When all was said and done, Aiden left the office accompanied, not only by the boy who introduced himself as Acke, but also the administrator and an older man who offered to help search for the missing member. His name was Mr. Miyagi. For his part, the administrator could not afford to let two youths alone, he left a series of indications, such as not to leave the room for anything in the world, and ventured along.
They called out to the missing man several times, despite the risk of attracting something else, but only silence answered them. The mission, for the adults, in addition to keeping the boys safe, was to find out what had happened to their domicile compatriot, so the administrator suggested going to his room where he could access the security data. The alternative was to go to the basement computer, responsible for regulating and recording all activity captured by the sensors, recording video from the cameras, regulating the temperature, sprinklers, etc. But he opted for his room because, to tell the truth, the alternative terrified him given tonight's events. In the dark basement there was nothing but the boiler, water pumps and a cellar, it was the perfect place to be attacked, there was a killer on the loose after all, so the group desisted.
In the end, Aiden had not been able to do exactly what he wanted, but if he was honest, it felt much better than to be alone. He could feel his heart racing with nothing but every step; icy sweat was running down his spine.
They were still completely in the dark, lighting the way with the flashlights on their phones. They hadn't noticed it before, but almost all the lights in the hallway on the second floor had suffered the same fate as those in the lobby. Only occasionally did the censors turn on one, much-appreciated, surviving lantern.
—I can't believe you don't have a phone; it must be hell trying to make any transactions —said Aiden to the boy walking beside him—. Oh, I get it! It's one of those, isn't it? You have a retinal implant or a chip in your wrist, right?
—Hey. No, no, not at all. I lost it today, I got mugged for walking in inappropriate places, it was a little while ago, and I haven't been able to replace it. I'm not a big fan of that technology. Injections, incisions, nano-chips and stuff. I've seen enough movies to know how it ends.
—How strange. It should be pointless to steal devices like a phone from this city. So many defense mechanisms that come into play when you try to force access, that stealing from people like us, makes the task simply not worth it. The object becomes useless, no different from a block of plastic. Oh, unless they've already found a way to bypass all that. Ah, it's possible, yes, it's a scary place, the world out there, don't you think?
He didn't know it himself, or maybe he did, but he wouldn't admit it. The reason he was doing so much talking was to dull the nervousness that was slowly but surely creeping up his legs to every corner of his body.
One of the men accompanying them, Mr. Miyagi, feeling the same way, answered the silly question.
—The truth, I don't think so much as in here, presently, at least. I'd rather be outside right now.
—I couldn't agree with you more, my friend —said the administrator—. I hope Mr. Andrey is well.
The group nodded, but no one dared to say it aloud. Acke, for his part, was not paying attention. He nodded with the rest of the matches, as he was thinking between the lines of "If I get out of this, the first thing I'll do, finally, is get a registered phone."
The group moved carefully down the angled hallway, giving the impression of moving through an octagon. Aiden in particular was hypersensitive, reacting to every little noise around him that broke the neurotic silence, his muscles already tense from the start, the scares causing him to jump and dozens of micro-strokes.
They made it safely to the final stretch, they could see the end of the corridor, the lights were intact, which caused a false sense of security. To the front, a wall; a few steps ahead, dark stairs. Just like the seat of heads earlier, the group let out a unison sigh. Unfortunately, for them, this did not even last to regain their composure. Mr. Administrator was about to open the door, but his trembling hands tried hard to find the keys among the many hanging from his waist. Trying one and another, he was interrupted by the thunderous, demoralizing sound of an explosion from where they had come. Like a stunned engraving, the reddish flash, ripped through the darkness of the hallway. Both Miyagi and the administrator let out dishonorable howls, but no one could blame them.
