B.O.N.D.E.D.

3. Nestor: Time Part 3

Then the ticking stopped.

Nestor didn't care for the dimmed light. Nor did he care for the neon route. All he wanted now, was the TRUTH.

"Why didn't you dodge?" He asked Ernest.

"What...?" Ernest was still confused by his brush against danger and the sudden dimming of light.

"You used your right arm to defend your left arm, while adding Bonding Energy on it. Why didn't you dodge the bullet!? Wouldn't that be far more efficient than adding on energy and blocking it with your other hand?" And why did your movement look so familiar? He wanted to add, but in the end, chose not to.

"Oh... I'm just kind of used to doing that. It's what my teacher taught me."

Nestor paused. He spoke softly, "Who's your teacher?"

"You probably don't know her... she's just a student at CIB— a very good one. She taught me a lot about close combat."

He was absolutely certain that there couldn't be another young Bonder with a similar fighting style in California. This technique is audacious to the point of foolishness, and can only originate from one person, a monster who truly has the ability to utilize it-

"Chennie!" Nestor said, "You know Chennie?"

"Who?" Ernest was confused, but soon realized what he meant, "Oh, do you mean Chennama? Chennama Thulvaar?"

Nestor just realized that he had addressed someone's teacher with a childhood nickname, but  he was too shocked to care anyways.

Of course CIB is just a disguise built on the ashes of the Academy. He had been too busy ignoring all the information thrown in his face, too busy running away from his past to realize such an obvious fact.

Running away from his past. So that was what he had been doing.

Tick tock tick tock tick tock.

It returned.

"Ummm... Hey Sherlock, what are we supposed to do now?" Owen asked Nestor, waving his arms around to get his attention.

Nestor zapped out of his thoughts. Owen Robinson again. That boy always seemed to be able to interrupt at the absolute worst moment.

"Follow the route, it will lead to the next clue," he said, then turned to Ernest, "You have to stay here though, that tile needs to be pressed down."

Ernest shrugged and agreed.

He took the lead. The others staggered behind him. The route highlighted the exact tiles that could be stepped on without triggering the bullets. If they weren't careful enough, they still had the chance of being targeted by those deadly little plastic balls.

Tick tock tick tock.

As he walked, thoughts began to take shape in his mind again.

The answer of his question has always been the same: back, that was where he planned to go. Back to the world of Bonding.

The route led them up to a wall.

He also realized what the ticking noises had been telling him to do.

They exchanged glances. Owen raised his hand, "Ummm... this looks really suspicious..."

    "Trap door," Nestor said without much thinking.

Tick tock tick tock.

Nestor pushed the wall. A door of the same color as the wall, cleverly disguised as a part of the wall, was pushed open.