Mr Love: Dream Date Chap 15 Name of Faith
Chapter 15 begins the next arc of the story called End of the Abyss. It was released on the SEA servers on 15 September 2020. Imagining that players had to endure a wait of about 4.5 months is quite unthinkable. And it just dawned on me that actually putting together a summary of what has happened in the story is a great way for players to recall what has happened thus far if they prefer not to go through the scenes itself. Chapter 15 unlocks at level 60 and I had the help of a large stamina pack to save me one day of waiting.
After what had happened in the last four chapters, I didn’t think that the storyline would sink any deeper but I was totally blown away by this chapter. It was focused on Gavin since it continues from that last scene when he grabbed you and saved you from plummeting to a certain death. Though I don’t really fancy Gavin at this point, the writing for this chapter is one of the best thus far in his storyline whether you are looking for romance or angst.
Spoilers ahead!
Victor appeared on a busy street, confused and disoriented. The year is 2028. He had somehow been teleported ten years into the future. As he stepped onto the street, a black car horned loudly as it sped past him. Victor recognised the future him inside the car. Not knowing where to go, he walked the familiar yet unfamiliar route to the LFG building. He was surprised that it had been refurbished into a museum.
You awoke from another dream filled with trails of blood and a hazy figure at the end of a bridge. It was another morning since the Loveland TV station incident. Since then you had been in a coma, then recovered under the surveillance of the STF and now finally back home. Though the physical wounds have healed somewhat, you still bore the emotional scars – of the break with Lucien, the disappearance of Victor, the farewell with Kiro and the blood stained Gavin who had saved you from certain death. While you were grappling with the losses in your life, it seemed like the world had forgotten all about the curious incidents and life continued to trudge on. Only it felt too surreal for you.
The mood of the story has turned rather sombre with the BGM and also your constant struggle with the battle around Evol which only you and those close to you are embroiled in. It almost feels like you are on the verge of some emotional breakdown. Gavin checks in on you on his daily visit. He notices the tears in your eyes and expresses his concern for you. He asked that you share with him what is bothering you so that he can help you shoulder the burden too. He also updated that there has been no more detection of Black Swan activities since the TV station and that he would return to active duty in a week’s time. Recalling the events of that day, you asked him how he knew that you were in danger. He replied briefly that he could sense you. You didn’t venture to ask further about where he had gone and had appeared all blood stained when he saved you. Perhaps it was better that you hold out on that first while you tried to restore yourself to some semblance of sanity.
It has been several days since and the same dream of splattered blood and a retreating figure kept repeating itself. You stir awake in the middle of a stuffy night. Hoping to get some fresh air you walked out to your veranda and observe the quiet city below. Kind of reminds me of that night when Victor finally opened up to you in the hospital. As you pondered the recent events and how Gavin instinctively knew where to find you, you heard him speak up from the corner of the balcony. He was thinking of you and decided to pop in for a visit. How convenient to be able to fly around like that. Seeing your emotional state, Gavin asked you to go somewhere with him. Holding onto him as he flew you across the city, you were mesmerised by the city lights as well as the stars in the sky. Later you landed in the vicinity of the TV station and the newly opened ferris wheel that towered over the city. Gavin asked if you would like to take a ride in the ferris wheel and you nodded your head, though you had no idea how he was going to get it to work.
Gavin managed to start up the ferris wheel and you hopped onto a cabin excitedly as it started its climb up to the sky. Sitting silently next to Gavin, you asked him why he wanted to bring you here. He told you to look at the city below – your office building, the museum, the stadium and even the ferris wheel and the people going about their daily lives. He wanted you to know that all these were protected by your efforts in the TV station so you should not feel useless. He also said that you had saved him from falling again. When you realised the weight of his words, emotions welled up within you and started crying. You had been feeling extremely guilt ridden for causing so much hurt to those around you and was thankful that Gavin made the effort to show you another side of the story. He also assured you that you would never be a burden to him as he embraced and comforted you.
Awww… that was really sweet. Compared to every other thing Gavin had done for you, all the heroics and what not, this was really the most touching thing he had done thus far which is to reach out and pull you out of the depths of your depression. This role had been played by Lucien up till he left you so I guess it was good that Gavin is shaping up to be more than a chunk of muscle.
You thanked Gavin for bringing you on the ferris ride. It was the first time you sat it with another person. Halfway through, the cabin stopped but instead of flying you down, Gavin used the wind to move the wheel so that it would complete the full circle. By the time you got down to the bottom, the skies opened and rain poured down on both of you. When you realised the rain was not going to let up anytime soon, Gavin took off his jacket, acting as a shelter for you as both of started running through the rain. The heavy rain pelted your face. It felt like a cleansing river that washed away all the darkness in your heart and it seemed like an eternity since you last smiled. You suddenly recalled this scene of running with Gavin in the rain back when you were 16 years old and it warmed your heart of how he had always been there to support you.
