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Alvin_Darren
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Synopsis

Chapter 1 - CHAPTER 1: ESCAPING THE SHADOWS

**"Three, two, one—run!"** The command echoed in my mind, accompanied by that haunting, evil laughter. It still haunts me, seeping into every waking moment of my life. Without hesitation, I (Darren), along with my friends Sasha and Derek, sprinted. I jumped ahead, leading the way, and smashed shoulder-first through a glass window. The others followed close behind.

I rolled back to my feet, slightly stunned. I couldn't believe I had the confidence or energy to pull off such a stunt, let alone emerge unscathed. But in this situation, that was the least of my worries—especially with the horde of armed men on our heels. We dashed across the field, desperate to escape, but something was wrong. Our bodies felt unfamiliar and sluggish. We hadn't moved like this since the incident.

I know you're wondering what the "incident" is, but I'll explain that later. For now, back to the chase: our unfamiliarity with our own bodies slowed us down, making every step feel awkward and unnatural. After about ten minutes of running, we started to get the hang of it. Our speed increased as we found our rhythm. I thought we had lost the horde when they vanished from sight, but then I realized something strange—there were no walls, no signs that we were anywhere close to escaping this place.

The ground began to vibrate beneath us, the rumble of engines growing louder. They had vehicles now. We had to find cover. I looked back but saw nothing. Then, up ahead, I spotted a dense forest. "Head for the trees!" I shouted to Derek and Sasha. We sprinted into the forest, hoping it would offer some protection.

Once inside, I quickly laid out the plan. We needed to head for the center, where the trees were tallest and thickest. The deeper we went, the better our chances of losing them. Derek and I scouted for resources to defend ourselves. We found some old tires and steel cables. Returning to the center, I assigned Sasha to be on lookout and alert us if she saw the armed men. "They're gaining on us, but it's going to be tough for them to navigate this dense forest with their vehicles," she said.

"That should buy us some time, but we need to set up these traps quickly before it gets completely dark," I told the team.

Sasha climbed the trees with impressive agility, jumping from branch to branch until she reached the top. She dashed through the treetops, disappearing from sight. Derek and I tied steel cables between trees, positioned about 150 cm off the ground, and hung tires from high branches. Sasha returned and informed us that the men were entering the forest.

As night fell, we climbed into the trees, blending into the darkness. The armed men, some on motorcycles and others on foot, were heading toward the center. The dense forest and the vines made it difficult for them to see. The high-speed riders hit the steel cables and were thrown off their motorcycles. The remaining men, confused and searching for us, were unable to spot us in the dark.

Derek, the most experienced among us, quietly approached the last man in line, strangling him skillfully. He laid the man down and stripped him of his uniform and weapons. We equipped ourselves with daggers and a utility knife.

As the men on motorcycles continued their search, they fell into our traps. The riders were incapacitated by the steel cables, while the rest of the men, disoriented and searching for us, were met with our counterattacks. I found myself surrounded by six confused enemies. I slashed one with my dagger on the arm but I was scared I would kill him so I kept the dagger away .A sharp jab to the nose sent one attacker reeling, and with a swift left hook, I brought him to the ground. the other men started to attack me but I stayed calm . Two attacked at the same time I held them both by the arms and twisted there wrists, a little trick I learned from Derek. They yelled in pain and I felt a strange happiness when I heard there screams. I they became aggressive and tried to punch me but I was too quick and strong, I kicked the one on the left at the side of the leg causing a dislocation he screamed and fell to the ground. The second one once again tried to punch me but I easily dodged him. Let me go you coward and we fight like men, the man said. I accepted and we set our selves for a fight he threw the first blow but I dodged it easily and quickly . Is that the best you've got I asked the man then he smirked at me and pulled a knife from hit pocket . He swings it at me but I dodged it and I could literally see he's hand try to hit me, I could feel everything, see everything ,hear everything better than usual, everything was enhanced my strength my speed my intellect. I held the man by the wrist and punched him powerfully at the throat sending him to the ground. I kicked the remaining two men away and tied them up using the steel cables. I continued to walk ahead and I found Derek kick one of the men right on the head and he passed out, I looked around that place and I saw around seven bodies of unconscious men. Derek then moved forward towards me pulled me by the arm.

"Let's move quickly "He said

We went back to the part of the forest we got in from. There, we found that Sasha had already set for us some bikes which were used by the men who attacked us.

"What took you guys so long?" she asked.

We got onto the bikes and started to ride through the forest, while we were going through we found some of the men starting to regain consciousness. One of the men lifted himself up and supported himself against a tree.

"Please, don't go. He'll kill us first for not being able to capture you then he'll come for you" the man said.

We just passed by him and ignored his warning but the first thing that came to my mind when he said that was the evil laughter. We continued for about 20 minutes by this time it was totally dark and we all must have been tired, so I suggested we take a rest and find somewhere to take shelter. We stopped under a big tree and agreed that we would take turns sleeping so as to prevent or at least control an ambush. I volunteered to take the first shift so since I saw Derek must have been exhausted. So, I stayed up looked around surveyed the perimeter after doing that for a while, I laid down and looked up at the stars thinking of everything we had to endure in the hands of the Black Hole. In case you're wondering no I'm not talking about the space black hole. I'm talking about the Black Hole organization It's the reason I have all the scars on my back. The reason I have nightmares everyday remembering all the things I've done. This organization breaks you physically psychologically and even spiritually.

They kidnapped me when I was about 8 years old, they molded me into what I am today but I'll explain more about as we move on. I laid there quietly remembering everything then I felt a vibration from the ground. I stood up and looked around but I couldn't see anything close by so I climbed the tree for a better view. Where we had just passed and I saw dust raise first then when I focused I realized, It was him. I jumped down from the tree and alerted the rest.

"He's here, We've gotta go "I said to Derek and Sasha.

We started riding full speed a head without looking back. The sound of his engine kept getting louder and before long I could feel his presence. A dark aura over took the atmosphere. Sasha was a head of us so I told her to go faster. I was in the middle and Derek was the last behind us. By this point we were in a rocky field so Derek tried to throw some rocks at him to buy us some time. He triggered some rocks causing them to fall towards the man, They hit his bike which made us believe we had bought some time. Then I heard