I look up at the two identical men before me. I just kind of ran over without thinking. My nerves are absolutely getting the better of me, especially after seeing the remains of the kid whose head got crushed.
"I'm Bag Boy." I sputter out.
What in the world is that stupid name?
The identical men roar with laughter. "Aw, so some random kid wanted to play hero, so he grabbed a paper bag." Said the one on the right. "Let's tear the kid to pieces!" Said the one on the left.
"Now, now, Cain. We should give the boy a chance to run." He says while looking right at me.
Running would be the smart thing to do. I'm sure if Miss Claire were here, she'd tell me to run. And I'm sure Mr. Eun-ji is panicking, trying to find where I ran off to.
"I won't run. Especially after what I saw." I say, not exactly resolute in my words.
The one on the left, "Cain", doesn't skip a beat and front kicks my stomach, sending me back. And the one who was on the right appears behind me and grabs my neck. I see his aura spike as he does so.
"I guess we need to remove all witnesses. Not that you could do anything if we let you go anyway. We're the top of the B rank Heroes." The one who was on the right explains. "Yeah, Klein!" Cain chimes in.
Typical. To these kinds of people, status equals free rein to do whatever they want.
I make a portal in front of me and punch through it. A shadow hand appears out on the other side; however, it's in the completely wrong direction, missing my intended target.
I don't know what I was expecting. Mid-battle was probably not the best time to try something I haven't attempted before.
In response, the one who was on the right, "Klein", kneed me in the back.
I fall to my knees, coughing.
Cain attempts to rip the bag from my head. But I move my head out of the way and throw an uppercut aimed at his chin.
It connects, but he doesn't react.
"Was that supposed to hurt?" He asks.
Cain shouts some random syllable at me, and I don't have time to think about what that was before it sends me flying back into a nearby brick wall. In an instant, Klein is in front of me, roundhouse kicking me in the head. I saw his aura spike again as he did so.
I vainly swing at Klein, he sidesteps and grabs my left arm, and Cain lifts his leg and slams it down on my arm.
A loud snap rings throughout the alleyway, and I feel my bone break. I can't help but let out a cry of pain.
I jump back and grab my arm. I activate Mr. Eun-ji's power. Trying to focus on more defensive tactics.
It was no use.
I still couldn't perceive Klein's movements. I saw his aura spike as he appeared in front of me and punched me in the stomach.
The pain is almost unbearable, like I'm going to pass out. Using Mr. Eun-ji's power was too risky. I should've known that, but before I could deactivate it, I felt an elbow connect to the back of my head, knocking me down to my knees. I see both men standing before me.
They're too coordinated, too fast, and my attacks do nothing.
I'm completely outclassed. They're fighting to kill. Obviously. Mad Hound did too. All of my opponents will.
Am I gonna die?
I feel my breath hitch as the thought enters my mind. My mind goes blank, and my next action is based on pure instinct.
As if it's perfect timing, I see Mr. Eun-ji appear out of the corner of my eye. He tackles Klein, right as a giant tendril comes flying up in the direction of where he was.
Mr Eun-ji shouts, "Klein, that is a ranker-level threat! That attack would've killed you, man! You and Cain get out of here, and I'll handle it."
The pair doesn't seem to question Mr. Eun-ji's authority. I suppose most wouldn't question a ranker.
They promptly leave. And when they're completely gone. Mr. Eun-ji rushes to my side. He grabbed me as he yanked the paper bag off my head. He is looking all around, checking my condition.
"Ray, what were you thinking?!" He shouts. "You were outclassed, even if that attack you threw incapacitated Klein, Cain would've just killed you anyway!"
"Mr. Eun-ji?"
"Yeah, Ray?"
"When you have faced a life-or-death situation. What did you do?" I ask. The earlier events are still replaying in my head.
"When I was going through rehabilitation, at first I wasn't making enough progress to their liking. So Paragon suggested executing me. But Ironhide fought it to give me another chance." Mr. Eun-ji says.
"So how'd you escape it?"
"Ray. In those situations, you either reinvent yourself or die. In that situation, I reinvented myself, going from Eun-ji Choi the villain, to Sonar, the hero."
"Ah, I see," I reply. I suppose that makes enough sense.
"Ah fuck, you're all battered up… Claire is gonna kill me…" Mr. Eun-ji says fast. He's beginning to ramble. He goes on and on before turning to me. "Ray. Tell Claire that we got ice cream, and then you tripped and fell into a brick wall."
