《Glitch》 I - When the Stars Fall (Part 1)

I ¨C When the Stars Fall

(Part 1) ¡°We are live from our helicopter over Highway I-81, where the Skulls are escaping from what specialists are already describing as the heist of the century...¡± Buzzed a bright TV in a minuscule dark bedroom. The flashing screen revealed posters of colorful heroes and anime covering the dim walls. ¡°Phillip, how are things looking?¡± asked the news anchor. The image of a lowrider speeding down a highway surfaced. Flames sprung off the vehicle¡¯s wheels. ¡°It¡¯s utter chaos here, Carolina!¡± narrated a journalist from inside a helicopter. The camera unzoomed and revealed a carpet of a hundred cars pursuing the lowrider like wheeled centipedes. ¡°Early in the morning, the Skulls have arguably stolen an inestimable cargo from the 2,000-men-strong US ¡®Othello¡¯ Armored Train convoy. The infamous Glitcher known as the Thief Queen, the supposed leader of the Skulls, has described the heist as her grand finale. She has been streaming the theft online for over 8 million people all over the worl¡ª¡± Jet turbines stormed the skies and silenced the man. The helicopter rattled, and the live coverage fell. The nervous glare from the news anchor replaced the footage of the heist. The woman sputtered to the cameras: ¡°W-We apologize to our audience, it seems we¡¯re having some technical difficulties¡ª¡± ¡°Please come back, please come back!¡± pleaded a curly-haired boy who watched the TV alone in his bedroom. He clasped his hands as if he prayed for a miracle. His elbows supported themselves on a pile of unfinished homework. ¡°Please come back¡ª¡± ¡°We are back to the chase!¡± announced the News Anchor, thrilled. ¡°Phillip, what¡¯s the situation?¡± ¡°This is absurd! Is that jet gonna bomb us?¡± the man ranted. ¡°Channel 8 doesn¡¯t even pay us life insurance¡ª¡± ¡°Phillip, you are back on the air! What is the situation?¡± Her questions were futile. The man had yanked his hearing device from the ear. ¡°¡ªthis was supposed to be my day off! This company¡¯s just bull¡ª¡± The production turned off his microphone. Only the footage from the high-speed chase remained. ¡°Wait,¡± faltered the boy as he realized that the vehicles from the National Guard braked, ¡°why are they stopping?¡± The distance between them and the Skulls¡¯ lowrider grew by the second. The Skulls did not hesitate. Their lowrider only went faster. Yet the silence of the pursuers¡¯ wheels bothered the gang¡¯s driver. Sweat drizzled off his nervous head. He pushed the central rearview mirror to face a woman with long pink hair. Her face hid under a witch¡¯s hat and a skull mask. ¡°Queen, I think you¡¯ve finally done it,¡± said the driver with a sarcastic grin, ¡°you¡¯ve finally killed us all! The Jets will fire any time now!¡± ¡°They won¡¯t, Jumper,¡± replied the Thief Queen without bothering to look at him in the eyes. She frowned upon a shoebox, where a heart appeared to beat inside. ¡°They wouldn¡¯t risk destroying their precious treasure just to kill us,¡± she said, embracing the shoebox. Her voice carried a thick English accent. ¡°I love this already.¡± ¡°Just drop this thing off a window!¡± bewailed Jumper as he wiped the sweat from his blond hair. ¡°How far are we from the Wrong Warp tunnel?¡± ¡°Less than a mile,¡± replied Jumper as a hill gained shape on the horizon. ¡°But I¡¯m not liking this,¡± he glimpsed at the stopped vehicles in the rearview, ¡°they got a State Glitcher there, I¡¯m sure of it! I think they know about my Wrong Warp! They¡¯ll catch us; they¡¯ll study me and find all my hideouts¡ª¡± ¡°If I listened to your pathological fatalism, I would not leave my bed in the morning.¡± ¡°It¡¯s hard to be positive with you around!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± said the Thief Queen with a sly smile on her face, ¡°after today, you won¡¯t ever see me again¡ª¡± A girl with fiery hair laughed. She wore a biker¡¯s jacket stamped with the word ¡®Pyre¡¯. She toyed with a lighter. ¡°That¡¯s what you said the last time, Queen,¡± remarked the woman. ¡°And the time before that,¡± said an eerie tall man with a breath that smelled like the one of a corpse. ¡°Good memory, Fallen,¡± commented the red-haired girl as she rested her head on the shoulder of the sinister figure. Her lipstick was bright like red neon. She narrowed her eyes at Queen and mocked her, ¡°we¡¯ll see you in a month to steal something else. You have no cure.¡± ¡°How silly you all are! After this¡±¡ªQueen tightened her grasp of the shoebox¡ª¡°there won¡¯t be anything else to steal.¡± She held the box like one holds the arm of a lover. ¡°Missile incoming,¡± announced a man with sunglasses and long hair who sat at the passenger seat of the lowrider. He had his legs crossed. Jumper, the driver, partied as he heard the news. ¡°I told you! Ha-ha-ha! I told you they¡¯d kill us all!¡± he laughed and pressed the horn as he saw the disappointment on Queen¡¯s face. ¡°Wait¡ª¡±the blond listened to his own words¡ª¡°they are gonna kill us all!¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. ¡°So they¡¯d rather destroy it than let me have it,¡± Thief Queen pondered, obviously ignoring him. ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear GEO?¡± snapped Jumper. He glanced at the man with sunglasses. ¡°There¡¯s a missile coming!¡± Fallen, the eerie tall figure, narrowed his eyes at Thief Queen. ¡°Can I tank a Hellfire Missile?¡± he asked. His words smelled like the kiss of a dead man. The pink-haired woman rose her sights from the shoebox and faced his grey face. Numbers hovered over his head: ¡°Have fun,¡± she simpered. He opened the lowrider¡¯s sunroof. His head seemed to sprout out of the dark vehicle as the man appeared in Channel 8¡¯s lenses film. The lonely boy watching his TV recoiled. His eyes shined with excitement. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s Fallen!¡± the boy cheered. ¡°They¡¯re screwed now! His Invincibility Glitch will¡­¡± The TV turned off. ¡°No¡±¡ªhe slammed his palm against the screen¡ª¡°what happened?¡± ¡°Time to sleep, Edward,¡± said a woman as she stored the remote control into her purse. ¡°This is not your dad¡¯s house, remember?¡± ¡°No, mom, can¡¯t you see?¡± the boy mumbled, ¡°the fate of the world is in their hands! This is¡ª¡± ¡°Then the fate of the world can wait,¡± she replied, wearing a nametag with the words ¡°Ms. Joy Williams (Nurse)¡± stamped on the paper. ¡°I gotta go back to the hospital now,¡± she uttered, looking down at him as if she faced a subordinate. ¡°B-But¡­¡± Edward frowned. ¡°You¡¯ve just arrived,¡± he spoke in a resentful tone. ¡°No buts. I took away your cell phone because I did not want you watching thugs. Much less making a ruckus about it,¡± she said as she pointed at the corner of his room. A little chubby girl slept in silence. ¡°It took forever for your sister to sleep. You know how Hermione is with sugar. You¡¯re not ruining this.¡± ¡°F-Fine,¡± he grumbled. ¡°I¡¯m going now,¡± she spoke as she held the bedroom¡¯s doorknob. ¡°Love you.¡± The boy did not reply. He breathed loud and mourned his TV. ¡°Love you,¡± she repeated herself, demanding his answer. Edward resigned: ¡°Love you.¡± He closed his eyes and heard her steps as his mom walked away. He sighed in relief as he heard the creak of the apartment¡¯s old door. The boy crawled to his tiny window and opened a hole in the curtain with his hands. Edward looked through the window to see if he could find anyone else watching the chase. Yet all he saw were metal bars and walls that had more graffiti than paint. The smoke trail from cigarettes and old cars blurred his view. ¡°Someone has to be watching, I know it¡±¡ªHe found an electronic tablet laying on a blonde girl¡¯s pink bed. She sat on a bed in an apartment located across the street¡ª¡°Adela, yes! She never disappoints!¡± he said, waving his arms with the despair of a stranded man. ¡°Huh?¡± The girl glanced at him. She opened a coyly smile. Her long blond hair and bright teeth seemed to be the only color left in the city. He pointed at her gadget and made hand gestures to show his intentions. ¡°Let me see it!¡± he pleaded. Adela tilted her head to the right and puzzled over what he meant. ¡°Fullscreen!¡± He made the sign of an expanding screen with his fingers. He clasped both hands together and begged, ¡°Help me, please!¡± She frowned at the device and clicked every button that she spotted, determined to help him even beyond her knowledge of informatics. Edward giggled in admiration for her. Yet his reflection in his window robbed him of any joy. His scrawny, average and mediocre appearance left him to wonder if an angel like Adela had not fallen in the wrong world when she was born. ¡°There is no way we are the same species,¡± he suspired as he looked at himself. ¡°I wonder if I started working out¡ª¡± Adela held her electronic tablet as if the machine¡¯s screen were the glass of her window. ¡°Watch!¡± she moved her lips, hoping to call his attention. The car pursuit covered the device¡¯s whole screen. Edward recoiled, excited. ¡°Yes!¡± he said, enthusiastic. He took a pair of binoculars from his drawer and watched the chase from between the bars of his window. ¡°There it is!¡± He saw Fallen standing on the roof of the Skulls¡¯ lowrider. The Glitcher stood nonchalantly as an eerie red projectile descended from the skies like a meteor. The object was an appropriately named Hellfire Missile that was about to destroy the vehicle. Fearless in the face of the afterlife, Fallen clasped his hands and filled his lungs with air. Grey static surrounded the man as if time and space distorted around the Glitcher. ¡°Matter never dies¡±¡ªHe told himself as his mouth enlarged to devour the missile. The projectile¡¯s explosion took place inside his flesh and enlarged him like a balloon. Yet the man stood apathetically and laid his sights on the fleet of vehicles that had pursued the Skulls down the highway¡ª¡°matter just changes form!¡± He widened his mouth and released the missile¡¯s heat from his insides. The heatwave that escaped his body was so hot that the air around the attack reddened. The heat spread chaos among the fleet of vehicles that had pursued the lowrider down the highway. ¡°Run away!¡± yelled the soldiers as they dispersed away from their vehicles. Fallen¡¯s attack ignited the fuel in their engines. Their fleet turned into a bursting minefield. Queen giggled as she stared at the lowrider¡¯s rear window. Fallen left behind a wall of smoke and fire to block the road. Even the bravest soul would still not dare to pursue them. ¡°More relaxed now, Jumper?¡± she asked her driver. ¡°In your rearview, you can see what happens to those who stand in our way.¡± The driver breathed from his mouth, angry. ¡°Whatever,¡± he replied as he leaned forward to focus on his driving, ¡°the false warp is close,¡± he commented as he saw the exit of the tunnel. He winked and a glowing purple wall replaced the tunnel¡¯s exit. He announced his countdown, ¡°get ready to fall off Earth now! Five¡­¡± Queen faced Fallen as the countdown proceeded. The man closed the lowrider¡¯s sunroof and faced her. ¡°Brilliant job,¡± said the woman with a smile on her face. ¡°But you didn¡¯t destroy the journalists, did you?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t pay me enough to have restraints,¡± he replied. Jumper continued his countdown: ¡°Four¡±¡ªhe beat the lowrider¡¯s dashboard a couple times¡ª¡°I mean Three! Four brings bad luck.¡± Pyre, the Glitcher with the fiery hair, smirked at Queen¡¯s question: ¡°What is it, girl? Worried about the paparazzi now?¡± ¡°Two¡­¡± Lingered Jumper, although no one bothered to give him a single glance. Queen faced Pyre as if her subordinate¡¯s question physically threatened her. ¡°Absolutely not!¡± protested Thief Queen, insulted. ¡°You bloody dimwits don¡¯t understand free publicity?¡± Jumper reached the limit of his countdown: ¡°One!¡± ¡°No, we don¡¯t understand publicity,¡± replied GEO, the silent longhaired man who concealed his eyes under the sunglasses. ¡°All we know is that this treasure better be worth something, Queen;¡± he frowned at her shoebox. ¡°No one else will die for nothing.¡± He glanced at the lowrider¡¯s empty seat. An embroidery with the name Gallant marked the seat. Queen swallowed dry. Yet she did not allow her concerns to slip down her tongue. ¡°Soon you won¡¯t have any doubts, GEO,¡± she asserted. Jumper finished counting: ¡°Zero and we are finally here!¡± The lowrider left the tunnel. Instead of proceeding on the highway, the vehicle appeared in front of an Italian restaurant in a snowy town. The gang hurried. They left their freight and entered the closed restaurant. A chalkboard stood near the entrance with a message for the customers, ¡°SPECIAL SALE! The Royal Sforza Cheese Pizza: 2999999.99$. April¡¯s inflation adjustment.¡± ¡°I¡¯m ending the stream,¡± announced Pyre as she touched the screen of Queen¡¯s cellphone, ¡°you¡¯d better prove that whatever is in that box was worth it.¡± The pizzeria¡¯s curtains rolled down to thwart any curious eyes. (CLICK HERE FOR PART 2. GO! GO! GO!) I - When the Stars Fall (Part 2)

I ¨C When the Stars Fall

(part 2) Edward mourned as the Skulls¡¯ stream went offline. The scenes of the heist had filled his eyes with so much marvel that his irises shined. He only recalled who he was and where he lived after a minute of staring at a blank screen. ¡°Oh, what?¡± faltered the boy, swinging his head left and right as his consciousness returned. He recalled that he was but a young loser watching a live stream through a pair of binoculars. His little sister slept in a corner of the tiny bedroom. He feared that even the sound of his breath would disturb her. Adela watched his painful awakening from her window across the street. She covered her mouth so that she would not shame him with her cringe. Yet she failed. ¡°Damn it,¡± cursed Edward with a palm covering his face, ¡°I must¡¯ve looked like such a dork.¡± The girl giggled. She had a pink pillow embraced between the arms to keep her sides together. Edward grinned. ¡°At least she¡¯s laughing,¡± he bargained, simpering and looking away to hide his blush. ¡°I¡¯ll take that as some sort of consolation. I wonder if she¡¯ll go to school tomorrow¡ª¡° He rose his head to face Adela. However, the horrifying scowl Adela¡¯s mother covered the window. ¡°Argh!¡± Edward recoiled and fell on his backs as if he saw an angry pit-bull. The woman closed the curtains. Screams erupted from the apartment and echoed for all on the street to hear. Her screams were as if barking and car horns joined forces to destroy a window. Yet instead of glass, their target was one¡¯s will to live. The boy cupped his ears to hear what the women shouted, yet all he heard were growls, except for when Adela¡¯s cry interrupted the woman. Edward, like all the girl¡¯s neighbors, had grown eerily accustomed to hearing her sob. ¡°It¡¯s my fault,¡± he bewailed, clenching his fists. Edward sighed loudly and kneaded his forehead, crestfallen. He faced his reflection and pondered, ¡°why do I always do this?¡± Hermione, his little sister, moved. She sleeptalked, ¡°Uh, what is going on?¡± All the noise disturbed the girl. The boy closed the curtain. He left only a tiny space from where he could stare at Adela¡¯s window like a dog looks from beneath a door. He did not want the girl to assume that she was alone if she looked for him once the screams were over. He knew well how painful her feeling would be, and how much he did not want to look like a coward. Yet Edward shrunk back as he heard the sound of a slap. He looked away, clenched his fists and heaved an angry sigh at the window. ¡°How can¡¯t any adult hear that?¡± he asked himself, repulsed. His eyes searched the decrepit city below. He looked for a single soul that still cared. Unrepaired holes covered the streets more than pavement. The roads reeked of garbage and fuel. Screams and firing car alarms were louder than the night¡¯s wind. The windows of shops had more cracks than glass. Their shelves were empty. A red graffiti paraded proudly on a wall with an evident truth, ¡°why bother?¡± Edward was powerless. If the adults had chosen to forget their own strife, a teenager¡¯s problems would not be what would awaken them. He resigned, ¡°I don¡¯t wanna be here anymore.¡± Those words were usual guests in his head. The heroes that stamped his half of the tiny bedrooms were like his window to a world of meaning. Red capes, anthropomorphic robots and anime girls formed a colorful pallet that contrasted to the dim world outside. Glitchers like the Skulls had a privileged position, however. Their bootleg sculptures and embarrassing plushies filled his shelves as if Edward desired to feel among them. A figure of yarn from Gallant, the deceased member of the Skulls, faced him with a judgmental expression on its face. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that,¡± said the boy as he turned the figure around. Yet the doll¡¯s eyes glowed white. ¡°Huh?¡± faltered Edward as he peeked at the street outside. A shooting star crossed the skies. Its light invaded the dim bedroom and brought color to the boy¡¯s idols and posters. Edward darted to his window to see the spectacle. ¡°Maybe I can make a wish!¡± he said, searching for an angle from where he could face the stars. Yet his window was too tiny. He could not see the sky from the floor where his apartment was. ¡°I think I missed it,¡± he mumbled, sighing in frustration as the streets darkened once again. He rose his frown to face Adela¡¯s closed curtains. ¡°And she missed it as well,¡± he mumbled. The boy was aware that unlike him, she never had any chance to witness the spectacle. Yet more shooting stars crossed the skies. This time they were so numerous that they looked as if a dazzling white curtain fell from the heavens. Their reflection turned into a silvery river the uncovered holes in the pavement, the broken glass littering the streets and the windows that hid underneath iron bars. Every bit of trash on earth screened the beautiful spectacle that the heavens arrayed. ¡°This is my chance!¡± uttered Edward as he clasped his hands together. He hoped that the stars would still hear him, even if he prayed to their reflection in the grime. ¡°Please,¡± he began, ¡°please show me a way to change the world. For myself and for¡±¡ªthe screams from Adela¡¯s apartment reached his ears¡ª¡°everyone. They are suffering so much,¡± he rustled as he frowned at the ruined city below. The light from the passing stars unveiled the decadence that the darkness concealed. Edward unclasped his hands, unsure if there was anything that he would like to ask more than making a difference. Yet ideas kept slipping down his tongue: ¡°And if that was not asking a lot, please make tomorrow¡¯s test easy,¡± he glanced at his unfinished homework, ¡°I got busy with the Skulls, and I didn¡¯t study a bit! Also¡­¡± He fired words like a machine gun fires bullets. He was afraid that he would miss the stars. ¡°It¡¯d be nice too if Adela realized her boyfriend is a huge jerk. But please make it in a way that she won¡¯t be hurt! She goes through enough¡ª¡± His sister moved. The boy¡¯s voice agitated her. ¡°Damn it,¡± murmured Edward as he covered his mouth. He relinquished himself from his whims, leaned his arm in the window and watched as the stars faded. He planned to wait for Adela, yet his eyes weighed. He yawned and felt a sudden exhaustion. His eyes closed, and his arms served him as pillows before he knew. ¡°Please,¡± whispered Edward as he collapsed asleep, ¡°please listen to me.¡± The Rain of Stars ceased. Yet the stars did not simply pass through Earth. They descended like hammers upon the snowy town where the Skulls hid. ¡°So,¡± began the Thief Queen with a large grin on her face. She reclined on a wooden chair. A table from her pizzeria served as support for her legs. ¡°Did that prove to you that this treasure was worth our time?¡± she asked her gang. Pyre, Jumper, GEO and Fallen peeked at the outside from every corner of the pizzeria. They watched as the stars fell from the heavens and shattered into pieces as they touched the Earth. ¡°T-This is absurd!¡± hesitated Jumper. ¡°How the hell did you do that, Queen?¡± He narrowed his eyes at his boss. ¡°I didn¡¯t,¡± she pointed at the shoebox where she concealed the treasure, ¡°my precious did it.¡± Yet GEO, the Glitcher with long hair and sunglasses, crossed his arms. He looked away from the spectacle, unimpressed. ¡°Was that all?¡± asked the man. Pyre and Fallen exchanged sights, baffled. They questioned Thief Queen, ¡°How are we supposed to make money out of it?¡±The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. The woman rolled her eyes. ¡°You fools really don¡¯t understand,¡± said Thief Queen as she unsealed the shoebox and yanked the content from inside. ¡°Come closer.¡± The Skulls neared her. They leaned forward and widened their eyes to see the object. ¡°This,¡± continued Thief Queen as a metal heart pumped in her right hand, ¡°is the Heart in a Vat. It makes any wish come true,¡± she explained, moving the object closer to Jumper. ¡°You can¡¯t just make money out of it, you can make anything.¡± ¡°Really?¡± faltered Jumper as he turned away, uncomfortable with the sight. ¡°How?¡± ¡°I suspect that this thing¡±¡ªshe rose the heart for him to see closer. Thief Queen found Jumper¡¯s disgust cute. She moved the heart closer to him whenever he recoiled¡ª¡°this thing is like the command console of the Universe. It can make anything happen,¡± she glanced at Fallen and Pyre, ¡°like summoning a mountain of gold or making any number appear in your bank account.¡± Fallen beamed. ¡°Label me interested,¡± he remarked. Thief Queen smirked. She narrowed her eyes at Jumper and continued, ¡°Maybe you can use it to change the past. Rewrite your history or even erase it completely so that no one will ever find you. Or, if you prefer,¡± she glared at GEO, ¡°we can even summon President Johnson right now to this pizzeria to dine with us.¡± The Skulls recoiled in awe, except for GEO. The woman finished: ¡°Just make sure you prepare a baby seat for him. His pants are probably brown since he heard that we took the Heart. And maybe, just maybe¡±¡ªshe held the heart with both hands. Her voice softened¡ª¡°perhaps we can even use it to bring the dead back to life.¡± GEO interrupted her reverie. ¡°Do it, then,¡± he said, still with his arms crossed. ¡°Make a wish come true.¡± ¡°I will,¡± said Thief Queen with a grin between the lips, ¡°once I learn how it works.¡± Pyre scowled. She questioned the woman, ¡°what? Once you learn? You don¡¯t know how to use it, girl?¡± ¡°Not yet.¡± Jumper recoiled. ¡°And how long will that take?¡± he asked, pulling his blond hair out. ¡°6 months, maybe one year¡­¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have that much time. Girl, this was not our deal!¡± resisted Pyre. ¡°The entire US government is after us right now. I don¡¯t doubt they would nuke a city if that meant stopping you from possibly killing the president. Fallen doesn¡¯t have to worry about it, but everyone else¡­¡± ¡°I just want my money,¡± insisted Fallen. ¡°Wait and you shall receive,¡± replied Thief Queen as she meddled with the Heart in a Vat. ¡°Besides,¡± she glanced at them, ¡°we are safe as long as we have Jumper around.¡± ¡°Every Glitch leaves a trail,¡± retorted GEO, ¡°even if Jumper is one of the best Warpers in the world, the Feds in Washington will find someone better and bring them here. They will promise a state for whoever comes up with even a hint that will lead to us.¡± Thief Queen simpered. ¡°Go grab your state, then,¡± she teased the man. ¡°I heard Hawaii is lovely this time of the year. A tan would do you good! If you like the Feds so much, just join them¡ª¡± ¡°I am,¡± replied GEO, threatening to take his sunglasses off. The Skulls rose from their chairs and surrounded the man. They slouched their backs forward like predators as if they prepared to assault GEO at the first sign of movement. Thief Queen faced him. ¡°What do you think you are doing, GEO?¡± she asked. ¡°I¡¯m making stand. That is what we should have done when Gallant died because of you. We can continue either living like dogs in the hopes you will for once keep a promise; or we can take the Heart from you, give it to the Feds and join the winning team. We can make any wish come true without having to hide: as State Glitchers.¡± ¡°Is it mutiny that I¡¯m hearing?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an invitation to common sense,¡± explained the man, glancing at the Skulls. His words hit their confident smiles more than any fist could. ¡°You,¡± said GEO as he faced Thief Queen, ¡°can either join us or perish.¡± He stretched his left arm for her to give him the Heart in a Vat. She retorted, ¡°Politicians can¡¯t bring him back to life, GEO.¡± ¡°Neither can your corpse.¡± ¡°I am willing to take that risk.¡± Her grasp of the Heart strengthened. GEO faced Jumper and Pyre. ¡°Are you two?¡± he asked them. They exchanged sights, dubious of what to say. Jumper bargained, ¡°Queen, let¡¯s not fight over this. Maybe GEO has a point. It might be better if we just hand them the treasure. We can¡¯t do this forever, you know¡±¡ªhe took his mask off. A large scrap bullet scar bonded his ears like a bridge¡ª¡°one might hit the target the next time,¡± he mumbled. His southern accent carried an uncommon sorrow. ¡°My mom has cancer, you know? I can¡¯t die.¡± ¡°Listen, girl,¡± argued Pyre as she narrowed her eyes at Thief Queen, ¡°I know how much you liked Gallant, but he¡¯d agree with GEO. Enough is enough. They probably already sent OLYMPUS after us.¡± Thief Queen glanced at Fallen as if her last hope were drawing a word of loyalty from him. ¡°Me?¡± floundered the undead Glitcher. ¡°I¡¯m just here for the money.¡± GEO faced his former leader, more confident than ever. Not a single voice had risen to support Thief Queen¡¯s plot. He kept a hand on his sunglasses as if a great power were hidden underneath. He argued, ¡°you know this is the wisest choice, Queen. Give me the Heart. Fighting is futile.¡± Jumper supported him, ¡°It¡¯s the right thing, Queen. No thief lasts forever¡­¡± ¡°I¡­¡± Thief Queen clenched her fists. She frowned, as she had no courage to look them in the eyes. She groaned with tears dripping from her eyes, ¡°I am surrounded by bloody sellouts¡ª¡± ¡°Be reasonable,¡± snorted GEO. ¡°¡ªcoward pathetic close-minded atrocious serpents so flat that they couldn¡¯t even be stepped upon!¡± GEO took a step ahead and gave her an ultimatum, ¡°Don¡¯t make me do this, Queen. Give us the Heart and our partnership won¡¯t have to end like this.¡± ¡°Do what you must, then,¡± she challenged him There was no fear in her expression. The Heart in a Vat beat faster in her right hand. ¡°It won¡¯t work, anyways,¡± she said, grinning confidently. GEO heaved a loud sigh. ¡°Farewell, Queen,¡± said the man as he pulled his sunglasses away. ¡°Wait,¡± recoiled Jumper as he jolted the arm to stop his partner, ¡°don¡¯t do it, GEO!¡± Yet he was not fast enough. Thief Queen closed her eyes. She made an appeal to the Heart in the Vat, ¡°please. Please listen to me.¡± The woman had no will to watch as Death embraced her. She felt as if she drifted into the unknown while her eyes closed, aware that her life would end at any millisecond as the last speck of sand went down the hourglass of life and death. She had no will to fight, as Pyre and Fallen would likely support GEO¡¯s cause. ¡°Is this¡±¡ªThief Queen ventured to open her eyes¡ª¡°Death?¡± she asked, wondering if she would unveil the mysteries of the afterlife. Yet the pizzeria remained around her, exactly as she had left. She searched her surroundings and found that the Skulls¡¯ recoiled as GEO pulled out his sunglasses to kill Thief Queen. Their expressions, like the snow that fell outside, were frozen in time. Yet there was truth in their gestures, as they had not had time to lie. She saw neither tears nor grief as she looked at them. What paraded on the faces of her companions, for whom Thief Queen would have given her life, was a relief. ¡°Just take me away from here,¡± she pleaded in disgust, ¡°I don¡¯t want to see these deplorable faces anywhere besides an obituary¡ª¡± She fell on her knees with both hands on her chest. ¡°W-What is this?¡± the woman cried in pain. She felt as if her heart had turned into heavy metal and her tendons could not hold it in place. ¡°T-The Heart in a Vat?¡± she asked, agonizing. ¡°It is inside me?¡± sobbed Thief Queen as she frowned at her chest and saw that her hands darkened. Her cells shriveled and died. Her limbs turned to ashes. ¡°No, no¡±¡ªshe collapsed onto the ground as her legs left her. Darkness engulfed the woman from all sides¡ª¡°I must stay alive, I¡­¡± She fought to stand even when her feet were gone. ¡°I mustn¡¯t die looking up to them!¡± she shouted in disgust as she carved their faces into her brain. ¡°I can¡¯t die!¡± she cried, helpless. Thief Queen could not see farther than she could breathe. She felt every limb in her body going numb as if she died one muscle at a time. The shadows devoured her. Lost, she rustled the name of her deceased comrade as if he were a light to show her the way, ¡°Gallant.¡± Her body disappeared. Only ashes and clothes littered the ground where she once stood. Time passed once again, and the Skulls searched their surroundings for her. Jumper rose his voice, aghast, ¡°w-w-where would Queen go? I felt like reality just crashed. I feel like someone hammered my skull¡­¡± Pyre bemoaned, ¡°I¡¯ve never seen anything like this. My brain¡±¡ªPyre collapsed on her knees¡ª¡°I feel like my head¡¯s burning.¡± GEO searched for the Heart in a Vat in Thief Queen¡¯s remnants. Fallen narrowed his eyes at the man. He rose his voice, ¡°where is she?¡± ¡°At least 800 meters away,¡± replied GEO, with empty hands. ¡°I can¡¯t detect her with any senses. The Heart is also gone.¡± ¡°Think you can find her?¡± ¡°Every glitch leaves a trail.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that was a glitch, GEO. She must be dead.¡± Jumper recoiled. ¡°Wait, Queen is dead?¡± asked the blond, falling on his backs. ¡°No, she can¡¯t be¡­¡± His lips trembled. He growled at GEO, ¡°You! It¡¯s your fault! You killed her, you animal! I thought that was just a bluff!¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say that Queen died unless there is absolute certainty, Alan,¡± asserted GEO as he walked to one of the pizzeria¡¯s windows. ¡°Whatever she did, we will find her and the relic.¡± Pyre chuckled. ¡°Should we, GEO? Really?¡± she questioned the man. ¡°We¡¯ll never find her with an army on our tail!¡± ¡°If it is not us, it¡¯ll be someone else. The Feds are but one threat. Every Glitcher in this country and beyond will want to retrieve the undefended spoil of a heist that only we could undertake. If they fail to see the signs, the desperation in the government will entice their curiosity. They will seek her,¡± said GEO as he rolled the pizzeria¡¯s curtains open and faced the sky. Northern lights covered the heavens like a pallet of clouds. He finished his speech as he stared at the wonders reigning above the town: ¡°The hunt is on.¡± The Northern Lights made their stage the skies of the American Midwest. The lights were visible from the forests of Manitoba to Tijuana. Yet Edward, who had fallen asleep while waiting for Adela¡¯s mother to leave the girl alone, slept near his window with both arms serving as pillows. He did not notice as a beacon of emerald light crawled through the gap in his window and basked his cheek. He felt an object pumping in his right hand. ¡°W-What is this?¡± he faltered. The boy opened his eyes and saw the Heart in a Vat between his fingers. ¡°I-Is this a nightmare?¡± he asked himself. A neon-like glow in his window robbed him of his attention. He rose his head and saw that his window reflected the purple light that his eyes emitted. Numbers hovered over his blurry reflection: Thief Queen¡¯s voice roamed Edward¡¯s head as he faced the image in the glass. ¡°Am I¡­¡± She faltered. ¡°Alive?¡±
II - The Voice in my Head tells me to do things. Is this normal?

