Elias struggled to open his eyes, his eyelids finding some resistance due to the dried blood that had trickled down from his head. He tried to wipe it away before realizing his hands were bound together. 

He sighed as he noticed the familiar tight sense around his wrists. “Ahh, not this again.”

A bit peeved that he had often found himself tied up against his will recently, he tried to stand where he was immediately welcomed by a room that seemed to be on its side. It was not; instead, Elias was experiencing positional vertigo. It was an injury caused by the close contact of the explosion he had nearly managed to escape from.

He reached for his head, recoiling as it felt sensitive to the touch. He took it slow as he finally got a proper footing. His vision returned as his balance steadied.

As he examined his wrist again, he chuckled. His luck is really a godsend. Fortunately, these weren’t metal shackles that some may find exciting; they were simple plastic zip ties.

He brought it close to his mouth, where he tightened the restraint, pulling the loose end with his teeth. Drawn as much as possible with his palms facing one another to ensure this was the case, he raised his hands above his head with his elbows wide open. Throwing his arms downward and back into a thrust with great force allowed him to break through the restraint.

After rubbing his soar wrists, he congratulated himself.

Now...where are we?

***

Seated there with his new burner device, he tried to call again to yield similar results.

“The line you are trying to reach is no longer in service.”

He sighed as he realized that his teacher was unreachable once again. “Well, he might be more annoyed than mad that I fumbled handling the drop-off. Still, at the very least, he could call me back. Well, whatever we are here now, I suppose that means we must pack up and prepare to leave soon.”

“What?!” shot another.

“Did you not hear a word I said. I think it is time we—”

“Huh?!”

“…I SAID—”

“What are you yelling for?”

“You could hear me this entire time?”

“No, I had headphones on. You know I don’t like being disturbed on my phone.”

“Right... Anyway, Bruno, we should split up. Get out of dodge while we can. I intend to speak with that young lad to know how he knew about our drop-off. He may know more about our goals. I plan on at least getting some answers. While I do that, you should take off first.”

Bruno scratched his temple with his thumb. “I don’t know. I think I will stay around here for a bit longer. If anything, shouldn’t you be going first? You’re the one talking about people coming after you, Korrick.”

“They will come after you too, you know, to ask you questions. You have some pretty good skills. Honestly, you’re probably better than me when I was your age. I want you to take care of yourself and walk away before you get too deep in this business.”

“Buddy… aren’t you two years older than me?”

Korrick shuffled to the side, half perplexed by Bruno’s question. Given his attitude, he had thought Bruno was much younger. Seeing as they were closer in age, he was now more embarrassed by their difference in skill.

Two years ago, he wouldn’t have even been half as close in dexterity to the one with headphones on. Only recently had his talents drastically improved thanks to the teachings of his teacher. But because of that, he ran into Bruno, who he thought was nothing more than an amateur at first. 

This led to the second point his younger friend wanted to bring up.

“Korrick, what will you be doing going forward? Aren’t you going to miss your buddies?”

The query seemed to come out of left field. It wasn’t the nature of the inquiry but rather the nature of who had asked.

Korrick hadn’t known Bruno for that long but assumed he was a very focused, head-down individual. The topic of companions never seemed to come up, and Bruno did not appear to have friends to speak of.

To Korrick, this was why he felt somewhat drawn to him, as he, too, never really had anyone to call a friend. They were colleagues at best, assets, and employers, but none ever crossed the threshold to be considered a true friend, not like Bruno.

The young man had his problems, but he was sensible. They once shared a meal and discussed their interests and what they liked and disliked.

“Bruno, let me put you on something. In this world…most people only have a reason to stand by you should they have something to gain. Those guys out there aren’t my friends, only associates. Never once have they asked me how I was. I am telling you this for your own good.”

“Hmph,” Bruno shot. “I don’t really get you and this spy business you are involved in, but I do know what you mean when people are in it for themselves. They are quick to drop you should you no longer bring benefits. I was only in it for the fun and the challenge. What were you in it for?”

Korrick chuckled to himself. This was the reason he so much enjoyed Bruno’s company. The young man was always so candid.

