Walking through the populous streets of zone one, Jon leads Hannah through a multitude of turns before finally stopping in front of what appeared to be a fire exit at the end of a dark alleyway.
'Hannah, why are you so trusting of me?'
'What do you mean?' Hannah asked looking up at Jon as the city lights only gently light up the outlines of his face.
'If all that you heard about the underworld is true, I could be leading you to your doom!' Jon said, 'you should not have trusted me this easily....it's dangerous down there.'
'If I wanted to give up, I would have done it a long time ago.' Hannah said stubbornly before she reached out to grab Jon's hand. Her fingers are warm, much warmer than his, 'you didn't have to come with me!'
Jon lets out a sigh and chuckles, 'I think we both know each other well enough.'
'Yes, we do.' Hannah smiled, squeezing Jon's hands gently once before letting it go, 'plus if the underworld is as bleak as you make it out to be, how are you so nice then?'
Jon gave her a longing look and promised himself to confess to her after this project is over.
'You'd better bring her and her camera back in one piece so I can fix it up nicely with my new tech!' Those were Patty's parting words as she sends them off back at the university.
Opening up the door with his access code, Jon and Hannah walked into the great beyond of the underworld, the mysterious zone negative one.
It was the first time that Jon has returned since the start of his university education, and his father has thankfully gradually pulled away from whatever he was doing in his first three years, though he still had it in the back of his mind the singular event that is going to change him forever, which is more reason why he is here with Hannah.
During their years at the university, Jon never once showed his power to others. He always trained in the dead of night far away from anyone else's attention, and he managed to get stronger through those years too. Now, he will use all of his strength to protect Hannah in the underworld and get her whatever she needs for her capstone project.
The compound that they are tracking down is widely used in zone four, and initially, the plan was to enter through zone four too, but that is akin to dropping directly into the line of fire between factions. Jon convinced Hannah to enter through the portals at zone 1 and slowly make their way towards the portals at zone four, tracking down the sellers and producers of the compound that way. Once they figured out everything upstream, they can then resurface and clamp down everything downstream.
The underworld had a similar vibe to the nightlife district of zone one, and Jon offered Hannah a full body cover hide the glow from her powers before they walked through the streets and opened up a room in one of the more luxurious love hotels.
In terms of privacy and secrecy, there are no better places, though Jon was way too embarrassed to suggest it straight up to Hannah. It ended up being her idea actually.
Setting up everything they needed for their investigations, Jon insisted on showing Hannah the general outlines of the underworld just so she can get a basic feel of how things work around here. Not much has changed since the last time he has walked around on the streets, and thanks to the cover, not too many bandits bothered Hannah through their walks. Given her innocent looks and kind demeanor, there is no way Jon can feel safe without him directly being there for her.
There was a cry from a child coming through an alleyway, and Hannah pulled grabbed onto Jon's hand to get his attention to it.
'It's one of the scams.' He explained before holding tightly onto Hannah and pulling her forward. He took her up to one of the high railings over this district of the underworld, 'things work differently down here. The enforcement of laws is done district by district by each of the dominant forces. We are in one of the more stable areas due to the booming businesses, but if we go out a bit further, the power systems become more and more messy and varying.'
'I see.' Hannah nodded with a serious look on her face, though Jon couldn't take her seriously look too serious and he started laughing, 'what?!'
'No.....hahahaha....I just can't see you without your smile....'
'What do you mean!' Hannah said angrily before making a face, 'I can be angry too!'
Jon looked under her cover, and he laughed even louder.
Then, he realized that he is still holding onto her hand, and both of their hands had become warmer and warmer.
'Anyway.....let's buy some groceries and head back.' Jon said, slowly letting go of Hannah's hand before turning around. He wondered if she is okay with either him letting go of holding on and decided it's best not to think about it.
The love hotel they are staying in includes its own kitchen, and Hannah volunteered to be the chef as Jon has proven time and time again how worthless he is in the kitchen. He never had the need to cook for himself before leaving the underworld, and Hannah has taught him so much of the cooking knowledge that he knows.
Though the student is in no way at the level of the master, so Jon volunteered to ensure the security of their room. The particular package they have gotten is a long term rental sort of deal, and the hotel manager didn't bother with much asking after Jon showed him the paycheck.
The rooms are themed, and theirs was space adventure, with various rooms, surfaces, slopes, tiny tunnels, and even a slide for them to perform their 'business'. Of course, Jon knew that that's not the point of them being here.
'Dinner's ready!' Hannah said from the other side of the room as Jon was cleaning up all the various surfaces and ensuring there are no hidden compartments, recorders and cameras. Turning off his eyes as sharp of a string of atoms, Jon headed out towards the dining room and joined Hannah at the table.
