by Adrian P
The girl struck the boy with full power.
The boy hit the floor sideways and groaned loud.
“You’ve told me that your name, Audi, is derived from Latin, which means To Hear,” she clenched her fists. “You prided on the fact that it is a calling you wish to understand.”
Audi stood up and swung his metal bar.
“Yet you won’t hear yourself; how you attempt to justify mass murder,” she took a fighting position. “You will be no different from these people you loathe. They who throw away morality for a shallow cause. The kind of being who give up on kindness.”
Charlotte deployed her helmet.
“But I won’t let you betray yourself.”
Chapter 4 / Part 6
Charlotte entered stealth mode. Her body vanished into invisibility, and she circled around Audi. She swung a punch.
The boy dodged her strike.
Damnit—!
Audi struck her with a back kick, pushing her to the wall. As Charlotte picked herself up, the boy launched towards her and swung his metal bar down. The girl dodged. She activated her boots’ electromagnetic function and sprinted on the wall sideways.
She stepped onto the ceiling and stood upside down.
Just days ago he was helpless against me, yet now, he could predict where I’ll strike him, even while I’m in stealth.
Charlotte opened a slot on her leg and drew a baton.
I need to take him down before he—
Audi turned to the woman shivering on the room’s corner.
He took heavy steps as he swung his metal bar, hitting the wall until a crack open. The woman screamed and crawled away, but the boy chased him while swinging his bloodstained bar. He caught up and aimed straight at her head.
Charlotte landed in front of her and blocked Audi’s attack.
“That’s enough!” the girl shouted. “Have you sunk so low, that you’re willing to kill an unarmed civilian?”
“I wasn’t trying to kill her.”
Oh no—
Audi shoulder-charged Charlotte and pushed her to the floor. He swung his metal bar, but Charlotte blocked him with her baton. Her suit’s stealth function ceased, and she was visible again.
“I might not see you, but I am well aware of your objective,” Audi pushed her baton down with full force until it touched her neck. “Your mission is to prevent me from killing her, a reactive one, while mine is active. So I own the battlefield.”
She gritted her teeth while resisting the push. “Why are you so stubborn?” Charlotte growled. “Killing her won’t do you any good!”
“I am not fighting for myself,” the boy replied. “Do you think I’m doing this for my own good? Bah! All this, like you’ve said, will simply turn me into a mass murderer.”
“Then—“
“These people shape the way our economy works, Ghost Girl,” he said. “And as long as they exist, children will always be reared and educated into insignificant cogs of the industrial world. Like your parents used to believe. Why they drugged you.”
“Don’t drag my past into your twisted reality!”
Charlotte kicked the boy away as she back-flipped into a stand.
“I killed my father thinking my misery would end! Did it?” the girl yelled. “My suffering did not disappear because the person who caused it died. Solving the problems in this world is more complicated than removing human actors from existence! It is belief system. It is culture. This abstract idea that permeates society,” she walked forward. “So long as we don’t solve this, every children will be forced to adapt to a wealth-centric reality when they grow up, and your killing will never end!”
“I am ready to kill until the end of time,” Audi swung his metal bar from top. “Until this wretched culture exhaust itself, and realised how unsustainable it really is.”
Charlotte blocked him. “No you’re not,” she pushed him towards the wall. “I’ll make sure you won’t.”
She turned her baton’s electric function.
Electric sparks jumped from the baton towards the boy. Audi winced for seconds but endured. She glared at Charlotte as he regained strength.
No way! How is that possible?
They repositioned themselves and struck one another like knights of antiquity. Audi had greater strength, but Charlotte has the speed advantage. She dodged attacks instead of blocking, and attacked the boy with fast, albeit weaker jabs which were harder to block. Her baton’s electric function was kept active, thus the boy took blunt hits with sudden jolts.
Several minutes passed, and neither gave their ground. But the boy’s exhaustion grew apparent, and his stance grew smaller and more defensive.
Chance.
The girl dashed forward and pushed her baton forward to stab Audi, but the boy swung his rod upwards and deflected her stab.
Charlotte smirked. “Nice try.”
Charlotte deployed another baton out of her opposite wrist.
Audi panicked, but Charlotte’s strike was quick. The baton touched his shoulder, and a surge of shock electrified his entire body. The boy’s body grew weak, and he fell on the ground.
He tried moving, but his body was paralysed.
“Lady,” Charlotte turned to the female executive behind her. “Run away and never return. Just because I saved you, does not mean I approve of what you’ve done. Not the slightest.”
The woman backed away.
“Go!”
She dashed away through the exit and left.
Audi glared at Charlotte while struggling to move. “Congratulations, you’ve let her away,” his voice was mumbled. “Now she’s free to propagate her ideology—“
Charlotte slapped him with full force.
“Did you forget your promise?” she asked. “The night we danced on the ballroom. You told me that you understood me; that believing differently from others is difficult,” she paused. “Trying to live free from the bondage to wealth is impossible, no, it would simply bring us suffering.”
