Creator

Chapter 9 - Engagement

Chapter 9 – Engagement

I can already hear running footsteps heading towards our location. They were already near if I could hear their footsteps. My blood pressure felt like it was actually rising. Adrenaline starts to pump into my blood.

I ran to Chloe. We have to run now or else we won't be able to do so later. We can't fight them.

I managed to get her off her backpack, but she was holding a tea kettle.

Right after she stood up, we ran the opposite direction of the hoodlums trying to chase us.

But a few feet away from us, some thugs were already standing in the way, a few of them holding iron bars.

Then the people running arrived behind us, some were crunching their knuckles. They had murderous intent in their eyes.

"Hey Chloe, any plans?" I whispered.

"I've got one. I've been wanting to try this."

Then she closed her eyes.

"Level 3, Engage"

She has released her third level…

Wait. She's already on her third level?

She opened her eyes and gripped the tea kettle tightly.

Then, she took a baseball pitching pose with the tea kettle as her ball.

Then she threw the kettle.

I was shocked and amazed altogether.

She threw the kettle at such force where I didn't actually see the kettle travel the air. It directly hit an enemy and launched him a few feet into the air and left him unconscious on the cold hard cement. The kettle smashed into multiple pieces and it turned into shrapnel and disabled a few more guys by lacerating or grazing a few more that were beside the target.

Some of them were already scared.

Chloe blew a puff of confidence. I looked at her and she was holding a lid.

Well now, if she could throw the kettle at that speed, who knows what kind of damage she can deal with a lid. Chances are, she could decapitate an arm, a leg or even a torso if she threw it right.

They were looking at her. She charged her arm for another throw, but it wasn't a baseball pitching pose, but how you normally hold a disc by the edge before you throw it.

Most of them were terrified and started to retreat. Others stood their ground and held tightly to their pride, if not, they should hold on to something, they might be blown away, literally.

Chloe threw the lid and instead of traveling in a straight line, it travelled in a curved line.

I heard a loud metal sound but then the lid had already disappeared. I instinctively looked at the thugs. No one was screaming nor did have any decapitated body parts.

"Run!" said the guy from the other party.

The lamppost beside the road screeched loudly and started to descend. There was a diagonal cut in the body of the post and it has started to slide down the slope.

The post crashed down the street, shaking the ground as bounces up and down.

The thugs that were in front of us were already gone.

Chloe went to her backpack then I hear footsteps behind me.

"Yaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh!"

I quickly turned around. An iron bar heading straight for my head.

*TTTHHAAANNNNGGGG!*

The sound of metal hitting something hard, followed by the hollow sound metal makes when it hits the ground.

But I wasn't hurt.

The iron bar was on the ground and the guy was on the ground. I should be the one sleeping on the ground, bleeding my head out. But no, I was still standing upright and am in a fine condition.

There were two distinctly large rocks on the street. Chloe must've thrown them both successively, deflecting the bar and inducing a concussion on the guy.

But that was only one. We still had 4 people to fight. I don't even know what their abilities are.

I put up my fighting stance. I have absolutely no idea on how I could fight these people. But, I have to defend Chloe and keep these hooligans away from her. If only I had the ability to stop them.

I remembered what I saw yesterday.

I was already level 1.

Let's see. There's nothing to lose in trying this one, anyway.

"Level 1, Engage" I whispered under my breath.

I look at myself, and I don't feel any change.

Nothing happened, like the previous times I've tried.

One of them starts running towards us. Chloe was just charging up for a throw. Water suddenly splashed unto our enemies. They looked at the direction of the source of the water. But no one was there. Then, the water suddenly froze. They couldn't move their bodies; the water was poured all over them and unto the ground.

I looked at Chloe and I knew she wasn't the one who did it.

I ran to Chloe and grabbed her bag.

I made a huge mistake of trying to put it over my shoulder. It was too heavy.

"Leave it behind. Let's just run!" she said.

I didn't know she actually knew how to retreat in a fight. And we ran away from the remaining Skullxia members.

At the gate, we saw Vincent, waiting for us in a van. The sidedoor was open and he was signaling us to run faster and get in the van.

It was our escape.

Vincent went out of the van and murmured something and I saw that he released a level. He ran towards us.

"Get my bag." screamed Chloe.

Vincent just smiled and nodded. We went past us and I looked back. We punched and kicked some of those who were running after us and grabbed Chloe's bag and ran.

Vincent ran past us and grabbed Chloe by the waist and carried her over his shoulder. Chloe, shocked by what happened, started pounding on Vincent's back, telling him to put her down. He signaled the driver and the engine roared to life.

Vincent jumped to the van and laid Chloe on a seat. He released his levels and relaxed. But immediately, Chloe threw a three-hit combo that looked like it really hurt. I, who was left behind because of Vincent's enhanced speed, am still running and the van has already started to move.

I can't get left behind.

I jumped for my life to the van. The door closed. A loud thud. And the van has already moved away.