Dark, gloomy alleyways. Sky covered with gray clouds. The only sound that could be heard was the quiet rustle of a cat hunting a mouse.

Just before the cat could pounce, it broke its stance and looked up. After staring for a brief moment, it bolted towards the nearest trash can.

For a brief moment, everything was silent.

Suddenly, a streak of lighting shot through the alley, sending trash cans flying in every direction. Just as fast as it appeared, the lighting was gone, leaving behind a ferocious thunderclap.

After a few more moments, the cat reappeared from one of the tossed bins. It jumped onto the ground, shook, and began to look for its next prey.

——

Savior: Original Story by OneSevenEight

Episode: Framed Perspective - Part 13

——

“Oh, look who’s finally awake. How was your nap?”

“Drop the knife.”

“Or what?”

Charlie closed his eyes and grinned from ear to ear.

“Or this.”

In the blink of an eye, Charlie sunk his fist into Max’s gut, sending him flying back into the ground. After the quick knockdown, Charlie turned his attention to Anna.

“Hey, uh, sorry- WAIT, YOU’RE SHIRTLESS? WAIT, WHAT’S ALL THAT BLOOD NEAR YOUR SHOULDER? BUT YOU’RE SHIRTLESS? WAIT, WHY ARE YOU CRYING? BUT, REALLY, YOU’RE SHIRTLESS?”

Being caught up in crying tears of joy, Anna completely ignored Charlie’s rant.

“You dork… You’re alive.”

“ I need to get you to the ER. Also, I’ll get you a shirt too. I mean, if you really want one…”

“JUST SHUT UP AND COME CLOSER.”

Charlie complied and knelt down in front of Anna. As she struggled to prop herself up, she formed a cross face.

“Wait, what did I do? Did I piss you off? I’m sorry you got dragged into this. How was I supposed to know that some sparky assassin guy would-“

Charlie’s rapid-fire words were interrupted when Anna threw herself into him and tightly wrapped her arms around him.

“Don’t… Don’t ever leave… Don’t ever do that again.”

Charlie’s face was full of pure shock, before reforming itself into concern.

“Hey, Anna, you’re kinda… bleeding everywhere. We need to get out of here.”

“Yeah, that’s a great idea, but there’s one problem.”

“What’s that”

“The guy who’s been trying to kill us is kind of a pain in the ass. Right before you woke up, the guy was literally making fire out of thin air.”

“WAIT, YOU CAN’T BE SERIOUS. WE HAVE TO FIGHT A GOD?”

Behind Charlie’s back, Anna eyes showed a stupefied look.

“Dork, why did I ever decide to become friends with you- Hey, he’s getting back up now.”

As Charlie detached from Anna and turned around, Max had risen back up from the ground and had begun to walk towards the duo.

“I’m sooo glad that you’re able to rejoin us, Char-lie! That dumb broad you were just clinging to was starting to become a real pain in the ass.”

Charlie picked himself and matched Max at eye-level.

“I don’t get why you’re glad to see me, but here I am. I can’t wait to show off for these beautiful ladies by giving you a good ole’ fashioned ass whooping.”

Max parted his lips and formed a proud grin.

“Wow, you’ve gotten just as cocky as the annoying bitch who’s bleeding out on the ground. And that’s AFTER you spaced out and caused her to get stabbed in the first place.”

Charlie began to slowly walk up to Max.

“That’s true. I lost my shit and failed my friends. I’ll have to apologize to them a million times over.”

Charlie stopped when he was directly in front of Max. They both stood perfectly still, as if they were frozen in time. They glared at each other, aqua blue to fiery orange.

After seemingly an eternity, Charlie moved his right hand to place it on Max’s left shoulder.

“I’ll start by making you regret ever coming here today.”

——

The magnificent view of the rose garden reflected over Bri’s hazel eyes as she slowly consumed a cup of tea.

As the burly man in the suit approached from behind, Bri lowered her cup.

“You requested to see me, Madam?”

“Yes. Faia made contact with Kaze. According to Kaze, Faia stated that Max is rampaging with no sense. He’s causing significant harm to the group.”

“Was that your intention, Madam?”

In less than a nanosecond, Bri had jumped out of her seat and grabbed the man’s tie.

“Who the hell do you think I am? You better watch your tone, asshole.”

After a brief silence that could be mistaken for a freeze frame, Bri released her hold and lowered herself back into her seat.

“Uh, sorry.”

“I should be apologizing, Madam. I unintentionally questioned your morales.”

“I’m just tense right now. It feels like the operation began ages ago. To me, it felt like it’s been three months. And now, after all this waiting, I get the news that the plan is going off the rails.”

Bri folded her arms on the table and lowered her head.

“Would you like another drink, Madam?”

“Ice water, please.”

As the burly man began to make his way out of the patio area, Bri lifted her head and once again made eye contact with the rose garden.

‘Maybe… It’s time. I need to go with my backup plan. I need to tell ‘him’ what’s going on.’

Bri lifted her head and looked back to find that her burly servant had not yet left her field of vision.

“WAIT UP! There’s one more thing. It might be too soon, but I need to go to my Plan B. I need you to tell-“

“You need ‘him’ to go out and fix the situation, right? He’s already on his way.”

Within a rather short period of time, Bri’s face had turned bright red.

“Who the hell authorized that, AND WHY THE HELL DIDN’T YOU SAY ANYTHING?”