Silence.
“But you’ve also told me to never give up. Because we need people who are brave enough to face the world, even while knowing that they have to suffer because of it.”
The boy grumbled.
“That means we need you.”
Audi kept his glance away.
“Someone with the power to listen to cries and tears of those who would otherwise be silenced by the world. Someone who would refuse to kill his enemies when it is unnecessary.”
“I killed these people.”
“But you refused to kill Konstantin.”
Silence.
“If you really want the medicine he possesses, you could’ve assassinated him silently and ransacked through his UFX-PDA. If Simonovsky Tech really have manufactured the drug in the past, then he would’ve had some data, even if it is buried underneath billions of information,” she said. “That is much easier than subduing him alive, while he possesses such a powerful ability.”
Charlotte sat on her knees and pulled Audi towards her. She hugged him while leaning her chin on his shoulder.
“I’m so sorry I left,” she closed her eyes. “Had I stayed with you, this would never have happened. You would never have killed these people. I wouldn’t have let you lose hope for even just a second.”
“I—“
“I’ve never meant to say what I did. I was just afraid,” she tightened her embrace. “That if I see what you’ve seen, that if I feel what you’ve felt, I would regress into what I was. Full of hate. Anger. Despair.”
The boy kept his sight low.
“Promise me that you’ll never give up on kindness anymore. On benevolence. On your power to empathise with the people of the world,” she pulled back and placed both hands on his chest. “I will stay by your side and hold you when the burdens of the world becomes too heavy. Even if the universe pressured you to give up. Even if their case for abandoning kindness is powerful. I will never. Ever. Let the abyss claim your heart again.”
>
“Why, Ghost Girl?” the boy’s voice softened to a near whisper. “What have I done? Why are you willing to go so far for someone who has nothing like me? What benefit do you get? What advantage—“
She put a finger over his lips.
“It is clear as sky that the world has ordained you to become something more. To be born a pauper and grow up in suffering, yet even when darkness consumed you, never once you lived for the sake of yourself.”
Silence.
“I’ve never thought such a being is possible. I’ve never thought someone like you ever exist. I want to know more. I want to be a part of your life. I want to see the world as viewed by your eyes; how you can condemn the world, yet still fight for it until the end.”
The boy sighed. “In other words, I’m a freak show.”
Charlotte giggled. “Welcome home, Audi.”
A sudden electric surge expanded through the boy’s body. He twitched his muscles from top to bottom, and slowly, the paralysis vanished. He took a deep breath and straightened his posture.
He looked at her. “Charley.”
“Yes?”
“Let’s go to Nagisawa Corporation after we’re done.”
She nodded while resting her chin on his shoulder.
“My CEO is about to execute her plan to mass produce food and clean water at a scale never seen before, to significantly reduce their price, so even the poorest can eat and drink at almost no cost,” he said. “The head of my Research and Development was at full gear to scientifically solve this project.”
“What about it?”
“Where do you want to work? The business development side or the scientific side?”
She swung her head sideways like a pendulum. “I don’t mind either. While I’m no genius at natural and social science, I am quite well versed in both.”
“Noted,” Audi grabbed her with both arms and stood, carrying her up with him. “Let’s finish our job in this planet, and then, we shall begin making a difference in our world.”
“Aye aye, commandant,” Charlotte saluted with a beaming smile. “So this job…is it what I think it is?”
The boy nodded.
“Let’s find Konstantin and beat the hell out of him.”
The entrance door to the room creaked silently.
And tiny footsteps echoed as they distanced away.
There were tears on the floor.
CHAPTER FIVE
“Man, when perfected, is the best of animals; but when separated from law and justice, he is the worst of all.”
-Aristotle-
Chapter 5 / Part 1
Brotherhood conscripts entered the spaceport through the backdoor. In regimented columns, they carried crates of cargo marked ‘FRAGILE’ into a white spacecraft in a hangar. Konstantin leaned on a square metal pillar holding the ceiling; his hand clenched tight on his communicator.
“How long until the invasion begins?” he asked in Russian.
“A week at most,” a woman replied. “The Patriot of War aims to secure the star system within a day, and defeat all planetary resistance within the following week.”
Konstantin sighed. “The planet is The Tyrant Empire’s major financial centre. With our dimensional jump technology, their space navy will never react in time—“
“The Tyrant Empire’s Navy is not The Patriot of War’s concern.”
The man frowned. “Then what?”
“The Locust. The Witch. The Harbinger.”
Silence.
“That is our situation,” she said. “Finish everything you’re doing there, and return to us immediately. We are going to deploy our new Berserkers, and you need to ensure all units are fully functional.”
“I’ll try my best, Vice-Admiral,” Konstantin grumbled. “A bunch of Inferior Beings held me back, but I should be fine now.”
“Very well,” she replied. “Death to the Tyrant.”
“Death to the Tyrant.”
He hung up.
“So,” Konstantin turned to a figure behind him. “What are you doing here?”
