That was a much needed nap. My leg is still a little sore, but it's nothing like being hit by a car. I want to get up, but this blanket is just soooo comfortable. Despite what happened, he still wanted to tuck me in. I had to turn away; I couldn't get over the guilt of how badly I treated him.
Still, this is a hotel, and if I recall correctly, I have a certain promise to keep. I hope I didn't ruin the chance. Passion and sex in the middle of the war torn city of love—now that's a memory of a lifetime.
I get up.
"Felix?" He's not in the room. Did he go to check other floors? Or, knowing him, he probably went to check vantage points or fallback routes. There's silence around us, and the street below us looks the same as it was before.
I check the bathroom. Not there.
Slowly, I exit the room and sweep the floor. Not on this floor. Is he upstairs? He'd be safer going up than down, so I go up to the next floor.
Not here.
Next floor. "Ice Cream!" I playfully shout up the stairs.
No answer. My legs were unconsciously starting to move quicker to get to the next floor.
Not here.
Top floor. Not here.
Rooftop? Not here. Where?
Felix?
I start running down to the floors below us. No.
Next floor. No...
Bottom floor. Please.
No. No. No!
I run outside, scanning the area around me. No footsteps, no movement.
"Ice Cream, location?" I call out, loud enough for just this block.
I start running to the opposite side of the block. Not at this corner. Next corner. Nothing.
"Felix?" I call out, louder.
This is the last corner of the building. "Felix!!!"
I'm back at the set of bodies near the front of the building, where I started. No. I'd have heard fighting and woken up. How could I fall asleep on him like that!?
I keep searching for signs of fighting, until I see it.
I don't want to believe it, so I look closer to be sure.
No...
On the ground. My handgun that I gave to him as a present. And he's not here!!!
I'm panicking. Think. Think! He's a thinker. Where could he go? There has to be something. I told him not to be a hero, and he's not the kind of idiot that would carelessly leave the perimeter. The gun was here, and there's are no signs of fighting, so there has to be clue somewhere nearby. I can only hope he's been captured instead of killed.
There. I spot an unusually large, scattered pile of rifle and pistol magazines by one of the dead soldiers. Did he try to get more ammo for us after I yelled at him for emptying our rifle? Oh no.
What have I done?
Not him. Anyone but him. I can't lose him.
I don't care who I run into. I have to find him!
I grab a radio, a rifle, and a couple grenades from one of the dead demon bodies and start running. "Ice Cream 1 to Ice cream 2. Location."
Silence. I keep running.
"Ice cream 1, Ice cream 2. Location. Over!"
I start hearing what I think is movement on the other side of this block. I don't care who I run into anymore. I need to find him.
"Ice cr—"
I leap behind cover, by instinct. The shot that flew by me echoes through the barren streets. The way ahead of me is paved in red, soaked in the amber streetlight glow. The heavy sound of their footsteps implies they must be soldiers in full gear. Looks like they just killed a group of enemy humans and demons.
These aren't friendly soldiers anymore—not that there were ever any for someone like me. You were right, Felix. I shouldn't have questioned your judgment. Shit.
Still, these soldiers are human. They have protective gear, but if I can get a clear shot at their heads, they're dead. I can't take my chances here, though. I leap into the narrow alleyway across from me. They try to shoot me, but they reacted too slow. I start jumping off the walls, gradually working up to the top. A human won't be able to catch me like this.
I throw a grenade towards the start of the alleyway to deter anyone coming closer. The frantic yelling in French I heard as I reached the rooftop means it worked. I still don't know how many there are, but I have the advantage up here.
"Which one of you speaks English!?"
I get nothing but gunfire as a reply.
I move to a different position and quickly peek over before ducking back down. I only had a second before they started shooting. Squad of 5 from what I could see, and they're well behind cover.
"English! Hold your fire, I'm a Hunter!"
They either don't understand, don't believe me, or don't care. Doesn't matter. If they won't respond, I'll have to fight back. I just need one of their radios to use their frequency. One of the voices we heard in the beginning was speaking in English, so I'll chance asking.
I start focusing my heat into my custom handgun, ready to switch to the rifle when I need to.
I throw the another grenade where I saw soldiers stacked together. As expected, I hear footsteps scattering below me. I peek over and start firing. There are 4 in the open. There has to be one more!
There! The grenades wounded two of them, to which the last soldier popped out to return covering fire. I duck and quickly leap to a different point on the rooftop, hidden below the ledge. He shouldn't have seen me move.
I drop my rifle to my feet and grab my pistol. In an instant, I look over and fire. That cover won't save you from this.
The detonation knocks me down. The instant my back hits the rooftop, I hear the mass of raw, burning energy crash into the ground.
I look over to assess the damage. One soldier was thrown across the street from the impact. Another was missing his arms. The two previously wounded show no signs of life. That now makes a total of 4 out of 5, and the last one just gave his position away by shouting away at his radio.
I haven't caught my breath yet, but I have to take the advantage while I can. I throw my last grenade at the source of the sound.
As I predicted, the last soldier runs out from behind the car he was against. It all happens in slow motion. I raise my rifle and level my sights on him. I'm sorry. I didn't want to do this. I fire a few rounds, hitting him in the leg. I see his rifle point up towards me as he falls.
I understand now, Felix. You knew you had to do this earlier, too. This desperation I'm feeling right now—this need to find and save the one I love. I understand why you did what you did, despite how horrible you must have felt. I can't believe I let myself forget how much we want to protect each other.
I pull the trigger once more.
Silence follows. It's over.
I jump back down the same alleyway as earlier and work my way to retrieve one of their radios. The last surviving soldier groans, barely alive.
I can't understand French, but I can only guess that he's cursing me.
"English?" He now says, in English, between pained gasps. "You said you..." He's coughing between words.
"Hunter... Why?"
We're not here officially. If we're discovered, this will screw everything up back home—and not just US4-D1. The French government denied Athena's official request, but she knew she had to do something to both protect Felix and further our investigation. I really hope this all pays off in the end.
He continues spitting at me in French. Fuck you. You understood me, and only now you believe I'm a Hunter? Fuck you, asshole.
I am pissed. I have to find Felix.
I grab this dead soldiers radio, unsure of how this will turn out. This is why I need you, Felix.
You were right. We both had our own parts to play.
"Ice Cream 1 to Ice Cream 2. Over."
Silence.
"Ice Cream to any English. I say again, anyone that speaks English."
"Ice Cream this is UK6-13-02 'Wizard.' We don't know your call sign. Who are you?"
A British Hunter in France? What on earth is going on here?
"Roger, Wizard. What's our status? Over?" I seriously have no idea what to say. I sound like an idiot with dumb questions.
"Ice Cream, answer the bloody question. Don't be like the last guy who kept cocking up our radios. Who are you?"
"Wizard, do you have that 'last guy?'" He must mean Felix! This is as good a lead as any. I need him to talk.
"What? No! Who? Quit the rubbish you dodgy twat and answer!"
"I say again, is the 'last guy' with you?"
"No. Ice Cream, get off this frequency. Out."
What an ass. Anyway, for better or worse, our messages were getting noticed. Work your magic, Jess.
The body of the soldier that cursed at me just finally stopped breathing. Around me is a squad of the good guys, and I just murdered them. I did what I had to, but an excuse like that doesn't help my conscience. I'm no better than a rogue, now.
Felix, please be alive. If you're not with the allied soldiers, then you've got to be with the enemy. I'm not leaving here without you, even if it means I have to blast through this whole city.