The Struggle for Justice and Truth

by

Tomas Cudzis

Part 1 – Becoming You . . .

Table of Contents
Part 1: Becoming You… .......................................................................................................... 8
Chapter 1: Until the Upper Hand Is Mine ...............................................................................10
Chapter 2: Healed .................................................................................................................18
Chapter 3: Secrets.................................................................................................................26
Chapter 4: Point of No Return ...............................................................................................36
Chapter 5: The First Signs of Inner Demons ..........................................................................45
Chapter 6: The Incident .........................................................................................................53
Chapter 7: The Exile ..............................................................................................................60
Part 2: Me, The Animal Takes Control ...................................................................................72
Chapter 1: Calm Before the Storm .................................................................................................... 77
Chapter 2: Despair ............................................................................................................................... 92
Chapter 3: This Is It ............................................................................................................................ 116
Chapter 4: New Allies? ...................................................................................................................... 126
Chapter 5: Still Hunted ...................................................................................................................... 156
Chapter 6: Enough is Enough! ......................................................................................................... 186
Chapter 7: Bloodbath ......................................................................................................................... 202
Chapter 8: Reborn.............................................................................................................................. 231
Part3: Pushed The Right Way ..............................................................................................258
Chapter 1: Getting Ready ................................................................................................................. 262
Chapter 2: First Mission .................................................................................................................... 285
Chapter 3: Goldie Girl ........................................................................................................................ 315
Chapter 4: First Problems in Paradise ............................................................................................ 395
Chapter 5: Irreconcilable Differences .............................................................................................. 440
Chapter 6: Until it Breaks .................................................................................................................. 463
Chapter 7: Breaking Point ................................................................................................................. 508
Chapter 8: Sucked Right Back In..................................................................................................... 536
Chapter 9: All for Nothing .................................................................................................................. 600
Part4: You Did It To Yourself! ..............................................................................................625
Chapter 1: All Pointless ..................................................................................................................... 629
Chapter 2: New Glow of Fire ............................................................................................................ 660
Chapter 3: Evil Thriving in Indifference ........................................................................................... 723
 Chapter 4: Times of Sorrow .............................................................................................................. 791
Chapter 5: You Again ........................................................................................................................ 824
Chapter 6: It has to be Done ............................................................................................................ 859
Chapter 7: The Solution .................................................................................................................... 883
Chapter 8: Epilogue ........................................................................................................................... 955
▪ Note from the Author .......................................................................................................... 984
Honour Acknowledgement:..................................................................................................992
 Author’s Advisory

Welcome to my book. As you continue to read, you will notice that in certain parts, there will be

something that appears to be a reference to a song followed by a lyrics sample. You will be right.

The purpose of the songs stated in the book is to evoke emotion in you, and to further support

your overall experience while reading that certain section. For better immersion, I suggest that

you listen to the songs as well.

What I really wanted to do, if I could, was to make a movie. I’m not even a writer – or active

reader, for that matter – and I’m sure you will be able to tell that very quickly, as my book is

probably very different in writing style, unique to others. Hopefully not in a bad way.

Watching a movie and having an emotional response is much easier than when reading a book,

because you already see the movements, the colours, and hear the sounds. The use of that

sensory input can capture your attention and invite you to draw more and more into the movie.

Even smell could be subconsciously imagined based on the imagery you see. For me, it is so

much easier to be connected to a movie.

On the other hand, in a text, there is hardly any emotion. All your emotional responses are based

on your own imagination of what you read.

Therefore, everyone can have a different – I should say, unique – response, for better or worse,

based on their own mental imagery capability and their personal traits.

I cannot make you see what I want you to see. I cannot put in your head the sounds that I would

like you to hear as you read my book. But I believe that through those songs that I carefully

selected, I can encourage you to feel what I intended to express when writing that part of the
story; what I felt and imagined while listening to the song. Not to prescribe or script, but to

improve your overall experience. That is what it is all about: better experience. Experience that

produces an emotional response in you.

In most sections, I would advise that you play the song after rather than before you read, but do

whatever suits you the best. At the very least, it should be obvious that the section was dedicated

to the “prescribed” individual song, and it is a tribute to the song’s lyrics itself.

The goal is, it should look like Linkin Park was making the soundtrack for the book, and not

the other way around.

I’ve included the track’s length so it’s easier for you to identify the correct version of the

intended song. If you are unable to find the correct version, then my advice is not to use any

other version of that song. Musical artists can convey different emotions in the same song,

depending on how they sing it. (Take, for example, Paul Anka’s album Rock Swings.) This could

impact my original intent of the emotion that I hoped you would have experienced listening to

that specific version of the song. It could destroy or amend the “atmosphere” that I originally

hoped to create for you.

I do not own the rights to these songs, and I know it may not be convenient for you to go and

find them (YouTube). However, if you play the right songs in the places I recommend you listen

to them, I’m sure you will have a much better experience. Give it a try! Either way, enjoy, and

thank you for taking an interest in my book.

Kind regards,

Tomas Cudzis
Caution: Please be aware that the book contains some

strong language and also depicts graphic violence.

Disclaimer:

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the

products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual

persons, living or dead, or actual events, is intentional at times, but still a fiction. The biggest challenge

for the author was to create an exciting story out of the lyrics of predominantly Linkin Park songs,

and order it in one smooth, logical storyline for the reader to follow. The author had no other agenda

creating the storyline, and it doesn’t represent the author’s personal, political, racial, social, etc.,

views. The author is aware that many sections in this book can be found extremely offensive in regard

to some characters’ opinions or actions. To create offensive content wasn’t the author’s intent, and it

was only done so to create drama, fit into the lyrics’ narrative, and to define some of the characters’

personality traits.

Copyright:

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or

mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission

from the author, except in the case of a reviewer who may quote brief passages embodied in critical

articles or in a review. Trademarked names appear throughout this book. Rather than use a

trademark symbol with every occurrence of a trademarked name, names are used in an editorial

fashion, with no intention of infringement of the respective owner’s trademark. The information in

this book is distributed on an “as is” basis, without warranty. Although every precaution has been

taken in the preparation of this work, neither the author nor the publisher shall have any liability to
 any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused or alleged to be caused, directly or

indirectly, by the information contained in this book.

©2021 Tomas Cudzis

Acknowledgement:

I would like to acknowledge and thank the music band Linkin Park for their life’s work to

date. Their music influenced my life heavily. Their songs moved me in ways I’m trying to

express in this book. They’re the only music band to date that doesn’t have a single average

song, in my humble opinion, never mind a bad one, despite every new album being very

different and unique.

This whole instalment of four parts is a tribute to their work, and is evolving around one

point of view of my personal interpretation of their songs. Any additional songs in certain

sections of this book are used for better immersion or connecting the storyline purposes

only. Linkin Park’s songs were ground zero for my inspiration, and all of them are present

within the Quadrilogy of this tribute book series.

RIP Chester Charles Bennington (March 20, 1976–July 20, 2017)

Gone, but not forgotten!

Soundtrack in Order of Appearance:

Part I: Becoming You . . .

Chapter 1: Until the Upper Hand is Mine…………………………………5
1. John Murphy – Sunshine (Adagio in D minor) 4:26
2. Audiomachine – Reaching 3:13
3. Hard Rock Sofa & Swanky Tunes – Apogee 2:51
4. Tidemann Esbjug – Find Yourself Piano Cover Zyzz 2:39
5. Linkin Park – Hit the Floor 2:44
6. Clint Mansell – Requiem for a Dream orchestral version 6:34
7. Zyzz motivation – Pain is Temporary 6:17

Chapter 2: Healed………………………………………11
1. Linkin Park – Somewhere I Belong 3:33
2. Professor Green (feat. Example) – Monster (Camo & Krooked Remix) 4:25
3. Sam La More – Wish it Could Last (Hook N Sling Remix) 7:03
4. John O’Callaghan – Find Yourself 7:04

Chapter 3: Secrets………………………………………16
1. Kraddy – Android Porn 6:55
2. Hardwell – Cobra (Official Energy Anthem 2012) 6:46
3. Above & Beyond – Sun & Moon (Radio edit) 3:08
4. Linkin Park – In Pieces (Radio edit) 3:37

Chapter 4: Point of No Return……………………………………………23

1. Headstrong (feat. Stine Grove) – Tears (Aurosonic Progressive Mix) 9:12

2. Imogen Heap – The Walk (MT EDEN DNB REMIX) 4:56
3. DJ Fresh – Gold Dust (Flux Pavilion remix) 5:17
4. Linkin Park – Lying From You 2:55

Chapter 5: The First Signs of Inner Demons……………………………29

1. Linkin Park – Forgotten 3:16
2. Linkin Park – Given Up 3:09
3. Linkin Park – Faint 2:42
Chapter 6: The Incident……………………………………………………34
1. Linkin Park – Valentine’s Day 3:16
2. Linkin Park – Breaking The Habit 3:16
3. Mortal Kombat Reptile (Techno) Theme 6:24
4. KFMD – Mortal Kombat Theme 3:41
5. Scooter – Hyper Hyper 3:37
6. Linkin Park – Figure.09 3:17

Chapter 7: The Exile…………………………………………………………39

1. Linkin Park – Fallout 1:23
2. Linkin Park (feat. Pusha T and Stormzy) – Good Goodbye 3:36
3. Linkin Park – Sharp Edges 2:58
4. Linkin Park – Sorry For Now 3:23
5. Linkin Park – Wastelands 3:15
6. Linkin Park – Roads Untraveled 3:44

End of Part I…………………..………………………………………………45

1. Linkin Park – Somewhere I Belong (zwieR.Z. Remix) 4:08
2. Linkin Park – Burning In The Skies 4:13
3. Linkin Park – FRGT 10 Ft. Alchemist, Chali 2na(Reanimation)
4. Linkin Park – Roads Untraveled (Rad Omen Remix) (Feat. Bun B) 5:28
5. Linkin Park – Breaking The Habit (zwieR.Z. Remix) 3:04
 Part I: Becoming
You . . .

Chapter 1: Until the Upper Hand Is Mine

John Murphy – Sunshine (Adagio in D minor) 4:26

Tomas had a small frame for a guy. As a boy, he had to face a lot of remarks on his skinny
appearance. Somewhere around 12 years old, his father mounted a pull-up bar high in the
hallway of their home flat. Tomas made a promise to himself that day. He promised himself that
he was going to transform his body. That bar was the first step in the right direction! Every time
Tomas would pass below the pull-up bar going from his room into the living room, or to the
bathroom, or kitchen, or back to his room, he would do as many pull-ups as he possibly could.
Beginnings were hard, at least for the first two days, when Tomas couldn’t do a single pull-up at
all. But since he was moving around his parents’ flat quite frequently, the number of daily
attempts was no less than twenty. With every new attempt, Tomas was getting closer and closer
to his first full pull-up ever!
He still remembered it vividly even many years later, as if it was yesterday . . . the moment when
he jumped up to grab onto the pull-up bar (it were so high that he couldn’t stand on the floor if
he was holding it), the heaviness of his body, the first pull that he did so many times before to no
avail. On that day, Tomas could make it into the mid-range! There, he would get stuck again, as
always.
The thought that went through his mind was: Not again! Not this time! The five-second struggle
followed when Tomas couldn’t move up no matter how hard he tried. Then, something that even
he didn’t really believe in, did happen. Tomas finally got through it, slowly raising up, past the
sticking point. All of Tomas’s power, everything that he had in him, was in the game! Finally, he
believed!
All of Tomas’s focus was on the level of his chin. He just wanted to get his chin higher than the
bar, nothing less. He made it that far . . . past the sticking point. Surely, it can only get easier
after this. And it did! Slowly, Tomas gained speed after being stuck at the sticking point
momentarily, and then he started to elevate himself closer to the bar that seemed to be so high up
above him. Then, his chin did raise higher than the bar level! Yes, he did jerk his body on the
way up. Yes, Tomas was kicking his legs like mad and his face looked like he had a hard time on
the toilet. But he made it all the way up by himself.
Something that was impossible just two days ago, or so it seemed at that time, had happened.
Tomas was convinced that none of the boys at school, or friends, and friends of friends, could do
it. This was the moment that Tomas was waiting for, for so long. The moment when his dream
would turn into reality. The moment that confirmed it for him. It was possible, and he was right
to dream about it. To even attempt it.

Audiomachine – Reaching 3:13

Tomas jumped off the bar, exhausted but happy, a smile on his face. Finally! he thought, and
couldn’t help but giggle. You cannot imagine what it felt like to him in that moment.
How could you? Not many people will ever feel what it feels like when you win against all of the
odds. When nobody would believe in you, when everybody would tell you to just forget about it.
That it is not meant to be for you. But you did it; you did win! And you made it without any
support, on your own. The moment is for you to enjoy, to see the surprised faces of all of the
disbelievers. It feels as if you performed a miracle! It’s a reminder for them that it is possible to
dream; it is possible to strive for better things despite the odds.
The admiration he received and the respect he gained were something Tomas didn’t have in his
life. Would it be so hard to understand that respect would be so important to him? Of course we
hold important the things we don’t have. Often, we don’t appreciate things we DO have. Because
we have them, our ignorant brain will tell us that it isn’t that important. It has no value until we
lose it. Only then will we understand what we had and took for granted.
This seemingly small thing of raising his chin above the pull-up bar morphed into deep
philosophical thinking; how much someone’s life can suck, and yet, they had it all, but couldn’t
see it. It’s a paradox of life. Instead of appreciating what we do have, we spend our lives
focusing on things we don’t have, especially if we can see other people having it. Like more
money, for most people. Or respect, in Tomas’s case.
It’s natural instinct to improve oneself, to have a purpose. Something to chase after. Love?
Tomas had plenty of it (from his mom, mostly). Respect? Everyone had it but him! You know
how it feels for a guy not being respected? Same as for a girl not being considered beautiful. If
you are a guy that guys don’t respect, it means you can’t do anything within your circle of peers.
What will you do? They can say anything to you, or do anything to you, and you cannot do
anything back!
Then, of course, no female will respect you either, or find you attractive. There is no hope for
you; your life will be pain. If you’re a straight man, that is. Almost everything about you as a
man is about that single thing, respect. Yet, almost all men have it. That’s why they can’t see the
value of it, nor care for. If men and women respect you, you can feel as a “man”. Quite important
if you are a man, if you would ask me!
And then, you finally get that respect, or at least it feels like you are on the way to getting it, and
it feels like achieving a goal. Like being poor all your life before winning the lottery big time.
Never to work again, long after you had lost any hope. True happiness? Maybe. Except, winning
the lottery is just luck. In fact, it means that you are for one, stupid enough to even try with those
odds, and second, not even considering working hard to make your own fortune. Yeah, those
were arrogant statements of Tomas, but you get the point. You would fly high in the skies should
that happen to you. That’s what it felt like for Tomas in that moment. Like his life had a chance,
even though everybody else was trying to convince him otherwise before the pull-up and that it
would always be the same.
Tomas couldn’t wait to show it off as soon as possible, but he had to make sure first. And yes,
even the second attempt shortly after was successful! Tomas was happy as never before.
Tomas wouldn’t care about people saying that “if you don’t try, you cannot win,” as with the
lottery. His position on fighting impossible odds was: “If the chance is one in ten million, which
is still optimistic, even if you buy a million tickets for five million pounds or whatever it is,
you’re just going to be five million pounds lighter in your bank account.”
But then again, someone must win. If that someone would be you, you would feel what Tomas
felt in that moment when he accomplished the impossible – getting his chin over that pull-up bar,
not once, but twice! Everybody tried to convince him that his odds in life were impossible, but
he refused to believe it.

Hard Rock Sofa & Swanky Tunes – Apogee 2:51

At first, Tomas was hiding this fact. Didn’t tell anybody. Just to his mom, dad and sister who
naturally knew. They were quite impressed with what Tomas accomplished in just two days.
However, there was a small stain in their statements, saying that it is only because of how small
and light he was! Tomas always said back in his defence: ‘It is as hard for me as it is for you! I
have no muscle to lift my body, right? I am so lanky, and yet, I can do this! You might be
heavier, but you’re also a lot stronger, right? So why can’t you do it?’ Well, it never really
worked to his full satisfaction because Tomas could always overhear people to say how light as a
feather he was and looked like a stick in the field, or a ‘coat-hanger’, or the ‘grim reaper’ (as an
actual skeleton). This has fuelled his determination even more and made every repetition on the
pull-up bar easier. Before his first week of training on the pull-up bar was over, Tomas could do
easily ten almost good pull-ups every single time that he passed by. That could have been easily
around two-hundred pull-ups a day!
Before the first month on the bar was over, Tomas had gained visible muscles on his back and a
little bit on his arms. No one else could really tell. When Tomas was dressed in his clothes, he
still looked like a stick. But that didn’t matter to him. He knew at some point later it will show
even through his clothes.
A few weeks later, Tomas was doing around twenty-five pull-ups on average when he was
passing by the pull-up bar. he even started to add more sets (series of repetitions). Tomas did his
first set as he should have when he passed by the bar, then he waited for a bit to do one more a
while later. It was very hard. Tomas was barely getting eight, maybe nine pull-ups on his second
set. But the feeling that he got from doing it!
He didn’t know it then, but that was his first pumped up moment, when you have pumped so
much blood into your muscles that they get swollen, bigger. Sometimes, Tomas felt like his skin
would burst from so much pressure. But it wasn’t painful. Actually, maybe it was, but it was a
good pain; a very addictive feeling. It was the only time when Tomas felt like he was really big
and strong. When he felt like a man. When Tomas felt like he could say or do something back.
Like, he could demand respect!

Tidemann Esbjug – Find Yourself Piano Cover Zyzz 2:39

It was only understandable that respect really mattered to him. People in general want to do
things that other people tell them are impossible. ‘You can never do that, keep dreaming!’ Tomas
had heard it so many times before . . . but even a lot more now. Mainly from his friends and
family, who were aware of his training. They were really impressed with what he managed to do
so quickly, but still, kind of dismissed that achievement by saying it was only because of his
feather weight.
The worst thing was, they knew what Tomas was trying to achieve and still said, ‘You will never
be big or strong; you are not built like a man.’ His mom hurt Tomas’s feelings especially with
her remarks. ‘You have the Rumancik build.’ (That was his mother’s maiden name.) ‘All of our
family were skinny and thin; just look at your uncle Ivan.’ Ivan was around 50 years old then,
and stood almost six feet tall but weighed only around sixty kilograms (132 pounds).
Deep down, Tomas knew it was true. He was 12 years old and weighed barely thirty kilograms
(66 pounds). His peers were weighing in at forty-plus kilograms (88 pounds). It was a real
embarrassment every time there was a school nurse check-up. Everybody could see his weight or
his body (welcome to post-Soviet Union remnants of that time).
Tomas felt betrayed by his friends and family for saying those things. Still, he knew it was only
because they were trying to protect him by not getting his hopes too high, so he would be
prepared for the disappointment coming down the line. Tomas never believed it though. His
whole soul refused to believe that he could never feel like a man; that he was never going to feel
safe in the face of the other males. That he couldn’t protect anyone, at any point in his life,
because of how small and weak he was, ever. That he stood no chance. That he would never get
any respect from men or the attention of females that he’d started to desire so much.
Tomas never had any of it. He was always overlooked by everyone, always dismissed with,
‘What are you going to do about it?’ Girls laughed at him when he tried to impress them by
pretending that he could go beat [insert any person’s] ass. They laughed at him! Justly, he had to
admit it on the inside that at that time, it was probably true.
 Linkin Park– Hit The Floor 2:44
“There are so many things you say that make me feel you cross the line,
but what goes up will surely fall and I'm counting down the time.”

Tomas was lucky that he never got seriously bullied. Now and then, someone tried to make him
a target for abuse. But he was quite popular with the other boys because of his personality. A
feminine trait (he thought), which made him feel even more like a pussy. He was quite funny and
was full of lots of good ideas – smart almost. So he had a lot of friends, and they always stepped
in as soon as someone else tried anything.
Tomas was glad, really, but at the same time, hated it. He hated the fact that he knew he stood no
chance alone. It was embarrassing for all of the girls to see that he needed help. Still, Tomas was
glad that his friends stepped in, although now and then, he could hear even them talking behind
his back about how pathetically lanky he was and that he needed their protection. To impress the
girls mainly, of course.
Every now and then, his friends put him down in front of the girls for their own benefit,
something Tomas would never do – or he promised himself never to do – even when he reached
his goal. Tomas wouldn’t want to be like them, putting someone else down to pull yourself up.
Sometimes, Tomas confronted them later, after he overheard the conversation, only to get in
response: ‘Would you prefer if we just stood by the next time?’ Of course not. Tomas wasn’t
ready for that yet. Yet. But he was carefully waiting for the day when he would have the upper
hand. He would show them all! This had to change! This had to stop! Tomas had enough of that
feeling that he was being stepped on by everyone, being lied to, seemingly everyone around him
trying to shatter his dreams before they even started. Lies. All lies! I will never trust what you all
say again. I’ll wait; the upper hand will be mine in the end.
Sometimes, his family and friends would feel guilty, asking him how he felt, what was on his
mind, if he was mad at them. As much as Tomas wanted to oppose them, he protected them out
of courtesy by pretending that everything was OK. And because real men don’t complain, they
find solution. Tomas continued his training regimen. He stopped caring about what others said.
Tomas learnt that no matter how much progress he would make, he wouldn’t get any support
from anyone because of how far away his end goal was in their eyes. They couldn’t see that far,
couldn’t believe this would continue long enough for him to see it through. And he couldn’t wait
to prove them wrong.
 Clint Mansell– Requiem for a Dream orchestral version 6:34
By the third month of his pull-ups routine, Tomas was doing fifty pull-ups in a row, with decent
form as well (at least, he thought so). The time was right to start showing up. Even his family
looked really surprised that he could do that. Tomas was still almost the same feather weight as
before. They were incredulous. ‘Fifty pull-ups? Multiple sets?’ It was something that was
supposed to be impossible.
Tomas even started to do push-ups, first thing in the morning and the last thing before going to
sleep. Those push-ups seemed easy to him from the very beginning, as he could do around
twenty of them at his starting point.
At school, Tomas would find any elevated surface possible and say to his friends, ‘Look at me!’
then proceed to do multiple pull-ups with just his fingertips, to everyone’s great surprise.
Potential bullies noticed. Girls noticed. There was one, maybe two really bulked-up boys in the
whole school that could do a few pull-ups with a great struggle. Tomas, though, he seemed to be
able to do infinite numbers with ease. Tomas always did quick ten–twelve pull-ups just to amaze
everyone, and then stop while showing no signs of fatigue at all.
Everyone was stunned; mainly because of his size, really. The fact that Tomas was so skinny was
their explanation at first, with five–six pull-ups, but to see him doing ten–twelve very quickly,
without any struggle, without showing any fatigue, was just amazing. Mind-boggling. Little did
they know that at that point, Tomas was doing fifty pull-ups around twenty times a day! By then,
Tomas did implement multiple sets of pull-ups each time he passed below the bar; perhaps a total
of one-thousand pull-ups a day!
People even started to notice that his arms were getting a bit bigger, and that he was definitively
wider too. Tomas felt great satisfaction from it. But he knew that the weight didn’t lie; he was
still about the same weight as before.
One day at school, a teacher noticed him doing his pull-up show again, as now Tomas was
getting stopped by random kids that he never knew before, to demonstrate. He didn’t mind; it
made him happy. The teacher was also really impressed and asked, ‘Tomas, that is really
impressive. How many can you do?’ Tomas said that after a short break, he could try for his
maximum, but it should be around fifty. ‘Fifty?’ She was shocked. Everyone stared in disbelief,
but didn’t laugh. Even though Tomas was doing ten to twelwe pull-ups very quickly for the show
without any signs of fatigue, no one could believe that.
‘Well, at home I do fifty in one set, but that is on a proper pull-up bar, not like here, hanging by
my fingertips on top of doors frames or windows. Normally, I do fifty and stop, but that is not
my maximum. I think, with a bit of a struggle, I could do around fifty on my fingertips too.’
Almost hundred people gathered around for the show, multiple teachers included, as it was the
break time in between scheduled classes. Tomas got very nervous, but very excited. This felt like
his moment, like he was a superstar, a superman, a showcase for everybody to watch and marvel
at his strength!
The first ten pull-ups were easy, as always, but before Tomas passed number fifteen, he had to
slow down to a normal speed. When he reached twenty-five, everybody was already amazed.
They just stared at him in awe, waiting to see if he really could do fifty.
After thirty pull-ups, it got as hard as after forty on the pull-up bar at home. Nothing too hard yet,
though; and it was not like Tomas hadn’t overcome the impossible before. He remembered how
much effort it took to do the first pull-up ever. How much pain and determination it took. Now,
this was a walk in the park for him. Something that others would have given up on by now. Not
him though! For Tomas, discomfort was a common friend, and struggle was his best friend.
Tomas embraced it and looked forward to it. It almost didn’t feel right anymore if he didn’t
experience it!
Tomas wanted to show everybody what kind of struggle he was capable of overcoming. How
much determination he had within him. And how wrong they all were about him!

Zyzz Motivation – Pain Is Temporary 6:17

“Pain is Temporary! It might last a minute, or hour, or day, or even a year; but eventually it
will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit however, it will last forever…”

Everybody was watching. Tomas slowed down to half speed at 35 repetitions, but he still kept
going, maintaining his tempo onwards. At forty-two pull-ups, he stopped completely for the first
time, but he didn’t let go of the window’s frame. Everybody broke their silence and started
chanting. ‘You can do it, Tomas, come on! To-mas! To-mas! To-mas!’ That gave him what he
needed and suddenly, Tomas was going for more! He even sped up!
Tomas got to fifty repetitions with a lot of struggle, showing visible pain in his face. The last rep
looked like it could have been his last. But no, Tomas kept going!
A second wave of chants arrived in disbelief. ‘He’s not finished! You go, Tomas!’ Even the girls
that stood in silence so far started to support him. His closest friends were in a total frenzy,
chanting their lungs out in disbelief and awe at the same time. They witnessed a real miracle. As
much as Tomas was impressive before with his demonstrations . . . this was something
else . . . something that should have been impossible. To see their friend going through that
horrible struggle that he was in and he still kept going despite it was very inspiring to them.
The teachers tried to interrupt at this point. ‘Tomas, that is great, but enough now. We need to go
back into the classes; all of you kids!’
Tomas didn’t listen to them just yet. He wanted to see if he could do one or two more repetitions
himself. It was about as hard as his first one ever! Possible, but barely. Tomas had been in that
position before though. Could he possibly go into a bigger struggle and still win?
At fifty-four repetitions, he had to stop after every rep for about seven seconds before he could
even attempt the next one. Pain is temporary! he thought to himself. That statement had got him
through a lot so far. ‘It will work now too!’
He got up to fifty-five . . . fifty-six . . . Tomas stopped halfway on fifty-seventh; it seemed that he
could never go past it. He just simply wasn’t moving up anymore, but Tomas kept fighting!
Fifty-seven! Everyone was clapping, chanting, with the exception of the teachers, who were
trying their best to disperse the crowd and to send them back into their classrooms. Tomas was
about to try his fifty-eight rep when not even on quarter way up, he realised, This is it, and had to
let go.
Massive applause! There was a smile on Tomas’s face, relieved he didn’t disappoint the crowd,
and himself. He had a true sense of achievement and feeling that things were about to change for
him now. At least at the school.
He was right. In less than a week, the whole school heard about the “strength feat” that he’d
made. Out of nowhere, his PE (physical education) teacher started to look at him as the leading
guy, as opposed to the very last and lankiest just a week prior. He started to ask Tomas for
demonstrations of feats of strength on the ropes, rings, etc. Tomas did them all with ease,
impressing everybody that it was not just a circus trick of pull-ups, but a real strength showcase
and application of it. On the ropes and climbing walls, Tomas was like a spiderman, jumping
around with ease, holding and hanging only by one hand, or climbing the rope only with his
hands, very quickly and easily, all the way to the top.
Boys started to ask Tomas for advice; they wanted to train with him. Many started, but gave up
as soon as it became too hard for them, too intense.
Tomas was very proud of himself. Everybody noticed and respected him now (if they knew
him), but even after two years of training and many, many pull-ups, push-ups, and sit-ups, he’d
still barely increased his weight. Tomas got more “ripped” (lean, with clear separation of the
muscles), and was very strong for his frame, but at 14 years old and around forty-two kilograms
(92 pound), he was still behind his peers by almost ten kilograms (22 pounds). Tomas needed to
step up his game; he just didn’t know how exactly he was going to do that. His ability to recover
was already stretched out to the maximum and he knew it.
Chapter 2: Healed

Linkin Park – Somewhere I Belong 3:33

“I want to heal, I want to feel what I thought was never real, I want to let go of the pain I've
felt for so long…”

Tomas had a mate at school named Honco. Honco was very impressed with Tomas’s progress
and his physique. Honco told Tomas that he met a guy who was called “Rambo” by everyone
and he recently gave up his secret to him on how to get big. Fast! Apparently, there was a magic
powder that makes the muscles grow very fast. The name of that magic powder was protein. The
year was 1999, and protein powder was not very well known at that time.
Tomas’s mom got very worried when he suggested that he would like to buy some. Tomas had to
go with his mom to the general practitioner to ask whether it was safe for him to buy it. To the
surprise of his mom, the general practitioner actually suggested that it would be a very good idea,
pointing out Tomas’s still very skinny frame. That was probably the only time in Tomas’s life
when he was actually glad that he was skinny, as now he had the magic muscle powder!
The practitioner’s suggestion reinforced Tomas’s belief of its power even further that it would
actually work. Of course, he and his mate Honco had no intention of telling anyone what they
were about to do. They were looking forward to becoming as big as Arnold Schwarzenegger!
Tomas couldn’t wait to see the faces of all of the disbelievers. He couldn’t wait to prove to
everyone, especially to his family, that he could get muscular and manly.
Tomas was tired of being the skinniest guy ever. Even Honco was considered a skinny guy, but
because of his normal male bone structure, even though he was as skinny as Tomas, he was still
about six kilograms heavier (12 pounds), and just looked bigger overall.
Tomas wanted to let go of the pain that he’d felt for so long every time he overheard someone
commenting on his skeleton-like appearance, or the size of a ‘little girl’! He wanted to have
what, deep in his subconscious, he himself didn’t believe he would ever have. It was engraved
into him by almost everyone he knew. Those who hadn’t said anything yet, Tomas knew were
thinking it, just were not saying it out loud. He always felt lonely in his situation. Even if there
were other skinny people out there, Tomas was “special”, but in a bad way . . . like, beyond
hope. Life has fucked you up beyond repair, he thought. There is nothing you can do about it,
just deal with it, learn to live with it! That is what they all were really telling him, without saying
it out loud directly. Tomas just wanted to feel like he belonged somewhere; that he was no longer
‘special’ in a bad way. He needed to heal. There was nothing to lose, but a lot to gain.
 Professor Green (feat. Example – Monster) (Camo & Krooked Remix) 4:25
“I'll give you anything you'll ever need, and I'll find a way to turn you into a monster,
Me and you - we can rule the world, 'cause no one's going to mess with me - I'm a monster.”

So, Tomas and Honco both joined the gym. After every workout, they would take the protein
powder, and also just before going to sleep, just as Rambo instructed.
It was a big step for Tomas to go into the gym. He knew the people in there would be looking at
him and judging him immediately. He knew it would be embarrassing. But he wouldn’t be alone;
he would have his mate Honco for support.
The first time they stepped into the gym together, the predictable thing happened. People judged
instantly. Tomas could hear them talking about him behind his back just as he passed them.
‘What is he doing here?’, ‘Look at this clown’, ‘God, he’s so skinny, he’s going to hurt himself,
just watch!’ It was humiliating. Those people had no idea what Tomas was capable of with that
small frame.
Naturally, they both had no idea what to do at all, so Tomas suggested to do first the only thing
that he and his friend Honco were really good at. Tomas proceeded to the pull-up bar facing the
wall; he could feel all the stares on his back. This was the moment, the time when he would
show them!
He did fifty easy pull-ups, full range of motion, to everyone’s surprise. Then, he started to watch
Honco on his set as they switched. Tomas could hear the surprised, ‘Did you see that?’, ‘That is
impossible!’ Some laughs were followed by, ‘I didn’t expect that!’
Honco finished his set of ten. Honco was very proud of that. Before he started to train with
Tomas on his home’s pull-up bar, he couldn’t do a single pull-up. That was not more than a few
months before.
By the time Tomas finished his second set of almost fifty repetitions, no one was looking
anymore. Tomas explained this to himself as a good thing. They probably stopped worrying
about my safety, he thought.
Well, they finished their pull-ups and started looking at what they could do next. Honco spied on
some other guys doing biceps curls with dumbbells while he was waiting for Tomas to finish his
sets. After a while, Honco was confident that he could teach Tomas how to do them too. They
moved together to do biceps curls by the dumbbell racks and with a big struggle, they both
managed to do four sets of ten repetitions with 6-kg weights (13 pounds) in each hand,
alternating.
After finishing those sets, something magical happened . . . Tomas had his first biceps pump
(rush of blood into his arm muscles, in this case) of his life. It felt so good, so intoxicating! By
the time he finished, Tomas felt like the strongest man ever. Absolutely amazing!
The remainder of their workout was basically following the ‘big guys’, copying their workout
routine that they saw consisting of mainly arms workout. As Rambo instructed them, the
workout should be the last thing before sleep. All they had to do after was to take that protein
shake and maybe hang around for a bit (on Tomas’s PC playing games, mainly), but to go to
sleep within one hour. They would go to the gym at 7:00 p.m., come back home just before 9:00
p.m., take the protein shake, and go to sleep. Honco lived only three minutes away from Tomas’s
parents’ flat.
The shake protein portion size was 2x the suggested one, of course, Two times the magic
powder, twice as fast growing muscles! Or so they both thought . . .
In three months’ time, since the workouts were mainly composed of arm training and pull-ups,
three times a week religiously, Tomas’s arms grew like mad. One could say that they exploded.
Honco didn’t have such luck. He grew too, but not as much. Tomas thought it must have been
due to his superior arms genetics, as everyone at the gym started to tell him.
By then, everyone at the gym knew Tomas. He was still only 14 years old, but even the over
thirties were talking to him, giving their respects and good advice on the exercises and diet.
Weight-wise, Tomas still hadn’t gained much, but his biceps grew a lot. He developed very
impressive biceps peaks overall and progressed from 6-kg dumbbell curls into 12-kg (26 pounds)
curls in a very short amount of time. Everyone was observing his techniques and exercises for
arms, trying to emulate and see if they would get similar results. Their main conclusion was
always: ‘Must be the genetics. He’s really good, don’t get me wrong, but in such a short time, so
much progress . . . genetics.’
Honco got a bit jealous, but at the same time, he looked up to Tomas even more.
Tomas continued getting more and more convinced in the magic powder’s ability. But since
everyone was saying it, he also truly believed that he could be “special” – in a good way, for a
change; that his genetics were truly superior when it came to building muscle. For the first time
in his life, Tomas truly believed that his dreams could come true. There was nothing present
anymore, deep back in his subconscious, telling him otherwise like it always used to. There were
no more people bringing him down now. Even though he hadn’t gained that much weight
visually yet, everyone had noticed and admired his progress.
 Sam La More – Wish It Could Last (Hook N Sling Remix) 7:03
“Oh, I wish it could last – forever.”

Another four months passed. His mate Honco gave up, frustrated with his results compared to
Tomas’s. Many more joined Tomas as his training partners, but they didn’t last long either. They
gave up on their dreams too soon, Tomas thought, just because they couldn’t replicate his results.
Tomas was 15 years old then, with the arms of a pro bodybuilder. People called HIM Rambo,
but if he dared to suggest, ‘I’ve got arms like Arnold!’ people still laughed.
‘Not quite, but very impressive!’
He didn’t mind it really. Tomas knew that it was more of a wish and a goal for the future than
reality. But with that impressive “horseshoe” for a triceps and a biceps peak that looked nine
months pregnant (impressive muscle bellies), Tomas was showing off his arms everywhere he
could at every opportunity. Kids that were trying to bully him before were now trying to make
friends with him, showing their respect and admiration. Others . . . the so-called true bad-asses
(bullies, really), just didn’t want to get in his way. Even though they still didn’t like Tomas,
openly saying that he was still a loser – although never in front of him – they couldn’t ignore the
impressive arms that he got and the power that had to be backing them. They were just jealous
that Tomas stole the attention away from them but couldn’t do much about it, and resented him
for that.
Within a year of a religious training routine with no exceptions, no excuses, while improving his
training program and diet according to the advice that Tomas received from the big guys in the
gym, not ever breaking the rule of training as the last thing to do before his sleep followed by the
protein shake, Tomas got to a respectable fifty-six kilograms in weight (123 pounds). That was
around the normal weight of his peers at his age and height, or slightly better. But because of his
frame, it took lots of solid muscle to get him there: what may have easily been a difference of
fifteen kilograms (33 pounds) of additional muscle mass compared to others. Visually, it actually
made him look much bigger than the others at the same weight, same height. Yes, his wrists were
still tiny, his forearms and calves looked to be average size, but everything else was considerably
bigger than his peers. Tomas’s arms being absolutely dominant and always admired.
He couldn’t pass a mirror without posing his biceps. In fact, Tomas couldn’t pass any surface
that had reflective properties without striking a pose. He felt like such a narcissist! Guilty
pleasure. He couldn’t wait till the next time someone would ask him to pose his arms. In the
standard front double biceps pose, Tomas was very impressive, maybe even jaw-dropping. He
always started with that pose, because believe it or not, that was his least impressive pose! If
people asked for more (which they usually did), Tomas would progress into adapted side chest
pose, where he lifted his elbow a bit higher and away to the front of his body to expose the peak
on his biceps in full glory. That was usually where people totally melted.
There was almost no one else out there, including bodybuilders, that could have showed them
such a biceps peak (and he was just 15; most of his peers had no peak to speak about at all).
Then, Tomas immediately progressed into triceps flexion, to show off his “propaah”(properly
developed) horseshoe (triceps muscle). It was a spectacle! Just based on how his arms looked,
people largely overestimated what the rest of his body must look like. Tomas didn’t care.
Finally! He was impressive like no other. Finally, he showed them! Finally, he could be happy
about who he was. Finally, he could feel happy and more importantly, proud about his body.
These were very happy times for Tomas. At first, just to be normal size would have been enough
for him, just to be like everyone else. To get the mutual respect like everyone else had, not
feeling invisible at best, stepped on by others at worst. Now? Tomas somehow ended up going
from a no one, into . . . it wasn’t popular, he’d had that before. Nor the most popular. Who
cared? If you are popular, or most popular within your friends’ circle, it doesn’t really matter.
You still have all of the benefits of being in those circles.
This wasn’t popularity. If anything, he got less popular with all of the boys out of jealousy. This
was something else. Tomas was special. There was no one else out there like him, perhaps in the
whole world. He was something new.
Other people would have changed, but not him. It wouldn’t even occur to him to abuse his new
power. To humiliate the people that abused him in the past. Or to intimidate them, to be a jerk.
Yeah, he had become a little bit of a narcissist, flexing at every opportunity, but never just for the
sake of showing off. People had to ask, almost like he was shy to show off! But he was very
much guilty of the pleasure he was getting out of it and at certain times, he would have used his
dominance in his defence. If he felt disrespected by some of the jealous punks who lost their
power over him, if they tried anything, then he would have stopped being the nice guy.
Intimidation was all it took. All pussies, all pretenders. Just as he thought.
And it felt so good to see them backing up. To see that they were truly afraid of him. They may
have cursed at him all they wanted, playing tough guys, but every time, they were the ones to
back off. Tomas’s arrogant smirk on his face while showing no signs of being afraid of them was
driving them mad. And he loved it!
Girls naturally flocked, as they always do to the jerks and bullies. But he wasn’t either. He was
still too shy, inexperienced, had never been kissed before. But he very well enjoyed their
attention while it lasted, learning from his mates what to do, and how. His friends had dated
since they were twelve. To Tomas, it was like a new world out there and it was his world! If only
it could last forever . . .
 John O’Callaghan – Find Yourself 7:04
“Looking at life through a loaded gun, take your best shot - aim it at the sun.”

Nothing good lasts forever, at least that’s what’s being said. It’s true. But there is always a
reason why. Sometimes it’s not your fault, but usually, it is. And Tomas’s case was no different.
He got too comfortable, too lazy. Most people wouldn’t admit it, or realize it. Blaming others
even. But how could one make progress otherwise, if you can’t admit that it was your fault? How
can you look for where it all went wrong? How can you improve? How can you learn from your
mistakes not to do the same things again the next time? Was it truly and completely out of your
hands, down to chance? Was there really nothing else that you could have done to change
whatever needs to be changed? Are you truly the victim?
Tomas never believed in that, although fate wasn’t ever in his favour. He always felt at the
disadvantage. The things that he managed to do despite all of the odds were mainly because of
him admitting that there was something more that he could do. Tomas realised that until he
exhausted all of his options, he was never the victim and then, only to his own laziness. He
admitted to himself that three years later, at 18 years old, he was barely sixty kilograms (132
pounds), and THAT wasn’t anybody else’s fault but his own. He got flat, stopped exercising, and
still followed bad diet habits. Frankly, he looked terrible. Once again too skinny-fat, with very
little if any muscle tone.
The only things that were still decent were his arms. However, his wrist-to-biceps ratio wasn’t as
insane as before. Not even close. His chest was flat, his posture was all wrong, he had lanky legs
and no abs. His confidence was still OK, but he didn’t get the attention that he was used to
anymore, from boys or girls. Tomas wasn’t happy anymore.
He started looking for reasons why and how he got there. Yeah, he started college, but that didn’t
have to result in stopping his training regimen. But he did stop it, and Tomas acknowledged that.
It was time to get back into shape! This time, he would educate himself better to achieve even
better results than before. He would give it his best shot.
And so, he did. Tomas’s training regimen and diet were at his best. Only educated guesses,
really, but at least it was based on research and evidence. Meaning based on actual knowledge,
rather than those of the “gym bros”. He was ready to be back up on top again.
The next 18 months were filled with training religiously and staying focused on monthly goals,
based on weight achieved without visible fat gain. And it worked! Now, at almost 20 years old,
he was eighty-two kilograms! (180 pounds)
Objectively looking like a Greek god, his confidence was through the roof. Finally, he was the
way nobody but himself could even imagine before. Tomas was the only one who still saw flaws
in his physique. He still looked at his wrists and accepted that they would be thin forever. And
when he looked at his abs, they weren’t the way he wanted them to be. A bit more sharpness.
Everybody was telling him, don’t get any bigger, you are perfect! But in his mind, he was still
thinking, Eighty-five kilograms; that’s my goal. Just a bit more size on the arms, chest, and legs
equally. That will make my waist look even smaller, for even more sick V taper.
His chest was by then equally impressive as arms; it almost looked like he was as gifted there as
on his arms. Truth was, Tomas kind of neglected his arms in favour of everything else. He knew
that his arms would stay in shape, and possibly even get a bit better, just by focusing on the other
body parts. It took a lot of hard work to make that chest though. It wasn’t so big as it looked at a
first glance, but it was sure aesthetic. Really, it was mainly the thickness and wideness of his
upper chest that made it appear to look massive. But either way, it felt like he had two steel
plates instead of a chest. Solid as steel to the touch, it felt as if he could bounce off bullets if
someone dared to shoot at him.
Tomas knew it was just an illusion, but that didn’t change the fact that it did feel that way. That’s
how much muscle he did build up. His back and legs? Back was always good, same as the arms,
it just wasn’t something that people would notice. Now? Well, let’s just say that it was not put to
shame or overshadowed by his chest or arms.
Legs? Well that was a different story. You see, his chest, back, arms, and shoulders, were all
clearly visible through the clothes. His legs, not really, and that did bother him a little bit because
they were absolutely massive! The problem was that on his small frame, they weren’t as
impressive in the jeans, or in shorts. But when posing in front of the mirror, they were
perfection! Perfection both in size and tone, considering his frame. So, Tomas was happy with
them, kind of . . . Narcissist, just wish there was a better way to show them off without coming
off as a show-off!
To be honest, people thought that Tomas must have been at least 100 kilograms of muscle,
judging by what they themselves weighed and how big they looked in comparison. Eighty-two
kilograms; it didn’t make any sense! But they had no idea what Tomas had come from, how
much muscle he was packing just to be standing at a mere 82 kilograms! It certainly showed
visually; that’s why everyone thought that he must have been around 100 kilograms at the very
least, judging by the shape and size of his muscle thickness/bellies.
It was the same story about his strength. People always assumed that Tomas was way stronger
than he actually was. For instance, most gym “meatheads” thought that Tomas was benching at
least 140 kilograms for his working sets (4 sets of 10 repetitions, Tomas’s staple). In fact, Tomas
could barely do 100 kilograms x 10 for his first set! After that? The repetitions number
plummeted down massively.
Tomas didn’t care, nor did he hide those facts. He always said to everyone that bodybuilding is
about the illusion. ‘All “smokes and mirrors”, just a perception of different angles.’ To Tomas, it
wasn’t about how much you actually weighed or how much you actually lifted. Only about how
much people thought that you could have weighed and how much they thought you could lift. ‘It
is illusion, for the most part.’
He didn’t care if he wasn’t the biggest, the most shredded and strongest guy in the gym, just as
long as he looked like one. That was all it took to reap all of the benefits associated with looking
like a strong man. ‘You don’t have to be one, just look like one.’ Due to his unique, small frame,
he was different than the rest of the buff guys. To the public, he was special. To him, he was
almost perfection! Almost . . .
The only thing that Tomas really could think of as still not perfect, in his mind, was his
midsection. The abs were there, but only if he flexed them. Even then, it wasn’t as good-looking
as others in the magazines. The extra shredded guys.
The internet was a normal thing by then and Tomas looked at many men in shape, comparing
himself to them, analysing, and just appreciating what the male body was capable of changing
into. In the beginning, he was mainly looking for motivation. Later, more for the comparison
part.
Well, Tomas had to admit that he was on a “perfected” diet now, and he’d perfected his training
to the point of no possible improvement at the time, but his cardio sucked. In fact, it sucked hard!
Who was he kidding? It wasn’t in existence at all! His workouts were based all around optimal
hypertrophy (gaining muscle), or resistance training, if you will. But aerobic exercise? Non-
existent. Mainly due to the fact that Tomas never really enjoyed sports like running or tennis, nor
the cardio machines in the gym. Let’s just be honest. He avoided them like a plague.
Tomas couldn’t wait to go into the gym, grab that bar, that cable machine, that dumbbell, and
feel the resistance, the tension produced in the muscles. The massive pump. To feel like a god,
like he could accomplish anything. But cardio didn’t give him any of that. It just made him feel
sick, weak, and bored. ‘Cardio? Is that Spanish?’ He used to laugh at those internet memes. But
now, he felt that there was no way around it.
It was the best thing that ever happened to him, he just didn’t know it yet. It was time to exploit
his true potential, and to look EXACTLY the way he always wanted.
Chapter 3: Secrets
Kraddy – Android Porn 6:55
There was no way around it, so what did Tomas do? He had a long think about all the types of
cardio that he could possibly enjoy, excluding sex, because that doesn’t really count. It obviously
wasn’t enough, because at this stage of his life, Tomas had regular access to sex when he wanted
it. Now that Tomas was truly desired, he’d found himself a girlfriend. No, it had to be something
other than increased sex frequency. Actually, too much of it could even have the opposite effect
in his case, taking away from his training, decreasing his strength levels and recovery ability.
A few things came to Tomas’s mind. Rollerblading, for instance. He’d had a little experience of
it and it was fun, but still heavy cardio. Yet, he didn’t perceive as such when he did it, only after.
Perfect!
Not quite. Tomas was a novice, really, and couldn’t do it everywhere, anytime he wanted to
(although years later, it was his cardio of choice).
Dance! Tomas was popular with the ladies, but didn’t go out much because of two things
(excluding his girlfriend as the obvious reason). First, he didn’t drink at all, and didn’t plan to,
which could make him feel awkward and bored in the company of drunk people. Second, Tomas
didn’t know how to dance. That is an understatement! To him, it felt absolutely (and it looked)
awkward when he tried any of the dance moves, even the basic ones. He tried copying other
peoples’ moves for the most part, and it was still terrible. Yet it was bugging him that he couldn’t
take his lady for a proper dance, because that was fun cardio, and he felt that there was a little bit
of hidden dancer in him. It was in his blood, and it was a shame he couldn’t express himself with
his movement, what he really felt inside listening to the music. Tomas couldn’t experience the
special moment he saw others achieving on the dance floor, leading and seducing the woman in
his arms with just his body movements. Well, he could; at least in his newly arrogant and cocky
mind, but certainly not with his dancing body movements.
Tomas also felt that every woman wants her man to be able to dance, and to lead her, almost
dominate her, as he would in bed. In his perception, dance was a very sexual act and just a step
away from sex itself. If you impress and dominate your girl dancing, you are getting laid first
thing after. Not that he needed it to get laid, yet he knew it was something that his girlfriend
must have secretly desired of him and he wasn’t able to provide it. It made him feel like a lesser
man. His insecurities were as strong as ever, although he wouldn’t admit it.
‘This is it!’ Tomas was ready to sign in on a dance class. Little did he know that on the first
session, as it turned out, he needed a dance partner. ‘Of course! It’s only a step away from actual
sex remember? What guy would let his girlfriend go into a dance class unless it’s her job, and
even then only to always wonder if she was truly faithful, not banging her dance partner on the
side? All of the people signed up for the class already had a partner: their girlfriend or boyfriend.
Of course they did!’ Tomas didn’t want his current girlfriend of almost two years to be there
with him. He didn’t believe that she was the “one” yet, only that it was “his turn” – a term he
learned on the internet.
No, she might start thinking that they were proper girlfriend-boyfriend, that he was thinking of
her as his future wife. NO! NO! NO!’ And . . . she would have found out about him being a total
wood plank on the dance floor. Of course she knew it, but wouldn’t say anything, as this was
obviously upsetting for Tomas. He had some complexes from his early childhood about being
seen as the weak one, or a lesser man in this case.
Also, Tomas thought it would be a nice surprise for her once he mastered dance.
For now, Tomas couldn’t allow her to see him in a situation that he wasn’t comfortable with
(wasn’t that confident after all!), where he could not play the Greek god role. Because truthfully,
in general, anything else that Tomas did, even if he was not that good at it, people would still
give him a lot of credit for it and think that he was good at it, purely because he just looked too
good doing it. Dancing, though . . . Tomas was that bad . . . it was undeniable. Everybody would
have known, noticed, and laughed at him. His dancing was downright grotesque, a comedy. It
was probably the only thing that he still felt insecure about, and didn’t want to feel that ever
again.
Tomas was truly at the peak of his narcissistic persona, which consequently meant also being the
most insecure. Showing any imperfection that could dent his self-perceived and reflected public
image was unimaginable to him. Never again did he want to feel embarrassed or lesser.
On his way out of the dance class with his tail between his legs, Tomas noticed that just next
door had a kickbox lesson going on. He couldn’t believe that he didn’t think about this before!
Martial arts!
At the start of his first lesson, Tomas got paired with the best guy they had in the place. He just
looked that physically impressive that even the best guy there was intimidated, and obviously
worried, thinking, why him? Tomas was a friendly, empathetic guy though, and recognized that
instantly. He just said to him, ‘No worries, I’m a total noob, never even took a swing at anybody.
You’re going to laugh seeing me punch!’
It did lighten the guy up a bit. Cracking a smile, all he managed to say back was, ‘Sure, but the
first hit is game over for me.’
That made Tomas smirk; he couldn’t help it.
To be fair, Tomas was paired with him only for the purpose of the technique and physical
practice. But for sparring, he was paired with the guys that had just started, just like him. That
didn’t last too long because his hits were really powerful, even if Tomas didn’t really try hard
and was holding back for the most part. So soon enough, he ended up sparring with the best guy
anyway.
All the fighters in the class became friends quickly, and it was not unusual for the other boys to
come to Tomas asking him for fitness advice after the lesson. So he gladly did. He helped them
all with creating exercise regime, along with providing them with advice into their diet and
mental strategies, to overcome the struggle during the “adjustment” period when your mind is
working against you as the body is fighting back to stay the same at all cost (homeostasis), so
that they would be more likely to stick to the prescribed program and ultimately succeed.
Basically, gave out all of his gained knowledge for free, but not without feeling great satisfaction
and their gratitude. One could say that he became the new leader, replacing Jan, even to Jan -
who was the best in the class but looked at Tomas with admiration for his physique. Jan was
already Slovakia’s national champion in the under 20y old category, and finished second at
Europe’s championship the year before. He was real good, and Tomas looked back at Jan with
his admiration towards him.

For weeks, Tomas couldn’t get rid of this feeling that perhaps Jan was holding back on him.
Even if Tomas did hit him now and then, it seemed like Jan was holding back on him. Tomas
finally asked Jan, ‘Are you holding back?’
Jan just smiled at him and answered, ‘Yes, and no’.
‘What do you mean?’
‘Well, I’m not taking any risk, or trying to exploit your, at times, open defence, because I’m not
sure if I would hurt you at all anyway, and I think that you hold back on me too. Especially with
how powerful your hits are. I’m worried that if I hit you too hard, you may try repay me the
favour and I don’t think I can take it.’
Tomas looked at him with serious expression in his face. ‘Honestly, I take this as my cardio of
choice; you know that much by now. But I’m also here to learn something; mainly the
techniques, and to get used to being punched or kicked. I don’t care where, except in the jewels.’
They both laughed. ‘Of course, I’m trying to improve on my self-defence capabilities, to know
my limits, and I need to get comfortable with being punched or kicked. I need that experience.
Without it, I can never master self-defence; it is just not going to happen.
‘It’s just like when you lift. If you do the lift for the first time, let’s say it’s a deadlift. I can teach
you the correct technique. I can mentally prepare you for that absolute tension and effort that you
will feel that you never felt before. But your first deadlift will still be crap, despite the
knowledge you will have.
‘Don’t get me wrong. It’s better to have the knowledge beforehand, because then you can reflect
on your form and identify what was not going according to plan from the start, which will save
you loads of time in the long run. But at the end of the day, without continuous, physical
practice, you will never perfect the deadlift movement, nor achieve the maximum effort at it that
your body is capable of. You will lack the pain, tension, muscle firing, and optimal contraction
experience. Your body will not have learned how to do it, it won’t adapt to it. So right now, I
need that experience, there is no way around it.’
Jan nodded. ‘Okay, but you have to promise that you will not hold back on me either. I need to
get used to having an opponent that is intimidating, and to find my limits.’
‘That’s a deal. So, let’s see what you’ve got.’
 Hardwell – Cobra (Official Energy Anthem 2012) 6:46
Both adjusted their stance. Jan was first to take action, landing a solid punch on Tomas’s left
cheek. Tomas managed to block it in the last second and only his own glove hit his face. The
second punch coming from Jan’s left hand onto Tomas’s midsection landed unblocked onto his
gut. It didn’t even faze Tomas. After that, a right high kick came in, followed by a left front kick
and Tomas just let the right high kick land on his back and stepped away from the front kick. He
didn’t even feel it.
Jan stopped for a moment. ‘Are you going to do anything?’
‘Yes, I’m just waiting for the right moment. You are just too fast for me,’ Tomas answered, still
in fully focused defence stance. Both of his hands were up high, his right shoulder covering his
cheek.
Finally, he decided on an action. Just a jab, for starters, followed by a right hook.
This was not a problem for experienced Jan; he even managed to retaliate and land a punch right
into Tomas’s face through his open defence.
‘You have your guard down completely when you are punching,’ Jan noted.
‘Yeah, this is the experience I’m talking about,’ Tomas replied.
This went on for about two minutes, both gradually increasing the frequency and power of the
attacks, kicking and punching until the coach sounded for a break.
‘God, I’m totally knocked. I’m so winded I can barely speak!’ Tomas said, gasping for air.
Jan was fresh. This was nothing to him; he could have done a full match in a ring easily.
Normally, it would be up to 25 minutes of actual fight time, with minimum breaks in between
the rounds.
Jan was the best at the club for two reasons, at least in Tomas’s opinion. First, he was technically
the best and the fastest. Second, he was fastest because his technique allowed him better energy
conservation, and he was also the fittest in there. Jan had a six pack Tomas could only envy, with
not a gram of extra visible fat on his body. And he had the fighter’s build as well.
Jan was kind of buff, with visible muscles and basic separation. However, he had very little
muscle bellies, or size. Tomas’s thinking was, Aesthetically, I need his midsection leanness. And
the key to that is his cardiovascular capacity. Kick box is fun and it will give me this, as well as
bonus flexibility, a bit of acrobatics, and self-defence skills. When I am at Jan’s level, I will have
all of that.
On the other hand, Jan was thinking, If I had the size and strength of Tomas, along with my
fighting skills, no one could touch me! I could be the next World Kick Box champion!
And so, their friendship grew. Each time they trained, they were a bit harder on each other. Both
received a few bloody noses or some massive painful bruises all over their bodies, mainly from
the kicks, but both improved massively over time. Tomas in combat skills, Jan grew in muscles
and confidence.
A year passed. Tomas was now 21 years old, still at 82 kilograms, but visibly leaner in his
midsection, sharper. He still wasn’t satisfied, as in his visions, his abs looked even better than
that. Still bit more fat to lose. But his cardio and fighting skills skyrocketed. The kick box coach
was already suggesting to him that he should focus on the fighting more and go to compete, but
that wasn’t for him. Competitions have rules, and Tomas was more interested in an ‘actual’ fight
where he could use all his defence skills. Kick box was a good start, but it was time to progress.
Tomas started dreaming about moving away from Slovakia (where all this had been taking place)
and start learning wushu, a specific form of kung fu/Chinese boxing) or other martial arts that he
had seen in movies. It could have opened new borders in self-defence, which is what Tomas
mainly wanted. An added benefit would be to further increase and improve his cardio capacity,
flexibility, his health, and looks. One could simply say, his quality of life.
Tomas also thought that martial arts acrobatics were cool. He wanted to be able to do those kicks
and various spectacular acrobatics he’d seen in movies. Once again it became more about being
able to show off. He already felt confident in his self-defence skills based on kick box and
learned few things from it. Mainly, when getting punched, only his face was vulnerable, as the
body shots couldn’t do anything to him, for the most part.
One time, while sparring with Jan, Tomas got punched in the stomach. Nothing unusual, just
another hit to the midsection; his abs should have taken care of it. Except that specific time,
Tomas was breathing heavily, sucking the air in. The punch from Jan came so fast and
unexpected, even on the subconscious level, the abs didn’t contract in time to mitigate the effect.
Instead, they were almost fully relaxed while in the exhalation process. The punch squeezed his
diaphragm so hard, it almost felt as if Jan’s fist went right through him. It expelled any
remaining air that Tomas had left in his lungs. It managed to blow his air completely out and
leave him in a paralyzed state for a few seconds.
After Tomas got punched, he stayed in a slightly leaning forward position, his arms just hanging
motionless and low. He couldn’t move, and he couldn’t speak. Jan immediately recognized that
and asked Tomas, ‘Are you all right, mate?’
Tomas couldn’t respond. It took him good 4 to 5 seconds after the hit before he was able to get
new air in, after one heavy gasp. Finally, Tomas could move his body and straighten himself up
and talk. He started to laugh. ‘Mate, you could have just annihilated me there if you wanted. It
felt like your punch just sank into my stomach and appeared on the other side, on my back. It
blew my air out totally and I stayed paralyzed! I couldn’t move or talk. If you had pushed into
me with one finger, gently, I would have fallen down onto the floor. I can’t believe it! I wouldn’t
have believed it if it just didn’t happen to me. This is crazy. Old movies can actually be right!
One good punch in the stomach and you’re out. Crazy . . .’
Normally, when your body is getting punched, the muscles affected by the punch will contract
prior to the impact, as your sensory units will detect it subconsciously and contract them to
reduce the impact/potential damage. However, in a tired state, this may not happen. Or if the
impact is so sudden, so unexpected. Then, even the body shots could be incapacitating or lethal,
possibly rupturing internal organs.
All ruptures of important organs would be followed with internal bleeding. If that was the case
though, Tomas wouldn’t be able to recover from it completely, so he didn’t even bother to go for
a check-up to the GP (doctor). But ever since, Tomas was cautious of that fact. Normal, average
people don’t have developed abs, so if you need to incapacitate them (take them out of a fight)
without causing bruises on their face, you could simply resort to one good body shot and take
them out.
Tomas also became much more actively (as opposed to passively/subconsciously) focused on
activating muscles prior to impact, to reduce the damage done. Especially in the case of body
shots, to prevent the incapacitating state he’d experienced.
Later on, Tomas found out about liver shots, which are even more incapacitating.
If hit in the face, the most important thing was not to let the opponent know that you have no
vision yet. If you’re not familiar with powerful face shots yourself, you wouldn’t realize that
after each hard hit, there is a period of time when you cannot see anything. Usually for a short
time; a split second even. It gets better over time as your body (brain, I should say) will get used
to it. Then it will compensate for the fact that it’s being bounced against the innards of your own
skull.
This is one of the main reasons why it is so hard to respond if you are getting hit in quick
succession in the face. You can’t see shit, and your natural reaction is to protect your face by
raising your hands, leaving your midsection totally unprotected. You’re just hoping that you will
get your vision and bearings back as soon as possible. The hits don’t even have to be strong. It
doesn’t take a lot to rid you of your sight. That is why jabs works wonders and why perhaps
speed and technical proficiency are the most important aspect of fighting skills.
When it comes to fighting styles, perhaps style that teaches defence while on the offence (they
all do really) could have the best potential to win the fight. Something like kung fu styles do.
Tomas kind of understood that if it comes to self-defence, the average Joe is better off with kick
box, or just boxing. Technically it’s much easier to master, but almost instantly greatly improves
your fighting ability.
However, if you want to be a master fighter, then you need to be able to do the advanced stuff. It
will take years of practice. But because Tomas already had the basics drilled in, even if he
implemented only one advanced technique into his fight that he could master, that could turn the
fight in his favour instantly, even end it.
Tomas started to look up to and study the life of Bruce Lee. He focused on his life philosophy, in
addition to his all-time favourite, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s, which Tomas had obeyed as a
zealot previously. He found out again that just as in Arnold’s case, not just his skill mastery but
also his life philosophy was highly commendable and worthy to identify with.
Tomas was certain now. He would leave Slovakia and go to China, trying to find new mastery in
martial arts and to perfect it. Just as Bruce Lee said, ‘No fighting style is better than the other,
it’s always about the person using it and his mastery level of that fighting skill. Better yet, don’t
focus on one style, use only what works or can work, and throw everything else out! The more
fighting styles you try, the more useful things you may find, be like a water my friend’. And
since Tomas also followed Arnold’s six commandments to a successful life, including, ‘You
can’t climb the success ladder with your hands in your pockets’.
Tomas knew that action/risk had to be taken. So, he asked his grandma for money to borrow, as
his parents didn’t have much savings, promising to return it as soon as possible. He quit his old
job as the gym instructor that he had done for the past two years, then had a final night out with
his friends. Which was funny, because he’d stopped going out at around 18 years old and just
lived the fitness lifestyle.
Then, Tomas told Felicity, his current girl that he was seeing, that he was leaving to find
someone else. Tomas wouldn’t call her his girlfriend, but while she was giving him what he
needed, he never looked somewhere else for it. Of course, it wasn’t just about sex, but he was too
afraid to show that it was more than just that. He believed that girls needed to be kept on the
edge, else you would lose them’. At least that is what he had learned observing the world around
him.

Above & Beyond – Sun & Moon (Radio edit) 3:08

“I'm sorry baby - You were the sun and moon to me - I'll never get over you,
you'll never get over me.”

Tomas wasn’t heartless; far from it. Deep down, it was very hard to leave Felicity. Tomas knew
she planned to change him, just like every girl plans to change her chosen man, he thought, and
that she was certain he would eventually commit. Tomas truly loved her. He was always very
kind to her and madly protective of her. But, he also believed it was an illusion, just a chemical
reaction that would not last forever. He would not let that hold him back. Just like all of the other
losers who commit and settle down too fast, leaving any chance for a better future inside of the
pussy, making kids too soon. Slaves to the pussy! Not him!
It did hurt him; it hurt him so badly that he wanted to cry in private and had to fight it in public.
It felt like he would never, ever, get over her, and knew that she would never get over him. That
had hurt him even more; he didn’t want her to hurt because of him. It felt like he was making a
mistake, but he believed that this was also an illusion. All of the possible scenarios that he had
exercised in his mind, including her coming with him (she would have gone, even though she
would hate China), always resulted in her holding him back, or eventually leaving him. Tomas
had no intention to marry her soon, nor to have kids with her in foreseeable future. And because
she was truly in love with him, she, as every woman, would eventually try to trap him in the
relationship via “accident” in the form of a child. At least he had convinced himself of that. If
she only was more like him, logical and grown up, it perhaps may have worked.
Tomas needed at least 12 years more. She would have never waited for another 12 years before
having kids or getting married, never. And in 12 years, only God knows how Tomas would feel
about her. Most likely, like every other man, he’d be thinking, It’s time for new, better model.
The timing simply wasn’t right. But should he meet her 12 years later, he was sure he would
marry her and give her a family in a heartbeat. What else, better, could await him out there? She
was more than “good enough”.
But he wasn’t 33, he was 21 years old, and she was a typical young woman/girl. In his mind,
child, really, in a grown-up body. Nothing wrong with that; that’s why he loved her so much.
She was very innocent, playful, a bit of a dummy (in a good way). She was really pretty (pretty
women don’t need to know much), but not dumb. She loved to learn new things! Tomas often
talked to her about many different subjects and she would absorb it and make her own
conclusions. She was more than capable of critical thinking, even though it was mostly based on
emotions, not facts, just as many other women would.
His protective/guardian natural instincts were off the charts with her. Same like for his mom, or
his sister. Nothing could happen to them, not when he was around. Tomas had to watch himself
not to be paranoid and overreact in certain situations. Dad? ‘He can take care of himself.’ Should
he ever need help, of course, Tomas would step in, but natural protective instincts were non-
present with his dad. Tomas never worried about him except during occasional health situations.
He was a man, and a big one, for a fact. ‘Who worries about a man?’ Tomas would say.
God, it was hard to leave her, but it was for the best. For him, and for her too. Tomas told
everybody that he was going to the United Kingdom because he knew they probably wouldn’t
give him any money at all should they know he was planning for a better future in China. He felt
bad about it, but at the end of the day, once he was there, he would get the money to give back to
his grandma, and he would come clean.
It wouldn’t really matter. His sister had left for the US already, just before he started his gym job
two years ago. His parents were not on good terms (what a surprise, after almost 20 years
together), and Tomas knew that once he was gone too, as there were no more siblings, his
parents were probably going to divorce.
He was right. It didn’t even take one month after he left for them to file for divorce. His mom left
to live with his sister in the US and lived in Las Vegas. Dad stayed back in the old flat in
Slovakia.
 Linkin Park – In Pieces (Radio edit) 3:37
“Telling me to go - but hands beg me to stay.
Your eyes say that you love - but your lips say that you hate.”

Tomas was almost 22 years old when he went to Honk Kong in a pursuit of “perfection”. Even to
him, this was such a narcissistic idea. The fact that he left the love of his life for that, he must
have been the biggest asshole of them all, and dumb, really, really dumb. He dwelled on it for
quite a while. Funny enough, Tomas hated the bad boy/asshole image holders. To make sure that
Felicity would let him go and move on, Tomas told her that he didn’t love her anymore, that she
doesn’t turn him on anymore, and he was hoping to start a new life with someone else in the new
country. Of course, that broke her heart. Of course, she called him every name possible while he
stood there pretending to be indifferent to it, not even trying the old: ‘It’s not you, it’s me.’
Tomas was sure that this way, it would make her hurt less. Otherwise, in the long run, it would
be worse, rendering her unable to move on. She really deserved better, in his opinion. Better than
him. Someone who can commit now, not twelve years later, Tomas kept thinking. He tried to hurt
her and in the process, he hurt himself even more. But, it was necessary. Better that way for
everybody.
As she turned away in tears and started to run away in disbelief, Tomas wanted to chase her
down, wrap her in his arms and beg for forgiveness. Tell her that it was all lies, a bad joke, and
that he loves her with his whole heart and soul. ‘Beg, beg for forgiveness and never do this
again!’ But he resisted.
Tomas was hurt many times before because of his appearance. All the times that he was exposed
to verbal abuse or humiliation, he never cried, always resisted (as a man should, he believed). He
couldn’t resist it this time. That night, he cried in secrecy into his pillow when no one could see
or hear him. Tomas had an image of an asshole to protect, after all, so she could move on. It felt
like he probably never would. He couldn’t stop thinking about what she was feeling. He worried
she might try to hurt herself. He wanted to check up on her, but couldn’t; that would have spoiled
everything. ‘No, she is a smart girl. She would never do anything that stupid. There will be
another guy, as soon as she’s ready.’
Felicity wasn’t dumb, as he said. She knew Tomas. She refused to believe what she heard from
him or saw when he broke the news to her. What Felicity thought was, You are telling me to go,
but your hands beg me to stay. Your eyes say that you love me, but your lips say that you hate.’
She saw some truth in his lies, the doubt in his actions. She knew very well what Tomas was
thinking. That he thought it was for the best. But Felicity also knew that there was nothing that
she could do or say to change his mind. Her last response was: ‘You promised me the sky, and
tossed me away like a stone! Okay, I won’t be the one to leave this in pieces, and YOU, you will
be alone, ALONE WITH YOUR SECRETS!’ Every time Tomas opened his mouth she said,
‘Don’t lie.’
She understood what was going on and accepted that. Well, maybe accepted is too strong a
word, more like “came to terms” with it, because if Tomas truly believed that it was for the best
for both of them, there was no changing his mind. ‘But yeah, he’s an asshole, just like all of
them!’ She resented the fact that he wouldn’t even give her the chance to talk him out of it.
On the other hand, she respected that he was able to made such a hard decision, as he was
obviously hurt as much as she was, but he still did it because it was meant to be “for the better”
of them both. In her resentment, there was still a pinch of admiration for what a “man” Tomas
was to her.
She wouldn’t show it to him out of respect for herself, but she couldn’t help but to feel it
anyway.
Tomas’s mom was actually happy that he left Felicity. She was scared that Tomas would have
kids and get settled too young too. She wanted him to go to the UK alone and start earning some
“proper” money first.
Chapter 4: Point of No Return

Headstrong (feat. Stine Grove – Tears) (Aurosonic Progressive Mix) 9:12

“I'll lift you up, we'll touch the sky,
I'll wipe away those tears from your eyes.”

Tomas spent nearly eight years in China. Yet he wasn’t very keen to talk about it. Since this had
become very obvious to his family and the people he knew, they stopped asking him about the
years he spent in China. Most of the information that anyone ever got from him was only due to
the fact that they would be talking about something, and Tomas would mention, ‘Back in
China . . .’ or, ‘I did something similar in China . . .’ Rarely in a direct conversation where they
asked questions would they receive a direct, honest answer. It was almost as if he was ashamed
of those years.
Upon his arrival to China, specifically into the Hong Kong area (he imagined that it would be the
best place to start), Tomas quickly realized that getting a job there wouldn’t be that easy. Not at a
gym as he hoped for. He ended up working in a baby wipes factory on the night shift.
Tomas was okay with that; it gave him enough money for living expenses. That in turn allowed
him to focus on the gym and kick box practice. Still, it looked like he’d made a huge mistake,
despite the increased income that he had compared to what he used to get in Slovakia; mostly
because he worked a 12-hour shift on training days, and 16 hours on non-training days. At least
for the first two months, when he was desperate to pay back his grandma as soon as possible, just
as Tomas promised to her. Also, so that he could come out with the truth.
Even though his mom’s reaction was negative, as always, urging Tomas to “pull the plug” and
come back home, hearing her voice was uplifting and gave him energy to go on. It was almost a
funny setup that would last for years. Tomas would never call; not because he didn’t care, just
because time flies without realizing it. She would contact him once a month or so. But when she
did, he couldn’t finish the Skype chat himself, it was always her, two hours later because she
really needed to go.
Tomas’s sister joined in the conversation at times, always planning for Tomas to come to live in
Vegas with them as well. That was Tomas’s plan too. One day, once he had achieved what he
needed to achieve, he would love to be there with them, to enjoy their company again. More
importantly, so that he could watch over them for protection.
Tomas thought about it often. ‘Is this why all of this is so important to me? Was I programmed
by my mom into protecting females so much that I will have no peace of mind until I feel ready
and competent to protect the dearest of all of the treasures in my life – my family?’
No, his father taught him way more about how to be a man than his mother anyway. Tomas had
spent way more time with his mom when it came to conversation and opening up. As women do.
But his dad didn’t have to say anything anyway. Just by being present, he was teaching him what
a man should be like. Calm, non-overreactive. But when his mom stepped over the line, he put
her back into her place. Not physically, not by intimidation, but by pointing out her
imperfections and the fact that he didn’t otherwise nag about it. Women do.
The fact was, every time they were out on a trip, or visit, or holidays as a family, in every
dangerous or worrying situation, she was clinging to him for protection. And Tomas’s dad did
offer protection; just his presence was so reassuring. Tomas’s father was physically massive; he
was a former cliff climber, despite his 110-kilogram (242 pounds of mainly muscle) physique at
6’1” tall (183 cm).
During Tomas’s childhood, his father had to physically fight to protect them all as a family
multiple times. Tomas would never forget how when he was six years old, a drunk neighbour
came banging on their flat building’s doors, shouting angrily.
Nobody dared to open their door. The neighbour was obviously drunk in his voice and he was
trashing the shared walkway in the apartment house on their floor level. Tomas was too little to
understand what was going on so he went to answer the door. He saw the neighbour with an axe
in his hands. The same axe that the neighbour used to smash the shared doors into the shared
walkway of the apartments just moments before.
Tomas saw the surprise on his face once he answered the door, almost instantly calming the
neighbour down by seeing this innocent, little, skinny boy in front of him. But as soon as he
opened the door, Tomas’s mom started to scream in absolute terror for Dad to come. She was
there in about a second after Tomas opened the door and she saw that drunk neighbour with the
axe in his hand. Tomas’s father was also already on his way. He reacted too, and it took him
about two seconds to just snatch the axe out of the neighbour’s hands and to subdue him to the
floor.
The neighbour snapped back into his frenzy once he saw Tomas’s dad approaching him, but he
was totally subdued in seconds. He was still cursing at Tomas’s dad long after, trying to get out
of his grip that was holding him subdued down to the floor, but he couldn’t. Tomas’s father
could have beat the neighbour’s ass, and wanted to do it for sure. But he didn’t. Instead, he said
to him that once he pays for the shared door replacement, it will all be good again. And to stay
away from the bottle, else the next time that he got close to his kids drunk, axe or not, he would
kill him.
Tomas’s mom was glad to have a husband like that in situations like that. She still managed to
nag him about not involving the police. As Tomas overheard the argument, his father responded
with, ‘Everybody makes stupid mistakes. He is in an unhappy marriage, where his own wife
locked him out of his own flat and he had no key on him to even open the shared walkway doors.
In his drunken stupor, he decided to smash it with an axe. He blamed it on me that he got stuck
in the walkway, since it was my idea to propose to have the floor locked out of the rest of the
building. So he banged at our door to open it up for him so he could get out, presumably to the
pub. Now, I don’t know where he got that axe from, nor do I approve of him being drunk, and I
explained to him that it wouldn’t be a great idea to be around my family in such a state in the
future. But I understand that he drinks because of his nagging wife, and that he could lose his job
easily because of being involved with the police. That wouldn’t do any good to his family either,
including his wife and kids. This time, we can overlook it, and see if there will be a next time.
Everyone deserves at least one warning.’
Once Tomas’s mom overcame her emotional frenzy over the fact that there was an angry drunk
man with an axe in his hands close to her 6-year-old boy, after she was pointed to the fact that it
could harm the neighbour’s whole family, she was okay with Tomas’s dad not involving the
police about this incident.
Tomas never saw the neighbour drunk again. He even started to greet Tomas on every occasion
that he saw him and came to talk to him. To a 6-year-old! It was certainly because he felt guilty
and ashamed after what had happened. Not because he got subdued in less than two seconds, but
rather the fact he found himself facing a 6-year-old boy holding an axe and smashing a door with
it just seconds before. That was what most likely had kept him away from the bottle ever after,
and the fact that he got a second chance. Not many people would have given him that. The
neighbour admitted his fault, and took appropriate action.
This kind of lesson Tomas learned from his father without any interaction between them, just
observing. What Tomas saw was a kind man. Not a pussy though. His dad had integrity, always
telling the truth no matter the consequences (many times, he got into trouble at work for that) and
had many arguments because of that with Tomas’s mom, because other people got rich
exploiting people. Despite that his father was in the same position to do that as well, he didn’t.
He couldn’t. Tomas’s mom would have, if she’d had the chance, so they would get rich as a
family, but not his dad. He was always saying to her that they were not that bad off that they had
to make another family’s life harder just to make themselves richer.
Of course neither Tomas nor his dad would hold it against her. She didn’t want the riches for
herself, but for them. Tomas learned that despite the fact that his mom seemed more
compassionate overall, more loving, more open, his dad may have been so just as much. But as a
man, he wouldn’t show it. Not by his words, only in his actions. And even though his mom
would have signed a contract with the devil just to make Tomas’s and his sister’s life better,
Tomas understood why his dad couldn’t and wouldn’t.
The fact that Tomas never saw him cry, not even when his own mom had died, inspired him. At
least not in public; but he was obviously fighting it. It wasn’t that his dad wasn’t hurt inside; he
was hurt just as much, maybe even more than others, but he had to fight it. It was the same way
that he as a man had to fight the fear. Not that men are not capable of getting just as scared as
women, but they have to take it. How else could they go into war? To fight to their death for
something that they believe in? To protect their family? As a man, you have to fight fear. You
have to have courage, be brave, despite being as scared as others, if not more, and taking action.
That is being brave.
Tomas knew that one day, when the time of the most soul-crushing moment in his life that he
could imagine came, he would have to be brave. And he knew that day would come when his
mom died and he would have to be prepared not to cry, offering strength and support to his
sister, just as his father and his uncles did for his aunts. His sister would need a man, a strong
pillar in that moment, and it would be Tomas’s job to do it. It would be his duty to support her in
that moment, to take that place. And he would.
Tomas didn’t know how he would accomplish that yet. He’d cried once already (in secrecy,
thank God) because of the breakup with his girlfriend. His mom’s death would be on an entirely
different level he couldn’t even imagine – didn’t want to imagine. He almost hoped he would die
before that happened. Then again, who would be there for his sister when their mom passed? Her
husband? Not nearly enough in a situation like that. She would need her brother, someone who
was her mom’s remnant. Someone that she could see her still living in.
His dad may not be there for further support. His health was already fading slowly away at the
moment that Tomas left home. Funny enough, about a year later, once his mom was already
living with his sister in Las Vegas and his dad was still in Slovakia alone, Tomas contacted his
dad via Skype (mainly because of his mom’s intervention; Tomas was blaming Dad for their
split up and felt that he screwed his mom in their divorce, forcing her out of the mutual flat). On
the call, his dad opened up. He tried to explain to Tomas his point of view. For the first time
ever, he openly said that they (Tomas and his sister, Lenka) were the most important things in his
life, and that he couldn’t bear losing contact with them. They’d kept in touch on a regular basis
ever since. Tomas grew to understand and respect his dad even more.
And even though Mom is Mom, Dad is also Dad.

Imogen Heap – The Walk (MT EDEN DNB REMIX) 4:56

It took Tomas something like ten months before he was able to get into a gym instructor role.
About one month after that, he met someone who saw him punching the bag in the gym (a
commercial one, but it had punching bags in it). His name was Chen, and they made friends.
Soon Chen got Tomas into practicing wushu with him. Apparently, Tomas was recognized as an
impressive talent and after he explained that Bruce Lee was his wushu idol, in combination with
his impressive physique and modest personality, doors were open everywhere to him.
It didn’t take long before Tomas was told that he could make quite a bit of money doing “not
exactly legal” street fights. Tomas wasn’t really ever keen to do fights, nor competitions.
However, once Chen told him how much money he could make, it was something Tomas
couldn’t refuse.
The first fights were very low profile and didn’t pay that much. However, looking back at that
time period, Tomas admitted that he could never make that kind of money in an honest way at
the gym. It just made perfect sense to him to do it, economically. But Tomas never intended to
hurt the other guy. His tactics were to show his superiority (if he could, and was in fact better
than his opponent) by just blocking or rag-dolling his opponent as much as he could. Just to get
him tired so he would eventually give up. Thinking about this now, the fact that this was
“underground” sort of fights between various wushu schools that involved money and betting,
that was kind of a crazy idea. It did work for him though, for a while at least . . .
Tomas made a name for himself as being merciful, for literally sparing his opponents of any
unnecessary damage. Often, he just made them give up because they couldn’t get through his
defence, nor had they seen him lose any energy doing it, while they were getting increasingly
more tired over time.
It took Tomas about a year before he was actually in a “proper” fight that forced him to attack
his opponent, to try his best in order not to lose. By that time, he had long stopped working for
the gym and just lived off the fight money.
Tomas found a great passion in Thai boxing because the first opponent that made him work hard,
forcing him to really earn his victory, was a Thai box fighter. Tomas started to explore more and
more fighting styles, including those that he would have called ‘fancy’ before. Styles like tae
kwon do, capoeira, judo, and also some more serious, like ju-jitsu, karate, and Krav Maga,
among some others.
Tomas was sticking to Bruce Lee’s motto of applying what works and discarding what doesn’t.
He understood his own limitations in execution and timing. Sometimes, it would take him longer
to discard some of the moves completely. Tomas said that he didn’t find any style that would be
completely useless in a real fight environment, always highlighting that what you do depends
more on your opponent than on you. ‘Best tactics are to react to your opponent, as opposed to
trying to force your fighting style on him. Different fighting styles counter different things that
your opponent could do. The easiest way to lose is to get tired while being countered all the time,
eventually losing to fatigue that will cause a reduction in your speed.
‘Speed is the key, then the ability to take hits and not to slow down. Forget about being able to
get up again. If your opponent is still fresh and progressively faster than you, you’ve already lost,
at that point. In a life-threatening fight, at that point, you can only hope for incapacitating your
opponent via surprise. Even though he is able to strike or block way faster than you, you still get
him into a position that he doesn’t know how to counter/react to. If that is not possible, then your
resistance is futile.
‘My success is based on my superior speed and letting my opponent get tired. If I’m the
aggressor, I always do it in a non-risk manner, where I give my opponent a strike that is easy for
him to block, not fully committing to it, anticipating his countermove and preparing the best
surprise element as a follow-up. Of course, being physically superior helps. And of course, a
superior technical ability helps. But at the end of the day, if you’re too slow in execution,
planning, or analysing/reading your opponent, you can’t win.
‘In the world of martial arts, speed determines the winner. If you’re faster, better overall, or just
better at some of the other aspects that come into play, you can rag-doll the poor fella as you
wish. Like you don’t even produce any effort to defeat him; like he never had a chance.’
Of course, Tomas did lose some of the fights now and then, but only in the first 2 to 3 years,
while he was working on all of those aspects of real fighting. It forced him to look more into
incapacitating techniques, including dislocating, ripping off joints, and breaking bones at their
weak points. That was mainly because the other ‘bastards’, as he named them, tried it on him.
Thankfully, unsuccessfully. But it made him think that he should be able to repay the favour, if it
ever came to it. Tomas always vocalized that his surprise factor was mainly due to the
underestimation of him by his opponents.

DJ Fresh – Gold Dust (Flux Pavilion remix) 5:17

At 24 years old, Tomas was eighty-five kilograms (187 pounds) and ripped as he had imagined
before, a “perfection” in his own mind. However, in his clothes, he still looked in shape at best.
A normal-sized man, for the most part, compared to the other big guys that were around hundred
kilograms (220 pounds). He almost looked small next to them. In a tight T-shirt, Tomas looked
great. A “beast”; but that is not how he was always walking around. Loose jackets, hoodies, and
over-sized T-shirts gave him privacy; he was invisible. Without a T-shirt, it was a different story.
Tomas looked like he was a ripped hundred kilograms while his small joints (ankle, elbow, knee,
and wrist) just enhanced the muscles size that he had built.
Tomas used this to his great advantage many times, because many of his opponents (mostly less
experienced) did tend to almost lose the will to fight before the fight even started. People that
already knew him were looking forward to that moment. It was as amusing as Tomas’s physique
was impressive. He always looked like an underdog, or at the best, ordinary – before the T-
shirt/jacket went off. After that, the opponents almost looked defeated then and there. Many
didn’t care. But at the very least, something that looked like a seal clubbing event before turned
into a proper fight in their eyes. Those people were either mad or that good, or both.
Tomas was absolutely confident in himself. He felt like a tank, like a very agile tank.
Indestructible as a solid structure and agile and fast as a Lamborghini among Trabants (google
it). Girls dug him hard, but Tomas still wasn’t over his girlfriend. It took him a good three years
before he somewhat was. In that time, he forgot what it felt like to hold a woman, to lie down
next to her, feel her heartbeat, her warmth.
One could say Tomas became insecure around women. Many times, he got into a situation where
girls were all over him (mainly after fights not organized by the martial arts clubs), touching him,
admiring his muscles, drooling all over him, and all he did was push them away. They in turn
began calling him all kinds of names, mainly gay or impotent, attacking his manliness. As if that
was going to work. Everywhere that people saw Tomas’s physique, they were oozing with
compliments. Tomas felt like the biggest smallest guy ever.
Now his disadvantage was an advantage! It gave him crazy angles at that weight. Eighty-five
kilos. A magic number, he thought to himself. He had got “that body” to die for. It was
understandable that his constant rejection of the girls looked as if he indeed was gay, or asexual.
Sometimes he felt asexual; he hadn’t had it for so long, he almost stopped missing it. And he
liked that! But when you have beautiful “angels” drooling all over you often, he was just a man,
after all. It was impossible not to get an erection. It was just a question of time before he would
give in. ‘When you have to go, you have to go.’ He had greater willpower than the other men for
sure, but then again, he was exposed to a lot more teasing. One can only last for so long.
At the start, Tomas only let them perform oral sex on him. Problem was, after that, the girls got
totally attached without him even trying. It was the body; they couldn’t get enough of it. All
kinds of kinky stuff were happening in those private moments without actual penetration. He felt
like gold dust, like people could not get enough of his physique (including guys; everybody was
admiring his physique). One of the girls once told him that it should be a law in China for him
not to be able to wear clothes.

Linkin Park – Lying From You 2:55

“When I pretend everything is what I want it to be, I look exactly like what you had always
wanted to see. When I pretend, I can forget about the criminal I am, stealing second after
second just 'cause I know I can. But I can't pretend this is the way it'll stay,
I'm just - trying to bend the truth - I can't pretend I'm who you want me to be -
so I'm lying my way from YOU.”

Eventually, he fully gave in, missing proper intimacy with a woman, always panicking the day
after, swearing not to do it again. Fearing that he will get trapped into fatherhood. Tomas swore
never to see any girl again, only to fall for the next “angel” that was hitting on him hard. He felt
like a criminal after stealing their time away from them, knowing that he couldn’t pretend that he
was who they wanted him to be. He was constantly changing his address to avoid them
afterwards.
It turned out to be fairly convenient, because many times when he relocated to a different place,
it was closer to his current martial arts dojo.
Tomas wanted to get his old life back. No commitment, no drama. He told them to let him go,
telling them that the worst part of them, is him. Now he was using the old: ‘It’s not you, it’s me.’
Tomas didn’t even know why; it would only make it harder for the girls in the long run, just like
before. But not for him; it made it easier to feel better about himself. He just didn’t really care
about them that much, so he never let it go that far. It would have been too much pain to carry
around for him, for too many times, if he should let it go that far.
Tomas didn’t want it to be that way, but as much as he wanted to have just one and the same girl
when he need her, it wasn’t possible. Not yet, and for the same reasons as before. He just wasn’t
finished yet. He was still chasing his goals, his dreams.
Tomas made sure there would be nothing holding him back. Nothing to consider before he surely
moved to the next place sooner or later. Closer to his current place of interest and that there
would be nothing for the girls to miss (him), lying his way away from them, pretending that he
was a bigger asshole than he really was. Tomas was simply too logical for them to understand.
But he was also a young man exposed to temptations. ‘I cannot stay in “monk mode” forever.’
To him, he was the trophy, not them! ‘Was it really a bad thing letting them have access to
something that they would probably never have access to otherwise? I was the one doing them a
favour, not the other way around, or mutually.’
Tomas knew that there would always be the next “angel”; there were so many beautiful girls out
there to die for. How many guys were like him? Looked like him? Had ambitions and self-
control (Oh, the irony!) like him? Could offer the same protection? Had the potential to make as
much money as him in the future?
And the so-called angels? What else could they offer but a beauty that would fade away soon?
He was the trophy! And he would not be trapped! Not yet.
Either way, Tomas was always honest about his intentions: sex = yes, anything else = not
interested.
Even Tomas thought that this way of thinking about and dealing with the women was demeaning
and appalling on the surface at the very least, but couldn’t help but to live by it to stay
“protected”. Truth be told, he never really got it out of his head completely and was damaged
goods in that way.
But of course, he also appreciated the value of women, and knew that they are a necessary key to
his true future happiness. It was just that it wasn’t right now, at this point in his life. There and
then, they could have even been a danger to it. “Everything has its time and place, even the best
thing that can happen to you.”
***
The following five years after were a mystery pretty much to all, another reason why he later
earned the nickname “Ghost”. Even frequency and communication with his family was reduced
to “I’m fine, everything is OK”, followed by Tomas letting them speak about their lives whilst
telling nothing about himself really.
Tomas stopped representing martial arts schools and just fought for himself, mainly exhibitions,
once he got challenged. No more street fights for money that he did occasionally before. Never
had he found someone on the same level as he was.
Tomas got into cold weapons and firearms, including a still secret technique called ‘gun-kata’
that was total fantasy stuff to him but he did it for fun, and to see whether there could be
potentially something useful in a real-life situation. Little did he know that it was more than
serious skill when perfected, based on data and research.
All his income was coming from teaching his arts to others, including physical preparation
(gym), and he was thinking about relocating to the US to open his own martial arts schools there,
just as Bruce Lee once did and/or to have some business online, since the internet was a
widespread tool to make money at that point in 2010–2014. The thought of having an online
martial arts studio was actually the most appealing to Tomas business wise, with just one brick
and mortar studio in Vegas close to his family for him to go every morning.
Then in 2014, at 29 years old, when he was finally about to make his move and join his family in
Las Vegas, his life took, as he later described it, a wrong turn.
Chapter 5: The First Signs of Inner Demons

Linkin Park – Faint 2:42

“I can't feel the way I did before - don't turn your back on me,
I won't be ignored!”

Tomas had been a very private person ever since he was a young man. Very independent, going
his own way. Even the people that Tomas met or had been friends with didn’t really know him
that well. Nor was he spending his private time with them during the final five years in China,
with the exception of really close friends that he didn’t have many of anyway. It wasn’t far off
from loneliness.
Tomas was very polite and humble and in general, liked as a person. To many, this was a sign of
weakness and they tried to take advantage of him. That was when they would find out that it
wasn’t a good idea. Tomas could impose his dominance and become very intimidating at will,
which he only used if he felt betrayed or greatly disrespected. By nature, Tomas was very much
oriented to helping people, and in general was very easy to approach. When he was in a fight, it
was almost as if he was a completely different person because he used his impressive physique
for intimidation in combination with superior speed, tactics, and general martial skills mastery.
By 2012, he was pretty much dominating everyone in the fights. People started to call him the
Ghost; no one really knew who he was. It was mainly because in his normal life, he was easily
overlooked, keeping a low profile that one could describe as unimpressive. But in a fight – in a
fight he was a god, untouchable, like a ghost raised from the grave with a grudge in his heart,
invulnerable to attack.
Tomas also kept his reputation as merciful, because he remained unscathed by the rage in a fight.
Even if he sustained injury, which wasn’t that often at all, Tomas would never lash out in anger
to do ‘eye for an eye’. If he did knock out an opponent, he would never add an extra kick onto
his opponent’s motionless body, even if he himself got hurt in the fight. That was because the
opponent wasn’t a thug in his eyes. Tomas got into many fights purely because he stepped into
the ring to defend someone that was getting beaten up well after the fight was basically over. Or
if someone caused serious damage, like dislocations or breaking bones on purpose for the fun of
it or intimidation; Tomas would step in with the intent to teach the aggressor a lesson. Often
those thugs would completely ignore him from the start because Tomas was in his low-profile,
ordinary, saggy clothes, unimpressive, not a threat in their eyes, only to make him feel
disrespected like when he was just a skinny boy. Still, he would always try to establish
discussion with them first, giving them a chance for peaceful resolution, but they would usually
barely look at him before turning their head away.
Once again, Tomas felt disregarded. It made him almost feel insecure, a little unconfident
because at that point, he was trying his best to intimidate them. It just didn’t make sense that in
the clothes he had on, he couldn’t convince them to hear him out. So he watched them turn their
backs on him, pretending he was not there, but Tomas would always be there because in a way,
they were the only ones he had left. They were reminders of why he was doing what he was
doing. ‘Fucking bullies.’ They could turn their backs on him, they could pretend that he wasn’t
there, but he would make sure he wasn’t ignored! The damage was done in the past; time
couldn’t heal it anymore in the face of the reminders. ‘They will have to listen, like it or not!’

Linkin Park – Forgotten 3:16

“In the memory, you'll find me - eyes burning up.
The darkness holding me tightly - until the sun rises up.”

This was when the first demons, as Tomas described it, started to show up inside his head. Many
times, he would do a lot more than just an ‘eye for an eye’, and he would get great satisfaction
from it. Tomas saw himself as a saviour from all of the bullies, as someone who he himself
needed when he was a scrawny kid. Even though he never got seriously bullied, he knew without
the protectors that he had in his friends, he very well could have been.
Tomas already knew back then that once he could, he would have repaid that back to anyone that
would be in need of help. It wasn’t uncommon that once Tomas stepped in to protect someone
and the aggressor didn’t stand down immediately after being asked to, then apologized for
getting out of control, Tomas would incapacitate him mercilessly with his first hit, in a manner
that could cause serious bodily harm, with them always needing medical assistance afterwards.
Or simply put, it was clear that the bully would be spending some “quality time” in the hospital.
In many cases, they recognized Tomas even in the plain clothes and the apology was very quick.
Many times, Tomas just managed to intimidate them with his physique (if he exposed himself to
them) and body language. Other times, the aggressor was told by someone else who recognized
the “Ghost” to stand down and apologize quickly.
In some cases, people had no idea who they were dealing with. If the aggressor was identified as
a bully, or a low-life, and kept trying to hurt Tomas even after he gave him plenty of chances to
stand down, as he sometimes did, it became common practice for Tomas to break many of the
bully’s bones, sometimes at multiple places, tearing out multiple joints or dislocating them.
Tomas wanted them to scream in pain and to beg for mercy. Some of those thugs had way too
much “toughness” in them to scream or beg after the first bone got broken. They would scream
in pain momentarily. However, they would recover from it quickly, many times sending harsh
language Tomas’s way, not caring if that would result in more pain. It did.
In the end, everyone broke, everyone screamed in pain, sometimes until they lost consciousness
as Tomas progressively kept breaking bones in different places of their body whilst he kept
tearing joints apart. But in all cases, the people gathered around thought that justice was finally
served; that the person totally deserved it; that the time they had spent in fear was finally over.
Because after this, that thug was harmless ever after.
Sometimes, it was hard for Tomas not to feel some compassion for them, seeing them in such a
state, as any normal human being would do. He felt caught in the act. ‘Where is this darkness
coming from?’ He understood that he would never be the same after, like a crumpled-up paper
that will never be perfect again. Still . . . it was the first time that Tomas felt satisfaction from
harming (and that’s an understatement) people. As much as Tomas resented that feeling, he
couldn’t help but to feel satisfaction at the same time, and he had to justify that properly in his
head, that the person had it coming and deserved it. Digging deep down into his core, the picture
of that stayed fresh; the memory wouldn’t escape him.
But, why should he care? To be fair, in many cases where it resorted to only one, two breakings
of the bones, the person on the receiving end changed for the better. According to Tomas, the
bully realized that he wasn’t the most badass guy around, and that there was no point playing
tough then, even admitting at times that it was a good wakeup call, or he would have ended up
dead one day.
For the other thugs that got it worse, or way worse, there was no hope. It was a good thing that
they would spend a lot of time to relearn basic things, such as walking or using a spoon again,
never able to be the aggressor again. Or so, Tomas told himself.

Linkin Park – Given Up 3:09

“Put me out of my misery, put me out of my misery;
put me out of my, put me out of my - fucking misery!”

Lost in his almost solitary life by his 29th birthday, where all Tomas knew was the gym, MA
(martial arts) practice, eating, and sleeping, his social life faded away slowly as he stopped going
out altogether. The only social life he had was with the people that he taught, or practiced with.
Never had a girlfriend in China, a companion, and his sex life was pretty much non-existent at
that point since he learnt to despise women’s nature. With his increasing age, there was quite a
decrease in his hair thickness, and even though Tomas wasn’t bald by a long shot, he had visibly
a lot thinner hairline than he used to. That decreased his confidence in terms of getting girls
further, as he stopped in his personal life to advertise his body for his benefit. Without that tactic,
he looked like an average guy. That meant he would have to chase the girls and try hard. And for
what? They were sluts. Gold-diggers. They were all that Tomas could see. The decent women
would never be interested in him. How could he capture their interest? He had average income,
looks (you can’t walk around naked), and if he tried to advertise his body or his fighting skills,
they would just rightly think that he was a douche bag. And as Tomas learnt from women’s
nature in the previous years, that could have very well worked on all of them! ‘They want the
bad boy even though they say they need a good guy.’ So, even if those tactics were working on
them, Tomas wouldn’t want them, as decent women wouldn’t really want the bad boy in the first
place!
Tomas was sick and tired of all the relationships (of people that he’d met) that had fallen apart
around him. All the nasty divorces for a guy getting ripped off, or damn right financially raped
by the woman in the court. All of those women that friend-zoned him instantly for being the
“nice” guy. Especially the ones that he actually tried to get with, without the body advertising
practices. They couldn’t see any value in him. Instead, he just learned about all their bad
boys/jerks that they’d had, and how much they wished they could find a decent good guy, while
totally overlooking him.
‘Don’t you just love it when women ask where are all the good guys at? As if they didn’t friend-
zone all of them! I ask, where are all the decent, traditional women at? Westernized women are
mostly spoiled little snowflake-social-justice-warrior-feminist-princesses and disgusting sluts!’
he thought.
Not that he would want most of them anyway. He tended to think of a woman as a used car at
that point in his life. The more mileage she had, the less he was interested in her, and they all
seemed to already have excessively high mileage by 25 years old. Tomas would happily add
some miles on them if he had the chance, but a relationship? ‘Who would want a used car with
many previous owners?’ They were damaged goods to him, and for the most part, always either
sluts or gold-diggers with no brains or emotional control. A burden.
Not that he had to worry about that anyway. Most women wouldn’t give Tomas five seconds of
their time. He was the nice guy now, after all. But he also thought that men aged as a good wine,
and woman as milk; the tables would later turn naturally anyway. Then, he would get a brand-
new, 20-year-old, decent girl as a girlfriend, because hopefully at that point in the future, he
should have more resources that he could possibly offer to her. Tomas used to joke that ‘it would
have to be really a decent woman, to be brand new at twenty years old.’ Because, in this age and
time, most of 20-year-old girls would have already had a lot of mileage on them, just like the
rest. And she would have to be around 20 years old, so she would have at least 10 years before
the expiry date.
Tomas also tended to use the phrase: ‘Before hitting the wall hard,’ a point where her looks
would start fading away, making it harder for him to be interested in her. Tomas always felt that
women have only sex to offer, and for that, they would have to be visually attractive, as all men
are attracted visually. ‘We don’t care if you’re smart, or rich; we can forgive that if you are not.
But not the looks; it is all about sex, after all.’
Tomas used to joke a lot at women’s expense, stating that if he was the one making “mileage” on
her, then perhaps, and only then, if she was also a decent, caring woman that you could enjoy her
presence even outside of the bed, only then would he marry her, to appreciate the fact that she
gave you her best years. Then give her a baby, making sure that she would always be getting at
least financial support from you, even if it would go down later on, considering seventy percent
of all marriages end in divorce. Only then would Tomas feel that the financial rape of a man in
the divorce process would be worth it, in exchange for the woman’s best years, and for giving
him a child or children, even though he probably wouldn’t be able to see them much after the
divorce.
Tomas was a lost cause. Unfixable, too stubborn, just like his dad. But for understandable
reasons. After all, it truly is not easy for the good guys to get a woman. It’s a well-known fact to
all men. ‘Decent woman? For that, you need to have resources as a must!’ And he had very few
of them (in his own point of view). Let’s also not forget that he still didn’t feel ready to commit,
and that at 29 he looked at the urge to fornicate as an ‘artificially invoked nature’s joke, to ensure
that woman can survive and feel safe – in man’s care’.
Although Tomas realized how disgusting this way of thinking was on the surface, true to his
critical thinking nature, he was constantly looking for more reasons (than just sex) to get with
women again – to no avail. Who was he trying to fool? There was no point . . .
The truth was that whatever confidence Tomas ever had with women rapidly vanished with his
fading “best looks”, and with it, any interest in him. Of course, as a defence mechanism, he tried
to convince himself that he didn’t need them anyway, and they were basically all unworthy of
him. Not only was he too proud to chase the women for a change, he honestly completely had
given up on the idea of ever finding the “worthy one” in the first place that had made him this
way.
He would deny it, but it did make him feel like he was missing something in his life – he was
unhappy. Every day without them in his life felt like a waste.
But what woman would like to be with someone who thinks about them in this way in the first
place? Worse, there was nothing he could say to change their mind and he knew it. Rightly. He
hated himself for being this way. What the fuck is wrong with me?
He was scared, really. Tomas didn’t see a way out of that dark place, thinking that he would be
stuck there forever, wishing that somebody would put him out of his misery.
As much as he grew to resent women for not wanting him anymore, and that it seemed there was
no decent woman left out there, he hated himself more for thinking this vile way – not being the
man that could offer any woman any value, for him being able to get her in the first place, even if
he had found her. Tomas felt like he’d become his own worst enemy.
 Linkin Park – Valentine’s Day 3:16
“I used to be my own protection - but not now.
'Cause my path has lost direction - somehow…”

Things were about to get worse for Tomas. From his young years until now, he thought it was
pretty good. Now that his social life pretty much vanished (his fault, really, as he openly
admitted), with his increased violence towards the bad boys/bullies in the ring or the streets
(perhaps filtering his anger on them, as he considered), Tomas also got noticed by some very
unpleasant people; namely, the local Mafia.
Tomas started to miss Felicity, doubting his decisions in the past. He felt lonely, even. Tomas
needed to feel loved by someone “real”, someone that he could physically touch, that was close
to him, not many hours of flight away. He had to see his family. Skype just wasn’t good enough
anymore. It did cost him a lot of money to visit them; sometimes, several times in a year
(Christmas, summer) every year. Tomas didn’t care, as it was a cure for his soul.
Returning to China after visiting them was always a soul-crushing experience for both parties.
Yet, living in the US with them wasn’t a possibility yet. To start from scratch, again. Surely later,
when he had a lot more of the necessary initial capital, Tomas promised them.
His status as a ghost and “untouchable” raised in value over time. However, he was becoming an
inconvenience, intervening business conducted by some local Mafias. Many of the local Mafia
enforcers entered those unofficial illegal street fights, mostly held by martial arts schools, to test
their skills and to promote their business.
Betting did naturally arise from it (although to the schools’ resentment), and that was the main
pay-check for Tomas. Since it was already illegal, you could bet on yourself if you wished, or
someone else. Tomas always bet on himself, since he didn’t want to gamble (his words, the
cocky bastard), even though he admitted that since he started to visit his sis and mom in Las
Vegas, he had developed a bit of a gambling soul. Perhaps it was just because he loved the fun
time he had with his mom and sis in the casinos, always playing slots or Blackjack. They would
all walk in the casino with 100 dollars each. They went to the slot machines first, to have some
fun sitting next to each other, sharing their ups and downs together. Once they got into a position
where they had only around 20 dollars left, he and Lenka would go play Blackjack. Mom only
watched after them, donating the rest of her money equally to both. They always played as a
team, with Mom looking over their shoulders and getting free drinks whilst looking for tables
that also played as a team.
It was a perfectly legal system that they used; the casinos didn’t mind. The system was that you
always consider the card of the house (dealer) that you cannot see to be the value of ten. Then,
because you can see the value of the card on top, you could calculate. If the top card was, let’s
say, a 6, then you consider the house hand to be 16. There were rules that the house (the dealer)
could never take another card if he’s got 16 already, but must if he’s got less than 16. So, if you
are below what the house has got (you calculated), you must take another card.
If the card on top is 10 for the house, then you must consider the house hand to be 20. Again, if
you have less, you must take another card, even though you cannot go past 21, as that is the
blackjack and maximum value, or else you are a bust.
If the table played this system, they always made money; the only question was how much in
how much time. On average, since the game was fun, Tomas, Lenka, and his mom stayed there
easily without realizing it for four or more hours, on average building up to 500 dollars each.
Lenka would always keep it, leaving the casinos with a profit.
Tomas was different; he always went to the roulette table. To him, it was always double your
money or nothing. ‘Bet everything you have on one colour and hope to double your bet.’ He had
an almost fifty-fifty chance (the only gamble he would dare) if there was for no green colour
with the 00 number. Tomas always declared that should he double his money, he would take
them both to a fancy restaurant for a dinner. He never intended to keep any of the money he
walked into the casino with anyway; he would have gladly spent it all on them. But it never
happened! Tomas visited Las Vegas multiple times, up to a month of stay at times, and each
time, they had one or two casino nights. It never happened, he never doubled his money. Tomas
bet on red, it was black. Bet on black, always red.
His sister used the money for going to the shooting range together, and Tomas got hooked on
guns.
The memories of the Las Vegas trips made him even more vulnerable upon his return. The
feeling of loneliness sank in even more with every new Valentine’s Day spent alone – which was
unthinkable as much as unlikely not that long ago. Tomas felt like he had lost his direction; it
made no sense to him anymore. Love had vanished from his life. He’d killed it and buried it
somewhere along the way. And he was wrong thinking that he could do without it.

Linkin Park – Breaking The Habit 3:16

“I don't want to be the one - the battles always choose.
'Cause inside I realize - that I'm the one confused.”

The point being that the betting business had nothing to do with the martial arts clubs. For the
schools, it wasn’t a matter of money. Tomas did go to those fights often, even though he got less
and less involved. He had nothing more to prove to himself or to test anymore. Partly, he was
ashamed of that blood money as well, never to tell his family of its origin, claiming that it was
the teaching of his martial arts and personal training sessions. Which became more and more
truth over time, as Tomas tried to leave it behind.
He tried to break the habit, to stop fighting. Tomas knew it wasn’t all right, often wondering how
he let it go that far. How he had come to be this way. Tomas tried not to always choose a fight
should he need easy and quick money again. But, if the local Mafia enforcers started to step over
the line with the use of unnecessary violence, and just purely annoy him with their bullying
tactics; if there was no one else to challenge them; if there was no one else who would dare to
step into the ring with them (as they almost always caused unnecessary permanent damage to
their opponent on purpose, purely for the fun and intimidation factor), Tomas would step into the
“ring”.
There was no ring, really, just a group of people surrounding the fighters in a circle, mostly in
the streets themselves or practice hall of one of the martial arts clubs. Tomas would step into the
ring to face the bullies, always to the cheers of all of the martial arts clubs’ students who
wouldn’t dare challenge those punks after they saw them causing some grievous bodily damage
or because they feared retaliation from the Mafia.
Tomas hated them. The triads. He saw them as the bullies in the school when he was young. In
his heart he knew, if it wasn’t for his friends, his school experience when he was still a small boy
could have been very different. Now, Tomas always felt that if he saw some dodgy stuff, or
straight-up bullying, he needed to intervene if he could. He wasn’t stupid; Tomas knew the
dangers of doing so, but he couldn’t help it. It even felt good in that moment, to fuck them up.
Mostly because it was only low rank Mafia members, and even though it did cause some minor
complications on some occasions to the flow of the triads’ business, it wasn’t worth it for them to
try teaching a lesson to the Ghost. Not yet; not at that level of minor business of their low-rank
members.
But Tomas did get noticed. He would often leave the triad members in a such state that it was
haunting him at times. he was consumed in his memories of what he had done, confused,
questioning the validity of his actions. Was he any better than them? What would his mom or
sister think of him should they find out? Is this worth fighting for? I am the problem, the
confused one! he thought. I’m breaking my habit, tonight! He hurt to his very core, hiding it
away. Nobody knew. Nobody could ever find out what he had become; nobody he cared about,
anyway. Even Chen, the guy that introduced him into the martial arts and the unofficial fights.
The person that had become his training partner at first, and perhaps biggest admirer later;
Tomas didn’t know. Sure, Chen saw Tomas fight. Sure, he saw him defending others from the
bullies. But to Chen, Tomas was merciful. He never saw Tomas do any serious harm to anyone.
Funny, Tomas was as much a ghost to his friends, who had no idea how many fights he was
getting into and what he was capable of doing if not in their presence, as to the people who knew
him only as the Ghost, not knowing anything about him. Where he was originally from, or even
his real name, nothing. Tomas didn’t tell, and they wouldn’t ask.
They also liked the mysteriousness of him and worshiped the “ghost” status. Tomas was
ashamed of his actions and protected his identity to not receive reprisals. But it would be a denial
on his part to claim that he didn’t enjoy all of it at the same time. After all, to many, he was “the
man”, just like he always wanted to be.
Except, deep within his core, Tomas knew that it really was just another illusion. He was far
from the man in his own eyes. Worse, it became questionable whether he could ever reconcile
with himself what he had become, to ever feel like a real man.
Chapter 6: The Incident

Mortal Kombat Reptile (Techno) Theme 6:24

One day, the whole Mafia clan of trained assassins dressed as ninjas without masks had come to
one of those friendly, unofficial competition days organized between the martial arts schools.
Their name was Sad Flutes and they were known as the most dangerous of the trained assassins
working for the triads. The Sad Flutes were not welcome at all, but no one would dare to deny
them the participation.
It wasn’t official; there were no rules, and the whole idea of those unofficial competitions was to
test their apprentices. On occasion, there would be exhibitions by the masters. Everybody that
had participated in the tournament knew that they could – and probably would – get injured, as it
was as much a real fight as possible. For them, no money was involved. It was a place to learn, a
real test of their abilities or a place to gain respect and humility. Nothing more, nothing less.
Because Tomas wasn’t officially with any of the schools, rather involved in some way with most
of them in the past, nobody did mind when the Ghost was the last man standing, nor that he
pretty much dominated those events. Tomas set a benchmark for them. Either way, all of
Tomas’s fights looked more like exhibitions, or like a bully smackdown. There were no trophies
for him, but people loved him.
The appearance of the Sad Flutes was considered a provocation. Trouble was expected. Soon
enough, the whole competition took the shape of two teams: Flutes vs everyone else. The Flutes
had sent their (still competent) novices first. It had become apparent to the schools that this could
be their standard practice in the future for accepting or promoting their assassins into their ranks
(Mafias). And since they were assassins, extreme violence, with intent to unnecessarily harm or
to kill even, after the fight was basically already decided, were expected by the schools. As
sensed - they had been right.
Some of the masters tried to send the Flutes away, telling them that they were not welcome, but
the Flutes just ignored it, saying that they were just being scared, calling them cowards.
Naturally, fights evolved, and many of the fighters got harmed on purpose, including some of the
masters.
Eventually, the Sad Flutes started to get the upper hand, almost beating to death some of the
fighters, when Grand Master Shi Yang Ho (head teacher of Bruce Lee’s Jeet Kune Do, someone
Tomas’s kept close to his heart), who was 82 years old and couldn’t stand it anymore, stepped in
to teach a lesson to those punks.
Tomas was just about to step in in his place. Master Ho respectfully asked Tomas to step back, as
it was his honour and duty to defend against ‘the darkness’ (as he called it). Tomas understood
this feeling too well, and even though it didn’t feel right, he couldn’t disrespect such a great
master by disobeying. But Master Ho showed those punks! It was the greatest exhibition ever!
People, including Tomas, cheered heavily and had a proper merry time seeing those punks
getting their asses kicked by an 82-year-old, denying them admittance or promotions. And they
threw a lot at him. At one point, all of the remaining novices attacked Grand Master Ho at the
same time. Still, to no avail! He picked them off one by one. Just like Tomas would. ‘Focus on
the closest threat and just block or avoid the rest.’
The massive celebrations that ensued were suddenly disrupted by a person calling Master Ho
out. It was the drill instructor (DI) of the Sad Flutes, the person who taught them ‘not to fight,
but to kill!’ It was a matter of his honour and life. The DI had to prove himself now because
none of his trainees managed to get down one old man! He wouldn’t be able to go back into the
Flutes anymore. He was fully accepted as a master ninja, an assassin that was deployed for field
operations. He stood in full black ninja outfit, covering his face. For him, there could be no
defeat, only death should he fail.
Everybody stood in silence, realizing what this meant. They knew the DI was challenging Grand
Master Ho to fight to the death. There was no backing out of this for Master Ho. Should he
decline to face him now, the DI would come after him anyway, even if that was the last thing he
would do in this life.
People tried to take Master Ho’s place. Even the beginners of the novices tried to protect their
master. But Master Ho wouldn’t let that happen. He knew that all of those that would go in
between him and the DI would surely get killed. Ho accepted the challenge.

KFMD – Mortal Kombat Theme 3:41

The fight started!
The DI attacked first with a simple front kick. Quite an exposing move, if you would ask the
Ghost. If you’re too slow that is. But the DI wasn’t. Like a leash smack, with no chance to
exploit it for Grand Master Ho. All he managed to do was step to the side, narrowly dodging it.
On the other side, it did surprise the DI (drill instructor). He wouldn’t expect the old guy to be
fast enough. But the DI didn’t go all in, he was just testing. It was still surprising. Master Ho
responded with arm work on DI’s upper body, managing to deflect the DI’s deflection tactics and
still hit him twice with relatively low force into the DI’s upper right chest and liver. It didn’t
even faze the DI, only enraged him.
He lashed out with strong kicks and spinning heel kicks that were too powerful and too fast for
Master Ho to exploit them. In Master Ho’s tactics, he just tried to preserve as much energy as
possible, facing a physically stronger opponent, and to just avoid completely any contact if
possible. He knew that every miss of such powerful kicks, with such a great generated
momentum behind them, was putting great energy demands on his opponent. But for the time
being, the DI didn’t show any signs of fatigue.
The first hit came through, too fast to avoid. Only a partial deflection was hastily applied in the
last moment by Master Ho, but he still got hit on his right cheek by DI’s fist. Ho staggered
backwards, almost losing balance completely. The whole place went silent. The frantic cheers of
Ho’s name that were present from the very start had vanished into silence, as if everyone realized
this is it. One hit and it’s over. Well, they underestimated Grand Master Ho too.
As the DI closed his distance to finish him, Ho responded with a combination of fast kick to the
DI’s knee area that nearly chopped him off at the feet, followed by 4, maybe 5 rapid hand
punches into the DI’s chest and face so quickly that the DI had no chance to respond to them. He
was still off his balance by Ho’s knee chop.
The DI fell down onto his back and Ho immediately mounted on top of him, trying to unleash a
volley of punches in his face. Not only did the DI cover his face in time to block them all, he also
managed to grab Ho by the neck, pulling him towards himself. The DI was way stronger. A
simple turnaround proceeded and then the DI was on top of Ho, beating the life out of him.
The first student came up; it was not even clear if it was Master Ho’s student or just a person that
wouldn’t stand by watching Grand Master Ho being beaten to death. ‘This would be perceived as
a stain on his honour, but he decided to pay the price anyway,’ Tomas explained. The student
didn’t do much. His attempt to kick the DI off Master Ho failed. Instead, he got himself a broken
leg by the DI. The DI grabbed the student’s leg just as he finished his round house kick, then
pressing it at the calf level against his torso while a powerful open palm punch into the above
knee area did the job.
The student bought Master Ho about two seconds, which was enough for Ho to kick the DI off
him. Ho shouted out angrily at everyone: ‘NO! No one steps in! This is my fig–’
Before he managed to finish the sentence, another front push kick into his chest threw him
backwards whilst he spat out some blood. Another three students stepped in, Tomas’s friend
Chen among them. They couldn’t watch it anymore, nor ignore it. The DI got them one by one in
rapid succession with kicks into their faces or chests, striking into the direction from which they
came. One of the students obviously fell mortally wounded onto the floor. His nose got pushed
inwards into his face as it caved in. A few gurgles followed, and the amount of blood that
covered his whole face in seconds, coming out of all of his face’s orifices, spelled his coming
doom. It was truly shocking, something that Tomas hadn’t seen before.
Enraged, Ho instantly managed to land in some good kicks that didn’t get blocked, but the DI
still looked unfazed. Worst of all, those kicks visibly cost Ho a lot of energy. Then, Ho got
slapped in his face via the DI’s right backhand and he staggered to the floor again. About 20
people had stepped in, but the DI was too good for them too. Every strike or defence resulted in
their total incapacitation or breakage of any of the body’s extremities that got exposed. In less
than 12 seconds, all of them were down, and the last one got his neck snapped by the DI’s hands
in exhibition manner, sending a statement to anyone who would dare to step in next.
That was exactly what was about to happen to Grand Master Ho next. That 12 seconds that Ho
gained was only enough to get himself back onto his feet, visibly shaken and trembling, bleeding
from the mouth, nose, a ripped eyebrow, and many other bruises. He couldn’t even speak
anymore, just whisper.
Chants turned into hate statements: ‘This is what you came here to do from the start, you
animals! Fucking Sad Flutes!’ With one man still dying on the floor, one dead already, possibly
more later in the hospital, Ho barely standing and expecting his fate to come in the next moment,
Tomas had no choice.

Scooter – Hyper Hyper 3:37

Now he had to step in. Tomas regretted that it took him this long, since he had to step in anyway.
Absolute silence ensued as soon as Tomas started making his way through the angry crowd into
the ring without a word. People made way instantly, and the absolute silence that ensued caught
the attention of the DI as well, leaving Ho alone for the moment.
As Tomas became visible to him, he spewed: ‘I know who you are; you are the annoying Ghost.
This is my lucky day. I can make it out of here with unscathed honour after all, once I kill you.’
Tomas didn’t reply, there was no need to. Talking is for the weak and afraid. To him, that the DI
even needed to say that out loud was a sign of clear weakness. True evil, like Tomas turned
himself into in that moment in his heart and mind, doesn’t tell its intentions, it just acts.
There was but one conflict in Tomas’s mind: ‘Should I kill him or not?’ Chen almost just got
killed in front of him. When Tomas looked towards hurt Chen, who was crying on top of his
other friend who was still gurgling out blood, lying on the floor, he got enraged. He instantly
attacked the DI’s legs, trying to chop him off his feet, but the DI just stepped back, dodging the
attempt easily. Tomas used the created momentum, placing his left hand on the floor whilst
switching legs and then reversed the momentum into the opposite direction, kicking hard at the
DI’s face. The DI managed to block it with his left arm, just barely, but Tomas’s kick had so
much force that he staggered to his right side a few steps, to his surprise. Then Tomas closed in
his distance and a rapid exchange of attacks and blocks ensued, resulting in a backhand slap from
Tomas into the DI’s right cheek that almost knocked him off his feet completely, staggering him
backwards once again. Humiliation!
A volley of loud laughs ensued, someone in the crowd calling out to the DI: ‘Like the little bitch
that you are!’
Tomas still didn’t say a word. He just stood there with a very serious, intimidating face,
anticipating what the DI would do next.
As expected, the DI lost it completely and lashed out in anger with such determination that the
following exchange resulted into Tomas’s lip being ripped on his right side. He even started to
bleed from his nose. However, as that happened, Tomas landed a slashing kick (axe kick) with
his right leg, top to bottom onto DI’s face, sending him down unconscious for a few seconds.
Just as Tomas wiped the blood off his nose and lip, the DI regained consciousness, surprised and
confused as to what just happened.
Before he managed to get back up on his feet completely, Tomas displayed the most beautiful
execution of a powerful butterfly kick that visibly dislocated (understatement) DI’s jaw and took
his face mask off. The DI didn’t care; it was as if he was high on drugs, possibly not even
noticing it. Straight after the very quick recovery, the DI actually attacked Tomas first. His
volley of follow-up kicks and punches at first got blocked, then stopped with the DI’s left hand
being broken at the elbow and wrist. Tomas caught DI’s wrist with his left hand and pulled
towards him while his right hand was pressing against the DI’s elbow, away from him. It
happened so quickly and with such force that the loud crack of the bone accompanied with the
ripping sound of the DI’s ligaments in his elbow, along with the visual of the radius bone ripping
the skin open below the DI’s wrist as it broke, would stay in the minds of those present for a long
time after.
It was something that Tomas had done before. It wouldn’t affect him as much as the very first
time. The first time, Tomas had lost control of himself in a fight with a sadistic bully. After that,
he couldn’t help but be disgusted with himself for a long time.
At the time he broke the DI’s hand? Nothing; satisfaction, even. It’s amazing what horrors the
human mind can get accustomed to once exposed to it on a regular basis. The moment when
Tomas broke the DI’s left hand at the elbow it forced the DI to lean towards Tomas in pain,
putting all of his body weight onto his left leg. Tomas knew this would happen. He used this
moment when the DI’s knee was fully extended and loaded by the DI’s full body weight for
kicking into it from the side, snapping it inwards. The DI’s tibia got exposed when the knee
opened up like a flower.

Linkin Park – Figure.09 3:17

“And now you've become a part of me - You'll always be right here.
You've become a part of me - You'll always be my fear.
I can't separate - myself from what I've done.
Giving up a part of me, I've let myself become you!
It never goes away…”

There was no doubt anymore – the DI was out of action. His jaw was beyond dislocated, with a
tear on his left cheek because of how much it moved. The jawbone caused a laceration to his
cheek from the inside. His left elbow and knee were both snapped, with bones protruding out,
and he was bleeding out. Still, there was no begging, no cries, no pain screams. Tough
motherfucker, Tomas thought. He was just awaiting his end, looking straight into Tomas’s eyes.
If he could, he would say: ‘Finish me!’ Not because of the pain, but because he had lost. There
was no way back for him, just a chance to keep his honour and die in combat.
When the initial shock of the onlooking crowd at what just took place in front of them fell off,
the crowd’s chants calling for the DI’s death began.
Tomas didn’t say anything. He just stood there, looking at what he had done once again. Tomas
was just about to walk away. He couldn’t do it, nor did he want to do it, even though he knew
that the DI possibly killed more than just one man that had died instantly that night, his friend
Chen was visibly hurt, lamenting above the guy that erupted in blood like geyser from his mouth.
Still, he couldn’t. To him, the fight was over. The DI’s own clan would kill him anyway.
But then the DI did something unexpected. He used his good right foot to chop into Tomas’s left
knee from behind when he stood above him, sending Tomas falling onto him. Then he tried to
stab Tomas in the neck with his protruding radius bone at the wrist. Tomas caught the attempt
with his right arm, wrapping it around the DI’s forearm so that once he would fully flex his arm
at the elbow, his elbow would press against the DI’s already snapped elbow joint from behind
whilst having control of DI’s wrist, holding it. It opened DI’s wounds even more and you could
hear a loud cry of pain in that one moment. Then? Then Tomas proceeded to break that arm with
three judo rolls where he used the DI’s own body weight to generate momentum, slamming him
hard into the ground, again and again, each time while holding the DI’s already broken arm in a
fixed, static position, breaking it two more times in the forearm area.
On the third roll, Tomas grabbed the DI just above his elbow level so that the humerus bone
would break too. Then, Tomas just repositioned himself around and behind the DI’s body so the
DI would lie face down on the floor on his belly. Then, while still holding that arm at above
elbow level, Tomas pulled it up hard. At the same time, with a massive force using his power
and body weight, he stomped on him.
First, at the DI’s humerus again, the exposed bone ripped through the skin. Right after that, the
shoulder dislocated from the joint. Following up was the DI’s neck. Tomas pulled up hard on the
DI’s arm that he had in his possession, and at the same time applied a powerful kick into the DI’s
neck area just below his jawline, utilizing his strength, body weight, and the assistance of
gravity. It snapped like a match. It was the moment when the DI’s ever-increasing cries of pain
permanently stopped. They all cry in the end, Tomas thought to himself in momentary
satisfaction.
Absolute silence ensued, only because the DI’s cries faded instantly. The crowd was silent long
before that in shock, seeing that brutality, surprised by Tomas’s ability to break a man so quickly
as that. To them, it was like: snap, snap . . . snap. First two snaps of the forehand and then the
humerus, then the follow-up snap of the humerus again, continuing with the slightly delayed
snap whilst dislocating the Di’s shoulder. Then finally, the snap of the DI’s neck, and that was it.
It happened so quickly, with such brutality. They had seen Tomas do that before; he’d broken
bones multiple times, sometimes in multiple places. But never in such a manner. It was always
when the bully still tried to strike Tomas that he broke the opponent’s bone in his defence. But
never multiple times, at multiple places, after a single attack of his opponent.
It was almost like an execution. Not that the DI deserved any better. Not that they didn’t call for
the DI’s death just moments before. But because they had never seen the Ghost, “the merciful”,
lash out in such a brutal manner. The Ghost almost just walked away. Now this?
They were surprised, and so was Tomas. He couldn’t help but to think that he had let himself
down again, like being shot in the back . . . by himself. ‘You will never fight again? You are a
killer now! Look what you have done! You have become what you hate! How are you any
better?’ Tomas knew then and there that this would never go away. He would have to live with it
forever, in shame, hiding it away.
Tomas looked at Chen for the last time. Chen was looking right back at him. He didn’t see
disgust in Chen’s face, nor surprise; he almost looked thankful. But he gave Tomas a nod with
his head, as if he was saying farewell.
Tomas started to leave hastily, almost in a panic. When he was almost out, back in the streets,
Tomas could hear that the lynching of the remnants of the Flutes had begun. He wasn’t sure if it
was to protect him, or just out of pure hate, or because they could blame it on him.
Chapter 7: The Exile

Linkin Park – Fallout 1:23

“I'm swimming in the smoke - of bridges I have burned.
So, don't apologize - I'm losing what I don't deserve.”

On his way out, he sank into thoughts of what just happened. Ho, supported by two others, had
caught up with Tomas.
Grand Master Ho stated, ‘I appreciate what you have done. But perhaps, it would have been
better if you had just let me die.’
Tomas replied, ‘How could I, Grand Master? And I wasn’t the only one trying to save you. How
many more would have died if I hadn’t stepped in? The whole gathering would have laid their
lives down before they would let you die.’
Ho got quiet for a moment, almost as if he had come to the same conclusion in that instance.
‘Perhaps you are right, Tomas. I have taught you sword-mastery for years, but I cannot protect
you; not in China anyway.’
‘What are you trying to say, Master?’
‘I’m saying that you are a dead man walking. The whole triad will go after you now. You took
out their DI for the Sad Flutes, the “special jobs” assassins!’
‘Who will tell them that it was me? Their apprentices were taken care of by the crowd.’
‘I know,’ Grand Master Ho replied. ‘But they have spies everywhere. Surely, they will find out
who opposed them and won; they will learn the truth of who killed their DI. It won’t matter that
the rest got finished off by the others. Once the DI lost, he was a dead man in the eyes of the
triads anyway. The apprentices were of very little value to the triads. I hope, or the same fate will
be ours.’
‘What shall I do, Master?’ Tomas asked.
‘You can’t do much here. You have to get out of China. Immediately!’
‘I presume I can’t go back to my family.’
Ho nodded. ‘You would presume right. Whatever you do, don’t go back to them. Don’t talk to
them, don’t do anything that can connect you to them. You have the advantage that you are a
very private person. Even I don’t know much. And what I do know is, will be, and always was,
safe with me. I promise you that. These two with me will have to forget that I called you by your
name, Ghost.’
The students that supported Ho nodded and bowed down to both Tomas and Master Ho.
‘I appreciate that, Master. So, I can expect a hit on me then?’
‘On that, you can count. The thing is, should you stay in China, even if you would get the first
team sent, there would be thousands more to go after you. I’ll send you to the USA; the triads are
not so strong there. I’ll give you all the details and instructions once we are alone. This also, you
need to forget,’ Grand Master Ho instructed, looking at the two with him. Once again, they
nodded and bowed down.
Tomas asked, ‘Why the USA?’
Master Ho replied, ‘You can run where you want. The hit will happen anyway. But in the USA,
the triads are relatively small fish, restricted to their own territory. In countries that they don’t do
business, the hit would happen anyway, but there would be no one else to worry about for them
not to cross their territory. No threat for them to lose business as a result of overstepping their
boundaries in order to do the hit on you. In the US, there is a lot of competition. Their ability to
do the hit on you will be limited. You could almost dictate the conditions of where and when,
without them realizing it’s a trap. And since their human resources would be limited as well, you
could get away with just one hit attempt, before giving up in favour of not losing their power in
the face of their competition.’
‘I see,’ said Tomas. ‘Then there is no way out of this?’
‘I am afraid not. I know this is not what you want to hear, but it is kill or be killed now. You
could go completely off the grid, I suppose. Hide in woods, caves, rainforests. Just away from
civilization, and you would not be worth the time and resources it would take for them to find
you. But as long as you live in civilization, they will find you, and they will do the hit, even if
you should live in a faraway mountain community in Nepal. Is living in solitary an option for
you?’ Master Ho asked, studying Tomas’s face.
Tomas thought a moment. ‘No, it isn’t. I’d rather die.’
‘Then you have no choice. I’m sorry. You disgraced them in such a way, it’s an honour matter
for them. A necessity to set an example.’
 Linkin Park (feat. Pusha T and Stormzy) – Good Goodbye 3:36
“So say goodbye and hit the road - pack it up and disappear.
You better have some place to go - 'cause you can't come back around here.
Good goodbye.”

Tomas just nodded his head in a defeated manner. Ho wanted to take Tomas straight to the
airport, insisting that they had no time to collect any belongings of his. Tomas said that he would
need his passport, at the very least. Ho agreed, and suggested he should go with him. Once they
arrived, Tomas was only to find his passport and cash, should he have it – no luggage. Ho
promised that once Tomas left, he would personally destroy all of his remaining belongings, to
get rid of any leads to his private life, protecting his family and friends.
Tomas knew that he could trust Master Ho with his life, and it would be done so. Ho gave Tomas
a paper with the instructions that he scrambled while Tomas was collecting his bank cards and
IDs. It contained information on what to do in the airport and after. Apparently, Tomas was to fly
into Illinois, then make his way into the city of Bloomington. The nearest triad cell was in
Chicago, surrounded by its competition. Tomas would surely be found eventually, but
Bloomington was far enough away to make them stretch their forces to attempt the hit.
Ho had an old friend there that had a grocery store. He was sure Tomas could work there until
the hit would happen, after Tomas explained that he was being sent by Ho. The hit was unlikely
to happen in public. ‘Most likely it will happen in your home.’ Ho suggested that Tomas live
alone, so as not to endanger anyone else. But he was sure that he didn’t need to tell that to Tomas
at all. He was right. Ho reassured Tomas that if anyone could live through this, it was him; that
he was ready, well trained. The last instruction Master Ho gave was that Tomas should never
come back into China again, or, ‘You are a dead man for sure’.
Tomas didn’t need to be told twice. He had been planning to leave China for years now anyway.
Tomas hadn’t been ready yet, but he was getting there. Now, he had no choice. Tomas wasn’t
welcome anymore; he felt like a criminal on the run. ‘That I am’, he would add about himself.
Still, as he was sitting in the airplane looking out of the window at the take-off, nostalgia hit him
hard. ‘Goodbye, Honk Kong. Goodbye, China, I will miss you after all.’
 Linkin Park – Sharp Edges 2:58
“Stay along the beaten path - never listened when she said.
Sharp edges have consequences - I guess that I had to find out for myself.”

Sitting in the plane, Tomas got lost in his own thoughts again, this time thinking about his life,
the choices that he’d made. Where he’d made mistakes. That he should have listened to his mom.
She always wanted for him to go to the UK. ‘Go, find a job first, then try to get a diploma at
university. Get the paper, find a stable, good-paying job, then get married and have a family.’
That had sounded to him like being too normal. ‘Why was that not enough? Why did I have to
get into martial arts at all? When did you ever have to fight before? Where would you have to
fight ever, if not in the ring? For the blood money?’ It was killing him inside. Why did I leave
Felicity? For what? For something that may have not happened at all? We could have gone
together to the UK, marry later. She was a decent woman that you couldn’t find ever again.
Look! Just look how you repaid her! You yourself know best that intentions don’t count as much
as actions. You could have had a degree by now, maybe even a PhD, a good-paying job, wife,
and family! Instead, you have become a murderer on the run. Endangering everyone that ever
knew you. You can’t even contact your family! Tomas’s inner torment continued.
‘How will you protect them now? By not being there for them? By endangering them via simple
association with you? You deserve everything that happened to you, starting with how skinny
you were as a kid! Nature knew best, and tried to protect everybody by not allowing you to be
what you would become otherwise. But you had to beat her too . . .’
He was angry at himself.
‘Are you proud now? You feel man enough now?’ The answer would be no. Tomas still felt like
a little boy in a man’s body. ‘I should have listened to Mom.’ She always resented him doing the
martial arts. As much as she was proud to have such a capable man around, she saw how
overprotective he was of his sister and her. She often had to calm situations down, as Tomas
would get into other people’s faces very quickly should he feel that someone disrespected them
or presented danger to them. All that wouldn’t be necessarily bad, if it wasn’t for Tomas really
being overboard with it, overreacting at miniscule things. Even Tomas knew it, but took pride in
it because he really wanted to show them both that he could, and would, protect them in the face
of anything. After all, wasn’t this the reason why he “transformed” in the first place? It was only
natural that he was on the lookout for any potential trouble, desperately wanting to prove to them
both how “dangerous” he had become on every visit he made, thus to prove to them that they
were totally safe with him, that he was the man now, despite they themselves telling him that it
was basically impossible when he was still just a boy. It was important to him. Not to prove them
wrong, but so that they both could be proud of him.
But deep down, Tomas still thought that it wasn’t worth it, not if it led where it did lead him into.
‘I should have listened to Mom . . . she was right all along. But I guess I had to find that out for
myself.’
As always, Tomas was calm on the surface. No one could see what was going on in his head.

Linkin Park – Sorry For Now 3:23

“So I'll be sorry for now, that I couldn't be around - sometimes things refuse to go the way we
planned. Oh, I'll be sorry for now, that I couldn't be around - there will be a day that
you will understand.”

Happy that he managed to slip away from China without the interference of the police or the
triads, Tomas arrived at Ho’s friend Mike Chang’s store. There was no discussion needed, to
Tomas’s surprise. Mike took him into the store and helped find him a suitable, secluded place in
Twin Grove to live in, until the hit would happen. Tomas hadn’t said anything to anybody about
him leaving China. He knew that soon enough, his mom first would probably start to worry
about him, wondering what had happened to him. Soon she would realize that he was
permanently offline on the Skype, that his phone was cut off, there would be no response on
email, and that he had no contact with anyone else in a longer time. ‘She will go mental, same as
sis, Dad, and a couple of old friends and family members.’ Tomas was afraid of what it would do
to them; he would essentially be a missing person in China. ‘Equal to most likely dead.’
They would probably go looking for him there, but they wouldn’t exactly know where to go.
Hong Kong and its surroundings were massive, and Tomas was moving around a lot anyway.
For the most part, hiding it from them as well, because of the fights. ‘It’s unlikely they should
get into any trouble with the triads’, Tomas comforted himself. ‘But only God knows what will
happen after they come to terms that I am most likely dead.’ For all he knew, they could be right
about it at that time – that he would be dead, that is. He may die in the US while they are looking
for him in China.
Tomas wanted to see them one last time, to at least contact them somehow without exposing
them to danger. After a while, only a few days into his arrival in the US, he decided to send a
letter via post. It was unlikely that the triads would already know his location. By letter, he could
let them know to not go looking for him in Hong Kong. He just wouldn’t include a return
address, or make up one if he had to.
In the letter, Tomas told them that he was going to work on something secret, and may not be
able to contact anyone for a few months, possibly longer, but that he was no longer in China and
that was as much as he could disclose. He didn’t even write that he loved them – ‘Idiot!’ he
chastised himself. He really wanted to, but Tomas had never, ever, said that before. ‘They would
realize that something was very wrong, should he do that. ‘They know anyway’, he comforted
himself. ‘Nothing needs to be said. Their security is of the utmost importance.’
Should he die, Tomas thought that they may assume he was working for the government as a spy
or something and possibly died on a mission that wasn’t official, so no one would present them
with the flag. And of what country? Maybe he was working for China’s government as a
Slovakian spy. China would never admit officially that he spied for them. Or, they could have
assumed that Tomas was a criminal who died as a criminal. ‘No, they know better.’
There was not much else to do. Tomas was just waiting to get noticed. He was sure that would
happen. This was not the American dream he had imagined . . .

Linkin Park – Wastelands 3:15

“In the wastelands of today - when tomorrow disappears,
when the future slips away - and your hope turns into fear.”

‘Will they just take me down with a sniper? Not much I can do there. If I was them, I’d play it
safe. They know what I can do now. Or will they try to teach me a lesson, to make an example of
me? I hope that they will try, it gives me a chance.’
Days passed by and Tomas got to know Mike better. Mike got to know Tomas better. Not only
did he grow to like Tomas a lot, he gained a lot of respect for him learning about his past. Mike
himself was three times divorced, and insisted on Tomas making the right choices in his life. He
said that there is not one man in this world that hasn’t been betrayed by a woman.’
Mike ranted, ‘Hell, there is no woman in the world who hasn’t been betrayed by a woman either!
Sooner or later, this Felicity of yours would give you more pain in life than joy. And then, as you
know, the only logical option would be to leave her. But marriage being what it is, you would be
the loser in the divorce. Why play a game that is rigged? Why attach to something that can’t be
trusted–’
Tomas interrupted, ‘So again, how many times you have been married already?’
Mike grinned, ‘Well, it’s true. Only a woman can truly make you the happiest man ever, at least
in the beginning. I swore after each divorce that I would never do it again, but then I fell victim
to my own stupidity and lack of discipline down the line.’
‘That begs the million-dollar question,’ Tomas replied. ‘Was it not worth it then?’
Mike looked like he was really thinking about the answer for a couple seconds. ‘For the kids
alone, it most definitely was,’ he replied resolutely.
‘You said that your former wives turned your kids against you!’ Tomas responded, a bit
surprised.
 ‘I wasn’t a good father in the first place,’ Mike admitted. ‘Unlike yours. It might have been for
the best, but that won’t change the fact that my kids are the most precious things I have in this
world, and now that they’re adults, we’re slowly finding our way to each other anyway. It was
well worth it.’
‘And if there had been no kids?’
Mike took an even longer pause to think about it. ‘I still wouldn’t change anything,’ he admitted,
surprising Tomas, whose face told the tale.
‘What?’ Mike continued. ‘It is like asking a junkie if the heroin was worth it. I knew the second
and third time that it would most likely end up ugly, but still hoped that the withdrawal after the
high wouldn’t happen. The short, good times were stronger persuasion than the absolutely
devastating and soul-crushing divorces that proceeded next after a rather long period of really
bad times.’
‘And you would still do the same?’ Tomas asked incredulously.
Mike scoffed. ‘Don’t be like me. Do as I say, not as I do!’ he said, grinning at their bantering.
It amused Tomas, who grinned back.
‘There will be no fourth wife, I can guarantee you that!’ Mike swore resolutely.
‘Only because you’re now too old – a grumpy, ugly fart that couldn’t pull off getting another
wife should you sell your soul for it,’ he laughed.
They both shared a good laugh after that.
‘You’re probably right,’ Mike agreed. ‘Anyway, it would have only made the situation worse
should you have family right now.’
‘Yeah,’ Tomas said in a defeated manner, almost a moan, looking to the floor. ‘But at least I
would feel like I have something. This way, as you said, my life is like a wasteland; I’ve got
nothing to lose. They can’t take anything more away from me but my life, which is not worth
much right now, looking at my future. Well, provided that they have no idea about my mom and
sister or friends. Should they ever touch any of them because of me, I would unleash such a hell
on their lives that they would regret for a long time they ever went after me. As long as I would
breathe, I would hunt them down one by one!’ There was a strong determination in his voice.
‘This is why I like you,’ Mike responded. ‘You don’t really care what happens to you, as long as
no one else that you love will go down because of you. You want to survive this only to make
sure that your mom and sister don’t have to deal with your death.’
‘Exactly. What is there for me in the future? I’ve got nothing. No degree, no wife, no kids, no
money. It would take me years to get my own gym, which I would like to have in the future. It’s
a lot of work starting from scratch again. I’m ten years behind where I should be!’
‘Hard work, you say? Something you are new to?’
Tomas just laughed. ‘No, not really.’
Mike replied, ‘There you go! As you said before, you do have a family. You have something to
live for, to fight to see again.’
‘True, but right now, I’ve got none. I hope the triads don’t know. God knows if it ever will be
safe for me to contact them again.’ Tomas gathered himself. ‘Let them come. I’ve got nothing to
lose.’

Linkin Park – Roads Untraveled 3:44

“Weep not for roads untraveled, weep not for paths left lone - 'cause beyond every bend is a
long blinding end - it's the worst kind of pain I've known.”

Mike noted, ‘You know, I would really prefer for you to try to run, to avoid all of this. But on the
other hand, if you don’t face them, you can’t cause damage to their business. It’s all about
business for them, you see. Right now, it seems to be more profitable for them to make an
example of you so that others will know not to mess with them. However, should you make them
more losses to the business, they would not come after you again. It wouldn’t be profitable, and
it would be too risky. Surely, they would rather spend resources on a coverup and denial of what
really happened should you defy them again, punishing all that would try to expose the truth
instead. Surely.
‘Right now? They’re trying to make a statement. You must try to make your own. Make it not
worth it for them to come after you again. Then, maybe you could even see your family again. It
would still be risky though. Should you give them an easier target to get to you, they may find
that profitable.’
Tomas nodded grimly. ‘Thanks. That just makes me want to kill all of them.’
‘Oh, no!’ Mike exclaimed. ‘You can’t do that. That would be a huge loss to the city of Chicago
and the surrounding area!’
Tomas erupted in laughter.
‘But seriously,’ Mike continued, ‘don’t do that. Should you go after them, they would have no
choice but to paint a huge target on you, investing everything that they have into taking you
down to protect the business they have here. It would be suicide. You can live through this, but
only if you play defence. Once the hit is over, it will be too risky to get back to your old life. You
will have to make a new life for yourself. With a new family, should you want it.’
Tomas shook his head. ‘Exposing someone else to the danger? No, I don’t think so. But, I could
send some pictures via post as proof that I’m still alive. Keep my family thinking that I’m a top-
secret agent, or something. I could send them some money to support them! Maybe, over time, I
could figure out a safe way to see them again as well!’
‘I’m sure you will.’
A momentary silence ensued.
‘What about you?’ Tomas asked.
‘What about me?’
‘Aren’t you guilty by association now too? If they have found out about me by now, they know
that you are helping me. Aren’t you scared that they will go after you too?’
‘Well, I’m glad you finally asked! That just means you care now. I guess I’m under your
protection too.’ Mike lightened up whilst Tomas’s face turned into a “maybe” expression, then
into a smirk right after.
Mike continued. ‘You don’t have to worry about me. As you know, I’m a friend and a part of
Grand Master Ho’s clan. Should they kill me, that would create tension between the triads and
the schools back home. Not good for their business. They may destroy my shop. Who cares? It’s
your ass you should worry about. I really hope you are as good as Grand Master Ho says. I
would hate to see you die.’
‘Thank you, Mike . . . for everything. I will never be able to pay you back.’ Tomas looked
sincere, but was looking to the ground as if he was ashamed.
‘Yes, yes you will! Just kick those punks’ asses for me please!’ he said passionately.
Tomas looked directly into Mike’s face.
Mike explained, ‘I fucking hate the triads! I would probably cry from happiness seeing one man
defeat them. The police don’t do shit; they are in their pockets. You, you could serve some
justice to them finally! For that, I would pay all I have. Just remember, when it comes to the
things that you have done in the past, sometimes, the only way to fight the evil is to become an
even bigger evil, to be the top dog. Only then you can dictate the conditions, to change
something. You must be feared for people to obey your rules. You did what you had to, and the
fact that you suffer for it on the inside makes me certain that you are a good man, willing to do
what has to be done, not thinking about himself. I would feel much safer with you being the top
dog than anybody else.’
That’s exactly how Tomas felt about it. ‘But, I do enjoy causing harm to those people in the
moment when it happens. Regret comes later. Each time, a little bit less. It makes me wonder,
what will I become when there is no more regret?’
‘I doubt that will ever happen. Not to you. I’m good at reading people; that’s why I feel
comfortable helping you in the first place. It’s somewhat of a risk, but for a man like you,
although still a stranger, I will risk it!’ Mike looked determined.
Tomas just nodded his head, making a gratitude gesture with his hands, but remained silent.
‘Besides, you may not live that long, so focus on the task at hand. There will be a lot of
celebrations should you succeed; a lot of happy people will find their justice thanks to you.’ With
spirit, Mike poked once into Tomas’s chest.
‘Yeah, no pressure, got it.’ Tomas saluted Mike as to an officer, which made Mike grin.
They spent that night playing online games together on the PC, just like Tomas did when he was
younger, much less in recent years. He was still a gamer at heart, just couldn’t find enough time
to play the way he would like to play due to the commitments and the physical training that he
underwent every day, mostly only after 9:00 p.m. for an hour or two, before he went to bed. As
they played hours long into the night, for the first time in a long time, Tomas was able to forget
completely everything that had happen. To just, relax. To not dwell on things that may have
been, or not. To forget Felicity again.
Little did he know that not only was he already located by the triads, the plan on taking him
down was already in motion. It was decided to make an example of him and to bring his head
back to China for display. For that, they knew they would need to assemble the best team of
assassins they could pay for. Their respect for the Ghost was great, once they dug deeper into his
scores of the unofficial street fights and the martial arts schools’ tournaments. He was pretty
much the undisputed champion of both for years now. They were certain that after killing the
Flute’s DI, he must have become an assassin for hire himself. A good one, due to his skill, and
since they couldn’t find any information on him at all, nor any connections outside of Chen and
Ho.
They couldn’t touch Ho, and Chen died without telling them anything about Tomas. He didn’t
really know anything, and what Chen did tell them, they wouldn’t believe. It sounded too
ordinary. As far as the triads were concerned, Chen didn’t tell them anything but lies.
Tomas never learned about Chen’s fate. Neither Ho nor Mike had the heart to tell him. Chen was
Tomas’s closest friend in China.
The triads had no choice. The Assassin’s Guild was contacted, and 1 million dollars of bounty
was placed on Tomas’s head. They hoped that someone, somewhere, would recognize him in
their circles and try to cash in on eliminating their competition. Perhaps someone that the Ghost
trusted would betray him, if the price was right.
Tough luck; Tomas was virtually a ghost now.
It was June 2014. He was still 29 years old.
 End of Part I
Linkin Park – Somewhere I Belong (zwieR.Z. Remix) 4:08
Linkin Park – Burning In The Skies 4:13
Linkin Park – FRGT 10 Ft. Alchemist, Chali 2na (Reanimation)
Linkin Park – Roads Untraveled (Rad Omen Remix) (Feat. Bun B) 5:28
Linkin Park – Breaking The Habit (zwieR.Z. Remix) 3:04
 The Struggle for Justice and Truth

by

Tomas Cudzis

Part 2 – Me, the Animal Takes Control

Soundtrack in Order of Appearance:

Part II: Me, the Animal Takes Control

Chapter 1: Calm Before the Storm……………………………5

8. Linkin Park – Battle Symphony 3:42

9. Linkin Park – Easier To Run 3:24

10. Linkin Park – Victimized 1:51

11. Linkin Park – Blackout 4:39

12. Linkin Park – Lost In The Echo 3:23

Chapter 2: Despair…………………………………………...13

5. Ramstein – Spelch 4:48

6. Linkin Park – Key to the Kingdom 3:38

7. Linkin Park – From The Inside 2:55

8. Linkin Park – By Myself 3:11

9. Linkin Park – Wretches and Kings 4:15

Chapter 3: This is it…………………………………………..23

1. Rammstein – Du hast 3:55

2. Rammstein – Eifersucht 3:36

Chapter 4: New Allies?………………………………………27

1. Linkin Park – Opening 1:07 (Reanimation)

2. System of a Down – Ego Brain 3:25

3. Metallica – Bleeding Me 8:16

4. Linkin Park – Catalyst 5:39

Chapter 5: Still Hunted………………………………………42

1. Linkin Park – When They Come For Me 4:55

2. Linkin Park – Runaway 3:05

3. U96 – Das Boot (Techno version) 5:13

4. Linkin Park – Skin to Bone (zwierz rock remix) 3:24

5. Scooter – Fire 3:32

Chapter 6: Enough is Enough!…………………………………………56

1. Linkin Park – Nobody’s Listening 2:58

2. Linkin Park – A Light That Never Comes (Rick Rubin Reboot) 4:40

3. Linkin Park – War 2:11

4. Linkin Park – NTR-MSSION 0:29 (Reanimation)

Chapter 7: Bloodbath……………………………………………………64

1. L.A.Style – James Brown is Dead 5:38

2. Bjork – Army of Me (feat. Skunk Anansie) 6:50

3. Rammstein – Feuer Frei! 3:13

4. The Equalizer OST – Zack Hemsey - Vengeance 6:33

5. Globus – Preliator 4:28

Chapter 8: Reborn………………………………………………………77

1. Sia – Alive 4:26

2. Hans Zimmer – Time 4:35

3. The XX – Intro (Long version) 5:17

End of Part II…………………..…………………………………………..91

1. Linkin Park – Victimized (zwierz remix) 2:04

2. Linkin Park – Blackout (zwierz remix) 3:29

3. Linkin Park – Lost In The Echo (zwierz remix) 4:05

4. Linkin Park – Skin to Bone 3:54 (Recharged – Nick Cathdubs Remix)

5. Linkin Park – A Light That Never Comes (Rick Rubin Reboot) 4:40

6. Linkin Park – Lost In The Echo 5:09 (Recharged – Killsonik Remix)

7. Linkin Park – Victimized 2:59 (Recharged – Mike Shinoda Remix)

8. Linkin Park – Skin to Bone 2:48

Part II: Me, the

Animal Takes

Control
o Chapter 1: Calm Before the Storm

Linkin Park – Battle Symphony 3:42

“If my armor breaks, I’ll fuse it back together.”

It was July 2014, the third week in the US for Tomas. Things looked calm and settled, nothing

out of the ordinary. Tomas knew it was an illusion. “Calm before the storm…” But he had very

high spirits and felt confident. Confident that he could live through this, and possibly serve some

justice for some locals in the process. This was something he could be proud of, and it had been

a long time since Tomas felt proud. The last time was for transforming himself, but now he

wasn’t even sure about that. The things he had done thanks to it…the guilt he felt because of it,

almost wiped out the sense of accomplishment completely.

But there was hope that Tomas could turn it into something positive, and to feel proud again.

About all of it. He wasn’t naive; he knew how serious his situation was, that his life was at stake,

for real. That he would most likely face many, and his chances were slim at best. They may

torture him before they kill him, should he surrender or be captured alive. Not an option.

Mike received info from his sources (Tomas didn’t know who they were) that there was a bounty

on his head. That made Mike really nervous. He started to insist more and more, that Tomas

should run now that there was no hope of winning. Mike said to Tomas that he was most likely

just waiting to be violently killed should he stay with him.

But Tomas always reminded Mike what he had told him before; that he needed to face them

should he even hope for the triads to ever leave him alone, should he ever hope for new start in

life.
As time passed, Mike’s sources revealed more teams were getting interested in the hit. Mike

grew more sceptical, almost hostile at times towards Tomas, arguing, that he was being stupid to

not run now.

Tomas never asked where this information was coming from. He could always read people well,

and he trusted Mike with his life. Tomas knew, one simply doesn’t ask about the source if one

will not tell on his own. Tomas thought he knew all he had to know about Mike, and just

reminded him not to give up on him just yet, that he’d been underestimated by others his whole

life and he would be just as much by those who would come after him.

Every time Tomas’s life turned difficult and it felt like someone had shut off all the lights in his

life, he didn’t break. Instead, he heard a strong call, almost a symphony that called him to fight.

To resist, to carry on, and change his misfortune. It worked every single time. With every new

occasion like that, Tomas grew even stronger armour that protected him ever after. Now and

then, some parts of that armour may have gotten chipped away, but Tomas survived, and fused it

all back together. He reminded Mike that negativity never helps, and that he was perfectly aware

of the dangers and the chance that he was taking by not running. But he’d been able to beat even

worse odds before, alone, and he would do it now too – with or without Mike’s support.

Tomas told Mike that he had done more than enough already, for which he was infinitely

grateful. He told him that he understood why Mike wanted to back off now; that it may feel like

he was being part of Tomas’s murder, and just couldn’t sit back and watch him die, but that he,

Tomas, was ready to face his enemies.

 Linkin Park – Easier To Run 3:24

“Sometimes I remember the darkness of my past, bringing back these memories

I wish I didn't have.
Sometimes I think of letting go and never looking back, and never moving forward
so there'd never be a past.”
It made Tomas think, though – doubt would be a better expression – about life, and his choices
so far. Regrets raised. The vicious cycle of his lately life: –> look back –> regret –>stabilize –
>repeat. A very feminine trait, he thought. Tomas hated it. Not because it was feminine, but
because he was a man and acted feminine with this volatility of his. It was only beneath the
surface, though. Tomas never expressed his problems on the outside, his unhappiness or feeling
of being a victim. He was no goddamn victim! He would solve his problems. Unhappiness is a
choice, and no one else needs to be burdened by that. Such is the duty of every man. You don’t
create drama, you solve it! You face whatever needs to be faced. Although, it wasn’t always easy
for him to hide it. One day, Mike noticed.
Mike asked, ‘You okay, T?’

‘I’m fine, why?’ he replied in an overly assertive voice.

‘Nothing, just wonder what’s on your mind. Did you think about what I said?’

Tomas replied, ‘I’m not running away, Mike. My choices brought me here, to this place. I have

no regrets. I wouldn’t have met you otherwise, for which I’m grateful. More importantly, I can

win; nothing is lost.’

‘No regrets at all? So, if you had a chance to do your life all over again, would you still do

exactly the same?’

Tomas replied, ‘Of course not! I’m not an idiot. There is no point in making the same mistakes

all over again, once you recognize that it was a mistake. If I could change, I would! If I could

retrace every wrong move I made, I would! But there is no point in dwelling on things that you

can’t change. Like your past. Regret is a negative feeling, and negativity never helps. If I can’t
change why I have the regret anymore, it’s time to move on.’ He paused momentarily before

continuing.

‘Yeah, saying that I have no regrets is more a metaphor than truth. I do have regrets, but those

can’t be healed anymore. Things that caused them in the past can’t be changed anymore. So no, I

have no regrets, because I do my best to fix what can be fixed. What more can I ask of myself to

have peace of mind?’

‘But you don’t have peace of mind, do you?’

Tomas lashed out at Mike. ‘Only because I’m not strong enough!’

This surprised Mike a lot. It was the first sight of “weakness” that Tomas ever expressed. He was

always so calm and collected before.

Mike noted, ‘This has obviously bothered you for a long time now. Why didn’t you say anything

before?’

‘Yeah, it is much easier to just express your unhappiness and burden others by it, than taking

action or consideration as to what it may do to others.’

‘It’s not a burden to me; I will help you if I can.’

‘You have already helped me enough, Mike, but with all due respect, you can’t help me with

this.’

‘Not if we don’t talk about it.’ Mike never expected that it would happen though, knowing

Tomas was an introverted person when it came to talking about his problems. But it was worth a

shot.
Tomas said, ‘Look, I know you’re trying to help, and I can see why. I seem a bit off today. But

I’m trying my best to ignore it myself. My logic is sound; it tells me that I should stop dwelling

on the past. I know I should, but sometimes, I simply can’t. There are a lot of things that I’m

ashamed of.’

‘You have nothing to be ashamed of, Tomas. You have been a victim of your circumstances.’

Linkin Park – Victimized 1:51

“Victimized, victimized, never again victimized!”

‘What circumstances?!’ Tomas raised his voice louder, which surprised Mike even more. He

didn’t recognize the Tomas he was talking to at all. Tomas was obviously vulnerable and

sensitive, protecting himself via his aggressive behaviour.

Mike started, ‘You know, that you were born –’

Tomas didn’t give him a chance to finish. ‘What!? A man in a woman’s body? A weakling?’

Mike stopped him. ‘I was about to say smaller than other boys.’

Tomas challenged, ‘So what? I changed that. It doesn’t matter now at all!’ Mike wanted to say

that it obviously still does, but decided not to.

‘But it had put you on a road –’

Tomas interrupted Mike before he could finish his sentence once again. It was very rude and

unusual for Tomas to do that, and made Mike worry even more about his state of mind.

‘Of what? Violence?’

‘Yes! You said before that you needed to feel like a man, and everything you did was essentially

not just to become a “real” man, but the best of them all. The “manliest” in your own eyes.’

Tomas said, ‘How has that made me a victim? I’m the perpetrator, if anything!’

‘You’re a good man, Tomas. I’m trying to help you, not to upset you. You don’t deserve any of

this.’

Tomas replied, ‘But I do deserve this; I do! And this is my chance to redeem myself. To do

something decent for a change. I will not run!’

‘Decent? By further violence? How did you get into this situation in the first place?’ Tomas

didn’t want to answer that. It was very well because of the same intentions as he had now.

‘Do you understand what the triads may do to you?’

Tomas said, ‘I do!’

Mike raised his voice above Tomas’s level.

‘No you don’t!’

Momentary silence was followed by the calmed-down voice of Mike. ‘If you did, you would run,

fool.’

Tomas calmed down too.

Tomas said, ‘Yeah, it’s so much easier to run away from your problems, but that’s for losers! It

creates a dependency on others; slavery by choice.’

Mike replied, ‘What does that even mean?’

Tomas replied, ‘It means that if you have a problem and your only choice is either to run or rely

on others to fix it for you, you’re dependent! If you’re dependent on others, then you end up

being their slave, by choice!’

‘What? You say that I can’t help you without making you my slave?’

‘I’m saying that I’m no goddamn victim, and don’t deserve help from you or anyone else. And I

will not run like one!’

‘That’s not true, and it didn’t answer my question.’

‘I’m no victim, Mike.’

‘Okay, you’re no victim. Can you answer my question now? Why can’t I help you without

making you my slave?’ Tomas just waved his arms in a defeated manner.

‘Okay, maybe you can, but only because I take part in solving my problem as well. If one can’t

raise a finger to solve his own problems, even when others are taking care of that problem for

him already, then he is just a parasite, a liability. A woman!’ Tomas paused, as if he realized he

was just rambling.

Mike couldn’t even follow the conversation anymore. To him, it was just that. Rambling.

Tomas said, ‘But at least women like that still have value, even though that value has an expiry

date. Men like that? Truly useless. Over time, a slave, always in debt to someone.’

Mike was flabbergasted. ‘What is this “woman” ramble about? Are you trying to tell me that you

can’t accept more help because it makes you feel like a woman? Grow up!’

Tomas’s facial expression suggested that was exactly what was going on, and that he could see

the absurdity of it, but he still continued. ‘You want to help? You want me to run, Mike, or to
talk me into running! I don’t find that helpful! In fact, right now, I find it contra-productive and

negative. What happened to the neighbourhood champion? To serve some justice for us all?’

‘The people will carry on living without you, or your help; don’t flatter yourself!’

This shocked Tomas to the core. Mike saw that in his face, so he paused for a moment before

continuing. ‘Listen, the situation has changed, and I don’t think you fully realize the seriousness

of it, Tomas.’

‘How? They wanted to kill me, and they still want to kill me! What has changed?!’

‘Their numbers; you have been put on a hit list! That means it’s not just the triads that will come

after you.’

Tomas said, ‘I’m not afraid of them. They will not make me run; they will not make me a

victim!’

‘What are you talking about? Victim, how?’

Tomas said, ‘What would my life be like after? Oh boo-hoo, poor me, I’m exiled, can’t contact

my family and I’m being chased after by hitmen and the triads. They will not make a victim out

of me; I’ll make them my victims!’

‘You are insane, listen to yourself! You can’t run away because that makes you feel inferior? A

victim? Be smart, run!’

Tomas was very disappointed. Once again, people just didn’t get it. Mike hadn’t seen Tomas in

action, so it was understandable, but Tomas was so sure that he’d got it right, and that now was

the time to resist. The people’s champion idea was very appealing to him – almost redeeming, in

a sense – for what he’d done. To him, there was no point in continuing the discussion.
Tomas said, ‘I thank you for all you have done so far for me, Mike, but it would be better if I

could just go home now.’

He waited for Mike’s response, but Mike remained silent. It looked like he was thinking.

Tomas said, ‘Can I!?’ If Mike didn’t know Tomas better, it would have almost sounded like a

threat.

Tomas was still to do the remainder of his shift in Mike’s grocery shop, but it was a fake job

anyway, and Mike didn’t really need him to be there and help.

‘You can go,’ Mike said. ‘Do some thinking. We’ll talk tomorrow.’

Tomas retorted, ‘Or not.’

Mike wasn’t sure if that was regarding the thinking, or talking, or both. Or just coming to work

tomorrow at all. But he did let it go. Tomas wasn’t himself that day, and Mike felt that he might

have made it worse.

Linkin Park – Blackout 4:39

“You say that it's not your fault - and said that I am mistaken.
You said it's not what it seems, no remorse for the trust you're breaking…”

Tomas felt betrayed, in a sense, and once again, by a person that presumably cared about him.

Once again, because Mike believed that it was in Tomas’s best interest. But how could it be? By

not supporting him? Suggesting that he should run like a coward? Going against his own initial

advice? Based on information coming from an undisclosed source? ‘Who was this informant?’

Tomas knew it couldn’t have been Grand Master Ho, or Mike would have said something. Who

else could have known about the triads and the hit taking place on him besides Ho? Why was
Mike hiding that information? As much as it was inappropriate to ask, Tomas knew that sooner

or later, he would have to ask him to understand what was going on.

The following day, Tomas came to work as usual, and Mike pretended like nothing had

happened yesterday. Tomas didn’t take any action. He thought that maybe it was for the best. He

might not get any answers, but he would not get nagged about running away in return.

The day passed without them speaking one word to each other. As Tomas was getting ready to

head back home, Mike asked him if he wouldn’t mind staying for a quick chat.

‘No, I wouldn’t. What’s up?’

‘You didn’t say much today.’

Tomas said calmly, ‘Didn’t want to have an argument again.’

‘Listen, I’m sorry if you feel that way, but I’m trying to help you. I’m not supposed to warn you

about how many are coming after you, but I did.’

Tomas said, ‘Wait, who is this informant, and why are you not supposed to let me know about

how many are coming after me? Who are you working for?’ He could wait no longer.

‘I’m not working for anyone,’ Mike responded. ‘I’m a store owner! But I have some

connections that I’m not at liberty to talk about.’

Tomas asked, ‘Why not? And why am I not supposed to know about the dangers? Do you realize

how it seems now?’

‘How?’
‘Like you may have been working for “them” all along, and now that we made friends, you are

feeling guilty and trying to save me.’

Before Mike was able to respond to that, Tomas jumped in again.

‘Let me tell you, you have no idea what I’m truly capable of, and should I find you are involved

in the hit on me –’

Mike’s face turned angry and he interrupted Tomas. ‘You are threatening me now?! I’m trying to

save you, for fuck’s sake!’

Tomas said, ‘Okay, so why are you not supposed to tell me about the danger?’

‘Because you might run away!’

Tomas laughed hard, and in intimidating manner, continued. ‘And why would that be a bad thing

for your source, if their goal was not to kill me?’

‘Can’t answer that; that would defeat the purpose.’

Tomas pressed, ‘What purpose?’

‘Can’t tell. You have to trust me.’

Tomas smirked. ‘Trust you? Mike, I wish I could, I really do, but right now, it looks bad.’

‘Have I not helped you enough yet? Have I not shown good intent?’

Tomas admitted, ‘You did, and I trusted you. I trusted my instincts that are usually right; but

perhaps I was wrong. Maybe your mission from the start was to keep me in one place so I’m an

easy target.’

‘Ho sent you to me for a reason. You don’t trust Ho!?’

Tomas said, ‘I trust Ho. I’ve known him for a long time. That’s why I’m certain he wasn’t in

touch with you in recent years. Things change, people change; maybe you are not the person Ho

thought you were. Maybe you started to work for the triads for the right price, or you’ve been

forced to.’

‘No, I’m not. I’m surprised you would even suggest that.’ Mike’s face looked really

disappointed, but as far as Tomas could tell, it could be part of the show.

Tomas said, ‘I haven’t known you for that long, Mike. I wish I could trust you, but unless I get

some answers today, I don’t think I can; not anymore.’

‘You don’t have to trust me, just as long as you leave and go somewhere far away.’

Tomas said, ‘And what would your source tell you on that? Are you going to tell me that they

would not know that you tipped me off?’

‘Oh, they know already.’

‘And what did they say? Can you tell me that much?’

‘They can kiss my ass. I don’t care what they say if you’d truly leave.’

After a moment of silence, Tomas continued. ‘And what will stop them from tracking me down

again?’

‘They could track you down, but the triads might not. The source is not after you; they’ll most

likely lose interest in you.’

Tomas raised his voice again. ‘So why can’t you tell me what this source wants, and why I’m not

supposed to leave if they intend no harm to me?!’

‘Can’t say.’

Tomas said, ‘To hell with it!’ He started to leave.

Mike tried to explain. ‘It’s not what it seems –’

Tomas said, ‘Mike, I have opened up to you. Told you all my secrets, my demons. And you had

to pull it out of me! I know, perhaps because it wouldn’t matter to me that you knew. No one else

I know, knows you, and you don’t know them. I’m possibly about to die, so perhaps for once in

my life I had to express my feelings to someone. To get it off my chest; to not to die like a

heartless monster that I could have been seen as by others. But you had to pull it out of me! Sure,

because you wanted to help, or so you say, but you can’t turn around now and tell me that you

can’t tell your secrets to me!’ he said passionately.

Mike stayed quiet.

Tomas said, ‘I’m leaving, and I’m not coming back. Don’t try to find me. I will consider it a

hostile action.’

‘As long as you get off the grid.’

Tomas said, ‘I don’t know what I’m going to do yet, but I’m not staying here with you.’

Mike responded, ‘Good luck, and take care, Tomas.’

Tomas turned around and had to stop for a moment. He wanted to say something back, but then

decided not to and left.

 Linkin Park – Lost In The Echo 3:23

“So conditioned, I could never let go. Then sorrow, then sickness,
then the shock when you flip it on me.
So hollow, so vicious, so afraid, I couldn't let myself see…”

It was heartbreaking and almost got Tomas physically sick, but now he was convinced that Mike

was working for the enemy from the start. Perhaps not for the triads, but someone else that also

got interested in him. ‘What is it, and why, if their intentions were good, can’t Mike say

anything?’ But the only real question was, why they hadn’t gone after him yet. ‘Perhaps Mike’s

friendship was genuine after all, and once he got to know me better, he was stalling them. But if

he wasn’t guilty, why hide the truth? No, he must be the enemy one way or another, and I was a

fool not to see that. To trust straight away.’

On his way back home, Tomas tried to analyse in his mind every word they had spoken together

in their last conversation, but it was very difficult. Once his logic decided that Mike was the

enemy, it was like every word Mike had spoken to him was lost in the echo. Thus, it wasn’t

possible to recall word for word anymore. In their conversations, Tomas heard Mike’s voice, but

didn’t really pay attention to the actual words increasingly over time, as he began to consider it

all lies.

It took him about 30 minutes on the bus, and a 10-minute walk to get “home”. Plenty of time to

think. Normally, Tomas would have taken Mike’s Chevy truck, but of course he left the keys on

the counter as he was walking out. Tomas was sure it would be the last time that he saw Mike. It

felt like he should have stolen Mike’s car but he wouldn’t, despite the strong sense of betrayal

and the gravity of it all. Besides, it could have been traceable, and Tomas needed to vanish.
He started to analyse their bonding conversations, trying to find flaws, mistakes, to confirm his

theory that Mike was just telling him what he wanted to hear. He thought about Mike’s past. Was

he really divorced? Tomas had never heard anyone else in the shop mention anything about his

past life, or wives. But then again, the rest of the staff were spaced out into shifts in a way, so

that they would not have seen Tomas much, or he them. It was really a secluded life, with only

Tomas and Mike spending some time together.

It made sense to try keep him away from everyone as much as possible. Tomas was expecting

assassination attempts, after all. The safety of others was on both of their minds.

Mike was there from the start. No questions, no consideration for his own safety or property.

Would he really do such a thing, just because Ho asked him to? It’s not a small favour to ask for,

to put your life on the line for a stranger. Even if not directly, as Mike never believed the triads

would have touched him. Just his property. But property could mean life, and possibly losing

your livelihood after 50 is no joke. ‘Could it be because he knew that nothing would ever happen

to him or to his property?’ Now it all made sense to Tomas. ‘Must have been! Mike was never in

danger; he was supposed to serve me up on a silver platter! Possibly, to the highest bidder. But

then Mike changed his mind. Saw that I’m possibly the last decent, unselfish person alive’ (oh,

the humble narcissist). ‘Now he can tell them. Tell them that I’m not hiding, not bowing to

anyone. Let them come. Let them come and test me! They can come hard, I’ll go smart! I know

how it’s going to go down. I’m stronger, faster, and more experienced in a one-on-one combat

situation. And if I’m not in that situation, I’ll make it like that. Let them come! I don’t care who

and how many will come. I can’t be stopped; I never could have been stopped! I got this far not

by accident, and my emotional scars make me stronger. Let them come!’

The whole way home was one big pep talk to himself to be ready for what was most likely about

to happen. Tomas wasn’t wrong.

Chapter 2: Despair

Ramstein – Spieluhr 4:48

As Tomas approached his home, a secluded house on the outskirts of Bloomington, he spotted

from a distance that there were several individuals hanging around, possibly waiting for him.

‘What a coincidence. I declare that I’m leaving, and that very moment, they are waiting for me.’

At that moment, his cell phone rang. Tomas looked at the screen; it was Mike. Just as he lifted

the phone to his ear, the individuals started to walk towards him as Tomas stood on the street.

With a sudden rush of alertness, his heart started to beat very fast.

Tomas said calmly, ‘I’m listening.’

‘Tomas! They are at your place right now!’ Mike paused for a moment, as if he wanted to say

something else, but then decided not to. After two seconds of silence he added, ‘Good luck!’

Mike hung up. Tomas turned around and for a moment, he was walking away from those guys,

crossing the road to the other side. They were Asian; most likely, the triads. ‘What to do? It’s

time to decide.’

They didn’t give him much time, as one of them started running towards Tomas. He could hear

his heavy steps closing in on him. Just as Tomas recognized that he was within striking distance,

he did a 180-degree turn while doing a cartwheel backwards (kind of like aú batido in capoeira),
hitting the guy with his knee into the guy’s chest, sending him violently to the floor. You could

hear a loud crack of the guy’s sternum (top of ribcage) on the impact.

That prompted all of the rest to start running towards Tomas too. A quick count established 11

more targets. Good thing was, they were spaced out, and their arrival at Tomas’s position would

be at different times. ‘So, make an example of me? Big mistake’, Tomas thought to himself.

As the second guy closed up on him, Tomas just did a spinning wheel kick into his face at the

right moment, seemingly even without stopping his movement forward to perform the kick. That

second guy went down immediately too and seemed knocked out. Tomas continued making

massive steps forwards while changing his stance by 180 degrees with every new step, preparing

for a more powerful spinning wheel kick for the next target.

The third and fourth guy fell victim to this about a quarter of a second later, one after another.

Both fell, and it didn’t look like they would be standing back up again. Tomas knocked them out

with those kicks.

The fifth wasn’t far behind them. Tomas managed just two more twisting steps, and on the final

one, jumped in the air as he performed the 540-degree turn tornado kick, this time hitting the guy

with the inner side of his foot onto his opponent’s right cheek. That broke his jaw, and you could

see blood spurt out onto the distant pavement. He certainly looked out of the fight for the

immediate moment as he writhed in pain on the road.

The next ones decided to stop short just in front of Tomas and waited for the others to catch up,

who quickly surrounded him.

Tomas assumed Thai box stance. The thugs all tried to attack at the same time. However, as the

guy behind him approached slightly first, Tomas just evaded his advance doing spinning wheel
combined with axe kick, hitting him on the left side of his face. The thug fell to the ground like a

rock, blocking others with his own limp body, but seemed to regain consciousness again just as

soon as he hit the floor, although blood started to pour out of his nose and mouth, incapacitating

him for a while as he struggled with the pain.

An immediate front kick into the next guy’s mid-section on Tomas’s right side sent the next thug

flying backwards whilst hitting the guy slightly behind him with his own body, forcing them

both to lose balance and finally falling down onto the ground. That opened more space for

Tomas, with only one guy remaining standing to his left side. That guy tried to roundhouse kick

low at Tomas’s leg, but he just lifted it to avoid the kick.

Immediately, a jump-spinning heel kick followed that, but Tomas did his own wheel spin kick

that hit the guy just at the right moment, so the guy’s kick narrowly missed Tomas’s head.

Tomas hit the guy in the chest while still in the air, sending him violently into the ground. The

guy puked out some blood in the process, to Tomas’s satisfaction. Then he tried to stand up

again, but Tomas lunged forward with his knee into the guy’s face. Then, Tomas made one more

step forward and stomped on the guy’s face again. That did the job. Caved his nose in, changing

the thug’s face into a blood pool within seconds.

