It felt like I was out for a number of hours, but it appeared to have only lasted a few seconds. I looked around me to notice that nothing had changed – minus the strange person standing beside me.

The person was crouched down and motioned for me to follow them.

Instinctively, I picked myself off of the floor and followed them.

My vision was blurred – due to the impact – so I wasn't able to make out who the person was. However, I continued to follow because this person seemed somewhat familiar, and appeared to be my only way out a terrible situation.

We dropped off of the roof and headed towards an uncultivated part of the city: The lack of buildings, and abundance of shrubbery, was more than enough to conceal our presence. After we got through the plants, the figure led me to a parking garage that appeared to not be in use. The figure ran until we reached top floor of the garage, and then stopped.

 

The moment we stopped, I sat down and grabbed my aching head. My body was slightly tense, and my breathing a little stressful.

It didn't take me too long to regain my bearings. With my eyes refocusing, I was able to get a good look at my surroundings:

The parking garage was completely empty, except for a few boxes and random junk. I turned my head, and sitting on a box in front of me was the same foreigner that helped me out in the convenience store.

"You!" I yelled in English as I pointed towards him.

He looked at me quizzically before pointing at himself. Afterwards, he waived with two fingers and responded.

"Hi."

His voice came out flat and apathetic, as if he didn't care about what he said.

 

There was a short pause before I tried to continue the conversation.

"Who are you? This is the second time you've helped me."

The foreigner shook his head in response.

He must not understand Korean.

...

The two of us sat there; almost in total silence.

I feel like I'm forgetting something...

I took the quiet time as a chance to look this person over:

He was an African-American male with relatively long legs and broad shoulders. From what I could tell, he appeared to be a bit younger than me. A few things stuck out about him: For one, his left forearm was wrapped in bandages; secondly, his eyes were strange. They were an average color, brown, but whenever he looked at something it seemed like he was looking through it – sort of like his mind was always somewhere else.

 

I still feel like I'm forgetting something... Oh, wait! Tiffany!

I looked at my arm and noticed that my bracer had shut itself off.

It must have happened when I lost consciousness.

 

Due to the presence of the foreigner, I hesitated before turning my bracer back on.

It's kind of late to be discrete.

*"TAE!*

Tiffany's voice echoed in my head the moment my bracer .

*"Do you have to yell your thoughts? I just recovered from a headache."*

*"Tae! Thank goodness! Are you okay? What happened up there?"*

*"I'm fine – one of the demons knew I was following them, but I was able to get away... How are things on your end?"*

*"They didn't notice me, but I stopped following them after I lost contact with you."*

*"Alright, I'm going to beacon you my location. I'm kind of confused about something."*

*"Okay, I'm on my way."*

 

...

 

It didn't take Tiffany too long to reach the parking garage. She ran up the all of the lanes; reaching the top within seconds.

As soon as she reached the top floor, Tiffany darted towards where I was sitting, and jumped on me.

"Why are you the one who's always getting into trouble?" She said as she wrapped her arms tightly around me.

I swear her grip is stronger than a python's.

A moment later, she cocked her head back and began berating me for being so careless. I couldn't respond due to Tiffany's grip, so I just nodded my head in the direction of the foreigner – to let her know that we had company.

 

The relief on Tiffany's face vanished as she became angry. She released her hold on me, and backed up slowly.

*"We can take him, Tae."*

*"Huh...? Wait, it's not what you think."*

By the time I realized that Tiffany assumed this guy was a threat, she was already in the motion of attacking him.

Tiffany ran towards the foreigner with a raised fist. Tiffany's random burst of speed surprised me... but not as much as what happened next:

With a confused look on his face, the foreigner clumsily fell backward – in time to dodge Tiffany's punch. He then immediately rolled off of the box, which got him out of the way of the following high-kick.

It was clear that this foreigner was different than I initially thought: No average person could have maneuvered their way out of that attack combination – even if it did look really awkward.

Who is this guy?

 

...

 

Tiffany apologized for attacking the stranger after realizing that he wasn't a threat.

"So who is he?" Tiffany asked me.

"This is the same guy I told you about. He's the one who helped me out at that convenience store."

"Is he following you or something? It's pretty convenient that he's randomly helped you out of two sticky situations."

"I don't know... I tried talking to him, but I don't think he understands Korean very well." I responded

"I'll speak to him: I'm pretty sure he understands English."

