Supercanuck
12-29-2008, 03:59 PM
Thank you all for your patience. This is a sample chapter from my super-hero novel "The Resurgence: Chronicles of the Shadow Chaser". Please feel free to leave a comment. Thank you all for your interest.
Randy
Chapter 1
Chicago, Illinois. USA. October 29, 1986:
“You have 10 hours to bring me 5 million dollars, or your little boy is dead!” the voice on the phone said. Tomas Collins hung up while the police looked on.
Collins asked, “Did you get it?” And then he tried to swallow.
“No, we just missed it,” the policeman said. “But we will be here when they call back.”
“It’s Stavros!” Collins shouted. “He wants my company, and I won’t give it to him. So, he has kidnapped my son—and he is going to kill him!”
“Tom, please. The FBI has had great success with kidnapping cases,” the man in a navy blue three-piece suit said.
“He’s right, Mr. Collins, we are the best at what we do,” the agent replied. “Could you please explain your connection with Antonio Stavros?”
“A few months ago, Stavros came to my office and wanted to buy 49 per cent of my shares. He offered me 50 million dollars. I turned him down because I knew whom he was. I watched that news coverage about his organized crime connections.”
“Did he threaten you or your family at that time?”
“No, not at first, but weeks later, I received frightening phone calls, had weird encounters on the street, and I was driven off the road recently.”
“Could you tell us more about your business?”
“Collins Hope is a financial aid institution,” Collins replied. “We help low-income families with loans to help them with mortgages and other bills.”
“I can see why Stavros would want to put his claws in a business like yours. He could control the loans and make a profit as well as having a front to move into the East Side of Chicago,” the agent said.
“But he didn’t actually threaten you, Tom. You can’t just say that he is responsible for Patrick’s kidnapping,” his friend said.
“Earl, you know what he’s capable of doing. Stavros is a powerful man. Agent Flynn, can you absolutely guarantee my son’s safety? Can you look at me in the eye and say that you will bring my son home?” Before Agent Flynn could reply, a woman entered frantically the room. The tears rolled down her cheeks like a sieve and fear consumed every inch of her body.
“Tom, is it true that they have him?” she asked, collapsing in his arms.
“Diana, we will get him back.” Collins gently held onto his fragile wife.
“Brrrrinnng! Brrrrinnng!” The phone rang, and the police took their positions.
Flynn said, “Let’s get it right this time, people.” And then he nodded at Collins to answer it.
“Hello.”
“I want you to put the money in a Swiss account. The account number is 674239-12. There’s been a change of plans,” the rugged voice said. “We want half of the money in half the time, or the little brat is dead.”
“I will do whatever you want,” Collins said, “but please let me talk to my son.” At first there was silence; then he heard the voice of a scared five-year-old boy.
“Mommy, Daddy! I want to go home, sniff.” The voice of their little boy was shaking. Collins felt the icy touch of fear in his child and was unable to comfort him. But he tried anyway.
“Daddy is here, son. Everything is going to be OK.” However, before the child could reply, the kidnapper took the phone away.
“Well, wasn’t that touching, but you better have the money in five hours, or the next time you want to talk to your boy it will be through Jesus.”
“You will have your money I promise.” The dial tone ended the call.
“PATRICK!” his wife yelled to the top of her lungs.
“Everything will be all right, Diana. We will pay them what they want, and then we will get Patrick back home,” Collins said, holding onto his wife with all the affection he could offer in this time of horror.
“Did we get it this time?” Flynn asked.
“Stand by, sir,” the agent replied, checking his equipment.
Uncertain of the child’s future, Flynn said, “Alright, men, we will monitor this house and the phone lines in case they call back.”
“Sir, we have them!” the agent proclaimed.
“Where are they?”
“According to the scanner, they are about three miles south by the old abandoned theatre on Racine Street.”
“Let’s get going. We will notify you when we get there, Mr. Collins,” Flynn said as Collins grabbed his left arm.
“Again, Agent Flynn, I ask you. Can you promise me that you will bring back our son to us?” Collins said with tears running down his eyes.
Flynn replied, “Nobody can make that promise, sir.” And then he left to deal with the unexpected.
