NEMESIS

Chapter Nine

"Hey" Caleb called.

Over the past few days that he revealed his secret identity to Kayode. The latter had been avoiding him. He did not come visiting, nor did he call his mother who Caleb lived with.

Today, Caleb decided to meet Kayode at the close of work at the precinct. Kayode was about to open the driver's side of his car when he heard the voice of his friend. He ignored the voice and proceeded to sit on the seat.

"Kayode listen to me" Caleb said holding the door.

"What exactly do you want from me?" Kayode said as he moved out of the car.

"I want you to understand me"

"Understand? What makes you think I will believe anything you say right now?"

"The fact that you have been coming to the precinct everyday and you haven't outed me yet"

"Talk"

"When my family died and Yomi took over the company I knew there was more to the fire than normal, but I could not challenge him, that is why I left the city. Over the years, I got involved in a series of things that transformed me into a weapon. I can not leave my father's hard earned legacy to him so I had to use my skill set to complete the mission"

"That does not justify you killing other people"

"The night before the tragedy, my father told me what this city was built on, corruption and he also told me that he and his friends have been the lice that destroy the city in the guise of building it, I needed to send a message to them all that this city is not theirs for the taking"

"Still doesn't justify your series of murders"

"What can I do to get your friendship back?"

"Caleb, you lost my friendship the day you fired the arrow that killed your first victim. I don't think me and you can ever be friends, ever again"

Caleb's half burnt face could not show his sadness as he turned away. He wished his friend can share in his misery but it seems they are from totally different worlds. Tears welled up in his eyes as he got on his bike and picked up his helmet. He looked at Kayode who had ignited his car's engines and is driving away.

*****

February 25, 2016

The place was an abandoned wharf. Five men in armors that covered their entire bodies stood facing the sea. The wind made their armours heavier. The only sounds they heard were the waves of the sea and sounds made by the sea birds.

Suddenly, another sound filled the atmosphere. The speedboat did exactly what it does, speed towards the wharf. It got to the shores and the three occupants alighted and walked into the dry land. The armoured men took off their helmets and walked towards their new companions.

One of the people from the boat, the only one dressed in a black tuxedo walked towards the armoured man with a burnt face who led the team. The scarred man handed the man in black a brief case which the latter took, opened, smiled and nodded. He signalled to his men and they returned to their vehicle.

*****

"Kayode would not listen to me" Caleb lamented.

"Oh so you think I would want to listen to you either?" Celeste asked.

They were in the hideout. Celeste was tracking something on the computer while Caleb was walking from wall to wall, unable to think of something to say or do.

"The only reason I put up with you in the first place is to avenge my brother's death in the hands of El Nino" Celeste said.

"Talk of El Nino, what have you found?" Caleb asked.

"Do you know the small village close the southern shores of the city?" Celeste asked.

"Yes, what about it?"

"It is controlled by El Nino and it is a petroleum black market, the largest in Nigeria and El Nino's biggest source of income"

"So all I have to do now is destroy it"

"Got it in one"
***
He walked with an air of authority, he was angry and was going to give his mother a piece of his mind.

"Oko mi (my dear)" Kabirat called as she stood up to embrace her son who avoided her touch.

"Maami (mother) how could you do such?" Kayode asked.

"Do what?" Kabirat asked.

"You know what you did mom, you shouldn't have supported him"

"Oh you mean Caleb?" Kabirat asked and she sat down "that is the least I can do to support him after all that has happened to him"

"So you're saying that because he faced a tragedy, you are supporting his killing of people?" Kayode asked "I'm disappointed in you mom"

"Hey, don't even think you can intimidate me, these criminals deserve everything coming their way. If you and your fellow policemen cannot stop crime in this city because your pockets are full, then let an able man do it for you"

"By killing people?"

"Like I said, they all deserve to die, to give this city a new feel"

"Mom, do you know that if Caleb is arrested, you will be taken as an accomplice"

"I don't care"

"Do you know you are in harm's way?"

"I put him in harm's way when I helped in the destruction of his family, if I have to die to atone  for those sins, it is totally worth it"

"Did you say you helped destroy his family?"

The question Kayode asked and the sudden realization of the slip of tongue caught Kabirat unawares and after a few seconds, she walked out of the sitting room and Kayode sat down, dumbfounded.

*****

Nightfall, the crickets are at their loudest, the bats played freely in the sky. The seagulls had retired for the day. A few herons could be seen on the beach trotting about. The Hunter held a pair of binoculars in his hands and studied the neighborhood. There was a wall shielding the entire village from the rest of the city. Nothing looked out of place. He zoomed in the lenses and he saw exactly what he was looking for, barrels of crude oil, stacked behind the walls facing the sea. A perfect entrance. He felt his intestines tie themselves up in knots, he can stop himself from doing this thing he wants to do but...there is no going back.

He ignited the engines of his bike, pulled down the visor of the helmet and sped down the hill, towards the sea, he turned towards the gates of the city.

With the cycle's highest speed, he knocked down the wooden gate. As he made his way into the village, he pulled an explosive arrow, fired it at the barrels and they exploded two seconds later, the fire began to spread, houses went up in flames, the barrels of oil that were hidden in different places also caught fire, the sleeping people woke up immediately to see the calamity. They rushed out of their homes to salvage whatever and whoever they can.

The Hunter did his best not to look at the fire until he got out of the village. He stopped the bike a few meters away from the village and saw the sight that terrified him the most, fire. His mind flashed back to a few years back when he narrowly made it out of the fire that annihilated his family and tears welled up in his eyes. As the first drop of tears was about to fall, an explosion rocked the neighborhood again, destroying everything and it burned the entire village down.

The sound caused him to open his eyes and the sight terrified him so much that he fell off the bike and passed out.