Shortly after Phon returned, the lunch period had ended. Xard felt that he wanted a break from associating with the two of them, so he decided to skip class knowing that they’d likely just be there as well. It’s not as if he particularly disliked them, but talking with and being around them had left him a lot to think about, and he didn’t know if he could handle any more for the day.

Unfortunately, Xard didn’t have any form of special permission slips that would allow him to go wherever he pleased. Normally, students would get in trouble if they were found out of class without the proper permissions, or weren’t on their lunch break. So, simply wandering around the school was out of the question. If he left the grounds and wandered around town he could get in trouble with the police, especially since he was still in uniform. Also, the idea of breaking rules to that degree didn’t really sit too well with him.

He could just go home, but felt that would cause some unwanted tension with his parents. The faculty most likely wouldn’t mind. They were still in the ‘do what you can’ mode where he wasn’t really forced to do any school work due to his ‘grief’. The only option he could think of to ditch successfully was to feign illness and go to the nurse’s office. He had been there a few times before when he had genuine medical concerns, and the school nurse, Mr. Valker, seemed to be pretty laid back. So, Xard doubted he would mind.

When he opened the door to the nurse’s office he saw Mr. Valker huddled over his desk, seemingly working on some paperwork. “Hey Mr. Valker, it’s Xard Randex. I’m not feeling so well so I’m going to lay down in one of the beds for a bit if that’s alright,” Xard announced. The nurse didn’t even look up from his work, and waved with his hand. Xard accepted that as permission and proceeded to lay down on one of the beds, all of which were unoccupied.

Xard hadn’t been planning to actually sleep. He was just going to fake it until the school day was over, but guessed he actually was more tired than he thought when he found himself rubbing his eyes. He looked at the clock. About an hour had passed, and he decided to go back to sleep or at least would keep pretending to do so. He rolled over and was startled when he saw Mr. Valker sitting in a chair right next to his bed, staring at him intently.

“You’re one of them aren’t you Xard, a Fiend?” Mr. Valker asked seriously. “Who did you kill, Xard? Was it that student you were always hanging around with? What was his name… Warig?”

Xard felt panic and unease surge through him. “Uhh, I’m feeling better, so I’m gonna go,” Xard spouted as he scrambled to his feet. He grabbed his bag which was next to the bed and darted out of the room. He power-walked through the halls, only slowing down once he reached the outdoors of the school’s main courtyard. Guess I’ll just go home for the day after all. I can probably just hide out somewhere until I’d normally come home, Xard thought to himself before pondering where he could go to kill time.

“Stop right there Xard!” he heard shouting from behind him. He guessed it was most likely Mr. Valker, but didn’t really want to stop and check. Xard felt he’d been through enough for the day, and would deal with it some other time. This was one of the times he felt being a Fiend was fortunate. He could outpace anyone trying to tail him without even really trying.

“I told you to stop Xard… I mean it!” The shouting continued as Xard picked up speed. He was just about to pass through the school's gate, when a loud gunshot boomed behind him. A single bullet went whizzing past his head and out of sight. Normally, his instinct would have been to run away from there as fast as possible and call the police, but this time that didn’t cross his mind at all. He dropped his bag, turned around, and stared at Mr. Valker who was slowly walking towards him with a handgun drawn.

Xard didn’t know why, but he didn’t feel afraid at all. He felt that he should stand his ground, that this was something that he could handle. If possible, he could diffuse this situation so that no one would get hurt. As the gun drew nearer, a few sparse thoughts of, What the hell am I thinking! ran through his head, but were soon drowned out by determination. He didn’t know why this was happening, but he needed to find out, no matter the risks.

“That’s very good Xard, now put your hands up,” Mr. Valker ordered as he edged steadily closer.

Xard felt it would be best to comply for now and lifted his arms to the sky. “I didn’t know you were such a stickler for school rules, Mr. Valker. Ditching school early seems a little undeserving of pointing a gun at a student,” Xard said cooly. He didn’t know where the confidence or verboseness was coming from. Perhaps he was mimicking what he felt the other Fiends would do in this sort of situation.

“Now answer me honestly, Xard. Are you a Fiend? Did you kill someone?!” Mr. Valker roared at him. Xard only gave a slight nod in response. “Then I’m afraid you have to die!” Mr. Valker yelled before aiming his gun directly at Xard’s head and shooting. Xard moved his left hand and opened his mouth, wanting to shout “wait” but it was too late. The bullet was already rapidly approaching. Even with Xard’s improved reflexes there would be no way to dodge in time.