The figure in hood watched the conscripts carry Celestial Anvil’s disassembled parts into the ship, pointing a finger at them, seemingly counting the numbers of something. He looked around the hangar, turned above, pointing at terraces made of metals, counting their numbers, and spreading his arms like he tried measuring the distance between walls. “I see,” he turned to Konstantin. “I’m here to supervise you.”
“The old man told you to?”
“Perhaps,” the figure replied. “He wanted to know how the boy he found in the mine decades ago has turned up. Only in solitude that one reveals oneself. The angels. The demons. The true soul of one’s being.”
“I don’t need your babysitting,” Konstantin stepped forward and walked towards his spacecraft. “Celestial Anvil is ready for use, as per order. All that’s left is a final quality check by the crews in our Mothership, and then—“
“The Bandana Boy is coming, Simonovsky.”
Konstantin stopped.
“The Ivory Tower has every reason to study your upcoming fight. Scholars in the Chamber of Philosophy and Scientific Consortium are eager to discover every question and answer they can draw out of this,” he said. “The potential knowledge we can gather over the past week in this planet has surmounted everything that we can learn in the liberation of Gleicherde.”
“There shall be no takeaway lesson from here on,” Konstantin replied. “If the boy dares showing up once more, I will reduce him to cinders with my Bionika power.”
“May our Great Liberator bless you, Simonovsky,” the figure replied. “You’ll need every metaphysical support to—“
His Eyes Were Crimson Red.
Konstantin fired branches of lightning at the floor next to the figure. The latter stayed still.
“I embody the second most powerful fundamental force of the universe, Electromagnetism, and yet you think I’ll lose?” Konstantin yelled. “A Tyrant Slave with no power cannot beat me. He was at my mercy, twice!”
“I’m sure,” the figure chuckled. “But the boy defeated The Patriot of War, who manifests one of the three primary building blocks of the universe: Space. He is stronger than you, stronger than many in the Brotherhood.”
“The Patriot of War is far too merciful, but I am not.”
“You said it like that’s a virtue.”
“The Cypriot Brotherhood cannot accomplish its Great Liberation of humanity if we’re bogged down by mercy,” Konstantin replied. “The Tyrant Empire tolerates the existence of people who are actively undermining moral relations. Under the guise of pursuing happiness and freedom, these Inferior Beings shape their culture to value one person over many; that sacrificing others is a necessary evil for the sake of enriching themselves.”
The figure crossed his arms. “You’re treading into simplistic Utilitarianism,” he said. “The Ivory Tower’s Chamber of Philosophy have emphasised the multi-dimensional nature of individualism and collectivism.”
“Are you saying that you approve of the Tyrant Empire’s society?”
“Absolutely not,” the figure replied. “Though not because they’re completely individualistic, but because they emphasised both individualism and collectivism at all the wrong places,” he paused. “They encourage a highly individualistic pursuit of happiness, but at the same time, are highly collectivistic in shunning those who think differently—who wishes to live differently.”
Silence.
The figure turned back. “Subscribe to a simplistic worldview with caution, that is, those which paint heroes and villains, good and evil, right and wrong so plainly,” he paused. “Life is complex, and solving issues within it require us to adopt an equally complex system of thoughts and beliefs. The moment your belief identifies a person or a group as an enemy to be purged, that’s when you have to be skeptic of yourself, of your belief.”
“I thought you despised the shunning of different thoughts.”
“Don’t feel so special,” he replied. “Many in the Brotherhood share your interpretation of our Great Liberator’s Wraths. As a scholar of The Ivory Tower, it is one of my primary duties to vet our people’s popular beliefs and line-of-thinking before they stir undesirable effects,” he paused. “The Great Liberator encourages intellectual freedom within The Brotherhood, and that’s exactly why my job is of paramount importance.”
Konstantin grumbled.
“Celestial Anvil is your design, but wasn’t under your authority,” he continued. “For this, the consequences of your action do not fall under your sole responsibility.”
“But for the destruction of this planet, your punishment will come soon.”
Punishment? Konstantin watched the figure disappear around the corner. These Ivory Tower scholars don’t know what they’re talking about. I thought they’re supposed to be the pillars of Cypriot Brotherhood’s wisdom.
He approached his spacecraft and watched his conscripts organised Celestial Anvil’s parts into its cargo compartment.
One conscript took his communicator and spoke to it. A flash of panic struck the man.
“Something’s wrong?” Konstantin asked.
“Brother Simonovsky,” the conscript paused. “There is a chaos unfolding outside.”
“What chaos?”
“The Tyrant Slaves’ queue to enter this spaceport has exploded into a revolt,” he said. “Their clash with the spaceport’s security guards has ensued. What do we do?”
“Damn it,” Konstantin frowned. “How fast can we complete loading Celestial Anvil in?”
“We have only finished loading the chassis, but none of the warheads are in.”
“Useless bunch of Deltas,” Konstantin grumbled. “Double time! We don’t have time until—“
