⁕ The wake-up call

Mike and Kadyn arrived at the beautiful city of Rome from the air. They both flew thanks to Mike's ability but before arriving at the city centre, Mike descended onto the Janiculum hill that overlooked the city. While Kadyn enjoyed the magnificent night scenery, Mike was more concerned with something else. While Kadyn's mechanical eyes zoomed into the city centre, Mike's view rested on the urban area around the city.

After a while, Kadyn turned around and noticed Mike's unsettled expression. 

[Kadyn] - "What's wrong, Mikey? "

[Mike] - "Sigh... It's just that, it reminded me of something. Remember how we were separated from each other for 3 years? "

[Kadyn] - "Yeah, I still remember the last time we ate at Giorno's Garden before we were sent on different missions. "

Said Kadyn with a nostalgic smile. 

[Mike] - "Three years ago, I thought: After the war, people's lives will improve under imperial rule. Yet, look outside of the city centre. "

Kadyn compared the two areas and quickly noticed the lack of light outside of the city. 

[Kadyn] - "Why is the outer ring so dark? "

[Mike] - "When I was a kid, Sniper told me that the empire would light up the city once more. Today, around 19 years after his promise, the city looked no different from before. "

Mike started to climb the hill and signalled for Kadyn to follow him. Upon reaching the top, a massive mansion appeared in front of them. After making sure that no one was around, Mike climbed onto the terrace and pulled Kadyn up there with him. As Mike moved forward, Kadyn stayed behind while trying to get the dirt out of her footwear.

[Mike] - "This used to be my grandpa's home. "

[Kadyn] - "Your grandfather must be bloody rich to afford all this. "

Mike smiled before taking a seat at the edge of the open-air pool.

[Mike] - "Of course he is. He was head of the biggest mafia organization in Italy. "

Kadyn took off her high-heels and dipped her feet inside the pool before sitting beside Mike. 

[Kadyn] - "You are related to the Italian mafia? "

Said Kadyn with a shocked look on her face. 

[Mike] - "Sorry I kept that from you. I should've told you sooner. "

[Kadyn] - "Oh, I'm perfectly fine with it. In fact, I find it quite interesting! Say, how was it? Like did you go: "Hey, Tommy, where is my drug money? See... Tommy, I have already waited for 3 months and I'm out of patience! Pew! Pew! " "

Mike smiled at Kadyn's cute reenactments. 

[Mike] - "No, everyone was brutally murdered. "

The world around the two abruptly fell silent. Slowly Kadyn lowered her finger guns and looked at her feet. 

[Kadyn] - "I'm sorry. "

[Mike] - "I don't really care about most of the victims. I was only 4 at that time. The only people who I really cared about were my parents and my grandpa. After that whole ordeal, Uncle Sniper adopted me and you know the rest. "

Mike tried to avoid going into details as he immediately fell silent afterward. 

[Kadyn] - "Hey, if there is anything that's bothering you, tell them to me. "

Said Kadyn as she grabbed Mike's hand and looked at him with her glowing green eyes. 

[Mike] - "You are the only one left in this world I genuinely care about. All the time I spent with you made me realize how colourful the world can be sometimes despite all its tragedies and flaws. "

Said Mike as he looked up to the sky.

[Kadyn] - "It's the same for me. "

Said Kadyn as she turned toward Mike.

[Mike] - "In that case, I think it's time then. "

Kadyn gasped in excitement as Mike fumbled in his pocket. 

[Mike] - "God fucking damn it, where did I put that bloody thing? I thought I had it with me. "

Said Mike with increased frustration as patted himself around the whole body. 

Kadyn giggled cutely.

[Kadyn] - "It's ok, Mike. You can ask me anytime when you find it. I won't go anywhere. "

Said Kadyn as she pressed her head against Mike's shoulder. 

[Kadyn] - "Besides, you already know my answer. "

[Mike] - "Sigh... I promise it won't happen like this next time. "

The two of them suddenly realized something at the same time. 

[Mike and Kadyn] - "The reservation! "

During this time, Karson's truck arrived inside a small wooded area outside of Rome. As he drove forward, he was abruptly stopped by an armed militant who jumped out of the bushes. 

[Militant] - "This is a restricted area! Your papers and motives, please! "

[Karson] - "Here. I'm here to deliver the weapons on behalf of Flavio Primo. "

Said Karson as he handed his forged papers to the soldier. 

After confirming Karson's false identity, the militant returned his papers and waved him forward through a small hidden path beside the dead end. After a short drive, Karson arrived inside a cave filled with militants and camps. 

As he put his truck in park, the militants quickly began to unload the cargo from behind. With shaky hands, Karson pushed himself out of the truck and met with the militants' leader. 

[Karson] - "Greeting, mate, I'm Johnny. "

[Leader] - "Nice to meet you, Johnny. These missiles are a much-appreciated contribution to our cause. Send my regards to Flavio. "

Said the leader as he shook hands with Karson. 

[Karson] - "What are you going to use these missiles for? "

Said Karson in a panic. 

[leader] - "To strike at the imperial army barracks in Rome's city centre of course. I thought your boss informed you about this. "

Said the leader with a confused look. 

Karson was scared. Although he felt no guilt before when he killed people, now he not only felt guilt but also a feeling of helplessness. This is the result of moral distancing. When he killed people using his ability, he felt justified and disengaged from the consequences. To him, the people he killed were the enemy and he never even saw or was held responsible for the aftermath of his reckless attacks 

Now, with a clear understanding of the death and destruction he was deliberately bringing to innocent people and with the consequences of his action ranging from his death to something even worse, he finally felt the crushing weight of guilt and fear. Most importantly, for the first time since he became a Cyberknight, he felt helpless. Before, he was the oppressor, now he was the victim.

