Unanswered Questions

Jackson and Alicia walked through a narrow alley to reach an abandoned building.

It was an apartment, empty and deserted. Jackson peered through the glass door, finding the interior resembling a "deserted haunted house." There was a keypad lock on the door, requiring a password or card swipe. Jackson ignored these processes , opened a portal on the glass door, and ushered Alicia and Lorient inside.

Lorient felt the uneven walls and accidentally peeled off a piece of wallpaper. They complained about the abundance of flyers on the floor, likening it to a desert covered in sand.

To the left were walls full of doors, but unfortunately not glass doors, preventing Jackson from peeking inside. On the right were walls full of windows, but with no sunlight and no light switch in sight, they resorted to feeling the walls and floors to determine their location.

"Hello, is anyone there?" Jackson politely knocked on a door.

"Bro,it seems like there's nobody here," Lorient innocently remarked.

"Indeed," Alicia kicked open a door.

"We've turned ourselves into thieves for nothing," Jackson chuckled self-deprecatingly.

"There's nothing and no one here to steal from," Alicia inspected the room, a lifeless space with dirty stains on the walls and floor.

"We don't need money, and we don't lack bullets," Jackson said, noticing Alicia kicking open another door, revealing a room identical to the first.

Suddenly, Lorient glimpsed a light emerging from the middle of the corridor. Before he could warn them, a man appeared, pointing a gun at Lorient—this man was Kraut!

Jackson saw him too but hadn't prepared to react when Alicia, gun in hand, pushed Jackson and Lorient into a room, closing the door behind them.

"Why did you kill that kid?" Alicia questioned.

"Military secrets, can't answer," Kraut provided a seemingly reasonable response.

"I don't understand."

"Sorry about that."

Their guns were now pointed at each other.

Shortly after, almost simultaneously, they reflexively pulled the triggers.

BANG!

After the loud noise dissipated, both guns smoked, and both stood in place, awaiting the outcome. Alicia was bleeding from her abdomen, sudden pain making her surroundings blur until she lost consciousness, her head hitting the door as her body fell to the ground .

Kraut, initially intending to bypass Alicia and open the door, reconsidered and moved her in front of the door before opening it. To his surprise, he found nothing.

Did the kid who can open portals escape this apartment? No.

Following his intuition, Kraut was convinced the kid was still hiding.

Thinking cleverly, assuming he would believe the kid fled with Lorient?

Then I won't fall for it! Even if I have to turn this entire apartment upside down, I'll find you!

***

Jackson and Lorient hid at the stairwell, breathing heavily, shadows enveloping them as they pretended to be part of the darkness.

When Alicia closed the door, Jackson had already opened the portal, pulling Lorient inside, evading Kraut's pursuit. Grateful that Alicia's body delayed Kraut.

But just before closing the portal, they heard a loud gunshot, followed by a thud against the door. They didn't need to think to know whose head had hit the door.

"Is that sister dead?" Lorient asked in a calm tone, but his eyes betrayed inner panic.

"...No, she's stronger than you think," Jackson replied firmly.

"But the gunshot..."

"She's also skilled with a gun. You're tired; take a rest."

Silence enveloped them. Even when they lowered their voices, the walls echoed, futile attempts to reduce noise. They distinctly heard Kraut's footsteps, climbing the stairs. Thankfully, there was no elevator, buying them some time. Better to continue climbing now, as the portal couldn't be opened too many times without draining Jackson's energy.

Grabbing Lorient's hand, Jackson pulled him up, heading for the stairs, climbing with determination.

"Where are we going?" Lorient asked.

Jackson chose silence, signaling Lorient to stay quiet to avoid detection.

Seems like this guy figured out we're doing the opposite of what he expects, deliberately staying in this dangerous place. So when I opened the portal, he should have guessed, right?

Alright! Let's see how patient you are in finding me in this apartment!

Jackson was determined to continue this hide-and-seek game!

"Is that sister really not dead?" Lorient persisted in asking.

This time, Jackson maintained silence, unwilling to answer.

After all, if Alicia really defeated Kraut, why would he still be chasing them?

...There's only one reason – he won! He defeated Alicia! Or, did he kill Alicia?

Since they haven't seen Alicia yet, her fate remains uncertain, but Jackson hopes she's still alive. He hasn't confessed to her yet!

"Is that sister not dead?" Lorient's tone changed, no longer calm but tinged with panic.

However, Jackson truly didn't want to answer.

"You won't answer?" Lorient's tone returned to calm, a calmness that felt eerie.

Suddenly, a object rushed toward Lorient. Jackson knew what it was but had no choice but to rush in front of Lorient to intercept it.

Jackson watched the wound where the object hit, realizing he wasn't mistaken. It was a bullet shot from Kraut's gun!

Looking at his shoulder pierced by the bullet, he marveled at not hitting bone. Unbeknownst to him, blood from the wound splattered onto the child's face.

Lorient, seeing blood on his face, unintentionally remembered asking Alicia if she was dead. He glanced at Jackson, his eyes now more panicked, highlighting a new quality – determination.

"I'll protect sister and brother!"

With those words, Lorient lost consciousness, energy gathering around his body. While Jackson and Kraut were still wondering, a lightning bolt shot into the yet-unlit dark blue sky with rocket speed.

Now they understood that disaster was imminent.

Kraut realized he might have accelerated the impending catastrophe, a catastrophe that would destroy half of the American continent.

Unfortunately, it was too late.