章節 38: CHAPTER 38
A/N: Sup guys, I apologize for not posting yesterday as It was unavoidable.
This might be unfortunate news for some, but I'm thinking of working on a new schedule during weekend for the number of chapters I'll be posting weekly since school and work are taking quite the toll on my free time.
And no, this is not a prelude to a drop.
I'm thinking between 3 - 5 chapters every week, that way I can at least have some breathing space for myself when work and school are done with me.
With that out of the way, let's proceed with today's chapter.
================
The thick and suffocating scent of fear saturated the air at the subway station, causing the hearts of the crowd to beat faster and harder than they ever thought possible. It was a chaotic scene, with people running in all directions, trying to escape the overwhelming feeling of dread, but they were halted with guns which pointed at them from both sides of the train.
Many feared for their lives and obeyed every instruction that was given to them. There was no place for ego or human rights when a gun that could snuff out your life with the pull of a trigger was being pointed at you. For some it was just another day over here, while some people have experienced traumatic events like this and now saw it as a new norm. Others never got used to it and are still terrified when such things happen.
When the train stopped at the station, they asked everyone to get down from the train as they controlled the crowd. Immediately everyone was out of the train, they asked us to get down on our knees with hands behind our heads.
They had taken control over the subway station's security system, both the security men, communication systems, and the surveillance cameras were under their control at the moment. They acted like they were on the clock and needed to achieve their objective before any help could come from the outside.
They confiscated everyone's phones, taking extra measures to ensure the police didn't intervene with their mission that day.
"Quiet down!" One of the goons wearing a Freddy Krueger mask yelled as he swayed his gun around, pointing at no one in particular but threatened the masses all together.
"No one is coming to save you now. Not the police, not even the speedsters." He let out a wicked chuckle as the faces of the crowd grew pale. They felt the tension in the air increase, and then the rest of the robbers just yelled at them for decorum.
Tom just kept calm, after all if things went south he was sure to get out of there unscathed. But if he made a move, who knows what would happen to the other hostages.
Like always, there is always that one idiot who thinks they could voice out their opinions and resolve a violent situation without the need for said violence.
A man started speaking up and yelling at the robbers that what they were doing was wrong and immoral, maybe the trauma must have made him lose his mind. Why else would a sane person yell at people holding loaded guns and could end the life of anyone present, right there at the spot?
As the man continued to rant on and on, their captors grew sick and tired of him wanting to voice out his so called human rights. One walked up to him and pointed a gun at his head before pulling the trigger. A headshot which ended the man immediately as his brains spilled out on the cold floor.
"Noo!"
A lady cried out loud as the man who was shot happened to be her husband, she crawled over to his lifeless body and cried bitterly for the loss of her beloved.
In the midst of the commotion, another man tried making a run for it, a dumb ass move if anyone was asked. He was shot down, an action that seemed to immediately knock some sense into the rest of them. No one was acting like a knucklehead anymore or making stupid decisions as they were all frozen to the spot.
"The man in the blue suit who's holding a brief case by the side, that's our guy." The head of the robbers stated as he singled out a middle aged man.
One of the men walked over to the midst of the hostages with a gun by his side, and dragged the target to their boss.
"You sneaky bastard. We've been looking for you for a while now. I gotta hand it to you, hiding out in Central City was a smart move."
"Please, I don't know what you are talking about. I'm just an accountant." The terrified man made his plea which fell on deaf ears.
"Come on now, we know you are not just an accountant, but one with ties to the Falcon family. We need some information which we think you might be able to provide us with."
"I swear, I don't know what you are talking about. I'm just an ordinary accountant, please let me go."
As the scene played out right before Tom's eyes, he seemed to find it a little bit entertaining as he just stayed put and watched it play out.
"Every minute counts boys, bag him up and kill the rest of them. I think they've heard too much already." He ordered his men.
A true psychopath who didn't care about the lives of the hostages since they were now useless to him. Fear gripped the crowd as they started begging for their lives and the children started crying, holding on to their parents, scared that this was going to be their last moment.
"Sigh!"
'It seems this verse is filled with psychopaths who just result to killing civilians for unnecessary reasons. The mass murder would lead to a greater punishment for them once they get caught and arrested, but I guess they never thought that far ahead.' Tom thought to himself, he wondered what kind of logic most DC bad guys worked with, because it was really fucked up.
