The Man Who Killed the First Monster

Shit, it's the cops.

Jason burst out into a sprint. He ran like his life was depending on it. The thought of being caught by the police would be the worst-case scenario for him. Not only he was trespassing a crime scene, he even brought a sharp weapon along. He didn't know whether it was enough to put him behind bars but he won't take any chances playing a good samaritan at this point in time. Desperate time needs desperate measures.

"Stop, or else I'll shoot," Jason heard the warning from the Det.Moretti.

It was dark and there was no light. He couldn't see the policeman but knew enough that he had already made the first move. He had already run and it was best to continue without stopping. Jason stumbled a few times as he couldn't see the path he was running. Yet every time he fell, he picked himself up in an instant. There was no time to cry about the pain when he fell. The last thing he need was a criminal record under his name. His breath was ragged and the pain over his left shoulder started to act up. The painkiller was starting to wear off.

Not now, damn it.

He was just about to run out of the dark back alley but then a strong force slammed him from behind. His feet were off the ground as he fell on the asphalt ground.

"You're under arrest on the charge of trespassing a crime scene-" Jason heard the voice of this policeman who was about to tell him his rights.

But he ain't going to play around. His future was at stake here. Pinned down on the ground, Jake Moretti thought Jason was helpless, but boy, he was wrong. Jason shrugged Jake off from sheer strength alone. The strength that he had obtained from those five points. Det. Moretti was caught off guard as he fell on his face right on the asphalt ground. He tasted payback right at this instant. The gun in Jake Moretti's hand fell on the ground lost within the darkness of the alleyway.

"Stop," Jake Moretti shouted.

But he was left ignored by Jason. Jason stood up, within his subconscious mind. He said.

Distribute four points to agility and one point to stamina.

With newfound strength welling up inside of him, Jason ran off like the wind leaving the alleyway. Jake Moretti got up and rushed to the street.

"Damn it, he's already gone," said Jake Moretti.

He couldn't believe it. Just a while ago, he could catch up to the speed of the suspect. But from the look of it, there was no way he could even see his back by now.

---

Jason was running by the side of the street with only the street lamps accompanying him. He didn't dare look back even for a glance.

One thing he knew off, he should never let the policeman see his face. Even in a dire situation, his mind was still thinking logically. He saw a fast food joint not far from where he was. Thinking back, he still didn't eat his pizza.

It must have gone cold by now.

He lamented that fact but right now, all he wanted to was to go back home. The more time he lingered around the street, the higher the possibility of that cop could find him. The grumbling noise of his stomach bothered him. His eyes stared at the fast-food restaurant but his line of sight brought him over to an obscure restaurant.

He thought it would be better if he didn’t eat at the fast-food restaurant. That place was rather public in the eyes of the people. Who knows when those cops would pop out. The best choice right now was an obscure restaurant. He catches his breath first and walked towards the obscure looking restaurant. From the outside, all he saw was darkness. Only the small neon sign hanging above the restaurant made him known that it's a restaurant. He looked around hoping that there were no cops. Jason went inside and was amazed by what he saw.

He had never seen an establishment like this before. The overall interior was close to the 70s. Yet the lights were rather dull and barely illuminate the whole place.

"What can I get you?"

Jason jumped out in surprise as a woman stood behind a counter appeared out of nowhere.

"Uhm, what's on the menu?" Jason asked.

"Can't you read the sign outside, this is a pizzeria. We sell pizza," said the woman.

Judging from her voice, Jason assumed she's rather old, close to the age of his grandmother.

"Ah sorry, I didn't notice," he said.

"You're running from the cops or something?" a direct question hitting straight at the bullseye.

Jason couldn't help but shake in his boots. He didn't know that this old woman could be so keen on her sight. Should he run? The old woman might call the cops on him. Numerous thoughts ran inside his mind. Unknown to him, his forehead was drenched in cold sweat.

“Stop standing there like a dumb mule and pick a pizza,” the old woman’s voice broke him from his constant wild thoughts.

“Hawaiian pizza please,” he ordered.

Something was thrown on his face.

“Ouch,” something just him right at the eye. He didn’t know what hit him.

“You dumb Americans, Hawaiian pizza is a blasphemy. Get out, if you don’t want a perfect Italian pizza,” she was scolding the heck out of Jason.

But I'm Canadian.

Jason grumbled. Now he knew who threw at him in the eye. His poor random selection of the menu brought him this misfortune.

“Sorry ma'am, I’ll order a pepperoni pizza please,” said Jason.

