"I… I summoned this person… or should I say… this entity?" His voice faltered, trying to grasp what was happening before everyone else understood it.
Daniel, who was standing close by, looked just as confused. "I don't get it… how… what does all this mean?"
Luca watched them for a moment in silence, then said in a quiet, weighty voice, "Hah… you're really making me work for this explanation. Alright… I'm a cursed spirit, as I said. I feed on people's anger, their hatred… and most importantly, their despair. That's when I sensed that massive energy."
He approached André slowly, his body half-floating in the air, and reached out to his chest, touching his heart directly. André felt an internal tremor, as if the energy itself was flowing from his heart into Luca's hand. "This energy… I didn't think it would come from such a small heart. A lot of anger… and even more hatred… despite his fractured mind."
Their faces were filled with astonishment despite the clarity of his words. The atmosphere was heavy, but curiosity outweighed fear.
Luca stepped back, his movement as quiet as someone withdrawing from a scene they're observing from the outside. "But it all made sense to me… when I saw him in that miserable state."
Daniel and André exchanged quick glances, neither knowing how they were supposed to respond.
Daniel chuckled nervously, trying to break the tension that had settled over the place. "I still think it's bizarre… I can't believe I'm actually talking to a spirit right now. What madness."
Luca raised an eyebrow, as if he'd enjoyed his statement more than he should have, then said with a faint amusement, "That's wonderful, isn't it? I likewise can't believe I'm talking to living beings."
Silence filled the room, heavy as dust covering his chest. André looked at the ground, trying to steady his breathing, but something inside him was shattering every second. He didn't know where to start, or even who he was. Just a void… a lost name, a torn memory, and gazes following him that he couldn't understand.
He whispered finally, his voice coming out cracked as if the letters were being dragged from his throat. "What's going to happen to me now? Will I stay like this… without memories?"
His words echoed in the air as if they were a question no one wanted to answer. He felt like the ground was moving beneath him, that his very existence was questionable.
Luca said in a quiet tone, but loaded with something strange that was hard to tell whether it was pity or sarcasm. "Memory doesn't disappear, little one… it just needs time."
Time? What time? How much time did he need to get back who he was? How could he heal from something he didn't even know the name of? All he felt now was a headache pounding his head with an erratic pulse, as if his skull was throbbing with anger at him. His body was foreign… his mind was foreign… and even his voice when he spoke didn't seem familiar to him.
Time…? As if I have the luxury of waiting. He lifted his head, and his voice came out more broken than he intended. "Time? Is that all I need?"
Luca replied calmly, without any hesitation, "Perhaps more."
Daniel intervened, his voice low but sharp. "Stop toying with the kid, spirit."
His heart trembled a little. Simple words, but heavy on his chest. Everything felt strange, as if the world around him was losing its stability.
Daniel approached, lowering himself to his level, looking into his eyes, searching for a word, but finding nothing that fit. "It's alright… we'll remember everything slowly…" His voice was low, steady, but it didn't ease the internal pressure on André.
Then he continued, as if a faint idea had occurred to him. "A name! Of course, I'll give you a name… you're not alone."
Daniel lightly tapped his forehead, as if to discourage him from getting too excited:
"Go ahead and choose his name."
André kept looking at them, his eyes wide, his chest trembling slightly with anticipation. Every second passed like an eternity, and every moment of silence weighed heavily on his heart.
I'm going to have a name...
Luca smiled a little, half sarcastically and half seriously, then gestured with his hand as if preparing to reveal a secret:
"Hmm... I have a terrible name... It suits you perfectly."
André held his breath, feeling his heart flutter in his chest.
The air around them grew heavier, as if everything else in the room had faded away.
"Stop playing around and tell him!" Daniel said firmly, trying to break the tension.
Luca nodded slightly, then winked and said in a calm tone, full of hidden amusement behind his seriousness:
"Okay... your new name... Maldo."
André trembled slightly, hesitated to pronounce it, then whispered softly, as if testing the word on his tongue for the first time:
" Maldo..."
After hearing his new name, André felt something strange running through his veins, a slight warmth, but surprising and painful at the same time.
He gasped, his voice trembling:
"There's... something... hurting me..."
Luca smiled briefly, half sarcastically, half calmly:
"Oh... I forgot about that... You've got 5% of my power now."
Luca smiled, that disturbing smile that didn't reach his eyes, and said calmly:
"Don't worry... nothing will happen to him."
Then he suddenly snapped his fingers, and a small spark scattered between them, and at that moment the heat running through André's body stopped.
André sat down, panting slightly, his heart beating fast, his hands trembling a little.
The strange feeling between pain and surprise suddenly disappeared, leaving behind a strange sense of relief... but now he was connected to Luca's world in a way he couldn't understand.
"I feel... somehow energized..." André said, his voice low, but full of surprise and caution.
Daniel looked at him with concern:
"Are you okay?"
André nodded, then slowly raised his hand, his eyes focused on his fingertips:
"I think so..."
He paused for a moment, his heart beating fast, but strangely light, as if something inside him had broken and he was now freer.
Was this feeling... power? Was this Luca's power? He thought calmly, slowly, like someone trying to read a mysterious book for the first time.
Then he raised his eyes to Luca, his tone more confident, though surprise still glinted in his eyes:
"Thank you... At least now I have a name."
Luca smiled a short, faint smile, a joke hidden between his lips, and his tone was calm but full of mischief:
"Oh... don't forget, this is just the beginning, Maldo. You still have a lot to learn."
Daniel looked at Luca, as if he wanted to comment on the strange moment they had just witnessed, but he couldn't find the right words before he heard a knock on the door:
Knock, knock!
"Come in," Daniel finally said, his voice calm but tinged with caution.
