Silent Choices

The next day, before the sun had even risen, Jackson woke up from his slumber. He struggled to climb down from the bench and then vigorously shook Alicia awake.

"Get up, the sun is roasting our butts," Jackson said while shaking her.

"Gimme a break, there are no windows here, how is the sun getting in?" Alicia, clearly annoyed by Jackson's shaking,"How about kid?"

"That kid woke up a long time ago," Jackson pointed at Lorient, who was standing there blankly.

"Alright, let's continue our escape," Alicia picked up her pistol, casting off drowsiness instantly, and gestured for Jackson to open the teleportation portal.

"Shouldn't we explain things to him first?" Jackson pointed again at Lorient. "He's been dragged along without knowing anything."

"The only thing we know is that this kid is being hunted. The reasons? Who? We have no idea," Alicia, with a bitter smile, stated the facts.

"I thought you knew everything," Jackson wanted to knock some sense into himself,"You really still want to follow us?"

"What do you mean?" Alicia was checking the bullet count.

"I mean, as a person without abilities, you've already gotten too deep into this dangerous situation. If you want, I can open the portal and escape anytime. You only have a gun."

"What you can do, I can do. What you can't do, I can also do," Alicia said seriously. "I appreciate your concern, but I don't need you kicking me out. One of the principles of Disciplinary Committee is 'commit to what you decide to do, don't give up halfway.' Did you forget that?"

Jackson was stunned but shook his head. "Forget it. If you die, I won't care."

"I'll return the favor word for word," Alicia finally finished reloading her bullets.

"Thanks," Jackson said, then opened the portal on the ground and jumped down. Alicia followed, pulling Lorient along.

***

"Problem solved," Michael told Hudson over the phone.

"We're like criminals, setting up our own communication frequency so that those high-ups can't find our conversations," Hudson sighed.

"We're now helping a 7 to 8-year-old fugitive escape. We need to be cautious."

"A 7 to 8-year-old fugitive."

"Alright, I have to hang up."

"What about Future Man?"

"I sent him to the future. As for which time point, I can't say. I can't freely manipulate that aspect," Michael said and then hung up the phone.

***

In the room with the time machine, Kraut was narrating his past encounter to the companion in the white robe.

"So, you encountered Michael Jackman?" The robed companion was somewhat surprised by his friend's experience.

"Yeah, even using his own abilities, I couldn't defeat him. He's truly as strong as the books say," Kraut shook his head. "I feel that if he can send me back here, it means he can manipulate time and see the flow of time. So, if I try to escape time again, he will definitely notice. It's not as simple as just sending me back."

Kraut pondered for a moment. "Should we try killing the kid's parents? That way, we can change the future, right? The kid won't be born."

"Brother, you really didn't do your homework," his companion shook his head in helplessness. "That kid is an experiment, no dad, no mom, just a doll that can be produced with the push of a button."

A doll? Kraut was puzzled.

He remembered the look of confusion mixed with a bit of fear and innocence in the kid's eyes when he glanced at him.

"So, we have another option: travel to the past, prevent that experiment. But we can't determine the exact date of the experiment, and this time machine is just a prototype, can't go too far back. Unless you can prove that you can use this time machine to prevent the assassination of President Kennedy."

"...So, do we still have to kill the kid?"

"Yes."

"Can't we improve this time machine?"

"It's impossible. The design documents for all time machines were destroyed in that catastrophe, and I'm just an ordinary technician."

"...So, do we still have to kill the kid?"

"Sorry, that's the only way."

The two fell into a dead silence, neither speaking, or perhaps they had no inclination to speak. They wanted to abandon the idea of killing Lorient, but the situation didn't allow it.

In the end, Kraut accepted reality.

"Activate the time machine," he said, without a tone of despair, only a resolute determination.