章 14: Chapter 14 : Take the locomotive to his girlfriend's house. Are you surprised or surprised?

The wind howled like a roaring beast, slicing through the night sky like a sharp sword. The gusts whipped at pedestrians, tossing their hair and making skirts flutter wildly.

The Locomotive glared at his target with disdain, who remained blissfully unaware of the danger. Just a few minutes earlier, he had been following this man under orders from the Homeland, trailing him at super speed and observing him thoroughly.

He couldn't understand why the Homeland had ordered him to spy on this ordinary-looking Asian man who appeared completely unremarkable. Yet, refusing the Homeland was not an option—he didn't dare.

After the incident with Deadman, the Locomotive's popularity had plummeted. Though the company handled the aftermath, they seemed eager to replace him with another speedster, Shockwave, something the Locomotive simply could not accept. The Homeland had promised that, if he kept a close eye on this man and gathered the necessary information, they would put pressure on the company to ensure he stayed with the Super Seven.

Confident that he had the situation under control, the Locomotive stared at his target.

"God is fair. He gave you a bad face, so he must've made sure you had a bad brain too. Can't have you looking even more unbalanced!" the Locomotive thought smugly.

But Jonny Blaze—the man he was following—didn't even acknowledge his existence. Instead, Jonny was using his super hearing to search for someone.

After about half an hour, boredom crept over the Locomotive, and his expression grew puzzled.

This is the block where his girlfriend lives.

"What's this guy doing here so late? Does he live around here too? Wait—did he just go into my girlfriend's apartment?!"

Watching Jonny slip into the building with clear purpose, a growing unease filled the Locomotive. He cursed and hurried to follow.

There were a lot of people living in this apartment complex. No way, right—

What the—!?

The Locomotive froze in shock as he saw Jonny standing in front of his girlfriend's door, knocking. His heart dropped.

He's here to see her?!

It couldn't be a coincidence—Jonny knew exactly where to go, as if he'd been here before. The Locomotive's mind raced. Was his girlfriend betraying him?

Rage surged through him, and he prepared to confront them both. But just as the anger boiled over, Jonny turned and smirked at him, as if taunting him.

"Surprised? Shocked?"

"You—" The Locomotive's eyes widened in disbelief. Had Jonny known he was being followed all along? Impossible!

There's no way he could've known! I'm too fast for him to detect! If he had noticed me, why didn't he—

"Who is it?" came a woman's voice from inside.

The door opened.

And in that instant, Jonny's mocking grin widened, and he lunged at the Locomotive before he could react.

Bam!

The Locomotive felt himself lifted and then hurled into the living room of his girlfriend's apartment. His neck ached from where Jonny had grabbed him.

How did he move so fast?

Is he a speedster too?

The Locomotive's mind reeled. No one was faster than him—there couldn't be! But Jonny had done it with ease.

"Who are you?" Jonny asked calmly.

The woman inside, dressed in casual home clothes, rushed toward the fallen Locomotive. "The Locomotive? What—are you okay?" she asked, panic in her voice as she tried to help him up.

But he pushed her away, scrambling to his feet, eyes locked on Jonny in disbelief.

"You a speedster too?" he finally blurted.

"You think I didn't notice you?" Jonny sneered. "You ran around, playing your little games, thinking I wouldn't catch on? Please. You really think you could follow someone under the Homeland's thumb without being spotted?"

It clicked in the Locomotive's head. This was all arranged by the Homeland.

"You… you have beef with Homeland, don't you?" Jonny asked, a mocking edge in his tone.

The Locomotive was panicking inside. "Of course not!" he lied. "What's your point?"

"Why did Homeland send you after me? You don't even know, do you? Poor fool."

"Know what?" The Locomotive's nerves were fraying.

Jonny didn't answer. Instead, something appeared in his hand out of thin air—a vial.

Compound V? It looked similar, but the Locomotive couldn't be sure.

Whatever it was, it didn't matter. He had to get out of there, now.

Whoosh!

The Locomotive tried to bolt, but Jonny was on him instantly, cutting him off.

Faster! I have to go faster!

Again and again, the Locomotive tried, but Jonny was too quick, matching every move, even anticipating them.

No—he's faster than me!

The Locomotive's heart raced with panic as the syringe in Jonny's hand drew closer. His heart was already worn out from overuse of Compound V, and now it was faltering.

I can't keep this up—my heart won't take it! I need to find an escape route!