02) Threat - Sacris: The return of Chaos (Patreon)

«… chaos is back!»

These were the last words Silk uttered in her recording. Everything was ready for phase one of her plan: remind Techvan of the beauty of chaos.

«Yes! Yes! Yes! I’m finally done!», she screamed, excited to be able to begin her crazy act. The white haired, purple locks girl kept on fidgeting her braid, ecstatic. She was impatient  and could not wait any longer for the fun to start, but she had to be calm and wait for the “play time” to come.

«Oh how I want to meet my new game friends!», she said to herself out loud. After a few seconds of euphoria had gone by, she decided to light up her room. The darkness did not do justice to her mood. As soon as she turned the light on, the room came alive around her. On every wall there were drawings of her name, smiley faces and a multitude of “S” in a color resembling the one of her hair. The floor was littered with bullets and inactive grenades, so much so that one could not avoid stepping on them. The furniture fit perfectly with her mad mental state. A purple bed with spiked hearts sewn on the pillow and on the sheets. A skull shaped purple desk and a skeleton shaped, bright yellow wardrobe. Silk laid down on her bed, staring at the ceiling and dreaming of what she could do to attract her new friends’ attention even more.

«Violet, Lu, Aaron… My new friends are Techvan’s legends. I wonder what games we will play once we meet in person!»

«Police and thieves, for sure.»

Silk jumped on her bed as soon as she heard her father’s voice, who had entered her daughter’s bedroom without making a sound. The sole sight of her dad was enough to make the little girl crack an untameable smile.

«Dad! You finally got out of the laboratory! You’ve been locked in there for almost a week. I was so lonely!», she said, jumping from the bed and running to her lean dad. In return, he hugged his daughter with a big and loving embrace. Silk was much taller than him, despite her being sixteen years old.

«I know… While I was working, my TV was on. Guess what I was watching…»

Silk already knew the answer to that. Her dad, being a great scientist and a big fan of Tech technology, constantly kept an eye on the discoveries made by the boring city of Techvan.

«Have you seen my show?»

The girl’s dad grabbed her by the shoulders, making the most serious face he could. Which was not an easy task, considering his huge glasses and the mustache covering his face. The girls knew that her father’s expression meant he was worried about her.

«Don’t you worry, da… I’m not in danger! I just want to play with them. I am sure that Lu and Violet are funny and reliable women!»

«So reliable that they will try to shoot you as soon as they see you.», he pointed out, with a worried face.

«True friends then, right?»

The girl’s dad, who was wearing a scientist coat, could not avoid scratching his huge head in worry. He knew that his daughter was too smart to be caught by some generic cops. But to go against Techvan’s law, that was a whole other level.

«Why don’t you just leave all these games and come work with me in the lab? We could create a new weapon more to your liking than the ones you already have», he said, in an attempt to dissuade his daughter from pursuing her crazy idea.

«I already promised that I would play with them and that I would bring some fun to Techvan… It would be impolite not to keep my word.»

Even the scientist’s final attempt to dissuade the girl had proven useless. Now, he could only pray for her wellbeing in carrying out her mad plan.

«If you put it like that, I can’t say no. But let me give you some toys with which you can protect yourself better.»

Silk’s eyes lit up instantly. And, right there and then, her madness was unleashed. That same madness her father was so afraid of. He used to give his inventions in service of good. But to give them in the hands of his crazy daughter would be dangerous. However, he just could not let his babygirl get in harm’s way. That was the exact reason why he had his huge brain. That was why he had chosen to have his skull fractured, in order to let his genius protect the world and his daughter from chaos. Or rather, to protect the world and his daughter from Silk herself.

«You’re asking me if I want more Gehirn toys? Of course I do!»

…........................................................................................................................................................................

«Calm down!», repeated the young explorer, while they were running.

«You must stay calm!»

He was quite shocked by the events that had thrown Techvan into chaos once again. Seeing his friends risk their lives in that moment had destabilized him. At that moment, when he saw the airship, he already knew what to do and how to act. He screamed Aaron’s name at the top of his lungs, and his friend turned around with feline agility to see him pointing at Lu, who was not far from him, meanwhile Dustan was running towards Violet.