As the very first thug to attack Tomas recovered back to his feet but visibly injured with one

hand placed on his sternum, he tried to throw himself at Tomas’s legs, but Tomas just stepped

slightly backwards and performed the axe kick, top to bottom, hitting him right on top of his

nose, breaking it, and switching all lights out in that guy. ‘This is so easy, lol’, Tomas thought to

himself. Those guys were obviously nowhere near his level of skill. Most certainly good enough

for power enforcement on “regular people”, but Tomas was essentially underground MMA fights
champion. They probably thought that their numbers would give them the upper hand.

Dreamers.

Tomas marvelled at his superiority in his great satisfaction. Just three more of them were still

standing whilst struggling to find open space to attack Tomas as he was sending bodies in their

general direction, while four more struggled to get back onto their feet. The one that was behind

Tomas in that moment attacked first, while the others still getting into surrounding positions

cautiously tried to approach Tomas.

The thug managed to throw a punch at Tomas, but he just dodged it and unleashed a rapid-fire

sequence of punches into that guy’s chest, finishing him off with an elbow uppercut to his chin,

striking at the bottom of it in an upwards motion. Tomas could swear that he felt the guy’s brain

bouncing off the inner walls of his own skull on the impact, and could hear his teeth shatter as

they violently clenched together. He was out too, possibly forever.

Both guys that were still standing in front of him tried to attack in that moment, but one 360-

degree spin-backflip whilst striking them in the face proved sufficient. Tomas lunged forward,

and at the right moment, started doing the twist-backflip, thrusting his right leg into the air first

(kind of like a cheat-gainer), hitting the left guy below his chin on the way up with his right inner

foot, and on the way down finishing his twist-flip, hitting the right guy in the face with the

outside of his left foot. Top to bottom. It was almost like an exhibition.

They managed to get up once more and got supported with the four that barely recovered as well,

but it was the same again. They attacked, missed or get blocked/deflected, whilst Tomas

responded with rapid-fire punches and kicks, usually in groups of three, where the third one was

the most massive, finishing blow.

Because Tomas used Thai box techniques for the most part, it meant either hit with the elbow or

the knee, in one case, lunging forward and hitting with both at the same time. Elbow to the face,

knee to the gut. In combination with Tomas’s superior physique, it was like getting hit by a

truck.

Another two became incapacitated, and Tomas played with the remaining four that still fought

him. On purpose he started to just block their attacks, allowing them to have physical contact

with his body. To them, it must have felt like punching a wall. They were of regular build, for

the most part. Some had a basic, non-serious physical training build. Tomas had 14 years of

heavy physical training behind him. He was like an unmovable object to them, whilst they were

rag dolls to him.

The four thugs that were still sort of getting back up to their feet and fighting were in rough

shape. All bloodied, caved-in cheeks, broken jaws, noses, ripped eyebrows, and most certainly

many broken ribs and clavicles. If it wasn’t for the adrenaline rush, they would have been

immobile and in horrible pain. Tomas didn’t have a scratch. To them, it was time for plan B.

The thug with bun hair pulled out his 9 mm Berretta first. He was a little to the back of Tomas on

his right side, just as Tomas was finishing another guy with a rapid-fire elbow-punches finisher.

Tomas noticed that, and quickly performed something that resembled capoeira’s macaco em pe –

kicks to the face with both legs, one after another, while doing a cartwheel backwards – just as

one shot that was squeezed missed him narrowly because of it.

The first kick knocked him out, with the second only adding to the impact force of his body

hitting the floor.

The two remaining thugs also started to pull out their guns. Tomas closed his distance quickly,

doing massive, twisting 180-degree steps again, and managed to land an outside crescent kick

(you want to kick the target on your right, but start the movement bottom left to gain bigger

momentum) on the closest guy just as he was ready to take a shot, hitting him in the face and

pushing his shooting arm away to the side at the same time. Tomas then followed it by an

immediate spinning wheel kick in the air, finishing the thug that was standing next to the first.

Both guys got knocked out with the force of the impacts and their blood splattered into the

surroundings.

The bun thug somehow recovered again but was visibly dizzy as he was trying to aim the gun at

Tomas, half standing, but he was closing in on him very quickly. Tomas managed to avoid two

gunshots that were let off at him before he got close enough to perform 720-degree powerful

butterfly kick. It generated so much momentum that the kick broke the guy’s neck as it landed on

his cheek. Paralyzing him, not killing him.

Quickly, Tomas looked around for more “surprise recoveries”. Now it seemed that all of the

thugs were fully down and incapacitated. None were dead; not yet that is. A few looked bad and

needed immediate medical assistance for sure.

Tomas looked rough himself at first glance, but only because he was partially drenched in the

blood of the thugs; none was his own.

 Linkin Park – Keys to the Kingdom 3:38

“I'm my own casualty, I fuck up everything I see - fighting in futility!”

Tomas quickly assessed the situation one more time, looking for possible additional targets.

There were none; he got them all, and they all lay in front of him. He wasn’t sure what to do

next. Kill them? Not kill them? All he knew was, he didn’t want to. As far as Tomas could tell,

they presented no danger to him anymore. Call the police? That would have compromised him,

exposed him to the authorities, and possibly the press as well. The last thing Tomas wanted to be

was the star of the evening news for his family to see and wonder how that happened. And what

it would have meant legally. Could he get kicked out of US? Banned from entering the country

for life, not to see his family again?

There was this one Chinese thug that may not pull through; perhaps he shouldn’t have stomped

on his face. Still, it was almost absurd that Tomas felt concerned about somebody who came here

to kill him. If he did go to the police, things would get horribly complicated. He may even serve

some time in jail. But after, perhaps a normal life? As normal as an ex-convict’s life can get,

nothing to write home about. Or stay incognito; the triads will clean up their own mess and if

that guy or more would die, there will be no reports, no police involved.

The original plan was to wait for the hit to happen, then call Mike and he would take over.

Tomas never knew what that really meant. Probably just something that Mike would say, not

expecting that he would have to deal with it, as he was working for the enemy.

So, I was right. Mike was involved, most likely from the very start.
Why am I even surprised? Did I think that I could really have control of this? That I would

dictate how things would turn out? That people are nice and would risk their life for a stranger?

I’m my own casualty, victim to my own stupidity. What did I ever not fuck up? I focus on success,

yet choose to ignore my failures. I wished to find true love, yet the only one I ever had I threw

away, like the idiot that I am. I wished to become a decent man, a role model for young boys, and

not to become the bad boy, yet I have become a killer on the run. I wished to be able to protect

my family, yet I put their lives in danger simply by their association with me. Let’s face it, I fuck

up everything I see or touch. My whole life’s fight is in futility. I am my own problem; what other

explanation is there?

What am I going to do now? Should I take revenge on Mike? Is there a point even? I’d probably

just end up on the late news as a serial killer. Is this really my legacy? Or, run, like a coward?

Bow down to the hostile elements just like everybody else, because we feel there is nothing that

can be done?

Tomas was really confused. His soul was lost, defeated, with no clear purpose or direction. A

conflict of interest at every corner.

Without even realizing it, while he was lost in his mind, he suddenly found himself somewhere

else. He must have run the whole time, but then he remembered something. ‘I need my passport.’

Tomas kept his bank card with him at all times, and didn’t really need anything else. Mike had

furnished his temporary place. Tomas owned nothing besides some clothes that could be easily

replaced. A passport is not something you would carry on you, but it’s quite important if you

plan to travel.
Tomas had to go back to his place; he was carefully approaching. There was no sight of the

triads, they were all gone. Some blood was still there in the street, but otherwise, one couldn’t

tell there had been a fight going on just a few minutes prior.

He sneaked into the house expecting an ambush, but nothing happened. Tomas went to grab his

passport when he realized that he actually gave it to Mike recently. Mike didn’t want it in his

house, just in case it got burned down or something. ‘I fuck up everything! Fighting in

futility…because my biggest enemy, is me.’

Tomas just sat down in a defeated manner, his hands covering his face, followed by a frustrated

yell, when his mobile phone rang again. ‘I should probably get rid of this, they are possibly

tracking me.’

Mike was showing as the caller, and Tomas really wanted to have a chat with him. He wanted to

ask Mike if he was happy now that he actually won and deflected the hit, yet it didn’t matter

because Mike was working for the triads from the start anyway. With that snake in his grass, he

never stood a chance. Tomas wanted to tell Mike that he was the only person that Tomas

considered a close friend in the last eight or so years and that he would have laid down his life

for him if it would have come to that. Tomas wanted Mike to feel guilty, to make him feel his

pain.

Linkin Park – From The Inside 2:55

“I don't know who to trust - no surprise - everyone feels so far away from me.
Heavy thoughts sift through dust, and the lies.”

Tomas accepted the call but didn’t say anything.

Mike asked, ‘Tomas?’

‘I’m still alive.’ There was a bit of resentment present in his voice.

‘I knew you would be. I need to see you, now!’

Tomas said, ‘Drop the mask, Mike, you told them!’

Mike tried again. ‘It’s not what it seems!’

‘So what is it then?!’

Mike stayed quiet, as he didn’t know what to say.

‘I loved you like an older brother,’ Tomas said, ‘almost wanted to do it for you too, as a thank-

you. All the talk about being people’s champion. I thought I could help the community, help

you…to do a decent thing for a change with the talents I have worked so hard for. To scare the

triads off the streets. Perhaps even other scum that would have dared to take their place. And you

worked for them from the start! Why!?’ Tomas cried out in frustration.

When there was still no reply, Tomas said, ‘Money?!’ There was a short pause as he waited for

an answer that didn’t come.

Tomas said, ‘Ho trusted in you! I know it’s easy to double-cross a stranger, but your old friend?!

How could you?!’

‘Tomas, I am your friend; you don’t see the whole truth.’

‘So tell me!’ Tomas cried out.

‘I can’t! I wish I could, but I still can’t.’ Mike struggled to remain calm.

‘Fuck!’ You could hear the frustration building up in Tomas’s voice.

‘You have to trust me! I only want what is best for you.’

Tomas said, ‘I can’t! How can I?’

Tomas really wanted to trust Mike; even now, it still felt like he was his friend and wanted what

was best for Tomas. But his logic argued against it. Tomas knew that Mike may have been just

trying to appeal to his weaker, trustful nature. To pull him into a trap. ‘I can’t trust myself with

him!’ his brain was screaming at him. ’Don’t get fooled just because you thought he was your

new best friend.’ But it still felt like he was really trying to help. ‘Feelings are not facts!

Challenge him!’ resonated in his mind.

Tomas said, ‘I decide to leave, and next thing I know, they are waiting for me?’

Mike simply replied, ‘Coincidence.’

Tomas said, ‘You must be kidding, come on! You really take me for a fool?!’ He sounded

frustrated.

‘So maybe they knew, but not from me. Did you think of that?’

Of course Tomas had, but decided it was highly unlikely. Their conversations were person to

person, not on the phone. Unless the triads had moles in Mike’s store, they wouldn’t know.

Perhaps if they planted it during the night? NO! Don’t give in! Don’t trust yourself with him! He

is trying to manipulate you as a woman would do to get what she wants! Your death, in this case!

Tomas stayed quiet, waiting for what Mike would come up with next.

‘I promise you, soon you will understand it all.’

Tomas said, ‘Oh, I understand perfectly. I was a fool. My whole life, perhaps. Time to let go of

everything that I am. Like, trustful.’

‘Tomas, listen –’ But Tomas didn’t let him finish the sentence.

‘Or compassionate, civil, not seeking revenge.’

‘You want your revenge?! Come, come and see me! I’ll send you the address!’ Tomas stayed

quiet, not to show any emotion to that. But it felt like a stab into the heart to hear it from Mike.

To confirm it, finally. Then Mike hung up and the message with the address arrived.

Linkin Park – By Myself 3:11

“What do I do to ignore them behind me? Do I follow my instincts blindly?

Do I hide my pride from these bad dreams - and give in to sad thoughts that are maddening?
Do I sit here and try to stand it? Or do I try to catch them red-handed?
Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness - Or do I trust nobody and live in loneliness?”

‘What should I do?’ Tomas’s thoughts were still arguing against his logic, trying to make sense

of it all. ‘How could it be that Mike insists that he is trying to help?’ It did feel like it, deep in his

bones and soul, but Mike said come and see me for revenge? ‘He never said take revenge on me,

he just said come and see me to get revenge. Perhaps on who is responsible for all of this.

Perhaps then Mike would be able to explain why he couldn’t say anything before. But it does

look like I’m just trying to make excuses, to not admit that someone I considered my best friend

would fool me like that. He did! Deal with it, you pussy!’

Tomas was locked in constant conflicting circles of thought. Stuck. ‘But now what? What are my

options? Turn my back and be defenceless? Showing weakness is never good. Besides, all it

takes to kill me is for them to decide that it’s not worth it to chase me anymore. One bullet when

I can’t see it coming, and it’s all over. But should I ignore that I would most likely walk into a

trap listening to Mike? To just follow my instincts blindly? They may torture me. Can’t run

though, can’t run. Best chance to live through it is to face them. At least I know where, and I’ll
discover who exactly it is who are trying to kill me. It will be most likely a secluded, quiet place,

where even if I die, I just need to make sure my face can’t be recognized. My passport is the only

connection to me. If I could get it back and burn it, I’m safe! I’ve got no history; no one could ID

me if my face can’t be seen on TV. My family wouldn’t know, which is for the best. The triads

would probably take care of my body anyway; it’s in their interest that no one finds it.

‘What am I thinking about? Don’t be stupid! There is a way out! Say that you run and manage to

slip away so they lose you. What then? Do I never trust anybody again and live in loneliness? Or

do I trust and fall again to peoples’ phoniness?’ There was a lot of money offered for his head. In

Tomas’s opinion, loyalty from most people was out of the question. Hell, in his view of the

world, Tomas wouldn’t be surprised if the pope himself would have sold him out for that kind of

money if he knew with 100 percent certainty that it would never come back to bite him in the

ass. ‘People, in general, can’t be trusted, especially when it comes to money.’ Tomas saw

corruption everywhere. Moral, personal, and literal. ‘Anyone in any kind of position of power

gets corrupted by it sooner or later. Money means power. Power corrupts; even a vision of power

corrupts.’

The only person he could really trust would be his mom or dad. Parents wouldn’t ever sell out

their kids for any sum of money. Sis? Not so sure; it was a lot of money, after all. Besides,

Tomas wouldn’t even be that mad if she did. At least she would have profited somewhat out of

his death – if one could trust the triads not to make an example of her and Mom once they

realized that it was the Ghost’s family. Tomas wouldn’t risk it.

‘Well, I’m screwed, this is it.’ The only option left to him was to go in guns blazing – trying to

catch them “red handed”? Surprising them? ‘But to achieve what? A bloodbath? I’m not even

sure if I could do that; it’s one thing to kill in sort of self-defence and anger, another to pre-
emptively kill to increase my survival chances. Would I even be able to do that? If I go there, I’d

better be ready to start killing people left and right. Whether they present danger to me in that

moment or not. Later, they certainly would.’

‘Let’s say I did that and survived. Am I going to pretend that it may not bother me? Like the sad

thoughts that I already have of me becoming something “else”, which is already maddening? Do

I really want to become “that”, no matter the cause? I have already lost, no matter what.’

As Tomas sat on the floor, unable to take any action even if the intent was there, a feeling of his

failure was sinking in. He realized he couldn’t rely on himself anymore. Tomas always felt that

he made the right moves, but ended up hurt in the end anyway. ‘Maybe this was all part of

Mike’s plan; maybe he was relying on me to know what to do.’ But how could Tomas have

known? The reason why Tomas was in this situation in the first place was because he didn’t fully

realize at the time the consequences of his own actions. Didn’t know any better. Everything that

he learned about the triads and the Mafias in general was from Mike! How could he expect him

to know what to do in this situation?

Tomas was afraid; he was out of touch with the outside world. How could he know? Tomas was

lost…but the decision had to be made. If the only way that he saw as a chance to live through it

did seem insane at worse, and slim at best, it was still his only chance. Tomas stood up and

decided to at least give it a try.

As he walked out of the taxi into the secluded industrial area in front of some sort of a

warehouse, Tomas hid his IDs and bankcards pouch before entering the building so that if he was

about to walk away from there alive, he wouldn’t be broke; if not, he wouldn’t have that on him

to identify the body.

 Linkin Park – Wretches and Kings 4:15

“If you haven't heard yet - then I'm letting you know, there ain't shit we don't run when the
guns unload - and no one make a move unless my people say so -
got everything outta control.”

“There he is!” said a grey-haired Chinese guy in a suit, Mike standing right next to him. “We

were beginning to think you would chicken out after all.” Massive laughter of around 15 armed

guards with automatic weapons erupted. “That’s close enough” he said, instructing Tomas to

stop as he was approaching closer and closer.

Tomas once again restrained himself from showing any emotion on the outside, but inside of

him, he was screaming at himself for coming. For the very first time ever, he experienced

tremendous fear for his life. It felt like an impending doom. Frankly, it was commendable that

Tomas still managed to maintain such a poker face, considering how he felt. Perhaps it was a

survival mechanism that he practiced so many times before. ‘Don’t show any weakness, don’t

show them that you are afraid!’ Tomas repeated to himself as he looked directly at Mike. It

looked like Mike wanted to say something to Tomas, but he got interrupted. “My name is Steven

Fok,” said the older Chinese man. Tomas stayed quiet. ‘And you are…?’ He looked like he was

awaiting an answer, surprising Tomas with the question.

Mike didn’t tell him?! Tomas wondered.

‘The famous Ghost!’ Fok answered after a short moment of suspense.

Now Tomas was sure that Mike didn’t tell him. ‘But, why? If Mike is on my side after all, what

role is he playing?’ Tomas wondered, realizing that the “source” and the triads were not the same

entity.

‘But before I proceed’ – Fok started to slow-clap – ‘congratulations on passing the test!’

Tomas asked, ‘What test?’ looking confused and nervous.

‘The test that awaited you at your house. Very impressive. I understand now why you are

so important to my friends in Hong Kong.’

Tomas kept quiet. He knew it was better to listen unless asked to speak, or when he needed

clarification.

Fok added, ‘Of course, they were just expendable pawns trying to make it into our ranks.

My soldiers are on a different level, so don’t get any ideas. But still, all thirteen without a

scratch?’ Fok’s face made an expression of respect, acknowledgment, and then he raised his

voice.

‘I have a proposal for you, Ghost! Listen carefully, as I’m not a person that repeats

himself. Come work for us, and everything will be forgiven. I could use a person like…you. No

history. Except, of exceptional violence!’ He grinned ear to ear whilst the other guards started to

laugh loudly.

Fok said, ‘Just the sort of person we like here.’

Fok’s guards’ laughter continued.

‘But!’ he continued, vividly gesturing with his hands, ‘before you say anything, there are

entry conditions to this generous offer.’ Mike looked at Fok as if something was wrong.
 Fok explained, ‘First, no more Ghost. I want to know who you are. Second…’ A captive,

bound young Chinese woman was brought forward, her mouth stuffed so she could not speak.

She was obviously beaten, and still had tears running down her face. ‘You kill this…’ he paused

for a moment. ’ Innocent person.’

Mike objected that this wasn’t the deal.

Fok asked, ‘What’s wrong, Mike? The deal was, I offer your friend a way out. I’m doing

it right now.’ He looked irritated by Mike’s objection.

Mike replied, ‘You said that should the Ghost join you, you would let him live.’

‘And I fully intend to hold that promise, make no mistake!’ He raised his voice even

louder. ‘I’m no barbarian!’ he yelled before calming down. ‘But such a generous offer can’t go

without certain sacrifices, can it?’ He instructed one of his guards to prepare his cell phone to

record footage of Tomas killing the woman.

Mike urged, ‘We had this talk before. I specifically said that the Ghost wouldn’t do any

dirty work for you. He is trying to live peacefully, leaving any violence behind. You said that it

will be not a problem. That the Ghost can be employed as a new instructor, to replace the one he

accidentally killed in self-defence.’ He raised his voice in return, but Fok just laughed at Mike.

Fok chuckled, ‘Accidentally; that’s a good one. There was nothing accidental about

multiple fractures inflicted and snapping a neck the way he did!’ He erupted in anger and pointed

at Tomas. ‘That is the only reason why Hong Kong even considered my proposal to make him

join our ranks. Now, I don’t expect him to do petty “dirty work”; he’s the Ghost, for Christ’s

sake! Enforcement is beneath him; that’s fine. He can teach us how to…kill more efficiently.’ He

began calming down. ‘But I do expect him to be one of us. We need an insurance policy that will
ensure so.’ He paused to take a breath. ‘Now kill her!’ he demanded, exploding at Tomas and

pointing at the captive woman.

The woman’s muffled cries got louder.

Tomas was in shock; he didn’t know what to say. The woman was basically a girl to him,

in her early twenties for sure. Kill her?! There was no way. If anything, Tomas felt a strong

protective urge to save her.

Fok demanded impatiently, ‘What are you waiting for?! Kill her! I don’t have all day!’

Fok waited for another three or four seconds before calming himself down again. ‘Listen, I sent

the pawns to get killed. We had a camera on you the whole time. But you didn’t kill them! So

now you forced me to use this innocent person to have blackmail material on you in case you

should change your mind and try to go against us. It’s only reasonable, right?’

Momentary silence ensued.

Fok continued. ‘Now, if you’re worried about the police part, a missing person

investigation, how to get rid of the body efficiently, etcetera, don’t. We’ve got that covered. This

is just insurance for us. Should you run, we expose you, and you’re hunted by all. Legal and

illegal systems.’ He laughed and the guards joined him immediately before calming down just as

fast.

Fok explained, ‘Honestly, FBI, CIA, NSA, we all walk hand in hand together.’ He

grinned ear to ear. ‘We’ve got connections everywhere. All we would need is some sort of

leverage to make it of official interest for the legal system so the good guys would think they do

a good day’s work for good, honest people. Not us!’ They all erupted in massive laughter
simultaneously. It took Fok a few seconds this time before he collected himself again. Then he

had to indicate to his guards with his hands to quiet down too.

‘As you see, I’m being honest. No tricks. You take the deal or leave it.’ You could tell

that he was already annoyed at this point.

Mike just stood there in shame. He was looking down into the floor; couldn’t even look at Tomas

anymore. He didn’t want to suggest for him to say no to Fok, nor to kill the girl.

Tomas asked, ‘What if I say no? Can’t we just go our own way? Let’s forget all of this.’

You could see that Tomas was getting more and more insecure in his body language.

Fok demanded, ‘And what would be there for us in it?!’ He exploded at Tomas again

before collecting himself just as quickly, even corrected his suit a bit. ‘It’s not that easy. You

have caused some grievance to us; we can’t just pretend that it never happened. I’m sure you can

understand that,’ he said dismissively.

Tomas remained silent and Fok started to lose it.

‘Look, if you haven’t noticed yet, I’m the guy with the guns on you! You can’t do shit!

What is there to think about? What?!’ His anger was now manifesting in a violent spasm in his

face and arms. ‘You mind violence?! Nobody does shit without the threat of violence!’ He

continued to shout in Tomas’s face. ‘The state threatens violence to its populace through the

police and army, or nobody would obey shit! At least not people like us.’ He was clearly

referring to Tomas as well. ‘People like us who just push around the people below them at will.

It’s been always like that! People up top push the people down low!’ He shook his head like he

didn’t understand Tomas’s hesitation at all. ‘We push some people down for the state too. Things
that would be deemed illegal for them to do, but need to be done. In return, we get protection

from the legal system. Everybody is happy!’

Turning around, he sought validation from his goons that unanimously showed their

agreement. ‘The state, the legal system, is like a machine with levers and all…’ He struggled to

finish his sentence. ‘And we move those levers to adjust the machine to our liking. One could

argue that we are part of the state enforcement force, although the state would never admit it.

Hell, one could argue that we run the state!’ He erupted in laughter again, joined by his guards.

‘After all, we, the so-called crime syndicate, as a whole, push around people running the

machine if we don’t like how they run it. And they can’t do shit to us! Not legally anyway.’ All

the guards erupted in laughter again, but Fok stayed calm and approached Tomas whilst keeping

a safe distance. ‘So, what is it going to be? Are you with the people on top, or with the people

down below?’ Looking directly in Tomas’s eyes, almost staring, he impatiently awaited his

answer.

‘I can’t…’ Tomas said quietly.

‘You can’t?!’ Fok turned towards the guard on his right. ‘He can’t!’ He raised his voice

louder and shouted out as loud as he could: ‘The Ghost…can’t!’ Then he quickly turned back

facing Tomas again.

‘I know that you can. I have heard stories of incredible violence that only an animal

would do. I have seen the animal in you, in your eyes. I know, because I am one, and just like

you, I hide it away until I need it. I take no pleasure in violence. I just do it because it is

necessary. Unlike you. You harm even when it’s not necessary. I have seen that cocky, satisfied

body language of yours as you stomped on the head of one of my pawns, changing him into a
bloody caricature. I have seen that you took pleasure in it,’ he said, passionately gesturing with

his hands again before turning away from Tomas. ‘So don’t tell me that you can’t. I know that

you can!’

But there was still no response from Tomas. Fok briefly looked at Mike, who immediately

avoided eye contact and then at the girl, who was still sobbing but stopped resisting and fidgeting

whilst she was held down to her knees by two guards at her sides.

After a short moment of thinking, Fok proclaimed, ‘Oh, is it because my pawns were the bad

guys?!’ Tomas still didn’t respond, but Fok took it as agreement. ‘And who are you to decide

that? What are you? The people’s champion?!’ Fok started to laugh hysterically, and all the

guards joined him. ‘Was that your plan coming here?! You were going to take on all of us?!’ He

looked amused. ‘Don’t be absurd!’ He spat, his amusement quickly turning into anger.

Yes, it did cross Tomas’s mind. In fact, he was already contemplating how to save Mike and the

girl. But so far, his conclusion was that it was suicide, so Tomas was just stalling in the

meantime, uncertain what to do.

‘You think you can take from us and get away with it?’ Fok snarled. ‘The way I see it,

either this bitch dies in the next thirty seconds or you are useless to me! That means dead, if you

didn’t get that part.’ It was obvious that he’d had enough already.

Tomas repeated, ‘I can’t…’

Fok stormed, ‘Then it is decided!’ He dismissively waved his hand and reached into his

suit for his concealed handgun, then aimed it at Tomas’s head.

Tomas just stood there and closed his eyes. His last thought? Just feeling ashamed. He always

thought that when it would come to it, he would definitely go down in a fight till the last breath.

Now that this situation emerged, in an instant, Tomas realized that this was it and he froze,

accepting his fate.

Mike tried to tackle Fok, but one of the guards got a hold of him before that happened.

Reacting rather quickly, Mike responded with a flawless, almost fully vertical kick coming from

the bottom and hitting just below the chin, which stunned the guard for a moment. That earned

Mike enough time to also take a side kick at Fok, hitting him on his left side and disrupting the

shot that was aimed just moments before at Tomas’s head, narrowly missing it.

Mike shouted, ‘Tomas, fight! Don’t give them the satisfaction!’

But then Mike got struck in his legs with a burst from one of the guard’s guns and fell

hurt onto the floor. After a momentary struggle with the pain, writhing, he got it under control.

Tomas still stood frozen in his position, scared to make a movement and unable to speak out of

shame. He was wrong about everything. Who he was, and what he would do. I’m a pretender,

just like the others… Tomas thought to himself. He felt that no matter what he did, things were

always spiralling out of control.

A shot came out and the girl fell to the ground. She got hit in the head from Fok’s gun,

blood squirting out of the entry hole to the rhythm of a still present heartbeat.

‘She was dead the minute we collected her anyway. Nothing personal, just knew too

much,’ Fok explained, turning back to Tomas.

 Tomas then looked at Mike and he could see the disappointment in his eyes that he

wouldn’t do anything, and even though Mike was bleeding heavily from his wounds that looked

painful, he got really calm and quiet in his own defiance of Fok’s satisfaction. Then Mike also

got shot in his head by Fok.

Fok said, ‘Now that was personal, for wasting my time! Besides, Mike was the only

person that I know you care about. This way, I get a little bit of satisfaction, getting under your

skin. I hope.’ Fok came really close, looking calmly directly into Tomas’s eyes, hoping for a

reaction. But there was nothing, Tomas was still frozen, no movement, no expression.

This time, Tomas didn’t have to tame his emotions – there were none. Just pure shock. To him,

what was happening so quickly was totally unreal and his brain struggled to process it. Then the

gun aimed at Tomas’s head once again, but the shot didn’t come out.

‘You know, Mike almost killed you with that side-kick of his.’ Fok said, grabbing his

left side, indicating that he got hurt by it. ‘I never really tried to shoot you, I just wanted to see

your reaction. But as he kicked me, the shot just came out!’ He made an “oops” expression.

‘Unlucky for you, it also moved my hand.’ Fok was grinning at first. Then, Fok’s facial

expression returned to normal and he patted Tomas on his left shoulder in a condescending way.

‘I’m really disappointed that I won’t get to kill you personally, but as you know, there

was a considerable price for your head. Someone actually paid us to have the honours, you see.

Made me an offer that no businessman would decline, grievances or not.’ He looked back into

Tomas eyes, analysing. ‘Are you beginning to comprehend how generous I was prepared to be to

you? This was just plan B in case you don’t join us,’ he explained, still looking for any response,

which didn’t come, so Fok continued. ‘That someone was the brother of the DI you
“accidentally” killed. Something tells me he won’t be as gentle as I would.’ He got bored staring

into Tomas’s eyes and even confidently turned his back to him at that close distance.

Fok went on, ‘Sorry for that, but business is business. I have to cover my own losses.

You can surely understand that.’ Then, turning back towards Tomas, he said, ‘But before I go, I

have to say, I’m really disappointed that you didn’t resist at all.’ He shook his head in disbelief.

‘Now I will have to make up some story about how I got the Ghost under control before handing

him in, and I’m not a very good liar!’ The guards started to laugh again.

Fok raised his hand and the laughter stopped.

‘I was wrong,’ Fok said. “You’re no animal after all! You’re fucking scared! You think

you can fool me with your poker face? You’re frozen scared, YOU PUSSY! I really don’t

understand!’ Fok looked puzzled, then he turned around and started to casually walk away whilst

the guards continued to laugh loudly as they were making their way out, leaving Tomas

completely alone for a short moment.

Chapter 3: This Is It

Rammstein – Du Hast 3:55

As they left, Tomas was finally able to move again. He turned around to see them leaving the

warehouse, and Tomas saw someone else coming in. It was hard to tell at first, but as they were

closing in, Tomas could clearly see that they were are all dressed like ninjas. Masks and all. All

of them had katana (traditional Japanese samurai sword) in sheaths on their backs. Not unlike the

Flutes that he saw in Hong Kong, except they had the swords. They were coming from all

directions, left, right, front and back, and quickly formed a rectangle around Tomas with the

sides being longer. Must have been at least 30 of them, too many to count.

Tomas’s heart was pounding, but at least he wasn’t frozen in place facing the guns. Before he

could even comprehend what was happening, one of them stepped forward from each side and

drew his sword. They attacked instantly. Tomas’s movements were more drilled instincts than

calculated actions, but he managed to avoid all incoming attacks and got all four ninjas in front

of him. The closest to Tomas tried to stab him, but Tomas twisted his torso and let the striking

arm pass close in front of him, missing. Then Tomas saw the opportunity to snatch the sword out

of the ninja’s hand. He grabbed him at the wrist and just above the elbow. Then as he had many

times before, he pushed the arm down and at the same time struck with his knee into the ninja’s

elbow from below, snapping it. That forced the ninja to let go of the sword, and Tomas caught it

on his foot, sending it back up into his hand from his toes.

As soon as Tomas had the katana in possession he reverse-gripped it, thrusting it in the ninja’s

belly. There was another ninja already on his side, trying to slash at Tomas’s chest. Tomas
dodged it again, slicing the ninja bottom to top, right to left across his whole torso while doing

so. It was deep enough to instantly kill him, and the blood sprayed the ninjas standing in

rectangle formation just behind him.

As a response to that, all of the remaining ninjas drew their swords and broke formation. Tomas

tried to move towards the back of the warehouse, to break through so that he could position

himself in a way that all of them were in front of him, if possible.

The ninja that got his arm broken at the elbow and was stabbed in the belly was still alive. He

tried to stop Tomas with his good hand as he lay on the floor. As soon as he grabbed Tomas’s

leg, Tomas instinctively slashed him across the neck to let him go. The ninja’s head was almost

severed, killing him, with fountains of blood squirting out of his arteries.

Still, it was enough to stop Tomas’s planned move, enough to keep him surrounded. Tomas

narrowly deflected incoming attacks and with one circular movement of the katana around and

above his body, he hit three out of the five closest enemies. Only one of them was wounded

mortally; the other two still stood injured. Tomas received one minor cut to his left shoulder. He

didn’t even notice it, as the adrenalin was pumping so hard.

Tomas thrusted forward, trying to get out of the encirclement. Frenzy possessed him and he

stormed into the wall of bodies in front of him. His whole focus was on deflection of the

incoming attacks. That would present him with an opportunity to strike, positioning the katana in

a way that the deflection would go fluently into his strike onto the opponent.

The sound of clashing swords filled the warehouse, sparks flying out of the impacts of the

blades.
As Tomas was making his way through, bodies were falling down. Maybe as many as eight of

them, he wasn’t sure, it was happening so quick. There was just one more ninja in front of him

before he could finally get out of the encirclement. The ninja performed a side slash at him,

aiming for his belly side to side. At the same time, the ninja behind Tomas attacked his legs with

a slash across.

As a response to them, Tomas instinctively lunged forward into a front roll to the left side of the

ninja in front of him. Both ninjas missed. One blade passed over Tomas’s head, and the other

blade just below his feet.

Tomas was halfway through the front roll, getting into recovery position. Doing so, he generated

so much momentum that his simultaneous side-slash from behind the ninja that was originally in

front of him – aiming below the knee level that time – severed both of his legs whilst doing the

front roll to avoid the ninja’s blade passing above his head. The ninja fell onto the ground and

that was the first time that a cry sounded. Only for a moment.

As Tomas recovered from the roll, he reverse-gripped the katana again and thrust it into the

fallen ninja’s belly, twisting it at first, then ripping it out in such a manner as to cut through as

much tissue as possible. It opened the stomach area, with guts protruding out. The ninja’s cry

turned into a growl before going silent. He was dead.

Tomas turned around, grabbed another katana off the floor, and assumed a defensive position,

one sword in front of him, in the left hand, twisted horizontally, one behind his back in his right,

twisted vertically, almost perfectly in alignment with his spine, both swords in reverse grip. He

was preparing for body-on-body combat distance again. Tomas knew they were going to storm

him, but at least now they were all in front of him.

The ninjas did, and Tomas did his 180-degree twisting side steps, stepping right next to his

enemies, using the rotation of his body to generate much more powerful slashing movements

than he could do with his arms alone. His swords almost lay on his body, protecting and slashing

at the same time, the enemies were that close.

Tomas made another pass across, out of the encirclement. Another 8–9 ninjas fell into their own

pools of blood. No cries.

For the first time they all paused, Tomas included, to assess the situation and to check on their

wounds. There were still 12 ninjas standing, two of them visibly injured. One minor slash was

added to Tomas’s upper back and one at his right calf. That was nothing. Nothing to pay to get

around 21 of them killed or out of action and dying. All of this in less than a half-minute of

combat!

Bodies were everywhere, the floor now flooded with the blood of the fallen. Ho taught Tomas

well; his sword mastery was obviously much better than theirs. His technique, his speed,

combined with the reaction time and superior physical ability, gave him the advantage. But now,

the element of surprise was gone. They didn’t blindly rush anymore, nor underestimate Tomas’s

ability to rush them, and there were still 12 of them.

They began gently stepping over the dead bodies of their comrades whilst moving forwards

towards him. Tomas was backing up; he didn’t want to get encircled now. A chaotic melee

ensued, at the end of which only Tomas stood. Around eight seconds long, twelve of them

dead…and Tomas was still in his last blow finishing stance. He realized that his back was getting

warm. It was from blood flowing down his back, as two more slashes were added onto it; one of

them long, one of them deep. There were dozens of other minor lacerations around his body, the
most painful on his left arm, and also his left thigh. Must have neglected that side. It forced him

to kneel down, despite that the pain was still suppressed with the adrenaline.

Tomas supported himself with the katanas. One in front of him, one behind. He was still in a

fighting stance, sideways. Ready for any incoming attack, including from behind. He was soaked

in blood. Both his own, and that of his enemies.

Rammstein – Eifersucht 3:36

His head hanging, he looked down at the floor, breathing deep, gasping for air. Tomas noticed a

figure in the distance across the floor filled with cut-up bodies. He never saw him coming; must

have been there all along but it was just too hectic for Tomas to notice him before. The figure

was another ninja, but he was in an all-red outfit, slowly and calmly approaching Tomas,

stepping over the bodies of his fallen comrades. ‘Who dresses in a red ninja outfit?’

Tomas wouldn’t wait for him to come all the way to him. He would meet him in the field like a

man! His courage was at its pinnacle, his ego soaking in what he’d just accomplished. ‘I’m

unstoppable! I will kill every motherfucker crossing my path!’

He let out a loud war cry and rushed to meet the ninja. The red ninja rushed towards Tomas to

meet him too. They passed each other as their swords met with a loud, clanging sound

accompanied with sparks. Both recovered instantly as they switched their original positions and

Tomas started to force the enemy to retreat his position to him. Now it was Tomas blindly

rushing while the enemy was focusing on deflection and the right moment to strike. Their

katanas must have kissed at least six times already before the first bite of the retreating ninja’s

blade into Tomas’s right hand came – he almost dropped the katana – but continued the push on
the ninja nevertheless until he almost got slashed just below his neck level. Tomas got so close

that he had to lean back a lot instantaneously to avoid it.

Then he managed to front kick the ninja during the recovery, coming back into his normal

standing position, pushing the ninja away to a safe distance. Tomas knew that he’d met his

match. For the first time ever! Not only had the ninja managed to deflect all of Tomas’s attacks

with only a single katana, he’d almost landed a mortal wound on him.

A cocky grin appeared on Tomas’s face. ‘You’re good! Better than any other I have met before.

Let’s see if you’re better than me!’ The ninja showed no emotion, no response.

Their katanas met a few more times in a rapid fire of various slashes until another hit was added

on Tomas’s left shoulder, forcing him to drop one of his katanas. The upper layer of the skin got

almost completely separated, just hanging out of the shoulder. Tomas felt that, even though he

was still in battle frenzy.

He refused to believe that the ninja could be better than him. He didn’t even wait to pick up the

second katana again and continued his advance onto the ninja with a single katana. The red ninja

was still backing up, but managing to deflect any incoming attacks from Tomas whilst

threatening him with his own counterattacks. But the red ninja bumped into a body on the floor,

which caused a momentary disruption of his defence.

Tomas managed to land a slash across his right side of the chest, splitting the fabric of his

shinobi shozoku (traditional ninja clothing), inflicting a painful laceration that started to bleed.

Tomas was still pushing forward in a frenzy of attacks. He managed three or four more steps

forward before the ninja completely recovered from the inflicted injury (ignoring it, managing

pain) and a full reversal followed. Now it was Tomas that had to frantically defend himself.
He was pushed back so fast that it may have looked like he was running backwards, unlike the

painfully slowly gained ground when he was attacking the ninja. This was like a full retreat,

barely managing to avoid and deflect incoming attacks of the red ninja.

This infuriated Tomas, that the ninja pushed him back so easily and rapidly. He let another loud

war cry out and stormed forward, thinking, ‘No step back!’ The ninja just let Tomas go past him,

sidestepping. But as soon as Tomas turned back around to attack again, massive pain forced him

to the ground. The ninja landed a good slashing hit onto Tomas’s already cut left thigh, this one

much deeper than the one before. Tomas refused to subdue to the pain, quickly stood back up

and continued his attack, forcing the ninja to actually back up again, but no hits landed.

Tomas was shouting foul language in frustration the whole time.

Then the ninja began his own push. It was very easy for him to push Tomas back, forcing him to

fall to the floor as he bumped into one of the bodies himself this time around. As Tomas was

falling down, his sword was just deflected away from his body and he expected the mortal strike

to come. Like in slow motion, Tomas saw the blade of the katana creeping on him, but it ended

up only flesh wounding him on his chest. In the same manner as he did to the red ninja before.

His T-shirt split, exposing the minor laceration.

This wasn’t lucky, or accidental. The ninja was playing with him with ease! Humiliating him!

Tomas suddenly realized his actions; that he was subconsciously trying to intimidate his

opponent with the words while he stood there indifferent. That this time he was the “cocky

bigshot” that he had humiliated so many times before in China whilst street fighting. He was the

insecure, showing his insecurity via the chants to his opponent. And his opponent was him,

confident, indifferent. ‘Words are for pussies, real men act, no need for a chat in a fight.’ Those
were Tomas’s own words. He realized he was the insecure one and started to doubt his skills.

Tomas knew that he’d got plenty of wounds slowing him down, while his opponent had but one.

Even that one was most likely just lucky to happen. The red ninja was simply better, faster. Even

good enough to “play” with him, humiliating him. There was no denying that anymore, as Tomas

was always a realist. He saw the situation/thing for what it was, even though he may have not

liked it. He was about to die, unless he could outwit his opponent. His skill was simply not good

enough.

‘But how?’ There is no time to think in combat. The only obvious thing that came to Tomas’s

mind was to try to disarm his enemy. Perhaps then he would have the upper hand.

The ninja was already on him, pushing him backwards more and more. Soon enough, Tomas was

unable to block, deflect, or completely avoid the increasingly rapid and tiring attacks of the red

ninja. One of the hits was so strong that when Tomas managed to barely block it in the last

millisecond, it blew Tomas’s katana out of his hand and downwards onto the floor. The

following slash was barely avoided (Tomas had no katana in his hands), but it slashed him

horizontally across his whole upper chest, inflicting massive pain on impact that forced Tomas to

fall on the floor again.

He quickly looked around to see if he could find a spare katana from one of the slain ninjas, but

none was within reaching distance. Tomas expected the finishing blow again, but the red ninja

just stood there, looking at Tomas.

After two or so seconds, the red ninja just put the tip of his katana under the handle of Tomas’s

disarmed katana and flipped it back towards Tomas. He caught it in the air whilst already in

attack move towards the ninja. Their katanas kissed again so hard that they got stuck in each
other from the powerful impact. The ninja pushed into his first, splitting Tomas’s katana in half.

As it split, it allowed the ninja’s katana to continue in its original striking path, and Tomas barely

managed to get his neck out of the way as the katana bit him on the right shoulder instead.

The next strike hit Tomas at his wrist. Only a flesh wound, but he dropped the remains (after it

was split in two) of his katana. Tomas was unarmed again, and this time he saw coming that

finishing blow that he expected for a long time now, right at the top of his head, slicing vertically

down. Finally, he saw his chance for disarming the opponent.

In a last-ditch attempt, Tomas managed to stop the blade between his palms just above the “bite”

that he previously made with his katana. You could see the surprise in the red ninjas face that

Tomas was able to do that. Even though only his eyes were visible, they gave him away.

The ninja tried to brute-force the blade into Tomas’s face, but Tomas twisted it sideways and it

snapped in half too. Still, the top part of the katana managed to scratch Tomas’s nose, and the

bottom part made quite a large laceration to Tomas’s abdominals as it continued on its original

path, despite Tomas trying to get out of its way.

Tomas let a painful cry out, but his opponent was half disarmed! Good enough for Tomas; now

the reach the ninja got on him was negligible! As Tomas hoped, the red ninja wasn’t as good in

hand-to-hand combat once losing his reach advantage.

Quickly, Tomas gained initiative again, managing to rapid-punch the ninja several times at

several body locations, slowing him down. Finally, the half katana that the ninja now basically

used as a dagger got in Tomas’s possession! He managed to get hold of the ninja’s right wrist

that held the “dagger”, and in an aikido-style move, he reversed the ninja’s original move,

flipping him onto the floor, where he landed on his back. Tomas sat on him and tried to stab at
the ninja’s neck as he got hold of the blade, but the ninja managed to block it with his free left

arm. Tomas was already sitting on top of ninja’s right arm with his left knee, whilst his right

knee was just below the ninja’s left arm, so Tomas used it as a platform to snap the ninja’s left

arm at the elbow. Then there was nothing else preventing Tomas from wildly stabbing at the

ninja’s neck.

Once the red ninja’s head was almost half severed from the stabbing wounds, Tomas stood up

with the “dagger” in his hand to watch the red ninja choke on his blood and die, whilst the good

right arm of the ninja raised in a reaching out manner – as if he was trying to prevent Tomas

from standing up, or to tell Tomas that it was not over yet, but the hand suddenly fell limp as the

ninja died.

Perhaps it was just because of Tomas’s facial expression as he towered above the dying ninja

that told of contempt and satisfaction with coming out “on top” after all that gave the ninja

enough strength to try to reach out and stop Tomas from humiliating him like that. But Death is

merciless, and doesn’t ask for permission when it comes.

Nor him, nor Tomas. Tomas might have had the satisfaction to see the ninja die, but he knew he

was in trouble himself.

He tried to get out of the warehouse in haste, but he had lost a lot of blood already and the deep

leg wound made it almost impossible for him to move at all. It was amazing how during combat

you can ignore a lot, but once the combat is over, you cannot ignore it any longer and horrible,

crippling pain settles in. Tomas tried to bandage the deepest wounds as best he could with the

remains of his former T-shirt that he found torn on the floor, but he was still losing blood, mostly

from the abdominal area. The intended finishing blow of the ninja to his face might have done a
good enough job after all. Before Tomas realized that it would happen, he collapsed onto the

floor, losing consciousness.

Chapter 4: New Allies?

Linkin Park – Opening 1:07 (Reanimation)

Pain, confusion, darkness, and some muffled sounds in distance. No, it was voices! It wasn’t

dark; Tomas’s eyes were just closed. He slowly opened them. More pain set in as he became

more aware. Tomas looked around. He was on a bed, tubes in both of his arms. ‘Mr. Cudzis,

welcome back from the dead! I’m Charlotte, your doctor.’ A woman in her late twenties smiled

at him.

Tomas asked, ‘I have a doctor?’

Charlotte replied, ‘Thanks to your friend Mike, you do; sorry about your loss.’ Tomas was still

confused, but started to remember what had happened.

‘These are my nurses, Helena and Catherine,’ Dr Charlotte explained. ‘They have been taking

good care of you.’ Two more women came closer to his bed to say hi. They were all hot, Doc

included, Tomas thought. Even in his weakened state he was but a man and couldn’t help but

notice.

Tomas asked, ‘Where am I?’

‘I’ll make a phone call; all your questions will be answered. One moment please.’ Dr Charlotte

turned away and started to dial some numbers.

Nurse Helena asked, ‘How are you feeling, sir?’

Both nurses were smiling ear to ear. It was really a pleasant sight, especially considering the last

sights that Tomas had seen, before he passed out.

Tomas said, ‘Thank you, I’m feeling well.’ Tomas wouldn’t complain, but his body felt like it

was on fire.

Nurse Helena replied, ‘Anything you need, let us know. We are here for you.’

The nurses made way for the doctor so she could approach Tomas at his bedside.

’For you, Mister Cudzis.’ She handed him the cell phone.

Tomas cautiously said, ‘Yes?’

‘My name is Peter. I presume you must have a lot of questions. First, let me present my

condolences. I know that you considered DiBi a close friend.’

Tomas asked, ‘Who?’

Peter said, ‘I’m sorry, I meant Mike; we knew him as DiBi.’

Tomas said, ‘Uh, thank you, I did.’ He still sounded confused.

Peter explained, ‘That brings me to who am I. I was Mike’s contact. The one you kept asking

about.’ Tomas kept quiet.

‘Now, I do know that you had your doubts; even tried to leave because it looked like a setup. I

understand why. But let me assure you first that Mike had your best interest always in mind. To

my displeasure, I must say, because he almost managed to scare you off.’

‘I wasn’t scared,’ Tomas said in a calm voice.

Peter said, ‘It was more a metaphor; you were about to leave. It doesn’t matter how Mike

managed to do that. Not to us.’ Tomas tried to say something, but he was too slow, still fuzzy-

headed, probably from the loss of blood.

Peter continued. ‘The point is, Mike was your friend till the end. I think you should know that.

What happened is, Mike and I became acquainted no more than a year ago and I approached him

with a work proposal when Ho sent you to DiBi –’ he realized the mistake ‘– Mike, and we

became interested in you. We wanted to see you perform, but Mike got worried over time as he

became aware of the hit contract on your head. He tried to convince you to just leave. When that

didn’t work, he tried his plan B, which was to work out an agreement with Fok. Fok had

contacted Mike about two weeks ago, offering him money for setting you up. Mike tried in turn

to convince Fok that you could be of use to them, that there was no need to kill you. Of course,

that was just supposed to be cover for you, to provide information on them to us. That way, you

wouldn’t have to fight them, but could still be of use to us, the good guys.

‘So we promised Mike guarantee of your safety and extraction, should things go south. We never

knew about the “acceptance terms” you would have to undertake. It was a massive failure on our

part that Mike paid for with his life. We’re sorry about the innocent lady too, but there was

nothing we could do to help.

‘To our surprise, you survived. Somehow. I feel bound to the promise I gave to Mike that I

would provide safety for you.’

Peter paused for a moment. ‘Are you still there?’

Tomas said, ‘I’m listening.’

Peter said, ‘Good. For a moment I thought the line got cut or something, you were so quiet.’
Tomas said, ‘I don’t like to interrupt.’

‘Now I see why Mike grew to like you.’ He almost laughed.

Tomas said, ‘That doesn’t mean that I believe everything I hear, nor that I have no questions.’

‘Like what?’

‘Like what was your original interest in me? Why did you want to see me in action?’

Peter said, ‘Now that is only on a need-to-know basis, and you don’t need to know that just yet.’

Tomas said, ‘I do.’

‘That is not for you to decide, Mr. Cudzis.’

Tomas said, ‘You know a lot about me, like my real name; Mike must have trusted you. That is,

of course, only if I’m not just a pawn in your game and you are telling me what I need to hear to

keep playing your game.’

Peter said, ‘I assure you that there is no deception, just some secrets. I’m sure you can

understand why. We saved you, after all; you were bleeding out on the floor unconscious when

we picked you up.’

Tomas said, ‘That doesn’t mean anything; as I said, you still could just find me useful for the

moment.’

Peter sighed, ‘Time will prove that we are telling the truth.’

‘Who is we?’ Tomas asked. ‘An organization of some kind?’

Peter said, ‘Need-to-know basis, I’m afraid, but obviously…’ Tomas kept quiet for a while so

Peter continued. ‘What you need to know is that you’re safe now. We transferred you to a safe

house in Boston –’

Tomas exclaimed, ‘I’m in Boston?’

Peter said, ‘Yes, you’re in Boston now. You know, land of the Red Sox and fried haddock. We

saved you from bleeding to death and kept you in concealment from the triads and potential

hitmen, as the contract on your head is still on. You have been provided with a doctor and her

nurses’ round-the-clock supervision for the last four days.’

‘I have been out for four days?’

Peter said, ‘Yes, it’s Sunday now; we thought that you may not pull through after all. The doctor

and her team did an amazing job, considering all the injuries you sustained. Even aesthetically,

you barely have any visible scars except the one to your gut.’ Tomas lifted his bedsheet and

looked at his belly. There was a deep, 45-degree scar from the red ninja’s blade as he’d snapped

his sword in two. As Tomas did that, he noticed a much less visible scar on his left forearm, from

when he got disarmed. Tomas started to recollect all of the hits he had received and had a huge

urge to look for the appearance of all of the scars. He couldn’t find any other, but he knew that

his back received some deeper hits too. Peter continued in the meantime.

‘We’re taking a huge risk helping you, but as I said, I feel obliged to Mike, frankly. To you too;

you’re the first person to walk away from such a situation, to our knowledge. I was very

impressed.’ He expected Tomas to say something, but that didn’t happen.

Peter continued. ‘But as you can imagine, Fok was much less impressed, figuratively speaking;

otherwise, I’m sure he was beyond surprised and upset. The body count was so large that it
wouldn’t even be practical for them to hide it. It was referred to as the “biggest mob score

levelling ever” in the evening news. No worries, not a single mention of a lone vigilante – not

that anyone would believe that, considering there were thirty-three bodies recovered.’ After a

while he added, ‘Plus two of ours’.

Tomas let that sink in as Peter continued. ‘Needless to say, Fok is looking for you. The prize

went up to five million for now. At the moment, you can’t go anywhere, it’s too risky.’

‘So I am a prisoner?’

Peter replied, ‘Not at all! But if you walk out and something happens to you, it’s on your head.

Be sensible; you are too far away from recovered to go anywhere anyway.’

This was truth. Tomas was in gruelling pain just to do some small movements, forget about

walking. It was only his inflated ego that had prevented him from showing his pain on his face.

That’s just the way Tomas was. Couldn’t, wouldn’t, show any weakness to anyone at any time.

Peter said, ‘Once you are fully recovered, Doc was saying in around seven weeks, then we can

start to talk about what we can do for you next, Mr. Cudzis.’ Tomas once again just kept quiet,

so Peter took that as agreement and continued.

‘I will also send our psychologist to you soon to have a chat.’

Tomas asked, ‘What do I need a psychologist for?’

‘Well, considering what you have been through, I thought you may need someone to talk to

about all that.’ Peter said with surprise in his voice. ‘It’s standard procedure for soldiers after

battle.’

Tomas said, ‘Clearly, you haven’t learned enough about me from Mike after all.’
Peter said, ‘Oh, I don’t expect you to take advantage of our kindness, but I intend to keep my

promise to Mike to help you with all the resources that I have access to. You do with it as you

find fit. Goodbye.’ Tomas could read the annoyance in Peter’s voice.

Tomas prompted, ‘Before you go!’

‘Yes?’

‘I don’t see any guards around. You have seen what I have done, yet you leave women alone

with me?’

Peter asked, ‘Should I be worried?’

Tomas said, ‘No, not really. I can promise that no matter what.’

‘I didn’t think so. Yet, I do appreciate that you have said that, Mr. Cudzis.’

Tomas handed the phone back to Dr Charlotte.

Tomas said, ‘Thank you. And thank you for everything too, sisters.’

Helena and Catherine just smiled and said that he was welcome.

‘So, you are going to take care of me until I’m fully recovered?’ He put on a fake smile.

Dr Charlotte smiled back. ’That’s the plan!’

Tomas said, ‘In that case, I may not want to ever fully recover after all.’ They all laughed, even

blushed.

Dr Charlotte played coy. ‘Is that flirting I sense, Mr. Cudzis? We all have boyfriends, you

know.’
‘I apologize, I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable. Please just take it as a compliment.’

Dr Charlotte patted his arm gently. ‘No need to apologize, you couldn’t have known. Besides,

we do enjoy compliments.’

The nurses nodded their heads.

Tomas said, ‘Glad to hear that there are still some sensible women out there.’

Dr Charlotte tried to keep the calm in her voice. ‘I beg your pardon?’

Tomas said, ‘Oh, you know…it’s now almost a criminal offence in our society to even talk to a

woman without her approval first, which you can’t get without asking her first! That is, of

course, if she doesn’t find you attractive, or else it is perfectly fine. I’m sorry, it’s just me. Forget

it.’

Dr Charlotte replied, ‘It’s okay, I know exactly what you mean. Now, I will be going, but you

will be in the competent hands of my nurses. Should you need anything, just ask them.’

Dr Charlotte had a short chat of who would stay with Tomas first, as it was obvious the nurses

would be taking shifts. Nurse Helena decided to stay as the first watch.
 System of a Down – Ego Brain 3:25

“You see my pain is real, watch my world dissolve -

and pretend, that none of us see the fall.
As I turned to sand, you took me by the hand and declared - that love prevails over all.”

Days passed. Tomas was slowly but surely recovering from his wounds, and able to walk about.

He found himself in one of those flats in a skyscraper, as he had always dreamed about. Tomas

could have spent days just looking out of the window, in awe at the surroundings. He fell in love

with Boston. He fell in love with Dr Charlotte, and nurses Helena and Catherine. Tomas did

some volume of flirting with them, as they didn’t show signs of disapproval or annoyance. But

he wouldn’t take it any further than flirting. They had boyfriends, as a starter, and then the other

reason.

Surprisingly, not that he wasn’t ready yet for a relationship. Tomas didn’t feel like there was

anything more to achieve, that he still had goals to chase. But now, there was a different

problem. He was hunted. By the triads, and God knows who else. He was a dangerous man to be

associated with. Tomas promised himself that he would not put them in any danger. Not by his

actions, not by fraternizing with them.

After two weeks had passed, Tomas was almost fully recovered, to everyone’s surprise.

Internally, at least; he still had to continue his physio schedule for the shoulder. He even had a

private gym in the flat! Obviously, it was costly. Tomas had never experienced such a luxury in

his life before.

Charlotte didn’t see it necessary for her to check up on him anymore. The nurses were the only

ones to stay with him after those two weeks, taking turns, only to bring groceries mostly, and to
keep him company. They got to know Tomas just superficially, as he was still accounting for

possible trickery on their part in the back of his mind. It wasn’t like he knew them well, and it

was a lot of money for his head, even if they may have worked for Peter with good intentions at

the moment. You never know; five million? Tomas would tell his own mom to rat him out so she

and his sister would get the pay cheque and a better life, if it wasn’t for the risk that they’d

expose themselves to the triads. If Tomas could trust the triads to actually pay them, and then

leave them alone even if they found out who they were, he would do it. Too bad he couldn’t; he

would have taken that option in a heartbeat.

Tomas was probably doomed anyway, but didn’t want to worry about that, so he didn’t. He had

amazing ability to just shut down his feelings and emotions, to ignore them. He had a lot of

practice of that as a kid. ‘Can’t be hurt or scared all the time, can’t make any progress like that.

Be a man, deal with it!’ Except that one time when his emotions had made him freeze in his

place. Tomas felt such shame every time he let his thoughts go to that moment, when he let Mike

and the girl just die. At the same time, he was ashamed that he wasn’t gasping for revenge, and

instead hoped that there could be a way for him to live through it; that the triads would forget

about him. He would forget about them in an instant and just carry on with his life, happy for a

second chance, if he could. Like a coward almost, except my logic is telling me not to be stupid

and take the best option if possible. For each to carry on his own way of course.

Tomas wanted to live like never before. Now, being a man and respected wasn’t important. Now

he most certainly had it. He felt like he had it. Now, the most important thing to have that he

didn’t have was a normal, peaceful life. Family life.

As time passed, now and then Tomas would dream about past events. The people he killed, the

way he killed them. Other times, about Mike and the girl that he didn’t know the name of. About
their faces. Mike’s cry for Tomas to take action. The girl’s cries. But now Tomas had lot of

practice keeping regrets under control, ever since he killed the DI. He saw him less and less in

his dreams. If he didn’t confess that he had problems back then to Mike, nobody would ever

guess, nor ever know. Even Helena, who had started to take overtime to be with Tomas more.

Helena announced, ‘I’m here,’ as she walked through the door. Tomas was at his computer

playing games to waste time away, to shake his thoughts away.

‘Helena?’

‘Yes, it’s me. I brought you some groceries.’

‘I thought it was Catherine’s day today.’

‘Yes it was, I offered to cover for her as she needed to take some time off. Why, you mind?’ she

asked with a flirting voice.

‘No, of course not. Just wondering. I knew it was her turn,’ he said in a calm voice and turned

off the game he was playing.

‘What did you play?’

Tomas said, ‘Just this game, nothing that would interest you.’

‘It would. What game?’

They continued to interact and flirt occasionally with each other until 7:00 p.m., the last working

hour of Helena’s shift. Tomas had just finished his workout and the shoulder physio routine

under Helena’s supervision.

Tomas sat at the table to eat food that Helena had prepared for him beforehand to eat after a

workout. She was very young, only 22, and it felt like she was his trophy wife. It felt amazing,

even without the sex. She cleaned, even though Tomas always cleaned up his own mess. She

made him food, even though he had been making his own food all his adult life. She always

smiled and was in a good mood, keeping him company and never nagging him about his choices

of activities. The gaming specifically. And of course, she was one of the “angels”, almost too hot

to be real. She was too perfect.

Helena said, ‘You know, don’t take this the wrong way, but you don’t strike me as a…you know,

a tough guy, a bad boy. I mean, I know what you have done, but all I see is this nice guy.’

Tomas just laughed and with a smile, turned to her. ‘Please don’t say that.’

‘Why not?’

‘Because coming from a woman, it is an insult. ”Nice guy”. It means she thinks that you’re a

pussy. It means she is not sexually attracted to you.’

Helena laughed and with a flirting voice, continued. ‘Why, you want me to be sexually attracted

to you?’ Tomas made a maybe expression with his face. ‘I have seen your body; what woman

would not like that?’ If he could blush, he would. But him being him, he probably lost the

physical capability of that a long time ago.

Tomas said, ‘Is this a bad boy’s body?’

‘Very much.’
Tomas said, ‘You like bad boys?’ Now, she was physically showing signs of blushing. The

secret admission. Likes bad boys, like every woman does, even though she says she wants a

“nice guy”. She must have been really confused that Tomas was both in her eyes, somehow.

‘No, I like nice guys, like you.’

Tomas asked, ‘How am I a nice guy?’

‘Well, you know, you’re always so polite. Well-mannered, easy-going, considerate of others,

capable, reliable –’

Tomas said, ‘Interrupting.’ She laughed. ‘Mass murderer.’ Her face got more serious.

‘You did what you had to, to survive!’ She even defended him passionately.

‘Helena, I did a lot of bad things because of my inflated ego. Because of me thinking that I had

the moral superiority, I performed even more heinous acts. I’m not a nice guy. I got into this

situation for a reason, not by accident. I wish there was a way back for me, to be a nice guy.’ She

got quiet, looking down to the floor.

‘But not like a pussy nice guy, you know.’ She laughed at him again.

Tomas said, ‘Like a normal man; no, scratch that! A real man! Strong enough at heart to not

impose any superiority that he may have over others, just because he can. But not to pussy out in

the face of real danger just to preserve himself. Someone that I always wanted to be. I thought I

was, but learned that I wasn’t.’

Now she had the face. “I want to kiss you”.

Tomas said, ‘I’m done for, Helena, I know I am. Too late for me to change now. Too late to lead

a normal life. What could possibly save me now?‘

‘Love,’ Helena replied gently, almost a moan.

She reached to wrap her arms around Tomas’s neck and they shared a long, passionate kiss. Then

Tomas pushed Helena away very gently so that when she realized that he was pushing her away,

she let go of him.

Tomas said, ‘Thank you.’

Helena replied, ‘You are very much welcome.’ But he could see the confused face on her, still

smiling though.

Tomas noted, ‘But I thought you had a boyfriend.’ Her face changed from a big smile to an

expression of shame very quickly.

‘I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that, please forgive me. You must think I’m a horrible person!’

She started to panic, visibly worried.

Tomas smiled. ‘No, nothing happened! You comforted a man that needed it, thank you for that.’

Metallica – Bleeding Me 8:16

“I'm diggin' my way, I'm diggin' my way to something.'

I'm diggin' my way to somethin' better.”

Helena calmed down, but was still visibly worried. Of course Tomas lied to make it easy on her.

Truth was, he thought she was just like the others. Monkey branching, willing to exchange her

old boyfriend for a better “new model”; him, in this case. He would have been selfish and taken

her up on that offer, should he not care for her. Should there be no danger of staying with him.

‘Nice guy? Sure I am!’

Helena was what Tomas deemed to be a decent woman. Well-raised, ladylike manners and all,

educated, with hopefully only 1 or 2 boyfriends (a guess on his part) at 22 years old. That’s a

really low number for a hot young woman in this era. Of course as a woman she would be

attracted to the toned body of Tomas. Of course she would be monkey branching from

relationship to relationship (Tomas would say from cock to cock, really); she was a woman, after

all. In his mind, they are programmed like that by nature. Of course she would want a bad boy,

but would never admit it. Women couldn’t help it, in Tomas’s opinion. ‘Why not profit from it

when you can?’ He had it all: body, manners, and he was a damn vigilante! ‘Killed thirty-three

gangsters? Great! You are the alpha of alphas. Let’s have sex, I want your kids!’ Despicable

mindset, really, to trap him in the relationship.

But he wouldn’t care about that anymore. It’s not like he was perfect. There are two needed to

make it work. Tomas just figured out that every woman has to fight her own hypergamy

tendencies and irrational choices, as much as every man has to fight his own animal within and

ego insecurities. The success of that pretty much determines who is a “decent” woman and who

is a “decent” man.

Helena said, ‘I think that I should go.’

‘No, please stay, you still have an hour to go.’

‘I don’t know, I feel bad.’

Tomas said, ‘For what? Making me happy, comforting me? Don’t be silly. Thank you! I promise

that I won’t take advantage of you again.’ He took the blame on himself as a gentleman like a

“nice guy” should.

‘Okay, but you keep your hands off me!’ she said in a sarcastic way, with a smile from ear to ear.
‘I can’t make such a promise,’ Tomas joked. Thank God he was back to the bad boy attitude; his

manhood insecurities started to kick in after the nice guy stuff.

Needless to say, as soon as Helena left, Tomas almost instantly regretted that he didn’t take

advantage of her. ‘It has been a while. Should have been selfish! Should have exposed her to

danger, but get what I wanted. She will never know anyway, never appreciate what you have

done for her. And what if you make it through? This could have been Felicity v. 2.0! Dumbass,

you are a pussy nice guy after all, always finishing last! Make sacrifices for what? To be laughed

at? Ridiculed even? Dumbass!’

But Tomas couldn’t help it. This was the way he was raised. He was just not capable of doing

selfish things; he hated selfish people! But he also learned a long time ago that those kinds of

people always finish last with women, and they are being ridiculed by all. ‘Used and stepped

over, every single damn time!’ Power corrupts; you give people any power over you, and they

will dry you to the last drop of blood before laughing in your face how stupid you were once you

confront them. ‘I should have ravaged her body and thrown her away after I had my way with

her. She would have come back for more for sure! Thinking that “love” will solve everything

and all that crap. That she will “fix” you. As if that didn’t mean turning you into a pussy! A

teddy bear that she would get bored of soon, and trade you back for another bad boy to fix. You

need to treat women like a pimp, not like a gentleman! Kindness in general is considered a

weakness. No woman seeks a weak man, she needs to feel secure. Stupid! You stupid, weak

pussy, you!’

Tomas always wanted to be a decent man, like his dad. Kind to others. But his dad’s actions and

massive appearance prevented anyone from making fun of him for being nice. He could have

turned into a bad boy in an instant to defend the defenceless or to prevent anyone from taking
advantage of him. Or to just prevent anyone from ridiculing him without consequence. Tomas’s

dad could always stand his ground.

But even now, Tomas wasn’t sure if his ego was secure enough to be able to pull it off as a

decent man without feeling inferior. Without feeling like a pussy. Women can smell that on you

and as much as he would want to disregard them, pretend he didn’t care, they were still the most

important thing in his life and he needed them to perceive him as a strong man, even if he had to

fake it. It was the struggle of his life. ‘Just keep digging there, mate; just keep digging for

something better. Everything that happens, happens for a reason. You sow the consequences of

your own actions. Nothing more, nothing less. The struggle that you are going through is not

because of other people’s perception of you, but because of your own perception of yourself!

Just keep digging and bleeding yourself of self-respect; there may be a way out in the end.’

Linkin Park – Catalyst 5:39

“God, bless us everyone - we're a broken people living under loaded gun;
And it can't be outfought, It can't be outdone, It can't be outmatched,
It can't be outrun, NO!”

Three weeks passed. A new person had come through Tomas’s doors, a lady in her late twenties,

gliding in like a model. She looked like a model too; a bit too posh though. It was supposed to be

Helena’s turn. Tomas got worried that she had asked to be replaced after the “incident”.

‘Hi, my name is Violetta, I’m a psychologist. Peter informed you that I was coming?’

Tomas replied, ‘A long time ago, yes. Is Helena still coming?’

Violetta replied, ‘It will be just the two of us today, but no worries, she will come back another

day.’
Tomas said, ‘I’m not worried.’ He said it in so quiet voice that she couldn’t hear. Tomas realized

as he was saying it that it was a blatant lie anyway. He stood up and shook her hand. ‘It’s nice to

meet you.’

Violetta said, ‘I was told that you have all the groceries you need, etcetera.’

Tomas said, ‘Yes, I don’t really need anything, thank you.’

‘Well, I was hoping we could have a chat. Nothing formal, just a friendly chat. Is there any

subject that you would like to suggest?’ She said it very formally though.

Tomas said, ‘Yes, you. I would like to know more about you.’

Violetta said, ‘What about me?’ She sounded surprised.

Tomas said, ‘Just in general. You know, where you came from, etcetera.’

They may have spent an hour or two talking about general topics. Had a meal together, and

Tomas got more relaxed while talking to Violetta who even took-off her formal suit to be more

comfortable.

Then out of nowhere, Violetta asked very casually, ‘So tell me, what is it like to kill thirty-four

people?’

If Tomas still had food in his mouth, he would have spit it out in surprise. His mouth stayed open

for a moment before collecting himself. It was the first time he had shown any genuine emotion

in a long time.

Tomas said calmly, ‘Peter said thirty-three. I’m not even sure to be honest.’

‘Well, I’m counting the one in China; or are there even more that we don’t know of?’
‘No, thirty-four it is then.’ Tomas got quiet, but realized that she still expected an answer. ‘I’m

not sure what you expect me to say to that.’

Violetta replied, ‘The truth, of course.’ She seemed to have turned very cold in comparison to the

previous hours that she had been very social, laughing and all.

Tomas said firmly, ‘I only did what I had to do. I didn’t want to kill anyone!’

Violetta said, ‘I didn’t challenge that, I asked, how did it feel?’ Tomas took pause to think about

it.

‘There, in that moment, nothing. I was fighting for my survival; I didn’t feel anything. Rage, if

something. After? I do my best not to think about it.’

Violetta pressed, ‘I know this is a hard question, but you must understand that I’m here

professionally. Peter would like to know if you’re fit to be released back to the public life, should

that even be possible.’ Tomas was shocked once again at how blunt and cold she had turned.

Tomas said, ‘I thought you said “nothing formal”?’

‘I have changed my mind,’ she said, shrugging her shoulders. ‘Normally, I go formal on the

second visit, once we know each other better, and thus my clients are more at ease to talk to me.

But as I said, I also have a job to do for Peter, and you seem cool enough to make it happen as it

is. I might just as well do it today.’

Tomas said, ‘Okay, even if that was the truth, why would you tell me that? Aren’t you afraid that

even if I’m not fit enough to be released into the public life, I would just run away anyway?

There are the doors, who is here to stop me?’

Violetta said, ‘There is no point not being honest with you, if I expect honesty. I know, it can be

painful or awkward, but it is still the best approach; and to answer your question on who would

stop you, the triads would, most likely. If you go out before it is safe, you may die. If not them,

then perhaps some other contract killers. I heard that there is a lot of money offered for your life.

If I could, I would do you myself, to collect.’ She said that with a perfect poker face. Then she

said, ‘Laugh, that was a joke, of course!’ lighting up like sunshine, even briefly touching

Tomas’s hand.

‘Of course.’ Tomas really struggled to understand whether she was trying to be offensive on

purpose as a joke, or was just being so blunt, so direct and cold, that it couldn’t even be

considered offensive, just truth.

Violetta patiently waited for his response.

Tomas said, ‘I don’t know what to say. One simply doesn’t ask that question in the first place.’

Violetta retorted, ‘Why not? I’m a psychologist, so I can. Besides, this is why I’m here, to make

a psychological profile of you. Might have not planned it for today, but as I explained already, I

have changed my mind.’

Tomas said, ‘Well, we have spent a lot of hours together already; can’t you tell what kind of a

person I am yet?’

Violetta said, ‘You seem strangely…ordinary, all considered.’ She seemed confused.

Tomas asked, ‘What did you expect I would be like?’

‘I don’t know, I have never profiled anyone that killed that many people.’

Tomas firmly reminded her, ‘In defence!’

Violetta said, ‘Yes, that’s correct, I don’t argue that. I’m genuinely intrigued. Could I get an

honest answer to that?’

Tomas said, ‘As I said, I don’t try to think about it, to keep my sanity. It’s not easy. Now and

then, I lose myself in those thoughts if I don’t preoccupy my mind. I already have had a dream or

two about certain events, regrets included.’

Violetta prompted, ‘Regrets of what?’

‘That Mike died, that the girl died, and I just stood there watching them die.’

‘How did that make you feel?’ Tomas got emotional on the inside, but like always, nothing was

happening on the surface.

Tomas said, ‘Like a pussy, like a pretender. A failure!’ Some anger crept into his voice, but it

was weak in comparison to what he truly felt.

Violetta asked, ‘Why? Wouldn’t you die otherwise as well? What choice did you have?’

Tomas said, ‘That was my rationalizing of my decisions. The truth is, I still may die. But, I had a

chance to die honest to myself, to who I thought I was.’

Violetta asked, ‘And who is that?’

‘Someone that would rather die in combat than watch two innocent people being killed because

of me. And I did nothing. Nothing! They could have killed me after without the slightest

resistance on my part. I would have not made them pay one bit for what they did, as I always

thought I would. I will never forgive myself, never!’ Now Tomas was for the first time visibly

upset, but still calm.

Violetta noted, ‘But you killed thirty-three people afterward, with a sword. Was that revenge?’
Tomas exploded, ‘Revenge?! Lady, I was fighting for survival! They wanted to slowly torture

me, slice off bits of my body until I was dead!’ His voice was raised now.

‘And how exactly would you know that with full confidence?’ Violetta was still calm, cold.

Tomas said, ‘Because I was there?! Because I’m still alive? How come only four of them

stepped forward at first?! How come it was obvious to me from the start that they were not trying

to kill me, but to hurt me?! They underestimated me! I realized that straight away and I didn’t

hold back one bit. I saw the chance. Before they realized that they couldn’t just torture me, it was

too late for them.

‘The guy that came after must have been the brother of the DI that I killed in Hong Kong. He

was toying with me! He was better…faster. I had battle rage in me and wanted revenge at that

point. For Mike, for that poor girl! When he finally went full out on me, if it wasn’t for the

rage…for the will to live long enough to avenge them…’

Tomas struggled to say anything more.

Violetta said, ‘But Fok was the one who killed Mike and the girl; you didn’t really avenge

anybody. You just killed people that had come to avenge the death of the DI’s brother. One

could say they had the same right to be mad at you, as you have now to be mad at Fok.’

Tomas said, ‘I know that! As I said, I was fighting for survival! God, thirty-three of them, huh?’

He paused to think. ‘Fuck them!! Fuck them! Those scumbags must have done things in their

past that are unspeakable! Killed innocent people, torture, and God knows what else.’ Then he

got quiet. ‘You want me to apologize for surviving?!’

Violetta said, ‘Not at all. I’m just trying to find out what’s in your head. You mention God a lot,

are you religious?’

Tomas collected himself a bit more. ‘No, it’s just a habit, the best expression of what I’m trying

to express…’ He got quiet again, but then remembered that there was another indirect question to

answer. ‘I just want to live a normal life, but even before this, I always felt that there was a gun

pointed at me.’

‘What do you mean by that?’

‘There were always aggressors out there. As a child, there were bullies. As an adult, I feel that

the state itself is the bully.’

‘How so?’

Tomas said, ‘Oh my God, so many examples, we would be here for a lifetime! Let’s just say that

I don’t feel there is any justice or truth. And if you object, if you try to point it out or disobey the

nonsense that may come out of the system, then you are fucked.’ He paused for a moment.

Tomas said, ‘I apologize, I swear too much. But when I get heated, it happens. Besides, there are

no better words to express more accurately my feelings about it.’

Violetta said, ‘It’s okay, no offense taken.’

Tomas continued. ‘The point is, if you don’t like how they run it, they will make you by force. A

murderer walks because of a legislative mistake? Oh well, he walks, the law is the law. You

don’t like it? Well, there will be a lot of police, to police you into submission. Going to war

because of whatever bullshit made-up nonsense, killing millions in the process? Same thing. And

the perpetrators walk free among us even after public exposure. It was perfectly legal! The
people up top push the people down low, to sum it up. Just look at my situation. Should I have

gone to the police, I would have been in jail, with possibly a death sentence, for what? Defending

myself from the mob?’

Violetta said, ’That is not entirely the truth either, is it? You killed a man, and you’re on the run

from the legal system of China. If it wasn’t for the fact that the triads tend to administer their

own justice, you still would be in trouble for murder. That’s why you have people going after

you, and you killed them too.’

Tomas seem defeated, again a very subtle but visible expression of his emotion. ‘I’m not a bad

person. My mom hasn’t raised a cold-blooded killer. It just…happened. I protected the weak, the

defenceless! Then…it was more reaction than anything else, it was automatic. I had rage in my

heart against those kinds of people. Animals! The DI tried to kill me and I snapped in rage! And

you know what? In that moment, it felt good! No, great! Justice served!’

Tomas calmed down a bit. ‘I guess I turned into what I hated. I’m not the same person anymore.

Especially now. But I had no choice! It was either me or them ever since… I will make no

excuses for my actions, nor cry that it isn’t fair. I realize it’s my own doing. All I had to do

was…nothing. Watch the oppressed being oppressed, like everybody else. But I couldn’t, and

took it too far.’

Violetta said, ‘But now you have a chance to lead a normal life again, perhaps.’

‘You mean die like a coward in hiding? Or you will kill me, for all I know, should you decide

I’m not fit for public!’

Violetta said, ‘I highly doubt that would be Peter’s course of action. I would not approve of that,

by the way.’
As much as he was shocked that Violetta didn’t deny that it could happen, there was a more

interesting question on Tomas’s lips.

Tomas said, ‘You are Peter’s superior?’

Violetta said, ‘Yes. No! Not directly. But I do have a major role of influence in our

organization.’

Tomas asked, ‘Is there any point of me asking you anything regarding the organization?’

‘No.’ She laughed.

There was a moment of silence.

Tomas said, ‘It sickens me!’

Violetta asked, ‘What sickens you?’

‘That we are living our lives like sheep. There is always an aggressor pointing a gun at us,

metaphorically speaking. Sometimes, literally. There is always someone to exploit us,

threatening violence should we disobey. The state, the “machine” included.’

Violetta asked, ‘Do you feel like a sheep?’

Tomas said, ‘Of course I do, look at me! Look at my situation! If I can’t find my way out, if I

can’t fight my way out, who can?!’ Tomas spoke with more and more passion, but in a civilized,

controlled manner.

Violetta noted, ‘But there is no correlation there. You are being chased by the Mafia. How does

that relate to the general population, to me?’

Tomas said, ‘The state is Mafia as well. They walk hand in hand. It’s good for business. I got it

first-hand!’

‘So you would prefer anarchy?’ Violeta always spoke with professional calmness.

‘Of course not.’

‘Then what would you propose to do?’

Tomas said, ‘I don’t know. It can’t be outfought, it can’t be outdone, it can’t be outrun. It’s just

the way it is. There is no justice, except the one that is paid for in blood or money. I don’t have

money.’

Violetta said, ‘So you see the USA as an enemy?’

Tomas said, ‘Of course not, this has nothing to do with the USA. I love the USA. I always did. I

dreamed about coming here to see the pinnacle of Western civilization. But I didn’t know that it

was already too late. That it had been long corrupted as well.’

Violeta was about to ask another question, but realized that Tomas wasn’t finished yet.

‘I’m talking about the system itself, as a machine that is being adjusted to the liking of the ruling

people that slowly but surely are taking away the rights of the working people. To guarantee that

they are the ones to stay at the top, for all I know. It used to be decent people, but now people

with character are scarce. How could you expect in a system where one hundred, two hundred,

three hundred people hold some kind of legislative power, they could all be decent people? How

could you expect that now the majority of already corrupt people will not corrupt the others?

When they can see only two options: join us, or be against us? They are the system, the machine!

If they want you out, you’re out. Often first publicly discredited, and then got rid of. Only the
strongest of characters will survive such an environment, but they are fighting a losing battle

from the start. Still, it’s good to see some light in the darkness, even if it’s just a feeble flame of a

candle in the vastness of space.’

Violetta clarified, ‘So you feel like the state is like a machine that is being controlled by the

wrong elements, or else it would have worked.’

‘Yes, exactly! Democracy is nice on paper, but we, the aware all know that there is no real

democracy, no real justice, no real truth. Look how much fake news and propaganda is out there!

How many real criminals are laughing in the face of common folk from behind their desk and

hefty pay checks as untouchables! Only if the public gets strongly outraged will they supposedly

step down. Only to continue in their merry lives in a different equally paid function, or better

occasionally. They never really step down.

‘And God forbid me to even suggest prison. That is unthinkable! If the common folk kill one

person, they get jailed for life or get a death sentence. Those gangsters can indirectly or directly

kill millions, or just ruin millions of lives, and nothing happens! Would you call this a working

system?

‘Don’t get me started on immigration, banks, money, debt, gun control, feminism, equality and

other LGBT bullshit, etcetera, etcetera. Or my favourite, false flags! There is so much shit going

on in the system. We must at least indicate to the people owning the machine, the state, and the

people running it, that unless we are free, the machine will be prevented from working at all.’

Violetta said, ‘Nice Mario Savio’s reference, even though he didn’t mean it that way.’

She was expecting Tomas to react, but he didn’t.

Violetta asked, ‘So there is nothing that the state, police, or justice system does right?’

Tomas replied, ‘I never said that. In fact, most of the things they do, pass, or enforce, are right, of

course. But, if out of a thousand things, fifty are absolute evil power abuse shit or damn right

nonsensical, like taking away human rights, that is fifty times more than we as the public should

tolerate from the governing people.’

Violetta checked her notes. ‘You mentioned gun control before. Is that what you refer to as

taking away rights? How come you feel threatened by a gun at all times, and at the same time,

you see gun control as a negative thing. Shouldn’t a ban on guns be positive legislation, meaning

less violence, less oppression, if you will?’

Tomas said, ‘And leave the guns only in the bad guys’ hands?! You must be kidding. The only

great thing about the US is that your people can physically oppose its own government from

slow, absolute enslavement disguised as security measures. Besides, that wouldn’t even stop

criminals from illegally obtaining a weapon anyway. It would just mean that the law-abiding

citizen has no means of self-defence outside of calling for help. Which would, in many cases,

just kill them as well, or instead…no, I’m not even going to go there.

‘But because there are so many guns, and people love their guns, I don’t think that in the US,

there will ever be an absolute ban on all firearms. Nor that the state will take away those guns.

The USA will still prevail as the last candle in the darkness.’ Tomas already felt exposed, unlike

himself, and wanted to finish the discussion as quickly as possible.

Violetta asked, ‘What about fewer mass shootings?’

Tomas said, ‘I don’t believe that. It has little to do with the availability of legally purchasable

guns, more so with the state of mind of the person doing it. Many people are committing suicide
every year at an exponentially increasing rate. Even more people suffer from depression. They

should look into why that is happening, the reason, so that fewer people would choose to take

revenge on the public as a whole. Possibly because they perceived them as their direct abusers,

accomplices to the system. Not that I defend them; quite the opposite. Is there anything else you

would like to ask me?’

Violetta said, ‘No, I think I know what I need to know, Mr. Cudzis.’

Tomas said, ‘I prefer if you call me Tomas.’

Violetta said, ‘Bye, Tomas, until our next meeting.’

‘You will come again?’

‘Maybe. Why, you don’t want me to?’

Tomas said almost aggressively, ‘No reason. Goodbye, take care.’

He just felt cheated into opening up, which Tomas had no intentions of doing. Ever, or to

anyone. At the same time, it was kind of calming, but he wouldn’t admit it. Psychology and all

that is for the weak-minded, and he is no pussy! But, intellectually, he found it stimulating.

‘Take care, Tomas, it was very…enlightening. I mean it,’ Violetta said, looking deep into his

eyes.

Violeta had put her formal suit jacket back on, and with the elegance of a posh woman, she left.

She was hot! But she is also surely a bitch at heart! Tomas couldn’t explain why he thought so.

She was polite and all, but her body language, accent, and bluntness…she was acting like she

was very high-maintenance. She probably was! ‘There is no point in even trying with such girls;
you can’t win! In the end, you will be the loser. And the end, I can guarantee!’ He laughed to

himself on the inside.

But more concerningly, Tomas wasn’t sure what Violetta meant by ‘I know what I need to

know.’ Was that a good thing or bad? Tomas never spoke about those things to anyone before.

There weren’t too many people in his life in the first place. Second, he didn’t want to be

perceived as a whacko, a conspiracy theorist with a foil hat on. That was a common reaction of

the “sheep”, as he learned. ‘Facts don’t matter. You don’t tell the sheep that it is just a sheep.’

Nobody likes to admit that he could be the fooled dummy. That he is not smart enough to see the

deceptions, the manipulations, and eventually be led to the slaughterhouse. ‘They will make fun

of you, YOU are the looney that believes every witch hunter out there. You probably believe in a

flat earth too, and all that stuff!’

‘God, I’m fucked. I should have kept quiet, as always.’

Chapter 5: Still Hunted

Linkin Park – When They Come For Me 4:55

“I'm not a criminal, not a role model.

Not a born leader - I'm a tough act to follow.”

Weeks passed. It was October 2014. Nothing happened; no response, no call, no changes,

nothing. Tomas felt like he dodged a bullet. Even Helena kept coming just like before, though

she didn’t cover for any days off for Catherine anymore. Tomas was growing back to his old

strength and flexibility levels. Surprisingly, his core didn’t have much of an impact on his overall

performance, although that was the most serious and deepest wound. Back was OK, but his left

shoulder muscles were still weaker compared to before, after almost getting a chunk sliced out of

them. Same with his right calf, but that was a minimal contribution to the performance and his

combat capabilities as long as he could plant his feet confidently.

Then, one day, the door opened in a hectic manner. A man in a biker suit and a helmet still on

with a visor down walked in. Tomas jumped off the chair (he was watching YouTube videos at

his PC) and instantly got into striking composure. The man in the helmet raised his arms in a

stop manner, then handed him a mobile phone to answer, as it just started to ring on its own.

Tomas carefully accepted the phone.

‘Yes?’

‘It’s me, Peter. Listen, we’ve got a slight problem; they have tracked your position.’

Tomas asked, ‘Who? Fok?!’

‘No, the bounty hunters. Fok possibly doesn’t know yet.’

‘So, what is the plan?’

Peter said, ‘Well, that is up to you. Your flat is big enough and soundproofed so that you could

resist them in there without attracting too much attention. We can provide safe clean-up

afterwards. Or, you could run, and we will relocate you somewhere else.’

Tomas said, ‘You sound an awful lot like Fok himself.’

‘Yes, I’m aware of your extraordinary points of view on the world around you. I can assure you

that we are not a criminal organization.’

‘Yet, you provide illegal services. Like safe clean-up afterwards? I’m not even sure I want

specifics of what exactly that means, not that you would tell me anyway.’

Peter said, ‘That’s funny, coming from a man that chopped thirty-three men into bits. But you

are right, I wouldn’t. What is your choice?’

Tomas asked, ‘Why would I fight them? What could I possibly achieve aside from getting

myself deeper into the rabbit hole? They didn’t do anything to me directly.’

Peter asked, ‘How about some justice? There was a very interesting passage in Violetta’s report

about your strong feelings about the justice system and the absence of it in general. I can assure

you, the people that are coming after you all deserve to die.’

Tomas exclaimed, ‘I’m not a killer! You are talking like it is expected of me to be OK with it.’

‘ “Fuck them! Fuck them, those scumbags must have done things in the past that are

unspeakable!” Did you say those words?’

Tomas said, ‘I was fighting for survival. Did you miss that part, or just didn’t mention it on

purpose?’

Peter said, ‘ “I wanted revenge.” Your words. Why do you think Mike was involved with us? To

fight the bad guys. You want to avenge Mike? Fight back all the scum!’

Tomas said, ‘I’m not a hero! I didn’t want any of this! I defended myself, that’s all. And as far as

I can say so far, that probably wasn’t the best option.’

Peter said, ‘So all the talk about the justice was just that, talk?’

‘Did you read the passage about my opinion, that the system can’t be fought? Or didn’t Violetta

include that there?’

Peter said, ‘Evil men triumph only when the good men do nothing.’

‘I heard that one before. You should focus on the plural in that sentence! Men; I’m just one

man.’

Peter said, ‘We are your allies, if you have not noticed yet; that makes it plural.’

‘Is this why you wanted me to stay before? You wanted me to fight the triads? Are you some

kind of secret state agency that deals with the gangsters eluding the legal system, in not exactly a

legal way? All you need is stupid sacrificial sheep to follow your orders into their possible doom

so that some “real” justice can be served? Me?! Are you the bloody CIA?’

Peter said, ‘No, but it doesn’t matter what I say to that, you wouldn’t believe it anyway. You are

a smart man, Tomas, and I admire your skill and spirit equally. I will say yes to the triads part.

Yes, we wanted you to fight them. I thought that was clear when I said we wanted to see you in
action. We wanted you to win and clean some dirt off this great nation, and we also believed that

you could do it, unlike some other people during your whole life. We believe in you.’

Tomas said, ‘You just tell me what you think I want to hear, to make me do your dirty work! I

knew this must be it because you think you can still use me. This must have cost a fortune! Who

would pay so much if he didn’t expect the investment to come back?’

‘Tomas, we’re not forcing you to do anything, and you have done enough already, okay? We

owe you, and Mike as well; this is the least I can do. The gentleman with you is called Martin.

His face is covered because you could be under surveillance as we speak. He won’t talk because

of the same reason; his voice could be recognized.’

Tomas said, ‘Sure, and your names are fake, just like everything else you say.’

‘The names are actually real, just my voice is computer distorted, although I wouldn’t risk a

phone call if it wasn’t one hundred percent secure. You won’t hear Martin now because of the

possible surveillance. But, Tomas, let me tell you, you have a gift. And you are in a perfect

position to use the gift for a greater good.’

Tomas said, ‘Perfect position for greater good…Like I have no life and no one would miss me,

so I may just as well sacrifice myself for the better good of the society that shits on my head left

and right. Did you mean that?’

Peter said, ‘Well yes, let’s be honest. That’s why we were interested in you. You’re perfect for

this kind of work. You wanted to make a change? Want to lead by example? To be the peoples’

champion? Mike believed that you can, before he chickened out, afraid for your life. But I’m

sure he wouldn’t if he saw what we did; he would have asked you to do some good. Now is the

perfect chance! We can make those bodies vanish like it never happened. Fight back the evil!’
Peter waited for a response that didn’t come. ‘Yeah, people will not really know, but that way

they can’t judge you either. We will know, and I promise you, it will pay off. If not directly to

you, then to whoever else. You must have parents, siblings?’

Tomas realized that Mike, and probably also Ho, must have kept that secret. Good. Possibly

because they had reason not to trust them. Or perhaps they are not even who they say they are.

There is no direct proof that Mike was really involved with them at all. They could have been

just spying on us both, learned from our conversations.

Tomas said, ‘I’m not a role model, and I have no one. Make no mistake, I’m not scared. I’m not!

And yes, the system is even more corrupted than I originally thought. Yes! It really sickens me,

but it could be worse.’

He took a short pause and drew new breath in. ‘The “gift” as you called it, I see as a curse. Even

if we would win in the end, the people would want the same system back again, allowing for the

same corruption to take place, again! So no, I’m not dumb enough to fight this fight. If I can, I

will avoid the conflict.’

Peter said, ‘We’re not trying to fight the system, just one evil at a time.’

‘I’m not interested.’

Peter said, ‘Not going to lie, that is a bit disappointing, but I’m a man of my word. Martin will

take you to the new location. I’m afraid it won’t be as luxurious as this one –’ He got interrupted.

Tomas said, ‘Here we go, punishments. Didn’t get your way?!’

Peter said, ‘No, no punishment. But in our kindness, we have already given you the best place at

our disposal. Naturally, the next one won’t be as good as the current one. But I will do my best to
provide the same standards, ASAP. Hope you can understand.’ Once again, Tomas could hear

the annoyance in his voice.

‘Peter!’

‘Yes?’

‘I’m not trying to be rude. I’m sorry it may have come out that I am, and ungrateful. I do

appreciate it all, I really do. But you must understand that trust is built over time, and in my

position, you have to be very careful to whom, and when, you give it.’

Peter said, ‘Oh, I perfectly understand; otherwise, we would not have had this conversation at all.

Now follow Martin. He will take care of you until you are in your new place. Take care, Tomas!’

Tomas just realized that he may have been very sceptical and negative towards Peter from the

very start. If what he said is all true, then perhaps he was even unappreciative, regardless of their

intentions. Without them, possibly he would have been dead meat by now.

Linkin Park – Runaway 3:05

“I wanna run away, never say goodbye.

I wanna know the truth, instead of wondering why.
I wanna know the answers - no more lies.
I wanna shut the door and open up my mind.”

It was May 2015 already, and as the time had passed he had relocated to his new place, which

was effectively a ghetto surrounded by graffiti everywhere you look. Tomas started to be

suspicious of Peter again. Ever since he was relocated to the new place in Morristown, New

York, no more luxury, no more spectacular views or his own gym. It had been like that for
months now. The nurses’ companionship was also cancelled, as it was deemed too dangerous for

them to visit Tomas; also, because health-wise, Tomas was cleared off as recovered. The only

person bringing the groceries now was Martin, who would literally just drop off the bag on the

inside at the doorstep and walk off without a word spoken. Tomas didn’t even know what Martin

looked like, as he always had that biker helmet on.

The place itself wasn’t that bad; it had everything one would need to survive. Thank God for the

high-end PC they still let him have, or else Tomas would go mental in there. The Internet was the

only thing that connected him to the outside world, however, there were numerous “security”

measures taken. No commenting, no posting anything, no use of email or any means of

communication to anyone. No shopping or ordering pizza, etc. He could play games and rent

movies to watch later. That’s all. ‘Not a punishment, I will do my best to provide the same

standards as before.’ Yeah? It had been six months!

But Tomas knew he couldn’t, and wouldn’t, expect the same luxuries as before. That place

before was insane, the high life. It was perfectly understandable that they wouldn’t spend their

budget on him anymore. Not after he refused to do their dirty work. But Tomas didn’t know that

his life standard would drop to this level, sub-par, below poverty even. ‘Can’t contact anyone,

even “virtually” on the net.’ Never mind not having seen an actual living person (the three

seconds biker helmet guy at the door didn’t count) in the last six months. Never mind not having

spoken a single word to anyone in that time. For God’s sake, he found himself talking to himself!

‘What kind of life is this?’ Just a tiny bit better than an unacceptable secluded life in the

wilderness! Tomas was like in a cave. He couldn’t even have the window blinds open; someone

may spot him. He was always under artificial light, or in the dark. He couldn’t look out to see

people either, just hear them.

That was the difference; there were always noises of the “outside” world. Now and then, Tomas

risked it and looked through the tiny gaps, but he really couldn’t see that much. It also always

felt weird, imagining that someone would spot that eye peeking out in an otherwise fully

boarded-up house. Who wouldn’t call the police?

He was desperate to get in contact with Peter, as it was obvious that Peter had lost interest in

him. Tomas must catch Martin to talk to him somehow. But Martin was coming really randomly

with the groceries. Probably tactics, so it was unpredictable. But because of that, and the fact that

Martin entered the room literally for 3 seconds before vanishing every six or eight days, Tomas

had no choice. He had to sit down with his back against the door so he would know, and prevent

Martin from leaving the condo before he could get hold of him.

Tomas dragged his PC and table so close that he could sit down on the chair leaning against the

door. Tomas decided not to eat or drink, so that way he didn’t need to go to the toilet either, to

limit the time away from the chair to a minimum. ‘How bad could it get for a few days?’

It had been around five days since the last Martin visit, so Tomas didn’t expect to wait there for

more than three days. One day maybe, if he got lucky. Well, he didn’t, and one wouldn’t believe

the state of panic Tomas was in when he realized that he had to go to the toilet after all. From

there, it was just one step away from grabbing something to eat and drink. It was surreal. ‘Guy

kills thirty-four men without showing emotion, panics when he needs to go to the toilet or eat!’

Tomas was laughing in despair at himself. It was maddening. ‘Should have just placed the

cabinet against the door, but the bastard would probably just either leave or manage to push it

away slightly to drop off the bag anyway and take off.’
Tomas had to wait and sleep for four days on that chair (for the most part) before the opportunity

presented itself. The door opened and crashed into Tomas’s chair as he sat on it, pushing him

slightly forward. Then, as expected, only an arm presented itself with the bag in it to drop it off.

Tomas didn’t have the opportunity, nor the will, to really practice his skills or physique during

his “quarantine”, so he was a bit rusty. But he still managed to almost instantly take hold of

Martin’s arm, like a snake attacking its prey. Tomas grabbed it and forced Martin into the condo

using his body weight and strength to pull him in. Martin was trying to resist and they both fell

onto the floor inside. Martin was on top of Tomas, and he raised his fist as if to punch him.

Tomas raised his arms in a stop manner.

Tomas said, ‘I just want to talk to Peter!’

Martin didn’t answer. His helmet was always on; he looked like he was not even a real person,

more like a robot.

Tomas said, ‘Please! If I don’t get to talk to him right now, I’m walking away.’

Martin just remained there in silence, his fist still ready to strike at Tomas.

Tomas said, ‘I can’t live like this. I’d rather die out there. Is this what Peter wants?!’

Martin hadn’t spoken a word back, but he reached into his leather jacket for a phone, dialled a

number, and handed the phone to Tomas and allowed him to stand up.

Peter answered. ‘Gargy?’

‘It’s me, Tomas.’

Peter demanded, ‘Why do you have Martin’s phone? What have you done?!’
Tomas said, ‘You just called him Gargy; so much for Martin. And I haven’t done anything to

him, yet. He is standing right next to me.’

That caught the attention of Martin, as his head in the helmet turned directly to Tomas. Too bad

Tomas couldn’t see his expression; he would have loved to see whether he got him worried.

Peter said, ‘In that case, I wouldn’t joke like that around him; it’s not wise to underestimate

people like him. You should know a lot about that.’

Tomas said, ‘So it’s all lies, this is a punishment! How could you call this even close to the

standards before?! No human being can live like this. It’s been six months now, and you haven’t

even bothered to check on me!’

Peter said, ‘I have been busy with other things. Also, there are hunters on your trail as we speak.

It’s not safe to move you anywhere, and too risky to try to do some work on your place.’

Tomas said, ‘Bullshit! I could at least uncover my windows before and it was safe, why not

now?!’

Peter said, ‘You were also living on the twentieth floor in a luxury flats complex. Now you are in

a ground-level condo unit. Obviously much riskier.’

Tomas replied, ‘Bullshit! You are just trying to make my life miserable, to make me do what you

want!’

‘That’s not true. We’re doing our best and your safety is provided. Getting suspicious of us

again? I thought we had already sorted that out.’

‘Just tell me the truth, you think I can’t take it? You think if you tell me now that yes, I can’t

spend any budget on you since you’re not helping us, I won’t own it? Just tell me the truth!’
Peter said, ‘OK, yes! Yes, we have a budget that has no spares for dead cells. I have real agents

in the field that need all of our resources. But when that changes and the danger reduces, I’ll

spend what I can.’

Tomas said, ‘Fair, but I can’t live like this anymore. I want out and I want it now!’

‘You know where the door is, nobody is stopping you. But you would only last a few hours for

sure, perhaps even fight your way out initially, as you proved before that you can. But it will be

in public, and the police or FBI would get involved for sure, depending on how much damage

you manage to do. And you know what that would mean. Fok told you himself. I wouldn’t be

surprised if you suddenly “resisted” while being in detention and the officers were forced to use

“necessary” force. That means lethal force. Or even more conveniently, you would have taken

your own life when the security cameras had conveniently had a “technical malfunction”. You

must know that this is the most likely scenario.’

That would have been a totally acceptable scenario to Tomas if it wasn’t for the likelihood of his

face on the TV for his mom and sister to see. As a criminal, God knows what kind of a monster

they would made out of him. THAT was unacceptable.

Tomas said, ‘I can’t live like this, please help me. You said you owe it to me, and to Mike. This

will kill me. There must be something that you could do or spare. Company more often,

perhaps?’ He said that in a calm voice rather than begging in a defeated manner. Tomas at best

could project his anger, but that was about it. Never a weakness.

‘I don’t know what more I can safely do for you. As I said, it’s too risky. The Flutes are in New

York right now, hunting for you.’

Tomas asked, ‘How would they know where I am? And why for God’s sake are they still after

me?! I know that they are just Yakuza’s outcast mercenaries for hire that the triads use now and

then. I know that the DI was just training new members for the triads the Flute’s way, but they

were no Flutes! I know they are basically outcasts in the mobs’ society and rather a small group,

if I may say.’

Peter replied, ‘Could it be because it is personal? Because you killed now both brothers, drill

instructors; well, was the red one a leader of theirs? Not to mention the price on your head is now

ten million. They want to collect it and have their revenge in the process. The Flutes were

supposed to be the best and the most feared assassins, with a “personal touch” approach. For the

people that wanted the target not only to die, but also to suffer before death – to make an

example of them. I don’t think they would simply just vanish or forget. In fact, I know that they

never will. The ones that are after you now are the collection of all of the DIs they have at their

disposal, the best of the best. Do you understand now how serious and dangerous your situation

is?’

‘So I have but one choice.’

‘I’m glad you came to your senses. I promise that I will try to amend your current living

standards –’ But Tomas didn’t let him finish.

‘I will have to face them, and I will kill every single motherfucker of them. I will set an example

of them instead!’ The anger was present in his voice.

Moment of silence.

Peter said, ‘You sure you want to do this?’ His voice turned to really surprised.
‘If I can get the best of the best in the assassins for hire world, who of the bounty hunters would

be crazy enough to go after me?’

‘Guys that think the “personal” approach is overrated?’ Peter said with sarcasm in his voice. But

Peter quickly realised that it wasn’t helpful to Tomas and cleared his throat. ‘Just to be realistic.

However, it wouldn’t be a small feat. I’m sure bounty hunters would at least reconsider, if it is

worth it after all, to go after you. If you manage to pull this off, you would singlehandedly wipe

out all of their seniors. That would be unbelievable! And a great service to the honest folk, I may

add.’

Tomas asked, ‘Okay, how do we do this?’

Peter said, ‘I’ll make this a priority and pool my resources. Then I’ll find where they are hiding.

They won’t be in the open ground, most likely in the most secluded place around, which will

help us to keep this low-profile when we strike.’

Tomas said, ‘You mean, when I strike.’

Peter returned, ‘We are a team.’

‘But I will be the only one risking my life. I thought that “Gargy” was supposed to be

dangerous, even to me. Why not send him with me?’

Peter said, ‘I’ll be honest, this is a suicide mission. I cannot force any of my other agents to go

with you. It’s not their fight, it’s yours.’

‘So much for a team.’

‘I’m doing the intelligence part; getting information is also risky business. Without my help, this

wouldn’t be possible at all. So yeah, we are a team.’

Tomas asked, ‘And after?’

‘After?’

Tomas said, ‘Am I free to go, should no one else go after me?’

‘Should no one else go after you – and that would take a while to find out – no one’s holding

you prisoner here, Tomas. We already made you a fake passport and a bankcard, and we will add

a substantial laundered sum to it after a successful mission.’

Tomas said, ‘Laundered? As in dirty money?!’

‘As in money that nobody would question where it has come from. In other words, you will be a

lottery winner. We will make sure of that.’ Tomas kept quiet. He still had his old IDs and bank

card (minus the passport) hidden back in Chicago so they couldn’t track him. He hoped.

Peter said, ‘So, we have a plan. I’ll be in touch soon. I suggest practicing any way you can.’ But

there was no response from Tomas to that, so he just hung up.

Tomas had a different plan. He was now convinced that Peter was a manipulating liar. He would

use the knowledge of Flutes’ location to steer clear of them, get off the grid, and never say

goodbye.

Just because they kept pointing their finger at him as the best candidate to take action – guilty by

association; and since his life was in question, don’t mean that Tomas would simply become a

killer, no matter how much they tried to make him one; and he was no fool either.
 U96 – Das Boot (Techno version) 5:13

In two days, the call came. Peter offered him a weapon, but Tomas refused. He didn’t even find

it weird, because when you go against the Flutes, they would close the distance on you quickly

anyway, rendering the weapon useless, and potentially dangerous to you.

A black Lincoln SUV had taken him to an abandoned-looking residential area called ‘The Hole’,

in New York City. Martin dropped Tomas off at night, with still five minutes of walking to reach

his final destination, an abandoned house with SSK graffiti on it. Whatever that meant.

As soon as the car was out of his visual, Tomas took out his earpiece and started to go in the

opposite direction. Soon, he got lost. The streets were abandoned, and it everything looked the

same in any direction that he ventured. But it wasn’t long before Tomas heard some noises, then

some very settled shadows. There were no working streetlights in this ghost town, just the

moonlight.

Tomas realized that someone was approaching. He tried to turn around, but instantly got hit on

his left cheek, hard enough to send him to the floor. Tomas got up almost in an instant and

looked around himself in disbelief that he heard no steps coming in or out, as they must have left.

‘Must be the Flutes!’

He had a sudden urge to look behind him; it was too late. He got hit a second time just as he tried

to turn around. His other cheek started to bleed after the impact. No pain, maximum focus,

Tomas was fully in fight mode. ‘They never learn, underestimating me once again. If they could
hit me without me even seeing them yet, then they could have sliced my throat just as easily.

Instead, they want to fight me, and a fight they will get!’ Tomas knew there was no chance

running away from them, he could only make his stand.

Just as he recovered from the second hit, Tomas expected the next hit to come from behind

again. He didn’t turn around into it this time. Instead, he raised his arm up to block it. Success! It

even slowed the bastard enough, disrupting his momentum, that Tomas managed to grab him. He

chopped his legs, quickly sending the Flute to the ground and he instantly sat on him, blocking

his both arms with his knees.

Tomas raised his right arm to strike, but someone else grabbed it from behind, stopping the

punch. Instantly, Tomas attempted to cartwheel backwards (kind of like macaco em pe in

capoeira), but both legs missed the target as the Flute just avoided it by stepping backwards. He

tried to combo it with another strike, but the Flute behind him chopped into his right leg that was

his back foot, sending him to his knees.

Rapid-fire strikes from both of the Flutes ensued. Tomas blocked them all, protecting his face

while taking the body shots. They bounced like off the armour of a tank, and did as much

damage to him as well. Nothing.

Tomas saw his chance to strike now and then, but it got blocked or avoided. Back to defence,

accepting multiple body shots again. The Flutes were too damn fast, almost like him. Almost.

With each new strike blocked or accepted without damage, they were slowing down. Tomas was

patiently waiting for the right moment to try for another strike. His front kick connected with the

Flute, pushing him slightly away. A low spinning wheel kick came at Tomas from the Flute

behind him; he answered it with a mid-jump spin kick. Both of them missed their target.
Two more Flutes appeared from the shadows, each on a side of the Flute that was in front of him

before. Tomas lunged forward to get past the Flute that was on his back before, and made it look

like he was making a run for it. The Flutes were so fast, that even though Tomas was at full

sprint speed already, he managed to do only five more steps before they almost caught up to him.

But Tomas was faking the run. Instead, he did his cheat gainer for a twist-backflip, thrusting his

right leg upwards. He generated so much momentum for the twist that he managed to turn 720

degrees while backflipping. It was so surprising that he caught the Flutes completely off guard

and managed to land kicks on all of their faces before touching down on the ground again, totally

incapacitating them with the force generated.

That was when he realized one more Flute was hastily approaching him from behind, and he

didn’t even try to muffle his heavy steps. Tomas did one more twist backflip (from a standing

position, he could only do 360 degrees) while the Flute tried a low spin kick at his legs. The

Flute missed, as Tomas got into the air just in time, and on the way down, Tomas managed again

to land a kick to the Flute’s nose, top to bottom, shutting his lights out for the meantime.

A loud war cry left his lungs. Even he couldn’t believe what he had just managed to pull off.

As expected, all of the Flutes had now left the shadows. Ten more had appeared. Way too many.

And even though Tomas’s morale was at its height, the incoming hits were hitting his body from

all sides like machine gun fire, slowing him down enough that they were able to eventually get

hold of his both arms.

Tomas was held in a cross position, with two Flutes holding his arms stretched at each side. The

guy behind Tomas had him in a chokehold, and the one in front was making a punching bag out
of him. Only for about two seconds, before Tomas made for his escape, but long enough to land

eight body and two face punches, forcing Tomas to spit out blood.

He used the body of the guy in front of him as a platform to generate a powerful backflip

momentum. A split second before that, both Tomas’s legs kicked the Flutes on his sides, doing a

mid-air split in their faces, making them release both of Tomas’s hands.

After the backflip, Tomas was choking the guy that did it to him just a moment before,

successfully landing behind him. Then Tomas started to pull the guy backwards with all of his

strength, forcing the Flute to lose his ground. Now Tomas was just holding the Flute below his

chin with his left arm while his right arm was machine-gun punching the Flute in his face,

turning his nose into bloody mush as Tomas was hastily stepping backwards.

The rest of the Flutes got cautious, and allowed for this to happen. They were just looking at

Tomas stepping backwards, beating the life out of the Flute in his possession while looking the

whole time at them, not his victim, only to realize that they were stalling for time to surround

him.

A few got behind Tomas without him even noticing. Another skirmish ensued. They were too

many, too fast. They cracked his ribs with the impacts but Tomas didn’t notice in the heat of the

situation. He may have landed a few hits of his own, but nothing that would take anyone out.

Tomas kept the Flutes at a distance quite well though, until one jumped 360 degrees in a spin

wheel kick that landed on his jaw. He lost two teeth at the left bottom side, spitting them out

along with a bunch of blood. Tomas fell onto the floor with his back facing to the Flutes. He saw

lots of stars through his blurred vision. They almost knocked him out! His brain was screaming

at him: ‘Get up or you’re dead!’

Tomas was about halfway back to his feet before his head barely turned back, facing one of the

Flutes, when he saw that incoming kick to his face. The Flute was doing his own twist-side flip

with his right leg extended for a strike. Tomas grabbed on that leg and used the generated

momentum to make the Flute land on his face, lunging forward, lifting the Flute’s leg up. The

cracking noise that the attacking Flute’s face made impacting the pavement, along with the blood

splatter, was quite shocking to all present.

Another war cry left Tomas’s lungs and he went into a complete rage. Another skirmish ensued.

This time, Tomas was just a tad faster than the Flutes. Perhaps thanks to the surprising element

of his unbelievable resistance. He started to break their limbs at will, quickly incapacitating four

of the Flutes. Then, one of them managed to get hold of Tomas’s hand and tried to break it at the

elbow level over his shoulder, in response to Tomas’s own attempt to do the same. After a triple

reversal, the Flute almost managed to break Tomas’s hand, but he slightly missed the correct

spot and timing, just dislocating Tomas’s shoulder because in the last moment, Tomas managed

to strike at the Flute’s knee, snapping it, when he realized that he was unable to perform the

fourth reversal.

The Flute lost ground support, and with it, the force and precision necessary to perform such a

thing. Still, the shoulder dislocation could have been enough to give the rest of the Flutes a

fighting edge, but Tomas was in such a rage that he completely ignored his injury. His right arm

just hanging on the side, unable to block anything, Tomas just accepted the body shots coming in

from his right side as he continued to fight his way through.

‘Just four more left.’

His rage had turned into a frenzy, launching himself into the void of bodies in the company of

loud war cries of all present. Twenty seconds later, three of the Flutes fell to the ground with

multiple fractures. The last one was holding Tomas in the neck choke position – trying to snap it,

really. But Tomas held his own hands on the Flute’s so that he couldn’t generate enough

momentum. After a few seconds of struggle, Tomas got himself released. The moment Tomas

turned around to face the Flute, he must have known that he was fucked. The expression on

Tomas’s face said it all, although the Flute would have never shown any emotion, ever. Also, the

Flutes were masked, so Tomas wouldn’t see it anyway.

The Flute knew that his end was coming but wouldn’t go out without a fight. Twelve seconds of

skirmish resulted in Tomas snapping the Flute’s left arm in six places first. Then, once Tomas

positioned the Flute face down on his knees, he first lifted the Flute’s chin up before striking into

it from the side with his elbow, dislocating the jaw. Then Tomas lifted the Flute’s chin one more

time (holding the dislocated jaw from below) and continued with thrusting kicks to the Flute’s

right shoulder, top to bottom.

The first impact had snapped the Flute’s lower back, allowing Tomas to compress the Flute

downwards for more pain. The second leg-thrust snapped the Flute’s neck and possibly killed

him, but Tomas still added one more. The loud crack of the Flute’s ribs indicated a total collapse

of Flute’s body frame integrity. Tomas almost compacted the normally six-foot-tall Flute into a

barely two-foot-tall cube of body remains. Blood squirted out of all the Flute’s orifices after each

impact. It was a showcase of brutality accompanied with inhuman frenzy war cries from Tomas.

Once it was done, Tomas calmed down. He looked around; there was no one else to oppose him.

Just seven pairs of eyes looking at him, all with multiple fractures. Another five were knocked

out, and three more killed.

Tomas said, ‘I didn’t want this. what happened in Hong Kong was an accident! The DI tried to

kill me and I simply reacted. What did you expect me to do? Just die? I tried to avoid further

bloodshed, but you fuckers are giving me no choice! I had to make examples of you for the rest

that think about coming after me!’ Frustration settled in his voice.

Tomas said, ‘Tell Fok that if he doesn’t take off the contract on my head, he is next! I will not

wait until the next team will come for me, and then the next, and then the next! I will have no

choice but to cut off the snake’s head, and by God, I will at least try this time around! Tell him!’

He raised his voice higher.

‘As for you…I’ll let you live. Now, we’re even! If I ever see you again, I’ll let you see the real

animal in me! That’ – he pointed at the cube of a fractured body – ‘is nothing. Don’t push me!’

Although he brought his voice down again and sounded calm, it came out really serious at the

same time.

Surprisingly, the Flutes bowed their heads, expressing their respect and most likely, agreement.

Tomas turned around and started to walk away but he wasn’t even sure in which direction he was

going, nor where he should be going. To put some distance between him and the Flutes was the

only thing on his mind.

As soon as the combat stopped, once again the pain settled in and he struggled to hide a slight

limp, his right arm supporting the broken ribs whilst holding his dislocated shoulder with the left.

He sure looked roughed-up good, his face busted all around. At least he was still alive and

walking out on his own.

‘Could have been worse’.

 Linkin Park – Skin to Bone (zwierz rock remix) 3:24

“Ash to ashes, dust to dust. Your deception, my disgust

When your name is finally drawn, I'll be happy that you're gone.
Ash to ashes, dust to dust.”

Headlights appeared in the distance and a familiar SUV has approached him. ‘Here we go again’,

Tomas thought to himself. Martin stepped out of the vehicle.

Martin announced, ‘You did good.’

Tomas replied, ‘He speaks!’ That just muted Martin again.

Tomas said, ‘You set me up!’ Tomas approached Martin with his fists clenched.

Martin just dialled his mobile and handed it to Tomas in silence.

‘You set me up!’ Anger was still in his voice.

Peter replied, ‘Wait a minute, you set us up! I thought we had an agreement.’

Tomas said, ‘You said that I can decide to leave whenever I want.’

‘And you can. But that obviously doesn’t relate to a situation when WE are on a mission

together!’ His voice was rising. ‘We have spent resources on it! Why accept it if you don’t plan

to do it? You could have just walked off before, sparing our budget.’

Tomas said, ‘Because I don’t trust you, and I wanted to shake you off.’

‘All you had to say was, let me be, and it would have been done.’
‘Sure, so why not let me go without sending the Flutes after me? Are your hurt feelings more

important than my life?’

Peter said, ‘We did not set you up.’

Tomas said, ‘So how come they knew I was coming? How come they knew my location? They

were hunting for me instantly!’

Peter said, ‘We could have been compromised extracting their location. I don’t know.’

‘Or somebody let them know I was coming. Someone told them as soon as I ditched you that I

was there for them to hunt?!’

Peter said, ‘Okay, maybe I did something irrational. Something that I regret I did in anger.

Because I felt cheated, used.’

Tomas said, ‘So you were willing to get me killed for it?’

Peter said, ‘Gargy did go with you there for a reason. Why did you think he appeared so quickly

after? He was there to cover your back, just in case, but I had no doubt in you.’

Tomas said, ‘You mean Martin, right? All deceptions.’

Peter said, ‘You already know what we call him; it’s not like he’s not really Martin. Friends use

nicknames. I did what I did so that we both win. You can go if that is what you really want. I will

even provide medical services for you again before you go, if you wish.’

Tomas hated to take anything from that man. But he had to face the fact that he could use that

medical service.

Can’t go to hospital, he thought.

Financially, and too many questions could be asked, as he was obviously horribly beaten up.

Police could get called, someone would rat him out to Fok, you never know. Or he could be

detained for questioning. It could spiral downwards horribly.

Tomas said, ‘Okay.’

‘Okay, what?’

‘I’ll take the medical service, then I’m out.’

Peter said, ‘That’s fair, but be careful what you wish for. Once you leave, we will truly let you

be. Don’t try to come back to us because you changed your mind. Until then, you’re welcome to

stay as long as you wish, just be aware it will be in similar conditions as before, should you

decide to “camp” for too long. You join us, and I start spending money on you again. For now,

you’ve earned our hospitality.’ Peter hung up before Tomas had a chance to say anything to it.

Martin asked, ‘You coming?’

Tomas said, ‘I’m coming.’

Tomas got into the car; Charlotte was already there waiting. She started to do a basic

examination. Multiple lacerations on his face, broken jaw, and knocked-out teeth. Multiple ribs

broken or cracked, with possible internal bleeding. His right shoulder dislocated, and the left

elbow ligaments possibly torn. Bruises everywhere. Tomas looked almost like a dalmatian. He

just looked terrible, and as time passed, he felt increasingly more terrible as well. Then, Tomas

went into shock. Tomas thought about Peter and his deception. His last thoughts before finally

passing out were, His time will come too, and I will be glad when that happens.

***
Once he woke up, Tomas wasn’t hiding his disgust with Peter’s actions. Alienating himself

further from the medical team provided, who defended Peter as a decent and good man. All

arguing that everybody makes mistakes, but that Peter meant no harm.

Nobody asked Tomas about what he was planning to do after he got better. Not even Helena,

when she was actually still there. Tomas wasn’t in a life-threatening situation like before, so the

nurses’ visits were sparse. No companions provided anymore.

‘What should I do? Should I just wait and see how long Peter’s promises will last this time? Or

try to run? Does it even matter anymore? Do I still matter? Ash to ashes, dust to dust, skin to

bone and steel to rust. Things don’t last. Including me. I’m on nothing but borrowed time

anyway.’

For now, Tomas decided to fully recover first. Then, time would tell.

‘Whatever happens, happens.’

At least his hiding place was better this time around. They stashed him in a skyrise flat again,

this time located in Pittsburgh. Sunshine and all.

‘What a luxury.’ A very genuine thought.

‘When that would start to fade away, it would be time to go.’ Tomas’s fake bank account had $1

million added to his fake identity. It all felt like dirty money though. Even if the Flutes weren’t

anyone to wish good health on, that $1 million was paid for in their blood. Blood money.
 Scooter – Fire 3:32

Three weeks later, nothing significant had happened since the Flutes’ mission. ‘Maybe it was a

good thing that I was forced to confront them. Maybe now I will truly have peace, and enough

money to start fresh, a new life. Maybe it was worth it after all.’

Tomas began to plan his new life. Mostly, only as a wish really, but it looked more likely

possible with every new insignificant day passing by.

Then, the door to his flat got breached open with a small explosive. Tomas was sitting at his desk

behind his PC, as always. He jumped off the chair and assumed position just behind the wall

closest to the entrance door so that whoever came through couldn’t immediately see him.

A tall man in a jacket entered first, then a woman and two more men, one of them massive. The

woman had an automatic rifle in her hands; the men all carried handguns and one MP5 small

machine gun. They moved in assault formation as one unit, everybody covering a different

direction.

They decided to move to their left first, towards the living room. One of the men stayed behind,

covering their back at the doorframe, covering the escape route out of the flat. That had separated

them slightly.

Tomas saw a chance and quickly lunged towards the lone man. The guy managed to raise and

aim his MP5 at Tomas, but he was too late. Tomas landed an outside jump-crescent kick,

pushing the MP5 to the side in time as he hit him in the face. The second hit came from the

doorframe due to the guy’s face being thrust into it.

Tomas saw that the rest of them had noticed him and were about to shoot. He performed the

wall-run move as the bullets’ impacts were mimicking Tomas’s wall movement with a slight

delay as he was closing in on them. A combo of a butterfly kick out of the wall landing on the

big guy on the left side into a low-spin-heel kick on the woman’s legs on the right finished with

aú batido backward on the tall man in the centre sent them all to the floor.

The woman was first to recover, but her attempted full auto fire got disrupted rather quickly with

an adapted double roundhouse kick. The first kick into the assault rifle knocked it out of her

hands, the second in less than a millisecond later went into her face, splatting blood out of her

mouth onto the walls.

The big guy was the second to recover. He managed to get four rapid shots out of his handguns

that Tomas managed to dodge in time as he fled back behind a wall, where he got attacked by the

MP5 man. Tomas managed to push away his full auto shooting MP5 just in time again every

time he tried to aim it at him, as they were that close. Bullets whistling around forced the rest to

duck onto the floor in cover.

As the big man ran out of bullets, the MP5 guy quickly drew a handgun of his own, which

Tomas kicked out of his hand just as fast. Rapid-fire punches and kicks from Tomas battered the

guy in the following split second. A massive volley of fire ensued coming from the rest of the

assault team, devastating the MP5 guy. Tomas had hit the floor behind the wall in time, just as it

got Swiss-cheesed by the fire that tried to follow Tomas’s movement.

He transitioned himself into a front roll, and as he entered the next room, Tomas progressed

again to wall-run. He finished the run with a 1080-degree spin kick, scoring hits on each one of

their faces after each full rotation. The woman and the tall man fell on impact, but the big guy
barely got affected by it, even though his nose got broken in the process and was bleeding

heavily. The others didn’t look much better, after multiple lacerations started to appear on their

faces.

To Tomas’s surprise, the kick didn’t faze the big guy at all. He froze momentarily after finishing

his spin kick, and instead he got grabbed by his throat. The pressure was crushing, but the elbow

of the big guy got exposed in a fixed, tensed position. A loud crack sounded as Tomas’s knee

snapped the arm at the elbow from below, followed by a push-off kick into the big guy’s chest,

forcing the big guy to trip over a table that was just behind him, falling on it and crushing it with

his body weight.

The woman had closed her distance on Tomas; she drew a hunting knife and slashed at his face.

That managed to make a laceration on his chin, as Tomas was too slow to dodge it completely,

but it was but a flesh wound. Her following slash got blocked and stopped so that Tomas was

presented with an aikido throw opportunity that he used to throw her body onto the big guy,

sending him down to the floor once again just as he attempted to stand up.

The tall man tried to unleash punishment of his own at Tomas, but was almost laughable. Tomas

easily managed to intercept his attempts and counter with attacks of his own, schooling the tall

guy, humiliating him.

In the meantime, the big guy had thrown the woman off him, paying no regard to her safety. She

was thrown over a chair so awkwardly that she almost broke her neck as she finally landed on

the floor headfirst. As the big guy tried to close in on Tomas from behind, just as he was still

dealing with the tall man, Tomas performed a hook kick at his face, knocking him out for a few

seconds. The big guy fell unconscious onto the floor.

Tomas continued to play with the tall man. Cracks of the tall guy’s ribs echoed off the thin walls

of the apartment; his blood coloured the carpet. In his final attempt to draw his handgun and

point it at Tomas, he got intercepted again. Tomas got hold of the armed hand, aikido twisted it

into a painful position that pointed at the tall man’s face and forcing one shot out, killing the guy.

It was 0.45 calibre; it blew a large hole in the back of the tall man’s head, ejecting the brain out.

The woman tried to jump on top of Tomas from behind, but as she lunged, he did a backflip off

the wall in front of him, turning 180 degrees and landing an axe kick on her face. She got

knocked out immediately and fell onto her knees at first before slowly falling numb to her left

side.

Seeing that she was incapacitated, Tomas performed a head-scissor leg throw, sending her numb

body flying towards the big guy again. The big guy just brushed off her flying body to the side

with his good left hand as if she was made out of paper. She nearly got impaled on one of the

legs of the toppled-over chair. The leg snapped instead but it must have been painful enough to

wake her up again.

Then the big guy stormed onto Tomas, trying to punch him, but Tomas unleashed absolute hell

on him instead. Rapid-fire kicks and punches peppered the big guy’s body. He didn’t slow down

at all, nor try to block anything, he just continued his best to try and hit Tomas any way possible.

Tomas was just dodging the big guy’s attempts and continued with his pummelling. After 4–5

seconds of this, 30–40 hits on the big guy’s body later, the guy finally slowed down at first, then

fell onto his knees. Tomas continued peppering him with the rapid punches, only to his chest this

time, until the big guy fell completely backwards on his back and onto the floor. Then Tomas

progressed to pulverizing his broken-nosed face until both of his cheekbones cracked. One final

stomp onto the big guy’s bloody potato-mush face killed him.
Tomas grabbed the big guy and used his buff body as a shield against the incoming fire from the

woman that had managed to get hold of the assault rifle again after recovering well enough from

getting nearly impaled at the chair’s leg. Tomas was right; the guy was so buff, not a single 7.62

mm calibre had gone through his body.

She was out of ammo. Tomas let go of the big guy’s body and stormed towards her. She got off

her kneeling position into a standing one, drew a handgun that she found on the floor and got two

shots off before Tomas got to her. Tomas was too evasive at that distance thanks to his gun-kata

skills and athletic body; she missed. As Tomas got close enough for him to strike at her a loud,

terrified cry left her lungs just as he landed his cheat gain kick on his way up doing a twist

backflip. The hit on her chin from below sent her flying backwards, falling over a sofa. Her head

was stuck out in the air as her body lay firmly on the sofa. As Tomas landed his twist backflip,

he axe kicked the woman on her stuck-out head, breaking her neck on impact.

The strike team were all dead, and Tomas had nothing but a scratch on his chin.
o Chapter 6: Enough is Enough!

Linkin Park – Nobody’s Listening 2:58

“Tried to give you warning, but everyone ignores me!

Told you everything loud and clear - but nobody's listening!
Called to you so clearly, but you don't want to hear me - told you everything loud and clear!
But nobody's listening…”

‘I tried to warn them. I told them that anyone going after me is going to die. I told them but they

wouldn’t listen! Okay, it’s time to change my tactics.’ Tomas was full of anger and almost

attacked Martin as he appeared in the doorway sporting his ever present biker helmet.

Martin noted, ‘We need to leave, now.’

‘How did you get here so fast?’

‘No time to explain; the police must have been already called.’

‘How did you get here so fast?!’ Tomas screamed at him.

Martin said, ‘I’m your bodyguard. My flat is just one level below you. I heard shots.’ Tomas’s

face was filled with surprise.

Martin said, ‘What, you still think we are the bad guys? That Peter is evil? We saved your life

twice. Cost us lots of money in the process. We’re still helping you.’

Tomas asked, ‘How could I trust you? I’m being used. Peter admitted to it in New York.’

Martin said, ‘You owed it to us; tricked us after we’ve been so nice to you –’
‘Nice to me?! I was living isolated in a ghetto for months! Just so you could provoke me into a

confrontation.’

Martin said, ‘You and me both.’ Tomas was stunned.

‘I don’t follow.’

Martin said, ‘As I said, I’m your bodyguard. I was in the next condo the whole time.’

Tomas asked, ‘You were living next to me the whole time?’

Martin, his face hidden, sounded like he was smirking. ‘Yes.’

‘I don’t believe it.’

Martin said, ‘I don’t care if you do, we have to go. Come on.’ He grabbed Tomas behind his

right elbow, but he didn’t budge.

‘Why wouldn’t you live with me instead then, “bodyguard,” Tomas said, ripping his right arm

out of Martin’s possession.

‘Because I don’t like you?’ Martin offered, confused.

Tomas’s face turned confused right back at him. ‘You don’t even know me. How could you not

like me? I have only known you as a mute in a helmet.’

Martin said, ‘Because it’s dangerous to be known in this business.’ He said it with a sense of

urgency, but lowered his voice to near-whisper level.

Voices of people echoed in the hall.

Martin said, ‘We have to go right now; cover your face.’

Tomas hastily put on his favourite hockey cap – Vegas Knights, given to him by his sister – and

as they made their way out together, he covered his face with his right arm across his mouth, as

if there was smoke in the building. There were some people in the distance, afraid to come any

closer. Tomas and Martin got into the car and left before the police arrived.

Tomas asked, ‘Where are we going?’

‘Nowhere. We keep on the move until Peter clears off a new location, then we head there.’

Tomas said, ‘Just drop me off near Fok’s place. I’m just about done with him.’

Martin said, ‘Now you want to fight? You want to go after Fok himself? You’re crazy.’

Tomas said, ‘I gave him a warning, told him what I’m going to do loud and clear, but he

wouldn’t listen.’

Martin asked, ‘What if he didn’t get the message?’

‘Then I will have to tell him personally.’

Martin said, ‘Here we go, Mister I want no violence. Next thing you know, there is a bloodbath.’

Tomas replied, ‘As if I had any choice in it. I didn’t go after them, they came after me! I gave

them enough warnings to let me be.’

Martin said, ‘You gave them plenty of reasons to hate you more.’

Tomas asked, ‘What’s your problem with me exactly?’

‘You act like you’re the best, like a know it all. Let’s not forget a sadistic mass-killer.’ Disgust

was in his voice.

Tomas said, ‘Sadistic mass-killer? You have no idea how much pain I carry in my heart, how

much stress is in my head because of all of this. All I did was defend myself. But sometimes you

need to make a statement as well. All I did was what I had to do.’

Martin said, ‘Is that how you excuse to yourself taking enjoyment in it? I have seen it with my

own eyes, the cocky body language, the almost satisfied smile as you’re brutally killing others.’

Tomas asked, ‘When?’

Martin said, ‘Every time that you realize your opponents are no match for you, every time you

start to win. You don’t kill them in the most efficient and fastest way to defend yourself, you kill

them in painful and sophisticated ways to satisfy your sick desires, to project your dominance

over them.’

Tomas demanded, ‘And who are you to judge me? Last time I checked, you’re the shadow killer

organization, not me. Butthurt much that I turned you down?’

Martin said, ‘I’m butthurt that a person like you even got a chance to be with us? We’re not

sadistic killers. We do public service. Eliminating the “key” evil with quick precision strikes, not

in a bloodbath.’

Tomas said, ‘There you go. I’m being judged by a professional killer, how laughable.’

Martin said, ‘I am what I am; someone has to be. But I take no pleasure in it, and I don’t do

massacres.’

Tomas said sarcastically, ‘Oh, I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I’m alive. I’m sorry that I had to defend

myself. Yeah, it’s all my fault, my doing.’

Martin replied, ‘Come on, killing so many people without blinking an eye? Acting like nothing

happened after? Showing no emotion? You provoked this whole situation on purpose. I bet that

you had nothing else going on in your life before, so you create a situation where you could

satisfy your sick desires without feeling like the bad guy. But, you are. We shouldn’t offer you

cooperation or protection. We should have let you die.’

Tomas said, ‘Like you almost didn’t get me killed? First, you swear that you will take care of

me, offering protection. Next thing I know, you throw me into sub-human conditions, forcing me

to clean the Flutes off the streets for you. Where were you then, Mister I’m your bodyguard? I

didn’t see you around when they were beating the shit out of me.’

Martin said, ‘I would have been there should you have carried on with the scheme as planned. I

was supposed to go to the “SSK” house myself, just as soon I ditched the car safely, driving

towards it so that I wasn’t late. But no, you had to trick us and try to run away from the

AGREED mission. I found you after the Flutes did.’

Tomas snarled, ‘How convenient.’

‘And you know what? I was the one suggesting to Peter to expose you to the Flutes, that you

were there.’ Anger was building in his voice.

‘You motherfucker.’ He was surprised that he got angry back at Martin but restrained himself,

as Martin was driving, after all.

Martin said, ‘Peter even paid you after as agreed, spent money on your recovery, and you still

talk shit about him. I have no idea what Peter sees in you. All I see is a target to eliminate. The

world would be better off without you.’

‘Seems that we have something in common then after all.’

‘I’m done talking to you.’

‘Good, you’re shit at it.’ Martin completely ignored that, showing no reaction at all.

Tomas mumbled under his breath but loud enough so that Martin could hear it, ‘Fucking robot,

hiding behind your helmet.’

Martin didn’t even turn his head to acknowledge that Tomas was insulting him.

After a short pause Tomas said, ‘Who shows no emotion now? Fucking robot.’ His voice was

calm though.

But Martin didn’t take the bait. He had no intention of escalating it any further.

As much as Tomas hated to admit it, their conversation made him think. Did he subconsciously

create this situation? To render the years of training, years of sacrifice to have a meaning? He

had a purpose now, after all, which he felt was lacking before.

‘No, I always tried to warn them beforehand, but nobody would listen. It’s not my fault that I

don’t let the bullies bully me, or others around me. I only defend myself or others when needed. I

don’t create the situation itself.’

 Linkin Park - A Light That Never Comes (Rick Rubin Reboot) 4:40

“The nights go on - waiting for a light that never comes.

I chase the sun - waiting for a light that never comes…”

They were driving towards El Paso, Texas, just in case they would have to cross the border if the

police heat was closing in on them. They were already in Texas when an incoming call sounded

in the car. Martin picked the call up by pressing a button on his steering wheel and a voice came

out of the speakers.

Peter said, ‘It’s all clear, you can turn around.’

Martin questioned, ‘The police?’

Peter said, ‘No leads. They’ve written it off as the mob solving their own problems.’

Martin asked, ‘The public?’

Peter replied, ‘Saw two guys leaving, no real description of the car or them, outside of one guy in

a motorcycle helmet and biker suit and one with a cap on his head in jeans and a red jacket.’

Martin asked, ‘Should we switch vehicle and clothes?’

Peter instructed, ‘Not yet. Do that after you drop off Tomas.’

‘Where?’

‘There is a place in Dallas. Nothing fancy this time, but it will have to do for now.’

Tomas would have said something sarcastic to the “nothing fancy this time” comment, but he

had a different thing in mind anyway.

Tomas declared, ‘I want to go after Fok, Peter.’

‘What?!’

Tomas repeated, ‘I want to go after Fok.’

Peter was so stunned he couldn’t respond.

Tomas asked, ‘Are you going to help me?’

Peter responded, ‘Are you insane? First, you don’t want to join us to fight those people. Now,

you want to take on their boss?’

‘Isn’t that the real goal of yours? Eventually to take the whole triads down?’

Peter said, ‘You can’t take them down. Fok is but one man, easily replaceable by the next man in

line. We target only the key evil in a way that they don’t even realize we exist.’

Tomas said, ‘What is that going to achieve? Everything will be the same after.’

‘It’s the only justice we can provide. You can’t go against the whole organization, the system

really, and expect to win. That’s suicide.’

Tomas replied, ‘For me, to do nothing now is suicide.’

‘You can still join us. We will take you off the grid, and after a certain time, you would be able

to lead a considerably safer life, without the mob chasing you.’

Tomas asked, ‘Doing your justice for you?’

‘You want to go after the bad guys now, right? Well, that will be exactly your job description –

in a safe and calculated way.’

‘Yes, that’s what I want. I want to make them pay for ending my life.’
Peter said, ‘But you’re still alive. And can be; we operate our missions in total secrecy,

untraceable. You could enjoy the money we pay, though you would have to be careful, as your

face could be compromised at this moment. THAT, can be sorted out for you too.’

Tomas said, ‘I’m not sure you understand, Peter. I never wanted this path of my life. Now that I

feel that I have no choice, I have no choice. I’m done waiting for the light that will never come.

For me, there is only one way now to deal with it.’

Peter asked, ‘How? Getting yourself killed? A massive bloodbath should you be successful?’

Tomas replied, ‘By holding them responsible for their actions, for once.’

Peter said, ‘Killing Fok would not solve anything. In fact, Martin could kill him within twelve

hours from now, should we want that.’

Tomas asked, ‘So why don’t you? Isn’t he one of the most obvious targets?’

Peter said, ‘No, he isn’t. He rarely does anything violent or even illegal. Fok has people to do

that for him. Real animals. If it wasn’t for the interest in you, he wouldn’t even waste his time on

this “petty violence stuff” in his own opinion. Besides, he is a rat. We intercept a lot of his

information provided to the FBI. He is useful to us where he is.’

Tomas retorted, ‘Killing the pawns is your justice? Now I’m disappointed.’

Peter explained, ‘We don’t always kill them. Some can be scared and converted into informants

to us.’

Tomas said, ‘Now I’m even more disappointed. How could Mike ever think that I could be

interested?’

‘Why?’
‘Peter, if you put me into this environment, you can’t control me. If I see any disgusting shit,

you expect me to let it go? Because it’s too dangerous, or because it’s not worth the risk, or

because the perpetrator could be an informant? Sooner or later, I would explode in a similar

manner as you have already witnessed. It wouldn’t work. I’ll become nothing but a liability to

you.’

Peter said, ‘You have a better idea how to fight those kinds of people? It will take a lot more than

killing those people to take them down.’

‘I’m about to show you, yes.’

‘Did you listen to what I just said?’

Tomas replied, ‘I’m done waiting. It has been night in my life for far too long. I have finally

accepted that the light will never come. Not unless I face the darkness.’

Peter said, ‘You can’t win, Tomas.’

Tomas said, ‘You don’t know me. I learned that I can’t be stopped, and every encounter has

made me stronger.’

Martin cut in, ‘Here we go again…’

Peter admonished, ‘Not now, Gargy. Tomas, listen to me. I made a promise to Mike that I would

do my best to keep you alive. I intend to keep that promise.’

‘That’s exactly what I want too. But not the life you described. I’m done after this. Help me or

get out of my way. It’s really that simple.’

Peter asked, ‘How would you even know where to go, how to strike? You have no intelligence

on Fok.’
‘You’re absolutely right. It’s time to change that.’

‘Yeah, how?’

Tomas said, ‘Well, how about google Steven Fok? He is a public person, a respectable

businessman, I think. I’ll just sent him a message signed Ghost with my number to call me. How

about that?’

Peter asked, ‘Then what?’

Tomas said, ‘Then I’ll give him one final chance for peace. If not, I’ll arrange a meeting. And I

will take with me to my grave as many as I can if it comes to that. I’ll clean your US streets of

the scum. Just as you wanted.’

‘OK. Why don’t we try that?’ Peter said sarcastically. ‘You know what? I’ll do it for you right

now. Let’s see what happens.’

Tomas said, ‘Okay by me.’

Linkin Park – War 2:11

“There's no peace, only war - Victory decides who's wrong or right.

It will not cease, only grow - you better be prepared to fight!”

‘Late Night Entertainment, this is Monika speaking, how can I help you?’

Awkward silence ensued. Tomas realized that Peter called one of Fok’s businesses – the “spicy”

one.

Tomas cleared his throat. ‘I would like to talk to the manager.’

Monika replied, ‘I’m afraid the manager is busy right now. Is there a way I can help you?’
Tomas said, ‘Yes, could you pass a message to him for me?’

‘Certainly, sir, what’s the message?’

Tomas said, ‘Tell him that the Ghost wishes to talk to Mister Fok.’

‘Excuse me, sir?’

‘It’s a joke, just please tell him exactly as I said, he will appreciate it.’ Tomas said light-

heartedly.

Someone else joined the conversation, presumably the manager, who was listening.

‘Who is this?’

Tomas said, ‘This is the Ghost.’

‘One moment please.’ The manager said in a calm and cold voice.

Martin expressed his surprise. ‘You’ve got to be kidding me.’

Peter kept quiet.

After 30 seconds of waiting on hold, the familiar voice spoke.

‘You are looking for me, Ghost?’ Fok asked.

Tomas said, ‘I am now; you have given me no choice. Didn’t you get my message?’

‘I did; a lot of them. New York, Philadelphia? Hell, even Chicago. I must say, you had me

fooled. Should have taken care of you myself when I could.’

‘It doesn’t have to be this way –’

Fok jumped to interrupt Tomas. ‘Yes it does. You had your chance to join us; now there can be

no peace. And if you think you can win, you’re naive. Even killing me will not change anything.

You will be hunted forever.’

Tomas replied, ‘Not if there is no one else to hunt me.’

Fok laughed loudly. ‘You’re going to kill all of us? Even if that was possible, the bounty hunters

would never stop coming after you.’

Tomas said, ‘And who is going to pay them? If I erase the triads off the US map, your territories

will be taken over by your competition. I highly doubt that other countries’ cells would invest

any more money into killing me.’

‘And you think you can do all that?’ Fok asked with genuine surprise.

Tomas said, ‘I think I will have to at least try, or do I?’

‘I guess that you would.’

There was a short pause.

Fok continued. ‘You know what? If you’re so confident, why don’t you visit me at my place

tomorrow night. It’s a nightclub in Chicago, I’ll send you the address. Please come after eleven

p.m. I’ll book the place just for us. I’m sure you don’t want to attract any unwanted attention

either.’

Tomas said, ‘You sure this is what you want? I will come, you know…’

‘Oh, I’m sure.’

Tomas said, ‘But what if you’re wrong?’

‘Let the victory decide who was right and who was wrong,’ Fok said calmly. Then he hung up.

Linkin Park – NTR-MSSION 0:29 (Reanimation)

Martin scoffed, ‘You sure know how to make friends.’

‘Shut up. Just take me to that address,’ Tomas retorted, visibly irritated.

‘Oh, I will take you all right. No problem,’ Martin said, visibly amused.

‘So, you are really going?’ Peter asked, in an almost sad voice.

Tomas moaned, ‘Yeah, looks like it.’

Peter said, ‘You sure about this? It’s obviously a trap.’

Tomas said, ‘Nope. Yes. I mean, it has to stop one way or another. This will pretty much

guarantee it.’

Peter suggested, ‘Think about this. Even if you succeed, and that’s pretty much impossible, you

will have to take a lot of lives. You okay with that?’

Tomas said, ‘I guess that’s the price I have to pay.’

Peter said, ‘What happened to I never wanted this, I only defend myself?’

Tomas said, ‘Nothing. I don’t want any of this and I’m still defending myself. Just the tactics

have changed.’

Peter asked, ‘You really think you can pull this off?’

Martin cut in sarcastically, ‘Of course he can, he’s the man!’

Peter said, ‘Gargy. Just –’

Tomas ignored Martin and answered Peter’s question. ‘I don’t, but sometimes it’s enough for

them to think I can. If I push hard enough, maybe they will break under pressure.’

Peter kept quiet for a moment. It was obvious that he was thinking about what to say next. ‘Good

luck then; you will need it.’ That wasn’t what Tomas expected, perhaps even hoped for. He was

still hoping that Peter would present him with a better option, but that didn’t happen.

Tomas asked, ‘Just for the record, is the money in my fake bank account real?’

Peter replied, ‘What do you mean? It’s there, it’s in your name, of course it’s real.’

Tomas said, ‘Fuck, I hope I’m right about this.’

Peter offered, ‘You can still change your mind.’

Tomas said, ‘No, no I can’t. Not after the phone call. I would be a laughingstock – it would be a

signal to go after me. You show weakness, and they never let you go again. You have to stand up

to your bullies.’

Peter said, ‘I have someone who wants to talk to you.’

Tomas was genuinely surprised. ‘What?! Who?’

It was Helena. As soon as her voice came out of the car’s speakers, Tomas pressed cancel on the

call button on the centreboard. Martin just looked at him, and even in his helmet, his body

language asked: ‘Why?’ without actually saying the word.

‘What? That is the last thing I need right now. Better for her too this way,’ Tomas said, turning

towards Martin.
The phone didn’t ring again, so Helena must have understood, or Peter prevented her from

calling back because he concluded that there was no point.

***

Martin drove Tomas into Chicago. He paid online for a room at a hotel under his fake name so

he didn’t have to deal with people personally. It was kind of awkward with his permanent helmet

on in public. People could call the police on him. He gave Tomas $300 cash for a taxi that he

would need to take him to the location the next day, and to have “glorious” last meals.

Martin said, ‘Keep your hoodie and cap on at all times; there are cameras everywhere. For what

it’s worth, take out as many as you can.’ Then, he left.

Tomas spent his first night in the public since what seemed like forever. No direct hiding, no safe

house. Nothing happened. He prepared himself to go to the nightclub as he would for the gym.

He ate a lot of carbs two hours before so he’d have plenty of energy for the “workout” that was

about to happen, but not too full so that he would get sick if punched in the belly.

The nightclub wasn’t far from the hotel. Tomas left at exactly 11:00 p.m. and entered through the

door at 11:10 p.m. There was a sign indicating it was closed for maintenance, but the door was

unguarded and unlocked when Tomas tried the doorhandle. All the shops around were long

closed and the streets empty, outside of the drunks and other human garbage. Some perhaps just

unfortunate, but you get the picture. Tomas made sure that he never looked directly into any

camera that he could see when he walked in.

Chapter 7: Bloodbath

L.A.Style – James Brown is Dead 5:38

There were Fok’s “soldiers” in line everywhere along the walls around the massive, open-space

dance floor but just one guy standing in the centre of it, waiting. He looked impressive, one of

the bigger guys but aesthetically just like Tomas. No one spoke a word. No one shot at Tomas

immediately. ‘A fortunate thing to happen.’ After a closer look, he noted that many of them

looked like bounty hunters. Different races and all. Not many of them packing though, at least

not visibly. ‘Another punishment, perhaps? Only an idiot repeats the same mistake again.’

Tomas was baffled.

‘I have come to see Fok.’

The lone man in the centre moved forward.

Tomas said, ‘You’re not Fok, are you?’

For a moment, Tomas thought that the first Fok could have been a deception. But this man

wasn’t Chinese, he was Caucasian, and young, Tomas thought it was unlikely that he was Fok.

The man began speechlessly approaching Tomas in a very confident, calm walk. Tomas got

confident and cocky seeing that most likely they wanted to take turns on him.

Tomas said, ‘You think you can take me on alone? I’m the Ghost!’ He was using intimidation

tactics.

As soon as Tomas started running towards the guy, someone turned the loud club music on.

Possibly to cover the noise of the fight, not to draw attention to it. As soon as Tomas was close

enough, he overshot his spin-heel-jump-kick over the guy’s head because he just easily dodged
it, ducking slightly. Their places reversed. Tomas angrily began to rapid fire the guy with kicks

and punches. However, the man intercepted them with ease and interrupted all of the attacks.

Intercepted! That rarely ever happened before, Tomas was that fast. This guy intercepted them

all, one after another, without breaking a sweat.

Tomas said, ‘Oh, you are something else, aren’t you? I can do the same thing, you know,’

showing a “come at me” movement with his left hand.

The guy still wore a poker face, no words, ignoring him. Tomas stood there for a few seconds,

expecting to be attacked soon, but the guy still stood in his place, motionless, not even in a

fighting stance. Just casually. What an insult, Tomas thought. He rushed to attack the guy in

anger for showing such disrespect to him but it was the same story. Tomas’s attacks just got

disrupted with the interceptions, not even allowing him to finish the striking movement. The last

intercepted kick even hurt him, and Tomas’s facial expression revealed that.

Suddenly, it was the guy storming on Tomas instead. To his satisfaction, Tomas managed to do

the same interception to the guy.

Tomas said, ‘Told you that I can do the same.’ A cocky smile appeared on his face.

Out of nowhere, the guy attacked again with a combo of two punches and a roundhouse kick into

Tomas’s mid-section but didn’t get through his interception defences. This time Tomas’s left arm

got visibly hurt doing the interception, as he shook it off a few times in the air, then made a fist

again. His cocky smile and body language spoke “it’s nothing” to his opponent.

Another wave of attacks pummelled Tomas with surprising speed. This time it was too fast for

interception. Too fast to try to dodge them too. Tomas ended up blocking or accepting the hits at

safe places whilst trying to land some hits of his own onto the opponent. In one instance, Tomas
had to block an incoming strike on his face, raising both of his arms up due to the power of the

strike, blocking his view temporarily. It was only for a millisecond really, but as soon as the hit

impacted on his arms, Tomas lowered his defence so he could see his opponent again. He wasn’t

in front of him anymore. A quick look to his left revealed that the guy just finished his wall-run

by an inwards crescent kick. The massive impact on Tomas’s left cheek sent him to the floor,

spitting out blood while losing his cap.

At least all of his teeth were still there, for the moment.

The guy was insanely fast. The combo that he did after almost didn’t give Tomas any time to

react after he fell onto the floor. But Tomas kind of expected another one. In the last moment, he

managed to avoid the incoming attack, and in retaliation, to send his opponent to the ground as

well.

They both quickly got up again and Tomas stormed at the guy first, visibly angry. The other guy

was still calm and collected, as if nothing was happening. Tomas’s attacks were fast enough this

time to not allow for interception, but got blocked instead. That slowed Tomas down a lot and a

full reversal followed. Now it was him being pummelled by the attacks that Tomas barely

managed to block in the last moment.

He used both hands to protect his face again for a split second, blocking his view. Tomas

accepted the impact and then lowered his hands to see again. The guy wasn’t in front of him

again. He’s done it to me twice! Just as Tomas predicted, he caught him wall-running on his left

side again. The guy finished the wall run with a butterfly kick to Tomas’s face, dislocating his

jaw and launching him to the floor once again after Tomas’s body performed a 540-degree front-

flip landing face down, the momentum of the kick was so great.
Tomas just managed to turn around on his back and snap his jaw back into position when the

opponent got on top of him and started to batter him with punches. Tomas resorted to jiu-jitsu

and grabbed onto his opponent, closing the distance of their bodies together so the guy was

unable to strike at him. Tomas was a very strong guy, and the opponent struggled with long

groundwork to get at least his legs free from Tomas’s grip and disruptions so he could stand up

again. Even though the guy was possibly stronger, Tomas used the advantage of lever arms in the

position that he found himself. As soon as the guy got his legs free and managed to stand up,

Tomas still wrapped around his upper body, he slammed Tomas into the floor, even though he

was slamming himself too. But Tomas’s wrapped-around body acted as a cushion to the impact.

This was unsustainable for Tomas, should he be slammed like that more times. He would have to

let go eventually.

On the second slam, you could hear Tomas’s spine’s discs crying, his ribs cracking. The guy

managed to stand up again for the third time after a brief struggle on the floor and prepared for

another slam into the floor. Even he was now visibly struggling in anger, and obviously put all of

his effort into the ground-slam.

Mid-way slamming Tomas down into the floor, Tomas switched his legs and arms positions

quickly. Tomas’s legs wrapped themselves around the guy’s neck while his arms released fully,

generating even more momentum into a backflip, swinging backwards. The combined

momentum of the ground-slam and Tomas’s backflip was enough to throw the guy into the space

whilst Tomas escaped during the backflip phase in between the guy’s legs. The guy got thrown

away, 3–4 metres into the distance, hitting a pillar before falling down awkwardly, headfirst,

nearly breaking his neck – as the fight was slowly moving over time towards the edges of the

large floor.
Tomas struggled to get up, his face all beaten up and bleeding. His torso hurt with possible

cracked ribs.

His opponent angrily stood up, wiping off some blood that came out of his mouth after the

impact into the pillar, and rushed onto Tomas. As soon as Tomas spotted that, as if by a miracle,

he stood back up into a fighting stance instantly. That surprised his opponent and forced him to

stop, as he decided to exercise caution. The guy just got owned a moment ago, from a position

that he was certain it wasn’t possible.

Tomas ripped off his shirt and swiped his bloody face with it to see, as the blood coming from

his torn right eyebrow was coming into his eye, and to resort to old tactics of intimidation. Not

that Tomas expected to have any success with that. Even in his clothes, the other guy looked

more buff, but perhaps he wouldn’t expect Tomas to be in the shape he was. No visible reaction

of his opponent to that, to Tomas’s disappointment.

He threw away the shirt and began another combo. Two punches and a spin-wheel kick. All

intercepted, with the kick being painfully intercepted with a hit into his ground knee. Thankfully,

not at an angle that would have snapped it. It forced Tomas down to his knees though.

As Tomas looked up, expecting a strike, instead he now saw the guy showing him the “come

here” hand move.

Such an insult. I’m the Ghost! he thought.

That is when Tomas went into a rage and the following skirmish bloodied both of them. Both

started angrily front kicking their opponent away from them as soon as they got hit, or combo-

hit, in hope to create distance between themselves. For a while, it looked like they played human
pinball, their bodies bouncing off the objects and pillars around them. Multiple hits with elbows

or knees ensued as both their styles turned into Thai-box simultaneously.

Tomas’s opponent was bloodied too at this point; he’d possibly never been in such a state as now

before. His mid-section hurt visibly, and his clothes were torn. But he was slowing down less

than Tomas after each hit received, and even though it could have been 50–50 in hits scored,

Tomas was losing steam a lot faster.

Within a minute of the human pinball, the opponent managed to land an axe kick onto Tomas’s

face, almost knocking him out. Then he grabbed Tomas at his neck from behind and started to

choke him out. That created opportunity for Tomas to skilfully aikido-throw the guy over his

shoulder onto the floor while fixing his arm in an awkward position. The arm would have

snapped at the elbow if it wasn’t for the guy’s buff stature that comes with stronger ligaments

and tendons binding the joints.

The guy went into a rage after that while Tomas increased his anger into a frenzy. The following

skirmish battered both, but Tomas was slowing more and more and more, until like by a magic

switch, he couldn’t move any more. Not to strike, nor to block; couldn’t even stand on his feet

anymore and fell to his knees, struggling to balance his body to stay upright.

The other guy, barely able to walk himself now, with a limp after Tomas’s almost successful

attempt to snap his leg at the knee during the skirmish, went to stand right behind Tomas once

again, locking his neck in a snapping position. Both of Tomas’s arms raised, trying to prevent

that, but really there was no more strength to resist anymore. Something pinched Tomas in his

neck, as if he was being injected with something.

‘This is your chance; this is the best I can do for you,’ the guy said, then he let go of Tomas, who

fell instantly to the floor onto his back, as now he didn’t even have enough strength to balance

himself upright.

Then the guy reached into his torn, fancy jacket and pulled out a pack of money bonded together

with a rubber band. He then threw it onto Tomas’s chest as he lay on the floor helpless.

‘Let it be said that I have beaten the Ghost. But I want no part in his death. Tell Fok that he can

keep his money. I have done my part of the promise and “pacified” the Ghost, but I have no

personal quarrel with him, and YOU will have to finish him yourself. It is my opinion now that I

am not worthy to finish off such a talent, nor are any of you. Do as you please.’ Anger

reverberated in the mysterious man’s voice.

Then he started to walk away, limping.

Bjork – Army of Me (feat. Skunk Anansie) 6:50

“You're alright, there's nothing wrong.

Self sufficiency please - and get to work!”

When the guy was almost out of the nightclub, about 7 or 8 mercenaries began to leave too. The

others hesitated to move forward towards Tomas at first until one of them started cautiously

walking to where he was laying. Tomas’s body started to have spasms, convulse, as if he was

going to die. That made the front man stop his movement. However, even though it was a very

painful experience for Tomas, it was sharpening his senses exponentially every second. Waking

him up, then silencing the pain.

Tomas didn’t even realize how he got back up to a standing position, but he did. Now he saw the

man running towards him, but it was like in slow motion, for lack of better words, since time was

flowing as normal, of course. Tomas instantly realized that he must have been injected with a

powerful drug.

But why?

It didn’t really matter. Now the rest of the mercenaries that were there also started to move

forward, away from the walls and towards Tomas. There were too many to count. Just on the

bottom floor there must have been at least 50, never mind the upper floor, where more were

observing what was happening on the ground floor below.

Tomas saw the closest one to him strike at him, but he dodged it with the slightest necessary

movement, without any effort perceived on his part. Tomas let the guy try again, but it was still

like he was moving in slow motion, rendering it too easy for Tomas to avoid. His muscles were

pumped up beyond belief and it felt great. Tomas wanted to test it out. After dodging another

attack, he retaliated with a punch into the opponent’s chest. It was so powerful that the loud

crack announced the fracture of his sternum in the presence of a spray of blood ejecting out of

the guy’s mouth. Must have been dead even before his body hit the ground.

Another two appeared in front of him. A double-crescent outside kick silenced them both,

switching off their lights.

It was like Tomas was always producing maximum force, at maximum rate (impulse/rate of

force development) while perceiving no RPE (rate of perceived exertion). With the full body

pump combined, it was absolutely amazing. Not to mention that Tomas virtually didn’t feel any

pain anymore, in contrast to the moments before the presumed injection.

He rushed into the void of bodies, absolutely annihilating anyone in his path. Blood painted the

walls and floor, pillars, sofas, tables, anything that was in the immediate vicinity of Tomas as he

was being attacked. Some of the mercenaries had knives, daggers, even swords. Others grabbed

sticks of some sort, or other weapons. But all that it managed to achieve was for Tomas to use it

against them. They just couldn’t touch him at all. He was so much faster, and his hits were

accurate and often meant either instant lights out, or death. Especially the combos that Tomas

did.

For instance, one of the sword wielders attempted to thrust it into Tomas’s upper torso. He

slightly turned to the side to let the blade narrowly miss him, giving him the perfect opportunity

to break the attacker’s arm at the elbow, so Tomas did. Right after that, front kicking and

pushing the guy away, only to bounce him off someone else who was standing right behind him,

sending the guy back towards Tomas again. He was already lunging forward, hitting the guy

again with an elbow to the face and a knee to the gut simultaneously that buried the guy into the

floor.

But it was enough to preoccupy Tomas so that he didn’t see in time the incoming spear tip to

avoid it. Yes, a spear. It pierced Tomas through his right shoulder almost all the way through,

with the tip slightly protruding out at the back. The guy carrying the spear also looked buff and

powerful. He generated so much forward momentum that when it went into Tomas’s shoulder

and got stuck in between the shoulder joint bones, it pushed Tomas backwards. Tomas was

bracing his legs against the floor, leaning forward as much as he could to make it harder to push

his body mass, and after 3–4 meters of being pushed backwards, Tomas managed to stop the

opponent’s momentum. Tomas didn’t feel any pain, or maybe just very slightly. He just looked

at the damage to his shoulder and went into a rage instantly.

Tomas let out a loud war cry before snapping the spear’s shaft into four pieces in a single second

as he was making his way towards the guy wielding it, then finally upper cutting the guy with a

powerful punch to his jaw that lifted the guy’s whole body off the ground before sending him

flying backwards. His teeth shattered against themselves because of the forced sudden bite,

blood squirting through the gaps created. He landed, and surprisingly, was not only conscious,

but also quickly managed to recover back to his standing position, ready to fight again, unfazed.

‘One of the tough guys.’

Tomas had to make his way through the bodies that instantly blocked his way in front of him.

Literally just rag-dolling them aikido-style into the space around him. If Tomas could, into other

mercenaries that were approaching him.

Then, someone managed to choke Tomas at his throat from behind. The mercenary had a knife in

that hand and tried to slice at Tomas’s throat, with minor success. Tomas managed to judo-throw

him over his back onto the buff guy that just recovered from the uppercut previously, leaving

only a scratch line on Tomas’s throat.

The thrown body would have hit the guy that Tomas was aiming for if it wasn’t for the tough

guy doing an outside crescent kick to his right side, pushing the flying body away to the side.

The body landed on a tipped-over chair with the centre of his body mass, impaling itself on it.

Tomas used the time that the tough guy’s crescent kick required to made a low-spin-heel kick at

the guy’s legs, sending him falling onto the floor on his back once again, combined with an

immediate lock of the tough guy’s head in between Tomas’s feet. Following was Tomas’s torso-

twist to the side to snap the guy’s neck, accompanied with a momentary pained expression on the

victim’s face, shocking to some of the present “active audience”.

Someone opened fire at Tomas after that from the top floor, only to hit anyone but him, as

Tomas was too agile and evasive. Soon, Tomas grabbed a katana sword off the floor from one of

his already slain victims. Then he proceeded to increase the level of violence displayed, cutting

off limbs, slicing heads horizontally or vertically. Sometimes only to get the blade stuck halfway

through, just to forcefully take it out a split second later, painting anyone and anything that was

in the near vicinity with brain matter. It was an absolute bloodbath.

At one point, Tomas was forced to throw his blade in a rotating manner, hitting shooters that

were too hard to get to at times. The blade travelled in a perfectly timed X-shape movement like

a rotor blade on a plane, hitting and slashing people left and right, until it finally penetrated the

body of the intended problematic shooter.

Tomas was already on the way to recover his blade when that happened and as soon as he got to

the katana, he just forced it downwards in a violent slashing movement, spilling out guts of the

unfortunate soul accompanied by an orchestra of agony.

Suddenly, there was no one else around Tomas anymore, just some disfigured caricatures that

were trying to flee, running away. But there was one impressive-looking, samurai sword-

wielding trio in the distance across the hall. They had made their way from the top floor to the

bottom, in an absolutely casual manner whilst there was all hell raised around them.

Before they managed to fully come downstairs, the deed was all done. It suddenly got all quiet,

as the mercenaries were all dead with the exception of the cries of the dying and the fleeing. But

no more battle noise. Less than a minute of action, 50-plus bodies on the floor. Tomas fully

soaked in the blood of his enemies, head to toe.

He was looking directly at the trio when he got into a fighting stance. Tomas made a few fancy

moves with the katana before resting it in reverse-grip position behind his body while his empty

left arm was fully extended in front of him, knees half bent.

The two on the sides of the trio were slightly behind the centre guy. They looked at each other

briefly and in silent mutual agreement, started to run away. The centre guy just momentarily

tilted his head to the side without fully looking at them running, his body language expressing

his displeasure with their cowardice.

As soon as his head returned to focusing on Tomas again, the left-behind “samurai” began his

attack whilst letting out a loud war cry. Tomas responded with a war cry of his own as he also

began closing in on his enemy, running across the open space littered with bodies and body parts,

both of their swords dragging on the floor making screeching noises.

As their bodies met in the centre, Tomas stuck his sword into his opponent’s belly, leaving it

there as his momentum still continued, making him slide away whilst trying to stop. His

opponent missed the attempted strike over Tomas’s head as Tomas dodged it, ducking down in

time. The katana went deep through the samurai’s belly, all the way to the guard of the katana.

The guy fell to his knees on impact and for a few seconds of agony, he tried to pull the sword

out, but he lost consciousness before that happened and died soon after in a pool of his own

blood.
 Rammstein – Feuer Frei. 3:13

“Those who know pain are dangerous,

(Gefährlich ist, wer Schmerzen kennt)

From the fire that burns the mind -

(Vom Feuer, das den Geist verbrennt)
- A burst of sparks -
(Ein Funkenstoß)

- A hot scream -
(Ein heißer Schrei)

Open fire!
(Feuer frei)
Bang bang, Bang bang”

Tomas called out, ‘Those of you who are still alive, listen. I want Fok. If you tell me now where

I can find him, I will leave you be to your fate. If you don’t, I will torture you until you tell, or

die. You will have but one chance to tell me what I want to know. But beware, if I find that you

lied to me, I will find you again and make you regret that you did so. Same goes for telling any

information about me. Trust me, you better forget everything right now or I will make you

forget. Permanently. Now, who is the lucky winner?’ He was looking at a guy that was not more

than four meters away to his left.

The man had lost his right arm at the elbow and left leg at the knee. It didn’t look like he would

stay conscious for long, so Tomas quickly approached him. But then Tomas noticed the door to

the back part of the club that said VIP Bar.

‘Could it be?’
He walked through the door. As soon as Tomas entered the room, all eyes were on him. They

must not have heard the terrifying noises in the other room that lasted for a little over a minute

because of the loud music that was bouncing from the dance floor room. They obviously

couldn’t identify who walked through that door, because none of them took an immediate shot at

Tomas from their assumed positions.

Tomas dropped his katana onto the floor in hopes that they would lower their weapons. They did.

They must have assumed that he was one of the bounty hunters that came to collect after the

fight. Tomas managed to take a few steps forward before Fok, who was all the way to the back

behind an L-shaped sofa, shouted: ‘That’s him!’

Fok’s face registered obvious disbelief, then panic soon after once he got a good look at Tomas’s

facial expression. Not to mention Tomas was covered in blood top to bottom, with bits of organic

matter here and there. There was Fok’s guard not four meters away from Tomas, standing next to

a bar table. He reached into his suit for a handgun. Tomas lunged at him with a hook kick to

wrap his leg around the gun-wielding arm so that when he bent his knee positioned against the

guard’s elbow, the guard’s arm snapped. At the same time, it slammed the guy’s face into the bar

table, smashing it against it. The impact killed him instantly as the guard’s nose entered his

brain.

Tomas took a chance and caught the weapon still in the air as it was falling out of the just broken

arm of the dead guy and sent four shots across to the other side where more guards were sitting

back at a table, killing two of them. Fok’s armed guards were obviously still cautious after they

lowered their weapons for a second or two because they managed to draw them out again just as

fast and all hell was raised, instantly sending hundreds of shots towards Tomas.
Tomas backflipped with the assistance of his free hand over the bar table, while managing to aim

a shot at the poor bartender that just picked up a shotgun from below the counter. He shouldn’t

have even been there; now he fell dead with a hole in his torso.

As soon as Tomas was behind the bar table, hundreds of shots impacted all around him. He

front-rolled into a parkour-style climb to get onto the top floor (it was like a balcony, just half or

less of the actual bar space, same as in the other room), sending out a few shots along the way.

Tomas may have hit a few of the guards downstairs, he wasn’t sure, but he surely hit two guys

closest to him that were on the balcony-like top floor.

The whole of the bottom floor stopped shooting; probably didn’t want to hit their own guys on

the top, which counted no less than fifteen. Well, thirteen, after the two that had been shot during

Tomas’s parkour climb-up.

As soon as Tomas got up, the whole top floor opened fire at him. There was a guy right at the

place where Tomas climbed to. Tomas grabbed the guard’s arm as he tried to aim at him and

aikido-threw the guard into the oncoming gunfire, which killed him, while still grabbing the

guard’s weapon mid-air, sending a few shots of his own into the pummelled-by-bullets body.

Like a gazelle, Tomas put his gun-kata skill to use. He kept lunging forward in the most optimal

shooting positions while minimizing the chance of being hit by the incoming fire. This was done

via applying disruption of the optimal shooting angles of the attackers that just constantly chase

an unpredictable moving target, missing it.

Tomas shot the last two guards on the top floor when he had to pick up new guns again during

another front roll (Tomas only chose to pick up handguns so he was still very agile and could do

acrobatics easier whilst aiming at two targets simultaneously when needed), only to do another
front roll right after. This time, Tomas turned by 180 degrees so that he could take aim at the

guards coming to the top floor. He unleashed a volley of fire, killing four of them.

As the guards fell back down the stairs dead, the whole bottom floor opened fire, Swiss-cheesing

the top floor with bullets penetrating everywhere. Tomas performed a couple of somersaults until

he got over the edge of the balcony. He let a few shots out during his fall and still managed to

land flawlessly into a roll. Still, from that height, it was just luck that Tomas’s legs didn’t snap

on the impact.

Tomas found himself about four meters away from a shotgun-wielding guard. He was already

aiming at Tomas and let three shots out before Tomas managed to get behind the first cover

available. The problem was that now Tomas was staring into the faces of another three guards.

One with an automatic weapon, two with handguns that were also ready to shoot and too far to

intercept.

Tomas had no choice. He backwards-cartwheeled macaco em pe style into the shotgun-wielding

guard. Tomas decided not to go for a double face hit-kick. Instead, he ended with a front push

away kick into the guard’s chest that was so powerful it sent the guy flying back, ejecting a spray

of blood from his mouth, while Tomas still managed to get hold of the shotgun as he did so. The

impact crushed the guard’s sternum, and Tomas could almost feel the heart being squished

against the other side of the ribcage, killing the guy instantly.

Of course, the guards Tomas was facing a split second before already opened fire at his old

location. Because of the spray nature of full-auto fire it was actually helpful, as it only managed

to hit Tomas in his left arm. Although Tomas still didn’t feel any pain, or just a little, he now lost

perfect control of his other hand as well, which rendered any attempted aiming of his that much
harder. Good thing was, Tomas didn’t aim that much anyway. Just “spray and pray” was his

tactic, which so far had very good results, to his credit.

Tomas quickly responded with rapid fire of the pump shotgun, sending out six shots in their

general direction, killing them. Tomas’s rapid fire was achieved by holding the pump action

whilst twisting the gun 180 degrees, then allowing it to come back a full 360-degree circle

already reloaded and ready to shoot. It sounds complicated, but Tomas did it as fast as if he was

nunchaku swinging.

The remaining guards didn’t sleep, but the following skirmish cleared all of them along with the

music – apparently, as Tomas finally realized that it stopped. No doubt because the equipment

got shot up to pieces at some point.

Tomas dropped the “shotty” for a pair of handguns during the firefight. The room was now full

of dead bodies, as much as 50 maybe, again, but Fok was nowhere to be seen. He must have fled.

There was another double door leading somewhere that Tomas hadn’t explored yet, so he

decided to go through them. It looked like he was heading back to the dance floor, but that was

impossible, as he hadn’t seen the door there before.

When Tomas was just one meter away from the double doors, he heard, and more so felt, the

incoming marching steps of many.

All Tomas managed to do was to get quickly into a split above the doorway position, pressing his

legs in a split position against the decorative pillars of the door frame that extended all the way to

the ceiling, roman style.

The doors exploded open and about 15 to 20 armed guards stormed in. They stopped and looked

around, but there was no sight of the Ghost. That was because now Tomas found himself behind

them on top of the doorframe, looking down at them.

The guards started to turn around to look for the Ghost. It was too late. Tomas already made his

move. He jumped on the shoulder of the closest guard to him whilst depositing a bullet or two

into the guard’s neck area, just as he already jumped on the shoulder of the next guard. Tomas

once again used his 180-degree rotation steps whilst moving forward from shoulder to shoulder,

which allowed him to take shots at the guys that were on his sides as well.

Tomas made his way to the very front guy so quickly that the guards didn’t even notice the body

weight of his as he stepped on their shoulders. They were dead less than half a second after that

anyway.

When Tomas got to the last, the front guard, he landed forcefully with both legs on the guard’s

shoulders, sending him falling to the floor as Tomas lay on top of him. Tomas’s knees held both

of the guard’s arms against the floor so the guard couldn’t fire at Tomas. Tomas unloaded the

rest of both of his magazines into the guard’s head, rendering it unrecognizable.
 The Equalizer OST – Zack Hemsey – Vengeance 6:33

“Before I die alone - let me have vengeance.

Before I die alone - I will have vengeance!”

Tomas looked back towards the double door where the guards that he just killed had come from.

It led into a large hall with a booth like capsules on its sides. Most likely for the “private” shows

for the customers. Fok was nowhere to be seen, and Tomas started to panic that he may have got

away. Tomas wanted to put an end to this. No, he wanted vengeance at this point. Tomas knew

that his right shoulder and left arm were badly injured, even though it didn’t hurt much thanks to

whatever drug he was injected with. But the effect of it was slowly but surely wearing off, as his

senses were slowing down. That meant he may not have much time before he would surely

collapse, which should come just purely because of the beating that Tomas received prior

anyway.

Tomas knew that if he was put in a hospital, should he survive in the first place, he could be

hated and feared as a mass murderer. Death was a more attractive option. He could be just

considered one of the victims, never to be smeared on the TV for his family to see. All Tomas

had to do was to blow his own head off before he would lose consciousness. A high-powered

rifle or a shotty would do; they were lying here and there. It was unlikely that Peter would have

come to save him for the third time, not until it was over. But it wasn’t over yet. Tomas was

practically already dead, he had to accept that. The best-case scenario now would be for him to

get his revenge and then blow off his head before the police would surely arrive or before he lost

consciousness.
Tomas wanted to avenge Mike and the girl, and also to take vengeance for ruining his own life,

turning him into what he had become. The carnage that took place was unspeakable. If it wasn’t

for the heat of the battle, it would even be unthinkable to do. There was nothing more to live for,

but the vengeance. Tomas, as he was his whole life before, now certainly didn’t exist, and

couldn’t exist ever after. If it didn’t happen before in Chicago the first time when he massacred

the Flutes with a sword, it certainly did now. Tomas Cudzis was no more. The body count was

too much, he ceased to exist. In his place, only his vengeance manifested.

Tomas heard some cars stopping outside the nightclub. No sirens, most likely a pickup rescue

party coming to extract Fok.

Tomas rushed through the hall hunting for Fok, checking the capsules at fly-by. A few guards

were hidden there, hiding in fear, really. Tomas shot them all anyway without hesitation.

There was a staircase at the end of the hall going to the top floor above. Next to it on the right, a

door led back to the dance floor. He must have missed it before, the first time he entered.

As Tomas was rushing up the stairs, fully automatic fire imitating his movement pattern

announced the presence of new troops in the building. The stairs led to a small office with a

massive one-way mirror instead of a wall that overlooked the dance floor. Must have been the

manager’s office. There was (from the outside) a non-visible door leading to the top

floor/balcony above the dance floor. It was open, and Tomas’s fears were confirmed once he

spotted Fok fleeing down the main stairs.

When Fok reached downstairs, he got surrounded by the new guards, that shielded him with their

own bodies. Then they immediately began to head towards the cars parked outside, crossing the

dance floor.
Tomas was standing behind the one-way mirror. He could see them, but they couldn’t see him.

Tomas opened fire through it, hitting many of the guards in the process. Then he remembered,

there were also guards chasing him up the stairs before. Just as soon as Tomas turned around, a

volley of fire struck him, twice to his mid-section, once to his left thigh, and one just a flesh

wound to his neck. Tomas returned fire whilst falling to the floor, killing the first three that

entered the office. Then he was out of ammo. At least, he still didn’t feel much pain.

Tomas rushed towards the rest of the guards on the stairs when an explosive grenade hit the

office. They all fell down the stairs. But luckily, Tomas ended up on top of the guards, and soon

after, he ended their lives with their own guns.

