Xard was certain he was being mocked for a moment when he put on the next outfit, not realizing the insult until the outfit was complete. Over the red and white checkered dress shirt was a baby blue sweater vest—the exact same color and pattern of clothing he wore all the way back when he was chased by police in Constead. In a way, that had been his public debut, so it made unfortunate sense that the outfit would be semi-iconic.
But once he had it all on, it didn’t clash like he thought it would. In fact, it was rather fetching. Maybe he’d keep it for the times… well, there were no other times he’d dress like this, so he’d just have to enjoy it in the moment.
When he got into the next room, he found Drim waiting for him again even though his clothes were more difficult to get into. He must have just put them on without question or hesitation unlike the wary redhead. The man was in a full black suit with a green tie, sitting at a table in a fancy restaurant.
Or at least that was the ambience Valen had been going for. The table was real, but the room was just a small cube with painted walls. Food was already on the table, and it smelled delicious. Xard’s stomach growled as he sat down, making him realize that he really had no idea how long it had been since he’d eaten.
“I guess I should say sorry for being late, or something like that,” he gave a cheeky smirk, deciding he may as well get into the roleplaying a bit. “What are the odds that this is edible… or poisonous?”
“I’ll have you know that’s the finest takeout I could find nearby,” Valen chimed in. “I certainly wouldn’t use poison if I wanted to kill you. Although maybe one of you choking and the other has to save them…”
“What would you like us to discuss while we eat?” Drim diverted.
“I dunno… whatever couples normally talk about on dates!” She started getting flustered. “Your days or a cute cat you saw or something.”
“Well, today I was kidnapped and forced to roleplay against my will,” Drim played along and then took a sip of his drink.
“How dreadful,” Xard started to cut the meat in front of him. “Quite similar to the day I’m having, really. What’s wrong with the world these days if you can’t even fight monsters and criminals in peace?”
“Ugh, not like that!” Valen had critiques. “Well, sort of like that, but more normal and wholesome!”
The two boys pondered in silence for a moment. “So how have your adventures been, Xard?” Drim fiddled with his glass. “I know I was never really one to lounge around at home, but there’s definitely something missing in the mansion lately. Still feels weird whenever I walk by your room and it looks like it hasn’t been touched in weeks.”
“I won’t say it hasn’t been lonely out on the road,” Xard admitted. “But it’s where I need to be. Things are just too quiet in Segrevide lately. Our very presence is the biggest deterrent to crime in the world, except for maybe Prosper. I can only stop muggers, pickpockets, and insurance scammers so many times.”
“Living in Constead my whole life, and then to Bisomote where it’s pretty peaceful, it definitely warped my perception of reality a bit. I always wanted to help people, but I was woefully unprepared for how many people actually need help out there in the world.”
“Since I’ve been all over, I’ve seen the worst that humanity has to offer. I imagine it was very similar to when you traveled the world growing up, how eye opening it is. I got a glimpse when we robbed those banks, but you don’t really understand until you go looking for it and face it all alone. Now more than ever, I understand that the real monsters aren’t the ones roaming around in the wilderness.”
“I’ve killed more people in the past few months than I ever expected to in my entire career back when I wanted to be a cop. But it’s not enough. No matter what I do, it just feels like trying to prune a limb that just grows back. If anything, it’s all just reaffirmed how much this world really needs our project to succeed.”
“But at the same time, I’ve seen how beautiful it is. There’s just as many wonderful people out there as there are terrible ones. More than anything else, we need to make sure that we don’t hinder their lives. Because they don’t deserve to be victims, and we can’t let their freedom and individuality be a casualty justified in the name of a better world. That would be a terrible world to live in.”
“I completely agree,” Drim looked serious for a moment before returning a smile. “And I’m glad that I have you with me on this to help remind me of things like that—to provide perspective I can be too far removed from their experiences to see.”
He then held out his glass, prompting for a toast. “To a better world, where hopefully one day we’re no longer needed.” Xard clinked his glass in return, and they both took a few deep gulps.
“Wow, I’m not entirely sure of everything you just said, but that was amazing!” It seemed they’d appeased their captor. “The raw emotion, the vulnerability. Yes, perfect! Beyond perfect! I’m literally dying from joy!”
“Well, you’ll be part of it soon too, Valen,” Drim reminded her. “So you’ll be seeing it a lot more. With your help, we’re going to take this a step beyond where we thought possible in the past.”
“Cheh, anything if I can see you together all the time!” she was ultimately an easy woman to please. The two boys peacefully ate the rest of their food over smalltalk and a few jokes which Valen didn’t seem to mind, too busy scribbling ideas from what she’d already heard by the sound of it.
Stolen story; please report.
With the meal deemed a success, Valen let them proceed into the next changing room, but not before Drim asked another question. “So how did you find our blood shipment? Even with our resources, only Ahvra and Nathym should have been able to find it.”
“Oh, that’s pretty simple,” their captor found the question a bit boring. “If I have blood in my posession, I can track any other sources of it. That’s how I found the shipment since I had Rezin’s blood, and how I knew it was you two coming to claim it. I wouldn’t have stuck around otherwise.”
