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All was peaceful in Harlem, until the demon truck began its path of destruction. Sven crashed through one of the warehouse windows, shielding his body as he slammed into a dumpster. He recoiled in pain.
"That's sure going to hurt," he muttered.
He fell out of the dumpster and landed unsteadily. His leg hurt too, the same sensation he felt every time he got a cramp. Bricks began to fall behind him as he screamed, fear driving him forward despite the pain. Once he got used to it, he ran—not as well as he could have, but enough to escape the death trap that was the alley. Only the demonic truck crashed through the building, moments after he left the alley. The truck spun around, trying to crush Sven with its shovel.
Sven ducked, ducking as he ran, while bricks rained down on him. He looked back and saw the truck flatten part of a building, scattering debris and people falling into the street. People going about their daily lives. One minute they were walking calmly down the street, fearing a simple mugging in that area. Now they were running, stumbling over debris and fallen bodies, to escape a monster.
"No," Sven looked at the bodies in horror.
A man was still alive, barely alive, his legs shattered. Sven looked at the path ahead and then at the helpless man, thinking too hard to act. That's when a brick crashed into his head, plunging his world into darkness.
As for the darkness, Scott was grateful for his eyes. When you saw only constant red, you didn't process darkness the same way others did. He could see in the dark, and that helped Todd and his mother navigate the sewers. But the smell still lingered, the foul smell of everything the neighborhood produced, flowing in only one direction. Even Scott was bothered by it, feeling the bile building in his throat.
"My mom, what are you going to do for her?" Todd asked.
"We just need to get to the rendezvous point. Our leader used to be a medic in the army, he'll be able to treat her," Scott assured him, seeing the panic in Todd's growing eyes.
His skin was getting more and more shiny, like the toad Spider-Man had called him. Scott saw only a worried son, different from the selfish loser they'd talked about.
"Why does he have a first-aid kit on him? I'm not as dumb as you think. I know it's not as easy as they make it out to be in the movies, and we're wading through raw sewage, so that doesn't help," Todd explained.
"Keep moving, try to stay calm and talk to your mother, keep her awake, but Miss Tolansky please try not to talk, save your strength," Scott adjusted his grip on the woman's arm, compensating for the height difference between himself and Todd.
Todd would have been the same height as Scott, but the curvature of his limbs and the hump forced him to be shorter than he statistically was. Scott kept passing them, prioritizing them, putting aside all concern for Warren. No matter how troublesome he was, he didn't want his companion to come to any harm.
"No," he thought, concentrating entirely on the Tolanskys , on saving them and getting through the sewers. "Focus, Summers, forget the smell, forget the weight on your shoulders, forget your companions, focus, prioritize, and keep going. Don't think, just move!"
Then he stopped, stopped thinking, and let his body move. He knew where he had to go, that he had to climb, and where the paths forked. When he reached the staircase leading to another level, he put Tolansky on his shoulder and climbed. Todd tried to grab the handles , but his hands slipped.
"Damn, I dry my hands but they're still really wet," he said.
As Todd complained, Scott lifted Tolansky 's shirt and examined the wound. The bullet was still there, so bleeding out wasn't a problem. Infection was, but with the bullet still in the body, he couldn't simply cauterize the wound. Todd jumped higher than he would have without his mutation, hitting his back on the ceiling and landing behind Scott.
"I need to work on my landing," he said.
"You were always clumsy," said Maria.
There were small beads of sweat, Scott noticed the slight alteration in his skin tone, although due to his eyes it was only a subtle change.
"I know, Mom, I'm a big disappointment," Todd said.
"No, no, you never let me down. I'm the one who screwed up. I didn't come out when I could. He's not your dad, Todd. He was never your real father," Maria explained.
"What? Are you saying Dad was right, that you had an affair?"
"Hey, talk to her, but don't stress her out, now help me," Scott ordered.
"You don't need to tell me to help my mom, my bitch mom, but still, my mom," Todd growled, taking one of Maria's arms and helping Scott lift her up.
They carried her through the tunnel, moving as fast as they could without hurting her. Scott stopped for a moment, thinking he heard additional footsteps. Although there was nothing behind them, Scott couldn't shake the unease from his mind. He felt as if something was watching them, following them down the tunnel corridor. Scott kept moving, occasionally looking over his shoulder.
"I'm glad, Mom, if what you were trying to say is true, I'm glad. I'm glad that guy back there isn't my father," Todd said, as his mother forced a smile.
He was no fool; he'd certainly make a good recruit. That was if he wanted to spend his life on the run. Scott didn't see the appeal, but he had reasons to fight the corrupt system. Reasons he pushed into the background as he continued to rise. Todd was getting the hang of jumping; he'd only hit his head a couple more times.
"It won't be long, Mom. It won't be long now," Todd assured the woman.
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Hello everyone, what did you think of the chapter? Please let me know in the comments. If you want to download the full book, it's available on my KO-FI page. The link is here. 👉
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