...
"Hey, Zastan!" Elara called out with a bright smile, her voice carrying over the noise of the crowd. She seemed genuinely pleased to see him.
Zastan's expression softened, and he returned her greeting with a polite nod.
"Elara. It's good to see you again."
Elara wasn't alone. Beside her in the passenger seat sat Amara, her best friend, who leaned over to get a better look at Zastan. In the back, two other girls watched with intrigued expressions, whispering to each other.
"Wow, Elara," Amara teased, her voice dripping with playful sarcasm. "Is this the 'mysterious guy' from the train you were talking about?"
Elara's face flushed a light shade of pink, and she shot Amara a glare.
"Amara, seriously?" she groaned, trying to keep her cool. She then turned to Zastan, offering an apologetic smile. "In the back, that's Liz and Fiona. And, you should know Amara." she said as she pointed to the person in the co-pilot seat.
Liz grinned mischievously, her eyes darting between Elara and Zastan. "So, this is the guy who managed to crack the ice goddess's shell, huh? Impressive."
Elara rolled her eyes, her cheeks now fully pink. "Can we not do this right now? We should get in line before it gets any longer." She gestured toward the steadily growing queue at the entrance. "Come on, let's move before we're stuck out here all day."
Amara quickly hopped out of the car, handing the keys to a valet who whisked the vehicle away to the parking lot. The girls joined Zastan at the entrance, and together, they started to queue up. The atmosphere was lively but tinged with unease as people continued to glance at their phones, checking for updates on the fugitive's whereabouts.
As they waited, a man in a sharp suit approached the front of the line, his expression stern. He was the person in charge of the building, and his presence immediately commanded attention. Clearing his throat, he addressed the crowd through a megaphone. "Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention, please! Due to unforeseen circumstances involving a dangerous criminal on the loose in this vicinity, we are closing the SkyDeck for safety reasons. We apologize for the inconvenience, but your safety is our top priority."
Murmurs of disappointment rippled through the crowd, and some began to turn away, dejected. Just as the announcement ended, a faint commotion from the nearby street reached their ears. The sound was distant at first—muffled shouts and the thumping of hurried footsteps—but it grew louder with each passing second, evolving into a chaotic chorus of panicked cries.
"Run! The criminal is here!" someone shouted, their voice cracking with fear.
Zastan turned his head sharply in the direction of the noise. On the wide sidewalk of the adjacent building, a large group of people came into view, sprinting with terror etched across their faces. They scattered in every direction, pushing past one another in their desperate attempt to flee. The air buzzed with the frantic energy of their escape, and it wasn't long before the reason for their panic became clear.
Police officers and soldiers followed close behind, weapons drawn, shouting commands that were lost in the discordance. "Stop! Surrender now!" a police officer yelled, but his voice was swallowed by the uproar.
Zastan's eyes narrowed as he watched the scene unfold, his mind calculating the potential risks. The crowd was moving closer, bringing the chaos dangerously near. In the midst of the fleeing masses, he finally spotted the source of the commotion. A huge figure wielding a bloodied knife. The man's massive build and wild eyes marked him unmistakably as the escaped criminal.
Elara and her friends froze in place, their expressions shifting from confusion to outright fear. Liz let out a strangled gasp and stumbled backward, falling to the ground. She remained there, paralyzed by terror, her eyes locked on the advancing criminal. Zastan's gaze flicked between the approaching threat and the girls, realizing that time was quickly running out.
"Get behind me," Zastan ordered firmly, his voice cutting through the noise. He stepped forward, positioning himself between the girls and the advancing threat. When they didn't move, still trapped in their shock, he raised his voice. "I said, get behind me!"
His commanding tone jolted them into action. Elara grabbed Liz's arm, pulling her up as they hurried to take cover behind Zastan. All except Liz, who remained rooted to the spot, her legs refusing to cooperate. Zastan glanced back, seeing her still sitting on the ground, and let out an exasperated sigh.
"Just great," he muttered under his breath. Without hesitation, he moved to stand directly in front of Liz, shielding her with his body.
"Young man, dodge!" a police officer shouted from a distance, panic lacing his voice.
Zastan quickly assessed the situation. The criminal was closing in fast, his knife slicing through the air in wide arcs. Zastan cursed under his breath, realizing the man's speed was greater than he had anticipated. He braced himself, instinctively shifting into a defensive stance as the criminal locked eyes with him, a vicious grin spreading across his face.
