Terrible Luck

However, he didn't have the time to admire the legibility when he saw the two uniformed men coming out of the first class on the block. "F**k! Where the hell are you Hawking?" Caleb cursed under his breath and ran to a random class.

Thankfully, it was empty. His cover wasn't going to last long. He beeped Hawking again, but he wasn't beeping back. Apart from the distant voices of teachers tutoring the student in classes, everywhere was silent, giving the vibe of quietness and harmony.

He peeped and saw the uniform men enter another class. He exited the empty class and hurried back to the first floor. Since he would not find Hawking, Hawking would come back to him.

Why Lucy even forced him to work with this robot was something he might not get the answer to. He preferred the wormhole shrinking job anyway, but Lucy insisted he works as a con man. What a buckeroo.

He wasn't even signalling that he was okay, and it was worrying him. But that was just the beginning of his worry. He had barely entered the car when to his horror, three black figures appeared ahead of him.

"What the hell?" Caleb almost screamed his tongue out with annoyance. How are these shadows finding them? What was worse, the keys to the car were with Hawking, which meant that there was no way of escape.

But this wasn't going to be the death of him, not at all. If those figures are out to get these agents, someone had to stop them. It was apparent that these figures were time travellers too. But how they kept tracking him was a headache.

So with a solid determination in his heart, he climbed down from the car and began running down the estate, where it was populated by one-storey-residential buildings.

Immediately those black figures caught sight of him, they increased their pace, this time, they took out something that looked like a lightsaber with glowing blades.

Soon, it became a cop-and-robber pursuit. Caleb ran with all the strength his little legs could carry him. The roads were straight, with no corners for Caleb to run to, which was the problem he immediately encountered.

If he shot a bullet inside this quiet estate, it would alert the securities at their posts, and it might either be to jail or death by hanging. So the idea of shooting at them became stale in his heart.

* * * * * * * * * *

Inside The School.

Hawking strolled for a while before he finally discovered Albert, sitting in the lounge. The lounge was a typical hub where the teachers could relax during their free time. It had a vending machine packed with snacks, multiple desks for each of the tutors, and a computer. A clock softly ticked in silence.

Albert kept sipping a bottle of water absent-minded. Hawking walked into the lounge and sat opposite him.

"I've said it once, and I'll say it again. I'm comfortable here", Albert said monotonously without looking at Hawking. "I'm not the assessment board Mr Albert", Hawking pointed out and cleared his throat.

"The name is Hawking Williams, and I'm interested in your research on the theory of the brain, specifically the hippocampus", he introduced. This statement caused Albert to look up and properly assess the middle-aged man sitting opposite him.

"What was that?" Albert asked. "I'm from the far future, I was sent to this timeline to obtain specific information from you", Hawking said.

Albert chuckled sarcastically and took another sip of the water in his bottle. "With all the silly excuses available in the world, you chose to go along with this one", he said with a smug.

"You live in a mansion in South-east suburbs in Los Angeles, a neurologist and part-time professor. You were found dead in your own house.

"What followed after your death was something your feeble mind would never comprehend. You know the secret family you were nurturing? They came to your burial and claimed your inheritance thanks to not writing a will, it sparked a gang war against your current family, and consequently, your eighteen-year-old son Matthew died horribly at the hands of a hitman", Hawking then took a deep breath and became silent.

Albert stared at him with mouth agape. For a moment, he found it difficult to speak. "How the hell did you know about this information? Who are you?" He managed to form a sentence.

"I need you to give me your research papers", Hawking relaxed his back on the chair and gazed at the man's terrified gaze.

"I don't think it would be of any use to you. It's all bogus and unreliable", Albert's voice shook as he said it. He still found it unbelievable speaking with someone from the future.

"Do you think it is bogus?" Hawking asked. "Of course not. I'm confident of my research, but without basis, how could it be believed to be researched?"

"Let me be the judge of it", Hawking flatly responded. "I'll be leaving now, but in the first light tomorrow, call this number", Hawking passed a business card to him, and Albert refused to pick it up.

"Why should I help you? What if in your 'future', my research was verified to be true, and you simply want to take the credits?" He glared at Hawking suspiciously.

"I'm not interested in credits Mr Albert. Besides, your death is sooner than you think", Hawking said. "What? Now you're threatening me?" This time, Albert stood up and stared at Hawking with fire in his eyes.

Just then, two uniformed men walked into the lounge. They each bore a huge body with ripped limbs. Although their faces appeared youthful, one could tell they mean business.

"I'm sorry sir, but I would need your VIP pass", a bulgy man said. Hawking frowned deeply and checked his watch and sure enough, there was multiple return request by Caleb.

"I told this idiot to stall the principal", he mumbled in silence. "Sir, your pass", the man gruffly spoke. "I have it with me, but I think I left it with my assistant. Hold on let me get them…"

The uniformed man rudely interrupted him. "Mister, you need to come with us", he said coldly. Hawking sighed and stood from his seat, not before he turned back and look at Albert.

"Your life is very much in your hand, but there's a condition", Hawking said. "What?" Albert's voice shook. "Take my card, call me first light tomorrow, and we'll talk", Hawking said and left the lounge.

* * * * * * * * * *

Just as the figure was about to swing the sabre at his neck, Caleb crouched and rolled to the floor. At the same time, he took out the Desert Eagle and shot at the advancing black figure.

Due to the adrenaline raging in his body, his hand wasn't able to aim properly, so the bullet streaked past the figure's shoulder. At this point, the terrified Caleb could only think of one thing: Jump time.

"What do you want from me?" He asked. The black figures stopped at Caleb's question and stood still. "Two choices", the figure began to speak with a distorted deep voice.

"Follow us, or die", he said. "Why should I even follow you? I don't know you", Caleb responded with a frown. The figures were not in the mood for chit-chat, as they raised the glowing sword over Caleb.

However, Caleb wasn't going down this way. He raised his gun and shot consecutively at him, causing him to jerk backwards. The two figures saw this and advanced toward Caleb, both slashing at him.

Run. With one man down, Caleb had the chance to turn around and run. He had barely run a few meters when he felt a scorching hot feeling on his back. "AARGH!" He screamed and fell to the floor.

The sabre fell to the ground next to him. However, the suit he wore was already burnt at the back. If not for its thickness, that sabre would have gone straight to his backbone.

The figure picked up the sabre on the floor. Caleb kept breathing heavily and quickly as he backed away slowly, while the figure kept advancing at him.

Again, with this life and death situation. Was his luck that bad? Who the hell is sending these night assassins to him?

The events happening to him looked like something straight out of a movie. In his perilous state, he couldn't help but mock himself at his luck. Imagine if he went back home and explained all his escapades to his family, they would imagine he had a long dream.

He felt like a player, and Hawking and Kolade were more like supporting character. These black figures were simply like mini hindrance that would eventually lead him to the boss.

This was a once in a million lifetime opportunity, and he's complaining. Instead of thinking about going back to his boring timeline, he could just rack experience and thrill in the way.

Besides, time travel was not something he thought existed until now. Now that he had the opportunity to visit timelines, then he could spend time with his paternal grandfather he never got to meet.

With all these motivations in mind, he confidence surged up in his heart. The figures had brought down the sword, but the once coward Caleb smiled and rolled over.

With another swift move, he pointed the gun at one of the figures hand and pulled the trigger. The figure grunted in pain and dropped his saber. Caleb attempted to pick it up, but the second figure slashed at his head, causing him to back out.