man¡¯s a wimp, and is barely anything of an agent. He¡¯s just like how all the other BMO agents are.¡±


    ¡°Well, after all, he created us the virus, and it¡¯s only a matter of time before the YMPAes running after it,¡± Lock said, which then he leaned forward as if he was pleading. ¡°I¡¯m going to die, Mr. Bane. All of EMO is chasing after me to stop our n. I¡¯m going to need a miracle.¡±


    Mr. Bane was thinking vigorously. He took many deep breaths before he nced back at Matthew Lock.


    ¡°You have a miracle,¡± Mr. Bane said, as Lock¡¯s face turned into a testimony of confusion.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°My son.¡± Mr. Bane said as he leaned forward again and looked directly into Matthew¡¯s eyes. ¡°He¡¯s an expert agent in the TSA field and is very talented.¡±


    ¡°Who is he?¡± he asked. Mr. Bane chuckled, slowly rubbing his hands in anticipation. ¡°Luther, Luther Bane,¡± he said with a malicious tone, as he saw the confusion grow on Lock¡¯s face even further. ¡°The most important agent that you¡¯ll ever meet.¡±


    ¡°Oh...¡± Matthew returned, looking as if he was unsure if he was thankful or not. Mr. Bane leaned in once again, ¡°He¡¯ll technically be your bodyguard. His team is very skilled and elite, so if any sort of agent from any EMO organization tries to kill you, they¡¯re going to have to get through my son first.¡±


    Shock and fear rolled like a ball through my mind. The TSA are literally protecting him like a VIP, like some president or something.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been training him since he was a toddler,¡± Mr. Bane said, as his eyes narrowed, ¡°He¡¯s been training for this moment for years.¡± Lock nodded as he looked at Matthew. ¡°And he¡¯s never failed me yet.¡±


    ¡°Great.¡±


    Mr. Bane continued talking. ¡°As for why I chose him... well...¡± Mr. Bane looked away, as he said, ¡°Because he¡¯s my son.¡±


    Lock leaned in as if he was almost disgusted by Mr. Bane¡¯s choice. Mr. Bane turned and looked at him. ¡°I¡¯ll send an escort to get you somewhere first, because we don¡¯t want anyone finding out you¡¯re here.¡± He stood up and opened up his cellphone. He dialed something quickly and put it back in his pocket. ¡°Where do you want to go?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I¡¯ll think about it,¡± Lock said, as he got up to his feet and exited the room.


    The excitement on Greg¡¯s face was exploding as I thought about what had happened with us all today. We were on the brink of something big here. The next move that would happen could very well be a historical move in the making here! Well, at least in the history of spy mages-nevertheless, this is huge!


    ¡°But where is he going, though?¡± I asked, and Greg¡¯s celebration stopped to a halt, as if it was overcast by an overcast sky. He looked back at me with a grave expression that said little as he muttered, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Well, we need to figure that out, but we can at least tell everyone where they are and what¡¯s happened so far,¡± I said, getting out my phone. ¡°You got any food?¡±


    Greg reached for his backpack and opened up the middle pouch, pulling out some trail mix and handed it to me as I took it from his hands and munched on it while I began to make a call on my phone. I needed to call Nikki, since she gave me the info in the first ce. ¡°Hey, Nikki. We found something that might be very useful. In fact, it will be very useful.¡±


    ¡°Okay, okay, okay!¡± she said, as I heard the fastest footsteps I have ever heard from a phone. ¡°Okay, what is it?¡±


    ¡°Well, we found where Lock is. He¡¯s at the Fillmore Center, a TSA private ind,¡± I exined to her, as she sighed and began tough.


    ¡°You¡¯re kidding me!¡± Nikki eximed. I knew she was excited by it and all, but she really wasn¡¯t expecting it either. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure I¡¯m not,¡± I said. ¡°Anyway, so we went inside of the cameras and we found him talking with someone named Mr. Bane. He knows we apprehended Dr. Mord and that he spilled to us about Lock.¡±


    ¡°Mmmm,¡± Nikki listened keenly.


    ¡°Now, Mr. Bane has a son named Luthor, who has a team ready to keep Lock safe as long as we¡¯re chasing after him,¡± I said, which I could only imagine the surprise on Nikki¡¯s face. ¡°So we need to figure out where he¡¯s going first so that we can intercept him.¡±


    Nikki said nothing, but let me know she was taking notes and writing things down as I spoke to her. ¡°Tell this to Mr. Drails,¡± I said. ¡°He might find something.¡±

 Chapter 229

    229 The Evidence


    It was the morning, and the sun was glinting through the window. I dressed up, brushed my teeth, walked downstairs to only see Mom sleeping on the couch.


    Nheless I walked outside to get to the bus, and I entered quickly. I looked towards the back where Greg was sitting.


    He was sitting by the kids at the back, where a lot of noise was produced. I felt a bit nervous going back there, but I was slowly feeling eptance as I reached there.


    ¡°What¡¯s good, Connor,¡± Greg said, dabbing me up. Now I don¡¯t mean the 2016 dab, not that one. The handshake dab. ¡°So, are we just gonna talk here or...¡± I asked, which Greg shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Has Nikki responded yet?¡±


    I gave him a widened look, but Greg chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Greg said. ¡°Just be normal.¡±


    ¡°Alright, but if anything happens,¡± I said to him. Greg sighed. ¡°Fulton called mest night, right after you left.¡±


    That name ignited a whole shrill of anger down my spine. Fulton, the son of Rocke-who he killed-has been annoying me about my father, when he just had a bad rtionship with his father.


    That ain¡¯t my problem!


    ¡°And what does he want?¡± I said hastily, as Greg looked at me with his head to the side and then nodded his head once. ¡°He said that we want to warn you about our father, saying his ns aren¡¯t what you think it is,¡± Greg said. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen any signs of Mr. Drails acting weird.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Me neither,¡± I said, shaking my head. Greg took a deep breath, and then took a look at me-noticing my frustration. ¡°It¡¯s fine bro,¡± he said with an encouraging smile. But then he immediately followed, ¡°But he said that he has evidence.¡±


    The whole world felt like it stopped moving.


    ¡°Evidence?¡± I asked him and Greg nodded. ¡°Evidence.¡±


    ¡°What kind?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, he never told me anything else,¡± Greg said with a shrug. ¡°But apparently something is happening, and I¡¯m not sure it¡¯s good at all.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not,¡± I said with a sigh, which Greg noticed and looked at me with a worried expression. ¡°It¡¯s definitely not good.¡±


    I was getting angry just thinking about that man, Fulton.


    ***


    ¡°Redford Bane,¡± Mr. Drails said, pointing at Mr. Bane which me and Greg saw yesterday through the cameras. We were inside the room that we usually get or discuss our missions. ¡°Him,¡± Mchi muttered to himself, meaning he must¡¯ve seen him somewhere. Or maybe it was something more personal, I¡¯m not exactly sure.


    ¡°He owns, or manages in this case, the Fillmore Center. It¡¯s meant for training newly graduated TSA agents, and also giving supplies. With that, I¡¯m not sure exactly how,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Right now, the Fillmore Center is holding Matthew Lock, but they¡¯re leaving soon. We need someone to infiltrate the base to find out his next location, and also the basic outlook of the ind.¡±


    I nodded, thinking about it for a moment, ¡°The security isn¡¯t too tight.¡± Mr. Drails looked at me with a grin that said, ¡®I know.¡¯ He knows what I¡¯m thinking, but he wanted me to say it anyway. Typical, him. Mchi nodded. ¡°So when do we-YMPA agents-start moving in?¡± he asked, taking pride in his career.


    ¡°Oh yeah, that...¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°The YMPA isn¡¯t doing this.¡±


    ¡°What? Who?¡± September asked. ¡°The FMA? The CSMO? JSA?¡±


    ¡°Nope.¡±


    ¡°Who?!¡± we all asked in unison. Mr. Drails took a nce at all of us before saying, ¡°BANE.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that the man we¡¯re...¡± I asked. Mr. Drails shook his head. ¡°Not that Bane, B-A-N-E. Bane!¡±


    ¡°Marcello?¡± Tisiah said with confusion. ¡°How¡¯s he any better?!¡± Mr. Drails chuckled, ¡°He isn¡¯t a part of EMO, but he is his own organization.¡±


    ¡°His organization has the same name as the man protecting Lock!¡± Mchi rebounded. ¡°You sure about that?¡±


    Mr. Drails nodded, ¡°Yeah.¡± He leaned back in his chair as he was thinking about it all. ¡°Alright,¡± he began to speak as his eyes opened up wide with excitement and interest, ¡°The n is to get Marcello and three of you guys to the ind. Two have to stay behind.¡±


    Should I stay behind? Should I go? That question lingered inside my head until Mr. Drails looked at me and nodded. ¡°Connor, you¡¯re going to stay behind,¡± Mr. Drails said as he pointed at me. ¡°Tisiah will join you,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°The rest will go to the ind. Get ready tomorrow. Things might go down.¡±


    Everyone exited the room, as thoughts and excitement began to spaz inside my mind, as if my head was being blown up by a balloon that had been filled with water-but not painfully of course. It was just filled with water and pressure...pressure to think about the mission.


    ¡°Well...at least we know what we¡¯re doing tomorrow,¡± Tisiah said with his hands on his hips as he walked beside me outside the room as he looked at me. I sighed. ¡°You know how to do all the camera stuff?¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you learn that in Caville¡¯s ss?¡± Tisiah asked.


    ¡°Yeah, kind of failed that one,¡± I said, feeling embarrassment run down my spine. Tisiah nodded, sharing my humiliation, but then he took a nce at my face before saying, ¡°Well it¡¯s no big deal man. You¡¯ll get better with practice.¡±


    ¡°Well I¡¯ma need to learn first,¡± I said, dabbing him up with a handshake. ¡°But yeah, we should be good at it.¡±


    Tisiah nodded as he looked to me and said, ¡°It¡¯s probably going to be pretty tough to get there, right?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I just hope they make it there safely,¡± I responded back, worry starting to fill in for its own shift, as it started to grow and expand in my head. ¡°But I don¡¯t think we should worry too much about it.¡±


    ¡°I agree,¡± Tisiah said with a smile.


    ***


    I walked over to Greg¡¯s house, still thinking about what he said. Evidence about my father? What could be possibly be there, that it would be prove his ridiculous im? I needed to know, and I needed to know now. As I approached Greg¡¯s house, I could feel my heartbeat quicken. I opened the door quickly.


    ¡°Hey man,¡± Greg greeted me with his usual smile.


    ¡°What¡¯s good bro?¡± I said as I walked in. ¡°So about this whole thing with my father, you said there was evidence.¡±


    Greg nodded. He walked into the living room and pulled out his secretputer from behind the picture. ¡°Alright, let me just load it up,¡± he said, as he began to start typing, as if he knew what was going toe up.


    ¡°Is it going to be bad?¡± I asked him, with a shiver running down my spine.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know... haven¡¯t seen it yet,¡± he responded, which made nothing better at all. Suddenly, a video popped up, and I saw a room that was surrounded by metal. But the object inside was something I recognized instantly.


    ¡°The Xeno,¡± I said. ¡°Why is something from two missions ago my problem?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know...¡± Greg muttered, staying invested in the video. I watched it with my own eyes, seeing the Xeno. I had to remind myself to breathe, as it had a lot of meaning, and meaning that I had no control over. Then, Mr. Drails and three YMPA spies walked inside of the room.


    ¡°Well, ain¡¯t I surprised,¡± Mr. Drails said sarcastically, looking at the gigantic machine. ¡°It¡¯s like an alien fortress.¡± Heughed at his own joke and then looked at all three of them with a smirk on his face. ¡°So, you got this thing ready?¡± he asked one of them, who nodded with confidence. ¡°Good, because we got a little n.¡± He turned back around to the Xeno, but then turned around again to look at the three spies in front of him.


    ¡°Does the YMPA know?¡± one of them asked.


    He didn¡¯t respond, and now suspicion was beginning, ¡°No one can know,¡± Mr. Drails said, as he walked towards the Xeno and grabbed the metal arm on the side of the machine, which started to move on its own ord. ¡°We don¡¯t wanna risk anything.¡±


    ¡°Risk what? I would prefer we-¡±


    Mr. Drails put his finger up, hushing them down, ¡°Quiet!¡±


    He looked at them with a smile and walked towards the Xeno once again.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to take off the cover,¡± he said to himself as if it was no big deal to him. Then he ripped off the metal covering off the Xeno¡¯s body and revealed the machine underneath it all, which was made of metal and ss-looking just like the rest of it.


    ¡°Oh yeah, this looks clean,¡± he said, touching its big structure, which started to open up and expose the Xeno¡¯s insides. The spy standing next to him stepped back, probably because it was toorge to touch or look at in detail. ¡°Charge it up, now,¡± he said. ¡°Quickly.¡±


    The spy moved quickly, turning a key inside of the machine and turning another one within the Xeno as well as turning a big button on top of the machine as well. The Xeno then started to vibrate with electricity before it started to light up blue and purple lightning all throughout its insides and then started to make loud humming noises.


    Then, the video stopped.

 Chapter 230

    230 The Ind


    ¡°Whoa, whoa-wait... wait,¡± I said, trying to process what just urred. ¡°Why would he want to hide that from anyone in the YMPA?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s a good thing,¡± Greg said, sighing with worry. ¡°What should we do?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t-¡± I stuttered, unsure of what to even say next. ¡°Maybe... I don¡¯t know.¡± But then Greg looked up with these pleading and hopeless eyes.


    ¡°Maybe we ask Fulton himself? He might have more information,¡± he said. I sighed. That was the only thing we could probably do in this case. He has answers which I desperately need-desperately need.


    How is my father not himself in this case?


    ¡°Might as well,¡± I said, taking a deep breath. ¡°Let¡¯s do that.¡±


    ***


    It was the end of school, meaning it was time for me to get transported to the YMPA for our mission. I¡¯m scared about it, because I never have been much of a camera guy.


    Never been much of anything to be honest.


    .....


    As I walked out, I saw Greg walk towards my side. ¡°You know what to do?¡± I asked him, and he nodded before walking off. Instantly, a portal swept me off my feet, and Inded inside of the room immediately. That¡¯s new. The others entered, as Mchi began to stretch.


    ¡°Alright, we need to make this quick,¡± Mr. Drails said, putting a hand on Mchi¡¯s shoulder and then turning to us, ¡°We¡¯re going to take off in five minutes.¡±


    Tisiah walked over to me. ¡°You ready to control some cameras?¡± he said with an excited smile, which made me feel a little bit better.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m ready,¡± I replied back, but then added, ¡°I hope I don¡¯t mess this up.¡±


    ¡°I hope so as well,¡± Tisiah responded, which I was a bit startled from the straightforward answer, as if he already knew that I was going to do a poor job with it. Mr. Drails looked at the two of us, then suddenly pointed to the door behind his office.


    Excitement was pumping inside quickly. What was behind that door?


    ¡°Ooh, I wonder what¡¯s behind here?¡± Tisiah said, rushing and barging through the door.


    ¡°Wait...¡± I said before seeing two screens right by one another on the ceiling. The walls were white, including the ceiling, and the floor was ck. ¡°Alright,¡± I said, seeing two headphones on these keyboards, which made me feel like I was at a concert.


    ¡°The best part,¡± Mr. Drails said as he walked up next to Tisiah, who had his eyes fixed on the screens on the ceiling. ¡°You guys put those on, and we¡¯ll get everyone in there. The numbers represent the camera angles in every part of the building, including the exterior.¡± He pointed at the screen where there were several numbers, all written in different colors and styles. ¡°Each number means a camera angle.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said, as Mr. Drails exited and closed the door. ¡°I¡¯m stressed now.¡±


    Tisiah chuckled, as he walked over to the mixer and began to put on his headphones. ¡°We¡¯ve got this, man.¡±


    I sighed and put on mine as well before saying, ¡°Yeah... let¡¯s just hope we don¡¯t screw this up.¡±


    ¡°Just follow my lead, okay?¡± Tisiah ordered, and I quickly nodded, letting the hands of this situation give upon him, as he did what he knew best-which was control all these cameras-and all my attention went to him. ¡°Alright, you guys in the ind?¡± Tisiah asked. ¡°We¡¯re watching you through the security cameras.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Mchi responded, with his voice echoing through the microphone attached to the camera above him.


    ¡°Good,¡± Tisiah responded, as if he was happy that they could hear him. I would be too, if I was in this situation, because they wouldn¡¯t be able to see me at all. ¡°Where are you guys. I need to find the right camera,¡± Tisiah said, clicking the numbers.


    ¡°The roof.¡±


    ¡°How are you guys on the roof?¡± I asked, confusion and wonder racing through my mind, as Tisiah walked over to the screen where there were two numbers next to each other with a camera right above it-that must be them. He clicked a few buttons and then continued to click and click before turning his head and saying into his mic, ¡°Okay, we¡¯re looking for you now.¡±


    Soon enough, we stopped on a view of the roof. The three of them were on there, which it was hard to tell who being the weird bird¡¯s-eye view we were seeing them at.


    ¡°Okay, we¡¯re in ce,¡± Tisiah said with excitement. ¡°Hey, where¡¯s Marcello¡¯s men?¡±


    ¡°Marcello-I don¡¯t know...¡± Nikki said, looking around from what I can assume from my view, which was a lot of empty space. ¡°They were supposed to be here a minute ago.¡±


    ¡°Oh shoot,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Uhh, Connor-check all the other floors through the security cameras and find them.¡± I nodded, as I began to look at the numbers on the keyboard, clicking on each one in a matter of seconds. ¡°How long does it take for these cameras to scan?¡± I asked out loud.


    ¡°Oh shoot, oh shoot,¡± Tisiah responded with frustration. ¡°We gotta hurry.¡±


    ¡°They should be on the way,¡± I said, as I clicked around through the cameras on the bottom floor, moving to the ones on the second floor. But suddenly, as I switched back to the roof camera, I saw a portal open up. Three men with spy gear piled out of the hole, as they began to groan.


    ¡°What kind of transportation is that?¡± one of themined in a gruff voice, as the other twoughed at him. ¡°This isn¡¯t working,¡± one of themined. ¡°Something must have gone wrong,¡± another one added with a sigh.


    ¡°Well, I guess they¡¯re here,¡± Nikki said through the headphones.


    ¡°Good, good,¡± I said with a sigh of relief, before saying into the mic, ¡°Okay guys, we¡¯re watching you now.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Mchi responded from his view. ¡°We¡¯ll make sure we can see everything that goes down here.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I know,¡± Nikki responded, and I could tell by her voice that she was nervous about this. ¡°Alright, anyways-head through the door, make sure no ones sees you,¡± Tisiah said, looking around. He looked at me. ¡°In these sort of things, you need to be specific and short,¡± he said to me, as if this was a lesson, which was weird considering this was a mission. ¡°We¡¯re heading to the elevator shaft,¡± Tisiah said to everyone as if he was reading off of a cue card. ¡°Once we get down there we need to go through the emergency exit doors and meet up in the lobby.¡±


    ¡°Wait-what?¡± Nikki said with a bit of confusion as she looked at him with her eyes widened. ¡°But that¡¯s like-the longest way.¡±


    ¡°There are too many guards in the shorter way, which is well-the elevator,¡± Tisiah said with a winced smile, as if it hurt him to say this. ¡°It¡¯s easier and safer.¡±


    ¡°I agree,¡± I said before quickly adding, ¡°But you can¡¯t be too safe.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± one of Marcello¡¯s men asked, clearly upset by myment.


    ¡°Nothing,¡± I responded quickly. ¡°It¡¯s just-we don¡¯t want to get caught.¡±


    ¡°Connor¡¯s right,¡± Tisiah said, agreeing with me.


    ¡°So how¡¯s that being too safe?¡± the man asked again, as September smacked her head in frustration, and I could tell she wanted to kill him.


    ¡°Just go,¡± I said, as I clicked away at the buttons, looking through all the cameras for them. I looked ahead, seeing three guards that were at the end of the corridor, talking andughing.


    ¡°I don¡¯t get you guys,¡± one of them said. ¡°You know that you shouldn¡¯t be doing this?¡±


    ¡°What do you care?¡± another one responded in an angry tone. ¡°We¡¯re just trying to survive here.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re risking your life,¡± the third man said. ¡°Don¡¯t you know that you shouldn¡¯t be doing this?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re already dead,¡± one of the men said in response.


    ¡°What are they talking about?¡± I muttered in confusion, rubbing my cheek, as I looked through the camera in front of the three guards. They were at the end of the hallway and I could hear their voices from here. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but we need to neutralize them,¡± September said. ¡°Nikki, on my left.¡±


    ¡°Got it,¡± Nikki said, before whispering, ¡°It¡¯s so easy when you¡¯re used to it, right? We can do this.¡±


    ¡°...okay,¡± September said, confused and annoyed at this point, as she raised her wand and nodded. It was so weird seeing them on the ind, while me and Tisiah were back at the YMPA-looking at cameras. September and Nikki slowly approached the three guards slowly, and surely, barely making a sound. They stopped in front of the three guards, who were now facing them.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± the first guard asked. ¡°What do you two want?¡±


    September swung her wand immediately-without any question, which made it a surprise when the guard ducked the iing swing-before he took a few steps back, getting his wand out. Without no time left to spare, he swung hard which caused a loud sh once it hit September¡¯s own weapon.


    They swung and blocked each other¡¯s hits, but not gaining any sort of ground, they looked to be at a stalemate. I quickly looked at the camera in front of them, seeing that they were still facing each other. But all of a sudden, September dodged three attacks that swept her way.


    Now the finishing move was on the block.


    She swung hard towards his jaw, but he blocked it with his own. His arm moved in an instant, before he jumped forward and started his next attack. September quickly took her wand back and aimed it at him, firing a spell at him that sent him flying backwards into the wall.


    ¡°Ay, y¡¯all good?!¡± I shouted, feeling the intensity of the fight, as I watched the screen in front of me. ¡°I¡¯m sure y¡¯all are good!¡± I repeated over and over again. I had no idea if they were good or not because I wasn¡¯t there, but I knew it looked like they were good.


    September didn¡¯t stop there either; she ran at the other two guards who were now trying to figure out what happened to their friend-or at least I assumed it was a friend-and then kicked the guard who had been fighting her in the face and then threw another fireball into his face from behind him. Then she ran back into the hallway with Nikki in tow as if nothing happened.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go,¡± she said.

 Chapter 231

    231 A New Location, A Revealed Enemy


    The group followed her down the stairs, making sure to be extra careful with how quiet they could be, knowing that they would have to pass through a lobby before going back to their floor. ¡°Alright, Tisiah¨Csearch through the cameras to find Matthew Lock anywhere,¡± September ordered, which Tisiah immediately took heed to her word. He moved his head from side-to-side as he clicked around the camera on the lower level.


    ¡°Found him,¡± he responded with a nod of his head.


    ¡°Where?¡± I asked, walking over to his mixer and looking at the screen.


    ¡°He¡¯sing up the stairs with two other guys,¡± Tisiah said with a chuckle. ¡°One of them is looking pretty serious.¡±


    I watched as one of the men approached Matthew and they talked briefly. Then the man shook hands with Matthew and walked away. ¡°You might wanna move over to the door on your left to escape him,¡± I said, looking at their angle and Lock¡¯s. Me and Tisiah were literally in the YMPA building, watching over them while September, Nikki and Mchi¨Cas well as some of Marcello¡¯s men, were at the ind.


    ¡°Alright, got it,¡± September said, moving over to the door and taking her ce. She held her wand tight in her right hand and pressed against the door lightly. The others followed quickly, but silently, and they all piled into the room with their guns raised. Eventually, Matthew and his team walked up the stairs, and passed through the hall and therefore, passing them.


    ¡°Alright,¡± September said as she cracked her neck. ¡°We gotta go now.¡± They began to make their way out of the room and I looked up at the screen to see if I could see any sign of movement. ¡°No one is near you right now, but you might wanna follow Lock. Just don¡¯t make it obvious,¡± Tisiah said, and the team nodded.


    ¡°Everyone, follow our lead,¡± one of Marcello¡¯s men said. ¡°We¡¯re assassins, we¡¯ve been in situations like these before.¡±


    ¡°Alright, just don¡¯t kill us,¡± Mchi said, as they began to faintly follow the assassins, which led them up the stairs after Matthew. He was beginning to walk inside of this hall, with a long red carpet and white walls with paintings and sculptures on the walls.


    .....


    ¡°You three try to cut him, we¡¯ll go after him,¡± one of the assassins said, as he turned his head to look at Nikki, Mchi and September.


    ¡°Alright,¡± September responded. ¡°Tisiah, find out if they know we¡¯re here.¡±


    ¡°Okay...¡± Tisiah said prolonged as he searched through the cameras. ¡°Not that I see.¡± September nodded as she looked at Nikki and Mchi. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    ¡°Wait¨CI¡¯m not sure we should go now,¡± Mchi said in a rush of panic, as he turned his head towards Nikki.


    ¡°You¡¯re not supposed to say anything,¡± Nikki said, as she stood in front of him. She waspletely calm and focused as if nothing was bothering her whatsoever, which only made me wonder what she was thinking. ¡°Says who?¡± Mchi hissed at her as she sighed. ¡°Nothing, let¡¯s go,¡± September said, as they booked it down the other hall to the right. They stayed low to the ground and moved through the halls quietly, so that no one could hear them.


    ¡°This is stressful,¡± I said to Tisiah, which he chuckled in response. ¡°Wee to being a spy mage,¡± he said. ¡°Camera version, of course.¡± I chuckled while looking at the two assassins moving directly behind Matthew. He was alone now, not noticing the two assassins behind him, and he continued down this long red carpeted hall, until he reached the end where two doors were facing each other¨Cone of them open¨Cand another set of doors was open but blocked by a big red wall.


    ¡°Okay,¡± he said. ¡°Hopefully this is good news.¡±


    I watched as he opened his mouth, but nothing came out for a minute or so, before he closed his mouth and nodded his head. He walked through it, as a man with dirty brown hair and the stubble beard made his way towards him. He was wearing a suit with a gray vest under, and he had a matching pair of ck shoes on.


    I was guessing he was an executive or something like that. But soon enough, Redford Bane walked inside of the room. ¡°Ahh, you¡¯ve finally arrived my son,¡± Mr. Bane said, hugging the executive-looking person, while Matthew stood awkwardly. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since west saw each other.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it has been,¡± the man responded in a t tone.


    Mr. Bane turned over to Matthew. ¡°This is my son, Luther Bane.¡± Shock stered onto my face, as realization finally took the throne, as I looked at Matthew and saw the same thing on his face as well.


    ¡°No... you¡¯re...¡± Matthew stuttered as he turned red. The man¨CLuthor Bane¨Cnodded. ¡°I¡¯ll be your bodyguard, and trust me, you¡¯ll be safe,¡± he said with a smile, as he turned around to face Matthew.


    Matthew¡¯s face looked like someone had smacked it with a brick wall, but he tried to maintain hisposure. ¡°Y-yeah,¡± he stuttered as he took a deep breath and began to calm himself down. ¡°You¡¯re the bodyguard?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and I will do this for your safety,¡± Luthor Bane said. ¡°After all, you have our greatest weapon.¡± Mr. Bane chuckled in response to his son¡¯s witty reply, before turning to face Matthew again. ¡°So what do we need to discuss? If there is anything that you need to know...¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t have much time,¡± Matthew interrupted quickly. ¡°We need to get to Saudi Arabia, at least in two days.¡±


    ¡°In two days? Are you sure you want to rush time like this?¡± Mr. Bane asked with a bit of a plea in his voice, which I figured meant he was concerned about Matthew¡¯s health and well-being. ¡°After all, it¡¯s been a while since you¡¯ve been out in the public eye.¡± Matthew chuckled and cracked his knuckles, while Luthor Bane just stared at him nkly. ¡°But if you¡¯re sure you can¡¯t wait longer than two days...¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m very much sure,¡± Matthew said with a sigh. He seemed himself even a bit nervous about the whole idea, but he was still persistent. It was almost heartbreaking to look at the fear on his face.


    Luthor Bane sighed and looked around the room with his hands folded over his stomach. He then looked back at Matthew. ¡°Okay, let me talk to some people and figure out the details.¡± He began to walk over towards Matthew, who backed up until he was right up against the wall. He looked back at Luthor Bane and said nothing.


    All of a sudden, Mr. Drails busted into the camera room. ¡°Tell the team to call off, we got enough information,¡± he said abruptly, which I nodded slowly with a startled thought, wondering if all this was worth it or not. I watched as Matthew seemed surprised at his sudden appearance before he rxed.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Matthew responded in a shaky voice before he turned his head towards Luthor Bane and looked up.


    I spoke into the mike. ¡°September and everyone needs to move out, we got what we needed,¡± I said in the microphone, as I heard them move out of the room. I turned my head towards Tisiah as he turned off his screen and walked over to me. ¡°Nice job,¡± he said with a little smile, as he rubbed the back of my head.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said, watching as everyone was now outside of the room. I could hear footsteps making their way up the stairs as we continued to watch through the screen. I turned the screen off, taking a deep breath and thinking about what happened. That was different, very different. But, it was fun. Seeing them rush throughout the building in the search of Lock, and information, was almost as exhrating as being there. Figures, I thought to myself with a chuckle. I felt a little bad for Lock, though.


    I walked out of the room and stood beside Tisiah. The portal opened up, as Mchi, September, and Nikki entered through the inside of Mr. Drails¡¯s room. ¡°That center smelled like honey,¡± Mchi said, taking a deep breath. ¡°Oh man,¡± Nikki said as she began to cough. ¡°I mean...¡± Mchi said as he rubbed her back with his right hand.


    ¡°Wow...¡± I muttered, almostughing for some reason, although I began to feel a bit bad for her. ¡°Must¡¯ve smelt terrible.¡±


    ¡°Honey doesn¡¯t smell bad... for a while,¡± September said, starting to cough herself.


    ¡°Maybe you should stop going around picking fights with your life-threatening diseases,¡± Mchi joked before looking at September. ¡°I¡¯m kidding.¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s not true...¡± September started to say but then began tough herself as she continued to cough and hack inughter.


    ¡°Alright,¡± Nikki said as she wiped her mouth and stood straight, but her eyes were still red from all those wheezing coughs. ¡°We at least know where he¡¯s going.¡±


    ¡°To one of the richest ces on earth,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Saudi Arabia.¡±


    Note:


    Sorry I didn¡¯t post for a while, I was pretty busy. Enjoy this chapter!

 Chapter 232

    232 Update


    I was now back in California, with the next mission in mind: Get to Greg¡¯s house. I have never been to his house this many times before, but here we are I guess.


    After approaching his door, I knocked. Soon enough, Greg¡¯s mom opened the door. And I found myself in awe of her extensive height.


    ¡°Hi...¡± I greeted once again. She said nothing and left it open, which I guessed meant that I could walk in. Slowly, I made my way inside of his house. Once she went upstairs, I approached the living room.


    Greg looked up and saw me, and quickly gestured for me toe quickly. I did, and took a seat that was by the counter.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Greg said. ¡°So, what¡¯s happened so far?¡± ¡°Well, we figured out where Lock is going,¡± I said. ¡°And how Luthor Bane looks.¡±


    ¡°Oh...¡± Greg said with his eyes widened. ¡°What does he look like?¡±


    ¡°Like those models in those high school movies,¡± I described. ¡°Pretty boy.¡± Greg seemed to be quite interested, but he returned back to hisputer and turned it on.


    ¡°So, where¡¯s he protecting Lock at?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Saudi Arabia,¡± I responded.


    .....


    Greg¡¯s eyes widened-although much wider this time-and even a smile followed as well. ¡°Well, well, well. He¡¯s gonna have some fun isn¡¯t he?¡± he said with an excited chuckle.


    ¡°Not when we start piling in,¡± I said to him. ¡°He¡¯s gonna have less of a good time for sure. Now, what else have you-well, has Fulton-found about my father.¡±


    Greg was silent for a long moment. ¡°Well-well...he has found something, technically. Em... yeah. But, he hasn¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Can you try and not speak random parables here?¡± I asked him. He nodded quickly, before he opened his mouth once again, now ready to speak.


    ¡°He has found something, but you have to find it,¡± he said. Confusion sted into my mind. What does he mean ¡®find it?¡¯


    ¡°Is this some sort of game?¡± I asked Greg. He shook his head, ¡°I don¡¯t believe so, I don¡¯t. Let me say it in a better way. He has a theory, and he needs you to prove it.¡±


    ¡°How?¡± I asked, starting to understand Greg¡¯splicated wording.


    ¡°Pretty simple. You don¡¯t need to follow your father, but you do need to follow one YMPA agent.¡± He reached into his backpack, getting out his folder as he handed it over to me.


    I opened it, seeing a girl that looked Cuban, or at least of Cuban descent.


    ¡°Anne Denver,¡± Greg said. ¡°A seventeen year old spy that graduated very early for her empowering performance as an agent.¡±


    ¡°Wow,¡± I said. ¡°How early?¡±


    ¡°Fifteen.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± I said, now starting to feel a bit intimidated. ¡°That¡¯s earlier than me.¡±


    ¡°Well she started when she was thirteen, so she had two years, unlike you who has had almost a year at best,¡± Greg said.


    ¡°And yet it feels as if a lot has happened,¡± I said, as memories flushed through my head. ¡°Nheless, continue on.¡±


    ¡°Yes, she is of Cuban descent, as you can see clearly here,¡± he said. So why does she have such a normal name?


    ¡°Well, she has quite the American name,¡± I said. ¡°Anne...very simple.¡±


    ¡°I would say thest name is none like Cuban descent. So just to clear things up, that is not her real name. It¡¯s meant to keep any spies away from approaching her family. Her real name is Ariana Alvaro and she¡¯s of Cuban descent.¡±


    I nodded and continued to read over the file of Anne Denver. She had ck hair that went down to her ribs, but not straight down; it was curly. She was about five feet and six inches tall, but not exactly thin and not exactly heavy; she was just about average in terms of height and weight for someone of seventeen years old.


    She had very light brown eyes that sparkled in certain lighting as well as her ck hair that was always pulled back into a bun or ponytail. She also had a long face with very small lips that were just barely parted enough to reveal a very straight white teeth that made her very beautiful indeed. Her eyebrows were also thick, but not bushy as I would expect them to be, and they seemed to be constantly furrowed. Her nose was rather small, and her chin was very delicate in shape as well as her cheeks seemed to have no defined curves or wrinkles whatsoever.


    ¡°Wow...¡± I said. ¡°So, why is she important?¡±


    ¡°Because, she¡¯s getting the next thing that Mr. Drails needs,¡± Greg said. ¡°It was the first mission you had.¡±


    ¡°The Armonk?¡± I asked him, which now the memories were really hitting me, even though it felt as if they had only happened yesterday. I shook my head and continued reading through her file again as Greg spoke on.


    ¡°Yes, the Armonk. That was when you found out that your friend-me, of course-was actually your brother,¡± he said with a smile that hit me real good, and I could only help but smile back at him. ¡°So, we-I need to follow her how, exactly?¡± I questioned, still looking at her file, which was starting to be concerning. ¡°Greg, she doesn¡¯t seem like much.¡±


    ¡°She will be able to lead us to the location,¡± Greg said in an excited tone, which made me a little bit concerned about what he was getting at. ¡°Does she have it in her possession?¡± I asked, but Greg shrugged, and answered my question.


    ¡°No. But we do have ways to get it from her,¡± he said, while giving me a strange look with his eyes wide and his eyebrows raised. ¡°Interrogation, torture, ckmail... many things can make people do what we want.¡±


    ¡°So basically, she has the location of the Armonk,¡± I said, which this time, he nodded. ¡°Yes,¡± he finally revealed. ¡°We do.¡±


    ¡°Alright then,¡± I said with a sigh as I continued to look at her file. ¡°When do we start following her?¡±


    ¡°Tomorrow, and once you do happen to find a time to get her, then we¡¯ll get the location,¡± he said. I stuttered. ¡°But I can¡¯t do torture, or ckmail or any sort of interrogation.¡± He chuckled, then pointed at himself. ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯ll be there,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ll be the one to do it.¡±


    ¡°I... I don¡¯t like the idea of it,¡± I said. ¡°I mind interrogation or torture or anything, so the idea of doing something like that... no.¡±


    ¡°Well, if you don¡¯t mind me saying so,¡± Greg started to say, ¡°you are a terrible person.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I said quickly. ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± he began, ¡°you¡¯re afraid of getting dirty or getting blood on your hands. But if you don¡¯t mind me saying so, that¡¯s not how we do things in our world.¡±


    ¡°Do we really have to do all that stuff though?¡± I asked, feeling my heart race. ¡°Maybe we can interrogate her without hurting her, at the least.¡±


    ¡°And if she says no?¡± Greg asked.


    ¡°We can bluff,¡± I said, with an embarrassed chuckle, before realizing that this was real life and I needed to be a spy for real.


    ¡°Oh...¡± Greg said with a sigh. ¡°Well, that¡¯s not how things work here. We don¡¯t really have a choice.¡±


    ¡°Well, I won¡¯t do it,¡± I said with a huff and a pout.


    ¡°Yes you will,¡± Greg said with a grin on his face that seemed like it would break his face apart. ¡°Trust me, you¡¯ll do fine.¡± I looked at him, and I gave him a very mean eye. But he didn¡¯t seem to care at the slightest bit, not even close. ¡°Okay then.¡±


    ¡°And what are we going to do about this?¡± I asked, pointing at his shirt, where a tear had formed right in the middle of it. It was a bit small in size, but it was very noticeable and seemed to have ruined his clothes.


    ¡°Oh... this?¡± he asked as he looked at his shirt. ¡°Thanks for telling me.¡±


    I chuckled as he got up from his seat and went upstairs. I could only think of what was just happening. The spy mage world is a bazaar of magic, power, and mystery. This is only the tip of the iceberg, and the ice is getting deeper and deeper each day.


    Suddenly, Greg came down from the stairs in a matter of seconds, with a new shirt. It was a gray shirt, almost navy in color and it was muchrger than his old one. He threw it on and tied his sleeves into ce, then he turned around and looked at me. ¡°You look nervous, are you still thinking about that?¡± he asked.


    I had the feeling of shaking my head, but I did nothing at all, so he must have been right. ¡°Yes, I am,¡± I admitted, which caused him to startughing at me, which made me feel extremely ufortable.


    ¡°You¡¯re so funny,¡± he said to me as he sat back down. ¡°You¡¯re always so funny.¡±


    ¡°Yeah...I guess,¡± I said, super confused. ¡°How, exactly?¡± But he didn¡¯t respond, but only started wheezing more like a fan, until it reached the point where he had to start breathing again after taking in air. He had gone off into another world. He was so far out of the room that he wasn¡¯t even here anymore; it was like he had disappeared into thin air.


    I decided not to say anything else to him and waited for him toe back down, which was not too long after that. ¡°I¡¯ll help you, how about that?¡± he said, which I nodded immediately, with no thought at all. ¡°Yeah,¡± I said. ¡°Definitely.¡±

 Chapter 233 - 233 A Hopeful Feeling

    233 A Hopeful Feeling


    The next day of school came, but now I had two missions at the YMPA to do, which weirdly, all of them came from Greg.


    I was walking through the halls, now thinking less about the sses ahead of me, and more about the secret little mission ahead of me this time.


    Pretty sure you already know what it is.


    First thing though, I need to talk to Greg. I¡¯m not sure how I¡¯m going to do this, if I also have to focus on Lock.


    What if Denver is on another mission?


    She did graduate, so it¡¯s not like there are other sses to actually do. And how am I, a person who just did this for a matter of months¨Cgoing to best Anne Denver, an agent who not only has years of experience but also graduated early.


    In fact, I think I might be interrogated by her instead.


    I went to Greg, who was talking with some of his friends before he found me, making my way towards him.


    ¡°Well, if it ain¡¯t Connor,¡± one of them said with a chuckle. I gave a quick smile, but quickly I went beside Greg. Before I could whisper anything, he nodded and looked back at his buddies.


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯ll be back alright?¡± he said. He and I began to walk away from them, and they seemed a bit startled from the sudden announcement.


    ¡°Okay, so what¡¯s the game n, how am I going to kidnap her?¡± I asked. Greg looked around once more before he looked back at me.


    ¡°Do you know how to use your wand yet?¡± Greg asked.


    ¡°No, because everytime I do, my Perk saves me,¡± I answered with an annoyed attitude.


    ¡°Dang, that must be very irritating,¡± Greg said with an embarrassed expression, but not for him of course.


    ¡°Anyways, how am I gonna kidnap her? Where will we meet?¡± I asked him, and he shook his head as if I said something wrong.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, okay?¡± he said. ¡°What we¡¯ll do is after we get Denver, we¡¯ll bring her to that one abandoned building back at, um, that street when youe out from my neighborhood.¡±


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± I said. ¡°How are we gonna drag her there? Mr. Drails will see me exit when it¡¯s not over, and use his portal to put me right back in that academy.¡±


    ¡°So do it towards the end. All you gotta do is go to the right section of your building, see her exit there and then boom¨Cthat¡¯s where you can kidnap her. Alright?¡± Greg said.


    I nodded, trying to keep myself sane after all that just sprayed out of Greg¡¯s mouth.


    ¡°Understand?¡± he asked me, to which I nodded. ¡°Alright,¡± he said with a smile. ¡°I¡¯ll see you in ss.¡± And then he left me standing alone in the hallway.


    ***


    I entered the YMPA room, seeing the rest of my team there. ¡°Hey Connor,¡± Nikki said, rushing over as she wrapped her arms around me. ¡°Are you feeling okay?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± I said quickly as I hugged her back, making her smile and nod with satisfaction. Mr. Drails nodded before he turned back to his screen. ¡°I¡¯ve set up some groups to surround the building, which we¡¯ll storm in tomorrow,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°I want you guys to find out which area on the ind they¡¯re leaving, alright?¡±


    ¡°Do we go now, or do we wait?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Whoever said you had to go there?¡± Mr. Drails said with a chuckle. He then pointed at the room behind him, the room with all the screens in there. ¡°Check the cameras, find out some information. I wanna make sure that this doesn¡¯t get out of hand. I don¡¯t want to y games with the enemy,¡± he said.


    ¡°Got it,¡± Mchi said. ¡°But there¡¯s only space for two of them.¡±


    ¡°Then don¡¯t use the headphones, now I¡¯ll be dealing with something else, so carry on,¡± he said, as he moved his head as a gesture to move to the room, which was right next to us. ¡°Just go in and look at the screens.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said with a sigh of relief before looking at everyone else¡¯s faces. We rose from our seats and walked in through the room, as the white walls weed us in. ¡°So this is what you guys used,¡± Mchi said, ncing at me and Tisiah. I nodded, ¡°Pretty much.¡±


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s turn these on,¡± Tisiah said, walking over to the first mixer, which turned on. The screen came alive, and the first camera was the view of the roof of the Fillmore Center. ¡°So if we are to find information, where would we look?¡± I muttered to myself, which in the end, everyone heard. ¡°Oh¡­¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± Nikki asked with a giggle. ¡°You sound like you don¡¯t even know where to look.¡±


    ¡°Because I don¡¯t,¡± I said.


    ¡°Try switching to a different camera. Maybe an idea wille up in your head,¡± Mchi joked, which wasn¡¯t funny in the slightest. I turned the screen to the front of the room, and sure enough, the room was filled with people. They were wearing ck robes that covered their entire body except for their hands.


    ¡°What the¡­¡± I muttered as we all looked.


    ¡°Switch a different one quickly,¡± Tisiah said, a bit horrified by the sight, but then again, it wasn¡¯t like anyone had seen this in real life before. It was all from movies and shows, but not even then.


    I turned the camera around and switched it to a different one from the camera on the other side of the room. A person was walking through it slowly; and lo-and-behold, it was Luthor Bane. ¡°Monitor him!¡± September shouted, pointing at him on the screen.


    I clicked on the button of the camera and zoomed in on Luthor Bane¡¯s face, which was looking around everywhere, almost like he was cautious. ¡°He knows something, but what?¡± I muttered, this time more silently, as my heart raced a bit faster.


    ¡°We have to follow him,¡± Tisiah said as he turned the camera back to the other side of the room. He walked over to a ck door, and he opened it. ¡°Switch to the next room he¡¯s in,¡± Tisiah ordered, and I nodded¡ªlooking down at the numbers near the top of the keypad and pressing it. The door opened, and I saw another person who was walking towards him and smiled upon seeing him. It was Lock.


    ¡°Finally, I¡¯ve been waiting for how long?!¡± Lock said, as they went into a hug. ¡°How have you been?¡±


    ¡°Just like all the other days,¡± Luthor Bane responded, ¡°But I¡¯m d you¡¯re okay.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, I¡¯m fine, I¡¯m fine, I¡¯m fine,¡± Lock said, before he looked down. ¡°I¡¯m perfectly fine. I¡¯ll be better once I leave for Saudi Arabia,¡± he added, which Luthor Bane nodded in agreement, making me look at the screen. ¡°Well, I¡¯m d to see you¡¯re doing well,¡± Luthor Bane said with a smile, and then his smile grew. ¡°We have the transport to take you there ready. You¡¯ll be ready to go tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s a relief,¡± Matthew Lock said, taking a seat on one chair by the side of the door. He put his hands on the desk and sighed, ¡°I know we¡¯re going to bete, but I have to see this through.¡± Luthor Bane nodded. ¡°I know, but every organization in EMO is looking for you, it¡¯s best you move as fast as you can.¡±


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t no one know about this ce?¡± Lock asked, which Luthor Bane nodded. ¡°So I¡¯ll be fine then.¡±


    ¡°You seem to forget that EMO, especially the YMPA and FMA are quite persistent corporations,¡± Luthor Bane added quickly, as his expression changed to a stern one.


    ¡°I know,¡± Lock said, ¡°but I still need to see it through.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s funny how before, I said you should wait. You have, and I¡¯m speaking against it,¡± Luthor Bane chuckled. ¡°Funny how that works.¡±


    ¡°I need to see this through, I need to,¡± Lock said. ¡°And I can¡¯t say I agree with you, but I respect you for saying that.¡±


    ¡°As your bodyguard, I can only suggest to you what is best for you,¡± Luthor Bane said, now taking a seat by Lock. ¡°I don¡¯t suck up to anyone, but I respect my masters.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t me you for that, it¡¯s not like you do it on purpose. I¡¯m just d you¡¯re here,¡± Lock said, smiling at him. ¡°And thanks foring to my rescue. I know that was hard to do, but I really appreciate it.¡±


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t mind helping you,¡± Luthor Bane said. ¡°I mean, if it was to protect you, I¡¯d do it. You are the answer to our victory, of course I would. It¡¯s just my job.¡± Luthor Bane leaned in on that sentence, creating this sort of eerie feeling that could feel from behind the screen. ¡°But, I¡¯ll do whatever it takes to make sure you¡¯re safe. I won¡¯t let anything happen to you.¡±


    ¡°Thanks, I appreciate it,¡± Lock said, and he gave him a smile.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I don¡¯t want to keep you any longer. I¡¯m sure you have many things to do,¡± Luthor Bane said as he stood up, putting his hands in the pocket of his robe. ¡°I¡¯ll see youter, alright?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I hope so,¡± Lock said, which made Luthor Bane chuckle.

 Chapter 234 - 234 Anne Denver

    234 Anne Denver


    ¡°So what about which position they¡¯re leaving from?¡± Mchi said. ¡°They didn¡¯t even talk about any sort of vehicr resource or position to escape.¡±


    He was right on that part. We got no information at all, so what do we do then?


    But then I looked at him, and then my face instantly lit up as I thought about it. He said ¡°transport.¡± Meaning it would have to be a boat.


    Obviously, of course, but it would be more in the factor of which there would be multiple boats so that Luthor Bane¡¯s guards could apany the vehicle holding Matthew Lock.


    So basically, a convoy.


    But they¡¯d have to be fast, and there would most likely have to be a distraction prepared. It makes a lot of sense.


    ¡°Guys, there is a potential answer,¡± I said, and their heads stopped and looked at me.


    ¡°What do you mean ¡®potential answer? You got something?¡± Mchi asked. I shrugged. ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°So then, tell us,¡± September said, as all their eyes were keen on me. I cleared my throat, feeling the pressure like it was some presentation.


    .....


    ¡°So, if Lock is perhaps leaving for Saudi Arabia, he¡¯d obviously have to be in a boat. Now, Luthor Bane would also have to apany Lock. Luthor Bane has his own team that wille with him, meaning a bunch of boats.¡±


    ¡°So basically, a convoy of boats,¡± September said, which I nodded in agreement.


    ¡°Yes, a convoy of boats. I also sense there might be some attempt at a distraction. And maybe a good one,¡± I said. They nodded, with their hearts troubled.


    ¡°So, we need to basically¨Cfind a convoy of boats and then get Lock,¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°You¡¯d be correct,¡± I said with a smile. ¡°You¡¯d be correct.¡±


    ***


    The day was the rest of ours after we told Mr. Drails, who said that he¡¯d fix it. Now it was time for my second problem, finding Anne Denver. She was in the other building, where the actual agents were. I needed to, somehow, kidnap her, and take her away to another ce.


    It wasn¡¯t that simple, though. I mean, she was an actual agent!


    She¡¯s light-years better than me, and I¡¯m going to kidnap her. I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if I was kidnapped by her instead!


    I sighed and shook my head. ¡°I¡¯m just gonna have to take a chance,¡± I said as I walked up to the door, and then I knocked.


    A few moments passed before the door opened. I heard a woman¡¯s voice say, ¡°What do you want?¡±


    I stared at her, and she looked like she had a scar over her eye, and it was covered in a bandage. Her hair was long and brown, and she wore sses on the end of her nose.


    ¡°I want to¡ªum¡ªspeak to Anne Denver. This is straight from Captain Drails,¡± I said, feeling weird saying ¡®Captain¡¯ instead of ¡®Mr.¡¯


    ¡°And why would you want to speak with her?¡± the woman asked, which I couldn¡¯t help but stare at her. ¡°Because it¡¯s straight from Captain Drails, as I said before,¡± I responded, giving a quick smile to ease the tenseness.


    ¡°I¡¯m not supposed to let anyone in without an appointment,¡± the woman said, which made me roll my eyes.


    ¡°I am the new intern. I don¡¯t have an appointment.¡±


    ¡°Well, then I¡¯ll have to ask you to leave,¡± the woman said, which made me frown. I needed to do something to get past this, but this woman was not budging at all. This was gonna be hard.


    ¡°Well, you can either let me in, or I¡¯ll just wait until you call Captain Drails, who will be back in an hour,¡± I said, and the woman¡¯s eyes widened as she said, ¡°Fine, you maye in, but I need you to shut the door behind you.¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± I said, and I did just that.


    When I walked in, I found myself dumbfounded by what was ahead of me. It was this long hall, a very long hall that consisted of many pictures and decorations. The floor was blue marble though the walls were white. There were these lights that shone in the room, and there was a door at the end of the hall.


    It was quiet.


    It was¡­eerie.


    ¡°Just walk to that end of the hall, and it should open if it recognizes you,¡± she said. ¡°So, have you gone through the new intern test?¡±


    Confusion raced through my mind, and I turned around to look at her, ¡°Um, yes, I have.¡±


    ¡°Oh, good. So, I know you¡¯re a special person,¡± she said, and I could feel my heart racing.


    ¡°Special, that¡¯s too much,¡± I said with a chuckle.


    The woman shook her head. ¡°No really, you¡¯re probably sixteen and have already passed the test. You¡¯re just like Denver.¡± I nodded asfortably as I could, because I was worried this would make it hard to pass.


    ¡°You know, I¡¯m a bit curious as to why you came here,¡± the woman said, and I took in a deep breath, ¡°I mean, I¡¯m guessing you want to talk to her, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I said, and I felt my stomach sink, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m just nervous.¡±


    ¡°Interns are usually nervous, it¡¯s just how it is,¡± the woman responded. ¡°End of the hall, and approach the door.¡±


    I nodded, and I walked to the door, and when I opened it, I was stunned.


    The door opened into a big room, which was so tall that I had to bend my neck down to see the top. It was white and lit with some kind of lighting that gave it a glow, and there was a beautiful fountain in the middle. ¡°Wow¡­¡± I said with a smile. ¡°So where¡¯s Anne Denver?¡±


    ¡°Probably in the Maxx,¡± the woman responded. ¡°She is crazy about that gym.¡±


    ¡°You guys call it the Maxx?¡± I asked her, and she nodded. ¡°Yep, where most of the men try to uplift themselves. Show off like the men they are,¡± she said, and I actuallyughed this time.


    ¡°So, what are we doing now?¡± I asked, as I began walking towards the fountain.


    ¡°Well, I think you should go in there and rx a little,¡± the woman said, and I stopped. ¡°You know, after you¡¯re done with your training, and you have time to rest.¡±


    ¡°I feel so guilty for needing a break, especially since there¡¯s no time,¡± I said with augh.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be, you¡¯re young and have energy to spare. Go in there, rx a bit, and enjoy yourself,¡± she said. ¡°And talk to Denver about whatever. She¡¯s pretty nice.¡±


    I nodded and soon enough, the woman left me and returned back into the hall. I was literally in the thick of the YMPA. Not the academy, but the agency. I took a deep breath, taking all of this in. Now where would the Maxx be? I walked out, seeing different buildings by the side that never was called ¡°Maxx.¡±


    I looked at the doorways, and finally I found a sign that said ¡°Maxx.¡±


    I smiled and went inside. Once I opened the door, the stench of sweat and Gatorade invaded my nose. Instantly I began coughing, seeing a bunch of sweaty men and women lifting weights, curling, benching, squats, all the hard stuff. You name it. Everything. There was this grass carpet that was on the floor, and there were rows of weights.


    ¡°Wow,¡± I muttered, almost scared. In fact, very scared. This ce looked like it could kill me.


    But then I saw a man who looked like a bodybuilder, which I didn¡¯t expect, but he was tall, and his arms were as wide as my thighs. I took a deep breath, and decided to look away.


    I moved over to the counter, where there was a girl sitting on a chair, eating a muffin. I approached her, and she looked up at me.


    ¡°Oh, hi!¡± she said with a smile. ¡°Can I help you?¡±


    ¡°Umm, yeah, I¡¯m new. Do you know where Anne Denver is?¡± I asked. The girl looked concerned. ¡°Why?¡± she asked, and I began to think of some bogus reasoning.


    ¡°Well, I wanted to ask her a question, but I don¡¯t want to bother her if she¡¯s busy,¡± I said. ¡°So if you could just¡ª¡± I saw a girl with ck hair get up, and instantly I felt something in my spirit hit hard. ¡°Is that her?¡± I asked the girl, who quickly turned around, and shot eyes at her.


    ¡°Anne Denver? Yeah, that¡¯s her,¡± the girl said with a smile. ¡°She¡¯s a friend of mine, so I can tell you that she is not busy at all.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± I said, as I began to follow after Anne Denver. I can¡¯t catch Anne¡¯s attention, unless this whole thing will blow over. So I couldn¡¯t talk to her. But I need to still follow her, and wait for the right time to strike. Denver walked out the door, and I quickly followed after her.


    I was getting more and more nervous, thinking that I might be seen by anyone. After all, I¡¯m following the woman who¡¯s supposed to be my superior, and a spy! She might already know, she might already know!


    I felt like I was going to faint. My heart was pounding.


    I got to the end of the building, and there was a staircase leading downwards. She kept walking down until she reached ground level, but then she suddenly went around the corner. I rushed down the stairs to find her, but she wasn¡¯t there. Where was she? I looked around, seeing no sight of her, but I knew that she was close.


    ¡°I¡¯m gonna go this way, you go that way,¡± I said to myself, and I started to run around the corners. I didn¡¯t know where I was going, but I needed to find her. The feeling of fear began to slowly rise inside of me. But then I heard footsteps, and looked behind quickly.


    No one.


    But then I heard someing in my direction and I looked in front of me.


    No one.


    She was doing something, something clever¡ªbut what? I wondered, and I turned around, and I was cornered.


    I froze as I saw the wall. It seemed to be a dead end. But then, for thest time, I heard footsteps. I slowly turned around, feeling the heat on my neck, and feeling the sweat drip from my face. I turned around, and saw a fisting at me at full speed.


    I shouted, and quickly ducked under before looking behind me. It was Denver! But she looked mad, and she was already running towards me. I ran as fast as I could, and she was right beside me. I was starting to feel weak, and I needed to rest. I turned around, and quickly got out my wand. I swung towards her neck, but somehow she grabbed my wand, and pushed it away.


    The force of her hand shot me to the wall, and I felt a bolt of pain course through my body. I dropped to the ground, feeling the wind knock out of me, and I fell to my knees. I heard herughing, and I coughed as I stood up.


    ¡°You should have used your magic,¡± I said, panting as I spoke. But then a sharp pain rang in my head, and I felt myself ckout, and I copsed to the ground.

 Chapter 235 - 235 Reverse Interrogation

    235 Reverse Interrogation


    My ears¨Cthey hurt.


    I tried to open my eyes, but they felt stuck, as if there was glue or something. I stretched my eyes open, seeing myself in some room, with gray walls and gray floors.


    There was one light bar that emitted light.


    I tried to move, but I felt the rope contain me tightly. I was trapped. Then ahead of me, I saw Denver, who was in the corner.


    She was standing, as if she was waiting for me to wake up. She slowly walked towards me, her face clean and smooth. How long was I here?


    ¡°Hello, TSA spy,¡± she said with a chuckle.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry TSA¨C¡±


    ¡°Who sent you?¡± she asked me. I looked around, confused why she asked. ¡°You just said I was from the TSA, so you would basically know the¨C¡±


    Suddenly, she swung her hand and pped me across the face. The pain, the burn of the p made me feel as if my face were shattered.


    .....


    ¡°Ow!¡± I shrieked, looking at her. ¡°What was that for?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get smart-aleck with me here,¡± she warned. ¡°Why are you here?¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯d like to say first that I¡¯m not a part of¨C¡± She pped me again, but whether this one was softer or I just got used to it.


    ¡°Answer my question,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯m not here to y games.¡± She still had a bit of a Cuban ent, so that just made it scarier.


    ¡°Please, if you¡¯d listen. I¨C¡±


    Another p came. Her face was super annoyed, like I was her baby brother or something like that. I needed to answer her question without her thinking I¡¯m a TSA agent when I¡¯m really not, unless my right cheek is going to be red as ketchup.


    But then she smiled. ¡°I¡¯m a pretty good pro when ites to interrogation. I¡¯m gonna make you suffer.¡±


    She held the rope, and fear was pumping. Sweat dripped from my face like a hose. Suddenly, she tightened, and the sharp sticks of rope scratched against me, making me cry out. I wiggled around, making my chair wiggle around with me. I was so tied up that I couldn¡¯t even escape.


    Sheughed, and she continued to tighten the rope. But I could still speak. ¡°Stop!¡± I shouted, clenching my teeth at the unbearable pain, and she stopped.


    I was breathing hard, and I felt dizzy.


    ¡°You¡¯re going to answer my questions,¡± she said, and I nodded. ¡°You want answers, I¡¯ll give them. I¡¯m not a part of the TSA, okay?¡± She stopped, and she looked at me in confusion, her eyebrow raised. ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said with a shaky voice, but she just stared at me, as if I was lying. ¡°I¡¯m not a part of it, you see. I was here to talk about what you¡¯re doing with¡ª¡±


    She put her finger up, making me keep my mouth shut. I didn¡¯t want to say anything, more afraid of the fact that I was going to get squished by this rope with sharp teeth, which is like a metal bar.


    ¡°You¡¯re lying,¡± she said. ¡°I don¡¯t think you¡¯re not a part of the TSA.¡± I shook my head. ¡°You¡¯d be very surprised, ma¡¯am,¡± I said, but she shook her head as well. ¡°You¡¯re lying.¡±


    ¡°I am not lying!¡± I shouted, and she looked at me, confused. ¡°Trust me, I¡¯m telling the truth! I¡¯m not a part of the TSA!¡± But all of a sudden, her eyes widened as if they were nk, and there was a loud bang from behind her. She slowly fell to the ground unconscious, which the savior¡ªGreg¡ªlooked down on her.


    He looked up back at me. ¡°Your wee,¡± he said, taking a deep breath before sighing. ¡°We should tie her up instead. Except you¡¯re tied up,¡± he said.


    I sighed, and I felt myself getting frustrated. I knew that I didn¡¯t lie to her. I told her that I wasn¡¯t a part of the TSA, and I wasn¡¯t lying. She looked at me, confused, but there was nothing I could do to help her.


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± I asked him.


    ¡°Well, I came in because I heard screaming,¡± Greg said. ¡°Then I saw you being attacked, and then I got here.¡± He looked at the unconscious girl, and he frowned.


    ¡°I was here to talk to her, not attack her,¡± I said. ¡°Well, in a way, talk to her.¡± He untied me, and I felt the freedom of my wrist and my body.


    I sat down, and I breathed out, trying to calm myself down. I needed to get a hold of myself. I was now free, and I was not going to get captured again¡­ I hope.


    ¡°All right, tie her up, put her on the chair,¡± he said, as I grabbed the ropes and gave it to him. He began to wrap the surrounding rope aggressively, and then he wrapped it around her.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± I asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s called a ¡®rope-a-dope,''¡± he said, as I stared at him in confusion. ¡°A rope-a-who?¡±


    ¡°A rope-a-dope, you guys should learn this pretty soon. It¡¯s very easy,¡± he said with a smile, before he tightened and sealed it, and then he tied it up. I looked at her, and I was worried about her, but I knew she would be okay. She had been hit with a powerful blow, and she had just been knocked out. ¡°Alright, put her on the chair,¡± he said. I grabbed her, which she wasn¡¯t that heavy, and I dragged her onto the chair.


    ***


    Finally, she woke up after 10 minutes, as she looked straight ahead at us. Her eyes were wide open, and she looked around, confused.


    ¡°Where am I?¡± she asked.


    ¡°You¡¯re in a safe ce,¡± I said. ¡°The same ce.¡±


    She looked around before setting eyes on us, and fury rose like a fire, and she quickly stood up. She tried to break out of the ropes, but she was too weak. Then, she fell back to her seat, and she was about to cry, but she didn¡¯t. ¡°You TSA pests,¡± she said with clenched teeth, but I wasn¡¯t affected by any chance, as I was just as shocked.


    ¡°What did you just call me?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You TSA pests,¡± she said, looking at me. ¡°Of course, you got a friend to help you.¡±


    ¡°Actually, he was just there, and how many times do I have to tell you, I¡¯m not a TSA spy,¡± I said, actually beginning to get frustrated.


    She looked at me, and she shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m not going to say that again. I¡¯ve already said that you¡¯re a spy.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s just your assumption, but it isn¡¯t true,¡± I said.


    ¡°If you¡¯re not a TSA agent, then why are you here?¡± she asked. I looked at Greg, and he nodded. He strolled over to her, and looked her keenly in the eye. ¡°We¡¯re actually in the same agency. The YMPA. But something tells me you have a special rtionship with the captain. Captain Drails.¡±


    ¡°What? We¡¯re not in any rtionship,¡± she said, her eyes squinted in perplexity.


    ¡°No, not that kind,¡± I said, with my hands up, trying to calm her down. ¡°I mean, we¡¯re in the same agency.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re lying, and I know it,¡± she said, looking at me with a scowl. ¡°No, we¡¯re not. In fact, look at our badges and utility belts,¡± Greg said. I lifted a bit of my shirt to show her, and her mouth closed slowly, as if she was about to burst into tears.


    ¡°You¡¯re not a TSA agent?¡± she said, looking at me.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m not,¡± I said. ¡°But I think you¡¯re doing something for him. Where¡¯s the Armonk?¡±


    ¡°The what?¡± she asked.


    ¡°The Armonk. Where is it?¡± I asked. ¡°You know the location, you know where it is. So tell us.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about,¡± she said, frowning at me.


    ¡°That¡¯s a lie!¡± I shouted, and Greg stepped forward, and he put his hand on my shoulder. ¡°We have connections that know about your secret. Your secret with the n you¡¯re working on with Mr. Drails,¡± Greg said, crossing his fingers and leaning closer to her. ¡°And I think you¡¯re lying to us. Because I think you know the location.¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t prove that,¡± she said, ring at him with narrowed eyes. ¡°You can¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°But we can, because we already know where it is,¡± I said with a smile. Her face froze in fear. ¡°Why¡­am¡­I here?¡± she muttered carefully, and I shook my head.


    ¡°We know that you¡¯re here to steal it,¡± Greg said, as he shook his head. ¡°And we¡¯re going to stop you.¡±


    ¡°Where is it?¡± she asked. I cleared my throat, preparing to make a statement. ¡°It¡¯s in Egypt, with the ESMFA,¡± I said. Silence took the ce for about a few seconds, and then she burst outughing like a horse.


    ¡°What?¡± she said, as sheughed. ¡°Egypt, with the ESMFA?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said.


    She shook her head and began to calm down. ¡°That¡¯s not where it is.¡± Then she stopped and realized her mistake. ¡°So, you know where it is,¡± I said, leaning in, and Greg followed as well. ¡°Where is it?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m going to give you onest chance to tell us,¡± he said.


    She sighed, thinking about all her life choices or something before she looked back at us. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you. I¡¯ll tell you the location of the Armonk. But you¡¯re going to release me. You¡¯re going to let me go, and I won¡¯t tell anyone about you,¡± she said. ¡°Deal?¡±


    ¡°Perfect deal, and if you do, we¡¯ll make sure you don¡¯t say to anyone else,¡± Greg said, as I looked up at him with concern. She nodded.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to tell you the location of the Armonk,¡± she said, as I began to get nervous. ¡°It¡¯s in this city in Mexico, and the name is ¡®El Muro del Santo.''¡±


    ¡°Where?¡± I asked.


    ¡°In the city of Oaxaca,¡± she said, as she began to tear up. ¡°It¡¯s a secret base. Now, are you happy?¡±


    ¡°Why is Mr. Drails doing this?¡± I asked. ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not telling you that,¡± she said, and my eyes widened. Greg muttered in confusion, ¡°You already gave us the location for the Armonk. Tell us everything.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± she persisted. ¡°I¡¯m not telling you anything else.¡±


    I looked at Greg, and I saw him shrug. ¡°Okay, then we¡¯re going to have to use more force.¡± But then we heard the bell ring, meaning it was time to go home. ¡°We have to let her go,¡± Greg said to me, and I sighed. I wanted to know!


    ¡°Okay, we¡¯re going to leave,¡± I said. ¡°And if you tell anyone, we¡¯reing for you.¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t, I promise,¡± she said, as I looked at her with a stern expression. It¡¯s funny, because I knew she was going to interrogate me instead. She did, except Greg came into the rescue. Thank goodness.

 Chapter 236 - 236 The Storm

    236 The Storm


    Now was the day to storm the Fillmore Center. We had an idea of where Matthew Lock and Luthor Bane would be in. A convoy of boats, specifically meant to protect him.


    We had to strike them hard.


    There was no way we didn¡¯t have them in the bag. They¡¯re trapped, and they can¡¯t withstand an entire fleet of YMPA boats after them.


    It just ain¡¯t happening.


    We were inside of the room where we are usually briefed for our missions. Mr. Drails was really more strict this time, being the fact this was a chance to end the uprising.


    I can¡¯t me him.


    This could probably be the one mission that ends everything. That allows us to continue in our quest to protect the world.


    ¡°Alright, remember the n I told you guys,¡± he said. He pointed at the fleet of YMPA boats that were charging in. It was a simtion of what should happen, in which he was exining as it went on.


    ¡°We first surround the ind, as an initial wall to block them. To not allow them through,¡± he said. ¡°That¡¯s the first n.¡±


    .....


    He looked back at the simtion. ¡°Second, a few boats wille in for the attack. They will close in, and make sure that they infiltrate and find Matthew Lock. In the case they escape, the outer wall should block them.¡±


    It showed a bunch of boats leaving the ind, which had to mean the TSA.


    ¡°In doing so, we will send our pursuers after them to take them down. We need Matthew Lock alive, so what you guys must not do, is to blow up the ship. Don¡¯t blow it up. You may shoot at it, and you may sink it. But make sure to get Matthew Lock in time. He¡¯ll tell us the location of the virus hopefully, and we can end this once and for all. It would look great on your spy mage resumes.¡±


    ¡°We have resumes?¡± I asked.


    ¡°In the matter that you don¡¯t want to work here, you can transfer to a different agency and that¡¯s when you¡¯ll need your resumes.¡±


    I nodded, understanding now.


    ¡°Get your gear ready,¡± he said. ¡°We¡¯ll be leaving in twenty minutes. Understood?¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± we all shouted, and immediately we got to checking our vests. I checked and examined every single weapon in my arsenal.


    Gun, check.


    Knives, check.


    Tasers for some odd reason, check.


    Wand, charged and ready.


    ¡°Are you ready for this?¡± Tisiah asked me, but I could only shrug. The anxiety of this not working was very high, and it was only going to be worse when we actually got there. I couldn¡¯t help but feel it.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said, as I tightened my vest. ¡°You?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m ready. Just imagine this being on our resumes. Stopped all the MSTO organizations in releasing a virus, and starting a pandemic,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m excited. This has to work.¡± I nodded, releasing a deep sigh before looking at him. ¡°I hope so,¡± I said, trying to keep the optimism alive.


    I felt it start to fade as I saw the look in his eyes. It was a sense of concern and unease.


    ¡°You¡¯re worried too, right?¡± I asked him, and he nodded slowly. ¡°Tell me about it,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°I¡¯ve seen many missions go theplete opposite direction. That¡¯s why I always try to keep a smile. To hide my fears.¡±


    ¡°Well, we¡¯ll make it happen,¡± I said. He smiled at me, and I smiled back.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m ready for the battle.¡±


    ¡°So am I,¡± he said.


    As soon as twenty minutes passed, we lined up in a single file line, waiting for the mission to arrive. Mr. Drails swung his wand in the direction of a circle, and a portal manifested into life. Ahead was the inside of something, and it seemed to be moving, being the fact it was swaying.


    We walked through the portal, and thest thing I saw before the portal closed was a giant blue screen. Then the view began to move, and we were inside of a boat.


    The boat started to elerate, and we quickly fell in the ocean.


    ¡°Whoa!¡± I yelled as I fell. I grabbed onto a railing, and then I looked around. ¡°Where are we?¡± ¡°A boat!¡± Mchi shouted, and I nodded in response. Knew it. We continued to move around from the crashing waves, rubbing up against our windows. ¡°How far are we from the ind?¡± September asked, which one of the agents looked back at us.


    He was wearing a baseball cap, with a suit that was clean as the walls of this ship, which was pretty clean. ¡°About a mile,¡± he said, which I responded with a nod, before looking back at Tisiah. He looked at me, which then I turned back to the front. Agents held on the rails, with their wands firm in their grasp.


    ¡°Things are about to go down,¡± Mchi said, ncing at me. I chuckled, mainly because he was right. Things were definitely about to go down. The question was, is it going to go down in our favor, or theirs? That was the real question. All of a sudden, the boat shook, almost sweeping me off my feet.


    That was no wave. Or maybe it was, but it wasn¡¯t the ocean¡¯s doing.


    ¡°We¡¯re being attacked!¡± someone shouted, which began to echo from the other¡¯s mouths. I felt my heart pulsate at more speed than before, and it was only climbing from there.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see anything,¡± I said, as I tried to peer out of the window. There was nothing to see, just the ocean, and a little bit of white. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    Tisiah looked at me with shock on his face. ¡°What do you mean you don¡¯t know? We¡¯re being attacked, embrace yourself!¡± Tisiah shouted. but right at that moment, another st crashed into the ocean. The boat shook once more, and this time, more aggresively. I saw a hole in the side, and I looked at the man next to me.


    ¡°They¡¯re getting close,¡± I said, and he nodded. ¡°It¡¯s time to get serious,¡± he said, and we both looked forward.


    ¡°We¡¯re approaching the ind,¡± someone said. ¡°We need to build the wall!¡± Soon enough, the boat turned from its position, and was now heading for the ind. We moved closer, and soon we could see the ind. I saw the sea surrounding the ind, and the ind was massive, which I could tell.


    Other boats began to get in position, creating a long wall of boats that surrounded the ind, leaving no room for escape.


    We need to move in quickly, because I¡¯m pretty sure they noticed it a long time ago¡ªand if not¡ªthey sure noticed it now.


    ¡°Alright, agents, get ready!¡± one of them shouted.


    ¡°You heard him, let¡¯s get ready for action. This is going to be a good one,¡± the agent next to me said.


    I looked back at him, and we exchanged a nce. I turned around and took a good look at my teammates. ¡°Ready?¡± September asked all of us, which in return she got a simtion of nods. ¡°Alright, we¡¯ll be moving soon,¡± she mumbled. Soon enough, the doors opened, and agents stormed out of the boats.


    It was like a battlefield.


    It was like war.


    It was like a fight for our lives.


    ¡°We need to stop them,¡± I said, and I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around, and I found Tisiah looking at me. ¡°You ready?¡± he asked, and I gave a hopeful nod. ¡°Let¡¯s do this,¡± I said. Our team was one of thest to storm out, but for a good reason. TSA agents already piled out of the Fillmore Center and were attacking the charging agents.


    ¡°Oh, boy,¡± Nikki muttered in fear.


    ¡°They¡¯reing!¡± I shouted, and we started to run towards the beach, to find Matthew Lock. As we ran, I felt a burning sensation in my leg, but it was gone in an instant. Maybe it was the nervousness that was coursing through my body. Bolts shot through the air like bullets, and the thick noise of shing wands.


    ¡°Come on!¡± Mchi shouted, as we continued to run through the immense battlefield. I saw the wall of boats, and the agents that were fighting for their lives, trying to push their way through the army of the MSTO.


    ¡°This is not going to work,¡± Nikki said, and I knew she was right. ¡°We need to end this fast, the TSA are pretty burning through us.¡± September nodded. ¡°Well we need to get inside of the center. Or at least find where Matthew Lock may be. We need to split up.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± Mchi responded, rolling his eyes.


    ¡°Nikki, you go with September,¡± I said. ¡°You two can go left while me, Mchi and Tisiah go right. We¡¯ll meet back at the center. We need to find him, and fast.¡±


    ¡°Got it,¡± Nikki said. Immediately we went our chosen directions. The problem was, we couldn¡¯t just storm through the gate. We needed to find another way, and time was against us. ¡°Do you see any way we can go?¡± I asked, looking around hopelessly.


    Mchi didn¡¯t respond, but only kept searching. ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡±


    ¡°Me neither,¡± Tisiah said, but he wasn¡¯t being honest.


