EVERGREEN RESIDENCE A

VIRTUM, GRATA- 7:35 AM

Zack Evergreen can be seen watching the broadcast intently on a television in his home.

AURUS PLAZA

AURUS, PRECIDA- 7:35 AM

A woman with long, brown hair trying to sell flowers on a busy street silently observes the broadcast through a television in a barber shop across the street.

DOSLIGHT SQUARE

DOSLIGHT, NAZENDEL- 7:35 AM

Several passersby witness the broadcast on LED screens at a town square.

NEVERGLOW

LUTHERFORD, AETERNUM- 7:35 AM

Nick, Luke and Celeste continue to observe the bizarre interruption. The masked man speaks with static and a lower pitch to hide his voice.

“Damon Estreval… Your days are numbered. For years you have terrorized this country… Raped it with the technology of the devil, and ruled it with an iron fist… No longer shall we stay silent. No longer shall we stay indolent. Eternal Drive WILL FALL. And to the people of Lavia… All you have to do is open your eyes… And BELIEVE IN RAGE.”

The broadcast then returns to the movie, as if nothing happened. The three look at each other, bewildered with what just occurred.

“The hell was that all about?” Luke asks uncomfortably.

“Probably just some stupid prank. No one sane enough is going to go against Eternal Drive,” Celeste answers.

“If that was a prank, then what a waste. I would have broadcasted some degenerate shit,” jokes Luke.

“Maybe it was Palladium? A subtle declaration of war?” Celeste asks.

“That wasn’t Palladium. The message spoke about the technology of the devil; that’d be a bit hypocritical, wouldn’t it?” says Nick as he opens his phone, the unknown broadcast trending on social media.

TF was up with that broadcast? Shit was lowkey terrifying

Did we all just collectively witness an act of terrorism?

Believe in rage? Anyways stan LUNAR

Excuse me @EternalNews, what was that broadcast all about?

Really? You guys pull this shit off on the AoG season premiere?

“Seems like they hacked every channel,” says Nick as he closes his phone.

“These guys have balls, then. Gotta respect that at least.”

“You can’t respect stupidity, Luke. Their efforts are gonna be futile,” Celeste replies.

“Hey if they at least manage to blow the Eternal tower again, then it’s good enough for me,” Luke comments.

“Don’t think that’ll happen again. Aside from the fact that demon blood’s near impossible to find nowadays, Estreval’s ramped up security to max since the breakout,” Nick explains.

“You never know, man. There could be way more of us, hiding in plain sight,” Luke theorizes.

“I doubt it. We lucked out because of Zack, who just so happened to be an E-Drive scientist. The others aren’t so fortunate; I mean, have you seen the news? Two people died in Grata yesterday!” exclaims Celeste.

“Which makes that broadcast even weirder. You’d think that people would be demotivated after a protest goes horribly wrong, but no. Maybe it did the opposite; added fuel to the fire.”

“You think maybe, just maybe… they would make a difference?”

“...I’m not so sure. My dad tried to stand up against Eternal Drive and he failed. Zack tried starting a coup and he failed. And now that Estreval’s gonna address the protests, I’m sure he’ll set down his iron fist to make any upcoming rebellions fail, too,” Nick answers as Luke bows his head dejectedly.

“They’ll get what’s coming to them, Luke. Maybe it’ll take years, decades or centuries. But even the greatest of empires fall and crumble one day, just like Esper did. Nothing in this world is ever truly eternal,” says Celeste, trying to comfort Luke.

Meanwhile, Nick’s phone vibrates after receiving a text from Zack. He opens it.

“Hey, Zack just texted.”

“What’d he say?”

I can’t be there by afternoon, got business to take care of in Virtum. There’s two transactions waiting for me and I want you to handle them. Both are on Monday - a 2 PM in Briken, and a 7:30 PM in Aurus. You’ll find the goods labelled in the Neverglow basement. See you in a few.

“FINALLY! Some fieldwork!” Luke exclaims excitedly, jumping from his seat.

