Chapter 88

88 Wake-Up Call

Pain, so much pain.

I felt like I slipped on the treadmill 54889 times in one hour, or perhaps I’m exaggerating. Who knows. I felt every single bruise, every single cut.

I opened my eyes to see a blurry room and a few worried faces looking down at me.

It seemed as if it was an apartment, and I was lying on a bed with a few people around me. It was very hard to see, not gonna lie. It was confusing.

My hands felt like they were on fire, and my chest felt like someone had taken a hammer to it.

My ears felt like they were bleeding, and my eyesight was still blurry.

I tried to get up, but I couldn’t. I felt so weak and dead.

“Hello...” I groaned. As my eyesight cleared, I saw September right in front of me with all the others. “Hey!” Malachi shouted in excitement, as he came into my view.

It was then that I realized what had happened. The last thing I remembered was flying into Rocke at full speed and then blacking out.

.....

The darkness must have been the time I spent unconscious.

“What happened?” I asked as I looked around.

“You practically headbutted with Rocke and then created a big shockwave, pretty much breaking the sound barrier, and then you dropped like a rock,” September explained.

“Is Rocke dead?” I asked as I tried to get up again.

“No, in fact, he got up immediately after he dropped,” September admitted.

“Figures,” I muttered as I finally sat up.

The pain was still there, but it was manageable now. The place looked like an apartment, with beds and a TV. I was in a bed, and the sheets were stained with blood.

“We had to patch you up as best as we could,” September said as she handed me a glass of water.

I graciously took it and downed the whole thing in one go. As I did, I looked at Nikki who seemed to be stuck in an expression of concern and terror.

“What?” I asked as I handed the glass back to September.

“It’s just when you were out, I just felt so helpless. I can’t lose you, Connor,” Nikki said as she came over and hugged me.

I was still in pain, but I tried my best to hug her back. Sadness fell over me and I felt a tear run down my cheek.

“I’m sorry,” I muttered.

“For what?” Nikki asked as she pulled herself away.

“For making you feel that way,” I sighed.

“It’s not your fault. I just can’t lose you, that’s all,” Nikki said as she looked away.

Malachi sighed. “Now just to tell you, we’re not with the YMPA. When we were captured, they took our radios so we’re on our own. We have the Cybertron, but it’s best we go ahead and make our way to Russia.”

“But why not get the radio and call Mr. Drails?” I asked. “He can deal with the rest.” Malachi sighed, “That’s the thing. The boat is going to Russia it’s already there. Luckily Tisiah confirmed that on that ship, there is a room where they carry the things they capture, so maybe our things could be there.”

“So when are we leaving?” I asked.

“Once we treat you from your injuries,” September responded.

I looked down at my arms and legs and saw bandages everywhere. I guess they did a good job considering the circumstances.

“Alright, I guess that’s so,” I said. We had a big responsibility here to do, but the problem wasn’t that it was a big responsibility. But it was more of the fact that we were now by ourselves, with no help from anyone else.

The only people we could rely on were each other, and that was it.

Stress was already hovering over me like a dark cloud, and I knew that things were going to get worse before they got better. But I had to be strong. I had to be the leader that everyone needed me to be.

Because if I wasn’t, then who would be?

Nikki got me another glass of water, and I drank it slowly this time. As I did, I felt my strength coming back, and the pain subsides.

“Alright,” Nikki said. “How do you like my water?”

“Pretty good for something made out of a wand,” I said, making Nikki giggle.

“Well, you should rest up,” Malachi said. “We’ll leave soon.”

I nodded and laid back down feeling a bit more exhausted than before. But I was glad that we were finally on our way to Russia.

I just hoped that everything would be okay once we got there. I want things to be the same old same old they were. Who knows what my Mom is thinking right now? She’s probably worried like crazy, and I don’t blame her.

But I need to stay strong. For everyone’s sake.

And that includes my own.

I don’t want to fail anyone, not at a time like this.

But I guess we’ll just have to wait and see what happens when we get to Russia.

