Tower Of The Elite

Being struck out of the blue is enough to shake anyone, but in the first place, was it truly an unexpected assault?

I had been holding a fortune in my hands and believed no one would dare to steal it.

Since when has the world been so kind?

"Karaka, you are not getting away!" one of the gang members screamed, chasing after the man who had snatched the ticket.

He was the first to snap back to reality, and soon the rest followed, giving chase to the man named Karaka.

I quickly got back on my feet and ran after them, but my speed was too slow compared to them. It was inevitable. In the shape I was in, my dull, frigid, and drained body seemed ready to collapse after barely a quarter mile of sprinting.

I didn't want this. It felt like fate was toying with me all over again. I couldn't lose, not again.

The same desperation surged through me as I considered my options, my mind racing to find any possible way to catch up to them.

As I ran down the lane, my eyes caught sight of a man spraying graffiti on the wall. But what truly grabbed my attention was the skateboard leaning on the farther side wall.

I shoved him into the scattered paint cans, and as he fell, he screamed after me, "Hey! Come back here!"

Without hesitation, I snatched the skateboard and took off, rolling as fast as I could. His angry shouts faded into the distance with every passing second.

After gaining speed, the figures of the gang members came into view, and I became more determined to catch up to them, to not lose sight of them.

We continued chasing Karaka through the back alleys, but eventually, we spilled into the main streets, with everyone watching us. Some assumed it was just the usual gang business, while a few threw curious glances.

I drew even more attention, being the only one chasing with a skateboard. I ignored their gazes, just as the rest of the gang members did, our focus entirely on the man running ahead of us.

Then, the man with the ticket began performing parkour moves as he scaled the construction scaffolding of a building.

The others followed suit, though with less finesse, while the girls and the heavier ones made their way across the building. I joined the latter.

Even when I was nearly close to them, they ignored me. In fact, they were all eyeing each other warily.

'Guess it is every man for himself',

 I thought as the implications dawned on me. These gang members, who had been together all along, were now ready to betray one another, all for money.

It wasn't just any money, but a sum so large it could change the lives of anyone here.

Of course, I had seen my fair share of betrayals. That's why I understood the situation better than anyone, yet I was the last to act despite that.

'When will I ever learn from my mistakes', I cursed at myself but soon got back to focusing on the chase. 

This was not the time for useless thoughts, It was the time for action.

"Leave me!"

"No, It is mine"

My gaze shifted upward, where some altercations were unfolding. The man Karaka had most likely been caught in a struggle for the ticket.

The noise grew louder, and so did my anxiety.

I started climbing the pavements along with the others. I was already a bit tired, but I pushed myself nonetheless.

My gaze shifted to the girls and the heavier ones; their exhaustion was evident in their eyes, and then it struck me.

What would I even do once I climbed up there? In my current state, one punch would be enough to knock me off.

I assessed my condition and planned my next move carefully. I took it slow, letting the others climb first.

"Aaahhhh!"

But suddenly a loud scream echoed as the silhouette plummeted from above, crashing into the hard ground with a sickening thud.

The man was likely dead as blood oozed from his head.

The others gulped, realizing just how far this conflict had gone.

But would they stop here? The answer was obvious. Such chances wouldn't come again, and it was worth gambling with their lives on the line.

Heck, I was even ready to kill myself a while ago, but right now, with such an opportunity, I was willing to risk more than just my life.

Just as the others recovered and climbed up, a bald man, whom I recognized from the convenience store, came down with the ticket in his mouth. He was descending at a quick pace, both hands gripping the poles tightly.

We shifted our focus and started chasing him. The man was already on the ground, running with every last ounce of energy he could muster.

I noticed that the others from above had also caught up with us, but they didn't even bother trying to knock us away.

As I looked around more carefully, most of them were drained. It was good news, so I pulled out the skateboard I had quickly hidden under the wooden wedge.

I hid it for the sake of my escape route and now I can use it to save my stamina again while hiding from their eyes.

My speed was slow as to not catch their attention, or someone might steal the skateboard itself from me.

