Day 28: Weakness

Kam and her father were waiting at the train station.

Kam stood beside him, watching the platform closely, following each arriving train with her eyes.
Her father held a still-warm coffee between his hands. His posture was calm, but attentive.

—It doesn’t have to be awkward —he said without looking away—. It’s just a conversation.

Kam didn’t respond.
She tightened her grip on her bag strap.

The sound of an approaching train filled the platform.
The doors opened and people began to step out, one after another, until a man stopped upon recognizing them.

He raised his hand in greeting.

—Aberu! —he called—. It’s been a while.

—I’m glad you came, Akiresu —Aberu replied.

Kam looked up when she heard it.

That name… finally had a face.

Akiresu slightly bowed his head toward her.

—Kam. Thank you for taking care of Sally.

Kam nodded, unsure of what to say.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the city, Sally was at the gaming center.

There were more people than usual.
A clip from her latest stream had spread rapidly.

Her numbers skyrocketed.
Her name crossed borders.

Not only in Japan.

People from other countries began to take interest in her story… and with it, in the situation of the country.

The energy.
The disappearances.
The protests.

A global controversy began to form, while the media tried to cover everything with noise, distractions, and official silences, including evasive responses from the government.

All eyes were on Japan.
On how it would respond to what was about to begin.

Inside the venue, Josu and Kiki tried to maintain order.

Sally laughed.
She interacted.
She replied to messages.

She went live.

More people arrived.
Too many.

The streets began to fill.

Sally was happy.
Or so it seemed.

Because that excess of love, of voices, of validation…
was also a hiding place.

A temporary refuge from listening to what she carried inside.

Her ears began to bleed. Her nose as well.
Then, the metallic taste.

She said nothing.
She kept smiling.

Her body, however, could no longer sustain what her mind had been accumulating.

It was wear.
Accumulation.

The energy overflowed.

Said watched from afar.

When Sally staggered, it was her own followers who caught her.

—Make way! —Josu shouted.

Kiki didn’t wait.
She put Sally on the motorcycle and sped off.

As they moved away, the cheers could still be heard.

She had built a great community.
But she had crossed the limit.

Kam, Aberu, and Akiresu arrived at the building shortly after.

Kam wanted to go in immediately.

—Wait —her father said, stopping her—. This… this is between them.

Akiresu nodded.

—Thank you.

They shook hands.

—Call me if you need anything —Aberu said.

Akiresu was nervous.
Happy.
Afraid.

After so long, he would finally see his daughter.

When he rang the doorbell, Kiki opened the door only a few centimeters.

—Yes? —she asked, keeping one hand on the frame.

—I’ve come to see Sally —Akiresu replied—. I’m her father.

Kiki didn’t move.

She looked him up and down, measuring every gesture, every pause.

—Her father…? —she repeated—. Name?

—Akiresu.

—Do you have any way to prove it?

Akiresu pulled a folded photograph from his wallet.

Kiki took it.

The image showed a younger man, a smiling woman, and between them, a small girl.

The child’s face was unmistakable.

Sally.

She then compared the surnames with the ID.
They matched.

The silence stretched for a few more seconds.

Finally, Kiki opened the door fully.

—…Come in. She’s inside.

Upon entering, Akiresu froze when he saw the condition his daughter was in.

And the place where she lived.

Josu and Kiki explained what had happened.

—We’re friends… and followers —Kiki said—. But even so, this caught us off guard.

—How is it possible that, being her father, your daughter ended up like this? —Josu asked.

—She lives with her mother —Akiresu replied—. She left me when Sally was barely two years old.

He explained how he had been located and why he was there.

—If things are as you say, then everything makes sense —Kiki said.

Before she could say anything else, the door opened.

Sally’s mother had arrived.

—Guys, please step outside —Akiresu asked.

They agreed.
They would check on Sally later.

—I came for my daughter —Akiresu said firmly—. This ends now.

—Now I’ll make sure you go to prison —he continued, his voice steady—.
—I won’t let you keep hurting my daughter.

He looked at her as if seeing what she truly was for the first time.

—You’re a greedy woman —he went on—.
—Materialistic. Consumerist.
—You used her like an object.

Sally’s mother didn’t react immediately.

Her expression remained still, empty.

In her mind, only one thought repeated:
her gold mine was leaving.

Finally, a short, broken laugh escaped her lips.

—Son of a bitch… —she muttered—.
—You never get tired of screwing me over.

—Say whatever you want —Akiresu replied—.
—Tomorrow I’ll come with child protective services. This is over.

He approached Sally.

Carefully, he placed a ring in her hand.

—I’m sorry… —he whispered, before turning away.

As he was leaving—

Everything happened in an instant.

Sally’s mother, in a fit of rage, stabbed him.

Akiresu grabbed his neck.
He fell without making a sound.

Silence filled the apartment once again.

Some time later, Sally woke up.

Her vision was blurry.
Her body felt heavy.

In front of her, she saw her mother moving nervously…
trying to get rid of her father’s body.

—What’s happening…? —she murmured—. I don’t understand…

—Don’t worry —her mother replied, without looking at her—.
—It was just your father’s trash.

The words took time to sink in.

No.
No.

She was supposed to finally meet him.

—What the hell did you do…? —Sally screamed.

The exhaustion, the pain, everything repressed exploded.

Sally lunged at her mother, screaming everything she had held inside for years.

Her mother, completely unhinged, reacted in the worst way.

She grabbed a bottle and struck her hard.

Sally fell to the floor.

Blood began to slowly spread.

The world started to darken.

As she faded, a single word crossed her mind.

Why?

Then she saw it.

She wasn’t there.

She was in an open field.

In front of her stood everyone:

the hero who had saved her from the bullies,
her father,
Kam,
Aberu,
Alice,
Kiki,
Josu,
Said…

waiting for her.

Her hero stepped forward and said something.

Sally replied:

—Yes.

Her heart-wrenching scream shook the entire building.

Anger could be felt.
Pain.
Years of accumulated suffering.

Her soul awakened.

Once again, purple energy began to pour from her body.

The marks on her skin lit up.

Sally felt the cold in her head…
and the warmth of blood running through her body.

She screamed.
She cried.

The crown of barbed wire appeared.

Pentacles formed in her hands.

Then she spoke.

—YOU SONS OF BITCHES!
—WHY ME?!
—EVERYONE TRIES TO RUIN MY EXISTENCE!
—YOU DESTROY EVERYTHING!
—NOW YOU’LL FEEL MY PAIN!

She began releasing even more energy from her body.

She moved toward her mother.

To make her feel the same pain she had felt.

The room became unrecognizable.

Her mother tried to flee, badly injured,
begging for help.

Sally stopped her.

—What makes you think anyone will help you?
—No one helped me when you hurt me.
—You… even less.

She grabbed her by the hair,
dragging her down the hallway.

Neighbors began to step out of their apartments.

They were horrified by what Sally had done to her mother.

Terrified, they tried to call the police.

It was useless.

All they managed was to approach their own deaths.

Sally looked at them.

Then she addressed all the neighbors:

—I see you’re calling the police now.
—And when I needed them?
—You never did anything.
—You pretended nothing was happening.

Her voice became an echo.

—Your lack of empathy disgusts me.
—DIE!
—HAHAHAHAHAHA!

The laughter echoed through the building.

Sally unleashed hell.

She released so much energy that it caused an explosion.

The building was destroyed.
Nearby structures were also affected.

When emergency services arrived and entered the building to evacuate people and assist the injured, they found a massacre.

They were only able to find one survivor.

Sally.

All they could do was evacuate the people living in the surrounding buildings.

Meanwhile, in Tokyo…

the protests had begun.