13 Reflecting On The Past

At the advent of dusk, the Guardians had reached Singapore. A striking image of the tropical, concrete jungle welcomed them just before landing. The city's kaleidoscopic hues flashed gloriously from a distance, painting the deep blue waters in a rainbow of color schemes.

If that wasn't enough, human intelligence enabled God's gift to be made manifest. His talented hands crafted the Singapore flyer with such knowledge at their disposal. The superstructure was almost five hundred feet tall and weighed more than a hundred tons.

This magnificent landmark personified the magnificence of the city. From a distance, the much-loved Ferris wheel was the most conspicuous. In addition to its enormous size, its rich colors gleamed brightly in the mercury of darkness.

"Woah," Pete glanced out the window while sitting in wonderment.

Slowly, the Ferris wheel rotated around its axis, thus giving an impression of a tranquil demeanor. It left him with awe-inspiring feelings. Pete was overwhelmed by unpleasant memories that had dogged him since early adolescence.

"You go to Singapore? That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!" Aiden said.

Aiden is Pete's eldest foster sibling. He was regarded as the most reliable and responsible child in the family. The way his parents adored him, they would often put him on a pedestal even when he was in the wrong.

Aiden was with Pete and two of the other siblings. Sarah and Jason were the other two; they always looked up to their brother because he was the smartest academically and street-wise.

The four played a board game called Monopoly.

"What do you mean it's ridiculous? I've always dreamed of going to that place."

The three burst with laughter while Aiden placed his hand on Pete's shoulder and patted him.

"You're a funny man. No seriously. Look at us; we got nothing. We don't have a car or a fancy house. My guy, we even sweat to buy bread, and you come here with ridiculous dreams?"

"I believe that I can do it. I believe that I can go to Singapore!" Pete shouted with protest.

Even though he believed in his dream of going to Singapore, his siblings considered him delusional. Living in an impoverished society discouraged them from believing in themselves. As a result, they saw it fit to tear his esteem apart so that they could bring him back to reality. When Pete shouted his lungs out to them, they laughed even more.

"No offense, bro, but you ain't going to Singapore. That place ain't for you."

Pete narrowed his brows with petulance. Aiden saw this as a way to belittle him.

"What? Don't you believe me? Just look at yourself. You're pathetic; nobody wants you. We don't want you. Oh, a good report doesn't want you either, bro. Otherwise, you wouldn't be a failure, am I right?"

Jason high-fived him while Sarah felt sympathetic toward him. Although she didn't want to be a part of the mockery, she only laughed because she didn't want to get on Aiden's wrong side.

He shook his head and sighed.

"Aiden told me that I'd never come to Singapore. Here I am. Am I destined to be successful?"

***********

Viper's golden jet graced the runway of an adjacent hanger. When the plane safely landed, the pilot turned it off while the four gathered in the cabin to devise a plan. Kuhn Lau briefly checked Google Maps on his tablet. On the map, a straight arrow pointed at a Siheyuan symbol. Everyone quickly looked at the tablet before he set it down on the table.

"Using the radar, I could determine where we were going next. I recorded the coordinates from the radar and used them to locate the fifth Guardian on the map. Our next stop is downtown at a Siheyuan nearby, if you can check the map. According to how things appear, there is a significant likelihood that

the famous Yung-Fu could be the fifth Guardian.".

After hearing those words uttered from his mouth, Pete imploded with exuberance. It's almost as if he wore a mask of jubilance when a chain of sorrow had incarnated his heart with a deadly coil.

"Did you just say, Yung Fu?!"

"Why, of course, Pete."

"OMG... I am freaking out right now! Sorry guys, it's just that I am an ordained member of the martial arts fan club. I even have a tattoo of the ying yang on my back! Check this shit out!"

He exposed his potbelly, which wobbled like jelly, by pulling his shirt up. Indistructo gnashed his teeth as Vanessa cringed while her left eye twitched. As for Kuhn Lau, he sighed quietly to himself.