Tomas was now blocking the front exit leading to the cars. The group of guards surrounding Fok

split in two. One started heading back with him towards the bar area, the other engaged Tomas.

A few seconds of gun-kata put an end to that. But Tomas was facing a dilemma. Should he

pursue the other group with Fok, or wait where he was? As far as he knew, this was the only exit

out of the building, but he could be wrong.

Instead, he turned towards the cars and peppered them with gunfire before picking up new

handguns. No one shot back at him. The cars were probably empty. So he headed back towards

the doorway leading to the staircase up to the manager’s office. Tomas thought the other group

must have wanted to use the hall with the capsules, to flank around him should he try to pursue

them.

Just as Tomas entered through the doorway, he saw one of the front guards throwing a grenade at

him while the rest took cover in the capsules, dragging Fok with them. It almost landed just one

meter in front of him, but Tomas caught it still in the air while doing a front roll. As soon as
Tomas recovered into normal position, he threw the grenade back at the guards in the middle of

the hall. Loud bang, flash, smoke, fire, screams of pain, and ricocheting shrapnel. One embedded

itself into Tomas’s torso, stopped by his ribcage.

Even through the smoke and fire, Tomas spotted the survivors retreating. They were shooting in

Tomas’s general direction to provide cover fire for their retreat, even though they couldn’t see

him any better either. Tomas was rushing through the hall, killing anything that was still making

a noise whilst ignoring the incoming fire. He got struck two more times. Once in the left forearm,

and once to right side of his belly. It didn’t slow him down a bit.

Tomas went into a frenzy, squeezing the shots out of the handguns as fast as he could. Collecting

new ones in one smooth, acrobatic move as soon as the used ones were empty. Injured guards

were left behind by Fok’s group, crawling or dragging themselves away from Tomas. He shot

them like the animals they were, or so he told himself.

Once fully in the bar floor, Tomas was met with resistance again. Hundreds of bullets

redecorated the surroundings while Tomas was gun-kata-parkouring around the place, shooting

at whatever was a target of opportunity. He just shot a guard and quickly turned away, seeking

another target – and Fok, for the most part – when the same guard shot back at him again. Tomas

realized that some of the new guards must have bulletproof vests. He paid for it with a shot to his

upper left back this time. It didn’t penetrate all the way through, but must have deflated his left

lung, as Tomas suddenly started to have a problem breathing. Coughing out blood came soon

after. ‘Yeah, left lung is deflated and filled with blood. Fuck it, I’ll have my vengeance.’

Tomas spotted a dropped katana on the floor that he’d left there before. He quickly picked it up

and lunged back at the guard that shot him, shoving the katana into his back, penetrating him
through the heart. Then he used his gun kata moves again to close on the opposing guards,

cutting them into pieces whilst in a frenzy until, the now shot-up katana’s blade snapped on the

clavicle of one of the guards, forcing Tomas to pick up arms again.

A few more seconds of a firefight, and then there were none left. There was no Fok to be seen

either, but Tomas was sure he hadn’t let anyone slip behind his back out of the two possible

doorways. Tomas was sure; he even got shot in his right calf doing so. It was dangerous, but he

didn’t want anyone to slip away from him. ‘All have to die.’

There was no other place possible to hide but behind the big, L-shaped sofa where Fok was

originally seen. Tomas didn’t even go behind it to check it out, he just opened fire at it. Sudden

cries of pain and a gurgling sound were heard as Tomas approached the back side of the sofa.

There was one guard already dead, one dying with a gun wound to his throat, and Fok. He had

three visible hits to his torso and a few around his body. Tomas must have gotten him before

while Fok was running away.

His face was pale now, and he was barely able to speak. ‘How?!’

Tomas just emptied the rest of his clips into him. In Tomas’s mind, he said back to Fok, I’m an

animal, you said it yourself, you saw it in my eyes. That’s how.

Globus – Preliator 4:28

Tomas’s body started to hurt and he noticed that he was limping. He started to look for a

shotgun; surely there was more than one lying around. He wanted to blow his head off so no one

could identify him. But Tomas couldn’t find any, so he decided to search in the dance floor area.

Then he found one and checked if it had ammo. It did.

Massive flash. Tomas didn’t hear the bang, only because it was so loud it rendered him deaf,

leaving him with a remaining whistling noise in his head. Tomas was temporarily blinded as

well, but he saw something like a shadow moving in his blurred vision. Tomas took shots at it

while taking cover behind one of the pillars. Good thing he did that, as the response fire took

massive chunks out of it.

Tomas wiped his eyes again, but the vision was still kind of blurred. He tried a surprise attack,

first doing acrobatics from cover to cover while shooting, but the blurred object continued to

move unscathed. He lost something though; Tomas saw a black blur fall onto the ground.

Possibly because “the blur” was also doing acrobatics while shooting. This was no ordinary

bounty hunter; he was also gun kata trained.

Tomas was hiding behind a seating place and started to shout at the blur, but he couldn’t hear his

own voice, his ears were still ringing. ‘Your boss is dead! There will be no pay-out! There is no

point in fighting me anymore! If you walk away, I will not shoot at you!’

Tomas was hoping for the guy to leave; there was no point in killing anyone else anymore.

Tomas’s target was Fok; he only killed anyone who stood in between them. He had his

vengeance already and wanted to blast his face off before he lost consciousness. Tomas wished

to live, really, but he had to face the fact that he would collapse soon. He could feel the drug

being less and less efficient every second by then. It was terrifying to him that he could become

the worst killer in the history of mankind that ever lived. At least, when it came to personal kills.

Yeah, there was at least one camera in each room, but Tomas had a cap on when he walked into

the nightclub. Once he lost it, Tomas was all bloodied anyway. The most likely low resolution of

the cameras would never be able to identify his face, nor make any accurate picture of him to

show to the public. All he had to do was to blow off his damn face in the blind spot.
Tomas didn’t want to give the satisfaction to a random bounty hunter to claim killing the Ghost.

If anything, that would be the only legacy Tomas would leave behind. Perhaps the legend of the

Ghost would scare the shit out of the mobsters, maybe forcing them to go easy on the public for

years to come out of fear of him coming back and killing everyone because they harmed the

wrong person again. At least that is how Tomas imagined the story would be told in the mob’s

annals. That is, if they thought that he got out, killing everyone in the process. They would

probably think that if no one saw him taking his own life. Or if that bastard that just came in

wouldn’t kill him in front of a camera. Tomas figured he had something else to fight for after

all…

Tomas yelled, ‘I will give you one last chance to get the hell out!’ The ringing in his ears still

made it impossible for him to understand what the other guy was shouting back at him.

Tomas called, ‘I’m coming out! You better start leaving!’ Some muffled noises shouted back at

him.

Tomas walked out of his cover and started to walk towards the guy. It was a guy, he could tell by

then. His vision was not so blurry anymore, but Tomas had the “flash spot” right in the middle of

his vision, making it impossible for him to see what he was looking at directly. Tomas could tell

that the guy was still shouting at him. He watched the man’s arm movements carefully. The body

movement hinted that the guy held two handguns, one in each hand, like a true gun kata master.

It looked like the guy was about to raise his handguns at him, but he wasn’t sure. Tomas couldn’t

take the chance though, too much at stake. He would not be known as the worst vermin that lived

on this planet for his family to be ashamed of. And there was no time to spare, as Tomas’s

wounds began to hurt more and more and his movements were slowing down gradually. Tomas

felt himself getting weaker. There was no time, he had to act.

Tomas responded to the blur presumably raising his arms and started to shoot at the guy in

response. Damn, the guy was good, moving just like a true gun kata master, avoiding incoming

fire whilst closing in on Tomas the whole time. A logical decision; it’s more likely to hit a gun

kata master at hand-to-hand combat distance.

As soon as they met, a gun melee ensued. Tomas was doing his best to stick his gun into the

other guy’s face so he could pull the trigger and kill him, but the guy was really good and

managed to deflect the gun-wielding arm out of the danger zone (his own body) just in time, so

that even though the shots did take place, they missed every time.

Strangely, for a moment it felt like the guy was only defending himself, but not taking any shot

attempts of his own at Tomas. Must have been because Tomas himself didn’t present any

opportunity to the guy to aim his weapon at any part of his body. The guy simply had better

trigger control, not wanting to waste any bullets if he was not absolutely sure that he could hit

Tomas. Tomas’s shots, on the other hand, were flying left and right. He almost hit the guy in his

left leg at first; the next bullet scratched the guy’s right shoulder. Too slow on the deflection,

even though the guy’s face was the original target.

Next, Tomas managed to scratch the right shoulder again, while the guy still didn’t take a shot,

which was a good sign. Tomas felt like he was on the offensive, not letting the guy breathe at all.

Soon, Tomas was out of ammo in both of his guns, but that wasn’t a problem at all. He already

had a plan for that in mind. He pressed the eject magazine button on the guy’s left gun, while

Tomas ejected his own empty magazine out too. Then in a spin-like movement, he got behind the

guy in an instant and caught the guy’s falling magazine while still in the air, quickly inserting it

in his own gun.

The guns were still a blur for Tomas; he took a chance that it would be a 9 millimetre just like

his. It was.

The guy must have panicked as soon as Tomas did his spin getting behind him and swapping the

magazines, as he started frantically shooting in Tomas’s general direction. That forced Tomas

into a front roll forward to avoid the shots. While Tomas’s right arm was slowing down his fall,

the left one was shooting back at the guy. A few more acrobatics, and both of them got behind

cover, where they both reloaded and met in gunfire again.

This time, Tomas was more selective in his shots, carefully choosing when he would take the

shot. Tomas adapted to the other guy’s style, mimicking his combat. Fearing that the next time

he ran out of bullets, he may not get another opportunity to snatch a magazine away from his

opponent to reload.

A shot came out of Tomas’s pistol, almost fully shooting off his opponent’s right ear. It remained

dangling on a small piece of skin. In response, two shots came out of the guy’s pistols, hitting

Tomas once in his gut; the other got deflected to the side just in time. Tomas felt the impact of

the bullet in his gut, but knew he couldn’t let that slow him down. Tomas managed to cut the guy

down off his feet, but he managed to grab onto Tomas, and they fell together anyway, releasing

several more shots out as they struggled on the floor. Tomas’s eyebrows got burned by the

vapours coming out of the guy’s guns, he was that close to blasting Tomas in his face.

Their struggle got more hectic when the guy managed to stick his gun in Tomas’s face, realizing

it couldn’t be stopped anymore. Tomas knew it too, and he froze for that millisecond, accepting

his fate, expecting the shot to come out as he stared into the barrel of the other guy’s gun, unable

to deflect it away in time.

Click. Misfire.

It took a while for both of them to realize what happened, then the struggle continued again.

Somehow, they got back up on their feet whilst still in almost hand-to-hand combat except they

were shooting bullets instead of fists. The struggle got even more hectic when Tomas realized

that he would be going down soon, as the drug’s effects were ceasing rapidly.

Finally, Tomas’s vision fully recovered so that he could clearly see into the face of his opponent.

He never saw that man before, but the guy still seemed to shout frantically at Tomas. Too bad,

Tomas’s ears were still ringing. All of it was muffled noise and it didn’t get any better thanks to

the shots going off close to his head. Most likely just verbal abuse anyway. Tomas didn’t feel

like he was missing out on anything.

All of his focus went into delivering that killing shot ASAP. His time was running out. Tomas

felt himself slowing down progressively. He almost let his opponent shoot him in the face just to

guarantee that he would not get shot in the torso, leaving his face and body recognizable.

Then, it came. Tomas sacrificed his left leg, getting shot close to the groin area, in the adductors.

But that opened a chance to take a shot at the guy’s face instead. The perfect opportunity and

they both knew it. There was something in the guy’s eyes once he realized that he was fucked

that made Tomas hesitate for a millisecond. A quick thought about the guy’s body movement; it

was somewhat familiar. His constant shouting. It didn’t look like abuse, but Tomas couldn’t hear

to be sure. The guy’s facial expression in the moment of truth when he was about to die wasn’t

that of a bounty hunter. More like: ‘Why?’

Tomas didn’t take the shot, knowing very well that he would be presenting an opportunity of his

own for the guy to exploit, should he not take the shot in time. He didn’t anyway, and about three
milliseconds later, he got shot just below his throat on the right side, as Tomas managed to at

least partially deflect it. He fell down onto the floor. There was a chair just behind him that

supported Tomas in a seated position leaning against it, else he would fall flat.

Should Tomas be wrong about the guy, in less than the next second, he would be Swiss-cheesed

for sure. But he wasn’t; the guy was just staring back at him in shock. Tomas was right. It was

Martin.

All that Tomas managed to do next was raise his gun one more time, the same one that almost

killed Martin moments before, and shot it once into the ceiling so that Martin knew Tomas could

have killed him. But he didn’t. Instead, he took the bullet himself. A mortal wound. An apology

for messing up and shooting at him first.

Tomas now realized that Martin was probably trying to tell him to stop the shooting, screaming

at him frantically the whole time. But he couldn’t hear his voice to recognize it. Martin also

didn’t have his helmet on. It all made sense to Tomas though. Martin was probably trying to

prove his loyalty to Tomas by exposing himself as well. Should have kept the helmet on,

dumbass. I would have recognized you sooner was Tomas’s final thought, then he passed out due

to the severe blood loss and ceasing effect of the drug.

Chapter 8: Reborn

Sia – Alive 4:26

“I was born in a thunderstorm, I grew up overnight.

I played alone, I played on my own -
I survived!”

Pain. Noises. A déjà vu.

Tomas’s eyes fully opened. He looked around and started to laugh spontaneously. Footsteps,

then the door to medical room where Tomas rested opened. It was the guy that had beaten him

up and injected him with some drug. Peter, it was obvious now. With him, Martin, Charlotte,

Helena, Catherine, and Violetta came in. Tomas burst into even louder laughter and instantly got

interrupted with his painful coughing, accompanied by a slight whistling noise thanks to the

wound received to his neck.

Peter asked, ‘What is so funny?’ The smile on his face looked genuine.

‘I’m alive.’

They all smiled and got closer to the side of Tomas’s bed, even Martin.

‘I’m sorry I shot at you,’ Tomas said, turning his head to Martin.

Martin replied, ‘Shit happens.’

They all laughed.

Martin asked, ‘But why?’

‘Why what?’

‘Why did you shoot at me?’

It took them a while, but they figured out what happened. Peter was apparently as good a hacker

as he was a martial artist. He was watching the progress of Tomas’s fight on the nightclub’s own

cameras after hacking into them. Martin was on standby to help Tomas, should it be no longer a

suicide mission. Once it looked like Tomas actually could pull it off and kill all Fok’s guards,

Peter had sent Martin to help.

In the meantime, the camera showing the dance floor got shot up during the firefight and Peter

lost his visual. Because it took a while for Martin to get into the nightclub after losing the visual,

he decided to use a flashbang before entering.

When Martin entered the dance floor, shots came at him. He dodged them narrowly and

instinctively returned fire. Then Martin saw Tomas as he was moving from cover to cover,

shooting, while he was still instinctively returning fire at Tomas.

Martin took off his biker helmet (that really didn’t offer any protection against bullets anyway)

for better vision as Tomas was quite accurate, and so that Tomas could hear his voice better. He

tried to yell at Tomas that it was him, but he had no success. Martin was aware that Tomas could

be momentarily or permanently deaf after the firefight and did his best to only defend himself

until Tomas would realize that something was odd. But he had to admit that he underestimated

Tomas and almost got killed instead.

Martin said, ‘I was sure in that moment that you were going to kill me. Why didn’t you?’ His

voice was soft, very serious and genuine.

‘I didn’t know it was you. If I had, I would have killed you.’

Awkward silence.

Tomas said, ‘Laugh; that was a joke!’ cracking a cheeky smile.

All present seemed relieved, but no laughs.

Violetta said drily, ‘Ha-ha. Apologies. This is my fault. He picked up a bad habit of mine.’

‘Not really, I was always like that.’ Tomas winked at Violetta and she genuinely laughed.

Martin pressed, ‘But really, why not kill me? We both knew that you would get shot if you

didn’t, it happened so fast.’

Tomas shook his head. ‘I finally recognized you. Why would I kill you?’

Silence again. Martin looked like he was thinking about it and then after a couple seconds, he

spoke again. ‘We were not exactly friends. In fact, one could beg to differ.’

Tomas said, ‘We were not exactly enemies either. I figured, if you really wanted me dead before,

you would have done it in a safe way, not going against me while I’m drug-powered and almost

dead anyway. So, you must have come to help me…again.’

Martin said, ‘What if I wanted to show you that I was better than you?’

‘Then I would have died the fool I was,’ Tomas replied, shrugging his shoulders. ‘Either way,

killing you just because you wanted to prove to me, or to yourself, that you are better, would be a

mistake. If you didn’t come to save me, then I would be dead anyway. There was no reason for

me to take your life to prove that I’m better. Which I am, by the way,’ he said in a joking manner

with a cheeky smile whilst pointing his finger at Martin.

All laughed as they understood it. Martin just jokingly shook his head, saying, ‘Rematch’.

Tomas said, ‘Technically, you won, so I’m asking for a rematch.’ They all had a good laugh.

Dr Charlotte jumped in with her own banter. ‘First, Tomas has to get better. There is a lot of

work to be done yet. There’s a long way to recovery. You boys will have to wait before you can

measure your dicks again.’ Eyebrows raised all around at her bluntness. ‘Just a word of warning.

I’m not fixing you two again. If you fight during your free time, you will have to find a different

doctor to fix you. They don’t pay your medical team enough to deal with your childish

behaviour.’

Tomas said, ‘But seriously now, what happened yesterday –’

He got interrupted as all universally said, “Six days ago”.

Helena explained, ‘You have been kept in artificial sleep for the last six days, as Charlotte had to

perform four surgeries on you and take some of your small intestine out.’

‘Along with some other stuff,’ Dr Charlotte added. ‘That, we will have to talk about later.’

Tomas looked quickly under the bedsheet to check if all the “important gear” was still there. He

got hit close to the groin area, after all.

Dr Charlotte chuckled, ‘That is still there, no worries.’ All smiles, ear to ear. ‘For now.’

Tomas made a “worried” face for everyone’s entertainment. He said, ‘Anyway, I meant to say

that what happened six days ago, was a tragedy. But I would like to think that it was necessary,

and everyone that died that day was asking for it for a long time.’

Tomas looked directly at Martin. He said, ‘If I did kill you that day, it would be a crime. Because

at that time you hadn’t done anything that bad to me for me to wish death upon you. No matter
how shady a role you could have possibly played in the equally possible deception. You haven’t

done anything yet that I could justify killing you for.’

The faces of those present turned more serious, listening as Tomas continued.

‘In fact, you carried me two, now three times to medical assistance. For the most part, you were

my only groceries supplier and a personal bodyguard. The only thing I could hold against you

was that you were using abusive language, once you actually started to talk to me. Also, you

used shaming tactics and wished me dead.’

Martin started to have a shamed expression in a funny way for the rest to laugh at.

Tomas added, ‘And possibly held me on purpose in inhuman conditions.’

Martin now covered his face with the palm of his hand. He was being roasted, and started

jokingly pointing at Peter, that it was his idea. The rest had a merry time at their expense again.

Tomas continued. ‘If I did kill you though, Martin, then I would have deserved to die.’ People’s

faces turned serious, almost sad, compassionate. ‘That would have spoiled my plan to play the

victim card. I couldn’t let that happen; that is really why you are still alive.’ Tomas said that in

an obvious joking manner, to make them laugh again. It worked.

‘But seriously, I’m glad I didn’t shoot you. Probably the only decent decision I’ve made in a

long time. Considering all the madness that was going on, it’s a fucking miracle with my usual

luck. If I shot you…not only would I not be alive right now, I would have died a villain. That

alone is reason-enough, for me taking the bullet instead.’

The welcome party composed themselves listening to Tomas and after a short pause, he

continued.
‘I’m fucking glad I didn’t kill you, and thank you for saving my ass again. To all of you. I’m

glad that I’m alive.’ Tomas got visibly exhausted again, and a bit emotional as he stopped

smiling for the first time. One could almost say that he looked troubled. Almost, as much as

Tomas could have.

Recognizing the situation, Dr Charlotte ordered, ‘Okay everyone, let Tomas rest. Everybody

out!’

Violetta gently waved at him. ‘We will talk later, Tomas.’

Tomas looked at Violetta but didn’t express or say anything back to her.

Dr Charlotte waved at them all, kicking everybody out. ‘Go on. Later.’

As he was leaving, Martin turned at the doors towards Tomas. ‘Call me Gargy. Friends call me

Gargy.’

Tomas just nodded his head yes. His voice was too weak; the shot in the throat was taking its

toll.
 Hans Zimmer – Time 4:35

It took three weeks for Tomas to be able to get out of bed for the first time. He stood up,

wandering around, and got greeted by random people that he met.

It was some kind of underground base. Artificial lights everywhere, no windows. TV screens

everywhere he looked. On them, there were no TV stations showcasing. Instead, they showed

various different locations throughout the base. The main screen, which also had sound on,

showed Peter on it. He was working on some intelligence gathering.

Tomas saw Peter picking up the phone and saying, ‘I’m on my way.’ Tomas just sat down on a

sofa next to some other people who invited him to do so when Dr Charlotte arrived.

‘Hey, Tomas, good to see you out of bed,’ Dr Charlotte greeted, all smiles.

‘I’m glad to be out of it.’

She asked, ‘Could you just follow me? I’ll do a quick examination.’

Tomas followed Dr Charlotte into her surgery room.

‘This place is quite big.’

‘Yes,’ Dr Charlotte replied. ‘Peter will answer all of your questions later.’

They were joined by Gargy, Peter, and Violetta.

Peter said, ‘Good to see you out of bed, Tomas.’

‘Thanks, I’m happy to be up.’

Peter continued. ‘After you’re done here, I’ll let you go off with Violetta first, then Gargy and I

will have a chat with you.’

‘Okay.’ But Peter could see resentment in Tomas’s body language.

Peter asked, ‘Something’s wrong?’

‘Nothing, it’s just me, don’t worry about it.’

‘Okay, if you say so,’ Peter replied, cautiously reading Tomas’s body language.

Peter and Gargy left for the moment, leaving Violetta behind.

Violetta asked Dr Charlotte, ‘How much longer do you want me to wait outside?’

Charlotte replied, ‘I’m almost done, you might just as well wait here.’ She quickly finished her

check-up.

The doctor announced, ‘Your right shoulder looks much better, Tomas. I was afraid that you

would lose some mobility permanently, but it looks like you will be okay after all. Otherwise,

you’ve got a very resistant body. A few scars, but nothing serious. Of course, I took out a bit of

your intestines, as you already know. Also, you had a kidney and liver transplant done on you.

Your lung recovered nicely though. Quite impressive, all considered. Nurses Helena and

Catherine will make sure you do your rehabilitation routines properly.’ Charlotte proceeded to

explain possible complications that Tomas may experience with his digestive system and

answered all of Tomas’s questions regarding the transplants. Then she let him go with Violetta,

who sat Tomas down in her office.

Violetta noticed his uncomfortable body language. ‘Is everything all right, Tomas?’

‘Yes, I would say so.’

‘I sense a bit of resentment in your voice; you don’t want to have a chat with me?’
‘About what exactly?’

‘Anything you want to, just like the last time.’

Tomas said, ‘And then you drag me into a more formal chat all of a sudden, just like the last

time…isn’t that your plan.?’ More resentment was present.

Violetta said formally, ‘My plan is to help you.’

Tomas said assertively, ‘I don’t need your help.’

Tomas tried to read Violetta’s body language in return, but she seemed well composed and

unfazed by his assertive behaviour, but certainly more formal than moments ago.

Tomas said, ‘I’m sorry, I’m not trying to be rude, but I don’t see how you could help me. There

is nothing wrong with me.’

‘It’s all okay. You don’t have to apologize to me, Tomas, ever. For anything. But considering

what you have been through, Peter and I thought that you may need to talk to someone. This is

what I do.’

Tomas asked, ‘No evaluation?’

Violetta admitted, ‘Perhaps a bit; I constantly evaluate. Everybody and every time. Call it

professional sickness.’

Tomas asked, ‘So I can go then?’

Violetta said, ‘Well, you can, but I was really hoping that you could talk to me about…what

happened at the nightclub.’

‘You already know what happened.’

‘Yes, I do. But I’m more interested in your feelings, not that day’s events.’

Tomas said, ‘I have no feelings about it. I feel lucky to be alive. If anything, happy. I’m no fool;

it’s a miracle that I’m still alive. Blind luck, and lots of help from my new true friends – you.’

Violetta noted, ‘So you see us as your friends now?’

‘I would have to be stupid to think otherwise at this point. The medical help alone is…I can’t

show enough gratitude for it.’

‘I’m glad to hear that.’

Momentary silence ensued. Violetta recognized Tomas wouldn’t initiate a conversation with her

on his own.

Violetta began, ‘As you may have noticed, you’re quite popular around here.’

Tomas said, ‘Yes, and where exactly are we?’

Violetta said, ‘That is for Peter and Gargy to tell you. There are certain safety protocols in place

that restrict me from talking about it. I don’t have the authorization.’

Silence ensued again. This time, Violetta decided to wait it out, forcing Tomas to initiate. It took

him a good 30 to 40 seconds.

Tomas asked, ‘So, are we done here?’

Violetta said, ‘Not yet. Before you go chat with them, I was asked to show you something.’ She

turned on a massive flat-screen TV on the wall behind her.

Violetta said, ‘The following footage is the recording of several late news programs about Fok’s

nightclub events.’
Tomas said, ‘I’m not sure I want to know.’

‘Aren’t you interested in what the public knows? What the official story is, and how much they

know about you?’

Tomas said, ‘Okay, go on then.’

Violetta played the first footage; it was the FOX TV late news from the day after the incident.

‘A well-known businessman died yesterday in one of his nightclubs in Chicago, in what has

been described as the bloodiest mob war event to date on US soil. Mr. Steven Fok, age sixty-

four, was shot, along with all of his bodyguards present with him. Mr. Fok allegedly had ties to

the Chinese triads, was even considered to be the godfather of the triad cells in the US. The

official body count is said to be over a hundred and is still climbing.

‘Presumably, Mr. Fok was being extracted by his special security guards during the attack on his

nightclub, but they were all killed along with him, rendering the triads on US soil totally

crippled. Police suspect the Russian Mafia to be involved, possibly even working along with the

Italians or other Mafia families.

‘The motive is said to be the acquisition of the triads’ territories among themselves. Police

already admitted that they found at least fifty well-known hitmen and Chinese Mafia enforcers

that had been evading the justice system for years among the dead. Another fifty are considered

to at least have ties to the triads and had been involved in various illegal activities.

‘Commander of the Chicago Police Department, Chief Eddie Johnson, has been heard saying

that the city of Chicago will definitely not miss many of the victims. It is his now highly

controversial opinion that such mob wars should happen more often, as “the vermin killed off the
other vermin”. As an example, he provided the file of a notorious machete killer that been found

among the dead. He was supposed to be responsible for over three hundred possible victims of

torture before murder. Apparently, his body was found with a snapped neck and a spear that had

been one of his tools of choice for the torture.

‘The commander ensured the public of its safety and promised that the Chicago Police

Department would seize the opportunity to do its best to prevent the other competing Mafia

families from overtaking the former triad’s territories. It is his opinion that this event will render

the city of Chicago, and I quote, “A much safer place than before.”’

Violetta stopped the recording. ‘I’ll show you another recording that we did.’

She switched to the next recording with the remote control that she held in her hand. It was dated

five days after incident. It showed a reporter on the streets of the city of Chicago asking the

public their opinion.

The reporter spoke to a middle-aged woman. ‘The total official death toll was established at one

hundred thirty-three dead. It has been confirmed that in eighty-seven cases, those killed were

criminals investigated or convicted before for drugs, human trafficking, illegal gun trade, even

assassins and bounty hunters. The list goes on. Another forty were suspected of criminal

activities, while another twelve were on the FBI’s most wanted list for murder for a couple of

years. Only four people couldn’t be charged or weren’t suspected of any criminal activity,

including Mr. Fok, who was the supposed godfather of the Chinese Mafia on US soil, also

known as the triad. What is your personal opinion about what happened last Tuesday? Do you

think it made the city of Chicago safer? Or do you think it’s a bad sign, that the police don’t
protect the public sufficiently? It was the worst mob war massacre in the history of the US,

possibly even the world. What is your opinion?’

‘I think good riddance,’ the woman responded. ‘But on the other hand, I don’t think the police

are doing a good job either.’

‘Why not?’

‘Because the shooting supposedly lasted for over ten minutes and the police failed to show up!’

‘They weren’t working the case; it was people of the public that realized something was

happening at the nightclub and called in to report it.’

‘Anyway, if a hundred thirty-three criminals died and the police say it was a good thing, how

come they didn’t lock up those guys before? I mean, I know that some of them were just

suspects, but twelve of them alone were on the FBI’s most wanted list for murder. How come

they could just walk around, going to the nightclubs, taking part in mob wars, just like that? How

come the police or the FBI didn’t catch and lock those people up already?’

The reporter countered, ‘Would you say that it was a good thing that that many people died?

Doesn’t it seem a bit harsh to wish death on people? What do you say about Chief Johnson

openly saying that? Should he wish the death of people? Should he remain in his position or

resign?’

The woman would not be moved. ‘I can’t feel sorry for the killers. I think most of people are of

the same opinion. I mean, look at life in Chicago afterward. The biggest mass shooting death toll

on USA soil, the bloodiest – some people supposedly got cut up, for Christ’s sake. Yet, people

are not crying about it. Most people feel safer now.’
‘So, you are of the same opinion as Chief Johnson? Is there good death, and bad death?’

‘I think some people are better off dead. I say that for the families of the victims that suffered

terrible fates at the hands of those kind of people who have finally found their justice. And all of

that, without burdening the state’s budget. I will say it again, good riddance.’

The reporter was a bit shocked but kept her composure. ‘Thank you very much for your opinion.’

Violetta shut it off. She explained, ‘There are lots of similar interviews. Most people are happy

about what took place that night.’

Tomas said, ‘Can’t say the same. I wish it was avoidable. But since it wasn’t, I’m happy about

the overall result. It couldn’t possibly get better.’

Violetta clarified, ‘It couldn’t? You almost got beaten to death, got drugged, and then shot

several times, with multiple lacerations across your body – and a spear pierced shoulder. You

even got shot in your throat. It couldn’t possibly get any better?!’ She said it in a light, sarcastic

way, with a smile.

Tomas replied, deadpan, ‘Details.’

Violetta burst into laughter and couldn’t stop.

She said, I’m sorry. I apologize, but you’re funny!’ She couldn’t stop laughing.

Tomas said, ‘I’m glad I made your day. Can I go now?’

Violetta sensed Tomas’s discomfort and let him go.

‘Just one more thing.’

‘Yes?’
Violetta said, ‘I’m glad that you are alive too, and I have the same opinion as the lady in the

interview. Thank you. You did us all a great service. I mean it.’

Tomas just nodded his head in accepting the compliment and left her office.

The XX – Intro (Long version) 5:17

There were two men waiting for Tomas outside Violetta’s office. ‘Hi, my name is Lubomir, and

this is Cop. We will take you to the planning room to see Gargy and Peter.’ They shook hands

together and Tomas followed. When they arrived, Peter and Gargy were sitting at a round desk.

Tomas noted, ‘Like the knights of King Arthur.’

Peter greeted, ‘Tomas, good to see you. That’s right; that was the idea. We are all equal at this

desk.’

Gargy added, ‘Good to see that you are walking now. Welcome to the brain room.’

Tomas responded, ‘Good to see you guys.’

Peter said, ‘I see you’ve met our technicians.’

‘Technicians for everything,’ Cop responded. ‘Although, I’m more of a science guy, and

Lubomir is more of a gun nut.’

Lubomir replied, ‘Anything military nut, to be precise.’

Tomas said, ‘Yes, we’ve already introduced ourselves.’

Peter said, ‘Good. So, Violetta showed you some of the news stories?’
Tomas said, ‘I saw them.’

Peter asked, ‘What do you think?’

‘I think it was the best possible outcome, considering it was unavoidable.’

Peter said, ‘That is an understatement. I must admit, I didn’t believe that this would be possible,

or else we would have joined you in on it. But I didn’t. I’m sorry for that, Tomas.’

Tomas said, ‘It’s okay. Like you said, it was a suicide mission. The best I hoped for was revenge,

yet I’m still here, thanks to you guys.’

Peter said, ‘You must know then what I’m about to propose to you. Again. Mind you, no

pressure, you are free to go. I already confirmed that no one else is after you. The bounty has

even been pulled off by the triads in China. You have scared them off. One man. Incredible.’ He

was overexcited.

Tomas said, ‘I’m in.’

Peter was a bit stunned. ‘That simple?’

Gargy added, ‘You sure? You really can have a new start, you know. And what a start it would

be! We have talked. Should you walk, we will make you win twenty-five million dollars in the

lottery.’

Peter said, ‘We will pay you as much if you stay –’

Gargy interrupted him. ‘I didn’t mean to suggest that I don’t want you here…’

Tomas said, ‘It’s okay, I didn’t take it that way. I’m in. But no more secrets. I want to know

everything.’
Peter said, ‘And we can tell you everything, should you join us. Last chance to turn back. Are

you sure you’re in? I’m happy to wait for you a little bit if you need to think about it.’

Tomas said, ‘I’m good. But one last thing I can’t connect yet though. What did you do in the

nightclub, Peter? And why did you beat me up so badly?’

Peter said, ‘I’m – I was – a hitman. Same as Gargy. Except I finished when he just started.’

Gargy said, ‘Almost; I had a mission or two under my belt already.’

Peter explained, ‘We were both trained by the CIA, then we left.’

Tomas asked, ‘You can just leave? And Why?’

Peter said, ‘No, you can’t. We had powerful friends who allowed for that to happen. I’ll come

back to that later, but right now, it is not important. And to answer the second question, well, I

was done killing people for them.’

Tomas asked, ‘Isn’t that what you do now?’

‘Not exactly; not me, anyway. That’s where Gargy comes into play. He does the hit, I do the

command part. Recon, intelligence gathering, and observing through hacked satellites and

cameras.’

Tomas said, ‘Why not you anymore?’

Peter admitted, ‘I have problems. Bad dreams. I had to stop. I couldn’t handle killing people

anymore, even if they were evil. That’s why I find it important to have a psychologist on our

team. The visits are mandatory.’

Tomas stated more than asked, ‘But you are still in the killing business?’
‘The CIA and the bounty missions weren’t exactly targets I would have chosen, to be honest. I

didn’t lose my faith in it though. I believe that some people are better off dead, but I had to make

my own organization in order to select the “proper” targets. Still, I can’t kill myself anymore. No

matter; Gargy has that covered.’

Tomas turned to Gargy. ‘How many so far?’

Gargy said, ‘Twelve.’

Tomas made a “What? Only twelve?” expression.

Gargy said, ‘We just started last year, you know! But all of them were absolute scum, total

animals.’

Tomas said, ‘One hundred and seventy-one, bitch,’ jokingly pointing at himself.

They got the joke and laughed.

Tomas said, ‘Just for the record, I really don’t take pleasure or pride in that number. It was a

stupid joke really.’ He paused for a moment. ‘But as I said before, I don’t regret taking a single

one of their lives. I did what I had to do. I haven’t killed a single person that wouldn’t have

wanted to kill me first.’

Peter warned, ‘But you may have to later. Regret may come. That’s why we have mandatory

visits to Violetta’s office.’

Tomas said, ‘What if I don’t want to talk to her?’

Peter asked, ‘Why not?’

‘I don’t really have a problem, and I don’t feel like talking about those things with her.’
Tomas was lying. It was bothering him, but he wouldn’t admit it. He was playing the tough guy.

He couldn’t show any weakness. Tomas wanted to be the one that people could always rely on.

When everybody else breaks, for whatever reasons, he would not. And he would do whatever

was necessary.

Peter said, ‘You don’t have to talk to her about that, or anything at all. You just have to go there.

I’m afraid I can’t make no exceptions. If you want to be part of this team, you will have to

comply with that. Besides, how bad could it be to go see such a beautiful woman? Just go check

her out, feast your eyes, and talk about puppies for all I care.’

They all grinned.

Tomas said, ‘I can live with that. OK.’

After short pause, Peter said, ‘This is a heavy environment on one’s conscience, Tomas, let’s not

deny it. Don’t be like this frozen heart over here.’ Peter was pointing at Gargy, who just turned

to Tomas and winked at him.

Peter continued. ‘We are all tough guys here; don’t flatter yourselves, boys. We all do what is

necessary. But it’s not easy, so let’s not pretend that it is. There is no need for that. Nobody will

think less of you for that.’

Gargy was making funny “he likes to talk a lot” hand gestures, pointing at Peter.

The rest were grinning.

Peter said, ‘Why do you think we have cameras and screens everywhere?’

Tomas said, ‘I have noticed that; what’s that about?’

Gargy interrupted Peter as he was just about to explain. ‘We like to have no secrets here.

Everything we do is displayed on the multiple screens around that are in every single room. The

“official mission” screen always has the audio on as well, but anyone can switch to any other

camera from the main screen that has the audio on. For instance, people watch and hear us as a

default right now, since we are the mission currently.’

Tomas was surprised. ‘For real?’

Gargy said, ‘For real. Look at the secondary screens. Some people are watching and listening to

us right now. Wave at them.’

Tomas waved to the camera and saw people waving back at him. ‘That’s unreal!’

Lubomir jumped into the conversation. ‘That’s one of the reasons why I joined. We can really

see what you guys do, and why. We can see the intelligence gathered on the target beforehand.

We can see and hear the discussion of the mission and the execution of it. Trust me, all of us

always agree with the selected target and are all right with it.’

Cop jumped in. ‘What you do, we couldn’t really do ourselves. But we wish we could.

Everybody here appreciates your sacrifices for us. We know it is not easy to be the one to do it,

but someone has to.’ He was obviously referring to Gargy and now Tomas, as Peter was not an

active assassin anymore.

‘I am what I am. Someone has to be,’ Gargy joked, to release the tension a bit.

It worked. And it was really needed, as it was getting a bit gloomy in there.

Peter clarified, ‘Except places like toilets, private rooms, and Charlotte’s surgery room, there are

pretty much cameras everywhere, recording and projecting everything onto the screens. No
secrecy in this kind of business. Helps to combat the negative mental effects on people that work

in it. Sometimes the fact that you think you are the only one that knows something could bring

you to madness. You would have the urge to tell someone. With this, you don’t have to.

Everyone knows.’

Tomas said, ‘I guess it makes sense. What about Violetta? Does she have a camera inside her

office? Is it projected on the screens?’

Peter noted, ‘She is the only exception here. I know it’s private, but for security reasons, she still

has a camera in there to record the events and conversations. However, it’s never projected on

any of the screens –’

Cop interrupted him. ‘Unless she is in danger. Then she could press a button so we can see and

hear what is going on in there. You know, if someone gets mental and violent with her.’

Peter said, ‘But she would never show the recorded session to anyone otherwise, except to me as

the mission leader, should that be necessary. All of the recordings are destroyed after a week

anyway.’

Tomas asked, ‘Except to you in case of what?’

‘In case she needs to make a point that someone is not fit to operate in this environment

anymore. For their own good, of course, or if they’re dangerously unstable to others or to the

mission at hand. In short, when she is booting someone.’

Tomas asked, ‘She can do that?’

Peter said, ‘Yes, including me. It’s better for everyone this way. I can overrule it, of course. If

I’m at question, then the main team has to vote. That would be Gargy, Lubomir, Cop, Charlotte,

and now you.’

Tomas thought about it for a while. It made sense. He actually kind of liked it. Tomas could

watch and listen to anyone. Learn and see that there are no shady things going on behind the

curtains. ‘Kind of a neat idea.’ Then he came back for the main question to ask Peter. ‘So what

did you do in there again? In the nightclub that night?’

Peter said, ‘I infiltrated the underground bounty hunters’ circles and made a name for myself

there. You have experienced why.’

‘That I did. You’re fucking fast,’ Tomas said, shaking his head in disbelief and to show his

respect.

‘Thanks. Anyway, I ended up doing the dirty jobs so I could keep my cover and one day I

decided I could not do this anymore, as I said before. My friends helped me to leave the CIA,

and the bounty hunters just thought that I retired. Nobody complained; more money for them.

That was until of course the day when you decided to go and face Fok. I took the contract myself

so nobody else would dare to claim you for themselves first. Because of my history, I got to face

you first. But of course, I had to make it look real.’

Tomas said, ‘That you did. Shit, my ego got the beating first, then I was fighting for survival.

Then, I thought I was defeated.’

Peter said, ‘I took a chance, and let me tell you, I had no idea what I was getting myself into.

Make no mistake, you put me into survival mode as well. But I knew that If I don’t win, I would
not have the opportunity to give you a second chance. So perhaps I had stronger motivation that

let me win.’

Tomas said, ‘I highly doubt that. I went there to either kill all of them or to die trying. How much

more motivated can one get? I do appreciate your humbleness though.’

‘Well, trust me, I had a hard time. I nearly failed.’

‘Nah, I was pretty much done for after you beat the shit out of me. I didn’t even notice when

you left.’

Peter said, ‘I limped out.’

‘If you hadn’t injected me with whatever that was –’

Peter interrupted Tomas. ‘Dr Charlotte will explain it better, but essentially it was an ergogenic,

anabolic painkiller.’

Tomas said, ‘God, it was great.’

‘It has some cocaine in it, and steroids too, along with other stuff. You will have to ask Dr

Charlotte.’

‘I will.’

‘The point was, I knew that if I beat you up properly, so that Fok’s people were not suspicious, I

would give you the element of surprise when they tried to collect you because I would be able to

inject you with this “super drug”, which I don’t think you would let me do otherwise.’

‘You are right, I wouldn’t.’

Peter said, ‘I knew that the drug would mitigate any injuries inflicted by me, and all future

injuries, while giving you maximum focus and power. A better chance to succeed, really, at least

for a couple of minutes. At least that was my plan, before I nearly failed.’

Tomas said, ‘What are you talking about? You were kicking my ass from the start.’

Peter said, ‘I see it differently. It was fifty-fifty, and I got lucky. You were careless at the start.

Gave me the edge in the end. After? Tomas, there is no way I could have pulled off what you

did. That was insane. Fighting one man no matter how good he is, is one thing. But I have seen

you throw yourself into the void and come out on top of it. Even Gargy couldn’t do that. And he

is the best of the best.’

Tomas looked at Gargy. ‘You are that good?’

‘With a weapon, better than you, as you found out,’ he said in a cheeky voice that made Tomas

smirk. ‘Without one, I’m not as good as Peter, but I think I could take you down.’ Again with a

cheeky smile.

Tomas said, ‘Hold your horses. In time, my friend, in time. Right now, I’m still recovering from

the last mistake I made.’

All laughed. After they collected themselves, Tomas continued. ‘So I guess I was even luckier

than I thought I was. And I received even more help than I thought I did.’

Tomas looked at Peter. ‘If you didn’t shoot me with that…super drug. I don’t think I would be

fast enough, or brave enough. I felt no pain, and no fear at all.’

Peter said, ‘We were all lucky. To find you first, to not give up on you next. We nearly did.’
‘Guilty as charged.’ Gargy put his right arm up, admitting he may have been negative towards

Tomas.

It was funny, and they all had a good laugh. Then Peter continued. ‘We have achieved a great

thing together. You have no idea yet what kind of scum you wiped off the face of this earth. If I

had the power, this would be declared a national holiday from now on.’

Gargy said, ‘Happy Bloodbath Day!’

All laughed.

Peter said, ‘So, welcome on board then. Take some rest; we will talk about the rest later.’

All shook hands and Tomas was assigned to his own room. He was looking forward to what the

future would bring, for a change. It felt nice.

It was June 2015. He was 30 years old.

End of Part II

Linkin Park – Victimized (zwierz remix) 2:04

Linkin Park – Blackout (zwierz remix) 3:29

Linkin Park – Lost In The Echo (zwierz remix) 4:05

Linkin Park – Skin to Bone (Recharged – Nick Cathdubs Remix) 3:54

Linkin Park - A Light That Never Comes (Rick Rubin Reboot) 4:40

Linkin Park – Lost In The Echo (Recharged – Killsonik Remix) 5:09

Linkin Park – Victimized (Recharged – Mike Shinoda Remix) 2:59

Linkin Park – Skin to Bone 2:48

The Struggle for Justice and Truth

by

Tomas Cudzis

Part III: Pushed the Right Way…

Soundtrack in Order of Appearance:

Part III: Pushed the Right Way

Chapter 1: Getting Ready………………………………………5

13. Linkin Park – Invisible 3:34

14. Emily Browning – Sweet Dreams (Are made of this) 5:18

15. Fort Minor – Remember The Name (feat. Styles Of Beyond) 3:50

Chapter 2: First Mission………………………………………17

10. Filter – Hey Man Nice Shot 5:15

11. Rob Zombie – Dragula (Hot Rod Herman Remix) 4:36

Chapter 3: Goldie Girl…………………………………………28

3. Zack Hemsey – See What I Have Become 3:54

4. Linkin Park – A Place For My Head 3:06

5. Evanescence – Going Under 3:34

6. Linkin Park – I’ll Be Gone (Vice Remix) 4:00

Chapter 4: First Problems in Paradise………………….68

5. Linkin Park – Lies Greed Misery 2:27

6. Black Hawk Down Soundtrack – Barra Barra (Rachid Taha)

7. Linkin Park – All For Nothing (zwierz remix) 3:35

8. Drowning Pool – Bodies 3:21

Chapter 5: Irreconcilable Differences……………………….91

6. Linkin Park – Points of Authority 3:22

7. Linkin Park – Pushing Me Away 3:11

8. Limp Bizkit – My Way 4:33

9. Linkin Park – Don’t Stay 3:07

Chapter 6: Until it Breaks…………………………………..103

5. Linkin Park – New Divide 4:28

6. Limp Bizkit – Take A Look Around 5:19

7. Dope – Die Motherfucker Die 3:06

Chapter 7: Breaking Point………………………………………126

6. Linkin Park – In My Remains 3:19

7. Linkin Park – With You 3:25

8. Linkin Park – In Between 3:16

Chapter 8: Sucked Right Back In………………………………..140

4. Evanescence – Bring Me to Life 4:00

5. Linkin Park – 1stp Klosr (The Humble Brothers Feat Jonathan Davis) 5:46

6. Linkin Park – The Little Things Give You Away 6:23

7. Linkin Park – Until It Breaks 3:46

8. Linkin Park – A Line in the Sand 6:35

9. Linkin Park – I’ll Be Gone (Schoolboy Remix) 6:11

10. Zack Hemsey – The Way (Instrumental) 7:04

Chapter 9: All for Nothing……………………………………….174

1. Linkin Park – Mark the Graves 5:05

2. Linkin Park – In the End 3:38

3. Linkin Park – Until It’s Gone 3:53

End of Part III…………………..…………………………………..187

9. Linkin Park – All for Nothing (feat. Page Hamilton) 3:33

10. Linkin Park – I’ll Be Gone 3:30

11. Linkin Park – In my remains (zwierz remix) 2:45

12. Linkin Park – Plc.4 Mie Haed (Amp Live Feat Zion) 4:20

13. Linkin Park – Until it Breaks (Datsik Remix) 6:00

14. Linkin Park – Wth>you-Chairman Hahn feat Aceyalone 4:13

15. Linkin Park – Until it Breaks 4:29

 Part III: Pushed

the Right Way

o Chapter 1: Getting Ready

Linkin Park – Invisible 3:34

“I was not mad at you, I was not trying to tear you down.

The words that I could've used - I was too scared to say out loud.”

Tomas spent a few days at the secret base, where he got to know it better and the people in it.

Then, Peter came with a proposal.

‘How would you like to visit your family?’

Tomas was surprised. ‘For real?’

‘Yes, you earned it for sure.’

Tomas asked, ‘But, is it safe? For them, I mean.’

‘Why not? You killed them all, and any interest in your persona with them, I’m sure. I have

been monitoring the situation for a few days now; no one wants to dig into what happened in
Chicago. They all look rather scared, boosting up security measures and reducing operations to a

bare minimum, to keep the most guns at hand.’

Tomas wondered, ‘But…what will I say? My mother and sister will have questions.’

Peter replied, ‘Just leave the talking to me. I’ll tell them you’re working for the government of

the USA, and you’re not able to disclose the nature of your work. Which is basically the truth

anyway. Gargy and I will go with you, if you don’t mind.’

‘I don’t. It will be a lot safer that way. But I will have to find out first if that’s okay with Mom.’

Peter said, ‘You do that. I’ll tell Gargy; I’m sure he’ll be happy to go along. Although, I will be

very specific that for him, it will be a job assignment. He’ll do all of the guard duties. Well, most

of them. I’ll do some too, along with all of the monitoring. And that means for you, it’s purely a

vacation. You just get to enjoy yourself with your family in the safety provided.’

Tomas was overjoyed. ‘I don’t know what to say!’

Peter said, ‘A simple thank you will suffice.’

Tomas said, ‘Thank you. I’ll actually go tell Gargy myself now. It’s time for “church” anyway.’

That was a term that Gargy was using as an excuse to his mom and his girlfriend when he was

asked where he had been. In reality, he was playing online PC games with Tomas when he was

“going to the church”. Not that his girlfriend wouldn’t quickly find out about it, but they had

kept the term. It was very amusing when they confused someone with it. ‘Tomas and Gargy

going to church? Imagine that!’ People got easily confused by it.

Tomas was openly atheist, and Gargy was atheist born into a very Catholic family. He was a

regular in the Church before he left home. ‘Perhaps Gargy finally found the wisdom in it and
converted Tomas too,’ people at the base speculated, while those two bastards were laughing

their assess off. Both times, when people believed it at first, and then when they found out what

that actually meant, it was extremely amusing to Tomas and Gargy.

Tomas began to make his way into the social room where many of the base personnel spent their

time off just relaxing or playing PC games together, as there were many gaming-dedicated

computers and VR stations there. Mostly guys, but some women too, including Helena. Peter

was pretty much the only guy that didn’t play games. Well, neither did Cop. But he still went

there often, just didn’t play. He preferred to be the “passive onlooker” as he called it. Peter rarely

even showed up in there. Tomas always thought it must be because of his role as commander of

the base. ‘A tough price to pay. Fuck that!’ But the truth was, Peter didn’t really have any

interest in PC games. His thing was going to the gym, watching sports, and hacking. He seemed

to always be working, always practicing something. All of the base respected and admired him

greatly for that. He was the rock to turn to for help in times of need. He was what Tomas always

wanted to be. He was The Man.

Before Tomas left to go see Gargy, Peter stopped him briefly.

‘Tomas.’

Tomas turned towards him. ‘Yeah?’

‘I mean, this is a vacation, and you have earned it, but afterward, we’re going into action. I’m

finalizing the details of the first mission, which I will discuss with the team later.’ He looked a

bit nervous.

Peter continued. ‘What I’m trying to say is, you’d better make your peace with your family. Tell

them what needs to be said. I don’t know what is going to happen to us later. I will discuss this
with all afterwards. But basically, you inspired me. With you on my team…’ He paused for a

moment and looked really serious. ‘We’re going “big” once we’re back, and I’m not sure what

kind of response it will initiate. I –’ Tomas interrupted him.

‘I understand, and it’s okay. I had it worse before, you know. Legitimately thought that I would

die, or at least never see my family again. Several times, in fact.’ Tomas felt like he needed to

lighten Peter up a bit.

‘It’s getting kind of ordinary to me now. The feeling that I may die at any moment. That

everybody hunts for me and I will never see my family again. I couldn’t even be asked to have

any kind of emotional reaction to that anymore!’ He was smiling ear to ear, trying to relieve

some of the pressure Peter felt.

Funny thing was, Tomas really had got used to that feeling by now; it didn’t even faze him at all

anymore. It was just always there, for far too long, so had no effect anymore.

***

The moment had come; Tomas contacted his family in Las Vegas. He had a lot of explaining to

do. Naturally, they were hurt, didn’t understand why he couldn’t contact them for months now,

like he had completely vanished. They felt “invisible” to him, ignored. Tomas just told them that

everything would be explained, and his boss would like to come visit them too. Tomas told them

he wasn’t mad at them or anything like that, since they asked him if that was why he’d been

incommunicado, suspecting skeletons of the past. Deep inside, they must have known that

Tomas didn’t feel he was supported by them. More the opposite of that; but he did go his own

way anyway, against all odds and their will.

Peter and Gargy were natural charmers and managed to fix it for Tomas very quickly, as he

wasn’t much of a talker when it came to expressing his emotions, despite the fact that Tomas

knew he might not see his family for a very long time after this vacation – or ever. They

managed it. Peter, with his leader’s composure and presence. Gargy, surprisingly to Tomas, as a

good-natured “soft heart”. Something that Tomas started to notice and admire more and more

about him. Peter and Gargy just conducted themselves as too well-raised, too gentleman-like for

Tomas’s family to suspect anything sinister going on.

By his nature, Gargy was totally unselfish and friendly towards everyone in general. A true “nice

guy”. But he still managed to get respect from both males and females. Somehow. So it was

possible. It made Tomas envy Gargy. Tomas could never pull that off without people taking

advantage of him, or without himself feeling inferior. Tomas realized that Gargy was hostile to

him at the start just for one reason alone; that he was, in his eyes, the tough bully/bad guy

character that Tomas himself despised so much.

They were both wrong about each other. The three weeks that they spent together had really

tightened the team up and calmed Tomas’s mom and sister. Peter and Gargy made such good

impressions that they gained Tomas’s family’s full confidence, even though they couldn’t

disclose what Tomas’s work was about.

It could have looked suspicious, as it was obvious that Tomas was pulling in a good income. He

bought new cars for both his mom and his sister as an apology, true to his nature, along with

paying for virtually all the fun activities. Not too-flashy cars or activities, or they would have

thought for sure he had gone criminal. Although, with Peter’s and Gargy’s presentation, they

might not have thought that, it would have still seemed fishy, perhaps some kind of legal con.
The three weeks passed quickly, as they always do when you have a good time. Tomas summed

it up later: ‘It was a great time, and we all resented going back to the base afterward.’ However,

the time of preparation for the mission had begun.

Emily Browning – Sweet Dreams (Are made of this) 5:18

“Sweet dreams are made of this, who am I to disagree?”

As soon as they got back to the secret underground base in Detroit, a hospital in disguise, the

time had come to see the full extent of it. It was open to the public 24/7, and the Agency’s

medical team worked there, looking as if nothing was out of the ordinary. However, the public or

the authorities didn’t know about the underground premises and the agenda behind it. The

military testing labs, armoury, shooting range, living quarters, collective living social room,

playroom, command room, kitchen, dining hall, gym, swimming pool and spa area,

theatre/cinema, further medical facilities, and a massive garage that even included choppers.

Peter inherited the decommissioned US National Guard secret property from his benefactor,

code-named Matty. No one else in the base knew who Matty really was or had personally meet

with him. That was exclusive to Peter. But no one would judge or doubt Peter’s character, so

when he said it was a person high up in the US government, no one would doubt him. Especially

considering the money they were getting out of Matty’s budget. Every month, 40 million US

dollars. Something that Peter said was not easy for Matty to “lose” every month out of the

taxpayers’ money.
Matty risked his job and his high government position every day for this Agency to operate. An

agency that had no name at all. Everybody just called it “the Agency” or “the Organization”.

Safer that way; they “never existed” after all.

It took Peter three years to transform it into its current shape. To hire skilled and devoted people

to the cause. Especially considering the risk of exposure involved with each person joining in. It

took time. It took lots of proof of loyalty, then agreement to what was the mission, the purpose of

this agency. Every single person had to see it the same way as Peter and Matty, to understand

that they might never be able to fully go back to civilian life again. That this wasn’t exactly legal,

and should the Agency get exposed, they all would be prosecuted and could get a life sentence.

If the Agency got exposed, all, including former members, could suffer and be imprisoned, even

long after the agency itself would cease to exist. Surprisingly, it wasn’t a problem really; there

were lots of highly skilled people who suffered injustice of some kind by the US legal system,

directly or indirectly, and were happy to join the cause.

Peter’s connection to Matty allowed for the acquisition of Gargy, a highly skilled assassin with

no previous background that was on the CIA list of protected assets. Should Gargy get caught, he

would likely “walk” anyway. Perfect for what they needed. Acquisition of Tomas was pure luck

and through his Chicago example, it meant a wide expansion of the Agency’s operation

ambitions.

After the Vegas vacation, their first steps were into the armoury, where Tomas was introduced to

his mission gear. Lubos and Cop greeted the team and started Tomas’s induction.
Lubos sang, ‘Sweet dreams are made of this.’ He was pointing to the massive gun section where

all kinds of firearms were to be found, including AT (anti-tank) systems (as Lubos called them)

and AA (anti-air).

Tomas responded, ‘Who am I to disagree?’ Anyone that happened to be watching the current

mission screen laughed at both the song reference and Tomas’s face expression once he had

beheld the inventory presented. Even rubbing his palms and sticking his tongue out like a little

kid.

Lubos tried to make a small presentation, providing advice to the selection of the weapons based

on Tomas’s role in the team as the point man (first to go, the ground man), but Tomas interrupted

him.

‘I want a Heckler & Koch G36 as my primary weapon, two Heckler & Koch P30L handguns,

and two military knives!’ he barked at Lubos.

Gargy, Peter, and Cop were surprised.

Lubos said, ‘You know your stuff. I can see that we will be great friends here.’

Peter noted, ‘Lubos is also fond of German engineering.’

Cop, Tomas, Gargy, and Lubos replied simultaneously: ‘Who isn’t?’

Peter said, ‘I’m not. I’m a patriot. Don’t judge me.’ It would have come out funny if it wasn’t for

Peter’s serious face as he said that. So no one said anything or laughed at him.

Lubos went on, ‘Well, I would have set you up with H&K MP 5 as the primary, and a pair of 20-

round extended Glocks 17 magazines, but I think this will do nicely too.’
Tomas replied, defending his choice, ‘I want something with a bit more punch and reach than the

MP 5. I’ll use the P30Ls in close quarters; may need to use their heavier bulk to bash someone

about now and then.’

Lubos nodded. ‘Not bad, not bad. Well, this was rather quick. I’ll see you at the range.’ Lubos

started to turn away.

Tomas asked, ‘What about the knives?’ forcing Lubos to turn back towards him.

‘Ahh, almost forgot. Well, any requests?’

‘No, I will leave it to your expertise.’ Tomas added a cheeky wink.

‘We’ll stick to the German stuff, right? Two Eichhorn KM 2000 will do nicely.’ He winked

back at Tomas.

Lubos presented the knives to Tomas after a short once-over of the inventory. Tomas fell in love

with the shape of them.

‘This will do. Definitely!’ Tomas said with a massive smile.

Lubos gave him a thumbs-up.

Peter said, ‘Now the impressive part,’ gesturing to Tomas to follow him.

Tomas said, ‘Wait, this was not supposed to be impressive? You’ve got roughly ten thousand

firearms here!’

‘Yeah, the inventory is great, no doubt, but nothing yet that would be experimental, unique only

to us, or really impressive. Let’s say, better than what the army has access to.’

Tomas was incredulous. All laughed at his facial expression.

‘Just wait. Cop will introduce you to your new body armour.’ Peter said with excited body

language.

Tomas was visibly impatient and almost overwhelmed with the extent of the operation. He

looked like a very satisfied tourist that would love to take a picture of all that he sees. Staring in

awe.

They entered the military testing lab section. Cop pointed at some extremely high-tech-looking

body armour mounted to a platform holding it upright. It was obvious that it had been previously

live-fire tested. Tomas expected a presentation, but that didn’t happen, to his disappointment.

Cop explained, ‘This is the Apex Armour. State-of-the-art body armour that only we have access

to, as I developed it personally.’ He turned back, facing Tomas. ‘Did you ever hear about dragon

skin body armour?’

Tomas said, ‘Yes, it can take a rifle round.’

‘It was the first, and the only, armour that could have taken a rifle round, even 7.62 mm. Well,

Apex Armour is the first armour that can take .50 calibre (12.7 mm). Even shrapnel of a standard

grenade. Along having strong shock absorbers implemented in it, fire retardant and fire

resistance capabilities, all that while being as heavy as a common biker suit, it still has

substantially higher mobility.’ Cop looked extremely proud and high-spirited about it.

Tomas was impressed. ‘That is pretty cool!’

‘Cool?!’ He looked disappointed, almost pissed off.

‘I’m sorry, I meant amazing. Absolutely amazing! I cannot imagine how big of a step forward

from the dragon skin it is, and I can imagine a lot!’ Tomas conceded, redeeming himself.
‘Thanks, but you haven’t seen the whole thing yet; this is but a torso part of the Apex Armour.

It’s an actual full body suit, excluding the face area.’ He pointed at a manikin wearing the

armour that had been risen out of the floor in a clear acrylic capsule.

Tomas exclaimed, ‘Wow, that must have been insanely expensive!’ Now he was truly impressed.

Cop boasted, ‘Around three million dollars for the full body suit, excluding the cost of the

research and development. You see, the beauty of the Apex Armour is not just that it can stop

multiple .50 BMG rounds, among other things, but that it is still light and agile. The joints are the

weak spots of the Apex Armour, of course, to maintain normal mobility. Still, any of the joints

has enough structural integrity to stop a 7.62 mm round. All of that at a tremendous price, of

course.’

Tomas said, ‘And you’ll actually let me wear that?’

Peter jumped into the conversation.

‘Considering the price of it, and the fact that the individual parts cannot be repaired once the

integrity is compromised, we would prefer if you didn’t get shot though.’

Tomas replied, ‘I would prefer not to be shot, or even to be shot at, make no mistake.’ Everyone

had a good chuckle.

Tomas turned more serious. ‘So, it can’t be repaired?’

Cop explained, ‘Due to the manufacturing process, no. Once the integrity of the fibres is

compromised, the only solution is to replace the whole section of the affected piece of the

armour.’
Tomas looked at the manikin again. The head area specifically. The headwrap covered all but the

face area. Almost like a balaclava that goes under the chin. He noted, ‘So, I don’t have face

protection?’

Cop answered, ‘That you do, but testing has proved that one solid piece has better protection,

due to better deflection, compared to the Apex Armour fabric. A face mask is more aerodynamic,

allows for better deflection of bullets and shrapnel. The complexity of the human face doesn’t

allow for the implementation of shock absorbers. The fabric would have to be too thick. If you

were to get shot in the face, even if the Apex Armour face fabric did stop the bullet, at the very

least, the kinetic energy would cause a facial fracture, if not outright kill you. A face mask also

has better breathing ability.’

There was a workstation close by, and Cop picked up something out of it, then brought it to

Tomas for observation. It looked very cool. Like an old-school hockey mask out of shiny metal.

Tomas instantly loved it.

‘This is Apex face mask. It’s made out of titanium, enriched with diamond, Kevlar, and carbon

fibre. It’s super light and super solid. It’s very deflective. However, it can’t take a .50 calibre

round. That wouldn’t be possible with the Apex Armour fabric anyway, and the face is even

more complex than a joint. Thus, thickness had to be hugely reduced. This is the best option that

we have at the moment, and it will comfortably take even a 7.62 mm rifle round. Something that

no other, even the most advanced military helmet, could do, never mind face protection.’

Tomas asked, ‘And how much would the mask be worth? Just curious.’

Peter cut in, ‘A modest thirty-five k. That doesn’t mean that you can get shot in the face as much

as you want,’ he joked.

Gargy waved off Peter. ‘Don’t listen to him! Feel free to get shot in the face as much as you

want. In fact, we should test it out right now. You wear it, I will shoot you in the face with my

H&K PSG1 sniper rifle. It’s only 7.62 with a 51 mm NATO round. Don’t worry, it will deflect.’

He had cheeky facial expression.

Gargy was always pestering Tomas as much as Tomas did Gargy. They always did that to each

other in a friendly, joking way, always bantering, as they grew more and more to being best

friends.

Cop warned, ‘Be careful with it. The mask will take a lot without failing, but should you take a

round in the face, there are no shock absorbers implemented in it, and the force can still travel

into your face and potentially cause a fracture, or worse. Even though the mask is slightly

protruding out, not touching your face, on purpose, just don’t count on it. Act as if you didn’t

have it on at all. The face mask’s role is really just insurance, just in case, but not an active part

of your combat suit that can be used strategically, sacrificing the armour in exchange for getting

a tactical advantage.’

Peter said seriously, ‘Same goes for the Apex Armour. Act as if you don’t have it on at all. That

shit is expensive.’

All were surprised by the statement. It was the first time they’d ever heard Peter use foul

language, and started to laugh. That was Peter’s intent, really.

Tomas said, ‘Yeah, fuck me, just as long as I don’t mess up the armour. Got it.’ All carried on

laughing.

Gargy laughed, ‘You got it all right!’

Tomas got more serious. ‘That is a ton of money just for the team’ equipment.’

Peter said, ‘Yes, but actually, even though Gargy and I also have Apex Armour at our disposal,

its integrity is only around seventy percent of yours. Just enough to stop a 7.62 mm high-

powered rifle round, as neither Gargy nor I are expected to be in the field of fire at all.’

Cop resumed, ‘That brings the total cost of their suits to below two hundred k each. It’s like with

cars. To make two hundred miles per hour is quite hard. To make two hundred sixty-two miles

per hour takes a lot more than getting to two hundred. Equally, to stop a 7.62 mm is quite hard,

but it takes a shit ton more advanced and expensive fibre to stop a .50 calibre. Since we couldn’t

compromise on the thickness and mobility, we just compromised on the integrity. Yours has the

same thickness – or I should say thinness – as theirs, but it has a lot more stopping and shock

absorbing capabilities.’

Tomas said, ‘Simply said, they are not as important as me, so they get the knock-off version of

my Apex Armour. Got it. Hope the same goes for their face masks.’ He was smirking, and

pointed at Peter and Gargy.

Cop replied, ‘Peter could wear exactly the same face mask if he needed and chose to. Gargy, due

to his sniper duties, wears a lot more expensive, but less protective, glass face-shield helmet. The

helmet combined with the Apex Armour head wrap at the back of the head can withstand even

0.50 calibre at distances longer than a thousand meters. The glass face shield though…a single

7.62 mm will make a hole into it at less than four hundred meters. Your mask can take 7.62 mm

point blank. Nevertheless, as I said before, Gargy is not expected to get under fire as a sniper.

Instead, he will need excellent visibility to provide adequate long-range support.’

Tomas said, ‘But me as the point man will get under fire. No big deal. I had no Apex Armour in

Chicago and I lived. With it, I will truly be indestructible.’ He made a classical Greek god pose,

for entertainment purposes, of course.

Peter said, ‘Don’t get ahead of yourself! Although the Apex Armour has excellent mobility, it’s

not as completely agile as you normally would be. You will have to learn to move with it ON

first. Get used to it until it almost doesn’t matter. Even then, the goal is not to get shot at all. You

know how expensive it is. Don’t do reckless things just because your armour will take it. I have

to pay the bill at the end of each month.’ He looked serious.

Tomas replied equally seriously, ‘Believe me, I want the same thing, to not get shot.’

‘Just checking, you two are nuts.’ Peter was pointing at Gargy too. ‘I wouldn’t be surprised if

you two want to get shot just to test it out.’

On that he was right, Tomas had to admit to himself. He would love to test it out there and then,

just to see how it would feel getting shot in it.

After that, Lubos demonstrated the effect of different calibres on the test-Apex Armour and a

smaller testing piece that represented the joints of the armour suit. Tomas was very impressed. It

was proper Batman-worthy technology. Even though it was obviously shot up before, possibly

for the same reasons, not a single round went through the test Apex Armour. Not even the .50

BMG round. More impressively, the slow-motion visual analysis of the effect on the ballistic gel

that represented the torso of the mannequin showed almost no shock wave traveling through the

body on impact! Except the .50 BMG round. Still, just stopping that bullet was a miracle enough

at only 20 meters distance. Unbelievable body armour!

Tomas got two days off after that, and then the training would begin, both in the firearms and the

Apex Armour.

Fort Minor – Remember The Name (feat. Styles Of Beyond) 3:50

“This is ten percent luck, twenty percent skill,

Fifteen percent concentrated power of will,

Five percent pleasure, fifty percent pain -

- and a hundred percent reason to remember the name.”

First, the body movement in the Apex Armour. It was still very light, like an average biker suit,

similar build too. The mobility was excellent. For a normal person, the difference wouldn’t even

be measurable. On Tomas’s level, however, the tiny slowdown could easily mean getting

constantly hit in hand-to-hand combat, or gun kata from a similarly skilled opponent wearing no

armour. Tomas tested himself in the suit against both Gargy and Peter without the suits. Peter

was at another level compared to Tomas with the Apex Armour on in hand-to-hand combat; way,

way faster. Against Gargy, Tomas was still competitive, mainly due to the absorption of blunt

impact (body shots) of the armour, but he was getting pummelled compared to how many hits he

scored on Gargy. All in all, the test was a pass.

Cop determined via testing that Tomas’s slowdown due to wearing the Apex Armour was 9

percent compared to non-wearing conditions and was considered acceptable. Cop expected the

slowdown to be brought down to around 4–5 percent once Tomas fully adapted to it.

The biggest part of the slowdown was the face shield, due to consecutive loss of vast parts of

peripheral vision. Surprisingly, the mask still allowed for almost normal breathing, even though

the oxygen was supplied only via tiny vent holes on the sides of the face shield.
One thing that Tomas absolutely loved about the armour was the shock and impact absorption.

Before, he felt indestructible when it came to body shots. Now, suited in the armour, he felt like

a tank compared to others. No pain at all, and little shock felt from impacts, mainly just the force

acting on him. Absolutely unstoppable. However, he did realize early on that this would invite

him to be bolder, just as Peter warned him about, and that he had to think about the wear and tear

of the suit; it was expensive as hell, after all.

Next, was the gun competency training. Tomas was an excellent gun kata master but Gargy was

equally skilled. This allowed for both of them to grow even better via sparring sessions. They

both practiced in the suits as a must. Then came Lubos’s advanced expertise on shooting

trajectories, aiming techniques, gun handling, and ballistics that brought Tomas up to another

level of gun competency in general. He learnt to expert-handle different firearms, the most

important part of which Tomas would find was the ballistics expertise. To learn what calibre can

go through what kind of material at what kind of different angles and distances, and finally what

affect it will have on its target. Things that Gargy had in his “pinkie” a long time ago, as every

sniper should.

For long-distance shooting practice, they had to go outside of the base to another property owned

by the organization. Tomas was reasonably good with his G36, being quite consistent in hitting

targets closer than 200 meters. After that, it was bad, really bad, even using Gargy’s PSG1 sniper

rifle. Tomas was no sniper, nor had any visible potential to be one. There were just too many

factors coming into play at higher distances.

Gargy, on the other hand, routinely demonstrated a 100 percent success rate up to 600 meters, 91

percent up to 1,000 meters, 74 percent up to 2,000 meters, and 34 percent up to 3,000 meters. It

was insane. Although on moving targets, he had roughly only half the success rate after 1,000
meters, thanks to Lubos’s modification of the sniper rifles and using the 0.50 Beretta for targets

exceeding 1,000 meters, as the PSG1’s normal effective range was only 800 meters.

Tomas knew then and there that, had the agency wished him to be dead before, Gargy truly could

have made it happen easily. No question about it. The number one lesson in gun kata is: ‘You

can’t dodge a bullet that you can’t predict the trajectory of in advance.’ Therefore, any gun

engagement that is coming from a direction that you can’t see or predict will hit you, depending

on the skill of the shooter, an easy task for a long-distance sniper as skilled as Gargy was.

Every time Gargy went to the long-distance shooting range it was like exhibition time for the

base, always on the main mission screen. People were cheering, even betting on the individual

shots! Especially when Gargy brought his secondary sniper rifle – a custom-made compact

Beretta .50 calibre made by Lubos. He was meant to carry it on his back for the missions, and

could deploy it should it be necessary. The PSG1 was way lighter, and adequate for most tasks;

Gargy preferred it greatly. Still, you never know when you need to use anti-material means.

***

Dr Charlotte explained to Tomas how to use the experimental drug and experimental surgical

glue. The surgical glue came in a tiny can. It had enough substance to plaster 1m2 (11 square

foot) of laceration, or equivalent to a size of combined injuries. It had both disinfection of the

wound and sealing capabilities. The experimental drug they called the “second chance” was as

explained before, a combination of a powerful stimulant and a painkiller. The downside was that

upon injection, the rapid effect of the drug was ensured via stimulant that initially temporarily

increases blood pressure to distribute the drug around the body faster, then drops the pressure to

a minimum in order to prevent any further blood loss from potential open wounds. The initial
part is very painful, as Tomas already experienced himself, and could be fatal should the injuries

be too great or the heart too weak.

Also, in the initial stage, powerful painkillers, sensory stimulants, and muscle receptor activators

would travel around the body along with the oxygen, nutrients, and energy supply in tiny

nanobots. Those would bind themselves to the cells and release what was needed, when it was

needed, until they were depleted. This way, blood was not necessary, and the follow-up drop in

blood pressure wouldn’t have a negative effect on performance or energy supply. Basically, once

you’re past the initial stage, it is a walk in the park until rapid, sudden diminishment of the effect

of the super-drug. The gradual cease of the effect of the super-drug can be felt for a few minutes

prior, as Tomas experienced himself. However, after complete depletion of the nanobots, the

diminishment would be absolute and rapid. It would leave the affected person in worse condition

than he would be otherwise without the drug in the same time span. Mostly because of the

energy output that wouldn’t be otherwise possible, absolutely squeezing all out of the body and

then some more, at the person’s overall health’s expense. The rationale behind it being that it is

better to use the drug and keep, or even increase, overall performance before sustaining the

injury that had forced the use of the drug, rather than not taking it, and due to the inability to

perform sustain even more injuries, or instant death. Multiple injections, even multiple

consecutive injections, would almost certainly mean death.

Also, the drug had been found to be highly addictive. Although it was only a guess on Dr

Charlotte’s part, as much as 50 times that of cocaine alone was predicted. Tomas and Gargy

would both carry three injection units per casing each. Just in case of malfunction, combat

damage, or for the revival of another agent, even after using one unit on themselves already.
The case and the injections were both inventions of the US Army. However, due to a price tag of

$60,000 for each can and $200,000 for a single shot of the second chance super-drug, it was not

economically sound enough to be considered worth it and never went into production. The only

reason the Agency had the means and knowledge to manufacture them was Matty’s money, and

that Dr Charlotte was involved in the development process herself before it was cancelled. That

was also how she met Peter in the first place, or why he approached her, to be precise.

The usage of the second chance drug was highly monitored, documented, and restricted. All used

or unused units were to be accounted for at all times. At that time, Tomas had no idea what kind

of addiction they were talking about. He had no urge to get “buffed” by the second chance drug

again.

Peter introduced Tomas to military/CIA tactics and planning, and proper combat communication

and teamwork. Especially that of a point man which was his dedicated role, but understanding

everyone’s roles was still important. After a gruelling six months of preparation, the mission

details were clear, target selected, and the reason fully justified for all on the base.

They were about to hit the Russian mob boss of Chicago that was trying to take over Fok’s old

territory. Peter wanted to make a statement to all of the “families” (Mafias), to tell them that

there was a new age coming, and there was a new player in the game. One that’s purpose was not

that of acquisition of power, but of distributing justice to those who evade it, who are

untouchable by the law.

The Russians in Chicago had a years-long operation of human trafficking going, among other

things, and were infamous for their brutality and torture practices. Mainly due to the command of

their boss, Igor Stachenko. Peter’s presentation of the accumulated evidence sparked up fire in
the base’s heart, and after two hours, there was no one in the Agency who wouldn’t want to nail

that bastard personally, figuratively speaking. Even if they had the necessary skills required, they

wouldn’t have the stomach. Luckily, they had Gargy and Tomas, who had both.

The plan was to execute Igor in an underground parking lot whilst he would be leaving one of his

“fortress” businesses, a hotel, then storm inside the hotel and eliminate as many of his men as

possible whilst trying to locate the holding cells of the girls that were used for sex slaving.

Igor was the main target. Therefore, he was to be hit first. Best whilst he was in a car, to

minimize the chance of his escape. (It’s hard to leave a moving car, and a car is quite a large

target to hit.) And it should be done while he was leaving his private underground parking lot, to

minimize the chance of hitting innocent bystanders.

The second target was to eliminate any opposition inside his hotel, but otherwise not harming

workers or other non-combatants that could be accomplices to the crime.

The third step in the mission was to release any sex slaves that could be found before the police

arrived, as they would have a much better chance in life, because many of them would simply

just be deported, disregarding the fact that they would most likely just be handed back over to the

human traffickers in Russia again.

Igor’s convoy alone would consist of 12 armed guards at a minimum, plus another 15–25 in

close proximity to the underground garage. The building itself could have up to 40 more guards.

Ever since the “Fok incident”, the underground as a whole was in full alert mode. Should the

resistance prove to be dangerous, Peter would call off the mission after nailing the primary

target.
Gargy was supposed to be stationed in the long corner of the underground garage, guarding the

exit and providing sniper support for Tomas. Tomas would be positioned mid-range and would

be first to open fire at the side of the convoy. Peter had access to the underground garage

cameras, but only partial coverage of the inside of the building. He was meant to provide real-

time intelligence support and had command over the operation, with Violetta overseeing it.

This would be the first time the Agency would hit more than one target, and at this scale.

Everyone was very nervous, despite having Tomas on the team and his previous experience with

Fok. Also because of what the success of this mission could mean at this time and place, what it

could do to the mob’s behaviour in general in the whole US.

The all hands command was given, meaning medical team, logistics (get them in and out +

supplies), and Violetta were on 24-hour shifts. The mission was engaged.

Logistics (transport vans) took the medical team on board, as well as Lubos and Cop, with extra

equipment and ammo, along with Tomas, Gargy, and Peter. Violetta stayed at the base and was

in charge during Peter’s absence. During the mission, Peter was meant to stay in the command

van with Nurse Catherine and Cop, and to get Tomas and Gargy into the drop-off location while

the second extraction van had Dr Charlotte, Lubos, and Nurse Helena in it.

All eyes were on the main mission screen back at the base. During the ride, close to the

destination, Peter started to have little pep talk on the comms (communication channel).

‘Okay, people, this is it. We know why we’re here. We know why we need to do what we are

about to do. I know you are all nervous. It’s very important that we succeed in this crucial time,

and we do it without casualties. Our own, and innocent bystanders.’ Tomas wanted to say
something funny, but decided against it in the last second, since Peter seemed very serious and

he didn’t want to spoil it for him.

Peter said, ‘We don’t need our names to be known. In fact, we prefer that they are not. But we do

need to be heard. We need to make a statement! Where the state fails its populace, we need to

step in. We need to make just what is not. Those people think they are untouchable, but they are

mistaken. We are going to prove them wrong. This is not about salary. This is about reality. The

state of affairs, and us pointing at it!’ He took a short pause. It almost looked like he was finished

when he spoke again.

Peter said, ‘Tomas, Gargy, I know that you’re good. I know that you can pull this off. I wouldn’t

even have sent you otherwise. But let’s not pretend this will be a walk in the park. Even with

your skills and equipment, things can go south very quickly. I want to let you know right now

that you will not be left behind if they do; not while I still breathe!’ Short pause again.

‘Please remember, play it safe. After all, what you do is ten percent of luck, twenty percent skill,

fifteen percent concentrated power of will, five percent pleasure, fifty percent pain, and a

hundred percent reason for us to remember your names.’ Projecting his voice louder over time

and then finally…

‘Good luck!’

Violetta added, ‘Good luck, team!’ on the comms.

It was pretty effective. There was hardly anyone in all of the Agency’s personnel that would not

feel pumped up after the pep talk.

 Tomas looked at Gargy and made a “that was pretty cool” expression, as he didn’t want to talk

on the comms to spoil the moment. There were no private comms; all talk and vision were

always broadcasted to the base’s screens for everyone to hear and see, no secrets. Gargy and

Tomas both even had POV cameras built into special contact lenses, showing their point of view.

Peter was in command of the main mission screen in general, but that could be changed

individually at the base’s leisure and to any location if wanted.

o Chapter 2: First Mission

Filter – Hey Man Nice Shot 5:15

“I wish I would've met you - now it's a little late.”

They have arrived at the site of the Hotel in the meantime, downtown Chicago.

Peter looked back into the Van at Tomas, Gargy and Catherine, raising his right hand showing 5

fingers – as in, ‘5 seconds left, get ready’ and then they finally stopped at the sidewall, right next

to the entrance into the carpark.

Tomas put on his face mask and stepped out of the van, heading towards the underground

entrance/exit. It was about 10 meters away behind the bend of the sidewall.

But not before briefly turning towards Gargy as he was stepping out, making a “bro fist”, to

which Gargy responded with a fist bump, and then Tomas left in haste.

When he was already out Gargy could resisted and shouted into the comms laughing at Tomas to

push his buttons, ‘And don’t fuck it up newbie!’ Just their usual banter.
Tomas mumbled back at him, ‘Keep speaking to me like that and I’ll fuck YOU up, Mr. I’m

number 47’, he was referring to the world’s best known hitman character from a popular video

game.

Gargy didn’t understand half of that, but the other half that he did made him laugh into the

comms anyway guessing what Tomas said, it was good banter.

It certainly entertained more than them two in the Agency. Lubos particularly enjoyed their

banter and was spotted by Charlotte and Helena to laugh his ass off shaking his head in disbelief

at their banter even during a mission.

In the meantime, Peter was closely monitoring what was happening inside of the garage via

hacked-in cameras. He saw the big double door leading into the garage from the reception area

open, and Stachenko with his guards entered through, heading towards the parked three

Escalades that were waiting for them. You could easily tell which person he was, as he was

smoking a big cigar and was surrounded by his guards. Stachenko sat into the centre back seat

surrounded by his guards on both sides and continued to smoke his cigar, making smoke-clouds

even. When everyone was in, the convoy left and started to make it’s way around the parking lot

towards the exit.

Tomas arrived at the entrance, ducking carefully below window of the guard booth to not get

spotted, peaking in.

Only one guard was present in the guard booth.

It was time to test out the KM 2000 knives. Tomas snuck behind the lone guard and inserted the

knife just below his chin, close to the neck’s vertebrae, easily penetrating all the way up into the

brain, avoiding the cranial (skull) bone for easy entry. It put the guard into a seizure so in the
very next second, the other knife went through the guard’s ribcage into his heart, killing him

instantly, stopping the guard’s violent movements. It went into the chest surprisingly easily.

‘Thank you, Lubos’, Tomas’ thought.

Peter and Cop witnessed it personally as they passed by the booth leaving the area dropping off

Gargy as well after the deed was done, Catherine briefly looking out shouting at Gargy ‘Good

luck!’ as he disembarked the Van. To Peter’s disbelief and annoyance, as now he had additional

job to find out and corrupt file of all cameras in the area that might have captured her face,

compromising them all. But he didn’t say anything, more important things were on his mind and

he knew that she only meant well.

Now that the guard was gone and his internal booth camera was hacked by Peter just prior to

Tomas’s attack so no one would get alarmed, Tomas proceeded into the underground garage

first. The garage was massive, about 150 meters squared, adequate for the hotel size standing on

top of it. The first floor contained Igor’s office, kitchen, dining hall, bars, dance floor, etc., and

was the only one to be stormed to locate the girls and eliminate the guards. It was unlikely that

the slave girls would be held in the 20 stories of hotel floors above, and intel didn’t confirm any

presence of Igor’s guards either.

The path that Peter outlined for Tomas and Gargy to storm was going across the waiting area

behind the reception area and into the ballroom and bar, then into Igor’s office premises and

private lounge. Peter was sure the girls would be located in the private VIP area or thereabout.

No need to go into the reception area, dining room, or kitchen. The guards would most likely

come to them, and the civilians would go out the nearest exit, helping to eliminate any civilian

casualties.
As soon as Tomas entered the underground area, he noted that there were no civilians there.

Igor’s guard had blocked the entrances to it a few minutes prior, until Igor’s convoy would be

gone. ‘Perfect!’

Tomas quickly advanced 70 meters forward into the middle of the left side of the garage. Igor’s

convoy was still making its way from the furthest corner – the entrance, having to go around

following inverted U-shape path towards the entrance / exit.

Gargy entered next. He stayed on the left side of the entrance/exit. There was a large, thick pillar

only about one meter away from the inner facade. He climbed it like a spider, pressing both of

his legs and arms against the inner facade and the pillar, climbing up towards the ceiling that was

about four meters high. Once Gargy was almost to the top, he fully extended his right leg that

was pressing against the inner facade and bent his left leg at the knee that was pressing against

the body of the thick pillar, locking him in stationary, solid shooting position with an almost

perfect vantage point. Almost, if it wasn’t for the thickness of the pillar that blocked his whole

left side vision as Gargy was leaning out on the right side of the pillar, aiming his PSG1 down

the parking lot. This was expected and planned for. It was totally irrelevant as there was pretty

much nothing to his left.

The convoy route was starting in the far-right corner that Gargy had perfect vision of, and

headed through the inverted U-shape route and out of the exit that all was on Gargy’s right side.

He would have had almost perfect vision during the convoy’s whole route out of the garage if it

wasn’t for the occasional support pillars in the way, providing momentary cover for the convoy

along the way. The convoy was never supposed to enter the blind spot on Gargy’s left side; this

is why Peter had chosen the pillar on the left close to the exit, and why Tomas was positioned in

Gargy’s blind spot on the left side in the centre of the left side of underground garage. Tomas
would open fire on the convoy’s right side as they passed by next to him, getting into Gargy’s

killing zone directly in front of him for the final straight stretch towards the exit.

Igor was placed in the centre vehicle out of three Cadillac Escalades. As far as the intel showed,

only Igor’s vehicle was heavily, but only partially, armoured. Soon, they were about to leave

through and out of the garage.

Both Tomas and Gargy assumed their striking positions.

A very quick thought went through Tomas’s mind. He was thinking that it wasn’t that long ago

when he felt like a lamb thrown to the wolves. Now, he was the predator. Correction – he was

the Apex predator.

Igor’s convoy made final left-turn and entered the final straight stretch heading towards the exit,

but more importantly, towards Gargy and Tomas who were waiting for Peter’s command,

tension building up.

Peter said calmly into the comms, ‘Hold your fire…’ The cars were moving towards the centre

of the final stretch.

Peter spoke clearly, ‘Wait…three…two…one… Open up!’ The first car of the convoy just

presented its right side to Tomas and was perfectly 60 meters ahead of Gargy.

Both Tomas and Gargy unleashed on the first car. The driver went down first, thanks to Gargy.

Tomas Swiss-cheesed the car from its side, killing the guard on the passenger side sitting in the

front, and 2 more out of 3 guards sitting in the back.

As the driver got hit in the face his arms jerked, turning the wheel to the left side, crashing the

car into one of the support pillars. The car erupted into a small fire on impact. It didn’t create a
barrier for the centre car with Igor as hoped for, and Igor’s Escalade started to speed up around

the first crashed car.

Peter instructed, ‘Hit the front wheels, Gargy.’ There was no need to say that, as Gargy was

already on it.

He hit the front left tire, but nothing happened just yet. Three more rapid-fire shots hit into the

right one instead managed to turn the car over on its right side as the driver was just trying to

make a left turn, with the G-loads and full weight of the car being on the right wheels coming out

of the previous right turn when evading the first crashed car in the convoy. The Cadillac kept

sliding forward on its side due to the momentum turning around 25 degrees off-centre to its left.

Gargy shot the front wind screen four times and the bonnet another four times, without visible

effect. As expected, it was well-armoured there and on the sides, even against .50 BMG. But he

had to try anyway.

The third car stopped right behind Igor’s turned-over Escalade, but before all five guards

managed to get out, the front guards got sniped by Gargy. The driver got hit in the head

immediately upon stopping the car, then the co-driver managed to hastily open his doors and

started exiting when he got hit high into his chest at a high angle, making him fall out the doors

onto the floor face first, dying, making a gurgling sound whilst slightly twitching. The bullet

penetrated both of his lungs left to right, entering just under the left armpit exiting under the

right, deflating them. He choked onto his own blood to death. But lucky enough, the hydrostatic

shock turned his lights out instantly. He didn’t suffer.

The three that came out of the back and took cover from the incoming Gargy’s sniper fire that

narrowly missed behind Igor’s turned-over Escalade got peppered by Tomas’s G36 into their

backs and sides, splattering their blood all over Igor’s car undercarriage and trunk doors.

‘I thought you said that you never miss.’ Tomas said sardonically.

Gargy replied with a cheeky smile, ‘You’re right, I don’t.’

‘So, what do you call that then?’ Tomas continued to banter.

Gargy chuckled, ‘I felt bad for you because I did all of the work so far, so I wanted to land you

some easy ones to make you feel better. But I guess it was pointless in the end since you had to

spoil it by asking me about it, dummy.’

‘Sure you did mate, sure you did.’ Tomas laughed back at him.

In the meantime, the last living guard of the first car just managed to get out of his crashed

Escalade seconds before a small explosion lit the whole interior on fire. To no avail; he too got

finished off by a burst from the G36 shortly after.

Peter said, ‘Tomas, start moving toward Igor’s car and spray the undercarriage.’ Tomas started to

reposition. The car still mostly faced straight forward at a slight left angle with neither him, nor

Gargy having a clear shot at the undercarriage. Gargy having no chance, only looking at the roof,

left side and bonnet of the car. Tomas could see only the undercarriage and the trunk doors, but

at a high angle.

One of the guards from Igor’s car tried to escape through the side door now facing into the

ceiling, as the other side was pressed against the floor. He got hit in the face by Gargy’s Heckler
& Koch PSG1 sniper rifle, and fell instantly back into the car, spurting blood out of the bigger

exit hole. The rest shielded Igor with their bodies and told him to stay put.

Tomas got in position to spray Igor’s Escalade undercarriage. He run across the pathway to the

other side and little bit forward until he was at 90-degree angle of Igor’s car undercarriage.

Then he sprayed it since now the undercarriage was exposed due to the car being turned over on

its right side. It wasn’t supposed to be armoured too, but it was for sure; none of the 5.56 x 45

mm armour-piercing bullets penetrated inside the car. Instead, massive “firework” of the

ricocheting bullets lit up the surrodings.

Tomas asked, ‘What now?’

Gargy answered, ‘Martha?’ That’s what he called his custom Beretta .50 BMG sniper rifle that

Lubos build for him. Gargy named her after his grandmother. Apparently, she was the strongest

woman that ever lived (according to Gargy), solved every and any problem every time. ‘Just like

the Beretta .50 BMG does.’

Peter said, ‘Keep the PSG1 for now, you guys have company. Igor’s not going anywhere.’ There

were about 20 more guards marching now from the convoy’s starting corner towards the crash

site.

Tomas took cover behind one of the support pillars to the right side in front of Igor’s crashed

Escalade. He could see the guards shielding Igor inside, and they could see him. Igor looked

rather amused by the situation. ‘Weird.’ Then Tomas’s attention turned back towards the

oncoming guards. The smoke coming out of the first car after it lit on fire got momentarily blown

to the left side by a breeze of wind coming in through the exit/entrance, revealing the full

carnage for the oncoming guards.

They instantly spread out and took cover, as opposed to the blind marching in just seconds

before. To their benefit, as only one of them got picked off by Gargy.

Tomas quickly reloaded a new, full magazine and sprayed it all empty just as quickly in the

reinforcement guards’ general direction. A storm of bullets was the answer to that, and Tomas

got pinned down quickly. But due to the number of surrounding cars, it was rather easy for

Tomas to quickly reposition elsewhere without getting noticed. Equally some of the guards

actually got close to Igor’s car too without getting noticed.

Gargy managed to pick off another two of the reinforcements, with one bullet mind you.

However, now he was spotted, and also pinned by the oncoming fire, forcing him to take cover.

He quickly swapped his stance, switching his legs that pressed against the pillar and the inner

wall as if doing mount-climbers on the floor. This allowed Gargy to start shooting from the left

side of the pillar, but now his blind spot was on his right, where Tomas was located.

This made sense, as both of them could still cover the whole garage with their vision, or fire.

Except neither of them had full visual on Igor’s crashed car anymore. It was in Gargy’s blind

spot due to another pillar in his way partially blocking the view, and behind Tomas’s back, as he

was now advancing towards the reinforcing guards. Peter couldn’t fully see much either, due to

the positions of the cameras inside of the garage, and the unpredictably direction-changing

smoke coming out the crashed Escalade.

What they didn’t know was the roof of Igor’s Escalade could be ejected in case of emergency.

The guards that shielded Igor inside his car ejected the roof and joined with the group that

managed to reach the overturned Escalade without getting noticed and started to take him back

where they came from towards the entrance into the Hotel and the other supporting guards while
both Gargy and Tomas were engaged in a fierce firefight. Gargy reported the presence of four

light machine guns among the otherwise fully automatic weaponry of the rest.

Peter alerted them, ‘He’s getting away!’ as Igor’s group came into the camera’s field of vision.

‘What, how?!’ Gargy changed his stance back and gained visual on them, almost picking off one

guard instantly.

Tomas said, ‘I don’t see the top door open.’ He also turned back towards Igor’s car, but as soon

as he did that, he almost got hit head-high. Instead, a massive chunk of the concrete pillar got

blasted off.

Tomas said, ‘What the fuck was that?!’

‘A .50 BMG, I’m on it.’ Gargy saw the impact as it happened. ‘No visual, have to wait till he

shoots again.’

‘Great,’ Tomas said in a defeated manner.

‘Will have to transition to a ground level, I’m too exposed up here’, said Gargy and jumped

down off the pillar.

‘Roger’, said both Peter and Tomas simultaneously.

Igor was successfully running away as both Tomas and Gargy got pinned down again by a volley

of covering fire coming from the reinforcing guards.

Peter calmly said, ‘Tomas, advance.’

There was no time for hesitation, nor did Tomas want to disappoint on the very first mission, so

he did. With no regard for his safety. He was in the Apex Armour, after all. Purposely, Tomas

stopped to utilise the cars as cover and jumped right over them parkour style, pushing forward

towards Igor’s position. He knew he would get hit a few times, but the armour didn’t disappoint;

it took three rounds, and the shock wave into the body was no problem. It just slightly jerked

with Tomas’s torso upon impact, but didn’t slow him down one bit. Little pain.

But as expected, Tomas presented himself as a target for the guards, inviting them to focus fire at

him. This brought opportunity for Gargy to start picking them off one by one, as they peeked out

of their cover to shoot at exposed Tomas. Gargy got another three guards before they realized

what was happening and turned their attention towards him again.

The first two were on Tomas’ sides as he passed right next to them parkouring over the cars.

One had what seemed like a Glock 18 pistol with similar haircut to Peter’s and got hit high into

head, second wielded modern version of AK-47 and got hit into his centre mass.

The third was shooting at Tomas from far away at a 45-degree angle to him with M249 light

machine gun, that had nice optics mounted on it. Gargy got the third guard into his right cheek

that immediately exploded on impact, with the pressure wave still traveling through the whole

skull cracking it and mushing the brain inside. He was dead before he knew it.

That presented opportunity for Tomas to advance once more and he even got into vantage

position to take shots at Igor’s escort that just got reunited with some of the supporting guards,

getting many, dwindling their numbers and forcing them to scatter into the nearest cover not

offering any resistance anymore. About sixteen of them, exposing the escaping Igor’s group. The
two of Igor’s group back guards that still frantically shot their sidearms at advancing Tomas had

no effect on him.

Peter sensed the opportunity to pick off the main target. ‘Take him down, now.’

Tomas just rushed forward again, encouraged by the Apex Armour’s performance, taking down

another four guards in the process, even gaining direct visual at Igor. Just as Tomas fully raised

his G36 aiming at Igor, it got hit. The assault rifle split in two pieces in a shower of sparks before

he managed to squeeze out single round. Tomas got sprayed with the shrapnel, but the Apex

Armour shined again. It had no effect and just bounced off it. All it managed to do was to jump-

scare onlookers of Tomas’s POV camera, and Tomas himself. He stumbled backwards as he got

jump scared and briefly fell before immediately getting back onto his feet.

Meanwhile, Igor’s guard managed to quickly reposition Igor out of Tomas’s sight, some

supporting guards joining them.

Tomas said, ‘Fuck! Again!’

Peter asked, ‘You okay, Tomas?’

‘I’m not injured, but lost my primary weapon.’

Peter said, ‘Okay, Gargy, did you locate that .50? I can’t find it on my monitors.’

Gargy said, ‘I didn’t see any flash, must be in my blind spot. I’m in his, else I would have been

shot at too, for sure.’

Peter said, ‘Unfold your .50 Beretta. There is no more armour shielding them that can take .50

calibre. Try to get the other sniper first; if not presented, focus on Igor and his group. Tomas,

stay put for the moment.’

Gargy immediately unfolded “Martha” and got into supported shooting position; his back and

right leg leaning against a pillar almost at hip high with his right knee shooting out.

Wasn’t the most optimal shooting position and he knew it, should have just kept his right foot on

the ground and bracing forward; but he wanted to rest against the pillar for a support at least

momentarily. He had to brace against the recoil in that position somehow…

Tomas replied to Peter, ‘I can just rush forward. They can’t stop me in the Apex Armour.

Switching to P30Ls.’ Tomas started to advance and the whole garage “lit up” again in a storm of

fire, some stray bullets even hitting close to Gargy forcing him to immediately duck down, but

he quickly got grounded by Peter.

Peter ordered, ‘Just stay put for now Tomas. That enemy .50 can still make a hole into our

budget. Don’t engage unless Igor is getting away.’

Peter didn’t have to say it twice as the next 0.50 BMG round just whistled by and over Tomas’s

right shoulder, hitting a car behind him. The loud bang that it made was terrifying, not to

mention the size of the impact hole in comparison to the other bullets’ holes. It made Tomas glad

he couldn’t see the exit hole.

Peter asked Gargy, ‘Did you spot where the last shot came from Gargy?’

‘That’s a negative.’

‘Okay, meaning enemy sniper should have no idea where you are at either. I think his eyes are on

Tomas.

I want you to quickly reposition, maybe you will get more lucky next time he will try it.

Gargy said, ‘Affirmative, repositioning now.’

He made a quick dash for it hoping Peter was right and the enemy sniper had no idea where he

was at, not taking a shot at him, then he quickly deployed his Martha over a roof of a hot hatch

family car, facing from back to front standing directly behind the car.

Peter was right, nobody shot at Gargy. In fact, it suddenly became very quiet. All movement

stopped for a moment. Even Igor’s escort held position behind one of larger SUVs out of the

sight of Gargy, or Tomas. Only momentarily, as there was a thick support pillar close to them

offering a lot more physical protection and they decided rather quickly to move Igor behind it in

the safety of the provided concealment, - compliments of the SUV.

It looked like Stachenko’s guards likewise got a command not to engage until Tomas was taken

down by their sniper, and for a few seconds, the whole firefight went silent.

Gargy said, ‘I’m in a new position with Martha, no visual on target though.’

Peter said, ‘The police were just notified, we’ve got seven minutes max. Speed it up.’

Gargy said, ‘Okay, I’ll need Tomas to play chicken as a distraction for me again.’

Peter said, ‘Approved. Do it, Tomas.’

‘Great, let me guess, get into the open so I can get shot at with the big fucking scary gun again,

huh?’ Tomas said sarcastically.

Gargy chuckled, ‘No worries, Apex can take it. I’ll try not to miss.’

‘What if I get it in the face?!’

Gargy continued to grin, ‘You won’t, you’re too fast, right? But if you do, I promise I will find

the best mortician to make you presentable again for an open coffin.’ They continued their

bantering as usual.
‘Just do it, we are running out of time,’ Peter said firmly but calmly.

Tomas rushed towards the central pathway to cross from one side to the other. With no cover at

all, he should be a tempting target. He began to cross to the other side when he felt something fly

by, then shortly after, almost instantly, he saw a flash from the barrel of the .50 about 50 meters

ahead at nine o’clock. Tomas managed to get to the other side unscathed. A testament to his

speed; the sniper just couldn’t react in time to hit him.

Tomas yelled out, ‘Did you spot him?!’

Gargy did spot the sniper, but he got surprised and outflanked by two groups of Igor’s guards

simultaneously. They opened fire at him from both sides, not giving Gargy a chance to take the

shot at the enemy sniper. At least the close by support pillar to his left offered some cover, and

Gargy utilized it very quickly as he frantically switched from Martha to MP7 submachine guns.

Tomas saw what was happening and rushed back to help Gargy. Bullets were flying everywhere.

Hitting cars, pillars, the floor, and even the ceiling. It was a display of spectacular firepower. All

of that was just a diversion for Igor’s escort to start moving towards the exit door once again

while Tomas and Gargy were both distracted. Not for long though. Both of them were skilled

gun kata masters, and at that distance, they almost instantly neutralized both flanking groups. No

problem.

Tomas on Gargy’s left side, Gargy on Tomas’s right side, but not before Tomas having to first

gun-kata his way back to Gargy ignoring all cover and purely relying on the Apex armour if his

gun kata fails him.

In one instance even parkour-jumping in between a group of 5 guards that were engaging Gargy

at first, then even jumping onto their bodies like he successfully did at Fok’s place previously,
using them as platform for the next body-jump whilst pushing them off forcing them to lose their

balance, disabling their ability to shoot, while Tomas was shooting simultaneously with left and

right arm at two different targets to clear them as fast as possible. It worked flawlessly again and

soon he found himself back at Stachenko’s over-turned Escalade where 3 flanking guards took

cover behind but got blasted away anyway.

There was also one dead guard leaning against the third Escalade in Igor’s convoy, and one more

in open space still alive but visibly injured struggling against pain, previously already shot by

Gargy, but they posed no threat or opposition anymore.

Tomas joined both his PL30’s pistols in the same direction this time around, as they all stood in

front of him and behind the cover of Igor’s Escalade, and the blasts that came out of both joined

barrels with Tomas’ squeezing out shots as fast as he could made it look like he must have had

some sort of a cannon in hands. Two seconds later, all three were dead in volley of bullets that lit

up the car too. Tomas joined up with Gargy soon after, with each covering each other fighting

almost back to back as the guards valiantly kept coming in on them despite of their loses and

their opposition seemingly being unstoppable.

As soon as Gargy was forced to switch into his secondaries – two H&K MP7 submachine guns.

German, of course. Lubos-modified, of course. – He still resorted for the most part to only utilize

precision burst-fire mode to conserve his ammunition, true to his sniper nature.

As the guards’ bodies started to get shredded by Gargy’s rapid fire of the 4.6 x 30 mm MP7s

calibre, and torn by the larger 9 mm calibre of Tomas’ P30Ls, Gargy almost took one .50 round

to his upper right chest. The bullet flew by so close to him that he could feel the pressure wave

traveling behind the bullet. He was the target of interest now.

Gargy quickly switched back to Martha and tried to retaliate back at the sniper when…

‘Igor’s getting away,’ Peter said, still calm, still collected.

Gargy spotted Igor’s escort and took a shot at them instead of the sniper just as Peter said that.

He managed to hit one of the guards in his neck. Gargy would have seen the guard’s head

shooting into the air followed by a blood geyser out of his shredded neck covering Igor’s whole

group in blood, shocking them and forcing them to hit the deck, if it wasn’t for the return fire of

their sniper hitting a pillar close to him. It must have been in the sniper’s way. Knowing the .50

BMG round wouldn’t go through, the sniper still took the shot anyway, and a shower of rock

pieces blasted out of the pillar hit forcefully into Gargy’s face shield. It was okay; it was

designed exactly for that purpose.

Tomas witnessed that, and then he saw Gargy about to try to retaliate at the sniper again.

Worried that Gargy may get shot with the next .50 BMG round, Tomas decided to play chicken

for him again. He dashed across the completely open central pathway again after picking up an

AR-15 assault rifle off the floor just moments before that. Tomas was right; the sniper took a

shot at him instead, as he was an easier target, while Gargy managed to shoot the enemy sniper

into his face with Martha, evaporating the sniper’s head above his bottom lip as it exploded in a

cloud of blood into all directions, painting red and redecorating everything around with bits of

brain matter and cranial bone.

It came at a price though. As Tomas was dashing across playing chicken for Gargy, he wasn’t

fast enough this time. The shot hit him in his left shoulder, which resulted in a mist of fibres

ejecting out of the hit location into the air. The force of the round turned Tomas’s whole body

around on impact, forcing him to lose his footing, as well as losing his grip on the AR-15 with
his left arm and fell to the ground almost completely on his back, as he got twisted by the shot

while falling.

Instantly, Tomas managed to get back onto his feet, grab the AR-15, and hide behind cover on

the other side, then instinctively let two shots out of the recovered AR-15 in the general direction

of the sniper – to no effect, as he was already dead, killed by Gargy.

Tomas said, ‘Goddamn it, that hurt!’ the pain resounding in his voice, just as Gargy said, ‘Got

him!’

Peter asked calmly, ‘Tomas, status?’

‘Uninjured, I think…I’ve got full shoulder mobility but it hurt like hell, possibly a partial

fracture.’

Peter said, ‘Understood. Advance to the primary target.’

Igor’s group panicked once their sniper’s head got blown off. The remaining guards rushed Igor

towards the exit in haste, disregarding possible exposure. It was smart, really, the best thing they

could have done in a situation like that, as there were only two more guards covering their

escape.

Tomas quickly took care of them with the AR-15 as he was closing in while Gargy reloaded for

explosive rounds and took one shot at Igor’s group. He took his time with it, calculating the best

impact zone. Peter almost ordered Gargy to take the shot already, as he was watching Gargy’s

POV camera, but he trusted him and didn’t.

The shot went through three pairs of car side windows, then penetrated one more side window of

the fourth car before finally hitting its inner side of the driver’s door, because of the bullet
traveling at a downwards angle, just as Igor’s group was passing by the fourth car. The blood

splatter that appeared on the opposite wall behind Igor’s group following the impact foretold a

successful hit. The shrapnel coming out of the doors, plus the round itself, hit the group. It was

like a massive shotgun round made out of shrapnel. It completely annihilated them, turning them

into shredded meat.

Tomas quickly closed his distance to confirm that the primary target was down. Guards were

dead, and Igor was close to it; they shielded him properly till the end. Igor was laying on his

back dying, looking directly at Tomas, wishing that he would have met him earlier to be better

prepared to save some face. Maybe even injure the fucker, but really glad regardless. For years

Igor thought that the Russian mob was getting soft and weak, not really having a proper

adversary to keep them sharp and on point.

Now there was, and he was glad to see many of his guards not panicking in action, resisting

valiantly even when the odds were clearly stacked-up against them, rushing into their doom.

Igor thought that they got strong, and certainly the whole Russian mob family will grow stronger

over time thanks to this new adversary. He was glad and happy, never wanting to grow old and

weak in the first place. He was a warrior and death in the field was his highest desire for many

years now, thinking it will never happen. He might have not fought back this time, because he

welcomed his fate, but his people did that he trained and chose personally, and he was glowing

to see them in action. He was proud like a dad of his sons as they all chosen the same – death

before humiliation of failing HIM, even if some were covering in fear when staring death into its

eyes.
Didn’t matter, none run away, all kept fighting, and there was a lot more that surely will take

revenge for his death. It was perfect, everything he ever wished for!

Igor look at Tomas standing above him and said in a weak voice while grinning, ‘Hey, man, nice

shot!’ Then he died right after.

Tomas answered, ‘Yeah, nice shot, but not mine.’ Too late; Igor was already dead and didn’t

hear it.

Crazy Russians, Tomas thought to himself.

Gargy was already on his way towards Tomas to join him in storming of the ground floor

looking for the girls, Martha and SPG1 both already folded on his back. He came up to Tomas.

‘Is it just me, or did the whole thing look quite amusing to him?!’ Tomas said, clearly referring

to Igor.

No one replied though, including Gargy to whom Tomas turned to asking the question, but it was

meant at everyone, since everyone at the base was surely watching.

After a short silence Tomas said, ‘Nice shot.’

Peter joined him. ‘Yeah, nice shot, Gargy.’

‘Just doing my job,’ Gargy said formally.

Peter said, ‘Okay, we should still have five more minutes before the police arrive. Enter the

reception area and proceed towards Igor’s office and then into the VIP area. You know what to

do; eliminate any opposition and try to locate the girls.’ Tomas threw away the AR-15 and pulled

out the twin P30Ls again. It was time for close quarters.
‘On the other hand, one moment please, just want to make sure we don’t walk into an ambush or

area full of civilians, standby’, Peter commanded.

Both Tomas and Gargy knew what to do next and assumed their positions on either side of the

big double doors leading into the reception area waiting for Peter’s command to proceed with the

entry. Tomas on the left, Gargy on right side. It became momentarily quiet, giving opportunity to

Gargy to open up with some more banter to calm the nerves and release some stress.

‘You’re ready for this?’, Gargy turned his head towards Tomas with a cheeky smile.

‘Oh, I’m ready as one can be.’ Tomas answered back expecting stronger Gargy’s banter next.

‘You don’t look ready to me, just saying…’ Gargy pushed some more of Tomas’ buttons,

delivering.

Tomas just chuckled and tried to ignore it but then,

‘You know, if you’re ready, then feel free to join in at any time my dude. I’m tired of doing all of

the work myself. I didn’t know you will be such a drag when we signed you up. It’s kinda

disappointing to be honest with you’ Gargy bantered even harder.

‘Oh, I’m sorry, I was busy catching all of the bullets for you, so that your candy ass doesn’t get

blasted off right away! It don’t look to me like you can take a lot and you certainly don’t pay

attention what is happening around you. What kind of sniper are you? A bloody muppet has

more spatial awareness than you!’ Made Gargy and Lubos to laugh out audibly into the comms.

But more people in the base listening enjoyed their banter, definitely relieving some of the

tension and stress accumulated so far.

Peter completely missed the whole exchange between them two as he was too focused on

quickly doing his double check through the hacked in cameras of what was happening inside of

the Hotel, but not the next part of the banter that was aimed at him.

Tomas asked Peter sardonically, ‘Peter, can we just blow up the convoy the next time, or

something? I know you wanted to avoid unnecessary damage, but holy hell, this place got

blasted anyway!’ There was no response to that, but you could imagine that it did annoy Peter.

Almost like pouring salt into the wounds. Gargy decided not to say anything either, although he

did agree with Tomas on that point.

Some people back at the base found Tomas’s remark funny; even Dr Charlotte, sitting in the

second van, got a grin on her face for a second before recovering quickly due to the seriousness

of the matter. No wonder, upon looking at the state of the underground garage. There was hardly

any car, wall, or support pillar that did not have several holes in it. Two wrecks, and one car on

fire producing thick, black smoke. Bodies everywhere, some torn to pieces. It looked like a war

zone.

Everyone in agency hoped that the resistance inside of the hotel would be rather negligible in

comparison, for the sake of bystanders, if nothing else. The carnage inside of the garage was

enough to give one nightmares for life.

As a response to Tomas’ comments, Peter almost barked into the comms, ‘Advance.’

Tomas could tell Peter didn’t appreciate it one bit and took the banter the wrong way, making a

‘Oh, shit, my bad’ face, but because of his mask it went unnoticed anyway.

But in reality, Peter reacted the way he reacted to Tomas because of the 30 seconds or so he

wasted checking something that he thought he should have already check prior, annoyed with
himself. The time was very precious and every second lost meant less time to find the girls in

already very limited timespan. That should have never happened, but the action was so fierce and

quick, he barely managed to keep up with the immediate needs of spatial awareness during the

highly stressful search for the enemy sniper that posed real danger to his team, never mind

keeping in check what was also happening on the inside of the hotel at the same time. Two

highly mobile and engaging in constant combat operatives on his team proved to be a great

challenge to handle. A lot harder than when it was just Gargy.

He nearly opted out on skipping the hotel check initially, but then decided that safety of his team

and public in general is of more importance than finding the girls, sacrificing the time in the end.

That is the real reason why he reacted the way he reacted to Tomas’ banter. He was already

annoyed with his “failure” to handle it all, when Tomas sarcastically pointed out another of his

“failures”.

It was just the wrong time really.

Rob Zombie – Dragula (Hot Rod Herman Remix) 4:36

“I Dead I am the light, dig into the skin.

Knuckle crack the bone, twenty-one to win.

Dead I am the dog - Hound of hell you cry.

Devil on your back - I can never die!”

Tomas and Gargy entered through the double doors leading into the rather large open-spaced

reception area. There was no one guarding on the other side of the doors, and they both set foot

inside without any opposition.

It was seemingly empty, except for the Igor’s guards waiting for them behind cover. The

firefight in the garage scared off the civilians and all personnel that were close to or on the

ground floor.

Then, a storm of gunfire greeted their arrival. Naturally, they split to divide the opposition.

Tomas took the left side, Gargy, the right. They returned fire, killing the welcome party, and just

pushed through the hall towards the bar and the dancing area, even though they were getting shot

at here and there. Time was of the essence, and they had to utilize their strengths. This was their

forte, their zone of comfort – close-range combat, where gun kata can dominate the battlefield.

Well, except for Gargy. He had tools and skills for long-range combat as well, but still preferred

the gun kata.

They arrived at the entry door leading to the ballroom and the bar. A quick reload, then

headshake signal for entry and they stormed in. Surprisingly, there were still plenty of civilians,

along with a bunch of guards that instantly opened fire at them.

Peter ordered, ‘Don’t engage. Do not engage.’

They both took the first available cover on their respective sides.

Gargy said, ‘Close distance first?’

Peter said, ‘Close distance. Make sure no civilians get hurt. No blind shooting. Select your shots

and targets.’
They both started closing in on the guards utilizing gun kata moves. The guards were shooting

like mad, disregarding the civilians that were mostly frozen in shock, hiding behind any cover

closest to them.

The guards’ frenzied fire forced Tomas and Gargy to disregard optimal movement patterns. They

exposed themselves to more risk of getting hit in order to avoid drawing potential crossfire or

stray bullets onto the civilians. All went well, and they both managed to eliminate the guards

along the way into the VIP and office area without any of the civilians getting hit.

Both of them were rushing through the hall almost at sprinting pace, while barely getting hit

once or twice each. In return, killing all that opposed them until Tomas spotted in his peripheral

vision what looked like a hidden civilian woman as he was passing by. She was in one of the

sitting sofa areas in the corner. Tomas just made a gun kata move to avoid incoming fire but

quickly realized that the woman would get hit instead, as that was the predicted shooting path

that he just avoided, and quickly decided to return into the firing zone, exposing his back to the

fire while ducking his head. He got hit four times in the back, once behind his right knee at the

joint (that one really hurt), and twice to the back of his right arm. Three more stray bullets

impacted around the kneeling – and now also screaming – woman. She must have seen Tomas

pass next to her, then the guard that was aiming at him as he was passing by, knowing that she

would get hit as soon as Tomas dodged to the side, since she was in the line of fire. She must

have thought that she was going to die and as a reaction, let out a loud cry while closing her eyes.

Once she felt a few of the bullets impact around her, it must have been a big surprise to her not

getting hit, considering the “brrrrrt” sound that accompanied it.

Peter said, ‘That was close. Well done, Tomas.’ Many people in the agency were really relieved

once they realized what just happened.

The woman opened her eyes and stared at this clearly metal, but not that shiny, mask on a man.

She saw the eyes, but it was too hard for her to tell what colour they were, it was just a moment.

Tomas instinctively blindly returned fire with his P30L handgun-wielding right arm in the

general direction of the guard while still facing the woman, scoring two hits into the guard’s

torso. It wouldn’t have mattered. Gargy had already sprayed the guard just a millisecond before

that, as there were no visible civilians in the guard’s vicinity, scoring triple penetration of his

skull left to right, two hits into his neck, and a triple hit into the guard’s side torso. The power of

Tomas’s larger 9 mm calibre and the closer distance had thrown the guard’s body backwards

rather than sideways, getting hit by Gargy’s more numerous, but smaller, 4.6 x 30 mm calibre.

As the body fell to the ground, the extent of the exit wounds in the head area got exposed. Right

side of the guard’s jaw got clearly separated, and also the guard’s right eye popped out of the

socket, while blood was pooling on the floor, squirting out of the exit holes. Funny, he was

technically still alive, as he was performing agonizing breathing, exposing the chipped-away jaw

more and more with every new agonized breath. Didn’t last long though; the guard passed away

more or less quickly.

Gargy had already advanced on his side, getting all the remaining guards in the area, then

stopped at the door leading to the VIP lounge. Almost all guards; he missed one that was already

ambushing Tomas at hand’s reach distance. Big mistake on the guard’s part; that is the strongest

position for a gun kata master.

Tomas was turning around to face forward and away from the woman again when he saw the 9

mm Barretta handgun pointing at his head. He instinctively dodged to his left side just as the first

shot came out, flying above the woman. Tomas reactively grabbed the guard’s wrist that held the

handgun and judo-rolled him onto the floor, where he tried to take the gun off him. The guard
was one of the bigger guys, and Tomas couldn’t snatch it off him, neither by twisting the guard’s

wrist, or after he broke the wrist, by striking his right knee into it while his right arm was pulling

and twisting the guard’s arm down. The wrist had broken, yet the guard didn’t let go of the gun.

Tomas could have killed the guard at his leisure. His left free arm could have just taken the P30L

handgun and shot the guy, or he could just as easily snap the guard’s neck in that position. But it

angered Tomas that the guard didn’t let go of the gun, even after breaking his wrist. Moreover,

the damn guard was still squeezing out shots! Tomas judo-rolled the resisting guard three more

times while holding the guard’s hand in a static position and reversing the movement of the held

hand just at the right moment to break it. He snapped the guard’s right arm once below the elbow

area, and two times above. But the guard would still not let go of the gun!

Worse, as Tomas was rag-dolling the guard around, he was still squeezing shots out until the

magazine was empty. One of the stray bullets had hit the same woman that was close to them in

her left forearm. She let out a loud cry of pain, then looked directly at Tomas with her scared

eyes. This angered Tomas even more, to the point of rage.

He smashed the guard’s head into the floor with such force, it must have killed him. The loud

crack noise of the guard’s face smashing into the floor accompanied with instant blood splatter

and possibly a piece of a bone ejecting out of the guard’s left cheek could be proof enough, but

finally, in quick succession after that, Tomas’s right knee struck the guard’s neck area from

behind, snapping it too and killing the guard for sure.

It was shockingly brutal. Even the injured woman involuntarily jumped up in surprised shock,

just as the guard’s face got splintered into pieces on the floor. Then, for a second time,

milliseconds after that, once the guard’s cervical vertebrae got snapped in a loud crack by
Tomas’s knee strike. She wasn’t alone; most onlookers of Tomas’s POV camera got jump-scared

by it too. All except Peter.

Lubos exclaimed excitedly, ‘Holy shit!’

‘Yeah,’ Cop said, shock present in his voice.

Peter ordered, ‘Keep the comms clear of chit-chat. Tomas, carry on.’ He stayed very formal

during the missions, compared to his very casual voice projection and approach otherwise.

Tomas snapped out of the rage quickly upon seeing the woman’s reaction, then hearing the

response on the comms. Just momentarily, he froze in the killing position, his right knee still on

the guard’s neck, both arms still pulling the guard’s right multiple-fractured arm upwards.

‘I apologize,’ Tomas said in a calm voice to the woman, her mouth still open in surprise.

Tomas reached behind his back for the surgical glue and was about to apply it on the woman’s

injured forearm. She let him hold her wounded arm and Tomas pointed the can at the wound

with no sign of resistance or fear on her part. Almost sign of trust, to let a stranger spray

something on her gunshot wound without resistance. She looked calm and collected now,

although she had smudges below her eyes after the waterworks.

Peter warned, ‘Don’t! It’s experimental and unique to us; no one else has this technology. Should

anyone do a lab test on it, they could possibly track us down and expose us.’ It was the first time

he raised his voice.

Dr Charlotte came on the comms. ‘The wound seems stable, she’s not bleeding heavily. Tell her

to keep pressure on the wound, hold it as high as she can and look for help, she will be fine.’
Tomas was still holding the woman’s arm in silence, can pointing at the wound, looking directly

into her eyes, not at the wound.

She was also silently looking directly into his eyes with an occasional sob sound, not looking at

her wound. Now she could see those blue eyes behind the face mask at this distance, while

Tomas was still. She saw his hesitation.

Gargy said, ‘Tomas, we need to go, now!’

Peter said, ‘Three minutes left.’

Tomas pulled back the surgical glue can, releasing the woman’s arm. ‘Keep pressure on it, hold

it high up and find help. You will be fine, I promise.’ Then he pointed in the direction that he

wanted her to go (back towards the reception) and quickly headed in Gargy’s direction.

The woman didn’t hesitate and started to run towards the reception area when the doors to the

VIP area opened. A few guards rushed through it. The woman turned around to see Tomas one

more time; he was already engaging the guards, killing them easily and mercilessly with the help

of Gargy. Then she sped up and soon got into the reception area, where the reception staff were

still present after emerging themselves from their cover and bravely navigating people out of the

building as soon as it seemed safe again.

Meaning, as soon as someone came from the upper floors or otherwise into the ground floor

reception area trying to use the main entrance as an exit, they turned them back and out of the

nearest side or back exit, away from the direction from where two armed masked men emerged

and passed through, killing hotel’s security staff without hesitation or mercy. Not knowing

whether they will come back out the same way, shooting everyone in sight including them.
The guests and visitors were their priority. It was commendable.

Meanwhile, Gargy and Tomas tore through the VIP area, killing now only a sporadic guard,

looking for the sex slave girls’ holding cells. They had to split again. Gargy went into Igor’s

office to look for any intel while Tomas continued to explore the VIP area, frantically looking

for anything suspicious. But there was nothing. Empty rooms, no girls in sight. Although, it was

obvious what the purpose of those rooms was. Love nests.

Then Tomas found a room that was likely the hold location of the sex slave girls. But it was also

empty. The Russians probably already managed to relocate them out as soon as the firefight

started. This was later confirmed by Peter during his after analysis of the camera evidence.

Peter said, ‘We have to go! Get to your exit location.’ Not far from Igor’s office was the

emergency exit that led directly into the streets, where the Agency’s other van containing Lubos,

Charlotte, and Helena, was already stationed.

Gargy said, ‘On my way.’

Tomas noted, ‘Haven’t located the girls yet.’

Peter said, ‘Possibly not here anymore. Get moving before the police make our escape much

harder.’

There was slight hesitation on Tomas’s part, and after 3–4 seconds: ‘Roger that, on my way.’

Tomas wasn’t happy though. He would really like to know how it would feel to release those

girls. He even carried $200,000 that Peter had given him to give to the girls once he found them,

knowing they would need means of surviving after their rescue. But it wasn’t meant to be.
 To him, despite hitting the primary target, this was a failed mission. Tomas jumped last into the

get-away van.

Lubos announced into the comms, ‘They are both in, we’re leaving.’

Dr Charlotte assessed Tomas and Gargy. ‘Can’t see any visual injury.’

Nurse Helena added, ‘Me either. Both look unharmed.’

Violetta announced, ‘Well done, team!’

Peter added, ‘Roger that. See you at the base. Over and out.’ Both vans travelled back to the base

along different routes.

Violetta concluded, ‘Safe journey, see you at the base. Over and out.’

o Chapter 3: Goldie Girl

Zack Hemsey – See What I Have Become 3:54

All arrived safely at the base and were warmly greeted by the base’s staff, Violetta up front. The

mission was considered a huge success with only minor losses. Only one confirmed injured

civilian at that time, and both Tomas and Gargy were uninjured. Relatively speaking, Tomas’s

large shoulder bruise didn’t apparently count. Both Apex Armours had only minor damage done

to them, with only one piece to be replaced, the left hand on Tomas’s armour. Total cost
including the ammunition expenditure was acceptable, $325,000 US, of which the left arm

replacement alone was $300,000. Considering that instead of blowing Tomas’s arm completely

off it only gave him a massive, painful bruise that would allow him to continue to participate in

future missions, it was a good trade-off.

Despite the general satisfaction that ruled throughout the base, Tomas couldn’t help but feel

guilty over what he had done to the guard and failing to find the girls. He knew this would be

part of the discussion later on, and possibly on the late TV news. He wasn’t wrong. Soon, what

had taken place was all over the news. All of them. America was hypnotized by the late events in

Chicago, in combination with what had happened previously to Fok, relentlessly bringing up late

news on the subject every hour or two for almost a week straight.

Peter managed to hack into the cameras of Igor’s hotel, erasing all video evidence to his

satisfaction, leaving much of the information gathered by the police coming only from the

witnesses. Of course, the lady that got shot in her forearm became an overnight star. She turned

out to be an undercover reporter herself, doing an independent investigation into Igor

Stachenko’s possible involvement in illegal sex trade activity. More importantly, she was the

leading witness, and insisted that the assailant (two attackers were still not confirmed, although

two different descriptions of the face mask were provided) didn’t want to hurt any of the

civilians. In contrary, she passionately told her story about the assailant even shielding her with

his own body. Furthermore, she claimed that the assailant was most certainly there to rescue the

girls that were forced to work at the hotel against their will. Although admitting it was only an

assumption on her part, based on the behaviour of the assailant.

But that wouldn’t discount 57 bodies that had been recovered on the scene. Tomas was still

presented as much a mass murderer as a vigilante. Public opinion swung back and forth, with
stories of the deceased’s families claiming they were just honest guys working in an honest job,

then FBI’s admitting that they were already investigating Stachenko for possible involvement in

multiple illegal activities, including sex-slaving, adding that many of the deceased were possibly

involved one way or another. Accomplices to the crimes, if nothing else.

The media tried to make a profile (physical and psychological) of Tomas, and often invited Faith

Goldie, the independent media journalist with the injured forearm, for interviews. Once she was

asked to describe the brutality of what had happened in front of her, but still defended Tomas.

Faith said that it was her opinion that the assailant (Tomas) reacted the way he did, causing

multiple fractures and the face-crush, followed by a violent snap of the guard’s neck, only after

she got hit in her forearm. Quickly adding the fact that he was about to offer her medical help at

first, then only provided medical advice while pointing to the safe way out. ‘Possibly due to the

lack of time to find the slave girls. She insisted that he wasn’t a heartless, killing psycho, rather a

vigilante possibly seeking justice.

When she was asked if she now thought that he was involved in what happened months ago to

Mr. Fok, she answered, ‘Absolutely, I think it was him, not a war of the mob.’ Interestingly,

when she was asked to describe Tomas’s appearance, she provided a detailed description of his

bodysuit (as she called it) and the face mask. But not once did she mention that she saw his eyes

too. That she knew they were blue. Peter dug up her police report; not a mention of it in there

either.

Peter said, ‘Maybe we have just found an ally.’

Every time she was asked if she thought the assailant belong behind bars, she dodged the

question by answering, ‘All I can be certain of is that I wouldn’t be here now talking to you if it
wasn’t for him. The guards were disregarding any civilians, including me, during the

engagement. If he didn’t shield me with his own body while getting shot himself, the guard that

was violently killed in front of me afterwards would have certainly recklessly shot me dead.’

Violetta said, ‘It certainly looks like it.’

Indeed, it turned out that multiple civilians and two reception staff got hit during the engagement

in the bar/ballroom area, and even in the reception area itself, because of the bullets penetrating

through several walls. Both the witnesses and the FBI’s analysis confirmed that all of the injured

were hit by the guards’ fire. All witnesses adding that the assailant they saw (still not confirmed

two of them) seemed to be actively moving away from them or the other civilians, to not get

them in the crossfire, even though it made the assailant obviously more exposed to the guards’

fire, resulting in him being seen getting visibly shot due to that behaviour. It would have been a

total PR win for the agency if it wasn’t for the occasional “deceased story”, or nationally

broadcast mass burial ceremony.

Conveniently, the president didn’t attend the ceremony either, due to the possible connections to

crime syndicates of the deceased and Mr. Stachenko. But he did broadcast his condolences to the

families of the deceased and his disapproval of what had happened, promising to catch all

responsible for it.

Still, the Agency as a whole was pleased with the public opinion as much as with the result of the

mission. Of course, Tomas’s uncalled for brutality had come into question by some at the base,

even though no one, including Peter, said anything directly to him. Peter just mumbled on the

debrief session towards Tomas, ‘Don’t mess with it that much next time, and just take them out
quickly, or someone could get hurt again’, but wouldn’t dig any deeper into it or mention it ever

after.

Violetta, though…she challenged Tomas during their next mandatory session, asking what was

that all about. Tomas just replied that his initial reaction of multiple fractures was just that, an

automatic reaction to the guard’s actions, nothing more. A lie, of course; his ego got hurt. When

asked about the way he killed the guard after, he replied, ‘I thought it was obvious. He had hurt

the woman, and I got angry in the heat of the moment.’ Violetta challenged him further, but

Tomas dismissed it with, ‘It was fast. He didn’t feel a thing. It doesn’t matter how it looked, it

wasn’t inhuman, if that is what you’re trying to suggest,’ shutting her down for the time being.

Still, self-reflecting on it after, even he resented what he had done. He had slipped again, gave in

to his inner demons again and he had to admit it. This was not what he wanted to become. This

was exactly what he had been scared of becoming. ‘Inhuman, animal, heartless, antipathic robot’.

Someone that his own mom would resent having given birth to. He had to get it under control.

First, he had to admit that he got pleasure from killing the guard the way he did. Second,

acknowledge that it is a good thing that he regrets it now. Third, actively resist the violent urge

the next time he would get it. At this point, he wouldn’t even lose any sleep over what had

happened, including the incident with Fok, as he secretly used to before. ‘It is just an adaptation

to immediate reality; it happens to soldiers too. It doesn’t mean that you don’t care anymore, it

doesn’t mean that you turned into animal.’

Too bad his subconsciousness didn’t believe that one bit. Deep down, Tomas was still uneasy

about how easily he could now deal with the brutal violence that he witnessed or caused.
Regardless, as time had passed since the first mission, he had a change of heart and just wanted

out before it was too late for him. Tomas thought that, should he continue the killing, he would

just become totally numb to it. A scary thought.

Linkin Park – A Place For My Head 3:06

“I'm sick of the tension, sick of the hunger,

sick of you acting like I owe you this.

Find another place to feed your greed - while I find a place to rest.”

Peter decided to lay low after the Stachenko mission, as the FBI was actively hunting for them,

but used the time to gather more intelligence on the Russians for the next mission. He wanted to

cripple them like Tomas crippled the triads. Chicago being their home base for operations, and

Fok their godfather in the US, the other cells and their local bosses were forced to pay for

protection to the other mob families. Their power all but disappeared soon after the incident.

Peter wanted to get Ivan Velicenko, the Russian godfather the was based in Manhattan, New

York City. In the meantime, he was just sending Tomas and Gargy individually all over the US

on single, low-importance (low-ranking brutes) target missions. Nothing that would even appear

in the local news, let alone get connected to the recent Chicago events.
They were gone for four days max. That wasn’t what Tomas wanted right now, or needed.

Tomas felt like he needed out before it was too late, but instead he was getting further down into

the rabbit hole. But he didn’t know how to tell it to the team, or Peter. Tomas felt like he would

betray them after all the investments they made in him, the planned future. Especially while he

was portraying himself as someone that can be relied on and is willing to do the hard things that

no one else would have the stomach to, so they don’t have to. How he could leave after just one

main mission, after he’d accepted to get on board with them just months prior? All the training

that he’d received, all the hopes that were put into him as the point man?

Tomas continued to go on those low-importance missions, but now and then, he showed signs of

resentment to do so. Violetta quickly sensed it and asked Tomas about that during their next

session. But of course, Tomas denied everything and just said everything was okay.

Violetta warned Peter about it, but he dismissed it with, ‘Tomas is just being Tomas. He’s

probably mad that he can’t just play computer games with Gargy all the time and has to do actual

work that is probably, in his mind, not worthy of a man of his calibre.’

Violetta asked Gargy too. At this point, everybody at the base knew that Tomas and Gargy

quickly grew into best friends and were getting tighter every day. Always bantering, always

entertaining the whole base with their non-stop mischief, their childish behaviour and

competitive nature. Non-stop pestering each other. One could easily think that they hated each

other’s guts seeing them just once, but the opposite was the truth. They used foul language,

laughed at each other’s failures, and taunted each other the way they did only because they

became such good friends that it had nothing but an entertaining effect.
Gargy called Tomas “the swine” most of the time, teasing him about his mid-section, since

Gargy’s was certainly slightly better, and Tomas called Gargy “the pest”, contesting his “angel”

image. But even Gargy had no idea; Tomas wouldn’t ever express his feelings or concerns to

anyone. If they were at their best behaviour, Gargy stopped calling Tomas just “Tomas”, but

rather called him Tomik, which was always his nickname that his friends knew Tomas by.

No one else dared or wanted to call him Tomik, just Martin (Gargy). Not that Tomas was feared

or didn’t have any other friends. But mostly out of respect, as they didn’t think they knew him

well enough. Except Lubos, Cop, Helena, Catherine, and even Peter, who were often spending

their free time with Gargy and Tomas, as there was always fun with them and they both had

different qualities. Gargy was truly the “angel”, unselfish and always ready to help, just nice to

be around. Tomas…many found him intellectually stimulating. Often proving his extensive

knowledge on many subjects. He was also very blunt but in a good way, not rude. You wanted a

real or realistic opinion? Unbiased by personal motives? Not scared to offend you by the “truth”

if it can help you? You go to Tomas. Many in the base did for that reason and found him very

helpful, to Violetta’s annoyance. Tomas even joked about that in one of their sessions, that he

should get paid for the advisory role. ‘Don’t worry, you’re still the shrink. I’m just the life

coach,’ he joked.

Four months after their first mission and five low-importance missions later, Tomas had built-up

resentment towards Peter’s low-level missions. He felt that those mission were pointless, and

that Peter was pushing it. Always asking for favours and acting like Tomas owed him. All

combined with his inner dilemma about stopping the killing, Tomas exploded during the next

assignment briefing with Peter. Of course, for the whole base to see, as it was broadcast on the
main mission screen at that time. People didn’t even need to tune into it, it was right there on the

biggest screen.

Tomas said, ‘I don’t want to do it,’ after Peter gave him the short briefing.

Peter asked, ‘What? Why?!’ He really didn’t expect it. But he didn’t give any time to Tomas to

answer it.

‘The time schedule is tight; this is not the time to say no. Go, do the mission, and we will talk

after.’ Peter said in a normal, calm voice, then lowered his sight off Tomas, expecting him to

leave, and focused back to the screen that had intelligence on another target.

Tomas said, ‘I don’t think so.’ Peter looked back at Tomas and shook his head. “Why?!”

Tomas had no answer, he just stood there. He couldn’t say that he thought this was making him a

bad person, that he actually wanted out. But not completely; they were family to him now,

especially Gargy. He still wanted to be part of the team, but just like Peter himself, in a non-

active way. But how could he? He pretended to be someone else the whole time, and now people

relied on him.

Peter said, ‘What is it? Do you think this kind of mission is beneath you?’ That just gave Tomas

fuel to the fire, Tomas sensed another “favour”.

Tomas replied, ‘This isn’t exactly what I signed up for.’

Peter said, ‘I thought you signed up to do justice, to make right what is wrong.’

‘Any idiot can kill a person, there is no need for all of this,’ Tomas said, pointing around

himself.
Peter noted, ‘True, but this is what we do. We can’t just sit on our asses until the next big

mission. It could take months; perhaps it wouldn’t even be possible again at this scale. We don’t

know. In the meantime, we provide any justice that we can, no matter how small. You know that

every target deserved death, you have seen the briefings.’ Tomas had to change his tactics, not to

expose the real reasons.

Tomas said, ‘Okay, what if I said I don’t want to be part of the low-profile missions anymore?’

He really needed a rest. Out of it all; out of the killing.

Peter said, ‘I would ask you to do me a favour.’

‘To do the mission?’

‘Yes.’

Tomas said, ‘Well, that is what you always do: Tomas, could you do me a favour?’

This was true; Peter was always polite and a gentleman. He wouldn’t give orders. He always

asked for doing a favour for him instead. But everyone knew that he was the boss and could

order them if needed.

Tomas said, ‘Maybe I’ve done you enough favours already.’

‘Tomas, I admire you and respect you, okay? But this is serious. When you joined the team, you

agreed to what we do, and the chain of command. Besides, I pay you after every mission and on

a monthly basis. It’s a job; you can’t just say no.’

Tomas said, ‘This isn’t about salary. You said it yourself, remember? Besides, I come from a

poor background. I don’t even know what to do with the thirty-seven million I already have.’

Peter said, ‘So at least we could agree that I’m generous to you, right?’
‘Oh, here we go again…’ Tomas said, rolling his eyes.

‘What do you mean?’

‘Listen, I’m not trying to undermine your authority, nor do I want your place. But what

happened to we are all equal at this table’?

Peter said, ‘Desk. It’s a desk.’

‘Whatever,’ Tomas said with an annoyed expression.

Peter said, ‘Nothing happened to it. You don’t feel like you have your voice in the team, the

agency?’

Tomas said, ‘That is not the problem.’

‘Then what is it?’ Peter was really puzzled.

‘I think that some of us do a lot more than others to be called “equals”.’ He was referring to the

main team at the round table.

‘Tomas, look around. All that you see, I am providing it. Who gives you all the intelligence on

the target, your equipment, medical support, a place to stay, food? The list goes on. Who do you

think pays for it all? On top of that, you’re getting paid generously.’ Now Tomas could hear a bit

of annoyance in Peter’s voice.

‘This is what I’m talking about. You always act as if I owe you. Now you talk that this is a job,

and I’m an employee. If that is the case, then all of this you talk about that you provide are just

tools I need to do the job, for you. The money you say I get, I earned. I don’t owe you shit.’
Peter said, ‘I wasn’t suggesting that. I simply implied that I do a lot too, maybe not in the field,

but we all do our specific roles. In that, we are equal.’

Tomas said, ‘I didn’t see anyone else take a .50 to their shoulder. I guess some people in the

team are…let’s say, harder to replace.’

‘I thought you wanted this. Nobody forced you, Tomas,’ Peter said with a concerned expression.

‘Peter, I wanted to help, not to be always indebted to you.’ Tomas was now obviously

distressed.

‘I never said that you owe me.’

Tomas said, ‘Then stop asking for favours. Peter, I like you, but you’re crossing a line at this

point.’

Of course, if it wasn’t for the killing part and Tomas trying to get a break away from it, this

wouldn’t be an issue in the first place.

Peter said, ‘Crossing a line? Tomas, I’m just being polite. Correction. I’m not just being polite,

it’s also an order.’ Now he was really got irritated, Tomas could hear it.

Tomas said firmly, ‘And I need a break from your orders.’

Peter said, ‘I don’t understand. What happened to you? Where is this hostility coming from?!’

Tomas said, ‘I’m not being hostile, I just need some rest. I need to go someplace else for a

while.’

‘What, why?’

‘You are pushing too hard, Peter. I have had enough.’

‘I don’t understand. Tomas, you had five low-level missions in the last four months. How is that

asking too much?’

After watching and listening to the main mission screen for a while, Violetta decided to enter the

briefing room.

Violetta said, ‘Okay, boys, I think you can use some help with the communication.’

Tomas said, ‘We’re doing just fine.’ Violetta expected that kind of reaction out of Tomas. She

fully understood that to Tomas, the whole “psychology thing” as he called it, was a bullshit.

‘Tomas…’ Peter said in a disappointed voice.

Violetta said, ‘It’s okay, no offence taken. But with all due respect, I beg to differ.’

Tomas had that slightly annoyed face, but enough courtesy to shut up and listen.

Violetta said, ‘You can go, Tomas. Consider yourself on holidays until further notice.’ Tomas

still stood there, a bit surprised, expecting resistance from Peter.

Peter said, ‘But –’

Violetta said, ‘No but! Chain of command, remember? I can overrule you, should it be needed.

We will stay to discuss further though. Tomas, you’re free to go.’ She nodded her head at him

again.

Tomas said, ‘Thanks?!’ With uncertain, slow steps, he slowly turned around and walked away.

He was still expecting Peter to stop him at any moment, but he didn’t.

***
As soon as Tomas left the briefing room, Violetta ordered Peter into her office for a private

conversation. Considering what the base just witnessed at the main mission screen, then the fact

that Violetta overruled Peter’s orders for the first time, then ordered him into her office,

obviously for the reason of privacy so that the base was not a witness to that, left a sour

atmosphere in the Agency as a whole. Most people were on Peter’s side, not understanding

Tomas’s disobedience. But still, some were on Tomas’s side, also thinking that Peter just pushes

too hard at times, and that someone like Tomas truly does risk more than others, therefore needs

more rest.

Once Violetta had Peter in her office, he naturally unleashed at her for helping Tomas. She

quickly shut him down, suggesting that Tomas, just as Peter himself before, had reached his

breaking point. It wasn’t visible at all. Tomas was always like a rock, with no regrets on the

outside, doing what needs to be done because someone had to, without showing any signs of

consequences. ‘But that’s just Tomas, the way he is,’ she suggested.

Violetta had the right idea. Not exactly right, but close enough. The problem, of course, was not

that Tomas didn’t have the stomach for the killings anymore. The problem was that he had NO

problem at all doing it, even getting occasional pleasure out of it. Tomas was scared of what he

was becoming, resenting it.

Violetta said, ‘I think if we give him some space, he will be just fine. He will deal with it. But,

should you push it now, he may leave us altogether.’

Peter said, ‘But he was talking about me asking too many favours. They’re not favours, they are

tasks to do! Like everyone else does.’

Violetta said, ‘And if I’m right, do you expect someone like Tomas to admit weakness? To say

sorry, I can’t do it because I don’t have the stomach for it anymore? Or, would he react in a way

like we just saw? Indirectly saying that he can’t do it, because of someone else’s fault or other

reasons?’

Peter said, ‘He seemed genuine, blaming me for acting like he owes it to me, like I ask too

much.’

Violetta said, ‘That was a genuine reaction, but not the real cause of that kind of reaction. I bet

that if you asked him anything else but to go kill someone, even a hundred times more difficult,

he would have gone to do it without hesitation. You have seen his work ethic, the focus and

dedication, all the extra training that he undergoes willingly. Do you really think this was him

being lazy?’

Peter thought about it for a few seconds in silence, then declared, ‘This is why we have you,

thank you! I could have made a terrible mistake escalating this further. But if you’re right, how

could I ask of him what I myself can’t do for the same reasons?’

Another moment of silence ensued.

Peter said, ‘Do you think he will be able to kill again, or are we basically done here?’ he realized

that the grand plans of his wouldn’t be possible without Tomas after all. As good as Gargy was,

he would be still but one man without the necessary sniper cover, and had little close-quarters

combat experience against multiple opponents.

Violetta said, ‘I’m sure he will. Tomas will adjust again, he just needs some time. He’s not you;

he’s much more detached than you. But he’s not evil. He’s got a conscience, just like you and

me. After a while, the conscience needs some rest. When was the last time he didn’t kill anyone
in a month? Never mind two. This is a good sign! Trust me, we don’t want him to become a

stone-cold killer. Gargy may have killed too, but mostly at range. It’s less personal, less

traumatic. Not to mention that Tomas has killed up to two hundred people at close range in what,

one year? Gargy has been in business for years, and the Chicago mission with Tomas put him at

what, forty-five confirmed kills? Almost quadrupling his previous score? We can only guess at

this point whether the next big mission won’t put Gargy at the breaking point as well.’

Peter was closely listening to what Violetta was saying, and it was clear that he was thinking

about it the whole time too.

Peter said, ‘As I said, thank you. Perhaps I was pushing too hard. Perhaps those low-key

missions are really not worth our time, considering the negative effect it may have on our agents.

One would have thought that I would have learned that lesson already. Yet, I was blind to it.’

Violetta said, ‘Gargy is okay to do the low-key mission. I’m sure he’s fine. But Tomas, he needs

rest for sure.’

Peter said, ‘I think I will cease them altogether for a while; we can’t get them all, after all. And

Gargy deserves time off too.’

Violetta said, ‘It’s your call. You can go now.’

Peter got up and walked to the doors. While still holding the doorknob, he turned around. ‘You

know, I don’t think that people appreciate you enough. I just realized that I belong to that

category too, even though I was convinced otherwise. Makes me want to send you on holidays

too, but I’m scared to. Because I truly don’t know what we would do without you, what could

happen in your absence.’ He said it in a semi-joking way, but it was obvious that Peter was also

serious about it. It made Violetta laugh.

‘Well, good thing is that you can’t. But if you carry on like this, I would be forced to send YOU

on holidays,’ she laughed.

Peter responded with a defeated nod of his head, realizing that it was the truth; technically, she

was above him.

Violetta joked, ‘Shouldn’t have given me that much power,’ adding a wink at Peter.

Peter said, ‘No, I’m glad I did.’ He bowed his head to her and left her office. It made Violetta

feel good about herself too, for sure.

‘Should have asked for a raise, dummy,’ Violetta said to herself, but quickly realized that she

had enough as it was.

Peter was truly generous to everyone that worked for the Agency. One might think it was to buy

their loyalty, but it was truly due to Peter being who he was. Although even he realized that it

would definitely help boosting it.

Evanescence – Going Under 3:34

“Now I will tell you what I've done for you - 50 000 tears I've cried.

Screaming, deceiving and bleeding for you - and you still won't hear me.”

Only three days had passed since Violetta’s intervention between Peter and Tomas. Gargy had

returned from his low-key mission and, united with Tomas, had provided a day-long

entertainment for the whole base again.

Gargy’s girlfriend, Ulrike, lived at the base with him and at this point, started to resent Tomas.

To be jealous of him, more precisely. Still, Tomas was always making fun of Gargy for being

‘pussyfied’ by his girlfriend every time she called Gargy to spend some time with her.

Peter was a married man. His wife, Justina, was living at the base with him; no kids yet. Tomas

wouldn’t ever make fun of him for spending more of his free time with his wife than his friends.

Also due to the fact that he was technically the boss at the base. Although Tomas didn’t perceive

Peter as such, he understood that it was important that others would think he did. Therefore,

Peter would only join the knights of the table – a term that had slowly settled at the base,

referring to the main team – for fun, when they were alone. Rarely if others were involved.

It was ten in the morning when Tomas, Gargy, Lubos, and Catherine were just playing Company

of Heroes while Peter, Cop, Violetta, and Helena were watching. Dr Charlotte was attending to

an injured team member that had a minor accident in the base’s stores involving slip-fall when

they noticed some kind of buzz in the base. Peter quickly went to see what was going on and

changed the main mission screen from broadcasting the game to the local news channel’s

breaking news, accompanied by a loud cry of disapproval from the previous onlookers and

players of the PC game. It ceased as quickly as it started.

The reporter started her broadcast. ‘Here I am in Chicago at the NBC tower, where two hours

ago, terrorists entered the building and are holding its residents and workers hostage. As many as

eight hundred people are expected to be in the building. The terrorists control the lobby area with

at least fifteen confirmed armed men, and are not allowing anyone in or out of the building.

According to reports, the people inside were told that anyone trying to use the stairs or the

elevators would be shot.

‘It’s unknown how many terrorists are actually inside the building, but no less than a dozen

armed men were accounted for by the police on the upper floors. Specifically, on the twenty-

sixth to the twenty-eighth floors, where on the twenty-eighth floor, the terrorists also planted at

least one explosive device of some sort. The police doesn’t know exactly what kind of explosive

device it is, but according to the police observers and the terrorists themselves it is incendiary,

and presents no actual structural threat to the stability of the building. Supposedly it is meant to

kill people on the inside only.

‘Most likely, all of the people that were present below the twenty-sixth floor were already

transported to the floors above it during the last two hours. The terrorists themselves claim that it

is only to prevent the police from interfering with their demands which are currently unknown,

according to the police.

‘Interestingly, it has been brought to our attention that the attack on the building began during

Chicago’s channel five interview with Faith Goldie. Yes, the woman that had met the vigilante

face to face and has defended him ever since in every interview she’s given.

‘FBI experts on the scene have stated it is their opinion that the terrorists are trying to lure the

vigilante into conflict in hopes of killing him while the whole country is watching it on TV. The

motive being to avenge the death of the alleged Russian Mafia boss in Chicago, Igor Stachenko.

They also stated that it is their belief the terrorists are probably trying to use Faith Goldie as bait

because of her possible relationship to the vigilante. This has already been disproven by the FBI;

however, her passionate defence of the vigilante may be reason enough for the vigilante to show

up and try to save her.

‘Yes, the FBI also thinks that soon enough, if the vigilante does not show up, the terrorists will

demand he appear or else people will die, no doubt Faith Goldie among them, if not first.

‘The NBC tower is thirty-seven stories high, which makes it impossible for the police, FBI, and

the SWAT unit that is also already present to commence a rescue mission to save the people

inside the tower without endangering the hostages’ lives.

‘The terrorists have also installed multiple cameras at the roof of the building, along with two

flying drones, preventing any assault force to come via air or be deployed from the roof. More

cameras installed by the terrorists are possible and expected within the building itself.

‘For now, everybody is just waiting for what will happen next as so far, the FBI’s negotiator has

been denied any contact by the terrorist themselves. The area surrounding the tower has been

fully evacuated, and the tower itself blocked off by the police. Snipers have been spotted on the

upper floors of the Equitable Building that is across the street from the NBC tower.

‘Multiple SWAT teams are waiting for the command to assault the building with only one entry

point, which is through the lobby of the building and has been heavily reinforced by the

terrorists. But it is certain that no such command will be given until the bomb threat at the

twenty-eighth floor is neutralized.

‘How will this end? Nobody knows, but we are staying at the location and will broadcast live

until the situation is resolved, so stay tuned. We are also posting minute-by-minute updates on

the situation on our webpage.’ Then she proceeded to walk around and point at different

locations on and around the building, describing the situation in more detail.

Tomas said, ‘Fuck me. What are we going to do?’

Peter replied calmly, ‘Nothing, for now. We don’t even know what this is truly about.’

Violetta said, ‘Shouldn’t we at least try to help?’

In distress, more people said yes to that.

Peter replied firmly, ‘The rescue mission is a job for the police, not us. If we go there, we will

just get arrested – or worse.’

Violetta noted, ‘We can’t just leave them to die.’

Once again, you could hear yeahs from almost all the people in the base, on or off the screen.

Peter said, ‘We don’t even know if this is really connected to us, not until the demands are made

public. Besides, we don’t even know if the bomb is real and if they really plan to blow the people

up.’ Everybody went silent.

Peter added, ‘But, let me do my thing. I will find out.’ He went to the briefing room, followed by

Violetta. Tomas and Gargy were ordered to get ready and suit up. Just in case. Lubos went to

help them while Cop went to prepare the chopper and disguise it as a TV station chopper on

Peter’s command.

It took Peter less than half an hour to use government satellites and some advanced hacking to

confirm that the bomb was indeed present on the twenty-eighth floor and that all of the people in

the building had been corralled to the twenty-sixth floor and above.

Finally, the long-expected demands arrived. Faith Goldie appeared on Chicago’s channel 5

station. She looked scared but collected. No sign of tears or violence done on her.

‘I’m Faith Goldie, and I am being held hostage in the NBC tower in Chicago. It’s ten forty-three

in the morning here, and if the masked man that attacked and killed Igor Stachenko in his hotel
here in Chicago on January 18, 2016, doesn’t show up before four p.m. today, my captors will

start killing the hostages, starting with me, then one more every ten minutes until he does.

‘If the police try to interfere and attempt to rescue the remaining hostages, they will blow up

incendiary bomb that is planted in the building. They do not wish to harm anyone, and once they

get what they want, they will leave in peace. If the police try to interfere with their actions, or

trying to stop them from leaving the building after, or attempt to track them, they will blow up

the bomb inside the building.

‘They would like to remind the police that the bomb can be remotely operated, and all of the

stairwells and elevators but one have been sabotaged so the hostages have no means of escape

once the bomb is exploded. The remaining elevator is also rigged with an explosive device.

‘They urge the masked man to step up and save the lives of innocent people.’

Then the broadcast cut out and the media went crazy, speculating if the “masked man” (adopting

the terrorists’ term) would show up and what they would do to him, as the terrorists didn’t state

their intentions with him.

The president ordered the police not to interfere, and to let the vigilante to enter the building

should he show up. He also promised the vigilante/masked man that once he was in the building,

the police, FBI, etc. would do everything in their power to not let the terrorists harm him.

Of course, the dilemma of what would stop the terrorists from detonating the bomb that was

inside the building once they got what they wanted and were gone was still present. The people

inside the tower were basically trapped, and it would take hours to get them out safely, even once

the terrorists had left. ‘Can we trust the terrorists to not harm any hostages?’ was the frequently

asked question of the media.

The FBI was helpless, and operated with the idea to detonate a low-yield nuclear electromagnetic

pulse bomb (EMP). But that would destroy all electrically operated devices in a two-five-mile

radius, causing astronomical financial loss while potentially killing people that were on

electrically operated devices, such as electrical cars, airplanes, life support machines, and more.

And at the same time, while the terrorists were present in the building, presumed manual

mechanical detonation of the bomb would still be possible. This would be an option only once

they were all out of the building, to prevent the terrorists from detonating the bomb after they

left. It was denied as potentially even more harmful than the incendiary device itself. All they

could do was to wait and pray.

No one knew what could be done, and what difference it would make to the fate of the hostages,

even if the vigilante/masked man showed up.

Peter said, ‘Well, it’s official. Apparently, it’s about you, Tomas.’

Tomas exclaimed, ‘What the fuck?!’

Gargy noted, ‘Technically, it should be about me. I killed Igor Stachenko.’

Tomas said, ‘I’m not surprised you got me into trouble, you pest, you.’ Even now, he was in the

mood to joke around with Gargy, but it didn’t really entertain anyone due to the seriousness of

the situation.

Peter said, ‘Well, I can’t send you there, nor would I advise you to go. They will just kill you, or

the FBI will arrest you. The hostages could still die anyway. This is a no-win situation.’

Tomas said, ‘I can’t just ignore it though. Especially with Faith being involved. She has been

defending my ass – all our asses – publicly. Which definitely pulled some pressure off us, as
public opinion is leaning towards us as being the good guys. I mean, sure, they say the FBI is

looking for us, but it has been months now, and how far did they get with that? What has

changed for us since? Are they truly looking for us, or just saying it? I don’t feel like we’re an

important target to them.’

Peter said, ‘Well, trust me, I had a lot to do with it, as did our benefactor, Matty. It isn’t an

accident that they’re always finding new barriers in carrying out their investigation, but I do see

your point.’

Tomas asked, ‘And what about the people? What if eight hundred of them die because of me?’

Gargy added, ‘Us.’

Tomas said, ‘Right, but the terrorists blame me directly. I know some of you may think I

wouldn’t care, but I would. Granted, I wouldn’t show it, probably, but I couldn’t really live with

it. Not if there was anything I could have done to prevent the tragedy.’

Violetta put in, ‘No one thinks like that about you Tomas, at least none of the knights. You

wouldn’t be on the team should it be otherwise.’ Knights in attendance nod their head in

agreement.

After typing frantically into his keyboard displayed on the round glass-desk in front of him and

making some notes on the clear write-on wall placed into the centre of the round glass-desk,

Peter stated, ‘Well, this is what I have come up with. It’s really dangerous, but it’s the best I have

come up with in this short time span.’

Tomas said, ‘Do tell.’

Peter asked, ‘You boys have done a lot of practicing on wingsuit deployment, right?’
Tomas and Gargy were both intrigued. ‘Yeah?’

Peter said, ‘You probably know it’s an experimental deployment and extraction method to keep a

low profile. I think it’s about time we utilized it.’ All of the knights, and surely all in the base (it

was on the main mission screen, of course) listened carefully.

Peter said, ‘You can’t just walk in through the front entrance, we know that, or you’re a dead

man. And most likely the hostages shortly after Velicenko’s people have left.’

‘Velicenko’s people?’ A unanimous buzz filled the room.

Peter said, ‘Of course. Are you surprised? This is revenge for Stachenko and the Russian

business disruption in Chicago. Now the Italians are taking over, like in the early 1920s. They

have finally found a way where they can dictate the rules of engagement to us. Most of the

captors are mercenaries and bounty hunters, of course, no one that could be connected to

Velicenko directly. Except for his right-hand officer, Josif Antolijev, I would imagine. He’s not

in the public life at all anyway, and is the only man Velicenko truly trusts. He’s a big guy, likes

machine guns. This is only a guess on my part, but I’m rarely wrong.’ The whole base was

buzzing with chatter. Then, as soon as Peter continued, the chatter stopped.

‘So, I would be in a chopper that will be disguised as a news helicopter taking you both to the

deployment area that would be three kilometres south of the NBC tower at an altitude of one

kilometre.’ Peter took a short pause, looking like he was going through the plan in his head again

and then he continued.

‘So, Gargy will jump out first and navigate his wingsuit to exactly five hundred meters away

and fifty meters above the AON building, which is seven hundred meters to the south of the

NBC tower, and will deploy his paragliding chute to land on top of the AON building. The AON
centre building is almost twice as tall as the NBC tower, at eighty-three floors, compared to

thirty-seven floors of the NBC tower.

‘This will be his sniping position. It’s quite far away, but Gargy has it under control, right?’

Gargy replied, ‘No doubt.’

Peter continued. ‘The best location is the Equitable building, only two hundred meters west of

the NBC tower, but that is taken by the police, FBI, and the SWAT teams. At that angle, looking

down from the rooftop of AON Center, Gargy would only be able to cover the south side of the

NBC tower, and only about ten meters inside the building on the twenty-sixth floor, a bit more

each floor higher up. We would simply have to rely on the police helping us from their superior

sniping positions, should it be necessary.’

Gargy asked, ‘Can’t you just get me into like fiftieth floor of the AON building for a better

angle? I understand that you chose that building because it is outside of the police perimeter zone

and unguarded.’

Peter explained, ‘Its entrances are guarded by their own security forces, and the building is still

full of civilians. You can’t just walk in and deploy your sniper rifle out the window; you would

be spotted instantly. I have checked all possible buildings and scenarios. The only other equally

good option could be a nearby Trump International Hotel and Tower’s rooftop patio area, but

you would have no visual on anything below the sixteenth floor of the NBC tower, and would

have to shoot above the heads of the FBI and everyone else, exposing yourself, possibly

instantly. The AON roof is truly the best we can do.’

Gargy acquiesced, ‘Okay then, got it.’

Peter went on, ‘Okay. Then Tomas will jump out and navigate his wingsuit around the west side

of the AON tower and deploy his paragliding chute two hundred meters away at roof-level of the

NBC tower on its south side. Then he’ll use his G36 and make holes in any window on the

twenty-eighth floor where the bomb is, land through it, eliminate all Velicenko mercenaries

present, and immediately locate the bomb planted in the centre of that floor.’ Loud buzz and

chatter began in the base again as people faces showed disbelief.

Peter said, ‘I know, I know, mission impossible, but it gets better. Listen up.’

Tomas noted, ‘I know fuck-all about bombs.’

Peter said, I’m getting to it, listen. Watching your POV, Lubos will be able to instruct you how

to disarm the bomb, right?’

Lubos said ‘Sure, I could do that, if I can see the bomb.’

Tomas questioned, ‘But what will stop them from detonating the bomb once they realize they are

under attack?’

Peter answered, ‘Well, you will have to act fast once you’re in; the captors will have a reaction

delay and in that time, you have to disarm the bomb.’

‘Great. Just great,’ Tomas said in disbelief.

Peter said, ‘You don’t have to go; we don’t have to do anything. You wanted to hear what could

be done. This is the best I can come up with this fast, and trust me, this is pretty close to the best

of the best scenarios anyway. I can’t do miracles.’

Tomas said, ‘Okay, how do I get out? How will I carry two paragliding chutes?’

‘Yeah, same goes for me,’ Gargy said.

Peter said, ‘Not so fast, I will get to that, but don’t forget that disarming the bomb doesn’t mean

shit yet.’ All eyes got much wider looking at Peter, as this was the second time he had cursed,

ever, as far as they could tell. This meant that it was more than serious.

‘Velicenko’s people will still be able to start shooting people left and right after you manage to

disarm the bomb, should they choose to. Or force you into a position to give up, holding a gun to

someone’s head. Possibly Faith’s head. Now listen up, this is important!’ His voice got loud,

almost angry.

‘You can’t give up, no matter what! If the bomb is disarmed and the mercenaries start to shoot

people up, police will surely assault the building anyway. Let them take over as soon as you

make contact with them and leave the building immediately. Although it may never happen

before the captors kill all of the hostages, as they will surely blow up the last elevator as well,

killing all the hostages as fast as possible before the police storm through the roof.

Tomas said, ‘Or they may give up after the bomb is disarmed; why get killed or jailed for life?’

Peter said, ‘I wouldn’t count on it. Surely all Velicenko’s soldiers would rather die than face his

wrath after, and their families also. Remember, they are after you; they won’t hesitate to kill or

use any of the hostages to make you surrender to them finally. DO NOT SURRENDER TO

VELICENKO’S PEOPLE! This is important. You would just die senselessly. No matter what

they do to the hostages, no matter how many they kill, YOU DO NOT SURRENDER TO

THEM. Even if it was your own mom that had a gun to her head, asking you to surrender or else

she would die.’ No one ever saw a more serious face on Peter before.

Tomas said, ‘They have my mom!?’ Tomas got disturbed.

Peter said, ‘No! That was just an example to make a point. The point is that YOU WILL NEVER

SURRENDER, NO MATTER WHAT!’

Tomas said, ‘Don’t do that to me, man. For a moment I thought…’

Peter voice got calm again. ‘It makes no difference. Your mom, my mom, Violetta’s mom, it

doesn’t matter. Most of the women in there could be a mom to someone. If not, then sisters or

daughters. The point is, it doesn’t matter. You get soft in there, you give up trying to save

someone’s life, you will die. And most likely all of the hostages after you die, should you not

even manage to disarm the bomb before that. Get the point? You act like the hard-ass and tough

guy all the time, saying that you can do anything that needs to be done regardless of the

consequences to you. Now we will find out how tough you truly are, how much stress you can

take before you break. In all likelihood, you will get into a situation where they will threaten to

shoot someone unless you give up. YOU CAN’T GIVE UP NO MATTER WHAT! You will be

the best chance for anyone else that is still alive to get safely out of that tower. You will have to

sacrifice anyone and everyone to give the rest at least a chance. If seven hundred ninety-nine of

the hostages die, it’s still better than all eight hundred of them. But I’m sure you will be able to

kill all of Velicenko’s mercenaries long before the number of dead hostages could get that high.’

‘Right,’ Tomas said in a defeated manner.

Peter said, ‘You will enter the building, disarm the bomb, then you will hunt for the mercenaries.

Only once all the captors are dead or the police make contact with you will you leave the

building. I hope I don’t even have to say not to return fire on the police teams if they shoot at

you.’
Tomas said, ‘Nah, they’re just doing their job. I wouldn’t shoot at innocents, ever.’ Peter

watched Tomas’s body language closely as he was saying it, as did Violetta.

Peter said, ‘Most likely, some of the hostages will die. In crossfire, or something else. Some of

them may be used as shields, or to force you to surrender. YOU WILL NOT! If a hostage gets

killed because of that…well, you will have to live with it, or learn to live with it. But know this,

YOU HAD NO OTHER CHOICE. YOU WILL NEVER SURRENDER TO THEM. YOU

WILL NOT HESITATE WHEN THE HOSTAGE WILL BE USED AS A SHIELD OR

THREATEN TO BE SHOT. YOU WILL CONTINUE TO HUNT THEM DOWN, KILLING

THEM ALL AS FAST AS YOU CAN. THAT IS THE BEST CHANCE THOSE HOSTAGES

HAVE. YOU NEVER GIVE UP, NEVER HESITATE, KILLING AS FAST AS YOU CAN NO

MATTER WHAT HAPPENS INSIDE THE TOWER, NO MATTER HOW MANY THEY USE

OR KILL TO GET TO YOU. YOU WILL NOT SURRENDER TO THEM, PERIOD!’ Tomas

just got pummelled in a rapid fire of preaching speech, but he appreciated every single word of

it.

Tomas said, ‘I will not surrender to them, no matter what happens, no matter how many they kill

to get to me.’

Peter added, ‘Or who they threaten to kill.’

Tomas repeated, ‘Or who they threaten to kill.’

There was a moment of silence on the whole base. After Peter’s talk, everybody realized even

more the seriousness of the situation and the most likely outcome. It was very gloomy in there.

Tomas asked, ‘So, how do you get me out of the building?’

Peter said, ‘I know that this already sounds crazy, because it is…’ He paused for a moment, as if

he was thinking about it again before saying it.

‘Gargy, you can carry two chutes and get off the AON building by wing-suiting to the east,

following the Michigan River to Lake Michigan as far as possible before you will have to deploy

your second parachute to soften the landing into the lake. There, Lubos will be waiting for you in

an underwater tactical mini-sub and take you and Tomas to South Haven for extraction so we

can’t be tracked by the authorities. There will be two vans waiting for you. Cop will be driving

one and Charlotte will be with him. When Lubos comes back, he will drive the other. Catherine

will be there as well. We will split you two, and you will receive medical assistance should it be

needed. The one with worse injuries will go with Charlotte; she will decide who it will be.

Helena stays with me in the chopper, in case we have to use it for emergency non-covert

extraction.’ Tomas was waiting impatiently about his extraction out of the building, you could

see that in his face.

Peter said, ‘Tomas, you will have to wingsuit yourself to the lake as well.’

Tomas said, ‘But I will be jumping out at a much lower altitude.’ He was shocked.

Peter said, ‘I know. Listen. Velicenko’s people are using one elevator that is also rigged with

explosives to move around the building. Should you manage to take them out before they blow

up that last elevator, you could get to the top floor of the NBC tower. Once you jump out, expect

to fall…’ He looked at Cop to remind him again, as he was doing the maths in the meantime.

Cop said, ‘Roughly, fifteen to seventeen floors before your wingsuit will have enough lift to start

flying.’

Tomas said, ‘Roughly? How good at math are you?’

Cop replied, ‘We don’t know how much ammo you will have left, or how much blood you could

have possibly lost at that time. Frankly, how heavy you could be at that time. However, we

presume that you will be at maximum weight, which means the worst possible scenario.’ He

looked like he was about to continue.

Peter cut in, ‘Full health’ – a nice way to say no blood loss – ‘and fully equipped’ – meaning no

ammo spent.

Peter said, ‘Even if you jump out of the twenty-eighth floor in case of emergency, contact with

police, or you decide to pull out early, you will still make it to Lake Michigan. I’m sure no one

here would hold that against you.’ He looked around, but there was no response, just gloomy

faces.

Peter continued. ‘I promise you, no matter where you land in the lake, how close to the city, we

will pick you up and take you to South Haven, on the opposite site of the lake, underwater.’

Tomas knew the risk of that, landing with no chute to break the fall, but knew this was the best

Peter could come up with. He nodded, accepting it, no comment.

Cop noted, ‘That will almost certainly kill him.’

Peter said, ‘I do realize that, but what else can we do? Tomas will definitely need the chute to

break the fall through the window into the NBC tower. I mean, we could technically give him a

second chute as well and strap it to his front side, like on Gargy, but you know the size of that

thing. It will render it a lot harder for him to maneuverer the wingsuit, for starters, possibly

killing him should he accidentally descend too low or mess up turning around at AON centre.

That manoeuvre is already hard enough, almost impossible, without overpacking him on top of

that. I mean, Gargy just has to land on a roof that is much higher, with a clear approach, without
resistance. Tomas has to navigate around the AON building and then he will have two to three

seconds to position himself correctly towards the intended window, or else he will miss and may

die. Never mind that he will get shot at the longer the approach takes.’

Cop noted, ‘There is another possibility.’

Peter and Tomas both said, ‘I’m listening,’ simultaneously. They looked at each other for a

second, then paid attention to Cop again.

‘Tomas will carry just one chute, for extraction.’ Peter was about to interrupt him.

Cop stopped him. ‘Let me explain! The impact of flying as fast as he will be when hitting the

surface of the water would mess up Tomas more than going through the window of the NBC

tower and then landing on the floor surface inside the twenty-eighth floor unassisted, without the

stopping power of the parachute.’ He carried on while people gave him weird faces.

Peter said, ‘You want him to crash into the building at top speed through the window?!’

‘Not exactly, but yes. I’ll explain, let me finish.’ He took a short pause and scanned the room.

‘Having no G36 on Tomas to shoot through the window before the impact will give him even

better manoeuvrability. As soon as Tomas flies by the west side of the Aon tower, it will be

Gargy’s responsibility to shoot the window at the twenty-eighth floor for Tomas to manoeuvre

through. That will make it even easier for him to know which window line is actually the twenty-

eighth floor.’

Peter nodded. ‘Good point.’

Cop continued. ‘Now the tricky part. Tomas will have to descend to the twenty-fourth floor level

first, and then perform seventy-five degrees of elevation that will propel him to the twenty-eighth
floor at first, then he will lose the lift ability at that angle and starts to descend, or rather fall, if

you will, but with the forward momentum that he will create it will send him through the window

at the twenty-eighth floor, possibly hitting the ceiling with a small force should he not lose the

lift ability fast enough. Then he’ll fall onto the floor surface of the twenty-eighth floor uninjured.

No chute assistance, much higher surprise factor, and much less time for Velicenko’s people to

shoot Tomas whilst in the air, should he be spotted fast enough, of course.’

Peter said, ‘I thought my plan was crazy enough as it is, but you just made it even more wacky.

But the idea is sound, if you did the math correctly and it can actually work.’

Cop admitted ‘I did the math in my head, but it can easily be confirmed right now.’ He did some

calculation on the PC. ‘Well, it’s possible.’ He lifted his head back up off the screen in the table.

(The whole desk-table was a screen, basically.)

Tomas clarified, ‘So, just to recap. You want me to descend four floors below the Gargy-targeted

window, flying at roughly one hundred twenty miles per hour, and then ascend at a sharp angle

to the point that I will actually lose the ability to fly, or stall, if you will, then start falling down

uncontrollably, relying on the forward momentum I had created previously to get me into the

building through the window whilst already in free fall?’

Cop nodded and smiled. ‘That’s correct.’

Tomas noted, ‘If I do it too late, I will hit the ceiling at God knows what speed, possibly

breaking my neck. If I do it too soon, I will not make it through the window and will fall twenty-

eight floors to my death. All of that, only if I actually manage to navigate myself into the right

window in a time span of roughly two seconds. If not, I will hit the wall of the building and

either die due to the force of the hit, or just fall to my death.’
Cop cleared his throat and fidgeted a bit, smile gone. ‘Roughly, yes. It’s worth mentioning that

you will have to lose the lift force whilst exactly one and a half meters away from the building or

you will either not make it to, or through, the window into the building and yes, fall to your

death, or you will crash into the ceiling with too much force. May kill you too, it depends. If you

manage to hit the right window at all, that is. The glass alone could either prove too solid to hit

and go through without sustaining injury, or even possibly kill you at certain speeds and angles if

impacted headfirst. Or it could just bounce you off if you lose too much speed in the manoeuvre,

should you not hit the window that was marked and already shot through by Gargy. Then you

will’ – he cleared his throat again – ‘fall to your death.’

Tomas was incredulous. ‘Right.’

Gargy said to Tomas, ‘I will try to shoot through the window you aim at before you go through

it.’ All eyes turned to Gargy.

‘The first two windows will be just for your orientation, to get your bearings and sense what

floor is the twenty-eighth and twenty-fourth that you need to descent to. Then just aim at any

window on the higher-twenty-eight floor level, and I promise you, I will make a hole in it before

you go through it.’

Tomas said, ‘You will have two seconds, tops, to do that.’

Gargy said, ‘It’s actually only one; it will take slightly less than a second for the bullet to reach

the window at the distance I will shoot from.’ Tomas looked at him in disbelief.

Gargy said confidently, ‘You will have to trust me on this. I can do it.’

After a brief pause, Peter said, ‘What do you think, Tomas?’

‘I think that Cop is the expert here, and I would like to have the surprise element of it, as well as

the parachute on the way back before hitting the water. If Gargy says he can shoot any window I

aim at before I go through it, possibly headfirst, then he can. It can work.’

Peter said, ‘Your call.’

Tomas asked Cop, ‘Can’t I just use this manoeuvre to slow myself before hitting the water of the

lake on my way back?’

Cop answered, ‘You would free-fall ten to sixteen meters down on your back, or neck. This is

why you need to ascend exactly four floors, but should you get inside the building, you will not

fall back four floors. Or should I say twenty-eight? You get my point. If you had no chute, it is

still the best chance to survive the lake landing. You don’t want to hit the water at one hundred

twenty plus miles per hour.’

Tomas said, ‘That I don’t.’

Peter asked, ‘Just to clarify, what will you chose to do if you go ?’

Tomas said, ‘Surprise, then use my chute on the way back.’

Peter sat back in his chair. ‘Okay, that’s pretty much it. I know it is a beyond-crazy plan, but

possible. Should everything go according to the plan, I dare say you have a chance to rescue all

of the hostages, then escape before the authorities capture you. All considered, I can’t believe

I’m saying this, but the most dangerous and high-risk part of the plan is you having to improvise

once you’re inside. Everything else is quite precise.’

Lubos noted, ‘Except the part where I need to be able to instruct Tomas on how to disarm the

bomb. I don’t know what kind of bomb it is, yet.’

Peter agreed, ‘Right, there is also that thing. Well, I hope I don’t need to mention that you will

have to jump out of the south side on the way back,’ he added, looking at Tomas.

Tomas answered, ‘No, I can see where the river is,’ looking down at the map that was being

projected at the knights’ round table.

Peter leaned forward. ‘Okay, but considering what is at stake, and the high-risk nature of the

operation, I propose a vote.’ All surrounding noise went silent.

Violetta said, ‘Agreed. Knights, let’s start the vote. I’m against; it’s too risky.’

Tomas looked at Violetta in disbelief. ‘I thought you wanted to do something?’

‘If this is the best that we can come up with, then sorry, Tomas, but this is suicide. I will not

vote for you to go die and risk not saving anyone.’ That shut Tomas down. You could tell there

were many people at the base that agreed with Violetta by the nodding heads and murmurs.

Peter said, ‘I will abstain.’ Then he looked at Tomas.

