Chapter VI - A Netted Rescue

Plop

Rain? Just yesterday it poured heavily. How is it possible that it already starts again? ... and why ...why do the drops feel so sad?

But somehow it was calming. As if the sky was sharing my agony with me. So calm and cool. The exact opposite of me. My head was roaring like an overheated drive. But I knew it wasn't time to shut down yet.

"No, I do not understand! How stupid can one actually be. I can't believe it. For one day Alex is missing and suddenly something like this happens. How can you possibly trust him?"

I knew that voice. It belonged to Ralf. He's in Markus and Alex's class. And from what I know, they all get along pretty well. I already expected that he wouldn't understand the situation. But Markus must have known that too.

"Calm down! There's no point in getting upset now!" Matthew, another schoolmate from their class, was also present. They always take the later train, which was cancelled due to the events.

Ralf: "If not now, when? When Markus is shredded into thousands of pieces? We're running out of time!"

Matthew: "Yes, I know! But what you're doing is no good either."

Ralf: "Still better than letting it pass over our heads."

I slowly opened my eyes. But the daylight blinded me, so I closed them again immediately.

"Hey, Isa..."

Isa: "Hi. How's my hero?"

"Terrible... Ahh... everything hurts... Haha... but I'm afraid... I deserved that. Hmm."

I tried to stand up.

"Ahhhhhh!"

Isa: "Lie still for now."

"I would like to. But I don't have the time!"

I tried to get up again.

"Ahhhhhhhh!!"

But it was no use. My heart was pounding so hard, as if it was about to jump out.

Isa: "You should start listening to me more."

"I think you're right... uff."

Matthew: "Dude, who's screaming like he just stepped on Lego?"

"Haha, that would be me... "

Matthew: "You have to hide the pain behind a smile."

"Like this?" I painfully tried to bend my lips.

Matthew: "Well, not bad at all!"

"What time is it?"

Isa: "About 10 minutes since your collapse."

Ralf: "7:25, if you want to know exactly." he replied calmly with a certain undertone as he looked at his watch.

"Thank goodness, I was afraid I wouldn't be able to get up in time."

Ralf: "You are not standing yet, Alex! I don't want to believe, that you dare to do something so risky. But even I cannot change the fact that Markus is currently sitting in a driverless, autonomous train."

"I'm sorry, Ralf. I must apologize. I pushed Markus into this."

Ralf: "Tsk... At a steady speed of 80 km/h the train will reach the final station..."

Marcus: "...at about 7:40"

"Marcus!"

Marcus: "Just so we understand each other, I find your action also insane."

"Fair enough..."

Marcus: "Noah was right this morning, when he said that you no longer know your limits once you see the semblance of success."

"...He did?" I made a depressed face.

Marcus: "Anyway, I have something here that might interest you." He handed me my cell phone that I had given him earlier to keep in touch with Isa. A list of the last phone calls was displayed.

Marcus: "While you were lying flat, someone called in under the name NUT. Of course I didn't answer, but Noel told me to tell you about it as soon as you woke up again."

"Thank you, Marcus! I really appreciate it."

Nut? The cheeky bear had added his number to my contacts. I didn't even know he had a number. And Noel knew what to do despite the fact that he had slept during my conversation with him. That made me wonder if Noel picked up on anything yesterday after all. Speaking of Noel, he was talking a bit apart with Lia and Fina.

Marcus: "He doesn't really want to talk to you right now. When this is all over, I think you both have a lot to think about."

"...quite possible."

Marcus: "I wish you the best of luck, Alex."

"Thanks."

But that turned out well. Nut was the ace that I still had up my sleeve. I took my phone and dialed his number.

"23091889... how funny..."

Judith: "Boy, you have surprised me in the last half hour more than all the men in my love life together. Your friend was right, I deeply underestimated you. Who would have thought that behind such a plain-looking guy, is such a fighter? "

"... uh thanks... I'll take that as a compliment."

Ralf: "Alex, you should feel honored."