That is a dumb excuse that won't work. But I won't tell him that. "Sure, will do."
We then begin walking back to the lair. It's a long and quiet walk. I think Mr. Eun-ji is giving me a worse glare than when we first met. If looks could kill, he'd maim me.
We arrive back at the lair, and we take the elevator down. And we are greeted by Miss Claire, her arms are crossed, and she's glaring at Mr. Eun-Ji as if she wanted him dead at that very moment.
"Where did you take my Chameleon, Eun-ji?!" Miss Claire shouts at him.
"We got ice cream, Miss Claire! It was tasty!" I say as innocuously as possible, I might as well attempt to hide today's events. If only because I'd be in for a lecture as well.
Her expression softens. Her eyebrows unscrunched, and a small smile appeared on her face. "Well, I'm glad you had fun."
She takes a closer look at me and sees that I'm hurt. Her face immediately goes back to her previous expression, holding me in place and looking all around me, scrutinizing my condition, "Ray! What happened to you?! Is your arm broken?!" Her glare then turns to Eun-ji.
Mr Eun-ji mumbles something like "Fuck, I didn't notice the arm," before shouting: "He decided to pick a fight with two B Tier Heroes!"
"Ray!" She turns back to me and shouts.
That snitch!
"He used your wallet to pay for the ice cream! At his truck as well, and he spent one hundred and fifty dollars too!" I retorted. If I'm going down, he is too.
"Eun-ji!" Her glare was now directed at him.
Mr Eun-ji's eyes widen, and he glares at me. But what did he expect?
"Eun-ji. Out. I'll handle your spending of my money later! Gimmie my wallet." She commands.
Mr. Eun-ji obediently hands over the black leather wallet before sheepishly entering the elevator.
Miss Claire then turns to me and grabs my shoulders and shakes me, "What were you thinking?!"
"I was-" I begin to say before getting cut off. "No! You listen to me, Ray! Losing is death! You could have died. Died!"
"I need you to know how unfathomably stupid your actions were! It's called picking your battles, Ray! You should learn it. You can only fight lower-end C tiers and below effectively! So never, and I mean never, try that shit again until I deem you ready, understand?!"
I can only bring myself to nod. She hugs me tightly, as if she's trying to verify that I'm still here and okay. She then proceeds to pick me up.
She carries me through the hallway and over to my room and throws me onto my bed.
"Sleep." She demands before slamming the door.
I use Mr. Eun-ji's power to listen in on what she's doing. It seems she is grabbing something from the kitchen. She then walks over to what seems like the living room. I hear a click.
Yeah. She's watching TV now.
I stand up. I'm not really tired, maybe it's the ice cream? Or maybe the adrenaline. Either way, I don't want to sleep.
I start repeatedly making portals in front of me and punching through them. Trying to replicate the technique Miss Claire showed me earlier in the day.
One of the punches hit me and I fell over. Making a loud thud.
I try and stand up and lie down in my bed. But before I can, my room's door swings open. Miss Claire stands in the doorway, her eyes are red, and she looks tired.
I didn't intend to hurt her that much with my actions. She walks over to me, towering over me. "Seriously, kiddo? I told you to sleep." She says, utterly exasperated.
"Uhm… I fell out of my bed." I reply while lying back down in my bed.
"Don't give me that. I'm not stupid. I bet money you were practicing the portal move and hit yourself. Look at that bruise on your face." She says as she looks down at me, grabbing my chin and tilting my head to get a closer look.
"You cannot fathom how scared I was, kiddo. Eun-ji just took you outside, and I didn't even know where. And you came back with injuries. I don't want to lose you. Just stay safe. For me?" She says as she sits on the edge of my bed, ruffling my hair.
"Okay, Miss Claire. I promise." I replied.
She then pats my head and exits my room. When I hear the door close. I don't stand up. I can't let Miss Claire worry about me.
I stare at the ceiling, contemplating today's events. Cain and Klein, self-proclaimed as the top of the B rank heroes. The shout that Cain did, that's obviously his power. But Klein?
I saw his aura move, I know I did. But what did he do that counted as a power?
I know that if I keep contemplating this, I'll be up all night. I should at the bare minimum attempt to sleep.
I can figure out where to go from here later.
Tomorrow is another day, after all.