Jay arrived at the 3rd Basement floor of the parking area, his footsteps echoing eerily in the dimly lit space. The fluorescent lights overhead flickered sporadically, casting long and wavering shadows across the cold concrete floor. His breath came out in short, nervous puffs as he recalled the events of the day, each memory adding to the tight knot of tension in his chest. He pulled out his phone and dialed Vikram's number.
"Where are you guys? I'm at the Basement-3 exit," Jay said, his voice steady despite the unease gnawing at him.
There was a brief, heart-pounding moment of silence before Vikram picked up, his voice laced with urgency and fear. "Jay, get over here now! Divyanshu woke up and puked all over some thugs. They're losing it, man. Things are getting out of control, and Jaswinder isn't helping—he's about to start a fight! Hurry!"
The call abruptly cut off, leaving Jay standing there with a growing sense of dread. Worry etched itself onto his young face. It struck him as odd that Divyanshu would puke, as he rarely did. But he didn't doubt Vikram's credibility. Trusting his friend's urgent tone, he broke into a run, his sneakers slapping against the concrete as he raced to the spot Vikram had mentioned.
As he got closer, the sounds of raised voices and scuffling grew louder, echoing ominously in the confined space. His heart pounded in his ears, and a cold sweat broke out on his forehead. When he finally reached the scene, he saw a group of around ten men becoming increasingly aggressive with his friends. One of the thugs kicked Jaswinder in the chest, causing him to stumble backward, clutching his ribs in pain.
The sight of his friends in danger ignited a fierce determination in Jay. He didn't hesitate; he sprinted forward at his fastest speed and lunged at one of the goons. The man, taken completely by surprise, was knocked out cold with a single, well-placed hook from Jay. The force of the punch sent him sprawling to the ground, unconscious before he hit the concrete.
Jay didn't stop there. He turned his attention to the next thug, his body flowing into a Muay Thai stance. He stepped forward, delivering a swift jab-cross combination to the thug's face, stunning him. Jay followed up with a powerful knee strike to the man's midsection, doubling him over. As the thug gasped for air, Jay grabbed the back of his head and brought it down onto his rising knee, sending the thug collapsing to the ground.
The sudden intervention caught the attention of the remaining goons, who had been overwhelming Vikram and Jaswinder. The thugs paused, momentarily shocked. They had underestimated Jay, not expecting such fierce resistance. But they quickly regrouped, their expressions hardening as they realized they were dealing with someone skilled.
Two of the thugs lunged at Jay simultaneously. Jay sidestepped the first attacker, catching his arm and twisting it into a Krav Maga joint lock. He used the man's momentum to throw him into the second attacker, sending both men crashing to the ground. Before they could recover, Jay delivered a spinning back kick to the first thug's head, knocking him out cold.
Three more goons charged at Jay, attempting to overwhelm him with sheer numbers. Jay ducked under a wild swing, countering with a quick uppercut that snapped the thug's head back. He spun around, delivering a roundhouse kick to the second thug's temple, the force of the blow sending him crashing into the third attacker. The third thug stumbled, and Jay seized the opportunity, launching himself forward and delivering a flying knee strike to the man's chest, sending him crashing to the ground.
The remaining goons tried to gang up on him, but Jay was too agile, too quick. He dodged their clumsy attempts to corner him, countering with swift, powerful strikes that left his attackers reeling. One thug managed to grab Jay from behind in a bear hug, but Jay dropped his weight and executed a textbook jiu-jitsu hip throw, slamming the man onto the concrete floor. He quickly transitioned into a mounted position, raining down punches until the thug stopped moving.
Finally, only one thug remained standing. He didn't rush in like the others. Instead, he panicked and pulled out his phone, yelling frantically into it. "Get down here now! He's taking us all out! Bring everyone!"
He then turned to Jay, a nervous laugh escaping his lips despite the fear in his eyes. "You think you're tough, kid? Just wait. More are coming. Let's see how you handle the rest of us."
Jay found the man's words suspicious. It was as if they knew him and had been waiting for this confrontation. Alarm bells rang in his mind, but he didn't have time to dwell on it. He closed the distance between them with swift, determined strides. With a powerful punch to the thug's gut, he doubled him over, then swiftly applied a choke hold, cutting off his air supply. The man struggled briefly before going limp, unconscious.
Jay slightly relaxed his grip just as the goon was about to lose consciousness. He let the goon take a breather and asked with an icy tone, "Why are you all coming after me?"
The goon didn't answer immediately but instead started laughing maniacally as he heard the noises of a large group of people making their way. "You will know soon who we are and why we are doing this."
Jay grew more alert, his mind racing with questions. Why were there a bunch of goons after him? Why had they targeted his friends? He released the goon, who fell to the ground gasping for air, and Jay turned to his friends, shouting, "Run! We need to get out of here now!"
But his friends didn't move. They stood frozen, guilt written across their faces. Jay's heart sank as he saw the goon who had been on the verge of passing out rise to his feet, rubbing his neck and laughing pitifully.
"What's wrong with you? Move!" Jay shouted, his voice rising in desperation. "We have to go!"
Vikram, Jaswinder, and Shaswat remained rooted to the spot, their eyes filled with a mixture of guilt and fear. Jay's mind spun, unable to comprehend why they weren't running. The goon's laughter grew louder, more mocking.
"For someone so skilled," the goon sneered, stepping closer, his eyes gleaming with malice. "You're pretty clueless in the end. Didn't you realize they were in on it from the get-go? Your precious friends have been playing you this whole time."
Jay felt his world crashing down around him. "What... what are you talking about?" he stammered, looking from the goon to his friends. "This can't be true. Tell me he's lying!"
Vikram couldn't meet Jay's eyes, staring at the ground instead. Jaswinder shifted uncomfortably, while Shaswat looked to the side, his face pale with shame.
Note: The first ten to comment for new chapter releases will get '1 ADVANCED CHAPTER' for free on Earth Alpha Prime's Discord server.
In the discord server, I opened a private channel for those Top 10 candidates, where I posted the respective Advanced Chapter.
╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╮
Discord Link for 'Earth's Alpha Prime' :
╰── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╯