Article 6: Fall

"Shit! Where did that little rodent go?!"

"The back door obviously, you block-head!"

Damon and Hannah had arrived at the cabin, in pursuit of Marcus. Damon had just kicked down the door and ran into the living room where the fireplace was, only to find Marcus wasn't there.

"I'll go after him, you stay and check whatever happened here!"

Damon yelled at Hannah, since he had no idea what he would need to do if he were given such a task. It was much easier for him to just chase after someone.

"Fine, get it done quickly!"

***

"Hah! Hah! Hah!"

I'm breathing heavily as I continue to sprint through the forest, being careful where to step, as to not injure myself.

I don't know if I'm still being chased, but I don't care. I simply continue charging through the foliage.

SHH.

I break out of the leafage and find myself in a clearing. Not good. If I'm caught in this open area, I'm done for.

SHH!

'Shit.'

My heart sinks.

I couldn't even tell if he'd been following me this whole time or not, but it didn't matter. The blonde mountain broke through the bushes and appeared before me.

'Shit... Shit. Shit. Shit! SHIT! SHIT!!! SHIT!!!! FOR FUCK'S SAKE!'

Instead of my previous lunacy upon first meeting this man, I am now overcome by a sense of rage and fury. But, what can I do? This man is a whole head taller than me and is as meaty as a gorilla! So, I was filled with a feeling of annoyance at my helplessness.

"Haah... Finally caught up to ya!"

"..."

"Not gonna speak again? You just gonna stand there and laugh like an idiot again? HAHAHA, good, it makes my job easier."

'Shit! FUCK! Don't mess with me! What did I do to deserve this?! I'm a fucking journalist for Pete's sake, not a spy! SHIT! SHIT!'

My face is contorted with anger and clearly displays my enraged state to the blonde man who had burst out from the bushes behind me.

"Ooooh, what a scary face. It seems like you still have some spunk in ya. If that beating last night wasn't enough, then I'll gladly serve you some more!"

The blonde man begins walking towards me while cracking his knuckles, with a smug grin on his face like he was enjoying the situation.

"DON'T FUCK WITH ME YOU FUCKING BASTARD!" with tears and spit flying about me, I shouted in my angered despair.

However, instead of my hopeless attempt to stand up for myself, at my shout, the only thing I could describe what happened would be my soul reacting to my words.

With me as the epicenter, a shockwave spread out in every direction.

BAAAAAAAAAANG!

Time seemed to slow and my surroundings became extremely detailed. I could see everything within my field of vision, down to the smallest creatures crawling in the grass. In this slowed time, I witnessed the grass being uprooted, the unearthed dirt flying along with it like a wave of earth. The loose stones, the animals in the soil, everything was pushed back by this shockwave, except myself and the ground I was standing on.

In the split moment before the shockwave impacted the man, a look full of utter disbelief flashed across his face.

Just a moment before, he had been so confident that he wouldn't have the slightest trouble capturing me, but now he was flying through the air, crashing into trees, and being pelted by the debris contained in the wave.

Silence.

The animals had stopped making noise. Nature had stopped singing her song, and all that remained was the now-barren land all around where I stood.

I was shaking. Looking down at my arms, they were uncontrollably shivering from what had just occurred.

'What the hell was that? Did I cause that to happen? How? What is going on?'

I had many questions on my mind, questions that I would come to learn in due time, but at the moment, it wasn't time to answer those questions. The man, despite being sent flying tens of meters away, and receiving the battering of trees and random forest-floor rubbish, was somehow still able to move.

'What the hell does this man eat, goodness!'

I took off running in a random direction. I don't know where I headed, I just ran, like Harold had, fearing for his life.

***

"Ugh... What in the fuck was that?"

Damon was covered in a pile of dirt, stone, grass, and other random things found in forests. His body and head ached; he had broken a few bones and sustained a concussion. However, he could still move.

If one were to find Damon at this moment, one would notice that he was bruised all over and that his ears, eyes, and nose had blood dripping from them. The shockwave had ruptured the many capillaries in his body, along with his ear drums.

