Missio drove down the streets of the city, the buildings radiating colorful lights. He pressed the handle, weaving between cars under the dim moonlight. He weaved through the streets, engine snarling, corners blurring like brushstrokes. Eventually, he stopped due to traffic. He was right behind a pick-up truck. Other cars were honking at regular intervals making his ears burn. A traffic police officer was at the middle of the crossroads, guiding the traffic.
After a few moments, Missio tapped his visor, trying to check the time. The visor exited the GPS and entered the clock. It showed a time of 7 pm.
'7? But I left like 15 minutes ago at 6…'
Then, a grave realization struck him. His eyes widened, his hands gripping the handle tightly. The seconds on the visor glitched — skipping like a broken reel.
'No…wait a minute…'
He drew heavy breaths while gripping the handle. His chest felt like a fire, burning without an end. Pain exploded behind his eyes — like his brain was clawing to escape his skull. A few minutes later, he was back to normal, cold sweat dripping down his face.
"Gosh…too much pressure." He pinched his nose.
He parked his bike near the sidewalk. He took off his helmet and placed it on the bike's handle.
He turned around, the car behind him moved forward a little. He paced towards the traffic officer. The police man who was directing traffic, noticed Missio. He let go of the whistle in his mouth and saluted Missio.
"Good evening, sir. What brings you here?" The man asked.
Missio stepped closer to the officer. He whispered some words into his ear that made his entire being drown in fear.
"A chaos fragment is about to open. Evacuate everyone."
The officer's face paled. He stepped back and stared at Missio for a moment. Then, he slowly picked the megaphone from his belt. He turned it on, and it buzzed with a static hum. He spoke onto the megaphone with a neutral voice.
"Citizens, a chaos fragment is about to open. Please evacuate under my orders."
Time seemed to freeze. The honking of the cars stopped. Then, a small tremor shook the crosswalk. Metal parts clanked against each other which made the officer put his hands on the ears. Then, all hell broke loose. Vehicles began to honk and reverse rapidly, crashing into one another. Some tried to speed forward but were stopped by the officer. Missio stepped forward and snatched the megaphone from the police man.
"Citizens of Romulus, I'm Missio Augustus, the lieutenant general of the black ops division of the REOC. I need you to remain calm and follow my orders. Otherwise, you may die here."
The chaos immediately stopped after the civilians heard his name. They flashed their lights in unison to signal they were ready to follow any order. Missio turned to the traffic officer.
"Tell your friends to evacuate all vehicles withing 3 miles of this crosswalk."
"Yes, sir!" The man saluted him and rushed away.
Missio lingered on the man who squeezed between cars to make it to his fellow officers. Missio grinned and pulled the megaphone up to his mouth.
"Now…follow my orders, exactly."
***
Missio quickly evacuated the cars stuck in the crosswalk in half an hour. He stood in the middle of a silent road, holding a megaphone in his hand. He looked at it for a moment, then chose to keep it. Another tremor shook the ground beneath him and cracks started to appear beneath him. The illuminating lights began to turn off one by one. Eventually, the entire section became dark. Missio stepped away from the center of the road, feeling a strange presence there.
Two seconds later, a giant rift appeared where he was standing. Missio turned around, seeing the giant void with his own eyes. The void felt infinite, cracking with indescribable energy. Missio mongered on the rift for longer than he wanted to. He snapped back, walking to his bike. Then, he rode away. The fragment began to release horrifying monsters with pale gray skin, crimson eyes and massive maws with jagged teeth.
When he was driving away, the shadows of twenty figures appeared in front of the rift. The massive beast stopped and then…a sword pierced the air, creating a sonic sound. The beast was cut into many halves, its blood and flesh splashing onto the road. The other monsters howled, their eyes gleaming with bloodlust. Another shadow pierced the monster's heart with their katana. The group was wearing the same clothes as Missio.
"It's just a beta-class. It won't take too long." A figure drew his katana.
"Right, I want to go to sleep quickly." Another figure pierced three beasts' hearts in an instant.
***
Missio drove through the empty streets in the middle of the night. A wide grin appeared behind his visor.
"Not my job to deal with these fragments. Let the special ops take care of it." He muttered.
He gripped the handle tightly and sped off into the city.
***
After a few minutes, Missio made to his home. The guards opened the gates to the garage, and he parked his bike inside. He walked out and closed the garage doors. He strolled inside the mansion, taking off his black sneakers. He placed them on the hoe rack and stepped onto the marble floor of the Augustus manor. He ascended the stairs and went to his room. After a few minutes, he changed into his casual clothes.
He wore black shorts and a white shirt. He went downstairs and sat down on the couch. He rested there for a few moments before Lilla approached him.
"My lord…Sir Victor is ready for the therapy session." Lilla informed.
"Okay, I'll be there in a few." Missio replied.
Lilla nodded and went back to doing her work. Missio leaned forward and pulled his hair back. His fingers slipped between the strands of hair. He lingered for a moment then headed to another room. He opened a door and saw a man inside. The man had blonde hair, green eyes wore glasses, a blue shirt and black pants. He had a light complexion, round face and wide forehead. He smiled and waved at Missio.
"Hello, son. How are ya doing?" The man asked.
"I'm doing fine, sir victor." Missio sat down on the couch.
"C'mon, you don't have to call me that, kid. I'm your therapist, not your superior." Victor urged.
"Okay…but it's a habit." Missio hugged a pillow.
"I know – I know. I know you best after all." Victor crossed his arms. "Okay, now tell me about your day."
Missio lifted his head slightly, tilting his head to the right.
"Well, I guess…it was a tad bit stressful." He rubbed his chin.
"Okay, son. Just spill it all out," Victor said, leaning forward like he already knew the answer would hurt.
Missio's lips parted, but for a moment — nothing came out. His eyes flicked to the clock on the wall, ticking loud enough to drown his thoughts. Then, it all broke loose.
"I… I had that dream again," he whispered, voice cracking. "The same one. The one where – " His hand dug into the pillow, fingers trembling. "I thought it was over. Two weeks. Two weeks of peace, and it just… came back."
Victor didn't interrupt.
Missio laughed weakly. "I forgot my insignia this morning. Almost got detained by my own guards. My men looked at me like I was a stranger. I could see it in their eyes."
His breathing quickened. "Then, the chaos fragment opened. And for a second… when I saw that rift—" He stopped. His nails pressed against the pillow fabric. "I didn't want to move. I wanted it to take me. I actually—"
"Hey," Victor said softly, cutting in. "You're here now. You made it."
Missio looked down at his trembling hands and smiled faintly. "Barely."
A silence filled the room. Not awkward — just heavy. Like both knew there were words that would never leave either of their mouths again.