Arya Satria's blood seemed to stop flowing. He was trapped.
He pressed his body against the cold concrete wall, hiding in the narrow gap behind the heavy iron shelf he had just moved. The large black leather-bound book—the 'Blacklist'—was clutched tightly to his chest. The air in Block C felt heavy with dust and the scent of approaching death.
A powerful flashlight beam swept the darkness, piercing his eyes. Heavy footsteps sounded on the cement floor.
"You check the pallet stack on the left, Riko," ordered the deadly, husky voice. The same voice that had haunted Arya for twelve years. It was Bargas—the bald man, the Black Dragon's executioner in Cakra Manggala City.
Riko, a thin but tall man in an oversized 'NH' jacket, turned on his own flashlight.
Riko: (His voice nervous) "Are you sure that kid tricked us, Boss? He seemed... desperate. Maybe he really had information."
Bargas: (A cold laugh, his voice like gravel) "He's desperate because he's stupid. He thinks he can stall for time with Commander Jaya at the Blue Facility. He mentioned the 'Blacklist'. That means he knows something. And if he knows, he must die."
Arya held his breath. His heart was pounding so loudly he feared Bargas could hear it. He was no longer the desperate 30-year-old man; he was a surrounded 18-year-old. He couldn't fight them physically. Bargas was a killing machine.
Riko's flashlight beam swept the stack of old wooden pallets.
Riko: "It's empty here, Boss. Just trash and some old chemical drums."
Bargas: "The kid must be around here. He couldn't have run away that fast. I'll check the archive area."
Bargas's footsteps drew closer.
His bright flashlight beam now swept the archive shelves. The light danced over the heavy iron shelf where Arya was hiding. Arya squeezed his eyes shut, turned off his phone's flashlight, and prayed silently.
Bargas: "Wait..."
Bargas directed his beam to the floor.
Bargas: "Riko, look at this."
Riko approached. Bargas pointed to the cement floor. "Scrape marks. Still fresh. This shelf was just moved."
Damn it!
Bargas pressed his large, calloused hand against the iron shelf. He pushed it slightly.
KRRIIK!
A deafening squeal of metal filled the room. The gap where Arya was hiding narrowed by an inch.
Bargas: "Hmph. So heavy. He must be behind it."
Riko: "We push it together, Boss! We'll crush him!"
Arya was cornered. No way out. His mind raced. Die here? No. Not again.
His hand fumbled over the cracked concrete floor beside him. His fingers touched something cold and hard—a small iron pipe lying among the debris, perhaps a broken shelf leg.
Just as Bargas and Riko positioned themselves to push the iron shelf...
Arya: (Screaming at the top of his lungs) "THEY ARE OVER THERE!"
CRASH!!
Arya hurled the iron pipe with all his might into the farthest corner of the room, hitting a pile of rusted old paint cans. The impact echoed like a small explosion in the silent warehouse.
On reflex, Bargas and Riko turned, aiming their flashlights at the source of the sound.
Bargas: "Who is that?! Is there someone else?!"
Riko: "Maybe his friend! Check it!"
Both men jogged toward the dark corner.
That was the two-second window Arya needed.
Without a second thought, Arya dashed out from behind the shelf, clutching the 'Blacklist' tightly, and ran toward the only exit of Block C.
Riko: (Seeing the movement) "Boss! He's running! The kid!"
Bargas: (Turning back, his eyes burning with anger) "CHASE HIM! DON'T LET HIM ESCAPE!"
Arya burst out of the Block C door, back into the darkness of the Warehouse K-7 area, with two professional killers right behind him.
Arya burst out of the Block C steel door. The cold night air felt like a slap in the face. He clutched the 'Blacklist' tightly beneath his Night Parade leather jacket.
Behind him, Bargas and Riko followed, the sound of their boots crunching on the gravel.
Bargas: (Growling in anger) "BOX HIM IN, RIKO! DON'T LET HIM REACH THE MAIN GATE!"
Arya knew this warehouse complex was a labyrinth. Stacks of rusted containers, empty oil drums, and the wreckage of old machinery created perfect shadows for hiding, and also for ambush.
Riko: "I'll take the left side, Boss! Through the tire stacks!"
Bargas: "Good! I'll cut him off near the main fence!"
They split up. A standard tactic to corner their prey.
Arya did not run toward the main gate; that was suicide. Bargas, the executioner, was heading there. He pushed his fit teenage body, turning sharply right, toward the disposal area behind the complex. He had to find another way out.
His breath hitched, adrenaline pumping his blood. He was a 30-year-old man caught in a physical fight he couldn't possibly win. He could only rely on speed and cunning.
Riko: (Sounding closer) "Where are you going, you rat kid? You can't hide forever!"
Arya saw a narrow gap between two giant shipping containers. The gap was too tight for Bargas, but the thin Riko might squeeze through. Arya took the risk.
He darted into the gap.
SRAK!
His leather jacket scraped hard against the rusted metal. The 'Blacklist' on his chest felt safe.
Riko: "THERE HE IS!"
Riko followed him into the gap. As Arya expected, Riko's wider shoulders got slightly stuck, buying him a split second.
Riko: (Cursing) "Damn it! Boss! He's heading toward the disposal area!"