 

That moment, Tiffany turned towards the foreigner and began speaking in English. A slight smirk crossed his face as he responded back. Tiffany gave me a thumbs up – to let me know that he understood her.

 

They conversed back and forth for a short time. I was able to understand a few words here and there, but I couldn't grasp the concept of their conversation. After a while, the two stopped speaking, and Tiffany turned back towards me.

"So what did you find out?" I was very curious about the situation.

"Not much. He said his name is Eli, and he's from America."

"That's all you were able to figure out?"

"Pretty much – he figured it would be weird if I had to relay everything he said to you."

"So, then what'll we do?"

 

As I said this, Eli started unraveling the bandages on his forearm. He tossed the bandages off moments later; revealing a bracer.

 

Well that explains a few things.

 

The bracer was of a different design than Tiffany's and my own. Eli's bracer was a light grey color, and it was riddled with different markings that symbolized various animals. Also, the screen on this bracer happened to be placed on the top of the forearm, rather than underneath – like mine and Tiffany's.

It apparently wasn't activated with the mind: Eli began tapping the screen once it flashed a dull white light. After some time of fussing with his bracer, Eli seemed to have found what he was searching for.

"Hello." He spoke in English; towards his bracer.

A second later, a computerized voice came from his bracer.

"Hello." It said in Korean.

 

He smiled at the success of his attempt, and then turned towards me.

"Say something."

"How's it going?" I struggled to relay one of the few English phrases I knew.

His face flattened and he chuckled before responding. "I meant: Say something... in Korean."

"Oh... umm... Hi, my name is Taeyeon." I said slowly.

As my words reached his bracer, the same computerized voice relayed the message to him in English.

"Hmmm... I'm surprised that it works." Eli spoke to himself.

 

...

 

"So, Eli, why are you here in Korea?" I beat around the bush a bit because I didn't want to harass him with questions right off the back.

"Where do I start...?"

 He responded as he thought to himself.

"Well first things first: I guess you can consider me a Liner."

He put up air quotes when he spoke the last word.

"The reason I'm in Korea is because I'm looking for someone: A former Headliner with the surname Kim."

 

Tiffany and I were shocked upon hearing this.

 

"That's my dad." I stated.

Eli's eyes widened.

"That's pretty convenient... Is it possible for you to take me to him?"

I looked down before responding "He's been abducted, along with my mother."

"Really?! How does something like that happen? From what I've heard, Headliners are supposed to be some of the most powerful people in the world."

"Well... you might want to get comfortable – it's a long story."

 

...

 

It took a while, but I told Eli of the events that happened a little more than a month prior.

 

"That's nuts." He responded as he reflected what I had just told him. "We have similar situations..."

"Were your parents abducted too?" Tiffany asked.

"Not exactly... A few years ago, my father sent me away to stay with a friend of his. My father was gone by the time that I got back. The only thing he left was a box with this bracer inside of it and the name a renowned scientist. After some time, I was able to get into contact with this scientist. He informed me of the Liners and filled me in on the current state of things. He took me in for some time, but he was killed two months ago."

"How terrible..." Tiffany responded. "What happened?"

"It turns out that the person who took me in was the engineer for the North American region of the Liners. Upon seeing my bracer, he began to teach me how to take apart and fix it. Before I was able to completely understand the workings of the technology, a few of those demon people struck him down. I wasn't around when it happened, but I showed up moments before he died. He mentioned that I should try to find the former Headliner of this region... and if I was unsuccessful, to look for the engineer with the surname Seo."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Tiffany was empathetic with the loss of someone.

 

"So did the engineer give you a reason for finding these people?" I was curious why the engineer from another region would mention two Liners who were supposed to be in hiding.

"He said that they could potentially help me find my father... And that I could be of some use in their plans to restore this region's Liners."

"Wait, he said that my father had plans of restoring things?"

Eli nodded.

I looked over to Tiffany "I know that your dad has a plan to restore things, but there might be something that he's not telling us."

"I've thought the same thing..." Tiffany responded. "... but I'm sure it's for our own good."

 

...

 

"... So how did you randomly end up at that convenience store?" Things seemed to have lined up too well for me to assume it was just by chance.

"Before the engineer died, he referred me to a small grouping of secluded towns that your father could potentially be in. I was coincidentally on my way to your hometown when I decided to stop for a drink at that store."

"... So you didn't know who I was?"

"No, I could just tell that old guy was up to no good, so I did what I thought was right."