Back in your apartment, you saw that Gavin was soaked through as he had lent you his jacket. You hurriedly used the towel to dry him not realising how close you were to him, prompting him to turn immediately red. As you struggled to relieve the awkwardness, the alarm in your apartment suddenly blared. You opened the door to the corridor to listen to the announcement. Apparently a new strain of virus has been diagnosed in those who had just returned from overseas and were living near you. To prevent the spread of the virus, your building as well as those in the vicinity were to be in immediate lockdown for a few days. (This actually sent goosebumps down my spine..this story was written in 2018… how did they even predict that COVID-19 would actually come to pass.. and considering this is also a story about transcending time and space.)
Gavin told you he would leave now before the lockdown took place. However before he could leave, you heard urgent thumping on your door. The incessant thumping made you uneasy. Gavin asked you to stand back while he quickly opened the door and both of you were spooked to find an empty corridor that was just bustling with people. Gavin hurriedly closed the door and asked if something like this has happened before. When you replied negative, he sought your permission to stay the night to make sure that you would be safe and then send someone to watch over you the next morning. You were secretly relieved for his protection as both of you set about to settle in for the night. Gavin took the couch which seemed much too small for him while you slept in your bedroom. Gavin left early in the morning before you woke up but not before leaving a note to say good morning.
A few days later and feeling a lot more healed emotionally, you headed off to work. Enroute to the metro station, you bumped into a young boy about 8 or 9 years old. He was running away from an adult chasing after him with some boxes of medicine in his hand. The moment he came into contact with you, a sudden vision flashed before you. The boy was lying in a hospital bed, crunched up in pain and looking like life was seeping away from him. When you broke out of your vision, you were met with an angry pharmacist who demanded payment for the medicine that the boy had apparently stolen. The young boy quickly avoided the angry pharmacist and claimed that he had gotten the medicine for you. Though you felt wronged, you decided to do a good deed and pay for it on his behalf. By the time you settled the bill, the boy was nowhere to be seen. However you saw that he had accidentally dropped a pendant with a photo of his parents and him on the ground. You decided to keep it for now.
Back at work, you were glad for the respite from the paranormal activities and could go back to burying your head in mundane corporate paperwork. Not too long after, it was evening and Gavin hopped in through the window to give you a lift home. You told him you needed to drop by the police station first to report a lost and found. He told you you could just hand it to him. When Gavin saw the photo in the pendant, a look of recognition swept over him and he frowned. You tried to ask him about it but he quickly brushed it off.
That night, Gavin met with an old STF agent Litton who had left service some time ago and only recently returned to Loveland City. The man before him was a shadow of the joyful father he had seen in the pendent. When Gavin didn’t pursue the reason for Litton leaving STF, the latter asked him what he would do if he found out whatever he believed about STF was a lie all along. Gavin strode away without giving an answer. The question kept lingering in his mind as he returned to STF base. It seemed like the answers could only be found in the archives.
Back at home, you received a call from Leto. He told you that the boy you bumped into today was a key to STF finding the members of the Black Swan. He was one of Black Swan’s experiments and had been commissioned to get close to you. You couldn’t believe that an innocent young boy could be manipulated for such less than pure intent. Leto hoped that you would get close to the boy so as to provide them leads to BSC. Though it wasn’t an order per se, he told you that helping them in this case could bring you closer to finding the truth about your father’s death. Don’t trust Leto!!
Leto’s words kept swirling in your head as you teetered between distrust and curiosity. You felt silly thinking that the whole matter with BSC was over. It had only been swept under the rug. You were relieved to see Gavin at the usual pick up point after work. You informed him of the call with Leto and wanted to get his views about it. He told you that he knew the boy’s father. He was a STF agent whom he had lost contact with 6 years ago. He had no idea why Leto said what he did but this was no simple case and he cautioned you against getting involved. However though you had no wish to help STF, you really wanted to find out the truth and whether this would lead to you learning more about your father’s death. Seeing your resolution, Gavin agreed to bring you to find the boy at a nearby playground.
You saw the boy drawing in the sand in the distance. His drawing was exceptional and you were amazed by it (this reminds me of Lucien and his drawings! Is that why you found the boy familiar?!). When the boy saw you, he pulled at your hand desperately asking if you might have found his pendant. When you handed the pendant over to Perry, he clutched it so tightly as if it were his most precious thing. Perry told through his tears that he would find a way to repay you for the medicine. The scene tugged your heart so you hugged him to calm him down. As you felt him, you realised that Perry was burning up with a fever. Gavin rushed him to the hospital to seek treatment, promising Perry that he would keep a watch out for his father.