However, unknown to the Collins’s and the FBI, someone else was listening in on the various conversations going on inside the house and the calls coming in from the abductors. Approximately 30 yards away from the Collins family home, a parked van with Ontario plates appeared abandoned. But inside was a man surrounded by equipment that he installed for electronic monitoring. Arthur Brown knew what Tomas and Diana Collins were feeling—for he, too, had suffered from the pain of loosing a loved one. Ten years ago, a serial rapist and his gang killed his wife, Claire. The system failed him and freed them.
“We, the jury, find the defendants not guilty by reason of insanity.”
The words of the jury foremen still haunted his life to this very day. Brown swore that the guilty would pay for hurting the innocent. Thus, he spent five years training both physically and mentally to prepare himself for the war in which he was about to enlist—the war on crime. Brown, a man in his mid-thirties, but already one of the most prolific inventors of his generation, he used his knowledge to a tremendous advantage. A genius, 30 years ahead of his time, he had created numerous weapons and a combat suit that he used against the scum of society. The black suit had a long cloak and a black fedora, which he used as an advanced type of boomerang. He even installed red lights in his mask to make it appear that he had red eyes, an illusion to fool the enemy. His cowl had an equalizer to mask his true voice and create the impression that the enemy would be fighting a spectre instead of a man. Brown pursued criminals that the law had determined to be ‘Untouchable’ either because of a lack of evidence or because of loopholes in the justice system. While fighting his war against evil, an expensive proposition, his resources dwindled. Allocating more time to the war at the detriment to his professional endeavours began to take a toll on his finances. But for now, he had to find that boy. Sitting in his van, he traced the call with one of his newest inventions.
“According to this, the party is being held at the harbour docks about four miles north of here. Stavros’s men have the FBI believing that they are further down south. It appears that they have prepared for every contingency. Except for me,” he said, looking at the computer screen.
“Stavros is up to his old tricks again. Well, it looks like it is time to balance the scales of justice for him and his associates,” he said, closing his surveillance equipment.
“Brrrrinnnng!” His car phone rang.
“Doctor Arthur Brown here.”
“Art, it’s Alex. I heard that you were coming to Chicago on a business trip,” the voice said.
“Alex, it is good to hear from you. Listen, you really caught me at a bad time. I am in a meeting. May I call you back?”
“Sure, Art. I just wanted to let you know that we have a suite at same hotel where you are staying, and I was wondering if we could get together tonight. Virginia really wants to see you.”
“Sounds great, Alex. I am in room 205. My meeting will not take too long. I will call you when I get a chance.”
Taylor replied, “Excellent. I will see you then.” And Brown hung up. Brown’s best friend, Alexander Taylor was one of the rising stars in the business world. Owner of many companies including oil, mining, and now venturing into the new computer frontier; Taylor had the life Brown could only dream of having. Rich as a small country, and married to a beautiful woman; indeed fortune smiled on Taylor. Even though he had earned everything honestly, Brown felt a little envious about his friend’s perfect life. However, Brown had no time to sink into self-pity.
“I only have four hours to save this child—or he’s dead,” Brown said, putting on his combat suit.
“Arthur Brown has done all he can for the Collins family. Now, it is time for justice to come in and do its job.” Brown pulled the mask over his face and activated the voice equalizer.
“Now, enter the Shadow Chaser,” he said as he headed for battle.
Supercanuck
01-03-2009, 01:38 PM
Chapter 2
Antonio Stavros sat in his office and waited patiently to hear from his bookkeeper. He was cocky and arrogant, for he knew the authorities would not find this old, abandoned warehouse located by the harbour close to Lake Michigan. Stavros was the reigning king of the underworld. He had the voice of a stern businessman, the looks of a Latino lover, and the temper of a pit bull. He fought his way to the top in order to achieve this power. Recently, he killed his mentor and his boss, Big Daddy Marino. Upon his death, Stavros took over the Scorpio Syndicate. Stavros did not take ‘no’ for an answer, so when Tomas Collins took a stand against him—he had to pay. The price for his opposition would be the death of his son Patrick. Even if they eventually delivered the ransom to his account, the boy had to die. Stavros grabbed his phone and dialed one of his associates.
“Hello, Juan. Has our transaction been completed yet?”
“No, sir. However, our client has three hours left to complete the first half of his financial obligations. We will notify you then—if it is convenient for you.”
“Excellent. Until then, Juan,” Stavros said, ending the call. Stavros always used business terms to carry out orders, just in case someone bugged his phone. In doing so, Stavros prevented the police from using any wiretap evidence against him. A man that looked like he belonged to the Capone gang entered his office.
