Capítulo 17: San Andreas 1/4
Ethan reached out to stop a taxi and asked the driver to take him to Duban Street.
—You know some good place to eat, I just got off the plane and I'm starving.
—Sure, my friend Jimmy Lee has the best Chinese food restaurant in Chinatown.
After the vehicle started, Ethan crossed his arms and closed his eyes to rest. The children next to him on the plane had made so much noise that the stewardess had to stop them several times before they finally calmed down.
The driver, an African American man, tried to strike up a conversation, but in the end he was ignored, he just muttered something to himself and, noticing Ethan through the rearview mirror, I don't know how long it was, but the taxi stopped .
The driver, seeing Ethan sleeping soundly, raised his voice to wake him up.
—Sir, we have arrived. They are $$ 15.00.
—Thanks —Ethan muttered while rubbing his eyes. He reached into his coat, took out some money, and handed it over to pay the fee.
—Man, remember not to fall asleep in a taxi, not everyone is as decent as me and you could wake up somewhere not very nice. Oh and tell Jimmy that he sent you Carl — he said giving him a business card. — If you need to move you can call me without problem.
The driver made a serious gesture when saying it.
—Thanks for the reminder, I'll keep that in mind.
Ethan thought for a moment and decided to tip him an extra ten bucks.
After handing the money over to the driver, Ethan took his backpack, opened the door, and got out of the vehicle, in front of the restaurant, walked in guided by the scent, the atmosphere was calm with some clear tables. I quickly took a seat at an unoccupied table and was excited to try something different.
At the counter, two young Asian girls in front saw Ethan and his eyes lit up. They hugged and whispered excitedly, fighting over who was going to attend their table:
— Wow, I take care of the handsome boy!
— What? You're crazy, it's my turn.
Ethan, who had a good ear, clearly heard the comment in Chinese without being able to understand what they were saying, only agreed to smile while waiting for the letter.
Hearing their response, the girls' faces turned red and they turned embarrassed.
After the letter was delivered to him, Ethan to place his order. It was not uncommon to find foreigners who enjoyed food there.
Ethan settled into the chair of the small table by the window, his gaze scanning the menu while the hustle and bustle of the Chinese restaurant filled the air. The aroma of spices and roast beef enveloped him, awakening a voracious hunger that made his stomach growl.
When the waitress, a middle-aged woman with a kind smile, approached her table with a notepad in hand, Ethan did not hesitate.
—I want an order of sweet and sour pork ribs and Kung Pao chicken with the accompaniments, please —said, guided by the menu photos. Since there were no Asian restaurants in Banshee, other than Sushi.- Oh and a coke.
The waitress nodded, quickly pointing to the order before disappearing among crowded customer tables. Ethan leaned back in his seat, allowing himself a quiet moment while waiting for his food.
When the plate arrived, the smell was almost overwhelming. The ribs were perfectly glazed, the sweet and sour sauce leaking temptingly over the tender meat. Kung Pao chicken, with its mix of peanuts, peppers, and spices, so Ethan couldn't wait to try.
He took the cutlery and, without further ado, began to eat, enjoying the perfect balance between sweet and spicy, between the crisp texture and the softness of the meat.
When he finished he felt satisfied, the food was excellent. So he had the idea to bring something back to Banshee, after all his storage space, he had previously tried that by placing something in dimensional space, time would stop for that object no matter how long it was. So I order the waitress to prepare some dishes like roast pork, chicken with soy sauce, roasted ribs, etc., in takeaway containers.
—Of course there is no problem, only it took a while.
Ethan understood and had no problem waiting. There was still a long time, and the city would not go anywhere after all.
Not long after, Ethan left the restaurant with two large bags full of food, one in each hand. San Francisco's Chinatown was a very famous tourist attraction, and there were people everywhere. He had a hard time finding a deserted corner to put the two large bags of food in his storage space.
After that Ethan wandered happily through Chinatown.
In the afternoon, he moved to Fisherman's Wharf, it was a pier on the north coast of the city that was the first port in San Francisco, it is one of the most popular tourist areas, so I enjoy some attractions, I buy some souvenirs for Siobhan and Alma, and after enjoying a seafood dinner in front of the sea accompanied by cold beers at sunset, He took a taxi to the Oracle Arena in Oakland, next to San Francisco.
As it was the weekend, when he arrived at the Oracle Arena, he was already full of fans queuing up to enter early.
Ethan caught the lively atmosphere, today the pass to Playoff was disputed between the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers, as game time approached, the Oracle Arena became a yellow sea, this was one of the reasons to come to San Fracisco first as he was a big fan of the Lakers.
During the warm-up, Lakers star player Kobe Bryant, with his number 24 on his back, greeted the audience, hitting a triple from the middle of the court, igniting the atmosphere.
