I.S.E.K.A.I: the story of a truck driver

"The truck driver yawned heartily. "... I don't feel like getting up yet." Dreamily, he looked around. His apartment was still cluttered with boxes and clothes and trash littered the floor. Annoyed, he turned off the alarm and dragged himself to his feet. His first steps led him to the refrigerator, as they did every morning. Although he knew he didn't have much food at home, he opened it anyway. He only found some bread and a slice of sausage; he couldn't use the cheese anymore because it was already moldy. He made a makeshift sandwich and trudged to the closet. When he arrived, he remembered that he had actually wanted to do laundry yesterday. But he had fallen asleep in front of the TV again and hadn't been able to do it. In the closet, he only found a pair of already-worn pants and a Hawaiian shirt, which he put on angrily. While brushing his teeth, some toothpaste dripped onto his shirt, which he cursed and then tried to remove with water as best he could. Then he headed outside, grabbed his sandwich, and he was off. His beloved truck was parked in the parking lot in front of the house, which he had been using for the past three years to deliver packages for different companies. As he got in, he took a bite of his sandwich and announced through the truck's radio with a full mouth, "The truck driver is on his way, how many packages are there to deliver today?" A slightly annoyed voice came out of the speaker, "I can't believe after all this time you still come late, I mean, the truck is right in front of your house." The truck driver, who was getting used to this greeting by now, chuckled, "I may be unpunctual, but at least my packages are always delivered on time." He heard a barely audible sigh through the speakers, "Then get going already and keep your arrogant promises!" The truck driver grinned even more, "You don't have to ask me, it's just my job." With those words, he started the engine and turned on the GPS. The different stops he had to make were marked with red dots on the screen. He was amazed, "Looks like it's busy again today." And then he quickly set off. His route led him through the city center and into the outer districts. Gradually, the traffic thinned out and he saw fewer and fewer people walking on the sidewalk. He was getting closer and closer to the red dot on the GPS. Then the voice came over the radio again, "Hurry up, the deadline is almost up." He replied with a hint of nervousness, "Don't worry, the package will be delivered, don't rush me, I'll be there soon." In that moment, he ran over a child who was crossing the street alone. He stopped immediately and looked through the windshield. It was lying in front of him on the asphalt and didn't move anymore. He quickly looked around and wiped his forehead with his hand. A quick glance at the GPS and he saw the red dot slowly fading. The radio was still in his hand: "The package has been successfully delivered." His eyes darted left and right, there seemed to be no one around. He opened the driver's door and ran to the back compartment of the truck. He pulled out a bag from the cargo area and bagged the boy, throwing him into the storage compartment. He got back in and announced, "The package is packaged, I'm now heading to the next station." 'That was quick...' thought the truck driver '...and the next packages are also nearby, it will be a relaxed day, maybe I can even make it to the bar.'
Enthusiastic about the idea, he continued his journey. The rest of the trip went smoothly, just as he had imagined it. When the last child was run over and the last red dot on the GPS screen slowly disappeared, he picked up the microphone from the radio and announced, "The last package has been delivered, I will just quickly pack it up and then make my way to the organization."

