Ark was not sure what he would see when he returned back. Would he see his original body full of scars from battles or his original body before the Tower appeared. As Ark came to his senses, he immediately knew the answer. He looked at his arms and all the injuries that he had suffered were not there. Ark had already got his answer.
It would not be possible for two Arks to be in the same time line and sending a strengthened version of himself would probably eat up a lot more causality. Chronos must have only sent his memories and instincts back to his original body. Ark felt somewhat sad that he did not have his original strength anymore. He could think fast enough but reacting to the stimuli in time would be a problem.
As Ark was lost in his own thoughts, he felt something hit his face and he staggered back in surprise. The man responsible for the punch had an ugly sneer on his face as his brown eyes looked at Ark with contempt. Mixed emotions filled Ark’s head. On one hand, he knew he could easily beat him up but on the other hand, why would he be bothered to do so? The boy would probably die later on one of the floors anyway. There was one thing Ark didn’t understand though
“Weak…Why are you so weak?” The punch had only stung for a bit. The punches Ark had received could not even be compared to this measly thing. It was like a housefly threatening an elephant.
“What did you say you fucking bastard? You wanna get beat up so bad today huh?”
The responses were comical too. Ark didn’t even remember the boy’s name but there was one thing that bugged him about the whole situation. Ark looked around and found not a single student anywhere. It was evident that he was on his college campus but where were the students?
“Was there supposed to be college today?” Ark thought out loud. Maybe the boy would answer his question for him?
“No, we don’t you fucker! Now will you give me the money or what?” Once upon a time, Ark might have been afraid of that boy. Now, he was just indifferent. What was the best he could do anyway? Ark had no money in his pocket right now, if it was the day he was thinking it was, he would probably need some money. A brilliant idea struck his mind then.
“You know what Anthony, I’ll do you one better! Give me all your money and maybe I will spare you for the punch.”
“What! My name is not even Anthony and why the fuck would I give you my money? Are you fucking crazy man? You know what, I was the dumb one for asking for the money. I should have just taken it”
“Did you always talk this much too, Anthony?” Ark sighed. He did not have the time to just lay around, he needed to buy the supplies and get ready for the apocalypse. “What time is it anyway?” Ark asked as he yawned from boredom
That seemed to be the last straw as Anthony lunged at Ark with the ferocity of a chihuahua and threw a haphazard punch towards Ark. Long honed instincts of combat reacted instantly as Ark tilted his head slightly. The punch connected with empty air and Ark sighed for the umpteenth time of the day.
“Oh! Come on! That’s the best you can do? I must have been the pathetic one…Really tell me honestly, did I really get beat up by you?”
The boy attacked again, this time aiming straight at Ark’s nose. Or at least, that must have been the intention but Ark had already moved sideways. The feeble punch was easily caught and two kicks to the abdomen and a punch to the throat later, the boy lay on the ground unconscious and motionless.
Ark knelt down and began searching for money. And it was a haul. Two hundred dollars were taken out of his back pocket while another two hundred was found in his bag.
“Neat! Who keeps that much money on them anyway?” Ark said as he left the college and went towards the store selling supplies. His stolen watch showed the time 15:22. It was only nine hours till doomsday arrived.
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
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Anthony awoke to consciousness nearly three hours later. The kicks to his abdomen were pretty nasty and Anthony was sure he had a bruise. All Anthony could feel was anger. It was unbelievable for a senior to get beat up by a freshman. Why did the kicks hurt that much too? In Anthony’s own opinion, he did nothing wrong. As a senior, it was his duty to show the younger students around the campus and so what if he charged money for it? Who was going to scold him anyway…He was doing them a service and they would have to pay for it. Anthony was frustrated beyond belief right now.
It would be very bad for him if rumors about this incident spread, he was already on shaky grounds with his ‘friends’, and he did not want to cause any more trouble. Anthony took out the cigarette and lighter from his pocket to relieve some stress. Something felt odd though. Shouldn’t he have some money tucked there? He patted his other pockets to see if he had anything there. Anthony clenched his teeth in anger as he did so. That bastard Ark had robbed him of his money. What was he supposed to do right now? It was the new years eve that day and his friends were waiting for him at the club. His friends would laugh at him if he did not at the very least buy them a round of beer.
He was consoled only by the fact that he had an extra two hundred dollars stored in his backpack. He would have to make do with that. He picked up his back to find it open and the rest of the money was gone. The anger Anthony had felt earlier was now at an all time high. He made a vow to himself. He would kill Ark the next time he saw him. It was not just a resolution that would go away by the next day. No, it was a promise. The next time Anthony saw Ark, the latter would be a dead man.
He had to deal with the immediate fallout first though. He sent a text to his friends that he would be late and went back to his home to scrounge up some money and get into some decent clothes. The ones he was wearing now were coated with dust and grime. He would kill Ark the following day. Today he was going to relax with his friends.
It was nine o clock by the time Anthony reached Timmy’s bar. It was called the “Motley Crew” but he preferred to give it a more personal touch. Timmy’s Bar was one of the most frequented college spots . Nearly every college student came here for drinks. It was packed by the time Anthony entered the bar and saw his friends sitting in one of the corners. They had three glasses of beer resting on the table. As they saw him enter, they picked up the glasses and cheered for him to get there.
“My man! Hey bro why are you so late?” said one of the boys who was wearing round glasses
“Sheesh! Give a guy a break will ya? I just had some stuff to do!”
“Oy Oy! You beat that bastard again didn’t you” chimed one of his other friends who had a cap over his head
Jason was silent at that. His pride hurt to admit that he was beaten up by his junior
“Fuck, man! Why are you silent? Did you fucking kill him, dude? He was a cash cow. Two hundos from an orphan on scholarship, that's a huge fucking amount”
“Nah Nah! I didn’t kill him. I beat him up real bad though. Shit, Bastard only had a hundred with him”
“Well, that’s that I guess… Man do you feel hot in here… Let’s get out and get some fresh air”
“Sure, I wanna see what the city did in the New Years anyway hah”
The three quickly finished their drinks, brought a can for the road, and got out of the cramped bar to explore the city.
New Year's eve was a special occasion for the city. It was always in its most perfect state every new year. All the street light was fixed, illuminating every nook and cranny. That itself was not enough. Ropes were hung from one house to another and from them were hung lanterns and lights of different colors. Red, blue, and yellow adorned every single house as a festive atmosphere permeated through the wind. The children seemed to love it every time too, attracted to it like a moth to a flame.
The city square was spacious. It was a huge area from which four roads spread out in four cardinal directions. Each road was as wide as one of the houses and had different signs pointing to different areas. Cars were parked near the fire hydrants and the lights coming out of the houses glowed brightly in the night sky. The lights that came out of the billboards and neon signs made the square look even more festive.
People were milling about now all walking together, some were standing in groups of three and four while some outright sat down on the cold concrete. Some boys were cheering as two girls kissed one another as a boy held a mistletoe over their heads. Some drinks were swaying slightly to the song that played in the background and some colleagues tearfully bade each other farewell, saying that they would see each other after an entire year. The clock at the top of the tallest building showed the time. The minute hand was at the highest it could possibly be for the day when suddenly it stopped.
A message rang out in a bold and clear voice.
[The Tower has found its home]
[Only the worthy shall enter it]