Andrew was sitting in the back seat behind the uniformed men in the luxurious SUV. He was a little nervous, having no idea what awaited him.
From what he had been told, it would just be a meeting to talk to the families of the deceased. But Andrew was almost certain that there was something else going on.
He wouldn't have been called to headquarters for something so easy to resolve. There was something else.
Andrew glanced sideways at the men in the seat in front of him. They looked confident; they knew what they were doing. It was obvious they were musicians. What Andrew wondered was, what rank?
If they were first-rate musicians, note, they shouldn't feel so "overwhelming."
The first time Andrew saw them, he felt very inferior to them.
So Andrew believed that these people were Chords, just like Ariel and his old squad.
Andrew frowned at this thought and looked away toward the car window.
He could see the huge city of Maderiú, and in the distance, the great Maderiú Curve. Since he was a child, Andrew had felt a certain fear of the immensity of the Curve. Although his mother told him every night about the horrors from which the Curve had saved this city, for Andrew, that great construction was like seeing a creature of melody. He never liked it.
Interrupting his thoughts, the men opened the car doors and got out. One of them opened Andrew's door, inviting him to get out.
Andrew slid across the back seat to get out. As he did so, he caught the eye of one of the men. The man frowned angrily, seeming to hate Andrew. Probably because he's voiceless.
"Your life must be awful, right?"
Andrew thought, mocking the man's face.
Andrew followed the other man. They were at the headquarters of the voiceless. This place was much more important than the headquarters where Andrew used to go to work. It was stupidly huge. Besides, it was located in the center of Maderiú, and only the high-ranking officials came here. Andrew was escorted by the workers on his short visit to the building. They were taking him to one of the commanders or someone higher up, it seemed. They entered a luxurious elevator, and the man selected the top floor.
It was definitely an awkward moment. Andrew whistled, trying to break the uncomfortable silence. The elevator music was the only sound, relaxing things a little. The two men remained indifferent.
"You're not very talkative, are you?"
The men did not answer.
"Well..."
Again, they remained indifferent. Andrew felt a little confused. They had been in the elevator for about a minute and still hadn't arrived. So Andrew looked back at the elevator window. He really hated doing that unless he was on a sonotubo, but he wanted to do it right now. As he did so, he realized the situation.
The elevator was going at high speed, but the building was simply huge.
After waiting a few more seconds, the elevator doors opened accompanied by the typical elevator chime.
The men went first and Andrew followed them. The place was really luxurious. There were famous paintings and, as far as Andrew knew, some of them were very expensive. One of them could be worth between 50,000 stater and 80,000 stater, at least.
"I could live well for a whole year with one of those..."
Andrew shook his head, concentrating on what was happening. He had to think before he said anything; he couldn't ruin this.
They walked down the quiet, luxurious hallway until they reached a large ebony door. The men opened it.
The creak of the hinges broke the silence of the place. When the doors opened, the first thing Andrew saw were the faces of three heartbroken women. Their cheeks were streaked with recent tears. Andrew felt a lump in his throat when he saw this. He could already guess who these women were.
They all looked at Andrew when he arrived, and one of the women got up from the luxurious armchair, approached Andrew, and looked him straight in the eye.
"How did my little Lucas die?"
Memories of the little boy's dismembered body flooded Andrew's mind. Andrew had kept them chained to the back of his memory, trying not to remember that moment, but right now, it was impossible.
"I... I couldn't see directly how it happened, I just... I could see his body."
Lucas's mother began to cry even more. It seemed she loved her deceased son very much.
The other mothers also looked sad, except for one. As far as Andrew knew, all the members of his squad were from famous families, but he had no idea they were so influential.
Andrew looked beyond the families. The room was very large, with large bookcases on the walls and a set of armchairs and a low table in the center. In the back, Andrew could see a large desk decorated by someone with good taste, and sitting at it was a man, or rather, "the man."
Andrew was in the same room as the Supreme Commander. The second most powerful man in Maderiú. And the third most powerful in the European Domain. Andrew tried to suppress a smile of excitement. Who would have thought that Andrew would meet the supreme commander one day?
"Haven't some pretty improbable things been happening to me lately?"
Andrew had been through some traumatic experiences recently, and yet, for some strange reason, he hadn't felt too downhearted. Andrew had a theory that it was due to his new awakening.
Andrew focused on the man. He was tall, very tall, muscular, his hair was completely white, and he had a thick white beard. His jet-black eyes screamed confidence. This man was arrogance personified.
Andrew tried not to look away from the man, but it was a futile attempt. Andrew felt a primal fear as he tried. This man was pure power.
"Andrew! My dear hoarse one, you're finally here,"
said the man, giving him a smile full of pure, unadulterated arrogance.
Andrew frowned; he hated this type of person with all his soul.
Andrew finally entered the room and walked among the gazes of the families. There were parents, brothers, and sisters of his fallen comrades.
But he didn't want to deal with this, not now. Andrew walked, trying to stand up straight until he was in front of the supreme commander's enormous desk.