II ¨C The Voice in my Head tells me to do things. Is this normal?!

Previously on ¡®Glitch¡¯: The infamous Glitcher known as Thief Queen steals the Heart in a Vat, a relic that supposedly makes dreams come true. However, she ends up betrayed by her partners from the Glitching Gang ¡®Skulls¡¯! Luckily, they fail to catch her: in the last moment, a mysterious power awakens to save her and the relic! Yet Thief Queen¡¯s mind now co-inhabits the mind of the gentle teenager Edward Williams, a passionate fan of Glitchers and all things anime! Now the relic, described as the command console of reality, is in possession of a clueless boy from Chicago! What¡¯s he gonna do?! -| Glitch - |

¡°G¡¯morning, Chicago!¡± buzzed a radio alarm-clock at Edward¡¯s apartment. The broadcaster¡¯s loud voice filled every chamber with sound. ¡°Here¡¯s J.J Strayan with your daily fix so you can start your day¡±¡ªairhorns and car horns furiously burst off the sound boxes¡ª¡°STRONGLY!¡± shouted the broadcaster at the top of his lungs. ¡°Argh!¡± bewailed Edward. He pressed his hands against his ears, envying the deaf. He had slept with his forehead rubbing against the window, and his backs hurt as if they had been ironed. J.J Strayan¡¯s uproar only added misery to his strife. ¡°Why did mom buy that radio?¡± grumbled the boy, squeezing his eyes shut as if he meant to trap the sleep. Yet a hand pulled his shirt. ¡°What?¡± faltered Edward, raising his head. ¡°Wake up, bro!¡± said his little sister, hoping to awaken him with her strident voice. ¡°Bro!¡± ¡°I-I¡¯m sleeping, Hermione!¡± The girl was named after her mother¡¯s favorite Harry Potter character. ¡°Don¡¯t care,¡± she replied. A tiara stood on top of her head. ¡°Breakfast!¡± squealed Hermione in a tone that made two grinding metals sound like Bach. Yet the sight of the Heart in a Vat pumping in her brother¡¯s hand bothered her. ¡°What is that in your hand?¡± she asked him, leaning forward. Her curiosity was hungrier than her stomach. ¡°It is drugs, isn¡¯t it? Mom suspects you¡¯re eating drugs. Dad gives them to you.¡± Edward recoiled. ¡°She what¡±¡ªhe rose his head and felt the odd cold metal object throbbing between his fingers¡ª¡°what the hell?¡± shouted the boy as he fell back in his chair. The Heart in a Vat sprung out of his hand and fell off the window. ¡°Ha! Bro said a bad word!¡± teased Hermione as she pointed at him and laughed. The boy jumped off the ground and stuck his head in the window to see if he could find where the heart had fallen. ¡°Where did it go, where did it go¡ª¡± A passerby screamed at him, ¡°Look at where you throw your trash, idiot!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry!¡± Edward yelled back. ¡°Please throw it in a bin, mister! I¡¯m gonna get it back n¡ª¡± ¡°No!¡± intervened Hermione. ¡°Aren¡¯t you forgetting something very important?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry?¡± ¡°Breakfast,¡± she said as she grasped at his shirt like ticks. ¡°Go grab your drugs later.¡± Edward rolled his eyes. He heaved a loud sigh and walked to the apartment¡¯s tiny kitchen. The boy quickly saw himself facing an oven with two golden eggs boiling in a frying pan. Hermione sat on a table with a fork in one hand, and a knife in the other. ¡°I¡¯m waiting,¡± she warned him as she touched the table with the cutlery. ¡°I gotta go fast,¡± grumbled Edward as he laid out the eggs with his spatula. His stomach moaned beneath his apron, yet he felt no hunger. Thoughts cooked in his head as he saw his reflection in the oven¡¯s metal surface. ¡°So that yesterday wasn¡¯t a nightmare?¡± he asked himself. He recalled the purple glow in his eyes and the eerie voice speaking in his head. ¡°For a moment I felt like I wasn¡¯t myself as if I had just become a spectator. It was almost like someone else had taken over¡ª¡± The radio alarm-clock buzzed, ¡°If you were awake yesterday at around 2 AM, you must have witnessed what some smartasses at NASA have described as somewhat of a rain of space trash followed by Northern Lights. They did not use those exact words, but here at Downtown Radio, J.J Strayan speaks in a way that you understand¡ª¡± Edward shrunk away, aghast. ¡°So there was indeed a rain of stars?¡± he asked with both eyes widened like pearls. ¡°So it was not a dream at all?¡± ¡°¡ªsome specialists, are describing the event as a magnetic anomaly that pulled some metal into Earth¡¯s atmosphere. Complex, no? Anyways, a US and Canadian joint effort is already surrounding the areas where the trash has supposedly fallen in order to keep you, the listener, safe. And speaking about safety, it¡¯s time for our public utility message sponsored by the US Department of Homeland Security,¡± he began, ¡°Snitch the Glitch! If you spot an illegal Glitcher, report them to the nearest public office! These reality-bending individuals could be anywhere, even inside your own home¡ª¡± Edward sighed and turned off the radio. Fearmongering about Glitchers had become as familiar as the birds singing in the morning. The boy looked away and poured salt into the egg yolks. Yet his arms trembled. He heard Thief Queen¡¯s voice in his head: ¡°Mercenaries who parade as journalists. Bloody vermins! The heist was the month¡¯s news and it doesn¡¯t make it into the morning headlines? The newsboys seem conscious that had it not been for Washington, they¡¯d all be flipping burgers.¡± The boy jumped back and dropped his spatula. ¡°W-Who is talking?¡± he asked, jolting his head left and right. His sister smirked. ¡°Bro, are you crazy?¡± she asked, mocking him. ¡°No, I¡­¡± He faltered, unsure of what had happened. ¡°I think I just heard a voice.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry¡±¡ªHermione dialed a telephone¡ª¡°I¡¯ll call mom and ask why you¡¯re hearing voices after sleeping with the drugs.¡± ¡°No, please don¡¯t!¡±This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Thief Queen¡¯s voice spoke to him once again, ¡°Can¡¯t you pay attention, you bloody toothpick? You¡¯re 8 seconds away from burning the eggs.¡± ¡°A-Alright!¡± replied Edward as he narrowed his eyes at the frying pan. ¡°I¡¯ll just turn this oven off and¡ª¡± His feet slipped on the grease of the fallen spatula. ¡°Damn it!¡± he screamed as he fell on his backs. His elbow hammered the pan¡¯s handle, and the object flipped upside down. His backs hit the ground and the eggs fell upon his apron. Hermione ran to his side. ¡°My eggs¡ª¡± ¡°Argh!¡± buffed Edward as he laid on his back. The steaming eggs burned on his apron like a pair of Suns. ¡°¡ªand my bro too, I guess!¡± completed Hermione. ¡°I-I-I got this!¡± said the boy as he grabbed the spatula and shoved the boiling food off his chest. ¡°Done!¡± he sighed in relief. Yet his sister was indifferent to his suffering. She narrowed her eyes at the clock. ¡°It¡¯s almost school time. What am I gonna eat?¡± she asked, facing him. Edward stood up and frowned at the wasted eggs. He breathed out heavily as if he exhaled his frustration. ¡°Mom¡¯s gonna talk a lot,¡± he remarked with a long sigh. Hermione insisted, ¡°Bro! My food!¡± ¡°Listen,¡± he crouched so that he could see her eye to eye, ¡°I¡¯m gonna give you some money and you buy something at school, alright?¡± ¡°Aight. Can I get a burrito?¡± ¡°I think that would be too caloric, no? And expensive¡ª¡± ¡°I¡¯ll tell mom...¡± The boy snatched his wallet from the kitchen counter. ¡°Four, five, six million¡­¡± Edward counted the money until there wasn¡¯t a single atom of any monetary worth in his wallet. ¡°Here,¡± he said with a scowl as he gave his last banknotes to his sister, ¡°this money was for my lunch¡±¡ªhis stomach grumbled as if it cried for the money that he gave her¡ª¡°but it should be enough for a cheap burrito,¡± he completed, nonchalantly. ¡°Thank you,¡± said Hermione as she grabbed the money and yanked her bag from a chair. ¡°I¡¯ll go to school with Iris and her mom now!¡± announced Hermione as she wore her shoes and opened the apartment¡¯s door. ¡°Bye!¡± ¡°Bye.¡± Edward looked away. He grumbled at the eggs that had fallen off his apron and smudged the floor. ¡°I¡¯m not going to get that metal thing back, am I?¡± he snorted at the yet-another-problem between him and Heart in a Vat. The boy sought a piece of fabric and cleaned the floor with passion. He rubbed the stains with a pallet of disinfectants, yet the mess refused to fade away. He resigned, ¡°desperate situations require desperate measures,¡± said as he spilled half a gallon of cleaning product on the ground to hide the grease stains, ¡°I¡¯m sure mom will not notice!¡± The boy sprung off the ground and left the apartment. ¡°I¡¯m glad I at least wore an apron,¡± remarked Edward as he ran down his building¡¯s stairs. The smell of trash and fuel from the streets guided him to the outside. ¡°I knew this day was going to be horrible,¡± he remarked as he reached the sidewalk. ¡°At least I did not taint my clothes¡ª¡± A monster truck sped down the street. The vehicle¡¯s giant wheels scared an entire puddle off the ground. Yet the waters sought refuge in the boy¡¯s clothes. Edward fell on his backs, soaked. ¡°Argh, damn it!¡± snorted the boy as he shoved the water off his eyelids. He felt as if he carried an entire pond in his clothes. He faced the vehicle and grumbled, ¡°can¡¯t they look where they drive¡ª¡± He noticed that the word ¡°Cubs¡± covered the truck¡¯s license plate under graffiti. Edward swallowed his complaints and rose from the sidewalk. ¡°So close. I should not anger these guys,¡± he remarked with both hands over his mouth, ¡°I¡¯d better just go find the thing.¡± The boy looked away and rushed to the trash bin into where the passerby had thrown the Heart in a Vat. The recipient was located in a dark alley that smelled like rotten milk. ¡°It must be here!¡± said Edward as he held his breath and uncovered the bin. He gathered the courage to dive his hand into the uncollected trash and find his lost treasure. ¡°There goes nothing¡ª¡± A foot dove against the object. The trash, including the Heart in a Vat, sprung off the bin and rolled on the ground. ¡°There it is!¡± said the boy. He yanked the heart from the ground with a wide grin on his face. He carried the object between the arms as if he held a baby. ¡°Ha-ha-ha! Thank you, sir!¡± said Edward as he faced his mysterious helper. ¡°W-Wait, Macro?¡± The boy swallowed dry. ¡°Yeah, me,¡± said Macro, stretching his neck. ¡°And that wasn¡¯t charity, dude.¡± Macro was a tall punk boy with a scar on his chin. He looked as if Edward¡¯s reflection from a parallel world. His short silvery hair hid underneath a black bandana stamped with the drawing of a wolf. Aside from the pristine headgear, all his clothes were ripped and soiled. He looked as if he had wrestled a Lion on his way to the alley. Edward faltered.¡°T-Thanks for the help?¡± he risked an answer as he hid the Heart in a Vat in his pocket. ¡°Thanks?¡± asked Macro, glancing at the fallen trash bin. ¡°You think I go around kicking things for fun? You must have blue balls to make fun of me like this.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not making fun of you, I¡ª¡± ¡°That would be quite a good idea, though. Kicking things¡­¡± Pondered Macro. ¡°You see that¡±¡ªhe pointed at the deformed trash bin¡ª¡°give me some support, and that @#&% won¡¯t happen to your face.¡± ¡°Support?¡± Macro rolled his eyes. He clarified, ¡°That¡¯s money, dude.¡± ¡°B-But I don¡¯t have money, I¡ª¡± ¡°You¡¯ll tell me your dog ate it?¡± asked the punk as he grabbed Edward by the shirt. Their height difference was so great that he lifted the boy off his feet. Edward bargained, ¡°I-I gave it all to my little sister Hermione! You know her, right? She studies with your brother. They are in the same class!¡± explained the boy. He noticed that Macro¡¯s scowl faltered as if he touched the bully¡¯s weak point. He continued, ¡°I-I tried making her breakfast but I was in a hurry. I had to retrieve a metal heart that appeared in my bedroom last night. When I was making Hermione¡¯s breakfast, I heard a strange voice and I got scared. I ended up ruining everything and had to give my sister all my money so that she could buy some food¡ª¡± Macro swung his fist at Edward¡¯s cheek. The thin boy rolled on the ground and banged his backs against a fence. ¡°Argh!¡± Edward moaned in pain. He opened his eyes and saw his bully snapping the fingers as he approached. ¡°You think you are very funny, right?¡± snorted Macro. He had marked the boy¡¯s face with his fist. Thinking well, it does sound a bit absurd, reflected Edward with a cheek touching the concrete. A beacon of light slithered through the rooftops of the alley where the boys fought. The light revealed a golden watch around Macro¡¯s right wrist. The accessory looked so alien on the punk that Edward wondered if he had gotten brain damage from the punch. The watch looked like a hallucination. Macro groaned, ¡°My face is up here, can¡¯t you see?¡± W-What¡¯s going on with Macro, Edward thought to himself, he always beats me up, but he never steals anything. He has a job. Why is he coming after money now?¡± ¡°So what is it gonna be, huh?¡± asked Macro as he lifted Edward by the shirt one more time. ¡°Will you give me your cash or serve as a punching bag?¡± He sounded as if he struggled to find words that made him threatening. ¡°I-I said I don¡¯t have any money in me, Macro! But if you chose to believe this¡­¡± The boy clenched his fists. ¡°We¡¯ll have to¡ª¡± Thief Queen spoke in Edward¡¯s head, ¡°Don¡¯t even try, toothpick. You should have told your sister that you were broke. It¡¯s not like she lacks reserves.¡± The boy shrunk in pain as he heard her voice. He felt as if his brain boiled. He closed his eyes in the hope that the agony would end. Yet Queen continued, nonchalantly: ¡°You stand no chance, toothpick. But I do,¡± she remarked as the boy agonized. ¡°Give in, and I¡¯ll teach this cunt some anatomy.¡± Edward cried in pain. ¡°G-Get away from me!¡± he yelled. Macro recoiled. ¡°What did you just say to me, dude?¡± he snorted. ¡°I¡¯m talking to the voice in my head!¡± grumbled Edward as he opened his eyes to face Macro. Words blurred the boy¡¯s vision of the bully. ¡°C-Can you wait a moment ¡®till I¡¯m done with them?¡± ¡°No!¡± ¡°P-Please?¡± ¡°You are asking to die, aren¡¯t you?¡± grunted Macro as he tightened his grasp of Edward¡¯s shirt. Steam came out of his nose as if he were a mad bull. The punk rose the right fist and calculated a punch that would send the boy¡¯s jaw flying. Thief Queen, speaking from inside Edward¡¯s head, insisted,¡°You must give in. He¡¯ll break you in half like a chalk¡ª¡± ¡°S-Shut up!¡± replied the boy, resisting the temptation. ¡°Please just leave me alone!¡± The woman mocked him, ¡°Want to know what, toothpick¡±¡ªshe laughed¡ª¡°this will be fun to watch. Enjoy your trip to the hospital. Ha-ha-ha¡­¡± Numbers hovered over Macro¡¯s head. They spelled Edward¡¯s doom: ¡°Any last words, dude?¡± asked Macro. Edward flinched and closed his eyes. ¡°Crap.¡± Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: ??? (Coming soon) III - The (Respectfully) Busty Princess of Chicago

III ¨C The (Respectfully) Busty Princess of Chicago

Previously on ¡®Glitch¡¯: Macro, the local bully, is about to give Edward the beating of a lifetime! Yet something seems to be troubling the guy. It is almost as if he did not want to hurt Edward! (He¡¯ll still do it, though) For Thief Queen, who is still trapped in Edward¡¯s head, it doesn¡¯t matter! She asks her host to give in and let her solve the situation. Yet what could her offer mean? The boy is resilient, and he refuses her strange deal. However, nothing now stands between his face and Macro¡¯s fist. What will happen now?

-| Glitch - |
Macro had Edward pinned with the backs against the wall. The boy swallowed dry. The punk¡¯s fist hovered over his face like a predator about to pounce. ¡°Your last chance, dude,¡± warned Macro. He was twice as strong as Edward, and it showed. The numbers did not lie. ¡°Hand the money,¡± he ordered. ¡°C-Can¡¯t you just have my word that I¡¯ll pay you tomorrow?¡± bargained Edward. He carried the Heart in a Vat in a pocket. ¡°I really need to go home real quick¡ª¡± ¡°I need it now.¡± ¡°Well,¡± Edward faltered, ¡°maybe I could pay interest.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t decide if you have a death wish or if you are a moron¡ª¡± A loud whistle echoed across the dark alley. ¡°What now?¡± snorted Macro as he turned at the exit of the alleyway. The shadow of a girl around their age eclipsed the sunlit street outside. She pointed at the punk¡¯s face and rose her voice, ¡°One more touch and you¡¯ll be back to a detention center, Mark Ross.¡± An ultraviolet monocle covered her left eye. She could see that the police had tagged the punk with a UV pen. Edward faltered as he faced his bully, ¡°Mark Ross? You got a name?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m a freaking indigent,¡° remarked Macro as he narrowed his eyes at the girl. ¡°So you are gonna send me to a re-education center? You and what army?¡± he challenged her. Two men in black suits covered the exit of the alleyway. They were so large that their suits blocked the alley like a bulkhead. Their shoulders were so vast and straight that they could pass as a wall. The girl smirked. ¡°Are Steve & Steven good enough for you, Mark?¡± she asked, chortling maniacally. ¡°I could call more.¡± Macro buffed. He spat on the ground and pulled his body away from Edward. ¡°Cow,¡± snorted the punk as he stuck his hands in his jacket and walked away. He stood no chance against the girl¡¯s brutes. Edward sighed in relief. He faced his saviors. ¡°T-Thank you!¡± he said as he walked to the girl so that he could bow to her in gratitude. She recoiled. ¡°Not so fast!¡± she yelled. ¡°What¡ª¡± Steve & Steven surrounded Edward. Steve held the boy by the jacket as if he held a cat by the scruff while Steven searched his clothes. ¡°Wait, wait!¡± protested Edward. ¡°Why are you touching there, it¡¯s personal¡ª¡± ¡°No drugs, Ms. Marchesi,¡± said Steven. His sunglasses were so dark that Edward wondered how he could even see. ¡°Just some weird toy,¡± finished the man as he showed the Heart in a Vat to his boss. ¡°It¡¯s smelling funny, though.¡± ¡°Looks innocent. Just because the Cubs own this area, it doesn¡¯t mean that everyone is a thug,¡± she said, crossing her arms and approaching Edward. Her long black hair was straight and lustrous like silk. The skirt of her private school uniform alone seemed more expensive than all the houses on that block. She wore a choker with a hammer-shaped whistle attached. ¡°Wait, Marchesi?¡± asked the boy, recoiling. ¡°Are you a parent of Judge Marchesi, the mayor?¡± ¡°I prefer Sophie Marchesi,¡± she said in a pompous manner. ¡°I¡¯d grab your hand but you are kinda sme¡ª¡± The boy could not lift his sights away from her chest. Her voluptuous bust barely fit in her uniform¡¯s blouse. They resembled a pair of golden Suns setting over her ocean-blue blouse. ¡°Oh my God,¡± he faltered, ¡°is that a¡ª¡± She slapped him so hard that the boy fell to the ground. ¡°A-Argh!¡± Edward agonized. She had hit him on the same cheek that Macro had punched. Thief Queen, who watched everything from inside his mind, mocked him yet again, ¡°I hope it is a closed fist next time.¡± Sophie Marchesi¡¯s cheeks reddened. Her hands covered her chest. She screamed at a hurt Edward, ¡°what you think you were looking at, you perv?¡± ¡°O-Ouch¡­¡± He narrowed his eyes at her. ¡°I wasn¡¯t looking at your breasts! I was gonna talk about your school¡¯s shield! That¡¯s the Sacred Heart Institute, isn¡¯t it? That¡¯s where they teach about Glitchers,¡± he said, glancing at the pressed shield beneath her chest. ¡°I found it interesting, it¡¯s all.¡± Sophie rolled her eyes. She heaved a long sigh. A part of her conceded that her reaction was unmeasured. ¡°Fair enough,¡± she resigned while facing Steve & Steven, ¡°listen to what I¡¯ll tell you, guys.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t we just hit him instead?¡± they bargained, disappointed. ¡°We¡¯ll give this boy¡ª¡± She glanced at him, expecting that he¡¯d tell her his name. ¡°Edward,¡± he said. ¡°That¡¯s my name.¡± ¡°¡ªWe¡¯ll give Edward a ride home in the limousine. I may have been a bit excessive on my punishment,¡± she conceded. ¡°I think I¡¯m bleeding,¡± the boy remarked with a hand on his cheek. ¡°Just a little bit excessive,¡± she insisted, rolling her eyes. ¡°Let¡¯s go to the limousine, shall we?¡± ¡°I-I actually go to school now,¡± he mumbled, ¡°I have a test in 20 minutes. Just please give me my toy back,¡± he said, glancing at the Heart in a Vat. ¡°I¡¯ll go straight to school, I swear. It¡¯s much faster to get there on foot¡ª¡± Sophie rolled her eyes. ¡°Fine! We¡¯ll drive Edward to school,¡± she resigned. ¡°B-But I just told you that¡ª¡± ¡°I heard enough. Let¡¯s go,¡± she said. ¡°I hope they at least have showers there.¡±Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Edward, Steve & Steven, and Sophie Marchesi walked to her limousine. Both bodyguards raced and competed to see who would open the door for her first. ¡°No need for this chivalry,¡± she said as she entered the vehicle. Edward followed her yet both men lifted him off his feet. ¡°You sit by our side, pervert,¡± they asserted. ¡°I-Is this necessary?¡± ¡°Why the scowl?¡± they smirked as they threw him into the limousine. ¡°Aren¡¯t we cute?¡± Edward sat pressed between both men. Although the vehicle was larger than the boy¡¯s bedroom, Steve & Steven were so huge that not a single more atom fit on their couch. Sophie grinned at Edward. ¡°Comfy?¡± she asked while twirling her hair and looking at her phone¡¯s screen. ¡°N-Not that much,¡± the boy replied while glancing at Steve & Steven¡¯s sunglasses. ¡°Do they have to wear those even in the dark? Both men replied, ¡°Yes.¡± The girl giggled at him. ¡°Don¡¯t mind my bodyguards,¡± said Sophie. ¡°The scarier they are, the better they are paid. Dad likes them overprotective. He says we can never be that safe when Glitchers are around.¡± Edward moaned. His brain boiled as Thief Queen spoke in his head: ¡°Mayor Judge Enzo Marchesi, the biggest hypocrite in America. Snitch an Illegal Glitcher near you and the police will be there in 2 minutes. Get your entire block razed by some gangbangers and all that you will get from him are thoughts and feelings,¡± she snorted. ¡°The Cubs extort people and do what they want with half the city. Yet Mayor Marchesi has the balls of running up for governor saying that Chicago has never been so safe. All because of his witch-hunts of Glitchers. If this dimwit really hated Glitchers that much, his daughter¡¯s driver wouldn¡¯t be one.¡± The boy recoiled. ¡°W-What?¡± pondered Edward as he glanced at the limousine¡¯s driver. A status card took shape over the man¡¯s head: Sophie rose her voice, ¡°Hey¡±¡ªshe waved her hand to catch the boy¡¯s attention¡ª¡°Eddy!¡± ¡°H-Hi?¡± he asked, narrowing his eyes at her. ¡°You study at St. Michael¡¯s High, correct? It¡¯s the local high school.¡± ¡°U-Unfortunately,¡± he replied. ¡°Cool.¡± Edward looked away and faced the beggars and wild dogs littering the streets. The trash on the sidewalk, the broken shop windows, and the ruined neighborhoods were a painful sight for him. The girl crossed her arms, discontent with his distraction. ¡°You are not really a fan of my dad, are you?¡± she asked him. ¡°Young people generally don¡¯t like him. They prefer the Glitchers.¡± Sophie glanced at the headlines from fresh newspapers by her side: ¡°US ¡®King Lear¡¯ Armored Train arrives at downtown Chicago for anti-Glitcher drills. ¡®Necessary¡¯, describes Mayor Marchesi.¡± Edward faltered. ¡°I just don¡¯t get it. What¡¯s an Armored Train going to do for someone who got mugged in an alley?¡± argued the boy. He glanced at the newspaper. ¡°When people see things like that, they just think that the government is doing all it can to protect itself, not us. Glitchers don¡¯t harm the little guy. If they hadn¡¯t been kicked off Chicago, the Cubs would have grown as much¡ª¡± ¡°You¡¯re so na?ve,¡± she said, smirking. ¡°You really believe a Glitcher would use their power to protect you, not themselves?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t, I¡±¡ªEdward rested his fists on his thighs¡ª¡°I just know that the government is not the one who will do it,¡± he spoke with absolute certainty. Sophie rolled her eyes. ¡°You see, Steve?¡± she uttered while crossing her legs. ¡°This is why I don¡¯t discuss politics with suburban fools. Especially when they wear Skulls merchandise,¡± she said, glancing at a ring in his right hand. Steve & Steven scowled at the boy. ¡°Skulls¡¯ merchandise?¡± they asked. ¡°T-This is not merchandise!¡± He faltered, hiding his ring. ¡°This is my dad¡¯s paratrooper ring. I drew some skulls on it, that is all.¡± The girl giggled. ¡°Sure¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s true!¡± She smirked. ¡°So he was foolish enough to fight in Pakistan?¡± asked Sophie. Edward surprised her with a quick answer.¡°Karachi,¡± he replied in a serious tone. The silence made a long speech in the vehicle as Sophie and Edward stared at each other. She had done a feat: robbing Edward of his tranquil self. The vehicle stopped. Kimura, the limousine¡¯s driver, rose his voice, ¡°We are here. Tell the Glitcher-lover to come out.¡± Edward complied. He left his seat before Steve & Steven could show him the way out. The door opened automatically and he left the limousine. Sophie Marchesi spoke her last words to the boy, ¡°And if you ever get in trouble again, Eddy¡±¡ªshe smirked¡ª¡°call the Batman. He¡¯ll come help you before any Glitcher, I¡¯m sure of it.¡± Steve & Steven laughed like a chorus. ¡°Bye, kid,¡± said one of them (both were indistinguishable) as the limousine¡¯s doors closed. The vehicle sped away. A trail of thick grey smoke was the once trace that the limousine was ever there. ¡°T-This is a school zone, people!¡± protested Edward. ¡°Don¡¯t go so fast¡ª¡± He coughed as if he had a frog in his throat. The school¡¯s bells rang. There was no time to complain. ¡°Oh, crap!¡± groaned the boy as he turned around and ran to school. Yet something bothered him. ¡°I almost forgot¡±¡ªhe stopped and paid his respects to a stone memorial that stood by the building¡¯s entrance¡ª¡°now I can go!¡± Words marked the monument: ¡°For the 72 Lives of St. Michael. You are gone, but not forgotten.¡± Thief Queen, who was still trapped in the boy¡¯s head, kept her thoughts to herself as she watched him pray for the victims of a massacre. ¡°The blood of that girl¡¯s brain probably went elsewhere,¡± she said, ¡°but this Edward kid seems odd. I first took him for a gutless wack wimp, but I think there is some paratrooper in him¡±¡ªshe corrected herself¡ª¡°some.¡± Edward looked away from the monument and ran to his classroom. The hallways were empty, denouncing that the students had already gone to their classes. His steps were the only ones that he heard in the corridors.¡°Come, come on! Open!¡± said the boy as he wrestled with his rusty locker. The locks refused to open. ¡°There is no way,¡± he resigned, ¡°I¡¯ll have to ask for a pen once I get there.¡± His locker won the fight. Edward turned around and hurried to his class. ¡°Two minutes, two minutes,¡± he rustled as he climbed the stairs with empty hands. Yet a thought shackled his legs. ¡°Wait,¡± he faltered, ¡°Adela will be there. She might want to talk about the heist from yesterday¡±¡ªhe swallowed dry¡ª¡°I can¡¯t just go inside while looking like I came from the sewer.¡± He rose his frown to face the school¡¯s clock. He still had four minutes. ¡°A mirror won¡¯t hurt,¡± said the boy as he rushed into the nearest bathroom and faced his reflection. He was wet, hurt and cashless. ¡°B-But maybe I¡¯ll look okay if I sit by her right¡­¡± Bargained Edward as he assessed the left side of his face in the mirror. ¡°Never mind, it still looks horrible,¡± he gripped. ¡°What if I¡ª¡± He heard Macro¡¯s voice from inside a bathroom stall. ¡°Listen, Brandon,¡± the punk spoke on his cell phone, ¡°I¡¯ll get your money, okay? Give me one day! Just let my brother be¡ª¡± The phone buzzed as Brandon spoke. Although Edward could not hear what the man said, Macro wept. The sound of the punk sobbing was terrifying enough to disgruntle the boy. He thought that he would live a hundred years without ever hearing him cry. Macro screamed at the phone, ¡°This is my problem, I owe you guys money! I suffer the consequences, not Joey. I joined the Cubs! I messed up! Leave him alone, you hear? If you touch that kid¡±¡ªMacro sobbed¡ª¡°i-if any of you slimes touch that kid¡­¡± He growled, maddened. ¡°You¡¯ll have to kill me because I¡¯ll be coming for you!¡± Thief Queen spoke to Edward in his head, ¡°He¡¯s only making things worse.¡± Brandon spoke and the phone buzzed loud. Yet Macro¡¯s rage was even louder: ¡°Listen, Brandon; I¡¯m going there, you want it or not!¡± he yelled at the phone. ¡°But if you touch Joey, dude,¡± he snorted, ¡°if any of you touch Joey, you are all screwed.¡± The punk stormed out of the bathroom stall. His body trembled. Tears reddened his eyes and blurred his sights on what was around him. ¡°Damn it¡ª¡± He stumbled upon a puddle and fell to the ground. His phone slid off his jacket¡¯s pocket. Edward hurried to help the punk. ¡°Macro, here,¡± said the boy, offering his hand to help the punk get back on his feet. ¡°Let me help.¡± Macro ignored the offer. He stood up by himself and walked to the exit of the bathroom, nonchalantly. Edward insisted, ¡°Please wait, Macro!¡± You don¡¯t have to do this by yourself!¡± The punk stopped. He glanced at Edward, who insisted for him to stop: ¡°You don¡¯t have to do this by yourself! I can help you,¡± continued Edward, yanking Macro¡¯s phone from the ground. ¡°You are not alone,¡± finished Edward. He stretched both hands towards Macro. The device laid upon the boy¡¯s palms. Its screen shinned beneath the phone¡¯s shattered glass. ¡°Yeah?¡± replied Macro, embittered. He ignored the offer and turned around. ¡°You speak like you know @&*% about my life,¡± he remarked with disdain as he left the bathroom. Edward hesitated. The boy frowned upon his scrawny reflection on Macro¡¯s damaged cell phone. The mark of the punk¡¯s fist on his face was but one of the many arguments that he had for ignoring Macro¡¯s problems. ¡°I need that grade,¡± faltered Edward. He fought a battle inside his head. ¡°If I fluke again, mom will certainly¡ª¡± He swallowed his fears. He felt ashamed for hesitating.¡°No! I gotta take this fear off my head. I¡¯m the only one who can stop Macro. I must do this,¡± asserted the boy, determined to do something. How could he judge the world for having given up when he let an opportunity to do what is right pass him by? Edward ran out of the bathroom. ¡°Macro, wait!¡± he shouted. Thief Queen watched the scene from inside his head, amused. ¡°I¡¯m curious, toothpick,¡± she spoke to him. ¡°What are you going to do? Serve as a company for him in the grave?¡± ¡°I will do what it takes,¡± affirmed Edward, unsure if he had gone mad because he answered a voice in his head, or because he was about to take a beating for someone who would never do the same for him. Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: ??? (Coming soon) IV - Awaken the King of Thieves! You are all S-C-R-E-W-E-D!