I just hope everything goes as planned and we can get out of this godforsaken place.

And back to our lives once again.

But I’m only here because of my friends, nothing else. They were always supporting and cheering me on, even when I didn’t think I could do it. They never gave up on me, no matter what the situation was.

Now I’ll do the same for them without a second thought.

We’re in this together, and I’ll make sure we get out together as well.

No matter what the cost may be, I’ll protect them. And I’ll get us all home safe and sound.

That’s a promise.

Preview of the next volume:

Let me tell you this once, and only once. Okay, doesn’t matter how much but let me tell you this. Don’t ever expect the normal, the average, or the mediocre when you’re with us. You will always find yourselves in extraordinary situations, and that’s just one of the many reasons why we’re here in the first place.

We’re now being hunted by spy mages from an evil agency and the FBI although I have not heard from them for a while. Now, it was the next day after I was just woken up from my very painful slumber.

Well, it wasn’t painful since I was sleeping, but my body was in a lot of pain. I feel like I just got run over by a stampede of bulls, and that’s not even the worst I felt. My team, September, Nikki, Tisiah, and Malachi with me have decided to calm down and lay low.

In case you forgot, we had a very explosive fight in the street with blown-up cars, lasers being propelled at each other, and a lot of screaming.

Not a good sound to hear, and it’s something I would not want to experience ever again. We were inside this apartment in Florida, and it doesn’t seem like anyone is going to come for us anytime soon.

I’m not sure if the people who were after us have given chase yet or not. But I’m pretty sure Rocke has already given chase after us, and he’s probably the only one we have to worry about.

Rocke is a very powerful and dangerous man. He’s ruthless, thinks he’s clever, and always gets what he wants. No matter who or what is in his way, he will stop at nothing to get to us.

Especially me, Connor. He wants me dead more than anything, and I don’t know why.

I’ve never even met the guy before until that one mission to get the Armonk, and we’ve been sworn enemies since then, always trying to kill each other.

It’s a miracle that I’m still alive, and I have my team to thank for that. They always had my back, no matter what the case was.

I was sitting in the living room, on a sofa that felt quite warm and fuzzy, with a blanket over me. I was still in my clothes from before, and they were starting to feel quite itchy.

But I didn’t change, because my bones felt as if I was a hundred years old.

The apartment was a typical Florida type, with a living room, kitchen, and bedroom. The flooring was white with a few stains on it. The sink was white with a few rust spots on it. The ceiling was light blue with several cracks in it. There was an aroma of coconuts in the air.

As I turned around, I saw September walking toward me.

“Hey September,” she greeted, caressing her brown hair. “You still okay?”

“I guess,” I muttered, sitting up and stretching my arms. “What about you guys? Is everyone alright?”

“We’re all good,” Nikki said as she suddenly arrived. “We’re not exactly sure what to do right now though, so we’re just kind of relaxing.”

“I see,” I said as I got up from the sofa. “Well, we can-maybe do something fun while we’re at it.”

“The last time we did that, we nearly got killed,” Malachi said as he entered the room. “Couldn’t even meet any ladies, and we had to save ourselves.”

“He’s right,” Tisiah said, following him. “It wasn’t exactly the greatest choice.”

“But after that, they would have to leave once that fight happened,” I said. “Maybe we could try to use as much time here safe as possible to reevaluate the situation and come up with a better plan.”

“It’s not like we have anything else to do,” Nikki said. “We’re just kind of sitting here waiting for something to happen.”

“Exactly,” I said. “So, let’s try to make the best of it.”

“Perhaps,” Tisiah said, “but we should be on our guard. We do not know when they will come for us again.”

“Tisiah’s right,” September said. “Stay on guard, also anyone seen Greg?”

Suddenly, Greg opened the door of his room, “I’m here,” he said. “What’s going on?”

“We’re just trying to come up with a plan,” she said. “Good morning, by the way, have you been up long?”

“About an hour or so,” he replied. “I was just trying to see if there was anything to find in this beehive of a place.”

“And? Anything useful?” I asked.

.....