CHAPTER 24 : CONTROL

Control is everything. If your hands can't take control of your life, you'll only live an empty excuse of a human being.Just a puppet.A few people are seated in front of their computers, typing various things; some are checking code, others are discussing with their colleagues.Syakir is at his desk, messy and alone. He looks tired, with slightly dark circles under his eyes. He presses a button and uploads his files. He exhales deeply and leans his head back.Every day is boring. Just a puppet for a company that doesn't care about you at all."This is wrong! How many times are you going to make the same damn mistakes?" yelled an old man with glasses. Syakir stood in front of him with some of his colleagues, she looked terrified and was sobbing.Why is someone so immature, who knows nothing, in control of us? Me... my colleagues, we all have better skills than this pathetic excuse of a boss, but why is he on top of us?Just because he's older and fatter? Just because he's a few years older and has two to three years more experience than us?I hate it... Being controlled by someone so pathetic and shit.I guess that was the moment... that night when I came home from work after my ears were berated by that trash...A rain of colorful particles fell from the sky. Syakir looked up, his tired eyes seemingly illuminated by the light of those particles.I won't live like this anymore. Living under the control of fools."Kill yourself..." Syakir ordered.The old man with glasses walked to the edge of the office building's rooftop. Syakir watched him. He climbed the rooftop's railing and jumped, and the wires from Syakir's fingertips unraveled just as the man leapt."What—Ah! Ahhhhh!" The man's scream was followed by the sound of flesh colliding with metal and the hard ground. Syakir walked forward. The man with glasses was dead, his head shattered into pieces. A sinister smile crept onto Syakir's face.This power... it really is a blessing..."You get power and the first thing you do is use it to kill others? You're pretty evil for a human," someone said. Syakir immediately turned around, shocked.Sui'ra was floating behind Syakir, his long blonde hair flowing in the air. Syakir immediately launched his wires toward him.Sui'ra effortlessly caught the wires, and Syakir couldn't retract or move them. He observed the wires for a moment, then released them. Syakir stepped back and reclaimed his wires."I understand your power and your desires, Syakir," Sui'ra said."How do you know?" Syakir asked, confused."I know every Mutant and Stray on this Earth... You don't want to live under anyone's control anymore, right? There's only one way to achieve that—become the strongest being in the galaxy, and no one will control you," Sui'ra explained, pointing his finger toward the sky.Become the strongest? No way I could ever be that, but at least... I won't let anyone make choices for me anymore...Syakir was inserting his wires into a laptop, seemingly hacking into some bank accounts and moving money."Coffee for you." Lilly handed Syakir a cup of hot coffee."Hmm..." Syakir took the coffee, sipped it, and refocused on his work."The sighting of the 'Masked Man.' Several CCTV recordings show a masked man apprehending suspected members of the 'White Tigers' gang, which has recently been increasingly rampant. The CCTV footage shows the masked man emitting light from his hands and generating a powerful energy, damaging walls and cameras..." The news was playing on the television. Lilly sat down in front of it, watching, and Syakir was also intrigued by the topic on the news. He looked up to watch as well."Who is the Masked Man? Is he part of the 'powered human' group that authorities believe exists, working to eradicate the mutant monsters out there?""Another dumbass trying to play superhero? They're just going to cause trouble for Mutants like us who just want to live in hiding," Syakir grumbled as he exhaled."At least they use their powers for good. Look at you, hoarding money for what? You don't even use it in the end," Lilly responded. Syakir smirked."You should be grateful that I chose you as my tool, Lilly. The future of the world is clear... Everything is going to turn into chaos, and I'm gathering resources that will ensure I survive when everything falls apart," Syakir explained."'I'? Doesn't feel like I'm part of your plan," Lilly remarked. Syakir returned his attention to the laptop."Know your place, tool.""The Masked Man..." All the members of HOPE were gathered around Nasuha and Khairul, watching the video on Nasuha's phone. It showed a fight involving the 'masked man,' who was beating up several men. When one man tried to shoot him, the masked man unleashed a powerful blue energy that destroyed the surrounding area, cutting off the CCTV footage."It seems like there's another Mutant revealing himself, just like us," said Khalid."Sister Rose also mentioned that after the Masked Man incident, the special task force from the combination police and military she talked about has officially started operating," Nasuha added."I've been thinking about splitting our group into three. One team to track other Mutants, another to eliminate Strays, and a third to monitor the movements of the authorities' special task force..." Khalid suggested, raising his index finger."For the Mutant detection team, it'll be just Mei