Then, Pete turned his back towards them so they could observe his tattoo.

"What do you think? Tell me that this shit ain't badass?"

Kuhn Lau complimented him with an awkward smile to prevent him from being placed in an embarrassing circumstance.

"Wow, it's um...great, Pete. It truly suits you."

He pulled his shirt down and turned around to face them.

"I knew you'd like it!"

Kuhn Lau cleared his throat, "Yeah...um.. anyways, moving on. Like some of us here, Yung Fu was wise enough to start his legacy. His martial arts legacy not only escalated his career to great heights. Moreover, it enabled him to keep up with his training."

"Oh, I like a man who goes after what he wants," Vanessa said, captivated by his achievements.

"Um... about that... recently, I checked on the internet, and it turns out that he will be holding a tournament tomorrow," Pete said.

Indistructo responded with enthusiasm.

"Great, this makes things so much easy. I thought we would have to stay here for a few days. The sooner we get this done and over with, the better for everyone!"

"How do you expect us to go there without tickets? They might be sold out?" Vanessa inquired.

"Bitch please, you're rich. I'm sure that you can pull around a couple of strings." He sneered.

"Excuse me? You did not just call me a bitch right now! What do you think I am? A careless imbecile who spends their money vicariously? I'll let you know that an enthralling woman like Moi takes pride in herself. With that said, just because I'm rich doesn't mean that money can come falling from the sky! This is why I prefer to distance myself from unambitious peasants."

"Oh, so now I'm a peasant?"

"Have you seen you seen yourself, Nicholas? You dress like there is no hope for your future!"

Kuhn Lau sought a way to neutralize the conflict that was stirring amongst them.

"Enough, you two are behaving like children!"

He turned towards Indistructo and said, "Nick, I understand you are still angry at us for being responsible for your break up. I sincerely apologize, but you cannot throw your tantrums at everyone you see fit. We need you on this. Please find measures to put your personal affairs aside."

Indistructo nodded in agreement while Kuhn Lau turned to Vanessa.

"Vanessa, I understand you work very hard to maintain your status. However, I will have to put my moral compass aside in this situation. If there comes a time when we have to pull a couple of strings, please let us do so. We need to get to Yung Fu before Khunta and Slicer do."

She willingly agreed.

"Thank you so much."

He arose from his seat and continued, "Let's not waste much time, shall we? We have to fulfill our duty."

**********************

Several days ago

Ace was chained against the ceiling. He groaned furiously, his feet dangling. Ace remained in Khunta's confinement for a long time without the strength to emancipate himself from these cuffs. He didn't have any more time left, last he checked. Therefore, he struggled with all of his might but failed to avail no. The cuffs that incarcerated him were power-dampening cuffs to add more luggage to his shoulders.

Then, yanking himself downward, he added more weight to pull the chain from the ceiling. Although he did so, nothing changed.

He said, "Bloody shackles."

Two of Khunta's bodyguards suddenly came up behind him. They had come from the surface and saw him trying to escape. They laughed at him.

"Look at what we have here," one said.

"Fellas. I want to thank you for checking up on me. It was getting lonely for a while. At least you'll keep me company, " Ace said.

The two guards glanced at one another and continued laughing.

"What is this sore loser saying? Does he think that he can hang with us? It sounds like you're looking for trouble, mate?" Alexander said.

Alexandra was the guard on the right. He wore a black cap and a black Kevlar breastplate. He had a toothpick sticking out from between his lips. Alex had blond hair and a mustache. Some security staff would consider him a douchebag since he had a big trap. Next to him was his companion, Felix. Felix was muscular in comparison to his companion. He was less talkative than him. His ethnicity was black. He crossed his arms while Alex ran his mouth.

"I'm not looking for trouble, mate. I need company," Ace said with a smirk.

"Oh. You need company, hey? I'll keep you company then."

