Outlanders

Chapter 2: Time of the Essence

Daylight had broken upon the city, the cars still along the ever busy roads. The sun's beaming rays spilled onto the modern day earth, the black exterior of some buildings soaking in the heat. A few citizens on the streets, some together, some alone, walking distance to and from wherever their destination leads them to. A particular person walks at a faster pace, their eyes set on the concrete street in front of them. Passing many other people, hearing bits and pieces of their conversations but paying no mind, they are already set on a conversation that is most important to their “organization”. Hearing the sound of footsteps from the front and along the back, some boots, some high heels, some just plain sneakers. The person continues onwards over to the docks, old warehouses stood where maybe old water wheels could have taken place. The water laps onto the wooden poles sticking out of the water to support the wooden planks screwed on top. The person looks to see the bridge connecting to the other part of the city, the buildings standing tall on the other side, while little ones continue to be seen but not for a far distance. Boats drift along the river, some small, some to be cargo and the like. The person then walks to the side of the old warehouses, seeming to have not been used for a long time.The windows that were once clean were now broken, graffiti sprayed all along the bottom of the once newly built structure. The large barn doors hinges now seem to fall apart at the seams. The person takes a couple more steps before finally reaching for a side door, the old crooked door creaked open with a groaning sigh. Stepping inside, the old windows streamed in the fresh sunlight, laying upon the old tools and machines that were left behind, old worn tarps covering some of the larger ones. The person's eyes scanned the old area, seeing what or who could be here.

“Ah you finally made it!” A voice rang out, echoing the empty ceiling above. The person's eyes soon landed on the person who spoke to them a few seconds earlier. The figure was tall and slim, his demeanor seeming to be friendly. His eyes glimmered a frosty blue when the sun had reflected onto them from above. His silver-like hair fixed to the side, his undercut still showing the spiky strands of hair still left. His attire was seemingly expensive, a dressed vintage black vest, the silver lining can be almost perfectly seen. The white polo shirt covering the rest of his body, the long sleeves rolled up neatly to reveal his arms, A fox tattoo could be seen slightly on his forearm but that was all the person could see. Designed pants and polished dark brown shoes.

The person's eyes squinted slightly, “ Never seen you so dressed up before..” The person finally spoke. The silver-haired person gave a small grin, “ I have a dinner party this afternoon, and rather soon I presume.” The silver-haired person’s accent seemed polish and deep-toned, almost as if he came straight off of a TV drama from the UK.

The person sighed, “ With the “special ones” I can only assume..” The person glanced at the silver-haired man for a moment. The silver-haired man lightly chuckled, “You are as sharp as ever today! That's what I’ve always liked about you, Kai” The person's dark brown eyes seem to stare straight into his soul. The silver-haired man smirked, “ Now, I’ll be straight to the point with you Kai.” The silver-haired man’s footsteps grew closer to Kai. Kai’s stature stood still, not wanting to make a fuss.

The silver-haired man’s eyes turned stern and cold. “ I hope you have accomplished what I asked of you to do with the... “intruders.” Kai’s eyes grew darker for a moment, “ Yes...I have, they were neutralized without disturbance.” The silver-haired man smiled, “Good, I was worried that those people would have run off without question with the precious intel we possess.” His voice gave off a pleasing tone. The silver-haired man gasped, “Ah, that's right! I have almost forgotten to ask how Lawrence is doing.” Kai’s eyes shifted back into view from his memory, “He’s...doing alright.” Kai spoke with drift in his tone. The silver-haired man grinned slightly, “Well, you know the drill.” The silver-haired man turned on his heels, his back to Kai. “If you both are summoned to headquarters, you know what to do.” The silver-haired man’s silhouette disappeared into the darkness as his voice trailed off into the ceiling. Kai’s eyes stared at the back of his figure before he disappeared completely. Kai then turned towards the side door, opening the groaning crooked door with one hand.

His black ebony hair pushed back, letting out a sigh. His hair was pulled up into a small bun, the rest had fallen onto his shoulders. Leaving only the small strands to be the only comfort for his stress that came flying in less then a second. His eyes trailed to the sidewalk close to the riverside, wanting to stroll his stress away. He soon trudged on the concrete sidewalk, the small trees lined up giving him cover from the beaming rays. His thoughts soon trailed his steps, his mind elsewhere.

