I instantly froze, holding my breath, inhaling the sharp smell of iron and dust. Thick darkness covered everything, my vision was completely gone, making me feel truly blind. Damn it, who else was in this rotten warehouse?
My legs were shaking violently, not only because my back and wrists were in terrible pain, but because of the deep fear I felt. This was not a regular brawl, this was a well-executed trap. I had to quickly find a weapon, anything I could hold, before it was too late.
I heard the panicked footsteps of the two masked men, they were shouting names, trying to figure out where I was. But the heavy, cold breathing felt closer, as if he was standing right behind my shoulder. I slowly shifted my feet to the side, backing up slightly towards a pile of scrap metal near the wall.
From the dark corner of the room, amidst the panicked voices of the two masked men, a low, very cold, and penetrating hoarse voice suddenly spoke. "You shouldn't have opened that laptop, Gamali."
My heart immediately sank, my body stiffened, and all the blood in my body seemed to stop flowing instantly. The voice felt familiar, but I couldn't recall who it was, I was certain he wasn't one of the two thugs chasing me. A strong sense of betrayal immediately arose, making me feel sick.
I was jolted into realization, this physical pain was no longer my main problem. I had to survive, bring Aisyah home, and exact the revenge that had been accumulating. My hands fumbled on the floor, feeling the dirt, until my fingers touched something long and rough. It was a heavy, rusty iron bar, a decent weapon.
Cold sweat streamed from my temple, wetting my eyes, which were already red from the intense dizziness that returned. I gripped the iron bar tightly, my strength returned little by little, vengeance and anger now dominating my thoughts. The third figure walked casually, his steps seemingly deliberate, as if he was toying with me in the darkness.
"Who are you, you bastard? Show your face now, or I'll make you regret stepping into this warehouse!" I yelled loudly, trying to hide my great fear. I immediately swung the rusty bar forward, producing a sharp scraping sound that shattered the oppressive silence.
The figure didn't answer, instead, he let out a small, very cold laugh, a laugh full of mockery and insult. Suddenly, he attacked directly from the front, his movement was very fast, far more skilled than the two masked men I had hit earlier. He immediately struck the iron bar with something hard, creating a small spark that quickly vanished in the dark.
The loud impact made my ears ring, my right hand hurt terribly, almost causing me to lose my grip on the bar. He attacked me again, pushing my body backward. I didn't hear his footsteps, he was like a very fast person who was playing with me. This was a brutal fight in total darkness.
"You think you can run from this trash life, Gamali?" the man whispered, his voice very close to my ear, then he immediately punched me hard and fast in the solar plexus. I was instantly shocked, coughing from the pain. My lungs ached, my breath ragged, I was running out of air.
I retaliated with a blind swing of the iron bar, hoping to hit his body, but he was too nimble and quick to evade. A wooden chair behind me fell with a loud crash, followed by the sound of breaking glass from a window hit by the rusty bar I swung. I felt like I was fighting someone who was disappearing and reappearing, his position was very hard to pinpoint.
"Listen, you loser, don't try to fight us, you're just a weak person we deserve to use as a plaything," he hissed again, then he kicked my knee very hard, causing me to stagger, almost falling. "It's useless to fight, you low-level traitor, you will die a miserable death here."
Traitor? I immediately clenched my jaw, the anger reignited throughout my body. I wasn't a traitor, I was the victim of all this mess. I wouldn't let those filthy words hurt my feelings. "I'm not afraid of you, you foul bastard! I will live, and all of you will face the consequences for all this revenge!" I shouted, forcing myself to stand up again.
I immediately used the iron bar as a support, then I kicked back at him, making the man take a step back. I heard a muffled groan, I managed to hit him. But he recovered very quickly. The man immediately grabbed my collar, slamming my body against the hard cement wall. My head hit the wall, making my eyes spin.
"Don't you dare talk about revenge, you snot-nosed kid," he threatened, his voice very cold, full of hatred and a palpable, frightening menace. "The real revenge is in my chest, and you will feel it in the most painful way, you deserve to die alone."
His grip on my collar tightened, choking me mercilessly, it was hard to breathe. The feeling of losing Aisyah and the persistent guilt immediately peaked, mixed with a strong will to live. I wouldn't die before seeing her face again, I had to save her.
I held my breath, then I bit his large arm very hard and deep, I didn't care about the pain. The man immediately shouted, reflexively releasing his grip, then he threw a hard punch at my face. I staggered and fell onto the dirty floor. My face felt numb, I spat out the metallic-tasting blood again.
Suddenly, I felt a strange sensation on my right palm, the symbol pulsed again, radiating an extraordinary heat. I tried to ignore it, focusing all my attention on the darkness. I had to escape now, this was the only way.
I quickly rolled toward the sound of the two masked men who were frantically shouting and looking for the thrown pistol. The third man immediately followed, his steps slow but feeling very dangerous, he knew where I was.
"Enough, you scoundrel! You've wasted your chance!" the third man shouted, his voice no longer low, he sounded panicked and angry. I sensed a strange defeat radiating from him.
Right at that second, I felt a small touch on my bloody hand. It was the wireless mouse connected to Andaru's laptop lying there. I immediately grabbed it, then moved the cursor without looking. I had to turn the laptop on again.
I heard a loud gunshot, the bullet missed widely, hitting the concrete wall. Followed by an angry shout from the first man. They were panicked because the third man was making the situation more chaotic. They knew nothing about the laptop, only I and the third man knew.
I immediately clicked any button I found there, hoping the file would reappear. In the midst of the chaos, a loud click sounded from the electrical panel in the far corner of the room. The main power came back on.
The bright neon light immediately illuminated the entire warehouse, making my eyes hurt and sting. I immediately closed my eyes, trying to adjust to the bright light.
When I opened my eyes, my heart pounded hard. The room was empty.
The third man, the two masked men—they had all simply disappeared, as if they had never been there, without a trace. There were only overturned chairs and broken glass. I gasped for breath, trying to stand up, disbelieving what had just happened.
I crawled towards the laptop, which was now on. On the screen, there was no longer a list of codenames or illegal BIN operations. There was only a blank screen with new writing that appeared out of nowhere. The sentence was simple, but very threatening:
"The traitor is in BIN. And he is closer than you think."
Suddenly, my right palm pulsed again, hurting terribly. I saw a strange symbol raised on it.
The same symbol as in the warehouse where Aisyah was kidnapped. The symbol emitted a faint light, like a deliberate sign left for me.
I immediately looked at the iron door, then at the laptop. Vengeance and confusion immediately hit me. Who was that third man? Who was watching us? Who was the traitor in BIN? And what was the meaning of the symbol on my hand?
I had to find out, I had to find Aisyah, and I had to avenge all these evil deeds. I didn't have time to stop. I gripped the rusty iron bar, then quickly ran out of the mysterious warehouse, leaving behind all the unanswered questions.