Tomas said, ‘I’m for.’ He looked at Gargy.

Gargy said, ‘I will abstain.’ Tomas looked at him like, ‘Bro, WTF?’ But Gargy just looked down

to the floor and remained silent.

Peter said, ‘He can’t change his vote now anyway; he has voted.’

Lubos: ‘Abstain.’

Cop: ‘Abstain.’ Then he looked at Charlotte and she looked like she was panicking.

Charlotte said, ‘Tomas, how sure are you that you can manage to land inside the building without

the parachute and survive in a well enough state to fight?’

Tomas said, ‘Pretty damn sure, or else I wouldn’t want to go.’

Charlotte smiled. ‘I’m for then.’

Violetta looked at her. ‘You can’t be serious!’

Peter said firmly, ‘Can’t change her vote now.’

Charlotte exclaimed, ‘I wouldn’t anyway! Am I the only one that still remembers what Tomas

went through in Chicago going after Fok?! ONE man! Against the whole Chicago triad. Alone!

Took punishment beyond belief! Almost died three times! Not once did he make a selfish

decision. He chose to die rather than unnecessarily kill more.’ (She was referring to his

encounter with Gargy after Tomas already killed Fok.) ‘His last mission with Gargy? They came

back with barely a scratch. I know that this is rather a more difficult situation, but I do believe

that unless we send our team there, those hostages are going to die. Due to our actions! We have

to respond to that or else it was no victory the last time, it was a tragedy. I also believe that if we

go there, Tomas and Gargy will come back alive, saving a lot of people in the process, if not all.’

Even though Charlotte’s words were powerful, everyone at the base still looked uneasy and a

loud buzz of chatter was echoing off the walls again.

Peter said calmly, ‘So it’s decided. Let’s get ready, people.’

‘Wait!’ Helena shouted at Peter. He just looked back at her, expecting her to say something,

waiting.

‘I want to vote too!’ she said firmly.

Peter said, ‘You’re not one of the main team, the knights, as people have started to refer to us.’

He also liked the term, and almost regretted that it wasn’t he that had come up with that idea. It

just, happened.

Helena stood her ground. ‘But I should be. The main team is the one that is being deployed for

the mission. Before, it was just Gargy going into the field, needing less assistance. But ever since

Tomas came, things have changed. Catherine and I were on the Stachenko mission too, and I

expect that it was planned like that for the Velicenko’s mission, or this one, should we have

gone.’

Peter said, ‘That is true. We need more than one transport now. Both, or rather, all, transports

need to have medical staff in them, in case anyone on the mission is hurt.’

After a while, Peter said, ‘I see your point. But the knights need to vote on this first. Any of the

knights objects?’

No one did. Tomas wanted to, because it was obvious that Helena wanted to vote against it,

possibly spoiling it for him. But he couldn’t deny her and Catherine’s contribution in the

Stachenko mission, and therefore their right to be knights as well. Frankly, to him it was

shameful that none of the knights, including him, had proposed the idea to add them both to the

main team before this.

Peter said, ‘Welcome to the team, knights. I must apologize that this didn’t occur to me before.

We should have voted on your acceptance into the main team even before putting you on the

Stachenko mission.’

Helena didn’t waste any time, nor did she care for the apology. ‘I vote against!’ She looked very

determined.
Everyone at the base knew why. Ever since she took care of Tomas back in Boston, when they

had almost made out, only for him to remind her that she had a boyfriend, she had fallen for him.

Not more than three weeks after that, she left her boyfriend and had no one since, but didn’t tell

Tomas about it. She was still ashamed of what she had almost done, and thanks to Tomas, she

realized she didn’t truly love her last boyfriend. Problem was, she couldn’t, and wouldn’t, just go

to Tomas saying: ‘I’m free now!’ She just hoped he would have found out and come to her. But

Tomas, being the oblivious fool that he was and having mental blocks in his head, was scared to

expose anyone to the danger of being associated with him. That, in combination with always

joking around with Gargy during his free time, he didn’t even flirt with any of the women at the

base anymore, let alone try actively to get laid. Tomas always used to say that he loved all the

women at the base and couldn’t break theirs hearts by starting to date just one of them (the cocky

bastard), which by the way was close to the truth. He did fancy most of them, and wouldn’t want

to hurt the ones that flirted with him by choosing one.

Right after that, all eyes looked at Catherine, as she would be the deciding knight. She looked

terrified! Only 18 years old, the youngest of the Phillips sisters. Never had a proper boyfriend

yet, just platonic dating partners. The last platonic partner that she had, she had secretly left not

long after Tomas rejected her sister Helena in Boston; she had also fallen in love with him. But

she was too shy and insecure to even talk to a man like Tomas, not to mention that she knew

Helena wanted him too, which made her feel guilty. She was a very “fragile beautiful flower”, as

Tomas described her once. It was always Tomas that had to flirt with her first, but she was too

shy to send the right signals back to him. Who knows, they could have been a couple by now,

were it not for her shyness, at least in her mind. It wouldn’t be that easy with Tomas though, due

to his mental blocks, as mentioned earlier.

Peter cautioned, ‘Before you vote, Catherine, I would like to remind you of the seriousness of

your decision. Also, that you can still abstain from voting. However, in that case, it would just

mean that no significant decision has been made and the mission would therefore be denied. In

other words, it would equal voting against.’ This just put even more pressure on the poor soul.

Catherine looked around. She saw faces that hoped she would vote their way. Helena was almost

killing her with her staring, not understanding why Catherine already hadn’t denied the mission.

But Catherine couldn’t miss that Tomas was also staring at her in hopes that she would let him

go. She couldn’t resist.

Catherine took in a deep breath and said, ‘I’m voting…for.’

A moment of silence was replaced by Helena screaming at and shaking with Catherine until

Peter split them up.

Helena started to cry. ‘Why?!’

Catherine explained, ‘Because I do believe in Tomas, and Gargy, and the team. We will win,

save the hostages, and all of us will get back safely!’ She had tears in her eyes. But of course, in

reality, she hoped for brownie points with Tomas, even though what she stated was also 100

percent truth.

Then Helena hugged Catherine. ‘I hope you’re right.’

Peter said, ‘We all do. No time to waste, it’s about one hour and forty minutes flight time in the

helicopter alone. We still need to get the mini-sub and two extraction cars in place as well. Move

on, people!’
Tomas approached a still tearful Catherine and gave her a kiss on her right cheek. ‘Thank you. I

will not disappoint you.’ Then he approached Helena and hugged her in silence. He was about to

leave to get ready when Violetta and Charlotte came shortly after to hug him too.

Violetta said, ‘Don’t get killed. You can’t save anyone else, ever, should you die. If you reckon

at any point that it is suicide, just come back to us. We will avenge the hostages later.’ Then she

made space for Charlotte.

Dr Charlotte added, ‘Please don’t make me regret my decision for the rest of my life.’ She

almost got a tear in her eye.

Tomas said, ‘I can promise that I will do my very best not to. But if all goes down the drain,

remember, I really wanted this. It’s time to show the public what we would do - for them. Maybe

then they will finally hear us; maybe something will finally change.’ This touched Charlotte and

she hugged Tomas one more time before letting him go. Before he left, Tomas went past Helena

again. He put his hand on the right sight of her face.

Tomas said, ‘Cheer up! I have been through worse, I think…’ He winked at her, which made

Helena momentarily smile.

It was weird that they did theirs farewells now, considering that they were going on the mission

along with him (except Violetta). But they knew there may be no time for that later. It was

almost like being at a funeral, but before the person had died.

Although the success of the mission depended on many people, Tomas was the only one that was

in real danger. And the risk was so high, most couldn’t help themselves but to think that Tomas

was going to die.

As he was making his way into the hangar with the helicopter, people that rushed there to meet

him were either hugging him, shaking his hand, or patting him on his back. It made Tomas feel

so good, but also put tremendous pressure on him to succeed, to not let them down. Any doubt

that he had got into his head, he resisted and ignored. There was no place for it now, and he

knew it.

Lubos, Cop, Nurse Catherine, and Dr Charlotte were in a cargo plane transporting the tactical

sub into position, as well as two newly disguised vans, Cop piloting it while Peter, Tomas,

Gargy, and Nurse Helena were flying in the helicopter.

***

It took around three hours to get the sub and cars into position. Once they got confirmation that

all was set, Peter took the helicopter back into the air, approaching downtown Chicago from the

south. It was 2:36 p.m., with a little over an hour left before the deadline. All attempted

negotiations were rejected, and the authorities got more and more nervous. They started to

prepare for attack, should the masked man not show up. All of their scenarios predicted 100

percent hostage loss of life, not to mention their own people. It was sure to be a PR nightmare,

but they had to be seen doing “something”.

The media sensed blood and competed with each other to bring better footage or any new

information faster, many branding the masked man as a coward at this point. For the most part,

the public had been demanding the masked man show up. Some pointing out that this was not his

doing and shouldn’t be held responsible for any outcome. One thing was for sure, the whole

world noticed.
The chopper was in position, one kilometre above Chicago’s field museum close to Grand Park.

Gargy jumped out first, as planned. The wingsuit was easy to implement into the Apex Armour

and enabled it to be easily deployed or to retract back as needed. Cop’s custom design, of course.

There was a small, sturdy hook at the right Apex armoured shoe. On the left side, all the way to

the groin, there was an automatically retracted bottom part of the wingsuit. Should you hook the

left side to the right heel, it would deploy itself.

The wings below the arms were similar. Two tiny rings that looked like a part of a boxer (the

weapon) were implemented at the hips on both sides. Should you put your fingers through them,

attaching your arms to it, you could deploy the wings that were otherwise automatically always

retracted. Just like in the legs, the wings were barely visible in their retracted position at the sides

of the torso and extended all the way to the armpits. None of the wingsuit parts were also Apex

armoured.

Gargy had no issue landing on the roof of the AON building and deploying his Martha. In the

noise that was going around and having a custom-made by Lubos muzzle brake, it was unlikely

that anyone would notice the flash or hear him shooting at that distance towards the NBC

building.

Gargy reported into his comms, ‘In position and ready to mark the windows at the twenty-eighth

floor first, then twenty-fourth.’

Peter said, ‘Roger that. Tomas, proceed.’

Tomas jumped out, deploying his wingsuit. He absolutely loved it. He’d spent many hours

before practicing precise manoeuvring and parachute-assisted landings. Even flying dangerously
close to hillsides or forests. But this was different. The idea that he would have to smash through

the window of a building whilst flying the wingsuit was beyond scary.

He descended about 900 meters when he was passing on the west side of the AON building,

about 91 meters above the surface. Gargy couldn’t see him, so Peter gave the order to mark the

twenty-eighth floor at the right time.

Peter said, ‘Gargy get ready…now!’ Three rapid shots were fired at the sixth window from the

left on the twenty-eighth floor of the NBC tower, completely shattering it.

Gargy figured at the last moment that he would rather make sure the window would basically

vanish, making it easier for Tomas to spot it, as there would be no reflection. Same for the

window on twenty-fourth floor that followed next shortly after.

Tomas easily saw the “black holes” as he was passing next to AON centre, realizing that he was

still too high. He descended another 10 meters down just as Cop announced to him: ‘Get a bit

lower.’

The exploding windows instantly attracted the attention of the police, media, and Velicenko’s

people.

However, not before Tomas would finish his manoeuvre first. He had banked left too

aggressively, following a right bank coming around the AON centre. Tomas saw that he would

not make it into the exploded window on the twenty-eight floor. He had to start ascending

sharply right then and there, should he even hope to force the free fall at the right moment while

still having enough forward momentum.

‘Shiit.’ That’s all Tomas managed to get out of him before what would happen next.
Most expected the worst to come right after that but Gargy reacted rather quickly to the fact that

Tomas was pointing towards the window to the left of the one he had just shattered on the

twenty-eight floor. As soon as Tomas appeared in his vision, he sent two more rounds at that

window, coming at a sharp downwards angle and over Tomas, shattering it milliseconds before

Tomas penetrated through it into the building.

Tomas did the manoeuvre he was supposed to do. Even though it became obvious that he had no

lift force beneath him anymore, he had enough accumulated energy and was still going sharply

upwards and forward. He pulled his knees to his chest with his hands, face looking down close to

the knees. He looked like a cannon ball. Tomas overshot it slightly (too much speed still) and

violently impacted the ceiling of the twenty-eighth floor inside the building, almost penetrating

all the way to the twenty-ninth floor before bouncing back off it. He got lucky; he didn’t hit any

support columns or steel reinforcement.

From the outside, it looked rather incredible; it all happened within 2–3 seconds after the first

window on twenty-eight floor had shattered until the one next to it got penetrated by an “object

of sorts” as described at first by both the media and the authorities. It took them a few minutes to

analyse and confirm that the object was actually a human in a wingsuit, performing a rather

daring acrobatic manoeuvre, crashing through the window into the building, vanishing out of

sight of the cameras. It was instantly presumed it must have been the masked man, as the mask

did show up on the slowed-down video footage, and the fact that shooting began almost instantly

afterwards.

Tomas collected himself quickly after bouncing off the ceiling doing the human cannon ball. A

lot of the otherwise still powerful impact was absorbed by the Apex Armour. He didn’t feel any
pain, although he could have sworn that he felt his sternum to crack on impact. Squashed by his

own knees.

‘I’m in,’ Tomas quickly announced, to let everybody know that he was alive. It was a massive

relief at the base and in the team. But only for some three seconds, because after that, shooting

began and the flashes of the firefight were spotted inside the building. The authorities debated

whether to intervene, but it was declined in favour of waiting for confirmation of civilian

casualties inside the tower first.

Tomas engaged one of Velicenko’s men first. After the recovery to his feet, Tomas saw one

armed man about 10 meters in front of him, with his weapon still pointing to the floor. Most

likely he’d reacted to the noise of breaking glass behind him, but was slow to recognize that a

man had penetrated the building. Tomas’s P30L tore his face to pieces, and his almost headless

body fell to the floor. Two hostages that were witnesses to that started screaming uncontrollably.

Non-stop, Tomas was penetrating deeper into the building, finding two more armed men that

were no challenge to him. Utilizing his gun kata skills and hiding behind the cubicles when

needed (it was an office floor), he outgunned them quickly whilst still moving towards the far

east side of the building, where the last working elevator was located, past the bomb.

He noticed many of the hostages hiding below their desks in their cubicles along the way.

Tomas saw two more armed men just entering the elevator. He took a few shots at them, but they

escaped. He quickly turned back around and headed towards the bomb when he spotted one of

Velicenko’s men that was holding one woman in her 40s hostage. His pistol was pressed against

the woman’s head and he was backing up.

Tomas rushed as fast as he could towards him, not pointing his P30Ls at the guy, to not provoke

him. As expected, Tomas forced the guy closer to the south side of the tower, into Gargy’s sights

and reach. Tomas knew that once he was close enough, the guy would try to take a shot at him.

Gargy said, ‘I can see him now; waiting for him to get the gun off her head.’

Tomas got close enough. The guard pointed his pistol at Tomas and managed to squeeze five

rapid-fire shots that Tomas dodged, using his gun kata, earning enough time for Gargy’s bullet to

get to its target. At that sharp angle, it entered through the upper back of the armed guard

between the shoulder blades, exiting out of the belly button. The shock wave of the impact

ripped off the guard’s head clean, spraying the poor lady with lots of spurting blood before the

headless body collapsed to the floor. The exit wound in the belly was so large that when the

shock wave passed through it, it ejected almost all of the intestines out and onto the floor.

Needless to say, the woman wasn’t happy, and hysterically screamed her lungs out; she also

visibly pissed herself.

Tomas had no time to comfort her. He looked for other targets around the floor and quickly made

his way back towards the bomb. Lubos was observing it via Tomas’s POV camera, the high-tech

optical lens worn in his eyes. It was just 8 big 50-litre barrels that presumably contained

kerosene jet fuel. A wild guess on Lubos’s part. He said that for incendiary purposes, it is the

second-best option short of napalm, which only the military should have access to. But you never

know; he just hoped it was “only” kerosene.

The barrels were connected via multiple wires and on top of them was a rather large suitcase that

all of the wires were entering into.

Lubos instructed, ‘Just look around the suitcase a bit, it could be booby trapped to explode on

opening it.’ It didn’t look like it.

He continued. ‘Okay, open it slowly. Let’s see how it looks inside. Slowly!’ Tomas carefully

opened the suitcase; it wasn’t locked or protected against opening in any way.

It showed a small display and keyboard beneath it. On the very bottom part there were two

plastic rolls of some kind. Each around 30 cm in length and 5 cm in width.

Lubos said, ‘Those rolls are C4, most likely.’ (Explosive device with tremendous explosive

power, whilst relatively lightweight, safe to operate and in stable condition, due to it being

plastic.)

Lubos said, ‘Enough to make a large hole in the core of the building, penetrating several floors

and spreading the kerosene around in one massive fireball. It would make the building one

massive torch from the twenty-third, maybe twenty-fourth floor upwards. Those bastards would

be safe below it.’

Tomas said, ‘I don’t want to burn to death; anything but that.’ The whole base was holding their

breath watching.

Lubos said, ‘Don’t worry, you wouldn’t; the C4 would evaporate you instantly at that distance.

You wouldn’t even know it exploded.’

Cop jumped in on the comms. ‘But if just the fireball was to hit you, the Apex Armour is also

very fire-resistant. You will not burn to death.’

Peter ordered, ‘Focus on the task!’

Lubos said, ‘I’m working as fast as I can! I may talk, but I also think what to do next.

Observing.’ Peter didn’t want to distract him further, so he restrained himself from answering

that.

***

What the team didn’t know was what was being seen by the police and the media on the west

side of the building, in the lobby. More and more of Velicenko’s armed men were coming out of

the only working elevator in short time intervals. It quickly became obvious that they were

evacuating the upper floors and coming down into the lobby. Lucky for Tomas and the hostages,

even though Velicenko’s men quickly communicated the situation on the twenty-eighth floor,

not all of them were completely out yet, as Tomas moved quite quickly. They had to wait for two

more batches of their men coming down to the lobby before blowing the elevator and then the

bomb. Peter, overlooking everything, recognized what was going on in the TV feed.

Peter said, ‘I think they are evacuating the floors so they can blow up the bomb. Hurry up!’

Lubos countered, ‘No! Stay calm, Tomas. See the red wire with green stripes on the side?’

Tomas pointed to it with the wire snips. ‘This one?’

‘Yeah, that one. It should disconnect the suitcase off the bomb. The suitcase’s C4 acts as

primers for the kerosene.’

Tomas said, ‘Should, or would?’

Lubos said, ‘It will. Do it.’ Tomas cut the wire; it didn’t go off. The suspense was relieved

momentarily.
Lubos said, ‘Okay, so now we can carry the suitcase out of the reach of those barrels without it

exploding.’

Tomas said, ‘Wait; that isn’t all?! It’s not disarmed yet?’

Lubos said, ‘No, that was just the secondary primer for the kerosene. Should the C4 explode

close enough, it could still ignite it.’

Tomas asked, ‘The C4 could be still initiated?’

Lubos said, ‘I’m afraid so.’

‘How do we disarm the C4?’

‘That can’t be done,’ Lubos admitted.

Just then, the timer on the display showed 30 seconds and counting down.

Tomas started, ‘It’s –’ He didn’t manage to finish the sentence before Lubos interrupted him.

‘I can see that. Okay, get the suitcase as far away from those barrels as possible.’

Tomas said, ‘How far away?’ It was 25 seconds to the explosion.

Lubos said, ‘To make sure it doesn’t ignite the kerosene, at least fifty meters.’

‘That’s far outside the building. I doubt I will able to get it that far away, even if I throw it out

the window!’ There were only 18 seconds left.

Lubos said, ‘I know that.’

‘What?! What am I supposed to do now?’

Lubos said, ‘You will have to jump out of the building whilst throwing it away. Perhaps the

combined momentum of the jump will have enough force to get the suitcase far enough away

from the barrels and the building.’ You could tell he wasn’t happy about that either. Only 10

seconds remained.

Tomas said, ‘OKAY!’ You could hear the distress in his voice. Tomas picked up the suitcase; it

was surprisingly light, just around 4 kg in total. He started to sprint towards the smashed

windows.

You cannot imagine what this did do to the people at the base. Both that Tomas just agreed to

sacrifice himself in hopes to save the hostages, and that he did so without hesitation, without any

resistance on his part, even though you could hear in his voice that he was scared. Peter was

about to remind him that if he died, all hostages would likely die too anyway. But then…

Cop jumped in, ‘Tomas, listen up! Turn away from the blast and you may survive the shock

wave that would likely propel you back towards the building!’ Tomas was four meters away

from the smashed-up windows. Just four seconds left.

Tomas said, ‘Base, are you listening? We will show them what we will do for them!’ His last

words came just as he was jumping out of the NBC tower.

Many at the base couldn’t even watch it anymore. Many couldn’t believe what Tomas just did.

As he jumped out, Tomas threw the suitcase as far away as he could, full force; that alone turned

him around 180 degrees and he was facing the building again, just as the explosion came. He had

plummeted one and a half floors when the blast wave caught him up. It violently threw him back

towards and into the building through window at the 26th floor. That was lucky, because he

could have just as easily been thrown into the facade of the building instead.
Tomas managed to throw the suitcase far enough. The kerosene didn’t ignite, nor was any

serious damage done to the building itself. Only a small part of six immediate floors outside the

facade collapsed after the explosion of the C4 in the suitcase, around three meters deep into the

building.

Tomas landed face first 10 meters inwards into the building on the 26th floor. There was a

fireball; as many as 10 floors combined caught fire in various depths into the building, but no

more than 7 meters in.

On the outside, the explosion was incredible, spectacular. It blew out all of the windows of the

NBC tower’s south side, all of the east side windows of the Equitable building, and even the first

30 floors of the AON tower on the north side. Incredibly, everyone saw a masked man jumping

out of the building whilst throwing a suitcase away from him, followed by the explosion. It was

hard to tell what happened to the man, as the expanding gases of the fireball had covered him up

completely. But no one saw him fall to the ground.

The FBI instantly gave an order to assault the building. SWAT teams entered the lobby in a

fierce firefight. Out of nowhere two police choppers, one possibly military-owned, approached

the tower and deployed two more teams onto the roof. Snipers opened up and shot down the

terrorists’ drones and any target of opportunity. The media went berserk in describing the

situation.

Linkin Park – I’ll Be Gone (Vice Remix) 4:00

“Let the sun fade out and another one rise,

climbing through tomorrow, I'll be gone - I'll be gone.”

In the meantime:

Tomas regained consciousness after momentarily passing out. He was lying face-down on the

floor, right arm above his head and his left hand rested on his back. His legs were in a P-shape.

When the blast wave hit Tomas, propelling him back into the building, the extra added shock

wave protection of the Apex Armour took the brunt of the force. Still, the passing shock wave

had partially shattered almost all the bones of his back. As he got ejected through the window

into the building, his left leg got caught partially on the outside facade of the window below the

knee. If it wasn’t for the padded protection on his shins, it would have taken his left leg

completely off below the knee. This way it only fractured both the tibia and fibula (bones

between the knee and ankle) of his left leg. The extra shin padding now had an extra support role

as a fixator of the fracture in its place.

The blast wave also managed to rip and tear apart Tomas’s parachute, then the fireball

evaporated large parts of it. The rest got burned into Tomas’s Apex Armour. One larger burning

piece of the parachute could be seen behind Tomas’s right elbow, and three more pieces spread

around his back. In combination with the partial combustion of both the upper and lower parts of

the integrated retractable wingsuit, it produced quite a smouldering effect of Tomas’s back, in

addition to the open fire here and there. One could easily think that Tomas was burned to death,

seeing him lying there. But the Apex Armour had held up to its reputation and proved in the field

to be the best of the best. The weakest part, the head protection, which was basically a balaclava

that didn’t cover the mouth area, had been partially ripped off Tomas’s head. It hung by a few

threads behind his neck area. The mask itself got torn off Tomas’s face upon the impact on the

floor’s surface. But not before it had broken Tomas’s nose first, completely “repositioning” it to

the left side of his face. The bottom part of the mask caused multiple fractures to his underbite,
splitting the bottom lip and inflicting the loss of five teeth. The top part of the mask made a

large, 4-centimetre-wide and long laceration to Tomas’s forehead, partially scalping him. Blood

was flowing down his face on the right side. The blast further disrupted his vital sensors, blasted

off the optical lenses, and ruptured his ear drums.

The base was in a state of panic. Charlotte instantly started to cry out into the comms, stating that

she’d lost all of Tomas’s vital signals. Peter didn’t even have to confirm, as the whole base was

watching it anyway, but did formally announce the loss of Tomas’s POV camera feed. While he

still tried to contact Tomas anyway, there was no response.

Everyone on the base was stunned, some of them crying. Violetta fought it hard, with only a bit

of glitter in her eyes, as she was meant to be the one to provide a leader’s example and strength.

All on base and on the mission turned to each other for support and comfort.

Only one man in the whole agency had no one to draw strength from in this time of need: Gargy.

Alone on the roof of the AON centre, his sights were on the partially visible legs of his just

presumably fallen buddy, Tomas. He wasn’t sad, actually, even though he had heard what was

said on the comms. No vital signs, no visual feed, no response to communication attempts. He

saw the massive blast, felt it too, at 800 meters’ distance! But he had his sights on the partially

visible body of Tomas. It didn’t look torn, and it was inside the building; he hadn’t lost hope just

yet. Gargy was waiting. Just 10 seconds after the explosion, barely longer than the initial shock

had worn off, he said, ‘Movement!’

Peter called, ‘Come again?’

Gargy repeated ‘Movement! I’ve got partial visual on Tomas! He is moving!’

Almost instantly, everyone in the agency tuned in to the camera feed of Martha’s (the sniper

rifle’s) sights. They saw Tomas move. He looked badly hurt, but it was like a beacon of hope to

the onlookers. ‘We need to get him out,’ began echoing around the base. Even Matty broke his

otherwise persistent radio silence.

Matty announced, ‘Peter, I want him out of the building. I’m authorizing you to use unlimited

resources for his rescue. I will pay the bill.’

Peter replied, ‘Not so easy, Matty; money is not the question. The question is, how?’

Gargy cut in, ‘Tomik, can you hear me?! Tomik, talk to me, buddy!’ ignoring the conversation

between Matty and Peter.

Cop said, ‘He probably can’t hear you Gargy, his eardrums must be blown out by the blast.’

Gargy said, ‘We have to at least try!’ He continued trying to get a response out of Tomas.

They were blown out. Tomas managed to get on all fours, accompanied by a loud whistling noise

and muffled voices. Both of the comms and that of the shocked hostages on the 26th floor. The

whole floor was multiple studio arrangements on the south side of the building, and the north

side was full of transmitting equipment and IT desk cubicles. When Velicenko’s men evacuated

the floor to blow the bomb up, all of the hostages approached the west side to gain visual on the

police to signal to them their presence, as well as to be as far away as possible from the last

working elevator on the east side that the terrorists were using. Four men and two women had

sustained minor injuries along with some first or second-degree burns due to the fact they were

also close to the south side of the building when the bomb went off.
One woman was hiding below a desk just seven meters away from Tomas across the central open

passageway. Tomas was still in one of the studio sets, not visible from the elevator area. That

woman was no one else but Faith Goldie! Not that Tomas could tell; to him she was just a blur,

due to his eyes’ injury.

When Faith looked at him, still hiding under the cover of the desk, she was horrified. Tomas was

on fire in some places, smouldering. His mask and head protection gone, his face all bloodied,

almost unrecognizable as a face. He was shaking, suffering from shell shock, and all of his

movement attempts were like in slow-mo.

Dr Charlotte yelled into the comms, ‘Tomas, take the second chance!’ advising him to inject

himself with the super drug.

Tomas couldn’t hear her, but knew what he had to do. First, he reached after the surgical glue

can. It was gone, destroyed by the blast. Aluminium pieces that were left of it were imbedded

into the Apex Armour on his back. Then, while still on all fours, he reached with his other hand

to the other side to grab the second chance. The triple-pack casing was destroyed, along with two

out of the three capsule injections.

He carefully inspected the third capsule, at least to the best of his ability. He couldn’t see well

due to all the blood coming into his eyes from his bleeding forehead, as well as due to the tiny

metal and glass fragments imbedded into his eyeballs. Must have been the flying debris during

the explosion coming out of the building, or God knows where it had come from. If he wasn’t

already in massive pain throughout his whole body, every movement of his eyes alone would

have caused him excruciating pain. That was the price to pay for losing the mask, yet he didn’t

even realize his mask was not on his face anymore. Although the mask itself had no glass
protective shield in its eye sockets. Tomas knew he had to shield his sight in case of explosions,

unlike Gargy, who wore a face shield. Tomas was helpless in protecting his sight in this kind of

situation.

After inspecting the final case and deciding it look undamaged, Tomas took the cover off and

then the injection inside of it. His hand had little to no sense in it yet, as his whole body was

shell-shocked and shivering, out of control. His CNS (central nervous system) was fried.

Tomas got the cover off all right, but then when he tried to lift the injection to his neck, it just

jumped out of his grip. It flew almost across the whole central pathway towards Faith, who was

just staring at Tomas. At first, she was too scared to reach out to it and try to help Tomas by

throwing it back to him. It was still only a few seconds after the explosion. Dust had barely

settled yet. Cries of the injured were heard and the whole sight was just terrifying.

After the initial decision-making, she found enough courage to reach after it and grabbed it, just

as the doors of the elevator opened and six of Velicenko’s armed men entered. The first one to

enter the floor had seen Faith’s hand throwing something across the pathway. He started to rush

towards her. Two more followed him at a short distance behind him and the last three stayed

close to the elevator.

Peter said, ‘Six of Velicenko’s men just entered the floor.’ He had also hacked into the FBI’s

deployed high-tech binoculars that had been positioned in the residential high-rise suites on the

north side of the NBC tower, monitoring it.

Gargy called, ‘I have no visual. Advise.’

Peter said, ‘Hold your position, cover the south side.’

Tomas grabbed the second chance off the floor after it was thrown back to him and injected

himself in the exposed neck area. Almost immediately his body went into violent muscle spasms.

The immediately increased blood pressure forced streams of blood out of his eyes, ears, and

shredded face. The pain was unimaginable, but he made no sound, as even his vocal cords were

in spasm.

Faith was looking at Tomas in horror as his body was writhing about in pain after he injected

himself.

The guard front-man was already halfway to Faith when he took two warning shots at her.

Presumably warning shots, as they only hit very close to her, penetrating the edge of the desk she

was hiding under. Should he have wanted to kill her, surely he would have shot mid-body of the

desk.

The rest of the hostages quickly dashed for the nearest cover and away from the oncoming guard.

The front-man guard ordered, ‘Come out! Come out, now!’

Tomas’s seizure ceased with the drop in blood pressure. His vision actually got better,

considering only the blood was now blocking his sight, but the focus was good enough. The

whistling noise in his ears got even louder, completely isolating any previously muffled noises.

He didn’t even hear those two shots as they came at Faith.

He turned his head towards the woman that helped him, recognizing Faith. Tomas was still lying

on his back, shortly after the spasms ceased, pain completely subsided. As he was looking at her,

two things came into his mind. First, she was really cute. Second, she was really scared! She was

shouting at him, but he couldn’t hear what. Then finally he felt the rapid rush of energy into his
body that he was waiting for. It lagged slightly behind the sensory enhancement effect of the

drug.

He was still on his back, leaned slightly against the wall of the studio set, out of sight of the

oncoming guard when he saw two bullet impacts around Faith. The guard shot at her again. Faith

was absolutely freaking out, trying to squeeze her body into an even tighter, smaller space.

Instantly, Tomas realized where they came from, and soon after, the guard himself came into his

vision. Tomas saw the guard point his rifle at Faith’s head.

Tomas said, ‘Hey!’ He screamed as loud as he could, but still couldn’t hear his own voice.

The guard was surprised by it. By the loudness, and the direction it came from. He tried to turn

around in the direction the cry came from, but it was too late. Tomas took him out with a

flawless macaco em pe double face kick off the floor, supporting his bodyweight on only his

right arm. As Tomas’s first leg made contact with the guard’s face, the impact forced two more

shots out of the guard’s gun. Luckily, none of the civilians got hit.

None of the guards coming onto the floor expected that; they came there to corral all of the

hostages before shooting them. The next group was meant to unload on the 27th floor and do the

same, the next after that on the 28th floor and engage the masked man.

They’d got the report of what happened on the twenty-eighth floor just minutes before from the

two guards that had managed to get into the elevator before getting shot by Tomas. Because the

C4 exploded outside of the building, they knew that even if they lit up the kerosene themselves,

it may take too long for the fire to spread around the building. Also, it would not partially

collapse the twenty-eighth or any other floor, meaning that due to the fact that fire extends
upwards, as well as the smoke, the hostages on the 26th and 27th floors would likely survive.

They had to make sure they didn’t. But the “masked man” wouldn’t know that.

They planned to round the hostages up first, make them cry into their radios so that Tomas could

hear their cries for help and give himself up so they could kill him without resistance. After that,

they would kill all the hostages and frame it like the masked man had fucked up so they had to

kill the hostages, swinging the public opinion against all possible future vigilantes, as there were

too many sympathizers among the public.

For Velicenko, it wasn’t enough to kill the Ghost. Of course, they knew by now about Fok’s

invitation of the Ghost for the final solution. It wasn’t exactly a well-protected secret; the triads

had many spies among themselves.

After Fok died along with all of his personal guards, it created shock waves among the mob

families. After a few quiet months, it was assumed that the Ghost perhaps died himself, until the

publicized death of Stachenko. It was a wild guess on their part, however; even if it was a

different man doing it, the precedent set was harmful to them. They had to send a clear message

to all future vigilantes.

In fact, not only Russians organized this; the Yakuza and the Italians paid for this mission and

the mercenaries as well. Each of the mercenaries got two million up front and two more million

after, if the mission goals were met. Ghost, or whoever else the masked man was, would be dead,

and all of the civilians. They’d pay two million extra on top of that, if all of the civilians in the

building truly died. That meant six million for each man along with five million in bonus

guaranteed to any mercenary that would die or get captured by the police during the mission.
This was so high-risk an operation to them that each man had to be paid so good that they would

willingly die just to cash up to 11 million in total to give to their families.

Of course, that was just insurance to the mercenaries. To them, Tomas was just one guy to kill,

along with a bunch of sheep, to cash in six million. Easy money. To the mob families, it was well

worth the investment into the future, considering the financial losses that the triads had before,

and now the Russians sustained as well.

The front guard fell to the ground. His face got instantly stomped on with Tomas’s heavy left

boot. It squashed the face inwards above the bottom lip, accompanied by an unpleasant noise that

the guard made.

Good thing was, it was out of Faith’s sight. Stuff like this could cause nightmares for life. But, it

had purpose. Tomas gained that slight shock-hesitation of the two guards that stood not far in

front of him. Enough for him to get close to them, and he proceeded with a kick combination

using only his right leg to alternate between the intended target zones. Tomas kicked the right

knee of the guard on his right first, snapping it inwards. Then immediately he crescent-kicked the

other guard in his left leg behind the knee, forcing him to lose balance and start falling to his

side. Right after that, back to the right guard, hitting him during the fall with the back of Tomas’s

heel into the face quite right, knocking him out, followed by a roundhouse kick to the left

guard’s face. He also fell to the ground, but was basically okay, and Tomas grabbed the lying

guard’s weapon so he couldn’t shoot at him.

They struggled for the control of the weapon when the three guards standing close to the elevator

opened up at them. Lucky for Tomas, as he struggled for control of the guard’s weapon, he was

leaning forward due to the guard being on his back. They couldn’t aim at his head. The guard got
hit six times in his legs and once high up in his torso, while Tomas got shot fifteen times around

his backside, including his legs. No effect; the Apex Armour still held.

Tomas stood up, the guard’s weapon empty after their struggle and after the guard got hit, Tomas

finally managed to get a hold of it. He just threw it away so the shot-up guard couldn’t reload it

again.

Tomas reached for his P30Ls; they were also gone. Must have lost them in the explosion.

‘He is on the twenty-sixth floor, I repeat, he’s here!’ The guards were panicking. Couldn’t

believe that this guy that was basically on fire and just got sprayed by them, just stood up as if

nothing had happened.

Tomas looked terrible too; his face unrecognizable, all bloodied. It was hard to tell what his face

may look like at all without all the blood and injuries. Yet, he looked okay with it, like he could

feel no pain. Scary.

They opened fire once more just as Tomas reached for his missing P30Ls. Tomas took cover

behind the stage set in time again, before the bullets reached him, spraying undamaged windows

for the most part, but also dangerously close to and around Faith. Tomas had looked to his right

at Faith first; he felt really sorry and responsible for the state she was in. But the guards had since

moved forward, and split to engage Tomas from different directions while sending fire towards

his last known position. The bullets easily penetrated the set’s walls and pieces, hitting Tomas

three more times in his back, just slightly jerking his body forward on impact. But the rest of the

bullets flew by, managing to hit one man that was hiding behind the set pieces, six meters to the

front and two meters to the left of Tomas. A bullet went through his right thigh and he screamed
in pain while holding the wound. That was a wake-up call for Tomas. He didn’t need to hide like

them; he could get shot without consequence, but not them.

Tomas said, ‘Everyone, get to the left side!’ No one moved. Tomas, of course, had gone to his

right side, trying to attract fire on him and away from the people.

Good thing he did that, as one of the guards managed to flank around Tomas to his left, just in

that moment. The guard lost his vision on Tomas, forcing him to approach Tomas from behind,

dangerously close to him. In the meantime, Tomas engaged the two guards that were in front of

him. The guard on his left was so close that he tried to stick his assault rifle right into Tomas’s

face. But he was too slow; Tomas front kicked him in his abdominals while snatching the rifle

away from him. Tomas immediately threw the rifle away; he didn’t want to open fire in a space

full of people with a weapon that could penetrate through any object on the inside.

Most of the hostages were truly to the west side of the NBC tower, but some of them were spread

along the whole floor. He had to make sure no one got hit. At least not by his own bullets, if he

could prevent it.

Immediately, Tomas lunged to the other guard on his right, first hitting him in the face with his

right elbow upwards, then grabbing and throwing away the guard’s rifle too. A short beating up

of the guards by Tomas got interrupted by the guard coming from behind. He instantly opened

fire at Tomas, disregarding the two guards that were getting beat up and were in Tomas’s

possession being rag-dolled around by him.

As if by a miracle, he only managed to hit Tomas high to his centre of body; the rest of the

bullets flew by, destroying the surroundings. No hostage got hurt, nor the two guards.
Tomas instantly performed an undercut sweeping kick at the shooting guard’s right leg. The kick

was so powerful that it cut the guard off his feet like a scythe. Then, while the guard’s body was

still in the air, almost lifted up by the undercut, Tomas struck the guard in his centre of body with

his right elbow, blowing all his air out of him.

The other guard that got beaten up before pulled out a massive military knife and tried to stab

Tomas in his kidney. Tomas managed to grab his hand in time and judo roll him on a desk in

front of them with such force that it collapsed under the pressure. Immediately, Tomas proceeded

to break that knife-wielding hand in several locations, finally removing the knife out of it, then

depositing the knife right into the guard’s face. The guard made a nasty sound during the

penetration, but surprisingly, still lived. Tomas quickly and violently pulled it out and this time

lifted the guard’s chin up before stabbing into it, silencing him.

Another guard jumped on his back, but Tomas also rag-dolled him off at first, and then threw

him into the window. The body was heavy enough, and the force throwing the guard out was

strong enough, to penetrate through the window weakened by the explosion and gunfire. The

guard fell to his death.

Then the last guard also jumped on Tomas from behind, choking him. Tomas used the desk that

Faith was hiding under to make a backflip off it, releasing himself from the guard’s grip first,

then landing behind the guard, who fell on his back. The desk that Faith was hiding under got

pushed over in the process and she made a run for it across to the southwest corner of the tower.

The guard tried to kick Tomas in his face, but Tomas grabbed onto the leg and used it to leverage

the guard’s body into a wall. The guard quickly got back on his feet after, but only because

Tomas let him. He wanted to rapid-fire punch the guard to his death, which happened as soon as
the guard stood back up. Tomas unleashed rapid punches at the guard that was pressed against

the wall of the studio-set. Only into his chest, no doubt crushing his sternum in the very first four

punches, followed by another twenty. That was enough to squash the lungs and the heart of the

guard.

That would have ejected the blood out of the guard’s mouth into Tomas’s face for sure, if it

wasn’t for it getting blown out by the incoming fire from the second batch of six guards that

came onto the floor. Tomas instinctively raised his arms to protect his head. Good thing, he still

wasn’t aware that his face mask was missing. He gave one more glance to his right side where a

bunch of the hostages, including Faith, were hiding in terror. A few bullets landed close to them

as the guards were spraying the whole place with bullets left to right indiscriminately as soon as

they lost sight of Tomas behind one of the stage walls. Enough to anger him to the point of rage

again. Enough to lose any sense of self-preservation. Enough to bury any guilt and resentment

for the killing he’d done so far. Enough to even starting enjoying it again.

A few quick thoughts went through Tomas’s mind before he rushed towards his enemies,

sticking to the north side of the building, keeping the storm of bullets away from the hostages as

much as possible.

‘It’s better this way. It’s better when they forget me now, before it’s too late. Before they fall in

love with me and my death will really hurt them. Tomorrow by this time, I’ll be gone. It’s time

for them to forget me; it’s time for them to let me go.’ He was thinking about the Phillips sisters,

Catherine and Helena, and Faith. Because he thought that if he really wanted to, he could have

already had them, that cocky bastard. Funny thing was, in his cockiness, he had no idea how

close he was to the truth. But to his subconsciousness, it was still more of a wish than a fact.
There and then, in his anger turned into rage, he just couldn’t help himself but to blindly rush

into the storm of bullets. Tomas knew that he was the hostages’ best chance to survive, but he

was alone. As long as he wanted to play it safe and hide away out of sight until he could get to

Velicenko’s mercenaries, they would kill many innocents in the crossfire. Their best chance was

him rushing Velicenko’s people and killing them as fast as he could, danger on not. A calculated

risk and a quick decision that he had to make. Good or bad, it was too late for rethinking it again.

Tomas covered his face as if against punches and the bullets were impacting, jerking his whole

body as he was rushing towards the guards. They too were advancing towards Tomas at first,

when they lost sight of him. But as soon as he rushed at them out of his cover, the combination

of seeing their bullets having little to no effect on Tomas, as well as him screaming his lungs out

while blindly rushing towards them in rage, and the fact that he was still smouldering and on fire

in some places, they quickly panicked.

The one guard that was closest to him tasted Tomas’s mid-air elbow strike to the face combined

with a flying knee strike to the gut. The elbow strike would have knocked him out, but the knee

to the gut guaranteed he would not get up soon.

The guard that was just a few meters behind that guard also didn’t manage to turn and run away

just yet. Tomas parkoured over one of the set pieces to get more height, then made a human

cannonball (knees and elbows together close to the body) before striking the guard in his face.

The impact just annihilated the guard’s face. The loud cracking noise of his both cheek bones

along with instant blood splatter coming out of his facial orifices, surely meant instant death. He

basically got shot down by 85 kilograms of solid, lean-muscle human cannonball in the face.

Then Tomas reached such a great speed advantage that he actually passed by three guards that

were running away, confusing them why he didn’t engage them. They momentarily stopped,
while Tomas continued towards his real target. A machine gun-wielding guard that frantically

shot at Tomas’s last known position, providing cover fire for the guards that were advancing on

him. A flying kick over a sofa into the machine gun-wielding guard silenced him instantly.

Tomas hit him good at the neck area, crushing his trachea tube, although the guard didn’t fall to

the ground, just got pushed backwards a few steps. He was also one of the bigger guys, 100

kilograms plus, mostly muscle.

The three remaining guards that Tomas just passed by seconds ago opened fire towards him. He

was about to finish the suffering of the guard that was choking to death when Tomas had to duck

for cover. The storm of bullets tore the big guy to pieces, visibly penetrating his body armour

vest, followed by his face, ejecting his brain visibly out the back of his skull.

Tomas had no choice but to turn back at them. He raised his hands up again as if he was trying to

indicate “stop”, but he was just shielding his face really. This time one of the 7.62 mm rifle

bullets managed to penetrate Tomas’s right Apex glove that was already previously shredded by

the fire. Tomas’s right palm got visibly jerked and torn by the round that got embedded in it, but

it didn’t slow Tomas down one bit. He didn’t feel much more than a pressure as he got hit, and

the jerk of his palm.

The guards had to split again as Tomas was closing in. He went after the middle one. As Tomas

expected, the guard that went to his left side got too close to the south side and got picked off by

Gargy. He took the shot as soon as he saw the guard’s legs. The first .50 BMG round took the

guard’s right leg off beneath his knee. He started falling to the ground and before he even

realized what happened to him, before he managed to get out a loud, painful scream, a second

round shot by Gargy got him side to side across his torso during his fall to the ground, instantly

killing him. Due to the angle of his torso during the fall, the round entered just above his fourth
rib on the guard’s right side. However, on the exit, it took all of his left side ribs, leaving a 30-

centimetre-wide hole and bits of shattered ribs protruding out of his torso’s left side. Fragments

of the ribs-bones sprayed one unfortunate hostage that was hiding on a stage set behind an L-

shaped sofa, lightly injuring him in multiple places around his body as some of the bone

fragments managed to embed themselves into him. It was like bird shot; 20 small pellets that

would barely penetrate the human skin at distances larger than 10 meters. Painful, but not lethal.

It was an unfortunate accident, but Gargy had no idea, as the hostage was out of his vision.

Needless to say, several hostages that were close by were shocked by the sight of a man almost

being cut in half in front of them; one even vomited.

At the same time, Tomas engaged the middle guy. The guard first swung the stock of his SR-47

assault rifle at Tomas, but he just ducked down and then twist-axe kicked into the guard’s face

left to right, just as he tried to aim the SR-47 at Tomas again, pushing the weapon away in time

while the burst from the weapon flew randomly into the surroundings.

The guard that went to the north side of the tower hesitated to shoot at Tomas while he was in

combat with his buddy. Instead, he decided to come back and help him. Tomas first judo-threw

the middle guard over his body towards the oncoming one, but he dodged the thrown body in

time. Then, Tomas also judo-threw the oncoming guard over his shoulder onto the floor while

holding the gun-wielding arm of the guard, then snapping it with the assistance of his knee,

releasing the weapon out of his possession.

Finally, he threw the same guard one more time over a kitchen countertop that was a piece of

another television set, breaking his arm one more time at a different location in the process,

while landing his body on the edge of that countertop, with only the guard’s head hanging off the
edge. A quick top to bottom axe kick crushed the guard’s nose inwards. Not that it mattered, as it

also broke his neck, killing the guard on impact.

Then Tomas got violently thrown forward onto the just-killed guard’s body. Before Tomas

managed to turn around to see what that was, he got violently thrown again. It was a shotgun!

Apparently, the other guard recovered to his feet and deployed his Benelli M4 shotgun that he

was carrying on his back for close encounters. The Apex Armour was already beaten up badly,

and each blast of the shotgun did visibly tear off a few fibres out of it, but nothing went through

– just yet, anyway. The force of the blast was pretty strong though; it felt like receiving a front

kick from a Thai boxer.

Tomas quickly performed a cartwheel backwards, landing a powerful kick into the chest of the

shotgun-wielding guard. It was so powerful, in fact, that once again, as it was a custom by now

performing this move, the loud crack of the guard’s sternum was accompanied by an instant

ejection of blood out of the guard’s mouth, propelling him into the window on the north side,

through it, and out. If the impact of the kick didn’t instantly kill him by squashing his heart

against the back of his own ribcage, then the fall certainly did.

The action was so fierce, so hectic, that Tomas didn’t even realize that another batch of guards

arrived in the meantime onto the 26th floor. The fact that he was also completely deaf ever since

the injection after the explosion could also have something to do with it. Luckily for Tomas, he

instinctively turned towards the working elevator to see if the floor was now clear. Another six

men were standing there, staring at him. They were witness to the backwards cartwheel into the

chest kick, and couldn’t believe the force of it. The surprise factor of that created just enough

delay in their next action, just enough hesitation on their part, that once they opened fire at

Tomas, he could have predicted it.

Tomas didn’t move anywhere. He stood close to the window at the north side of the tower and at

an angle that the bullets would fly out of the building, safely away from the hostages. He just

squatted down to the floor, exposing his back surface to the fire, Tomas’s hands protecting his

head while he leaned forward.

Hundreds of bullets lit up Tomas’s surroundings, Swiss-cheesing everything around. Due to

Tomas’s small silhouette after he squatted down, and the fact that he was partially in cover, only

a dozen rounds actually hit him in his back and with little effect, no penetration.

The fire ceased. Tomas stood back up, facing the guards. Finally, he had more time to have a

better look at them. One man in the centre was a big guy, wielding an M249 machine gun.

Tomas presumed it was Josif Antolijev, Ivan Velicenko’s right hand. He was right about that.

Josif was massive, and obviously lean as well; could have definitely placed in the top six at a Mr

Olympia contest, he was that big. He was also taller than Tomas, and must have had a good 20–

40 kilograms (50-90 pounds) of lean muscle over Tomas. It certainly would not be a fair fight

should he get hold of Tomas.

Soon after the gunfire ceased and Tomas raised like a phoenix out of the ashes, his backside still

on fire at places and smouldering, instead of reloading their guns and opening up at Tomas again,

Josif ordered the rest of the guards to hold their fire.

‘He’s mine,’ Josif said calmly, almost in a bored tone. Then he threw his M249 away.

At first, Josif just slowly walked towards Tomas, his buddies close behind him. Tomas held his

position firmly, already planning what he would do, and how. Unexpectedly, Josif raised some

kind of a remote control and pressed it. It blew the remaining elevator up, preventing anyone
from coming in or out of the whole building. Then Josif broke into a slow jogging pace, soon

after that, into a full-paced sprint towards Tomas, his buddies keeping up slightly behind.

The sight of the approaching giant forced Tomas to start instinctively backing up. Tomas had no

interest in fighting Josif. He knew it would be for the best should he kill him with the first blow,

or at least knock him out.

Josif was only about five meters away from Tomas when he began his tackle move on Tomas,

lunging at him, hoping to bring Tomas to the ground with him being on top. Tomas was

watching his movement closely, counting. He had to counter-move Josif at the precise moment.

Tomas performed a cheat-gainer move to the left, as if he wanted to do a butterfly kick. He used

it to gain bigger momentum for his outside crescent kick with his right leg.

Immediately after the cheat-gainer move that helped Tomas avoid Josif’s tackle, he started to

perform the outside crescent kick low to the left, then high to the right, hitting Josif exactly

below the right side of his chin with his right leg. The massive momentum that Tomas

accumulated through the cheat gainer, in combination with his own power, jerked Josif’s head to

his left so violently, it instantly snapped his neck. No wonder; the force generated was so great, it

actually lifted Josif’s whole body slightly upwards before ejecting it to his left side over a

kitchen countertop that was part of another TV studio set, the whole countertop length, before

the lifeless body of Josif finally fell down to the ground off it.

However, every action has a counter reaction. Tomas got ejected by equal force to the opposite

side, Josif’s body was so heavy. Tomas flew sideways over a desk, landing on his back. One of

the guards immediately jumped on him, trying to stab Tomas high in his chest with a knife that

he pulled out. Tomas managed to wrap his right leg around that knife-wielding arm, then
bending it at knee, breaking that arm at the elbow joint while losing the knife as well. Of course,

Tomas also used the momentum to smash the guard’s face into the floor, but it wasn’t enough to

kill him, just broke his nose.

Then Tomas kicked the guard away, hoping to bump him into one of the four oncoming guards.

They just avoided the guard’s body as it fell to the ground.

Tomas proceeded to break them up in close-range combat. The first of the four that got to him

tackled Tomas to the floor. Tomas managed to put his right leg up and bent at the knee under the

guard’s chest while wrapping his right arm behind the guard’s neck and under Tomas’s armpit.

They fell together to the floor and Tomas just pushed away with his knee on the guard’s chest

while pulling violently down on the guard’s neck. Yes, it snapped, killing Velicenko’s

mercenary.

The three guards that still stood, the fourth being dizzy and trying to get back on his feet, opened

fire at Tomas, hitting mostly the dead guard’s body that lay on top of him. Tomas pushed the

body away to the side and performed an undercut backwards kick onto the left standing guard’s

legs, hitting just one of the legs, which was enough for the guard to lose balance and start falling.

However, Tomas immediately performed a 360-degree jumping heel-spin kick, hitting the guard

in his face whilst falling, knocking him out.

Tomas used the momentum to perform another immediate 360-degree jumping heel-spin kick at

the guard on his right, but managed to only kick the guard’s weapon away from him, as the guard

managed to shield his face with the weapon. The guard rushed at Tomas. He just judo-threw the

guard over his shoulder whilst still holding the guard’s right arm up. Then he quickly
repositioned himself, forcing the guard to lay on his belly whilst breaking his arm for the first

time at the elbow.

Then Tomas wrapped his right leg around the guard’s broken arm and sat on it, bending his knee

all the way to the floor; the arm snapped again and the guard cried out in pain for the first time,

and the last. Tomas then grabbed the guard’s head with both of his hands and violently twisted it,

killing the guard.

The fourth guard that had so far only unsuccessfully attempted to strike at Tomas, but always got

deflected, then ignored by Tomas, finally managed to land a roundhouse kick at Tomas’s head.

Blood sprayed out of Tomas’s mouth, but not much else. He still didn’t feel any pain, still was

full of active stimulants that not only kept him awake, but also in the highest state of awareness.

However, the diminishment of the super drug had begun, and Tomas felt it. A lot sooner than last

time, but he was arguably in a worse state as well. Tomas knew he had to end it fast.

He waited for the last guard standing to perform another strike again, and it came soon. Another

high roundhouse kick at Tomas’s head, a different leg though this time around. Perfect

opportunity for Tomas to lock that leg against his right shoulder then kick the support leg of the

guard to the knee, snapping it. Then Tomas violently twisted the locked-on leg, forcing the guard

to start rolling on the floor. The second roll broke the leg at the knee as well, leaving the guard

lying on the floor in pain and unable to move.

The last guard, who already had a broken arm and nose, tried to shoot into Tomas’s face at point-

blank range with a handgun held in his good hand. Tomas managed to twist it out of the way in

time while breaking the arm in the moment that it pointed at the guard’s face. The moment that
the guard’s elbow snapped forced one round out of the .45 ACP Colt handgun, blasting off the

whole right side of the guard’s skull. Bits of his brain painted the surroundings.

Then Tomas choke-slammed the dead guard’s body onto the head of the guard with both broken

legs who in the meantime had also pulled a handgun on Tomas and was in a sitting position with

his left arm supporting his body up and his right arm shooting. It didn’t kill the guard; his

shooting hand was still up, squeezing shots at Tomas, all impacting into the ceiling instead.

Tomas then grabbed onto that arm and pulled it up while kicking into the guard’s neck. The first

or second kick didn’t snap it, although the ligaments in the arm’s elbow area were pulled

asunder; the third kick did the job and the guard’s neck suffered an open fracture. The guard died

a few seconds later, producing gurgling noises whilst one of the arteries that got severed by the

neck’s fractured vertebrae squirted out blood.

Tomas quickly looked around himself, expecting another bunch of bad guys, but there was no

one else. All lay dead, one knocked out. He stomped a few times on the knocked-out guard’s

face, completely flattening it in a pile of bloodied remains, to make sure that the guard would not

cause any trouble should he come to himself too soon. Some of the hostages let out cry of a

horror as Tomas did so, but he had no other choice.

Tomas started to feel slight pain. He knew that the effect of the second chance may cease at any

moment, leaving him in God knows what state. Would they manage to kill him should I pass out

and he gets up? I don’t think so; got to make sure. Besides, they shouldn’t have to live with that

afterwards. For you, it is just one more horror to carry in your heart and mind, along with many

others.
Tomas proceeded to walk towards the large hole in the façade of the building due to the C4

explosion, to jump out. He’d done what he could. With Gargy’s help, he’d just killed 18 men on

the twenty-sixth floor and 4 more on the twenty-eighth. How many could there be? Didn’t

matter, the elevator was blown, no one else was getting on any of the floors anytime soon. And if

they blew it, most likely it was the last of them; the hostages were safe. No doubt a few of

Velicenko’s men stayed in the lobby, delaying the police until the elevator was blown, but even

if they were still alive, they were not Tomas’s concern anymore. All of the hostages would be

above the 26th floor anyway.

He couldn’t hear it, but Peter was announcing to him in the comms that the police were already

evacuating the 27th floor via the two choppers they had and rope work inside the blown-up

elevator shafts that they had managed to set up.

Tomas was even limping now, and not more than 15 meters away from the hole in the façade on

the south side that the police had no vision of, when he became aware of the hostages rounding

up around him. The police/FBI never considered to cover the south side with the snipers, as the

closest building in the south was the AON centre, after the immediate parking lot of the NBC

tower, the Michigan River, and then some more buildings - roughly 800 meters away. Roughly,

because that was at the ground level. Should you put snipers on any of the upper levels of that

building, it would become more - considered an unacceptable too-high of a risk of lack of

accuracy at that distance. No problem for Gargy, of course, not even on the roof of that 400-

meter-tall monster. He was that good and talented a sharpshooter.

A hostage took off his jacket and started to put the fire out on Tomas’s back. Until he did it,

Tomas wasn’t even aware that his back was still on fire in some places. One of the women
stepped forward and almost laid her hand on Tomas’s left cheek but restrained herself, due to the

state of that face. She thought she could have caused him pain doing that.

Tomas was visibly shivering, not realizing it. Shock had started to set in. Many of the hostages

got tears in their eyes and were saying something, but Tomas couldn’t hear anything, just pointed

to his bleeding ears, signalling it to them. Some of them broke up in tears seeing that, covering

their mouths with their hands.

Then he noticed Faith approaching him; she was holding something in her hand. It was the mask!

Tomas touched his face, only then realizing that he didn’t have it on. In a moment it struck him,

and it was obvious. The people around him were signalling to Tomas with their hands and body

language that it didn’t matter, they would not say anything to anyone. Tomas understood that.

Tomas said, ‘Thank you, Faith,’ calmly, while putting his hand on her face, wiping her tears,

only to replace them with a blood smudges there due to his bloodied hands. Then he turned

towards the majority of the hostages.

Tomas said, ‘I must apologize. I can’t hear my voice, so it’s hard for me to talk,’ pointing to his

bleeding ears again.

Tomas said, ‘I have risked my life coming here to save you. Worse, the life of my family and

friends, since my identity could now be exposed. Please, don’t let me regret coming here, and

protect me the way I protected you. This is not a threat, of course, this is just a humble wish on

my part. Do what your heart tells you, just as I do. I must warn you though, should you want to

disclose any information about me, do so only to the police or the FBI, not the media. You could

expose yourself as a person of importance to some very nasty people, as you just bore witness.

However, I wouldn’t be surprised if the information about you being the witness would leak out
of either source soon after anyway. I truly wish it would not; I don’t want to go through this

again.’ He winked at them, cracking a smile to cheer them up. It worked a bit.

Tomas said, ‘Follow the police orders to the letter when they come, it shouldn’t be long now.

Good luck!’ He stepped closer towards the edge of the hole in the façade but got grabbed by

several of the hostages, including Faith.

Tomas said, ‘Don’t worry, I came in this way. Getting out is the easy part,’ showing them his

wingsuit capabilities, extracting it fully.

It had many holes in both the upper wings and the bottom one between the legs, as it was

partially on fire after the explosion. Tomas knew that his parachute was gone, but he had to get

out of the building before the police got to him. The hostages didn’t need to know he needed it

for the landing. Cop’s manoeuvre would have to do.

Tomas said, ‘Don’t worry, it will fly! I’m not a madman. I wouldn’t have just jumped out to my

death.’ This made the hostages to let go of him, but truthfully, he was only hoping that the

wingsuit would fly. Tomas had already made the decision in his mind that should he fall, he

would aim his face down to impact the pavement of the tower’s south parking lot first, shattering

his face in pieces, destroying his identity.

Faith was still holding onto him, saying something that Tomas could swear just by the lips

moving was ‘I love you’, but couldn’t be sure. Then the hostages started to look up to the ceiling

and it became obvious to Tomas that the police/SWAT teams were on the floor above already,

and that he had to go immediately. He looked at Faith again.

Tomas said, ‘I will contact you when it is safe. In the meantime, keep a low profile; get into the

FBI’s protection program.’ She finally let go of him, her face cracking up into tears again.
Tomas said, ‘Wish me luck!’ looking at the hostages, then he jumped out of the building.

He fell 23 floors before the wingsuit got enough lift to start flying.

Gargy called into the comms, ‘He will not make it to the lake, he’s too low!’

Cop countered, ‘He will, but he has no parachute!’

Peter informed them, ‘Gargy, you will have to catch up with Tomas before he lands in the water.

Grab hold of him and pull your chute out immediately.’

Gargy said, ‘Roger that, jumping out!’ He jumped off the AON building and built up significant

speed while descending some 75 floors, enough to quickly start catching up with Tomas as the

whole base watched through Gargy’s POV, collectively gasping.

They both followed the Michigan River into Lake Michigan, where Gargy caught up with

Tomas. He was only eight meters, or two floors, above the water level of the lake, with a few

hundred meters of flight left at best. Gargy was much faster than Tomas and even though he

caught up with him only about half a mile into the lake, he had to make a decision. Gargy

decided to slow down as much as he could to Tomas’s speed before connecting with him, and

started to do up-down maneuverers to slow down.

When he was only slightly faster than Tomas, he finally let himself catch up with him, grabbing

around Tomas’s chest and below Tomas’s armpits. Gargy used his right arm to pull the chute’s

cord on his left side while holding around Tomas, who got really jump-scared by it, not

expecting it.

They were violently pulled backwards first just as the chute had deploy itself, before landing a

bit awkwardly in the lake together. Neither suffered injury during the landing.
Lubos rushed to their position and picked them up in the mini submarine. Tomas had already

passed out by that time due to the second chance being over. Gargy held Tomas’s breathing

mask to him during the whole way back. They were rather quick to get Tomas to South Haven,

and then back into the base, while Charlotte stabilized his condition in the van with the help of

Catherine, who switched because Gargy had no injury anyway.

Yes, Tomas’s face was beaten up. He had multiple partial ribcage fractures, a partially shattered

back, a broken leg and torn palm, along with some non-life-threatening internal bleeding, but

otherwise just multiple bruises from the bullet impacts. No penetrations, no burns, no organs

pulverized by the shock wave blast. The Apex Armour shined; worth every penny.

Needless to say, it had to be replaced as a whole after the mission. But no one, including Peter,

thought about the $3 million needed for the new Apex Armour, excluding the loss of both P30Ls,

the KM 2000 knives, the parachute, and also the wingsuit during the mission. That was just

peanuts anyway in comparison to saving all those people.

The mask? Good as new.

The whole Agency was concerned about one thing only: Tomas.

Charlotte put him into an induced sleep to allow for better recovery and delay the time that he

would be in pain. All were awaiting the moment when Tomas would awake. The Agency agreed

to postpone the celebrations until Tomas woke up.

o Chapter 4: First Problems in Paradise

Linkin Park – Lies Greed Misery 2:27

“What is it you want me to tell you?

I'm not the failure, I would rather live and let be.

But you came with the right kind of threat to,

push me to let you know you can't intimidate me.”

The mission was a massive success. None of the 800 hostages got killed, and all of the remaining

terrorists were finished off in the lobby of the building by the SWAT teams, without casualties.

Faith got FBI protective custody. Although forty-three hostages got hurt either by stray bullets or

the explosion itself. None of the hostages blamed it on the vigilante’s actions. Furthermore, all

claimed that they couldn’t see the vigilante’s face, but what he did there for them, they would

never forget, labelling him a hero across all media.

The crime families weren’t happy; it was a disaster for them. The Russian family started to be

roughed up by FBI and the police at every opportunity. For them, not only had their operation

not worked and they were humiliated, it made things even worse.

The president himself announced that in light of the heroics and unselfishness of the vigilante, he

was offering amnesty for all of his actions should he come forward, would even like to offer him

a job in the national security agency, as well as to all of his accomplices.

Some at the Agency called for taking the president’s offer – backed by the US congress. It felt

like victory, and time to come out as heroes; if it wasn’t for two people in the agency that were

strongly against it. Namely immediately Matty and later by Tomas.

Matty reminded Peter why he risked his career and life creating this agency, stealing money from

the government: because he had lost any trust in the justice system and in the politicians to fix it.

As soon as Tomas was woken up some three days later and heard about the president’s offer, he

said basically the same thing and more; much, much more.

All the knights were present while all of the Agency was watching the discussion about the

president’s offer in the brain room. Peter said to Tomas, ‘I thought you wanted this, a new

chance in life, being a hero?’

Tomas replied, ‘I never wanted to be known. New chance in life? Yes, being anonymous. Hero?

Yes, in my heart, so I have an excuse for what I have done, so that I can sleep at night.’ This

statement really surprised a lot of people, or more the way Tomas said it. Emotionally. Then he

continued.
‘I know that for a lot of you, this could be great. Being recognized as heroes, all your actions

done legally, and you can start over again as good, respected, law-abiding citizens. You can go

back to your families with your heads high; they would be proud of you. Admittedly, in your

place, I would think the same way. But I’m not in your place! Do you realize how many people I

have killed? The way I have killed some of them?! Do you think my family would be proud of

me?! Or recognize me anymore? Do you think people would simply accept me as part of their

community knowing I may have killed hundreds of people while some of my brutality was

already smeared nationwide on the television? I can only do what I do because I already know

that for me, there is no way back. Tomas Cudzis is no more, as far as I am concerned. But I

would like to be able to at least pretend, for my family’s sake, that he is. I can’t just come

forward and say, yeah it was me! Never!’ Again, very emotionally, not common for Tomas.

Violetta proposed, ‘Maybe you can stay anonymous. Request it as your condition?’

Tomas said, ‘Are you suggesting to trust politicians? Please! Even if they wouldn’t openly

backstab me, I’m sure there would be a leak sooner or later, just so they could pin a medal on me

afterwards in a photo op and improve their re-election position along with public relations. You

really think they wouldn’t want to use the national hero to their advantage once they know my

true identity?’

Violetta said, ‘They could use any of us, right? Why just you? We all worked as a team, it was a

team effort, right?’

Tomas said, ‘Violetta. I don’t want to sound like an asshole, but did you jump out of a building

with a bomb in your hands to save the hostages? Did you personally kill all of Fok’s henchmen?
Do you think that you would be as important to the public, therefore the politicians, as me? Not a

chance! They would want ME to pose for pictures with them!

‘It doesn’t matter that I know in my heart that if it wasn’t for Cop’s amazing Apex Armour, I

wouldn’t have survived even the initial entry. If it wasn’t for Dr Charlotte’s super drug, I

wouldn’t have been able to make a move, never mind fight. If it wasn’t for Gargy saving my ass

on the landing into the lake, at best I would be paralyzed right now. If it wasn’t for Peter making

the plan, and Lubos picking us up in the mini sub, we would most likely be in jail right now, my

identity already exposed. The list goes on. Every tiny task that had to be done and I didn’t do it

personally, then I have to thank the team and the Agency as a whole for allowing me to at least

try being a hero and saving the hostages. I know that. It was us, not me!

‘I’m not trying to steal anything away from any of you. But the public and the politicians

wouldn’t care about you. If Roger here’ – pointing at him on the screen – ‘told them that he

worked in the stores, making sure that all supplies are unloaded, available, and in necessary

numbers, along with the thousands of other things he helps with, that they would care? With all

due respect, I would overshadow all of you. The public cares about the man that pulled the

trigger, that shielded the hostages with his own body, not the people that allowed him to do so in

the first place.

‘Yeah, you all would be heroes, but the public and the politicians would bug you until you would

disclose to them who the masked man was so they could exploit the person of highest importance

to their own benefit before their competitors could.

‘And if public opinion changes over time, I would be the first one to be forsaken as a monster.

Right now, the public is with us; not even completely, just for the most part. How about
tomorrow? Can you trust the politicians to keep their word should public opinion change after

we have come forward? Don’t be daft!’

Momentary silence ensued.

Tomas continued. ‘And what about justice? What about the truth? Have you people forgotten

why this agency even exists? Because YOU personally didn’t believe in the justice system

anymore! Right?!’

Still silence.

‘Well, I’ll tell you not only that I believe there is no more justice, I believe there is no more truth

out there either. Wake up! How you want to do justice without the truth? Justice can be done

only if the truth is known. Isn’t that how it’s worked so far? Peter here’ – pointing at him – ‘digs

into the available evidence that the justice system already disposed with but chose to ignore,

supposedly protecting their informers that continue to do their dirty job in the meantime, and

then we kill that person. Because once we have found the truth, we act on it. Isn’t that how it

works?’

Still silence.

‘I can’t believe that the president and congress supposedly offers you a new, honest, legal start,

along with being a celebrity, and you just forget about all of this! Do you think they will let us

continue to do what we do now? Do you think they will let us dig until we find evidence on

them?’

Violetta wanted to bring him back to earth. ‘What are you trying to suggest?’
Tomas said, ‘That this, all of this…this is just peanuts! Yeah, it’s the best we can do. But it’s

trivial. The real gangsters are not even in our sights.’

Peter took offence. ‘So all of this was basically for nothing anyway to you? We haven’t achieved

anything in your eyes?’

Tomas said, ‘I didn’t say that. We’ve achieved a lot more than the people that have suffered

under those fucking mob families ever dreamed of. Gave them more than justice; gave them

hope. More than Mike aka DiBi, may he rest in peace, ever dreamed was possible, and would

definitely have said it was more than enough. But in the bigger picture, this is not enough. The

true evil people that deserve to die evade our radar.’

Peter asked, ‘Like who?’

Tomas said, ‘Like the people who did the September 11 attacks!’

Peter said, ‘The Taliban is gone, Osama bin Laden is dead –’

Tomas said, ‘Peter, I’m amazed that with all of your intelligence, with all of your brilliant mind,

you never doubted the official version. I mean, I’m just an idiot –’

He got interrupted by Gargy, who attempted to make a joke to alleviate the situation. ‘You said it

yourself!’ It didn’t work, and got basically ignored by everyone.

Tomas continued. ‘But even I can see that the US government did it to themselves so they have

no resistance from their own populace when they invade foreign countries, killing MILLIONS of

innocent civilians in the process while officially chasing ghosts. But very conveniently, thanks to

those invasions, they get world dominance in drug production, along with oil fields that

guarantee the dollar stays as the world currency, just in the nick of a time!’
Peter said, ‘Now you’re just talking out of your ass.’ He waved his hand dismissively at Tomas.

‘Am I? Perhaps. But not only idiots like me can see through the lies they have fed us so far. The

scholars and university lecturers, engineers, firefighters, pilots, the police, experts in their fields,

thousands have spoken against it. Conveniently, the most influential of them died in accidents

soon after they became too open about their doubts of the official story, too loud publicly.’

‘Sure, our government is killing its own people and is the number one enemy of the state.

Obviously,’ Peter said, sarcastically, but Tomas didn’t get it.

Tomas said, ‘Well, now we’re getting somewhere. But the people in the administration of

government have changed since, so I don’t know. Either way, if the governments after didn’t feel

that it should be their number one concern to open the investigation of 9/11 again, this time

perhaps with real independent investigators on a real budget, not my little niece’s pocket money,

I find them accomplices to the crimes.’

Peter said, ‘I think that’s enough of that,’ trying to sway the discussion in another direction.

Tomas said, ‘Of course, the truth hurts, right?! It’s too painful. You can’t handle the truth! Same

way all of the disbelievers/sheep that call people like me conspiracy theorist can’t. To them the

world is a nice place, you can trust your government, rose-coloured glasses, rainbows and

sunshine and all. Last time I checked, Kennedy is long dead. He is the last president of this

country with a real interest to save and help his people, not his own personal gain. He got killed

before he managed to expose to the public what federal reserve bank, the Fed, really is, and

abolish the dollar printed on a debt to the state basis by a private bank. Before he exposed the

bankers and their dominance of the governments of all so-called first-world countries as a whole.

Before he managed to wake the people the fuck up –’

Peter said, ‘I said that’s quite enough now! We’re side-tracking!’ He was clearly annoyed with

Tomas now.

Tomas said, ‘Are we? Isn’t this what our real goal should be?’

Peter asked, ‘What are you talking about?!’

Tomas explained, ‘Stop chasing after the field rabbits and go after the big game for a change!’

Peter gave him that look like, what are you talking about?

Tomas said, ‘Fuck the mob, they’re fucked enough now anyway. As soon as we die or get

caught, all will go through the same motions as before us; nothing will change. Why? ’Cause the

real gangsters that not only allow for all of that to happen, but more likely induce it in the first

place for their own benefit, still live their lives happily untouched and out of the spotlights. Why

have you never gone after those crooked politicians, Peter? I sure don’t know. I’m sure you

would also find the bankers that are controlling them. They should be our real targets. People

that create laws that are very beneficial to them, but harmful to the populace. Banks that legally

steal people’s lives and livelihoods based on a lie, lending out money that never existed in the

first place, on interest!’

‘Tomas, I think you are still affected by your injuries. You should go and have a rest,’ Peter said

calmly while pointing at the doorway as if he just realized this was total lunacy and must be due

to the resounding head injuries. He looked at Violetta for backup.

Tomas barked. ‘Why?! This is me; this was always me. Ever since I was fifteen and watched the

Twin Towers fall the way they did, I knew it was fishy. Never mind that all of the official story,

every single damn statement, I have found later to be either a blatant lie or fantasy. I watched the
coverup, the vanishing of the witnesses and the most active “truthers” in the early years after,

when it still mattered.

‘Ever since I found out as a nineteen-year-old how money is created. Why is everybody in debt,

Peter? All of the supposedly rich first-world countries? To whom? Does it bother you, Peter, that

the federal reserve bank is a privately owned bank that lends out its money to the state on

interest? Money that they never had! Simply typing new numbers into the computer every time

there is demand, then asking interest back on it from the borrower? Has it ever bothered you that

people out there have to work for their money, and people at the top in the banks just legally

create money out of thin air, then ask interest on it too? Does it bother you a little bit, Peter, that

Thomas Jefferson’s greatest fear has come true? That the banks are more dangerous to the

liberties of a man than standing armies? That to this moment, the power of banks to issue money

hasn’t been restored to its people, as he urged?’

Peter said calmly, ‘Tomas, we’re all patriots here, but what you are saying is just nonsense.’

Tomas said, ‘Nonsense. Patriots. I thought that first and foremost, the duty of every patriot is to

defend his country against all enemies. Foreign and domestic. Not to trust the government

blindly. Real patriots keep their government in check. Do you really think the politicians have

your best interest in their minds?’

Peter said firmly, ‘Maybe not all, but for the most part, yes! Look at Matty. All of this is thanks

to having that good man in a government position.’

Tomas said, ‘Yet, what we do, what he does too, is illegal! Doesn’t that raise concerns to you,

Peter?’
Peter said, ‘It’s just because the justice system has too many loopholes and needs improvement.

This man recognized it and acted on it, so now things are again in balance, in favour of the

people. If nothing else, this should prove to you that in the face of injustice, the government itself

will fix it, even if illegally.’

Tomas asked, ‘And what would happen to him should they find out about him, about us? Will

they say: This is a good thing, we need to cover this up, and let him be? Or would someone like

to step up his career on Matty’s political corpse?’

Peter said, ‘I think you just look at the world in all black, Tomas. It’s not as bad and evil as you

claim.’

Tomas replied, ‘Perhaps, I’m willing to admit that. But what if I’m right? There’re a lot of bad

people that destroy people’s lives, make them economic slaves for life, kill many millions while

not even personally getting dirty while they are collecting their Man of the Year and other

bullshit humanitarian awards. They’re laughing at us all, the sheep in their eyes. What if I’m

right about that? Would you do anything, Peter? Or just keep your head down and carry on living

the lie. It’s so easy when you don’t realize that you’re also a victim to their plans. When people

around have it worse, much worse. When it’s not your family or loved ones being killed. When

you think that you’re free to do what you want, not limited by your economic situation, that

you’re not necessarily in control of, and for the most part is predetermined by to whom and

where in the world you have been born to.’

Peter said, ‘You are in control of your economic situation. You study hard, you work hard, you

will get paid good money. Nothing stops you from investing or starting your own business either.

Plenty of people get rich coming from nothing.’

Tomas said, ‘True, plenty of celebrities with questionable talents, or sports people that are

overpaid, in my opinion. How does that relate to the average Joe going through life trying to

improve his economic situation, working hard at it? You say nothing stops them. Nothing but

their economic situation. The place they have been born to. The people that they know, etcetera.

It’s true that everyone has a chance to become rich through hard work, but it’s not guaranteed.

‘How much easier is it when you just know the right people? No need for talent, knowledge, or

anything else. All you need to know is the right person.

‘What help is your school? To be a slave to someone else? I’m applauding the fact that truly

exceptional and talented people will always find a way to wealth eventually, despite the

hardships and lack of essential connections. But I despise the fact that someone who is short of

genius, in poor family conditions, even if they have a great idea and business plan that would

guarantee profit, gets turned away by the banks and investors ninety-nine percent of the time. It’s

simply not even worth their time because their cut would be too small, and they are nobody that

they could profit from associating with. Never mind that they could radically improve someone’s

life taking but a small risk on their part.

‘The fact is, the system is designed in such a way that you don’t have time for self-improvement;

they don’t want that. Go work for someone else, pay taxes, and die before benefiting from your

own retirement fund! Nothing more! No one wants the poor to succeed. No one rich would like

to eliminate the massive void between the poor and the rich populace; they’d rather build a wall.

In time, the middle class virtually won’t exist anymore. The poor get larger in their numbers

while the rich get richer in individual wealth.’

Peter said, ‘Not everybody can be rich; not everyone deserves a good life.’
Tomas said, ‘Agreed, I never said that they do. Fuck the lazy, the brutes, the economic whores,

the baby factories, the generations-long benefit collectors, and the other human trash. I’m talking

about the people who work their whole lives for improvement. Made many sacrifices, took jobs

they didn’t want to because everyone has to start somewhere, paid taxes their whole life. All in

the hope that it will pay off in the end, just to be shut down at every corner by the system. You

get sick? You’re fucked. The health insurance that you paid for your whole life? Well, it doesn’t

cover this shit. You need housing, a grant, anything to support you in time of need, or to support

your entrepreneur activity? Fuck you! The system will give it to the abusers, the benefit leaches

and other scum that are only a burden to the state instead of you that has been productive your

whole life and contributed to the state’s budget.

‘Politicians don’t need to help the right people to stay in power, they need to help the donors

who in turn pay for their campaigns. The security of their own economic situation is the first and

last concern of theirs. The poor are easily controlled. Either they are the dumb, lazy, reality

show-watching leaches, or they work so hard that they have no time to do anything at the end of

the day, or are just too tired.

‘Educated and financially independent people snoop around too much, can see through a con

much easier, oppose it quicker and louder. It is important for the government to keep them at low

numbers. Then, once you’re really rich, it just becomes greed and a struggle for more power with

the other powerful-rich people. Backstabbing each other. The only time they will publicize some

fat cat fall is only because they wanted it and condemned that bastard! A small victory, if any.

Instead of two fat cats, there is only one big fat cat having all the collective power. No victory at

all.’
Peter said, ‘What do you want, Tomas? I mean, what did you really want and hope for joining

this team? That we will start killing politicians and bankers?’

Tomas stayed silent.

‘That we will kill the president? He is the head of the snake, right?’

Tomas said, ‘No, and no. He’s just a pawn.’

‘Then who? The richest banker we can find?’

‘No, nothing would have changed.’

Peter asked, ‘Then what?! What is it that you want?’

‘I want the public to know the truth. Once they know the truth about the politics, the banks, this

system and how it really all works, I’m sure there would be a revolt. Perhaps global. Then, and

only then, could things change. If it’s not too late already.’

Peter asked, ‘Even if any of what you have said was true, how would you change their minds?

My mind? To accept it?’

Tomas said, ‘I can’t. Your own politicians would have to come forward and tell you the same

thing that I just did for you to accept it. You will never take the truth from me. You need

someone that you perceive as authority, as your superior, to tell you that. Someone in power that

you trust.’

‘So it can never happen, end of story,’ Peter said, dismissing the idea.

Tomas said, ‘Maybe it can. I just need the politicians, the president at best, to admit that 9/11

was an inside job. I believe that would be all that is required for the people to wake up. For you.
If I can make your President at the time say, yes, we did it to ourselves! That would be all that’s

necessary for your happy world to completely collapse and force you to wake up. To stop being a

fucking victim; to stop being a sheep.’ He took a short pause for thinking before he continued.

Tomas said, ‘It would be glorious. To see them choke on their previous lies, swallow up their

greed. I want to see them suffer in their misery. No, Peter, I was always like this. I haven’t been

outspoken about it because of the prejudice of most people around me. But I won’t be defeated,

converted into sheep. I didn’t soften up. I was just ducking the prejudice while reloading my

words into a stronger argument at the right time.

‘Do you think I want this to be true? That I want to believe the world is this bad? No. But I have

no choice in light of all the evidence I have seen. In light of history that tends to repeat. Do you

read history and just think how great the people were of the past? Or are you disgusted by the

evil nature of man, that has been a well-documented fact. Yes, we have made massive progress

in many aspects, even since the last century, but it won’t change the fact that those forward-

moving people that were exceptional often ended up in tragedy. They have been the object of

ridicule during their life, only to be recognized after their deaths by other intellectuals.

‘Yes, there are still people capable of kindness, regardless of financial means or intellect. That is

the reason why I should try my best to improve their lives. To reveal the truth, so that justice can

be done. I can’t just stand by knowing that many good and kind people are getting screwed over,

lied to, their lives destroyed, or being outright killed, all by people with artificial power, creating

money out of thin air.

‘It only works because people accept their money created out of thin air as currency, and the debt

they will put themselves into doing so because their government has no problem with that.

Worse, supports it and covers up the truth for their own benefit.

‘This has to end, and if I can help end it, I will. Me stating my opinion is the first step, no matter

how small.’

Peter said plainly, ‘I think you’re nuts. Let me be perfectly clear with everyone here listening, we

will never go out killing politicians, or the bankers, ever!’

Tomas said, ‘I’m okay with that.’

Peter retorted, ‘So what was all of this preaching about? A waste of our time?’

Tomas said, ‘What do you want me to tell you? I’m not the failure here! I needed to say it clear

and loud with you all present. I can’t hide and pretend everything is okay when it is not. I won’t

be intimidated to shut up either. If nothing else, perhaps it will make some of you think and go

dig up stuff that is openly at your disposal on the internet and see for yourself. Perhaps you could

come up with arguments that would change my mind. Either way, it’s a win-win situation.

‘I truly wish this wasn’t the truth. I would rather just live and let be, but can’t help to think that it

is. I just…I can’t find peace in my heart and my mind. Every time I see the evidence of 9/11

being an inside job, my blood boils. Something has to be done! I think about the horrors that the

people in the towers endured, the people that were jumping out, the towers falling. Then I’m

imagining the responsible politicians and bankers rubbing their hands in glee watching it all,

knowing that their plans will work. Cheering and celebrating as they can see their power rising

with every new horror witnessed. Laughing behind the backs of the people, how stupid they are.

They fucked up more than once that day. Yet, even the most obvious evidence, the fall of the
towers, is widely accepted as normal, not slightly suspicious to the wider public. It’s fucking

enraging! The things I would have done to those people should I have been there and then in that

moment with them. When they were laughing, congratulating each other, watching the towers

fall while people ran away in panic. Cheering it for sure! I would gladly let out the animal in me

and let happen whatever would have happened.

‘But their deaths wouldn’t be enough. Only the admission of the truth to the public ever will. I

hope it will not happen two hundred years from now, when people just wave their hands at it;

when it wouldn’t matter anymore. But mark my words, it will one day.’

Peter said, ‘Well, now you have said it, and I promise you that I will look into it when I’ve got

time. It’s a dark world that you are living in, Tomas. Perhaps I will manage to lighten it up a bit

for you.’ He looked around the table. ‘I think we are done here for now. We will discuss the

success of our rescue mission some other time.’ He put his right hand on Tomas’s shoulder, then

left to see his wife.

‘Uff, that wasn’t exactly the celebration I expected and hoped for,’ Gargy said, speaking to

Helena and Cop to his right.

Cop agreed. ‘Most definitely not.’ Totally bummed out.

The whole base sort of dispersed, went to do anything and nothing at the same time after what

they’d witnessed. They expected celebrations; instead, it felt like an argument between Tomas

and Peter. Worse, to many, Tomas became some sort of extremist, although nobody could deny

his sacrifice and heroics at the NBC tower. It just put the Agency in a state of limbo.

One thing was for sure; there would be no accepting of the president’s offer. Even if Tomas was

wrong about everything else, he did remind them why they joined in the first place. To do
something that wouldn’t be possible to do otherwise. To serve justice in places the state closes its

eyes on. Although, Tomas’s belittling of those efforts, saying it’s basically meaningless and

really achieves nothing, left many people sour.

Black Hawk Down Soundtrack – Barra Barra (Rachid Taha) 5:48

“Outside, Outside ... Corruption and envy. There is no trust.

(BARRA BARRA hozd wel boghd ou zawara)

Outside, Outside ... Thirst and perverse people.

(barra barra fezd wel l´hozd ma b´qa amene)

Outside, Outside ... No mercy, oppression and slavery.”

(barra barra l´alach we ness menhoussine)

For two whole weeks, the atmosphere at the base was awkward. Tomas promised Gargy that he

would never, ever, talk about 9/11, the banks, and politics ever again. Tomas agreed and stated
that he didn’t wish to spoil the celebrations or to demean the deeds of the Agency to date, just

needed to come out loud and clear on his opinions and beliefs in the light of people rooting for

the president’s offer. Neither Helena nor Catherine had expressed their feelings for Tomas yet,

although they had both fallen even more deeply in love with him after the rescue mission. Both

investigated Tomas’s claims about 9/11 being an inside job, but kept that to themselves. Funny

enough, not to find the truth in the matter. Rather to find out whether Tomas was a real nutter.

Even if he was, they would happily live with it. After all, they would “fix” him over time, as

most women think they can fix their man.

Public opinion even slightly increased, despite the masked man not coming forward. The

president extended his offer indefinitely until the masked man would act on his own again,

outside of the law’s borders. The heroics of what happened in the NBC tower was still talked

about, and the pressure put on the crime families by the police and FBI even increased. Chicago,

for the first time in the history of the US, was declared the safest city in the USA. Virtually all

killings stopped, all illegal activities. The vigilante was real, and he apparently had a hard-on for

Chicago. Even small-time thieves ceased their operations in fear that the vigilante may find them

and kill them. As far as the TV said, he was leaving nothing but corpses behind.

The whole Agency was proud. Matty increased his donation to 45 million a month and

demanded daily reports on Tomas’s recovery process until fully healed. His right palm still had

three more weeks of predicted recovery time, but outside of that, he was fine.

The increased budget and Peter’s charisma allowed for two new surgeons to join the team, Dr

Patrik, a plastic surgeon, and Dr Kupkin, a neurologist, as well as two dentists, doctors Odlew

and Sataano. As much as Charlotte was a versatile doctor, a Jack of all trades, plastic surgery and

dentistry weren’t her specialty, and Tomas needed some extensive work to be done on his face.
With the help of doctors Odlew and Sataano, you would never guess that Tomas was partially

scalped and lost part of his bottom jaw after they were done with him. With Dr Kupkin’s

assistance, Tomas quickly gained back sense in his facial muscles, got normal vision and hearing

capabilities back, as well as function of his right hand.

However, the doctors’ use for the missions themselves was non-existent; they were more damage

control in nature. Therefore, they weren’t offered knights’ positions. Also, because Peter got

sceptical about taking in more knights to make decisions with, after the first sign of the

conflicting nature of Tomas, almost disobedient.

Certainly, their relationship got colder; everyone noticed that. Barely spoke a word on an average

day outside of the usual small talk. The tension could be felt, and Violetta long before predicted

impending open conflict, even asked Gargy not to take his side the next time, rather to try to

defuse the situation. Of course, he agreed. Gargy was everyone’s friend, and wished that Tomas

would just fit in better.

They didn’t have to wait for too long, as Helena told Tomas about the conversation that she had

with Peter’s wife, Justina. Apparently, there was a mission of opportunity that Peter decided not

to present in the end to the knights, being too risky, a trap even. Tomas told Gargy, not wanting

to confront Peter directly, and Gargy told Lubos when he asked him about the conversation with

Tomas, and then the mission became the base’s public secret soon after. Peter got mad when he

found out and called out the knights for discussion; the whole Agency tuned in, of course.

Peter began, ‘So, I have become aware that there are some rumours about me hiding away an

opportunity mission from you guys, and I want to make it clear that I’m not hiding anything.
This agency is a place of transparency, as it has always been since the beginning. There are no

secrets.’

Tomas said, ‘So the rumours are not true?’ Of course it was him to challenge Peter first. The

whole base expected another argument between the two.

Peter said, ‘No, I’m saying that I’m not hiding anything. All of my intelligence gathering was

done in the brain room that is under constant surveillance supervision and by default, is the main

mission screen for the whole base. For everyone to see what I’m doing and what I’m looking at.’

Tomas listened carefully.

Peter said, ‘But of course, you’re busy playing games when people like me work on our next

objectives gathering intelligence, while most of the base would also rather change the channel to

watch your silly games on the main screens. Lately, it feels like being in a damn internet café

most of the time, not a secret base. Of course no one even notices anymore, or pays attention to

what’s going on.’ That shut Tomas up. Also, it was the third time Peter ever used foul language,

if damn counts as well. But who counts anyway?

Peter said, ‘But in my kindness, I wouldn’t demand a ban on gaming activities or casting. After

consultation with Violetta, I feel that it is helpful for the state of morale and mental health of the

team as a whole. I wouldn’t demand for people to control what I do and how. It’s flattering that

people trust me so much, that no one feels the need anymore.’ You could feel the sarcasm in the

last sentence.

‘But, I would beg to differ that I’m hiding anything away. Especially based on claims that came

after women were doing what they do best, chatting around.’ He was expressing his annoyance

with his wife and Helena, but it surely felt like an attack on women.
Violetta and Dr Charlotte both reacted immediately. ‘Excuse me?!’ It was highly out of his

character and Peter later promised to himself to never shame his wife publicly ever again,

realising that he had reduced himself to Tomas’ level – blaming it on him in his mind at first,

later admitting own responsibility to himself after cooling off, apologizing to both Justina and

Helena directly.

Helena couldn’t even look at Peter and Catherine was just being her fragile, gentle, wouldn’t

ever confront anyone herself. Peter totally ignored Violetta’s and Charlottes reaction, denying

them explanation or apology, and continued.

Peter said, ‘Frankly, I’m appalled.’ You could cut the tension in the air with a knife.

Violetta said, ‘Okay, that’s enough.’ She felt that it was her job to fix it. It probably was.

She said firmly, ‘I think that it is obvious that Peter wasn’t hiding anything, and the base owes

him an apology. Then, as of today, I’m banning casting of any leisure activity on the main screen

with the audio during Peter’s intelligence gathering efforts. Instead, one volunteer knight that has

free time at such time must be witness to it. If there are no volunteers, I have no problem

assigning you in shifts. Any questions, complaints?’ No one said anything.

‘Good. Furthermore, I order Peter to organize mandatory report sessions for the knights after he

decides not to go ahead with any of the potential missions or targets in the future, due to it being

too risky or something else. However, I will leave it at his discretion to decide whether he was

just looking around gathering intelligence, or whether he was in the planning stage but made the

decision to not go ahead for whatever reasons.

‘I would like to remind the knights that Peter has the main word in launching the mission or not.

The voting is a privilege only once given by him, or me, to the knights, at our leisure, and
extends to the individual main missions only. It’s not a right, nor a custom. Only Peter or I can

call for the knights to vote, to make a collective decision regarding what WE find fit.

Understood?’ Some nodded, some said yes.

Violetta said, ‘Okay. Now to clarify the situation, I would like to ask Peter to present his last

mission and his reasons for cancelling it. For the knights and the base to see that it was a

legitimate decision based on a reason, not in spite.’ She looked at Peter.

‘Is that possible?’ Violetta said, calmly but firmly.

Peter answered formally, ‘Yes, ma’am, it is.’

Peter proceeded to present his gathered intelligence on the last targets of interest. It turned out

that Peter tracked two low-key gangs into Dearborn, Michigan, the city right next door to Detroit

that has the largest Muslim community in the US, more than 50 percent of its population.

Twenty-four gang members in total were to meet there in the local marketplace at night. The

marketplace was around 150 meters square of open area surrounded by a parking lot and shops to

the west, with one access road to the east. The purpose of the meeting was unknown. But why

there? Why in an open space, with just one exit? Why would those two groups that never met

before even come together at all?

Then, one of Detroit’s detectives that was investigating one of the gangs got a no-go order from

upstairs due to the meeting taking place outside of his jurisdiction. It was too fishy. Obvious to

find out about too. It almost felt like an advertisement to Peter. So why had no authorities acted

on it? It was a bunch of junkies, crackheads, and low-life killers for hire, led by two wannabe

gangsters. One local named Hassan. Apparently, he came from Syria less than a year ago and

had three beheadings under his belt already. The other one was an African-American male,
Tyrone, born and raised in Forest Park, Detroit, suspected in eight killings. Needless to say, none

of their associates were saints. For those two men to consider taking you on a “job” with them,

you had to prove you could kill someone first.

Then Tomas of course challenged Peter that they should be taking this easy opportunity to take

them all out. That the place should be deserted at night and would be an open field of fire for

Gargy to take advantage of. That they would be like a fish in the barrel, a fast job.

‘I thought you didn’t care about petty criminals anymore. They are not politicians, you know,’

Peter replied sarcastically.

Tomas said, ‘Sure, I would prefer to go after the big fish, but I have seen their files, Peter. I

know what kind of people those are. The kind that definitely end up on my to-do list. Not that I

have anything better to do either.’ It almost felt like he was blaming Peter for that.

Everybody expected another argument between the two, but Peter just gave in and the mission

was launched in the end.

There was only one elevated area to position Gargy at. On the low roofs of the nearby shops,

about five meters tall. However, it had good coverage overlooking the market and the parking lot

area.

Peter hacked a CIA satellite and observed the situation through its optics from the sky. There

were no targets until 1:00 a.m. Then, three cars came from the north access point and a few

minutes later, three more cars from the south. The cars unloaded simultaneously with lights kept

on, then the two groups headed to meet each other. Gargy observed them with the sights of his

PSG1 while Tomas was below the roof at the ground level hiding behind one of the benches

some 100 meters away from the meeting group.

Peter said, ‘Wait for my signal. I would like to know what this meeting is about first.’

Gargy replied, ‘Roger.’ Tomas kept quiet.

The groups approached each other. Their leaders stopped about two meters away from each other

with the rest on their tail. No observable greetings, no nothing, no visible chat. It looked more

like they were both waiting for someone else to come. They stood there for 10 minutes, but

nothing happened. The body language of the gang members revealed that they were also getting

bored, impatient. Occasional looks at their watches, while not one word was spoken visibly

between the groups. Why are they here? came to Peter’s mind.

Peter said, ‘I don’t like this, it’s too easy. Smells like a trap.’

Tomas said, ‘For who? Us? How would they, whoever it is setting the trap, be sure we would

come?’

Peter said, ‘I don’t know that, but don’t you find it odd that they are just standing there,

waiting?’

Gargy offered, ‘Maybe someone else is coming. Maybe we will catch even more of them.’

Peter said, ‘So they basically advertised their meeting, while the third party remained hidden,

and the detective that caught up with them has been called off?’ Silence.

Peter said, ‘It’s not a question of whether it is a trap, it is a trap! The question is, for who? And

where are the people who set the trap up?’ Comms silence still.

Peter said, ‘I’m pulling the plug, we will go home. Backtrack your way into the field, then head

towards the vans through the forest going south. It’s a five-minute jog.’

Lubos announced, ‘I’m in position and waiting.’

Tomas said calmly, ‘Just one second.’ Nobody said anything. Gargy didn’t move.

After a while, Peter asked, ‘What are we waiting for?’

Tomas said, ‘I don’t know. You said it yourself, this is too easy. And they are right there, Peter!’

‘And?’

‘And, I was thinking about Karima, who got beheaded by that bastard Hassan for having the

audacity to tell him no when he was making his advances on her. I’m thinking about Joseph, who

admittedly wasn’t an angel himself, doing robberies and stuff. Coming from his poor, single-

parent background and means. What else would you expect anyway? But the way that cunt

Tyrone killed him for refusing to kill a person for him…remember? Chained him to a pole and lit

him on fire while the gang had a good laugh watching him screaming in pain, begging them to

shoot him?’ Momentary silence.

Tomas said, ‘I’m thinking…you said it yourself, it’s too easy. Let’s get them fast, and then

vanish. Whoever set up the trap for whoever, it will be too late to react.’

Peter said, ‘What if it is a trap for us, and they’re just waiting for exactly that?’

Tomas said, ‘Well, what can you see on the satellite? Is anything suspicious close to us? I can’t

see anything suspicious around from my point of view.’

Gargy said, ‘Me either. I have already checked the field several times and the forest to the back.

Nothing.’

Tomas said, ‘Maybe it isn’t a trap.’

Peter said, ‘It is, trust me. And until we can identify who set it up, for who, and where they are

at, we shouldn’t risk it.’

Tomas responded, ‘I don’t see this as a risk. I’m not twenty-eight floors high with a bomb in my

hands jumping out of a window.’

Gargy said, ‘Will you never stop reminding us of that one?’ bantering with Tomas as always.

Tomas said, ‘Even a pest like you has got to admit that it was pretty ballsy – and cool.’

‘I did that kind of stuff before I could talk!’

‘You still can’t talk.’ That made Gargy laugh into the comms; you would probably hear a few

crack-ups at the base too.

Peter said, ‘Okay, cut it. Let me think.’

Tomas said, ‘Come on, Peter, they will be gone in seconds. Then we will return ASAP. We have

the Apex Armour, after all. What could possibly happen?’

Peter was still hesitant, quiet for a few more seconds. Then he said, ‘Light them up.’

Gargy replied, ‘Roger that.’

Tomas said, ‘Now we’re talking!’

Tomas opened up first with fully automatic fire of his new G36. The gang members were so

dumb that they didn’t even stay close to the cars and were in the complete open. Gargy added his

SPG1 fire seconds after, and 16 of them paid the price before they managed to get into the cover

of the cars.

Tomas lost visual on them due to being in cover, so he decided to advance after them into the

open space of the parking lot under the protection of the proven Apex Armour.
Peter said, ‘Don’t go into the open, stay back!’ It was too late, as Tomas was already exposed,

attracting the occasional shooter, who got immediately cut down by Gargy as soon as they poked

out.

The gangs were both dead within 14 seconds. Tomas advanced all the way to their bodies to

confirm the kills visually.

BRRRRRRT-BRRRRRRRRRT-BRRRRRRRRRT. Long bursts of fire struck the roof where

Gargy was positioned. It was an M134 personal minigun. A team of “soldiers” came out of the

ground of the field close to the woods. They were dug in there in well-concealed trenches that

were unrecognizable from a normal grass field to the naked eye. The soldiers pushed the

concealment roof off the trench and away, got out, and opened fire as soon as Tomas and Gargy

exposed their positions.

‘I’m hit, I’m hit!’ Gargy cried out in pain. Tomas immediately opened fire at the soldiers,

getting 2 out of the 15 before attracting fire of one of the two M134s on himself, forcing him to

take cover behind the gangs’ cars.

Peter asked, ‘How bad is it?’

Gargy said, ‘Not sure, my right arm is visibly bleeding. Applying the glue.’ He reached for the

glue and sprayed it all over the wound.

The M134 minigun was an up to 6,000 rounds per minute killing machine. The two members in

the attacking team that wielded it had to carry massive, belt-fed backpacks on their backs that

could roughly have 2,000 rounds stored in each. It shot a 7.62 mm NATO round that the Apex

Armour could easily withstand, even the knock-off cheap version that Gargy wore, but in the

initial burst, close to 16 rounds struck almost simultaneously into Gargy’s right hand along the
whole way, ripping the fibres visibly on impact, while two rounds managed to actually get

through. The rate of fire proved to be too much for the Apex Armour.

Peter asked, ‘Can you still shoot?’

It was a redundant question, as he could have seen Gargy return fire at the soldiers almost in the

same instant before being forced back to cover due to the tremendous firepower the “soldiers”

(they looked equipped like a military special ops team) had. Gargy got another soldier and all of

them opened fire back at him again. Peter gave the order to Cop to get him into the parking lot of

the market. Helena was with them in the command van. Then he ordered Lubos to also come to

them, but with caution, and that he would update him on the situation along the way. Nurse

Catherine and Dr Charlotte were in there with him too. They sped up to assist Tomas and Gargy

that were pinned down by the tremendous gunfire.

Tomas said, ‘Fuuck, what is that?!’

Lubos answered, ‘It’s an M134 personal minigun. One one-second burst easily means fifty to a

hundred bullets flying in close proximity to each other, virtually simultaneously. Don’t get

caught in it!’

Cop added, ‘We never tested the Apex Armour against such firepower. Gargy is already hurt!’

He said that so fast, it was hard to keep up with it.

Gargy was forced to reposition, as the roof was virtually getting destroyed by the firepower,

collapsing into the inside of the shopping area. He wasn’t fast enough; in that much firepower, he

got caught and was hit by a burst from one of the M4 assault rifles that the other “soldiers”

carried.
Gargy said, ‘I’m hit! I’m hit again!’ There was a little bit of panic in his voice, but there was no

penetration.

Tomas poked out of his cover from behind the engine compartment of one of the cars, getting

another soldier and visibly injuring one. The return fire of one of the M134s and a few M4s lit

the car instantly on fire, forcing a small explosion to erupt. Tomas just ducked and moved from

one car to the next, just for the other cars to also get Swiss-cheesed and erupt in flames. The heat

was too much, and Tomas had to move across to the other three cars that may have been 15

meters away. Should be an easy enough task in the Apex Armour. Should be…

As Tomas made the attempt to reposition himself to new cover that was not already on fire and

prone to explode in a huge fireball at any moment, he was struck in his legs from combined fire

of all of the remaining soldiers, including both of the two M134s. He was just too juicy a target

to ignore as he made the attempt at crossing the open space.

The momentary distraction allowed Gargy to take out one of the M134s, attracting all of the

remaining M4s to fire at him. Gargy got hit high in his chest without penetration, while his

returning blind fire from his MP7s injured two of the soldiers while killing one.

Two Humvee military armoured cars were approaching the parking lot from the north side, both

wielding M249 machine guns mounted in the turret. They opened fire at Tomas, who was

already lying down on the ground and was closer to them. When Tomas fell to the ground,

painfully struck in his legs, he lost his G36 as he got cut down. Immediately he attempted to

reach after it and moved slightly forward, but the incoming fire of the remaining M134 hit the

G36 first, shattering it, then a few rounds struck Tomas in his reaching hand. No penetration, but

the combined force of the bullets almost broke that hand. The pain was tremendous, forcing him
to compact his body into a tiny ball, exposing only his back to the fire like he had before in the

NBC tower. It was a very different experience without being on the second chance super drug.

Each hit of a bullet forced his body to writhe about in pain uncontrollably, struggling to get back

into his compact form of a human ball. Each burst from the M134 that struck Tomas made a

confetti-like explosion of the torn-out Apex Armour fibres. To his advantage, it made it look like

his body exploded, as well as it made him a bit harder to hit. Tomas’s body looked torn.

It made the last M134 switch back to targeting Gargy, but not before it got cut down by Gargy’s

SPG1. Both M249s opened at Gargy, forcing him to take cover, but not before he got another

four soldiers with his MP7s. Although three of them were already injured and on their way back

to the Humvees. The last two panicked and turned their backs under the cover of fire of both of

the M249s. Gargy got one of them anyway, although his face shield got struck by the fire

sideways and it shattered. Good thing it was extended about two centimetres away from his face.

Then Gargy had no choice but to stay in cover, as both of the machine guns continued to full-

auto him thanks to them being mounted on a platform. After a few seconds, they stopped; must

have seen the shattering of the face shield and assumed a kill. Gargy didn’t move, nor shoot back

at them again. He was waiting to see what would happen next, as they didn’t even shoot at

Tomas, who lay lifeless on the market’s pavement. Both Humvees started to leave.

Gargy said, ‘Tomas?!’ He’d just noticed the torn-up body of Tomas, as he was “bit” preoccupied

before.

Just then, Tomas somehow managed to sit up and unwisely shot with one of his P30Ls at the

retreating Humvees. Both Humvees stopped and a burst of fire came out of both of them. Their
fire was somewhat accurate, and Tomas suffered a quadruple headshot along with a few body

shots that instantly buried him back to the pavement, shutting his lights out.

Gargy called, ‘Tomik, can you hear me?!’

Dr Charlotte replied, ‘He’s got vitals, he’s fine.’ But her voice sounded shaken.

Peter said, ‘Stay put, Gargy!’ He listened.

The Humvees continued on their way.

Peter said, ‘The clean-up force must not be far behind, we have to move out, now!’

Gargy got to Tomas almost the same time the command van arrived. Dr Charlotte approached

Tomas and pulled his mask off. The extent of his facial injuries was revealed. The four rounds

that hit him in close proximity to each other into his left cheek area had actually cracked the face

mask inwards. Although all of the bullets were ultimately deflected, Tomas suffered open

fracture of his cheekbone due to the force of the impact, and lost four upper teeth in the process.

It looked much more serious than it actually was. Charlotte managed to wake Tomas up and

reassured him that he would be okay, then she switched to Gargy, as his condition was deemed

more serious, while Helena continued to patch Tomas up.

‘Oohh, what did they do to you again?’ Helena asked with great compassion as he was being

loaded up into the command Van with Peter and Chop in it.

Catherine joined Charlotte to work on Gargy in the Van driven by Lubos. His right arm looked

pretty bad, although fully functional. Both vans left the area quickly. They had seen new sets of

incoming lights in the distance. Presumably the clean-up crew, as Peter called them.

Linkin Park – All For Nothing (zwierz remix) 3:35

 “You could never see it - your battle's not mine

Wanna skate and play it safe - but this is take a shot time.

You waiting for a purpose? - I already got mine -

While you tell me "step to it like - One, two, three, four"

Tomas was in massive pain. Helena already located a possible seven broken ribs, along with a

fracture to his right forearm and possibly two cracked legs below the knee level. His backside

was so torn up that she was able to relatively easily peel off a few top layers of the Apex Armour

that were basically just hanging, revealing the very bottom basic layers of it, with the assistance

of Cop.

Cop stated, ‘You got very lucky, Tomas. Just one more burst of that M134 could have ripped you

apart.’ But Tomas wasn’t able to respond as the pain was too much.

Once Helena confirmed that Tomas miraculously had no penetrations, she turned away to look

for a painkiller, consulting quickly with Dr Charlotte over the comms. It was just enough time

for Tomas to quickly inject himself with the second chance and he began to have the muscle

spasms.

‘No! What have you done?!’ Helena cried out.

It was too late to do anything. The problem was that should Tomas have internal bleeding or the

possible broken ribs penetrated his lungs, the initial phase could have easily killed him. The risk

was unnecessary, and as a painkiller it is massive overkill for no reason at health’s expense.
The muscle spasm ceased, and Tomas was finally able to talk again, as the pain subsided quickly

just moments after.

‘What have you done?! Are you stupid, or have a death wish?!’ Helena was visibly frustrated.

Tomas said calmly, ‘I still have a job to do, Helena.’

Helena and Peter both said, ‘What job?!’

‘We need to catch those guys and kill them all. Who’s going to do it? You?’ He was talking to

Helena, ignoring Peter.

Peter said, ‘We are not doing any such thing.’ Tomas gave him “what?!” face.

Tomas said, ‘We need to find out who they are, and who their boss is. Then, we kill them all.’

Peter said, ‘I already know who they are.’ The whole agency was surprised, awaiting what Peter

would say next.

‘This was a textbook CIA rogue operation. Hit and run. We saw the clean-up party arriving.

They would have staged the shooting to their liking and eliminated any of their casualties from

the scene. Most likely they would have staged it as a weapons trade gone wrong, where they

would try to connect us to the Detroit underground while ISIS attacked and killed us all before

vanishing from the scene – or surely something like it. They would have discredited our name,

finally getting rid of the vigilantes without sending the public against them, and further their

fighting ISIS agenda. Win-win situation.’

Gargy snarled, ‘Bastards.’

Tomas said, ‘That seems a bit far-fetched, even to me.’

Peter said, ‘The clean-up party can do wonders, trust me on that.’

Violetta asked, ‘But who would believe such a ridiculous story?’

Tomas said, ‘People will believe anything that is the official narrative. All they have to do is to

be consistent with it and repeat it over and over again over the media. It doesn’t have to make

sense.’ Awkward silence ensued; everyone knew what he was referring to. But technically he

didn’t say it directly, so he didn’t break his promise to Gargy.

Tomas said, ‘Okay, so it’s the CIA, one less problem to solve. Now let’s kill them!’

Peter said, ‘We can’t go against the CIA.’

‘Why not?!’ Tomas shouted.

Peter said, ‘It’s like going against the government! Do you want war against the state?’ He raised

his voice.

‘Peter, they already attacked us. What do you want to wait for?’

‘Tomas, those people work for the US government. I used to be one of them! As did Gargy, not

that long ago.’

‘And you have left why again?’ Peter kept quiet.

Tomas said, ‘Was it because you didn’t like their way of serving the country? Could it be that

you killed someone that you later regretted doing it? Isn’t that why you can’t kill now at all?’ He

was hitting close to home.

Peter said, ‘They just follow orders while anonymously dying for their country. Haven’t you

killed enough of them already?’

‘Peter, I don’t know where you have been in the last twenty minutes, but me and Gargy got

almost wiped out by them. Do you want to give them another chance? What if they are tracking

us right now through the satellite, waiting for us to reach the base so that tomorrow there can be

a story about a massive gas leak explosion in one of the hospitals in Detroit that killed hundreds,

while they just send one drone to bomb us into the stone age?’

Peter said, ‘They are not tracking us, or we would be dead already. All of us in the field.’

Tomas said, ‘How can you be so sure? Maybe they’re really just waiting for us to lead them to

our base of operations location.’

Peter said, ‘If that was the case, they would have known exactly where you were deployed, not

waiting for you to open fire first. We got lucky; we approached from the opposite side of the

shops so they didn’t see you when you deployed. This is a rogue operation; not even the CIA

director knows about it. Therefore, no satellite was used for surveillance, or evidence of them

staging it would have existed.’

Tomas said, ‘Well that is great! We can surprise them and kill them all, while the CIA will not

miss them at all! Us going after them now is the last thing they would expect!’

Peter said, ‘Tomas, those are still soldiers just serving their country. You’re alive, right? Many of

them are not.’

Tomas said, ‘I didn’t attack them first. In fact, I hardly killed any of them. I owe my life to

Gargy, again.’ Gargy would have liked to say something, but just as many others, opted to listen

and not to mix in. Peter kept quiet for a moment and got visibly uncomfortable.

Peter said, ‘I need more time. I will solve this without violence, I promise.’
Tomas said, ‘Peter, I wish that would be possible. I do. But how?’

Peter said, ‘I don’t know yet, but I will. You will have to put your bloodthirstiness on hold. I’m

asking you to.’

Tomas said, ‘Bloodthirstiness?! Do you believe that?’

‘Tomas, we’re the criminals in the state’s eyes; we are killers! You can’t blame them for going

after us. Those people but follow orders. They don’t need to die, nor hate you personally. To

them, you are a job to do.’

‘Uh-huh, and they are not killers? Is it perfectly legal for them to put out an assassination

mission on us? They are doing exactly what we do! We are also unofficially sponsored and

supported by the government, right?’

‘Exactly. They are like us!’

Tomas said, ‘Well, not exactly. Last time I checked, I haven’t tried to kill a national hero while

trying to stage it as something else to further my personal agenda. I don’t care that they follow

orders, I would never follow orders like that!’

Peter said, ‘You’re also a mass murderer, proven to be brutal at times. Do you think it would

take a lot to persuade someone who doesn’t know you directly that the world would actually be a

better place without you? That you’re a psycho that can snap at any moment?’

Tomas scoffed, ‘You can hate on me all you want. You can call me all you want to. There is

nothing that I haven’t been called before. It won’t change that I’m right, and you’re wrong.’

Peter said, ‘I am not hating on you, Tomas, I’m demanding as your commanding officer to let

this go!’
‘I’m not your soldier, I don’t listen to your orders! There is no “mission” without me and you

know it!’

‘Tomas, you owe me! I’m demanding that you let go of this, and I give you my word that I will

sort this out personally.’

‘No! No more obeying. My debt was repaid long ago.’

Peter said, ‘No, no it’s not. But I will consider it to be fully repaid should you let this one go.’

Tomas said, ‘I don’t know how else to say it, so let me just break this fucker down for you. I

don’t really know you, Peter. But I’m disgusted at what makes you tuck your tail between your

legs. What will it take for you to find some courage? It certainly isn’t seeing your friends –

apologies, soldiers –almost get killed. And to think that you called us equals…’ He took a pause.

Tomas continued. ‘Just look how you changed your composure. Expecting me to one, two, three,

four, do as I say!’

Peter said, ‘I’m trying to avoid further violence that is unnecessary!’

Tomas retorted, ‘Unnecessary. You see, there lies the problem. I do see it as necessary. Your

battle is clearly not mine. My priorities are to protect all in the Agency at all costs. I will not give

slack to killer mercenaries that tried to wipe us out just because they are “soldiers obeying

orders” of the state. Correction, a rogue CIA branch. They are life-threatening to my friends. I

don’t care if the pope himself sent them and those are the soldiers of God, doing God’s will.

They can’t be persuaded to change their minds. They need to be eliminated. Not just that. It has

to be in a way so as to send a message back. To leave us the fuck alone! Now help me, or get out

of my way.’
Peter said, ‘I won’t help you. And you can’t get them without my help.’

Violetta said on the comms, ‘Yes you will.’ Tomas wasn’t the only one that got stunned by

Violetta’s intervention.

Peter said firmly, ‘I will not!’

Violetta said, ‘Chain of command, remember? Or do you also want to disobey orders? If so, all

of this is over.’

Peter demanded, ‘Why are you helping him?’

Violetta replied, ‘Him? I’m helping the agency as a whole. Tomas is right. If we can take them

out, we should!’

Peter said, ‘It could have easily been me there with them, or Gargy.’

Violetta said, ‘But it’s not, exactly for reasons like this. Right?’

Peter said, ‘Maybe they didn’t manage to get out of it yet.’

Violetta said, ‘Or maybe they like what they do. Not everyone has a conscience.’

Peter said, ‘That doesn’t mean they will not develop one.’

Violetta said, ‘That doesn’t mean it wouldn’t be too late for us. So, are you going to follow your

orders, soldier?!’ Peter took about 10 seconds to think it over.

‘Yes, ma’am.’ He turned to Tomas. ‘I bet you’re enjoying this.’

Tomas said, ‘Killing rogue killers for hire of the CIA? Best job I ever had!’ Just to rub it in even

more, he enjoyed that one for sure.

Peter said in a defeated manner, ‘I can’t believe it was all for nothing.’

Tomas said, ‘What did you mean by that?’ But Peter just ignored him, so Tomas didn’t ask

again.

Drowning Pool – Bodies 3:21

“One, nothing wrong with me

Two, nothing wrong with me

Three, nothing wrong with me

Four, nothing wrong with me”

Peter helped to track the two escaping Humvees. As he predicted, they weren’t far ahead. They

drove to an abandoned farm close to the outskirts of Detroit; you could see the lights of

downtown in the distance. Both cars drove inside an old barn, no guards outside.

‘I’m coming with you,’ Gargy said to Tomas.

Tomas asked, ‘How is your arm?’

‘I can shoot.’

‘So you will be my backup. Shoot anyone that tries to turn the brawl into a firefight.’

Gargy asked, ‘What are you going to do?’ He was surprised that Tomas suggested a brawl.

‘I will send the right message.’ Gargy was reluctant to ask him what exactly that meant. He

figured he would find out soon enough.

They both approached the barn.

Tomas said, ‘Use Martha if you can, for better effect. If anyone tries to pull a gun on me, shoot

him! The rest, leave for me.’

Gargy said, ‘Okay,’ after a slight hesitation.

They walked into the barn.

The soldiers were surprised; they looked like they had seen a ghost and froze in place. It looked

like they were in the process of destroying all of the equipment, including the Humvees. Some

were already in civilian clothes. That would explain why there was six civilian cars parked close

to the farm. Probably the getaway vehicles, more than were needed now after their losses. Still,

there were 10 of them inside. Some must have operated the radio equipment and led the mission

from this point of operations.

One man reached for a weapon and his head got blasted off by Gargy. Enough for the rest to

freeze once again.

Tomas said, ‘I wouldn’t do that if I were you; my friend has a twitchy finger, bastard.’ Gargy

gave him that face that said, “really?”, while Tomas took his face mask off, revealing the hole in

his cheek.

Tomas said, ‘Nice one,’ pointing at it. Someone in the back smiled.

‘That was you, right?’ He didn’t say anything, just grinned.

A random soldier asked, ‘How the fuck are you two still alive?’

Tomas said, ‘We have guardian angels. Plus, very, very expensive Tommy Hilfiger rags.’ Some

of the soldiers actually cracked a smile.

Another random soldier asked, ‘You think you are a funny fucker, huh?’

Tomas barked back, ‘Shut up! This is how it’s going to be.’ Short pause.

Tomas said, ‘Normally, I would just skip the chatting part and proceed to beat the shit out of

you. But today…today I want you to know exactly what will happen before it happens.’ One of

them moved for a gun, then one more shortly after that. Both got blasted off by Gargy.

A random soldier calmly explained, ‘We were just following orders.’

Tomas said, ‘I don’t have the patience for your explanations.’ Someone else tried to say

something, but got interrupted by Tomas.

‘Psst, I tried that before. I tried to walk away so many times. I would rather live and let be. But

you, or someone else, has to always push on me the right way! Threaten me in the right way.

Trying to kill me? I can forgive that; you’re not the first or the last. I kind of got used to it. But

you have fucked up; you tried to kill my friend too. Made me think, what else would you do

should you be able to?’ Someone tried to respond to that but got interrupted once more.

‘You are all dead. You know that, I know that. You did that to yourself. It’s over. BUT, you

have a choice in it.’ Short pause, the soldiers listening, probably thinking what to do next.

Tomas said, ‘If you try to reach for a weapon, or run, you get a bit of my friend’s Martha. The

lethal bit. Or, you can take your chances with me. I must warn you though, I don’t play nice and

I’m high as fuck on drugs, can’t feel shit.’ The soldiers started to look at each other.

Tomas said, ‘Who knows, perhaps if all of you rush me at the same time, you can get me at least.

My friend will not interfere, I promise you that.’ Looking at Gargy, he gave Tomas a nod.
Tomas said, ‘And then, maybe, just maybe, you can take him out too. If there are still enough of

you.’ The soldiers were visibly communicating without speaking to each other.

Peter said, ‘Just do it, for fuck’s sake! Why these theatrics?’ This was the fourth time ever with

the foul language; he must have been very serious.

Tomas said calmly, ‘I’m sending a message, Peter.’

Peter said, ‘No, you are enjoying yourself!’ But Tomas didn’t have a chance to respond as the

first of the soldiers attacked him.

It was an old-fashioned tackle on the legs. Tomas just stepped slightly backwards while axe

kicking the soldier top to bottom on top of his head, knocking him out. Then he stomped on his

head four times as the soldier lay face down on the ground. Each time, more of the shattered face

splattered into the surrounding, before it was completely flattened. Shocking enough for all of

the remaining soldiers to attack Tomas at once. All but one, that panicked and tried to reach for a

weapon; Gargy took care of that.

They failed miserably, and Tomas was visibly playing with them, rag-dolling them around,

knocking them to the floor, just bloodying them badly. Breaking a bone or two on each of them,

all while repeating to himself in his head, “There is nothing wrong with me”, and, “Let the

bodies set the floor”.

When Tomas reached a frenzy, that manifested itself in rapid consecutive hits that obliterated

each unlucky soldier. Then he decided to finish the job; they weren’t far from dead anyway at

that point. Hardly aware of what was happening around them, with no life left to resist at all.
Tomas picked up the first one. His body was so limp that once Tomas let go of him again, the

soldier fell back down like a rock, but not before Tomas’s elbow strike to the soldier’s bottom

jaw almost completely separated it from the skull. A massive laceration appeared just beneath

the soldier’s left ear, where the bottom jaw cut through the skin as it got basically ripped out by

the force of the elbow’s impact. Big enough hole for Tomas to stick his hand in it, then grabbing

at the edge of the ripped-off bottom jaw-line, then completely ripping it out of the soldier’s face

with his right arm while his left arm was pressing down against the soldier’s forehead so that it

was possible, revealing the soldier’s trachea. It didn’t kill the soldier just yet and his trachea

made gasping-for-air noises at first, then gurgling as it overflowed with the soldier’s own blood.

Tomas’s thrust kicks were as forceful as a heavy jackhammer. The first kick into the dying

soldier’s chest crushed the ribcage, partially squishing his lungs and heart. Definitely a fatal

blow, it ejected so much blood out of the soldier’s trachea that it covered Tomas’s whole face,

but it was not an instant death. The next jackhammer-like kick came to the soldier’s throat,

crushing the trachea itself, accompanied by a nasty hissing noise that the soldier made on impact.

The soldier’s hands got violently lifted halfway up to his throat. Just a sensory system reaction to

the impact, completely autonomous and involuntary. Then and only then, the soldier died as his

central nervous system reactively shut him down to prevent further suffering.

The nasty death made many onlookers at the base physically sick. Almost all had to turn away,

even Gargy, after the first blow to the soldier’s chest. Peter and Violetta watched it all. They had

to, although Violetta only with one eye open at a time. Not that they hadn’t seen any brutality

from Tomas before, something really nasty and shocking. They had. But this one probably took

the cake to date in the brutality and savageness of Tomas. Gargy wouldn’t comment on that,

although he almost did. Peter couldn’t help but to comment.

Peter said, ‘You know people are watching this, right?’

‘I know. Let them see. Let them see what I would do so they don’t have to. To protect them.’ He

said it calmly, but the presence of hate and anger was still in his voice.

Peter said, ‘Then I don’t think that anyone here would want you to protect us. If it means this…’

Tomas said, ‘Then no one else understands what is necessary to keep you all safe.’

Then he picked up another soldier off the floor to finish him off. He proceeded to break his limbs

repeatedly, one after another. The soldier writhed about in pain, which made it even easier for

Tomas to apply pressure in the opposite direction. When Tomas himself had enough of his

screaming, he slammed the soldier’s head against a sharp corner of a workstation. It got partially

impaled on it, completely shattering half of the soldier’s face, ejecting one of his eyes out of the

socket. But it didn’t kill him, as the brain remained untouched. The soldier went into shock and

most likely was unconscious when Tomas kicked into it, and the whole skull exploded. It didn’t

look like Tomas was enjoying it, but he did it with robot-like precision and determination. Like a

task to do. No matter what it is, no emotions.

He was about to pick up another one when Gargy proceeded to kill the remaining three soldiers,

shooting them with Martha.

‘I told you not to interfere. You promised!’ Tomas said, looking at Gargy with disbelief.

Gargy said, ‘I promised to not interfere if they start beating up your ass, not if you’re going to

take your sweet time with it. We need to go.’ But of course, the real reason was to stop the

torturing. He couldn’t watch it anymore, but wouldn’t openly admit it, to not put Tomas in a tight

spot. So he played it into a corner instead.

Tomas said, ‘Hmmm, fair point. But I wasn’t done with them yet.’

Gargy said, ‘So just finish it now, quickly.’

Tomas said, ‘Now that they are dead?’

Gargy asked, ‘What’s the difference?’

Peter said, ‘That they don’t suffer. He was enjoying it.’ There was the presence of disapproval in

his voice.

Tomas said, ‘No I wasn’t! They have to fear us. If we stage the rest of them, they would have

found out about it, and it would be all for nothing. Even the real ones, they wouldn’t take us

seriously. Never again. We either do all of them for real, or none at all. We can’t fake suffering!’

Peter said, ‘You sound awfully like Fok now.’

‘I learned that from him.’

‘And you are proud of that? Is that a person to learn from?’

‘This has nothing to do with morals, this is about adopting what works. This works. I did it to

protect you all.’

Peter said, ‘I think I speak for everyone here that I would have rather died than be the cause, or

excuse, for this. What makes you different from the people that you clearly hate so much?’

Tomas said, ‘That I don’t do this kind of stuff to innocent people? I bet all of them had all kinds

of innocent blood on their hands.’

Peter asked, ‘How can you be so sure?’

 Tomas said, ‘They were fucking CIA assassins! Of all people, you should know the best, Peter!

They didn’t deserve any better.’

‘And you do?’

‘Maybe not. But that’s a price I’m willing to pay for you, all of you. When this comes back to

me one day in any shape or form, I won’t bitch about it. Someone had to do it, and to live with it.

You’re welcome!’

Peter had no comeback to that.

o Chapter 5: Irreconcilable Differences

Linkin Park – Points of Authority 3:22

“You take away if I give in.

My life, my pride is broken.”

They left the barn and returned to the base. There was no mention of any shooting, corpses of

soldiers or gang members on any of the news channels. The clean-up party did a good job and

the whole thing was covered up as a private plane that crashed into the roof of the marketplace

shopping centre, partially collapsing it while killing all 12 locals on board. You guessed it,

Hassan’s gang. A supposed smuggling operation gone wrong. Not one word about the barn full

of bodies. That was easy to sweep under the carpet. The problem in Dearborn was that the

soldiers shot up the shopping centre good when trying to kill Gargy, so they had to stage the
plane crashing into it. Only God knows how they managed to cover up the bullet holes in the

parking lot surface.

The CIA trap may not have worked, but it had one negative effect on the Agency as a whole. No

one but Gargy would look at Tomas the same as before. Some were even downright scared of

him. It wouldn’t wipe out his undeniable sacrifice and heroics at the NBC tower, but this was a

black mark on his hero image that was in everyone’s subconscious in the Agency. Although

Helena and Catherine still secretly loved him, and a few weeks after the torturing executions

incident most of the base snapped out of the initial shock and all went back to normal, Peter grew

more sceptical of Tomas and became more conflicted, challenging him at every opportunity.

Tomas wanted none of it. He rather chose to play it nice, obey and to give in. All until another of

the cancelled mission reports.

It was three months since the ambush, and Peter hadn’t come up with any possibilities. Although

it is understood that the intelligence gathering, then the planning process, is a time-consuming

activity, even Matty became dissatisfied with the inactivity of the Agency. All low-importance

missions were still on hold. However, after the CIA incident and Matty witnessing it, even he

told Peter to watch Tomas more closely, as he found him unstable.

The report began.

Peter said, ‘Okay, you all already know that I was working on Velicenko’s mission. You all

stood witness to parts of it during your mandatory observation shifts. Thank you again, Violetta.’

Tomas gave him that “whatever” face, since Peter was looking at him the whole time saying it.

Peter said, ‘I have located some of the sex-slave girls that he managed to transport from his hotel

in Chicago after we attacked it. Coincidently, as I was actually looking for options to attack him
at his residence in the upper east side of New York City, where we know he will be in two

months from now during late November. Mostly for the promotion of his shield homeless charity

organization, as well as to collect his “honour citizen” award presented to him by the mayor

himself. Of course, we know that the charity is really a money laundering means for Ivan, and he

gained the award most likely due to the sex-slave girls offered to the right people, including the

mayor, along with giving them their cut in Velicenko’s business operations.’

Tomas said, ‘We should take the mayor out too.’

Peter said, ‘We will do no such thing. Besides, this is a report on a cancelled mission. You would

have known that if you paid any attention.’ Everyone expected open conflict between them

again.

Tomas said, ‘I know, I’m just saying that we should put that slimy bastard on our to-do list as

well.’

Peter replied, ‘As far as I know, the mayor has never ordered to kill or torture people, or done it

himself. We can’t start killing people just for being greedy, spineless, or having a lack of any

sense of morality or compassion.’

Tomas asked, ‘Why not? They are making money out of human suffering, just like the Mafia.

Being a passive accomplice to the crime still makes you an accomplice. I don’t care if he didn’t

come up with the idea to sex-trade Eastern girls himself. I care that not only does he allow it

knowingly in exchange for personal financial profit, he also uses the “service” himself whilst

giving an honour citizen award to the bastard that came up with it. Am I the only one here that is

sickened by it?!’ Looking around, he noted that they all just avoided his eye contact and wanted

to stay out of the conflict.

Peter said, ‘We are all sickened by it, Tomas. But perhaps not as much as by the brutal torture-

executions of others that we go after.’ Tomas felt like he was aiming that at him. He was.

Peter said, ‘We have to be very selective in who we go after, Tomas, or else we would have to

kill half of the rich and powerful population.’

Tomas replied, ‘I wouldn’t have much problem with that personally. Anyone that is involved in

this kind of shit in any way, willingly, deserves to die, in my book. Accomplice or perpetrator,

makes no difference to me.’

Peter said, ‘Oh, you always know better! You’re never wrong, right?’ He was really annoyed.

Tomas said, ‘I never said that. On the contrary, I was always open about the mistakes that I made

that cost me my life, my identity.’

Peter said, ‘Yet you are perfectly okay with that, acting like you are “someone”. The hero, the

saviour of the defenceless.’

Tomas said, ‘I think I have proved myself by now, that I am. It’s all I have left now, all that is

left for me to do.’

Peter asked, ‘What about us? We haven’t proved ourselves yet? All of us? Or is all of this just

you?’

Tomas said, ‘There is no point talking to you, Peter, you are just putting words into my mouth.’

Peter said, ‘Am I? Or is it because you can’t defend yourself anymore? Because I’m right? You

are giving up before I expose you further!’

‘Expose me of what?!’ Tomas raised his voice.

‘That you have been hurt! You’re a damaged person, Tomas! And you’re trying to pull us all

down into your suffering with you!’ Tomas looked at Violetta but she would say nothing.

Peter said, ‘She thinks the same; we all do! How else would you be able to do what you have

done to those soldiers?’

Tomas shouted at him, ‘It had to be done!’

Peter asked, ‘Do you remember what you asked me back then? What did I mean by: “I can’t

believe that it was all for nothing”?’

‘Yes.’

Peter said, ‘You talk about how you lost yourself, your identity. Well, I lost mine too. My pride,

my life was broken. Until then, I believed that I had been part of something better. Better than

what I was part of during my time with the CIA. You have changed all of that, made me

ashamed once again for what I am part of, and I don’t think that I am alone. But you know what?

I blame myself. That’s right, I blame myself! I shouldn’t give in to you. Every time I give in, you

take away. I should never have allowed the mission in the first place!’

Silence ensued. After a few seconds Tomas decided to speak.

Tomas said, ‘I’m sorry,’ in a quiet voice.

Peter said, ‘Come again, what was that? You’re sorry?!’

Tomas said, ‘I’m sorry, okay?!’

Peter said, ‘So now it’s supposed to be all okay, right? Remind me why this happened in the first

place. Could it be that you always knew better than me, the intelligence officer? ’Cause I know
that you damn sure do not respect me as your superior, as your commanding officer.’ It was the

fifth time ever he used foul language now.

Tomas said, ‘It was a mistake. You see? I can admit it.’

Peter said, ‘That it sure was. I told you from the start that it was, but you knew better than me. I

tried to tell you, but what do I know, right? I only do this for a living! It’s because of you that

Gargy almost got killed. It’s because of you that those soldiers died! There was no need for any

of it. All you had to do was to listen and carry out the orders.’ Totally ignoring that Tomas

almost died as well, on purpose.

‘At least we know now that the CIA is after us. Correction, was after us!’ Tomas exploded at

Peter.

Peter said, ‘You see, you still know better! You are still the hero! I rest my case.’

Tomas said, ‘What else do you want me to say? Yes, it was mistake! I admit it. I’m just trying to

see the positive in the negative too. Do you think that I’m happy about…’ He was thinking about

the correct formulation of his words.

‘About what?’

Tomas said, ‘That you feel like it was all for nothing. That I am the bad guy now? That you hate

me?’

Peter said, ‘Yes, yes I do. I bet that you have enjoyed disobeying me. You love the way I look at

you, while taking pleasure in the awful things you put me through!’
Tomas said, ‘If you truly believe that, why am I still here?’ Gargy visibly panicked and looked at

Violetta to do something, while not saying a word. Same reaction that Helena had. Catherine just

started to sob silently.

Peter said, ‘Because of them,’ pointing around at the other knights. ‘They don’t see yet what I

see. So perhaps I don’t see what they see either. Time will tell.’

Then Peter turned around and left to see his family, ignoring finishing the rest of the report.

Violetta didn’t stop him. No one wanted any more conflicts.

Gargy took Tomas away to go play some online games together. Just an excuse really, to

separate him from Peter as far away as possible. Helena, Lubos, Cop, and Catherine joined them.

But this time, Tomas joined Cop to only watch the others playing together. He was too disturbed

to concentrate or to relax, even during the late evening movie session that was a custom by now

at the base. Half the base met in the cinema room every evening to enjoy watching a movie

together. Tomas was there physically, but his mind went over the last conversation with Peter in

loops ever since it happened. He couldn’t stop thinking about Peter indirectly admitting that he

hates him. About the fact that he personally caused suffering to someone else that he did care

about. Tomas promised to himself that from now on, he would just shut his fucking mouth and

do as he was told. They all were his family now, after all, including Peter. That was perhaps the

biggest issue in the first place; that Tomas truly didn’t see Peter as his superior, his leader, but

rather as a buddy or an older brother.

Linkin Park – Pushing Me Away 3:11

 “Why I never walked away?

Why I played myself this way?

Now I see you're testing me, pushes me away.”

Another month passed by. Peter and Tomas hardly spoke to each other at all. The low-level

missions were resumed, but only Gargy was assigned to them. Tomas didn’t ask why not him;

didn’t want to create another argument. This time it wasn’t because of Peter wanting to give

Tomas a rest away from the killing, but rather he didn’t trust Tomas anymore, found him

uncontrollable, a liability.

Of course, when Violetta asked Peter about it, he lied, saying that he didn’t want to initiate

another argument with Tomas due to him accusing Peter of asking for constant favours. She

knew it was a lie, but this couldn’t have been approached directly. She decided on an indirect

settling of differences approach during her sessions. The problem was that neither Tomas (as

usual), or even Peter now, were opening up to her. Tomas claimed that everything was okay and

he was enjoying his “holidays”, while Peter denied actively excluding Tomas of any Agency

activity. But it was obvious. Peter wouldn’t even mention Tomas’s name, never mind assigning

him a task or supervise any of Tomas’s activities. He just didn’t care anymore, but would accuse

Tomas of being a slacker should he get the slightest chance.

Tomas wasn’t an active agent on his team anymore, but his daily routine was very strict. Dual

physical training in the morning and evening, afternoon firing range session and sparring (both

martial arts and gun kata with Gargy when he was present, or else on his own) along with the

mandatory occasional session with Violetta or a routine observation of Peter’s intelligence

gathering process. Tomas was preparing for when he would be “active” again. It didn’t come.
Worst of all, a main mission was launched without deploying Tomas as point man. Peter argued

that it was an unnecessary risk to take, and that one sniper skilled like Gargy would do just fine.

It went smoothly. Gargy took out one of the Italian family bosses operating in Chicago, Pablo

Giovianni, during his vacation in Kansas, along with eight of his guards at long range, never to

even be spotted.

The Italians were confused themselves who did it. Due to the absence of the masked man, they

assumed that someone else inspired by him took his vengeance. Pablo was no angel, after all,

and still personally active, even at 63 years of age. He’d killed a father of three not long ago. It

played into Peter’s cards, claiming to keep very low profile since the “CIA fiasco”, as he called

it. Some in the Agency believed that. Some, including Tomas, knew it was for his own personal

prejudice against Tomas. It wasn’t that hard to see it.

Now it was Peter who started provoking Tomas into conflict. Although Tomas’s intentions were

never to provoke or challenge Peter, it was just because of the way he was, but it may have

looked like that. Tomas always chose to give in and defuse the situation. Even if he had to lie or

fake a smile even. For someone like Tomas, that took tremendous self-control and effort to do

that, in the face of the obvious injustice. Especially because not only did he fake it for Peter, but

for everyone else too.

Tomas didn’t complain to anybody. Not to Violetta, not to Gargy, not to Lubos, Cop, Helena, or

Catherine, as they all tried to sit him down and offer him their sympathies, reassuring him that

Peter would get tired of it eventually and all would go back to normal again. Even Charlotte did

and she, along with Peter, spent the least of her time with Tomas. Mostly due to her

preoccupation with her “cover up” job in the hospital above the base as the head of department,

but even she noticed the unfairness to Tomas and felt that she had to express her support.
Tomas’s answer was always the same. Fake smile first, then said that everything was okay and

that he was enjoying his free time during the extended preparation for a really big mission,

taking down the whole Velicenko Russian syndicate. Of course, deep inside, he was even angry

at Peter at times, but understood that more than ever now it was important that there was no

conflict in the Agency. To ensure that, Tomas couldn’t tell anyone anything that could spark any

rumours. He understood Peter’s reasons for disliking him. Tomas understood that the whole

agency loved Peter, and that the two of them would either work together, or it would be him

going away. So, he faked his indifference to the current situation, as he had to many times

before.

In comparison to the other situations when Tomas knew he couldn’t show any emotion, this was

nothing, the easiest thing ever. Nothing but his ego got stepped on. Even he thought that it may

have not been a bad idea in the first place, getting humbled a bit, reflecting on the things he’d

done. Perhaps it was about time, and healthy for him.

However, another month passed by and the situation was the same. Peter still resented Tomas,

and perhaps even intensified his instigating tactics, hoping for an open conflict despite the fact

that Violetta always spent a decent amount of her time during their sessions to talk Peter out of

it. She knew that ever since she took Tomas’s side, Peter partially blamed her for the CIA fiasco,

and became much more introverted during their mandatory sessions.

Tomas started to exercise the idea of leaving. Slowly but surely, he felt pushed away by Peter

more and more. He began to accept that Peter may never lay off him. That he was testing Tomas

on how much he could take before the final conflict that Peter would use as an excuse to kick

him out disgracefully. Tomas began to think that his sacrifice hiding in the lie was for nothing.

All the times he did what Peter wanted, all the times he took the blame on himself, just to remain
in the Agency, all for nothing. Regretting why he didn’t already walk away, why he let it play

out this way. Tomas knew that sooner or later, there would be a conflict; he would have enough.

Even best friends fight each other now and then. Peter would be the winner in the waiting, and

most likely it would end soon anyway, and it would be ugly. Tomas was right.

Limp Bizkit – My Way 4:33

“Just one more fight about your leadership - and I will straight up leave your shit.

'Cause I've had enough of this, and now I'm pissed!”

It was 20th November when Peter and Tomas had their big argument. As was custom at the time,

Peter instigated it. But this time, Tomas wouldn’t have any of it anymore. It was during another

briefing of an upcoming main mission that Peter already approved and launched, the base being

in an all hands on deck state.

All but Tomas; he was excluded.

The target was another Italian boss, Francesco Torreto, who operated in New York and was

about to spend some time with his real family during his vacation at his ranch in Virginia.

‘So he is going to kill thirty-three guards and Francesco alone?’ Tomas asked, referring to

Gargy.

Peter said, ‘He will kill the main target first, and then as many of his guards as he can before he

will be forced to retreat to safety.’

Tomas said, ‘I could help him, you know. We could easily get all of them.’
Peter said, ‘There is no need to kill all of them anymore. It’s more important to not be seen at

all.’

Tomas said, ‘If we get all of them, we will not be seen.’

Peter countered, ‘Why take the risk? What benefit will there be to killing a few more of Torreto’s

guards, in exchange for possible exposure that it was us?’

Tomas said, ‘I thought the idea was to do as much economic damage as possible. The boss will

easily be replaced by the next in line.’

Peter said, ‘I’m sure Gargy can take as many as twenty of them before they either run away or

force Gargy to retreat. That’s good enough for me.’

‘But why not deploy me as well? We could wipe them out completely. Imagine the damage it

would do to their ranks, their power on the streets.’

‘Because you are a liability to me, Tomas. You don’t listen to the orders and you tend to make

stupid decisions. I’m not even going to mention your excessive violent tendencies.’

Gargy cut in, ‘Okay, that’s enough.’ But he got totally ignored.

Tomas said, ‘So me at the NBC tower was a liability? I made stupid decisions and committed

excessive violence?!’

Gargy said, ‘Tomas, just leave it!’ He got ignored again.

The knights all got concerned faces.

Peter said, ‘Yes! You jumped out of a window, Tomas! What did you think would happen to

those hostages should you not miraculously survive that?! They were all about to be killed!’
Violetta said, ‘Peter, that’s enough.’ She got ignored too.

Tomas said, ‘I saved all of them! Me! I risked my life, took a hell of a beating in the process to

save them all. I did! If I hadn’t jumped out of the window, how large a part of the building would

have collapsed?! You saw how big the explosion was. What if it had been enough to ignite the

kerosene inside? Then what?’

Violetta said, ‘Tomas, you have to leave it too.’ But she had insecure body language.

Tomas said, ‘No! Not this time! I will not shut up! This time, I will let it all out!’

Peter said, ‘So you gained a few extra meters, big deal.’

Cop noted, ‘About twelve, actually.’

Lubos added, ‘Or else I wouldn’t even have suggested it.’

Tomas said, ‘Thank you!’

Peter said, ‘Whatever! The significance of it is still questionable. Sure, some might have died as

a result. But you would be alive for sure and in a state to stop all of Velicenko’s mercenaries

before they were about to execute the hostages.’

Dr Charlotte said angrily, ‘Stop, guys. That’s enough!’

Tomas said, ‘I did stop them.’

Nurse Helena was getting truly concerned now. ‘Please, stop!’

Peter said, ‘You took an unnecessary risk, Tomas. What did I tell you prior to the mission? What

did I make you promise me? That no matter what, you will not give up! That no matter what they

do to the hostages, you will not give up and just continue to kill them as fast as you can until
there were no more of them. Why? Because once you die, the hostages were surely dead, all of

them. And what did you do? You jumped out of the building with a bomb in your hands while

the building was still full of Velicenko’s people and one elevator was still active! YOU GOT

EXTREMELY LUCKY. THAT IS WHAT REALLY HAPPENED!’

Violetta said, ‘Okay, this meeting is over. I order you all back to your rooms to cool off and we

will meet again in four hours.’ Peter was about to follow the order along with the others, but

Tomas had no intention of doing that.

Tomas said, ‘No, it’s not! I will not stand by, letting him attack me without consequences!’

Peter said, ‘Oh really? What are you going to do? Are you going to snap on us, on me? Okay,

come on, show them all what you really are.’

Gargy started to drag Tomas out while Violetta was dragging Peter. Neither succeeded.

Tomas said, ‘You think you are special!’ Peter just waved his hand at Tomas like “whatever”,

with a smirk on his face. Then he turned around and started to walk away.

Tomas said, ‘Yes you do! I can see it in your eyes.’ Peter turned back to face Tomas again.

Charlotte grabbed his hand to stop him going towards Tomas.

Tomas said, ‘I can see the way you laugh at me, look down on me, you walk around on me!’

As soon as the argument started, Justina ran out of her room to get Peter out of there. She entered

the room and started to drag her husband away with the help of Violetta and Charlotte, but he

wouldn’t budge. He stood there resisting them pulling him out.

Tomas said, ‘But let me tell you. Just one more fight about your leadership, just one more fight,

and I will straight up leave your shit, because I have had enough of this! NOW I’M PISSED!’
Gargy, Cop, Lubos, and Helena stood in front of Tomas, trying to push him away, out the other

exit of the room. Tomas had visible anger on his face.

Peter said, ‘Let him go! Let him go and see what will happen. You all know what would

happen!’

Tomas said, ‘You know what will happen? I will walk out of here and do things my way again. I

will give up everything, this new family of mine, and be on my own again, free.’

Peter said, ‘I’m not holding you back! You know the saying: Never interrupt your enemy when

he is making a mistake.’

Violetta interrupted, ‘Hey!’

Tomas said, ‘Nah, you would be the one missing me. You know how I know that?’ Peter just

nodded at him.

Tomas said, ‘Because one day, you will see things my way.’

Peter said, ‘I honestly doubt that. I’m nothing like you.’

Tomas said, ‘Oh really? You never made a mistake? Never got lucky?’

Peter said, ‘Everyone makes mistakes. I did, taking you on board. But lucky? In this business,

you can’t rely on luck, can’t take risks and hazards. I don’t get lucky, Tomas, I carefully plan and

execute.’

Tomas said, ‘You see, I remember it differently. What was is that you said taking me on board?

Oh, I remember, something like: We were lucky to find you, Tomas.’

Peter said, ‘Yeah, that was one of the mistakes.’

Tomas said, ‘You know what other mistake you made?’

‘What?’

‘Where were you when they were killing our common friend Mike, aka DiBi? Did you just

watch it? How about when they killed the girl next to him and were about to kill me too? I bet

you did. I know that you did!’

Peter said, ‘Yes, I did!’

Tomas said, ‘Let me guess, it was too dangerous to do anything, right?’

Peter said calmly, ‘It was.’

Tomas said, ‘So you just watched them being killed. What would have happened had you taken

action? Or let Gargy engage?’

Peter said firmly, ‘You would have died most likely anyway; you were frozen where you stood.

They would have shot you just to make sure, as soon as we would have engaged. There was

nothing that we could have done.’

‘Perhaps. But perhaps the girl or Mike would still be alive.’

‘And you would gladly just exchange your life for theirs, right? You hero! But that is not what

we watched happen. You stood there and did nothing yourself!’

Tomas just snapped. ‘Well, I will definitely do something now!’ He took a swing at Peter as he

was being held by his wife, Justina, and Charlotte and Violetta, while getting out of the grips of

Gargy, Lubos, Cop, and Helena himself.

 Linkin Park – Don’t Stay 3:07

“Don't stay, forget our memories, forget our possibilities,

What you were changing me into - just give me myself back and -

Don't stay.”

The fight between Peter and Tomas ensued, with the whole base watching it. There was only one

knight that could have separated those two, but Gargy was just one man trying not to injure any

of the involved parties in the process. He just stood no chance while Tomas and Peter were

engaged in a fierce fight where blood was squirting out into the surroundings left and right.

Justina, Ulrike (even Gargy’s girlfriend came in the meantime), Helena, and Catherine were

screaming their lungs out for them both to stop and looking for an opening to help end the fight.

Violetta had tears running down her face while not making any sound. She blamed herself for

not being able to stop it before it escalated this terribly, even though she predicted it would

eventually happen.

Charlotte was just shouting her lungs out that she will not “fix” them after, and to stop it

immediately.

Lubos, Cop, and Gargy unsuccessfully tried to separate Tomas and Peter, but just got thrown out

of the way with ease. No one could stop this. Their combat was very violent and quick, and just

like before, both of them received bleeding facial injuries within seconds. But just like before,

eventually Peter gained the upper hand. He tired Tomas out and waited until his injuries slowed
Tomas down enough. Enough for him to judo-throw Tomas over his shoulder onto the knights’

table, collapsing it.

Then Peter mounted Tomas and started beating his life away, regardless of Tomas’s inability to

further defend himself against Peter’s strikes anymore due to his incapacitated state, while all of

the knights plus both Justina and Ulrike were trying to stop him in any way possible. Peter

wouldn’t stop, blinded by the rage. Not until Nurse Catherine came to stand over Tomas’s body

and in Peter’s way. She didn’t even say anything, just looked plaintively with her arms fully

extended whilst gently touching Peter. Not even pushing him away. She knew there would be no

point in that. She just placed her hands against Peter’s chest and rested them there.

Peter did stop. Something moved in him when someone as gentle, truly innocent, fragile, and

angel-like as Catherine was stepped in his way. He couldn’t strike anymore, or he could have

hurt her. ‘Inconceivable.’

He dismounted Tomas and allowed him to stand up. Tomas still could, but a few seconds more

of that beating and perhaps he wouldn’t be able to anymore.

Peter said, ‘He started it! He hit me first! You all saw it!’ pointing at Tomas while looking at the

rest of the knights.

Tomas said, ‘I apologize,’ spitting blood on the floor.

Peter said, ‘Nah, no, no, no. That’s not good enough,’ wiping his own blood out of his sight, due

to the eyebrow laceration that he received.

Tomas said, ‘That wasn’t to you, that was to them.’ He was nodding his head at the rest. ‘I’m

sorry you had to witness that. Sorry, Justina, that I struck your husband; but he was asking for it.’
She was wrapped around Peter’s waist, looking at Tomas. Out of sympathy, she gave Tomas a

head nod of acceptance.

Peter said, ‘You will receive final medical assistance from us because of my good will, then you

will pack your stuff and enjoy your millionaire’s life.’

Tomas said, ‘Oh, that’s right. I’m rich.’

Peter said, ‘Yes, you are! I wonder how that happened? Oh, could it be thanks to my generosity

as well?’ Then he just pointed at Tomas while nodding at Charlotte to give him care. She was

about to tell him off, but got interrupted by Tomas.

‘I don’t want your money!’

‘Well then, I’ll text you my bank account and you can send it all back for all I care.’

Tomas said, ‘The things I have done for you, Peter, for this Agency, this base, can you undo

them all? Do you think money can compensate for that?’

Peter said, ‘Nobody can undo what you have done, Tomas. Good or bad, it’s done. Don’t worry,

you will get what you deserve, eventually.’

Tomas asked, ‘Is that a threat?’

‘What? I think I just proved I don’t need to threaten you. I could have ended you right now!

That was a promise.’

‘What kind of promise is that, that I will get what I deserve?!’

Peter said, ‘Just fix him, Charlotte, and get him off my base already,’ Ignoring Tomas and

nodding at Charlotte again whilst about to leave the room again.

Dr Charlotte replied, ‘I told you that I will not fix you. Not you or him! You did this, and now

you will clean up your own mess!’ She was angry and about to go away.

Peter said, ‘I did this?! He struck me first!’ Pointing at Tomas.

Charlotte turned back to him. ‘And did you stop once it was already over, or did you have to be

stopped? Did you instigate this for months now or not? You wanted this, hoped for it!’ Everyone

knew the answer to that. Peter had no comeback.

Charlotte said firmly, ‘I told you both, this is on your heads and I am not fixing you!’

Peter said, ‘Okay, so, Tomas, just pack your stuff and…don’t stay.’

Charlotte said, ‘Oh no, no, no! You’re going to get him help, and you will do it now. I don’t care

how, or I’m leaving too.’ All the knights except Violetta said one after another: “Me too”.

‘Am I the bad guy now? I’m the bad guy?!’ Peter said, tapping on his chest. ‘You know what?

You guys do what you want. I don’t care anymore.’ He was about to leave frustrated.

‘What pissed you off so much, Peter? So, I did kill some of your ex-co-workers and apologized

to you for it. So what? Were they better than me? Were they worth all of this?’ Tomas said,

looking at Peter in disbelief while Helena and Catherine supported him on his sides to stand.

Gargy, Cop, and Lubos were closely watching the conversation while standing to the side and in

between Peter and Tomas, prepared to separate them again if needed. Violetta still stood in the

corner, comforted by Ulrike.

Peter said, ‘Tomas, sometimes I’m in disbelief. I didn’t know…’

Tomas said, ‘What?’ with a confused face.

Peter said, ‘Just look how lucky I was to find you. You see what you got me into? What you

made me do? What you have made me in their eyes?’ Peter declared, pointing at the knights.

‘Are you happy now?!’ He got emotional, glitter in his eyes.

Tomas said, ‘I never meant for any of this, Peter. You all were my family. I would have done

anything for you! That includes you. I don’t understand how we got here.’

Peter said, ‘I know how. We both caused this, I admit it. But it is because we are both different

than we thought we were, and it’s done now, and it cannot be undone.’

Tomas said, ‘Okay, I’ll leave.’

Helena tightened her grip on Tomas while gently saying, “No”, looking at him. Gargy just put

both of his hands up on top of his head while turning away for a moment in frustration.

Tomas said, ‘But I want you to answer the question, was it worth it, all of this? Were the CIA

assassins worth all of this?’

Peter said, ‘It’s not only about the CIA, Tomas. It’s one of the things, yes! But you are…too

violent, too cold-blooded, too into yourself and too disobedient. I told you, you are a huge

liability, and I have to protect all of the people in the Agency. I guess, in essence, we want the

same thing, the same goals, but have different outlooks on how it should be done. I can’t work

with someone who doesn’t respect me, who can’t follow my orders.’

Tomas asked, ‘What if I said that from now on, I would?’

Peter said, ‘I guess we all know that wouldn’t be the case. Sooner or later, as soon as you would

get comfortable in your position again, you would start doing your own thing again.’

Tomas said, ‘Trust me.’

Peter said, ‘I trusted you too well before, Tomas, and I ended up screaming at myself for that

later. That bus has already left.’

‘So all we achieved together, all that we could have achieved, it doesn’t count?’

‘Forget our memories, Tomas. Forget our possibilities. You are changing me every day and I

don’t think for better. I want my old self back, before Tomas. I need you to go.’

Tomas asked, ‘Changing you for worse? How?’

Peter said, ‘You just witnessed it. I grew to despise you so much I momentarily became you

myself. That would have never happened before.’

Tomas said, ‘Despise me, why? What could I have possibly done so bad for you to despise me?’

Peter said, ‘I’ve had enough of you ignoring me, undermining my position while I was being

kind to you the whole time. I’ve had enough of your faithlessness in my abilities, always acting

only on what you personally thought was the best course of action.’

Tomas said, ‘I always discussed it with you first.’

Peter said, ‘But we both know that you weren’t discussing anything. You were telling me what

you were going to do anyway, so I gave in. I gave in! And every time I did, something in me

died along with my pride. I knew I gave in only because I wanted it to look like I was in

command, like I was in control. It was a lie, and I knew it. The shame is killing me. So much

unnecessary danger I exposed people to, so much unnecessary death that I caused because I was

weak. I wanted you on my team so bad that I allowed for all of this to happen.

‘Yes, it is great what we have achieved, and yes, it could be great what we could have achieved

later, but at what price? I was lucky enough so far to avoid hazards with you on board. When
will my luck run out and it will cost someone’s life? What if Gargy dies the very next mission I

send the both of you on? Because you, Tomas, would decide once again that you know better? I

admit, Tomas, you are amazing. An amazing killing and destruction machine capable of

frightening the devil himself; but you can’t be controlled. You have a mind of your own and a

problem with authority. I don’t need you anymore. I need you to go.’

Tomas just nodded his head, accepting it. Dr Charlotte and her nurses helped fix both of them

after all, and along with the rest of the knights, she tried to reason with them both, elevating the

situation and saying to go sleep on it first to cool down. But Peter had made his mind up, and

Tomas had too. It felt like a divorce. He really liked Peter a lot, but their differences were too

great. He had to go. It was Peter’s place, and Tomas was nothing more than a resident there.

So once again, Tomas was faking that he would go sleep on it, and that tomorrow would show

what’s up. He was lying. ‘To make the farewells easier, you just have to skip them completely.’

He snuck out into the armoury when all were asleep, but it was secured, of course. ‘Of course!’

Tomas was mad at himself that he didn’t expect it. He kicked into the locked doors out of

frustration.
o Chapter 6: Until it Breaks

Linkin Park – New Divide 4:28

“I remembered black skies, the lightning all around me.

I remembered each flash, as time began to blur,

like a startling sign - that fate had finally found me,

and your voice was all I heard - that I get what I deserve.”

Lubos said, ‘So you wanted to sneak out without saying goodbye, whilst stealing the expensive

stuff?’

Tomas answered, ‘You know that it would be better this way. Peter is right. I am what I am, and

I can’t change. It’s killing him inside. What other choice is there?’

‘So you thought that before you left, you’d just steal the equipment and carry on, on your own?’

Tomas asked, ‘What date is it, Lubos?’

Lubos said, ‘As of last hour, it’s November twenty-first.’

‘Exactly!’

‘I don’t follow.’

Tomas said simply, ‘Velicenko.’

Lubos asked incredulously, ‘You want to go to New York and take out Velicenko while he

resides there?’

‘Yes, and to rescue the girls. He should be there until the twenty-fourth. Ever since Peter

cancelled that mission, it stuck in my mind. I never cared to kill Torreto whilst in Virginia that

we had the argument with Peter over, I wanted to save the sex-slave girls ever since we failed to

do it on Stachenko’s mission. Velicenko is just a target of opportunity too juicy to pass on. You

know what he did, you know he’s the godfather of the Russian Mafia on US soil. I’ll take him

out as soon as I get the girls to safety first. His presence and the fact that he’s about to receive his

award from the mayor will guarantee that the girls will be there at mayor’s disposal.’

‘You know that Peter cancelled the mission because it was too risky. Although, we didn’t get to

that part,’ Lubos reminded him.

Tomas said, ‘I have seen the intelligence gathering process. I know Peter cancelled it because the

exit out of there without getting caught by the police is almost impossible. He didn’t want to risk

a confrontation with them. I’m not worried about that.’

Lubos said, ‘Maybe you should be. Peter knows his stuff, you know.’

‘Yeah, I know. But I don’t care. I’ll manage.’ Lubos’s face turned concerned.

Tomas said, ‘I won’t retaliate at the police, of course!’ Lubos’s face showed a little relief.

Tomas said, ‘I just don’t care. If they get me, then they get me. I have a backup plan for that too.’

Lubos asked, ‘Does that plan involve blasting off your head?’

‘Something like that.’

‘Uh-huhm, that’s what I thought. You are truly mad, you know? But I like it. At least you’re

mad in the right direction. Okay, I will help you. I will even take you as close to Velicenko’s

residence as possible.’

Tomas said, ‘Thank you. But this could get you kicked out of the Agency as well.’

Lubos said, ‘No matter, I will come join you instead.’ Tomas just smiled, shaking his head while

looking down.

Lubos said, ‘But you know, I don’t have what you truly need. I can open this door for you, but

the Apex Armour is secured by Cop. You don’t need guns, you could buy them easily. You need

the Apex Armour; that can’t be bought.’

Tomas said, ‘So, what are we going to do?’ Lubos was about to say something.

Cop piped up, ‘Well, you could ask me nicely, for starters, and see what happens,’ surprising

both with his presence.

Tomas said, ‘How long have you been there?’

Cop replied, ‘Long enough. What? I couldn’t sleep due to the traumatic events of today.’ Tomas

made an “oops” face.

Cop continued. ‘I bet I’m not the only one, so we have to be quiet.’ They entered the armoury

and started to help Tomas get fully geared up.

Lubos said, ‘You know, as soon as Gargy finds out that you have left, he will go after you to find

you anyway.’

Tomas said, ‘I know. Maybe he will kick my ass as well, I’m not exactly well yet. That bastard

would have the advantage.’ He was bantering even now, to Lubos and Cop’s entertainment.
Tomas said, ‘I don’t care, just as long as I would actually still be alive at the time he finds me.’

They all laughed quietly.

Tomas said, ‘Who knows what will happen? Maybe I will create my own agency. We could

cooperate with Peter’s. Although, we would be the poor one, the knock-off version of his.’ They

continued to laugh.

Lubos said, ‘You will be missed, you know. I understand Peter’s reasons, but I have no beef with

you. To me and plenty of people here, you are a hero.’ Tomas just smiled.

Cop added, ‘Especially Helena. I bet she will insist to go with Gargy to find you, then she’ll stay

with you.’ Tomas gave a “why?” face.

Lubos chuckled, ‘Oh, you really are as blind as you are stupid? Everyone here knows that she

loves you.’

Cop added, ‘Everyone but you, obviously.’ Lubos just nodded. Tomas still wore an “I don’t

understand” face.

Tomas said, ‘As if she didn’t have a boyfriend.’

Cop shook his head. ‘You mean the one she left after taking care of you some time ago?’

Lubos said, ‘Must be that one,’ taking the piss out of Tomas.

Tomas stopped his gearing up for a moment, he was thinking about it that intensely, then he

continued.

‘I guess that I am that blind and stupid. It wouldn’t change a thing anyway. I’m not person to…’

He was looking for some more decent expression. He didn’t find any. ‘To fuck with. In bed, or

out.’ Lubos and Cop exploded in laughter, struggling to collect themselves.

Tomas said, ‘If I am not the number one enemy of the state yet, I’m sure I will be one day. I

can’t afford to be loved. Nor can I let the love stop me from doing what needs to be done. It’s an

illusion, after all, animal instinct.’ Lubos and Cop looked at each other, grinning.

Lubos said, ‘This is why I freaking love you, Tomas. You’re fucking savage! My man!’ Cop just

nodded his head whilst struggling to hold in his laughter.

Tomas said, ‘Just make sure not to put that on my gravestone.’ They knew he was bantering

again.

Cop asked, ‘What would you like to have written on your gravestone then?’

‘That I was a passionate florist and lepidopterist in my spare time.’ They burst into laughter.

Lubos asked, ‘Why?’ tears of laughter running down his face.

‘I want the people to be pissing themselves laughing coming to my grave, not crying. Perhaps,

they would visit me more often. Not that I would give a FUCK once I’m gone.’ Cop and Lubos

burst into laughter again.

Notting like a good laugh before a mission for stress relief.+ Or during. Tomas believed it was

the second-best cure for everything. After sex, which was non-existed for Tomas, who was in a

‘monk mode’ as he called it, ever since he killed the DI back in China, some years ago now.

Cop wanted to go with Lubos and Tomas, but they convinced him to stay at the base and buy

them some time. It was roughly 11 hours’ drive to NYC and they didn’t want to take the

helicopter, so as not to alarm anyone.

Should the base realize soon after they woke up what happened, they could intercept Tomas and

interrupt his intentions. But that didn’t happen.

The weather in Manhattan was terrible. It was midday, yet the skies were black due to a

thunderstorm. Very unusual that far North, ‘perhaps the climate change is a real thing after all’

Tomas thought. It was almost scary, but it was the perfect scenario. There were virtually no

people outside, all staying dry indoors. The loud thunder would help somewhat to muffle the

firefight, or so Tomas thought as he got out of the “borrowed” van they’d acquired. It could buy

him just enough time to vanish before the police would eventually arrive.

Lubos asked, ‘How do you know that Velicenko is there now?’

‘I don’t, I’m taking a risk. But look around. Plus, it’s quarter to one. He is most likely having

lunch with some other big fishes. I’ll take them all out.’ Tomas said, winking at Lubos, making

him smile.

‘And what if he is not there?’

Tomas said, ‘Then I’ll save the girls and get him some other time!’

Lubos nodded in understanding. ‘Good luck then!’ he called as he drove off casually.

Tomas approached the front door of the 20-story apartment building. The girls were most likely

held in the cellar premises below the building – based on Peter’s predictions that Tomas

definitely trusted, whilst Ivan Velicenko had the whole top three floors to himself. The first four

floors were like a nightclub business except it was private only, for Velicenko’s VIPs.

Surprisingly, no one guarded the front door on the outside (a mystery really), Tomas just kicked

it in and entered the building. It was actually packed, maybe due to the outside weather situation.

Tomas quickly looked around to find some targets. A few men in suits looked suspicious, but
they just stared at Tomas like the rest, shocked by what they saw. “The famous masked man!”

someone exclaimed, but no one did anything, nor were they visibly armed.

Tomas had seen the building blueprint plans; he knew where the basement entrance was. He

turned left and looked for the stairs heading down, ignoring the suspicious men. None of the

guests had panicked yet. Some were heard saying, “That’s him!” but in an excited way.

Tomas quickly proceeded downstairs, his G36 on lookout for targets. There, he found the first

obvious man of Velicenko’s guarding the door to the cellar. The guard was ready for Tomas;

someone must have announced Tomas’s presence in the building. He had a submachine gun and

opened fire at Tomas on first sight, hitting him only once dead centre in his torso before being

cut down by Tomas’s G36. Right after the first gunfire sounded, panic ensued among the guests

upstairs and they started leaving the building hastily – finally realizing this wasn’t one of the

surprise VIP guests of Velicenko who was in the public’s eye a good Samaritan businessman.

Tomas entered through the cellar doors where another two guards opened fire at him. Tomas

would have shot back immediately if it wasn’t for the large cages with the slave girls in them all

around along the walls. Tomas took the incoming fire, shielding his face with his left hand, not

even attempting to dodge. He relied on the Apex Armour, closed in on them, and using martial

arts and the stock of his G36, knocked them both to the floor, then executed both men with a

single shot to their face.

Some of the girls screamed out; it was quite gruesome. Unfortunately, at that close distance, one

of the guard’s face split in two while ejecting a large part of his brain out of the skull. In seconds

there were large blood pools beneath the guards’ heads.

As soon as Tomas looked up at the girls, they instinctively backed off even closer to the edge of

their cages; they seemed scared. Obviously, they had no idea who he was. Never even heard

about the masked man before. They looked frightened of Tomas’s every move. No doubt a

reaction to how they were handled by the Russian Mafia. But there were no visible beating

marks on them; the Russians had to keep them blemish-free for the paying customers, after all.

‘It’s okay, I’m here to save you,’ Tomas said, taking his hands off the G36, letting it hang on his

shoulder.

They calmed down a bit, but it was uncertain if they understood him.

Tomas asked, ‘Do you speak English?’ No response.

Luckily, Tomas was Slovak originally, and some of his native language is somewhat similar to

Russian. He knew some basic words.

Tomas asked, ‘Ruski?’ He got their attention.

Some of the girls in the back said, “Da!” Tomas knew that meant yes. But he didn’t know how to

say anything else in Russian. So instead, he opted for his own Slovak language and hoped they

would understand at least part of it. There was no point in English. It made sense that the Russian

mob didn’t want girls that spoke English. It could help them run away or say something to

someone. This way, they were completely helpless and at their mercy.

Tomas said, ‘Musite co najviac ustupit! Idem rozstrelit zamky a nechcem aby sa vam daco stalo.

Okay?’ There was no response.

He told them that he was going to shoot the locks and he didn’t want them to get hurt, to move

away from it as much as they could. He proceeded to shoot the locks one after another. The
cages could have been already open, but he shot eight of them before the first girls dared to try. It

worked! They immediately tried to run away. Tomas turned around and shouted at them.

‘Stoy!’

It meant, “Stop!” They got that much and stopped. Tomas waved his left hand for them to come

to him. After a slight hesitation on their part, they listened and came to him. Tomas proceeded to

shoot up the rest of the cages, releasing all of the girls.

***

There was obvious activity going on above the cellar stairs. Sounds of muffled chatter resonated

off the walls of the cellar. Tomas knew what that meant. It was one of the reasons why Peter

cancelled the mission. Only one way in and one way out, through the cellar door and up the stairs

onto the first floor. The longer they spent down in the cellar rescuing the girls, the more guards

would surely accumulate at the only possible exit. Then there was the lift that opens up for the

sidewalk deliveries, but that Peter already identified as properly “disabled” by the Russian mob.

Velicenko’s residence had access to its own armoury, and only God knows what kind of artillery

they had there, what the guards could bring with them to flush the team out of the cellar or to kill

them all down there. Tomas indicated to the girls to stay at the back wall of the cellar, as much

away from the doorway as possible, while he proceeded to walk towards it. Two girls

instinctively held onto him, trying to prevent him from going while shaking their heads, saying

“Nie”, meaning no.

Tomas said, ‘It’s okay.’ They understood that. Then, he gently took their hands off him, and then

he took off his mask too, while pointing at his face, gesturing to them to smile.
Most of them calmed down; some of them even smiled.

Something weird happened to Tomas in that moment. He felt like fate finally found him; that this

was meant for him to do from the start. This was why he transformed himself in the first place.

This was why all of the constant training wasn’t meaningless. You could say that he felt happy.

Tomas reminded himself of the hostages’ reaction at the NBC tower before he jumped out again.

Then he thought about Peter’s words, that he would get what he deserves. Thought about how

negative it sounded. Like Tomas would get what he deserves in a bad way. ‘But why? For this?’

Once again, he was risking his life to save others. ‘This is why?’ He thought about how wrong

Peter was about him. Tomas wanted to prove Peter wrong, looking for a reason why he was

seeing him in that way. Why should he want to be part of his Agency and overcome the big

divide that Tomas felt Peter created? Yes, in his heart, he wanted it to be like before, like it was

after the NBC tower mission for a short time. Tomas wanted to be with all of his new family, as

he was already missing them.

He was looking for a reason to prove himself wrong too, to forget what Peter said. But he

couldn’t help it. Even now he could hear deep in his mind Peter’s words that he would get what

he deserves. He wished for it to not be the truth.

Tomas put his mask back on and went towards the stairs. He made a few steps up, almost to the

mid-floor section of the stairs before it turned left from his point of view. Tomas peaked out

briefly to see what was waiting for him at the top of the stairs. Too briefly to make a count of the

Russians, but there were many of them. They opened up on him for only a second as a reaction

to it, but it only Swiss-cheesed the opposite wall, missing Tomas, who hid back behind the bend

of the stairwell completely.

A Russian guard could be heard saying, ‘Suka Blyat Pizda!’ Tomas just assumed it was

something like, “Fuck you, Bitch!”

Then, his worst fear materialized. Grenades followed that, but the Russians cooked them (held

them longer in the hand after pulling the safety pin out, to offset the normal six-second explosion

delay), so that the explosion would happen almost instantly after they had thrown them. To

Tomas’s luck, it was a bit too late. Four grenades were thrown down the stairs and towards

Tomas, but only one exploded somewhat next to him. The rest exploded a bit too soon and the

walls before the bend in the stairwell absorbed most of the blast and shrapnel.

Tomas managed to jump off the stairs and back into the cellar at the last moment. The blast wave

of the one accurate grenade didn’t do much, as only a few pieces of the shrapnel found Tomas’s

body. Most imbedding into Tomas’s backside of the Apex Armour with no real effect outside

damaging parts of it.

In a strong Russian accent, the Russian guard at the top of stairs called, ‘Are you still alive,

masked man?’ A few laughs rang in the background.

Tomas looked at his right leg, slightly behind his knee joint. Shrapnel was stuck there, so he

pulled it out. There was blood on it, but he didn’t feel much pain. He had no intentions to talk to

the Russian either.

The Russian guard at the top of stairs continued taunting. ‘You won’t be for much longer!’

Louder laughs echoed down the stairwell.

Another bunch of grenades were thrown down the stairs. This time not pre-cooked so much, and

they actually made it around the bend, bouncing off the stairs and the walls. Tomas instinctively
took cover on the left side wall of the doorway. A few shrapnel pieces flew into the cellar.

Thankfully, just scaring the poor girls, but not much else.

Tomas knew that the next bunch would make it further into the cellar, so he had no choice.

Blindly, he rushed up the stairs and into the storm of bullets, forcing his way through, G36 full

auto-blasting. A bunch of bodies fell down on the floor instantly, like sacks of potatoes, then

close combat/firefight ensued. Tomas, utilizing his gun kata skills, managed to bring 20-plus

men down, while absorbing decent portion of the incoming fire that pummelled his whole body.

One of the rounds went into Tomas’s mask below his right eye slit, but it just bounced off

harmlessly. It was a small 9 mm pistol round, no match to the mask’s capabilities.

Around 10 more of the Velicenko’s men took cover while the rest retreated to the upper floors.

Tomas seemed unstoppable. He stormed the first cover position of some of Velicenko’s men.

There were two of them that waited for Tomas in ambush. However, Tomas surprised them with

a Gatling-barrels-like rotation acrobatic move as his body flew through the air and over the

cover, gunning them down with his P30Ls.

Immediately, he proceeded to the next hiding spot, and another air-through rotation at the right

time and over the cover of the guards took care of them. The rest of the men under cover tried to

run away after that. Some out of the front door. Some into the upper floors. They got all gunned

down systematically with Tomas’s G36’s single shots.

Velicenko’s men were in obvious retreat. Now was the optimal time to get the girls out of the

building.

Tomas rushed to the stairwell leading into the cellar and from the very top of it, he shouted:

“Davaj, Davaj!” He only hoped that it meant something like “Come on!” but he wasn’t sure.
Nothing happened, but Tomas heard very settle chatter of the girls, so he shouted at them again:

“Davaj!” and finally they started very carefully coming up the stairs. As soon as he saw the first

of them, he made a “come to me” hand signal at her. When the first one reached Tomas, he gave

her an envelope that he hidden in one of the suit’s ammo pockets. It had 900 US dollars in it (that

he, Cop, and Lubos managed to quickly acquire before leaving), Peter’s original instructions in

Russian (thanks to Cop) with the address of where to go in NYC, and a telephone number to call.

Tomas had no idea where the place was, nor who would be accepting the call, but he knew that

Peter would have made sure it was the best place to go to and the best person to call. He had to

give him that much; Peter made no mistakes, took no chances after all.

Immediately, Tomas moved into the middle of the entrance room space, between the stairs to the

cellar and the front door. As the girls were passing by behind Tomas’s back and out of the front

door, while he was covering the stairs leading to the upper floors and overlooking the elevator,

some of them were heard to say: “Harasho”. Tomas knew it meant thank you. There were 16

girls and it took them less than 10 seconds to get out into the streets after leaving the stairwell.

Pretty impressive, considering the roughly 30 meters distance to travel and that they moved

together as a bunch, elbows locked together and all. They didn’t wear the best outfits either,

considering the strong storm outside, but taxis were still lurking everywhere. Tomas was sure

they would be just fine.

He proceeded up the stairs onto the first floor but encountered no resistance, voices of panic

echoing all around him. The first 10 floors had direct access to the car park behind the building

and most of the people had either left or were in the process of leaving.

Tomas advanced another four levels to the fifth floor, but still no opposition. Tomas started to

panic that Velicenko had already left, as the squealing noises of the tires from the cars peeling
out had ceased. He rushed to the car park through the access on the fifth floor and looked around.

It was completely abandoned. A few cars here and there, but no people. Perhaps Velicenko

wasn’t here at all, Tomas tried to comfort himself.

