Silvertroll

The Rogue

Phlox follows the directions sent to her phone by Arlan. She is familiar with the neighbourhood so she doesn't have much trouble finding the Hackerspace. Her only roadblock is her resolve. It has been waning all morning in the face of The Caveman's recent actions. Things are escalating in ways she's never experienced before. It's mainly the violence getting out of hand that's spooking her. The rough and tumble, the pushing and shoving she accepts as acceptable in life, that's how she's dealt with bullies all her life. The aggression displayed by Julian's father, especially against innocent bystanders, is a level of insanity she couldn't deal with. She hates to think what would happen if he ever got his hands on The Silvertroll. 

And yet, here she is, unable to let go of the drama, unwilling to miss out on solving the mystery of The Silvertroll, and determined to finish what she started, to make sure her connection with Julian Caves doesn't end in abrupt, meaningless silence, but with long lasting relevance and closure. 

Hoping for any last-minute update on the Caveman's whereabouts, she finds Arlan sitting at a table, looking like he'd only had a few hours of sleep. Loitering at the other corner of the the warehouse, the other brother spun a basketball on his palm, and then attacks the hoop. 

Apart from Arlan and Connor, the studio is empty.

Arlan hits his laptop, gluing his eyes on the screen, making it obvious he is ignoring her.

"The van's gone," says Phlox, "When did he take it?"

"Last night," answered Arlan. "He showed, took the van and left. He looked scary. Made it clear that he doesn't want any of us involved anymore."

"He was kinda fuckin scary," confirmed Connor. "There was blood all over his hands. He got into some nasty shit."

It didn't matter to Phlox, "Too late. We're involved."

"What does that even mean?" asked Arlan.

"It means we are still involved in some capacity," she explains.

"He's gone," snapped Connor. "Gone, gone." Connor took a shot at the hoop.

Arlan turns to him and says, "You're not supposed to be here." Arlan seems frustrated. Phlox can't place it.

"I don't care. Life is short. Dad can go fuck his own ass."

This agitates Arlan further, "Some of us need a space like this. With all the police and trouble, I'm afraid Reuben's gonna freak out and shut this place down.

"Fuck Reuben," reiterated Connor, "You don't need this place."

"I do need it."

"Bullshit," counters Connor, his voice adamant.

Arlan yells, "You're not the only one with problems."

The words seem to strike Connor hard. He lets the ball bounce off his chest. Phlox decides to break the tension, so picks up the basketball and he bounces it back to Connor. His mood changes. She rushes to defend the hoop when she hears footsteps.

Libby struts into the studio. The two boys fall speechless as she approaches them. "Where is he?" she demands.

"Who?" asks Arlan. "The Caveman?"

"Where is he?"

Connor takes another shot at the hoop, shoving Phlox out the way, saying, "He's gone rogue."

Libby glares at Arlan, who shrugs to confirm.

"We don't know where he's gone," explain Phlox.

Libby glares at all of them, not content at all. "Find him."

"How?" asks Connor.

Arlan shakes his head. "He doesn't want us to."

Libby gets into Arlan's face, "I knew Julian. I was his girlfriend. I need to speak with his father right now."

Arlan gulps, "He made it clear..."

"Shhhh!" Libby cuts him off.

It took Phlox several seconds to soak in the new information. "We'll find him."

"Okay," Libby says, "Any ideas?"

Connor, eager to appease her, offers, "Track his Neechat."

"Do it."

Arlan appears to resist.

"No buts," she says.

An idea enters Phlox's head. "We can try contacting the next of kin."

They all look her, each face asking the same question.

"Julian's mum," Phlox explains.