A woman in a business suit watched the setting sun out the window, her fist tightly clenching some papers in her hand. Her eyes dark and full of scorn, a fire within them that could engulf a nation. Despite that, she just stood there, standing and staring out the large window that looked down upon the city below.
"So your saying they all failed?"
The woman's tone was icey and cold, and yet a deep wraith could be felt within it. It would send shivers down the spines of any who heard it. As for her question, it was directed at a man, also in a business suit, but with hair and a different face and appearance then the snakes who had been at The Emporium. He had long dark hair, and eyes that while appeared emotionless, had a certain depth and glint in them.
"Yes ma'am. It appears the Crone was ahead of us completely. The target did appear there as we thought he might, but she had made moves well ahead of us. Most likely, she had the surrounding streets already under her control before we even showed up, as we never saw the boy enter the store the entire time we were watching it".
"One cannot underestimate the power of that shop. Its influence reaches well beyond its walls, seeping into the very ground. Still, it appears it was far stronger in its ability to exert its influence then one can give it credit for. How...irritating. And here I was hoping for a nice quick payday".
"Old Crone was bad enough, but to think Code Blue was there as well" the man lamented half seriously.
"Yes, he certainly has caused us no end of troubles. We should move to eliminate him".
The woman looked over at the files they had dug out. Several of their contractors and associates had been captured or killed by Code Blue, also known as the Blue Card Hunter, or the Anti-Hunter. He was a sort of checkmate to bounty hunters and assassins, dealing with those who crossed over the line, which was most of them. One could say he was like a counter force.
The larger of a mess you made, the more likely Code Blue would hunt you down. In just two years, he had built that reputation. His sniping skill was legendary, supposedly having killed a guy with a shot that, in the normal world, would make him one of the best five snipers in the world.
However, those who knew about the world within the world knew he was using some sort of magic as an enhancer. Likely in his weapons and tools. The top snipers list was mainly those who did not use magic, and most who could use magic didn't bother with such large weapons like sniper rifles anyways. Of course, that only made Code Blue stand out more.
"And he already bought the rights to his own identity from Merchant too".
Merchant would never go back on a deal, no matter what. No matter what anyone did or said to him, even seduction magic was pointless on him. Otherwise she would have obtained his identity long ago, but he apparently had quite a lot of money. That or he repaid the merchant with services, and the merchant was the source of all his gear. But in any case, purchasing his identity was not possible, at least from the Merchant.
"Its not just that. The bat bought the rights to the target's identity as well" the man reported.
"The bat as well? Damn those two! The Bat and the Crone!"
She picked up a chair and threw it across the room.
"Do we at least have something?"
"Yes. We won't be able to search it up, but we do have his face, scent, and mana signature. He cant stay hidden forever, so eventually when he is out on the street, we can get him. We can also prepare a variety of traps".
"Probably for the best. Bat and Crone appear to be protecting him, so I would rather not risk an assault on wherever he lives. Though I hope no one else happens to find it and sneak in there, and steal our bounty. I suspect the heat will be turning up soon as well".
"Should we search for it anyways then?"
"Yes".
As she clenched her fist, her eyes glowed a pale yellow, and her hair turned into serpents.
"Besides, I am curious now about this power that everyone seems to want".
----------------------------------------
Bell and Maze made it back to his building. It was an old styled apartment building, and they climbed up the stairs to the fifth floor, which was where Bell's home was. The stairs themselves would normally be a bit imposing, but Bell was used to them and with his new abilities and body, found it easy. Although at the moment, neither Bell nor Maze were big fans of the stairs. There was an elevator, but it was in use already and Bell needed to get inside his home quick.
Plus, there was a few things he wanted to check out with Maze. Some questions, but also he needed to get a feel for someone who might end up being his guardian against the terrors. He seemed like a friendly, open, likable boy...but there was layers for sure. No one becomes a sniper bounty hunter by chance. He might need to push a few things perhaps, but he had to take the risk. Though he wasn't sure if he might be up for it. That said, the way Maze spoke and heard...it seemed to almost naturally pierce through Bell's normally reserved and kind of worrywort personality. Like for a moment, being with Maze let him forget about being hunted, or embarrassed, or afraid. He just seemed to have that natural effect on him.
On a display board outside, it also mentioned that it was already 39 degrees outside and rising. The heat wave was apparently hitting hard today. Perhaps that was messing with his head, as he was feeling a little off. Or perhaps it was the aftereffects of the fight with that swordsman, all the tension he had been through. Or perhaps, what he had gone through with his seal. Either way, his mind was a bit all over the place, so he was a bit worried about his judgement.