At the hospital, the doctor reprimanded both of you for leaving it till so late to bring Perry in. Though it was the flu season, Perry was the only child patient there and Gavin suspected there could be more to his condition than just a simple flu. Perry awoke from his slumber not too long after and he felt flustered by the attention and quickly hid under his blanket. With some tenderness and coaxing from Gavin, a side of him you never seen before, he managed to get Perry out from under the covers. When Perry told Gavin he was hungry and requested meekly for some soup, your heart broke at the sight. Just what kind of suffering had Perry gone through all this time?
After drinking the soup, he fell back into an uneasy sleep, constantly reaching his hand out to grab something. Gavin took hold of Perry’s hands and in a strained voice, Perry called out for his dad not to leave him. You saw Gavin tensed under the situation so you placed your hand over his. Suddenly you had another vision, this time of Gavin standing under a tree, rain soaked and looking desolate. What were these images you are seeing? As your vision returned to normal, you realised that a storm was just breaking on the horizon.
Deep into the night, after making sure that both you and Perry were asleep, Gavin crept out of the ward to meet with Litton. He handed Litton’s case file to him and asked Litton to take Perry away. Litton refused saying it was safer to keep it this way. He also revealed the shocking truth that all the Evol criminals that Gavin had arrested all these years whether for big or small crimes had mysteriously disappeared, died possibly, and their identities replaced by another person. Litton said that only someone of authority could have made this happen which ignited the doubt that had already lit in Gavin’s heart. He said that faith was what we want to believe in when we want to avoid the truth. As Litton walked away, Gavin clenched his fist and black swirls of wind appeared slashing into him and reopening of old wounds. Gavin quickly left the place knowing that his movements were being monitored.
There we have it. Another revelation of a dark truth. The STF weren’t as honorable as we thought they were. Why they wanted to execute all Evolvers is another mystery to be solved. For now, what puzzles me more is that there seemed to be something wrong with Gavin’s Evol. Was it still not under control, why did he suddenly get hurt again?
Over the next few days, you continued to care for Perry, not out of duty but an affection for the young boy who seemed to be in the same predicament as you. However Perry’s condition did not improve. His fever kept coming back and soon the hospital informed you that they couldn’t anything more for him. That evening Gavin picked you up from the hospital and you noticed a fresh scar on his hand. When you reached home, you asked him what was bothering him as he looked disturbed all the way back. He told you there was nothing you needed to be worried about. He also said that you could stop taking care of Perry and he would send someone to take over the responsibility. When you questioned the decision, he told you it had now become dangerous and he didn’t want you to be involved anymore. When you pursued the issue, he clamped up and refused to speak further. In your frustration, you lashed out at him asking why he was still keeping things from you and refusing to let you share his burden. With a pained look, Gavin turned and left.
Yup there goes Gavin again, keeping the truth from you. I’ve always wondered why people think that keeping the truth from people is the best way to protect them. It really depends on how strong the person is isn’t it? Anyway after this little difference in opinion, both of you seemed to be on a cold war. Gavin stopped visiting Perry and the young boy asked you if it was because he was angry. You told Perry that there had been a little disagreement between the two of you. Perry told you to forgive Gavin and patch up again because he knew that Gavin cared alot for you. You decided to break the silence and message Gavin but he didn’t reply. In the shadows, we see Gavin watching you from a distance as you left the hospital.
Not a few days after while you were tending to Perry, the doctor called you out. He told you that Perry had developed new symptoms that resembled the new strain of virus and requested that you transferred him to the Central Hospital where a new team of doctors are studying it and could offer more assistance. The news was like the last straw causing you to wander off out the hospital into the pouring rain. You kept walking hoping to seek clarity on what to do but with each step you realised how futile your efforts seemed, when you thought you took a step forward, it ended up like three step backwards. You stopped before a traffic light and closed your eyes. In that moment you felt a familiar presence. Turning around you saw Gavin standing at a distance watching you with great concern in his eyes. Time seemed to stand still as you both of you stared at each other. Awhile later, Gavin walked over to you.
