by Eric S Kim
Oswald, Sabrina, and Elliott ran toward the Blackjack SUV. The three of them had an opportunity to hang on for a ride on the outside. They held on to the SUV’s roof racks with one hand and put one foot on the step at the bottom of the doors.
Oswald shouted, “Let’s start the chase, baby!”
As Oswald howled wildly, Bryce stepped on the gas pedal as hard as he could. An adrenaline rush stirred in Preston’s body and mind. He and his teammates pursued the white horse. The Denial Dart must have done its job, since the Nevinoth animal didn’t change into its original form just yet. Its evolution started with a racoon, but ended with a horse.
Bryce led the SUV into the parking lot of Golden Mile Golf Course. The horse tried to scurry away from the authorities, but the distance between it and the automobile didn’t experience a drastic change.
Oswald, who rode the SUV on Jerome’s side, cried out to the horse with a mocking tone, “You’re not going anywhere! We’re going to make you stay put like a bitch!”
The horse made it on the grass. Bryce didn’t need to park anywhere. He followed the horse onto the grass and evaded two pedestrians who were about to block their way. They entered the golf course without grace. The path grew bumpy. The SUV shook when it had to follow its target. The grass wasn’t smooth. There were a few bumps and hills that the horse had run across. Preston could feel the seat below him rocking in random directions. It would be hard enough for him to almost lose his balance at least once. With the SUV at a high speed, there would be no chance of a smooth trek across the green terrain.
Oswald shouted, “Come on, Bryce! Faster!”
Bryce became more aggressive when being behind the wheel. Even when the horse squeezed through two trees that stood close beside each other, Bryce had to make a swift turn to the right to avoid a collision. When a golf cart stood in the horse’s way, it jumped high and narrowly missed the vehicle. Its gigantic leap above the cart was successful. The two women in the golf cart were shaken, but not entirely fazed by the encounter. Bryce drove past the golf players and managed to move much closer to the speedy animal.
Oswald handed his dart gun to Jerome through the open window. “Take this! The big beauty is now mine!”
He raised his fist and used the gauntlet for the final blow. The Devious EEL shot right out of the ampule. The wire soared across the air as a straight line. The horse was close enough to become its first victim. The EEL wrapped itself around the horse’s waist.
Oswald howled again. “Feel the pain!”
Small electric bolts emerged from the wire. The horse screamed in pain. It almost collapsed on the grass before getting back up and trying to flee from the Blackjacks. It grew slower in terms of speed. The SUV had been finally able to catch up to it. Oswald’s electric wire didn’t let go of the horse. The mammal slowed down once more. Elliott and Sabrina used their own Devious EELs to bring the horse down. The second and third wires wrapped themselves firmly around the horse’s legs. Oswald, Sabrina, and Elliott jumped off of the SUV. The triple electricity forced the horse to finally stop running and struggle to escape from the shock.
Bryce stopped the SUV to let the other Blackjacks join in on the inevitable capture. Preston and Rebecca used their Devious EELs to reduce the horse to a completely powerless creature. Preston’s EEL had caught the horse by its long neck. Bryce parked the SUV on the grass and stood beside Jerome to watch their teammates win the battle. All seven Blackjack Troopers had the horse surrounded in the center of the golf course. Preston, Oswald, Sabrina, Elliott, and Rebecca turned a knob on their gauntlets to lessen the electric shocks imposed on the Nevinoth mammal. The horse couldn’t move. It finally collapsed on the ground and lay on its side.
Bryce received a call on his earpiece while Jerome crouched down in front of the horse.
“This is why you should never try to fun from us. We get the upper-hand all the time.”
The horse brought its head up to bite at Jerome, but its two rows of teeth only bit down on air.
Jerome stood back up and asked Bryce about the call.
Bryce replied, “Sorivo is on his way here. This Nevinoth isn’t going back home anytime soon.”
Sabrina grinned at the horse. “You could have just stayed out of California. But no, you had to be a complete idiot and show yourself.”