"Of all the places…" Zastan thought, irritated by the unexpected confrontation. But there was no time to second-guess. The criminal's focus shifted to Liz, who was still on the ground, her eyes wide with fear. With a sinister laugh, the man lunged toward them, knife raised high.
"Zastan, don't! Just run!" Liz's voice pierced through the chaos, filled with a mixture of fear and pleading. She reached out as if to push him away, but Zastan stood his ground.
"Relax," Zastan said calmly, his eyes never leaving the criminal. "I know my limits. Just trust me."
As the criminal charged, Zastan moved swiftly, sidestepping the initial swipe of the knife. His movements were fluid and precise, the result of the strength-enhancing potion he had taken earlier. The criminal, underestimating Zastan's agility, stumbled slightly, his momentum throwing him off balance.
Zastan seized the opportunity. He delivered a sharp punch to the criminal's side, his enhanced strength catching the man completely off guard. The criminal staggered, eyes wide with surprise as he realized he had been hit much harder than expected. But Zastan didn't stop there. He followed up with a powerful strike to the criminal's arm, the force of the blow snapping the bone with a sickening crunch.
The knife clattered to the ground, and the criminal howled in pain, clutching his broken limb. Zastan moved in for the final blow, landing a precise punch to the man's jaw. The criminal crumpled to the pavement, unconscious before he hit the ground.
For a moment, there was silence. The world seemed to pause as everyone processed what had just happened. Then, like a dam breaking, the police and soldiers swarmed the area. Officers rushed forward, securing the criminal with swift efficiency. From above, soldiers descended from a helicopter, rappelling down ropes to join the fray. The criminal was subdued in seconds, restrained and surrounded by armed personnel.
Zastan stepped back, his breathing steady, and glanced over at the girls. They were staring at him, eyes wide with shock and awe.
But for Elara, it was different, her breath catching in her throat as she watched Zastan in the aftermath of his confrontation with the criminal. Her heart raced, not from fear but from a different, unexpected emotion. There was something about the way Zastan had stepped in without hesitation, the calm determination in his eyes, the strength he had shown. It all made her see him in a completely new light. She had always admired confidence and strength, but seeing it displayed so effortlessly, so genuinely, stirred something within her. She found herself blushing, unable to tear her gaze away from him.
She had been known as the 'ice goddess' in her circles—a reputation for being reserved, composed, and difficult to impress. But now, she felt her own cool facade melting. Elara had met plenty of guys who talked big but crumbled when faced with real pressure. Zastan, however, was different. He didn't just talk; he acted, and he acted with a quiet assurance that left no room for doubt. She caught herself staring and quickly looked away, feeling a warmth spread across her cheeks. She glanced back at him, a shy but genuine smile playing on her lips.
Zastan, meanwhile, was calmly surveying the scene, ensuring that the girls were safe and that the situation was under control. He noticed Elara's gaze, the subtle shift in her demeanor. She wasn't just grateful—there was something deeper, an unspoken connection that seemed to form in that moment of shared danger. He acknowledged her with a small nod, a soft smile of his own.
The spell was broken when a police officer approached Zastan, his expression a mix of relief and admiration. "Sir, that was… remarkable. I don't know how you did it, but you saved a lot of lives today." The officer extended a hand, shaking Zastan's firmly. "I can't thank you enough on behalf of everyone here."
Zastan shrugged modestly, brushing off the praise with a casual wave. "Just doing what anyone would do," he said, though he knew full well that his actions were far from ordinary.
"Not everyone would've had the guts," the officer replied, a touch of awe still in his voice. "We've got medics on the way for the injured, but thanks to you, it didn't escalate further."
As the scene calmed, it became clear that Zastan's actions had not gone unnoticed. A crowd had gathered, phones held high to capture the moment. Whispers and murmurs of disbelief rippled through the onlookers. Word spread quickly among the crowd, with more and more people pulling out their phones to check the latest updates and videos.
Before long, the area buzzed with the sound of camera shutters and the hum of news crews setting up their equipment. Reporters jostled for the best angles, eager to capture every detail of the incident that was already making waves across the city. A particularly persistent reporter from the Luminae Daily managed to push her way to the front, microphone in hand.
...