CHAPTER 30 – T-minus (16)

"Don't call me that," I say, holding a knife against the wound I had treated, not too long ago.

Arson… I hadn't heard someone call me that, for a long time. The court found me guilty of…

"…arson. And for that, you will be punished. But since there is a lack of evidence, the court still can't let the sole survivor of the fire, to walk away, without doubts of being the perpetrator. Having no wounds of any sorts, they are considered to have at least known of such an incident to have a possibility of occurrence. So the court orders them to be jailed and investigated."

The sole survivor of the fire. Where did the fire come from? Had I really caused it? Then that'd mean…

"The court finds the survivor to be the prime suspect for the death of their wife, their daughter, their son in-law, the father of their son in-law, and also their ten months old granddaughter, who have died in the fire occurring at…"

That was the fate of someone who could survive. They were seen as a villain for this or that. Just like how it was for the military.

"Get out of our lands!" this was the common shouts of the people living in the borders. The borders which the military protected.

There was so much in common with me and the military. Another fate I found, after my family had died… and were to have died in my hands.

I learnt so much. For once… I saved lives, while also killing. And here, killing was… praised upon. It was so weird. It was still the son of someone. Even if that someone was supposed to be the enemy.

But to clear my own dirty past… I had to do such a thing too. Such a service. Such a service each one of the participant hated, but still did it.

Such was the story of a hero.

But here I stand… as yet another person calls me the long-forgiven name. A person who was on-line with the heroes. Even when he was just… a powerless human.

"I'm sorry," this person, having a given name like me, Lost-Bird, says.

"Who are you? Do you work for those-" I ask, with rage engulfing every bit of my words and my vision.

The Saturn Organisation. Those who wanted me now. They too, knew I was here.

"-no, you have misunderstood me," Lost-Bird says, and takes a step back. "I was just merely… I just know who you are. I don't exactly mean to get anywhere with it."

I look into his eyes. These eyes which were so helpless, yet cared for his friends who were stronger than him. And looking at these eyes, I put away the knife.

"I'm no criminal," I say, shuddering again, like an old man I was. "And whoever knows of me… only thinks of me that way."

"Not me," Lost-Bird says, yet I see that he fears me. "I have heard those things about you. Actually I was unsure about you exactly being… the titled person. I knew for sure that you had powers. But knew you were that one… with a confirmation…"

"I guess you heard me that night… when I was trying to wake Wrap," I say. "Don't get me wrong… I just wanted to wake him."

I had doubted that someone was there that day. And left it, thinking if it was just someone passing by, they'd just fear it and run away.

"I know," Lost-Bird says.

I just wordlessly sign Lost-Bird to get comfortable and sit down. We just sit there, without exchanging words.

"I think… why you let me know that you know… is for a reason. A reason related to my powers."

…

"Why is he here?" the-illusion-guy asks, looking at me.

"I have a bomb," I say, before Lost-Bird replies. "I mean… I had enough materials. So I made one."

"So that is what we will do," Scelesthe says.

"I'm sure even being an ex-military, you won't just be given a bomb-right," Feather says.

"You'd be imprisoned if it was not for… the situation, Grandpa," Forcerer says.

"I'm ready to pay for charges, if it comes to it."

"I sure hope that doesn't happen."

"How far away is he?" Lost-Bird asks to Witch.

"I can't exactly tell but… not too far away," Witch says, and keeps looking my way.

"We need to choose either building 3, 4 or 6. They are closest to the edge. So we can escape easier," Lost-Bird says.

"Building 3 is-"

"Wait, what's with buildings?" the-spy asks.

"Well, we need to kill this guy, no?" Lost-Bird says.

"Right but… it's dangerous."

"That's why we need to ask everyone to be at one far-away building, while we stay at another," Scelesthe explains.

"For that, as Rusk said, building 3 is not good option, as it is surrounded by other buildings," I say.

Rusk just looks my way, surprised that he hadn't even said a word yet. Yet I knew.

"Yes and so…" Rusk says, and clears his throat.

"Building 6 is right next to the shield, and towards the road," Forcerer says.

"Building 4 was recently built and has better material. So if you blow that up… firstly it'd be harder and if we do get struck there…" the-illusion-guy says.

Rusk just nods, than speak with his open mouth.

"Mother…" Scelesthe says to Psyand's mother. "You should probably-"

"-I decline," Psyand's mother says. "Wherever my daughters go… I'll go."

"I meant you should probably come with us too. Then I can protect my sister and mother. But do you still decline?" Scelesthe asks, and everyone laughs along.

Back in the military… we knew when our person was dying. But the rule was to send them off laughing. Shedding tears was fine but… mourning had to wait until after the death.

But I couldn't let a death to occur here. Not to this family.

…

"You want us to move again?" the people ask. Groaning and whining, they still agree to do so, and move to building 3.

