Most, if not all, communication systems in the area were showing the live feed of the masked man. The people in their homes and those in the streets contemplated about the information the masked man has shared so far.
They recalled how a few days ago dark clouds were seen in the city as well, unlike the previous times where they appeared in the wasteland. While the golden lightning didn’t manifest in the city but the pressure of dark clouds has created many incidents. (Chapter 109).
"Could he be correct?" A woman on a street asked as she gazed at her mobile screen, "Is the government truly using us as guinea pigs for some weapon of mass destruction?"
"They wouldn’t," A man next her to muttered in a low voice as if unsure of his own words.
"I have seen those government officers in the slum," A middle-aged man muttered, "And didn’t a carnage took place there a month ago?"
"Now that you mention it," A middle-aged woman tried to recall, "That incident took place the same day when the golden lightning manifested in the wasteland."
"You guys are thinking wrong," A twenty-year-old protested, "The slum carnage was different from how those people disintegrated in nothingness."
"Maybe the government is using different weapons," A buddy of the twenty-year-old argued, "Using different styles would avoid suspicions."
"It is possible!"
"We have to run away before they kill us in some freak experiment!"
"Revolutionary, please kill those officers!"
The will of the people is easy to manipulate if one knows how to use facts with fiction. From thousands of years, propaganda has been used to manage the public opinion by various organizations whether they are religious, dynastical or the government.
Most people often ignore the power of ’words’ but in fact, their power is the strongest. A master of words can change the perspective of an individual.
That’s why the politicians spend so much time on their speeches to create a sympathetic node with the public. As long as one knows what interest or scare the public, one can have their attention and use it to for own benefit.
Kiba has always known about the power of words. Maybe more than anyone else for he has always used it to charm women and torture men.
Ever since the incident at the wasteland, he and Claudia have created multiple plans to tackle the attention of government and other organizations.
When Eva informed him of a possibility of his other persona’s involvement in the mining incident being known, he decided to use one of the plans by modifying it to match the current requirements.
He used the explosives, droids and other materials he has ’borrowed’ over the years to strike the police headquarters.
His attack has three objectives. Firstly, he wanted to go away with any evidence which might become a trouble for Zed.
Secondly, he wished to ensure the government attention was diverted from the first objective by blaming it on revolutionaries.
While he was confident in his ability to impersonate as a revolutionary in the attack, he wasn’t overconfident to believe the government would blindly trust the narrative he was selling.
After all, what he knew about revolutionaries was from the media and corporate knowledge, he didn’t know what the government knew about revolutionaries. His knowledge was limited in this regard.
This brought him to his third objective: Turn public will against the government, or at least against the investigators. While he knew the government would soon pacify the public, the damage done to their image would be far too great.
Every action from now would be seen with suspicion especially after he leaked the pictures of investigators. Sure the government might send more forces but that would only create more trouble.
You can kill people but never a thought of suspicion.
----
Fifth floor, Police headquarters.
"You are lying!" the investigators shouted in unison but alas, their efforts were useless. The live feed only carried what Kiba wanted.
Zzzz
"Hmm?" The masked man looked at the tablet.
[[The communication system has been restored. We can’t hack again in a short while.]]
"It is fine," The masked man said in an audible voice to everyone, "We already have left the impression we wanted."
"Impression?" Davis was terrified as he thought of a possibility, "You are not a revolutionary?!"
Ellen, Tamara, and others thought in a similar fashion.
"No, I’m a revolutionary," The masked man removed his mask, "Just not your definition of revolutionary."
Everyone looked with eyes wide open as the face behind the mask was revealed
"He is..."
"KIBA?!"
"What is going on?"
"Never thought esteemed investigators from the government know of me," Kiba said with a smile as he crunched the mask into dust, "I’m flattered."
"What are you doing here?" Jason tried to make sense of things.
Just what is his objective?!
"I think I now understand the revolution he wanted to create," A civilian woman muttered after knowing the attacker was Kiba.
"...Me as well," Her husband consented.
"Oh?" Kiba looked back.
His vision passed the black barrier at the end of the floor and saw a blond man attacking the barrier with his fists. The blond-haired man’s fists were like missiles as they created vibrations on the barrier.
"Powerful but not enough for now," Kiba mused without any care, "The barrier is created on Castor Damon’s knowledge as well with many modifications by me based on Section IV."
"Castor Damon?!" Ellen was horrified by the words.
"Could you be responsible..." Tamara trailed off at the terrifying guess.
"You can learn everything in a short while," Kiba turned his face around, "There are many knowledgeable persons waiting for you all in the underworld, and I’m sure they would be glad to share their information with reputed investigators like you."
"Bastard!" Davis tried to stand up from the floor. He was sure what awaited for them if they didn’t fight back now.
BANG!
He fell on the floor just like others as the air above them compressed like a mountain.
"Farwell," Kiba took out a grenade from the jacket, "It was fun to know you all."
"You wouldn’t go scot free!" Tamara shouted in resentment, "You evil creature!"
"Evil?" Kiba laughed loudly as he finger moved on the firing pin, "Evil is purely subjective."
What might be good for one might be evil for another.
"You are killing innocents so that is evil!" Jason looked at him with deep hatred. He didn’t wish to die but he knew his fate.
"Innocents? What about the slum dweller whose memories you were forcefully retrieving? You should know what his fate would be," Kiba said with contempt, "Or what about the people you killed in one way or another to get your hands on information?"