The horse opened its mouth to speak the English language. It had a bit of a nasal tenor voice. “You have to let me go. I’m not worth your time.”
Oswald hissed at the Nevinoth. “Go ahead and keep saying the wrong things. We won’t be hearing them, anyway.”
The horse tried to get back up. “You shouldn’t even be doing this. You don’t even know why we’re here.”
Elliott asked, “Why should we care? Our job is to take you down. We don’t have to hear about why you want to kill us all.”
“I don’t want to kill you. I just want to rescue you from the horrible things that Gorvex is about to do.”
Jerome stepped away from the mammal. “No, thanks. We’re just fine.”
“Listen to me! Gorvex is not what he seems. Your world leader thinks of you as lesser beings. He doesn’t want anything to do with you.”
Preston still didn’t turn off his Devious EEL. “Nice try, man.”
He could hear a familiar noise from a long distance. The sound of two wings flapping was first heard in a faint volume.
Bryce pointed at something in the sky. “He’s already here.”
Without deactivating the wire, Preston turned his head and spotted the General of the Silver Skin Dragons appearing behind the faraway trees.
Oswald laughed. “You’re in for a world of death. No last meal for you!”
The horse still struggled to escape the EELs. “None of you understand. The Silver Skins do not care for you. Gorvex and Sorivo don’t have any use for you. They want to get rid of you.”
Rebecca replied, “If that’s true, then how come we’re living the good life? Why isn’t everything in ruins huh? Try to explain that.”
“Gorvex is not responsible for that. Think! Your Chairman is the only one who could made this paradise come true. He’s not the one who’s ruling the world, but he’s doing the exact opposite of what Gorvex wants to do.”
Sabrina narrowed her eyes. “Alright, that’s enough out of you.”
Sorivo drew closer toward the golf course. It would only take a short amount of time to reach his destination and put an end to this Nevinoth Dragon.
The horse yelled, “Don’t give in to his agenda! He will only bring more pain into this world, and you’re just letting it happen because of your blissful ignorance.”
Oswald tugged at his electric wire, causing the horse to wail in pain once again. “You’re about to turn into complete shit. Why should we listen?”
The white horse still tried to get up. “Listen to me. Jerome, listen to me! Don’t let this happen to the human race! Gorvex is going to destroy this world!”
Jerome asked, “How do you know me?”
“Your father is making a big mistake. Tell him that he’s doing things the wrong way. Tell him that Vincent Yoon still lives!”
“Who the hell is that?”
The horse finally stood up straight. “Tell him!”
Sorivo didn’t give him another opportunity to persuade the Blackjacks from doing anything else. The Silver Skin took a steep dive onto the golf course and flapped his wings aggressively as he descended down to the grass. The young Blackjacks finally pulled their EELs back into their ampules. They stepped back as Sorivo brought his hand down on the white horse and dug his claws deep into the earth all around his victim. The horse would have no way of getting out of Sorivo’s grasp.
Sorivo looked disgusted with what he would be taken care of for the next few minutes. “Hilkoris. I knew you wouldn’t go very far.”
The Silver Skin dug his claws deeper into the grass, trapping Hilkoris and crushing him in such a compact space.
Hilkoris tried to speak through th
e pain. “You can’t do this. You can’t destroy everything! These human beings are worth more than you realize!”
Sorivo shook his head. “You’re just spouting nonsense like you usually do. We should have put you in an insane asylum, but I think this’ll do.”
“Remember my words, my fellow Blackjacks! Remember my warnings! Tell your captain why I was here!”
Sorivo didn’t want to hear the horse’s voice again. He pushed Hilkoris’s body deeper onto the ground. This indeed led to his demise. Preston could hear bones snapping and organs being squished from within. Elliott and Rebecca had to turn away to evade the horrifying sight in front of them. Hilkoris no longer moved. Sorivo had crushed him to death. Blood poured out of the Nevinoth’s mouth and punctured skin.
Sorivo brought his hand away from the corpse. “Tell me everything that he told you.”
