6/23 - NewPort Island - Proxy's apartment - Afternoon

Arriving from the elevator, I'm up on the last floor of the apartment complex Proxy is living in. He has his own apartment instead of living in the dorm for middle and high schoolers. He told me that someone is paying the rent, electricity, and gas for him, but he does not know who. They also send in money every month, enough to live off of. I sleep here more so than I do in my room, mainly because it's so loud in that place that I can't think straight, nor can I study properly. Sure, Proxy can be loud too, but he's not as annoying. Plus, it's not like anyone will care if I'm not there.

Opening the door to Proxy's apartment with my key, the couch is the first thing I see from the door. It is on the left, facing a wide-screen TV. The kitchen is also visible from the doorway, no doors are obscuring the view of the kitchen from the living room; a counter is the only thing separating it from the living room. There is a set of stairs that lead up to another floor that has three rooms: Proxy's room and a guest room -basically my room - and on the far left is the bathroom.

The TV is on, it's on the NewPort Island news channel. Taking a seat on the couch, I grab the remote to turn up the volume.

"Today marks the anniversary of the Blackout fire incident: Five years ago. Within those 10 miles, electricity was cut off, city blocks were scorched, many were injured during the incident, and several were reported deceased hours after the power returned to the area. The origins of the fire and blackout are unknown, and no new information on the cause has been announced. As of today, we remember those affected by the fire and shall celebrate them with today's concert, which shall take place at the rebuilt opera house, the building majorly damaged by the fire. Hopefully, everyone will have a wonderful time there, as it will feature the up and incoming band: Kiss Machine. . ."

That happened 2 years before I came to NewPort Island. Must've been a pretty terrible fire.

"How long were you here?" Proxy comes rushing down from upstairs in his casual clothes. He seems to have a pep-in-his-step. "Richard! We're going to the concert! A concert so kick ass, it will blow up for no goddamn reason!"

Ah, so that's why he called me. Earlier, he just instructed me to get here as quickly as possible. Getting here doesn't take too long, providing I take the monorail.

"Okay, but how are we going to get in? It's a highly anticipated concert, so I doubt we'd be able to get in."

"No problem, I have that covered."

He presents two tickets from his pocket.

"How did you get those?"

"Birch is a badass guy."

Damn, Mr. Birch was able to get two tickets for troublemakers like us? I'm certainly impressed. Hang on, why is he shouldering a big grey backpack?

"What's in the bag?"

"Bare essentials, drinks, food, lens cleaner, and some clothes."

"Why clothes?"

"You have to be prepared for all situations, that's the first rule in the boy scouts," Proxy proudly states.

He's not even a part of the boy scouts.

"Hey, can you put these in there?"

I hand him two deck boxes. He stuffs them inside the bag, he then checks his phone.

"Come on, we have to catch the train if we want to make it there on time."

He walks out ahead of me. I turn off the tv and walk out with him, locking the door behind me.

NewPort Island - outside of Opera house - evening

The streets are packed with people coming from all over the city.

"So, there's going to be a famous band here?" I ask Proxy.

"Yeah, Kiss Machine: A mega-famous group that went big just last year!"

The name sounds like a lame boy band girls fawn over.

"Is Daniel coming?" I ask.

"Nah, he's out of the country with his mom for another family get-together. Such a shame."

"Yes, meeting with family, what a. . ."

I stop my sentence as Proxy’s knocked down by someone passing him by.

"Dear me, I'm so sorry. Here, let me help you up," the stranger kindly says, in a cool, yet cold and detached tone.

"It's cool, not the end of the world, or anything," Proxy assures him, brushing himself off.

This man has sharp facial features with no facial hair to speak of. He’s wearing a black and white jacket that reaches down to his ankles. His baggy sleeves hide his arms. Wearing sneakers that match his jacket's color scheme. Finally, his eyes; piercing emerald eyes. But, the most notable feature is his shoulder-length snow-white hair. At first, someone would think it's just hair dye, but I feel as if that's not the case.

"You should watch where your legs cross, or else you might bump into someone less nice," the white hair man warns Proxy.

He just appears as if he is on another plane. Is that why I can't read his words, or maybe he’s just wearing his heart on his sleeves?

"Yeah, thanks for the advice," Proxy says half-heartedly.

The white-hair man turns his attention to the opera house. "You're heading to the concert?" he asks.

"Yep, got tickets for me and my buddy, see..." Proxy reaches into his pocket to show off the tickets. He let out a small gasp, frantically searched his pockets. "No, no, no, no, where the hell did they go!?"

"Did you lose your ticket?"