"This is not the same! We were doing our job as investigators and those deaths only occurred because we didn’t have any alternative!" Ellen argued trying to find ways to stop him, "We had permission from the government!"
"So the permission of government gives you right to torture and kill," Kiba laughed at the logic, "But I also have the permission to kill you."
"What?!" Ellen was startled.
He has permission?!
"Who gave you the permission?" Davis asked trying to think who could have ordered him.
"My desires," Kiba answered with a playful smile, "I don’t need anyone else’s permission."
"Bastard!" Jason cursed loudly.
"You would suffer hell!"
Kiba ignored their cursings as he took out the firing pin.
"You aim here is to destroy the life I have built for myself," Kiba’s voice turned cold, "Nothing can be eviler than this for me."
He threw the grenade at the investigators and turned around.
"Stop!"
"Please!"
"You can have me!"
"Kiba!"
The investigators begged and cried but he ignored them. He stepped towards the civilians who were on the opposite corner.
"P-please don’t," A woman begged, "Let us go."
"I plan to," Kiba gave a sigh, "But before that, there is something I have to do."
"Wha---?"
The civilians didn’t even get to contemplate as their eyes were stuck on his. They felt his eyes were like a vortex of unmeasurable depths.
"I hate slaughter when I have an alternative," Kiba’s voice passed in their heads, "And thankfully for you, there is an alternative which suits my goal."
The memories of the civilians were churned out and replaced with few adjustments as he wanted. If he hasn’t copied the psychic ability of the monk then he would have killed them as well.
But now this alternative even worked better for him since he could make them remember as he wants to improve his narrative.
"This should be enough," Kiba waved his hand and the civilians were pushed to the end of the floor.
He turned around and saw the struggle on the face of investigators as they tried to escape from the grenade without any success.
"Send my regards to Castor and Lisa in the underworld," Kiba said as rays of white light surrounded him and the droids, "I’m sure you would have fun there in the investigation."
BOOOOM!
The grenade exploded into green flames.
"No!"
"AHHHHH!"
"Pl..ea..se"
-----
Outside, the police headquarters.
Liam launched another fist on the black barrier covering the fourth and fifth floor.
CRACK!
The barrier cracked like a mirror and fragments of black energy floated all around. Liam jumped inside the fifth floor while few others jumped in the fourth floor.
"Damn!" Liam gritted his teeth in anger as he saw the state of the floor. There were civilians lying in a corner with minor injuries from the explosion but there was no trace of the investigator.
He noticed green flames at the end of the floor and he knew what they signified.
"Those terrorists!" Liam’s eyes were bloodshot...
-----
Section I, Dream Rise House.
"He is in a vegetative state," Kiba sighed in disappointment as he checked the condition of the slum dweller he has teleported from the forensic room, "His brain has been ruined by the memory retrieval equipment."
Forceful retrieval of memory has severe side effects. The doctor didn’t really care for the life of a slum dweller.
Of course, before the doctor could retrieve his memories fully, Kiba has killed the doctor.
[[What should we do with him?]]
"This could have been avoided if I was a few minutes earlier," Kiba glanced at the old man on the glass examination table, "Euthanize him."
[[Understood.]]
Claudia knew he has a soft spot for the slum dwellers. Otherwise he wouldn’t have helped them by killing slum overlords. Nor he would have helped the woman and her two children by giving them food and money.
"If only living beings stop lusting after power and eternal life," Kiba stepped towards the elevator at the end of lab, "So many deaths could be avoided."
[[You are thinking of the impossible, sir.]]
"I know it very well," Kiba entered the elevator, "It is just like Elissa once told me...there is an attraction to the impossible."
[[....]]
------
A few hours later at the police headquarters.
The entire perimeter outside was filled with ambulance and military vans while news reporters and protestors were placed outside the barricade.
Emily was sitting on a chair near the entrance of the building. The injuries she took during her battle with droids were fully healed by the treatment.
"In just a week we have lost so many of our comrades," Emily said after taking a sip of coffee, "First the incident at the wasteland and now this."
"Don’t forget them," A woman officer next to pointed towards the protestors far away, "We are now public enemies."
"Yeah," Emily sighed in frustration.
"Emily!"
"Hmm?" Emily and the officer next to her turned around as her name was called loudly.
Emily was startled as she saw a familiar figure running towards her. Before she could say anything, the figure hugged her.
"I’m glad you’re safe," the man said with heavy breathing, "Thank god."
"K-Kiba," Emily was completely caught off guard by his sudden entrance and hug. Her cheeks blushed as she saw the strange expression on the woman officer next to her.
"I’m sorry," Kiba left her hug, "I didn’t mean to.."
Emily looked at him and noticed traces of worry on his face.
"He was worried for me?" Emily thought surprised.
She was impressed by his conduct and personality during the dinner but never thought he would care so much about her.
The attack has shocked everyone in the city but for him to be here even after all this... She couldn’t help but look him in a different light.
"Why are you here?" Emily asked just to hear him clear her doubts.
"I saw the news," Kiba said with a bit of sadness in his voice, "I was afraid the terrorists..."
He trailed off in between but Emily and the other woman could feel an aura of melancholy from him.
"Thank you," Emily moved forward to hug him with an affection she has rarely shown in her life, "I’m glad you are here."