Jerome answered him, “He said something about Gorvex not caring about the human race. And then, he mentioned someone’s name. Vincent Yoon. Who is that?”
Sorivo didn’t flinch. “You shouldn’t have to worry about him. Vincent Yoon’s been dead for over a decade. Fearing him would be absolutely pointless.”
Preston asked, “Who is he, anyway?”
“An urban myth and nothing more.”
Sorivo glanced at the horse’s dead body before congratulating the seven Blackjacks for their heroic duty.”
He pointed his finger at Jerome’s gauntlet. “Is that the Devious EEL that I’ve been hearing about?”
Jerome nodded. “Yeah, it’s one of Milton Han’s creation. You do approve of it, right?”
“Oh, of course.”
Elliott raised a finger. “This thing…it’s not made out of magic or anything, is it?”
He sounded so nervous when he said those words.
Sorivo chuckled, causing bits and pieces of his metal skin to produce faint clanking noises. “I can assure you that it’s not a weapon of the past, but a breakthrough for the future. You won’t have to worry about all of that old sorcery. This is advanced technology that everyone should be proud of.”
Jerome smiled. “Oh, you’re right about that. We like these very much.”
“Good.”
From above the gold course, two surveillance drones hovered over the trees and recorded the crime scene that unfolded just a few moments ago.
Sorivo added, “Why don’t all of you stay here for a while? I’d like to get to know more about you. I’m beginning to admire A-X-9.”
Preston felt thrilled to receive such a positive compliment from the General of the Silver Skins. “Well, we get five-star reviews for a reason.”
TWENTY-FOUR
3:09 PM
In the northern region of Garden Grove, Lionel had gathered two of his teammates in the parking lot of a strip mall. It was a relatively quiet environment, with only several cars parked on the asphalt. Businesses all across Southern California had slowed when the news of Nevinoth Dragons hiding in suburban cities had spread all across the state. Nothing interesting had transpired in front of the strip mall. Civilians were not in the mood make a purchase at this time. Most of them decided to stay at home to evade any encounters with certain reptiles. Lionel did, however, spot a Silver Skin Dragon in the sky several minutes ago.
He had received the official announcement from his son through his earpiece. Jerome had mentioned everything, from the use of the Denial Dart to the arrival of Sorivo leading to Hilkoris’s demise.
Lionel felt proud of his son, as well as the other young teammates. “
“Congratulations. You did great.”
But Jerome still had other things to say. “There’s something else. Hilkoris told me that Vincent Yoon is still alive, but I don’t know who that is.”
Lionel almost forgot to breathe for a moment.
Jerome asked, “Who is he?”
Lionel brought himself back to a steady position for his demeanor. “He’s someone from the past, but don’t worry about it. He’s been dead for a long time. Hilkoris was just trying to use a scare tactic that’s obviously not going to work this time.”
“Who was he, anyway?”
“Someone that used to gain a lot of notoriety over the years. But forget him.”
“I’ll make sure that I will.”
They ended the call soon after. Lionel’s body was very close to trembling. Vincent Yoon. He hadn’t heard that name in a long time. But he decided to shrug it off as Hilkoris’s tactic to gain some unnecessary attention.
He rejoined his two teammates who had parked their SUV at the front of the strip mall. He had informed Hector Conroy and Victoria Hernandez of what had transpired in Fountain Valley.
Victoria was pleased with their teammates’ success. “They must have handled the situation very well. I’m proud of them as much as you are.”
Lionel replied, “But we better expect more of this. It’s been reported by headquarters that there are over two dozen Nevinoth Dragons all over the entire county. One horse isn’t enough to call it a good day.”
Hector had been busy filling his pump-action shotgun with new shells in the driver’s side. “I’d say we’re about due for another skirmish on the streets if they keep this up.”
Victoria added, “I’m really tired of seeing this place being turned into a danger zone. Civilians shouldn’t have to endure all of this violence just because the other side wants to ruin everything for us.”