"I think I did," Proxy nervously chuckles. "Ah, damnit, I lost it!"

The white-hair man turns his back towards us, moving as Proxy freaks out over the lost ticket. "I'm sorry for your loss, but who knows, maybe it's a good thing."

"How?" Proxy asks, agitated by the comment.

"Who knows? Maybe tonight will present that answer."

That's the last thing he says as he walks off. What did he mean by it being a good thing? Who was he?

Proxy slammed his hands on his face. "Augh! This is a nightmare," he screams in his hand. His head shot up at me a moment after.

"Hey, I gave you your ticket, right?" he desperately questions me. Now that he mentions it. . .

"Umm... I do!"

I pull it out of my pocket. Proxy looks at it with a dower face.

"This puts a damper on lots of things."

Proxy is rubbing his temples as he squats down on the floor.

"What do we do now?"

"I don't know. I need to think."

No matter how much he thinks about it, we only have one ticket. Only one of us can go watch, If that's the case then. . .

"Here." I hand Proxy the ticket. He just gazes at it. "You should go watch it."

"Hey, you sure?"

"Yeah, you probably already knew, but I didn't want to see it, anyway. I only tagged along because you were going. So, if this last ticket should be used it should be for you."

"Hmm . . ."

We stand in silence. The ticket is just sitting in my hands, waiting for him to take it.

"Okay, I've decided." Proxy takes the ticket, putting both hands on the ticket, and ripping it in halves.

"Screw the concert."

"Wh-what are you doing?" I stammer, dumbfounded by what he did.

"I'm ripping the ticket into pieces."

"I know that, but why?"

"Well, I thought it over, and to be honest, it'd be boring by myself. Besides, I'm sure it would take a couple of hours for Kiss Machine to even get on stage."

He claps his hands and rests his hands on his hips.

"So, what do you want to do now?" He was hyping himself up to go to the concert for about 3 hours now, and yet he's willing to give it up to just hang out with me. Honestly, this guy is unbelievable.

"Now then, how about we hit the card shop?" he suggests.

"No, the store is closed by now. How about we just play some games at your house?".

"Aight, but just to let you know, my record in mercs mode is still rising," Proxy boasts.

We keep a little scoreboard of who has the most points in mercs mode.

"Did you raise your score behind my back?"

"Not at all, my good sir. I was just doing a few runs in it, so far, I didn't break my record...yet."

"And you never will, cause I'll be beating your score!"

"Bring it on then!"

We let out a laugh as we stroll along the sidewalk. I realize that there's nobody else on the streets. Most of the people with tickets must've entered the stadium by now, and the rest must have left.

"You wanna spill something?" Proxy inquires.

He must've noticed the look on my face.

"Well, um. Are you really okay with not going?" I ask him, guilt-riddled for having him waste a ticket.

"Like I said, it's cool. So don't feel bad about it, okay?"

"Okay. And um, thanks, Proxy."

"No problem, bud."

Both of us continue to walk down the street. It's so quiet, it's almost as if everyone has left somewhere else, and left us behind in this gigantic city. I look up at the night sky. The stars are somewhat obscure from view because of the lights from the city.

"Be great if we could fully see the stars," Proxy says.

"Yeah, it would be."

Nights like these are pretty great, where we can both just hang out without getting in trouble. I like it like this, though, maybe Proxy doesn't. I don't see him complain about it, so maybe I'm wrong.

My eyes drift towards the back entrance of the stadium. No guards are blocking off access to the back of the opera house.

"Where are the guards?"

"What do you mean, they're... Not there?"

Proxy just realized that they're absent from the back.

"Huh, maybe they went to go see the concert," Proxy assumes.

I doubt it. That just sounds too irresponsible. Proxy looks around the street.

"Looks like we can see the concert after all."

"Wait, you want to go through the back? What if we end up in an area we're not supposed to?"

"Then we get the hell out of dodge!"

Proxy runs across the street, turning his body toward me and hopping in the air. He signals me to come over. I know I don't want to see the concert, but I know Proxy does, so why the hell not. Might as well have fun.

"Wait up for me, man!"

NewPort Island - Opera house - evening

The hall is jam-packed. The hall itself is pretty clean, not the type of place you'd hear rock or metal music being played in, especially since it's an opera house.

"This is so cool," Proxy shouts, jumping up and down with excitement.

"I have to admit, this is pretty exciting."

"Hell yeah, and the best thing, we're near the snack venues! Speaking of which, I'm gonna get me some cinnamon pretzel bits. Want anything?"

"Cinnamon pretzel sticks."