IV ¨C Awaken the King of Thieves! You are all S-C-R-E-W-E-D!

Previously on ¡®Sonic Boom: The Ice Age¡¯: Thanks to an intervention from Sophia Marchesi, a relative of the Anti-Glitcher mayor Judge Marchesi, Edward escapes from Macro! Yet as the boy arrives at school, he hears Macro talking to ¡®Brandon¡¯, a supposed member of the Cubs (a powerful gang of Chicago), about having a debt that he is unable to pay. ¡®Brandon¡¯ threatens Macro¡¯s little brother, Joey. Maddened, the punk recklessly leaves school to go confront the Cubs all by himself. Edward, determined to help Macro even if it means fluking a test and getting beaten, decides to help him. Was it a poor choice? Yes, it was. What will happen now? Let¡¯s find out!

-| Glitch - |
¡°911, what¡¯s the address of your emergency?¡± buzzed the phone that Edward held against his right ear. ¡°Listen,¡± he replied, ¡°my friend is gone mad. He¡¯ll confront the Cubs by himself and he might die¡ª¡± ¡°Give me the address.¡± Edward peeked behind a wall to see where Macro was headed. He described what he saw: ¡°It¡¯s a basketball court in an alley, Meserole Street Number¡ª¡± ¡°Give me the name of the neighborhood.¡± ¡°I-Is It really important?¡± he faltered. He knew that there were many areas in Chicago where the police refused to go. Yet the attendant did not reply his obvious question. ¡°Okay,¡± resigned Edward. He closed his eyes and crossed the fingers. ¡°It¡¯s Jefferson Park¡ª¡± The attendant hung up on him. All that he heard were beeps. Edward groaned, ¡°Come on! Can¡¯t they at least pretend that they¡¯ll do something about it?¡± Macro¡¯s voice echoed across the alley: ¡°I¡¯m here, Brandon!¡± The boy peeked behind the wall. He spied upon Macro¡¯s meeting with the Cubs. ¡°Hey! I¡¯m here! You blind?¡± yelled Macro. He stood by a sports court where three men played basketball. ¡°I¡¯m talking to you!¡± he repeated himself. The punk snorted. The sound of bouncing balls, laughter, music and barking dogs at the basketball court drowned out his voice. Yet Macro insisted, ¡°Drop this ball and come negotiate, you son of a¡ª¡± ¡°Son of a what?¡± replied Brandon with a basketball between the hands. He was a tall man who wore so much silver jewelry that he could decorate a Christmas tree. A silvery wolf stamped the man¡¯s bandana, representing The Cubs. ¡°Better not start the sentence you lack the balls to finish,¡± he said as he faced Macro. ¡°I¡¯m here to end this.¡± ¡°Really?¡± asked the gangster, smirking. Two shady men, both wearing bandanas of the Cubs, stood by his side. They laughed at Macro¡¯s insolence. Brandon continued: ¡°If you wanna die, wait until I¡¯m done with my game. I don¡¯t want any of your filthy blood tainting my basketball court. My homie here might get dirty¡±¡ªhe kissed his basketball. Signatures from dozens of legendary players covered the object¡¯s surface¡ª¡°this #&% is worth more than you. &$¡§%*, I¡¯d have to bring your ass back to life just so you can lick it clean.¡± Macro snorted in protest, ¡°I don¡¯t care about your stupid game¡±¡ªhe removed his broken golden watch and threw it at Brandon¡ª¡°I¡¯m paying my debt so you can leave me and my brother alone.¡± ¡°Oh, Macro. Did you steal from your grandma just for me? How sweet!¡± remarked Brandon as he experimented Macro¡¯s watch. ¡°It looks pretty good,¡± said the man as he stretched his arm, ¡°who was the owner?¡± ¡°It was mine.¡± ¡°And how¡¯d you get that? Mom and dad left you more than a burnt house?¡± Brandon¡¯s subordinates laughed at the quip. Yet Macro¡¯s scowl only became uglier. ¡°It¡¯s none of your business,¡± replied the punk. ¡°I see¡­¡± Smirked Brandon as he bit the watch to test the integrity of the cold. ¡°This is no cheap copy, though. Even a connoisseur like me got impressed. There¡¯s only one problem with it all¡ª¡± ¡°No buts, Brandon. We had a deal¡ª¡± ¡°We had. And I¡¯m not saying this watch won¡¯t pay some interest, ¡®cause it will. But only until next week.¡±Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°N-Next week? What?¡± ¡°That¡¯s how it goes, Mark. This &$#% will go straight to a pawnshop. Sorry,¡± he said, storing the watch in his pockets. ¡°If Boss catches anyone else wearing gold, we are dead. Rules are rules.¡± Veins pumped on Macro¡¯s forehead. ¡°Screw that, dude!¡± he screamed. ¡°We had a deal, you mother¡ª¡± One of the Cubs sucker punched the boy¡¯s chin. ¡°Argh!¡± moaned as Macro fell to the ground, hurt. Blood trickled down his lips. His vision was blurry. All he saw was Brandon looking down to him with both arms crossed and a large grin between the cheeks ¡°We had a deal,¡± explained the gangster, ¡°and now I¡¯m changing it. You, Mark¡±¡ªBrandon grinned¡ª¡° better comply or I might change it again. Think about Joey, your little bro. I talked to him today on his way to school¡­¡± Brandon chortled as he saw the punk¡¯s skin reddening with anger. ¡°Good kid, that Joey. But he still thinks his bro is a hero. Might as well believe in Santa Claus¡ª¡± Macro sprung from the ground and jolted his fist at Brandon. Yet the Cubs held the punk by the arms. ¡°Go¡­¡± Growled Macro. He faced Brandon with eyes that were as red as the ones from a mad bull. ¡°Go to hell!¡± A couple young women giggled. They sat on benches by the basketball court to watch the Cubs play. Yet the suffering from Macro was a much more entertaining event. ¡°This kid looks so pissed, Brandog,¡± remarked a girl with her eyes narrowed at the punk, ¡°why don¡¯t you invite him to play? Poor kid might calm down.¡± Brandon smiled. ¡°Now that¡¯s a good idea, Melina,¡± remarked the gangster as he blinked at the women. He touched Macro¡¯s hurt chin. ¡°Macro, kid,¡± he began, ¡°you¡¯re damn lucky I¡¯m a man of the ladies. I got love in the heart and look at that: there¡¯s even some for you. So come here, let¡¯s play,¡± said the gangster as he stepped back and dribbled his basketball. ¡°Let¡¯s play a bit, come on, man. Come on!¡± The two Cubs faced Brandon, hesitant. ¡°Bran, you sure we let him free?¡± they asked. ¡°Yeah, why not?¡± asked the gangster, smiling. ¡°Didn¡¯t the Romans let lions out in the arena? You guys are scared of some &%¡§$% kid? Come on,¡± he shouted at them, ¡°it¡¯s just a game! He can stand by himself.¡± The Cubs exchanged sights, confused about what their boss planned. They moved away from Macro and scattered around the basketball court. Macro staggered, disoriented. He felt as if a hammer had mauled his head. The punk was so dizzy that he punched the air, imagining that Brandon stood near him. The gangster beamed at the scene. ¡°Since my boy here seems aggressive, we¡¯ll let him start. Catch!¡± He said as he heaved the basketball at Macro¡¯s hurt cheek. The punk faltered, ¡°W-What¡ª¡± The ball slammed his wounded head and knocked him back to the ground. ¡°Argh!¡± bewailed the punk, agonizing. The Cubs burst out laughing. ¡°Come on, man! Ha-ha!¡± partied Brandon. ¡°It¡¯s just a bruise, don¡¯t be so dramatic! Stand up! Let¡¯s play!¡± Macro gritted his teeth. Veins pumped on his forehead. His trembling arms pushed himself up. He saw the sweat dripping off his hair as he rose his head from the ground. ¡°You¡±¡ªhe moaned in pain as he struggled to lift himself off the dirt. Rage fueled his actions. He eyed the throats of the Cubs like a predator¡ª¡°I¡¯ll make you pay for this!¡± Brandon rose his voice yet again, ¡°Hey, Macro! Watch your left flank, man!¡± ¡°What¡ª¡± One of the Cubs kicked him in the stomach. Macro¡¯s body hit the grime yet again. The punk spilled blood and sucked air. Brandon and his subordinates burst out laughing at his suffering. The punk¡¯s suffering was like a comedy spectacle. ¡°5 seconds playing and you¡¯re already tired?¡± teased the gangster as he took a pair of metal knuckles from his pockets and dressed them. ¡°Stand up for us to play more, kid. We are having fun.¡± Edward looked away as yet another of Macro¡¯s screams echoed for all the neighborhood to hear. ¡°I must do something!¡± said the boy. Tears filled his eyes. ¡°They will kill him!¡± He ran to the basketball court without hesitation. Yet a pressure grew in his head and stalled him. ¡°W-W-What?¡± he faltered, falling to his knees. He felt as if his brain steamed. Thief Queen spoke in his mind,¡°You know that not only they are much stronger, they also outnumber you? They are cruel, toothpick.¡± ¡°Argh!¡± bemoaned the boy, agonizing. He endured the pain and opened his eyes to see the path ahead of him. He ignored the voice in his head and followed Macro¡¯s screams. The woman insisted for him to stop: ¡°Think, toothpick. You¡¯ll get skinned alive¡ª¡± ¡°If we only fought when we had chances to win, no one would stand up for anything!¡± replied Edward, persisting. ¡°M-Macro¡¯s waiting for me!¡± ¡°Cute, yet stupid,¡± she provoked him. ¡°You are aware that this city belongs to the Cubs? Even if you, by a bloody miracle, succeed; they¡¯ll still find out who you are and come after you. There is no way you can win. Joining your friend will only multiply your incompetence.¡± ¡°Then what do you propose? Abandoning him?¡± protested Edward. ¡°If you don¡¯t have a better idea, just shut u¡ª ¡± He felt as if his head were in flames. The pain was like a mountain that he carried over his shoulders. ¡°What you¡¯re feeling right now,¡± argued Thief Queen, ¡°is less than a fraction of the pain that they¡¯ll make you feel. If you truly care about Macro, you won¡¯t do what makes you look good, but what will save him. Listen to me,¡± she began, ¡°I can do this. I see your reality as someone who is trying to wake up from a dream. But every time I try to awaken, you pull me back down. I just need you to let go, and I¡¯ll save your friend¡¯s life,¡± she promised. Edward could not rise off his knees. He faced a puddle as tears fell from his eyelids and smudged his reflection. He confessed, ¡°I-I¡¯m pathetic.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t have to be like this. Give in.¡± ¡°N-No!¡± he said, gritting his teeth. ¡°I just wanted to be courageous and do what¡¯s right for someone else! I wanted to do something that matters!¡± ¡°I¡¯m giving you a chance to do exactly that.¡± Macro¡¯s scream echoed across the alley. They served Thief Queen as the perfect argument. ¡°Your chancing is passing you by, toothpick,¡± she reminded him. ¡°You want to honor that ring from your dad?¡± Edward glanced at his Airborne-Paratrooper ring. The ring did not fit the boy: neither physically, nor spiritually. He took a deep breath and resigned, ¡°Do what it takes, whatever you are. Just¡±¡ªhe sobbed¡ª¡°just save Macro.¡± ¡°Now we are talking.¡± The boy¡¯s head burned. He rose his eyes to the skies to cry in pain, yet he had no voice. Thunder moaned in the sky as if the incoming storm cried out in his place. Water fell from the clouds, but Edward could not feel the cold touch of the rain. The boy was gone. Thief Queen had taken control of him. ¡°I have returned,¡± she told herself, raising from the ground and facing her reflection. She had become neither herself nor the boy. She had become a young man with an ominous aura. His eyes carried a fluorescent purple luster. He looked like a perfected version of Edward: taller, stronger and deeper voiced. His curly hair displayed even more curls. Numbers hovered over his reflection in the puddle: ¡°This shall suffice,¡± he rustled to himself as lightening painted a white stripe across the skies of Chicago. Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: V - A Match with the Thief King (GONE WRONG) (GONE EVIL)

V - A Match with the Thief King (GONE WRONG) (GONE EVIL)

Previously on ¡®Glitch¡¯: Macro tried to confront The Cubs by himself. Guess what, he is getting the beating of his life! Edward, seeing that he cannot do anything for his ¡°friend¡±, saw no option: he accepted the deal from the Thief Queen and let her take over his body! Storm clouds hover over Chicago as Thief King Edward steps into the fray! Will the promise be upheld and Macro will be saved? Or has Thief Queen tricked Edward just so that he could take over his body? Let¡¯s find out!

-| Glitch - |
¡°A boy¡¯s body?¡± grumbled Thief King Edward as he faced his reflection in a puddle. The light from his purple eyes colored his image. He had the soul of Thief Queen controlling him. ¡°What a drag,¡± sighed the man, disappointed. He snatched the Heart in a Vat from his pockets. ¡°At least now I have a body to work with. I will study the heart, become me again and then get my revenge. This world will fall¡ª¡± He heard Edward¡¯s boyish voice buzzing in his head like a bug. ¡°What are you doing?¡± he asked, desperate. ¡°You promised to rescue Macro!¡± Thief King rolled his eyes as he walked away from the alley. The man spoke to himself, ¡°Correction: my first wish will be to get toothpick out of my head.¡± Macro¡¯s screams echoed from the basketball court. They were loud enough for the entire neighborhood to hear. The Cubs battered the punk, whose only desire was getting them out of his life for the sake of his younger brother. Edward pleaded, ¡°Please! I don¡¯t care what you do next, just save him!¡± The man stopped and faced his reflection in the Heart in a Vat. His eerie purple eyes shined more intensely than the thunder that roamed the cloudy skies of Chicago. Edward insisted for him to save Macro, ¡°You know that is the right thing to do.¡± Thief King faltered. The painful feeling of being alone and betrayed was still a fresh wound in the soul of the Thief Queen, who controlled the man¡¯s body. For her, Macro¡¯s screams sounded louder than the storm. His despair was familiar. She knew well that there was no one else in the world who could help him. ¡°You know what?¡± Thief King resigned. ¡°I haven¡¯t made anyone go through unbelievable suffering in a while. This will be a good entertainment.¡± The man turned around and entered the alleyway that led to the basketball court where Macro confronted the Cubs. The bright purple glare from Thief King Edward lightened the darkness as he approached. Yet Brandon, his thugs and the women who watched them had no eyes for their new guest. They instead laughed at Macro, whose wounded body laid prone on the ground. His cheeks were swollen and blood dripped from his lips. ¡°E-Edward?¡± faltered Macro. He saw Thief King through the swellings on his face. ¡°I-Is that him¡ª¡± Brandon sat onto the punk¡¯s backs. His weight crushed the punk. ¡°Don¡¯t look there, Mark,¡± said the gangster as he kneaded Macro¡¯s head and meddled with his wounds, ¡°you might start moving and I might slip off your backs. You really don¡¯t want me to get my new pants dirty¡ª¡± He heard dogs barking in despair. Brandon lifted his frown and saw an approaching Thief King. The leashed dogs from the Cubs recoiled and hid in fear as he passed. Eyes orbited around him like the planets orbited the Sun. One of the two Cubs who served Brandon took a step ahead. ¡°What do you want, dude?¡± asked the man as he yanked a knife from his pockets. ¡°Can¡¯t you see we¡¯re busy?¡± Thief King Edward smirked. ¡°I see,¡± he said, yanking Brandon¡¯s basketball from the ground. ¡°I just came to say Hi.¡± Brandon lifted his body off Macro. The gangster groaned: ¡°Give that ball back, man. It¡¯s worth more than you¡ª¡± ¡°Joshua W. Grey, the Wizard?¡± faltered Thief King as he read the precious autographs that covered the ball¡¯s surface. ¡°Didn¡¯t he die in a drunk driving accident one year ago?¡± ¡°If you taint that, you¡¯ll join him,¡± threatened Brandon. Thief King gently bounced the basketball. ¡°I don¡¯t come with any wrong intentions,¡± he said, ¡°I just want to play.¡± The Cubs laughed. A scowl formed on Brandon¡¯s face, yet he noticed that the two girls who watched the scene were amused. ¡°You wanna know what?¡± Asked the gangster, simpering. He glanced at a broken Macro. ¡°One of our teammates just couldn¡¯t hang. We¡¯re missing one guy. Think you can hang, dude?¡± ¡°Absolutely,¡± replied Thief King with an arrogant smirk. ¡°Can you?¡± The Cubs chortled. Melina, Brandon¡¯s girlfriend and one of the girls who spectated the scene, rose her voice: ¡°Hey, Brandog,¡± she narrowed her eyes at the man, ¡°don¡¯t get mad. Just play with him. He¡¯s kinda cute.¡± The man blinked at her. ¡°Whatever you ask for, my Hershey¡¯s,¡± replied Brandon as he snapped his fingers. ¡°But I warn you that he isn¡¯t gonna be cute for long. Things are about to get ugly.¡± The Cubs surrounded Thief King, yet the purple-haired man nonchalantly bounced the basketball. He narrowed his eyes at Macro and smiled softly. The punk faltered, aghast. ¡°H-H-He¡¯s doing this for me?¡±Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Brandon took a step ahead. ¡°Enough chit-chat. If you won¡¯t give back my ball, we take it from you!¡± he said, pointing at the purple-eyed man. ¡°Start the game!¡± His two subordinates ran at Thief King. The purple-eyed man simpered. He took a step ahead and slid beneath the arms of both subordinates from Brandon. The Cubs recoiled at his speed. ¡°W-Where did he go?¡± they asked. ¡°Behind you,¡± he replied with a smirk as consistent as the one from a statue. Both gangsters turned around and Thief King heaved the ball against the head of one of them. His movement was so precise that the object ricocheted off one head to the other, knocking both men to the ground. ¡°You¡¯re welcome for the tan,¡± remarked the purple-haired man as he yanked the basketball from the grime. He narrowed his eyes at Macro, who laid defenseless on the basketball court. ¡°Now it is your chance,¡± whispered Thief King, ¡°run.¡± Brandon stomped the ground. He called all attention to himself. ¡°Lucky move, creepy kid,¡± remarked the gangster as he equipped his steel knuckles. ¡°But I don¡¯t play fair!¡± he yelled as he ran at Thief King. The purple-eyed man stood nonchalantly. He stepped back as Brandon jolted his fists at him. He dodged so fast that the gangster¡¯s knuckles could not even feel the smell of his hair. Thief King¡¯s reflexes were so agile that even a bullet would struggle to catch him, although he still bounced a basketball with the left hand. He stepped back with every dodge, distancing himself from the basketball court and approaching the road. Thief King mocked his attacker, ¡°getting tired already? I thought you could hang.¡± ¡°H-H-How are you doing this?¡± snapped Brandon, gasping. Sweat rained from his forehead, yet he was yet to land a single blow at his enemy. His chest burned with flank pain. ¡°I skip dessert and eat a lot of vegetables,¡± joked Thief King as he glanced at the gangster¡¯s chest. ¡°I think that would do you good.¡± ¡°&$@%* you, man!¡± retorted Brandon as he rushed at his foe. Thief King smirked and heaved the ball against the gangster¡¯s forehead, knocking him to the ground and stamping a red mark on his face. The gangster contorted on the ground as he kneaded his wound. The basketball ricocheted off his face and rolled down the alleyway. ¡°My bad,¡± smirked Thief King as he glanced at the distancing ball. ¡°It¡¯s getting to the middle of the road. Let¡¯s hope your gang has not made this neighborhood too scary for people to obey the speed limits.¡± Brandon opened his eyes and saw his precious ball standing in the middle of the road. His heart tightened. He felt as if his world neared the edge of a cliff. ¡°I-I¡¯ll &%¡§%$ murder you, ¡§$&#%!¡± snorted the gangster as he lifted himself from the ground and rushed to take his ball off the street. His shirt moved as the man ran and revealed a fire weapon on his waist. Edward spoke in Thief King¡¯s head, ¡°He has a gun! He¡¯ll shoot us!¡± ¡°He¡¯ll try,¡± replied the man, nonchalantly. He put his hands in his pocket and turned his backs to the street. He walked back to the basketball court as Brandon yanked his treasured basketball from the middle of the road. A malevolent grin formed between the gangster¡¯s cheeks. He pulled the gun from his pants and aimed the crosshairs of his pistol at Thief King¡¯s head. ¡°Say hi to my granny for me, dude!¡± he spoke aloud. Thief King grinned. He faced the gangster through the reticle of his gun. ¡°She told me you should look left and right,¡± he replied. ¡°What¡ª¡± An SUV from Channel 8 slammed Brandon. His body flew over the vehicle, and his treasured basketball sprung off his hands. He collapsed on the cold pavement, agonizing. ¡°A-A-Argh!¡± he bewailed in pain. He felt as if hammers had rained on his body. The driver faced him from her rearview mirror. She was Carolina, the TV anchor Channel 8¡¯s live news. Despair overtook her as she saw the blood tainting Brandon¡¯s Cubs bandana. ¡°C-Crap, crap, crap!¡± she sputtered as she turned on the car and sped away from his stirred body. Edward watched the scene, disgusted. ¡°No one deserves to die like this! Go help him!¡± he shouted in Thief King¡¯s head. ¡°Why?¡± replied the man. He walked to the sidewalk with his eyes shining brighter than before. ¡°It¡¯s not over yet,¡± he said as time and space distorted around him. ¡°W-What do you mean?¡± A truck¡¯s horn echoed across the road. A transport vehicle as tall as a building sped down the street. Its giant wheels were enough to crush a car. The ground quaked as the truck approached. The trucker spotted Brandon¡¯s fallen body and stomped all brakes. Yet the vehicle struggled to deaccelerate. Its momentum was colossal. The gangster could not see the trucker¡¯s effort to save his life. All that Brandon saw in the car¡¯s windshield was the eerie reflection from Thief King Edward staring into his soul. He saw the purple-eyed man laughing as he accelerated the truck to crush every limb in Brandon¡¯s crippled body. The man cried in terror as the truck neared. He anticipated the immense pain of losing his entire body before the vehicle¡¯s colossal wheels finally put his brain out of his misery. He would die one limb at a time. ¡°No! No! No! No!¡± screamed Brandon until he choked on his own blood. His eyes went blank. Thief King chuckled at the man¡¯s imminent demise. ¡°The more possible outcomes in a system, the greater the possibility that a Glitch will happen. In that case, no place homes more Glitches than the human mind,¡± he explained, narrowing his eyes at Brandon. ¡°Your mind will now break and dwell on the past. You shall relieve this terror thirty-seven hundred times. The Fire of Mourgiana devours you, Brandon O¡¯Neal.¡± The truck finally braked as the rubber of one of its wheel touched the tip of Brandon¡¯s foot. The trucker sighed in relief and praised his own reflexes for having saved someone¡¯s life. The man stuck his head out the window. ¡°Are you alright, son?¡± he asked Brandon. The gangster did not react. Purple tears crept down his cheeks and were the only motion on his face. His heart still beat, yet none would say that there was life in him. He looked like a breathing doll more than a human being. Edward faltered. ¡°W-What did you do to him?¡± asked the boy. A crippled Brandon crying purple tears was a ghastly sight. ¡°Unbelievable suffering. The type that transforms even the most irreducible creature into something else¡± explained Thief King. ¡°It¡¯s a powerful Glitch called the Fire of Mourgiana. I¡¯ve trapped his mind into an emotional loop that he cannot escape. He¡¯ll re-live the same scene over and over again. The exact pain, despair, and fear that he felt at that moment shall last months. His mind will be damaged and even when he recovers, he shall never come back to being the same.¡± ¡°That is awful!¡± ¡°It is not. I can either use it to preserve the courage of my companions or to prolong the pain of my enemies. It is not my fault that all that I have left are enemies.¡± ¡°Wait, you mentioned a Glitch,¡± faltered Edward, ¡°are you a Glitcher?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t even imagine, toothpick,¡± remarked Thief King Edward as he yanked Brandon¡¯s ball from the ground. He admired the collection of autographs on the object¡¯s surface. ¡°This shall be my treasure. I¡¯ve always been a fan of The Wizard¡ª¡± He glanced at a puddle and noticed the bright reflection of the gold watch that the gangster had taken from Macro. The accessory had flown off Brandon¡¯s pocket when the SUV ran over him. ¡°¡ªand this shall be my treasure as well,¡± said the purple-eyed man as he put the jewel in a pocket. Edward protested, ¡°you¡¯re kidding, right? Why would you want his watch¡ª¡± Fireworks exploded and dyed the skies into red. The color was a sign that one of the Cubs¡¯ bases was under attack. ¡°We gotta get out of here!¡± said Edward, still trapped in Thief King¡¯s head. ¡°They¡¯re coming!¡± Thief King chuckled. ¡°You¡¯ve seen it with your own eyes, toothpick. I have no reason to run away from anything,¡± he said, taking the Heart in a Vat out of his pocket. ¡°I¡¯m worse than every weapon that they have in their arsenal. My only concern now is for my reveng¡ª¡± His eyes darkened. The man¡¯s body shrunk and he turned into the frail, weak Edward from before. Thief Queen became once again a voice in his head. ¡°Bloody hell!¡± She screamed. ¡°This cannot be!¡± Voices from members of the Cubs wandered around the neighborhood. ¡°Spread out! He must be close,¡± they said. Edward flinched. The voices grew louder and louder. ¡°W-What do I do?¡± he asked Thief Queen. ¡°Isn¡¯t that bloody obvious? You run, you dunce!¡± Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: VI - Kawaii! A Toad wearing armor... No, wait! Dont erase my existence! No! No! (Part 1)

VI ¨C Kawaii! A Toad wearing armor... No, wait! Don¡¯t erase my existence! No! No! (Part 1)

Previously on ¡®Bleach¡¯: Edward gave in and let Thief Queen take over his body so that she would save Macro¡¯s life. Result: Brandon, a vicious leader of the Cubs Gang, got THIEVED. The A.I Glitch ¡®Fire of Mourgiana¡¯ trapped his mind in a terrible loop. Yet as the confrontation ended, Thief Queen lost control of Edward¡¯s ¡®Thief King Mode¡¯ and the boy turned once again into a frail teenager. The Cubs approached, and Edward left the neighborhood as fast as he could. However, every Glitch leaves a trail. In their case, it is Brandon crying purple tears...

