One, two, three steps later, amidst all of his panic, a part of his brain that he had never known existed registered a change in the environment. Something familiar but undefined gathered behind him. That he had time to deliberate the soundness of his mind did not bode well for his sanity Kael thought.

At the same time, his body was already moving again. Responding to the alarm bells ringing in his head, his subconscious had somehow concluded that evasive maneuvers would be appropriate for the situation. Desperate to not get hit, he threw himself to the side. Dodging left and right projectiles passed him by.

With every successful evasion, they got closer to the exit, to safety. With just four meters left to go, they had almost made it. Kael had just completed a sidestep to his left when then the feeling of danger increased again. Already in motion, Kael had no choice but to commit fully to the movement. Instead of regaining his balance, he dropped into a dive.

There was little room left to maneuver. Thankfully the direction of Kael's sidestep had carried him towards one of the deep, metal industrial dumpsters. Lining his dive roll up so that he would come to rest somewhere behind the barrier of trash and metal was about all he could manage. With no time to care for his landing, he crashed into the wall just as another projectile passed through where he had just been.

Heart racing, he hid behind the dumpster making his form as small as possible to avoid anything sticking out. Hoping that Jason would soon run out of ammo or be struck by lightning, whatever came first. Seconds passed, and the sound of his blood rushing through his ears let up enough for him to hear again. What reached his restored hearing first was laughter that he would not forget for the rest of his life.

He had seen many villains in movies and cartoons as a kid. The typical evil mastermind laughter was practically a staple for any villainous character back then. Although some actors had pretty good versions of it, there was another dimension of quality and impact to the real deal.

“Wahahahaha YES RUN YOU PIG! HIDE LITTLE MOUSE, FOR YOUR END IS NIGH!” The voice was rough and shaking with a mix of rage, hatred, glee, and pleasure, transforming the whole of it into something more than the sum of its parts. Feeling the laugh in both his ears and his soul left him utterly terrified.

The only thing left on his mind was to flee. There was no room left to think about consequences or Green -no, no, his name was Martin, was it not?- anymore. Why that was the moment his brain felt was ideal for contemplating the name of his co-escapee was a mystery to Kael. Instincts had taken over the decision-making process fully at this point. Waiting for his opportunity to escape.

Suddenly, Kael felt that magical something gathering behind him once again. It was quickly followed by another swish and, a black projectile of some kind zipped past over his hiding spot at insane speeds. As the seconds passed, he could still hear the insane Jason as he shot at him. More importantly, he realized that Jason was coming closer and closer. Soon his hiding spot would transform into a trap when Jason reached him.

Waiting for the right timing to act in the downtime between shots, he got ready to run. Swish! That was his go sign. As soon as he heard the projectile pass over his head, he started sprinting towards the exit of the alley. He had timed Jason's firing speed before and knew that he should be safe for at least a second or two before another projectile would be coming his way. Apparently, he had underestimated his enemy.

Right as he left the protections of his dumpster turned shelter, he felt the familiar power gathering behind him, followed by a sneer and Jason's laugh. Time slowed to a crawl. He would get hit, he knew. His plan, and all of his preparations; useless. The timing! He had underestimated his opponent, thought himself better, smarter, than Jason. The hubris.

The only thing left to do was to brace for the impact he was sure would come. There was nothing to do anymore. His mind turned to his family as he awaited his inevitable end. He worried what would happen to Lucy if he died here. Would she ever find out what happened to him? Would she even care?

Maybe this is for the better. At least she has a proper family now. One that would protect her, where she did not have to worry about them getting killed by some sixteen-year-old lunatic in a dirty alley. Maybe this way she doesn't have to find out what a loser her big brother really is. Maybe, maybe he should just give up? Perhaps she would even get something out of this, something to set her up for the future.

Amid the despair, one memory broke through all of the darkness. Guiding him back to safe waters like the bright beacon of a lighthouse in a stormy night. What about that night on the roof? Would he really not have the chance to find out what was going on? Magic was real! His world was finally moving again, was it not? And now he just accepts his fate and drops dead?

Hah! He had bested much worse in his time. Would the secrets of the world, of magic, hidden behind a thick veil of mystery and confidentiality, be forever barred for him? No! He would find out, master the strange forces of nature and regain control over his life.

As if using the moment of epiphany as fule, he felt something change inside him to accommodate his will. In but a moment, he knew, everything had become... More. Energy, the likes he had never felt before, burst out of his heart, flooding his entire body. Suddenly his heart sputtered, stopping pouring energy into his body.

How long the pause was, Kael had no idea, but it felt like an eternity to him, hoping that his chance for a new life had not just died with him. Then he felt his heart shudder and come back to life. Like some kind of diffuse connection, something much bigger than himself began pouring more and more power into him.

His body was running on autopilot, and Kael felt like a spectator in his own body as he watched everything unfold. Then time resumed, and the calm before the storm was over. Before he had a chance to react, he felt something hit his back.

The impact in the center of his back spread to his arms and legs. The energy contained in whatever the projectile was, was so high that he felt his body lifted off the ground. How he was still alive was anyone's guess. Kael thought it might have something to do with the crisscross net of energy over his back, but who knew. As he was flying through the air, the pain arrived, and his vision flickered before darkness took him.