However, his instincts kicked in and his left hand kept moving. He didn’t know why he was doing it. Surely the bullet would go right through and hit him anyways, but somehow he knew it was the right action. Once his hand was directly in the line of fire, he opened his palm. The bullet hit directly in the center of Xard’s left hand, tearing through the glove, but it didn’t penetrate his skin at all. The bullet instantly lost all momentum and clunked to the ground.

Xard suddenly felt a wave of pressure inside of him, stemming from the impact point on his left hand. He wasn’t sure what the feeling was, but he knew he had to get it out of his body. He could feel it worming around inside of him, and guided it to his right hand, where the pressure shot out of the tip of his right pointer finger, and up towards the sky; ripping through the tip of his glove with ease.

“What the? What did you do?!” Mr. Valker yelled, looking at his gun to make sure nothing was defective. “I guess I just wasn’t close enough,” he said as he began taking steps closer. He had been halfway across the courtyard originally but was now about ten feet away. He raised his gun again, and was aiming to fire.

“Wait, wait, wait, wait!” Xard protested back at him while holding his hands out. “At least tell me why you’re doing this! Did I ever do anything to you?!”

“Che, you think I’m stupid enough to reveal all my reasons to you? You’d just use that time to escape!” Mr. Valker snapped at him.

“I’m one of your students. I at least deserve to know why. I get that people would normally be upset when confronted with a murderer, but this seems to be on a more personal level for you. I just want to understand, okay,” Xard insisted.

“Fine then,” Mr. Valker said, still refusing to lower his gun. Xard doubted that he would, but it was worth the slim chance. “A few years ago, my fiancée was killed by a man with red eyes. I didn’t know what it meant then, but after those Drazahs revealed what Fiends were, I knew. I also knew that every single one of them were murderers, every single one of them took away a loved one from someone else. Every single one was evil and had to die! That’s why I started killing them. Someone has to. They deserved to die more than anyone else!”

Mr. Valker’s face grew bright red in anger. Xard guessed it must be painful reliving these memories, but there was something he had to confirm. “I take it you’ve killed a fair few then. Tell me, did a single one of them wrong you personally? Did you have proof that any of them were bad people, or did you kill them just because of what the world turned them into?” Xard questioned as calmly as he could.

“What does that matter?!” Mr. Valker rebuked. “They’re all killers. None of them could possibly have a single shred of decency in them! And you… you’re worse than all the others! You killed someone you cared about on top of it. How could you possibly do that to someone you loved?! You’re the first proper Fiend I’ll ever kill, but you won't be the last. I heard those Drazah brats are stomping around here. Since my cover’s blown, after I’m done with you, I’ll go kill them next…! If no one else will eradicate the evil from this world, I’ll do it myself!”

Mr. Valker firmly aimed again and shot three times, sending multiple bullets soaring right at Xard. However, Xard didn’t even look. From the middle of Mr. Valker’s outburst he had been looking down at the ground, causing a few of his hairs to fall in front of his face. Fury had slowly been building in him, and suddenly he felt the same calmness he felt when he found out about Warig. This man needs to be stopped!

Each of the bullets landed a direct hit on Xard; two in the chest and one in the leg. They seemed like clean hits, vanishing into his clothing, but there wasn’t even a scratch of damage. Xard looked up and glared intensely at Mr. Valker. He could feel his hair pulsating, and anyone looking closely at him would definitely notice his golden eyes glittering more than normal.

Without a word, Xard lifted his right hand, extended his pointer finger and thumb, making a finger pistol, and pointing it right at Mr. Valker. Xard guided the energy swirling inside him towards his finger tip, and released it in three equal bursts; the same as the bullets that hit him. He hadn’t even aimed, but knew that he was shooting right where he needed to.

The first energy bullet knocked the gun out of Mr. Valker’s hand and sent it flying. The other two hit both of his kneecaps, causing him to collapse on the ground and writhe in pain as blood pooled beneath him. He had begun to shout obscenities, but that was quickly drowned out by the yelling of someone else.

“What’d I tell you Drim! If you want to find a Fiend Killer… Then follow the Fiend!” Xard looked around for the source, and found Drim and Phon standing atop the school's roof; a second later they were standing right next to him. “Wow, you sure did a number on him, little red. Looks like he’ll bleed out soon if we don’t do something,” Phon said before nodding towards her brother.