-| Glitch - |
¡°I-I-It was some cute kid with shining purple-eyes. But if you ask me, it was that evil guy from down there,¡± said a crying Melina with a capsule of a sedative in hands. She sobbed as she touched Brandon¡¯s unconscious face. She was the spectator on the basketball court who convinced the Cubs to challenge Thief King. ¡°T-That creepy guy came in and took my sweet boyfriend¡¯s stupid basketball,¡± she bawled, angry. ¡°Brandog just wanted it back and look at what happened to him!¡± Brandon laid on a hospital bed in a dim chamber. Hooded figures surrounded his body and Melina like a curtain of shadows. The woman filled her lungs with air and continued her testimony, ¡°the kid knocked the Cubs out and almost got my boyfriend killed. My dear Brandon got hit by a car and survived because he¡¯s so strong. But now he won¡¯t wake up!¡± she wept. ¡°He keeps crying these stupid purple tears! I just want him back¡ª¡± ¡°That is enough, Melina. I am grateful,¡± replied GEO, the member of the Skulls that orchestrated the betrayal of Thief Queen. ¡°Take this woman elsewhere,¡± he said as he glanced at three mobsters who stood in the room. ¡°And stay there with her.¡± They hurried to obey his order and did not raise one word in protest. A Glitcher was an ominous presence. They knew of the legendary powers that hid beneath their guest¡¯s sunglasses.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Yet a man remained in the room aside from GEO. He wore a bright golden mask and the bright red tunic of a king. ¡°You found out what happened, freak?¡± asked the golden man in a mechanic manner. His mask drowned out his voice. ¡°Did the person that you are looking for indeed hurt one of my men?¡± ¡°Yes, ¡°those purple tears are her signature. It is so obvious, it almost seems like a trap,¡± he said, walking to a window and watched as acid rain fell upon Chicago. He eyed the endless maze of alleys that stripped the city, aware that the woman could be anywhere. ¡°There is no doubt in my mind: Thief Queen is alive. And she is in the city,¡± he concluded. The man dressed in gold crossed his arms, baffled. ¡°So is this Glitcher a threat to my business?¡± he inquired, thoughtful. ¡°The Skulls have stolen from the cartel in Honduras before if I¡¯m not mistaken.¡± GEO sneered the man¡¯s sense of self-importance. He replied, ¡°Midas, with all due respect, Thief Queen has larger concerns than your mafia¡ª¡± ¡°Wolfpack.¡± ¡°Wolfpack¡±¡ªGEO corrected himself¡ª¡°as I said, you are not her target. Thief Queen is a Mastermind Class Glitcher. Without a gang to lead, she is unable to make a heist. On the other hand,¡± he narrowed his eyes at Midas, ¡°she might turn out to be a fortuitous target for you. You must know that we stole a precious cargo from the US ¡®Othello¡¯ Armored Train when we invaded it. That cargo, in the hands of an educated Glitcher like me, would make you even more powerful than President Johnson.¡± ¡°I am listening.¡± ¡°I lack manpower, for my companions from the Skulls are short-sighted and left me to my own resources. I say that we join forces. All you must do is to mobilize your men to help me find Thief Queen. I shall take care of the rest once that is done,¡± proposed GEO. ¡°Deal?¡± ¡°I, Midas, warn you that I don¡¯t expect to grab less than half of what we find.¡± ¡°There¡¯ll be plenty of time to bargain,¡± said the Glitcher as he faced the window. ¡±There is no telling if the device in her possession can rewind time.¡± ¡°Midas always bargains first¡ª¡± GEO gestured for the man to halt his speech. Something bothered the Glitcher. He frowned and noticed that a shiver ran down his arm. He rose his scowl to face the horizon as if he saw ghosts flying over the city¡¯s skyline. Yet Midas grew impatient. ¡°What happened now, freak?¡± he questioned. The Glitcher grimaced. ¡°I fear I am not the only one who is close to finding her,¡± he replied. ¡°Tell your men to keep their eyes opened and stay safe. There is no telling what will happen tonight.¡± ¡°Really? And what you are gonna do?¡± ¡°I plead you to do not ask any questions. For now¡±¡ªGEO faced the city¡ª¡°let me enjoy the sight.¡± Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: VI - Kawaii! A Toad wearing armor... No, wait! Dont erase my existence! No! No! (Part 2)

VI ¨C Kawaii! A Toad wearing armor... No, wait! Don¡¯t erase my existence! No! No! (Part 2)

-| Glitch - |
The night fell as if a deity stirred a black veil over Chicago. Edward slept, unsuspicious. The previous day pushed his body to its limits. His stomach grumbled and stormed, yet the boy did not move an inch. His sleep was so deep that one could mistake him for a piece of furniture. His little sister Hermione watched him alongside with Joy, their mother. ¡°See?¡± asked the young girl, pointing at Edward. ¡°He¡¯s been sleeping like that ever since he got home. Didn¡¯t say a word, just got in bed.¡± ¡°It says online that he¡¯s missed a test...¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s drugs,¡± supposed Hermione, crossing her arms. ¡°He¡¯s been eating drugs, I¡¯m sure of it! You¡¯ll berate him, right? He forgot dinner¡ª¡± The woman turned around, nonchalantly. She walked away and closed the bedroom¡¯s door. Hermione ran after her mother, confused, ¡°Wait, mom! You¡¯ll fight with him, right?¡± Her mother did not answer. The girl watched as Joy meddled with papers in her hospital bag. Hermione sobbed: ¡°Mom¡±¡ªshe grasped at the woman¡¯s jacket¡ª¡°something wrong?¡± ¡°Once I¡¯m back from the hospital, I¡¯ll talk to your brother,¡± replied Joy as she turned around and yanked papers from a table. They were copies of radiographs. The exams displayed empty holes around the bones of a victim as if entire limbs had disappeared into thin air. ¡°You¡¯re leaving already, mom?¡± asked Hermione with tears in her eyes. ¡°How come they need a nurse all the time? We need our mom,¡± she wept. ¡°Don¡¯t make this face, I took you out to dine and bought that toy that you wanted.¡± The girl inflated the cheeks with air, grumping. She made the ugliest scowl that she could and ran away in protest. Joy heaved a loud sigh. ¡°I have no time for this, Hermione!¡± said the woman as she wore her purse and walked to the old door of the apartment. ¡°I¡¯ll see you tomorrow, okay? Love you,¡± she asserted, expecting an answer. Hermione did not reply. She crossed her arms and stared at a window with a grumpy scowl on her face. Joy resigned, ¡°As you want, goodbye.¡± The young girl refused to look at her mother as she left. Hermione snorted: ¡°Who needs her? I¡¯m fine by myself! Even if no one likes me¡ª¡± Shadows knocked down trash bins as they roamed the streets outside. They turned bags upside-down and investigated the sidewalk. Their cheeks inflated and deflated like balloons. Hermione leaned over to see what was happening. ¡°What the h¡±¡ªshe covered her mouth to stop a bad word from escaping her lips¡ª¡°w-what are those?¡± She laid her sights upon the strange creatures as they stepped under a light pole.They were colorful and had yellow eyes, like the ones of toads. A sticky goo dripped off their skins and faded as it touched the ground. ¡°Giant toads?¡± she murmured to herself. ¡°Where are they going?¡± Her eyes shined with wonder and admiration as the creatures faded into the darkness of the night. ¡°What was that¡ª¡± She felt a strange urge to draw what she saw. Hermione tore a tower of notebooks down and dove in a sea of drawing sheets. She yanked a pen from the carpet and scribbled the paper until she had drawn a toad holding a bloody ax. **** The Moon hid in the west and a new morning began. As punctual as the Sun, J.J Strayan¡¯s radio show was there to inform the city that a new day started: ¡°G¡¯morning, Chicago!¡± buzzed a radio alarm-clock at Edward¡¯s apartment. The broadcaster¡¯s loud voice filled every chamber with sound. ¡°Here¡¯s J.J Strayan with your daily fix so you can start your day¡±¡ªairhorns and car horns furiously burst off the sound boxes¡ª¡°STRON¡ª¡± Edward turned off the radio. J.J Strayan¡¯s obnoxious shout would not get him this time. The boy already stood by the machine, full of energy. ¡°The same trick doesn¡¯t work twice against a Golden Saint!¡± said Edward as he fired up the apartment¡¯s cheap oven. He had awakened earlier solely to make breakfast. The boy¡¯s body longed for food and he cooked without straying his sights away from the eggs. He faced his soon-to-be-omelet as if he eyed the woman of his life. Thief Queen watched bored as Edward cooked. She had awakened another day as nothing but a voice in his head. She mocked his anime knowledge, embittered: ¡°You expected me to get that reference? Because I did. Shamefully.¡± The boy giggled at her comment. ¡°You¡¯re up already?¡± he asked. ¡°No. If I were, I¡¯d be answering your questions. Which I¡¯m clearly not.¡± ¡°You really are a morning person, aren¡¯t you?¡± he mocked her. ¡°It¡¯s been years since I got off the bed before 14:00. I apologize if I can¡¯t be on my best behavior.¡± ¡°Alright, alright. So,¡± Edward began, ¡°want to talk about you? I really feel like we must talk. I was wondering if you are a part of me or something like that. Can you at least tell me what¡¯s going on? Am I going crazy? Was that Thief King Edward guy really me?¡± ¡°No,¡± she replied. ¡°Was that a ¡®No¡¯ for which question?¡± ¡°All of them.¡± ¡°A-Alright,¡± he faltered, ¡°so can you tell me what¡¯s that metal heart thing?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Can you tell about that guy that I turned into to save Macro?¡± ¡°No. You¡¯ve asked that already.¡± ¡°And you said¡­¡± ¡°No.¡± Edward frowned, upset. ¡°Can you at least tell me your name?¡± he bargained. ¡°You have one, right?¡± ¡°No, you are a total dork. You¡¯d start fangirling all over me¡­¡± ¡°I really wanted to know your name. I love Glitchers, you know?¡± he remarked. His face displayed a smile that had enough positivity for two. ¡°Have you seen my half of the bedroom?¡± ¡°I think I¡¯m the only girl from outside who will ever see it¡­¡± ¡°My point is¡±¡ªhe continued¡ª¡±I absolutely love Glitchers! I¡¯m not ignorant about you guys. I know it all! Before my mom took my PC away, I¡¯ve even written fanfiction in my fansite!¡± confessed Edward with a wide grin on his face. ¡°Really?¡± she asked, skeptical. ¡°Was it one of those terrible fan stories trying to turn children¡¯s heroes into hardcore perverts?¡±The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. ¡°Of course not!¡± he protested, blushing. ¡°I wrote like Greek theater, you know? Aristophanes wrote plays very similar to what we call fanfiction.¡± ¡°So what did you write? I bet it was cringy.¡± ¡°I wrote backstories for some famous Glitching Circles and gangs. I¡¯ve always wanted to know what¡¯s behind the mask, you know? When we want something really bad and we don¡¯t get it, we make it ourselves. There comes the fanfiction. Some people want to see creepy things, I just wanted to know more about the people whom I admire.¡± ¡°I see,¡± Thief Queen faltered. The boy¡¯s positivity ignited a warm fuss in her consciousness. She seldom heard of admiration. Edward continued, ¡°I¡¯ve always wanted to be one of them and make a difference, you know? I know Glitchers get a terrible rep and no one trusts them, but I think it¡¯s worth trying to change that. Glitches put the people and the authorities on equal level of power¡ª¡± ¡°You are aware that this world is a simulation, right?¡± she said, feeling the need to tempt the boy with nihilism. ¡°Who cares if people are getting screwed. If anything, they had it coming. None of this political trash should matter to you. Those posters, this apartment, this world; it¡¯s all pointless. Everything is as real as those cartoon characters that you like. You might as well be an NPC in a video game. This has been proven many times before, and Glitchers see it every day.¡± Edward faced his reflection as if he stared at Thief Queen¡¯s eyes. His hands ceased to move. ¡°I know all that, but¡±¡ªhe rose his frown¡ª¡°it¡¯s the only world we have, no? If I don¡¯t believe in something and give up finding a purpose, that¡¯s when everything will really become pointless. Show people a tiny light in the dark and that is all that they need to know that there is a way out. That was a quote from a Glitcher called¡ª¡± ¡°Gallant. He always said that,¡± remarked Thief Queen, morose. If she had a body, she would have smiled. ¡°¡ªGallant, yes! He is my favorite! I remember reading about his battle with that European guy who wanted to blow up Notredame. What was that guy¡¯s name, the Lizard?¡± ¡°La Salamandre.¡± He grinned. ¡°You know a lot too,¡± he said. ¡°I also remember that Gallant¡¯s duo, Thief Queen, was always really boring¡ª¡± ¡°What did you say?¡± ¡°I said that she was boring. But when she teamed up with Gallant, it was magic. I read that La Salamandre is still locked up in a madhouse. He never recovered from that fight,¡± continued Edward. ¡°Then there was that other time when the Skulls invaded the National Archives and they cheated the elite Glitchers from OLYMPUS¡­¡± Thief Queen kept silent as the boy continued telling stories that she knew by heart. The names that he spoke breathed life into old memories in her. Yet the women felt hopeless. She failed to control Edward for more than an hour. Recovering her body, unlocking the secrets of the Heart in a Vat and bringing Gallant back to life seemed like an ever more distant dream. She feared that her destiny was to be a figment of that boy¡¯s imagination. Yet if she were to be a prisoner in Edward¡¯s mind, she decided that she might as well make her sentence more comfortable. ¡°You wanna know what,¡± she interrupted his endless tales of the Skulls, ¡°I¡¯ll tell you my name.¡± ¡°You will? So let me go first¡±¡ªhe smiled¡ª¡°I¡¯m Edward Williams, I¡¯m 15 years old. So what¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°My name is¡­¡± She faltered, unsure of what to say. She hadn¡¯t spoken her real name in a long time. Although telling him that she was ¡®Thief Queen¡¯ was out of the question, that nickname grew to define her much better than her real identity. She heaved a loud sigh and told him the truth, ¡°my name is Elizabeth Shao, and my age is not of your concern.¡± ¡°Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Shao! Thank you for saving Macro!¡± ¡°Whatever. You¡¯ll burn the eggs again, by the way.¡± Edward¡¯s eyes widened. He sniffed the smoke coming out of the frying pan. ¡°Oh, damn it. The eggs¡±¡ªhe turned off the oven¡ª¡°So close!¡± he sighed in relief, glancing at his sister Hermione, who sat by the window. ¡°Breakfast is almost here, sis!¡± he announced. The boy removed his apron and poured the steaming eggs into plates. He yanked two bronze toasts from his toasters and laid them out along with the eggs as if he organized a military formation. He arrayed the food as if he drew a photocopy of what his mother had taught him (and of what her grandmother had taught her). Thief Queen Elizabeth observed his militaresque cooking doctrine and felt disgusted.¡°Have you ever reflected that if you always play the game how it is supposed to be played, you¡¯ll never find anything new?¡± she inquired. ¡°The road does not change if you walk it a thousand times, you know. Glitches appear when you make yourself open to them. You only discover something new by doing something that hasn¡¯t been done before. That should be obviou¡ª¡± ¡°Sorry,¡± faltered Edward, ¡°were you saying something important? I was thinking about something else.¡± ¡°No,¡± she replied sarcastically, ¡°why would I bother making coherent sounds with my nonexistent mouth?¡± ¡°That¡¯s good because I wasn¡¯t paying attention. I¡¯m thinking it¡¯s strange that Hermione hasn¡¯t come to eat yet¡±¡ªhe tilted his head to face his sister¡ª¡°she¡¯s just sitting there, drawing.¡± ¡°Maybe she decided more food isn¡¯t really what she needs¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be mean,¡± said the boy as he rested the breakfast on the table and walked to his sister. ¡°Hey, Hermione,¡± he greeted her, ¡°whatcha you doing?¡± He asked, crouching to see what she drew. She had painted enough colorful frogs to cover a wall from the apartment. Edward noticed that the toy that her mother had bought her the previous day was still sealed in a toybox. He grabbed the girl¡¯s shoulder, concerned. ¡°Hermione? Are you alright?¡± he asked. ¡°Bro...¡± She frowned at her drawings. ¡°Did you see walking toads roaming around the street yesterday? I mean, before you passed out because of the drugs? I think I did.¡± ¡°Giant toads?¡± he faltered. ¡°Like these!¡± she said, pointing at the animals that she drew. Edward yanked a poorly-drawn drawing from the carpet. ¡°Let me see it,¡± he said, squeezing his eyes to understand what she portrayed through her art. ¡°You¡¯ve seen things like these anywhere?¡± He grinned, embarrassed. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve seen any animal this abstract, sorry. But why are you drawing these toads so much?¡± ¡°I-I don¡¯t know¡±¡ªshe wept¡ª¡°I can¡¯t stop. My hand hurts so much.¡± ¡°I can solve that with a magic trick.¡± Her eyes shined. ¡°Really?¡± Edward yanked the pen from his sister¡¯s hand and threw it out the window. ¡°Done,¡± he said as he beat both hands together. ¡°Now go eat and take a shower. It¡¯s almost school time.¡± ¡°Wait, I think someone must¡¯ve seen it!¡± said Hermione as walked to the radio and turned up the volume. ¡°Hermione, eat. You can¡¯t¡ª¡± J.J Strayan¡¯s voice burst off the radio, ¡°14 youths walking around Jefferson Park were sent to Chicago¡¯s Central Hospital with disappeared limbs. 8 of them wore bandanas from the organization The Cubs. The police have discarded the possibility of gang warfare, which is good news. However, the local doctors are intrigued because they couldn¡¯t find any trace of the missing limbs. It¡¯s like these guys played knife game with a shredder! It ain¡¯t looking pretty! And now to our public utility announcement¡­¡± Edward¡¯s cheeks glowed green. He covered his mouth as he imagined the scene. Elizabeth, the Thief Queen, recoiled. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you?¡± ¡°I¡¯m disgusted easily, sorry,¡± he mumbled as he touched his sister¡¯s shoulder and narrowed his eyes at her. ¡°We can see the news later today, okay? You gotta go to school now.¡± Hermione scowled. There was no news of giant frogs. Tears filled her eyelids. ¡°I swear I saw them!¡± she sobbed. Edward smiled. ¡°Maybe my drugs have contaminated the apartment,¡± he said, patting her on the head. ¡°You¡¯re starting to see things too.¡± The girl stuck out her tongue. ¡°That is disgusting!¡± ¡°Yes, it is. So eat something to detox yourself, will you?¡± He blinked at her. The girl hurried to the table and devoured her breakfast without hesitation. He crossed his arms as he watched her eat. Yet he could not eat. Something troubled the boy. ¡°Any idea of what happened to Hermione?¡± he asked Elizabeth. ¡°I got carried over. Bloody hell!¡± ¡°W-What do you mean?¡± ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have used Mourgiana¡¯s Fire on that Brandon-guy. Curses. He just had such a burnable face¡­¡± ¡°What are you on about?¡± She heaved a loud sigh. ¡°It seems that the Sprites have come to catch me. Or better, catch you.¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± ¡°Jefferson Park, the place where those mobsters got attacked, is where I fought the Cubs, correct? It can¡¯t be a coincidence that the Sprites appeared there soon after we left.¡± ¡°Time, please,¡± faltered the boy as he stood up and frowned at Hermione¡¯s drawings, ¡°what are these Sprites? What do they have to do with anything?¡± ¡°I keep forgetting your knowledge of Glitchers comes from our bootleg comics,¡± she buffed. ¡°Haven¡¯t you ever wondered why are there so few Glitchers in the world, toothpick?¡± He swung his head in denial. ¡°I figured,¡± Elizabeth continued. ¡°that¡¯s because of Sprites. They are like corrective beings that take shape in order to quickly eliminate mobs that are abusing glitches. Ever wondered what the tales of talking animals, civilization-destroying creatures and fairies were? The entities that this annoying girl is drawing are Sprites,¡± she spoke as Edward eyed the colorful drawings. ¡°H-How come?¡± he protested, ¡°Hermione has nothing to do with this!¡± ¡°Smaller Sprites are only visible to children and Glitchers. They use invisibility to cause accidents and kill the Glitcher. That way even if they fail, the Glitcher will still be socially ostracized for being mad. Then all they need to do is to push out of the window of a sanatorium.¡± ¡°Hermione is not in danger, right?¡± asked Edward as he yanked the most detailed of the drawings from the carpet. ¡°No, your sister is not in danger. But you certainly are,¡± clarified Elizabeth, the Thief Queen. Edward¡¯s eyes widened in terror as he saw the drawing. His sister had drawn a toad stabbing a purple-eyed boy with a medieval blade. ¡°W-W-What is going on¡±¡ªhe recoiled and dropped the image¡ª¡°will they catch me? w-what do I do now?¡± ¡°Keep your eyes open. Until proven innocent, everything is trying to kill you.¡± Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: VII - I got a feeling somebodys watching me!

VII ¨C I got a feeling somebody¡¯s watching me!

Previously on ¡®Glitch¡¯: GEO, the treacherous member of the Skulls who betrayed Thief Queen to steal her Heart in a Vat (the supposed command console of reality), discovered that she is alive and somewhere in Chicago! He made a sinister alliance with Duke Midas, leader of The Cubs (the mafia that controls half the city). Yet somebody comes after Thief Queen and Edward first: the Sprites¡ªstrange creatures who are brought into reality in order to punish mobs (beings) that are abusing Glitches. Will Edward survive his first test as a Glitcher? Find out!