Arya emerged from the narrow gap and immediately stopped short. Ahead was a dead end. A four-meter-high barbed wire fence, looming under the dim moonlight, blocked his exit. Beside it was only a stack of dilapidated old wooden pallets. He was trapped.
Riko stepped out of the gap, blocking the only way out. He smiled cruelly, his breath ragged.
Riko: "Well, where to now, champ? Hand over the book, and I'll make your death quick. You resist, I'll break your arms first."
Bargas's heavy footsteps sounded, approaching from the opposite direction. Arya's time was up.
Arya: (Feigning panic, pressing his back against the fence) "This book? Your boss (Bargas) won't like it if this document is damaged. He wants this document intact, right?"
Riko: (Laughing) "You think you can negotiate? You're just a kid. I'll break your arm, take the book, then break your neck. The boss only cares about results."
Riko lunged.
Arya, with instincts honed by future experience, didn't fight back. He dodged left, letting Riko crash into a pile of empty drums.
CRASH!
Riko: "Stay still!"
Riko turned, now truly enraged. He pulled a folding knife from his pocket.
At the same moment, Bargas appeared at the end of the alley.
Bargas: "Did you get him, Riko? Finish him!"
Arya was surrounded. Riko with a knife in front of him, Bargas closing off the exit, and the barbed wire fence behind him.
Riko: "You're finished."
Riko lunged again, his knife aimed at Arya's stomach.
Arya had no choice. He didn't dodge sideways. He jumped backward—onto the pile of dilapidated wooden pallets beside the fence.
CRACK!
The old wood groaned and snapped under his weight, but Arya kept climbing, using adrenaline as fuel.
Riko: "Hey!"
Arya reached the top of the shaky pallet stack. He was now level with the top of the fence.
Bargas: (Realizing Arya's intent) "DON'T LET HIM CLIMB!"
Without hesitation, Arya jumped from the wooden pallets, ignoring the sharp barbed wire, and threw himself over the fence.
Time seemed to stop. Arya was at the peak of the pallet stack. Bargas and Riko were below him, frozen for a split second in shock.
Bargas: "DON'T LET HIM CLIMB!"
Arya didn't wait. He leaped from the decaying wood pile, ignoring the fear, and threw his body over the four-meter-high barbed wire fence.
SCREEECH!
The sound of tearing cloth and flesh. The barbed wire tore his Night Parade leather jacket and dug deep into his thigh and arm. A searing pain instantly burned through his nervous system.
Riko: (Trying to climb the wobbly pallets) "He... he's crazy!"
Arya didn't care. He clutched the 'Blacklist' tightly to his chest. With one last adrenaline-fueled push, he rolled over the sharp top of the fence and let gravity take over.
He fell four meters.
THUD!
Arya landed hard on the sharp gravel outside the warehouse complex. He rolled, trying to absorb the impact, but his ankle twisted badly. The pain was excruciating.
"Argh!" he hissed. Blood streamed from the gashes on his arms and legs.
Inside the fence, Bargas cursed loudly.
Bargas: "THAT DAMN KID! RIKO, TO THE MAIN GATE! CUT HIM OFF! HE WON'T GET FAR!"
Arya forced himself to stand. His ankle throbbed with pain, making him limp. He had no time. He had to reach Dion.
He staggered toward the main road, leaving a small trail of blood on the cracked asphalt.
Arya: (Shouting with all his might) "DION! START THE ENGINE! NOW!"
Across the street, under the dim streetlights, the roar of the beat-up motorcycle engine broke the silence of the Cakra Manggala night. Dion, who had almost given up waiting, saw Arya's limping figure running.
Dion: "My God, Arya! You... you're bleeding!"
Arya: "DON'T ASK QUESTIONS! GO!"
Arya jumped onto the back seat, barely making it. Just then, Bargas and Riko burst out of the main gate of Warehouse K-7, about fifty meters behind them.
Bargas: (Seeing the running motorcycle) "NO! DON'T LET THEM ESCAPE!"
Bargas's eyes met Arya's for a split second. Pure hatred radiated from the executioner.
Bargas: "I WILL FIND YOU, YOU DAMN KID! YOU AND YOUR GIRL WON'T LIVE TO SEE TOMORROW!"
The threat hit Arya harder than his landing. Maya.
Arya: (Hitting Dion's back) "GO, DION! GO!"
Dion twisted the throttle full open. The motorcycle tires screeched on the asphalt as they sped into the darkness, leaving the two Black Dragon members in a cloud of exhaust smoke.
They rode fast through the deserted industrial streets. Arya's adrenaline began to fade, replaced by piercing pain throughout his body and the cold night air.
Dion: (Shouting against the wind) "ARYA, YOU'RE INSANE! WHAT ARE YOU CARRYING?! YOU JUST FOUGHT BARGAS THE EXECUTIONER!"
Arya clutched the 'Blacklist' beneath his torn jacket. The document was now stained with his own blood.
Arya: (Gasping, holding back the pain) "I... I'm carrying our weapon, Dion. The weapon to destroy them."
He looked back at the warehouse, which was now shrinking in the distance.
Arya:This is just the beginning. I got the book. Now, the real war begins. I have to use it before Bargas finds Maya.