«Keep calm!»

One moment. It lasted but a moment. Luckily however, thanks to his speed he was able to save his friend, one of the dearest people to him. He had his own power to thank, the one that had been with him ever since he was born and that resided inside him: the divine light.

«Calm down, dammit!»

He screamed at his own heart, fearing that he would not be able to keep his power in check due to the shock. As soon as he saw his friends unharmed after the tragedy, Dustan’s mind managed to slow his heartbeat down, making him lucid once more. However, it didn’t last long. The video-message made his heart beat so fast that he had to run away from the others and head for his old house. The house in which he had been living the first eight years of his life. The house which he now shared with Violet and Lu.

«Stop!»

As soon as he entered the house, he didn’t even have time to look at the new furniture brought in by the two girls, as  he had to rush at full speed towards the basement. In complete darkness. Only there he could find the light.

«You must stop now!»

He removed his jacket and his shirt, leaving himself bare chested. The only thing bringing light in the darkness of the basement was his amulet, the only object that allowed him to hide his true self and to fight it. The one and only true companion in those dark moments. Nobody could come with him on his travels. Only that crystal could understand him, save him, stop him.

«Here we go…», he sighed in the darkness, as he sat cross legged in order to find calm and focus. This was not going to be a quick fix.

…........................................................................................................................................................................

Techvan was completely engulfed by that threatening wave called “Silk”. The square had been almost completely destroyed, the mayor and other citizens had been harmed during the attack, and on the Moonbank’s face a defying letter had been scribbled. A pink inscription of an hour and a big “S”, as if it wanted to tell Techvan’s authorities that the next target was going to be the treasury itself.

«Friday, at six in the morning…», said the young Violet, reading the inscription on the wall. She almost did not believe that all this happened. Was this the only clue that that mad woman was going to give her?

«She is planning to hit the treasury? Why? What could she steal from it?», asked Aaron, who was holding Lu by her waist. Lu was furious for everything that happened, but in particular, she was mad at the scribbles left by Silk. Mainly because next to the date and the “S” she had left a caricature of the girl’s face. The paint had been used primarily to make fun of Techvan’s “Law”.

«Let me go! If she had the time to scribble those things, then she must still be around! She can’t have gone far!»

Her fury could not be tamed, but Violet calmed her down.

«It’s no use looking for her… Look!»

The young woman pointed at a robot behind the mega-screen, armed with paint and a brush.

«She sent him to do the dirty work...»

The sheriff was trying to keep her cool in that desperate moment. She had to do it. Dustan had disappeared and she could not let her citizens know that she was worried about that new threat.

«What do we do now?»

Aaron let go of Lu, who finally managed to contain her wrath. Even though she still wanted to get her hands on that little girl who ruined this day of celebration.

«The other members of the police force and I will take care of the injured and will reassure the citizens. Lu! I want an analysis of the painter-robot. It might contain some clues as to the whereabouts of the crazy girl or the technology she uses.»

«And what am I supposed to do?», asked Aaron, who wanted to be of help too. Violet perfectly knew what to ask him.

«Please… Find Dustan!»

…........................................................................................................................................................................

Aaron decided to obey the sheriff, even though he wanted to be more of help with calming down the fearful city. Techvan’s hero already knew where to find the blonde explorer. That was not the first time he vanished suddenly.

«Knowing him, he is probably hiding in his house.»

As soon as he arrived in front of Lu and Violet’s house, he called him loudly to make him come out. Seeing that he wasn’t getting a reply, he went in and started looking for him in every room. Nothing in his room. An empty and bare bedroom. There was only the essential: a bed, a wardrobe and a desk with a chair. He couldn’t find him neither in the kitchen nor in the living room. He wasn’t hiding in Violet’s room either.

«What the hell?»

The sheriff’s room was filled with posters and the faces of Techvan’s outlaws on every wall. Each poster was marked with a huge red “X” in the middle of it.