"Huh?"

Ralf: "That you could gain respect from such a lovely lady."

"Pfff!"

Judith: "Oh, someone flatters me."

Ralf: "It's my pleasure." He bowed down before her.

Judith: "As it looks like there is a true gentleman here after all. And I thought all of your friends were tots. You can take a leaf out of his book." I rolled my eyes.

Judith: "Still, I hope you haven't forgotten our agreement, have you?"

"No, of course not. When this is over, I'm going to turn myself in."

Isa: "What?"

Judith: "Good, good, just that we're on the same page."

"Don't worry, Isa! I won't let myself get down that easily. Ouch!"

Judith: "One more thing, milksop. Try not to die. I need you in one piece."

"...I have no intention of dying."

Isa: "Oh dear... that can't end well."

NUT: "Yo master, what's up? Break a leg, I guess." Everyone looked at me in bewilderment.

"Hey, I told you not to call me that."

NUT: "Oh, that's right. How can I satisfy you today?"

"Choice of words! Choice of words!"

Ralf: "Uhm, who are you talking to?"

Isa: "I would like to know that too."

"...that's a rather long story."

Matthew: "Of course, it is..."

"Nut, listen to me. I need you to do me a favor."

NUT: "Sure thing."

"Teleport me to the terminus."

NUT: "PFFFFFFFFFFFFRRRRRRRRT"

Matthew: "Should I be surprised that the robot voice just delivered a spit take?"

"I'm more surprised that you know what that is."

Ralf: "Oh dear, what have I gotten myself into here? Get to the point!"

NUT: "Are you out of your mind?"

Ralf: "Yes, he is. We are that far."

NUT: "The distance is way too far. To risk that would be complete suicide. You know that teleporting also demands your stamina. If it's out, then... you know... poop, blip, knarks, ächsz, poof."

"Yes, I am aware of that. But I have no choice. It is now the only way to save Markus."

NUT: "Still, I have to advise against it, afterwards you probably won't have the strength to teleport him."

"I will have to take that risk."

NUT: "...I don't know..., the chances of success are under 2%."

"Nut!" Ralf grabbed the phone from my hand.

Ralf: "I don't know what you are and how you work. But if you have the chance to save someone, no matter how small the result turns out to be, you trust in an event that will lead you to a positive solution. Alex may have made a mistake, but he doesn't hesitate to correct it. So I beg you...

LET ME SAVE MY FRIEND

"You heard him, Nut."

NUT: "Take it easy. I was gonna do it anyway."

I was surprised that Nut hadn't even suggested to teleport Markus out of the train early. Not stopping the train wasn't an option for him, which made me suspicious. Also that Nut knew that Markus was on the train was strange, as we had never mentioned it before him. I assumed Nut could follow my steps and actions. But also those of the others? Could it be that Nut intentionally directed things that way. But why?

I began to glow again.

"Give me your hands, Ralf and Matthew. We'll teleport immediately." They gave me their hands.

Matthew: "Can we all beam ourselves at once?"

"Yes, Spock, this is the same way Noel and I came to Nuts Secret Hideout yesterday. Could you maybe help me up?"

Ralf: "Go for it! 3... 2...1..."

"AHHH! Ouch! ...fortunately I will never have to bear children. I don't even want to imagine how much that hurts".

Isa: "Hihi! You seem to be completely back to your old self."

She had to smile. That smile was what I wanted to keep. No matter what it will cost.

"Old for sure. Thank you Isa, for everything! If you hadn't been on the train..."

Isa: "Don't think about it!" She hugged me.

Isa: "Let's not think about all the bad things that could have happened, but instead let's work towards a bright future."

"You...?!"

Isa: "Good luck, Alex! I know you can do it!"

"...I see that you also took something from him. Haha! From my second half..."

Then I had to blink and with the next wink of an eye we arrived at the terminal station.

Matthew: "Crazy Shit! We were just here and now we are there. Wait, or is it the other way around?" Ralf looked at his watch.