“What’s up with you?” Kai jumped startled and looked around, seeing a figure behind him. Kai sighed in relief, “It’s just you Lawrence...you could’ve given me a heart attack if you weren’t careful” Kai gave an exasperated sigh. Lawrence’s hood was up slightly, his eyes could be seen shining an ember color from the sun poking in through the leaves. His metallic arm was covered by the sleeve, but seemed to be a bit torn from the few metals poking out. He wore black jeans and brown hiking boots, maybe in it for a little better dressed for a day.

“Well you can be a scaredy cat most times, that’s why it’s fun to jumpscare you.” Lawrence gave a small grin and chuckled. Kai’s expression pouted, “Well I’m sorry that I have to be self-aware around the clock.” Kai crosses his arms. Lawrence gave a small chuckle with his act. Kai’s expression dimmed, his mind nearly enclosing him in a loop of thoughts. “I had a brief conversation with the “Silver Fox” earlier, asking about you and how you’ve been doing.” Kai glanced at his eyes, hoping to find a response. Lawrence gave a sigh, his hands loosely on his hips. The silver-haired man's name revealed, He seemed to be a person of great importance. “Yeah, I figured he’d ask about me,” Lawrence sighed. “He always has some sort of motive, which is hard to pinpoint if he’s actually genuine or if he’s just a lying bastard.” Lawrence spat his words of frustration. Kai shrugged his shoulders, “Well isn’t that with everyone these days?” Kai questioned truthfully. Lawrence’s eyes glanced into Kai’s, “Well you’re not wrong about that.” Lawrence stepped closer and playfully nudged Kai’s shoulder. “If anything, some things just are what they are.” Lawrence spoke thoughtfully. Kai’s eyes glanced to the river in front, the sun's reflection in the cool water. “I worry sometimes, about how much privacy is needed to the point that even having to… “eradicate” intruders when even some could be innocent, it’s just been on my mind for some time now.” Kai’s brows furrowed. Lawrence sighed, “I know it’s not what we both signed up for, but in the end, they helped us, so it’s only fair to help them in return, even though I don’t like it myself sometimes.” Lawrence stepped over to the park bench closest to him.

“Even so, things have been escalating a bit since then. The NightWalkers can only do so much in a single night.” Kai exclaimed as he stepped over to sit down on the wooden bench. Lawrence glanced at the river's glistening waves, his mind beginning to wander. Kai glanced at his covered metallic arm, the little marks of stretched out fabric or cotton creating little holes from the gleaming metal that lies beneath the hoodie. Lawrence spoke out from the momentary silence, “ Things aren’t really easy to come by, let alone having the “easy” to come so quickly.” Lawrence glanced at his metallic arm, though wasn’t visibly seen, he could feel the weight on his heavy arm.

Lawrence’s tone grew more serious, “ You never really know when the worst will come.” Lawrence continues to gaze out onto the open river, his eyes scanning the opposite buildings from the other side of the large body of water. Kai’s eyes lingered down to his hands, his hands folded while being consumed in thought. Kai soon checked his electronic watch, the time being only 1:35 PM. Kai’s voice sighed, “s**t, I gotta get going, I have a lot of business to take care of.” Kai soon stood up and stretched his body. Lawrence looked over at him, his “business” usually would mean he’s in deep trouble or something he would rather not do. Kai glances over at Lawrence, seeing his amber-like eyes gleaming. Kai grinned slightly, “I’ll see you around!” Kai spoke as he began jogging away and waving goodbye to him. Lawrence raised a hand and waved back slightly, chuckling a bit from his kid-like actions. Lawrence’s eyes scanned the area around him, seeing the bustling people of the city still about in daylight. The time, still moving ever so swiftly from each passing second. As Lawrence continued to gaze at the surroundings around him, his pocket began to buzz. Reaching into his pocket, the touch of his phone grazed his fingers. Pulling out his phone, the buzzing continued. The caller ID read out, “The Trouble”. Lawrence’s eyes rolled, letting out a short sigh.

“This guy...I swear” He swore under his breath. Lawrence’s thumb hovered over the green button for a few seconds before answering the troublemaker on the other end.

“Hey Lawyer!” The voice on the other end spoke out cheerfully. Lawrence sighed begrudgingly, not even liking his nickname ever since it’s been given to him.