"Keep up the good working getting up those stairs!"
The manager said that as they passed, misunderstanding their appearance. Leaving aside the fact it had begun raining heavily outside, and it took them longer to find shelter for Bell to hide, dry off a bit, and put on a rain poncho that would hide his ears and tail, Bell had just been in a major fight. His body was exhausted, and Maze apparently had been busy himself. He was tired and not fully rested, apparently having done quite a bit today.
One might mistake it being two boys being tired from going up flights of stairs, but there was a lot more to it.
After a quick scan, they were able to enter just fine, taking off their shoes by the door. Bell was able to release his suppression, and the two quickly took off their vests and such as well.
"Why is it even when it rains, the heat wave still persists?"
"That might just be from mana exhaustion. If you use too much at once beyond what you should, or use too much in general, and you can get really heated up, be physically drained, ect".
"...then why are you like that?"
"I did a few side jobs on my way there. Gobli extermination, dealing with a kidnapper, and a drunk werewolf".
"...that last one kind of stands out".
"Yeah...what is the temperature anyways?"
"40 degrees Celsius" Bell answered, turning on the AC as he removed his socks and such as well.
"Yikes. Thats like, one hundred and five degrees Fahrenheit or such. Then, do you mind?" Maze asked, looking down.
"...yeah, I mean, you already saw me in mine anyways. And we are both boys".
The two took off their shorts as well, basically leaving them in their shirts and underwear. And then, a sign of the apocalypse occurred as the AC shut off.
"What?! No!" Bell shouted. "I have furry tails! Do not die on me AC!"
Maze noticed a notification show up on a screen built into the wall, part of the home management system.
"Looks like a message from the owner. The AC system died from overtaxation".
It had been quite a long heat wave, so that came as no surprise. Still, the boys were already dripping with sweat.
"I am going to start a bath" Bell muttered.
"Sure. While we wait for that, perhaps I can answer some of your questions in the meantime".
Bell nodded. He had gotten some out of Maybell, or whatever her name actually was, and was able to work through some things as he dealt with the seal. But Maze could answer a lot more right now, which was part of why Bell decided to have him stay over. Bell programmed the bath to start filling and prepare itself accordingly, and then the two went into his room.
"Yeah okay, I just cant help it. What is the temperature right now?"
"...41 degrees".
Maze took off his underwear and shirt, as Bell turned on the fans. Bell was a bit surprised.
"That is certainly trusting".
"Well, you let me in after all, so I figured I should return the trust. Besides, you said it yourself. Also, its just way too hot".
"Here, you can at least use this" Bell said, tossing him a towel as he did the same. With his fur, anything he could do would help, and compared to Maybell, at least this was with another boy who was his age and didn't have awkward word choices, so being completely undressed was a lot easier. There was a bath being prepared, but he needed to cool off a bit as well. Also his clothes were getting sweaty fast and they were just washed. He got out some oversized shirts for them to put on once the heat died down or the AC came on, after their bath that is.
That said, he couldn't help but notice Maze's body had a few marks on it. Most of them were hard to tell, but it looked like they were scars that healed well or had been treated so they were barely visible. Bell had some of his own, his mom had been a gymnist and after he lost her, he had practiced a lot himself to try and connect with her. He was never anywhere near as good though. But Maze's were different. Near his waist looked like a stab wound, and on his back appeared to be a bullet wound. Both had healed nicely, and it looked like they avoided any fatal damage. There were others that looked like perhaps healed bruises, but the most notable one was probably the marks on his neck.
With the two having wiped the sweat off and sitting on towels, it was time for the QnA.
"First of all...what the hell are Goblis?"
"Ah, you know legends of Goblins and such? Goblis are what they originate from. That said, the legends didn't quite do them justice. Certainly they are ugly, numerous, and quite vile. But, they also are kind of metallic. I wouldn't be surprised if they inspired people to make suits of armor to wear into battle, as well as shows about mechas and robots and giant robots. Although, they themselves are not actually giant".
"...sounds like a lot of things changed about that".
"They are also murderous. Typically they can only appear inside of a Boundary, but occasionally they can push a part of the boundary through and have someone pulled into the boundary, where they can hunt, kill, and eat them. There are other things that can appear as well. All are from beyond the veil originally".
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
"But what is the veil really? It didn't sound like a physical object from what I heard".