Despite his numerous injuries, Damon still was able to move somehow, maybe through sheer willpower.

"Fuck, I need to contact Hannah."

Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his phone. Of course, the screen had been cracked, but at least it still worked.

"Did you get him?"

Damon responded despondent as he fought to understand Hannah's words through the tinnitus afflicting his ears and the blurry sound being fed to his brain, "No..."

"What?! How?!! How'd that walking stick escape from you?!"

"Ugh... That's what I'd like to know. Since when can humans create sonic blasts with their voice?"

"What? Are you high right now?"

"NO! I'm being serious! That fucker literally yelled at me, and then I was hit by some force and was shot through the fuckin' forest!"

"...You're serious, right?"

"YES! Why would I give some whack answer like that, I'd have to be wylin' to be yankin' your chain right now!"

"..."

It was Hannah's turn to be despondent. Their mission was to capture Marcus, as well as secure the briefcase. The first part, they completely failed; Marcus was able to flee. The second part, they had only partially succeeded in; they got the briefcase, but it had already been opened.

Vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvrrrrrr!

Hannah's phone vibrated again, and she looked to see the Adam had called her. She turned sullen at the report she would have to give.

"Adam's calling, I'll call you back in a second."

"Wai—".

Click — "Did you secure the briefcase?"

"...Yes, we have the briefcase."

"Haha, great! Then, bring it back and hand the journalist over to the interrogation team. This is a big win for us!"

"Um... Sir... There's been a complication..."

"What do you mean?" Adam's voice turned serious when he heard Hannah's usually arrogant voice turn somewhat timid.

"First off, we failed to capture the journalist. Sec—"

"What? Wait, how's that possible? Didn't Damon say the guy was weaker than a stuffed animal?" Adam cut Hannah off and quickly threw out a few questions that had immediately come to the forefront of his mind.

"Yes, that is the case, he is physically weak. But, that's where the second part of the complication comes in to play. The second part of the complication is about the briefcase. While we do have the physical briefcase, we weren't able to recover the contents of it. It was opened somehow..."

"...Hannah. How in the fuck was that briefcase able to be opened?" Adam sounded with displeasure, after hearing—possibly—the worst news pertaining to this incident.

"The biometric lock must have been unlocked before the journalist got it, that's the only way this makes sense. That would be the only way the briefcase could be opened without destroying the jacket of metal surrounding the case. And, given the metal jacket isn't destroyed, it's logical to conclude that the biometric lock was released before the journalist got a hold of it. So... most likely... that man unlocked the biometric lock."

"FUCK!" BANG!

Adam raged on the other end of the phone, banging a surface and yelling. He was filled with indignation after hearing the report.

It took him some time and a lot of heavy breathing before he calmed down enough to continue the conversation.

"Hah...I see. But that still doesn't explain how the journalist got away."

"Right. In my opinion, I believe he was the one who opened the briefcase."

"Are you certain?"

"Yes. When you called me, I was just in a call with Damon. He said something crazy. He said he caught up to the journalist, but he was sent flying by a 'sonic blast' that the journalist created after yelling at Damon."

"Shit... this is not good. Are you certain Damon wasn't high?"

"Yes, I made sure...mostly."

"Alright, I'll immediately contact the available personnel to search the area. We can't let him slip through our fingers like the briefcase did. The briefcase is still useful to us, so make sure you bring it in as soon as possible."

"Affirmative!"

Click.

Hannah sat there for a few seconds with a heavy feeling in her chest. She had failed again. How many times had she failed after this project started? She didn't know. She had messed up more in the past few years than she had the rest of her life. She was extremely frustrated and couldn't help a sense of disappointment and disgust surface in her heart.

'Shit, get it together.'

Clap!

Hannah slapped her cheeks to try and drive her negative thoughts away. She then proceeded to call Damon again.

"Finally! Hey, I need some help here! My fuckin' leg is busted!"

"You can wait, I need to return the briefcase ASAP."

