[Stumble into the Future]: Part Two

"Ah!" Batu spiraled down the portal like shit being flushed down a toilet as a waterfall of tears comically poured down from his eyes.

All he could see around him was a clash of swirling colors resembling an optical illusion. Batu felt as if he was stuck in the everlasting cycle of free falling madness. There was no light on the other side of the tunnel as far he could see.

How the hell could this have happened to him? Did God suddenly turned impatient and decided to give him an early one-way ticket to Hell? Suddenly, the portal spat him out like he was rotten food. Unfortunately for him, it had dropped him high above the ground, causing Batu to scream even more.

In a dark and decrepit alley, a woman was surrounded by three men in black leather clothes and dyed mohawks. The flickering neon signs dimly lit the dark alleyway, but it was not enough to see their faces clearly.

The woman had hair as black as night and eyes as red as blood, staring at the men before her with pure boredom. She was dressed in a half-cut, red hoodie that exposed her toned abs and wore black, baggy pants.

She hid half of her lower face with a red oni mask which only accentuated her gorgeous phoenix eyes. Overall, the woman was a jaw-dropping beauty hidden underneath rosy thorns.

"Where is it?" One of them asked in a threatening manner.

"Where's what?" Yu Mei feigned ignorance, stuffing her hands in loose pockets. She wanted to see what these guys were made of before she kicked their asses.

"Don't fuckin' play dumb with us, bitch!" The man pulled a small, switch blade from his pocket. He pressed a button, and the sharp edge of the blade suddenly burned scorching red. "The money! If you don't tell us where you hid the god damn cash, I'll slowly cut you up into small chunks, got it?"

"Oh? I'm really shaking in my boots from your overwhelmingly scary presence," Her voice was laced with extreme sarcasm. She leaned up against the wall in nonchalance with crossed arms.

"I'm warnin' you, keep pushin' our buttons, and you'll might end up at death's door," One of them growled out.

Yu Mei dug deeper into her pockets and pulled out a roll of fat cash. She played around with it just to tease with them, "Yeah, I have it. So what?"

"So. Give it to us," The thug in the middle reached his hand out. "Or else." His partner waved the glowing hot knife in an attempt to intimidate her.

"Fine, you can have it," Yu Mei rolled her eyes at them. She handed the thug her cash in painstakingly slow fashion.

"God damn, stop draggin' this shit out!" Before the thug could grab hold of it, Yu Mei quickly yanked the bankroll away.

"You honestly thought I'd give you the stack of dough that's probably worth more than you lowlives combined?" She caught the bankroll in midair and shoved it back into her pockets.

"That's it, you're fuckin' dead!" He shouted in rage.

Yu Mei slowly reached behind her waist for her weapon, however, she grabbed nothing but thin air.

"Shit," She whispered under her breath. Yu Mei realized she had left her weapon with the motorbike out there.

She gazed back at them with narrow eyes as they approached closer. It seemed like she would have to beat them down the old-fashioned way. Yu Mei then lowered herself in a combat stance.

"Watch out!" A distant voice cried out of the sky. "Move out of the freakin' way!"

Everyone looked up above in utter confusion and suddenly noticed Batu barreling straight for them. Their eyes quickly widened with absolute shock; the trio of thugs tried to move out of the way, but it was too late; Batu had crashed right into them, effectively knocking them out cold.

"Damn, that hurt," Batu rubbed his head in pain. He glanced down at the unconscious trio with an expression of guilt. He tried to warn them beforehand, honestly. Batu hastily looked around his environment with shock and utter confusion written all over his face.

"Where am I?" He asked himself. "This doesn't look like Altai City."

Yu Mei blinked in surprise as she watched Batu get up from the ground. Well, that was an unexpected entry if she had ever seen one. She took a closer look at the man before her with a smirk of approval. Tall? Check. Short black hair? Check. Rugged looks? Check. Randomly falling out of the sky? Double check.

However, his clothes looked really outdated. Was this guy cosplaying as some sort of retro highschooler? Talk about a blast from the past.

"Is it fall season already?" Yu Mei playfully sauntered her way towards him with her hands clasped behind her back. "How did a guy like you suddenly drop out of the sky?"