Just then loud engine noises sounded, including the familiar sound of the Escalades that

Stachenko had been in. It was obvious that some kind of column of cars was leaving. The car

park was built with half-floor sections on each side. Meaning for each level of the building’s

floor, there been two floors of the car park. The section closer to the access door was on the same

level, but the other half of the car park that was further away was elevated by half a building’s

floor height and then connected by ramps together, so that the climb up the ramp was not too

steep nor too long. This way though, you could see through to the upper half level.

Tomas listened as the convoy noises began closing in on him, hiding behind one of the support

columns, watching the upper half floor to see what would be coming at him.

Limp Bizkit – Take A Look Around 5:19

“I know why you wanna hate me,

'Cause hate is all the world has even seen lately.”

It was the same Escalades as Stachenko had. Tomas was sure it must be Velicenko himself.

Tomas waited for them to get a bit closer. He recognized the guards inside to be the ones that

escaped him into higher floors previously, after he forced his way up the stairwell. ‘It must be

him in there!’ Tomas was sure that perhaps Ivan didn’t want to leave at first, then his personal
guards may have persuaded him to leave the building, but his transport cars must have been

stored on the very top half-floor of the car park, making it even harder for them to leave in a

rush. Just enough time for Tomas to catch them in the nick of time.

Tomas saw the Escalades going down the ramp and turning towards the next one that was across

the length and on the opposite side of the half floor car park section. He stood up in their way,

facing them backwards. A lot was running through Tomas’s mind in that moment. He was

thinking about Peter’s words to him again, his critique of Tomas’s actions. If he could, Tomas

would tell him to look around at what was happening and what he was doing while Peter was

passively waiting it out in the safety of certainty. He was thinking about himself living the life

the right way instead. That things in the world were moving really fast and that you need to be

able to act as fast, or it is too late. ‘You need to be on top! You need to be the one dictating what

will happen, not reacting to it!’

The first car in the convoy stopped, forcing the rest to halt, wondering what their next course of

action should be, no doubt. Then the order probably came. ‘Run him over, he is not moving and

facing us with his back, the crazy bastard!’ Their convoy moved up again, the first car leading by

some distance, Tomas listening closely as the roaring noise of the engine was closing in on him.

He was thinking about Peter’s disapproval of his actions. ‘I know why you want to hate me,

’cause the hate is all we have seen in the world lately!’ But to Tomas there was no other way

around it. He wasn’t happy about it, but he had to face reality. ‘Everybody runs away, everybody

wants to hide from the gun pointing at them, everybody wants to just cruise through life and

mind their own business, only to worry about what is happening around them once it involves

them as well. But no one can deny that the threat is always there, the injustice is constantly
happening, while the truth hasn’t seen the light of day for a long time now. Enough! I know why

you all want to hate me! ’Cause I’m the one standing in your way!’

Tomas took out his P30Ls, leaving the G36 hanging on his back. The first car in the convoy was

almost upon him when Tomas performed the same Gatling-barrels move he used before, lunging

to the side and out of the way of the car while rotating like Gatling gun barrels and shooting his

P30Ls to the exposed side of the first car. He killed two out of five men that were inside, while

injuring all, but the driver didn’t stop and continued down the next ramp.

The follow-up car waited to see what would happen to the first one. Only once it got shot up by

Tomas did it speed forward. Tomas grabbed his G36, slotting the P30Ls to the side-front pockets

on his chest, and rushed towards the car, shooting it up whilst approaching it head on.

Expectedly, the guards had opened their side windows and opened up on him too. Tomas got hit

a few times, but managed to kill at least three out of the five men inside, while the driver was

visibly hiding behind the dashboard of the car, not even watching where he was going.

At the last moment, Tomas jumped up on top of the car’s trunk as it tried to run him over, then

onto the roof while shooting madly downwards, killing the rest, and finally jumping off the car

onto the car park floor performing a parkour roll on the landing to prevent any unnecessary

impact.

The second car missed the ramp and continued head on until it crashed into the wall in a loud

bang.

Tomas immediately turned towards the next car in the convoy of five. He expected Velicenko to

be in it, as the middle car is always the VIP transport, and for it to be highly armoured. It was.

Tomas’s fire didn’t have any effect on the car as he dodged to the side when it tried to run him
over. Nor from the front into the windshield, tires, nor from the side as the doors got exposed to

him after the dodge.

Tomas spotted Velicenko inside. He was ducking down despite the armour, looking scared,

unlike the amused expression of Stachenko he witnessed previously from Russian mob boss.

The first car in the convoy was just passing by next to Tomas one half-level below him. He

sprayed it with his G36, certainly killing the driver this time around as it crashed into another car

parked to the right side shortly after, missing the next ramp down.

The last two Escalades completely unloaded, and 10 guards that came out unleashed fire at

Tomas immediately. He sporadically shot back at them, but in general, completely ignored their

presence. His target was Velicenko himself. Tomas thought about how he was going to stop his

car and kill him.

Tomas slid down through the opening onto the half floor below, trying to catch up to Velicenko,

who was already another half floor below. He emptied another full magazine into it, but to no

effect. The bullets just ricocheted into the surroundings or bounced off.

In the meantime, Tomas was attracting lots of fire coming from the disembarked guards and got

pummelled pretty badly by it. He couldn’t ignore it anymore and retaliated as they followed him

another half level down, slipping through the half floor openings.

Tomas unloaded the last magazine of his G36 into Velicenko’s Cadillac’s front left tire before

throwing the gun away to not slow him down once he began to do his gun kata acrobatics with

the P30Ls, engaging the guards. The tire got ripped open, but it didn’t slow the Escalade a bit

and it just continued on its way towards the exit on the bottom half level of the car park,

surpassing Tomas by one whole level.

At first, Tomas thought that engaging the guards would not slow him down too much; not

enough to miss catching up with the escaping Velicenko, but soon it turned out that those were

no ordinary guards. Most likely trained mercenaries or a former military force. Perhaps Rangers

or Delta Force. They had no gun kata skills. No need for it, as they had excellent accuracy,

tactics, and equipment. That made it very difficult for Tomas to get any of them without getting

brutally punished by a storm of incoming bullets, some even incendiary and tracer rounds; to no

major effect, as the Apex Armour absorbed it nicely.

Then, of course, grenades were thrown in Tomas’s direction. Shrapnel sprayed everything

around as Tomas decided to storm them head on, killing another three of them before he was cut

down by suppressive fire into his legs, forcing him to fall to the ground.

The remaining four guards started to retreat at this opportunity. As good as they were, they had

no Apex Armour, and their incoming fire had only momentary stopping power on Tomas.

Suddenly, Tomas realized why. Velicenko must have escaped already! He quickly slid through

the openings of the half floors all the way into the first floor, ignoring the pain in his legs and

around his body, when the car noise completely disappeared.

Tomas proceeded back to the first floor of Velicenko’s residence building and towards the front

wall facing the street that he came from. He saw Velicenko’s Escalade coming from the left

down the street towards him. ‘Last chance to stop him, but how?’

The next thing he did wasn’t really thought through, there was no time for it. All he was thinking

about was how Stachenko’s car got turned over on its side once the driver made a sharp turn and

his tire was blown by Gargy’s SPG1 sniper rifle fire. ‘But how to force him into a sharp turn?’
Well, in Tomas’s mind there was only one option, and the time window for executing it was

getting smaller as the Escalade was approaching fast.

Tomas kicked into the window he was looking from, shattering the bottom part of it. Then he

hastily backed up about 20 meters into the building, followed by an even faster sprint towards

and out of the partially shattered window. Tomas was only hoping that his timing would be good

enough, as he lost the sight and position of Velicenko’s Escalade. He had to be good enough to

hit the car on its side with his falling-down-jumped-out-of-the-window body. Suggesting that he

could in fact jump out that far in the first place. But due to the fact that the front door was only

about a meter away from the sidewalk, which was only about a meter in width, and the fact that

he was jumping out of the window approximately three meters above ground level, he should

make it doing his best!

The car was going down the street only about three meters away from the front door on the

ground level. He made it! As Tomas jumped out of the window and saw that he would crash into

the side of Velicenko’s escaping Escalade, at the last second he presented his right shoulder into

it, as if he performed a body-check in ice hockey into it, or in American football, tackling the

opponent.

The massive impact to the car’s side lifted both of the car’s right-side tires off the ground

momentarily, surprising the driver, who instinctively turned the wheel a full turn to the opposite

side. But once the tires made contact with the ground surface again, the sharp turn overturned the

already destabilized Escalade onto its side. It crashed into several parked cars on the west side of

the street facing towards Central Park, forcing it to roll over a few times before coming to a full

stop on its roof. The problem was, the powerful impact also made Tomas unconscious, and he

was left lying motionless in the street.

Velicenko’s personal guard took Tomas alive on his command and transported him, unconscious,

as fast as they could into the north part of Harlem (which otherwise had no Russians – made it

more secret), to one of their safe houses. It was ironic; it was only safe for them to do their

torturing business there, with Velicenko’s main torturer, Sergey, as a resident in it. For the

unfortunate souls that ended up in that place, it was hell on earth before their departure into

eternity.

Dope – Die Motherfucker Die 3:06

“I don't need your forgiveness, I don't need your hate,

I don't need your acceptance - So what should I do?”

At first, it was only tickling. Then a proper forceful hit into Tomas’s mask that was still on woke

him up. He was chained to a vertical torturing table of sorts in an X-shape, and was getting shot

up by six of Velicenko’s soldiers. They were laughing at him, louder once they realized that

Tomas had woken up.

As Tomas regained his consciousness more and more, the impacts on his body became more

painful, but he wouldn’t make a sound. After a few more seconds of full auto fire, and a few face

shots later, breaking Tomas’s nose in the process and lacerating his left eyebrow, they stopped.

Velicenko approached Tomas to a distance of about one meter away.

Ivan said, ‘So this is your secret! Impressive…’ Tomas could tell that he was thinking. ‘This

must have been ridiculously expensive; proper Batman-worthy armour.’ It was the strongest

Russian accent Tomas had ever heard.

Tomas smiled momentarily. Not because of the strong Russian accent of Ivan, but because he’d

said the same thing to Cop when he saw the Apex Armour the first time.

Ivan asked, ‘But where did you get it from? I know you’re not the military, or CIA or FBI. They

don’t even possess this level of technology. I have never seen anything like it, nor heard about

any armour this potent…’ He was thinking again.

One of the thugs asked, ‘Should we try the twenty millimetre?’

Ivan said, ‘Nah, no body armour could ever stop a twenty millimetre. Although, we already

know that this can stop .50 BMG round.’

Another of the thugs asked, ‘Can I try? Please?’

Ivan said, ‘No, I don’t want to damage it any further, nor do I want to kill the occupant. Not this

fast.’ Velicenko’s thugs laughed loudly.

Ivan continued. ‘I thank you for this gift. I will give it to my people for analysis and

reproduction. I will even wear underwear made out of it!’ He started to laugh as well. ‘Then I’ll

give it to every one of my soldiers, and I will be unstoppable! I will crush all my enemies and

roll over them, thanks to you.’

‘Good luck with that,’ Tomas said in a sarcastic tone.

Ivan chuckled, ‘So, we will have a conversation after all! I was beginning to think that you

would be one of those brainwashed potato heads. Serving whoever, got no mind of their own,

just follows orders, or the money. Although those kinds of people are useful, they never reach

the potential of yours.’ Momentary silence.

‘But then again, people with their own mind tend to fuck up. Just like you did now. Where is

your support? I know you didn’t act on your own before. This time? It was beyond stupid what

you did, and how you did it. I would bet it has something to do with you acting on your own,

cowboy,’ he taunted, getting even closer to Tomas, looking directly into his eyes.

Ivan said, ‘Amazing body armour! No wonder you could do what you did. No wonder you are so

hard to kill. But please, tell me, how did you know that you would survive the explosion at the

NBC tower?’

Tomas said, ‘I didn’t,’ hate present in his voice.

Ivan said, ‘Has balls too. It’s a pity you’re on the opposite side of the fence. The things we could

have achieved together, the power we could have acquired! Doesn’t matter now, your fate is

sealed; and that of your family.’

‘I have no family,’ Tomas said quietly, just enough for Velicenko to hear it.

Ivan said, ‘Everyone has a family! If your closest ones are dead, then your friends – dogs, for all

I care!’

Tomas said, ‘Good luck with that too.’

Ivan said, ‘Oh, you think this is funny? We will find out for sure. I’ll just contact a few friends

that will assign a few FBI agents to the case. They will have a lead now, you know.’ He ordered

his men to remove Tomas’s mask finally, exposing his facial wounds.

Ivan said, ‘A fucking kid! What are you, late twenties, early thirties? Never mind, I don’t intend

on asking any questions, you would lie anyway. We will eventually find out all about you. So,

where was I? Oh yes, that’s right. Now that we have your face, we will push it as an anonymous
lead of the masked man to the FBI. They will send agents to find your relatives. Once they do,

they will get pulled off the case, and it will be supposedly taken over by someone else. Us.’ The

thugs had a good laugh once again.

Ivan went on. ‘And let me tell you, we don’t play nice in here. ESPECIALLY here. As you will

soon find out.’ The bald, scar-covered guy couldn’t help but to smirk the whole time at Tomas.

Measuring him up and down.

Ivan ordered them to strip Tomas out of the armour completely, even his underwear, revealing

many bruises beneath it from the bullet impacts. Due to the X-shape of the vertical torture table,

this was rather easy without having to unchain him. Ivan continued to talk to Tomas.

‘Very well-built man, what do you say, boys?’ They made all kinds of vulgar sexual gestures

towards Tomas. Someone even said that he was not gay, but would fuck that body anyways, just

would have to put a paper bag over Tomas’s ugly face. Velicenko was very amused by it.

‘Yes, not so perfect protection after all. Look at you! Well, I guess it’s better than being dead.’

Ivan said, observing Tomas’s present and past bruises. ‘You know, I used to hate you. I fucking

hated you so much! At first, we thought this was some kind of new player fighting for his own

turf. But you had to pick on everybody! Triads, Italians, us? After Fok’s death we offered help,

but no one knew what actually happened. Not even the FBI, CIA, or NSA. The fucking Yakuza

even refused to talk about it, mumbling something about a ghost. A fucking ghost!’ He got

visibly angrier.

‘I wouldn’t believe any of that shit. But now, I guess I’m staring at him. The Ghost. But of

course, you didn’t act alone, and you had the help of this amazing armour. I can only imagine

what secrets the spray can and the injection unit hold. I’m guessing that it is some sort of strong
stimulant and painkiller? How else would you be able to function after surely sustaining

numerous injuries, as we can see now? Thank you for that too!’ Ivan looked proud of himself.

Ivan got more serious. ‘Who are you people? I know you’re not a top-secret government agency,

nor any competition to us in any way. How can you afford this? Who made this technology?’ He

turned a bit nervous before calming down again. Tomas remained silent.

‘Never mind, I said that I would not ask any questions. There is no need, we will find out. You

are here for something else.’ The scarred face grinned ear to ear at Tomas again.

‘I fucking hated you so much. You have cost me so much money. Worse, loss of power! Mostly

manpower. Some of them fucking irreplaceable! Do you remember Josif?! I’m sure you know

who I’m talking about.’ This time it was Tomas that had a smirk on his face.

Ivan said, ‘Best man that ever worked for me. Like a brother to me, and the only person I have

ever fully trusted. Not my wife, kids, family, no one! And you have killed him!’

Tomas’s smirk widened. ‘One good hit was all it took.’

‘One hit, you say? Like, you shot him in the head or what?’ Ivan was confused.

‘No, I hit him below his jaw with such force, it snapped like a match.’ Tomas looked proud.

‘A single hit to Josif, killing him?! Well, you survived the explosion whilst jumping out of the

building. I guess this would be less weird…’ Ivan looked a bit defeated.

‘That was pretty impressive and cool, wasn’t it?’ Tomas said with a massive smirk.

Ivan said, ‘You know, I haven’t gotten dirty for about twenty years now. But for you, for you, I

will make an exception.’ He asked the scarred guy to come to him.

Ivan said, ‘This is Sergey. Sergey is a master torturer, the best I have. The best on this side of the

hemisphere, I’m sure. The things he does? I can’t even watch, it’s too much, you know.’ Sergey

had a smirk on his face, looking directly at Tomas.

Ivan said, ‘Not to extract information. As I said, we don’t ask questions around here. We’re here

to have fun, and to make a statement.’ Sergey was so focused on Tomas that even Ivan noticed it.

‘Look at him! He can’t wait! I’m afraid I will have the first touch, Sergey,’ Ivan said, patting

Sergey on his shoulder.

Ivan said, ‘Do you see his face? Sergey did it to himself. For fun. We didn’t have anyone to

torture for a while back around three years ago, so the crazy bastard started to work on himself!

That’s what I call workaholic!’ The thugs have laughed while Sergey was still staring at Tomas,

smirking.

Ivan said, ‘Now, Sergey will give me instructions on how to flay you properly. It will be my first

time, so please excuse me if I do a bit of a sloppy job.’ He had a dead serious expression.

On the outside, Tomas always managed to remain calm. But on the inside, he was scared shitless.

This was one of his worst fears, that he would get captured alive and tortured. And now it was

about to happen. Flaying first!

Ivan said, ‘Now, masked man, which of your arms was it that hit and killed Josif again?’ But he

gave Tomas no time to answer.

Not that it would matter, as Tomas wouldn’t say anything anyway.

‘Never mind, I said no questions. You know what? I’ll flay both of your arms, just to make

sure.’
Ivan calmly approached Tomas and following Sergey’s instructions, he started to peel the skin

off Tomas’s right arm, beginning at the shoulder. The initial cut was okay to endure, but the

continuous peeling off of the skin that got supported by further horizontal cuts every time Ivan

got stuck were excruciating pain. Tomas had no choice; it was as much instinctive as it was an

irreversible, inevitable impulse to scream his lungs out, to everyone present’s entertainment.

Now and then, Ivan made too deep a cut and then Sergey had to fix it, helping him to continue

the right way without damaging the muscles or forcing too much of a bleeding. The idea was to

keep Tomas alive as long as possible, to endure as much suffering as possible. Once it was all

done, Ivan, in total coldness, looked at Tomas, who had since calmed down somewhat.

Ivan said, ‘I apologize. I’m not as professional as Sergey here is, but I do want to know what you

have to say about that.’

Tomas said, ‘It wasn’t a punch, you fuck! It was a kick that killed Josif.’ He would have wanted

to laugh at Ivan, but the pain really prevented that attempt.

‘I’m glad you are as entertained as I am. Thankfully, because now I will have to flay both of

your legs. For Josif, you understand,’ Ivan said, cold and calm.

He made the initial cut on Tomas’s right leg at the hip level.

‘Fuuuck!’ Tomas screamed in pain.

Ivan said, ‘Something is wrong?’ He paused momentarily. The thugs were laughing their asses

off.

‘You sick fuck! You will pay for this!’

‘Will I?’ Ivan said calmly whilst continuing to flay Tomas’s leg.
Tomas tried to say something to Ivan but the pain prevented him. Ivan noticed that too, and took

a pause again to allow Tomas to respond.

‘You were saying?’

It took a few seconds for Tomas to get collected enough to answer. ‘As you know, I don’t work

alone. Once they find out what you have done, they will come and make you pay for it. You

think I was a pain in the ass? I was the weakest link in the chain! The stupid one, the reckless and

the least skilled. Why do you think they made me the point man? Because I’m the least valuable.

They will come for you, and then you will just begin to experience what hell on earth is!’ Gasps

of pain continued during the whole speech.

Ivan said, ‘I’m hoping that they will come. Why do you think I’m making this statement? For

whom? Now that we have new toys to play with, thanks to you again, I’m sure we will be more

than a match for them. Guaranteed. You were just the rich kid showing his dad’s sports car to the

slum’s rats. But you have turned the odds in our favour. I’m sure there are more of us.’ He

calmly continued the flaying, Sergey still giving him instructions now and then, when Ivan

messed up again.

Tomas said, ‘They are probably already on the way. You will all die, you motherfuckers!’ Tears

of pain were running down his face.

‘Possibly; that’s why I will leave before it is finished. You didn’t think this would be all, did

you? We are just starting! I can’t even bear to watch what is about to happen next anyway, and

I’ll be long gone before it. But don’t worry, I will watch the video later. In fact, I can guarantee

you that I will watch it several times! It will instantly become my favourite for sure. Every time I

feel low, I will play it to cheer me up. I wish I had the stomach for it to be here live, but I don’t.
Video, on the other hand; that is a different story. I can watch anything. Thank God, or else I

would have missed out,’ Ivan said, very calmly continuing to flay the other leg of Tomas.

The pain was so much that Tomas passed out. Then Sergey injected him with something.

Ivan said, ‘Oh, he’s back! Good, now we can continue to play. Thank God we also have

stimulants that prevent you from passing out so that you can experience everything. And there is

a lot for you in store next!’

Tomas still looked confused, then suddenly he realized where he was and what was happening.

Then the pain kicked in again and his face wore an agonized expression.

Ivan said, ‘If it’s any consolation to you, after all of this, we’re good. I used to hate you so much.

But the gifts that you have brought to me today made it worth it to endure. But you will have to

get punished anyway, you understand that, right? So, after I kill you and your family, then we’re

good. No more beef with you. I used to think that the memory of you would be painful even once

I killed you and your family. But now that you have brought me those gifts that will make me the

most powerful man around, allowing me to torture you as well, it will be a happy memory

instead. You made me happy. I will think of you a lot now. I promise you that, and also thank

you. I haven’t been this happy in a long time! Funny how a bad thing can turn into the best thing

ever. I guess the saying that everything bad is good for something is true after all. What I’m

trying to say is, I will hold no more grudge against you.’ He was dead serious, no sarcasm.

Tomas said, ‘Go fuck yourself!’

‘Funny you should say that, because you are about to fuck yourself! Sergey here will cut off

your balls and then your dick. He will stuff the balls into your mouth while inserting the dick in
your ass. I will hang your peeled-off skin on my wall for display! I will eat your heart!’ He

became momentarily frenzied before calming down again.

Ivan said, ‘I don’t believe in that shit. That if you eat the heart of your enemy, you will gain his

strength. I’m just a man that when he says that he will eat your heart, he means it. And I will. But

as I said, after all of that, we are good.’ Tomas looked defeated, almost about to cry.

Ivan said, ‘They all break, no shame in it. They all break no matter how tough they are. But I

must admit that you didn’t last long, disappointingly. Obviously, no training in managing the

pain or torture. Interestingly, who doesn’t train their operatives to handle pain or torture?’ He

looked like he was truly thinking.

Ivan said, ‘You’ve got a long way to go yet, boy, but I will have to go now. For safety reasons.

Also, it will get hard-core from now on, if you know what I mean. But don’t worry, I will keep

you in the best hands here. He’s not as messy as I am, and he’s way faster as well. Although, he

probably shouldn’t be; this is supposed to be torture, after all.’ Sergey was smirking again.

Ivan asked, ‘What do you say, Sergey? Sometimes you wish you hadn’t got your experience,

right?’ Sergey’s smirk widened.

Ivan said, ‘But trust me, he won’t let you bleed out or pass out before it’s all done. You will get

to experience all of what we have to offer.’ He was talking to Tomas while holding Sergey

firmly at his neck; he still had that smirk and eyes only for Tomas. One could swear he also had

a hard-on.

Ivan said, ‘Hell! You will even get a little trailer before, so you know what to expect.’ Multiple

X-shaped torturing tables with naked girls attached to them were brought into the torturing room.

All of them screaming, crying, and twitching all around.

It was the girls that Tomas rescued from Velicenko’s residence; they’d captured them all.

Tomas said, ‘No! Fuck! No!’

‘What’s wrong? You should appreciate this. They have a big monetary value attached to them.

But I would rather expend them in this way, for you,’ Ivan said, trying to upset Tomas and force

a reaction out of him.

But Tomas knew what was happening and didn’t want to give Velicenko the satisfaction, so he

stopped reacting to their presence in any way. This in turn upset Velicenko.

‘What did you think would happen? You didn’t take out all of us. Most importantly, you didn’t

take me out! This was my idea!’ Ivan said, tapping his chest angrily. ‘I’m sure you will enjoy it

as much as we will,’ he said sarcastically after collecting himself again.

Tomas panicked. ‘I can tell you stuff!’

Ivan said, ‘You can tell me…stuff? Like what? I don’t need to know anything; I will find out.

Enjoy the show! Dasvidaniya!’ (Russian goodbye; until we see each other, exact translation).

‘But then of course, only I will see you again, multiple times, on the video. Oh well, zbohom!

(farewell).’ Then he calmly left the room, accompanied by his soldiers.

‘Finally,’ Sergey very quietly whispered into Tomas’s ear. ‘Now it’s only you and me, and a

few of my charming assistants to have fun with.’ Sergey’s teeth were as bad as his breath, black-

yellow. His body was as scarred all around as his soul was dark.

Tomas said, ‘Listen to me! My people are on their way. You let them go and play only with me,

and I will say it on the camera for them to make it quick for you.’
As a response, Sergey bit Tomas’s right cheek clean off, exposing Tomas’s teeth beneath. Tomas

was screaming in pain, cursing at Sergey while the blood was flowing down his face.

‘The left one was already scarred, I can tell. It would be a shame not to equalize it. You know,

for balance,’ Sergey said, ignoring Tomas completely.

Tomas said, ‘Nothing that I can’t forgive yet, just let the girls go!’

‘We will begin. I will instruct my fabulous assistants’ – pointing at the rest of the thugs that had

taken place at one of the girls each – ‘ on what to do first. Then, once you’ve got the full demo, I

will personally take care of you.’ Sergey gave Tomas a death stare. ‘Well, almost exactly. Except

I will only stuff your balls into your mouth whilst ramming your own dick into your own ass,

instead of the rape part,’ Sergey said in an intimidating way, then he calmed down.

‘I will cut it off before that, of course. And remember to always smile for the camera!’ He gave

Tomas a kiss on his forehead.

Sergey announced, ‘We will begin! First, get us on equal grounds.’

Tomas said, ‘Please don’t.’ But he knew he could never change Sergey’s mind. Tomas had to

say it - for himself at least. That he actually said that out loud for Sergey to hear, instead of

instantly capitulating on the idea before even trying, because he didn’t have any faith in it

stopping Sergey in what he was about to do. First, and last time.

The thugs begun to flay the girls’ arms, then legs, in a similar manner as in Tomas’s case. Tomas

tried his best not to react to it in any way, but couldn’t help it and showed signs of discomfort

here and there. Sergey was watching him closely. One could swear that he was getting off on

Tomas’s suffering more than that of the girls. The more Tomas tried to hide it, but eventually
couldn’t, the greater was Sergey’s satisfaction. Four out of the sixteen girls didn’t survive the

ordeal. Some bled out due to the messy job of the thugs, some due to their heart stopping after

the stimulant injection to keep them awake. It was too strong and their bodies were too feeble at

that point.

Sergey said, ‘Oh well, we’ve still got some more to play around with. Don’t worry, I will get you

through the whole experience even if they couldn’t. Now it is time for you to look into the future.

Your future!’ He was enjoying this.

Then they proceeded to cut off the girls’ ankles first, then below the knee joint before proceeding

all the way to the hip level. After that, they cut the girls wrists first, then hands at the elbow

level, and finally the shoulder joint.

‘Amazing what one can achieve with a good, sharp knife, huh?’ Sergey said, laughing

hysterically.

They used rubber bands to prevent the girls from bleeding out, and special clamps for the

shoulders and hips as the thugs procedurally got there. Tomas had to listen to their cries of

absolute agony while being chopped into pieces procedurally. Then the thugs just laid them on

the floor (due to having no arms or legs to speak of with which to chain the girls to the X-shaped

tables) that had drains everywhere around, as if it was originally some kind of mass shower area.

Or they could have built it that way for the torturing purposes themselves.

Only then did Tomas also notice the giant mirror on the ceiling so that the tortured person could

still see what was happening to them.

***
But Tomas wasn’t the only witness to that. The whole Agency was, and let me tell you that there

was never, ever, a more urgent intention to intervene there. Once Gargy figured out what

happened, and that Tomas left some two hours before, there was not even a discussion about the

next course of action. After Peter saw Gargy’s never-seen-before seriousness on his face, he

didn’t even try to oppose him and it almost looked like Gargy was in charge, commanding others

what to do.

Peter tracked Tomas’s suit for his position, and connected to his vision and communication

channel. It was only one way. Tomas couldn’t hide what he was doing or where, due to it being

implemented into the Apex full body armour suit, but he could mute the communications to not

be disturbed at “work”. Tomas knew that Peter would most likely be furious, and only proved to

be a distraction.

The Agency was on Tomas’s tail even before he got inside Velicenko’s residence, predicting

accurately where he was going and what he was about to do. After Velicenko took off Tomas’s

suit and took it with him as he left the torture room, the GPS was showing only Velicenko’s

position instead of that of Tomas, and the team intercepted Velicenko first.

That bastard managed to run away in the end, due to no time to chase after him, but he was

forced to leave Tomas’s equipment behind in his abandoned transport. It didn’t matter, the

Agency already had Tomas’s position anyway, just couldn’t listen to any of the conversations

between him and Sergey. Not that they would prefer to hear it anyway. It would be mostly just

agonizing cries of pain of the girls.

But the base could see everything as it was happening; Tomas still had his special contact lenses

in, providing the Agency with his POV (point of view) vision. It helped Tomas with identifying
targets and aiming. The sight of what the torturers were doing to the girls, knowing that Tomas

would follow exactly the same fate shortly after, was bringing the whole Agency into a frenzy.

Most couldn’t really even watch it, though, Peter suggested for them all to do it. To remind them

what the Agency was really fighting against, and for. A few people fainted just watching it on

the screen with no audio. Some fainted when they still had partial audio and Tomas was being

flayed himself.

Gargy was heard saying that he would rip the torturers into pieces. Very unusual behaviour on

his part, as he was never seen being aggressive before. Gargy was always just like a soldier

doing his job. No emotions or hate present really. Almost like Tomas, except Tomas had a

tendency to also get very angry and seemingly even cocky, enjoying the violence. At the base,

Gargy was the “angel”, the person that always smiles, is always in a good mood, and always

willing to help.

Even Peter got angry. He ordered Cop to bring the 20 mm with the experimental infra vision

(heat signature enabling vision through the walls), just in case Martha wouldn’t do.

Peter said, ‘Gargy, once we are there, I want you to shoot but not to kill. I want you to focus on

releasing Tomas ASAP, while killing the least of those bastards as possible! That would be too

quick for those animals. Release Tomas and let him distribute his justice.’ Surprising words

coming from him.

Then the Agency made connection with Lubos and told him what happened. Not that he

wouldn’t have already known; his van had all the equipment tracking the suits and the

communication equipment. Lubos was close to the building where Tomas was held in. It took a

lot of work to persuade him not to enter on his own. Not that Lubos wouldn’t be an excellent
shot and seasoned soldier himself, he just wasn’t as good as Tomas, Gargy, or Peter, and would

most likely die if attempting the rescue, whilst not achieving much due to dying in the process.

Lubos knew that, but told the team that if they don’t get there in time before “they” start work on

Tomas, there would be two dead members of the Agency in one day.

As hard as it was watching the girls being gruesomely tortured, the damage to them was already

done and irreversible. Now, it was all about saving the Agency member to fight and avenge their

deaths some other day.

Violetta herself (as many others) lost herself completely, throwing out the window all of the

expected and demanded professionality, losing her cool, suggesting they castrate all involved

then flay them themselves before throwing them to the pigs covered in honey, to get torn to

pieces. All of that, just to be replaced shortly after with rivers of tears and loud cries. It was

unwatchable, unimaginable what sort of noises the girls must have made once they were cut into

pieces after the limbs flaying. Then, once their limbless torsos had been left lying on the ground,

the men took their turns raping the girls that got another stimulant shot in to keep them awake,

because most passed out again. Thankfully, eight more of them had died since, leaving only four

of the girls to experience the gang-raping part.

Sergey said, ‘Don’t worry, this part will be much faster for you. We will only stuff your own

dick into you. Although, now that I think about it, I think I will have a go as well. Let’s see if

your ass can take two dicks at once! If not, I’ll rip you a new one!’ He was hysterically laughing,

giving a long lick on Tomas’s bitten-off cheek that had been exposed all the way to the bone,

while grabbing his own gear.

Sergey’s mouth got all bloodied around by it, and he was enjoying it, licking and collecting

every single drop of Tomas’s blood with his right fingers, back into his mouth to taste it. Tomas

couldn’t even react to it in any way, the burning sensation of the exposed, skinned muscles of his

arms and legs, was too great. He just had a painful grimace on his face, interrupted by Sergey’s

successful attempts to force Tomas to watch what was happening to the girls. For the most part,

the girls were quiet during the whole duration of the gang rape. In comparison to the skinning

and the chopping into pieces part, this was nothing to them at that stage.

‘Now, for the real fun part! I would advise you to pay close attention to this, you don’t want to

miss out.’ Sergey said, forcefully holding Tomas’s head in the direction of the girls.

The thugs began to flay the girls’ faces, cutting the nose and ears off in the process too. They

were rather quick on that. It woke all of the remaining girls up again, out of the numbness during

and after the rape. They were screaming hellishly, to no effect. Straight after the face, the thugs

began to flay their chests as well, cutting off the breasts first, then skinning the whole body so

that the ribcage got completely exposed. Only one girl lived long enough to experience the whole

torture until the last centimetre of her torso’s skin got violently pulled, cut, and ripped off by the

thugs’ hands.

Sergey explained, ‘We will leave the eyes for last. We want you to see all that is happening till

the very end. I’m sure you will enjoy the giant mirror on top. Best we could find. It also slightly

zooms in on the reflected picture so that you can see better the details of our magnificent work.’

The smirk was back on his face.

Tomas said, ‘You will fucking die! I will fucking rip you into pieces, you little shits! You better

pray that when my friends arrive, they will kill you before I get my hands on you!’ But it only

provided entertainment for the thugs and Sergey. No one showed any signs of concern.

Sergey said, ‘You know, I almost wish it was true. I would love to see what you are capable of. I

heard some stories about your “brutality”. But to me, that was only bedtime stories really.

Lullabies. I’m sure you could do better than that.’

‘Let me go and I will show you!!!’ Tomas screamed, his saliva unintentionally hitting Sergey in

the face.

As a response to it, Sergey made a horizontal cut on top and across the whole length of Tomas’

left pectoral (breast), then pulled the skin off, exposing his top three ribs on the left side of his

ribcage. Sergey didn’t rip it out or cut through it, just left the pulled-off skin to hang over

Tomas’s abdominals. Tomas was writhing in pain the whole time, even made his eyes water. It

was excruciating.

‘Sorry, I couldn’t help myself! I got all excited that we’re near the end. But no worries, I’ll let

you finish watching the rest of it in peace,’ Sergey said, licking his exposed ribcage in the

process.

Tomas had no way to scream at him anymore. He wanted to, but the pain was so much it just

grimaced his face every time, being unable to talk completely for the moment. The thugs then

used massive, industrial wire cutters as a scissors, cutting through the ribcage of the last girl still

alive. The familiar cracking noise that Tomas heard – and had caused before himself – sounded.

But then they also ripped it open to the sides, exposing the still inflating-deflating lungs and the
beating heart. The girl made a beyond-animal sound as they did it, then they also cut out her

tongue.

‘Now we have to be quick. You see, without the ribcage providing contra-pressure, the lungs

can’t function properly and she will die soon of suffocation,’ Sergey gently whispered in

Tomas’s ear.

Sergey said impatiently, ‘Okay, she’s seen it well enough!’

The thugs made sure the girl was looking up into the mirror, and due to the missing eyelids after

the skinning part, she had no way of preventing seeing what was left of her. No way to close her

eyes. It must have been a surreal picture to see yourself with no limbs at all, skinned and ribcage

open, to see your own lungs and beating heart. Tomas wouldn’t even dare to guess what went

through her mind. Wouldn’t want to either.

Sergey instructed angrily, ‘Eyes out! You know what to do!’

The thugs took a supper spoon and plucked both of the girl’s eyes out with it. She was still

gasping for air and unfortunately was well aware of what was happening to her, but looked

peaceful. After all that she had already been through, frying her nervous systems in the process

due to the continuous painful feedback provided, the pain of plucking her eyes out wasn’t nearly

enough for her to have a reaction to it anymore.

Tomas looked defeated. He also got quiet, and just hung loosely on the X-shaped table. Then the

thugs poured gasoline all over the girl’s still alive body and lit it on fire. Due to the accumulated

blood in her chest cavity, it made a hissing noise and steam rose along with it. The rest was

burning in smoke as normal. The girl’s body was slightly twitching for a few seconds, and then it

went motionless. She had finally found her peace…in death.

Sergey said, ‘Now it’s your turn, cowboy! Hope you’re just as excited as I am.’ But Tomas

looked passed out.

Sergey said, ‘Wake him up!’ ordering another stimulant shot. It did wake Tomas up.

Sergey came to Tomas and bent down to cut off his left leg at the ankle first. Just as he reached

and made a slight cut into it, Gargy’s 20 mm shell flew through the wall, blowing off Sergey’s

arm that held the knife. The 20 mm rifle (technically a cannon, but it was based on a rifle

platform) had the best available infrared vision optics mounted on it, and Gargy could see

bodies’ heat signatures through the walls with it. The large calibre made it through the

soundproofed, mostly brick wall of the slightly below-ground-level room with no windows

easily, and at a higher downward angle.

After recovering Tomas’s gear during the contact with Velicenko, the team had hastily gotten

into strike position to rescue Tomas. Gargy took the first opportunity to take the shot.

Thankfully, just in the nick of time before Tomas lost his foot. It helped that the rifle actually

sounded similar to the loud thunder that roared all around them, as the thunderstorm in New

York City had gotten even worse since Tomas’s attack at Velicenko’s residence, less than 40

minutes ago.

Gargy screamed, ‘Fucking animal, get some!’

No one ever saw him like that before. But considering the circumstances, it was no wonder,

really.

The rest of the thugs panicked and tried to reach the exit, but two of them got hit dead centre,

ripping them into two parts. After that, the rest of the thugs tried to take cover behind the first

possible obstacle, trying to figure out where the shooter couldn’t shoot.
In the meantime, Sergey rushed to the “tools” table and grabbed a machete off it whilst Tomas’s

chains at the legs and one arm got shot off. Tomas was left hanging by his skinned right arm. He

still looked unconscious.

Gargy said, ‘Come on, Tomik, get up, buddy!’

Then he shot off the last chain and Tomas fell to the ground and onto all fours, supporting

himself, awake. Soon Tomas realized that he was free. As if by a magic wand he got a rush of

energy coming back into his body, fuelled by his rage and hate. He felt no more pain. His

expression was that of giving someone hell.

The first to reach him was, of course, Sergey; big mistake on his part. He tried to chop at

Tomas’s neck, but that was a cheap move and Tomas easily used his momentum to grab his arm

and judo-throw Sergey over his shoulder onto the ground, twisting the machete-wielding arm in

a way that it snapped at the elbow in the process. The machete fell on the ground.

Peter said to himself, ‘Come on, Tomas, do your thing.’ But only to himself; he wouldn’t say

that out loud.

Tomas then got attacked by the thugs, but he grabbed the machete and deliberately started to

chop at them in a way that wouldn’t kill them, but chopped away parts of them. They were no

match for him. Tomas was playing with them and with the rage in his heart he was chopping

madly left and right, cutting off their limbs and legs at first, because they tried to run away from

him. Then, deliberately, only portions of their bodies that wouldn’t cause instant or quick death.

Just like you would cut bread, he was slicing off bits of their bodies into portions.

Gargy had to shoot another two thugs, as in the panic, they almost got to the exit. He only blew

off one of theirs legs so they couldn’t run away from Tomas; he’d do the rest later.
Dr Charlotte and her sisters, with Lubos as a guard, were already at the entry point to the room

itself.

Lubos said, ‘Wait, you don’t want to go in there right now.’ Cries of agonizing pain echoed off

the wall of the building. Animal sounds, really; they didn’t even sound human, as Tomas was

literally chopping the thugs into little pieces in a way that prolonged their suffering. You could

recognize individual hits that forced instant cries of pain that were getting louder progressively

with each new loss of human tissue off their bodies.

Dr Charlotte declared urgently, ‘Tomas is hurt! His exposed wounds need to be bandaged

straight away, or he will get an infection!’

Lubos replied, ‘You don’t want to witness first-hand what is happening in there right now, nor

do you want to get in contact with Tomas right now. He’s in a frenzy. He may accidentally strike

at us.’ He grabbed the doctor by the arm and put his other arm in front of the nurses, preventing

them from entering.

After a quick think-through, they agreed to wait till it was all over.

Peter said into the comms, ‘Don’t go in there just yet,’ just as Lubos stopped the women. ‘Gargy

and I will go in there first. He may need to be pacified; may not recognize us at all after all he

has been through.’

Violetta said firmly, ‘Agreed. Peter and Gargy will go ahead first. Then Charlotte’s team.’

In the meantime, they were able to listen to the hellish screams due to the holes in the

soundproofed wall that the 20 mm shells passing through it a few times had made, but it got

partially lost in the storm noises that raged around them outside. They caught the voice of
someone that plead sorry to Tomas as he was progressively breaking various bones in his body,

sometimes in multiple places. They also caught Tomas’s response to him before he delivered the

killing blow: ‘I’m not sorry.’ A loud crack of the thug’s neck’s vertebrae, and he was dead.

Tomas continued to turn the place into an even worse horror show than it was before. Fully

aware that the Agency was looking. But in his mind, he didn’t need their permission or approval

of what he was doing, nor their acceptance or forgiveness after. It didn’t matter to him then and

there. After what he’d witnessed they did to the girls, he wanted to kill them in the most painful

possible way, and he wouldn’t give a fuck what anyone would have to say about that afterwards.

For many, it was really unwatchable, but at the same time, they did get their satisfaction out of it.

They wouldn’t admit it openly, but deep in their hearts it was warming them, the fate that met

those animals in the end at Tomas’s hands.

One of the thugs that got chopped down into the floor with various cuts all around his body and

his left arm severed at the wrist due to defending his body finally got the blade of the machete

stuck into his belly. Tomas then sliced his belly horizontally whilst forcefully pulling the blade

out. The thug’s guts came out. That induced Tomas to grab at them and rip them out of the

thug’s body, just to start feeding them back to him.

Tomas said, ‘Die, motherfucker! Die, motherfucker! Die!’ was all that could be heard as he was

slaying them there and then.

Then he cut the thug’s bottom jaw off; at least he tried to, but the blade got stuck three-quarters

of the way in. It only ripped off after Tomas pulled the machete out to attempt another cut. He

added a few more fanatical cuts into the thug’s body, almost severing his right arm at the

shoulder. It went so deep and forcefully into it that the blade cut through the thug’s clavicle bone
and first two top ribs as well. Then Tomas left him there to choke on his own blood, focusing on

his next victim, but not before he also stomped on the thug’s skull, partially caving in the left

side of it. Some of his brain actually got squeezed out through the cracks. The thug was still alive

and twitching in pain spasms.

Tomas then noticed that Sergey was sitting against a wall, looking pale at that stage due to the

severe blood loss. He was hysterically laughing. That reminded Tomas of Stachenko’s amused

expression during his assassination.

‘This is funny to you? This is funny to you?!’ Tomas screamed his lungs out at Sergey as he was

approaching him.

Sergey still had the smirk on his face.

Sergey began, ‘I knew that –’ but didn’t manage to finish before Tomas’s kick into his face

arrived, squashing his head against the wall, interrupting him.

Tomas said again, ‘Die, motherfucker, die!’

Tomas was in full frenzy, experiencing a full loss of awareness of his surroundings. All of his

focus was only on Sergey, who still managed to laugh at Tomas, even after the first hit that caved

his face partially in, coughing out blood and gurgling it out. Even then, Tomas could tell that

Sergey still found that amusing. The man was obviously insane.

Tomas threw away the machete and with his bare hands started to crush Sergey’s face, caving it

in even more. When it seemed possible, he grabbed Sergey below his chin and ripped his bottom

jaw out of his face, as it was already broken into pieces previously, so it went easier. Then,

Tomas used it to start madly stabbing Sergey with it all around his body, making sure that Sergey
could see himself in the giant mirror in the ceiling. He was stabbing Sergey with it so fast and

hard that the bone also penetrated Tomas’s palm before it crushed itself against Sergey’s ribcage,

shattering into even smaller pieces. Sergey still managed to look like he was grinning the whole

time, even though he had no bottom part of his jaw.

He started to stomp on top of Sergey’s ribcage, crushing it. It looked like Sergey was about to die

and was passing out.

‘No, not yet!’ Tomas grabbed below Sergey’s bottom left rib of his ribcage through the skin. He

managed to pull it up so much that it started to cut through the skin before it snapped. Then the

sharp end of the broken rib bone made an even larger laceration into Sergey’s torso. Needless to

say, that woke Sergey up. He wasn’t smiling anymore. But only for a while, and then it was there

again. Almost a smirk! Perhaps it was only in Tomas’s imagination, as the bottom part of

Sergey’s face was gone completely, but with the upper teeth showing, Tomas could swear it was

still a smirk.

Tomas crushed Sergey’s upper jaw inwards. It got stuck in Sergey’s trachea and he started to

choke on it along with the blood. Tomas took the piece of the upper jaw out, not allowing him to

die. Sergey still looked like he had that smirk on his face! Just part of his shattered nose and the

eyes were all that was left of Sergey’s face.

Tomas said, ‘Die, motherfucker, die!’

Tomas went to grab the gasoline that they poured onto the last poor girl and chucked it down

Sergey’s throat and into the hole in his face. Then he lit it on fire. The flames again made a

hissing noise due to the blood pool inside Sergey’s face cavity, steam rising up along the face

and some smoke. He still looked like he smirked at Tomas!

Tomas sat on top of Sergey’s partially crushed torso and started beating into the remains of

Sergey’s face as it was writhing in the flames, getting his own hands that had no skin on them

burned in the process. Tomas was smashing the remains of Sergey’s face madly in a frenzy until

it was only mush. Bits of Sergey’s brain got squeezed and ejected out into the surroundings after

every new strike through the remains of his skull as it was getting more and more flattened.

Many tiny bone pieces of Sergey’s skull got imbedded into Tomas’s fists.

Sergey was long gone, but Tomas didn’t get his peace yet and continued to smash into the

flattened-and-on-fire remains of Sergey’s head.

Tomas was still screaming, ‘Die, motherfucker, die!’

Peter and Gargy had finally reached the room’s entrance, and witnessed last moments of Sergey.

Peter called out loudly, ‘Tomas!’ as he and Gargy entered the room.
o Chapter 7: Breaking Point

Linkin Park – In My Remains 3:19

“Separate, sifting through the wreckage,

I can't concentrate - searching for a message,

in the fear and pain, broken down and waiting for the chance to feel alive.”

Tomas ceased smashing into the burning remains of Sergey’s head, but wouldn’t even look at

Peter and Gargy as they were approaching him.

Violetta urged through the comms, ‘I advise caution.’

They both slowed down their approach and had a good look around. The horrors inside were

unspeakable; bits of cut-off flesh and parts of ripped-out bones were lying all around, walls

showed blood splatter everywhere. Bodies unrecognizable as human beings, with tons of internal

organs or parts of them spread all around. If it wasn’t for the drains all around the floor, Gargy

and Peter would surely be knee-deep in blood.

Tomas himself just sat quietly next to the burning head of Sergey, still looking directly at it, as if

he was mesmerized by it. He didn’t show any sign of awareness of Gargy’s or Peter’s presence.

Gargy asked, ‘Tomik, are you, okay?’ But there was no response.

Violetta said, ‘Okay, get him out of there, he’s in shock.’

Peter and Gargy surrounded Tomas on his sides. At first, they didn’t know how to grab and pull

him up onto his feet. All of Tomas’s limbs were skinned, and both of his hands partially burned.

His face was missing the right cheek completely, making Tomas’s face grimace in a horrible,

intimidating way that exposed his teeth. Along with his broken nose, bleeding eyebrow, and

various bruises all around his body, it made him hardly recognizable. If it wasn’t for Gargy and

Peter, hardly anyone would dare to approach him at all, he looked that horrible.

After a while, they stood Tomas up and helped him to walk towards the exit. He was awfully

quiet. Surprisingly, he didn’t express happiness at seeing them either, not even Gargy. Everyone

knew that something was wrong with him. This wasn’t Tomas as they knew him. He

looked…broken.

Peter said, ‘Don’t worry, Tomas, we will fix you again. You will be prettier than ever!’ trying to

banter with Tomas.

Gargy added, ‘Yeah, after Patrik finishes your makeover, you could be a male model even!

Honestly, it’s good thing, what happened. You were an ugly fucker before anyway!’

Tomas didn’t react to that in any way, but Peter gave Gargy “the look”, and he immediately

realized how inappropriate it was to say what happened was good.

Gargy choked on the awkwardness of it for a while.

As soon as they got out and reached the medical team, all of the Phillips sisters sprang into

action at the sight of Tomas, evaluating injuries and treating wounds. More than once they

realized that Tomas didn’t even seem to be aware of what was happening around him as they

were bandaging him. No response at all, just looking straight forward, blindly.
Gargy tried to communicate with Tomas the whole way back, not giving up, reassuring Tomas

that all will be good again. But Tomas remained a statue for the most part, obviously locked into

his own mind, not aware at all of his surroundings. It was heart-breaking to see him like that.

Shortly before they reached the base, Tomas started to move his head around, reacting to people

again, but remained silent. On Violetta’s recommendation, Dr Charlotte ordered Tomas back into

his room during his recovery.

Word that Tomas was “broken” spread around the base quickly. It wasn’t surprising, considering

what they’d witnessed, but at the same time, it was. It was Tomas! He was always bold, always

the action man willing to see and do horrible things, only to sleep like a baby afterwards. He was

the guy that claimed: ‘It had to be done! Someone had to do it!’ They realized now he was just a

man, after all, just like them.

Peter certainly did, and felt sorry for Tomas more than anything. The old grudge was even

completely gone.

Peter didn’t have to hear it from Violetta, since in his heart, he already knew. ‘He’s reached his

breaking point,’ was her evaluation.

Peter asked, ‘What can we do?’

Violetta replied, ‘Could anyone do anything for you?’

‘Not really. I had to make my own peace, I guess.’

Violetta said, ‘There is your answer. There are things that could help, of course. Most people

respond well to the presence of friends and family. Some to puppies or other positive energy

things. The opposite of what created the trauma.’

Peter said, ‘You mean kids’ stuff, right?’

‘Yes, but I know that in Tomas’s case…it’s hard to tell. He may get even offended by it, and

violent towards whoever would suggest it.’

Peter offered, ‘Wait it out and see what happens?’

Violetta nodded. ‘I’m afraid that’s the best approach to it right now. But just in case, I’m putting

Tomas on suicide watch. He can’t be aware of that, of course, but someone has to always be

present with him and take turns sleeping outside his room doors during the night. If I’m correct,

his solution could be the “easy” way out. I mean, it takes a lot to break a man like him. Then

when it finally overflows, they tend to kill themselves. Tomas looks like a textbook severe PTSD

case. He can’t be left alone until he shows signs of improvement of the post-traumatic stress,

ever.’

Peter said, ‘I’ll take the first watch.’

Violetta said, ‘I don’t think Gargy will let you do that.’

Peter said, ‘That’s right; second one then.’

Violetta said, ‘I’ll put myself on the rotation, along with all of the knights. Let’s not tell anyone

else about it, or Tomas could find out. That could prove catastrophic.’

Peter said, ‘Understood. Thank you.’

‘For what?’

‘Just…for being.’ Violetta smiled.

Peter was about to leave.

‘And, Peter?’

‘Yes?’ He turned back towards her.

Violetta said, ‘It wasn’t your fault.’ He didn’t respond to that, and left.

Violetta knew that she would have another job to do along with Tomas.

***

On the very first night that Gargy escorted Tomas to his room at night to sleep, as soon as the

doors closed behind him, he could hear Tomas start to quietly cry. He could hear that Tomas was

fighting it, but couldn’t, and in waves of sobbing explosions he continued to weep continuously.

It was breaking Gargy’s heart, but also scared him to death. He knew that what happened in New

York City had changed Tomas forever. That he may never recover from it mentally. Only time

would tell.

There was nothing in the news at all. The police covered up the “house of horrors” completely,

but Velicenko received FBI protective custody publicly on his request.

The very next day, to everyone’s surprise, Tomas acted as if nothing ever happened. Smiles

(fake) and all, but never even mentioned New York City, nor would anyone else dare in his

presence. But every night for the following two weeks, the knights could hear Tomas secretly

weep in his room as they sat on the suicide watch outside of his room. Everyone knew that it was

just a show on Tomas’s part, to not worry others about his state of mind.

Peter got very conscience-stricken about his previous statements about Tomas. He felt guilt-

ridden for what happened. For the first time, he saw through Tomas’s tough guy act, and saw the

man behind the mask that could control his emotions a lot better than others, to do what he
thought was necessary. Despite the fact that he suffered inside as a consequence, just as anyone

else would, but wouldn’t have the stomach to do it in the first place. Even though Tomas

obviously suffered with anger issues as well, Peter saw Tomas’s sacrifice and his pain in his

heart and mind.

Matty, on the other hand, didn’t. After what he saw Tomas to do in New York City to the

torturers, he wanted him out of the team as soon as possible. ‘Although I wouldn’t wish on them

any better, only an animal could do that to another human being. I want him out!’ Peter managed

to convince him that it was only a mental breakdown of his and it would not happen again. Matty

wasn’t fully satisfied due to Tomas’s history of brutal behaviour. He agreed to provide Tomas

care until recovery and then one more chance to prove himself as a “civilized” person, but Peter

had to promise that any slip-on Tomas’s part, any uncalled-for excessive violence, and he would

be out.

Around the base there were two kinds of groups. One talked about Tomas as a heartless animal

that was completely okay the very next day after the New York City incident. The other spread

rumours about him crying every night in his room like a child. Some even making fun of him.

Peter once overheard a group of guys working in the warehouse talking about Tomas in that way.

They stood in the cameras’ blind spot and it never had audio on, unless you manually selected it.

It was just blind luck, or for them, bad luck, that Peter was passing by at that time. He grabbed

the loudest one by his neck, pressing him violently against a wall.

‘Yes! Yes it’s true!’ Peter said, looking around at them. ‘And you find this funny? Do you know

what he does, and what it takes away from him, so that none of you ever have to do the things he

does?!’ They all looked scared.

‘You think that Tomas cries about what happened to him? He does have flashbacks, for sure,

and is jumpier just seeing a knife, it’s undeniable. Yes, he’s jumpy just hearing any sort of

scream, even calling at someone. Even on the TV! So what? After what he’s been through, it’s a

wonder he can still function. Correction, does his best to appear to function as a normal person.’

He grabbed the guy even more tightly, almost choking him.

‘But you know what he cries about at night?’ Peter said through gritted teeth. ‘He cries about

what happened to the girls, you fools, and that he couldn’t prevent it. He even blames himself for

what happened to them! He even cries about what he did to the torturers after! He can’t believe

he was capable of those things and he suffers deeply in his core because of it. Yes! I heard him

speaking in his sleep. Then he wakes up due to the dream being too real. Yes, I could hear him

screaming “I didn’t want to!” or “Please take me!” no doubt living through it again in his dreams

over and over again. You find his suffering funny?!’ He smashed his fist into the wall next to the

guy’s face.

‘You make fun of him because of that?! You think he is less of a man because of that?!’ Peter

was so angry in his face that all of the group were choking, unable to say anything in their

defence.

Peter let go of the man. ‘Pass this around. If I ever find out about someone making fun of Tomas

again, he’s gone. You’d better pack your shit immediately before I even get to you, and leave!

More importantly, if Tomas ever finds out about me having to intervene to not make fun of him,

or that we know about him crying, I will kill you! All involved! You have no idea what kind of

damage it could do to him in his present state.’ No doubt thinking that Tomas may take his own

life due to the hit to his ego.

He knew how important it was for him to have the tough guy image and why. Partly, so that the

others don’t have to be and suffer for it. The important part about him. Peter finally understood

that.

Peter started to leave, but then he turned back to the men one more time. ‘You will never be half

the man he is.’ He really looked disappointed with the men. ‘You should thank him that you will

probably never have to be either,’ he said in a calmer voice as he was leaving.

Needless to say, after that, all of the rumours stopped and only one of the groups remained. The

one that perceived Tomas as a monster. A useful monster to be sure, one that served justice,

although they wouldn’t admit it, but still a monster.

Because of the secrecy of the suicide watch, after Peter effectively silenced the group that knew,

only the knights were aware of his suffering. The crying, the nightmares that he got every night,

hearing him speaking out in his sleep. In daytime, Tomas acted as if everything was okay. Once

you knew about his condition, you could easily see through it in the little things that he did.

However, for the most part, people on the base rather started to avoid him. Some even expressed

fear in his vicinity and Tomas noticed that too. He started to avoid all people as a whole,

knowing that they may not feel good in his presence. Even the knights, except Gargy, who spent

as much time with Tomas as he could. Pretending that he had nothing else better to do.

Consequently, Tomas didn’t feel comfortable in people’s presence either and started to withdraw

socially. He knew why they were scared of him. That reminded him of the events that he

desperately tried to get out of his head. To deny the truth. That he was an animal, that he was

stupid, responsible for what happened to the girls. There wasn’t one second that his mind

wouldn’t steer that way if Tomas didn’t preoccupy it with something else.
He was glad that Gargy spent basically the whole day pretending that all was good and there was

nothing else to do but to play online games all day long together. Never mind that Tomas knew

that Gargy was skipping his scheduled trainings and that suspiciously, Gargy’s girlfriend, Ulrike,

didn’t complain about him not spending more time with her no more.

It was a convenient lie on all of their parts. Tomas wouldn’t admit that he knew what Gargy was

doing for him so as to not lose his face as a tough guy. Gargy wouldn’t admit that he was doing

what he was doing so that Tomas’s ego wouldn’t get hit, and that Tomas could keep his tough

guy face into the future. That’s what friends should do, after all.

Certainly, it helped a lot that Peter and Violetta allowed for that to happen in the first place.

Pretending on their parts that Gargy and Tomas deserved a bit of a vacation to allow Tomas to

save face and to recover faster with Gargy’s help.

Nevertheless, any improvement to his condition was hardly noticeable. Violetta thought it could

be due to the obvious resentment towards Tomas by the Agency as a whole at the base. It was

almost the whole Agency’s secret. No one talked about it, but everyone couldn’t help but to

rather avoid Tomas when possible, and Tomas acted exactly the same way towards them. No one

wanted to be the one to suggest that Tomas should leave, especially because of what he had been

through, and he was still physically recovering, walking around bandaged like a mummy. But

deep in their hearts, they would feel better if Tomas wasn’t around.

***

Finally, Violetta dared to call Tomas for the otherwise mandatory sessions, as he had a

temporary exception from it, to not worsen his mental health. Surprisingly, Tomas didn’t object
in any way. Not even his usual moaning about the need of going in there. He sat down in the

chair in her office.

‘So how are you feeling today, Tomas?’

Unexpectedly, that almost forced Tomas to weep in front of her right then and there, but he

instantly fought it back.

‘It’s okay, you can let it out here, I will not tell anyone,’ Violetta said, getting closer to Tomas,

even attempting to grab and hold onto his hand, but he pulled it away.

Tomas said, ‘No, no it’s not,’ quietly, obviously still fighting not to burst into tears.

Violetta said in a calming voice, ‘It’s better if you do; it will make you feel better. Relieve the

pressure.’

‘No it will not, it will make it worse. I would feel like a pussy. Me!’ He looked disturbed at first,

but it transitioned into frustration.

Violetta asked, ‘So why did you come in here today? You know I wouldn’t force you if you

didn’t want to.’

‘I guess, I have things to say,’ he paused, ‘that I don’t want anyone to hear.’

‘Why not?’

‘So I can keep pretending.’

‘Pretending what?’

Tomas said, ‘I shouldn’t have come.’ He stood up and was about to leave.

‘Wait! Let me help you.’

Tomas turned back towards Violetta. ‘Well that’s just it; you can’t.’

Violetta said, ‘Please sit down.’ Tomas did.

Violetta asked, ‘Why not?’

Tomas said, ‘You know that I don’t believe in this shit. Apologies, I mean this, psychology

thing.’

Violetta said, ‘No need to, I know. But wouldn’t it at least be worth a try? I’ve helped a lot of

people, you know.’

Tomas said, ‘I believe that. But I’m different.’

‘How?’

‘You need to believe that you can be helped, before something can help you. I don’t believe that

can happen. With all due respect to you and your profession, there is nothing that you can say to

me to help me. I can’t be helped. I don’t need a motivational speech or compassion or a kick in

the head. Words are just that, words. The only thing that could help me is to undo my actions.

But that can’t happen, ever. So there is no helping me, ever. What has been done, cannot be

undone. What has been seen, cannot be unseen. What has been heard, cannot ever again be

unheard. My only hope is to forget. But I doubt that I can ever forget. I will only find peace in

my grave.’

Violetta asked, ‘Do you have suicidal thoughts?’ Tomas looked at her like he was offended. The

truth, of course, was that he did.

Violetta said, ‘I’ll rephrase myself. Do you have thoughts of self-harm? To punish yourself?’

Tomas said, ‘Nah, it had to be done, and I didn’t cause it.’

‘Are you referring to the New York City incident?’

‘You tell me, what do you think?

Violetta said, ‘I don’t need to think, Tomas. I have been doing this for thirteen years now and

I’m the best. I know that you are hurt, and I know that you were hurt long before your rogue

mission in New York City. That was just your tipping point.’ Tomas started to crack again on the

inside, but remained silent.

Violetta said, ‘Come on! Deny it!’ But he was just shaking his head, signalling no.

Violetta said, ‘Okay, that’s a start. Now you have to tell me what it is that bothers you exactly,

not that I don’t know already, but I need to hear it from you.’ He was still shaking his head

signalling that he would not.

Violetta said, ‘You blame yourself for what happened to the girls.’

Tomas said, ‘No! I tried to help them. I didn’t do any of what happened to them, I avenged it. I

made the bastards pay for it dearly!’ Still shaking his head sideways, but a tear came out of his

left eye first, then the right one. He instantly wiped them both with his hand.

Violetta said, ‘That is right, you didn’t do it to them. You couldn’t know what would happen.

You tried to help them!’ Tomas was nodding his head up and down.

Violetta said, ‘But you still blame yourself anyway, is that it?’ She hoped for progress, but

instead Tomas collected himself again and resisted.

Tomas said, ‘I can see what you’re doing. It doesn’t take a psychologist to see it like that. There

is no skill in what you say and this is bullshit. I’m sorry.’

‘Okay, it is bullshit. But you’re still here.’ Tomas stood up again.

Violetta said, ‘Sit down, I’m not done with you yet!’ surprising Tomas with that tone.

Secretly, she pressed the emergency button, and all screens around the base tuned in to her office

view with audio on as a default. This was meant to be done only in case of emergency when

Violetta was in danger so that people knew to come and help her. The knights instantly jumped

into action, thinking that maybe Tomas would become violent towards Violetta, but Peter

grabbed Gargy, who was near him, and was about to run into her office.

Gargy said, ‘She needs our help. I will get him out myself.’

Peter asked, ‘Does she? Look, Tomas is just sitting there. I think she wants to show us

something.’ Then he looked at Gargy. ‘You don’t give Tomas enough credit. He would never

hurt her.’

Gargy said, ‘I know that, but that doesn’t mean she didn’t get scared to death by him. He can get

really intimidating, you know.’

Peter said, ‘Just…wait,’ looking at the screen and listening to Tomas’s and Violetta’s’

conversation.

Peter instructed the knights through the speakers to not take any action unless told to do so, and

to the base to never speak of anything that they would see or hear.

Peter said, ‘I think Violetta made a choice for you to see the real Tomas that you can’t normally

see. I’m certain that he is not aware of this. It has to stay like that. Before this ends, I’m sure that

you will all find out why. Don’t ever talk about this, not even when you think you are alone; you

may not be. We know how rumours spread easily. I always said that there are no secrets, and

there are none when it comes to what we do, how we do it, and why. But each of you, including
Tomas, has a right to privacy. What you do in there is none of anyone’s business. Now you are

about to see something from Tomas’s private life. Please respect that.’

In the meantime:

Violetta said almost arrogantly, ‘What? You are acting as if you’re okay, so I will treat you as if

you are okay.’

Tomas calmly replied, ‘I said, I can’t be helped.’

‘And I think that I deserve a chance to at least try to help you.’

‘Can you bring those girls back, Violetta? Can you undo what I have done? They all fear me

now, and they have every right to do so! I’m scared of myself too! Of what I am capable of.’ He

became quiet. Violetta decided to wait and listen if there would be more.

Tomas said, ‘I still remember the first time I broke someone’s arm, the first fracture I caused. I

couldn’t eat or sleep for three days. I could still feel the bone under my hands, snapping it, see

the face the guy made. He deserved it; he did it first to someone else for fun, multiple times!

Still, I was sickened by myself. Then, I got over it.

‘Next time I broke more bones, then multiple fractures of the same bone, and so on. The cycle

repeated with me feeling sorry, but telling myself it had to be done, that it was for the better. It

wouldn’t change what I had done.

‘Then I overdid it once, and I swore afterwards that I would never fight again. That I would

change. Next thing you know, I killed a person. Executed him in a brutal manner because I felt

he deserved that then and there, that it was for a good cause, for the better. I still feel that it was;

he was a ruthless killer about to kill my teacher, a great man. Because he could and knew that
nothing would happen to him afterwards; thought that no one could stop him. I didn’t want to kill

him, not even after the carnage he brought with him previously. But in a split-second reaction to

his attempt to kill me, I killed for the first time. You can’t imagine what that did to me on the

inside, how I felt.

‘Today? I wouldn’t miss a minute of sleep because of that. What I’m losing my sleep over are

unspeakable things in comparison to that. Things I saw, things I have done, things I have heard,

things I have caused. What really scares me is that I know I will get over that too. I won’t forget,

no. That is not possible. But I will adapt, get used to it. That scares me. What person will come

out after all of this is overcome, and what will that person be capable of afterwards? Knowing

that each time I’m escalating the violence even more.’ He got quiet again. Violetta still listened

with a face of compassion, but Tomas didn’t even noticed that, as he was just looking down into

the table.

‘I don’t recognize this person anymore. It became so distant that I can’t even pretend that I am

the person that left home a long time ago. Or the person two years ago, before all of this. What

you see now are but remains of me.’

Violetta asked, ‘Is there really nothing left?’

‘I just…don’t feel alive. Tomas Cudzis is completely gone, dead. In my head I’m constantly

searching through the wreck of what’s left of me, for any signs. To feel alive again. To feel like

myself again. But I don’t. Right now, it doesn’t look like I ever will again.’ Another tear came

out; it touched Violetta.

Violetta said, ‘Okay, how was that person better, you before? I mean, you may have not killed

anyone then. But all of the people you have killed deserved to die, right?’
Tomas said, ‘I do believe that. It’s the only comfort I have in this mess.’

‘So, would that person before be able to jump out of the twenty-eighth floor with a bomb in his

hand so he can save innocent people?’

Tomas said, ‘I am proud of that. But I am not that person; not anymore.’

Violetta said, ‘How?’ Tomas chuckled to that question.

Tomas said, ‘I am an impostor, Violetta. I’ve been an impostor my whole life. Pretending to be

what I wasn’t. All I wanted was to be a man, act like a good man should, something to be proud

of. I pretended to be brave. I pretended to be strong on the inside. But the truth is, I was always

scared. I was always weak on the inside. I’m always pretending that something doesn’t bother

me when it does. Because I wanted to be the man that can always be relied on, someone that no

matter what, cannot be broken. Someone that you always can feel safe with.

‘Look at me now. People fear me instead. People that I care about and do this for as well. I can’t

be relied on. I don’t even trust myself anymore. I’m a wreck. I’ve felt it coming for a long time

now. I have tried to stop with all of this killing. But I was weak, and too proud to tell you what I

really am. A weak impostor. I didn’t know how. So many people relied on me. Peter specifically.

How could I tell him that I was losing the stomach for it? Every time I killed someone, it felt like

part of me died with him. It feels like I am an army of many. But every time, one of me dies

along with the bad guy. It didn’t matter that it was a bad guy, and “the army of me” is not

limitless. My numbers were dwindling fast in the madness that happened in the past months. One

by one, falling. Almost nothing left of me. Yet, at the same time, the animal in me was capable

of even enjoying at times what I have done. This contrast is killing me. I’m like water and fire at
the same time. Always both extremes, there is nothing in between. Either I’m falling apart, or

I’m close to exploding, capable of atrocities.’ He looked defeated.

Tomas said, ‘Do you see this?’ pointing at his rivers of tears that started to fall down his face.

He wasn’t alone; Violetta had them too.

Tomas said, ‘I am such an impostor of a man that I’m ashamed of it. For the most part I manage

to fight it well, but lately, it is like Niagara Falls.’ That expression made Violetta chuckle.

Tomas said, ‘But you know what? It feels like it is washing away the worst of me. Yet, my

stupid ego that pretends to be a man is making me feel like a pussy! You see the absurdity of it?

After all I have done? The unspeakable horrors? I do still feel in my heart like a pussy! I still feel

that I have never been the man I wanted to be. Like Peter or Gargy are. Hell, even Lubos is a

good example of a strong, reliable, good man. I’m volatile like a woman. Pardon the expression.’

Violetta just shook her head.

Tomas said, ‘All I do is pretend that somethings doesn’t bother me when it does, until I explode.

There is no denying that I will never be the man I always wanted to be; you have to be born like

that. You don’t have to practice to be calm, collected, and confident. You just are. I have to

practice a lot to at least look like I’m calm, collected, and confident. But if you only knew what

is going on in my mind half the time. I’m just an impostor. I have never been brave. My heart

beats like mad when things are heating up, when real men stay completely calm. I’m afraid.

Every time.’ He looked really ashamed.

Violetta said, ‘Yet you go ahead without showing it. That is brave! I don’t believe that “real

men” don’t cry, don’t break, are never afraid. You said men like Peter; you know that he had his

own episode, right?’ She was more collected now.

Tomas said, ‘I bet he never cried about it like I do. And he at least had the balls to say enough,

before it was too late for him. Despite the fact he doesn’t do any violence now, he’s stayed a

respected and feared man. If you know what I mean. You can’t disrespect him to his face without

consequences, everyone knows that. No one would dare. I learned that the hard way, twice. He’s

got so much power that he is confident enough not to use it unless necessary. I wouldn’t have the

balls to do that. I demand respect as a default because I’m not confident enough as a man! I feel

threatened by anyone that is a bigger man than me. A real man doesn’t ever feel threatened by

another man. Just look at Gargy. He is simply always confident in himself. Or Peter, or Lubos.

Tell me, do you not feel safe and good around them?’

Violetta said, ‘I do feel safe and good around them,’ nodding her head.

Tomas said, ‘You see? People don’t feel safe or good around me. Not anymore. Perhaps they

never did; I was never half the man that they are.’

Violetta said, ‘Funny you should say that. I think they would say the same about you.’

‘They can’t see the impostor.’

‘The whole thing? I don’t think anyone ever could, you do it too well. But make no mistake, you

don’t fool us in everything. Even now you are holding back, I can tell.’ As she got more

collected, she started to wipe her tears with a tissue. She offered one to Tomas that he refused,

and just wiped his tears with his hands.

Tomas said, ‘Like what?’

Violetta said, ‘That you’re actually a good man, even though you act like an asshole sometimes.

Most times.’ She chuckled again. ‘We can see that it’s just an act.’

Tomas said, ‘Stop, this makes me feel like a pussy again.’ He even cracked a smile. ‘Okay, I

think that is enough. I have said too much again.’ He started to get up off the chair.

Violetta asked, ‘But did it help?’

‘I don’t know. I still feel like a pussy and an animal at the same time. But I do feel some relief. I

couldn’t say any of it in front of anyone else. I have an impostor job to do, after all. I will deny

everything if ever confronted about this. Worst-case scenario, I will blame it on the pain

medication that Charlotte is pumping me with,’ Tomas said, obviously bantering.

‘That’s it!’ Tomas said. ‘This is just the medication speaking. Forget everything I said.’

Violetta said, ‘Too late, filed and stored. Every line.’ She had a serious face. Tomas gave her an

ugly look.

Violetta said, ‘What? It’s so I can blackmail you. I know you are a rich man.’ That made him

chuckle.

Then, Tomas left.

Violetta quickly shut off the emergency button, switching the screens back to normal around the

base before Tomas could notice. She felt that progress was made, but there was still a lot of work

to do. At least the base as a whole was “healed”. After that, there were hardly any hard feelings

against Tomas anymore, and the people started to invite Tomas to join them in their activities.
No doubt guilt-ridden. Soon, Tomas stopped avoiding them too, but didn’t understand why this

sudden change came. Still, he was glad for it.

Immediately after Tomas left, Peter entered Violetta’s office. ‘You sure about this?’

Violetta said, ‘It wasn’t an easy decision. Confidentiality is a top priority, of course, but it had to

be done. I couldn’t watch the people treating Tomas as some kind of sick animal. He deserved

better.’

‘What if he finds out?’

‘I will have to live with the consequences, whatever they would be. It was my call. I’m prepared

to take responsibility for it.’

Peter said, ‘I hoped that you knew what you were doing. But I shouldn’t doubt you. I have

doubted you once before and it was a mistake. I regret it.’ Looking in her eyes, he touched her

shoulders with both of his extended arms.

Violetta said, ‘Thank you,’ with some visible relief.

‘You are welcome. By the way, I made it clear over the speakers that no one should speak of it.’

Violetta’s office was isolated from the speakers and the screens around the base, to not disturb

her in her work. It only flashed a red light in the corners of her room in case of emergency so she

would know to leave and see what was happening.

Violetta said, ‘Good idea.’

Peter nodded his head and left to do his duties.

 Linkin Park – With You 3:25

“Even if you're not with me - I'm with you.

You, now I see - keeping everything inside (with you)

You, now I see - even when I close my eyes”

As Violetta predicted, Tomas wasn’t the only urgent work in progress. Peter was equally

disturbed by the late events in New York City. Guilt-ridden, he couldn’t fall asleep without

seeing skinned and broken Tomas in his dreams, quietly sitting next to Sergey’s burning remains.

He thought about it every quiet moment in the day too, about Tomas’s nightmares that he

listened to on the outside of his room doors while being on the suicide watch.

It wasn’t necessary anymore, and Violetta called it off as Tomas showed progress, but it was

obvious that he wasn’t the same as before. It was obvious that Tomas wouldn’t join the team

anytime soon on any mission no matter how small, if ever. Matty put pressure on Peter to either

put Tomas on a mission to earn his monthly pay, which was a substantial one million US dollars,

even if he didn’t participate in any of the Agency’s tasks. Not even forced surveillance of the

intelligence gathering process. Even the small missions that Peter sent Gargy on were just so

Matty didn’t complain about complete inactivity. But Peter didn’t want to expose Tomas to any

of it. He remembered how it felt when he reached his breaking point. The reasons that seemed

trivial in comparison to Tomas’s circumstances.

Peter killed a family man, father of four, because it was his mission. It was quick and painless.

Then he found out that the reason for the man’s killing was that he had damning evidence against

a local underground oligarch that was an informer for the FBI. The problem was that he was an
aspiring politician with a voice that started to be too loud. The CIA took him out and made it

look like a robbery, using Peter as the assassin.

This wasn’t the first time that Peter felt forced, even tricked, into something he wouldn’t agree to

do otherwise. But it was the last one thanks to Matty, who’d met Peter some years before and

became friends. Peter wanted out with honours, and Matty, with his political power, obliged him.

That is when they started to discuss the reasons for why he wanted to leave and he found

common ground with Matty, who was looking for capable, reliable and moral people to

distribute justice that was above the law. Meaning illegal, but just. That is when Peter suggested

to get one more agent out of the CIA and work for him: Gargy.

Now, Peter almost felt like he was working against Matty, who didn’t understand the situation

with Tomas. Peter had to agree to reduce Tomas’s salary during his inactivity to nothing, Matty

arguing that Tomas was well paid for each of the missions and already a millionaire. But Peter

wouldn’t, and couldn’t, tell Tomas about that. So instead, he gave Tomas his own salary while he

earned zero dollars. It was the first secret he ever hid from his wife, Justina. She possibly

wouldn’t agree to that. Why should she? But Peter would rather risk that and lose one million of

his own salary than tell Tomas that since he was useless now, he didn’t deserve a salary. All

Peter constantly saw in his mind and could think about was Tomas’s face surrounded by carnage.

The way it looked lifeless and broken.

Peter saw the man that now and then frequented around the base, but was a far cry from the

confident, cocky, and perhaps even arrogant man that Tomas was before. Knowing that it was all

an act, so that the people could drain strength from that and feel really secure. The terrible things

Tomas had done so that no one else had to, yet he was paying a heavy price to play the hard-ass.

He couldn’t stop thinking about the way he perceived Tomas before, the things he said to him,
even beat him up. No, he didn’t believe that Tomas did everything the right way, but he fully

knew that it was something that Tomas really believed was necessary, and was willing to pay

any price for it. Even being kicked out of the Agency for it if it was for the higher good, if

Tomas believed it was the right thing to do. Peter could respect that. There was no monster in

Tomas anymore, even though Tomas himself said there was.

***

Peter wished that things between them would finally settle, but it was almost two months since

the New York City rescue mission, and most of them had hardly talked together at all since.

Tomas in general with anybody. Yes, he was there. But in comparison to before, Tomas was

simply secluding himself. Peter didn’t know how to approach him, what to say. How to

apologize. Should he? No one was at fault, at least not directly. He realized that he was as much

responsible for what happened to Tomas as Tomas was for what happened to the girls. Indirectly,

out of their hands. Yet, both of them couldn’t help but to feel responsible anyway.

Peter felt that it was a mistake to treat Tomas the way he did, that he provoked the divide. He

knew at heart that he also wanted it, regretting it. It felt so strange for Peter to be so close to

Tomas, yet feel so distant, helpless to bring the old Tomas back, betting all of his chips on

Gargy, Helena, and Violetta. ‘Maybe they can bring him back.’

With every new day passing by without the two being able to talk about what happened and

pretending it never did, they became more far apart. It didn’t matter to Peter. To him, even if

Tomas wasn’t with him, he was with Tomas. Glad for every new day that Tomas didn’t give up

and stayed around. Or didn’t kill himself; there was always that in the back of Peter’s mind,
every time he pictured that defeated, broken face of Tomas’s in the room of horrors. But in the

end, it was Tomas that came to him and opened up.

Linkin Park – In Between 3:16

“But trying to be someone else was harder than it seemed -

- and somehow I got caught up in between.

Between my pride and my promise,

between my lies and how the truth gets in the way.”

It was the end of February 2017 when Tomas requested a meeting of the knights following his

full recovery, some two and a half months after the failed New York City rescue mission. All of

the medical team, plastic surgery, and dentistry did amazing reconstruction of his face and body.

Tomas was littered with countless scars all around his body by now anyway, but all of them were

very settled, with the exception of his gut and the left shoulder scar. Thanks to Patrik’s and

Kupkin’s skills, even his face looked untouched at a distance, and more importantly, was fully

functional.

The knights all sat down in the brain room. As always, it was broadcast to the whole base on the

main mission screen.

Dr Charlotte just arrived, she was always in demand upstairs in the hospital, and late for almost

every meeting.
Peter said, ‘Okay, we are all present here now. Tomas, you have the floor.’

Tomas cleared his throat. ‘Ehm-hmm.’ Everybody impatiently anticipated what important

announcement he to say.

Tomas said, ‘Let me apologize, to begin with. Let me apologize for what I am about to say.’ He

got their full attention.

Tomas said, ‘I quit.’ Calmly, with focus on the pronunciation. He wanted to make sure that

everyone heard it the first time, so he wouldn’t have to repeat it.

Of course, instant chatter and some objections began to be thrown at Tomas while he sat there in

indifference. Peter calmed everybody down.

Tomas said, ‘We all know that I’ve been doing nothing for the past two plus months, and taking

generous pay for it. I simply cannot do that with a clear conscience anymore. In fact, I would like

to donate that money back to the Agency.’

More objections against him quitting were no use; even that he was recovering from serious

physical trauma. No one would dare to mention the mental trauma as well. Peter said there was

no issue about the money at all. That Tomas can take as much time off as he needs before being

active again and it will be understandable.

Tomas said, ‘Well, that’s just it. I don’t think I can do what we did, what I did, anymore.’

Chatter in the background.

Tomas said, ‘I didn’t lose faith in the cause, nor in our practices…’ He took a pause, almost

talking himself out of continuing, but then he pushed through it.

Tomas said, ‘I’m not the person that I am pretending to be.’ He expected reactions but there were

none, just all eyes on him, listening.

Tomas said, ‘I always tried to be genuine, lying to myself that I am strong and all, but I’m not. I

learned that much. In reality, I was trying to be someone other than I really am, and it became

too hard to continue to do so.’ Still no response, so he continued.

‘I tried to tell you before, I really did. Even before the very first mission, as I recall now. But I

didn’t know how. You all had this image of me, being the “man”. I really liked it. I liked the idea

of being people’s champion, a hero and all of that. I got caught up in it. Between the lies and the

truth that got in the way. That I can’t do this. It is killing me on the inside. Between my pride to

admit it, and the promise that I indirectly gave to you joining up with the team, that I can be the

person that you saw in me. But it was a lie, I’m sorry. I’m not that person, can’t even pretend to

be that person anymore. There it is, I finally said it!’ But the knights were still silent, even

looked confused.

‘I’m done. I apologize,’ Tomas said, to make the point again.

Peter said, ‘There is nothing to apologize for.’

Tomas said, ‘Yes there is, Peter, to you too. I wanted to regain your trust, but it proved too hard.

So instead I escalated the situation, caught up in my act. Then the worst of me tried to prove you

wrong because of my massive ego, because of my anger episodes. The New York City adventure

was my last-ditch attempt. Instead, I learned that I was the one in the wrong. In everything! I’m

truly just an impostor.’ It looked like he was thinking for a moment.

‘I’m just an impostor, not the person that I desperately pretended to be. Nor could I ever become

one. And yes, I am dangerous! I am volatile, not worthy to be relied on. I do seem to have a
problem with authority of any kind. Peter, you had every right to call me out, and you were also

right about everything. I just want you to understand that I never meant any harm to anyone here,

and I truly believed at the time that my way was the right way. I truly believed that I was the

person I pretended to be almost my whole life. But I wasn’t, and those poor girls paid for it…’

Peter tried to respond, but Tomas was first to say something.

‘I cannot explain to you, in anything I say or do, how very sorry I am. For everything. I think

guilt is a language that you all can understand, seeing it in my face. I cannot explain how much I

wanted to do right, to lead by example, to be the person I think you all saw in me and relied on. I

cannot explain how much I only hope my actions speak for themselves. But it was a lie. The

truth is that I’m afraid every time we go out on a mission. My heart doesn’t lie. I can feel it

beating out of my chest when the action is about to begin. Fear is not afraid of me, no matter

what kind of hard-ass I tend to play. Later to be momentarily replaced with anger when we begin

to win, losing myself completely in my own ego and moral superiority, feeding it as much as I

can. Only so that I can drown in my own guilt after, falling apart on the inside. Not recognizing

myself anymore. I’m done. It’s over. No more! I can’t, and I shouldn’t either. Otherwise, it may

be too late for me. I apologize.’ Tomas looked genuine and for once, somewhat showed other

emotions outside of anger.

Everyone at the base understood how difficult it must have been for Tomas to open up as much

as he did. Even though the tough guy was an act, it was an important act for him and it was hard

to come out as a “weakling” in his own mind. Although no one would perceive him as such, they

all knew that Tomas himself would. No one dared to talk him out of it. Not even Gargy, who

couldn’t imagine not having his buddy around. Not Helena, who loved him openly. Nor Peter,

who felt responsible for his leaving in a way, guilt-ridden.

Peter said, ‘I appreciate your words, Tomas, but for the record, I must say that I am also

responsible for what happened. To you, and to the girls as well. I must admit that openly. I

instigated the situation willingly, even hoping for an eventual altercation between us that I

eventually got. I tried to expose you to the others. But I was wrong about you. I only saw an

uncontrollable animal. I’m sorry. I wish that you would stay with us, as everyone else on the

base does, I’m sure. But I do respect your decision and the reasons for it. If there is truly no other

way, I will wish you good luck and begin to help you with your transition into the life “after”. It

will take time before I fabricate and fool-proof your whole new life of becoming a millionaire,

but in three months or so, you will be able to safely leave us. We fully trust you to protect us

even after you leave.’

Tomas knew that Peter meant the secrecy of the Agency.

‘Thank you. Well, I guess it’s done, but no farewells for now. We’ve got months to go yet,’

Tomas said, cracking a smile for the other knights to cheer them up.

It somewhat worked. Being it was months to go, many believed that Tomas would change his

mind anyway. Later, Peter asked Tomas privately what he will be doing if he couldn’t even

dream about killing the corrupted politicians eventually anymore, half-bantering. Tomas

responded with: ‘I have trust in the newly elected president. He will make America great again!’

Peter had no idea if he was joking or not, but knowing Tomas, he was always a radical, so he

probably wasn’t. No, he really wasn’t.

o Chapter 8: Sucked Right Back In

Evanescence – Bring Me to Life 4:00

“Now that I know what I'm without - you can't just leave me.

Breathe into me and make me real - bring me to life.”

What Tomas couldn’t know, though, was that Faith Goldie willingly left the FBI’s protection

against their advice and decided to go straight back into the investigation of the Russian Mafia.

This time, focusing on Velicenko himself. Partly because she didn’t trust the FBI either, didn’t

feel any safer with the new name, location, and assigned job, ditching it all. Partly because she

loved what she did, and what she meant to a lot of people. After the meeting with Tomas

personally, she also fell in love with him, admiring his courage and his sacrifice. She couldn’t

help but to think about him often, wanting to meet him again. Hopefully under different

circumstances. She just didn’t feel alive enough without him not being around, wondering what

happened to him, what his real name was.

After hearing about the New York City incident with Velicenko, she suspected Tomas was

involved, just as most of the public did. Funnily enough, it was Velicenko that came to the press

saying that he to request FBI protection after the assassination attempt on him, trying to discredit

the “masked man”, despite the FBI’s advice. In fact, it discredited him instead in the eyes of the

public, to his displeasure, drawing attention to why the masked man would want to kill him in

the first place. So much so that the mayor was forced to cancel the planned “honour citizen”

award to Velicenko and distance himself from him as much as possible in hopes to keep his

reputation.
Velicenko seemed to have lost a lot of former allies, damaging himself financially as much as

power-wise. Officially, he lost all of his legal connections. Unofficially, he became a criminal in

the eyes of the public. Any hopes of his to become a politician in the near future so he could be

the influencer and benefit from the “gifts” that it brings (corruption), vanished in an instant.

Velicenko was raging for a few days. Faith was digging into the New York City events, and

discovered the house of horrors, from a few of the residents that declined to go on record. She

found out about Velicenko’s people dragging in different kinds of people that were never seen

again. Then about the “day after” police cover-up of that place, seeing countless bodies in body

bags being taken out. ‘Most likely the reason why the masked man attacked Velicenko in the

first place.’ Speculating it was a torture room of Velicenko, and that the masked man tried to

intervene. No one really saw anything. There was a strong thunderstorm that day, but the public

was convinced that it was Velicenko’s torture place.

Faith once again played a big part in swaying the public’s opinion to the Agency’s favour while

discrediting Velicenko in the process. Faith felt that if she could, she would do the same as the

masked man, or at least join him in his efforts. She became a very popular celebrity in the US

and a target of interest to Velicenko. She knew that, but was actually hoping that she would.

Faith was certain that if she got into danger again, the masked man would come to protect her

again. Although she knew that she couldn’t be the only reason for Tomas to come to the NBC

tower, she was certain that after they met, he wouldn’t let her be killed or tortured. She was

certain that he would find her and come. After all, the masked man promised to contact her when

it would be possible.

‘What did he mean by that? Why would he have said it if he didn’t care about me, if he didn’t

like me?’ She knew she was a very attractive woman and that Tomas may have fancied her back.
Before the masked man came to the public’s attention, Faith felt like she was fighting this war on

criminals and shady persons alone. Barely alive, almost numb at the soul level, just accepting

that ‘things are the way they are’. Tomas gave her hope; he made her feel more alive. But as

soon as he was gone again, she was starting to fade away into the numbness of acceptance once

again.

Once she knew what she was missing, there was no way back for her. She dreamed about him

calling her name, bringing her back to life. ‘I wish I knew his name.’ Nothing made any sense

without his presence. Faith had to see him again. If getting into danger was the only way, then

she was ready to do it.

***

Her wish was granted. Velicenko’s goons abducted her, even though she was still secretly

guarded by the FBI agents that followed her around. As soon as Faith went missing, the FBI was

in a state of panic, signalling in every direction. Peter caught up on it. He hesitated to tell Tomas,

but knew that he would have found out eventually anyway, so he may as well tell it to him now.
 Linkin Park – 1stp Klosr (The Humble Brothers Feat. Jonathan Davis) 5:46

“Everything you say to me, takes me one step closer to the edge,

and I'm about to break.

I need a little room to breathe, 'Cause I'm one step closer to the edge,

and I'm about to – break.

‘Goldie was abducted,’ Peter said casually after walking into the gym.

Tomas was training with Gargy, Lubos, Kupkin, Patrik, Cop, Odlew, and Sataano. Helena and

Catherine were also present, but they had their own, different workout plan. Tomas loved to be

in the personal trainer position, especially now that he’d decided to quit. He felt that perhaps this

could become his new role, and maybe he wouldn’t even have to leave at all. Although Tomas

also wanted to enjoy the millionaire lifestyle, he could see himself stopping by to deliver

personal training sessions to the Agency members now and then. And to manage all base

members’ fitness schedules over the internet from the comfort of his new home. He just didn’t

know if that could be done safely, and Peter would have to approve. Something that Tomas

wanted to talk about with Peter later.

Tomas surprise showed on his face. ‘What?’

Peter said, ‘Faith Goldie, the independent reporter that gave us good publicity, has been

abducted. The FBI announced it some twenty minutes ago.’

Tomas said, ‘I know who she is.’

Peter said, ‘The FBI is already on the trail of the abductors. Looks like hired low-lifes.’
Tomas said, ‘Going to torture and kill her?’

Peter said, ‘I don’t know, but I’m afraid so. Looks like revenge for discrediting Velicenko. As of

four hours ago, the Russian Mafia sent his replacement from Russia to take over their business

here. Man named Victor Skalensky. Not much is known about him though, I’m afraid.’

Tomas said, ‘So Velicenko has nothing to lose anymore? His ride is abruptly over?’

Peter said, ‘Seems that way; but as you said, he was replaced rather quickly.’

‘I’m more interested in what he will do as revenge. Faith is just a decoy. I’m sure we are his real

target.’

‘But he doesn’t know who, or where, we are. Unless he can force us to come to him, he can’t

even try to pay us back. This thing with Goldie would be of satisfaction to him. More than trying

to hurt us, it is personal to him, for exposing him to the public, forcing him to be replaced. But

I’m sure he is preparing something big for us too. Somehow.’

‘Okay, first things first, we need to go save Faith.’

‘The team looks ready to go,’ Peter said, looking at the rest in the gym. No one seemed to

object. ‘I will be the point man, with Gargy as my back-up. Lubos will have tactical command.’

Tomas asked, ‘You as point man?’

‘Why, am I not good enough?’

‘I’ll just be blunt. I’m coming too.’

‘I thought so.’ He turned to the others. ‘Okay, get your gear fast, guys, we need to be quick!’

The rest left the gym immediately while Tomas held Peter back for a moment.
Tomas asked, ‘No resistance, just like that?’

‘Is there a point? I have no problem with you, Tomas; anyway, you decided to quit. If you say

you want to come, I’m glad that you do. Best point man we could wish for.’

‘Thanks. It’s sort of funny.’

‘What?’

Tomas said, ‘Every time I want to quit, they suck me right back into it, giving me no other

choice. They just have to push me the right way, every time!’

‘But you have a choice, Tomas; you can truly just stop.’

‘No, I can’t. My conscience leaves me no other choice. If Faith dies because of me while I

didn’t try to help her personally, a lot more of me would die with her than by the killings done on

my part. I’m not losing another girl because of me; not while I can do something about it.’

Peter said, ‘I understand. The chopper is ready, so hurry up. Faith is still being transported, but

after they stop, we will have less than thirty minutes to save her.’

‘Just one more thing; what you are going to carry?’

‘Silenced MP5 and two 1911 Colts.’

Tomas taunted, ‘Since when is MP5 US-made, patriot?’

‘It has been adopted by the US enforcement forces for twenty-five years now! This one is US

made for sure.’

‘Yet it is still a German design. Just saying’.’ Peter also saw the joke in it and cracked a smile at

Tomas while shaking his head in an “I don’t care, it is US made” manner.

Tomas rushed into the armoury to gear up. Lubos, Cop, and Gargy were already geared up and

waiting for him there to help him and speed up his process.

Gargy said, ‘Look who’s back! I had no doubt.’ He saw the sparkle in Tomas’s eyes at being part

of the mission.

‘Yeah, I’m glad you’re happy, but better hope that we also save Faith, or I won’t be happy that

you were happy I was back.’ Tomas said, bantering with him as always.

‘I got that covered,’ Gargy said, pointing at Martha, sporting a smirk on his face.

Cop asked, ‘You didn’t feel that you had a choice, huh?’

Tomas answered, ‘Nah, they always have to push me in the right way. At first, I just wanted to

survive. Then I had to kill them all because they wouldn’t let go of me. Then they had to take

hostages, threatening to blow them all up, blaming me for it. Now they take one of the few

women that are actually okay on the whole, that also happens to love me –’

Gargy interrupted, ‘She said that?!’

‘I think so.’

‘I don’t think so. You use too much of your imagination. Who could love you?’ Gargy laughed.

Cop asked, ‘And do you love her?’

Tomas replied, ‘I could; she is fine as fuck. Has it all sorted out in her head, and is actually

intellectually developed. No reality TV shows, no cigarettes or alcohol or tattoos. She exercises

and watches her food intake. Also, she is an activist to better all of our lives, pointing out all of

the shady stuff that happens in politics and elsewhere. Her view of the world is largely the same

as mine; just look up her YouTube. She is a perfect match.’

Lubos asked, ‘Do you plan to do anything about it?’

Tomas said, ‘Of course, same as with Helena. If it comes to it, I’ll tell her she would be better off

without me.’

They all laughed.

Gargy said, ‘But seriously now.’

Tomas said firmly, ‘I am serious!’

Gargy said, ‘I mean…okay, if she dies, what would you do?’

Tomas said, ‘I would postpone my retirement and raise hell on Velicenko that he could have

never imagined. Something tells me, that I will have to postpone it until I take care of him

anyway.’

‘Then he is fucked!’ Lubos said in an overly forced, manly tone, almost comical.

Tomas said, ‘We will see. Perhaps for once he will learn to let go after we save Faith.’

‘I wouldn’t count on that, I know guys like him. They would rather go out guns blazing than

admit defeat.’ Lubos said seriously.

Tomas said, ‘Then he is fucked. I’ve got the best team in the world, and the best equipment. I’ll

take that fucker down and go live my millionaire life with Helena on one arm, and Faith on the

other.’

Peter came to see how the gearing-up process was going. Tomas was almost done.

‘Just a heads up, this may need to be done quietly for as long as possible. No shooting, or she

may die instantly. The torture intent may play in our favour, giving us more time to intervene.’
Tomas asked Lubos, ‘You got my katana?’

‘Yes, I’ll strap it onto your back.’

Tomas said, ‘I’ll leave the G36 here then, but will keep the PL30s, just in case. I’ll use the KM

2000 knives and katana predominantly, for as long as I can.’

Peter said, ‘Then we are on the same page. Let’s go!’

***

They were sitting in the chopper on an interception course to Faith’s abduction vehicle.

Gargy said, ‘About Faith; you’d better keep it to yourself. It would hurt Helena.’

Tomas said, ‘I know. Not that she wouldn’t be good enough either, it’s just I’m not confident

enough yet to get involved in a relationship. I feel like I have a massive target painted on my

back at all times. It’s not safe for them.’

Gargy said, ‘Well, they both could get targeted because of you anyway. At least you could enjoy

a little bit of life. It’s also a lot safer for them to be in your presence than when they are not.’

Tomas said, ‘Helena already is. Now I think we’ll have to do the same favour for Faith.’

‘That could get interesting, if Faith really loves you. The real question here is, which one would

you choose?’

‘Tell me about it! But that is the least of my worries right now.’

Peter started to talk into the comms.

‘The FBI has just been called off. That means it is a lot more serious than we originally thought.

Also, the FBI’s tracking satellite has been called off too. But no worries, I’m already using

another to track Faith’s van.’

Tomas asked, ‘Much more serious in what way?’

Peter replied, ‘In a way that Velicenko wants to make an example of her. To really do some job

on her, if you know what I mean. He wants her to really suffer, and make sure that she will not

live past today.’

Tomas said, ‘I would gladly spoil it for him.’

Peter responded, ‘Remember, this is also a good thing. It may give us more time. But it also

means that they would no doubt just kill her straight away at the first sign of complications. We

will have to do this quickly and unnoticed for as long as possible.

‘Just a heads up; the van is heading into deep woods. Long sniper support will not be a viable

option, and the heat signature vision of the spy satellite will be at the very least limited due to the

thickness of the forest. The abductors don’t seem to have any mobile phones on them either. I

can’t hack in to track their real position. Neither can I listen to what they are saying at the

moment. Simply put, one slip on our part, and she could die quickly.’

Tomas asked, ‘What’s the plan then?’

‘We will have to operate at relatively close distance. Shock and awe tactics. Gargy will have to

find a position where he can see the greatest number of Velicenko’s men, who will no doubt be

stationed around the cabin that they are planning to use for the deed. We will have to cover the

rest of the outside guards, trying to take them out at the same time as Gargy uses his silenced
SPG1 sniper rifle. We need to take the whole guarding perimeter around the cabin at the same

time.

‘For this purpose, I will join you, to increase the odds. Then we should have a minute or two to

breach the cabin at the same time before the men inside realize something is wrong. That is, of

course, if everything should go according to the plan. Lubos has the tactical command.’

Tomas asked, ‘What if we get discovered?’

‘We will have no choice but to storm the building immediately and hope to get lucky.’

Tomas proposed, ‘What if we storm the building first? Or just place me in the breaching position

before you two try to take out the guarded perimeter?’

Peter responded, ‘We don’t know yet if it will be a cabin, or how it will look, how big it will be,

or where Faith would be put in it. I presume the cellar, if there is one. We also don’t know how

many guards there will be on the outside or inside. Yes, it is an option, but we will have to assess

the situation as it develops and make informed decisions based on that. Right now, the best plan

we could make is to take out all of the outside guards at the same time before storming in.’

Tomas said, ‘I will follow your lead, Peter. I’m not planning any shenanigans of my own. I tried

that; it was a mistake.’

Peter said, ‘I didn’t try to imply that you would, just explaining the situation. But I do appreciate

your input.’

Tomas asked, ‘You ready to kill again for this?’

Peter responded, ‘Are you?’

Tomas said, ‘For Faith, I am. I’ll do what’s necessary.’

Peter said, ‘So will I, to save her life.’

Tomas went on, ‘Suppose we save her –’

Gargy interrupted, ‘First things first, right?’ But he got ignored.

Tomas began again. ‘Suppose we save her, will she stay with us? I mean, going to the secret base

and all?’

Peter said, ‘I would strongly advise that to her.’

Tomas asked, ‘What if she then changes her mind?’

Peter said, ‘I’ll make sure that she understands that it may not be that easy; not until I can be one

hundred percent sure that it is safe for us to let her go.’

Tomas pressed, ‘And if she decides not to go with us?’

Peter said, ‘Then I think, Tomas, you will have to make the decision whether you would go to

save her again, and again. Or would you kill Velicenko before she gets in trouble again. Not that

it wouldn’t be our priority already anyway. Ever since the New York City mission, he is. It just

isn’t so easy. I’ll explain it to you later, if necessary.’

Tomas said, ‘Thanks.’

The abductors’ van went about eight miles deep into the woods. Faith was abducted in New

York City as she was still working on exposing more about Velicenko, whose FBI protection at

his Los Angeles residence was changed into house arrest. She knew it was dangerous, but that

was the point. Thankfully, Faith was being transported by van the whole way – all nine hours

long nonstop drive, and flying a helicopter from Detroit to Maine was rather quick in comparison

as it turned out.
As soon as the van entered the deep forest area, it became hard to track it via the chopper or the

spy satellite, but Peter managed to follow them all the way to the cabin anyway. The team had to

deploy the ropes off the chopper (as landing wasn’t possible, the chopper had to stay hovering in

the air above the thick tree canopy) one mile away from the cabin, so as not to expose their

presence.

Although Peter anticipated six guards to be with Faith in the van, plus at least six more waiting

in the cabin, soon it became obvious that there were a lot more guards. The guarded perimeter

was multi-staged, and also much wider, deeper into the forest away from the cabin, than Peter

imagined. Velicenko really wanted to take no chances with Faith. At the very minimum, she was

about to die that day.

Tomas could hear the worry in Peter’s voice as he was talking into the comms, giving out

commands. The perimeter of guards around the cabin was thick, and in two circles. One outside

a bit thinner, one inner circle where the guards stood no more than 10 meters apart. All of the

outside guards looked like mercenaries, former military of sorts. If they knew why they were

there and what was happening at the cabin, it didn’t matter to them.

It was the wrong assignment at the wrong time, taken from the wrong people. The Agency

couldn’t risk it; they had to kill them all.

The team assumed a triangular formation around the outside guarding circle. Tomas’s heart was

beating like mad again, like it always had before the action. The more it looked like it would all

begin the more he worried, and his heart rate shot through the roof. It was almost like he couldn’t

breathe at all. Choking at the intensity of the situation that he was in. But with every new word
that Peter said into the comms, Tomas felt the anger kicking in again. The hate that he carried in

his heart against all evil people. He felt like he was about to snap again and start raging.

It was his defence mechanism; he finally understood it in that moment.

It was the only way to prevent him from choking in the presence of danger (before the action)

and dying due to it. Like he did when Fok pointed the gun at him for the first time. The answers

that Tomas thought he’d found out about himself before, suddenly weren’t so clear.

With the increased pressure, the anger also increased, and forced Tomas to act. Each time it

came easier, each time a bit stronger. Drawing its strength from the hate that Tomas carried in

his heart.

Tomas listened carefully to Peter’s instructions and could feel the pressure slowly build up

within him.

The command to commence their covert approach to the cabin was given. It was Tomas who got

spotted first, but Gargy’s fast hands shot at the guard, preventing him from alarming the rest. But

they knew that Velicenko’s men would probably find out that one of them was missing in less

than a minute.

Peter took care of two of the guards on his side quickly, just as Gargy did, and Tomas had only

one man to worry about. He ran towards the man like a deer through the woods and cut him

down with his katana, hitting high at the neck level, severing his head in a single chop. It had

been a while since Tomas had used the katana. It was still as messy and traumatizing. But it was

a quick and silent death, perfect for this kind of situation. It had to be done.

Like shadows, the team quickly moved towards the inner guard perimeter.
Peter said, ‘Everybody stop! It looks like they still don’t know. Wait for my command.’

The cabin had two floors, and something that looked like it could be doors into a cellar that were

outdoors on the backside. Peter instructed that once they took care of the ten guards forming the

inner circle, each of them would have to investigate one of the cabin levels, not storming in if not

necessary. Not unless it became obvious that the torturers knew that something was going on.

Peter instructed them to wait for the rest of the team to join before storming the room where

Faith was held after she was located. It was most likely that she would be in the cellar, thus

Tomas suggested that he would go investigate there. Peter agreed, and took the first floor. Gargy

was used to climbing into elevated positions, so he took the floor above.

Tomas listened to all of the following instructions and felt that the pressure had built up enough

for him to lose control again. He couldn’t stop thinking that this was the sort of place and

circumstance where he turned into something else, torn away from his own body. Now Tomas

choked, trying to fight it back, struggling not to lose control, not letting the anger take over.

Tomas felt like he needed some room to breathe. But with each of Peter’s new words,

highlighting the seriousness of the situation, Tomas choked even more, struggling to stay in

control.

Peter didn’t like the body language of the inner circle guards and their increased chatter.

Peter said urgently, ‘Go, go, go!’

The team assaulted the inner circle. It fell quickly, they hoped without anyone noticing anything.

After the first inner circle guard got shot in his head from Gargy’s SPG1 sniper rifle while Peter

burst-fired another three that stood to the left of him with his silenced MP5, the two right-side

guards turned in their direction. Tomas flew past them, cutting off their heads swiftly and
continuing towards the rest of the inner circle guards that were on the other side of the cabin.

Tomas cut down another three of them before the remaining guards noticed and turned towards

him, just as Peter closed the encirclement of the cabin coming from the opposite direction, taking

care of them swiftly.

In the meantime, Gargy had already climbed to the top floor.

Tomas quickly checked all of the cellar windows that were at the ground level, while Peter

checked the first-floor windows and Gargy his. The cellar windows were all boarded up, and

Tomas couldn’t see anything on the inside. But the muffled cries of Faith reached him. Tomas

was sure that she was inside, still alive. Peter told him to stay put until he and Gargy finished

their floor surveys.

Both floors were completely empty, but Peter and Gargy couldn’t know it. Also, it was important

to find out whether there was more than the outside entry/exit point into the cellar.

The pressure was too much. Tomas struggled to fight it back, listening to Peter’s and Gargy’s

constant report on their current situation. But the hate and anger in his heart wouldn’t go away;

he couldn’t calm down a bit. Tomas knew what would eventually happen. He wished that he

could disappear so the Agency wouldn’t have to witness it, again. At the same time, he was

confused by the fact that he tried to prevent it. Tomas knew that Faith’s best chance was if he

lost it again. It didn’t make sense for him to try preventing it, just so no one would see him like

that again. He remembered how he always found momentary bliss in the ignorance towards his

actions in such a state. “Delivering justice”. How much easier it was to overcome whatever stood

in his way, whatever he was doing. Tomas was waiting for someone to give him a reason to rip

off his current face and show the other one.

As he stood on the outside of the dual doors leading into the cellar, listening to what was most

likely happening on the inside, he couldn’t help but to build up the hate towards the goons on the

inside increasingly with the passing time. Tomas never wanted to feel that way. He always gave

the bastards that he faced a warning, but they would never listen. They all knew perfectly well

what he could do and was capable of. ‘But they wouldn’t listen!’ Tomas couldn’t resist anymore,

listening to the blunt force impact sounds while Faith was being beaten up. He snapped, and

stormed into the cellar ahead of Peter and Gargy.

There were four of the goons on the inside with her. It was a blood bath. Mostly using his katana,

Tomas chopped them into pieces.

First, the guy that was just about to punch Faith in her face again. It was already swollen up

around her right eye. He cut off the goon’s arm at the shoulder, forcing him to cry out in pain.

Only then did Peter and Gargy become aware that Tomas was already in the cellar, assuming he

had no choice.

‘On my way!’ Peter and Gargy said simultaneously.

The goon that was beating Faith yelled, ‘Wait!’ raising his other hand in a gesture for Tomas to

stop.

‘Shut up!’ Tomas said, then he cut off his head.

Blood splattered the walls behind and partially over Faith. As soon as the headless body fell onto

the ground, the heavy flow of blood coming out of the neck area started to pour onto the floor,

pooling.
The goon on Faith’s right side tried to raise his Uzi submachine gun, pointing it at Tomas and

making a funny noise. Something like, ‘Whoa!’

‘Shut up!’

Tomas did a 360-degree turnaround, increasing his momentum and the force of the impact as he

slashed the goon across his body at a 45-degree angle left to right, almost severing the goon’s left

arm completely off at the shoulder level and cutting halfway deep across the torso. The cracking

noise of the goon’s ribs as they got cut through was replaced by a hissing noise of his left

severed lung. Then the body fell over backwards, and the cut across the front opened up even

more, spraying blood out of it while most of his intestines fell out.

Both of the remaining goons tried to point theirs weapons at Faith’s head, instead of at Tomas.

But he was faster.

‘Fuckers!’

Tomas’s free left hand managed to pull out one of the PL30s and he shot the furthest goon in his

face first. A split second later, Tomas threw his katana at the other goon that stood closer to him.

It got stuck in his neck area, forcing the goon to lose his aim and balance, letting the shot

intended for Faith’s head go into the cellar’s ceiling instead as he fell onto the floor. The goon

started to visibly choke on his own blood.

‘Shut up!’ Tomas yelled. He ripped the katana out of the goon’s neck. Blood immediately

started to pour down his shirt, opening the wound even more. The goon became more noisy in

his choking, holding his neck with both hands.

One swift slash across the choking goon’s face split it in two, exposing his brain and killing him.
Peter and Gargy got into the cellar, partially shocked by the devastation that Tomas managed to

distribute within a few seconds. Walls were sprayed with blood all around, and the floor was

flooded by the pooling blood. They immediately started to untie Faith from the chair while

Tomas approached the goon that he shot in the face previously. He lay on his back. The bullet

just blew off part of his face but he was still alive. He appeared to by trying to say something to

Tomas; it certainly looked like it was all foul language, but one couldn’t tell, since his mouth

was disfigured distorting the words.

Tomas said, ‘You just can’t learn at all. Why the fuck would you take this assignment?’ Nothing

but continuous distorted noises of the gurgling goon; all profanities for sure.

Tomas demanded, ‘What did you think would happen?’ The goon even raised a finger at Tomas

while continuously supposedly shouting profanities at him.

Tomas declared, ‘What choice do I have?!’ All present could recognize that the goon said: “Fuck

you!” to that; it just somehow sounded clear.

‘Shut up!’ Tomas said. He thrust the katana’s blade into the goon’s belly.

The goon let out a painful cry before apparently continuing the foul language at Tomas.

Tomas said, ‘Shut up when I’m talking to you!’ twisting the blade sideways before ripping it out,

killing the thug.

Another splatter of blood appeared on the walls, accompanied by thug’s painful growl.

Tomas turned back towards Peter and Gargy. They were already leading Faith up the stairs and

out of the cellar, covering her face against Peter’s chest. Tomas immediately calmed down and

caught up with them. Nobody commented on the scene in the cellar.

Tomas said, ‘It will be okay, Faith, don’t worry.’ She was still shaken up, probably in shock.

Then Faith put resistance against Peter’s body, forcing him to stop. He let go of her and Faith

threw herself around Tomas instead. Now she started to cry. Tomas did the same thing as Peter;

he pressed her face against his chest to cover her sight of Velicenko’s slain hired men. The team

needed to move faster to get out quickly, so Tomas took Faith in his arms, carrying her.

As soon as they reached the chopper, Peter took out a black bag and put it over her head. It

freaked Faith out a bit.

Peter explained, ‘I’m sorry about this, but it is for your – and our – protection.’

Tomas said, ‘It’s okay, you are safe with us. I’m still holding you.’ She calmed down.

Peter said, ‘You don’t know our faces yet, and it’s better if it stays like that for now, until you

can make an informed decision. We are not exactly the police, as you surely realize.’ He placed

his hand on Faith’s upper back.

She nodded that she agreed.

Faith turned to where she sensed Tomas was. ‘I knew you would come.’

Tomas said, ‘It was still stupid of you to put yourself in such danger. You can’t imagine what

those people do, or are capable of.’

Faith repeated, ‘I knew you would come. I knew.’

Tomas said, ‘I can’t be there every time. Not even if I wanted to.’

Faith asked, ‘Can you at least tell me your name?’

‘My name is…Tomas,’ he replied after a slight hesitation and dodgy looks from Gargy and

Peter.

Faith just made herself more comfortable in Tomas’s arms, pressing her body against his even

closer. It felt amazing. Tomas wished he could hold her like that every day.

Linkin Park – The Little Things Give You Away 6:23

“All you've ever wanted - was someone to truly look up to you,

and six feet under water, I do.”

The remainder of the flight was rather quiet. Mostly because she fell asleep in Tomas’s arms and

no-one wanted to wake her up by their chatter. It presented an opportunity for Charlotte to

survey her body for injuries. The goons managed to break Faith’s right forearm and three of her

ribs, but nothing life-threatening.

The team took her into the hospital above the secret base in Detroit. When she woke up, she

panicked at first, wondering where they had all gone. But Charlotte greeted her, calming her

down, assuring her that she was completely safe there.

There were people coming from all over to support Faith in her recovery, sending flowers and

laying some in front of the hospital, as there were too many. The public opinion about the

Agency was at its highest again and the president expressed his wish to talk to the masked man,

guaranteeing him safety to do so.

It made big waves in the Agency. People rejoiced at the attention and the approval of the public,

apparently including the president. Tomas also wanted to meet the guy, to see whether he could

truly make America great again, and how much of a puppet he was to the bankers, both US and

abroad, especially Russia and the UAE. But he knew Peter’s opinion.

‘It’s too risky.’

Tomas said, ‘I thought you were a patriot. Trust your government and all that.’

Peter said, ‘I am a patriot, but you made me think about protecting against domestic enemies as

well as foreign. I personally don’t trust the president.’

Tomas declared, ‘I’m not going then.’

Peter said, ‘You can make your own decisions, Tomas. People around here think it would be

good for us, an honour.’

Tomas said, ‘No, I can’t trust my own judgement on this. I would rather follow orders now,

believe it or not. Funny how it takes away the pressure of responsibility, makes things so much

easier.’

Peter said, ‘And I got used to not being responsible for people for same reasons.’ They both

laughed.

Tomas got serious for a moment. ‘But really, what should I do?’

Peter said, ‘I really don’t know. What is there to gain? Positive publicity? We already have that

as it is. Seems foolish, considering the risk.’

Tomas said, ‘I want to ask him the hard questions and see his response.’
‘About 9/11?’

Tomas said, ‘Yep, for the most part.’

Peter said, ‘I’m not going to lie. I would like to see what he has to say about that too.’

Tomas was astounded. ‘Really?’

‘Yeah, I do think there were a few things left unanswered. I did my research, you know, after

our argument. But I still don’t believe that we did it. Maybe closed an eye or two, like with Pearl

Harbor.’

Tomas said, ‘I wish I could believe that too. Honestly.’

Peter asked, ‘Need a ride?’

‘Just you and me, turning back at the first sign of trouble?’

Peter said, ‘For you, it will be too late, most likely.’

Tomas said, ‘I guess it’s worth a shot. This has been bothering me for a long time now, and this

is the first chance I’ve got to actually do something about it. It could be big.’

Peter said, ‘I’ll make arrangements and do the survey then. If he’s lying, or there is an ambush

prepared for you, I will find out.’

Peter didn’t find any shady setup outside of standard protocol and flew with Tomas to meet the

president at the cabin, the “scene of the crime”. Around 30 armed soldiers, a few armoured cars,

two Apache attack helicopters, and 20 bodyguards were present there.

Tomas approached the cabin completely unarmed. Naturally, he was searched for weapons

anyway, and wouldn’t get close to the president should he be armed. Tomas didn’t mind one bit.
They didn’t fully realize how dangerous he was in the Apex Armour. Even unarmed, he could

take on all of them. Only the helicopters could stop him, in his own mind. But surely not before

he would kill the president easily, should Tomas really have wanted to.

Tomas then entered the living room, where the president sat at a makeshift conference table, no

media present. He stood up to meet Tomas as he approached and shook his hand before sitting

down together.

‘It’s an honour to meet a real-life superhero.’

Tomas said, ‘Thank you, Mr. President, but I don’t consider myself a hero. The risk wasn’t ever

so big to even call me brave. I am well-equipped, with the best team as support.’

‘So there was no risk jumping out of a building with a bomb in your hand?’

Tomas chuckled. ‘I have my moments. That was pretty cool, right?’

‘I watched it on TV. I couldn’t believe you did it, then apparently lived through it.’

Tomas said, ‘Yeah, me neither.’

Both chuckled briefly, and then momentary silence ensued.

‘Well then,’ the president began. ‘The reason I asked to talk to you was so I could ask you to

come forward with your team. Full pardons granted, and anonymity after, should you wish, or

you could be employed by us. I wouldn’t mind having bodyguards like you people. I would

recommend to the House of Representatives to quadruple your wages, considering that I know

how good you are. But this vigilante stuff has to stop. It makes us, the government, look

incompetent.’
Tomas said, ‘Well that is exactly the reason why we do what we do. The state is too incompetent

to act on its own in a timely and right way. We didn’t want to do this, we were forced to. We

couldn’t look at the injustices anymore.’

The president said, ‘I promise changes to the justice system. I could guarantee you having a word

in how it would be changed as well.’

Tomas asked, ‘Could you guarantee that no corrupt people would be working for the justice

system anymore? Or that the new ones wouldn’t get corrupted eventually? The problem with the

justice system is the human condition, I am afraid.’

‘There could be a few bad apples here and there, I admit, but not everybody is corrupt. Most of

them are good people, righteous.’

Tomas said, ‘I would disagree.’

‘I think you see the world in too dark a shade, my friend.’

Tomas said, ‘I’m not your friend.’ Half the people in the Agency, including Matty, almost

choked, along with the president’s guards.

Tomas said, ‘And I don’t think I do. It’s hard to not see it dark after 9/11, and nothing happening

about it since.’

The president said, ‘I don’t think I follow; you mean the Twin Towers attack? We have been at

war with the terrorists ever since. Osama bin Laden is dead. What do you mean nothing was

done about it?’

Tomas said, ‘So you are going to sit here pretending that it all made perfect sense and the

perpetrators have been dealt with?’

‘That’s the reality!’

Tomas said, ‘Then I’m afraid I have been mistaken, and there is no point in me talking to you at

all.’ Tomas was about to get up and starting to leave, but his initial movement startled the

president and the Secret Service that reacted with a momentary combat posture, forcing Tomas

to change his mind immediately and he stayed seated instead to settle them down.

The president said, ‘I still don’t follow.’

‘Okay, let’s say I do buy your, “I don’t know what you are talking about” attitude. I’ll be clearer

then. Do you think that the Twin Towers fell in a completely normal and expected manner?’

The president said, ‘I know little about engineering, but I would say yes.’

Tomas said, ‘Fair enough. The same could be asked about the two planes destroying one tower

each. You just don’t know enough about engineering to see that it doesn’t make any sense,

right?’

The president was speechless.

‘Okay, how about the fact that the budget for the investigation into the fall of the Twin Towers

was roughly sixteen million, while that of Bill Clinton’s blow job was sixty million?’

The president said, ‘I’m sure that wasn’t the case.’

Tomas said, ‘Okay, how about that the alleged planes couldn’t fly at that attitude, that fast,

without ripping their wings off, according to the pilots that fly those planes daily? That some of

the official terrorists that allegedly flew the planes into the Twin Towers are still alive today?

That the phone calls were impossible to make at their respective attitudes, in that year? That

nothing was left of the one hundred ten stories but a small pile of rubble? The buildings basically
disappeared into themselves, all while the slightly burned passport of one alleged hijacking

terrorist has been presented as evidence as surviving the plane crash and the tower collapse?’

The president didn’t know how to respond. He felt pummelled with the information coming at

him.

Tomas said, ‘How about the invasion after? You want to tell me that it wasn’t for control over

the drug production in Afghanistan and the control of the oil fields in Iraq? You want to tell me

that it was because of Al Qaeda? Because of Osama bin Laden?!’

Tomas was leaving no space for the president to respond.

‘The same Al Qaeda that the CIA created and financed during the Russian war in Afghanistan?

The same Osama bin Laden that was getting younger over time in every new video of him and

was obviously just a puppet created by the CIA?

‘Funny how they always get rid of the evidence ASAP! First, the towers were sold to China for

scrap metal. Then, bin Laden’s supposed corpse was dropped into the sea at a secret location.’

‘Funny how the people that were involved in both events had “accidents” shortly after. Same as

people that spoke out too much and loud in the early years about how ridiculous the official

NIST report into the Twin Towers collapse was.’

The president still sat quiet, overwhelmed by both the speed at which Tomas was talking and the

passion behind it, as if Tomas truly believed every word of it. The Secret Service inched a little

closer.
Tomas said, ‘Nothing suspicious there! How about that the towers were basically empty after

nine a.m. and that none of the big fishes were conveniently present there that day? All late or

other crap. Nothing suspicious!’

The president was about to respond to that, but Tomas gave him no space again. The president’s

personal guard looked highly alerted, as Tomas looked almost aggressive towards the president,

no doubt ready to fire at him in the matter of a split second.

Tomas said, ‘I know! How about that the towers had been proposed for demolition unless they

got rid of the asbestos, at a cost of six million dollars per floor? Then, surprisingly, Larry

Silverstein buys the “really bad” investment just months before the towers get destroyed.

Cashing out the expensively unheard-of specific insurance against such an event, making the

“bad investment” earn him seven times the worth of it after they fell?! Nothing suspicious there

either!’

The president still sat quietly, internally alarmed.

Tomas said, ‘Nothing, and I really mean nothing, makes sense in the official investigation report.

Nor is it truth. Nothing about that day makes any sense. Not one bit of the actions during that

day, or official statements later explaining it, make any sense! It was more like a massive

coverup mission.’ He took a pause. ‘As if they did it.’ Hate was present in his voice.

The president asked, ‘You mean the government?!’

‘Who else?!’

‘That wouldn’t be possible. Someone would have come out,’ the president said calmly, almost

in a dismissive manner.
Tomas said, ‘Really? Or all profited from the events, the rest possibly intimidated? How many

key people of low political status that spoke out about the events of 9/11 have vanished or had an

accident shortly after? A lot!’

The president asked, ‘Do you have any evidence of that?’

‘Funny enough, I was about to ask you the same!’

‘What did you hope to achieve in coming here? Why are you telling me all of this?’

Tomas said, ‘Because I want you to reopen the investigation into the events of 9/11. All of them,

including Building 7 and the pentagon. This time with peer review, done by independent experts

in their specific fields. With all of the witness’s reports accounted for and analysed. Not just the

fabricated ones that support the official version. The firefighters that were there, the people that

spoke about countless explosions all around the buildings before and long after the planes hit the

towers. Also, before they crashed down into themselves. With a proper budget, worthy of

investigation into such an event. Sixteen million? That’s proof right there it was an inside job if

you ask me. Also, I want you to publicly release at least five different angle videos out of the

sixty-five thousand cameras that recorded the Pentagon impact, to clearly show us a commercial

airplane crashing into it. The one officially released video is a joke. No one can really see shit! If

anything, it shows a missile, not an airplane.’

The president said, ‘Suppose I would do that, and shady things would come out, although I don’t

believe it would. Let’s suppose. Then what? Suppose you make the USA the “bad guy”, killing

her own people so we could kill even more in other countries, gaining control over them. Then

what?!’ He got agitated. Secret Service inched even closer.

Tomas said, ‘I don’t want to make the USA the bad guy. I want justice! For the people who died

in the towers, as well as those innocents who died in the invaded countries. I want those

responsible to rot in hell!’

The president asked, ‘Even if that could mean the total collapse of the US as a whole?!’

Tomas said, ‘I don’t see the US government as the USA. I see its people as the USA. They had

nothing to do with the events of 9/11 or the actions of their government at that time. I don’t

blame the country. I only blame the people responsible.

The president said, ‘The world wouldn’t see it that way; neither would the people of this

country.’

Tomas said, ‘I just want to know the truth finally so that justice can be delivered to all

responsible. No matter if they were in the government, or high-ranked bankers, or any big-

calibre fish that think they are untouchable.’

The president asked, ‘You would kill them?’

Tomas said, ‘I wouldn’t have to ever kill again. My work would be done. People would either

finally wake up and fulfil their citizenship duties to protect the state against a foreign or domestic

enemy or they wouldn’t do anything, and there would be no point for me to continue this fight

against this broken system. For who? They would deserve what they allowed to happen in their

stupidity. But if I believed that, I wouldn’t do this in the first place.’

The president said, ‘I thought you were someone else. I thought you fought the underground

syndicates, not the state.’

‘I fight evil wherever I see it.’

Momentary silence.

The president said, ‘I will see what I can do. Not that I believe any of it, but so that I can help

you. I still believe that you are a good man at heart, but you are disturbed. You need help.’

At that point, the Secret Service unbuttoned their suit jackets to clear the way to their sidearms.

Tomas said, ‘You really don’t care, do you? You really don’t care, even if I’m right about the

government causing the events 9/11 on command of the bankers that control them. The little

things give you away. I mean nothing to you either! You just wanted a good promotion, that’s

all. You wanted someone like me to look up to you. That’s all you wanted. “The masked man

approves of the president!” You know what? Now I feel six feet under, fighting an unwinnable

fight, I do. I really do! I comparison to you, I’m powerless.’

The president said, ‘I do care about you, and the people of this country.’

Tomas said, ‘If you really want to serve your country, then there is nothing more important than

re-opening the investigation into the events of 9/11. What could you possibly lose? If I’m wrong,

all of the disbelievers like me would find peace, and there are a lot of us out there. Just prove us

wrong; I really want it! I want to believe that I am wrong, but the evidence says otherwise. Prove

it to us, give us truth that is believable, based on the evidence that already exists. That is all I ask

for.

‘Actually, one more thing. Could you please publicly admit, or declare, whatever, that the

Federal Reserve is privately owned, and not by the government? That it is issuing its money into

the world on interest and that is why everyone is in debt? That it can create money out of thin air

just based on demand, only regulated by the law, but on the interest as well? I mean, that is

publicly available information. The truth. But it seems to be forgotten by the education system
all around in Western society. Conveniently. I think people should know where and how money

is created, and by who. Let’s see what would happen after. Either my world gets a lot brighter, or

yours gets a lot darker.’

That sounded like a threat, and the Secret Service pushed their jackets open to gain quick access

to their sidearms. Still, Tomas continued. ‘It wouldn’t matter, but it would be the reality and the

first step in the right direction.’

‘I’ll see what I can do,’ the president said dismissively, really wanting to end this conversation.

Tomas replied, ‘Same.’

‘Come again?’

Tomas said, ‘About me stopping this “vigilante stuff”. Brighten my world! Do your job. Put your

people and the truth first, and there would be no need for me to do it for you. You have a lot

more power to make it happen than me. Use it!’

The president looked like he was thinking. Tomas stood up and walked out.

***

Tomas expected that he would get detained after that, but no one stopped or followed him back

into the woods. All of the cheers and excitement at the Agency had stopped long before that

happened. The meeting didn’t turn out the way they had hoped, and knew it would be better if

there was no publicity about this meeting at all.

The president admitted to the media and on his Twitter account that he had met the masked man

“face to face” (Tomas had his mask on the whole time, of course), and they had a serious chat
about the issues of the country, but didn’t specify anything. Even Tomas thought it was better

that way, and gained hope that the president would perhaps reopen the investigation after all.

Linkin Park – Until It Breaks 3:46

“With the hunger of a lion, the strength of a sun,

I don't need to sweat it when the competition come.”

May 2017, not even a week after Tomas had his meeting with the president, he got a request to

“chat” again. This time by Velicenko himself. When Velicenko learned about his replacement

coming to the USA, he knew that he was done. During his house arrest, Velicenko secretly

pulled in as many assets of the Russian Mafia on US soil as he could. Then the raised army

overwhelmed the FBI agents that guarded Velicenko and took them hostages in turn. All twenty-

four of them. his men killed six of the agents during the take-over. It was sensational! It felt like

Velicenko turned overnight from an honorary citizen into the biggest scumbag of the USA. The

public hated him, and his actions only confirmed Faith Goldie’s accusations.

The National Guard encircled and lay siege to Velicenko’s Los Angeles mansion. The police

assisted, and the FBI present were in charge of it. Their negotiator was allowed to briefly talk to

Velicenko. He requested to talk to the masked man within six hours or he would kill the

remaining FBI agents and open fire with his army at the “besiegers”.
It was widely broadcast by the cable news networks and on Faith Goldie’s YouTube channel.

She was also present, barely released from medical care and secretly guarded by one volunteer

member of the agency, to be able to alert the base if he felt that she might be in danger.

Velicenko expressed to the negotiator that all he wanted to do was talk to the “masked man”, and

that should he meet his demands (which he didn’t disclose), he would release all of the hostages

without a fight and surrender. No one knew what Velicenko promised to his men, how much he

paid them, or what threats he made to make them do this last stand with him. All must have

known that the best-case scenario was prison. It must have been worth it.

Tomas was pushed into a response once again. He had to be there personally, and knew that

confrontation would surely happen. But Tomas told himself that he was naive to think it would

ever end up otherwise. He just never could turn his back on the ones in need.

Tomas also felt recovered from the breakdown and embraced the anger within him. Letting it

grow, giving him courage and will to act. He still wanted out, before he felt it would be too late,

despising the inner changes that he was undergoing. But it was always ‘after this one’.

The Agency as a whole wanted to intervene anyway; they wanted Tomas to go and talk to

Velicenko, knowing it would likely end up in an altercation. Peter found a way to secretly

contact the commanding FBI agent, convincing him without any proof of evidence that he was in

contact with the masked man, to agree and provide a guarantee that should the masked man show

up for the talk, he would not be detained by officials. It was agreed.

Velicenko’s mansion was close to Beverly hills, at one of the highest points of Los Angeles. The

closest house to it was about 200 meters downhill to the south of it. It was evacuated, but

countless people still pooled around and beneath it, trying to catch sight of the masked man,
should he come. Tomas had to walk through the park all the way up to the sieged mansion,

cheered by the public along the way. Peter and Gargy took different elevated positions and acted

as support once again. They were soon spotted in the cleared-off area by the onlookers. But as

the FBI agent promised, everyone on the mission just ignored them and gave them space.

Tomas met Faith along the way; she just thanked him for saving her the last time. It looked like

she wanted to say a lot more, but it wasn’t the time or the place to do it. But she still quickly

squeezed at least one question in.

‘What do you say about the people calling you the real Justice League?’ she asked with a big

smile on her face. She was the one that used that term first in relation to the masked man and his

team. People quickly adopted it, liking it.

Tomas said casually, ‘I thought that name was already taken.’

Faith smiled. ‘What would you like us to call you guys instead?’

Tomas said, ‘Justice and Truth League. There is no justice without truth. Today, you will find

out the truth about Velicenko.’ He continued to move on while Faith was following him.

‘I would agree. Before you go, one more thing. What shall we call you? The masked man?’

Tomas stopped for a brief moment and was visibly thinking about it. ‘Call me Paid in Blood,’ he

said, remembering his chat with Violetta about how he didn’t have enough money to buy justice,

so he had to pay for it in blood.

Faith said, ‘Paid in Blood? That’s doesn’t sound like a name.’

Tomas said, ‘Okay, PiB, as an acronym for Paid in Blood then.’

Faith said, ‘Pee-I-Bee, I like it. But why? What do you mean by it?’
Tomas said, ‘That’s what I do for the public in the name of justice and truth; I have to pay for in

blood. My own, and that of my enemies –enemies to our society – the otherwise untouchables.

It’s a heavy price, make no mistake. I want people to remember that.’ He began walking in haste

again.

They came to the perimeter cut-off point, the police letting only Tomas pass. He just turned

around and told her, ‘Stay safe’, before heading on forward.

When Tomas reached the barricade to the mansion, the negotiator handed him the direct phone

line that the FBI had set up with Velicenko.

Tomas said calmly, ‘Yes?’

Velicenko laughed, ‘It’s really you! I recognize your voice. Although, last time your voice

sounded a bit more disturbed.’

Tomas said, ‘And yours was a lot more confident.’ That stopped his laughter. ‘So, how do you

want to play this?’

Velicenko said, ‘Glad you asked. It’s simple. You trade your life for the hostages’ lives.’

‘And why would I want to do that?’

‘I thought you were a hero! The people’s champion and all that!’

Tomas said, ‘I’m not, and I’m not dumb either. What guaranties have I got?’

Velicenko said, ‘My word.’

‘Your word means shit to me. Besides, I don’t negotiate with terrorists. A good friend of mine

once said to me: You don’t give up, no matter what happens to the hostages.’
Velicenko said, ‘Then they all die.’

Tomas said, ‘They would be dead anyway, you don’t fool me. Your ship is sinking and you will

take as many with you as you can.’

Velicenko said, ‘Maybe, but maybe you are wrong and forsaking them needlessly.’

Tomas said, ‘I’ll tell you what. We both know that you really want me. I’m the top prize.’

‘And?’

‘You will have to earn it.’

‘I’m listening.’

Tomas said, ‘Me against you and your army. I make sure that the authorities don’t mix into it,

you make sure that the hostages don’t get hurt while we are settling our scores.’

Velicenko said, ‘You against all of us?! Hah! You got balls, I’ll tell you that. Okay, let’s say I

bite. No harm will come to the hostages as long as we fight and no police mix into it. I would

love to see you try to rescue them alone. Well, I know that you’ve got help, but it wouldn’t

matter. Just make sure that none of the officials here take any action when we open fire.’

Tomas said, ‘Deal! You really still have no idea what you’re dealing with, do you?’

‘Suka who thinks he’s a god.’

Tomas said, ‘A Suka with the hunger of a lion and the strength of a sun. I don’t need to sweat it

when my enemies come.’

‘You are really a cheeky pizda, huh? I have got fucking artillery in here and will blast you into

oblivion! What do you have? A rifle that can’t even penetrate my Escalade?’
‘One would think that you would learn to respect it by now, as you clearly can’t stop it. But I’m

warning you, if you call your artillery on me, I will call mine, and you wouldn’t like it, trust me.

Keep it for the near end cheating, okay? I want to have some fun; don’t make this too quick.’

Velicenko said, ‘You’re bluffing!’

‘Am I? As if you didn’t know that I don’t operate alone by now. These are my rules. If you

break them, I’ll blast you off, along with the hostages, if necessary. I’m not going to give up no

matter what, and make no mistake, I’m coming for you!’

Velicenko said, ‘Hah! And you really think that if you did that, the police would just let you go?’

Tomas said, ‘They probably won’t let me go anyway. It doesn’t really matter whether you are

wrong or right. Not to them. They are just programmed robots serving whoever pays the salary,

for the most part. Not like it’s their place to decide whether you’re wrong or right either, to give

them some credit. But you would be long gone already if it wasn’t for the sharks on the left and

the snakes on the right, waiting to get their bite. And once they’ve got their teeth in, it is

basically all over, so I need to tread lightly at times.’

Velicenko said, ‘Yeah, as if only THAT was stopping you from getting me! I was the most

powerful man around, I earned it with my own hands. I eat mudaks like you for breakfast, suka

blyat!’

Tomas said, ‘You can play tough when I’m not standing next to you. But I always go in like I

have nothing to lose. So you better be ready.’

Velicenko said, ‘We will see how it goes then; you think you’ve got a chance? Baffling! This is a

fortress! Pizda!’
Tomas said, ‘Okay, play bank. I will play bank takedown.’

‘I’ll skin you like the last time, suka blyat!’

‘The body bends until it breaks. Mine has plenty of flexibility, so better come up with new

ideas.’

Velicenko said, ‘Khui, you think that I’m playing? This time I really will rip your heart out and

eat it, even if that would be the last thing that I ever do! Ebat!’

‘I am not playing either! Just saying enjoy the last moments of your life; you don’t have a sliver

of a chance!’

‘Blyad! Come on then, already, I’m right here!’

‘See you soon.’

Then Tomas hung up.

***

The commanding officer showed Tomas the blueprint of the mansion first, and the presumed

locations of the hostages, then agreed to not get mixed in, as long as there was no sign of the

hostages being in danger. But she also warned Tomas to act accordingly. Should he jeopardize

the hostages’ lives, they would not hesitate to take him down too.

Tomas asked, ‘What do you think will happen? That, if by a miracle I start winning, he will let

the hostages go? I will try to take as many of them out as possible and buy you time, as long as I

can, distracting them. You better be ready with your teams to storm in and after the hostages

directly. That is the plan. That is all I can do.’

But commander would have none of it. ‘You have been warned!’

Tomas said, ‘You better show me some respect. I’m about to walk into a storm of fire alone and

you are threatening me? I don’t have time for your crap. Either we at least try to do something,

and be the firing squad, or you can try to play it safe, turning the hostages into a line-up. Make

up your mind. There is no happy ending in this! As soon as I die, they are as good as dead. So

you better pray that I will last long enough, and kill enough of them, to give you at least a chance

to do something. Now get out of my face!’ He got really angry at the commander’s comments.

Linkin Park – A Line in the Sand 6:35

“And so today, your truth has come -

- you're gonna pay for what you've, pay for what you've done.”

Peter said, ‘I don’t think this is a good idea, Tomas.’

‘Too late for that now, the wheels are in motion. No way back now. People are watching, we

better inspire them,’ Tomas said, preparing to storm the mansion with a frontal attack.

It was true; the news helicopters were hovering high above the mansion, broadcasting live

nationwide all that was happening. Faith Goldie, watching the news broadcasts, was commenting

on it live on her YouTube channel.

Faith announced, ‘The masked man, or P-i-B, appears to have finished the phone call with

Velicenko. We don’t know yet what they talked about, or what the result of their talk was. Now

it looks like he is talking to the commanding officer. It’s seems like a disagreement of sorts. The
masked man’ – she quickly fell back into using Tomas’s already established name – ‘looks like

he is about to attack the mansion. Yes, he has made his first steps and is heading down the road

towards the wall that is all around the Velicenko property. There are men stationed all around it,

armed with various weapons.

‘They opened fire first! The masked man is still going forward, shooting back his assault rifle

and the police are just watching! It must be because of some sort of agreement between the

masked man and Velicenko to not harm the hostages as long as the police don’t mix in, I’m sure.

‘It looks like two of Velicenko’s men just got hit and fell to the ground! The masked man is still

pushing on the road leading towards the gate, taking cover as he can, when and where he can,

while shooting back at them. There goes another one! Another Velicenko man just fell to the

ground.

‘There is heavy fire incoming at the masked man and he seems to be suppressed in a ditch next

to a road some fifty yards away to the south of the entrance gate. It looks like he is reloading his

assault rifle. Now he is on the move again, leaving the ditch and visibly taking lots of incoming

fire into his body armour, but still not stopping! I think I saw two, or three more Velicenko men

get hit by the masked man as he returned fire back at them. It is hard to tell; the angle of the

hovering TV chopper taking the footage just changed.’ She paused, watching the stream for a

while.

‘Yes, it looks like he actually got more. I can see now four, no, five bodies lying in that location!

‘The fire just ceased for a moment. We can see Velicenko’s men running around the place,

repositioning. Now the masked man is in a ditch again, presumably reloading. The police still

haven’t taken any action. It must have been agreed, I’m sure.
‘The masked man is on the move again. Oh no! Oh no! He’s been hit by something big!’ She

sounded worried and horrified at the same time. ‘His whole body was violently thrown

backwards onto his back! We can see now that one of the men that are presumably teamed up

with the masked man in the Justice and Truth League started to shoot at Velicenko’s people from

a distant hill they are on, undisturbed by the police so far.’ She collected herself, distracted by

what was happening to Gargy and Peter.

Faith said, ‘Oh God! The masked man just turned around. He was lying on his back for a while

after he got hit. Now he turned around, exposing a large wound to his back, the exit hole. Oh

God, it’s bleeding heavily, and the masked man is visibly struggling to crawl back into the ditch.

The police are still not doing anything!’ Her voice started to crack, almost crying, but she

collected herself quickly and continued.

‘Only one of the Justice and Truth League members is currently engaging Velicenko’s people,

trying to buy the masked man time.

‘He’s been hit too! The sniper with the face shield was getting shot at as well, but he quickly

changed his target and the incoming fire stopped momentarily. Looks like he got wounded in the

arm.’ Momentary distress showed in her voice before calming down again.

‘The other man next to him is checking it out, presumably assessing the seriousness of the arm

wound. There goes more incoming fire at the Justice and Truth League members! Now both of

the masked man’s teammates seem to be pummelled by a heavy storm of incoming bullets. We

can see bullet impacts all around them. Puffs of dust are being raised in the air. Now even the

third Justice and Truth League member that so far hadn’t taken part in the skirmish has opened
fire at Velicenko’s men, shooting what looks like an AR-15 assault rifle.’ Excitement increased

in her voice.

‘I can hear the gunfire thundering its way to where I stand! Some hundreds of yards away

downhill, and let me tell you, it’s much louder than the Fourth of July!’

Faith said, ‘The masked man’s companions seem to be in trouble!’ She seemed distressed again.

‘The incoming fire is not ceasing, as more of Velicenko’s men are now stationed on the east part

of a stone wall surrounding the whole property, shooting furiously at them!’ She took a small

pause, surprised by what she saw.

‘I don’t believe it! The masked man is on the move again!’ Small relief was present in her voice.

‘His back is covered in some sort of a white substance and the wound is barely visible. He moves

as if nothing happened. Unbelievable!’ She was almost excited, but she still sounded worried.

‘Velicenko’s men are getting punished by the created crossfire and are retreating across the open

garden towards the safety of the mansion, vanishing into its premises. Around six bodies lay still

in the central garden in front of the mansion house as a result of their hasty retreat.

‘The masked man has reached the south wall next to the entrance gate. He’s sitting down,

bracing his back against the wall. Looks like he is checking his weapon. Now he is reloading it.’

Faith announced, ‘There is blood splatter on the wall as the masked man moved slightly, no

doubt coming out of what looked like a mortal wound on his back!’ She sounded worried again.

She continued her commentary, watching the news helicopter stream from the safety of the

police barricades.
What happened was that Tomas got hit by the same type of 20 mm sniper rifle that his New York

City captors wanted to use on him but Velicenko prevented it, not wanting to damage the armour

nor kill Tomas that fast. Velicenko didn’t believe that any body armour could withstand such a

calibre. He was right. The artillery shell went clean through Tomas’s right lung, liquefying most

of it, and exited his back, shattering his right scapula (shoulder blade). The shock wave force

would have instantly killed him if the Apex armour hadn’t managed to absorb most of it. Still,

the exit hole was 13 cm wide.

The whole agency could hear Tomas’s gurgling in the comms after he got hit, along with pain

noises; choking on his own blood, gasping for air. Blood gushing out through the breathing holes

in his face mask as he was crawling into a ditch.

Then his right calf was also hit with the 20 mm round, which opened it up like a red flower. They

didn’t even see it on TV as the camera focused on Gargy, who returned fire with Martha,

managing to kill the opposing 20 mm armed sniper. At a price; he was then hit back with another

20 mm wielding sniper, which thankfully only grazed him, managing to just compromise his

Apex Armour. That consequently resulted in two smaller calibre rounds penetrating into Gargy’s

right arm biceps area, which got opened up by the 20 mm round as they, along with Peter, got lit

up by automatic fire (which also managed to partially shatter Gargy’s face shield on his right

side) shortly after that. Peter himself got hit in the face, but sporting the same mask as Tomas,

the round just deflected off it, managing to only swell up Peter’s cheek beneath.

As soon as Velicenko’s men retreated into the mansion, the Truth and Justice League got some

breathing space. Tomas partially managed to adjust to the drowning feeling, and even began to

talk with some difficulties.

Gargy said, ‘Talk to me, buddy, how bad is it?’

‘It’s pretty bad. I can barely lift my right arm,’ Tomas said, coughing out blood now and then.

Violetta said, ‘Okay, I’m calling off the mission.’ She sounded worried.

Tomas said, ‘I’m okay, I’m okay, no worries.’ But he still coughed out blood.

Gargy, Peter, Violetta, Helena, Catherine, Lubos, and Cop, who were all on the comms, objected

simultaneously but got ignored by Tomas, as he was preoccupied by a conversation with

Charlotte.

Charlotte asked, ‘Did you take the second chance?’

Tomas said, ‘I had to, or I wouldn’t be able to get up. But I think I will need one more to

continue.’

Charlotte said, ‘Don’t do that! Even if you could take it without dying as a consequence, you

would gain, at the very best three to four minutes before you would pass out due to the heavy

blood loss anyway.’

Tomas said, ‘Then I better start moving, time is running out.’

Charlotte said, ‘You don’t understand. Due to the nanobots overload and decrease in blood

pressure, you would fall into a coma as a guarantee. Perhaps never waking up again, even if you

survive your injuries!’ Tomas had no response to that.

Peter said, ‘Tomas, think about this; if you die now, who is going to benefit? How is that going

to help at all?’

Gargy said, ‘I agree.’

Lubos had to restrain Helena, while Cop cut off her communication feed to prevent her from

disturbing the ongoing conversation, as she got slightly hysterical.

Tomas said, ‘We need to draw a line in the sand. If I give up now, with most of the world

watching, how is it going to make us look?’

Peter said, ‘Like we have done what we could?’

Tomas said, ‘Like I run and the hostages get killed. You know that is exactly what is going to

happen, and that is exactly what it is going to look like.’ There was total comms silence for a

moment.

Tomas said, ‘There is no way I’m turning back and letting him win. People like him disgust me.

If it wasn’t for us and Faith, Velicenko would have a long and successful political career ahead

of him.’

Tomas couldn’t help it but to think that it was people like Velicenko that come up with 9/11

ideas. Then used the events to deceive the public into believing a fight for a higher cause so that

they could get richer, more powerful. Deceiving people into joining up in the military and

fighting evil! But little did those soldiers know what it was all about. Once they realize, they

often kill themselves. It was an issue that Tomas talked about with many people at the base quite

often. ‘Why do you think there is such a high rate of suicide among veterans today? Is Iraq or

Afghanistan more horrifying than Iwo-Jima, or Omaha Beach? Or is it because it becomes a lot

more obvious to them what it is all about once they are actually there, doing what they do?’

To Tomas, evil people like Velicenko were the problem. Big fishes that are thirsty for more

power, allowed by the top brass to join politics. Because they know how easily they can control
them, as they are already corrupted by the thirst for money. Top brass know that people like

Velicenko would do whatever asked if it would benefit them as well. Even another 9/11.

Worse, people like Velicenko easily fool the public to take their side, even giving them honorary

awards for various “righteous” activities. Until they get cornered. Afraid of the truth coming out,

in one last-ditch attempt, they will pull down as many people as they can along with them, out of

spite.

Tomas said, ‘People like him always get what they want, or so they think. Velicenko probably

thinks that he will kill me and the hostages, then claim that he was being held hostage himself,

forced to act the way he did by his captors. Worst-case scenario, he goes to jail for five to ten

years and quietly gets released, basically getting away with this. Best-case scenario, he would be

a victim and a survivor. A strong candidate for his desired politics, regaining the trust of his

bosses in Russia and the public! He would climb a lot higher on the power ladder.’

Tomas’s words sounded too true for anyone to try to oppose.

Tomas said, ‘Not today! Today, he is going to get his! All I have to do is get into the house

across the garden and the police will surely storm in as well. They will go after the hostages,

while I go directly after him and kill him. He is done for!’ He took a pause, as there was too

much blood in his lungs. He had to cough it out first.

Tomas said, ‘He will give us what is ours, the truth. About him, and about ourselves. I’m not

going to be the coward, and he will finally reveal himself for what he really is. Evil!’

Tomas’s plan was to make Velicenko shoot at him first, get it on camera (his POV lenses), and

leak it to Faith, along with the audio of their conversation, exposing him with undeniable

evidence. Tomas knew it wouldn’t be legal proof for the court, but it would be proof enough for
the public. That would be good enough for him. Tomas intended to kill Velicenko anyway after

all.

Linkin Park – I’ll Be Gone (Schoolboy Remix) 6:11

“And tell them I couldn't help myself, and tell them I was alone,

Oh, tell me I am the only one, And there's nothing left to stop me.”

Tomas injected himself with second chance once again and rushed off, bursting through the main

south gate into the garden, leaving a blood splatter on it as he body-checked it. Immediately, he

drew fire coming out of multiple windows of the mansion, but Tomas just ignored it, almost as

recklessly as in the NBC tower, rushing directly into and through it. Disregarding his own safety.

Blinded by the hate that he carried in his heart, letting the anger take over him again, Tomas was

adamant to face the enemy head-on so everybody could see it. Carrying the wound he already

had, knowing the risk of taking two second chances consequently, he was sure that by tomorrow

at this time, he would be gone anyway. All that mattered to him was to accomplish the goal he

had before he would expire. To be enough of a distraction and nuisance to Velicenko’s

mercenaries that the police would save most, if not all, of the FBI hostages. To kill Velicenko,

while looking “cool” doing it. Showing to all how little he cared about his own life, how much

damage he would endure to serve justice and to protect the ones in need.

This “dying thing”, it got old to him. Tomas had felt the presence of inevitable death so often by

now, he didn’t even give it a second thought anymore. He simply stopped caring. Not that he
wanted to die. But to him, it was more acceptable to die like a martyr than survive like a coward.

Tomas wanted his actions to speak for themselves. Something that no one could deny. Words

can be denied; intentions too. But actions, actions are the reality that speak the truth about the

person. ‘Almost got out, but had to be pushed the right way once again…Tomorrow by this time,

out there in the silence, I’ll be gone,’ was going through his mind. But not before he would do

what needs to be done!

He fired his G36 madly in the direction that he got shot at from previously, killing many as he

proceeded through the garden. Multiple explosions erupted around him. Velicenko didn’t lie

about the artillery present. He had no less than four of his men wielding M32 grenade launchers.

From the bird’s-eye view of the TV chopper, the public gasped at the sight of the explosions and

the man running through them.

Gargy did his best to always target first the highest danger to Tomas as fast as he could. But it

usually meant that the danger had to reveal itself by firing at Tomas first, before he could do so.

Often, behind a cover or at a difficult, sharp angle.

Gargy would randomly send rounds through the walls of the mansion if it wasn’t for the

undisclosed location of the hostages. The risk of killing them accidentally was too high. Gargy

killed two of the M32-wielding mercenaries, while Tomas possibly killed another two (his sight

was blocked at times, hard to confirm kills), but not before a piece of shrapnel that hit him

imbedded itself into Tomas’s bottom jaw, partially cutting open his throat. The shrapnel snuck

beneath the mask and hit at a 35-degree upward angle from Tomas’s left side, slicing his throat

sideways two centimetres deep before penetrating into his mouth cavity and through his tongue.

It almost got severed, and hung on only about one centimetre on the thick right side of the tongue

tissue. Tomas visibly staggered and stuttered into the comms as he got hit. The TV showed him
first trying to, then pulling out, the shrapnel, accompanied by blood pouring out whilst he was

still being shot at and his body was being jerked involuntarily by the bullet impacts.

Tomas tried to stand up straight again after he pulled the shrapnel out but got blasted off his feet

by another explosion that hit close behind him. He remained lying in the garden grass for a

while.

Gargy said, ‘He’s in trouble, I’m going in!’

Peter said, ‘No, you wait here and cover me, I’ll go.’

***

At the same time, the police commanding officer gave the command to the units’ leaders who

waited on the police comms. ‘Looks like that is all we will get out of him. Storm the building.

Bring me back my hostages!’ After confirming the order, four SWAT teams breached the back

wall of the mansion. Two more teams got brought by helicopter and deployed onto the roof,

while three more teams attacked from the front, using armoured cars as battering rams to breach

the stone wall surrounding the property first, get across the garden safely while the bullets only

bounced off the armour, then breach the mansion wall itself before deploying the SWAT teams

inside. It was spectacular.

Tomas got back on his feet, leaving behind his G36 that he’d lost as he fell. He pulled out both of

his PL30s and entered the mansion through the front doors after he hastily applied some of the

surgical glue onto his throat.

‘He’s in,’ Lubos announced, watching the tactical screen.

Peter said, ‘Get into position,’ ordering Lubos and Cop to get both vans into extraction locations.
Gargy said, ‘I’m coming in.’

Peter said, ‘Okay, I’ll cover the back, in case Velicenko tries to escape.’ It was also an extraction

position for Tomas.

A fierce firefight ensued inside of mansion, which was full of Velicenko’s mercenaries. As many

as 50! It was a good thing the police stormed the mansion as well. There was no way for Tomas

to get to Velicenko or protect the hostages in his current condition.

Peter said, ‘Tomas, status?’ Four seconds of silence.

Tomas said, ‘Combat capable,’ choking on his own blood.

Gargy asked, ‘Need any help?’

Tomas said, ‘With extraction, be ready. Hold on for now.’ Surprisingly still quite possible even

with almost fully severed tongue that flapped around in his mouth as he spoke, but not without

gurgling noises of choking on his own blood in the process.

Tomas was shooting madly left and right, the advantage of having the ability to aim at two

targets simultaneously with the handguns. He took a lot of fire too. Tomas began to feel weak. he

knew that he didn’t have much time left. The police were all around him, engaged in a firefight

with Velicenko’s people. Tomas saw one of the SWAT teams evacuate a few hostages. They

were spread all around the building, split into four groups. In Tomas’s mind, it was going well.

The SWAT teams didn’t mind him, and obviously searched for the hostages first.

He headed straight into the office area, as the commanding officer showed him before on the

blueprint of the building. His intent was to get there, but he got pinned down on his way there by
overwhelming gunfire and the severity of his back wound. After a few more seconds of combat

and several reloaded magazines, it all ceased.

Tomas finally managed to get to Velicenko’s office doors. They were already wide open (if

blasted to bits counts) and one of the SWAT teams was already leaving, carrying one body. A

dead hostage. Velicenko must have killed him. They didn’t mind Tomas, and he saw Velicenko’s

slain body on the floor. Only sporadic shots remained far in the distance.

‘It’s all over, returning,’ Tomas said with difficulty.

What he didn’t know was that shortly after all the hostages were accounted for, the order to

detain the masked man and his companions was also given.

Zack Hemsey – The Way (Instrumental) 7:04

Suddenly, the SWAT team that was closest to Tomas pointed their guns at him.

The SWAT team leader ordered, ‘Throw down your weapons, now!’

Tomas was confused at first.

‘Throw down your weapons, now!’ he said, more firmly.

Tomas threw both of his PL30s on the floor. He had no intentions of getting shot or shooting at

them. They were the good guys, just doing their job. But he had no intention of getting detained

either.

The SWAT team leader yelled, ‘On your knees! Get on your knees!’

Tomas said, ‘I’m having a slight problem,’ just as Lubos announced Tomas’s situation to the

comms.
Peter said, ‘Run!’

Peter was further away, slightly downhill from the back side of the mansion, ready to cover

Tomas’s expected approach position while Gargy waited at the very breach hole that one of the

SWAT teams’ explosives had made to the back wall of the mansion, expecting to see Tomas at

any moment.

After a slight hesitation, Tomas began to flee, while he still had the energy to do it. The SWAT

team didn’t open fire and just followed him.

The SWAT team leader ordered: ‘Stop! Stop right now or we’ll shoot!’

Tomas just continued to flee, limping a bit, as the two second chances both started to expire. His

right calf wound was gnarly, and prevented fluent movement without difficulty.

Tomas exited the office waiting area and turned to his right, where he met another SWAT team

threatening him. Tomas just ignored them and followed the hall on his right, hoping to reach one

of the breach holes. But another SWAT team got in his way, preventing him from continuing.

‘Sir, stop!’

He didn’t want to fight them. He couldn’t, either; he was getting weak, and felt like he would

pass out soon.

Tomas said, ‘I can’t make it. SWAT is in my way, and I’m about to lose consciousness.’ There

was slight distress in his voice.

Gargy said, ‘On my way, just hold on!’ He sounded determined.

Tomas managed to raise his hands up and put them at the back of his head whilst getting to his

knees, but then immediately he passed out and fell loosely, directly onto his face.
Velicenko had his people in the SWAT teams as well. They were waiting for an excuse to shoot

Tomas at the first opportunity. This looked good enough. They could have claimed that Tomas

made a sudden, unexpected move and they feared for their lives. They knew that they would get

away with it in court, if it would have gone there at all.

Two of them, from two separate SWAT teams, opened full auto fire at Tomas’s fallen body. As a

reaction to it, due to their training, the rest of the three teams surrounding Tomas opened fire at

him too, assuming that the other SWAT members saw something that they didn’t. Tomas’s body

was jerking with the impacts, but no bullet really went through his Apex Armour. None life-

threatening, but a graze to his right-hand glove did pop open in a spray of blood, as it wasn’t as

highly protected.

The commanding officer ordered, ‘Cease fire! Cease fire!’

All units ceased their fire.

Gargy heard the gunfire and approached the SWAT team that was blocking Tomas’s way first.

He had two SWAT teams on his tail himself.

Peter got surrounded in the field behind the mansion by the remaining four SWAT teams. He had

an AR-15 in one hand, pointing in one direction, and the MP5 in the other, pointing in the

opposite direction.

Gargy immediately raised and pointed both of his MP7 submachine guns at the SWAT team in

front of him and the two behind him. It was a standoff.

The SWAT team leaders were continuously yelling: ‘Drop your weapons!’

‘We were promised that we could leave in peace!’ Peter explained, but it had no effect.
‘Drop your weapons now, or we’ll shoot!’

Gargy said, ‘I am taking him with me’ – pointing at Tomas whilst slowly stepping towards him.

‘Don’t try to stop me or you will regret it!’

The SWAT team closest to Gargy started to retreat, joining up with two others, while two more

followed Gargy from behind.

A SWAT team leader called: ‘Last warning! Drop your weapons or we’ll shoot!’

Gargy stopped. ‘I’m telling you, either you let me take him, or you will regret that you didn’t,’

he said firmly.

The commanding officer ordered: ‘All units! All units! Do not shoot except in self-defence!’

The SWAT teams affirmed the command, but continued to threaten both Gargy and Peter,

hoping they would give up without a fight.

Gargy said, ‘I’m going to pick him up and walk away, as it was agreed. If you start shooting, you

will regret it!’

Gargy had no intention of shooting back; he rather hoped for a close combat confrontation,

relying on the Apex Armour. He began to move towards Tomas’s unconscious body again.

Tomas actually regained consciousness at that moment, giving a loud cry of pain. He attempted

to move.

That gave Velicenko’s people good enough reason to shoot at Tomas again. Although it was

agreed not to shoot unless shot upon, they could always backtrack to: ‘I felt threatened.’ Tomas

was proven to be a highly dangerous individual, after all. This time they were alone to do so. The
rest of the SWAT teams didn’t shoot, and even forced the two guys shooting to lower their

weapons, pushing them down to the floor with their own guns.

But that wasn’t enough. Gargy attacked the closest SWAT team member, sending him to the

floor with a double roundhouse kick. First, kicking his weapon out of his hands, then a kick to

the helmet. Strong enough to knock him out. Close combat ensued as the rest of the SWAT

teams attacked Gargy back, using their weapons as battering rams. They were no match for

Gargy. One by one, he brought them all down onto the floor, incapacitating them. Some even

attempted to shoot at him in panic as soon as they realized that they as a whole were losing to

one man! But using his gun kata skills, Gargy easily avoided their shooting trajectory while

closing the distance on the shooters and finally knocking them down. All five SWAT teams got

“pacified”, six of them retreating, asking for advice.

SWAT team leader A called in, ‘This is Alpha team. Assailant B is resisting successfully and

managed to neutralize most of my men. The other teams are not in any better shape. We cannot

detain the assailant without using firepower. Please advise!’

The commanding officer replied, ‘All right, shoot centre mass. Bring him down first, then

detain!’

As soon as it seemed possible, Gargy grabbed Tomas, who fell unconscious once again, below

his left armpit and started to drag him behind himself. That was when the SWAT teams opened

fire at him, throwing a flash bang or two as well. Gargy got hit all around his back, a few shots

hitting Tomas, but it was a triple round burst into Gargy’s top left shoulder that toppled him onto

the floor. He quickly recovered, this time grabbing Tomas below both of his armpits, dragging

him in front of him while he was backing up. That was when he got hit with a burst into his face
shield, finally shattering it completely. It struck Gargy below his left eye. Two rounds got

deflected by the face shield as it shattered, but one entered below his left eye, exiting through his

left ear. The bullet shock wave actually popped Gargy’s left eye out of the socket. But to him it

wouldn’t matter, as he was also knocked unconscious by it.

Gargy fell on his back with a stream of blood squirting out of the exit hole. Good thing his

girlfriend, Ulrike, never watched the missions’ livestream. Still, Justina rushed to tell her that

something happened to Gargy as they saw from his POV that he suddenly fell onto the floor and

seems motionless.

The whole base was in a total state of panic at that moment.

Moments before that:

The SWAT team leader outside called: ‘Drop your weapons or we’ll shoot!’

Peter said, ‘Forget it! Shoot if you have to, but I’m not leaving without my buddies, and you will

not stop me either!’

That is when the don’t shoot except in self-defence command had been given, possibly avoiding

an immediate shootout.

Peter stood his ground, his weapons pointing directly at the surrounding SWAT teams. Then he

heard a few shots in the mansion, assuming that Tomas and Gargy were in trouble. He rushed to

the same breached hole in the back of the mansion that Gargy went into previously. The SWAT

teams that surrounded Peter tried to prevent that, unsuccessfully.

Accompanied by the echo of explosions and gunfire coming out of the breach hole in the wall,

Peter spectacularly took care of all four SWAT teams, apart from three SWAT unit members that
instead retreated after the initial confrontation. They opened fire at Peter as soon as the command

to “shoot to bring them down” came, only to hit him once in his back just as he vanished into the

breach hole.

Immediately, Peter saw both Tomas and Gargy lying on the floor. Gargy was gently twitching

involuntarily, a blood pool around his head. Tomas was in spasms, his body violently jerking,

and blood-coloured foam was gushing out of his mouth through the holes in his mask. Both

looked like they were about to die.

Charlotte said, ‘Their vitals are fading! Tomas has surely entered coma, and Gargy may be

revitalized using the second chance. Try it!’ Distress was in her voice.

Peter got lit up by fire again before one flash bang and two stun grenades blew in his close

proximity. He lost all ability to hear, just bells ringing in his ears. Luckily, Peter reacted to the

flash bang in time, closing his eyes just in time. Still, two of the SWAT members were already at

him using the stocks of their M4 rifles, trying to hit him in the head. Peter fell to the floor after

the second hit, but quickly recovered and took down all six SWAT members that reached him.

He had to break the legs of two of them, since time was running out.

As the SWAT members lay incapacitated on the floor while the rest of them took cover again,

Peter grabbed the second chance’s casing and pulled out one out of three available shots. He was

about to apply it to Gargy’s neck when he got lit up by gunfire once again from the remaining

SWAT members, and a few that even returned from the field after their recovery. It blew the

second chance injection up, as well as hitting Peter in his mask, slamming it into his left temple,

toppling him onto the floor again.

That pissed Peter off. Not that he got struck in the head again, but that he lost one of the second

chances. He shot back at the SWAT teams!

Peter said, ‘If it’s you or my buddies, then I would rather choose my buddies!’

All it took was ten seconds of returning fire, hitting six SWAT members in the process, for them

to completely retreat. He may have killed one of them. It looked like the SWAT officer got it in

his face, even though that wasn’t Peter’s intent. There was no time to dwell on it. Immediately,

Peter went back to Gargy and injected him with the second chance.

Charlotte said, ‘Tomas’s airway is blocked! You must clear it!’

Peter then slightly lifted Tomas’s face mask up and with his hand, scooped as much of the

mouth-foam as he could, as quickly as he could, before turning him to his side and starting to

drag him out.

The SWAT team leader called over the radio: ‘We’ve got casualties, I repeat, we’ve got

casualties.’

The commanding officer ordered, ‘Retreat and wait for further orders.’ She sounded pissed.

The commander then turned to the National Guard captain, asking him to intervene, but his

response was that he had direct orders from the Governor to allow the masked man and his team

to leave.

The commanding officer countered angrily, ‘Clearly, that has changed! I have just received

orders from the police chief himself to detain them!’

The captain said, ‘I have my orders, you have yours. Can’t help you.’

The commanding officer replied, ‘I have casualties! Do you understand? They shot at us!’
The captain said, ‘I understand that you shot at them first.’

The commanding officer replied, ‘Because they resisted the arrest! We tried to pacify them

manually first!’

‘Unless the Governor says otherwise, I can’t help you. I’m sorry.’

‘Screw you!’

Then she proceeded to call the chief of police again. Soon after, the new orders were to shoot to

kill.

The commanding officer said, ‘Shoot to kill! I repeat, bring them down any way you can.’

***

Gargy managed to come to in the meantime. He looked lost and confused.

Peter said, ‘Get up! Help me with Tomas. We need to get him into the van.’

Then Gargy saw Tomas again, and the blood-foam coming out of the holes of his mask. It was a

rapid wakeup call. Gargy became alert in an instant. Peter saw Gargy look (with one eye) at

Tomas’s face mask.

Peter said, ‘I know, we will have to clear it up every twenty seconds or so. We have to act fast.

Grab him, I will provide cover!’ He sounded in distress too, which was unusual for Peter. Gargy

realized that the situation may be even more serious than at first sight.

Gargy threw Tomas over his right shoulder and started to run out of the mansion while Peter

openly exchanged fire with the SWAT teams that came back to pester them some more. This

time they were a lot more determined, scoring many headshots, eventually bringing Peter down
once again. Peter also suffered penetration to his gut; the knock-off version of the Apex Armour

gave in to the constant beating of the high-powered rifle rounds.

Gargy made it to a safe distance from the action with Tomas over his shoulder. ‘I’m going back

for him! Lubos, you have to take care of Tomas.’ He left Tomas lying in the grass some 30

meters away from Peter, who had provided cover fire for their retreat.

Lubos told Helena that she would have to be the driver now. He grabbed his H&K MR762A1

long range assault rifle and waited until Helena got closer with the van, instructing Cop to follow

them. Then he pulled a balaclava over his head and dismounted from the car, looking like a

terrorist.

They stopped some 20 meters away from Tomas’s body, as it was too dangerous to get any

closer. A few bullets hit the fronts of both vans, forcing all inside to duck.

When Lubos got to Tomas’s body, he still waited there, providing cover fire for Gargy, who was

helping Peter get up onto his feet again. Peter took the second chance and after the initial muscle

spasms phase, he got up, supported by Gargy, exchanging a few rounds with the SWAT teams.

They both got pummelled by the overwhelming firepower. There was as many as 20 of the

SWAT members exchanging accurate fire with them. Gargy didn’t even have any weapons

anymore, he was just supporting Peter, who was shooting back at them during the retreat.

Both of their armours got torn to pieces and started to give in. Gargy received three penetrating

hits to his legs, pulling Peter down with him. Peter actually laughed as they fell momentarily; he

found it funny, especially seeing Gargy’s amused expression. It didn’t last long. Gargy tried to

get up off his belly when he got hit in the back of his helmet. It was built to withstand rifle

rounds, but the round still cracked the helmet open, chipping away a bit of it, penetrating the
balaclava’s Apex Armour fabric beneath it and entered slightly below the back of Gargy’s skull

into his mouth cavity and out his right cheek, blasting it off completely. Must have been a

0.50BMG depleted uranium round or something.

Gargy’s motionless body fell to the ground; he sure looked dead. Peter, in disbelief, looked

towards Lubos, who, after seeing Gargy get shot in the back of his head, opened fire at the

SWAT teams, only to get struck in his chest too, falling into the grass next to Tomas’s body.

***

The panic in the base and in the field team reached hysteria. Charlotte was about to get out of the

van when Cop stopped her, telling her to at least pull a balaclava over her head first, to protect

her identity if she really had to go. Catherine begged her not to go on the comms, scared that

Charlotte would only get shot like the rest. Charlotte hesitated for a moment, admitting to herself

that Catherine was most likely right. There was little that she could achieve that Gargy, or Peter,

or Lubos couldn’t.

After seeing Lubos getting shot, Peter went into a full-on frenzy. He didn’t need any second

chance. The sight of his friends getting killed was burned into his mind and was more than

enough to revitalize him back onto his feet. Raising up his AR-15, he started to mercilessly shoot

back at the SWAT teams with the intent to kill. He got seven of them, many with headshots,

while receiving multiple gun wounds himself. He started to pull Gargy’s lifeless body towards

the vans as soon as the incoming fire ceased due to the SWAT teams’ sustaining heavy losses,

forcing them into cover and regroup, before taking care of their casualties - as a priority.
Both Cop and Charlotte, with balaclavas on, dismounted their van and grabbed Lubos and Tomas

each. Lubos’s body was too heavy for Charlotte to drag, so Peter had to help her with his other

hand as soon as he reached her. Cop managed to get Tomas into the van on his own.

Tomas and Lubos were put into the van with Charlotte and Cop. Catherine joined them to help

Charlotte. Refusing any medical help due to the others needing it more, Peter ordered Helena to

help Gargy first. He wasn’t dead yet.

Not even a minute into their drive, they came up to a National Guard blockade. Both vans

stopped.

Cop asked Peter, ‘What are we going to do?’

Peter said, ‘We can give up, and live, but most likely in prison cell. While Tomas, Gargy, and

Lubos most certainly will die. Or we can try to go through it, give them a chance, but most likely

all die in the process.’

Cop clarified, ‘I know the options. I asked, what are we going to do?’

Peter looked at Nurse Helena, who relentlessly worked on saving Gargy. She gave him a silent

nod.

Peter said, ‘We’re going to try.’

Cop did the same with Charlotte and Catherine; they also wanted to try.

Peter said, ‘If you want to say something that has to be said, do it now!’ ordering the team to

speak their final words.

No one said anything. Mostly because it didn’t fully sink in just yet that Peter was asking for

their last words.

Peter said, ‘I love you, Justina, please forgive me, but I have to try.’ She was bawling her eyes

out in Ulrike’s arms, but understood and loved Peter for exactly who he was. And he was just

that.

Cop said, ‘Kupkin, if I die, please delete my browsing tab for me.’ They had become good

friends in the past weeks.

That made all in the Agency momentarily chuckle. A small relief of the tension, but welcomed.

Peter said, ‘Okay, wish us luck, base! I have no regrets!’

Violetta said, ‘Please come back to us!’ Her voice was cracking. She’d evidently been holding

back the sobbing.

Peter said, ‘I have every intention of doing so. Radio silence until we arrive. Over and out.’ He

sounded confident.

Both vans started to speed up towards the blockade. To their disbelief, instead of gunfire, the

blockade started to open up for them to pass. Rejoicing started in the Agency, with people

hugging each other, it was a massive relief. But only momentarily. They still had dying members

inside the vans.

o Chapter 9: All for Nothing

Linkin Park – Mark the Graves 5:05

“And the blood may wash away, but the scars will never fade -

- at least I know somehow I made a mark.”

It was difficult, but Charlotte, Helena, and Catherine managed to stabilize Tomas and Gargy.

Unfortunately, Lubos was basically killed instantly; there was nothing that Charlotte or

Catherine could have done. He had no Apex Armour on himself. The bullet missed Lubos’s heart

by a few millimetres, but the shock wave following it almost liquified the whole right side of it.

Unless they could have performed an immediate heart transplant after Lubos got shot, there was

nothing they could have done for him.

Still, Charlotte and Catherine were present during Lubos’s final, agonizing breaths before he

passed, and both were heavily traumatized by it. It’s one thing when a patient dies on the

operating table, but it’s completely another when you watch your close friend die, knowing that

you couldn’t do anything about it.

Cop, who was present with Charlotte and Catherine, was hit by Lubos’s death even harder; they

were best friends. Not that it would be easy on the rest of the Agency, but Peter, Tomas, and

Gargy were still in danger of dying if complications would have occurred.

Peter took five weeks to recover enough to finally leave the hospital bed. He still limped on his

left leg after his fibula got shattered by a penetrating bullet. Peter was in a weak state of mind the
whole time, blaming himself for not acting fast enough to prevent what happened. He was put on

suicide watch by Violetta.

Thankfully, Tomas came out of his coma after two months, which helped Peter a lot. But Gargy

still remained in his. After Tomas found out what happened, and that Lubos was dead, whilst

Gargy’s chance to wake up was smaller every day, he wasn’t happy either. Tomas was seen

sitting at Gargy’s side every day for hours. It was a very hard time for all involved.

Violetta had a lot of work at the base. Public opinion had turned against the Agency big time

after the rescue mission at Velicenko’s LA residence. As Tomas predicted, Velicenko’s attorneys

turned the story around, claiming that Velicenko was forced to play his role, threatened by the

armed abductors (his own mercenaries). They further claimed that he was an exemplary citizen,

and was only targeted for discreditation by unknow people, that surely tried to prevent him from

getting into the politics.

Then the attorneys proceeded to blame the police and the Justice and Truth League (an accepted

term by now) for inappropriate handling of the situation that resulted in his death.

In the same breath, in attempts to look honest and trustworthy, they applauded Faith Goldie for

her fearlessness and honest, independent investigations, but claimed that most of the “evidence”

(that wouldn’t be good enough for the court in the law’s eyes, but looked really suspicious) was

framed on Mr. Velicenko by the competition that wanted to get rid of him. “Successfully”, they

added.

In turn, the police put the blame for shooting Velicenko on the Justice and Truth League,

claiming that it portrayed Mr. Velicenko in a deceiving light, forcing the officers to use lethal
force on him due to their belief that they were in danger. Adding that they had no idea that

Velicenko was a hostage himself.

Faith, of course, didn’t buy that one bit. In return, she continued to claim that Velicenko was the

real orchestrator of it all, without direct proof, knowingly discrediting herself in the public’s eye.

Even more, by still standing behind the Justice and Truth League’s actions that killed eight

SWAT officers during their resistance to the attempted detention. Claiming that they had no

choice and were betrayed by the FBI and the state.

Although many people felt that way, they couldn’t overlook, nor forgive, the killings of eight

officers. Especially after the TV news had been showing for weeks on end the interviews with

the mourning families of the fallen officers.

Mourning wife Louise of one of the officers stated, ‘Frank was a good husband and father.

Everybody loved him. He was always helpful, and ran a charity organization for homeless people

in our city of New York. He was an honest person, incorruptible, and believed in what he did.

Neutralizing bad people. Sometimes he had nightmares due to things he saw, or taking pity on

the criminals that he dealt with in the past. It wasn’t an easy job, nor pretty, but he always used

to say: “If I don’t do it, someone else would have to. And I wouldn’t wish this kind of burden on

anyone else.” He also said, “Evil thrives when good people do nothing. I can’t stand by and

watch the evil win.” She was breaking down in tears.