Ralf: "We have 10 minutes left! What can we do?"

"...uargh... something's wrong..."

Matthew: "Boy, you look like someone who's digging to Mine Diamonds for 24 hours. Um, not that I know what that looks like."

I ran quickly to the nearest bush.

"Blaaaaargh!"

Ralf: "So much for that."

I felt terrible. Everything was spinning. Breathing was hard for me. But I couldn't stop now. Markus trusted me. The train will be here soon.

"Haha, I would say, it's a shame about the muesli, but I didn't even have any today. Wait... is that...?"

It smelled like blood. I had vomited a huge puddle of blood. Only now did I realize how badly I'd overdone it.

Ralf: "Okay, time out for you! I'll take care of the problem now."

"No, I can still help..."

Ralf: "You already helped enough. Just understand it finally. You should know your own limits before you go helping others. Otherwise you will only become a burden in the end."

Matthew: "Ralf is right. Everything has an end. Only the end has Chuck Norris."

"...Blaaaargh!"

Matthew: "And what can we do without Mr. Hangover?"

Ralf: "We have to find a way to stop the train before it crashes into the building behind us."

Matthew: "We could switch the points so that the train changes tracks. That way we would have more time to stop the wagon."

Ralf: Far too dangerous. Then the train would be in the main network of the railroad system and could possibly collide with other trains. Coordinating that would be almost impossible."

Matthew: "But you said yourself that time is running out. There has to be something we can do."

Ralf looked around. The entire station had meanwhile been cleared by the police. An insane number of troops were present. Everywhere you looked you found a uniform.

The rail of the wild monster led directly to the building. One station clock ticked on the beat of a second. Two lonely lampposts stood on either side of the railtrack. Three people with the will to prevent a disaster.

Matthew: "It isn't particularly smart to end a track directly towards a building. Didn't the architects watch bad action movies back then?"

Ralf: "I got it!"

Matthew: "Huh?"

Ralf: "It's almost so crazy that it can work. No, it will work."

Matthew: "What have you come up with?"

Ralf: "We have a big advantage over the train, that we know..."

Matthew: "And what is that?"

Ralf: "We know how, where and when it will arrive here. And we can make use of that."

Matthew: "And in what way does that help us?"

Ralf: "Ahh... the train, completely driverless and without control, does not behave any differently than a wild animal. What do you do with wild animals that are out of control?"

Matthew: "You catch them...?"

Ralf: "...with a net!"

Matthew: "Uhh... sure... wait... what?"

Ralf: "Do you see the two lamp posts? I'm sure a net can be stretched around them."

Matthew: "Yes... of course. Just so that I understand correctly. You want to fasten a net around the two lamp posts?"

Ralf: "Yes, that's the plan."

Matthew: "And where do you want to find a net that is strong enough to catch a whole train? It's not the year 2004. Any more bright ideas?"

Ralf: "I got a few, yeah! There's just no time to explain them all to you. Find something ropey that we can use. We'll meet again in 5 minutes."

Matthew: "Uhh wait...! Uff, and he's gone. Great. I've heard of all sorts of nets before, but of none that catches trains. And where should I get ropes from now? Am I a spider or what?"

Matthew: "Ropes, ropes, ropes ... arrgh! Stupid, where am I going to find something to tie? At home I always have one there, but here at a train station you'd rather jump on the tracks. And the cops just leave me hanging, ...standing there in their get-up and leaving their dicks hanging! Wait a minute..., that's it!"

Matthew ran over to a policewoman and examined her equipment. He looked at the equipment thoroughly.

Policewoman: "Um, excuse me!"

Matthew: "...that could work..."

Policewoman: "Uhh hey, can I help you with something?"

Matthew: "Yes, actually. May I borrow your belt?"

Policewoman: "Unfortunately I am not allowed to hand over police equipment to others. Especially not to minors. Even though we were told that you have been given special authority by Miss Junks to support us in this operation. Oh, one day I want to be just like Miss Junks. I only had the pleasure of speaking to her once. Oh!"