"Nice choice. I'll be right back."

After Proxy heads up to the food venue, a magician gets up on stage. Soon as he gets the crowd excited, something launches up into the air. It's a firework, and upon exploding, it shows an image. So do the others that follow. Isn't this a fire hazard?

"What did I miss?" Proxy asks as he approaches from beside me with our food in hand.

"Nothing."

I grab my stuff and he sits down on the seat I saved for him. We took bites out of our food.

"Delicious," we simultaneously express.

Pure delight foaming from our words. There might be a bit too much cinnamon, but it was still good.

While I'm eating, I see Proxy polishing his goggles by licking his thumb and rubbing it against the lenses. They were welding goggles; the frame is greyish black, and the lens is orange.

"I was going to clean these a few days ago, but I kept putting it off ever since we spray painted the walls at the school. Honestly, doing it now is a pain."

He's wiping much harder, but to no avail. I pull out a spray bottle of screen cleaner and a cleaning lens cloth.

"Here, use this."

"Thanks, buddy."

He takes the bottle and sprays it on his goggles; he rubs the lenses with the cloth. The paint is coming off now.

"I always wanted to know. Where did you buy your goggles?" I ask him.

"I never bought them. They've been with me since I was a baby."

"You don’t know who gave them to you?"

"Nope, but I feel as though they're a part of me. I feel naked without them."

He continues to rub his goggles until the paint cleared off. He then rests it on his forehead.

"Finally, I feel complete," he happily announces.

He hands me back my cleaner and cloth.

"Thanks, buddy."

"No problem."

After a couple of minutes of fireworks, a hooded man saunters onto the stage. As the magician passes by him, he hit the ground with a thud.

Proxy jumps up from his seat. "What the hell?"

"What just happened?"

I can tell from the murmurs in the crowd that everyone is asking the same question we are. Everyone’s emotions varied, like several colors being mixed ‌to create something else. The hooded man gets in front of the stage microphone for the lead singer.

"Good evening, everyone. I am glad that all of you came to the ceremony. With so many here, we can begin."

The crowd cheers on from the announcement, despite their concern for the magician. But I don't feel their excitement. His words are bitter, lined with malice. These are not new emotions to me, but the intensity ravages my brain.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Proxy puts a hand on my shoulder.

"I-I-I don't know. This feeling... It's a sickening feeling!"

"The purpose of this concert has been fulfilled. I must ask you all not to resist."

The sicking feeling elevates as he brings out a book. It's glowing red and black.

"The shit is that!?"

A bright light below us appears, covering the entire audience. Some collapse to the floor as a pillar of light pierces them. I let out a horrified gasp when I see it happen. Just as a pillar is going to hit me, Proxy throws me out of the row of seats. He narrowly dodges the one that formed under his seat by jumping off his seat to another row.

Anxiety builds up and takes over. My breathing is erratic. I can't get a firm grip on it.

"Richard, you okay?"

He sits me down on the ground."

"P-Proxy, what t-t-the hell is going on!?"

My voice is a higher pitch than usual. I can't stop myself from stuttering.

"I don't know, but stay here, move if you need to. I'm going to go kick that guy's ass."

Before I can get a word out, he runs towards the stage.

"Wa-wait!"

I try to move my legs, but they’re glued to the ground. They're shaking uncontrollably. I hear a loud bang going off near the stage. It sounds like an explosion. Security guards fly over my head. Their bodies dropped to the floor unnaturally. I don't want to know if they're dead or alive; I don't want to see! Every voice in here, all of them, are digging into my brain as they scream for their lives; sheer terror taking over, pressing down on me like a truck.

"Little worm!"

The red and black energy that is covering the book charges through my row. Proxy is the one it hit. It hits him again while he is soaring over the seats. The energy is taking the form of a hand.

"Done already, boy," the hooded man laughs after he taunts Proxy.

The hand retreats away from Proxy. He is resting on a seat. Well, what's left of it, anyway. I run over to see if he's okay.

"Proxy, are you okay!?"

He has an open wound on his forehead that's leaking blood over his eye. We have to get out of here! Wait, what if his wounds are bad!? But if I don’t, then we can’t escape.

"Unless any of you wish to end up like that, child, I suggest you let the assimilation process continue. Don't worry, it-"

"It'll be quick, right," Proxy finishes for him as he positions himself on the seat. "Wow dude, you must've watched a lot of B-rated movies, 'cause only cliché villains say that. I mean, come on man, the robe is just a dead giveaway on that. Seriously, was there even an effort?"

"How are you even alive? That should've drained you," the hooded man vents his frustration.