"It is an honor to stand before you, sir."
Andrew said as he bowed exaggeratedly. The man remained silent and just smiled. Andrew looked at him and decided to be the first to speak.
"Sir, if it's not too much trouble, could you tell me why I was brought here?" Andrew said, trying to sound confused.
"I don't understand the question," the man replied.
"You see, I don't understand why things had to be handled this way. Couldn't it have been a simpler process?"
The man frowned and leaned toward Andrew. Andrew felt immense pressure emanating from the man. Andrew knew that if he provoked him, he would die.
"Simple process? Four very talented musicians died. Four musicians who had more potential than you could ever imagine.
Can't your hoarse head think?
Andrew tried to remain calm. He mustn't fall, he mustn't.
"I'm sorry, that was reckless of me."
The man's smug, narcissistic expression returned instantly.
"Now you're going to go and tell these people how each of their sons, brothers, or sisters died.
Understood?"
Andrew nodded and went to speak to the families of his companions. But not before making a mental note.
"This bastard is going to fall by my hand."
Andrew was a person who used to forgive people if they deserved it; he was quite empathetic. But this time, his resentful side came to the surface.
If Andrew managed to reach these levels of power, he was sure he would destroy this man and take his place.
Andrew walked over, trying to appear as calm as possible, and sat down with everyone else. Andrew looked at them all, trying to put himself in their shoes. The fathers remained indifferent to the situation, some even checking their cell phones, not seeming very interested in what was happening. They appeared to be royalty, probably affiliated with a family from The Orchestra. The mothers were the ones who seemed truly concerned.
The sisters and brothers also seemed eager to know how their siblings had died.
"How curious."
That's how the world worked, huh?
***
Andrew spent about two hours talking to the families of the deceased, recounting every detail of what had happened except for Andrew's awakening. After finishing his exhaustive psychology session, Andrew left the headquarters of aphonia and headed home.
"Ugh, I just want to lie down and sleep."
Andrew walked through the lonely streets of Maderiú. It was 11:00 PM, and no one left their house after 10:00 PM. Andrew walked tiredly, his mind full of doubts. Tomorrow he would take the time to think more clearly about what to do.
Andrew stopped in front of a yarn shop, a silk store. Andrew sighed wearily and knocked on the door.
A minute passed and no one answered. A second later, someone unlocked the door from the inside and opened it.
Andrew's mother was wearing a nightgown and looked really tired.
"Oh, son..."
said his mother before hugging him. Andrew smelled the familiar, warm scent of home. Andrew hugged his mother back, holding her tightly. And finally, Andrew allowed himself to let down his mental defenses.
Andrew began to sob as he hugged his mother in the silent embrace of the night.
Andrew entered his house, climbed the old, worn stairs, which creaked, but Andrew didn't care.
Andrew reached his room and opened the door.
Andrew took a deep breath, walked inside, and fell exhausted onto his bed.
Andrew stared at the ceiling as he reflected on everything that had happened. Andrew stayed like that for a long time. He couldn't fall asleep.
Something wouldn't leave his mind.
"...Will I be able to?"
Andrew thought about his new powers; his awakening was unexpected. This changed everything. Being a musician would change his whole life. It was time to leave behind his work as a tuner, his steady job for the past two years.
But how convenient was this really?
Andrew never sought to fight a melody creature. He has no idea how to fight one. When he attended the Academy of Aphonia as an exchange student, Andrew learned some attack songs and different combat tactics. But apparently, his musical energy did not respond to these.
It had only chosen to respond to the feelings Andrew felt when he was about to die.
Andrew raised an arm in the air and smiled slightly.
"I can do this."
There were many doubts, gaps to fill in his ideas, but he was sure of one thing. With this change, he would do everything possible to achieve his goal.
And of course, he was going to prove to the universe that he too could be someone.
***
Andrew was getting ready to leave the house to go practice. He had been told that on Monday he would be assigned to a new squad. Andrew had decided not to reveal that he had awakened; he didn't want to look for trouble for now. He preferred to take the time to discover himself first.
Revealing to the world that a man had awakened at seventeen, when the normal age for awakening was between eight and ten.
Rocking the boat right now would be problematic.
He had to maintain discretion in this situation.
Andrew left home early, at 5:00 AM. He was dressed in sportswear. It was time to test himself. Andrew left the silk shop stealthily. Once on the street, Andrew stretched and yawned. The ground was completely gray, and it was very cold. Andrew rubbed his palms together and blew on them, seeking warmth in the freezing air.
"Okay, let's do this."
Andrew was about to start running when the sound of a large sheet falling behind him startled him. Andrew screamed in fright and turned around. It was a man who had fallen from his neighbor's house. The old man got up and smiled.
"I'm fine, young man. Go on with what you're doing."
The old man smiled confidently, as if he were provoking Andrew to ask if he was okay. Andrew rolled his eyes.
"Ugh, more trouble, seriously?"