Something from a far distance made Lionel fully aware of a potential crime that could unfold soon. On the corner of the strip mall, away from the street, three teenage boys had begun to laugh at an old beggar sitting against a concrete wall.
Lionel kept his eyes on them as he said to Victoria, “It’s true that the past two weeks will be added in our history for the wrong reasons. But remember that we’re the ones who always keep our enemies from getting worse.”
Victoria used her tablet to examine a few pigeons that landed on the rooftop. Her casual tone of voice showed the lack of an exhilarating discovery. She put down her tablet and said, “We better come up with better ideas before this entire county becomes a crater. I don’t want our home to be taken advantage of again.”
Lionel grew cautious when one of the teenage boys in the corner kicked the old homeless man on the leg. The beggar tried to push them away while yelling obscenities. The teenagers stayed in the same exact spot. One had opened his soda bottle and spilled it right on the beggar’s torn jacket.
Lionel brought his hand down to the pistol in his holster. Victoria said something, but he didn’t pay attention to her. One of the teenage boys wielded an aluminum baseball bat. He threatened the old man on the bench as his two friends laughed at him. Their devotion to irrational behavior demonstrated their lack of commitment towards a caring heart.
Lionel said to his two teammates, “Excuse me.”
He drew closer to the corner of the strip mall at a modest speed. The teenagers still didn’t stop harassing the homeless man. The one with the baseball bat poked the man on the head as another way of amusing himself. Lionel didn’t give him a chance to use it for a more aggressive form of entertainment.
He stood still and said, “I think it’s time for the three of you to leave.”
Two of the teenagers immediately stepped away from the beggar. The one with the baseball bat didn’t.
“Oh, come on. You’re gonna fuckin’ ruin it for us.”
Lionel didn’t lose his temper. “Just turn around and go back home. That’ll be the most obvious choice.”
The teenager laughed. “Fuck that shit, man. This old fucker ain’t gonna walk away from us.”
“What makes you think that you can get away with it when there’s a Blackjack Trooper standing right in front of you?”
The teenager narrowed his eyes. “Because fuck you, that’s why. I saw what happened in La Palma. Why aren’t you in prison yet?”
“So you’ve seen it on TV, huh?”
“Yeah, and now everyone knows that you
’re a fuckin’ sellout! You ain’t supposed to ride a dragon like that. You’re a fuckin’ traitor! You can go fuck yourself!”
The other two teenagers tried to persuade their friend to stop yelling obscenities. But he resisted their pleas.
“They gonna let you go just like that? Well, fuck them and fuck you, too. Like I said, you ain’t nothing but a sellout.”
Lionel could feel his pistol’s surface on his fingertips. “Did your parents ever teach you how to have good manners?”
“Fuck you.”
“I suggest you leave this old man alone, or else we’re taking you to the station.”
“Why should I be afraid of that? Why should I be afraid of you?”
Lionel could hear footsteps from behind him. Assuming that either Hector or Victoria had joined him was proven correct when Hector reiterated what Lionel said.
“Why don’t you guys go back home? We won’t be having any trouble around here.”
The teenager with the bat didn’t move. “Oh, what? Are you sticking up for the guy who did some illegal shit? We got all these dragons looking like cats and dogs, and you’re gonna side with this scumbag?”
“You’ve got an interesting attitude there. Are you proud of yourself?”
The teenager yelled, “So what? You got a fucking problem with that?”
Lionel stepped aside. The homeless man stayed seated on the bench enjoying the show so far. Hector stood in front of the teenager with the baseball bat. Compared to the younger male, Hector’s ominous eyes would have made a criminal grow fearful of his own future. The other two teenagers practically begged their arrogant friend to just leave the area. But he ignored them and showcased a classic behavioral presentation. A common occurrence on the streets of California included anyone that tried to act tough against the authorities.
“I remember you. You’re the one that sprayed all that graffiti at the hospital.”
The teenager blurted, “What about it, huh? You want to congratulate me by sucking my dad’s dick?”