Later, rain continued to patter on the windows as the teachers and students worked together on setting up the stage. They made sure the lighting worked and the props operated as they should. Reginald peeked through the curtains to find the seats had been packed. His eyes darted back and forth, searching for his father and butler.

“So, is everybody ready?” He heard the teacher ask their students.

“Almost!” They exclaimed.

“Hey, Young Master Reginald?” A familiar voice called out to the group. Reginald turned to find Gerald sneaking backstage. “Ah, there you are.” He waved to him.

“Gerald, what are you doing here?” Reginald pulled the curtains back and turned to face him.

“Have you seen Young Master Richard anywhere?”

“Is he not with you?” The teacher questioned.

“I’m afraid not,” Gerald replied with a shrug.

“Did you check the gym?”

Gerald nodded. “I’ve checked everywhere inside the school, but I can’t find him at all.”

“What if he’s in the bathroom?” Reginald guessed.

“Well—”

A flash of light from the ceiling lamp flickered between on and off for a short while, and the ground shook, leaving everyone in the audience confused. The others backstage pondered over what to do about the circumstances. Should they continue with the performance despite the risk of a blackout?

“What should we do?” A student questioned, looking around the room.

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“I don’t like the looks of those flickering lights.” Another muttered, twiddling their fingers.

“I have a hunch on where Richard might be.” Gerald proclaimed as he ran out the doors.

“What now?” A third student asked. “Do we wait for them to come back?”

“But the audience has waited long enough,” One of the teachers reminded them. “And the weather might make them antsy.”

“We have to go through with this!” Reginald insisted. He turned to the pair of students from the gym incident and smiled at them. “Are you feeling better? Ready to perform?”

“Yeah, and thanks again for helping us.” The one with the sprained ankle replied.

.-.-.-.

Gerald got outside the back of the school and looked around the area. The winds grew loud; the rain didn’t pour down too hard, but the dark and foreboding clouds spelled bad news.

“Come on, lend me your power...” A familiar voice said in a foreboding manner.

Gerald continued to look around, trying to find the source of the voice. As he kept hearing them, the butler spotted a large tree and climbed it to get a better view of his surroundings.

“Where are you?”

In his view, Richard stood on the top of the school building with his eyes closed and his arms spread amidst the dark sky.

“Richard, it’s dangerous out there!” Gerald called out to him, snapping the boy out of his senses. “Get down here this instant!”

“That voice, could it be...?” Richard opened his eyes and glanced at Gerald watching him from the trees. I can handle myself; I’m not a kid anymore, I don’t need adults to babysit me. Although, I should get down from here. He joined him as they climbed back down and rested under the roof.

“Thank goodness you came down without any trouble.” Gerald sighed in relief. “What were you doing up there?”

“Hey, Gerald, so if you’re here, then that must mean the talent show is starting already,” Richard concluded, heading toward the doors.

“Say, are you going to perform?” Gerald followed him inside.

“Why yes, look forward to my performance. It’ll be quite an unforgettable experience.”

“I look forward to seeing it on display.”

“That’s what I like to hear. Don’t blink.” It’ll amaze you, I’m sure of it.