Chapter 21: Too Late?
"Damn, where is it? It can't be this hard to find,"
mumbled Kaiden to himself as he frantically tapped on his phone. He was almost dismantling his brand new device.
If it didn't have the added protection of a newer model, it would look like a battered thing with a flickering screen by now.
Luckily, that wasn't the case, but Kaiden was getting more and more panicked as he couldn't locate it. Just as he was about to approach another person to ask for help with his email issue, he was suddenly bumped into and stumbled to the ground.
Another person extended a hand and asked if he was alright. Kaiden affirmed that it was nothing serious.
"Anyway, I need your help. I've got a problem, I can't find my email on my phone," he explained.
But as he said this and tried to show his phone to the bystanders, his feet, despite socks and shoes, turned cold. A shiver ran down his spine, and sudden dread gripped his heart.
With frantic arm movements, he searched his entire body. First in his pockets, but the shock worsened.
His wallet was gone too. He looked around within a few meters, but no phone was in sight.
Then he looked around and spotted a person, dressed entirely in black, sprinting away. They must have stolen his phone and made a quick escape. Muttering that this person would pay, he apologized to the passerby who had helped him up.
He bid him farewell and set off after the fleeing thief. But Kaiden seemed to want to take a shortcut. He went down the left dark alley and took several turns.
He ran almost in circles, taking as many turns as possible. When he was done and finally had the thief back in sight, he started walking towards him, calmly. The thief thought he had escaped unnoticed.
Kaiden, approaching the thief quietly but swiftly, whispered into his ear,
"Thought you could outsmart me, huh?"
Startled, the thief turned around, screaming, as he realized it was Kaiden.
The slightly trembling passerby from earlier, who had stolen the items. Chuckling and laughing at this bizarre sight, Kaiden said,
"A person all dressed in black?! Running away when they could've easily hidden in the crowd?! And then a complete stranger helps me, who was at least 10 meters away before?! I couldn't help but laugh."
He grumbled somewhat annoyed that, yes, he was a bit off because of the tumor, but not so much that he would fall for such ridiculous tricks.
"You could've at least put in more effort when stealing, you know. I noticed you trying to steal my wallet from my pocket. I saw your hand and could immediately identify it, despite everything."
The passerby, who turned out to be the actual thief, seemed even more nervous now. But his expression changed abruptly, becoming normal and ending with a slight smile.
Then Kaiden realized something must be up. In just a fraction of a second, as he saw this shift in emotions, he knew his accomplice would be coming from behind.
However, since he didn't know exactly from where, he simply sidestepped. The other swung futilely with a steel pipe, missing completely and losing balance, leaning slightly forward.
Kaiden seized this moment and struck the back of his head with his hand as hard as he could, shifting his whole body weight into that one spot. The direct hit flung the now almost pitiable thief several meters, leaving him on the ground.
Crimson liquid spread from the back of the attacker's head. Kaiden, his hand slightly stained with blood, swung down with force, like a sword to the ground, causing some blood particles to scatter.
The dark, filthy alley was now streaked with deep red blood. Kaiden, looking back at the bystanders, explained regretfully that his friend would likely die if he didn't get medical help.
Moreover, he seemed to be suffering from severe impairments after brutally hitting his head. "Anyway, I'll let you pass and will call an ambulance if you tell me where the email button is."
The nervous passerby, almost in tears, tremblingly took out his wallet and phone, dropping the knife.
He threw the wallet to Kaiden, who reached out and approached. Somewhat bent over, he watched the trembling man search for the email button.
Within a few seconds, he found it and added it to the home screen, similar to how one would add a phone call shortcut.
With a touch of sarcasm, Kaiden said, chuckling slightly,
"Well, turns out you're good for something."
He patted him lightly on the shoulder as he crouched down.
He then called emergency services, explained that there were two apparently lifeless people on the ground, and quickly gave their location before ending the call.
The passerby, pale and filled with fear, closed his eyes and listened to Kaiden's reassuring voice, assuring him that he was just messing around and would now leave.
The man breathed a sigh of relief, but then Kaiden's left hook struck with great speed, followed by several more blows. Some teeth fell out, and his face was covered in swellings.
But Kaiden didn't seem entirely satisfied. He struck again with half the force, this time with the same momentum as before.
There was a loud crack, followed by more sounds as he withdrew his hand from the obviously shattered skull.
"Damn,"
he whispered softly, "I think I may have overdone it a bit."
Then, in a louder voice, he asked himself, "Anyway, where's the address?"
His eyes widened as he looked at the clock. Only twelve minutes until 6 PM. A page on his phone opened, evidently a route guide to the address.
It would take 35 minutes on foot, 15 by bicycle, and 8 by car.
"I can make it if I just run fast," he thought in relief.
He immediately started picking up pace and sprinting, but not through the crowds.
Instead, he ran through side alleys until he saw a way to get onto the roofs.
His legs moved almost automatically, without any sign of pain, through the eternal, dark, and foul-smelling alleys.
Finally, a rise formed by several garbage bins and balconies provided a perfect hurdle to ascend. Kaiden seized it, galloping over like a noble steed and using it as an additional springboard.
Shortly after, he managed to conquer the obstacle, which was about ten meters high, triggering an endless sprint across the city's buildings.
As he approached the end of the buildings, he realized he was already at his destination – near the promenade, at a kind of boat docking point where several boats were moored.
Kaiden, who had been glancing at his phone every few seconds, studied the route to the destination.
When he looked away, he noticed that the buildings were gradually losing height. Finally, the last building was only three meters high, from which Kaiden could easily jump.
Time flew by; it was already 5:57 PM, and there were only 600 meters left to the destination. Kaiden accelerated even more until he finally reached the destination just before the end.
The person waiting for him was tall and robust, with a black-brownish full beard and a half-bald head. His gaze was extremely threatening and grim as he scanned the surroundings for latecomers.
Then, as he seemed to spot Kaiden and locked eyes with him, he continued to look into the distance, searching for others. In a gruff tone, he said that two were still missing.
The somewhat larger boat seemed not only to be visited by Kaiden – it was practically overflowing.
The boat, designed for maybe 80 people, had at least 100 visitors on board, which meant that those who came later had to stand, but still had some space.
Seconds passed, and another person – a young man about the same age as Kaiden – seemed to be sprinting towards the boat at full speed.
The last seconds ticked away, and the barrier that blocked the entrance slowly closed. It seemed almost shut when the other young man was still a few meters away.
Finally, he raised his hand as if pointing towards the barrier, which then opened again as if by magic.
The man in uniform black with stars and a name on his chest seemed even grimmer. He stated that he would let this action pass. As the strapping and broad-seeming giant with a slightly furrowed brow stood up to express himself better while shouting, he declared with a loud voice:
"From today on, you are students of an academy that serves the homeland. Call yourselves mercenaries, warriors, awakened, or whatever else, but remember one thing: I have the authority here, and if anyone steps out of line, I am authorized to eliminate you! If you don't know what that means, I'll throw you out into the open sea! My name is Sergeant Ken, and for many of you, I'll be a familiar face in the coming days, as you might be joining my course!"
With these powerful words, the previously lively chatter abruptly fell silent. The seemingly solid ground suddenly seemed to jolt as the boat detached from the shore. This surprised not only Kaiden but also many others, who were now thrown off balance.
Shortly after, Sergeant Ken added that conversations were allowed, but he would only tolerate real arguments and disturbances that he perceived as such.
With that, the conversations began again, though slightly quieter than before.
With the onset of conversations, one voice stood out, especially that of the latecomer.
But this was because his words were directly aimed at Kaiden.
"I'm Alex Fram, what's your name?"
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