Chapter 118: farewell

Woods Calibri held his wife tightly, as their figures stirred like clothes being washed in a washing machine. The stirring finally stopped a little, as their disoriented eyes gradually started stabilizing.

They now finally started taking in their surroundings, as the memories of what just transpired returned to their brain.

“What did you do? Where are my children? Why are we alone?” As soon as Elizabeth Calibri recovered her memories, she grabbed her husband as he demanded where he sent her children.

Her husband turned to look at her, as he tried hard without much success to rid his face of his pained expression.

“I’m sorry Liz,” he gently apologized, as he held and stroked his wife’s hand. “I only had one of the super teleportation devices; I was able to get it by luck in one of the equipment auctions I visited”.

“The other one I gave to Dan and Sonia was the ones my boys got from a war ruin. Its operation is completely random; I don’t know where they landed. I had no other choice; I just could not bear seeing you suffering again”.

“What??? You abandoned our children?” His wife exploded, as tears already started pouring from her eyes in rage and frustration.

Despite being a man, the great Woods Calibri could not control his emotions on seeing his wife flare-up, as tears also flowed down from his eyes. He gently wiped the tears off with his left hand, as he lifted his face to glance at the ceiling.

The 2 devices he used to break the space stabilization effects are called the omnidirectional teleportation device. It was a rare exotic-produced device that can send users to any place in the world, no matter how unfavorable the user’s current location was.

The one he used on himself and his wife was the one he got by luck, from one of the high-grade auctions he attended. The other one that he gave to his children was gotten by his soldiers from an exploration to a war ruin, as battle loot.

When he got it, some of its parts were barely functional. Because it already sustained some damage, he could not control where his children will be sent to.

He loved his children and his wife, the decision he made was the most heart-rending decision he had ever faced to make, in his entire life.

He couldn’t help but feel like he was a bad father. Yes, he was a bad father, opting to send his children to completely unknown places. But to him, at least, he temporarily saved their life.

His expression soured again, as he glanced back at his crying, broken, raging, furious, and frustrated wife. Rage slowly took over him also, as he ground his teeth to control himself a bit.

“All the people who planned this, wait for me. I will take all your blood, as compensation for the life of my children. You want war, and war is what you will get”.

…

Somewhere else, in the Sahara desert, in Africa. The golden glow of the hot sun shone down, burning the dry but sandy earth. Life went on as usual in the desert, as all the desert living animals lived their life uneventfully.

A portal suddenly opened in the air, as 2 figures dropped down from it. Due to their still disoriented state, they could not react on time as they dropped to the sand, with their face facing down.

“Awwn,” Sonia grunted in pain, as she slowly stood up while wiping the sand particles away from her face.

On seeing the sight before her, her face morphed into one of surprise. “Where am I? Is this heaven?”

As she soliloquized, the memories of the previous events suddenly flashed back into her memory, just like a system memory reboot. She closed her eyes, as she went through her memories again.

“Daniel…, Daniel where are you?” She finally remembered what happened, as she scrambled up to look for her brother.

“Sonia, where are we?” Her brother’s weak voice sounded from below her feet, as she hastily looked down. She was surprised to see her brother half-buried by the sand. She quickly pulled him out of the sand, while proceeding to check his injuries.

Daniel was just too weak to take in his surroundings. His eyes were clouded over, as he could just barely recognize the voice of his sister.

On seeing his brother’s still bruised and weak state, worry soon took over Sonia’s face, as she wondered why her father sent them here. After thinking but not finding any reasonable explanation, she decided to take matters into her own hands.

Her brother urgently needed to see a doctor, and that was her top priority at the moment.

“Dan, don’t worry, I’ll bring you to safety”. She could only say these reassuring words, as she supported her brother up.

She picked a random direction to walk towards, as she started her journey in this seemingly endless desert. She could only pray that a settlement was nearby, so she could find shelter.

After hours of moving in the desert, sweat dripped down her temples like waterfalls, as she gasped for breath. Despite this, she didn’t stop. Her worry kept on intensifying, as her brother’s body kept on getting hotter than normal.

Her leg bones started getting too heavy for her to carry, as her eyesight started getting blurry also. Her throat felt dry and parched, she currently felt like a fish that was gradually being sun-dried.

