Chapter 5 - The Madman (1)

My rage for you is like a fire
Burning my peace and my desire,
And leaves me naked, free to be
The woman I was meant to be.

A squad of four Teardrops stood at the entrance of the building that hosted one of the eastern power generators. Around the building, four more Teardrops were patrolling, checking for intruders. The creatures did not seem to mind the total obscurity around them. Harmon assumed they relied on their ability to detect energy waves generated by the tiniest movement.

The average Teardrop was about the size of a large dog, and they had no eyes, hands, or feet; instead, they were entirely made of water. Harmon suspected they used specific wavelengths for elementary communication, yet their intelligence wasn't too advanced. The strange part, however, was their ability to follow specific orders, such as guarding a place, attacking, or patrolling. Perhaps they ought to be seen as domestic animals rather than wild beasts.

The Teardrops jumped at the sound of wheels scratching against the ground.

"Plup-pup, popo-plup!" cried one of the Teardrops, alerting the others patrolling further away.

"Plup-plup!" replied the other ones, hurrying back and preparing to engage in combat.

Three Wheelers came into sight and started throwing mud balls at the alerted Teardrops. A few mud balls hit one of the Teardrops. The creature immediately burst into multiple puddles of muddy water. The remaining Teardrops charged against the Wheelers, yet the robot pulled back at full speed, still throwing mud balls and putting one more Teardrop out of commission. One of the six remaining Teardrops reached the closest Wheeler and caught it in a watery embrace. The robot was not waterproof, so the engulfment of water short-circuited his systems, causing permanent damage. The short-circuit also destroyed the Teardrop, turning it into a puddle.

There were two Wheelers and five Teardrops remaining. The latter were faster and quickly started closing the gap to their enemies. Two more mud balls hit back at the closest Teardrop, turning it into a puddle, but the rest didn't flinch or slow down.

Clearly, the Teardrops did not know fear or care about dying. Ironically, this made these watery creatures more akin to the Wheelers rather than animals.

Then suddenly, the light went on. The Teardrops paused for a second, not knowing what was happening. They noticed that the surrounding lampposts were now on, illuminating the area. They attempted to return to the power generator, but it was too late.

Out of nowhere, a laser beam sliced through the Teardrops, tearing all of them to pieces. But unlike the ones that got hit by mudballs, they didn't get turned into a puddle; instead, their entire body evaporated, leaving no mark behind.

Meanwhile, the Teardrops that were previously turned into puddles started forming again. And they might have turned into viable Teardrops once again. Still, the laser beam also shot and pulverized them into vapors.

"Just as I suspected, unlike butchering them, vaporizing them is the permanent thing," exclaimed Harmon as he stopped the laser beam from his hand. His other hand held a cable that went into the power generator building.

"Thanks for the diversion, gentlemen!" said Harmon to his remaining two Wheelers as they drew closer to him. "Now I have a reliable energy source, so I should be able to resist here for a while. If the Red Barbarian is indeed on the 33rd floor of the Tower, they should be able to see the light from there. Let's see if they attack once more."

Harmon wasn't sure what time it was, but he suddenly felt drained. His clock showed 2pm, meaning it had been over 12 hours since the initial attack. But he had no time to rest. He checked the surroundings and found three more Wheelers on the ground, batteries drained. He dragged them closer to the power plant and pulled some cables so he could recharge them.

Strangely enough, there was no other sign of life nearby. He expected the enemy to quickly retaliate upon him, as he had just revealed his location. This lack of counteraction was bizarre. Did they not consider him a threat at this point? Or did they mean to wait for him to tire or attack when he was not awake?

Harmon pondered his following action when he suddenly saw something strange on the ground. It was like tiny blue bullets left behind by the vapourised Teardrops. Was that some essence that gave life to these watery Teardrops? He held the bullets in his hand and looked at them carefully but couldn't figure them out.

Eventually, he decided to go with a more electrical approach. As he touched the bullets, he felt they were charged with energy, like a battery. He used his power to warm them and eventually melt them into his hand. To his surprise, he realized his body could absorb them entirely, which meant they were made of pure energy. He reordered the electric signals and realized this was a code, a message he could read deep in his mind. It was a story. More than a story. A memory.

Deeply engulfed in this new information, he felt like he was suddenly transported into a new body. It felt more intense than a dream; it was more like an out-of-body experience.

***

Harmon saw the Nexus, full of light, standing before him, with the Grand Tower Building dominating the center. Yet, he was far away, darkness surrounding him. He felt movement around, hundreds of little being yelling unintelligible sounds. It was the Teardrops, not just a few, but an entire army of thousands, or even tens of thousands. He could hear them gathering and getting ready. For the first time, he perceived these strange creatures as cute pets rather than ferocious beasts. A few touched his hands and feet in their movement; it felt like a puppy tingling someone with its wet fluffy nose.

And then he started running, rushing toward Nexus, the Teardrops following his lead. He could not control his body, but his heart was excited as Nexus grew closer. Something extraordinary was about to happen. On top of that, he was happy to see his city again, surrounded by the gift of light.

And then the Wheelers came into sight, preparing to fight back. Harmon didn't want to fight his Wheelers, but his enemy was there, hiding in the Tower. He had to get there. Reprogramming the Wheelers so they would serve him again would take too long. He had to let the Teardrops strike the robots so he could focus on the enemy leader.

The battle grew more intense, and with every crushed Wheeler and every broken lamppost, his heart became sadder and darker. He felt everything was like a big sin, something he was not supposed to do. He couldn't stop.

***

Harmon suddenly woke up once again in his body.

"What did I just witness?" he wondered. "Was that a memory from my past? But I don't remember any of this happening…"

This occurrence left him very confused. But a new surprise came just as he tried to regain his senses. Instead of the darkness, he saw how the Tower Building's and Nexus's center lights were on, brighter than ever.