Turning back wouldn't work, we'd both be shot down. Only by entering was there the possibility of escape. Had they not hesitated when we entered, they could've capitalized on my confusion and taken care of both Eliya and I.
Not anymore, I was prepared.
With a step forward, I entered the familiar area. Two rows of tables spread from the door to the window in the back, to its left disposed bookshelf upon bookshelf and to its right a fixed phone and a series of couches.
The plan from here was simple: they couldn't expose themselves to Eliya, but neither could I. I had to protect Eliya to keep them from doing anything rash while quietly disposing of them to not arouse suspicion.
[Should be easy…] A self-deprecating sigh almost left my lips, my eyes not leaving the grey-haired girl as she walked to the last row of tables. Using the sound of our footsteps, a rough layout of the library made itself clear to me without needing to divert my eyes. My ears were indeed like a second pair of eyes.
Levi was nowhere to be seen, there was no librarian, and about five people, excluding Eliya and me, filled the library tables.
[The bathrooms are to what's currently my left just beyond the bookshelves, it's good that at least some things are the same.]
We sat and almost immediately, the man who had been sitting at the closest table to the door got up and searched through the lines of books. He was faking it, he didn't give a fuck about "The Secret of Jaquen" or "Roses Redder Than Blood". He just needed an excuse to get closer.
"Eliya, I actually came here to find a few good books. Have any recommendations?" Forcing composure, my lips curled upwards.
"Of course I do! What kinds of books do you like? Fantasy? Romance? Have you read "Kelden" or…" She threw herself into a rant.
"Kelden? I heard it's good but I never got around to reading it." Her face twisted in what seemed to be shock and horror. With surprising strength, she pulled me from my chair and dragged me into the sea of bookshelves.
We sifted through the library, gathering books about fantasy, sci-fi, and everything in between. I made sure to keep my senses sharp, keeping a reasonable distance between us and the old man.
"You need to read this, this, and this. In that order. This one isn't really important to that main story, but I just loved it so much!"
"AAAAHHH!" A scream pulled our attention, the old man had collapsed to the floor. Eliya couldn't suppress her urge to walk over and help the man.
"Are you okay?"
No answer, the man only groaned.
Eliya looked to me, not sure what to do.
"Should I call the paramedics?"
Those clever bastards. I couldn't refuse, that would make me seem suspicious seeing as how 'badly' the man was injured. But if I accepted, Eliya would be left alone.
Fuck!
"Do you have a phone?" I asked, still clinging onto hope.
"No, I didn't bring it."
Fuck!
"Use the library phone, I'll help him."
She nodded and left. I could lickily still see her.
Slash!
"You certainly don't waste time." The old man now stood on his own, a knife in his hand. Using that power would cause too much of a scene, I had to save it for when I had no other choices.
The old man dashed towards me, blade brandished. I barely dodged, my attention split between fighting and keeping an eye on Eliya. An elbow caused his head to snap back.
My hand firmly grasped his blade-wielding fist, a mistake. He used our interlocked hands to pull me closer, headbutting me.
I took a step back. I was no MMA fighter, much less when my attention was split.
[I've got this. Two seconds, if I can focus wholly on him for two seconds.]
2.00
We dashed towards each other, his knife aimed for my side. I didn't dodge, letting the weapon dig into my flesh. A muffled sound almost left my lips, forcing me to bite my tongue.
1.45
I threw my forearm downward, striking his knife-holding hand. He could no longer hold onto the weapon, leaving it embedded in my flesh. Almost instantly, a layer of ice covered both the wound and the weapon. My fist flew up to meet his face but he caught it, once again using our connection to pull me close and deliver a knee to the pit of my stomach.
1.15
I lurched back in pain, my vision blurring. The knife embedded in my side burned, my only comfort being the knowledge it wouldn't aggravate.
Pant!
Pant!
Pant!
My stamina was wearing thin and my body screamed at me to stop moving. But I couldn't. I lunged forward once more, throwing another punch at the man. I understood it now.
He caught it, like I had expected. It was my turn. I jerked my arm to the right, pulling him off balance. My arm filled with what remain of my strength as I pulled from the elder's grip. I grasped his skull and drove it into a nearby bookshelf. Blood made a handful of books unreadable.
0.00
I turned to Eliya, fuck! She was held in the embrace of a large man, his hand preventing any sounds from leaving her throat. She looked around frantically, tears in her eyes.
"Just die already!" I screamed. Alerted by my senses, I grabbed a bloodstained book, covering it in a dozen layers of ice before holding it above my head.
Clang!
The sound of steel on reinforced ice resounded, another foe had seemingly descended from the heavens. I didn't have time for this.
A wave of ice froze the man who had just descended from the sky as I dashed forward toward Eliya.
The large man held a knife to her throat.