"Honestly, I don't even-" Batu glanced up at her and held his breath in awe. He couldn't stop staring into Yu Mei's blood red eyes; it was as if he had been hypnotized by them. This was probably the hottest girl he had seen in his entire life.

"Hello~?" Yu Mei snapped her fingers at his face, shaking Batu out of his thoughts. "Did you suddenly lose brain cells?"

"Crap, my bad," Batu rubbed his head in embarrassment. It was the first time he had suddenly done that.

"I'm Yu Mei, by the way," She raised a hand out to him.

"Batu," He shook her hand.

"Thanks for helping me out, though; I really owe ya one."

"What do you mean?" Batu raised an eyebrow. The only thing he did was inadvertently knocked out a couple of random dudes.

"See those three idiots behind you?" Yu Mei pointed at the no-named thugs. "They tried to pull a sorry ass excuse of a robbery on me. Well, they were until you happen to come along, that is."

"Oh, really? Glad I happened to drop by in time," He awkwardly chuckled to himself. Inwardly, Batu was cringing at himself. How could he say such an idiotic pun at a time like this. He wanted to slam his head against the wall.

"Pfft- more like crash and burn," Yu Mei giggled. "But, that was a good one; I'll give ya that."

The thugs groaned in pain as they struggled to sit back up again. Their minds muddled, and their words turned into incoherent slurs, gaining the attention of both Yu Mei and Batu.

"C'mon," Yu Mei waved Batu to follow her. "Let's crash at someplace else."

"Sure," Batu nodded. Yu Mei didn't seem threatening at all, he noted. Besides, he needed answers fast; he wanted to know what was going on and where he was now. Perhaps, Yu Mei could help him out with his current predicament.

They quickly arrived at her motorcycle. Batu wondered what type of model was this, because it was one of the most futuristic bikes he had ever seen. The bike carried a big, beautiful engine with twin exhausts.

It was a sleek, red chrome low-rider with its front wheel extended much further than normal bikes that he have ridden on. The bike had a bulky build to fit its large engine, and a glimmer of neon blue shining from its sides. Batu had to admit; he was really jealous of her bike.

Yu Mei hopped onto her bike, and the incredible machine roared to life; black exhaust kicked out from the back in thick plumes as she revved up the engine.

"Well, what are you waiting for, Batu?" She asked. "Hop on."

Batu sat in the small space that Yu Mei provided behind her; it was painfully obvious that this bike didn't fit two people, especially someone of his stature. He felt her thin frame over his crotch, and a sudden rush of blood flowed between his legs.

'Damn it, stay down, little dragon!' Batu cursed himself for being such a hormonal idiot. He just hope Yu Mei wouldn't feel it at all.

The brilliant machine roared once more, and it shot forward, making its way near halfway down the street already. Batu was stunned by the surrounding concrete jungle around him. Bright flashes of neon advertisements and animated holograms struck out against the pitch black of night.

The buildings were massive, ridiculously so, that pierced through the clouds above. The apartments, however, were cramped together and near claustrophobic to look at. Thousands of wires were strung across buildings in each road they turned on.

The cars here were more angular and stylized compared to the ones from his city. On the sidewalks, pedestrians were dressed in weird get-ups while some wore strange visors over their faces. Overall, this place was completely foreign to Batu. It's as if Batu had fallen into a different time period.

Batu turned his attention away from the crazy scenery and stared at Yu Mei's beautiful face hidden under that red mask. Her luscious black hair flowed with the wind, and her red eyes brimmed with excitement. Bright neon glimmered across her body like Hollywood lights as she drove past them; she was like an untouchable star.

"Hey, Batu," Yu Mei suddenly called out to him. "You up for some Ming's?"

"Ming's?" He asked in confusion. "What's that?"

"Are you living under some kind of rock? It's one of the best diners in this pile of metal crap."

"I think?" He sighed, scratching his head. "I just don't know anymore; I'm confused by everything."

"That fall really did mess up that head of yours."

Yu Mei turned the left corner and stopped in front of a small and retro diner. The diner expressed itself in beautiful, pink neon and proudly displayed its name over a large sign that read: MING'S DINER. Cars filled the parking lot as customers entered the diner. Shady men in rough beards squatted by the corner as they smoked cigarettes to pass the time.

"You're gonna love it here, trust me," The bell rung as Yu Mei swung open the door.

"Welcome!"