Slow and Speedy Win the Fight

106. Rescue

Sheldon

It wasn't actually Reynard's face but a screen showing his face.

At least, it used to be.

The pile of metal now sat on the floor and I had a small box in my hands that blinked softly. I was honestly disappointed that they didn't put more effort and sent poor quality robots after me. The robot didn't even have functioning legs and just had wheels and arms. Then they attached a poor-quality tracker on it too? Reynard just wanted to insult me or give me a temporary scare. Maybe both.

I immediately grabbed a screwdriver from my pocket, quickly unscrewed the tracking device and removed a wire before screwing it back and throwing it into a ground vent. This won't stop him for long but it would make him question what happened to his toy.

I scanned my surroundings and saw that the door in front of me had a lock. Too obvious.

I looked at the duct above me and I rolled one of my shoulders. I wasn't even sure what I was searching for but I knew that I didn't want to be caught. When in doubt, crawl in the air ducts.

I made sure the cloth of my costume covered my face tight enough so I wouldn't be inhaling more dust than air.

The ducts of the building were old and filthy. They aren't even meant to hold the weight of a 16-year-old teenager but I was doing it anyway since I rather not have to break down every door I came across.

Every inch forward was filled with dust and only my sense of touch could help me navigate through the ducts.

At first, I was aimlessly crawling through the vents but the more I crawled, the more I heard a low hum. Eventually, that hum turned into distinct singing. I mean, I think it was singing.

"Hey girl, you're my chammak challo!"

The distinct sound of Rudra attempting to sing echoed through the ducts and I managed to wriggle my way to the vent to have a peak of the performance.

Rudra danced in the middle of what looked like a cleared-out office and the door had a small window with bars. There was a small bed in the corner and as Rudra danced, he inched closer to the door as if his eyes were fixated on someone.

"Could you at least get a fan so my hair can dramatically flow in the wind?" Rudra asked whoever was on the other side of the door. "It isn't Bollywood if I don't have that while dancing. Or the dramatic replays and jump cuts but that's harder to do than getting a fan."

There was a low sound of a voice but I couldn't make out any of what the person was saying. All I could tell from the voice was that it sounded almost annoyed as it was soon followed by a loud clank sound.

"Oh, come on. You're not even trying. A metal tray isn't an adequate fan," Rudra said.

Before any response could be given from what I assumed was a guard, the warped sound of pressurized air being released and feet hitting the ground made Rudra go silent. His eyes were focused on whatever was happening on the other side of the bars and he gave an almost pouty frown.

"How are you holding up? I hope the meal was enough because I'm not getting more." Reynard's voice echoed through to the vent and it took me all my self-control to keep myself from revealing my location and fighting him.

"Not like I want more anyway. The food isn't properly seasoned," Rudra spat back.

"I'll speak with the chef about it. I'm so sorry that your hotel stay hasn't been going as expected." His tone dripped with sarcasm.

I listened to the conversation intensely as I unscrewed the bolts to the grate as quietly as possible.

"Haresa will come for me any second now!" Rudra grabbed the bars and shook them almost dramatically. "She'd never let me stay trapped here."

"Ahhh, classic." Reynard cleared his throat. "We'll see how the hero fares after fighting Carabao. Speaking Haresa, where's the tagalong that came with them?"

"I didn't see Sheldon yet boss," the guard said.

Reynard sighed. "He should come. His new boyfriend is trapped here even though he doesn't actually have the glasses. Unless you want to finally confess."

"I don't have them, you gave me a new change of clothes and nothing was in the pockets, you know what." Rudra sounded really irritated as he trudged back to the bed and lay in it. "I don't have anything on me and I haven't seen Sheldon since the night of the school dance."

"Oh, he told me all about that," Reynard said. "Not long after your fight, he came crying into my arms."

Rudra brought his knees to his chest and moved his head to the side as if to hide his face in the pillow. "You know?"

"Of course I do. I also know how not to be transphobic."

There was a tsk from the guard.

"This is enough yapping. He's not here yet so I'll go check where else he could be," Reynard said. "He could be lost for all I know."

There was a clink and something small rolled on the ground toward Rudra.

"A present, from your hero."

It looked like one of the bracelets that we were required to wear for school. Rudra only stared at it with empty eyes and there was some laughter. After everything died down for a few seconds, I kicked the grate open. The metal rattled on the ground and my feet were the next thing to hit the ground.

Rudra watched me with a hopeful glee and jumped off the bed.

"Sheldon!" He exclaimed. "You came for me!"

His arms were stretched out to give me a hug but I stopped him with a glare.

"Correction. I came for Reynard."