"Hmm. That is hard to describe" Maze mentioned. "Its like a place, but also not a place. Like a barrier, but also not a barrier. Its like something that covers and separates two things. But its basically layers. You have our world, you have The Boundary. Then you have the Veil. Then you have what is beyond the veil. We dont know much more then that. Its not that people haven't gone beyond the veil, but the accounts differ. The current working theory is that there might be many different places beyond the veil, and the veil is like Terminus".
"Ah, so it leads to everywhere".
"Yeah, but its significantly easier to get lost in the Veil".
"It seems like a big topic".
"Well, the few who returned from the Veil had major breakthroughs in the magical community, some even developed great scientific discoveries that led to computers and medicine today" Maze said, then looking down. "Even discoveries about the human body".
"Wow. That sounds...kind of amazing".
"Yeah. There are also a few who gained great power and ability. Pandora, Merlin, and to name a girl as well, Mina Miller Edison".
"...there is a lot to unpack there, but hold on, isn't Pandora a girl?"
"No, Pandora was actually a boy. Not sure how that got switched around. Some thinks it was some big supporter of patriarchal society, wanted to make it so a girl, not a boy, was responsible for releasing horrors into the world. Or something like that".
"Ah. Sounds like the ones who do this are really big deals then".
"Yeah. It's said that they have created entire fields of magic as a result. Speaking of which, regarding a different magic field, you will probably want to develop some sort of folded space in your home, a secret magical room for you to train and store things in. Its kind of like a boundary, but more stable and far more difficult to break into".
"A folded space?"
"Yeah, sometimes people even have a few of them. An Arcanium, an Arcane Study, things like that".
"...I will need to figure out how to set one up".
"It makes a good place to practice, although it helps to use a Boundary or find a nice open place for that as well. After all, indoors practice can get...dangerous".
"...yeah, I am familiar".
"Ah yes, the Crone likes to throw people into the deep end. Especially kids, since she says they tend to learn better from the approach. How many times did you destroy that room anyways?"
Bell looked away sheepishly.
"...only three times until I got the seal under control".
Maze looked shocked. "You had a seal placed on you?"
"More like it transferred to me with the power".
"Damn. Thats kind of amazing. To be able to use something even while it was sealed, and then to master that seal...perhaps a Bloodline power? Do you have a history of people who could have supernatural abilities in your family?"
Bell shook his head. "Ummm, I don't think so. There was a ritual site involved though".
"...a ritual site granting a Bloodline? That would be an insanely valuable ritual site. Bloodlines are like, prime supernatural ancestries. The Fox-Kin Bloodline was thought to be lost a few times now, people think it might justt have a tendency to remain dormant for multiple generations. If it's actually granted by a ritual site, though, that would certainly explain its rarity. But it's likely moreso the ritual site itself".
"Wait wait, how rare are these Bloodlines? And what you mean dormant?"
"A Bloodline sometimes can skip a generation or two, or otherwise go dormant. It happens from time to time. As for Bloodlines themselves, they aren't rare, but they can typically only be inherited. The fact is your family would have sensed an awakening, so the fact not a single one reached out yet probably means you recieved a Bloodline from a ritual site. It also explains the bounty. If you not only received a bloodline, but inherited the seal, that means the Ritual Site wont work without you, or at least without your blessing. You are a key to an incredibly powerful lock".
"So that means they will want to kill me?"
"Not quite. If you die, there is a good chance the seal could be sealed forever, or at least a very long time. There is a possibility it would unlock it as well though, so it depends on what they believe. However, you cant inherit more then one Bloodline. Anyone already with one wont be interested in it, but they may not like the fact that there is a ritual site out there that can grant more to others. They might try to eliminate you just to see what you can do....sorry, can we just, both take a bath? Its really hot so id like to continue the conversation in cool water".
"Yeah, I set it to be nice and cool. Let's just get in".
The two of them got up and took their towels with them into the bathroom. After washing up a bit and getting their stuff like soap and shampoo, they got into the bathtub. It was plenty big enough for two young boys to get in and have room to spare. And the cool water felt nice as they got in, although perhaps it was so cool it was a bit of a shock to them. Bell checked the temperature on the panel in the bathroom. The temperature was 42, no 43 degrees as it just switched. The bath water meanwhile was a much more pleasant 10 degrees. That would mean it was about 50 degrees Fahrenheit. He had set it for 5 degrees Celsius, but apparently it got a little heated up as well.
"Ah yes...this is bliss".
"Cold baths and showers during a heat wave are the best!"
As they let out a sigh of relief, Bell looked over at Maze.
"So, basically one side will want to kidnap me, and the other will want to kill me?"