    ¡°You do have a n, don¡¯t you?¡± I asked him, and he nodded. ¡°Well, tell me what it is. I¡¯m not a mind reader.¡±


    Tisiah thought for a moment, and then he looked at me. ¡°Okay, we should probably use the wall.¡± He said, and I looked at him with confusion. ¡°How, do you have some rope or something?¡± I asked, which I ate my words right at that moment. There wasn¡¯t a rope, but there was a pipe. ¡°There, right?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You¡¯d be correct,¡± he said, and I sighed with relief and nodded. ¡°Who¡¯s going first?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll go. Let me show you how it¡¯s done,¡± Mchi said, rubbing his hands as he approached the pipe.

 Chapter 237 - 237 The Fillmore Center

    237 The Fillmore Center


    He grabbed his hands firmly on the pipe, the second, then he added his legs to the mix. He began to climb slowly as I looked in awe. He was so strong, and he was getting stronger.


    ¡°You okay?¡± I asked. He turned his head to me, and he nodded. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll be fine,¡± he said.


    ¡°Alright, don¡¯t kill yourself,¡± I said to him, and he gave me a wink.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be fine. I¡¯m the best climber in the world,¡± he said, as his hands gripped the pipe tightly. He began to pull himself upwards, and it was like he was being pulled by an invisible force. ¡°Goodness sakes, he¡¯s good,¡± Tisiah said, taking a deep breath and staring in awe of him. Once Mchi climbed up, he looked down on us like some giant. ¡°Alright you guys, get up here,¡± he said. We each looked at each other, before I turned my gaze to Tisiah.


    ¡°Are you ready?¡± I asked. Tisiah nodded. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s go!¡± I said, and Tisiah smiled. He began to climb up the pipe, and he looked back at me. ¡°Be careful!¡± I shouted, and he looked at me, before nodding.


    He reached the top, and he looked over the ledge. ¡°Okay, Connor, it¡¯s your turn!¡± they both shouted, and I nodded while feeling the pressurepress on me. I didn¡¯t want to fail, and I wanted to make sure I seeded.


    I put my foot on the wall, and I began to climb. It was difficult, and I had to use my arms to pull myself up the pipe. I could feel the wind smacking me left and right, teetering my bnce, but I stayed firm and continued climbing up. I could see the ocean below, and I could see the battle between the agents.


    ¡°You¡¯re almost there,¡± I heard a voice say, and I turned my gaze to see Tisiah. I could see his feet on the ground, but he wasn¡¯t holding onto anything. ¡°Just a little further, and you¡¯re there,¡± he said, and I could see the smile on his face. I turned my gaze back to the ocean, and I saw that we were close. ¡°Just a little more,¡± Tisiah said, and I looked at him.


    ¡°I¡¯m trying!¡± I shouted, and heughed.


    .....


    ¡°It¡¯s alright. You¡¯re doing great, just keep going,¡± he said, and I smiled. Suddenly, I threw my hands up for the climb and he clutched with a firm grip. ¡°Gotcha!¡± he shouted, as he pulled me onto the balcony of the Fillmore Center.


    I looked at him and I grinned.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s get inside and find Matthew Lock.¡± I said, and he nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll go around the outside of the building, and I¡¯lle around to the back.¡± Mchi nodded as well with us, and we all made our way around the building. We finally reached the back, and I opened the door. We entered the building, and we found ourselves in a hallway.


    ¡°Well, what now?¡± I asked.


    ¡°He might already be outside of the center,¡± Mchi said. ¡°But Nikki and September would tell us. There¡¯s a chance they¡¯re still here.¡±


    We walked through the hallway, which was decorated with white walls painted with gold triangles, that followed all the way to bright tan carpet. There were lights that shone through the hallway.


    I got on my radio. ¡°Do you see him?¡± I asked. After a few seconds of static, Nikki replied. ¡°No, not yet.¡± I sighed. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s keep going.¡±


    We kept walking through the hallway, and suddenly I heard footsteps. ¡°Did you hear that?¡± I asked.


    ¡°No, but I think we should check it out,¡± Tisiah said, as he stepped forward. He continued to advance towards the beating sound, before a figure walked past the door that was open ajar. ¡°Follow him,¡± I said, as we all exited the hallway and entered into the new one. This one was with the same decoration that was stuck on the wall and the same carpet. The only difference was the two men walking through the hall.


    We followed them, but no noise was produced from our steps. They were wearing ck suits, with sunsses, and we followed the pair until we reached arge gray door. The door opened up to the stairs, which they walked down, and we followed them as we went downstairs.


    ¡°Who are they?¡± Tisiah asked.


    ¡°I have no idea,¡± Mchi said, but he was smiling.


    ¡°Let¡¯s just follow them,¡± I said, and we continued to walk. But all of a sudden, one of them turned their heads and shock was the only thing their face testified. ¡°It¡¯s them!¡± the man¡ªRedford Bane¡ªshouted, which with him was none other than his son, Luthor Bane. Immediately, his son got out his wand, and shot three bolts at us, as they belted in our direction.


    ¡°Oh, shoot!¡± Tisiah said, as we leaped out of the way, dodging the attacks. Redford was quick to shoot his wand, and he fired several sts of lightning at us, but he was toote. We jumped and ducked out of the way of the shots, but when he tried to cast a spell, it was a failure.


    ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go!¡± Luthor Bane shouted, which now they booked it down the stairs.


    ¡°They¡¯re running!¡± Mchi warned, as we lifted to our feet and began to pursue after them. We ran as fast as we could, and I was surprised at how fast these two were. We chased them down the stairway, until we were on the bottom floor. They turned the corner, and we quickly turned the corner as well.


    I felt my legs quiver in the air as I continued running, and I felt the wind carry me through the floor. I slowly reached them, but that was used against my advantage. Suddenly, Luthor Bane stopped and went for the swing. The head of the wand struck the space between my face and ear, and I screamed in pain as I fell. I hit the ground hard, and I could feel the wind leaving me.


    ¡°Connor!¡± I heard Tisiah shout with shock trembling in his voice, but I couldn¡¯t respond.


    I looked up to see Tisiah¡¯s face. He was looking at me, and he was confused. I couldn¡¯t speak, and I could feel the cold floor beneath my cheek. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s get you up. Mchi, chase after those Banes!¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°On it,¡± Mchi said, and I saw him running away from my view.


    ¡°You should¡¯ve seen your face,¡± Tisiah said, as he helped me up.


    ¡°I know, I¡¯m so dumb,¡± I said, and I began to cough. I grabbed onto Tisiah as he held my arm, and I leaned on him. ¡°I¡¯m good, I¡¯m good, I¡¯m¡­¡± I muttered, but the ringing pain in my head began to intensify.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get you up,¡± Tisiah said, as he grabbed my arm. ¡°I don¡¯t know what that was, but I know it hurts.¡± I nodded, as we continued to walk to the exit. We busted out the door, trying to focus on those two men.


    We ran as fast as we could, and I could see the two men in the distance. ¡°Keep running, and don¡¯t stop,¡± I said, and Tisiah nodded.


    ¡°Let me tell September,¡± Tisiah said, touching his earpiece. ¡°September, it¡¯s Tisiah. We¡¯reing back to the base, and I want you toe back here immediately. I¡¯ll exin to you once I get there. I don¡¯t know what happened, but we lost sight of them,¡± he said, and I nodded.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see them either,¡± September said. ¡°But we¡¯re hoping to see the convoy of boats Connor predicted.¡±


    ¡°It has to be,¡± I muttered to myself. But what if I was wrong. What if something else was on the table? What if there was nothing on the table? I didn¡¯t know what to do, and I didn¡¯t know what to expect. I had a feeling that I knew the answer, but I didn¡¯t want to think about it.


    ¡°Ahh,e on! Where are they?!¡± I shouted. ¡°Where¡¯s Mchi. I thought he was chasing after them.¡±


    I pressed my earpiece. ¡°Hey Mchi, where you at? Do you see them?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t see them, and I¡¯m not sure why,¡± Mchi responded and I sighed, feeling the anger boil inside of me.


    ¡°Well, keep looking for them,¡± I said, as I ran on the side of Tisiah. We reached the pier, and I could see the sun setting in the sky. The day was almost over, and we haven¡¯t found them. But right then and there, I heard someone speak in the earpiece.


    ¡°There¡¯s a convoy of boats. I see it!¡± September shouted, and hope filled my heart again. I turned my gaze to the ocean, and I saw the ck and white fleet of ships, with a multitude of people aboard each other. ¡°I see them!¡±


    ¡°Oh, thank God!¡± I said, and I could see Tisiah¡¯s eyes widened with shock.


    ¡°We¡¯ll meet them at the pier,¡± I said, and I could hear the excitement in Tisiah¡¯s voice. We both turned our heads, and we continued to run. I began to jog as we approached the pier, and we were finally there. We got to the end of the pier, and I could see the boat that was closest to us.

 Chapter 238 - 238 A Battlefield At Sea

    238 A Battlefield At Sea


    ¡°Alright, which boat would they possibly be in,¡± Tisiah muttered as he examined each boat that was lined up in the row, before he spoke. ¡°The first one is our best bet, and that¡¯s where we need to be.¡± He started to walk towards the first boat, but I stopped him.


    ¡°I want to make sure this is the right one,¡± I said.


    ¡°What?¡± Tisiah asked. ¡°What are you talking about?¡±


    ¡°Look at the structure, it¡¯s wide, meant for more strength, but not really speed,¡± I exined. ¡°How about thest one?¡± I asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s a good idea, let¡¯s check that one out too,¡± he said, and we walked towards thest one in line. ¡°Hopefully no one¡¯s on that boat,¡± September said as we made our way towards thest boat. It had this certain structure that was destined for speed: it was narrow and long.


    ¡°Let¡¯s hurry, we have little time,¡± Tisiah said, as he ced his hand on the edge of the ship. ¡°Everyone, get in.¡± We rushed into the boat, and I immediately found myself overwhelmed by the towering walls of the ship. ¡°Someone needs to steer this,¡± I said, looking at September for the job.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll take the wheel,¡± September said, as she stepped out of the cabin and onto the deck. ¡°Everyone, stay low, and keep quiet,¡± she whispered.


    I could feel the wind blowing, and I could hear the water sshing against the sides of the boat. I could smell the seaweed and salt in the air.


    ¡°Here goes nothing,¡± I muttered. Nikki nodded, before she turned to look at Mchi. ¡°Here goes nothing,¡± she repeated with a close.


    .....


    The boat began to make ground¨Cor water in this case, I guess. I¡¯m not sure how the term exactly works when you¡¯re on a ship.


    We sped through the waters and the waves testified to that. Slowly, we approached the convoy of boats¨Calthough¨CI¡¯m not sure they saw us yet.


    ¡°We need someone to shoot at them, are there any weapons avable in this ship?¡± Mchi asked. ¡°I¡¯m hungry for some bullets or something.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll go check,¡± Tisiah said, with an eager nod before he turned quickly to me. ¡°Keep an eye on them, and tell us if anything¡¯s happening.¡±


    ¡°Got that,¡± I gestured, before Tisiah shot off the floor and entered the door before mming it shut. I looked ahead and nothing was much different, of course, only the fact that we were just slowly catching up to the convoy.


    ¡°Remember, don¡¯t blow up the ship Lock is in, we need him,¡± September said through the earpiece.


    ¡°How are we supposed to know which one he¡¯s in?¡±


    ¡°He wouldn¡¯t be on the outside, because what¡¯s the point of having a convoy if you¡¯re at the front of the entire battle,¡± September said. ¡°He would be super enclosed, and possibly in the middle.¡±


    ¡°Understood,¡± I muttered before I nced back, not seeing much of a change urring. ¡°Understood.¡±


    The repetition was necessary for an unknown reason, but it felt right to do. ¡°You see anything, Mchi?¡± I asked, taking a peer at him.


    ¡°Nah, nothing,¡± he said, shaking his head to add to his point. ¡°Hopefully those pursuer boats get here on time,¡± he mumbled, but loud enough for me to process.


    ¡°We all do.¡±


    But all of a sudden, a loud wail in the air produced, and it caught our attention to the sky.


    It was a big ball of mes, and it was heading straight down for us.


    ¡°Oh, no, September!¡± I shouted, fear pulsating through my veins. ¡°Weave!¡±


    The boat suddenly had a hard jerk to the right, and I could feel the ground being swept from under me, before I rocked back onto the ground.


    The fireball crashed into the sea, leaving its message with a big eruption of water. ¡°That was close,¡± I uttered stiffly, feeling a bit of shock spasm through my bones.


    ¡°But that means they noticed us,¡± Mchi said, and a hull of terror thudded on my body. ¡°We¡¯re going to die.¡±


    ¡°No, we¡¯re not!¡± Nikki snapped, as she jumped to her feet. ¡°We¡¯re not going to die! We¡¯ll just have to make our own weapons.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± Mchi asked, as we both stared at her in confusion. But then, she caught her wand from her belt, and instantly put it to use. A cannon dropped from her use of power, andprehension really began to sink into my mind.


    ¡°I forgot she had that power,¡± I said.


    ¡°She¡¯s been using it the entire time,¡± Mchi replied, and I could see the curiosity in his eyes.


    ¡°Yeah, I forgot about that too.¡±


    ¡°But I haven¡¯t!¡± September chimed in.


    ¡°Well, we should start making weapons now. We don¡¯t have much time left,¡± Nikki said. ¡°I¡¯ll make another one, and you guys can use it to hold them off for a moment. I have to y hide and seek with Tisiah right now.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll take care of it, we¡¯ll help you,¡± Mchi said with a determined tone.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get to it,¡± Nikki said. Instantly a machine gun spawned into existence, before she shot away and through the door. ¡°Alright, it¡¯s just us,¡± I said, looking at him. A sneer came across his face as he looked at each weapon. ¡°Connor, you take the cannon. I¡¯ll take this beautiful machinery,¡± he muttered with excitement,ing forth to the gun.


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said, walking over to the cannon. ¡°This is gonna be fun.¡±


    ¡°It won¡¯t be fun, it will be death,¡± Mchi said, as he grabbed the handle. ¡°You better be ready for this, it¡¯s gonna be rough.¡± I lifted up the cannon to rest on the brim of the ship. ¡°I¡¯m soon about to fire!¡± I shouted enough for Mchi to hear. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ve got this!¡± he shouted back. ¡°Alright, here goes nothing!¡±


    I could feel the weight in my arms as I took aim at the enemy convoy. The ball struck through the air, with no speed untold, dashing through the sky beforeing down and elerating towards one of the TSA boats. I could see the ball of fire burst into a mess of ck smoke, and the boat exploded.


    ¡°That was amazing,¡± I said, as I took a nce at Mchi. A high-five was exchanged between us, before the celebration was rudely interrupted. Now two balls of fire wereing at us, and this was going to be hard to dodge. ¡°Uh, September!¡± I shouted in the earpiece. ¡°Two areing at your nine clock!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m on it!¡± she screamed.


    ¡°And I¡¯m not sure how long I canst with this cannon,¡± I added.


    ¡°Just hold on, they¡¯ll be here in a second,¡± September said.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m ready to go,¡± I said, as the balls of fire came closer and closer. I aimed towards the projectiles, and I shot¡ªfeeling the weight push against me¡ªbefore they shot up towards the iing fireballs.


    Both of the balls of fire shattered, and I breathed out. ¡°Alright, that was a lot easier than I thought.¡±


    ¡°Good job!¡± Mchi shouted, with a smile.


    ¡°You too!¡± I returned, before I saw the look of horror in his eyes. ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re stilling!¡± he said, as I turned my attention back to the sky.


    ¡°Shoot,¡± I muttered, before I threw the cannon back to the floor. ¡°September, you¡¯re gonna need to dodge them. One¡¯sing at your eight and eleven!¡± I shouted, before I ran towards the front of the ship. I could see the balls of fire were getting closer, and the sounds of the boats were louder. Suddenly the boat swerved hard to the right, hoping the fireballs would clear us. But it was not getting better, in fact, it was worse.


    ¡°They¡¯reing straight for us!¡± I shouted.


    ¡°I know, just keep going, keep going,¡± September cried.


    The ball of fire came into view, and it seemed to be heading straight for us. I closed my eyes and braced myself.


    ¡°Now!¡± I shouted, opening my eyes to see the ball of firee directly in front of us. But all of a sudden, it exploded, creating a force that pushed us back. I felt myself fly through the air, beforending on the back of the ship. The ball of fire had been so hot that it burned part of my clothes, and the sound of the explosion was so loud that I was sure it was going to blow the entire boat apart.


    But it didn¡¯t.


    Instead, it was just arge boom. We weren¡¯t affected¡­as much. But suddenly, I heard Nikki speak inside of the earpiece as some savior of such. ¡°You¡¯re wee.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± I muttered, looking at my tattered shirt that was chopped to pieces. ¡°We found a weapon that shoots these big bolts or something, and now, at least we know it works.¡± I nodded, feeling my heart basically pumping out of my chest.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. It does work,¡± I said, looking over the other side. The TSA boat was a burning wreckage, with fire shooting from the top of the boat. ¡°But where are the other YMPA boats?¡± And just like that, the horns bellowed into the orange sky, as I looked back, seeing an entire fleet, school,munity of YMPA boats as you¡¯d call it.


    ¡°Oh my Lord,¡± I muttered, seeing my rescue approach the battle. ¡°This is going to be crazy!¡± I said, as I began to run towards the front of the ship. ¡°Everyone, you¡¯re gonna have to help!¡± I shouted. ¡°We need to get ready for the battle!¡±


    ¡°Are you kidding me? I¡¯m going to have to fight those things again?¡± Mchi asked, with a huge sigh.


    ¡°Yes, you¡¯re gonna have to fight them again,¡± I said with a grin.


    ¡°No, I mean, it¡¯s gonna be that kind of battle?¡± he said, as we both stood on the edge of the boat.


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s gonna be that kind of battle.¡± I replied, holding my hand out. ¡°We¡¯re gonna be fine. Just ready your weapon. Nikki and Tisiah readied theirs, we¡¯re gonna do fine,¡± I said with a smile that was probably the most hopeful ever since this situation started.


    ¡°Alright, you¡¯re right. Let¡¯s get ready,¡± he said, shaking his head.


    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t worry. You can do this. Trust me,¡± I assured him, resting my hands on his shoulders. My eyes looked directly at his eyes and I could see, fear, worry, and a lot of nervousness. But then I felt that warmth spread through me like a wave, calming me down from my emotions. ¡°You got this.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°And trust me, we¡¯ll be fine.¡± He looked into my eyes for a second and nodded in agreement. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go.¡±


    I touched my earpiece. ¡°Ya¡¯ll ready?¡± I asked Tisiah and Nikki through the earpiece, in which they responded quickly, ¡°Ready!¡±


    ¡°Alright, here we go,¡± I said with a nod before I turned around and walked towards the front of the ship. As we began to move closer to our enemy, the TSA ships began to gain more speed. But the YMPA boats and us were catching up quickly, and contact was imminent. Very imminent.


    I could see the YMPA boat with my own eyes, as I came to a stop. The ball of fire was about to hit the boat, and it was all up to us. ¡°Shoot the fireball!¡± I shouted. ¡°Don¡¯t let it hit that ship!¡±


    ¡°Gotcha!¡± Tisiah shouted in response, before he shot the fireball with a lot of speed, sending it flying towards the enemy ship. I could hear the sound of the fireball mming into the enemy ship. The big gas of fire exploded, and debris shot through the air like bullets.


    ¡°Wow, that was close,¡± I said, as I watched the TSA boat beingpletely destroyed. ¡°I think we have them now. Everyone, hold your ground!¡± The convoy was beginning to close in, in which one boat had the nerve to start nearing towards us. ¡°September, move right and avoid this boat!¡± I ordered through the earpiece, which she followed. ¡°Nikki, take that boat!¡±


    ¡°Gotcha!¡± Nikki said, taking aim and firing. I watched as the boat was shot, and a huge plume of fire went into the air. But it wasn¡¯t destroyed, but the structure was now punctured with holes.


    ¡°Perfect shot, Nikki!¡± I shouted, before I saw a few more of the enemy boats were approaching. ¡°Alright, keep shooting!¡± I shouted, before I saw the TSA boat, which was in the middle of the convoy, begin to slow down. The YMPA fleet was beginning to approach, and now the sea was now a massive town of warring boats.


    ¡°Good job, guys!¡± I shouted, as I saw the enemy boats try to circle around us. ¡°We need to stay together. We can¡¯t let them surround us!¡± I said, watching the enemy boats slowly circle us. Suddenly, I saw an explosion near the front of the convoy, and I knew instantly that it hade from Nikki.


    ¡°Nice, Nikki!¡± I shouted, and my heart slightly dropped from its rapid rhythm to the rhythm of calmness. I continued to watch as the enemy boats began to slowly surround us. I knew I needed to decide soon, so I turned to September and spoke.


    ¡°September, I¡¯m gonna need you to do something crazy, alright?¡± I said. ¡°You ready?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± she responded, her chest inhaling and exhaling excessively.


    ¡°Okay, just be ready to follow my lead,¡± I said, as I began to feel the heat from the surrounding mes. ¡°Now, everyone, get ready! This is gonna be intense!¡± I said, as I began to look around the boat. I noticed that the enemy boats had stopped circling and were just sitting there, like they were waiting for the right time to strike.


    Sorry that I missed today. Here¡¯s an extra long chapter for you guys to enjoy. Vote, add to your library, and even share this with your friends you want. Love y¡¯all!

 Chapter 239 - 239 A Devestating Trick

    239 A Devestating Trick


    ¡°Perfect,¡± I muttered, feeling my heart expand like a balloon ready to pop in my chest. ¡°September, lean towards that boat.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, what?¡±


    ¡°Lean towards it.¡±


    ¡°Connor, you would never be this risky. Usually, September does all this stuff,¡± Mchi said. ¡°I¡¯m not sure¨C¡±


    ¡°Lean towards the boat, September. Please,¡± I said, ignoring all theirints. But they were right. This is unlike me, but in this matter, sometimes you have to take action.


    And that¡¯s what I¡¯m doing.


    ¡°Are you sure you want to do that?¡± September asked once again, now making me feel unsure myself.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, it¡¯s worth a try though,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s worth a try.¡±


    ¡°Well this try may cost us our lives,¡± Mchi said, looking at me. ¡°You better hope this is a good idea.¡±


    .....


    I didn¡¯t know what to say, but mostly because of the fact I knew it wasn¡¯t a good idea. We could wait for the YMPA fleet to start attacking the convoy, but that would take ages.


    They would¡¯ve already escaped by then.


    We needed to buy time, and make some real damage happen. I wanted to get near them so we could get a better shot.


    I¡¯m not sure what¡¯s so risky about that.


    But then, one¨Cin fact¨Ctwo of them began to take formation closer to us. I¡¯m pretty sure they didn¡¯t know our n, because they were basically skipping to the door of death.


    ¡°Shoot at them!¡± I shouted to Nikki, in which, projectiles of bolts and fire began to pour out.


    They soared through the air, and created explosions not of the boats, but of the water. They fired back, their bolts barely missing our ship, but instead joining the others in the sea.


    ¡°September, move a bit closer. Nikki, shoot directly at the closest one,¡± Mchi suddenly ordered. I chuckled. ¡°Look at the one taking control now.¡±


    ¡°Trust me, I have more experience,¡± he said.


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure not on this scale though,¡± I added. He shook his head. ¡°We¡¯re spy mages, and these happen all the time. Yet we¡¯re scared with every single mission. The possibility of dying. Fear never goes away.¡±


    ¡°Yet you keep doing it.¡±


    ¡°As I said, we¡¯re spy mages.¡±


    We exchanged projectiles between one another, as we continued to circle the enemy ships. I watched as they began to take aim at us, and before I knew it, I saw the enemy ships begin to move towards us. ¡°Tisiah and Nikki, do your magic!¡± Mchi shouted. Soon enough, bolts flew in the enemy ship¡¯s direction, only to be shot down and blown apart. The enemy ship was beginning to gain speed, but I knew it was toote.


    ¡°Now!¡± I shouted, and I was starting to feel nervous. ¡°September, lean towards the closest enemy ship!¡±


    ¡°Are you sure?¡± she asked, but I could tell she was preparing to do so.


    ¡°Yes, now!¡± Mchi shouted. ¡°Unless they¡¯re gonna blow us up to pieces. And no one wants that do they?¡± After a hard jerk to the left, we were in close quarters of the opponent ship. I was holding my breath, knowing we were close to getting shot to pieces. But then, before I knew it, arge plume of fire came into the air, and the enemy ship began to sink.


    The force of the fire shook the area, and our boat spasmed like an electrical cord. I felt my legs move in different directions, but I still held my ground.


    ¡°You okay?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± she replied, and she let go of the steering wheel.


    ¡°Nice work, September!¡± Mchi said, as we both looked at the sinking enemy ship.


    ¡°I did it, huh?¡± September said, and she began tough. ¡°I did it.¡±


    ¡°You did,¡± I said, and I smiled, but it was short lived. But not because of ships, fortunately, but more of what was said on the radio. Static first introduced itself before passing the mike to the actual speaker. ¡°Guys, we heard some very bad news.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± we all asked in unison, which was not that surprising.


    ¡°Matthew Lock and Luthor Bane were never in the convoy. They went on the other big ship. It seemed like they knew what our n was. They escaped.¡±


    I don¡¯t know what to say. I mean, I can say I knew it, but that would be a lie. I didn¡¯t even think about it. My heart dropped, and my hopes sunk into the deep abyss. How¡­how does that happen? How did they escape from us that easily?


    I just thought they were in the convoy, but they weren¡¯t. They tricked us, and now they were on their way to Saudi Arabia. We failed, and we failed badly. ¡°We¡¯re returning back to the YMPA,¡± the man said, and I nodded at his word.


    ¡°But, you know what? I¡¯m d you guys didn¡¯t die. I¡¯m really happy about that,¡± he continued, and I could feel the blood drain from my face.


    ¡°Yeah, well¡­we didn¡¯t want to die either,¡± I said, with a hint of sarcasm. ¡°I don¡¯t know why you were worried about us anyway.¡±


    ¡°Well, after all, you were in the thick of it,¡± he said, and he cut off from the radio. I sighed, and closed my eyes. We lost. And now, we had to wait for the YMPA fleet to arrive. That took time, but that also meant Matthew Lock and Luthor Bane would get further away. ¡°I¡¯ve never felt so energized in my life,¡± I heard someone say.


    Tisiah was there in front of us, walking slowly and taking a big sigh. ¡°That was pretty fun, not gonna lie.¡±


    ¡°It was,¡± I replied, and I started tough.


    ¡°It was so much fun, I almost died, though. Almost.¡± Heughed as well. September got out of the cockpit and approached us, which now put us in a format of a circle. ¡°We¡¯re gonna keep trying guys, we are gonna keep trying to get them. We won¡¯t give up. I promise you that.¡±


    ¡°We will try,¡± I said, and I hoped we could actually pull this one off. ¡°But my goodness, I am baked.¡± Mchi chuckled and patted me on the back before leaning down to nce at me, and I could see his eyes twinkling.


    ¡°I¡¯m gonna go check out the damage to the ship,¡± Tisiah said, and I watched as he walked away.


    ***


    ¡°Wow¡­¡± Mr. Drails muttered. We were in the briefing room, to which he heard about what happened. But what he heard was nothingpared to what I saw. ¡°That¡¯s what I call a failure.¡±


    ¡°Failure?¡± I questioned, and I sat back in my seat. He returned with an aggressive nod. ¡°Yes, failure. You guys didn¡¯t even notice the trick. Everyone went for the convoy, but yet not the other ship.¡± He turned to look at me, and I couldn¡¯t help but feel intimidated by his stare. But I wasn¡¯t afraid of him. I knew how good he was, and I knew how powerful he was. I just wanted to get this over with. ¡°You should have done your job right, and you didn¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°I know, sir,¡± Mchi replied, and I felt my hands ball up. ¡°So, what do we do now?¡±


    ¡°Find who he¡¯s dealing with in Saudi Arabia, what his n is. Maybe something can happen, and we finally fix this ugly mess you guys refused to clean,¡± he said, leaning back hard in his chair. He stared me down, and it was as if I was a little kid that was being scolded for breaking a te or something of the sort. ¡°What did your team say?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked, confused about his attempt.


    ¡°You heard me,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°What did they say? They gave up, didn¡¯t they? They were too afraid to even follow through with their job.¡±


    ¡°They sped towards the convoy to try to find them in time. If they came, more risk would be involved for some magic trick,¡± September said. ¡°With all due respect, no one knew their n. They beat us.¡±


    ¡°I know, but I refuse to believe it was because of their pathetic wits,¡± Mr. Drails hissed back, with a harsh tone that brought out all the base in his voice. He then looked away from us and sighed heavily. ¡°This is getting out of hand, and I want you all to remember that.¡±


    ¡°Yes sir,¡± Mchi replied. ¡°We¡¯ll deal with it, trust us.¡±


    ¡°I did, and I still am. Don¡¯t mess this up the second time,¡± Mr. Drails said, before he gestured for us to leave immediately. We stood up from our seats and walked out of the room, and I felt a heavy pressure on my back. I turned to see Mr. Drails ring at me with such disappointment that it made me shiver with fear.


    I couldn¡¯t mess up again, not again. That would be catastrophic, for the entire country.


    ¡°It¡¯s going to be a long day,¡± I said to myself, and I could hear the others grunt as they walked behind me. ¡°Now, what do we do?¡± Nikki asked. ¡°Who knows what Matthew Lock might be doing right now.¡±


    ¡°He might be on the other side of the world by now. It¡¯s possible,¡± I said, and I looked at them all. ¡°He¡¯s probably on some airne, heading for Saudi Arabia for some random¡­oh.¡±


    ¡°What.¡±


    ¡°He has the virus, doesn¡¯t he?¡± I asked them, in which they nodded. ¡°Meaning he¡¯s probably giving or selling it to someone.¡±


    ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I replied, and I felt a headacheing on. ¡°But, I bet he¡¯s got a buyer already.¡± Mchi sighed. ¡°Is there any sort of enemy organization from Saudi Arabia, by any chance?¡±


    ¡°Not that I know of,¡± September responded. ¡°Saudi Arabia isn¡¯t really involved in our spy mage nonsense.¡± I sighed, feeling the weirdness of the whole situation.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°They don¡¯t really have a spy mage culture. It¡¯s more of a desert people thing. No offense, but they aren¡¯t the most creative people. They are known to be a lot more violent, and they have more of a warrior-like culture,¡± September exined.


    ¡°Well, dang¡­¡± I muttered. Hopefully that wasn¡¯t anything too offensive. I think they¡¯re creative. I mean, they have a lot of art.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure they don¡¯t have the same type of culture as we do.¡±


    ¡°Maybe, but we¡¯re not exactly the same, either. What do you think we should do?¡±


    ¡°What do I think?¡± September said, and I sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know. But I¡¯m not sure what to do now. It feels like the world is on fire, and it¡¯s getting worse.¡±

 Chapter 240 - 240 The Hard Truth

    240 The Hard Truth


    After the time at the YMPA, I had another thing beating in my head. But it is far inferior to the stress I had during chasing the convoy.


    That dumb trick.


    Although this time, Greg headed to my house, because Mom found it quite a probleming back at like eight. She knows I¡¯m going to Greg¡¯s house, but she doesn¡¯t know the actual reason.


    A knock sounded at the door. I rushed out of my room, steadily running down the stairs, before I opened the door.


    There was no surprise in seeing him, being the fact it was nned. Greg walked through and gave a brief gesture with head up the stairs.


    I nodded, and we went up.


    We entered the room, and with no time to waste¨Cbefore the door even closed¨Che pulled out his secretputer, and his mouth opened for a long presentation.


    ¡°Alright, so I looked at any sort of secret bases in Mexico that might be a part of some sort of spy mage agency,¡± Greg said.


    ¡°Did you find any?¡± I asked him.


    .....


    ¡°No, but I have a few clues. It¡¯s better to have two brains than one working together. It¡¯s like being a detective.¡±


    ¡°Except a crime hasn¡¯t beenmitted yet, and we¡¯re trying to prevent it,¡± I rified, which he followed with a shrug.


    He sat down on the bed, and the creaks added to his settlement. ¡°What¡¯s the first clue?¡± I asked Greg. He chuckled. ¡°This van, this van right here.¡±


    ¡°What about it?¡± I asked.


    It was a forest green color, and it was probably big enough to hold twelve guys. It was a very cramped road, with many cars moving through the enclosed space.


    ¡°Is this a recording or is this live?¡± I asked Greg. ¡°Recorded,¡± he returned. ¡°I kept this on while I was at school, which was risky¨Cnot gonna lie.¡±


    I nodded in agreement.


    Suddenly, the van took a hard right to a clearer and spacious road. The buildings were still very popr in this area, but at least there weren¡¯t many cars to spray the dust around.


    ¡°Alright,¡± I muttered to myself.


    As they were driving, they took a dirt road which led them through many hills. But in doing so, more vans joined in on the fun. But the rest were ck G-Wagons, which they seemed prettyfortable on the dirt.


    They went, passing by dirt-hills and small, thick bushes before they arrived at a building. It wasn¡¯t high, and for a good reason, and there were about five ck G-Wagons parked in a spear formation.


    The forest green parked first, as men in these ck vests exited the car. But there was nothing in them. More men approached outside their vehicles. But one vehicle that was third tost also had men walk out the door, but one of them held something.


    A box that I haven¡¯t seen since the day I came into the YMPA.


    ¡°The Armonk,¡± I muttered, feeling all the memories push against me like a whirling wind.


    ¡°Haven¡¯t seen that thing in a long time,¡± Greg said with a chuckle. He shook his head, as he looked at the box. ¡°Felt like yesterday, or maybe two days ago. I don¡¯t know, it¡¯s been a long time.¡± I nodded. ¡°That box was built with a lot of power. I¡¯ve seen nothing like that.¡±


    At the front of the formation of G-Wagons, men exited the vehicle, including one man as well. ¡°Mr. Drails,¡± I said, watching him.


    ¡°Hello, friends,¡± Mr. Drails said, waving his hand towards the men. They smiled and waved back with smiles and nods.


    The van parked and three men climbed out and walked over, while two remained in the car. And when the one with white hair entered, I saw he was wearing a new uniform, one I have never seen before. It was a blue shirt and ck jeans. His jacket had some more pockets on it, and a few buttons on the back.


    ¡°How are you guys? Well, I hope,¡± he said, with a chuckle. One man responded. ¡°Somewhat,¡± he said. Mr. Drailsughed loudly, which made me frown. ¡°Yeah, yeah, we¡¯re alive.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s all that matters,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°You guys have the Armonk?¡±


    ¡°Yes, as you can see here,¡± the man said, and the guy behind him raised the box-looking weapon and Mr. Drails smiled widely.


    ¡°Very good. I am d to see it in your hands. It is a very useful weapon,¡± Mr. Drails said, and he pped his hands. ¡°Come in everybody, I¡¯ve been waiting to have a conversation.¡± Mr. Drails gestured for them to follow him, and the team nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s go inside, shall we? I¡¯m sure you guys need some drinks after all that stress,¡± he said with a chuckle.


    ¡°What drinks?¡±


    ¡°Nothing alcoholic if you¡¯re worried about that,¡± Mr. Drails returned quickly, in which the camera instantly switched to the lobby of the base. It was a simple room, with a counter and a long desk, with arge table in the middle. ¡°What were you guys doing with it anyway?¡± Mr. Drails asked. ¡°I waited for that Armonk for a long time. Good thing one of my agents knows its location at all times.¡±


    ¡°And who would that be?¡± one of them asked, which Mr. Drails chuckled.


    ¡°Remember? Anne Denver?¡± he said, which they all nodded slowly in acknowledgement. ¡°She is quite an interesting woman and I know you wouldn¡¯t want to miss a chance to talk to her.¡±


    ¡°Why is that?¡± one of them asked.


    ¡°She is quite the powerful mage, and she knows many secrets about the YMPA. I think you¡¯ll find her interesting,¡± Mr. Drails said with a chuckle. They nodded with her. ¡°I¡¯d like to know how she knows so much.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± he said, with a shrug. ¡°She just has a knack for knowing things.¡±


    ¡°Clearly. Now, I heard you guys have the Xeno right now. Am I correct?¡± the man asked. Mr. Drails smiled and sighed, before he gave a quick nod to answer the man¡¯s question. ¡°Well, I guess that makes sense, considering what happened to you guys. But I wonder what you guys intend to do with it.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t know,¡± one of the men answered.


    ¡°Well, I do have a suggestion for you, and I think you¡¯ll like it,¡± Mr. Drails said with a chuckle. ¡°We first need to ask for a truce with the BMO and the SAF,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    ¡°You mean enemy corporations in the MSTO?¡± the man asked in which Mr. Drails nodded.


    ¡°That is what I meant,¡± Mr. Drails said, and he scratched his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I think that¡¯s a bit too dangerous. We have to be careful about these things. I mean, we are still enemies and we should stay away from the MSTO.¡±


    ¡°But they would be very important in our mission right now. Trust me, I have everything nned,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°There are these five kids, one of my favorites, that I send on certain missions that benefit us. And I don¡¯t mean you guys.¡±


    ¡°Wait, wait, what do you mean by that?¡± one of them asked.


    Mr. Drails shook his head, and his hands, really specifying his answer. ¡°Never mind,¡± Mr. Drails said, adding a chuckle to oppress the awkwardness.


    ¡°You must have something in mind for us. Otherwise, you wouldn¡¯t be so confident,¡± one of the men said, and he pulled out a ss of red liquid.


    ¡°Oh, I do,¡± Mr. Drails said, and he took a sip of the drink. ¡°But you guys aren¡¯t ready for it yet.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean? We brought the Armonk, even without the help of your ¡®Anne¡¯ friend. We want to be a part of your n. You want to make friends with them. Why?¡± the man asked, getting up, his eyes steady and focused on Mr. Drails.


    ¡°In due time,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°In due time. For now, let me show you around the base.¡±


    Then the video stopped. I was confused. I was so perplexed. Why does he want to be partners with the BMO and SAF? Greg scratched his chin, his face indecisive. ¡°Why?¡± he muttered.


    ¡°He said, in due time. That¡¯s the only hint I got. I don¡¯t know why. Maybe because of the war between the two corporations?¡± I asked. ¡°Maybe he¡¯s doing some sort of¡­maybe¡­I¡¯m not sure.¡± Greg shook his head, and licked inside his mouth. ¡°Why?¡± he repeated, this one with more trembles in his voice.


    ¡°He said he had everything nned, right?¡± I said, but Greg shook his head.


    ¡°Yeah, but what kind of ns? I don¡¯t know,¡± Greg said. ¡°Fulton is probably right. Your dad isn¡¯t what he seems. He probably isn¡¯t. But now we need to figure out what he¡¯s doing, and we need to stop him while we¡¯re at it.¡± I nodded with him. ¡°What he said about having the Xeno. I mean, that¡¯s obvious, right? We already have it.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. And he said we were going to be a part of this, whatever it is. I don¡¯t get it,¡± I said, rubbing my temples. ¡°I really don¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°He said you and the team you¡¯re in, Connor, are benefiting him. Was this not assigned by the YMPA directors themselves?¡± Greg asked. Now anger was beginning to boil inside of me.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s exactly the point. They don¡¯t know, and that¡¯s what makes me so angry,¡± I answered, and Greg nodded slowly. He patted me on the back, and then he looked at me. ¡°It¡¯s fine, Connor. We¡¯ll figure this out. I just hope it isn¡¯t what it seems,¡± Greg said, his eyes looking directly into mine.


    ¡°What, that we¡¯re going to be used for his own personal gain? Or that he¡¯s going to be using the YMPA¡¯s resources for his own gains?¡± I said. ¡°I hope so too.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but we will figure this out. I promise,¡± Greg said, and I nodded. ¡°Now, go rest for a little while, and we¡¯ll continueter.¡±

 Chapter 241 - 241 Conference Room

    241 Conference Room


    I arrived at school, feeling the heaviness of fatigue grab hold of me. I couldn¡¯t sleep all night, twisting and turning, just hoping a little bit that this wasn¡¯t as it seemed.


    But there was no way it wasn¡¯t. No one makes friends with an enemy to defeat them. No one!


    There is no sort of corrtion between this and finding Matthew Lock. None! But that wasn¡¯t even the worst part. The worst part was that we weren¡¯t even doing the actual missions any of the YMPA directors even ordered or approved.


    We were doing missions that only helped him! The Xeno, the Armonk, the Cybertron. Who knows what he¡¯s using this virus for?


    So then¡­what is the MSTO doing with the virus then? Maybe this was approved by the directors, it¡¯s just he has his own ns for it.


    And I don¡¯t know what type of ns they are, but the fact he¡¯s making friends with the enemy isplete hogwash.


    As I was walking, I approached Greg once again, who was this time by himself. I didn¡¯t really care why, but he immediately noticed my presence.


    ¡°Oh, Connor,¡± he said, but then he repeated it again with worry present in his voice. ¡°Oh¡­Connor. What in the world happened to you?¡±


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t sleep at all,¡± I said to him. ¡°I was tossing and turning, andpletely mouthed into this constant cycle of confusion and anger.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Dang,¡± Greg said, his eyes widened mildly. ¡°I didn¡¯t think it hurt you that much. He was your uncle, well technically our uncle, but more of acted as your uncle for years. You never knew he was your dad. Life was normal. It¡¯s not like you knew him for years or something.¡±


    ¡°I know. It¡¯s just, he¡¯s really been protecting me and looking out for me ever since I got into the YMPA,¡± I said. ¡°That tends to really grow rtionships, fun fact.¡±


    ¡°Nheless, this should hurt me as much as it hurts you. But yet, I care less. My mother and father aren¡¯t even my actual mother and father. At least your mother¡­our mother¡­is living with you.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡±


    ¡°At least something is real in your life. Your mom. My parents aren¡¯t my parents. So, Mr. Drails shouldn¡¯t bring you down to your knees like this. Mr. Drails should¡¯ve never entered into your life.¡±


    ¡°He didn¡¯t. I did.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°I was taking a short-cut home after a terrible day. Remember that day I punched Kirk Jexifan? And we both got sent to the office,¡± I said. ¡°I saw a fight. And they saw me, and shot at me. I escaped, but then they tried toe back for me during that same day, being that it was prom. Right then, Mr. Drails saved me. It was my fault I¡¯m here. I was just so¡­nosy.¡±


    ¡°And now your life is upside down,¡± Greg said.


    ¡°My friend is my brother,¡± I said, but luckily Greg took no offense to that, although it wasn¡¯t offensive in the first ce.


    ¡°Well, fate obviously brought you here,¡± Greg said. I shook my head. ¡°I brought myself here.¡±


    Greg sighed. ¡°I gotta get to ss. See you for lunch?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I muttered, looking at him walk over the corner. Right then and there, I heard my phone ring. I picked it up, andid it beside my ear.


    ¡°Yeah?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Connor, right?¡± September asked.


    I nodded slowly. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s me. You did call me, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I was saying that once we¡¯re done with school, we¡¯ll meet up in the conference room at the YMPA,¡± September said. ¡°I think I may have something.¡±


    ¡°Alright, bet,¡± I said eagerly, before she hung up.


    ***


    I went through the halls, not paying attention to anything. I was too worried about this. We had to stop him, and we had to stop him now.


    I reached the conference room, where I found Nikki, Tisiah, Mchi, and September already waiting. September looked as if she was presenting something, which I was already interested in what she had to say.


    ¡°Well, well, what have we here?¡± I asked, as I walked in. I nced around, and I noticed everyone was looking at me. She chuckled. ¡°Now, we were wondering what his n was in Saudi Arabia with the virus. Is he selling it, releasing it, destroying it or something?¡±


    Mchi nodded, following closely. ¡°Yeah, and why would he want to destroy it?¡± he asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s a question that¡¯s been bothering me,¡± September said. ¡°And why release it Saudi Arabia, if you¡¯re trying to affect the United States. Which leaves only one possible idea. Selling it.¡±


    ¡°Exactly to whom?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°TSA.¡±


    ¡°Wait¡­wait, Matthew Lock is their ally. Why is an ally selling something to an ally?¡± I asked, as confusion raced through my mind. September said as she clicked a different window. ¡°Because Matthew Lock is working for no one but himself.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± I said, as I felt my heart beat a little bit faster. ¡°You¡¯re kidding.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not,¡± September said, and I looked at her. She exined more, ¡°The TSA offered him money, and a position there if he did this. They¡¯d offer him way more money, more protection, all of that.¡±


    ¡°So he was forced against his own will?¡±


    ¡°No, he just chose to betray us. Simple as that,¡± September said with a nod.


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t make sense,¡± Nikki said. ¡°If he¡¯s just doing this to gain more money and power, why sell it to an enemy?¡±


    ¡°Because he¡¯s not doing this to gain power or money. He¡¯s doing this to gain information. That¡¯s what the TSA wanted,¡± September said. ¡°We need to stop the meet, and in that way, we stop the TSA from ever, ever releasing that virus.¡± Mchi smiled at this, and I could already tell the excitement pumping inside of him, like a kid that just got a new toy.


    ¡°But how do we stop it?¡± I asked, as I began to think of a n.


    ¡°We stop it by killing the man in charge of it, and that¡¯s Matthew Lock. And we¡¯re going to be the ones to kill him,¡± September said, and I felt a cold shiver go down my spine.


    ¡°Are you sure about this?¡± I asked. ¡°He could give us very valuable information.¡± September paused for a moment, processing the thought before she quickly answered. ¡°We¡¯ll question him, then kill him.¡±


    ¡°Well, dang,¡± Nikki mumbled, as we all looked at each other. ¡°That¡¯s cold.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t have a choice. He¡¯s the only one that can pull this off,¡± September said. ¡°We need to stop him, because he can cause catastrophic damage.¡±


    ¡°Well, we can¡¯t just shoot him. We can¡¯t risk it,¡± I said, as the room was silent.


    ¡°No, we can¡¯t,¡± September said. ¡°We¡¯ll try and take him alive, then interrogate him. If he gives us the information, then we¡¯ll kill him.¡±


    ¡°Well, we have to tell this to Mr. Drails first, unless you want him to yell at us with his rant,¡± Tisiah said, which I can¡¯t say I don¡¯t agree with him.


    ¡°We¡¯ll just tell him that we got the information. It shouldn¡¯t be a problem, but I will let Mr. Drails know,¡± September said, and then she motioned for the door. ¡°I¡¯ll be back,¡± she said, before she closed the door. Silence instantly took control of the room, and quick stares were taken across the conference room. ¡°I still remember the Fillmore Center,¡± Tisiah chuckled. ¡°When we were chasing that convoy.¡±


    ¡°Mhm,¡± I chuckled. ¡°I haven¡¯t been there since then. I wonder what it¡¯s like now.¡±


    ¡°Probably nothing,¡± Nikki said, which causedughter to fill the room.


    ¡°All those TSA members probably evacuated the second they heard that we wereing,¡± Mchi added, which caused moreughter to erupt, and even more people joining in.


    ¡°It¡¯s been a while since I¡¯veughed like this,¡± Tisiah said, as he leaned back in his chair. ¡°But I think this is the first time I¡¯ve actually seen these guysugh. It¡¯s kind of refreshing, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    ¡°I agree,¡± I said. ¡°Usually the stress would consume me, but I think augh right now is what I needed.¡± I sighed, not only swallowing the fun, but also remembering the intense, terrible parts of the past. I felt my body rx a little bit, but I didn¡¯t feel like I was ready to let loose. Not yet.


    ¡°What was that?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Tisiah asked, confused.


    ¡°You sighed.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t realize,¡± Tisiah said, with a chuckle. ¡°I felt a bit nostaglic for a second. This ce has been so emptytely, and I miss the old days, when I was just here with you guys.¡±


    ¡°I can see that,¡± I said with a smile. ¡°I miss the old days too, especially the nights. We had so much fun back then.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, we did,¡± Nikki agreed. ¡°We definitely did. I remember when I saw Connor for the first time,¡± Tisiah said, pointing to me. ¡°The man was nervous!¡±


    ¡°I was,¡± I said with augh. ¡°I was so nervous. I mean, I knew you all would wee me into the family, but I never really believed that you all would ept me as one of your own.¡±


    ¡°Well, we did,¡± Mchi said. ¡°And you proved us right.¡±


    ¡°And we love you for that,¡± Tisiah added. ¡°Well, techincally we all got put in a team so I guess, we were all put in the family. And it was the right one.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but smile, and memories began to flow through my brain. I was able to relive all of our adventures, and how I came to be here. I remembered the times we spent together, and I even remembered the bad things, like the times we fought, and how I lost my temper. I smiled, as I thought about how I got over that.


    ¡°I¡¯m d I coulde back here and find the same thing. And I¡¯m d I could get to know you all,¡± I said, as I stood up. I walked around the table, and I looked at everyone.


    All of a sudden, September banged through the door, her eyes widened and excited like fireworks. ¡°Okay I told Mr. Drails, and he said he¡¯ll set up the meeting immediately. But in a different way.¡±


    ¡°How?¡±


    ¡°We pretend to be the TSA.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, what?!¡± I shouted, my voice shuddering from the sudden rise in volume. I was standing in front of September¡¯sputer, staring at the words that had just appeared.


    ¡°It¡¯s a great n, trust me,¡± September said with a grin.

 Chapter 242 - 242 Fulton’s Arrival

    242 Fulton¡¯s Arrival


    It was just thest hour, or what we call it, ¡°Final Hour¡±, of YMPA school. I just finished myst ss, which we had a test in there. Every question was like another maze to me, because those long batches of words just confuse my brain into a twirl.


    It exins things in the mostplex way you could think of, and based on your small understanding, none of the answers sound correct!


    Nheless, I did it, and I can only expect a C at best. I was in the halls, which were filled with students and the loud and bellowing sound of conversations.


    In fact, it was so hideous, it was too easy to hear my phone ringing. I picked it up, seeing that Greg called me. This had to be about our other problem.


    I answered immediately. ¡°Yeah, what¡¯s up?¡± I asked. Silence followed after that, before Greg responded with, ¡°Now I know that you may not want to see him. But Fulton wants to talk with us, like, see us.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, maybe he has something to show us. I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Well, did you ask him?¡± I asked, my interest at its peak. Greg said, ¡°Yes, but then he hung up. I think it¡¯s a surprise.¡±


    ¡°Obviously, it just depends if it¡¯s a good one,¡± I said. ¡°What do you got on Mr. Drails?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Not sure, I activated that camera thing on him again, so we might see the footage sometime soon. Maybe after speaking with Fulton. Or maybe we can show it to him or something. It depends,¡± Greg said.


    ¡°Well a few hours ago, I talked to September and the rest of my team. Figures out, Matthew Lock was paid to do it for them. He never decided randomly to join them,¡± I said.


    ¡°Obviously. You think out of his own heart he was going to betray the YMPA. Of course money was involved.¡±


    ¡°So we¡¯re going to pretend as if we¡¯re the TSA.¡±


    Silence took the phone, and for a long moment, before Greg responded with a loud shout, ¡°What?!¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°How, why, who¡­who thought of that?¡± Greg asked. I took a deep breath before I returned, ¡°Mr. Drails did, I think.¡±


    ¡°Well, not gonna lie, he¡¯s a genius.¡±


    That took mepletely off guard, I¡¯m not even going to say otherwise. He really had me in the first half. ¡°Yeah, I guess,¡± I said with a chuckle, unsure whether tough or not.


    ¡°Now thinking about, what do you think he¡¯s gonna do with the virus?¡± Greg asked.


    ¡°I think that¡¯s something we ought to figure out, don¡¯t you think?¡± I said, after a few seconds of consideration.


    ***


    After time at the YMPA passed, I was brought home via Mr. Drails¡¯s portal, then I booked it straight to Greg¡¯s house. If Fulton was going to arrive, I needed to get there quick. But once I arrived, I didn¡¯t see any other car at the parking driveway or anywhere beside his house. I pressed the doorbell, but no answer. I didn¡¯t know what to do, but I needed to know what was going on.


    I turned around to look at the door, and then I heard it open. I saw Greg open the door, and he quickly rushed me inside. He then closed the door, gesturing with his head for me to go upstairs. I nodded, and I went up the stairs before I entered his room. He followed after me, before he opened hisptop and plumped onto the bed.


    ¡°Is Fulton noting? Is this some sort of trick?¡± I asked, looking out the window just in case he suddenly arrived. Greg shook his head. ¡°He specifically called me. He somehow found my number.¡±


    ¡°What? How?¡± I asked, still confused.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Greg said. ¡°He didn¡¯t tell me how, but he was very specific. He told me to be here, and he¡¯d be here. And so far, he hasn¡¯t shown up. So, I¡¯m afraid to say that I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on.¡±


    ¡°Well he better arrive soon,¡± I said, adding a few nervous chuckles in the mix. ¡°Because it¡¯s taking a lot of nerve to actually wait for him.¡± Greg could only give a quickugh, probably to just calm things down. I then grabbed the chair and sat on it, my hands holding the sides of the seat. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll try to keep calm. Let¡¯s just wait for him.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s.¡±


    We both had our phones on, and we were constantly ncing at them. But as we did, suddenly, the sound of an engine faintly creeped in through our window. Instantly, our heads rocked towards the window, staring and ring, looking and searching, for any sort of car that would turn over the corner.


    Figures it wasn¡¯t one car. It was ten of them.


    ¡°Whoa,¡± I muttered, seeing the single-file line of cars follow behind one another. The first car was a ck limousine, and then they all followed behind it. The next one was a red sports car, which I recognized as one of thetest models, followed by two more ck limousines. The other six were these big Escdes or something, and their color glistened through the ck night.


    I stared at the line of cars, watching them drive by the house.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I asked, still in awe of the sight. Suddenly, they stopped, the line reaching on both ends of the house. I was legit scared, but also intrigued. I stood up, walking to the window, and I peered through it.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I repeated, but then I realized, ¡°Oh, right. Fulton.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Greg said. ¡°Let¡¯s go meet him.¡±


    We rushed out the door and down the stairs, and we quickly approached the door, only to see three men with these ck suits that were rid of any hairs or stains. They looked clean as if they were just purchased a few minutes ago.


    ¡°Fulton sent us,¡± one of the men said. ¡°Pleasee in.¡±


    ¡°Yes, thank you,¡± I said. ¡°Please, I need to speak with him.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± the man said, opening the door for me. ¡°Just wait a moment.¡±


    Once the door opened, the man himself was revealed like some golden artifact. The man, Fulton, looked at me with this innocent smile that had a hint of cunning at the side of the te. He was dressed in a ck suit that was made of silk, with a white dress shirt underneath it. His hair was short and neatly groomed.


    ¡°Hello, Connor,¡± he said, his teeth almost glowing. ¡°Hasn¡¯t been too much of a while has it? I missed you, and I¡¯m very d you¡¯re okay.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I am. Howe you didn¡¯te for us when we got captured by Dr. Mord?¡± I asked. ¡°The YMPA themselves had toe for us.¡± Fulton chuckled, then looked up. ¡°Now, now, let¡¯s take a breather shall we?¡± he said. ¡°Agent Nelson suggested that we fall back. I had to notify Mr. Drails for you.¡±


    ¡°Oh, you notified him?¡±


    ¡°Yes, how else do you think he knew?¡±


    ¡°Because they know where we are at all times, being that our radios are on us at all times,¡± I said, my eyes widened to emphasize my point. Nheless, he pushed it to the side and said, ¡°Well, I¡¯m d that you¡¯re here. Come, sit. I have something to show you.¡±


    I took a step forward into the car, and Greg followed along, and I noticed that his bodyguards were with us. They weren¡¯t carrying any weapons, but they were wearing ck suits and ck shirts. Maybe they had some sort of weapon concealed somewhere secret on them, although I couldn¡¯t be too sure.


    Fulton continued, ¡°We have something important to show you, Connor. You¡¯re going to be quite surprised. And it¡¯s something that might even make you say, ¡®I should have known.''¡±


    ¡°Okay, what is it?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Greg added, which wasn¡¯t needed.


    ¡°Well, we figured out that Mr. Drails is trying to make friends with the SAF and the BMO. We weren¡¯t sure why at first, and that¡¯s why I contacted you. Now I didn¡¯t know at first if you were dead or not, until I found that you had a friend¡ªbrother¡ªin this case. Greg.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± I mumbled, following his story.


    ¡°He, in return, contacted you and was working with you to find out Mr. Drails¡¯s true intention. Since we haven¡¯t found out until now, at least you saw that your father, Connor, had different intentions for your missions that you thought.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I did. I guess.¡±


    ¡°And so we decided to do what I had always wanted to do.¡±


    ¡°And what was that?¡± I asked.


    ¡°To find the truth.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I remember. I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re saying this now.¡±


    ¡°Because we found the truth,¡± Fulton said. ¡°But I¡¯ll tell you once we get to one of my C.A.M buildings here in a second.¡± We pulled out of the neighborhood, and we were now in the busy streets. Lights from the stoplights red through the sky, as well as the cars¡¯ headlights. I didn¡¯t know where we were going, but I trusted that he did. I nced at Greg, who just shrugged his shoulders.


    ¡°You¡¯re going to exin what you meant by the truth, right?¡± Greg said.


    ¡°Yes, once we get there,¡± Fulton said, nodding. ¡°It¡¯s not too far away.¡±


    ¡°Okay, so what is this truth you¡¯re talking about?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll tell you once we get there,¡± he said,ughing. He was quiet for a few moments, and he looked at me, his eyes glowing, and his teeth gleaming. He then said, ¡°I believe I have a solution for the problem at hand. And I believe it¡¯s a good solution. In fact, the only solution. Now I¡¯ll only tell you a part of it, because I¡¯m a bit too hyped to keep the suspense.¡±


    How he was setting this up, and the way that he was advertising it was almost making me to hype to tolerate all the suspense.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Do nothing.¡±


    The silence was almost insulting. My head was filled with so much confusion, it was literally impossible to even say anything. ¡°What, what do you mean¡­¡± I said. ¡°How does that even make anything better?¡±


    ¡°Because it¡¯s the only answer. I can guarantee that this will work, and I¡¯ve done it before. But first, I need to take you to the C.A.M base. And then we will exin more about things there. It sounds weird, but just trust the process, alright?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m doing,¡± I said. ¡°Because you got me on thin ice here.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. Juste with me,¡± he said, his voice cracking, his head turning to the right. I then followed his gaze, and I saw we were in front of the C.A.M base. It was mighty high. And I mean mighty high.

 Chapter 243 - 243 Fulton’s Plan

    243 Fulton¡¯s n


    ¡°Wow, this ce is huge,¡± Greg said, with his eyes focused on the gigantic building, and his pupils sparkled. He pointed at the structure, his hands on his sides, his eyes wide open. ¡°It¡¯s like a gigantic factory or something.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s actually multiple buildings put together,¡± Fulton said, pointing at the giant towers above us. ¡°Each one has a different purpose, which would be too many to count, just to spare you the details.¡±


    Greg didn¡¯t seem to listen, or he did, but he was too amazed to look away from the building. The car parked at the gate of the entrance, which Fulton took no time in getting out.


    I quickly rushed after him, with Greg right behind me. All the bodyguards in the car did the same, and stayed within close quarters with us.


    We walked towards the gate, and it opened once the cameraid eyes on Fulton.


    After that, the bodyguards slowly began to disperse like fluttering feathers, and soon enough, it was only us three.


    We went into the main lobby of the building. The ceiling was made of ss, and there was white marbled floor. There were loads of people roaming the floor, and there was the front desk with a woman behind it. She was wearing a blue suit with a bowtie, and she had her brown hair in a ponytail.


    We approached her, to which Fulton said, ¡°These twoe with me.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± she said, before handing him this white and green card. We walked over to the elevator, which the walls were wooden, and olden as if they were from two hundred years ago.


    .....


    After lifting up to the 30th floor, the door opened, and there was a hall with doors by the side, each for different things.


    There were a few people in the hall, and they were all wearing these ck suits with ties in various colors.


    ¡°Is this like a uniform or something?¡± Greg asked, looking at one man with partially white hair.


    ¡°Not exactly, but they are required to wear a suit,¡± Fulton responded. ¡°It¡¯s meant to show ss in what we do.¡±


    ¡°Clearly, now let¡¯s hurry up and get there,¡± I said.


    After we went forward, there was an intersection which was left and right, or turn back. Fulton led us to the right, in which came across a door that had a doorknob with a code.


    There was a slot for the card, in which he pushed it in. The door unlocked, and we were led to his office. It was quite nice, like a luxury apartment: a couch, a table, and a small kitchte with a fridge. It was filled with nts, some of which were colorful and others were white and green. There was a brown desk with a chair behind it. There was a TV hanging at the corner beside him.


    Once we entered, the door closed, and we heard a lock click.


    Fulton took off his coat, revealing a white shirt underneath it. ¡°Alright, take a seat please,¡± Fulton said, as he sat behind his desk. ¡°Now, remember when I said to do nothing, a few minutes ago I believe? You guys looked so disappointed.¡±


    ¡°Still am,¡± I muttered.


    ¡°I know, I know, but you have to understand that I didn¡¯t want to tell you in the first ce. But I did, and I hope you believe me now. Because this leads to our next half of why we do nothing. You see, I found pretty surprising information in a way. You know the trick Greg did to spy on Mr. Drails?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I answered.


    ¡°I gave him that idea. Well, not an idea. But I gave him the tool. What Greg recorded everyday, I listened to. Whether in my office, or in the car, or in the bathroom. Everywhere, I was gathering information. And I found out that Mr. Drails was trying to make friends with the SAF and the BMO. So I decided to tell you about it.¡±


    ¡°Mhm.¡±


    ¡°Now, you may be wondering, why is he doing it? What¡¯s the point? What do they offer other than being allies? That could be it, but that¡¯s not like Mr. Drails. He wants something from them. And it¡¯s simple. He wants them to improve their creation,¡± Fulton said. ¡°It makes sense. The Xeno is what the BMO made. Now he¡¯s using it as bait against them to join his team. And SAF created a weapon that basically, create more people.¡±


    ¡°A cloning machine?¡± I asked, my eyes widened in shock, and my hands trembling in suspense.


    ¡°Exactly. They call it the NCR-8. Now, that¡¯s the second reason why we do nothing. We don¡¯t do anything because we can¡¯t stop him. We can¡¯t stop him, because we have to keep this a secret,¡± Fulton said. ¡°We¡¯ll watch how he advances with his n, and once we do, we can intersect him.¡±


    I nodded, ¡°That ain¡¯t a bad idea, now thinking about it. But what if we¡¯re wrong?¡±


    ¡°What if we are?¡± Greg asked.


    ¡°Well, then we would be screwed,¡± Fulton answered bluntly, which he shook his head. ¡°No, I wouldn¡¯t say we would be screwed. We would be dead. And that would be the end of it.¡±


    I turned to Greg, ¡°So, what are we gonna do?¡±


    ¡°Do what we keep doing, but don¡¯t make it obvious to anyone. Especially Mr. Drails. He notices, we¡¯ll be screwed¡ª¡±


    ¡°Dead,¡± Fulton corrected.


    ¡°Whatever, he¡¯ll notice and he¡¯ll try to kill us. I¡¯m serious. He¡¯lle after us like he¡¯s the Hulk, and I mean that literally. I¡¯ve seen it, and I¡¯ve read about it, and he doesn¡¯t stop until he kills you,¡± Greg said, his hands gripping the chair, and his eyes wide open.


    ¡°I think you¡¯re reading too manyic books Greg,¡± I said to him, patting his back.


    ¡°Nah,¡± he said, ¡°I¡¯m serious.¡±


    ¡°Alright, whatever. If you really think it¡¯ll happen, then it will. Just be careful, alright? I don¡¯t want you to die.¡±


    ¡°Me either,¡± he said, looking at me with his dark blue eyes, his mouth in a straight line. I could feel the fear already creeping inside of me, and the danger of this n was beginning to take notice.


    Fulton sighed, ¡°I don¡¯t want you to worry about this. I will be here with you, and I will keep you safe. Trust me. Now, I think this meeting is done. I¡¯ll have my guys escort you out, and make sure that you won¡¯t get hurt.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, thanks for that,¡± I said, getting up.


    We left the room, with the three bodyguards leading us like sheep back into the elevator. ¡°You know my biggest worry,¡± I asked Greg. ¡°What Mr. Drails is actually trying to defeat the MSTO, and we¡¯re just seeing how he¡¯s doing it?¡±


    ¡°I know, I know. I think I figured it out, but I¡¯m not sure,¡± he replied, his voice cracking.


    ¡°Well, we should figure it out soon, right? Like, before it¡¯s toote.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± Greg said, nodding his head. ¡°I never thought I¡¯d be a son of a traitor.¡±


    ¡°With you there,¡± I said to him, patting his back once again, which this time he noticed.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± he said, his voice still cracking.


    The elevator opened, and we walked out. The hallways were long, and there were a few people walking around. ¡°What would you do if you figured out that Mr. Drails actually had sinister ns?¡± Greg asked me, which was actually a very good question.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I replied. ¡°I don¡¯t think I would be able to do much, but I¡¯ll have to see. It depends on what he has nned.¡± Greg nodded. ¡°I mean if you¡¯re nning for enemy corporations to improve their own weapons, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea. What if Mr. Drails was secretly a TSA spy, and he just pretended to be your father. He was the new CEO of the YMPA, so it would make sense.¡±


    ¡°Heh, that would be ironic.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but it¡¯s possible.¡±


    ¡°True. So, what do we do now?¡± Greg asked, and I knew what he was getting at.


    ¡°We wait,¡± I said. ¡°We wait for him to try to attack us, or to do something, or to make a move. Most likely make a move because he wouldn¡¯t know that we know his secret. As Fulton said. Wait.¡±


    Greg sighed, ¡°That¡¯s all we can do right now, I guess. It¡¯s not fun, but we can¡¯t do anything else.¡±


    I shrugged my shoulders, ¡°That¡¯s the only thing we can do.¡±


    Greg nodded. ¡°It¡¯s all that we can do, and we¡¯ll just have to see what happens. We¡¯ll have to see if it was worth it to get information on Mr. Drails.¡±


    I looked down at the ground, ¡°Yeah, it was worth it. I was worried that we¡¯d be caught, but it worked. We got the information.¡±


    ¡°It did,¡± Greg agreed, ¡°but it¡¯s going to be a while until we find out how to stop him.¡±

 Chapter 244 - 244 The Setup

    244 The Setup


    After school, I went to the YMPA, in suspense about infiltrating the meeting with Matthew Lock and the TSA. It would be ingenious, but things could go very wrong.


    I entered the briefing room, where everyone was already seated. I took my own seat by Tisiah, and to the left of me was Nikki.


    She gave me a very sly look, though I didn¡¯t know what to do at that point. Mr. Drails looked at each and every one of us keenly before he started.


    ¡°Alright, now, after that bamboozle, we figured out Matthew Lock was never officially a part of the TSA. Only that they were protecting him, because he was going to sell them the virus. In fact, he is going to sell them the virus in Saudi Arabia.¡±


    ¡°Figures,¡± I muttered. He nodded, but gave me a quick side eye before he returned back to the group. ¡°Now, if everyone can please look down at the table in front of us.¡±


    What?


    What did he mean?


    All of a sudden, this holographic image of argepound of buildings showed up. ¡°This is a block where based on our research, they might be doing the deal. It¡¯s going to be big, but going to be secret.¡±


    ¡°Obviously,¡± I said. But I only received another side eye from Mr. Drails.


    .....


    ¡°Based on our technological advantages, we can see that it will be underground. The problem is that we don¡¯t know how. Now, we know they¡¯ll have to enter through a building. Which one though?¡± he said.


    ¡°The one least obvious?¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°So which building out of here is the least obvious?¡± Mr. Drails asked.


    ¡°Well, the one that¡¯s shorter would cause less attention. So maybe that diner-looking building that¡¯s right by that otherrge skyscraper- looking thing,¡± September said, which Mr. Drails shrugged.


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± he said. ¡°But you also have to remember that this will most likely be an entire group of TSA vehicles, transports, you name it. So imagine all those vehicles pulling up to a diner. Now what about the tall skyscraper thing?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re saying that¡¯s the least obvious?¡±


    ¡°The one that makes the most sense, yes. Being of how high it is, you would particrly want to have arge cleaning group maybe, or something to where that would require lots of vehicles.¡±


    ¡°Makes sense,¡± I said.


    ¡°So, from our assumptions, we think this skyscraper is where the deal may take ce, correct?¡± Mr. Drails asked, which we all nodded in response. He smiled, before looking back at the holographic structure.


    ¡°So now, the next thing to do is now figure out how we¡¯ll pretend that we are the TSA. We need to arrive there first, but not too far from the assigned time.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°The time they¡¯ll meet is at 4 am in the morning.¡±


    ¡°AM?¡± Mchi asked, his eyes widened in disbelief. Mr. Drails slowly nodded. ¡°Yes, A.M. You know what that means right?¡±


    ¡°Of course I do, but why so early?¡± Mchi asked. ¡°What happened to the night?¡±


    ¡°The night is where most police actually roam the streets, and it would be an instant bust if they were caught. All that they worked for, will fly down the drain.¡±


    ¡°So, how far is far?¡± September asked.


    ¡°An hour early,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°We want to be there at the highest, thirty minutes before the actual meet is supposed to begin.¡±


    ¡°What about thetest?¡±


    ¡°Latest would be ten to fifteen minutes, just enough to get us actually inside of the room where the meet will start. We can make the deal very fast, and hopefully book it out of there once the actual TSA arrives.¡±


    ¡°Okay, so what do we do in order, like positions and stuff?¡± September asked.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m getting there, September,¡± he said with a smile, and soon enough, he rearranged the position of the structure.


    ¡°Now, here¡¯s what we first do,¡± he said, taking a quick nce at us before looking back at the holographic representation.


    He pointed to a group of people who would be positioned outside the building, watching for the TSA. ¡°They would be the ones that get the word of when they show up.¡± It was these small people, that were stationed at the right side by the building, and guarding in front of a door.


    ¡°As soon as they see the TSA arrive, they¡¯ll send a message to the other people, which will then be passed to someone else, and then finally to the leader of the TSA.¡±


    ¡°Where is Matthew Lock going to arrive?¡± I asked. ¡°He isn¡¯t there with them right? Because why not just do the deal inside of the car then?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s on a different transport, but by another MSTO organization, ISM. Iranian Spy Mages. Theye early, and then check to see if any threats areing beforehand of the deal.¡±


    ¡°Makes sense. How much is Lock selling the virus for anyways? Does he really need that much money?¡± I asked. Mr. Drails turned to me, and gave me a look.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure how much it¡¯s worth, but I can tell you that it¡¯s worth a million-fold of money,¡± Mr. Drails said with a chuckle. ¡°Anyways, as I was saying. We¡¯ll first arrive at any time, thirty minutes I hope, and we¡¯ll make sure that we are called in as the TSA. Once we get in, we will try to make the deal as quickly as possible, and then leave. But we will have to act very fast, because if the TSA doesn¡¯t arrive in that time, then it won¡¯t be a problem, but we will have to get out of there.¡±


    ¡°What if we¡¯rete?¡±


    ¡°Then we¡¯ll have to make the best of the situation that we have, and get out of there.¡±


    ¡°Who¡¯s going to be the one to make the deal? We look like kids, so we can¡¯t actually make the deal without getting caught or anything.¡±


    ¡°Trust me, you¡¯ll do fine. Mchi, you¡¯re almost an adult. Just put a beard on you and already aged five years.¡±


    ¡°No, I¡¯m not doing no deal with Matthew Lock,¡± Mchi said, shaking his head.


    ¡°You¡¯re the best one. The TSA leader is anonymous, so he won¡¯t know whether that¡¯s you or not,¡± Mr. Drails exined. ¡°Just make the deal and get out of there.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re forgetting about the cameras, and the fact that we can¡¯t really see what¡¯s going on,¡± I said, ¡°and the fact that if we mess up, we¡¯ll be killed by the TSA. No thanks.¡±


    Mr. Drails shook his head, ¡°I can assure you that the TSA will never know that it was us. There will be a ton of security around them, and we will be able to get out of there in the blink of an eye. But you know what, that¡¯s a good point, Connor. I forgot about the cameras, and the fact that we can¡¯t really see what¡¯s going on. But for a reason.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°We already disabled them. We figured out their location by using the cameras, and now if we disable them, the TSA won¡¯t know that we were on their database. Basically, they won¡¯t know it¡¯s us, and they won¡¯t know it was also us who found out about them. It¡¯s genius.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s smart,¡± I said. ¡°But very risky.¡±


    ¡°Trust me, everyday in this business is risky,¡± Mr. Drails assured me. ¡°But it¡¯s all part of the game. And besides, I¡¯ve got you guys. I trust you, and I believe that you can pull this off. You don¡¯t need to worry about this. The rest is all up to you. Now, let¡¯s go over the n again, shall we?¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said, and he began to exin the n once more.


    ¡°Remember, arrive thirty minutes early. Just so that we¡¯re not too suspicious alright? Next, Mchi puts on a beard and makes the deal with Matthew Lock. We book it out of there once we get the virus, and just like that we saved the world in thirty minutes. That¡¯s pretty impressive, don¡¯t you think?¡± Mr. Drails exined.


    I nodded. ¡°I hope so.¡±


    ¡°Alright, the deal happens two days from now, so you guys need to train, and get ready, understood? And remember, you only have one chance to do it right. If you screw up, it might be yourst mistake.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Mchi, September, Tisiah, Nikki and I all responded.


    ¡°You guys can leave,¡± he said, pointing to the door.


    ¡°Thank you, Mr. Drails!¡± I said, walking towards the exit.


    ¡°You¡¯re wee, Connor. Remember, keep it simple. And remember, the whole thing is a gamble. You could get away with this, and everything will work out, or they will catch you, and then it will be over.¡±


    ¡°Well dang¡­¡± Mchi said, feeling a bit disturbed from the sudden warning. ¡°I don¡¯t want to get caught.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t me you there,¡± Mr. Drails said as he began to walk towards us again. ¡°But you need to keep calm and be prepared for anything. If anything happens to you guys, it will be all my fault.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± I said with a smile, trying to reassure him. ¡°We¡¯ll do it right. We will.¡± Mr. Drails nodded, but not in the most assured way, before he closed the door. ¡°Alright, well things just happened. Didn¡¯t it?¡± Nikki said, which Mchi agreed with a simple nod.


    ¡°Yes¡­it did,¡± Mchi said, turning around to face us both. ¡°What now?¡±


    ¡°Now we practice,¡± September said as she ced her hands in her pockets. ¡°We try to act like the TSA. Simple as that.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not very simple, just to put that out there,¡± I said, looking at everyone. ¡°How does an 18 year old act like the leader of the TSA. We don¡¯t even know who he is!¡±


    ¡°Which is very ironic to be honest,¡± Tisiah added. ¡°If they¡¯re so secretive about this guy¡¯s identity, then how do we know who we¡¯re dealing with?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m telling you,¡± Mchi said, ¡°it doesn¡¯t matter. They¡¯ll never catch us. We can do this.¡±


    ¡°Yeah well,¡± Nikki said. ¡°It¡¯s easy for you to say that when you¡¯ve got it all together.¡±


    ¡°I got it all together?! I have to act like the man who is the leader. I¡¯m the one making the deal, I¡¯m the one who determines the future of the world. And yet, I¡¯m not too worried. Do you guys not have faith in me?¡± Mchi asked us.