“Mr. Stavros, the area is still secured. I got Louis and Victor checking the port. We are ready to take out the little tyke when you want, sir.”
“Get Clyde here. I will tell him when we will waste the bambino,” Stavros said as the goon complied with his order. Minutes later, another goon walked in the room.
“You sent for me, sir?”
“Clyde, has the kid finished his meal yet?” Stavros asked.
“Yes, he is, Mr. Stavros,” Clyde replied. “He’s a good kid. He beat me in checkers.”
“That doesn’t surprise me, Clyde,” Stavros said with an annoyed look on his face. “Once I get the call that the money is in my account—kill him.”
“Kill him, sir?”
“Yes, kill him. What? Is there a damn echo in here?”
“No, sir. But he’s just a kid,” Clyde replied, feeling sympathy for the child. “We are going to get what we want. Why does the kid have to die, too?”
“You don’t want to kill the kid?”
“No, sir. I don’t.”
“I understand, Clyde. I’ll tell you what. You just go back there and get the kid ready, and we will let him go—after we get the money of course.” Stavros smiled.
“Thank you, sir.”
“Now run along, Clyde,” Stavros said as Clyde got up to leave his office. However, Stavros had something else in mind.
Stavros fired his gun. “BRAMM! BRAMM! BRAMM!” The bullets pierced Clyde’s spine. The thug’s body collided with the concrete floor.
Stavros said, “Never question my orders again, Clyde.” And then he walked towards the body and fired more shots into his former lackey. Three of his men ran towards the office.
“What’s wrong, boss?” one of them asked as they saw Clyde’s dead body drowning in his own blood.
Stavros replied, “Oh, Clyde just gave me his resignation. Bobby, take him out of my sight. The rest of you, stay alert,” Bobby remained with Stavros while the others continued with their duties.
“Where do you want me to put him, boss?”
“Put him with the boy. Let the little brat see what awaits him.” Stavros smiled.
“Yes, boss,” Bobby said, dragging the body out of the office.
About three hours had passed, and still there was no answer—until now.
“Brrrinnng!”
“Hello,” Stavros greeted. “Yes, Juan. Excellent, we will meet shortly.” Stavros hung up to end the conversation.
“Was that Juan, boss?”
“Yes, it was. Bobby, you know what to do.”
“Quick and easy or slow and painful?”
“Oh, slow and painful, please,” Stavros said. With a quick grin to his boss, Bobby left Stavros’ office. He walked to the other side of the warehouse before he arrived at the room. Opening the door, he saw the little boy beside Clyde’s dead body.
Crying, the boy asked, “Can I go home now?”
“Yeah, kid, it’s all over,” Bobby said, taking out his blades.
“Your are right, scum. It is over for your kind. The ghost of justice is here to cleanse this dark room,” a voice said, coming from the shadows.
“Who are you?” Bobby shouted as he witnessed a pair of red eyes staring at him in the darkness. “Dddon’t come any closer, or I’ll gut ya!” But the eyes moved closer.
“Your reign of terror is over, scum,” the cold voice of death said.
“STAY AWAY FROM ME!” Bobby felt his heart racing, and his fear was beginning to smother him.
“Are you going to talk or fight, scum?” The voice became even more frightening. Bobby tried to slash the shadowed stranger, but failed.
“My turn now,” the stranger said as he grabbed the goon’s left arm and broke it.
“CRACK!” The sound of Bobby’s left arm braking in three different places.
“AGGGGGGH! MY ARM!” he screamed in pain, but the stranger continued the attack.
Stavros was about to leave when he noticed that Bobby was not with his men.
“I know that psycho loves his work, but it has been 20 minutes. Louis, go see what is taking him so long.”
Louis replied, “Yes, boss.” And then he stepped towards the room where they confined the boy.
“Hey, Bobby,” he said. “Where the hell are you?” With the exception of Clyde’s dead body, the room was deserted.
“Over here!” the voice shouted at him, and Bobby’s body flew right on top of him.
“OOOOFFF!” Louis groaned as the body connected with his chest. A few seconds later, Louis got up from the ground and checked his partner out.
“Bobby, are you all right?” he asked, seeing the mangled condition of his associate’s body.
“He’s conscience was getting to him. Now, it is your turn,” the stranger said.
Louis shouted, “Oh God, it’s the Devil!” And he spotted the red eyes appear out of nowhere.