The rhythm of the game was a bit boring at first. After seeing the wonderful performance of the cheerleaders during halftime, the triples of the Splash Brothers, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson of the Golden States dominated the second half of the game, pressuring their opponent shortly after the start. In the last quarter, the game went into downtime, and both teams made substitutions in their main lineups.
After the game, Ethan enthusiastically entered the player tunnel and managed to obtain autographs of the team's stars, in the Jersey he carried with him, after paying a few dollars to one of the guards, he managed to sneak in, although his team had lost the game. , he couldn't help but get excited.
He recovered his backpack, left the Oracle Arena still excited, took a taxi back to his hotel in San Francisco, at the end of the low taxi ride, and in front of the luxurious Grand Meridian Hotel, one of the most exclusive hotels in San Francisco. The modern and elegant building reflected the bright afternoon sunlight, as if each glass panel was made to impress.
The doorman, dressed in impeccable uniform, hurried to receive him, opening the front door with a professional smile. Ethan nodded in gratitude, his expression impassive as he crossed the threshold inward.
Ethan advanced towards the reception, where an elegant woman in a perfectly fitted black suit greeted him with a welcoming smile.
—Welcome to the Grand Meridian, sir. How can I help you? —he said, his voice soft and trained to convey warmth without familiarity.
—I have a reservation in the name of Ethan Morgan —he replied, giving him his ID.
The receptionist took the document and began to type in her computer, her fast and precise movements. After a few seconds, he looked up.
—Of course, Mr. Morgan. Your room is ready. We have prepared everything according to your specifications. His room is located on the top floor, with panoramic views of the San Francisco Bay. If there is anything else you need, feel free to ask.
Ethan thanked with a slight nod, accepting the key card that she offered him. A bellboy materialized next to him, ready to accompany him to his room. Walking next to the uniformed young man.
Upon reaching the upper floors, the bellboy opened the door to the room and, with an almost imperceptible bow and after a tip, withdrew, leaving Ethan alone.
Ethan put his suitcase on the floor and headed for the windows, observing the city unfolding under his feet. The sea breeze gently caressed the glass, and for a moment, everything seemed to be in perfect balance.
He stripped off his jacket and dropped onto the fluffy sofa, enjoying the silence and solitude that the room offered him. San Francisco extended beyond the windows, a city full of possibilities, and he was ready to face them, but not before enjoying a well-deserved rest.
The next day, he left the hotel with the intention of taking a taxi and heading to his next tourist destination. He didn't know what was going on, but when he left the hotel he saw a dozen rats running wildly down the street.
Ethan walked past the hotel doorman, who was trying to chase the mice away with a broom, with a dejected expression on his face.
Upon reaching the corner of the street, he couldn't find a taxi, so he looked around. Through a large window in an office building, he saw a beautiful blonde in a red leather jacket, holding a young boy while writing and drawing in a book.
Perhaps out of a mysterious sixth sense, the blonde felt someone watching her, so she turned her head, encountering Ethan's gaze. They both smiled.
Ethan felt that the woman was familiar to him, but he did not give it much importance and quickly looked away.
He was about to stop an approaching taxi when he suddenly heard a sound in his mind: "ding".
"Escape mission: survive the San Francisco earthquake."
Looking at the information on the light screen in front of him, Ethan's hair suddenly bristled, his mind soon began to work and he saw the blonde girl say goodbye to the boy and walk towards the elevator with a middle-aged man. age.
—Damn — cursed Ethan briefly and forcefully. The scene in front of him and the systematic tasks vaguely reminded him of a movie he had seen in his previous life.
He pushed the can aside, spread his legs, and hurried to the park in the middle of the street next to him. This was the only open space near him, and there was no time to look for another, he hoped to be wrong but seeing the girl who must be Blake (Alexandra Daddario) he could not be wrong.
Pedestrians on the street saw his appearance and fled, thinking that they had run into a madman.
Ethan ran to the park in the middle of the street, took a quick look, and quickly ran to the corner of a flowerbed. Ignoring the dust from the ground, he lay down, snuggled up, and held his head in his hands.
— Hahaha! Look at this lunatic, is this some kind of stage art?
In a fast food truck not far away, a Mexican vendor pointed at Ethan with a taco and laughed wildly.
Several people waiting for the food also laughed. Boring office workers have many opportunities to see this type of show it was not a rare thing to see this city so they ignored it.
Before the laughter could subside, the ground shook.
Cars parked on both sides of the street shook and a series of sirens sounded. People near the food truck looked at each other, wondering what had happened.
Ethan was also surprised by the sudden shaking in the ground and started to sweat when he saw some people in the food truck who were still stunned.