    ¡°Yes I do,¡± Tisiah said with a smile. ¡°But you know what I think? I think that we¡¯re all getting a little nervous here because we don¡¯t know anything about him.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t know anything about how the TSA acts, other than just being a pain in our sides,¡± I said, which was a bit overboard, not gonna lie.


    ¡°But we need to learn how to act like him,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°I can assure you guys,¡± Mchi said with his hands in his pockets. ¡°We¡¯re good and we¡¯re straight. There is nothing that can stop us, unless we just do something wrong. Alright?¡±


    ¡°I guess,¡± I said, with a big and deep sigh that blew out an immense amount of air. ¡°But I¡¯m still worried.¡±


    ¡°Yeah well¡­we¡¯re all worried,¡± September said. ¡°But there¡¯s no point in worrying about it. What we can do however, is do it. Alright, let¡¯s do that thing they do in those football movies.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, no,¡± Mchi said, shaking his head. ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Come on man! We have to try something!¡± I eximed with a smile. ¡°It¡¯s either that or just sitting here talking.¡±


    ¡°And sitting here talking is good enough for me,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m not doing anything.¡±


    ¡°Look!¡± September said with an expression of utter exasperation as she crossed her arms and threw her head back. ¡°He¡¯s not gonna do anything.¡±


    ¡°Look!¡± I repeated with augh and a shake of my head. ¡°I¡¯m not gonna sit here and just talk to him anymore! He needs to be part of this! We don¡¯t know him, so we¡¯re not going to just sit here!¡±


    ¡°Alright guys!¡± Nikki shouted as she ran her hands through her hair and pointed at us as though she had an actual stick. ¡°Let¡¯s leave Mchi alone alright?¡±


    But Mchi didn¡¯t seem to agree with her approach, and instead, decided to hit us with our own medicine.


    ¡°Look, there are these annoying pigs that are fattening up for ughter,¡± he said as he held his arms up and took a deep breath. ¡°And these annoying pigs have just gotten a whiff of meat!¡± Confusion was the only thing socializing inside this circle of spies. ¡°And then these annoying pigs begin to move towards their meal as though they had been starved for it.¡±


    .....


    ¡°We get it!¡± Nikki said with a serious tone and a serious look on her face.


    ¡°I¡¯m not honest,¡± I said, shaking my head. ¡°I really don¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s just how dumb you are I guess,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Not sure how that¡¯s my problem.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said with a grin, trying to lighten up the atmosphere a bit. ¡°I¡¯m not going to tell you what happens next, because I don¡¯t want you to know.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure?¡± he asked me with a curious look on his face. ¡°I would like to know.¡±


    I nodded my head slowly. ¡°Sure¡­I guess.¡± I wasn¡¯t sure if I should tell him anyway, but I just shrugged and kept quiet. I was so sure that he would end up ruining it for me. Although, nheless, it¡¯s Mchi. He¡¯d probably end something with a punch to the face or something. Maybe something worse.

 Chapter 245 - 245 The Last Talk

    245 The Last Talk


    Now, for some unknown reason, YMPA school decided to end early because of some meeting with the directors of the YMPA.


    That¡¯s ironic.


    Nheless, that means I could go to Greg¡¯s house earlier. At six instead of eight, I headed to his house, anxious but also exhrated to find out anything else Mr. Drails, or those other guys from Mexico were doing.


    They would probably be defending the Xeno and the Armonk, unless the Xeno is somewhere else in the YMPA grounds.


    I walked over to Greg¡¯s house nervously. I knocked on the door, saw Greg¡¯s humongous mom, then rushed up to the living room.


    ¡°Hey Greg,¡± I said, catching his attention immediately. He has this sort of way of turning his head, that he whips his head towards the person talking. It goes faster than the frames per second you can even see, if that makes any sense.


    ¡°What¡¯s good, bro,¡± Greg said, and we dabbed each other up. Dabbed is such a weird word.


    ¡°Alright, so what has happened so far?¡± I asked Greg. ¡°Well, let me start with this,¡± he said, almost warning the fact that somethingpletely backwards was about to erupt. ¡°Remember when Fulton said to do nothing¨Cat all?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    .....


    ¡°That kind of has been twisted a bit, if you could put it that way.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°After looking at the footage early and not waiting for you, Fulton found out that there is a meeting that is soon to happen. The question is this: When? When is this going to ur, because if we do know, that means we can intercept it.¡±


    ¡°I thought so,¡± I said. ¡°So who¡¯s doing it?¡± Greg tilted his head left and right unsurely before he said, ¡°You. All of us, technically, but you. You¡¯re the one infiltrating a certain building or center you could call it, which has a drive that holds all the schedules and certain appointments for the YMPA. We don¡¯t want to steal, but more to copy it. Fulton will advance in more detail when we go there at six.¡±


    ¡°Are you serious?¡± I muttered.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Howe you can¡¯t?¡±


    ¡°Because you¡¯re a YMPA agent!¡± Greg argued. ¡°I may be a part of the FMA, but you, you are literally in the same agency that Mr. Drails is the CEO of. Come on.¡±


    ¡°I guess,¡± I said. ¡°But I want you guys to tell me every single step I have to take. Because I don¡¯t want to die because of some assumption.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, trust!¡± Greg said with a chuckle. ¡°You¡¯re all so worked up, like sometimes in this agency, you gotta chill.¡±


    ¡°y, just be chill that I¡¯mmitting treason to the agency I¡¯m in,¡± I shot back at him, which he seemed to take that hardly.


    ¡°Well, now that you put it that way,¡± Greg muttered, ¡°it kind of sounds worse than I thought it actually was.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said, squinting my eyes and nodding with a bit of sarcasm as a topping. ¡°You don¡¯t say.¡±


    ¡°But think about it, we may be saving the world right now. Imagine all those great men, the ones who created the US to what it is right now. They had to do what was wrong, to do what was¨C¡±


    ¡°Yeah, yeah, whatever,¡± I said. ¡°Clearly you know your history.¡±


    ¡°Yes, and so do you. I¡¯m sure you know about the great war and the weapons of mass destruction.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I do, but I¡¯m not really sure that the weapons of mass destruction are still a thing.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Because I¡¯m not sure that the US ever really used that term.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s just that it seems like the media and the government used that term a lot back then, and I¡¯m not sure they¡¯re still using it.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I think they¡¯re still using it.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, why wouldn¡¯t they?¡± Greg said. ¡°Nheless, wanna y a game before Fultones? We basically have an hour or so.¡±


    ***


    As time passed, the arrival of Fulton was near. Realization hit me square in the face once I heard the growls of Fulton¡¯s train of cars. ¡°He¡¯s here,¡± I said.


    ¡°Yeah, we need to get in the car,¡± Greg said. ¡°We have to go now. It¡¯s an emergency.¡±


    ¡°Emergency?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yep,¡± Greg said with a nod. ¡°We¡¯re going to do something illegal, but necessary.¡±


    ¡°Illegal?¡± I asked, frowning. ¡°We¡¯re breaking thew?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we¡¯re breaking thew,¡± he said, with a smile. ¡°And we¡¯re going to do it anyway.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not really sure, but we¡¯ll know once we¡¯re there.¡± Greg nodded his head, and he was about to make a dash towards the front door. He ran to the front door, and I could only help but hesitantly follow behind him. We got out of the house, as the bodyguards exited and stood in front of their vehicles. We entered the one where we could see Fulton¡¯s face, although it was darkened by the tint of the windows.


    ¡°I¡¯m here!¡± Greg shouted.


    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± I could hear his voice through the ss, but it was too dark to make out his face. We opened the door, and just like that, the bodyguards returned to their vehicles once more, before mming it shut. We entered the car. ¡°So, I heard what your new n was,¡± I said to him, which he chuckled.


    ¡°Yes, infiltrate the YMPA Storage Center, the ce they usually keep ssified files and things,¡± Fulton said. ¡°You¡¯re going to steal a drive that contains a schedule of their usual appointments which should include the meetings with the SAF and BMO.¡±


    ¡°What if we get caught?¡± I asked him.


    ¡°We won¡¯t get caught, and we¡¯ll be able to sneak in and out,¡± he said. ¡°Well, you actually.¡± I sighed and shook my head, and I was already beginning to feel scared and fearful. ¡°When are we doing this?¡±


    ¡°Tomorrow, because we don¡¯t want to waste any more time,¡± Fulton said. ¡°Just wanted to talk to you about the n.¡±


    ¡°Alright, but I want you guys to tell me everything. I¡¯m not sure how this will go, so I want to know every single detail.¡±


    ¡°Sure, sure,¡± he said. ¡°So, first, you need to go to the YMPA storage center tomorrow. It¡¯s at the YMPA building, but you guys probably know where that is. You¡¯ll be there at five in the morning, when it¡¯s pretty empty. And there¡¯s going to be a bunch of security guards, but we have the codes for the system, so it shouldn¡¯t be a problem.¡±


    ¡°So why not¨C¡±


    ¡°Wait, wait,¡± Fulton said. ¡°Let me get through this, alright?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, of course.¡±


    ¡°Alright, so there will be a few cameras in the building. But I¡¯ve gotten into the system, and I¡¯ve changed them all to my own code, so they¡¯re all fake. After that, you¡¯ll find yourself in this long, gray hall that may seem to go like...forever, okay? Walk through the hall, because it¡¯s just an illusion then take the elevator to the right. That will take you down to the basement. There, you will see a big red button, right? Press the button.¡±


    ¡°Okay.¡±


    ¡°And then you¡¯ll see a door. Don¡¯t touch the door, it¡¯ll be locked. Just stand next to the door until it opens. Then go through the door. And that¡¯s it. Simple, right? You¡¯ll be in the storage center. Now, the drive you want is the one with the blue box on it. The blue box. Got it? So, you¡¯ll need to get the blue box off the shelf. You¡¯ll notice the box is a bit heavy, so you might want to have a friend help you out. You can just ask Greg for his help. He¡¯s your friend, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, he¡¯s my friend. Thank you.¡±


    ¡°No, no, it¡¯s fine. Anyway, once you have the blue box, bring it to the elevator and go back to the lobby. You¡¯ll see a desk. Go past the desk, and there should be a window.¡±


    ¡°Okay, where¡¯s the part where I get out of there?¡± I said, moving my head impatiently.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Fulton said with a chuckle. ¡°You¡¯re free. No, don¡¯t get out yet. Once you leave the building, go back to the storage center, and you¡¯ll see a couple of boxes in the corner. Take the blue box and put it inside the boxes.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Because you¡¯re not done yet. Now, you¡¯ll have to take the blue box to the elevator, and press the button. And when you do, you¡¯ll see a little screen. Just press enter, and the blue box will open. And then, there will be a window. Get in the window, and it will close. Now, you¡¯re in the basement, but you¡¯re not alone. You¡¯ll see a guy sitting on a chair, reading a newspaper.¡±


    ¡°Is it the guy from before?¡±


    ¡°No, he¡¯s the janitor. You can just ignore him. Anyway, the janitor is going to look up, and he¡¯s going to say something like ¡®What is going on, or something like that,¡± Fulton said. ¡°Just say, ¡®I¡¯m just here to fix the air conditioning.¡¯ Whatever you say, just make it believable.¡±


    ¡°So I just need to say something, and then I¡¯m done?¡±


    ¡°Yep, after that. Get out into the parking lot, and then we¡¯ll fly from Maine back to California, where we are now, and then you should be back by 10 o¡¯ clock,¡± Fulton said, with this smile that seemedical. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I know you can do it.¡±


    ¡°Okay, well I hope I don¡¯t mess up,¡± I said, feeling a bit nervous.


    ¡°You won¡¯t because if you do, you won¡¯t be in the YMPA for much longer,¡± Fulton said. ¡°So, don¡¯t mess up. No pressure, of course.¡±


    ¡°No pressure, of course.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re good at this. I haveplete confidence in you. And that¡¯s why you¡¯re the best choice. That¡¯s why I chose you for the job. Because you are good, and I trust you. I want to save the world, but more importantly, your life.¡±


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s enough,¡± I said. ¡°I get it.¡±


    ¡°No, I need you to understand what I¡¯m saying. I need you to remember that, and to remember why you were chosen.¡±


    ¡°Okay, I get it. I¡¯m not dumb. I get that I¡¯m the only person who could possibly do this.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯re the only one. Only you. I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t mean it like that. I was just exining it to you.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡±


    ¡°And you¡¯re a good kid. I know you¡¯ll do a great job.¡±


    ¡°Thanks, I appreciate that. I¡¯ll try not to let you down.¡±


    ¡°You won¡¯t,¡± he said. ¡°But if you do, I¡¯ll make sure it doesn¡¯t happen again.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said, trying to keep a straight face. I almostughed, because of how weak that sounded, but he does own an organization, so I don¡¯t wanna mess this up.


    ¡°Just focus on the task at hand,¡± he said. ¡°You have a lot to learn, and you still have to grow, but I know you will. I have a feeling you¡¯re going to be the most powerful mage of all time. I can feel it in my bones. So, you just keep being you, and you¡¯ll be fine.¡±


    ¡°Alright...¡± I muttered with a chuckle.


    .....


    ¡°Just have fun,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s gonna be an exciting adventure, and I¡¯m d you¡¯re with us. I know you¡¯ll be able to handle it. Ahh, look, we¡¯re arriving at the C.A.M base. Can¡¯t wait to show you the drive looks like. Let¡¯s get ready to go.¡±


    ¡°Okay, okay,¡± I said. ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with.¡±


    ¡°Yes, you¡¯re right.¡±


    We arrived at the ce, which still looked as mesmerizing as before. I was still in awe that I was actually about to go through with it.


    We parked the car and got out, and the bodyguards stood outside, waiting for us toe out. Eventually, I did, and Greg as well. They did their same formation and disperse, and we still went into the lobby, and we got checked by the woman at the front desk, and we still went into the elevator, and we still entered into his office.


    And, then, we finally sat down in his office, and I began to wonder if he¡¯d forgotten about the meeting. He didn¡¯t seem to be in any hurry. But obviously he remembered by the time he turned on the TV, and instantly a blue box showed up on the screen. It wasn¡¯t as blue as I thought it was, but it was definitely blue. It was just a tiny bitrger than aputer drive. It had a weird silver light on the side, and it glowed a bright blue.


    ¡°This is the drive, or the thing holding the drive¨Cexcuse me¨Cthat you need to get,¡± Fulton said, looking straight at me. ¡°So, I¡¯ll exin how to use it. But, I¡¯m not sure how to exin it. You¡¯ll have to use your imagination, and I¡¯ll try to help you.¡±


    ¡°Alright...¡± I said, a bit worried that I was going to do extra work for listening apparently.


    ¡°The drive is in the blue box, and the box will open up to reveal the drive. You¡¯ll see the drive. It¡¯s a small ck drive in this matter. Now you¡¯re going to need to copy it in this certain way. You¡¯ll have to press the button on the drive. And then, you¡¯ll hear a beep, and you¡¯ll have to press enter. Then, it¡¯ll start copying.¡±


    ¡°Oh...¡± I muttered. ¡°So it¡¯s like that?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s like that,¡± Fulton said with a chuckle. ¡°Make three copies of the drive, and then put it right back. And you¡¯ll have to put it in the box with the other two drives, and then put it in the box with the blue box, and then, when you¡¯re done, you¡¯ll have to take it to the elevator, and then you¡¯ll have to press the button. Then, you¡¯ll go through the door, and you¡¯ll have to stand next to the door. Don¡¯t touch the door. It will be locked. Just stand there until it opens, and you¡¯ll go in. Then you¡¯ll see the window. Get in the window, and it will close. You¡¯ll be in the basement. But you won¡¯t be alone. There will be a man sitting on a chair, reading a newspaper. Just say whatever you have to say to him, and then you¡¯ll be out.¡±


    ¡°Yep...the entire n,¡± I said. ¡°The entire n.¡±


    ¡°That shouldn¡¯t be too hard, and if you get caught, that¡¯s where thises in.¡±


    Fulton got out this watch that was ck with a red button, which once it came near my hand, ittched on like a snake. ¡°Oh,¡± Greg shrieked, which he flinched backwards and took a few deep breaths. ¡°Press the button and it washes their memory from the past three hours.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I see,¡± I said. ¡°So, if I get caught, they will forget that they saw me?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± he said. ¡°Just push the button and they¡¯ll forget they ever saw you.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said. ¡°That sounds like a good n. I¡¯ll remember to do that.¡±


    ¡°Now, I need you to be careful. Because things can happen, and it can be very, very dangerous,¡± Fulton said, looking at me and taking a deep sigh. ¡°But I know you¡¯re going to do a good job.¡±


    I felt a bit nervous and I tried my best not to act weird about it. I didn¡¯t want Fulton to think that I¡¯m a total moron who¡¯s gonna get him killed by doing something stupid. I don¡¯t want anyone to get hurt because of me. I don¡¯t want to kill anybody. I don¡¯t want to kill myself.


    ¡°I understand,¡± I said. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be very careful. I promise.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± Fulton said. ¡°Because I want you to be able to save the world. I want you to be able to save everyone¡¯s lives. And I don¡¯t want you to die. So, just be careful.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said, taking a deep breath.

 Chapter 246 - 246 Going to Saudi Arabia

    246 Going to Saudi Arabia


    Now was the day we went to Saudi Arabia, to stop Matthew Lock from making the deal, or at least trick him into making a deal with us.


    This could go bust, in fact it will most likely go bust, however, this could also be thest pin in stopping the MSTO¡¯s ns.


    I¡¯m ready for this. But it¡¯s mostly Mchi to worry about. He needs to pretend like the leader of the TSA, which is quite a big role. No one even knows who he is, so he¡¯s going to need to act with this sense of power and authority.


    He must be scared to heavens, or something like that.


    But after today, was tomorrow, and that was something I needed to worry about. I was going to steal from my own agency, so stop a conspiracy that Mr. Drails could possibly be doing.


    Everything felt so weird, but one problem at a time¨Cone problem at a time.


    I arrived into the briefing room, where I was met with a hug by Nikki. She was the only one there for now, before the others began to enter.


    Mchi eventually entered, and now¨CI¡¯m not no expert at personalities¨Cbut I can tell you that Mchi was acting way, way different.


    He was acting like some sort of cunning king, or clever kingpin or something along those lines.


    .....


    He had this look that sensed danger and he had this sort of act of clever personality, always knowing the next n, or the next move.


    In fact, both.


    ¡°Alright¡­¡± Mr. Drails said, his face wrapped with concern after looking at Mchi. ¡°I¡¯ll have one of my friends deliver you guys your TSA vests. Remember, you¡¯ll be acting like the TSA, and we¡¯ll arrive thirty minutes before the actual deal¨Cbest case scenario¨Cand then Mchi will make the deal, then we rush outta there with the virus.¡±


    ¡°Easy as cake,¡± September said with a confident, and quite supporting nod. It was as if no one was worried at all about this.


    Am I just weird or something?


    ¡°In twenty minutes, we¡¯re soon to start, so set up your weapons, and make sure you¡¯re ready by the time we start,¡± Mr. Drails said, looking at all of us with a keen eye.


    We exited the room, and immediately went to the barracks room. Usually we set up at the briefing room, but they recently constructed a new barracks room for people to get their weapons, and to set up for a mission, like what we¡¯re doing now.


    We entered the barracks room, which looked more like a boys¡¯ locker room in a gym. There were many doors stacked on top of each other, and there were different stations through the room. There were three hallways that led to bathroom stalls, a ce to shower, and more bathroom stalls.


    There were other spies inside of that room, and once they opened their lockers, there were weapons in their own sections.


    Guns, knives, grenades, and a taser for good measure. But the thing on top of them was the utility belts, which hold all those weapons, including our wands.


    We were assigned a locker door number when ss first started, and we chose our own codes.


    ¡°Alright¡­where is locker 43?¡± I muttered, walking through the barracks. I went around the 40¡¯s section and looked for 43, which was right at the corner.


    I opened it, andid eyes upon my new, friendly weapons. Footsteps were behind me, and I looked back to see Mchi in my same area.


    Seems like he also has a locker in the 40¡¯s section.


    But I felt nervous for him every time I took any sort of look at him. He had such a big role, and stress must be destroying him right now.


    I had to calm him down by some sort of chance.


    I walked over to him, slowly just in case he wasn¡¯t in the mood, and I tapped his shoulder.


    He turned his head to look at me, and he gave a quick smile. That at least lowered a bit of some tension.


    ¡°Hey look, I know it¡¯s hard for you right now, but this is going to work¨Ctrust me,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s going to work, and you¡¯re going to do great.¡±


    He said nothing.


    He nodded, but said nothing.


    He didn¡¯t even want to make eye contact with me, and it made me feel guilty that I couldn¡¯t help him. I¡¯m his friend, and I should be able to help him in times of need. But then, his mouth opened, but yet no words escaped from his tongue.


    He sighed, and then shook his head.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m just¡­I¡¯m not used to this.¡±


    I was taken aback.


    ¡°You¡¯re not used to what?¡± I asked, taking a step back.


    ¡°This,¡± he said, pointing to himself.


    ¡°What do you mean, ¡®this¡¯?¡± I said, a bit confused.


    ¡°This mission,¡± he said, pointing to himself. ¡°I haven¡¯t done this in years, and it¡¯s a big deal.¡±


    ¡°But you¡¯re the best at this sort of stuff,¡± I said. ¡°I know you are.¡±


    ¡°I was,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ve been away for a while, and I¡¯m rusty, I guess. I was always a good conman, but this is kind of mind-blowing and stressful. I¡¯m usually a guy who is never afraid. Loves action, danger, and risk. This isn¡¯t really me.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a big deal,¡± I said, trying to console him. ¡°But you¡¯ll do fine. You can do this. I would never be able to do something like this, because if I could¡ª trust me¡ªI would. But I¡¯m not good, or at least as good as you. So you¡¯ll do fine.¡±


    I grabbed his hand, and he looked at me. His eyes were filled with the desperation of someone who has lost all hope. His face was trembling with fear, fear that took control over his body, fear that whispered into his ears, fear that spoke nothing but discouragement.


    And I didn¡¯t want that to happen to him.


    But I knew that this was what he needed to do.


    I pulled him close, and we hugged each other. I was still wearing my jacket, but he wore his TSA vest over a shirt and pants.


    He was sweating, and I could feel it.


    ¡°I love you,¡± I said.


    ¡°I love you, too,¡± he said, a little more rxed than before.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for being so dumb, and for making you worry,¡± I said.


    ¡°Don¡¯t apologize,¡± he said. ¡°I just have a lot of pressure on me right now. And it¡¯s making me anxious.¡±


    I let go of him, and he wiped his sweat off his forehead. He looked around, before he equipped his belt, and then looked back at me. ¡°After all, I do like danger. Might as well keep it that way.¡± He smiled, and that cockiness was starting to shine again. I smiled with him, before he put on his red jacket, and then patted me on the shoulder. ¡°Thanks for that,¡± he said. ¡°I need it.¡±


    ¡°No problem,¡± I said, giving a chuckle. ¡°You got this, man. You got this. I believe in you.¡±


    ¡°Thanks, Connor,¡± he said, and that was the only time I could remember him saying my name.


    He left the room, and I just began to expand my arsenal.


    I was wearing my TSA vest, with my knife, gun, and wand. I put my wand in my belt and I took out a knife and a gun. The knife was sharp, and I mean really sharp, and the gun had a silencer on it, which just made it even more sick.


    I loaded the gun, and checked my pockets to make sure everything was in its ce.


    The gun, knife, and wand were ced in their respective areas, but the utility belt was still empty.


    I looked at my watch, and it read 5:30 PM.


    It was about time to go.


    I walked out of the barracks, and I saw Mchi, Nikki, and September walking towards me. Tisiah eventually revealed himself after the other three approached me. ¡°Alright, are we ready?¡± September asked, looking at each and every one of us in this small circle. ¡°You know we need to do, so let¡¯s do it. Mchi, are you ready?¡±


    Thatst question had a lot more stakes bottled up with it. But Mchi nodded. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go to Mr. Drails and he¡¯ll portal us over there,¡± she said, as she pped her hands. We made our way out of the barracks and into the briefing room, where Mr. Drails was still located.


    Mr. Drails had his hand in the air, waiting for us to appear. I stepped in, followed by Mchi, Nikki, and September and Tisiah. ¡°Are you guys ready?¡± he asked, his eyes staring right into our souls.


    ¡°We¡¯re ready,¡± I said with a firm nod. He nodded, and then right then, a portal shot from under our feet. We were sucked in, and I hit the ground¡ªor in this case, the road¡ªhard, as pain shot through my body. ¡°He does that every single time,¡± Mchi groaned.


    ¡°Well, you gotta be careful, I guess,¡± I said, rubbing my arm. ¡°Now, we just need to get there in time. Where¡¯s all the YMPA vehicles, didn¡¯t they say¡ª¡± I was disturbed the sight of the city, where the sun glowed behind this one building, giving the city its glorious look. But when I looked up, I realized that I wasn¡¯t on the streets of the city.


    We were in the middle of the street, and the buildings were tall and there were cars, but mostly other people walking around. ¡°Let¡¯s get on the sidewalk,¡± September suggested. ¡°Yeah, good idea,¡± I muttered.


    We walked along the sidewalk until we reached an alley, where a group of people were walking. One of them was a tall guy, with dark hair and a mustache. He passed by me, and I could smell this stench of sweat that whiffed into my nose. I tried not to cough but it was very challenging not to, and it was getting worse. I noticed that this guy was a few inches taller than me, and he had a scar on his cheek, and a tattoo on his neck.


    I looked ahead, not thinking about the man. I saw arge white truck, and the back doors were open, revealing arge cargo space. It was parked in the middle of the street, and it was wide enough for four cars to fit.


    ¡°This ce is very different,¡± Mchi said, looking at the written messages on the buildings beside us. ¡°Very different.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± I asked, looking at a billboard with a picture of a woman wearing a dress. She had a red ribbon tied around her wrist, and she was smiling.


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s a promotion for some local radio station,¡± Nikki said, reading the sign. ¡°It¡¯s promoting their new music video.¡±


    ¡°They look like they¡¯re having a lot of fun here,¡± I said, looking at a young couple walking down the road.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t know, I¡¯ve never been to this city before,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Now, Mr. Drails said we would see a row of YMPA vehicles pretending to be TSA transports, so¡­where is it?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I can¡¯t wait to get out of here,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°Me neither,¡± I said, looking at the back of a truck. ¡°I¡¯m just hoping we get in without a hitch.¡±


    ¡°I know what you mean,¡± Mchi said. ¡°I¡¯m just wondering what kind of trouble we¡¯re going to find over here.¡±


    But all of a sudden, a loud growl of a multitude of cars roared over the corner of the alleyway. Soon enough, five ck cars arrived in front of us abruptly. They were all the same make and model, but they were all slightly different colors, and the windows were tinted, so it was hard to see who was inside.


    One of them rolled down their windows, which was a man with sunsses and rough dirty-brown hair. He moved his head, gesturing for us to get inside of the car. I nodded, and made the first move. I walked forward, and the door opened. I got inside of the car, and Mchi came in right after me.


    ¡°You okay, man?¡± I asked, seeing his face pale. He nodded, and he sat in the seat, looking at the man in sunsses.


    September entered, in which Nikki and Tisiah entered afterwards. ¡°So we¡¯ve got our transport,¡± I said, turning to the driver.


    The man nodded. ¡°I¡¯ve got your ride,¡± he said with a voice that sounded like gravel. ¡°We¡¯re going to be going to the skyscraper where the deal is being held: the V&V Corporation. We need to be there in thirty minutes.¡±


    ¡°Got it,¡± I said.


    .....

 Chapter 247 - 247 The Deal

    247 The Deal


    The man put the vehicle in drive, and we sped away, with the four other cars following us. The road was littered with cars and buses, in fact, even motorcycles.


    There were buildings that towered into the sky, and other buildings that stayed at eye level. There were small buildings, and big corporation towers that shot up from the ground.


    It was electrifying.


    ¡°Imagine living here. That must be cool,¡± Nikki said. ¡°And September said that¨C¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t start that now,¡± September quickly shot,ing to her defense. ¡°That was only for an established agency there.¡±


    ¡°Alright¡­okay,¡± Nikki chuckled, shaking her head. September narrowed her eyes at her before looking outside the window.


    ¡°So are there going to be YMPA or ¡®Fake TSA¡¯ agents guarding the area? Are we going to be safe from any sort of attacks?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yes, we have snipers from all the surrounding buildings. We have some transports and vehicles circling the block. We got some cones to keep other cars away from the building.¡±


    ¡°Alright good,¡± I said. ¡°We don¡¯t want to crash anything here.¡±


    .....


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want that either sir,¡± he said, ncing at me through the little mirror hanging on the ceiling in front of him. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want that.¡±


    Soon enough, we went onto the highway before switching to an exit. We then turned to the left, and kept that way for a mile.


    I¡¯m pretty sure ten minutes have already passed by now.


    ¡°Imagine if we actually pull this off. Mchi would have to act as Mr. Lebanon. He has to legit act like a CEO of a big spy agency.¡±


    ¡°Like I didn¡¯t know that,¡± Mchi hissed. ¡°Cut me some ck.¡±


    ¡°No one wasn¡¯t in the first ce. We believe in you, so try to keep that belief close. How about that?¡± September shot quickly.


    ¡°I am,¡± Mchi said.


    September gave a smile, which was more irritated than supportive. We began to go down this strip before turning to another street to the right.


    ¡°Once we arrive, you¡¯re going to follow the ISM agents to the underground deal, and we¡¯ll be behind you if anything happens,¡± the man said. ¡°Don¡¯t say too much. Choose your words carefully.¡±


    Everyone shot a nce at Mchi.


    ¡°Don¡¯t do anything out of the ordinary,¡± he said. ¡°We don¡¯t want Matthew Lock to run away with the virus again.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right about that,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°Are we approaching?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we are about to approach the V&V corporation tower. Get ready, because things are about to go down,¡± the driver said.


    The building was enormous. It was about five times taller than the Empire State Building in New York, and it was shaped like an obelisk. It had many floors, and it looked like it had a ss exterior. There were also many different colored lights on the top of the building. There were somerge lights on the roof, and they were shing.


    ¡°Jesus, man,¡± Nikki said. ¡°I can barely see the top.¡±


    ¡°Imagine,¡± Tisiah joked, which he got an elbow in return. We exited the vehicle, and two guys that looked like they were from Iran or somewhere in the Middle East immediately approached us. They looked at Mchi, and there was long silence in between each stare. Hopefully they think he¡¯s Mr. Lebanon.


    ¡°You¡¯re here,¡± one of the men said, holding a card. ¡°Come in.¡±


    We walked in, and we were in a lobby that had many elevators. One of the men pointed at an elevator and then at us. We all followed the man, and we went inside of the elevator. Once the doors closed, we started to go down. But one thing I noticed was that we were going down, much longer than were supposed to, and all of a sudden, the numbers went negative.


    We were going underground.


    We continued to descend, and it felt like forever.


    I heard a strange sound, and I looked down to see a metal door with a lock. The ISM spies gave us side eyes, as if they were studying us, but I tried not to look at them, or leak any suspicion.


    The doors opened, and we stepped out. It was a dimly lit room, and it was filled with crates. Some of the crates were full of water, others with dirt, and still others with soil. There were men stationed all around the room, in ck and silky zer suits. They had sunsses and earpieces that had wires that sunk into their pockets.


    I gulped. I was scared, and I wanted to tell them that I wasn¡¯t a part of this. But I knew I couldn¡¯t. This was my only chance to get this virus.


    We stood in front of the table where the deal was being held. There were six men, three men, and three women, and they all wore ck suits.


    Then through all the bodies of spies, one man walked out, and his face I instantly recognized.


    Mchi walked up, and had this walk that showed himself to be ssy and dilligent. He was acting as if he was rich, when really, he was a simple junior agent, doing one of the most important missions of all time.


    ¡°Hello, Matthew Lock,¡± Mchi said, his voice firm and fierce. ¡°I am Mr. Lebanon. I would like to know who you are, what you are, and what you are after.¡±


    The man¡¯s face turned to stone, and he seemed like a statue. He stared at us, and he didn¡¯t blink.


    ¡°You have no idea who you¡¯re messing with, boy. I¡¯m the real deal, and I know how to make my moves. You¡¯vee to sell me the virus, as we discussed,¡± Mchi said. Matthew Lock nodded, and gave a quick smirk.


    ¡°Alright, here is the deal. You give me the virus, and we¡¯ll split it. And the price is $500 million. But if I find that you are a fake, I will shoot you in the head. Now, hand over the virus,¡± Mchi said.


    Matthew Lock lifted up his left hand, and from his wrist was a band. It was ck, and it had an ID chip in it. He tilted it towards the box, and it unlocked. He opened it, and revealed two syringes. ¡°This is the Cobra Virus, and the antidote to it,¡± Matthew Lock said. ¡°Now let me see your money.¡±


    Mchi moved his head to the side. A man carried a briefcase, and he opened it. Inside were bundles of cash. He counted the money, and put it back in the case. Then he passed it to Mchi.


    Mchi then slid it towards Matthew Lock, where he took it. ¡°That should be everything you need. We are leaving. And you won¡¯t be seeing us again.¡±


    Matthew Lock looked at him for a moment. ¡°You know, I never realized how quick you guys are,¡± he said. ¡°You guys are very efficient people. We should work together more often, and maybe, things may turn up from here.¡±


    I could feel everyone¡¯s eyes on me, but I was able to keep my cool. I just shook my head.


    ¡°Let¡¯s leave,¡± Mchi said. He turned over to us before he turned his back on Lock, and walked in the opposite direction. ¡°Hey!¡± Lock suddenly shouted, in which Mchi stopped.


    ¡°Think about my offer. After all, I did get you the virus. There shouldn¡¯t be any problems,¡± he said.


    Suddenly someone said, ¡°But there is.¡±


    Everyone whipped their heads towards the voice, in which we saw none other than Redford Bane, and his son apanying him. Matthew Lock looked around in confusion, before heid eyes on us.


    ¡°That man is not the CEO of anything. I¡¯m the CEO, and I¡¯m Mr. Lebanon.¡±


    ¡°What, I thought you were Redford Bane,¡± Matthew Lock said. Mr. Bane chuckled. ¡°I am, but Mr. Lebanon is meant to confuse people, and basically provide me an alias. I¡¯d hate to have to kill you.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to die,¡± Matthew Lock said. ¡°You¡¯re a fool. Why don¡¯t you take that briefcase, and we can start working together?¡±


    ¡°Well, how about I work with you instead,¡± Mchi said quickly. ¡°Obviously that man is speaking riddles. Listen to his reasoning, it¡¯splete nonsense.¡±


    I could hear some heavy footstepsing closer, and we turned our heads to see Luthor Bane. ¡°These are actually YMPA agents that have been monitoring us since we arrived at the Fillmore Center. My father the actual ¡®Lebanon.¡¯ And if you want the money, I suggest that you don¡¯t move. The YMPA has ways of taking care of situations like this, and we will be taking this virus,¡± Luthor Bane said.


    ¡°Nonsense!¡± Mchi barked. ¡°I¡¯m the actual CEO.¡±


    ¡°Jesus, man,¡± Mr. Bane sighed. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯re going to get out of here.¡±


    I gulped, and I felt my heart beating fast. I was scared, and I wanted to run away. Things were goingpletely backwards, and I mean backwards. I felt my hands trembling, and I squeezed them into fists. I tried my best to hold myself steady.


    ¡°Alright, listen carefully. My father is the real deal, and we¡¯re going to be taking the virus and the antidote from you. We will also be taking the money, and we will be leaving.¡±


    ¡°Excuse me? You give me the money, and I will give you the virus and antidote. We¡¯re not changing anything!¡± Matthew Lock shouted, which now this entire deal was bing a hot mess.


    ¡°No, we¡¯re not changing anything,¡± Mr. Bane said. ¡°You¡¯re going to take the money and go, and you¡¯ll forget about ever having met us. If you don¡¯t do as I say, then I¡¯m going to shoot you in the head.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry,¡± Matthew Lock said, ¡°I didn¡¯t realize that you guys were a bunch of trigger happy assassins.¡±


    ¡°Excuse me?!¡± Luthor Bane shrieked, and anger erupted inside of him. He brought out his gun and faced Matthew Lock, in which everyone pulled out their guns, facing each other. The tension shook the room, and fear coursed through my veins. I trembled, and my eyes widened in worry, fright, panic, any synonym or word like fear. I didn¡¯t want to die, and I wasn¡¯t ready to die.


    ¡°Matthew, you can¡¯t fight him! We¡¯ve got to get out of here,¡± Mchi whispered.


    ¡°Shush up!¡± he snapped. ¡°I¡¯m not going anywhere until I get the money, and I get my payment.¡±


    ¡°Fine, but I¡¯ll be right behind you,¡± Mchi said, and he turned his back on me.


    ¡°Oh my Lord,¡± September breathed, putting her hands on her head frantically. ¡°We¡¯re all going to die. This is the worst situation ever, and I don¡¯t want to die. I don¡¯t want to die. I don¡¯t want to die.¡±


    ¡°Calm down,¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°You better take that back, boy,¡± Luthor Bane said, his eyes and gun pointed directly at Lock.


    ¡°Or what?¡± Matthew Lock said.


    ¡°Or I¡¯ll blow your head off, that¡¯s what.¡±


    ¡°So, that¡¯s the way this is going to y out. Let me tell you something, you guys aren¡¯t the only ones with a lot of money, and a lot of power. You see, I have a lot of money, and a lot of power, and I can get a lot more. And I¡¯ll be getting it, and I won¡¯t be giving it to you. So if you try to stop me, I¡¯ll shoot you in the face.¡±


    ¡°Now look at the one changing things,¡± Mr. Bane said with a chuckle. ¡°People like you, I loathe.¡±


    ¡°You know, you sound just like my father. I think you guys are cut from the same cloth,¡± Matthew Lock said.


    ¡°No, we¡¯re not. We are not the same. We are different. And one of those differences is that I¡¯m not afraid to pull the trigger on you. I will shoot you in the face, and I willugh while I do it.¡±

 Chapter 248 - 248 Chasing After Lock

    248 Chasing After Lock


    Things were goingpletely backwards, and when I say backwards, I mean backwards.


    ¡°See,¡± Mchi said, walking a bit closer. ¡°They are just warmongers, unlike the real Mr. Lebanon. We were quick and effective, and we can still end this out sessfully. Give me the virus and antidote, and take the money on that table.¡±


    Matthew Lock looked directly at Mchi, who returned back with a hopeful gaze.


    Then Lock turned to Luthor and Mr. Bane, which Luthor Bane still had his gun pointed at him. It was like staring at death in the face.


    ¡°You know,¡± Matthew Lock said, adding a chuckle. ¡°My father always said, in certain situations, you need to back out to try again. You weren¡¯t ready the first time, but now with experience, you¡¯re bound to seed the second time. If not, the third time¡¯s the charm.¡±


    Where was he getting here?


    ¡°But in this case, you guys came unprepared with this entire volley of drama sneaking behind you, and now blowing up in your face. I can tell you this much, you had one chance and now you messed it up,¡± he said.


    He chuckled as he took a seat. ¡°You see, these guys behind me now ensure my protection. It would¡¯ve been nice to have the TSA and the ISM watching over me. But one is fine I guess. The ISM is now under my payroll.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Mr. Bane muttered.


    .....


    ¡°That¡¯s right, with this money, I made a deal with the ISM to side with me at all costs. I would continue to provide them money, and in return they will be under my wing. So as I said before, you had one chance, and now it¡¯s gone.¡±


    All of a sudden, he pulled out a gun and fired the first shot.


    Now, bullets shot through the entire room, puncturing the walls and boxes and spraying wood through the air.


    ¡°Get down!¡± September shouted, tackling me down to safety. My entire team dropped down to avoid any of the gunfire.


    ¡°What in the world just happened?!¡± Tisiah shouted, covering his head, and his voice decreased in volume from all the shots. ¡°I don¡¯t even know!¡± I shouted, feeling the spraying wood fall on me.


    I covered my face, and I could feel my heart racing, and my mind was panicking. ¡°Someone needs to grab that virus!¡± Nikki shouted. But the gunfire was too much, and anyone could end up shot and killed from any bullet. I looked around, not sure if I should do it or not. I needed to, but this was a bad time to do so.


    ¡°September!¡± I screamed. ¡°Take the virus!¡±


    September jumped to her feet, and I held my breath. She rushed over to where the briefcase was, and I closed my eyes and prayed that she didn¡¯t get shot. But suddenly, one of the ISM agents belted towards her, and crashed her to the ground. Fear shot rapidly through my veins. But then that fear melted to anger.


    Quickly, I shot up to my feet and scrambled towards her. The ISM agent noticed my presence, and immediately got up with his hands balled into fists. He was a huge man, and his muscles were bulging, and I knew that he was going to attack me.


    ¡°You¡¯re not going to kill her,¡± I growled. But the man didn¡¯t respond, and instead, threw a quick right towards my jaw. I ducked, and the punch missed me by inches. I then shot up to my feet and charged at him. He quickly blocked my attack, but I ducked under his arm and elbowed him in the stomach. I heard his ribs crack, and I hit him with a kick to his knee.


    ¡°I¡¯ll break you,¡± I growled.


    ¡°I¡¯m not afraid of you, little girl,¡± the man said as he pushed me back.


    ¡°Girl?!¡± I shouted, knowing that I was a man. ¡°I¡¯m a man, and I¡¯m not afraid of you.¡±


    I grabbed his shoulders and tried to m him to the ground, but he was too strong for me. But all of a sudden, he dropped to the floor after getting molly-whopped by September¡¯s gun. ¡°Well¡­thank you,¡± I chuckled, nodding slowly.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± September asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m okay, I think.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, September.¡± I smiled at her. ¡°You saved me, and I couldn¡¯t have done it without you.¡± She chuckled. ¡°Let¡¯s deal with these guys first, then we¡¯ll start thanking people.¡± Two guys rushed towards us at full speed, but September quickly shot two bullets, neutralizing them.


    ¡°Get down at the corner,¡± September said, pointing to the corner while iling her gun around.


    ¡°Try to use the other hand when pointing,¡± I suggested.


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll try that,¡± she said.


    ¡°And don¡¯t get yourself shot,¡± I reminded.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m just so excited to be using this gun!¡± she said.


    ¡°I know, but I¡¯m not worried about you,¡± I said. ¡°You¡¯re more careful than me.¡±


    She grinned. ¡°Get to the corner, I¡¯ll protect you.¡±


    We crouched and made our way towards the corner. September shot a few bursts of bullets, which one of them hit a guy towards the left, while the three traveled into the wall.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe how easy it is to kill someone,¡± I said, looking at the blood that covered the wall.


    ¡°You¡¯re lucky, you have a good teacher,¡± she said.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I agreed. ¡°But I¡¯m pretty sure I can learn a lot from you.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re really confident,¡± she said.


    ¡°Trust me, I¡¯m not usually like this,¡± I said. I looked to the side, seeing Mchi and Tisiah join in the fight. Nikki was still shooting at the ISM. I could see the light go off in the hallway.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± September asked.


    ¡°I think it¡¯s a bomb,¡± I replied.


    ¡°Are you kidding me?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m serious,¡± I said. ¡°It looks like a sh grenade.¡±


    ¡°Okay, well, don¡¯t move,¡± she said, her voice was low and deep. ¡°And keep your hands away from your face.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Because,¡± she said, her eyes turned to me, and she gave me a slight grin, ¡°if the grenade goes off, the force will knock you back.¡± I spoke, but no voice came out, and I just kept quiet in the end. She began to move closer to the attacking ISM spies.


    The grenade exploded, and I was blown back. Inded in a pile of bodies, and I rolled around, trying to find something to hold onto. I felt the wood p against my face, and the dust covered my entire body. I sat up, my eyes burning from the smoke, and I realized that I wasn¡¯t hurt. I saw Mchi and Tisiah running towards me, but I couldn¡¯t see the others.


    ¡°You good?¡± Mchi asked.


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± I muttered, taking hold of his hand. I rose to my feet, and took a few deep breaths. ¡°Where¡¯s Matthew?¡±


    Right then, I saw a man with two briefcases walk out of the room, and my eyes widened in shock. ¡°He¡¯s getting away!¡± I shouted. ¡°I¡¯m going after him!¡±


    ¡°No wait!¡± Mchi said, but the door was already shut, meaning his message didn¡¯t go through. I looked around, not seeing Lock in the hall, but as I turned to the right¡ªI saw a little glimpse of him over the corner.


    The opportunity was now in my hands. I quickly ran after him, but tried to stay a bit quiet so he didn¡¯t hear. I approached the corner, feeling my heart rate climb quickly, and my hands tremble in fear. Then I shot out and revealed myself, but then a bullet shot towards me. I dodged out of the way, seeing the bullet puncture the wall instead.


    I turned to see Lock now running full speed.


    I ran after him, keeping close quarters of his location. I ran as fast as I could, my heart pounding so hard that I could feel my pulse in my ears. I turned the corner, and he shot another bullet at me. This time, it hit one of the pictures that were behind me. He ran towards the elevator, in which I knew I had to get in there with him.


    It was basically a death wish, but I would lose him if he entered that elevator, and left in time. I sprinted, getting close to his position. He was about to push the button, but then I was right behind him, and he pushed it. Because of my speed, I rammed into him, pushing him against the wall. He threw me off, making me hit the wall to my right.


    I stumbled, but kept my ground. He had a look of shock on his face, and I knew that he was surprised to see me. I was panting, but my heart was beating very fast, and I knew that I was going to win this fight.


    Right then and there, he pulled out a new weapon: his wand.


    ¡°You are going to die today,¡± he said, pointing the wand at me.

 Chapter 249 - 249 A Heated Discussion

    249 A Heated Discussion


    It was purple and shaped like a lightning bolt. He pointed it at me, and I looked at the wand. I could feel my heart racing, and my mind began to panic. I could do this, I thought, but suddenly he shot a bolt of lightning at me. I quickly jumped to my feet, and dodged it, but then he shot another one. I used my speed to jump over it, and I was at the top of the elevator.


    He ran up after me, but then he shot a bolt of electricity and sent me back down. I hit the floor, and I got up to my feet. He ran towards me, and I knew that he was going to shoot at me again.


    ¡°I¡¯ll stop you!¡± I shouted, raising my wand.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think you will,¡± he said, his voice was dark. I needed to change my way of fighting. I needed to change my techinque, but how? As far as I¡¯m concerned, this guy is going to continue to shoot bolts at me until I drop dead, or this elevator shuts off and we end up going down. One or the other. Maybe his legs. If I drop him to the ground, I¡¯ll be on higher ground. Or at least the only one standing. He won¡¯t shoot so easily.


    ¡°Come here, and let me show you what I¡¯m capable of,¡± I said.


    ¡°You don¡¯t know what you¡¯re doing,¡± he said.


    ¡°I know more than you think,¡± I replied.


    He paused for a moment, and I could see the fear in his eyes. But then he smirked, and began tough. ¡°You¡¯re too weak, and you¡¯ll never defeat me,¡± he said, but then he stopped.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± I asked, and I smiled at him.


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯m notughing because you¡¯re too weak,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯mughing because I¡¯m going to kill you, and then I¡¯m going to kill your father.¡± He grinned, and I wanted to punch his teeth out. Quickly, I swung for his thighs, hoping to kill any of his stability.


    I missed, and I could see his leg swing forward. I quickly jumped to the side, and then I heard him grunt in pain. I jumped up, and then I hit him in the stomach with my wand. He dropped the two briefcases, and opportunity shone in my eyes. This was the time. I had to get it!


    I quickly snatched the briefcases and I ran for the elevator. But being that Lock wasn¡¯t far from me, he caught up to me instantly. I went into the elevator and pressed the button, but in the end, as the door closed, Lock entered. Now it was me and Lock, fighting for two briefcases. I pressed the top floor, not sure of what to do from there, but it was going to take a minute or two until we reached the top of the skyscraper.


    One or two minutes to neutralize Lock, and obtain the briefcases.


    ¡°Well, this is weird,¡± Lock said with a chuckle.


    I nodded, and silence took the roompletely. After a few seconds, suddenly, Matthew Lock swung his wand towards my neck, which I managed to stop at the slightest moment.


    ¡°You¡¯re really strong, aren¡¯t you?¡± I asked, my voice was shaky.


    ¡°You¡¯re not so tough,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ve been fighting longer than you.¡±


    I smirked, and then I threw my wand at him. But he immediately caught it, and now I was left with no wands but my hands, while he was using two wands like dual weapons. This was bad.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter who you are,¡± I said, ¡°or how much experience you have. You can¡¯t beat me.¡±


    ¡°Maybe you¡¯re right,¡± he said. ¡°But I¡¯m not going to tell you that.¡±


    Iughed, and I started to run towards him, ready to destroy him. I would get the briefcases, and I would leave him on the ground. But when I got closer, he suddenly kicked me, sending me flying across the elevator. The elevator shook, and the lights flickered before it returned back to normal. Inded on my back, and I looked up. I could see him grinning at me, and I knew that he wasn¡¯t going to give up.


    I stood up, and I grabbed my wand. I raised it, and he shot another bolt of lightning at me. I threw up my wand, holding it close to block the bolt. The bolt dispersed once it hit the wand, and I sped forward, with renewed confidence.


    I swung for his head, but missed, mostly because he dodged under it. He then tried to swing for my back, but by the side of my eye, I caught him and blocked the attack. I then got him in a choke hold, and I squeezed. I could feel his throat struggling to breathe, and I could hear his heartbeat. I held it as long as I could, but he managed to push my arms off of him.


    He then kicked my chest, raising me from the ground and into the wall, causing me to wheeze. He then turned, and shot a bolt of lightning at me. I ran to the wall, and I felt the electricity shoot past me. I jumped, and Inded on the other side.


    He ran after me, but I jumped to the left and then right. Then I swung for his head, hoping to knock him out, and maybe end this charade. But he blocked it and threw it to the side, kicking me in the leg before swinging for the finisher. He swung for my ribs, and I jumped out of the way.


    I rolled to my feet, and I turned around. He wasing for me, and I knew that he was going to shoot at me. I dodged out of the way, and I saw a chance. I ran towards him, and I jumped up and kicked him in the face. He fell, but he was still conscious. He got up, and he spat blood out of his mouth.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to make you regret this day,¡± he said.


    ¡°I¡¯m counting on it,¡± I muttered. He scrambled to his feet, and wasted no time in effecting a strike. But that strike knocked both wands out of my hands, and shock was the only thing written on my face. Itnded coincidentally by the two briefcases. We were now down to fists.


    ¡°Trust me, I¡¯m way better at handbat than you,¡± Lock said. ¡°Try me.¡±


    I looked at the numbers that depicted which floor we were at, and we were almost to the top. Thirty seconds at best.


    I punched him in the jaw, knocking him down. He fell to the ground, and I could see that he was getting back up. I needed to do something quick. I jumped at him, and I put my knee on his chest, and I grabbed his hair, and I pulled his head back. Matthew Lock grunted in pain, and eventually it worsened to a cry of pain. I pinned his face against the door.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to hurt you,¡± I said. ¡°But I will if I have to.¡±


    He looked at me, and I could see the fear in his eyes. He was a man that had lived his life without fear, and he didn¡¯t know how to deal with it.


    ¡°You should be scared,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m going to kill you.¡±


    I smirked. ¡°I know,¡± I said, ¡°but I don¡¯t think you¡¯re going to.¡±


    I pulled my wand out, and I pointed it at his face. I then touched his forehead, and he shut his eyes. I held it there for a second, and then I moved my wand to his neck. I needed a good ce to whack him and knock him out, and then take the briefcases. But all of a sudden, the door of the elevator opened to the top floor. We were in this hallway that led to the highest balcony of the skyscraper.


    But that wasn¡¯t the problem.


    The problem was Luthor Bane and some of his TSA guys that were pointing their guns at me, which was quite embarrassing because of the position I was stationed in. I wasn¡¯t going to get the briefcases, and I wasn¡¯t going to get out of this alive.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t,¡± said Luthor Bane, but I knew that I had to do something. But what? Then all of a sudden, the door to the left that was for the stairs shot open, and September and the rest of my team came to the rescue. ¡°Don¡¯t shoot, Bane,¡± September ordered, pointing her gun directly at the side of his head.


    ¡°It¡¯s over,¡± she said.


    ¡°You don¡¯t understand,¡± said Luthor. ¡°We need this virus, and you¡¯re not going to get it.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care about that,¡± she said. ¡°You¡¯re not going to kill Connor.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t have to,¡± he said. ¡°I have other ways of getting the virus.¡±


    September was taken aback, and then she smirked. ¡°You know, I really don¡¯t like your tone.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t like you,¡± he replied. ¡°I don¡¯t like your boyfriend. And I definitely don¡¯t like you.¡±


    September¡¯s expression darkened, and I could see the rage building inside of her. ¡°First of all, he ain¡¯t my boyfriend so you can stop that nonsense right now.¡±


    ¡°Ay, let¡¯s chill¡­¡± I muttered. ¡°How about we get the briefcase, you can guys get Lock. Terrible deal I know, but it¡¯s more better for me.¡±


    ¡°Who does this fool think he is?¡± one of Luthor¡¯s men asked, and Luthor chuckled.


    ¡°You¡¯re going to regret saying that,¡± I said, but I was only making an empty threat. I had nothing to do with it.


    ¡°Connor, he¡¯s going to kill you,¡± Lock said. ¡°I don¡¯t think you want that¡ª¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t ask,¡± I grunted towards Lock, trying to keep my mouth immobile. ¡°Listen, give me the briefcases right now,¡± Luthor Bane ordered. ¡°Or I¡¯ll blow his brains out.¡±


    I could feel the anger burning in my stomach, and I wanted to punch him in the face, but I managed to restrain myself. ¡°He doesn¡¯t deserve to die¡­yet,¡± I said. ¡°Let¡¯s figure out something. Because you guys are very, very, very smart people. You¡¯re the best of the best. I mean, you guys are the best of the best. You have to have some sort of n for this, right? Let me join in¡ªno us¡ªjoin in.¡±


    I pointed at September and the rest of the team, indicating their recent join. ¡°I can help you out. I¡¯m great withputers, and I¡¯m a great fighter. I could help you out. What¡¯s the harm in that?¡±


    Luthor Bane seemed to be taking that into good context, but then he cocked the gun, and clearly it showed that it backfired.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said. ¡°But I¡¯m sure that we cane to an agreement. That¡¯s all I¡¯m trying to say. Listen, I can do it, I promise. I know what I¡¯m doing.¡±


    September and the rest of my teammates looked at me with suspicion. ¡°Why would I work with the man who is about to kill the guy that holds our agency¡¯s future,¡± Luthor Bane said. ¡°It¡¯s taking a lot in me to not pop you in your skull right now.¡±


    ¡°Look, I¡¯m just saying,¡± I said, ¡°I can help you out. I¡¯m good withputers, and I¡¯m not afraid to fight. You guys are the best of the best, and you have to have a n for this, right? So let me join in. I¡¯m not trying to betray you or anything. I just want to be on the winning side, and I want to help. I want to be on the side of the good guys. I want to be on the side of justice.¡±


    ¡°Justice? There¡¯s no justice here. There¡¯s only power.¡±


    I smiled, and I shook my head. ¡°That¡¯s the spirit. Let me do it. Let me be part of the team. I can assure you, I won¡¯t mess up.¡±


    ¡°You know, I really don¡¯t think you should trust him,¡± Lock said. ¡°I don¡¯t know who he is, but he is definitely an enemy. ¡°Keep your mouth shut!¡± Mchi said, pointing his gun right at Lock¡¯s forehead. ¡°We don¡¯t need any more trouble. Just hand over the briefcase and then we will leave,¡± Luthor Bane said.


    ¡°No, you fools,¡± I said, trying to sound as convincing as possible. ¡°I¡¯m not going to hand over the case, but I¡¯ll help you out. I promise. I¡¯m good at this stuff. I¡¯ve done this a few times, so don¡¯t worry.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not doing a deal with you, nor will I let you ramble your mouth and waste my time. Hand it over, now.¡±


    I sighed, and I put my hand in the briefcase. ¡°You¡¯re just going to have to trust me.¡±


    I opened the briefcase, and I took out the virus. But all of a sudden, I felt Matthew¡¯s elbow knock me in my nose, as he sped out the elevator and towards the door. ¡°He¡¯s running!¡± Nikki shouted, and both TSA and YMPA agents chased after him. He barged through the door, and approached the edge of the roof.


    I looked at the virus, and I tried to grab it from the briefcase, but Matthew Lock was too fast. He held onto his briefcase, and he threw himself off of the roof. Surprise was drawn on each of our faces, unsure of what to even do next. He must have a n in mind, but what?


    ¡°Did he just throw himself off the roof?¡± I asked.


    ¡°He did,¡± said September. ¡°What are we going to do?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

 Chapter 250 - 250 The Next Plan

    250 The Next n


    Mchi sighed as he looked down, but then his eyes widened in shock. ¡°What?¡± I asked, making my way towards him. ¡°Uh, he isn¡¯t stted dead on the sidewalk. I think he escaped, Connor,¡± he said, slowly turning around. I sighed. Luthor Bane and his men went back inside the building, probably to get out of the scene.


    ¡°What do we do now?¡± I muttered.


    We¡¯re going to find him,¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°Where do you think he might go?¡± I asked. ¡°How could he have possibly gotten away from them?¡±


    ¡°Luthor Bane has been known toe up with a lot of different ns,¡± Mchi said. ¡°And I¡¯m sure that he knows where they¡¯ll head to look for him.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± I muttered. ¡°We need to follow Luthor Bane, and then he¡¯ll find Matthew Lock. But let¡¯s get back to the other teams and tell them what happened. Something tells me Mr. Drails is going to have a field day.¡±


    ***


    ¡°You gotta be kidding me,¡± Mr. Drails sighed. We were in the briefing room back in the YMPA, in which he was notified of the exploding failure. What a great way to put it. The entire n had gone down in mes.


    ¡°But why didn¡¯t you guys do something to stop it?¡± he asked. ¡°You guys literally have the resources to stop him. How does the TSA show up early to the deal, and suddenly everyone is against each other. Please exin that to me!¡±


    .....


    I kept my mouth shut, because he wasn¡¯t asking me, he was demanding. ¡°What n do you guys have now? Exin please,¡± he hissed. September didn¡¯t do anything, nor did anyone else. It was like they knew what I was thinking. ¡°I want a n. So far, nothing has worked. Tell me how this n will work,¡± he continued, looking at us with disgust.


    ¡°Well, we could follow Luthor Bane, and therefore, we find Matthew Lock. Luthor is aplete genius, and he knows how to do things. He probably knew that we were infiltrating the deal and sessfully stopped us in the process. It¡¯s funny how Luthor Bane was supposed to be his bodyguard, but now he¡¯s hunting him just like us. It¡¯s like a race, sort of,¡± Tisiah said, finally speaking up. I nodded in agreement, but September and the rest of my team looked defeated. And I understood. It stinks.


    ¡°You say that you are nning to follow him. Have you thought about this n at all?¡± Mr. Drails asked.


    ¡°Yes,¡± said Mchi. ¡°We¡¯re going to put a tracker on Luthor Bane. Now that means we would actively have to find him, which shouldn¡¯t be hard. We put the tracker, then we see where he is. Now the tracker connects to one of the YMPA special cameras: The HDR-07, which basically switches automatically to cameras that are near our suspect.¡±


    When he said that, I thought about it, and a light-bulb lit open inside my brain. That was the thing Greg used to keep watch on Mr. Drails. That wasn¡¯t Greg¡¯s little trick. But this, this was the real deal.


    ¡°And then we find Matthew Lock,¡± Mchi continued. ¡°He¡¯s hiding somewhere, either in an abandoned building or maybe even in some type of a hotel room. Then we¡¯ll try to convince him to give up the briefcase.¡±


    ¡°And what makes you think he will hand it over willingly?¡± Mr. Drails asked.


    ¡°We capture him. He has nowhere to go. We neutralize rogue agents in this spy mage business. He has nothing to live for, he¡¯s gonna die anyways.¡±


    The three of us stared at each other, because I understood his point, but it felt like we were taking a big risk. What if Luthor Bane captured him, and he killed him? It was a dangerous situation. But what choice did we have? I didn¡¯t want to say anything, because I really wanted to hear what the others would say.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m sure you guys cane up with something,¡± Mr. Drails sighed. ¡°At least I hope you can. Because time is running out.¡±


    ¡°Time?¡± Tisiah asked. ¡°How much time do we have left, exactly?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Mr. Drails said. He looked over at me, as if that was his problem and the only thing he needed to know.


    ¡°What about the other two agencies?¡± I asked. ¡°The ISM and the TSA. What time do they have. Why do we even have a limited time.¡±


    ¡°No, you¡¯re looking at it the wrong way,¡± he said. ¡°The TSA are going to look for him, so we have to beat them in time. If we are to win this, we must find him before the TSA. And you know, that might sound risky. But the truth is, the more we wait, the less likely we are to find him.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right about that,¡± I said. ¡°You¡¯re right about that. The question is, where is Luthor Bane. If he¡¯s not hard to find, then surely we should already know his location. Right?¡±


    I waited for their replies, but none came. I knew it was a dumb question, and I shouldn¡¯t be asking it, but Mr. Drails looked at the five of us.


    ¡°What are you thinking?¡± he asked, looking at each of us in turn. September frowned, and Mchi crossed his arms over his chest, as if deep in thought. Tisiah¡¯s eyes wandered through the entire room, before an idea clicked in his head. His eyes widened, and his mouth dropped open.


    ¡°That¡¯s it!¡± he shouted. ¡°I think there¡¯s one ce to start.¡±


    ¡°But where is it?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I have an idea, let me think it out.¡±


    He then left the room in a hurry, almost tripping over himself. He was definitely confused, but I hoped he was on the right track. I scratched my chin, then looked at Nikki, September, and Mchi. They shrugged, but Mr. Drails had a smile on his face that showed confidence and excitement. Tisiah just booked it out of the room, to do God knows what.


    ¡°We¡¯ll just wait for him,¡± Mr. Drails said. He wasn¡¯t worried at all.


    ¡°Hey, I don¡¯t know why we¡¯re sitting here, waiting,¡± said Mchi. ¡°Let¡¯s go get some coffee. There is a Starbucks in the lobby. I heard they¡¯ve got really good coffee there. Do you guys want anything?¡±


    ¡°What does any of this matter when we¡¯re waiting?¡± September asked.


    Mr. Drails sighed, clearly annoyed. ¡°Can we please just do as we were told? We¡¯re waiting for a n. There has to be a reason that we are staying here, instead of going to get coffee or something else.¡±


    Then Tisiah busted into the room, with hisptop in his hand. He went to the other side of the table, facing theptop towards us. ¡°See what¡¯s on the screen?¡±


    The screen showed a screen that showed what looked to be an abandoned building. But that¡¯s not what caught my eyes. I saw TSA and BMO vehicles parked all around the building. And two men that seemed to be right in the middle of the two cars upfront. ¡°Redford Bane, and the leader of the BMO,¡± Tisiah said. ¡°This was a few months before Dr. Mord created the virus. And guess, who¡¯s there.¡±


    ¡°Dr. Mord. But didn¡¯t we kill him already?¡± I asked.


    ¡°No, he¡¯s at a YMPA prison all the way in ska,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°I can question him, and tell him to call Luthor Bane. We put a tracker on him right there, and now while he¡¯s searching for Matthew Lock, we anonymously follow behind him. He won¡¯t even see iting.¡±


    ¡°And then we find him?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yeah, that should be easy enough.¡±


    ¡°Just like that? It¡¯s done?¡± I asked, skeptically.


    ¡°That¡¯s not how this works. You know that, Connor. I don¡¯t think you understand itpletely. So just leave it alone. I¡¯m sure that if you listen to what Mchi has said, then we¡¯ll seed.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± I said, because I did.


    ¡°Now do you understand?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Mr. Drails closed his eyes and took a deep breath. That was his signal that he was thinking things through. A smile formed on his face, and he turned to look at me. ¡°Well, I think we¡¯ll start tomorrow. But I want you guys to get some rest tonight,¡± he said.


    It was obvious that he had something nned, and I knew from experience that he wouldn¡¯t just blurt out what it was. We could probably use some rest, too. I nodded, and the others followed suit. ¡°Okay, thanks,¡± said Tisiah. ¡°You guys want to meet upter for coffee or something, just to talk about how tomorrow will go?¡±


    ¡°Which time?¡± I asked, looking at my watch.


    ¡°There are three coffee ces in the lobby, which one would you prefer?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t drink coffee,¡± I lied. I very much enjoy coffee, but Mom seems to be really against it for me. Maybe it¡¯s just a bad habit, like biting my nails, something to break. Either way, I have a hard time finding someone to make the drinks for me. And my mom always scolds me when I buy them. ¡°What do you suggest?¡±


    He looked at the screen of myptop, then shook his head, as if he were confused. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Why don¡¯t we all meet up at ten o¡¯clock in the morning?¡± I asked. ¡°Tomorrow is a Saturday.¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    ¡°Good, that¡¯s fine with me. And what are your ns for the night? I might be going to the library to take a few courses, so I¡¯ll be busy. But I guess you cane with me. I¡¯m thinking about starting a little research of my own.¡±


    ¡°Oh, that sounds interesting. What kind of research are you doing?¡±


    I told him that I wanted to focus on the YMPA, and the world around it. ¡°To begin with,¡± I added.


    Tisiah seemed pretty excited about that. ¡°I¡¯ve been interested in this subject too, actually. I mean, it¡¯s really important, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s mostly for Mr. Robbs ss,¡± I muttered with a chuckle.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s how I feel, Connor. You should really try to do a great job on that assignment. It can really help you on a project you do.¡±

 Chapter 251 - 251 The Continuous Plan

    251 The Continuous n


    As I was heading out to the front door of the YMPA to go home, my phone rang immediately. That could be none other than Greg.


    What was he calling me for?


    I answered the phone, anxious about what¡¯s happening. ¡°Hey Greg, what¡¯s the problem?¡± I asked. Greg sighed before he spoke. ¡°Remember that drive that was inside the blue box? It¡¯s been shipped somewhere else, so we have no clue of its location.¡±


    ¡°What does that mean?¡±


    ¡°That means we can¡¯t do anything, and we still do¡ª¡±


    ¡°Nothing,¡± me and Greg finished together. ¡°So what else?¡±


    ¡°I want to see how you guys are doing in the Matthew Lock case.¡±


    ¡°Terrible, to be frank with you,¡± I said. ¡°Matthew Lock was doing the deal, and we had it in the bag until the actual TSA decided to show up early to the scene.¡±


    ¡°Well, what¡¯s your n now?¡± Greg asked. I sighed, gritting my teeth before answering. ¡°Follow Luthor Bane so that he can find Matthew Lock, and then we capture Lock and leave the TSA hanging.¡±


    .....


    ¡°That¡¯s pretty smart. How are you guys going to find him?¡±


    ¡°Ask Dr. Mord. Maybe he can tell us some sort of schedule that Luthor Bane is usually at or something like that,¡± I said.


    ¡°A bit of a w in your n,¡± Greg said. ¡°We spies know not to make a pattern in our lives, because eventually someone will know.¡±


    ¡°I guess that makes sense,¡± I said. ¡°But he would have guys to protect him.¡±


    ¡°Then we would bring even more guys,¡± Greg said. ¡°We have to be very vignt on his location, because he definitely must be changing locations. Invite all the others over, and we talk about a n.¡±


    ¡°When you say others, do you mean?¨C¡±


    ¡°Yes, Nikki, Tisiah, and even that mean dude, Mchi.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s not mean.¡±


    ¡°He was mean, though,¡± Greg added. ¡°Last time I remember, he knocked you upside your head a few months ago.¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, okay?¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯ll call up the others, alright? Where are we meeting?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s a diner that closes at eight, but I usually get a bit of extra time because I¡¯m such friends with the owner. Usually he¡¯s in his office counting the money he gathered after that day, so the day is just for us.¡±


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± I muttered. ¡°But they all live in different ces, right?¡±


    ¡°Who told you that you wereing back to California? I¡¯ll meet you in Maine,¡± Greg said.


    ¡°How do you know a man from across the US?¡±


    ¡°Missions, missions,¡± Greg responded before he shut off the call. I sighed.


    ***


    I went to the local diner that was apparently near to here, although it took thirty minutes to walk. I told Mr. Drails I would not be leaving yet, in which he allowed me. Hopefully, the others convinced him.


    I approached the diner, which had big red letters upfront that said: BIG-AL¡¯s DINER.


    Not sure why he called himself big, but whatever, I guess.


    I walked in, and the ce was pretty checkered, if you could say it like that.


    The floors were checkered red and white, but the walls were just pure white. The counter was red; the tools were red, and I mean, everything was red¨Cin fact¨Cthe tables were red.


    I saw Greg at the corner table, and as I got closer, I noticed the other three. September was sitting next to Tisiah, who had a te full of fries in front of him. Nikki was sitting in between the two of them, with her mouth wide open as she stared at the te. I knew that look. She was drooling at the sight of the food.


    Mchi was at the end, whose eyes lit up once he saw me. ¡°Well, man of the hour,¡± he said with a chuckle.


    ¡°I thought I would be the one to say that,¡± I replied. He chuckled again. I sat down and looked at Greg, who in return looked at everyone. ¡°Now, if you guys are going to find Luthor Bane, you can¡¯t find him in a pattern. We spies know not to make patterns because someone will catch on. So what¡¯s your n?¡±


    ¡°I already told you, follow him and wait for the perfect opportunity,¡± I said. ¡°I also don¡¯t think that you can trust Luthor Bane.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t know about that. We can¡¯t really trust anyone, Connor.¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s true.¡±


    ¡°What I was thinking was that we use Dr. Mord to bait him. Make him create a meeting with Luthor Bane, and therefore, we get him and put the tracker on his back. Simple as that to be honest,¡± Greg said with a chuckle.


    ¡°Never thought about that,¡± September said.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure we can use that idea,¡± I said, while I nodded at Greg. ¡°I¡¯m not sure about using Luthor Bane.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Tisiah?¡± I asked.


    ¡°He¡¯ll be joining us soon,¡± she said. ¡°As you were saying?¡± I nodded. ¡°Luthor Bane might find out. We can¡¯t put it on his bare neck because he¡¯ll know, and we can¡¯t put it on his suit because I doubt he¡¯s wearing the same suit.¡±


    ¡°But he does wear the same utility belt,¡± Greg said, which realization arrived in my mind.


    ¡°So what?¡± I asked. ¡°We don¡¯t need to track the belt, we only need to track the person wearing it.¡±


    ¡°How would we do that?¡± Mchi asked.


    ¡°We just have to have a way to identify him.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I know,¡± Greg spoke up. ¡°I have a way to do that, but it¡¯s not for long.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± we all asked, our heads facing him. ¡°Can you please borate?¡±


    ¡°I was thinking of something simr to a dog whistle. Something that would be hard to hear but not to see, and be able to tell who it is.¡±


    ¡°What kind of sound is that?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure, but I¡¯ve read about it somewhere.¡±


    ¡°You want to tell us?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s an electronic sound.¡±


    ¡°What is?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I¡¯ve seen it on a TV show, and it was something like a very high pitch,¡± Greg exined. I nodded. ¡°And how is that going to be useful to put the tracker on Luthor Bane exactly?¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll be able to listen to that sound, and if I find that sound, I¡¯ll be able to tell who is speaking.¡±


    ¡°And by doing that, we can find Luthor Bane, put the tracker on his belt and then¡ªwe exit the scene. But how are we going to put it on his belt at the fake meet?¡± I asked.


    ¡°We can just put it on the inside of the pocket, or even the inside of the back of the pants. There are a lot of ces to hide things here,¡± Greg said, pointing at his body.


    ¡°Yeah, but we don¡¯t want to do it too many times. It can be found and then he¡¯ll know we¡¯re following him,¡± I said. ¡°We can¡¯t put it on his pants because he doesn¡¯t wear the same pants everyday. Should we knock him out and put it on his utility belt?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯d be much easier to take him out,¡± Greg said. ¡°If we can just get close to him, we can just shoot him.¡±


    ¡°Whoa, slow down. Let¡¯s just hit him with a gun, how about that,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°Not good enough. If he finds out that we are using a weapon, he won¡¯t trust us anymore.¡±


    ¡°We can still shoot him,¡± I said. ¡°Just with a dart instead.¡±


    ¡°Ahhh,¡± everyone agreed simultaneously, as if the thought finally entered their brains. Can¡¯t me them though. We all needed to breathe, and this was a new n.


    ¡°We¡¯ll have toe up with something to keep him quiet when we approach him, because he would definitely notice a gunshot. But what?!¡± I said.


    ¡°We can tie him up and gag him. That should do the trick. And then we put the tracker on his belt and left,¡± September suggested. ¡°Then we use the dart to make him sleep and forget.¡±


    ¡°Ahhh,¡± everyone agreed simultaneously, as the thought finally entered our brains. Can¡¯t me us though. But we all didn¡¯t need to breathe though.


    ¡°That¡¯s not going to work,¡± I said. ¡°He will realize that we are trying to set him up.¡±


    ¡°Then what do we do?¡± Greg asked.


    ¡°We need to find some way to get close to him without him noticing. Maybe a distraction, but that doesn¡¯t seem possible right now,¡± I said. ¡°Should we make a car blow up?¡±


    ¡°No, he¡¯ll notice that. But what if we have someone dress as a bomb? He¡¯ll go and check it out, and then we can just take him out.¡±


    ¡°How would we do that?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Well, I was thinking of just having a bomb strapped to a guy. He¡¯ll be wearing a suit, so it will be hard to spot,¡± Greg said. ¡°Luthor Bane will notice him, we will knock him out, put it on his belt, and then shoot him with a dart gun.¡±


    ¡°Ahhh,¡± everyone agreed simultaneously, as the thought finally entered our brains. Can¡¯t me us though, this was a new n. We all needed to breathe, but it was a n.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think it will work, but let¡¯s give it a try.¡±


    ¡°How will we make sure he¡¯s the right person?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Well, the easiest thing to do is to get a picture of him, and then see if it¡¯s the right person.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t have a camera,¡± I said. ¡°Do you want us to use our phones?¡±


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± Greg said. ¡°But I think we should just use myptop.¡±


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s a great idea. Just have someone walk around with aptop,¡± Nikki said sarcastically.


    ¡°Why is that a bad idea?¡± Greg asked.


    .....