The chase went on for a while until we got back into the back alleys. The others appeared quite tired with all the running, the chase had been going for almost half an hour after all.

Using my navigation skills, I quickly took a detour, knowing now is the time to reveal myself. I had been careful not to go fast and save energy.

It was all for this moment, and I can't fail now. I quickly speed up on the parallel road which would eventually join them ahead at the intersection.

And true to the image I had envisioned, the bald man with the ticket appeared just as I neared the meeting point of the alleyway.

I jumped on him as soon as I got close, using my full body weight to press him down.

The man yelped, but I didn't give him time to scream as I punched his face immediately after landing, knocking him out quickly, he was already on the verge of complete exhaustion.

Then, I took the ticket from his pocket. Just as I was about to hop on my skateboard and make a run for it, the others jumped on me.

It started with one man and soon I felt the pressing weight of seven men on top of me. 

I sensed a feminine hand reaching for the ticket in my grip, but before it could be snatched away, I shoved the ticket in my mouth and gulped out loud.

"NOOOO!"

The woman screamed in despair as the rest of the men slowly got up to their feet. Everyone surrounded me and I knew soon I would minced into meat paste.

I didn't release the hand holding my mouth until a second later, but just then, the tallest guy in the group lifted me up by my collar. He screamed at me with bloodshot eyes.

"Do you know what you just did?"

To his question, I merely smirked as I replied,

"If I'm not winning, then no one is."

They were all sinking into despair, but the big guy had other ideas. He shoved his hand inside my mouth.

I felt what it meant to have something big thrust deep inside their mouth.

 " he has to be lying, he can't swallow it", his word brought others a silver of hope, but the man found nothing even after torturing me for a whole minute, I was struggling to breathe.

But as if luck shined on me once again, a loud siren rang in the colony as every gang member screeched in fear,

"Its the Police, someone might have reported the commotion we had been causing"

The female said while grabbing her hair in frustation.

"SHIT SHIT SHIT!!!!"

Everyone started running away until it was only the large guy and me. The sounds of the siren became louder as none of us moved, I was already released from his grasp, I lacked the energy to move after being beaten by them. 

Heck, I wanted to move but I after a lot of struggle I only managed to get up in a kneeling position.

But the man stayed with a broken mindset as he muttered in a low voice, 

" That money, It could have saved my dying sister"

Tears left the man's eyes. They were genuine, and it made me uncomfortable. Unlike me, the man was fighting not for himself, but for the sake of his sister, I had seen scammers trying to take advantage of the kindness of others.

But this, this was heartfelt, I knew because I know those looks in his eyes. He also certainly not trying to guilt trip me, This was him losing hope.

Maybe he would try something else later on, like kidnapping, theft, and murder. I would go that far as well if I was as desperate as him. I understood that desperation better than anyone.

I had a sister too, but I had wronged her on so many levels.

'If I could…' My thoughts trailed off as I sighed,

'I was going to end my life anyway,' I thought as I reached inside my shirt.

"Here," I said to the man who was weeping on the road.

He looked up, shocked to see the ticket, though it was crumpled. I had folded it to fit between my fingers before tucking it into my shirt. A variation of a magic trick I had developed just for entertaining my girlfriend.

" This money will have more worth if used for saving a life. Now go, they should be here any minute" I said as I fell to the ground again.

Strangely, I felt no guilt or regret for losing my money this time, only a sense of peace. This peace was what I craved for so long.

The man still didn't move, his gaze shifting between the ticket and me. But eventually, as he saw the flicker of red-blue lights on the walls, he stood and ran as fast as he could. He didn't look back, but his shaken voice echoed,

"THANK YOU SO MUCH SIR!"

It was a voice filled with gratitude and respect.

"For crying out loud… haha," I chuckled at his actions, my mind analyzing his words as I realized,

'How long has it been since I received respect?'

The question remained unanswered as I lost consciousness.

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A/N: If you have any review or suggestions feel free to drop them.

I won't be changing my novel's storyline I have a picture in my mind to navigate it, but I think the writing certainly has room for improvements, Any good suggestion is always welcome.

And please drop in some Power Stones.