7 Return of the Hero (1/2)
Typically, Diesel freely roamed around the areas that he was sent to for his service assignments. There wasn't often a strict deadline when it came to completing the job, so it was nice to take in the sights.
He had never gotten the chance to travel; never had the money for it. This had started being one of the perks to his new life – being able to enjoy experiences that he had previously only seen displayed on a screen.
At the moment, Diesel was travelling through the streets of Shanghai, carefully dodging the swarms of people that traversed the streets. He had never seen so much foot traffic before. There was hardly any room for him to maneuver as people spilled onto the road, even as his compact size.
The cars behind him honked furiously that he wasn't moving forward, but he wasn't sure how to navigate through the seemingly endless stream of people. He honked his horn at them, but it seemed like they barely acknowledged him.
Getting nervous by the increasingly angry honking from behind, Diesel blew out a puff of smoke and crept forward.
To his surprise, the pedestrians nearby appeared to move away, making room for him. As if the river of people naturally parted to account for his presence, Diesel crept his way through. He looked for the landmark called 'People's Square', where his next target was certain to be at.
Though he was still stuck in traffic as he approached the public area designated as that landmark, a loud voice pierced through the air from a distance.
”Hear my story! How I, the great Lord Bottomus came to be!”
”A legend told and passed on for generations!”
”My adventures in a strange world that I call home! One of many!”
”Where I come from…How it has led to today! We are blind to much of reality!
”So, listen to my story…the story of my life!”
”From your enlightened one, Bottomus.”
”This is definitely not a story told by the common man.”
A man dressed in a peculiar outfit stood out in the square as he yelled out his proclamations on top of a step ladder.
Was he not embarrassed to be screaming out such language? Diesel certainly wouldn't be caught dead spouting off such words. Maybe if he had been suffering from 'eighth-grade syndrome,' but that had been over a decade ago in his previous life. Thankfully, he retained his previous mindset when reincarnated as a truck; that wasn't a phase that he wanted to revisit again.
On the other hand, a talking truck would be odd enough to begin with. It wouldn't matter what he said.
”Fellow Daoists, who walk on this earth beside me. I am the wisest in the world. For I have seen that we truly know nothing!”
”Remember one thing – Humans are strong! They have the power to change. To become better or worse. To dream and feel things that aren't apparent in this world.”
”Let not the systems of this world dominate you! Join me to overcome and shake the heavens!”
People continued to walk through the square, trying their best to ignore him. They probably had good reason to, since Diesel was already starting to grow tired of his rambling. He watched as Bottomus tried to catch the attention of a random passerby, only to be given a sharp look of annoyance.
”Does it hurt to listen to my words? The words of truth? Then, I will destroy and cause pain to save the world!”
”We are but mere sheep in the grand scheme of things! Let us ascend to greater forms!”
Finally, rolling up to the excessively talkative person, Diesel couldn't take it anymore.
”The form of a truck is certainly better than any 'ascended' forms that you speak of,” he joked, believing that he wouldn't be heard anyways.
But there were times that unexpected things happened. This was such a time.
The man named Bottomus abruptly stopped his dialogue, looking around like he had just been heckled. Finally, his eyes fixated in the direction of Diesel, in which he pointed.
”You! You have apparently been touched by the Gods! Oh, distinguished one before me!”
His words drew stares from the people around him. But as he jumped down from his step ladder and walked over to Diesel to place a hand on his hood, the crowd decided that Bottomus had just lost his marbles.