Chapter 44- Time Ticking (Part 2)

Chapter 44: Chapter 44- Time Ticking (Part 2)

Chapter 44- Time Ticking (Part 2)

"M-Mommy... Mommy! Where are you?"

Amongst the chaos, a little kid looked around him in panic. He was no more than 5 years of age as he was being pushed around by the running civilians. Tears welled in his eyes as he searched for his mother amongst the countless people. However, there was no real trace of her anywhere he looked.

At the same time, the sound of gunshots grew closer and closer to him. Before he could even notice, he heard a loud sound in his ear that made it ring loudly.

"H... uh?" He muttered under his breath as he turned around, only to see a man fall to the ground, his eyes wide open in terror, and blood was seeping out of his head. The boy didn’t understand what was happening as he stared at the dead body confusedly. Tears stopped dripping from his face as he walked slowly toward the man and crouched down as he poked his face.

"Um... Um... Are you ok?" The boy asked with a concerned tone as he tried to wake the man up. But he didn’t reply. As the boy kept shaking him, a silhouette loomed over him that made him look up. All he saw was a man clad in black staring down at him.

The boy felt confused, and yet the fear that crept into his heart at that moment made him step back. He didn’t know why, but that stranger was really scary.

"Do... you know... Where mommy is?" He asked with a hesitant voice. But he received no reply.

Instead, the man slowly lifted his gun as he aimed it at the boy’s face. For a second, the boy didn’t understand what was happening as he watched the barrel in silence. His innocent eyes were completely clueless as to what was about to happen.

The man put his hand on the trigger and was about to pull it before...

*BANG*

Everything went pitch black for the boy as he closed his eyes, hearing a loud gunshot that made him shudder. He sat there, holding his head. However, seconds passed without anything happening, so he opened his eyes and stared up. There, he saw the man clad in black clothes on the ground, motionless.

"..." He didn’t know how to react as he watched him silently.

"Are you ok, kid?"

"..."

A soft, feminine voice spoke to him as it approached him from afar. He looked to the right and saw a girl with a hood over her head crouching next to him.

"Did he hurt you?" She asked.

"... Mmm, no..." The boy replied.

"Good job for being brave. You’re safe now, ok?" She said as she patted his head. "Can you run?"

"Mmm..."

"Good boy." Venera smiled warmly at him as she nodded. "Just run in that direction until you find the exit, ok? You will find your mommy there. Now, go."

The boy stood up, turned around, and started running. However, before going far, he stopped and looked at her.

"Thank you, big sis!" He said with an innocent smile on his face before he turned around and continued running.

Venera stared at his back, a bit taken aback, before she exhaled and nodded. She would be lying if she said that those words didn’t fill her heart with warmth. However, at the same time, it gave her the conviction to stop these monsters before they killed more innocent souls.

’I’ve killed three... There are at least 10 more.’ She thought to herself as she checked the gun. ’I have enough bullets. But no room for mistakes.’

Then, Venera disappeared from the scene. After spending hours walking around the park, she had a rough idea of the layout and how to reach certain areas, which helped her locate her next target. Venera’s exceptional intelligence and ability to sneak behind targets made it almost impossible to notice her presence.

Using the terrain and the buildings, she found the next target. Then, she aimed her gun at them before...

*BANG*

One bullet. Dead.

Without wasting more time, she stood up and ran to the next area. Venera moved like a lethal killer. Someone who had long years in that domain, even though these were her true first kills. She shut her mind down, not letting it sink in as she focused on saving the lives of her people, even if it was something that would make her puke from disgust.

As she was running through the empty streets, her phone rang again. Picking it up, she saw that it was an unknown number. But she still answered.

"Who is it?"

"Venera! It’s me, Rize! Are you ok? I’m hearing gunshots out there."

"I’m fine. Are you fine? Where is that man? Did you find somewhere to hide?"

"I killed him."

"You... what?!" Venera stopped before she closed her mouth, fearing someone might hear her.

"Yeah, it’s a long story and doesn’t matter right now. Listen, I don’t know what is happening, but the bomb has been activated. I didn’t do it." Rize said.

"How?"

"I... don’t know. But that’s not the point. We don’t have a lot of time, Venera. I’m going to try and deactivate the bomb myself." Rize said.

"What?! No, Rize, listen to me. Get out of there right now." Venera said. "Help will come in a few minutes."

"They won’t have time to stop it," Rize replied in a calm tone.

"That doesn’t matter. Get out of there, and if it explodes, so be it. We cannot do much more than what we already di-"

"No. Venera." Rize said. "I think I can deactivate it with some luck. What matters now is that you get out of there safe and sound. It’s my responsibility to make sure you’re ok. Once help arrives, I want you to alert them to the situation and leave the premises as soon as possible."

"What about you? How are you going to escape if the bomb doesn’t deactivate?!" She asked.

"... I’m sorry."

"What... What do you mean?"

"If I can’t activate it, then I’m sorry... I know we only knew each other for a bit, but... You were way better than I could’ve expected. I’ve always had this premonition that you might be an arrogant royalty who would look down on me and treat me horribly. Even when I first met you, I was wary that might be the case."

"..."

"But I’ve only seen great things from you, and I’m... sorry for thinking so badly of you before."

"Rize, no, you can’t just..."

"I know. I don’t plan to die. But, in case my luck runs out, I hope you succeed in changing the world, Venera. If there is someone who could do it, it’s you."

"Rize, what are you even-"

Before she could speak, Rize hung up on her. Venera stared at her phone as she tried to call him again quickly. However, he didn’t reply.

"Why... Why would you do such a reckless thing... You idiot." Venera said as she tapped her forehead, her heart twisting with pain. Rize’s words echoed in her mind as she contemplated running back and dragging him out.

But the sheer conviction in his voice and the belief... She could tell that he had made up his mind. Her role was different; she had to evacuate and save as many people as possible.

***

"Sigh... Alright." Rize muttered as he looked at the bomb. "Do I know how to defuse a bomb? No. Am I going to still give it a try and figure it out somehow? Well, no other option, really." Rize laughed dryly. "I can only hope for the best."