Showdown at the Hollowtree Cafe - Part Two
Without further hesitation, the two men charged at each other. Luke brandished the knife, not exactly wanting to stab the other man, but willing to do so if necessary.
He did all he could but quickly found himself on the back foot, unable to keep up with this man who clearly made a lifestyle out of taking what he wanted by force. He fought not only the deranged man in front of him, but he also battled the rising panic and frustration within, his attention divided in a way that made it difficult to focus on either.
Luke swung wildly and missed. He was rewarded for his failed attempt with a punch to his gut and another to his face. Pain wracked his body and for a moment he felt that his consciousness was going to slip away from him.
Through it all, Luke could tell the man wasn't very skilled, just used to overpowering people with his strength and viciousness. He stepped back, trying to catch his breath. The robber didn't let up, though, and leapt at him.
Luke sidestepped and swiped the man with the knife, catching him on the arm. The man yelled in pain and frustration, spittle flying from his mouth. Luke readied himself for the next inevitable attack.
The man jumped forward again, going for Luke's throat. Luke tried to sidestep once more but found his foot sliding out from under him. He'd stepped in a pool of his own blood. That momentary distraction was all the robber needed.
He knocked the knife from Luke's hand and grabbed him by the throat, crushing the life from him. Luke's vision blurred and his lungs began to burn. He clawed at the robber's hands but to no avail. He punched the man over and over again in his face, but the man was overtaken by his rage and Luke's attacks did nothing but make him angrier.
As darkness began to encroach on Luke's vision, he wondered somewhere in the back of his mind if the man was on drugs. That would explain a lot, at least. Too bad he wouldn't be around to find out for sure. This was going to be his death…
Suddenly, Lila's voice broke through the pain, "I can't intervene now. You have to overcome this yourself if you hope to grow. Remember who you are now, Luke. Use your gifts."
Suddenly, like opening his eyes or walking for the first time, Luke's mana sense opened up and became fully aware of his mana vortex and the energy floating everywhere around him, filling the atmosphere in the Hollowtree Cafe. The air felt charged. The pain in his body was suddenly dulled, drowned out by the flood of mana he pulled toward himself.
Like a drowning man gasping for air he gulped the mana in. His body pulsated with power as his mana vortex sped up and consumed the mana ravenously. HIs wounds burned, as if the mana was targeting them somehow. Was he healing? The thought was fleeting as he focused on the enemy that was still trying to kill him.
He focused on channeling all that energy into his hands and arms, then brought them up and slammed down as hard as he could on the bends in the robber's arms. The man's grip broke and Luke drove his head into the man's face. He didn't let up, not now that he felt at least somewhat refreshed and reenergized.
He stepped forward, following the backward momentum of the other man. He crushed the robber's face with a hard right elbow, then drove his left fist into the man's chin, slamming the man's head backward and sending him to the floor.
He looked at the now unconscious man with disgust. "You thought I was done for, did you?" Luke said hoarsely. "Well little did you know, I'm apparently pretty good at taking a beating." His words were followed by an equally hoarse chuckle.
A faint blue light surrounded Luke now, with small bright spots no bigger than grains of sand. It looked like a light blue version of the night sky, stars and all.
"Lila, what is this?" Luke asked, eyes wide.
"That, my friend, is a basic mana cloak. Congratulations, we've leveled up." Lila had a huge smile on her face as she spoke.
Luke was ecstatic. "We're at Bet level now?" Lila nodded in response. Now Luke's own smile echoed hers, his pains and worries all but forgotten.
"Did you hear that?" Luke asked the robber. "I leveled up!"
"You know he's unconscious, right?" Lila asked with a furrowed brow.
Luke laughed in victory, "Hey, look at that! Looks like you lose, sucka!"
As Luke watched the man regained consciousness, slowly at first. Then, the sounds of police sirens reached inside the Hollowtree Cafe, bringing the man completely out of his slumber.
He suddenly looked like a rat in a cage. "No way I'm getting caught," he muttered. "NO WAY!" He climbed to his feet unsteadily, then ran forward. He grabbed a chair and threw it at Luke as hard as he could. Luke smirked as he reached out and caught the chair easily.
The man continued forward, apparently not noticing that his diversion tactic hadn't worked. Luke reared back with the chair and swung it out at the man, taking his legs out from under him. The man fell face first into the hard floor of the Cafe.
The robber groaned aloud in pain, and Luke thought he actually heard the man sobbing. Still, though, the man fought to escape. He rose to his hands and knees and crawled toward the exit. Without delay, Luke grabbed the man by the arm and tossed him away from the door.
Luke thought the man would simply fall back on his back, but instead he watched as the robber flew across the entirety of the Cafe, slamming into the far wall with a loud bang. His body slumped to the floor, unmoving.