    ¡°Because people might get suspicious if they see a guy with aptop walking around.¡±


    ¡°But we¡¯ll be in disguise.¡±


    ¡°But no one brings aptop around!¡± Nikki said. ¡°Come on, just use our phones. We can just use the phone, since it looks a whole lot farther than aptop.¡±


    ¡°Ahhh¡ª¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s enough guys,¡± September said. ¡°We can¡¯t argue over every little thing. We have to decide on the n. That¡¯s the only way to seed.¡±


    ¡°I agree with September,¡± I said. ¡°We all know the n, right? Let me exin. 1. We find where Luthor Bane is. 2. We wait for a time where he isn¡¯t busy. 3. We follow him. 4. We follow him until we get a chance to nt the tracker. 5. We make a distraction by making a guy reveal the fake bomb. 6. We knock Luthor Bane out, put the tracker on him, and then we knock him out with a dart.¡±


    ¡°Ahhh,¡± we all said together. That was now finished in our brains, and this time there was no one to me. This was a foolproof n.


    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s the n. I¡¯m sure that we¡¯ll figure something out, but for now, we need to find Luthor Bane. He¡¯ll lead us to Matthew Lock, and we can make this happen. Oh, and for the record, I¡¯m not sure that we should do this, but we have to do something. I¡¯m tired of sitting here, and we can¡¯t sit around any longer.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m with you, Connor. Let¡¯s do this,¡± Greg said, as he stood up and stretched.


    ¡°Wait, what are you doing?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°Getting something to eat then going home. My behind is killing me. I¡¯ve been sitting here for hours, and I can¡¯t sit on my behind any longer.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re just going to leave?¡± September asked.


    Greg and I nodded. ¡°You have our number, just call us when you need it. Don¡¯t worry about it, just do what you have to do,¡± I said.


    ¡°Okay. We¡¯ll just do what we have to do,¡± Greg said. ¡°I¡¯m going to go get something to eat.¡±


    ¡°Good luck, brother,¡± I said, as he left.


    ¡°He seems nice,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°He is,¡± I said, before leaving the diner.


    I walked down the street, thinking about how the n would work out.


    I didn¡¯t like it. It would work, but I wasn¡¯t sure that it was the right way to do it.

 Chapter 252 - 252 Meeting Dr. Mord

    252 Meeting Dr. Mord


    The next day, after school, I went up to the briefing room, still feeling a bit unsure about this whole idea. It would¡¯ve been great if Greg was here, but you know, he¡¯s more of that FMA stuff.


    As I was heading up the stairs, Mchi and September joined me, and soon enough Tisiah and Nikki came from the right.


    We entered the room, immediately catching Mr. Drails¡¯s attention.


    ¡°You know, you could¡¯ve knocked,¡± he said. ¡°Oh well,e in.¡±


    We sat down, as heid back, taking off his sses. ¡°Alright, what¡¯s the problem?¡± he asked, scanning all of us.


    ¡°Not much of a problem, but more of a solution,¡± Mchi said with a chuckle, which Mr. Drails leaned in now with interest. ¡°Solution?¡±


    ¡°We found a way to put a tracker on Luthor Bane, which will require someone that is kind of in prison,¡± I said. ¡°Not that we¡¯re doing a prison break.¡±


    ¡°What¨Cwhat¡­what?¡± Mr. Drails asked, shaking his head in confusion. ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°Dr. Mord,¡± September finally finished. We all nodded, as if we were dominoes falling after each other.


    .....


    ¡°You want me to release him? For what?¡± he asked, his eyes squinted in more confusion.


    ¡°We want him to set up a meeting with Luthor Bane, as Tisiah showed you a picture a few months before Dr. Mord created the virus.¡±


    ¡°You want to create a meeting that¡¯s fake, so that you could put the tracker on him. How?¡± Mr. Drails asked, his eyes widened.


    ¡°Well, we first need to set up the meeting and find Luthor Bane. Then we follow him enough to where he doesn¡¯t expose us. Then we make a distraction, and then knock him down, put the tracker on, then shoot him with a dart gun so that he doesn¡¯t remember that recent turn of events,¡± I said, crossing my arms.


    ¡°Well, sheesh,¡± he said, chuckling nervously. ¡°It¡¯s an interesting idea, no doubt about that.¡±


    ¡°So, what should we do, or actually, when should we do it?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°Now.¡±


    ¡°Whoa,¡± Tisiah said with widened eyes,ying back rapidly after the abruptment. Mr. Drails nodded, organizing his papers. ¡°Yep, get ready, I will teleport you guys there once you guys are done.¡±


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± I muttered.


    ¡°Go, go!¡± he said, motioning us out the door. We exited, and I found myself a bit dumbfounded. Now? We just got here! He really wants us to find this virus quick and fast. And we aren¡¯t even catching the man holding the virus, we¡¯re just tracking the man that¡¯s going to lead us to him.


    We went into the barracks, as September sighed. ¡°Didn¡¯t want to see Dr. Mord again,¡± she said, opening her locker.


    ¡°I certainly don¡¯t,¡± I said, taking deep breaths to calm myself. ¡°I still have trauma because of him, but mostly Rocke.¡±


    ¡°You have trauma, I cry every night because he and his dumb BMO spies kidnapped me, and chained me. They lowered the oxygen considerably to the point it was like lifting weights just to breathe,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°Good point,¡± I said.


    ¡°It was a miracle you saved me,¡± she said, smiling at me and touching my arms.


    ¡°And we¡¯re still gonna have to meet him nheless, because we have a virus to go after,¡± September said. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    We walked out of the barracks, heading up the stairs and back into the briefing room. It probably took ten minutes, being that he looked deeply invested into his papers.


    ¡°You guys ready?¡± he asked, not looking at us.


    ¡°Yes, sir,¡± we all said in unison. Mr. Drails nodded, reaching for his wand, before he moved it in a circr motion. It opened under us, dropping us not onto the ground¨Cno¨Cbut in the water!


    Not really in the water, we dropped into a boat, like this big boat that was more like a cargo ship and in fact, probably was a cargo ship.


    ¡°Whoa¡­¡± Mchi muttered, grunting as he rose to his feet. The sky was foggy, as if the stratosphere was only just gray clouds and rain. The water was clear¨Cwell, more gray than clear. It smelled like rain and fish, and the climate was freezing cold.


    It felt like Antarctica, although the ce looked more humid than dry. ¡°Is this ska?¡± September asked. ¡°ska is kind of wylin¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Tell me about it,¡± Tisiah said.


    He looked ahead, and his mouth opened with shock, as a big huge figure of a prison revealed through the silver clouds.


    It had to be ny feet tall, because that thing soared through the sky. I couldn¡¯t even calcte how wide it was, because of the sections of buildings beside and behind and in front of one another. It was a giant, ugly prison, made of metal, and it was easily over a thousand feet wide.


    There was a square building, which was probably the guard tower. It was not a small thing, but it was smaller than the prison.


    There were two other buildings besides the main one, one to the right and one to the left.


    Then the boat stopped, and the door ahead that led to the inside of the ship opened, in which a YMPA sailor took a nce at us. He didn¡¯t say anything, we were YMPA agents, so thank goodness. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get inside the prison, and then find Dr. Mord,¡± September suggested.


    ¡°How do you know where he is?¡± I asked.


    ¡°We¡¯ve got people who are very good at getting information from people,¡± September said, smirking. ¡°It¡¯s not hard to find out.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said, nodding. ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯d rather not get in a fight with anyone,¡± Mchi said, looking around. ¡°Or start a prison break by any chance.¡±


    ¡°No, we¡¯re not breaking anyone out. That¡¯s not our job. We¡¯re just going to get the information that we need to find this Matthew Lock guy, and then we¡¯ll go home,¡± September said, rubbing the top of her head. She turned to the side, and saw adder, which was there for some reason. It was descending down to the gray sand, in which she took a deep breath. ¡°Alright guys, follow me,¡± she said. She dropped down thedder,nding on the sand that was in front of the prison. ¡°This way.¡±


    ¡°Wow,¡± Tisiah said, sliding off the boat and following September. ¡°You can do this, right?¡±


    ¡°Of course I can!¡± she said, jogging towards the gate of the prison. The guard shot a look at me, in which I spread my jacket, showing my yellow utility belt. He nodded. ¡°Oh, well, I guess we¡¯ll go in, then,¡± she said, opening the door. ¡°What are you doing? Hurry up, the door is open.¡±


    I was standing in front of the door, but I didn¡¯t move. I was frozen, but I wasn¡¯t frozen. I just wanted to make sure that I was prepared. I entered, and the rest followed after me and September. We entered inside, and we were led to arge hall of a cafeteria. Tables were scattered through the floor, and there were two people in the room.


    The first person was a guard, a middle-aged man, who had a mustache, a bald head, a dark green uniform and a gun on his hip. He had a yellow utility belt, which if you didn¡¯t catch it the first time, shows you¡¯re a YMPA agent. The other person was a woman, who was a red-head with freckles across her nose and cheeks.


    She wore a brown coat, and her hair was tied up in a ponytail, as she was looking at me with a confused expression. She seemed like a person to approach, instead of that guy that seemed like he was going to beat me up with his baton and roll me into a burrito.


    The woman stood up from the table, and I noticed a scar on her left shoulder. She was dressed in a white shirt with a blue tie, and her jeans were blue. Her name tag said Jennifer, though I don¡¯t know what herst name is.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to need you to step away from the table,¡± the woman said, pointing her finger at me. ¡°I don¡¯t want you to make me break your face. I mean, I would, but I don¡¯t want to. So just stay back and let me talk to them.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s going on here? What are you guys doing in my facility?¡± the man said, his eyes widened.


    ¡°Well, we are just, you know, doing our job,¡± September said, as she ced her hand on the woman¡¯s shoulder. ¡°We need to talk to someone, specifically. Dr. Jacob Mord. He was transported here as a prisoner, and not actually killed for some reason.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a lot to take in,¡± the man said. ¡°Are you guys telling the truth?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, we are. Just let us talk to him,¡± September said, as she rolled her eyes. ¡°Look, we don¡¯t have a lot of time. If he was moved, then he might have been moved to the cells. Now, I¡¯m going to need you to open up the cell block and then call Dr. Mord out. We need to ask him a few questions.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s going to happen,¡± the guard said, shaking his head.


    ¡°We have orders from Mr¡ªor in your case¡ªCaptain Drails to do so. Don¡¯t start this nonsense with me,¡± September said, her eyes striking at the man¡¯s soul. His eyes trembled, and he leaned back a bit, startled and unsure of what to do, only then to listen to her demands.


    He moved to the other side of the room, and he opened a door, leading to a staircase. Then he stepped back, and I saw a hallway with several doors.


    September walked to the other end of the room, and we followed behind her. She opened a door, and there was a single man with sses sitting at a desk. He had a skull ring, and he had white hair just flowed, or more roughed, down to his shoulders. He had not cut his hair since he was captured.


    ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Dr. Mord,¡± he said, smiling. ¡°Can I help you?¡±


    ¡°Yes, you can,¡± September said, smirking. He recognized her face, then immediately leaned to see mine, and all of a sudden, hate rejoined him. ¡°You,¡± he said, looking straight at me with a fire in his eyes that already burned me into ash.

 Chapter 253 - 253 The Setup

    253 The Setup


    A few minutes passed, or more so an hour passed. I was in my room, scrolling on my phone, because I had nothing else better to do.


    It was lunch time, so I had to do something.


    The orange light from the sun poured inside my room, emitting light throughout the entire ce. It was cool, and it actually looked nice, aesthetically sort of.


    I heard a knock on my door, which I wasn¡¯t sure who, but I wasn¡¯t exactly excited to see who.


    I opened the door, and I saw Nikki right in front of me. ¡°Hi, Connor,¡± she said, smiling a bit. ¡°It¡¯s been a bit of a while since we actually talked with one another.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    She sighed, and she walked inside of the room. ¡°Listen, these past few days we haven¡¯t really been focusing on us as actual friends.¡±


    ¡°Friends?¡±


    ¡°Friends, somewhat,¡± she said. ¡°I miss you.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Well, some things have been happening a lot I guess,¡± I said. ¡°Do you think now¡¯s a good time to talk?¡±


    ¡°No, definitely not.¡±


    That was very unexpected. You usually don¡¯t start talking about making time, and then when someone offers you too, that wasn¡¯t the point anyways.


    ¡°What are you here for then?¡±


    ¡°Dr. Mord is giving us the location. He just met with him, somehow after an hour and thirty. Come,¡± she said, leaping off the bed.


    I muttered, confused about what to say, which in the end, I sighed and followed after her.


    We went back into the briefing room, and the next thing you know, a giant screen which presented a live video of Dr. Mord met my eyes.


    He was a bit too close to the camera, so hopefully I can keep my serious face on and not start snorting inughter.


    ¡°Alright guys, sit down, because something major has just urred,¡± Mr. Drails said, before turning his chair around to face the screen.


    ¡°So you said you got the location?¡± Mr. Drails asked.


    ¡°You¡¯d be correct,¡± he said. ¡°I got it.¡±


    ¡°So where did you set up the location?¡± I asked, very interested.


    ¡°It¡¯s somewhere that I used to meet with the TSA. Not the ce before I made the virus, but the usual ce. It¡¯s a park called Winston Trail and based on my location, it¡¯s thirty minutes from here.¡±


    ¡°Where are you at?¡± Mr. Drails asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m actually in this old cabin not close to there. I called up one of my buddies¨Cwho is not in the BMO, just as a little disimer¨Cwho was just leaving this cabin. He was on here for a trip, and I knew this because¡­never-mind¡­anyway, just head to this street: 2100 North 5th Avenue, apartment 721. I will be waiting there for a few hours, but make sure you bring plenty of supplies and backup. If it gets hairy, I won¡¯t be able to help you,¡± he said.


    ¡°Did you contract the BMO to be here?¡± Mr. Drails asked.


    ¡°Yes, but they¡¯ll be here, from veryte. They aren¡¯t too far, but they¡¯ll be here prettyte,¡± he said. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll be waiting.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll be there,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Good luck.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± September added.


    ¡°Good luck,¡± I repeated.


    Mr. Drails then turned his chair around again, facing the screen. ¡°Alright guys, I¡¯m going to go over the n. I don¡¯t know how long this meeting is going to take, so we¡¯re going to split up into two groups. One group is going to be the actual team, and the other is going to be the support team.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said. ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°Mchi, September and Tisiah will be the main team, whereas Connor and Nikki will provide support. Make sure that no one actually dies in this, probably except Luthor Bane with the dart gun¡­okay? Now, I know it¡¯s hard to tell when the meeting is going to start, but we should be fine. We¡¯re not going to need any backup at this point. This is a reconnaissance mission, so we¡¯re only going to be observing. The meeting should be at the usual ce, so I¡¯m going to assume that it¡¯s there, so let¡¯s do this. Get your weapons ready, and we¡¯ll be there at the first minute.¡±


    ***


    We were close to the Winston Trail park, which was empty with no soul in sight. We were teleported, or at least transported in a portal to the location, and the first thing I saw was the emptiness of the road. It was as if a pandemic happened, which it will soon be if we don¡¯t stop Matthew Lock.


    ¡°Goodness sakes, this ce is deserted. No wonder he chose this ce,¡± Mchi said, sniffing carefully. ¡°I hope this isn¡¯t some radioactive area.¡±


    ¡°Why would it be?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. It could have been a nuclear war zone, I suppose.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s just a park,¡± I said. ¡°And it¡¯s best that¡¯s silent. Come on, let¡¯s take our ces. We don¡¯t want to mess this up.¡±


    We took our positions. I was the one to look into the distance, where I could see the field of trees. I was in the back of the group, with Nikki behind me. I felt like a sniper, but I wasn¡¯t. I was the one who would have to provide support for the others if anything went wrong.


    As we cleared through the trees, I saw a gathering of BMO vehicles, and Dr. Mord there. There was a guy behind a few meat shields of BMO spies, with this vest with ck-strapped boxes attached to it. The fake bomb. We were not super close, in fact, we were on a hill behind the border of the park.


    ¡°I think we¡¯re good,¡± Nikki said. She was in the middle of our group, just beside me.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see soon enough,¡± I said. I got the radio, and dialed the right number, before connecting to his channel. I spoke through it, hoping I wasn¡¯t too loud. ¡°We¡¯re here, when will the TSA arrive?¡±


    ¡°Depends,¡± he muttered. ¡°I told you that they¡¯d be here, and they are, but not immediately. I can¡¯t say how long they¡¯re going to be.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said. ¡°We¡¯ll wait.¡±


    I knew what I was doing. I wasn¡¯t the one who would be going inside. I was just the one providing support and watching the whole situation.


    ¡°Hey, Connor,¡± Nikki said, making me snap back. I wasn¡¯t paying attention to where I was.


    ¡°Oh, sorry. What did you say?¡±


    ¡°Nothing, I just wanted to talk to you for a bit. I haven¡¯t talked to you in a while, and I feel like we should.¡±


    ¡°So now¡¯s the best time?¡± I asked. She shrugged. ¡°We aren¡¯t rushing exactly, just saying.¡±


    ¡°Well, you never know. It¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve talked to anyone, and I wanted to get away from this whole situation.¡±


    ¡°Okay, yeah. You¡¯re right. Let¡¯s just chill out, though. We can do that.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m actually hanging out with you,¡± she said, smiling.


    ¡°Well, I can¡¯t believe it either,¡± I replied. ¡°I¡¯m usually the loner, and you¡¯re the social butterfly.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, well, maybe that was before.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I guess that I¡¯m changing. I don¡¯t want to be alone anymore. I don¡¯t want to just sit and do nothing, because that¡¯s how I was before, but I¡¯m not that person anymore.¡±


    ¡°Or maybe you don¡¯t have the choice to be alone. Maybe, all this has made you more¡­confident,¡± she said. I leaned back my neck, and turned to look at her. ¡°Confident? Were you just calling me a wimp just now?¡± I asked, which I was a bit offended by her.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t mean it like that. I was just thinking that maybe you just became confident in yourself, and that¡¯s why you¡¯re acting this way.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure about that,¡± I said. ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the reason. I just felt like I had to act differently, and it¡¯s just something I did.¡±


    ¡°And look at how it worked out. I think dealing with Demetrius Rocke changed youpletely. Just how much he tried to kill you messed you uppletely,¡± Nikki said. ¡°Or upgrade youpletely in this case. So you can¡¯t deny that something has changed you.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guess so. But I¡¯m still the same person,¡± I said.


    ¡°Well, I think it¡¯s good that you are.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°Yes. I¡¯m d you¡¯re different than you were before. You can be whatever you want to be. I think you¡¯ll be great at whatever you choose to be.¡± I shot a smile at her. Just seeing her smile made my heart flutter in adoration. ¡°I guess,¡± I said.


    But then the radio decided to disturb the moment, as Dr. Mord announced, ¡°The TSA is here. Luthor Bane has just arrived.¡±


    ¡°Wait what?¡± I asked, quickly getting my binocrs. I rested them on my eyes, zooming in closer to see another gathering of vehicles, except it was on the opposite side of them. They were facing each other. TSA spies poured out of the vehicle.


    ¡°So, we have two groups,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°That¡¯s not even the main group,¡± I said.


    ¡°No, but it¡¯s still a lot.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a good sign,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Anyone got sight of this?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I responded. ¡°There are two groups of spies, and they¡¯re facing each other. There are four people in the first group, and they¡¯re looking around, but I don¡¯t know if they¡¯re scoping us out or what.¡±


    The BMO vehicles were almost staring at the TSA vehicles, just like the spies that were exiting their vehicles.


    ¡°They¡¯re definitely scoping us out,¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°Maybe we should just start moving,¡± I said. ¡°If they find us, then we¡¯re screwed.¡±


    ¡°Stay still, it¡¯s going to be fine,¡± Mchi said. Then, the man of the hour exited his vehicle, and Dr. Mord approached him. ¡°Hello, Luthor Bane. You clearly know that we¡¯ve met before, correct? Well, I¡¯m d to see that you¡¯ve brought some friends with you.¡±


    ¡°I guess so,¡± he replied.


    ¡°Well, we¡¯re going to start the meeting, so make sure that your team is ready.¡±

 Chapter 254 - 254 The Meeting

    254 The Meeting


    Both teams cocked their weapons, signaling for the meeting to begin.


    ¡°First things first,¡± Luthor Bane said immediately. ¡°How in the world did you manage to escape the YMPA prison? That¡¯s quite unbelievable.¡±


    ¡°Well, I won¡¯t say it¡¯s luck,¡± Dr. Mord said.


    ¡°I guess. You were always known to be the crazy one, just like your sister,¡± Luthor Bane chuckled.


    ¡°Not crazy¨Cdetermined,¡± Dr. Mord corrected, but Luthor Bane just shook his head and chuckled. ¡°Perhaps.¡±


    ¡°Now, how are things going with my baby virus?¡± Dr. Mord asked. ¡°You guys have it correct?¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± Luthor Bane breathed. ¡°That¡¯s a long story on its own.¡±


    ¡°Pardon me?¡± Dr. Mord said, his eyes widening.


    ¡°We were doing the meet at Saudi Arabia, and the next thing you know, those dumb YMPA spies decided to arrive first. Everything just dissolved into chaos at that point.¡±


    .....


    ¡°When you say those YMPA spies, do you mean?¡±


    ¡°The ones that killed Rocke, and in fact, your sister. Those same people that got you in that prison,¡± Luthor Bane hissed. Dr. Mord¡¯s face wrinkled into anger, which was ironic because we were working with him right now.


    ¡°Someone¡¯s gotta kill those kids.¡±


    ¡°Yes, we have some guys searching for them. But they can hide, and I can tell you that much,¡± Luthor Bane said. ¡°Anyways, we had to go after Matthew Lock after he decided to bail and take the ISM into his own hands. He jumped off the roof.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s dead?¡±


    ¡°I highly doubt it,¡± Luthor Bane said. ¡°He had two briefcases, one with the Cobra virus and antidote. The other had our money of five hundred million that he took for free basically.¡±


    ¡°Do you have any leads?¡± Dr. Mord asked. Luthor Bane chuckled. ¡°What kind of person am I without a lead? I can search for anyone.¡±


    ¡°What about those kids?¡±


    ¡°I never said I didn¡¯t know they were, but they¡¯re good hiders. But there¡¯s only five of them and the whole TSA on their backs.¡±


    ¡°Well they still have the YMPA though,¡± Dr. Mord said. ¡°They are literally YMPA agents.¡±


    ¡°The YMPA is a bunch of fishes that have a lot of money. They don¡¯t think or remember anything, but yet they have all these resources. They would care less about five kids.¡±


    My heart was beating rapidly the more he continued speaking, and I felt like it was going to burst into pieces any second now on.


    They¡¯re searching for us?


    He thinks the YMPA are a bunch of fishes?


    Fear wasn¡¯t even coursing through my body, but it was anger boiling inside of me. I felt like running over there, and shooting him myself, and not even with no dart gun¨Cbut with an actual bullet or bolt. In fact I would destroy him once I activated my Perk. I would disintegrate his face, watch! But I needed to keep my cool, because this was for the better of the world, including myself.


    ¡°So what should we do then?¡± Luthor Bane asked.


    Then all of a sudden, my radio was switched on, and Dr. Mord¡¯s voice projected through the radio.


    ¡°Well, there are many things we could do. But one thing¡¯s for sure, this can end up blowing into a ball of fire.¡±


    That was the que.


    Dr. Mord shifted out of the way, revealing the BMO agent with the fake bomb. ¡°Bomb!¡± a TSA agent shouted. Everyone¡¯s eyes shifted to the agents, and wands were brought up from all directions.


    ¡°Get down!¡± Dr. Mord yelled, and everyone started to drop to the ground. Then the sound of explosions and screams of pain filled the air. ¡°Go, go go!¡± Mchi shouted through the radio, as he, September and Nikki shot down the hill. I quickly got up, and ran with them, while Tisiah and Mchi followed behind us. I could see a TSA agent take cover behind one of the vehicles, shooting bolts as he did. ¡°Mchi!¡± I yelled, and he turned to look at me. I pointed at the vehicle, and he nodded, turning to look at Tisiah.


    ¡°Connor,e with me. We¡¯re going for Luthor Bane,¡± he said. I nodded, as we continued to run down the hill. We were now in the thick of the battlefield, where bolts shot past us every second. ¡°Get down!¡± Mchi shouted, as we dove down to the ground. ¡°Stay low.¡± I looked back at him, and he shot another bolt, and then turned to look at me. ¡°Stay low. Now let¡¯s go.¡± I nodded, and we started to move forward again.


    Suddenly, a bolt shot through the trees above us, and I saw a woman¡¯s body fall to the ground.


    My heart skipped a beat once she hit the ground, and my eyes widened in shock as I looked at her lifeless face. ¡°C¡¯mon, let¡¯s move!¡± he said, pulling me by my hand and dragging me away from the body. ¡°Where¡¯s Connor?¡± I heard the familiar voice of September, and we ran to the left, and then we ducked down, as another bolt was shot at us.


    ¡°I¡¯m right here!¡± I said on the radio. ¡°Is there a problem?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re still alive?¡± September said.


    ¡°Yeah, why?¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± she said. ¡°Let¡¯s keep it that way. What are you guys doing?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re trying to find Luthor, but he seems to have escaped, or disappeared or something,¡± I said, ncing around. ¡°You guys see him?¡±


    ¡°Not yet,¡± Nikki responded, with a hint of worry in her voice. ¡°We¡¯re heading to the middle, but we haven¡¯t found him yet.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s your location?¡± I asked.


    ¡°We¡¯re just south of the main battle.¡±


    ¡°Keep going south.¡±


    ¡°Okay.¡±


    We kept on running, and eventually, we made it to the middle of the battlefield, where it seemed like everything was a mess. ss and doors were scattered all over the road, and blood was sttered on the hood of each car.


    ¡°This is insane,¡± Tisiah said, taking cover behind a nearby tree.


    ¡°Mchi!¡± September called out. ¡°He¡¯s over here.¡± Me and Mchi instantly turned our heads, seeing Luthor Bane and two guys running away from the scene. ¡°I¡¯ll go after them!¡± I shouted, as Mchi began to stutter, but I already left before he could even say anything.


    ¡°Wait!¡± I heard his voice call out, but I was too far to hear what he said. I didn¡¯t know if I should turn back, but I decided to continue after them. They sped through destroyed cars, and fields of ss, and through little strips of space between the big TSA trucks. They were fast, I can tell you that much. I kept on their tail, but I was just a tad bit slower.


    ¡°Luthor Bane, stop right now!¡± I yelled, as I took thest turn. I could see the two men who were with him were shooting bolts at me, but I just dodged it. Then I saw Luthor Bane running in the distance. He wasn¡¯t getting away so easily¡­I hope. I began to gain ground, enough to reach the first guy that was closest to me. He turned around, and fired a bolt at me. I dodged it, and then I grabbed his wrist, and twisted it. He fell to the ground, and I turned my attention towards the other guy, who was also running.


    He was way faster than the first guy, like I mean ten times faster. I felt as if I was running a marathon. I could barely keep up with him. He was on the edge of the field, and I was in the middle of it. The wind blew my hair, and I felt as if I was going to pass out from exhaustion. Suddenly, I felt my foot get stuck in a hole, and I tripped over my own two feet. I rolled, and felt my shoulder m into the ground. I looked up, and saw the other guy running off, and I looked back up at Luthor Bane.


    ¡°Stop!¡± I shouted, scrambling back onto my two feet. I turned my head, and saw that Luthor Bane was looking at me, with a smirk on his face. I was breathing hard, and sweat was dripping off my forehead. I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder, and I felt a warm liquid drip down my arm.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to hurt you, Connor,¡± Luthor Bane said, stopping. ¡°You¡¯re kind of a fun guy to y with. I don¡¯t want to kill you just yet. But you have to go through me first. I¡¯m the boss.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not the boss, Luthor Bane,¡± I said, staring into his eyes. ¡°You¡¯ve never been the boss. You¡¯re more of a prince, if you¡¯re picking up what I¡¯m putting down.¡±


    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re those smart-alecks. Those are my favorites to kill. But let me just have a little fun with you. Then I¡¯ll finish it,¡± he said. He suddenly swung out his wand, and went for the striking blow. I didn¡¯t have a chance to block it, and I felt my body jolt as it hit my chest. It was like I was being electrocuted. I felt myself hit the car next to me, as the ss shot out in little pieces before ttering to the floor. I coughed up blood, and I felt my consciousness slipping away.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to kill you,¡± he said, as he lifted his wand.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want you to either,¡± I muttered,nguidly reaching for my wand. I pressed the button on the utility belt, as the wand popped out from its hole and I grabbed it in the air. Then we both swung, with the energy flowing through our veins transferring to the dome of our wands.


    ¡°You¡¯re not as good as I am, Connor,¡± he said, as he got the upper hand. I had no time to react, and he shot another bolt. But this time, I did have time to react, and I quickly dodged it.


    ¡°You¡¯re wrong,¡± I said, as I moved to the side of the road. We were moving in a circting motion, our eyes steady and directly facing one another. ¡°Because I have this.¡± I charged up my Perk, feeling the energy and power shot inside of me, and feeling the intensity and excitement spark inside of me. Then I ran forward, my arms glowing, as I jumped, seeing his shocked face. I hit the ground, and the cars surrounding me leaped in the air, as well as Luthor Bane. I felt my body shake, as I slowly stood up, and saw the cars crash back down to the ground, and the two guys were on the ground, holding their heads.


    Luthor Bane was trembling from the pain, slowly trying to reach for one of the hoods of the car to lift him up. Now was the time. Now was the time to shoot him. I reached for my dart gun, facing right at his shoulder. All I need to do is to shoot him, then he¡¯ll be unconscious, then I¡¯ll nt the tracker, then mission aplished. I looked at him, my wrist trembling, shaking the dart gun. But then I pulled the trigger, and closed my eyes.


    ¡°You¡¯re not going to get away, Luthor Bane,¡± I whispered to myself, as I shot him with the dart. My vision blurred, and I heard him groan, and then he dropped to the ground. He closed his eyes, as he began to lose consciousness and then he loosened, going into a temporary sleep. I took a deep breath, and then I looked down at the dart, which was now on his left shoulder. I removed the dart, and walked towards him.


    I reached into my pocket, pulling out the tracker which was a small attachable red button. I ced it at the other side of his utility belt, hoping it would be unnoticeable once he wakes up from his painful slumber. I stared at his sleeping face, and I looked down at his hands, seeing that he had a wand in it. I shook my head, and turned around.


    I looked down, seeing the radio stuffed in my pocket. I picked it up, and quickly dialed the number. ¡°Hey, uh, I got Luthor Bane. I¡¯m at the swings of the park. I¡¯m heading back.¡±


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± September asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m heading back now.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± she responded, as I hung up the radio. I took a deep breath, and I walked away from Luthor Bane¡¯s body. I nced back at it, and then I quickly made my way back to the front, where Mchi, Tisiah and September were waiting for me. Once I met their eyes, relief soothed their faces, as Nikki emerged from behind them and closed in for a hug.


    ¡°You¡¯re alive!¡± Nikki said.


    ¡°Yeah, I guess I am.¡± I sighed, as I took a step back. ¡°What about you guys?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re fine,¡± September said, as she held her hand out to me. ¡°Where¡¯s Dr. Mord?¡± Right at that moment, Dr. Mord appeared over the corner of the car by Mchi. He squished through the lean space between two cars, before arriving in our presence. ¡°Got him?¡± he asked me.


    I gave a quick nod, and he sighed in relief as well. ¡°Good, good.¡±


    ¡°So, are you going to go back to the prison?¡± I asked. His face melted into a thoughtful, but almost regretful expression.


    ¡°Yes, I think so. But, I think that it¡¯s time to stop. I¡¯m just so tired. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going to happen to me, or to this country. I hope I can pass the test, and see my family again. And that¡¯s all I can hope for.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s time to give up, huh?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yes, I think so. I don¡¯t want to kill anymore. I don¡¯t want to get into a fight with people, I don¡¯t want to hurt anyone, and I don¡¯t want to kill anyone,¡± he said, as his eyes zed over with tears.


    ¡°Alright, then we¡¯ll just leave the rest to you, doctor.¡±


    ¡°I will take care of it, yes. Goodbye, Mr. Connor. It was nice to meet you, even though it was brief,¡± he said, as he extended his hand out to me.


    ¡°Thank you, doctor.¡±

 Chapter 255 - 255 Life from a Belt’s Perspective

    255 Life from a Belt¡¯s Perspective


    The ce was still littered with broken and destroyed cars, ss and pieces, and in fact, mirrors were also on the ground.


    I looked around, before my phone rang, catching my attention. ¡°Yeah?¡± I asked, seeing that it was Greg. ¡°Yeah, did you guys do it?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Yeah, we got him.¡±


    ¡°Perfect,¡± Greg said, and I could hear his sigh of relief. ¡°I was worried you guys were going to fail for a second.¡±


    ¡°So you don¡¯t have faith in us is what you¡¯re saying,¡± I said on the phone. Greg scoffed, and chuckled. ¡°Of course, not¡ªtotally. Anyways, we need to figure out what to do next.¡±


    ¡°Alright, so you got any ideas?¡±


    ¡°In fact, I have to. I have a piece of a n, but I do.¡±


    ¡°Wh¡ªwhat does that even mean?¡± I asked, my eyes squinted in confusion.


    ¡°Someone is obviously going to have to look at him. I¡¯ll try and get my captain to get someone to see some footage.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Okay,¡± I muttered, taking a deep breath. ¡°Who exactly do you prefer? And how will we see?¡±


    ¡°First question, I have no clue. Second question, we¡¯ll send important footage to you guys, so you guys don¡¯t need to see over 24 hours of nonsense.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guess. Wait, when you say 24 hours of nonsense, do you mean even¡ª¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, no one¡¯s going to look at it.¡±


    I sighed. ¡°Alright, continue. What do you hope that we find?¡± Greg chuckled. ¡°Simple, where Matthew Lock is, or something that can give us clues. I hope time isn¡¯t too short for that.¡±


    ¡°It isn¡¯t¡­it shouldn¡¯t be.¡±


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll see y¡¯allter,¡± Greg said with a sigh. He hung up, and I put my phone away. Then my phone decided to ring once again, making me pick up my phone once again.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked, a bit annoyed, but my emotion changedpletely once I heard Mr. Drails voice.


    ¡°Yeah?¡± I muttered.


    ¡°Did you guys put the tracker on Luthor Bane,¡± he asked as if he just ran a marathon. I nodded. ¡°Yeah, we did.¡±


    He sighed in relief. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll send a portal for you guys toe back to the YMPA. Good job everyone, we¡¯ll see what to do next.¡±


    ¡°Well, Greg said that the FMA is going to look at the footage, then send us the important footage. Including the weird stuff.¡±


    ¡°What weird stuff?¡±


    ¡°You know, bathroom and shower and¡ª¡±


    ¡°First of all, it¡¯s on his belt, not his body, so we shouldn¡¯t be seeing anything first of all¡­I hope.¡±


    ¡°Oh well, what you say,¡± I said with a chuckle.


    ***


    It was the next day, and I was in school or at least heading to school. I needed to see if Greg maybe got anything worth looking at.


    I entered the school, studying the hall to pick out Greg from the haystack. Then I caught him in the midst of a few students. I walked towards him, and I instantly caught his attention.


    ¡°Oh, Connor,¡± he said. ¡°What¡¯s good?¡±


    ¡°What would be best actually, would be if you got anything from the footage.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure, haven¡¯t checked,¡± he said. ¡°Also, they have cheeseburgers today for lunch so hopefully we can do our deluxe special if you know what I mean¡­¡±


    He nudged and winked at me, but I didn¡¯t seem to have any effect. ¡°Yeah¡­um, when will we be able to see it?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Hopefully when school ends, because if not, you¡¯re gonna have two in one day. And I¡¯m not sure that¡¯s the most time you¡¯d want to spend on¡ªjust saying.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I muttered. ¡°But they have cheeseburgers today right?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, excited for it?¡±


    ¡°You know already.¡± Gregughed, as we began to attend our sses.


    ***


    After school was done, the next thing on my mind was the footage. I was pretty excited to see if we were going to get any sort of information on Matthew Lock¡¯s location. But I also kind of want to see his lifestyle. I might be weird about this, but it¡¯s oddly interesting.


    I entered inside, as the others began to join me as well inside the briefing room. Mr. Drails turned, and his mouth widened into a smile.


    ¡°Wee everybody. Now I just got an email from the FMA to see an hour and forty minutes of footage. Come on everybody, sit down, sit down.¡±


    We rushed to our seats, as Mr. Drails pulled up the video. The screen dropped down, and the video was revealed as it lowered.


    ¡°Here we go,¡± Mchi sighed, leaning back and biting his lower lip.


    It started with us being in Luthor Bane¡¯s belt perspective, in which we saw the wearer himself, walk over to it andtch it on. Then we were in the room once again and then all five of us watched, in silence. It was footage that made sense now, seeing it was probably from a camera attached to the guy¡¯s body. All of a sudden, a ring red inside the speakers which was obviously his phone.


    ¡°Hello?¡± a distorted voice echoed.


    ¡°Who is this?¡± Luthor asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s me.¡±


    ¡°Oh, Father.¡±


    All our faces shot up in surprise, and now our interest was in full effect. What is he doing with his father?


    ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but I need you toe back to the bunker. I have a lot on my te, but I should be able to make it by tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll see you then. Where are you at right now, I¡¯m about to head to the TSA mainstream.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m headed to the car, so I¡¯ll meet you there.¡±


    ¡°Perfect.¡±


    ¡°I love you too, bye.¡±


    ¡°Bye.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll see you soon.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m looking forward to it.¡±


    ¡°Same. Bye.¡±


    Luthor Bane put away his phone, and he once again headed towards the door, in which he found himself staring at a line of expensive and exquisite vehicles of his choosing. He unlocked the vehicle and closed the door. ¡°Hmph, it¡¯s about time.¡± He muttered as the engine turned on, and the doors were locked, in ce. He pulled out of the parking spot, and moved out of the driveway and into the street.


    After a few minutes, he turned onto a road that took him through the city of Detroit, and into another town. The roads were filled with cars, some speeding down the street while others just drove slow. The sun was going down in the sky, revealing itself in the beauty of orange and red in the night sky. The moon and stars were also there as well, and they were shining bright and beautiful in the night.


    ¡°Ooh, this is a nice setting,¡± Mchi said, shooting an admiring look at me.


    ¡°It is.¡±


    He began to approach this tall building thatpletely took my eyes. It towered to the sky, covered in clear and white ss, with the color being abination of the green grass that surrounded the building. There wererge windows and pirs that reached to the very top of its height. The design in which the building was was both a mix of modern architecture as well as Victorian styles. The main difference was that it looked like it had a much newer and brighter feel than the Victorian architecture.


    ¡°Wow¡­¡± I muttered. It looked mesmerizing even from a video. He went into the parking lot of this beauty of the TSA Mainstream Building. I¡¯m pretty sure it is not allowed topliment the TSA, but my goodness, look at this thing.


    Then we watched as he walked up to the entrance, where he rang the bell. The moment he did that, the doors opened, and there stood the security guards. They instantly let him in, and they didn¡¯t even check if he had the ck utility belt. He must be very popr among all of the TSA.


    ¡°Here you are, sir,¡± the guard said with an odd sense of familiarity.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± he said.


    ¡°You¡¯re wee.¡±


    He was about to walk away, when he turned his head back towards the door. ¡°Oh, and the bathrooms are on the second floor by the way, down the hallway on your left, to your right.¡±


    ¡°I see, thank you.¡±


    ¡°No problem.¡±


    We watched him go through the lobby and then onto the stairwell that brought him up to the second floor, and in his office. He quickly made his way inside, and he immediately shut the door behind himself. We only caught a glimpse of the room, but it appeared to be quite spacious. All of a sudden, he went through a door, and opened up to a room that waspletely mind-boggling to see. A row full ofputers, buttons, and screens all around the room ced on the walls was the depiction of this room. It was like a technological slideshow. It was oddly exciting to look at.


    Then as I continued to watch, the door at the end of the room slid open, as a man entered. At first nce, he looked very distinguished and sophisticated. But then I noticed the familiar face structure of the man, and my eyes widened with disgust. ¡°Redford Bane,¡± everyone said in a joint remark.


    ¡°Yes, and what is this? What a surprise to see you. The traitorous little¡ª¡±


    ¡°Luthor, please,¡± Mr. Bane interrupted. ¡°We can discuss thister. For now I would like to inform you of what is going on. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve already seen my email.¡± All the agents in the room turned their chairs, making this squeaking noise of chairs turning directions. ¡°Now, we have reached out to an old friend of the TSA who is very good at tracking, and I¡¯m pretty sure you guys know him. His name: Mark Gerard. He is very skilled with both tracking as well as hiding himself. And he has been given a task. To track a certain person, as well as keeping it secret to the rest of the world.¡±


    ¡°Matthew Lock is that certain person¡­correct?¡±


    ¡°Yes, obviously. But he¡¯s retired, so me and my son will meet him, and we can resume our mission. Understood? Good, then you will meet him at the meeting area that I specified.¡±


    ¡°Understood. Alright, I¡¯ll be there.¡±


    ¡°Perfect. If anything happens, you call and contact me, or my son at once. Now if that¡¯s everything, I believe I need to go. Be safe.¡±


    ¡°Wait, so what¡¯s the location since you already know where he is?¡± an agent that was sitting by one of theputers asked. Mr. Bane chuckled.


    ¡°I have it on file. He was seen in that restaurant earlier today, at about four PM.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Alright, alright,¡± the agent said. ¡°Well, off to find that file right now.¡±


    ¡°Be safe, and good luck to all of you. I hope that this works out, because things are getting really out of hand. I do not want to see the destruction of the TSA by a bunch of viins and monsters. Bye.¡±


    The screen then dimmed, and everyone stood up.


    ¡°Well, that was interesting. Can¡¯t wait to hear the rest,¡± Mchi said. ¡°But yeah, that was pretty much the information we were told to gather. I don¡¯t know why Bane is trying to reach out for an old friend of the TSA to track this guy, but this sounds like it¡¯s going to work for us.¡±


    ¡°He must¡¯ve been a very good agent then,¡± I said with a chuckle. ¡°Do we have any background information on Mark Gerard? Or what does this ¡®old friend of the TSA¡¯ have to say about all of this?¡±


    All the agents shifted their gaze over towards Mr. Drails, who was standing up from his seat. ¡°Well, let me pull up a folder on this guy first.¡±

 Chapter 256 - 256 A Location Scavenger Hunt

    256 A Location Scavenger Hunt


    ¡°This is Mark Gerard,¡± Mr. Drails said. We saw a picture of a broad man who looked as if his picture was taken in the 90¡¯s. He had messy, short brown hair with a goatee, and wore dark blue sses. He did not have facial hair when he was younger, however, he became more masculine throughout the years, and it definitely made him look tough and powerful.


    ¡°Mark Gerard is one of the best agents that the TSA has ever seen, with great intelligence and skills. He joined the agency after graduating high school, and he did not waste any time,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Gerard had a keen eye for recognizing faces, even the hardest disguises he could pick out, a keen detail that exposed the person fully. He would sometimes use his abilities to help him identify criminals and take them down. He also helped track them down, with the goal being to capture and convict them to the full extent of thew. Or in this case, the TSA¡¯sw.¡±


    ¡°Nice one.¡±


    ¡°Thank you. As of now, he is retired, but that does not mean that he isn¡¯t quite the active agent that he used to be. He still has ess to the technology that the TSA owns, including many new devices that were invented. In fact, recently, he helped the TSA with tracking down a person who stole some weapons from the TSA all the way to Mysia. I¡¯m not sure if they caught the person, but it was thanks to him.¡±


    ¡°Wow, really? Well, if he¡¯s good enough for that, I hope he can track this guy down.¡±


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s just hope that our luck is on our side,¡± Mchi said. We watched as the footage stopped, leaving a nk screen behind it. ¡°So, what do we do now?¡± September asked. ¡°We don¡¯t know his location by any chance.¡±


    ¡°But we do.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°This is a retired man. This man doesn¡¯t care where he lives or not, so he¡¯s most likely in Fiji, enjoying some coconut water with a straw or something along those lines. I have a feeling we¡¯re going to find him at the beach.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Oh, cool.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, hopefully. I¡¯ll go on a quick search in my office, and see if there¡¯s anything of his we can dig up. You guys can search if you want to, but immediately report back to this room once any of us have found the location. Alright?¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± we all said in unison.


    ¡°All righty, then, let me know when you guys havee up with the results. I¡¯ll need to make the arrangements as well.¡± We left the office as the five of us stared at each other, unsure of where to start. ¡°So, does anyone have any ideas?¡± I asked. ¡°He said to start with a beach.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Mchi replied. ¡°We could start with the beach that I go to. It¡¯s in Cairns.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the one he¡¯s at,¡± I said. ¡°That¡¯s the one I went tost year and got sand fleas. I will never forget that. The moment you step foot on that white sandy beach, with the gentle breeze, you will be eaten alive by sand fleas.¡±


    ¡°Well that sounds like a personal issue,¡± Mchi said jokingly, in which I elbowed him in the shoulder. ¡°Anyway, maybe we should look for another beach?¡±


    I thought to myself about that, and in no time I had it. ¡°How about Fraser Ind? I heard there are lots of beaches on that ind where we could find him. That would be great, because we won¡¯t have to deal with sand fleas if the ce has none.¡±


    ¡°Oh, perfect! We can head over there, grab some lunch in the food stalls, go for a swim, and I bet we can find him there!¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°Yeah¡­not really,¡± September said,pletely destroying the spirit. ¡°We need somewhere that is crowded, so that in the case anyone tries to search for him, they¡¯d have a much harder time in doing so. So, how about a shopping mall? Or a hotel?¡±


    ¡°Are you kidding me?¡±


    ¡°No, I¡¯m serious. We can make a n, go together, go into the food court, grab some breakfast, get lunch, and maybe sit next to one of the balconies overlooking the ocean. It would be amazing, and he will almost certainly be there.¡±


    ¡°It would be hard to search for someone in a mall,¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°True. But we¡¯ve done much worse in the past. You just need to be ready to kick, as long as we stick to my n,¡± September said. ¡°The question is which shopping mall though?¡± It was a good question, because he could be in hundreds of malls in the US. There are fifty states, and we have to choose the right one. Same with hotels, too. We have a few hundred hotels in the United States as well, and we will not be able to take on every single one of them. ¡°Any ideas?¡±


    Mchi thought for a moment. ¡°There is an ind that is connected to Florida,¡± he said. ¡°But it¡¯s called Bimini, so I¡¯m guessing that¡¯s where he is now.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not a hotel or a shopping mall,¡± I said. ¡°He might be in the Bahamas, but that¡¯s still far away from here.¡±


    ¡°Not if you travel via a portal,¡± Mchi countered. A smile went across all our faces, as the thought began to marinate in our heads. ¡°He has a point,¡± Nikki chuckled. ¡°Just imagine that.¡±


    A grin went over my face when I looked at Mchi. He had juste up with the most awesome idea ever, and all of us knew it. ¡°Let¡¯s see what Mr. Drails finds out first. Then maybe we can make our final decision. Or, we can ask him. So, let me go check with him first.¡± I walked towards the office, and soon heard the sounds of the printer. ¡°Hey, can I talk to you in there?¡±


    ¡°Sure, why not? Come in, please.¡±


    ¡°So, any luck finding the location of Mark Gerard?¡±


    ¡°Somewhat. I gained somewhat of a clue.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± I muttered, seeing him go to a scattered pile of papers. ¡°What is it?¡± Mr. Drails turned his attention towards me, ¡°Well, he goes to a beach every Wednesday, because he can, but the question is, where is it? So, I¡¯m asking around in other countries to find the one that he¡¯s going to visit. The problem is, he goes to all of the beaches in different countries, so it¡¯s taking a while for me to narrow it down.¡±


    ¡°Wow, this man has all the free time in the world doesn¡¯t he?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. I wish I was him,¡± Mr. Drails chuckled. ¡°But we don¡¯t have the same kind of money to travel as he does. And he certainly has more free time than me. But luckily for all of us, and lucky for Mr. Bane, he won¡¯t have any free time for a long while, once he meets the end of thew.¡±


    That was great news to hear. ¡°Right. How about a list of all these ces?¡±


    ¡°Right away.¡±


    I took a piece of paper and wrote out a list with the names on them. When I finished, I handed it to him. ¡°Thank you, that will be a big help. I should be able to pick up the locations in a couple hours.¡±


    ¡°Okay then. Well, I¡¯ll check back in a couple hours to see how far you¡¯ve gotten.¡±


    ¡°Alright. Thank you for the info, Mr. Drails. And thanks for having my team on this case.¡±


    ¡°No problem, and good luck to you. You are not alone.¡±


    The words wereforting, yet slightly ominous. The fact that we would all be working together, but none of us really knew each other personally. I guess it¡¯s just an encouraging word I guess. I walked out of the office, seeing the four curious faces. ¡°He doesn¡¯t know either, but he has a clue,¡± I announced. ¡°He goes to a beach every Wednesday, meaning we¡¯re back to the beaches. Let¡¯s look for one.¡±


    ¡°Which ind is it again?¡± Mchi asked.


    ¡°Bimini,¡± I answered, recalling the information from the report.


    ¡°What is Bimini?¡± Tisiah asked. ¡°Never heard of it. Isn¡¯t it in Africa or somewhere?¡±


    ¡°Well, yes, but it¡¯s on the east side of Florida, which makes it¡ªMchi literally just mentioned it! It¡¯s located between Miami and Cuba, by the way,¡± I added. ¡°So the first ce we can start looking is in Florida itself.¡± That made sense to everyone. ¡°So, when do you think Mr. Drails will let us know where he is?¡±


    ¡°Maybe tomorrow morning,¡± Mchi replied. ¡°So we¡¯re gonna have to wait.¡±


    But all of a sudden, Mr. Drails quickly whipped open his door and his eyes were bright with excitement, as if he just realized something. ¡°Everyonee in, I know the perfect location of where he is.¡±


    Shock was present on all of our faces, as we rushed inside of his office.


    ¡°Where is he?¡± Mchi said eagerly.


    ¡°I found it,¡± Mr. Drails smiled. ¡°I thought it was all too impossible, but I did it.¡±

 Chapter 257 - 257 Going to Bimini

    257 Going to Bimini


    ¡°Well, how did you find him?¡±


    ¡°So I said that he was at a beach right? Well, based on his folders, he went on a mission near Florida that scarred him for life.¡±


    ¡°Dang,¡± I muttered.


    ¡°He lost a lot of friends, especially his best one, which I¡¯m informed from this folder that he still has a picture of him in his house. Probably by the counter or something, I¡¯m not sure.¡±


    ¡°So how does this¨C¡±


    ¡°But, one way he copes with things is to continuously attend ces where he was traumatized. It¡¯s a painful but very effective way to actually cope with certain memories.¡±


    ¡°And if it¡¯s somewhere in Florida¨C¡±


    ¡°That means he¡¯s in¨C¡±


    ¡°Bimini,¡± Mchi called out as if he just won Bingo. Mr. Drails pointed at him, nodding his head. ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± he said. ¡°Bimini. And we¡¯re going to go there now.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Alright, then send us.¡±


    ¡°Well, since he is a man with a lot of free time, I want you guys to also enjoy yourselves. I¡¯ll transport you guys to a dock nearby Bimini. You guys will take a boat or a jet ski, or whichever you want to do, and arrive at that exact location.¡±


    ¡°Exact location? Is he at a certain block or¡­¡±


    ¡°No, just at Bimini,¡± he said, nodding and slowly making things more awkward. ¡°Alright? Get ready, get your weapons ready, and you guys will be gone soon.¡±


    We exited his room, and Mchi rejoiced with a whispered, ¡°Yes.¡±


    Not sure why that was such a big thing, but Mchi ispetitive so¡ªkind of expect that.


    ¡°Are you ready to go to Bimini?¡± I asked Nikki, and as if words weren¡¯t good enough, she iled her arms to show her excitement.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m so excited. Like, I can¡¯t wait to feel the warm sun, and the beaches, and those guys that are¨C¡±


    ¡°Ahem.¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­yeah. Just those two,¡± she said, shing a wide smile at me, in which I chuckled. ¡°Alright, I guess.¡±


    We finished getting our weapons ready, and I was ready to start riding some boats. I¡¯ve never, ever, been on a boat before, so the fact that we were literally being spawned to the docks was kind of fascinating.


    We returned to his office, and he looked at us with a cocky smile. ¡°Alright, you guys ready?¡± he asked, studying each of our faces.


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°Alright, here goes nothing.¡±


    He used his finger, and did it in a circr motion in front of us. This was probably the first time he was actually going to put it in an actual, sensible ce.


    But, no. I was wrong.


    He opened a portal under us, making usnd on the wooden ground of the docks. ¡°Ow,¡± I muttered, feeling the pain shot through my neck. Hopefully that doesn¡¯tst.


    My eyes widened at a sight I had not seen in quite some time. The docks were full of people and motorboats. Well, motorbikes. There were tons of them. They ran past a jet ski, as I observed. I remembered from my past life that those were things that could go pretty fast.


    I was actually right.


    One guy by the jet ski was jumping off with a surfboard attached to it, and I watched him skim across the water like a dolphin. ¡°Wow¡­¡± Nikki muttered, ¡°Can¡¯t wait to get to Bimini like that. Come on, let¡¯s go.¡±


    ¡°No, wait, wait!¡± I shouted, as she dragged from where I was. She led me to one of the jet skis that was a very bright red. I turned back to Mchi, who rolled his eyes as if to say that they are all pretty much the same. However, this model also looked interesting. It was sleek and shiny, and it was also quite fast.


    I took a deep breath and jumped on top. It was the exact same concept as a motorbike. But instead, there is an engine underneath you, and it was muchrger than any bike or motorbike would be. My heart pounded and my adrenaline level skyrocketed, especially since this was my first time on a jet ski.


    Nikki joined me. The jet ski was only a two-seat vehicle, meaning her life was now in my hands. If anything were to happen to her¡­it¡¯d be my fault.


    ¡°Alright,¡± I muttered, feeling uneasy but knowing that I was about to make history with the fastest ride in the world. ¡°Here we go. Fasten your seat belt.¡±


    She buckled herself, and she was ready. I kicked down, pushing forward with my feet and pressing the elerator. The jet ski zoomed from where it was before, gliding through the water, as the waves red from the sides. ¡°Ahhhh!!!¡± I screamed in fear, whereas sheughed as if this was some carnival ride. It was much worse than a carnival ride. But it was fun!


    The ocean was so vast, and I didn¡¯t know how far I should go. I wanted to hit the speed limit, which was 120 kmph (75 miles per hour). Yes, I¡¯m very knowledgeable, thank you very much. I could see the outlines of the ind, and the buildings that weed our presence.


    We approached the dock, and people began to stare at us. This jet ski had its own special sound, unlike the other ones, and as we started to slowly go up the ramp, I noticed the guy from the jet ski was right there, looking surprised at us.


    I let go of the eleration, and coasted to a stop at the dock, as the motorboat appeared next to us. I hopped off the jet ski and handed it to Nikki, who was stillughing like an insane person. ¡°Whoa, it was amazing!¡± she said, her eyes shining. She hopped off the jet ski, and now we had to wait for the others toe. I heard the others arrive, and one by one they began toe out of the boat.


    ¡°I can already tell this will be a great adventure,¡± Nikki replied.


    Mchi and Tisiah rode together, whereas September took her own. Tisiah seemed horrified, whereas Mchi looked as if that was intentionally supposed to happen. ¡°I¡¯ll never get used to this, it¡¯s just too weird,¡± he muttered.


    ¡°Yeah, well, don¡¯t worry about it. It¡¯ll feel normal once we¡¯re done,¡± Mchi assured. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s find a car and find the beach. I want to sit on the warm sand and do nothing.¡±


    Nikki sighed in amusement, and followed behind him, but she nced back at me with a mischievous grin. ¡°Youing?¡±


    ¡°Uh-huh,¡± I replied, still feeling that difort in my stomach. But that was probably because my head was spinning. I was so anxious that I could explode.


    A jet ski zoomed past me, as I stared into the water. My mind told me to run. To run before I saw what was lurking beneath the deep blue sea. But something else within me wanted more. Something I¡¯ve never felt before.


    ¡°How much money do you think I would have to spend to stay here for five days?¡± I whispered. The other side of my brain wanted to hear the reply.


    It didn¡¯t take long.


    The man who was driving the jet ski stopped, and he looked at me with his pale skin and sharp blue eyes. They scanned from top to bottom, and I felt as though he knew me. I could feel my pulse racing. If not because of how calm he seemed, then maybe because of the sudden fear of what was going to happen next.


    ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go Connor!¡± I heard Nikki say. Quickly, I followed her, as the fear rushed out of me. I felt calm now, as we began to approach a car that parked near the gate of the beach. ¡°Well, well, well,¡± Mchi said, looking at the vehicle. It was a F-250, and I could tell Mchi was in love with it.


    There were others parked around us, and the whole scene looked as if it was meant for television or movie. ¡°We should take a walk along the beach,¡± I heard Nikki remark. Mchi smiled and nodded, and we all hopped into the truck. I sat next to Mchi, while Nikki sat to my right.


    September jumped into the driver¡¯s seat, as she usually does, as I felt the seats touch of leather and fabric. The windows turned down, and I could feel the wind gust.


    ¡°Alright,¡± Mchi said. ¡°We¡¯ll start this now. It¡¯s time to head for the beach. Oh, and I wouldn¡¯t mind swimming in some warm water. I¡¯m so tired of this cold weather.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. I guess it¡¯s better to be on vacation than in ss, huh?¡± I said with a chuckle. ¡°Let¡¯s find Mark Gerard.¡±


    I saw September open her map, and then she began to navigate towards a certain area of Bimini. I could barely see her face because she used her phone, but she kept typing on the screen. ¡°We can return this to the owner in time, I hope,¡± September said.


    ¡°I made the car,¡± Nikki said. ¡°With my wand obviously.¡±


    September froze as if she justgged, then nodded slowly. ¡°That means this thing isn¡¯t going tost very long, right?¡± September asked. Nikki nodded.


    ¡°But that is the beauty of it!¡± she replied. ¡°You have to work fast before you break it. We are on a mission, and that means everything has to be wless and fast! So you make what you can, in time. That is how the YMPA rolls. Everything is faster. More productive. And we don¡¯t have to worry about having cars every single day like normal people do. They¡¯re a luxury, really. But if you want to be the best there is at doing anything, then you have to get used to not having things. At least for a while. You need to take risks, take chances. Then when you seed, you gain a greater amount of experience. This way, you can grow into an even better person than before.¡±


    ¡°Jeez, Nikki,¡± I muttered. The only reason I was so stunned was because I didn¡¯t think she had these kinds of ideas.


    The car moved forward, and I sat back on the leather seat, closing my eyes for a few minutes, and just enjoying the warm air. My thoughts weren¡¯t peaceful and tranquil. They were scattered. It was as if my mind was filled with many different memories from my past life, and I couldn¡¯t seem to focus on one particr memory at a time.


    ¡°Connor,¡± Mchi murmured, snapping me out of my daze. I opened my eyes slowly, as the ocean came into view. It was dark, and I could hear the waves crashing against the shore.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Are you okay, kid? Your mind seems¡­distracted.¡±


    ¡°Oh, yeah,¡± I said, looking out the window. ¡°I know.¡±

 Chapter 258 - 258 An Old Search

    258 An Old Search


    We began to arrive at a beach, which was blocked by a metal gate. I could already see people sunbathing, and people in the sea, swimming and swaying in the water.


    I could see little floats floating on the ocean, and childrenughing as they created sand castles. Reminded me of the old days, when me and my dad went to beaches. My mom just decided to go to the nearest food truck.


    Somehow we live in California, but yet don¡¯t go to any sort of beach there. Funny.


    ¡°Alright, where do you guys want to search? Or should I assign an outpost for us,¡± she said, looking at us.


    ¡°Outposts,¡± Tisiah chose, and everyone else agreed with him. She nodded. ¡°Alright. Connor, you will be at the heart of the beach. Nikki and I will search close to the gate. Mchi and Tisiah will look at the nearby streets.¡±


    ¡°How are the nearby streets a good idea?¡±


    ¡°Because it¡¯s nearby.¡±


    We exited the truck, as we began to head towards the gate. I looked around, enjoying the fresh and sunny air. I walked through the gate as everyone began to disperse to their own positions.


    ¡°Alright, where are you Gerard?¡± I muttered to myself, looking around. I looked ahead in the ocean, seeing kids smiling andughing through the air.


    .....


    But no Gerard.


    I walked through the sand, dirtying my shoes, and seeing kids finish up their creations. I saw women and men sunbathing, with their umbres hovering over their heads.


    But no Gerard.


    I saw food trucks nearby, with lines waiting in front of them for a good quick meal. I heard the ind music that was ring in the distance. I smelt the fresh air of flowers and oranges.


    But no Gerard.


    My radio was suddenly connected, and September¡¯s voice was going through the radio. ¡°Do you have any sight of him?¡± she asked.


    ¡°No, ma¡¯am,¡± I said, looking around my sides. ¡°No, I don¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Where are you?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m walking around the beach in the sand,¡± I said, shaking off some dust on my ck shoes, ¡°yeah, and I don¡¯t see Mark Gerard. You?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m at the parking lot, trying to search through the windows and see any sort of sign of Gerard being here,¡± she said. ¡°No sign of him.¡±


    ¡°Have you asked Mchi and Tisiah?¡±


    ¡°They had the same answer,¡± she said with a sigh. ¡°In fact, they told me to ask you.¡±


    I nodded, understanding what she was saying. But that slowly began to fade away, once I saw an agent¡ªa TSA agent¡ªahead in the distance.


    ¡°Uh¡­ guys,¡± I said on the radio. ¡°I have sight on a TSA agent. The TSA is here.¡±


    ¡°Okay, we can confirm with Nikki, but I think we should be cautious,¡± she said.


    ¡°We shouldn¡¯t wait too long for them to get here,¡± I said on the radio, my eyes peeled on him. ¡°I¡¯m going to follow him, and see if he can find Gerard.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. See if you can lose them in the process. Do not reveal yourself. Be careful, Connor. Just stay alert, alright?¡± she said. I nodded. ¡°I promise.¡± I turned off the radio, and now have a new objective in mind. The agent was looking at me. He had an Adidas hat on, with a ck leather jacket and some ck boots. That looks suspicious already.


    I looked around, trying to sneakily look behind him without him noticing. His hands were in the pockets of his baggy jeans, and my eyes caught him. He began to move, walking towards the stairs which led to the beach. He looked around once more, and once he looked in my direction, I caught cover behind an umbre.


    I saw him turn around, searching for someone. Then I heard a voice¡ªthe female TSA agent.


    ¡°Yes, hello?¡± she said in a friendly voice.


    The man started to approach her, and I watched as their eyes locked.


    ¡°Hey, do you know where I could find Mark Gerard?¡± the agent asked.


    ¡°Mark Gerard? Oh, of course,¡± she said, turning towards him.


    Her face was friendly and full of confidence. She smiled at the male TSA agent, and he seemed shocked for a moment, until she showed up.


    ¡°Of course. Let me take you to my team. They can give you a better report than me.¡±


    The TSA agent followed her as she led him away.


    I got on my radio immediately, my heart pouncing in fear, but also excitement. ¡°There are now two confirmed TSA agents. I repeat, two confirmed TSA agents. They¡¯re heading towards the parking lot, right now. I¡¯ll be hiding. Stay hidden, please. It doesn¡¯t matter whether you¡¯re seen or not, just don¡¯t be noticed at all.¡±


    I could see Mchi and Tisiah on the radio, and they both agreed to keep this under wraps for a while until we found Mark Gerard. I saw September and Nikki on the radio, and they were ready to go for their search near the gate. And I began to hear sirens approaching, so I pulled out my wand, and put it in my pocket.


    Now was the time to use this thing for good.


    I waited for the sirens to pass by, then I hid myself behind an umbre. I was slowly approaching them, and now I found myself seeing a group of TSA agents, right in the parking lot by a red van. One of the agents took out a camera, and aimed at us.


    I tried to avoid being seen, and then I could see the man who had been following the female agent, walking towards them. I hid behind the pir behind the gate, as my chest breathed in and out aggressively, before I calmed down and peeked at them again. There had to be four, maybe five of them or something. I needed September and Nikki to get here quickly.


    I had my wand out, and I was moving around to look for their position. I could feel that my wand was starting to burn with energy inside of it, as if I was really getting used to using it. Maybe it was just the sweat in my hand that wasing from the fear that was heating my palm. ¡°Alright, do you have any sight on Gerard?¡± a TSA agent asked.


    ¡°No, sadly I don¡¯t,¡± another TSA agent said. ¡°It¡¯s like this man is purposely hiding from us.¡±


    ¡°Haha, no, that¡¯s far from the truth,¡± he said in a calm tone.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± the female agent asked, her voice full of anger. ¡°How can we not see a retired man, who is spending his time on a beach?¡± The male agent chuckled. ¡°Let¡¯s focus on ¡®retired¡¯ for a moment. He was literally a TSA tracker before he decided to retire, so he probably knows that some people could possibly be looking for him. Just saying.¡±


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s hope that your ¡®say¡¯ isn¡¯t true,¡± the female agent hissed back. ¡°It¡¯d make him a real fool, I¡¯m sure.¡±


    I saw the male agent shake his head. ¡°Oh, please.¡±


    I noticed the female agent ring at the male agent, as she turned to the side and said, ¡°This has to be fake. How can it be anything but a fake? Why would a person like him try to hide? You know, unless they are in the middle of something. But then I wouldn¡¯t even bother with finding Gerard because I would assume he was in the middle of doing something important that¡¯s worth the risk of being found by the TSA.¡±


    But as she was ranting, her eyes widened. ¡°I have sight of him.¡± That¡¯s when my eyes widened. I got on my radio and updated, ¡°The TSA agents have sight of him. Following them now.¡± I started to run towards the parking lot, while dodging around vehicles, and people, and everything else. I found myself running behind two of them¡ªthe female agent and the man who had been following them. The other five were all the way upfront, and they were moving with speed. And I mean real speed, like that speed as if a firetruck was after you. My feet hit the sand, and my sneakers began to slip as I did my best to keep up with them. I was about ten feet from the two agents right in front of me, as I got my wand ready in my hand.


    ¡°Do you have sight on them?¡± I asked September on the radio.


    ¡°Yes,¡± she replied.


    ¡°Got you,¡± I said back.


    I dived from behind one of the cars nearby.


    I fell on the ground, my left hand grabbing onto the sandy floor. But soon enough, I saw a man who had white hair and this white mustache that went across his lips. He was wearing a solid blue shirt and khaki shorts with sandals.


    That was Gerard.


    The TSA didn¡¯t notice him yet, meaning the opportunity was literally in my hands. I needed to approach Gerard, and then get out of here. All I needed to do was avoid detection from the TSA, and I would be golden.


    I turned, facing the group of TSA agents. My heart was racing.


    I took a step forward, and then another.


    I reached him.


    I looked at him, and I saw him turn and look at me. He gave a slight wave, as if I was some boy exploring the beach. But I was clearly here for a different matter. I approached him, and he turned to look at me. ¡°You¡¯re such a young fine boy,¡± he said. ¡°How do you do?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, but listen, I need you toe with me. There are those muggers that are trying to mug you because you look rich, so I¡¯m trying to keep you safe,¡± I lied, as the man looked at me with concern. ¡°I don¡¯t want you getting hurt, okay? I just don¡¯t.¡± The man seemed confused, and my heart leapt into my throat.


    Why wouldn¡¯t he trust me? I had to find a way to convince him.


    ¡°Okay, I guess I¡¯ll follow you then, because I don¡¯t want to get robbed,¡± he said. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°Levi Williams,¡± I lied again quickly. ¡°Follow me.¡± I ran, while running around several cars and trees before I came to a stop. I knew that the agents were behind me, watching from a distance, and trying to see I wasn¡¯t doing anything weird. I looked behind me, and I saw the man following me closely. I sighed.


    ¡°What should we do?¡± I heard a woman¡¯s voice from behind me, and I turned around and found one of the agents behind me.


    ¡°Why would they want to rob me?¡± the man asked again, messing with his white hair.


    ¡°As I said, you look rich,¡± I exined once more. ¡°You just seem like a regr old guy, who looks unassuming, but really isn¡¯t. So people might try and mug you to take a big slice of your riches.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    I got onto the radio, and dialed in the number to connect to their line. ¡°Hey, listen,¡± I said. ¡°I got Gerard, so I need you to get the truck ready and parked over here, okay?¡± September responded. ¡°Got it, I¡¯ll tell the others.¡±


    I continued to walk, and I could see that the agent was about ten feet behind me. He must have been walking slowly because of all of my excitement.


    I looked at him, and he smiled at me. ¡°Thank you, young man,¡± he said. ¡°I owe you a lot.¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°Oh no, this is nothing,¡± I replied. ¡°It was my job to keep you safe from those guys. You¡¯re very lucky that I took a detour here because of that woman, so you wouldn¡¯t have gotten hurt. I¡¯m d that I was able to save you. And I¡¯m sorry for the long way.¡±


    ¡°You know,¡± the man said, ¡°I was a tracker at one time, and I was a good one too. I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d ever retire. I mean, I still remember how things used to be. I worked with an amazing team back then, and we were a family.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± I muttered. But he just continued on, like those men that have stories galore, and never run out. ¡°But, since I retired, I¡¯vee to understand that it isn¡¯t always as great as I remember. Back then, I looked at my fellow agents as brothers and sisters. I looked up to them, respected them. Even the ones that seemed a bit more experienced or that I thought were better than me felt just as important and awesome as me. But now, they were just a bunch of punks. Big-minded fools. Complete imbeciles. So I decided to retire. I figured I¡¯d spend the rest of my days rxing at the beach and enjoying life. Now look. Here I am.¡±


    ¡°Amazing story, but we gotta go,¡± I said, looking behind me, and seeing the rest of the TSA team gain up on us.


    ¡°You don¡¯t wanna hear it, huh?¡± the man asked, and there was a hint of sadness in his tone.


    ¡°Yes, yes, yes I do!¡± I said, with a smile to make things a bit brighter. ¡°Just right now is a bad time. My people are gonna get us and take us away from the muggers,¡± I said, as I nodded my head.


    The TSA team drew closer, and I really needed September and the rest of the team to pull through.

 Chapter 259 - 259 Gerard’s Talents

    259 Gerard¡¯s Talents


    ¡°Those muggers look awfully familiar,¡± Gerard said. ¡°Are those the¡ª¡±


    ¡°Definitely not,¡± I chuckled. ¡°Totally not, because if they were, I¡¯m pretty sure they would¡¯ve shot us by now.¡± Gerard turned to face me in confusion. ¡°The food truck employees would¡¯ve shot us by now?¡± he asked with confusion present in his voice. I stammered, my tongue unsure of what to say next.


    ¡°No, no,¡± I said. ¡°Nothing.¡±


    He widened his eyes in suspicious understanding, as we continued to keep our distance away from the TSA team. They were probably sprinting by now, and I could feel my head dripping with sweat.


    ¡°Hey, guys. Where are y¡¯all?!¡± I asked on the radio. ¡°We¡¯reing, don¡¯t worry!¡± September said on the radio.


    ¡°How soon?!¡± I asked, as I saw the truck in the distance fly towards my direction.


    ¡°That soon,¡± Gerard said with a chuckle, as the truck stopped, gassing out a puff of smoke. The passenger window lowered down, as Mchi¡¯s face revealed behind the ss.


    ¡°Get in!¡± he said. I nodded, as well as Gerard, as we quickly entered the vehicle. I looked behind me, seeing the TSA confused and lost to our whereabouts.


    ¡°Good, I think we escaped them,¡± I said, looking ahead. ¡°Yeah, I think we did,¡± Tisiah confirmed.


    .....


    ¡°So what do we do now?¡± Gerard asked. ¡°Are you guys trying to drop me home or something?¡±


    ¡°No, but in fact, we¡¯re more keen on using your talents,¡± I said. Gerard nodded. ¡°That¡¯s what all YMPA agents do. Really what the whole spy mage system does.¡±


    I froze. How did he know? Where did he get that information from?


    ¡°How¡ªhow¡­¡± Nikki stammered in confusion, but Gerard only chuckled at her remark. ¡°Have you ever wondered why I even followed you in the first ce?¡± he asked, looking directly at me.


    He had a point.


    ¡°I guess that makes sense,¡± I said, rubbing my chin. ¡°Mhm, because you were YMPA agents, and you used those guys behind me, who were all just probably enjoying their day, to make them muggers.¡±


    ¡°Then why did they chase us down then?¡±


    ¡°Probably they didn¡¯t,¡± he said, shrugging his shoulders. ¡°I wasn¡¯t looking.¡±


    I leaned over to Tisiah. ¡°Should we tell him?¡± I whispered, although I doubt Gerard could hear much. Tisiah shook his head.


    ¡°It¡¯s probably best that we don¡¯t,¡± he said, and I nodded agreeably.


    ¡°Alright, let me just call Mr. Drails real quick, and then we¡¯ll be on our way to the YMPA,¡± I muttered to myself.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t we already on our way there?¡± Gerard asked, but I could only give a chuckle to his question. I dialed the code, and called Mr. Drails.


    In a matter of a good two seconds, a portal opened up in front of us in the street¡ªwhich hopefully no one saw¡ªand we ended up in the briefing room.


    An entire truck in the living room. Wow.


    ¡°What¡ªwhat kind of nonsense was that?¡± Gerard asked, confused. ¡°I kind of like the way all this works.¡±


    We exited the vehicle, hoping there was enough space for us to even sit. ¡°Uh¡­what are you gonna do about this big elephant in the room?¡± I asked, pointing to the vehicle.


    Mr. Drails chuckled, and opened a portal under the truck, as it dropped down to God-knows-where.


    ¡°Alright, um, hello Gerard, it¡¯s very nice to meet you,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°How do you do?¡± Gerard only nodded, and studied the room.


    Mr. Drails gave a very awkward smile, just waiting for the answer. But Gerard only looked around, before his eyes stopped on the CEO.


    ¡°Oh, you asked me?¡± he said. Mr. Drails nodded slowly. ¡°I said your name¡ª¡±


    ¡°Well how do you do?¡± Gerard said, his hands reached out across the table. Mr. Drails almost reluctantly reached out his hand as well.


    ¡°Fine, you?¡±


    ¡°Kind of confused to be honest.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Mr. Drails said, nodding once again. ¡°Well, unless my agents haven¡¯t already told you so, we need your ability to search for a certain person.¡±


    ¡°How important is this certain person?¡±


    ¡°Like a pandemic-important-certain person,¡± Mr. Drails said. Gerard stopped, with mouth ajar in surprise. I smirked, knowing exactly what the man meant, and I decided to reveal his identity.


    ¡°Mchi,¡± I said.


    Gerard turned his head to face Mchi, who quickly bowed his head.