"What about just now?" Tiffany asked "You conveniently show up when we're some distance away from Tae's town."

Eli laughed and waved his hands in front of him. "I'm not a stalker or anything. When I arrived in the town, there was talk of a family that went missing – I'm assuming it was yours. During the commotion, those two demons you were following showed up."

"What!" Tiffany and I said in unison.

"Yeah, they showed up at your house and searched some restaurant."

Hearing these words made the realization of something dawn on me.

"If my parents hadn't been kidnapped, we could all be dead right now..."

Tiffany put her arm around my shoulder.

"Don't think of it like that, Tae... You and your sister are safe, and we're going to get your parents."

 

I let the feeling of anguish pass over me before returning to the conversation.

"What happened after they went to those places?"

"Somebody called them, and they decided to leave. I figured that they had something to do with your dad, so I followed them here."

"Did you see them go to a library?"

Eli nodded. "The library was their first stop. They spent a good two hours in there before coming out with a frustrated look on their faces. Afterward, they went to that factory... and that's when I spotted the two of you staking the place out. I wanted to warn you about going in there, but I couldn't do so without revealing myself. Plus, I figured you two knew what you were doing. Once you guys decided to follow them, I tagged along because I had a feeling things would go bad."

"Wait a minute... How have you been able to follow them this whole time, but we get detected within minutes of following them?" I still wasn't able to understand why that demon was able to know exactly where I was.

"My guess is that the demon was able to sense your presence..."

"Sense her presence?" Tiffany interjected. "What does that mean?

"How do I explain this? ....You know how you can sort of tell if someone is in a room before you even enter it?"

Tiffany and I nodded.

I could usually tell when someone was in the bathroom... It prevented many potentially awkward situations.

"Well the reason you're able to do that is because every living person has a presence. Imagine it being like life energy – I say this because you can't sense someone who isn't alive. Sensing it is pretty difficult because most people aren't aware of it... but once you realize it's there, you can benefit from it."

"How so?"

"You can practice using the sense, which will make it stronger. My guess is that the demon guy has strengthened his senses to the point where he can feel someone's presence from far away."

"... but then how come he attacked me, and not Tiffany?"

"You were following them from the rooftops... He most likely noticed you a while before he attacked, but was uncertain whether or not you were following them. Tiffany was in a normal spot for people to be, so her presence didn't alert him."

"... So is that how you've been able to stay under his radar?" Tiffany asked.

"Partially... but sometimes it's not possible to follow that way. There is a way to hide your presence... or at least make it unnoticeable."

"Teach us how!" I was eager to learn more about random ideas and techniques that could help me in the field.

With a surprised look on his face, Eli stood up before responding. "The first step is that: You have to breathe as little as possible... Make it so the only air you take in is to maintain consciousness while you're moving. You can practice by taking in less and less air. If your lungs start burning that means you're not breathing enough. The best situation is if you can find the exact point where your lungs begin to burn, and stay right above that point."

Tiffany and I watched as Eli closed his eyes and slowed his breathing.

"The next step is to make your body take up as little space as possible. The less your body disrupts the flow of air, the better"

He crouched and tucked in his arms – it suddenly felt like less of him was there.

"As corny as it sounds, the last step requires believing that you're not there. Part of concealing your presence relies on mental toughness. Oh, and not being physically seen is a given."

 

...

 

Tiffany and I spent hours looking like idiots as we tried to master hiding our presence.

"What about now?"

I would make Tiffany close her eyes while I attempted to hide behind random objects.

"I still know you're there..." Tiffany said; moving purely off of muscle memory at this point.

"Ugh... I don't know what I'm doing wrong."

Eli had spent most of the time reading a small book that he kept in his back pocket, and paid us no attention.

"Eli, can you tell us what we're doing wrong?"

The preoccupied foreigner looked up from his book and stared at me with a confused look on his face... It didn't take me long to realize that his bracer was turned off, so he had no idea what I was saying.

"Uh... sorry – this thing tends to turn off on its own. What's up?"

"We haven't been able to hide our presence, and have no idea why."

"All of your mechanics are on point, but you do not believe that you're not actually there... ... I just realized how crazy that sounds... but I guess you have to be sort of crazy to deal with this kind of stuff."

"What do you mean?"

"What kind of sane person would put themselves in our shoes? You mean to tell me that you've never thought about how different you are from the people you walk past on the street?"

"Hmmm... I don't think either of us has thought of it that way." I stated as Tiffany walked up next to me.