“Time’s up!” The stranger gave him a roundhouse kick before he was able to grab his handgun.
“TWACK!” The boot connected with the goon’s face, and the thug fell onto the floor.
“I’m getting the hell out of here!” he shouted as he got up and ran towards Stavros. Louis screamed in terror “BOSS, BOSS! THE DEVIL’S GOT BOBBY!”
“What the hell are you talking about? What devil?” Stavros asked.
The voice said, “He means me, Stavros!” And then the red eyes appeared to the remaining few of the syndicate.
“HOW THE HELL DID YOU FIND ME?” Stavros screamed.
“The stench of evil can be smelled everywhere. And you reek, murderer!”
“That’s no devil! He’s the freak I was telling you about. He’s been after me for months now, but tonight we kill him.”
“Who the hell is he, boss?” Louis asked. Taking out his weapon, Stavros replied, “They call him the Shadow Chaser.”
Supercanuck
01-06-2009, 09:27 PM
Chapter 3
Stavros and his men had their guns pointing at the Shadow Chaser. The odds were not in his favour, but he did not care.
Stavros ordered. “Take him down, boys,” His men began to discharge their guns.
“BRAMM! BOOM! DRRRR!” Their weapons fired for about a good minute before they stopped.
“He must be in those crates. Go fish him out, Mario,” Stavros said. The thugs headed towards the damaged crates.
“He’s not here, boss.”
“********! He was just there,” Stavros said when they noticed a cloud of smoke appear just west from their direction.
“You can do better than that, scum. I saw that attack coming for days!” Shadow Chaser said as the goon squad prepared to fire at him.
“No, you morons. He’s right on top of those gasoline barrels. If you miss him, you blow this place up to kingdom come,” Stavros said, grabbing onto one of his men’s shotgun.
“You should listen to your boss, scum!”
“You can’t stay up there forever you gruesome son of a *****,” Louis said, keeping his aim on the Shadow Chaser.
Shadow Chaser replied, “Forever is all I have left. Now, it is time to level the playing field.” And then he snapped his fingers. Instantly, all the lights in the old warehouse went out.
“How the hell did he do that?” one of the goons demanded.
“I tell you, boss, this guy is the Devil. Who else could do that?” Louis pondered.
“He’s not the Devil. He’s just some creep in a fancy costume living out some childhood dream. Look sharp and watch where you are firing. One wrong shot, and this place is a flare for all of Chicago to see,” Stavros said, walking cautiously around the dark building.
“Scum can run and hide, but justice will find you and show you no mercy.” The voice of the Shadow Chaser surrounded the room. It was not difficult for him to extinguish the lights, for he had previously configured a shutdown switch with one of his gadgets as the goons were guarding the child. When he snapped his fingers with his left hand, he activated the miniature remote control with his right hand to make it look like he could turn the lights off with just a thought. Mini-speakers installed throughout the room amplified his voice, creating a sense of omniscience throughout the theatre of engagement. Shadow Chaser knew that it would fool Stavros’s goons, but he knew that the big man was too clever to fall for it. However, the diversion gave him an advantage against all of those guns that were looking for him.
I have five guns—excluding Stavros. I see that two of them have split up and are around the back exit. Now, is my time to attack. Shadow Chaser thought, looking through a pair of infrared binoculars. With this fancy gadget, he analyzed the entire room and prepared his strategy. He had the kid hidden in a closet in the same room where he found him. No one was near the room, so he was not worried for the child’s safety—for now.
Louis and Mario were by the back exit, hoping the creep in the suit would try to take their meal ticket out that way. Both men had their weapons loaded and ready for the kill.
“I hope that he comes here,” Mario said. “We’ll give him a reason for wearing a mask.”
“I still think it’s the Devil, man,” Louis said, trying to see in the dark.
“You think everybody is the Devil. Your wife, kids, in-laws, and that little dame you had in the room last night.” Mario smirked.
“An intoxicating danger, man.” Louis laughed. “Say, why is he after the boss?”
“From what I heard, the boss got away with killing an undercover cop. The boss made him look like a dirty cop, and that some other family killed him,” Mario said. “Shortly after that, he got some strange letters and photos about his empire, and he warned the boss about his crimes. It was weird.”
“What do you mean weird, Mario?” Louis probed, starting to feel a little uncomfortable about his current situation.
“He was using some quotes from the Bible about justice and vengeance. Stuff about the reckoning.”
“The Bible! I told you the guy is the Devil!”