He wore his hoodie over his head and stood up, then walked to the front of the crowd as the robbers took note of his presumed bold move.
"You've got some balls kid, I see you want to go first. Light him up boys before disposing of the rest, then we make a run for it." The leader of the crew ordered his men as he moved to prepare their escape.
The first one shot at Tom, only for the bullet to be deflected back at him in the blink of an eye. The rest were shocked at the sight of their man who fired a gun shot, but yet he was the one who got shot.
'That never gets old.' The thought crossed Tom's mind while his eyes scanned the rest to see what their next move might be.
Before they could fathom what had just happened, he disarmed them without making any use of his hands but with a thought, their guns were ripped from their hands and sent far away from anyone's reach. He then lifted them above the ground as they floated in mid air.
"Run!" He said to the crowd as he stayed focused on the floating men.
At first they hesitated because they did not know if there were more men ahead, but they suddenly had a feel of courage as they started running towards the exit of the station. They ran so fast that Tom could only assume it was a result of the adrenaline pumping within them as the life and death situation must have probably triggered it.
"Boss, they are escaping." The men floating in the air shouted as they tried alarming their boss who had just finished preparing for their getaway.
He didn't want to bother with attending to each one of them, so he slammed them against a wall across the tracks, and one against a pillar, two lost consciousness and the other who seemed to have landed wrongly, dislocated his elbow and was struggling with the immense pain.
Tom walked up to him with his bone poking out of his hand and blood spilling over. Then bent over so he could take a closer look at his eyes as he looked like he was begging him not to hurt him any further.
Tom didn't care about hurting him, his only business was with the boss. He stretched out his hand to his face as he bashed his head into a wall he was leaning on.
The leader came in and was wondering what the commotion was all about, but the sight of Tom standing over his men on the floor and unconscious made him furious and wanted Tom's head for it.
The look in his eyes was pure hatred as it seemed Tom had foiled his plans even more.
"You think you can stop me?" He shouted in a fit of rage as he cocked his gun and shot at him. The bullet deflected off Tom and unlike his men, he was quick to evade it.
"Nice reflexes." Tom commented with a mischievous smile on his face. He saw that as an opportunity to exercise a little more of his powers on a human.
"You are a meta, well if bullets won't work then I would have to use my fists." He dropped his gun then punched the side of a pillar which scattered on impact with his hand, almost like a warm up.
"Show off." Tom muttered to himself as he realized the boss was a power type.
He raced at him, then took a sudden leap which sent him midair as he prepared his fist and launched a heavy blow directed at Tom's face.
Tom didn't move from that spot as his fist was deflected on impact with the field which surrounded him. The deflected force as a result of the man's punch, threw him a few paces back from Tom's position.
"Oh, so you are a coward who hides behind a shield. Why don't you drop that shield then come out and play?" He smiled as he taunted Tom to put down his defense.
"You know the cops will be here in no time right?" Tom said to him as he prepared himself for another attack.
"That's right, and you would be long dead before anyone gets here." He cracked his knuckles as he slowly approached him, cautious of whatever trick Tom might wish to pull on him.
"Well, that gives us some time to get a little physical. It's been a while." Tom cracked his neck, stretched his limbs a little, before taking a kickboxing stance.
One of the benefits of being the only child from a rich home was that he had to take martial arts classes, but he was a bit rusty due to the fact that he hasn't trained or practiced it since he arrived at this verse.
Tom gave him a hand gesture for him to make the first move. He dashed at him and threw a direct kick to his neck, which Tom ducked then delivered a heavy punch with its momentum tweaked to match the strength of the mad man. But unfortunately his head twisted the wrong way due to the impact from Tom's punch, and he broke his neck.
"...I guess I miscalculated what he could handle." Tom said to himself as he stared at the lifeless body, in complete shock of what had happened.
He never intended to take the man's life. Tom just wanted a minor brawl, so he could beat a little sense into him before he landed in jail. Maybe set his head straight with a punch or two, but it was too late.
After staring at his lifeless body for a few seconds, Tom noticed he didn't react like he would normally do. He had just killed a man and he wasn't fidgeting or shaking from the shock of it.