Drim walked over to Mr. Valker, who was writhing on the ground in pain, and held his hands out over the bloody kneecaps. Vines shot out and wrapped tight above and below each knee. “That should stop the bleeding,” Drim muttered as he held his palm out flat. A blue plant materialized in his hand, then began rapidly scrunching up and twisting. Eventually just a ball of goo was left floating there.

A long thin thorn shot out of Drim’s wrist and into the goo, coating it. He bent down, and jabbed the thorn into Mr. Valker’s neck. “This works as a fast-acting sedative. He’ll be asleep in less than a minute,” Drim said after he retracted the thorn and reabsorbed both it and the goo.

Xard wanted to say something, but Phon beat him to it. She crouched down next to Mr. Valker’s head and said, “You know, not a single one of those Lesser Fiends you killed was a bad person.”

“How could you possibly know that?!” Mr. Valker shouted with the last remaining energy he had.

A sadistic smirk stretched across Phon’s entire face, as she stared him in the eyes and said cheekily, “If they were, you would have turned into a Lesser Fiend yourself.” Suddenly. Mr. Valker’s face contorted wildly; not from any physical pain, but rather it seemed to be struggling with the reality just imposed on him, and took it as a mental blow. Phon watched adoringly for the next few seconds until he lost consciousness.

“So, this was your job, huh? Catch the Fiend Killer? I didn’t even know there was one,” was all Xard could think to say at this moment.

“I doubt many people did,” Drim mentioned. “He was quite careful about his killings. It took us a lot of research to even track him to this school. Even then we were only confident that it was someone who attended this school. We weren’t even sure if it was a teacher or a student. I guess he got so riled up when he met you today that he got careless.”

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

“Well to be honest, we actually didn’t really track him to the school,” Phon added. “More like we investigated this school because you attended it. That led us to believe that there was a murderer operating in this school, and a Fiend Killer at that. We really didn’t know what we’d be facing. I honestly thought it would at least be a Lesser Fiend since they were able to kill so many others. Oh, and you made great bait by the way.”

“I guess I should take that as a compliment,” Xard said, surprised at his own words. He wasn’t mad that they had used him. It was a smart tactic, one that he may have used if he were in their position; whatever it took to get the job done and save people. “I have to ask, though, why didn’t you step in once he started shooting at me?”

“We wanted to see what you would do,” Phon said with seemingly no remorse. “Also, we were pretty confident that you hadn’t fully awoken to your Curse yet. So, we figured this would be a good chance. Y’know, character development and what not. Not to worry, though, we were ready to step in at any moment if we thought you were in any real danger.” Xard looked over to Drim since he didn’t really feel he could trust her words, and he nodded in confirmation.

“So, what will you do now?” Drim asked.

“I’m not sure what you mean,” Xard responded. “I plan to just forget this ever happened and go back to my regular life.”

“Heh, not sure that’s going to be possible,” Phon chuckled as she pointed behind herself towards the school. Xard looked over and there were countless eyes peering out from every window, all glaring at him. “Now, how about we take this conversation somewhere a little more private.” Phon lifted her hands to her eyes and then a second later the three of them were up on the school roof.

Xard looked down at Mr. Valker lying on the ground, and a few seconds later, the scene was swarming with police. “Wow, that was a fast response time, but they were there the whole time… weren’t they…?” Xard asked, a little depressed since he already knew the answer. After the first shot was fired, a couple minutes later he felt several eyes watching him from behind. He guessed someone must have called it in after that first gunshot.

“Yeah, they have been there for a little bit now,” said Drim. “I guess they must have realized you were a Fiend, and been too wary to act. Plus, they were aware that we were on the premises as well, and most likely didn’t want to take the risk.”

“Even with so many of them…” Xard sighed sadly as he watched the scene unfold. An ambulance had arrived and was now carting Mr. Valker off. “How cowardly can they be?!” Xard suddenly yelled out, unable to hold himself back. He could feel pressure building up in the back of his eyes, like he wanted to cry. He felt a sense of betrayal from those policemen, not that he knew any of them.