    ¡°So why are we searching for a rogue YMPA agent?¡±


    ¡°The president of the TSA, Redford Bane, has a son, Luthor Bane who was protecting a rogue YMPA agent,¡± Mchi exined. ¡°Matthew Lock,¡± Gerard instantly guessed. Mr. Drails chuckled, ¡°Well someone¡¯s been doing their homework.¡± Gerard looked over at the CEO and sighed, turning his attention back to Mchi.


    ¡°Alright, I will help you find this kid,¡± Gerard said. ¡°What did he do?¡±


    ¡°Well, this rogue agent, Matthew Lock, has a virus that he¡¯s trying to give to where you used to work at: the TSA obviously, but the deal didn¡¯t go as nned and now he has both the money and the virus. Once we find him, we can stop a pandemic from happening. Or at least we¡¯ll try,¡± Mr. Drails said, as he looked at me. ¡°This is going to be quite the challenge, though, especially with the amount of people that know about this.¡±


    Gerard chuckled. ¡°This already reminds me of my old days. Those were the good old days. I was young, but I was so happy. Now it feels like the world has gone downhill,¡± he said, looking at the window, as the sun started setting.


    ¡°Well, maybe this is your chance to change direction,¡± I said. ¡°You never know what life has in store for you. You could always make the world a better ce.¡± Gerard smiled, as he listened to my words. ¡°Alright, when do we start?¡± he said, standing up as he pped. ¡°Whenever you feel like it,¡± Mr. Drails said.


    ¡°Good, because I want to show you how we can find him,¡± he said. He looked energized, like he was ready. As he was walking, I tapped his shoulder, making him stop as he turned to look at me. ¡°Yeah?¡± he asked, his voice lower and quiet.


    ¡°Why are you helping us?¡± I asked. ¡°You¡¯re basically betraying your entire life.¡±


    Gerard looked away, as he started to walk away.


    ¡°I¡¯m not betraying anything. I have my own reasons.¡±


    I grabbed his arm, as I turned him to face me. ¡°Why? Because of what happened between us?¡±


    Gerard nodded.


    ¡°But it doesn¡¯t mean you owe us anything. You didn¡¯t do anything wrong. You were just a victim.¡±


    ¡°I was just a victim, huh? Yeah, I was just a victim, and that makes me a good person. Listen, Connor. I told you that the TSA brainwashed me into thinking that I was a hero, when I was more of a viin. I¡¯ve been betraying my life, but now I can redeem it. I don¡¯t want to see the world die anymore. I don¡¯t want to watch the TSA destroy the world. I don¡¯t want to watch the world be a terrible ce to live. So, I am doing this for the world. Not because I owe you.¡±


    He looked ahead. ¡°As I was saying. Here¡¯s a way you can find Lock easily. I¡¯ll just need someone¡¯sputer. Not your personal one, but just a randomputer. Someone¡¯s personalputer. I don¡¯t care whose it is. Just someone¡¯s. And I don¡¯t care if they have any security on it. I just need to check something out.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said, but Mr. Drails already handed him one.


    ¡°This should be good enough,¡± Gerard said.


    ¡°Alright, thanks,¡± I said.


    ¡°Yeah, thanks. Hey, don¡¯t worry about that whole thing from earlier, okay?¡±


    I rolled my eyes, as I watched Gerard go outside and shut the door.


    ¡°Oh, and by the way. This guy I¡¯m looking for. I need to know what he looks like, what his hair color is, what his eye color is, what his height and weight are, where he lives, where he works, everything.¡±


    ¡°Would a picture do you some good?¡± Mr. Drails asked. Gerard nodded excitedly. ¡°Yes, yes, a picture would be great!¡±


    Mr. Drails quickly pulled up a photo of a man.


    ¡°Is this close enough?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Yeah, this is perfect!¡± Gerard said, and he smiled as he looked at the picture. ¡°Alright, let me use yourputer, and then we can get started. I¡¯m d that you¡¯re able to help me. It¡¯s not like I expected anyone to be able to help me.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I think you will be surprised to see who will be helping you. But let me just go and make sure there¡¯s nothing suspicious on myputer.¡±


    ¡°I hope we get somewhere,¡± Mr. Drails said, as he walked over to his desk. I just sat there, and waited. I knew that I couldn¡¯t trust him, but I didn¡¯t want to take the risk.


    Gerard was still smiling, as he sat in front of Mr. Drails¡¯puter and started to type.


    ¡°Here¡¯s the picture of the guy I was talking about. He¡¯s got brown hair, blue eyes, his height is about five-foot-eight, and he¡¯s about one-eighty-five pounds. His name is Matthew Lock. He¡¯s the rogue YMPA agent, and I need to know where to find him.¡±


    Gerard continued to run his fingers through the keys, as his eyes widened more and more, as if he was reaching something. He licked his lips, as suspense intensified in the room. Finally, he stopped typing, and just stared at the screen for a good ten seconds.


    ¡°Lock¡­ Lock¡­ No, I¡¯m thinking of someone else,¡± Gerard mumbled, before starting to type again. And now, as the minutes passed by, Gerard typed harder than ever.


    ¡°Alright, here it is!¡± Gerard eximed, and he turned to Mr. Drails. ¡°Can you confirm, please?¡± Gerard asked.


    ¡°You think this is him?¡± Mr. Drails asked. Gerard nodded his head, slowly and deliberately. We looked at him, and the picture was indeed Matthew Lock. ¡°What about his location?¡± September asked. Gerard clicked a button. ¡°Here we go,¡± he said. ¡°This is the address of where he lives!¡±


    ¡°Well, what do you expect? This is New York. It wouldn¡¯t be hard for him to live there! I mean, I grew up in the Bronx, in New York, and my parents never had any problems with finding me. So, unless you have some sort of tracking device on your body that we don¡¯t know about, I¡¯m going to assume that you can find him. Right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I can find him easily. I guess I shouldn¡¯t have doubted you.¡±


    ¡°So how do you n to find him? With your eyes? Is there some kind of YMPA agent that can see around corners or something?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°But we have a very, very elite group that, in fact, finds Matthew Lock.¡± He turned to us and smiled. ¡°They are like ninjas, so they must be able to move around undetected and even invisible. Oh, this is going to be great! I¡¯m sorry if I took so long, but I just needed to get them prepared.¡±


    Gerard paused, and slowly nodded, ¡°Alright. So I guess my work here is done?¡±


    ¡°Yes, how much do you want?¡± Mr. Drails asked.


    ¡°How much of what? Dors?¡± Gerard asked. Mr. Drails chuckled, as he got up and walked behind the desk. He grabbed arge stack of bills, and passed it all to Gerard. ¡°This is $10000, and if you want more, you can just say so.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m already rich. That¡¯s the only good thing I got from working with the TSA. I could use another million dors, though, just for fun,¡± Gerard said, before he began to count the cash. He started to slide each bill onto the floor as he counted. ¡°A few million more maybe,¡± he muttered with a chuckle, before he quickly stood up. ¡°Thank you guys! You¡¯re awesome. Good luck!¡± Gerard said, as he held up his hand, which was shaking.


    ¡°I¡¯ll have some agents escort you to your home,¡± Mr. Drails said with a smile. ¡°Good-bye, and good luck!¡± Gerard waved his hand. ¡°Bye!¡±


    Then he and the other two disappeared. I shut the door, and just shook my head. Gerard was definitely an old man.


    .....

 Chapter 260 - 260 The Final Plan

    260 The Final n


    ¡°Alright,¡± he said. ¡°Now we have something on our hands. The question is, what ideas do we have?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± September asked, as he chuckled. He responded back, ¡°We need ideas, like how are we gonna take it from him. We can¡¯t just bust in there, because he¡¯ll have time to escape.¡±


    ¡°Makes sense,¡± I said.


    ¡°So, we have to lure him, but how?¡± Mr. Drails said, pacing around the room.


    I looked around, although I¡¯m not sure why I did that, but I just did. But that¡ªapparently¡ªmustered an idea into my brain.


    ¡°Wait. What if we pretend to make a murder scene?¡±


    It was as if the room pausedpletely, as everyone looked at me. Some were intrigued, and some were concerned.


    ¡°Murder scene?¡± Mr. Drails muttered to himself. ¡°How would that work?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ maybe we could get a few YMPA agents to pretend to make a murder scene, in which it would force Matthew Lock to escort himself from the Bronx.¡±


    .....


    ¡°And then¡­¡± Mchi added, basically ordering me to continue.


    ¡°We tail him until we find an alleyway or somewhere secret to take him down, and get the two briefcases.¡±


    ¡°What if he has the briefcases saved somewhere. He has the ISM working with him, so they probably have it,¡± Nikki said, rubbing her chin.


    Mr. Drails sighed, and inhaled before he exhaled out his thoughts. ¡°We could get some YMPA agents to scout out the ce. Maybe see or examine any rooms that might have the briefcases. If not, then Matthew Lock clearly has possession of the two.¡±


    ¡°Mhm,¡± I agreed.


    ¡°Otherwise, we go on a full search of Matthew Lock. We clear everyone out¡ªincluding him¡ªand then we keep on following Lock until we find him in a secure and unknown area, and then¡ªBam¡ªwe got him!¡± he said, in which the ¡®Bam¡¯ startled all of us.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ so what do we do now?¡±


    ¡°Well, we do have the location of him right on myputer, don¡¯t ya think?¡± he said, turning hisputer to once again reveal his location.


    It was this big red dot that was on a white map, which was a clear representation of his whereabouts. ¡°Now what would be our positions?¡± September asked. Mr. Drails stopped, as his face transferred to a thoughtful expression.


    ¡°Well, perhaps, we would need the most skilled or powerful, in fact, both to go after him. September and Mchi will follow him. However, Connor, Nikki, and Tisiah are going to try and figure out where exactly Matthew Lock ising from. Once you catch sight of him, immediately tell them.¡±


    ¡°Alright, and can the other YMPA agents help?¡±


    ¡°Hopefully, but something tells me the residents are going to upy them for a little while.¡±


    I sighed. ¡°That¡¯s unfortunate,¡± I muttered. ¡°What if September and Mchi need help?¡±


    ¡°What do you think?¡±


    Tisiah reeled back in shock of such quick-paced harsh words. ¡°Dang¡­¡± he muttered to himself, scratching his head.


    ¡°You will not help them, but in fact, help the other YMPA agents in keeping the residents cool.¡±


    ¡°Wait¡ªwhat?!¡± everyone shrieked in shock. ¡°So we¡¯re by ourselves?¡± September asked.


    ¡°You guys have been in this for so long, it¡¯s almost time for you to graduate. Trust me, you guys can take him down.¡±


    ¡°But he¡¯s an official YMPA spy mage, we¡¯re just juniors!¡± Mchi said.


    ¡°There¡¯s two juniors and one official. I¡¯m pretty sure that¡¯s an even match,¡± Mr. Drails said. ¡°Alright?¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± I muttered. ¡°So when are we doing this?¡±


    ¡°As quick as we can,¡± Mr. Drails replied. ¡°Now, I have to talk with some other YMPA agents so they can create this murder scene. In the meantime, you guys can prepare for when the timees. Don¡¯t fail me guys. Don¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir,¡± we all confirmed. We left the briefing room, and the only thing that I could think about was this uing mission.


    I thought Saudi Arabia was going to be the final mission of dealing with Matthew Lock, but what about now? What else is going to happen? What do we do at that point?


    I sighed, and wiped my head. I wasn¡¯t sweating, but it sure felt like it. Then, I heard my phone ring, and I immediately went to pick it up. I looked at the phone, seeing that it was Greg. Probably what I needed right now. I answered the phone, in which Greg shot, ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°What has happened so far?¡±


    ¡°We found out where Lock is, and our n of luring him into a trap might work.¡±


    ¡°Wow. That¡¯s fantastic,¡± he said, in disbelief. ¡°How did you even find him?¡± I chuckled. ¡°We found this tracker Mark Gerard, who used to work for the TSA but retired. He helped us.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Greg asked, his voice curled in surprise.


    ¡°Yep,¡± I quickly uttered.


    ¡°That¡¯s crazy. So what happens next? How will you go after him?¡±


    ¡°Well, we¡¯re following him, and if he tries to escape, we¡¯ll corner him. We¡¯ll lure him out by creating a fake murder scene, and then capture him right when we need him to. Or we could wait for him at an alleyway, but he knows we¡¯reing. But since he¡¯s not expecting much from his new enemies, maybe that will work. Although, we¡¯re going to need more YMPA agents.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, you don¡¯t say. It¡¯s an entire murder scene. YMPA agents will be required. They should be helping.¡±


    ¡°Oh, they will be. Well, I gotta go; we¡¯ll talkter. Bye.¡± But then I stopped, and I never pressed that little red button on my phone. A thought entered my head at thest moment. I returned back to the phone. ¡°Anything from Fulton?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Not too much, or too little I guess,¡± Greg chuckled. ¡°He¡¯s currently keeping an eye on the blue drive, seeing if it¡¯s going to be arriving back anytime soon. I¡¯m sure it is, though, seeing as we¡¯ve been hearing about it every day.¡±


    ¡°Okay¡­ Okay. Alright. How soon?¡±


    ¡°Maybe two or three days. It really all depends, Connor,¡± he said. ¡°I just hope we¡¯re not doing anything wrong.¡±


    ¡°Fulton is very experienced. In fact, he literally owns an entire organization. He knows what he¡¯s doing¡­I hope,¡± I said, slightly bing less confident as I continued. ¡°What do you think?¡±


    ¡°Honestly, Connor? I have no idea. But I trust him, because it still boggles me that Mr. Drails is trying to make a deal with¡­Oh, my goodness.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°You know how you convinced Dr. Mord to help you guys?¡± Greg asked. I nodded. ¡°Yeah, what if Mr. Drails¡¯s n is to use that as a way to make an alliance with the BMO. That¡¯s already one down, and now the SAF is next. We need to be careful, Connor. I¡¯ll keep in touch with you, okay?¡±


    ¡°Okay. Well, I better go, I¡¯ll keep you updated.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± Greg said, as he hung up the phone. I sighed, looking down at the dragon designs and golden fire that was scattered throughout the rails. It made it seem like the YMPA was some fantasy kingdom, with dragons and soldiers fighting for victory. Then again, we¡¯re spy mages. This is a fantasy. That thought made me feel better.


    A few moments passed by. Then, I heard someone approaching. It was Tisiah. He sat next to me, with a strange expression on his face. I looked at him, waiting for him to speak.


    ¡°Hey Connor,¡± Tisiah said with a chuckle. ¡°I heard you talking to Greg about something.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, just updating him on what happened,¡± I said, smiling back. But Tisiah wasn¡¯t smiling anymore, in fact, he had this expression of concern. ¡°It was about some blue drive. Did you guys find something?¡±


    I tried to give a confused face, but it was almost ironic just doing that. A smile still yed on my lips. I didn¡¯t want to scare the rest of the agents. ¡°Yeah, yeah, we found some blue drive. But it was something from the YMPA, so it¡¯s nothing to worry about. We thought it may have carried some documents by the TSA of the virus or something. But we were told it was just some sort of memory drive, though. It¡¯s from the YMPA, so we shouldn¡¯t be concerned,¡± I lied.


    Tisiah nodded. ¡°Alright, lunch is about to start. So, just meet us at the table if you need to talk to us or anything.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    ¡°Did you find something out? Anything? Let me know,¡± he asked, making sure that I knew that it was alright to let him know the truth. ¡°Don¡¯t hold things back. You have me and the other two,¡± he said, nodding his head in the direction of September and Mchi.


    ¡°Why do you say that?¡± I asked, but Tisiah just shook his head. ¡°You never know when you might need them, if you really wanted to. Trust me; you need them.¡±


    I nodded.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m going to take off then,¡± Tisiah said, as he got up from his seat. He went to the cafeteria.


    ¡°Thanks. See youter,¡± I said, waving him goodbye.


    ¡°Okay, bye Connor,¡± he said.

 Chapter 261 - 261 A Tough Question

    261 A Tough Question


    My heart was now beating faster because of the consciousness that was pulsating through my veins. That was way too close. And who knows, maybe he¡¯s still suspicious because my story didn¡¯t add up.


    This is too scary.


    I took a deep breath, figuring maybe that I needed to eat. I haven¡¯t eaten since school, and school was three hours ago, which still doesn¡¯t justify my sudden ravenous hunger for food.


    I walked to the cafeteria, in which chicken and brown rice was being served. The meal wasn¡¯t very good, but not too bad to where it was uneatable.


    As I grabbed my tray, I saw peopleing in and out to Mchi¡¯s table, in which he was sitting with the rest of my team.


    Someughed, some flirted as usual, or some just came to ask a simple question, which was weird.


    But once they all left, it was as if a cat was now out of a bag, and the group began talking. I needed to hear what they were talking about without disturbing their conversation, because my presence would just dy things.


    But the first sentence uttered out of Tisiah¡¯s mouth startled me.


    ¡°Hey, guys, I don¡¯t think Connor is okay. I think there¡¯s something that he isn¡¯t telling us.¡±


    .....


    My legs froze, unwilling to move any closer. I could see September lean back, as if the information hit her with a bat.


    ¡°What makes you think that?¡± she asked, her eyes narrowed in confusion. Tisiah sighed and shook his head worriedly. ¡°I was talking to him, and he was talking about some blue drive. I asked him what it was, and he said he thought it was something important to finding Matthew Lock, but it was just something that belonged to the YMPA anyways.¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­ so what¡¯s the problem?¡± Nikki asked, rubbing her chin, in which she seemed really interested¡ªbut also concerned.


    ¡°That story is very odd. First, why would he not tell us this information? If it¡¯s dealing with Matthew Lock, it¡¯s probably a good idea to tell us. Correct me if I¡¯m wrong.¡±


    September nodded, although I wasn¡¯t sure in agreement or in response to Tisiah¡¯s question. But her enthusiastic nod seemed to answer my question.


    ¡°And he seemed so¡ªshaky once he said that. As if that was theplete opposite of what happened. Like that story was one hundred percent bogus.¡±


    ¡°It probably is,¡± Mchi said. I felt a bit hurt from hisment. Is that what he thought of me?


    I looked to the side of me, seeing an empty table that was blocked by some other junior-agent students socializing with their friends.


    I quickly took my ce there, close enough to clearly hear their conversation.


    ¡°I hope not,¡± Tisiah muttered. ¡°Maybe he wanted it as a surprise. But I know Connor isn¡¯t like that. I remember when I first met him, he was quite stiff and straightforward, and alone. That¡¯s why I befriended him. So this is unlike him¡ªvery much unlike him.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think Connor is hiding anything from us,¡± September said. ¡°He¡¯s always been open and has always told us the truth.¡±


    ¡°Yes, but maybe this one is different. It could be possible that he is¡ªindeed¡ªhiding something.¡±


    ¡°Nonsense.¡±


    ¡°Connor will tell us if he needs to keep something secret. We just have to respect his wishes and let him do as he pleases. I¡¯m sure he has his reasons, and we¡¯re all here for him. We are supposed to trust each other.¡±


    ¡°I agree with September,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Connor is a very trustful person. However, sometimes people change, and this could be that time. He is young after all, and he should get to know us more before saying something like that. And we shouldn¡¯t get the wrong idea either. He might have had a good reason to say that, so maybe there is a good chance it¡¯s true.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, he might just have had a really bad day at school. And since we¡¯re here, we should ask himter when he¡¯s in a better mood.¡±


    I was in a good mood. Now I¡¯m not.


    ¡°Well, it would help if he actually tells the rest of us about this blue drive of his. Otherwise, he¡¯s going to remain suspicious,¡± Mchi said. Nikki looked at him with a scrunched attitude. ¡°Do you want him to be some sneaky type of guy or something?¡± she asked. Mchi shook his head in the negative. Then he nodded. ¡°Alright, yeah, let¡¯s wait and see what he says about it.¡±


    ¡°So, how did everything go?¡± September asked.


    ¡°Fine, fine,¡± Tisiah said.


    ¡°Are you alright? Do you need a break from training? You seem exhausted.¡±


    ¡°No, no, I¡¯m okay. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be fine. I just got some bad news.¡±


    As they continued talking, their voices slowly began to muffle and the beating of my heart climbed in volume. They were still talking about my ¡®blue drive¡¯, which I knew wasn¡¯t good for me.


    I nced around the table to make sure that nobody else was watching. I shouldn¡¯t have answered Greg¡¯s call, because now I might have messed up a lot of things. What if they began to investigate? What if they told Mr. Drails? Now my teeth chattered, and it wasn¡¯t even cold. I needed to do something, but what?


    They said they were going to ask me. But what do I even tell them? I had a feeling that I was about to be found out. I stood and rushed over to the food line.


    I didn¡¯t care anymore that Mchi¡¯s eyes were on me. I just wanted to run, and there was nowhere to run to. I didn¡¯t feel safe; I didn¡¯t feel like I could ever truly fit in with any group again. I needed to fix this. But I felt helpless in making that im. I had a choice. Whether to let Mr. Drails, the president of literally the top MSTO organization, continue his puzzling n? Or do I work with Fulton and stop him, or at least know his n?


    It was hard. Very hard. Especially considering I had been a part of the YMPA for quite some time, and I was loyal¡ªfor the most part.


    But I¡¯ve always felt like I could never trust him. I mean, I could trust him, but not now. And now, I¡¯m not even sure if I can trust Tisiah¡ª-or the whole group in that matter.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on? Is everyone okay? Did someone get hurt? Is everything alright?¡± Tisiah asked, looking straight at me. It was as if the Earth finally caught my attention, and I jumped from his sudden arrival. I stammered, trying to muster the words of what to say. ¡°Yeah¡­¡± I blurted out, a bit embarrassed from that result.


    ¡°Connor, what¡¯s wrong? You¡¯re shaking.¡±


    ¡°No, no¡­ I¡¯m fine,¡± I lied, although my fingers were gripping my knife so tightly that my knuckles turned white. Tisiah narrowed his eyes to look at me suspiciously. I saw him lick his lips, wondering if I was telling the truth or not.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on, Connor? We all need to know. What did you do? Tell us, man. You have to tell us.¡±


    I took a deep breath, willing to let the words flow. But my conscience was working against me, and my mouth trembled like my lips were sitting on a vibrating chair, which I felt like I needed right now.


    ¡°I don¡¯t really remember it happening¡­¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not buying that. Now juste out with it, kid. What¡¯s going on? Why are you acting like this?¡± Mchi asked, his eyebrow raised in confusion.


    I took another deep breath and then nced at the floor. I wanted to tell them, but I felt like I couldn¡¯t. I felt as if someone was forcing me, although I wanted to submit and confess. But how could I? I had to think of a good excuse.


    ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll tell you, but I want to be honest with all of you. So please, respect my decision. Okay?¡±


    They all looked at each other, as if they needed time to decide. However, my heart pounded heavily in my chest and I didn¡¯t think I had much time left. I needed to create a story in my head, very quickly as I could. ¡°Uh¡ª-okay¡ª-um, I had this blue drive which was meant for something more personal for me. Like, family kind of personal, and being that it was something that was in my personal life, I didn¡¯t want you guys to be involved with it. It would be very embarrassing, if I could say it in that way, and just¡ª-not justifiable to the situations that have encountered my family.¡±


    Silence took the space between the five of us. I nced down, as the silence grew longer and louder. September pursed her lips into a cute, pouty expression as she thought. Mchi was still looking at me, staring me straight in the eyes and scrutinizing me.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know that,¡± Tisiah muttered. ¡°I honestly didn¡¯t know that.¡±


    Mchi nodded, his head bobbing up and down. ¡°So, you¡¯re telling us the truth? You¡¯ve never lied to us before?¡±


    ¡°What would make you think that?¡± I asked quickly, almost too quickly enough to cause suspicion, in which I dialed down.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure what else to believe now. You keep saying things like ¡®I don¡¯t remember,¡¯ or ¡®I can¡¯t think straight¡¯ or even, ¡®I¡¯m not okay¡¯, and¡­well, I feel like you¡¯re making excuses to us,¡± he said.


    ¡°You have no idea¡­but there isn¡¯t any lie. I can assure you that much,¡± I said. ¡°My spy and family world are two different things, and not something for you guys to worry about. Trust me. I wouldn¡¯t want to disappoint Mr. Drails either. So if you need to, trust your leader. He knows what¡¯s best, you know?¡±


    They chuckled. ¡°Alright,¡± Tisiah said, rolling his eyes, in which I chuckled. ¡°Come, give me a hug.¡±


    The four of us walked toward the table. Tisiah went first. I looked at him, a bit confused, but then I leaned in and hugged his massive frame. I felt a bit shocked, but eventually I closed in. I smiled as we did, but that only made me feel a bit more sad now. I lied to them, and they¡¯re treating me like a family. How can I be so cruel to them?


    ¡°I need to go for a walk. I want to clear my head.¡±


    ¡°Can Ie with you?¡± Nikki asked, her arms folded.


    I nced up at September who was smiling, as Tisiah shook his head and pushed her back. She stumbled backward andnded on her behind.


    ¡°No, I want to do this alone.¡±


    She scooted up her chair and stood up, as I began to leave the cafeteria. I sighed as I exited the cafeteria, just thinking about the slide of events that just happened.

 Chapter 262 - 266 Chs

    266 Chs


    ADD


    262 Preparing for the Last Mission


    School came the next day, and the only thing in my mind was telling Greg what happened yesterday. I couldn¡¯t call him while I was at the YMPA. The only ce that he and I could privately speak¡ªassuming they¡¯re not spying on me¡ªwas school or at Greg¡¯s house.


    I immediately ran towards Greg, in which he noticed my footsteps very quickly.


    ¡°You¡¯re running like something¡¯s wrong?¡± he said, looking at me with concern.


    ¡°That¡¯s because something is,¡± I said, looking at him. He sighed. ¡°What?¡± he shot at me, his eyes widened with fear.


    ¡°Listen, okay? Remember when you called me yesterday?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°Tisiah noticed, and he asked what the whole blue drive thing was. I gave him a bogus story, and he didn¡¯t buy it,¡± I said.


    Greg took a deep breath, and rested his hand on his head. His face was drenched with worry. ¡°Hey, don¡¯t worry, I made them think it was a personal matter and they bought this time¡ªI think.¡±


    ¡°I hope so,¡± Greg said. ¡°If they still think it¡¯s bogus and didn¡¯t tell you, then many things may go wrong. In fact, many things will go wrong.¡±


    .....


    ¡°I mean, I do think they did buy it this time around. Tisiah even gave me a hug afterwards,¡± I said, shrugging.


    Greg just gave me an unamused look, and I nodded slowly, a bit embarrassed not gonna lie.


    ¡°Listen, I¡¯m going to call Fultonter to see if he can somehow make the blue drive arrive quicker or something. Then maybe we can get it and continue on with this secret mission. Which reminds me, how is the Matthew Lock mission going?¡±


    ¡°We found his location, and hopefully we can finally catch him this time.¡±


    ¡°I hope so too.¡±


    ***


    Hopefully, this time is going to be thest time that we can stop Matthew Lock from releasing the virus. Or at least have any chance of releasing it.


    From what we were informed, the YMPa agents already created the scene, but they were only going to be able to keep it going for another four hours.


    The first thing I did once I got inside of the YMPA was run straight to the barracks. So did the others I assume, because I met them there once I arrived.


    September came first. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re here?¡± she said, looking at me with a pleasantly surprised face.


    ¡°Yeah, are the othersing or not?¡± I asked, looking behind me and by the corner. She shrugged. But then talking echoed through the halls diagonal from us, and appearing around the corner was Mchi.


    ¡°Oh, y¡¯all¡¯s here?¡± he said, looking at us with a pleasantly surprised face.


    ¡°Yeah, is Tisiah and Nikkiing yet?¡± September asked. ¡°I would presume they are.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know to be honest. I¡¯m just trying to fix up my weapons and then head to the briefing room,¡± he said, confirming that room is indeed called: The Briefing Room.


    But suddenly, more talking traveled from the same hall. Tisiah and Nikki¡ªthest two¡ªfinally showed up for the asion.


    ¡°Oh, you guys are here?¡± Nikki asked, but her face was confused. Tisiah shrugged. ¡°Apparently. Y¡¯all here to get your weapons?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, then we¡¯re going to head to the briefing room.¡±


    ¡°Sounds like a n.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. You should all get some coffee as well before we go into the actual briefing. It helps you focus on what you¡¯re supposed to do, and who knows, it may actually give you a boost of adrenaline and energy,¡± Tisiah said, smiling. He looked at each one of us in turn.


    ¡°Nah, I¡¯m a bit too excited for coffee,¡± Mchi chuckled. After getting our weapons, and putting them in their respective ces, we all headed towards the briefing room.


    As soon as we arrived, we walked in, and then sat down at the table. We all looked around, almostpletely at a loss with what to do next. Mr. Drails then turned around, and his face was beaming with a stern face. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure you guys already know the events that are going to take ce soon,¡± Mr. Drails said, in which we nodded.


    ¡°Now, here¡¯s the n, just an overview if you could say it in that way. We enter the Bronx and the murder scene will already be prepared. Matthew Lock will most likely be leaving, just to avoid any contact with the ¡®police.¡¯ He will run, and then I¡¯ll have Mchi and September in a helicopter after him. We will then capture him, stop him, and get the virus. Understood?¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll be leaving very soon. Did you guys prepare your¡ª¡±


    ¡°Yes, we did.¡±


    ¡°Oh, good¡­well then¡­we¡¯ll be leaving shortly. Good luck!¡±


    ¡°Good luck, sir!¡±


    ¡°No, you don¡¯t need to call me that, just Drails works fine. I guess we¡¯ve be quite close, haven¡¯t we? Ah, I don¡¯t mean that in a bad way.¡±


    ¡°We got this, Mr. Drails!¡±


    ¡°I know you do, and I believe in all of you guys. You can help us out of this one little situation, so don¡¯t worry about it, okay?¡± he said. ¡°Five minutes and then we¡¯re leaving.¡± He turned his eyes back to hisputer, as I turned to Tisiah, and he looked at me. ¡°So, you ready?¡±


    ¡°Say less,¡± Tisiah said, chuckling. ¡°I can¡¯t wait to get Matthew Lock behind our bars. This is my best chance to finally take down the virus creator. Oh man, I can¡¯t wait for tonight¡­¡±


    ¡°Me too,¡± I said, turning around. ¡°But Matthew Lock isn¡¯t the virus creator though?¡±


    ¡°Well, he¡¯s holding it right now,¡± he said, focusing his eyes on me. ¡°That makes him bad enough. Why else do you think we have to stop him, besides the fact that he might kill again and release the virus? If he keeps releasing the virus, and the vine still hasn¡¯t been created yet, then humanity will be extinct, as you said. And if that happens, then the world as we know it, will end.¡±


    ¡°Yup. It would all just be gone in an instant,¡± I said, now thinking about it. This was really a big deal, and I can¡¯t sugarcoat it. It is definitely a big deal. This is a chance that we have to stop the virus from being released, and let the TSA finish their ns.


    ¡°Bro, I¡¯m just excited that we¡¯re going to be using a helicopter,¡± Mchi said. ¡°Well¡ª-me and September, not the rest of you guys.¡±


    ¡°Well you better do your job right then,¡± Tisiah hissed quickly. ¡°Because, I can assure you, it¡¯s only going to be your fault if this mission messes up.¡± Mchi gave him a hard look, and I could already tell that things were about to go down.


    ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± Mchi hissed, and Tisiah chuckled. ¡°You know exactly what¡ª-¡±


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s calm down, shall we?¡± I said, shooting a smile at both of them, which didn¡¯t seem to fix much. Mchi stared back at Tisiah, before backing up and taking a seat.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. I trust you two with this assignment. We shouldn¡¯t fight at the moment when we¡¯re about to leave, anyways,¡± Mr. Drails said, turning to Mchi and giving him a reassuring smile.


    ¡°Yeah, yeah. I know, we¡¯ve got this. We will make sure to have our work done, just like you said. You don¡¯t need to worry about us,¡± Mchi said, shooting a look back at Tisiah. ¡°You just stay in your ce.¡±


    Tisiah didn¡¯t say anything, but the look on his face said that he wanted to give Mchi a good right to the face.


    ¡°Good, good,¡± Mr. Drails said, walking to hisputer, looking back at the five of us. ¡°Okay, so let me give you all the info that you¡¯re going to need. We are actually having some issues with our portal.¡±


    I looked at Tisiah, as I asked, ¡°Issues with the portal?¡± I wasn¡¯t too surprised about the portal because we had already heard that a bunch of portals were broken. ¡°Are you telling me we¡¯re going to have to fly there?¡± Nikki asked, her eyes widened. Mr. Drails chuckled. ¡°The transmissions between our wands have been a bit wonky. I¡¯ll transport you guys to a base close to New York. Hopefully they can contain the people in there for a good while before Matthew Lock decides to forget it and leave. But I¡¯m pretty sure by now, he knows that we¡¯re on our way to capture him. So, I doubt he¡¯ll do the smart thing.¡±


    ¡°Alright, so when are we leaving?¡±


    ¡°Based on my timer¡­ thirty seconds.¡±


    ¡°Okay guys,¡± September said, looking at all four of us. ¡°This is it. This is the mission we¡¯re going to get Matthew Lock. We better be ready to fight. Let¡¯s go!¡±


    ¡°Yes! Let¡¯s go! Come on, let¡¯s blow this door down!¡±


    Then all of a sudden, Mr. Drails sent a portal under us, dropping us from the ground and onto the other ground. The other ground was filled with grass and soil, which luckily didn¡¯t paint my face.


    ¡°We¡¯re here, guys. This ce doesn¡¯t look like much of a base, but at least it¡¯s somewhere where Lock isn¡¯t going to run away and escape, if he does,¡± Mchi said. But the base looked more like a border patrol than any sort of base or center. There were a few soldiers inside, standing in their uniforms, ring at us. They didn¡¯t move out, but just started. ¡°And who are these guys?¡± Mchi muttered.


    ¡°Let¡¯s not worry about them, let¡¯s just go ahead and make our way to New York,¡± September said. ¡°Nikki, can you make a car real quick enough to get us there?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I think so,¡± she said.

 Chapter 263 - 263 A Challenging Fight

    263 A Challenging Fight


    I quickly got my radio, and dialed the number. I quickly connected to Nikki, and my heart slowed a bit after hearing her voice through the chaos.


    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s going on? Are you guys with me?¡± she asked us, but I could only just pant in exhaustion. ¡°No, not really. However, we are met by a bunch of TSA vehicles speeding in your direction, and driving in oing traffic.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry what?¡±


    ¡°We are met¡ª¡±


    ¡°No, no, no, thest two words you just said.¡±


    ¡°Oing traffic?¡± All of a sudden, her voice skyrocketed in volume. ¡°Why are you guys driving in the oingne? Do you guys really want to die?!¡±


    ¡°Would you prefer us behind them?¡± I asked, seeing two bolts pass by me, although only inches from my face.


    ¡°Oh, Lord,¡± she muttered, before returning back to the radio. ¡°Alright, on your left, there should be an exit. Matthew Lock is driving this Jeep, which Lord only knows why that¡¯s a good idea. It¡¯s a ck jeep so once you see that, immediately get on him.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said. ¡°Tisiah, did you hear that?¡±


    .....


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°On the left is an exit, make that turn and try to search for a ck jeep.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± Tisiah said. Suddenly, the vehicle veered towards the left and onto the exit, which was closer than I thought.


    We went down to the main road, where all the cars were stopped by street lights and intersections were present in every block.


    But no ck Jeep.


    ¡°Oh, boy,¡± I muttered to myself, looking around, trying to see a Jeep that could be parked at some diner, or behind some big 18-wheeler or something. All I know is that citizens will be concerned about seeing a kid with a machine gun in a Humvee.


    Hopefully we¡¯re not put in the news.


    ¡°Got any sight of him Tisiah?¡± I asked, trying to look down at the windshield. I could see a reflection of Tisiah shaking his head.


    ¡°Nikki, are you behind him by any chance?¡± I asked, putting the radio right beside my ear. ¡°Is there any chance at all that you¡¯re behind him, because that will make life¡ªconsiderably easier.¡±


    ¡°I can slightly see him, but he¡¯s pulling away. I¡¯m waiting for him to go into an alleyway to not cause much attention.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure bringing a big military vehicle is not gonna cause much attention. Totally.¡±


    ¡°Just do what I tell you to do, because stopping him will pretty much save the world, and we don¡¯t have time to be ying around.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    We continued to search, as I nced left and right, trying to catch sight of a ck jeep. We needed to find him, unless those TSA vehicles behind us were going to catch up.


    ¡°Come on,¡± I muttered, getting out my binocrs and looking ahead. Figures that was the answer, because I saw a ck Jeep, speeding through the road.


    ¡°Over there!¡± I shouted, hoping Tisiah could hear me. ¡°Follow him!¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± Tisiah said, as the vehicle sped forward after the other transport. The Jeep was moving, not gonna lie, but we were catching up to it.


    The ck Jeep¡ªwhich Matthew Lock was driving¡ªall of a sudden, drifted to the left through all the intersecting traffic in which we followed, and received the brunt of the angry honks.


    Matthew Lock cut into anotherne, dodging a car in his way. His engine roared and growled, as he sped up through the streets.


    Quickly, we dashed after him, cutting the corner and trying to keep a tail on him. His wheels produced smoke that sted against our car, which luckily I was too high in elevation to not avoid.


    ¡°Get by the side of him,¡± I said, in which Tisiah was on it. He began to advance on the side of the Jeep, in which I could see the face I¡¯ve been waiting to see since Saudi Arabia.


    Matthew Lock.


    Quickly, Tisiah veered into him, but Matthew Lock then escaped by veering the same direction as Tisiah.


    A car abruptly separated us for a moment, before we closed back in on each other. Tisiah revved towards him, but Matthew Lock moved to the right, before cutting to anotherne at the left.


    Tisiah followed closely, before drifting to the right side¡ªand then sting forward towards Matthew Lock like a rocket.


    The engine roared as a warning, and Matthew Lock took wisdom in that. He moved once again, this time to the rightne, but Tisiah cut to the left because of the two cars that were almost barricading our way.


    Twones separated us, but not for long. Suddenly, the sound of a screeching motorcycle revved in our ears. I turned quickly, to see someone on a motorcycle, hot on Matthew Lock¡¯s tail.


    Nikki.


    ¡°Nikki!¡± I shouted, catching her attention. She turned to look at me, and an expression of relief was drawn on her face, but then she looked back at the Jeep, with her eye on the prize.


    Matthew Lock then turned to the right, drifting as he did so, which we inevitably followed. The tail of his car leaned to the left side, before he straightened out the car back to its natural position, as if it was some fish tail.


    ¡°We need to somehow stall him, or get him somewhere secret? Any ideas?¡± Nikki said loudly.


    ¡°No, not really to be honest with you,¡± I said. ¡°Where¡¯s Mchi and September, I thought they were in the helicopter¡ª¡±


    I looked up slowly, seeing a ck police helicopter in the air, soaring through the sky while keeping pace on Matthew Lock.


    ¡°That¡¯s where they are,¡± I muttered to myself. I turned back to the radio, my mouth closer to the speaker. ¡°They¡¯re in the helicopter above us. It¡¯s a police helicopter for the murder scene, correct?¡±


    ¡°I can only assume so,¡± Nikki said. ¡°They must be livid at us, aren¡¯t they?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m quite positive,¡± I said with a soft chuckle, before returning my gaze at Matthew Lock. I looked ahead, and an idea blinked inside my puzzled brain.


    ¡°There¡¯s a dead end, or some construction barricade that¡¯s blocking the road ahead of us. If we crash him there, then we can basically hide him, and make our secret spot.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure this will work?¡± Nikki asked.


    ¡°To be honest, I¡¯m not sure,¡± I said. ¡°But that¡¯s why you try¡ªright?¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Nikki muttered. I lowered down back inside of the Humvee, to scream the message to him.


    ¡°Make Matthew Lock crash at that construction site right there. Crash him, pile-maneuver him, trick him or something, just make sure he crashes.¡±


    ¡°Got it,¡± Tisiah said, as the engine revved louder, and the sudden thrust of the Humvee climbed, and we dashed forward towards the Jeep.


    The Humvee, getting ready to ram, shot forward towards the side of his vehicle, and it was not stopping any time soon.


    Tisiah¡ªI believe¡ªpushed the pedal even harder, as the wind shot against me, the air pping my face, before I felt the hard collision between us and Matthew Lock.


    I could see the Jeep leap into the air, do three barrel rolls, thennd and puke out ss, and in doing so, do five more barrel rolls than before, before crashing into a pir.


    I turned to see Nikki¡¯s stunned face. ¡°Dang¡­¡± she muttered, and I could only help but to agree with her.


    But then, I saw Matthew Lock crawl out of his shattered windshield, and scramble onto his feet. All of a sudden, a wand was in his hand, and he pointed it right at Nikki.


    ¡°No!¡± I shouted, getting ready to st a bunch of bullets from the stationed machine gun.


    But it was toote.


    He shot the bolt, and the bolt dissolved once it crashed into Nikki¡¯s front tire. She ejected off the seat and into the air, doing a frontflip before dropping to the ground.


    ¡°Nikki!¡± Tisiah shouted, in which he immediately stopped the Humvee. I contracted my legs from the little hole, and released them out into the air, before I jumped down to Nikki¡¯s side.


    ¡°Hah, isn¡¯t this funny!¡± Matthew Lock chuckled. ¡°You guys never learn do you, kids?¡±


    I tried not to listen to him, but to only focus attention on Nikki, who was unconscious, I hope, right now.


    ¡°My goal is very clear, in case you didn¡¯t know,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°You YMPA fools think you guys are going to stop what I¡¯ve sacrificed for years?¡±


    ¡°You betrayed us!¡± Tisiah screamed at him, his voice trembling in sorrow.


    ¡°For my greater good,¡± Matthew Lock said with a chuckle. ¡°Let me educate you guys. When ites to self-welfare, or safety, it¡¯s every man for himself.¡±


    ¡°So you¡¯ll put the whole world at risk because of you?¡± I hissed, extending my posture to the full stance.


    ¡°Please, don¡¯t make it so dramatic,¡± Lock hissed back quickly. ¡°You¡¯re getting a bit annoying. I ought to deal with you right now.¡±


    ¡°I dare you,¡± I grumbled, walking slowly to him. His hands balled into fists, and so did mine. We slowly began to approach one another, his face filled with cleverness, whereas mine was filled with rage.


    ¡°You used to be one of us,¡± I said. ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°Opportunity happened,¡± he said, chuckling afterwards. ¡°Opportunity knocked at my door, and I let him in, and trust me, it was a good choice too.¡±


    ¡°I think you¡¯ll be second-guessing that very soon.¡±


    ¡°Humor me.¡±


    Quickly, we dashed towards each other, as he made the first swing. I dodged to the lower left, and returned back to my first posture. But suddenly, two more punches came, in which I weaved left and right, before adding a quick jab to his stomach.


    He didn¡¯t even stumble from the hit, but instead came with more.


    He gave a hard right to my cheek, which in my dazed condition, he clocked me with a left. He was too quick, and too smart.


    How in the world was I going to beat him?


    He always knew what to do next, and which attacks would affect me most. It was impossible to eveny a hand on him.


    But I needed to do this for Nikki. I need to read my enemy, as Master Tophe would always say. You guys remember her, right?


    I looked at him, trying to analyze his past moves and attacks, and trying toe up with a conclusion.


    He¡¯s fast, meaning that he isn¡¯t strong. If I hit him somewhere where it hurts: ribs, gut, shoulders, jaw, and head, maybe it might work.


    Quickly, I took a few steps away, and we were about a few feet from each other. I looked at him, ready to put my attack into use. I¡¯m not sure about him though, he seemed more as if he was trying to catch his breath.


    .....


    His eyes were red, although I don¡¯t think they were with fury. His hands were still balled up into fists, and I could see his knuckles almost popping out of his skin.


    ¡°I never realized how annoying you guys were. I kind of respect that,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°Not gonna lie.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m diligent, not annoying,¡± I quickly defended.


    ¡°Well, you can really decide if you¡¯re annoying or not. That¡¯s not necessarily your choice,¡± he said, as we moved in this circle formation as if we were in some colosseum.


    ¡°However, the choice you do have is whether to leave me alone with my own problems, or to end up like your little friend over there,¡± he said, referencing Nikki. ¡°Your choice, kid.¡±

 Chapter 264 - 264 Bane vs. Connor

    264 Bane vs. Connor


    Suddenly, like an angel from heaven, the helicopter above us¡ªthe ones Mchi and September were in¡ªlowered down to ground.


    The rushing wind that overtook the ce whipped against my body and my face, as the des of the helicopter traveled the wind through the area.


    I could see Mchi and September exit their flying transport, with their guns drawn and faced at Lock.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move!¡± September shouted.


    Mchi didn¡¯t say anything, but his gun was still locked on Matthew¡¯s chest. Any move Matthew made meant imminent death.


    I looked back at him, in which he looked at me, his eyes widened with fear and panic. ¡°Now you have a choice,¡± I said. ¡°Surrender and live, or run and die. Your pick.¡±


    But then, as if it wasn¡¯t chaotic enough, I heard, ¡°I¡¯ll give you two a choice instead.¡±


    Me and Matthew turned around to see three TSA vehicles parked, with men pouring out of them, and Luthor Bane standing in front of them like some king.


    He chuckled, ¡°You and your YMPA children will mind your own business, and Matthew Lock gives me both my money and the virus. Or, both of you can try something funny and die in the process of your joke. Please choose wisely, I don¡¯t want to be here long.¡±


    .....


    Matthew Lock¡¯s face seemed lost, but also disgusted. Nikki, who Tisiah was still nursing, looked at me, her face fearful and scared.


    I couldn¡¯t let this continue. I had to make the best choice for all of us.


    I closed my eyes, and focused on myself, my mind, and my body. I felt the energy, the red energy flow brightly through me.


    Yes, there we go.


    I opened my eyes and looked deadly at Luthor Bane. His eyes widened, as he saw my eyes ring with a red beam.


    ¡°Shoot him!¡± I could hear him shout, as all the agents unloaded their weapons. Their bullets shot towards me, but once I stomped the ground, the bullets turned to dust.


    Every car and every object big or small jumped into the air, and shattered ss soared through the sky. Explosions erupted once the carsnded on the ground, and groans and screams of pain followed shortly.


    I looked around, seeing the destruction and smoke billow around me. That was my choice. And I think it was a good one.


    But then I heard, ¡°Connor!¡±


    I turned around to see Nikki and everyone else right behind me. ¡°Over here!¡± Mchi shouted, in which I quickly followed him.


    But something grabbed my cor and shoved me to the ground. Or in this case, Luthor Bane. He looked down at me, his eyes ring with anger, and possibly annoyance.


    I crawled to one of the fiery cars, trying to lift myself up using the window regtor. He slowly walked towards me like a predator watching his prey, his footsteps slow and menacing.


    ¡°You know, you forget that my father is the literal president of the TSA, and you know what that means.¡±


    All of a sudden, he began to duplicate himself, as more bodies of him lined up against me.


    ¡°How about now?¡± he muttered.


    I looked at Mchi and the rest of them who were looking back in horror. ¡°You cannot stop me with this, my friend!¡± Luthor Bane shouted, following with a crazedugh.


    ¡°Guys, I¡¯m quite positive I¡¯m going to need your help with this,¡± I said, looking at them with widened eyes, which they were welling up.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we got you. Me and Mchi and Tisiah will help Connor, Nikki, you need to search for those two briefcases,¡± September said.


    ¡°I already got my men on that, she won¡¯t find time,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°Give up, children.¡±


    Mchi, September and Tisiah unsheathed their wands, ready for a fight. ¡°I don¡¯t think we want to,¡± I said, crawling up to my feet.


    He chuckled, looking at us cunningly before he sent his duplicates against us.


    I charged up my Perk, and readied for the battle.


    Two of himself dashed towards me for a challenge, in which I backed up. I looked at both of them, deciding which to do first.


    The one on the left quickly attacked me, in which I fought him off quickly. The other began to release a st of attacks, in which I quickly dodged.


    After a few misses, I finally managed to catch him right at his jaw. He fell down, and disappeared, leaving a dust pile of glitter before it too disappeared.


    Two down.


    Then another two set their eyes on me, and charged at me. These ones were advanced however, as if I just unlocked a new level.


    They attacked at the same time, rather than just letting one have a go at it, and then give the turn to the other after they were defeated.


    It was a struggle having to block punches flying at me from every direction at once. It was difficult, and I knew I was going to need some help.


    Quickly I kicked the two of them to give me some space, in which I readied my Perk. I stomped the ground, in which they flew into the air.


    One of them flew in apletely different direction, in which that one was gone, but one of them was in the air and was still within my reach.


    I jumped up and soared through the air, before I punched the duplicate, sending it down to Earth.


    Once it hit the ground, it disappeared in the same pile of glitter.


    I returned to the ground, as I studied the area. The duplicates were slowly beginning to surround Mchi and the rest of the team.


    They swung and swung, but it seemed as if the duplicates were copying each other.


    ¡°Guys, I¡¯ming!¡± I shouted, but then I heard footsteps behind me. I turned around, to see Luthor Bane¡¯s smirk.


    ¡°Not yet. I¡¯m not done with you,¡± he said, chuckling. ¡°Fight me, kid.¡±


    I looked at him, my chest expanding as my lungs inhaled. I continued to stare at him, waiting for him to do his move.


    But nothing happened.


    ¡°Well, you gonna¡ª¡± All of a sudden, I felt a sharp pain behind me as I fell to the ground, rolling before I bumped into a pole.


    Did he just teleport?


    I crawled onto my feet, seeing his smirk, as he tilted his neck side to side, and I could hear the crackling of his joints.


    ¡°I expected better, Connor,¡± he said. ¡°Use your Perk! I want a real fight.¡±


    I coughed, feeling as if my heart was going to bust from all the pressure beating down on it.


    He sighed, and his face was drawn with annoyance.


    ¡°Fight me!¡± he shouted. I staggered to my feet, and pulled up my fists.


    ¡°There we go!¡± he said, chuckling which slowly intensified into a cacklingugh. ¡°There¡¯s the Connor I like.¡±


    He rushed at me, and I rushed at him. I threw two punches at him, but his elbows quickly came to the rescue.


    But then, as I tried to throw another one, it was suddenly clutched by his hands, and he shot a kick at my chest. I flew and dropped to the ground, rolling before I returned to my feet, stopping the moving momentum.


    He chuckled, slowly walking towards me as if he was trying to regain his energy. I needed to use that to my advantage.


    I quickly brought myself to run at him, in which I threw a punch and he weaved, giving a good right to my cheek.


    I stumbled.


    But then I tried to go with the elbow approach, but he caught that and twisted it to where he could give a good jab to my nose.


    He did, and I staggered back.


    I violently shook my head, trying to get my senses back together. What was I doing? I wasn¡¯t like this. Was I just nervous or scared?


    I moved my head around in a slithering motion, before round three began. Two punches came at me, but I blocked them quickly, before adding a quick elbow to stun Luthor Bane.


    I threw two punches, but they missed from his brisk dodge. He tried to finish me with a roundhouse kick that probably would¡¯ve ended my career, but the rushing wind pulled me back, and my heart throbbed from the immense amount of pain that jolted at that moment.


    ¡°Where¡¯s the offensive?¡± he asked. ¡°I¡¯m not feeling it.¡±


    A pack of punches followed his words, in which I dodged two, and blocked three. I hit him in the elbow, in which by the side of my eye, a trash can was present.


    I quickly rolled on top of it, my feet propelled in a way in which two kicks came across his face.


    He flew from the air, but didn¡¯t miss thending. Shock was the only thing drawn on my face.


    ¡°Nice attempt,¡± he said, dusting off his hands. I wasn¡¯t amused.


    Quickly I ran towards him, throwing a swing in which he blocked. He gave two quick punches to my chest, and the pain of the two merged together into a pulsating bolt of pain.


    I stumbled back, trying to catch up with the pain that was pumping in my chest. But he didn¡¯t give a care in the world.


    He threw a right across my jaw once again, and the entire process repeated. More punches and more kicks and more attacks kept popping up everywhere, not giving me enough time to even recover.


    The pain was dragging me to my knees, as I stumbled onto the hood of a TSA vehicle.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, are you a bit too tired?!¡± he asked. He threw a hard punch at my cheek, and my brain wobbled inside my skull.


    ¡°Do you need a little nap?!¡± he shouted.


    This time, he grabbed my entire body and threw me back onto the hood of the car. The ss shot out and covered the hood.


    I groaned, unsure if I was going to be able to get up ever again at this point. The pain soared through my body, and cries of agony was the only thing I could speak.


    ¡°I remember when you shot me with that dart gun, and I allowed you to disrespect me like that,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s such a little mistake that I¡¯m super ticked off about. Don¡¯t you think? Oh well, it doesn¡¯t matter much anyways, I¡¯ll just finish you right now.¡±


    Slowly, he got out his wand, flipping it around like some staff before he stopped, allowing me to see the sharp-edged top of his wand.


    .....


    ¡°Have a good day, Connor,¡± he said, chuckling beforeughing before cackling.


    But all of a sudden, soaring through the air were two briefcases, flying as if they had wings. They sped down towards me, and immediately I knew what was going on.


    Quickly, I pushed my body back onto my feet, hopping over Luthor Bane in the process. The briefcases continued to descend towards Earth, in which I quickly caught the two briefcases.


    I felt my heart beat fast in shock, as I slowly turned to see Luthor Bane¡¯s confuddled face. ¡°Well, that¡¯s unfortunate,¡± he said with a chuckle.


    All of a sudden, his wand swung towards me, and all of a sudden, a sharp, stabbing pain in my stomach throbbed as I just realized what happened.


    I looked down, seeing my hands swallowed with blood, and my shirt stained badly with that same red substance.


    I looked up, seeing Luthor Bane chuckle as he retreated his weapon. ¡°Night night,¡± he said, as I slowly felt my body dropping to the ground.


    My eyes trembled as they began to shut, before finally darkness was the only thing I could view.

 Chapter 265 - 265 A Daring Escape

    265 A Daring Escape


    Oh¡­it hurts. It feels like something is devouring my stomach. The pain¡ªthe pain throbbing in my stomach is unbearable.


    First of all to start things off, where in the world am I?


    I began to take notice of the surroundings around me.


    Something was moving, for a fact, and it seemed to be moving forward to a certain destination. It didn¡¯t feel like a boat. No, it felt quicker than that. Maybe it was¡­maybe a ne? But I could feel the bumps from the moving entity I was inside.


    And that clue alone finally gave me the answer.


    I was in a car. And it seemed to be arge one. It was probably a van or something along those lines like a truck. Now the question is, which one?


    I slowly began to open my eyes, which took a great amount of effort to do. I was behind a wall, a very fabric wall. I looked ahead of me, and I saw a big window that led to the veneer.


    I was definitely in a van.


    I slowly began to advance to my knees, in which in a split second, I saw heads in my view and I immediately ducked down.


    .....


    ¡°How long until we get to that ne?¡± someone asked. This person, who sounded like a male, had a growling voice that scared me to death as if he was a bear that knew English.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure, probably another hour or so,¡± another said. Alright, based on that information and what I heard, those are not YMPA agents. And they¡¯re trying to take something to a ne.


    What is that something?


    I slowly began to move to my sitting position, as I continued to listen to their conversation. ¡°Where do you think Matthew Lock is?¡± one of them asked.


    ¡°They¡¯re probably with those kids. Imagine getting arrested by small children.¡±


    ¡°But those small children are very good. They somehow keep posing as a threat to us,¡± one of them said, which I think was the driver based on how far away his voice was.


    But right then and there, I just realized whose van this is. It¡¯s the TSA¡¯s, and once I realized that my memory rushed through my brain like the wind.


    I could remember us fighting Luthor Bane and his men, and pursuing Matthew Lock for both briefcases. And I could also remember Luthor Bane spearing me right in the side of my rib.


    Once I realized that the pain hurts a whole lot more.


    They kidnapped me and put me in their car as well as the two briefcases. But why did they kidnap me when I could¡¯ve died right there in the middle of the street, wounded?


    It makes no sense.


    The only thing it could be is that they were trying to get information out of me, and that thought alone made me almost shriek in terror.


    ¡°How¡¯s the boy doing back there?¡± I heard a familiar voice ask. It was crafty and cunning, like some sort of spy from a movie which is ironic because we are spies.


    Luthor Bane.


    Quickly I turned back to my original position, and closed my eyes, hoping they weren¡¯t twitching in terror. I could hear a person moving over their seat to look at me, and I could smell the breath from their mouth, which actually was pleasant.


    ¡°He¡¯s good, cap,¡± the person returned. He shuffled back to his seat, and relief washed over my heart.


    They continued driving for a certain moment until they suddenly stopped. Right then, I decided to create a game n. The briefcase isn¡¯t back here at the truck, meaning that it¡¯s with them.


    Maybe I could wait until one of them gets out of the car or something.


    But then I heard Luthor Bane say, ¡°Hey, Mike, watch over that boy over there, alright?¡± I quickly returned to my original pose.


    All of a sudden, three doors at once opened and then closed in unison. I could hear the man moving to look over me, and his loud breaths.


    ¡°Sounds like someone is sleeping, ay?¡± he said with a chuckle, which I could tell he was British.


    I didn¡¯t say anything, because that would foil my n. I waited, unsure whether to move now orter when he turned back.


    But then, he moved his body to where his loud breaths were faint. There was no other time than now. Quickly, I rose from my position and went in for the surprise attack.


    I wrapped my arms around his neck, as he screamed and shouted for help. ¡°Get off me you little pri¡ª¡± he barked, but I tightened, cutting him off his sentence.


    Little cries and whines of pain escaped from his throat until I punched him right in the head and he slumped over.


    I did it, I did it! But now what?


    I looked and I saw the two briefcases right beside him. Bingo. I fetched the two briefcases, and I quickly drove toward the handle of the door.


    I opened it, as the air scuttled in, and I quickly made my escape. We were parked at a gas station, in which TSA agents were gathering around the gas pump.


    I needed to hide behind somewhere so they didn¡¯t immediately take notice of me.


    I looked around, and I saw this car that looked broken down as if it was only worth a couple of bucks.


    I quickly ran towards there, my breath short, and sweat dripping down from my forehead. I was terrified but hopeful.


    I made it, seeing it was a station wagon that looked as if it was from the 70s.


    Quickly, I went towards the driver¡¯s door, and I tried to open it. But it was locked, somehow, although there was a key in there. I looked through the window to what left I could see of the trunk, which there was also nothing.


    Quickly, I charged up my Perk, and I punched the window, which dissolved into nothing.


    I reached for the little switch above the handle and once it clicked, I opened the door and I jumped in the car.


    I quickly turned on the ignition, and the car coughed to life. I pushed on the pedal and began to make my way toward the road.


    I could see the men turn to look at me, but I ducked my head low so they wouldn¡¯t notice me. Then I turned to the road, in which the light was green and I drove away.


    I escaped! Yes!


    But what now? There was a list of things to do, and I didn¡¯t even know where to start!


    I quickly looked in my utility belt, and I saw that I didn¡¯t have my wand, my gun, or any weapon at all. I was defenseless,pletely!


    Worry began to overtake me, and my stress soared through the roof. What do I do now? Alright, I still have my radio right?


    I checked, and lo and behold, I didn¡¯t have it.


    How were they supposed to track me, or how was I supposed to call them and say this: Hey, I need help. I¡¯m on this street on Bell and Greenway, if that even exists.


    I continued driving, just trying to figure out what to do. Let¡¯s try to do one step at a time alright?


    First of all, I need to find help or some sort of ce where I could get treatment. This stab in my stomach is killing me!


    But I probably don¡¯t even have my phone, do I? I checked my pocket, and I felt a long object that was in my hand.


    Quickly, I pulled it out and I saw my phone, and joy surpassed mepletely. I activated the GPS to the nearest pharmacy, and I had a bit of hope again. After that, I could find a ce to eat. If only I had Nikki to create some fake money.


    I quickly drove my way towards the pharmacy, which was quite soon up ahead, probably only about a mile away. I couldn¡¯t stop thinking about my Mom, Mr. Drails, or my team, who are probably panicked and scared about what happened to me. Or where I am.


    I felt like crying, but I was a bit too relieved and focused to cry. Right now, what I needed to do was to grow up, and get myself together. I¡¯ve been through this before, and I know it.


    I still can remember when we were being hunted by Rocke because of the Cybertron. But the difference was, I wasn¡¯t alone.


    I had help, and someone to talk to. We had to depend on each other, but now, I can only depend on myself. But then, I realized that there was¡ªin fact¡ªa person to whom I could reach for help.


    I tried to think of the name, but it was so hard to figure it out. What was it? Howe I couldn¡¯t remember it?


    The frustration began to sink inside my mind, and I began to thrash the wheel in fury, moring like a maniac as I did so.


    Then I stopped, out of breath and almost too sightless to focus on the road. My head hurt badly and my body felt as if it wanted to plunge into a long sleep.


    I needed to treat myself for this wound, and soon.

 Chapter 266 - 266 Wandering

    266 Wandering


    One thing I can say for sure not to do is ever drive in New York. It¡¯s a pain in the behind to deal with all the traffic that¡¯s slowing you down.


    How am I supposed to treat a critical wound, if traffic keeps urring? It¡¯s annoying having to hear consistent honking from other cars. It¡¯s an absolute pain in the behind, and to all my Yorkers out there, you know it too.


    I began to inch towards the pharmacy. All I had to do was to go out the exit, make a turn to the right, and keep straight until I arrived at my destination.


    It¡¯s simple.


    But traffic decided to go three feet per hour, and it was harder than I expected it to be. Slowly, I began to make it to the exit, until I could speed my way down to the main road.


    More¡ªjust a little bit more.


    The second I hit the border between the highway and the drive down to the main road, the speed climbed and I went down and arrived at the intersection.


    As I listed before, I drove my way through the road before turning to the right and then going straight before arriving at the pharmacy.


    I think it was CVS Pharmacy, but to be honest, I don¡¯t remember.


    .....


    I pulled up into the parking lot. I parked, quickly left the car, and rushed inside the hospital, while keeping my jacket folded to cover the bleeding wound.


    I¡¯m not trying to make any trails for the TSA to follow, especially with a pharmacy.


    I ran inside, with only two things in my mind: rubbing alcohol, and bandages.


    Quickly, I went into the aisle, trying to see any signs that might indicate those two things. I went into one aisle and searched around.


    Nothing showed up so far, but I did find something that piqued my interest.


    I grabbed a little snack that was in front of a wooden desk with a white top, then I returned to my search.


    Anyways, back to what I said.


    I looked around, and all of a sudden, I saw alcohol on one of the aisles, and my eyes sparkled with excitement.


    I quickly made my way toward it, and I fetched it before proceeding to the desk I just came from. A woman with brown hair and a red tucked-in shirt saw my iing presence.


    She didn¡¯t give a wave for some reason, but that isn¡¯t my biggest concern. ¡°Put them here,¡± she said, tapping the space inside of the wooden square painted on the desk.


    I put them there, as she scanned them. She tapped a punch of random buttons on herputer, in which she leaned out and said, ¡°$20.11.¡±


    I got out that exact amount of money, in which she grabbed it and continued tapping her fingers on the monitor before she leaned out again and asked, ¡°Receipt?¡±


    ¡°Yes, please.¡±


    As she gave me the receipt, I saw something out of the corner of my eye. The person quickly rushed behind a bush, in which I turned around, with no sight of him.


    Where did he go? And why did he¡ªor maybe she¡ªhide behind a bush?


    Being the state of my mind right now, paranoia kicked in and I immediately assumed that it was the TSA. The beat in my chest increased rapidly, as I frantically looked around, just to see if more spies were lurking around in the area.


    Slowly, I headed towards the door, and I exited the pharmacy before I set my goal straight for my vehicle.


    I quickly ran towards there, looking around continuously to spot any more spies. But there were none. It was slowly but increasingly bing an option that it was maybe just a squirrel.


    I opened the door and closed it in relief. I quickly reached for the bandage inside the grocery bag and I pulled out the bandage.


    After ripping away the package, I then straightened out the bandage and lifted my shirt. I wrapped it around the wound, and it was slowly beginning to feel less painful, which I knew was a good thing.


    After thest bandage strip wrapped around my rib, I lowered my shirt and turned on the vehicle.


    Next, find a ce to eat. Mom always told me to save money since I got my first allowance. I barely bought much, and clearly, that¡¯s paid off.


    ¡°Where¡¯s the nearest diner¡­¡± I muttered silently to myself. Once I found the nearest one, I pulled away from the parking lot and made my way there.


    It was a very silent drive, almost more silent than I could bear. I was trying to imagine the others in here, talking andughing¡ªor being offensive to one another as we usually are.


    I¡¯ve never missed them so much.


    And Mom¡ªwho has no clue of what¡¯s happening to me¡ªand is probably so worried right now. I miss her. I miss them.


    I saw this diner, which looked as if it was made from scraps, towards the side of me. That must¡¯ve been the location. The little sound effect rang, indicating that I was at my destination.


    I pulled inside and parked right in front of the diner. I turned off the vehicle, exited the car, and walked towards the diner.


    As I opened the door, the faint music from that one radio at the corner of the wall, the three tables and the three booths at the corner, the white floor, and the wooden walls were what I noticed once I entered inside.


    There were two men, both with ck hats, red shirts, and ck aprons.


    ¡°Wee to Joey and Jack¡¯s Diner, what do you want for today?¡± one of them asked.


    I chuckled. ¡°Uh¡ª¡±


    ¡°Are your parents with you?¡± one of them asked. I shook my head. ¡°They allow me to do this.¡±


    They nodded slowly before one of them exited from behind their desk and walked up to me, and led me to my seat ahead.


    It was at the corner of the diner, and it had red puffy seats that stretched the entire area.


    I took a seat as the man left and went back inside the kitchen. The ce smelled likevender and dirt, which is a weird mixture. It is the smell of something very pleasant, mixed with the smell of something revolting.


    Time continued to pass as I looked at the menu. Being in this diner reminded me of that time when we nned to put a tracker on Luthor Bane, and Greg was with me and the whole team.


    Good times¡ªgood times.


    I looked ahead to see if the guys wereing, which they weren¡¯t, but it didn¡¯t bother me that much. I continued to examine the menu for something I liked, and the man came once I was done.


    It was as if they were monitoring me until I finished searching through the menu.


    I gave them the answer to what I wanted, to which the man nodded and walked away. Once he entered the kitchen, I could hear him calling out my order.


    I¡¯ve never heard anyone do that before, only because I¡¯m usually far away from the kitchen or there are so many other orders, I¡¯ve already missed mine.


    As I looked around, I found my eyes wandering around the ce, which was exactly what I was doing right now. Wandering. Not sure where to go or where to even stay. Not sure what to do next. But just looking around, trying to survive in this crowded city. I was homeless, and I was trying to search for my way home, but that wasn¡¯t going to happen anytime soon.


    All I can do right now is just wander and try to survive for a few days.


    But then, I heard the door open, and a girl¡ªmaybe my age walked in. The man who took my order looked up front, and he seemed somewhat surprised.


    ¡°Oh, well¡ªhello,¡± he said with a little chuckle. ¡°How do you do?¡±


    ¡°Fine, you?¡± she asked. She was a mixed-race girl, although a bit more on the white side. She almost looked like Nikki, but she had smooth, silk hair instead of the braids Nikki usually has.


    She was wearing a jean jacket with a green shirt which I¡¯m pretty sure was a long-sleeve. She wore blue jeans and had these high-top Nike shoes which I do have to say¡ªwere looking fine.


    ¡°Well, ma¡¯am, I¡¯m a bit tired, but I still can work for another day!¡± he said, his voice shooting higher at thest part. She chuckled, and she then looked in my direction.


    Now, being the introvert I am, I was hugely ufortable for no certain reason once I saw her look at me.


    I slowly scooted to the corner, hoping the chair in front of me would block my view. But as I did, she suddenly walked towards my corner and took a seat across from me.


    The nervousness that was pumping inside of me was almost too much to bear. But she let out her first greeting, ¡°Hello.¡±

 Chapter 267 - 267 A New Partner

    267 A New Partner


    A moment of silence followed her greeting. I gulped, unsure of what to do or what to say. ¡°Hel¡ªhello,¡± I stammered, giving a slow wave afterward.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know teenagers went here just for a quick meal,¡± she said, chuckling. ¡°I guess I¡¯m not the only one.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked her. She sighed and shook her head. ¡°It¡¯s personal, don¡¯t worry about it,¡± she said, looking away from me and at the glistening white counter.


    ¡°So, something personal causes you toe to this diner a lot?¡± I asked her, and she nodded but hesitantly. ¡°Well, I¡¯m dealing with something very personal too,¡± I said, giving a quick smile. I¡¯m not very sure if that was going to make her feel better though, but it¡¯s worth a try.


    ¡°How personal?¡± she asked, her head facing towards me once again. I chuckled and widened my eyes. ¡°Very personal, and this diner seemed like a ce of refuge for me in a sense.¡±


    She nodded and she smiled at me. ¡°That¡¯s sounds like me,¡± she said, chuckling which herugh affected me, and cause me to snicker myself.


    Silence followed the room shortly after, I knew I had to end the silence.


    ¡°So, maybe, if you told me your problem, and I told you mine, maybe we can bond or something, just saying,¡± I said, to which she chuckled once again, but this time she seemed a bit ufortable.


    That might¡¯ve been the wrong move.


    .....


    But then suddenly, she said, ¡°My parents didn¡¯t like the way I was. In a sense, I was always getting in trouble, fighting with other people, and dealing with the police. You know, all the bad stuff.¡±


    She stopped for a moment, but then continued her story.


    ¡°My parents said that they were done, that if I didn¡¯t change, they were going to force me to change somehow,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen my parents so ashamed, so disappointed. Especially my mom. My mom¡­ just despised every part of me. Who I was, and what I did. It hurt. It hurt bad,¡± she said.


    ¡°I can tell,¡± I responded quietly.


    ¡°I can remember days when Mom will see mee home from school, and even when I didn¡¯t get in trouble, she would be like: So what did you do now? I just¡ªI couldn¡¯t deal with it. But I loved my parents,¡± she said. ¡°One thing I¡¯ve learned is, the only ones that keep you really care about you.¡±


    But she quickly shook her head after that. ¡°But now, my parents are on that same list of people who don¡¯t give a care in the world.¡±


    Silence took the room again until I mustered up some strength to ask, ¡°Is there anyone who still cares about you?¡±


    She smiled as if this was supposed to be funny, and she looked up at me. ¡°Myself,¡± she said, as her confidence boomed in her voice. ¡°I¡¯m the only person on that list that cares about myself.¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s because it¡¯s you,¡± I said. ¡°Of course, you would care about yourself.¡±


    ¡°Well I want what¡¯s best for me, and since no one else does, I might as well take that responsibility. What about you? Do you have anyone that cares about you?¡± she asked me.


    I sighed. ¡°A lot of people. My mom, my dad, my ¡®uncle¡¯, my friends, and a lot of people.¡±


    ¡°So howe you¡¯re here?¡±


    I looked around. The lights stood still, anticipating the chapter of this story. ¡°I¡¯m a bit lost,¡± I said. ¡°In fact, very lost. Very far away from the ce that I can call home. And being that this is New York, it¡¯s only me and I that can care for myself.¡±


    She nodded, as I continued on.


    ¡°It hurts when you know there are people right now that are scared and frantic about where you are, or what happened to you. It hurts very much. Because you think, ¡®If only I could tell them right now, imagine how much pain and anguish would flee from their minds. You know what I mean?¡±


    She nodded. I could already feel the tears beginning to well up in my eyes as I continued speaking. The devastation choking me inside, the feeling of fear that was clouding my mind, was already beginning to dwell inside of me.


    ¡°Preferably, if there was a phone that I could use just to talk to them just one more time, that would be the whole world to me.¡±


    All of a sudden, I found myself looking at a phone that was stretched towards me, as I looked up, and saw her face that showed sympathy.


    ¡°Here, call them,¡± she said, moving her hand a bit to push my attention back to her phone. I shook my head. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s a very long story. I can¡¯t really use your phone, it would threaten your safety.¡±


    ¡°I can take care of myself. What is there to lose, I¡¯ve already lost everything, might as well.¡±


    I shrugged, a bit hopeful in that moment, but all of a sudden, the little, faint sound of a bush shaking caught my attention.


    It caught hers too, as we both looked outside of the window. Suddenly, the man asked, ¡°Is everything alright?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I think so,¡± I said.


    Silence followed right after, but our suspicion was still high on alert. The man looked around worriedly as if he knew something was wrong as well.


    The tension continued to climb, as eyes darted around the room, waiting for something to happen.


    But nothing happened¡ªluckily.


    Iid back and took a deep breath, but at that point, the ss shattered, as a bullet punctured the wall that was ten feet from me.


    My eyes widened and froze from the shock.


    ¡°Get down!¡± I shouted as bullets began to fly in packs, and belt through the room. The walls were punched with holes, as I covered my head from the iing bullets that sprayed all over the ce.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?!¡± the man shouted. But all of a sudden, the cash register on the table crumbled into pieces as the bullets crushed it into pieces.


    ¡°We gotta get out of here!¡± she said, looking back, her face widened with shock and fear.


    Then she looked at me, her eyes narrowed and focused. ¡°Don¡¯t ask okay?¡± she said, and all of a sudden, a gun was brought from her belt.


    Where did she get that from?!


    I didn¡¯t have time to ask, because she immediately sped for the door. I quickly followed after her, but I stopped real quick.


    The least I could do was warn the guy.


    ¡°Get in your car and run away!¡± I shouted, and the man nodded and took off.


    But then, I felt the woman tap my shoulder, gesturing that we should go right now. She quickly unloaded a few shots at the attacking enemy, before she opened the door, and unloaded a few more.


    ¡°Go, go!¡± she shouted, moving her head towards the right, which I nodded and booked it over there. There was my station wagon, and there was a red car parked right beside it.


    ¡°The red car?!¡± I shouted, and she nodded before she returned to shooting back at the enemy.


    I quickly opened the driver¡¯s door and jumped inside, and this time there was a button which was a relief. I at least didn¡¯t have to do the whole process of turning on the ignition.


    The car roared into life, as I pulled out from the parking space, and quickly sped towards the girl¡¯s location.


    She looked at me and quickly saw her escape. She began to run towards me, while still shooting at the enemies shooting at us.


    She opened the door, in which two bullets shot through the window, and shattered the ss onto the seat.


    She swept it off and jumped in the car, and I quickly pushed on the gas pedal. The car revved in power and shot forward, but I could catch a little glimpse of one of the people shooting at us.


    He turned around, and he seemed to notice me because his eyes widenedrge enough that his eyelids were hidden from sight by his mask.


    Those were the TSA. They found out that I escaped, and they immediately knew my location.


    Quickly, I pulled into an alleyway, then drove into an intersection. I stopped, my heart pumping as if it was about to blow up.