He knew killing was wrong but he only felt remorse for not more than a second. It only seemed logical to him that if the man didn't die here, the number of lives he would take during his lifetime would be a hulking amount. He was someone who saw people's lives as disposable the minute they cease to be of any use to him.
'The life of one man to save the lives of the masses. I don't know why I was thinking that way now, or since when I started thinking on such thin logics.' These thoughts kept flooding his mind as he overlooked the murder he had just committed, but one thought stood above the rest. And that was to get out of there before the cops arrived and they could do so at any second.
Tom proceeded to the control room where he found the security guards unconscious, then destroyed the surveillance system and erased its memory beyond recovery. He expunged every bit of data in order to cover his tracks before he fled the scene.
章節 39: CHAPTER 39
The thought of taking a man's life was one thing, but actually carrying out the act was an entirely different experience. Since the subway incident, the image of the lifeless man's face keeps flashing before my eyes whenever I am lost in thought or close my eyes for more than a few seconds.
I know it was clearly accident but my response to the situation came as a surprise to me. It made me wonder what else could have changed about me and how much this verse had affected my state of mind without my notice.
I know the change was natural due to my new environment but still, I might be losing a piece of myself as I adapt to my new norms around here.
The first time I noticed a change in my personality was when I first woke up in this world, and I knew exactly what caused it. It was the betrayal I experienced from my uncle in my previous lifetime, which led to my untimely death. Now, I view the world with a more cynical perspective, keeping people at arm's length and not letting anyone over the walls I've put up.
I don't mind the changes though, just that I would like to keep tabs on them and keep them in check. If I don't have control over them and I somehow develop a selfish ideology down the road, then Central City might have another villian on their hands.
My thoughts on heroes and villains still remained the same. I think it would be fun to be a villain but that's kind of a hassle if you asked me. Then again they are free to do whatever they want and whenever they wish to, without feeling obliged or carrying the expectations of the public on their shoulders.
The constant plotting and scheming, always looking above your shoulders when you are up to no good as you keep making enemies or frenemies along the way because you just can't trust anyone. One thing is clear, every villain is a hero of his own story… as fucking if. Psychos were psychos, backstory included.
Heroes on the other hand, I think they are sick with the need to help people and keep order within their city and another where their help was needed. It was the heroes' job, and they hardly took breaks from heroism because they believed in the phrase 'Evil never sleeps.' A phrase that suits this world more than anything, as they put their hearts and souls into protecting their beloved city.
If I want to live a long life in this world and enjoy the endless thrills it has to offer, I need to get stronger. Only the strong can survive here, and I don't mind reaching the top level as long as I can do my thing without interference from heroes or villains.
…
[Barry Allen's POV]
I was back in Central City and Wally has been acting weird since I arrived, I don't know if it had everything to do with the vigilante he promised to bring in, but whatever it was I hope he'll speak up soon.
Reports of beaten thugs hadn't been spotted in a while and all trails had gone cold. Maybe he had ceased all late-night activities for the time being and started keeping a lower profile, or something happened between him and Wally which he is not telling me about.
I glanced at the young speedster who was watching TV and seemed to be avoiding me, while I finished up with the sandwich he was preparing in the kitchen.
"Hey Wally, got a sec?" I said to the young lad as I gave him a sandwich.
"Sure Barry."
"Did anything interesting happen while I was away?" I asked.
"Anything like?" Wally asked as he tried to camouflage the incident in hopes of me not asking about the vigilante, because it would be embarrassing to fill me in on how he had his ass handed over to him.
"You've been avoiding holding a conversation with me since I got back and it is so unlike you to do so. So tell me, what happened."
"We found the vigilante." Wally said as he averted his gaze from me.
"That's great, why didn't you tell me about it?"
"That was because things went south and that night ended painfully for me."
"You engaged him? Wally, I've told you several times that violence is not always the answer. You should have reasoned with him and given a fair warning not to engage in such activities again, or else the police would come for him," I scolded.
"Of course, I tried to be reasonable with him. I confronted him and tried to have a rational conversation, but he didn't care to listen to what I had to say," Wally defended himself.
"I'm guessing it didn't go well and it led to something else." I said to him, sensing that there was more to the story.
