Barney accelerated in his police cruiser at dawn, weaving through the streets with his partner, James, riding shotgun. Under the cover of night, they transformed into underground detectives, delving into illegal truths that lurked beneath the surface. By day, they assumed the roles of ordinary policemen, concealing their covert investigations. While becoming an ordinary detective would have been a commendable career move, Barney's pursuit of the mysteries surrounding AquaLux and Skyra preoccupied his mind. The War of the End had ignited, and the consequences were uncertain.

Regrettably, the advent of the war left Barney with limited time to indulge in his secret investigation. All he could do was speculate about the sudden appearance of fakers and what their presence truly meant. As his police cruiser came to an unwelcomed halt in a long line of vehicles on the highway, Barney joined the queue, contemplating whether these individuals were attempting to escape to another corporation in order to evade another draft. The war's announcement had permeated AquaLux with universal tension, and wherever Barney ventured, he was met with anxious silence, a natural response to news of impending calamity.

Their orders were to patrol the perimeter around Energia Tower, as many prisoners were slated to be drafted into the war. They were also nearby to help vehicles escort the numerous weapons constructed at Energia Tower. None of the prisoners were drafted in the first draft, however in the event of another draft, they'd likely be shipped out to Maritopia for battle as well. It seemed AquaLux wanted the prisoners constructing as much weapons as possible for now.

"Great! More traffic," fussed James, his face printed with worry.

Barney remained silent, gazing out of the window at the myriad of skyscrapers in the distance. The city of Oceanica, lay adjacent to the highway where they were stationed. Oceanica served as the capital of the Novaria region, as well as the entirety of AquaLux. Normally a serene coastal city, it now lay in disarray. If superweapons were deployed in the war, it would likely spell humanity's downfall.

"Do you think we'll be drafted?" asked James.

Barney took a deep breath, redirecting his attention to the congested traffic. "The first wave of drafts have already taken place, since we're cops, we'll likely be drafted in the near future if the war continues... which it will." Nearly a hundred thousand troops were deployed in Maritopia to keep Skyra from advancing. Much of those troops were already in the military prior to the war announcement; if the war persisted civilians would also have to get their hands dirty.

"How do you know it will!?" asked James.

"Because, James, whenever you light a match, the smoke must go somewhere when it's extinguished," Barney explained cryptically.

"Uh... I don't get it," said James.

"Forget it," scrawled Barney as the traffic slowly moved. "You know James, we probably don't have much longer. A superweapon could drop anytime now and destroy all of us. We should cherish these times."

"Aw c'mon! There's no way we'll die soon! Nobody's gonna' use a superweapon, Skyra wants more land, not destruction!"

"Maybe you're right," said Barney.

Suddenly, a deafening explosion rocked the heart of Oceanica. The shockwave rippled through the air; Barney and James knew the blast had occurred nearby.

"This way!" Barney shouted, swiftly abandoning his vehicle and dashing towards the rising plumes of smoke. Many pedestrians also abandoned their cars, fleeing in the opposite direction.

"Where are you going!" James shouted as he jumped out of the cruiser.

Barney paid no heed to James' protests, pushing past horrified civilians as he sprinted towards the epicenter of the explosion. Judging by the fact that he was still alive, it couldn't have been a superweapon. Had the war finally reached Novaria? Was Maritopia overtaken by Skyra? It was an abrupt turn of events, and surely he would have received some prior warning if Novaria were under attack. Puzzlement mingled with his growing fear as he drew closer to the scene.

"If this is Skyra, let's go back! Let the military deal with it!" James pleaded.

Barney again, ignored James, rushing past the wreckage-strewn streets. Emergency sirens wailed in his ears, heightening his sense of apprehension. Barney hurried past disheveled individuals, drawing nearer to the source of the chaos. Eventually, he reached the origin of the explosion—the Aqua Bank headquarters, the largest financial institution in AquaLux. The devastation was immense, with a gaping hole in the building's facade and debris strewn in teardrop patterns. He paused, studying the smoldering bank with a perplexed expression. Should he venture into the hazardous environment? Inhaling the smoke would undoubtedly harm his lungs. He couldn't help but wonder why he had such a bad feeling. Was it merely the explosion, or was it something more ominous?

"Is anyone in there!" Barney called out in front of the burning building. James caught up with him, panting heavily.

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After hearing faint cries, he suddenly jotled into the building. Stepping into the building riddled him with agonizing anxiety... it was like something was telling him not to go inside.

"Anybody!?" He yelled again before erupting into a fit of coughing.

"Right here," a weak voice said.

Barney peered into the ruined lobby, its once pristine beige tiles now obscured by debris. Broken equipment littered the floor. His eyes landed on an elderly man in a suit, trapped beneath a massive pillar and covered in rubble. Time was of the essence; the smoke grew increasingly toxic.

"James, help me get this pillar off this man!"

James rushed over, and together they promptly lifted the pillar off of the man.

"Get him to safety! I'm going to look for the culprit," Barney said to James. Judging by the scenery, the culprit probably died in the explosion.