"I have..." Tiffany objected. "... but it's not something that I tend to dwell on – it's just interesting to think about."

"Well it's a good thing that the thought doesn't linger in your mind. When that happens, you tend to become detached from the people you're working to protect: That's when people start to make decisions that aren't privy to them."

Eli looked off to the side as he seemed to lose his train of thought.

"... but back to the topic: You have to make yourself believe that you're not actually there. If you've had a situation where you've had to watch something, but you felt like you weren't a part of it; that is the same mindset you need to approach this with."

The feeling that Eli had just mentioned was not foreign to me... and Tiffany felt the same way. Today wasn't my only run-in with that feeling; I first realized it when my parents were taken, and it's popped up randomly ever since...

"So do you think you're going to be able to do it?" Eli asked me

"I think I can pull it off..."

 

...

 

"Huh... I can barely sense both of you – nice progress."

"You can still sense us?" Tiffany said as she rose from behind one of the random boxes in the parking garage. "That means we still need more work..."

"I thought we had it too..." I rose from my own hiding spot.

"Don't forget that I mentioned: you can't completely conceal you presence – especially to someone who is expecting it. Plus, you generally won't be this close when you're following someone."

"So do you think we're ready to use it?"

"For what...?"

"We need to retrieve a note that they took – it's our only clue to finding the engineer of this region."

Eli's eyes widened as he heard news of one of the people he was looking for.

"Even if we are able to successfully follow them; they're probably long gone by now." Tiffany pointed out.

"That is true."

"Not exactly..." Eli responded. "The guy knew that a presence was there, but he didn't hit anything and it disappeared. Chances are: they're paranoid, and will most likely stick around because of it."

"You think they're still going to be in the city?" I asked.

"Yeah, they'll probably stay until they are sure that no one is following them. From my knowledge: the demon's seem to be very meticulous, and won't want to risk anyone trailing them."

"We still have a shot then." Tiffany put her hand on my shoulder and gave me a look. We can do this – it said.

"I'm willing to go for it." I responded. "... but we need to have a good plan this time."

 

There was a moment of silence as Tiffany and I brainstormed.

I turned over to look at Eli, and saw him looking at the ground quizzically.

The two of us stopped what we were doing to figure out what he was staring at...

After a minute of being idle, Eli finally looked up. "I think I've got a plan."

"You're going to help us?" Tiffany was surprised.

"We have a mutual interest... plus, I would be a terrible person to just let you two handle something like this alone."

"Well what kind of plan do you have in mind?"

Eli didn't respond. He tapped the screen of his bracer a few times and waited until a map of the area popped up.

He looked at Tiffany and me awkwardly as he suddenly noticed us peering over his shoulders.

"Umm...?"

"Oh, uh... Our bracers aren't fully unlocked either, so we don't have that function... We were just curious..." I said as we backed up a bit.

After searching the map for a bit, Eli appeared to have found what he was looking for. He then dug through his pockets and pulled out some money.

What could that be for?

"Follow me."

 

...

 

We tried to be as inconspicuous as possible while walking towards our destination. The day was far from over – it was only 2 in the afternoon, which made sense because everything happened fairly early in the morning.

It was nerve-wracking being out in the open just hours after a near-death experience.

"We'll be fine, Tae." Tiffany reassured me as she grabbed my hand. "Remember: they didn't see our faces."

"Yeah, they won't notice us as long as we don't bring unnecessary attention to ourselves." Eli stated: His bracer's translator was still on despite being covered in the bandages.

"Eli... you're black... in the middle of Korea... we're going to stand out regardless of our actions."

He stopped with wide eyes and a shocked look evident on his face, while Tiffany laughed at my remark. A sheepish grin replaced the shocked look as he turned around to continue walking.

"I'm just visiting this beautiful country... nothing suspicious about this guy..."

 

...

 

It wasn't long before we arrived to the place Eli was taking us.

"Why are we at a firework store?" Tiffany asked.

Without responding, Eli walked inside the store.

"Wait out here." He said as the door closed behind him.

 

"Such a strange guy..." Tiffany said as we turned to face the street.

"Yeah, but he's helped me out twice, so I can't really complain."

"His timing seems too good to be coincidental – do you think he's being completely honest about everything?"

"I have my suspicions too, but I'm not going to focus on them unless he gives me a reason to."

Before Tiffany could respond, Eli walked out of the shop with a few bags in his hands.