“Hmph, that’s more like it. Go take a seat and make yourself at home,” she left the counter and was about to start cooking. “and don’t mind the lights, we’re trying to save some pennies for the electricity,”

Jason let out a wary smile and found himself a seat by the side of the window.

For now, there're no cops in sight.

He glanced at the night sky hoping to catch a glimpse of the so-called crack in the sky. But thankfully, the crack hasn’t reached yet to Queens. He took out his smartphone and watched a few videos posted on the internet. The crack in the sky was similar to what he saw before. He couldn’t help but imagine what kind of monsters would pop out from that crack.

If the small crack in the alleyway let out a goblin, then would the huge crack in the sky let out a...

He stopped himself from thinking about it. If that thing he thought emerges from the crack, then it would only spell out the doom for him and the whole of New York.

"Here's your pizza," the pizza was served.

"Thank you, ma'am," said Jason.

"This isn't charity, you got to pay. Got it?"

Jason was taken aback, did he look like a bum to her?

"Yes ma'am, I'll pay later," replied Jason.

She left him to himself and Jason appeased the hunger of his stomach. The moment he took his first bite, an explosion of flavor fill his mouth.

This is damn delicious.

He didn't have much expectation but the taste of this normal looking pizza was mind-blowing.

Did she dope it with something?

He was still skeptical about the pizza. With a taste like this, shouldn't the store be overrun by customers by now? His curiosity was poking at him, telling him to ask the old woman. But being cursed and yelled at wasn't his cup of tea at the moment. He had enough mistakes for the night.

After finishing up, he sat there on his seat not budging away. He paid first to the owner and sat there with his eyes looking around through the window. The wall clock was close to reaching midnight.

"Boy, I'm closing up the store. So get out," a blunt way of telling him to get out.

"Ma’am may I go through the back door?" asked Jason.

"Knock yourself out," said the old woman.

He went to the back and the back door was locked. He came back to the front and saw the incoming old woman.

"Get out of the way," Jason complied and stayed away like a pitiful kitten. He watched the old woman unlocked the backdoor and followed suit. He stood under the only light at the back alley.

His sight caught on to the old woman getting inside an old chevy. The condition of the car was top notch, well kept for something built forty years ago.

"Boy, what are you standing around for? Get inside," said the old woman.

"Me?" Jason pointed at himself as he didn't expect to be called out by the old woman.

"Of course dummy, come on. I can't be late for bingo night," said the old woman.

Jason hesitated at first but seeing he had no other option at the moment, might as well hitch a ride with this old woman. He sat at the passenger seat. He felt awkward sitting inside a stranger's car.

"Where to?" asked the old woman.

“Van Horn Street, Queens,” Jason replied.

The old engine revved up and the old chevy entered the street of New York. At first, Jason was a bit worried about being driven by an old woman, but as he arrived in front of his apartment, he was impressed by the old woman.

"Thank you, ma'am," Jason said.

"Enough with the ma'am, Call me Betty," said Betty as Jason felt a sense chicness from this old lady.

Before he could even tell her his name, the old chevy already drove off leaving him in the dust.

"For an old-timer, she really living in the fast lane," said Jason.

---

Sitting on the couch, he grabbed a slice of his Othello's pizza. Although it was already cold, he definitely ain't going waste it. He turned on the television and saw a live broadcast of the news reporting about the crack in the sky. His mouth didn't stop chewing and his eyes kept on to the sight of his television screen.

"Good evening folks, it's twelve-thirty past midnight and Central Park had never been this lighted up. As of now, leading experts in the field of physics is still currently debating regarding the current phenomenon happening here above Central Park. Dubbed as the Crack, social media have run rampant with multiple videos and eye-witness regarding this amazing scene of the century..." the news reporter, a blonde in her mid-thirties was reporting live at the scene.

Jason kept on watching as he prayed within his heart. Hoping that nothing came out from that crack. The blonde reporter fell silent for a while as something was relaying through her earpiece.

"Citizen of New York, we are not alone. I have received reports that countless countries throughout the whole world are experiencing the same thing here in New York. Major cities like Tokyo, Hong Kong, London, Paris, Madrid and etc, are reported to also experiencing the Crack..."

Jason stopped eating as the television screen was showing multiple images from different locations and all of it had one thing in common.

"A crack in the sky, this..."

He was left speechless not knowing how to anticipate the future. He doesn't know whether he's the only person who knew what was about to come. Should he tell a news outlet? Or should he just spread it through the internet anonymously? But for some reason, he was sure about one thing.

Would they even believe me?