The Fastest Esper (2)

Takagi stood his ground. He did not raise his Spitfire. Not one bit, not even the intention of it. He just stared at Talia as she rushed towards him with her fist. Fury consumed her eyes.

However, the woman was stopped in her tracks just three metres in front of Takagi. Her body had stopped like a statue. Her whole momentum was gone in an instant.

“Tch! You bastard…!”

“-Open fire!”

Suddenly, guns from the windows burst into a rage following a man’s shout from the side. Hail of bullets hurtled towards Takagi from every angle. For five seconds, flashes lightened up the place, and the blast was almost deafening. But as time went on, the sound slowly faded and finally stopped.

They stopped moving and floated mid-air, creating a sphere made from a flock of bullets around five metres from Takagi. The smell of smoke filled the air. The bullets then trickled down on the asphalt like a rain of metals. Silence then followed through except for the crackling flames from Talia’s hand.

Takagi took a large exhale before breathing back. He heightened his voice. “Look, this is pointless. You and your guys know this. I just need to know where Travis is.”

“Damn masked man.” Talia was still in her last spot and did not move. “I don’t trust you.”

“Then at least can you patch me through him so he can explain everything?” he asked. “I don’t want trouble, and neither do you, right?”

“Always with the cockiness behind that annoying flat voice.”

She looked at him with disdain on her face. After some time, the flame on her fist then waned. She then took a step back after Takagi released her.

“...Whatever,” she said. “The truth is… I’ve lost contact with him as well. Travis went with a few people to the East End to evacuate some people before the shit happened. Unfortunately, he was late, and after some moments, we lost contact.”

Takagi was surprised when the word “evacuate” came out of Talia’s mouth. However, he kept a straight voice. Besides, there were more pressing matters to talk about.

“Is he safe?”

“I don’t know, but he’ll be fine as always. I’ve sent another team to report and help him if something happens. Unfortunately, they got entangled in the gang wars just a few minutes ago and haven’t reported since,” she said. “However, there were some people that arrived from the East End. Travis had helped them get away, but they came without escorts.”

“What did they say?”

“They were chased down by gang members. Travis held them so they could escape,” she said. “The bastards popped out left and right out of nowhere.”

“Any info?”

“Not much. The communication is lacking for now.” Talia signalled his men around the building to stand down their weapons. Her eyes were still sharp, but her voice was toned down. “Everything happened so fast, and any electricity we have is gone. Suddenly, we have this big fucking war all over the place–The Scorpions, Markovs, Helmuths, to name a few.”

“Those names...Are you sure?”

Talia just shrugged.

“So, why are you here of all places? I thought you were together with him,” Takagi said.

“Travis’ order,” she said. “I’ve been told to run away with the rest of the men, and he said that this part of the district is the safest of all.”

“I see. Well, he’s right for that part, but running away?” Takagi said. “Never thought he would say that.”

She ignored his remarks. However, for a moment, Takagi caught a pensive look from her. “He told me that some people will come here, and I must protect them.”

Takagi did not say anything for some time, but he kept staring at Talia’s face through his mask with weird feelings.

“What? You think he’s just some outlaw bounty hunter, don’t you?” Talia suddenly asked. “You’re surprised that he helps people.”

“Kind of,” Takagi said. “But I’m not here to debate about…what kind of man he is or what he does.”

She was quiet and looked away for a while. “I’ve heard the outer district is in chaos, thanks to Pavlov’s demise. But, what really happened? Did he really get killed?”

“Yes. I assume this whole thing is also a part of the whole mess in the outer districts, especially with those same names being mentioned again.”

“But Regra had nothing to do with Pavlov.”

“All you need to fall the whole Jenga tower is to remove a block, and Pavlov happens to be that block,” Takagi replied. “Since other places have already become hell, adding another one doesn’t matter anymore.”

“Okay, but the real question is, why do you want to meet Travis?”

Talia finally got to the point.

“I have a business with him, and he has agreed.”

“What business?”

“I can’t tell you that now.”

Talia did not know anything about it, even though Takagi assumed Travis had told her at least a part of it, considering how close she was to him. Apparently, he was so serious that he did not tell anyone about the matter. When millions of kredit were on the line, Travis was wise to be careful about this. He played his part just as Takagi told him to keep it a closely guarded secret between both of them.

“You’ll hear it from Travis later, but now I can’t really divulge anything,” Takagi continued.

Talia looked at him for a moment. “I won’t pry further then. Travis must’ve had reasons to keep it quiet.”

“Don’t worry. We’re on the same side this time.”

“Oh? Why so?”

“I’ve asked him to help me.”

“...And he agreed?”

“I won’t be here if that’s the case.”

“Okay, I think we’re cool–for now.” Talia sighed. “He was on the East End last time, near the fish statue, remember?”

“Yeah, I see.”

“That was the last time he reported his location. Unfortunately, I can’t help you more than that,” she said. “And, of course, people like you don’t need more men. Or, do you?”

“That’s fine. I’ll take it from here,” Takagi said. ‘By the way, do you have a bike or something?”

“What? Didn’t you just arrive by car?”

“I’ve sent it home.”

Talia rolled her eyes.