Tower Climber (A LitRPG Adventure, Book 1) Jakob Tanner (reading comprehension books TXT) 📖

head slowly towards Max. His eyes were bloodshot. His whole face was slimy with sweat.

“Are you speaking to me, Useless?” slurred Mr. Grimes.

This was it. Max was distracting him. He needed to lure him away from Sarah’s door.

“That’s right,” said Max.

Mr. Grimes snickered and then did something Max wasn’t expecting.

The man simply ignored him.

He returned to the door, knocking on it.

“Come out, Sarah...”

So the man was just going to ignore him. He’d have to distract him further.

Max made his way so that he was right beside the man. He lifted his arms and grabbed Mr. Grimes’ wrist.

“Leave her alone,” said Max.

“What’s this...” said Mr. Grimes, continuing to slur his words. “Assault? I guess I’ll just have to send you to juvenile hall.”

Max gulped. If protecting Sarah meant going to a juvenile center, so be it.

“You’ll have a record though, Useless,” said Mr. Grimes. “And you know what that means? No way in hell would you ever get documents to enter the tower-zone.”

He laughed, spit flying into Max’s face.

If he couldn’t enter the tower-zone, he’d never be able to find his sister. He’d never be able to fulfill the promise he made to her.

“Now remove your hand from my wrist, Useless,” spat Mr. Grimes.

Max ignored him. He just kept thinking about never seeing his sister again. Failing at his promise.

“Let go of me,” shouted Mr. Grimes. “Can you not hear me? Are you an idiot and a cripple?”

Max wasn’t hearing the man. He saw his sister in his mind. They were much younger, playing in a field.

“As your big brother,” he had said. “I promise to always protect you.”

SMACK!

Mr. Grimes slapped Max across the face.

The pain scorched across his cheek.

“If you send me to a juvenile center,” said Max. “I’ll tell everyone about you. All the evil things you’ve done. You’ll be finished. And guess what—you won’t be able to do anything about it. Make me do the dishes? Clean the showers? You won’t be able to make me do anything because I’ll be far away.”

The man perked up at that.

“Don’t you threaten me, Useless,” said Mr. Grimes. “I’ll take you at your word.”

“Leave me and my friend alone and you got a deal,” said Max.

“Nope,” smiled Mr. Grimes. “You’re a loose end now and do you know what I do to loose ends? I snip them away.”

Mr. Grimes reached out and grabbed Max by the hair and slammed his head against the wall.

Max blacked out.

Max woke up in darkness.

He lifted up his hand and felt a metal surface above him.

Where am I?

He heard the thrum of a car engine. The crackle of a wheel rolling over a stone.

Was he in the trunk of a car?

The car came to a stop and the engine cut out.

He heard a murmur of voices.

What the heck was going on?

The last thing Max remembered was yelling at Mr. Grimes before the man hit him. Had he blacked out after that? So it seemed logical that the only place he could be was in the back of Mr. Grimes’ car.

But what was he planning on doing with him?

Max pushed himself so his ear was against the metal surface. He could make out the voices outside.

“Remember that favor you owe me,” said Mr. Grimes.

“You couldn’t have picked better timing,” said the other voice. “A monster wave has just started. The kid will get torn apart. No evidence, no problem.”

Mr. Grimes popped open the trunk and grinned maliciously at Max.

“Wake up, Useless,” said Mr. Grimes.

The group manager turned to the other figure. It was a soldier, but the uniform he was wearing wasn’t a normal military outfit.

He must be a tower-zone guard. What was he doing interacting with Mr. Grimes?

The two men picked Max up by either side.

“Let me go,” said Max, squirming between them. “Where are you taking me!?”

They carried him over to a gateway.

Mr. Grimes snickered. “You wanted to enter the tower-zone so badly, well, here you go, Useless.”

With that, they swung him forward into the dangerous world beyond the wall.

3

Max watched as a metal door slid shut in front of him.

His whole body ached. For the second time that day he could taste blood in his mouth. He spat it out, then coughed.

Holy smokes.

They’d just thrown him beyond the wall. He was no longer in the outer-rim of Zestiris, but the tower-zone. Since receiving his sister’s mysterious letter a year ago, all he had wanted was to enter the tower-zone.

But never like this.

And what had that guard meant when he said, monster wave? That didn’t sound good.

Max blinked. He had to make a plan and make one fast.

He tilted his head and took in his surroundings.

He was on a paved road. Across the street was a park—lots of green trees, grass, benches, and lampposts.

Okay new plan, thought Max. Get off this road. Head to the park. Find someone to help him and then go get Mr. Grimes arrested.

Max dragged himself forward across the road. His whole body ached as he did so. He gritted his teeth and winced at the pain.

He stretched his arms and chest then dragged his lower body forward.

He gasped in exhaustion when he finally got his body fully on the grass of the park.

He looked around and contemplated screaming for help. No one was in sight though and he needed to conserve his energy.

He was slightly perplexed by the park he was in. It was like any normal park in the outer-rim. He wasn’t expecting something so, normal.

KABOOM!

A massive force of energy rippled across the park and shot Max’s hair back.

What the heck was that?

It sounded like an explosion from deeper in the city. No wonder no one was around in the park. It sounded like there was a city wide emergency going on.

Max had to rethink his plan. He would have to drag himself through this park and get to the nearest tower-zone police station.

He dragged himself forward.

His body slid across the grass, his clothing getting tainted and damp with dirt.

Rustle, rustle.

Max stopped.

What was that?

Were there animals