“Will you stop that devil crap!” Mario said, putting his hand on Louis’s mouth. “Do you want to let all of Chicago know that we are here? Besides, do you want me to tell the rest of it?”
“OK, man. So, what happened next?” Louis asked, and then looked around the dark area.
“Well, about a month ago, the boss had a big shipment of heroin coming in from Afghanistan. It was foolproof, but that's when the chaser guy came into the picture. You know how much the boss likes to have hidden cameras all over the place.”
“Yeah, he calls it a good investment for an untrusting world.”
“Well, the shipment was going good until that freak broke into the boss’s office and took all of the dealers out, including our men.”
“All of them dead?”
“None were killed—until the boss got to them of course. However, he had beaten them up so badly that their grandkids would feel it. It took that freak about 15 seconds, if that. Then he looked straight into the hidden camera and told the boss that the Shadow Chaser was the one that would destroy him; the freak also said the boss’s days were numbered.”
“Then what?”
“Then this Shadow Chaser opened the boss’s filing cabinet and took out all of the information he had on that cop, including the evidence that would clear that cop’s name. He did this, so that the boss could see everything on tape. Then he called the cops and told them about the drug deal.”
“No wonder the boss wants this guy dead.”
“It gets better. He then left about half of the shipment and a quarter of a million dollars behind for the cops to nail the guys he took down. When the sirens appeared, he ran with the rest of the money, the shipment, and the file.”
“So, he kept it?”
“No, man. When our guys were at court, the DA got a parcel containing the rest of the shipment, the money, the file, and a videotape,” Mario said.
“But how did he get the tape?”
“It wasn’t the boss’s tape. He taped the event as it went on.”
“You mean he had the whole bust planned?”
“Yeah, with the file, he cleared the cop’s name. With his tape, he sent our boys to jail. But somehow, he contained the rest of the evidence the cops had, just in case the boss had any plans to bribe someone to make it disappear. And believe me the boss tried to get it back. This guy is a real pro.”
“But the boss didn’t get charged?”
“The guys said that they acted alone and broke into his office to do the deal. The boss had a good alibi at the time of the crime. As for the file, one our guys said they were planning to frame the boss by planting the file in his office.”
“But you said that the boss killed them. Didn’t you?”
“The boss couldn’t trust them, so he had them put on ice in jail.”
“So, did the boss go after the freak?”
“When he arrived to his home after the trial, the boss got a phone call from the jerk. The voice told him that the Shadow Chaser wouldn’t rest until he stopped the boss. The boss had fake meetings with his lieutenants just in case this Shadow Chaser was bugging his discussions. He had everybody believing that he was going to Florida. In the meantime, he hired some of the best hitters in the country to kill the freak. He mentioned that he would make an arms deal in Orlando. He gave the name of the building, the time, and the day.”
“So, that the man would take the bait, and the hitters would finish him off when he arrived.”
“Exactly, but it didn’t work exactly the way the boss planned it. The freak never showed up. We didn’t hear anything from this guy for months. We thought that he had quit or had died. He was no longer chasing the boss. Besides, the boss had a gang war to win, and he didn’t have the time to play cat and mouse with a costumed idiot. So, he just went on with business as usual,” Mario said.
“Until now.”
“Yeah, until now,” Mario replied when they heard a noise about five feet in front of them.
“CRACK!” The sound broke the silence.
“What was that?” Louis asked, shaking violently, for he still thought that this stranger was the prince of darkness.
“I am going to check it out. Wait here,” Mario said as he grabbed his shotgun and tightened his grip on it.
“You’re not leaving me here alone, man,” Louis said, starting to feel his blood pressure rising. “That devil is out there.”
“What did I tell you, stupid? He’s not the Devil. If he were the Devil, he would make me disappear before I had the chance to scream.” Mario laughed. “Now stay here, I’ll be right back.” And then he stepped into the darkness.
Shadow Chaser listened to their conversation and remembered what happened on the night of that drug deal. He also recalled the false information he received from the bug during that meeting.
Stavros almost had me fooled with his scheme. It’s a good thing I knew that those hit men were waiting for me, or it could’ve gotten ugly—really ugly. Shadow Chaser thought as he saw Mario walking in his direction.
“Excellent. Now, is the time to take the offence.” Shadow Chaser dove down from the boxes to the ground. With cat-like reflexes, he positioned himself without Mario even hearing him, or knowing the better. Mario stood three yards away from a trap—unaware that the dark stranger awaited his next move.