‘And now our four kids have no father!’ She was bawling her eyes out. ‘Our youngest is just

fourteen months old!’ Then she got angry. ‘The Justice and Truth League?! What truth?! That

my youngest son will never remember his father? What justice?! That they got away with it? I
don’t care that the SWAT teams shot at them first. My husband was just following his orders.

They were the criminals! He was doing his duty!’ She needed a moment to collect herself.

‘And what did the governor of California do? He ordered the National Guard to let them go!

Shame on him!’

The rest of the interviews were more or less the same. Honest man, doing his job.

Peter was ashamed, but he knew the price for attempting to save his comrades. He would do

exactly the same again if he had to, and was open about it. Adding that his only regret was not

acting fast enough.

After his life was no longer in danger, Justina left him, going to her mom’s because of that. She

told Peter that she needed time to think their marriage through. Those SWAT team victims’

family’s stories got to her tremendously. Although she wouldn’t say it, if Peter and Gargy would

have left Tomas to be captured instead, she would have preferred that outcome to the death of

eight “innocent” officers at the hands of her husband.

Little did she know, or the families of the killed SWAT officers know, that both of Velicenko’s

plants in the SWAT teams were also among the casualties. No doubt escalating the firefight with

their determination to kill, exposing themselves more to the returning gunfire in the process.

The president, of course, condemned the actions of the “vigilantes” and pulled back his amnesty

offer. The president presented his condolences to the families of the slain officers in many public

photo ops, promising that ‘justice will be served’, suggesting to the affected families to try to

find comfort in the most likely deaths of the perpetrators as a result of the injuries witnessed.

‘I’m sure we will find them eventually, if they are still alive, but we all saw that all of the armed
vigilantes were seriously wounded by the brave officers, with only one vigilante being able to

limp away after the shootout, and is also most likely already dead.

‘Our mission now will be to find those responsible that helped them, so that they can stand trial.’

The governor apologized for not acting fast enough after the Justice and Truth League shot back

at the SWAT officers. ‘I didn’t know. I was watching it on TV, as were most of us, and it took

me a while before I realized that they were shooting at the SWAT teams. When I saw that, I

contacted the captain of the National Guard present at the location and ordered them to not allow

them to leave. Sadly, they had been already let through.’

The governor lied. In reality, he hesitated because he didn’t know how the public would react to

that. He played it safe. If he did stop or kill the Justice and Truth League and the public was

against it, there was no way back.

To add insult to the injury, Velicenko’s son, Vitaly, came from Russia and immediately sued the

US government for the death of his father (whose guts he actually hated), gaining millions in the

settlement.

The intent was to give the public someone to blame. The president pushed hard, and

investigations showed the stolen money out of the federal budget. Matty was given a date for a

trial that was to happen in a few weeks, fast-tracked. Matty requested one final meeting with

Peter before surely going to jail. Peter obliged, even though he was certain that it meant it was all

over. But not before he finally talked to Tomas as well.

Maybe not on purpose, sometimes maybe on purpose, but ever since Tomas’s recovery from his

coma some two weeks before, they hadn’t spoken together yet. Both were blaming themselves

for what happened, ashamed, and retreated into their own denial.
Peter found the courage first, but not without Violetta’s encouragement. He waited until Tomas

was alone and in his relaxed environment. Tomas loved skyscrapers; just looking at them

somehow made him happy. Sometimes at night, Tomas would sneak out of the underground base

onto the roof of the hospital above it, watching Detroit’s downtown skyscrapers’ lights.

Peter came up to him. ‘It is beautiful, but I never understood what draws you to them so much.’

He stood next to Tomas, who gazed at the lights in the distance.

Tomas said, ‘It is…just magnificent. It shouldn’t be possible. I mean, they are enormous. To me,

every single one of them is a world wonder. Just amazing. Many of them are art. Like the

Chrysler building in New York City. Just amazing, the details on it, the interior, the size of it, the

time in which it was built. It should have been impossible! Yet they stand, laughing at our puny

existence. They are all magnificent, all of them.’

Peter said, ‘I think I was just born into this. I find it normal, ordinary. But I wish I had your

outlook on it. Not being so spoiled growing up, appreciating more what we have instead of

missing what we don’t. To me, the grass was always greener on the other side of the fence.’

Tomas said, ‘Trust me, I was like that too. Why do you think I left my country? Compared to

eighty-five to ninety-five percent of the total world population, I had the life of the upper fifteen

to five percent. Yet, it wasn’t enough.’

Peter asked, ‘Do you miss it?’

‘Not anymore; not for a long time now. We didn’t have any skyscrapers at all that I could see,

and I fell in love with them in Honk Kong. If anything, I miss Honk Kong more than Slovakia.

Although, when I think of relaxing surrounded by beautiful nature, there’s hardly any better

place anywhere in the world than Slovakia. The lakes, the caves, the old castles, the beautiful
mountains and ski centres, aquaparks, the whole country is one big tourist attraction. But I’m

biased, I’m sure.’

Peter said, ‘Listen, I came here to say, I’m sorry.’ Tomas gave him a look of “for what?”

Peter said, ‘I let him win in the end.’

Tomas said, ‘Velicenko?’ surprised. ‘He’s six feet under,’ he said, looking back at the

skyscrapers in the distance, dismissing the idea.

Peter said, ‘I know that you know, it is more complicated than that.’

‘I was the one pushing it, Peter. I fell into Velicenko’s trap willingly and played the pawn in his

plans. It wasn’t worth it. Not if Lubos is dead and Gargy…you could hardly call him alive if he

never wakes up again.’

‘You did what you thought was right.’

‘As did you. I want you to know that if I still had strength in me, I would be the one that let the

worst in him to take over. Guaranteed. It had to be done. I would let the same thing happen

again. Knowing myself, possibly worse.’ He was trying to ease some of Peter’s guilt, which was

obviously troubling him ever since he shot the officers.

Peter said, ‘I guess I found out first-hand what you tried to spare us of. Doing something that has

to be done so no one else has to. About time I took some responsibility and shared some of the

burden.’

Tomas said, ‘You always did. In your own way. You had different responsibilities, different hard

decisions to make. Knowing no one else could. This…was supposed to be my burden.’ They got

momentarily quiet.
Tomas said, ‘But it wasn’t supposed to happen in the first place. It was preventable. I’m sorry,

it’s all my fault.’

Peter said, ‘You couldn’t have known how it would go down. You don’t carry any responsibility

for my, or anyone else’s, actions. Just your own. I saw nothing wrong on your part. I saw

bravery, sacrifice.’

Tomas said, ‘I pushed my luck long enough. You tried to warn me, but in my carelessness, I had

to wait until it went horribly wrong again, leaving you in the dark. That wasn’t the plan. I

honestly thought that in a worst-case scenario, I would be the only casualty, but I would have

kept our name out there, and clean, while Velicenko would finally get his. Now look at us. Most

people hate us, and we are officially hunted by the government. Number one enemy of the state,

while Velicenko’s name has been restored to saint status. He really did win; but not by your

doing, by mine own.’

Peter said, ‘We all knew the risk, we all played our own parts. We all could have done things

differently. But there’s one thing no one can ever take away from us. We acted on our beliefs,

and we all meant well.’

Tomas said, ‘Amen.’ Another momentary silence. ‘But now it’s all over, right?’

‘Pretty much. Matty is going to jail for sure. The money will not come next month.’

Tomas said, ‘There is just so much more to lose…than the pain I put you through. I mean…what

is the point anyway?’

‘Yeah…I don’t see one either. Not anymore. You were right. They are just getting replaced

faster than we can kill them anyway. Nothing has changed.’ After a short pause for thought,

Peter continued.

‘Well, the Yakuza and the triads have completely left US soil. Scared of the Ghost after what

happened to the triads first, now the Russians, while hitting the Italians hard as well. Leaving it

all for Velicenko’s replacement, Mr. Victor Skalensky, to take over. Not believing that the Ghost

died, that he’s immortal.’

Tomas almost cracked a smile. ‘Yeah. The blood may have washed way, but the scars will never

fade. At least I know that somehow, I made a mark.’ He realized that it was somewhat selfish.

‘Not that I had no help.’

Peter said, ‘It was mostly you, Tomas. You risked the most. You have forced the biggest change

as well.’

‘Yet, it was all for nothing in the end. In the dark, the light. Nothing left, nothing right. All for

nothing.’

Peter said, ‘No a trace of what remains, no stones to mark the graves. Only memories we thought

we could deny.’

‘Nothing left, nothing right…’ Both got quiet for a moment. Tomas said, ‘I’m sorry about your

wife.’ But he realized it came out wrong. ‘Not that I don’t believe that she will come back to you

again. Just –’

Peter interrupted him. ‘It’s okay, I know. Congratulations on finally getting it together with

Helena. Was about time.’

Tomas said, ‘I could resist no more. She held my hand the whole time I was in the coma. I heard

her in my dreams, knew she was there. I think. First thing I saw waking up, she looked like an

angel. A crying angel. I have a heart too, you know? How could I resist? I do like her, she is

absolutely lovely. But it was selfish of me. Worst time possible to be with me.’

Peter asked, ‘Do you love her?’

‘I’m not sure if I am capable of that. I know that I could. But I have this block in me that is

scared that something will happen to her, the more I love her. So I do my best not to, or she will

get hurt. I know it; I can feel it.’

Peter turned to Tomas. ‘Want my advice?’

Tomas turned to Peter. ‘Always.’

Peter said, ‘Live life fully, while you can.’

Both got quiet again.

Tomas asked, ‘So what’s next? What are we going to do, Captain?’ That wasn’t bantering.

Peter said, ‘I will continue to pay for the medical services for me, you, and Gargy until he wakes

up. And to all base members that need counselling sessions for the PTSD. I mean, I will have to

keep all the people that are necessary. They already know there is no more money coming in and

all offered to continue to work for free. Not one asked to get paid. They offered free help. But

they will have to live off something. I will use my own account. Excluding the expenses on the

mission and maintenance of the training and research facilities, along with the whole armoury,

we could last three to four years.’

‘Make it eight, I will use my own money too. Not that I ever believed that I was a millionaire.

My mind refused to believe it; it always seemed too unreal,’ Tomas said, gazing back at the

skyscrapers. ‘I won’t even miss it,’ he grinned.

‘It really wasn’t about the salary, I know.’

‘No it wasn’t.’

Peter said, ‘All right then, I will give the good news to the base. But I still need to find a new

place to move into. Large enough, and covert in essence. We will be hunted.’

Tomas said, ‘They better pray they never find us. It’s not about “them” for us anymore. It’s

about the family. And I will do whatever it takes to protect it.’

Peter said, ‘As will I. Let’s hope they never find us then.’

‘Let’s hope.’

Peter said, ‘In the dark, the light, nothing left, nothing right. Right?’

Tomas said, ‘Exactly.’

‘I get it.’

Peter left Tomas to enjoy the view in peace.

 Linkin Park – In the End 3:38

“I tried so hard and got so far, but in the end it doesn't even matter.

I had to fall to lose it all, but in the end it doesn't even matter.”

It was time to make the hard call. Knowing that it most likely wouldn’t be a pleasant

conversation, Peter hesitated to make the scheduled call to Matty. But it was still part of his job.

At that time, he was still an employee, in essence. Peter picked up the phone, secured the line,

and finally contacted Matty.

Matty answered, ‘Peter?’

Peter said, ‘It’s me.’

Silence.

Matty said, ‘Well, I guess you already know. This is it; it’s all over.’

Peter said, ‘Sorry that I got you into this.’

Matty said, ‘I’m not going to lie, I wouldn’t expect that from you. In fact, you were the last

person I would expect to shoot and kill state enforcement forces.’ He sounded a bit disappointed.

Peter said, ‘I had no other choice. I would have lost them all if I didn’t shoot back to stop the

incoming fire, permanently.’

Matty said, ‘Still, coming from you? I mean, I expected the animal to do it at the end, but instead

he was about to give up. Granted, he lost consciousness soon after. But you? I would have never

imagined.’
Peter said, ‘Animal? He’s got a name, remember? Not that long ago, there was a time when you

thought of him as a “golden” boy. Remember?’

‘I admit that he had his moments, even in the last Velicenko mission. Very brave, always ready

to sacrifice; can’t deny it. But he is a ticking time bomb! I’m telling you now, he should never be

let out again. He is beyond saving.’

Peter was shocked. ‘No, he just needed someone else to save him. Like you saved me. Perhaps I

can save him, to repay my debt. I know I can never repay it to you. Now that I think of it, quite

the opposite. Look how I repaid you.’

Matty said, ‘No good deed goes unpunished.’ This rendered Peter silent for a moment.

Matty said, ‘Cheer up, it’s a joke!’

‘Most likely true though.’

Matty said, ‘Listen, Peter, I want you to know that I have no regrets. Your last actions? I don’t

agree with them. Tomas wasn’t worth it at all. But I do understand why. I would do anything for

my brothers in arms back in the day. Even today, those kind of combat bonds never break. No

woman would be worth breaking it up for. That is the usual reason for a friend turning on his

best friend. But not if you have been through hell together.’

Peter said, ‘Funny, you almost sounded like Tomas.’ That only aggravated Matty.

‘The point is. I am sorry too. I won’t be able to protect you anymore. But I need you to know

that I did my best for as long as I could.’

‘I know that. You always did.’

Matty said, ‘I tried so hard, Peter, and got so far. But in the end, it didn’t really matter.’

Momentary silence.

Matty said, ‘Funny, it only took for me to fall and lose it all to realize that. It didn’t even matter.’

Peter asked, ‘Because of Velicenko? That he basically won in the end, despite it all?’

‘It goes much deeper than that, my old friend. All of this, agenda of delivering justice to

criminals, is a joke.’

Peter was surprised. ‘How could you say that? Why would you say that?!’

Matty said, ‘Because it is like watching a pendulum swing by. It always comes back. It was a

waste of time. And time is very valuable.’

Peter said, ‘So it was all for nothing?’

Matty said, ‘I just don’t know why, but it doesn’t really matter how hard you try. Eventually, all

of this will just be a memory.’

‘Don’t say that. We had the same vision. We believed that we could make America a better,

safer place. More just! We always knew deep inside that it would end up bad for both of us.

Everybody in the Agency is accepting the same risk.’

Matty said, ‘I didn’t, Peter. I’m sorry, but I didn’t have the same vision. I kept it inside, knowing

one day it would fall apart.’

Peter asked, ‘What?!Why didn’t you say something?! Why take the risk?’

‘Because it made you happy, gave you a new direction, possibly saved your life. It was worth it

to me.’
‘So what changed?’

Matty said, ‘I did. You wouldn’t even recognize me anymore. Politics has that effect on you.’

Peter said, ‘I don’t believe this.’

‘Do you remember how many times we argued? All the fights we had?’

‘You mean discussions? Different opinions?’

Matty said, ‘The point is, I’m surprised we got this far, to be honest. But in the end, it didn’t

really matter.’

‘Why are you saying this?!’

‘I’m saying this so that you know the truth. The truth is, that I’m also not squeaky clean.’

‘So what? We can’t do any good anymore?!’

Matty said, ‘I’m trying to say that I am corrupted! I even provided you with evidence that would

push you against the opposition of my own benefactors.’

Peter said softly, in disbelief, ‘What?’

Matty said, ‘I told you, you wouldn’t even recognize me anymore.’

‘Did you fabricate evidence?!’ Peter asked, raising his voice.

Matty said, ‘No! God no! Just pushed you in the right direction that would benefit the right

people. And the public. They were all animals. But as I said before, there was a lot more to that.’

Peter said, ‘You’re just saying this so I will let go of you, forget about you. That will not

happen!’
Matty explained, ‘There is no trial. There is no investigation. Well, there is both, but it is a

charade for the public. I will walk, while one of my subordinates will get “exposed” and jailed.

Peter, I really tried my best to do good, but the truth is, I’m in some rich guys’ pockets. The truth

is that no matter what you did, in the big picture, it really didn’t matter. You just made certain

people more powerful by eliminating their opposition. The only justice in there was that to the

families who got harmed by those animals you took down.’

Peter asked, ‘So it was all a lie? I was your pawn?!’

‘No! You were not just a pawn. Peter, I always trusted in you, in your judgement. You did rid

this world of some nasty people. Justice was served. I tried hard to allow you to do your own

thing, make your own decisions. You know that. I never told you who to go after. And none of

the evidence provided was fabricated. It was all true. No one else knows that you worked for me.

I protected you the whole time. But I will not go to jail because of EXACTLY that; I’m useful to

some people with money. I deliver, they don’t care how. That is the truth. Those people run the

whole world, shape it to their desires. I’m sorry.’

Peter said, ‘I should have listened to Tomas from the start. But I didn’t want to believe it. I

refused!’

Matty said, ‘You can’t win this fight against them, no one can. You did the best you could and

you did good. Now listen to me, it’s over. You have done enough. Live your life, you’re rich!’

Peter said, ‘You take care of yourself, Matty. And don’t ever contact me again.’

Matty said, ‘I won’t. It would put you in danger. Take care, Peter. God bless.’
 Linkin Park – Until It’s Gone 3:53

“I've heard it said a thousand times - but now I know,

That you don't know what you've got, Oh you don't know what you've got,

No you don't know what you've got - until it's gone.”

Even if Matty said that he never used Peter, to Peter, it sure felt like it. On top of the general

public opinion about the Agency, that was pretty much the last nail in the coffin, and even Peter

gave in to defeatism. There was not even a thought of possible continuation of the fight against

evil on a smaller scale later on, after they all fully recovered. Including Gargy. Like there used to

be before the talk with Matty. There was no point in continuing. There was no point in

continuing to fight. ‘Fight who? For what? To give more power to another asshole that at least

had been kept in check by his opposition? There are too many of them, and like heads of the

hydra, not only do they grow back after you cut one of them, they multiply!’

They would have to hit them all at the same time and perhaps then, the untouchables behind the

curtains that keep in the shadows would have to expose themselves so they could be dealt with

too. The problem was that it would mean a full state collapse, as surely most of the politicians in

power were corrupted by it, and had to be taken care of too. The heads of the hydra. That alone,

was mission impossible. There was no more hope. The rabbit hole was too deep.

Interestingly, just two weeks after the Justice and Truth League were seemingly killed in action,

Chicago got back to its rightful place as the number one most dangerous city in the USA again.
The number of shootings and murders skyrocketed. No doubt also thanks to the arrival of Victor

Skalensky and his forceful acquisition of the lost territory.

Even more interestingly, the crime rate and violence rates around the country increased

significantly (as in not down to chance), with the analysts claiming that the correlation was found

in relation to the now defunct Justice and Truth League. Criminals simply had less to fear when

conducting their business. Michigan’s chief of police himself had been heard saying that it was

her belief that the criminal elements had been kept in check by the Justice and Truth League

previously, admitting that the increased rate of lethal and other violence was due to their

elimination from the scene.

Once again, public opinion about the Agency as a whole was slightly in their favour. Many talk

shows and public figures, including Faith Goldie, called for their return, if they were still alive,

that is. Many were mourning their apparent deaths, despite their involvement in the killing of the

officers.

As always, Faith did some digging and found out about the two Velicenko plants in the SWAT

teams, exposing them. That forced the police to release their bodycams, which clearly revealed

their foul, aggressive, and unprovoked actions. It was about three weeks after the Velicenko

shooting when the FBI presented their evidence about those two SWAT members being paid by

someone other than just the Defence Department. Of course, there was no direct connection to

Velicenko; his name was still clean. But at least it was enough new light to shine into the

response of the Justice and Truth League, portraying them as defending against intent to kill

from the very first moment of Tomas’s unconscious body falling on the floor for the first time,

shortly after he tried to surrender.

The president made a new statement, correcting himself and calling the events “unfortunate”,

instead of a “despicable act of uncalled-for violence”, but didn’t re-offer his amnesty due to

“honest officers still dying in the exchange”. It didn’t matter. The whole Agency didn’t care

much for what the current public opinion was, nor the calls for their return. They’d lost a beloved

family member, and one was still in a coma.

They were mourning, and any energy or attention left was spent on Gargy’s recovery. Although

at that point, Charlotte said there was not much more anyone could do, and only time would tell

if Gargy would wake up. She prescribed 24/7 company for Gargy. People took their turns at his

bedside to talk to him. A schedule was unnecessary, as there was always four or five anyway, if

Ulrike, or sometimes Tomas, wasn’t at his bed. They gave them both space for privacy.

Sometimes they sat there both together, next to Gargy, although everyone knew they both

weren’t exactly on good terms.

***

Finding Tomas once again on the roof, gazing at the skyscrapers, Peter said, ‘I talked to Matty.’

‘I imagine it wasn’t much fun.’

‘No, it wasn’t.’ Moment of silence.

Peter said, ‘You were right.’

‘About what?’

‘The world. Matty will walk; someone else will bite the bullet. He is too important to certain

people with money. The state is as corrupt as you described.’

Tomas said, ‘He’s just one man. It doesn’t mean I was right. I have been wrong in many things.

Most of them. But even a broken clock shows the correct time twice a day. He could be a fluke.’

Peter said, ‘Nah. What we did didn’t really matter because as you said before, we didn’t hit high

enough. And to hit high enough is impossible.’

Tomas said, ‘No wonder I have anger issues if the whole world pisses me off. The point is, the

elites don’t need competition, they need slaves. The elites know that it can’t be done by force,

it’s proven in history, over and over again. As soon as people know that they are oppressed, or

their country is occupied, they plan a revolt. Which doesn’t really matter if you’re occupied or

not, in my opinion. It really just means that someone else came to power, just like it’s supposed

to be after elections. But in the perception of the public, the occupation is unacceptable, and they

will revolt sooner or later. No empire, no matter how great, no matter how powerful and

seemingly unbeatable, ever successfully occupied any territory indefinitely. No one can control

masses by force.’ Peter kept listening.

‘The only way to keep people as slaves is if they don’t realize that they are slaves. To achieve

that, the elites seemingly give the people options. Except that they are limited by money. Always

give them a little money so they are happy with you up there “helping” them, but never nearly

enough to bounce off the bottom. Preoccupy their minds with nonsense bullshit and made-up

celebrities. Divide them to hate each other and the revolt will never happen. The poor will not

have the intellect capacity, nor enough humanity in themselves to put someone else to be as

important as themselves.’ Peter had no response.

‘They are all “special” and it is all about “them”! Who cares about the other person nowadays?

No one. Unless what helps the other person seemingly helps you too. If it didn’t help you, you

would surely try your best to prevent the other person from getting their help, or they would have

it better than you! Divide and conquer! Old tactics, still effective. Make them jealous of each

other’s success, make them hate each other’s guts. They will never join forces, Make them dumb

and give them false idols to worship, and they will never get “awakened”. Give them choices,

but limit them by the element that you have full control over, and all want the most in the world,

the money, and they will never realize that they are slaves by social engineering!’ He got visibly

angry just talking about it.

Peter said, ‘There are many good people. You said it yourself, you did it for them. I find it hard

not to care about them anymore. I mean, the rest be damned very well, but how could I ignore

injustices happening to common, good people? I still believe in the vast majority.’

Tomas said, ‘Easily. Same way they don’t really care about anyone else besides themselves. And

you’re a dreamer if you think it’s the vast majority. The vast majority is self-centred and easily

corruptible. They would become the next “bastard” the first chance they get, ready to put

themselves above you in a heartbeat. It’s a good thing they are kept in a position where they have

no other choice but to be nice, else they would quickly be put back into their place by other

“ready to be” assholes.’

Peter said, ‘It’s worse than I thought; how are you not depressed?’

Tomas said, ‘I overcame it, adapted to it. I mean, I know how it sounds. But I wouldn’t dare to

speak like that if my actions didn’t already provide me with enough ground to judge others,

based on theirs. Their choices in life compared to mine, etcetera. If someone else jumps out of a
building with a bomb in his hand to save innocent people; if someone else is training his body

and mind, educating himself every single day to be a better version of himself, like me, then I’m

ready to be judged by him. Otherwise, no more sorrow for them. Fuck them all!’

Peter said, ‘What about people that really do care, have various charities, are selfless? There are

many.’

Tomas said, ‘But not enough to bother about. Not at the price that we paid to be condemned by

the same people we did it for. What position do you think those kinds of people took? Our side,

or the one that called for hanging us? Sadly, most of them are caring and selfless because they

can’t see past the “vigilante” part of us. Don’t see the bigger picture, or the bigger evil. They

would vote for condemning us all for the violence we did. To them, the purpose of it wouldn’t

justify the means. For us to sacrifice for them would be plain stupidity.’

Suddenly, Peter saw the world through Tomas’s eyes. It was disgusting! People as a whole.

Disgusting, not worth the effort, nor the sacrifice.

‘Mike told me once, they don’t deserve you. After what we have been through, and seen the

common human nature, I agree. They don’t deserve you or any of us,’ Tomas said, looking at

Peter then continued. ‘Fuck them! If they couldn’t stand by us at our worst, they don’t deserve us

at our best. We were like a fire, spreading across the underbelly of the US. But every fire needs a

space to burn, breath to build a glow. But they were ready to “starve us of oxygen” at first sight

of our failure. No one is perfect! We did our best, and we did it selflessly, sacrificing ourselves,

for them! But they only realized how good they had it with us once we were gone. Fuck them!

There is no hope for them to ever awaken. There is no point for me or you to continue to

sacrifice for them. I fucking hate them. It will be everybody for themselves after all. We will
stand divided and hate each other after all. At least I can say that I actively tried not to. Which is

more than they will ever do.’

Peter could see the hate in Tomas’s eyes, and could understand why too. He saw how badly

Tomas was hurt by it all. The events, and the immediate public response. Peter knew there and

then that if Gargy never woke up from the coma, Tomas would never again lift a finger to help

strangers. Tomas’s inner transformation was finalized. The last of him that wanted to protect the

weak died with Lubos and Gargy. It just wasn’t worth it. And he was probably right about that. It

was all for nothing after all.

But it would be impossible not to notice that Tomas now seemed even more “extremist” than

before, which was worrying for Peter who prayed at this point for Gargy to wake up from his

coma. Not that he wouldn’t before, but now it was even more important as the hate built up

within Tomas against everybody and everything seemed to grow with every passing day, and he

dared not to think where it could lead should Gargy never wake up.

It was August 2017. Tomas was 32 years old.

End of Part III

Linkin Park – All for Nothing (feat. Page Hamilton) 3:33

Linkin Park – I’ll Be Gone 3:30

Linkin Park – In my Remains (zwierz remix) 2:45

Linkin Park – Plc.4 My head Haed-Amp Live Feat. Zion 4:20

Linkin Park – Until it Breaks (Datsik Remix) 6:00

Linkin Park – Wth>you-Chairman Hahn feat. Aceyalone 4:13

Linkin Park – Until it Breaks 4:29

The Struggle for Justice and Truth

by

Tomas Cudzis

Part IV: You Did it to Yourself

Soundtrack in order of appearance:

Part IV: You Did it to Yourself!

Chapter 1: All Pointless………………………………………5

16. Linkin Park – Rebellion (zwierz remix) 3:48

17. Linkin Park – Robot Boy 4:29

18. Linkin Park – Halfway Right 3:37

Chapter 2: New Glow of Fire……………………………….22

12. Linkin Park – Burn it Down 3:51

13. Linkin Park – Bleed it Out 2:44

14. Linkin Park – Castle of Glass 3:51

15. Linkin Park – Iridescent 4:56

16. Linkin Park – One More Light 3:23

Chapter 3: Evil Thriving in Indifference……………………54

7. Linkin Park – Hands Held High 3:52

8. Linkin Park – No More Sorrow 3:41

9. Linkin Park – Lies Greed Misery (dirtyphonics remix) 4:50

10. Linkin Park – Guilty All the Same (zwierz remix) 3:42

Chapter 4: Time of Sorrow…………………………………89

9. Linkin Park – What I’ve Done 3:25

10. Linkin Park – Heavy (zwierz rock remix) 3:16

11. Linkin Park – Talking To Myself 3:51

Chapter 5: You Again……………………………………..107

10. Linkin Park – Carousel 2:59

11. Prodigy – Breathe 5:11

12. Prodigy – Smack My Bitch Up

13. Linkin Park – Crawling (Mike Shinoda Feat. Aaron Lewis reanimation remix) 5:40
Chapter 6: It has to be Done…………………………………………125

8. Linkin Park/Tom Morello – Drawbar 2:46

9. Linkin Park – Final Masquerade 3:37

10. Linkin Park – Lies Greed Misery (zwierz remix) 3:19

Chapter 7: The Final Solution…………………………………………137

9. Awolnation – Sail 4:24

10. Linkin Park – Numb 3:07

11. Linkin Park – Nobody Can Save Me 3:45

12. Linkin Park – Leave out All the Rest 3:29

13. Linkin Park – Shadow of the Day 4:49

14. Foo Fighters – The Pretender 4:27

15. Linkin Park – Wisdom, Justice and Love 1:38

16. Linkin Park – Castle of Glass (Mike Shinoda remix – Recharged) 6:20

17. Linkin Park – Waiting for the End (zwierz remix) 3:51
Chapter 8: Epilogue……………………………………………………178

11. Linkin Park – One More Light (zwierz remix) 4:30

12. Linkin Park – Papercut (zwierz remix) 4:28

13. Linkin Park – Powerless 3:36

14. Linkin Park – The Messenger 3:01

15. Imagine Dragons – Thunder 3:07

End of Part IV………………..……………………………………………190

16. Linkin Park – Waiting For The End 3:51

17. Linkin Park – Guilty All the Same 5:53

18. Linkin Park – Powerless (Enferno remix – Recharged) 6:07

 Part IV: You did it

to Yourself!

o Chapter 1: All Pointless

Linkin Park – Rebellion (zwierz remix) 3:48

“We are the fortunate ones, who've never faced opression's gun.

We are the fortunate ones - Imitations of rebellion.”

After abandoning their former base in Detroit, Peter found a suitable skyrise penthouse in

Seattle, the whole top floor of a luxury Premiere On Pine skyscraper. He did it mainly to please

Tomas, as he knew he would love it, but it also had enough bedrooms to accommodate him,

Charlotte, Catherine, Cop, Violetta, Ulrike, and Gargy, who was still bed-bound in a coma.

Helena shared a room with Tomas, just like Ulrike with Gargy, whilst Dr Charlotte and Violetta

both split with their boyfriends to not expose them to the danger, as well as keep the true nature

of their job secret. All of the knights lived at one place, whilst the rest of the base was put on

hold until the next course of action, if any, would be taken, and lived in their homes as normal.

Justina still lived with her mom, leaving Peter alone.

Putting all of their money together, the knights could live there indefinitely whilst having more

than enough to live in luxury and take good care of Gargy.

It didn’t take long after the retreat of the Justice and Truth League from public life before the

crime level across the USA got out of the hand, which meant back to normal or slightly worse

than before, followed by national rallies protesting against the president’s administration.

However, to Tomas’ surprise, their main agenda was to bring attention to immigration, the

LGBTQ community, racial equality, women’s rights, and gun control. Apparently, that was the

problem; the state was simply not liberal and compassionate enough.

Tomas just laughed at the protesters, that first and foremost saw the problem in the state as being

too white-supremacist-toxic-masculine-Nazi-fascists-like, calling for compassion and social

liberation whilst advocating for racist-sexist-discriminatory-human-rights-stripping-away laws

themselves. One of the rallies was just happening in Seattle, and Tomas was watching it from the

outside balcony of the living room, facing to the north.

Tomas said, ‘Fucking entitled snowflakes. When I wished for a rebellion, this is NOT what I had

in mind. This is nothing to be that upset about, to be uprising for! They have no idea how good

they have it now in comparison to the past.’ He was visibly upset.

‘I thought you were disgusted with the current state of affairs,’ Peter said, joining Tomas at the

balcony, standing next to him while looking out into the distance and down onto the streets filled

with the protesting people.

Tomas said, ‘It is beautiful, by the way…the surroundings, not the rallies. Thank you, Peter, I

love this place. To answer your question, I am disgusted. But the current social justice bullshit

and feminism is as much a cancer as the corporate banks that rule this world. Along with the
political correctness status quo, with everybody trying to virtue signal, presenting themselves to

have the moral high ground. Based on what? On what they are trying to virtue signal for? All

while discriminating and being openly hostile, even violent, towards other people based on their

gender, race, and belief systems!? So basically, they are the Nazis who present themselves to

have the moral high ground! They’re the “higher truth”, the authority! They are the “good guys”

protecting the weak? What a joke they are…worse, idiots who just do whatever they think will

present them in a better light so they can look good in front of their neighbours and family. So

that when they feel they’re failing at life, they can at least say that they “fight for the people”,

like they are sacrificing their life and future for a greater good of all mankind. They wouldn’t do

shit if it didn’t directly benefit them in some way, nor if there was a real danger of them

becoming a target or being persecuted based on their actions and beliefs while they perfectly

know that they can persecute, intimidate, even violently attack people that they perceive as a

good target to make themselves look good, to go after them without consequence. Anyone that is

not currently politicly correct…’

He took a longer pause while Peter just calmly stood in silence, listening.

Tomas continued. ‘Like me, for instance. I would be the perfect target for them. A white guy,

straight, young, well-built – which equals toxic masculinity – and now even rich. No matter that

I have never discriminated or oppressed anyone based on their gender, race, religion or other

system of beliefs. On the contrary, I risked my life and protected all people that I perceived as

being oppressed or in immediate danger. How many of them were Black, Asian, LGBTQ,

Muslim, Buddhist, or Atheist? In many cases, visibly many!’

‘Naturally, States are a diverse place,’ Peter added.

‘I didn’t want to say diverse, I hate that word now…

Anyway, did it stop me from risking my life for them? Did I turn my back on all kinds of people,

saying: “Sorry, you’re not a straight, white, rich male, get fucked!”, leaving them to their fate?

I’m a foreigner myself, who comes from a more than poor background, and even though I’m

technically rich now, I still haven’t really spent a penny on myself. Bought stuff for my family

and invested all that I have in my friends.’

‘We all know that, Tomas,’ Peter said, looking briefly at him.

Tomas continued, ‘I know you don’t need to hear this, that I preach to the “wrong” person. It’s

just something I have a need to say out loud. Seeing this outside… Just look at them, listen to

what they chant…They would put a bunch of people under the same umbrella based on their

gender, etcetera, saying that they’re all the same, all while putting another specific group divided

into subgroups of “guiltiness”. My group being the guiltiest of all, saying we’re all like that. We

all are responsible for the past!’ He got even more upset.

‘They might be right about many things though you know,’ Peter opposed.

Tomas said, ‘Responsible and guilty for what?! What other people did? Come on Peter, all races

and belief systems have their own assholes. Can’t put them all in one basket based on the colour

of their skin or system of beliefs. Isn’t that what they protest against?! Oh, that’s right, all whites

are evil and have easy lives. Never mind that seventy-five percent of whites worldwide are also

below the poverty level and living “challenging” lives. Never mind me; I’m an exception, but

fuck me, my life was hard way before I got myself into trouble!’ You could hear the frustration.

Tomas continued, ‘All they had to do was to be born in the right country and get shit for free so

they can complain that they don’t get even more for free sitting on their asses collecting welfare!
Spoiled brats! You would die of hunger if not freeze to the death whilst in the dark in Mother

Russia, I’m sure! Slovakia also, and many other poor “white” countries not that long ago. White

privilege? What a surprise that in “parent” white culture countries, most of the successful people

are white. As if also the most unfortunate and forgotten people weren’t also white!’ His

frustration was escalating.

‘What do you mean?’ Peter asked.

Tomas said, ‘Oh, you’re white? Sorry, can’t help you. There is nothing I can gain by helping

you. If you were Black, I could virtue signal that I’m not a racist. If you were a woman, I could

virtue signal that I’m for equality of the sexes. If you were a Muslim, I could virtue signal that

I’m not Islamophobic. At least if you were gay, I could virtue signal that I’m supporting the

LGBTQ community. But you’re a straight, white male! Get fucked then! Nobody cares about

you. It could even harm me as being pro-white supremacist! This could easily end my career, just

an allegation, in fact! Get fucked!’ Frustration further escalated in his voice but then he calmed

down.

Tomas continued, ‘That is what I mean. Now, I’m not saying that all of the white people in need

deserve help. There is a lot of white trash at the bottom of white society. But neither do all of the

other groups’ people deserve help. There is a lot of human trash down there in each society.’

Peter was still letting Tomas have his monologue without interrupting him for the most part.

Tomas said, ‘Besides, it was the white people who abolished all injustices because they

recognized them as injustices. Not that any other group who had been subjected to be oppressed

by at the time a more “advanced civilization” freed themselves. They were freed by the decent
white people. Just like I tried to free them all of the scum among the human race that preys on

them without consequence. Worse, without a fear of consequence.’

Long silence, but Peter still waited patiently without any response. He felt like Tomas still had

more to get off his chest, and he was right.

Tomas continued, ‘Although, I am a bad example of a decent, young, white, straight male after

all, all considered.’ Peter looked at Tomas with surprised face.

Tomas explained, ‘I’m a jerk, a violent, unpredictable bastard who is on the edge of being an

anarchist, sometimes in the past admittedly misogynist, and for all I know, often proven

paranoid.’ That made Peter chuckle for a moment.

Tomas said, ‘But you’re not. Or Gargy, or Cop, or Kupkin, or Patrik.’ He took a breath and with

a slight moan added, ‘Or Lubos was…’

Peter nodded grimly.

Tomas said, ‘You are all white, straight males, and I can’t see any wrong in you, any true evil.’

Peter said, ‘Thanks for pointing out we’re all white. Now I do feel a little bit of racist. It’s just

coincidence, I promise!’ Trying to cheer up Tomas with banter but he seemed to deep in his

thoughts.

Tomas said, ‘I didn’t even realize myself until now that we’re all white here, basically, at least

all of the knights are. That could be perceived as racism. Until now that I talked about it, it’s just

not something you even think about!’

Peter said, ‘Because there is no racism, or other form of discrimination. It just happened that all

knights are white.’

‘Exactly. I know in my heart that you have chosen us based on our skills and traits. I mean, the

base is full of diverse people, except the knights. Not that I’m suggesting that only white people

would have the skill and traits to be knights. I’m sure DiBi would have been a knight for sure,

should he still be alive,’ Tomas said a bit defensively (DiBi was Asian).

Peter opposed, ‘Tomas, no need to tell me this. I know you’re not racist, and you know I’m not.’

‘Sorry, I know, just thinking out loud.’

After a moment, he began again.

Tomas said, ‘DiBi; almost forgot the guy. What a disgrace I am. After all he did for me, after

how close we were. He even died because of me… It’s just…so much has happened, it seems

like a decade has passed since.’

‘Yeah,’ Peter said, almost a moan, looking directly forward out into the distance.

Tomas said, ‘I meant to say previously, good men like you guys, DiBi included.’

‘That’s probably pushing it too far in my and Gargy’s case, perhaps even Lubos’s. We all have

killed. I know for a fact that at least one of my victims didn’t deserve it. Regardless, killing alone

is voiding any innocence. It wouldn’t be accurate to call someone “good” if he is not exactly

innocent.’

‘Agreed, but DiBi, Cop, Kupkin, and Patrik didn’t. They are what we could call innocent, on top

of being honest, and a good man, like you with Gargy are.’

‘And you’re not honest? Tomas, I never met a more honest person than you. You say the truth

even when you know for a fact that it will hurt you personally. That’s something I can’t say

about myself, nor I think about anyone else in here with one hundred percent certainty. We’d all
rather say nothing than say something that could make us look bad in the eyes of our friends or

family, anything that could result in us losing something. You literally don’t care about that, as

long as it is the truth. Something I think we all learned to appreciate a lot about you,’ Peter said

passionately.

Tomas replied calmly, ‘Maybe, but I’m still not a completely honest person, Peter. As everyone

else has, I’ve lied many times, about many things. Sometimes to spare the other person of pain,

sometimes to just avoid conflict. And hell, sometimes for personal gain! I’m not “all that”, Peter.

Certainly not what one would describe as a good man.’

Peter wanted to oppose Tomas, stating that in his opinion, not only was Tomas a good man at

heart, but to him, also a true hero. But Tomas was faster.

Tomas said, ‘I’m a true jerk. Maybe not quite evil, I have my bright moments…but a jerk for

sure! A malignant narcissist at the core.’

Peter said, ‘A what?!’ with a massive grin on his face.

Tomas said, ‘I was watching the story and psychological profile of Ted Bundy, the famous US

serial killer, yesterday. Don’t ask me why or how, just the usual YouTube experience of going

there to watch pandas eat bamboo and ending up in the “weird corner” every time.’ That made

Peter chuckle.

‘Anyway, they described him as a malignant narcissist. It is a psychological syndrome

comprising of an extreme mix of narcissism, aggression, anti-social behaviour, and sadism. Man,

I was like, that’s me! This explains why I was capable of the things I was capable of! Although, I

think I have a little bit of a split personality in there as well. I’m a normal person most of the

time. Correction, I feel like a normal person most of the time. That’s the reason why I suffer for
things I have done. But when I’m getting angry, when I’m “in” – I don’t know how else to

describe it, it’s like flipping a switch –someone else takes over. Then I do things that in that

moment I even enjoy, but later…. Regret doesn’t fully give justice to describe what I feel after.

Especially because I knew that it had to be done. I don’t regret what I did but perhaps how I did

it, and that I was able to find satisfaction in it that moment. That is what I regret and I’m

disgusted with.’

Peter hesitated, not sure how to respond, nor if Tomas was just joking as usual, as he said

something that deep in a very casual way.

‘Let’s not forget the build-up of tolerance to it. As you see, I’m more or less OK with all of it

now, sleep like a baby for the most part. That’s scary,’ Tomas said, still casually.

‘Violetta knows, right?’ Peter said calmly, to disguise his concern.

Tomas shrugged his shoulders. ‘Sure. I mean, she must, right? I didn’t tell her all, in exactly this

way, nor did I share my psychoanalysis of myself with her, but she is the best of the best. I’m

sure she knows. It would be interesting to find out how close I am with my own analysis.’

Tomas realized that he didn’t want to know. He was scared of the possible outcome, and avoided

any deep chat with Violetta ever since the last mission. One could say he was scared of the truth

that he may have learned about himself.

Peter hinted, ‘We could go ask her.’

‘Nah, I don’t really care that much. I’m a jerk, remember?’ Tomas laughed.

Peter said, ‘As you said, “perfect mating match” for women,’ openly playing into Tomas’s hand.

That made Tomas chuckle in return.

‘True, that’s why I got a woman whilst you’re single!’ As soon as Tomas said that, he realized

that he had overdone it.

Tomas said, ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it. That was a bad joke.’

Peter saw the panic in Tomas’s eyes. ‘No offence taken.’ He even chuckled at the joke for

Tomas’s sake, but it did sting a bit in his heart.

Tomas said, ‘I mean it. I apologize. That was inappropriate and not the truth.’

‘It’s okay, really,’ Peter said calmly while looking out into the distance again.

After a moment of awkward silence, Tomas decided to just continue with what he had in mind

before whilst looking at the protesting crowd down in the streets.

‘What I meant originally by all of this was that we are truly the fortunate ones in the face of

history. And they do this’ – he pointed at the crowd outside – ‘for fabricated reasons while doing

exactly what they preach must stop! Fucking idiots.’

Peter remained silent, his mind now drifted towards Justina, even though he tried not to.

Tomas continued. ‘On the other hand, I’m sure it is like this by design by the elites., I’m sure.

The control mass media, just push certain narratives and the sheep do what they do best, blindly

follow. Just look at them! That’s a poor imitation of a rebellion. This is not what we need to fight

against.’ He calmed down again.

‘I have seen the blood, the lost and broken people in the face of real injustices. In the presence

of real-life danger and the real manipulation behind it, the social engineering behind the scenes

to make us all unconscious slaves. The “divide and conquer” tactics. That is something to be

upset about, to rise up against. We need a national flood of awakening, an ocean even, to resolve
this empty story left behind. There is nothing the Agency can do to repair the damage done by

the system ourselves. Only they’ – jutting his chin toward the protesters below – ‘can help

themselves at this point. Can’t help them anymore…nor do I care anymore.’

Peter remained silent but his attention returned to Tomas.

Tomas said, ‘I hate the established system because it is disguised as democracy and freedom,

although it is more the exact opposite of it with every new day passing by. But I can still

appreciate what was good about it and the original culture that sadly spawned this clown world

of today’s. It sickens me that where there is no issue or injustice at all, those people seem to be

convinced that there is, whilst not seeing the bigger picture and the real injustice. Not seeing all

the lies, but adding to them, all based on their personal feelings. Fuck them! Can’t believe I ever

cared about them.’

Peter still remained silent, not knowing what to do or say. His concern about Tomas increased,

but he wanted to disguise it well enough so that Tomas didn’t notice it and shut down again.

Tomas realized that Peter looked like he was thinking hard, worried even.

Tomas said, ‘I’m sorry, this isn’t helping at all. I don’t know why I bother you with all of this. I

should have just talked to Violetta; at least she is getting paid for listening to my bullshit,’ he

joked.

‘Nah, it’s okay. It’s a reminder of reality, sad as it is,’ Peter replied, looking back at Tomas. ‘But

remember, nothing is just black or white, you said that to me once. Those people see issues for a

reason, it can’t be all just manufactured.’ He left the balcony, tapping Tomas on his shoulder on

his way out.

What a fucking idiot you are! Tomas thought about himself. In his mind, Peter seemed to be

okay when he walked in to see Tomas, but definitely wasn’t when he left. Tomas felt responsible

and guilty for that. For unnecessarily putting more stress and problems on him for no reason

really. Tomas got something off his chest while putting it directly onto Peter’s, adding to it even.

That’s how Tomas felt. ‘Should have kept to myself as always, dummy.’

He was right. Peter was deep in his thoughts, thinking about the whole thing. His mission and the

vision that he had to protect the unprotected and to serve justice to the “untouchables”, the

criminals avoiding consequences, ignored even, by the US legal system. And Tomas, one of his

knights that lost faith in this cause. At this point, even himself included. It was all lost before we

even began. One by one we fall apart. Us, and the public too. We fell apart, he thought as he was

leaving the balcony back into the living room of the penthouse.

Linkin Park – Robot Boy 4:29

“You say - You're not gonna fight, 'Cause no one will fight for you,

And

You think - There's not enough love and no one to give it to…”

As Peter was leaving, Helena was passing by, about to join them on the outside balcony. It took

her only a second to look at Peter to notice that Peter looked rather sad.

Helena asked, ‘You already leaving?’

‘I just needed some fresh air, going to make us some lunch now. Do you have any requests?’

Helena smiled, ‘I’ll be more than happy with whatever you can make, Peter, surprise me.’

Peter said, ‘You will see, Justina taught me a lot, and I was already a good cook before.’
‘I’m sure you are; you’re good at everything. Excellent, to be more precise,’ she added, even

giving a hug to Peter. That got a smile back from him momentarily, but the sad look of Peter was

breaking her heart.

Peter then left to join the other knights that were in the living room. The kitchen was the second

part extending into the open central space of the top floor that was considered to be the living

room. Charlotte and Violetta immediately proceeded to help Peter with the lunch preparation

whilst Catherine, Ulrike, and Cop were keeping company and caring for Gargy, whom they

brought out of his room into the living room to increase his chances of awakening. The knights

really wanted for Gargy to be included in all that they do as much as possible so there were

always noises around Gargy, always impulses from the outside to increase a chance for him to

come out of his coma.

Kupkin, Sataano, Odlew, Patrik, and fifteen of the other former base staff were also visiting at

that time, as many others did at other times. There was a lot of laughter and chatting around.

***

Helena joined Tomas on the balcony. ‘Peter seems sad, it’s heart-breaking.’

Tomas moaned, ‘Guilty as charged.’

‘What did you say to him?!’ Replied upset.

Tomas said, ‘You know me, just the usual “it was all for nothing” on top of “we never had a

chance” and “this must end, they need to awaken” followed by “there is no point in doing

anything”, that sort of stuff. I don’t even know anymore. I’m just basically rambling and

contradicting myself half the time.’ He looked out in the distance again.
Helena wrapped herself around Tomas’s right arm. ‘It wasn’t all for nothing. If nothing else, we

met. I wouldn’t have met you otherwise, and I’m the happiest girl in the world right now. I love

you.’ They shared a kiss after that.

Tomas said, ‘Love you too. Of course I’m glad that I met you, the guys, all of you. It’s just…all

we did for them, all we endured for them…it was all pointless.’ He nodded his head at the people

below again.

After a moment of silence, once Helena collected her thoughts, she replied, ‘So what if they truly

don’t deserve for us to care about them anymore?’ Tomas looked surprised at Helena.

‘Did Velicenko deserve to die or did he not? Stachenko? Fok? Even if you don’t believe it

achieved anything else but their death, I’m glad they are no more.’

Tomas said, ‘Let’s not forget Pablo Giovanni, whom Gargy took out alone.’

Helena said, ‘Right.’

Tomas said, ‘But they were replaced by possibly bigger evil, some man named Victor Skalensky,

apparently a bigger fish than all of them combined. Only God knows what horrors he’s preparing

now for people to endure.’

‘Who cares though, right?’ Helena said, trying to bait Tomas into admitting that he still cares

about the people.

It didn’t work.

‘Right,’ Tomas said firmly.

Helena said, ‘Oh, come on! I know you still care. I know you’re still hurting every time you see

injustice.’
Tomas said, ‘The only injustice I see is the hurt in Peter’s face or lifeless Gargy. The broken look

on Cop’s face when he’s at Lubos’s grave. The way Violetta walks around now, like she failed

us or something. Even your sad look now, looking at me. THAT is the only injustice I care about

now. That is what I blame myself for now.’

Not even mentioning that his whole left lung was essentially missing due to the “mortal” wound

he sustained, leaving Tomas tired all the time in comparison to before due to the lack of ability to

suck in enough oxygen in one breath. The fact that the wound still burned down in his chest so

many times, that he was forced to “secretly” take the second chance drug. Except Dr Charlotte,

of course, knew, but hadn’t said anything yet. She understood. Although she was concerned

about the addiction side of the drug and possible unknown side-effects.

Helena said, ‘You didn’t do any of that!’

Tomas said, ‘No, but I have indirectly caused all of that! Because in my blind love – no, that’s

not the right expression. Because I cared too much for people who didn’t care back for me in the

slightest, more the opposite. I was blindly willing to sacrifice myself for them, in turn dragging

people who cared about me, who I love, into a danger. For what?!’

‘Because you believed it was the right thing to do! We all did, and we all knew the dangers, so

don’t flatter yourself that you were the only person “aware”.’ She raised her voice at Tomas for

the first time, catching him off guard.

Tomas said quietly, ‘I didn’t mean it like that, you know it.’

Helena said, ‘So why are you trying to carry the cross alone again? I know you mean well, but

trying to take all the responsibility on yourself is in turn trivializing other people’s pain. Like

only you knew better, so their – correction – our actions didn’t have much of an impact. We are
all hurt. We all think about things we could have done differently.’ Helena’s voice started to

break.

‘I wasn’t there when Lubos passed away. I was still working on stabilizing Gargy in the other

van while Charlotte and Catherine fought to save your both lives. I’m glad that Peter

instinctively ordered me away from you. I wouldn’t have been of much help, and knew that

Charlotte was the most competent person to save you anyway. But I heard it loud and clear on

the comms while you and Gargy were both in a coma…I heard Lubos take his last breath…’

Now her voice was also shaking and Tomas hugged her, holding Helena tight to his body. She

spoke into Tomas’s ear.

‘I heard Charlotte’s and Catherine’s cries for Lubos to wake up while frantically compressing

his chest, knowing it wouldn’t happen. I heard Cop make a sad cry that I still can’t get out of my

head, an expression of unimaginable pain. The silent background noise of the open comms

vanished. I knew that Violetta must have cut them off momentarily, allowing for all to hide their

pain behind the silence so we could focus better on the task still at hand. To save you, Gargy, and

even Peter, who almost bled out by the time we managed to get back to the base.’ The increased

pitch of her voice reflected the pain she endured in order to say it.

Then Helena slowly but surely recovered and continued.

‘The point is that after I talked to my sisters, they both were constantly going on about “what if

we tried this?” and, “what if we didn’t let him go out?” The same thing that is killing me on the

inside. I know that both Cop and Peter suffer in the same way, for similar reasons. I know that

Violetta blames herself for not intervening when she could have, multiple times at multiple
stages of the mission. We all have our what-ifs, so don’t try to take it away from us. We all carry

the cross equally. We are all equally responsible and suffer together, equally.’

Tomas said, ‘I won’t, I promise,’ still holding her.

Then Helena pushed herself away from Tomas, quickly wiping off her watery eyes, then pulled

Tomas back into the living room by his hand.

Tomas said, ‘Just one more moment alone, please. I’ll be right in.’

She let go of him and went back inside alone.

Funny enough, Violetta noticed both Peter’s broken look and Helena’s slightly watery eyes when

they left the balcony and decided to investigate. Helena saw that Violetta started to head towards

the balcony and almost stopped her because she knew that Tomas asked for a moment alone, but

Charlotte called her name, asking for help, and she decided to let it go. Then Violetta joined

Tomas on the outside balcony and even though he wanted to be alone, Tomas wasn’t annoyed in

the slightest.

‘What were you telling those poor people?’ Violetta asked playfully.

‘Don’t even ask,’ Tomas said, cracking a smile.

Violetta smiled, ‘Am I going to leave here in a similar state?’

Tomas joked, ‘Possibly, if you stay here long enough. I’m not the best company right now.’

‘Has it something to do with them?’ Violetta asked, nodding her head at the crowd in the street.

‘Yes and no.’

‘Let me guess, you’re not going to fight for them again because they wouldn’t fight for you.’
‘So far, so good, but there’s more.’

‘You think there is not enough love out there and no one to truly give it to?’ Tomas nodded his

head yes.

Violetta said, ‘And you’re sure, you have been hurt for so long, you have nothing else left to lose

that you’re willing to sacrifice for them.’ Another nod from Tomas, smiling.

‘So you’re not going to fight for them anymore because they ultimately wouldn’t fight for you

regardless of your sacrifice.’

Tomas said, ‘You’re really good at this; not that I would have any doubt!’ After a shared laugh,

Violetta continued.

‘But this is not why people are leaving your presence out here in ashes, is it?’ she asked more

seriously.

Tomas admitted, ‘It goes a bit deeper, but it is along those lines.’

‘I know, you still haven’t let go of the weight of the world, not fully.’ Tomas made a “perhaps”

face.

‘And you’re so convinced now that compassion is a flaw that you will never again let it show.’

Tomas had no visible response for that so Violetta continued, closely observing him.

Violetta said, ‘You think you have been hurt in a way that no one will ever know.’ Still no

response.

Violetta waited for a moment, but Tomas just gazed into the distance again. Silent admission, she

thought.
Violetta said, ‘Mark my words, one day, the weight of the world will give you the strength to go

once more.’

Tomas turned back to her. ‘I would like to disagree, but I have learned my lesson by now. I’m

usually the one in the wrong… If that is the case, I hope it will be many years from now, and I

will be alone in it.’ Violetta wanted to ask him a question, but Tomas was quicker, so she didn’t

even have to.

‘Because it is pure madness, it’s pointless. It will only lead to more pain for all involved, and

you guys deserve much better.’

‘And so do you, Tomas, so do you.’

They shared a quick hug and joined the rest in the living room shortly after.

Linkin Park – Halfway Right 3:37

“All you said to do was slow down, I remember, now I remember,

All you said to do was slow down - But I was already gone!”

On Violetta’s suggestion, Tomas visited his family in Las Vegas, taking Helena with him. It was

almost two years since his last visit, and Tomas knew that he would have to come clean to them,

as there were many visible scars all around his body and partially to his face. But that was the

point. Violetta thought it would strengthen and bring some peace for Tomas. She was also

confident that they would be fine with it, but left the choice to Tomas to come up with any truth

he wanted.

Tomas came clean about him being the masked man. (Paid in Blood, or PiB, wasn’t really used

at all by anyone as he’d hoped for, not even by Faith.) Naturally, at first they thought he was just
joking, but once Tomas showed his mask and scars, and little of his “theatrics” combat

exhibition, it became obvious. Although Tomas stayed in touch with them and also his dad by

having Skype calls (although no video, blaming it on having no PC camera) every few months,

no one had any idea, not even a suspicion.

Well, they took it better than he thought, to his great relief. Aside from giving him a verbal

beating for doing stupid things like jumping out of the 28th floor with a bomb in his hand, etc.,

they didn’t resent him or anything like it. It would be a stretch to say that his mom or sister were

proud, but it sure made them feel a lot safer with Tomas being around, and perhaps even a bit

arrogant in a way: What are you going to do? You know who my son/brother is? You don’t want

me to tell him about you!

Not that they were conflict-prone people or such, but ever since Tomas’s reveal, there was a

subtle but noticeable change of behaviour and confidence in their interactions with their

surroundings. They felt that if someone ever again did them any harm, they could simply ask

Tomas to have a “talk” with the person as the masked man and the problem would for sure not

only vanish, but perhaps completely transform into some sort of a privilege coming from the

same person that formerly gave them the trouble.

His dad was a bit different. He may have not condemned Tomas either, but wanted to talk about

many things in detail and depth that Tomas refused to talk about, in contrast to his mom and

sister, who didn’t want to hear anything about anything aside from him being well, finished with

his “work”, and taking comfort in his promise that only bad people who deserved it got harmed.

His dad warned Tomas that if there are things that he needs to say to someone but can’t really

say to anyone, it will sooner or later eat his sanity away. To find a person, if not him, that he can
say those things to, even if he doesn’t feel the need just yet. Tomas thanked his dad for his

advice and reassured him that everything was fine with him. His dad wished a speedy recovery

to Gargy, so that the last thing that was still unresolved that would bring Tomas great joy would

come to a conclusion and bring him final peace.

Tomas and Helena stayed for two weeks and in that time, all of Tomas’s family, including his

dad, came to like Helena a lot, advising Tomas to never let go of her and to take good care of

her.

Although his mom and certainly dad could already feel in their bones that some grandchildren

would come their way soon, they were far from the truth. Tomas still had reservations, still felt

that something bad would happen should he take the next step. As much as he was ready to be a

husband and father, he expected for something bad to happen to Helena as soon as he started to

truly love her. So, he fought it, and them back, saying that it was way too soon for that, as they’d

only started to date just a couple months ago.

Helena didn’t mind it at all, although, in her mind, she wasn’t going to let go of Tomas and was

looking forward to surely being his wife in the future.

***

Weeks passed after their return back to Seattle. Then the October 1, 2017, Vegas mass shooting

happened. After Tomas learned that his family was thankfully all right and safe, the shooting

didn’t bother him much – if it wasn’t for Gargy waking up from his coma just two days before,

to everyone’s delight, who was visibly upset about it.

‘What is happening here since we’ve gone off the scene? Are criminals going off totally mad

now? This is terrible!’ Gargy said, commenting on the news they all watched together in the

living room.

The captured footage was truly shocking. Hard to believe. Shooting machine guns into a crowd

like that…

Gargy said, ‘Those poor people. Who would do this? Why?! What a bastard. He’s lucky he’s

already dead!’

All the knights were sickened by it. Even Tomas, who was doing his best not to care, openly

displayed his anger.

‘This can’t be a one-man action though. No way. They are not telling us the whole truth,’ Peter

said, shaking his head.

Tomas grimaced. ‘What a surprise. But one or more shooters doesn’t matter really. The outcome

does.’

Gargy said, ‘Still, I for one want to know the truth. If more people did it, I want to know about

all of them, and their fate. Did the police get them all? Are they holding somebody in custody?

What exactly happened to the shooters if there were more than one, and what were their

motives?’

Peter nodded, ‘So do I. I will do some digging later.’

Later that night, Tomas snuck out to the outside balcony to release some steam. Even though the

luxury penthouse floor that Peter bought had an indoor gym, slowly but surely, Tomas and Peter

pulled some equipment onto the balcony. One rig (multiple monkey bars), a punching bag, and
one squat rack along with some weights and a few dumbbells. There was also a pool, side

jacuzzi, large patio, grilling area, tons of sunbeds, a bar, an open fireplace, along with the fresh

air and sun when there was some. In case of rain, there were also two large clothed extendable

roofs that provided cover and shade to nearly half of the balcony space, if needed.

Tomas truly loved it there; it couldn’t get any better than being on the 44th floor balcony space

with stunning views, fresh air, a pool, and a gym. If it wasn’t for the occasional playing of games

on his PC, he would have spent nearly all his time out there. As did most, to be fair.

That night, Tomas waited for Helena to fully fall asleep first before sneaking out. It was around

3:00 a.m., so he didn’t expect anybody else to be awake.

The anger because of the mass shooting in Vegas built up in him so much that he had to release it

in the only way he knew how. By fucking people up. A punching bag would have to do in this

case. Tomas’s powerful kicks and punches damn near ripped it off the rig, accompanied by his

stifled grunts.

‘Who are you shouting at? Who are you trying to kill?’ Gargy asked, coming out onto the

balcony in his wheelchair.

Although Gargy could walk on his own a bit, he still relied on the wheelchair for traveling longer

distances, as his muscles were atrophied despite Dr Charlottes’ and her sisters’ daily stretching

intervention during his coma, as well as Kupkin’s prescribed exercises to at least maintain his

peripheral nervous system activity. But his motor-locomotion (sensory-producing movement)

was still half-asleep, making it look like Gargy needed to re-learn all movements from scratch.

He also bore slightly visible facial scars, despite the best efforts of Odlew and Sataano, who

fixed his denture, and Patrik, who provided plastic surgery to fix any deformity of his face.
Thankfully, Kupkin’s and Charlotte’s early intervention fully saved his left eye, but the damage

done to his eardrum (nearly blowing his ear off completely) meant that he was almost completely

deaf in his left ear. But it was great to see him awake and moving around while remaining in his

former good spirits, despite it all.

Tomas instantly stopped, a smirk of surprise on his face, and waited a couple seconds to catch

his breath first.

Tomas smiled, ‘I scream at myself when there is no one else to fight.’

Gargy said, ‘I don’t care, you weirdo, who or what you are grunting at. Just do it at a reasonable

time you, you…’

‘You what?’ Tomas asked, grinning, expecting a funny insult.

Gargy said, ‘You brute!’ Both laughed.

‘Oh, shut up! Not that you could hear me anyway! Not only is the soundproofing spotless in this

place, all you have to do now is roll onto your right side, and you’re sorted!’ Tomas laughed,

waving his arm at Gargy.

Tomas started to pound the bag again, expecting more banter to come soon.

‘Oh, is that right? And now you also want to show off to a cripple on top of that? How

insensitive! Oh, the humanity!’ Gargy could barely keep a straight face, laughing at his own

drama.

That cracked Tomas up, and he had to stop the pounding momentarily.

‘But seriously now, I’m sorry about…that,’ Tomas said, indicating the wheelchair, almost

looking ashamed.
Gargy nonchalantly, ‘It’s okay, really. It’s not that bad, considering. And you’re welcome.’

Tomas nodded back at Gargy in respect and acceptance. He knew that most likely he would be

six feet under if it wasn’t for Gargy rushing to save him initially before the rest joined the rescue

action, Lubos paying the ultimate price for it.

After a momentary silence, Tomas started to pound into the bag again.

Gargy stated, ‘You’re pissed about Vegas, is that it?’

‘Yeah. I’ve got to let off some steam or I’ll go mad,’ Tomas said, still casually pounding into the

bag.

Gargy said, ‘I’d join you if I was fully cleared by Dr Charlotte.’

That made Tomas chuckle and stop the pounding again.

‘Anyway, what are you really doing here at this hour?’ Tomas asked, still catching his breath,

turning towards Gargy.

Gargy noticed that Tomas looked more exhausted than usual doing that kind of activity, but

didn’t pay any attention to it yet.

‘Couldn’t sleep. I know that you guys already had some time to adjust to the fact that Lubos is

gone, but for me, this is still new. It’s hard to believe that he’s not around anymore. I miss him.’

Tomas said, ‘We all do, trust me.’ He lost his smile in a serious expression, then he prepared to

strike the bag again.

Gargy said, ‘As I said, you guys already had time to adjust.’
It was a signal to Tomas that Gargy had something to get off his chest. He left the bag alone, just

standing next to it, and expected Gargy to say something while looking at him. Instead, a

momentary silence ensued again. No one really wanted to continue that conversation, but Tomas

lost the need to beat up the bag and recognized that Gargy may just need company.

They both sat on a sofa close to the electric fireplace and turned it on. Stars were up above, a

gentle breeze was in the air and the beautiful view of the city skyline accompanied both. The

subtle noise of the fire and occasional wave splashing against the side of the pool was super-

relaxing. They just sat there inhaling the comfort for a moment.

Gargy asked, ‘So, did you win or what?’

‘What?’ Tomas didn’t get it.

Gargy said, ‘The bag. Did you beat it up, or did it beat YOU up?’ He pointed towards it,

referring to Tomas’s unusual exhausted state.

Tomas laughed, ‘Oh. I don’t win, buddy; not anymore.’ There was a small pause. ‘I don’t lose

either,’ Tomas said in a really thoughtful, almost hurt way.

Gargy said, ‘You almost make it sound bad. Why is that a bad thing?’

‘Ahhh, you know, it’s always someone else that suffers the consequences of my failures, but not

me. Somehow, I never lose,’ Tomas said, waving his hand in defiance.

‘And that is a bad thing how?

Tomas said, ‘Sometimes it’s harder to not lose yourself, if you know someone else is going to

lose because of you.’

‘Oh, so even though you personally don’t lose, you’re still somehow a victim. What a surprise!’
‘You know me. It’s just like when I’m wrong. In my head, I’m still halfway right.’

That made Gargy laugh, nodding his head in agreement, even clapping his hands for a moment in

accuracy of that statement.

Gargy said, ‘Typical you,’ still laughing.

They both got quiet for a moment and Tomas got more serious. Gargy instantly recognized this

moment; he knew it well by now. Tomas was about to open up a bit to him again.

Tomas said, ‘Back in China, not long after I joined the martial arts clubs and met Chen, we went

out one day with a few other guys. “Street squatters” with no real future. At least, not in China.

But Chen knew them and I wanted to fit in. I could have won two or three street fights by that

point. Felt indestructible, confident. Girls were all over us and we borrowed a car from one of

them.’ He paused. ‘You know, I never did drugs or drank alcohol.’ He turned to Gargy with a

serious look.

‘Yeah?’

‘Well, I did that night. Marijuana and loads of vodka, which I tried to suppress by overeating. It

was the first and the last time. I got kind of high, and probably also drunk, which only increased

my massive ego and I wanted to show off in front of the girls.’

‘What happened?’

Tomas said, ‘Not much, really. I crashed the car with the girls in it and sent them to the hospital.

Chen didn’t go with us; he tried to stop me. He always used to say that I needed to slow down. In

regard to my street fights and in general. That I burned too bright and I would never last at that
pace. Kind of like you were always saying to me, one way or another…’ There was a momentary

silence.

Tomas said, ‘It makes perfect sense now, but it was bullshit then and I just laughed at him. Like,

“what does he know”? Chen said that I will lose all if I lose control, but I couldn’t see it like that

back then.’ Another pause.

‘All I had to do was to slow down, like he said. I remember, now I remember.’ Another pause.

‘In one ear and out the other.’

Shaking his head in disbelief, looking really sad, Tomas said, ‘I was already gone.’

Gargy wanted to say something to alleviate the situation, but nothing sensible came to his mind.

Tomas said, ‘I woke up in the damn crashed car still driving it! Never knew where I had been

that night or where the rest of them were. I knew I took it too far. Never knew that I sent them

into hospital, while I had not a scratch on me.

‘I don’t win, I don’t lose. If I’m wrong, I’m halfway right!’ He was angry with himself.

‘All I had to do was slow down.’ Looking back at Gargy, Tomas said, ‘You tried to tell me the

same thing in different ways so many times before. Now I can see, now I remember!’ Now the

anger was visible on his face.

‘You tried to slow me down, not to go headfirst after Velicenko into an obvious trap. Peter and

the other knights did too!’ Now he was looking into the distance in shame, glitter in his eyes.

Tomas said, ‘You all tried to tell me, but man…I was already gone. Now look at me. I’m lucky

not to be sitting here all alone.’ His eyes nearly watered.

‘It won’t change the fact that I caused all of this.’ He collected himself again.

Gargy was about to protest that it wasn’t only Tomas’s fault, but Tomas remembered what

Helena told him first.

Tomas raised his hand to stop him. ‘I know, I know, it’s not only my fault. But, all I had to do

was slow down and things could have been different. But I was already gone!’ He punched his

own right temple twice, manifesting frustration with his stupid decisions.

Then Tomas became silent and Gargy saw the pain in his eyes for the second time in his life. The

first time was after Tomas “broke”. This was a different pain, almost sadder to see.

‘I hope that Chen and Ho are okay and didn’t meet Mike’s, I mean DiBi’s, fate,’ Tomas said,

realizing that Gargy knew Mike as DiBi. ‘Or Lubos’s…’

Again, Gargy wanted to say something, the truth, he knew about Chen’s fate from Peter who told

him, but didn’t want to add another injury on already obviously troubled mind.

‘I’m sure glad you came back to sit next to me again,’ Tomas said, looking at Gargy and

extending his hand for a handshake. Gargy just waved at it and extended both of his hands for a

hug, forcing Tomas to stand up and lean down, as Gargy was sitting on the sofa unable to stand

up himself. The first hug they ever shared, despite how close friends they felt they had become

for a little over two years now.

Gargy said, ‘Glad you have Helena now. Smart move.’ He made an expression of approval.

Tomas asked, ‘Do I? Was it?’

‘What do you mean?!’ Gargy looked confused.

Tomas said, ‘It feels off, wrong. I know something bad will happen to her, or me, if we stay

together. I just hope it will not be because of me, or me hurting her.’

‘I think you’re just paranoid,’ Gargy said lightly, but only to hide his real concern. Tomas

seemed “changed” since last time he could remember. A lot more vulnerable.

Gargy had to make a mental note for himself to tell Violetta about his concerns for Tomas first

opportunity he got.

‘I wouldn’t be surprised. I’m only halfway right at the very best, remember?’ They shared a fake

laugh.

Gargy said, ‘Now go to sleep! It’s my turn on the bag.’

Tomas said, ‘Oh yeah? And how would that work exactly? You can’t even take a few steps

unassisted.’ Kupkin and Charlotte gave Gargy two weeks minimum until he would have enough

strength and locomotion back to be fully independent again, with possibly up to a year before

regaining his full combat capability. Not that he wanted or needed it back, so there was no rush.

It was just a reflection point for Gargy’s overall fitness capabilities as a whole, in comparison to

his present state.

‘Can’t I?’ Gargy winked. ‘I kind of like the attention and care that I get from everyone; why

spoil it?’

‘I knew it! You lazy, cunning bastard!’ Tomas shook his head in disbelief at first, then in

approval while showing Gargy thumbs up as he went back into the penthouse.

Of course, Tomas thought it was just banter, but because of the tone in which Gargy said it,

Tomas momentarily paused and turned around to look back to see whether Gargy was punching
the bag. As crazy as it was, and would be against the “angel” image that Gargy had, he did come

out of coma just recently. If nothing else, Gargy did earn the care and attention, even if he didn’t

really need it anymore. But then he saw Gargy just sitting on the sofa, enjoying the view and air.

Of course it was just banter, Tomas thought to himself.

What he didn’t see was that Gargy truly tried to do some work on the bag himself a little bit

later, but was way too weak to do more than a couple of slow punches. It was too soon.
o Chapter 2: New Glow of Fire

Linkin Park – Burn It Down 3:51

“The colors conflicted, as the flames climbed into the clouds.

I wanted to fix this but couldn't stop from tearing it down.”

Just seven days had passed since the Vegas shooting and Peter found out all about it. To his great

disappointment, it was a failed job allowed by the governor of Nevada, Lisa Scott-Cunningham,

and orchestrated by the FBI. The FBI and some Mexican cartels were supposed to trade

weapons. The FBI used one of their agents as the middleman and planned to detain the cartel

members as soon as the sale had taken place. It was an honest, good job, really. Except, it did go

horribly wrong and the cartels knew about the mole, killing him before starting to shoot into the

crowds to create a situation for their escape and to send a message to the FBI not to mess with

them in the future.

The FBI failed miserably to react adequately, or save their own agent, and resorted to sweeping it

under the carpet instead, sacrificing the agent in the process as the scapegoat.

The governor knew all about it, and even came herself with the suggestion of a lone shooter so

she could use it in her personal agenda against banning all guns, which she was opposing

strongly. But more importantly, she and the FBI could keep their place and comfortable jobs. If

the public found out about their mutual incompetence to protect the public during their own

missions, heads would be rolling. Instead, the governor opted without hesitation for hiding the

truth and sweeping it under the carpet in an instant, suggesting this wasn’t her first time reaching

a decision of such nature.

Needless to say, all the knights were pretty disgusted once they found out the truth. It’s one thing

to fail, but to cover it up and even fabricate a story, and sacrificing their own guy just so the

governor could use it in her own agenda and the FBI keep its face, was completely another.

Tomas said, ‘What an absolute bitch and cowards! Oh man, when I tell this to my mom and

sister, they will go mental. I think they may have even voted for that bitch!’

Peter said, ‘Yet again the world seems to be the way you described it to us, Tomas. One would

have hoped that it was only down to chance, but the evidence is piling up. We really didn’t aim

high enough.’

Tomas said, ‘Well, to be honest. It’s not like she is evil. She’s just incompetent, like the FBI, and

spineless enough to blame the innocent.’

Violetta and Gargy said, ‘Agreed,’ simultaneously.

Peter said, ‘I wish it was that simple. But you don’t know the whole story yet.’

Tomas asked, ‘Which is?’

Peter said, ‘That the cartels and the FBI were trading weapons since forever, with the knowledge

and the approval of the governor.’

Violetta said, ‘What?’

There were a lot of surprised faces around.

Peter said, ‘Yes, it’s true. The FBI was selling undercover weapons to the cartels in exchange for

gathering intelligence on the cartels and their bosses for years. Not only did Governor

Cunningham know about it, she directly received money from the cartels after the trade took

place. Not into the state budget, but into her personal account. The FBI’s unofficial thank-you.’
Everybody was listening closely.

Peter moaned. ‘Now the juicy part.’

Gargy asked, ‘There’s more?’

Peter said, ‘It turns out that she was the mole.’

Charlotte asked, ‘What do you mean?’

Peter said, ‘She was the one that warned the cartels about the FBI planning to arrest them this

time.’

Tomas said, ‘So because she didn’t want to lose the juicy income from the weapons deals, she

simply warned the cartels what was happening?’

Gargy said, ‘But she would lose the income anyway. It’s not like the cartels would trade again

with anyone in Nevada in the near future. Why do it then?’

‘That’s right,’ Tomas acknowledged.

Peter said, ‘It’s because of that reason that she decided to at least milk it for what was left. She

has an ambition to become president one day, and she felt that being on the anti-gun side,

strongly opposing the Second Amendment, would give her the highest chance to gain enough

public support.’

Charlotte said, ‘But she couldn’t know the cartels would shoot into the crowd.’

Peter looked down. ‘But she did.’

Everyone gasped.
Peter said, ‘It’s hard to believe, but not only did she warn the cartels about the FBI, she contacted

them via a third person some time ago in order to create another source of income for herself,

and support in the future election. She sent a loud and clear message to the cartels that she will

protect their interests on US soil as long as they support her in the elections via money and any

“other means necessary” to climb as high as possible on the political ladder. It would be very

beneficial for the cartel to have an ally in the White House, and for Cunningham, to have allies

that would easily kill for her in order to climb that ladder if necessary.’

People were shaking their heads in disbelief.

Peter said, ‘While the FBI trade was taking place without a threat, both parties were happy.

Meaning the cartels and Cunningham were happy to keep it that way. The cartels knew the

person on the inside that should protect them if the FBI tried something. Cunningham was

getting paid generously and building up her reputation with the cartels in general. Once the FBI

announced their intentions to bag the cartels, she not only warned them, she also proposed to

make such a mess that the FBI couldn’t go public with the truth in order to keep their face,

instead, organizing it in such a way that it would also benefit her position, allowing her to climb

higher along the political ladder and the cartels along with her. It was she who basically ordered

the cartels to kill as many people as possible.’

The knights were sickened by what they heard.

Tomas said, ‘But this could still mean she is just a single bad apple. Not that the whole system is

corrupt.’

‘I can’t believe this clown is making more sense than you Peter. What has this world come to

whilst I was gone?’ Gargy trying to add some banter.

Peter simply continued, ‘Except, that the CIA is protecting and financing the cartels in Mexico

against the Mexican government to keep the drug industry under their control, which finances

most of our military budget. On the command of multiple politicians sitting in the US Senate and

generals that are being paid for by even more influential people that are mostly from the financial

sector.

‘The inner fight between the cartels is really just an inner fight for more influence/power of

people sitting in the US Senate and high-ranking bankers. Cunningham is just one of those

people that are trying to gain more power within an established corrupted system.

‘It’s not that no one else knew about Cunningham being a mole; everyone knew! Everyone that

is high enough to at least attempt to struggle for more power. If anything, they’re not sickened by

what she’s done, they are rather impressed! Jealous even that they didn’t come up with such an

idea themselves. Now she’s built up enough confidence on the Democratic side that she could

win the next presidential elections against the president. Enough that I can tell you right now

with full confidence, she will be the presidential candidate of the Democratic party for the next

elections.’

Dr Charlotte said, ‘I think I will be sick.’

Peter said, ‘I’ll just finish it quickly so you know the whole story.’

Violetta said in surprise, ‘There’s more?!’

Peter continued, ‘All of it was only possible because of the people that really pull the strings high

above the US president and the Senate, possibly the Federal Reserve Bank owners, that

Cunningham was allowed to do this. That is where the idea to pull against the Second

Amendment came from. They want to disarm the populace. They don’t care who’s in charge in
the eyes of the people. Because Cunningham is a woman and a mother, they feel that the people

will now support her because of what happened, and since she is going heavily for the

disarmament, that she is given this chance. And it is all going according to her plan; they are

genuinely impressed.

‘But truthfully, those people above only laugh at the “worms” beneath them eating one another

in a fight for more power, because they already know that they will be on top forever. They own

everything and everybody to such a scale that they all would have to lose power at the same

time. Achievable only with the people rising up against the established system on a massive

scale, unthinkable. They own all of our money. The money owns everybody and everything. It’s

only a question of price, which is not a problem if you have unlimited money. It is disgusting.

‘We only hit at small fish trying to swim with the sharks before. To the sharks, it doesn’t matter

which of the fishes are gone, they’re still on top, laughing as the fish eat one another for a chance

to swim with them as a wingman, not as equal or above them. THAT, they would never allow.’

Helena said, ‘I will be sick too.’ Tomas pulled her closer to his body, comforting her.

There was a momentary silence.

Gargy asked, ‘And you know this how exactly?’

‘Because I did what I didn’t want to do but had to in order to find the real truth. I contacted the

fish that swims with the sharks as a wingman.’

Violetta said, ‘Our former benefactor?’

Tomas, Gargy, and Cop all said, ‘Matty?’ simultaneously.

Peter confirmed, ‘Yes, Matty.’

Tomas said, ‘I thought you didn’t trust him anymore.’

‘I don’t trust for him to be associating with us anymore. Although I don’t believe that he would

ever tell on us to his masters willingly, or we would all most likely be dead already. I just simply

don’t trust him enough that he will not break should he be tortured in order to reveal us if we

become important enough.

‘But he’s not a liar. Never was, never will be. And he’s almost a shark, to know what’s up.

Everything I was able to find on my own supports what he told me. I have no reason to think

otherwise. It is what it is, a disgusting, corrupted world of fish preying on each other in order to

swim with sharks one day, and only allows the fish to become their wingman if they are in

control of enough of the other fish that support them. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship, but

already established. Only a real shark can be a shark in the future. The fish are useful pawns at

the very best.’

An awkward silence ensued. Just one dig into the affairs of the “high enough” people confirmed

what Tomas was saying all along, at a time when even he thought he was just too pessimistic in

the past, and in the wrong. ‘It couldn’t possibly be that bad.’ But it was.

‘We can’t just let this go,’ Gargy said, looking at Peter and Tomas especially.

But there was no answer, just avoided looks.

Gargy said, ‘You can’t be serious!’

Tomas asked, ‘What is there to do?’

But Gargy had no answer to that.

Peter said, ‘There is no point in going to kill someone. Who? Cunningham? She’s just one of

many, quickly to be replaced by another waiting for his or her chance. And she’s a mother…’

Gargy looked at Violetta first, then Tomas.

Tomas said, ‘I agree, there is not much that we could achieve but to endanger ourselves. Imagine

how the public would react if we showed up alive, and the first thing we do is kill their beloved

“golden girl” that tried to stop the violence, the mass shootings, and who was a role model

mother for many. We would be committing suicide. And not just that, we would wipe out

whatever good that some of the public thinks we did in the past. For what?!’

Violetta said, ‘I agree, but I also agree with Gargy that this can’t simply be swept under the

carpet.’

Peter said, ‘We should just wait. The guard, Jesus Campos, that had supposedly been shot in the

leg by Paddock, can still talk. He’s Cunningham’s guy. She paid him in order to support the

official story – with the full knowledge of the FBI, by the way. But he could get scared that he

will be the next one thrown under the bus, because there are many holes in his story being

uncovered. Perhaps he will sing, and things will solve themselves without us doing anything.’

Gargy asked incredulously, ‘You trust the legal and justice system now?!’

Peter said, ‘I trust in the fish that is ready to eat the other fish as soon as it sees the opportunity to

become the shark’s wingman themselves. Cunningham will be eaten away by her fish-enemies at

the first opportunity. As soon as the shark ceases to see her as useful, as soon as they stop

supporting and protecting her. If she gets exposed by Campos, I’m sure the FBI will throw her

under the bus instead, and the public outrage will be so great that I’m sure she will get life in

prison instead of being the president of the USA.’

Tomas said, ‘That would work for me.’

Gargy said, ‘I guess it is worth it to wait.’ But his dissatisfaction was present in his voice.

Violetta asked, ‘Why don’t you try to expose her with your evidence?’

‘What evidence? I got hold of some communication between the FBI and Cunningham about the

weapons trades that she knew about. That’s all. Then she and some people in the Senate talking

about if she manages to push an anti-gun agenda well enough, she will become the next

Democratic candidate for the presidential elections. Nothing too incriminating that couldn’t be

easily spun around because it was all coded messaging. Everything else is from Matty, who

confirmed it.’

Tomas said, ‘Why did you contact Matty then? How did you know something was off?’

Peter said, ‘I will not go too much in depth, because there is a lot that doesn’t make sense in the

official version. What I know really happened made it look like a simple FBI fuck-up that

needed to be covered up. Why would the cartels start to shoot up random people after killing the

FBI’s middleman, Paddock? Why would they stage it as a one-man shooter thing? Why risk

being caught by the police in the process because of that? Why not leave in peace and quiet?

Revenge for the FBI’s trick? I don’t think so.

‘For the cartels, it’s all business in the first place after all. There is no other agenda. So, why

make such a mess and stage it as one-man shooter, when it was obvious it will only be easier for

the FBI to simply just sweep it under a carpet and make patsy out of Paddock? Why not shoot up

the people and their man, make it visible to the public that there were multiple shooters and

leaving “Fuck You FBI” note on the doors? That would be harder for the FBI to “explain”. A

revenge for spoiling up their business for them.’

Gargy said, ‘True that.’

‘So I reached out to the person that I knew would most likely have some insights on it, despite

me saying to him not to ever contact me again. I wanted the truth that bad, and all he said made

perfect sense out of it.

‘Then, I dug into the Democratic Party’s and Cunningham’s communication deeper and found

out about them telling her that if her anti-gun agenda worked well enough with the people, she

would be the next presidential candidate. On top of that, a message about them being rather

impressed with her “solution” on how to create a real situation that would press the public

against the gun laws. Not mentioning what exactly it was, but we know from Matty what it was.’

Violetta asked, ‘Why not ask Matty to give us the evidence so we can expose her? We could

always pass this to Faith Goldie and I’m sure she would get the ball rolling.’

‘What evidence? All Matty knows is from the chats that the sharks have among themselves.

What is he going to ask for? Prove it to him that what they say is not out of their ass? Why? So

that he’s got blackmail material on them and her? He would be dead within a week by just asking

for such a thing, never mind him ever having real contact with any potential evidence against

them. There is no reason to believe that they are making up stories about the smaller fishes doing

things to get among them so that they can be impressed by them. It is simply that way, it makes

perfect sense.’

Charlotte said, ‘I guess we’ll have to hope that Campos will get scared and start to talk.’

Peter agreed, ‘I guess we’ll have to.’

However, Jesus Campos didn’t expose anybody. He vanished a few days after instead,

presumably killed to keep his mouth shut. That, of course, was very dissatisfying for everyone in

the Agency, what was left of it.

Linkin Park – Bleed it Out 2:44

“Fuck, this hurts, I won't lie, doesn't matter how hard I try.

Half the words don't mean a thing - and I know that I won't be satisfied.”

Various voices stated their opinion that something should be done, but it wasn’t even clear what

should be done and who would do it. Tomas and Peter were really reluctant to even talk about it,

and it was mostly Gargy who wanted some action to be taken. But what to do anyway? The

cartel soldiers who shot up people in Vegas were long gone to Mexico, laying low. Governor

Cunningham was out of the question, for now. Because she was a woman, a mother, and directly

didn’t kill anyone herself, nor did she come up with anything like the mass-shooting event before

Vegas. She may never have, if it wasn’t for her greed and ambition.

And despite the despicable event in Vegas, she hadn’t capitalized on it enough for her to climb

that political ladder. Her public, and consequently political support, started to diminish. It was

becoming clear that she would stay where she was, presumably to learn from her mistakes.

Although there were those in the Agency that voiced she should be shot for what she essentially

staged and provoked, neither Peter, nor Tomas, nor even Gargy, who was most adamant that

something needed to be done, were willing to kill her.

A huge factor in that was also because if it came out that the former Justice and Truth League

was alive and killed her, they would be hunted and hated, and if not, she would most likely be
portrayed by the media as a martyr who fought against gun violence, possibly strengthening the

position against the Second Amendment. It simply wasn’t worth it. There was no win condition,

she had to walk.

Gargy proposed to at least go give her a warning, tell her that she will be killed if she doesn’t

come out with the truth. But that was quickly dismissed by Violetta, stating that Cunningham

would certainly rather die a martyr and a hero to the people and her 14-year-old daughter than to

live as a villain in prison.

Then Gargy proposed to warn her to just resign instead, but that was also dismissed by Violetta.

Cunningham would most likely expose the fact that the League was alive and was threatening

her life because of the guns. Again, there was no win scenario talking to her either.

Then Gargy proposed to instead reveal themselves again in Nevada, if possible, so that for one,

Cunningham would find out that the League was alive and would get scared to do anything to

upset them, and two, most likely other scum would too. The crime rate in the USA as a whole

would certainly drop rapidly again, as before, once the League announced their presence. The

public cried for them to come back not that long ago, when many still believed that they were

alive. If the state was going after them, the public would surely be outraged, for the most part.

But more importantly, the Agency wouldn’t have to actively hunt like before, trying to wipe out

some crime syndicate again, as there was no point really. Just to hit now and then really blatant

evil or something that was publicized enough for more exposure. Their presence alone would

keep the crime rate low and that was worth it.

***
After long debate stretching across multiple days, the Agency decided to do something again, to

reveal their presence. Tomas had one condition though. Because he was the most visible part of

the Agency and the one who did most of the dirty work, he would have to ask for permission

from his dad and mom first. He’d already got Helena’s, as they were planning their future

together before this.

Charlotte tried to dismiss the idea of Tomas returning to action, revealing for the first time

openly that Tomas would never recover from his chest wound completely because she was

forced to perform a pneumonectomy, a surgical removal of almost the whole of his left lung, or

what was left of it after the 20 mm round went through it.

That instantly explained why Tomas looked unusually out of breath loads of times. No one really

paid too much attention to it, blaming it on the wound, but no one except the Phillips sisters and

Tomas, of course, really knew how bad it was, nor that they had to remove almost his whole left

lung, meaning it was permanent.

Peter asked Dr Charlotte, ‘Why didn’t you tell us this before?’

Charlotte said, ‘No one really asked before,’ making them almost ashamed of themselves. But it

was understandable, considering there was a lot of concern around for a lot of people, especially

comatose Gargy.

Peter turned to Tomas. ‘Why didn’t you tell us?’

‘I didn’t think it was that important. I mean, I’m fine, look at me. And I never thought I would

consider going into action again anyway.’

Charlotte explained, ‘He’s got a reoccurring burning sensation in his chest, and I know he’s

secretly been taking second chance now and then because of it.’ Tomas got the expression of a

deer in the headlights. Stunned for a moment.

Peter asked, ‘Is this true?’

Violetta pressed, ‘Tomas?’

All eyes were on Tomas.

‘Yes, it is. I don’t deny anything. I didn’t think it was that important. So I took some now and

then to kill the pain, So what? It’s not like I never used it before on my own. I didn’t want to

bother Dr Charlotte with it, nor try to hide it. I just did it, not placing too much importance on it.

It will surely pass later on, and I will simply not need it anymore,’ Tomas admitted, almost

defensively, but it made sense to a lot of people, all things considered.

Tomas said, ‘I didn’t think we would still need it for action, I understand that we can’t produce

any more of it and the stock is limited.’ He was trying to deflect away from the addictive part of

the drug, turning it to another angle before Charlotte could point that out, as was her original

intention. Now even she was convinced that Tomas had no issue, it was just what he said, a

harmless necessity.

There was no reason for anyone to doubt whether Tomas was telling the truth; it made perfect

sense. But he already knew deep inside that the addiction had developed enough for him to miss

the drug even when he didn’t have the burning pains inside his chest. But he kept that to himself,

confident that he could easily control himself not to abuse it. Self-discipline was one of Tomas’s

strong points.
Peter said, ‘Of course it’s not bothering us, Tomas. You can tell us anything that troubles you. In

fact, we want to know! I know that you like to deal with many things alone and in your own way,

and I’m perfectly fine with that, for the record. But don’t say “I didn’t want to bother you”. I’m

sure I’m speaking for everyone here and the Agency as a whole that we will be very happy to

help you with anything that you allow us to help you with.’ Everyone nodded their heads in

agreement and said yes.

Tomas didn’t respond.

Peter said, ‘Okay, we’ll make sure that you have other kinds of painkillers whenever needed, and

under the supervision of any of the Phillips sisters. For now, I will personally go check what the

situation is with the stock and will have to start rationing it heavily, for action only, if we decide

to do something.’

That was the whole of it for the meantime, leaving Tomas to do what he needed to do first. After

Tomas told his mom and dad what Peter found out about the Vegas shooting and what the

Agency wanted to achieve and how, he got their blessing.

***

All the remnants of the former Agency that accepted the invitation for a meeting gathered in the

penthouse. As the discussion for what needed to be done started, Tomas seemed to be rather

passive; not enthusiastic, to put it mildly. People noticed.

Violetta said, ‘We don’t want you to feel forced into this, Tomas. You can still say no if it

doesn’t feel right.’

You could see heads nodding and hear “yeah” across all of the penthouse.
Tomas said, ‘We talked about this; something needs to be done. And there is no one else that

would be recognized instantly as a former League member but me. No offence. If I show up,

people will know that we’re back. It has to be me.’

Gargy offered, ‘I, or Peter, could dress like you. You are a “mask” for the most part, after all.’

Tomas said, ‘You’re a sniper; I can’t snipe to cover your back. Peter, with all due respect, is

nowhere near as good a gun kata master as I am. His movement across space is a lot different,

recognizably.’

Peter said, ‘It may not matter. They saw all three of us already in Velicenko’s residence.’

Tomas said, ‘But again, with all due respect, the syndicates are scared of the masked man for the

most part. If they see me alive, they will know my friends must be too; that will hopefully scare

the shit out of them. If they see only you, they may still think that the masked man is dead, and

not too much may change. Again, with all due respect.’

Peter said, ‘No offence taken, I agree. It still doesn’t mean you have to do it for the most effect.

It could still be just me as the ground man with Gargy covering me for a lesser effect. It would

still have meaning.’

Tomas said, ‘If you think that I’d let you risk your life so I could chicken out now, fully knowing

that you will not achieve maximum effect of what you’re trying to do, you’re mistaken. I have no

choice.’

Violetta said, ‘But this is what we’re trying to say and offer to you. Yes, you do have a choice.

Don’t feel obliged, we understand.’

Again, you could see heads nodding and hear “yeah” across all of the penthouse.
Tomas said, ‘No, I would not let you do this alone. We are family. We all get exposed and

endangered again if this goes ahead. I would not let you risk all of this for anything less than the

maximum effect. It must be me. It will be me, if we go ahead with this.’

Peter said, ‘Perhaps another discussion would be in order then. It is obvious that you’re reluctant

to do this, and rather feel forced into it. That changes what I personally want to do.’

Tomas said, ‘No, we’ve already had long, thorough discussions. The result is clear. We need to

do something, I agree. Therefore, I should really just shut up and do as I’m told. It has to be me,

it has to be Gargy who covers my back, and it has to be Peter who plans it, acts as a backup, and

is in command with Violetta. That’s what works best, we know that. I apologize if I’m acting

reluctant.’

He paused.

‘I just feel like I’m being sucked into it again. But before you say anything, it’s just me being

me. It has to be done, and I need to be there with you. I just need to deal with it in my own head.

But I want this too, I do. Something needs to be done and this is the only way.’

Peter said, ‘Okay that does it for me. We will not take any action until you’re absolutely sure that

you want to do it without any hesitation. And for us to know for sure, I propose that you must

have an open chat about it with Violetta first.’ He looked for Violetta’s approval; she nodded

yes.

Tomas started, ‘But –’

Peter interrupted, ‘But what? It’s me and Violetta who have to make decisions, just as much as it

is you who needs to be the point man, right?’

Tomas said, ‘Right. You’re right.’ Tomas said looked at Violetta. ‘I guess now is as good a time

as any. Let’s do it.’

Everybody dispersed to give Tomas and Violetta some space. After a while they went, where

else, onto the balcony, for total privacy. It was also a calming place for Tomas, as Violetta knew

very well.

Violetta asked, ‘So, where do you want to start?’

Tomas said, ‘I have no idea.’

‘Come on, help me here a bit, open up once again for me.’

‘Not sure about that. There is nothing that you wouldn’t know already.’

‘Really?’

‘Nothing that I think you would think is important, I guess.’

Violetta said, ‘Okay, how about the reluctancy, let’s start there. Why? I mean, we totally know

why, and you don’t have to do anything ever again, but you will not let us go without you.’

Tomas said, ‘Don’t know, really. It’s just, I’m really torn between wanting to do something and

not going into action again at all. You know why I don’t want to do any of…that…anymore, but

on the other hand, I do see why you guys want to. I kind of want to too. It’s complicated.’

‘Okay, that’s a start. Now we will look more closely at why you “kind of” want to. I know why

you don’t already.’ Violetta said, still very casually, trying her best to disperse any potential

tension or stress. Even having a slight smile on her face, although it was serious things they were

about to talk about.

Tomas said, ‘I want to make them pay for what they do to us, to people, and not only getting

away with it scot-free, even laughing about it. And that is a fact.’

Violetta said, ‘Who? Cunningham? The corrupt senators? The bankers? They will not be the

target.’

‘Exactly.’

‘Okay, there it is. We will do nothing at all then.’

Tomas said, ‘No, we have to. I’ll just have to flip a switch again I guess, and not think about it

all too much. We just need to show our presence as a start, after all.’

Violetta asked, ‘Flip a switch?’

Tomas said, ‘You must have noticed. The me that needs to do something and suffers later for it,

and the me that enjoys it and can’t wait until the next action. There is no in between for me.

Either I fall apart inside for the things that I have done or I’m in the rage and do things that are

unspeakable. Yet, in that moment, I thrive and enjoy every second of it. It’s like having a sweet,

sweet revenge, but then regret the way I did it, being ashamed for what I was capable of, and

sometimes even that I did it in the first place. The nightmares that come and I pretend to never

have. That I don’t ever want to stop having, to remind me that I’m still human. Sort of.’

Violetta said, ‘You don’t believe that you have a split personality, do you? You know it’s a real

condition, not some psychological hocus-pocus.’

Tomas said, ‘I don’t know, honestly. Sometimes I think that maybe I do have a split personality;

that would explain the massive mood swings. What do you think?’
Violetta said, ‘Absolutely not. No, you don’t. You’re the same person experiencing different

states of emotional balance. PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder. You’re a textbook case, which

is totally understandable, and not something out of the ordinary for people that have been

subjected to true violence in its purest form. Not something that would require you to be put into

the “crazy people box” as you would call it, nor that you’re necessarily a danger to yourself or

others. At least I don’t think so. You have shown tremendous progress since your PTSD’s peak.

In fact, I personally would be more worried about you if you didn’t.’

Tomas said, ‘I would beg to differ.’

‘Beg you a pardon?’

‘I am absolutely still a danger to others that happen to be on my bad side. I still want to hurt

them no matter how hard I try to convince myself that it is pointless and it will only cause me

more pain in the future. My other “me” still wants to crush their heads against a wall, tear their

ribcage open and rip their heart out with my bare hands.’ He said it calmly, but with some voice

projection.

Violetta said, ‘And then you bleed it out.’

‘What?’

‘A metaphor, for letting the pain out.’

Violetta expected Tomas to respond but he stayed silent, so she continued. ‘Ever hear about

people physically hurting themselves?’

‘You mean self-harming? Yes.’

Violetta said, ‘It’s a coping mechanism. A way of coping with or expressing overwhelming

emotional distress. The intention is more often to punish themselves, express their distress, or

relieve unbearable tension. Sometimes it’s a mixture of all three.’

‘And the point is?’

‘The point is that it doesn’t always have to manifest physically in actual physical self-harm,

where the people are literally trying to “bleed it out” to feel better. It could just be an emotional

bleeding out. You finally let go of all the suppression of emotions and “bleed out” the tension

emotionally.’

Tomas asked, ‘You mean crying?’

Violetta said, ‘That’s the most basic coping mechanism, but when the PTSD is much deeper, it is

much deeper emotionally. It’s when you may even cry, but it doesn’t feel like it is helping much,

or at all. It may even come without actual tears at that point, the anxiety is a lot deeper and lasts

longer. Often, forever. One will simply have to learn techniques on how to suppress it, from

people like me. Otherwise, suicide is quite likely to happen. Or life will be a lot gloomier than it

has to be. All because of something that happened in the past, decades ago, sometimes a lifetime.

We still use the term of “bleeding it out” in our circles to describe it. Bleeding it out techniques

are a tool to help, and we don’t mean to open your veins up.’ She added a genuine laugh to

elevate the gloomy discussion.

Tomas said, ‘Okay, that’s deep. I will have to bleed it out. I will bleed it out!’ A moment of

silence ensued for a moment, as Violetta wanted to leave Tomas enough time to reflect on it.

Tomas said, ‘I guess I will have to simply dig deeper and bleed it out later. Just to throw it

away…’
Violetta said, ‘I think I know what you mean by “digging deeper”, but what do you mean, “just

to throw it away”? Could you elaborate?’

‘It’s a metaphor, for doing it most likely in vain,’ Tomas said, adding a sad smile. ‘But it has to

happen. It must happen! I want to. I’ll bleed it out.’

Violetta said, ‘Not if you think it’s in vain. I will not let that happen to you.’

Tomas said, ‘So make me believe it’s not in vain, make me believe that it will make a difference.

Find me a target worth the sacrifice. Worth digging deeper. Find me a way to hurt that bitch

Cunningham, any way possible.’

Violetta said, ‘I’ll let Peter know your condition. I’m sure that is what he had in mind anyway.

He will find something; he always does. She will pay one way or another, now that we’re back,

sort of.’

Violetta left the balcony and went straight to report to Peter, leaving Tomas alone. Helena

wanted to go to Tomas straight afterward, but got stopped by Gargy, saying that it was his turn

this time. She was okay with that; she could talk to Tomas anytime.

Gargy asked carefully, ‘So, how did it go?’

‘We’re back.’

‘When?’

‘As soon as Peter finds a way to hurt the bitch Cunningham…’ Tomas said, coldly. ‘And when

you can walk again.’ He looked briefly at Gargy before gazing back into the distance.

To that, Gargy’s response was to stand up off the wheelchair and start moving on his own again,

forcing Tomas to fully turn his way. He didn’t say anything, just watched to see what would
happen. There was a struggle, but Gargy managed to fully stand on his own, unsupported,

pushing the wheelchair away and walking in a somewhat uncertain way.

Gargy said, ‘In that case, it’s time to start practice properly. I won’t need this anymore.’

Tomas said, ‘Did you actually ever need it? You don’t impress me with this. I knew you could

walk from the start.’ There was a smirk on his face that made Gargy chuckle.

‘But you keep it to yourself. I want this to be a small miracle for them,’ Gargy said, nodding at

the rest inside, playing along with Tomas.

‘As if I would expose you the first chance I had.’

Their bantering kept going for a while before they went back inside. Gargy didn’t notice any

more hesitation on Tomas’s part, but Violetta knew better. She started to hammer Tomas with

more “bleed out techniques” and by far, his most favourite was positive self-talk. Mostly because

it was private; no one would know when he was doing it to release the pressure that he felt here

and there. Not that he never did it before, but back then, it was more natural than prescribed

practice. Back then, he didn’t pay any attention to it, nor believed in it, it just happened on its

own. Now it was almost his religion, and he was spending a lot of time talking to himself in a

positive manner. It wouldn’t be considered positive self-talk in a traditional way of

understanding the meaning of it, but in some way his mantra that he repeated to himself in hard

moments, ‘I bleed it out, digging deeper, just to throw it away,’ was helping Tomas to

depressurize tremendously. Not that he would ever admit it.

***
Six more months passed, and Peter wasn’t able to find a “worthy” target. It was April 2018, and

Tomas was about to turn 33 years old. It was enough for Gargy to recover into full mobility, if

not previous combat capacity and ability. Tomas adjusted nicely to basically not having his left

lung. He had to learn to train smarter and accept the fact that he wouldn’t be able to last as long

during high-intensity activity. Basically, he would have to become more efficient in everything

he did and adjust the tactics accordingly.

Everything was planned with swiftness as a priority, and Peter was to always be in reserve on the

ground floor, just in case. No more helicopters for him. Not that they still had one anyway. After

they were forced to leave the Detroit “hospital” base, they had to sell the building and contents

off to their previous direct competition in health care. It was mostly Cop’s job to dismantle and

get rid of everything that could be considered suspicious. Although, when the sale was made, the

paperwork proved it was a former National Guard secret base before being a hospital, which

explained the massive underground additional facilities.

Cop had to remove everything and make it look like storage, or previously unused premises.

Sure, Peter was helping him a lot and Charlotte was the one to explain to the buyers what kind of

equipment the hospital disposed of, etc., but he was the one to dismantle all of the screens,

science labs, and armoury. The private gym and cinema stayed untouched and was used as

leverage to make a better sale.

The buyer was rather impressed what kind of staff facilities they had without compromising any

of the existing hospital space that they knew about. It was a pleasant bonus to them.

Although the value of the “hospital” was astronomical, it was technically only rented by Peter’s

company from the US government, and the pay-out basically just covered the rent for the leased
period, which was not over yet. Peter claimed bankruptcy as a reason for trying to sublease/sell

the property.

At the end of the day, the Agency received $4.7 million after breaking even with the old contract.

Once Peter divided the money equally between all of the Agency personnel, it was roughly only

#38k per head. Not much in comparison to what their actual salary was before, but that didn’t

matter at that point. Everybody appreciated Peter’s gesture.

Despite Peter’s best intentions, he couldn’t find anything on Cunningham to interrupt any of her

potential dirty operations that she may have had. She seemed to cut off all her cartel ties after the

Vegas shooting and her failure to capitalize on it, and everything else suspicious and immoral

couldn’t have been sorted by eliminating personnel. She had to be let off the hook, for now.

But the crime situation in the US was worsening with every new day, although it still didn’t fall

to the level of before the Justice and Truth League. But the League’s intention was there; they

wanted to make the public, and more so the crime lords, aware that they were still alive, present,

and looking for targets. Except for Tomas, maybe; he was happy enough the way it was. As

much as he still cared, he was more and more convinced that any contra-action would only be in

vain, punished, and would only bring more pain into his life. But then it had to come…

***

April 20, 2018, just nine days before Tomas’s 33rd birthday, a large shootout happened between

the police and apparently armoured bank robbers in downtown Seattle, just a block away from

their penthouse. In fact, that’s how the League learned about it; they heard the first shots coming

from the streets below. Switching on the TV, within a minute or two, there were already

livestreamed Facebook videos from people in the bank’s vicinity.

The attack seemed very similar to that in North Hollywood, known as the Los Angeles shootout,

back in 1997, except there weren’t only two shooters, but thirteen in total. The Seattle Police’s

responding units were no match for that much of firepower and were getting shredded one by

one upon their arrival. The SWAT teams were apparently lured away into another smaller-scale

hostage situation at a supermarket about 25 miles north. They wouldn’t be able to join within the

next 30 minutes or so. Surely more than enough time for the assailants to fight their way out of

the predicament.

The bank robbers chose a moment when the armoured trucks that take away almost all of the

bank’s cash, $250 million reportedly, went into another more secure location. Something that

happens only once a year. Those two trucks collecting the money had a team of six armed men

between them, plus another four of the bank’s guards providing escort from and to the vault.

However, in the face of 13 heavily armoured men with automatic weaponry they stood little

chance, despite their resistance.

Four of them were reported to be shot, along with all of the bank’s escort guards, the two

remaining hostages, along with some of the bank’s staff. In fact, if it wasn’t for the guards’

resistance, the shootout may not have even happened. To their credit, one of the bank robbers

was shot dead, and at least two injured; how badly was unknown.

What was already known, on top of that, was at least one bank employee was shot in the street

when some of the robbers came out to meet the responding units with overwhelming automatic

fire, along with twenty-five other bystanders and one ambulance crew, injuring or killing every

single one of them. At that time, sixteen. It really looked like a well-planned robbery with a

backup plan should it go wrong, paying no attention to any collateral damage.

Peter said, ‘I think this is it, this is our chance. We can be down there in less than five minutes

and help the police. If we want to let our presence be known, this is the perfect opportunity.’

Violetta said, ‘I agree. If we want to do something, we will hardly get a better reason to do

something than now. Worse, if we don’t do anything, and this gets a lot worse, we should forget

about trying to make up for this later. We will always think about this moment in our mind, that

since we decided to step in at some point again, we should have done it right now and here.

When our actions wouldn’t be just distribution of justice/vengeance, but directly protecting the

public and officers that are bravely going into a firestorm, perfectly knowing what happened to

the previous units. WE are the missing SWAT teams. We can prove to all again, including the

government, that we truly only ever wanted to help. That it wasn’t just some kind of personal

vendetta or power struggle as some tried to claim, despite Chicago’s events. We can remind

them all.’

Tomas said, ‘All I want to know is, who still robs banks at gunpoint in this day and age? Fucking

low-key amateur fishes that think they are real gangsters. It’s laughable.’

Gargy said, ‘Some people just want to be a “badass”, like the idea, and want to shoot people at

the first excuse available. It’s perfect for them. They probably wouldn’t even want to become the

“pussies” in suits that may have stolen a lot more money, legally even. To them, that’s the

“girly” way. Some men simply just want to be a gangster, in the violent way.’

Some surprised looks came Gargy’s way. No one expected something like that from him. Mostly

because he never discussed anything serious ever at all. He was the always helpful and chill guy.

Tomas joked, ‘And how exactly would you know that?’ suggesting he was a nice guy that

wouldn’t know about what the baddass might want or think like.
Gargy said, ‘Have I not been paying attention to what’s happening around me in the past five or

so years? Of course I have. Some men are plain evil, and wouldn’t want it any other way.’

It was a reminder for others that he was fully aware of everything on every level, just like

everybody else. He just coped with it all a lot better than others, in an invisible way. He was not

just a simple man, as some may have started to think of him in the Agency. Peter, Tomas,

Violetta, and Gargy’s girlfriend, Ulrike, excluded. They knew better.

‘Time is of the essence now. Tomas, are we going?’ Peter said, turning to him, asking for his

approval to take action.

‘I’ll get suited up.’ He immediately went to the storage room of the penthouse along with Gargy,

Cop, and others helping them to suit up.

Peter went to prepare the vans that were stored at different locations and ordered them to be at

the exit of the private entrance/exit in exactly five minutes, stressing the urgency of the situation

that with every minute, there were more casualties and the SWAT team was still 25-plus minutes

away at the very best.

Violetta, Dr Charlotte, and Nurse Catherine were responsible for finding the latest updates on the

situation and reporting them as soon as some new, vital information was disclosed. Helena went

with Peter to the vans, as he needed an additional driver for the second one.

Peter told everyone that he would work out the concealed entry and extraction details along the

way, as he would have to adjust some details to fit the current situation but that general, a plan

and a hiding place were already secured. Basically, not to worry about any of the logistics of it.

He would, and everything would be just fine.

***

As Tomas and Gargy were getting suited up, Tomas couldn’t help but think that he was cursed.

What were the chances of something like this happening this close to them, where refusing to

take action wasn’t really an option? The whole Agency wished to act, and he didn’t want to be

the bad guy who literally shut this and any future possibility to take action down. It was as

Violetta said, now or never.

He felt pressured into it, but didn’t want to show it. Here we go for the hundredth time, he

thought. In fact, he could already hear the explosions from the streets, the “shotgun opera” with

theirs weapons already checked to be fit for action, led by Cop and a few others that just

happened to be visiting at that time, helping, whilst Tomas was going out of his fucking mind,

knowing perfectly well what that means, knowing what comes next after that.

Just fucking kill me already. Hang me off the fucking roof and make sure that I won’t get loose!

The truth is that the public may stop and stare, but in the end, no one really cares, whilst I will

have to bleed myself out.

Anger was building within him, but this time, not against the perpetrators, but the public itself,

and he was barely managing to hide it. He’d had enough, didn’t want any part of it, and didn’t

believe that it would achieve anything.

Tomas said to himself, ‘No good deed goes unpunished, as Mike said. Just forgotten at the very

best.’

He knew this wasn’t the sort of self-talk that Violetta prescribed to keep a lid on his personal

struggles, so he tried to switch his thought process to his mantra instead.

Tomas said, ‘Bleed it out, digging deeper, just to throw it away! Bleed it out, digging deeper, just

to throw it away!’ over and over, but this close to action, it wasn’t really working, and his

thought process switched again in a negative way towards the public. Tomas realized this and

fought it off as best he could, directing it towards the perpetrators instead this time.

Tomas said, ‘I have opened up these emotional scars for you! I’ll make you face this! I have

pulled myself so far away, but you still have to drag me in again! I’ll make YOU FACE THIS

NOW!’

Tomas realized that he was just opening up to his inner demons again and that he had to calm his

mind down instead. He did.

Tomas said, ‘Fuck this hurt, I can’t lie, no matter how much I try, I KNOW that I won’t be

satisfied,’ replacing the anger with desperation instead.

The rapidly changing emotions in close succession brought his level of confusion to a maximum.

“Filthy mouth, no excuse. Half the words don’t mean a thing. So why try ignoring them, just

make it a dance floor again. Say your prayers and stomp it out. Let anger out. When they bring

you in, you bleed it out.”

After that, Tomas just blocked all of his thought processes. He became a zombie, fully automated

only guided by instinct. He didn’t even know how or when he got into the van.
 Linkin Park – Castle of Glass 3:23

“Take me down to the river bend, take me down to the fighting end.

Wash the poison from off my skin - Show me how to be whole again.”

That is when Tomas realized that he already was in the van with Peter, while Gargy was in the

other one with Helena, being deployed into the best concealed vantage position, some 600 meters

away in the opposite direction. A six-story building that was currently on hold in the construction

process due to lack of finances or God knows what other complications. Certainly, it was

supposed to be taller, but as it was, it was in a “conserved” state for possible future development

and abandoned in the meantime. It was perfect. Amazing what kind of information and how fast

Peter could come up with when needed.

It would mean that Gargy wouldn’t be able to take part in any possible back-up role for Tomas if

needed, but Peter put himself into that role.

The firefight between the bank robbers and the police units got louder and they started to see

people that were visibly hurt and running away in panic. They couldn’t be more than 200 meters

away from the bank itself at that point when Tomas dismounted the van. There was a visible

barricade in the distance made of multiple police cars and mostly killed or wounded police

officers.

The bank robbers didn’t hold back; they were content to hole up until all of the money was

loaded up into the armoured cars first. They knew they would have plenty of time to do it and

had much stronger firepower whilst body-armoured themselves. Some wore Tomas-like masks,

but it was obviously only an inspired-by makeshift version of it, whilst the body armour seemed
to be the standard Kevlar vest topped up by a flak military vest. They obviously didn’t look to be

part of the former Justice and Truth League.

A woman shot in her abdomen with a dog on her leash ran past Tomas, not even noticing him,

that’s how scared she was. She didn’t even pay attention to her surroundings. It reminded Tomas

of Faith’s face at the NBC tower during the siege.

More injured people running away were approaching Tomas, a horde almost. It certainly looked

similar to the scenes of people fleeing broadcast at the Las Vegas mass shooting on the TV and

YouTube that Tomas saw.

That brought the same kind of feelings that he had then. The thought that he, at that time, wished

to be there. Well, he was here now, and he could do something! Back in his subconscious, he still

thought that in the large scale of things, this would not change anything and that he was simply

just risking his life again for no reward at all, more likely the opposite.

He would be just a “crack in the castle of glass”, and it would take a lot more to bring it down.

‘Hardly anything there to see.’ Yet, the will to act was a lot stronger than him in the direct

striking presence of the reality going on around him. The inner self-talk of being just a crack in

the castle of glass oddly only increased his will to fight, despite knowing it. Partly because it also

meant that success or failure didn’t depend on him alone. Whatever went bad, in whatever he

may fail, it really was not just because of him. He was just a crack in the castle of glass, after all.

It took away some of the responsibility, some of the pain. It simply helped.

Tomas increasingly used poetry-like self-talk mantras that he found online, in the movies, song

lyrics, or came up with himself, as he found it a lot more powerful tool than just trying to talk to

himself or others in a direct way. You could easily say that he became a poet, as it was much
easier for him to express himself fully in metaphors rather than directly. What mattered was, it

worked, and he was also able to talk about things that he couldn’t say directly to others should he

choose to. Only in puzzle-like metaphors for the listener to decode what it actually meant so he

could say what was on his mind, to really express what he felt without really saying it. But he

still mostly kept it to himself, because the inevitable question of “what do you mean?” almost

always followed.

‘Take me down to the river bend’, a place where the natural flow of life twisted to the side, a

crime place.

‘Take me down to the fighting end’, a place where he could struggle to try to amend it back

straight.

‘Wash the poison off my skin…’ By doing so, allow him to let go of some pain that he carried

within him.

‘… And show me how to be whole again’, hopefully resulting in Tomas finding his inner peace

again.

‘Fly me up on a silver wing.’ Allow me to succeed through my own firepower.

‘Past the black where the sirens sing.’ Through the firefight without getting hurt again.

‘Warm me up in the nova’s glow…’ Allow me to succeed and to feel some praise, some approval

again.

‘…And drop me down into the dream below’, followed by a period of time when he felt

accomplishment, that Tomas did something good.

Like a prayer to a God that he didn’t believe in, those lyrics went through his mind. ‘Because I’m

only a crack in the castle of glass, hardly anything there for you to see…’ Before bringing me

back down to face the reality that I actually hardly achieved anything.

If Tomas tried to express it directly, he wouldn’t be able to, or it wouldn’t make any sense; it

seemed chaotic even. In poetry and metaphors, his brain seemed to work much faster, and

instantly made sense to him. A powerful weapon of strengthening his will and redirecting his

focus where it was needed. ‘Thanks, Violetta!’

***

As Tomas was approaching the police barricade, the random chatter at first turned into a

confident chant from the onlookers and even some injured victims that turned around to confirm

that their eyes were not lying to them. ‘That’s him, that’s him! He’s alive! Go get ’em!’ It

seemed surreal to Tomas, as it reminded him of comics and superhero movies, but it felt good, he

couldn’t deny it.

Tomas reached the barricade from its south side, where multiple officers lay dead on the road in

front of the bank beside their Swiss-cheesed police cars. Too many to count, but no less than ten

for sure.

The last officer was still returning fire although already visibly shot through his right shoulder

and twice through his right leg. She’d just got lit up again by five of the bank robbers in a storm

of bullets, forcing her to duck down behind the cover of her police car, facing an approaching

Tomas as she rested her back against it.

At first the officer instinctively pointed her sidearm at Tomas, but once she realized who it was,

she lowered it again with obvious relief on her face.

Tomas asked, ‘How are you doing, officer?’ He couldn’t come up with anything smarter.

‘Not good. I have multiple gunshot wounds and can feel myself losing strength,’ the officer

replied, surprisingly calmly, all things considered.

The gunfire of the bank robbers redirected towards the north side of the police barricade, as there

were still at least two officers fighting back, trying to take them down. None of the robbers had

noticed Tomas’s arrival yet.

The officer brought Tomas up to speed. ‘There is no one else left to try to block the public from

coming in. The firefight noise is trapped and bouncing off the skyscrapers around, confusing the

public which way to run to safety. Some are downright getting into the line of fire because of it!

There are multiple people trapped in their cars on the road within the firing zone before we

managed to barricade it off. In the confusion, they drove straight into it, only to get their tires and

engines blown out and got stranded. We managed to evacuate four of the cars already, but the

last one closest to the bank entrance, next to the armoured cars, is still occupied, as we don’t

have enough firepower anymore. There is a father and his daughter still pinned inside the car and

getting pummelled by stray bullets. She seems to be only around seven, eight, maybe nine years

old at the most.’

It was true. Five cars were trapped inside the barricade before they managed to escape. Most

likely due to confusion as to which way to drive away from the firefight and into safety because

of the ricocheting noises, only to go straight into it instead. That was the same reason why so

much of the public still ran towards the shooting site instead of away from it, until they saw the

actual police barricade when it developed at last. It didn’t stop them from getting shot by a storm

of stray bullets that otherwise weren’t meant for them. The bank robbers didn’t control their fire
at all. It looked like a military operation, overwhelming suppressive fire tactics resulting in

hundreds of stray bullets flying in all directions.

No less than eight officers lay dead around those four already evacuated cars, with one more that

seemed to reach the last still occupied car where the dad with his daughter were trapped before

finally being killed. No doubt he was shot multiple times just reaching there, as his body was

riddled with gunshot wounds. But that didn’t stop him from trying.

An occasional high-pitched scream was added to the firefight’s loud “storm”, undoubtedly

coming from the little girl inside of the trapped car. Their status was otherwise unknown. Maybe

the father was already dead, while certainly shielding his daughter with his own body as the

occasional mostly rifle-based bullets easily penetrated the car’s body. Occasional, yes, but an

occasional group of bullets during a period of now seven minutes of the raging firefight ended up

in a heavily shot-up car. Too many holes to even try to count during a high-stress situation.

Tomas took out his spray can and applied it to the officer’s wounds. ‘It doesn’t do miracles, but

it will seal off the bleeding while disinfecting the wounds nicely. You won’t have to worry about

bleeding out, or in. It fills cavities.’ He handed the can to the officer.

Tomas did something that was directly forbidden before, due to the possible tracking of the

otherwise experimental surgical can substance. But nobody protested this time. It was not like

the Agency wasn’t officially disbanded and the former base in private hands anyway. There

wasn’t that much at stake anymore and since they couldn’t produce any of it themselves, maybe

it was time for the public get their hands on it and start asking difficult questions like why this

isn’t standard medical equipment yet. Price, of course.

Tomas said, ‘Keep it. Navigate the public away from the site and help those who need assistance.

Apply it only on the most serious cases. It’s not limitless, and I don’t have any more. I’ll take

care of them.’ He nodded his head towards the bank robbers’ direction.

‘Thank you, and God bless! Shoot to kill; don’t spare any of those fuckers!’ It was the first time

she’d shown her rage.

Considering that she was the last officer “standing” on the south side of the barricade, and it was

more than likely that her pals lay dead all around her, along with her partner, it was a

commendably insane level of personal control. Tomas could only aspire to be at that level.

Tomas said, ‘I intend to do just that. In fact, WE intend to do that.’ It was almost a shout, as the

gunfire got even louder, signalling its increase.

Tomas said, ‘You didn’t think that I came alone, did you? I never did before.’ He looked back at

the officer after a brief look over the police car to see why there was increase in the gunfire.

That brought a brief smile to the officer’s face, then she tapped Tomas on his left arm above his

G36 that he wielded, indicating the urgency to take action.

Peter said calmly into Tomas’s earpiece, ‘You’ve got to go now, Tomas, as I’m sure you know.’

‘Good luck!’ Tomas said to the officer before going over the police car and towards the stranded

car.

The officer did what Tomas asked him to do and started to direct people to safety whilst

providing the worst injured with her body support and the surgical can, dragging them away if

needed whilst being shot in the leg herself, mind you.

Peter said, ‘Gargy is already in position and ready to support,’ so that Tomas was aware.
Peter ordered, ‘No mercy. Shoot to kill at the first opportunity, both of you. Same rules as at the

NBC tower. Worry about the hostages later. You will do everybody a favour by eliminating all

of the threats at any cost first. It’s the only way to minimize overall casualties. We have the

luxury of not being scrutinized into any consequences afterwards, like the police would. Use it!’

‘I’m only a crack in this castle of glass’, went through his mind as Tomas directed his focus

towards finding out the status of the dad with his daughter first.

Tomas asked, ‘Do you have a visual, Gargy?’

Gargy said, ‘I got you, just keep running, rounds incoming.’ His Martha let out two rounds.

That was the moment when the robbers closest to Tomas noticed him. It was way too late for

them as Gargy’s 0.5 calibre rounds were already on the way. However, due to the flight time of

roughly 0.5 seconds, it was still enough to miss their centre of mass (torso) as Gargy originally

intended, because the robbers managed to turn around.

The first bank robber got hit below his left shoulder and it severed his arm off, with him noticing

it only moments later as the rifle still wielded in the other hand couldn’t point it directly at

Tomas, since the severed hand that still firmly held the gun barrel whilst falling to the ground

due to gravity was pulling it down to the pavement with it. The ricocheting bullets flew in all

directions, some even hit the stranded car. Tomas’s burst from his G36 followed and hit the same

robber in his makeshift mask, but of course the bullets went right through it, although the bullets

did deflect into the sides as they penetrated it. On one side, it made a much worse mess of the

robber’s face below his eye level, with the face getting basically shredded completely. On the

other side it meant that the robber survived the burst in his face after all.
Only milliseconds later, the other robber got hit by Gargy as he was turning towards Tomas. The

bullet hit him at an angle and went through his right lung, which surely got pulverized by it.

After an initial staggering due to it, he immediately managed to suppress his pain and opened fire

at Tomas, only to be hit by another 0.5 from Martha, this time slightly below his heart. The

shock wave following the bullet still tore it to pieces and the robber died instantly on the spot.

His lifeless body was slightly thrown to the side due to the impact’s force.

Tomas got hit in his Apex Armour, but that was really nothing and he simply ignored it, still

pressing towards the missing-arm-and-blown-face robber. Tomas really expected him to fall

down dead. Instead, he got surprised by the robber letting go of what looked like a fully

automated assault rifle of sorts that only Lubos would be able to identify, should he still be alive,

and pulling out his handgun instead, while instantly trying to take a shot at Tomas. More

instinctively than anything else, Tomas managed to dodge the first shot whilst grabbing the only

hand still attached to the bank robber’s body and snapping his arm in two at the elbow level in a

judo throw before letting off one round into the robber’s already destroyed face out of his P30L

that he quickly switched to. However, the 9 mm projectile failed to penetrate the robber’s mask,

as it didn’t hit exactly into the holes made by his G36, and deflected it without Tomas noticing at

all, as he was in a rush, being confident this combatant had been taken care of.

All of the bank robbers must have been on some kind of a drug prior, to feel less pain and have

better stamina during their heist. The robber wasn’t out of the fight yet, and in his last gesture of

defiance, he raised his handgun with the elbow-snapped arm, awkwardly aimed it at Tomas, and

managed to let one round off into Tomas’s back. The kickback of firing the shot widened the

open fracture so wide it nearly tore the arm in half. The forearm just dangled on a thin fibre of
skin with the gun still held in the hand. The robber didn’t even make any sound of pain or

anything. Either drugs, or just plain badass.

Tomas only managed to turn around to see what was up before Martha finished the robber by a

centre shot at angle that spilled the robber’s guts out through the exit wound, finally killing him.

This was the point when four robbers on the outside in front of the bank engaging in the shootout

with the police silenced the north side of the barricade, while four more robbers, two of which

were already wounded at that point, were arriving with the bags of money carried by the bank’s

employees that they took hostage. If it wasn’t for the seriousness of the situation, you could

almost say the reactions were almost funny. Everybody looked stunned and frozen for a slight

moment except the expressions on the hostages’ faces were in strong contrast to the body

language of the robbers. Whilst the hostages went from absolute panic to stunned, to sudden

relief, accompanied by almost a smile in some cases, the robbers’ body language went from

confident, commanding dominance to stunned, to panic.

One could say it was in that moment when they realized they’d fucked up. One of the robbers

could even be heard shouting out loud in horror more than anything else, “It’s fucking him!”

Tomas and Gargy had been given instructions from Peter for this moment of “reveal” when it

finally came. Peter predicted two reactions of the robbers. Some would panic and try to run,

whilst others would panic and try to use hostages as human shields to run away. There was a

slight chance that some of them could be downright crazy and try to fight it out regardless, but

since this seemed to be an otherwise well-executed plan, they must have some brains. To go

against the Justice and Truth League would be crazy, considering what the public knew about

them.
Of course, both Tomas’s and Gargy’s jobs were to take down the robbers that tried to use the

hostages first. But they couldn’t hesitate or try to negotiate, never mind giving up trying to save

the hostages. Tomas’s best tactics were to blindly rush towards the robbers that were closest to

the hostages, trying to force the robbers to try to aim at him instead of the hostages, whilst Gargy

would quickly pick off those who weren’t close but seemed to try to use the hostages as shields,

moving towards them instead of trying to run away by the first route possible.

Tomas nearly reached the stranded car’s location but was running towards the bank robbers who

had just come out of the bank with the hostages first. They guarded the hostages and forced them

towards the armoured cars that were parked to Tomas’s right side about 12 more meters in front

of him. The seven hostages were leading the way. Two women were held as a shield by two of

the robbers that were already wounded, while five men who carried big gym bags of money, two

of them each, were guarded by the two uninjured robbers who hustled them to hurry up and load

the armoured cars. The remaining two robbers were already waiting in the armoured cars behind

the wheel, with their dead comrade already being loaded into one of the cars.

The stranded car itself was facing towards Tomas and was slightly to his left side. Behind that

car but further in the distance, some 25 meters away, were the three bank robbers who just

successfully fought off the north side barricade’s police units. As they pointed their automatic

guns at him, Tomas knew that he had a dilemma to deal with because of the position he was in

that moment.

He knew that a storm of stray bullets would hit the stranded car with the family in it, no matter

what. Even if he pushed forward and right towards the robbers that were an immediate threat to

the hostages as he should, the car would still get peppered with gunfire that would be intended

for him, but the rest of the bullets would just hit the armoured car’s side, rather than going into
the streets filled with mostly confused bystanders, possibly hitting some. Although, to be honest,

some of them even stopped running away and rather chose to observe from a “safe” position to

see the masked man in action, cheering at him whilst recording him on their cell phone. ‘People

these days…’ Considering that the streets were already littered with lots of bodies, and stray

bullets were still hitting people randomly left and right in an everlasting storm of incoming fire,

you would have thought that no one would risk their life for that.

However, the choice that Tomas had to make was whether he would open fire at the four robbers

coming from the north barricade to try to silence their fire that would hit the stranded car, or he

would ignore them and open up on the two uninjured guards that weren’t shielded by any

hostages and could certainly be “safely” hit first. He chose the latter, despite hearing an

occasional high-pitched cry from the little girl trapped in the stranded car with her dad, which

was quite disheartening.

‘Bring me home in a blinding dream’. Let me come back home with astounding success.

‘Through the secrets that I have seen’, despite what I know may happen.

‘Wash the sorrow from off my skin’. Allow me to heal by doing something good for a change.

‘And show me how to be whole again’, so that perhaps I can be a normal person again. More

self-talk that was more of a prayer than anything else went through Tomas’s mind.

While Tomas himself got lit up pretty badly, it didn’t stop him from continuing to press towards

the hostages. If he could, he would have told Gargy to focus on the robbers at the barricade first.

But Tomas knew that by the time he would have explained it, it would be too late anyway. And

so did Peter, who also decided to stay silent for now in order to not distract Tomas or Gargy

during critical moments, relying on their own ability and instincts to guide them.
At the same time, Gargy also saw the opportunity to take care of the two uninjured robbers who

seemed to try and get a hold of a hostage to use as a shield as well, hitting the same one that

Tomas chose as his first target too. The robber’s blood splattered all around as he got hit

simultaneously from Tomas’s burst and Gargy’s Martha before falling lifeless on the pavement.

Then, once Gargy realized who Tomas’s targets were, he chose to take down the four robbers

who were at the north barricade shooting towards Tomas. One by one they fell down, despite

their attempts to take cover. They must have known that they were screwed, as it was obvious

that Tomas wasn’t even shooting at them and they were being picked off regardless. Their

attempts to identify where the shots were coming from were futile, as they had only seconds to

react before it was too late.

In the meantime, Tomas managed to take down the other uninjured robber that had no hostage

shield with a quick burst into his centre mass that dropped him like a sack of potatoes. You could

see that when the robber got shot through, it suddenly tensed his body at first before falling down

in almost a funny way, with his forward-leaning upper body still falling on its ass and to the side.

His arms still tensed were reaching out forward, as well as his legs still tensed and slightly lifted

above the ground as he lay dead on the pavement.

The two robbers that held the women hostages pulled them closer to their bodies, with their

weapons pressed against the hostages’ heads, trying to threaten Tomas they’d kill them if he

didn’t stop.

‘I will kill her! I swear that I will kill her –’ That’s all the first robber managed to say before

Tomas was close enough to him. He was sprinting towards the robber with his G36 shouldered

and his P30Ls holstered to try to present himself to the robber as the least threat possible so he

wouldn’t shoot the woman and possibly try to shoot him instead.
It worked in the NBC tower and it worked here too. Tomas was way too juicy of a target for the

robber not to try to shoot at him, since he seemed not to be armed, despite rushing towards him.

With each new step that Tomas made towards him and was getting closer, he was also an

increasingly easier target to hit. Of course, they didn’t notice the carnage that Gargy was causing

in the meantime to their comrades coming back from the barricades; didn’t have time to focus on

anything but Tomas, who was the immediate threat. Nor did they know that this was exactly

what the whole Justice and Truth League was hoping for and had already executed successfully

before, but it was still a stroke of blind luck that the robber decided to take his SPAS-12 shotgun

from the female hostage’s head and try to take down Tomas with it instead. Just like the other

robber with the other female hostage did, wielding his Uzi. They must have both known that this

would not kill Tomas, and maybe not even stop him, considering what happened in Los Angeles

in full view of the public. But maybe just bringing Tomas down to the floor like they had seen

many times before would be enough for them to perhaps take his face shield/mask off and kill

him after. They had to at least try. There was 250 million dollars at stake, and their cut was only

getting larger with each one of their comrades getting killed.

Tomas knew that he was about to get shot and didn’t even try an evasive manoeuvre, as he could

have. Because that would almost certainly just mean that someone else or some of the hostages

would get hit instead, and they didn’t have the Apex Armour on. He did. He could take it.

The stopping power of the SPAS-12 was tremendous. It felt like getting hit by the 20 mm in Los

Angeles except, the slug didn’t penetrate, it just threw Tomas backwards and into the armoured

car through the open back door without really injuring him at all, outside of blowing Tomas’s air

out.
Tomas managed to position himself well, and no one was in the way or behind him. Most of the

bullets from the Uzi that missed him ended up embedded on the inside of the armoured car.

Some of the bullets coming from the four robbers at the north barricades before being taken care

out had struck the stranded car, Tomas’s side, and some of the male hostages. It wasn’t mortal

though, mostly just flesh wounds to extremities without severing any arteries.

When Tomas got blown into the first armoured car closest to him, the driver that was in the car

opened his visor into the storage compartment where Tomas lay on his back and tried to take a

shot at the top of Tomas’s head and behind his mask. He let off three rapid-shot rounds from his

Glock that all hit their target, to Tomas’s displeasure, before Tomas returned fire instinctively

with one of his P30Ls, shooting the driver in his face, killing him on the spot. The Apex Armour

balaclava didn’t have any problem stopping the 9 mm bullets, but they still gave Tomas quite a

headache.

The other driver in the second armoured car lost his nerve seeing that the first car driver next to

him just got shot and tried to bail out without his buddies or the money. Gargy reacted and took a

shot at him, but his driver’s window actually stopped the 0.5 calibre armour-piercing bullet,

which was slightly surprising. But it did.

The second shot went at the doors and the next one at the tires but to little effect as well and the

car was leaving, pushing its way through the north side barricade where more police had arrived

and engaged the car to no effect. The driver had no problem running over thankfully just the

dead bodies of the fallen officers and other random victims along with the first responding units

of the shot-up ambulance before they were stopped from arrival until the situation was under

control, pushing aside the stranded cars as it approached it.

But by that time, Gargy managed to switch up into anti-material high-explosive

incendiary/armour-piercing rounds, or Raufoss NM140 MP rounds, to be specific, and took a

shot at the driver’s-side back wall through the opened-up back door that separated the driver’s

compartment from the storage area. All that Gargy was able to observe was a flash at the point of

impact before the car suddenly came to a stop, but from the front side of the car, the public and

the police engaging it saw the front windshield suddenly getting painted red. The shrapnel

coming from the armoured back wall behind the driver, plus the round itself that exploded

immediately after impact, shredded the robber into pieces, leaving his upper body an

unrecognizable pile of shredded, and at some places burning, meat. Quite gruesome.

But not before Gargy picked off the Uzi-wielding robber with his last standard round after he

took the first shot at the driver’s side window. In a panic, the robber tried to quickly load the

escaping car with two of the money bags whilst pushing the woman into the car, but she tripped

over one of the male hostages on the ground, falling over him instead of into the car. As he held

the bags in both of his hands running towards the escaping car, he presented the opportunity to

Gargy to bring him down.

The bullet didn’t hit him exactly as Gargy hoped for due to the distance the bullet had to travel

and the time it took for the bullet to arrive at the moving target’s destination, only grazing the

robber’s right hip. However, it was enough to bring him down, and two of the hostages that were

also the original official escort of the armoured car jumped on top of him and subdued him

quickly, despite their own injuries and in one case, a gunshot wound in the leg.

***
Going back in time to when Tomas shot the first driver in the face through his driver’s visor, the

SPAS-12-wielding guy was about to shoot him again, this time aiming directly at Tomas’s mask.

This could have been quite serious, but Tomas managed in the last moment to notice that and

lifted his left free hand in front of it, presenting it as an additional shield. The impact of the slug

tore Tomas’s glove a little, as the Apex layer was much thinner there with no impact absorbents

present, breaking Tomas’s wrist in the process as it twisted violently. But it saved him from

being shot in the face with a SPAS-12 at five or so meters’ range. Good deal.

That was the same moment when Gargy took down the other escaping robber with a grazing

shot, distracting the SPAS-12-wielding robber for a moment as he aimed at the armoured car

escort that was in the process of subduing the downed robber.

As he pointed his shotgun at them the woman, who was no doubt the bank’s employee of sorts,

finally twisted out of his grip and immediately threw herself on the pavement. This did present

Tomas the opportunity to shoot from his G36, as he knew the P30Ls wouldn’t penetrate the

robber’s body armour and kill him with a burst so that he couldn’t harm the hostage anymore. He

hit the robber unintentionally quite high in his chest area, almost at the collar bone, nearly

severing the robber’s head that kept dangling to the side instead after the impact on a quite large

piece of skin. It looked like someone cut into the robber’s neck with an axe from the right side

but didn’t quite manage to sever it with the blow. Except it wasn’t a clean-edged cut, but rather

looked torn by immense force.

It was done. All of the robbers had been taken care of in a span of about thirty seconds, one of

them still alive and subdued even. Well, it did turn out that the grazing wound was rather more

serious than it looked like at first and in the end the robber died within a minute after he got hit,

subdued by the two armoured car escorts turned hostages.

 Linkin Park – Iridescent 4:56

“When you were standing in the wake of devastation,

when you were waiting on the edge of the unknown,

and with the cataclysm raining down - Insides crying, "Save me now",

You were there impossibly alone.”

Tomas got back onto his feet again after a momentary rest, lying on his back once he shot the last

robber. But then and only then, once the shooting and screaming noise of the hostages got

suppressed, did he hear the cries of the little girl in the stranded car again, forcing him onto his

feet.

He immediately started to approach the car, deciding to investigate it despite his gut telling him

that he might not want to know after all. As he was nearing the car, his anxiety increased due to

the ever-increasing and more clear cries of the little girl. It certainly sounded like there was

nothing good for him to see in there.

He was right.

As Tomas got all the way to them on the driver’s side, he could hear everything. The car was so

badly shot up that all of the vehicle’s windows were blown out completely with the exception of

the windshield, which was “only” riddled with bullets rather than completely shattered. ‘Daddy,

don’t die! Daddy, don’t die! Pleeeease!’ She was screaming her lungs out while bawling her eyes

out. Her dad was barely holding her left arm with his right as she sat next to him in the passenger

seat, whilst his left arm applied pressure onto his chest wound.
‘I love you so much, pumpkin, but Daddy has to go, I’m so sorry.’ He kept repeating it over and

over again as she begged him not to die with his gentle and sometimes nearly inaudible voice

because he was having difficulty speaking. She was reaching towards him now and then, but

instantly got gently blocked by her dad. He didn’t want to bleed all over her. ‘Daddy loves you

so much, and Mommy. You will have to be strong for the both of you. I love you.’

Tomas called into his comms in obvious panic, ‘What do I do, what do I do?!’

Charlotte said hastily, ‘Primary and secondary survey, remember the training?’

Tomas didn’t answer that but was glad for the quick reminder and got straight to it.

Because they didn’t even notice when Tomas reached them, it gave him a short time to assess

what their injuries were in peace. The little girl’s clothes were covered in blood, but the only

visible injury that Tomas could see was a graze to her forehead on the left side above the

eyebrow. Most likely from the flying glass debris as it initially got shot up. But otherwise, she

looked way too awake and full of energy to be seriously injured.

Her dad, on the other hand, had multiple visible gunshot wounds all over his back and was sitting

in a pool of his own blood already. The worst of them was one shot to his upper back and one to

his lower back, because they managed to penetrate all the way through, leaving gaping wounds

on his chest and abdomen. It didn’t look like he was even aware of them all, as the only pressure

he applied was to his chest. That must have hurt the most, or he may have just given up and used

one hand to try to comfort his crying daughter, knowing he was a goner at that point anyway.

That was when the girl noticed Tomas first. Her initial reaction was to scream in sheer terror,

forcing her dad to look behind and see Tomas himself.

‘It’s okay, sweetie, he’s the good guy. You’re going to be all right, you’re safe now.’ His face

showed visible signs of relief.

Tomas said, ‘No, no, it’s okay, I’m here to help!’ simultaneously, whilst raising both hands in a

gesture of surrender.

But the little girl remained screaming in terror as if she was expecting the worst to happen next.

Tomas realized that the masks that most of the bank robbers wore were similar to his and she

must have thought he was one of them. He immediately lifted it up, resting it on top of his head,

exposing his face fully.

Tomas said, ‘See, I’m a good guy. I’m here to help. Let me look at your daddy.’

Peter wanted to tell Tomas to keep his face mask on to protect his identity, but decided not to, as

he understood why he did it and that Tomas was surely aware of the risk involved but made his

decision already. Peter wasn’t alone, but no one said anything for the same reasons.

The little girl still held onto her daddy with all of her strength, but he did gently push her away.

‘It’s okay, pumpkin, let him help.’

Now Tomas was no doctor, but Charlotte and her sisters were medical experts. Through the feed

from Tomas’s lenses they could assess the man’s situation. What they had seen so far didn’t spell

anything good, but “a drowning person would grab even a straw to hold onto”, and Tomas leaned

the man slightly forward to give them a better look at his back wounds, revealing for the first

time that there was a lot more damage done than just those two most likely already mortal

wounds.

After a second of hesitation, Charlotte said, ‘Tomas, I’m sorry…’

The hesitation on Tomas’s part in turn exposed to both the man and his daughter that he’d

learned it was too late.

‘No, no, Daddy, don’t die, please don’t die, please, don’t die, don’t die, Daddy, please!’ But her

cries went onto increasingly deaf ears as her dad started fading away quickly after his final, ‘I

love you’, with tears in his eyes.

This was also when one of the original armoured car escorts came to Tomas to help. Just in time

to see the scene inside and witness the very last seconds of the man’s life and his final goodbye

to his daughter before passing out. He immediately turned around and walked a couple steps

away whilst putting both of his hands onto his head in disbelief and shock. ‘Oh my God, OH MY

GOD, no, noooo!’ came out of him instinctively. He then turned back again and wanted to go see

how he could help, but since the masked man was already there, he thought that the masked man

would know better anyway.

He decided to hang around but not to approach the car anymore and to see the horror inside

again, the image and screams surely burned deep into his brain along with all of the other horrors

that, once the craziness settled down, became more apparent. All the dead bodies of mostly

police officers. Many bodies around the stranded car of officers that no doubt tried frantically to

reach it to help evacuate the occupants safely, only to be cut down and die whilst trying.

But Tomas wasn’t ready to give up just yet. He couldn’t. He refused to accept what was clearly

the reality.

Tomas said, ‘Don’t worry, little angel.’ He looked around to see what was going on around him,

since he was so focused on the father and his daughter that he completely lost sense of his

surroundings. ‘Medic!’
Only then did he realize how almost ridiculous it must have sounded, as if this was a war zone

and he was a soldier looking for his team medic instead of calling for an ambulance. But that was

his first initial reaction and thought process. Who would have blamed him though, the place

certainly looked like a war zone, with countless victims that could attest to it? Everything around

was shot up, with bodies lying even deep into the surrounding streets. It was like Vegas 2.0, with

the exception of different circumstances and results - bodycounts.

Tomas then grabbed onto the escort guard hanging around behind him, asking him to bring an

ambulance team straight away. He didn’t have to tell him twice and the guard was on his way

immediately. Tomas returned to the car, trying to use his surgical glue can on the dad, only to

realize seconds later that he gave the can to the wounded police officer. He almost panicked,

deciding to go find an ambulance himself. Instead and wandered around a couple seconds like a

lost chicken in all directions before noticing the incoming ambulance team along with the escort

and two more police officers.

Tomas instinctively raised his hands above his head. ‘I’m not a threat!’

‘Are you kidding?! You are a hero! We’re not here for you,’ one said back to him whilst shaking

Tomas’s hand and pointing out the onlookers in the background that were apparently clapping

and cheering at Tomas for a while now. But Tomas didn’t pay any attention to that, as there were

more serious matters at hand.

He took one or two steps aside and watched the paramedics pulling out the dad first and

assessing him, only to immediately shake their heads side to side in a “he didn’t make it”

manner. What pierced through his mind and heart though was what happened almost straight

after that, as Tomas’s focus turned to the little girl.

‘She didn’t make it either’ the female paramedic said in a very soft voice, immediately bringing

many people around the stranded car to tears, including Tomas. It stunned him as the terror of

that statement hit him. He couldn’t believe it. But then it hit him that the little girl strangely

became quieter just after he told her not to worry. Just resting her head on her dad, hugging him.

‘That can’t be true, she was fine just moments ago!’ Came out of him, almost in anger.

He immediately proceeded to the paramedic to see for himself. ‘I’m sorry, looks like she bled

out. There is nothing we can do now.’ She said to him whilst being visibly affected by it.

‘But, but she was fine enough just moments ago,’ Tomas said in a low, defeated manner, but still

in slight disbelief. Tomas proceeded to the little girl’s body as it lay on the prepared stretcher

after getting pulled out of the car. She certainly looked dead, lifeless. ‘This doesn’t make any

sense. Why, how?!’ he muttered in an increasingly desperate voice.

The female paramedic then pushed the little girl’s body slightly onto her side to reveal a

midsection gunshot wound to her right back side, bringing tears to his eyes.

‘I didn’t see that, I didn’t see that, I was on the other side…’ Tomas said in a soft voice, looking

back at the paramedic. ‘She seemed fine…I thought she would be okay, but, but her dad needed

all of my attention! I believed that he needed more help than her, she seemed fine! How come

she didn’t show any sign of pain?! She seemed fine!’ His voice was shaking, and everybody

around and on the comms knew that he was about to burst out crying.

The female paramedic tried to grab onto Tomas’s hand whilst one of the officers and the escort

guard each laid one of their hands onto his shoulder at the same time that one of the other

paramedics tried to cover the little girl’s body, only to snap Tomas out of his grief immediately

whilst snatching the girl’s body away off the stretcher, holding her in his arms.
Tomas said, ‘No! This can’t be! She was fine!’ almost angrily. Nobody tried to oppose him.

Peter, Gargy, Violetta, Cop, Charlotte, Helena, Catherine, Kupkin, Sataano, Odlew, and others

were watching closely from Tomas’s POV, the TV screen, and Gargy’s POV to witness him

getting broken again. Not knowing what to say, despite wanting to say something as they

themselves were deeply moved by what happened and Tomas’s immediate frantic reaction.

Charlotte was the first one to address him as Tomas started to walk away with the girl’s body in

his arms.

‘It’s not your fault; I didn’t see it either. I watched what you saw the whole time and I couldn’t

see it,’ Charlotte said in her soft and heartbroken voice, but there was no response.

In the meantime, Tomas was changing directions while he was walking with the girl in his arms

as he changed his mind which way to go every couple seconds. You could see and feel the

conflict and desperation in him trying to come up with an idea what to do and where to go to

“fix” this.

‘You couldn’t have known. I think…I think that the adrenalin and shock blocked her pain, due

to the stress she was going through seeing her dad like that… And then she simply faded away,

in peace…’ Charlotte’s voice was crackling too, trying to hold back crying.

But Tomas barely paid any attention to it as he registered it only in his subconscious. He was

totally absorbed in the desperation by now, trying to find a solution. By now he realized there

was none, she was gone. It forced Tomas to stop, as he had to face the reality. There was

nowhere he could go where he could get help now.

Charlotte said into the comms, ‘You did what you could. It’s not your fault.’ More people joined

in saying it was not Tomas’s fault.

All of the support that Tomas heard in his comms and around him from the bystanders was like a

burst of light that could blind an angel, hope and support for a better future, that it would all be

good again, that he had done well and what he could. In fact, it was so much that it was as if the

sky had blown the heavens into the stars, overwhelming support coming from everywhere.

But Tomas could feel the ‘gravity of tampered grace’, and that it wasn’t helping, ‘falling into

empty space’, wasn’t easing the inner pain that he felt one bit and he was falling deeper into the

depression whilst there was ‘no one to catch him in their arms’, no one could do or say anything

to make this pain go away, or even to ease it a bit. All he could see was that ‘he stood in the

wake of devastation’. It looked like a war zone around him with bodies lying everywhere, each a

tragedy on its own. ‘With the cataclysm raining down on him’, the cries of physical and

emotional pain echoed from everywhere around as the relatives were finding out about their loss

and the victims themselves cried out in pain, rolling on the pavement, completely silencing the

momentary cheer for Tomas that really lasted less than half a minute in the face of the carnage

around, every cell, every atom in his body was screaming “Save me now!” feeling impossibly

alone. All whilst he was ‘standing at the edge of the unknown’, being in a position that he never

was before.

Tomas immediately fell to his knees and burst out crying after letting out an angry war cry that

burst into the sky in frustration before turning into painful weeping.

Although Tomas had witnessed unspeakable horrors before, namely the flaying of the poor girls

at the New York “House of Horrors”, which broke him completely at the time, this was still

somehow next-level. He witnessed the love of a dying dad and daughter for each other in their

last moments, making it somehow more personal. On some level, Tomas imagined that he

himself was her dad and the little angel that he held in his arms had died despite his frantic
efforts. It was as if he lost a child in a freak event despite his best attempts to save her.

Unspeakable, unimaginable pain of a parent losing a child, never mind under such a

circumstance on top of it. He was broken again, this time even more deeply.

Tomas whispered, ‘I have failed you, little angel, I have failed you!’ his tears rolling out so hard

that he could barely see anymore.

He couldn’t get rid of the feeling that it was his fault, despite everyone’s efforts to convince him

otherwise.

Helena tried her best as well, but ended up not knowing what else to say that others hadn’t yet

and was rendered silent herself after grieving with Tomas. It moved everyone to see him

clutching onto the little girl in such a way, as if she was indeed his. It showed again what

compassion he was capable of, and to what extent.

The space around Tomas was getting more busy as more and more police units and ambulances

arrived, flooding in with personnel. One of the police officers cautiously approached Tomas with

the female paramedic from before in tow.

The police officer stated, ‘I don’t want to be insensitive, but we’ll need the body for her

relatives.’

Tomas stopped weeping, looked at him, nodded that he understood, and realized that this could

have been seen as a “little weird” by some. He placed the body of the little girl into his hands

whilst remaining on his knees.

‘Thank you…and you, you should go now! I, or my colleagues here, have no intention of

arresting you, but you’re bound to be arrested by others if you stay here any longer. Go!’ he said

with real urgency in his voice.

But Tomas had no strength to move, nor full comprehension of the gravity of that statement. It

felt pale in comparison to what happened previously and what he felt. All that happened so far,

all of it. So much hope for a better tomorrow, only to fail each and every time, in everything. The

end goal never reached, not even close. It all seemed more and more like it was all for nothing

after all. Only small victories in a larger tragedy, providing little comfort when considering the

cost of each.

Violetta said, ‘Tomas, you have to let go of it. It’s not your fault, you have to let go!’

He still remained in a kneeled position on the pavement, although completely silent and

seemingly had fully stopped weeping. Except he kept crying on the inside, and Violetta knew it.

Tomas was unresponsive, just like in New York, the first time that he became “broken”. It was

an unmistakable sign.

‘I will go get him!’ Gargy said in an urgent manner, not even attempting to try to talk to Tomas

anymore, realizing what happened again.

Gargy would have tried to say some comfort words to Tomas, but he knew it would only fall on

deaf ears, leaving those efforts to others that still tried.

Violetta pleaded, ‘Do you feel cold and lost in desperation? I know, I know. You have built up

hope, but failure is all you have known. I know. Remember all the sadness and frustration, all of

it, and let it go. Let it go! It’s not your fault, Tomas. None of it is. Let it go.’
In the end, it took for Gargy to show up and collect Tomas whilst finally bringing his face mask

back into place, covering Tomas’s face. The police officers recognized Gargy when he

approached and expressed that they were glad that he also survived the LA incident. Even asked

him about the third man that shot back at the officers (Peter), if he was also okay, to which

Gargy of course didn’t respond at all and hastily took Tomas out of there.

People would naturally follow them, but Peter already had a plan for that. After a couple of

changed cars and clothes, they were all on their way to Richmond, Virginia, where Peter’s

prepared safe house was. Others had to stay in the luxury Seattle penthouse for the moment, to

not create suspicion. After two days, it was Helena who accompanied Tomas in Richmond’s safe

house whilst Peter and Gargy returned to the luxury flat in Seattle. Just in time, before the first

detectives showed up at the doors to ask a few questions.

Interestingly, despite Tomas having his face mask pulled back on top of his head, revealing his

face for quite a while, and tons of recorded footage online or otherwise, not one publicly showed

his face. Even when obviously capturing it, the photographer opted to blur it out in the posted

video instead, in order to protect his identity. As far as the public was aware, he, along with his

buddy that showed up and later proved to help by taking out a couple of the robbers, were

heroes. People rejoiced that they were alive and “back”.

***

Naturally, soon enough there was at least one soul that tried to monetize the fact that he’d clearly

recorded the face of the masked man, but only blurred-out versions were ever publicized. Online

or anywhere else. If anything, Tomas’s kneeling whilst clutching onto the little girl in tears had
been recreated in multiple art pieces all around the world and became a symbol for heroes. It

moved everyone in a great way.

However, the FBI and the police knew Tomas’s face now. Mostly blurry images, and it wasn’t

even possible to confidently determine Tomas’s skin colour due to the shadows, stating that he

was most likely “light-skinned” (Black), and efforts were made to locate and identify him.

Since Tomas wasn’t a legal citizen, and most of his adult records that may have existed were

from his China days, whilst still being called the Ghost there for a reason, he only had a little

recorded teen history in Slovakia, which no one could really connect to him at the present time

anyway.

Ghost was his nickname in the triads’ circles for a reason. It would have never led anywhere, and

the FBI’s best hope was to look for that face alone. Not an easy task when someone is in

isolation at a safe house in Virginia (State), hiding. Tomas was completely safe, protected by his

close ones and the public equally.

 Linkin Park – One More Light 4:15

“If they say - Who cares if one more light goes out?

In a sky of a million stars - It flickers, flickers.

Who cares when someone's time runs out?

If a moment is all we are - We're quicker, quicker.

Who cares if one more light goes out?

Well I, do.”

Safe from being exposed, that is. His mental health seemed to worsen since the Seattle incident

as he fell into a deep depression, still grieving over the girl and her dad. He couldn’t get that

image out of his mind. Blaming himself for it. Although he did it in complete silence whilst

pretending everything was okay to everyone else.

The truth was that almost every time he was left alone when Helena went grocery shopping or

somewhere else, he wept again and sank so deep into the image that was printed into his mind.

He felt the guilt was killing him. What if I did this? What if I did that?’ Looking for ways that he

could have saved them and where that would have led in regard to the other hostages and the

public around. What if he approached from the other side instead? Would the car still be in the

line of fire? But he couldn’t have known that anyway. What if they both were already mortally

wounded prior to his arrival? The car was already shot up badly when he first arrived. Were the

wounds that serious? Or could he at least have saved the little girl if he kept the surgical glue can

and applied it straight away on her? Could he have saved them both? They both basically bled

out, although their organs may have failed even if the bleeding was stopped later and died

regardless.
‘What if, what if?’ Tomas explored countless angles and possible results. But one of them was

burning the most. ‘Charlotte told me to do a primary and secondary survey, but did I?! Did I?!

Just because you can’t see it, doesn’t mean it isn’t there! I didn’t even touch the little girl to see

whether she was also injured, I was so focused on her dad! Did I ignore any signs?! She got

awfully quiet at one point. Why did I leave then? Should have stayed…’

The thought that he surely could have saved her if only paying any attention to the signs and not

leaving her alone at any moment, even when it was only for a couple seconds, was killing him on

the inside. He did send the guard for help, which the guard did bring in a hasty manner. Why did

he leave too? Could he have found the wound, held pressure on it, talked to her, comforted her?

All things that he could do but didn’t.

It was killing him on the inside, but also made him angry more than anything else that he

couldn’t see it. As he should be feeling angry. It wasn’t fair!

It may not have changed the result at all, but the possibility existed, and that was enough for him.

It was like looking for proof of his own guilt that he felt, despite everyone else trying to convince

him otherwise. Even on the TV! The little girl’s mom, Kate, expressed her gratitude to the

Justice and Truth League for their efforts to save her family, along with everybody else, despite

her being still obviously devastated even weeks after it happened. Kate stated that she felt the

need to acknowledge the tremendous support that she received from her family and the public,

and to make it perfectly clear that she doesn’t blame the Justice and Truth League for anything

that happened to her family. In fact, that she is grateful for the efforts made, and found comfort

in all of the original images or the artistic depictions of the masked man holding her daughter in

his arms, screaming in pain and disbelief into the skies in frustration that flooded the internet and
the media whilst being adopted as a symbol of heroes, when there were so many more victims

that day.

‘So many others lost their loved ones, so many officers paid the ultimate price or with their own

blood in efforts to protect us all, including getting my family out of the car before it was too late.

I can’t express how grateful I am for their efforts and how sorry I am for the loss that it resulted

in to their families… I pray that we will all get the answers for how this could even possibly

happen in the first place, in this age, during daylight. Why do we still need, and I mean no

disrespect by this, “vigilantes” to come and save the day? Why were the SWAT teams a no-

show? Why was nobody picked up by the FBI or, I don’t know, someone? Was this planned to

happen? This kind of firepower and body armour must be easy to trace. Why is something like

this still possible after what happened in Vegas and in other places? Something has to change!

How many more heroes will have to pay the ultimate price? How many more tragedies will we

all have to endure?! How many more symbols have to be created?!’ She broke down in tears,

ending the interview.

It was fuel into the rage that replaced the sorrow that Tomas felt. He wanted answers too, and he

felt obliged to make this “right” by finding everyone involved in the bank robbery. He felt that it

was his duty to all of the victims that day, and it would be the only way he would perhaps find

peace again, and to make the memory not as painful once he avenged them. He was sure that

there would be more people involved in it.

Tomas felt ashamed once he realized that despite the countless victims, on the surface, to him it

was just a statistic, because he didn’t witness it personally, or “up close” enough that he would

feel the gravity of tragedy inflicted in the same way as he did with the little girl and her dad. He

still cared for every single one of them below the surface.
Just like Helena knew all along and reminded Tomas from time to time once he tried to deny it,

despite the almost hatred he felt towards what he called the “undeserving sheep” (the public) not

that long ago. In the face of their suffering, he couldn’t help but to feel for each and every one of

them. Even in the million-star sky, he missed every single light that went out.

He knew that our time here is but a moment in comparison to the age of the universe, and that we

have no meaningful impact on anything during our short existence in the “big picture”. Our

lights flicker in the sky with every hardship and suffering that we have to endure, fragile in our

existence. We are, and no one should suffer without a meaning; no one should simply be

forgotten, blown away in the wind of time. Tomas cared, and he would remember for as long as

he lived.

How could he ever forget? Reminders were everywhere, pulling the floor from his feet, bringing

him to the very borders of panic attacks and depression every time he saw some random dad

playing with his daughter. Or every time he saw a red Honda Civic, the stranded car in which the

little girl and her dad got shot. Oh, he hated that car now no matter what colour it was! Couldn’t

stand it, despite knowing it was an irrational emotional response. The car itself couldn’t be

blamed for anything. It didn’t matter, it was a painful reminder. All things considered, he

managed to hide it well again, most of the time.

o Chapter 3: Evil Thriving in Indifference

Linkin Park – Hands Held High 3:52

“Fuck that, I wanna see some fists pumping!

Risk something, take back what's yours,

say something that you know they might attack you for!

'Cause I'm sick of being treated like I had before - Like it's stupid standing

for what I'm standing for!”

A couple quiet weeks passed but then something unprecedented happened. Some COVID-19

pandemic outburst that locked down the whole country. Which on its own, wouldn’t be

something horrific, despite a quite notable death toll. Since the lockdown didn’t exactly work as

the government hoped for, with many people ignoring it and some governors overriding it, and

their pleas to the public to have compassion for the overloaded healthcare workers, to show some

respect and stay home or at least wear a face mask had failed, other mitigating tactics were under

consideration to try to get the pandemic under control. Talks about better country monitoring via

new facial recognition cameras, chips inserted into the body with relevant information, such as

who was tested for COVID-19 or not, location, travel itineraries, credit scores, all in the name of

safety and earlier opening up of the country – China style. It was a truly terrifying time, well past

an Orwellian dystopia model. It would allow the government to control every aspect of one’s life

based on a social credit score. Movement, access to finances, control over one’s body

choices…sickening. It would allow the government to basically fully shut down anyone’s life at
will, based on their social credit that they will have full control over. Penalizing people for things

such as opposing or otherwise considered “dangerous and harmful” views, thus effectively

denying one’s freedom of speech because of fear of life-threatening reprisals. A direct attack on

the First Amendment. Unsurprisingly, Tomas declared that he believes that this pandemic is not

just and coincidence. That it must have been planned and released exactly for the purpose of

introducing various restrictions by the government that wouldn’t get as opposed, as their

otherwise would. But as usually, he would take it to the absolute opposite extreme declaring that

Covid was for the most part harmless anyway; and that the government whom surely must have

ordered this is so incompetent, that they can’t even make a bio-weapon right to make it at least

seem like a real dangerous threat. Because the After Vegas Mass Shooting, it wouldn’t be that

surprising to be honest, and some simply automatically took it as the truth. Mainly Cop and

Gargy who both basically begin to see through Tomas’ eyes after what Cunnigham did.

The proposers of the bill would argue that it was only to get the country into a safer state, where

pandemics and potentially also mass shootings wouldn’t be able to happen, and to save the

economy, not unnecessarily overburdening it with more sick people. They argued that when it

comes to the free speech, they would only penalize for “dangerous” or “hate” speech; otherwise,

people were free to say what they wanted. What a joke! Tomas thought. He couldn’t ever

imagine that he would live long enough to see this level of dystopia being proposed. To him, the

control of government and media by the monetary system was bad enough, with the corruption,

greed, and lies that it produced on a daily basis and the public consuming it, for the most part.

But this? Surely not…

‘This alone should wake up people already! Where are they now? Oh, I forgot, in forced

isolation, how convenient!’ Tomas said, talking to Helena and Peter, who had been visiting for

almost a week now.

Peter said confidently, ‘It will never go ahead, no way. You’ll see.’

Tomas said, ‘That’s not the point. The point is that they even suggested that something like that

could take place. They already introduced the idea to the public, surely testing its reaction. Now

is the time to protest. This is something to protest about, not the shit I saw in Seattle! Finally

something obvious in so many ways for the leaders to mumble about nervously in the nightly

news replays. But instead, the living rooms are laughing, like, “What did he say?” and the rest of

the world is just watching it. I wouldn’t be surprised if similar shit started to be discussed in

Europe as well, now that the USA publicly announced it. What an “NPC” age we are living in.

The rich wage war for power but it’s the poor who die!’

Helena said, ‘Don’t let it get too close to you, babe, does you no good. As Peter said, it probably

won’t go anywhere anyway. It will get shut down by the public promptly. You will see.’ She

wrapped her arm tighter around Tomas’s left arm.

Tomas confirmed, ‘You’re probably right. Not sure why I’m even telling you the obvious. It’s

just that I have the need to express myself loud and clear. Like I have to say something.’

Peter said, ‘We know, no harm done, buddy. It’s not like you’re the most open person in the first

place. We certainly won’t hold it against you when you are.’

Helena seconded, ‘Exactly. You can tell us anything, anytime.’

Silence ensued for a moment, when no one knew what else to add. Tomas seemed done. Then he

said, ‘Funny enough, with no disrespect to you two, I would love to know Violetta’s opinion on

this. Maybe I’m really going crazy.’

Peter said, ‘No one said you’re going crazy!’ Helena seconding again.

Tomas said, ‘I feel like maybe I am. Not that long ago I was a mourning “wreck”. Then, as if by

a flip of a switch, I feel only rage in my heart. I’m angry constantly. I have a need…to hurt, the

bad people. How strange; I had all but made a covenant to myself and you guys that I’m over it.

It really leads nowhere but to your and my suffering. I don’t want that. Yet, there is this

“crawling” in my skin, getting me to a point of rage.’

Peter said, ‘So you’re angry, and with good reason. What is so strange about that?’

Tomas didn’t respond but remained looking unhappy.

‘Perhaps a call to Violetta would be in order?’ Peter suggested, trying his best at finding a

resolution.

Helena dismissed the idea. ‘Surely that’s not necessary. You can tell us whatever you would tell

her.’

Peter recognized that it was more of an emotional response coming from Helena, more so than

rational. She must have felt threatened and perhaps even disrespected by him suggesting that

another woman could be more emotional support to Tomas than Helena was. Despite Violetta

being a psychologist, and a very good one at that. Peter had to drop it for Helena’s sake, not that

it seemed that important. It was barely a suggestion on his part.

Tomas said, ‘I’ll be fine. I’m just rambling like I do,’ also dismissing the idea, waving his hand

in a “never mind” gesture.

Tomas said, ‘It’s just…that I know the majority will just wave their hands too and forget that it

ever even happened. Making them more susceptible the next time the elites try. I’m sick of these

people rebelling over “wage gap and equality” and in the meantime they jump as soon as the

government tells them to jump into something like this. “Because it is for your safety.” Fuck

that! I want to see some fist pumping! Risk something, take back what’s yours! I want them to

say something that they know they might get attacked for! Because I’m sick of being treated like

I have before! Like it’s stupid standing for what I’m standing for! Like this war they’re waging

against us is really just a different brand of war, as if it didn’t cater to the rich and abandon the

poor. They still believe their leaders understand them from the back of their jet, when you can’t

put gas in your tank! And these fuckers are laughing their asses off all the way to the bank and

cashing the cheque, asking us to have compassion and have some respect?!’ His face turned red

at how angrily and fast he said all of that with passion.

Peter and Helena gave him space to finish before saying something, as it was obvious Tomas

wasn’t done.

‘They be laughing at this shit, thinking it’s funny, not understanding how serious this is. Well

I’m not laughing! ’Cause when it gets tense, I know what might happen. The world is cold, the

bold men take action. You have to react or get blown into fractions!

‘Like that ten-year-old…I’ll tell you, it’s something to see.’ His eyes got watery, clearly

referring to the little girl in the shot-up car. Not that he needed to tell them what they had both

seen through his POV, although that’s not the same as being there. Or that it was exactly what
happened to her. But to make a point, there were enough horrors that they had all witnessed

already.

Tomas pushed the tears back, quickly wiping his watery eyes and got composed again.

‘Isn’t it ironic that people still worry about Muslims blowing them up, but a bomb blew up a

mosque yesterday?! In Iraq? Because of an Iranian general being there? But people are scared

that there are bombs on our buses, bikes, roads, inside our markets, our shops, our clothes?!’ It

just didn’t make sense to him.

‘They have a lot of fear, I know, but some have enough pride inside not to let that show. Whilst

all of it is just an illusion! They have been groomed to believe that, to fear. As soon as they stop

to fear one thing, the government, or the people behind them pulling the strings, I should say,

will bring a new boogeyman. What do you think COVID-19 is? It might be just accidental

convenience, but they will for sure not let such an opportunity pass without exploiting it first!’

He stopped for a moment, realizing that he was raging in front of Peter and Helena, who didn’t

even know how to respond anymore.

Tomas said, ‘I’m done!’ waving his hand in a resigned gesture. ‘I’ll just stand tall with MY fist

into the blue sky waiting for the ocean to swallow me as well.’ He went to the kitchen to make

some food.

Both Peter and Helena understood that Tomas wasn’t convinced this was over, nor that the

public would do anything significant to stop it. But to them, the real problem at hand was Tomas

himself, as they watched him changing his mood frequently and from extreme to the opposite

extreme based on the outside stimulus. It became increasingly rare when he was simply just cool

and calm as he always used to be. On the outside, that is. Even Helena began to give more credit
to Violetta, who briefed everyone long ago that Tomas must have always been like that. It’s just

that now his emotions were leaking over as he struggled to control them again. But not to point

this out to him, as it certainly would upset him even more and extend the damage done.

The PTSD was there for sure, and it was quite visible too. All they could hope for was that this

would not go as Tomas predicted, however no one would dare to predict what Tomas would do

about it, or what it would do to Tomas in turn.

In Tomas’s mind, he’d had enough and said his peace. He would simply just wait for the

inevitable to happen. The powers at hand, to him, were as unbeatable as the ocean coming to

swallow you.

Linkin Park – No More Sorrow 3:41

“No, no more sorrow! - I've paid for your mistakes!

Your time is borrowed! - Your time has come to be replaced!”

Well, Tomas wasn’t wrong. Although there were many voices in the public that opposed some or

all of the proposed “security” measures, it certainly looked like the government was serious

about going ahead with it. However, two or three days into the first public talk by the media

about the chatter within the Senate to introduce the new security measures, the president came

out with a speech stating that he would sign no such bill, and in fact, that he would use his veto

power to block it, to Tomas’s and surely many others’ satisfaction. Congress still tried to find

enough support to pass such a law but fell short anyway. It seemed that everything would be

okay after all, if it wasn’t for the most infuriating thing that happened next.
Governor of Nevada Lisa Scott-Cunningham, the same one that indirectly-directly caused the

Vegas mass shooting and tried to profit politically off it and got away with it, came out to the

public stating that the proposed measures made perfect sense and that the public just needed to

see that the government wouldn’t use it against law-abiding citizens; that there was nothing to

fear at all. She said in a nationwide broadcasted interview that the public just needed to see it for

themselves first in action, declaring that Nevada would become the “testing” state, turning it into

the safest and most just place in the US, as she was ready to sign such a bill.

Her main arguments for the bill were that in the face of the recent Vegas mass shooting and the

spread of COVID-19 nationwide, action must be taken. Cunningham claimed that she understood

where the fear of such a law was coming from, but after giving America proof that it can trust its

government, with Nevada setting an example first, it would surely be adopted by the other states

as well, even independently, if needed.

Then she proceeded to make a case that shootings, as they witnessed in their state, would not be

possible anymore, and that there would be no better time to go ahead with the installation and

enforcement of all of the security measures, along with the chip implants, as now, during the

pandemic. Each visit to chip the person would also be a visit where they could test the person for

COVID-19, and that person could surrender his guns without stating any history of purchasing it,

without any persecution.

That, in turn, would provide the person with the reassurance that he/she doesn’t have COVID-19,

or if so, would be taken to get help immediately, not further endangering the rest of the public

and the family of that individual. Chipping of people positively tested for COVID-19 would be

mandatory. Thus, the public would be safe, even if those kinds of people would decide not to

self-isolate.
The chip itself would alert local police of that person’s location, allowing them to respond

swiftly and safely, with the knowledge that the person has COVID-19. The chip inside would

automatically allow the police to come up with all relevant information, eliminating the need to

ask for an ID or driver’s licence, etc. Furthermore, the chip could block the person’s usage of her

credit cards or booking online of any kind of services that would potentially expose more people

to danger.

Naturally, the newly installed security system (spying cameras) would automatically draw

attention to such a person, allowing the security forces to have constant visual contact with the

offender. This could be an offender of any kind. Somebody does a hit-and-run? Face recognizing

or secret body identifying techniques would flag such a person via the chip, freezing bank

accounts, the car itself, providing it’s a smart car, blocking her mobile, alerting police and all of

the security systems to track her visually.

‘No crime goes unpunished. It will be in the interest of that offender to get caught as soon as

possible, to “unfreeze” his life.’

Cunningham boasted that anyone who volunteers to get the chips themselves is basically

declaring that they’ve got nothing to hide, and in fact, is ready to get rewarded for being an

upstanding, law-abiding citizen via the benefits of their increased social score. On the other

hand, any serious offender would be mandatorily chipped, for the public being aware of what he

does, when and how in the future, instantly punishing him for any further misdemeanour via the

social score, thus removing the ability of some services or free movement without the need of

police intervention. It was to be swift justice, punishing or rewarding people via the social score,

saving tons of money otherwise needed for current legal system intervention, paying for itself
within a couple years and then allowing the saved resources to be spent in the further

development of Nevada.

‘The real question you should ask yourself or your neighbour is, why wouldn’t you want to be

chipped? I will take pride in being the first citizen to get chipped in our great state of Nevada,’

she boasted.

Cunningham stressed that after the first three-month period in which she expected to be able to

chip every willing person, the gun amnesty would be over. Yes, she did state that chipping will

be voluntary, but should this go ahead fully after the testing phase, there would be no more gun

amnesty anymore, and for the citizens not to be surprised if previously chipped people would

have a higher starting social score giving them multiple advantages, including better interest

rates on their loans, cheaper prices for tickets, etc., because they have already been in the system

for longer, proving that they’re law-abiding citizens. Thus having a better start than those who

would first have to prove themselves over time to increase their own social score.

Someone could see that as just normal incentives. Tomas saw that as pressuring people into

submission or face the consequences! He was fuming. The bill was about to be ceremonially

signed on Friday the following week and broadcast from Cunningham’s home online. As if it

was some sort of a historical moment. Well, it would be, but not in the sense that you could be

proud of. Surely it was only designed for the purpose of deception.

***

Tomas declared, ‘This can’t be true! Of all the bitches out there, this bitch has the audacity to do

this!? Just a few months after?!’

On that occasion it was Gargy with Ulrike, Kupkin, and Cop visiting Tomas at that time. The rest

were still staying in Seattle to occupy the penthouse for quite a while before moving. Although

Peter was already on the case looking for a suitable high-rise with a penthouse for a reasonable

price so they could all live together but have their own privacy at the same time. Kind of like at

their former base. They all continued to watch the post-speech question-and-answer section in

the living room.

Gargy said, ‘No fucking way.’

‘No fucking way this is really happening!’ joined Tomas.

Cop said excitedly, ‘Look, look, she’s lost in her lies!’

He was referring to Cunningham trying to answer a question from a female reporter that asked

her whether she really felt that adopting China’s Orwellian-style security measures were really a

good idea, to explain who and how exactly will decide whether an offence or something to

reward happens, and to what extent the punishment or reward on the social score should be

reflected. Of course Cunningham stuttered, claiming that there are experts who would be more

qualified to answer those questions.

Following that question, the same reporter asked her whether she felt that without fully knowing

or understanding the answer to that, how was she in a position to sign such a bill? More

stuttering came, more excuses how she was explained everything by the experts already and is

confident that the systems will not be abused or misused or unjust, as all of the experts, advisors,

and contractors providing those security systems were working directly for the federal

government and had been screened by both the FBI and CIA prior to proposing the original bill

in the US Senate.
Cop said, ‘Yeah, sure they are. That’s why we all are going to pay for it in our collective taxes!

Thieves!’

Gargy noted, ‘But no one is going to spy on them. No one is going to “justly” judge them,

fucking hypocrites!’

Before Cunningham managed to finish that answer, the female reporter suddenly vanished off

the screen. This was realized by Gargy first once they showed the next, also female reporter to

ask the next question; the original one who stood not far away from her a moment ago was not

there anymore.

