Voltaic (Interference: Book 1)

Chapter 2: Verification

"This is CNN breaking news. Reports of fires and small explosions coming about abruptly in Chicago have just begun pouring in about ten minutes ago. The fires coincidentally occurred at the same time when unidentified aircraft were detected to be flying within Chicago airspace. The Mayor of Chicago has announced that it is highly unlikely that the two events are related and advises that the public not be alarmed. He adds that the medical and fire departments are working hard on putting out the fires and sending the injured to dedicated facilities outside of the city, and should the blazes persist, a mass evacuation programme would take place for all residents in Chicago," a news presenter spoke over the television, which everyone was crowding around.

"Stand away from the TV," I ordered as I walked back to the living room from the window.

The guests, of which most continued to stay where they were despite my instruction, turned to look at me for a moment. One of them raised an eyebrow while another frowned. Eventually, they turned back to watch the news. Only a few stepped away from the television.

"Seriously, you guys. Don't stay near the television," I told them once again.

"Well, why not? We need to check the news for updates on whatever is going on," a guest questioned.

"Yeah. Like, what the hell is even happening? There was literally a guy outside the apartment running around while he was on fire, and we don't know why. So why don't you just shut up for a moment?" another one disregarded my remark rudely.

"Well, I don't know why this is happening, but I'm pretty sure I know what is happening," I stated.

And with perfect timing, a socket that was connected to a room heater blew, which caused a small fire on the wire.

"That's what is happening," I said, glancing over at the burning heater and pointing my finger at it. I was confident that I knew what was going on without needing to understand why it was happening. The reason for it just wasn't important.

It was essential enough to know that the electrical appliances were the ones that were causing casualties all over the city.

Before I began my announcement, I made sure that the heater fire was put out. Thankfully, Jake rushed over to the bathroom, grabbed a pail of water and a toothbrush, used the end of the toothbrush to turn the socket off and splashed the water all over the fire, which caused it to dissipate and die down.

As such, I began speaking again. "Now, I want all of you to move away from that television now, and I'll tell you why," I said calmly.

The guests finally stayed quiet and compliant, stepping away from the TV stand altogether, with some even retreating further back into the room as a precaution.

"Look what has happened so far. A toaster malfunctioning, the gas pipe for a stove igniting, a light fixture sparking a fire and falling, a refrigerator door blasting open and a heater catching on fire. What do all of these have in common?" I asked everyone.

"They are electrical appliances," Zoe answered promptly. It was clear that she probably understood what was going on too, so I nodded at her.

"Exactly," I continued. "These appliances malfunctioned around the same time and have just caused three potential deaths and one injury. Now, look out of the window. What do you see outside?"

The guests all turned their heads to face the scenery outside—the ugly scenery that included burning cars and clouds of smoke erupting from buildings. It was an unpleasant sight, just as unpleasant as what was going on in the apartment we were in.

"As you can see, whatever is happening to us is also happening to everyone else in this city. The malfunctioning of the appliances here doesn't make it an isolated incident. It's everywhere. So if you think the paramedics and police officers are going to rush over to serve you when you're injured, then I'm to say that you're wrong," I told the stubborn guests off.