-| Glitch - |
"The July Days were a turbulent moment in American history," lectured a teacher with messy hair and poorly tied tie. He had so many dark circles that he looked as if he wore sunglasses. "To talk about the July Days, I gotta first tell you about the miserable year that 2026 was. Give mom and dad some credit because things looked ugly! The dollar fell, Americans suddenly got a real shock about how poor they were, and people were royally pissed like they weren''t since 1776!" Edward sat on the class¡¯s front row, yet he had no eyes for the teacher. He jolted his head left and right as if he expected an animal to come out of the ventilation and assault him. Thief Queen Elizabeth, inside Edward¡¯s mind, observed the teacher as he lectured. "This modernities teacher of yours looks like he just got off the bed,¡± she remarked. ¡°What does he do at night?¡± "Dr. Welsh is weird,¡± replied the boy, struggling not to call anyone¡¯s attention. ¡°But could you please focus on the invisible frogs trying to decapitate me?" "Wait, am I seeing toothpick scared of something?" "Sorry, it''s that Hermione''s drawings creeped me out¡ª¡± Dr. Welsh, the teacher, pointed at Edward. "Mr. Williams!" the man rose his voice. Elizabeth snorted, "Pretend he''s talking to someone else." "I can''t,¡± murmured the boy, ¡°there are like eleven people in class¡ª" "Talking to yourself, Eddy?" inquired Dr. Welsh, crossing his arms. "You know, I used to hear voices and talk to them all the time when I was in college. Doug, my girlfriend at the time¡ªyes, her name was Doug. The girl got bullied more than me. Doug used to say that that was really charming about my personality. She said I..." The man spoke as if he read his own detailed autobiography. Dr. Welsh acted like he stood on a stand-up podium as if the class were no more. All students sighed in frustration as the teacher ranted and joked about stories that had become as familiar as gunfire noise in the night. ¡°Damn, I don¡¯t believe he¡¯s talking about Doug again!¡± said a chubby student with ginger hair as he opened a bag of snacks. ¡°I¡¯m glad I bought these. Want some, Eddy?¡± he asked, narrowing his eyes at the anxious boy and shaking the food. Yet Edward was so caught up in his own fears that he did not hear the offer. He frowned and talked to Elizabeth, "Okay! Mr. Welsh started deviating. No more class today. Where are the evil toad Sprites? Could they just appear and stab me in the back¡­" The ginger student scowled, disappointed. ¡°Eddy?¡± he faltered. ¡°You never say no to Berg¡¯s Pretzels. Who are you talking to? You don¡¯t like Pretzels anymore, man?¡± Edward once again did not reply. He looked out the window and swung his head to face any suspicious noise¡ªwhich ranged from bushes moving to a nail falling to the ground. Yet his ginger friend did not need an answer to feel insecure about himself. He made a hundred assumptions over a single gesture, ¡°You fear you¡¯ll gain some weight and become like me, Eddy? I know you do, you are not replying. Come on, man! Life¡¯s not worth without some food! Don¡¯t judge me. All my insecurity is just making me eat more and¡­¡± His ramblings bothered Elizabeth. ¡°Edward, your friend is talking,¡± she remarked. ¡°Please tell him to shut up, I must concentrate.¡± The boy recoiled and faced his ginger friend. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, Schmidt,¡± said Edward, noticing that his classmate ate something. ¡°Oh, I see you brought pretzels. Can you give me some?¡± Schmidt looked away and whistled, obviously ignoring the boy¡¯s plead. Elizabeth bargained: ¡°Maybe it¡¯s better if you keep your stomach empty. It¡¯ll make less of a mess if the Sprites get to you.¡± ¡°You are right,¡± resigned Edward. ¡°I just wanted to distract myself. I feel like I¡¯m going mad and I haven¡¯t even seen any of the Sprites yet¡ª¡± A cold hand touched his shoulder. "Eddy, are you alright?" asked Adela, his young blonde neighbor who shared his fascination with Glitches. She had the voice of an angel, and her touch felt softer than a pillow. "People are talking." Edward looked back and faced a wall of curious eyes. His classmates were ten of the few brave souls who hadn''t dropped off high school. "W-What¡¯s going on?¡± he faltered, grinning awkwardly. ¡°Did they draw ¡®I¡¯m gay¡¯ again on my shirt? It took me forever to clean the last t¡ª¡± Adela interrupted him, ¡°Haven¡¯t you noticed, Eddy? You¡¯ve been talking a to yourself a lot and doing weird things. Are you sure you are alright?¡± ¡°Y-Yeah, I''m alright, Adela. Thank you for worrying. I¡¯m just stressed out¡±¡ªhe faced his colleagues and waved his palms¡ª¡°it¡¯s just stress, guys. No worries!¡± The school''s bells rang. Dr. Welsh, who rambled about yet another set of stories about Doug, threw his notes into the air. "Yahoo, break time! said the man as he ran out of the room. Edward stood up and packed his notebooks to leave, yet Adela held his bag. "Are you sure you are alright?" she insisted. ¡°You know my uncle is a reverend. You can join his¡ª¡± "I¡¯m okay, Adela," he faced her, ¡°trust me.¡± ¡°Want to eat outside today, then? If you eat alone, the rumors might get worse, so¡­¡± Edward blushed. ¡°W-wait, that¡¯s sudden. Wouldn¡¯t Brad mind?¡± he hesitated. ¡°Brad and I are off and on. You know how it is¡±¡ªshe frowned at her right hand. She had taken out her boyfriend¡¯s commitment ring¡ª¡±so what do you say?¡± she asked, grinning at him. ¡°Maybe it is not right¡ª¡± Elizabeth yelled in Edward¡¯s head, ¡°Bloody hell, how is it not right? Screw whoever that Brad is. This dummy wants you.¡± You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Edward felt as if his heart exploded in his chest. He became so red that a tomato would envy him. Adela frowned, embarrassed. ¡°Why are you acting like this?¡± she asked, blushing. ¡°It¡¯s just lunch. Look¡±¡ªshe stepped aside and pointed at the school¡¯s old playground¡ª¡°today seems pretty windy. We should really eat outside. Doesn¡¯t the weather look nice?¡± Edward looked out the window. Yet a shiver crept down his spine and his grin collapsed. He noticed that the school''s swings bounced. "There it is,¡± remarked Thief Queen Elizabeth, ¡°the Sprite.¡± A human-sized frog bounced on the school''s swings. "Look!" said Edward, jolting his finger at the playground. ¡°What?¡± asked Adela. She looked outside and could not see the Sprite. "You don¡¯t like the windy weather?¡± she asked him, yanking a boxed lunch from her bag. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I really did not want to eat inside. Brad might see me and it will be awk¡ª¡± she noticed that the boy paid no attention to what she said. Edward could not move his eyes away from the toad on the swings. The creature stuck its tongue out, revealing an ax wrapped around the tip of its tongue. The boy shrunk back and grabbed Adela¡¯s shoulders. "P-Please, Adela¡±¡ªhe shook her¡ª¡°promise me you won¡¯t eat outside today!¡± ¡°W-Why¡ª¡± ¡°There¡¯s a¡­¡± He faced the swings and the bouncing Sprite disappeared. Edward sealed his lips and scowled, crestfallen. His curious colleagues surrounded the boy as if they surrounded the victim of a car crash. Yet instead of a broken car, the spectacle was the death of Edward¡¯s reputation. ¡°Eddy, please let go,¡± faltered Adela, glancing at his hands on her arms. ¡°You¡¯re hurting me.¡± Edward stepped back, embarrassed. ¡°I-I¡¯m so sorry, I¡­¡± The curtain of mind-boggled faces staring at the boy made him nervous. He wondered where had so many faces come from. ¡°I must go!¡± he said as he yanked his bag and left the classroom, leaving his colleagues to their own theories. ¡°What¡¯s up with Eddy?¡± asked a blond classmate who wore a red french barret. ¡°He doesn¡¯t look tr¨¨s bien aujourd¡¯hui.¡± Schmidt replied, ¡°Must be drugs, Louise¡±¡ªhe filled his mouth with pretzels¡ª¡°didn¡¯t he skip school yesterday to go hang out with Macro?¡± ¡°Macro? That abominable idiot? The one who joined the Cubs?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± said Schmidt with his mouth full. ¡°Crap, Eddy is going downhill since his parents broke up. I remember when my dad used to tell me to look up to Eddy. Now he¡¯s seeing things and hearing voices. People change.¡± Adela listened to her classmates as she watched Edward run away. Their theories felt like stabs. Yet Schmidt continued: ¡°I knew something was totally bogus when he refused my pretzels. Maybe whatever he¡¯s taking makes his appetite a¡ª¡± ¡°Eddy is alright, okay?¡± snapped Adela. ¡°I¡¯m sure there¡¯s nothing wrong with him! He told me to stay indoors because there is too much wind and he¡¯s afraid I¡¯ll get a cold!¡± Louise, the student with french berret, mocked her, ¡°Oui, my dear. Keep telling that to yourself.¡± ¡°He¡¯s going through a lot, ok? You can¡¯t just judge him for having Macro as a friend.¡± Schmidt rolled his eyes. ¡°If it is Macro, we can,¡± he remarked, laughing. A gloomy bald girl stood up from her seat by the window. She wore black & white clothes and the contrast between her dim vests made her resemble a zebra¡ªor the ghost of one. She moved her soft swarthy face and glanced at Adela, Schmidt, and Louise. ¡°There was something on the playground, though. Something evil,¡± described the eerie girl as she stood up and walked to the exit of the room. ¡°Don¡¯t judge him for seeing what you cannot.¡± She faded like a phantom¡ªnot leaving a single clue behind. The group of friends exchanged sights, bewildered. ¡°Who is not confused, lift your hands,¡± said Schmidt, narrowing his eyes at his classmates. They all stared at him, motionless. ¡°I figured so,¡± he concluded, yanking a pretzel from his bag. ¡°I miss when Sammy was not so weird.¡± **** Edward was oblivious to what his classmates thought of him. He ran to his locker, confused. ¡°Have I done bad, Elizabeth?¡± ¡°For you, yes. For her¡±¡ªElizabeth smirked¡ª¡°not so much. Sprites would not kill her, as they are here to punish Glitchers. Yet they could threaten her so that you would get in a vulnerable position to help her. You¡¯ve done something stupidly noble. If anyone had doubts that something is wrong with you, now they know for s¡ª¡± The boy saw a crowd surrounding his rusty locker. The people gossiped, baffled. Their shoulders were like layers of walls between him and his textbooks. ¡°Excuse me, excuse me,¡± pleaded Edward as he opened his way through the mob. ¡°¡ªNow they are sure something is wrong,¡± finished Elizabeth. He frowned and saw all his school supplies littering the ground. Eerie drawings of fleshless faces and gore were like wallpaper in his locker. ¡°This is disgusting,¡± remarked a teacher, crossing his arms. ¡°If it were some girl pics, I¡¯d understand. But this feels like the drawings of someone who might attack a school, I tell you!¡± His words spread speculation like wildfire consumes a dry forest. The mob recoiled and gossiped. The first St. Michel¡¯s High was the stage of a killing in the past, and the school displayed a monument for the victims on all its entrances to remind them of what happened. The fear of a new catastrophe was an assiduous guest in the school. Edward recoiled. ¡°I can¡¯t have my textbooks laying around¡ª¡° ¡°They don¡¯t know that is your locker, toothpick,¡± intervened Elizabeth. ¡°Just get away and don¡¯t pick up anything.¡± ¡°B-But¡ª¡± ¡°Leave. Pretend you went to the bathroom.¡± ¡°A-Alright,¡± he resigned, fearful that his mother would kill for all the wasted school supplies. The boy walked into a bathroom and laid his notebooks by the sink. He faced his reflection in the mirror as if he expected to hear a solution. ¡°Elizabeth, this can¡¯t go like this!¡± he mumbled. ¡°It¡¯s been like 2 hours and everyone seems to think I¡¯m mad already. The principal will come and they¡¯ll find out that locker is mine. It¡¯ll get worse!¡± ¡°The Sprites have found you already. All we need is to lure them out and attack them. Most Glitchers die because they are ambush¡ª¡° She noticed that loose nails rolled on the floor. ¡°¡ªhave they been doing repairs?¡± An entire row of bathroom stalls collapsed. A toad¡¯s tongue stuck out of the debris and wrapped itself tightly around Edward¡¯s waist. ¡°What?¡± he recoiled. ¡°Stay firm!¡± ordered Elizabeth. The boy faced his reflection in the bathroom¡¯s mirror and saw that a giant toad used the tongue as a grappling hook. The entity held two thin daggers as it propelled itself towards the boy. Edward felt his body burning. He cried in pain and his eyes flashed bright purple. The boy turned into Thief King Edward. The purple-eyed man faced his aggressor. ¡°You¡¯ll regret coming to my world,¡± he said, confident. Numbers hovered over the creature¡¯s head:
¡°Rogue Class Kobold¡± LV2 Sprite
HP: 4atm Reaction: 188ms Strength: 90lbs Dislocation: 16mph
Equipment: Ethereal Daggers
KNOWN SKILLS - The Tongue of the Relinquished: Unbreakable tongue with infinite length and three times the strength of the Sprite. - Growth: Can swallow other Sprites to increase Level and evolve.
¡°Can do,¡± concluded Thief King with a smirk. His reaction speed was so high that he felt time slowing around him. He yanked one of Edward¡¯s notebooks from the sink and heaved the paper at the Sprite¡¯s daggers. ¡°My notes!¡± cried Edward, speaking in the Glitcher¡¯s head. The toad¡¯s blade tore apart the notebook and pages sprung at the entity¡¯s head, blocking its sight and attaching themselves to its gooey body. ¡°Did you really have to destroy my notebooks?¡± snorted Edward. ¡°Quiet,¡± said Thief King. He jolted his arm forward and used Edward¡¯s notes as napkins to grab the creature¡¯s slippery neck. The man lifted the Sprite over his shoulders and mauled the being into the sink as if he hammered a nail. ¡°It¡¯s pointless to resist,¡± he said to the Sprite, pressing its head against the bathroom sink. The mirror and all spouts broke with his move. Waters filled the sinks to drown the immobilized creature. ¡°We got him, Elizabeth!¡± ¡°You may contort and fight¡±¡ªThief King used his weight to keep the toad¡¯s head in the water. His eyes brightened and reality distorted around him¡ª¡°but you shall not prevail. You shall drown in the waters of lie and deception for all eternity, evil creature. Yours is a fate worse than the underworld, for you shall never see it. You shall forever be the rope in the painful tug-of-war between Death and Life. Befriend your despair, accursed entity, for it shall remain,¡± he finished his speech, grinning maliciously. ¡°The Fire of Mourgiana devours y¡ª¡± A girl stood by the bathroom¡¯s entrance. ¡°Excuse me, can I use the boy¡¯s bathroom¡ª¡± Her jaw collapsed. She could not see the Sprite. All that she saw was an embarrassed Thief King standing amidst a ruined bathroom as he tried to drown his own right hand in a broken sink. ¡°¡ªHelp!¡± she cried out, running away. Thief King turned into Edward once again right before curious guests heard the girl¡¯s plea and invaded the bathroom. The boy pulled himself away from the sink and faced the spectators, embarrassed. ¡°T-This is not what it looks like!¡± swore Edward, putting his hands in the air as if he faced the police. ¡°I-I can¡¯t explain this, but the bathroom broke by itself!¡± An older woman who was as tall as a child made her way through the crowd. ¡°Edward Williams?¡± she asked as she rose her glasses and squeezed the eyes to see him with clarity. The boy nodded, embarrassed. She shouted, ¡°To my office, now!¡± Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: [Intermission] How the Characters Look WARNING: If you have a different image of the characters in your head, go with it. These images are representative Edward Williams (Normal) Source: I couldn''t find the original source. I apologize Edward is described as a scrawny boy from Chicago with curly hair and a heart far bigger than his muscles. He makes an innocent wish upon a rain of stars (to make a difference in the world) and he becomes a Glitcher when Thief Queen Elizabeth Shao enters his body. His life hasn''t been the same since, as he is always hopping from adventure to adventure. He is living his dream and that is making his life much harder. The only issue with the image is that Edward looks way too cute, almost like he is in a Boy Band. How would we call it? The Glitchstreet Boys?
Edward Williams (Thief King Mode) Source: Persona 5 original art Looking for ''anime boy with curly hair'', I stumbled upon some Persona 5 images and felt like they were perfect. Thief King is described as The Perfect Edward (or what Edward could be if he sorted his life out): he has a deep voice, great posture, an evident presence, somewhat sophisticated (slightly effeminate) and athletic composition. Edward turns into Thief King Edward when he plays possum and lets Thief Queen Elizabeth take over. When his iconic purple-eyes shine, it is a sign that any wise foe should just run away. Powerful, fast and (slightly) sadistic, he looks like Edward''s evil older brother and acts like one. He always has a creepy speech for his victims, which are never gifted with death--he uses an A.I Glitch to trap their minds into repeating the emotions of a moment (generally a painful) for thousands of times (per example, he makes a victim ''drown forever'') Don''t like him? The Fire of Mourgiana devours you, reader!
Thief Queen Elizabeth Shao Source: Persona 5 official art Our favorite heroine! She has pinkish hair, purple eyes, a thick English accent and somewhat eastern-Asian features. That would be impossible to find, so have a Persona character instead. Despite being young (she has refused to tell her age, but we can speculate she is younger than 30), she is a seasoned Glitcher with a knack for stealing (she always takes souvenirs) and sarcastic remarks. We never saw her on her golden days, though: for the few moments that we see her as a person of her own and not a voice in Edward''s head, she is actually mourning her fellow comrade Gallant (who supposedly died because of her).
Adela Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Source: Hoshii Miki Adela is Edward''s caring neighbor. She is described as a gorgeous blonde girl who is not that rich and has problems with her abusive mother and her Chad jock boyfriend, Brad.
Macro Source: https://br.pinterest.com/pin/475200198163582062/ Ajgiel. Check out his art! Too much of a Boyband guy in the image! Macro is a tall Slavic guy with punk style and features. His clothes are ripped and he always looks like he just wrestled a tiger. He has a very tragic backstory and besides his little brother Joey, Macro is alone in the world. When Edward and Thief Queen decided to help him, they ignited a flame of hope in the punk''s heart. Although Macro is strong, he is actually a very small fish in the school. He only bullied and mugged Edward because the boy was probably the only fish that Macro could eat.
Sammy Source: I couldn''t find the original source, sorry. Edward''s mysterious classmate who could somehow see the Sprites (D&D monsters that materialize as a mean of reality to punish those who abuse glitches) that are tormenting the boy. She is described as a pretty swarthy girl who wears black and white clothes. She seems to have a knack for mysticism and photography. In fact, she has her own paranormal club in the school. Barely anyone heard of it because Sammy is the only member. The girl in the picture is a bit too old and Sammy does not have a tattoo (that we know of), but they are both pretty. ">
Hermione Williams Source: Beyblade Zero-G Edward''s chubby sister that we love to hate. She starts off as a bit snobbish and imperious, even to the point of wearing a princess''s tiara; yet we understand that she misses her mom and is in desperate need of a parent figure. Being a child, she sees the Sprites that are coming for Edward and fall in their spells. She starts drawing sinister toads decapitating a purple-eyed man (Thief King) with an ax, even to the point that her hands bleed. Joy, her and Edward''s mother, named the girl ''Hermione'' after the Harry Potter character. You might imagine that a certain metrossexual vampire inspired Edward''s name...
Sophie Marchesi Source: Girls und Panzers I know you''ve come to this list just for her. Sophie Marchesi is rich, wears the uniform of a private school (Sacred Heart Institute of Technology, where they learn about Glitchers); and is the Mayor Judge Marchesi''s daughter. She is referred as the princess of Chicago. Her large breasts are her trademark, being described as like a pair of Suns setting over her ocean-blue uniform. The girl in the picture looks way too nice and is concealing her breasts. Sophie is imperious, skeptical and sarcastic. She is always surrounded by Steve & Steven, her evil bodyguards who don''t take their sunglasses off even to shower.
GEO Source: Boruto Member of the last formation of the Skulls. He led a mutiny against Thief Queen and would have claimed her life, had it not been for The Heart in a Vat''s mysterious power that turned her into a spirit and trapped her inside Edward William''s head. He is now pursuing her in order to recover the relic, even partnering the Cubs (a mafia that controls half Chicago). The image is not very good. GEO wears sunglasses, not whatever-that-is. Taking off his sunglasses means it is time for him to start fighting. We still don''t know what type of glitches he can exploit, but they probably have something to do with his eyes. What do you guys think his powers are? Why are they so feared? I really like this villain. "> VIII - How screwed am I?!

VIII ¨C How screwed am I?

Previously on ¡®Glitch¡¯: Edward is pregnant and GEO is the father! Ha! Did I get you? That was a trick to test your attention! The Sprites--mysterious D&Desque monsters who exist to eliminate those that abuse glitches--are passionate about ruining Edward¡¯s life! They attacked in the school bathroom and the fight that came after trashed the whole place! Guess who will be blamed for this? - Edward, of course! Now our hero is facing two troubles: the Sprites that are trying to kill him AND his mom, who will probably succeed at killing him if she has to pay for all the property damage. Let¡¯s watch and see how things get even worse!

-| Glitch - |
¡°Please hear me, Ms. Taylor,¡± pleaded Adela. She talked to the school¡¯s principal while Edward sat outside the office. He sat on an old bench and listened to her discussion through the door¡¯s breach. The girl continued, ¡°Edward did not mean bad! I am sure he is not entirely responsible! Also, his parents just went through a divorce and they cannot pay the repairs. Please don¡¯t sue them!¡± Elizabeth, Thief Queen, heard the girl¡¯s defense. ¡°Is she going to be a lawyer?¡± she asked, speaking inside Edward¡¯s head. ¡°I think she might even convince granny.¡± ¡°Adela wants to be one, just like me. But with our grades, it likely won¡¯t happen,¡± he remarked, scratching the back of his head. ¡°Could we talk about the elephant in the room now? Just for a moment?¡± ¡°What is it?¡± resisted the woman, as if she avoided her embarrassment. ¡°Why do you gotta make those creepy mean speeches every time? I think they will never believe I was not on anything!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be so loud. Someone might see that you are talking to yourself and you¡¯ll end up even worse.¡± ¡°But did we get those Sprites out of the way, at least? ¡°No, they are four and they are still all around the school,¡± she replied, thoughtful. ¡°What? So that was all for nothing?¡± ¡°I fear we might have fallen into a trap,¡± she snorted. ¡°It was either getting embarrassed in front of the whole school or having Sprites slit your wrists. These bloody things know exactly what they are doing.¡± ¡°You sound like you never had problems with them,¡± remarked Edward. ¡°I thought all Glitchers had trouble with these things.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not an issue when you¡¯re constantly moving around and when you are strong enough to keep the weak Sprites away. They seem to be a bloody plague when you have a social life, though.¡± ¡°What am I gonna do now? It¡¯s impossible to live like this.¡± ¡°First, calm down. Second, I¡¯ve saved your life. It could be much worse. My concern is that they have the upper hand for now¡ª¡± Loud steps echoed across the hallway. ¡°They are coming again?¡± asked Edward. ¡°No, it¡¯s Macro,¡± said Elizabeth. ¡°Isn¡¯t he your best friend, toothpick? I must say, he has good taste for watches¡ª¡± ¡°Oh, I brought his watch back,¡± said Edward, standing up from the bench and yanking Macro¡¯s golden watch from the pocket. ¡°¡ªwhat are you doing, toothpick?¡± protested Elizabeth. ¡°That is my treasure, not yours!¡± The punk walked down the hallway pretending that he read a document. He used papers to conceal the injuries and swellings that dotted his face after the confrontation with Brandon and the Cubs. Edward rose his voice, ¡°Macro? Is that you?¡± Macro ignored him. Yet he could not see what was ahead through the documents¡ªand he was still dizzy from the beating that he took. Yet he risked a response, ¡°I dunno who this Macro i¡ª¡± He tripped on the floor and the papers sprung from his hands. ¡°Damn it, my chest,¡± bemoaned the punk as he struggled to stand up. Edward crouched to help him. ¡°Damn it, Macro. I know you are hurt. There is no need to hide your f¡ª¡± He saw Macro¡¯s face. The result of his meeting with the Cubs was not pretty. He had more swellings than skin. The punk looked as if he kept an entire box of chocolates in his mouth, similar to how a hamster does with its sunflower seeds. Edward burst off laughing. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry!¡± pleaded the boy, shedding tears of joy. ¡°I swear I don¡¯t wanna laugh, but it¡¯s too funny!¡± ¡°Listen here!¡± Macro grabbed the boy by the shirt and rose him off his feet. ¡°One more laugh and I¡¯ll ¡§$&%*$ make you regret helping me, you hear?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡°¡ªhe showed the golden watch to the punk¡ª¡±this was yours, right?¡± ¡°M-My grandma¡¯s watch!¡± said Macro, dropping Edward. He became calmer as he saw his reflection on the watch¡¯s surface. Edward smiled, ¡°I cleaned up and fixed it for you¡ª¡± ¡°Sure. You are the specialist in clocks here. Not me,¡± remarked Elizabeth, sarcastically. ¡°¡ªit¡¯s fresh a new now. Wear it,¡± he gave the watch to Macro, ¡°it tells the time now¡ª¡± Macro wept. Edward recoiled. ¡°Y-You are crying?¡± he asked. ¡°I¡¯m not, I¡±¡ªMacro wiped the tears from his face and swallowed his agony¡ª¡°why would you think that, huh?¡± he snorted. ¡°Never mind,¡± resigned Edward. ¡°This watch really seems very important to you.¡± ¡°My grandma used to say that when she came to America, her family only had that watch. Everything else was taken¡­¡± ¡°Tito, right?¡± He nodded, continuing, ¡°So when the mansion burned and my parents died, she gave it to me as a reminder that I could lose everything, but not my history. So if my family went from a single watch to being filthy rich, I could do it too,¡± he faltered. ¡°Or something like that. It¡¯s been a while since she passed. It sounds bad, but I can¡¯t tell the whole lesson anymore.¡±The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Elizabeth conceded, ¡°He doesn¡¯t seem that dumb, although he makes an effort for us to think that.¡± Macro blushed. He continued, ¡°You¡¯ve done some serious &%¡§$% for me, Eddy. If you need something, just call me out,¡± he said with a funny taste in his mouth. He felt as if he had never tasted those words in his mouth before. ¡°I¡¯ll keep that in mind!¡± said Edward, smiling. ¡°But don¡¯t abuse it!¡± ¡°I won¡¯t, don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡°Also,¡± the punk faltered, looking away. ¡°If it ain¡¯t asking much, I got a question¡­¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Was I going crazy or did you knock two people out on the basketball court¡ª¡± The principal¡¯s door opened. Adela walked out with a smile on her face. She had a document between the hands and news at the tip of her tongue. ¡°Done! You are saved,¡± she said, giving Edward a piece of paper. ¡°You just gotta show up after class every night until forever to help clean the school up.¡± ¡°Thank you so much, Adela!¡± he said, reading the document and confirming what she said. The girl glanced at Macro. The swellings on his face disgusted her. ¡°Sup,¡± said the punk. Edward rose his sights and noticed that his two friends met each other for the first time. ¡°Oh, yeah¡±¡ªhe coughed¡ª¡°I forgot to introduce you guys. Adela, Macro. Macro, Adela.¡± She grabbed Edward¡¯s arm. ¡°Please stay away from him!¡± she said, facing the punk. Macro rolled his eyes, put his hands in his pockets and entered the principal¡¯s room. ¡°Whatever,¡± he snorted. Adela swung her head left and right as the man distanced himself. ¡°Please stay away from this Macro guy,¡± she told Edward. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be so harsh on him, you know? I think he¡¯s trying to turn things around. Something tells me he¡¯s not in the Cubs anymore.¡± ¡°We can talk about this on the way. Let¡¯s go home now?¡± she asked. ¡°I¡¯m scared to go alone. It¡¯s dark already.¡± ¡°Lead the way.¡± They walked through the school¡¯s hallways. The girl twirled her hair and rambled about her romantic life: ¡°I think it¡¯s really not working out with Brad. Sometimes I feel like he just cares about showing me off to his friends as if I¡¯m some sort of prize. He is also very touchy. We went to see a movie in the outdoor cinema last weekend, but he just kept trying to grab me. I was so busy pushing him off that I couldn¡¯t watch the movie. What does he think that I am?¡± she ranted. ¡°I got angry and threatened to walk out. He just laughed, called me the b-word, yanked my popcorn and told me to go home by foot¡ªand not make much noise as I left so that I¡¯d not disturb his movie. Can you believe that?¡± ¡°And you walked out, right?¡± asked Edward, hopeful. ¡°Of course not!¡± ¡°I figured¡­¡± ¡°Enjoy her company while you can, toothpick,¡± remarked Elizabeth. ¡°She¡¯s clearly too pretty to be your friend. It¡¯s a matter of time before she becomes one of the cool kids. You will be left only with Macro and that fat ginger kid who squeaks when he eats.¡± Adela and Edward passed by a girl whose face was dark with grease. She wore full baseball attire. ¡°Hey, Eddy. Hey, Brad¡¯s girlfriend,¡± said the girl in baseball attire as she toyed with a baseball, ¡°I found the school¡¯s old baseball equipment. Anyone wanna be my batter?¡± ¡°I have a name, you know?¡± Adela snorted Edward smiled and waved his arm. ¡°I think we¡¯ll pass, Karina,¡± he replied. ¡°But shouldn¡¯t you go home now? It¡¯s getting late. Wanna join us?¡± Elizabeth recoiled. ¡°Toothpick, why are you inviting this other girl? Did you fall on your head when you were a kid or are you naturally this bloody stupid¡ª¡± ¡°Home is for the weak!¡± replied Karina, confident. ¡°¡ªwhat a relief.¡± ¡°Carry on, then,¡± said Edward, grinning. He and Adela reached the school¡¯s exit. Chicago¡¯s smell of trash and smog filled their lungs. The girl rose her voice, ¡°so why didn¡¯t you show up to the test yesterday? I wanted to talk about the Skulls¡¯ heist.¡± ¡°It¡¯s sort of a complicated answer, and I don¡¯t think you¡¯d believe me if I told you,¡± bargained Edward. ¡°Not even I believe it sometimes.¡± ¡°Of course I would believe in you. You never lie to me!¡± said Adela, squeezing his cheek. ¡°You are my cute little honest friend.¡± ¡°Friend¡­¡± Faltered Edward. That word had a sour taste in his mouth. ¡°So what happened yesterday?¡± she insisted. ¡°I wanna know.¡± ¡°Well, I woke up with a metal thing in my¡ª¡± Loud car honks interrupted his explanations. ¡°Babe! Adela!¡± shouted a jock from inside his convertible. ¡°Get in, babe, hurry up!¡± he said, opening the car¡¯s door. Edward squeezed his eyes and noticed yellow lines painted on the sidewalk near the car. ¡°I think he¡¯s blocking the ramp for the disabled,¡± he said. Yet Adela forgot that the boy existed. ¡°Brad, you were waiting for me?¡± she asked the jock, her eyes shining like jewels. ¡°Hell no, babe,¡± Brad replied, glancing at a bouquet of flowers on the passenger seat of his car, ¡°this flower is my new girlfriend. We just hanging.¡± ¡°You brought me flowers!¡± said Adela as she ran to the vehicle and yanked his gift from the seat. ¡°Hop in¡±¡ªBrad wore his sunglasses¡ª¡°I¡¯m taking you home.¡± Edward scowled at the offer. ¡°Adela, wait,¡± he pleaded, glancing at the girl, ¡°he did not even apologize.¡± She faltered as she heard his voice. The memories of why she was upset with Brad struck her. She rested the flowers on the seat and walked back. ¡°No, I¡¯m not going with you, Brad,¡± she said. ¡°Edward will take me home. Won¡¯t you, Eddy?¡± ¡°Of course I will¡ª¡± Brad pressed the car¡¯s pedals. The honk of the convertible¡¯s motor was like a fine serenade for Adela. ¡°Babe, I¡¯m sorry, okay?¡± conceded the jock. ¡°You were acting up and I had to do something. Now hop in and quit with the crap. I even put on your &$¡§%$ song,¡± he said as he turned up the radio volume. ¡°Our song.¡± Verses of music burst off the car¡¯s sound boxes, ¡°And I swear by the moon and stars in the sky. I¡¯ll be there¡ª¡± Edward swung his head left and right. ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯s really apologizing¡­¡± ¡°¡ªI swear like the shadow that is by your side. I¡¯ll be there,¡± the radio continued as Brad moved his lips and gestured as if he sang the song for a bewitched Adela. The music was like the singing of a siren, enchanting the girl and convincing her to enter his car. The girl lost her air. She had hearts in her irises. Edward rolled the eyes. ¡°Adela!¡± he said, shaking her shoulders, hoping to break the spell. ¡°Adela, I¡¯m talking to you¡ª¡± ¡°Look straight, Edward,¡± intervened Elizabeth. He lost his air. He saw four Sprites facing him from the windows of the apartment buildings that surrounded the school. The reflection of Adela¡¯s neck colored their blades. ¡°You wanna know what?¡± Edward resigned. ¡°Go with Brad, Adela.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± she asked, confused. ¡°Yeah. Just go. I¡¯ll stay and play some baseball with Karina,¡± he said, facing the baseballer girl. Karina¡¯s eyes shined. ¡°Really? You¡¯ll play with me?¡± she asked, approaching him. ¡°Yeah,¡± replied Edward, trying his best not to have a psychotic attack. ¡°Leaving Adela with her jerk ex-boyfriend while I go play baseball will be super fun!¡± ¡°Yes, it will! Now if only I could find a catcher¡­¡± Edward glanced at the road and saw that the Sprites crossed the street and neared the school. He sweated, nervous. ¡°Maybe we can call¡±¡ªhe noticed Macro leaving the building¡ª¡±Macro!¡± The punk recoiled. ¡°Me what?¡± ¡°You are the catcher!¡± Macro grabbed Edward by his shirt. ¡°What are you implying, dude?¡± snorted the man, blushing. Veins pumped on his forehead. ¡°Y-You said you owed me one!¡± ¡°I thought like helping you out with some bags! Not with something like this!¡± Karina hopped in excitement. ¡°I¡¯ll get the helmet ready for Macro!¡± she said, clasping her hands and running to the school¡¯s old baseball yard. The punk faltered. ¡°Wait¡±¡ªhe dropped Edward¡ª¡°you¡¯re inviting me to play baseball?¡± ¡°Of course. What were you thinking?¡± ¡°Nothing,¡± replied Macro, blushing. ¡°I¡¯ll play with you guys, but I can¡¯t stay for long.¡± Edward smiled, satisfied with the tiny team that he had quickly assembled. ¡°See, Adela? You can go now,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m covered¡ª¡± The boy coughed. The smoke of Brad¡¯s speeding convertible filled his lungs. Adela had gotten in the jock¡¯s car and they left without saying ¡®goodbye¡¯. Edward¡¯s grin collapsed. ¡°Elizabeth, why didn¡¯t you tell me that she had left?¡± he mumbled, crestfallen. ¡°Mostly for comedic purposes. And also¡±¡ªher voice deepened¡ª¡°because of the Sprites. Get moving now.¡± The boy looked back and saw a gang of four armed anthropomorphic toads approaching him. ¡°Let¡¯s go play now,¡± he said out loud. The Sprites stalked the Edward as he followed Karina on her way to the school¡¯s abandoned baseball field. Elizabeth analyzed the situation: ¡°Now that you have company, you can¡¯t just turn into Thief King and let me deal with the problem.¡± ¡°You are right¡±¡ªthe boy glanced at Macro and Karina¡ª¡°they¡¯ll see if I change form. So what are we gonna do?¡± he asked, glancing at the four Sprites who walked after him. The entities were armed like an RPG group, carrying swords, shields, daggers, and rods. They did not move their lifeless stares away from Edward¡¯s neck. Elizabeth replied, ¡°You shall fight them, not me. You¡¯ll learn with me.¡± He faltered, frowning at his thin arms and legs that were supposed to defeat four creatures from another realm. ¡°Learn what?¡± he asked her, skeptical. ¡°You are the world¡¯s dumbest Glitcher, Edward.¡± Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: IX - Keep Calm and "ISG"

IX ¨C ¡°Keep Calm and ISG¡±

Previously on ¡®Glitch¡¯: Adela saves Edward from years of debt for all the destruction that the Sprites have spread across the school! Yet these entities insist on ruining the boy¡¯s life! They pursue Edward and force him to let Adela go home with her jerk boyfriend so that she would be out of harm¡¯s way. Still cornered, Edward stays in school to play baseball with Karina, a schoolmate, and Macro; the punk whom he saved from the Cubs. Yet now our hero cannot go in his ¡®Thief King Form¡¯ anymore because his friends are all around him. I know this is not a problem for Superman and Yugi Moto, but our cast is not that dumb to do not notice. How will Edward save himself? Let¡¯s find out!

