Precedent

Chapter Five

The brutes approach me. I try to decide which one is the biggest threat. The middle guy was a bit pudgy, so he has extra cushion to protect him.

I mark the guy on the right as my target. He isn't the biggest, but looks like a threat. I don't know why. I've learned though that, contrary to popular belief, the person in the middle is never the biggest threat. The person in the middle tends to be the one in charge. The ones on the end are body guards.

I somersault across the ground to the end guy. When I pop up, I nail him in the place the sun doesn't shine. He howls with pain.

Before the other two can react, I lash out and do a one-two punch the middle guy in the face. I reach past the middle guy and kick the left end guy in the stomach. He doubles over spontaneously.

The guy I slammed in between the legs suddenly grabs me from behind. I snap my elbow back into his face. I hear a crack. His exclamation of pain is my confirmation I broke his nose.

I duck under the guy's arm, which he has bent back towards his face. I kick one of the other guys' legs out from under him. He crashes to the ground. I bend over and press down on his carotid artery. I know how to do it because the R.A.C.O.'s central circuit is located near there. If you press down hard enough, their guns turn off.

I pin the last guy to the side of the building.

To the girl, I call out," Get out of here! Get help!" She scampers away. I hope she actually does bring help. I've seen civilians abandon us, even when we protect them, so they can stay safe.

"Who are you?" I demand. The guy I have pinned spits at my feet. I bring my knee up into his ribs. I am used to fighting mechanical R.A.C.O.'s, so I slam him harder than I should. He groans.

"Who are you," I repeat through gritted teeth.

"Brent Garrison," he admitted.

"What's your talent?" I ask. If he's an inventor, I might have found the Originator.

"I can play football better than some pros," Brent says.

"And...do you have the brains to create killer automatons?" I press.

"According to my teachers, no." He frowns. "Why are you asking a question like that?"

My insides deflated after the revelation that Brent isn't the Originator. I should've known I wouldn't find him on my second day.

"Well, from where I'm standing, you look like you're on a very dark path." He snorts.

"Whatever."

"So...you've been attacking girls in alleyways?"

"Obviously."

"When campus security gets here, you're going to confess," I tell him. Brent smirks.

"How do you know I'll stay?"

"Because I'm going to tie you lot up," I retort. I take off his belt and tie his ankles to his wrists. I take off both his buddies' belts and use them to tie them both up.

"See ya!" I call cheerily.

I call campus security in the lobby of Venus and my building. Then I proceeded to go up to our floor.

"What took so long?" Venus exclaims when I open the door. She runs over to me. "I thought something might've happened."

"Something did," I tell her. I walk past her and set the cold pizza down on the table. I get two plates out.

"You want pepperoni, right?" I ask.

"Oh! Don't do this!" she cries. "Tell me!" I laugh.

"First pizza and TV. Then we talk about what happened." She huffs, but grabs her plate. She turns on the television.