Gargy said, ‘Look, she’s not there anymore! They already took her off the site!’ pointing with his

finger at the place where she used to be on the screen.

Tomas added in disgust, ‘One simply doesn’t ask the hard questions.’

However, even the follow-up question from the other female reporter was a hard one. She asked

Cunningham whether, since the Senate couldn’t find a majority to sign such a bill, and the

president himself declared that he would never sign such a bill, she still felt that she knows

better, planning to go ahead with it on her own anyway.

‘Ha-ha, she’s getting roasted! Serves her right!’ Cop was amused.

Sadly, there was no answer to that, as Cunningham’s advisor then conveniently stepped in to

inform the gathered press that their time had sadly expired and the governor needed to attend to

her other duties, taking her away. The spokesperson then declared that they would address the

answer to this question as soon as possible at their official webpage made specifically for the
bill, and that the public will be able to see how it all works on the webpage’s educational videos

provided, or to find answers to all the questions they may have, or ask one there.

Tomas said, ‘Do they really think that we don’t realize what is going on? Fucking lies! This is

just another crusade in disguise so they can replace freedom with fear and trade money for lives.

Literally.’

Momentary silence ensued.

Cop said, ‘I hoped, I believed that this would never happen after what the president stated, but

I’ll be honest, I’m beginning to think I have been deceived.’

Tomas said, ‘And so did I. They will have to pay for this; this is treason!’

Gargy said, ‘Damn right it is, unbelievable.’

‘Well, to me it doesn’t sound that bad after all. I know she’s a bitch and all, but what if this

actually works?’ Ulrike noted, despite knowing that she would get nasty looks for that.

She was right. Tomas, Gargy, and Cop looked at her like she was crazy.

‘It’s a charade, schatzing,’ Gargy said, smiling at Ulrike.

Schatzing means darling in German. Gargy learned that from her – since she was German.

‘All I see is pain and need. I see liars and thieves that abuse power with greed,’ Tomas said,

looking at Ulrike.

Ulrike was adamant. ‘But what if it actually works?’

Tomas said, ‘You really believe she would chip herself if she couldn’t turn it off or control her

own social score? It’s for show! No way that’s actually going to track anything she does. The
system would no doubt pick up what she’s saying and communicating to others, flagging her and

anyone else she is talking to. It’s just like when your mommy is trying to trick you into a

doctor’s visit for a vaccination shot when you were small. “Look, there is nothing to fear”,

pretending to take one herself casually. You should have listened to your gut back then, and

today.’

Cop said, ‘Except that is probably a poor example, as the actual vaccination was useful despite

the deception.’

Tomas said, ‘I would go as far as saying it probably wasn’t; the world is dark. You wouldn’t

believe how many vaccinations were actually social experiment of a kind, or directly with

malicious intent to harm you in a way, for whatever they would gain from it.’

Gargy laughed, ‘That’s maybe pushing it too far, Tomik, even for me.’

Tomas said, ‘I don’t know man, I don’t want to believe it either, but some of the YouTube

videos are really looking convincing.’

Helena said jokingly., ‘Okay, that’s it for your YouTube for the whole week. Sorry, guys, he’s

always watching all of the conspiracy theories on there all the time. No wonder he’s so messed

up.’

Gargy said, ‘You don’t say, I would have never guessed!’ Enjoying the banter, laughing his ass

of.

All erupted in laughter, including Tomas. It was good to see him genuinely smile and laugh

again.
Tomas said, ‘In all honesty though, the bill looks like a good idea. On paper it looks great. But,

let’s face it, it’s Utopia. A dream they try to tape your eyes with so that you can’t see past the

lies. Of course, it is a shameless grab for absolute power where any and every dissident will be

promptly identified and dealt with.

‘Who’s watching them? I’m sure the whole Congress, along with half of the police force, would

be instantly flagged for several life sentences. Never mind the bankers, lawyers, and no doubt

many doctors. They would have to put a lot of exceptions in there, let me tell you. Rob the

nation, that’s legal. Steal ten dollars because you can’t afford to eat, well, social score down,

making your situation even worse. Steal a hundred equals jail time, plus you will get flagged and

no one will ever hire you again because that will be in your chip, instantly telling any potential

employer, I’m sure. No second chances, and no hope for people genuinely living at the bottom of

society because of to whom they were born, or where.

‘The problem is, we can’t trust them with this. Not yet, not anytime soon. Look around. Society

is going downhill ever since the multiculturism and third wave of feminism got the spotlight!’

Tomas was now speaking directly to Ulrike.

‘All right, that is enough now. Sorry, everybody,’ Helena said, trying to make it a joke.

‘I’m serious, this is a serious matter, stop demeaning it,’ Tomas said to Helena, looking

annoyed.

Helena lost her smile. ‘I just don’t like where this is going. Can we change the subject please?’

‘Well I don’t like where this is going either, but that doesn’t mean I will simply ignore it. This

has to be discussed and resolved!’ Tomas said with a serious face.

That forced Helena to get up and leave the room, almost in tears.

Ulrike said, ‘I’ll go talk to her. You boys talk about what you have to talk about, but leave us two

out of it.’ She was obviously irritated too.

Gargy said, ‘Good job, Tomik, well done!’

It eased Tomas a bit.

‘Yeah, I could have handled it better, but perhaps it’s better that the women are not here. Less

hassle to go through the “meat” of the matter.’

Gargy said seriously, ‘Come on, man, you’re talking like you don’t even care about them, about

Helena. That’s your girlfriend, that would take a bullet for you. No doubt about that.’

Cop said, ‘Seconded.’

Tomas said, ‘I know she would, but for the wrong reasons!’

Gargy asked, ‘What are you talking about now?!’

‘Oh, man, I’m not sure I even want to know,’ Cop said, trying to ease it up with banter.

But that only angered Tomas without really showing it.

Tomas said, ‘Oh, come on, it’s women! You guys know exactly what I’m talking about.’

Gargy said, ‘Tomik, you know that I’m always with you on anything, but this I cannot support.

As your friend, and take it as you wish, I’m telling you that Helena will be the most likely person

to help you get through the issues you have. A woman. Not me, nor Peter, not your family or

anyone else. This much I know. Now, I do know what you mean by that, but you need to realise

that you’re in a relationship now. All this negative talk about women in general is not healthy.
Not for you or Helena or anyone else for that matter. I also think that you’re not giving Helena

enough credit. She is not just the average bimbo if you hadn’t notice.’

Tomas said, ‘I know, but –’

Gargy said, ‘No but. It’s not just you anymore, and compromises have to be made. Like when

you need to bite your tongue in order to make Helena happy. Don’t ignore her, just simply go

with whatever keeps things happy for her.’

Tomas asked, ‘You want me to lie to her?’

Cop said, ‘He wants you to be more considerate. You know, like when you made a ton of

sacrifices for many other people before, even strangers. Just do a small sacrifice for her as well

now and then. A little compromise here and there, as Gargy suggested goes a long way. Anyway,

why not?’

Gargy said, ‘Exactly, thank you!’

Both looked at Tomas for a response. He looked a bit stunned.

Tomas said, ‘Boys, I’m really surprised by you even suggesting that I don’t compromise with her

enough already.’

Cop asked, ‘Like in what?’

Gargy repeated, ‘Yeah, in like what, when?’

‘Like…okay, perhaps she does it a lot more than me.’

Gargy said, ‘Of course she does. She’s still glowing around you and you’re acting like you don’t

even care.’
Tomas asked, ‘What do you want me to say? I love Helena. Perhaps not the way she loves me

back, but I do my best. The honeymoon period is over; of course things will slow down,

etcetera.’

‘Just saying you should step up your game, boy, that’s all,’ Gargy laughed, trying to sway it to

banter again. Cop laughed too.

Tomas didn’t.

Tomas said, ‘Okay, I do understand that you boys have been in a happy relationship way longer

than I have…’

Cop found a girlfriend whilst in Seattle, so technically, Tomas wasn’t exactly right in this case.

The girl still had no idea who Cop really was and what he did. To her, he was a self-made rich

engineer that held his family dear. Thus, he visited them often, and that’s why he was where he

was right now. She still patiently waited to be introduced to them. A problem for Cop to solve at

some point. He could have taken her to his real parents, but they would only be surprised to see

him after such a long time. Or he could take her to the penthouse, but to a normal person, that

kind of setting would have looked rather odd. Maybe even like there was some kind of swinging

or other perverted activities going on. Or he could have taken her now to Tomas and Helena

alone. But that would be obvious; it’s not even his brother or anything like it.

Worst of all, deep down, he knew to bring new people around Tomas wasn’t exactly a good idea

right now. Not that he would be dangerous or something like that. But he wasn’t exactly himself

for a long time now (for perfectly understandable reasons) and could potentially have one of his

“episodes” where he either exploded or got broken up about something. The timing simply

wasn’t right. Or he would say something like he was sure Tomas was about to say next.
‘But with all due respect, you all are blind to the basic women’s nature and how they operate.’

Gargy said, ‘Oh, here we go again, blah, blah, blah. Can we change the subject back to

Cunningham please?’ Even Gargy was annoyed at this point.

‘Well, Cunningham is a woman too, in case you didn’t notice,’ Tomas said, lightly irritated also.

Even the best of friends have a fight now and then, perhaps it was time for one now.

Cop said, ‘Okay, let him speak, Gargy. We have been wrong before, perhaps we are again. Either

way, we should listen when given the opportunity, right?’

It was a clear referral to Violetta’s advice from before, that if Tomas ever wanted to open up, to

let him. As it was very rare, and frankly an opportunity to understand him better and possibly to

help him relieve some of the frustration that was no doubt building up within him. Also, if they

learned something that she should know about, to report it.

Gargy said, ‘Go ahead, teach us about women’s nature.’ But he still looked dismissive.

Tomas said, ‘Women aren’t attracted to men. There is a vague idea of what a man is physically,

and some are better than others, aesthetically speaking, but the purely physical appearance of a

man is almost inconsequential unless he is horribly ugly or outrageously attractive.’

‘Which is a really good thing for you and me.’ He was looking at Cop. ‘Unlike like this pretty

boy here; his face could go on any magazine cover without Photoshop,’ he said, looking at

Gargy, forcing him to cast a smile again.

Cop bantered, ‘Well, at least you’re built like a Greek god.’

‘Dude, I’m getting older and uglier with every year. No one’s body could compensate for this.

This face is a face that only a mom could love.’ Tomas pointed to his face, laughing.
Of course, it was mainly banter, but both Cop and Gargy knew about Tomas’s insecurities about

balding because of his thinning hairline, which really wasn’t that bad at all, just undeniably

present, and the scars and somewhat more puff-like face that Tomas developed as the result of so

many injuries, surgeries, and granted, even some weight gain in the past months. Not that it was

something that for many would be even worth mentioning, but it was great banter and they loved

when Tomas was taking the piss out of himself when it was also truth in its essence. That’s why

it was so funny, it was also the truth. It made for great laughs, and certainly showed some

healthy self-awareness that he was not just a jerk thinking of himself as some kind of perfection,

as it may have seemed at time, but he was also ready to make fun of his own shortcomings.

Tomas said, ‘Thank God we two have more than just this to work with!’

Cop said, ‘Like what? Come on, tell us!’ still chuckling, Gargy included.

Tomas said, ‘Women are attracted to status, money, how much a man smiles and laughs, how

many friends and resources a man has, how full a man’s life is, how many cool, exciting, and

prestigious things he is doing or is connected to.

‘They are interested in how other people view him. How many people want to be around him,

how other people interact with him and whether their interactions convey that he is special or

amazing. They want him to be extremely outgoing and aggressive; they want him to demonstrate

his status over other people by dominating them in various non-violent ways.

‘A woman’s attraction to a man is a function of her jealousy at the thought of another woman

having that man. She doesn’t care who he actually is, or EXACTLY what he looks like

physically. She only cares about the VALUE of the life he has constructed around himself. A

woman basically is a greedy, materialistic prostitute.’

Gargy almost choked. ‘Dude, come on!’

Cop insisted, ‘Hear him out, hear him out.’

Tomas continued, ‘I know, although that sounds vulgar, it’s true. She trades her physical self to

buy into the success a man has created for himself. The difference is that I, as a man, fall in love

with how a woman is physically. I fall in love with the simple parts of a woman. Like the way

her hair falls around her face, the line of her neck, her shoulders…’ He became articulate with

his hands, like a painter making his next magnum opus.’

Gargy started to crack up in the way Tomas was saying it, the show he put on, as much as with

what he was saying. You would never hear Tomas say such things before. That would be

something that Tomas would consider to be for “pussies” to say. Thus, increasing the

entertainment level.

Cop chuckled, ‘Psst, just let him finish.’

But Tomas never really stopped except for when he had to fight his own laughter back.

Tomas continued. ‘The way her ears might peek from her hair. Her eyelashes. The size and

shape of her hands, her fingernails…’ He was doing a real show with his hands and expressions.

Tomas said, ‘The way she walks, the way she looks when she is tired or annoyed, the sound she

makes when she sneezes, coughs, or cries. The way she sits in a chair. The way she breathes

while experiencing different emotions. The way her lips move. A million little things…’ He

finished his show.

Tomas said, ‘Sure, a huge part of my attraction is mental, but the powerful seed of love that

builds within me and crystallizes is based greatly on visual things that set off torrents of

emotions and lust.’

He took a short pause to look at Gargy and Cop.

‘Do you understand? It seems to me that women almost cannot think for themselves. Their

estimates of worth are based on other peoples’ estimates of worth. They don’t really find an

object beautiful on their own. The object becomes beautiful when other people let her know that

it is beautiful. This is the reason why we two are lucky,’ he said, looking at Cop.

‘We’ve got wealth, status. People around us hold us with great regard. We project confidence

and can demand respect if needed. But let’s face it. Take all of that away, put us into a random

room with many girls that have no idea who we are, and they will fight over who will fuck Gargy

and Peter, paying no attention to us two at all, my friend.’

‘That ain’t no truth!’ Gargy said, gesturing with his finger but laughing.

Cop didn’t want to admit it, but deep inside, he must have known. He wasn’t a “model”, such as

Gargy and Peter were. If there was nothing else going for him and Tomas, they would both be

largely overlooked based on their physical appearance alone.

Tomas joked, ‘Shut up, pretty boy! I’m talking to my man here; you wouldn’t even understand.’

Gargy said, ‘You’re bigger than me. I thought you said that does matter.’

Tomas said, ‘I might have more developed muscles than you, but in clothes, I’m still just an

average build with an average face. I can’t walk around with my T-shirt off all the time, nor do I

think that it can compensate for this face here.’ He pointed at his face again.
‘I said that you would have to be outrageously pretty-boy to be able to take advantage of that,

despite not having anything else like I mentioned going for you. Like you and Peter have, and

that you would have to be outrageously ugly for the other things not to work. If you happen to be

in the average column, like me and Cop, along with eighty percent of all men, you can only

compensate for your physical averageness by those things that I mentioned for women to still

genuinely love you.’

Cop said, ‘Thank God for that. At least I can hope I will not get cheated on or get dumped.’

Tomas reassured, ‘You’re safe for now. Not only are you loaded, but you also have a manly,

commanding presence. But you better keep her in check and make sure to let her know that

you’re ready to let her go at any point, else she most certainly would fuck a boy like this on the

side for sure.’ he pointed at Gargy.

Awkward momentary silence.

‘Hoes will be hoes. You let her once consider you to be a betta provider, she will go and fuck

the next alpha she can find in less than ten seconds. Hurray to the social media and female

emancipation!’

Both Gargy and Cop erupted in laughter. It forced Ulrike to come and check on them.

Ulrike was still upset. ‘I’m so happy that you boys are having such a good time now, but we’re

not laughing.’

Gargy said, ‘It’s okay, schutzing! Tomas was about to apologize. Right?’

‘Sure, as soon as we’re done here. Just give us a few minutes, okay?’ Tomas said, looking

amused.
Ulrike gave them a nasty stare back whilst proclaiming, ‘Men…’ in a disappointed manner that

only entertained the lot even more.

After she left the room, Tomas said, ‘He isn’t getting laid today either! Pretty boy is in the same

boat!’

Cop and Gargy were very amused too. It took a while for them to calm down a bit. Then Tomas

continued.

‘I’m completely unable to reconcile the differences between men and women. It seems like

success with women is equal to spending half of your life working to create a giant illusion,

something vastly tiring and annoying, while sacrificing your own true self and your own

interests. We construct our lives around nest-building. We’re like male birds building nests and

showing them off to attract mates. It’s pathetic. Everything we do is to get women. I used to

believe that it was just to improve myself, for myself. But I just didn’t want to admit to myself

that I’m too pussy-whipped, a slave to pussy, controlled by my own thirst. A fucking beta!’

Gargy and Cop burst into laughter again.

‘It’s a fucking shit deal. Someone needs to invent a drug that has no hormonal imbalance side

effects but is able to erase a man’s sex drive and attraction to women. It would increase

productivity rates to incredible heights, I’m telling you!’

Cop chuckled, ‘So what you did was to put Helena in check to make sure that she stays with

you?!’

Tomas said, ‘Finally, this man understands me!’ putting his hand around Cop’s shoulder.

Gargy said, ‘That is shit thinking to say the least, let me tell YOU.’
Cop was entertained too.

Tomas asked, ‘Why? Why is that shit thinking? You would want me to open up to her and cry on

her shoulder, wouldn’t you?’

Gargy said, ‘Why not? I did it once before and no, I’m not telling you why.’

Tomas said, ‘These pretty boys must get away with so many things that we can’t even

comprehend. I mean, he’s got all of the status, and manly presence on top of that, but still, being

“girly” is one, if not the biggest, sin that man can do. If me and you try that shit, we’re done,’

Tomas declared, turning back to Cop.

‘Let me tell you how it works for the rest of us down here, mate. Women don’t give a fuck

about sensitive manginas. Treat her like shit, ignore her, and fuck her hard when you do see her,

and she’ll love you. Women want dominant, insensitive, and ruthless men. They’ll love you for

what you can provide, emotionally, financially, and genetically, and not for who you are as a

person. Remember that, lads,’ Tomas said, turning back to both of them, bantering.

Cop looked terrified as he checked whether the girls didn’t overhear that by any chance. Gargy

opted out to just cover his face as he was cracking up before checking with Cop whether the girls

heard that. ‘All okay,’ he said.

Gargy said, ‘Dude, do you want to end up single today? Shut up already!’ Looked genuinely

embarrassed too.

Cop just nodded his head, agreeing.

Gargy said, ‘Besides, you can’t really mean it, can you? You are describing a “trash” woman, not

what you have in that room right there.’

Tomas said, ‘I want to believe that too. She has an excellent upbringing, presentation, and act.

No tattoos, doesn’t swear, and I’m only her second boyfriend, despite her being twenty-five

years old. No kids. Her family and friends are all decent people and no doubt were a great

influence, as she is a direct reflection of them. No red flags, really. A real unicorn, right? No red

flags but one. ME.’ He was serious.

That got Gargy’s and Cop’s attention.

Tomas continued, ‘She left her first boyfriend, who even at that time was already a bloody brain

surgeon, for me? And good-looking, too. I have seen Richard’s picture. A well-raised man with a

bright future in front of him. For me! A dude that was chased by the triads for killing one of their

own, and then he massacred thirty-three others that came after him with a katana! Like where is

the logic there? Hypergamy 101. She got too close to what she perceived as a bad boy and

despite her whole life’s upbringing, despite being protected from such a person as me and

warned about it by everyone, she just threw it all away for a chance to be with the ultimate bad

boy?!

‘Granted, nothing happened before she split with her old boyfriend, although let me tell you, it

nearly did. And then she simply waited for her chance to get to know me better whilst being

single the whole time…but she did all this for me? I did a lot more before we actually got

together, unspeakable things that I’m not fully at peace with yet myself, and she was falling

deeper in love with me? Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad to have her, but her choice alone makes

me doubt her moral compass integrity.’

Gargy said, ‘So you resent her for choosing you as her partner?!’
‘Yes, of course I do. I hate what I am. I have become what I hated!’ Tomas said, tapping his

chest. ‘And she chose this over a decent, well-raised, and good-looking man?’ He looked

frustrated.

‘Can’t you see that she loves the man that resents the things he’s done? That she sees the

sacrifice and kindness that we all can see in you too? That she tries to help you deal with the

unspeakable things?’ Cop said in disbelief.

‘This!’ Gargy seconded Cop as he was about to say the same thing but got beaten to it.

Tomas said, ‘That might be true, but she also fell in love with the bad boy persona too, I’m sure

of it. Women can’t help it; it’s simply how nature operates. Just like we can’t help but to want to

fuck seventy percent of them because nature knew that ninety percent of women would reject us

anyway so we have a higher chance to reproduce when for us is it strictly about physical

attraction first, everything else is secondary, and we will get rejected nine out of ten times

anyway. We happen to talk about the decent men who happen not to be the other ten percent of

men who have the qualities I mentioned and get laid all the time with multiple women at will.

Jerks, for the most part, on a power trip, drunk on their male proven-ness with all females. They

know that they could erase the decent man’s history with their female in an instant, and I fucking

hate that about women.’

A short pause, but Gargy and Cop didn’t respond with their own insights although they would

like to oppose him. Just wasn’t prepared for this conversation.

Tomas went on, ‘I know that, for instance, I as the masked man could walk up to eighty percent

of happily married women with a high-value, decent man that has given them all and more, and

they would still cheat on him with me in a heartbeat, because of how much they perceive me as
the ultimate bad boy, rebel, alpha, based on actions that I personally despise I do, and the fact

that my social status right now is skyrocketing with the posters of me holding a child in my arms

everywhere. My “celebrity” status. A hero, they say. Yet they have also witnessed me doing

some of the unspeakable things, but simply don’t care. I wouldn’t have to do anything but to

show up in that family and I will guarantee you that once my T-shirt would go off for whatever

reason, like going into their swimming pool or something, it would be too much temptation for

the woman not to try to hit on me and would fuck me right there and then first chance given

when nobody is watching!’

‘Yeah, sure they would!’ Gargy said sarcastically, genuinely laughing at Tomas.

Cop said, ‘Yes, you’re one cocky bastard full of himself, but that would not get you laid with

eighty percent of women.’

Tomas said seriously, ‘Yes it would! Because I have already proven through my actions that I

truly am one, and I’m widely loved for that.’

Cop was surprised. ‘You really believe that?’

Tomas said, ‘Dude, wake up! All it takes is to go on the internet and look for yourself how men

are treated nowadays. How women use the new social media age to prostitute themselves for

endless attention and what idols they have. Granted, it’s mostly a Western woman problem, but

it’s all in the DNA of every woman and it takes a lot of integrity and strict, right upbringing

within a healthy man and woman family unit to somewhat mitigate it in the face of all of the

temptation. Ever since the rise of the third feminist wave that taught women to hate men and see

them mostly as disposable ATM machines because when it comes to the worst, uncle
government is going to lend his hand anyway, making sure they don’t need one anymore. And

they call this a strong, independent woman! It’s laughable.’

Tomas said, ‘The old societal model was when a young woman would trade her youth and

fertility exclusively to only one man. He in turn would be the workhorse, the best provider he

could be, and take care of her when she got past her prime. This was a great incentive for men to

work and “become a man”. It meant that you got a great prize, a young, beautiful, and loyal wife.

‘In theory. As we know, life isn’t perfect, and this model has some human flaws. But it was the

model that worked best so far. She does him a favour early on by being a virgin and exclusive.

Later on, he does her a favour by dutifully staying and supporting her instead of leaving her for a

younger woman. They both get a prize.

‘The new collapsing societal model is this. Women are encouraged to wilfully whore around to

waste their youth and fertility on the Chad/Tyrone bad-boy types. They get banged dozens of

times, get walled out, get a myriad of STDs, lose any ability whatsoever to faithfully pair bond

with men, and rapidly accelerate their aging process with excessive alcohol and fast food

consumption. Once they pass thirty years old and grow to have no loyalty whatsoever to any

man, they only profess their love and loyalty fleetingly when they are desperate to marry, as their

appeal is dying and their clock is running out.

‘What good, decent, upstanding man with any shred of dignity wants to pay an arm and a leg for

something thirty-plus that other men got for free? The incentive for men to carry the burdens of

modern Western women is completely and utterly GONE. You don’t get a prize anymore at all!

You get a parasite with an entitlement mentality that’s looking to take your resources and then

some. Before you even say I do at the altar, she’s already plotting how to financially rape you in
family court when she divorces your sorry ass in a few years. Why do you think she’s smiling as

she’s walking down the aisle?’ Progressively he was getting more and more upset, Gargy and

Cop would say paranoid really.

‘What women, feminists, government, and this fucked-up society expect is for men to pay a

premium price, with a huge divorce risk, for a used-up, beaten-up, soulless woman from the

bargain bin who possibly already has kids from Chad/Tyrone as well, of course. You’re expected

to pay a premium price for this woman with the morals of an alley cat, an in-denial, freak of

nature, pathologically delusional, self-esteem deficient, morally bankrupt, bottom-dwelling,

blood-sucking, inhuman creature. When she dies, the last living reminder of hell will be gone

from the face of the earth!’

Gargy and Cop would have stopped him if it wasn’t for Violetta’s advice and their own curiosity

how deep this rabbit hole would go.

‘She has kids from Chad/Tyrone or both, personal credit card debt, no assets, school debt for a

worthless degree in liberal arts, no cooking skills and no desire to learn any, no fiscal

responsibility, an overly banged vagina, and a pet you’ll be expected to take care of as well. And

you’re supposed to be happy about this opportunity to lick up the scraps from the floor? The so-

called good men that she wants and can’t find are out there. They just don’t want her at the table

because she has nothing to bring except financial and emotional pain.

‘In addition, she also has great expectations that you’ll do everything for her, make her feel

better, and provide an unrealistic, unsustainable lifestyle she feels that she deserves because she

read about it in some feminazi magazine article that hates men. All this while she cheats behind
your back with the bad boys she really wants while you’re at work paying all the bills for this

little parasite!’ He was almost raging.

‘Yeah, that sounds like a good deal! Is this the line I stand in to lose half my shit?!’ He was

starting to calm down, making a bit of a joke now. But then…

‘Women are throwaway sexual objects now more than they ever were, with less value than a

handful of sand to the average guy. He can’t expect any loyalty, nor real love, as she will not be

able to see the value in him because he is not the bad boy that really sexually attracts her. Men

feel ashamed when they’re given things they didn’t work for. However, women feel

accomplished when they use their vagina to get things they didn’t earn. Love Island and the

Kardashians, their idols, taught them so.’

‘Is this how you see me?’ Helena asked, devastated.

Gargy’s and Cop’s faces reflected the impending doom situation that surely was to follow.

Tomas said, ‘No, no, I wasn’t speaking about you. Not all of it; some maybe. I’m not sure what

all you heard, but no! I was just trying to point out how the current snowflake social model that

largely caters to feminism and multiculturism is fucked up and harms men along with the women

who don’t even realize it.’

‘Oh, great, so now I’m too stupid to know it as well.’ Helena was understandably upset.

Tomas said, ‘I didn’t say that you, or Ulrike, or Charlotte, or Violetta or, or –’

‘Then who? Every other woman that you don’t personally know?’
Tomas said, ‘Don’t get me wrong. Every woman has nature’s imbedded…nature. But you girls

come from a decent background and thus can control yourselves better and are a lot more self-

aware as well.’

Ulrike started to pull Gargy’s arm, saying that she thought they should go now. Both Gargy and

Cop started to get up off the sofa they sat on.

Helena said sarcastically, ‘Oh, and poor men have nothing but unfair conditions that benefit

women inflicted on them by the society because of the other women that became too stupid and

indifferent towards all but the bad boys that they cheat with on their decent and supportive man

behind their back, huh?’

‘I could not have said it better myself!’ Tomas said, just to spite her even more.

Helena said, ‘You see, boys, he accuses women of becoming degenerate by watching The

Kardashians and Love Island whilst he’s been totally degenerated himself by the MGTOW shit

that he constantly watches on YouTube.’ Visibly disturbed by what she heard.

Tomas said, ‘It’s not shit, it’s true. It’s about what I personally realized a long time ago and

observed personally even in Honk Kong, which was largely Westernized. This didn’t exist in

Slovakia when I left it, but back then there was no social media, no Superstar or Love Island for

women to watch. No Instagram to whore themselves out, no Sugar Daddy pages or Only Fans,

and no witch hunt on men who are constantly portrayed as useless, disposable objects except for

the bad fucking boys that all women naturally gravitate to. It’s all true, and it’s spread across all

of the Western world now, including Slovakia, and I’m disgusted with it! Yet, somehow it is

constantly the women who are still victimized, whilst the reality is exactly the opposite, or is full
of double standards at the very best due to their own degeneracy.’ He needed to take a new

breath before continuing, he was talking so fast.

‘Women leverage their sexuality to siphon resources from men. “It’s female empowerment!”

say the feminists. Men leverage their resources to gain sexual access to women. “Look at this

sick predator preying on women!” feminists cry out in a frenzy. For one example… Feminism is

CANCER!’ he concluded, raising his voice.

Gargy, Ulrike, and Cop were about to leave when Helena stopped them to wait for a moment.

They obliged, standing at the entrance door.

Helena said, ‘While you men are so perfect, huh?’

Tomas said, ‘Absolutely not. There are a lot of “simps”, suckers idolizing mediocre pussy,

contributing to this problem, or it wouldn’t be a problem. But only the jerks are rewarded by the

women. Still, even the bad boys don’t realise what lies ahead for them at some point. They will

also bite the bullet, as society will fuck them in the ass one way or another.’

Helena said, ‘Look who’s being victimized now!’

Gargy, Ulrike, and Cop were about to leave once more when Helena stopped them again by

saying, ‘Just a minute please’.

Tomas said, ‘I have no problem with that. Cocky bad boys who benefit from this and the simps

who support this can go to hell and deserve all that is coming to them from women. I’m talking

about the rest, and the fact is that men are ninety-seven percent of combat fatalities. Men pay

ninety-seven percent of alimony. Men make up ninety-four percent of work suicides. Men make

up ninety-three percent of work fatalities. Men make up eighty-one percent of all war deaths.
Men lose custody in eighty-four percent of divorces. Eighty percent of all suicides are men.

Seventy-seven percent of homicide victims are men. Eighty-nine percent of men will be the

victim of at least one violent crime. Men are over twice as victimised by strangers as women.

Men are one hundred sixty-five percent more likely to be convicted than women. Men get sixty-

three percent longer sentences than women for the same crime. Court bias against men is at least

six times bigger than racial bias. Males are discriminated against in schools and universities.

Boys face vastly more corporal punishment than girls. Sixty to eighty percent of the homeless are

men. Women’s cancer research receives fifteen times more funding than men’s. At least ten

percent of fathers are victims of paternity fraud. One-third of all fathers in the US have lost

custody of children, most are expected to pay for this, whilst forty to seventy percent of domestic

violence is against men, however less than one percent of domestic violence shelter spaces are

for men. Men pay over seventy percent of income tax, but the vast majority of public spending is

on services for women. There is more money spent on breast cancer than lung cancer and

prostate cancer combined, despite the fact that lung cancer alone has three to four times more

fatalities than breast cancer. A man’s chance of getting cancer is forty-four percent and twenty-

three percent of men will die from cancer, while thirty-eight percent of women get cancer and

nineteen percent die. Yet, there is vastly more money spent on cancer for women. This is lethal

discrimination! Every single problem evolves around how men are essentially evil and deserve

no sympathy for anything!’

Helena was visibly upset. ‘You’re done?!’

No response came back.

‘And you want to tell me that all of that you personally verified, didn’t pull those numbers out of

your ass and then remembered all of them so that you could have this monologue at some point?’
Tomas said, ‘What if I didn’t exactly? I may live in my personal protective bubble away from all

of this because of where and how my life has taken me. But that doesn’t mean I can’t see the life

stories of my male friends on Facebook or elsewhere. Every year I find out about some nasty

break-up, divorce, rape, or suicide due to the issues they’re facing at home, at work, studying, or

simply existing. Something I have seen with my own eyes to be happening around me in Hong

Kong, here shown on YouTube and TV, glorified and ridiculed. “Girl power” and all that. Which

is only celebrating the existing double standards whilst supposedly fighting for equality. It’s all

true.’

Helena said, ‘All I’m saying is that some of the things I heard you say are frankly so offensive,

so demeaning and borderline disgusting views of women that you might have created based on a

biased, one-sided point of view of failing men. I’m not sure how I’m supposed to feel about it. I

can’t believe you actually said some of those things.’

Tomas wanted to oppose deep down but opted not to escalate it.

‘You weren’t supposed to hear any of that. I wouldn’t say something like that in front of you.’

‘How is that supposed to make me feel better?! How? That makes it even worse! The point is

not to avoid telling me, the point is what you think of me behind my back! I am going shopping

for groceries after escorting these folks out. You’d better think of a way to explain this to me so

that I can fully understand, or to apologize once I’m back. I don’t even know how you got to talk

about it in the first place.’

Tomas said, ‘I was just trying to express that to me, it’s a fucking clown world out there.

Everything is corrupted to the core. Everything that I see in the current culture, the movies,

etcetera, all to go down to hell in the name of promoting so-called tolerance and equality.
‘On the surface, the man is always portrayed as the idiot, expendable, replicable, and at the very

least, toxic. Meanwhile, the female characters are always smarter, stronger, and superior in every

aspect compared to the males.

‘And all of that LGBTQ bullshit or some religious bullshit shoved down our throat at every

opportunity to remind the males how insufferable, intolerant, and inferior they are below the

surface with the white, straight male being the personification of the Antichrist. You’re a man?

Then you are the devil himself, automatically. Unless you happen to be the bad boy/fuckboy they

desire to get, or you’re the celebrity they’re dreaming about to finally save them from all of the

undeserving betas that are orbiting them. Feeling entitled for the best of the best that have it all,

despite being literally used-up human garbage themselves that hold no value to any decent man,

for the most part.

Western woman entitlement and privilege has no end, but still demands more! Sure, some men

will get brownie points if they happen to be Black, trans, gay, or Muslim, as they’re supposedly

part of the victimized populace. Except, they still possess their male privilege and will only ever

be considered a second-class citizen in the new establishment regardless.’

Gargy, Cop, and Ulrike just cringed at the door, cursing at Tomas on the inside that he had the

perfect opportunity to let go but opted to continue.

Helena said, ‘Okay, you know what?! I’m going to go now. I highly advise you to think about

what I have said.’

Tomas said, ‘About what? About the apology? None of what I said was about you; you’re my

unicorn! I’m sorry if this offended you, but why are you putting yourself in the same category as

the rest of women?’

‘And how else am I supposed to take it?! You are talking about women in general and I’m a

woman!’

Tomas said genuinely, ‘In general, like as in the majority of, yes, but not you, or Ulrike, and so

on. We wouldn’t mess with any of what I have mentioned in the first place. Why do you think

I’m in love with you? You’re my own unicorn, the best thing that ever happened to me.’

That cast a real smile on Helena’s face as it changed from angry. She visibly tried to resist it but

couldn’t help it.

‘You never said it so convincing as now.’ Smiling again, coming closer to Tomas to wrap her

arms around him.

Tomas said, ‘Well, I’m sorry for that too. You know how I am. I do my best, and I do appreciate

you and everything that you are. If anything, I don’t think that I deserve you, and that is what I

was telling the boys too.’

They both nodded as Helena looked at them.

‘And the fact that you must have left your moral compass somewhere on the love island, picking

me over your brain surgeon boy…’ He put a smile on, hoping that it wouldn’t go bad again, but

told her the truth as well there and then.

Helena just punched him in his abs, letting go of Tomas instantly, but still with that angry smile.

‘I sure don’t know what I was thinking of that day myself.’

Tomas grabbed Helena’s arm as she was about to leave, pulled her close to him so that she could

feel his strength as well, looked deep into her eyes and after a while, kissed her passionately.

That cast an embarrassed smile on Helena’s face.

‘Okay, I’m going. I’ll leave you to your sorrows for now. But when I come back, I’ll see what I

can do to make it go away.’ Helena said, looking at Tomas with desire and a cheeky smile.

‘On second thought, do we need any groceries? I’m sure we can still hold on for a day or two,’

Tomas said, still not letting Helena go.

‘I’m sure your sorrows can wait for an hour or two if needed, before we start to look for a

remedy.’

‘I don’t need to look for no remedy. I know exactly what I need.’

‘And what would that be?’ Helena whispered into Tomas’s ear.

‘You,’ Tomas whispered to her ear, adding another kiss on her cheek.

Gargy said, ‘Okay, guys, I see you need some privacy. We’re just going to go. See you next

Saturday!’

The whole lot was looking rather relieved now.

Helena said, ‘No, wait for me, I really do need some groceries. That madman doesn’t even know

we’re out of chicken and I can already hear him moaning about how did that happen.’ She joined

the group, putting her shoes on.

Tomas said, ‘Okay, okay, see you guys, and thank you for visiting. I’m looking forward to next

week. And, sorry about that previously.’

Ulrike said, ‘Don’t worry about it. You should see me and Gargy fight, this is nothing. Glad you

two sorted it out quickly. And that I’m on the “not a horrible and despicable bitch” list too.’

Good banter, all were entertained.

Tomas just couldn’t believe that, ‘All of this, only because of some “nails” that started to feel

jealous of the “hammers” and began to convince the other nails that they must hate the

“hammers”, as they are being oppressed or used by them. Not realizing that for most of the

“hammers”, their life was nothing but a struggle to be worthy of their “nail”, as they see no point

in their existence without them.’

However, Tomas knew that this was actually too close for comfort and him almost losing Helena

because of voicing his “sorrows” as she called it out loud. Only to reinforce his old self and not

to talk to anyone about anything serious ever again. It usually only brought pain, or offended

people that he cared about, or he was looked at like a fool.

If God really existed, he would have “formatted the disk” a long time ago from the depression

that he would have gotten after witnessing this mess. After the restart, there would be no more

free will or a man at all anymore, so that there would be no more Sodom and Gomorrah. He

would have simply looked at the Nature in awe at how beautiful it is, relaxing, Tomas thought to

himself.

But he also couldn’t stop thinking about what Helena said to him. About him and his sorrows,

and the more Tomas thought about it, the more he got angry. Not at Helena, but at the cause of

those sorrows. It all came down to what he felt for a long time now, to what he thought the world

really was like and why. Forget third-wave feminism or multiculturalism; that was definitely a

part of the problem, but not the cause. The elites at the very top who basically controlled

everything and everybody via money had no doubt a full grip over the vast majority of the

politicians in all Western countries and some beyond, thus legal power. And their goal was clear

to Tomas. To make sure that it stays that way, even in the information era of the internet, where

there were whistle-blowers uploading content on them and against them everywhere,
unstoppable. They realized that the internet cannot be stopped or ever fully censored and it was

only a question of time before more people would see that content and grow in numbers to the

point of revolution, as their evidence was irrefutable. They knew that all of the red flags were

getting exposed and events such as 9/11, if ever fully exposed, would end their reign instantly,

starting a witch hunt on them. All of the power they had would go away within a month.

Exposing the red flags wouldn’t lead to them, but the money would, and that would be the next

obvious question to ask if some of the heavier red flags, such as 9/11, ever got fully exposed. It

was like the body of a hydra. Cutting off one head wouldn’t do anything to it really, but

following the neck of that head to find the body that it is attached to would.

Thus, they had no choice really; to keep their power, they would have to start taking civil

liberties away from people. But they knew that they couldn’t just take them away, else there

would be revolution instantly. Politicians would get replaced as a whole and it could take them

another decade before they got enough of them corrupted to try to push their agenda such as it

was again. Frankly, they may not even have another decade at this rate of exposure. They had to

do what they always did before. First, create a common fear for all so that they can come up with

a solution that will take away some of the liberties in the name of safety. They knew that they

would have to convince the public first that it would only improve their lives and was for their

own good, and that it would have to be proposed by what the public considered their legal

leaders, else the public would never accept it. “Their” goal was no doubt to have full control over

every aspect of peoples’ lives via the chips and to take away their arms, making any resistance

futile and dissidence impossible. ‘Create sorrows for the people and introduce your solution to

them’ was their mantra.

Granted, many of the politicians or other activists might have no idea who their real masters are,

or what the real purpose of the proposed solution that might have looked good on paper was.

They couldn’t see that it was their gullible persona that made the elites at the top allow those

people to climb the political power ladder in order to serve them well without even knowing

about it! Or had a hateful persona towards what the narrative needed to be. Like “hate white

men”, “women need more power”, “diversity makes us strong”, “Racists and Nazis are

everywhere”, “rape culture”, anything that would eliminate the biggest threats to, or steer the

attention away from, the elites at the top and behind the curtains.

But not that bitch Cunningham. Not after what she did and with whom. She must have been fully

aware of how the world works and was fully onboard to climb the ladder, whatever it takes,

power hungry. ‘Now she wants to chip my family?’ Tomas thought. Yeah, they would never get

chipped voluntarily, but sooner or later, eventually it would become mandatory, guaranteed. But

surely not before they would have to endure endless ridicule, personal attacks, being branded as

criminals for refusing to chip themselves. ‘No fucking way!’ Tomas would have none of it. ‘That

bitch has to die!’

Cunningham narrowly dodged the bullet last time after what she caused in Vegas, but this was

the last straw, the last nail in her coffin. ‘Your time is borrowed. Your time has come to be

replaced!’ He was hyping himself up.

But then Tomas reminded himself of the sorrows he still carried with him in his heart, nearly

giving up on the idea completely. ‘Peter and Violetta wouldn’t approve something like this

anyway…’ It was his inner personal conflict whether something should be done or could be

done. The price to pay for something like that seemed to be too high. He was aware that his

actions can’t hand out more checks than his mind can pay anymore. But then a quote from
Thomas Jefferson came to his mind that, “When people fear their government, there is tyranny.

When the government fears the people, there is liberty”. That was about to be the reality for his

mom and sister very soon, then God knows who else after that. Perhaps the whole world.

‘No, no more sorrow! You will pay for what you’ve done! Your time has come to be erased!’

Tomas made his mind up, there was no stopping him now. The only question was how to go

about it. He knew that it might be for the best to not tell anyone and do it on his own. No matter

the consequences. This was yet to be the most important action that Tomas would do in his life.

Thus, the most serious consequences were to be expected. And Tomas didn’t expect anything

good, so he didn’t let anyone else be part of it, even if they went along with it.

Linkin Park – Lies Greed Misery (Dirtyphonics remix) 4:50

“You let your pride or your ego talk slick to me, no - That is not the way I get down.

And look at how you lose your composure,

Now, let me show you, exactly how the breaking point sounds!”

He carefully prepared what and how he would do, without Helena or anyone else noticing

anything. They would only come the next Saturday, and the chip bill was getting signed the day

prior to that. It was perfect. The only problem was that all the airports were closed due to

COVID-19 and Carson City in Nevada was quite a drive away from Virginia. Two days at the

very least. It was a good thing that Tomas’s family lived in Las Vegas and he made an excuse to

visit them immediately following what had been announced. People weren’t happy about it at all,

but it didn’t look like Cunningham was about to budge to the pressure. Helena understood and

didn’t even find it suspicious that Tomas took his Apex Armour with him when he told her he
just wanted to finally show it to his mom and sister, as they had only seen his mask previously,

and that it doesn’t hurt to have additional protection if needed anyway.

***

His family was surprised by his visit once he simply just showed up with Helena at their door,

but glad. They talked a lot about Cunningham’s plans and how disgusted they were with what

she was planning to do, but Tomas only reassured them that he was confident that she would not

sign it in the end, as the pressure and hate online, along with multiple petitions signed by

thousands of people to not go ahead with it, as well as a hastily filed court injunction request,

would surely sway her not to do it in the end, if she hoped to keep her office.

It was a possibility, but Tomas knew it was more a hope than anything else. Cunningham also

had a lot of supporters that welcomed the next-level “security of the future”. That alone was

enough for Tomas to know that Cunningham would never let pass such an opportunity, and the

signing was surely about to happen. Even if she had to bail out of it after the “testing month”.

But he couldn’t take that chance. Anyway, she had to go, one way or another, for what she had

done.

Luckily, Carson City is a stretch away from Las Vegas for Tomas to be far away and long gone

before Helena and his family would realize what was most likely going on, but not too far away,

so that he couldn’t simply leave once everyone was already asleep and still make it in time for

the morning’s 11:00 a.m. signing. Tomas knew that he wouldn’t be able to come back to Helena,

or his family or the Justice and Truth League, after. That the public wouldn’t take it well if the

signing of such a bill was apparently the only reason for the masked man to kill Cunningham.
That instead of being a hero he would turn into a “psycho villain” or something like it in the

media for sure. He didn’t care. This was bigger than anything else he’d done before.

But still, Tomas was hoping that Peter would get his hands on additional proof from Matty, and

once leaked online, together with what they already had on Cunningham, the public would know

better and she would possibly be considered just another criminal justly taken down by the

masked man. Best-case scenario, really. Either way, it had to be done.

***

Wheels were put into motion and he was able to secretly leave the house at 2:30 a.m. He used a

ride service so that the vehicle wouldn’t incriminate his family or lead to Helena. Uberman was

only happy for a hefty pay cheque from a guy who told him that he was divorcing his wife and

wanted to leave in a way she didn’t notice. That explained the semi-large backpack that Tomas

had with him. Of course, the Apex Armour and two PL30s were in there.

Naturally, Tomas took his own car first to the other side of Las Vegas, parked in a secured

location, and had himself picked up by the taxi a couple blocks away from the parking lot. That

way, the taxi man couldn’t provide any lead, even if someone figured out what was really going

on.

The roads were empty, allowing Tomas to arrive just before 10:00 a.m. That gave Tomas more

time than he needed, because of course he took the Uber to the opposite side of Carson City first,

supposedly to his parents’ house. Then, about ten minutes later, he took another Uber that took

him to the beginning of Ash Canyon Creek Trail. Tomas told the driver that he was going hiking

for some exercise; that would explain why he looked so plain. But of course, the main reason
was that the trail was only a 10-minute walk from Cunningham’s house at the 191 Plantation

Drive, to be specific, which was at the very edge of the city itself.

That allowed Tomas to easily suit up in absolute privacy deep in nature and out of sight of any

potential cameras, then to walk calmly down the hill and into the residential area. He only had to

walk past one house before reaching Cunningham’s house. There were people from both camps

outside her house, despite the lockdown. Protesters and supporters who were slightly smaller in

numbers, all guarded by no less than 30 policemen preventing anyone from making contact with

each other, or getting too close to Cunningham’s house. Some TV networks, but surprisingly not

many, considering how significant a leap towards an Orwellian government it was.

That was the first time Tomas actually thought about just trying to convince Cunningham to

change her mind and letting her live if she decided not to sign it. But then he instantly realized

that even if she didn’t sign it after all, the public would only see him as an aggressor who

threatened her into submission, and would no doubt hurt a lot of officers in order to get to her in

the first place, God knows who else. That would surely only increase public support to put such a

bill into effect in the end.

The only option was to make a statement by killing her, and then exposing her for Vegas with

the intel he’d already got from Peter, and hopefully Peter would convince Matty to get them

more conclusive evidence than just coded messages to and from “suspicious” people. This could

go horribly bad either way, but surely not good if she was allowed to live. Tomas could only

hope this would turn out positive in the end in the public’s eyes, but once again he was ready to

pay the price. Whatever it would be.

Tomas left the trail completely unnoticed, but as soon as he entered the residential area and

found himself just behind the gathered crowd, he got recognized immediately. The reactions

were mixed. Some people seemed happy, some seemed terrified, but certainly all were confused

as to why the masked man appeared. Well, except the ones that thought it was just a cosplay.

Those people were about to learn the truth quickly, as soon as Tomas started to make his way

through the crowd and to the police blockade. There, he had to stop and instruct the police

officers to make him way. No one moved an inch and for the most part, the officers were

ignoring Tomas completely, no doubt thinking he was just a cosplay too. ‘Why would the

masked man show up here?’

That gave Tomas no choice but to draw his P30Ls out of chest holsters built into the Apex

Armour, showing them that he was for real, a threat at the very least if nothing else.

Tomas said, ‘I’m not playing, guys. I’ve got no beef with you, but if you leave me no other

choice, I’ll fight my way through. Step aside!’

As soon as he showed them his weapons, they to draw on him. He holstered his weapons.

Tomas projected his voice loudly. ‘Put your guns down, boys. You must know this will not stop

me at all. Don’t force me to hurt you!’

Not that Tomas expected them to do that; he knew they had no choice and confrontation was

inevitable, but he had to try regardless, to show that his intent not to harm them was at the very

least there.

A Black police officer closest to Tomas said, ‘We can’t; how would we know you’re not just a

crazy guy in a costume and those are possibly real firearms?’ But his voice was kind of

trembling, sensing that this was in fact the real masked man.
‘Either way, we still can’t, regardless,’ he continued.

‘Get down on your knees with hands on your head or we will shoot!’ echoed from every

direction. The crowd dispersed quickly, but most looked on from what they considered to be a

safe distance out of the firing zone, along with all the TV crews.

Tomas said, ‘I really don’t want to do this, guys, but you leave me no choice. I’m about to enter

that house’ – pointing at Cunningham’s place – and as soon as the first of you takes a shot at me,

I will be forced to incapacitate you all in any way I can, as soon as I can. I can’t guarantee you

will not get seriously hurt or accidentally killed, but I can promise you that I will try my best not

to. I understand that you have no choice either.’

The police officers seemed to get more uneasy realizing that this was most likely the masked

man, and if he was there, he must have a damn good reason. However, their job was clear, and

left them no space for compromises, nor could they take any chance that this was just some

nutcase impostor. It was unfortunate, but also inevitable. They all knew it.

Tomas made his move forward despite the officers shouting for him to give up the whole time.

Of course, they opened fire on Tomas.

A volley of centre of mass shots struck Tomas, to little effect. It was like using airsoft against a

normal bulletproof vest. Tomas barely felt the force of the impact due to the superior high tech of

the Apex Armour and his muscular build that allowed him to simply go through them all.

The Black officer that was closed to Tomas was taken down first. He managed to let off five

rounds into Tomas before he got to him. Tomas didn’t even try any gun kata techniques on

purpose, as he normally would. The point was for him to “eat” and absorb all of the incoming

fire so that no bullets hit anyone else but him. Then Tomas just used a judo takedown on him,
placing his right leg behind the Black officer’s legs whilst using his body mass to cut the officer

off his feet, following with a stomp onto the officer’s face to shut his lights out. It worked, and

Tomas didn’t have to do too much damage to him either.

A fresh, more intense wave of incoming fire came as soon as the Black officer was out of the

firing zone and knocked out on the pavement, with Tomas rushing to the next officer. That

prevented the other officers from taking any further shots at Tomas, and it was clear to everyone

that this would result in a melee.

Some hesitated as soon as it became obvious that this was no fraud, but the dilemma of their duty

remained. They had to stop the masked man no matter what. One by one they got taken care of in

close martial arts combat. It was no contest really, unsurprisingly, and despite Tomas being very

reserved in what he did and how, the officers went down in the beginning one by one quite

easily.

Tomas predominantly used judo and jiu-jitsu takedowns on them without resulting in fractures,

as he was so accustomed to do before. His goal was to knock them out, not to give them a life-

long injury that an open fracture could easily result in. But since Tomas forced this restriction on

himself, he was but one man versus around thirty officers and over time, he simply wasn’t able

to take them out of action fast enough.

At one point, it seemed that he would get overpowered, and one officer actually got him into a

headlock from behind whilst two others partially restrained Tomas’s legs and one arm. It

certainly looked like they were going to restrain him fully with only seven officers being

knocked out in that moment. The rest were still fighting whilst their numbers close to his

proximity only increased.

Tomas had no choice and in a split second, whilst his left arm was still free, he had to make a

hard decision else they would have restrained him fully. He reached for his P30L and shot the

officer that held his legs in his shoulder. Immediately after, he shot the one that held him in a

chokehold into his foot. The next two shots Tomas aimed at the officers who both held his right

arm, struggling to restrain it. The first got hit in his hand and the second in his shoulder.

Tomas got free, but that evoked another shootout and a storm of bullets came at Tomas once

again. This time, Tomas didn’t hold back. He knew that trying to melee this out without him

even trying to hurt them as much as possible as quick as possible wouldn’t work; there were just

too many of them. Even if he didn’t hold back it would be a challenge, as they were all trained in

wrestling and basic aspects of judo and jiu-jitsu themselves. Tomas realised how optimistic he

was to even think it was possible and that he didn’t give the officers enough credit, as well as he

didn’t consider that his lungs would feel on fire once again doing high-intensity exercise. Tomas

was lucky to get himself out of the restraint in the first place before it was too late. At that point,

he was both out of breath and strength, whilst he could feel his destroyed left lung burning.

Good thing was that Charlotte entrusted Helena with all three remaining second chances to her

care. Just in case Tomas would get really bad or they would need it in order to escape, etc.

Helena didn’t consider having the remaining second chances locked up and to monitor them all

the time in case Tomas was a junkie. Tomas in turn didn’t hesitate for a moment because he was

a junkie and took the first opportunity to grab all of them to have them in his possession without

Helena’s knowledge. ‘For situations like this’, he convinced himself.

The first opportunity presented itself as soon as he got loose of the officers’ grip on him. He took

one of the remaining three second chances, shooting it into his neck high, just below his jaw, like

he did so many times before. It was easy to do without even lifting the mask up. The spasms that
would come next he had got accustomed to at that point and were far less severe, but the energy

rush and focus was almost as strong as the first time.

What he didn’t know was that the drug was contributing to his developing a split personality and

made him more brutal over time, clouding his judgement to what was considered horrific or

savage, basically hindering his ability for empathy. That in turn resulted in disbelief of the

increased brutality that he was capable of after it wore out of his system. Because Tomas was

highly empathic otherwise, more so than the average person, by far, was why he couldn’t let go

as many would, knowing as he did that it would only bring them more pain. He still couldn’t let

go, and did what he thought was necessary, ready to reap or suffer any and every consequence.

It didn’t mean he’d lost himself fully, not thinking anymore. He still consciously avoided killing

the officers. But he didn’t hesitate in causing a fracture to take the officers out of action

permanently.

A white, middle-aged officer found out first as he struggled to shoot Tomas in the head at point-

blank range, since he found himself at that distance when Tomas started to shoot, only to be shot

into his handgun wielding palm before one of his legs got locked into breaking position by

Tomas’s leg and snapped at the knee. He still tried to reach for his gun that lay on the pavement

with his good hand, only for Tomas to deliver a powerful kick at just the right angle to break all

of his fingers but the thumb on that hand, rendering it useless too. Tomas holstered his PL30s

again as the officers that could dispersed behind a cover and away from Tomas after he started to

shoot them.

That basically opened a way for Tomas to enter the house unopposed. As soon as he turned his

back towards the officers behind cover, they opened fire on him again, but Tomas simply
ignored it. Once he got almost to the front door, they had to stop and came out of cover to close

on Tomas again whilst shouting at him to submit to them. All it took for Tomas to do was to

unholster his handguns again and take aim at them for them to retreat again. He didn’t have to

take a shot, but it was clear to all that he could have, should he have wanted, or if they forced

him to.

It must have been clear to the officers that they couldn’t do anything. They could come out of

cover and try to do something, but if that something would be effective enough, the masked man

would simply shoot them. There was no stopping him.

The one ambulance crew that was already stationed there as a precaution started to take care of

the hurt officers because it was obvious that Tomas didn’t really present any danger to them,

since the officers stopped engaging him and only four went out of cover with their weapons

clearly holstered, trying to reason with him. ‘We only want to talk!’ They had their hands in the

air, clearly showing that they held no weapon. Tomas ignored them and continued towards the

front door.

As Tomas reached the front door of Cunningham’s house with the officers in tow, he was

presented with a weird dilemma. Would he just kick in the door, or use the bell and wait like a

civilized person for someone to answer it? Tomas chose, for whatever reason, to ring the bell and

wait. Quite a bizarre sight for the officers and the onlookers to see, considering what happened

just moments ago and that Tomas knew he was now pressed for time to be able to escape before

it would be too overwhelming with all kinds of reinforcement units that were surely on the way.

‘Let me through, let me through!’ a female voice that Tomas clearly recognized, he noticed it

for the first time. It was the Goldie girl! She was running towards Tomas and the officers once
she got through the initial police blockade. It certainly looked like she was let through. Perhaps

some of the officers thought that she could talk some sense into the masked man because of their

mutual history. It certainly stunned Tomas at first, and he kept staring at her as she was getting

closer, reminding him how stunningly beautiful she was.

Faith called out, ‘Paid! Paid, stop, stop, just stop for a moment! Think about what you’re doing!’

Calling Tomas Paid instead of the masked man certainly got his attention immediately.

One of the officers still pulled her back to stand behind him, shielding her with his own body,

just in case. Faith understood and talked over the officer’s shoulder to Tomas.

Tomas said, ‘I know exactly what –’ but got interrupted by the front door actually getting opened

behind his back.

Two agents in suits tried to ambush Tomas.

Tomas managed to grab and break the extended right hand that was pointing at him just moments

ago against his torso with his right hand, whilst his left arm got the first agent into a chokehold

below Tomas’s left armpit. But then the second agent nearly shot Tomas point-blank into his

face mask (which wouldn’t work anyway), if it wasn’t for Tomas automatically moving his head

out of the shooting path. Two rounds flew past him, nearly hitting one of the police officers,

before Tomas let go of the first agent after delivering a knock-out face kick first, and then a rapid

three-punch combo into the second agent’s gut, chest, and a hook into chin followed by a face

axe-kick with his right leg into the already knocked-out second agent’s falling body as a

response, taking him out too.

The four officers were smart enough not to respond to the agents’ actions and remained in their

places whilst just being vocal.

Tomas said, ‘…am doing,’ finishing his sentence after the five-second-long scuffle with the

agents.

Faith asked, ‘Because of the proposed law?!’ Distress in her voice.

Tomas said, ‘Partly, yes, but also because of what she did in Vegas. This was just the last straw.’

He was about to enter the house.

Faith asked confused, ‘Vegas? What she did in Vegas?!’

Tomas replied with clear hate in his voice, ‘The Vegas mass shooting,’ whilst trying to enter the

house again.

Faith said, ‘What?! Are you saying she is behind what happened there?’

Tomas said, ‘I don’t have time for this right now, Faith, but believe me when I say this: I have

really good reasons, and I will reach out to you when possible with proof of what she has done.’

This time, Tomas simply entered the house, feeling the pressure of time. Faith was so stunned by

Tomas’s accusation of Cunningham that she didn’t even try to enter the house with the officers

that followed him in.

Surprisingly, the governor was simply just waiting in her home office for Tomas to come, not

even trying to escape via a back door or something like that. She must have been aware of

danger, since she must have heard the shots fired. But she remained with her daughter, two of her

staff, and four other TV crew members.

Tomas said, ‘Everybody out!’ as soon as he entered the office.

He didn’t have to say it twice, and all but her daughter, Jessica, and the officers behind him left

the house immediately. Tomas quickly destroyed the two set-up cameras first before telling

Cunningham’s daughter that it meant her too.

Jessica yelled, ‘Fuck you, I’m not going anywhere!’ Surprising Tomas and the officers as much

as Cunningham herself.

Lisa admonished, ‘Jessica Scott-Cunningham! I apologize for her.’ She looked genuinely

surprised and embarrassed.

‘We can’t let you do this!’ said the officers behind Tomas’s back whilst drawing their weapons

on him again. ‘Please, just leave.’

Tomas looked at them briefly before asking, ‘Let me do what? Take the daughter away. I need to

have a private chat with the governor,’ he told them casually.

But they didn’t budge.

Tomas said, ‘Maybe you haven’t realized it yet, officers, but you have a hostage situation here,

and I’m telling you, take one of my hostages away and get lost! Or be ready to be responsible for

the consequences!’

Lisa Scott-Cunningham said, ‘Go, baby, it will be okay, I promise!’ pushing away her daughter.

The officers didn’t hesitate after that and grabbed the girl whilst leaving the house, although

Jessica fought back and cursed at Tomas whilst bawling her eyes out. They obviously changed

their protocol into a hostage situation scenario and started to surround the whole house with the

remaining units whilst waiting for reinforcements and the negotiator. Not knowing Tomas’s full
intent. His trickery worked, and he finally had his alone time with the governor. Tomas waited in

a moment of silence to see whether she will open the dialogue first.

Lisa said, ‘The famous vigilante! Such an honour. But I take it that you’re not a fan of the new

bill.’ She looked calm and unworried.

‘You would guess right,’ Tomas said calmly, deciding that he did want to have a chat with her,

hesitating to just kill her outright despite the time pressure.

Lisa said, ‘That’s a real shame. I’m only trying to do what I believe is best for everyone.’

‘Just like you did in Vegas? Was that massacre in everyone’s interest?’ Tomas said, stunning

Cunningham with that question.

Lisa dismissed it. ‘I have no idea what you are talking about. Are you trying to suggest that I was

somehow involved? Ridiculous.’

‘Oh yes you do. I don’t expect you to admit anything, I’m letting you know that I know,’ Tomas

said, carefully watching her reaction.

She seemed suspiciously calm.

Lisa said, ‘You know what? Don’t you think that if I believed that you came here to kill me

because you know what you claim you know, I wouldn’t try to escape at the very least? There

was plenty of time for me to try to leave. I don’t know why you are here, or what you think you

know about me.’

‘I don’t know; that is a good point. Why didn’t you try to run away? I got unexpectedly delayed

for a while. You must have heard the shots; you must have known that you’re in real danger.’

Again, watching for her body language, but she seemed still calm and genuine.
Lisa said, ‘The agents told me that the masked man seemed to be forcing his way into the house.

I didn’t believe I was in any danger. I still don’t.’

Tomas said, ‘And the shots? You didn’t believe that you were in danger after hearing shots

fired?!’

‘Well, I know that the officers would have no choice but to try to stop you, including opening

fire at you. There is a rule of law in this state, despite what you might think otherwise. I knew

they opened fire at you, yet you’re here, so it must really be you,’ Lisa said, still calm.

‘Yet you didn’t think that you were in danger after I opened fire at them?’

‘I don’t know anything about that, did you? Are you crazy?! What have you done?!’

‘It’s not about what I have done, but about what you have done and are about to do.’

‘I don’t know what you think you know about me, but you’re wrong!’ Lisa said, showing anger

even.

‘Am I? Do you really believe that I would be here right now, even opening fire at officers that

are just doing their job, ME, Paid in Blood, without being one hundred percent convinced about

your involvement in the Vegas mass shooting?’

‘If you are one hundred percent convinced that I did that, and even shot at the officers in order

to get to me, why am I still alive if you really believe it?’

‘Because I want to see you choke on your lies, swallow up your greed and suffer all alone in

your misery, knowing that those are your last moments on Earth with the “masked man”’ –

making air quotes – ‘exposing you to the world because that is exactly what I intend to do,’

Tomas said, even drawing one of his P30Ls after he finished his sentence for a bigger effect.
It worked. Cunningham visibly lost her previous composure, most likely realizing that she would

not talk her way out of the situation and she was about to die.

‘Wait, wait, wait, you’re making a mistake!’ Lisa said in distress, stretching her arms out to

shield her face whilst half-squatting to the ground.

Tomas said, ‘I don’t make mistakes.’

Tomas knew that was a lie, but he wanted her to suffer. He wanted her to feel the impending

doom.

Lisa said, ‘You and I are the same. We do what we have to in order to improve everyone else’s

life. I’m not doing this for any other reason, despite what you might think.’

Tomas said, ‘You think I would shoot into unarmed innocent civilians? What planet do you live

on?’

‘I didn’t…Listen…I only want to help, from the bottom of my heart, just like you do. I did make

a couple mistakes along the way and paid my price for it. Believe me, I PAID my price

DEARLY, just like I believe you did for the mistakes that you have made. Or just things that you

must have done so that no one else would have to do them in order to benefit everyone else but

you. I can’t do violence like you do, but I do understand why you did what you did when you did

it. I do what I can when I can, to achieve the same goal. I want the best for everyone! Genuinely,

and I was prepared to pay any price, just like you. I still am. In blood, if needed. You know it

better than anyone else,’ Lisa said convincingly.

‘Well, so you must know that paid in blood means “with my own blood, as much as that of my

enemies”, and now it’s your turn to pay with yours. So, if there is nothing else you want to
say…I guess I better get down to it,’ Tomas said, pointing his P30L at the top of her head again,

with the governor basically falling onto her ass, shielding herself with extended arms.

‘Wait, wait, you’re making mistake! I’m on your side! I’m on the same side as you are. We

could be allies, why are you doing this?!’ She said, terror in her voice.

‘What do you want me to tell you? I’m not the failure. I would rather live and let be, but you

came with the right kind of threat to push me. I have to let you know you can’t intimidate me!

Your proposed bill disrespecting us all so clearly, now you better hear me that is not the way it

all goes down –’

‘Wait, wait, I am a mother! Jesus Christ, she is just outside! How can you do this?! I can explain

everything!’ Lisa said in great distress.

‘You can save your petty explanations, I don’t have the patience, before you even say it, I know!

You did this to yourself and it’s over, now, let me show you exactly how the breaking point

sounds!’ Tomas cocked his gun for dramatic effect, despite it already being ready to shoot.

Then aimed the P30L at her head again and this time Cunningham didn’t even try to oppose

anymore. Just froze in a defence posture trying to shield herself. But the shot that she expected

straight away didn’t come. She thought that Tomas was trying to torture her with the delay,

expecting it any and every moment, but in truth, Tomas froze himself. Looking for the last time

why not to do this, but always came to the same conclusion. It had to be done, despite him not

really wanting to do this. Contemplating what she said about being similar to him, about doing

what she believed was for the best, just like him. The hard decisions that she made, same as he

was doing right now. About the price that has to be paid in blood. For some it might be too

much, just like it was too much for him to do what she did in Vegas. But she seemed genuine;
who was he to tell her what is too much blood and what is not? He’d killed hundreds by that

time, personally, in many cases in a gruesome manner as well. Was that worse than if he allowed

someone else to commit mass murder of innocents if he believed it would allow him to convince

the public to take the actions he wanted them to take? In order to liberate them, to give them

justice and truth? Was she really that different, or did she just have a different approach to what

he wanted to do as well?

Tomas knew that even J. Kennedy, who essentially infiltrated the Mafia, did some dirty business

with them in order to get into office so he could turn on them and clean up all of the scum that

pulled the strings behind the curtains. What if Cunningham wanted to do the same?

His hand was just shaking at first before he stopped aiming at her head. Cunningham noticed it

when she opened her eyes again.

Lisa said, ‘I only wanted to do good. I did what I thought was necessary. I swear!’ She pleaded

with him whilst more tears started to roll off her previously watery eyes.

Tomas was just shaking his head no. As if he was refusing what she was saying. Repeating, ‘You

did it to yourself!’ over and over, but it seemed as if he was just addressing it to himself because

he wasn’t even looking at Cunningham at that point.

Lisa said, ‘Think of the little girl’s mom, the pain she was going through. You really want to kill

the mom of my little girl in reverse? Do you want to cause that kind of pain to this family?’ She

got slightly collected.

But it only backfired on her and she immediately realized it as Tomas suddenly seemed to snap

out of his hesitation and even pointed his gun at her head again.
‘Oh yeah?! And how many families did you tear apart in Vegas? How much pain did you cause?

How many innocent moms, daughters, dads, and brothers died? How many?! WE ARE NOT

THE SAME!’ he screamed in anger, visualizing the carnage of Vegas mass shooting he knew so

well in his head, the horrors.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! into Cunningham’s head until it almost ripped it in half, even

at that close range where the velocity of the bullet is so high that it simply just makes a tiny hole.

It was done. Cunningham was no doubt dead, closed casket even. He placed a note on her desk

for the officers to find with his statement of why he did it, same that the media would get.

He stormed out of the house and found immediate resistance from the officers outside, but they

unsurprisingly failed to stop him once again and Tomas reached the 580 Motorway with little

problems, where he managed to vanish. Mostly because he pretty damn incapacitated or shot

everyone who wasn’t injured yet on his way out whilst taking Faith as a “hostage”, utilizing her

car for the escape. The rest just didn’t even dare to follow him anymore.

But to the officers’ credit, Tomas got shot up pretty bad himself, despite not even trying to “eat”

all of the bullets anymore. As soon as the second chance started to wear off, Tomas could even

feel pain coming from the blunt trauma that he absorbed, despite the protective characteristic of

the Apex Armour. Testament to the firepower he was subjected to once some rifled weapons

showed up. There was even a couple of tears on the top layers of the Apex Armour, especially on

his back, that needed repairing. In general, it looked torn here and there, and not so smooth and

new-looking anymore. He absorbed close to 300 rounds that day from the police officers.
 Linkin Park – Guilty All the Same (zwierz remix) 3:42

“You're guilty all the same, too sick to be ashamed.

You want to point your finger - But there's no one else to blame!”

Tomas’s use of potentially lethal force on the officers, despite none of them dying later as a

result of their sustained injuries, shocked the public as much as it did Faith. She was sure that she

wasn’t being taken “hostage” by Tomas and in reality, she was totally safe with him and free to

go should she decide to, but it was obvious to her that this wasn’t the same person she’d met the

last time around. He seemed changed, a lot more fragile, but more extreme at the same time.

As soon as Tomas took off his mask, he reassured Faith that he would never hurt her, of course,

and she could go any time she decided to. He simply just found it convenient and frankly, quite

lucky, to pretend that she was a hostage and ferry him out quicker with less opposition once he

got hold of her. ‘For that, I apologize.’

Then Tomas proceeded to explain in detail what he knew about Cunningham and what he could

prove. Tomas promised Faith that he would send her all the evidence that he could get his hands

on, plus hopefully something that would pass even in a court of law. Yet, somehow, even he felt

that it didn’t fully justify what he did.

Two things went through his mind. First, Jessica, and her cries that he could still hear in his head.

Her terrified face that showed hate towards him at the same time. ‘How did she know? Did she

know about her mom? Was I a hero to her as well before, especially after Seattle, when I was

made the symbol of a hero? Now I forcefully walked into the home office of her mum and she

immediately knew why I was there, since I don’t do anything else.’

And second, what Cunningham said to him about not really being that different from each other.

That she possibly might have been genuine, claiming that she did what she considered to be in

the interest of all, just like him. Difficult, inexcusable things, just like he did, right now, starting

with her. Things paid for in blood. Even that of the innocent.

He might not have killed anyone innocent yet to his knowledge, but he sure shed the blood of

innocent people himself. It was pure luck that no one died yet, because at times he was ready and

willing to use even lethal force if necessary. How was that different from what Cunningham did?

In numbers, perhaps. But still, Tomas shot at those who were more than innocent; he shot and

could have killed those who dedicated their lives to serve and protect others, in pursuit of his

own “superior” goals. How was that different? Potentially even a worse offense?

Until that point, Tomas could have been perceived as a victim. Forced to defend himself at first,

then actively hunting those who deserved justice, but feared none. All already having blood on

their hands so their blood on his hands was somewhat excusable. Until Cunningham. She didn’t

directly harm, kill, or even torture anyone; he did. Often finding pleasure in it, which he dreaded

later. She possibly didn’t; there was no real indication of her evilness. She might have asked for

something horrific and despicable, but not do it directly herself, because she might have really

believed that it was necessary in order for her to get into a real position of power. Possibly in

order to start fixing what she thought was wrong with the country. Same as he would, if he

could, most likely.

Tomas wanted to believe that if someone suggested he could manipulate the population in order

to get the revolution he wanted so badly and expose the banks, the dirty politicians, what really

happened on 9/11, and what the real history is, possibly collapsing this disgusting system

disguised as a Democracy along with those who always pulled the strings from behind the
curtains, but it would cost – let’s say, even a thousand innocent souls to be killed first, not by

him, but they would do it for him, that he would have said no to that.

But deep in his heart, he had to admit it would be a very temping proposal, especially if it would

not affect anyone he knows directly. We all have flaws, after all. No one is exactly innocent

when it comes down to it. Innocent of violence maybe, but not of causing pain to someone in

some way, regardless. No one but kids, perhaps, but even at young ages there is already a lot of

bullying, especially from small kids that have no moral compass yet and little compassion. No

conscience, because there is no real understanding of consequences of their actions. It’s all about

them only at that age, and that is where the parenting should be coming into play, to shape them

out of absolute selfishness, to teach them compassion and morals. Give them your values that

you as parent believe are worth fighting for. Teach them responsibility and accountability for

their actions. Until then, even they fit the bill and would be fair game if it wasn’t for their

innocence in a way that their parents didn’t raise them better yet. Their innocence in a way that

we all start as self-absorbed monsters before our parents put us straight. But this could apply to

anyone who came even into adulthood without any parenting. No wonder such a person would

end up the way they would, if no one had a chance yet to set them straight.

What was Tomas’s excuse? For this…was this real justice?

How could he now try to tell the public that their hands are “unclean” – by being really oblivious

to what is really going on around them – to tell them what the real issues are, that they cannot

even see? How could he tell them that they’re unprepared; that he is what they need? That he had

to do what he did because there was no other way, otherwise, they couldn’t be saved anymore

with the end this near? How could he tell them what it is that they can’t see? To fall in line, to be

what he thinks they should be and follow what he says?

Since they all knew now – HE was guilty himself of the same. How could he now? Who would

listen? Why should they?

Well, he tried in his statement, so that at least the public would know his reasons, although

conclusive evidence simply wasn’t there, and Tomas knew it.

He could see in Faith’s face that she didn’t agree with what he just did, despite what he told her

about Cunningham. Tomas wasn’t sure if he agreed with it either. She didn’t oppose, but

remaining silent wasn’t approval neither. He should have just exposed the governor and hoped

she would get jailed for what she did, but not executing her in the way she was. Her life as a

politician would have been destroyed anyway. But now, even his vigilante status of hero was lost

forever, and every “good” deed that he might have done before, undone.

‘Was it really worth it?’ was a question that Tomas would hear a lot from everyone. From Peter

first, after he was contacted by Tomas from Faith’s car to prepare him a hiding spot. He heard it

from his parents and sister, Helena, Gargy, you name it. All asked him that if not as the first

thing, then definitely before it was the last.

In reality, he wasn’t so sure anymore, but had no choice but to be adamant, insisting on it being

absolutely necessary and acting normal, as if he didn’t do anything wrong. It had to be done! But

Tomas could feel their piercing, almost disconnected stares on his back everywhere he moved,

before being fully relocated and “abandoned” in Detroit whilst he was hiding from the authorities

– Tomas’ hiding spot of choice in solitude to not expose anyone to danger, Peter obliged him.

Of course there was massive outrage and a hunt on, him being declared the number one enemy of

the state and by a large portion of public. Some remained reserved, considering his past and the

inconclusive but somewhat indicative evidence of Cunningham’s involvement in the Vegas mass
shooting. But mostly it only proved her ambitions and bias against the Second Amendment

whilst potentially communicating with people from outside of the government to reach her goals.

Not exactly damning enough for many. Some burned the pictures of him holding the little girl in

his arms publicly as he was denounced of his hero status.

No one really wanted to say it, but Tomas seemed awfully unmoved by what he had done, as if

he was too sick now to even feel ashamed. It was really a defence mechanism on his part kicking

in and he was in the denial stage. Something that Violetta reminded to all that seemed to be too

shocked within the Agency. Defending him in that sense, and that after all, they wanted it in a

way after Vegas anyway. But now that it was on the TV, with everyone else pointing the finger

at him denouncing him and seeing Jessica crying on national TV, it was easy to forget they all

caused this and at the end of the day, if not exactly justice, it was the only justice that he could

deliver.

But they all knew he was guilty just the same.

In one interview, the crying Jessica openly accused him of being guilty just the same in response

to a question asking her whether she had seen the evidence that the masked man provided as a

reason for doing to her mum what he did.

Jessica cried, ‘Everybody thinks that, but no one wants to say it! I don’t know what, or how

exactly my mum was supposed to be guilty of whatever it was that he tried to point to. To me, it

seems that he killed her over a bill that he didn’t agree with! He sure likes to point his finger at

others for shedding blood, but there is no one else to blame for the murder of my mum! No one!

HE did it!’ She was bawling her eyes out in between the rage-induced outbursts and finally

collapsing into a ball of sorrow onto the floor once she was done, looking absolutely devastated.
Powerful stuff, and the country, for the most part, was fully on her side because of the lack of

conclusive evidence. It seemed that Tomas really did go rogue psycho. But there was a bright

side to it too.

There were still some trying to defend the masked man in the media.

‘It happens to a lot of people subjected to real violence. I think he needs our help more than

anything else. I think he just snapped after all he’s been through. We have all seen how broken

he was after he wasn’t able to save the family in the trapped car. Let’s not suddenly point fingers

at him saying he is evil; there is a lot in his past that would say otherwise. But there is no doubt

in my mind that he needs help and guidance to come back to us, and that he IS, I repeat, he is a

danger to us all now. I pray that we will find him and it will be possible to get possession of him

without killing him, but I’m afraid that, all things considered, no chances can be taken and it

would be really down to luck whether the masked man, or PiB, as he called himself, would be

able to survive whatever they threw at him in order to stop him. I mean, it will take some serious

artillery, from what we have seen so far, and once he’s hit with whatever they plan to hit him

with, it’s unlikely he would survive,’ declared one of the psychologists on TV.

Whilst Tomas was safely hidden in the “ghetto” of Detroit and time was passing, Peter did

everything in his power to gather conclusive evidence definitely incriminating Cunningham in

relation to the Vegas mass shooting – and he got it in the end. Convincing Matty that if he ever

needed help from him before, it was now, and Matty delivered, despite knowing the danger that

he was exposing himself to. To Peter, Matty loved him more than his life, and he proved it. Of

course, Matty had a lethal motor “accident” not long after the evidence leaked to the public via

Faith, and largely somewhat skewed the public opinion into the masked man’s favour again.
Although Tomas remained public enemy number one, as the president declared, ‘What he did

was an attack on the state regardless, and there is due process in this land. His vigilante actions

playing the judge and executioner will not be tolerated anymore’, but promising a fair court trial

and a pardon from a possible death sentence in favour of a life sentence in prison.

In eight days, Matty was dead. It made Peter almost regret his request of Matty. He never really

thought they would kill him. But that was still two days more than Jessica, who committed

suicide by hanging herself after her mom got exposed and smeared nationwide. That hit Tomas

quite hard, despite trying to fight it back. But once the uncensored picture of hanged Jessica

leaked online, for the first time ever, Tomas experienced hallucinations.

He heard a voice in his head now and then, loud and clear. It was the voice of the DI, the first

man Tomas killed (granted, in self-defence), telling him that he was “guilty all the same” over

and over again. That part, Tomas kept hidden away from Violetta after he called her to confess.

He also confessed that he had taken the second chance drug secretly again and wondered

whether that could be a factor. Since it was an experimental drug and not really human-tested,

only to be used in extreme otherwise life-threatening situations, it couldn’t be ruled out, and he

was advised over the phone to take a prescription of hers in the meantime and report whether he

was still hallucinating, not even being aware it was an actual voice in his head telling Tomas

something loud and clear.

No one else knew, not Peter, Gargy, Helena, or Cop, who stayed in touch on a daily basis.

Charlotte and Catherine talked to him once a week because they got themselves into another

regular job. Kupkin, Patrik, Odlew, and Sataano only once every two weeks, for same reasons,

just to check on him.

Whatever Tomas thought they saw him as now, it was just an illusion in his head. No one really

held it against him, regardless of the fact that many thought that Cunningham should have been

simply just exposed. But that was too easy to say now, once Matty sacrificed himself in order to

do so, but Tomas couldn’t have known that beforehand. It was what it was.

The isolation wasn’t a punishment, it was a necessity for the meantime until things calmed down

somewhat in the hunt for him. As much as Peter was heartbroken by what happened to Matty

because of him, he had to make the best of it now and make sure it wasn’t for nothing. He would

stand by Tomas no matter what. It helped that Justina finally came back to him upon hearing the

news, knowing how much Matty meant to Peter.

o Chapter 4: Times of Sorrow

Linkin Park – What I’ve Done 3:25

“So let mercy come and wash away - what I've done!

I'll face myself - to cross out what I've become.

Erase myself, and let go of what I've done.”

There were protests in most US cities, despite the coronavirus lockdown, with the relatives who

lost their family members in the Vegas mass shooting, along with a large number of protesters

vandalizing the late governor’s home, spraying graffiti on it and on many walls in the US calling

Cunningham a bitch at the very least, later growing into full-on riots when one of the protesters

was killed by being choked to death in police custody. People were turning against the state and

the police that enforced the obedience that was supposedly also racially targeting Blacks on a

large scale, as the killed protester was a Black man who pleaded that he couldn’t breathe prior to

expiring. The protesters burned down everything in their path, killing some in the looting that

ensued. Was this finally the revolution that Tomas always wanted so bad?

Not exactly.

Not even close, to be accurate. Tomas saw the rioting mob as a bunch of hypocrites, racists, and

thieves taking advantage of the situation and calling others exactly that. Like he’d seen them

before. Everything was backwards from what it should be, a clown world. Yet again, another

action of his was for nothing. It didn’t have the desired effect, wasn’t the wake-up call that he

wanted to make. Instead, it turned out to be a rally cry and used as a reason for calling for more
preferential treatment of already privileged groups and for the whites to repent in order to

oppress them based on racist and misandrist ideals. “White guilt”.

The only guilt Tomas had was that he ever tried to help this kind of people before, sympathizing

with them, only to make things worse. And that when he could save or help decent people, he

failed them many times and even unintentionally made their situation worst. Sometimes,

downright killed them by his actions. Like poor Jessica, or the father and daughter in the trapped

car, although those two were disputable.

However, what was not disputable was his good friend DiBi and the poor Asian woman. The

Velicenko-held girls. That nightmare haunted Tomas in his dreams most often. Let’s not forget

about Lubos; Tomas held that one on his conscience too. Hell, even Matty. Peter didn’t want to

tell him about it, knowing that it would lay heavy on Tomas’s mind for Peter’s sake, but Helena

spoke about it by accident. Peter was right; as much as Tomas didn’t like Matty, he knew what

Matty meant to Peter, in the end, and he had to give it to Matty too, that he sacrificed himself to

do an important favour for his young former apprentice. A son, really, that he never had.

‘Ultimate act of love, respect.’ All of this was laying heavy on Tomas’s conscience.

It was a lot. Enough to make one crazy. Enough to hear voices – for real. At least that’s how

Tomas rationalized it to himself as their frequency increased over the passing time. It was

legitimately scaring him. Enough for Tomas to refuse any proposed visit in person, despite

Helena’s and Gargy’s downright demands to see him.

Tomas family didn’t know. They were told that he was fine and in hiding for the moment and

couldn’t really see anyone. Which was pretty much the truth anyway. But if it wasn’t for Tomas

refusing to see anyone and Peter holding back everyone who wanted to see Tomas, it wouldn’t
be the case. Because Tomas told Peter that he needed to talk to Violetta in person first before

anyone else. To kindly arrange that for him but if possible, keep it low profile. No, it wasn’t

possible to keep it low profile, and Peter used that information to convince Gargy and Helena to

wait in the meantime. That alone was good enough for them to understand that Tomas must have

some serious issues again, predicting that it was Jessica-related. They would be right, partially.

But Tomas was contemplating his whole life’s decisions and results of them whilst being

haunted by the occasional DI voice appearing in his head. Tomas was convinced that he had

finally lost it and was somehow aware of that, because of his conscience. The barbarity of his

past actions, the deaths of innocents with the DI’s voice telling him that he was “guilty all the

same”, that it was “all for nothing” anyway and he “did it to himself”.

He confessed it all to Violetta once she visited him in Detroit. Both Peter and Gargy acted as her

“escort” but stayed in the car. Not because of fearing that Tomas could physically harm Violetta,

but because this was Detroit, and Tomas lived in the local ghetto. It wasn’t exactly safe, and soon

after their arrival, they had to use force on some local thugs that came to teach them a lesson and

scare them away until they left.

Violetta sat Tomas down after giving him a hug and told him that the voices were most likely

related to the second chance drug and should vanish over time on their own, but she could see

him being broken and worried. She wanted him to tell her all that was heavy on his conscience,

not leaving anything out. She explained that once he did that, most people found that they could

finally let go of it, because of someone else knowing. That it is mostly related to the fear of those

things that bother us being forgotten, but we don’t want to forget, so we have the need to say

them to someone to remember for us instead. At the same time, we can’t really say it to anyone

else either and the suffering continues.

Violetta said, ‘You need to tell me everything that is heavy on your mind. Whatever pain it will

bring, you need to tell me all, don’t leave anything out. Only then I can help you; only then you

can heal.’

Tomas didn’t hesitate, in hopes that it would make it all stop, the guilt he felt, the voices he heard

loud and clear in his head. He told it all down to the most miniscule detail, even from his

childhood when he felt stepped on and over with the threat of bullying constantly over his head,

trying to hold back his tears in futility in many painful instances.

Violetta was a very experienced psychologist and professional, but yet again it was with Tomas

that she burst out in tears hearing about the struggles he had to face and the pain it caused.

Finally seeing the whole picture that made perfect sense, all the events that made him who he

was and how he was led there, the heart-breaking tragedy of it.

Violetta said, ‘You need to let go of it, Tomas, and in order to do so, you need to forget what you

have done. Let it go, forget it! Don’t worry, I will remember it for you; let it go.’ She embraced

him after Tomas told her all whilst being reduced to his “remains” once again.

Tomas said, ‘I will…I will! This is my farewell, with no blood, no alibi. I can finally put to rest

what you have thought of me, while I clean this slate with the hands of uncertainty. Let mercy

come and wash away what I have done!’ Almost clutching onto Violetta.

Tomas continue, ‘I have drawn regret from the truth of a thousand lies,’ collecting himself again.

He regretted things that he had done based on believing in fallacies. Like he could have changed

something for better, but it only led to more pain, more tragedy.
Tomas said, ‘I’ll face myself, to cross out what I’ve become. Erase myself! And let go of what

I’ve done. I’ll start again, and whatever pain may come, today, this ends! I’m forgiving what I’ve

done!’ He continued further breaking Violetta’s heart who at this time tightened up her grip on

Tomas, him mirroring it in return.

Any more and he would have squashed her like bug, yet it was very comfortable for both.

Violetta said, ‘The mercy will come, believe me, it will, you will be fine again!’

It all took close to four hours but was worth it. For a while, it seemed that the voices were gone

for good. That Tomas would be able to heal. Violetta allowed others to see Tomas after she

convinced him to let them do so, in order to heal faster, saying that it was perfectly safe and not

to worry.

***

Two weeks passed and the voices still appeared here and there. Tomas’s conscience was still

heavy, although lighter than before. But it forced Tomas to make Peter and Gargy promise to

him, with them being witness to each other, ‘If I ever go mad and do something horrible again,

that would directly harm the innocents again, or me harming innocents or someone else who

doesn’t have blood on their hands directly, kill me! You promise?’

That caught them both off guard.

Gargy said, ‘But –’ surprised and looking at Peter, who had the same look on his face.

Tomas said, ‘No buts. Just say yes, please!’ Urgency and desperation were in his voice as he

interrupted Gargy.

Peter said, ‘Wait, what? Why?!’

Gargy said, ‘I thought you sorted out with Violetta whatever it was that you needed.’

Tomas said, ‘I need to know that I will die a decent person, not a monster. I need to know that

my mom, sister, or dad will not have to be ashamed of what I have become!’ He looked at them

with need on face.

Peter and Gargy were still stunned, considering they’d just had a good night of mostly gaming

with Tomas and everything looked just fine moments before, for Tomas to come up with such a

request of them now.

Tomas said, ‘I need you to promise me that. Please!’

They still hesitated, were still stunned by it, not understanding.

Tomas said, ‘Only you two can do it clean and in time. If possible, I would prefer that Gargy

would do it. Nice, clean, and fast. One shot, all done, and not at a personal distance. I wouldn’t

even see it coming, nor feel any pain. If that’s not possible, then Peter, you have my permission

to beat the shit out of me until I die. Batter me if you have to! But you have to promise to me,

right now, you will not let me go too far anymore. You will preserve me, being what I believe I

still am at this moment, right now, a human. A hero to some. Not an embarrassment or a monster

just yet. Please!’

Without saying it really, they both nodded in agreement.

Tomas said, ‘Thank you, thank you!’ He sounded relieved.

Gargy asked, ‘Should we be worried about you? Why would you ask for such a promise now?’

It was the same question Peter was about to ask.

Tomas said, ‘No, no reason really, just something that will help me sleep better at night knowing

it. Thank you.’

But that didn’t grow confidence in the lot of them and they reported all to Violetta. She was

suspecting the voices were still there, Tomas still being in the bargaining phase. She explained to

them that there is a theory of five stages of grief. That Tomas was still grieving, not reaching

acceptance yet.

Violetta said, ‘The first stage is denial. We could have seen Tomas many times trying to deny the

heaviness of his actions in the light of necessity before getting angry that he had to do the action

in the first place, the second stage. Then he was bargaining that perhaps he could have done

something else after all; he seems to still be in that stage. That is why he just asked you to do

what he asked you to do. He’s been through this cycle so many times, he’s regretting so many

decisions of his at this point, he wants to guarantee that it will be prevented in the future.’

Peter asked curiously, ‘What is the next stage?’

Violetta hesitated for a while before answering.

‘Depression.’

Gargy said, ‘Depression? He already looks depressed to me.’

Violetta said, ‘It will get a lot worse before it gets better. Remember the breaking point? It comes

with realization of the reality.’

Peter asked, ‘What reality?’

Violetta said, ‘That what has been done cannot be undone, it can only be forgotten, or rarely,

forgiven. If you’re not able to, then you’re going to be struggling for life. It’s hard to seek

forgiveness from people who are dead.’

Gargy said, ‘I thought you said he would be fine!’

Violetta said, ‘I still believe that, but we have to get him through all the stages first.’

Peter and Gargy both asked, ‘And the last stage?’

‘Acceptance. He will accept everything for what it is, as it is, how it is. It’s the first step on the

way to healing. I believe we made a lot of progress towards that in our last session. I believe we

will get through it. But it is very important that we give him our support, our presence, whether

he wants it or not. As we know Tomas, most likely, he will try to pull away now. Don’t let him.

And for God’s sake, don’t let him engage in any action again. Ever.’

Peter asked, ‘Do you want me to confiscate his armour and guns?’

Violetta said, ‘No, it will send the wrong message to him. Besides, he’s a dangerous weapon

without it anyway. I want you to watch him, babysit him if you have to, at least until he’s in the

acceptance stage. Don’t let him do anything stupid. We still don’t know what kind of a person

will come out of the acceptance phase. All we know is that each time he’s a bit more radical than

before. A bit more able to push the last boundaries of his own morality, or to suppress his own

empathy. Otherwise, the healing process will never be possible. You can only forgive yourself

by adjusting the perception of what you have done into the “acceptable” category, since you

can’t seek forgiveness from dead people. Or you can forget.

‘But that, I can tell you right now, will never happen in Tomas’s case, unless he has some kind of

head injury, a memory-wiping accident. Nothing that we could do safely or in a controlled

manner. So logically that leaves only one option; we need to help him adjust his current view of

his actions into the “acceptable” category. But what person will he become if in his own mind an

unjustified killing becomes normal?

To be honest, if we hope he will recover from it, and we don’t know what kind of a person will

come out the other side of it, my advice is to be ready to grant him your promise if needed. I

would hate to see Tomas being smeared as a monster publicly. Not that I believe that will be the

case, but it is better to be safe than sorry. Tomas is right; I would do it myself to preserve his

memory as he is now if needed, but it is only you two who really can do so without him doing

too much damage if things go south. I hope you will find the strength in you if ever needed.

‘To think of it, I probably couldn’t. Not knowing what I know about him now. He could send us

all to hell and I would still only see the tragedy left behind, still feeling sorry for him. But I can’t

anyway. You’d better be ready if he turns “cold”.

Gargy and Peter looked rather stunned by what Violetta just said.

‘Cheer up; the very fact that he asked you for such a thing is bringing more hope, not less! All

will be good. You will see.’ She seemed genuine, even with a smile on her face to alleviate the

situation.

Naturally, everyone close to Tomas, including his family, were given notice of the current

situation and Violetta’s advice, minus the promise part, so they all were aware what would most

likely happen, and what they should do in order to help Tomas transition into the acceptance

stage
 Linkin Park feat. Kiaara – Heavy (zwierz remix) 3:16

“You say that I'm paranoid, But I'm pretty sure the world is out to get me.

It's not like I make the choice - to let my mind stay so fucking messy.”

Even two weeks after Gregory Farmer’s murder at the hands of the police, there were still riots.

The Black Lives Matter movement grew in folds, and the masked man symbol was also used as a

rally call to oppose the established supposedly racist system. Tomas despised the fact that

indirectly he was responsible for what he saw.

On top of that, Tomas resented the hypocrisy of it and the calls for racism against whites. It also

turned out that Farmer wasn’t exactly a saint. He was convicted multiple times of violent assault,

once held a gun to a pregnant woman’s belly during a robbery and was rather a crackhead who

served time in nine different states. You know, the kind of person that Tomas himself would

shoot on the spot to rid the world of him, since the legal system fell short once again, seventeen

or so times in Farmer’s case. Disgusting. And then making that man a martyr, next to his portrait

as the masked man, a symbol of resistance to fascism, racism, Blacks oppression, was gut

wrenching. “Paid in Blood” was a popular chant shouted out at BLM rallies and became a

rallying call for them; it made Tomas feel physically sick every time he heard it.

‘Lucky I never got to have a good look into the average Black community neighbourhood in the

Chicago, I’d have to shoot half of the fuckers. But the other half would thank me!’ Angry at the

looting and the callings for police defunding. Tomas never thought that would be one of his

worries. He feared nothing more than a dystopian police state that was oppressing its populace to

serve true masters. A thing Tomas was certain would happen more likely sooner than later based

on events after 9/11 and follow-up wars that brought certain liberty-stripping “securities”, but it
wasn’t there yet, not even close, and certainly not racial targeting. That wasn’t a real threat, real

injustice, it was pure fantasy that allowed the uncivilized, power-hungry mob to steal and kill at

will innocent people trying to grab even more privilege than they already had.

You can’t explain to a crackhead that perhaps giving up the crack or the gangster lifestyle would

improve the overall quality of his life. That even if all of the rest was true about society (which it

wasn’t), he wouldn’t deserve any help or compassion anyway. A dickhead/bitch that is only a

stain on the community and his/her only ambitions are to make more cons, exploits, and violence

against others deserved nothing but a bullet from Tomas’s P30Ls. He would have gladly done

that personally and lose NO sleep over it. Maybe only if he got too personal, not even granting

the mercy bullet in anger.

Tomas raged in conversations with others, always going in that direction having seen what he’d

seen, only to retreat into an absolute ball of sorrow when Tomas thought no one was watching. It

wasn’t conscious, not like the watery eyes or weeping like he did before when broken. This

looked like his third time and if it wasn’t for the “ball of sorrow” appearance of his when alone,

or when he thought he was alone, it would be shocking how fast he got over it this time around.

However, the way Tomas walked around like a ball of sorrow was hard to explain. It was as if

something was compressing him down. As if there was a physical force pushing on his

shoulders. Like a slave carrying a heavy load on his back in the ancient times; that’s what his

posture was changed into. Tomas looked like an overly bent-over old man walking with a stick,

head looking straight down to the floor. Unconsciously, because Tomas fixed himself into a

normal posture and normal walking pace instead of the slow one as soon as someone interacted

with him, obviously not even being aware of the change himself.
Helena forbade him from any more news, and Tomas wanted to resist it until Violetta intervened

and said that it was actually a very good idea. He took it from her as prescribed treatment. Peter

and Gargy were like a pair of hawks on the case if Tomas looked like he might slip.

It wasn’t enough, and even cutting him off from any more news didn’t result in any sign of

improvement over time in his posture, or his mind.

Helena said, ‘Just talk to me, baby. What is on your mind right now?’ after wrapping her arms

around Tomas from behind whilst he was gazing onto the Detroit’s downtown skyline in the

distance.

Tomas said, ‘I don’t like my mind right now,’ in low voice and defeated manner.

Helena said, ‘Why, what’s the matter? Just talk to me! I hate to see you like this,’ clutching onto

him stronger whilst resting her head on his shoulder.

That was normally not possible, because Tomas was a head taller than Helena, but the

unconscious change in his posture almost levelled their heights completely, allowing her to do

so.

Tomas said, ‘I’m…just stacking up problems that are so unnecessary,’ touching her hand and

holding it.

‘Still thinking about what is happening outside?’

‘How can I not? This is the opposite of what I wanted, what I have fought for. Instead, the

crazies are running the asylum now. The racists are making careers and power grabs by calling

out everyone else as being racist. Proclaiming themselves victims whilst killing, stealing, and

burning the places of decent people down, mostly Black. Oh, the irony and hypocrisy! And the
elites see them as an opportunity to get what they want, allowing it. Soon, there will be no

liberties. Soon, there will be civil war against all whites and our culture. My white skin is already

making me a target for elimination because I’m supposedly evil…’

After a moment Tomas said, ‘I mean, that is probably a fact…’

Helena opposed, but Tomas ignored responding to her objections.

Tomas continued. ‘But why denounce all whites? Why now? Based on what, actually? That they

have the best life in comparison to the rest of the world? That they are so spoiled that they see

their own privilege as oppression? White people have been nothing but bending over backwards

for all of minorities and races for decades, yet all they get back for it is hate, murder, and being

called racist or other shit.’ Anger was building up.

Tomas said in disgust, ‘Of course not by all, but many! Just look how many there are out there!

And the scared populace and power-hungry elites are bending their backs to pander to the mob,

validating all of that madness, the injustice! I have lost respect for most of the so-called

celebrities, certainly all that also pandered to the mob.

‘It’s not like I don’t understand that even you Helena are risking your job, life, future, by not

supporting BLM movement openly at this point, never mind silence. Even that’s not an option

anymore, as that counts as being a racist now. “If you are not openly with us, then you are

against us. Since our cause is anti-white supremacy, then you are a racist and a slaver”, or other

bullshit. Whilst they kill, loot, and burn down cities. Ludicrous!’

Helena replied, ‘Just let it go, don’t think about it. It’s not like we can do anything about it, so

why worry? It does you no good.’ She stepped right in front of Tomas, looking deeply into his

eyes.
Tomas said, ‘I want to let go, but there is comfort in the panic.’ Gesturing with his head that he

can’t let go.

‘What do you mean?’

Tomas said, ‘It reminds me that I can still feel, that I’m still human after all I have done. That I

can still be hurt by the mere thought of my failures or the horrors I have witnessed. Sometimes

caused. That seeing injustice, no matter against whom, still boils my blood. That perhaps, despite

it all…do I dare to say it? I still can be considered a human, maybe even a good man by others.’

Helena said confidently, ‘Of course you are! You think I would be with an evil man?’.

Tomas smirked, indicating he was about to make a joke. ‘You’re a woman, after all.’

Helena chuckled but rolled her eyes at the same time whilst punching Tomas in his chest.

Tomas said, ‘You can’t help but to like danger. Bad boys,’ continuing his obvious joke.

Helena said, ‘I only like dangerous men that can control themselves, and they do so by their own

will, not due to social pressure or fear of consequences. A good man is not a man that cannot be

dangerous; that is a coward that cannot even protect his closest family, fearing for his own life.

Only a dangerous man that chooses to be under control until his “dangerousness” is needed to

protect or deliver justice for those who can’t seek justice on their own, can be a good man. Men

like YOU. I fully support everything that you do and have done so far. All of it. Yeah, I might

have been wrong in some cases. We have been wrong together. But malicious intent wasn’t ever

there. We are but humans that make errors; no one is perfect. But I love the man in front of me

and everything that you represent. A good man.’ She cradled Tomas’s head in her arms as he
slowly but surely lost strength in his feet whilst hearing what Helena said to him whilst looking

deep into his eyes.

Tomas nearly burst into tears but managed to hold it back in the end and looked back at Helena.

Tomas said, ‘But, babe, I can’t control myself sometimes. I can’t. Things…just happen.’ A tear

or two rolled down his face, which were instantly wiped by Helena.

‘I don’t care, I love you. I will help you to be who you want to be. You’re still a good man no

matter what you think.’

‘But you should. I should. It’s not safe with me,’ Tomas said, recovering his composure and

gently pushing Helena away.

‘What are you talking about?! Are you going to try to suggest that you could harm me?! I know

that you couldn’t, wouldn’t, EVER!’

Tomas said, ‘That is not what I mean. It’s not safe with me. People will always be after me for

what I have done.’

‘What?! Who?! You’re symbol of the resistance! No matter what you think about the people out

there rioting, they would fight for you, or with you, should you decide to do so. Perhaps you

could even talk some sense into them and stop the riots.’

Tomas said, ‘Exactly. I’m a massive threat to the establishment right now. I could perhaps bring

it all down if I wanted. But I wouldn’t be using those people out there; they’re not representing

the people I represent! I’m directly against them! But the establishment wouldn’t know that.

Who knows who is already after me. I need you to stay away from me!’
Tomas stormed into the bedroom, starting to pack Helena’s belongings as she stood there in

disbelief, stunned.

Tomas said, ‘Just for the meantime, until things calm down a bit and the establishment doesn’t

consider me a threat anymore. They know I have the best chance now. If I really wanted to go

after them. If the riots pass without me taking advantage of it, I’m sure they will be convinced

that I have not even thought of it.’

Helena tried to oppose, stating that he was being paranoid at this point, but Tomas would have

none of it.

‘I know I’m not the centre of the universe, but you keep spinning around me just the same! And

I drive myself crazy thinking everything is about me. I drive myself crazy because I can’t escape

the gravity…’ He was getting visibly frustrated.

Tomas was certain that what must happen, will happen. Men will come after him. Not sure

whom, but they will.

Helena pleaded, ‘Just stop, please! You’re really being paranoid.’

‘Perhaps, but it’s not like I made the choice to let my mind get this fucking messy,’ Tomas said,

looking in her eyes whilst holding both of her arms in a restrictive manner as she struggled with

him to stop him.

Tomas was about to call Gargy to collect Helena and take her back to their safe house in

Virginia, so she tried to stop him as he walked towards his phone.

‘Stop, just let go of it, babe. All these worries and regrets that bring you down…just let go of

them. Stop holding onto it.’

Tomas said, ‘It’s not about that. It’s not…I’m NOT losing you. NO WAY. Maybe I am crazy

and paranoid, but it is better to be safe than sorry. This doesn’t concern only you, but everyone. I

don’t want to be alone, but why take any risk? How long can those riots last? A week? Two? A

small price to pay in return for peace of mind. I need to make sure you’re safe, and all my friends

and family too. I should have seen this before…’

Helena yielded, stating that he better come back to her as soon as he can.

Tomas replied firmly, ‘That is the plan,’ adding confidence to that statement.

Helena helped finish packing her stuff and Gargy was there in two hours. He’d moved closer to

Detroit so he could visit Tomas every day. Peter and the rest had to travel and stay overnight

each time they did because someone had to occupy the Virginia and Seattle places to not draw

attention to them.

Tomas was instantly relieved, but that wouldn’t change that he lied to Helena.

There was a real chance that someone could be after him, but Tomas considered it unlikely that

they would find him in the first place. The real reason for sending Helena away and stopping

everyone from visiting him was that for the first time ever, he considered the possibility that he

might hurt them while losing it; since the voices were still there, he was sure he was crazy and

dangerous at some level. That was the real risk he wasn’t willing to take. At least now, he had

come up with a reason that people would accept.

 Linkin Park – Talking To Myself 3:51

“The truth is - you turn into someone else.

You keep running like the sky is falling.

I can whisper, I can yell,

But I know, yeah I know, yeah I know - I'm just talking to myself.”

Twelve days had passed since Helena left the Detroit place. A week since the riots dialled down

and all but vanished. However new independent zones emerged. One in Seattle called CHAZ

(Capitol Hill independent zone) run by idiots and racists but peaceful, for the most part, and one

in a really violent and dangerous to all whites area in Detroit, where Tomas was called ACAB

(all cops are bastards), which was pretty much run by the newly created local Mafia, killing cops

on sight whilst the local government did nothing, afraid of another mob/BLM movement

backlash. All business but the illegal ones had left it, forsaking Detroit to be truly a hellhole on

Earth after all – Mad Max style.

Gargy couldn’t understand why Tomas would remain in there, still refusing to see anyone.

He could have simply just returned to Helena in Virginia, allowing everyone to visit him safely.

Right now, white people weren’t even allowed to enter the area, including the “sympathizers”

willing to kiss their feet. The absolute centre of Detroit became a “whites-free area”. Laughingly,

it was also the most violent and murder-ridden place on Earth. There was even a mortal combat

arena where people fought each other to the death. Whites versus Blacks. The only time there

was made exception for a white person to enter the white-free zone was when going to fight in

the arena, hopefully dying in combat. At least that was the idea.
To be objective, it didn’t start like that, nor was combat to the death the goal. Someone came up

with the idea of a duel, like in the old times. Ironically, Western culture style, where disputes

could be won with the fists rather than arguments with full honour. That led, after a while, into

the development of a street fight club where duels took place. Originally, it was just a normal

bar, but it happened to be the only bar in the whites-free zone, and soon enough, drunk people

called each other into a duel over honour matters. It was good for business and in no time, all

duels were fought in the street fight club deep within the bar premises for people to enjoy

watching. Bets were of course involved too, which pretty much forced all duels to happen in the

club, since the promoters paid the participants to come and settle their score in there, to get paid.

Naturally, that gave rise to duels that had no quarrels at all, but were a chance to become

notorious and get paid for it.

No weapons were meant to be involved, but soon enough people tried to cheat and killed their

opponent with a weapon. Then it became a rule that if you killed your opponent in a duel, then

you had to go into the arena and fight with weapons of choice, gladiator-style, no firearms. There

was only a victory or death option.

Needless to say, that was the most popular and moneymaking entertainment that people would

pay the premium for just to witness it, since it was also very rare. No one would go willingly to

fight in there, of course.

Soon, there was a champion in the arena, the “Black Queen” being established as the toughest

one. Who would have guessed? Certainly not Tomas, since she was just a woman to him. She

killed a white person and to the BLM’s credit, was still forced to go into the arena and either die,

or become its champion. The thing was, in the arena, all of the ACAB’s criminals were sent there

as a punishment instead of being imprisoned and had to fight the condemned person first, before
facing the champion of arena, who himself got there by killing a person in a duel. So it was

unfair, since the person even accidentally killing the other person in a duel had to face several of

ACAB’s own convicts (a different kind of animal in their own right) that fought for their own

lives and second chances before the champion of the arena himself, and either win or die trying.

Such were the rules of duel.

The Black Queen killed a White man in a supposed duel, but rumour had it that it was an

attempted rape on her gone south for the would-be rapist. Then she was forced into killing even

the convicts and a former champion of the arena after that. Since then, she was unbeaten, and had

supposedly slain 15 more men since, in rather a brutal way becoming the Black Queen. She liked

to use a whip with sewn-in tiny blades at the very ends of it, ripping flesh out of her victims.

I guess the weapons levelled out the score after all, Tomas thought to himself on how she could

have become a champion.

One could ask how Tomas found all this out. Well, it was a public secret told to him one day

when he tried to shop for groceries, the clerk stating that whites were unwelcome there and for

him to go into the white-free zone to shop. Once he asked how he could go shop there, since he

was white, Tomas was told to simply accept a duel in the arena and win his right to shop. It was

an obvious bait on their part. Most white BLM movement sympathizers had left Detroit

altogether due to their treatment. One could say they got “red-pilled” rather quickly, with only

white residents that refused to abandon their homes remaining in Detroit if it happened to be

outside of the white-free zone, or else they were evicted by force.

The radical white supremacists started to call Detroit “N-land”. One could imagine that didn’t

help the situation, and many of them entered the arena willingly into a duel. Ten out of fifteen
people who were already forced into the arena’s mortal combat and died at the hands of the

Black Queen were white supremacists, once they themselves killed their opponent during the

duel. The other five were Blacks who killed other Blacks in the duel. No Black man could be

sent into the arena for killing a white in the duel. Such were the rules, because white lives didn’t

matter in the whites-free zone.

Tomas also started to call it the N-land once he heard about the callsign and what was going on

in there.

He didn’t believe in the mortal combat and the Queen stuff at all; it seemed too farfetched even

to him, but the duels and no doubt provoked beatings with the occasional “manslaughter” of a

white supremacist person coming there were an obvious fact at that point. It was a war zone in

most senses, but also a Candyland to those who loved to be able to kill without consequence, as

long as it was a white person. Which was pretty much the goal of all who established and ran the

whites-free zone. That was the idea, without openly saying it. That was their “getting back” at

their perceived oppressors.

That left the police on the outskirts, or what was left of it, to issue an order to all white people to

avoid and surely not willingly come into the whites-free zone at all, since there were too many

“vanishings” and they had no means to investigate there. The president considered sending the

National Guard in there to shut it down once hearing the rumours about the vanishings, duels,

and the arena, but was advised not to do anything and wait in the meantime to not start a possible

racial civil war.

And there were still those who defended and celebrated the whites-free zone all over social

media, and the media themselves, for the most part. It was truly inconceivable to Tomas that
people were that dumb and tricked into advocating and celebrating calls for their own extinction

or slavery, based on white guilt alone that they based on their colour of skin and supposed slaver

ancestors. As if their ancestors didn’t also abolish slavery in the Western world, whilst it still

flourishes everywhere else but there to this day. Which is obviously still more recent history

because it happened after slavery was created and later adopted out of greed by the colonial

white West.

But still, how many generations back? Well before even Nazis, with only a few people old

enough to experience that as a kid. They should tell all the victims of the Holocaust about their

white privilege, which is much more recent history, with pretty much not one white person in

current Europe not having at least one family member who was killed, persecuted, or forced into

hiding, living in unimaginable conditions just to stay alive. Or, at least one who fought against

that Hell on Earth and for the most part, sustained a war wound or died trying. White privilege…

Now racism is another story, which visibly prevailed well into the 1960s within the US. When it

became too common and too visible to be accepted by the vast majority of the remaining non-

racist whites, they abolished it quickly, and came in fact with a number of privileges for the

Blacks in return.

The race for who gets the higher moral high ground started long ago. That’s the reason why it all

led here today. Never being punished, only rewarded and bribed to not cry never leads anywhere,

since this kind of treatment doesn’t promote character building or moral values. Punishment

doesn’t automatically mean injustice or abuse. In fact, it is necessary to weed out bad or unruly

behaviour, because every human being is by nature selfish and greedy. Thus, every time in

history that someone had absolute power, it led to a catastrophe and suffering of the rest. Whilst

for the most part, all of the power given is always abused to its maximum limits.
Just like the “victimhood” mentality. It’s a power that can be abused to the max, for their own

privilege. To get even more than they already have, denying every and any shortcomings on their

own part. Everything is excusable because they’re victims in their own words and claims.

‘Pathetic scum.’

But Tomas knew that many were simply just raised that way and couldn’t be blamed for

believing in it. If everyone around you, including the media, says that you’re a victim, then it

must be so. Why wouldn’t you believe it? Even better, once you taste the privilege of it, the

greed would not let them release that power. Most people have not been taught integrity or

morals; in fact, the opposite. It’s a survival response in a world full of greed in all races, sexes,

and religions, for the most part.

‘All steal and abuse whatever power they have. You would be stupid not to use yours for

personal gain at any and every opportunity. You would just be taking away from yourself and

your loved ones if not doing so.’ They would try to justify it.

In this, most humans are created equal, and only a good upbringing can weed it out. But how can

you teach morals in a world where you know that people would just step over you at the first

opportunity to gain something by it, only abusing your kindness in the meantime? That was the

reality for most communities, irrespective of culture or skin colour, but particularly for the

Blacks at present times.

Tomas wasn’t happy about Gargy wanting to stop by and talk, but once he showed up at his

door, he kind of had no choice but to open it for him to not draw any suspicions. But if anything,

the voices had only grown stronger since last time he saw anyone and he had a massive itch for

the second chance. Tomas often just stared at the last one, resisting the thought of injecting it, but
he knew that was the withdrawal talking and he was truly addicted to it but almost out. It also

meant that Tomas had sometimes involuntary muscle spasms, including in his face, and he didn’t

want anyone to see him like that.

Gargy asked carefully, ‘So, how are things going?’

Tomas almost barked at him, ‘Fine!’

Gargy said sarcastically, ‘Sure, I can see that. Not like I wasn’t verbally and almost physically

abused on the way just to visit you here.’

Tomas said, ‘I don’t go out that much, no one bothers me here, yet.’

A lie. Verbal abuse was a daily occurrence with the BLM movement trying to scare away all

whites from Detroit as a whole.

‘Tomik, why are you still here? How is this place better than being with Helena, with us all in

Virginia?’ Gargy asked, shaking his head.

Tomas had no response to that, partly because he really kind of unconsciously ignored it. He

wasn’t listening. His clear state of mind when he was able to rationally think was increasingly

diminishing over time, as he kept hearing the inner voice of the DI more often.

Almost all of his conscious attention was preoccupied with trying to maintain an image of a sane

person, only resulting in him looking more withdrawn and almost ignorant to others. Like he

didn’t care or listen to anyone anymore.

‘Your family asked us how you’re doing. What am I supposed to tell them? They want to see

you, but all Peter and I keep telling them is that it is not possible yet, since you’re still in Detroit,

deep within the ACAB zone,’ Gargy said, looking for some sort of a reaction from Tomas.
None came. Tomas seemed to not even be listening, turning his back to Gargy whilst he seemed

to be more interested in whatever he opened in his web browser on his PC. Gargy waited for a

moment before bursting in anger, ‘Are you even listening to me?!’

Tomas looked at him, but it was a numb look into the void. Like he was looking at Gargy, and

yet obviously didn’t really see him.

Gargy said, ‘What do I tell your mom? You’re not even picking up the calls anymore. All you do

is text here and there “I’m fine, give it more time, I’ll come back when it’s safe.” When will it be

safe?! It’s been weeks and if anything, you are making yourself a bigger target and more visible

by staying here!’

Tomas said, ‘I’m fine, just give it more time, I’ll come back when it’s safe,’ in an almost robot-

like way.

Gargy was getting more vocal.

‘Great, you’re really not listening at all! Do you really need me to call Peter and Violetta and tell

them that you have probably really lost it?! You’re an absolute mess! I will drag you out if I have

to!’

Tomas said, ‘Wait, wait, wait.’ It looked like that definitely caught his attention and he switched

from the almost zombie mode from before.

Gargy said, ‘Finally,’ and calmed down.

Tomas said in a soft voice, ‘You don’t understand.’

‘No, I don’t; nobody does. Why do you think I’m here right now?’

‘There is something that I need to do before I come back.’

Gargy said, ‘Okay, that is a reason, but would you mind telling me what it is?’

‘Look, Gargy, you’re my best friend, okay, and I don’t want to offend you, but it is personal.’

Gargy said, ‘Well, you’re my best friend too, and I would normally leave things like this alone,

this is so out of my comfort zone you wouldn’t believe it. But exactly for that reason, as your

best friend, it is up to me to be the envoy of us all and tell you that we all have concerns about

you. That we need some answers.’ He couldn’t help but notice that Tomas drifted away in his

mind again somewhere along the way.

‘Okay, it looks like you leave me no choice. Peter of course asked Violetta repeatedly if there

are any insights that would be deemed necessary for our own knowledge, but all we got from her

was that in her opinion, “not really”, but it would be best to check on you since you have stopped

communicating with her too. The way I see it, I have checked on you and you don’t seem to be

quite right “up there” to me. I’m taking you back with me,’ Gargy said in a determined tone.

But it didn’t catch the attention of Tomas this time at all. He still seemed preoccupied with

something else.

Hesitating, Gargy approached Tomas, who had once again turned his back to him, and just

placed his arm on his left shoulder before jerking with it to indicate “you’re going with me”.

Tomas violently turned in automatic defensive mode and if it wasn’t for Gargy’s above average

martial art skills, Tomas would have got him into an arm-lockdown position.

Gargy said, ‘You want to fight me now, just to be able to stay here?!’ He was disappointed.
Tomas came out of his numbness as he realized that it was an overreaction to something really

innocent. ‘I didn’t mean anything by it, it happened automatically. After all I have been through,

you should know better.’ He looked disappointed with Gargy’s reaction himself.

‘Hey, I’m trying to help you pal. That’s all,’ Gargy said apologetically.

Tomas responded, ‘So help me by giving me more time. I told you that there are things I have to

do before I can come back. Why is that not enough?!’

Gargy said, ‘Try to imagine being in my place, and me in yours. What would you do?’

Tomas said, ‘I wouldn’t see a problem.’

Gargy repeated, ‘You wouldn’t see a problem…’ He paused. ‘Okay, you asked for it. What if I

told you that I think you’re going through some serious depression and have possibly started to

take drugs?!’

Tomas had no answer to that, but at least it seemed that he didn’t drift away in his thoughts

again. Yet.

Gargy said, ‘Do you know how many times I had to come here to find you only once?’

He waited for answer, but none come. Tomas still looked “present” though.

Gargy said, ‘Six times this week! Six times for you to be here once. I come specifically late

evenings so that I’m not such a target coming here, and you certainly should be home. But,

you’re not!’

Tomas said, ‘I must have been sleeping already. What is so strange about that?’

‘No you weren’t.’

Tomas drifted away again.

Gargy said, ‘Do you want to know how I know?’ He raised his voice again to get Tomas’s

attention back.

‘How do you know?’ Tomas seemed to come back.

Gargy said, ‘Because I let myself in. If you were completely yourself, you would have noticed

that a long time ago. Do you know why?’ he continued in a condescending tone.

Tomas asked softly, ‘Why?’

Gargy said, ‘Because I left a massive note on your freaking cereal cupboard for you to read!’

Gargy proceeded to the kitchen and towards the cupboard where Tomas kept his oats. He knew

that Tomas ate his oats religiously every breakfast for as long as he remembered and yet, the note

was still there.

Gargy Started to read it aloud.

‘I have come to see you Tomik, but you must have been out. Please call me ASAP. We need to

talk. Gargy.’

Gargy said, ‘You haven’t seen this in the last six days? I specifically left it in a location I could

be one hundred percent sure that you would have noticed. Why didn’t you reply? For six days?

Could it be that you have not eaten in the last six days? Could it be that you’re going out into the

“N-land”, as you call it, EVERY night, where I presume you have found the cure for your

depression?!’

Tomas was obviously present, but still remained silent.

Gargy yelled, ‘When you leave, where do you go?!’

Tomas yelled back, ‘Okay, okay! YES! I have become a junkie, but I’m aware of that! I’m trying

to detox, and let me tell you, it’s not easier with people coming here staring at me in this state!’

That really stunned Gargy to the core. Tomas was a junkie? The guy who wouldn’t even touch

junk food, never mind alcohol, cigarettes, or marijuana, was a junkie now? But it explained a lot.

All, to be precise, and certainly satisfied Gargy with this answer. It was obvious that Tomas had

turned into someone else, but the reasons why were now understandable. All of it.

Gargy was determined to help Tomas into the acceptance stage of his grief, and possibly the old

Tomas would come out of it at the other end. Either way, he wouldn’t forsake him, no matter

what. No one would.

Gargy said, ‘Okay, thank you. I can understand that.’ He lowered his voice significantly.

Tomas said, ‘Let me get through the detox before I go back.’

Gargy said, ‘Why in here? I mean, I do understand that you don’t want someone else to see you

like this, but I have already seen you. I’m taking you back to my place outside of the ACAB

zone; it’s not that far either. Why stay here?’

Tomas said, ‘You might have seen me now, but not at my worst. I want to keep it that way. Just

give me time.’

Gargy was hesitant, since he didn’t want to flat-out dismiss Tomas.

Gargy said, ‘You’ve got one day. Day after tomorrow, I am taking you back whether you want to

go or not. If I have to, I’ll call Peter to come help me, explaining the situation to him. I’m sure he
will drop everything and come here in a heartbeat, despite the fact that Justina just recently came

back to him and they’re basically “glued” together now.’

‘Really, she did?’

‘Yeah, and I’m getting married to Ulrike,’ he said casually.

After a slight hesitation to process it, Tomas said, ‘Wow, that is great news. Congrats!’ It seemed

genuine, but still zombie-like and hesitant.

‘If you would have checked your WhatsApp, Facebook, or answered your phone, you would

have known that more than a week ago. I planned to tell you first,’ Gargy said, almost

resentfully.

Tomas looked ashamed, looking down, avoiding eye contact.

Gargy said, ‘My advice? You should do the same. Chimps like you don’t deserve a girl like

Helena anyway. Don’t let that go to waste. You always used to say that laughter is the second-

best cure for everything…’

Tomas finished, ‘After pussy, that is, if you happen to be a heterosexual guy.’ Smiles broke out

on both their faces.

Gargy said, ‘Whatever depression you’re going through, she will help you through it the best.

Not me, not Peter, not Violetta. You should take advantage of that.’

Gargy was about to leave for now and turned, heading back to his car, but looked rather

disturbed.

Tomas said, ‘Wait, let me tell you a marriage joke first!’

Gargy turned around.

Tomas said, ‘There is a Husband Store. A store that sells new husbands recently opened, where a

woman may go to choose a husband. Among the instructions at the entrance is a description of

how the store operates.

‘Instructions: You may visit this store ONLY ONCE! There are six floors, and the value of the

products increases as the shopper ascends the flights. The shopper may choose any item from a

particular floor, or may choose to go up to the next floor, but cannot go back down except to exit

the building.

‘So, a woman goes to the Husband Store to find a husband. On the first floor, the sign on the

door reads: Floor 1 – These Men Have Jobs. She is intrigued, but continues to the second floor,

where the sign reads: Floor 2 – These Men Have Jobs and Love Kids. “That’s nice,” she thinks,

“but I want more.” So, she continues upward. The third-floor sign reads: Floor 3 – These Men

Have Jobs, Love Kids, and are Extremely Good-Looking. “Wow,” she thinks, but feels

compelled to keep going. She goes to the fourth floor and the sign reads: Floor 4 – These men

Have Jobs, Love Kids, are Drop-dead Good-Looking, and Help with Housework. “Oh, mercy

me!” she exclaims, “I can hardly stand it!” Still, she goes to the fifth floor and the sign reads:

Floor 5 – These men Have Jobs, Love Kids, are Drop-dead Gorgeous, Help with Housework,

and Have a Strong Romantic Streak. She is so tempted to stay, but she goes to the sixth floor,

where the sign reads: Floor 6 – You are visitor #31,456,012 to this floor. There are no men on

this floor. This floor exists solely as proof that women are impossible to please. Thank you for

shopping at the Husband Store.’

Gargy chuckled and Tomas continued.

‘The Wife Store is just across the street, where men can buy a wife.

‘The first floor has wives that love sex. The second floor has wives that love sex and are good

looking. The third, fourth, fifth, and sixth floors have never been visited,’ he finished with a grin.

Gargy genuinely laughed despite his best efforts not to.

‘Where do you come up with this shit?’ Gargy said, a grin still present on his face.

Tomas said, ‘DiBi told me that one. He was divorced multiple times. Not that I’m trying to talk

you out of marriage or anything. I might need to warm up to the idea, but you definitely need

some red pills here and there. Don’t forget, you’re as much a prize to her as she is to you. But, as

a man, you will always give and sacrifice a lot more to the relationship. Thus, it is a lot more

important to make the right decision the first time, if ever, when getting involved in a serious

relationship with a woman. Make sure she is worth it. As far as I’m concerned, you could marry

Wonder Woman and she would still not be worth you.’

Gargy said, ‘I’ll…take that as a compliment,’ but waving his arm in a dismissive manner.

Although it was an obvious disrespect to Ulrike, it was a somewhat pathetic (Tomas worthy)

attempt to express how highly Tomas thinks of him. As a future husband to Ulrike, Gargy had a

strong urge to say something and defend Ulrike, but even with “normal” Tomas, it would be a

difficult task to do, to get the memo to him when it came to women. Never mind now that Tomas

seemed zombie-like. There would be no point.

Gargy couldn’t help but feel like he was talking to himself whether he whispered or yelled. It

would be a waste of time and at very best, a potential conflict that would only lead to alienating
himself in Tomas’s eyes further. What was clear to him was that Tomas needed help, whether he

wanted it or not.

Tomas wasn’t going to make it on his own, in his opinion; that much was VERY clear to Gargy.

Although he didn’t express his suspicion to Tomas, he was worried that Tomas could still be

holding something from him. The “extra” day in ACAB that he gave to Tomas was mostly for

the reason to try finding the answer to his gut feeling, when Tomas didn’t realize he was being

stalked.

Gargy was right; there was more to it.

o Chapter 5: You Again

Linkin Park – Carousel 2:59

“She can't hide no matter how hard she tries - Her secret disguised behind the lies.

And at night, she cries away her pride - With eyes shut tight staring at her inside.

All her friends know why she can't sleep at night,

All her family asking if she's alright,

All she wants to do is get rid of this hell,

Well, all she's got to do is stop kidding herself…”

The “I’m a junkie” line was a lie, of course. Tomas told Gargy what he had to just to get him off

his back. In reality, Tomas went out into the whites-free zone to do duels. Like back in the day in

China when he was street fighting. Tomas told himself it was to impress the Blacks that would

have to admit to themselves that they do like some whites and look up to them, even in the

whites-free zone and that they do so for “qualities” that are questionable at best, like being

dominant through violence.

Except, the more Tomas thought about it, the more he realized that perhaps he was really

addicted. Only it wasn’t to heroin, or whatever was the “street candy” that Gargy could have

imagined. It was to the second chance drug. Tomas had shakes, involuntary movements, and a

clouded mind, among other things, including the “itch” for it.

Perhaps it was true after all and not a complete lie. Perhaps the voices were part of the

withdrawal and as soon as they came back, Tomas wanted to shoot the last of the second chances

that he had, for multiple reasons. First, he really wanted to end the itch for it; second, to see
whether his condition would improve and the voices would temporarily vanish as the body got

the substance it was thirsting for.

But that also meant that he would interrupt the detox process and would have to go through it all

again. He only had one day and night before Gargy would come and collect him. If he wanted to

test the theory without Gargy knowing what was really going on, he had to do it there and then.

Tomas took the last second chance.

At first, he was relieved, as his mind stopped being clouded, no random twitches, and most

importantly, Tomas hadn’t heard the voices since. But as night was approaching, Tomas could

feel the withdrawal already coming and it was even worse than the last time. Definitely happened

a lot sooner too.

It got worse once the DI’s voice came back again around 7:00 p.m. It wasn’t just a voice

anymore. Tomas could actually see him in every reflection of himself that talked back to him.

It still looked like Tomas’s face, but it was disfigured and bloodied in the same way as it was just

before Tomas was about to kill the DI, and it was clearly his voice as well, whilst occasionally

fully transforming into the DI’s face. It made Tomas instantly think that he was flipping between

a little bit crazier than before and full-on crazy about to happen.

“I don’t believe this! This is a hallucination. All you have to do is to get through the detox and

never, ever, touch that shit again.” Panicked, he closed his eyes, placed his hands over them and

collapsed to ground, resting his back against the bathroom wall.

The DI’s voice said, ‘That should be rather easy, since there is no more of it anyway.’

“Shut up, shut up!”

The drill instructor said, ‘How can I shut up when I’m a product of your imagination? You’re a

smart guy. You know it, I know it. Why fight it?’

Tomas focused on not thinking anything that could be a response to that. He wanted out of it.

The drill instructor said, ‘Just admit it, I’m your subconsciousness that you try to ignore and

silence, but now you have set me free and have to face me. Face yourself.’

Tomas replied, ‘I might need to listen to you, but why should I take you seriously when we both

know you’re not real?’ This was all in his mind, no actual words spoken.

The drill instructor said, ‘I’m real to you. Yes, the face is that of your biggest regret, the voice

follows suit, but it doesn’t change a thing about the fact that I am you. I’m your

subconsciousness that you can’t normally even sense that it is there, nor control, never mind

have a conversation with. Yet, I’m you as much as it can get. All your values, all your fears, all

that makes you who you are and what you base making your conscious decisions upon, is me.

Things you have long forgotten or actively try to forget, I still know it all. I know your real

desires, I know your real pain and fears. More importantly, I know your real reasons, not the

ones you try to believe in so hard. I am the TRUTH, the truth about you. Isn’t that what matters

to you the most? I know it is; in this, you’re true to yourself.’

Tomas said, ‘Or you’re just a hallucination and a projection of my subconsciousness based on

my expectation of being “drugged”, which is based on my perception of “shamans” or junkies

that I have seen totally baked out of their minds, thinking that they found the secret to the

universe and deeper understanding of life itself; that they got enlightened. But in reality, they

were just losing brain cells, and so did I.’

The drill instructor said, ‘It absolutely could be that, I agree. You always tried to be rational and

objective about everything, overanalysed everything from every angle on every level of your

conscience. That is also true. Fine…

‘…Or, you could really be talking to your subconsciousness because of your drugged state and it

is basically a conversation between your conscious thinking versus subconscious thinking. A rare

gift; you should be happy! How many people get to have a conversation with something that is

by definition autonomous and inaccessible, yet it is what makes them, them?’

Tomas said, ‘If that is so, why don’t I have these hallucinations when I’m actually under the

influence of the drug, rather than once I’m already having a withdrawal? How does that make

any sense?’

The drill instructor said, ‘What do I know? I’m just as dumb as you, know as much as you.

Could be side effects for all I know. Which you also suspect, I know. But you’re a pussy that

wouldn’t tell anyone, wouldn’t ask the questions to people that could possibly know best,

because truth be told, you’re scared of the answer. You’re scared of the truth.’

Tomas said, ‘Why would I fear the truth, if truth is what I want the most on every level of my

being? You said so yourself.’

The drill instructor screamed, ‘Because in this case, you can’t handle the truth!’

Tomas angrily got up and looked back into the mirror above the sink to see whether the DI’s

reflection instead of his was still in there. It was, but this time, he wasn’t so shocked with it.

Tomas shouted out loud, ‘Bullshit! What truth?!’

Amused, the drill instructor said, ‘Where should we start? There is a lot to what you try to

deny.’

Tomas said, ‘Like what?’

The drill instructor said, ‘That you’re still a pussy really, a pretender. Despite all that you have

been through, which was just overcompensation really. Still fragile as a little girl!’

Tomas said, ‘LIAR!’ Even pointing at the DI’s reflection in the mirror, still shouting out loud.

The drill instructor continued, ‘She can’t hide no matter how hard she tries, HER secrets

disguised behind the lies, and at night she cries away her pride, with eyes shut tight staring at her

inside…’ ridiculing Tomas even more by suggesting he’s girl.

Tomas didn’t want to admit it, audibly saying, “No,” and shaking his head, but the truth was that

he was worried that people would find out about the “true” him, entangling himself in lies in the

past and even more so recently. And yes, he was ashamed every time he cried, even secretly,

feeling like a pussy doing so, often looking for the answers on the inside as soon as he closed his

eyes… but couldn’t fall asleep.

The drill instructor whispered into Tomas’s ear, ‘All HER friends know why SHE can’t sleep at

night, All HER family asking if SHE’s all right. All SHE wants to do is get rid of this hell. Well,

all SHE’s got to do is stop kidding herself…’

Tomas’s mind was running in circles, analysing everything and anything, making it impossible.

Things he’d done. Perhaps because of truly overcompensating for this pussy, insecure feeling

he’d had since his childhood, like he was unworthy of all.

Tomas knew about his friends knowing about his inner issues, despite avoiding exposing that

they knew. Often asking if he was all right, BECAUSE they knew. They just didn’t want to put

him in a vulnerable and uncomfortable position, so they all pretended, including him. Everybody

knows that he knows that they know, yet they all pretend otherwise. It was like a false reality

created for him to get better without losing face, in his eyes. So, they all played along, and he

knew it deep inside…

The drill instructor continued to put more pressure on Tomas, ‘SHE can only fool herself for so

long. SHE can only fool herself for so long. SHE can only fool herself for so long…’

“I’m too weak to face me.” This time just thinking to himself, shutting his eyes again and

covering his ears whilst crumbling in anger. As if that would help in any way, preventing the DI

from being heard or the DI hearing what Tomas said to himself in his head. Just a natural

reaction.

The drill instructor laughed, ‘P-u-s-s-y. Pussy.’

Tomas said, ‘If I’m such a pussy, then so are you! The joke’s on you.’

The drill instructor said, ‘Oh no, not on me. I am the DI, after all. You might have become me in

your subconsciousness, therefore I know everything about you, but your consciousness, as

always, is resisting me. Because you’re a pussy. Because I’m kind, or maybe that part I inherited

from you, I have allowed you to become me occasionally, taking over your actions so that you

can feel like a man again. It turned out that you’re a real psycho, and that kind of power wasn’t

meant for you. Not only have you become me, you have tried to overcompensate for your

“pussyness”, causing unnecessary suffering really. All whilst flexing like a peacock, a bloody

mannequin. Everything to be an exhibition, everything to have a shock factor, because of your

precious, fragile ego trying to overcompensate for the truth you always knew, that you’re a

pussy.’ He started laughing.

Tomas said, ‘What are you talking about? You’re a fraud and a creation of my own imagination.

Seems to me that you’re conveniently “me” when it suits you, and not me when I’m a pussy.

Why do I even waste my time on you?’ He continued the loud conversation again, talking to the

mirror.

The drill instructor said, ‘No, you’re not me. I have been a true, what you call a “bad boy”, all

my life, a real man to most women. You know, the kinda guy that gets laid and pussy-boys like

you despise because there is nothing you can do about it. The kinda guy who don’t even care

about getting women and getting laid, it comes too easy for me to care about it. Yet, that is the

only thing that pussy-boys like you ever care about, because you weren’t man enough to get laid!

Pathetic really!’

Tomas said, ‘Oh yeah?! I have got so much pussy I was drowning in it when I was younger!

How could you not know this, if you know all about me?!’

The drill instructor said, ‘Overcompensation. You had to get buff before you could get laid. Even

then you had no confidence until it worked because women…or should I say girls, to be more

accurate…couldn’t see the pussy behind the muscles. And where did it lead you in the end?

Regret? Disgust with women? For what?! Being genetically programmed to choose a worthy

partner, not a pussy-boy like you? You’re an emotional pussy, that’s why. Overthinking

everything. I would have tapped and dashed, pumped and dumped and had a bitch on the side to

start a family with if I desired so, and I would have ZERO regrets. But you, pussy-boy, became

so disgusted with women wanting REAL men and went into monk mode until you were basically
raped by a woman, because you yourself still restrain and got no game no more would be

incapable of making a move, and she knew it.’

Tomas said, ‘You’re right, you’re not like me. You know shit; all of this is just an illusion.

Reminder to what I hate. And make no mistake, you’re so lucky you’re just an illusion, because

if you weren’t, you would learn the hard way very quickly how much of a “pussy-boy” I am. In

fact, to think of it, I already did show you, it is all coming back to me. The sound your cracking

bones made and the gurgle of blood before I snapped your neck.’

The drill instructor said, ‘Here we go again, the overcompensating pussy-boy psycho strikes

back. Wanna play tough on me? We already established that you have killed me and THAT is

your biggest regret to date. The moment when things officially went off the rails. How pathetic

you are. I would have never regretted killing you, wouldn’t lose any sleep over it either. But I

wouldn’t find pleasure in killing you, or the pain I caused you before I killed you, like YOU did

in mine.

‘You don’t think I know that you tried to justify your barbaric actions by becoming me in your

head? Of course I know! But let me set this straight for you. Admittedly, I wouldn’t have

considered them barbaric in the first place…well, at least not most of it. Some things are too

much even for my lack of empathy. You psycho.

‘But I never felt pleasure in what I did to others. I did it because I could, and because it was who

I had chosen to be. It was a job, and I did what was expected of me. I didn’t have the need to

overcompensate like you did, pussy-boy. I might have helped you to cross the border at the start,

but it wasn’t me who forced you to do most of your…now “regrets”. THAT is on you!
‘If you would let me get the “steering wheel” and didn’t consciously fight me all the time, you

would be sleeping like a baby, and you certainly wouldn’t do the things that you, pussy-boy,

couldn’t handle afterwards anyway. I have no need to prove anything. I wouldn’t do it.

Tomas said, ‘I’m done listening to this crap!’ moving away from the bathroom.

The drill instructor said, ‘Well that’s too bad, because you have no choice.’

The DI’s image talking back at Tomas appeared in every reflection. On the TV, windows,

anywhere Tomas tried to go, there was a reflecting surface and he saw the DI. He couldn’t stop

the voice regardless.

The drill instructor said, ‘There we go, trying to run away again as you always do. As if that ever

worked for you!’

“I’m too weak to face me.” Tomas was frustrated, almost in a panic.

The drill instructor continued the pressure, ‘When it comes to how to live his life he can’t be

told, says he’s got it all under control. Thinks he knows it’s not a problem he’s stuck with, but in

reality, it’d be a problem to just quit…’

Tomas screamed out loud this time, ‘I’m too weak to face me!’ collapsing onto floor, doing his

best to squeeze his ears, hoping it would stop the voice, clenching his eyelids to make sure not to

see the DI.

The drill instructor had no intentions to stop, ‘An addict, and he can’t hold the reins, the pain is

worse because his friends have it the same. Tries to slow down the problem he’s got, but can’t

get off the carousel until he makes it stop. HE can only fool himself for so long, HE can only
fool himself for so long, HE can only fool himself for so long…’ still whispering in his head in

an amused tone.

‘What are you talking about?!’ Tomas shouted out in anger, opening his eyes again and walking

back to the bathroom to face “himself”.

The drill instructor said, ‘What do you think I’m talking about? I told you, I know everything

about you. I already know what you are about to do, I know why you really stayed behind this

long.’

Tomas said, ‘Yeah, why?!’

The drill instructor said, ‘I don’t call people psychos for no reason. You’re a pussy-boy that

happens to be bloodthirsty, as I mentioned. Funny enough, you stayed behind because you love

violence, pain, and you’re lusting for the arena, to go kill the Queen. In the most brutal manner

possible, to shock everyone. You want to overcompensate again and send a strong message that

you’re no pussy, that to you, they’re they pussies. Because that’s who you perceive as the “bad

boys”, the bullies, the “no-goods”, and you want to overcompensate for your pussy-boy status by

showing them all that you’re even worse. That you’re the top dog. To instead make them fear

you.

‘But you can’t handle that. You’re not made for this and in fact, you’re a psycho for doing so

anyway. Perfectly knowing that you will regret doing so later. Terrified that it comes easy, yet it

haunts you later. Sometimes because you don’t care, sometimes because you do care. Either way,

you’re terrified with yourself. Don’t want to be a pussy on one side, but terrified each time I take

over and you’re not on the other.’

Tomas thought to himself again, ‘I’m too weak to face me!’ trying his best not to listen,

frustrating himself even more.

The words rang a bell and although he wanted to deny it, perhaps it was true. It would explain a

lot.

The drill instructor said, ‘Worse, you believe that even your friends will have the same fate as

you, if they already don’t, if the killings don’t stop. Yet, you can’t help yourself and you will go

satisfy your fragile, overinflated ego tonight regardless, hurting you even more. You know it, I

know it. Because you’re weak, and because you still find pleasure in it.’

Tomas said, ‘No I will not! I will not go there.’ He had run away from the reflection again.

The drill instructor said in a calm voice, ‘Yes, you will. But it is okay, It’s okay, don’t worry.’

Tomas stopped, motionless.

The drill instructor continued, ‘Tonight, I will be in control. Those thugs deserve a good beating

anyway. I would have wiped them out myself if I still lived. The Queen? A wannabe. I’ll spit on

her corpse, but no more. We will show these butthurt snowflakes turned warlords that they’re

nobody. We’d have their heads on a silver platter in China, should they have tried shit like that

there. We would show them real oppression, real horrors. Tonight, you, with my help, will teach

them a lesson. A lesson that needs to be learned for their own good.

‘You’re lucky that you have me, for this might be the last night I can have you on a leash, to not

do something stupid, something overboard. You should thank me, not be afraid of me. To be

honest, I never know just why you run so far away, far away from me. I am your cure. I will give

you your peace.’ The DI said in a calm, comforting tone.

Tomas wanted to deny everything, but to who? To this illusion? It could be truly just his

subconsciousness talking out loud. Tomas planned to go out there, to the arena. Of course he did.

Tomas ventured regularly into the street fights club, already making a name for himself there,

and spectating the arena’s mortal combat deep within the club itself, for which there was a lot of

premium to be paid in order to see it, if you have not been a contestant. It was like a true

gladiator mortal combat, Roman-style. Tomas loved it.

THAT was the real secret. And yes, Tomas wanted to go out in big style before Gargy would

take him away. Tomas wanted to go into the arena and kill their Queen. And he wanted to do it

in a dominating and shocking way.

Perhaps it was good that Tomas’s DI’s voice was now in his head to help him not go overboard

and do something that he would regret later. So he thought.

“Fly with me under the wings I gave you. Try to be closer to me and I’ll save you,” the DI

whispered into Tomas’s ears as he was approaching the street fight club and mortal combat arena

location deep within the whites-free zone of ACAB.

Prodigy – Breathe 5:11

“Breathe the pressure - Come play my game, I'll test ya!

Psychosomatic, addict, insane…

Come play my game!

Inhale, inhale, you're the victim!”

“Breathe with me,” DI whispered into Tomas’s ears as he was approaching the fight club’s

entrance. He could feel the DI’s breath on his ear, even see the face in his peripheral vision.
The seven Black bodyguards with the build of an oversized gorilla and most certainly equal

strength got alerted to his presence. Tomas’s walking was firm and rapid, hoodie on and posture

signalling that he was up to no good, visually aggressive. Couldn’t see his hands either, since

they were inside the side pockets of the hoodie, fists clenched unconsciously, signalling further

violence could be imminent.

Since Tomas had become notorious in the club by that time already, as he came closer to them,

two of the bouncers/bodyguards recognized him. Instead of harassing him as they would any

other white trying to come inside the club before letting them in to get their ass beaten, they gave

him a fist bump, to which Tomas responded with a fist bump and they let him in no questions

asked, no abuse spoken.

Of course, the other five were quite disappointed that they just let the white boy in without any

prior hassle, demanding an explanation.

‘Remember the guy I was telling you about, cuz? That’s him,’ said one of them.

‘So what?! No white nigger is coming through me without me having some fun with him first!’

‘This white nigger would end you in a second, cuz!’ But the other one just shook his head and

hand in disapproval and disbelief. ‘The first night he came here, we tried to rough him up as we

normally would, and he proceeded to make us look like fools, not even saying a word! Not even

trying. Then he offered me his hand to help me back up, saying that we gave him no choice, but

no hard feelings. I asked him why he came. He told me to have some fun, and let me tell you, fun

he had, and the second time, and the third. You see a pattern emerging here, cuz? We shake

hands when he leaves.’

‘You sound like a white-nigger-lover, cuz!’

‘He’s no ordinary white.’

‘They are all ordinary. They are all devils!’ the other continued.

‘Oh, yeah? Tell you what, cuz, why don’t you challenge him then, and see?’

To which the other replied that he would, and proceeded into the club looking for Tomas whilst

calling the other bouncers pussies. Needless to say, the rest of the bodyguards immediately

proceeded to take bets. Melvin, who was the guard defending Tomas, simply known as Mel,

looked rather happy and expected a big cash out, betting 300 dollars on Tomas’s win. The other

one who also had the “pleasure” to meet Tomas before also bet on him, but the rest were against,

meaning between the two, each was expecting a $600 pay-out.

Tomas was already deep in the club at that point. Occasional abuse was thrown at him and he

ignored it, but it was quickly ceased by people who recognized him. The barman had already

prepared a glass of water for Tomas as he approached the bar, shutting down occasional abuse

coming from others sitting at the bar, telling them to shut the fuck up if they know what is good

for them. If it was just him, it might not have worked, but there was whispering in the ears

present all around, enlightening the unaware to who Tomas was, expecting a good show later.

But still, if it wasn’t for Tomas’s presentation, there was no way that they would simply just

respect him immediately based on what they had seen so far of him in the duels. It was because

he pretty much didn’t portray himself as some supremacist trying to show them that he was

better than them or anything like that. For the most part, he didn’t speak a word outside of

thanking the barman for the glass of water and saying to Mel he’d see him next time when

leaving. Never mind shouting out any verbal abuse or making provocative gestures.
One could say he earned their respect and one could say, if nothing else, he made many of them

think about the no-whites area as a whole. “Perhaps there should be exceptions,” came here and

there. Tomas even fought true white supremacist coming there! Bloodied them in a way it was

obvious would leave permanent damage. There were already calls many times for killing his

opponent so that he would go into the arena. They wanted to see him kill the Queen, as they

believed he easily would. But he never killed anyone yet. ‘Perhaps today,’ many hoped.

As always, Tomas began as a spectator. There was no shortage of duels, which were pretty much

nonstop at this point, and the main reason why people even went into the bar in the first place.

Thus, the street fight club nickname.

‘Breathe the pressure,’ DI whispered into his ear while Tomas observed the fights. There was

still restriction in his mind, reserve, doubts. As much as part of him didn’t want to fight, the other

one craved for blood.

The spectator aspect didn’t help either. Tomas got addicted to the chanting of his spectators and

the “glory” received with him often granting them their wishes. Making additional unnecessary

and often permanent damage to his opponents. It was very reminiscent of his street fights in

Hong Kong. It reminded him that even back then, Tomas knew and tried to stop his fighting

before it was too late, realising that he was the one in the wrong, that he was changing. Exactly

the same internal struggle. Except, this time he was already so deep, had already done much

worse things, it seemed nearly irrelevant, insignificant, and he contemplated giving in to his

demons again. Telling himself that this was his last chance to satisfy his “need” before he would

be forced into abstinence anyway. ‘Just for the last time, just on the bad guys, just the last

“justice” I’ll give.’ Along with continuous whispers of the DI to breathe with him, to breathe the
pressure, Tomas each time reminded himself that the DI was just a psychosomatic manifestation

of his second chance-induced insanity due to him being addicted.

DI was taunting Tomas. “Come play my game, I’ll test you.” Tomas reminded himself of what

the DI, or rather his own subconscious, told him, to let go of the control and he would save him.

That if he stayed close to him, Tomas would not lose it, but wouldn’t have to feel like a pussy

either. But Tomas still looked for a “legit” excuse to initiate any violence.

Soon enough, there was this Black asshole who challenged every white and even Blacks, not for

seeking some sort of resolution to conflict, but rather just fame, money, and respect in the form

of fear. DI’s taunting of Tomas to come play with him intensified, however, Tomas reminded

himself that he was basically the same as the Black asshole, and he also came there for the fame

and glory, along with the need to satisfy his urge for violence. Which was possibly worse than

the money incentive of the Black asshole.

He tried to resist it, but eventually the pressure was too much and he “gladly” gave in so that his

inner conflict would finally stop tearing him apart. It was just a violent asshole who needed to be

put in line after all.

‘Who else wants to challenge me, who else?! You pussies!’ the Black asshole shouted.

Tomas stepped into the ring, which was basically made out of the bodies of the spectators in the

middle of the bar/club. Very reminiscent of Hong Kong. Except there the fights happened mostly

in the streets and the contestants were mostly competent martial artists rather than just local

thugs who only fought equally unskilled opponents.

‘Fucking white boy?! Are you lost, blut?!’

He charged Tomas, but a simple axe kick top to bottom that hit the thug precisely on top of his

nose, breaking it whilst knocking him out, put a stop to that. Some laughs sounded, some abuse

sounded too. Apparently, unaware people got upset losing their bets.

‘I’ll fuck him up!’ another charged.

A spinning heel kick that landed beautifully on the thug’s left cheek sorted that out.

Three more charged but soon learned that numbers meant shit when you’ve got no skill and face

an opponent like Tomas. A couple of judo rolls, snapped hands, and one snapped hand in a jiu-

jitsu lockout for the entertainment of the onlookers followed. Even a broken ankle after Tomas’s

kick into it from the side. They all writhed in pain on the floor in seconds.

More cheers. More abuse. More Tomas’ satisfaction. From the cheers, and from the seemingly

never-ending supply of the “drug”.

‘Exhale, exhale.’ DI reminded Tomas to breathe, since he was holding it in due to the

excitement.

‘Psychotic, addict, insane,’ the DI taunted Tomas in the next second whilst laughing, as Tomas

started to distribute more “justice” to those who stormed him next.

Blood squirted everywhere. Some were disgusted and jumped when it hit them accidentally, for

some, it was exciting. A proper show.

The bookies were doing their best, but couldn’t keep track and take the bets in time. Tomas’s

opponents were emerging and falling faster than they could work.

Absolute carnage ensued, and no less than 20 writhing bodies littered the floor as Tomas,

seemingly calmly, machine-like, precisely and systematically eliminated them out of the fight in
an increasingly exhibition-like way. Finishing off some already beaten, barely standing, stunned

opponents with butterfly and other acrobatic kicks.

The crowd went into a frenzy, but the influx of more opponents suddenly stopped.

Tomas just remained in his place, looking around him, looking for more “substance” to consume.

People started throwing money directly at him, but he didn’t care. That wasn’t why he was there.

The gorilla-like bodyguard that followed Tomas into the club stepped in, and after a second of

surprised silence, even louder chanting began.

‘I’m Tyrone.’ Hate was present in the bodyguard’s voice.

Tomas couldn’t help but to chuckle at that name, but refused to respond in any way after that.

‘What’s so funny, white boy?! What’s so funny?!’ Tyrone got aggravated even more.

Tyrone was towering slightly over the rest of the people at six feet three inches tall, and was

certainly visibly taller and heavier than Tomas by a lot, although not in fat. Pretty much the body

of Michael Jay White when he was young. ‘A proper unit,’ Tomas would say.

Until that point, he was just observing Tomas, analysing him. Tyrone was very surprised at what

Tomas showcased, but was still confident that his height and weight superiority would give him

the edge in the end. After all, he was no stranger to the duels, where he also dominated others.

That’s why the management offered him the bouncer position in the first place and put him on a

steady payroll.

As he charged at Tomas, Tomas charged at him in response. Just as they were about to meet in

the middle, Tyrone ready to grab Tomas below his waist and mount him after slamming Tomas

onto floor, Tomas thrust with both of his knees into the face of Tyrone. The massive impact was
heard despite the loud music playing. Because Tyrone was already slightly leaning forward and

was a big guy, despite Tomas hitting him first with both knees into the face and cracking his left

cheek on impact and breaking Tyrone’s nose, it almost looked like Tomas’s thrust was fully

stopped mid-air on the impact itself and Tomas awkwardly fell onto the floor after himself, not

expecting to be stopped in the air like that. Tyrone was an absolute machine. Even Velicenko’s

former right hand, Igor, who was a monster of a man, wouldn’t withstand such an impact and

would be certainly “rolled over”.

Not Tyrone. After the initial confusion of both parties, they came back onto their feet and

exchanged a couple blows that Tomas blocked and Tyron “tanked” with no problem, getting a bit

more bloodied on his face in the process. As soon as Tyrone seemed to be stunned enough,

Tomas performed a flawless flying spinning heel kick followed instantly by an undercut,

sweeping Tyrone off his legs onto his back. He immediately tried to stand up, but Tomas

performed a wall-walk into a 720 tornado kick, landing on top of his head which shut his lights

out whilst dislocating his jaw. For a couple seconds Tomas just stood there, waiting to see

whether Tyrone would come back to himself. The crowd was in a state of frenzy but Tomas

didn’t showcase any joy or react to the crowd in any way.

It was obvious that Tomas was toying with Tyrone, but as soon as he regained his consciousness,

he couldn’t help but to storm Tomas again.

A backward cartwheel-knee into Tyrone’s chest sent him onto the floor quite violently again.

Tyrone even spat out blood on impact after collapsing on the floor. Tomas got annoyed by

Tyrone’s persistence, grabbed his arm and snapped it at the elbow against the floor, sitting on it.
Needless to say, Tyrone wasn’t happy about that but didn’t give up and still tried to take a swing

at Tomas with his good hand as soon as Tomas stood back up off him. Tomas dodged and got

Tyrone in a headlock. Tyrone was passing out to the chants of: “Kill him!” from the crowd.

‘Breathe the pressure’. The DI was telling Tomas to enjoy his moment and just like that, Tomas

snapped Tyrone’s neck.

Momentary silence was replaced with absolute frenzy. He was finally going after the Queen and

there were quite a few criminals waiting for their chance to get free as well. The crowd wanted to

see Tomas kill them all, and so did he.

‘Just more justice,’ he said to himself.

‘Psychotic, addict, insane,’ DI whispered into his ear, laughing.

Prodigy – Smack My Bitch Up 5:43

“Change my pitch up!

Smack my bitch up!”

It was a rule to go into the arena next and normally it had to be enforced, but no one would dare

touch Tomas, nor did he need to be touched. Tomas proceeded of his own will into the arena

below, navigated by the excited bookies. It was a door that led to staircase downwards and into

the arena, a former old basketball court converted into the arena. The spectators only had to

follow to the back of the club and into the seating area of the arena that was separated with

cupola-like cage bars from the arena below.

In the former changing rooms, there was a selection of “costumes” that the condemned person

could have chosen to wear so as not to bleed all over his own clothes should he survive, and

certainly to burn to get rid of if he would die.

There were all kinds of costumes, including replicas of old ancient gladiator helmets and

armours, and weaponry, that was strictly melee based. You could choose your own.

Tomas went with a rounded, medium-sized shield and a Roman short sword and battle skirt,

along with Greek shin, shoulder, and helmet protection. Somebody made a replica of the same

helmet that Brat Pitt wore in the movie Troy. Tomas liked the helmet best and chose that one.

There was even a mirror. Tomas sure looked like a proper gladiator with his physique finally

showing as quite intimidating. That earned him a lot of admiring comments coming from the

crowd later on as he slowly emerged out of the gates.

He was quite the opposite to the “criminals” that already awaited him in the arena, who looked

rather intimidated, and it was obvious that they were discussing strategies. There were 10 of

them. People who must have killed someone outside of a duel, or rapists. Some of them were

held for more than two weeks, waiting for the next offender in the duel to appear and redeem

themselves. Numbering ten men (they were all men), they must have been confident as their

numbers grew, being convinced that the next guy coming into the arena from the duel would be

their ticket to freedom.

Yes, the rules said that they could only engage in combat one on one, one by one, in the order

they had been held. But it did mean that the tenth person would face a guy who must have

already gotten through nine of them previously, most likely not having much left in the tank, and

certainly multiple injuries.

On the flip side, being the tenth offender could mean that the guy coming from the duel would be

killed by someone else prior, making that man free, and he would have to wait for the next duel’s

offender to come before having a shot at freedom again. But one thing none of them imagined

was that the guy coming from the duel could kill them all to go face the Queen.

They had no idea who they were facing.

Tomas appeared at the bar-like gate into the arena. He was still in the shadow and out of the

light, but his silhouette alone looked impressive enough to intimidate the waiting men. The first

man that would face him was getting ready and started to approach Tomas, but as the gate lifted

and Tomas stepped into the light, he instantly got visibly uneasy.

Tomas looked like a proper gladiator. The crowd went wild, and the betting started. Some of the

bouncers even left their post to see Tomas in the arena; there was no real discipline when it came

to the arena spectacle. Everybody had to see that, job be damned.

As Tomas made his first few confidence steps walking into the arena, the first man stormed at

him. Tomas just dodged his angry attack with a spear, not even trying to counter him yet to give

a little bit of a show for the crowd, but after five or so thrusts at him with the spear, one fast stab

at the man’s chest through his heart sent him onto the sand floor, now soaked with more blood to

the cheers of the crowd.

The second man didn’t hesitate a moment and instantly replaced the first one killed, engaging

Tomas whilst he was doing fancy spinning moves for the crowd with the sword and then at the

right moment, with one slash cut off the weapon-wielding hand of the second man, then in quick

succession stabbing through his neck too, left him to blead out whilst making hissing sounds.

It sure seemed unfair, like they didn’t stand a chance and Tomas was toying with them.
The command from the Queen came to allow two of the condemned to engage Tomas at the

same time. The crowd got louder once more and a new wave of bets began, making Tomas

chuckle, but it was unlikely anyone noticed as the helmet hid his face well. He was enjoying it.

The atmosphere, just like he imagined. Close to what he saw in the movie Gladiator, in the

smaller arena. He could totally understand why some men would go of their free will into the

arena even back in the day, to feel like a superstar. Better, the top dog.

The fact that the two men coming in tried to surround him cheered Tomas up. He knew it would

give a better show for the onlookers. It allowed him to shine more. What followed looked more

like a choreographed dance than a fight, since Tomas was once again actively avoiding the

strikes, not making any contact, or blocking with his shield or sword, until like a scorpion, out of

nowhere, he stabbed both in under a second like a scorpion stabbing with its tail.

Both men fell into the bloodied sand, but one of them remained alive; the stab didn’t deliver

instant death as intended. At that time, all six remaining men had been already released at Tomas

and he was forced to deflect one of their sword attacks, then instead of killing the man whose

strike he’d just deflected, Tomas opted to give a killing strike to the dying man, ending his

suffering. It was so obvious; it stunned the man as he froze for a moment in the horror he could

have been just killed.

All of the remaining men surrounded Tomas before trying to engage him. Two spears, two

swords and shields, one polearm and the final one a morning star with a tiny buckler shield, all

partially armoured.

Once again, Tomas toyed with them for a bit before killing them on purpose, one by one, always

with two quick-succession blows or stabs with his short sword. He took his time and used his
imagination to kill the next man in a different way than the one before, pleasing the crowd that

was in a frenzy by that point.

Just as he killed the last man by first cutting off his right leg at the ankle, forcing him to fall onto

the sandy floor before stabbing him in his belly as he flipped his sword from forward facing into

backward facing, Tomas felt a sharp pain on his back.

It was the bladed end of Queen’s whip that dug in deep into his right trapezius, tearing it partially

open as she retracted it and slashed the rest of his back that the whip body made contact with.

The Queen even made a battle cry, long and loud, yet very seductive in nature, just like an

Amazonian warrior would.

Tomas slowly turned around and the next slash came in. The Queen certainly had the body, sex

appeal, and confident body language of one - Amazonian.

Normally, Tomas wouldn’t be attracted to a dark-skinned female, it just wasn’t him. But the

Queen was one fine specimen and he couldn’t help it, or deny it.

The whip itself was at least three meters long, it seemed. Tomas didn’t move a muscle and still

the shield at his left side completely deflected the second blow without even trying, but it did

wake him up from under her spell and Tomas saw the Queen preparing the next blow.

This time, he calmly let his shield slide off his grip onto the floor, letting the blow bite him in his

left arm. Tomas’s left triceps got torn a little as she retracted the whip again after it dug in quite

deeply. He then threw away his sword as well in an over-stated manner, as if making a statement

that he didn’t need it and proceeded to remove his helmet too, before also letting it slip out of his

hands and fall on the sand floor.

The Queen almost followed with yet another, fourth slash, but stopped mid-movement seeing

Tomas removing his helmet and throwing away his sword. To her, it almost looked like he made

a gesture that he didn’t want to fight her.

First, she was wrong. Tomas was making a show for the crowd that he wanted to please in the

most exhibitionist manner possible, making a statement that he doesn’t need weapons to easily

take down their Queen. It was the reason why he didn’t even flinch when the whip dug deep into

his flesh, so that the blows seemed to have nothing but a visual effect on him.

Second, although she hesitated at first, she then remembered the rules of the arena, that only one

person would walk outside alive from either side and that she as the Queen of the arena was

expected to fight the condemned to the death or die trying for justice to be served, so she struck

again, aiming for Tomas’s exposed face.

Tomas caught the whip’s bladed end in his left palm first, then pulled it out of the Queen’s hand

immediately afterwards, and in a wrapping-around movement as he was rushing towards her,

made a spiked boxing glove out of it, ripping open and injuring his own palm in the process.

Immediately, just as Tomas was within striking distance, he had to avoid a counter-strike of the

Queen himself whilst hitting her square in her face, tearing and bruising her skin whilst breaking

her nose and knocking her out in a single blow.

Apparently, that wasn’t to the warlord’s liking and in a panic he sent six of his personal

bodyguards into the arena to save her. But it was little more than just additional amusement for

Tomas to deal with. One by one they fell, all to the cheers of the crowd who displayed their

disapproval of the warlord’s decision to send his dogs in to try to save his Queen. That was

against the rules. Either way, they didn’t buy the Queen much time anyway, and before she was
even able to get her bearings back after receiving the massive blow prior, Tomas was already

towering over her.

Tomas didn’t want to mess with the Queen for one second, he wanted to make a statement. He

wanted to show his dominance, and the fact that she was still breathing was only due to him

allowing it. He wanted to enjoy the crowd’s cheers first, and needed some time to figure out how

he would kill her in the most spectacular way possible.

The Queen regained her consciousness back in the meantime and managed to get into a seated

position, visibly fazed and bleeding from her now disfigured face.

Tomas noticed that and immediately slashed her own whip at her, wrapping it around the

Queen’s neck. He immediately got the idea how to finish it, seeing how deep the whip’s blades

dug into her neck, knowing that the more he pulled back now, the more it would tighten up,

potentially even fully decapitating her. It would be like starting up a chainsaw, the teeth of the

saw waiting for the circular tightening movement.

On purpose, he dragged her towards one of the arena’s walls. It was about two and a half meters

tall and the roof of it was basically like a cupola made of bars so that no one could escape the

arena or accidentally fall in from the spectators’ floor that was one level above the arena, nor did

the bars prevent good visibility.

As Tomas was dragging the Queen towards the wall, she was already bleeding heavily from her

neck and lost consciousness due to the heavy blood loss. Just as Tomas reached the wall, her

hands finally let go of the grip at her neck. Then he threw the other end of the whip over one of

the copula’s bars, used the wall to gain jump momentum, and grabbed the end again as it hung.

This basically meant that the Queen was being suddenly hanged and Tomas dragged her
dangling body back to the middle of the arena, where he pulled the whip down as hard as he

could. The whip tightened completely doing so, and it decapitated the Queen, as Tomas

expected.

The body fell to the side of Tomas and the Queen’s head behind him, but the massive geyser of

blood hit Tomas square in his face as he even lifted his head upwards, expecting the blood

shower. It covered it completely, and the Queen’s blood flowed down the rest of his body.

Linkin Park – Krwlng (Mike Shinoda Feat Aaron Lewis) 5:40

“There's something inside me that pulls beneath the surface - consuming, confusing.

This lack of self control I fear is never ending – Controlling,

I can't seem - to find myself again, my walls are closing in.

I've felt this way before - So insecure.

Crawling in my skin - These wounds, they will not heal!

Fear is how I fall, confusing what is real…”

At first, Tomas lifted his arms up in a victory gesture to the cheers of the crowd that also called

for him to pull the whip down, knowing it would decapitate the Queen, but as soon as the blood

hit him in the face, instead of his pleased reaction and the showmanship that they witnessed so

far from Tomas, they saw that it was like he was splashed by a bucket of water out of his sleep,

looking rather surprised by it.

The sudden change in Tomas’s posture, the change in his body language. The surprise on his

face as he got covered in blood followed by Tomas falling to his knees, letting out a cry of

sorrow, a cry of instant regret, muted the whole arena.

It was very reminiscent of the scene where the masked man held the little girl in his arms in

Seattle, letting out a loud cry of sorrow. To be precise, it sounded and looked exactly like that. A

video that practically every single living person in the world must have seen a couple times. The

symbol of a hero and the pain of loss.

It became obvious. This was the masked man. This was Paid in Blood! It must have been.

At first just whispers, but later almost panicked, louder shouts of: “That’s him!” echoed in the

arena. “It’s Paid! PiB is here!” So it was true; the masked man was truly a white man. All

speculations until that point – and BLM propaganda – indicating that Paid (popularized in the

BLM movement instead of “masked man”) must have been of BAME (Black, Asian and

minority ethnic) origin fell apart.

Nobody knew what to do. Some expected they might be next for taking part in this “sport”. Deep

down, everyone knew this wasn’t right, nor was it supposed to be entertainment. They all felt

that they did something wrong by being part of it and that Paid in Blood might punish them next.

Except Paid seemed to be just remaining there in a kneeling position, looking rather motionless.

After a while, in the complete silence of the arena, Tomas stood up again, but his face was

looking into “space”, nowhere. Like, whatever he was looking at, Tomas didn’t actually see. It

was obvious something wasn’t exactly right with him.

This numbness and zombie-like state was later explained by Violetta, who stated that when the

DI in Tomas and his old self shared equal control over his mind and body, neither of his split

personality personas could exhibit traits of either personality, and his mind and body were fully

automated based on impulses learned and embedded during the life of that person. Thus, no

cognitive actions, just reactions to being acted upon that were based on basic instincts, vastly

related to self-preservation and behaviours embedded during the course of a life of either of the

personalities. In other words, he was like a zombie.

The warlord of ACAB came down into the arena from the spectating floor as he normally would

to crown the new “king” in this case. The crowning itself consisted of a basic raising of the hand

of the new winner. However, the warlord was too scared to touch Tomas and waited for him to

make the first move instead. Nor did he expect or want Tomas to assume the position of the

arena’s new king.

‘I guess it’s all over now,’ the warlord murmured.

But Tomas seemed not to be fully present, numb-like. He then looked at the warlord and without

a word, proceeded through the exit at the opposite side of the arena, all doors opening up for

him, with the warlord following behind.

The warlord noted, ‘The showers are to your left and your clothes are already waiting there for

you. Then when you exit there is a corridor leading into streets that are abandoned. I can

guarantee no one will bother you.’ He pointed out the directions for Tomas.

Not one word came out of Tomas and the same numbness continued. Something was wrong with

him, it was obvious. Tomas proceeded into the showers, which was basically an old locker room

with showers.
The warlord said, ‘I guess we can count our blessings today. He ain’t all right up there’ – he

pointed at his head – ‘if you know what I mean. I don’t know about you, but Imma head out and

ain’t coming back. This motherfucker can come here fuck us up anytime he wants, you feel me?

You niggas do what you want, I’m out!’ He was talking to the two Black men acting as his

bodyguards whilst nervously pacing.

They all seemed to leave rather in a haste. The club itself was already empty, with the crowds

vanishing in a panic into the night. It didn’t look like any of them would be back anytime soon.

Along with the last muffled sounds vanishing in the distance Tomas woke up standing in the

shower. A little bit of confusion ensued, not knowing where he was and how he got there. Then

he noticed he was bleeding from his left triceps, high, almost at the shoulder, and his left palm.

His back stung too, and as Tomas tried to reach it, he noticed his right trapezius was a bit torn as

well.

He tried to remember. He was sure the information must have been there, else why would he be

standing in a shower. It was not like he just woke up from unconsciousness, he was fully

conscious when he realized that he didn’t know how he got there, or where he actually was.

Why was he injured? What had he done?

As he tried his best to remember, backtracking to the last things he could remember, flashbacks

from the arena and of that night came to him. The blood he spilled was long washed away with

only his own, colouring his own body slightly.

With the flashbacks, a physical sense of “crawling”, for lack of a better word, deep beneath

Tomas’s skin began and intensified with every new memory. Against his will, he saw his own

vague reflection on the wet walls of the shower covered in white tiles. It didn’t look like him,
and Tomas clearly recognized it was the distorted reflection of the DI’s face, not his own. But

there was no voice. No voice in his head, nor coming from the reflection itself, as was common.

Just, silence.

He had to look again, just to make sure he saw what he saw and yet the DI was still there.

More confusion, more sadness, then panic.

What had he done?

For a moment, it seemed Tomas tried to convince himself the flashbacks were not real, the arena

didn’t happen. But then the fact that he was in a shower of an otherwise unknown location, with

wounds on his body, reminded him of what was most likely the reality.

He had lost control again, it was evident. Worse, never-ending, Tomas’s biggest fear.

The crawling of his skin intensified, like something else inside him was pulling beneath the

surface, consuming him, confusing him.

No doubt the DI was trying to get control over Tomas’s mind and body again. He fought it hard,

fearing what else might happen. Yet, with every moment passing by, it seemed inevitable.

Without a sense of confidence, even the walls seemed to be closing in on him, and Tomas began

to be convinced that the pressure was too high. He felt very insecure, almost terrified, like he was

before the events in Chicago, back when he was almost innocent.

‘Let go.’ He heard the DI’s voice in his head again.

‘No! You’re not real!’ Tomas shouted out loud.

Tomas looked directly into the reflection again, hands pressed against the wall supporting his

weight. With an expression of absolute hatred he stared at it, waiting for it to vanish, to see his

own face again like he used to. But now, it wasn’t even “flipping” between the faces anymore, it

was just the face of the DI constantly. It was haunting. Tomas couldn’t seem to be able to find

himself again and after a while of waiting, he gave up.

Tomas realized that the emotional wounds that he had suffered so far in his life and were

constantly multiplying would not heal. They would always be there, and he was scarred for life.

He kind of always knew it, thought about that before, but at the very least, he used to hope they

might go away at some point. Not anymore. His confidence replaced with fear of losing control.

‘Fear is how I fall.’ Tomas was convinced that this would be his ultimate demise.

One more time he looked at his torn palm, then triceps. The injuries paled in comparison to his

emotional pain; didn’t even hurt. More sense of insecurity overcame him and he began to weep

whilst collapsing to the floor. ‘Fear is how I fall!’ He shouted out loud, cursing to the skies.

Then he heard a random noise in the locker room, likely the opening or closing of doors. Tomas

quickly decided to leave, and soon he was walking in the now empty night streets of Detroit.

Once again, he couldn’t remember how he got there, but knew that it was most likely due to his

mind shutting down on him again. Perhaps a safety mechanism to protect him. But from what?

Himself? The inner pain he felt, the insecurity, the constant confusion or fear? Probably all. It

was a mercy, if you asked him.

But not the only one Tomas received that night.

As he’d planned, Gargy followed Tomas into the club and saw all that happened. A few people

tried to rough him up along the way, suspecting a white person in the motorcycle helmet and
fully leathered outfit, but got roughed up themselves instead. What Gargy found inside was

worse than he could have imagined.

Tomas vividly enjoying the violence and pleasing the crowd by bending to their demands.

Killing a man so he could go inside the arena to slaughter more and bathe in blood.

His promise to Tomas came into consideration. To protect the “old” Tomas’s image at all cost,

even if it meant killing him. In fact, the promise that both Peter and he gave to Tomas was to kill

him once he “slipped” again in a way that would taint the perception of him in his family and

other members of the Justice and Truth League. Tomas begged them for it.

With a heavy heart, Gargy followed Tomas into the showers, his silenced Heckler & Koch MP7

pointing directly at Tomas’s back, hands shaking. Considering Tomas’s recent behaviour and

actions, it seemed that Tomas did drift away too far, as he’d desperately tried to warn them might

happen. The words, “I would prefer if Gargy does it, if possible,” resonated in his mind. There

was a sense of duty for his best friend, him, to do it for Tomas.

He hesitated only because Tomas still seemed zombie-like, completely out of his mind,

motionless. Lights on but nobody home. There was neither need nor will to hurry up.

It gave him time to think this through, to find reasons not to kill Tomas and if he did, how to do

it so nobody would know. Of course, Peter would suspect, but would play along with any story

that Gargy would come up with.

Another reason for his hesitation was Tomas’s initial reaction when he got bathed in the blood of

the Queen. As if he didn’t expect it and it shocked him to the core, then the cry of sorrow whilst

falling to his knees. Like he suddenly regretted it deeply. But then Tomas didn’t cry or seem
broken, rather went into the zombie mode. Which in all honesty was absolutely terrifying, not

knowing what he would do next.

The panic of the crowd confirmed that they sensed something bad would happen as well, and

that Tomas was a real danger and was about to snap again. Gargy promised him he would kill

him before Tomas destroyed everything he used to mean to his family, his friends, and the public

alike.

He was thinking of telling his family, Helena, and others that Tomas was killed in the arena

where he was dragged by the BLM movement and somehow, perhaps due to a fading mind and

body that wasn’t able to defend himself, he was killed by them. Then he killed them all in the

arena once he found out the truth about what happened to Tomas and burned the place down to

the ground. But they probably wouldn’t believe that anyway.

What else could he say? That he never found him? Whilst making sure Tomas’s body would

never be found? That could be an eternal torment and false hope cast upon everybody who cared

deeply about him. No, that wasn’t an option. Worse, it would offend Tomas if he knew what he

had done, honesty being the most important value to him. Although that was the price he was

prepared to pay to save Tomas’s reputation.

Gargy stood there long whilst contemplating all these options in his mind.

Then he was pulled back into the present when Tomas suddenly spoken out loud, shouting at his

own image that he wasn’t real. It was obvious that Tomas was hallucinating. Gargy couldn’t

miss noticing how confused and hopeless Tomas looked, then broken, harmless.

He couldn’t do it, wouldn’t. All he saw was his best friend suffering from obvious PTSD, likely

related to diminishing mental health that resulted in God knows what horrible hallucinations. It
became so obvious when Tomas didn’t know that he was being observed, since he couldn’t act to

try to hide it. All Gargy saw was his best friend who needed help, not a mercy bullet target.

Panic struck him too. What if Tomas noticed his presence? Would he force him to kill him? Or

would Tomas try to kill himself? He had to vanish before that would happen. On the other hand,

he had to make sure Tomas would not take his own life either. He sure looked close to it.

Gargy made a noise with the locker room’s door on purpose and awaited Tomas’s reaction.

At the first attempt, nothing happened. It didn’t seem like Tomas noticed at all. Then he tried

again and Tomas came back to life, hastily leaving the place. Then Gargy followed Tomas all the

way back to his place, making sure he was all right, whilst witnessing another episode when

Tomas went numb and seemed confused as to where he was before finally arriving home.
o Chapter 6: It has to be Done

Linkin Park – Drawbar (Tom Morello) 2:46

Tomas instantly went to sleep, and it was perhaps thanks to the numb state he was in that he was

able to do so in the first place. Although it would be hard to call it sleep, since Tomas was

obviously reliving his nightmares, even screaming occasionally in his sleep without waking up.

