For The Truth

Chapter 12- Shock

Once I got back to my universe, my only priority was to start spreading the word. I had to stop time travel before it got worse.

Yet, on the other hand, I wanted to get my friends back. So, I suppose you could say that I ended up procrastinating on what was more important.

Bad move on my part.

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Something isn't right. I know it the second I sit up.

There is a sharp pain in my chest. I feel it reverberate throughout my entire body. It spreads into every atom in the room.

I've just destroyed another universe.

Also, it seems that I've landed in the middle of the TKA headquarters. My luck just can't get any worse.

I put weight on my arm as I get to my feet. Then I wince, realizing that there is still a bullet hole ripped through it. That'll have to be looked at soon.

First, though, I have to get a hold of Maxx and Vanessa. I have no clue what happened after I teleported... Speaking of teleporting, how exactly did that happen? I certainly didn't press anything. There are too many questions swirling around inside of my head.

"Hey!" comes a shout from my right. I look around.

One of the workers stares at me. Another dashes off, no doubt in search of a supervisor. I can't be found here. I have to get out.

I get up and run, smashing right through the crowd that has gathered around me. The sounds of pursuit follow, but I'm already sprinting down the skywalk.

Every bone, muscle, and ligament in my body throbs. My feet feel like lead as I try to push them in front of each other, and my lungs burn from a lack of oxygen. I suppose I should have stayed in shape.

The skywalk wraps around the headquarters and empties out into the street. Soon I'm dashing down oblique pathways covered in flashing lights, with hovercars zooming past overhead.

I've only just moved to the city, so I really have no clue where I'm going. Building after building zips by, but none of them mean anything. A towering glass storefront glares down at me, its pale eyes blinking solemnly at the rushed travelers.

I suddenly come to a break in the road. There is a gap at least ten feet wide between the glass. Gasping for breath, I pause a moment. The sounds of pursuit did not follow me here. I am safe. Right?

Wrong. The TKA man who was staring at me comes around a corner sprinting at full tilt. He's aided by a group of other workers, no doubt in search of the reward for turning me in. Great.

At least I have options. That's more than I could say for today's earlier situation. The plans rifle through my head. I take the briefest time to consider them before moving on to the next.

Eventually, two contenders remain. I could try and make the jump, or I could take an alternate route. There are obviously pros and cons to both sides. I could make the jump, but I could also miss and be killed instantly. I could find a successful route, but it could dead end and I would be caught immediately.

My pursuers are only fifteen feet away. I need to decide, and fast.

I snap to the left and take off for a side street. I've had enough of jumping to last me for a lifetime.

My feet pump against the pavement. But for every step I take, the TKA workers seem to take two. It's not long before they're almost on top of me.

One reaches out a hand and grabs my jacket. He twists it to throw me off balance. I nearly fall, but I reach up to unzip it. I hear his enraged howl as his fist suddenly clutches an empty garment.