"What did you buy?" I asked

"Let's go back to the parking garage – I'll fill you in on the way."

 

...

 

"Wow... You really think we can pull that off?"

"It's the best plan I could come up with in such a short time. I'm willing to listen if either of you has an idea."

Tiffany and I looked at each other.

"Considering the difference in our abilities, this seems like the safest way to pull off what we're trying to do." Tiffany added her opinion.

"It looks perfect..." I stated. "... but are you sure you want to put yourself in that danger?" I asked Eli.

He shrugged. "I'm the best option for that part... plus, you two have put yourselves in enough danger already... Tiffany what do you think about your part?"

"I can handle it... I just hope they don't find out what we're up to."

Eli looked over to me.

"Taeyeon, you have the most crucial part; your timing is everything. Are you confident that you'll be able to hide you presence and focus on what's at hand?"

"I've got this." I responded with confidence – despite actually being worried about the outcome... but I wasn't going to let that stop me from doing my best.

 

"This whole thing just feels like a game of cat and mouse." Tiffany relayed what each of us was most likely thinking.

"Well sometimes the mice need to fight back!" I responded with a grin.

There was a moment of awkward silence as Tiffany and Eli stared at me with shame on their faces.

"Now that was just cheesy..." Eli stood up and walked away.

"Was it really that cheesy?"

"Tae... I just don't even know anymore..." Tiffany, likewise, stood up and walked away.

:( Was it really that cheesy?

 

...

 

*"I see them..."* Tiffany relayed to me. *"I'm going to beacon you my location."*

I began to move from building to building the moment a blip appeared on the screen of my bracer.

 Eli's bracer wasn't in sync with ours, so it was difficult for us to communicate with him, but the plan didn't rely on it too much. As an alternative to actually speaking, Eli decided to shadow Tiffany until the plan was set into motion.

 

It didn't take long before I arrived where Tiffany and Eli were.

The streets were busy because it was the end of the work day, which gave us good cover for what we were attempting.

I saw Tiffany sitting at a table, drinking a cup of coffee.

She noticed my position on the roof, and pointed towards the street in response.

Walking on the opposite sidewalk were the demons we had a run-in with earlier in the day. The male appeared to be somewhat tense, while the female was completely relaxed.

*"I'm good to go whenever you're ready."*

Tiffany nodded in acknowledgement.

 

...

 

The time was reaching five in the afternoon when our plan finally set into motion.

 

Tiffany walked down the sidewalk, and Eli followed cautiously – walking into random stores as he did, so he wouldn't stick out. I carefully treaded along the rooftops, while doing my best to conceal my presence.

Tiffany sped up as the demons approached a crosswalk.

The demons were the only two people crossing the street, and Tiffany was there waiting for them. As they neared, she pulled out a travel brochure that she was keeping in her pocket.

Things are going perfectly so far...

 

Tiffany scratched her head, and had a confused look on her face as she approached the two older individuals.

"Excuse me, do either one of you know how to get to this place..." Tiffany asked as she pointed towards a map on the brochure.

"Beat it kid." The woman waived Tiffany off.

"Now now, there's no reason to be rude." The man in the suit objected. He seemed to have relaxed as he spoke

 

As Tiffany distracted the two demons, Eli slyly made his way over to the store adjacent from them.

 

"So you just go down this street, and then you make a left – that should get you to the museum."

"Ah... Thank you!" Tiffany responded.

 

I could see the beads of sweat lining her face – I just knew it was difficult for her to breathe.

 

Better get ready...

...

The demons started speaking to each other as Tiffany went off in the other direction.

Eli motioned towards me – giving me the signal to start whenever I was ready.

 

It's now or never.

 

I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath.

Steady...

The moment that the two killers took a step, I reached in my back pocket and launched its contents towards them. It was difficult for me to maintain my hidden state while making a motion, but the adrenaline running through my body helped me concentrate

Eli sprang out of the store immediately after the projectile left my hand.

The two demons spotted the projectile flying towards them; despite how fast it was going. The man in the suit allowed one of the blades in his suit to unsheathe. He then jumped in front of his partner, and sliced the projectile moments before it made impact.

 

It worked!!!

 

The smoke bomb I threw exploded causing a billow of multi-colored smoke to fill the area surrounding the two demons.