Feeling awkward he broke the silence asking if you were feeling cold. How could anyone still be angry with him? You asked him what he was doing here and he said he had followed you after the doctor said you left. He didn’t know what to say to you hence he had just tailed you from a distance. Feeling the weight of your gaze on him he finally admitted that the day he had rescued you from the fall was the first time he doubted he could save you and he derided himself for promising that he would always be able to protect you which he feared would be be empty promise. You told him it was over now and he did not need to feel remorseful about it. In that moment of vulnerability, he also let slip that he had lost his Evol albeit temporarily but he would still be able to protect you. You pulled him into a shelter and in that moment of contact, you saw another vision. You saw Gavin clutching his chest in pain as a swirl of wind lashed around him. As you put all the visions you have seen together, you realised that your Evol now enables you to see the future of the people you touched. If this was going to be Gavin’s future, you dreaded what kind of harm is going to befall him.
This was a really touching scene as I tried to replay it in my mind. I am so glad that the writers finally decided to put a bit more personality into Gavin beyond the heroics. In this moment of weakness, we finally see him as a normal boy doing his best to protect the girl he had always loved since school days. However he doubted his ability to do so now more than ever and also his inability to understand the depths and complications of a woman’s heart. It was quite cute actually to see his clumsy efforts. For this, you score a brownie point.
As both of you were drying yourself, Gavin asked why you were walking alone in the rain. You told him about what the doctor said about Perry and how you couldn’t face the boy with the truth. Gavin immediately replied that he would bring Perry to see his father now. Both of you hurried back to the hospital and found to your horror that Perry was no longer on the bed and the staff had no idea where he had gone. Gavin picked up Perry’s necklace which had been left on the bed. If Perry had left voluntarily he wouldn’t have left this behind. You held the necklace and another vision of the future appeared in your mind. This time you saw a trace of blood, an abandoned warehouse and a two bodies lying motionless on the floor. As you approached the bodies, a pair of tear stained eyes stared back at you. You started to reality and grabbed Gavin. Perry was in danger! You told Gavin about your newfound powers and he took it all in his stride. Calmly he assured you that these events had not taken place and there was still time to change the future.
With the clues from your vision, it didn’t take long for both of you to locate the abandoned warehouse. You rushed in and found the small form of Perry sitting in the middle on the floor, writhing in pain. Gavin noticed that Perry’s Evol was fluctuating out of control and it was dangerous for you to stay here. Perry looked up at you guiltily and told you to stay away. He said that they had told him to get near you if he wanted to find his father. He apologised for tricking you and you felt a chill in your body. Suddenly you heard a loud bang and you couldn’t distinguish if it was a bullet or nearby fireworks. At the sudden sound, Perry jerked and a wave of power circled out from him slicing the rebar in its path. Gavin quickly used his wind power to shield you. He told you to quickly get out of the building so that he can focus on saving Perry. As you exited the warehouse, you felt another wave of power and the whole warehouse shook threatening to collapse on itself.
You heard another bang. This time unmistakable for a gunshot. Without further hesitation, you ran back into the warehouse. The whole place was now covered in a cloud of dirt, debris and smoke and you couldn’t make out the silhouette of Gavin or Perry. You called out for them in panic as bullets rained in from outside. Suddenly a man rushed into the warehouse passing by you. The sudden movement cleared the air before you and you saw Gavin unharmed, desperately putting up a shield to protect himself and Perry from the bullets. You didn’t have time to breathe a sigh of relief when everything changed. A lone bullet had found its way through a weakness in Gavin’s defense and pierced Perry’s chest. Blood spurted out of his body as his body slumped to the ground. It was exactly as you have pictured in your vision. In that moment time seemed to stop. You saw the man picked up Perry and embraced him. Perry opened his eyes and looked up at the familiar face, a smile on his face as he muttered the word ‘Dad’.
The tears in your eyes threatened to blind you as you tried to understand what was happening. Gavin rushed towards you and pulled you out of the warehouse leaving the tragic scene behind you. As you emerged from the building, you saw that the place had been surrounded by masked men in black with the unmistakable STF badge. Gavin seethed in rage and he demanded an explanation for their actions. Leto stepped into view and said emotionlessly that he had given the order to shoot as Perry posed a threat. Gavin shouted that Leto didn’t have the authority to do that and his actions were not aligned with the STF code. Leto replied coldly that he wasn’t obliged to reply Gavin. Gavin then asked Leto to explain the death of all 76 Evol offenders he had arrested over these years. Leto said that Gavin would understand his justice when he finally got to his position. This was the final straw, in a show of defiance, Gavin raised his gun at Leto and told him sternly that he didn’t want this justice and anyone who followed it would answer to him. With that he threw his gun aside and announced his quitting of STF.
