The Hero's Conundrum/Chapter 23

What happened? My hair is black again and I remember I was very old, or was I? How did I get here? Oh yeah, I thought about getting out and got out. Is that a new power? I went to an empty alley and tried to use that power again y thought about going to Bansao’s cabin. I opened my eyes, and I was in the middle of the woods, it looks familiar this must be where his cabin will be. It seems like I can fast travel thru space now, but not thru time. Maybe this is the key to understanding time, so I try concentrating on the explosion, when Sammael mentioned that either I wake up or stay dreaming. When I opened my eyes I was seeing the explosion thru everyone’s eyes, I can’t explain it. Then I got scared and came back here.

Maybe I should rest, so I went to look for a place to stay then I felt really dizzy, fell on the floor in an alley and passed out. I had a dream that there was a war between heaven and hell and I was the devil. When I woke up my shoes were being taken off by someone and he startled me, instinctively I attacked him. When I hit him, he flew like five feet from the blow, he stood up screaming and a cop came aiming his guns at me while asking for his partner on the radio.

“Stand up slowly with your hands where I can see them” so I did.

“I didn’t mean to do that he was trying to steal my shoes”

I need to escape, I need to try. But where should I go? Should I let them take me? His partner arrived and told me to turn around and he had cuffs with him, so I thought about Bansao’s cabin and appeared there but there still was no cabin, I lay on the floor and fell asleep.

I woke up very hungry, then I remembered there is a village near, so I went there to find new clothes and a place to stay. I arrived and everyone is so nicely dressed, they are looking at me funny and two other cops approached me, but they had very different uniforms than the ones from before. I raised my hands and told them

“I have done nothing wrong”

“Is ok, we just want to help, come with us.”

I didn’t want to fight anymore so I went with them to a place that has a cell in it, must be a command center of some sorts. I thought they were going to put me in a cell but they asked me to sit in a chair beside a desk. Someone sat on the desk and started asking questions.

“Good afternoon my name is Eva, Mr. . .”

“ . . .” I stayed silent looking at her.

“Do you know who you are sir?” I thought I should take advantage of this situation, so I did.

“I can’t remember much”

“I understand, in that case I will ask a psychologist to see you. Wait here.”

“Ok”

Eva left and started talking to someone that looks like he is the person in charge here, his name is Cristopher. He looked at me and made an affirmative gesture with his head and she asked me to follow Eva. She took me to a room with a mirror and a table, it looks like the room where Sara was interrogating me but the mirror was broken in that room. Wait I think it is the same, yes, this is the village where Sara took me when she was interrogating me. Wow, it looks so different, everything looks, new. Someone in a suit entered the room and started:

“Good afternoon, my name is Michael, I’m going to ask you a couple of questions to try and help you. I understand that you had an accident and have trouble remembering some events, including your name. Can you tell me about the incident?”

“Well I woke up with a big headache and very confused and started walking then found this place.”

“I see. Have you eaten anything?”

“No”

“That’s unacceptable” He made a gesture with his hands to one of the cops and when he came, he asked him to bring me a burger with fries. A burger, I have only heard of burgers from the elders.

“Shall we continue, or do you prefer to eat first?”

“Let’s continue”

“Very well. I’m making arrangements to send you to a hospital to get checked”

“No thanks, its fine, I heal pretty fast”

“I insist, is a basic check up to see if you are ok. I also make arrangement for you to stay at the homeless shelter until you decide what you are going to do”

“That’s very nice of you”

The guard arrived with the burger and the fries, the smell was overwhelming, I started eating and it was the best thing I have ever eaten in my life. Then they took me to the hospital where they were going to leave me overnight on observation. I woke up in the middle of the night and tried to leave but one of the nurses caught me.

“If you are leaving, please change into this and take a couple of water bottles with you”

I took the clothes she gave me then started changing and she turned around.

“Sir if you must leave, please take care, but I suggest you stay. There is nothing around for miles and if you really don’t remember who you are, this is a great place to start over.”