“Come out, come out wherever you are!” Mario said, aiming his shotgun all around the area.
“As you wish,” Shadow Chaser said as he grabbed Mario from behind and took him out with a sleeper hold. Seconds later, he had the goon cuffed with his manacles. Before leaving the scene, the dark hero took off Mario’s shoes and gagged him with his own pair of socks.
“I hope that you wash them frequently,” Shadow Chaser said. The mask he wore covered his smile.
Louis was getting more anxious by the minute. Mario had disappeared for about ten minutes, and he should have returned by now. Louis was beginning to sweat; his heart was beating like the wings of a crow. Finally, he broke the silence.
“Mario, where the hell are you? Come on, man. Stop this **** right now. I’m serious!” His speech pattern changed from scared to terrified.
“MMMMM!” The sound came from the area where Mario went.
Louis asked, “Mario, is that you?” And then he reluctantly paced toward the sound.
“Mario, where are you?” he asked, but received no reply. Louis probed again. “What did he do to you?” Louis turned around and spotted two red eyes appeared from nowhere.
“PAFF!” The sound of the Shadow Chaser’s left boot connecting with Louis’s right hand. The blow took the goon’s gun right out of his hand, and it fell to the ground. It was too dark for Louis to find his only insurance marker. The red eyes were closer, and the figure began to speak.
“Time to visit your friend,” Shadow Chaser said, holding a gun with a silencer attached.
“No! Don’t kill me, man!” Louis shouted as the dark vigilante fired his weapon.
“TUFF!” the Shadow Chaser fired. A few seconds after the shot, Louis fell to his knees.
“You drugged me, man!” Louis said, looking at the dart in his chest.
Shadow Chaser replied, “I wouldn’t waste bullets on you, scum. I’m on a tight budget.” Louis fell unconscious from the sleep-inducing drug.
“Two down, three to go,” Shadow Chaser said as he continued his crusade.
Stavros and the rest of his men were around the area when they heard a scream.
“That sounded like Louis,” one goon said while the other one walked towards Stavros.
“I got that flashlight from your office like you asked, boss,” the second goon said
“Give it to me. Now follow my lead.” The goons followed him. As they got closer to the back exit, they heard a strange muffled sound.
“MUMMMM! MUMMMM!” The noise was getting louder.
“It’s coming from over there,” Stavros said, shining the flashlight east of his direction. The goons followed the sound. One of them scouted the area and nearly tripped over a body.
The goon said, “Boss, it’s Mario!” Stavros and the others ran towards him.
“What happened here, Mario?” Stavros demanded, taking the socks out of his henchman’s mouth.
“It was the Shadow Chaser. He got me, and I think he got Louis, too,” Mario said. The glare from the flashlight was beginning to annoy his eyes.
“Boss, I found Louis here. He’s fast asleep,” the other goon said.
“You trying to say that two of the top hitters in the syndicate got slapped around by some freak in a Halloween costume!” Stavros said with anger in his voice.
“He got us by surprise, boss,” Mario said while the other goon tended to Louis.
“It looks like he shot Louis with some sort of tranquilizer, boss,” the goon said.
Taking out his gun, Stavros said, “Well, he’s not going to feel this then—will he!” And then he aimed it at Louis head and fired.
“BRAMM! BRAMM! BRAMM!” Three shots pierced through Louis’s skull like a sewing needle through fabric. The rest of the men felt first disgust towards their employer; then a sense of anxiety, no one was going to debate the issue. Each was aware that the penalty for failure was death for anyone falling short of Stavros’s objectives. Mario saw the blood running down to the ground and feared that he was going to be next.
“Boss, it wasn’t my fault. I tried to stop him,” Mario said, sobbing. “I honestly tried to stop him.”
“Mario, please. I hate to see a grown man cry. I know you tried, but don’t take it so hard,” Stavros said. “I have nothing against you, so I’m not going to kill you.” Then he untied Mario.
“You’re not!” Mario said, controlled by fear.
“No, I have to much respect for you. You’re like a son to me.”
“Thanks, boss,” Mario said as Stavros looked at the third goon.
“I don’t have the heart to shoot you. Jack, would you do the honours?” Stavros requested.
“Yes, Mr. Stavros,” Jack said, and aimed his machine gun at Mario.
