The two thugs walked closer.
Their hands moved behind their backs reaching for the knives hidden in their belts. The man in the front offered a fake sympathetic smile.
"Did you see what happened here kid? Looks like someone ran right off the road." He was trying to get closer trying to close the trap.
But Adam had learned his lessons. He had died too many times to fall for simple tricks. Before they could draw their weapons he exploded into motion.
He didn’t wait for them to act.
He would dictate the terms of this fight.
He closed the distance in three long strides. The ground seemed to fly by beneath his feet.
He leaped launching himself at the thug on the left. In mid-air he brought his own knife up and then down in a vicious arcing slash. The blade cut deep into the man’s throat.
The second thug reacted instantly. He was a professional. He saw his partner go down and immediately abandoned any pretense of being a bystander.
He lashed out with a powerful kick.
It caught Adam squarely on the shoulder sending him staggering to the side.
Adam hit the asphalt hard rolling to absorb the impact. But the first thug was already collapsing.
His hands clawed at his neck as a gurgling sound escaped his lips. He twitched on the road choking on his own blood.
His eyes were wide with a surprise that would be his last expression.
The second thug glanced at his fallen partner. He saw the arterial spray.
He saw the look of terror in the dying man’s eyes. He knew he was beyond help.
Rage contorted his features. His face became a mask of pure hate.
He drew his own knife a large hunting knife with a serrated edge. He switched it to his other hand in a blur of motion and charged at Adam.
He was silent and focused his every movement aimed at a swift kill.
Adam was still scrambling to his feet when the thug reached him. The knife flashed under the dim light of the setting sun.
Adam saw it coming but he couldn’t move fast enough. He was still off balance from the kick. The blade plunged into his chest just below the ribs.
An excruciating wave of pain washed over him. It was a fire that spread through his entire body.
It felt like his entire nervous system had been shut down. All the strength all the energy from his new stats drained away in an instant. The thug ripped the knife out and raised it for another strike a final killing blow.
This time Adam managed to move. He stumbled backward his feet clumsy on the rough road. He barely avoided the follow-up attack.
The knife sliced through the air where his head had been a second before.
The thug swore at him a low guttural sound. Adam pressed a hand to his chest.
It came away slick with a massive amount of his own blood. He knew the wound was fatal.
He could feel his life draining out of him onto the cold pavement. I’m not going to last much longer he thought. Then another thought surfaced. It was cold and clear and terrifying in its simplicity.
He decided then. If he was going to die in this loop he was taking this man with him.
It was no longer about survival. It was about revenge. It was about trading his temporary life for this man’s permanent one.
The thug raised his knife again. This time he aimed for Adam’s head with a brutal downward stab.
Adam didn’t retreat. He didn’t dodge. As the blade came down he thrust his own left arm forward to block it.
He made a conscious choice to sacrifice the arm.
The knife cut deep into his forearm grinding against bone.
He ignored the searing pain. He gripped the thug’s wrist with his bloody hand twisting it hard with all his enhanced strength.
The man cried out in surprise and pain as his arm was forced to the side his weapon neutralized for a critical second.
Using the thug’s momentum against him Adam lunged forward.
He closed the small distance between them. His own bloody knife was still in his right hand.
He drove the blade into the side of the thug’s neck with all his remaining strength. He twisted the blade for maximum damage.
The man made a choked gurgling sound a mirror of his partner’s final moments.
His eyes went wide with disbelief. He let go of his own knife. It clattered to the ground.
He stumbled back a few steps his hands weakly trying to staunch the unstoppable flow of blood from his throat.
He collapsed to the ground next to his dead partner. The two of them lay together in a growing pool of their own blood.
Adam’s strength finally gave out. His body felt like lead.
The adrenaline faded leaving only the immense pain of his wounds. He fell to his knees.
Then he collapsed forward onto the road landing beside the two men he had just killed.
His white school uniform was now almost entirely red. It was a macabre scene on a lonely road at dusk.
He was still conscious his vision blurry. The world was a hazy red-tinged smear. He heard the sound of someone approaching. Slow hesitant footsteps on the asphalt.
Adam’s eyes still open shifted to the side. He saw a pair of school shoes.
Philips was standing over him. His face was streaked with tears his body trembling uncontrollably. He looked from Adam to the two dead men then back to Adam. The horror of the situation was too much for him.
"I’m sorry Adam!" he cried out his voice choked with sobs.
"I’m so so sorry!" Then clutching his own wounded shoulder he turned and ran. He disappeared into the darkness of the deserted road a frightened child fleeing a nightmare.
Adam watched him go and let out a long slow breath.
The sound was wet and labored. So Philips wasn’t really a part of this he thought. He was just a pawn forced into it by the teacher. The thought brought no comfort. It only made the entire situation more tragic more senseless.
Slowly the edges of his vision began to darken. The red haze turned to a deep black. The world faded away. Finally he was dead.
And then a familiar blue window appeared in the void. A sign of his failure and his next chance.
[CAUSE OF DEATH: EXSANGUINATING FROM STAB WOUND.]