Alex then threw a heinous punch toward his gut. Blood spewed out of his mouth while the two laughed.

"How's that for company?"

Surprisingly, Ace chuckled while the two glanced at him with astonishment. Although his attack connected, it would seem that the prisoner trivialized the seriousness of this matter.

"Is that all you got? You punch like a girl!"

Alex nodded with his upper lip covering his lower one. Where else, he failed to realize that Ace was playing under his skin.

"Is that so?" He inquired.

Ace flicked his brows up and grinned at him.

Alex clenched his fist. Ace swiftly wrapped his legs around his neck as he was about to punch him. For this reason, Felix aimed his pistol at him.

"Let him go now, or I will shoot!"

"Go ahead, shoot!" He dared him as he invigorated his legs' grip around his neck.

"But remember, you'll kill us both, and I bet that's the last thing you need."

Struggling to breathe, he raised his voice at Felix with desperation.

"Don't listen to him, man. He's playing bluff!"

Ace throttled more firmly and applied tremendous pressure on his legs. It got to the point where he clogged his windpipe. Since he was unable to breathe, Alexandra's face turned purple. More importantly, his brain cells deteriorated due to the shortage of oxygen in his body. He wasn't going to survive very long. This was clear from the despair written all over his face, his bulging eyes, and the fact that death was at his door. Felix watched in horror as his friend was about to die before him. Nevertheless, he couldn't stand by and let another one of the inmates kill his pal.

"All right, enough, stop!" He shouted.

Alex passed out when Ace halted in the absence of his acts,

"Please, don't take his life. He's a father of two kids and a husband."

"Never in a million years have I thought a prick would be a husband of two." He jeered.

"Just let him go." He pleaded.

"I'll tell you what, I'll let him go only if you set me free."

"No way, the boss is gonna have my head."

"You worried about Khunta? How about this? What if I promised you I would imprison him for a long time."

"You can't; he is the toughest that there is. He owns a powerful crime syndicate. He knows a lot of powerful people. You can't touch him!"

It was evident that the latter feared the King of the streets. After all, helping Ace wouldn't just compromise his life and his family. The question now remains, what was he to do?

"My dear friend. Can I ask? Don't I have powers beyond your wildest dream?"

Felix nodded while he continued.

"Exactly, Khunta fears me. Otherwise, he wouldn't have ambushed me while I was still drunk. I will protect you, you, and your family if he comes. I guarantee your safety. Only if you set me free, so what will it be?"

*****************

A few days later

Ace enjoyed the free service offered at the hotel.

While basking in the sun, the hotel's owner approached him from behind. He held onto a tray containing a newspaper article and a glass of orange juice.

"Here we are, sir, freshly squeezed. Just as you've asked."

Ace took the glass from the tray and placed the straw between his lips. He began sucking from the straw, and after a satisfying gulp, he belched.

"Now, this is what you call one hundred percent fruit juice."

He leaned his head against the chair and grabbed a newspaper article.

"Well, what do we have here?"

He paged through it while the manager addressed him.

"If you can go to the second page, it will tell you more about the martial arts tournament."

Ace paged back to the second page.

"So the martial arts tournament will occur tomorrow at noon, interesting."

He called out to him as the manager was about to part ways with him.

"Before you go, I hope you have learned your lesson?"

Ace is one of a kind. He recently learned about a hotel manager from a reliable source before arriving in Singapore.

The manager allegedly used the blood of innocent people to erect the renowned hotel. He regularly engages in criminal activity and has significant involvement in an underground organization. With this information at his disposal, he took advantage and turned this source against him. Naturally, the entrepreneur only agreed to provide him with free service if he kept quiet. He happily obliged.

Ace pulled out his scythe and pointed it toward the manager's forehead.

"Yes, Master Ace, truly I have learned from my lesson. Never make a profit from other people's misfortunes."

He put the scythe aside and took another sip from the straw.

"Good now, if you can excuse me, I have some indulging to partake in."