and me. We're enough. The Stray elimination team will be Khairul, Nasuha, and Kyoko—you three have great synergy. The third group will be Chyou and Mikael. Chyou's abilities make you hard to detect, and Mikael's experience will help us effectively track their movements. What do you all think? Agree with my plan?" Khalid explained in detail, with all the HOPE members listening attentively."It's a solid plan. I agree," Mikael said."I'm in. I like not having to think too much and just taking out Strays..." Kyoko raised her hand with a smile."Chyou, are you okay working with Mikael?" Mei asked."I'm fine with it, sis. As long as Khalid takes good care of you, I'm fine," Chyou replied."Sometimes, your love for your sister is a bit creepy," Kyoko teased, but Chyou ignored her."Don't worry, Chyou. I'll take care of your sister very well," Khalid said, giving a thumbs up. Mei lightly elbowed his shoulder."What do you mean by that, huh?""Haha... Nothing, nothing...""I'm in!""I agree..." Nasuha and Khairul responded at the same time. Kyoko looked at them and smiled."You two just agree because you get to stay together, right?" Kyoko teased, and Nasuha simply looked away with an awkward smile."Yeah... Something like that," Khairul admitted."Oh, to be young and in love~ I'm jealous." Kyoko continued her teasing, but Khairul just furrowed his brow, unable to keep up with her anymore."Alright, that's enough," Nasuha requested, embarrassed.All the members of HOPE began moving with their respective groups."Your power... it's kind of disorienting..." Mikael sighed after being teleported multiple times by Chyou."You'll get used to it," Chyou replied as Mikael exhaled deeply."Yeah... sure...""The Masked Man seems to always stop crimes around Klang, Shah Alam, and Puchong. He's even disrupted operations of the White Tigers gang. If we're looking for someone whose objectives align closely with ours, I think he's someone we could try to recruit," Mei explained, reading several articles about the Masked Man. Khalid was driving Furioswheels, which moved so fast it couldn't be captured by cameras or CCTV. Yet, inside the car, everything outside the windows moved slowly, allowing Khalid to maintain control with ease."The problem is, he only shows up at night, right? That means he only operates during that time... We might need to stay out a little later if we want a chance to meet him," Khalid suggested.Meanwhile, Nasuha and Kyoko were flying through the air, with Nasuha carrying Khairul inside a ball of light. Khairul scanned the surroundings, using his enhanced vision to search for Strays from afar."There's no quarantine area in Cheras, huh? Flying for long periods is exhausting." Finally, the three of them took a break on the rooftop of an apartment building, with Kyoko massaging her own shoulder."Maybe we should rest here for a while," Khairul suggested."It feels weird seeing so many vehicles still on the road," Nasuha said, reflecting on how most cities in the Federal Territory and Selangor looked empty, with few cars on the roads due to the quarantine.Suddenly, someone's stomach growled, and both Khairul and Kyoko immediately looked at Nasuha."Why are you two looking at me first?!" Nasuha snapped."Nasuha... You're the only one who's always snacking even while working. You're hungry all the time," Kyoko teased, making Nasuha go silent and avert her gaze."Let's ditch the costumes and go down to find some food," Khairul suggested."Let's go." Both Nasuha and Kyoko agreed without hesitation. After removing their costumes and changing into regular clothes, the three of them walked around Cheras."Seems like the tactic of gating Cheras and preventing people from entering and exiting the city is quite effective. I can't believe there are so many people out here at a time like this..." Kyoko remarked as they walked, noticing many people around the shop buildings along the street."Look at that, the police are everywhere too," Khairul added, pointing to police officers in armor scattered around, checking people and patrolling."In Malaysia right now, only a few cities are safe. I guess it's not surprising why Kuala Lumpur is hit the hardest with Strays... but Ipoh and Kelantan are also in bad shape," Kyoko explained, as Nasuha stopped in front of a shop, her eyes lighting up."Wow, if I'm not mistaken, this is the viral shop, right?" Nasuha said, as Kyoko and Khairul looked towards the shop she was referring to. It was a Korean-themed restaurant."Everything Korean and cheese goes viral in Malaysia..." Kyoko sighed."Let's eat here," Nasuha suggested."I'm okay with that," Khairul replied.The three of them entered the restaurant, with Kyoko sitting next to Nasuha and Khairul sitting across from them. A waiter handed them the menu."Uh... I can't read any of this..." Khairul complained, looking up."Shall we try this?" Nasuha asked Kyoko."But the Korean fried chicken looks good too..."Khairul just smiled as he watched Nasuha's excitement. After half an hour, they finished their meal."Are you sure you're okay paying for this? You barely ate anything..." Nasuha asked worriedly."I've got money," Khairul responded."That's not the issue... I still haven't paid off my debt from our runaway before. Sorry for dragging you to a place that doesn't have many options for you." Nasuha lamented, but Khairul placed his hand on her head."Don't say