Chapter 11: Karim and Henry

Once our charming introduction was Suleiman was over and done with, we entered the left building to find ourselves in a narrow hallway with yellow painted walls, a brown carpet and some sort of shop in front of us. Okay so, the right side appears to be blocked, I'm assuming. Left side it is.

"Tower trash," A nearby guard insulted us. Gee, thanks man. Not cool at all.

I opened my mouth to snap something back, but Libby beat me to it in an unimpressed manner. "Oh, the irony,"

Woah!

Cue the guard to storm off in a rage (Ha, you just got burned by a little girl!) and me to give him the finger before glancing at my best friend with amusement. "I'm impressed, kiddo,"

Hearing this, the young girl smirked. "Well, you already know that I have my moments,"

True that.

My best friend and I continued down the left side of the hallway and turned to find ourselves entering the main base of operations. The area had a wide space similar to our own Headquarters, only this one was a lot larger. Numerous goons were busy at work or socialising among themselves, whilst one brown-eyed dude sat on his laptop behind a dark wooden desk on the right side. He too looked like sh*t with his lighter brown hair slicked back and his outfit consisting of a brown leather jacket (accompanied by a lighter furry collar), grey shirt, light blue jeans and a pair of greyish boots. I'm guessing this must be our guy, then.

He confirmed this when he spotted us and said in a Russian accent: "Ah! There you two are. Rais said you'd be coming by, I'm Karim,"

"Crane," I introduced myself, gesturing to my best pal with: "This is Libby,"

"An American," Karim commented. "I have an uncle there, lives in Texas," Lucky you. "You both from Texas? You a cowboy?"

"No. I'm from Los Angeles and Libby's from Salisbury," I answered, hiding my annoyance.

"Okay, Al' Capone," Our new pal continued, sensing that I was getting p*ssed off. "We'll be in contact over the radio tomorrow, that way I can make sure that you and your kid will be able to get to where you need to go,"

I don't have kids, how many times do I have to f*cking repeat that now?!

"And where is that, exactly?" Libby asked calmly, feeling just as agitated as I was.

"You will be climbing at least one or two antenna towers and switching on radio modulators," Karim answered. "Most of my men are too slow, too fat or too drunk to climb a tower like that without killing themselves,"

"And if we do this, we'll get the Antizin?" I questioned.

"That's between you and Rais, since I know better than to speak for him," Our pal revealed. "Just don't fail, alright? He doesn't handle disappointment very well,"

"So, we've seen," I remarked. "Thanks for the advice,"

"Don't mention it. Plus, your quarters are just down the hall next to the shop,"

Hearing this, I thanked him and followed his directions with Libby in tow. Once we ventured down a smaller hallway, we were instantly unimpressed with the room we were staying in temporarily. Brown walls, lighter floor, one half of the area was blocked off and the right side contained two zip-up beds. That was it. Gee, thanks for the hospitality.

"Wow," Libby sighed with annoyance.

"I know, right?" I agreed with disappointment. Things can't get any worse now, can they?

Cue a familiar beep from my radio.

"F*ck," I growled angrily to myself, before calmly addressing Libby with: "I gotta go check something real quick, will you be fine here?"

"Yeah, sure," My best friend answered in a confused yet understanding manner.

"I won't be long, okay?" I replied, giving her a concerned look as I turned to leave.

"Alright, no problem,"

God-f*cking-damn it, Boss! Any time, but now!

Once I made it outside the fortress, I quickly scanned my surroundings for a spot and it didn't take a while for me to see a train carriage sat on a nearby hill. Jackpot. Keeping the volatiles in mind, I dashed over to my destination and ascended the first box I could find. Cue me switching on my radio yet again, after I checked to see if I was safe. "Crane here,"

"Report," My Boss commanded on the other end.

"I just met Rais and there's no question, that's Suleiman," I sighed tiredly. "He's gone from ruthless politician to f*cking warlord,"

"Is he aware of your affiliation with us?"

"No, he thinks I'm just a guy from the Tower," I explained. "In fact, he's making me jump through hoops before he'll give me any Antizin,"

"Acknowledged. Continue to do as he asks," The woman ordered. "Remember, we need that file,"

I don't have much a choice, do I?

"Great, Crane out," I snapped with annoyance, switching my radio off. What the f*ck is going on with the GRE now? Ordering me to burn Antizin, putting my new friends at risk and following Rais when I don't want to?!

Something's up, I just know i— Calm down, buddy.

With that in mind, I began turning to descend the train box ... before something caught my attention. What the f*ck? Standing underneath a street lamp not too far from the hill were three people staring at me; a teenager who looked like he was 14 years old and two little girls who appeared to be 7 years of age - all bore a striking resemblance to Libby and were clad in outfits similar to her's.

