[18th-01-2016]

It was spring and birds were making love, the sun shone brightly between the shady leaves, and life passed by with each drop of light. A girl rode her bicycle and, as she rode, amazed by the sunshine, she tried to grab hold of the blissful light.

Suddenly, a police siren wailed outside.

“Bryan get out here!” Chris yelled from outside Bryan’s house as he waited with his crew in the pimped-out car, playing loud electro-music. Nick, sitting in the passenger seat, kept playing with police siren in an attempt to urge their friend to hurry up.

“Ah, what a girl… look at her pretty face!” Chris said, as Bryan finally arrived.

“There comes my boo!” Elles threw her arms around Bryan’s neck and they shared a quick kiss.

Their car had a police radio signaling back to the local cops.

“It will take another 30 minutes to lose the cops.” Chris said as he sped off.

When the gang had left the street and was nowhere close, a midget climbed up his wall to make sure that the pimped up car had disappeared. He then blew a whistle, which saw Lion Street come alive.

Hidden Journalists got their story, then stepped down from trees with their heavy cameras. Wives walked outside with cups of tea, as Husbands parked vehicles outside for a car wash. Cars once again drove up and down the road, as aunts washed dusty windows. Dogs barked again while late scholars rushed to catch buses. Elders came out to grab a chair and read their newspapers in peace.

“It’s 10am in the morning and kids of Lion Street are back on the streets…with a tank!” a helicopter was broadcasting the video footage of the army tank shunting police vehicles across the highway.

“It all happened so quickly, one moment I was showing the students around the military exhibition and the next thing there is a missing tank in the yard, and I can’t find Chris!” Mrs. Serra, the distraught sergeant major, explained to the reporter, then turned back towards the students, clearly stressed out.

“Guys, where’s Chris?” Mrs. Serra asked the loud-spoken scholars behind her.

Chris was staff-sergeant and currently had his head sticking out of the top of the tank in a crash helmet. He zoned in on his target across the road and commanded his gang to smoke everything in sight, until the local cops ran out of cars.

Later that night, the tank, known as Brenda DTi-48, forced her way into a closed mall, which gave the officials some time to close the roads and arrange themselves outside the premises. Inside the mall, the gang was enjoying their very early morning coffee at their favourite food store. Elles finished cooking them breakfast and, having served everyone else, settled into her seat. Next door was a bank with its safe burst open; DTi-48 was parked next to it, along with bags full of cash.

It was 4 am and thousands had gathered to witness their escape. Guns had already started firing inside the mall. Brenda rolled out, shooting at every road block to make way. The army was called in for duty as police officials had given up on the pursuit. The gang were struggling to shake off their tail. Every soldier they shot was pulled aside next to the parked vehicles but very quickly got back up on foot. They now had to make an escape!

In-between the buildings, Brenda created short-cuts, smashing directly against the glass entrances of the ground floor to let passengers climb off. The first was Chris, who jumped out of the army tank while it was still in motion. Bryan was the driver, he maintained his speed as the bags disappeared with everyone, one by one. On his last stop under a building, Bryan realized that Elles hadn’t left with the crew. She was seated next to him, holding a rifle.

“I love who you are!” Brian shouted like he meant it.

Brian drove Brenda to a nearby beach; the shots continued to come in hard until she sank under the sea. The troops assumed they were dead and closed in on the target. Inside the DTi-48 the water slowly began to fill the interior and, in the heat of a moment, the two took their clothes off urgently, giving in to the passion of the moment.

After a while, Brenda suddenly reversed out of the water and, once again, the shots started firing. Along the road more tanks joined the pursuit; they hit Brenda seven times before she stopped. They were already aware there was no shooting from inside the tank anymore. Holding a loud speaker, the sergeant major called to them: “Come on out, kids!!!”

Inside DTi-48 Bryan tried to hide his desperate eyes as he dwelt on his fate. He came out to stand on the ground; the troops were already locked on target when he opened the hatch. Elles got off at the other end of the beach, where the troops were far from sight. When Bryan got arrested it was too late for second thoughts, standing under a wooden bridge, she could only watch with horror.

***

Tell us what you think: Do you think Elles should have turned herself in with Bryan? Why?