I didn't know what, but something was coming towards them, there was no doubt. The explosion was just the opening. They could hear the chaotic symphony of footsteps approaching. Aiden grabbed his leg and, with his other hand, reached into his pocket and squeezed the talisman Leyson had entrusted to him. He took a deep breath while he still could and repeated several times in his mind, "It'll be all right, it's all right, I can do it." If he kept repeating it, maybe he would come to believe it, the young man thought.
Acke, on the other hand, started counting down in his mind. He didn't quite know what to expect, or why he did it, but as soon as he recited "zero," the figure of a beautiful girl his age, potentially younger, with beautiful long red hair, entered his field of vision. She came through the air, her back to them, as if she had been sent flying by a blow. She crashed, from the angle, sideways against the wall, near one of the windows facing the lilac tulips that decorated the facade. Part of the inner frame of the window gave way on impact and the glass splashed mostly outward, fortunately.
—Mina! —Acke reacted aloud when he recognized the girl.
But his voice was dulled, the roar of the fire consuming the atmosphere. It reminded Aiden of a video of a flamethrower he had seen long ago. The fire whip contorted in midair toward Mina. She managed to evade it with a leap and regained her form, well, if it could be called a form. She assumed, what could only be called, a panther's stance, ready to pounce on her prey. With one of its arms raised, showing its imaginary claws. He didn't need them, Aiden thought, with his strength he could easily decapitate someone. At the thought, he couldn't help but shudder.
Behind the sizzling whip came the calm footsteps of a tall, ashen-haired man covered by a large, crumpled hat. The temperature in the hallway rose at least ten degrees, probably more, with the flame from earlier. He, however, still wore the stole as a scarf. He thrust his jaw into the stole and whispered extra words in sequence. In the palm of his hand, which he opened pointing to the ceiling, a small red and yellowish sphere came into existence. Soon, as if it were a baseball, he threw it at Mina Neri.
She dodged it and lunged at the priest, but was met by a pair of fiery stakes. One hit her right arm. Mina howled in pain. Her hand took on a color between purple and black on the knuckle side; as if scorched. The palm, on the other hand, where it received the full force of the attack, looked like a slice of pizza fresh from the oven. The smell of cooking meat made Aiden regurgitate. He couldn't take it anymore, so he decided to intervene.
—What the hell did you do to him?!
—Oh, my, my, my… But it's you, what are you doing here? —he said with a tinge of displeasure on his face—. Lost? I don't see your friend.
—What do you think you're doing attacking indiscriminately without asking questions first, you bastard?
—Oh, but it's my problem. I make it my job to hunt monsters to protect innocent sheep, like all of you. —He said and formed a smile on his face—. I won't lie, though, the lord commands are such, my favorite part is the hunting.
Mina Neri, ignoring the exchange, raised her head as if she had sensed something, sniffed for a second and fled in the direction of the stairs.
—Look what you've done, kid. He ran away because you distracted me.
—You said it yourself, it's your problem —Aiden prepared to fight, but found no opportunity to advance.
The man called Benjamin the priest ignored the group of two men trembling with their heads buried between their legs and the two young men; one trembling and ready to flee or fight, at least that was what his body language said; the other was perhaps the most enigmatic, he looked at him coldly, immobile, as if he were paralyzed. But he gave no importance to either. He climbed the first step and, as if he had remembered something, he turned and spoke.
—Although it's true that an issue arises when there are witnesses. Don't look at me like that, I have no choice, I don't want this either. But don't worry, once I take care of this, your turn will come, ordinary people. I advise you not to leave the rooms, for your own good. Goodbye, friends.
The group remained in the same positions until the sound of footsteps disappeared in the distance.
The first to speak was Acke.
—What was that? That's the first time I've seen that kind of weapon. Although it's true that in this city, nothing surprises me.
—There's no time. —Aiden burst in—. Please, sir, I need to see the security cameras to check something.
As if a higher force were taunting the young man at that moment, the instant he uttered those words, the remaining lights went out.
—A blackout? —said Acke.
—For real? —Aiden added—. You've got to be kidding me.