"Yeah pretty much. And then there are some who might kidnap you, and then auction you off to the highest bidder".
"That...does not sound good".
"...it's not" Maze muttered, his voice lower for a second. "Most of them don't treat you like a person, but as merchandise. They like to show you off, and its always horrible. They don't treat you well either. Illegal bounties have been placed on supernaturals to sell them at these, although there is also a market for abductions in general for these things".
"Thats...pretty bad. Especially for me".
Suddenly, Maze shoved a shampoo covered hand into Bell's head.
"Well, it's better to enjoy things then worry about that, Mr. Soaphead!"
"...alright, now you have done it!" Bell said, as a bit of roughhousing and playing in the bath began. Both of them were fairly active children, so it came naturally to them.
Between some grabbing, a bit of tickles, and splash based combat, it was a bit of a heartwarming experience to see...and one that Bell had needed after his combat encounter earlier. Perhaps that was Maze's intention, to help Bell adjust.
"There was no way we could do this outside of a bath...did you plan this the whole time, Maze?"
"Only half of it. But yeah, there is no way we could do this out of this at like...what is the temperature again?"
Bell looked and checked, and saw what it was.
"45 degrees...wait hold on. We got here in the afternoon, and it's raining right now".
Maze also looked concerned.
"Bell, we need to get out and I need to get my weapons, right now".
"Is this an attack?"
"Yeah, but not on you. Shiza, I thought I finished with them. Listen, okay, just pull out some shirts for us to wear at least, shorts if you can as well but focus on large and covering shirts first. I will grab my weapons".
"Wait, why?"
"...listen okay, I really don't want to fight naked, do you? Otherwise no time to explain! Remember, go with large and covering first!"
"...fair enough, but what is going on?"
"This entire apartment, or perhaps even the building, is being attacked by a fire elemental. If we just sit here, the heat will keep going up and the water will boil. And we will be killed along with it. So, you get the clothes, I will get the weapons, okay?"
"Understood".
The two jumped out of the water, and Maze grabbed the doorknob, only for it to be hot enough to ward him away. Bell told the door to open via voice command, which it did and let them get out. Bell went into his room while Maze went to grab his weapons and bag, and grabbed Bell's dagger while he was at it, retreating backwards into the room. He grabbed Bell's shoes and his boots on the way back as well. Bell tossed him an oversized T shirt that would go down to just before his knees, but the room began to shift and shake, causing the boys to go back to back as the dimensions began to shift.
"Shit! It's a boundary!" he said, as they separated and each pulled on a shirt as the dresser seemed to alter and disappear, and the entire room shifted and changed.
"Mazemillion Jones! You shall be judged for your treachery!"
A somewhat feminine voice roared out, although distorted and clearly enraged, the rage perhaps hotter than the heat they currently felt.
"Treachery!? You are the ones who kidnapped someone! Don't blame me because someone hired me to get their kid back!"
"You hurt my Bael! And so, you must be destroyed!"
"Damnit! Stupid emotional fire elemental!"
Maze took out a spray bottle that looked like insect repellant from his bag, and sprayed both himself and Bell. Suddenly, their clothes were covered in runic writing and glowing lines of magical energy.
"What is this?"
"Quick apply protection spell!" Maze told him. It was why he told Bell to focus on shirts first, especially big and covering ones. It was all they were able to pull on, as well as their shoes. He used something different on them. "And that will help decrease impact and increase bounciness and softness. Here, raise your feet. I am putting on something that will let you walk on walls. Just uhh, with these shirts, don't walk on ceilings".
"Because it would be super embarrassing?"
"Well, and it would block your view. Can you make those chains again?"
"Probably, but I am still kind of drained...where are we anyways?"
Suddenly, they found themselves in a very strange place. It was like a hallway in the apartment building, but much larger and wider, and it featured various paintings, works of art, and random objects around.
"Meow".
And there was also a cat.
"Huh? Wait, Mr. Whiskers?"
"Eh? You know that cat?"
"It's the building owner's cat!"
"...how the frag did a cat make it inside of a boundary. Thats just not possible".
Maze took out his pistol and aimed it at the cat.
"I don't know what you are, but you don't fool us, Mr. Whiskers. No normal cat can end up in a boundary".
"Meow".
The cat replied with a meow, and then came up and brushed against their legs all friendly like.
Bell watched this for awhile, and then sighed.
"I don't sense anything about it either. It should just be a normal cat".
"Normal cats can't enter the boundary! The only way would be if someone pulled it in somehow!"
