The darkness reached Daniel.
There was no gust.
There was no light.
Nothing impossible happened.
The impact lifted him off the ground.
For a moment, he felt nothing.
Then came the pavement.
His shoulder first.
His back next.
He rolled.
The folder flew from his hands.
Several sheets slid across the ground.
One landed face up.
RESERVE: 0
Daniel didn't see it.
For a few seconds, he heard nothing either.
Then the sounds returned.
Shouts.
Footsteps.
His own breathing.
“DANIEL!”
Lina moved forward.
A security officer watching the perimeter blocked her path.
“Back!”
“He's my brother!”
She tried to go around him.
The officer stepped in front of her again.
“You can't go in.”
“He's attacking him!”
The man reached for his communicator.
Waited.
Nothing.
Lina stared at him, unable to understand.
“What are you doing?”
The officer didn't seem to know either.
Daniel opened his eyes.
Everything was far too blurred.
He tried to take a deep breath.
Bad idea.
His side answered with a sharp pain.
He stayed still for a few seconds.
Darian was still in front of him.
He hadn't advanced.
He was just watching.
As if waiting for something.
Daniel put a hand on the ground.
Then a knee.
Armando saw him.
“No...”
Daniel didn't answer.
He planted his other foot.
His body protested.
He got up.
Slowly.
The crowd stopped murmuring.
Daniel needed a few seconds to find his balance.
Then he stood in front of Armando again.
The first time.
Darian frowned slightly.
“I gave you a chance.”
Daniel breathed.
“It wasn't for me.”
Darian looked at the young Inert woman.
Then at Armando.
Back at Daniel.
“You still don't understand.”
Daniel didn't answer.
He wiped the blood from his lip.
“Apologise.”
Something changed in Darian's expression.
Very slightly.
But it changed.
In a room inside the A.E.E., several screens showed different views of the exterior.
One tracked Daniel and Darian.
Another showed Armando.
A third, the crowd.
A security supervisor had his communicator ready.
“Team two ready to intervene.”
He looked at the man standing beside the monitors.
Grey hair.
Dark suit.
A high-level identification badge hung around his neck.
“Sir?”
The man kept his eyes on the screen.
“Wait.”
The supervisor turned his head.
“There are already injuries.”
“I know.”
“We can separate them in less than thirty seconds.”
Silence.
“Not yet.”
A researcher stopped writing.
“You want to keep observing?”
The man looked at the graphs.
Ether variations.
Activity spikes.
Environmental response.
“This was going to happen sooner or later.”
“That doesn't mean we have to allow it.”
For the first time, he looked away from the monitors.
“We have doctors here.”
He pointed at another screen.
“Security.”
Then at the sensors.
“And the ability to intervene.”
The supervisor's expression hardened.
“We also have civilians.”
“Exactly.”
He looked at Daniel again.
“It'll be a few seconds.”
No one answered.
“We've spent weeks telling people the world has changed.”
A pause.
“Until now, they were words.”
The supervisor understood.
He didn't seem to like it.
“And you want them to learn it this way?”
The man didn't answer immediately.
“I want to know what happens when it stops being news...”
He looked at the fight again.
“...and becomes reality.”
The supervisor kept his hand on the communicator.
He didn't lower it.
Darian advanced.
Daniel raised his arms out of sheer instinct.
The blow came from one side.
Too fast.
He managed to cover himself partly.
It didn't do much good.
The impact threw him off balance.
Darian struck again before he could recover it.
Daniel fell.
This time he landed close.
Too close.
Darian walked towards him.
“Stay there.”
Daniel breathed.
He didn't move for a few seconds.
Darian waited.
Then Daniel planted a hand.
Then a knee.
“No.”
Daniel kept going.
“I said stay down.”
One leg.
Then the other.
Daniel got up again.
More slowly.
Much more.
The second time.
Darian stared at him.
“What part don't you understand?”
Daniel stayed silent.
“You've lost.”
Silence.
Darian gestured around them.
“Look at yourself.”
The blood.
The uneven breathing.
The shaking legs.
“You have no affinity.”
Daniel didn't answer.
“You have no pattern.”
Nothing.
“You have nothing.”
Daniel looked up.
“Maybe.”
The reply unsettled Darian.
He waited for something more.
It didn't come.
Daniel breathed.
“That doesn't give you the right.”
The smile disappeared completely from Darian's face.
Armando was still on the ground.
He had to get up.
He knew it.
He planted a hand.
His arm shook.
He looked for the water.
Small amounts lay scattered across the pavement.
He tried to draw them towards him.
A few drops responded.
Nothing more.
His arm gave way.
He fell again.
Gritted his teeth.
In front of him, Daniel was still standing.
Armando looked down at his own hands.
Wet.
Then he looked at Daniel's.
Empty.
He had had water.
An affinity.
Something to defend himself with.
Daniel had nothing.
And yet Daniel was the one standing in front of him.
Armando tried to get up again.
He couldn't.
This time he lowered his head.
He didn't want this stranger protecting him.
He didn't want to need him.
And he didn't want to feel that helplessness again.
He looked up at Darian.