Korrick Vaz—current age of twenty-seven years; current occupation, license antique dealer; redacted information of actual business, freelance field operator.

Some names existed in the world that lie in the shadows, transcending time and affiliation. They were legends amongst legends, whether they be assassins, professional killers, or even spies. This was a rare occurrence, as your actions would require deeds so drastic that they impacted the world within the shadows. This world continuously and actively tried to keep its movements hidden from the public.

He wanted to be one. 

Unfortunately for Korrick, when he finally worked his butt off to see the fruits of his labor, luck would have it another way.

“Best of luck to you, Bruno, I mean that. I hope to see you out on the other side.” 

He wanted to say more but couldn’t find the right words.

Bruno never had the opportunity to confess something. He didn’t really like Korrick. He thought Korrick was arrogant and talked too much about himself. They only hung out because Korrick had made a promise to Bruno, which he hadn’t kept yet.

Bruno threw back his headphones to tune into the entertainment on his phone. He chuckled to himself as he enjoyed the bits of the stream before his smile turned to a distraught, cold glare.

“You know it’s impolite to disrupt a sermon?” Bruno expressed. His gaze was sharp.

Despite not turning around, his tone seemed directed at someone who had stumbled into a place he shouldn’t have been.

“Oh, I did it again. This isn’t the washroom.”

“You dare disturb Celesta’s stream over a tiny teacup of a bladder?”

“Eh? I don’t care about some idol or whatever. When I need to go, I need to go, mate.”

Bruno began to stand up, a vein bulging on the side of his temple. His hair was tucked into a rather messy man-bun. His entire physique could be seen as a sculpted masterpiece ordained by the heavens above.

“Oi… I didn’t say anything about her being an idol,” Bruno scoffed as he stared at the small fry before him. He was curious to know why Korrick said he would interrogate the young man. He had his doubts. “You’re what he was scared of? Nothing but a string bean.”

“What?” Elias questioned, not following the conversation as he combed his fingers through his blood-dried curly hair.

Taking a closer inspection, Bruno heeded Korrick’s words. “Never judge a book by its cover.” They rang like gospel hymns as he saw what he could not.

He was covered in bruises and blood, hinting at the fact that there may be some truth to his friend’s words.

“I will give you a free one, buddy,” Bruno suggested as he pointed to his jaw. He wanted to test how much of a threat the small fry posed. Indeed, there had to be some validity for all the commotion Korrick caused.

“Free one? I don’t need a free one. Plus, are you insane? I am just trying to find the exit.”

“Don’t be like a bore. Come on, hit me.”

“You’re a crazy one, aren’t you? I am good,” Elias replied.

Bruno groaned for a moment in displeasure. “Arghhhh. Don’t tell me you’re nothing but a sham. And here I thought you would put up more of an effort. Embarrassing that this country’s hardest hitters were false shepherds trying to get an early dig at my lady’s treasures. Unless you collect all special wrappings of those ramen for her, she will not bat an eye in thy direction. They had failed to see that. I might as well head out like Korrick said.”

Elias’s ears had perked up. Given his headspace, he wasn’t sure if his hearing was proper or if he was still not all there. 

“What did you just say?”

“Huh? I said chili ramen... They were difficult to swipe, but I woke up early, as my goddess had prescribed. I went to four stores to swipe as many as possible. Shipped them all out yesterday morning. Her face was sublime when she streamed it live in her unboxing video.”

“Oh…” Elias chuckled to himself. He found the villain who had ransacked the shelves and left him to starve. With a crack of his knuckles, he prepared to take the big oaf at his words. 

“You said a free one, right?”

“Now, you wish to take me up on my offer?” Bruno inquired, half amused.

“Yeah, definitely!” 

Cocking back, Elias wound his fist and swung. It immediately carried his weight as it purposely missed—nay, redirected downward, his body twisting mid-air for a kick with optimal strength to form.

Bruno had suggested one free one and hadn’t even braced for it. The sudden strike was swift and decisive. His entire body began to fall backward, and his eyes closed. His consciousness started to fade.

At that moment, Bruno started to recount a distant memory.