I stayed quiet looking at her and accepted her offer to stay at the shelter. I started helping people all around with their while staying in the shelter. They say is not necessary but I’ve learned that if you receive you have to give, I’ve been here two weeks and I have been well treated and well fed, so I need to give back. Maybe, just maybe this is the long-awaited peace that I always wanted.

This place is called Canada, is a small town, is very quiet and everybody know each other. One night after two months or so, a gang of young men arrived at town in a van and to the hotel to stay here. The moment I saw them, I knew they meant trouble. There were like ten of them and some look tough, the police was cautious, but I don’t think they are ready to handle them, so I asked one of the cops, Calvin;

“Have you seen them before?”

“Yes, they come here every now and then”

“Good kids?”

“No, the come they wreak some havoc and then they leave, typical gang bangers. I hate them”

“Wait, what? And you let them?”

“Well, honestly, they come armed to the teeth and we can’t handle them, the first time they came we lost one of ours, a cop who tried to be a hero”

“Why don’t you call for help from other places, don’t you have an army?”

“Yes. We already tried that, and it was worse, military came and it was a mess. They managed to take them away, but they release them after a month fort lack of proof that they killed the cop”

“When they came back, it was worse. They got into two houses destroyed everything inside and in one of them, they abused of a woman. She was a respectable teacher in this town and after a month of the incident she, she fell into depression and killed herself”

“Why don’t you kill them as soon as they arrive?”

“Well, we have to follow the law, but between you and me . . . I’m going to kill them, I have a plan and I will kill them, especially the leader. He was the one who killed my brother, the one who tried to be the hero.”

“Fuck this, I can take them”

“What? No. I will do it even if I go to jail”

“No, here is what we are going to do” I explained to him my own plan to get them.

“You will have your chance for revenge even if it means jail or me getting kicked out of town. But these assholes are going to pay.”

“No way man, I’m going to handle this, I’m a trained cop and you don’t even know who you are”

“Trust me, I can handle myself”

“Show me” We went back to an alley and he tried to restrain me but I was too fast for him.

“I told you I can handle myself, now shoot me”

“No, are you crazy?”

“Ok, empty your gun, point it at me and pull the trigger, I’ll give you three chances”

He pointed his gun at me but before he pulled the trigger I had him cuffed. I released him then he tried again but this time I had him on the floor restrained. In his last try I ended up pulling the trigger on him.

“Ok, you convinced me, man you are fast”

“Yeah, I know”

“No man, it is impossible to move that fast”

“And that will be our secret, ok?

“Ok. What do we do?”

I told Calvin to lure them out town, just out the border. We put two mannequins on the back seat of his car and we put on wigs, gang bangers won’t resist following a car full of girls. It was about 11:00 pm and they were just outside the hotel smoking and drinking. Calvin put some music on his car and they noticed us, it didn’t took long for them to follow us. They were speeding really close behind us, Calvin slowed down and signaled them to pass by us, when they did, they stopped in front of us and we had to stop. I got out of the car and the driver got out pointing a gun at me, this is perfect. I yelled Calvin to leave and he left in reverse then turned his car around and left, he was going to wait for me nearby.

They were all pointing they guns at me they were nine of them, before they could move, I disarmed them and killed them, all but the leader. I took the leader to Calvin and gave him his rifle. Calvin was reluctant but his eyes teared up and he finally executed the leader. I told him to leave, the cops will be here soon and he needs to be in his home, I’ll take the blame.

Suddenly Calvin pointed his rifle at me, I raised my hands but noticed he was looking at something behind me and I heard a shot, they were ten of them, looks like one of them was hiding while I dealt with the other nine. He shot me in the back and I fell on my knees.

Calvin shot the remaining gang member and came to me.

“oh man oh man, let’s go to the hospital come on”

“No, don’t touch me, give me the rifle and your gloves, go home”

“No, you are bleeding too much”

“Believe me I’ve been thru worse. Now leave!”

“But”

“I’ll be fine, leave”

Calvin left and I took all the gang members to the van, drove to an isolated area and burned the van. I started walking to town, but I knew I was not going to make it, so much for this long awaited peace. I fell on the floor unconscious.