    ¡°Shoot, I¡¯m sorry I dragged you into this,¡± she said.


    ¡°I was about to say that,¡± I said, now confused and a bit curious now. She turned to me, her head tilted as she asked, ¡°Are you being chased by the TSA?¡±


    ¡°Are you?¡±


    We both slowly nodded to each other¡¯s questions, realizing what we both just said.


    ¡°How do you know what the TSA is?¡± I asked. ¡°And how are you getting chased?¡±


    ¡°I should ask you that question!¡±


    ¡°We should both ask each other that question, but I asked first, so you tell me first.¡±


    ¡°Well based on those two briefcases you¡¯re holding, I think it¡¯s best you go first.¡± I chuckled, but narrowed into an annoyed frown. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± I asked her strictly, to which she answered with a heavy breath, ¡°Brie.¡±

 Chapter 268 - 268 A Place to Rest

    268 A ce to Rest


    I nodded in response to what her name was. ¡°Now, it¡¯s your turn,¡± she said. I sighed. ¡°Well, I¡¯m Connor and I have these two briefcases, as you can clearly see. One of them has a virus and¡ª¡±


    ¡°You what?!¡±


    ¡°I know, I know, I know. Listen, please. One of them has a virus and the antidote, while another has a bunch of money in it. The TSA is after both because this is their money, and they want the virus. Now, it¡¯s your turn¡­again.¡±


    ¡°Okay, listen. I basically have secret intel on another weapon or thing they¡¯re making. Or in this case, making with.¡±


    ¡°With who?¡±


    ¡°The SAF.¡± My mind exploded in realization, remembering when I watched the footage with Greg when Mr. Drails said that he was going to make a deal with the BMO and the SAF. I forgot what the weapon¡¯s name is though.


    ¡°Oh¡­dang,¡± I muttered. ¡°Is the BMO a part of it too?¡±


    ¡°No, I¡¯m pretty sure they have their own problems,¡± she said quickly, startling me a bit. I nodded slowly, trying to recover from the immediate reply, before I said, ¡°Yeah, I guess.¡±


    ¡°However, the TSA and maybe the SAF are after us so we gotta move,¡± she said.


    .....


    ¡°And do what? Hide for the rest of our lives. Which MSTO organization are you from? The CSMO, FMA, YMPA, ISF¡ª¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m from the VASM, Venezun Agency for Spy Mages.¡±


    ¡°I know what that is, in fact, I was going to say that next,¡± I said, squinting my face to express my annoyance.


    ¡°So now that we know who each other are and what our situations are, what do we do now?¡± I asked, shrugging. She sighed and shook her head. ¡°Let¡¯s make a deal, how about that?¡± she said, returning the attention to me.


    ¡°What deal?¡±


    ¡°A deal that can get us both back to our agencies. Duh,¡± she hissed, in which I shot a cross look at her. ¡°I help you with the briefcase and we go from there.¡±


    ¡°Why are you helping me first?¡±


    ¡°Because helping you first, then helps me,¡± she said, doing a sarcastic emote that didn¡¯t really help make things any better.


    ¡°What do you expect us to do, in the middle of this endless city?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I¡¯m more of the action type of person.¡±


    Then an idea clicked in my head, as my eyes widened in excitement. ¡°Okay, I¡¯m going to need you to listen closely alright?¡± I asked her, in which she nodded, and I shifted my position as we approached a red light.


    ¡°I have this friend who is the CEO or captain of this agency right?¡±


    ¡°Right.¡±


    ¡°I know him¡ªpersonally¡ªand I think if we can find him and go to his agency, we can use Fulton to call the YMPA, which then they pick me up, and send you back to the VASM, and boom, problem solved.¡±


    ¡°How did you even know this person in the first ce?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Trust me, it¡¯s a very long story,¡± I said, as the memories already began racing through my head. ¡°Nheless, that¡¯s the n.¡±


    ¡°So where is he?¡±


    ¡°We would have to go all the way to California,¡± I said.


    ¡°What?!¡± she shouted. ¡°That¡¯s literally on the other side!¡±


    I nodded, using my hands to calm her down. ¡°I would go to the YMPA Headquarters, but even I don¡¯t know where it is. His agency however, I do, so just stick with me.¡±


    ¡°How are we gonna get there without all these TSA agents right behind our backs?¡±


    ¡°Well, airne?¡±


    ¡°You got money for an airne?¡±


    Slowly, I patted the briefcase full of money, which she opened her mouth ajar in realization. ¡°Okay, how much is in there?¡±


    ¡°Five hundred million dors,¡± I said, as her face popped wide, and excitement soared through her veins. ¡°That is¡ªa lot.¡±


    ¡°Mhm, so we should be fine.¡±


    ¡°We should go to a hotel or even rent a house or something,¡± she said. But her smile slowly narrowed into a disappointed frown. ¡°But that means the TSA¡ª¡±


    ¡°¡ªwill know our location,¡± I finished.


    ¡°What do we do now?¡± she asked as I turned to the left road.


    ¡°Do you have a ce we could live at for a while? Maybe a motel or somece less obvious?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Maybe¡­¡± she muttered. ¡°But you¡¯ll have to let me drive though.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    She cupped her hands and moved them back and forth, as I sighed and parked over to the side of the road. I exited the vehicle, mming the door shut as we switched sides, and I entered, mming that door as well.


    ¡°Thank you good sir,¡± she said with a chuckle.


    ¡°Don¡¯t even think about it,¡± I said. But then, she pressed on the gas pedal, and all of a sudden, the vehicle shot forward with no warning.


    ¡°Hey, whoa!¡± I shouted, before she turned to the right road, drifting and billowing a cover of smoke before she faced forward.


    ¡°This ain¡¯t no tuned car that you can use for street racing, this is still¡ª¡±


    She drifted once again, this time to the left, where she was driving under a bridge. ¡°Oh yeah, this is real driving,¡± she said, smiling as she looked at me.


    I looked back at her in horror.


    ¡°What in the world are you doing?¡± I grumbled at her, but she ignored me and only reacted with a smirk. I felt like throwing two good rights at her face, but I didn¡¯t even have the strength to do it.


    She raced ahead, switching betweennes and cutting cars over, leaving a trail of honks behind us.


    The engine growled, as the speed rose, elerating us even faster through the street.


    ¡°Do you happen to know where you¡¯re going?¡± I asked her, in which she looked up, her face switching to a thoughtful expression.


    ¡°I think I do,¡± she said, in which I immediately had a drop of faith in her.


    ¡°You think? You¡¯re driving this fast and you think you know where you¡¯re going?¡± I barked at her.


    ¡°Chill my friend, you¡¯re going to be alright. I¡¯ve been doing this for almost a year now.¡±


    As if I wasn¡¯t worried enough, now I¡¯m terrified.


    Another turn came, in which she curved into, and began to drive down a street in which motels and small buildings were beginning to spawn on every block.


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± I muttered.


    ¡°Wee to the weird part of New York,¡± she said. ¡°And these small building¡¯s mortgages are as expensive as my house. And my house is huge.¡±


    ¡°Huh,¡± I said, smiling in disbelief.


    ¡°Mhm, you should see it, you¡¯ll agree,¡± she said. Eventually, she slowed down to where there was this small motel, which had this sign that was infected with dirt and stains.


    ¡°This is definitely the weird part of New York,¡± I said, blowing a deep breath. She pulled into this one ce, in which the building was shaped like a C, except in a more sharp corner type of way.


    ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go,¡± she said, once she parked by one of the pirs. ¡°Let¡¯s try and see if anyone is in here.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a motel, of course someone is in here,¡± I said, but then she looked at me and corrected, ¡°Emphasis: It¡¯s a motel.¡±


    ¡°Good point,¡± I said, closing the door.


    We began to walk towards the door which led to some office looking room. There was a paper on the wall that was stapled saying $35 a night.


    Hmm.


    The person up front was a man who had a ck ascot cap, but his outfit was dressed with many styles from many different times.


    Not only did he have the ascot cap, but he was wearing a jean jacket, a white shirt, and gold ne that looked more like pebbles. But what threw the entire outfit off was those Pilgrim boots he was fitting on himself, which was highly rming to me for some reason.


    ¡°Hello, what do y¡¯all want?¡± he asked, his pupils travelling to the top of his eyeball to look at us.


    ¡°Well, a room to stay for a few nights,¡± she said. ¡°Are your rooms by any chance¡­ clean?¡±


    ¡°Well we have this guy, um¡ªMark, yeah I think, thates every night cleans up a few rooms so I can give you those.¡±


    ¡°What about the others.¡±


    ¡°We can barely pay any rent so to add another janitor would consume uspletely.¡±


    ¡°Makes sense,¡± she said. ¡°Can we make the payment to you everyday? Because we¡¯re not very sure how long we¡¯re staying here.¡±


    ¡°Sure, doesn¡¯t sound like a problem to me,¡± he said, leaning back in his chair, while grabbing a toothpick and maneuvering within his teeth.


    ¡°Alright, thank you,¡± she said. ¡°Which room are me in by any chance?¡±


    ¡°108, that should be one of the clean rooms.¡±


    ¡°Alright, thank you,¡± she said, as she quickly equipped the key in her hand, and we escorted ourselves from the office.

 Chapter 269 - 269 Time to Spend

    269 Time to Spend


    Soon enough, we entered the room, which I was met with two small sofas that were on opposite sides of the room.


    The floor was covered with a tan carpet, which there was this soiled stain that was in the middle of the carpet.


    Great start, just great start.


    ¡°Well, to be honest, I kind of expected worse,¡± she said, looking around though not exactly satisfied. I shrugged. ¡°I guess.¡±


    She sat down in one of the sofas, which immediately leaned back, before she caught herself and put the sofa back in its original cement.


    ¡°Well, what do you say that we do?¡± I asked. She rubbed her chin and a smile stretched across her face. ¡°We rx, while we just n a ticket for California for tomorrow or the day after that. We can maybe order some food, turn on the TV and you know¡ªhave fun.¡±


    Suspicion was already in my mind once she said ¡®rx.¡¯ That was¡ªfor some reason¡ªa red in my book. Not sure why though.


    ¡°Sure,¡± I said. ¡°Let¡¯s just see if this ce has any more disgusting secrets.¡± She chuckled with a little wheeze, before she plumped down onto the sofa, looking around before she reached for the remote.


    I went towards the dining area, which was a table with four chairs. I closely examined the table, which was actually quite clean.


    .....


    At least we can eat with some sort of decency. I heard the TV power up to life, as the news channel yed on the screen.


    Immediately Brie changed the channel, which she set eyes on this movie or show. She set the remote down,id back, and watched. Then, she looked at me and said, ¡°Do you want me to order the ticket?¡±


    ¡°You should do the ticket, I¡¯ll just do the food. If the TSA see me trying to leave for California, things will go upsettingly wrong.¡±


    ¡°You use big words,¡± she said. ¡°Must be an educated schr, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°And you¡¯re not?¡± I asked, concerned. She shrugged with a vague answer. ¡°I was in high school, but then I dropped out to focus on being a full-time spy mage. I liked the danger, the adreanline, the feeling of iing threats. It¡¯s something much better than just school.¡±


    I nodded slowly. She was an interesting individual, and I mean that with no remorse. She was careless and brave like those big muscr bodybuilders or heroes from Hollywood.


    She just liked danger. I mean, I gotta respect it, not gonna lie.


    I reached for my phone, and I pulled it out. ¡°Doordash or Uber Eats?¡± I asked. She turned around slowly, her face a bit exasperated. ¡°What¡¯s the difference?¡±


    ¡°I dunno, just which one?¡±


    ¡°Do Grubhub.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­Grubhub? What is that¡ª¡±


    ¡°You know, do which ever one you want, I don¡¯t want to miss this,¡± she said, her eyes peeled on the screen. I leaned over to see what she was watching in the first ce.


    ¡°Um, what is that?¡± I asked, as she turned to look at me. ¡°Oh this is that new show¡ªum¡ªRunter¡¯s Tale,¡± she said. I muttered to myself in confusion. ¡°What is¡­Runter¡¯s Tale?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Oh, you gotta watch it to understand it,¡± she said. I chuckled, and answered with a sarcastic tone, ¡°You don¡¯t say.¡±


    ¡°Mhm, amazing showm with good acting, beautiful storyline, one of the best special effects I¡¯ve seen for a show, and the critics are also in favor of this one as well,¡± she said. ¡°It¡¯s a winner.¡±


    ¡°Something there might be a little biased, isn¡¯t it?¡± I said, to which she shot me a defensive look. ¡°No, of course not!¡± she said abruptly. ¡°Nonsense.¡±


    ¡°Alright, do you just want Panda Express or¡ª¡± ¡°Yes, definitely,¡± she said, as I stammered, eventually drawing to a close.


    I added the Chow Main and Orange Chicken as well as some rice, you know¡ªthe usual, into the cart. I ordered it, making sure to put cash. We were basically rich in cash, which I¡¯m very sure is notmon nowadays.


    ¡°Alright, so I got the food, which it should being shortly,¡± I said, looking at her as she returned with a smile. ¡°C¡¯mon, watch this show with me and just see how amazing it is.¡±


    I nodded and looked out the window. Night was about to fall on us. I looked back down, as the show yed on the screen.


    Slowly, the show began to grab my interest, as I continued to stare at the screen, anticipating for what happens next.


    Which then, right at that moment, the doorbell rung. ¡°Oh, it must be here,¡± I said, getting up from the couch and walking over to the door.


    I opened it, seeing an employee with blue hair, ck acryllic nails with stars decorated on it. ¡°Oh, let me just get my¡ª¡± I said, reaching into my pocket and grabbing the bundle of money I had, as I gave it to the deliverer.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± she said. ¡°Have a nice day!¡±


    ¡°You too,¡± I said, as I closed the door. I turned around, and Brie¡¯s face was already ravenous for the food in my hand.


    ¡°I¡¯ll grab you a te if you want, alright?¡± I asked, a bit fearful of what she was going to do. She continued to stare at me, and to follow my movement.


    Eventually, she returned back to her show, her eyes glued to the screen.


    ¡°Heh,¡± I muttered to myself, as I set up two tes for each of us, as the aroma lifted up into my nose, and the pleasure I had from it calmed me.


    I brought it over to Brie, as the aroma caught her attention. She looked at me with a smile, as she epted the food. ¡°Come on, I think the episode is almost ending.¡±


    ¡°How long is each episode?¡± I asked, as I began to take the noodles into my mouth first.


    ¡°An hour and twenty,¡± she responded, in which shock was written all over my face. ¡°An hour and twenty?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yeah, a lot happens in these episodes,¡± she said. ¡°And there¡¯s still twenty episodes each season.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m almost afraid this show is gonna jump the shark,¡± I said, taking a bite out of the chicken, which the vor burst into my mouth.


    ¡°Jump the shark? What kind of nonsense is that?¡± Brie asked, confused and possibly worried to be honest.


    ¡°Jump the shark means the plot basically goes to rock bottom, and nothing makes sense any more,¡± I said, in which she nodded slowly.


    ¡°But you did say that this show had like a very good plot so I¡¯m trusting you on that,¡± I said, shrugging. She shot a look at me, and then she shook her head, turning her face back to the screen.


    ¡°Jump the shark,¡± she muttered to herself. ¡°That sounds like a dance move.¡±


    ¡°Dance move?¡±


    She suddenly shot her head at me, like I didn¡¯t hear anything. ¡°Yeah¡­that¡¯s right,¡± she hissed, looking at me up and down. ¡°Dance move.¡±


    To be honest, I just felt likeughing at that moment.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s watch shall we,¡± I said to her, and she nodded confidently as we looked at the screen. Time passed by more and more, as we continued to watch Runter¡¯s Tale.


    Slowly, her head slid down from the couch and rested on my shoulder. She looked up at me and smiled, and continued to snuggle up on me. Well, I didn¡¯t expect this.


    I rested my hands on her shoulder, which she grabbed it and slowly moved it to rub against her shoulder. She looked at me, her eyes twinkling like the stars on that delivery person¡¯s nails.


    Then, the snoring arrived to the scene.


    I looked down, and I saw her eyes closed and asleep. ¡°Well, good night, I guess¡­¡± I muttered as I turned off the TV and immediately headed for the room. I walked inside, looking at the properly-made bed that was in front of me, in which I was quite surprised.


    I looked back in the living room, seeing her still asleep, and probably having dreams by now.


    I sighed, and I walked over and picked her up, her skin smooth and warm, but I shook my head to get myself out of it.


    I put her on the bed, and arranged the sheets around to cover her. I then went towards the right side, and I climbed in, covering the sheets on top of me. I turned around to look at her, in which something in my heart slowly began to beat a little faster.


    I didn¡¯t want to say that it was feelings. Maybe it was just, I don¡¯t know, something. Maybe it was¡ªmaybe it is feelings.


    But her attitude ispletely different from mine, but maybe that¡¯s what it is. She¡¯s a wild, brave, and strong woman. I¡¯m more of a timid type of guy, and I guess I admire that.


    Nheless, I guess today¡¯s over, and tomorrow is going to present a whole other set of problems.

 Chapter 270 - 270 A Hostile Visit

    270 A Hostile Visit


    For a very odd reason, I found myself terrified from the morning light. I woke up, drenched in sweat, as I looked beside me. Oddly¡ªif it¡¯s even odd¡ªshe wasn¡¯t there. I sighed, as I got up from my bed and exited the room, just to see her nowhere.


    Absolutely nowhere.


    Did she escape or something¡ªunless¡ªshe ran with the money!


    Of course that fiend would take my money and run with it! That betrayer! The anger boiling through my blood was too great to contain.


    But then, I heard the bathroom door open, as she exited out of there. She looked at me with concern, which I calmed down, trying to pretend nothing happened.


    ¡°You good?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Yes, I think,¡± I said with an embarrassed smile. ¡°So when are we going to get to the airport?¡±


    ¡°Tomorrow, so that we can meet your friend and get back to our regr lives as soon as possible,¡± she said. She spit her marinating toothpaste into her cup, leaving this sticky, viscous residue.


    ¡°Well, I guess that¡¯s good,¡± I said, chuckling a bit.


    .....


    She shifted into a position, as she took a good look at me. ¡°Are you always nervous?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°Like, right now.¡±


    She wasn¡¯t wrong, I had to give her that. ¡°I mean, we are in a very nerve-racking situation so in a sense, I guess.¡±


    ¡°It is what we spy mages do, correct?¡± she asked me, which I hesitantly nodded. She was right, unfortunately.


    ¡°You should calm down some time, it might actually do you some good,¡± she said.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m perfectly fine,¡± I said. ¡°Are you good?¡± She smiled with her toothbrush shoved in her mouth. ¡°Never been better.¡±


    She returned back to the bathroom, in which I sighed, looking around the ce. It wasn¡¯t bad, and the sun shining was a nice addition to the room.


    But then, I noticed something on the TV, or more on the screen.


    I didn¡¯t even turn it on, and the static picture was ying, which rmed me instantly. ¡°Uh, did you turn it on?¡± I asked, hoping she would hear me from the bathroom.


    Unfortunately, that was not the case.


    Then, the picture cleared up into an actual video, which the video was showing a dark room that shadowed every corner.


    But then, onemp turned on, then two, then three until the entire face of the speaker was the main product on the screen.


    ¡°Hello, Connor, I know you¡¯re there,¡± he¡ªLuthor Bane¡ªsaid. ¡°I¡¯m not sure how you thought it was a good idea to escape from us, knowing that it was a bad idea anyways.¡±


    Fear captivated my heart, as I heard the loud footsteps from the bathroom head towards that door.


    ¡°Hey, Connor, do you happen to know¡­oh,¡± Brie asked, before she abruptly surprised. Luthor Bane noticed her presence. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s the woman!¡±


    ¡°Woman who?¡± she asked in confusion.


    ¡°I sent some guys to find you and to kill you Connor, but a fellow friend of yours came to the rescue seemingly,¡± he said. ¡°Wow. Nice to meet you.¡±


    ¡°What do you want?¡± she asked. I turned to her. ¡°What do you think?¡±


    Luthor Bane nodded slowly, the smirk wiping all over his face. ¡°First of all, to clear the air here, there¡¯s no way you guys are escaping from us. So Connor, why don¡¯t you hand us those two briefcases and that girl right beside you and we¡¯ll send you back to the YMPA. I¡¯m pretty sure they¡¯d havepassion on you being the fact you were basically kidnapped by us.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I want to do that,¡± I said.


    Luthor Bane shook his head. ¡°What do you think is going to happen by keeping those two briefcases. Do you really believe you¡¯re going to survive against the entire force of the TSA on your head?¡±


    ¡°Well you failed to kill me in the first ce,¡± I said. Luthor Bane sighed. ¡°First of all, we¡¯re not monsters. We won¡¯t kill innocent people unless required to, to get what we want. Secondly, no one expected that girl toe to rescue like some female Batman. Now that we know, we¡¯ll take clear caution. It is just the two of you anyways.¡±


    ¡°So, how does this help your case?¡± she asked. ¡°Are you going to bust inside of here and kill us both or something?¡±


    ¡°In a sense, yes, if you don¡¯t except my deal. Look out the window. You¡¯ll be surprised,¡± he said.


    I looked at him with concern, as I slowly made my way to the window, and I scooted the drapes out the way.


    Shock was drawn all over my face, seeing the groups of vehicles parked all over the front gate, with men with wands and machine guns standing in front of them like bodyguards.


    ¡°Oh, no,¡± I mumbled. I could hear Luthor Baneughing from the TV all the way at the corner. ¡°Terrifying sight, ain¡¯t it?¡± he said,ughing even more.


    ¡°If I ept your deal, are these guys going to disappear?¡± I asked, my eyes glued to the horrifying sight.


    ¡°Oh, disappear? They¡¯ll vanish!¡± he advertised. ¡°They¡¯ll go like holograms!¡±


    I slowly turned around to nce at Brie. I mouthed the words: ¡°Get your wand!¡± She quickly nodded, and she slowly reached for her weapon.


    I slowly reached for my gun, in which I cocked the weapon, ready to shoot at any moment.


    ¡°I¡¯m waiting for an answer kid,¡± Luthor Bane said. I gave a smirk outside the window, curious if anyone of them noticed.


    ¡°You want an answer?¡± I asked. ¡°Here¡¯s one. C¡¯mon in.¡± Immediately, I fired three bullets out the window, and the rain of bullets began.


    ¡°Get down!¡± I shouted to her, in which I dove behind one of the sofas.


    The little quick sounds of bullets passing by increased the pumping speed inside my heart. I looked beside me and shot a few more bullets blindly, before returning to cover.


    ¡°Hey, Connor!¡± Brie shouted, hiding behind the other sofa on the other side of the room.


    But then, the war of bullets stopped. The sounds of magazines dropping onto the floor were thest things producing sound before the silence took cover.


    ¡°That was a quick free trial of what¡¯s going to happen. But now you have a chance to make the right choice again, unless you¡¯re gonna have to pay,¡± Luthor Bane said, breaking the silence.


    I nced ahead, seeing Brie mouthing words to me: ¡°What do we do?¡±


    I looked around, only seeing the smoke slither through air, and the debris scatter across the floor.


    I looked ahead, seeing the door which was unhinged. That was our way of escape, because we could go through the backdoor, and escape that way.


    ¡°Go over there,¡± I mouthed. Luthor Bane sighed once again, ¡°I need an answer!¡±


    Quickly we crawled towards the door, before I shot up to my feet. I reached out my hand, and Brie grabbed. ¡°Oh my Lord, you guys are escaping again¡ª¡±


    I shut the door.


    ¡°Okay, we have to go now,¡± I said, in which she nodded. We sped through the hall, already knowing that TSA spies galore were going to flood these halls.


    But as we came across one of the crossings, two agents peeked out from the corner. ¡°Get back!¡± Brie shouted. She twirled the wand in her hands, fighting against them while I checked the corners to see if more wereing.


    And indeed, they were.


    ¡°Okay, we gotta go like now!¡± I said, looking at her. She dodged an attack, then finished herst opponent with a strong strike to the jaw.


    ¡°What?¡± she asked. I moved my head towards the door that was letting rays of light enter, and also a bunch of enemy agents.


    ¡°Yeah,e on, let¡¯s move,¡± she said. We shot through the halls, as the others came in, and immediately pursued us.


    ¡°Where¡¯s the backdoor of this ce?¡± I mumbled to myself, looking around for that door with the white frame.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I¡¯ll try and keep them back,¡± she said. Then, an idea that I always forget to use clicked in my brain.


    ¡°Wait, watch this,¡± I said, stopping in my tracks and turning around. Agents poured through the halls like a rushing flood, in which I took a deep breath.


    I stomped the ground, and sent a shockwave that pushed them all back.


    They flew through the air, and cosped onto the ground. ¡°That should hold them back,¡± I said, quickly turning my head to her. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    We flew through the hall, until we finally reached that door withn the white frame. But then, at the right of us another two agents decided to appoint us as their opponents.


    ¡°Oh, boy,¡± I muttered, looking around. I saw a fire extinguisher, which on top of it was a fine for five hundred, although I¡¯m quite sure my live is worth quite more than a fire extinguisher.


    Quickly, I fetched for the fire extinguisher, and swung at one of the men. He quickly caught it, as he tried to throw it to the side, but I reversed that move.


    Then he reversed that move, leading us into his dance or rhythm while constantly trying to hit each other with this big red bottle. I quickly swung it to the side, but this time, I kicked him in his thigh.


    His stability wavered, in which I crossed him with the fire extinguisher. The bottle dropped, but luckily didn¡¯t decide to spew out anything.


    ¡°C¡¯mon let¡¯s go before moree,¡± I said, looking at Brie, in which her nod confirmed our next move.

 Chapter 271 - 271 A Fast Escape

    271 A Fast Escape


    Quickly, we sped through the white door, leading out to the parking lot at the back. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s go,¡± Brie said. ¡°Before things get worse.¡±


    ¡°Well things just got a whole lot worse,¡± someone said, catching both our attentions. Two men, from both sides of the building appeared around the corner, with their guns faced at us.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move, or we will shoot. We can kill you.¡±


    ¡°Howe you haven¡¯t done that already?¡± I asked. ¡°Because we can give you a chance,¡± one of them said. ¡°We¡¯re giving you a lot of chances for an enemy of ours.¡±


    ¡°Well, we¡¯re not giving anything,¡± Brie said, in which I gulped. At this point, surrendering the briefcase seemed like a better idea to me.


    ¡°Oh well,¡± they said, as they cocked their weapons. It was only seconds before they would shoot both of us and we¡¯d drop dead, with them having the briefcase.


    But as the tension rose, suddenly, Brie grabbed my arm and swung me behind her. ¡°Get down!¡± she shouted, as a blue shield unfolded in front of us.


    Bullets collided against it, but it only shredded them into pieces. Bullets also arrived from behind, but she quickly added the other shield to appear behind me.


    I could see the little circles expanding with every hit that came from the two guys at the corner.


    .....


    ¡°Is this going tost for long?!¡± I shouted amidst the loud rupturing of the weapons.


    ¡°We have to split up, but we¡¯ll meet back here okay? When I say three, we¡¯ll run. Okay?¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    ¡°One¡ªtwo¡ªthree!¡± The shield closed from view, as we booked it in separate directions. ¡°After them!¡± one of them shouted, and the two from the left took chase.


    Quickly, I dashed towards the train tracks, seeing the iing train speed in my direction. Concerned citizens looked from all over the ce, as I jumped between the space.


    The others followed close behind me, but were hiding their weapons to not gain any more attention.


    ¡°Stop!¡± they shouted, but I didn¡¯t stop running. I couldn¡¯t stop running. Soon enough I arrived an intersection, in which one of thenes were full of cars driving to their respective destinations.


    As I ran through it, cars abruptly halted, barely hitting my legs. I stumbled a bit, using their hoods as support to regain speed.


    The others were still tagging along behind me, as their footsteps echoed through the air.


    They were still behind me, and very close. I looked beside me, seeing a building that had a key to my escape.


    Thedder.


    Thedder shot up to the roof of the building, in which left me with one idea: To parkour away from them.


    I quicklytched onto thedder, as I made my way up towards the roof. ¡°Ahh, here he goes,¡± one of them muttered to themselves, as he took reigns of thedder.


    They followed me up to the roof, which then skipped to the next level of escape: Parkour. I ran forward as they raced behind me, ready to knock me out with the butt of their wand.


    Quickly, I leaped from the current roof I was on, to another roof that was right beside this one, but except it was higher in elevation.


    It took them a few more seconds to do so than me, so I could gain a bit of space from that, just a bit. I raced forward, as their orders bellowed from behind. I reached towards another crossover to the next building.


    I leaped, but my legs dangled in the air, and I lost my footing.


    Inded, almost slipping to the ground but I quickly caught myself.


    ¡°Shoot him!¡± one of them shouted to the other. My eyes widened, because now they weren¡¯t going to be the only ones chasing me.


    I saw a sight of escape from below, seeing a car that was over a fence.


    I ran over, jumped from the building,nded on the fence then slid down onto the car. I hopped onto the road, hoping that would confuse the pursuers.


    ¡°We need backup on Broadway, and fast, because its already crowded with people,¡± they said, and they weren¡¯t wrong.


    It was getting crowded.


    Quickly, I ran through the street, finding myself confronted by walking pedestrians. ¡°Sorry!¡± I shouted, everytime I happened to bump into someone.


    I looked behind, barely able to see any of the two TSA agents.


    I wish I lost them, but their shouts and screams to move were quite easy to notice. As I turned back upfront, a taxi suddenly stopped in front of me, causing me to identaly mount over the taxi.


    ¡°What the?¡± I could hear the driver mutter to himself.


    I rolled down the back of the vehicle and back onto the road. I looked behind me, seeing the men still following me through the crowd.


    I was gonna need someone to help me here, and quick. I wonder what Brie is doing right now. She probably already lost them.


    Then, all of a sudden, three more vehicles pulled from the left street as more agents poured out from the vehicle.


    Things just took a turn for the worse.


    ¡°Come on, Brie,¡± I muttered to myself, looking at the agents group up to find me. ¡°Come on¡­¡±


    Which right then, I was a taxi honking towards my direction, which I assumed was another angry driver. But the window lowered down, as I could see Brie peek out from inside the car, waving her hands.


    Relief cooled my body as I ran towards the car, and the door opened. ¡°In, in!¡± she shouted, as I hopped inside of the vehicle, as she mmed the door shut.


    ¡°Oh, my¡­that was close,¡± I muttered, as the taxi driver began to steadily move through the traffic.


    ¡°Too close,¡± she said. ¡°How did you not get away from them?¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re like terminators,¡± I said, breathing heavily. ¡°They were on me like lions.¡± She sighed, but then she took notice of something.


    ¡°Down,¡± she said, as she lowered me down with her hand. We hid under the window, as we steadily rode through the packed streets.


    ¡°Does anyone see us,¡± I asked. She shook her head instead of saying anything much. Slowly, time passed as I anticipated for the one answer I wanted¡ªthat I needed.


    ¡°Okay, we¡¯re good,¡± she said.


    Preview:


    ¡°Okay, so what do we do now? Apparently they found us inside of the motel, although we used cash,¡± Brie said, once we exited the taxi.


    We were by a row of brown buildings which you could see the outlines of the bricks stationed on top of each other.


    ¡°Stay away from a motel I guess,¡± I said, shrugging. She sighed and turned to give a cross look. ¡°You don¡¯t say,¡± she said as she walked forward.


    ¡°Listen, we can go back to the motel, grab our car, and just drive around until the next dayes,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s not a good idea, but it is the best we got.¡±


    ¡°The best?¡±


    ¡°Trust me¡ªyes¡ªunless you want to go to a hotel this time, and endanger a lot more people,¡± I said, exaggerating a bit.


    ¡°Of course not,¡± she said. ¡°But what makes you think driving around is going to be the best option?¡± I shrugged, very unsure of what to say.


    ¡°It¡¯s the only option,¡± I said.


    She sighed, battling within herself. Eventually she turned around to face me, and she nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s do it, unless the TSA are investigating the ce.¡±


    ¡°For what, we already escaped.¡±


    ¡°I guess. Come on, let¡¯s go.¡±


    ¡°Do you remember the direction to go?¡± I asked. ¡°And wouldn¡¯t it take hours to get back?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s your n!¡± she shouted. ¡°You made the choice. Now we have to suffer the consequences.¡±


    I grumbled, as we began to walk along the sidewalk, with traffic swinging by as we strolled back to the motel.


    I looked around, seeing the towering buildings that were beginning to disappear into the night sky.


    The cold air whiffed against my face, making my body chill a bit. She turned to look at me, as concern was drawn on her face, which I couldn¡¯t me her.


    ¡°You about to die from frostbite or something?¡± she asked.


    I nced at her, and I shook my head. ¡°Just a bit¡ªchilly, I guess,¡± I said. ¡°Actually, just a lot chilly.¡± She looked at me up and down, and narrowed her eyes, ¡°I thought so.¡±


    She brought her head up and looked above me, as she pointed ahead. ¡°Look, we almost there,¡± she said, as I turned around to see us arriving at the motel.


    ¡°Oh, perfect,¡± I muttered, as we began to approach the front gate. But there were a lot of sirens and lights in the area, which could only mean one thing¡ªthe car was probably gone.


    ¡°Could the car be gone?¡± I muttered, although Brie still heard it clearly. ¡°Hopefully not,¡± she said, as she jogged towards the side of the building.


    I followed behind her, as she searched for the red car. As she stopped, her eyes slimmed through the night sky, as she pointed to the treasure.


    ¡°Over there,¡± she said, as she put her hand on the top of the fence, and propelled herself over. ¡°Come on,¡± she said, cupping her hands in a motion.


    I jumped over the fence withoutying any hands on it, as I dropped down to my feet.


    She gave me a disgusted look. ¡°Show-off,¡± she mumbled, as she walked towards the car, leaving me behind.


    ¡°Wait!¡± I shouted,ing after her. She walked towards the car, and opened the door as I took the passenger side.


    ¡°Alright, should we find some ce to eat?¡± I asked her, in which she turned to me and nodded slowly with a smile going across her face.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s sounds like a good idea,¡± she said, turning the ignition on. ¡°We have to find to go out the back unless the cops are going to pull us over, and make things worse,¡± she said.


    ¡°Makes sense,¡± I said, as she drove off, except exiting a different way. She turned to the right, and drove through the road, which barely any lights were positoned on the sidewalk.


    ¡°When I thought things were gonna be calm,¡± I said, shooting a look at her. She didn¡¯t turn to respond to what I said, but then she shrugged, then continued driving.


    Silence followed shortly, before I then said something. I¡¯m not sure if it was a good idea, but I think it was worth knowing.


    .....


    ¡°Remember what you said about your parents? That they kicked you out, and were kinda ashamed, which you went to that diner for refuge?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Mhm,¡± she said silently. I hesitantly opened my mouth and then asked, ¡°Was that true?¡±


    She paused for a moment, her eyes still, before she nced at me. Then she scoffed, ¡°Nonsense, what makes you think that?¡±


    ¡°Well, you did say it.¡±


    ¡°As a cover, obviously.¡±


    That¡¯splete hogwash. That¡¯splete cap. ¡°Okay, okay,¡± I said, giving her the look as she turned to see my side-eye, giving me one in return.

 Chapter 272 - 272 A New Place of Refuge

    272 A New ce of Refuge


    ¡°Okay, so what do we do now? Somehow, they found us inside of the motel, although we used cash,¡± Brie said once we exited the taxi.


    We were by a row of brown buildings, which you could see the outlines of the bricks stationed on top of each other.


    ¡°Stay away from a motel, I guess,¡± I said, shrugging. She sighed and turned to give a cross look. ¡°You don¡¯t say,¡± she said as she walked forward.


    ¡°Listen, we can go back to the motel, grab our car, and just drive around until the next dayes,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s not a good idea, but it is the best we have got.¡±


    ¡°The best?¡±


    ¡°Trust me¡ªyes¡ªunless you want to go to a hotel this time, and endanger a lot more people,¡± I said, exaggerating a bit.


    ¡°Of course not,¡± she said. ¡°But what makes you think driving around is going to be the best option?¡± I shrugged, very unsure of what to say.


    ¡°It¡¯s the only option,¡± I said.


    She sighed, battling within herself. She turned around to face me, and she nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s do it, unless the TSA are investigating the ce.¡±


    .....


    ¡°For what? We already escaped.¡±


    ¡°I guess. Come on, let¡¯s go.¡±


    ¡°Do you remember the direction to go?¡± I asked. ¡°And wouldn¡¯t it take hours to get back?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s your n!¡± she shouted. ¡°You made the choice. Now we have to suffer the consequences.¡±


    I grumbled as we began to walk along the sidewalk, with traffic swinging by as we strolled back to the motel.


    I looked around, seeing the towering buildings that were disappearing into the night sky.


    The cold air whiffed against my face, making my body chill a bit. She turned to look at me, as concern was drawn on her face, which I couldn¡¯t me on her.


    ¡°You about to die from frostbite or something?¡± she asked.


    I nced at her, and I shook my head. ¡°¡ªchilly, I guess,¡± I said. ¡°Actually, just a lot chilly.¡± She looked at me up and down, and narrowed her eyes, ¡°I thought so.¡±


    She brought her head up and looked above me as she pointed ahead. ¡°Look, we almost there,¡± she said, as I turned around to see us arriving at the motel.


    ¡°Oh, perfect,¡± I muttered, as we began to approach the front gate. But there were a lot of sirens and lights in the area, which could only mean one thing¡ªthe car was probably gone.


    ¡°Could the car be gone?¡± I muttered, although Brie still heard it clearly. ¡°Hopefully not,¡± she said, as she jogged towards the side of the building.


    I followed behind her as she searched for the red car. As she stopped, her eyes skimmed through the night sky as she pointed to the treasure.


    ¡°Over there,¡± she said, as she put her hand on the top of the fence and propelled herself over. ¡°Come on,¡± she said, cupping her hands in a motion.


    I jumped over the fence withoutying any hands on it, as I dropped down to my feet.


    She gave me a disgusted look. ¡°Show-off,¡± she mumbled, as she walked towards the car, leaving me behind.


    ¡°Wait!¡± I shouted,ing after her. She walked towards the car and opened the door as I took the passenger side.


    ¡°Alright, should we find some ce to eat?¡± I asked her, in which she turned to me and nodded slowly with a smile going across her face.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s sounds like a good idea,¡± she said, turning the ignition on. ¡°We have to find to go out the back unless the cops are going to pull us over, and make things worse,¡± she said.


    ¡°Makes sense,¡± I said, as she drove off, except exiting a different way. She turned to the right, and drove through the road, which barely any lights were positioned on the sidewalk.


    ¡°When I thought things were gonna be calm,¡± I said, shooting a look at her. She didn¡¯t turn to respond to what I said, but then she shrugged, then continued driving.


    Silence followed shortly before I then said something. I¡¯m not sure if it was a good idea, but I think it was worth knowing.


    ¡°Remember what you said about your parents? That they kicked you out, and were kinda ashamed, which you went to that diner for refuge?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± she said silently. I hesitantly opened my mouth and then asked, ¡°Was that true?¡±


    She paused for a moment, her eyes still, before she nced at me. Then she scoffed, ¡°Nonsense, what makes you think that?¡±


    ¡°Well, you said it.¡±


    ¡°As a cover, obviously.¡±


    That¡¯splete hogwash. That¡¯s aplete cap. ¡°Okay, okay,¡± I said, giving her the look as she turned to see my side-eye, giving me one in return.


    ¡°That¡¯s right, just a cover,¡± she said. ¡°I didn¡¯t know if you were trustworthy or not. You¡¯d understand.¡±


    She wasn¡¯t wrong. I did. I never had to create a fake name for myself, or a false identity, but I could understand her point.


    ¡°What do you think of iHop?¡± she asked abruptly, destroying my train of thought. ¡°I¡ªuh¡ªyeah, that could work,¡± I said, nodding at her. ¡°They¡¯re open 24/7, right?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I believe so,¡± I said, as she pulled out her phone. She set her navigation system towards the nearest iHop before she put her phone away.


    ¡°My phone is also dead, so let¡¯s hope they have a charger there,¡± she said, throwing a look at me in which I nodded.


    We soon arrived at the iHop restaurant that was radiating light in this dark area. She pulled into the driveway before she parked in the lot.


    ¡°Pancakes sound good even in the darkest night,¡± I said, chuckling. ¡°You can say that again,¡± I said, as we bothughed. She exited the car with me, as we headed towards the restaurant.


    Once we entered inside, I could see the bright lights re through the room. There were a couple of chairs and tables scattered around the ce, but the one ce that immediately got my attention was, of course¡ªthe booth.


    ¡°Over there,¡± I said, in which when we walked, I saw an employee behind the table, as if she was waiting for customers to enter iHop.


    We sat in the booth, showing her arrival. She walked up to us and said, ¡°So what drinks will you guys want?¡±


    ¡°Lemonade, please,¡± I said.


    She nodded. She left our table, walking behind the counter and barging into the diner.


    ¡°This looks a lot like the time we first met,¡± I said. ¡°We were both lost, unsure what to do or what to try next, just wandering around this big city.¡±


    ¡°And now it¡¯s together,¡± she said. I shrugged.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said, nodding. ¡°Together we¡¯re lost, inside a restaurant.¡± We both chuckled, waiting for our drinks to arrive, which it was actually quite coincidental when it approached us.


    ¡°Here you go,¡± the waiter said, her smile glistening. ¡°Now what will you guys like to have for today?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll have your double-berry pancakes,¡± I said. Abruptly, Brie added. ¡°Make that two, please.¡± The waiter was disturbed by the sudden order, being the fact she slowly wrote our orders as if she saw something horrifying.


    ¡°Alright,¡± she said before she walked off. Right then, another employee walked in, meaning things could go faster.


    But then, three girls walked inside and sat at the far other side, meaning things were going to go back to regr speed as it was.


    ¡°You know, I was never like those girls,¡± Brie said. ¡°An enormous group of girls,ughing and gossiping. I was a bit¡ªtoo violent.¡±


    ¡°How?¡± I asked, in which she took a deep breath, as if a cut-scene about her story was going to ur.


    ¡°When I was in preschool, the teacher feared me. I remember when she put me in the far back of the rows of children sitting on the floor. She hated me like I was some devil,¡± she said.


    ¡°Well, what happened next?¡± I asked, but then our food immediately came, as the waiterid the food on the table on both sides of the table.


    ¡°Hope you guys enjoy,¡± the waiter said, as I gave a quick smile, but quickly returned to look back at Brie. ¡°Brie, what happened next?¡±


    ¡°Oh, you wanna know?¡±


    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s why I asked.¡±


    ¡°My parents beat me like I was some type of dog! Wooden spoons, belts, staffs, you name it¡ªthey beat me up!¡±


    My mouth dropped in shock, but she only recovered with a chuckle. ¡°That was fun,¡± she muttered. What kind of psychopath is she?


    ¡°Fun?¡± I hissed at her. ¡°How in the world is that fun?¡±


    ¡°Ahh¡ªdon¡¯t take it seriously, I¡¯m just trying to liven up this conversation. I didn¡¯t know you wanted me to talk to you like some therapist.¡±


    ¡°I never asked for that, but I mean¡ª¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t take it literally,¡± she said, shaking her head as she took her first bite of the double-blueberry pancake.

 Chapter 273 - 273 Furniture Adventure

    273 Furniture Adventure


    The conversation we were having before was dispersed right after she got that pancake. She seemed to have lost her train of thought, or something along those lines.


    ¡°So, we know the n tomorrow right?¡± I asked her, in which she nodded. ¡°When¡¯s the ne flight?¡±


    ¡°Three pm, so we should have some time before we have to get onto the flight,¡± she said.


    ¡°Okay, good,¡± I muttered. ¡°Should we try and get different clothes so that the TSA won¡¯t notice us as much?¡±


    She paused for a moment, then nodded. ¡°Probably a good idea to be honest,¡± she said, scraping up her food. ¡°I wanna look like a tourist.¡±


    Fantasies were already beginning to form inside her head.


    ¡°Well, at least it¡¯s anything different,¡± I said, shrugging. ¡°I¡¯m just going to try and wear something that isn¡¯t like me, you know what I mean?¡± I said, but she shook her head.


    I sighed. ¡°Tourist, yeah, good idea.¡±


    ***


    .....


    We exited iHop, looking around for our car before we found it, and we entered in it. ¡°Alright, we maybe we can find a ce to rest,¡± she muttered.


    ¡°Did you not learn from the first time?¡± I asked, which she shrugged.


    ¡°I never exactly mentioned a hotel or motel or any of the ¡®tel¡¯s,¡± she argued. ¡°We can just sneak into a furniture store and sleep in one of the beds.¡±


    To be honest, that was not a bad idea. That could perhaps work. ¡°I mean, I guess so,¡± I said. ¡°Let¡¯s just hope we don¡¯t get caught by any security guards.¡±


    She nodded, as she pulled the car into reverse.


    She exited out the entering driveway and onto the main road, searching up the nearest furniture store on her phone.


    ¡°We¡¯re gonna need a charger soon,¡± she said. ¡°My phone is at twenty.¡±


    ¡°Shoot,¡± I muttered. I didn¡¯t even have my phone, they took it. I just managed to fetch my gun before I escaped from that van.


    ¡°Alright, well let¡¯s hope there¡¯s a charger there,¡± I said. She continued driving through the road, passing by a few cars here and there. Even a truck, which was an 18-wheeler for some grocery store I suppose.


    Eventually, we saw a store that was ahead of us, with big red letters posted on the side of the building, although one of the lights weren¡¯t illuminating the B of the store.


    ¡°Alright, here we go,¡± she grunted, as she began to pull in this time to the furniture store. Every parking spot was vacant, and the only lights in the area were the shlights of the security guards.


    ¡°Okay, turn off the car,¡± I said to Brie. She nodded and turned it off. Silence followed shortly, as a few seconds passed, just to check if it was safe.


    ¡°Alright, go,¡± I said, as we rushed out the vehicle. Brie carefully closed the door of the car, before we made our way towards the store.


    She looked around, searching for any sign of what could be TSA agents, or maybe police in general.


    ¡°Shh,¡± she said, as she gestured for me to follow her behind some bushes. We were behind this post that was reaching above us.


    A security guard passed us, and steered over the corner, as we quickly shot past the first corner. Now we were at the second corner, as if this was the second level.


    There were now two guards upying the perimeter. ¡°My wife is probably worried sick!¡± one of them said,ughing as he did so.


    ¡°Why?¡± the other guy, which he has this big burly brown beard.


    ¡°I don¡¯t usuallye home thiste. My wife has this sort of curfew, you would call it,¡± he said, which now both men were chuckling.


    I was sort of interested on what was happening, but I was suddenly grabbed by Brie over the next corner. This time, there was this door that was blue with rust on it.


    ¡°Should we go in?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s hope its open first,¡± she said, walking over to the door. She held the doorknob hostage, and then wiggled it, in which it submitted and opened the door.


    ¡°Perfect,¡± she said, as she walked through, with the door weing us in. Darkness upied the room for a moment, until I felt a light switch, which then the boxes and tools blinked with life.


    The ce was now radiated with light from the bigmp that was hanging on the ceiling.


    ¡°Okay,¡± Brie said. ¡°Follow me, and stay quiet, otherwise, we are for sure dead.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t say¡­¡± I muttered, which she unfortunately heard. She shot a look that scarred my soul, in which I gulped in submission. She carefully opened the other door that led out from this lobby of a room.


    Darkness escaped to this area, except we couldn¡¯t evict it out with the light otherwise the guards would notice.


    I sighed, looking around before a little light caught my attention. Amp was turned on, with Brie being the culprit.


    ¡°We can use these, and maybe we can find a bed somehow,¡± she said, her voice sounding like the little whispers in the air.


    I shrugged, trying to see with the support of that little light. ¡°I¡¯ll try and look for some, you just keep turning on more lights,¡± I said, in which a thumbs up jumped from the darkness.


    I walked through, barely able to see any furniture as I continued searching like a hunter in the nightly forest.


    I felt the texture and structure of certain objects, in which the answer clicked in my mind, but it wasn¡¯t the answer that I needed.


    I continued to wander through the halls and sections of the store, as the tes and bowls shined through the ck surroundings.


    They twirled like those little crafts that hang on a rope, twisting both ways from the faint air. The sinks looked more like big mouths, ready to devour anything.


    ¡°Okay¡­I¡¯m in the dishes section, where are you at?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m not even sure to be honest,¡± I heard her say, although her voice sounded more like the result of an echo.


    I nodded, as if she was going to see that. She¡¯s far away first of all and even if she was right beside me, the darkness would cover her eyes anyways.


    But all of a sudden, my legs stumbled and tripped me, as my hands felt this texture of a soft, plumpy type of object.


    ¡°Wait¡­¡± I muttered, as my eyes veered to the corner of my vision.


    I quickly went over to themp, turning it on, in which the object revealed itself to be a king sized bed, withforters and sheets.


    ¡°Whoa!¡± I shouted, my heart leaping for joy. ¡°I found one.¡±


    As if she spawned into the server, she suddenly appeared by my side, looking at the beautiful bed that wasid in front of her.


    ¡°Oh, finally, I can sleep,¡± she said. ¡°It¡¯s been too much of a long day.¡±


    But the day was about to get even longer. Suddenly, someone shouted in the distance, ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± Fear instantly retook the throne from joy, as I rushed over and turned off the light.


    ¡°Turn off the others!¡± Brie said, her voice filled with panic. I nodded, and I ran over to the other ones, turning them off and letting the darkness take over the room once again.


    Slowly, the lights were shutting off, before I ran back and slid under the bed, my eyes darting around to see if any feet were going to arrive to the scene anytime soon.


    This was bad. And I knew it.


    Suddenly, one foot showed up right behind one of the dressers, in which the other joined. He walked slowly, and our breaths were stopped immediately as he continued to search around our area.


    The shlight was like a dog, sniffing around with its blinding rays.


    The man, or woman, or some other thing was silent like air, not saying a word, but only his feet echoing through the room.


    I didn¡¯t want to say anything, I couldn¡¯t say anything.


    ¡°Okay, okay, we need to get ready,¡± I muttered. ¡°Once this person has his back against us, we take him down, alright? It¡¯s two against one.¡±


    Brie looked at me, but then shrugged, as if she didn¡¯t care anymore. ¡°Sure, let¡¯s do it,¡± she said. I nodded, as we slowly crawled out from under the bed, and the person¡ªa woman¡ªhad her back turned against us.


    But once we got even within two feet of her, she turned around, and a baton wasing my way.


    ¡°Whoa!¡± I shouted, rolling under and returning to my knee, looking at her with shock rolling through my eyes.


    I looked at her, and she was dressed as a security guard. The one thing that threw me off was that ck utility belt that was resting on her waist.


    She was a TSA agent.


    Brie noticed as well, being the fact she took out her wand as if that was some normal weapon to have in store.


    She swung her wand, and that¡¯s when the nging of the wands began its tune.

 Chapter 274 - 274 A TSA Terminator

    274 A TSA Terminator


    Awe gripped my heart as it thumped with fright coursing through my veins. What should I do? What can I do?


    I looked beside me, seeing a pole that wasid on the ground. Bingo. I swiftly snatched it and scurried from under the bed.


    As I looked up, I found myself right away startled by the powerful swing from the agent. Brie luckily ducked, which she rolled to the side, twirled a 360 and then converted to a swing.


    Their wands shed and nged as I scrambled to my feet and rushed to the rescue.


    But one swing was too fast for me to even get closer. I reeled back, seeing the pole past me before I stumbled and I grabbed the body of the bed.


    Brie grunted as she threw many swings at the TSA agent, but the agent shoved her off with a kick.


    Brie moved a few feet, or a few yards in this instance, from the kick. But she quickly got up to her feet and prepared for the next attack.


    Two swings she gave, and two she missed. The agent swooped into a twirl, getting into the stance that implied something bad was going to happen.


    She suddenly shot forward, her wand whirling up so fast to where it was barely even noticeable.


    .....


    The TSA agentnded with a hard hit to Brie¡¯s shoulder, that she flew from the ground, and into a sofa, tipping it over.


    I hurried after her, ready to swing my pole at her head.


    The TSA agent vaulted onto the bed, and after Brie, who stared up in fear and hurried away. She got up to her feet, with her wand firm in her hand. They both battled courageously, although Brie was being pushed back.


    Brie quickly swung towards her head. Or I assume from the point of view I had, but the TSA agent dodged the attack, then jumped and kicked her in the chest. The TSA agent merged to flip down to her feet, whereas Brie was finding herself in a pile of pans.


    ¡°Connor!¡± she shouted, causing the TSA agent to turn her head menacingly.


    What did she just do?


    ¡°No, no, no,¡± I muttered with a plea in my voice, as the agent slowly walked as if she was some sort of terminator, which in this case, she was. ¡°Wait,¡± I pleaded. ¡°We can work something out. Please, don¡¯t¡ª¡±


    But she did.


    She sped right towards me, as I yelled, and dashed for my life. I ran towards Brie¡¯s direction, hearing the thundering footsteps of the agent behind me. ¡°No! No!¡± I shouted, feeling my voice tremble in fear. ¡°Please!¡±


    I reached Brie, who was now just on her feet. I grabbed her hand, and we ran through the dishes section, with the lights ring here and there like little candles guiding us through the dark path.


    Except for the fact there is a lion chasing after us.


    ¡°We need to go, quick!¡± I shouted. ¡°We¡¯ll find some other ce¡ª¡± A bookshelf or some other type of shelf decided to reveal itself at thest minute, causing us to separate in different directions.


    What do I do now? What¡¯s going to happen next?


    I expected to hear footsteps slowly fading away into the distance, but it scaled louder, meaning only one thing: she was right behind me.


    I shrieked in terror, seeing her face barely shown in the light, and the little shadows of her movement after me. I looked forward, now seeing a table spawn up in front of me, in which I went to the left this time.


    She was still after me!


    ¡°Go away!¡± I shouted, but she obviously wouldn¡¯t. But then, a chair with legs that had wheels popped up, and I quickly swung it towards her.


    She basically climbed it while it was moving.


    I needed something more weight to take her down or to give me enough space to find Brie and to book it from here.


    I saw two this time, which bothbined could do more work. I paused, using my Perk this time to swing both chairs in her direction like missiles. But she slid between the crack of the two chairs, meaning another failed attempt.


    I thought I was going to die.


    I looked to the left, seeing a dimly lit area, which led to what I think was the door. Escape was just a few feet from me. I looked behind me, and she was still hot on my tail, but I was going to escape, just you wait.


    I darted towards the door, my eyes locked in, but soon I realized it wasn¡¯t the door out of here. It was the door to one of those souvenir rooms that were created in the middle of the store.


    I crashed inside of it, tumbling over a toilet that happened to just be in my way. I flipped over, feeling my brain race inside my skull. But my eyesight was still sharp enough to see the iing wand.


    I somersaulted backwards, dodging the crushing hit, before I stumbled back to my feet, and raced ahead. ¡°Brie!¡± I shouted, my voice cracking from the damage of my screaming.


    ¡°Brie isn¡¯t here to save you,¡± I heard the agent say, which her voice, not raspy, or low as if there was a frog in her throat, but menacing as if she was a hitman, saying thest words I¡¯d ever hear until I was finally dead.


    As if my throat recovered, I screamed a scream of terror. I barged out of the little model of the room, in which she followed behind me close.


    ¡°Brie, Brie!¡± I shouted, but then an idea popped up in my brain.


    I looked to the side, squinting my eyes to see if I was close to the dishes section. I wasn¡¯t exactly too far away, but I still had a bit to run before I reached there.


    I marked my location, and I shot towards that ce, still hearing that TSA agent behind me. She didn¡¯t know what wasing.


    I was slowly reaching that coveted mark, just praying for it to be closer than I thought.


    Soon enough, I saw the bed we were nning to sleep on right next to us, meaning I was very close. I looked back, the TSA agent running with no sign of fatigue.


    I nodded, then looked back forward, and quickly got a pan and swung it as hard as I could.


    I could feel the tingle inside my hands once the pan collided with the agent. She fell onto her side, and shock was written all over my face.


    But I couldn¡¯t waste any more time. I needed to find Brie, then hide.


    Quickly, I ran, looking around to see if Brie could be anywhere. I looked to the side and saw another bed, although this one had no sheets.


    But that didn¡¯t worry me, because under the bed was the spot I was interested in.


    I slid under and curled up into a ball under the bed. Silence followed the room for a moment until you could little taps.


    A little tap.


    Another little tap.


    Another little tap.


    Another little tap.


    Another slightly louder little tap.


    Another slightly louder little tap.


    Another slightly louder little tap.


    Another very loud little tap.


    Another petrifying tap.


    And onest tap, in which her shoes finally revealed themselves, showing that she was right beside this bed.


    Then suddenly, she dropped, as my eyes widened, and my throat hurled at a scream. But she covered my mouth and said, ¡°What are you screaming for? It¡¯s me!¡±


    ¡°Oh.¡±


    Brie shook her head and looked to the side. She lowered her head to hear if any footsteps wereing. She then raised it back up slowly, then turned to me. ¡°I think we¡¯re good,¡± she said silently.


    I found that very hard to believe.


    ¡°How is someone just gonna leave because they didn¡¯t find two kids,¡± I reasoned, to which she ignored.


    She stayed silent, which then I stayed silent too, waiting for any echoing sound to erupt. But there was nothing.


    She could be actually gone.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s find that bed again, and¡ªoh, we¡¯re gonna need an rm clock.¡±


    ¡°What happened to your phone?¡± I asked. Then her eyes widened even more once she crawled out from under the bed.


    ¡°The charger.¡±


    At that moment, my eyes widened at her. ¡°See if you can find a charger anywhere, okay? Meet me back at this bed,¡± Brie said, in which I quickly nodded.


    We both separated¡ªagain¡ªin which I searched around to find any sort of charger.


    I¡¯m not sure if they sell chargers in furniture stores, but just in case someone left it here, that would be very useful.


    ¡°Did you find anything?!¡± I heard her shout.


    ¡°No, not yet!¡±


    We spent a bit of the night searching for a charger until I found this ck cord that led to an outlet and also¡ªa ck charger.

 Chapter 275 - 275 Airport

    275 Airport


    ¡°Alright, setting up the timer, and wall-ah!¡± Brie said once she set the phone down, and activated the timer. ¡°Let¡¯s get to bed, I¡¯m tired.¡±


    ¡°Same, too,¡± I said, as I hopped onto the bed.


    I covered myself with the sheets as Brie joined me. ¡°Ahh, today was¡ªwas a mess,¡± she said, shaking her head as she looked up at the ceiling.


    ¡°We got chased from morning till night,¡± I said, looking at her. ¡°It was definitely a mess.¡±


    ¡°Mhm,¡± she chuckled. ¡°You can say that again.¡± She shifted over to the side facing towards me, her eyes blending into the dark. ¡°This is kind of fun.¡±


    ¡°This is terrifying,¡± I quickly rejected. ¡°This ispletely terrifying. Like, I hate this.¡±


    ¡°You need to be immune to stuff like this,¡± she said,ying her crossed fingers on her chest. ¡°Once you learn to like it, you¡¯re never afraid,¡± she said.


    ¡°Is that what you live by? Love what you¡¯re afraid of?¡± I asked.


    She paused for a moment, moving her jaw around before she nodded silently. ¡°Yeah, and it works,¡± she said, turning over to the other side.


    .....


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± I muttered. ¡°I mean, if it works for you, then go right ahead I guess.¡±


    ¡°And I will.¡±


    It was silent for a moment, as I blinked before I turned my head towards her. ¡°Don¡¯t you ever miss your normal life sometimes?¡± I asked. ¡°You just wish you were back from school, getting ready to unload and justy down and rx?¡±


    She was silent for a while. She didn¡¯t answer my question, in which I didn¡¯t say anything else.


    But then she answered. ¡°Maybe.¡±


    ¡®Maybe¡¯, such an interesting answer, it almost intrigues me. In case you can¡¯t tell, I¡¯m being sarcastic.


    ¡°Maybe, what does that even mean?¡± I asked, my eyes narrowed in confusion as if she was going to see them anyways.


    ¡°Maybe, it¡¯s quite self-exnatory. You know what ¡®maybe¡¯ means right?¡± she asked. I shook my head with a ¡®duh¡¯ like tone. ¡°Yeah, of course.¡±


    ¡°Then you should clearly know what I¡¯m trying to say,¡± she said, in which she shifted into a more fitting position. I slowly nodded.


    ¡°Good night,¡± I said. She still didn¡¯t respond.


    ***


    I could feel my body violently shaking as if I was a maraca. What is going on? I tried to open amidst all the seizure-like movement, seeing the sky was barely breaking light.


    I could hear a muffled voice behind me, which was quite loud already. But it climbed even more in volume as my ears began to clear up.


    ¡°Wake up!¡± she shouted. ¡°We gotta go!¡±


    That¡¯s when my eyes widened, remembering what was happening today. We were going to California today.


    I jumped from my bed and quickly brushed myself off. ¡°Come on, we need to go now!¡± she said, in which I nced at her and nodded. ¡°The briefcases are the trunk, right?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go,¡± she said. We rushed out of the building, and towards the car. Quickly, Brie reached inside her pocket for the key, in which she unlocked the vehicle.


    We entered inside, where she took no time in starting up the car. The car roared into life, as she mmed the door shut.


    ¡°You ready?¡± she asked, smiling with excitement.


    ¡°You bet I am,¡± I said, as she reversed, spurting out a cloud of smoke. She turned and led the car onto the main road, to the right towards the airport.


    ¡°When does our flight leave?¡±


    ¡°Four hours, but it¡¯s best that we get there now so it¡¯ll be three hours by then,¡± she said. ¡°It takes an hour to get there, but traffic might decide to pile up.¡±


    I sighed, gritting my teeth in suspense. She sped through the streets, going a good ten miles over the speed limit.


    ¡°The police are going to find us and destroy us,¡± I said to her, in which she scoffed. ¡°Not if I can help it.¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t!¡± I hissed, but she ignored me and continued to zoom through the streets. Soon enough, we were sting onto the highway, revving through until we reached the exit heading towards the airport.


    Little signs of airnes were drawn on a bunch of signs and billboards. We were definitely close.


    ¡°This could be all over soon,¡± she said.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be too sure of that,¡± I said, wincing.


    Soon enough, she drove under the roof of one of the terminals, as she exited the car and ran inside of the building.


    ¡°Come on,e on!¡± she shouted, as we squeezed in through the elevator. Brie looked ahead, and saw a few lines structured next to one another.


    ¡°You stay here and watch for anything,¡± she said, nodding in which I confirmed with another nod. She jogged towards one of the shorter lines I assume, as I looked around to see if anything suspicious wasing towards us.


    Then, that¡¯s when I saw it.


    A big ck van with the word ¡°police¡± on it suddenly parked right in front of the terminal, as officers poured out the vehicle.


    That in itself was suspicious.


    I nced behind me to see if Brie was almost done. She was second tost.


    ¡°Okay,¡± I whispered to myself, taking a deep breath as I kept an eye on those officers. They brought out their guns, as if the public wasn¡¯t going to react to that.


    But then, one man came out of the vehicle and revealed himself. ¡°Luthor Bane,¡± I said, my eyes shot open. He personally came himself just to get us, meaning things were going to take a very bad turn.


    I quickly ran towards Brie, who was now the customer to be checked out.


    ¡°Hey, we gotta go!¡± I said, as I looked at the employee in front of us. ¡°We don¡¯t have any luggage, we¡¯ll just be on our way.¡±


    Brie bobbed her head back in confusion, but I led her away from that section. ¡°The TSA is here!¡± I whispered violently in her ear.


    ¡°Oh, shoot!¡± she said, realizing the wordsing out of my mouth. Quickly, I got onto the elevator, as the agents poured into the floor, searching around for us.


    We lifted up towards the second floor, as an agent shot a look at me, but didn¡¯t recognize me whatsoever. That was pretty close.


    ¡°Alright, what¡¯s our gate?¡± Brie muttered to herself as we sped through the floor, seeing each gate pass by us but unfortunately not revealing to us our right, and exact gate. ¡°We¡¯re gate F5 correct?¡± I asked Brie again, and she nodded.


    I looked behind me, and two agents were on the same floor as us. They were walking quite fast, looking left and right. They were searching for us, no doubt about it.


    ¡°Alright, this is F8, we passed three of them,¡± she said, clenching her teeth. She turned around, seeing the agent¡¯s iing presence.


    ¡°Quick,¡± she said, dashing her head towards me. When I wasn¡¯t looking at her, she grabbed a hold of my shoulder and drove me behind a corner.


    We watched as the agents passed by us, in which my heart slowed down a bit from a taste of relief. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± she said, as we made our way back to F5.


    Once we reached it, we could see the seats slowly being upied by travelers.


    ¡°We need to sit away from their sight,¡± I said. I saw three seats that were facing towards the white desk that was in front of me. ¡°Quickly, let¡¯s go,¡± she said.


    We rushed over to those three seats, and quickly settled down, keeping ourselves invisible to any more agentsing up this floor.


    I nced by the left of me, seeing two more join the ¡°second-floor search.¡± But I quickly dashed my head forward, hoping that I didn¡¯t bring attention to me.


    ¡°You good?¡± Brie asked. I nodded, and nced to the left again.


    ¡°There¡¯s four agents up here on this floor, I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s only a matter of time before they find us,¡± I said, taking a very deep breath.


    ¡°Well this flight better get moving,¡± she said, checking her watch. ¡°Unless we¡¯re going to be dead before we even can get on the ne.¡±


    I sighed, as two more agents appeared on the second floor once again. There were now six¡ªsix agents looking for two people. How does that work?


    But these two agents were much different I tell you. Instead of walking the path of their peers, they changed their navigation towards us, heading towards Gate F5.


    That was bad¡ªsuper bad.


    ¡°Oh boy, they¡¯reing,¡± I said, my lips twitching as I said so. Brie looked back, but quickly faced forward again, and her eyes were widened with fear.


    ¡°Okay, this can go very well, or very wrong,¡± she said, and I had no choice but to agree with her.


    The two agents¡¯ footsteps were constantly getting louder, as if they were soon to approach us, mainly because they were.


    But then, they stopped all of a sudden. I could hear them sitting down on the two seats right in the corner of us.


    One of their elbows peered behind the chair and slumped on the armrest. Just seeing that elbow sparked panic inside of me.

 Chapter 276 - 276 A Race to the Plane

    276 A Race to the ne


    The tension was insanely ufortable, knowing that I couldn¡¯t move an inch, because if I did, we would be dead. Brie turned her head beside me, and her eyes widened, realizing the predicament I was in.


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± she muttered, barely moving her head to figure out the men that were in the row beside me. But as she leaned forward, more men hurried up to the second floor, including Luthor Bane with them.


    And as if things couldn¡¯t get any worse, guess what happened.


    ¡°Hey, this is the FBI, we need you to get down on the ground!¡± Luthor Bane shouted, sending the passengers into a frenzy.


    The silence before converted into hollering screams of fear and mutters of confusion. ¡°Get down!¡± Brie harshly whispered, as we lowered down behind the chair.


    ¡°Search the ce, I want those two found,¡± Luthor Banemanded, in which the agents unloaded and started searching throughout all the gates.


    They grabbed and shoved citizens on their backs facing them, just to figure out if it was us two or not. All this chaos, caused by two people¡ªjust to emphasize: kids.


    ¡°Shoot, that means the flight is going to be dyed!¡± I shouted amidst all the screaming, which Brie gritted her teeth and looked around.


    Her eyesid on this small 40-passenger ne that looked as if it was still refueling.


    .....


    ¡°n B,¡± she said.


    ¡°What do you mean n¡ª¡±


    ¡°Follow me,¡± she said, grabbing my hand and leading through the gate. As we were escaping into the tube, one of the men shouted, ¡°Hey, who¡¯s running?!¡±


    ¡°We gotta move!¡± I said frantically, knowing those men were gonna be on us any second.


    We ran through the tube, as their footsteps thundered behind us. ¡°Stop moving kids!¡± they shouted, as we began to exit the tube. There were stairs to the side of the little transition to the ne.


    ¡°Jump!¡± Brie shouted, as she leaped onto one of the steps. I followed quickly, although I stumbled once Inded.


    ¡°We got the two escapees running down the stairs onto the road,¡± one of them said in their radios. ¡°Make sure no airnes are near them!¡±


    Quickly, I got my gun, and shot two bullets¡ªnot exactly aiming to kill them, but to distract them more.


    Two of them hit the metal pirs and ricocheted off of them, as the two men returned fire. ¡°Where are you even running to?¡± I asked Brie, shooting.


    ¡°To that ne!¡± she said, pointing to the one I mentioned.


    I was right.


    She sped towards it, with me following, as we surely began to approach the ne.


    ¡°Someone needs to blow it up!¡± one of them shouted. I looked back, stopping once I heard thatment. ¡°Connor!¡± Brie shouted, which I assume she stopped as well.


    No one¡¯s blowing up anything.


    I charged up my Perk and sped towards them, in which they saw the red me that was trailing behind me. ¡°One of the escapees has a Perk!¡± one of them shouted, before I grabbed his shoulders and swung him across the scene.


    He crashed into one of those vehicles, shattering the windshield.


    The other attempted to lock in a punch, but the only thing he locked in was a trip to the hospital after I punched him hard in the gut.


    He flew, and vigorously collided against one of the pirs.


    ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go!¡± Brie shouted, as I nced back at the body then ran forward with Brie. Eventually, we arrived at the ne, as Brie looked around, trying to see any sort of button to open the door. Obviously, there was none.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m gonna do something,¡± she said, looking back in which her eyes widened with shock. I waspelled to see what it was, so I looked back, and her same expression was now written on my face.


    It was a bunch of cars, probably Mercedes Maybacks or such, that were speeding in our direction.


    ¡°Well you better do that thing quickly, becausepany ain¡¯t gonna be so nice to us!¡± I warned her. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, just hold on!¡± she shouted.


    She ran over to the pilot¡¯s side of the ne, which I could only hear the body of the ne being used in some sort of shape or form.


    What really worried me was those troops of cars that were still speeding in our direction.


    ¡°Come on, Brie!¡± I updated.


    All of a sudden, as if level two unlocked, men peeked out of their windows and began to load their weapons on top of the regtor.


    ¡°Brie!¡± I shrieked, knowing what was about toe to me.


    ¡°Wait¡­¡± she muttered, as fear began to creep inside and the tension began to climb, seeing those vehicles get closer¡ªand closer¡ªand closer.


    ¡°Brie!¡±


    By the time I shouted that name, I heard the opening of the door. ¡°Get in!¡± she shouted, as I ran towards that side of the ne.


    There were ck stairs that led inside of the ne, which we sped up. Brie quickly went inside of the cockpit, taking a seat in the pilot¡¯s chair while I took the co-pilot¡¯s.


    ¡°Do you know how to fly nes?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Trust me, I¡¯ve been,¡± she said, releasing the ps and doing all the nonsense you usually do to start a ne.


    Slowly, the ne moved from its parking spot onto the road that led over to the take-off strip. The pursuers quickly drifted towards us, going towards us at full speed.


    ¡°I know we¡¯re not at the point for takeoff, but can you speed it up a bit more?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Unless you want to crash,¡± she said, steadying her pace. The cars were already catching up, as she turned to one of the roads that was almost like a roundabout, leading to the take-off strip.


    ¡°Come on¡­¡± I muttered. ¡°Wait, can we open these windows?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, why do you ask?¡± she wondered. I didn¡¯t even answer her, being that I ran out the door and appointed one of the windows by the seats close to the cockpit and opened it.


    The rush of the wind smacked against my face, as I struggled to fetch my gun.


    Once I got it, I quickly positioned it towards the chasing vehicles. Then, I unloaded.


    Shot after shot, I kept shooting, seeing some of the bullets shatter windows. It was working, for a while.


    ¡°We¡¯re taking off!¡± Brie shouted, which my eyes erged from the report. I needed to put on my seatbelt now.


    Quickly I shut the window, hoping they wouldn¡¯t break it unless it was really going to be hard to breathe once we got up in the air.


    Now thinking about it, why are these windows even able to open in the first ce? Do they want the passengers to die?


    The ne was now throttling up in speed, shooting down the strip as the cars desperately tried to follow, but to no avail.


    Slowly the ne took flight, barely touching the ground before it soared into the air.


    We made it, and we escaped.


    ¡°We¡ªwe did it,¡± I muttered, looking at Brie. She smiled as well, before we celebrated into a hug.


    ¡°Oh, my goodness. I thought we were dead,¡± I said, chuckling. She eventually followed in my footsteps as we looked at the blue sky, with clouds passing by.


    There was now a sense of hope, a sense of faith. Maybe everything was going to be okay.


    And I can say it was a good feeling, no doubt about that.


    Iid back in my seat before looking at Brie. ¡°So, what are you going to do once you get home?¡± I asked.


    She chuckled. ¡°I don¡¯t even know.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t? I do.¡±


    ¡°Of course you do, you nitwit,¡± she said, muttering thest part. I nodded. ¡°Mhm, I¡¯m gonna hug my mom,y down on my bed, then drift off into an endless sleep.¡±


    ¡°Endless?¡±


    ¡°Not endless, but long sleep. You know what I mean,¡± I said, as Brie shook her head. ¡°Must be fun for you,¡± she said, shooting a look at me.


    I nodded, as the buttons and controls of the ne grabbed my attention.


    ¡°How did you even learn this?¡± I asked, looking at her. Her face squeezed out a little smile. ¡°My dad was a pilot, and he¡¯d always teach me all these controls and regtions of flying a ne,¡± she said. ¡°It was fun.¡±


    ¡°Oh, is this your first time flying?¡±


    ¡°You pretend like I¡¯m not a spy mage.¡±


    ¡°So I guess that¡¯s a no,¡± I mumbled. Silence took over the conversation for a few seconds before she returned, ¡°This is my second time.¡±


    ¡°Oh, like that¡¯s any different.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it sort of is. At least I know what to do from the first time,¡± she said, with a wide smile.


    ¡°Did you crash the first time?¡± I asked, but I received no answer. I¡¯m assuming she did. I looked down, seeing all the buildings pass by like little toys scattered on the yground.


    This time felt different, much different. And I liked the feeling, I really did.

 Chapter 277 - 277 A Very Bad Landing

    277 A Very Bad Landing


    We continued to soar through the sky, as more clouds began to fill up the airspace. Iid back, feeling rxed for once in this era of chaos.


    I looked to the side of me, seeing Brie continue to pilot the ne. She didn¡¯t look tired one bit, and I respected that.


    ¡°How soon until we reach California?¡± I asked, in which Brie chuckled and smiled. She responded, ¡°About another thousand miles away from California.¡±


    ¡°It seems so far away,¡± I said, anticipating the next scenario of events. ¡°We¡¯ll go to Fulton, ask him to call both our agencies, then we¡¯ll go our separate ways.¡±


    Brie nodded, but the nod didn¡¯t seem as excited.