-| Glitch - |
¡°Hurry up, dude!¡± yelled Macro from the door of the school¡¯s abandoned equipment storage. ¡°You are choosing a baseball bat, not a wife!¡± Edward shouted back, ¡°Just give me a minute, it¡¯s dark in here.¡± Elizabeth spoke in the boy¡¯s head, ¡°Don¡¯t mind Macro. Everything that wasn¡¯t pillaged from this place is falling apart. Choose the wrong bat, it¡¯ll break in half and give you a concussion.¡± ¡°We gotta go fast. The Sprites are coming,¡± replied the boy, yanking a bat from the shelf. ¡°Will this one work?¡± he asked Elizabeth. The boy¡¯s eyes flashed purple. Numbers took shape over the object:
Hollow Baseball Bat
-20% Punching Force. (Strength of an average punch)
Elizabeth groaned. ¡°Bloody no. Look for something else!¡± ¡°Alright!¡± Macro waited outside. He frowned at his watch and shouted again, ¡°Dude, you are creeping me out. Stop talking to yourself, pick a bat and just get done with it.¡± ¡°Sorry,¡± replied Edward. ¡°Just one second.¡± ¡°I heard there is some ghost girl who roams around here at night. If I pay attention, I can hear her laugh. I¡¯m getting goosebumps all over¡­¡± ¡°There are no ghosts, Macro.¡± ¡°If this turns out to be a prank, you¡¯ll become one! Dude, I¡¯m telling you¡±¡ªhe rubbed his arms and shivered¡ª¡±it¡¯s getting cold and warm all the time. I saw some weird &$&%# all the time in my grandma¡¯s old house. It always began like this. If some creepy voice comes jinxing in my ear, I¡¯m getting the hell outta here leaving you two to talk!¡± ¡°I¡¯m in a dark place and I¡¯m keeping my cool,¡± replied Edward as he hunted for a baseball bat inside the dim storage building. ¡°You should do it too, Macro.¡± ¡°Easy for you! You are not ¡§$&% phasmophobic!¡± snorted the punk, wiping the sweat from his face. His legs were wobbly. Edward faltered. ¡°What is phasmophobia?¡± he asked Elizabeth. ¡°Fear of ghosts and demons. Often used by people who are scared of the dark to make their phobia sound more glamorous.¡± ¡°So Macro has fear of the dark?¡± ¡°Likely. Now pick up a bat.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± replied the boy as he yanked a baseball from an old shelf, ¡°will this one work¡ª¡± The entire shelf collapsed on him. Macro squeaked like a little child when he heard the noise. ¡°Dude, you are ¡§$&%& doing it on purpose, aren¡¯t you?¡± he snorted. ¡°S-S-Sorry! Argh¡±¡ªEdward dragged himself out of the pile of broken sports equipment that covered him¡ª¡±I¡¯m alright if you were wondering.¡± Elizabeth resigned, ¡°Toothpick, just pick up anything and let¡¯s get out of here before you end up killing yours¡ª¡± A pristine baseball bat rolled on the ground and touched the boy¡¯s right foot. ¡°W-What is that?¡± he asked himself, yanking the object from the ground. His eyes flashed purple. A stat sheet hovered over the wood:
Maple ¡°Nixon¡± Baseball Bat
+30% Punching Force. (Strength of an average punch) Average Swing of a Professional Batter: 0,4atm
¡°This seems perfect!¡± said the boy, smiling wide. ¡°I shall call it Nixon¡ª¡± He felt as if his brain burned. Elizabeth shouted in his head: ¡°Toothpick, stand up now!¡± ¡°W-What?¡± A toad Sprite¡¯s yellow eye lightened the dark. It rose its longsword over the shoulder and jolted the blade down to tear Edward in half. ¡°I¡¯ll take over!¡± intervened Elizabeth. The boy¡¯s eyes flashed purple and he turned into Thief King Edward. The man rolled on the ground and dodged the Sprite¡¯s attack. The blade was so strong that the floor ripped open as if a pickaxe had hit it. Macro heard all the noise, terrified. ¡°D-Dude, what the &$*%(% is going on in there?¡± he asked. ¡°Nothing, you wanker,¡± replied Thief King as he dodged attack after attack from the creature. The Sprite demolished the room as if its weapon were a sledgehammer. ¡°What the &$&%&% happened to your voice?¡± asked Macro, trembling. ¡°What is going on in there, Eddy?¡± ¡°Edward is dead. You are next,¡± replied the purple-eyed man. Edward spoke in Thief King¡¯s head, ¡°stop scaring Macro, Elizabeth!¡± Thief King rolled his eyes. ¡°Bugger,¡± he snorted as he turned into Edward again.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. Elizabeth, once more a voice in the boy¡¯s head, buffed, ¡°Why must I hate all your friends?¡± ¡°Elizabeth, what are you doing?¡± asked the boy, surprised. Edward did not expect to fight. He held Nixon, his baseball bat, like a two-handed sword. The Sprite rested its heavy blade on the shoulder and walked closer. The ground trembled with its steps.
¡°Knight Class Kobold¡± LV2 Sprite
HP: 4atm Reaction: 288ms Strength: 200lbs Dislocation: 2mph
Equipment: Ethereal Zweihander (adds Strength, reduces Dislocation)
KNOWN SKILLS - The Tongue of the Relinquished: Unbreakable tongue with infinite length and three times the strength of the Sprite. - Growth: Can swallow other Sprites to increase Level and evolve.
¡°This was the card that I got. I will only explain how to do this once,¡± began Elizabeth, ¡°this Sprite is slow but it hits like a truck¡­¡± She rambled about strategy and the meaning of every status. She described fundaments of battle so fast that a listener would wonder what language she spoke. Yet Edward did not react. He shivered, catatonic. He could not take his eyes away from the entity that approached him with the intention of murder. For him, the creature¡¯s steps sounded much louder than the woman¡¯s endless ramblings about attribute values and meanings. The boy¡¯s adrenaline faltered and he realized that he was in a fight to the death¡ªor better, complete erasure. Fear immobilized his legs like chains. Yet Elizabeth spoke about strategy, unaware that Edward had a panic attack. She continued: ¡°You must be wise and¡±¡ªshe realized that he did not react¡ª¡°Toothpick?¡± she shouted. ¡°Toothpick, snap out of it! Wake up!¡± Edward was blind to what was around him. He saw scenes of his childhood before his eyes as if he watched a movie of his life. He saw himself approaching the hospital bed of a man with burned skin. The patient¡¯s body was in so much pain that he could barely move his neck. A doctor rose her voice: ¡°Remember he jumped off a plane in flames¡ªshe narrowed his eyes at Joy, Edward¡¯s mother¡ª¡°tell your son to do not push him beyond his limits. I¡¯ll let you two alone with your husband now. He is on a sedative to do not feel pain when he talks.¡± Edward leaned forward to see the man from up-close. ¡°Dad?¡± asked the boy. Tears filled his eyelids. ¡°Eddy?¡± mumbled the man, moving his neck to face his child. ¡°D-Did you die, dad?¡± The man chuckled. ¡°I got 7 lives. 5 are left,¡± he replied. The boy grinned in excitement. ¡°Like in a video game?¡± he asked with light in his eyes. ¡°Kinda,¡± replied the man as he glanced at the curtain of blood sacks surrounding his body. ¡°Why did you jump, dad?¡± asked Edward. ¡°I was gonna fall, either way, man. I couldn¡¯t change gravity,¡± he explained with a smile so bright that his teeth could brighten the darkness. ¡°Might as well choose where you will jump and face the trouble head-on,¡± he continued. ¡°You either make a choice of where the land, or let the enemy make it for you. That¡¯s how life works.¡± Edward recoiled. His reverie ended and he saw himself back in the storage of St. Michael¡¯s High. ¡°Toothpick wake up!¡± Elizabeth shouted in his head. ¡°You must¡ª¡± ¡°Fight,¡± he completed without a doubt of what to do. His eyes flashed green. ¡°I must hit it from the side after it does an attack, got it. He¡¯s slow and that will give me an opening.¡± ¡°¡ªor you could just run away. Look at the speed values.¡± Edward recoiled. ¡°Wow, I¡¯m an idiot¡ª¡± ¡°Get down!¡± yelled Elizabeth. The Sprite swung its sword horizontally to separate the boy¡¯s chest from his waist. Edward ducked and dodged the attack, gasping. ¡°So close,¡± he told himself, exasperated. His eyes widened in despair as the creature regained control of its sword and prepared to attack again. ¡°It¡¯s not over yet! Get away now, Edward!¡± ¡°W-Wait,¡± pleaded the boy as he felt reality distorting around him. A shiver crept down his spine as he saw a tiny green target taking shape on the Sprite¡¯s chest. ¡°I-Is that a¡ª¡± ¡°A Glitch¡¯s Rift?¡± completed Elizabeth, baffled. ¡°W-What am I supposed to do, Elizabeth?¡± asked Edward as the Sprite eyed him with lust for blood. ¡°I told you. Glitches appear when you do something new and play the game how it is not supposed to be played. Most glitches are circumstantial, yet you can break reality and force some of them to happen again, like the Fire of Mourgiana,¡± she explained, fascinated. ¡°This could be one of your ¡®Fire of Mourgiana¡¯, Edward.¡± ¡°B-But what did I do?¡± he asked. ¡°Play baseball?¡± ¡°You chose to fight.¡± ¡°I did,¡± he said, frowning at his father¡¯s paratrooper ring around the hand that held Nixon, the baseball bat. The boy for once felt as if the accessory fit him. He knew exactly what to do. ¡°Look straight!¡± warned Elizabeth. The Sprite rose its two-handed blade over its shoulders to attack. ¡°You decide now, Toothpick. You run or fight!¡± -| Infinite Swing Glitch (ISG) ¨C Multiplication Glitch. - | ¡°Argh!¡± shouted Edward, twisting his waist and swinging the bat at the creature¡¯s chest. His movement was weak and the creature barely flinched. Yet reality distorted around him. He felt his arms moving by themselves, repeating the swing as if he lived in a rewinding scene in a movie. His attack was insignificant by itself, yet a series of attacks was a force to be feared. He swung the beat as fast as a machine gun fired bullets. ¡°Eat it!¡± said Edward as he hit the Sprite¡¯s head with the bat and knocked the creature to the ground. ¡°Finish him, toothpick!¡± said Elizabeth. ¡°Wait a moment, please.¡± He collapsed to his knees, gasping. His body weighed and he used Nixon, the baseball bat, as a cane. ¡°What¡¯s going on,¡± he bemoaned. ¡®I can¡¯t lift my right arm anymore.¡± ¡°I feared this would happen,¡± she remarked. ¡°Glitches don¡¯t come for free. A trained batter can exert a pressure of 0,4 atmospheres with a single swing. Since your only lifting is the one you do when you get off the bed, you can barely do one-fourth of that damage and thus need to swing your arms until you dislocate your shoulders when using the ISG. And the thing is not even dead.¡± The Sprite contorted on the ground. Its wounds disappeared as if the entity¡¯s body healed itself. ¡°How will I destroy it, then?¡± asked Edward, frowning. He had no time to feel proud of his first victory. ¡°Not with a dislocated shoulder,¡± replied Elizabeth. ¡°Just get away from here and call it a day. Better leave before more of them shows up.¡± ¡°A-Alright,¡± replied Edward as he ran out of the abandoned storage building. The air from the outside was fresh and cold. Yet something bothered Elizabeth. ¡°Aren¡¯t we forgetting something¡ª¡± A hand grasped Edward¡¯s knee. ¡°What?¡± asked the boy as he frowned and saw an expressionless Macro sitting on the ground. The punk hugged his helmet as if he held a teddy bear. His skin was cold as ice. Although he feared ghosts, he became the closest thing to one in that school. ¡°Easy there,¡± remarked Edward as he struggled to pull the man off the ground. Yet Macro felt as heavy as a boulder. He did not raise a finger to help. ¡°I can¡¯t do it,¡± the boy resigned. ¡°Any ideas, Elizabeth?¡± ¡°Let me try scaring him.¡± ¡°No!¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Edward became Thief King. The purple-eyed man crouched and whispered into Macro¡¯s ears with the deepest voice that he could: ¡°You have such a great skin. I wonder how well it will look on me.¡± The punk widened his mouth and screamed so loud that the entire neighborhood could hear his voice. He sprung off the ground and ran away as Thief King laughed maniacally. ¡°The Fire of Mourgiana devours you, Mark Ro¡ª¡± ¡°No more glitches! We gotta go tell Karina that we can¡¯t play. Doing that glitch to Macro is just mean!¡± ¡°Have a sense of humor, toothpick. A little scare won¡¯t do him harm, I promise.¡± ¡°No!¡± They discussed what to do. There was so much noise inside Thief King¡¯s head that neither Elizabeth nor Edward noticed a sudden flash dotting the darkness and capturing his image in a frame. ¡°So this is your secret, Edward Williams,¡± remarked Sammy, the boy¡¯s strange classmate who claimed to see the Sprites around the school. She frowned upon the picture of Thief King Edward that the camera printed. ¡°I wonder what you were fleeing from,¡± she told herself as she walked into the abandoned storage house where the boy had found his baseball bat. She looked through the camera¡¯s lenses and saw that Sprites roamed the place. One of them widened its jaw and devoured the creature that Edward had defeated while the others searched for clues. They all narrowed their eyes at the girl as she entered the building. ¡°Face the light,¡± said Sammy as she took a picture of the creatures. Her camera¡¯s flash turned them into stone. ¡°You now belong among the evidence,¡± she said as her camera printed the picture of the toad Sprite. She stored the image in an album filled with black-and-white animated images of many types of Sprites. Her collection was a chaotic one, for the creatures protested and fought to escape their photos. The girl yanked the picture that she had taken of Thief King and frowned upon him. ¡°You¡¯re now scheduled for an interview in the paranormal club, Edward Williams.¡± Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: [Intermission] The Many Covers of Glitch This was the first cover of Glitch, made before the first chapter was even written: I made this cover after a brief talk with Alexis Keane (check out his fiction by clicking his name! It''s a dungeon story!) about what makes a good cover. Although it is elegant and visually appealing, this cover did not quite fit what I was looking for. There was no hook for people to want to read. All I had was the symbol that now represents "Elizabeth x Edward", he is the Green Skull and she represents the purple flames. Without the purple flames, that is the symbol of the Glitching Circle / Clique / Gang "The Skulls''. The second cover was then made after a discussion on Discord about what the original one needed. We decided on a title and borders. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. I also added "Pat.e.ll", which is my name as an author. This cover lasted a month and I planned to make it official. It had all I was looking for. However, it lacked waifus. That, for Vsolon, was a great problem. The third cover is when things started getting too hard for me. It looked way too cringy to be a front cover, but it had a great appeal as a miniature. I thought that maybe it could be used in the description as a hook for the readers to find a visual style to see what they read. Yet I was not satisfied. I was cluttering an image that was never supposed to have that much going on. And then ssddxcame to do my job for me. To make this cover for you, we were up at 4 AM: & And this is where we are right now. What do you guys think? Would the novel have worked with Cover 2 or 1? Thank you guys for reading! X - RE: Expository Dialogue

X ¨C RE: Expository Dialogue

Previously on ¡®Glitch¡¯: Edward managed to exploit a Glitch called the ISG (Infinite Swing Glitch) and defeated one of the Sprites that was searching for him! However, he dislocated his arm and had to flee! No baseball for a while, I guess. Fortunately (and unfortunately) for him, the Sprites are not a threat anymore: Sammy, a mysterious classmate who can see the entities through the lenses of her strange camera, was there. Fortunately, because she photographed the entities and imprisoned them in a photo; unfortunately because the girl photographed his transformation into Thief King Edward and desires to blackmail him for unknown reasons. What will happen if that photo leaks? Will GEO and the Cubs find Thief Queen Elizabeth and Edward? Let¡¯s see!

-| Glitch - |
¡°I¡¯m so happy it is Saturday!¡± said Edward as he threw himself on his bed. A beacon of light slithered through the breach of his window and lightened his bed. He basked in the Sun and stretched out his still moving arm¡ªhe dislocated the other while exploiting the ISG. ¡°Any plans for today?¡± asked Thief Queen Elizabeth, still trapped inside his mind. ¡°I mean, plans besides getting professional help?¡± ¡°Getting my phone back, apologizing to Karina for not playing baseball with her yesterday, phone calling my father to see how he¡¯s been doing in the physical therapy, hunt the Sprites¡­¡± ¡°Why not ask Adela out?¡± Edward rolled his eyes, as he desired to avoid that question. ¡°You saw what I had to do yesterday, Elizabeth. I told Adela to go home with Brad so the Sprites would not harm her. I must have looked like an idiot.¡± ¡°Yes, you did. She¡¯d find it noble if you explained her the real reasons¡ª¡± ¡°What there were evil frogs trying to erase me?¡± ¡°I said she¡¯d find it noble, not that she¡¯d believe it.¡± The boy faltered. ¡°Wait, why are you asking about my plans?¡± ¡°I want to borrow your body for a while. There is something I want to try,¡± she referred to the Heart in a Vat. ¡°Alright,¡± he replied, closing his eyes. ¡°Please don¡¯t get dirty, I just took a shower.¡± ¡°I saw it.¡± The boy recoiled. ¡°Wait, did you see it all¡ª¡± He turned into Thief King Edward. The purple-eyed man lifted himself off the bed, brushed the hair with a hand and looked at his reflection in the bedroom¡¯s window. ¡°Pathetic,¡± he remarked as he yanked the Heart in a Vat from a shelf. Only one of his arms was functional. ¡°What affects toothpick seems to hurt me as well. This will be a painful existence.¡± ¡°Hey, I¡¯m listening to all you are saying!¡± replied Edward, speaking as a figment of the man¡¯s mind. ¡°I know,¡± replied Thief King, smirking. He squeezed the Heart in a Vat and leaned forward to see the relic from closer. ¡°Do you have a microscope?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°An anvil?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so;¡± ¡°A chemical lab, maybe?¡± ¡°Why would I have any of these things?¡± Thief King snorted, ¡°What do you have? Besides wasteful concrete books and lying textbooks?¡± ¡°I have a computer, but¡ª¡± ¡°A computer, of course¡±¡ªhe recoiled¡ª¡°I can access the G-Channel.¡± ¡°¡ªmom doesn¡¯t allow me to use the PC, remember? Also, what is the G-Channel?¡± ¡°Social network for Glitchers. We access it through a glitch to keep normals out.¡± ¡°Does that work?¡± ¡°No. Normals find a way to ruin everything. Tell me where that computer is, I must disassemble it and check part by part.¡± ¡°Why? It works!¡± ¡°To guarantee privacy¡ª¡± Thief King heard the sound of steps on the apartment¡¯s floor. He turned back into Edward as the bedroom¡¯s doors banged open. ¡°Eddy, we must talk,¡± said Joy, his mother, who had forgotten to take her raincoat off. She entered the room with an empty gallon of disinfectants in hand. ¡°Did you empty this?¡± she asked, jerking the disinfectants left and right. The boy frowned. He mumbled, ¡°I-I was late for school and nothing was working¡ª¡± ¡°Wake up earlier, then. Do you have any idea how expensive that is? You think my money is grass? Also, have you been telling Hermione she doesn¡¯t need to take a shower? I called Sally¡¯s mom and she said that Hermione looked like she was homeless yesterday. She looked ugly and everyone noticed. You have no idea how hard it is to run a house and a family¡­¡± Joy ranted without stopping to breathe. She mentioned every single atom out of place in the apartment as a reason to be angry with Edward. Elizabeth groaned in anger for having to hear the scolding. She was not Joy¡¯s daughter and did not feel the need to tolerate her shouts. ¡°Let me get this straight,¡± began Elizabeth, ¡°you miss a test, dislocate an arm, destroy a year of a teacher¡¯s salary in school property; your sister Hermione filled her hand with calluses and what makes your mom angry is that she is out of disinfectants? And that you did not tell her child to take a shower? Also, she is clearly on something.¡±The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Edward¡¯s eyes flashed purple. Numbers hovered over Joy¡¯s head: Elizabeth concluded, ¡°I knew she was on something.¡± Edward pulled his sights away. He had no will to face his mother as she ranted in a frenzy. He had heard the same speech many times before, no matter how much he attempted to be a perfect son. He was sure that he would not change in the millionth speech. The boy frowned and mumbled for only Elizabeth to hear, ¡°Can you go over the theory of combat?¡± ¡°Wait, now?¡± Joy, the boy¡¯s mother, continued her rant: ¡°¡­it¡¯s hard enough to spend all night up working and have that taken for granted. All my friends are up all night partying while I¡¯m working because I have responsibilities¡­¡± Edward answered Elizabeth¡¯s question, apathetic, ¡°I don¡¯t see why not explain it now.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± He nodded. ¡°Alright,¡± began Elizabeth, trying to ignore Joy¡¯s rant. ¡°From where do I start? You must know that every object in our reality has emergent attributes. I discovered a glitch called ¡®Sesame¡¯ that allows me to take a glimpse of the attributes that the Universe associates to each one of us when it calculates the outcome of a certain interaction, like a car crash. Knowing that data gives me the immediate insight of the most likely outcome of every situation. I, per example, never failed to predict the winner of an arm-wrestling competition. There are countless attributes in every mob¡ªhow we call the objects of the Universe. Yet I choose five of them for their reliability in stressful situations like a potential conflict: Health Points, Reaction Time, Dislocation Capacity, Physical Strength and Five Senses. The Five Senses are the ones that you learn at school. Since most humans don¡¯t tend to have far better sight or hearing than their peers, I reserve myself to only detailing them when there is a sharp distinction in capacity. Like the one that being sleepy or having a sight disease may cause. Physical Strength is measured by your average capacity of deadlifting. Very straight-forward, but you are so thin that I doubt you know what deadlifting is. Reaction Time is an attribute that is better, the lower it is. It is how long you take to react to a certain situation. Some Glitchers, all modesty aside, can act so fast that they dodge bullets. Battles between experienced Glitchers tend to awe those who watch, even when the fighters know absolutely no martial arts. We just react so fast that fights almost look choreographed. Dislocation Capacity is how fast you run. You¡¯re surprisingly slow for a boy your age. Health Points is how I foolishly called ¡®enough pressure to instantly kill you¡¯. I took this from video games when I looked for the minimum pressure that would be equivalent to 100% of someone¡¯s health. I found that swimmers considered swimming beyond 400 feet underwater were enough to press their chest and kill them. So I decided to adopt the unit. It has been surprisingly reliable since health bars are not a property of matter.¡± Elizabeth ended her explanations. Edward listened to his mother once again: ¡°¡­I don¡¯t know what would make you happy. I don¡¯t understand you, Edward. What is lacking so much in your life that you have this love for these things?¡± she glanced at the figures of Glitchers. ¡°I¡¯ve had it far worse when I was your age¡ª¡± Edward spoke back: ¡°Mom, please; this is not about you¡ª¡± ¡°What? How can you say this¡­¡± The woman continued her ranting. She spoke so loud that Hermione walked into the room, wondering what happened. Elizabeth buffed, ¡°maybe I should just talk about progression systems while we are at it.¡± ¡°Be my guest,¡± replied Edward. ¡°There is no leveling up in the Universe, at least not for mobs. The only way to naturally improve attributes¡ªthe ones that can be improved¡ªis by practicing them. Just like every athlete already does it. Want to run faster? Run around the city occasionally. Want to become stronger? Join a gym. Want to improve your reaction time? Play fighting video games, join a photography stroll, join a music club. I don¡¯t know. Want to discover new glitches? Go to new places, do unorthodox things and they will appear. I¡¯m not telling you to hit your head against a wall, yet the more things you try, the greater are the chances of finding new glitches in reality. Have some bloody common sense because you know well you are never living up to your fullest potent¡ª¡± Edward snapped: ¡°I¡¯ll go buy a new bottle of disinfectants,¡± he said, standing up. He heard neither Elizabeth nor his mom. The voices mixed in his head and the resulting solution was exothermic. Joy, his mother, recoiled as her son left the room. ¡°You¡¯ll do what now? I¡¯m talking!¡± she protested. The boy walked out the bedroom and yanked his red gymnastics jacket from a wall. ¡°I¡¯m going out. Want something?¡± he asked Hermione. He sighed in relief, noticing that she carried the drawing of a house instead of a murderous toad. ¡°You are gonna buy drugs, won¡¯t you?¡± asked the girl as she scratched her chin, suspicious. ¡°We had to write a text about drugs yesterday. I got an A writing about my brother who eats them. I even read it in front of the class¡ª¡± ¡°Please, Hermione! I don¡¯t do drugs!¡± he said as he wore his shoes and left the apartment. The girl stuck her head out the door and watched him as he climbed down the stairs of the apartment building. She shouted, ¡°that¡¯s exactly what an agict¡±¡ªhow she referred to an addict¡ª¡°would say!¡± Edward did not slow down. He cherished the cold stinky air of Chicago like a soft breeze as if a boxer that leaves the ring and has a coach wave a dry towel on their face. He felt his body lighter¡ªway lighter than it should. Elizabeth spoke in his head, ¡°Hey, toothpick. Did you bring the dough with you?¡± ¡°The dough?¡± ¡°Money.¡± ¡°Damn it,¡± he grunted, touching his clothes expecting to feel the shape of a wallet. ¡°I didn¡¯t bring money and there are no shops around here anymore. I¡¯ll have to walk to Ms. Wilson¡¯s. She generally accepts if I pay later.¡± ¡°Why not just go back and ask for money?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to go back in there,¡± confessed the boy. ¡°It¡¯s so frustrating, you know? The only time that mom is not in a hurry to leave, she makes us wish she was working. Were your family like this too?¡± ¡°That is a talk I¡¯m not willing to have.¡± ¡°Alright, I guess,¡± he resigned, glancing at the cracks and trash littering the floor of his apartment building. ¡°I think this would all be better if we were rich and had a big house. There would be no need to fight over cleaning products. I could just stay home and relax.¡± ¡°That is a popular theory. Yet I always found that when there is a hole in the heart, the hole in the pocket is soon to rip open.¡± ¡°I still don¡¯t know much about you. Were you rich yourself? ¡°You don¡¯t imagine, Toothpick,¡± she remarked, chuckling. Edward left the apartment and the landlord, an old man with a white beard, rose his voice as he saw the boy leaving, ¡°Edward there is a package for you,¡± said the man, hiding behind steel bars. ¡°A package for me, Mr. Mouriarty?¡± asked Edward, approaching the man¡¯s armored office. ¡°Yes, son. I also got surprised when you received something.¡± ¡°Is your daughter feeling okay today?¡± asked the boy as he yanked the package from a shelf. ¡°Erika is fine. She¡¯s reacting well to the chemotherapy. The doctor says it is too early to be sure, but I think this is it and she will finally recover. Her birthday is coming soon¡±¡ªhe glanced at a pamphlet his daughter¡¯s birthday party at the door¡ª¡° she doesn¡¯t have any friends. Consider yourself invited¡ª¡± The boy¡¯s eyes shined. ¡°Really?¡± he asked the man. ¡°¡ªif you bring soda.¡± Elizabeth rose her voice, ¡°Why is everyone a bloody jerk in this city?¡± ¡°Never mind,¡± replied Edward, laying the package on a table and unwrapping the contents. ¡°I wonder if this is that is the One Piece cosplay that I ordered.¡± ¡°Wait, that series is still around?¡± ¡°It gets pretty good after episode three-thousand with the new arc,¡± remarked Edward as he yanked the contents from inside the package. ¡°Wait, this is a¡±¡ªhe recoiled. He saw a picture of Thief King Edward alongside a photo of the toad Sprites that pursued him¡ª¡°photo?¡± A message slipped off the wraps. The boy crouched and squeezed his eyes to read the mandatary¡¯s message. He read out loud, ¡°I know your secret. If you don¡¯t want anyone else to know, come alone. Judy Park, Hughes Road 222.¡± Mr. Mouriarty smirked at the scene. ¡°Worried, kid? You should. When I was your age, I remember getting a photo of myself sleeping. The thing is"--he grinned--"I lived alone. So watch yourself, son. There are some creepy people in this city.¡± Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: An Important Announcement MEDIA''S ''THANK YOU'' MESSAGE TO EVERYONE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPHbavbF5xM&feature=youtu.be
I''m happy to inform you that Glitch will go on... AND THAT WE WILL ALSO PUBLISH IT ON PATREON! -Donate at least1 DOLLAR / Month (less than a cup of tea/month) for the cause! You get access to 2 UPDATES before their official release date! Your name will also show up in the ''List of Patrons'' in every new update! - Donate +4 DOLLARS / Monthfor the MAJOR LEAGUEMEDIA IN SANITYMLG XLR ULTRA PACK Gamestop JOHN CENA Deluxe Edition, which comes with 6UPDATES before their official release date! Your name will also show in the ''List of Patrons'' in every new update! COMING SOON:Join Elizabeth''s List of People who should get Mourgiana''d! Do a 10+ Dollars donation, get access to10 UPDATES before their official release date! Get acharacter based on yourself! The weirder you are, the better it is! If you don''t want to donate some coins, you can still count on our regular3 Updates / Week,which will be hopefully of a higher quality, as readers from Patreon can give us feedback on how everything is looking. "> No pressure: just keep being awesome! Donation money can be used for me to improve the novel, like getting ''Premium'' on Grammarly to improve the quality of the text.
I really wanted to thank you guys one more time for all you''ve done.Glitchwill continue. The next update will come out in two days onRRL. An early draft of the next 6Updates is already available on PATREONin case you guys want to read it now (and hopefully help me out with some feedback! We want the best final drafts as possible!) But let''s not taint this message with any more aggressive marketing!This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Here is aThank You to specific people who helped me so far: -ssddx: For making the best coverever made by a human! -Lone: For patiently explaining to me how he does what he does! I know I''m a bit slow. He has been amazing! -Alexis Keane: For always being so helpful! -SJ Reaver: For joining when I was working up until 4 AM to get Glitch going! -Ressonant Wordsmith: For his amazing proofreading! -Tophicakes: For always having my back and doing a great proofreading! -Merly23: For her great eyes. -Theater Girl: For being awesome and being a great motivation! -God_is_Good: For being a great person and helping to promote the novel! -The WriTE Gang: Ulia,Zenlith, The Monk, Who Cares, Emi, Tanaka "The Coolest Guy Ever'' Tomoyuki, Venior, George Bakerson and everyone else (too many people to list); you guys are awesome and helped meso muchstyle improvements and insights about grammar and life! - RRL Staff: For giving me a great platform to promote my work. You guys shouldn''t be so skeptical and mean-spirited about everything. For an author, you are doing a heavenly work. -My Best Friends: Juniorsohn, Honda and Jhonny. Espero que agora eu consigan?o desapont¨¢-los. Eu realmente s¨® quero voltarao RRPG para jogar com voc¨ºs. For the readers... - ZED_OUD:For writing such an amazing review (his first on this website! Impressive) and having helped Glitch recover from a rocky first day. Zed is awesome. - Ice1080: Same. Ice did a great effort to review the novel alongside ZED_OUD.It is amazing how I never knew these guys and they still acted in such magnificent manner for an unknown. Thank you guysso much for helping Glitch! If this novel is still being written, it is because you guys showed up! Thank you so much! - treshkcool:For breaking the review ice with his"Doomed from the Start"review. I''ll PM you whenthat moment that you''ve asked for approaches. - Zedred: For being an awesome reader ever since Verano from Avatar: The Wild Lands was a baby. - CRAZYDARKLORD: For giving me an amazing reminder that Glitch is good in a difficult moment that I had recently. - BERS3RKER: For his very kind words. Welcome to RRL! All authors here thank you for making that account only to review Glitch. "> - Lord_Baseus: For showing up from Avatar: The Wild Lands to help! - Slayersky123: Motivating words! - Alfred Onyx: Cryptic (yet awesome) comments! - lucitfler: Great eyes and very helpful corrections/insights! -isomin: Very kind words! - Tenroujima: For always showing up and being motivating! Thanks, everyone! XI - There are things that money cannot buy. So bring Bitcoins... (Part 1)

XI ¨C There are things that Money cannot buy. So bring some Bitcoins¡­ (Part 1)

Previously on ¡®Glitch¡¯: It¡¯s Saturday and Edward is resting when his mother comes yell at him for having wasted the house¡¯s disinfectants. What a drag, not even I can be excited about it. Tired of her ranting, he decides to leave home so that he can go buy some. Yet he receives an anonymous letter from Sammy, the girl who somehow trapped the Sprites in a photo! She includes a picture of Thief King and threatens to publish the image. The only way for Edward to preserve his privacy is to go to a shady address. Something tells me it is not a blind date¡­