“NO, PLEASE! I’LL DO ANYTHING!” Mario yelled.
“You had your chance. Waste him!” Stavros shouted as the goon fired upon his former colleague.
“NOOOOOOOOOO!” Mario screamed, but they ignored his cry.
“BRRRRRR! BRRRRRR! BRRRRRR!” The bullets traveled like a jet and hunted down its prey like a spider on a fly. When the smoke from the gunpowder cleared, they looked upon Mario’s lifeless, bloodstained body.
“Anybody else going to fail me now?” Stavros asked.
“No, boss. That Shadow Chaser guy is as good as dead,” they vowed.
“Good. Now, let’s get back to work. You three search the area; I will meet up with you later.”
“What are you going to do, boss?” Jack said.
Stavros replied, “I got a surprise for our friend.” And he left the area.
In the shadows, the dark vigilante had just witnessed the death of two of Stavros’s men. He did not care if the criminals would kill each other off. Stavros needed no reason to kill. Antonio Stavros did not play by the rules—even by the mob’s standards. Shadow Chaser knew that he had to stop Stavros, now more than ever—even if it meant dying in the attempt.
Their deaths were ruthless, even for their kind. Even I never thought that Stavros would have gone over the edge as he did a few minutes ago. Shadow Chaser thought. I have to get the child out of here soon. So, the only way you’re going to that, Art, is to finish this now. Shadow Chaser noticed the remaining men walking around the area and looking forward to his blood.
“Let’s see if they are ready for this.” Shadow Chaser plunged from the crate and drove two of the three goons to the ground.
“THUMP! THUMP!” The sound of their heads as they connected with the surface of the floor, knocking out his two opponents instantly.
“SHADOW CHASER!” Jack screamed. The dark spectre with the red eyes was looking straight at him as if it was judgment day, for he was about to be damned for life.
“It’s over, scum,” Shadow Chaser said as he bounced back to his feet and waited for Jack’s next move.
“I’m not letting you take me,” Jack said, taking out his gun.
“The life of crime has already taken away your soul. Don’t let it take your life as well,” Shadow Chaser said. However, Jack would not listen.
Jack shouted, “Screw you, freak!” And then he fired his handgun.
“BRAMM! BRAMM! BRAMM!” The bullets flew through the air like the wind. The Shadow Chaser evaded the bullets, and once again; he disappeared the same way he appeared—mysteriously.
“Where did you go, you bas…” Jack said, and then he felt somebody tapping his left shoulder.
Shadow Chaser replied, “Over here.” And struck the goon on the jaw.
“ARRGGHH!” Jack moaned and collided with the crates.
“BAM! TRUNCH! TUCK!” The crates tumbled to the ground and buried Jack.
“It’s a good thing I had my grappling launcher, or I would not have been able to move from harm’s way and surprise that fool,” Shadow Chaser said, thinking about the bullets that were meant for him. The darkness allowed him to fool Jack, believing that he just vanished into thin air.
“Now, for the child. With those guns out of the way, I could get the boy out of here and come back for Stavros,” Shadow Chaser said, and then he ambled towards the room.
Patrick feared for his life and hid in the dark, damp closet. He missed his parents, and he wanted to be with them. He sat in the closet inaudibly just as the man with the red eyes told him to do. Fifteen minutes ago, he was crying for his mommy when he saw somebody entering the room. The person had red eyes, and he looked very scary to the child.
“I am not here to hurt you, Patrick. I’m here to take you to your mommy and daddy. A man is coming in the room. Don’t tell him I’m here.” Patrick remembered the words of the dark man. “Stay in the closet until I come back, kid. I have to take care of the bad men.” He continued to relive the incident and waited inside the closet for the man to return. Patrick heard the door open in the room. The footsteps were getting louder and nearer by the second.
As the door opened, he shouted, “Mommy! Daddy!”
“Not yet, Patrick, but soon,” Shadow Chaser said, lifting the little angel out of hell. With the child in his arms, Shadow Chaser headed towards the door.
“You came back, Mr. Red Eyes.”
“How about calling me Shadow Chaser, kid.”
“Why do you look so scary?”
“It’s to scare the bad guys.”
“Stupid bad guys.” The boy giggled.
“Yeah, stupid bad guys.” Shadow Chaser smirked along with the young child. However, the laughter stopped instantly.
“Damn it, the lights are back. How the hell did that happened?” Shadow Chaser pondered; then a thought came to his mind.