Oh sh*t! Easy there, kids. I'm looking out for your sister, don't worry...

(Meanwhile, back in Rais' Fortress - 20:47...)

K-H

Kadir Suleiman was one of the worst people I've ever met.

Before the outbreak, he was the general ruthless politician who had a normal life, family, friends, you name it. He adored his younger brother, Hassan, who seemed like a decent enough guy to have a pint with - despite having to get around in a wheelchair, which must have been hard before everything went to sh*t.

I also heard that his passing caused Rais to become the monster we knew before our nightmare ended. It's tragic, considering what events like that can do to people.

I suppose I should tell you about myself. I'm Henry and before the Harran Virus, I was just your average bloke from Essex who enjoyed singing. After I won a competition for that in 2010, I've been recording music in the studio, travelling around the world and performing for my fans - who are the loveliest people I've ever met. One of them was this little girl named Libby and she's a really sweet person. She was absolutely terrified when we first met in 2012 and I understood her side of it, because meeting someone who you look up to would be a very overwhelming scenario.

But thankfully, she was okay and bonus points go to her becoming more confident when I ran into her again.

"Ah, Henry!" Karim greeted as I approached him. "Glad you could stop by,"

"What is it, Karim?" I sighed, hiding my repulsion about what happened to poor Osman. "Do I have to watch someone else get their hand severed for nothing?"

Please don't make me do that again!

"No, you have a different job," The man informed me. "We have two people from the Tower who are switching on an antenna tomorrow and I need you to help me get them where they need to go,"

"So, I'm essentially a tour guide now?!" I gawked angrily. That's ridiculous, especially in this sh*thole!

"Perhaps," Karim answered. Translation: Yes. Great.

"Okay, who are they?" I questioned, having calmed down.

"Crane and his friend, Libby," My acquaintance revealed, not noticing the alarmed look on my face when he mentioned the latter. Libby? "I don't know how old she is, but she appears to be in her mid teenage years at the latest,"

Oh no... That can't be who I remember, she's supposed to be evacuated with her parents!

"Alright, thanks for the heads up," I replied appreciatively, slowly allowing my anger to flare as I continued. "I hope I can introduce myself beforehand, given what our Boss is like,"

"I understand your feelings, Henry," Karim reassured me. "And I don't see why not too. Go find them,"

"Thanks again, Karim," I said, holding back a pleased smile as I left to track the new people down.

It didn't take very long for me to do so as I spotted a familiar guy who appeared to be around my age storming back in, with a combination of shock and mild anger on his face. This must be Crane. Once we made eye contact, he stopped and his brown eyes narrowed with recognition. "Hey man,"

"Hey mate," I greeted politely. "You alright there?"

Hearing this, Crane scoffed. "Peachy," He then continued with "I know who you are, by the way,"

"Oh, you've heard of my music?" I found myself questioning in a confused manner.

"Of course," My new acquaintance answered. "Through Libby, one of your fans who's been surviving in this sh*thole for the past three months now,"

No, no, nononono! Not her too! I f*ckng knew it!

"What?!"

Crane gave a sympathetic yet bitter frown, suspecting my thoughts. "Yeah, she thought the same when she found out that you've been here working for Rais the whole time,"

"I-Is she okay?!" I spluttered with surprise and concern.

"Relax buddy, Libby's fine," The man reassured me with a hint of annoyance. "And she always has been, because she's got a lot of people who have her back here - me included."

Words couldn't describe how relieved I was, yet concern was still flaring up. "Great, that's really great to hear! But what about her parents, are they here too?"

"No sign of them," Crane confirmed sadly, still cautious. "Libby doesn't know if they're both dead, still alive or if they've been evacuated with everyone else that got lucky,"

Hearing this, my hopeful expression faded. F*ck! "I'm sorry to hear that,"

"Don't be," My acquaintance said. "Anyway, what do you want?"

"Well, Karim has asked me to help you both get to where you need to go tomorrow," I answered, smiling politely. "So, I thought I'd introduce myself beforehand,"

"Joy," Crane scowled sarcastically. Just be cool Henry, he's understandably cautious since Karim and I are on the opposing side. Libby's bound to be the same, so just be cool. "That's considerate." He then held his hand out calmly. "Crane. I think I caught your name was Henry?"

"Yes, Henry Phillips," I answered happily, shaking his hand. "Nice to meet you, Crane,"

"You too, man," Crane replied, his eyes softening. "See you tomorrow, then,"

"Looking forward to it!" I cheered, prompting him to hold back a smirk as he bade me a good night and re-entered his quarters whilst I left for my own.

This is going to be fun, I suppose... Bring on the Antennas.