- / Glitch - /
¡°What must we do?¡± asked Edward, nervous. He sat on a ruined bench on the sidewalk as he flipped through the photos of Thief King. ¡°Here says the mandatary has all the negatives¡­¡± ¡°We must do nothing,¡± replied Thief Queen Elizabeth Shao, still trapped in the boy¡¯s mind. ¡°It¡¯s either a bluff or a trap.¡± ¡°How can you be so sure?¡± ¡°What happened to the Sprites sure is impressive, yet how could the person know that we have an important secret? The blackmailer has no film of the transformation, so they have no evidence that you and that handsome purple-eyed fellow are the same individual. He may have been a trespasser in the school who looked exactly like you. Going to the blackmailer¡¯s meeting spot would just prove that they have power over us.¡± ¡°Who you think this blackmailer is? One of the Cubs? A Sprite?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve once seen a Glitcher do something similar,¡± pondered Elizabeth, silent. ¡°Could it be them?¡± she asked herself, thinking of the Skulls, the Glitching Gang that betrayed her. ¡°Are you alright, Elizabeth?¡± ¡°Yes. For now, I want you to look for something.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± he asked, standing up. The unrepaired bench tumbled as he rose his body. ¡°I want a hideout. I don¡¯t want to work on that metal heart and have someone storm in the room to ask you to clean a toilet¡ª¡± A car¡¯s engine roared across the neighborhood. Brad, the jock who dated Adela, rode down the street on his new convertible. The car was so polished that the Sun was brighter on the vehicle¡¯s bodywork than in the sky. ¡°Hurry up, babe, come on!¡± he said, facing the exit of the girl¡¯s apartment and smashing the horn. Edward snorted, ¡°It¡¯s eight in the morning of a Saturday! Can¡¯t you be quieter?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t hear you, man,¡± replied Brad as he faced Edward ¡°What did you say again?¡± ¡°I told you to stop¡ª¡± Brad pressed the car¡¯s horn and drowned out the boy¡¯s voice The jock teased him, ¡° ¡°Sorry, you speak too low. What were you saying, bro?¡± ¡°It¡¯s eight in the morn¡ª¡± Brad smashed a pedal. The car¡¯s engine moaned so loud that the sound drowned out Edward¡¯s voice and ripped cracks in windows. ¡°My ears!¡± screamed Edward, agonizing. ¡°Was my baby too loud for you, Eddy?¡± asked the jock, referring to his brand new car. ¡°Because I¡¯m sure Adela¡¯s louder,¡± he said, chortling. ¡°I¡¯ll find out today and tell you, bueno?¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Screw you!¡± snapped Edward. Elizabeth mocked the boy¡¯s response. ¡°¡¯Screw you¡¯? Is that your bloody best, toothpick? Are you sure your dad¡¯s in the military?¡± Adela ran out of her apartment building to the symphony of a car¡¯s loud engine. ¡°Calm down, Brad, please¡±¡ªshe opened his convertible¡¯s door¡ª¡°you woke up my mom!¡± Brad smirked. ¡°And you love me for that, don¡¯t you¡±¡ªhe kissed her as she sat on the passenger seat¡ª¡°why the &$(%¡§% you took so long, babe?¡± ¡°I was feeding my cats,¡± she replied, wearing the seat belt. ¡°Babe, this car¡¯s not insured yet! I don¡¯t feel like donating it to the Cubs. If you want to take long, you either move out of this craphole or I find someone else.¡± ¡°We can¡¯t all live in a mansion like yours,¡± she said, using her reflection in the car¡¯s rearview to mess her long blond hair. Brad chuckled. He rustled in her ears, ¡°Be nice to this kitty here¡±¡ªhe wore his sunglasses¡ª¡±and you might just live in one. Meow.¡± He smashed the accelerator pedal and the convertible sped down the street. Edward watched high and dry as the car disappeared into the horizon. Elizabeth rumbled, ¡°She did not even notice you. What was that, Toothpick?¡± ¡°Maybe it¡¯s better like this,¡± he conceded, crestfallen. ¡°We¡¯d have to go on a bus if I asked her out. I have no money for a car.¡± ¡°That¡¯s rubbish. You keep talking about money when the bloody problem is somewhere else. ¡®Screw you¡¯?¡± she quoted him. ¡°He disrespected her, you dunce! You should have ISG¡¯ed that bloody &$&%¡§.¡± ¡°She¡¯d get angry if I picked a fight with him¡­¡± ¡°Which of your mom¡¯s pills did you swallow, Toothpick? I have a feeling it was that one that comes with a calendar.¡± ¡°Elizabeth, please. She knows I don¡¯t like him, but I must be civil¡ª¡± ¡°Girls don¡¯t like civil guys, they like guys¡±¡ªshe corrected herself¡ª¡°and some like girls. Who taught all that rubbish, by the way? You don¡¯t want to be happy, Toothpick? I don¡¯t know what voice you have in your head that is telling you exactly what to do for you to retire cleaning your family¡¯s toilet, but it was not mine.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just go home, alright?¡± mumbled Edward, turning around. ¡°I should not have left my bedroom today.¡± Elizabeth heaved a loud sigh. ¡°The body is yours,¡± she resigned. The boy climbed the stairs to his apartment building. Yet a thought weighed in his chest. ¡°Hey, Elizabeth,¡± he faltered, testing if speaking freed him from the angst. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I really like having you as a company,¡± confessed Edward, blushing. ¡°We¡¯ve known each other for so little and I feel like you know all that there is to know about me. I really like you.¡± If the woman had cheeks, they would have reddened. ¡°Y-You¡¯re a tool for me, Toothpick. If anything, your teenage angst entertains me,¡± she snorted. ¡°And don¡¯t use compliments to buy my silence. You can dodge the money issue for a while, but I want you to do what I tell you the next time. Having a box of disinfectants won¡¯t make your mom nice, and a BMW won¡¯t make you more of a man.¡± ¡°You sure?¡± he mumbled, scratching his cheek. ¡°Those sound really nice.¡± ¡°Shut up, Toothpick. Let¡¯s get that shoulder fixed.¡± The weekend passed as if time rode on the back of a bullet. Mr. Mouriarty, who often claimed that he was a famous doctor from Chicago, was the only free pair of hands that the boy found to fix his dislocated shoulder. What Edward only realized as he sat in Mr. Mouriarty¡¯s office and saw the man¡¯s proud degree hanging on a wall, was that the landlord was a doctor of mechanical engineering, not of people. And his real proficiencies showed: the man grasped the boy¡¯s dislocated arm like he screwed a screw nut with a wrench and pushed the limb forward as if he shifted the gears of a tractor¡ªand the boy screamed as loud as the engine of one. ¡°Two days of rest and you¡¯ll be fine, son,¡± guaranteed Mr. Mouriarty. His breath smelled of whiskey and smoke. The man¡¯s words repeated like an echo in Edward¡¯s head as the boy laid down on his bed, agonizing. The only greater pain than his arm was the one that he felt whenever he heard the horn of Brad¡¯s car coming to pick Adela up again. After a while, Edward¡¯s hearing became one that would envy Mozart, as the boy could tell every single note, accord, and scale of the jock¡¯s usual uproar. Monday arrived and Edward attended school as dreary as if he went to a funeral. His dislocated arm was still limp and he hid his injury with more caution than one hides their intimate shames. ¡°Still no sign of the Sprites,¡± remarked Elizabeth, concerned. ¡°What could this mean?¡± The boy entered St. Michael¡¯s High, unaware that a pair of eyes watched him from a dark room. ¡°There you are,¡± said Sammy, observing Edward through the breach of a window. ¡°You did not take my threat seriously, Edward. ¡°Now the world will know that you chose to hide your sortileges from us,¡± she said, yanking the new edition of the school¡¯s newspapers from the press. Thief King¡¯s clumsiest scowl stamped the colorful front page. "It is an act of fate that you smiled for the camera," she said, frowning at his image. Once released, that picture could lead the Cubs directly to St. Michael¡¯s High. Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: XI – There are things that Money cannot buy. So bring some Bitcoins… (Part 2)

XI ¨C There are things that Money cannot buy. So bring some Bitcoins¡­ (Part 2)

- / Glitch - /
The school bells rang, announcing that another painful day of classes ended. Edward walked out of his classroom as if someone had ironed his backs. ¡°If they don¡¯t have the money to pay a teacher, why do they have classes to show us an internet video?¡± he asked himself, walking to his locker. ¡°I just don¡¯t understand why¡­¡± He rambled with a hand on his exhausted spine. Elizabeth, still trapped inside his head, rose her voice, ¡°Why are they looking at you like that?¡± ¡°Who?¡± replied the boy, raising his frown and noticing that people glanced at him everywhere he went. A student gossiped, ¡°they are saying Eddy is that guy who was hanging out with Macro on the cover? There is no way. He¡¯d have grown some inches¡­¡± A teacher replied, ¡°Didn¡¯t Eddy destroy an entire toilet last week? I mean,¡± he pointed at the purple-eyed man stamping the front cover of a newspaper, ¡±they have a lot in common. It¡¯s uncanny¡±¡ªthe man as he noticed that the boy got closer¡ª¡°act normal, act normal!¡± Edward walked crestfallen and suspicious. He noticed that the students struggled to do not stare at him. ¡°What in the world is going on?¡± he asked Elizabeth, feeling as if there were a gravitational pull around him that attracted jokes and rumors. ¡°Are they still going on about the ruined toilet?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so. They are walking around with a school newspaper this time.¡± ¡°But this school has no newspaper. I thought they stopped making it after the massacre. There is no way they have started printing it again. The old prints were stolen¡±¡ªhe kicked a newspaper on the ground and saw the face of Thief King stamping the cover¡ª¡°wait, what? This can¡¯t be!¡± he said, yanking the document from the ground, incredulous. ¡°When did they photograph us?¡± Elizabeth chortled as if joy erupted from her insides. Her laughter was so loud that she deafened the boy. ¡°Look at Macro¡¯s picture!¡± she said. ¡°Macro?¡± asked Edward as he frowned upon a picture of Macro sitting down on fetal position and sucking his thumb. There was a puddle by his side. The punk looked as if he had wet the ground, as the image had no color. ¡°Oh no, he¡¯s gonna¡ª¡± Macro grabbed the boy by his shirt and rose him off his feet. ¡°¡ªkill you,¡± he completed. ¡°I-I know it¡¯s hard to believe, but I had nothing to do with that!¡± bargained Edward. ¡°I¡¯m as confused as you are!¡± ¡°You take me for a moron, don¡¯t you, dude?¡± Brad, who watched the scene alongside his jock friends, laughed. ¡°Nice job, Macro! Want some money for new pants?¡± he teased the punk. The jock¡¯s friends burst off laughing. Macro snorted, ¡°*$&%%# you, dude¡ª¡± A bucket fell on his head. ¡°Mr. Ross and Mr. Williams,¡± began a woman in a penitentiary officer attire, ¡°where are your uniforms? It¡¯s time to start your shift!¡± ¡°What shift, Ms. Pershing?¡± faltered Edward, facing the woman. Elizabeth spoke in his head, ¡°Toothpick, remember the deal that Adela got for you? Clean toilets and the school might not sue your mom for the destruction that the Sprites did.¡± ¡°Wait, so Macro is on that deal too?¡± asked Edward, glancing at the punk as he rose from the ground. The bucket had left a mark on Macro¡¯s forehead. ¡°What did you do?¡± asked the boy, facing his new co-worker. Ms. Pershing rose her voice, ¡°he did something horrible. Even worse than yours. Now hurry up and get dressed, you two.¡± Elizabeth pondered, ¡°Don¡¯t complain, Toothpick. This could be a good opportunity to investigate that newspaper. This could be the exposure that the blackmailer threatened us with.¡± Hours later, Edward saw himself lying on the floor like a rugged carpet. The rake had left a red mark on his hand. ¡°You sure this was a good idea, Elizabeth?¡± he asked her, trying to lift himself off the ground. ¡°I can¡¯t feel my hands¡ª¡± The sound of Ms. Pershing¡¯s boots echoed across the hallway. Edward rose from the ground as fast as if he raced a thunder, ¡°I was not complaining, Ms. Pershing!¡± he said. ¡°The ground is looking spectacular.¡±Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. The woman frowned on the result of his moping. ¡°I¡¯m not impressed,¡± she remarked. ¡°But your shift is over for today. Pack up and go home.¡± ¡°What a relief,¡± replied the boy, standing up and shoving the grime off his uniform. Karina, the girl who loves baseball, approached them. She had an exhausted look on her face. ¡°Mom, are you done yet?¡± she asked Ms. Pershing, rubbing the eyes. Edward recoiled. ¡°Wait, she¡±¡ªhe pointed at Ms. Pershing¡ª¡°is your mom, Karina? I¡¯m so sorry¡ª¡± ¡°You¡¯re what?¡± protested the woman, swinging her ferule at him. ¡°Nothing!¡± replied Edward. Karina stared at him, bothered. ¡°I don¡¯t wanna talk to you, Eddy,¡± she said, still bitter about him not showing up to play baseball with her. The boy bargained, ¡°I¡¯m so sorry for what happened last week, I swear¡ª¡± The girl did not waste a word on him. Karina turned around and left the school alongside Ms. Pershing. ¡°You should play with her sometimes. Would certainly make you feel like a better friend and less like you are swinging a noodle when you do the ISG. I just doubt that she¡¯d want to play with you.¡± Edward stared as Karina and her mother as they walked through the exit door. The boy mumbled, ¡°Karina has to wait for her mom to be done with work every day. It must be horrible for her. I wish I could give them a ride home. It¡¯s not a good idea for two women to walk around at night. If only I had a car,¡± he said, walking to his locker. ¡°Why don¡¯t you say that to them, Toothpick? Try using those exact same words and see what happens..¡± ¡°I feel like you¡¯re being sarcastic.¡± ¡°Am I?¡± she mocked him. ¡°Now let¡¯s ignore this matter and go check the printing room¡ª¡± Edward kicked his rusty locker to unlock the lock¡ªhis usual routine. Yet this time a newspaper slipped off the insides and fell on his feet. ¡°Wait, who left this?¡± he asked himself, yanking the papers from the ground. A message written with a green marker stamped the front page, ¡°The leaks will keep coming. Don¡¯t be stupid. Judy Park, Hughes Road 222.¡± Edward clenched his fist. ¡°Damn it, what do you think they have on us?¡± he asked Elizabeth. ¡°Still nothing than pictures that only suggest, not state,¡± she replied. ¡°At least I now know it was a girl who wrote this by the calligraphy, likely around your age. For a moment, I considered something worse could be on our tail.¡± ¡°I should go investigate the printing room. Maybe there is a clue there¡ª¡± The sound of a kick echoed through the school¡¯s empty hallways. ¡°What was that?¡± asked Edward, pursuing the origin of the sound. He peeked on a wall and saw Macro slamming the door of the printing room with his feet. ¡°Why won¡¯t it open,¡± snorted the punk, hitting the door with his shoulders. ¡°Why can¡¯t it¡ª¡± Edward walked by his side and turned the knob of the printing room. The door opened without ceremony as if it invited them in. Elizabeth concluded, ¡°See? It¡¯s imperative in life that we only break what is strictly necessary.¡± Edward faced Macro, repeating what he heard, ¡°It is imperative in life that we only break what is necessary.¡± ¡°Did you come up with that on your own, Toothpick?¡± The punk rolled his eyes and put his hands in his pockets, blushing. He entered the room and frowned upon the printing equipment. The machines still had their price tags on. ¡°Yeah, it wasn¡¯t you who spread all that $&%* around the school,¡± concluded Macro, snatching a copy of the newspaper from the floor. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t spend that type of money to make fun of me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s just physical press, Macro. People will forget about that joke soon.¡± ¡°They won¡¯t. It¡¯s all over the web, dude. Every damn Photogram profile has that picture of me supposedly wetting my pants.¡± ¡°It¡¯s strange,¡± remarked Edward, scratching his chin. ¡°The school gets a donation and we don¡¯t hear about it? They left the door unlocked.¡± ¡°Those &$*%($ must be planning to take the machines home.¡± ¡°Or perhaps the person who was using this room also goes home late,¡± said Edward, glaring at an open window. The cold wind of the night blew the room¡¯s curtains. ¡°Whoever printed those images must be planning to do it again. I think we should stay quiet and¡ª¡± Macro slammed a printer with a hammer. Edward recoiled. ¡°What are you doing, Macro?¡± he asked, holding the punk by the arms. ¡°Dude, it was not you who was &$¡§%& wetting yourself in a picture, alright?¡± ¡°I know, but that doesn¡¯t mean you gotta act like this. We can still figure things out¡­¡± Both boys discussed what should be the printers. Unbeknownst to them, a hidden camera filmed the discussion. ¡°Breaking school property again,¡± remarked Sammy, watching the scene through a tablet. ¡°A spirit of chaos really inhabits you, Edward Williams. Yet after I threaten you with the images from this video, you will be tamed. The school won¡¯t resist pressing charges.¡± The girl rose from the grass. She printed the image of the destroyed printer and stored the photo in the new envelope that she planned to blackmail Edward with. ¡°The destiny keeps me one step ahead. I knew you¡¯d not resist going into the room,¡± she said, walking away and praising her own intelligence. She did not notice that a shady vehicle watched her from afar. ¡°This is the school where the picture of the purple-haired man was taken?¡± asked a member of Cubs. He blew the smoke from a cigar, sitting quietly on the passenger seat of the strange car. ¡°Yeah,¡± replied the driver. He looked back and faced GEO, who sat with his legs crossed on the back seat. ¡°Hearing anything suspicious, Glitcher?¡± GEO rose his frown. ¡°Not every element of reality is made equal,¡± he rambled, ¡°some are more fallible than others, and are prone to be used to break the laws of nature.¡± The driver chortled. ¡°What are you on about¡ª¡± The Glitcher rose his sunglasses just enough for the man to see the color of his irises. ¡°¡ªargh! Don¡¯t eat me!¡± bemoaned the driver, screaming as if he had fallen in the middle of a herd of ferocious hyenas. ¡°No! I beg you! No!¡± GEO finished his speech. ¡°That teenage girl¡±¡ªhe faced Sammy as she left the school¡ª¡° she is in possession of a glitched item.¡± The smoking Cub on the passenger seat watched as his partner agonized. ¡°Y-Y-You think Thief Queen gave that to her?¡± asked the smoking Cub on the passenger seat, struggling to ignore his agonizing partner. ¡°We shall find out now,¡± replied GEO, unlocking the vehicle¡¯s doors. Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: XI - There are things that money cannot buy. So bring Bitcoins... (Part 3)

XII ¨C There are things that Money cannot buy. So bring some Bitcoins¡­ (Part 3)

- / Glitch - /
¡°How long you will hide from me, Edward Williams?¡± asked Sammy, crestfallen. She frowned upon the image of Thief King Edward as she approached the building where he lived. The night was of New Moon and the streets were dark. The yellow light of Chicago¡¯s poles was her only guidance. ¡°You have a new package, Eddy,¡± she said, leaving a black box in his apartment¡¯s mail. ¡°You either come meet me or goes to meet the police¡ª¡± GEO¡¯s voice crawled out of the darkness. ¡°You play with danger, little girl,¡± he said, not revealing himself. She yanked a picture of a Sprite from her vests. ¡°Who is talking?¡± asked Sammy, jolting her head left and right. ¡°I just desire to talk,¡± replied GEO. ¡°You might not know, but what you have in your possession¡ªthat camera¡ª, has a glitched item in it. These are dangerous objects, fathers to as many legends of fortune as they are of tragedies. I am a Glitcher, I can help you.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t fear the unknown.¡± ¡°You should, for you are a child. I want to know who gave that camera to you. Don¡¯t be concerned about revealing their identity¡ªthat person is not your friend.¡± ¡°I-I¡¯m fine on my own. Your concern is not welcome!¡± ¡°Who is the purple-eyed man in that picture that you were holding?¡± ¡°The man whose fate is bound to clash with mine.¡± GEO smirked. ¡°So you are blackmailing him?¡± he asked. Sammy snorted, ¡°That is not of your concern!¡± She ripped the animated picture of a Sprite in half.
¡°Luminous Wisp¡± LV3 Sprite
A creature in the shape of a bright flame with a baby face sprung off the picture. The entity closed its eyes and its fires brightened, revealing all the surroundings as if the neighborhood basked in the Sun of nine o¡¯clock. Sammy snarled, ¡°So you brought a friend.¡± The light revealed that GEO faced the girl from across the street while a mobster of the Cubs stood on the same sidewalk as if he expected her to run away. The man wearing the bandana of the Cubs fell on his backs, trembling. ¡°W-What the hell is going on? Why is everything bright?¡± GEO frowned nonchalantly. He narrowed his eyes at Sammy and suspired. ¡°I was hoping that we would join forces,¡± he said, yanking his sunglasses from his eyes. ¡°But it seems that there is no other option.¡± The Glitcher yanked his sunglasses from the face and a blinding bright light flashed. Sammy covered her face to protect herself from the flash, yet the reality was not the same as her eyes opened the second time. ¡°Where am I? What is going on?¡± she asked, opening her eyes. She stood in the hallway of a dark castle alongside her Wisp Sprite. Two Moons hovered like chandeliers near the ceiling. Piles of gold rose like hills and blocked her sights. ¡°What is this place?¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°In a cave to where there is no entrance,¡± replied GEO. His eyes glowed white. ¡°This dungeon may be inside your wardrobe, in the middle of the sea, or in the entrails of a whale¡ªwe¡¯ll never know. It was generated alongside our reality, but the means to reach it were lost. A few parts of reality, however, still work as if this place existed. Those parts are glitches.¡± ¡°Open Sesame?¡± she asked, looking around. Piles of gold, microchips and hard drives stretched as far as her eyes could see. The cave seemed endless. ¡°I feel like I¡¯m on an alien planet,¡± she remarked. ¡°For a tiny ant that cannot climb, the top of a table would also seem alien,¡± he explained. ¡°This is but how it looks like when a real Glitcher is in control of a Glitched Item. Don¡¯t force me to go beyond this¡±¡ªhe outstretched his right hand¡ª¡°tell me what you know of Thief Queen.¡± Sammy frowned. She yanked two other photos of Sprites from her album and ripped them in half. Two wolves as silvery as a Full Moon materialized:
¡°F-Wolf¡± LV3 Sprite
¡°It¡¯s not over yet,¡± she remarked, smirking. The mouth of one her F-Wolves widened. The creature devoured its partner, and then it proceeded to swallow the Luminous Wisp. The wolf¡¯s body enlarged and the Sprite became a man-sized wolf with fiery fur and red eyes.
¡°The Midday Werewolf¡± LV6 Sprite
¡°What¡¯s your answer, Glitcher?¡± asked Sammy, raising her camera so that she could see the monster as it readied itself to attack. ¡°Can you even see evil spirits that roam our world?¡± ¡°These Sprites¡±¡ªhe corrected her¡ª¡±are not Pok¨¦mon for bored teenagers.¡± ¡°Attack!¡± she ordered. The Midday Werewolf rushed at GEO. The entity¡¯s body was so warm that its fur caught on fire. The creature trampled and razed the ground where it walked, leaving nothing but ashes behind. The Glitcher¡¯s white eyes widened and reality moved once again. ¡°What?¡± faltered Sammy, recoiling. The girl, GEO and the Sprite moved to the insides of a flooded Greek acropolis. Water was as high as the girl¡¯s waist. Yet the entity continued its attack. The Glitcher narrowed his eyes at the approaching monster, nonchalant. ¡°There is always a bigger fish¡±, he said. The ground ripped open. A tentacle sprung out of the floor of the Acropolis, wrapped itself around the Midday Werewolf¡¯s waist and pulled the creature to the depths. Sammy¡¯s eyes widened and took long to shrink. She was catatonic, incapable of believing what she saw. ¡°T-T-That was¡ª¡± She struggled to speak, bewildered. GEO smirked at her reaction. They returned to Chicago and he wore his sunglasses again. The man narrowed his eyes at her and continued his threats, ¡°We can either indulge in this nonsense, going through your entire album of trapped Sprites, or¡ª¡± ¡°¡ªso cool!¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Please, mister, make me a Glitcher!¡± she said, grasping his shoulders without any fear. ¡°I want to see those dungeons again and photograph them all! That is my calling!¡± ¡°You are serious, teenager?¡± ¡°There is nothing that I¡¯d like more! You don¡¯t understand, mister¡±¡ªtears filled her eyelids¡ª¡°The stars have given me a mission. This meeting was not an act of chance.¡± GEO heaved a loud sigh, reluctant. ¡°I can make you a Glitcher,¡± he conceded, crouching and yanking a photo from Thief King Edward from the ground. ¡°All you must do is to take him to me.¡± ¡°Now that I have a strong why. All I need is one photo,¡± she said, activating the zoom function of her camera. ¡°What are you up to?¡± asked GEO. Sammy turned around and eyed him. ¡°Step aside,¡± she told the gangster. GEO opened the way and the girl aimed her camera¡¯s lenses towards Adela¡¯s apartment. Edward''s innocent neighbor sat down on her pink bed and did homework, unsuspicious. ¡°Say cheese,¡± rustled Sammy as she took the picture and printed the image. The girl yanked a marker from her vests and smudged Adela¡¯s picture with a blurry message for Edward, ¡°Judy Park, Hughes Road, 222. Come, Edward. I do not want to hurt her.¡± ¡°This is not the first time you blackmail him?¡± Sammy swung her head left and right. ¡°What makes you sure that this work?¡± Sammy replied with a malicious smile on her face, ¡°I did not want to use her out of a sense of decency. But I must see those places again¡±¡ªshe wrapped the photo in a package and deposited into Edward¡¯s mailbox¡ª¡±it¡¯s Adela. I have no doubt that Edward will come.¡± Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: XII - I have no eyes and I must blink (Part 1)

XIII ¨C I have no eyes and I must blink (Part 1)

Previously on ¡®Yu-gi-oh!¡¯: Sammy, the creepy girl who blackmails Edward, has joined forces with GEO, the member of the Skulls who orchestrated the mutiny against Thief Queen Elizabeth Shao! Ruthless, Sammy takes a photo of Adela and threatens to hurt her in yet another blackmail letter to Edward. Will Edward finally fall for it and go meet her¡ªand her new powerful senpai¡ª, or will he discover the plot? Find out now!

- / Glitch - /
¡°No class today, kids! Go home!¡± said Dr. Welsh, Edward¡¯s eccentric teacher, waving his arms at a crowd that blocked the entrance to St. Michael¡¯s High school. Yet the students gossiped and partied, drowning out the teacher¡¯s voice. ¡°Excuse me, excuse me,¡± uttered Edward as he snuck into the crowd, confused about what happened. He found Macro standing idly amidst the sea of people. ¡°Good morning, Macro,¡± said the boy, feeling like a stranded sailor who found a port for finding a familiar face. ¡°Sup.¡± ¡°Any idea of what is going on in the school?¡± ¡°The pigs closed all the public repartitions for today.¡± ¡°The pigs? How?" ¡°That¡¯s thug life for cops, dude¡±¡ªMacro rolled his eyes and cleared his throat¡ª¡°The point is: Mayor Marchesi must be after some Glitcher or something. It is standard procedure.¡± Elizabeth Shao, yet again trapped in Edward¡¯s mind, chortled at what she heard. She explained, ¡°It¡¯s the infamous Marchesi Protocol¡ªor ¡®Stop and Glitch¡¯, like we used to call it: spot a supposed Glitcher, suddenly close all the repartitions and then interrogate the public officers who already showed up. No one would bother to talk otherwise. It is one of the ways that he found to witch-hunt glitches, look,¡± she said, guiding Edward¡¯s attention towards a police car that parked on the other side of the school. ¡°They¡¯re already getting in.¡± Edward suspired. ¡°Well, I¡¯ll go back to bed,¡± hetold Macro. ¡°Have a nice day.¡± ¡°See you, dude.¡± The boy left the whereabouts of the school and headed home. ¡°Thinking about that, it¡¯s been a while since I have seen Sophie Marchesi,¡± Edward remarked to Elizabeth. ¡°That is good. Her name made the tables.¡± ¡°The tables?¡± ¡°¡¯People to get Mourgiana¡¯d¡¯. I wonder what punishment I will choose for her...¡±Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Seriously? You keep tables just for that?¡± ¡°I must find something to do. There are way too many names for just a list.¡± ¡°Are you serious? Who is on that list already?¡± Elizabeth cleared her unexistent throat. She began, ¡°Your sister Hermione, your mother Joy, your father because he married Joy; the landlord Mr. Mouriarty, Macro, that fat kid with a German name who squeaks when he eats; that wannabe French classmate with a bloody obvious Quebec accent; the school principal, Ms. Pershing, Brad, Brad¡¯s jock friends, Macro again¡­¡± ¡°B-But that is everyone! You think all of them should get Mourgiana¡¯d? You hate everyone?¡± ¡°Not everyone should get Mourgiana¡¯d,¡± she faltered. ¡°Dr. Welsh entertained me.¡± Edward chuckled. ¡°You are the salt of the Earth, Elizabeth.¡± ¡°I¡¯m just British.¡± Police sirens colored Edward¡¯s pupils. ¡°Wait, what is going on?¡± asked the boy, raising his head. Police cars flooded the street. Police officers stood on the sidewalks and interrogated the citizens. ¡°Isn¡¯t that the landlord?¡± asked Elizabeth, guiding the boy¡¯s attention to Mr. Moriarty. ¡°Go ask him what is going on.¡± Edward approached the landlord, who stared at his phone like a hungry dog faces a warm meal. ¡°Mr. Moriarty?¡± asked the boy, glancing at the police officers. ¡°You know what is going on?¡± ¡°Hey, son. How is the arm?¡± Elizabeth spoke in the boy¡¯s head, ¡°it only hurts when you breathe.¡± Edward held his laughter and answered the old man¡¯s question, ¡°it¡¯s great. Thank you, Mr. Moriarty. But can you tell me what is going on¡±¡ªhe glanced at two people in white vests who collected evidence from the sidewalk¡ª¡°what are they doing?¡± ¡°Some people reported strange activity that could be a Glitcher.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yeah. Just be happy you¡¯re seeing the cops, son. Only time they show up around here is to give fines and find Glitchers¡ª¡± Elizabeth bargained, ¡°Maybe Mr. Moriarty should not get Mourgiana¡¯d¡­¡± ¡°¡ªOh crap, I lost a match of Sweetslam!¡± protested the man, furiously pressing his phone¡¯s screen. ¡°I meant to click the purple gummy, damn it!¡± ¡°Never mind. Back to the tables he goes.¡± Edward rose his head. He heard a familiar voice talking to a police officer on the sidewalk. ¡°Wait, is that mom?¡± he asked, walking closer to her and listening to their conversation. The officer wore a nametag signed with the word ¡°Haig¡±. He blinked at the woman. ¡°Maybe we can grab some coffee later today. You can get a break from the job, right?¡± he asked, smiling. ¡°A break. Know what I¡¯m talking about?¡± ¡°I¡¯d love that¡ª¡± Edward interrupted them, ¡°Mom?¡± Officer Haig grinned and walked away at the sight of a son. Joy, Edward¡¯s mother, narrowed her eyes at the boy. She snorted, ¡°What is it, Edward?¡± ¡°You¡¯re home?¡± ¡°Yes, I am. But they won¡¯t allow us in yet¡±¡ªshe gave him a box¡ª¡°and that is for you.¡± ¡°Is it a gift?¡± asked Edward, excited. ¡°I don¡¯t know, it was in the mail.¡± Edward unwrapped the box and recoiled at what he saw. ¡°Judy Park, Hughes Road, 222. Come, Edward. I do not want to hurt her,¡± said a message that was written on a picture of Adela. The boy gritted his teeth. He felt his heart pounding like a hammer. The thought of Adela suffering for him was like torture for Edward. Elizabeth noticed his agitation. ¡°Toothpick, wait,¡± she pleaded, ¡°don¡¯t just do anything insane¡ª¡± Adela¡¯s voice crept in the boy¡¯s ears. She had a phone in her left ear and said goodbyes to a friend, ¡°Bye, I¡¯m gonna go meet Brad right now. He¡¯ll drive me there,¡± she announced. Edward¡¯s mind went blank. He dropped the picture and ran at the girl as she climbed down the stairs of her apartment. ¡°Adela, we gotta talk!¡± he yelled, jolting his arm at her. ¡°Adela, wait¡ª¡± Officer Haig walked between him and the girl. ¡°Loving is setting free kid,¡± he mocked Edward, holding a clipboard between the hands. ¡°Care to answer some questions?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t¡±¡ªthe boy sobbed, looking at the girl as she walked around the street corner and disappeared¡ª¡°I think I love her.¡± Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: XII - I have no eyes and I must blink (Part 2)