The anger came afterwards.
Slow.
Cold.
He didn't know how much he would have to improve.
Or how long it would take.
But this wasn't going to end here.
Next time would be different.
It had to be.
Clara barely blinked.
Every time Daniel fell, she thought it was over.
And every time, she saw him get up again.
The first time, she could call it courage.
The second...
She no longer knew what to call it.
She only knew she had seen it before.
Dust.
Glass.
A creature.
Daniel coming back while everyone else fled.
For weeks, she had thought that moment might have been a consequence of the chaos.
An impulsive decision.
Fear.
Adrenaline.
Now she knew it wasn't.
Daniel didn't even know Armando.
He hadn't known her name that night either.
He hadn't come back for her because of who she was.
It was simply...
him.
Clara felt a knot in her chest.
“Again...”
No one heard her.
Lina tried to move forward.
The officer held out an arm.
“I said no.”
“And I said he's my brother!”
A current of air rose around her.
Weak.
Involuntary.
The officer's uniform stirred.
Several people stepped back.
The man immediately changed his stance.
“No manifestations.”
Lina stood motionless.
The air stopped.
She looked at her hands.
Less than an hour ago, a machine had measured that.
Reserve.
Flow.
Control.
Synchrony.
Numbers.
She had numbers.
Daniel didn't.
And yet he was the one out there in front.
She didn't know how to use what she had when it really mattered.
Not yet.
Daniel took another blow.
Lina closed her eyes.
No.
This couldn't happen again.
Having an affinity wasn't enough.
She had to learn.
She had to improve.
There had to come a day when Daniel didn't always have to stand in front.
One day...
she would be the one who could stand in front of him.
Daniel saw the next attack coming.
This time he even managed to move aside.
Not completely.
The darkness grazed his torso and spun him around.
Darian appeared in front of him.
Daniel reacted on instinct.
He threw a punch.
Clumsy.
Darian dodged it effortlessly.
Caught his arm.
Shoved him.
Daniel hit the ground on his knees.
Darian stayed behind him.
“Stay down.”
Daniel breathed.
Tried to get up.
Darian watched him.
“Enough.”
Daniel kept trying to stand.
Something broke in Darian's composure.
“What are you trying to prove?”
Daniel stopped.
He didn't raise his head yet.
“Nothing.”
Darian frowned.
Daniel managed to stand.
“Then why?”
Daniel breathed.
Looked up.
“Because you're still in front of them.”
Silence.
Darian didn't know what to say.
And that irritated him even more.
Daniel wasn't trying to impress him.
He wasn't trying to prove he was stronger.
He didn't even believe he could beat him.
He simply refused to accept that losing meant Darian was right.
For Darian, defeat was an answer.
The world measured.
Compared.
Ordered.
Some were above.
Others below.
Daniel had four zeros.
He, of all people, should understand his position better than anyone.
And yet...
he kept refusing.
Darian advanced.
He was no longer smiling.
In the control room, the security supervisor looked at the man in the suit.
“It's over.”
It wasn't a question.
The man kept watching.
Daniel could barely stay on his feet.
Darian was coming towards him again.
“Five seconds.”
“No.”
The supervisor raised his communicator.
The man didn't try to stop him.
“Team two.”
The reply came immediately.
“Ready.”
“On my order.”
Darian stopped in front of Daniel.
“One last time.”
Daniel could barely bring him into focus.
“Stay down.”
Daniel swallowed.
Looked over his shoulder.
Armando.
The young Inert woman.
Then back at Darian.
“No.”
Darian's jaw tightened.
“Why don't you understand?”
Daniel didn't answer.
“You've lost.”
Darian moved half a step forward.
“Accept your position.”
Daniel raised his head slightly.
Darian attacked.
The blow knocked him down.
Daniel lay on his side.
He didn't move.
One second.
Two.
Three.
Lina shouted his name.
Darian waited.
Then Daniel moved a hand.
Darian's eyes widened a little.
“No...”
Daniel pressed his palm to the ground.
Tried to get up.
His arm gave way.
He fell.
Put his hand down again.
Tried again.
One knee.
Nothing more.
The third.
Armando lifted his head.
Clara stopped breathing.
Daniel tried to push his own body up.
It didn't respond.
He tried again.
Nothing.
His arm was shaking.
His strength was disappearing.
Darian stood in front of him.
For the first time, there was no contempt in his expression.
There was frustration.
Daniel tried again.
His body gave way.
Darian gritted his teeth.
“Enough.”
Daniel opened his eyes.
Darian's outline was beginning to turn into a blur.
He tried to get up one last time.
He couldn't.
Darkness began closing around his vision.
Darian came closer.
Daniel moved his lips.
Darian frowned.
“What?”
Daniel managed to look at him.
Only for a moment.
“Apologise.”
His fingers began to give way.
First one.
Then another.
His arm lost its strength.
His head slowly lowered.
And finally...
his body stopped responding.
Daniel lost consciousness.
“Now.”
The order came over the communicator.
The officers entered from both sides.
“SECURITY!”
“NOBODY MOVE!”
Three stepped in front of Darian.
Others ran towards Daniel.