Bell looked outward, down the hall. There were doors all around them, each with room numbers. However there appeared to be way more doors, and way more levels, inside of this apartment building. When they reached the staircase, they were clearly no longer on the fifth floor. In fact, they couldn't even be sure if they were on the fiftieth floor, which this building did not have. At least normally.
"This place...I don't think its a boundary. I think it's a Reflection".
"Wait wait, what's a Reflection?"
"Its like the middle ground between a Boundary and a Folded Space I was telling you about before. Reflections are tied to specific locations, but are more structured. Some are made through chance and significance, and others can be made naturally. In SCP terms, you could call it a Threshold or an Overlap. It seems that one was made of your apartment building".
That was when Bell noticed something.
"Hey, it looks like this is my apartment" Bell mentioned, noticing the number on the door. He was even able to open the door. However, once they got inside, the socks and other belongings they had left at the door and in the hall were gone. "Where is everything".
"Look at the mirror beside you" Maze told him. Bell looked, and noticed that he could see them in the reflection still.
"Oh wow..."
"Yeah. Reflections can act as places instead of boundaries, but they have other purposes too" Maze said as he checked a device. "And I will be honest, I don't like the levels of energy I am picking up here. Who the hell was using this place?"
"The building owner maybe? His cat is the one here".
The two went back out into the hall and checked on their surroundings.
"...that would make the most sense. We should avoid being spotted by him, who knows who he might talk to. That said, at least you can hide things pretty easily in here. This Reflection must be...ancient. You could store all sorts of stuff in here. You are sure this is a normal apartment building right?"
"I used to..."
At those words, flames erupted from behind them. Bell created an ice wall to block them, and then they attacked. Meanwhile, Maze shot through the ice and hit the elemental. It appeared to be a creature of pure fire.
"Looks like its already in its elemental form. Great, just great".
"Mazemillion Jones! You will pay for what you did to my family!"
"You broke several laws both in the human world and the supernatural one!"
"Suffer the consequences!"
It shouted that, as the flames erupted and spread. Bell created more ice, but it was hot. It had to be reaching an incredibly dangerous point for them.
Even if they were supernaturally enhanced, neither wanted to find out if they could stand the heat. They had to at least stop it before it reached 50 degrees Celsius, if not sooner, for safety reasons.
Every shot that Maze released let loose a powerful ice burst that helped cool him down, and Bell was using ice as well.
"Damnit, we need water, but it would just evaporate if it got too close, and supernatural ice doesn't really melt!"
As they lamented that, a powerful shockwave emerged from the building, resonating everywhere. It didn't directly affect them, but something was different for sure.
And then as if on cue, a huge amount of water came rushing down the hall. It was as if a damn had burst, and the water came rushing at them. Maze threw something down on the floor, and it created a bubble shaped barrier around them as the water rushed at them, putting out the fires of the fire elemental and cooling him down. At the same time, the barrier couldn't take the pressure at the very end and released, causing them to get soaked at the end as the water washed away.
"...that was a lot of water".
"More importantly" Maze mentioned, aiming his rifle and firing an energy burst at the weakened fire elemental. He had clearly been rendered incapacitated, and when it hit him, he was turned into card form, folding up and being sucked into himself in the same way the swordsman had. "And there".
"Why didn't you do that from the start?"
"Because that only works if they have been rendered incapacitated or at least weakened enough to lack the willpower to fight back. That said, once they are in card form, even if they recover while inside, they wouldn't be able to break out. Its only during the process of becoming one".
As they said this, the cat leapt into Bell's arms, causing him to catch it. At the same time, everything began to shift again, and they found themselves outside in the hall.
"Oh? Where did ya two kids come from?"
It was the building manager. Considering their state of dress, even if they were covered right now and the shirts were large enough that no one could really tell, Bell was a bit frazzled.
"Ah! This cat jumped onto the veranda! It kind of startled us, especially since it was so hot, but then Bell wanted to make sure you got him back! And also...if you could please get the AC working again soon".
"Yeah, it got up to 45 degrees ya know? The hottest yet so far. As for the AC, I got it working partially again, but with this heat, id recommend ya do what ya can".
"Thanks!" Bell said, as they headed back inside their apartment. It was still insanely hot, so they took off their shoes quickly and decided to take the advice and cool off however they could. After all, the thermostat still read 43 degrees.
However, there was one question that weighed on their minds still. One they couldn't answer yet.
Where did the water come from, and why right at that moment?
But no matter how hard they thought about it, they wouldn't get any answers today.