    ¡°Brie, you good?¡± I asked. She looked at me and scoffed. ¡°Am I good¡ªI¡¯m great!¡± she shouted, but the doubt in her voice was toorge not to notice.


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± I muttered,ying back on my seat.


    I looked back at her, and her face¡ªher expression was not convincing. It was like she was sad for all this danger to go in the next thousand miles.


    ¡°I kind of missed this,¡± she said.


    .....


    ¡°What do you mean? Weren¡¯t you scared out of your life?¡±


    ¡°Well, yes, but that¡¯s the reason why I joined VASM, was for stuff like this to happen. To fight bad guys, and dodge explosions, police chases, find handsome guys¡­¡±


    ¡°Do you think this is some sort of movie?¡± I asked her, a bit concerned.


    ¡°Well, what¡¯s been happening has felt like a movie,¡± she said. ¡°Everything imaginable has happened. Us two against the entirety of the TSA. We fought bad guys, dodged every threat, and even got chased by multiple pursuing vehicles in a ne! And I even found a handsome guy.¡±


    ¡°Who?¡±


    But she ignored that question, and looked outside. She smiled. ¡°Clouds are so beautiful.¡±


    ¡°But who is¡ª¡±


    ¡°They just remind me of rainbows and unicorns and leprechauns and all that fun stuff, don¡¯t you think?¡± she asked, turning her head towards me.


    ¡°Yeah, but who is¡ª¡±


    ¡°I thought I was the only one for a second,¡± she said, chuckling which eventually merged into augh. I gave a little chuckle as well, knowing that she wasn¡¯t going to listen anyways.


    But then, all of a sudden, a red light began to beep in front of us. Our eyes focused on that light, which meant one thing: something was wrong.


    Amidst all the warning lights, I read the outline of what spelled out the word FUEL.


    ¡°Uh, Brie,¡± I said, keeping my eyes stationed at that beeping light. ¡°I think something is wrong.¡±


    And right when I said that, the ne took a nose-dive.


    I screamed for my life, feeling my blood rush towards my chest, creating this tense feeling you discover whenever you¡¯re in one of those roller coasters.


    ¡°Brie!¡± I shouted. She looked at me, her hair shooting all over the ce from the sheer speed of the fall. ¡°Hold on!¡± she shouted.


    She tried to pull the wheel, but the wheel was not in control anymore. I looked at the feet measurement, and we were falling down fast.


    ¡°Are there any parachutes near us?¡± she asked. Shock was the only thingmunicating in my brain. ¡°What?!¡± I shouted. ¡°You can¡¯t save this?!¡±


    ¡°There is no fuel, therefore I can¡¯t steer this, therefore we have to get out, do you understand what I¡¯m¡ª¡±


    ¡°Yes, let me check!¡±


    I climbed out from my seat and entered what seemed to be the first-ss set of passenger seats, and I checked to the side.


    There were indeed parachutes.


    I quickly fetched them and threw one to Brie. ¡°Here, put it on!¡± I shouted.


    She put it on, carefully rising from her seat before meeting with me in the same set. ¡°You ready?¡± she asked. I nodded, putting mine on.


    She carefully grabbed the handle of the door and pulled it open, as the wind began to rush against me. ¡°Ready?!¡± she asked.


    ¡°Yeah!¡± I shouted.


    ¡°Alright, on the count of three I¡¯ll¡ª¡± she said, which she was abruptly disturbed as I jumped out of the ne. ¡°Wait!¡± I could hear her shout, her cry faint and quiet.


    She hopped out as well, as I looked back, seeing the ne fall to its doom. The wind dangled us around like little pieces of paper just fluttering through the sky.


    ¡°Brie, I don¡¯t like this feeling!¡± I shouted while she examined her surroundings. There wasn¡¯t much to search, it was just wind pping us around.


    ¡°Okay, we need to find a ce tond,¡± she said. ¡°Very quickly!¡±


    I searched under me, seeing a crowd of buildings gathered with one another. ¡°Let¡¯s try this building over here, or maybe a field,¡± I said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see many fields to be honest,¡± Brie said, staring down at the colony of buildings. ¡°Let¡¯s try a short building to not bring much attention.¡±


    ¡°What makes you think a short one isn¡¯t going to bring much attention. We are literally at ground level with the citizens, that would expose us way more,¡± I said.


    ¡°Okay, tall one it is,¡± Brie muttered. She put more weight on her parachute, lowering herself more down to the one tall gold building that was sticking out of the pack.


    The space between us and ournding point rapidly lowered, very quick to the point I could see the rocky texture of the roof.


    The next thing you know, our feet aggressively hit the ground, as we tripped onto our sides.


    ¡°That was harder than expected,¡± I muttered, feeling the pain course through my side. I slowly rose to my knees and crawled over to see what was beneath us.


    There were definitely not as many cars, so we were definitely not still in New York.


    ¡°Do you still have your phone?¡± she asked me. I checked in my pockets, unbuttoning and reaching for my phone. Iid back, and checked our location.


    ¡°Where are we?¡± she asked.


    I turned to look at her. ¡°Texas,¡± I responded, to which she reacted with confusion. ¡°How are we in Texas?¡± she asked. ¡°How does that make sense?¡±


    ¡°Well, about 1000 miles away from California, is in fact, Texas,¡± I said.


    She sighed. ¡°That means it¡¯s going to be an entire road trip just to get to California,¡± she said, shaking her head. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go.¡±


    We got up to our feet, and once we went to the other ledge opposite of the one facing traffic, we saw a series of ck stairs leading down to the ground. ¡°C¡¯mon,¡± she said again, this time quieter.


    We quickly made our way down the stairs, which was a very long trip, until we finally reached the ground. ¡°Well, got any car we can use in Texas?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Well, we do have money,¡± she said, pointing to the two briefcases I was holding. ¡°Makes sense,¡± I said. ¡°Are we going to call a taxi while we¡¯re at it?¡±


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± she said. ¡°But first, we need to find a hotel. This time, we can¡¯t make a payment though.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± I asked. She didn¡¯t respond, once again.


    We began to approach the streets, which a load of cars whizzed past us, some engines roaring and hissing, while others sounded as quiet as a mouse.


    ¡°Well, Texas is a bit hot, don¡¯t you say?¡± Brie asked. No sweat fell from my forehead, so I was a bit befuddled once she made that statement.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think there are many taxis in Texas,¡± I said, ncing back and forth. She shook her head. ¡°No kidding,¡± she muttered.


    We continued walking for a moment, before I asked, ¡°Can we call Uber?¡±


    Brie looked at me in disbelief. ¡°Uber?!¡± she shouted, as if we weren¡¯t in the atmosphere of the public. ¡°Do you want them to find us?¡±


    ¡°No, but we¡¯re gonna find ourselves walking there instead of¡ª¡±


    All of sudden, she lifted up her hands and shouted with all the strength in her vocal chord: ¡°Taxi!¡±


    Suddenly, this green hatchback parked right beside us. He unlocked the door as we entered the car.


    It was a man with smooth ck hair, and this firm jaw, looking like one of those cologne models onmercials.


    ¡°Hey,¡± he said, his voice manly and seductive and I was sure I could hear a little French ent in that. ¡°Where to, mademoiselle?¡±


    What about me?


    Brie smiled and chuckled, and her eyes were sparkling with delight. ¡°To any hotel you think is best,¡± she said, her voice all of a sudden purring like some cat.


    What is going on?


    ¡°Brie!¡± I shouted, which I didn¡¯t even get to finish getting her attention because her palm shut me off, which at this point, it was preferred to give up.


    Preview:


    ¡°So, how¡¯s your day been?¡± Brie asked. I couldn¡¯t believe this already. He shrugged, and chuckled right afterwards. ¡°I¡¯m just deciding to take over my friend today, because he was going through surgery today.¡±


    Her eyes widened, being brainwashed by hispelling story¡ªin her eyes at least.


    ¡°So, what do you actually do?¡± she asked. He moved his head around, indicating that it wasn¡¯t much of anything.

 Chapter 278 - 278 Taxi Banter

    278 Taxi Banter


    ¡°So, how¡¯s your day been?¡± Brie asked. I couldn¡¯t believe this already. He shrugged, and chuckled right afterwards. ¡°I¡¯m just deciding to take over my friend today, because he was going through surgery today.¡±


    Her eyes widened, being brainwashed by hispelling story¡ªin her eyes at least.


    ¡°So, what do you actually do?¡± she asked. He moved his head around, indicating that it wasn¡¯t much of anything.


    ¡°I¡¯m just a junior agent for that new space program Space X created, the Enterprise,¡± he said.


    Now that waspelling in my eyes. Enterprise is very hard to get into, and I heard they have ships and all those stuff you¡¯d find in a sci-fi action movie.


    ¡°Oh, so you¡¯re like¡­ ripped,¡± she said and he chuckled once again. ¡°Yeah, if you could say like that, but I don¡¯t like to brag about myself though.¡±


    Brie all of a sudden burst intoughter, and my amazement quickly switched to concern. ¡°Brie,¡± I whispered, giving her a little shove she just ignored.


    ¡°So like, what¡¯s your name?¡± Brie asked, getting a bit closer to him like some tentacles from an octopus. ¡°Loveborn,¡± he said. ¡°Hans Loveborn.¡±


    This man is so cringy, bro, I can¡¯t stand it with his James Bond-jpeno-looking jaw.


    .....


    ¡°Okay,¡± she said, finally moving back to her destined position, giving her this side-eye as if she was going to wink any second.


    She turned to look at me, immediately disturbed by my disgusted expression.


    ¡°What¡¯s your problem?¡± she asked. I shook my head. ¡°Nothing,¡± I said, putting up a rushed smile. ¡°Nothing at all. Just can¡¯t wait to rest.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guess,¡± she said.


    We continued to drive through the ordinary streets of Texas before we pulled onto the highway.


    ¡°So, how is it at thepany you¡¯re working at?¡± I asked her. She looked at me with confusion, but then nodded. ¡°Oh yeah, mypany, it¡¯s actually not too exciting. It feels more like an academy than an actualpany.¡±


    ¡°Well¡ªI mean¡ªthat is what it is, right?¡± I asked. She looked at me. ¡°What about yours?¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve only been there for a few months and yet the craziest things to ever happen in life, well, happened,¡± I said. ¡°I made friends who probably miss me right now, and many things have been revealed to me that not even a spark in my mind ever thought about.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, is that why you¡¯re so scared?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean, scared? I¡¯m perfectly fine. I still get desensitized to certain feelings.¡±


    ¡°Apparently not,¡± she hissed, punching me in the shoulder. ¡°You¡¯ll know when you¡¯ve gotten over those feelings.¡±


    ¡°How long have you been in the game for?¡±


    ¡°Two, almost three years,¡± she said. ¡°And a lot has happened since then. A lot.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guessed so,¡± I said, which she turned to me and shook her head. ¡°Your guess was correct.¡±


    We pulled out of the highway, heading to an exit in which we continued forward, and back onto the highway. What a waste.


    ¡°So, how have you been mademoiselle?¡± Hans asked, turning his head for a moment before looking back at the road.


    ¡°Could be better, you know, many things have happened today,¡± she said. ¡°I can assure you, it¡¯s worse than yours. Or maybe yours is worse than mine, it all depends,¡± Brie said.


    He seemed a bit stunned from the pool of information. ¡°Oh, wow,¡± he said, slowly nodding his head. ¡°That must hurt, I believe.¡±


    ¡°Nah, it¡¯s mostly just been funny,¡± she truthfully admitted. ¡°Very funny as a matter of fact.¡±


    Heughed this time, raising him from his level of chuckling. It was like he wasughing his pain away. ¡°You are a unique girl you know, very unique,¡± he said. ¡°In fact, you know what I realized? I never learned your name.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± she said, now stunned herself. ¡°Jamie¡ªJamie Loft.¡±


    ¡°Oh, nice to meet you, Loft,¡± he said. Brie chuckled. ¡°Yeah, nice to meet you too, Lovesborn,¡± she responded back. What kind of flirting is this? As I said before: cringy.


    Sighing, I looked back to see two cars, both ck, but different vehicles. In fact, one of them was a truck. It was a bit of coincidence they were ck, but there are many ck vehicles I could assume.


    The one thing that concerned me was that they were right beside one another. Now you may be saying, how does that make any sense? Let me exin, they were maintaining speed right beside each other, although there was clearly room to move.


    ¡°Uh, Brie,¡± I muttered. She looked at me, then shot a look behind me. Instantly, she noticed the weird setup.


    ¡°Hey, Hans, could you drive a bit faster? I need to really use the bathroom,¡± she said, cracking a smile.


    ¡°Sure,¡± Hans responded. The speed of the car rumbled under the seats which was a bitforting. But the cars were still close behind us.


    ¡°Alright, you¡¯re almost to your destination,¡± Hans said. ¡°This is one of my favorite hotels.¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t wait to see it,¡± I said nervously.


    We pulled off the highway a second time, going to the left and carefully slowing down. You know the surprising thing that wasn¡¯t too surprising: they followed us.


    He pulled out to thene that led to the right, to the sight of a hotel. I could feel the tension in the room, although I¡¯m not sure if Hans felt it.


    He pulled into the parking lot and¡ªof course¡ªparked. Quickly, I exited the car and closed the door quickly. ¡°Bye!¡± I said. And he nodded, and gave a cunning look at Brie.


    ¡°You have fun.¡±


    ¡°You too,¡± she said in a rushed tone. Yet, he didn¡¯t get inside his taxi. ¡°You know, I¡¯m on break so let me sign in you guys for ya. You guys should definitely enjoy yourselves, I¡¯ll pay for the night.¡±


    ¡°Oh, thank you!¡± Brie said, wiping her head.


    We walked inside of the hotel, which we were met with the lobby, with this breakfast section aside from this check-in one.


    I looked around and I took a seat, which Brie did as well. Suddenly, two men walked inside, as the elevator opened for them.


    They walked over, which one sat down on the couch. He was young¡ªbut definitely older than me¡ªmaybe seventeen.


    The other was about the same age, although I think that person already graduated. They were wearing these solid t-shirts, with ck pants and these newly-bought shoes.


    ¡°Maybe I was wrong,¡± I said, looking at Brie. She shrugged.


    ¡°At least we¡¯re not the one making payment,¡± she muttered.


    While Hans signed it, I tried to keep my eyes peeled on the front desk only, not paying attention to the two guys on the sofa across from us.


    But they were really giving me hostile vibes. Very hostile vibes.


    Brie whispered so silently it almost sounded like wind, ¡°Don¡¯t look at them, and if you do, do not look suspicious. We don¡¯t want them calling for backup.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said.


    Right then, Hans finished and waved at us. ¡°Thank you!¡± Brie said. Hans chuckled, ¡°See youter, Jamie.¡±


    The person at the front desk¡ªwho had ck hair and dark skin¡ªgestured for us toe to her. We did, and a card was passed onto us. ¡°Your room is 320, I hope you enjoy your stay,¡± she said.


    Brie nodded as we left, and went through this hall with multiple doors on the side leading to their own respective rooms.


    But that wasn¡¯t the scary thing, not even close. The scary thing was the sound of multiple footsteps behind us.


    I didn¡¯t even peek at them, because the fear in my heart froze my head to look forward and nowhere else. We turned to this room to the side which led to the elevator. The floor changed to carpet with multiple colored hexagonal shapes painted on it.


    Brie clicked the button, which the elevator to the right opened up. We entered the moving box, as well as the two teenagers.


    Silence took all of us without surprise, as the elevator began to rise to the third floor.


    Preview:


    ¡°So¡­ how are you guys,¡± the blue t-shirt person greeted. I nodded slowly. ¡°Good.¡±


    He nodded, which now it blinked to the second floor. And right then and there, he lunged at me like a tiger. The amount ofmotion that was shaking in this elevator was theplete opposite a few seconds ago.


    ¡°Hey!¡± Brie shouted, which she went after the other person, while I had to deal with this one. I hit against the wall of the elevator, feeling the ground tremble under me.


    His hands were lodged on my chest, pushing me against my will. But quickly, I threw a right across his cheek, throwing him off.


    He stumbled, as I tried to recover from the sudden charge. But then, he stormed at me and rammed into my stomach¡ªand once again, I was pinned against the wall.


    I needed to get him off before this elevator begins to copse because of all this rough movement. I got my elbow and hammered it onto his back repeatedly until freedom was mine.

 Chapter 279 - 279 A Dangerous Tussle

    279 A Dangerous Tussle


    ¡°So¡­ how are you guys,¡± the blue t-shirt person greeted. I nodded slowly. ¡°Good.¡±


    He nodded, which now it blinked to the second floor. And right then and there, he lunged at me with full force. The amount ofmotion that was shaking in this elevator was theplete opposite a few seconds ago, and it was nowhere near normal.


    ¡°Hey!¡± Brie shouted, which she went after the other person, while I had to deal with this one. I hit against the wall of the elevator, feeling the ground shake under me, and walls teeter behind me.


    His body was firmly pressed against my chest as my back slowly began to bleed into the silver railing. Then, in desperation, I defended myself with a right fist to the jaw, and as I tried to recover from the unexpected strike, he stumbled. However, without warning, he lunged at me and drove his fist into my stomach. Once more, I was jammed against the wall and my head was rocking forward as a consequence of the severe force of the impact.


    Panic swept through my mind as I searched the area for any sign of escape. But, I just had one option, so I mmed my fist against his back again and again in an effort to break his hold on me.


    I did not, however, get the desired oue. As you could anticipate, given the circumstances, it was worse.


    The man shifted his body and reached between my legs with his left arm. He gripped my shoulder firmly with his right. Then he lifted me up before mming me to the ground.


    The elevator lights suddenly went out. Brie nced around and saw that the warning lights were everywhere. She muttered, ¡°Oh, no.¡±


    I quickly nced up to see the TSA agent, who gave me a second nce. He appeared uncertain, as did I. But I kicked him in the chest right away, catching him off guard, and pushed him back and off my chest.


    .....


    As I finally got to my feet, I got up and held onto the silver rail.


    But he suddenly lurched towards me from the corner and delivered a punch. I seized it and carried it to the side, then struck him in the stomach with several jabs.


    He stumbled into the bottom right corner of the elevator, as far as I could tell from the lights that asionally gleamed, after I let go of my grip on him and struck his jaw with a hard, sharp blow.


    However, he wasn¡¯t finished at this point. This fight was still continuing.


    I threw a brief left punch that was caught by the assassin as swiftly as a snake bite, forcing me to use the alternative fist. However, the other one also failed in its mission.


    Both of us fell to the ground, rolled, and eventually came to our knees as a result of the force he forced into me¡ªor at least the man to his knees, which prevented me from moving as his fists struck across my face. Left, right, left, right, left, right, both areas where a ferocious fist was constantly met.


    However, I shoved him off with my limited strength at his chest, causing him to stumble onto his feet once more, but not into the wall this time¡ªnot as if that was ever a good thing. He immediately hopped onto the silver rail, circling the elevator after I got to my feet as quickly as I could, and fired a sloppy curve, wobbling as I did so.


    I sighed, ¡°Come on.¡± He bounced, flipped, and ended up on the ground as I plunged myself toward his ankles, which was not a good idea.


    I hit the ceiling at a dangerous speed as the elevator abruptly sank, sending us into the air. ¡°Connor!¡± Brie yelled.


    As the elevator continued to descend, her voice ripped in and out, giving the impression that it was echoing through a fan.


    My head smacked the floor, and my brain rocked against my skull as the elevator stalled.


    My entire face was stung by the pain: every bone in my face, including my shoulder and jawbone and cheekbone, felt like burning wood.


    I shuffled to my feet and saw a blurred wandid out in front of me. I quickly reached for it and felt the stick¡¯s long, thin form. However, I was joined by a second hand, which could only mean one thing: He was still alive.


    I pulled it quickly toward me, but the assassin had a stronger grip and pulled me instead with the wand. I dug my foot into the ground, raising us both to our feet, which somehow that even urred.


    After that, he lifted me over his back and onto the ground in a matter of seconds, producing a clunking sound that mirrored through the dim walls.


    But I had the wand, since I took it right out of his hands.


    ¡°Brie!¡± As I slowly rose to my feet, I yelled. ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    ¡°You better hope so!¡± she said in a low, thin voice.


    I swung the wand as hard as I could now that I had it, finally hoping to put an end to this disaster. However, the eleration of the wand stopped suddenly. Slowly, I turned around, which I noticed the man holding the wand tightly as I looked up.


    Come on!


    Before I mmed him against the wall, I drew him towards me with his hands still on the wand. I drove a right punch across his face, but his hands were still on the wand.


    Okay, next n.


    In an effort to remove the weapon from his hand, I dragged him from the wall on the bottom left to the one on the top right, right next to Brie¡¯s opponent. I attempted to pull it back, but he did the same, resulting in an imbnced force that caused the wand to shift left and right like a steering wheel.


    ¡°Give it to me!¡± Before hitting the other TSA agent in the head with my swing, I grunted, and the other agent fell to the ground with a thud, leaving me as the only assant.


    Shocked, he loosened his grip a bit on the wand, which I used to my advantage¡ªkicking him in the chest, to which he bounced back from the wall down to the floor.


    Now it was time to end this, as I carried the wand through the fingers of my hand and readied for the final blow. But all of a sudden, I felt an arm wrap around my neck and suddenly tighten.


    Who was choking me?! I tried my best to look beside me, seeing the nose peering out into my view.


    I thought the other agent was knocked out already, or maybe asleep.


    I struggled against him, as my opponent dismissed the wand from my hand, spinning it through his fingers, as if he was mocking me.


    ¡°Bye-bye,¡± the agent sneered, which I never heard his voice, and now wish I didn¡¯t. He braced for the final blow.


    Suddenly, the doors of the elevator cracked ajar, with a pole digging through the doors. ¡°Huh¡­¡± I muttered. All of a sudden, the doors opened up entirely, with Hans standing there with a pole in his hand.


    ¡°I thought so,¡± he muttered. The assassins looked at him with confusion, then resulted in him being a threat¡ªwhich, to be honest¡ªI wouldn¡¯t me them. He had this pole in his hand and said, ¡°thought so.¡±


    Suddenly, Hans shot both of them with this small gun that I could only assume to be a tranquilizer. They slumped down to the ground, unconscious. Shock was the only thing present in my brain.


    ¡°How¡ªhow¡­¡± I muttered, scratching my head, trying to process everything that happened, which was not easy.


    ¡°Remember, I¡¯m a junior agent. Let¡¯s get out of here before moree.¡±


    ¡°But didn¡¯t you pay for our room?¡±


    ¡°Well, I guess that was a waste,¡± he stated, snapping his fingers harshly. I had no choice but to adhere to his will as we ran out of the elevator and took a corner by the nearby window.


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll open this and we¡¯ll get to my taxi alright?¡± he asked. ¡°I¡¯ll return it back, then we¡¯ll see what to do next. First question, why are they chasing after you?!¡±


    Brie sighed. ¡°Those are some thugs that I used to deal with, until I stopped a few weeks ago, and now¡ªI guess they finally decided to take action. So my mom told me to get to California, where my uncle is and to stay there until it¡¯s safe.¡±


    ¡°Why did you deal with them?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a long story. You know, personal stuff.¡±


    He slowly nodded, then opened the window. I looked at Brie, quite impressed. ¡°I know, I know,¡± she muttered, which almost wanted me to just take it back.


    We crept through the open space and ended up on the ledge.


    Hopefully no one was watching.


    ¡°Okay, is there adder by any chance?¡± I asked, starting to be frantic. You already know I have had a fear of heights ever since that attack on that one FBI base when we were dealing with Dr. Mord. I¡ªlegit¡ªleaped from the window, and into the helicopter.


    Granted, it was cool, but scary.


    Hans took a glimpse over the corner, leading to the side of the building, before he nced back at me with a quick nod.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go,¡± Brie said, gesturing to him as if she was saying ¡°Shoo¡± to him.


    We continued to travel along the ledge before we reached the beloveddder, which was a very long one, from this ledge to the ground.


    ¡°Okay, stay quiet,¡± he said, but his words immediately backfired, once I felt my foot slip on a tiny slope.

 Chapter 280 - 280 Escape from Texas

    280 Escape from Texas


    ¡°Ahhh!¡± I screamed in fear, as my bottom dropped onto the ledge, then slipped off to where only my hand was holding on.


    ¡°Oh, brother,¡± Brie muttered as she approached me, amidst the terrified screams I was eliciting.


    ¡°Bring up your hand,¡± she said. I had no choice but to, but even then, the retraction of my hand caused me to stoop even lower than before.


    As if the screams weren¡¯t louder, they were bellowing louder than a wolf.


    ¡°Oh my¡ªare you serious? Just bring your hand up!¡± Brie shouted, now ming with annoyance. I tried and persisted, but my hand could barely even raise. It was as if the bones gained an amplitude of weight from that fight.


    ¡°Oh, my Lord, get my hand!¡± she shouted, as I steadily granted my hand to her, which she grabbed firmly.


    She pulled me up, although the sheer weight was a bit of an obstacle for her.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go,¡± Hans said, as we climbed down thedder. We dropped down onto the parking lot and dashed towards the taxi.


    ¡°Put the briefcases in here,¡± Hans said, unlocking the trunk. It sounded a little beep, as the trunk unlocked, which Brie rose up the trunk, as I put the two briefcases inside.


    .....


    She mmed it down, before gesturing to get inside the car. I opened the door, taking a seat in the middle to which Hans entered the driver seat, while Brie joined me in the back.


    ¡°Move over to the far left,¡± she whispered. I followed her order, in which Hans abruptly stomped the gas pedal, driving us out the driveway before we headed onto the street.


    As we did, a bundle of ck vehicles pulled in on the scene. Those must have been TSA vehicles, hoping that they neutralized us, but I doubt that they even know that this green taxi is holding their suspects.


    ¡°Stay down,¡± Hans said, as we lowered down under the window.


    I think we passed on a lot farther than the hotel, based on the multiple buildings drifting by.


    ¡°Okay, first of all, who were those people?¡± Hans asked, ncing back at us. I stammered, barely able to dig up any words that I could say.


    ¡°It¡¯s a bit hard to exin¡ªin fact¡ªwe can¡¯t,¡± I said, immediately regretting my decision. Hans shook his head. ¡°How can two children have something secret that they cannot tell an adult. In fact, it¡¯s best to tell an adult. What is it?¡±


    ¡°Please, trust me, you cannot know.¡±


    Suddenly, he stopped the car, as the rear end of the vehicle lifted forward, then returned to its ideal level with a thunk. Hans leaned back in his seat, his hands behind his back, his gaze fixed on us.


    ¡°Listen, I saved your behinds back there. Come on, Jamie,¡± he said, directing his view towards Brie.


    Brie muttered to herself, sighing between each mumbling remark she made.


    She looked back up and nodded. ¡°Listen, what if we made a deal? You get us to California, then we tell you what¡¯s happening.¡±


    He paused for a moment, thinking about our offer. Slowly, he began to nod, then his eyes fixed on us. ¡°All right, but I better get my answer or I¡¯m going to deliver you to those people,¡± he said.


    I nodded slowly, now a little nervous.


    I knew that his threat was not an idle one, so I took a deep breath and replied, ¡°We understand. We¡¯ll give you our answer as soon as possible.¡±


    ¡°All right, don¡¯t disappoint me now,¡± he said as we drove on. For a brief moment, silence filled the room before a question entered my mind. ¡°Wait, are we going to rest somewhere for a moment, or are we just going to go straight to California?¡±


    ¡°Do you want some snacks? Given our current situation, don¡¯t you think it would be nice to turn this into a road trip?¡± He asked, turning his head briefly before returning his gaze to the road.


    ¡°We can rest and grab some snacks before hitting the road again.¡± And, yes, a road trip sounds like a great idea; we can stop along the way and enjoy the scenery,¡± Brie replied with a smile. ¡°What do you think, Connor?¡±


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± I murmured, doubting that I was actually hungry enough to eat anything at all. Hans chuckled before taking a left turn onto the street, which led straight ahead for a long period of time. We passed through multiple intersections, going straight ahead, before we reached an intersection: Winco Foods.


    ¡°A grocery store, like Costco. ¡°¡±Wait, I don¡¯t think you have a Costco in Venezu,¡± I said, which she didn¡¯t find offensive. She chuckled. Instead, she replied, ¡°No, we don¡¯t have Costco here, but we have simr stores where we can buy things in bulk.¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± I muttered.


    I had assumed that Costco was a global brand, but it seems like it¡¯s not as ubiquitous as I thought. I wondered if there were any other assumptions I had made about the world that were actually incorrect. It was a humbling realization.


    Hans moved his head down, and although I was unsure what he was looking at, it was probably his left rear-view mirror, because he immediately looked back in confusion. ¡°Wait, what¡¯s going on?¡± he muttered to himself as he drove past Winco Foods.


    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s going on?¡± Brie asked, looking behind us, and I ultimately had to follow. There were these ck cars, just like the ones from the highway, that were right behind us, I replied, feeling a knot form in my stomach. ¡°I think we¡¯re being followed.¡±


    ¡°We need to stay calm and think of a n,¡± Brie said, her voice steady. ¡°Let¡¯s take a few turns to try to lose them, and if that doesn¡¯t work, we¡¯ll call the cops.¡±


    ¡°And do what?! Let them arrest us?¡±


    ¡°For what, we didn¡¯t do anything?¡±


    I gave her a look, which she eventually followed. I shook my head and whispered, ¡°No, we won¡¯t let them arrest us. But we need to leave this ce before things get worse.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by arrested?¡± he inquired. ¡°Did you guys murder someone, Jamie?¡± Brie shook her head and ultimately shook her hands in refusal. ¡°We didn¡¯t do anything wrong, but we were caught in the wrong ce at the wrong time,¡± Brie exined. ¡°We need to get out of here before we get caught up in something that isn¡¯t our fault.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s going to be happening soon,¡± I said. Quickly, Hans took a hard right, which the three ck cars behind us followed closely. One of them was in thene to our right, while the other was in thene to our left. ¡°I suggest we try to lose them by taking the next exit and finding a ce to hide until they pass. We can¡¯t risk getting involved in a car chase and endangering ourselves,¡± Hans exined.


    ¡°They¡¯re advancing,¡± I warned, my voice getting a bit tense.


    A bar of light reflected off the window of one of the cars. Inside the window, a man was barely visible due to the dark tint. The only thing that confirmed my suspicion was the suit. It was the TSA spies, and they caught on to us. ¡°Hans, speed up,¡± I said, as the chasing cars began to overtake us. I could feel my heart racing as I realized the severity of the situation. We were in big trouble, and I knew we had toe up with a n fast. Hans increased the vehicle¡¯s speed, darting through traffic, and the pursuing cars entered a new phase, cuttingnes and dodging cars in their path. I frantically searched for any possible escape routes or hiding spots, but the city streets were too crowded.


    We needed to find a way to lose them before it was toote. Hans made a hard turn to the right, heading through the city marketce, I assume. I held on tight as we weaved through the stalls and vendors, hoping that the pursuing cars would lose us in the chaos. But as we emerged from the marketce, I could see that they were still hot on our tail, and we needed toe up with a new n quickly.


    ¡°Hey, anyone got any ns?¡± Brie eximed, moving her gaze back and forth between the cars before she finally set her eyes on me. I shrugged, unsure what to say or im, as her gaze darted back and forth between the cars before settling on me. I shrugged, unsure of what to say or do. I quickly scanned the area and noticed arge 18-wheeler truck nearby. ¡°There!¡± I pointed and said, ¡°Let¡¯s drive through there and lose them. Maybe this truck could act as a shield for us.¡± My friend looked at me suspiciously but started the car anyway.


    As we drove towards the truck, I couldn¡¯t help but feel a sense of relief that we might finally escape our pursuers. But I was wrongpletely wrong. The car suddenly shook from the back like an earthquake, and I was thrown into the front seat.

 Chapter 281 - 281 Secrets and Concerns

    281 Secrets and Concerns


    I turned around to see a TSA car still following us. I knew we had toe up with a n fast, so I quickly searched for any side roads or exits that we could take to lose them. As the TSA car continued to follow us, I realized that this was far from over and we were in for a wild ride. The pursuer, on the other hand, gradually began to tap the car¡¯s bumper, causing the stability to move left and right.


    ¡°Could you maybe drive a bit faster?!¡± I shouted, my heart racing as they continued to collide with the bumper.


    But then, as we entered another intersection that was less popted with vehicles, they dispersed like birds.


    My mind was clouded with confusion, which spread to Brie and Hans as well. Why would they just leave? If the TSA wants us so bad for those briefcases, why chase us for a few minutes then leave to go on your lunch break?


    It was so confusing to the fact it was almost disturbing. I shook my head, as we headed on through the street.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what thugs you guys dealt with, but they are not as diligent as they usually are. Did you forget to give kids some money for their lemonade or something, and now their parents areing after you?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I wish it was that,¡± Brie said.


    Hans sighed. ¡°Look, now that they¡¯re off our tail, we can find a grocery store nearby and get some snacks. Perhaps we can still salvage this road trip.¡±


    ¡°Sounds like a n,¡± I said, throwing up a smile that was trembling under my fear.


    .....


    What if they came back again, and even more prepared? They¡¯ve been with us these past few days. They sent men after us at that diner, which then they chased us from the hotel into the crowded streets. They sent some random person after us in a furniture store, searched for us in the airport, chased us while we were in the process of take-off, sent assassins after us in an elevator, and now decided to chase us for thirty seconds, and then call it a break.


    We drove along until the night began to cloud the sky. We found a grocery store¡ªa gas station, in fact¡ªthat was on the right, in the middle of arge field which spanned all the way to the mountains.


    ¡°Ahead is Fredricksburg, where we can find a ce to stay. It would be hard to find us if there aren¡¯t many people at a certain ce,¡± Hans said.


    I was a bit confused about his reasoning, but it was probably the best idea. He drove into the station holding the gas tanks, parking there. ¡°We¡¯ll stay here,¡± Brie said.


    I quickly turned my head towards her, looking at her in shock. What do you mean, stay here?


    ¡°What¡ªhow does that make any sense?¡± Hans asked. In response, Brie said, ¡°If they see the car here, they¡¯ll think we¡¯re inside, so you cane out and drive off while they keep wasting their time in there.¡±


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s hope they¡¯re that dumb¡ªor smart for not assuming we¡¯re in the car in the first ce,¡± I said, narrowing my eyes. She ignored me like usual.


    ¡°Alright, stay safe,¡± he said, as he closed the door, going over to the gas tank which was decorated with yellow and red stripes.


    The sound of the gas pump entering the hole managed to parallel into the interior of the vehicle. But, in a muffled quality.


    ¡°So, fun few days, am I right?¡± Brie asked. I shook my head unquestionably. ¡°Nope,pletely terrifying,¡± I said. But there was a voice that was whispering in my ear, convincing me that these past few days were pretty wild. I couldn¡¯t lie to myself, it was a bit exciting.


    I eventually revealed that which Brie nodded, as if she knew I was going to fall into temptation.


    ¡°Yeah, but it¡¯s been a fun time. To be honest, I have never seen Hans so concerned in the past few hours I¡¯ve known him,¡± she said.


    ¡°Known him?¡± I quoted, questioning her choice of words.


    ¡°Seen him, how about that?¡± she corrected, which I was more receptive to. I looked outside the window, seeing if any more ck cars wereing. I was wrong however¡ªwhich was a good thing.


    I turned to face Brie, who seemed almost trapped, trembling to say something that she felt like she wasn¡¯t ready to.


    She sighed, andid back, which wasn¡¯t too far from her seating position. ¡°You know, a few days ago, that one time I told you that story?¡±


    ¡°Story?¡±


    ¡°How my parents kicked me out, and didn¡¯t want me anymore?¡± she said. I nodded slowly, a bit anxious of what¡¯s going to be said next.


    ¡°Well, that was kind of true¡­mostly true¡­all of it true. It was their way of punishing me,¡± she continued, her voice shaking with emotion. ¡°My parents never wanted me to be who I am, and I guess when I started to act a certain way, they decided to just¡­cut thest strings between us.¡±


    I could feel her pain, although I didn¡¯t quite know what to say. I just wanted to make her feel better, to tell her that everything would be alright in the end.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright,¡± I said, cing a hand on her shoulder. ¡°Everything will work out fine. We¡¯ll be out of this situation soon, and you¡¯ll be able to move on with your life¡ªwith your goals and dreams.¡±


    Brie looked up, her eyes meeting mine. ¡°Do you really believe that?¡± she asked, her voice a fragile whisper.


    ¡°Yes, I do,¡± I said with a nod, my voice confident.


    For a moment, neither of us said anything, and then Brie spoke. ¡°Thanks,¡± she said quietly.


    I smiled in response, but before I could say anything else, a loud noise outside interrupted our conversation. ¡°Remember when I said that, I was lost, and I wanted to see my friends and family?¡± I asked her, which she nodded.


    ¡°I¡¯m guessing you can already guess that¡¯s true,¡± I said which she nodded. ¡°I thought so too,¡± she admitted, following with a chuckle that eventually caused me to chuckle as well.


    I sighed, a wave of nostalgia washing over me. Despite the difficult situation we were in, I was still reminded of the happy times with my friends and family back at the YMPA academy.


    Mchi, September, Nikki, and Tisiah were my closestpanions there. They were always my first thought when times were tough. I was so lucky to have such supportive and loyal friends from the day I started.


    But there was one person who was more important to me than anyone else: my mother. She was always my guiding light, the one unifying force that kept me going and allowed me to be my best. She was the one who had been there since day one, and she was the one I knew I could always rely on.


    The thought of her brought tears to my eyes, and I quickly wiped them away, taking a deep breath to calm myself. I had to stay strong; I couldn¡¯t let her down. I had to grasp on to the hope that one day I¡¯d be reunited with her and all my friends and family.


    Looking back at Brie, I could see the understanding in her eyes, as if she sensed my emotions without me having to say a word. She gave me a gentle smile, and I felt almost immediatelyforted.


    ¡°I know it¡¯s hard,¡± she said. ¡°But never forget that wherever you go, your mom and your friends are always with you in your heart.¡±


    I nodded, feeling a renewed sense of determination. ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± I said, my voice stronger than before. ¡°No matter what happens, I¡¯ll always carry them with me.¡±


    We sat in silence for a moment, each lost in our thoughts. Then, the sound of the gas pump clicking off brought us back to reality. Hans had finished filling up the tank, and it was time to continue our journey.


    As Hans opened the driver¡¯s side door, he nced around nervously. ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve been followed,¡± he said, but his voice was uncertain. ¡°But let¡¯s get out of here quickly, just in case.¡±


    We agreed, and Hans started the car, pulling away from the gas station and back onto the open road. The sun hadpletely set by now, and the darkness enveloped us as we drove towards Fredericksburg.


    The road ahead was uncertain, and danger seemed to lurk around every corner. But with Brie by my side and the memories of my loved ones in my heart, I felt a sense of courage and determination that I hadn¡¯t felt in a long time.


    I knew that no matter what challengesy ahead, we would face them together. And somehow, I knew that everything would be alright in the end.

 Chapter 282 - 282 A Calm Time

    282 A Calm Time


    The car filled with afortable silence, and my thoughts went to my mother once more. I remembered all the years that she¡¯d been by my side, never wavering in her strength and her love for me.


    I thought about the times she¡¯dforted me through the dark days, when it felt like the world was against me. I thought about theughter we¡¯d shared during the good times, when everything seemed so full of joy.


    I was thankful for my mother¡¯s love and guidance, and I was determined to live a life that would make her proud.


    ncing out the window, I noticed the first few stars twinkling in the night sky. I stared at them for a few moments, captivated by their beauty.


    Even though I was far away, I could feel my mother looking down at me from the stars, as if she was sending me a wordless message of hope. I closed my eyes, wishing that I could see her and hug her onest time.


    But I knew that I wouldn¡¯t be able to.


    The only way that I could feel close to her now was by continuing my journey and never giving up, no matter the obstacles in my way.


    As I looked up at the stars, I made a vow to myself: I will be strong and brave, and I will never forget the love that my mother had for me. I will honor her memory.


    ¡°Ay, Earth to Connor!¡± I heard someone shout, which was unsurprisingly Brie. I blinked, slowly pulling my thoughts back to the present. ¡°Yeah, sorry,¡± I said, giving Brie a sheepish grin. ¡°Just got lost in thought for a moment.¡±


    .....


    Brie¡¯s eyes softened, and she reached over to give my hand a reassuring squeeze. ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± she said gently. ¡°Sometimes, we need to let ourselves remember and reflect. It helps us stay strong.¡± We continued to drive through the night, the stars above guiding our way. As the miles rolled by, we took turns sharing stories of our families ¨C the good, the bad, and the funny. It felt therapeutic to reminisce, and we found sce in each other¡¯spany.


    As the hours passed, the first light of dawn began to break on the horizon, casting a warm glow across thendscape. We knew that we¡¯d need to find a ce to rest soon, and decided to look for a small town or motel where we could catch a few hours of sleep.


    Up ahead, we spotted a sign for a town called Willow Creek, and decided to give it a try. We took the exit and began to navigate the sleepy streets, hoping to find a ce to rest our weary heads.


    As we approached the town¡¯s center, we noticed the charming atmosphere and friendly faces of the locals. It felt like a ce where we could findfort, if only for a little while.


    And so, we pulled into the parking lot of a small motel.


    ¡°Okay, you guys stay in here while I check us in for the second time in a row,¡± he said, muttering thest part. He closed the door¡ªin fact¡ªmmed the door before entering the motel. The motel was shaped in a circle, with a few buildings side by side with each other. There were a few cars, a red pickup truck, a little green hatchback, and a skateboard.


    Brie raised an eyebrow at Hans¡¯ annoyance but decided not toment on it. Instead, she turned to me and smiled. ¡°Hey, do you want to stretch your legs for a bit? We¡¯ve been cooped up in the car for a while.¡±


    I agreed, and we stepped out of the car, taking in the quaint surroundings. The circryout of the motel gave it a unique, cozy feel, and the well-tended flower beds added a touch of color to the scene.


    As we strolled around the parking lot, we couldn¡¯t help but notice the skateboard leaning against one of the buildings. It seemed out of ce among the cars and trucks, but it also piqued our curiosity.


    ¡°Do you think someone just left it here?¡± I asked Brie, eyeing the skateboard.


    Brie shrugged. ¡°Maybe? Or it could belong to someone staying at the motel. Either way, it¡¯s been years since I¡¯ve ridden a skateboard. How about you?¡±


    I chuckled, remembering the scraped knees and bruised elbows of my teenage skateboarding adventures. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time for me too,¡± I admitted. ¡°But it might be fun to give it a try again.¡±


    All of a sudden, she started snorting, as if she wasughing and snoring at the same time, and I can¡¯t say I liked it.


    ¡°What¡¯s so funny?¡± I asked, a hint of amusement in my voice.


    Brie grinned. ¡°Let¡¯s check into the motel and get some sleep, and then you can try out that skateboard,¡± she suggested.


    I agreed, and we made our way back to the car. Fortunately, Hans had already secured us a room, so we quickly checked in and headed up to the second floor.


    We dropped off our bags, and then Brie gave me a yful shove towards the bed.


    ¡°Alright! Time to hit the hay!¡± she dered cheerily.


    I nodded, too exhausted to protest. It seemed like we had been on the road for days, and the thought of finally getting some rest was too tempting to refuse. The room was a bit weird not gonna lie:It had a quirkyyout, with a small, round window on one wall that offered a view of the parking lot below. The wallpaper was a faded floral pattern, giving the room a nostalgic, vintage vibe. A couple of mismatched chairs were tucked into one corner, and an old, wooden dresser stood against the opposite wall.


    Despite its peculiarities, the room had a certain charm to it, and we couldn¡¯t help but smile at its entricities. We quickly settled into the squeaky, yet surprisinglyfortable, beds.


    As wey there, Brie turned to me, her eyes twinkling with mischief. ¡°Tomorrow, after we¡¯re well-rested, we¡¯re gonna have a skateboard showdown. You in?¡±


    Iughed, feeling my exhaustion momentarily abate. ¡°You¡¯re on,¡± I agreed, unable to resist her infectious enthusiasm.


    Then her eyes met with mine, as she chuckled once more, her face stuck on mine. Eventually, my head froze,pletely contained by her gaze. ¡°Your eyes are scary,¡± she said abruptly.


    I blinked, surprised by herment, and felt my cheeks flush with embarrassment. ¡°Oh, um, sorry about that,¡± I stammered, quickly averting my gaze.


    Brie¡¯sughter softened, and she reached out to gently nudge my shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I just meant that you have really intense eyes, like you¡¯re always thinking about something. It¡¯s not a bad thing, just¡­ noticeable.¡±


    I let out a nervous chuckle, trying to y it off. ¡°Well, I guess I do tend to get lost in my thoughts sometimes.¡±


    With a warm smile, Brie reassured me, ¡°It¡¯s okay. It¡¯s just one of those things that make you, well, you. Now, let¡¯s get some sleep. We¡¯ve got a big day¡ª¡±


    All of a sudden, someone knocked on the door, causing us both to jump in rm. Brie shot me a knowing look and I quickly got off the bed and made my way towards the door, pressing my ear up against it to hear the muffled voice on the other side.


    ¡°Room service,¡± the voice said.


    I nced over my shoulder at Brie, who was already shaking her head. I knew that we had already missed dinner, and thest thing I wanted to do was to pay for something that we weren¡¯t even hungry for. As if sensing my thoughts, Brie waved me away, murmuring that she would handle it.


    After a few moments of muffled discussion, she returned with a tray of food in her hands.


    ¡°Lucky us,¡± Brie dered, her voice full of surprise. She exined that the manager had felt bad about us missing dinner and had kindly sent us some leftovers as aplimentary gesture.


    We dug into the warm food eagerly, our exhaustion momentarily pushed away by the promise of a satisfying meal. After we finished our dinner, we gathered our things and found our way back to our beds.


    ¡°Well, I guess the night wasn¡¯t a total waste after all,¡± Brie said warmly. I nodded in agreement, thankful for our good luck.


    Now, I thought, I could finally get some sleep and be ready for tomorrow. Brie was right: we had a big day ahead of us, filled with new adventures and unexplored possibilities. With a deep breath, I settled into my bed ¡ª my thoughts slowly fading with the gentle lull of the night. As I drifted off to sleep, I couldn¡¯t help but feel surprised at the unexpected turn of events. After all, it¡¯s not every night that you get a surprise dinner.


    Or, maybe you do and I¡¯m just being weird. Although I doubt any of you guys actually get surprise meals. Maybe you bring ones from home or still pay a bunch of money for room service. It all depends though.

 Chapter 283 - 283 A Chaotic Time

    283 A Chaotic Time


    It felt like two seconds rather than eight hours because the moment I regained consciousness, my body jerked as if someone was shaking me.


    ¡°Wake up!¡± I heard someone shout, which I slowly opened my eyes, still feeling my body race me around.


    My vision began to clear up, as I saw the face of Brie, shaking me like some maraca. ¡°What?!¡± I shouted,ing off very harsh.


    ¡°I think the TSA is here,¡± she said. ¡°Come, quickly!¡± She jumped off of me, as I threw off the sheets andnded on my feet on the wooden floor. The bed was right by the door, so it didn¡¯t take long to walk outside.


    Brie steadily moved through the hall that presented other rooms. The ground was white with white pirs glued and pasted on it. There were two others like this, one of them being the lobby.


    ¡°Okay, where is this¡ª¡±


    ¡°Down!¡± she shouted, immediately ducking down to a crouching form. She took out her binocrs from her back pocket, cing them in her eyes before she moved it and handed it to me, who was behind her.


    ¡°Look towards the roof of the lobby,¡± she said, pointing to that spot.


    I guided my eyes towards the reddish-brown roof, where there was a man in dark red clothing, with these ck binocrs that disyed where his position was.


    .....


    ¡°See him?¡± she asked. I nodded. ¡°I believe so. Do you need me to take him out?¡±


    ¡°Well, I mean, why not¡ªI think he¡¯s moving,¡± she said, which I saw first¡ªbeing that I had the binocrs. ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s changing his position,¡± I said, keeping my eyes on him.


    He reached for something on his back, I believe, which he then mounted onto the roof, cocking something back before¡ªoh, no.


    ¡°He has a sniper!¡± I shouted in a hushed voice, but a bullet was already released from his weapon. It hit the pir nearby me, as pieces sprayed from the wound.


    I dropped down, taking cover behind a wooden box that was nearest to me on the right. ¡°Brie, you good?!¡± I shouted, looking from behind me.


    She was behind the pir next to the wounded one, which she gave a quick thumbs up. That was a relief. ¡°Okay, how are we gonna take him out?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I genuinely don¡¯t know,¡± she said. I could hear her deep breaths of fear and panic, before she gulped and added, ¡°Listen, go to Hans, wake him up, and tell him that someone is here. I¡¯ll try and stop this sniper, alright?¡±


    ¡°Uh¡ªif you say,¡± I said, a bit anxious. She peeked out and nodded, before we both darted from our positions, to which I ran towards our room.


    I could hear shots hit the ground beside me, which only spiked my anxiety. I rushed towards our room and dashed inside, mming the door at the same time.


    ¡°Hans!¡± I shouted. ¡°We¡¯re being attacked!¡±


    ¡°Wait, what?!¡± I could hear, but the voice sounded more croaky than ever. After a series of thumping, Hans exited his room and out the door, holding the same small gun he used to shoot those assassins.


    He looked a bit tired but more importantly, scared. His eyes started to drift towards the window, where he could see the sniper still shooting, and a few bullets pierced through the ss of the window and hit the wall behind us. I quickly shut the window.


    ¡°It¡¯s a sniper,¡± I said. ¡°Brie is handling him. We need to get out of this building and to safety!¡± I could see Hans had turned pale. I grabbed him by the arm and started to pull him to the door.


    ¡°Wait,¡± he said, pulling away. He reached into his pocket and shuffled around for a moment before he finally revealed a magazine, loading it into his weapon. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go,¡± Hans said, determination now etched on his face.


    We made our way out of the room, crouching low to avoid the sniper¡¯s line of sight. As we carefully navigated the hallway, I couldn¡¯t help but worry about Brie. She was brave, but the situation was undoubtedly dangerous.


    Suddenly, we heard a loud crash, followed by the sound of ss shattering. My heart raced, fearing the worst for Brie. I turned to Hans, who looked equally worried.


    ¡°We need to find another way out,¡± I whispered, trying to keep my voice steady.


    Hans nodded, his eyes scanning the area for an alternate route. He pointed towards a door on the other side of the hall. ¡°There¡¯s a stairwell over there. We can use it to get to the ground floor and find a way out.¡±


    We cautiously made our way to the door, keeping as low as possible to avoid being seen. As we approached the stairwell, the sound of gunshots rang out again, this time apanied by a scream.


    My heart dropped, fearing it might be Brie. But before I could even process the thought, Hans grabbed my arm and pulled me into the stairwell, shutting the door behind us.


    As we descended the stairs, I couldn¡¯t help but feel a sense of dread. What if we couldn¡¯t make it out in time? What if Brie was injured, or worse?


    We reached the ground floor, and Hans led me to a back exit. As we stepped outside, we found ourselves in a narrow alleyway, the building providing us with some cover from the sniper.


    ¡°We need to find Brie,¡± I said, my voice shaking with concern.


    Hans nodded, his eyes scanning the surrounding area for any sign of her. ¡°We¡¯ll find her. But first, we need to make sure the sniper doesn¡¯t have a clear shot at us. Come on, let¡¯s move.¡±


    The two of us stood in the shadowy alley, our breaths ragged and hearts pounding. The air was thick with tension and the faint scent of dampness from the recent rain. A chill wind whispered through the narrow passage, its icy fingers brushing against our skin and causing goosebumps to rise. The full moon yed hide-and-seek with the clouds, casting eerie, dancing shadows on the wet cobblestones beneath our feet.


    The crumbling brick walls on either side of the alley seemed to close in on us, as if they were ancient, silent witnesses to the danger that lurked nearby. The rusted fire escapes above groaned under the weight of years of disuse, casting menacing, twisted shadows that seemed to take on a life of their own. Every sound, from the distant howl of a dog to the drip of water from a broken gutter, heightened our senses and fueled our anxiety.


    Far off, the faint wail of sirens pierced the night, mingling with the distant hum of traffic. It was a stark reminder that beyond this ustrophobic corridor, the city continued with its usual cacophony, blissfully unaware of the sinister events unfolding in its dark underbelly.


    As we slowly inched our way through the alley, the buildings around us seemed to be more decrepit, their windows boarded up and doors sealed shut. It was as if the city had abandoned this ce, leaving it to rot and decay, much like the secrets that were buried within its depths.


    As we moved forward, the darkness seemed to grow thicker, swallowing up any semnce of safety we may have felt. Our footsteps echoed softly, the sound reverberating through the alley, a constant reminder that we were trespassing into the unknown. With every step, the sense of foreboding grew stronger, wrapping its icy tendrils around our hearts and tightening its grip.


    In this haunting and oppressive atmosphere, we knew we had to keep moving, to find a way out of thisbyrinth of shadows and secrets. For we were now part of a deadly game, and our survival depended on our ability to navigate the treacherousndscape that stretched out before us.


    I looked around nervously, the darkness closing in on us like a thick, inky curtain. My heart raced as I worried about Brie and our own safety. But then, a faint glimmer of light peeked through a gap, catching my attention. ¡°Hey, Brie might be over there!¡± I eximed, a surge of hope lifting my spirits.


    I stepped out of the alleyway and spotted the sniper perched on the roof of the building¡¯s lobby section. ¡°Uh-oh,¡± I muttered under my breath, quickly ducking behind the wall for cover.


    ¡°He¡¯s up there,¡± I whispered to Hans, who cautiously peeked around the corner before darting to the other side of the wall. ¡°So, where¡¯s Brie?¡± he asked, concern etched on his face. I tried to get a better look, but suddenly, a bright sh of light streaked towards us as if a bolt had just been fired.


    Brie! That had to be her!


    With adrenaline surging through my veins, I sprinted forward, my eyes fixed on the roof above. Spotting arge crate nearby, I leaped onto it and hoisted myself up, hands gripping the edge of the roof.


    ¡°Connor!¡± Hans called out, his voice filled with a mix of worry and urgency.

 Chapter 284 - 284 A Fight on the Roof

    284 A Fight on the Roof


    I finally rested my legs on the roof, which I crawled towards the sniper, who looked behind him, and began to thrust his legs¡ªas if he was kicking someone.


    A thud followed the attack, and a groan slipped into my ears.


    He kicked Brie!


    But, as he turned his head around, it halted once his eyes met mine¡ªeven through his sunsses. Suddenly, he guided his weapon right at my face in point-nk motion.


    Oh, no.


    I lifted my body and ran, jumping to dodge the shot, which soared into disappearance. Inded, feeling the adrenaline surge through my body, which I slowly lifted my head, seeing his eyebrows upheaved towards his forehead in surprise.


    ¡°Well, how do you do?¡± I said, sputtering out the first thing to say, which I immediately felt the conscience of regret.


    He slowly got up onto his feet, steadying his feet between the two slopes on both sides of us. Then, suddenly, he swung his weapon at my head, which I ducked beneath.


    I could feel the wind sail through my hair, which I staggered back¡ªunsure what even just urred.


    .....


    He put his sniper on his shoulder and wrapped it, taking out his wand, and crouching down forbat.


    He then swung, extending his body, which the wand raced towards the side of my head.


    I quickly brought up my right elbow, stopping it in its tracks.


    He retreated the weapon, guiding it over in midair¡ªbefore the wand dove towards my shoulder.


    I moved to the side, to which I dodged his swing to the right by lowering my body beneath the swiftly moving wand.


    But just as my confidence in this fight began to grow, the agent twirled, lifting his right leg andunching it right against my chest.


    The force knocked me off my feet, which I then slid down the roof¡¯s right slope, rolled off a bunch of boxes that were stacked on top of one another, before colliding with the ground as dust rubbed against my face.


    ¡°Connor!¡± I heard Brie shout, which I could hear her feet drop onto the ground, to which they revealed themselves in a blurry picture, running towards me before her face abruptly showed up.


    ¡°You good?¡± she asked.


    ¡°My back feels like mashed potatoes, but yeah,¡± I groaned, carefully raising my arm up to feel my forehead.


    ¡°Did you take him out?¡± she asked. I threw a cross look at her, which she inevitably got the message.


    ¡°Alright, just calm down, I¡¯ll deal with him, before he decides to take a shot a¡ª¡±


    Suddenly, the ground exploded, but Brie managed to dodge out of the way in time. I carried myself onto my knees, before I staggered onto my feet, turning in time to see Brie, climbing up the boxes and towards the sniper, who was still holding his wand.


    That must¡¯ve been it, he shot some sort of power at us. And it was strong.


    ¡°Oh, no,¡± I muttered, climbing the boxes. Once I got to the top floor, I crouched down, peeking a bit to see the fight take ce.


    ¡°Where¡¯s that other friend you had?¡± the man asked, which he sounded more like fifty than fifteen. Brie chuckled. ¡°I just came to finish the job.¡±


    And just like that, the fight began.


    She clicked the button on her belt, as the wand leaped out of her pouch. She caught it just in time to deflect the sniper¡¯s swing, though it pushed her back a few steps.


    They were now in the middle region of the roof, which any step out of ce would mean the same oue. ¡°Nicely done,¡± he said. ¡°That¡¯s probably the best you¡¯ll ever do.¡±


    I could only exin the fear pumping in my heart in one word: terrified. After a few seconds of analyzing, they lunged forward at one another, to which Brie raised her arm, and twirled, allowing the wand to spin before colliding against the ribs of the sniper.


    The sniper stumbled from the hit, grasping on the site of the pain. But he shortly regained his stance, keeping a strong grip on his weapon.


    ¡°Round 2?¡± she asked, adding a smirk.


    He didn¡¯t answer¡ªhe did, but not with words. He sped forward, and coiled back his arm, before going with the swing.


    Brie effortlessly raised her wand in defense, despite the attack pushing her back a few feet towards the edge.


    The spy took a few steps back, returning with another attack that originated from top right, aiming down towards her head to which Brie avoided as well.


    The cycle continued, as the nging sounds of the wands red through the sky.


    Brie was beginning to show fatigue¡ªhowever. The sniper positioned his wand at the bottom right and swung it up towards her chin, which mmed against the wand.


    The impact was so powerful that she lifted her body into the air before falling to the ground, despite the block. She was still on the thin, narrow part between the slopes.


    She muttered, ¡°Nicely done,¡± and then began to cough, herst two coughs being particrly violent.


    The sniper chuckled in response to her suffering. ¡°You think you¡¯re so smart, aren¡¯t you?¡± he asked, walking slowly towards her.


    His footsteps were slow and menacing, as if he was an executioner. Sadly, that was going to be a reality very soon¡ªunless I did something.


    But what? Knock him out with my bare hands¡ªoh¡­my Perk!


    The excitement that raced through my skull drove me forward to climb back onto the roof, just in time for the sniper to pass by me¡ªto which I was behind him now.


    I switched from my crawling position to my crouching position, to which I steadily readied my Perk. I hope the re of the red glow didn¡¯t catch his attention, but I couldn¡¯t guarantee anything.


    After several rounds of ferocious coughing, Brie finally replied, ¡°Yeah, I think I do.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll just show you how smart you really are, you punk,¡± he muttered. ¡°And to be honest, you¡¯re not that smart. What makes you think you can run away from the entire TSA? Especially while you¡¯re apanying that boy that has what belongs to us. You both are an abomination,¡± he muttered.


    Brie chuckled. ¡°You know, you remind me of that one person, that one person that was chasing us in that one furniture. I¡¯m quite sure you have no clue what I¡¯m talking about, but it¡¯s quite a story.¡±


    ¡°Yes, you somehow knocked out a Shadow Operative,¡± he said. ¡°Somehow¡­¡±


    The amount of fear that exploded in my brain was almost indescribable. I learned that from Master Tiphe, which they are like¡ªthe elite of the spy mages. They are very skilled: each Shadow Operative possessed an exceptional set of skills that made them invaluable assets in the world of espionage. Their physical prowess was unmatched, with agility and strength honed to perfection through years of relentless training. They moved like ghosts through the urbanndscape, scaling walls and traversing rooftops with ease.


    Mastery of hand-to-handbat and proficiency in various forms of martial arts was a given among the SO¡¯s. They could disarm and neutralize opponents within seconds, using their bodies as lethal weapons when necessary.


    But their abilities didn¡¯t end there. Shadow Operatives were also expert marksmen, capable of hitting a target from incredible distances with uncanny precision. Their knowledge of firearms and weaponry was extensive, enabling them to adapt and improvise in any situation.


    In the realm of technology, the SO¡¯s were second to none. Their expertise in hacking, surveince, and data analysis made them invaluable assets in the age of information warfare. They could infiltrate the most secureworks and retrieve sensitive data without leaving a trace.


    Furthermore, they were masters of disguise and deception. Shadow Operatives could blend into any environment, adopting new personas and appearances with ease. Their ability to manipte and read people was unparalleled, making them exceptional interrogators and experts at gathering intelligence.


    But perhaps the most impressive skill of the Shadow Operatives was their unwavering mental fortitude. Trained to withstand the most intense psychological pressure, they remained calm and collected in even the most dire situations. This mental resilience enabled them to make critical decisions with rity and focus, ensuring the sess of their missions.


    Preview:


    ¡°Yeah, I figured,¡± Brie said, shrugging. ¡°You¡¯re not one of them are you?¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to¡ªyou know what, let me not waste anymore time,¡± he said, to which he quickly reached into his belt, and equipped a gun in his hand.


    My heart raced right at that moment.


    ¡°No!¡± I shouted, settling my legs in the middle between the slopes before charging at him. He turned around after my desperate battle cry with his hands gripped on the gun tightly.


    Before he could even face it towards me, I plunged into his body, to which we soared right over Brie,nding near the edge of the roof.


    My hands were pressing tightly against his neck, as croaking sounds slipped from the sniper¡¯s throat. His face under that ck mask of his was slowly forming into the color of a tomato.


    I looked to the side, seeing his arm steadily reach for his belt. What did he have? His gun was probably lodged inside the dirt, and the wand was probably stacked with the boxes, meaning¡­

 Chapter 285 - 285 An Tricky Investigation

    285 An Tricky Investigation


    ¡°Yeah, I figured,¡± Brie said, shrugging. ¡°You¡¯re not one of them are you?¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to¡ªyou know what, let me not waste anymore time,¡± he said, to which he quickly reached into his belt, and equipped a gun in his hand.


    My heart raced right at that moment.


    ¡°No!¡± I shouted, settling my legs in the middle between the slopes before charging at him. He turned around after my desperate battle cry with his hands gripped on the gun tightly.


    Before he could even face it towards me, I drove into his body, to which we soared right over Brie,nding near the edge of the roof.


    My hands were pressing tightly against his neck, as croaking sounds slipped from the sniper¡¯s throat. His face under that ck mask of his was slowly forming into the color of a tomato.


    I looked to the side, seeing his arm steadily reach for his belt. What did he have? His gun was probably lodged inside the dirt, and the wand was probably stacked with the boxes, meaning¡­


    Suddenly, a knife swung from the left side of my face, which I quickly loosened my left hand on his neck, and caught the knife in its tracks.


    Unfortunately, the bnce of power was against me, to which he managed to push me over to the side, rolling down the slope before dropping down onto the white, wooden floor of the building.


    .....


    A loud thud and a surge of pain followed the impact, which I groaned, feeling my spine burn in pain. Our grips were unfastened from each other, which gave me enough time to look to the side, and recognize the weapon.


    It was¡ªindeed¡ªlodged into the dirt, and it was going to be the weapon that¡¯s going to save me.


    I turned my head to face the man, who was on the right of me. I rolled towards the left onto the dry ground, grabbing the gun and reaping it from the soil.


    Once I turned my body, I faced the gun right between his eyes, which he was much closer than I thought he was.


    I knew if I didn¡¯t face this weapon at him in time, I was probably going to be partnered with him in another test of strength¡ªor worse.


    But yet¡ªwhich happens in a lot of stories and movies¡ªthe strength to pull the trigger was non-existent.


    Now, you might be thinking that you would pull the trigger of the man trying to kill you, but if you were in my situation, would you shoot?


    Fear shaking in your fingers, terror coursing through your veins, adrenaline driving through your bones. Would you?


    ¡°Heh, you don¡¯t even have the guts,¡± he said with a smile. I wanted to pull it so bad, but my finger wouldn¡¯t pull the trigger.


    It was as if the safety was on, except it wasn¡¯t, and my hands were too frozen to even move. ¡°Go ahead, shoot it!¡± he encouraged, cackling afterwards. ¡°What are you waiting for?¡±


    I kept the gun facing right at him, mostly just to keep him away from me.


    ¡°Yeah, I thought so. You¡¯ve never been in this situation before,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯re panicking¡ªyou¡¯re shaking in your boots!¡±


    He wasn¡¯t wrong, I was. I carefully rearranged my fingers, hoping that this time it would encourage me to pull the trigger.


    It didn¡¯t.


    ¡°How about you give me the gun, and we can work this out. You¡¯re a determined fool, and I can¡¯t deny that,¡± he said. ¡°Maybe you can join us.¡±


    ¡°Hush,¡± I said timidly, to which he listened somehow, and shook his head.


    ¡°Wrong word,¡± he said. ¡°I was looking for more of a yes¡ªbut after all, it¡¯s on you.¡±


    All of a sudden, the sound of a fired shot aired through the sky.


    The sniper¡¯s eyes froze for a moment, as if he was engulfed by the cold, before they steadily began to shut. Shock contained my mouth from uttering any words, as I slowly dropped the gun.


    I raised the top-half of my body, as footsteps came to my rescue.


    ¡°Hey, are you good?¡± Hans asked, which after a moment, I nodded. ¡°Yeah, what about Brie?¡±


    Right then and there, footsteps arrived over the corner, which belonged to Brie.


    ¡°Oh, Connor!¡± she said. ¡°Why did you do that?!¡±


    I leaned my head back in shock. You¡¯d think she¡¯d thank me for saving her, but instead, I¡¯m being scolded!


    ¡°What do you mean? Did you want to die?¡± I asked her.


    ¡°No, did you?!¡± she quickly responded. ¡°That waspletely reckless.¡±


    ¡°Hey, guys, there¡¯s no time for that. Let¡¯s see if this guy has any information on him,¡± Hans said, staring down at the unconscious man.


    ***


    The man woke up after a wave of water sshed against his face. He looked scared, his eyes darting around in fear. We were inside of the hotel room, where we managed to get a chair from the dining table. We ced it right beside the bed.


    Hans got some spare rope to tie him up to the chair, entangling his entire body with the furniture.


    ¡°What¡ªwhere¡ªwhat?¡± he muttered. He paused for a moment, as if was realizing something.


    ¡°My mask¡­¡± he muttered.


    The sniper had an interesting face structure: It was angr and sharp, with a defined jawline that seemed to chisel his features. The mask he was referring to must have been concealing a face that was just as intriguing.


    ¡°Hello, remember me?¡± Brie said, waving with a very sarcastic smile. He didn¡¯t even break a grin, but only gave furious eyes.


    ¡°What?¡± he hissed. ¡°What¡¯s this for? You think you¡¯re going to torture me or something? I¡¯ve been through it all, so trust me, you¡¯re not doing anything.¡±


    Brie chuckled. ¡°What makes you think that?¡±


    ¡°Well, you¡¯d have to be a fool to not torture someone for information,¡± he said, shaking his head in confusion,ughing while he did so.


    ¡°I guess,¡± she said. ¡°But you know what, who cares, let¡¯s give it a shot.¡±


    She motioned for me to get her a chair, so I reached out and grabbed a nearby one, as I dragged it right in front of the sniper.


    Brie took a seat and crossed her legs. She looked at him as if he was a joke or some sort of circus clown. ¡°Now, just to say, we caught you by surprise. I¡¯m even thankful I¡¯m here,¡± she said.


    He stayed silent.


    ¡°You and the TSA are very skilled fighters. Like, it took two people to take you down, and that was even a hard fight. Now imagine a Shadow Operative. What would that even mean?¡± she rambled. ¡°Is another one going toe for us since we knocked out the first one?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± the agent said abruptly, which everyone paused, and guided their eyes towards him. ¡°You knocked the first one out, but that doesn¡¯t mean they¡¯re done. You guys are dumb, like brainless. Do you not know that when SO¡¯s are put on a mission, they have to neutralize that person until you or that agent dies.¡±


    He began tough, which eventually escted into a wheeze. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you amateurs. Do you know how experienced an SO is? I¡¯m pretty sure you fools learned this. One guy can take down three to five men with little effort.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, we can see that. The other one was about to kill us. Are you an SO, because you fight pretty good,¡± Brie asked.


    ¡°Well, I wish I could say I was. I¡¯m just very good at what I do. Even in the most difficult of circumstances, I practice, train, and persevere. I¡¯m that type of guy!¡± he bragged,ughing along with his rant.


    ¡°Yeah, you are,¡± Brie said.


    ¡°No, but in all seriousness, one of our SO¡¯s is probably as dangerous as the army of agents that are going to be arriving at your doorstep soon¡­oh,¡± he muttered.


    ¡°Yeah, you arrogant fool,¡± Brieughed. ¡°I didn¡¯t even have to torture you, you knucklehead.¡±


    ¡°So you now know that¡­¡± he trailed off, gulping as he darted between the three of us. But, out of the blue, Brie reached behind her belt and pulled out a gun. Three bullets sunk into his chest, as his head dropped to the side.


    ¡°Thank you for your service,¡± Brie said, fastening the weapon back into her belt. She then looked at us with a worried expression on her face.


    ¡°We gotta go.¡±


    ¡°You think?¡± I hissed at her. ¡°We definitely gotta go!¡± Hans nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll prepare the car, and then we get out of here ASAP. We need to avoid any stops.¡±


    ¡°What if we got to go?¡± I asked, feeling already the need to run to the restroom.


    ¡°Well, you better go now, because we won¡¯t have time to stopter,¡± Hans said, his voice testifying a message of warning.


    Preview:


    Hans ran towards the car. He unlocked the doors, entered the vehicle, and turned on the ignition.


    ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go!¡± he shouted, which me and Brie rushed over to the car, opening the doors and mming them shut.


    ¡°Okay, how far are we to Arizona? From there we can go to California,¡± Brie suggested, ncing at the back window before returning her attention to the front.


    He checked the GPS and replied, ¡°It¡¯s about a 10-hour drive to Arizona. We can make it by tonight if we don¡¯t take too many breaks.¡±


    ¡°I guess,¡± she said. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go.¡±

 Chapter 286 - 286 A Trip in the Middle of Nowhere

    286 A Trip in the Middle of Nowhere


    Hans shook his head. ¡°No, I¡¯m sorry.¡± He looked at me with sad eyes, which made my heart sink even further into despair. He knew that Brie was probably in trouble and we had no idea where she was. I could feel my hands starting to shake as the reality of the situation sank in. Brie was missing, and we had no idea where she was or what had happened to her. My mind raced with all sorts of terrible possibilities, each one more horrifying than thest.


    ¡°What are we going to do?¡± I asked, my voice trembling. ¡°We have to find her.¡±


    Hans put a hand on my shoulder, trying to steady me. ¡°I know, and we will. But we need to stay calm and think logically. Panicking won¡¯t help anyone.¡±


    I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. Hans was right, of course. We needed to approach this situation with a clear head if we were going to have any chance of finding Brie.


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said, nodding. ¡°What¡¯s the n?¡±


    Hans gestured to his phone. ¡°I¡¯m going to look up caf¨¦s in the area.¡±


    ¡°Uh¡­yeah,¡± I muttered. Ipletely forgot Hans thought her actual name was Jamie.


    As Hans started typing on his phone, I looked around at the chaos that surrounded us. TSA spies were rushing around, trying to put out fires and contain the damage from the explosion. ss littered the ground, and the air was thick with smoke, which was making it hard to breathe. I felt light-headed, like I¡¯d get dizzy if I didn¡¯t sit down soon. But there was no way that I could sit down while Brie was still missing.


    ¡°You know what, let¡¯s go down further on the street and see if we can find a ride,¡± Hans said. ¡°We¡¯ll figure out what to do next.¡±


    .....


    I looked up at the sky, still filled with smoke and debris from the explosion. I felt skeptical about Hans¡¯ n; with all of the damage, it seemed unlikely that anyone would be willing to take us anywhere. And even if they did, what would we do once we got there? It all seemed so futile ¨C like trying to find a needle in a haystack. And yet, I knew I had to try.


    I took a deep breath and nodded. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s go.¡±


    We started down the street, weaving through the ruined cars and broken ss. It felt surreal, like something out of a nightmare ¨C like I was in a different world entirely. I was too scared to even think clearly, my heart pounding against my rib cage as my mind raced with all sorts of bleak possibilities.


    As we kept walking, I kept scanning the area, searching for any sign of Brie. I knew the odds were slim, but a part of me still held onto the hope that we¡¯d find her ¨C that she was still alive and out there somewhere. We had to find her. We just had to.


    Talk about night slowly approaching, which they saw a ck car arriving, although they don¡¯t that its the TSAing to clean up the mess.


    The car drove slowly down the street, eventually stopping right in front of us. I held my breath as two people stepped out of the car.


    The two people in the car were dressed in uniforms ¨C TSA uniforms. We had been found.


    My heart immediately sank. I looked at Hans, who had a look of resigned eptance on his face.


    The first agent, a man, stepped toward us and gave us a curt nod. ¡°What are you two doing here?¡±


    Hans quickly stepped forward and put on his best convincing face. ¡°We were driving by and heard an explosion. We were just trying to help.¡±


    The second agent, a woman, narrowed her eyes. ¡°Help? It looks like you were trying to get away.¡±


    ¡°No, no, we were just curious,¡± Hans quickly continued. ¡°We were worried about anyone who might have been hurt.¡±


    The two agents exchanged a look and seemed to consider our story. Finally, the man slowly nodded.


    ¡°We understand,¡± he said. ¡°We¡¯re here to take care of the clean-up.¡±


    He looked at us sympathetically. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I¡¯m afraid you won¡¯t be able to find any help here.¡±


    The woman stepped forward. ¡°You two should go back to your cars and go home. It¡¯s not safe for civilians to be here right now.¡±


    I could feel a terror pounding inside of me, but I tried to remain calm and collected. As I heard the agents¡¯ words, my mind raced to think of a way to talk our way out of this ¨C to find a way to find Brie.


    Hans looked pleadingly at the agents. ¡°We understand,¡± he said. ¡°We¡¯ll leave. We just wanted to make sure no one was hurt.¡±


    The man nodded, understanding in his gaze. ¡°I understand,¡± he said. ¡°But you best go now. Things are very dangerous here.¡±


    He stepped back as the woman opened the passenger door of the car. ¡°Please,¡± she said. ¡°Leave the area as soon as possible.¡±


    We quickly nodded and backed away, not quite believing our luck. As the car drove away, I let out a long sigh of relief, feeling a wave of emotion wash over me. We had been so close, we could have been caught.