Matthew: "(what is she talking about?) ...no..."

Policewoman: "You must be something very special to have Miss Junks trust you, don't you?"

Matthew's cheeks turned red.

Matthew: "Me... special? ...I don't know..."

Policewoman: "But hey, you guys try to stop the train, aren't you? That sounds special to me. I'm sure you have a very unique idea."

Matthew: "Yeah... hehe... Me... hehe... special... hehe... idea! Oh right, idea! That's why I need your belt."

Policewoman: "Huh?"

Matthew: "I want you to undress."

Suddenly the policewoman's face was red too.

Policewoman: "WHAT?!"

slap slap

Then Matthew's cheeks were dark red.

Matthew: "Ouch... I think you misunderstood me. I don't need your gear, just the belt. And preferably not just from you."

Policewoman: "I bet you do! Die! Pervert!"

She turned around and tried to get away.

Matthew: "Ahhhh, I have no time for this. Sorry Ralf, I know that's not very gentleman-like!"

Policewoman: "AHHHH!"

Matthew skillfully removed her belt.

Policewoman: "You're crazy. This is sexual harassment!"

Matthew: "Sorry Ma'am! But I need your belt for a net."

Policewoman: "A net? I see. Why didn't you say so straight away?! We still have rope in the car!"

Matthew: "I've been trying...!"

Policewoman: "Don't think you'll get away with such an excuse, you lecher. Wait, I have an idea. You're fond of belts, aren't you..."

crack crack

Policewoman: "I have a black one in Jiu-Jutsu. Would you like to take a look?"

Matthew: "Uh, I'd rather not."

Policewoman: "Hehe. Too late."

Matthew: "swallow... help...

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

"...cough... cough... it's not raining here, I just noticed."

As discussed, both friends met again after five minutes.

Ralf: "I brought rope from the hardware store. Now we can tie the net. Ah, you've already started. Wait, where do all these..."

Matthew: "..."

Ralf looked around.

Ralf: "I better not ask."

Matthew: "Yes, it's better that way... ouch."

They stretched a net of rope and belt over the track and attached it to the two lampposts. On both sides they had one end each to pull it taut.

"Never in a lifetime will that be enough to stop the train." I said to my new friend the bush.

Ralf's idea was, for the time and material available, quite impressive. But never ever will something so cobbled together have more effect than the mysterious force that made me smash entire walls.

Ralf was counting with the help of Markus to slow down the train just enough so that it didn't land in the building. But this seemed a little bit too optimistic to me, since we were dealing with 80 km/h. It was a desperate attempt, born of pressure, to prevent the worst from happening.

"Still better than doing nothing, like me." I thought to myself.

"I have... to... do... Blaaaargh!"

Matthew: "It's coming!"

Ralf: "Get ready!"

The train could be seen in the distance. At any moment it would pass us by and end in an explosive catastrophe. I couldn't do anything about it. I could only watch it. I could only let it get to me. I hated that I was so helpless.

"Cough cough... I can't... I can't do it... I'm so... arrgh... pathetic. Tsk, I don't even have the strength to lift my head upon my own crime. I'm sorry, Markus. You gave me all your trust because you believed in me. Just like Alex. But after I lost my strength I lost all faith in myself. You're right, I'm an idiot. How did I believe I could change something? I'm really good for nothing. I'm a fool! Even though I was big-spitting just now. And now I'm crawling here on the ground like an insect. ...Heh... In the end I won't even be able to keep my promise. Unlike the two of you, who are really true friends. I hope one day you can forgive me for what I'm going to do now."

The pain I felt became unbearable. I laid down on the floor and looked up into the sky. The clouds slowly passed me by.

"I just wonder what you see, that I can't see."

I picked up my cell phone and noticed that the call with Nut was still going on the whole time.

"We got little pointy ears, don't we?"

NUT: "Excuse me master, but I was too curious."

