Lights out.
Aaliyah hadn’t gone too far when a man in coveralls came towards her with a gun. He shot at her and missed. His aim was poor, and he looked afraid.
There was no time to keep climbing. She was sure there were more vengeful engineers down there. She let go of the ladder and allowed herself to fall through the remaining four feet. Then, she ran out of the reach of the man’s bullets.
“They are here!” the man shouted as he followed her.
Aaliyah flattened herself against a large tank and a group of pipes waiting for the man. She could hear more than one footstep coming in her direction, and so, she braced herself.
“I don’t know who you think you are, but you can’t fight five hefty men by yourself. Your minutes are numbered,” one man said as all of them peered around for her.
She smiled.
Five eh?
From the pipes behind her, she could sense someone. She waited for the person to come close enough, then she moved, grabbing the hand of the man that held onto the gun. She raised it so that he shot at the ceiling; then, she kicked the arm, causing him to let go of the gun in pain.
His scream attracted the other men. However, before they arrived, she twisted his arm so that he was in front of her. One of his colleagues came from around the corner, shooting randomly. He killed his teammate, and she killed him.
She realized her gun was empty. The others were running towards her. She ran towards a larger pipe and climbed up on it. An unsuspecting man passed by, looking around. She jumped off, landing on his shoulder with her legs curled around his neck. Twisting her body, she took him down to the floor. The other two engineers were right in front of her. She picked the fallen man’s gun up and shot the two of them with perfect aims.
She stood up and listened. There were no more movements. She then ran to a set of tanks and looked inside. They were full of an oily substance- fuel. She took a deep breath, ready to run.
Unpinning a grenade, she dropped it into the tank and ran to the entry ladder. Climbing up with all her strength, she left the manhole, and she covered it.
She could hear gunshots from the cabin area. Joel was still inside.
“Joel!” she screamed. But it was too late. The first explosion happened, almost making her trip. She knew it didn’t stop there. She ran through the weather deck to the Starboard side of the ship just as another explosion caused the manhole cover to fly off. She dived into the water, swimming away with energy as the explosions continued. The concussions rippled through the water, pushing her away. As she began to lose consciousness, one word was on
her mind.
Joel…
The protests on the harbor had ceased, and everyone watched the fireworks show.
???
3rd December 2021
11:00 am.
Ray of Hope HQ, Staten Island, Richmond County, New York.
USA.
Adrik held a gun in front of him as he opened the door of his room. He peered out cautiously. There was no one. He frowned. Something wasn’t right.
That was when he noticed Khristina’s body on the ground.
“Too slow, Adrik,” Suzanne said as she emerged from a corner, flinging the tray at him. The tray hit the hand that held the gun and sent the gun flying.
Adrik looked at her in shock. She pulled her two guns from the belt and held them pointed at him.
“Do you always kill the waiters that come to serve you breakfast?” she asked, smiling.
Adrik didn’t return the smile.
“Vivien,” he growled. “You had the nerve”