CHAPTER 26 : QUESTIONS

"You get an offer to join the Special Force?" Rose asked, surprised to hear that Shaurya had received an offer to join the Special Force to hunt down 'powered humans.'"Yeah... Sigh... I don't know what to do..." Shaurya sighed. Rose and he were in their police station office, sitting together on a bench facing the water machine."If you join that group, you might run into HOPE, and you'll have to fight them." Rose replied."That's true.""They currently have one hundred and fifty members and are recruiting more people. That Masked Man is really making everyone anxious, huh? Even though he seems to be on our side, in the end, the government and the higher-ups are still afraid that someone can do the job better than us..." Rose explained as she walked toward the water machine. She inserted coins and then pressed the button for a can of coffee."I'll just turn down their offer. I want to work with you, sis." Shaurya said as Rose took her can of coffee and faced him again."Alright... Good, Shaurya. Stay working with me; you're my only gossip buddy left." Rose smiled, and Shaurya looked shy at the compliment from Rose.Rose's phone rang, and she quickly opened it. The name 'Nasuha' appeared on her phone screen, indicating an incoming call. Rose promptly answered the call."Nasuha, what's wrong?" Rose asked."Sister Rose! Where are you right now? Khairul and Kyoko are injured, and they're not healing quickly. Bella needs to check on them!" Nasuha said anxiously, and Rose looked around for a moment."Nasuha, calm down. Bella is at my house; I will let her know you need help." Rose replied."G-Good... Sorry, Sister Rose." Their call ended, and Rose quickly dialed Bella."Bella, Nasuha needs your help; please check on Khairul and another member of his group." Rose said as soon as Bella answered her call."I'm a scientist, not a doctor..." Bella sighed."But you can do it, right? Please help them!" Rose insisted."Hah... Yeah." Bella replied lazily. Their call ended shortly after, and Rose let out a long sigh."What happened?" Shaurya asked."Khairul and a member of HOPE are injured. Let's make an excuse to patrol; I want to check on them." Rose suggested."Aye, aye captain." Shaurya replied, standing up immediately.At Rose's house, all HOPE members were present except for Mikael and Chyou. Khairul and Kyoko were lying on the bed, and Bella was checking their conditions."It seems that the root that pierced Khairul's thigh has properties that prevent the mutation cells from healing his wound quickly, but he will be okay." Bella said, with Nasuha sitting beside Khairul."See, I'm fine... You worry too much." Khairul said with a small smile."Of course! Normally, you would have healed by now." Nasuha complained."For Kyoko, the excessive use of power caused her mutation cells to move slowly, making her healing process slow as well... But she will be okay too." Bella explained to Khalid and Mei."Phew... Honestly, I was scared I wouldn't heal quickly..." Kyoko said, relieved. Khalid looked around Bella's room, which was filled with scientific equipment, including a machine that could detect and analyze Mutant Cells."Curious about the machines here? I created them myself... While Khairul and Nasuha were here, I tried to learn everything I could about Mutants; I even have some Stray bodies in my lab that I've been studying." Bella explained when she noticed Khalid looking around with a questioning expression."That's quite amazing. The aliens spreading Mutant Cells said humans have fallen behind millions of years in terms of technology, but you managed to create machines that can help you study Mutants and Strays." Khalid praised, looking impressed."What the aliens said has some truth to it. There's still a lot that I and other scientists don't understand about Mutant Cells... For example, how can they give powers? Our understanding of all this is still far off." Bella replied, and Khalid nodded in understanding."I'm really excited... I want to learn more about all this. Hehe." Bella laughed mischievously, and Khalid looked at her worriedly."Glad you both are okay in the end." Mei said, touching Kyoko's shoulder."Exactly. Anyway, I'm sorry... Khairul, Nasuha. If I had been more careful, I wouldn't have been controlled like that and hurt you both." Kyoko turned her head towards Khairul and Nasuha."It's not your fault... Just chill." Khairul replied."That's right, Kyoko. In the end, everyone is safe, and that's what matters." Nasuha added, and Kyoko chuckled before looking up.After some time passed, Rose and Shaurya arrived, and soon after, Mikael and Chyou also showed up. Everyone gathered in Bella's lab to discuss what had happened."Rogue Mutants... Strays are already dangerous enough. Now there's also a group of Mutants using their powers to commit crimes, Strays that are capable of thinking and have tactical skills as well as insane powers." Rose looked disturbed, thinking about Syakir and Lilly attacking Khairul's group."This is the first time we're facing a problem like this. Before, when it came to killing Strays, we justified it because they had lost their minds. But if our opponents are other Mutants, what is the right action? Lock them up? They will definitely become experimental subjects and expose even more knowledge about Mutants to the government. They could create weapons or tools to eliminate innocent Mutants. They would probably see us the same way, just like Strays. Dangerous beings that need to be eradicated." Khalid explained, pondering their fate if the Mutant criminals were discussed."For me, the answer is simple. If they try to kill us, we kill them. If we defeat them and they surrender, we make them our allies and try to control them that way," said Khairul."It's not that easy... We can't just trust everyone," Rose replied."My power allows me to read their minds. So if they have any intention to betray us, I will know," Mei added."Good idea... until you think about whether you can kill other Mutants who don't agree with you? In the end, everyone has their own motives. This isn't a simple problem; it's not black and white..." Kyoko chimed in. Everyone fell silent for a moment."I... might have killed Mutant from before and Khairul's father. For me, we can release them if they