5 Chapter 4
The next morning, Ziv looked at himself in the mirror. He was paler than yesterday and he was thinner. The pain he felt on his ribs was mostly from the healing. Sometimes he would try to itch the wound, but he knew better. He felt tired, but he wanted to go outside.
He was told by Veno that he and the others had school starting today so he and Kear would arrive later to check up on him. Of course they said they would bring more ice cream flavors. He tried vanilla and chocolate, those were amazing. He really couldn't wait to try other flavors. Kear would be picking out everything, but he was worried about the amount of money being spent. He was fully aware of money and its value, he just never used it before.
He left the bathroom and went outside. He was still in the wheelchair as it was still too difficult to walk. Resting in that park sounded like a wonderful idea. He left while the others were busy with the other children and while they were making breakfast. He didn't want to bother them. He just wanted to relax in the green. He needed time to think and that place was peaceful enough to do it.
Now the park wasn't too far away. He needed to roll down two streets and across another, then he would be in the park. It was hard to hear the sounds around him with people honking and the other people walking about, but the smells from their coffee and the gas from the cars and trucks were the most prominent to his senses. It was much more pleasing than the pain he has been feeling on his side.
He strolled around the park. The flowers, the trees, the birds and couples walking around calmed him down. It was better than the garden in his basement, it was better than being around his parents. No. No that isn't true. He looked up at the blue sky. It wasn't brown or black, it was blue. The true meaning of sky blue. He closed his eyes.
---
He must have fallen asleep as when he opened his eyes he was in a dark room. There was dust and a smell of wet mold throughout the room. He heard chatter coming from the door in front of him. Wherever he was it was not a friendly place and the shouting coming from outside the door, helped to assure Ziv that he needed to get out of their fast. The wheelchair needed to be left behind. He needed to run.
He stood up and out of the chair, but he made a bit of noise. He hoped the people on the other side didn't notice him. They kept shouting without stopping, so that made him feel a bit better. He steadied himself along the wall of the room, leaning heavily against the wall as he listened to the shouting to get a clearer image.
"…KID… You… I won't… PUT IT…"
*Bang*
*Bang Bang*
He needed to go now. He didn't have time to wait anymore. He turned the knob on the door, it was unlocked. The shouting came from his left, so he turned down the hallway to his right. Keeping himself steady on the wall he kept moving. He wasn't running, just fast hobbling. He was panting out of exhaustion. His body wasn't ready for this and he knew he made a mistake. Perhaps being cared for right away blinded him to what his parents told him about other humans. It didn't matter right now anyways, he shook his head looking into the rooms that he crossed paths with.
He turned down the right on the next hallway and at the end he saw a door. There was light coming through the windows. They were distorted and the light could have been sunlight or a streetlamp. Night or still day, he ran. Escape was close and he started hearing curses from behind him. Loud shouting alerting him that there was a man running after him. He got to the door and tried pulling on the door, indicated by the handles. He heard the man getting closer, but the door wasn't opening. He looked up at a sign on the door to his left.
[Push]
Design of the door aside he pushed the door open and started running. He didn't know where he was, but he kept running and screaming now. He cried out for help. He was tired, his lungs burned. His side was getting horribly agitated due to the movement and the pain was getting worse. He ran, pushing his body to extreme levels.
He felt a hand on his arm and turned around. It was a large man. The beard on his face was disheveled and there were many scars on his shoulders. Ziv's arm felt like it was breaking under the grip of the man. The man smiled at Ziv for just a single moment.
*Smack*
He was hit in the face by a punch. The attacker, or in this case savior, Plavlin, made the man stumble backwards.
"You know Kear's training is tough right?"
"Kid you don't know who you're messing with do you?"
"I don't but does it matter? South of the night club, one block away. Ziv hang on to my phone alright."
With an underhand throw, Plavlin chucked the phone towards Ziv. He didn't know what to do and it was hard to understand what Plavlin was saying.
Plavlin rushed the man as he was trying to get something out from his back. The Plavlin kicked the item out of the man's hand as they dodged blows with each other.
Ziv knew he needed to help. He looked at the phone in his hand and his techpad. He took apart the phone and parts of his techpad. Using the battery in the phone to hold the current of his futuristic techpad, he left two wires separate from each other to create a stunner. He was quick and the battle between the savior and the bad guy wasn't ending yet, both were still fighting with equal spirit.
Getting out of the man's view, Ziv ran with the makeshift stun gun in his hand. He got to the man's leg and electrocuted him, just before he was able to kick Plavlin. The man was out cold, as Ziv kept sending volts of electricity through his body. His savior picked him up as he fell over. The contraption he made, still hanging from his wrist.
"Thank you Ziv, you did a great job."
That was the last thing Ziv heard before falling back again. He was out cold.
---
"What do we do about that guy?"
"It is in Ziv's best interest for now if we didn't involve the cops. Can't have them taking a look at the little time traveler. Could you take him home for now, I will take care of this man."
"Sure I can."
"Wait, I think we have the upper hand here."
"What do you mean Kear."
"Techpad are more than the phones you use, but they can be used like one. Since it is future tech, we can use it for anonymity. I think I have a good idea."
---
'Not bad, Kear.'
'Thank you very much.'
With that call she made, she used different accents she learned from in the military to create the sound of a few people in the background as she spoke over 'those people'. Thankfully the techpad could record and play audio like the one she had used in the past.
She also noticed the gun. She could smell that it had been used following Ziv's trail. It led to a couple other bodies in the warehouse around a van and an operating table. Possibly trying to take Ziv's organs and sell them.
She was even happier noticing there were no cameras in the area, so she set the building a blaze in the opposite corner of the building allowing the police and fire department to find the bodies and supplies left behind. With that man's gun and a few bottles of alcohol from the club nearby, that Veno and her worked in for a time, she forced the unconscious man to drink making anything he was to say come off as a drunk hallucination.
That man would be going away for a long time.
Veno, Wren, Plavlin, Juniqu and Granno all became a little more fearful of Kear that day.
---
It has been a couple weeks since then. Ziv learned his lesson on traveling alone and stranger danger. He apologized more times than he could count for all the trouble and stress the others went through.
For Ziv the fact that he wasn't infected filled him with more warmth than the bath he was taking at the moment. His side healed faster than expected. It could be a side effect from the foam, the portal, of the future he was from, but that wasn't what mattered right now.
He stepped out of the bath drying himself off with a towel. His chest had no scar on it at all. The mirror was a little fogged up. He wiped it off staring at his face. He made a bunch of silly faces before dressing himself up.
He left the bathroom. Kear and Veno asked him to stay over at their apartment tonight. They said it would be a special talk, so he needed to be ready. So he walked out with a fresh pair of pajamas on over to the couch. Juniqu and Veno were in the kitchen chatting about their day, making dinner.
He looked on the coffee table. There were a few papers talking about citizenship and others about adoption. He didn't pay it any mind. He was tired from the day he had. He was learning about the different things that were in this time, this world. He really liked the idea of Librarian, but it did sound like they were being phased out due to the rise of technology.
Last week he got a teddy bear. It had been helping him sleep. The fur on the bear reminded him of his mother's hair.
The tv was talking about the fire at the warehouse he escaped from. He looked at the wheelchair that he was in. It was in the living room area off to the side. He was happy to be strong enough to walk now.
"Ziv dinner is ready."
He acknowledged the call for dinner and walked over to the small table in the kitchen. The calm lights and tight area gave it a cozy feel. A feeling that he was home once again.