 

*** About an hour before

"Why did you get multi-colored smoke? Wouldn't normal smoke give you more of an advantage?" I asked Eli

"Look at it this way: If something moves in normal colored smoke, you automatically realize it's there. On the other hand, it will take someone a bit longer to recognize what's moving in multi-colored smoke... Any small advantage is necessary for a job like this."

***

 

By the time the smoke had enveloped the two people, Eli had already halved the distance between he and them with only one step. His strides were extremely long; resembling a track runner.

The woman must have heard Eli taking a step because she turned in his direction.

 

***

"What are these for?" Tiffany asked.

"The people we're going up against are very experienced when it comes to fighting. They're most likely able to function without the use of one of their senses... so we're going to mess with two instead."

***

 

Tiffany turned around and noticed the female demon turning towards Eli.

"Here goes nothing..."

She reached in her sweater pockets and threw the items near the center of the smoke.

 

*

 

The sound of high-end firework poppers filled the air... but the high concentration of the poppers caused sounds similar to small explosions.

Completely off of instinct, the two demons flinched and covered their heads in reaction to the noise.

 

The timing of the smoke bomb and the poppers was perfect: Eli disappeared into the smoke at the exact moment the demons flinched.

 

...

 

A fraction of second later, Eli sprang out of the smoke with a wrinkled sheet of paper in-hand. The sight relieved me... but then I spotted something else:

Something approached Eli from behind; reflecting light as it did.

It's a blade!

 

The man in the suit had unsheathed the blade hidden in his other sleeve and swung it towards the running figure.

It was strange that I was actually able to see the movements this time, but I figured that the smoke had just slowed him down some.

 

As the blade crept up on him, Eli suddenly lost his footing and fell towards the floor. He turned in the air – just in time to notice the sharp object cutting the wind above his face. With Eli's back now facing the ground, he rolled and smoothly landed on his feet without losing any momentum.

 

The next moment was the most crucial:

Eli immediately continued running, until he eventually disappeared between a pair of buildings.

Tiffany quietly crept away as a crowd of people began to look at the commotion.

It took everything in me, but I was somehow able to keep my presence hidden during the entire confrontation.

In the following moments, I activated my bracer – to get a read on what was going on.

 

"What the hell just happened?!"

"It appears that we've been outsmarted by whoever has been following us..." The demon in the suit responded to his angry partner.

"... You're supposed to be able to sense that kind of stuff! What the hell!"

"Apparently one or more of them were able to hide their presence from me. They set up the perfect trap... but considering the tactic, they're most likely not able to trade blows with us."

"Did you see which way they went?" The female demon was finally calming down.

"A foreigner was the one who snatched the note, but I wasn't able to spot his face. Only one ran into the smoke, but it's safe to assume that the tourist was a part of the plan... That being said, the foreigner ran between those two buildings – I didn't see where the other one went."

"Well the foreigner has the note, so that's the only person we need to focus on."

"Hold on... I also believe that there was another accomplice. Everything was timed too well for there to only be two people. I'm also sure that this person can hear me right now."

A cold shiver ran down my spine as I heard those words.

"Whoever you are, I commend the craftiness, but I should let you know that you've made the biggest mistake of your life." The man in the suit essentially stated a cold vendetta out in the open.

"We don't have time to linger." His female counterpart urged. "If we don't retrieve that note, boss is going to kill us."

"I understand: No matter whom it is they won't be able to outrun me... but get the car and try to cut him off just to make sure."

The two demons nodded towards each other as they went their separate ways.

The woman ran down the street and turned the corner with incredible speed. On the other hand, the man darted in the same direction as Eli... but his speed was unbelievably fast.

There's no way Eli can outrun that guy...

 

...

 

 I sat on the rooftop for some number of minutes, with no idea of what to do.

*"Are you alright?"* I decided to message Tiffany to make sure everything was good on her end.

*"I'm fine... but I'm kind of nervous walking out in the open – things will go bad quickly if those demons find me... How are things on your end?"*

*"Eli was able to grab the note, but I don't think he can outrun those guys..."*

*"... Maybe we should go try to help him..." Tiffany was hesitant with the statement.

*"We might have t-..."*

My thoughts trailed off as I caught a glimpse of Eli cautiously poking his head out from one of the buildings he ran between: He had the note in his hand.

*"Tae... did something happen?"*

*"I've spotted Eli... let's meet back up at the parking garage."*

*"Alright... Be careful on your way back."*

*"It's my job to tell you that..."*

 

__________________________________________

Hope you all enjoyed the chapter!