Outing

In the now drizzling rain, Jin and Dobby stood next to each other. They were outside, in the front yard of Jin's house. Waiting. Patiently. They had not a clue where they were about to go; curiosity flickered in their minds.

Dobby was well dressed; standing straight and tall. Whereas Jin, back hunched and apathy on his face, just wore a simple black hoodie as usual. Simplicity.

From what he could tell, he needn't be dressed for an occasion … since he didn't know what the occasion was. Where were they going?

Dobby was anxious and excited to leave the house for a bit. Regardless of where they were heading. He glanced at Jin, impatience beaming in his eyes. "What the hell's taking them so—"

Suddenly, a portal manifested. Tristan's words were cut by the sharp blades of unexpected revelation. The portal spiraled. It whirled. Sinister noise resounded with it as the source.

Stepping out of the blackhole-like portal were Flint and Ashton.

Silence on both ends.

Flint had that arrogant look lingering on his face as one would expect. Ashton was trembling in that he had just used a portal. He had never gotten to witness magic up close. Much less use it in some way.

Flint closed the portal. Then opened another where the former was. He then turned around and gazed at the others.

He beckoned them with his head. "You guys ready? I mean, you look like you are … let's go, shall we?"

He turned around again.

Jin, Ashton and Dobby looked at each other. Then, they all looked ahead again in unison. They watched as Flint walked right into the portal.

Where they were going? Again, they had not a clue. Yet, they felt obligated. In turn, they all walked straight in after him. The portal closed after Jin, the last to enter, walked in.

***

Jin's heart throbbed. On the other side of the portal, they were on the flat, wide rooftop of a huge building. In the drizzling rain, whistling gusts of cold wind were prominent. They were very, very high up.

Who would have thought that fear-of-heights, Jin's childhood friend, would come to visit him at his age.

Not too far away, stood Alura, with folded arms and a black suit. Krod and Baron were to their left and right, wearing the same jackets. Flint approached Alura. He stopped when he was next to her. And then, he turned to face Jin.

'Why would he bring us up here? This makes no sense … I don't like the feeling I'm getting all the way here. I know this building—we're far from home.'

"Come, Jin," called Flint, with a visage swathed in nuances. His smirk was not there. It wasn't. His expression was dead serious. Not something they usually saw from him.

Jin looked at Ashton. And then at Dobby. They all had the same looks on their faces. He finally shifted his attention back to Flint. He slowly started to approach him.

He halted when he was about a meter away from Flint. On his face, a grimace of utter confusion lingered. "Why'd you bring us—"

Flint placed a finger upon Jin's lips. "Shhh …" he managed to quell Jin's concern. "I'm going to explain myself. I wanted to long," he chuckled, "long, long, time ago. The second day I met you to be precise…" he kept that dead, impenetrable look on his face.

Jin remained silent. But his racing thoughts were louder than thousands of explosions on a planet being terraformed.

Flint's eyes began to become fiercer. Darker. His pupils were subtly dilated. His nose looked down on Jin. His shoulders squared. His chin, up. Staggering arrogance. "I'm like a big brother to you. Kneel to me. Do as I say." arrogance even in his tone.

Overpowering arrogance to which Jin merely succumbed. He felt obligation surging through him. This was not an obligation, a greater force lingered within. Silence. Then, he obeyed. Slowly, he began descending to his knees.

His knees collided with the floor. Then, he slowly looked at Flint from his feet up. His eyes dragged along the boy, until he met a face.

Flint, towering over Jin, stood callously. Eyes downcast at the figure before him. From the entirety of his being, staggering arrogance emanated.

Suddenly, he opened a small, circular portal and pulled an iron pole from it. It looked as though it would take an entirety to pull the long object out of the black hole. Shrieking.

And unexpectedly the portal closed. But this was not all. Flint stretched the iron pole back. Then he rammed it into Jin's abdomen.

The long pole pierced into Jin's belly, came out through his back, and stuck in the ground.

Jin's eyes bulged. Blood came running from the penetration. Searing pain coursed through his body. He yelped in excruciating agony. Then came a much louder, painful, wail.

[HP: 16/20]

Dobby and Ashton were stunned by the jarring scene. Their eyes expanded. Their bodies moved on their own. They both rushed toward their friend.

"JIN!!! J—" screamed Ashton, as a pale fist buried itself into his face. He was knocked down to the floor. An elf, nuance on its countenance, towered over him. Baron.

Dobby, furrowed brows, was darting toward Jin. "FLINT, YOU MOTHER F—" his words were cut by a powerful jab to the side of his head.

A fist sunk into his abdomen. Then to his face. He was knocked down. The back of his body collided with the floor. Towering over him, was a muscular Hobgoblin wearing a black jacket. Krod.

Jin gasped. "ASHTON, DOBBY!" he screamed to the top of his lungs.

He tried breaking free from the tall pole that was stuck in his abdomen. The pole was thrice as tall as him. He tried to get back up, but he couldn't. The pain … was insufferable. And his attempt to extricate his body from the pole made it far worse. He hopelessly dropped to his knees.

He tossed his head up at Flint again. "What are you—"

"Shhhh." Flint hushes him. Silence. Then, a smirk materialized on his face. "Perhaps this will make my explanation much, much," he opened a portal behind him, " … easier." droning the last word.

A familiar figure, body shrouded in police uniform, walked out from the portal. He remained silent and behind Flint just like Alura. He folded his arms. His visage was fierce as a feral beast. Officer Clarke.