that. I wanted to treat you, and forget about the debt from our runaway. You're more important than my money. I can always make money. My burger stall job is pretty profitable. Although, I had to switch to delivery because of the quarantine. Ah... I miss my bike," Khairul explained, and Nasuha just smiled at him.Kyoko, walking behind them, sighed heavily."Don't show off in front of me..." Kyoko muttered to herself."Ahhh! There's a monster!" Suddenly, a scream was heard, and they saw people running in panic. Khairul, Nasuha, and Kyoko quickly moved forward but then realized they weren't wearing their costumes."Alright... You two might not like me doing this, but I have to." Kyoko said. Using her power, in a split second, she changed their outfits back into their costumes."Phew... Sorry," Kyoko sighed."That's not important right now, let's help quickly," Khairul responded. The panicked crowd ignored the three costumed individuals rushing ahead to see what was happening, as the sound of gunfire echoed nearby."Get back!" a police officer commanded, blood splattered everywhere. Khairul unsheathed both of his swords, Nasuha flew into the air, and Kyoko followed closely behind Khairul."You lied! Lied! Lied! Said you'd marry me! Ahhhh! Liar!" screamed the Stray, who appeared as a long-haired woman, though her lower body had transformed into spider legs. Beneath her was the corpse of a man, split in two, and a severely injured police officer.The two remaining police officers were panicked, backing away with no idea what to do. Despite being shot several times, the Stray was still alive, blood streaming from the bullet wounds in her forehead."Leave this to us, get out of here!" Nasuha commanded. The two officers looked up at the sky and saw Nasuha, glowing brightly as she hovered in the air. Without hesitation, they fled the scene.A few bystanders began to notice their presence, and some even started recording. Khairul readied himself for battle."Let's finish this quickly," Kyoko said.Khairul leapt forward, but the Stray dodged his strike. She vomited spider silk that caused Khairul to stick to the wall. Before the Stray could attack him, Kyoko intervened, striking the creature with multiple bolts of lightning, paralyzing its movements."Star Beam!" Nasuha unleashed a moderate Star Beam, forcing the Stray backward into a nearby jewelry shop."Everyone's a liar! Liar!" The Stray continued screaming. Khairul freed himself from the webbing and rushed back toward the Stray. The three of them cornered her inside the narrow store.The Stray vomited more spider webs, but Nasuha created a light shield that blocked all the webs. Kyoko quickly transported Khairul behind the creature."Sorry about this..." Khairul whispered as he beheaded the Stray.The Stray's body collapsed to the ground, her head rolling away, blood splattering everywhere, staining Khairul's costume and blades.Without wasting any time, Kyoko used her lightning powers again, swiftly transporting all three of them away from the scene. The police officers were left confused, unsure where the powered individuals had disappeared to.Among the crowd stood Syakir and Lilly. Lilly had been recording the entire event. She stopped the recording and lowered her phone."They passed through Cheras as well, huh..." Syakir remarked."They were so fast. My phone couldn't capture everything that happened," Lilly complained."One of them has lightning powers, another has blades coming out of his arms... and then there's the one who can fly and shoot light beams. They don't exactly leave a clean trail," Syakir analyzed, glancing at Lilly."They're strong.""I know. That's why they're useful. If I can make one of them my tool, especially the one with the lightning powers..." Syakir smiled maliciously."You managed to plant the tracker on the flying girl, right?" Syakir asked as they walked away."Yeah..." Lilly replied.Back with Khairul's group, a small seed was attached to Nasuha's costume. They were resting again on a rooftop, and Nasuha was using her powers to evaporate the blood from Khairul's costume, making it disappear."Lots of people were recording earlier. Ugh... but what were we supposed to do? There were only two police officers with small pistols," Kyoko sighed, sitting down."We had to help. Otherwise, more people would have died," Khairul said, and Kyoko nodded in agreement."You okay, Khai? That Stray looked like it had just turned. Still very human-like..." Nasuha asked, concerned."I'm fine. But yeah... I just hope she died quickly so she wouldn't suffer," Khairul said, staring at his blades.My power isn't like the others. They have different ways of using their abilities, but what I have are weapons.Weapons for killing.I'm the only one who should dirty my hands.Nasuha had to dirty her hands to protect me from my father...At least I can repay her by making sure she doesn't have to do it again."They seem to be resting right now. Probably tired," Lilly commented. Syakir stepped forward, looking toward the rooftop of the apartment building ahead."HOPE, I have no interest in your group's goals, but I'd be lying if I said the Mutant powers you possess don't intrigue me. You're bound to interfere with my plans eventually... Before that happens, I'll control you." Syakir extended wires from each of his fingers.Dreams are just a path that will only lead to your death.