CHAPTER 3
Going from the Shelter to the Police Station
"Hey Ivan, do you still want to help me? Then there's one thing I'd like you to do." "Whatever you want, James, tell me." Ivan's voice was determined.
James quickly explained his plan: Ivan would put on his costume and take the samples from the vehicle. Ivan paused for a moment but nodded without thinking.
By the Cliff
"Hey Ivan, good job." "Hey, don't forget, I'm one of the best at my job, James." "You really were. My offer still stands, Ivan. One more person here wouldn't hurt." "Look, don't take it the wrong way, but your game is brutal. I can't kill people, you understand? But I can also understand you killing; after all, Shade City is your city."
"Alright, but my offer still stands. You can come whenever you want, Ivan. By the way, how's Kira?" "Good you asked. James plans to come to Shade City soon; partly because he misses you haha anyway, I'm getting out of here, you're in charge, James."
James entered with the blood samples, placed them in the safe and closed the lid.
He turned on the computer and, looking at the screen, murmured: "Let's see if I can find you today? No, not here; not here. Here, yes. There's a lot more activity on this account than there should be; there are purchases linked to the last place I went. I need to visit this place."
He quickly opened the cupboard. "Okay, let's see what I can do. Ah, what's on this note: 'Hey, hey, I noticed your armors are very fragile. This is a small gift from me and Kira; it will provide much better protection than those ankiler. But be careful, don't get yourself killed. Adios, amigos, Ivan.'"
"Look at these," he said, smiling as he approached the armor.
He quickly added the new armor pieces and assembled them; he mounted night-vision optics for the mask. The body armor could now withstand more bullets. The mask camera's AI could detect incoming attacks more quickly. The gloves were made from a lightweight metal whose hardness had been increased to deal extra damage. The escrima sticks were reinforced with the same metal; together with the gloves they would deliver more effective strikes.
"Yes, these escrima sticks are ready too; now it's time to go. Are you hiding from the busiest port? I don't know whether you thought you wouldn't be found at the most crowded port, but your death will be by my hands," James said, checking his equipment one last time.
James walked forward with slow steps. He quickly scanned his surroundings, searching for the safest exit position; shadows, wind direction, and lights that were offline were calculated in his mind. Once he found the position he sped up, running toward his target point.
He reached the edge of the harbor; a little away from the men but to an unseen blind spot, he began to climb the pole. When he reached the top of the pole he activated the area-scan feature on his mask. The surroundings seemed divided with lines; movement points appeared on his screen as trembling markers. He connected his small drone to the mask's camera, and the drone flew out to scan around the harbor. James recorded weak spots and entry points one by one; he counted the men and memorized their positions.
Now the entry plan was in his head. First he would disable the alarm it would give him ten minutes then he'd go down. Then he'd run and, to get behind the first man, he'd throw a small sonic-wave ball from his belt that only made a sound at close range; when the ball exploded the man would look that way; at that moment he'd come down behind him and incapacitate him, hide behind a nearby rock and take position for the next step.
Then he'd run forward and throw the skyfang knives to stop the two men in front of him; the knives would sharply silence the target, and James would then climb the ventilation pipe he aimed for to get into the main harbor building; when he reached the corridor and found himself in the middle of the men he would launch the reaper eye into the air and activate it the device would scan the surroundings for an instant and neutralize targets.
When the men fell to the ground James would quickly get back up. He would engage in direct combat with those who arrived: using his escrima sticks, the ironfangs, he would clear them one by one and then quickly sweep the area the plan was completely ready; now he only had to execute it. He set the timing and disabled the alarm and his ten minutes had begun; he knew he had to make it out alive and ensure his family's participation was eliminated.