“What do you need? You know I can already tell from your cheery attitude that you got a job for me.” Lawrence exclaimed. The voice on the other end gave an exasperated sigh, “you caught me, you know me too well!” The voice dramatically exclaimed. Lawrence’s face could already be seen glaring into the phone to the other person on the other side. As if the person could feel his glare, they stutter, “ W-Well, hear me out this time! I promise this is a good one!” The person bargained. Lawrences eyebrow raised questionably, “Ok...I’m listening” His tone intrigued. The other person sighed in relief, having not wanted Lawrence to immediately hang up on them. “Ok, so here’s the plan” the voice resumed, their tone in a more serious sense. “You know of that fancy restaurant just across the bridge to the small city, Wilton, right?”

Lawrence subconsciously turns his head out to the other buildings across the river, “Of course” his tone giving a matter-of-fact attitude.

“Well you know the guy that you took out to dry just a couple days back? William Kingson? You know the broken wrist, tried to kill you with a pretty nice looking pistol-“ before the person could add anymore, Lawrence cut them short.

“Ok ok I get who you’re talking about!” Lawrence’s tone grew irritated for a moment, his fingers pitching his temples. Not wanting to remember his failed “interview” with the man in question. With a pause, he sighed “what about him?” Lawrence questioned.

“Well since he’s still in a cast and has severe bruising, he rescheduled his appointment with the Whites to the restaurant across the river, Rose Withers Restaurant.” The person spoke as if they were reading off a script.

Lawrence’s eyes grew serious, focusing his attention completely on his phone, waiting to hear more information.

“Apparently, he still is going to go ahead with his appointment for a meeting with the Whites, I’m not sure what they are planning to talk about but my gut has got some bad feelings about it.” The person spoke as if they ate a bad apple. Lawrence looked to the river, still glistening in the basking sunlight. The smell of the water filling his nose.

After a moment of silence, Lawrence spoke, “When is the dinner?” Lawrence’s tone grew serious. “Hmmm…let me check” a sound of a keyboard clicks just a few times. “It is supposed to be Thursday at 8:00 PM” the person spoke with affirmation in their voice. The day was a Monday, so this was supposedly 3 days away.

Lawrence’s eyes shifted to the ground, searching for his question “Why tell me this now when you usually inform me about this type of job just when it’s about to happen?” Lawrence questioned them. The person nervously laughed on the other end, “…Let's just say that a certain someone wants you to have the job and not the higher ups..” The person stuttered.

Lawrence sighed, “It's ok to tell me his name, you know I’m not going to kill you for it…even though I know who you’re referring to…” Lawrence’s voice quieted.

The person sighed in relief, “Good! Because I do not want to be your punching bag for today.” The person jokingly said.

Lawrence gave a small chuckle in response, “I’m not that cruel you know” Lawrence’s expression lightened, a small curl upon his lips.

The person's laughter could be heard on the other end, “Well you can be, that’s why I don’t want to get on your bad side!” The person joked once more.

Lawrence shook his head, the small grin still plastered onto his face.

“Well thank you for letting me know ahead of time, I’ll come by later with some food for ya” Lawrence uttered.

The person's voice raised in excitement, “Really?! Hell ya! Thanks Lawyer, you're the best!” The person could be practically bouncing up and down, like an excited puppy. Lawrence rolled his eyes and gave a small chuckle, always wanting to hear the excitement in their voice for such small things such as food.

“What are you in the mood for?” Lawrence suggested. The person on the other end grew silent for a moment, their thoughts gathering.

“How about ramen from the Chinese shop just a few blocks away from the shopping square?” The person's voice sang as they mentioned their favorite food.

Lawrence’s expression blanked, “That’s all you ever eat nowadays..” Lawrence spoke under his breath.

The person's attitude heightened, “Hey! I work out most of the time! Besides, it's my go-to when I’m working my ass off for the rest of the punks!” The person ended their sentence with a huff, playfully offended by Lawrence’s action.

Lawrence shakes his head at the person's playfulness, which seems to be too often sometimes, “Well, I’ll be sure to bring it over to you soon” Lawrence said giving a final note.

“You better! Or I may never let you see another day!” The person's triumphant laughter ringed in Lawrence’s ears. Lawrence gave a light chuckle before lifting the phone off his ear and pressing the red button. The peaceful moment was soon gone, his serious mind coming to fruition. His eyes scanned the other side of the city just across the large-scaled river.