Episode #1: Jake's mistakes

Jun,28 2025

I take a deep breath, and leave my cabin. I had to wait for my sunscreen to have properly dried. The biggest mistake that a naturist can do on a warm cloudless day, like today, is rush after putting sunscreen.

M digital watch vibrates, I check it. No major updates, but Tilly wants to talk. Jake can wait.

I get her parent's location and knock on the door.

Melanie opens and smiles when she sees me. "Cassian! How are you?"

"I am splendid, what about you? Are the kids treating you all right?"

"They are! They miss you. They love when you come chat with them. That last challenge? They are still talking about it"

"I am preparing the next one. Perhaps in a day or two. Pick a new gift if they succeed"

"Chocolate and candies are always a hit"

I smile. I was a kid once too. "Of course. Is Tilly ok? We are not missing any insulin, right?"

"She is. No, you take good care of it. No, she had a concern about Tomorrow"

"Oh. I better listen to her, is Tom already at the range?"

"You know he is"

I get to Tilly's room, the door is open. She is at her desk, and wearing shorts.

"Hey Cassian"

"How is my favorite 15-year-old?"

"With major cramps. Which it why I spent all night reviewing the plan. I think it's too complicated"

"Really? You know how I love your inputs"

"I know. I was thinking, we know who the assistant is. Maybe we should skip the theatrics and just have Vexx point to one person at random, but it's the assistant manager in particular"

"But they might be anywhere, this is my the theatrics are used2

"Then, the first step isn't solid enough."

"Tilly, people can be anywhere"

"No, I think we should book an appointment with her so that we know she will be in her office"

I look at her.

"Tilly, this is absolutely brilliant. Ok, So you think Mrs Porter would do? We hire her via a shell corporation to reward her for past help"

"Hey, not my department"

"I know. Thank you, Tilly. You did good. Why don't you take a day of rest. I'll get you a tutor for anything you miss"

"I was planning to. I'll get on a pill to reduce the cramps"

"Talk to Patricia. She is our best endocrinologist"

"I can?"

"Tilly, everyone can. "

I leave her, thanking her again, and then, her mother.

I take a deep breath and get to Jake and Melanie's house. They don't have kids yet, but they plan to.

I have all of my notes in my mind, but I am not up to date on his injuries.

Melanie, is on the porch. Tanning on a bed on the front lawn. She spots me.

"Alone?", she says, nervous.

"You both haven't been with me for a long time, Melanie. I practice what I preach"

"Tell him that as you arrive, he is a nervous ball of stress"

I put my hand on her shoulder. "Melanie, you are in a good place"

"I do love my job"

"And I love your food."

"Go on in, he is waiting for you"

"You should be there"

"But... isn't it all secret?"

"Melanie, it's all secret out there, but not in here."

"Oh, Patrick wasn't talking to me"

"He should. You are his wife"

"Not yet"

"Wait, seriously? I have in my mind that you are married"

"To be married. We don't have a date yet with the moving in, and getting used to be nude, and the next jobs"

"Melanie, this is major. Ok, first, I pay for the wedding, and the honeymoon. We have the best books, and I don't mean you, you would focus on your wedding day. It can be here, in town, if you want your textile friends to now know"

"We don't have friends outside, and you know it"

I smile. Of course, I do. I don't recruit people with a vast support network.

"You have us. All of us. We will all be there for you. Patrick is already on leave, I can extend it so that he is in top shape for your special day."

"We would like that. Could I wear a dress?"

"Of course", I say, smiling.

We get inside, and Patrick is lying on the coach, still with some bandages. He put on boxers, which I can excuse. He did get shot.

"Oh, I am so sorry, Boss"

"First, Patrick, I am sorry. I shouldn't have sent you in without more training. You have nothing to fear from me, other than being put out of action to get better trained"

"I would like that. I panicked, and I don't want to panic"

"Patrick, you will panic. It will happen again. And I won't be mad. I will each time take you off field, and offer you more training"

"And if I mess up each time?", he says, nervous

"You'll get new responsibilities, Patrick. You are in. You made it. Not only that, but you have a place here until we fail, or you retire. "

"I didn't see him"

"Nobody did. He was a single man, a simple civilian, who carried a concealed weapon in a place where he wasn't allowed to, Patrick. No plan can account for them. The only mistake you made, is that you hesitated, so you got two bullets in, including once in your vest. You are lucky that he wasn't trained for action, and it was a low caliber"

"But I couldn't just shoot him"

"This, is why you need more training. You could have intimidated him more, called for backup, ducked, or shot him. That's an option. We need to avoid more people playing the hero. But I am not the person who will train you. George is the best. Trust him, I certainly do. And Patrick, I do trust you"

"Thank you, I won't fail you again"

"Patrick, I want to make something clear. You will fail me again. It will happen. And the next day or two, once we all have rested. I will come to your house, and we will talk about how you can do better, or how I can do better. This is how we roll"

Melanie thanks me too.