don't join us under the conditions we set. If they don't comply and continue to be dangerous, we eradicate them just like we do with Strays..." Nasuha explained, clenching her fists tightly."I agree. You all gave me a second chance before. I almost killed Khairul too... We only kill other Mutants if they are truly dangerous," Mikael replied.Once again, everyone fell silent. The issues they were facing were too heavy to contemplate."There's a lot to think about. We're dealing with various problems. Let's tackle them one by one," Khalid suggested."Sigh... I need some air." Rose sighed and walked out of the room alone. Shaurya watched her leave with a worried expression.Outside in her yard, Rose tried to calm herself. Everything she was thinking was too heavy, making her feel overwhelmed."Sister Rose?" Shaurya called out, and Rose turned around."Oh, Shaurya..." Rose sounded exhausted. Shaurya approached her, his worried expression still etched on his face."Sis... I know you don't like people asking whether you're okay or not. I know you're strong. But we're human. We all have our limits. Everything is tiring, I understand. Just remember that I will always be by your side, no matter what happens because I—" Shaurya's words trailed off as Rose focused on listening."Because I care about you, Sister Rose." Shaurya smiled faintly, and Rose let out a small sigh."Yes... Uhm... Thank you, Shaurya." Rose said, gently punching Shaurya's chest. His smile grew sweeter.Eventually, all the members of HOPE returned to their homes, with Khairul and Kyoko's wounds and injuries having healed somewhat. Each of them returned with their minds still contemplating the new challenges they were facing.Khairul and Nasuha returned together again. Nasuha watched Khairul, who was in a bubble of light, lying back with both hands behind his head."Are you seriously going to work with your injuries?" Nasuha asked."I'm recovering. I'll be okay, I promise," Khairul replied."Promise me you'll rest if you can't handle it," Nasuha urged."Okay." Khairul nodded in understanding.Nasuha landed them both, and Khairul and she looked at each other. Nasuha's face still showed a hint of worry, and Khairul placed his hand on Nasuha's head."Hey. As long as we're together, everything will be okay. I'm strong when you're strong. Many times we've faced everything together, I trust us," Khairul reassured her, and Nasuha smiled slightly. She moved closer to Khairul and hugged him, then released him again."See you tomorrow." Nasuha slowly took to the air again, and Khairul waved his hand gently."Ah, yeah. See you tomorrow, Nasuha." Khairul replied. Nasuha nodded and then flew away, Khairul watched her until she disappeared from view.A woman wearing a white coat and matching hijab was climbing the stairs of an apartment. She took out her keys and opened the door to her home, quickly entering, taking off her shoes, and walking towards the living room.The clock showed 11:45 PM. The woman took off her white coat, ready to remove her hijab pin when suddenly there were four knocks at her balcony window. She quickly moved to the balcony and opened the window."Assalamualaikum..." A Masked Man was sitting on her balcony railing, looking like he was tending to a wound on his side, with blood flowing from his nose and a split lip."Waalaikummusalam... How long have you been waiting?" the woman asked. The Masked Man just smiled and then climbed down from the railing, almost falling, but the woman caught him.The Masked Man lay on the sofa in the woman's living room. He had injuries on his side, thigh, and face. The woman sat beside him, placing her hand on the wound on his side.A green light radiated from her palm, and the light quickly healed the wound. The Masked Man exhaled in relief as his injury vanished, and the woman then placed her hand on another injury, healing him completely."Thank you, Aisyah... Sorry for the trouble." said the Masked Man as Aisyah took out two packets of instant noodles from the cupboard. The Masked Man stood up from the sofa and moved towards the balcony."Hey, come eat first. This is all I have right now—Maggie." Aisyah offered, and the Masked Man turned to her and smiled faintly."Alright, alright... It's not nice to refuse someone's offer of free food." replied the Masked Man as he walked toward Aisyah.They sat together eating in Aisyah's kitchen, and the Masked Man pulled down part of his mask, revealing that he had a thin mustache and beard. Aisyah observed him while she ate."Thank you once again. Be careful out there. It seems my guess was right. There are Mutants working with the White Tigers; they might be at the highest ranks too..." the Masked Man said, climbing over Aisyah's balcony railing."You're welcome, and you too. Don't go dying on me." Aisyah warned."Hahaha. As long as you're here... I won't die." the Masked Man replied, causing Aisyah to let out a sigh at his words."Alright. I'll go now." The Masked Man jumped off Aisyah's balcony, visibly gathering blue energy that glowed through his veins.He landed on another building without issue and continued his run. Aisyah closed the balcony window and walked to the living room, sitting on her sofa, noticing a blood stain from the Masked Man."I'll hit him next time he comes over; my sofa is ruined." Aisyah complained to herself in the dimly lit living room, illuminated only by a small bulb.The Masked Man was observing the dark Klang city from a tall building, his irises glowing blue as he surveyed the surroundings, his eyes allowing him to see in the dark.Police were gathered in an area, arresting several men and pulling out containers. Inside the containers, there were drugs and Stray corpses. One police officer looked up, but the Masked Man had already vanished from his previous spot.Crime was rampant, a result of the police being overwhelmed with Strays and Mutant cases out there. Groups of criminals and gangsters took the opportunity to carry out their activities, even using Strays as weapons.But standing between oblivion and peace in this city is me. The Mutant power I received comes with responsibility...To ensure that the city where I was raised, the place I learned, the place where my loved ones are, remains safe. I am the Masked Man who will haunt the criminals.