After James walked away with the elderly man, Barney heard ghostly footsteps emanating deeper within the building. Each slow footfall quickened his heartbeat.

"Someone there? Do you need help!?" shouted Barney, coughing all the more.

A figure emerged from the haze, gradually revealing a young man with pale skin and medium-length black hair. The unsettling smile on his face and his measured footsteps suggested he didn't require assistance.

"Who are you!? Did you cause this explosion!? griped Barney, placing his hand on his holster."

"Yes, I'm the one who caused this," the young man said with horrifying eyes. "It's beautiful, wouldn't you say."

Barney widened his dry eyes as he swiftly drew his pistol. The young man in front of him was a faker, no doubt about it.

"Why did you bomb the bank?" coughed Barney, as he listened to the emergency sirens get closer and closer.

"Why did I bomb the bank? Well, I was ordered to. I was supposed to wait longer, but I couldn't resist. This destruction, satisfies me. How many people do you think I killed," the strange man said with a grin. His harrowing demeanor was absolutely daunting.

Rage began to fill up Barney like an old vase. "Why did you do this! Who ordered you!?" His hand was shaking rapidly as he pointed the gun at the man.

"What do you mean by why did I do it? I already told you, I did it to satisfy myself. Skyra ordered me to do this, hopefully they won't be mad at me for satisfying this wonderful urge to soon," the man said while staring into Barney's scared eyes without a hint of emotion.

That likely means that Skyra is responsible for the fakers! Barney thought. Afterwards, he remained mute, continuing to point his pistol at the man. He wanted to shoot, but the horror almost made him paralyzed. He shouldn't be afraid to take the life of a monster, yet there he was, quivering like gelatin.

"Nothing delights me more than seeing the fear on all of your faces. I love it," the man said, now smiling even more maniacally. "The look on your face is priceless. Does my demeanor terrify you?"

"Enough! I'm sending you straight to hell!" Barney yelled, still angry at himself for not being able to shoot.

"That's okay... I'd rather send myself to hell. Won't you join me?" The man slowly lifted his shirt, revealing a multitude of bombs strapped to his torso. "Perhaps Skyra won't be too displeased with me for acting before the designated time." He charged toward Barney, his expression emotionless.

Barney instantly shot his weapon, hitting the man in the torso, however the man kept sprinting after him. He shot three more times, but his nervousness made him miss all of his shots. Panic then gripped him, and he dropped his weapon, sprinting away from the approaching threat. His only thought was to escape and alert everyone of Skyra's responsibility for the fakers' deadly activities. Yet, the terrifying reality was that AquaLux likely already knew. Perhaps his newfound knowledge would make little difference in the grand scheme of things

The faker man smiled and pulled out a switch from his pocket, upon clicking it, another enormous explosion greeted the air. Every wall collapsed as the entire building came tumbling down.

"Barney!" James shouted from outside.

***

"The warden killed an inmate?" a guard named Hue exclaimed, sitting across from Officer Charles at a table in Energia Tower's expansive cafeteria. They occupied the space during the hours when inmates were barred from entry.

"Of course, I'm not sure why you're so surprised, he always kills inmates," said Charles as he casually took a sip of his coffee.

"And they don't do anything about it!?"

"Of course not, why would anyone care about him killing animals," said Charles.

"Animals? They're not animals... they're people!" said Hue with a somber mood.

"We literally have convicted mass murderers housed here, you think they're people too?" asked Charles. Young guards like Hue irritated him the most.

"Well... yeah! Maybe something happened in their lives that led them down a dark path. Surely, nobody is born evil," said Hue.

"Oh you naive little kid, don't you get it? It doesn't matter if something made those people evil or not, the reality is that they're still evil."

"Maybe it does matter!" Hue began. "It's been clearly documented that people who have gone through trauma are more likely to engage in violent acts than people who have not."

"So what are you saying? That people shouldn't be held accountable for doing evil acts just because they had trauma!? We all have trauma, not all of us kill someone over it!" fussed Charles.

"That's not what I'm saying," Hue clarified. "I simply believe the warden and everyone else here should show a little more compassion to all the prisoners—every one of them—regardless of their crimes. We don't know their stories, especially those who committed violent acts."

"So what, you think there's people who commit crimes due to specific trauma? We've been over this already! There's no excuse for being evil," said Charles angrily.

Hue tilted his head down. "I just don't like hearing about what the warden did to an inmate," he said after a brief pause. "Even if the victim was evil, it's just... not right."

"Well you don't get to dictate what's right and what's not right."

"I wonder what kind of trauma happened to the inmates," said Hue, lifting his head in disappointment.

"You sound like my friend Barney, he believed in some sort of super people, who commit violent crimes, but he had no evidence to support that! He said those people likely went through some sort of trauma," scuffed Charles.

"That's interesting, do you think he could have been telling the truth?" asked Hue.

"I doubt it, he was just a naive idiot like you," said Charles.

Charles took a large sip of his coffee mug. I wonder what Barney's been up to anyway.