XIII ¨C I have no eyes and I must blink (Part 2)

- / Glitch - /
"Adela, wait!" shouted Edward, running after Brad''s convertible like a dog chases a truck. Yet the girl did not hear. He was nothing but a sweating black dot in the car¡¯s rearview mirror. Edward snorted, "That jerk did it on purpose! he referred to Officer Haig, the man who had stopped the boy as he ran to warn Adela about the plot to harm her. "He made it in the tables,¡± remarked Elizabeth, still trapped in the boy¡¯s head. Edward cupped his mouth with the hands and screamed at the top of his lungs, "Adela, wait!¡± The roar of the engine in Brad''s car drowned out his voice. ¡°Wait please, Adela!¡± he repeated himself. ¡°Please don¡¯t go! Wait, please¡ª¡° His throat dried and closed. The boy collapsed to his knees, gasping. His efforts were futile. Elizabeth watched as he agonized. He was so red that he looked like a breathing strawberry. Edward insisted, ¡°I must stand up and¡±¡ªhe coughed as if he had a melon in his throat¡ª¡°go after her.¡± ¡°Look up, Toothpick. Hope is blinking at you.¡± His eyes flashed green. He saw a distortion in a nearby brick wall as if an emerald spotlight lightened the surface. ¡°What is that,¡± he asked Elizabeth. ¡°You died.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I¡¯m just kidding. You¡¯re seeing a Glitch¡¯s Rift, which is a mark that you can break reality at that point.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember seeing those before¡­¡± ¡°The 25th Hour probably happened.¡± ¡°What now?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t notice it, but reality has to be taken off the air and re-generated again to fix glitches. When that happens, new contextual glitches appear. Which asks for a new 25th Hour and so on¡±¡ªshe snorted¡ª¡° why am I even telling you this? Adela¡¯s getting away! Jump on that wall!¡± ¡°B-But¡ª¡± ¡°Do it! It is your only chance! You like that girl or not? Put your bloody head into those bricks!¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it dange¡±¡ªhe swallowed his fears¡ª¡°No, this is for Adela!¡± he said, silencing all voices of common sense in his head and running as fast as he could into the distorting wall. Elizabeth faltered. ¡°Wait, is he really doing it¡ª Edward closed his eyes and threw himself head first into a brick wall. ¡°¡ªtoothpick, no! It was a jest!¡± ¡°What¡ª¡± The boy jumped into the Glitch¡¯s Rift and fell in the middle of a street away from where he previously was. He grated his body on the unrepaired pavement and slammed his chest against the hard ground, hurting himself. ¡°Damn it,¡± he bemoaned, contorting. ¡°It hurts so much!¡±This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Wow, you really did it,¡± remarked Elizabeth, baffled. ¡°Toothpick, she is just one girl. Were you really going to break your neck for her?¡± ¡°B-But you told me to do that!¡± he protested, standing up and looking around. He did not recognize where he was. ¡°What happened to me? Where am I?¡± The suburbs of Chicago were all the same: hole-infested streets, barricaded homes, and broken glasses. Even a master photographer would struggle to find beauty in the city. Elizabeth ignored Edward¡¯s question. She ranted instead, ¡°I am glad that glitch was a Wrong Warp. If it were something else, we¡¯d be in the hospital now! Bloody hell, Toothpick! What is wrong with you? Can¡¯t you understand irony? Jesus, Mary, and Joseph; you could have just borrowed a bloody phone and talked to the bloody girl. Or maybe ask her mother where she bloody went, if possible. You have any idea how bloody foolish this was?¡± ¡°So that glitch is like a door that should not be there?¡± he asked. ¡°I think I¡¯ve never been here.¡± ¡°Ever heard of the curious case of Gil Perez? He leaned on a wall, fell asleep in the Philippines and woke up in the City of Mexico. We could be anywhere. You did not give me time, so I could not tell where that warp led to.¡± ¡°But you told me to jump¡ª¡± The ground quaked. Elizabeth guided Edward¡¯s eyes towards an incoming convertible about to crush him. ¡°Watch out!¡± she warned him. ¡°No one is paying attention to the road.¡± Brad, the driver, drove with the eyes planted on his phone. Adela ranted by his side: ¡°¡­so I just stopped studying, because my mom would not stop shouting at me for no reason. I texted Sammy, that weird girl who went emo after she started high school, and said we could do Dr. Welsh¡¯s work about 9/11 together because the way things are at home, I cannot finish a single line¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, babe,¡± replied Brad without pulling his eyes away from his phone. ¡°That movie was really good.¡± Edward flinched. His grated legs hurt as he tried to stand up and move away from the car. ¡°I-I¡¯ll move away!¡± he warned Elizabeth, hurt. He was running out of time. ¡°Pass the baton,¡± she replied. ¡°A-A-Alright,¡± replied Edward, confused. The boy closed his eyes and when they opened again, a bright purple-aura colored them. He became Thief King Edward. Edward, speaking as a figment of the man¡¯s mind, ordered, ¡°Okay, roll away now!¡± ¡°Roll away? I refuse to dirt my clothes. He shall stop for the King,¡± replied Thief King, yanking a rock from the damaged pavement and throwing it at the windshield of Brad¡¯s convertible. ¡°No! I can¡¯t pay that back!¡± The stone mauled Brad¡¯s windshield. ¡°What the &$%&?¡± snorted the jock, lifting his sights from his phone to face the catastrophe that a single rock caused. The rock drew a web of broken glass. His windshield became as if the eyes of a spider. Adela recoiled. ¡°There is a guy there!¡± she said, holding his shoulder. ¡°Sto¡ª¡± The car braked so fast that Adela felt as if the whiplash yanked her heart from her insides. Yet Brad did not have his possible victim¡¯s welfare in mind. ¡°That &$&%¡§#¡§$ will pay for this!¡± he grunted, leaving the car. He laid upon his convertible¡¯s hood and checked the damage. He ignored Thief King, the man whom he almost killed. Adela, however, yanked a first aid kit from the glove compartment and rushed to assist Thief King. ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯ll help you, mister!¡± She squatted, rested the first aid kit on her thighs and unzipped the first aid. ¡°I¡¯m sure I have some painkillers here¡ª¡± A collection of female underwear filled the box. She dropped the first aid kit and only stared at the clothes, catatonic. ¡°W-What is this?¡± she asked with tears creeping down her cheeks. Edward rumbled, ¡°poor Adela. Why would she think Brad would be more loyal to her than to anyone else? He is not worth her. You should do something, Elizabeth.¡± Thief King touched the girl¡¯s hand. ¡°What are you doing with your life?¡± he asked, narrowing his eyes at her. ¡°You know well he is not worth you.¡± Adela glanced at Brad. He dialed his phone and cursed out loud, ¡°¡§&$&$&% me! Mom, you listening¡±¡ªhe glanced at Thief King¡ª¡°can I get away with killing a &$*%# who stood in front of my car? Wait,¡± he flinched, ¡°what do you mean I¡¯m already on probation?¡± Thief King concluded, ¡°He¡¯s not changing. Being like that was how he got the girl.¡± Adela nodded, morose. ¡°Come,¡± she mumbled, glancing at the gratings on his leg and raising him from the ground. ¡°You¡¯re hurt. Brad doesn¡¯t have first aid, but I know a girl who lives nearby. She might be able to help.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t cry, girl,¡° said Thief King, spotting a tear shining like a pearl over her pink cheek. ¡°You are dodging a bullet.¡± She smiled. ¡°Sure,¡± she said, glancing at Brad, expecting him to react to her leaving with a stranger. Yet the jock only had eyes for his car. ¡°Damn it, where is the closest workshop in this slum?¡± ¡°But where are we?¡± ¡°You live somewhere else? This is Hughes Road, Judy Park.¡± Edward flinched. He was in the neighborhood of the blackmailer. XII - I have no eyes and I must blink (Part 3)

XII ¨C I have no eyes and I must blink (Part 3)

- / Glitch - /
¡°Come in, princess, what are you waiting for?¡± asked Sammy¡¯s mother, opening the door for Adela and Thief King Edward. A smell of smoke, brand new furniture and dust came to greet them. Music and loud voices agitated the environment. ¡°Wow, this is totally not what I remember. I thought Sammy only lived with her mother,¡± remarked Adela, grabbing the Thief King¡¯s arm. She glanced at all the plastic-wrapped furniture standing on their path. ¡°Come; be careful not to stumble upon anything.¡± Edward, trapped inside the purple-eyed man¡¯s head, felt jealous. ¡°She knows you did not injure your leg that bad, right?¡± he snorted. Adela narrowed her eyes at a group of people who sat on a couch and were the origin of the uproar. ¡°Hey, I¡¯m sorry to bother. But Sammy¡¯s bedroom wasn¡¯t over there?¡± she asked, pointing at a bedroom with nothing but boxes. ¡°Sorry, I have no idea,¡± replied a man. ¡°I¡¯m just a cousin.¡± A woman by his side replied with her own identity, ¡°And I¡¯m his wife.¡± The people around the table identified themselves one by one: ¡°Grandmother,¡± ¡°cousin,¡± ¡°uncle,¡± ¡°niece,¡± ¡°fourth-degree cousin¡±, ¡°Reverend Joseph,¡± ¡°friend of the family¡±, ¡°husband of the family friend¡±, ¡°accountant¡±, ¡°heirloom lawyer¡±, ¡°neighbor¡±¡­¡± Adela wondered what alternate dimension that extended family had crawled from. She recalled that silence and resentment were her only hosts when she visited that apartment before. ¡°Alright, I should just ask Maria,¡± resigned Adela, walking to the house¡¯s tiny kitchen with a skeptical look on her face. ¡°Excuse me, Ms. Brito,¡± she spoke to Sammy¡¯s mother. ¡°What, princess?¡± ¡°Is Sammy¡¯s bedroom that one with all the boxes?¡± ¡°Yes. We were just packing up to move out. Didn¡¯t you hear?¡± replied the woman with a wide smile on her face. ¡°My godparent Anthony Usfat, may his soul rest in peace, died and I inherited some of his wealth. We are rich now!¡± said the woman, lifting a plate of food for all the guests. ¡°Cake?¡± Edward spoke in Thief King¡¯s Head, ¡°An inheritance! So this explains all the extended family!¡± Thief King frowned at the food. ¡°No, thanks,¡± he replied, narrowing his eyes at Ms. Brito. ¡°I know I am stranger, but beware those folks over there¡±¡ªhe glanced at all the other guests¡ª¡°be careful if the first word you heard from them in months is a ¡®please¡¯.¡± ¡°O-Okay,¡± replied the woman, confused. Adela rose her voice, ¡°Ms. Brito, you wouldn¡¯t happen to have some medicine lying around, do you?¡± ¡°Sammy injures herself all the time, I¡¯m sure she has it somewhere in her bedroom.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Adela and Thief King walked to Sammy¡¯s bedroom. The girl looked left and right. ¡°Sammy generally kept a first aid kit around here,¡± she said. ¡°Maybe they put it in a box? Help me check out!¡± The purple-eyed man rolled his eyes as if her concern for his welfare were a bore. ¡°I could be firing-of-Mourgiana a blackmailer right now,¡± he snorted. Adela glanced at him. ¡°Did you say something?¡± she inquired, yanking books from a box. ¡°I was stretching out. I¡¯m knackered.¡± ¡°I noticed your accent. Are you British? I love how you talk!¡± ¡°Really? Tell me more,¡± replied Thief King, sarcastically. He did not give her a single glance. ¡°Yes! My dream is to move to England,¡± she said, not noticing the irony. ¡°I just want to leave all this rubbish behind¡±¡ªshe grinned¡ª¡±that¡¯s how you say in England, right? Rubbish?¡± He nodded. She continued dreaming, ¡°Just imagine leaving all this rubbish behind and moving to Britain! With all the tea, the biscuits, the Royal Family¡­¡± Thief King snorted, ¡°You know England is a bloody hellhole, right? It¡¯s a banana republic, except it is also cold and miserable. Might as well stay in Chicago.¡±The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°Don¡¯t be so rude, Elizabeth! I wish I were there listening to her!¡± intervened Edward. ¡°Look¡±¡ªhe guided the man¡¯s attention to a sobbing Adela¡ª¡°you made her sad!¡± ¡°Brilliant. She must take that idea out of her head.¡± ¡°Elizabeth!¡± The man heaved a loud sigh and turned around. Adela cried as if she mourned her romantic European dreams. ¡°Hey¡±¡ªhe blushed¡ª¡° sorry for saying what I said. I have some past in England that I¡¯d like to forget. I¡¯m still embittered. I just wanted to say that you should not move there. You are a good gal and they really don¡¯t deserve you¡ª¡± She smiled wide. ¡°¡ªbecause the only thing England deserves is a nuclear holocaus¡ª¡± ¡°Elizabeth!¡± Thief King corrected himself, ¡°Never mind. The point is that you don¡¯t need to run away. Happiness is anywhere the people allow it in.¡± ¡°Strange that you say that. I¡¯ve never met anyone who was happy.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure you won¡¯t have a better luck in England,¡± said Thief King, grinning at her. His bright smile contrasted with his sinister looks and gave him an air of humanity. Adela blushed as she grinned back at him. ¡°R-Right,¡± she mumbled, frowning at the boxes. ¡°I should just keep looking¡ª¡± ¡°Hey, look at me,¡± said Thief King, walking to her. ¡°What are you doing, Elizabeth?¡± He cupped her cheek with one hand and yawned so loud and wide that a lion would envy him. Adela recoiled. ¡°W-What is it that you are doing¡ª¡± Her eyes closed and a loud yawn overtook her as well. ¡°Look me in the eyes,¡± he said, facing her as she yawned. She obeyed his call and reality distorted around them. The girl felt drowsy as if in her mind she yawned forever. Adela stood still, daydreaming and drooling. Purple tears crept down her cheeks. Edward shouted in Thief King¡¯s head, ¡°Wait, you Mourgiana¡¯d her? What the hell, Elizabeth!¡± ¡°The problem with the blackmailer can now be safely solved until tomorrow morning. The Fire of Mourgiana did not devour her, only gave her a light tan,¡± explained Thief King, staring at the girl. He saw numbers hovering over her head: ¡°And we¡¯ll get Sprites coming to Sammy¡¯s house! Congratulation¡ª¡± An old camera slipped off Adela¡¯s hand and opened. The ¡®On¡¯ button hit the ground and the object¡¯s screens brightened. Thief King looked away, nonchalant. ¡°Let¡¯s go solve the problem with the blackmailer now,¡± he said, grabbing the bedroom¡¯s knob. Yet he did not open the door. Something troubled him. ¡°What is up?¡± asked Edward. ¡°Anthony Usfat was a Glitcher.¡± ¡°Who?¡± ¡°The mother¡¯s godparent was the billionaire Anthony Usfat. Did I hear it right?¡± ¡°That guy used to adopt orphans from Chicago all the time. Let¡¯s just be happy for them and¡ª¡± Thief King turned around and yanked Sammy¡¯s old camera from the ground. ¡°What is in the cartridge? Something about Anthony?¡± he asked, browsing the movies and pictures of the girl. ¡°This girl was a vlogger?¡± Edward stared at another image, displaying the now bald girl with a long hair and clothes as large as a cloud. ¡°She was a hippie too?¡± he asked. ¡°Wait, Elizabeth. Why are we looking at her private files?¡± ¡°Something came to my mind. Ever heard about the Book of Job?¡± ¡°People don¡¯t bother waking up early on Sundays anymore¡­¡± ¡°Ever heard of Faust?¡± ¡°People don¡¯t bother teaching German plays anymore¡­¡± ¡°Never mind,¡± replied Thief King, suspiring loud. Let¡¯s watch the video.¡± He pressed a button and a video from Sammy began. The girl faced the camera and spoke without cuts: ¡°¡­mother¡¯s voyages, mother¡¯s friends, mother¡¯s dreams. It all disgusts me. The single thing that I hate the most is coming back and staring at the line of false friends that only now I realized existed. They praise how much I¡¯ve grown in size and beauty since the immemorial times when we first met, yet they seem to think that my brain shrunk as my bones stretched. I can see through their fa?ade: for a fraction of what my mother has won, they¡¯d be tempted to murder her. Yet she smiles, opens our doors to them and bakes them a cake. I cannot tell if it is idiocy or a foolish altruism that moves her. These people squandered every single cent that they have already touched, what makes her think they¡¯ll do anything with her gifts besides indulging in futilities and bringing the date of their demise closer? No action denounces the poor character of one than trying to look rich. This place is rotten. I praise the Universe for having given me the eyes that reveal the mysteries of our false world. This society is desperately thirsty for something amazing and I will show it to them, no matter what I have to do. All else, as I¡¯ve spoken before, is pure mediocrity¡ª¡± Thief King turned off the camera. ¡°It¡¯s only the diary of a rebellious teenager,¡± he concluded. ¡°We shouldn¡¯t have listened to it,¡± faltered Edward. The purple-eyed man grunted, disappointed. ¡°Only God knows how many hobbies those who hate their families have,¡± he said. Elizabeth, who was in control of his body, had the romantic belief that she would find information regarding Anthony Usfat and that the information would lead her to understand what the Heart in a Vat had done to her. She cursed herself for being so foolish. Edward reflected, ¡°I¡¯ve always wondered why Sammy was so weird. Maybe she is not that different. The mystical just seems to be her way of feeling unique. She wants to avoid being home with all these fake people. I think we are not that different, after all. We just picked different hobbies to escape from.¡± ¡°You also believe in the will of the Cosmos?¡± ¡°No, but I believe in people. There are times I feel like her belief makes more sense,¡± he remarked. ¡°But what¡¯s up with you? Why the sudden interest in her? What were you expecting to find? She¡¯s just a kid like me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a long story, Toothpick. Let¡¯s go meet the blackmailer.¡± ¡°You will leave Adela there? Like a breathing doll?¡± ¡°She is a big girl. She doesn¡¯t need a little dad. Now let¡¯s go.¡± Judy Park, Hughes Road 222 was the ruins of an amusement park. GEO and Sammy shared the cabin that hanged closest to the sky on a Ferris-wheel. The girl had her arms crossed. The wind sent shivers down her spine. ¡°W-We spent the whole day here,¡± she snorted, trembling with cold. ¡°Why didn¡¯t the winds whisper in my ears the basic idea to include time in my photo? L-L-Learning how to exploit g-glitches better be worth it,¡± she told GEO. Yet the man was nonchalant. He sat down with his legs crossed and searched the surroundings for signs of invaders. The girl groaned impatiently, ¡°don¡¯t we ever leave this place? I am exhausted¡ª¡± GEO rose his voice, ¡°she is here.¡± ¡°She? Who is she? I thought Edward would¡ª¡± ¡°Thief Queen is here,¡± he replied, smirking. ¡°Every Glitch leaves a trail. The trail has finally led me to you." Lightning colored the skies as if the heavens anticipated the fated reunion of the Skulls. XIII - Does a Heart of Stone weigh you down?

XIII ¨C Does a Heart of Stone weigh you down?

Previously on ¡®Glitch¡¯: Edward discovers there is no class at school because Glitchers were reported nearby. He comes home and finds out that Sammy, now allied with GEO, is threatening to hurt Adela if the boy refuses to go meet them. Desperate, Edward tries to warn Adela as she rode on Brad¡¯s (her boyfriend) convertible. Without success, Edward turns into Thief King, for ¡®everyone stops for the King¡¯. After some property damage and a verbal quarrel, Adela takes the side of Thief King. She noticed that Brad cared more about his car than anything else. The girl takes her mysterious new friend to Sammy¡¯s house¡ªwhere Adela had a supposed school assignment with Sammy¡ªto apply medicaments. Thief King uses that opportunity to trap Adela in a long daydream using the Fire of Mourgiana A.I Glitch. Edward and Thief King explore Sammy¡¯s chambers and unsuspicious that the girl could be a threat, they head straight to the address of the meeting! What will happen now?

- / Glitch - /
¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about what we¡¯ve talked this last weekend,¡± remarked Edward, speaking in Thief King¡¯s head as the man picked the lock of the fence from the abandoned amusement park at Hughes Road 222. ¡°Judging by what we saw in Sammy¡¯s house, money doesn¡¯t seem to make people better. Maybe you are right: being poor is just an excuse for me to do not try being happy. Mom would have probably scolded me over something else if we had an extra box of disinfectants. And Adela would have still chosen Brad over me because I acted so puny that she did not even notice I was there¡ª¡± The fence of the amusement park at Hughes Road 222 opened as if ghastly servants opened the door to welcome Thief King into their realm. ¡°¡ªyou¡¯re great, Elizabeth! You picked that lock?¡± ¡°It was already open, Toothpick,¡± remarked Thief King, thoughtful. He searched his surroundings and noticed that tidy full bowls of old dog food littered the ground, even though there were no animals nearby. ¡°Something¡¯s off. There is no bloody way squatters would leave this place empty. Something must be something keeping them out. And it¡¯s not dogs,¡± he concluded, looking away and studying his surroundings before every step. ¡°Are you sure that there are no angry dogs around? Maybe they ate their leashes and freed themselves.¡± Thief King glanced at a broken chain. Many metal bonds were missing without traces as if they had ceased to exist. ¡°Do dogs in Chicago eat metal?¡± ¡°Strange,¡± said Edward, nervous. He felt as if a threat hid behind every ruined tent and broken machine in the abandoned amusement park. ¡°You know, this place reminds me of those documentaries about empty ships that appear on the sea from time to time. You know those shows that appear in completely unrelated outlets. I think that the crew in those ships must have made a trip to another world and disappeared. I once read that Glitchers sometimes find completely different worlds through glitches. There is that Glitcher called Polo who writes a blog about the places he visits¡­¡± ¡°I know who Polo is. His trips are made up,¡± said Thief King. ¡°But the places are real.¡± ¡°W-What do you mean?¡± ¡°Most Wrong Warp Glitch Rifts, like the one you found when you were pursuing Adela, are like portals to a nearby place. Yet Glitchers and Normals often find passageways to legendary realms and return with wild stories that can never be proven, except by some.¡± ¡°Some?¡± ¡°Some Glitchers are capable to visit those worlds without the gateway itself,¡± replied Thief King, smirking maliciously. He rose his head and eyed the cabin that hanged closer to the skies on a distant Ferris-wheel. ¡°Isn¡¯t that right, GEO?¡± ¡°What? Who did you just talk to¡ª¡± A shadow cast around Thief King. The purple-eyed man looked back and saw GEO, the man who had started the mutiny against Elizabeth, standing less than one-step behind him.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. Edward flinched. ¡°I-I-Is that who I think it is?¡± he mumbled, outspoken. ¡°That is who you think you are,¡± replied Thief King, narrowing his eyes at the traitor who stood behind him. ¡°That is the most bloody pathetic ungrateful scoundrel that has ever walked the Earth. So flat that he envies a squashed roach¡ª¡± ¡°That is GEO! I can¡¯t believe it! Ask for an autograph!¡± said Edward, ecstatic. ¡°What now?¡± ¡°I cosplayed him for two years straight! He is so cool!¡± said the boy, thrilled. ¡°You just need the sunglasses and the dark coat to look like him! I even got to the semi-finals in a contest! Everyone was impressed and they wanted to take pictures with me! But wait a moment,¡± he faltered. ¡°What is he doing here?¡± ¡°Bloody hell.¡± GEO narrowed his eyes at Thief King and rose the voice, ¡°I knew you would be too foolish to die.¡± The purple-eyed man smirked. He replied, ¡°My desire for revenge alone has kept me breathing. I must thank you for coming to me. It will make my revenge swifter, your pain longer and also¡±¡ªhe glanced at his foe¡¯s eyes¡ª¡°you have something that belongs to me, Geralt. Or should I call you Cassim?¡± she referred to the treacherous brother of Ali Baba from the legend of the 40 Thieves, whose greed led to his own demise. ¡°Once again, you are short-sighted, vindictive and impulsive. Gallant¡¯s death has made you a compass without a north. I do not regret demanding the rudder of the ship. I was saving our own circle from your own stubbornness and pride.¡± ¡°Do you still write your own speeches, Senator GEO? No matter how much fluff you add, a coward will never fit a hero¡¯s clothes. You are a sellout.¡± ¡°I want you to tell me where you are hiding the Heart in a Vat. You¡¯ll either give it to me, or to someone else. It is only a matter of time before others find you. Gallant would have¡ª¡± ¡°Stood by my side. Like he always did.¡± Edward flinched as he heard the passion in Thief King¡¯s voice. ¡°Gallant? One of my plushies? You two are talking about him?¡± The boy¡¯s questions were like the wind for Thief King, whose eyes and ears dedicated themselves to nothing but his foe. He saw numbers hovering over GEO¡¯s head: GEO rested a hand on his sunglasses. ¡°This is your last chance to do what Gallant would tell you to and retire,¡± he announced, expressionless. ¡°No flame is supposed to last forever.¡± ¡°Someone else will come, GEO? Don¡¯t make me laugh,¡± teased Thief King, yanking a nail from his pocket. ¡°After what I do to you, no one will come.¡± Thief King toyed with a nail. ¡°If you have two bullets, a traitor and an enemy in a room¡±¡ªhe narrowed his eyes at his foe¡ª¡°shoot the traitor twice.¡± He threw the nail at GEO¡¯s hand that held the sunglasses. The metal object opened a tiny wound on the man¡¯s skin. ¡°Just enough,¡± judged Thief King as reality distorted around him and his opponent. ¡°Mourgiana!¡± GEO groaned. The pain of the wound that the nail had opened refused to end. Instead, the man felt as if nails rained on the same spot and dilacerated his flesh. He felt dazed. ¡°Now it is your chance, Elizabeth!¡± said Edward. Thief King elbowed his foe¡¯s chin and took him off balance. ¡°Your turn, Toothpick! ISG him now!¡± said Thief King, closing his eyes and turning into the frail Edward Williams once again. The boy faltered as he faced his foe. ¡°A-Alright,¡± said Edward, outstretching his right fist to punch his enemy. Yet his arm refused to stretch all the way, for he realized that he jolted his arm to hurt another human being. ¡°What am I doing?¡± he asked himself, feeling as if his heart tightened and his limbs paralyzed like stone. ¡°What are you doing, Toothpick?¡± shouted Elizabeth, speaking again from inside his head. ¡°Attack¡ª¡± GEO grabbed Edward¡¯s static fist and crushed his fingers as if they were playdoh. ¡°Argh!¡± the boy screamed loud, trying to pull his arm away from the Glitcher¡¯s grasp. ¡°Toothpick, focus!¡± pleaded Elizabeth. ¡°Let me retake control!¡± Edward replied, ¡°I-I can¡¯t, Elizabeth! I¡¯m so sorry! It hurts too much¡ª¡± GEO grabbed the boy¡¯s neck and lifted him off his feet. The man¡¯s sunglasses slipped off and he faced Edward without any filters or censorships¡ªGlitcher to Amateur, man to Child. Reality unmade itself around them. ¡°W-W-Wait, where did we go?¡± asked Edward, swinging his head left and right. He looked down and saw himself hovering over an abyss. The darkness stared back at him and he felt paralyzed. GEO¡¯s hand grasping the boy¡¯s neck was the only strength that prevented him from descending into the depths of wherever he was. ¡°Try ignoring this dreary first impression,¡± said GEO, trying to ignore the bleeding wound on his chin that Thief King¡¯s elbow opened. ¡°My name is Geralt, yet most know me for my rogue name, GEO. I am yet to understand your relation with Thief Queen, but maybe I can do with you what I could not with her: reason.¡± ¡°L-Let me go!¡± pleaded Edward, shaking himself. ¡°Beware your wishes for they might come true, child,¡± said GEO, glancing at the endless abyss below the boy¡¯s feet. ¡°Your life is in my hands and I have the upper hand on our bargain.¡± ¡°I-I won¡¯t deal with you!¡± ¡°You will give me the Heart in a Vat and I shall leave you alone forever.¡± Edward snorted, ¡°I-I don¡¯t know what any of this is! Let me go!¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know what is happening? So Thief Queen did not trust you enough to tell you anything? She put your life on the line without explaining your role in all this?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t listen to this dimwit, Edward!¡± groaned Elizabeth, speaking in the boy¡¯s head. ¡°T-Thief Queen?¡± faltered Edward, narrowing his eyes at GEO. ¡°You mean¡±¡ªhe recoiled¡ª¡°Elizabeth?¡± GEO heaved a loud sigh. ¡°You were fast to find another pawn for your games, Thief Queen,¡± he said, narrowing his eyes at the boy. ¡°It is time for you to know my side of this story, Edward Williams.¡± Tables for the Table Gods: Spoiler: Spoiler Edward''s Stat Cards: Edward (Thief King Mode)''s Stat Card: