Chapter 43: CHAPTER 42
The warmth of the sun filled him and the soft tender arms of the air captured his lungs, he didn't know when he tithed his head backwards and closed his eyes, inhaling the air greedily as though he was competing for it. Jeff felt relief, from having breathed foul air for almost six hours in the tunnel, and not for the fact that he was out of the school walls. For one thing, he couldn't believe that he was actually out of the walls of the academy. He never saw this day coming, he was actually hoping that he would not see the outside of the school walls until his graduation day, when all the school would cheer and call out his name. When the principal would shake hands with him and hand him his certificate. He had envisioned joining the army afterwards, getting married to a good wife and also taking care of his mother. He never for once saw this day, all thanks to Raz and his friends and their speculations of the apocalypse. Only God knows if what they say is true or not. Jeff frowned and opened his eyes when he heard footsteps behind him.
"Ema, can't you just maintain your distance..." he trailed off. It wasn't Ema. It was the keepers, about three of them all in polished white armor that could serve as a mirror anytime. The red light from their dark visor beeped constantly as if daring him to move. They looked down and towered over Jeff with active light swords, beaming dangerously with red light. None of them had the electric gun, which was quiet comforting to Jeff.
Jeff elevated his gaze and studied them with narrow eyes, the fright lying somewhere in his adrenaline was almost surfacing. What were they doing here? Were they sent by the school authority? These robots are fast and taking down three of them won't be easy, especially when you are unarmed. But the keepers never operated on their own, so if there were three here, that means the person who had their control might be close. Jeff leaned behind the green covered rock and scrambled with his hands, trying to find anything to arm himself. His eyes never left the three keepers who attacked him immediately when he picked up a dry bamboo stick.
"Whoosh" Come the sound of the light sword of the first keeper, which passes by Jeff, missing him by the hair, and creating sparks on the rock while pushing into the air some of the greens in the rock. Jeff used the bamboo stick in his hand and smashed its helmet with all his might. The robot lost its balance and crushed over the rock, dropping its light sword in the process. Jeff picked up the sword swiftly and destroyed the robot. He shifted his weight in an acute angle, missing the other who jumped over trying to collide with him but ended up crashing on the rock behind him. It was much easier for Jeff to cut off its head. There was not enough room here and the keepers were trying to trap him between the two large rocks.
Jeff noticed and scrambled out like a spider, giving himself enough space to fight, least he dies and be forgotten here. The third keeper slashed his sword horizontally but Jeff, calling to mind all the seasons he'd had with Raz, stoop with a spinning motion and sliced the robot in half, from its insulated tube abdomen. The robot dismantled in pieces with twitting sound, exposing wires and sparks.
Jeff panted and wiped his brow. What in the Hero's city were the keepers doing in the middle of nowhere and why had they attacked him? The keepers were built to maintain, peace and dignity and not to assault anybody in any form. Jeff extinguished his Light sword and turned the keeper before him. He found the clip of the brain plate and forced it open the.
Jeff gasped.
"A flame card!!!" he exclaimed, afraid to admit to the fears that were giving his goose bump. He picked up the red chip from the mother board of the keeper and observed its features under the rising sun. The yellow lines trailing down on both side of it and the red in the middle crisscross at the upper and lower side. With the rays of sunlight passing through it, the chip always resemble a burning card, hence the name flame card. The red chip was popularly known as a flame card, which was only inserted during a war, yet even during wars it was dangerous to insert these cards. The flame card is a technology that makes the keepers very strong, fast and agile, but the after effect is that they become very aggressive that they kill anything in sight, even the one controlling them. That's why the only people allowed to posses such cards were the top officers in the military.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone