Chapter 296: Back to Los Angeles
The cold storage doors swung open, and five modified sports cars filed out, heading toward the site of the terrorist attack. The car carrying the Russian diplomat had already turned onto Seventh Avenue.
Just as the driver breathed a sigh of relief, thinking they'd escaped, a loud crash rang out.
The driver looked up to see a car flying off a rooftop parking garage and plummeting down, landing right in front of the lead security vehicle. Without even warning the car ahead, the driver hastily swerved, his vehicle narrowly missing the wreckage.
Just as he pulled alongside the lead car, the airborne vehicle slammed into it, crushing it into a metal pancake. The people inside were clearly dead.
You think that was the end of it? No, this was just the beginning. The driver looked up in horror to find that, following the first car that fell from the sky, countless others followed suit, raining down from the rooftops like missiles.
In the blink of an eye, cars fell one after another onto or beside the Russian diplomat's vehicle, piling up like a junkyard, burying the diplomat's security car deep inside.
"This scene is fucking spectacular!" Ron, watching the live feed on his phone, couldn't help but exclaim with excitement. The scene was straight out of a Hollywood blockbuster; he really wanted to see what it would look like on the big screen.
Watching it on his phone definitely wasn't doing it justice.
"Boss, are you sure we're just going to bail like this? Don't we need to help Hobbs and the others? I feel like they're still struggling with Toretto," Hank asked hesitantly, carrying two suitcases behind Ron.
He was worried about them, being teammates and all.
"Don't worry, as long as they stick to the plan, everything will go smoothly. Don't forget, the purpose of this operation wasn't to capture Toretto or kill Cipher."
Ron took the suitcase from Hank. "The main objective of this mission is for Toretto to take the tracker back so we can find Cipher's location. I have a feeling that if we don't deal with this snake now, she'll definitely come back to bite us later."
"Then why can't we help Hobbs and his crew?"
"Because we're in the shadows, Hank." Ron dropped a line like he was some CEO in a spy thriller. "In the shadows, we can move freely. But if we go help, we'll expose ourselves to Cipher. I don't think you want your wife getting dragged into a van by two masked guys while she's shopping at Target, right?
Hank, where's my boarding pass?"
Hank opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but finally gave up and pulled out the boarding pass and ticket from his pocket and handed them to Ron.
What happened next was all up to Hobbs to handle. Ron had already bought his plane ticket and was heading back to Los Angeles.
He had more important things to do—checking on the preparations for the exoskeleton suits that would carry the Shaw brothers between aircraft mid-flight.
At Caltech, Ron got off the plane and drove straight to campus. Meanwhile, Hobbs called with the final results of the operation.
The good news was that, after a "hard-fought battle," Toretto had finally escaped from Hobbs and his team and successfully brought the tracker back to the plane.
The bad news was that, along with it, he'd also brought back the nuclear launch codes that had been in the Russian diplomat's possession.
"FUCK! Ron, FUCK!" Hobbs cursed continuously into the phone. "What are these lunatics trying to do? They actually stole the nuclear launch codes?! Are they trying to start World War III?
The codes were lost on American soil, and now no matter how much we try to explain, we can't dodge responsibility. I heard from a guy at the Pentagon that Russia has already started large-scale troop movements. If we can't give them answers within a week, we might be facing a real shooting war!
Ron, are you listening?"
"Of course," Ron replied lazily. "Tell Mr. Nobody to find a way to stall for another week. We'll definitely catch Cipher before then and make her give them up."
"Within a week? Are you crazy?!" Hobbs roared into the phone. Ron quickly held it away from his ear to avoid further auditory torture.
"The tracker signal is too weak. It'll take at least three days to locate them. Who knows what crazy shit Cipher might pull in the meantime? If she launches a nuke during this period, the whole world is screwed!"
"No, you're overthinking it, big guy," Ron switched his phone to speaker and picked at his ear. "Having the codes isn't enough without actual nuclear weapons, so just wait and see. She'll definitely be targeting some Russian military installation soon, and the kind that's easiest to hit. I suggest you keep a close eye on movements around Chechnya."
"No problem, but if you're leaving everything to me, what will you be doing?"
"Handling Deckard and Owen's equipment, of course."
Ron looked up. Caltech was right there. It was lunchtime. Ron parked his car and headed straight for the cafeteria.
Sure enough, all four of them were there. "Hey guys, long time no see! I bet you've got some good news about the exosuits, right?"
"Not really. On the contrary, I have bad news," Howard wiped his mouth with a napkin. "There was an accident at the biology lab."
"An accident? What kind of accident?"
"They injected a lab rat with radioactive isotopes, but the little guy bit one of the techs and escaped, so the biology lab, along with several other labs around it, got sealed off—including our exoskeleton lab."
Ron's heart sank. "How long until the lab reopens?"
"Don't worry, it'll reopen by noon tomorrow at the latest. I've already modified the flight function you requested. The flight range is limited to thirty kilometers, but I promise it'll fly as fast as you need."
"Well, looks like I'll just have to wait with you guys," Ron said, sitting in an empty seat at their table. "I bet Sheldon's with Amy, right?"
Three heads nodded in unison. Ron shrugged helplessly. "Never mind him then. I'll head home tonight and come back with you guys to pick up the suits tomorrow."
"Hey, how's that tech doing? Did he get superpowers?" Rajesh asked eagerly as soon as Ron sat down.
Howard: "No, he got five stitches and a tetanus shot."
"That's really disappointing."
"Why do you say that?" Since he had nothing else to do, Ron joined their nerdy conversation.
"If you got bitten by a radioactive creature in a lab, you'd definitely want to become a superhero, like Spider-Man," Rajesh said matter-of-factly.
Howard scoffed. "Okay, even if you're right, who wants to be Rat-Man?"
"Who wouldn't? You could navigate mazes, squeeze through tiny holes, and shut down restaurants with just a few appearances. And best of all, if I really became Rat-Man, you could be my sidekick, Rat-Boy."
Rajesh's comic book fantasy made Ron laugh. "Those superpowers you mentioned don't seem very useful. If you want to navigate a maze, just use Google Maps. If you lose some weight, you can squeeze through smaller holes too. Finally, if you really want to shut down a restaurant, I suggest you don't shower for a month and just stand in front of it. I believe that'll have the same effect."
"That's different. Superpowers are way cooler, don't you think, Rat-Boy?"
Rajesh asked Howard for his opinion. Howard objected, "First of all, let me be clear: if there really were superpowers, I definitely wouldn't be the sidekick—you would be."
"Rat-Man will never be a sidekick!"
Ron covered his face. If he didn't need their help adjusting the gear tomorrow, he would've pretended not to know these two clowns.
Superheroes, huh? I've played one several times!
There was still an unsolved bank robbery case at the NYPD, and the suspect photos showed Batman and Robin. Who else could that be but Ron's handiwork?
Those were real superheroes, unlike these two who just talked the talk.
Ron didn't want to get involved in this mess, but the battle eventually came to him. After several rounds of arguing, Rajesh and Howard turned to Ron together. "Ron, who do you think is more like a sidekick?"
I think you're both adorable little sidekicks making gear for Batman!
Of course, he couldn't say that out loud. Ron could only suggest, "If you really want to decide, how about you two compete in something? Leonard and I can be your judges. What do you say, Leonard?"
Anyway, he couldn't get the gear today, and he couldn't leave, so he didn't mind having some fun.
"Okay, I don't care. But how do you plan to have them compete?" Leonard was flattered that Ron asked him.
"First, the first test is, of course, courage..."
An hour later, Ron returned to the cafeteria with a white ceramic jar.
Leonard asked curiously, "Ron, what's in that jar?"
"The most important quality for a superhero is, of course, superhuman courage," Ron didn't answer directly but placed the jar between the three of them and began to speak. "Everyone feels fear, and that's not shameful, but some people still choose to face their fear head-on. It is this superhuman courage that makes them worthy of being called superheroes."
"There's a tarantula in this jar. You two just have to stick your hands in, and whoever pulls out last wins. Sound good?"
"Of course!" Howard agreed enthusiastically, opening the jar and sticking his hand in first. "Come on, Rajesh, you scared?"
"No, but, this... this..." Rajesh was terrified of spiders. He stared intently at the jar but didn't put his hand in.
"If you don't dare stick your hand in, you can expect to be a sidekick for life!" Howard taunted.
But perhaps spurred on by Howard's trash talk, just as Leonard was about to declare Howard the winner, Rajesh suddenly thrust his hand in.
"Well done, Rajesh. Congratulations on taking another step toward becoming a superhero," Ron nodded approvingly. He'd never imagined the Indian guy could have such courage. "Can you tell me why you suddenly went for it?"
"Simple. The spider's already crawling up Howard's arm." Rajesh pointed, and from Ron's angle, sure enough, a large tarantula was crawling up Howard's sleeve.
"Ahhh! AHHH!..." Howard let out a shriek that would make a soprano jealous. "Ron, get this thing off me! Hurry, Ron!"
Ron shook his head, reached in, grabbed the spider, tossed it back into the jar, and closed the lid. "Alright, I declare Rajesh the winner of round one."
"Why? He clearly didn't keep his hand in there as long as I did!"
"Because I said whoever pulled out last won, not who kept it in the longest," Ron remained unmoved, sticking to his original decision. "Also, your panicked reaction just now was a major fail. If this were America's Got Talent, I definitely wouldn't have given you my golden buzzer. Referee Leonard?"
"Agreed."
"Alright, what's next? I'll definitely beat him this time!"
Ron led them to the Caltech gymnasium, found a secluded corner, and rolled out wrestling mats. "The second event, of course, is hand-to-hand combat."
Ron said seriously, "Superheroes can't always carry their weapons. When you're unarmed, combat skills are essential. The rules are simple.
No groin shots, no eye gouging, no chokeholds. Use whatever you want—as long as you can knock your opponent down and keep them down, you win. Sound good, gentlemen?"
"That suits me perfectly. I started learning karate when I was eleven. Rajesh, I'm warning you, you can still tap out now." Howard, wearing a red spandex wrestling singlet, struck a bizarre pose and talked trash.
Whatever that pose was, Ron was certain it wasn't karate.
"Really? I've also taken Pilates classes at the gym. My abs are like a Hershey's chocolate bar, all defined and segmented. You're no match for me!"
Rajesh struck a pose that defied Ron's understanding.
"If I remember correctly, Pilates is basically yoga, Rajesh. Are you sure that helps in a fight?" Ron asked skeptically.
"Really?" Rajesh made a feint, causing Howard to back away in fright. "Whatever it is, he's definitely going down today!"
(End of Chapter)
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