"Listen, I have other people to talk you, but my door is already open. On your watch, you can request an audience and I will get to you. Tilly had concerns, and I dropped to her place before coming here. I think I was there 2 minutes after she called."

"Who is Tilly?"

"She is one of my teenager advisers"

"Teenager?", says Melanie.

"Oh yeah. Teenagers have a great imagination. I consult them to see if there are flaws. She stopped one which will save us about 20 to 25 seconds on the next operation"

"Why not consult little kids too!", says Melanie, laughing.

"Oh, I do. But at school, as part of role playing games"

She looks at me.

"You really are something, we were nervous when we got the job offer"

"And I had high hopes for both of you, and you are both turning out well", I say, leaving their house.

They were kissing when I looked back before closing their door. Ah, young love...

I spot Brigit in her garden nearby. She isn't crying.

I try to approach her.

"Should I stay away?", I tell her.

"I am not mad at you"

"You were"

"I was hurt"

"I understand. If you need anything, and I do mean, anything, I will make sure someone is there for you"

"The psychologist helps a lot"

"She is the best. How often do you see her?"

"Once per week, why?"

"If you want more frequent visits, even every day, I can make that happen"

She looks at me.

"You really care?"

"I do"

"I thought my husband was crazy. Working for you, but we were happy, and then, he died"

"Brigit. He used to work for Stanley King, right?"

"You know he did"

"How many times did one of his colleagues got killed, or hurt"

"All the time"

"Did Stanley care?"

She scoffed. "He killed a few of them himself"

"Brigit. I only lost two of my men on operations, including your husband, and I still mourn them"

"You killed Jaclyn's husband"

"That's another story, If you want to hear it, I will tell you, but I still take care of Jaclyn. If you think that Stanley takes care of the widows of the guys who betrayed him, I feel sorry for how naive you are"

"We heard you were a better employer. Which makes no fucking sense. How are you, so... Grounded after what you do out there?"

I look at here.

"Stanley, is himself all the time. He is a violent mobster who terrorizes his victims, his employees, his wife, his mistress and his kids. I two different people. In here, I am Cassian Verris, your friendly leader. It's only out there, that I play a role"

"A role? Your operations are so improvised! So random!"

I look at her.

"Do you have something on the agenda today?"

"Not really"

"Maybe you should come to our repetition for the next operation. You'll see that what appears to be chaos, is a well choreographed operation. I want you to understand, that the death of your husband, occurred before things fell apart, not because we were careless. Not because we were not ready. Accidents occur."

She looks at me.

"Are you telling me that Vexx, the lord of chaos, has repetitions on the madness he unleashes on the city?"

"Brigit, I am telling you that all of Vexx's operations are rehearsed until everyone knows down to the second what they are supposed to do. Everything, even my laughs are used as signals. "

"So why did my husband die?"

"Because when we got out of the museum, as he was closing the door to the escape van, he was leaning just in the right way for a random cop to fire their weapon at an angle allowing to get in the vest. It's a one in a million lucky shot. Our vans are bulletproof, our helmets and masks too, but for the head to move, we need to leave a gap on the neck protection"

She looks at me.

"I can ask anything?"

"You can"

"Can I stop being a naturist?"

"You can. I can set you up in an apartment in Europe, we have a retirement facility there"

"But not here"

"Not here. It's our cover, and our protection"

"But why?"

"First, I am a naturist. Many of us are. But second, you can't sneak a gun, a bomb, tools or anything in here, and it's a perfect cover"

"We get visitors!"

"I know. There is a family visiting right now, but don't worry, they are from out of state, and we vetted them. We don't allow a lot, just enough to help our cover."

"You know, Vexx, maybe I'll stay a little longer. When I don't forget the sunscreen, I don't mind just gardening"

"In here, I am Cassian. Always Cassian"

"But why are you doing this? Robbing banks, stealing from museums, bombing factories?"

I lean forward.

"Because society is evil and lets kids go hungry while billionaires get richer. Because the current and past generations pollute the planet without thinking about the future. Because politicians care more about their reelection than their constituents"

"So you became a super villain to what, teach them a lesson?"

"No, I didn't become a super villain. I am the Correction. I am Justice, Uncaged. I am the Answer to their Lies. I am... Reckoning".

"You are..."

"I am Entropy, wearing a Smile", I say, laughing.

"Insane", she says.

I look at her.

"Do you know George Bernard Shaw?"

She looks at me. "Not really"

"He said: The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man. I am not insane, I am unreasonable"

She looks at me.

"You really want to make a world a better place?"

"For all the kids."

"And the money you make?"

"All reinvested in this project, in the people. I barely keep anything"

"So you are a thief, a terrorist, an agent of chaos, who intends to destroy the current world, to give a better one to the next generation?"

"Pretty much. I don't want power, I want the power to go to the people, instead of to the billionaires out there"

"Cassian?"

"Jaclyn?"

"What can I do to help?"

I look at her. This is what I want. People who join me because they believe.