This was the first time that she experienced such an unfavorable weather condition from nature. From the weather, her hope to see a settlement kept on being dashed, again and again.

She was not sure if anyone would be willing to come to such a deserted place, and build a settlement here.

After journeying for a few hours that felt to her like a journey of years, she started seeing smoke rising from the distance. Due to how tired she was, she didn’t notice it at first.

But as soon as she saw it, her eyes lit up, as she mustered her remaining strength to follow the direction of the smoke.

After another 20 minutes of moving, she finally saw the first building in the middle of the desert. From the first to the second, then the third, the building’s spanned across for as far as her eyes could see.

She could not believe it, some people could actually live in such extreme weather. Despite her unbelief, she still put in the effort to go closer.

On reaching the first building, she wanted to knock on the door, but her strength failed her. She unconsciously dropped her brother, as she swayed to the left, then to the right.

Darkness finally engulfed her consciousness, as she fell with a thud sound at the front of the building.

She didn’t know what would befall her next, she completely left her dying or living to fate. Any situation she finds herself if she survives, she’ll strive to live through it.

…

Clark smiled, as he discussed while laughing with his teammates. Today was the day they decided to go back to their various homes and destinations.

All 5 gladiators were in a black suit, as they sat around the big round table. Today being their last day together, Emily prepared a special dish to celebrate the occasion.

She already established herself, as the team’s cook. They discussed their experience throughout the years, as they enjoyed the delicious food made by their cook.

During their discussion, Arthur revealed that he would go back to his old job of being a mercenary. He was not ready, nor could he embark on starting another occupation. So, he just remained stuck with his mercenary tag.

Mark decided that he won’t go back to his country, that he had the idea to start his mercenary organization.

He was already in his 30’s. He didn’t want to fight for his country, nor did he want to become a lone adventurer. So, the only other option that was compatible with him was him establishing his mercenary organization.

Clark made his decision for some time already, he was naturally returning to his country. After they received their awards in the award-giving ceremony, he learned that one of his country’s fleets was also here in the Seafarers alliance outer headquarters.

They recognized him when he was broadcasted in the award-giving ceremony. So, they contacted him secretly, to avoid anyone recognizing them. They told him where to meet them when he was ready to go.

After separating from his teammates, he planned on going there to regroup with his fellow countrymen again. The main reason that influenced his decision, was that he could help the fleet fight off enemies, to get contribution points in the journey back home.

Emily was also lucky, as she discovered that a fleet from her country was here also. Though they did not contact her, she found out through other means that are exclusive to soldiers of her country.

After it came to Aurora’s turn, she was still undecided. She didn’t want to return to her country, as just like Arthur, she was a mercenary. But unlike him, she was a bounty hunter, an assassin. She hunts only criminals with high price tags.

On seeing the expectant looks on her teammate’s faces, she finally decided to say something. She told them that she would make her decision when they were gone.

After eating, the 5 gladiators finally stood up with a smile, as they got ready to go back to their various lives. After exchanging small farewell gestures, they finally separated.

Clark carried his new bag on his back, as he steadily walked down the street while looking to hail a taxi. The gladiator district was completely illuminated with light as it was already evening, painting its beautiful scenery.

He admired the scenery, as this was probably going to be his last time coming here to the outer headquarters of the Seafarers alliance.

Not long later, he quickly located a taxi cab. He boarded it while describing the direction he was going to the taxi driver. The taxi vehicle’s engine roared to life, as the driver expertly sped across the street.

After leaving the gladiator district, the taxi driver finally carried him to the destination described. The area was lit up with light, but the surrounding was darker than where they just drove from.

Clark immediately recognized this as the slightly shadier parts of the Seafarer’s alliance headquarters. No matter how advanced a country or an organization may be, the law of the underworld was always present, it was universal.

On seeing the looks the people around gave him, he calmly put on his dark-rimmed glasses, while dipping his hands into his pockets.

This gesture succeeded in enhancing his stature, making him look more mysterious and dangerous. The effect was instant, as the stares going his way lessened at a visible rate.

He suddenly turned to the right to see someone dressed in black, moving towards him. His implant already informed him, so he knew that this was his person.

The man quickly reached his side. They exchanged some code words to verify their identity before the man led him away.

“Man, I’m finally back to meet my homies. This feels good baby,” this was the only thought in his head, as the man led him into a bar at the corner.

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