Leto explained that this world isn’t always black and white and was disappointed that Gavin had chosen this path. Without batting his eye, he commanded the squadron to arrest Gavin. In a sudden twist of fate, allies turned into enemies and all the guns trained their barrel on both of you. Gavin summoned his powers to cover both of you in a vortex of wind. You could see him straining under the weight and that using his Evol would only hurt him further. You tried to stop him but was suddenly whipped up in a current and everything went hazy.
As you start to regain your consciousness, you realised you were on the bike with Gavin speeding through the highway trying to get away from your pursuers. You asked about what would happen to Perry and he told you that he and his dad got away. As the events leading up to this moment caught up to you, you realised that there were enemies on both the inside and outside. Whatever faith Gavin had in the STF was shattered in one fell swoop. Gavin told you he was bringing you to somewhere safe then he would return to settle matters. As long as Black Swan or STF were around, you would always be hunted. You wrapped your hands tighter around his waist and saw another vision. This time of Gavin standing on a broken highway and walking away alone and forlorn into the horizon. Thus far all your visions had come true and you begged Gavin not to leave.
As if your troubles were not enough, a fleet of black SUVs suddenly appeared behind you, giving chase. Gavin tried to swerve through traffic to get away from them. As he did so, he didn’t notice a rifle aimed at him from one of the cars. Without hesitation, you swung your body forward to shield him from the incoming bullet. The pain was instant and you called out in pain. Gavin pulled you in front of him, desperately trying to control his panic as he asked you to cling on tightly to him. You gritted your teeth in pain and looked ahead and saw a crack in the highway looming in the distance. A fall through would mean a certain end in the crashing waves below. Just when you thought the end was nigh, pandemonium broke out – trees uprooted and the road split apart as an invisible glass appeared shielding you from everything else. A group of men with guns appeared on all side. Gavin stopped the bike and dismounted carrying you to a nearby tree. You held on to him desperately begging him not to leave you as images from your visions merged with reality. He promised you he would not leave you. Noticing that your gingko bracelet had broken in the hustle, he told he would return to fix it.
Gavin approached the group of men and their leader stepped forward. It appears they know Gavin. The man told Gavin that they would offer you protection as long as Gavin agreed to proceed with some project NH just as his brother had done so. It didn’t seem like Gavin had much of a choice in this matter as he looked over to you with pain in his eyes. As the gunshot wound threatened to steal your consciousness, you hoped with all your heart that Gavin wouldn’t bargain his life for yours. In the the fleeting moments before you lost consciousness, you saw Gavin walk away with the men into the horizon, never turning back to look at you, exactly how you had pictured in your visions.
Woah! What just happened? One moment I was feeling the tenderness of love and the next moment, I got flung into a whirlwind of tragedy, danger, broken trust and sacrifice. My heart broke when Perry got shot. It was only in his last moments that he finally reunited with his father. How can any parent do that to his child and who on earth experimented on Perry like this? Was this Black Swan’s doing, did Lucien had a part to play in this whole scheme of things? This is beyond cruel. And then of course Leto turning out to be exactly the villain or anti-hero as I expected. People in such authority always seem to be able to justify all their actions because of some bigger than thou objective, leaving minions like us to either trust and obey or desist and destroy. What choice did Gavin make at the end and who are these new group of people introduced – BSC, STF or some other vigilante?
In the aftermath of everything, you are now rested on your bed in your apartment. You gunshot wound has recovered somewhat leaving a scar. As you slept fitfully, Gavin approached you to wipe the tear from your face. He had repaired the gingko bracelet and clasped it on your wrist. He told you softly to wait for him and then left. You woke up not too soon after but Gavin’s warmth had already turned cold. You called out for him but only silence returned. Where had he gone and why did he just leave his blood stained jacket and the bracelet? Would you ever see him again? You walked out to the corridor of your apartment, feeling aimless. Suddenly you heard a familiar voice calling your name behind you. When you turned around, there was no one. Instead you saw an envelope materialised in the thin air and floated to your feet. In the envelope was a single lone sheet of paper with the letter A calligraphed on it. It must be Victor calling you from the future which means the next chapter would be about him.
Meanwhile we see Gavin in a some kind of experiment chamber, shackled with multitude of tubes sticking out of him. The mysterious man asked if was ready and he replied resolutely yes even as memories of all the people he cared for and failed flashed before his eyes. Specifically he held on to his promise to you. The man turned on a switch and the operation was underway. The EKG fluctuated wildly for a moment and then flat lined.
This looks like a scene out of a X-Men movie. Is Gavin going to be the next Wolverine where some unknown syndicate experiments on him to evolve him further into a mutant? I really hope he doesn’t transform into a being who is just a lean mean fighting machine and loses his humanity in the process.