Chapter 88: Guilt, Shame, Pain and Anger
As I ran out of the forest with Neha in my arms, I did not care about the fact that I could see easily in the dark night. Nor did I care about the fact that my speed was more than triple the amount it used to be even though it should have just increased by a little bit after the evolution.
I did not care about the 3rd tier mutant beasts I slaughtered on my way out of the encirclement. And I did not care about what happened to my other subordinates.
'How did all this happened?'
'How did me and Neha went from sleeping inside a large building to running from a large horde of mutant beasts?'
'This is my fault that Neha is so injured. Is should have been careful.'
Guilt.
Shame.
Anger.
I crushed all the thoughts in my mind, quashed all the feelings in my heart and focused all my attention on running.
Neha was injured. And needed to get her to a safe place.
Nothing else matter to me now.
So I ran.
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"This will hurt a bit. Here. Bite this cloth so you don't bite your tongue." I said and removed her defensive suit and she cried out in pain when I reached her hands and legs as both of them had sustain extensive muscle injuries and a few fractures.
'What do I do now Lily. Please help me.' I begged as I saw Neha squirm in pain.
Guilt. Pain. Shame. Worry.
'Alright. Go to the 'buy' section in the interface and then go to the 'medical' section.' She said and I went through her instructions with utmost urgency.
"Shh.. Shhhh… Don't worry. It'll all be fine. I'm here. Your big brother is here. I'll take care of you." I said and wiped her tears as she sobbed through the pain.
This was truly a dark night for me.
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I looked at her sleeping form and felt my worry lessen a bit. But then it came back with vengeance.
'Did I set her broken bones alright?'
'Will she truly be well?'
'Did the mutant beasts follow us or are we safe in here?'
Many unwanted question surged in my mind and I had no answers for them.
And despite the fact that I was stronger than ever, I had never felt so weak and helpless before.
To watch my little princess suffer through so much pain.
I did what I could but I hope I would have been able to do more.
To somehow take away her pain and give it to myself.
'And what do I do now?' That thought stuck with me.
Neha was safe. For now.
I had gained enough distance between the mutant beasts and myself. And I was sure to not leave any traces as I ran.
But despite all that Jasvinder taught me, I was only a human.
I was worried about Neha and did not do a very good job and might have left some traces for them to follow.
'What if the follow them and come here?'
We'll have to run once again?
But the 'Agility Booster' Penalty is in effect and I might not be able to run away this time.
And I don't want to see her go through so much pain once again either.
Worry filled my mind but by the end of it, I was able to make a decent enough plan.
—————
"And you don't know what happened to your subordinates either."
"Yes. I don't. I don't know if they ran away. I don't know if we are in danger because of them. I don't know if they're dead or alive. And frankly, at this point, I don't really care. I care about my sister and she's heavily wounded and I would prefer not to move her right now. So, are you going to help or not?" I asked.
After a long pause he said "We'll arrive there within half an hour."
"Thank you." I replied.
"Did you tell Rahul about this?" he asked and I froze.
He took my silence for what it was and said "I see. Do tell him about this. He has the right to know. She is his sister as well after all." He said and I felt my something sink at the bottom of my stomach.
Yes. I had to inform big bro as well. Tell him of my failure and how she got so heavily injured in my watch.
"I will." I said with a dejected tone. It was not something I wanted to do, but it something that needed to be done.
"Good. And Ashok…"
"What?" I asked weakly.
"…This is not your fault."
"…Thank you Jasvinder."
"Hmm… We'll be there as soon as possible." He said and cut the connection.
I sighed deeply and looked at the stars up above in the sky and felt a sense of calm come over me.
Still, the worry and guilt didn't go away either.
I felt lonely.
I looked at the basement where I had shifted Neha, and her pet Holler.
If the mutant beasts arrive here, then I'll lead them away.
Keep her safe.
But before that, I had one more person to inform.
So I called big bro.
—————
Unlike what I had assumed, he did not berate me.
He calmly told me that it was not my fault and that Neha would never blame me for such a thing either.
He did not blame me for anything.
He did not point out how I lost the first team he ever gave me.
He just told me that it was not my fault and that everything will be alright.
Somehow that made me feel worse.
I sighed deeply for the nth number of time in the dark night.
I kept the walkie talkie back in my pocket and stood up, getting ready to guard the house but froze once again.
Someone was trying to contact me through the walkie talkie.
"Who is this?" I asked.
"Is that you Rahul. Oh thank god you're safe. Can you tell me where you are. I'm a bit lost out here." He said and I recognized the voice instantly.
"Raka? Where are you?" I asked.
"I… I don't know. It's some kind of park. Wait! I see a Board in here. It says… Shiki… no, …Shakti Shadara Park. Yes yes. That's what he said." He said frantically and I did not had to guess that he was a bit spooked out by his circumstance.
"Hold on for a second" I said and took out the map in order to search for his location.
At times like these, I truly hated the absence of GPS.
It made things so much easier and simple.
Regardless, the Park was in the map. And it was close by.
"Very well Raka. Follow my direction." I said and started to give him directions.
Weekly Power Status
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