◆◆◆
Well, this is familiar. Xard picked up a gray shirt that was just like several he had back at home. The pants were pretty similar to something he owned as well. It was the kind of clothes he’d wear on a day off if he wasn’t wearing his combat outfit—practically never these days.
When he entered the next room, he had to blink a few times to make sure he wasn’t seeing things. The redhead even went so far as to turn around and look back into the changing room to make sure he hadn’t been transported. It was his bedroom at the Fiends For Hire compound, or half of it anyways, recreated in painstaking detail.
Basically the only thing missing was his bed, but the rest of the furniture, even the police scanner was in place. The bulletin board where he kept a list of criminals, suspects, and problem locations was a few months outdated but still eerily accurate for the time.
“So how exactly did you learn what my room looks like?” Xard asked since he was still waiting on Drim for once. He really shouldn’t be surprised at this point, but it was both impressive and rather disturbing.
“Uhhhh, I may have bribed the Bisomote clerk for the floorplans of your mansion,” Valen openly admitted. “Was honestly shocked you all had even submitted them. As for their interior, I pieced together a mockup using the photos you all, mostly Kada, have posted over time.”
“Well, if being a stalker blood-Fiend doesn’t work out for you, recreating crime scenes might be right up your alley,” he was only half-joking. “So what am I supposed to be anyways?”
“Just waiting,” she instructed him. “No wait, brooding. You should be brooding. That’d be better. It’s been a long day, and things haven’t been great lately. To make things worse, you and Drim aren’t on speaking terms—had a big fight a few days ago and you’re not ready to forgive him just yet.”
“Why wouldn’t I be speaking to him?” Xard found his motivation lacking.
“Well, it would totally be him that caused the fight, right?” Valen suspected. “Back when you guys were off to fight Sim Twelling, Drim did something that upset you for a while, didn’t he? I don’t know what it was, but you two certainly weren’t on good terms. And then Drim doesn’t seem like the type to apologize easily, not because he’s a prick, but because he doesn’t get as emotional or empathetic as you do and fully understand what he did wrong.”
“Pretty spot on,” Xard couldn’t deny.
“Heheh! I’ve been writing about relationships ever since I discovered the internet! I’d like to think I’ve mastered the human heart. Not that I actually have any experience myself…” She probably could have left that last part out. “But let’s get on with the scene, start brooding!”
The man didn’t exactly know how to brood. He’d certainly done it unconsciously in his life, but how was he supposed to bring it about unprompted? Ultimately, he landed on just sitting at his desk and fiddling with the police scanner. Surprisingly, it turned on, but it wasn’t picking anything up, so he tried to tune it.
While he worked, rain started hitting the window to the fake outside—another painted wall disguised to look like their compound. This led to several questions such as why was there rain inside? How was she making it rain—a hose or a sprinkler perhaps? Was there proper drainage to deal with the water now flooding the room? But despite all those questions, the ambience really did add to the brooding.
Just as Xard refocused on the scanner, there was a rapping on the window behind him. He spun in his chair to find Drim standing pitifully outside his window in the rain, despite it being on the second floor in reality. Xard, of course, hopped up and flung the window open, and a drenched Drim stepped inside, carrying a bouquet of his signature roses.
“I know we’re fighting, but I heard you were having a bad day,” the soaked man began his clearly rehearsed speech. “And I just couldn’t leave you be. I need you to know that I’m here for you, always, even when you don’t want to see me. And even if you’re not ready to forgive me, I’ll be here for whatever you need.”
“Oh, uhh…” Xard was a bit stumped, still unsure why he was supposed to be upset. “Uhh-of course I forgive you. I’m so glad you’re here. There’s no one else I want to be with right now!”
Drim set the roses down on the desk and then held out his arms to his side—open and inviting. Xard would normally have a few more questions and reservations because of the dampness, but mawhg it. He just had to live in the moment for both this scene and himself.
The two men both took a step forward and wrapped their arms around each other. It wasn’t like one of those guy hugs with a quick pat and the back and stepping away as soon as possible. No, it was a warm, tender embrace that left Xard feeling loved and secure. Hell, in that moment, he really didn’t want to let go.
The moment was ruined a bit by the sound of snapping shutters. Their hug went well beyond the point of touching and comforting, straight into awkward. But neither of them pulled away, not wanting to ignite the ire of their captor if they messed up her scene. Only, finally, when the majority of noise around them slowed did they actually separate.
“So what do you want us to do now?” Drim looked towards one of the cameras.
“Uhh, that’s it for this scene,” Valen wrapped it up. “There was originally a bit more, but I scrapped it, which is why the bedroom is incomplete. I just don’t think my heart is ready for it… So let’s move right along, shall we?!”
“Wait, I have a question this time,” Xard interjected. “All of this is very impressive, technically and artistically. Did you make it all yourself or did you pay someone to do it. Hard to imagine any reputable contractor signing off on what’s basically some weird murder playhouse on the surface”
“Yes, I did it all myself!” their captor answered with pride. “I was a theater arts major in college, mostly doing set design and a bit of script writing.”
“Alright, that explains a lot then,” his question was answered. “Skepticism retracted.”