“He has a backup generator. That son of a *****!” Shadow Chaser said as the boy looked at his saviour.
“That’s a bad word, Shadow Chaser. You should not use bad words—it makes baby Jesus cry,” Patrick said, scolding the dark guardian.
Shadow Chaser replied, “You’re right, kid. Sorry.” Shadow Chaser realized how well the Collins’s had raised their boy.
“That’s OK. But you can’t have any desert when you bring me back home, OK.”
“OK.” Shadow Chaser nodded, and they left the room.
“BRAMM! BRAMM! BRAMM! BRAMM!” He heard the shots, but could not see the shooter nor where the bullets were coming from. He had no time to hesitate.
“Hang on!” Shadow Chaser shouted as he attempted to evade the bullets. Any other time Shadow Chaser would have been able to move with great ease. However, he had a child clinging onto him, and he had to make sure that the bullets would not hit his little body. The agent of justice dodged the first three of the bullets. Unfortunately, the fourth one penetrated his left leg.
Shadow Chaser shrieked, “ARRGHHH!” And fell into the crates. However, he made sure that he would take the blunt of the collision instead of the child.
“Are you OK?” the boy asked.
“I’m shot, kid. Run and hide in that crate over there,” Shadow Chaser said, looking at the wound in his leg.
“The bad man is coming. I can’t leave you here.”
“Don’t worry about me, kid. Go!” Shadow Chaser said, pushing him towards the crate. The boy started to run as Shadow Chaser tried to get up from the bloodstained floor.
“Armor piercing bullet. Penetrated the body armor and an artery; I have to tighten the wound—or I’m dead.” Shadow Chaser took off his combat belt and tied it around the wound.
“That should slow down the bleeding,” he said, feeling a sharp pain in his back.
“PAFF!” The sound of a boot connecting with Chaser’s back.
“ARRGHHH!” Shadow Chaser moaned as he fell back to the ground.
“You don’t look so tough now, hero. You bleed like the rest of us, too,” Stavros said, looking down on the injured vigilante.
Shadow Chaser replied, “We will just see how tough I am, killer.” And then he used his other leg to trip his adversary. That move gave him a little more time to get up. However, Stavros still had the advantage.
“I see that you’re a good fighter, Shadow Chaser,” Stavros said. “But let’s see how you do against me.” Stavros demonstrated his mastery in the martial arts. Shadow Chaser was trying to evade to the best of his ability. If it would not be for the bullet that is plunged into his leg, he would be able to show Stavros what skills a shadow art master had to offer. However, life, as Shadow Chaser knew, was not always easy or fair. The fight continued for several minutes until Stavros took the advantage.
“I’m hurting bad. I lost the feeling in my leg. I am starting to lose my focus. His punches aren’t helping either,” Shadow Chaser said, for the loss of blood had drained most of the life right out of him.
“Where’s your courage now, freak,” Stavros said, and begun to deliver blow after near lethal blow to the helpless Shadow Chaser.
Shadow Chaser said, “It’s all over.” And then he fell hard on the ground. Stavros strode towards his defeated opponent and laughed.
“I would like to see who is behind that mask and kill you. However, I want to waste that brat first, so you could hear the sound of the gun that will kill him. After, I will bring the kid’s dead body to show you,” Stavros said. “Then I will kill you; so your blood will mingle with his.” Stavros left to resume his search for the boy. After many minutes of deliriousness, Shadow Chaser started to regain consciousness. He still had no feeling in his leg, and he feared that he might lose it. He knew that his life would end like this; taken out by the scum he vowed to battle. He knew that someday he would die at the hands of a powerful enemy, or some lucky thug. He took that risk. He accepted that. But he regretted that he could not save the young child from the mob boss. Stavros will kill him for no reason at all.
“I failed to save him as I failed to save my beloved Claire,” Shadow Chaser said, having a hard time to breathe. As he lay there thinking about his failures, Shadow Chaser thought about his wife; he knew how much she cherished life. From that thought, a new drive appeared in both the Shadow Chaser and Arthur Brown.
“Claire didn’t quit. Even when those monsters had her, she fought them until they killed her. How dare I quit now. Do I only become a hero when it is easy, and give up when it is hard? The answer is no,” Shadow Chaser said as he slowly got up from the ground.
“Hold on, Patrick. I’m coming,” Shadow Chaser said as he went on with the mission.
Thanks for reading :)
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