    I shot a nce at Hans, a pit forming in my stomach. We were so close to finding Brie. But obviously, it was a stupid n, and one that had almost gotten us in serious trouble.


    ¡°You okay?¡± I asked, my voice low.


    Hans nodded but didn¡¯t meet my gaze. We kept walking, silently, until we had reached the edge of the woods. Only then did Hans finally break the silence.


    ¡°We could have been caught,¡± he said, his voice full of regret.


    ¡°I know,¡± I said, my voice somber.


    Hans ran a hand over his face. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± he said. ¡°I thought it was a good n, but it obviously wasn¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± I replied. ¡°It was a bit of a gamble. We were lucky we weren¡¯t spotted.¡±


    Hans nodded, his expression solemn. We stood in silence for a few minutes, contemting what could have been.


    ¡°We need to find a different way to find Brie,¡± I finally said. ¡°Maybe there¡¯s something we haven¡¯t thought of yet.¡±


    Hans looked up, a spark of hope in his eyes. ¡°Maybe,¡± he said. ¡°We have to keep looking.¡±


    I nodded, determined. We¡¯d find a way to get Brie back. We just had to keep trying.


    My heart sunk when I saw the bus, arge, hulking machine filled with unkind people. Thugs, criminals, and also civilians ¡ª all crammed together and guarded by armed guards. It was our only chance.


    ¡°This is it,¡± Hans said, his voice tense. ¡°We can¡¯t turn back now.¡±


    I swallowed and nodded. We¡¯d have to take a chance, no matter how slim.


    We approached cautiously, trying to keep out of sight. The guards eyed us suspiciously, but let us pass. I don¡¯t know if it was dumb luck or if they didn¡¯t think we posed any threat, but I was grateful nheless.


    The bus was dark and dingy, filled with a heavy air of tension. I kept my head down, trying to make myself as small as possible. I could hear the men talking in hushed voices, obviously plotting something.


    I nced at Hans, trying to get his attention, but his gaze was fixed on the ground. I barely breathed as the bus lurched forward, the motion rocking us back and forth.


    As I settled into the worn seat next to Hans, I couldn¡¯t shake the eerie feeling that washed over me. The dim lighting and the strange noises echoing through the bus only amplified my difort.


    ¡°Hey, Hans. Is it just me, or is this bus giving off some seriously creepy vibes?¡± I asked, trying to gauge whether my friend shared my unease.


    ¡°You¡¯re not alone, Connor. I¡¯ve been feeling uneasy since we got on. The dim lighting and the strange noises aren¡¯t helping either,¡± Hans replied, confirming my suspicions.


    I wrinkled my nose, bothered by the bus¡¯s peculiar smell. ¡°Yeah, and what¡¯s up with the weird smell? It¡¯s like a mix of old socks and something rotting,¡± I said.


    ¡°I noticed that too. And have you seen the graffiti on the windows? It¡¯s like someone¡¯s been trying to send a message,¡± Hans added, gesturing to the cryptic messages etched onto the ss.


    I nodded in agreement. ¡°I was just thinking the same thing! The messages seem cryptic, like they¡¯re part of some bigger story.¡±


    ¡°Right? I¡¯m d we¡¯re on the same page. I just hope we get to our destination soon. This ce is giving me the chills,¡± Hans admitted, shivering slightly.


    ¡°Me too, buddy. Let¡¯s just keep an eye out for anything suspicious and be ready to react if things take a turn for the worse,¡± I suggested, my voice firm and determined.


    Hans nodded. ¡°Agreed. Stay alert, and we¡¯ll get through this together.¡±

 Chapter 287 - 287 The Story of a Troubled Town

    287 The Story of a Troubled Town


    The interior was dimly lit, with flickering overhead lights that cast eerie shadows that danced along the worn and tattered seats. The musty scent of old upholstery and dampness filled the air, hinting at the bus¡¯s age and neglect.


    The windows were covered in a thickyer of grime, allowing only faint traces of light to seep through and distort my view of the outside world. The ss was etched with what appeared to be random patterns, but upon closer inspection, I noticed faint symbols scratched into the surface. Weird.


    The bus¡¯s floor was strewn with debris: discarded ticket stubs, crumpled newspapers with ominous headlines, and unidentifiable stains that sparked my imagination in unsettling ways. An unsettling creaking sound echoed through the bus as it sways on its suspension, amplifying my sense of unease.


    As the bus lurched into motion, the driver offered no words offort or reassurance. Instead, he fixated on the winding road ahead, steering the old vehicle through the dense forest.


    The other passengers on the bus were an odd assortment of characters, each seemingly lost in their own thoughts and fears. They avoided eye contact, clutching their belongings tightly and whispering in hushed tones. The silence was only broken by the bus¡¯s creaks and groans, as well as the distant howl of an unseen creature lurking in the shadows of the surrounding woods.


    As the bus continued on, footsteps reverberated behind us, forcing me to look. I immediately regretted it. This figure was wearing this hazmat suit that looked as if it was made of foil.


    ¡°You¡¯ve been on this bus before?¡± he asked, his voice sounding like a nail being dragged across dirt. ¡°Y¡¯all don¡¯t look like you¡¯ve been on this bus before.¡±


    ¡°Correct,¡± Hans said. ¡°We just needed a ride ahead.¡±


    All of a sudden, the man began to chuckle as he pulled away from us, his head lowering down to our elevation.


    .....


    ¡°You¡¯re in for a ride,¡± he said, revealing his teeth, which were stained yellow. ¡°A very bumpy ride.¡± I gulped, unsure of what he was conveying. ¡°What do you mean by¡­bumpy?¡± Hans asked.


    The man began to chuckle more, but this time, the volume of his voice rose to a different level.


    ¡°This town up ahead is one where once you get in, it¡¯s hard to get out. Crime follows you until you leave this town.¡±


    ¡°What town?¡±


    ¡°Raven¡¯s Gorge.¡± His voice sounded like he was describing the town as some sort of ghost town littered with monsters and beasts that would eat you up if you were still in the streets after curfew.


    Too dark? My bad.


    ¡°Raven¡¯s Gorge, a small, isted town nestled in a densely forested valley, has a mysterious and eerie background that keeps outsiders at bay. The town¡¯s history dates back to the early 1800s when a group of settlers, seeking refuge from persecution, established the settlement. Its namees from therge poption of ravens that seem to congregate around the steep cliffs surrounding the gorge,¡± he said, lowering to the same peak as me.


    ¡°Over the years, Raven¡¯s Gorge has be known for a series of unexined phenomena and chilling urrences. Many believe the town to be cursed, as residents have reported strange sightings, unsettling whispers in the wind, and an unusually high number of idents and disappearances,¡± he continued, to which he gestured for me to scoot over for him to sit. I had to at this point, before this man decides to make his next horror story.


    ¡°The town¡¯s most infamous event urred in thete 19th century when a mysterious fire engulfed the local school, taking the lives of several townsfolk with it. The cause of the fire was never determined, and many believed it to be the work of a malevolent force. Since then, the charred remains of the school have be a hauntingndmark, a constant reminder of the town¡¯s dark past,¡± he said, ending his rant by looking at me, with his eyes piercing into my soul.


    He had hazel eyes that grabbed my attention and contained me.


    It was hard to look at, but harder to look away. ¡°In Raven¡¯s Gorge, a series of chilling crimes has been guing the town for decades, casting a dark shadow over the close-knitmunity. Known as the ¡®Moonlit Murders,¡¯ these gruesome crimes ur only on nights when the moon is full, and they have be an unnerving part of the town¡¯s folklore,¡± he said, standing up to his feet to which he broke this smile that extended all the way to his cheeks.


    ¡°The first Moonlit Murder urred in 1957 when a local farmer was found brutally in in his own barn. The scene was ghastly ¨C the victim¡¯s body mutted beyond recognition, with strange symbols carved into the flesh. The murder sent shockwaves through themunity, as nothing like this had ever happened before in Raven¡¯s Gorge.


    As the years passed, the Moonlit Murders continued to haunt the town. Victims were found in various locations, but always with the same chilling hallmarks ¨C mutted bodies, cryptic symbols carved into the flesh, and the eerie glow of the full moon casting shadows over the grisly scenes,¡± he said, his hand clenched as he looked up the ceiling, as if the lights nted on top was the dark, night sky.


    ¡°Local authorities have tried in vain to solve the mystery behind these horrific crimes. Many theories have been put forth, from the work of a deranged serial killer to supernatural forces at y. However, no solid evidence has ever been found to pinpoint the true identity of the perpetrator.


    Fear and suspicion have gripped the residents of Raven¡¯s Gorge as the Moonlit Murders continue to cast a long shadow over the town. Neighbors be wary of one another, and outsiders are met with distrust. The tight-knitmunity once known for its resilience now finds itself fractured, with whispers of the town¡¯s dark curse growing stronger with each passing full moon.


    As the town struggles toe to terms with the chilling reality of the Moonlit Murders, the unanswered questions and unsolved crimes continue to haunt the people of Raven¡¯s Gorge. And as the full moon rises once more, the townsfolk can¡¯t help but wonder ¨C who will be the next victim of the sinister force lurking in the shadows?¡±


    He froze, stopping his performance, which me and Hans¡¯s faces were scribbled with shock. ¡°Wow, I think I wanna get off,¡± Hans said.


    ¡°No can do,¡± the man said. ¡°The bus itself was warning enough.¡±


    ¡°Why do you guys pick up people anyways?¡± I asked. The man sighed, as he shook his head. ¡°Raven¡¯s Gorge shouldn¡¯t be Raven¡¯s Gorge, which if enough people popte this hell-ridden vige, then perhaps, maybe we can stop these lurking shadows within our midst.¡±


    ¡°So you basically kidnapped us,¡± I said. The man rocked his head in half-denial. ¡°Somewhat.¡±


    I think that¡¯s what broke Hans¡¯s water.


    ¡°Nah, nope! We¡¯re not doing this!¡± Hans said, getting up from his seat. ¡°Uh, excuse me, monsieur!¡± he shouted, to which the bus driver looked back. He was chubby, with a pointy nose and bushy brown eyebrows.


    ¡°Yes?¡± he asked. Hans stopped. ¡°Stop this bus right now. I have a person to look for, I have a person to save, and I¡¯m not being dragged to some town so you guys can kill me!¡±


    ¡°Calm down, there¡¯s no point,¡± the bus driver said, his voice sounding the equivalent of a pig. ¡°The only way you¡¯re leaving his bus is either by death, or heading to the town topete in the Exile¡¯s Gauntlet.¡±


    ¡°Who and what?¡± Hans asked.


    ¡°Have you ever read the Hunger Games, or at least watched the movies?¡± the man in the hazmat suit asked. ¡°That¡¯s what it¡¯s like. Every year, some people petition to face the game, so that they can exit this vige. People vote for who will fight as well. The yers, which consist of twelve teams in pairs, will fight to be thest one standing. Then, we¡¯ll treat you and send you on your way.¡±


    ¡°Heh, nonsense,¡± Hans said. But something about thatment refired a memory in my brain, that caused worry to beat in my chest.


    ¡°Uh, Hans,¡± I muttered. ¡°We forgot the suitcases.¡± Hans stopped, and I could imagine the series of feelings racing through his head.


    ¡°The suitcases¡­¡± he repeated. Then, he stormed forward at the driver and shouted, ¡°You better let us out of here, right now! Let us go!¡±


    But his message was drowned out by the series of passengers yelling at him to sit down.


    ¡°Listen to me!¡± Hans pleaded. ¡°Get us off, because it¡¯s very important! I know this, listen to me!¡± Then, a man who had a gray newsboy cap and a vest gripped Hans¡¯s shoulder.


    ¡°Get off me!¡± Hans bellowed, shoving his elbow into the man¡¯s chest, making him wince and triggering a flurry of guns to be pointed at him.


    Hans¡¯ heart raced as he looked around, panting, and saw guns pointed in his direction from all sides, except for the man wearing a hazmat suit and a vest.

 Chapter 288 - 288 Arrival

    288 Arrival


    ¡°Please, sit down, before thingse harder for you,¡± the hazmat suit man said. ¡°Self-control is clearly nonexistent in your set of manners.¡±


    Hans gave a real dirty look at the man, but he didn¡¯t open his mouth, probably afraid he was going to get clocked by a bullet.


    Fear raced through my veins as Hans began walking towards our seat. His footsteps were the only producers of sound besides the moving bus.


    He came towards me, and returned to his seat, before everyone began to retreat back to their respective spots, although someone came to treat the man in the vest.


    ¡°We¡¯ll be arriving at Raven¡¯s Gorge very soon. Try to enjoy your stay as much as you can,¡± the driver announced. I gulped, unsure of what to do. We lost the briefcases, meaning that the TSA finally might have them.


    That means, I probably failed. No. No. I didn¡¯t fail, what we¡¯re going to do is that we¡¯re going to get out of this ce as fast as we can and find Brie and the suitcase.


    But, that¡¯s when a horrifying thought entered my brain, which I immediately wished it didn¡¯t.


    ¡°Hans,¡± I said. Hans didn¡¯t answer, as if he was lost in his fears, which I was probably not wrong. I sighed. ¡°If the briefcases were to be taken by the TSA, wouldn¡¯t that mean that Jamie was too?¡±


    Hans sighed. ¡°Didn¡¯te across that?¡±


    .....


    ¡°No. I guess I was just in a rush of things,¡± I said. ¡°You obviously know that.¡±


    ¡°Of course I do,¡± he said,ying his head back against the chair. ¡°I can¡¯t say that I sometimes don¡¯t think of things whenever a certain situation happens. I¡¯m literally a junior agent in the Enterprise. We basically are training to fight against extraterrestrial things. In certain missions or training sses, adrenaline shifts your entire mode of thinking. It happens. But staying calm is what always helps. You know that.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve heard of that,¡± I said. ¡°I have.¡±


    ¡°So, use it,¡± he said. ¡°But staying calm isn¡¯t always easy, as you could clearly see there.¡± He threw his hand towards the site of themotion before he slumped it back down.


    I nodded, unsure of what to even do but to even stare at the chair in front of me. Eventually, the driver announced, ¡°And wee to Raven¡¯s Gorge!¡±


    Everyone looked outside their windows, as rows of dark lean buildings hiding under the dark shadows passed by us. The sky was this dark, ominous blue, and the water drizzled by the streets looked more runnier than ever.


    A few people rode through the streets. Some were in these weird cars that looked older than a Jeep Cherokee from the 90¡¯s.


    Some passed by in bikes, which they were dressed as those boys who gave out newspapers everyday back in the olden days. The buildings looked as if they were saloons. The people dressed as if they were the 19th century.


    ¡°What happened to these people?¡± I muttered. Then, I rose my head up, seeing a tall pole holding a wooden sign that wrote:


    Ravens Gorge: Wee to Your Worst Nightmare


    Things were already a nightmare by the looks of it. The bus turned to the left, where it was more of a mugging center than a street. Block after block, people were dragging people to the ground, kicking them in their ribs, and snatching their money right from them.


    In fact, there were two men, beating up a woman down to the ground, as one guy pinned his neck against her chest. A boy beside her, who was probably her son, was crying.


    It was hard to even see the tears, but his face was showing more signs of despair than this vige itself. Cars raced past the street, as if dodging the muggers.


    ¡°What happened to this ce?¡± I asked, shocked and nauseous of the twisted society inhabiting this city. ¡°Abandonment,¡± someone said, which made me veer my head back towards the voice. It was Hazmat. ¡°No one knows about us, and if no one knows about us, who can deal with the crime? The police only serve the rich.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s rich?¡± Hans asked, staring out the window.


    ¡°Yes, not too far in fact. They have bigger, stable homes, and they pretty much own the police. They tend to care about each other more than the residents making them the money,¡± Hazmat exined.


    ¡°Wow, there¡¯s jobs?¡± I asked.


    ¡°How else do you think anyone makes money? You see, in the government of Raven¡¯s Gorge, they send out certain people. Reelers. They steal money from ces so that they can make the bnce of money work throughout the city. Bit by bit, we¡¯re making ourselves known to the world.¡±


    ¡°By kidnapping people and stealing money?¡± I asked. Hazmat nodded. ¡°You do what you gotta do. But, we like to let people out every now and then.¡±


    ¡°Why, if you¡¯re trying to let people know about this rotting vige?¡± I asked.


    ¡°So they can report to people about a vige they got lost in, which then increases our marketability,¡± the man exined. ¡°As I said, little by little.¡±


    ¡°Little by little,¡± I muttered to myself, looking at the towering buildings, who in return looked down at our bus and sneered.


    The bus turned onto another road, which was closed in by small buildings and businesses along the way. Then, the bus stopped. ¡°We¡¯re here,¡± he said. ¡°If any new people enter this bus, you are free to explore. We take all kinds of money. Pesos, pounds, dors, you name it.¡±


    ¡°But what¡¯s the normal currency?¡± someone asked, which sounded like a woman who was maybe twenty-five or older.


    The man chuckled. ¡°We live in America. Just keep that in your head.¡±


    The doors opened as everyone slowly began to exit the bus. I slowly rose to my feet, as Hans followed. ¡°Okay, what do we do now?¡± I asked, taking a few deep breaths.


    ¡°Stay here, maybe we won¡¯t notice us,¡± I said. I looked back, seeing a blond-haired woman in a white jacket, with a ck dress and some gold-colored high heels. She seemed too proper to have been here before.


    ¡°Ma¡¯am,¡± the driver said, turning his head. ¡°You gotta go.¡± The woman shook her head, as the light exposed the sweat of fear dripping down her forehead.


    ¡°No, I want to go back home, I only wanted a ride.¡±


    ¡°And a ride you got. Get out!¡± he shouted. She shook her head, as her face scrunched up, and she began to cry.


    ¡°No, please! Just take me back home, I¡¯ll do whatever, please! Just take me home!¡± she cried. All of a sudden, the driver rose from his seat, holding what seemed to be a stick.


    But then, the stick produced an electrifying sight, as little zaps of electricity hovered around the top of the ck stick.


    ¡°If you¡¯re not going to move, then I¡¯ll have to move you somehow,¡± he said. A thwack followed the threat, and the zapping sounds of electricity buzzed for a moment. A sizzling sound followed, but in a silent volume.


    He turned around, andid his eyes on us. ¡°You better get moving,¡± he said, pointing his stick towards the door. ¡°Nothing to see here.¡±


    I opened my mouth, but no words were given as a result. I got up from my seat, and nodded, heading out the door to which Hans followed me.


    We exited the bus, as it drove away into the fog, leaving us and a few people on the sidewalks. ¡°I want to get out of here,¡± I wheezed. Whimpers followed afterwards, as I held myself to not let any tears out.


    But it was difficult.


    ¡°Listen, we just need to find the way out of here. But for now, we need to find a ce to hide or stay, and then we can get out of here the next day,¡± Hans said.


    ¡°I hope so,¡± I said. Hans sighed. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go.¡± He walked forward, which I inevitably followed. We went over the corner, into what seemed to be the dead middle of the city. Buildings rose high and might in the air, but only darkness was the color of these structures.


    Cars passed by here and there, and civilians walked the streets, holding their children¡¯s hands. They walked as if they were scared, or anticipating something to ur.


    ¡°Wow, this ce is pretty lively for some mysterious, crime-ridden town,¡± I said. Hans chuckled, but sighed, as if he was expecting something.


    And he was not wrong either.


    All of a sudden, three men darted out from the shadows, and began to surround us. They were wearing these lined gray jackets with buttoned up shirts. They looked like they were from the early 1900¡¯s.


    Then, another man showed up from the shadows. He wore a brown trilby hat, with a beige jacket with microscope diamonds patterned on his suit.


    ¡°You guys look new here,¡± he said. He revealed what to be a six-bullet revolver. ¡°And mesmerisingly fresh too.¡±

 Chapter 289 - 289 Mugging Problems

    289 Mugging Problems


    ¡°How?¡± Hans asked. The man chuckled, studying Hans¡¯s features. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because it¡¯s night here. I can barely see the patches of dirt on you.¡±


    He stopped for a moment, before moving through the circle of muggers, and stepping up right behind us.


    ¡°Maybe, I should take a more personal look,¡± he said, his voice slithering into our ears. ¡°Possibly. Get on ¡¯em boys.¡±


    Suddenly, the muggers advanced towards us, which Hans brought out his little tranquilizer. ¡°Hey! I will shoot,¡± he said, pointing at them.


    I¡¯m not sure he thought that through.


    The man with the trilby hat rose his revolver towards Hans. ¡°Wrong move, son,¡± he admitted. ¡°Wrong move.¡±


    Hans lowered his head and looked at me, which I nodded, looking at the blood-thirsty muggers.


    ¡°Deal with ¡¯em,¡± the man said, which the muggers stormed once again.


    One of them pulled out a switchde, and raised their wrists, swinging for my head.


    .....


    I ducked back, which the mugger advanced while swinging relentlessly, which I lowered beneath. The mugger then shifted his palm on the knife for the de to face downwards.


    He swung his arm towards the left side of my ear, as the light glistened from the de of the knife. Noticing the light, I brought up my left arm and grabbed his arm, stopping any further movement of the knife.


    His body was frozen due to my grip. I searched around, as my eyes darted across his body, before it stopped while looking at his stomach.


    Knowing my next move, I pushed forward,nding several blows into his gut. Then, I finished with a strong, but quick blow across the cheek. The man dropped to the ground, but another one quickly advanced towards me.


    My brain panicked from his sudden arrival, flushing out a lower left punch. But the mugger was quite quick to grab the punch. The only choice I had was to utilize the right hand.


    However, he immediately caught hold of my right fist, before kneeing my stomach, to which I stumbled back.


    And just like the first one, he equipped the same switchde, swinging from the left.


    I ducked beneath the swing, but it coiled back in the opposite direction, catching me off guard. I leaned back, while the knife barely missed the flesh of my skin, aiming for the neck of my shirt instead.


    Somehow, I regained ground, which I lifted my head up, which he stopped for a moment as if he was in shock.


    Seeing the opportunity, I twirled my body towards the left, arriving from the right side with a kick that struck his jaw. He spinned around like a fan, before rolling onto the ground.


    ¡°Hey, Hans!¡± I shouted, ncing to the left to see him finish his opponent, which dropped to the ground after a hard blow across the jaw.


    ¡°Yeah, what?!¡± he asked.


    I gestured towards the left, which conveyed a message about the pitch-dark alleyway beside me. Hans extended his body towards the coveted alleyway, before nodding relievedly. ¡°Yeah, good idea,¡± he said.


    And just like that, we booked it through the alleyway. ¡°After them!¡± one of them shouted, which sent an entire mercenary team of muggers after us through the shadowed walls.


    Footsteps echoed constantly behind us, as we exited out the other side of the alleyway.


    ¡°Over here!¡± Hans said, pointing to the left. We guided ourselves in that direction, as the muggers pursued us, yelling and shouting¡ªand probably cursing as we continued to flee from them.


    The whipping sounds of something passing by caught my attention as I was running. The object, which my eyes barely managed to follow, turned out to be a knife, as was almost predictable.


    It¡¯s always the knives with them!


    I nced forward and noticed a skateboard with only three wheels, then turned to look behind me and noticed the pursuing mercenaries getting ready to throw their next knife.


    I swung the skateboard behind me as it sped toward them when I came across it. Muggers could be heard mming into the ground and grunting in time with the impact.


    But three were still on our tail, probably grabbing another knife from their belt right now.


    ¡°I think they¡¯re catching up,¡± I said to Hans. Hans looked to the right, before he ordered, ¡°Over here!¡± He cut across me, dashing into traffic, which I had no choice but to follow.


    As we ran, I heard a loud thud echo behind me, which I turned around, seeing a mugger roll up the windshield of a car, before sliding back down onto the road.


    He must¡¯ve been hit.


    ¡°Come on,¡± Hans shouted, looking behind towards me. I nodded, but another knife passed from behind me, hitting one of the mirrors of what seemed to be a rusted taxi.


    After sixnes of traffic, we made it to the sidewalk. I looked back, seeing a good three of them on our tail. ¡°Here, another alleyway!¡± Hans said, pointing at a dark path between this diner and this abandoned building.


    I was determined to run as we sped there to avoid risking any sort of sessful attacks by the muggers.


    We led into the alleyway, but before we could evene out, a Ford Gxie¡ªor at least some type of car from the 60¡¯s¡ªblocked our way.


    I could see more muggers inside of that vehicle, which I turned around, seeing those three muggers snicker at us as they slowly began to encounter us.


    ¡°Oh, boy,¡± I muttered.


    I looked at Hans, and he looked at me. He sighed. ¡°I¡¯ll take the car, you take those three. Deal?¡±


    I looked towards my three opponents, who were stillughing in the form of hyenas. ¡°Sure, why not,¡± I said. Hans nodded, which he went his way, and I went mine.


    As they readied their knives for battle, I charged up my Perk, as their eyes widened from the sheer glow of my arms and legs.


    I leaped into the air, and stomped on the ground, sting them away hundreds of feet in a matter of two seconds.


    But strangely, an explosion and a bright glow of light shed behind me. I turned around, curious but also not surprised to see the car engulfed in mes.


    Hans didn¡¯t look hurt, but his hair was basically the equivalent of a bush. But, ahead, I saw someone running towards us with thisrge object in their hand.


    Then, I saw that it was a man who looked like a lumberjack, who seemed to be holding this automatic weapon¡ªan AK-47, I assume.


    Now that was pretty surprising.


    ¡°First time?¡± he asked. He was wearing a red striped-button shirt with brown suspenders, and jeans, while his shoes were ck boots that blended with the overwhelming shadow.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I admitted unhesitantly. ¡°Definitely our first time.¡±


    ¡°Those muggers led by Cornelius Brick, mostly known as Mr. Trilby, because of the hat he always wears. When did you guys arrive?¡±


    ¡°A few minutes ago,¡± I said.


    ¡°Wow, they¡¯re very impatient these days,¡± he said with a chuckle. ¡°That¡¯s why I got this bad boy, Snooper.¡±


    ¡°Oh, you have a dog?¡± I asked, a bit hopeful. He shook his head andughed. ¡°No, you silly, this gun right here: Snooper.¡±


    ¡°You name your guns?¡± Hans asked. The lumberjack-looking-man shrugged. ¡°This one has been with me since I was a little boy. It¡¯s been with more than my parents ever have. Come, you guys look beat.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, we kind of are,¡± Hans said, which the man nodded. After passing the raging fire, we crossed the street to the other side of the sidewalk.


    ¡°The name¡¯s Barry by the way,¡± the man said. Hans nodded, then pointed to himself, ¡°Hans, and this is Connor.¡±


    I felt a bit ufortable even giving a wave. ¡°Hey, he¡¯s a youngin. Is he your son?¡±


    ¡°No, no, he¡¯s just a lost boy, that¡¯s all,¡± Hans quickly said, recovering from the situation. Barry nodded, then threw up a smile at us, ¡°Well, we¡¯ll be arriving at our house very soon.¡±


    ¡°I hope so, it¡¯s feeling a bit chilly out here,¡± Hans said. ¡°And it seems so dark.¡±


    ¡°Well that¡¯s because it¡¯s night. But it still ain¡¯t so great in the morning. Think of it like a rainy day. It¡¯s gray, so you can¡¯t even tell the time, then the nightes at you,¡± he exined.


    ¡°Well, I guess that was a pretty good illustration,¡± Hans said. Barry nodded, then turned to take a good look at me.


    ¡°Do you talk?¡± he asked, which I nodded, although that wasn¡¯t exactly proving my point.


    ¡°Say hello for me,¡± he ordered.


    ¡°Hello.¡±


    ¡°Well, sounds like your face,¡± he abruptly said, as if that was supposed to mean something. He nodded, before we crossed another street, heading on his long sidewalk that led to an upward slope.


    ¡°My home is close to there, as you can see,¡± he said, pointing to the second to first house on the hill. ¡°You guys should enjoy it.¡±

 Chapter 290 - 290 Barry’s Request

    290 Barry¡¯s Request


    Soon enough, we approached the front door, which Barry reached into his back pocket and took out a key.


    ¡°Keys are really expensive here in Raven¡¯s Gorge, because muggers, especially Mr. Trilby¡¯s guys tend to break into homes without consent a lot,¡± he said. ¡°If you have a key, you have a treasure. In fact, they try to steal the keys instead to sell ¡¯em.¡±


    He opened the door, which revealed the living room. The floor was wooden. There was arge white sofa that was stretched across the room.


    There were small sofas, with pillowsying on the arms of them, and bookshelves on both corners of the room. There was a chandelier of some sorts that illuminated light with candles on top of them.


    There was a painting of two men that were dressed in 1800¡¯s ying cards against each other.


    ¡°Well, this is my home,¡± he said. He set his weapon on the table near him, before taking a deep breath and looking around.


    ¡°Ahh, so, you guys wanna go on a little hike trip with me tomorrow?¡± Barry asked. I looked at him with a sense of confusion, which Hans did as well.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Hans asked. Barry darted his head around, and stammered, before he gestured to us to sit down. We walked towards the white sofas, where I rearranged the pillows and took a seat.


    I found myself startled from the hard, brick cushion that I was sitting on. I turned to look at Hans, who sat down, but got up onto his feet from the sudden, underwhelming feeling.


    .....


    ¡°Wow,¡± he mumbled before steadily taking a seat. Then, the sound of wood being dragged across the floor reverberated from behind us. Barry revealed himself into our sights, bringing a chair with him to which he ced facing towards us.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m going to need you to follow me on this, okay? I don¡¯t want to sound crazy, but I¡¯m genuinely focused on this,¡± he said, taking a seat.


    He, and his eyes were faced directly at both of us, not looking in front nor the back of him.


    ¡°Raven¡¯s Gorge has a bad reputation. You guys know this from the past hour that you¡¯ve been here,¡± he said. ¡°But Raven¡¯s Gorge could end up being a camping site instead of this sick vige. It¡¯s just the fear of this unnatural force that is lurking in the woods.¡±


    ¡°Mhm,¡± Hans said, as if he was trying not to break a smile.


    ¡°So, here¡¯s what I want to do,¡± Barry said. ¡°Seeing how you guys fended off those muggers, I¡¯m certain we can do this.¡±


    ¡°Do what?¡±


    ¡°Kill the beast.¡±


    The room fell silent as Hans and I both had our eyes widened in a sea of bewilderment.


    ¡°Beast?¡± I asked. ¡°You¡¯re telling me it just isn¡¯t the people living here?¡±


    ¡°It is because of the people. But the people are the effect of the beast.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± I asked, with my eyes narrowed, and my brain more befuddled than ever. Barry sighed. ¡°The beast is affecting the people which is affecting the vige,¡± he cleared.


    ¡°Oh,¡± Hans proimed, nodding in understanding. ¡°Well, how do you know there¡¯s a beast?¡±


    ¡°Some days, we¡¯ll hear this loud roar that is none besides it, and you would hear it get louder, and louder, and louder before it quiets, quiets, and quiets. It¡¯s like the doppler effect.¡±


    ¡°You sure that just ain¡¯t cars passing by?¡± I asked. Barry shook his head. ¡°It sounds like cars passing by, but it echoes throughout the entire vige of Raven¡¯s Gorge. That¡ªgentlemen¡ªis unnatural.¡±


    ¡°Well, have you seen it?¡± I asked. The man stopped for a moment, which he leaned forward with a sigh, staying silent for a moment before he answered: ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°No?¡±


    ¡°Nope.¡±


    ¡°So how are you not sure that it¡¯s just cars?!¡± Hans asked. Barry opened his mouth, but refused to say any words, as he mmed his thigh with his fist.


    ¡°I can feel it. I can see it. Look what it has done to this vige. Everyone is afraid, and angry. They kill, plunder, and hurt others just so that they themselves can survive. Fear breaks us all, and this beast is the cause of it. Now, I¡¯m not sure if you guys know this, but every full moon, it has been reported that someone dies in cold blood,¡± he said.


    ¡°The Moonlit Murders,¡± I said.


    Barry snapped and pointed at me, and began to nod quite excessively as a way of saying I was correct. ¡°Yeah, those!¡± he shouted. ¡°Everyone is scared whenever the full moones. Every single person in this vige is scared to sleep.¡±


    ¡°Everyone?¡±


    ¡°Everyone.¡±


    ¡°But what if there is no beast, you think the Moonlit Murders are gonna stop?¡± Hans asked. Barry sighed. ¡°I think the Moonlit Murders are caused by the beast.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Basically, everything is going back to the beast,¡± Barry said. ¡°And trust me, when we kill this beast, you can live life here in peace. Maybe we might even get recognized by the actual world, and probably even return to our homes.¡±


    I looked at Barry, seeing his twinkle with hope. It would be a shame to let him down, but I¡¯m quite sure there is no beast.


    ¡°How about this,¡± I said suddenly, which both Hans and Barry turned their heads towards me interestedly.


    ¡°Me and Hans need to get out of here, and for a good reason,¡± I said to him. ¡°It may affect a lot of people if we don¡¯t, so we can make a deal. You help us kill this beast, then you help us get out of here.¡±


    ¡°Uh, what?¡±


    ¡°You help us get off here,¡± Hans said, stammering for the first part and throwing nces at me. ¡°We do our thing, and you can stay a coveted hero for two people instead.¡±


    Barry did that thing again, where he opened his mouth but couldn¡¯t produce words. However, he seemed to be speechless in confusion.


    ¡°You know what they do to people who try to escape?¡± Barry asked. The only guess I had was when that driver hit or did something to thatdy. Just that sizzling sound of smoke, makes me even repellent to even want to know what happened to her.


    ¡°They basically force you into what they call the Exile¡¯s Gauntlet.¡±


    ¡°The¡ªthe¡ªbut I thought the police only served the rich people,¡± I said.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s a funnyment. They do. It¡¯s the citizens themselves that will throw you in there. The rich won¡¯t veto them, it¡¯s basically entertainment for themselves.¡±


    ¡°Oh, wow,¡± I muttered. ¡°Trust me, we can do this. Think about it. You, me, and Hans can escape and return back home. Who did you used to live with?¡±


    ¡°My wife and kids, and my mom,¡± he said. Hans¡¯s eyes widened, but not in a shocked or impressed way, but more of a suspicious way.


    ¡°Are you sure the wife hasn¡¯t¡ª¡±


    ¡°No, we don¡¯t believe in divorce or cheating or anything. I¡¯ve been here for two years. The reason why I want to do this is so that if I never escape, I could live somewhat in peace. But even if I escape, I would be d that I was the one to save these broken people,¡± Barry said.


    He got up to his feet. ¡°They¡¯ll put me on a statue for what I¡¯ve done, and tell stories. Raven¡¯s Gorge could end up bing a campsite.¡± He stopped, as his eyes looked up at the ceiling, and he sighed.


    ¡°Oh, dreams. Those are some killers,¡± he said, taking a seat. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, there¡¯s no way I can do that.¡±


    ¡°No, no, no,¡± I said. ¡°Remember? Saw the way we fought? Throwing lefts and rights, and hooks all over their faces. Plus, you have an AK! You can st them all!¡±


    ¡°Oh, really,¡± Barry said. Hans reached out his hands in assurance. ¡°If they see that you saved Raven¡¯s Gorge, they¡¯ll definitely allow you to leave or do whatever you want. All in all, this is an amazing n.¡±


    Hans sighed. He looked out the window, as the crescent moon shone brightly in the sky. ¡°Perhaps,¡± he said, turning his attention towards us. ¡°We possibly do have a certain deal.¡±


    ¡°Great!¡± Hans said. ¡°So what¡¯s the game n?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve studied the forest for a bit, and I can estimate certain paths that we can go to find the beast,¡± Barry said. ¡°I¡¯ll show you tomorrow when we do it. But for now, get some sleep, eat real good, and just try not to have scary dreams.¡±


    Silence followed the room, as me and Hans slowly nodded, unsure whether to even agree or disagree.


    But just for the sake of this mission, agreeing was probably the best choice.


    ¡°Alright, you guys are probably tired as goodness from all that chaos you guys dealt with tonight. If you would follow me into the guest room, that would probably make your day¡ªor night¡ªbetter,¡± he said.


    He chuckled as he did, which I had to follow up with a little snicker as well, just for the morale.

 Chapter 291 - 291 Breakfast Time

    291 Breakfast Time


    He went to the door to the left, which he opened up to a bedroom, with two beds, a dresser ced at the bottom right corner, a mirror directly on the wall facing the other side, a wooden floor and ceiling, and this fan that asionally screeched.


    ¡°These are your beds,¡± Barry said. ¡°Now, it¡¯s lucky that I have two beds, because I was about to sell one of them, and see if I could buy another gun.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Well, before you guys came, I was going to get some people to help me on my quest. Luckily, you two came, and with your talents¡ªI think we can save this timid town,¡± Barry said. ¡°Nheless, here are your beds. Have a good night¡¯s sleep.¡±


    He closed the door, which silence apanied us in the room, except for a few creaks from the fan. ¡°I don¡¯t know what we got ourselves into, but I hope it works,¡± I said.


    Hans chuckled. ¡°You think? We¡¯re going to be chasing some beast around which I¡¯m quite positive doesn¡¯t even exist. Although, to be fairly honest, everything that¡¯s happened so far waspletely supernatural to me, so maybe there is some beast killing people in every full moon.¡±


    ¡°Doubt it,¡± I said. I looked at the beds, before I turned my head up to Hans, who stared at me for a moment. We nced between the two beds, the left blue and the right pink, before we red right back at each other.


    ¡°I call¡ª¡±


    ¡°Dibs,¡± Hans said, pointing to the blue bed. I sighed. ¡°Come on, howe I have to get this pink bed?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Because I¡¯m older than you,¡± Hans said, rubbing his chin. ¡°Plus, pink is cool. I think you¡¯ll like it.¡± I gave him a cross look before I went towards my bed.


    I unloaded the sheets, and climbed in, which Hans did as well.


    ¡°Good luck, and sleep tight,¡± Hans said with a chuckle. I puffed instead, turning to my right side as I looked out the window. The crescent moon looked down at me, as if it was saying: ¡®It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s not the full moon yet.¡¯


    It wasn¡¯tforting to the slightest bit. In fact, it was frightening me to the point I abruptly closed in the curtains, allowing darkness to fill this side of the room.


    I sighed, closing my eyes and letting the stress drift away.


    ***


    ¡°Wake up!¡± I heard someone shout, which immediately woke me up. I rose up, looking around only to see Barry inside the room, with his gun strapped on his back. ¡°Breakfast is here.¡±


    Soon enough, Hans rose up while leaning on the pillow, but his eyes were only opened ajar. He looked as if he was still closing his eyes.


    ¡°Okay, let me get myself settled first,¡± Hans said, his voice sounding like a dying engine.


    ¡°Alright,¡± he said. Then he pointed at me. ¡°As for you,e eat. Your friend will join us soon. I¡¯ll tell you guys what we¡¯re going to do once we go on our journey through the forest.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said, stretching my arms and legs, before resting my feet on the floor. I got up to my feet as I walked out the door, throwing a look at Hans, before I entered the living room. The smell of eggs caught my nose, when I saw the table filled with a bunch of eggs.


    ¡°Oh, yes¡­¡± Barry said with a smile. ¡°I think I cooked well this time.¡±


    I nced at him and back on the food. There were five or six pots with lids on them. But since they were white, all I had to go on was the odor that emanated from them to infer what was inside.


    ¡°You sure cooked a lot,¡± I said, my eyes addicted to the pack of pots and bowls. Barry chuckled, ¡°I sure did.¡±


    I followed Barry towards the kitchen, my stomach growling at the sight and smell of the food. Barry started to take off the lids of the pots, revealing a variety of dishes. There were scrambled eggs, bacon, sausages, pancakes, and even some fruits. I couldn¡¯t help but salivate at the sight of the food.


    ¡°Help yourself,¡± Barry said, gesturing towards the table. I grabbed a te and started piling it up with food, feeling grateful for Barry¡¯s hospitality. As I sat down, Hans walked in, rubbing his eyes. He took a seat next to me and started filling his own te.


    ¡°This looks amazing, Barry,¡± I said, as I took a bite of the scrambled eggs. The food was delicious, and I couldn¡¯t help but feel more at ease with the situation we were in.


    ¡°d you like it,¡± Barry said, smiling. ¡°Now, let¡¯s talk about our n for the day. We need to head into the forest and search for any clues about the beast. I have a feeling that it¡¯s been hiding in there.¡±


    As we finished our breakfast, Barry went to his pantry and started packing some snacks for us. He handed us each a bag of trail mix, some gran bars, and a water bottle.


    ¡°Thanks, Barry,¡± I said, feeling grateful for the extra supplies.


    ¡°No problem. Just be careful out there. The forest can be dangerous,¡± Barry said, with a worried look on his face.


    As we finished our breakfast, Barry went to his pantry and started packing some snacks for us. He handed us each a bag of trail mix, some gran bars, and a water bottle. ¡°Thanks, Barry,¡± I said, feeling grateful for the extra supplies. ¡°No problem. Just be careful out there. The forest can be dangerous,¡± Barry said, with a worried look on his face.


    After we finished packing, Barry gathered us around him and startedying out the n for the day. ¡°Alright guys, here¡¯s what we¡¯re going to do,¡± he said. ¡°We¡¯ll follow the well-marked trail for a few miles until wee to a fork.¡±


    I nodded along, trying to take in all the information. ¡°What kind of clues are we looking for?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Anything that seems out of ce,¡± Barry replied. ¡°Footprints, broken branches, strange markings on trees. Anything that could lead us to the treasure.¡±


    ¡°Got it,¡± I said, feeling a sense of excitement and anticipation. ¡°When you say treasure, you mean¡ª¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Barry confirmed. ¡°If you guys see anything, please tell me. I know you guys are good fighters, but a little firepower might be needed for this beast.¡±


    ¡°Figures,¡± Hans said. ¡°What are we there for?¡±


    Barry put his finger up, extending the time between Hans¡¯s question and his answer. He shoved his hands in between the two cushions which he pulled out two knives.


    ¡°Remember these?¡± he asked. Those were the same switchdes that those muggers utilized. Seems like that weapon is a popr one.


    ¡°A little stab is useful every now and then,¡± Barry said, handing us the weapons. ¡°These should be useful.¡±


    Then¡ªright at that moment, three loud knocks banged at the door. Barry brought up his finger at us to keep us quiet, as he steadily made his way towards the door.


    He took his weapon off his back, keeping right at his left hip. He looked through the window, but stayed close to the corner. But then, his head slowly turned towards us.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s Mr. Trilby¡¯s guys,¡± he said, which my heart rate climbed rapidly after thest syble of that sentence finished.


    ¡°Oh, shoot,¡± Hans muttered. ¡°Stay behind the couch.¡± He slowly approached the door with Barry, but standing on the opposite side.


    ¡°Hello!¡± one of them shouted. ¡°It¡¯s your friendly neighbor!¡±


    No one uttered a word. But then, they continued, ¡°I know you¡¯re in there, otherwise the light wouldn¡¯t be on. Just saying.¡±


    Barry sighed, and rocked his head to the side in frustration. ¡°Okay, what do we do?¡± I asked, but Barry could only stammer.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to get a visit from muggers this morning,¡± Barry said. ¡°Think of a n, then tell me.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I do have a n. It¡¯s just a bit risky, that¡¯s all,¡± I said. Barry looked at me. ¡°Does it hurt me in any sort of way?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Not directly. Maybe your house will have a hard time¡ª¡±


    Barry shook his head. ¡°We need this ce to have a headquarters to stop the beast. We destroy this ce, and you¡¯ll find these muggers on our tail for the entire time that you¡¯re ever here.¡±


    I sighed, and three more knocks hammered against the door.


    ¡°Shoot,¡± I muttered. ¡°Should we open it, because they¡¯ll never leave.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean? Do you want to die?¡± Barry asked. ¡°That¡¯s a terrible idea.¡± Hans sighed, but then his eyes widened, which he quickly brought his attention towards Barry.


    ¡°Is there any back or secret door?¡± he asked. Barry shrugged. ¡°Somewhat, but it¡¯s going to be a very dusty ride.¡±


    ¡°Do you have some tunnel under this house or something?¡± I asked. Barry tilted his head to the side, which I sighed and narrowed my eyes.

 Chapter 292 - 292 A Tunnel to a Forest

    292 A Tunnel to a Forest


    ¡°We have to hide,¡± I said. ¡°Quickly, show us where the secret door is.¡±


    Barry led us to the back of the house where there was a small door half-buried in the dirt. He opened it up and we saw a narrow, dusty tunnel leading out into the forest.


    ¡°This way,¡± he said, gesturing for us to follow him.


    We crouched down and entered the tunnel, which was barely wide enough for us to squeeze through. The walls were damp and slimy, and the air was thick with dust and cobwebs. We could hear the sound of our own breathing echoing off the walls.


    ¡°So, what do we do now?¡± Hans whispered.


    ¡°Just keep moving,¡± Barry replied. ¡°We¡¯lle out on the other side of the forest. Then we can figure out our next move.¡±


    As we made our way through the tunnel, I couldn¡¯t help but feel a sense of unease. What if Mr. Trilby¡¯s men found us? What if they were waiting for us on the other side?


    ¡°Do you think Mr. Trilby is really that dangerous?¡± I asked.


    Barry stopped and turned to me. ¡°Let me tell you something, kid. Mr. Trilby is not someone you want to mess with. He¡¯s the kind of guy who will do whatever it takes to get what he wants. And right now, he wants that treasure.¡±


    .....


    ¡°But why does he want it so badly?¡± Hans asked.


    Barry sighed. ¡°Who knows. Maybe it¡¯s just for the thrill of the chase. Or maybe there¡¯s something more to it. All I know is that we need to be careful. We¡¯re dealing with some dangerous people here.¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help but feel a knot in my stomach as we walked through the dark and dusty tunnel. The thought of Mr. Trilby and his dangerous men waiting for us on the other side made me shudder. I had never dealt with such dangerous people before, and the fact that they were after the same treasure as us only made things worse.


    Hans looked just as nervous as I felt. ¡°Do you think we can take them on if they find us?¡± he asked Barry.


    Barry shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea. These guys are armed and dangerous. We need to be smart about this.¡± He put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°We¡¯ll get through this, kid. We just need to stick together and be smart about our next move.¡±


    The three of us walked slowly, taking careful steps as we adjusted to the soft soil beneath our feet. The ground was damp and cool, and I could feel the mud squishing between my toes. The grass was soft and lush, brushing against our ankles as we walked. It was a stark contrast to the hard concrete and steel of the city, and I felt a sense of relief wash over me as we walked deeper into the forest.


    As we made our way further into the forest, the trees grew denser, their leaves forming a canopy overhead. Rays of sunlight filtered through the leaves, creating a dappled effect on the forest floor. The glint of the sun behind the leaves was mesmerizing, and I found myself staring up at the sky, lost in thought.


    The air was cool and fresh, with a hint of pine and earthy scents. I took deep breaths, filling my lungs with the crisp forest air. It was a wee change from the smog and pollution of the city. The forest was alive with the sounds of nature, with birds chirping, leaves rustling in the breeze, and the asional snap of a twig. It was a symphony of sound, and I felt at peace surrounded by nature¡¯s music.


    We walked in silence for a while, taking in the beauty of our surroundings. The forest seemed to go on forever, with tall trees stretching high into the sky. The path we were on was well-worn, and I could tell that many people had walked this way before us. The soil was littered with footprints, and I felt a sense of camaraderie with those who had walked this path before me. Maybe it was just Barry, I don¡¯t know.


    I looked over at Barry and Hans, feeling grateful for theirpany. We had been walking for what felt like hours, and the silence was starting to get to me. I cleared my throat, trying to think of something to say.


    ¡°So, guys,¡± I said, ¡°does anyone know any good jokes?¡±


    Barry chuckled. ¡°I know one. Why did the tomato turn red?¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Because it saw the sd dressing!¡± Barry said, grinning.


    Hans rolled his eyes. ¡°That¡¯s terrible,¡± he said.


    ¡°Oh,e on Hans, it was funny,¡± Barry said.


    Iughed, feeling a sense of relief at the sound of their voices. We continued to walk, joking and bantering back and forth. It was a wee distraction from the danger and uncertainty of our situation.


    As we walked, I thought of another joke to tell. ¡°How does a penguin build its house?¡± I asked.


    Barry and Hans both looked at me, waiting for the punchline.


    ¡°Igloos it together!¡± I said, grinning.


    Hans let out a smallugh, while Barry shook his head. ¡°That was bad, kid,¡± he said, chuckling.


    We continued to walk, the jokes and banter flowing freely between us. It was a nice change of pace from the tension and danger of our mission. I felt grateful for the chance to let loose and just have fun with my new friends.


    As we walked, I couldn¡¯t help but notice the beauty of our surroundings. The forest was alive with the sounds of nature, and the sun filtered through the leaves, casting a warm glow on everything around us. It was a peaceful moment, and I felt grateful for the chance to experience it with Barry and Hans by my side.


    Hans suddenly stopped in his tracks and pointed his finger towards a tree. ¡°Look, guys!¡± he eximed. ¡°That tree looks like it¡¯s giving us the finger!¡±


    Barry and I looked at the tree and burst outughing. ¡°It sure does!¡± Barry said, wiping tears from his eyes.


    We continued walking, now with a lighter step and a more yful mood. The forest seemed to glow with a new light, and I couldn¡¯t help but feel grateful for these moments of levity.


    As we walked, Hans suddenly stopped and turned to us with a serious expression. ¡°Guys, I have a riddle for you,¡± he said.


    Barry and I looked at each other, intrigued. ¡°Okay, shoot,¡± Barry said.


    Hans cleared his throat. ¡°What has a heart that doesn¡¯t beat?¡±


    We both thought for a moment, trying toe up with an answer. Finally, I spoke up. ¡°A deck of cards?¡±


    Hans shook his head. ¡°Nope. An artichoke!¡± he said, grinning.


    Barry and I groaned, but couldn¡¯t help butugh at the ridiculousness of it all. It was moments like these that made me grateful for thepany of my new friends.


    As we walked deeper into the forest, I couldn¡¯t help but feel a sense of excitement and anticipation.


    But then, as we continued to move on, little footsteps dug into the ground began to trail through the forest. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± I asked, bending down.


    It seemed dried up, as if it was new, meaning someone was here earlier. But who would be here at basically four in the morning. ¡°Footprints. Just in case you didn¡¯t see that,¡± Hans said.


    I ignored his nitpickingment, but Barry enthusiastically bent down to look at it. ¡°Someone was here earlier. Probably a few hours ago, meaning¡ªthey probably found the beast.¡±


    ¡°Uh, yeah,¡± I said, still agreeing just for morale.


    Barry stretched up to his feet, and snapped his fingers. ¡°Let¡¯s move,¡± he said.


    We continued moving through the forest, as leaves consistently slid against our faces, and branches trapped our legs.


    ¡°Okay, anyone else got another¡ªoh, Lord!¡± Barry shouted, his eyes widened and his hand closed against his mouth as he turned around.


    ¡°What¡ªoh¡­¡± Hans muttered. I tried to look at what was ahead, but Hans¡¯s body was covering sight, which he steadily approached. Was it the beast? I doubt it was because it wasn¡¯t even bigger than Hans.


    Hans kneeled down, but the mysterious object was yet to be revealed. He moved his hands around, as if he was searching for something. Based on context clues, the thing wasying on the ground.


    What could beying on the ground? An animal, nt, some random object.


    A person¡­


    Immediately I ran forward, but Barry grabbed me and pulled me aside. ¡°I think it might be too much for you.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean too much?¡± I asked. ¡°It might just be some random thing. In fact, since you saw it first, what was it?¡±


    Barry took a deep breath, but then Hans called out randomly, catching my attention.


    ¡°Something killed this person, and they did not treat it well,¡± Hans said, standing up and moving to the side. My eyes expanded so wide that it almost melted, and my stomach almost lurched up my throat. It was a person, or at least, a few pieces of a person.

 Chapter 293 - 293 A Search Through the Woods

    293 A Search Through the Woods


    ¡°Whoa¡­¡± I muttered. ¡°Was that the beast?¡±


    Barry nodded his head timidly. ¡°It has to be. No one does this amount of damage except if it was an animal¡ªa strong animal.¡±


    I sighed, as I steadily walked towards the body. ¡°We should maybe just turn back,¡± I said, looking back at Barry. But he still shook his head. ¡°We got something this guy doesn¡¯t¡ªdidn¡¯t¡ªhave,¡± he said.


    I looked at him, waiting for his mind-blowing answer.


    ¡°Three people, and ammo,¡± Barry said, cocking his weapon. ¡°Plus, you guys have your little knives. That could do some work.¡±


    I stammered just like he would, before I sighed and kept it shut, as he continued walking. Flies hovered over the pieced-up body, and the smell reeked miles away from the dead soul.


    ¡°Alright, just so we don¡¯t end up like him, we¡¯re going to do two things. One, hide, and two, search.¡±


    ¡°How do we hide and search at the same time?¡± I asked. Barry used his left hand, and pointed at his two eyes, nodding with a confident attitude before saying, ¡°That¡¯s how.¡±


    We continued to ze through the woods, before we arrived into this area, where there were tall trees climbing to the sky. There were quite a lot of them, no doubt about it.


    .....


    ¡°Is this where we hide and search?¡± I asked. Barry hung his gun over his shoulder. ¡°Yes. Find your spots, and if something needs to be said, just mouth it out. I can read lips.¡±


    ¡°Good to know,¡± Hans said. I looked up, seeing a tree was right at the same height as a few others. It would be best to use that one, just so I don¡¯t stand out. However, a taller tree would be a better view.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go for the taller one,¡± I said, pointing to the one behind me.


    ¡°I go to the one that is farther ahead,¡± Hans said. Barry nodded. ¡°Good, here are some binocrs. Use them, because they¡¯ll be excruciatingly important.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± Hans said, while Barry handed out some binocrs, cing them in our hands.


    ¡°Good luck,¡± he said, saluting us before walking towards his own spot. Soon enough, me and Hans dispersed, which I set foot on the chosen tree and climbed up all the way to the top.


    I continued climbing, utilizing the branches iling out in every direction, before I settled in between the bark and the branch, probably twenty to thirty feet high.


    There weren¡¯t many leaves to block my way, so this would be an ideal spot to search for this beast. I got the binocrs and ced them on my eyes, which the view enhanced and zoomed in.


    There was a lot of dirt and a lot of trees. I saw a few logs here and there, but it¡¯s not like that was important information in the first ce.


    I continued to search from the left to the right, zooming out a bit to see the entire picture. However, nothing was happening. Nothing wasing out of the trees or peeking out from a branch or burrowing up from the dirt.


    Not that a beast would do that, but the point is, nothing was happening.


    I continued to search for the beast, but it was nowhere to be found. I had been searching for a long time, and I was starting to get tired. I was also starting to get scared. It was a very different experience being in the woods during the day. The trees seemed to loom over me, and the sun seemed to press in on all sides. I could hear nothing all around me, and I was starting to think that maybe the beast wasn¡¯t there at all


    I scanned the treetops, looking for any sign of the beast. I could see nothing but trees, trees, and more trees. I was starting to think that I had imagined the whole thing. Maybe there was no beast after all.But then, I saw something out of the corner of my eye. It was a small, dark shape moving through the trees. I squinted my eyes, trying to get a better look. It was definitely something, but I couldn¡¯t tell what it was.


    I continued to watch the shape as it moved through the trees. Then, looking at the figure, I noticed it wasn¡¯t a beast, but a person.


    I quickly lowered the binocrs and shouted out to Barry, ¡°Barry! It¡¯s not the beast, it¡¯s a person! I can see them moving through the trees!¡±


    But there was no response.


    I tried again, ¡°Barry, can you hear me?¡± but still, nothing. It was as if he couldn¡¯t hear me at all.


    I started to panic.


    What if something had happened to Barry? What if he was hurt and couldn¡¯t answer me?


    I frantically tried calling him on my phone, but he didn¡¯t pick up. I tried again and again, but still no answer.


    I was starting to feel helpless and alone. But then, a hand waved in the distance. It was from Barry.


    ¡°I can¡¯t see you, Connor. I can hear you, but I can¡¯t see you. Where are you?¡± Relief flooded through me as I quickly shouted back, ¡°I¡¯m up in a tree, Barry. I¡¯ve spotted a person moving through the trees, not the beast. Where are you?¡± A few momentster, Barry responded. ¡°I¡¯m on the ground, near the body. I think I found something. Stay where you are, I¡¯ming to you.¡± I breathed a sigh of relief as I continued to watch the person moving through the trees.


    As I peered through my binocrs, trying to get a closer look at the mysterious figure in the woods, my heart began to race. Suddenly, I realized that the person was wearing a TSA uniform. This realization sent shivers down my spine, and I felt a cold sweat forming on my forehead.


    My mind raced with questions. What was the TSA doing out here in the middle of nowhere? Why were they dressed in full uniform? And why were they so close to where we were searching for the beast?


    I tried to contact Barry, but there was no response. I was left alone to face the mysterious presence of the TSA in the woods. I felt scared to death, knowing that I waspletely vulnerable and exposed.


    My thoughts were interrupted by a rustling in the bushes, and I quickly lowered my binocrs. I tried to calm my racing heart and focus on the situation at hand, but the fear was overwhelming.


    I knew that I had to be careful and stay hidden, but the fear of what the TSA might do to me was almost too much to bear. I waspletely alone, with no backup or support, and I had no idea what was going to happen next.


    As I peered through my binocrs, I couldn¡¯t believe what I was seeing. More TSA spies were walking through the forest, and they seemed to be converging on my location. My heart raced as I tried to make sense of what was happening. Were they here to arrest me? Interrogate me? I had no idea, but the fear that gripped me was almost too much to bear.


    My mind raced with all sorts of worst-case scenarios. Would they take me away to some secret facility and torture me for information? Or would they simply eliminate me as a threat to their operation? The uncertainty was killing me, and I felt more vulnerable than ever before. I tried to contact Barry again, but still no response. It was as if I waspletely cut off from the world, trapped in a nightmare from which there was no escape.


    I frantically typed out a message to Barry, telling him about the TSA spies I had spotted in the woods. I begged him to go warn Hans and to hurry back to me as soon as possible. My heart was pounding as I waited for a response, but there was only silence. I tried calling Barry, but the call went straight to voicemail. I feltpletely alone and helpless, like a sitting duck in the middle of a dangerous game.


    After what felt like hours, I finally received a response from Barry. He assured me that help was on the way and told me to stay put. I tried to calm myself down, but the image of the TSA spies converging on my location kept shing through my mind. I knew I had to keep my wits about me if I was going to make it out of this alive.


    As I looked around, my heart sank. More TSA agents were on their way, and I was alone and helpless. I knew I had to act fast if I wanted to survive. My mind raced as I tried toe up with a n, but nothing seemed to make sense. Every second that passed felt like an eternity, and I could feel the fear creeping up inside me.


    I tried calling Barry again, but there was no answer. I waspletely on my own. I knew that if I didn¡¯t do something soon, it would be the end of me. I took a deep breath and tried to clear my mind. I had to focus on finding a way out of this mess.


    As I looked around, I saw the TSA agents closing in on my location. There was no way out. I was trapped. I closed my eyes and tried to think of a way to escape, but my mind was nk. I was running out of time, and I knew it.


    In that moment, I realized that I had to face my fear head-on. I took a deep breath and stood up, ready to fight. I knew I might not make it out alive, but I was determined to go down fighting. As the TSA agents closed in, I braced myself for impact.

 Chapter 294 - 297 Chs

    294 Forest Problems


    Suddenly, those agents moved in a different direction, and the footsteps began to disappear into the horizon.


    ¡°Okay,¡± I muttered. All of a sudden, leaves rustled behind me, which I turned around in fear. But it was Barry. Relief washed over me as he came to look. ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t see the beast, but I saw a bunch of enemies,¡± I said. Barry¡¯s face paused for a moment, as he stared at me. ¡°How do you know they¡¯re enemies?¡± I asked.


    ¡°They¡¯re enemies for us, and they will destroy us,¡± I said. Barry sighed, which he ced his binocrs against his eyes, but took them off after a quick moment.


    ¡°Will they affect this vige?¡± he asked. I scoffed,pletely confident in what I was going to say. ¡°They will burn this vige to the ground just to find and kill us.¡±


    Barry¡¯s eyes widened with shock and sorrow, which he ced his hand over his mouth. ¡°Your n for saving this vige will be scorched to ashes,¡± I exined. ¡°But maybe, you can help us.¡±


    ¡°Whoa, whoa, whoa,¡± he said, throwing his hands in the case to halt the conversation. ¡°Who are you guys?¡±


    ¡°Very important people,¡± I said. ¡°Anything else is ssified. But just trust us, because I want you to achieve your dream.¡±


    ¡°Oh, really?¡± Barry said, which his hands steadily reached behind his back. I nced between his hands which were now hidden behind his back, and his face that only showed the message of suspicion.


    .....


    ¡°Barry, please,¡± I said, slowly reaching my hand out. ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s all fine, allowing us to get trapped inside your mess. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s fine. Not at all.¡±


    ¡°No, we¡¯ll fix this,¡± I said.


    ¡°No, I will.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked.


    All of a sudden, Barry grabbed his weapon and faced it towards my chest. Quickly, I kicked it out of the way, causing the silencer of the gun to slip off, which traveled all the way to the ground.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s useless now,¡± Barry said, looking down at the silencer.


    But suddenly, he pulled out a knife, and swung it towards me. I ducked, which the knife chipped out little pieces of bark, leaving a scar there to settle.


    I kicked him in the chest in an effort to break free, as my heart pumped in shock and confusion. Barry tumbled down from the thin twig and fell off the side.


    But, his hands were quick enough to grab the branch and hang on.


    ¡°Barry,e on. It doesn¡¯t have to be like this!¡± I pleaded to him. He chuckled. ¡°It already is. The second I figured out your n, that¡¯s when you became my enemy.¡±


    He paused for a moment, in which his eyes widened, as if realized something that was probably the immense opposite of what the actual truth was.


    ¡°In fact, now thinking about it, maybe those aren¡¯t even your enemies. Maybe they¡¯re working with you to bring down this vige1!¡± he shouted.


    ¡°What?!¡± I shouted. ¡°Number one, that¡¯s not true. Number two, didn¡¯t you want to leave?!¡±


    ¡°I wanted to leave this ce by cementing my ce in the history of this vige. They might even let me leave because of what I did. Not only would I have saved a vige, but I can go home while Raven¡¯s Gorge is standing strong!¡± he shouted.


    ¡°First of all, we didn¡¯t expect anyone to be in this forest. Especially our enemies!¡± I said. Suddenly, a cracking sound reverberated in front of me. I looked down, seeing the little zigzagged tear of the branch. Barry was going to fall to his death if he didn¡¯t stop this now.


    ¡°Plus, you can save this vige by warning everybody about the dangering!¡± I pleaded, ncing between the deathly crack and Barry.


    ¡°I will,¡± Barry said, nodding agreeably. ¡°However, every hero¡¯s journey starts with one step¡ªor in this case, a kick.¡±


    Suddenly, he kicked my chest, throwing me off the little branch, andnding on the one below. This one had more mass, meaning more strength, meaning I could possibly stand on this.


    But the pain searing through my stomach almost limited me from doing so. Iid my hand on the main bark of the tree, which I felt a little tug, as I looked to the side.


    Barry was there, with his switchde, which he slowly walked towards me. ¡°You¡¯re going to be the first of many that¡¯s going to die against this war against the people.¡±


    ¡°Wait, what?¡± I asked, finally on both of my feet.


    ¡°I should¡¯ve known. Random outsiders that could fight off muggers in such an experienced way. So clean and fresh as if you guys just came from a mansion. But mostly, how brave you guys were, as if a pack of muggers didn¡¯t just attack you,¡± he said.


    ¡°Those sound like pretty weak reasons to be honest,¡± I said, looking to both sides, to which Barry rolled his eyes and continued his steady encounter.


    ¡°Nheless, don¡¯t expect to live very long after this,¡± he said. He threw his first attack, which the knife swung towards my neck. I guided it to the side, shoving my knee into his stomach before pushing him back.


    He stumbled back, which his knife flew into the air, piercing into the branch above us.


    That seemed to be thest straw.


    The branch broke off the bark and copsed towards us. ¡°Oh shoot!¡± I shouted, moving to the side, to where the branch hit Barry on the shoulder, not the fact that it hurt, but more of the fact that it swung him off the branch.


    Barry shrieked a cry of terror as he fell off the branch, and fell down towards the ground. I leaned over to peek down, but the only thing I saw was his voice bing more faint as time went on.


    A heavy impact abruptly sounded, which afterwards, a faint thud was heard followed by some groans.


    He was still alive, how?!


    But not for long. Footsteps ultimately followed, as TSA agents began to scout in this area. Shocked, I pulled back and hid on the bark, trying to catch my breath.


    ¡°Bro, you need to try the one cheeseburger back at the Foodstorm Cafeteria. They actually made it right this time,¡± one of them said. The other, which was a voice of a girl about the age of eighteen, responded, ¡°I¡¯m not a fan of thatyered monstrosity you call food,¡± she said harshly.


    ¡°It¡¯s not a monstrosity for your biased information,¡± the other guy said. ¡°This is a product that serves as American pride.¡±


    ¡°Oh, boy, here he goes,¡± she said. ¡°Why don¡¯t you go ahead and marry the president at this point?¡±


    ¡°Well¡ªI mean¡ªthere are many limitations to that to be honest,¡± he said. Although I was interested in their conversation, my main focus was looking down at Barry to see if he would get up on time.


    I don¡¯t want him to die. He¡¯s the only chance we have to leave this vige. We need to get the briefcase, find Brie, and Raven¡¯s Gorge was holding me back.


    I looked down to the next branch, which wasn¡¯t too far away from my current one, but it was still somewhat of a leap.


    I nodded, taking a deep breath before I readied my legs, then took off into the air, before taking a hardnding onto the next branch.


    I immediately gripped my hands on the bark, taking a deep breath as I did so. Now I had a better view on Barry, who was stillying t on the ground.


    I wanted to call him, or get his attention somehow, but that was not a good idea. He would, number one, climb back up to continue his conquest to kill me, or the TSA notices and shoots me from the tree.


    Either way, I would be dead.


    But then, Barry moved his left arm with such fragileness it was almost to theparison of a baby that was just born.


    He steadily got to his feet, and immediately lifted his head up in my direction. I pulled back, hoping he didn¡¯t notice me by any chance.


    I peeked a bit, which Barry lifted to his feet, looking down to the ground. It was assuring to only see his red hat, which he now put on over his scruffy brown hair.


    But then, I heard this: ¡°Hey, who¡¯s there?¡±


    Barry looked in that direction, and the voice was the sound of the TSA agent. All of a sudden, Barry flung to the side as a blue bolt collided with him at zooming speed. My eyes widened with shock, too stunned to even move. I needed to find Hans immediately, because things just got way¡ªway worse. Slowly, I lifted my left leg to rest on the one below me. Then, after a period of hanging while attached to the bark, both feet were now nted on the branch beneath.


    But then, the voices suddenly increased in volume.

 Chapter 295 - 295 Rescuing Barry

    295 Rescuing Barry


    ¡°Who was that?¡± the TSA agent asked. Soon enough, both agents were now in view, although it was in bird¡¯s eye view.


    ¡°Looked like an animal,¡± the girl replied. Suddenly, they brought out shlights in daylight, and searched around for a moment. But then, the wave of light then turned in my direction, beaming light in my area.


    I shifted to the side, barely missing the zing light that was illuminating the tree. I looked to the side, seeing a branch that was probably too far to even jump, nheless reach.


    ¡°Shoot,¡± I muttered, as the light retreated from the tree. I shifted back to my original spot, seeing that the agents were now on their way. But as I moved forward, suddenly, a certain object slipped from my back pocket.


    My body froze, as if it was just stunned from the sudden change of feeling.


    I slowly guided my eyes down, seeing one of the snacks¡ªa bag of chips I believe¡ªhitting the ground. Then, the shlights hounded on the chips, as the agents ran to the scene of the noise.


    The beaming light returned to search the same spot, seeing nothing just like before. But this time, it didn¡¯t just leave.


    ¡°Search around the tree, I¡¯ll search the rest of the area,¡± the woman said. Trudging footsteps followed after the order, which the beaming light began to explore other corners around this tree.


    I darted my eyes to the side, looking down and seeing a branch below towards the left.


    .....


    The only chance I had was to somehow escape sneakily, and find Hans in time.


    I dropped down, hoping to not make much noise. But the leaves rattled and the triangle of light quickly switched towards my side.


    Heavy footsteps became more heavy, as the TSA spy got closer. But then, and soon enough, he was right directly under me. The leaves blocked the view, meaning I could only see bits and pieces from certain areas, but nheless¡ªthe TSA spy was right here.


    I needed to make the correct move, unless there would be a tribe of enemy spies after me. Slowly, I stretched my leg down, slow enough to where no noise produced from the shrill movement of my leg.


    The spy, who was actually a redhead, looked left and right¡ªmeaning the only ce to look was up.


    But then, suddenly, an object collided against the man, and he whizzed past my view.


    What just happened?


    I quickly dropped down to see Hans with a firm grip on the man¡¯s neck, with his knee pinning him down. Then, with one charged-up punch, he swept it across his face.


    The stering sound of the impact startled me, as my bones trembled from the finishing blow.


    ¡°Ha¡ª¡±


    ¡°Shh,¡± he said, leaving a finger up to indicate the closing of my mouth. I nodded ungrudgingly. Hans got up from the unconscious body, then jogged towards me. ¡°What happened to Barry?¡±


    ¡°Barry went a little rogue. Once I saw the agents, I told him they were going to possibly attack this vige. Instead of listening to me, he instead decided to name me as his enemy.¡±


    ¡°Wow,¡± Hans said. ¡°But we still need him.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± I said. ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m gonna try and get Barry and return back to his house. We can wait until he wakes up and see what to do from there.¡±


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s hope that we escape from these agents first,¡± I said. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± We immediately ran away from the tree, to the little area where we dispersed to our own scouting spots.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Barry?¡± I muttered, looking around, trying to visualize the direction he flew from. I looked to the left, seeing him fly that way, which I gestured for Hans to follow.


    We went through a few bushes, smelling something that seemed to be scorched by fire. Barry. ¡°He has to be close, unless I¡¯m smelling things,¡± Hans said, rubbing his nose.


    ¡°I doubt so,¡± I said, which we eventually reached the area where Barry was. His shirt waspletely melted into ash, exposing the side of his stomach. He was not moving, but he wasn¡¯t dead. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll carry him, and we¡¯ll go,¡± I said. Hans took a quick peek of our surroundings, and he nodded agreeably.


    We shot through the trees, hoping that we were moving farther away from the searching enemy spies, and closer to his house.


    But we went through a secret door, meaning we¡¯d have to go to the streets, and go up to his house. We continued along the path, until the sounds of cars slowly began to climb.


    We¡¯re getting closer.


    ¡°You see anything?¡± I asked. Hans leaned his head to the right, and he nodded excitedly. ¡°We¡¯re close to the city. I think it¡¯s close to the uphill street to his house,¡± he said. I nodded. ¡°Perfect, let¡¯s go.¡±


    But as we encountered it, the view of muggers suddenly showed up to the scene.


    We were close to the sidewalk that led to the uphill, but we were behind a few trees, meaning they didn¡¯t see us yet¡ªhopefully.


    Three cars were parked in our area¡ª60¡¯s convertibles I could only assume. It was as if the FBI was right at Barry¡¯s doorstep. ¡°How are we supposed to return back to his house without get lynched by these guys?¡± I asked.


    Hans searched around, which it was starting to be clear he was more of a scout than I was.


    ¡°Over there,¡± he said, pointing to this trail which led to the door we came out of. Now taking a more detailed look at it, it was wooden with his darkened-metal ring that was circled around the doorknob.


    ¡°Does Barry still have his key?¡± I asked. Hans scoffed. ¡°How about this: you look?¡±


    ¡°Why can¡¯t¡ªoh,¡± I asked, realizing in the middle of my foolish sentence. I went over behind Hans, searching through his back pockets, although no object was stored in them.


    ¡°Hans, move his legs to the side a little, would ya?¡± I asked, which Barry¡¯s body shifted to the side. I checked his right pocket first: nothing.


    I checked the left pocket: Nothing.


    But out of the corner of my eye, I saw a little key hanging on a keychain on his belt. I¡¯m not even sure how that even exists, but that¡¯s the least of my worries.


    ¡°Come on,¡± I said, and we reached the door. Memories of this trail were still vibrant, being that it was only two hours ago.


    I plugged it in the keyhole, and turned it, opening the door and quickly rushed inside. Hans shut the door, as we continued through the dusty trail. It seemed as if it was a cave that held some sort of ancient maze.


    After a series of running, we finally came across the stairs which led up the door leading into the living room.


    ¡°Take it away,¡± Hans said, and I stepped up, doing the same thing with the secret door from outside, leading into the bright inside of the living room. The sun was really starting to re inside of the cabin-house, as Hans went over toy Barry onto the sofa.


    ¡°Okay, now we need to get these muggers away,¡± I said.


    Then, the sound of a weapon cocking forced me to turn towards the inevitable sound. Hans was holding Barry¡¯s gun. ¡°Okay, now what¡¯s the next part?¡±


    ¡°I have no clue,¡± I said, shaking my head, as the door began to bang. Then, the sound of another vehicle pulling up, trailed from the right side of the house. Looking through the window, I saw another of those old convertible¡¯s, but one man in particr caught my attention.


    ¡°It¡¯s Mr. Trilby,¡± I said. ¡°I think his entire army is here.¡±


    ¡°Oh¡ªmy Lord,¡± Hans said. ¡°This is great, this is totally great. What I¡¯ll do is to just shoot them. That¡¯s the only thing we can do.¡±


    ¡°Well, I mean, maybe we can negotiate. I don¡¯t think enough bullets are going to mow down this entire fleet of muggers¡ªjust saying,¡± I said, being realistic.


    ¡°There¡¯s no reason to be negative. Someone¡¯s gotta stop these muggers, and it¡¯s going to be you and me. So grow up!¡±


    Dang¡­


    I lifted my hands up in submission, as Hans steadily advanced towards the door. He faced the rifle straight at the door, while extending his height by bending over to his tippy-toes. ¡°They¡¯re still there,¡± he said. ¡°They¡¯re not gonna be for a short time.¡±


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s hope that the same fate doesn¡¯t happen with us,¡± I said, but Hans only responded with an exasperated look, forcing me into submission, once again.


    Then, he kneeled down, as he got ready for the initial fire. ¡°Wait, what do I do?¡± I asked, realizing that he was going to be the lone fighter in all of this. Hans nced at me. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Throw knives or pots or anything. Just do whatever.¡±


    ¡°Alright¡­¡± I said in a mutter.


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