Shock rippled through Luke as the reality of his newfound strength settled. He hadn't even tried that hard to push the man back…
His chest tightened as he began to feel a sense of dread and fear. How strong was he? Did he just kill the man?
"Did you see that?" Luke asked Lila.
"The basic mana cloak amplifies your defense and strength," she said simply. Then, catching the look on Luke's face, she said, "Don't worry, he's not dead. I can sense it."
Relief washed over him and he slumped to the floor as his basic mana cloak dissipated, suddenly quite exhausted.
Luke felt a profound sense of responsibility that he hadn't had previously. He wondered just how powerful he was going to be if he was only on the second level of the Radiant Path and he could already through grown men around like rag dolls… Soon, though, he was abruptly brought back to the present as several police officers charged into the coffee shop with their guns drawn.
Luke quickly put his hands up.
"Lay on your stomach!" the officers yelled.
They were extremely loud and aggressive, understandably. They didn't know who was good and who was bad. Luke listened to their commands, going down to his stomach on the floor. He had respect for the police and didn't want to end up on their bad side.
The officers cuffed Luke and stood him up, taking him outside. Slowly, they brought out the robber in cuffs too, though he looked like he was having a very difficult time walking. The other people who had been hiding inside the coffee shop came out next.
Luke looked down at himself, his clothing and body covered in blood, some of it his; some of it the robber's. He could tell that it didn't look good. He hoped the cops were open to reason, otherwise he might be in an even worse situation.
One young man, perhaps a little younger than Luke, looked at Luke and his expression shifted from shock to anger. He marched up to the police officer who was standing with Luke.
"Hey, why do you have him in cuffs?" he asked, pointing to Luke. "That's the guy who saved our lives! Didn't you even ask him what happened?"
"Sir," the officer began, "This is an evolving situation and our investigation has only just begun. I haven't questioned this man because I have him in custody and I have not read him his Miranda Rights and we're unsure of his role. He will be interviewed soon. But if you were a witness, I'd be glad to take your statement and pass it on to the lead investigators."
Luke smiled and nodded his thanks to the young man, who's demeanor shifted again, this time from angry to amicable. "Okay, sure, I'll tell you what happened."
The young man went on to explain in great detail what he'd witnessed, painting Luke as a hero as he did so. Luke blushed, not knowing how to deal with praise. He'd never been in a situation like this. He'd also never been in handcuffs, so that was something new too.
Lila drifted about around him carelessly, not perturbed by the happenings in the least. She looked at Luke and said, "Well, that de-escalated quickly!" She laughed at her own joke for a moment before realizing that Luke wasn't laughing with her.
Luke shifted a bit closer to her and muttered quietly, "So far, the only thing that seems to bother you is when I call you a stalker."
Her head snapped up with a menacing look, "I am NOT a stalker." A smirk quickly spread over her face, letting Luke know she wasn't really offended.
Luke chuckled, growing more fond of his new friend.
He stood in handcuffs for quite a while, his stomach growling incessantly. He tried to be patient as the police did their jobs, though. About half an hour later, the officer who was still with him apparently heard something on his radio earpiece.
He smiled and said, "Looks like I get to let you go, man. Good job, and thank you for stepping up when everyone else ran away."
The officer removed the handcuffs and Luke smiled in return, rubbing the feeling back into his wrists. "I didn't really have a choice. I couldn't just let him hurt that woman, or any of those people."
The officer nodded. "You're a rare breed. If you ever want a job, let me know. I'll put in a good word for you at the department."
Luke's eyebrows rose. "I'll keep that in mind. Thank you, Sir."
The officer nodded and turned, waving once as he walked away.
Luke wondered about his future for a moment. What did it hold now? Was he going to continue being a student, or did the King have some other plan for him? What was he really meant to do now?
He looked down at his hand, flexing his fingers and feeling the phantom hum of mana coursing through his body. How much stronger could he actually become?
Luke exhaled, rolling his shoulders, still feeling the lingering energy coursing through him. His arm ached, but the pain was nothing compared to what it should have been. His mana was still working, still healing.
He flexed his fingers, absentmindedly now, his thoughts drifting. This had been one fight. One man with a knife. And it had nearly been the end of him.
Lila floated beside him, arms crossed, watching him closely. "You're thinking about something," she observed.
"Yeah," Luke muttered. "I'm thinking… if one guy could do this much damage, what happens when we face something really dangerous?"
Lila's smirk faded. "Then you'd better start training faster."
Luke swallowed, a chill creeping up his spine. He suddenly felt like someone was watching him. Not the police. Not the bystanders. Something else.
A faint whisper of energy brushed against his senses—distant but unmistakable.
He turned sharply, scanning the crowd. The grounds. The rooftops. Nothing. But the feeling lingered, like unseen eyes tracing his every move.
Lila followed his gaze, her expression shifting. "You feel it too, don't you?"
Luke nodded slowly. He had a sinking feeling that today had just been a warm-up.