ISH MOTRANGA's POV
Where: At Roots
I left the house planning to hang out at the kuwayanan. It's a place in Roots where there are lots of bamboo trees, the breeze feels nice, it's a great spot to chill, and a nice playground for kids.
It was already dark.
I'm shocked I spent the entire day doing that?! What is that? Secret~
Where could I hang out around here? There are a lot of people chilling in this area. By the creek is okay but there's nowhere comfy to sit and it smells bad—lots of pig cages around. The waiting shed is too open. Across the street is the same. So, I decided to just stay near old grumpy Nestor and Nancy's store, which is also located here in the kuwayanan. It's an open area but there are places to hide. I hid behind a truck where there's a large wooden table and chair.
I was just scrolling to pass the time when something disturbing suddenly showed up on my newsfeed.
1.43 Citadel Radio Page
"5 people in Calm City went missing!"
1k Comments
Sol Grimony: 😭
Fallen Sinclair: like i care?!
Gin Lobster: Pssst! Fall, mind your comment, lots of netizens watching!
Yang Emerald: Scary news!
Yin Emerald: 😴
Dy Grimony: 😡
Maye Los Pobres: Always stay safe.
Azure Mercantino: Stay safe.
Seth Mikazuchi: Just be careful.. with my heart.. charr hehehe. Joke😅 peace
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"You saw that too? That's the current buzz. Stay alert," whispered Lito. He just arrived with Rin.
I clutched my chest from the shock. "Haven't you guys heard of privacy?" The way he peeked at my phone, you'd think it was his.
He just shrugged, sat across from me, and started playing video games.
Rin sat beside me and read the trending post on social media.
"That's very disturbing!" he exclaimed—dramatically, I mean... literally grabbed my phone and commented on the post.
These guys are too much.
"Kidnapping?" Clen asked, who had just arrived eating grilled chicken itestines, his younger sister in tow.
"Big brother, teacher said we should be careful because the kidnappers are supposedly cult members."
Cult?
I took my phone back from the snatcher and gave him a dirty look but, of course, the troll wasn't scared.
Clen laughed. "Your teachers are such boomers! Still believing in that kind of stuff? It's a new age now. Unreal!"
His laugh was like someone laughing at a clown.
I couldn't help but roll my eyes. I get annoyed with people like Clen who does not respect others' beliefs. I know he doesn's believe in that stuff but… at least show a little respect. He's getting offensive.
"For all we know, the cults might be real. Especially since they're just groups of psycho fanatics," I said.
Clen gave a mocking smile. "If people had superpowers, if the world was a super society, if there are heroes... therefore there must be villains. Maybe villains are the ones behind these disappearances not some religious cult."
"There are really people who abuse their powers and use their exskills for evil," Rin added.
"Meaning there are villains in Citadel now?" Lito exclaimed nervously.
Clen just shrugged. "Possible."
"Hey! The cults are real!" We were all shocked when old blabbermouth Nicanor suddenly joined the conversation.
We almost ran from surprise.
"Wait… Mr. Nicanor, are you even from Roots or from Riverside?" Clen asked sarcastically, one eyebrow raised.
Can't blame him—old blabbermouth Nicanor just jumped into the convo out of nowhere.
"The cults are real! They're the reason why there's a curfew!" Old blabbermouth Nicanor said determined.
Clen just snickered, subtly mocking the old man while Rin stay silent and Lito just stare blanky at the old man's face.
"Curfew?" I asked a bit surprised but I keep my emotion at bay. "How come I'm only hearing about this now?"
"Why'd you only go out now?" Clen remarked.
"You didn't hear? Probably because you didn't go outside. What were you even doing at home?" Lito said sounding so curious.
"They only announced it today, Ish," Rin said calmly.
"The curfew starts tonight at ten. No one should be on the streets. Police and community watchmen will patrol to ensure no one breaks the rules," Rin explain clearly.
We heard old man Nicanor sighed causing all of us to turn to his way. "Because of the cult—"
"Mr. Nicanor! Could you please leave? No offense, but you're not part of the characters. What're you even doing here?" Clen said unapologetically.
We all exchanged glances—us ALVAACAD people, well, except for Clen's younger sister, since she's still in elementary.
"Dude, let's just pretend we didn't hear him, okay?" Lito proposes and we all agreed.
Was it just me or did old blabbermouth Nicanor pout before leaving?
Now, it's just us—me, the upperclassmen, and the kid. Clen bought a liter of cole and lots of lemon-turmeric gummies from the small store of grumpy Nestor and Nancy's.
"Ish, I heard you're the class president of tala and that you're also part of the Chord?" Clen asked ad he nudged me. "That's a 'wow'."
Before I could say anything, Lito spoke up first. "Uh—wait… I feel kinda out of place in this circle. Can I leave?"
We raised our eyebrows as we all reacted, "Eh?"
Lito gave a genuine smile and stood up. "Look, dudes! All of you have fire/heat-based exskills and I'm the only one who doesn't. I think, it's better if I just leav—"
"You're not gonna drink the cole?" Clen asked as he used his lips to point the tempting cole while his face displayed stoic.
Lito froze mid-sentence and… quickly changed his mind. "Oh, yeah, right! Changed my mind last minute. It doesn't really matter, we're all just human beans no matter what element." He smiled and sat back down.
Clen raised his brow in victory. He bought some plastic cups and we all drank together. No alcohol—just cole.
"What do you think the people behind the abductions are planning?" I couldn't help but asked. I feel bad for the missing. Where are they now? Where were they taken? What happened to them?
"Now that you mention it, I've been thinking about that too. I believe everything happens for a reason." Lito said as he eat some lemon-turmeric gummies.
I took a deep breath and drank some cole as I think about some possibilities.
"I think, five people have already gone missing in Calm," Rin said, his tone was like a horror movie narrator. "And did you know all the missing people have fire/heat-based exskills? Is that really just a coincidence?"
Next to speak was Clen. "Strange. Could it be... that the target of whoever's behind this is people like us?" He raised an eyebrow and glanced slightly at Lito. "Ah… well… except for Lito. No offense, bud."
"None taken," Lito said, rolling his eyeballs.
Fire and heat-based exskills are the target?Our circle—well, except for Lito—could be the next targets.
Clen and his younger sister have the exskill called Scarlet Flames. Their fire isn't the usual color like mine—it's a scarlet flame.
Rin's exskill is releasing hot water from his fingers; it's known as boiling water. Cool, right? No need to warm water for coffee.
Lito isn't part of the target since his exskill is releasing water from his fingers, known as Water Gun.
"Why our element?" I asked, confused and frustrated.
"That, we still don't know." Rin said, he shrugged and eat all the remaining gummies.
To be continued...