The guard entered, looking to be in his mid-twenties, or perhaps a little older. He stood quietly, his gaze cold and direct, fixed on Daniel's face as if quickly reading him:
"Lord Daniel... Your car has arrived."
Daniel looked at him with reserved eyes, then said slowly and sternly:
"Okay... You can leave now."
The guard nodded, took a step back, then turned and walked away without another word.
"Come on... Little Moldo, we're leaving now. We're leaving this place," said Daniel, his voice calm but firm, his eyes following André as if watching an important step in the birth of a new personality.
André nodded slowly, his heart still beating strongly, a strange feeling flowing through his veins, but now he felt more confident, as if the name Luca had chosen for him had become part of him: I am Maldo... I am here.
Luca's lips formed a childish, playful smile, his tone of voice losing none of its authority despite all the playfulness:
"I'll come with Sir Maldo, of course."
André turned toward him for a moment, a small smile on his face, one he hadn't felt in a long time, while Luca floated lightly beside him, as if experiencing the whole world from a different perspective, free from any constraints.
Then Daniel straightened up, took his coat, put it on, and sighed.
André straightened up behind him.
They left the room, the wooden floor echoing their slow footsteps. André, now Maldo, felt that every movement of his body carried a new weight, but at the same time was full of energy, as if something had awakened inside him.
As they walked through the dirty corridors, they finally reached the courtyard. There, at the end of it, stood the nightmare that haunted his foggy memory: Enzo, with Don Dante beside him.
Maldo's steps stopped abruptly. A blurry image appeared in his mind, unclear, but it confused him... it terrified him.
"Are you finally leaving?" Enzo said, addressing Daniel in a sharp voice.
Daniel noticed the terror on Maldo's face, shielded him with his body without letting it show, then said calmly but firmly:
"We will meet again... Just wait."
"I can't believe you're leaving this place for a worthless child!" said Don Dante, staring at them with contempt.
Daniel turned slowly, his voice stern and confident:
"This child has a name... He is Maldo... And yeah, he's important."
Luca's smile, which had always been on his face, suddenly faded. His voice became more serious:
"I don't like them... They need a little lesson."
He moved his finger in a circular motion, and suddenly a powerful gust of air blew their opponents violently upward until they hit the ceiling, then fell to the ground, concussed.
Daniel stood watching what had happened and said in a tone that was half sarcastic and half serious:
"Oh... looks like there's a storm coming."
Maldo felt a strange power flowing inside him, heat in his veins, and Luca's movement made his heart beat faster... For the first time, he felt that he was part of this world, and that his new name was not just a word, but the key to his power and existence.
Daniel took Maldo's hand firmly, looking at him with stern but confident eyes:
"Come on... let's go."
They continued on their way out, the dirty corridors fading behind them, the air feeling lighter after the chaos Luca had left in the courtyard.
Daniel glanced around the place, then smiled, his voice calm but with a hint of hidden amusement:
"I like the idea of being hidden... It's really fun."
Luca, floating lightly beside them, laughed a short, faint laugh, half playful and half mysterious:
"Oh... fun? This is just the beginning... I'll have more fun."
They got into the car, each of them preparing for the journey ahead. Maldo sat in the back seat, touching his hand cautiously, testing the heat and strength that still flowed through his body, remembering his new name, and feeling that this moment was not just an escape... but the beginning of a whole new chapter.
The car engine started, and the city began to loom on the horizon, its scattered lights shining in the dark evening. The car sped off, and the noisy wind around them made every feeling, every movement, more distinct... as if the whole world was waiting for what would come next.
After an hour's drive, they finally arrived at the house in the heart of Casalini. Buildings surrounded them on all sides, the scattered lights of the city twinkled in the evening, and the air was filled with the sound of cars and distant noise.
Maldo was asleep, his body exhausted after the trip, his eyes half closed, his head heavy on the back seat. He didn't seem to have realized yet that he was in the car.
Daniel got out of the car first, then turned gently to Maldo, patting his shoulder to wake him up, his voice firm but gentle:
"Come on... we're here."
Maldo looked at him slowly, his eyes still heavy, but he felt reality returning to him little by little.
Maldo slowly rubbed his eyes, trying to shake off the last traces of sleepiness.
He stepped out of the seat, his feet touching the ground for the first time in a long while, and with every movement, reality weighed a little heavier on him, but at the same time, he felt completely present.
The house was made of red brick, somewhat imposing. It had two floors. The windows on the first floor were completely dark, as if something was hiding in the shadows, while on the second floor, a window emitted a dim light, shyly revealing part of the interior.
Daniel smiled gently, his voice calm but direct:
"Oh... I forgot to tell you. There's a little girl in the house... Try to get along with her."
Then he turned to Luca, his eyes half-resentful and half-amused:
"And you... don't you dare scare her. So... find a solution for yourself."
Luca's face broke into a mischievous smile, half sarcastic and half calm, as if every word Daniel said was just a fun challenge for him. He said in a strange childish tone:
"I'll make my body like yours... Wait a minute."
Suddenly, a light energy flowed from his body, accompanied by a thin smoke that swirled around him. Maldo and Daniel watched the transformation in amazement. Luca stood on the ground, his body not much changed, but now looking like a twenty-year-old, similar to Daniel in height and build. The mysterious aura that had surrounded him disappeared, and he became closer to a familiar human form.
He approached Daniel, grabbed his arm firmly, his eyes half playful and half serious:
"I'm your friend now... Luca." "
Maldo stared at him for a moment, his heart fluttering slightly, not knowing whether to laugh or feel awe. It was strange, but he felt at ease... as if this transformation had made Luca closer, more understandable, and more... friendly.