In the corner of his eyes, Karson noticed the boogeyman staring at him with that unnatural smile on his face. When he turned to face the Cyberknight, he found nothing but an empty wall. 

[leader] - "Prepare to launch the missiles! "

In a last attempt to redeem himself, Karson turned toward the leader to stop him but a sudden pain gripped his body like the claws of the devil. Karson watched as the leader walked away while he felt the flesh on his body rot away. Karson wanted to call for help but the ground suddenly swallowed him before moving him through solid rocks as if they were a liquid. 

When light reappeared in his sight, he noticed how he was imprisoned inside solid rocks with only his eyes and nose exposed. All he could do was to observe the city of Rome while suffering in silence. 

"God save everyone! I'm sorry! What the fuck have I done... "

Thought Karson while gripped in despair.

In a rush, Mike and Kadyn arrived at the reception counter inside the luxury restaurant.

[Mike] - "We have a reservation at table 15! "

[Receptionist] - "Both of you are 30 minutes late. Due to the crowdedness of our restaurant tonight, we have given your table to another pair of our customers. You may reserve another table again in the near coming months. "

[Mike] - "Bloody son of bitch! It's just 30 minutes! "

Said Mike in frustration. 

Everyone was in shock at the type of language used by Mike. In a clutch, Kadyn smiled awkwardly and moved in front of Mike. 

[Kadyn] - "I believe there is a mistake! Would you be so kind as to check again? "

Said Kadyn as the colour of her irises changed from green to purple. 

Reluctantly, the receptionist checked again and raised his eyebrow in confusion as he saw table 17 reserved to Mike and Kadyn's name. 

[Receptionist] - "Oh... Ummm... I must have made a mistake. This way, please. "

Both Mike and Kadyn were led to their new table before menus were placed in front of them. 

[Kadyn] - "You gotta calm down sometime, Mikey. "

[Mike] - "I just don't want you to be disappointed. I know how much you love the food here. "

After having their orders taken and being served some red wine, Kadyn raised her cup toward Mike. 

[Kadyn] - "To us. "

Said Kadyn with a charming smile on her cheeks. 

[Mike] - "To us. "

Responded Mike before gently bumping his glass against Kadyn's. 

While drinking, a few drops of wine fell from Kadyn's glass toward her dress. With a lightning-fast reaction, Mike used his ability to shield Kadyn from the wine stain but this action will save more than just Kadyn's dress. In an instant, everything except Kadyn disappeared from Mike's view in a bright flash before she also disappeared under a wall of flame. 

Karson tried to yell but he could only silently suffer as the heat melted his eyes and flesh. Despite the immense damage done to him both by the poison and the heat, he is somehow still conscious and alive. However, at that moment, all he wished for was death. 

It didn't take long for Mike to process what happened as he immediately sprung into action. Using his ability, Mike jumped into the sky and locked all the incoming missiles in a fraction of a second before dashing toward one that was in the process of detonating. With a single punch, Mike held the mushroom cloud and the shockwave from expanding before sending it into space. When Mike turned around, he realized that stopping them one by one was too time-consuming. 

With a single wave of his palm, he forced all the missiles to gather into a single spot before meeting them head-on with a single punch. Mike grunted as he was pushed toward the ground by the massive explosion that followed but he clapped his hands together and caused the explosion to instead compress into a small ball. The ball, which contained at least 25 hydrogen missiles, angrily pushed against Mike's fist but they were no match. 

With one last fiery yell, Mike punched the fireball into the night sky before a small red mass appeared beside the moon. When Mike looked back, he was shocked by the devastation left behind by the first missile. Nothing was left on the ground. The city was reduced to a wasteland consisting of broken buildings and a sea of flames. 

[Mike] - "Kadyn! "

Mike flew down toward where the restaurant used to be and lifted all the debris in the air. Panic quickly began to set in as he dug for Kadyn and after checking everything, he still didn't manage to find a trace of her. What if he failed to protect her? What if she was buried somewhere below the city? How long does he have before she receives harm? All these ideas were jumping inside Mike's head as he fumbled his hair in a panic. 

Just as Mike activated his crystals for a second search, a finger tapped on his shoulder. 

[Mike] - "Not now, I'm busy! "

After a moment, Mike realized what the tap meant. He quickly turned around to see Kadyn floating just behind him while remaining surprisingly calm with the wine glass still in her hand. He immediately hugged her in his arms and breathed a huge sigh of relief. 

[Mike] - "Jesus Christ, I thought I lost you. Are you hurt? "

[Kadyn] - "I'm fine. I think I only lost one of my high heels. "

[Mike] - "How are you so calm? You must be in shock, we need to get you to a doctor right away! "

Kadyn pressed both of her hands on Mike's cheeks and looked him in the eyes. 

[Kadyn] - "Mike! Calm down! I'm calm because I trust you. I know I won't be in danger as long as I'm with you. Let's instead go help the people down there! "

Mike breathed a few times before regaining his composure. 

[Mike] - "Alright, let's go. "

The night went by and people all around the city sent help to the affected areas. Survivors were found and taken to different medical centres for treatment but the total death toll is still unknown. Mike and Kadyn helped immensely during the effort hidden behind makeshift masks but the people will remember Mike's distinct hairstyle and the Cyberknight marking on both his and Kadyn's clothes. 

As for the militant groups, they immediately turned themselves in after realizing what they had done. They were quickly captured and either executed by the imperial army under a secret order or lynched by the angry mob and survivors. As for Karson, he only saw the crooked smile of the boogeyman before his vision finally went dark. 

To be continued...