«That girl sure needs a new hobby…»

Lu’s room, on the other hand, surprised him mainly for the mess reigning over everything.

Tech machines, food, clothes, underwear, all scattered in every corner.

«For this one, “tidiness” is optional…», he said, as he was making his way through that mess. The final room to check was the basement. Aaron slowly descended the stairs and saw something that unsettled him greatly.

…........................................................................................................................................................................

«Did you see it?», asked the bare chested blonde, all sweaty due to the demanding task he had to withstand. Aaron was beside him, almost scared by what he saw.

«Yeah… But, what happened?»

Dustan, now calm and peaceful, put his clothes back on and gestured to Aaron to come into the living room, where they could talk in peace.

«Do you recall the fight of some months ago?», he asked his friend, who was looking at him perplexedly.

«The one where you defeated J…»

Dustan stopped him before he could say that name. The mere memory of that being made him shiver.

«Don’t say its name… He would know we are talking about him.»

Dustan was almost paranoid. He kept his eyes fixed towards the floor, as if he was afraid of telling what happened.

«During our fight, I prevailed, and you know this. We put him in the secret cells of Techvan’s treasury. The safest place on the entire continent of Sacris. But there have been a few problems...»

«What kind of problems?» asked the “protector” with anxiety, listening to his friend without getting the point he was making.

«He has the ability to awaken the dark power hidden in our hearts. And, anticipating some sort of advantage, he awakened mine.»

From that moment, Aaron started understanding what his friend was about to tell him. His nemesis had the ability to inoculate an evil power in his allies. But he would have never believed that he could do that also to his enemies.

«You’re telling me that…»

«Yes, what you saw earlier is my true form when I can’t control my power.»

Aaron’s expression suddenly showed fear.

«But Dustan, this can’t be! You are the light! You are one of the most talented and good hearted magicians of Techvan! How can you possibly have such power?»

Dustan was ashamed of himself. Aaron was right, but what could he do about it? That being was him. It was only thanks to his amulet that he could keep at bay that part of him which he hated.

«Does Violet know?»

The young man shook his head.

«Violet must not know. I don’t want her to worry about me. I don’t want her to see me as a monster!», he said, desperate. Aaron understood the situation.

«Just one more secret I’ll have to keep from everybody else…». he thought, placing his hand on the young man’s shoulder and showing him a hopeful smile.

…........................................................................................................................................................................

Two days had gone by ever since Silk’s message to her new “playmates”. The beginning was close, and the next day that mad girl was going to attack Techvan’s treasury. One of the safest known places in all of Sacris. Guarded by robots armed with the best Tech technology available on the market. But, more importantly, it was guarded by Techvan’s police. Silk could not wait to meet Lu and Violet. So much so that she intensely stared at the clock when she was not busy with something else.

«Go faster time! I can’t wait any longer!»

She had spent those two days in her father’s company, in his lab. Despite her dad, professor Gehirn, being one of the brightest minds of this age, Silk had a natural talent for crafting new weapons. Even considering the brain surgery he had, which made him a “pibu” with a gigantic skull, Silk could easily surpass him thanks to her innate ability. He was a “pibu”, that is a sentient being, much like common mortals, but much shorter, more hairy and with animal features. Gehirn’s skin was of a yellowish hue, and he was almost one meter tall. He was also the founder of the renowned “Pibus’ Science Academy”. Nevertheless, he had a human daughter, and even though Silk had been adopted, some of his peers did not approve of this. Careless of what the community thought, the great inventor kept on working on his projects, more often than not with a hidden help from her daughter.

«I’m finally done!», said the pitch black haired girl in excitement. As if she was attracted to her last masterpiece.

«You sure put a lot of effort into this one…»

The professor noticed the immense job done by his daughter, hardly believing that she had managed to build everything in just two days.

«I had a lot of free time on my hands.»

Silk bit her lip at the mere thought of trying out her new “toys”. She wanted the event she organized to be disproportionately spectacular. She wanted to make the sky fall out of stupor. The father, worried about her daughter, could not help but feel regret at having helped her. But now, however, it was too late to change Silk’s mind.