by Ammar Habib
He heard the roar of the explosion behind him, and felt their shock waves crash against his back. Ignoring it and feeling the princess grab ahold of him, William took a step and leapt off of the rooftop.
***
William and the princess landed on the next rooftop. But right as they arrived, a blinding bolt of lightning followed. Striking a few feet away, the force of the blast sent The Guardian and Amelia sprawling.
Falling on his side, William sprang back to his feet as his hunter landed not far from him. The sinister figure smirked as he slowly advanced. “You cannot outrun death.”
William unsheathed two throwing knives. He gripped them tightly. His heart shivered with fear, but he would not show it.
“You are just a man. How can you defeat a warrior bred to kill?”
From above them all, a cold voice showered down. “By having one on his side.”
Out of nowhere, a new figure landed between William and his pursuer. Like William, he was dressed in the uniform of Crown City’s Guardian. It was Ethan.
Ethan’s masked eyes remained locked on his foe. “You must be Lyn.”
“Crown City’s favorite son has finally returned.” Lyn seemed unfazed by the sudden appearance of Ethan as he took a step towards him. “He has come to face his death.”
Ethan reached under his cloak. “You killed a friend of mine.”
“The Russian? I rather enjoyed it.”
Without warning, Ethan launched a knife. The blade erupted into a ball of flame against the target’s shield. Lyn immediately followed by firing a deadly lightning bolt. But Ethan easily dodged it, leaving it to shoot into the heavens.
Doing a quick flip in the air, Ethan landed on his feet as the lightning dispersed in the night sky. No sooner did Ethan regain his composure that he sidestepped a few more successive attacks. They all flew right by him as Ethan weaved his body with blinding speed, detecting the attacks before they even occurred.
Knowing that his foe would follow him, Ethan suddenly sprinted to his right. Lyn pursued and ran almost parallel to Crown City’s Guardian. As they ran, Lyn continued to fire off bolts of lightning at his foe. The bright and deafening attacks lit up the nighttime sky as they shot off towards their target faster than the eye could see.
But Ethan masterfully dodged each and every one. Ethan leapt over, ducked under, or sidestepped the lightning bolts, leaving the attacks to violently crash into the rooftop or fire off into the dark heavens. Ethan suddenly arrived at the building’s edge. He kicked off of the ledge without a step of hesitation.
Soaring through the air, time seemed to stand still for an extended moment. Ethan sensed his foe chase him. Looking ahead, Ethan watched the rooftop grow closer and closer before he perfectly landed on it. Lyn closely followed him to the center of the rooftop, directly under a large water tower. Ethan stopped running, turning to look his foe right in the eyes.
“You can’t escape me.” Lyn aimed both closed fists at Ethan.
“And you can’t escape this.” As his words ended, Ethan pulled his gloved hands out from under his cloak and revealed two knives in each hand. Without hesitation, he flung each knife at a leg of the water tower. As each blade hit their mark, their explosives erupted, destroying the tower’s supports. In the next instant, the water tower came crashing down onto the two of them. But Ethan easily leapt out of the way.
However, the same could not be said for Lyn.
His electric field protected him against the tower itself. But as the flood of water hit his shield, his weakness was exposed. By the time the entire tower fully collapsed and the flood of water hit him, Lyn’s corpse was fried to a crisp.
Chapter 17
Beginning of the End
As Ethan valiantly battled Lyn, William used the distraction to bring Amelia to a secured apartment. It was one of the many safe houses The Guardian held access to across the city. Coming in through the window, they made it just in time to see the water tower explode several buildings over.
Ethan joined them soon after the eruption. The window shutters were closed, and the entrance was guarded by a bolted door. In what would have been a living room, Amelia sat on a long, leather couch as William and Ethan stood under the dim lights. Both remained in their uniforms, but neither wore their mask. As Amelia looked at the famed face of Ethan Daniels, she hardly believed her eyes. This was the legend himself.
However, his face had changed from the last pictures she’d seen. It was harder, colder even. A part of her thought it appeared stronger than before in every way imaginable.
William placed his hand on his friend’s shoulder, a slight smile on his face. “Of all the entrances you’ve made Ethan, that was the best timed.”
Ethan did not return the gesture. “We need to get back to the base.”
“What’s going on, Ethan?”
“Daken… because of what I’ve done, he will be initiating his endgame.”
“Endgame?”
Ethan told William everything.
…everything except for the fact that Katrina was captured. Silence consumed the room as William and Amelia digested everything that Crown City’s long-lost savior told them. It was almost too much to take in. A few days ago, William stood as the protector of the most peaceful city and nation. And now, now he was being told that everything could be in flames before the morning sun appeared.
“Now that I’ve killed Lyn, Villanueva will be free from Daken’s control. I am sure that within the hour, he’ll retract his manhunt for you.” Ethan looked at Amelia. “But your uncle and countless other powerful figures are still not free. And Daken has more than enough firepower to kill everything. All that’s left is me.”
William slowly spoke. “And now that you’ve revealed where you are, he’ll come here.”