At that time it was too late; all the earth trembled like a wave.
Wherever he looked, the skyscrapers kept swaying, making bending metal sounds. Countless bricks, tiles, and glass fell from the walls like raindrops and shattered, like bombs when they hit the ground.
People on the street gave out heartbreaking screams, running like headless flies, and occasionally someone fell to the ground.
Ethan watched helplessly as a huge wall fell from the sky, hitting the place where the food truck was with a loud bang.
The moment it hit, a circle of smoke and dust rose, and countless pieces of gravel flew everywhere.
Fortunately, Ethan was hidden in the corner of the park. It was the safest place for now.
Faced with this powerful force of nature, Ethan felt like a little ant. There was nothing I could do for now. He could only protect his head with one hand, cover his mouth and nose with the other, and hold his breath. The following could only be left to luck.
Soon the ground stopped shaking. Ethan quickly checked his condition. Fortunately, he suffered no harm.
After getting up, he saw where the food truck was, with a large wall covering it. The group of people and the food truck disappeared under the wall.
The surrounding tall buildings were crumbling here and there, and occasionally the broken walls fell from the sky. All kinds of office paper flew in the sky, like it was snowing.
A scream came abruptly from a high place, and with a "bang" sound, a few drops of blood stained Ethan's pants.
Ethan stabilized his mind. This was just the first wave of earthquakes, and after that there would be more. Now she had to find Blake, her father was a rescuer who would rescue her sooner or later, so by following her and the characters in the play, her chances of survival would increase considerably.
Ethan ignored the crying crowds all over the street and ran quickly to the office building.
When they arrived in front of the office building, the people inside lost their old dignity, moved away from each other from the interior and ran away.
After struggling to break through the crowd, Ethan finally entered the office building, searched the chaotic crowd, and saw the curly-haired boy who had just brought someone to the fire door.
Ignoring the deterrence of the building's security guard, Ethan ran upstairs to the second floor against the flow of people and followed him.
—Guys, do you need help?
—Hi, I'm Ben, Ben Taylor, and this is my brother Ollie.
—Our friend trapped in the parking lot, can you help us get her out of there? —Ben Taylor took Ollie's hand, stopped when he heard Ethan's scream and asked enthusiastically.
—No problem, let's go. By the way, I'm Ethan —this was exactly what Ethan wanted, and he agreed without saying a word.
Several people walked down the stairs to the parking lot. Unlike outside, the underground parking lot was as quiet as a cemetery.
Ethan heard some faint screams for help, searched through the screams, and found a ramshackle Lincoln car crashed in the corner.
— Help, I'm trapped!
People trapped in the car heard a series of steps, quickly put their hands out the car window.
Ethan saw a slab fall from the ground onto the roof of the Lincoln, and the heavy reinforced concrete blocks had already crushed most of the car.
Ben hurried up and said:
— Blake, are you okay ?!
—Ben, great, where's Daniel? Didn't he come with you?
—The floor is about to collapse the car. My feet are blocked by the front seat and I can't move. Please help me get out of here. —Blake said hastily.
—Daniel told us you were trapped in the parking lot and ran away —Ben said helplessly.
Blake wiped the tears off his face and said:
—This bastard, my mother should send him to hell.
Ethan stepped forward and tugged at the car door with both hands. Unfortunately, the entire body was tight and deformed, and the door did not move at all.
—Hi, I'm Ethan. I just saw them run in this direction. I am here to help. Don't worry, we'll find a way to get you out. —Seeing Blake's confused expression, he presented himself with a smile, trying to sound calm.
Ben pushed Ethan aside.
—The top floor is so heavy that it cannot move. We have to give Blake some room to move before we can get her out the window.
—Okay, what do you want to do?
After searching nearby, Ben Taylor found a steel bar, walked to the Lincoln car, found a fulcrum, and pushed it hard.
—Come on, let's push together.
Ethan stepped forward, grabbed the steel bar with both hands, and the two pulled up with all their might by leveraging the concrete block.
Although they had strengthened their physicists and had extraordinary physical strength, the floor was too heavy and they only managed to move the steel bars slightly.
When Ollie saw Ethan and his brother retaining the veins from their necks, he also ran forward with his slim body.
With the efforts of the three people, the vehicle creaked and the floor rose slowly. Blake was pleasantly surprised to discover that the pressure on his legs gradually decreased.
He was about to pull out his legs, but at that moment, Ben Taylor's forces failed and his hands suddenly loosened; he could no longer hold it and the ground fell again.
As a result, the broken floor slipped further and several stones fell.
Ethan's reaction was amazing. He released the steel bars with both hands and grabbed Ben and Ollie's necks. He quickly backed away, causing none of them to be hit by the rocks.
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