She tied her hair up into a single tail and absolutely dazzled in the apron. She is slightly sweaty from the cooking effort, and Jon stood up before grabbing a tissue and gently taps away from the sweat over her forehead.
The smell from the food she cooked up filled the entire suite, though her aroma is all Jon is thinking about.
Looking closely into her eyes, he realized that her face is bright red, and yet she didn't move from Jon as he approached.
Blinking his eyes a few times to realize that he is doing, Jon took half a step back and pulled his hand away.
'So.....sorry...I just...I didn't know what came of me...'
'Hm.....hm...it's okay.' Hannah smiled back at him, 'I feel great now!'
The glow is now what filled the room.
As they shared a meal at the table, Jon realized that he now wanted this project to last as long as he could.
However, a movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention, and before Hannah realized what is going on, Jon already moved. Whispering the phrase of activation of his powers, he dashed across the room to the window, puncturing his hand through it and grabbed onto the collar of someone who's waiting outside of the windows.
The walls were knocked down as dust stormed and bricks rained. Multiple superhumans filled the room as one placed a knife against the throats of Hannah, still sitting at the table and utterly helpless.
'I welcome you back, master.' Jon's old butler appeared from the hole the wall as Jon is still holding onto the collar of the one he caught, 'and I am glad to see you deliver a troublesome journalist to us.'
'What is the meaning of this?' Jon asked, pointing his finger at the butler with the unconscious foot soldiers still in his hand.
'Why why?' The butler laughed coldly, 'It was thanks to your efforts that the trading of the RED powder will remain a secret. Your father will reward you heavily after she is dealt with.'
'Jon...?' Hannah asked, and Jon turned to see the dining table chopped in half and the dishes Hannah cooked up carefully now on the floor. Her glow is weak and ghostly, and she had tears streaming down her face.
'How did you track me?' Tossing the foot soldier in his hand through the wall out of the window, Jon suppressed his anger and asked him.
'Why, you told us when you will be coming back. Do you not remember?'
So this is it. This is the event. The one that will change him forever.
Father was watching all along.
That's why he was hesitant...especially when it comes to Hannah. However, he just cannot say no to her.
Looking over back at the girl, Jon saw her smiling at her before she mouthed the following phrase.
"cover your eyes"
Looking away and blocking out his sight as Hannah lets out all of her reserved power of the GLOW. All of the foot soldiers in the room are blinded by her attack as Jon whispered, 'footwork as quick as a shooting star.'
Dashing across the room, Jon reappeared behind where he remembered Hannah to be sitting.
'Fingers as accurate as entangled quantums.'
The knifes held against Hannah's throat are shattered into hundreds of pieces as Jon picked up Hannah and jumped out of the building.
'I know you are much stronger than you look.'
That was the first thing Hannah said, and Jon is at a loss for words.
Holding back the guilty tears and biting deep into his lips until blood and tears are what's left behind him in the wake of his movements through the air, he headed straight to the nearest portal back towards the outside world.
He already memorized the location of the nearest three portals, and him at his fastest state meant they are mere seconds away from making it out of here.
Then, he looked up right in front of him when the bottom face of a shoe appeared out of nowhere before it got bigger and bigger and crashed into his face.
Still holding tightly onto Hannah's frail body, Jon slammed hard onto the road surface, absorbing all of the impacts directly into his body as the ground beneath him was smashed in.
'JON!' Hannah screamed, her chilly fingers caressing Jon's cheek and waking him from impact. A rage that she has never seen before lit up like a wildfire inside Jon's eyes, and he pressed himself up.
'....Go....run away from here....' Jon said, his eyes desperately searching for the one responsible for knocking him out from the air, 'I...I am so sorry...Hannah...they must have tracked my access code...'
'No. They are working with others on the surface too.' Hannah said decisively, 'nobody wants the truth about the compound to come out, and they must have gotten wind of my project.'
'Get...get away from here....please...'
'You know me better than that.' Hannah said, holding onto Jon's shoulder as she applied a firm pressure and puts his dislocated shoulder back into place, 'I am not going anywhere.'
'WHY DO YOU HAVE TO BE STUBBORN NOW!' Jon screamed back into her warm smile, 'JUST GET OUT OF HERE!'
Hannah was about to open her mouth and say something when Jon spotted a flash of light coming in directly from behind her.
'NOOOOO! FINGERS AS ACCURATE AS ENTANGLED QUANTUMS!'
Reaching out with his hand, Jon intended to deflect the attack, but the incoming projectile swerved around his hand at the last moment and found its way into Hannah's back through her heart.
The impact threw Hannah into Jon and a mixture of blood and flesh jetted out onto Jon's hand.
'Han....Hannah.....? Hannah?!'
'Stand up. Son.' A thunderous voice came from behind him as a chill ran down Jon's spine.