Ethan nodded.
“Why did you come back?”
Silence was Ethan’s reply.
Looking into his friend’s eyes, William saw the change in them. They were not the same. Yes, he was stronger and a more matured warrior than ever before, but there was something else. Something was missing. “Katrina. Where is she?”
Ethan did not have to reply for his comrade to get the answer.
“That’s why you’re back.”
Turning around, Ethan put his mask back on. “We’ve been here long enough. It’s time to move.”
“Where to?”
“Amelia will stay here for the time being, but you and I have a meeting with the president.”
William followed suit by throwing his mask on. “What do you hope to find there?”
“Answers.”
***
Even in his own bedroom, the president was not safe.
The intruder sprang on Villanueva from the shadows. Grabbing the president by the collar, he forcefully slung him onto the ground and towered over his defenseless body. The president received no chance to cry for help. A dimly lit lamp reflected off the attacker’s face. As Villanueva’s terrified eyes stared at the intruder, he found himself looking into the eyes Crown City’s original Guardian.
“E—Ethan.” He barely got the words out. As if straight out of a dream, his friend had returned. Ethan’s face appeared harder, his eyes colder. Something about him had changed. But it was undoubtedly the hero of Villanueva’s people who stood over him.
Ethan intently studied the president’s tired eyes as if searching for something. After a long moment, he slowly tore his gaze away from Villanueva and took a step back. “He’s good now.”
A second Guardian—this one masked—stepped out from the shadows. Villanueva’s gaze wandered from one to the other as he tried to decipher what was happening.
Ethan looked back down at him. “You look exhausted, Mr. President.”
“I feel it too.”
“You’ve not been yourself lately. What do you remember?”
“From the past few days—not much. It feels like I just woke up from a nightmare that went on for too long.” Villanueva rose
back to his feet. “It’s all a haze. And then it suddenly ended and I woke up here a few minutes ago.”
“But do you remember what you did?”
Villanueva took a deep breath. “I just called my press secretary before you came. He’ll be announcing that the hunt for—well you—is over and that we were misinformed in doing so. I’m sorry.”
Ethan slightly nodded. “Do you know what happened to you—who was controlling you?”
“Not a name. Only a face… and a dark presence.”
“But did you see anything? Any hint of what that person might be planning.”
“All I could ever see was—” Villanueva’s face grew sullen as the image crossed his mind. “Fire.”
The Guardian patiently waited for a few seconds.
“But whatever he is planning, it will be happening tonight.”
Hearing those words, Ethan’s fears were realized. The battle he had prepared to fight for so long would indeed happen tonight. But his expression did not change upon hearing the news.
Villanueva thought for a long moment before his eyes became distant as the visions flashed through his mind. “I remember the flames, and a flag flying high—Tripton’s flag—burning. The place that was burning—it was surrounded by a low wall.”
The second Guardian quickly spoke. “How high was the wall?”
Villanueva looked his way. “No more than two stories.”
“And the flag? What sort building was it flying over?”
“It was hard to tell.” The president paused. “The building was tall but not very wide—it may’ve been ten stories tall.”
“That’s the military compound outside of Crown City: Camp Fin.”
“Are you sure?” Ethan asked.
“It’s the first camp I was stationed at.”
Ethan took a step towards the president. “Mr. President, you need to listen to me closely. Order that base to be emptied of all personnel. Tell them to clear the base of as many weapons and equipment as they can. Anybody who remains there will be dead before the night ends.”
Villanueva quickly registered everything that Ethan ordered. “I’ll say it’s a training exercise.”
“When the attack begins, don’t let anybody near the base. There’s nothing anybody or any of your weapons can do against this enemy. You need to hold the army back.”
“But—”
“Their leader—the one that was influencing you is too much for the army. My team and I need to go in there and cut the head off the snake. Once he is down, blow the camp to the sun.”
After a long moment, Villanueva broke the silence. “…ok.”
Ethan nodded in thanks. He stuck out his hand and the president firmly shook it. Ethan did not smile, but his eyes softened and showed his gratitude. “It was an honor to have known you, Mr. President, an honor to have fought alongside you. And I am thankful that our paths crossed and for the time we fought together for our people. You’re a good man… and a better friend.”
Villanueva knew what this meant, but hardly believed Ethan’s words. This was Ethan’s final goodbye. There would be no coming back from this, and there would be no stopping this hero as he went on his final hurrah. As quickly as he’d returned, Ethan was leaving. But Villanueva held back any tears as he smiled at his friend. “No Ethan. You are the hero. I always wished I could have been more like you: selfless… even in your final moments.”
***
Adam and Jonathan stepped into the warehouse not long after being freed. Upon returning, they quickly secured the base and made sure that they weren’t followed. But they soon realized that William was nowhere to be seen. And neither was Amelia.
It had been nearly two hours since they arrived. It was nearing midnight, but the warehouse was fully illuminated. The large screens displayed reports of the rooftop battle. All of the mercenaries were found unconscious and recognized by the police as internationally wanted criminals.