“Aurus? We’ve never done work there before, have we?” Nick asks.

“We haven’t. We might have to split up for this one too since Aurus is pretty far.”

“Sure, I’ll go to Aurus. You and Luke handle the one in Briken.”

“Wow, way to jump the gun, man. Isn’t Aurus holding their festival this week?” Luke asks as Celeste nods.

“I see what you’re trying to do. I get it, last year’s festival was a spectacle. Man, I’d love to visit Aurus again…” Luke states as he leers at Nick.

“It’s more the fact that Aurus is way safer than Briken. I’d be more worried about you guys, personally.”

“Is that why you want us to go together?” Celeste asks, pointing at herself and Luke.

“Yeah. Safety in numbers kinda thing,” Nick answers.

“C’mon Nick, there ain’t a demon in the world that’s taking me down!” Luke says standing up, flexing as if he were in a bodybuilding competition. The two stay seated, unamused.

“...Sure, if you say so.”

“Then it’s settled! Let’s go back and pack our bags,” Luke says as the three leave the shop, but he stops just outside the door.

“Why do you guys look so down? We’ve got a helluva payday incoming!” asks Luke as the two turn to him.

“I don’t know, I just… I have a bad feeling about this,” Celeste says.

“She’s right. Ever since those protests started happening, nothing feels right anymore. There’s this uneasiness about everything lately. And what happened earlier only serves to strengthen my case,” says Nick as Celeste nods.

“And our first deal in Precidia? I mean… That’s so far from Valcove. Why would Palladium want to initiate the deal there and not in Grata like usual?” Celeste contemplates, unsure of the Aurus deal. Luke stares at the two briefly before locking the front door.

“Who knows? Maybe it’s two different squads this time. Maybe they want to draw away suspicion since E-Drive’s already aware of us. Or maybe they’re just being cautious since you guys got attacked by a demon earlier,” Luke replies.

“Please, Palladium isn't that competent,” Celeste argues as Nick shrugs.

“I don’t know man, I’m kind of siding with Cel here. Or I guess I’m just being paranoid.” Nick says, his voice filled with doubt.

“That’s just the lack of sleep talking. Maybe you two should rest as soon as you get back,” says Luke as he positions himself on his motorcycle. Nick looks at the billboard promoting holographic flowers one last time before joining Celeste in their vehicle.

The three ride through the town of Lutherford, making their way back to their respective homes. Luke waves the two goodbye, drifting towards a different road leading to another sector of Lutherford. Meanwhile in Nick’s car, Celeste repeats her question from earlier.

“So… Do you think humans can ever be replaced by technology?”

“That’s a terrifying thought,” Nick replies.

“I know, but that old lady earlier got me thinking… If she had the chance, would she bring back an artificial version of her daughter?”

“What about you? Would you bring back your mom?” Nick asks Celeste.

“I… never really got to know her well. So, maybe, to get to know her better? What about-”

Celeste remembers Nick’s past being a sensitive topic, swiftly refraining herself from speaking any further.

“Sorry, nevermind.”

“Nah, it's okay,” Nick assures her.

“I want to say that I’d like to bring them back but… I know that it won’t be the same. They might look and act the same, but you know in your heart that they’re really dead.” Nick explains as Celeste intently listens.

“It’s ingenuine; you’ll be spending the rest of your life in doubt wondering if it’s morally okay, and if that’s what they would want for us. Maybe that’s how others wish to cope, but I don’t believe that people can ever be truly replaced, no matter how accurate technology gets,” Nick replies as Celeste stares out the window, seeing a holographic billboard promoting a product with the capability of preserving memories.

“What about memories? Do you think they’re enough?” Celeste asks Nick.

“I think so, yeah. I think that when people die, the last thing that they’d wish for is for us to move on. Memories make us who we are. Lying to ourselves does not,” Nick answers as the two pass by a large billboard that was vandalized with graffiti:

SOUTH LAVIA - THE PLACE WHERE DREAMS ARE MADE GO TO DIE

To Be Continued…