"You must have guessed it already, but it escalated into a fight in which he seemed to have had the upper hand." He sighed. It was embarrassing to admit he was beaten hands down, even though he didn't go all out.
"Was he really that strong?" I asked, I wondered how Wally could be overpowered by the local vigilante.
"I wouldn't say he was that strong, he just had some tricks up his sleeves and I still couldn't figure out how his powers work."
"Well at least you got to witness him use his powers. What kind of powers were they? I could finally ask the question that had been nagging at the back of my mind since the first time I saw the reports, cases about brutally beaten thugs who testified that the culprit didn't come in contact with them but yet tossed them around like ragdolls.
Sigh!
"That's a tough one, because I still haven't figured it out yet." Wally said with a defeated tone.
"Okay, but what was it like?" I asked him as I wondered if I could figure out the nature of his abilities from the information Wally could provide.
"First off, it definitely wasn't telekinetic like we had assumed it to be." He paused and took a bit of his sandwich.
"I had a feeling his ability might be more than that."
"He did not put in much effort into fending off both Gar and I." He said with a low tone.
"I knew Gar didn't just decide to visit Central City just for the opening of that new art gallery the news was talking about. Well, continue." I gestured for him to proceed while I kept munching on my delicious sandwich.
"At first, he released what seemed to be an energy burst. I managed to get close to him, but then he messed with my center of gravity, which made me unable to move for a brief second. I broke out of his hold just in time to dodge a punch he threw at me, and that's when things got a little crazy," Wally explained.
"What do you mean by 'crazy'?" I asked the younger speedster who seemed a bit confused, I was curious about what had happened next.
"I clearly dodged the punch but yet something came in contact with my face."
"How's that even possible?" I wanted to hear more about it, this was our first time dealing with this kind of meta.
"I don't know, it just happened."
"Any other thing?"
"Yeah, he sent Gar who had transformed into a gorilla, half way across the street with a single punch."
"Wow, does he possess super strength?" For us speedsters, that level of strength was normal. But not for a normal meta unless he possessed some kind of super strength.
"I'm not sure he does, if he did then he'd get involved physically with those victims. But I did notice the crowbar he used as cuffs on some robbers who tried rubbing a jewelry store."
"Wait, what? He turned a crowbar into handcuffs?"
"Yes, yes he fucking did." He replied as he gave a slight chuckle.
"Wow, that was something I never expected . Anything else?"
"Yes, he pulled a very annoying stunt on me. I sped at him so I could knock him out and end the scuffle, but just as I was about to deliver my punch, it felt like I punched a force field and it sent me flying, almost like it deflected the force back at me and it led to a dislocated shoulder." He held this shoulder with his other arm, then flexed it a little as he spoke.
"Now that's something. How's your shoulder?" I asked, with a worried expression on my face.
"I'm fine, speed healing, remember?"
"Sure, do not let your guard down next time okay." I said to him as I patted him softly on his shoulder before attempting to take my leave.
I could tell from the way he spoke, that he intended to settle the scores if he gets the chance to do so.
"Wait, you are leaving already?"
"Yes, I gotta catch up with iris. We've got dinner plans for tonight." I replied him while I reached for my jacket hanging on the coat rack.
"You know that's not fair right?" I stopped with my hand few inches away from the door nub as I slowly turned to him, wondering what the fuck he meant by that.
"Not fair how?" I asked the teenager who seemed like his only plans for the night were to sit on the couch all night and binge watch TV series I'm pretty sure he has seen already.
"I told you what went down in the city while you were away, and about my encounter with the vigilante."
"So….?"
"Of course I want to hear what happened over the past few days, I know something juicy must have happened during your time away. Unless you would have been back to the city a few days ago." He said with no doubt in his eyes. I had a dinner date planned out with Iris in less than an hour, I wouldn't want to be late for our date like always and just show up on time.
Then again, I'm the fastest man alive. I'm sure I could squeeze in a few minutes and feed Wally's curiosity. He was right about me not being fair for holding back on what actually happened. It was League business and I was not supposed to discuss it with him, but he had earned it.
"Okay Wally, scoot over. It's time I filled you in on what really happened."
每周推薦票狀態
200+ 推薦票
榜單 
3 推薦票 
段落評論