Avilien

A crazy town

Looking into the sky like Brit, Luke allowed himself to bathe in the sunlight, embracing a new euphoric feeling—the feeling that he had vanquished all of his bullies and cast them aside. Nebs allowed him to think in peace and said nothing about the strange scent emanating from Jayce. It messed with his perception of smell and felt like Jayce had the rarest of all Avilien abilities: the ability to change class without owning another class.

When a car drove down the street heading into town and crashed into a streetlight, Luke snapped back to reality. The crash happened close by. Finally able to investigate, he followed the stone alleyways cluttered with rubbish until he found an opening that led out onto the high street. His jaw dropped at the ungodly sight as what lay before him was pure madness. The alleys were considered a dumping ground and messy with rubbish, but the high street had turned into something much worse.

Parked cars had been toppled over or lit on fire. Some shops had been bashed into by trucks and other cars, allowing people to get inside and rob the place. People battled one another—in the streets and on the roofs of the buildings they tried to steal from—with Avilien weapons and magical abilities.

A group of people rushed out of Fancy Things, the electronic store down the road, carrying huge boxes of flat-screen televisions and other gadgets before fleeing down the street. Metal shutters had been pried open on shops that contained luxury high-priced items, and two buildings were a swirling vortex of fire and smoke.

Nearby, a police car rested in the road, black and smouldering as the fire inside dwindled. A policeman sat by the side of the road with his head in his hands, looking defeated and helpless. Next to him sat a small strange puppy covered with game-guide markings that tried its best to console him.

There were just as many game guides as there were people, some of them Grenchitties like Nebs and others beyond unique, like a flaming phoenix. Luke didn't know what to do as he watched chaos unfold. Islington had been such a sleepy town until now.

"This is crazy," said Luke. His eyes glassed over as groups of frenzied people hurried by.

"To be fair, it was expected. Once people received their own game guides and learnt of their hidden weapons and skills, or learnt that they had been turned into data and the government had covered it up, this was bound to happen." Nebs looked at the distraught officer who pulled on his hair. "Maybe you should join in on the action? It looks like fun." Nebs chuckled and then grinned.

"Is this what it will be like in Avilien?" Luke asked as he stepped back. A person carrying several boxes of GTs raced past him in a hurry and down the street.

"If they tried this in any of the capitals, they would all end up getting deleted. So, is it time to go looting?" Nebs let his evil side shine through, a side that Luke needed to keep in check.

People may have been fighting and going at it like maniacs, but no one appeared to be hurt. Sure, there was mass confusion, hysteria, and people sobbing over looted material objects, but the real damage was done to the surrounding town.

"What are you doing out here? It's madness out here!" Lance shouted to Luke as he ran down the middle of the road, his hands filled with white paper shopping bags.

Behind him, walking calmly and swinging her giant flaming sword around, was Brit. Not focused on much beside clouds, she almost walked into the back of Lance as he stopped next to Luke. Targoon and Squeeks were nowhere to be seen, meaning the pair had nestled them away in their phones. It made Luke want to do the same with Nebs as he grew more excited as the carnage continued.

"Don't space out! I've enough to deal with, with this one." Lance motioned his head towards Brit as he spoke to Luke. "Help me with these bags, will you? We've got to get to the storefront now." Lance passed three of the white bags to Luke, freeing up his right arm. Lance then equipped his sword and rushed off towards the shop.