Chapter 16: The Aftermath.
24th June 2026
After his encounter with Gamblreno, Aboutrika was found driving back to the wedding's place, the steady, low hum of the engine keeping the silence at bay.
As Aboutrika was driving… he notices a familiar chef sitting down on a low staircase while thinking to himself.
Aboutrika notices and stops by Tariq, the glass letting out a heavy mechanical whirrr as he rolls down his window.
"Yo, Tariq. Watcha' doing here?"
"Oh, if it's not Aboutrika. Nothing much… just had to deal with some 'business' here."
Aboutrika then stares at Tariq for a moment… in a soft way.
Aboutrika then remembers the illusion where Tariq and Harith had died because of him shooting them… it played vividly in his head.
The wet, heavy noise of blood splattering… the view of Tariq's iconic hat falling off his head as he fell down.
"What's up? I don't see that classic smirk of yours on your face."
Then Aboutrika snaps out of it, remembering that all of it was just a lie.
Aboutrika then smiled.
"Oh, you're now smiling?"
Tariq says as he gets inside the Autobus.
"That's quite the rare sight, what's the occasion?"
He then buckled his seatbelt with a sharp click and shuts the door with a small slam.
"It's… nothing, just happy to have someone like you as my friend."
Aboutrika says while focusing on the road.
(Acting a bit weird… huh? That means he probably fought a Disposition user…)
"So… where's Harith and the others?"
"Wait, Harith? He actually didn't follow me… Not sure where he is right now."
"Let me call 'em, hold on."
Aboutrika then pulls out a new, best-in-class smartphone.
Tariq then notices with his side eye the new phone while his arms are crossed.
"A new phone? Where'd you get it from?"
"Just bought it with my money… not to flex or anything but it's the best one this year."
Tariq sighs.
"Aboutrika, I am not stupid… how did you actually get it? I just know you don't even pay for your own gas, you just use your Disposition for that."
"Lowkey… I stole it from a guy."
Then unexpectedly, Tariq swings his palm down on the back of Aboutrika's neck with a loud slap.
"AH, what's your problem?!"
Aboutrika loses control of his vehicle for a second, the tires letting out a loud, screeching drift across the asphalt.
"Why'd you steal other people's stuff… I didn't know Harith liked to befriend thieves…"
"Yo! Man I am not a thief… I am just…"
"No excuses for being a thief, Aboutrika. You should—"
Then Aboutrika and Tariq could feel a heavy, deep rumble from the earth that shakes the entire place.
Tariq's expression turns alarmed.
Aboutrika tenses up.
The place kept shaking and shaking rapidly…
"What the fuck's goin' on?!"
"Drive there, Aboutrika."
Tariq points at the place where it's really foggy until…
Debris dust fogs the entire place… making it almost impossible to see.
"Shit…"
Says Tariq.
"Hate to break it to ya, Tariq. That's gonna be impossible… unless we are lucky enough to find our way blindly."
"That explosion… those earthquakes. Harith must've been involved in them…"
Some buildings fall down and make a massive, shattering crash in front of their very own eyes. Others getting destroyed in weird ways…
"Holy… fuck…"
"Aboutrika, get out of the bus. It's best if we stay out of it temporarily since buildings are falling."
He says as he quickly steps down and slams the door of the auto-bus, Aboutrika following his lead.
"Store your bus, we need to have some distance from this incident for now. And where is Amina and Harith's sister?! We've got to escort them safely!"
Meanwhile…
Amina was found still inside the marriage hall inside a private room, doing Mi'na's hair.
"Uhm… wow, Amina. Didn't know you were this good at being a hair dresser. Did you work as one before or something?"
Amina had a scissor in her mouth as she was using a hair dryer, its loud, roaring whirrrr filling the small space.
In a muffled voice.
"It's nothing much… just some personal experience. You like it?"
Both Amina and Mi'na didn't even feel the ground shake beneath as the buildings were falling one by one behind them. Which was comical…
Meanwhile…
Harith stood there through the heavy and thick fog while staring directly at the barely visible body of Shagahf.
Harith was seriously injured… but he kept his ground, his heavy, ragged breathing cutting through the dust. He was holding his shoulder while his back was bent over.
Then a voice comes from the fogs… a familiar voice.
"You guys seem to be forgetting someone here…"
Says the figure as he slowly stepped in, a heavy, distinct thud accompanying each step, heard clearly despite the crashing and the earthquakes around the city.
"You, Harith forgot I was on your side…"
"And you, Shagahf. You forgot I was also one of your enemies."
Mutafakir was then shown, his muscles visible underneath his shirt as he stepped next to Harith while warming up, letting out a sharp, loud crack as he loosened his neck.
"Shagahf, you wanted a challenge with hardship, huh? You've got it. Me and Harith'll make sure this is your last fight, ever."
Mutafakir was shown uninjured despite the heavy punch from Shagahf earlier.
Harith was silent… he didn't know what to say at the sight of Mutafakir being completely fine.
"You've got a big mouth there, fam. What I am hoping is that you're able to back up those words of yours," Shagahf replies, letting out a low, mocking chuckle.
They spoke through the heavy, dense fog.
"Harith, let's give this guy a piece of our mind."
To be continued…