“You know something, I actually wanted to be a police officer… before I became a Fiend,” Xard confided. “At first I thought that I didn’t deserve to be one after I murdered Warig. That I was beneath them, since I gave into my anger and couldn’t properly uphold justice. Seeing them now, though, how sad they are. Refusing to come when someone calls just because they’re afraid. Refusing to act because there’s someone stronger than they are... No, I see now that I would never have fit in among them. Unlike them, I can’t just stand idly by when I know there’s something I can do!”

About a minute passed and the three of them just stood there in silence. Xard hadn’t looked at the other two since they got up there, he was too absorbed in his own thoughts. “Oh, are you done?” Phon cut in. “That was a great speech and all, albeit a little boring. If you want, I can help you work on your monologuing... Anyways, that doesn’t change that you need to figure out what you’re going to do. I doubt that you’d be happy staying here.”

Phon looked at Drim who then dug into his backpack for a scroll, which he then handed to her. Phon handed the scroll out to Xard, prompting him to take it as she said, “Regardless of what you do next, this will at least remove one shackle.” Xard unfurled the scroll. It was a diploma with his name on it.

“How… how did you get this?” Xard asked, confused, wanting to cry even more now.

“It was our payment for completing the job,” Phon answered. “The principal was kind enough to give them to us in advance. Three diplomas; one for me and Drim since we never actually went to school, and one for you.”

“You cheeky bastards,” was the only comeback Xard could think of. “You knew from the start that I’d end up an outcast, and I played right into your hands. Thank you for this.”

“I did say you were good bait after all,” Phon snidely remarked. “You know, if you’d like, you could join us. I’m guessing you probably have heard stories about us and think of us as criminals. We’re not all bad though, if you get to know us, well Drim’s not anyways. You wouldn’t have to commit crimes or do anything you didn’t want to do. You could even just focus on requests that help people. Don’t worry, you’ll get some time to think it over… Ten, nine, eight...”

“Wait, that’s not enough time dammit!” Xard rebuked, but Phon just kept on counting. When she got to about three he shouted, “Fine, I'll do it! I’ll join…! Jeez could you have a little more patience, damn she-demon.”

“Hurray... we got a new member...” Phon cheered half-heartedly as she barely waved her arms. Then she pointed at her brother and commanded, “Drim, do the thing!”

Drim pulled out a popper and pulled the string. A small blast of confetti shot up into the air, was immediately caught in the wind and swept away, where it rained down on the puzzled police officers.

“Wow… you guys sure know how to make a guy feel welcomed…” Xard droned in monotone.

“Alright, I guess we should go ahead and get Kada then,” Phon said as she moved her hands to her eyes again. Kada appeared in the middle of the three of them. She was now wearing a tracksuit instead of just the bikini from earlier. She was also balanced on one leg, with both arms raised, and her other leg sticking behind her horizontally. It appeared she was attempting an ‘attitude’ ballet pose. After a second of her realizing the change of her surroundings, she lost her balance and collapsed.

“Dammit Phon, you have the worst timing!” Kada cried out as she rubbed the parts that had hit the roof. “I had finally gotten the students to complete a 28 person human pyramid with me on top, and we were about to take the picture!”

“What’s up with the tracksuit,” Xard asked, surprised that he was the first one to comment on it.

“Ugh, one of the other teachers got upset and forced me to wear it,” Kada grumbled. “Oh and hi Xard. I guess this means you guys got him to join, huh.” The three of them nodded which prompted Kada to charge at Xard and tackle him while hugging. “Yay, this means I’m not the noob anymore!”

“Well, there’s your welcome,” Phon chuckled again. “I’m assuming you’ll be moving in with us then. Would be kinda hard to work with us otherwise. We’re stationed in Constead for now, but we definitely won’t be here forever. If you have any regrets or second thoughts about leaving your past life behind, now’s the chance to change your mind.”

Xard pushed Kada off of him, looked up to the sky, and without even hesitating said, “No, I’m ready to move on and start a new life.”

“Good good, now all that’s left is to figure out is who will stay in what room,” Phon pondered. “Since you’re a boy, you can’t really stay with me or Kada. Two per room is a little tight though… Hmm, maybe we could put a futon in the living room…”

Phon started muttering to herself before Drim interjected, “If you’re worried about that kind of stuff then I’m the last person Xard should share a room with.” Both Phon and Kada looked at him confused with tilted heads. He stared at them both for a second and then added, “Xard’s gay… Didn’t you notice?”