"You fucking bitch wa—"

Hannah hung up on Damon again.

If one listened carefully in that forest at that time, one might hear a faint guttural howl arise from the forest full of annoyance and frustration.

***

Hannah was walking through an artificially lit hallway that was completely composed of a mat-silver metal. She was walking, swinging her wide and seductive hips back and forth while carrying the briefcase down said corridor until it opened up into a larger warehouse-size room.

"Agent Davis, thank you for coming so soon. It is a relief that we finally recovered the briefcase, even if it isn't in its complete state."

The person who was speaking was an old man with grayed hair and deep wrinkles around his face, who held a hidden lustful gaze at Hannah. He was one of the main researchers working on Project Re-Write. His name was Bernard Acker. Not much was known about him. At least, Hannah didn't know much about him. She tried to find information about him before, but she never found anything interesting.

She found out that he graduated from a smallish college in Idaho, Idaho State University. He had graduated from there during the 1970s, but after that, there was nothing.

He was a mystery to most involved in the project; however, Hannah felt his presence to be extremely revolting from his constant ogling. However, she couldn't say anything since he somehow had a prestigious position. She could only express her displeasure through disdainful looks and disgusted expressions.

"Yes, sir. What is the state of the research currently?"

Hannah had been out in the field for some time now, and hadn't been able to check the progress for a few months. Her original job was still to aid the research sector, but her involvement in the satellite incident had caused her to be thrust into the field more often, due to her superiors dissatisfaction in the level of success she had achieved.

"Oh, yes, we seem to have made a breakthrough. We were able to find a way for the 'product' to bind more easily to a wider range of people. It shouldn't be long until we have a stable and working product that anyone can use with no complications. Heheheh, fun times we live in, right Agent Davis?"

'Tsk.' Hannah was happy that they had made a breakthrough in development, since it meant the project was getting closer and closer to completion, but she was dissatisfied by the lecherous mannerisms of Bernard. At this moment in time, Hannah wished she could pull out her gun and turn Bernard's face into an image that would trigger someone with trypophobia. The reason would be obvious if anyone were standing behind the two of them; the scummy Bernard had reached down and was squeezing Hannah's plump booty with no hint of shame whatsoever on his face. It was like he enjoyed seeing Hannah's disgusted and embarrassed stares.

"Bernard, return your hand before you lose your hand."

A deep authoritative voice boomed from behind the two of them. Agent White had come down when he received word that Hannah had arrived.

Hannah was thankful that Adam had stopped Bernard's molestation, but still filled with many feelings of rage, helplessness, disgust, and embarrassment. She understood that nothing would happen if she tried to fight against it, and she might even get in trouble if that happened. Adam was different, however, since he held a level of authority that could go against Bernard without having anything happen against him.

Hannah despised this point about the world. Those with power and authority could run around and do whatever they wanted, while those lower than them had to suffer their unjust treatment, and could only grit their teeth and let it happen, or something worse would occur as a result.

Adam's thoughts were similar to Hannah's. He had experienced how unfair the world was since he was young and could empathize with Hannah about the unjust and disgusting situations, and treatment that was allowed to pass.

"Tch, Agent White. So glad to see you today," Bernard said in a blatantly sarcastic tone with a fake smile on his face. It was obvious that he didn't like Agent White since he would always be kept in check while Adam was around.

"You should return to your lab now that you have the briefcase. We don't have the leisure to delay, even if we recently made a breakthrough."

"Yea, yea. See you later, Miss Davis, hehe," Bernard said, as he walked away with a perverted smirk on his dry lips and wrinkled face.

Adam watched Bernard leave until he was out of sight before turning to Hannah.

"Are you alright?"

"Hmph, what do you think?"

"I guess not. I'm sorry that I can't do anything more for you than this."

"Hah...It's fine. I'd rather just forget about it."

"Alright...By the way, where's Damon?"

"Oh, I left him back at the cabin."

"Why?"

"I was annoyed."

"I see."

"..."

"Well, let's get back to work then."

