The view of the city from that height was majestic. The sun had risen in full force, and as it rose above the horizon, its rays cast a golden glow over the buildings below them. They glowed like so many fireflies on display for all to see.
He could hear birds singing their songs far overhead somewhere among the skyscrapers—a beautiful symphony echoing off the surrounding concrete walls around him.
It reminded Erik very much of his first time flying with his father years ago: how he'd felt when he took him up into this same sky, high above everything else.
He was younger then and free of any worry. Now he knew better than anyone what kind of world lay beyond these skies.
A dark place where nothing lived but monsters lurking, and he wasn't talking about the thaids. Something about being at such an altitude made him feel safe somehow.
As though reaching such heights meant he could escape those who persecuted him.
Countless skyscrapers surrounded him now, each one standing taller than the last. They were arranged in neat rows along both sides of the streets below, some rising higher still, while others seemed more run-down or dilapidated.
Each building had multiple shop signs advertising this or that product. Food stands selling hot dogs, coffee shops offering lattes, fast food restaurants advertising hamburgers, pizza joints serving pasta dishes... All of which looked delicious enough to make Erik start salivating.
He saw people moving between the various structures below as they flew past. Some went inside, and most simply walked right across their front doors.
Others stood outside, smoking cigarettes or chewing gum. Their faces wore expressions ranging from boredom to anger or sadness as they moved back and forth under the watchful eye of security cameras positioned at every corner.
They looked like tiny working ants scurrying through a maze beneath giant feet. Some of them seemed unhappy, some others the opposite.
"Are you ok?" Benjamin asked the young man, who could do nothing but look out of the car's window in awe.
Erik shook himself out of his reverie before replying. "Yeah," he said quietly. Then louder: "I'm fine."
"We almost arrived at the restaurant," Benjamin said.
Erik's stomach then growled loudly, reminding him just how hungry he was. He hadn't eaten since breakfast this morning. Erik's cheeks reddened because of embarrassment. "Sorry," he said to Benjamin.
"Don't worry," the latter replied.
They finally arrived at the restaurant. It was a giant building with an indoor parking lot directly built inside the building. The two entered it, passing by a sort of blue barrier, and then Benjamin parked in an empty spot.
The parking lot was huge, easily large enough for several dozen vehicles to park side by side without interfering with one another.
It was lit brightly even during night hours, thanks to dozens of fluorescent lights lining the ceiling. Benches lined either wall, and vending machines were placed sporadically throughout the area. In fact, it looked more like a mall than anything.
Far from their position, Erik saw multiple people lined up to take the elevator down. Two men wearing suits waited patiently in front of the elevator's door; they were probably bouncers.
The two waited in line, and Benjamin showed his ID when it was their turn.
"You can enter, sir," one of the bouncers said. Then Erik and Benjamin entered the elevator. The technology behind it was incredible; the machine didn't make a sound, and the two could barely feel the difference between moving and staying still.
They only figured out they were inside the restaurant because the elevator's door opened, revealing the huge restaurant room.
The place was massive, to say the least, distributed into multiple floors connected by elevators. The place was white and gold. On the tables nearby, the two men could see golden cutleries on top of plates containing all sorts of foods. A waiter approached them after the elevator stopped, holding a menu.
Benjamin smiled politely. "If you are gentle enough to follow me, I will bring you to your table," the server said.
With that, he led Benjamin and Erik away, walking straight ahead until reaching the far end of the hall where their table was.
The furniture was in front of a giant window that allowed the two to see the city in its entirety. Outside, traffic flowed smoothly, with flying cars driving in different directions.
After being seated at their own table, Benjamin ordered for two. His choice consisted of a steak dish and a salad. For his part, Erik wanted something much heavier on the stomach since he couldn't come here often. So he chose a pasta dish. When the food arrived, the waitress brought them a bottle of wine for Benjamin and one of water for Erik.
The two ate their lunch while enjoying the view of the city outside the windows. They would sometimes talk about random things, mostly work-related topics for Benjamin and school-related ones for Erik.
They also talked about sports, movies, books, music, and TV shows. The duo's mood was good until Lucius's topic came out.
"So, did you hear your father recently?"
Erik couldn't say that he returned from his trip and left him the biological supercomputer. Not only that, he couldn't even say that he saw him at all.
His father made him understand that something big was happening and that it was related to his situation, so reporting weird things to a military man was not safe. He trusted Benjamin, but there were some things it was better to keep hidden.
"Not at all. He disappeared. As much as I know, he is dead," Erik obviously lied.
A silence fell over the two men. Benjamin stared blankly at Erik for a few seconds before saying, "I'm sorry..."
"No! Don't be...It doesn't matter anymore, anyway. My dad chose his life, and his and only his are the consequences of his actions."
The conversation ended abruptly, with both men staring silently at each other for a moment. After a short pause, Benjamin spoke again. "You know that if you need anything, you can count on me, right?" he said.
"Yes, thanks, uncle Ben."
The two kept eating and ordered a dessert. While eating sweets, Erik thought about his life and how much he wanted uncle Benjamin to be his real father.
He was a lovely man, always smiling and kind, who loved talking to anyone regardless of age or social status.
Erik wasn't sure if Benjamin's actions were motivated by compassion for him, because he cared about him, or because of his father's friendship.
In any case, it was nice to have a friend with whom you could have casual conversations about dreams, relationships, girls, and school.
All those simple human aspects meant the world to him. Uncle Ben had become like an older brother to Erik.
Then, the pair finished their meal. Benjamin had already paid the bill earlier, leaving no debt whatsoever.
With that, the two got ready to go home. Erik felt a little bit lonely since his time with Benjamin had ended, but he knew that the man was busy and couldn't ask him to stay any longer.
In fact, they barely spent two hours together. But still, it was great to spend some quality time with him. It reminded Erik why he liked this guy.
They took the elevator again and walked toward the car. On the way, Benjamin told Erik that he could call him anytime.
If he wasn't too busy, that is. That seemed to please the young man. Then, the ride back home started.
Benjamin didn't immediately go to Erik's home but made a slight detour to make the young man look at the city again.
When they reached the house, Benjamin stopped in front of the building. Before landing the vehicle, he turned around and looked at Erik. "Take care, kid. I'll see you next weekend."
"Really?"
"Yes," Benjamin said while smiling widely.
"Thanks, Uncle Ben!"
Benjamin smiled, then opened the passenger side door, and Erik jumped out of the car.
"Bye, Erik."
"Bye, Uncle Ben!"
Then the man left the young man there, alone. Erik then grabbed the keys to his house and went to the entrance hall.
He then proceeded to go to the upper levels of the building by using the stairs. As soon as he reached the third floor, he unlocked the door to his apartment and walked inside, but when he opened the door, a chilling view appeared before him.
Someone had been inside his house; everything was messy. It was evident that whoever came searched the entire house for something specific.
The first thing that Erik thought was that some thief had entered in. However, he looked to his left side and saw the computer still on the desk, meaning that nothing important was stolen, besides he got nothing valuable besides his clothes.
Then, immediately, another thought spread inside his mind, this situation probably happened because of the biological supercomputer. Whoever was chasing his father knew that he had met him here. And now he, too, was implicated in the matter.
He sat down and sighed heavily, not knowing what else to do. Erik was scared but could do nothing to solve the current situation. For now, he could only wait to fix his deformity problem and then hope that he would be able to become stronger so that such things would stop happening to him.
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