"I had paper cuts worse than what you dished out."

"It would seem like this requires a more aggressive approach."

The red hand turns in a sphere-like shape around the book.

"You all can scream and cry all you like, but this is the end of the road for you all!" The floor gets brighter and brighter.

"Nice light show, show me something better though."

"I'll show you death."

"See, that's better. A round of applause for the guy. Come on, people."

A red light shoots from the floor. Proxy dodges it without a problem. He dashes off for the stage.

"Frontal assaults won't work on me."

The red light comes hurtling down the aisle Proxy is in. He jumps on top of one seat, launching himself over the attack and towards the stage.

"I got you now!"

As he closes the gap, an explosion suddenly goes off between the hooded man. Proxy crashes into me. I catch him, but his momentum is so great that it's pushing us backward the moment I caught him.

"Proxy, are you okay?"

Such a stupid question. Of course, he's not okay!

"Yeah...That was...nothing."

The fact he took on an explosion and isn't seriously hurt is absolutely amazing. As he gets up, he rips off the jacket, taking out another from his bag. Throwing it on as if nothing happened.

"Hey...Is that all you got, bitch?"

Proxy drops to the floor soon after saying that. Damn it, he's in worse shape than I thought.

"How dare you insult me!? Hm, it matters not, I think the time for this show to conclude is at hand."

The light below gets brighter and brighter. The people that are panicking start dropping to the floor. One by one, the collective screams are fading. It feels like I'm being drained of something.

"P-proxy, we have to get out of here!"

"Having a bit of trouble doing that right. Just go without me."

"Wha-- I can't do that!"

"Richard, now's not the time to be a stubborn bastard. Just go!"

"I won't! I can't just abandon you."

I'm scared, my legs are shaking, my heart is pounding, I want to run as Proxy said, but I... I can't leave him here!

"Huh?"

Proxy's bag gains my notice. It's shrouded in black energy. It's an ominous feeling, nothing evil, but mysterious, with no definitive way of explaining it, or comprehending what it is.

"Proxy, your bag!"

I open it to find the Grimoire in it. It's emitting a black shadow around itself.

"That's… No, wait right there, you bastards! Hand that over to me!"

As the hooded man launches an attack at us, a shadow-like dome wraps itself around us. It has to be at least 10 meters wide. I can hear continuous attempts at breaking the dome, and some yelling.

"What is this?" I whisper, probing the dome.

It’s solid, but my tap sends a ripple around the dome like it’s a body of water.

Proxy takes the book in his hands. The blank pages are filling up with words and symbols as it flips to the middle part of the book. It lands on the two-page spread, fading before our very eyes. A black hole appears right in front of us. It is sucking us in, as well as anything else inside this dome into it.

"What the hell is this!?" Proxy cursed as he grabs onto a seat.

I grab the lower part of a chair in front of Proxy. I dig my fingers into the seat. My grip quickly grows weaker as the black hole's pull is growing stronger. My seat is coming off the ground as the bolts, keeping it down, fly out of the ground. I scream from the top of my lungs as I'm dragged towards the hole. In a panic, I try to grab another seat, but I'm too far away to grab it. I'm closing into the hole. It's going to suck me in. I feel something grab my wrist just before I get any closer to the hole.

"Sup buddy."

Proxy, wearing his goggles, grabbed my wrist, squeezing it. Blood flows from his arms. There must be a cut there, and God knows if he should even move it.

"Richard, you're gonna climb up from me to behind the seat."

"I don't think it will work. What if I just-"

"No what-ifs, just go for it," Proxy yells out, barely pulling me closer to the seat.

"Come on man, climb!"

His grip is weakening. He’s struggling to keep his other hand on the seat. If I don’t climb, we’ll both die… If I climb, then I can pull him behind a seat until this ends. Okay, okay, I got this! Using all the strength I could, I scale his body, fighting against the suction of this hole while thinking about how to move. But as I'm about to climb, the back part of the chair lifts from the floor.

"Shit! You gotta start climbing!"

With the tension in Proxy's voice, I climb up his arm to his shoulder. I'll try to climb through Proxy as fast as possible, not wasting a second in one place.

I hear a metallic noise ringing in the dome. The chair is going to break off any second!

"Screw it, jump for it," Proxy instructs me.

I couldn't. My legs aren't on the floor. I can't make it this way, even if I tried. The chair finally breaks off from the ground. Both of us are being pulled towards the hole. My head and heart are racing. As I am sucked into the hole, I feel light-headed, as if all my thoughts are being thrown into the void, almost as if I was floating off into a dream.