Just in Time

Ren didn't hear anything that Mr. Walker had just said, but he got the idea.

"Look, I can explain myself. I can't hear right now anyway, so hear me out!" pleaded Ren. "All those people in the facility were brainwashed. They were completely loyal to the Commander there. That's why I did what I did. I killed..." Tears began to form in Ren's eyes. "I killed them all... to protect others... others like me!" The tears began to flow down his face now as he remembered Marissa getting a hole blown through her stomach. He remembered Alex's last facial expression as he killed him.

Mr. Walker just shook his head with a disappointed look on his face. Ren knew they wouldn't just let the death of nearly 8,000 slide.

"I'm sorry Mr. Walker, but I have to do this. I'm going to fight until I die or until I escape."

Ren got into a stance, ready to fight to his death. Mr. Walker raised his hand, then lowered it towards Ren. All twenty-five men, including the ones behind him, rushed at Ren. Ren's eyes flashed green and then began to unleash a fury of attacks.

BAM! SMASH! THUD! POW! BAM! CRACK!

Ren darted from enemy to enemy, spinning, kicking, and punching. However, things like water, fire, shockwaves, explosions, and lasers were thrown at Ren. Ren was burned, sliced, and impaled, but he continued to fight, shooting around, bashing heads together, sending his fists into stomachs and connecting his foot to skulls.

"Warning! Host's life is in danger, emergency mode will be activated!" sounded the voice in Ren's head.

Ren felt his body surge with more energy and power than he ever felt before.

KABOOM!

Ren smashed his fists into the ground that sent a huge shockwave, blowing all the men around him away.

SLASH! SLASH!

Two very long, deep cuts appeared on Ren's torso, blood spurting everywhere.

SLASH! SLASH!

Two more very deep cuts emerged on Ren's thighs. Ren dropped to his knees. He shifted his gaze up, and saw Mr. Walker floating in the air, his blue eyes shining, and blonde hair being blown around from the wind.

The twenty-five men all regrouped and charged back at Ren, slashing, burning, stabbing, and beating him into submission.

KA.... BOOM!

A huge bolt of lightning came crashing down out of nowhere, paralyzing and burning everyone, including Mr. Walker. After that, a huge sheet of ice began to lock everyone, except Ren, to the ground.

"This is..." Ren looked around and saw Lorraine and Eric standing a little ways away.

"Ray, get out of here!" Lorraine yelled. Ren couldn't hear her, but he understood what she was trying to say from the hand gestures she was making.

"Damnit! Not again!" Ren cried. Ren slowly stood, his legs screaming in pain from the deep cuts in his thighs. He began to limp away.

"AFTER HIM!" ordered Mr. Walker as he flew through the air, but he collided with a wall of ice formed by Lorraine. Mr. Walker glared at Lorraine.

Ren tried to move as fast as he could. Behind him, bolts of lightning and groups of icicles flew.

"Stay alive... my friends!" Ren gulped as he made his getaway.

"Is he gone?!" yelled Lorraine.

"Yeah! Time for us to get out of here too." Eric scowled. "DAMNIT, if only I didn't lose to him, now my whole life is messed up!" Both Lorraine and Eric turned to leave, but Mr. Walker was already there.

"You just helped a murderer escape. You're both now considered his accomplices. I'm going to have to take you in."

Ren wandered around in Los Angeles and found a back alley. He limped down the alley and collapsed halfway down. He pushed himself up and leaned his back to the wall.

"Fuck! Even in emergency mode I couldn't escape!" Ren wailed. Tears were still in his eyes from earlier. "Now Lorraine and Eric are caught up in all this!" Ren tried to calm himself and think through his situation. He pulled out the key he kept in his phone case and put it in his pocket. "I'll get that some other time. Right now," Ren looked at his wounds and the blood trail he left behind him, "I need to stop the bleeding."

Ren ripped the lower parts of his pants off and wrapped them around his thighs. He then stood slowly back up and began to continue to walk down the alley.

A couple of minutes later he pulled the ripped parts of his pants off his thighs and they had already stopped bleeding. The holes in his torso began to close as well. As for the cuts on his torso, they were still deep, but the bleeding stopped.

Ren searched and searched until he found an old abandoned warehouse. He broke the lock on a side door into the warehouse and walked in, closing the door behind him. Inside was a large open space. There were narrow metal stairs that lead to a balcony that lined the inside of the warehouse about ten feet above. A little bit above the balcony were windows that lined the inside as well which was the only source of light in the warehouse. Ren laid on the ground and waited for his body to recover.

Ren woke up and slowly sat up. "Damnit, I feel asleep?! I need to find Lorraine and Eric!" Ren suddenly heard a soft rustle of some sort and shot towards it.

SLAM!

Ren pinned whoever was there to the wall of the warehouse, holding them up by their neck, high enough that their feet were suspended in the air.

"Ren! Its... me! Ms.... Croft!" gasped Ms. Croft as Ren was choking her.

"What are you doing here!" Ren demanded roughly.

"I... came... here... to help... you!"

Ren squeezed her neck even harder. "How can I trust you?"

"I... got here... hours ago, I... could've... killed you... anytime... I wanted... I know where... your core is."

Ren released her after this statement. "That's right. She could've."