Chapter 1 Emergency Mission

"Not so fast..." came the voice from the radio, "...we just received an emergency mission, pack the package quickly and follow the blue target on the screen!" The truck driver sighed, "Okay, but I hope this emergency mission is as quick as the name suggests, I planned to go to the bar tonight." Disappointed, the other end of the radio said, "Do I need to remind you how important your job is, you're not here to have fun and even you should have realized by now that an emergency mission never means anything good. So stop joking around and get going." The truck driver muttered something to himself and then opened the driver's door to pack up the child. "She's right," he thought to himself, "I should hurry." He sat back behind the wheel and made his way to the blue target with increased speed. The longer he drove, the more he dreaded it. Twilight had already set in. His route took him from the surrounding areas of the city back to the city center, where nightlife is already slowly awakening. Accordingly, many people were out and about, visiting street markets, small restaurants, or karaoke bars. Nervously, he scratched his head, "This could get interesting," he thought to himself, "emergency missions at this late hour never bode well." He drove past various clubs and the large screens at a large square blinded him terribly. Now that he had passed them, he entered a residential area in the middle of the city center. The package must be on this street. Nearby, he spotted a car that was just pulling into an empty parking lot and coming to a stop. A man and a woman got out of the front doors, and the last door opened only hesitantly. A little girl emerged. The truck driver knew what to do, but that also meant that there would be no more bar night tonight. He pressed the red button on the radio. "Damn, which code was that again?" he pondered. He flipped down his visor and stared at the paper. One glance and he had the information he needed. He stared at the GPS and realized he had no time. As he transmitted Code 4 through the microphone, he was already driving his truck toward the child. The impact was quick but hard. He had hit the little girl and the car full force. The child's parents stood in shock in front of their destroyed car and did not move. The truck driver quickly announced over the radio, "Package has been delivered, I need assistance. Until you arrive, I will execute the routine." He got out, and his calm expression suddenly disappeared. His face now showed the image of shock. That's exactly what someone should look like who just ran over a child. After a few seconds of shock, he ran towards the child. It lay motionless on the ground, and the first thing the truck driver did was to check if it was still alive by checking for pulse and breathing. He immediately called the child's parents over and asked:"Can one of you provide first aid?" The parents snapped out of their shock and ran towards him. They declined his request and accused him of killing their child. He quickly dialed a number on his phone and handed it to the father: "Describe the accident to the police and request an ambulance," he said desperately. The man reluctantly followed his instructions. Shortly after, a police car and then an ambulance arrived. The parents insisted on riding with their daughter in the ambulance. The truck driver and the police officers were left behind; they had arrested him and promised the parents to take him to the station for further questioning. Already sitting in the police car was a man who looked just like the person on his name tag. The officer driving congratulated him: "Good job T, you seem to have learned a lot in the short time you've been with us." The truck driver replied: "I've been here for almost a year now. It feels like an eternity to me." The police officers chuckled at that: "You can just accept our praise, we've been around for quite a while. Now get going, you probably have work to do." The truck driver yawned and wished the officers a good evening, took off his name tag and threw on a police uniform. He got out of the police car and went back to his truck. Since he had driven his truck into the car, more and more gawkers had come to see what had happened. More police cars rolled up and secured the accident site, while the truck driver made his way to the organization. The truck had not suffered much damage in the accident, so the trip to the organization was not difficult. Upon arriving, the bright lights of the display boards and the advertising for manga and anime merchandise greeted him from afar. Exhausted from the long day, the truck driver greeted the gatekeeper. The gatekeeper simply nodded in greeting and opened the gate. His further path led him to the storage station, where he unloaded the bags that had accumulated on the truck's loading platform. The storage unit took the bags from him and thanked him for his good work. He looked at the clock and cursed: "Damn it, I won't make it to the bar with the others again." After he had finished that, he drove his truck to the organization's workshop, where the mechanic greeted him: "Good evening T, you've had another long day." "Yeah, go ahead and make fun of me, today could have been a completely normal day and I could have made it to the bar for once, if only there hadn't been that stupid rush job." She smiled at that: "Yes, the damage looks like a rush job, but don't worry, I'll have it fixed by tomorrow. Here, you've earned this now." She quickly fetched a non-alcoholic beer from the garage: "I can only offer you this since I can't drink anything real at work." The truck driver was quite surprised: "Thank you, I needed that, you're the best." The mechanic played off her embarrassment and said goodbye: "Get home and get some rest, there will probably be just as much to do tomorrow." He opened his non-alcoholic beer and realized that his stomach was rumbling terribly. He decided to get something from a roadside stand. He chose a bowl of ramen, which he ate right on the spot. Well-fed, he made his way home, taking the bus. When he arrived home, he collapsed exhausted onto his couch and fell asleep immediately.