Thank God. It could pose an issue for Gargy, who watched him the whole time, being afraid to

go to sleep himself, imagining Tomas would wake up from his nightmares only to blow his

brains out, it looked so terrible. The torment was heart-breaking beyond belief, Tomas’s

suffering was so intense.

If this is what his rest/sleep looks like now, what is happening in his head when he is awake?

No wonder Tomas hadn’t eaten in days and didn’t even notice. Hence missing his note.

But there was another dilemma that kept Gargy awake. He came to the conclusion that he could

not disclose to anyone what he witnessed tonight. As strange as it sounded, it was most likely the

only option that would give Tomas a chance to live and recover.

His fears were that if he confessed to Violetta what happened, and the hallucinations, she would

consider Tomas to be too much of a risk now and advise him and Peter to fulfil their promise to

Tomas. Same would go for Peter, and he couldn’t blame them for that at all. they would most

likely be right.

Or, they might try to help. It was just a risk he wasn’t prepared to take for the moment. Gargy

had to keep it a secret. On the other hand, it meant that if Tomas did something bad, it would be
on him, and he would have to live with failing not just Tomas for not taking action before it was

too late. “Just punishment”, he thought.

When Tomas looked like he was about to finally wake up, Gargy kicked into his bed’s leg.

Gargy said, ‘Wakey, wakey, princess!’ in a condescending tone.

Gargy made a good job pretending he had no idea what happened last night. Tomas seemed like

he didn’t remember and fell into the zombie-like numbness for the most part until they got into

the car. Perhaps it was a blessing. It eased Tomas’s pain, and explained why Gargy hadn’t asked

Tomas about yesterday at all. Gargy could simply say there was no point.

Once Tomas sort of came back to himself, it was obvious it was more him than the DI now, and

he looked rather worried and broken. Probably remembered all that happened last night.

They didn’t speak to each other at all in the car and opted to listen to music instead. On one

hand, Tomas hated the fact that Gargy assumed a dominant position over him, almost father-like,

and on the other hand, he understood it and was glad for it – probably for the best.

Tomas knew that to Gargy he had become a junkie who needed guidance and babysitting to get

through it. Which was basically the truth anyway; his subconsciousness alias the DI taught him

so yesterday. He was a junkie on the second chance, whilst the DI in him was a junkie on the

violence. At least he hoped that was the case. It was possible that it was him the junkie on the

drug and him the junkie on the violence, and the DI was just adding insult to injury making him a

ruthless, confident bastard on top of that.

There was also a chance that Tomas was simply just crazy, and perhaps most of what he

perceived as his reality was just in his head, and in fact he was locked up in a straightjacket in

some asylum. Since he had seen “live” hallucinations in his reality, how could he tell whether all
of his “reality” wasn’t just a hallucination? It wouldn’t be so bad after all. Tomas almost hoped

that was what was truly happening, since that would directly mean he didn’t actually do any of

the things that were tormenting his soul. But deep inside, he didn’t really believe it. It wasn’t that

long ago when he felt all right, completely fine. At what point could he consider something just a

hallucination? Truthfully, only from the point when he realized that he saw things that couldn’t

possibly be there. Way too late for reconciliation of past events. But the chance was there.

Perhaps he was in asylum and his medication started to have less effect, and that led to him

seeing things in his own reality. But that was as much likely as that he was connected to the

Matrix; and he was just and battery living in an augmented reality. There was a chance, but

‘unlikely’, Tomas thought.

In fact, the silence during the ride was mostly due to the deep thinking of both Gargy and Tomas

the whole 9-hour ride with two added rest stops for an hour each, during which they did share

some small talk unrelated to anything. “How’s your food? Yeah, good, thanks,” etcetera.

During his ordeal, Tomas came to the conclusion that he would most likely never get better

unless he got definite answers on whether his actions were worth anything, or whether his

actions were based on real threats, rather than it was all in his head. But there were always the

9/11 events. Undoubtedly shady to the core, with the investigation being an obvious coverup.

Possibly not what he thought was an inside job, but a cover job nevertheless. All Tomas had to

do was to focus on answering that one question alone and he would get his peace. Or he would

suffer even more, but in that case, he was ready to hand himself over so that justice could be

served. He was ready to take any punishment and responsibility for his failures, and possibly get

his peace anyway. He needed closure; he needed answers.

Was the world as sinister as he thought? Tomas needed the US government to officially explain

9/11 in a believable way in a new investigation that would be peer-reviewed and scrutinized; that

would certainly put light onto that. But years had passed since, and incriminating evidence was

probably gotten rid of forever. But if no one could still explain why the buildings fell the way

they did and the US government would declare the former NIST report a coverup, calling for a

new investigation to take place, that would be good enough to set things in motion. People could

wake up and call for the government to be truthful at any and every occasion, unable to label

something top secret just because it is the evidence of their crimes and misleading to the general

public, or even to prevent panic among the general populace, which was just an excuse at this

point anyway. ’But what was to be done?’ There was no answer to that.

However, soon after Tomas had returned with Gargy to Richmond Virginia, the US government

announced in the wake of the late events of the murder of Governor Cunningham, their plan to

vote again on mandatory chipping, vaccination and introduction of the social credit score into

effect, China style. This time it was expected to be passed without a problem in the Congress.

‘Never! Not my family, you will not!’ Tomas made up his mind. Well, the DI growing within him

did it for him most likely. He would wipe out the US Congress in the Capitol Building for their

crimes, RESET THE STATUS QUO, allowing new legislators to take their place who hopefully

would come there with genuine interest to do good and wouldn’t be corrupted by money or

power, nor have any interest in covering up past injustices of their predecessors. It had to be

done!

Then he would walk towards the White House to declare why he did it before demanding to

reveal (declassify) all secret documents in existence of every event in US recorded history, no

matter how long ago or present. Exceptions just for obvious technology advances and secrets in
military or security. Everything else has to be declared public for people to see what the truth is

and to compare it to the narrative being shoved down their throats at that time or present, so that

people could finally wake up, realizing almost every government is always lying or covering up

its own criminal activity and power abuse. Then, Tomas planned to give himself up willingly,

even disclosing his true identity. He didn’t want to expose his family to danger, but if he

demanded Truth of the government, He himself owed the whole Truth to the people. Even who

was really was.

Whatever else consequence to himself after be damned, because he knew that even if he

somehow could make all things in life just, for everyone in their lives to get justice, he would be

one more injustice left out himself. No denying that.

If the president refused to do so, Tomas would walk into the White House to take residence in

there until it would be done so, but most likely die trying to get there, as he wasn’t planning to

retaliate with lethal force to anyone trying to prevent him from doing so. He wanted to make a

statement that he would rather die for his cause than to take another life after it became obvious

there was nothing else to gain by it. Tomas knew that if the president refused, then he could not

win, but at least it might open discussion as to why the masked man believed it was so important

to happen and to prevent the vote on mandatory chipping, vaccination and social credit score to

pass into legislation.

Gargy’s plan upon their arrival was to keep an eye on Tomas and tell Peter and Violetta that

Tomas admitted becoming a junkie of an undisclosed substance, but not mention anything

regarding the club, nor the arena, nor that he saw Tomas most likely seeing hallucinations from

the detox, and go from there.

***

Once Violetta, accompanied by Dr Charlotte, approached Tomas about his addiction that he

disclosed to Gargy, he told them that the substance was the second chance drug and he’d taken

the last of it already. When Violetta asked Tomas in private whether he still heard any voices, he

flat-out denied it, saying that they had stopped completely long ago.

Tomas was ordered to mandatory weekly reports to both Violetta and Charlotte for check-ups. In

the meantime, Helena and Peter were also notified, but otherwise it was kept low. Since Tomas

seemed to be “present” at all times ever since he was put into a different environment, nothing

suspicious was visible at all.

However, since the question had to come at some point as to why he stayed in Detroit for so

long, especially considering what was happening there and in what area he lived, Tomas

confessed his addiction openly to Cop when he asked. It explained everything well, and Tomas

received nothing but love and support from everyone involved. His stress was almost gone

completely, if it wasn’t for the guilt eating away at him because he wasn’t telling them the full

truth, and what he planned to do next.

Tomas wasn’t alone in guilt-tripping. Gargy blamed himself that he let Tomas be alone that long

and didn’t force him to come back earlier, rather than focusing on proposing to Ulrike. That

could have waited. Now he was stressed out that Tomas might hallucinate again, and how others

would react to it, or what Tomas himself would do. Gargy had seen Tomas massacring people in

the arena for sport and enjoying it highly before switching into a different state in a heartbeat.
 Linkin Park – Final Masquerade 3:37

“The light on the horizon was brighter yesterday,

with shadows floating over, the scars began to fade.

We said it was forever - But then it slipped away.

Standing at the end of - The final masquerade.”

Tomas didn’t wait too long before he would strike “the snake at its head”, but needed time to

study maps, visit locations, see entrances, exits, see where the security had their posts and their

habits, all of the usual intel that Peter used to do and they watched him do it, learning the craft in

the process. Tomas’s resources were limited in comparison, just as his skill was, but it was still

sufficient to make s successful “suicide” mission. Not that he planned to die. It could happen, but

not before he would wipe out the US Senate. At least as much of it as he could.

Although he was under constant supervision, there were opportunities here and there to do basics

on his computer when no one was directly behind his shoulder, and the rest was done in the field

going for walks. Tomas loved Gothic architecture and stated that it really helped him to “heal”

going for walks around the World War II monument and the White House towards the Capitol

Building. Who could blame or suspect him for that? It was fabulous there, and despite the

increasing, almost daily, BLM demonstrations or Anti-Waxxers, there was always at least one

person willing to go walk with him.

Tomas learned where to park, how long it would take to get there, and where there would be

blind spots for him to dismount and be at the Capitol entrance within a minute, way too quickly

for the security forces to have any chance to react to his aggression. Their gear was nothing in

comparison.
Tomas had become a stone-cold killer. All he had to do was to let the DI take over if he started to

have any doubts, regrets, or one of his depression episodes. The DI was now always present,

crawling in his skin; all Tomas had to do was to stop fighting him. An insurance policy if he was

about to pussy out. Tomas almost stopped seeing him as an enemy; he had a use for him now.

Almost.

The DI might have talked to him nonstop at this stage, seeing everything and judging, but Tomas

learned to live with it and ignored him. Not reacting in any way to him. Mostly because it was

constant criticism of Tomas’s actions and taunting him that he would chicken out without him.

The DI claimed that only he could make a “man” out of him, and only with him at the steering

wheel could he accomplish what Tomas set as his goals.

***

Not long after the government’s official announcements of their intentions for new security

measures, there was a massive anti-chipping rally supported by BLM followers announced that

was supposed to spread from the Washington Monument all the way to the Capitol Building. A

perfect opportunity for Tomas to blend in. The extra security was of no concern to him at all.

Guys with ballistic shields and batons could do nothing to pose a threat to him. Tomas was

determined; tomorrow was the day of his own solution and as far as he could tell, no one had any

idea.

He was almost right; no one knew. Except Peter.

Although Tomas was really baby-sat at almost all times by everyone, leaving only short

windows of opportunities for indoor preparations, Peter went one step further.
Unknown to anyone else, he planted a spying program on Tomas’s personal computer that told

him Tomas’s searching patterns. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what Tomas was preparing

for now, nor that Tomas was disturbed, occasionally hearing Tomas’s conversation with himself

via his phone microphone – courtesy of Google and Microsoft in-built algorithms.

However, what Peter did with that information would be totally unexpected by everyone,

including Tomas. Peter even assisted Tomas in finding the relevant information, and even some

of the classified stuff that Peter cleverly planted into Tomas’s search results. The reason being,

Peter saw past the facade, past the “masquerade” that Tomas clearly played. It was very

reminiscent of his own behaviour post his personal breakdown that he’d played ever since so

everyone would think he was okay, or at the very least, getting better over time. The truth was,

he was getting better at hiding the pain and the guilt.

Peter understood that Tomas couldn’t find his own peace until the question of 9/11 was

definitely, convincingly, and to full extent finally answered, nor did he agreed with the

mandatory chipping, vaccination, or the social credit score. No one should have that kind of

power especially when it’s a fact that Tomas’s view of the world only proved to be more

accurate than Peter originally thought. It wasn’t something that he could ignore. Would he wipe

out the congress over it? NO! But it wouldn’t be him doing it, and he knew first-hand how many

snakes were sitting in the congress anyway. He still held vendetta against them in his heart over

what had happened to whom he considered was his real dad - Matty. He understood that

although an atrocity - it could be the only solution at this point of corruption and downright

evilness on the government level. For that, for Matty, as a friend to Tomas, and as a patriot

protecting against foreign or domestic enemy, he was ready to go to hell with him both if

absolutely necessary.
The problem was, Peter was convinced that the others wouldn’t understand. Some wouldn’t

believe it, as there was no conclusive or damning evidence of any of the senators that would pass

in the court of law. Others wouldn’t allow Tomas to “sacrifice” his life on such a mission.

Peter was afraid to say anything to Violetta, as she would most likely order him or Gargy to “put

down” Tomas in quiet before it was too late and he would commit the atrocity he was preparing

for. Make it an “accident” to ease the pain of his family and the rest of the Agency. As much as it

might have look like a massive step towards real dystopian 1984 government, the proof was

simply not there. Just their assumptions.

Nor had he the balls to openly support Tomas in his defence. Tomas was clearly mad, to an

extent, and Peter’s wife would probably leave him again.

If Peter confessed to Gargy, he would most likely “do” Tomas himself to fulfil his promise to his

best friend to protect his image at all cost, once it began to look like he’d crossed the line too far.

If he told anyone else, Violetta or Gargy would find out one way or another, with the same

results, or worse, if Tomas tried to resist and people would die in the following scuffle, resulting

in Tomas then losing his face nevertheless. It was an awkward position to find himself in.

All Peter knew for sure was that Tomas had the best, and in his opinion, only, chance in life in

finishing what he was preparing for and finally hopefully finding his peace if he succeeded, so he

helped Tomas in any way he could without anyone else, including Tomas, knowing.

When Tomas came back to Virginia in the state he was, obviously disturbed, the first reaction of

everyone was to take his Apex Armour and guns away from him. When Tomas argued against it,

claiming that he would not remain in the same location as his friends and family without the
ability to protect them if needed, Peter calmed everyone down claiming that he would take care

of it and not to worry.

When Tomas researched the locations, door guards, etc., Peter helped him with the search results

that Tomas thought were available information to the public, since he just googled it but Peter’s

top-secret info was fed into Tomas’s search results. When Tomas came up with a plan to sneak

sleeping pills into everyone’s drinks the night prior his “final day”, Peter made sure that

Charlotte’s drug cupboard would be “magically” left open for Tomas to take what he needed, not

even realizing it was biometrically locked to her fingerprint or voice command.

On Tomas’s final walk through the National Mall park the day prior, Peter scheduled his turn to

accompany Tomas, to make sure that Tomas would have enough time and opportunity to

practice and calculate in own his head the mission ahead of him.

Tomas always walked from the Capitol Building all the way towards the Lincoln Memorial,

where he sat on the stairs and relaxed for a bit, looking towards the Washington Monument and

the Capitol Building behind it.

Peter sat quietly next to him, almost starting a conversation, but didn’t know what to say in order

not to mess everything up.

In the end, it was the look on both their faces that did the talking as Tomas occasionally looked

at Peter and patted him on his back.

They probably exchanged some small talk between them, but both operated on autopilot, and the

real talk happened in their heads when both tried to confess to the other in their own way, but

couldn’t speak it out loud.

To others, they just stared at each other in silence, and only theirs facial expressions told a tale of

more happening behind the curtains.

Peter though looking at Tomas, ‘Tearing me apart with words you wouldn’t say, suddenly

tomorrow’s moment washed away…’ Peter was wishing for Tomas to open up to him so that

perhaps they both could find a different solution, knowing that if he himself confessed to Tomas

that he knew, it would most likely end with Tomas ending his own life rather than hurting him,

or leave it up to Gargy to kill him as he promised, exposing Peter to a world of regret and

suffering instead. At the same time, Peter knew that this moment of intimacy they both shared

would pass very quickly, as tomorrow was creeping up on them very quickly without a way to

stop it, future unknown.

Peter said to himself, ‘’Cause I don’t have a reason, and you don’t have the time…’ Because I’m

not supposed to know anything, and you’re going to do this tomorrow…

‘We both keep on waiting for something we won’t find’. And we both hope that something will

happen so you don’t have to do this, but we both know it is highly unlikely at the very best.

Peter’s expression forced Tomas to pat him on the back and give him a smile and nod to show

mutual affection for each other.

Peter thought, ‘The light on the horizon was brighter yesterday…’ The future looked brighter not

that long ago.

‘Shadows floating over scars begin to fade…’ As the future looks darker with every new day, the

scars that reminds us of the pain already caried in our hearts are losing their power. But now

Peter couldn’t help but to think that although it was the best chance for Tomas, tomorrow would

be a bad and sad day, with him most likely succeeding, yet, not finding his inner peace and
possibly dying in the process. The only comfort was that it would at least give Tomas a chance

and possibly truly stopping what was most likely about to become authoritative dystopian

government. If not straight away, certainly down the road. Tomas was a powerful symbol of a

hero to many after all.

Peter continued his flow of thoughts, ‘You said it was forever…’, remembering what Tomas said

to him first thing after he opened his eyes after Velicenko’s siege, seeing Peter bursting into tears

at his bed, telling Peter not to worry, that they were friends forever a would stay together forever.

‘But then it slipped away, standing at the end of the final masquerade’. But then it simply

somehow ceased to be the truth over time. Ironically, all that remained were secrets in a place

that was built on transparency of everyone and everything that slipped into an illusion that was

about to end tomorrow. ‘Final masquerade.’

Tomas had his own confession in his head to tell Peter as he was looking into his eyes.

‘All I ever wanted, secrets that you keep…’. He felt that Peter was holding out things and truths

from him on purpose in order to prevent him from doing such things, as he was planning for

tomorrow. Not willing to cross the line with him.

‘All you ever wanted, the truth I couldn’t speak…’. He perfectly realized and accepted the fact

that Peter would be right in his assumptions and reasons why he did so.

‘’Cause I can’t seek forgiveness and you can’t see the crime…’ Knowing that what he did

before or was planning to do now was unforgivable, regretfully, Tomas had no choice but to

keep it secret else they may try to stop him.

‘We both keep on waiting for what we left behind…’

Tomas wanted them to both live for a moment in the illusion that things will get better on their

own over time. Something they both stopped believing a long time ago as they both lost Hope

somewhere along the way.

Peter and Tomas sang in their minds together, ‘The light on the horizon was brighter yesterday,

shadows floating over skies begin to fade. You said it was forever but then it slipped away,

standing at the end of the final masquerade!’ They both had the same thoughts, and both even

wiped a tear or two as it came out of their eyes.

No actual words were spoken, yet the expression on their faces and the moment they shared was

obviously very intimate in its nature. To both of them it was very clear that they both knew in

their hearts that things were not to last the way they were, and they couldn’t help but to think

they would change for the worse. As soon as tomorrow.

They might have sat there for a good twenty minutes full of banter to alleviate the situation,

making fun of the awkward silence and the couple of tears, but that moment of silent confession

would stay with them until the end of their time. That, was truly for ever.

Linkin Park – Lies Greed Misery (zwierz remix) 3:19

“I want to see you choke on your lies, swallow up your greed,

Suffer all alone in your misery!

Choke on your lies, swallow up your greed, suffer all alone in your misery!”

Tomas picked the Anti-Waxxer and BLM rally on 4 October 2018 as his day of strike to blend in

easier. However, he knew that the BLM movement, which was convinced at this point that

Tomas must be a Black man (propaganda that was already debunked on the internet by multiple
witnesses but got labelled as hate speech by the BLM as a response), would interpret his

appearing and wiping out of the congress in the wrong way.

It had been months now that the BLM had used the image of the masked man holding the little

girl in Seattle next to the face of Gregory Farmer, calling for “Paid” to come and lead them

against the oppressors. To help them overturn the racist establishment. Their explanation of why

it hadn’t happened yet was because after he killed and exposed Cunningham, he had to go into

hiding from the system. They called for Paid in Blood to come and lead them, stating, “We will

join you, Paid! We will protect you with our lives!”

Tomas had to make sure that his act would be clearly not in their support, nor could it be

interpreted as such. He had to make a statement back to them. The fact that the BLM were the

first to consistently use his nickname Paid in Blood or Paid, was beyond irritating and ironic to

him.

Tomas prepared his speech over and over again, but once he discovered the speech of Charlie

Chaplin from The Great Dictator movie, he opted to just slightly adjust it to present times and

use that because it was perfect, and still relevant. He printed it out twice. One for putting on the

Capitol Building entrance, and one for leaving at the home for his friends and family to read

once they woke up. Furthermore, he scheduled the delivery of an email of the same speech to

Faith Goldie, cable news channels, and the official Justice and Truth League fan page that had to

change its address several times a week, as it was quickly getting pulled down by every provider

across the world.

The message stated:

“What I did has nothing to do with the support of BLM; more to contrary. I do not support BLM,

nor the riots, and I think Gregory Farmer was no role model, just to be crystal clear. I tried to

come up with my own words, but Charlie Chaplin in his final speech from The Great Dictator

movie said it better than I could:

I’m sorry, but I don’t want to be an emperor. That’s not my business. I don’t want to rule

or conquer anyone. I should like to help everyone – if possible – Jew, Gentile – Black man

– white. We all want to help one another. Human beings are like that. We want to live by

each other’s happiness – not by each other’s misery. We don’t want to hate and despise

one another. In this world there is room for everyone. And the good earth is rich and can

provide for everyone. The way of life can be free and beautiful, but we have lost the way.

Greed has poisoned men’s souls, has barricaded the world with hate, has goose-stepped us

into misery and bloodshed. We have developed speed, but we have shut ourselves in.

Machinery that gives abundance has left us in want. Our knowledge has made us cynical.

Our cleverness, hard and unkind. We think too much and feel too little. More than

machinery we need humanity. More than cleverness we need kindness and gentleness.

Without these qualities, life will be violent and all will be lost….

The aeroplane and the internet have brought us closer together. The very nature of these

inventions cries out for the goodness in men – cries out for universal brotherhood – for the

unity of us all. Even now my voice is reaching millions throughout the world – millions of

despairing men, women, and little children – victims of a system that makes men torture

and imprison innocent people. To those who can hear me, I say – do not despair. The misery

that is now upon us is but the passing of greed – the bitterness of men who fear the way of

human progress. The hate of men will pass, and dictators die, and the power they took from

the people will return to the people. And so long as men die, liberty will never perish. …..
Soldiers! don’t give yourselves to brutes – men who despise you – enslave you – who

regiment your lives – tell you what to do – what to think and what to feel! Who drill you –

diet you – treat you like cattle, use you as cannon fodder. Don’t give yourselves to these

unnatural men – machine men with machine minds and machine hearts! You are not

machines! You are not cattle! You are men! You have the love of humanity in your hearts!

You don’t hate! Only the unloved hate – the unloved and the unnatural! Soldiers! Don’t

fight for slavery! Fight for liberty!

You, the people have the power – the power to create machines. The power to create

happiness! You, the people, have the power to make this life free and beautiful, to make

this life a wonderful adventure.

Then – in the name of truth and justice – let us use that power – let us all unite!

Let us fight for a new world – a decent world that will give men a chance to work – that

will give youth a future and old age a security. By the promise of these things, brutes have

risen to power. But they lie! They do not fulfil that promise. They never will!

All present governments that are controlled by bankers free themselves and enslave the

people. Now let us fight to fulfil that promise! Let us fight to free the world – to do away

with national barriers – to do away with greed, with hate and intolerance. Let us fight for a

world of reason, a world where science and progress will lead to all men’s happiness.

Soldiers! In the name of truth and justice, let us all unite!

Let’s demand the truth of what really happened on 9/11 so that justice can take place. And

all that will stand in our way of this goal should be challenged to state a reason other than

that the official investigation has already taken place explaining everything and that

everything else is just conspiracy theory. THAT is not a satisfactory contra-argument when

there is evidence of 9/11 most likely being an inside job and a green light to invade multiple
countries, killing millions of innocent people in the process. This is not only about the

3,000 lost souls who most likely died at the hand of their own government but who certainly

deserve truth and justice just the same, nevertheless.

And whilst we are there, no state secrets should be kept or continue to exist in the future

moving on! Nothing that is unrelated directly to breakthrough in military or security

technology. Everything else has no purpose nor meaning to stay secret outside of protecting

criminals who don’t want you to know the truth! We the people have the right to know.

The government should not have the power to simply declare something a state secret in

order to prevent “panic” that could do more harm than otherwise.

In the words of Thomas Jefferson, “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase

a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty, nor safety.”

I for one am ready to do whatever it takes to make it so. I’m willing to reveal and admit to

all of my present or past crimes whilst doing so, and I’m certainly willing to submit myself

fully into the hands and judgement of all people around the world whilst stating nothing

but the truth, no matter how damning to myself, so that justice can be done.

THIS I pledge to you all, whether you support me or not!

To prove my commitment to these goals, I will start with disclosing my identity to you all

first, so that you all know who to hold accountable for these violent acts.

My name is Tomas Cudzis. I’m a thirty-three -year old illegal Slovakian immigrant, and if

I’m not dead right now whilst you’re reading this, I have most likely wiped out the US

Congress so that no one could prevent an executive order for opening a new official and

scrutinized investigation into the events of 9/11 and a subsequent order for disclosing all

present or past state secrets by the president, whom I will have to trust to do since I believe
 that anyone else’s Freedom of Information Act request would be simply denied as already

fulfilled in regards to the events – as it has been many times since 9/11.

Only in this way we can truly know who we are, what ground exactly we stand on, and

what needs to be done to honour justice.

If you want the world to be fair, if you want to punish the wrongdoers, you will help me in

my efforts and you will give yourself up after it is all done and confess what exactly you

have done whilst doing so.

To my friends and family, please forgive me, but I see no other way. And if I’m wrong,

forget me. Forget that I existed.

Everything went according to plan, and Tomas managed to slip the sleeping pills into everyone’s

drink the night before. Without his knowledge, Peter helped him too. Not so much that they

would notice, but enough so that they would sleep a deep sleep for longer hours.

Tomas sat on a chair clutching this statement in his hands whilst looking at a sleeping Helena.

He couldn’t stop thinking how perfect and innocent she was, how beautiful, and what could have

been. Tomas started clutching his statement harder in a ball, slightly leaning forward whilst

rocking forward and backward in his chair, shaking his head as if in disagreement, his mind in a

constant struggle that manifested in his body movement. Uneasiness. He was looking for all the

reasons to stop this now, let it go and just live life the way it is. Get oblivious like everyone else,

and chances are that you will never feel oppressed, nor unhappy.

But then anger overruled it as his thoughts drifted towards to what he was convinced was the

reality, the fact of what was going on in the Congress behind the curtains.
‘You did it to yourself.’ He shook his head in disagreement with himself to simply let them be,

but he was already disgusted with what he was preparing to do, only for that thought to be

replaced by another reason why to do it, his anger slowly rising.

The way they shamelessly treat people like cattle and laugh at the success of their deceptions via

controlled media. Their laughs at the stupidity and obliviousness of people. At how well their

plan to divide and conquer was working whilst enslaving people and selling it to them as

“protection”, making it feel like they were revolting and would get the power whilst in reality,

they had already been led by people corrupted by money and hunger for power.

‘You did it to yourself,’ was a remainder to himself that it was their own fault for what was about

to happen.

…This, full-control system once and if established, easily making it look like a rule of

“Democracy”, that at any point in surely soon to be Orwellian future, his friends and family

could find themselves at the wrong end of it even by accident, or just because, and then it would

be too late to do anything about it.

‘You did it to yourself.’

The system could control any and every aspect of everyone’s life (excluding theirs) with only a

flick of a switch to eliminate any opposition, whether it would be just by denying access to any

or every service, including monetary disposition, or straight up killing via poison release in the

implemented chips that of course to the public would be nothing more than a conspiracy theory

of the crazies. Tomas anger raising in just the thought of it.

‘You did it to yourself.’

Not that anyone who would have any kind of evidence could hide, use any service at that point,

or have the means to communicate it to the world so that potential exposure of anything

nefarious could take place. And if so, a coverup story played in every media into oblivion until it

would become common truth would wipe out any leaks.

‘You did it to yourself.’

All, in the name of “safety”, surely, the real future planned for us all with the 9/11 events being

the first “test” to test our readiness for submission. So far, so good…

Tomas thought, ‘No! This is not how it will go down,’ to himself, finally stopping the rocking

forward and backward in the chair, as if his mind finally resolved the struggle in a final decision.

Tomas continued his thought process, ‘YOU DID IT TO YOURSELVES!’ Anger got so strong

that Tomas immediately stormed off his chair and automatically cranked the bolt on his G36 to

load a round into the chamber.

‘This is not the future of my friends or family! Over my dead body!’ With determined steps, he

walked out of the room.

‘I want to see you choke on your lies, swallow up your greed and suffer all alone in your

misery!’ Rage screamed in his head.

But there was always the reminder that it would most likely end his life as well.

‘Everybody else be damned at this point!’ Tomas lost his faith in people and didn’t care about

them that much anymore. If it wasn’t for his family and friends, he would be ready to press the

reset button on the world himself if given the opportunity and power.
If it wasn’t for them, he could simply say fuck it, and really just live in denial himself, just like

everyone else.

Why sacrifice for the general public? Most are corruptible by greed and hunger for power. Most

are self-absorbed when it really came to taking the right and just action. No one was really

willing to sacrifice anything in the name of truth or justice, or even simpler concepts such as not

being a cunt at every opportunity when it benefited them. The occasional and rare exceptions,

such as himself (he thought the cocky bastard), wouldn’t hesitate to just “burn it all down” and

start over again, as it seemed too late and futile to try to appeal on anyone’s decency.

All that was visible was empty virtue signalling in order to get attention and gratification from

others and to gain higher social status than the people they accused of whatever they accused

them of. Many even believing so! Not even realizing or willing to admit to themselves that

whatever they demanded of others, they themselves are not prepared to do themselves. That they

accuse of racism whilst being racist themselves, etc. That asking for other people to fund your

ideas is as crazy as someone else asking you to pay for their ideas that you might oppose. Whilst

being a good sheep, not even seeing the big picture, the world as it really is.

No, he wasn’t doing it for them. But he wouldn’t let his family and friends be subjected to such a

future. Not if he could help it.

But what if he was just mad? What if all of this was just his imagination? What if what he

thought happened or was about to happen, didn’t, or wouldn’t. What if it was only in his head?

How could he know what was real or not, if he had hallucinations that seemed to be real? When

did he cross the line into the madness that was surely there?
With those thoughts his rage subsided again, and Tomas hesitated for a moment sitting in the car,

contemplating calling it all off.

‘No, 9/11 happened long before anything else happened to you that could turn you mad. No!

Even if nothing else is true, what happened on 9/11 was a lie sold to us. That alone is worth

fighting for; that alone is worth wiping out Congress for!’

‘You did it to yourself,’ Tomas said to himself, ignoring the DI who was telling him that he

would fuck it up anyway and let him take the wheel instead if he really wanted to go through

with it.

‘No! This is me doing it, not you! I have the control, not you!’ he said back at the DI.

The DI just continued to taunt Tomas that he was a pussy trying to be a man and he would fuck

this up unless he let the “real” man take over. Tomas struggled against the crawling in his skin

that indicated to him that the DI was fighting him for control.

‘No, I was a monster before you showed up. I don’t want any excuses for my actions, and I need

to prove that I never needed you. This is me, this is reality. You’re just a drug-induced

hallucination that my subconsciousness created as an excuse for my past actions so that I can

seek a little comfort in it to get peace. The truth is, you’re not really here, I am. It was always

me. Right or wrong, it was always me.’

Tomas started up his engine and looked one more time towards the house’s entrance. His final

hesitation – a thought of Helena and how much he loved her, wished for a life with her; then

horrible images of his past actions, his regrets went through his mind, adding to that hesitation

whilst perfectly realizing that he would add new ones to the collection.
‘You did it to yourself…’ he said in a defeated tone more than anything else – trying to justify

the horrors to himself.

It wasn’t justifiable, even in his own opinion. It was simply a price to pay. Better for him to pay

it than his loved ones…

‘No!’ The hesitation passed. It had to be done and it had to be done by him!

For Helena, his family, and friends; and for those who had already fallen into the “darkness” of

this current wretched world.

He must do it for them!

He buckled up and drove off in anger. His own, or the DI’s, no one will ever know. The lines

between the two were so thin, that both could be the answer to it just as easily.
o Chapter 7: The Solution

Awolnation – Sail 4:24

“Maybe I should cry for help, maybe I should kill myself - Blame it on my ADD baby.

Maybe I'm a different breed, maybe I'm not listening - so blame it on my ADD baby.”

Suddenly, Tomas was in front of the Capitol Building. He didn’t even know how he got there.

Must have been in his zombie autopilot mode again.

There were perhaps one to two hundred BLM and Anti-Waxxer supporters already there, but

thousands more were in front of the White House protesting. His G36 was already in his hands,

him out of the car not even remembering where he parked it, just assumed at the place he’d

planned before.

BLM supporters instantly recognized him and made a corridor for Tomas as he was walking

towards the front entrance of the Capitol Building. Cheers could be heard, but also surprise and

excitement for what would happen next. ‘Shit, it’s him, it’s Paid! Look!’ People were patting

their buddies on the shoulders, turning them around to have a look at Tomas as he approached

from behind them.

Tomas reached the police barrier, where no less than 30 policemen held a defensive line backed

up by no less than 30 more randomly spread across the available space behind them, leading all

the way up the stairs and towards the main entrance.

Tomas felt the now familiar crawling in his skin with the DI once again struggling for full

control over his body, shouting profanities at Tomas to let him take over – or he will fail like the
pussy he is. Tomas shouldered his G36 when he got to the very front of the group of supporters

and to the gap between them and the police. This wasn’t because he didn’t want to intimidate the

police and get as close as possible before opening fire at them, rather the fact that Tomas had

limited G36’s ammo at his disposal and needed its full auto capability exclusively for wiping out

the Senate.

***

Tomas saw the faces of the policemen in front of him as he was approaching the line. Their

surprise at first, then sheer horror, surely expecting the worst possible outcome as to why he was

there coming towards them.

Whilst both sides of the line separated themselves to encircle Tomas, the centre of the line, made

of five brave officers that stood their ground, pointed their weapons at Tomas and commanded

him to get to the ground immediately.

Somehow, everything seemed to slow down in time flow for Tomas. Every movement seemed

slow-motion, including his own, but it gave him much better reaction time and ability to plan

ahead.

Tomas pulled out his P30Ls and with the one in his right hand, shot the riot officer in his face

shield at point-blank range, shattering and penetrating it, no doubt killing him. The riot officer

fell down to the ground with blood spurting out of the hole in his face shield, blood painting all

of the inner side of the face shield, completely obstructing visibility of his face.

Then he immediately aimed with his left hand at the officer to his left side and without even

looking at him, squeezed the following shot that also hit the second riot police officer square in

his face, killing him. Only then did it seem like the rest of the riot police caught up with what
was happening and seemed to be preparing to shoot at Tomas. It was all like in slow motion,

although it forced Tomas to do a small gun kata evasion movement before letting two almost

simultaneous rounds out whilst crossing his aiming hands, killing two more officers.

The response was a storm of occasionally hesitant fire due to cross-fire or the potential of stray

bullets hitting the gathered crowd, who immediately backed up and for the most part started to

retreat in panic towards the White House, except a few souls that wanted to see what would

happen next.

Tomas managed to let off two more controlled shots before he lost it again. Perhaps he let it

happen, or perhaps it was another part of him that shut him down to prevent further emotional

trauma due to regret and disgust with himself, but not the DI part of him.

Bodies started to litter the ground very quickly as Tomas “slipped” and let the DI fully take over.

Perhaps Tomas was afraid that he would hesitate and get himself killed or captured before he

was able to finish his mission in the fierce firefight that quickly erupted, still remembering what

almost happened to him in Nevada. He couldn’t give them any chance, no quarter. Tomas

learned to respect them – or fail.

Strangely, the whole experience seemed so natural and fluent to him though. As if he was

“sailing”, for lack of a better word. The DI himself calling out randomly, “Sail!” to Tomas.

Another officer fell in such close proximity to Tomas that his blood splattered him in the face

through the openings for his eyes in his mask, as he was trying to tackle Tomas to the ground.

‘This is how I show my love,’ went through Tomas’s mind, instantly regretting and ridiculing his

own actions. To Tomas, it was all a great tragedy. Just innocent souls in his way that had no

other choice but to resist and protect what they swore to protect.
‘I made it in my mind because…blame it on my ADD, baby!’ the DI responded in laughter.

Tears started to roll down Tomas’s face in complete silence and calmness, covered up by the

mask, with the DI even taunting Tomas, ‘This is how an “angel” cries’, ridiculing him as a man,

as a “decent” man that Tomas was striving for, then laughing in Tomas’s face, suggesting for

him to blame it “on his own surprise”, “blame it on my ADD, baby!”

At this point, Tomas separated himself from the DI’s actions so much that he was suddenly

looking at himself – the DI – from a third person view in an out-of-body experience.

‘I’m really crazy.’ Tomas muttered, not believing that this was even possible. ‘Just another

hallucination,’ confusing him whether it was even real or not – what was happening?

But with the impact of each bullet of various calibres, the pain and the pressure that Tomas felt

in his body indicated to him that it was real. Just a “surreal” experience, but it was reality.

As the riot officers’ bodies started to literally pile up on top of each other in the frenzied

firefight, during which Tomas seemed unstoppable and cold-blooded, Tomas was able to enter

the Capitol Building and make it into the Senate hall after he pinned his pre-written statement on

the door. Tomas entered the main hall.

The senators and congressmen were clearly in a distressed state, confused and disorganized in

their actions as the outside shooting only began less than a minute ago.

They simply didn’t have enough time to recognize the situation for what it was, and for the

Sergeant at Arms to tell them what to do.

Shocked faces.
‘Sail! Sail!’ The DI began to mow them down systematically with his G36 that he finally

unholstered.

Scenes of sheer terror and panic. Senators and congressmen/women started to litter the floor with

their piling-up dead bodies, spurts of blood splashing everything and everyone around them as

they got hit.

Observing this from a third person perspective and in slow motion, further doubts came into

Tomas’s mind.

‘Maybe I should cry for help.’ He considered stopping this madness and finally confessing his

mental illness.

‘Maybe I should kill myself.’ He didn’t like the idea of exposing himself as a madman, he’d

rather just blow his brains out and leave everything else for speculation only, but stopping the

madness nevertheless.

‘Just blame it on my ADD, baby!’ the DI responded with laughter at Tomas’s thoughts, but it fell

on deaf ears, as Tomas learned to ignore him.

More bodies littered the floor and blood began to pool at the very bottom. Walls and the

surroundings as a whole were painted in blood, increased in density towards the bottom.

Screams, begging, nothing worked, they all get mowed down regardless, including every

incoming agent or police officer that sporadically entered the hall too, in vain. Eight out of ten

forty-round extended magazines of the G36 were already emptied. Tomas was “sailing” in the

backseat in a total retreat from reality.

For the first time ever, the DI showed some compassion to Tomas. Perhaps he sensed that Tomas

was shutting down completely and was worried for his own existence.

‘Maybe I’m a different breed. Maybe I’m not listening. So blame it on my ADD, baby,’ reached

out to Tomas who not only heard it, but also responded by becoming more “present”.

‘Sail! Sail!’ They sailed together, finishing what they started and both deemed necessary.

‘Sail with me into the dark,’ the DI whispered to Tomas like a lullaby over and over again.

Now it was Tomas that held his rifle and the DI on the outside of his body, like a shadow

silhouette navigating his otherwise seemingly numb body. The DI grabbing and moving Tomas’

limbs manually, reloading and aiming his rifle, then squeezing the trigger for him. Tomas

looking at him, only for even his head being manually adjusted by the DI to look back at his

targets when he shoots. DI guided every Tomas’ movement like a puppeteer would that of his

puppet. Nothing would have happened without his inputs.

***

The final two magazines of the G36 were empty, allowing for the occasional person to slip out

whilst swapping back to his P30Ls before continuing to finish off all of the wounded and the

moaning.

No one was really standing anymore. Even the flow of resisting officers and agents stopped,

being completely exhausted. Meaning all dead.

It was done. Tomas might have been shot up pretty bad, his whole body aching if he cared to

notice, but there were no penetrations. He was fine.

Here and there, an occasional runner decided to dash for it, hiding behind the bodies previously,

but got blasted off by the DI fast.

Then, for whatever reason, the DI himself forced Tomas to take control again. Could be, that he

just enjoyed his suffering.

Linkin Park – Numb 3:07

“I'm tired of being what you want me to be,

feeling so faithless, lost under the surface.

Don't know what you're expecting of me - put under the pressure of walking in your shoes…”

Instead, Tomas didn’t even feel anything anymore. He sat down and was totally numb, although

responsive, and not in his zombie mode. That surprised both the DI and Tomas himself. It was as

if he came to terms with it all. Well, more like he didn’t really care anymore.

‘You can thank me later!’ the DI barked at Tomas.

Suddenly, from one of the top rows, a group of three senators dug themselves up from beneath

the bodies that fell on top of them and made an organized run for it.

Tomas noticed, but in his numbness, hesitated.

‘Do something! They will run away!’ the DI yelled at him angrily.

But only Tomas’s head was following their movement; his arms didn’t aim the P30Ls.

Instantly, the DI tried to take over again, managing to raise at least Tomas’s left hand to aim at

them, but Tomas struggled with him for control again, preventing him from squeezing the trigger

and they got away.

The drill instructor screamed, ‘Why would you do that?!’

Tomas said, ‘What’s the point? It’s done now,’ even casually throwing away both of the P30Ls,

and then holding his face in his palms.

The drill instructor said, ‘No it’s not! I will say when it is done!’

Tomas said, ‘I have become so numb…’ in an absolutely calm and disconnected tone, retracting

his palms back again.

The drill instructor said, ‘What?! What are you talking about?!’

Tomas said, ‘I can’t feel you there…’

‘What?! Oh, what the hell! You pathetic whacko! You let them get away?! For what?! I let you

be yourself one moment and you instantly fuck up!’

There was no response from Tomas, who seemed still self-absorbed, looking at his own palms.

The drill instructor asked, ‘Isn’t this what you wanted?’ looking around, gesturing with his

hands.

Tomas looked directly at the DI.

‘I can’t feel you there. No more skin crawling when we fight over control. I don’t feel anything

at all,’ he said, looking at the blood on his hands and around him, hoping for some sort of

emotion that didn’t come.

‘Good, you’re finally becoming a man,’ the drill instructor said in a condescending tone.

Tomas said, ‘I’m becoming this…’ He stood up and gestured with both hands at the bodies

around and then pointed at himself in desperation.

The drill instructor asked, ‘This what?!’

Tomas said, ‘You…’ His facial expression showed he was not happy about it.

The drill instructor said, ‘You wish! I basically had to accomplish everything for you. And what

do I get in return?! Ingratitude!’

‘You’re just my imagination, I did this…’ Tomas said, clutching his own head.

‘This what? Your goal? Thank you, DI! You’re welcome, Tomas.’ He was making fun of

Tomas whilst circling him around.

Tomas didn’t know how to respond, although he seemed like he was looking for it.

The drill instructor laughed, ‘You, pussy, will thank me later. No more sleepless nights, no more

senseless regrets. Who knows, you might even get laid again soon.’

Tomas said, ‘Shut up!’ He stood up again.

The drill instructor said, ‘There we go, boy, show me some balls!’

But it only resulted in Tomas calming down and sitting back down again. He said, ‘I’m so tired

of being what you want me to be…’

The drill instructor said, ‘What is that supposed to mean?! I’m trying to help you. Don’t you

want to feel like a man?’

‘I never wanted this… I’m feeling so faithless, lost under the surface…’ He seemed about to

break into tears.

‘Go cry on your momma’s shoulder, not mine. You pussy…“Can’t feel anything”, yet he was

about to cry. “I did this”, yet he wanted to blame everything bad on me. So, which one is it?!’
Tomas said, ‘I don’t know anything anymore and I don’t care!’ but looked rather unhappy.

The drill instructor said, ‘How pathetic you are! Can’t even admit it would be for the best if I

was in charge all the time.’

Tomas said, ‘Don’t know what you’re expecting of me. I’m put under the pressure of walking in

your shoes. Yet every step I take is another mistake to you! AND EVERY SECOND I WASTE

IS MORE THAN I CAN TAKE!’ He got angry again.

The drill instructor said, ‘This is what you wanted all along. This is who you always wanted to

be; why do you think I have come? Because you have been so desperate that when you got crazy,

I had to come save you from yourself!’

Tomas said, ‘I never wanted this! All that happened to me is…fate. I just got caught in the

undertow, that’s all.’

The drill instructor said, ‘That might be true. But that doesn’t change the fact that I’m what you

always wanted to be!’

‘I didn’t want to be like this! Ever since you appeared, things got a lot worse. I’ve become so

numb! And what is scariest, I can’t even feel you there anymore. I have become so tired, so

much more aware – that I’m becoming this. All I WANT TO DO is be more like me and be less

like you. Do you understand?!’ Tomas said, almost in a threatening manner but frustration was

more dominant.

The drill instructor said, ‘Less like me?! YOU NEED ME! You’re useless without me! A big

crybaby man-child without any balls. If it wasn’t for me holding your hand all the time, you

wouldn’t achieve anything at all!’

Tomas asked, ‘Achieve what?! This?’ looking around in despair, gesturing at the dead bodies

again.

The drill instructor said, ‘I have had enough of you! You pathetic excuse for a man…

Did you ever considered that I am YOU, what you wanted to be and were back in the day for the

most part? At least in acting like it, if nothing else. I am the real you! And the “more like me” is

the “new” weak ME after I went crazy! I WENT SOFT. You, you’re my hallucination and I’m

absolutely disgusted with you! I have to struggle with this big crybaby at every turn to get things

done! Can’t even plow my woman no more because of you! It’s not that you wouldn’t get it up,

but you don’t feel “worthy” anymore. Such a loser!

Do I really need to hold your hand at all times to keep it together?! I think it’s time for YOU to

go and leave me alone. I never asked for you anyway.’

Tomas thought about it for a couple seconds. What if he was right, and him right now was the

real hallucination? But then he reminded himself that at first, the DI’s face wasn’t that of his

own, but he actually saw the face of the DI.

Tomas said, ‘You’re just trying to mess with me. I’m the real me and you’re the DI! You think I

don’t remember the first time I saw you? It wasn’t my own face in the reflection!’

The drill instructor said, ‘Your point being?!’

Tomas replied, ‘That I can’t be the hallucination, you are!’

The drill instructor said, ‘You’re the crazy one, not me. You saw the DI’s face the first time you

realized you’re just like the DI. You have become him. I DID become him a long time ago!

You’re just a shadow of my past. The one I tried to bury and left behind. To be a man! But it
seems that the pussy in me couldn’t fully let me go. You got lucky that the second chance had

some serious side effects or you wouldn’t exist in the first place at all. It would be just me here!

And I will not let you fuck up what I have started. It is not done yet!’

The DI forced Tomas to get up and start walking out of the hall, but Tomas managed to get

control of his body back.

Tomas said, ‘You’re lying. I’m the one in my body and you’re the one I see on the “outside”.

The drill instructor said, ‘Oh yeah? And what just happened moments ago? Slow-mo time and

observing ME from a third person perspective? Isn’t it possible that you’re just imagining it

all?!’

Another confusing moment for Tomas to what is real.

Tomas replied, ‘You already admitted the first time we spoke together that you’re the

hallucination. My subconsciousness talking to me!’

The drill instructor opposed, ‘And what is more like YOU than your own subconsciousness! I’m

the one in charge automatically regardless. I should be in charge of your conscious decisions

too!’

The DI forced Tomas to start walking again and he made a couple more steps before getting

control of his body again.

Tomas said, ‘Okay, so you’re the real me that deep inside in my subconsciousness I wanted to

be, and perhaps over time changed into and I consciously regret it. But, can’t you see that you’re

smothering me? Holding me too tightly, afraid to lose control? Being you is killing me! And if I

die, you will die with me.’

The drill instructor said, ‘Like I have a choice. There are things I still need to do and you’re

holding me back!

I thought you would become someone else, but it is clearly falling apart right in front of me! I

will not let that happen! I will not let you fail and get my image smeared in the public and my

family’s eyes. I will a hero in their eyes! All I need to do is to prove that I was right, that the

government works against us. Instead of this crazy mess turned into a pile of sorrows every other

second that just committed atrocity without a reason! I had a good reason, I did it for them! They

rely on me! They think I’m their rock, their protector, and I’ll be damned if I let you spoil it!

Whatever I did here today, you felt in your gut is right, you just didn’t have the balls to do what

was necessary yourself, so I helped you, as always.’

Tomas said, ‘You helped me kill many innocents along the way, to the point that I’m not even

sure about anything anymore.’

The drill instructor replied, ‘You want to make an omelette, you have to break a few eggs. It was

too risky trying to be gentle about it, you knew it. I’m not the one enjoying all of this, you

secretly are! I’m just the one that gets the job done. Isn’t that why you simply let me take over

fully? Besides, you might not be certain of anything anymore, and that is exactly why you

shouldn’t be in charge. I am! You will just fuck everything up and end up in the jail’s psyche

ward as the most sick and dangerous individual in history instead of hero! I can’t let you do that

to your own family and friends. Not after all this!

Tomas said, ‘And I can’t let you have control over me again!’

The drill instructor responded irritated, ‘Why not?! It’s not like you would have the balls to

finish this without me. Not with dignity! You will just embarrass me, you’re such a
disappointment! I’m certain that if you go out there, you will simply fail! Most likely collapse in

tears, get arrested, and thrown in a psyche ward! You’re no leader! What you need to do now

requires leadership. That requires confidence and charisma! You’ve got none! Look at you!’

Tomas agreed, ‘Maybe you’re right. Maybe I’m the pussy I was afraid of being and you’re the

man I thought I wanted to be. But you know what? I was wrong. I can’t pretend anymore to be

like you. I don’t want to. I can’t be this’ – pointing to all of the dead bodies lying around again –

‘anymore. I’d rather be more like the real pussy me and less like the macho you!’

The drill instructor chuckled, ‘Then you’re fool doomed to fail.’

Tomas said, ‘Oh, I know. I might end up failing too. But make no mistake, I know you’re just

like me, with someone else disappointed in you!’

After that, the DI launched a tsunami of profanities towards Tomas, but he just managed to block

him out and completely ignore him. He couldn’t help but to still see and hear the DI, but he got

himself together and pretended that he didn’t. Tomas became even more numb and tired of what

the DI wanted him to be.

Leaving his empty G36 and the almost empty P30Ls behind, he was about to walk out of the

building. Tomas didn’t want to take any chances of the DI getting control back and start shooting

again. This part of his plan required a demonstration of his full commitment to try avoiding

unnecessary violence, and there was no one left out there for Tomas to kill anyway. It was done.

He was scared of falling apart along the way, but less than going through bodies at all cost

against anyone and everyone that wouldn’t agree with him, failing to give up to his enemies

should he meet only resistance and no support. That would be horrible. He would end up as that

“crazy psycho that would have to be put down” at all cost unquestionably.
 Linkin Park – Nobody Can Save Me 3:45

“You tell me it's alright, tell me I'm forgiven, tonight - but nobody can save me now.

I'm holding up a light, I'm chasing out the darkness inside - 'Cause nobody can save me”

Just as he almost reached the exit, out of nowhere, Faith Goldie appeared in front of him. She

happened to be at the White House to document the demonstrations.

Slap!

‘What did you do?! WHAT DID YOU DO?! HAVE YOU GONE COMPLETELY MAD?!’

Faith was freaking out and pounding her fist into Tomas who just stood there, numb.

‘They are all about to kill you now! All of them!’ Faith screamed out at first, then calming down

shortly after and resting her head on Tomas’s chest.

Tomas laid his right palm on top of her head to provide a little comfort, but otherwise didn’t

show any emotion and still stood numb.

Faith said, ‘It’s okay, the crowd got mad and assaulted the White House after you started to

shoot, thinking you were helping their cause. All the police units and the army are now forming

at the White House to hold the line. But there is a quite confused crowd on the outside after they

read the whole of your memo, stating that you don’t support the BLM movement specifically. I

was the only one brave enough to enter here alone. But soon enough, there will be a lot of them,

and it’s only a matter of time before the crazy ones get enough numbers to gather courage and

charge here. We need to leave now! We can use the confusion to get away.’ She was looking at

Tomas in hopes that he would agree.

Tomas just smiled back. ‘Faith, I wiped out the Senate. Nobody can save me now…’

Faith said, ‘I don’t care what you did. I know that you must have a good reason.’

Even to Faith, this was irrational thinking. But as they say, “Love is blind’”. She couldn’t,

wouldn’t believe that Tomas would commit such a atrocity over a bill. Ans since he did, there

must be a damn good explanation why – much deeper than that. ‘Surely!’

Tomas replied with uncertainty, ‘Even I’m not completely sure on that I’m afraid, not anymore.

What I am sure of, is that I killed many innocent and good people today. If I am right, it could be

worth it, but only if I confess to my crimes and give myself up afterwards. Nobody can save me

now.’

‘We can at least try. The BLM is torn apart, with some people willing to support your cause, and

there are many more that simply heard your call and are willing to join you. We could use them

to escape! They will protect you,’ Faith said, pulling Tomas’s hand to get out of the building in

haste, but he didn’t budge and pulled Faith back into his arms.

‘This is not the time for me to run away. No, no more. I have to see this through. Besides, that

wasn’t my promise to them. I can’t let you all down, I have to see it through,’ Tomas opposed,

holding her head in his palms as she was looking directly into his eyes.

Faith said, ‘But they will kill you. I personally heard one of the commanders receive a message

that the helicopters are already on the way. They plan to deploy jets in the skies too!’

Tomas replied adamant, ‘Won’t change the fact that I need to see it through no matter what.’

Faith insisted, ‘I can’t let you die, not now, not ever. I love you. Let me help you for a change.

Let me save YOU for a change!’

Tomas said, ‘You have already helped me enough, more than you realize. Hell, even saved me,

us, with your passionate defence of the Justice and Truth League. You don’t owe me anything.’

Faith replied, ‘Let me save you one more time then, please!’ clutching onto Tomas.

Tomas gently pushed Faith away whilst keeping his grip on her arms around her biceps. ‘Faith,

I’m not a man to be saved. Can’t you see it? I’m holding up a light, chasing out the darkness

inside… Only I can save me now. I have to do this.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Faith, I’m not exactly myself recently. I’m, dangerous. I’m dancing with my demons on a daily

basis and I’m barely hanging off the edge…’ He looked rather troubled and numb at the same

time. One could say tired, but there was obviously a lot more to it.

Tomas paused, as he wanted to confess his hallucinations too, but didn’t find the courage.

The drill instructor said, ‘Pussy,’ making Tomas desire to be fully “awake” more than anything

else.

‘I don’t care, I don’t really care, I love you!’ Faith said, looking at Tomas hopefully.

Tomas closed his eyes and his face showed pain. It wasn’t easy to say what he was about to say.

‘I am already with somebody, Faith.’ He sounded unhappy though.

Faith said, ‘But I thought…you said you would find me. Held me in your arms. Risked your life

once just for me, there was no one else…’ She was obviously stunned by that.

Tomas said, ‘I don’t know what to say, Faith. I meant it, and then it slipped away. I’m sorry.’

‘Who is she? Do you love her?’ Faith asked in almost a whisper, tears in her eyes.
Tomas looked frustrated. ‘I don’t even know anymore, to be honest. I don’t feel anything. But I

know I did, as much as I did love you.’

‘It’s okay. I don’t care that you love someone else. It doesn’t change a thing,’ Faith said, wiping

her tears away and fixing her composure again.

‘Faith, you don’t fully know me! You haven’t seen all the things I have done! I deserve no

sympathy. In fact, it is killing me that I do get sympathy, and I’m not even absolutely sure if it all

was worth it. I need answers, and I need punishment for all the wrongs that I have done. I can’t

even sleep at night, I can’t think. I can’t love no more. It’s consuming me. There are only storm

clouds gathering beneath me, waves break above my head! I’m petrified that all of this is only an

illusion that I created in my head and I’m staring at it, looking for answers yet to come.’

Faith said, ‘Then why do this if you aren’t absolutely certain?!’

‘I might have chosen a false solution, but nobody proved me wrong. Yet.’

Momentary silence.

Faith said, ‘It’s okay, it really is. You’re forgiven. Before tonight is over, you will see. I promise.

All you need is help, and lots of love. You have risked so much for me, now it’s my turn.’

‘I can’t just be forgiven like that, can’t you understand? I need to forgive myself first. I can’t do

that without answers. I need to see this through till the end. I need to know if it all was worth it,

or not. I’m ready to accept the reality. I need the truth.’

‘You will never find the truth if you get yourself killed!’

‘I’m not trying to kill myself. I’m trying to not let everyone down, and I’m trying to save

myself. Only I can save me now.’

Faith said, ‘Then let me come with you. They are less likely to shoot at you with me still at your

side. Take me hostage again if you have to.’

‘Absolutely not, it is not safe. I don’t need to add another grievance should something happen to

you. Besides, it will hurt Helena to see you at my side.’

‘Is that her name?’

‘Yes.’

‘She’s a lucky lady.’

Tomas’s scoffed. ‘There are so many men like me out there. Better. Without the darkness inside.

It’s just you can’t see them because they don’t jump out of windows with bombs in their hand for

strangers, or have the need to demonstrate their dominance at any and every opportunity. Maybe

they don’t have a six-pack either, but they’re still like me. They would give the blue out of the

skies for a woman like you if they only had the chance. If they only got noticed. But most likely,

it still wouldn’t be enough, even if they got the chance. Nice guys finish last. No wonder they

can’t be found. They’re invisible. My biggest fear since my childhood. No one respected me. No

man, no woman. And this is what I ultimately became because of it. I just wanted to be respected

for who I really was. I wanted to be noticed, respected. But you know what? I’d rather be

invisible again.’

Faith said, ‘Wait, what are you trying to say?!’

Tomas replied, ‘That I’m a weak person. I need help. I have this…flawed…correction,

disgusting dark way of thinking that is making me believe the world is all black. Yet, I know it
can’t be true. All I know is that it isn’t all white either, but I can’t tell the difference no more. I

can’t see what is real.

‘Disgusting dark way of thinking? Like what?’, asked hesitantly.

Tomas replied, ‘Like that we live in a matriarchy. Putting women on pedestals whilst men are

unable to satisfy women anymore at all due to promoting modern-age feminism and celebrating

women’s hypergamous nature and double standards. This kind.’

‘What?!’

Tomas explained, ‘Patriarchy: Men have authority; men have accountability and responsibility.

Matriarchy: Women have authority, but men have accountability and responsibility.

Responsibility without authority is SLAVERY. Authority without responsibility is tyranny.

‘Thus, our current situation. But for that, the current society as a whole is responsible. Allowing

this to happen. We are responsible for the values that we teach to children by our own behaviour.

Telling them to be one way, but acting in the exact opposite way for the most part, causes all

kinds of confusion and torment in their future. But the child will ultimately always copy their

parents’ or their role model’s behaviour and the cycle repeats itself for their kids.

‘Still, not taking responsibility for their own actions is even more to blame. Portraying yourself

as a victim at first chance, or when someone else has a better life. Not me! This is my fault first

and foremost for letting it go this far. I was so desperate to be accepted by society that I have

turned into this…’

Tomas got lost for words. But he tried his best to express what he felt.
‘Been searching somewhere out there, for what’s been missing right here.’ He pointed at his

own heart. ‘Only to learn that you can’t change who you are, you can only learn to live with it.

It’s as simple as that. I wasn’t made for this. I’m not a hero. I have no courage, nor a noble cause.

I never had it in me. You’ve got to be born with that.

‘What I found instead was darkness, and hatred. All my actions came from my ability to hate

others, my desire to prove them wrong. But what’s most ironic is that I was born a pussy as well,

so I can’t even take responsibility for my own actions and my soul is tormented because of it.

I’m trying to pretend I am something that I’m not. Never will be…

‘And for what? Validation from people that I don’t give a shit about anyway? Or for getting

attention from women?’

He smirked.

‘I could have just gotten a tattoo instead. Act like a hooligan, drink, smoke cigarettes, and I

would have been just fine. There was no need for this…’ He gestured with his hands at the

bloodied surroundings full of bodies.

‘But I despised the pretence of it, the fact it’s hurtful to health, and it is labelling yourself as a

lowlife. In my own perception, granted. So, I simply pretended to be the tough and dangerous

guy that I needed to be in order to be valued and rewarded in our society in another way, despite

everyone else trying to convince me that it was the other way around – be the nice guy. Some

tried to comfort me, knowing perfectly well it was a lie. Some lie to themselves about their own

personal choices. Our whole society disgusts me…

‘I had to learn the truth the hard way, since no one wanted to see the reality for what it is, and

who they are. Who we are, as people, to each other.

‘So, I got buff and trained in martial arts instead, and I was good. Except, that it wasn’t enough

for me; I had to be the best. So, I turned into a monster somewhere along the way and here I am.

Just another failure. From one extreme to the opposite extreme. Because my character was just as

flawed as theirs, only in another way. A lot more dangerous and despicable way.’

Faith still patiently listened, perhaps rather rendered speechless; but this was the most Tomas had

ever spoken to her.

Tomas continued, ‘For me, after today, my best-case scenario is that I will end up giving

speeches to kids at schools to not be like me for the rest of my life, else they end up like me, if

there will be hopefully happy end at the end of today.

‘I’m disgusted with myself because now my own personal behaviour will be copied by boys

thinking of me as their role model, girls wanting a man like me, thus, I’m contributing in

teaching them the wrong values myself, and selling them a lie.

‘But not today. I need to show them that I know what I did today wasn’t right, but I didn’t have a

better solution and I found it necessary. I’m willing to be judged for my actions and to seek my

own just punishment for it. For all of my actions so far.

‘I do what I do because I believe it must be done. Those crooked politicians have been asking for

it for way too long. Shielded by their privilege of “untouchables”. But when it is truly over and

there is nothing else for me to fight for, I will take full responsibility for the actions and means I

have used in order to satisfy my personal beliefs that could be proven a fallacy. I invite anyone to

prove me wrong convincingly, not based on a personal feeling or pseudoscience that doesn’t

hold up to scrutiny. I’m prepared for and welcome the scrutiny! I want to know the truth myself

more than anything else so that justice can be served, on me included.

‘But be aware that I don’t do so because of my honour, or any noble cause to improve society, or

desire for being a proper role model. No. Right now, I’m at a point where I don’t care anymore

about any of them out there. I only care about my friends and family, just like everyone else, and

I would most likely shamelessly cower in the anonymity forever if I had that option.

‘How ironic, I hate them for what I do myself.

‘No, there is no noble intention in my actions. I do it for selfish reasons, to simply be able to find

my inner peace, to finally sleep at night. THAT, is the truth about me.

‘That is how pathetic I really am!

‘Had I not prepared a plan to stop myself from chickening out and seeing it through… If I

already hadn’t confessed my identity and my intentions – which I currently regret doing so, I

wouldn’t need you to talk me out of it – I would be long gone before you even came. I had to

make sure it wouldn’t even be an option.

‘THAT IS HOW PATHETIC I REALLY AM!’

Faith finally found something to respond to, ‘Everything you have just described are qualities of

a good man. The very fact you can’t have inner peace until you will be judged by others on your

actions WILLINGLY, when you could have simply avoided it altogether, says so, and I hate you

for it. Because I love you even more now.’

Although Tomas’s body language indicated that he wanted to respond to that, in the end, he

restrained himself from doing so at the price of getting visibly emotionally hurt. He looked

tormented.

Faith said, ‘It’s okay, I understand. I’m glad for it. I wouldn’t expect anything less of you.’
She paused, obviously thinking.

‘I’ll tell you what; since there is no way of talking you out of it, I will go ahead and talk to the

leaders of the protesters out there and the commander of the army forces to let you speak, and

will possibly find you a direct communication line to the government as well, so you can try to

fully explain yourself to them all and state your demands publicly before giving yourself up

without getting killed.’

‘That would actually be very helpful, if you could do that for me,’ Tomas said, giving Faith an

awkward hug. Awkward, because Tomas did his best to not get any of the blood that was on him

from his victims onto Faith.

Faith said, ‘Wait here for exactly half an hour, then you can walk towards the White House. I

will be there waiting for you with a megaphone.’ She clutched onto Tomas despite the blood, her

head resting on his chest, not even realising it was there.

Tomas said, ‘Thank you,’ giving a gentle kiss to Faith’s forehead, then right cheek.

They separated themselves from the hug, then Faith kissed the tips of her right hand’s fingers

and set it on Tomas’s lips before going back outside.

Thankfully, the blood was mostly already soaked into the Apex Armour and Faith wore a black

dress. She seemed unscathed by the hug.

Faith said, ‘No goodbyes! I’ll see you soon,’ whilst leaving, with her back already to Tomas.

Tomas said, ‘No goodbyes, yet,’ to himself.

Tomas watched Faith leave whilst he fought the thought to call out her name, but a subsequent

thought of Helena prevented him from doing so. Anyway, what would he say? For what reason?
That train already left the station a long time ago. Helena was too good of a woman, more than

enough to him and he wouldn’t even exercise the possibility of hurting her in such a way.

Unthinkable.

‘Do you really want to destroy the last virtue you have kept so far?’ He said to himself, then

finally buried the idea completely.

Linkin Park – Leave out All the Rest 3:29

“When my time comes, forget the wrong that I've done,

help me leave behind some reasons to be missed.

And don't resent me, and when you're feeling empty,

keep me in your memory - Leave out all the rest.

Leave out all the rest.”

As soon as he opened up his comms, he could hear Peter, Gargy, Helena, and the rest trying to

force him to respond. Pleading with him to respond to them, telling him he was forgiven and just

to come back to them. Gargy and Peter were already on the way to “collect” him, but too far

away for stopping Tomas from doing what he was planning to do next. What he needed to do.

Tomas said, ‘Could I ask you a favour, Peter?’ stunning everyone that he actually responded.

Their pleas had been transmitting for almost ten minutes at that point, and it was more of a far

cry than they actually believed it would work with Tomas, knowing him.

Instantly, there was absolute silence for a good five seconds, almost forcing Tomas to ask for a

response back, before Peter answered. ‘Anything you need, Tomas.’

‘Could you kindly allow me to have a private chat with Helena on the comms please? What I

have to say I need to say to her ALONE first. Then we can all talk.’

Peter said, ‘Sure, just don’t go silent on us after. Okay?’

The rest demanded agreement too in the background.

Tomas said, ‘I won’t, you’ve got my word. I need to talk to you all too.’

Peter said, ‘Okay, I’m switching it to a private line to Helena now. As soon as she talks, you’re

private.’

Tomas said, ‘Thanks, mate.’

Violetta and some of the rest, including Tomas’s mom, tried to convince Peter to make it public

anyway, that they would not say anything, but it could be important information that they could

use to persuade Tomas to come back home. But Peter refused, saying he gave his word. “We will

have our chance to persuade him too, don’t worry”.

Helena said, ‘Babe, you’re there?’ Her voice was shaking.

‘I’m here.’

Helena said, ‘Could you please come back to us, to me?’ You could tell she was crying before.

Tomas said, ‘I can’t do that, I’m sorry.’

Helena asked, ‘Why not?’ trying her best to stay calm.

Tomas said, ‘You know why, babe. We talked about why many times before. It didn’t get better.

It got worse. Hence, today. I couldn’t let them do it.’

Helena said, ‘But I thought you didn’t care anymore. You said yourself that whatever you do or

did, it didn’t matter in the end.’

Tomas said, ‘That is just it, babe. I have become so numb, I can’t feel anything anymore, it’s

consuming me. I have no choice but to try and make it all worth something. Give it my best shot

for it all to matter in the end. But don’t worry, I am not going to hurt anyone else.’

Helena said, ‘I’m not worried about anyone else, I’m worried about you. I want you back! We all

do.’

‘I know, I know that, babe. But I can’t come back. Not before I finish this.’

‘But you might not be able to come back if you finish this!’ She said slowly, losing her

calmness, her voice seeming more projected and desperate.

Tomas moaned, ‘I know that too. But there is no other way, I’m afraid.’

Momentary silence. Helena wanted to argue with Tomas but she knew better. There was nothing

she could have said to change his mind once he was set on something.

Helena asked, ‘Why are you talking to me then?’

Tomas said, ‘Because I wanted you to know that I love you.’

‘I know that,’ Helena said with a cracking voice, holding back weeping. ‘And?’ She almost

sounded pissed.

Tomas said, ‘I haven’t thought this part through.’

Typical, Helena thought to herself, but couldn’t help but smirk. Just another part of Tomas she

loved. It was good to know it was still him out there.

Helena said, ‘Why am I not surprised?’

Tomas said, ‘This is why I had the need to tell you that I love you one last time. I don’t think I

gave it justice before. I’m sorry for that.’

‘Why would you say for the last time?’ She was obviously crying at this point, although fighting

it back the best she could.

Tomas said, ‘I don’t know what will happen to me next. Probably nothing good. I wanted to

make sure I had the opportunity to say it at least one more time.’

Helena said, ‘So, don’t go then. We –’

Tomas said, ‘That is not an option for me, I’m sorry. I have to finish it.’

Helena said, ‘Yes, yes it is! Peter and Gargy are already on the way to pick you up. We don’t

care what you did. We understand why. Well, if not all, then the important parts at the very least!

We choose you! Come back to us. Let us help you.’

Tomas said, ‘There is more to it, Helena, than just preventing the bill going ahead, finding out

the truth and toppling the bank-controlled government. I have no choice, believe me, I don’t.

Helena asked, concerned, ‘What else?!’

Tomas said, ‘All will be explained later. I don’t want to go into it right now; this is not why I had

to talk to you right now. Even if something bad happens to me today, three days from now, you

all will get an email that explains it all.’

Helena said angrily, ‘No, no! You tell me now what it is! I deserve that much!’
Tomas said, ‘Babe…please don’t be like this. I don’t want this to be our potentially last

conversation.’

Tomas waited for a response, but Helena didn’t say anything, although she could be heard

weeping whilst fighting it.

Tomas said, ‘I don’t want to hurt you anymore. I know that I am, just by being with you. Every

time I do something stupid or self-harmful, just like now. Every time I can’t communicate to you

what’s up with me, every time I’m simply not ME the way you remember me when we first met.

You think I don’t realise that? That you’re trying to forget or ignore all the hurt inside that you

learned to hide so well? Pretending that someone else can come and save me from myself? I

know that, but I can’t be who you are. I can’t pretend anymore because at the end of it, I’ll hurt

you even more. I can’t allow that just because I desire to be with you. I truly love you, Helena,

thus, I have to resolve this here today, or to let you go. And I can’t let you go either. I’d rather

die trying to resolve this today.’

Tomas hoped for some sort of response, but he could only hear the weeping on Helena’s part that

she tried to hide. She couldn’t even talk anymore, it was hurting her so much.

Tomas said, ‘Please don’t cry, not for me or because of me.’

‘I’m not crying. I just don’t know what to say,’ Helena said, recovering slightly to soldier it out

for Tomas, but it was obvious.

Tomas said, ‘I dreamed I was missing, you were so scared, but no one would listen, ’cause no

one else cared…’

Helena started to sob louder, as she couldn’t help it.

Tomas said, ‘After my dreaming, I woke with this fear, what am I leaving when I’m done here?

So if you’re asking me, I want you to know – when my time comes, forget the wrong that I’ve

done, help me leave behind some reasons to be missed. And don’t resent me when you’re feeling

empty, keep me in your memory and leave out all the rest. Leave out all the rest…’

Helena interrupted, ‘Stop! This is not fair… You don’t get to break my hearth one more time

and…’

Tomas replied, ‘You’re right, it’s not fair to you. I refuse to hurt you like this anymore. I’m sorry

it all ended like this. I promise I would give it all to come back to you, and I will be the man you

‘fell in love with. Bye, babe, I love you! Sorry for all the hurt I have brought onto you.’.

Tomas waited for Helena’s response.

‘Are you hurt right now, I mean, physically?’ She collected herself but sounded concerned.

‘Don’t be afraid, I’ve taken my beating. I’ve shared what I’ve made. Like always. But no, I’m

not bleeding or anything like that. At least, not that I know about,’ Tomas said, checking around

himself.

Lots of blood splatter covered his Apex Armour and partly onto his face through the eye

openings and breathing holes in the mask. For the first time, Tomas realized that his body was

aching from all of the bullet impacts, but it sure didn’t look like any penetrated through. Funny

enough, even the DI was gone for the moment. ‘A true moment of clarity?’ he thought to

himself.

Helena said, ‘Good. Keep it like that.’

Tomas said, ‘Yes, ma’am!’ to play along.

‘Wish me luck babe.’

‘Wait!’ Helena said desperately.

‘Yeah?’

‘Why could you never open up to me like you did to others? To Gargy, Peter, Violetta, Cop. I

feel like they all know more about you than me.’

‘A portion of me? Yes. The portion that I didn’t want you to see. You have seen the portion of

me I wouldn’t want them to see…’ Tomas said, serious and sincere. ‘If you know what I mean.’

Helena smiled. ‘But I wanted to know it all. I wanted to help you too.’

‘But, I can’t help it. I’m strong on the surface, not all the way through. I couldn’t bear for you,

my mom, dad, or sister, to see that side of me. I was glad for my friends to try to help me with

that, to express myself fully with them once basically forced to. Else, I would never have shown

that to anyone and would suffer more. But I couldn’t express that to you. To put that on YOU.

I’m sorry. I have never been perfect…but neither have you.’

‘Oh, is that right, mister?!’ Helena said, bantering back. It seemed that her spirit was somewhat

lifted.

Tomas said, ‘You have a flaw I can’t stand.’

‘Yeah, what?’

‘Me.’

Helena instinctively covered her mouth as she started to break down again, unable to say

anything for a moment.

Tomas said, ‘I really got to go, babe, I need talk to the others, I love you.’

Helena pleaded softly, ‘Come back to me, promise me that you will come back to me.’

Tomas said softly, ‘I will certainly do my best.’

Linkin Park – Shadow of the Day 4:49

“In cards and flowers on your window - your friends all plead for you to stay.

Sometimes beginnings aren't so simple - Sometimes goodbye's the only way.”

As soon as Helena cancelled their private channel, the comms were open for the rest.

Tomas said, ‘Thank you, Peter, I appreciate it, mate.’

Peter said, ‘Anything you need, Tomas. We’re coming to get you, bro, just stay tight. Twenty

minutes ETA.’

Tomas said, ‘I’ll have to make it quick then, with you guys, I’m sorry. I love you all!’

Then Tomas muted his microphone, which looked at first like he cut off the communication

channel. After a brief panic of his friends and family, Peter announced to them that Tomas was

still listening, but had muted his microphone. Which indicated to them that he wanted to hear

them. Tomas didn’t have the strength left to argue with them, or to prolong his farewell. He was

going to go through with his plan and demands to the president.

Since they knew Tomas was listening, they all tried one by one to plead with him to come back.

To let it go, that he’s done enough. That he clearly needs help but they’re not mad and support

him no matter what, just to come back to them safe.

But there was no response from Tomas. He was just drawing his strength from it to do what he

had to, so that perhaps he could go back to them eventually whilst not presenting a danger to

them anymore. It gave him more will to go ahead and finish what he had started, or die trying.

For Tomas, it was almost as if he metaphorically did turn his back on them whilst they pleaded

with him, with him ignoring whatever they said, just listened to the texture of their individual

voices. Metaphorically speaking, they were placing pleading cards and flowers at his window,

but Tomas instead locked the window with both locks, even closing the blind before turning

away from it. Dismissing everything they say before even listening to it.

To Tomas, it was clear; there was no way back for him anymore. ‘Sometimes solutions aren’t so

simple, sometimes goodbye is the only way’, he thought.

Their attempts lasted for quite a while, almost the whole way of Tomas walking from the Capitol

Building to the White House, with the TV cameras following him all the way. One was an aerial

shot from a helicopter, and multiple on the ground from afar.

The crowd, which kept some distance to make way for him, mostly chanted his name – the

masked man and Paid in Blood – enthusiastically. Tomas didn’t expect that, since many of them

were also BLM supporters that already read his statement and his condemnation of the BLM, but

increasingly larger numbers of non-BLM or Anti-Waxxer supporters went into the streets to

show their support too. There was no opposition visible anywhere near. Well, outside of the

police and army units that were stationed at the White House waiting for Tomas.

With each new step towards the White House, it seemed as if the shadows were following him.

Even the DI still remained silent, observing everything that Tomas did but remaining “on leash”,

muted.
It might have been early afternoon at that point, but the sun decided to set and embraced the

world in grey. It was almost as if his own emotions bent the world around him. Everything was

so sad and depressive. Felt like walking to your own funeral with your friends and family already

mourning whilst you watched them.

With the state of his mind, even Tomas thought it must have been just another hallucination of

his and a reflection of his sense of impending doom. Anxiety rose within him. He was partly

right. The clouds covered up the sun, and his mind and imagination did the rest with the whole

sun setting down. It was all so gloomy, yet he walked on, drawing strength from the pleas that

kept coming in. Tomas was so glad that he could hear them all one last time.

‘I love you all. I wish the solution was so simple…’ was his last thought before finally reaching

the barricades at the White House.

Gargy and Peter were still around ten minutes away. More time than he needed, Tomas thought.

‘At least it is all going according to plan so far.’

Foo Fighters – The Pretender 4:27

“What if I say I'm not like the others?

What if I say I'm not just another one, of your plays?

You're the pretender!

What if I say that I never surrender?”

There was an old, white van parked there up front, with a BLM leader with a megaphone

standing on top of it. Faith was standing with a couple people that the crowd made space for just

below it, waiting for Tomas. The BLM leader didn’t seem happy, and Tomas caught part of his
speech as he approached. “Paid in Blood might not be our ally by his own words, but he did us a

great favour today and deserves to be able to say whatever he desires to say to us, and to them!”

Pointing at the police and army barricade. “Let’s hear what he has to say!” The BLM leader

jumped off the van and handed the megaphone to Faith first.

She must have arranged everything by now. “The police will allow you to make your speech and

state your demands, but then they expect you to give yourself up without resistance in return,”

she stated as she gave Tomas a quick hug.

Tomas said, ‘Thank you, Faith. Can you do me one last favour?’

Faith said, ‘Ask away!’

‘I need you to leave now, immediately.’

‘What, why?! What are you preparing?’ She looked disturbed.

Tomas said, ‘If things go my way, as I’m hoping for, it might get ugly with the crowd involved.

We could even have the start of a civil war. I don’t want you to get hurt.’

No response from Faith.

Tomas said, ‘If you don’t go, then I cannot make my speech. I might as well just give myself up

right now. Can’t risk hurting you in my personal quest for seeking truth and justice, which seems

futile, really, not worth it. Why do you think I had to do this in secret? I didn’t want any of my

friends or family to be here when I did it. Because it might get ugly either way, but definitely

ugly if it does go my way. Of that, I’m certain.’

Still no response from Faith; she seemed hesitant.

Tomas said, ‘If you want me to have a chance to explain why I did what I did in detail, if you

want me to have a chance to demand truth and justice, you will leave here right now. Else, I’m

just going to give up without the chance to change things, right here, right now.’

Still hesitant.

Tomas said, ‘Please, you have to let me do this. I didn’t know you would be here. All that I did

today, could be for nothing. Please let me have a chance at least.’

Faith proceeded to leave without any response or show emotion in front of Tomas, but as soon as

she made some distance, she started to break down, thinking that Tomas was planning to become

a martyr of sorts, suicide by cop or the army. Either way, she thought he would die today and

emotions overcame her. As much as she knew that if she would have stayed Tomas would live

past today, she also knew that she would deprive him of everything that he strived to achieve,

doing terrible things in the process, rendering all of his sacrifice for nothing. That, she couldn’t

live with.

As soon as Faith vanished in the distance within the crowd, Tomas accepted the megaphone and

stood up on top of the van in front of the crowd, his back towards the police barricades. Then

slowly, with uncertainty, he pulled off his mask and then the back of his Apex Armour balaclava

to reveal his face and head fully. Gasps came out of the crowd. Both the surprise that he actually

revealed himself, and second that he was white as a bunny and in his early thirties. The BLM

folks certainly weren’t happy about that because it was against their former narrative of the

“Black Avenger,” as they sometimes called Tomas among themselves.

Tomas said, ‘As I promised, I’m ready to truthfully confess to all my actions today, or in the

past, and to face my own justice cast by you all upon me.’
As soon as Tomas started to speak, the crowd chatter immediately ceased, and you could almost

hear a pin drop. Only the occasional noise of the policemen’ horses were heard in the otherwise

background silence.

Tomas said, ‘Let me start with saying that I’m not proud of what I did today. I’m not happy

about it either. I did what I did because I believe it was necessary. But I will not be a hypocrite

and send my condolences to their families, since I had to do what I did because of them not being

the “good guys” serving their country and you the way they swore an oath to, rather for personal

benefit and as a puppet to forces that, among other atrocities, I’m convinced are behind the 9/11

events and the current proposed bill to throw us all into tyranny.’

Loud chatter among the crowd, lots of obvious confusion and even disappointment on the part of

many, but also an occasional cheer that someone finally spoke the truth and stood up to the

untouchables.

Tomas said, ‘I know how this sounds. To most of you, I just became a whacko, flat-earther

conspiracy theorist, and certainly the villain and offender in today’s events, totally discrediting

myself and my past actions in your eyes.’

Tomas took a pause.

‘I get that. It’s not like I didn’t notice that your opinions, and even that of our Justice and Truth

League, have been changing back and forwards for the most part along our journey together. No

doubt because of me and my personal actions. It is understandable. Most of the time, I even

question my own actions. It’s hard to justify something like what I did today. It probably isn’t

justifiable, to the point I need to know what you all think about it because I’m not sure of it

myself. If I’m wrong, then…I guess I’m the bad guy here…’ He shrugged his shoulders.
‘But if I’m right, then maybe, just maybe, you should take it easy on judging me.’

Tomas caught an occasional, “We’re with you!” from some corners of the crowd, mostly the

ones that were just coming in to join whilst holding his banners. Many were also visibly armed,

but even from some of the BLM and Anti-Waxxer supporters. The rest seemed to be just

chattering. Tomas continued.

‘So what am I really saying? To put it bluntly, there is no more USA. The state, I mean. No

Democracy. At least not in the sense that you believe it is. The government is in the pockets of

the bankers that virtually are the shadow government, and the whole Democracy thing is only an

illusion at this point, making you think that your individual actions and votes could in fact take

part in decision-making in this state. In reality, everything the government does is pandering

towards the lobbyists that have them on a solid payroll to do what they need them to do in order

to control all of you, not just them!’

“Fuck the government!” This time, some of the supporters and protesters even added: “Fuck the

president!”

Tomas continued, ‘We’re all like minions to them. The government officials are but puppets on

strings. Everything is designed in a way for YOU to not realise this state of affairs. Everything is

designed in a way to divide us, to divide and conquer! Not just here in the US, but everywhere

you can find Western money involved!’

Most of the crowd seemed confused and surprised by what Tomas said.

Tomas said, ‘So why do it here in the US? you might ask. Because despite everybody telling you

something else, despite me telling you what I just told you, this country is still the best place to

live, and the only hope in the world for people to oppose and overthrown this wretched, rigged,
artificial slavery system, thanks to your Second Amendment. As long as it exists, there is a good

reason for the government to fear its people, for the politicians having to hide their nefarious

activities, and not the other way around. It’s the only reason we are not living in an absolutely

Orwellian system already.’

“The president will save us!” got countered by “Fuck the president!” in the crowd. Tomas

decided to ignore the comments for now.

He said, ‘All of this is also the reason why so many tactics to divide us and to make us stupid and

abandon all reason and morals have been pushed so heavily ever since the 9/11. Because first,

they got away with it, signalling to them they can push any narrative they want, no matter how

“fantastic”, unlikely, and unrealistic, we the people will sadly swallow it all without question, for

the most part.’

There was nonstop, mostly confused chatter, with an occasional approval or disapproval coming

out of the crowd.

Tomas said, ‘Thank God for the internet, else they would have certainly got away with

everything. That’s also the reason why they are trying to suppress it to the maximum extent the

public is willing to accept; bit by bit, all rights and aspects of lives are signed off to them. In the

name of “safety” of course.’

Trust me, almost everything that is an official narrative is a lie, as I’ve found since. As much

now as it was in history, looking back all the way to the beginning of twentieth century. Many of

them already officially disclosed as a lie by individual governments. If there is nothing else to

learn from history, it would be that the victor writes it, and often it is found out to be a lie for us

to correct for our own understanding of it centuries later.

The most important lesson to learn from history is to trust, but verify. Verify everything,

scrutinize everything. Especially the people that hold legislative power over you. If they can hold

up to the scrutiny, if they can be transparent about themselves, then they can remain in power

and there is no reason to fear their power. But as soon as they can’t be transparent about

something, or as soon as they don’t hold up to scrutiny, they shouldn’t be in power. Can anyone

spell obvious CORRUPTION?! Or just lack of morality, power abuse and certainly not acting in

good will and for the benefit of people that gave the politicians the power in the first place?’

Tomas took a short break to suck in new breath.

‘You see, there lies the problem. They do act for the benefit of people that gave them power,

only it is not you!’ Pointing into the crowd again.

Tomas said, ‘As long as you can’t see it, they can do whatever they want and push any narrative

they want in order to divide us! So that they can take away our guns to make us defenceless

when they come to chip us like cattle. I’m sure that’s their endgame; that is when they will

possess absolute power over you that can’t be challenged anymore.’

“Down with the president!” came from the BLM supporters.

Tomas said, ‘I’m not so sure about him. It certainly looks like he is a thorn in the side of those

lobbyist bankers and that’s why they want you to hate him! But, it is suspicious why he went

along with this Corona bullshit and didn’t have the guts to call out some of the other things as

well.’

Many eyebrows were raised at the “Corona bullshit” phrase and Tomas certainly discredited

himself somewhat whit that statement.

‘Still, I can understand, some things would be political suicide, and that would only help the

lobbyist bankers. But who knows; maybe he too is just a puppet that plays his part in their games

so that we, the public, have the illusion of not just a choice, but opposing powers struggling for

control. When in fact, they already have full control and are merely playing a charade for us. I

guess we will find out together today which side he is on. Why do you think I had to wipe out the

corrupted Congress today? So that there is nothing holding him back to issue an executive order

to execute our pleas and demands to end all secrecies! Let’s see if he will do it!’

“He is still a racist, fascist pig! Fuck all white supremacists! Abolish the police!” Of course this

was exclusively coming from the BLM supporters, although just a very few.

Tomas said, ‘Stop it! Just…stop! I can’t dispute your beliefs, nor can I prove to you that you’re

wrong. But the riots, looting, killing, and police slander is inexcusable! Do you not understand

that it only hurts yourselves? That you’re aiming your anger randomly at innocent victims that

have nothing to do with what you claim are your grievances, police included?! I targeted my

anger and violence EXCLUSIVELY on the people I had real grievances with! If I applied your

logic to my tactics of revenge, I would have already wiped out most of the BLM movement!

Can’t you see you’re all criminals by association? I don’t care that you didn’t personally burn

down, loot, or kill anyone, you still support this basically terrorist organization and worship

fallen criminals?! How can anyone idolize guys like Gregory Farmer?! Can’t you see that if he

had the brains of Velicenko, he would be just another Mafia/gang leader with bloody hands?!

That is your idol?!What the fuck is wrong with you all? I said it before and I will say it again, if I

were to run into Gregory Farmer, knowing what I know about him now, I would have put that

bastard down myself! I might have made him suffer even more, as I know myself now! All the
other ones you worship? Similar story, including your beloved Black female officer who turned

out to be a drug trafficker that died during the raid!’

Questions and some slander came Tomas’s way, yelled from the crowd.

Tomas said, ‘Enough of this! I can’t change your mind because you know your own truth that

you choose to believe no matter what. This is the division I’m talking about! When one of their

division tactics stops having an effect, sadly because we as people have very short attention

spans no matter how serious the matter is, thus wide ignorance of 9/11 and its implications, they

just come up with new division tactics for us, the plebes, to argue about!

‘After the war on terror, or if you will, the West versus the Muslims, comes rape culture, men

versus females. The rise of feminism, of so-called equality and tolerance. More like the rise of

even more privilege for already the most privileged, along with exchanging morality for so-

called tolerance based on emotion, not reason, of clueless people.

Then the immigration narrative, the rise of fascism disguised as anti-fascism, narrative of the

racist white race that was behind all of the evils in history, guilt, shaming, all whilst the whites –

specifically men – are the real victims of unfair treatment in society via social engineering for

decades! Then of course the rise of BLM, the victimhood narrative, or Blacks versus white, poor

versus rich, police versus Blacks. Sorry, any other minority, your lives don’t matter either.

‘All the narratives are feeding off each other, based on fallacies. All, at the end of the day,

pointing to one common evil – the white man.’

‘Fuck the whites!’

‘They’re all racist scum!’

‘White man is the root of all evil!’

‘I have been oppressed for four hundred years by them!’

Again, lots of the BLM supporters shouted out in anger.

‘That is not racist or sexist at all, not at all. Nor is it proof of unfair bias and public treatment of

whites in definitely patriarchal and racist society, no way,’ Tomas said, obviously sarcastically.

Tomas said, ‘Do you understand how grotesquely comical it looks when you shout: “Stop

oppressing me!” whilst beating the shit out of a random, peaceful, non-combative white man

who is for the most part also poor – mostly as a consequence of societal mistreatment? And the

best part is, you know you can do so without any consequence coming from public reaction, or

the state itself! Instead, you will even be portrayed as some kind of a justice fighter in the

process! That is the white privilege you are talk about? The male privilege? That the whole state

and society as a whole hates you and works against you? That many white men are attacked and

ridiculed, their lives destroyed on a whim without any consequence to the direct initiators?’

‘You’re one of them!’

‘You’re part of the problem!’

Tomas said, ‘I am not against you! This whole speech doesn’t mean I’m against you. It means – I

get it. I know who is really pushing these narratives and wants to divide us, and why. I think.

Only together can we bring them down. We are not enemies! The people who want us to believe

that we are, are our real enemies! People who want to control every aspect of our lives.’

The cheers of joy and agreement were getting louder with each new statement coming from the

people joining in the protest, which clearly wasn’t led by BLM anymore.
‘We all have privilege of some kind. Being beautiful, or smart, having a skill or trait that others

don’t, or just being born in the right place, such as the USA, is a privilege. THAT is not unjust!

Those are just realities of life.’

“Yeah! God bless the masked man! God bless the USA!” Their cheers were thundering louder

each time Tomas took a pause to get new breath in, then immediately stopped when he began to

talk again. The core BLM supporters were getting largely dismissive and some began to leave,

whilst the main body remained to listen.

‘However, I’m also sad to see that the division tactics are clearly working. That OUR real enemy

must be laughing that our petty, manufactured by them issues are working perfectly! They really

taught us to hate each other’s guts. You really believe that if the white man was gone it would

stop the violence and any perceived injustice on yourself? Feminists, that if you killed all men

and just kept our sperm for future female-only selective reproduction that you would be happy?

That even the violence and power struggle would stop? You know very well you would hate

each other just as much!’

Some murmuring agreements from the crowd with little opposition.

‘I’m going to repeated myself, but fuck it, this takes time to sink in! Just look again what people

you chosen to worship and glorify, BLM. Gregory Farmer?! Are you kidding me?! Such a

lowlife he was!’ Looking into the crowd with anger in face.

‘Thomas Sowell should be a person that you celebrate and worship. Google him! HELL, even

Tupac and his values and truths should be spoken and celebrated! He might play into the

“gangsta” persona because he understood that it was the only way to reach Black people with the
victimhood complex and to get away from his own poverty, but he hated the fact! YES, he did

say a lot of things to the contrary in his early life, but as he grew, he saw the world the way I still

do. And a lot of it is just a logical consequence of our own ignorance of the real enemy and

worshiping of false idols. False sense of unity based on sex, race, age, or belief systems.’

Crowd was mostly silent listening, despite of Tomas giving them space to express themselves.

‘No group ever related by any other aspects but their values could live happily and peacefully

alongside each other. Because only equal values results in equal actions. And only your actions

matter because they tell the real story of your character. And only your character and merit

should be the dictating factors for the opportunities in your life. Not your skin, sex, age, sexual

orientation, or beliefs. If we want to act the same way, then we have no problem to co-exists.

‘So, to be honest, if you folks want true equality and justice among sexes and all races, your goal

should be the opposite of what you’re doing now, and abolish the preferential treatment of the

stated privileges and extend them on all sexes and races equally. Stop fighting inequality with

even more inequality towards one specific race and sex…

‘Stop hating, stop persecuting people in the same way you accuse the white people of doing to

you. Can’t you see the irony of it? Can’t you see the reality? Look around you.

‘How is this translating into a reality you see around you?

Do yourself what you demand of the white to do towards you! Judge people by their actions,

measure their character by their merit. Give them opportunity based on merit so that we all can

enjoy our Western values/privileges.’

There was a raise of resistance predominantly from the BLM protesters and their supporters in

the crowd. The rest cheered even more, as if that was even possible.

Tomas said, ‘I know you don’t like it! It means you’re not a victim, but rather the perpetrator!

But I also know that deep inside, you know that I’m right. It’s just your programming that

happened by the media and in your schools that is making you fight this feeling!’ Addressing the

other BLM supporters who also started to leave.

Tomas continued, ‘Which brings me to WHY I’m here in the first place. I did what I did to stop

the bill, but even I know that is only temporary. I have come to you here not to preach, no, that’s

not the point. The point IS, that the reason why I’m here is different to why you’re here.

‘I’m here to demand the Truth. I believe that this government was planning to throw us all into

tyranny proposing such a bill, but there is not way to be certain of it. Therefore, what I believe

will ultimately tell us the Truth will be a new investigation into 9/11 official narrative. I believe

they lied to us about it, and I believe it’s all connected, but I have no proof of any of it to be

completely straight with you. I only feel it in my gut, and I believe you feel It too.’

Crowd still mostly silent.

Tomas continued, ‘I’m the voice inside your head that you refuse to hear. I’m the face that you

have to face, mirrored in your stare…’ Leaning slightly forward towards the people in front of

him whilst pointing at his temple with his right hand, whilst holding the megaphone close to his

mouth with his left.

Tomas said, ‘I’m what’s left, I’m what’s right, I’m the enemy! I’m the hand that will take you

down and bring you to your knees!’ He turned away from the gathered protesters and looked

directly into the multiple cameras of the mass media that were allowed to position themselves
slightly behind the first line of the polices and army’s barricade. A gesture that was cheered upon

by the ones who recognized it.

Tomas said, ‘This is why I’M here, this is WHO I am. So, WHO ARE YOU?!’ turning back

towards the people gathered, this time all of them.

Tomas said, ‘Yeah, who are you?!’ He sounded angrier.

There was no response yet coming from the crowd.

Tomas said, ‘If I’m right about this, then only the Truth about 9/11 can stop the next dystopian

bill - because it will become obvious to everyone everywhere in the world that such power can’t

be entrusted to any government – no matter how democratic and free it might seem, ever. If I’m

wrong… I’m ready to pay for my crimes. But, I would still recommend not to allow anyone to

have that kind of power over you anyway. Just because we can, doesn’t always mean we

should.’

Murmuring from the crowd.

‘We could have built atomic bomb, but should have we? It was supposed to stop the wars they

said. They had to have it before the enemy had it, they said. But did it stop the wars, or, did it

allow only those with atomic weaponry to bully those who didn’t have them, perfectly knowing

that the other big dog with his own atomic weaponry wouldn’t dare to mess in-between? The

world got truly safer for those who had them at the expense of everyone else who didn’t. It

probably did in fact stop the next World War, but it certainly almost ended the World as a whole

a couple times since as well.’

Murmuring got louder.

‘This new bill would surely stop most crime for the most part, I do believe that, only fools would

do it knowing that they’re being constantly watched and every of their actions can be traced back

in time, all aspects of their life and services stopped at a press of a button. No way of avoiding

immediate punishment, no need to chase the criminals anymore. Sounds great on paper isn’t it?

Except, if you’re the one in charge of such a system, which would in turn absolutely guarantee

that most crime would be conducted EXCLUSIVELY by those in charge of such a system,

whilst simultaneously rendering any resistance to the status qou impossible at the same time. As

soon as those in charge of such a system would become corrupt, or just want to abuse the power,

it’s game over – because they’re above it. No way of resisting. Rules for thee, but not for me!

This, is what I believe would inevitably happen sooner or later!’

“Yeah!” Sounded loud out of the crowd for the most part.

Tomas continued, ‘I also believe that this is what they always wanted. This is why they keep

dividing us, turning us against each other, so that in fear of the other group and their proposed

solution promising us safety, you would give away your freedom rights without a fight.’

The crowd looked angry.

‘Yes, we all wish that the world was fair and safe for everyone. But the truth is that the

corruption of the character of a man thrives everywhere! It is only due to the values and laws

imbedded in the Constitution made by our forefathers that we can still enjoy their benefits. If it

wasn’t already a law, you would have lost them a long time ago! And we need to fight every

time they want to take any away, for whatever reasons, “safety” included.’
‘…and I say this as a Slovakian who isn’t even supposed to be here. I’m willing to die on this

hill for you because I believe it is the right thing to do! I believe that this is my fight too! This is

who I am.’

More cheers and support.

‘So who are you? Are you going to keep pretending that WE are enemies?!’

Short suspense.

Tomas continued, ‘Or are you going to join me and demand the Truth?!’ gesturing with his free

hand tapping into his chest.

‘We’re with you!’ Thundered back from many in the crowd.

Tomas screamed out loudly, ‘TRUTH SHOULD MATTER THE MOST!

‘ALL SECRETS IN POLITICS should be banned. Everything, including your private life,

should be public if you want to represent the public as a politician. We should be able to

scrutinize and judge on everything, know everything about you before selecting you as a role

model to represent our values and wellbeing. Before giving you power over us. Maybe then we

will only get men and women of character that have nothing but good intentions in their minds,

not trying to enrich themselves in the first place. ‘

‘The highest threat to our wellbeing is our own politicians and banking system. We need to be

vigilant and scrutinize them at all times.’

Lots of support erupted, some chanting “Pee-I-Bee for president!” making Tomas smirk.

‘NO STATE SECRETS. If any decision took legislative action, it must be disclosed. If any

information about anything, including espionage done on other countries has been concluded, it
has to be immediately disclosed to the public. Thus, forcing the whole world to change if they do

something bad and want to stay in business with the USA, not condemned by its general public

that truly hold its reins in the country, not the politicians or the banks. They should be but a

representative, as it was intended. Not hold actual power.

‘Also, it wouldn’t be possible to scheme something bad either that could benefit the USA at the

expense of someone else, or a different country, without it being found out about by all.

‘If that was still approved be the USA’s populace, at least the USA and the rest of the world

would have a clear picture about itself and couldn’t play the victim. At least it would show its

true colours when it would go off the rails once again! Human greed knows no limits. At least

we would know as soon as it happened again and who was the real enemy. Even if it was us.

We will design a system that will be based on values that we can all agree upon and force our

successors to have no choice but to play by them or to get exposed for what they are when they

try to change it in the future!’ He raised his hand with the clenched fist in the air gesture that was

supposed to be BLM exclusively.

‘And lastly, but not the least, NO CENSORSHIP, EVER!

‘I will borrow the words of the last man who tried to save you, and to get you all out of the hands

of the corporate private state control at the hands of the bankers, the great John F. Kennedy. In

his speech delivered on April 1961 he stated:

“The very word “secrecy” is repugnant in a free and open society, and we are as a people

inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths and to secret

proceedings. We decided long ago that the dangers of excessive and unwarranted

concealment of pertinent facts far outweighed the dangers which are cited to justify it. Even
 today, there is little value in opposing the threat of a closed society by imitating its arbitrary

restrictions. Even today, there is little value in ensuring the survival of our nation if our

traditions do not survive with it. And there is very grave danger that an announced need

for increased security will be seized upon by those anxious to expand its meaning to the

very limits of official censorship and concealment. That I do not intend to permit to the

extent that it is in my control. And no official of my Administration, whether his rank is

high or low, civilian or military, should interpret my words here tonight as an excuse to

censor the news, to stifle dissent, to cover up our mistakes or to withhold from the press

and the public the facts they deserve to know.”

‘I couldn’t say it any better, no matter how much I would try. These words are even more true

now than ever.

‘THOSE will be our demands on the president – Only in this way we can be certain of the Truth

that we deserve to learn. We will plead with him to open up new 9/11 investigation’!’ Tomas

was gasping for breath because he was talking so fast and passionately, and had to take

precautions because of his damaged lung.

The crowd was roaring with their support. Tomas stood there for a while enjoying the moment. It

was better than he could ever have hoped for. Now he had real hope that things would change;

that he would live past this day to see Helena, his friends, and family again. That he would heal

his wounds and the DI would become but a distant memory.

Tomas continued, ‘Would that be something you would want? Is that something worth fighting

for? To sacrifice something for? Instead of getting chipped, for every of your steps and actions

being watched at all times in the name of “safety”? Instead of taking away your right to do what

YOU feel is best for you?’

Crowd looked frenzied with support but Tomas still managed to catch up on some opposition.

“In time, you will be just like them!”

“You are pretending just the same!” sounded off some in the crowd. The rest seemed to be very

supportive, but Tomas wanted to address the negative reaction of his supporters towards the

persons who dared to say that, Tomas instructing them to “Stop! Leave them alone!” then

addressing them directly.

Tomas said, ‘I see your concern, but as I stated before in my…statement’ – he was looking for

better articulation but couldn’t find the right words fast enough – ‘I have no ambition to be in

any position of power whatsoever. In fact, I will turn myself in for you all to judge what I have

done, and to tell the truth and nothing but the truth of what I have done, based on what I have

learned, as I have stated more than once by now.’

“How can we trust you?” still sounded from somewhere.

Tomas said, ‘What if I say I’m not like the others?! What if I say I’m not just another one…of

their plays?!’ He pointed at the gathered media behind the barricade’s lines before facing the

crowd again.

Tomas said, ‘That I will never surrender?! Not before it is all done. Not before we find the truth

together?! I’m not pretending anything, they are!’ He pointed at the gathered media behind the

barricade’s lines again.

‘Do you think I was pretending when I jumped out of the twenty-eighth floor of a building with

a bomb in my hand? My prospects to survive that were non-existent, and yet a stroke of luck, or

fate, I don’t know what to call it…saved my life. How about when I walked into a storm of fire
at Velicenko’s residence trying to help save the hostages? Was that pretending? I died there for a

couple minutes, you know. How about in Seattle? I can see a couple posters here with the

famous “masked man” holding the little angel in his hands,’ he said, scanning the horizon of the

crowd.

There were thousands of them at this point, more still flooding in.

Tomas said, ‘Look, there are more over there, showing even more of my deeds.’ He pointed into

the distance to people holding posters of him depicting him in many of his heroic actions.

Tomas said, ‘You think I was pretending then?!’

“Noo, we love you, Paid!” came loudly from the rest of the crowd.

Tomas said, ‘You can call me Tomas. That is my real name. I’m not pretending ANYTHING

anymore. I’m but a guy that made some wrong choices along the way to be forced to be right

here, right now, as my last chance for a better life. Yes, FORCED, because I don’t see any other

way, and let me tell you, I would rather do nothing and let someone else fight this fight for me.

I’m not a role model, I never claimed to be one. I’m here because I had no choice. What I did

today was to make sure I can’t chicken out anymore. It’s either me, or them. I had to make sure

that this time around I will not chicken out fighting what I consider impossible odds. I took

action that guaranteed I can’t change my mind on this; that I can’t choose to run away from this

fight.’

Tomas briefly remembered Mike’s death with him just standing there watching it because he

pretended that he was something that he wasn’t, yet. A painful memory. He wasn’t letting that

happen again. Not without a fight on his part; not without taking action! But he couldn’t trust

himself, so he had to make sure there was no more choice.

Tomas said, ‘You might say that I already have faced impossible odds, but not in my mind. In

my mind, there was always hope, no matter how small…except, one time…and let me tell you, it

didn’t end well for somebody close to me and one innocent person. Because I chickened out

facing what I considered impossible odds.

‘Now, I am facing them again, and there is truly no hope if it is just me. None, zero, nada!

‘I know that I can’t do it alone. I will need you all to help me. There was never any chance

without you guys, and I’m relieved and humbled standing here seeing so much support from so

many. You give me hope!’

“We love you, Tomas!” got even lounder. Even some “Marry me!” sounded from the ladies,

which made Tomas chuckle on the inside.

Tomas said, ‘And I know why you’re supporting me. I know you feel what I feel. That

something is really wrong, and I can’t put my finger on who’s responsible for that. I mean, really

responsible – pulling the strings behind the curtains up high somewhere. All concealed by the

widespread lies and pretending. Who it exactly IS that want’s to divide us.’

The crowd noise reduced almost to silence again.

‘Although, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was bunch of white supremacist guys after all,’ Grinning.

‘Honestly, I do, can’t help it.’ Still grinning.

Tomas continued, ‘We are not alone in that feeling!’ passionately looking deeply into the crowd.

‘Look, I’m standing here on top of this van being allowed to make this long speech without

being shot already. Trust me, there are a lot of snipers aiming at my head, ready to blow it off at
the first command. What stopped them?! I’m sure they already got the command by now, but

nothing has happened yet. Why?!’ he asked, turning towards the police and army barricade.’

Tomas said, ‘I think that there is already inner conflict going on between them right now. In the

army and the police. They don’t see a reason to kill me right now, standing here unarmed,

claiming that I will give myself up as soon as I’m done here – which is true, by the way. But

surely someone already instructed both parties to get rid of me, most likely stating the perfect

opportunity to get rid of me whilst not presenting any danger to hurt you guys along the way. All

they have to do is shoot from the ground upwards into the skies whilst I’m on this elevated,

perfectly exposed position with my mask and head protection OFF. But nothing has happened

yet!

‘Why?! Because they’re not our enemy either! In fact, almost all of them joined the police or the

army to protect us. Us, the people! Not to serve their evil overlords when they demand

something that is obviously against their oath, and values. That is why!

‘Deep inside, we all know that those politicians and people in power who are supposed to have

us in their best interests, they all pretend! You know it, I know it, and the ordinary army and

police officers know it too!’

The confusion in the army and police ranks was apparent. Tomas was quite right in what he was

suggesting. More than 30 police officers had left their ranks and handed their badges back.

Refusing to take on the protesters and Tomas, who was about to walk towards the White House.

All the police snipers, so far counting four, refused to take the kill shot whilst Tomas was

making his speech in that exposed position. Army snipers were called in, relying that they would

be more obedient, but they hadn’t time to assume a proper position yet.
In the meantime, four Apache helicopters floated in the air in front of the White House and two

F-35 jets were circling the Capitol. The army was unable to get any of their tanks forward, due to

them getting stuck and actively blocked by the massive crowds joining the main crowd gathered

in front of the White House from all sides. They would have to run the crowd over as many

protesters even dared them to.

Peter and Gargy had reached the crowd too, but there was too many of thousands of them,

perhaps even hundred thousand to go through before reaching Tomas. The crowd might have

made their way for them as fast as they could, but it was still slowing them down and it could

take several more minutes before they would be actually able to reach Tomas.

Tomas said, ‘So, remember that later today when something will happen! And I’m sure that

something is going to happen because they have to keep you in the dark at all cost, and we still

need to know the Truth. You humbly request that you help me in this effort. If not, I might just

as well give myself up right now, I can’t do this on my own.’

‘WE WILL FOLLOW YOU! WE WANT THE TRUTH!’

‘Then I will have walk myself into the White House and remain there until our pleas are met

with the president’s approval!’

People looked more than ready to begin the march on the White House. But Tomas had still

more to say.

Tomas said, ‘Of course I know the White House is empty and this whole gesture is basically

pointless! But it isn’t, because if I can get there, and remain there indefinitely as a gesture, if

nothing else; if the president wants to come back into his office, he will have to ask ME for

permission. He will have to legislatively approve my ONLY demand that I cannot yield, a new
investigation into 9/11 that would be well-funded, independent, transparent, and scrutinized.

Only then I will finally give myself up. Only then we will go home.’

The crowd was at the boiling point, but Tomas still continued. It was important.

Tomas said, ‘Of course, I have already seen a lot of how it works, and what is broken, I wouldn’t

be here otherwise. I wouldn’t have done what I did today, nor in Nevada, if I didn’t know with

absolute certainty that large parts of this government were corrupted to it’s core. That’s why I’m

here!’

‘They need me buried deep, because the secrets that I haven’t got chance yet to disclose are at

the ready to be disclosed and I’m ready give it all out. Are you ready?!’ It was almost a war cry.

The crowd was cheerful, energized, and supportive. Perhaps too much, ready to follow Tomas to

hell if needed.

Or so it seemed. It’s hard to judge what a person will do when he is met with solid resistance,

perhaps even lethal.

At this point, it sure looked like it would be a good idea to try to calm down those

overenthusiastic and armed in the crowd a little bit, to give them warning of the burdens of

taking violent action.

Linkin Park – Wisdom, Justice, And Love 1:38

“Physically handicapped and psychologically deranged

Cannot be reconciled with wisdom, justice and love.”

Tomas said, ‘ Before we go…I know that you guys are angry just as much as I am, but all the

violence I have done, I did it so that you don’t have to, and I have done it only when necessary!
‘But the fact remains that, borrowing the words of the great Martin Luther King,

“A true revolution of values will lay hands on the world order and say of war. But, this way of

settling differences is not just. It only fills our nation’s homes with orphans and widows, and

injects poisonous drugs of hate into the veins of people normally humane, leaving them

physically handicapped and psychologically deranged. This, cannot be reconciled with wisdom,

justice and love.”

‘Trust me, I know it first-hand. That is the reason I have come to you today, to give myself up,

because my conscience leaves me no other choice either. Don’t end up like me!’ He was talking

towards the crowd.

Tomas said, ‘Please, and I’m also talking to you too, my dear friends in the police force and the

army. Think through your actions carefully when we begin our march on the White House. Don’t

choose to pay too high a price just to stop us. We are no threat to you, the president, or the

government property that the White House is. We have no other objective but to enter the lobby

of the White House and wait there for the president to greet us so that we can state our demands

and pleas.’

Turning towards the barricade, Tomas said, ‘To you, my dear supporters, I can see that many of

you are visibly armed. In this instance, there is no enemy here for us to fight. I urge you to not

use your arms under any circumstances, no matter what happens next, the only exception being

to defend your own life or that of your friends and family when no other resort is available. I’m

not going to use any violence on those innocent people here that are but doing their job, and

many are already visibly torn between their duty and what their hearts are telling them.
‘But make no mistake! I will not give up! I will try to force my way in physically if needed, but

not at the price of killing someone. If I get stopped and overpowered, then so be it. There are

many of us, a lot more than them. Some of us will surely get into the lobby regardless! If they

start shooting at us, then I urge you to retreat instead of escalating this further. There is no real

objective of our march, it is a gesture of our unhappiness with the current state of the affairs.

That’s all. If they shoot at us, we have already won, and they will be the ones trying to reconcile

their actions! Our worst fears would be confirmed! …That this is indeed a tyranny.

‘Most of those people in front of you don’t want to hurt you, they have a job to do. Some will

try; there are bad apples everywhere. But in general, no one is happy that they will have the job

to stop and detain us even if it means killing us!’

Turning back towards the crowd, Tomas said, ‘Please, I beg you all, if there are shots fired,

retreat, you have already won. If that is what is about to happen, then it is a tragedy. Let’s do our

best to not unnecessarily add to it.

‘Anything else you do, I can promise you, you will not able to reconcile it with wisdom, justice

and love, no matter how hard you try, for the rest of your life. DO NOT BECOME ME, or so

God help you all!’

He had that one final point to make, but it was important. Even though Tomas wasn’t a believer,

it felt right to say it, as that was the only accurate description of what he felt.

Then he jumped off the van and made his first steps towards the barricade before cutting off his

comms completely, with Gargy and Peter screaming at him to hold tight until they arrive, they

weren’t that far behind at that point. Perhaps only a minute or so. But to Tomas, it was only a
distraction at this point, and he had no room for that anymore. Tomas had to do what he had to

do, and he wasn’t alone.

Linkin Park – Castle of Glass (Mike Shinoda Remix) 6:20

“ 'Cause I'm only a crack in this castle of glass - hardly anything there for you to see,

For you to see…”

The first line consisted of the riot policemen. The second was made of soldiers armed to their

teeth.

But before Tomas made the second step, the DI appeared again. He wasn’t saying anything, just

followed Tomas like a shadow. Funnily enough, it did provide some comfort to Tomas knowing

that he would not chicken out now. The DI was surely there to make sure of that. Tomas’s

legacy, if there was one, was to be protected and unspoiled by an act of cowardice in the worst

possible moment. He promised to the people that he was not just a pretender.

But there was of course a chance that the DI was there to take over and start killing people

senselessly in his thirst for blood, but somehow, Tomas knew that wasn’t the case.

The DI was him, after all. He was in control regardless, and wouldn’t let that happen, but could

choose to let the DI steer the wheel in moments when he could not. Tomas couldn’t know how

ugly this would get, but ugly it would get for sure. One could even say that he was glad the DI

was there again. He probably was there all along, except not directly in his sight. It kind of

surprised him out of nowhere when he appeared, because of Tomas realising that he hadn’t seen

or heard the DI for a while now.

Then, something unexpected happened. The DI started to walk side by side next to Tomas and

recite in a quiet voice the same words that went through Tomas’s mind in Seattle before he

engaged the bank robbers.

“Take me down to the river bend.” Tomas’s heartrate skyrocketed, with chills going down his

spine as soon as he heard it.

“Take me down to the fighting end.” This forced Tomas to look at the DI, who remained

marching forward with his head straight, with them both being no more than sixty meters away

of the first line of the barricade, the rest of the crowd about ten meters behind Tomas.

“Wash the poison from off my skin,” nearly pushed tears into Tomas’s eyes.

“Show me how to be whole again.” That did it, and his eyes were glittering.

The police line got visibly nervous as Tomas, with the crowd in tow, was only around forty

meters away now. Some of the army was repositioned just behind the police barricade and

seemed aggressively pushing forward into their ranks and on their flanks, the army commandant

shouting, “Do not approach the line or we will open fire!”

Some of the police and the soldiers seemed really surprised by that statement. The four Apache

helicopters split. Two remained straight above and around sixty meters behind the first barricade.

Two split to one of the sides of the approaching crowd each, whilst keeping the same distance.

“Fly me up on a silver wing,” gave Tomas courage to continue despite it.

“Past the black where the sirens sing,” and no matter what would happen to him.

“Warm me up in the nova’s glow.” He hoped that he would succeed, and the army or police

wouldn’t open fire despite their orders.

“And drop me down to the dream below.” He was making the first step towards real justice and

truth in the world, breaking the camel’s back of the ruling elites.

Warning shots landed some five meters in front of Tomas; he didn’t slow down, but the crowd

behind him stopped fully.

“’Cause I’m only a crack in this castle of glass.” Tomas even went into a full sprint towards the

first line of the barricade, knowing that he might catch some fire and be shot in the face, killed,

but there were thousands of other “cracks in the glass” right behind him that he promised he

would not let down. He wanted to inspire them at all cost. Although, it was “Hardly anything

there for you to see.”

The initial hesitation after the first warning shots wore off once the crowd saw that Tomas didn’t

stop and instead proceeded in a sprint towards the barricade. The crowd found courage and

continued advancing too.

“Open fire!”

The army commandant wasn’t joking.

Only about one-fifth of the army, and even fewer of the police officers, opened fire into Tomas

and the crowd. Still, that was no less than fifty automatic weapons that unloaded their clips into

the crowd, which the first few lines got completely mowed down by.

Tomas got hit several times, but since he covered his face with his hand and actually breached

the first line as he was too fast, he wasn’t killed. Once Tomas heard the shots though, he quickly

stopped resisting and gave himself up to the police officers that surrounded him, but at that point
even they didn’t actually seem to be interested in him, as they were shocked at the fact the army

actually shot into the crowd.

They could see the bodies that lay on the grass, the injured bleeding and screaming in pain.

No less than a hundred.

After the initial burst into the crowd, the crowd immediately started to retreat in panic. Some of

the gun-wielding protesters cursed at the barricades, but did not return any fire. The army halted

their fire, but there was visible argument in their own ranks as soon as that happened.

The commanding police officer was seen demanding the army officer disclose to him who gave

him the command to open live fire into the crowd, screaming and pointing at him.

The army commander dismissed the police commander, stating, “I don’t answer to you!”

“Men, arrest this man!” was the police commander’s answer.

“Are you kidding me?! Men, shoot anyone who tries to stop us in our duty!” was the army

commandant’s answer.

A standoff ensued. It wouldn’t be a fair fight if it wasn’t for many defectors in the army to point

their weapons at those who seemed to follow the army command orders.

“Mutiny! This is mutiny! You will all be shot!” He was shouting angrily.

But no one did anything but point their weapon at what they perceived was their enemy.

Tomas was picked up off the floor and helped back up on his feet by the police and two army

soldiers that were close by. It seemed they protected him instead by surrounding him.
The cries of the families who went back to find their family dead on the grass kicked off loudly,

adding to the tension.

‘What have you done?!’ the police commander shouted at the army commandant.

‘I have done my duty! I will not let these protesters extort our president with their demands! To

chase him out of his house and threaten him! They have no legal rights to do that. I have upheld

the law for you, since you failed to enforce it!’

‘Not like this! Not at this cost! What is there to lose? The president isn’t even in the White

House!’

‘So what? The White House is a symbol of our government. We have a duty to protect it with

force from being overrun by a crowd of any agenda! Why do I need to explain this to you? Have

you forgotten your duty?’

‘My duty is to the public. To serve and protect. I have no intention to simply let them in, but

there was no need for live fire! Why did we even form a barricade? We could have stopped them

in their tracks!’

‘Sure, all hundred – two-hundred thousands of them following that criminal! He should have

been shot on sight!’

‘He should have been detained and brought into the court for justice!’

‘I have no time for that! He is clearly guilty. He’s not denying that he is guilty and he committed

assault on our very country! I should have done this before; maybe all of this could have been

avoided! Soldiers, shoot the traitor!’

“Murderer!” came out of the crowd that was mourning their dead family, and shot the army

commandant through his neck at the very instant he made the command.

Total confusion and a skirmish ensued. Army versus the rest of the army, police versus the rest

of the police, the armed crowd versus the police and army, all versus all. It was all confusing and

fierce.

Multiple sergeants and other officers with commanding authority on all sides, including the

armed crowd, tried to force “Hold your fire!” but with the bodies piling up and some of

themselves being shot in the process, it was unstoppable.

Even the army and police snipers positioned at multiple vantage points on the White House

seemed to battle each other. Some refused to take any shots prior when Tomas was exposed on

the van, some refused to take any shot with the first burst into the crowd, now they actively tried

to stop those who were joining the “civil war” in their very own shootout.

It was fierce, bloody, and personal. Too many of them standing right next to each other, trying to

figure out which side the other person was on, only to get panicky by the nervous body language

of the other person, forcing them to shoot before being shot, resulting in lots of “blue on blue”

fire. Which basically means shooting a person that is, or would otherwise be, on your team if you

didn’t force them to react to you in threatening way.

***

As all of this ensued, Tomas was encouraged by those who surrounded him to continue towards

the White House’s West Wing. So he did, in a hasty manner.

He was soon spotted by the opposition as he got exposed advancing alone across the grass

towards the White House.

“Shoot the traitor!” A lot of fire was diverted on him.

One of the four Apache helicopters, that up to this point remained neutral opting out of joining

any of sides, spotted Tomas advancing alone across the grass and turned towards him, obviously

about to engage.

That didn’t sit well with one of the remaining Apache helicopters, and before the first one

managed to let out more than a short burst at Tomas, it was shot down by the second one with a

rocket. In turn, the third helicopter didn’t like that the second helicopter shot down the first one,

and shot the second one out of the sky too. The fourth helicopter reacted to the third’s action by

turning towards it because of that, but didn’t engage. However, that manoeuvre made it seem

hostile to the third helicopter, and preventively opened fire at the fourth one. As a response, the

fourth Helicopter opened fire too, as it was expecting it. In the end, the third helicopter did a

successful evasive manoeuvres and shot down the fourth one without receiving too much

damage themselves.

Their celebration didn’t last long, as no more than twenty seconds later they got shot down by

one of the F-35s circling the White House, but not before the third surviving Apache helicopter

actually managed to open fire with their twenty-millimetre cannon against the crowd that was

skirmishing with the police and military and amongst themselves.

The second F-35 then engaged in a dog fight with the first one, which lasted a good two minutes

before being concluded with the second F-35 winning that engagement. That F-35 was on the

side of the army commandant.

Tomas got hit by the first Apache helicopter’s 20 mm cannon burst, but luckily received only a

grazing wound to his left leg high at the hamstring. It went through the Apex Armour easily and

took a good portion of his left thigh, with the graze sending Tomas staggering to the ground.

After managing to get back up onto his feet regardless, Tomas proceeded ahead to get inside the

White House West Wing’s lobby whilst being shot occasionally. Mostly from small arms fire

striking into his back. Nothing too serious.

However, after Tomas entered the White House, the flying F-35 pilot got the order to discharge

his full belt of its 30 mm cannon into the lobby of the White House, almost a thousand rounds in

total. Without hesitation, the pilot executed the command and the thirty-millimetre rounds easily

penetrated the walls of the White House into the interior in a long-thundering burst, hitting

Tomas once right through his mid-lower back in the process. The round exited through his belly

button and left a twenty-centimetre-round open wound, ejecting all of his intestines out and

pulverizing his liver and kidney with the shock wave following. If it wasn’t for the Apex

Armour, he would have been torn in half completely. He was bleeding out but surprisingly, not

profusely. His open, gaping hole almost strangely seemed “sealed” at its corners. Even his

diaphragm was able to press against the sealed wound without falling out, allowing him to

breathe with only a slight difficulty. His heart was still able to push blood around his body and

his blood pressure didn’t drop to zero; instead, it raised due to constriction around the open

wound.
 Linkin Park – Waiting for the End (zwierz remix) 3:51

“This is not the end, this is not the beginning, just a voice like a riot rocking every revision.

But you listen to the tone and the violent rhythm,

and though the words sound steady - something's empty within'em”

Still, it only bought him some time before the inevitable. Tomas was about to die. For most

people, this would be a curse and they would wish to die instantly, as the pain would be

excruciating and frankly, unnecessary when we account for the irreversible condition -

impending death. But for Tomas, who had been through a lot of physical punishment prior,

including being skinned alive and on fire, it was rather bearable, and not even worthy of his

attention. His attention was purely on the fact that he was about to die, reflecting upon his life.

Tomas managed to crawl into the lobby room and braced himself up by sitting against the

cabinet directly opposite to the entrance, which also got badly shot up. Then the flood of

thoughts overwhelmed him at the speed of light, spinning inside his head. He tried to fight it

back as hard as he could; it would have made it easier for him whilst he was waiting for the end

to come. Tomas wished to have enough strength to stand so that whoever would come into the

lobby of the West Wing would see him fighting to the very last moment, rather than find him in a

defeated position.

He was supposed to survive in the first place! ‘This is not what I planned.’ But that was out of

his control now. Frankly, he was surprised he was still alive. “Perhaps because so many things

were left unsaid. Perhaps it is because it’s so hard to let go…” he said, thinking of his friends and

family.
In true Tomas way, he was less concerned about him dying than what effect his death would

have on his mom, sister, Helena, Gargy, Peter, Violetta, Cop, Faith…all of the rest, knowing that

they loved him as much as he did them. Their deaths were unimaginable to him, so in turn he

thought that his death would be unbearable to them. In a weird way, he was glad he wouldn’t live

long enough to see them “vanish”. Tomas could always find a positive to every situation.

At the same time, it was killing him that his death would surely crush them. Lying to each other

after a while that they were okay, but they wouldn’t be okay, the same way we all do when we

suffer emotionally, how it makes us feel even more depressed. Like a failure. Same way he did.

“Oh, I know how hard it is to move on. I know how it feels to lie.” He reflected back to when

Mike died, Lubos, Lilly – the little girl in Seattle that died in his arms – and the Russian girls

tortured in New York were the most painful. All the deaths of the innocents that he witnessed,

some caused. How it made him feel, how he lied about it.

All Tomas wanted to do was to trade his life for something new, knowing that he was holding

onto something that he didn’t have anyway. A chance for a normal life.

‘Always such a dreamer.’

Sitting in that empty room, Tomas quickly tried to chase all the thoughts away, trying to forget

the past. Too much of it was more painful than the physical pain he was in. The good parts

reminded him of what he was losing. Anger almost consumed him instead, wishing to die

already.

“I’m holding on to what I haven’t got!” He cursed at himself on how pointless and only painful it

was. But something still kept him alive; something still prevented him from letting go and his

mind was still filled with thoughts flying at lightning speed.

“This was never meant to last anyway”. He was trying to excuse his death by self-suggesting that

he always knew he never had a real shot at a “normal” life, but by God, he wished it wasn’t so!

Perhaps this is what they meant when some people claim your life will flash before your eyes

right before you die. It’s a reflection of your past and actions, and what will happen when you’re

gone. All at the same time, all previously impossible.

“The brain must work at overclocked speed when you know this is it; what you don’t reconcile

now you will never ever,” he thought.

The gunfire on the outside almost ceased completely, but Tomas couldn’t help but to question

whether it all was worth it, considering what he witnessed out there. He wasn’t sure if anything

would change at all, or possibly even worsen due to it, since he wouldn’t be able to whistle-blow

anything anymore to anyone – because he would be dead. Only him surviving would guarantee

that this struggle for Justice and Truth wouldn’t die off. He was sure. No one else in the agency

seemed to be on board with him when it came to this.

“What was left when that fire was gone? I thought it felt right but that right was wrong. All

caught up in the eye of the storm and trying to figure out what it’s like moving on.”

Tomas thought of all the people he saw being killed, all the families affected in the same way his

would be, all trying to figure out how to move on. For what?

“I don’t even know what kind of things I said, my mouth kept moving and my mind went dead.”

He reflected upon his speech given. Couldn’t even recall anymore what he said, but questioned

whether he could have said it differently and all of this was avoidable.
“So I’m picking up the pieces, now where to begin, the hardest part of ending is starting again.”

He knew that his death and the deaths of the people out there were still the easy part; that they

were the lucky ones in comparison to the survivors and the relatives of all affected.

“This is not the end, this is not the beginning, just a voice like a riot rocking every revision.” He

hoped that it wasn’t all for nothing.

“But you listen to the tone and the violent rhythm, though the words sound steady something

empty’s within them.” Still, he couldn’t help but to think that once he was gone, the resistance

would be gone with him, because although there were a lot of vocal followers that even took

action, even he wasn’t completely sure whether it all wasn’t only in his imagination, his

madness. Whether the World was really so dark as he thought. The possibility of being wrong all

along, was still there.

“We say yeah with fists flying up in the air, like we’re holding onto something that’s invisible

there.” Many might have been vocal taking action, but it is questionable how many actually

believed that he was right and didn’t follow him, just because it was him. The symbol of hero…

“’Cause we’re living at the mercy of the pain and the fear, until we dead it, forget it, let it all

disappear.” Because most people are driven by their emotions, rather than rationale thinking.

But, in order to continue the struggle for justice and truth, one must be willing to separate

himself from his emotions completely to be able to acknowledge the Truth when discovered. If

you don’t, you will most likely be the one in wrong, and should yield.

‘But did he separate himself from his emotions in his struggle? No. Therefore, maybe he was

blind to the Truth even if he found it along the way’, Tomas thought to himself.
He could be the one that was wrong all along, rendering his actions Unjust. He was clearly mad

at that point after all, not knowing when the madness really started. Hallucinations being always

the last most severe stage. And if he was right all along, the resistance will most likely die off

along with him anyway, leaving the way into tyranny wide open.

‘He messed up, and most likely ended up the failure he dreaded becoming all of his life’, Tomas

thought.

‘No! If you were right, Gargy and Peter wouldn’t let “them”, whoever it is, win. They would

avenge me, they would carry on my legacy! If I was right…’

In that moment, Tomas realized that the DI was nowhere around to be heard or seen. It was just

him.

A small victory.

Confused how did he manage to stay alive this long after clearly receiving a mortal wound,

Tomas thought that it must have simply been because he wasn’t ready to go yet. He wasn’t ready

to die.

‘I’m holding on to what I haven’t got!’, knowing that there was no chance of surviving this.

Since it was futile anyway, he might just as well let go of it now. He accepted the Truth.

His fist raised up one last time in a sign of his struggle for justice and truth till the very end, then

Tomas took his last breath, lost consciousness and his fist fell right back onto the floor just as

fast, numb.

Tomas died, He was 33 years old. Only four years after his life had taken a very violent wrong

turn.
o Chapter 8: Epilogue

Linkin Park – One More Light (zwierz remix) 4:30

“Should've stayed, were there signs, I ignored?

Can I help you, not to hurt, anymore?

We saw brilliance, when the world, was asleep

There are things that we can have, but can't keep…”

Only ten seconds later, Peter and Gargy walked into the West Wing’s lobby to see Tomas sat

against the shot-up cabinet, lifeless.

Upon seeing him, Peter immediately put both his hands on top of his head in frustration whilst

turning his back away from the sight of torn-up Tomas. Gargy’s reaction was the opposite. He

immediately dashed to Tomas’s body to check for signs of life. He still hoped, despite the

massive, gaping hole in his midsection and the ejected intestines that were mangled and torn all

over the entry hall towards the lobby that itself looked pretty shot-up, with large holes randomly

spread all around the walls. Seats, desks, and furniture all had some sort of damage to it or were

completely torn to bits. Lots of debris. Gargy still hoped.

In his defence, Tomas had survived a lot of “impossible” situations before, so there was some

merit to it, as well as the fact he himself wasn’t ready to let Tomas go.

To his disbelief, there were no signs of life, nor was there anything that could have been done.

Peter immediately told Violetta to cut all video and audio feeds, as everybody else was watching
it, and kept a private audio channel to her in case there would be a need. But that channel stayed

silent and muted as well.

The first image of Tomas before Peter managed to turn away was clear enough for Tomas’s

mom, sister, and Helena to see, resulting in immediate grief held only with a grain of hope that

was destroyed as soon as Peter confirmed to Violetta that Gargy didn’t find any signs of life and

yes, Tomas was no doubt at peace.

Even their neighbours called the police and ambulance with the base’s address upon hearing their

lamenting when Tomas’s death was confirmed to them, though something horrible must have

happened to their neighbours.

It was no different for Peter or Gargy, except it happened within them on the inside in quiet, for

the most part. Peter struggled to go comfort Gargy. As much as he wanted to, he felt that he had

no right, since he felt responsible for allowing this to happen despite knowing what Tomas was

planning. And at the same time, he also felt that since Gargy and Tomas were obviously best

buddies, he should leave Gargy some time alone with Tomas’s body.

Peter stepped outside again where the crowd slowly began to accumulate, so he prevented them

from going inside after announcing that Paid in Blood, aka the masked man, was killed.

There were paramedics ready to go assist, but Peter stopped them as well, telling them that there

was no doubt that nothing could be done now, and to give some time for Tomas’s best friend to

grieve alone.

Grieve, Gargy did.

As the reality started to sink in deeper, Gargy’s own guilt poisoned his mind.
He couldn’t stop thinking about what he saw and chose to not disclose to anyone, nor to confront

Tomas himself, thinking everything would be just fine.

“Thinking? More like hoping, you fool!” Gargy thought to himself.

But how could he have known what would happen? Everything seemed just fine, and Tomas

looked like he was getting better. Did he miss any signs? It was killing him.

Clutching Tomas’s numb hand in both his hands, Gargy leaned closer towards Tomas’s head that

hung loosely, facing downwards.

“Can I help you, not to hurt, anymore?” He said out loud, knowing it was too late.

It was a gesture of what he should have said seeing Tomas’s split personality and inner torment

first-hand in Detroit.

He obviously wasn’t himself, not the “old” Tomas that Gargy knew. Gargy was certain that

Tomas was planning this the whole time. To die, that is. That his pain was unbearable, leaving

him no choice but to commit suicide in a way that wouldn’t hurt them, his family and friends, as

much as otherwise (knowing it was obvious suicide). Gargy thought that Tomas wanted to die

coming here. It was staged, premeditated.

He knew Tomas was a master of hiding his feelings in front of anyone and playing an act of

“doing well”, no matter how hard he struggled on the inside. He had years of practice going all

the way back before his first pull-up gave him hope of a normal life. But the wounds never really

healed.

“Just because you can’t see it, doesn’t mean it isn’t there!” Gargy screamed at himself in anger.
Gargy remembered Tomas’s words when he was grieving for little Lilly for weeks, telling them

that he knew it was irrational, she was just one of many that died in front of him or because of

him at that point, but “Who cares if one more light goes out in the sky of a million stars? Well, I

do,” was Tomas’s answer. He couldn’t help it.

“I do too.” Clutching Tomas’s hand bit harder, Gargy began to sob louder.

Gargy always thought that Tomas was “special”, whilst the “world was asleep”. If you asked

him, he wouldn’t be able to put his finger on it, but it was there and it was beautiful.

“It isn’t fair!” he screamed into the sky.

“You have been right, Tomas. There are things that we can have, but can’t keep,” he whispered

to Tomas as he finally collected himself well enough to close Tomas’s eyes.

His final gesture of acceptance.

‘Like everything that is worth having…’

“Rest in peace, my friend. I will never forget you.”

***

Before the day was over, Tomas and all the people that joined him or fought against him were

pardoned by the president before he stepped down and called for new elections to take place.

“People have spoken today loud and clear. There is no confidence in me or our government no

more. In the light of all lives lost here today and the evidence of criminal activity against many

of now deceased senators, that I’m willing to present myself on the court of law, my final

enactment in office would be that of pardoning now also deceased “masked man”, and the so-

called Justice and Truth League members, as well as of people on both sides of today’s
insurrection. People who fought against this wretched system that I myself was part of, yes,

wretched; and the people who did their duty and defended it not knowing any better equally.

The Truth is, that corruption was already everywhere at every level when I came into office, and

despite of my desire to fight and expose it, it was so largely spread that I didn’t see how I could

win that fight, and eventually succumbed to the temptation of abusing my power and corruption

myself.

But I have never wanted it this way. When I came into politics, I wanted to do good, I wanted to

help people, I wanted to be the role model for young people to follow to make this country even

better place that it still is despite of all. I was a patriot. But somewhere along the way I got

disillusioned, and lost hope. I didn’t see way on how to fix it, so I gave in into the system I grew

to despise.

Until today.

Today I was given hope, today I was inspired to do what is right and to finally say enough! I was

inspired to face my own punishment whatever it is and for you to judge me in NEW, just, court

of law, because I will be presenting damning evidence against even the highest court of justice

level.

I became patriot today again.

Now, I don’t know anything about 9/11 being an inside job, but I sure see no problem to look at

it again, since the masked man was willing to pay the ultimate price for it and I’m calling for

new investigation into it immediately. Lets look together how deep this rabbit hole is.
I also want to be very specific and vocal about me not validating masked man’s actions of today.

In just society, you can’t be the jury, judge and executioner.

But again, in the light of the evidence that I personally possess and will be presenting that this

society isn’t exactly just, - which is only a tip of an iceberg that I can personally prove, not the

full extent of corruption and other criminal activity on highest level of government - and the past

heroic actions of the masked man; although I still can’t approve of simply slaughtering people no

matter how evil, no matter how corrupt, the masked man is also no more himself; and I can’t

help but to pardon him for the hope he gave me.

Everything else, I’ll leave for the next government to decide to what should be done, and where

this country should go from here. I’ll leave it to you people to judge, whether I was right or

wrong in this action.

I resign to my position as president of the United States.

God bless Amerika, God bless us all.”

 Linkin Park – Papercut (zwierz remix) 4:28

“It's like I'm paranoid lookin' over my back

It's like a whirlwind inside of my head

It's like I can't stop what I'm hearing within

It's like the face inside is right beneath my skin.”

Tomas’s body was escorted by Gargy and Peter back to his family for a private burial that

happened four days later.

Before that, on the third day after, Violetta received Tomas’s personal explanation of why he did

what he did, which was meant to be disclosed to all - by her.

It started by apologizing to Violetta first, then to the others, for not letting them try to help him in

the first place, but he thought there was no helping him unless he helped himself. He wanted to

live for them, but not at the cost of endangering them. He thought he knew the solution and it

wasn’t supposed to end like this. They were not supposed to get this email in the first place.

“But since you did get it, I’m dead, and I owe you an explanation. I owe you answers that

hopefully bring you peace. There was nothing that you did wrong; there was nothing that you

could have done or say.”

Tomas proceeded to confess everything since the first hallucination in detail. All of it. When,

what, what he thought of it, how he rationalized his actions based on it.
Tomas did his best trying to describe as well as he could what it was like. But even within the

writing itself, his torment became more and more obvious as Tomas increasingly used metaphors

to express himself.

“I kept asking myself – why does it feel like night today? Something in here’s not right today.

Why am I so uptight today? Paranoia’s all I got left…”

Tomas attempted to find the origin of his torment, but in the twohundred-fifty pages where he

confessed his past trauma, going all the way back to when he was just a boy attempting his first

pull-up to give him hope, he failed to identify it with confidence.

“I don’t know what stressed me first, or how the pressure was fed. I just know what it feels like

to have a voice in the back of my head.” He confessed about the DI first appearing in voice.

“Like a face that I hold inside, a face that awakes when I close my eyes, a face that watches

every time I lie, a face that laughs every time I fall. It watches everything!” Then how the DI

showed up “in person”, watching and judging everything that he did.

Then Tomas confessed to losing control of it, the DI taking completely over at times, doing

awful things. Especially when Tomas knew that “action” would take place, confessing to his

developed bloodlust in Detroit.

“So I know that when it’s time to sink or swim, the face inside is here in me, right underneath my

skin.”
The other part of him tried to fight it back, was always on guard to not give in to it, only to

eventually losing control anyway, often finding himself confused after; where he was, what

happened, what was even real…

“It’s like I’m paranoid looking over my back / It’s like a whirlwind inside of my head! / It’s like

I can’t stop what I’m hearing within / It’s like the face inside is right beneath my skin!”

Tomas speculated that it might have all started with what he felt all of his life, no matter what.

That he wasn’t good enough; that he would never really become a man. Inferiority complex.

“I don’t know what set me off first, but I know what I can’t stand. Everybody acts like the fact of

the matter is I can’t add up to what you can.”

Then Tomas hypothesised that he thought it was only his subconscious talking to him, later even

manifesting due to the second chance drug withdrawal side effects.

“Normally, this is all subconscious and autonomous, we don’t even realize it. It’s us, our very

own essence of who we are. I realized that it was as much blessing as a curse for me to see into

myself this way. To really see who I was, who I became.”

Tomas proceeded to rationalize to himself that, “Everybody has a face that they hold inside, a

face that awakes when you close your eyes, a face that watches every time they lie, a face that

laughs every time they fall – it watches everything.”

Adding, “It’s our conscience! Our moral compass that is telling us what is right and what is

wrong! So, you know that when it’s time to sink or swim, that the face inside is watching you

too, right inside your skin.” It almost sounded like a warning.

At the very end, justifying his final actions, Tomas described how desperate he felt when he

realized he was fighting a losing battle against the DI. That he had become too dangerous for him

to try ignoring it.

“The sun goes down, I feel the light betray me, the sun goes down, I feel the light betray me…”

There was no other way. He had to find peace. He had to find the Truth about himself. Whether

he was right, or wrong. He had to do what he had done, and he had to do it alone.

“I love you all. I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me even if I was just paranoid. I know

that I have failed you regardless and caused you pain far worse than I’m worth. But know this, I

have tried my best, I really tried. In my confusion that is more common now than not, I’m still

sure of this. That it is the Truth.”

Linkin Park – Powerless 3:36

“You hid your skeletons when I had shown you mine,

you woke the devil that I thought you'd left behind.

I saw the evidence, the crimson soaking through,

ten thousand promises, ten thousand ways to lose.”

On the fourth day, the funeral took place. It was relatively small, and done in absolute secrecy

and in Slovakia. The president offered the Agency one of his private jets to take them there to

avoid unwanted attention if a US government or public plane was used.

To keep it quiet, only the closest family and the knights actually attended the act of burying.

Then celebration of Tomas’ life happened after in the US. Only members of the Justice and
Truth League got an invitation, along with Tomas’s family, and they all came to honour him.

There was no casket, of course, as Tomas was already buried in Slovakia, but there was his

picture dominating the small shrine that was made. It was a picture of Tomas on top of the

hospital’s roof looking into the distance of downtown Detroit, gazing at the skyline as he often

did to relax. Taken by Helena, actually. He was all smiles, as he must have just turned towards

her noticing she was taking a picture. He looked very happy there.

Whilst Gargy and Peter did their speech first, all of the knights took theirs turns as well – easing

and at the same time adding to the grief of Tomas’s family with their own stories of Tomas.

Afterwards, when most people had already left and Tomas’s family and the knights had fallen

asleep, exhausted from grief, Peter approached the shrine in secrecy.

Looking at the picture. No, staring. Perhaps because of that, he reached the second stage of the

grieving process, Anger overtook him. Anger towards Tomas. Maybe anger would be too strong

a word, but resentment at the very least.

He still blamed himself for what happened, but at the same time, resented Tomas for letting it

happen. Peter felt that it was avoidable, and that Tomas was so close to the life he felt that

Tomas deserved, yet wasted the chance to have it. He couldn’t understand why.

Yes, the letter that Tomas left explaining all made perfect sense. But Peter felt that all it would

have taken was for Tomas to open up and ask for help.

Peter knew what Tomas was about to do, guessed accurately why, and didn’t tell anyone for the

fear of Gargy being forced to kill Tomas because of the promises they both gave to Tomas, and

Violetta’s possible recommendation of it. But he felt that if Tomas had come to them openly,

there would be no need for the “charade” that Peter himself hated so much. It was he who taught
Tomas that it is vital to be open about what you do and how you are when you’re in “public”

service, if for no other sake, than for your own so that you don’t need to doubt your actions and

people can’t guide you with their own inputs. Then, even if you’re wrong, you’re wrong together

and the burden of guilt is spread across many shoulders instead of just one. The guilt he felt now

because of Tomas, Peter felt deeply.

“You hid your skeletons when I show you mine…” Peter resented the fact that he did openly

confess to Tomas his own demons and regrets when it came to that, yet Tomas was unable to do

so, ever. If it wasn’t for Violetta’s intervention to show Tomas’s true nature, there would still be

a lot of people at the Justice and Truth League who would have thought of Tomas as perhaps

useful, but a heartless, dangerous animal.

“You woke the devil that I thought you’d left behind…” He reflected on learning about the

hallucination of the DI and the Detroit’s bloodbath, which he thought Tomas wasn’t capable of

anymore, seeing Tomas only as a broken man suffering with severe PTSD. What Tomas did in

Detroit wasn’t for a higher cause, it was purely out of a lust for blood and killing, although it

wasn’t really him anymore.

“I saw the evidence, the crimson soaking through…”

Peter knew what Tomas was suffering on the inside and hiding it; that the whole “junkie”

narrative wasn’t the full story. He knew what Tomas was preparing to do in Washington, but he

couldn’t see the whole picture of how bad he actually was, he was such a good “actor”.

“…Ten thousand promises, ten thousand ways to lose.” It created a guessing game about Tomas,

in which there were too many ways to make it even worse, leaving him with the only option

Peter saw; to let Tomas try to fix it himself.

But he didn’t fix it, he died doing so. What a waste. Worse, at the very end, and so close after all

that Tomas had been through. The League was over. Helena was bound to become his wife,

surely, and Tomas would have the life he always wanted. They were well hidden; they would

have been rich! All that Tomas had to do was wait this out and then Peter would arrange for

Tomas to leave the country. They would have all left the country eventually to join them, in

groups, so as to avoid drawing attention. They could have been the family they’d now become,

but Tomas would be part of it! His kids would have been part of it! But no, Tomas couldn’t open

up and ask for help or advice. He wouldn’t leave anyone else to make the decision for him, to

judge whether he would be really dangerous to them, or that they would have to “restrain” him

until he got better. Tomas couldn’t do that.

“And you held it all, but you were careless to let it fall. You held it all…And I was by your side,

powerless…”

Peter had to reconcile this within himself. Go in his head with every possible scenario that he

could come up with of what else he could possibly have done, but it always ended in uncertainty

and a low probability of a better result. He did all that he could have done!

This was Tomas fault.

“I watched you fall apart and chased you to the end…”

He resent Tomas, for not letting him to help him, for not opening up to him.

“…I’m left with emptiness that words cannot defend.”

Yet, it wouldn’t change anything about how much he missed him.

Still, the resentment towards Tomas only increased when he remembered all of the sacrifices

he’d made for him along the way. The pain he had to carry.

“You’ll never know what I became because of you…”

What it did to him when he shot the police officers to save him, his own wife leaving him, his,

what he considered “dad”, Matty, sacrificing himself to save Tomas.

And yet, all of that for nothing, Tomas had to throw all of that away because he was too much of

a mystery to be helped. He was too much of a closed book that no one could read. Too many

ways to fail!

“…Ten thousand promises, ten thousand ways to lose.”

There was nothing Peter could do, but to watch.

“And I was at your side, powerless…”

In reality, it was all just his coping mechanism to accept the fact that Tomas was gone. Peter’s

own way to ease his pain a bit.

Once he somewhat got over Tomas’s death, with the help of time, he never expressed anything

else but praise and admiration for Tomas, outside of the common banter when remembering him.

He often referred to Tomas’s death day as the “saddest day in his life”.
 Linking Park – The Messenger 3:01

“When you've suffered enough, and your spirit is breaking,

you're growing desperate from the fight…

Remember, you're loved, and you always will be,

this melody will bring you right back home -

When life leaves us blind, Love keeps us kind.”

Faith was also invited to the celebration of Tomas’ life. By Helena herself; as long as she kept

that it was happening to herself and didn’t disclose that information to the public on her

platform.

More than anything, there were things that she needed to ask her, looking for answers that didn’t

need to be asked.

But, it did her well to hear it from Faith. They even became friends, bound by love for the same

man, sharing their memories of him at first. Helena told Faith about what Tomas was like as her

man, a partner in life, but was jealous that Faith knew Tomas as her “saviour”. Faith told Helena

of her encounters with death, what it felt like being saved by the mysterious “masked man”, her

personal guardian angel. Later, they bonded because of who they were. Not like Tomas would

attach to low-quality women anyway, so there was a lot to admire in each other between

themselves. Each becoming a sort of daughter-in-law to Tomas’s mom.

Peter and Gargy were “better” sons to her and his dad, as Tomas asked and described Gargy in

their personal emails that they received; better brothers to his sister.
In all fairness, Cop, Violetta, Charlotte, and Catherine became son and daughters too, with most

of the holidays since culminating around their home in Nevada where the knights came to visit as

one big family every year. Somehow, Tomas’s presence was still felt. He was living in them. As

much as painful reminders of Tomas they represented to each other at the start, with their

instincts telling them to run, their love for him and each other always brought them back “home”

together each time.

Over time, the pain almost disappeared and only love remained. It was like a balm on a broken

spirit each time they suffered enough and grew desperate from the fight, when life left them

blind. They always came back home. Love kept them kind.

Family is just a word for people that you love. Some are bloodborne, some become family, but

there is truly nothing more important in the world than that.

Truth? The only way to get justice, and only in a just society, families of many, thus the state

itself, can live happily next to each other without preying on each other to get the best for their

own family. Only in a just society can we truly love each other, and only love can keep us kind

to each other.

Love, the most powerful force in the universe, is stronger than hate. That was the ultimate

message, and Tomas was the messenger. All that he did wasn’t because of the hate within him,

but because of the love he felt for all. At least that was what people took from the words of

Tomas’s friends and family, who stepped forward to the people of US to disclose everything they

did and how, for them to be judged just like Tomas intended for himself. There were no

convictions, no condemnation. Tomas became a state hero and the Justice and Truth League

members were called for candidature into elected offices of the USA. Not all rose up to the
challenge or opportunity, but all became “celebrities” and role models for many, continuing what

many considered Tomas’s legacy.

The whole world had a strong reaction to what happened in the US and why. After the former

president presented damning and conclusive evidence of corruption and other criminal or power

abuse activity of many of the senators, along with many in the jurisdiction system in general,

with many more witnesses finding the courage the present their own evidence; reasons behind

Tomas’ actions were widely understood if not accepted by all. The message of hope, better, Just,

and Truthful tomorrow spread across the whole world.

The revolution happened nearly everywhere in the world, one by one, the UK being the first

country to do so after the USA incident. Equally, with many inspired “inside” witnesses coming

forwards despite of presenting damning evidence even against themselves in many cases – that

was connected for large part to the condemned people in US. It was a new wave of patriotism.

A domino that Tomas’ started not even knowing how many pieces will be in the chain. But with

each new day there was many more “dominos” exposed, or found the courage to expose others

even at their own expense.

The US president stepped down, but not before initiating a new investigation into the events of

9/11 that proved Tomas’ suspicions right. Not because it uncovered that it was an inside job, but

because it proved that the original report was largely “incorrect” – or more likely downright lie -

in its conclusions. Since there was no damning evidence found connecting anyone in the

government of that time to the events of 9/11 that would find them directly responsible, no

charges were brought forward. However, the official report was corrected in 47 instances, as

“unexplainable”, - because previous conclusions were either found as a lie, or as misleading; and
due to lack of evidence to confirm that something else was the Truth - leaving the public

convinced that it was a cover up of sorts at the very least. Which in itself was good enough

warning and a proof that Tomas was most likely right; that no-one with that much power as

people in the government should be trusted blindly with anything, nevermind the implications of

bills such as the proposed mandatory chipping, vaccination or social credit score.

Instead, that they should be “guarded” closely in system of absolute transparency in the future –

eventually leading to PiB act of 2025 honouring Tomas, that just as he suggested, banned

Censorship of Public, and enforced full transparency including that of a private life of all people

working in public service. The higher the position, the more watchdog measures taken, allowing

only people of character to be elected into office through their scrutiny.

Immediately after Tomas’ death, some of the Justice and Truth members run the elections and

got elected into newly formed government, whilst forming a new party – The Justice and Truth

party - with Violetta becoming the new president, and were welcomed as the second true

founding fathers and mothers by the large public. Peter and Gargy refused public service

positions due to their violent past; but Charlotte, Helena, Cop, Kupkin and Odlew gladly took the

opportunity. Catherine founded and run independent non-profit Charity that supported victims

and families of those who have fallen on both sides of the insurgency with the help of Peter.

Later on, they expanded their support wider with Patrik and Sataano being their lead specialists

in providing free healthcare.

The world communicated with each other to make a Universal Constitution and a new Bill of

Rights together that finally formed in 2026, just year behind the US, based on Tomas’s pleas.
Censorship and secrecy in general became outlawed. Character, skilfulness, knowledge, and

rational critical thinking became the standards for the merit of a person’s competency.

Opportunity was given based on merit, not skin colour, gender, sexual orientation, religious

beliefs, or political affiliation.

Segregation of nations from under the control of private banks became the top agenda.

Corruption once again became the worse offence outside of direct violence against one’s

character.

Not long ago, statues of white men were being torn down and destroyed. Now, due to an

initiative of Peter and supported by the people, a new one rose up. It was a statue of Tomas

sitting at the very steps of the Washington Monument where he sat, looking towards the Capitol

Building.

In Tomas’s birth town, Liptovsky Mikulas, a statue of “Paid in Blood” holding Lilly in his arms

as he cried into the sky, an image that had become the symbol of heroes, the symbol of personal

sacrifice had been erected too. All paid for by crowdfunding in less than an hour not long after

his death.

Now, it had become a lot more than that; it also become a symbol of love to one another as

human beings. The stranger grieving for another person because he wasn’t able to save her.

There was new hope for the world as a whole that there are people like that out there, and Tomas

had become the messenger of it.

THERE IS HOPE.
 Imagine Dragons – Thunder 3:07

“Just a young gun, with a quick fuse, I was uptight, wanna let loose,

I was dreaming of bigger things and wanna leave my own life behind.

Not a "Yes sir", not a follower - Fit the box fit the mold,

have a seat in the foyer, take a number - I was lightning before the thunder.”

Months passed since Tomas died. Since Gargy refused to take any position of power within the

newly elected government because he wanted to focus on life with Ulrike and within the

“family” circle, he ended up eventually becoming the new ambassador of the former Justice and

Truth League to fill in his time with something he was passionate about.

This mostly consisted of private stories about Tomas. What he was like as a regular person, a

friend. Things that weren’t told yet and were outside of the scrutiny of Tomas’s actions by the

public; things that were personal in nature.

On April 29, what would have been Tomas’s 34th birthday, Gargy made a public appearance that

included a Q&A session at the end.

There was a six-year-old kid that asked him who was this Tomas that he was talking about,

which many in the public found quite amusing. Even Gargy chuckled at it for a moment.

“This just made my day, thank you,” he stated, smiling from ear to ear.

However, somewhere from the crowd sounded: “Murderer!” followed by a loud booing of the

attendees that had started to harass the small group of protesters.

Upon seeing that, Gargy asked the public to leave the people alone, stating, “That is quite right,”
stunning everyone with his statement. For a moment, there was total silence in the audience.

Gargy explained, “No, really, it is a true statement. But, so am I, as are some police officers and

soldiers. Such is the fate of our chosen profession. We defend with our weapon at the hip. We

didn’t hand out candies to poor kids on the streets.’

Oh, that came out the wrong way! Once he realized that the good example sounded like drug

dealers he said, ‘Sorry, guys, I’m no charming speaker.’ Some in the audience chuckled though.

‘But yeah, it’s true. Tomas killed people. That made him a murderer to the families and friends

of his “victims”. As we learned, some were innocent, and the Truth and Justice League has no

intention of hiding that. I have no intention hiding that. So yeah, he was a murderer, as well as he

was a life saver.

‘I dare to say that he saved a lot more lives with his direct action than he took. Improved

countless more with cleaning of the streets from absolute scum and human garbage walking it.

‘Make no mistake; Tomas suffered for each life he took, and the one he couldn’t save.

‘And I’m not talking about it being paid in his blood. I’m talking about the price they needed to

pay with theirs that bothered him.

‘I can guarantee you, he shed tears for the innocent officers he shot on that fateful day, I know

that in my heart. He would have shed tears for any other innocents that we learned about later.

Including the senators that so far came up as “clean”.

‘To those families, of course he would be a murderer, not a hero as we celebrate him here today.

There is no denying that. The world isn’t perfect, nor was Tomas, nor are we.
‘But there was no malicious intent; there was no personal benefit to gain. What Tomas did was a

sacrifice for others. And I don’t mean him ultimately dying for what he believed, I’m talking

about every action that he took, for the most part selflessly; about the heavy price of constant

personal torment that he paid for no real personal gain. I’m talking about that sacrifice.

‘So, absolutely, to some he was a murderer. More even! To some he was the spawn of Satan

himself. We all know about certain things that Tomas did, unspeakable things. But only to those

who deserved no better, believe me on that. Only when you and I would wish those things on

those kinds of people, but wouldn’t have the guts to go through with it, so Tomas did it to deliver

your vengeance at times, justice on others.

‘Yeah, to some he was Satan himself. Yet, to me, he was my best friend.

‘To some he was the most inhumane and insensitive person ever, animal-like, for the lack of

better words. That is, if you could be considered an animal yourself, he would make you feel

what you did to others and worse.

‘To vulnerable people, he was the kindest and most compassionate person you could ever meet.

It was almost like he could feel your personal pain, physical or emotional. Or joy, for that matter,

and be happy for you and with you. Something that is almost impossible for many people

because all they can feel is jealousy instead. That is when you’re selfish, and I don’t think even

his enemies could describe Tomas as selfish.

‘Some would call him one of the bravest men to ever live. I mean, who else would have jumped

out of a skyscraper with a bomb in his hand into a certain death?’ He paused to take a breath.

The audience were still completely silent, hanging onto Gargy’s every word.
‘I used to think that, until I learned that he was just plain dumb,’ Gargy said with a cheeky

smile, obviously bantering.

The crowd laughed audibly.

Gargy said, ‘I learned first-hand that he was scared all of his life. That his bravery was an act.

That when some people would call him the poster boy for toxic masculinity man, because that’s

what we call confident and secure men these days, Tomas was actually the most insecure person

that I ever met. Constantly doubting himself, trying to overcompensate with the macho persona

that he created.

‘In fact, he told me that kids used to laugh at him behind his back in the classroom because of

how lanky he was back then. And I believe he never felt like a “man” since, no matter what.

‘Tomas never felt like a normal man because of the bone structure that he was born with, never

mind being a real hero. He never felt like a success either. More the opposite; and that’s why I

think he developed his inner daemons that were his ultimate demise. Because with all that

pretending to be someone else when he was not, Tomas wasn’t able to deal with the

responsibility or the consequences of his own actions. It hung heavily on his conscience.’ He

took a pause and became visibly emotional.

Gargy said, ‘In my book, THAT’s being a hero. THAT is being brave. You do something that

you feel is absolutely necessary but no one else can do, despite that you yourself are scared just

as much, or disgusted with what has to be done, or because you don’t wish for anyone else to

have to do it and instead you pay the price for it. You sacrifice yourself.’ He had to take another

pause, with tears appearing in his eyes.

Gargy said, ‘My biggest regret is that I know that Tomas considered himself a failure to his very

end. That he thought he was inadequate and failed us all in his incompetence to be the man he

wanted to be, to be a hero. That he possibly turned out wrong, and we would be better off

without him anyway. That he was a burden…’ He had to wipe his tears away and it took him a

while to get his composure back.

Gargy said, ‘Anyway, I’m sure those same kids that laughed at Tomas are watching us right now

as grown people, and they are clapping at his image until they get a nosebleed. Being proud to

personally know him, as I am.’ He paused again to get new breath.

Gargy said, ‘I’m not trying to suggest that they are at fault or anything, they were just kids, and

we know how kids are.’ He pointed at the six-year-old who’d asked the question earlier, and

everyone laughed. ‘Nor is it their fault that Tomas felt that way about his bone structure. I just

wish Tomas was here to see it.’

‘But to finally answer the young man’s question. Tomas didn’t just magically become the man

he did, just like that. He worked hard to improve himself and made himself into what he became.

A real-life hero. This Thunder,’ he said, referencing the Imagine Dragons song “Thunder”,

‘scaring the living…life out of the criminals.’ Good enough, he thought, toning down his

language for the children present.

‘When I first met Tomas, I thought he was a quite violent jerk full of himself. I didn’t see

anything special or commendable. I thought he was just a young gun with a quick fuse. He

looked uptight, like he wanted to let loose. I didn’t know that he was dreaming of bigger things,

wanting to leave his old life behind. This life of being a hotshot. I had to get to know him better

to see past it, and even then, it took a long time to fully see him for what he really was.
‘Tomas was certainly hard to work with at times, let me tell you. He was not a yes man, not a

follower. He did not fit the box, fit the mould. He had a mind of his own. He was not someone

you could tell what to do. One could say he was arrogant even.

‘Tomas was rough around the edges, and seemed like he had the world figured out. He had his

own mission from the start, and we were part of it, not the other way around. We just didn’t

know it yet.

‘But he was right about it, and I’m glad I watched him grow from lightning into thunder!

Changing the world for the better. It seemed impossible. Even to him; yet he managed it

somehow. I really wish he could be here to see that himself. I wish he could have seen that whilst

he was still with us.’

The protesters weren’t having any of it, and finally broke their silence.

One of them shouted: ‘Changing the world for the better?! He was a murderer! He incited

violence on our Democracy and murdered our Senate! What happened on 9/11 was no inside job.

The way he saw the world was nuts! There is still no proof of any of his claims. He was a

straight-up whacko! A white supremacist defending patriarchy! How can anyone celebrate this

bloodthirsty Nazi?! What is wrong with you people?’

Gargy said, ‘You’re right. I did not agree one hundred percent with every one of his beliefs, nor

can I say I’m one hundred percent confident that every one of his actions was right and just. I

thought we already established that. But I can assure you that Tomas had no other agenda but to

seek the truth so he could deliver justice. He didn’t want to be right either; he would have much

rather preferred to find out that he was wrong – about everything. He constantly questioned

everything and everybody, including himself, and wanted nothing more than a new system that
would guarantee that everything and everyone, including him and his actions, could be fully

scrutinized in a free society without censorship. A system that would therefore be hard to corrupt

and would judge and reward people truly based on their merit, rather than for superficial traits

such a gender or skin colour. A fair system. A system that is just, where truth holds the highest

value and importance. A system where politicians truly work in the interest of the people who

elected them, not themselves and their own agenda or the lobbyists that corrupt them.

‘If nothing else, he gave you that much.’

The protester said, ‘He started an even worse government than the last one! Stopped all the

progress we were about to have and put it in reverse, and the evolution we recently achieved –

we’re heading back into the dark ages! Where is the justice you’re talking about?’

Gargy replied, ‘The justice is in the fact that despite that we seem to be on the opposite sides of

our beliefs and we’re in power, you being our opposition, no one will ever silence you, nor

censor you, nor discriminate against you in any way.

‘There will be no indoctrination into thinking our way on any level of society. In fact, only that

of critical thinking and seeking of opposite points of view so we all can see the full picture and

decide based on all available knowledge.

‘We will encourage you to share your thoughts and concerns with us so we can find the truth

together, to be just together.

‘Sure you will! Lies! Racists, bigots!’

Gargy said, ‘You can say whatever you want and we will give it a honest thought – such as

Tomas was a murderer – and if we find it a truthful statement, no matter how uncomfortable but

the truth nevertheless, we will agree with you and never try to hide it.

But our critical thinking will not stop there, and we will try to point to reasons why that could be,

or what else he also was. Although the statement in itself may indeed be factually accurate, it

doesn’t necessarily accurately represent him as a whole. Not even close; and certainly not to

everyone. It depends on who’s judging.’

Tomas was no role model, let’s face it, he had too many issues that although could be

understandable, cannot be excused or ignored. He was a flawed human, and he would like you to

know that. Admittedly, towards his end he wasn’t even sane no more. He lost his sanity

somewhere along his struggle for Justice and Truth for all. But he certainly wasn’t evil at hearth.

He lost it exactly for the reason that he wasn’t evil, and with the actions that he felt that had to be

done, but had and internal struggle within the whole time - that were bringing him towards the

madness - caused him suffering beyond all comprehension. Enough to make one gone mad.

Protesters said, ‘That’s what the neo-Nazis say about Hitler too! “He brought down the

suffocating inflation rate when he first came to power. Gave people jobs.” Won’t change what

he’s done! Won’t change all the death and destruction in the name of so-called justice and truth!’

Gargy said, ‘You’re right, it won’t. But he gave us hope! Finally, we have a majority of people in

the government that represent us all and our interests against those who still hold their reins

above us! Finally, anyone in the government of foul character or lack of integrity has to hide and

pretend to have one. Not the other way around.

‘I have no illusions; it is far from over. The movement for draining the swamp of people of

power that still hold a tight grip on everything via their dirty or dark money has all but just

begun. The struggle for justice and truth has all but just begun. At least this time around, there is

a light at the end of the tunnel.

‘The TRUTH is, how it all ends depends on YOU!’ Gargy said, pointing into the crowd. ‘So,

where do you stand? Was it all for nothing?’

Looking deep into the crowd he lowered his voice and stated, ‘That, only the future will tell, and

YOU will be the deciding factor. Act accordingly.’

End of Part IV

Linkin Park – Waiting for the End 3:51

Linkin Park – Guilty All the Same (ft. Rakim) 5:53

Linkin Park – Powerless (Enferno Remix) 6:07

 ▪ Note from the Author

Thank you for reading my book, valuable reader. I hope you enjoyed it, as well as the other

books preceding this one.

Now that the whole story has reached its climax, I hope that you found satisfaction in it’s

conclusion. If I did my job right, and you used the intended song as your support experience

during your reading to guide you, it must have been a roller-coaster ride of emotions. That was

my intention.

Please know that if some of the conspiracy theories were upsetting to you, it was done on

purpose, so that it will fit the general narrative of the songs’ lyrics and to allow for the

continuation of the story to happen, based on the songs I still left to incorporate into it. Also, to

make interesting and evolving characters in the story so that your opinion on them could change

over time based on what more you have learned about them as they developed. No doubt going

forwards and backwards. We (and the characters in this book) are human, after all, and all are

flawed. Myself included.

The end is open on purpose so you can make up your own mind who the main protagonist was

after all. Tomas might have not been the hero after all; he might have been quite the opposite to

you, and that’s just fine. That’s why even at the very end, there are still two sides to the story, to

his character. There is still opposition to his actions. Because that is exactly how we are in
reality. Someone to somebody, someone else to the next person. At least, in their perception of

us. Only you know who you truly are. That would be one of my intended take-away messages

for you out of this whole story.

My main take-away message for you that I tried to express in this tribute book series, or the only

agenda I had for you, if you will, was that we should scrutinize; scrutinize everything and

everybody.

Critical thinking is the building block of all knowledge and understanding – and the most

important ability that every human should be capable of exercising and taught how to from an

early age. No government law should be taken at face value. If it’s written by the authorities or

the specialists; we shouldn’t automatically assume that it is as good as it gets, and that it must be

in our best interests – it should still be scrutinized by the public, just as every politician should.

Do you really trust anyone so much, that you would be happy for them to make decisions that

will affect your whole way of life and your financial situation – without your knowledge or need

of approval at any point? Anyone at all? I’m sure I know the answer to that for most of you.

Furthermore, I would like for us all to try avoiding absolutes – good or bad, white or black – it is

always a lot more complicated than that, and often only leads to resentment – thus conflict.

(Only I can manage to contradict myself in the very next sentence, but you know what they say:

“Exception makes the rule.” That is my excuse.

I mean, try to make a good, convincing argument why censorship and less transparency could

actually be a good thing – no one ever did, and I have heard it all , most of them.)
At least make some effort to try to understand the other side, whatever it might be. If nothing

else, you will learn their way of thinking and will have a better understanding why they are the

way they are, so that perhaps some common ground could be established instead of never-ending

arguments about different religions, skin colour, gender, or sexual orientation, and thousands of

other reasons that people seem to fight about, claiming it is for a “just” cause and it will make the

world a better place to live in, a more peaceful and just place.

Let me tell you – peace can only be found within the heart of each individual, not the

religion/belief or political system of the masses.

I’m not trying to attack any religion or any belief system or culture that you might identify with,

or your political position. I’m just pointing out that when it comes to the masses, it doesn’t

matter what it stands for. People do as they wish, and then will find excuses to justify their own

actions later - to give any merit to any of the current movements for justice, whatever their

agenda might be. Those who lack understanding and have inability to see from the other’s point

of view, still use it as a reason for their existence.

Those people still wage that war within themselves; those people still see things only in black or

white, good or bad, nothing in between. Worse, some people still hate what is different to them –

for no other reason than that they were told to.

We should always be careful before talking in absolutes, my dear readers!

Since we as humankind seem to have developed a fundamental inability to apologize to anyone,

for anything, I personally don’t hold my breath for anything to change anytime soon, even if we

do realize that we might be the ones that are in the wrong. Human greed and ego know no

bounds – change my mind, please do!

Anyway, this is the only disclosure of my personal side agenda that I had in mind whilst writing

this book series.

If we want justice, we need to know the truth; if we want to know the truth, we need to be able to

scrutinize, challenge - thus, no censorship of opinions can therefore be allowed to happen, for

any reason, so that true transparency allowing the scrutiny to happen can really exist. To

scrutinize means to look at everything from multiple angles, which naturally excludes the

possibility of absolutes to exist. If the absolute still exists and is being used at any level as an

excuse for any action, I can pretty much guarantee you that such an action is neither just, nor is

full Truth being told.

Everything else in this fictional story is just an artificial drama created out of existing problems

in our current society and conspiracy theories that I came across at some point in my life and

tried to use both side where applicable. (Sadly, sometimes there were no contra arguments, but

I’m sure that is only due to my lack of extensive research – and the fact it is a fiction after all so I

didn’t find it absolutely necessary.)

I needed to create the possibility of existence of Dystopian government, and generally dark

world in this story, but not conclusively.

I wanted to create a world (for simplicity to understand) like in DC comic book series, where the

Batman is roaming Gotham City that is full of openly dodgy characters, doing all kinds of crime,

but the biggest fishes/the fattest cats are always pulling the strings behind the scenes unseen by

the public. I wanted the main character to by violent himself so that his transformation into Joker

towards the end was understandable. I wanted to send a clear message that Violence even if the

only option or solution, it always come at heavy price. It’s not something to be proud of or to call
for no matter what evil you try to stop by it. It’s always just the last resort and there is a limit to

how much it can be used before WE ourselves using it - for no matter what “good” - turn

ourselves evil.

It was meant to create food for “thought” content, creating personal traits for the characters along

the way to would make the imperfect – as we all are. If the main character did something that I

personally consider to be a heroic/good action, I wanted to take it all away with his next one, or

to made him say something later that would show that he’s not “all that”. Again, to remind us

that no-one is perfect. Good people can do/say evil/awful things and vice versa. I believe that.

The only question is, how much of “good”, or much “bad” was in the main character in the end -

for you to decide who he really was.

Villain? Hero? For me, it should be a blurred line – by my design.

But of course, my primary focus remained to stay true, as closely as possible, to the lyrics of

the Linkin Park and other artists’ songs along the way, compiling it all into one compelling

story across all four books, whilst hopefully expressing my emotion that I got from each of their

songs for you to experience as well.

Let me tell you, not an easy task!

Because of the number of songs that was immense, 159 in total, to be exact (but who’s

counting?), the amount of lyrics that would generate a storyline was too large for me to

prearrange perfectly into a fully pre-prepared whole storyline to hold all in my head before

writing it all down. Also, due to me writing it only as a hobby and fan-made tribute to Linkin

Park in my spare time, it took me, all in all, five years. So, you can imagine that I had forgotten
many times what my original “agenda” for any of the particular songs was, and in which

direction it would progress the whole storyline in the end to.

I only remembered that the original basic idea was to tell a story of someone who wanted to

become Batman, becoming one, only to find himself changing into a Joker later down the road

due to the very basic nature of vigilante’s work – use of force/violence - that in its essence is

evil. I wanted to played with the idea of how much one can be exposed to, even if used for a

noble cause, before ultimately turning into monster himself due to it.

Twice, or three times, I had to change the whole narrative of the intended endgame because I

realized it wouldn’t make any sense, or that the characters in the book would be forced to act in

such a way that it would be most likely considered bizarre or unexpected, without any prior

backstory or indication of it. Frankly, disappointing to anyone who was rooting for them. I didn’t

want to take that away. The only exception was the main character, Tomas, because the whole

endgame of the full story was for him to gradually decline mentally over time in his struggle for

justice and truth, and for (hopefully) understandable reasons, giving some merit to his past

actions, and his insecurities. Also, because that would leave the end open for you to decide who

he really was. No answer being wrong.

I would like to stress out at this point that it is only a fiction.

I used on purpose some real dates and events mixed with some of the most “popular” conspiracy

theories and other inflammatory material (mainly from the “manosphere”), to give “manly”

(according to manosphere) traits to the main character Tomas, so that he is more believable in his

controversial way of thinking, and the ground to his insecurities - in hopes to attract more
attention to the books, and to get the readers perhaps more emotionally involved (even if it

would be a negative reaction).

But ultimately, it is all fiction, I made it up.

You might ask, why bother? Actually, many people close to me asked me this question along the

way. Granted, it was a massive and ambitious task to accomplish for someone who not only is

just an amateur writer, but isn’t even an active reader of books, as such, so I had no idea what an

actual novel might look like, or in what way, and to what degree of quality it is expected to reach

in order to have a chance to be financially successful.

There lies the point.

My goal or motivation wasn’t financial profit, but rather to create something that would be a real

tribute to the music band – to those songs that reached out to me.

My primary concern was that if Linkin Park themselves would one day got hold of my tribute

book series, instead of thinking “this is pretty cool”, would feel disappointed, or want to distance

themselves from it as much as possible.

I can see how the books could be easily seen as pretty controversial. Outrageous even.

You don’t know the half of it yet. I originally even intended to use the band’s names as the

names for the knights, Chester being Tomas – reflecting upon his own inner struggles and

ultimate sad demise. But then I realized, maybe too many people (and possibly the band

themselves) would be upset with their portrayals in the books (fiction or not); so I opted out to

use my own name instead, so that no-one can really attack me for it. I don’t mind being

portrayed in this way in my own fiction.

It’s fiction.

Rest assured, the real Tomas Cudzis in the real world has his own real insecurities and burdens

on his mind, and is in his own struggle for justice and truth in our society, but it’s not the same

person as portrayed in these books.

However, now that my work on the books is finally done, I also feel like I have contributed with

my two cents to shape society into what I would consider it to be a better place to live in, whilst

making the musical tribute I intended to create, in a format that could reach out there for others

to scrutinize.

Just as it should be, and the way I want it.

The “need” that I felt that I must give back something to Linkin Park after Chester’s passing, is

finally gone and I feel at peace.

Frankly, I’m surprised that it did turn (in my opinion) into quite worth-telling story in the end

myself.

If you also feel like in the end I did a good enough job with this Linkin Park tribute book series, I

would appreciate if you would show me your support and let me know; leave me some feedback!

If you don’t think so, let me know anyway! Leave constructive feedback so I can realize my

shortcomings and improve. There is no such thing as negative feedback. Rip me to shreds if I

deserve it. I don’t want for this tribute to become a stain on Linkin Park’s work; I want it to be a

complement. I can still rework it. Please, help me pay tribute to this band in the best way I can.

Tomas Cudzis
Honour Acknowledgement:

To zwieR.Z., Polish music artist whose remixes of Linkin Park songs I highly

appreciate, and in some cases, maybe even prefer to the original versions. Either

way, they are very well done and are a complement to Linkin Park’s songs.

Thank you!