They'd be fine there. And after what happened earlier, they knew that, the heroes were their best choice. If they didn't want to end up like those dead people that is.

…

But… what the hell was that?

A thud falls from the sky, as the night sky gets darker and darker, the sky covered by the dome. And at the top of the dome… stands the thing which Witch said was getting closer, the 'Other-Being', whose structure is the only thing I can make out, because of the darkness.

"It's time," Scelesthe says.

We barely had an hour. And most of it was gone in evacuating people.

"Mr. Edward, you done?" Psyand asks.

"Just waiting for the signal," spy-Edward says, holding his phone in front of him, waiting to tap his finger onto the send button.

He had typed a message to someone. Someone to come help us.

But with the force field… all the messages could be tracked so…

The force field above us opens, and the person upon it, falls down.

Edward quickly clicks the send button and throws his phone out of the building. We see it smack down to the ground.

"Hope it got sent," Edward says through his teeth.

The people in building 3… they were the target to the sender. And their responsibility. Alongside two other people that is.

"Wow, it closes fast. We forgot the part where they'd time it this way, perfectly," Edward says, looking at the instant formation of the dome.

A realisation strikes me…

"I forgot to-"

Before I complete my words, I get thrown, alongside others, but Feather gets a hold of me, and I impact on the ground, with him grabbing onto me, and helping reduce damage.

I open my eyes to find that Scelesthe, Lost-Bird, and Edward are still standing, alongside Other-Being.

"What a waste," Other-Being's voice comes out, as if he is just a normal human being, unlike what Witch had said.

As the person continues to say something, which I'm unable to hear because of footsteps, he gets thrown away by Lost-Bird. And further away, with Forcerer hitting him mid-air, with his magical powers.

We all just get up and start running from the entrance cum exit of the roof.

"What was that?" Psyand asks.

Nobody answers.

As we run down the stairs, something breaks the closed door of the roof's entrance cum exit.

"S-shit, it may be time!" Rusk says.

To second that, Other-Being's jelly-flesh falls right in front of me, and I stumble backwards.

"W-wait, they are hungry," Other-Being says.

Thuds and growls enter my ear, and I realise the coming of… Exterior-Beings.

"Feed yourselves. But leave that one to me," Other-Being says, looking towards Witch.

We just freeze there, as if waiting to be eaten by the Exterior-Beings but…

"Stop," says their master, right as they reach us. And all of us look behind us to find Other-Being. Or rather…

"I-illusions?" the real Other-Being asks.

"A-am I?" Thunder asks, while looking exactly like Other-Being, and behaving as him.

Looking at the frozen Exterior-Beings, they must have taken the illusion as confusing, and stopped.

"You are NOTHING l-like me," Other-Being says.

***

"This… OTHER-being," I say, to Witch, while I find her near me, while we spread this… Grandpa's weird chemicals across the building.

Witch waits for me to continue, giving me her attention.

"You say that he caused a sonic boom. So must he not be pretty fast? And strong too? So at the starting running part… how do we escape?"

"You could cause your illusions," Witch says, without skipping a beat.

"Well, I don't know if… BEINGS are effected by it," I say.

"If it works on me, it should work on them," Witch says.

Witch explains her story in a short way, and I understand.

And Rusk gives me a way to amp my powers so when Other-Being…

"Feed yourselves. But leave that one to me," Other-Being says to the rushing Exterior-Beings, and looking towards Witch.

I quickly use one of the vials of steroid on myself, and form an illusion, while concentrating on every living thing in the building.

The illusion surely pisses off the real owner of the self of it. But freezes everyone else. The Exterior-Beings dazedly get confused of whose orders to follow.

"You are NOTHING l-like me," Other-Being says.

"Y-yes," I feel myself say.

It is common to make an illusion but to entangle oneself and shroud oneself to be the illusion is… pretty neat. Rather than using more of the brain muscle, physical movements could move the illusion but…

I and him clash our jelly-like hands at each other. I feel like ordering myself mentally to do it, and not physically. And this… illusion, just goes with it.

I use my own strength to push Other-Being backwards, from between the group, to where the Exterior-Beings are. But as I do, I feel a strong resistance from my self.

Something starts speaking to me, and asking me to leave.

Leave? How do I do that? And what does that mean?

I won't be harmed? No, that's not what I'm afraid of.

You'll take care of it? But… oh, but not for too long? Okay.

I just listen to the unknown words, as if I'm mesmerized by it. And as my illusion pushes itself and Other-Being forward, towards the Exterior-Beings, I separate from the illusion, while pushing my body backward.

When in mid-air, not realising I'm on freaking stairs, and floating there for a moment, looking forward, I see my own illusion that I have caused. Perfect fake of Other-Being, no one could differentiate the two.

And my illusion looks at me ever-so-slightly, and nods. As if to say that it'll take care of things.

And with a relaxing heart, I fall even further backwards.