Sigma/Star

Chapter 71: Enter Beijing Part 4

Porter glanced over his shoulder, finally giving in to Chase's demands for attention, and saw the two soldiers approaching. They had now drawn their guns out, pointing them ahead and yelling at anyone in their way. The download was nearly finishing, but, as was obvious in the adjective, wasn't completed. Nearly finished just wasn't good enough. The guards obviously wouldn't stop and wait for Porter to complete his obviously illegal actions.

Chase was now violently shaking his partner as panic set in to his brain. "What do we do? What do we do?!"

"We...we..." Porter scanned the area around him. They were caught between two bookcases, with nothing but a wall at the end. Closer to the ceiling on that wall was a window, one that was certainly large enough to escape through, but it was much too high. You'd have to be on top of one of the shelves to reach it... "I have an idea." The youth yanked the storage device out, not caring about its ninety-nine per cent completion. That would have to do, he thought.

"Ok so what's the idea?" Chase's teeth were almost chattering in his fusion of excitement and fear.

"Follow my lead and really hope this works." Porter looked at the soldiers as they were closing the final few metres. He felt a very familiar tingle running through his body, a surge that tried to take over his mind and wrestle away his consciousness. It was a power he had tried to control, to gain access to in his training with Mr. Shotuku, but it always came out best in times of need. This certainly qualified as one of those times.

Sparks shot out of Porter's fingertips, little tiny blue ones. The electric current flew down to his feet, rippling through his toes before a burst of electricity sprung out around the boy's legs. With a surge of enhanced energy, he leaped halfway up the side of the metallic bookcase, then sprung off again and flipped through the air, landing his somersault on top of the opposite shelf. And then he ran. Sprinted really, with leaving an electrical trail in his wake.

Chase was mystified but certainly couldn't be shown up by the lesser Porter. His own feet were suddenly engulfed in flames, and he too shot up, following a similar path to the pilot. He landed a bit off balance atop the bookshelf but was still out of the danger of being caught by the twin guards. Chase stood proudly for a moment, basking in his success at performing such a feet, before he noticed his feet were beginning to melt into the metal surface of the bookcase.

Porter was already rushing to the window, mentally preparing himself for the jump he had to take. He checked backwards to see Chase yanking his feet out of the holes they had burned and starting to catch up. Porter put his hands up in front of his face as he made the jump, feet first, towards the window, crashing straight through the glass. He felt the fragments travelling up his body. They seemed to slow down as they passed his face, nearly coming to a halt in front of him, leaving nothing but his pounding heartbeat.

A couple of tiny pieces brushed by, cutting little red lines along Porter's arms. One chunk caught deep in the skin, ripping along the forearm and shearing a deep cut into Porter, sending searing pain shooting through the rest of his body. He bit his lip to keep from yelping, but he was already twisting in reaction, and he slammed down onto the ground, tumbling around and taking a battering across his body.

The pilot struggled to get back to his feet, his left arm unable to sustain any pressure with the new slice across the muscles. While it wasn't bleeding profusely, it was still a major cut, one that would need stitches eventually if it were to heal properly. For now though, Porter had to find a way to get up, his bruised legs unwilling to move properly.

Chase hit the ground ahead of Porter, his jump having been unbridled without a window to crash through. He sprung right back up again, ready to take off down the road but then stopped, checking around for where Porter had gone. It took a moment, but the hothead finally managed to find his friend struggling to move, lying on the ground.