"Curiosity killed the cat... cough... but who am I to tell you."

NUT: "Master, what is the meaning of your last words?"

"I request you to teleport Markus off the train."

NUT: "...even if it could mean your end?"

"Yes... I could never live with being responsible for Markus's death. I could never look Alex in the eye again."

NUT: "And neither will you now! Do you realize that?!"

"Yes, I know what it means to die... cough. I just don't know if I'm ready for it. But Markus certainly is not. Even though he might think he is. So please Nut, don't let me tell you again."

NUT: "It changes a lot."

"Huh?"

NUT: "Alex, I find your decision odd."

"That again? Are you really just a robot? (Wait, did he just call me Alex?)"

NUT: "I can't understand why you give up so easily. How can it be over already? Have you no ambition? Where did your striving to stand against fate go? Didn't you say that no matter what happens, you still want to live your everyday life? How will you do that when you're dead?"

"Nut, I'm not giving up. I would never do that. Because to be honest, giving up is not part of my repertoire. Don't forget that!"

NUT: "Then why?"

"... because it's the right thing to do ... I once learned that from a friend."

NUT: "...you should know something. I don't think you were given this power by chance."

"...huh... what makes you believe that?"

NUT: "I don't know. Actually I should know, because I only consist of numbers. But I really don't know."

"... you are not just made up of numbers, you consist of at least 1% love. I know this because I raised you."

NUT: "..."

"You're truly unbelievable."

NUT: "...Okay, I will do as you wish, master."

"Cough... thank you!"

I looked up at the sky one last time. Then I closed my eyes.

My body began to glow. I felt how I lost more and more weight. It was like a stone turning into a feather. That was really the last bit of strength that was left in me. The last bit of something I didn't understand at all. Why it existed? How it worked? And why it was given to me?

NUT: "Master, the train is starting to lose speed."

"Huh, has Markus pulled the emergency brake already?"

NUT: "No, I'm afraid not. The train is slowing down due to some other influence."

"But how is that possible..."

My brain began to analyze out of reflex.

"And where do you want to find a net that is strong enough to catch a whole train?"

"While you were lying flat, someone called in under the name NUT."

"Markus! You have to get on the train, otherwise we won't be able to stop it."

"I'm not going to put a student on the rails to stop 120 tons at a speed of 80 km/h!"

"I only know when it's time for me to leave the stage!"

"Already on the way!"

...

...

...

Jakob is very familiar with all things technological.

...

...

"No. He didn't... "

The boy suddenly realized the background behind the actions of the person who made him play this game of emotions in the first place. This person, who was so afraid of the force, that he immediately wanted to test it's limits to the last detail and so developed a plan that served to obtain all the necessary information. The thought of being abandoned, only to serve as a pawn and catalyst for chaos, triggered a previously unknown state of mind in the boy.

"That bastard! ...That was his plan all along! ...He used me to buy time! Asshole! ...Making me go through all that trauma just so his friend could run home!"

NUT: "Master...? Your eyes..."

"Jacob hacked himself into the system of the train to stop it! And Noah, that coward, surrendered me to my fate. He didn't utter a single thought, just to avoid being caught. Everyone was buying that from him. Even Judith. Not bad, I'll give you that, bastard!"

The boy's rage awakened an unexpected spike in power. His eyes began to glow poisonous green. The aura sharpened into the sky. He had completely forgotten what had been. The force had taken over him completely.

"Are they gonna make it?"

NUT: "Huh?"

"You're a computer, ain't you? Tell me do they make it?"

NUT: "Despite the contribution of Ralf and Matthew, the train will derail in 90% of all possible scenarios."

"Good, that's enough! You have to teleport Markus out of the train as soon as he pulls the emergency brake."

NUT: "Yes?"

"And me you have to take to Jakob. I need to know who's behind all this!"

NUT: "Do you know how long the distance is? You'll never survive it."

"And you won't survive me if you hesitate! Do you understand me?!"

NUT: "Yes, of course... master."