An Act of Chivalry (Sander Sides)

Chapter Twenty

The lights in the restaurant glowed a faint orange, creating a warm, entrancing vibe to the room. Music flowed through the building, hitting the glass window Thomas sat by and causing the glass to hum softly. Lunch plans had been canceled thanks to an overbearing amount of work, but that didn't stop the group from forcing Thomas to join them later on. Remy also tagged along, favoring the autumn weather and dark night over daytime.

Many people left Washington DC, but many also stayed. Due to the bridge explosion, many refused to go, feeling safer with the "Sander Sides" around. No one had the heart to tell them otherwise. Anyway, it was the remaining population alone that kept the restaurant open.

"Yo Tom!" Remy snapped. I jumped back into focus, letting my head drift away from the window. "When was the last time you got out of that building? You look like you just saw the sunset for the first time." My companion sipped on his drink, clicking his tongue afterward. "Ah, seasonal depression."

Joan giggled at the officer's observation, covering his mouth with their sleeve as they tried not to spit their drink over the table. "Seasonal depression?" Talyn repeated, raising a brow.

"Yup bitches, cold and creamy like my heart."

I would've protested, calling Remy a teddy bear without question, but lucky for him the waitress came a moment later. "Oh my, a full house! What can I be getting you all tonight?" The waitress smiled genuinely. I already liked this person.

We passed her our menus, telling her our order as we did so. The fancy attire didn't fool us, because the first thing we asked for was a medium sized stuffed crust pizza. The pizza was something we'd all share, unlike our individual meals. "Will that be all?" The waitress cocked her head to the side, causing her ponytail to drift to the side as well. "Nah, thank you though." 

The waitress nodded, "Okay, please be patient with our chefs today, some people are out of work for the week. The bridge has sent everyone through a loop." The girl turned to leave but paused, turning back around to face me. "Are you Thomas Sanders?" They asked. I smiled in response, nodding yes as I did so. 

The smile on her face grew and the young adult pulled me into a sudden hug. I returned the quick hug and pulled away soon after, "What was that for?" I asked, "I don't mean that in a rude way though sorry-"

"Oh no, I understand. During the bridge incident, my um, my parents said you saved them...Thank you." 

I got to my feet and pulled the waitress into another hug, "It's no problem," I chuckled. The waitress nodded, pulling away and heading to the kitchen. "Tell the sides I said hi." 

With that the waitress was gone, leaving me to fall back into my seat. I'll tell them when I get the chance.

-----

"Beep! Beep! Beep!" An alarm echoed through the large room, halting me mid-swing. I was in the middle of a fencing duel when the siren blared, making my obvious grown impossible to hear. Both the officer and I took off our hear gear simultaneously, throwing them to the side carelessly. The light filling to room periodically was red, meaning code red. I shared a glance with the officer before hanging my sword and fencing gear.

By the time the officer had her gear off, I was already sprinting down the hall to find Thomas. The noise blasted in my ears, leaving white noise in my ears and unease growing in the pit of my stomach. 

"Thomas!" I called through my earpiece.

Thomas replied instantly, "Roman, find Virgil and get to the central lab. I'll meet you there. make an official announcement, we'll need a breach."

"On it!" I responded, already contacting Valory. The device responded immediately, speaking through my watch, "Yes Roman?" "Find Thomas's coordinates and air an officer breach to his position, we've got a problem."

The device was quiet for a few seconds, spirling a moment before it finished my request. "Request aired," As the device finished its statement a notice echoed through the building as I requested. "Roman, coordinates have bee located, would you like a route?" I turned a sharp corner, starting down the stairs as she spoke. "No, first locate Virgil. He should be in the building."

The device paused another moment, doing a radio search as I walked. "Virgil Black can be found on the third floor, in the break room." With that in mind, I jumped down the center of the stairwell, using it as a quicker route to reach floor three. I would've taken the elevator but I honestly thought he'd be on the next floor down, not floor three. "Thanks, Valory, prepare for handheld Gps."

"Of course sir."

I slowed myself down to a hover and jumped over the light green railing, landing on the concrete staircase and bolting for the third-floor entrance.

The room was a mess occupied by lights flashing, a blaring siren, and rushing officers. Virgil must be stressing the hell out right now. With that in mind, I began pushing through the hall, slowly making my way to the "Break" room. However, It probably didn't look like a break room now. "Virgil!" I called when I entered the room, but the siren catastrophy left me on mute.

Someone shouted beside me. I wasn't sure what they said, but when I turned I found Virgil rushing to my side.

-----

The break room was so loud I thought it'd shatter. Safe to say, I was uncomfortable. When I spotted Roman in the crowd I was quick to call his name and rush to his side. The prince was shouting, but I couldn't hear him. That only reminded me of the noise, and the noise only freaked me out, and when I freak out I-

I took a deep breath in a desperate attempt to clear my thoughts. My eyes shot across the room to the quickest exit that came to mind, the wall exit. The room was finally starting to clear but the hall would be just as bad if not worse. So grabbing Roman's hand, I pulled him with me through the crowd and towards the other side of the room. I crouched low when the cost was clear, pressing a button under the couch and watching the wall open before us.

We jumped out before the wall could close again and began to fall, fall, fall until I fell through the ground and bounced back up like a bob in the water. Roman was quick to aid me, grabbing me by the hand and lifting me out of the two-dimensional dimension.

"Valory," I called, lifting my watch closer to my face. 

"Yes, Virgil?"

"Please send my motorcycle here asap."

"Of course." 

Roman smiled at that, bouncing with excitement. "Finally! You never let me ride that thing!" The hero added. "Yeah, usually YOU don't need it. By the time you hit the ground your already their your highness."

Tires approached from behind me and soon enough it screeched to a halt beside me. I would never admit it out loud but I loved this thing. The motorcycle was black, grey, and had dark purple tires. The engine roared with excitement and the sun bouncing off it was pure gold. It had bulletproof glass shielding me in the front, a feature that came in handy a good few times.

With a swing of my leg and the push of the other, I was on it and ready to go. I waited for Roman, but the hero was to busy staring at the machine to notice. "You getting on or what?" I questioned. The prince broke out of his thoughts, nodding quickly and taking a seat behind me.

He wrapped his arms around me and I roared the motor before speeding off. Buildings began to fly by and I could see our reflections in the windows. It was nice, and despite the adrenaline I always felt, it was a good thrill. A thrill I'd gladly do a hundred times over. 

I think the person smiling behind me made it better. 

It didn't take long to get there, the sound of gunshots made the location evident. It was hard to hear with the wind rushing past us but Thomas clicked on. "Virgil, where are you?" I couldn't respond because I couldn't let go of the handle bars. With this in mind, I only went faster. The bike drifted onto another street and I could see the police cars in the distance.

"Virgil, you should slow down!" Roman shouted, apparently he didn't know my vehicle like I did. Rolling my eyes I ran us toward the cars. Using my thumb to flicked open a fake ashtray, I pressed a button hidden underneath. The button sent us flying over the other vehicles and we landed with little resistance onto the other side.

The moment the motorcycle was set in place, a stand automatically came out from its side. I went to get off it and lean it to the side but a pair of shaken arms held me firmly in place. "Ro, you can let go now."