Not long after the explosions, witnesses saw The Guardian and princess being pursued by a man firing lightning out of his hands. No reporter saw it, but a few civilians had made short videos of the chase on their phones. A few videos also revealed the appearance of the second Guardian who quickly defeated the unknown man.
The videos were being shown again and again on every news channel as different people commented on what they thought occurred. Everybody was attempting to figure out what had happened, and many now realized that Amelia was not with The Guardian against her will.
Soon after Jonathan and Adam returned to the warehouse, the president’s press secretary made an announcement. The manhunt for The Guardian was over and the president would soon apologize to the nation’s citizens. The secretary promised that tomorrow the president would explain his actions to the world. This announcement, added with the rooftop battle, only kept the city more awake and alive with speculation.
Not long after statement, William contacted the warehouse.
“We’re headed back.”
“Are you guys okay?” Jonathan asked into the computer’s microphone.
“We’ll hold up. Ethan is with us.”
Jonathan’s eyes suddenly widened. Did his ears deceived him? “Ethan?”
Ethan’s voice came onto the line. “Hey, Jonathan.”
Jonathan’s smile showed in his words. “God, am I glad to hear your voice.”
“Same here. William’s filled me in on everything. I’m heading back to the base and I need you to take care of some things.”
“What do you need us to do?”
“Prep weapons.”
“Which ones?”
“Heavy extraction.”
Jonathan and Adam followed the orders. They laid out an assortment of knives, daggers, grenades, and guns out on the warehouse’s tables. But hearing the request, they both knew that the fight was not over yet. The biggest battle was yet to come.
Not long after the weapons were prepped, they heard Ethan’s arrival. A sleek, black sports bike pulled into the warehouse through the underground tunnel. The tunnel opened up in a room adjacent to the lair’s main compound. Ethan, still dressed in his uniform, exited the room and met his comrades, followed closely behind by William and Amelia. As he arrived within sight of his brother and Adam, he pulled his mask off and revealed his weary face.
After seeing his brother for the first time in over a year, Jonathan thought he was dreaming. Without thinking, he embraced Ethan. For a moment, the two of them were at peace. For too many nights Jonathan had feared never seeing his brother again. He had witnessed too many nightmares of his brother never returning and slowly dying in some forgotten corner of the world. And that fear turned many nights into sleepless ones.
But now Ethan was back.
As the two brothers were reunited, William looked towards the monitors. “Any news?”
“Nothing other than the end of the manhunt,” Adam replied. “Are you expecting something?”
William solemnly nodded.
***
Soon after the reunion, Ethan filled everyone in on what all he knew of Daken’s plan. Silence engrossed the warehouse as they processed Ethan’s words. It was nearly impossible to fathom everything he spoke. The past few days had been an endless rollercoaster. One moment everything was fine. The next, the president was seemingly possessed and hunted them down. Then, Ethan had slain Daken’s soldier, freeing the president and making him an ally once more.
However, now Ethan claimed that the endgame was upon them. Daken would soon appear in Crown City for the sole purpose of killing Ethan, and he would bring his army with him. It was the last piece of his puzzle. The last thing he needed in order to fulfill his scheme.
And they had no choice but to face him.
Jonathan observed a difference in Ethan’s face. It was not the same as when they last met. It was the face of a soldier who had fully embraced the battle. The face a soldier who had become disillusioned from war. It was as if the light Ethan once held onto as he had trave
lled through the darkness was now gone.
Slowly, Jonathan broke the silence. “When will he be here?”
“Soon,” Ethan answered. “When he does arrive, he’ll make sure we all know it.”
“And you have to face him?”
Ethan solemnly nodded.
“But why?” Adam interjected. “Fighting him will play right into his hands. He needs you to face him to complete his plan—he wants you to do it. Why don’t you hide until we have a plan to beat him?”
“I can’t.”
“Why?”
Ethan didn’t answer.
“If we’re going to beat him, we will have to do it together,” William commented.
“How can we beat him?” Adam asked. “We nearly lost to just a handful of his soldiers when we fought Vixen last year. And without Ethan, we can hardly even take on one of his soldiers.”
“We can beat him.” Ethan’s words were full of conviction. “And we will.”
Adam didn’t say anything, but his eyes asked ‘how’.
“Because I’m stronger than ever before.”
“He’ll know that.”
“I hope he does.”
Jonathan put his hand on Ethan’s shoulder. “What’s going on Ethan?”
Ethan didn’t reply as he looked at his brother.
“Why are you so hell-bent on fighting? Why not wait for a better time to fight?”
Ethan remained mute for a long moment. But then he spoke without looking any one of them in the eyes. “He’s killed Ivan. And Katrina—she’s gone.”
There was dead silence in the room.
“I’ve lost too many people to this monster. He’s been responsible directly or indirectly for too many deaths. Naira, dad, and now my friend. And for all I know, my wife could already be his next victim.” Ethan’s hands clenched into fists. “It’s time for him to pay for sins. It’s time for him to face true courage and cower like all devils do.”