After their brief awkward small talk, Hannah and Adam left the warehouse and continued to investigate Marcus' whereabouts.

***

"Damon, you look like shit."

"Thanks! I really appreciate your bluntness as always."

Damon was taken to a nearby medical facility for treatment. He wasn't taken to a public hospital, but, instead, one of the medical facilities connected to Project Re-Write. The medical capabilities of the project's facilities were arguably the best in the world, given, one of the products from the facility was used on Marcus to heal his wounds from Damon's beating.

Most of Damon's external wounds had already healed and his internal wounds were quickly healing. He was being kept in a lavish room, the lighting was warm and soft, the bedding comfortable, general amenities were expensive and plentiful. Anyway, Damon was kept in a comfortable environment while he was healing from his wounds.

"You're welcome. When do you get released? Adam gave us the task of tracking down the journalist."

"You're kiddin' right? You'll need a tank to take that guy down now. How are we gonna catch the bastard when he can literally make an explosion with his shout!?"

"Can't we just shoot him? If he's so dangerous, he's a threat to the country and should be dealt with as such."

"Wait, did Adam letcha kill him if needed?"

"Only as a last option. He said that the journalist would be an important test subject if we could capture him, but his body would still be useful even if he's dead."

"That's good. I don't want to get near that bastard again. I'd rather just blow a hole through his fucking head."

"Well, be it as it may, our first priority is to find him and capture him. Only when we can't capture him will we kill him. Capiche?"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Let me rest, I'm tired right now."

"Alright. Get better quick. Our job will become harder the more time passes."

Hannah walked out of the room after wishing Damon a quick recovery. Damon lay in his hospital gown staring up at the ceiling.

'Haaaaah, what kinda sci-fi crap has my life become?'

Damon was pondersome, laying there, reflecting on his current situation in life. When he was younger, he never thought his life would become like this. He always thought he'd die before even the age of 18, let alone working for the CIA and being tasked to a crazy project like Project Re-Write, which was like something straight out of a science fiction novel. All things considered, he didn't really find trepidation in his current situation. He had people that had his back, a good job and salary, as well as other important things that were like luxuries to his younger self. To say the least, he was content with his current life, for the time being. He had nothing more he wanted as of now, he had no drive for a family, he just wanted to live life every day and see what the world threw at him.

'Haha, am I an old man or something?'

Damon laughed at his own reflection. It wasn't like him. He never felt that his life had turned upside down, or that it was so strange until today. He felt nostalgic, in a sense, looking over his past and seeing how he had gotten to the current point in his life. He couldn't help but laugh at both the absurdity of his life and him being so reminiscent at such a young age. Nevertheless, he felt content laying there in the hospital bed, and soon fell asleep with a slight smile on his face.

***

Three weeks later.

"Sir, we have no new leads on the journalist's whereabouts."

"...I understand. There's not much we can go on anyway. Good work, you can leave now."

After Marcus escaped the grasp of Damon and Hannah, he hadn't appeared in the slightest. It was like he had dropped off the face of the Earth.

Marcus hadn't used any of the utilities that he used before. By that, it meant he didn't use his phone, his bank account, ID, anything. He was completely gone, no trace was found. He hadn't appeared on any camera feed in the country, and there was no digital footprint after his escape. Even the satellite stationed above the area couldn't track Marcus' whereabouts. They had no solid leads, nothing to go on that would point to Marcus' location. It was a depressing situation to be in, where a world-class agency couldn't find a single civilian even after three weeks. They had even sent out a wanted notice through the FBI for anyone that knew anything about his whereabouts, but nothing concrete came up, only the usual "I think I saw someone who looks like him" or "that's my neighbor", and the like.

It was shameful for Adam, to say the least. He had been the one held responsible since he was the leader for the team of agents that failed to capture and then locate Marcus. He had been pushing his team to try every avenue available to find Marcus, to no avail. However, Adam had another route to use, Marcus' family in New York. He believed they would be able to point his team in the right direction, so he contacted the team to set out for New York to "interrogate" Marcus' family.