“Ehhhhh, really?!” both Phon and Kada hollered out in unison. Xard was just as shocked as the other two. He had only ever told his parents and no one else, not even Warig. He didn’t think he gave off any telltale signs or really fit into any of the big stereotypes. So, he had absolutely no idea how Drim could have figured it out.

“Well, I wouldn’t be too worried over that either, Drim isn’t really my type after all… Well… Huh,” Xard spouted out a mess of words. He had never really taken the time to look over Drim properly. The scary face would likely deter people at first glance, but now that he was looking closely it didn’t seem scary at all. “You know now that I really look at him, he’s pretty cute, isn't he?”

“Cosdammit, not another one!” Phon whined. “If we hadn’t just made you an official member, you can be damn sure I wouldn’t invite you now!. If you dare flirt with him I’ll beat you to a bloody pulp,” Phon hissed as she pulled her toy gavel and bashed it against her palm, creating a resounding squeak noise. Xard noticed that Kada instinctively flinched at the sight of it, and wondered how many times she’d been hit.

◆◆◆

Kada and Xard were approaching the front door to his house. Drim and Phon had gone ahead to buy things they would need for an additional person, as well as to get the apartment set up. It had been decided that Drim and Phon would share a room since they were siblings, and that Xard would take Drim’s old room.

“So, are you sure your parent’s won’t have a problem with this?” Kada asked as they approached the front door.

“Yeah…” Xard replied with a sigh. “About a year ago, I came out to my parents. They’re super religious, so of course they didn’t approve. Ever since, they’ve basically been treating me like I don’t exist. If anything, they’ll probably be relieved that I’m leaving.”

The two of them entered the house and Kada followed Xard towards the stairs. They passed the living room on the way where Xard’s parents were watching tv. Wow they didn’t even turn their heads or greet him at all. I guess I can’t comment though, my own home life wasn’t great, Kada thought to herself before she headed up the stairs to Xard’s room.

They packed up a couple boxes of Xard’s belongings. Kada had told him to pack light since there wasn’t much room at the apartment. After Xard was content with everything, they headed down the stairs. Kada headed to the door, but Xard paused by the living room for a moment.

He turned towards his parents, who still weren’t even looking at him and said, “Mom, Dad, I’m moving out. I assume you had your suspicions, but I was the one who killed Warig, and turned into a Fiend as a result. I found other Fiends who are willing to take me in. There’s a good chance that I’ll be labeled as a criminal as early as tomorrow. So, it’s likely the police will come to ask you some questions. Please be prepared for that, and you’re free to tell them whatever you like.”

After Xard had said his peace, he headed back over to Kada. She wanted to ask him if he wasn’t going to say anything else, but felt she didn’t have the right to intervene. Just as he was about to pass through the door outside, a soft voice came from the living room. “Goodbye son,” said Xard’s mother.

Shortly after it was followed by his father saying, “Good luck out there.” Xard froze when he heard those words, and Kada could see tears dripping down his face. After a few seconds, he bashed his hand against the doorframe then headed outside. Kada followed after him, through the frame that was entirely destroyed on one side.

Fiends For Hire Job Report

Job No. 000020

Status:

Completed

Date Received: 2/4/2077

Date Accepted:

2/4/2077

Date Completed:

2/5/2077

Client: Principal of Constead South High School (Didn’t actually get his name, didn’t feel it was important - Phon)

Reward: Diplomas for Drim, Phon, and Xard Randex. 500$ and reimbursement for expenses.

Original Request: N/A. Client was met in person and was convinced that there was a serial killer in his school, and that we were the best candidates to deal with it.

Requirements for Completion:

* Flush out the serial killer and see that he/she is either murdered or arrested.

* (Additional) Recruit Xard Randex

Job accepted by:

* Drim Drazah

* Phon Drazah

* Kada Susten

Additional Notes:

(Phon) Would say that the job was handled about as well as it could have been. We barely did any work and the bonus objective was completed. Yay for completionism.

(Drim) Kind of sad that it ended so soon. Phon and I have never actually been enrolled in a proper school before. It was an interesting experience.

(Xard) Not really sure what I should put here. Hi, I guess. Still a little annoyed you all came in and uprooted my life, but I realize my life may have been in danger otherwise. Thank you.

(Kada) Wait, doesn’t this mean that I’m the only one of us who actually completely made it through high school? Ha, suck it, scrubs!