“Medical staff!”
Lina tried to get in.
“He's my brother!”
“Wait.”
“DANIEL!”
Two medics knelt beside him.
“He's breathing.”
“Pulse.”
“I've got it.”
“Get a stretcher ready.”
Armando tried to sit up.
“Stay still.”
Another medic reached him.
“I'm fine.”
“You're not.”
“The other one...”
“They're already treating him.”
Armando looked for Darian.
He found him surrounded by security.
Darian wasn't resisting.
But he wasn't looking at the officers either.
He was still looking at Daniel.
“Everyone out of the perimeter.”
The order was repeated over the public address system.
“The outdoor complex is being temporarily cleared.”
“Do not remain in the area.”
The officers began moving the onlookers away.
Phones were lowered.
Conversations returned.
Quieter.
More serious.
The young Inert woman stood several metres away.
She was still holding her folder against her chest.
Before leaving, she looked towards Daniel.
Then towards Armando.
She said nothing.
She left.
Clara tried to move forward.
An officer stopped her.
“That way, miss.”
“I need to go over there.”
“You can't.”
Clara pointed towards the medics.
“I know him.”
The officer looked at Daniel.
Then at her.
“Are you family?”
Clara opened her mouth.
Stopped.
No.
She wasn't.
She had barely even spoken to him.
Until that afternoon, she hadn't known his name.
She slowly lowered her hand.
“No.”
“Then you have to leave the area.”
Clara looked over the officer's shoulder.
The medics were putting Daniel on a stretcher.
“I just want to talk to him.”
“You can't right now.”
The stretcher began moving.
Clara took a small step.
The officer blocked her again.
Daniel disappeared behind a set of doors.
Again.
Clara stood looking at them.
“Daniel...”
This time she could say his name.
But he wasn't there to hear it.
Lina managed to approach once the medics let her through.
She walked beside the stretcher.
Took Daniel's hand.
He didn't respond.
For a moment, she remembered something insignificant.
Something so small she didn't know why it had returned just then.
She was a child.
She had tripped.
A scraped knee.
Daniel in front of her.
A hand held out.
Come on.
It had always been like that.
Him in front.
Her holding on.
Lina squeezed his fingers.
A tiny current moved through the corridor.
She held it back.
This time consciously.
She looked at her brother.
Not any more.
It would no longer always be Daniel.
One day...
it would be her.
Armando was sitting down while a medic cleaned the blood from his face.
“We need to examine your side.”
He didn't answer.
He was looking towards the place where Daniel had fallen.
One sheet from his file was still lying on the pavement.
An officer bent down to pick it up.
Armando caught sight of it.
RESERVE: 0
A small drop of blood had fallen onto the zero.
Daniel's blood.
Armando stared at it.
His own hands were still damp.
Water.
Affinity.
Something to defend himself with.
Daniel had had nothing.
And that blood was on his zero.
Armando lowered his eyes.
Bit his lip.
Hard.
Until he felt pain.
He slowly clenched his fists.
Then lifted his head.
On the other side, the officers were taking Darian away.
Their eyes met.
Armando didn't look away.
He didn't know how much he would have to improve.
He didn't know how much time he would need.
But he knew this didn't end here.
In the control room, the security supervisor put his communicator on the table.
“We could have intervened sooner.”
“Yes.”
The answer was immediate.
That finally made him look at the man in the suit.
“And?”
The man switched off one of the screens.
“Then you're not asking me what happened.”
Silence.
“You're asking me why I waited.”
The supervisor stayed silent.
“Yes.”
The man picked up his folder.
“I still don't know whether I did the right thing.”
That wasn't the answer he had expected.
The man walked towards the door.
Stopped before leaving.
“But I want to understand what we've just seen.”
The door closed behind him.
Darian left through one of the side exits.
An officer had taken his details.
Another had made it clear he would receive a summons.
He didn't care.
One of the young men from earlier caught up with him.
“Darian.”
He didn't answer.
The boy walked beside him.
“You destroyed him.”
Silence.
“He had nothing.”
“I know.”
“Then what's the problem?”
Darian kept walking.
The boy spoke again.
“He stayed on the ground in the end.”
Darian stopped.
Silence.
He remembered the first time.
Daniel getting up.
The second.
Again.
And the third.
The hand against the ground.
The arm giving way.
His body refusing to respond.
And yet...
trying.
Not to win.
Not to prove he was strong.
Simply because he refused to accept the place Darian had assigned him.
Darian tightened his jaw.
Bit his lip.
The young man watched him.
“Darian?”
He didn't answer.
He had won.
Daniel had ended up unconscious.
Everyone who had been there knew it.
So did he.
Then...
why did it bother him so much?
Darian started walking again.
After a few metres, he spoke.
Very quietly.
“He doesn't understand.”
“What?”
Darian kept walking.
“His position.”
Silence.
More footsteps.
He bit his lip again.
That final word came back to him.
Apologise.
Darian stopped.
“Then...”
The boy looked at him.
Darian didn't turn.
“Why am I still thinking about him?”
He kept walking.
This time he didn't look back.
CUT TO BLACK.