Aj waited while his PC booted and loaded up Ascending Divinity, the entire time his roommate, a 8ft tall bipedal humanoid vine creature with a black and white colored tiger head, watched on giggling.
Aj’s smile tightened “So what drops did you get huh, the Platinum Envoy?”
His large roommate’s giggle grew
“Nah, nothing that good” He replied shaking his feline head, sporting a devilish smile that Aj was very familiar with
Aj said nothing realizing he wouldn't get anything out of his friend and waited in silence until his game loaded a few quite minutes later.
“You got a fucking Tear of Divinity!?!?! You lucky son of a bitch Kit!” Aj exclaimed
Kit, the 8ft tall vine and tiger creature began to let out a sinister laugh
“Huah Huah Huegh” He laughted, “I told you I was feeling lucky and that the drop was coming, I could feel it!”
Aj exhaled exasperated but smiling, “Kit, that’s not how statistics work, but I’m happy you got the drop. I think that'll really make you the top DPS of the raid party ” Aj said
“I know right, it’s just sick” Kit responded, he cocked and raised his white eyebrows “We should do something to celebrate” Kit continued
“Yeah, let's do a couple of quick duo runs to test out your DPS” Aj responded, turning back towards his computer.
“Welllllllllll” KIt said, slyly using one of his outstretched vines to spin Aj’s gaming chair back towards him.
“I was thinking maybe we could do something special tonight, liiiiiiike” He said drawing out the like for a least 5 seconds.
“You want to go outside” Aj interrupted flatly
“Shorthand, yes! I’m cramped in here dude, I need to get out there a little bit let my skins get some sun”
“You get plenty from windows Kit”
“Sure, but that’s different and you know it,” Kit said pointedly, “Listen I know you’re a social recluse and you don’t enjoy outside. That’s fine. We’ve been able to survive off of your savings and we both enjoy our online lives, but I need more Aj” Kit took a long pause, his deep but playful voice abruptly silent attempting to find the words.
“I’m gonna burst If I don’t get a break from this room and this house Aj, I love it and you, but that love is suffocating and I need a breath of fresh air,” Kit said abruptly, his face showing relief over expressing himself, but still posed and defensive.
Aj was quiet for only a few moments
“I get it, I’ve been thinking about it for a while and you’re right you’re due for some time outside” Aj paused then continued with a soft smile “We both are due probably”
“Great!” Kit said matter of factly “It’s settled we’ll go out at night”
“That’s fine, but we’ll go out around midnight when it’s really dead and you’re going to have to do the thing,” Aj said sternly
“Ehh I’d rather not do the thing, I’m plenty stealthy and if we are going out when it’s dead I don’t see the need” Kit said
“I’m not sure Kit it’s just such a high risk, if somebody figures out you’re still alive and with me our lives are gonna get flipped upside down” Aj looked down thinking about the worst possible scenarios. Assassins or government agents, breaking into the house, stealing or even worse killing Kit. The thought was one of many that Aj often tried to keep off his mind.
When Aj looked back up he saw Kit’s face performing one his forbidden moves, The Kitten Eyes, a patented technique perfected by Kit to channel the memories of Kit as a kitten. Aj was defenseless, Kit was his best friend, but a small part of him still remembered him as this weird, freaky, and adorable kitten and that part absolutely melted at the cuteness.
“Fine, you don’t have to do the thing” Aj broke “But if it gets close, you gotta promise you will”
“AGREED!” Kit said jumping up excitedly, then quickly back down “We have some time before night then, let's get a little grinding in before”Aj nodded and thought to himself, it’s going to be at least 10 hours until midnight and he views that as only a little grinding. He looked over at his now smug and happy friend “I’ve created a monster”
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THAT NIGHT 0100
“This jerky is bussin bussin” Kit said chewing on a stick of gas station jerky.
Aj twisted his face looking at the park benches around them and ending on Kit giving him a strange look
“I get you that same jerky stick like 3 times a week when I grab us sodas” Aj said
“Yeah, I know,” Kit said pausing, lifting his head towards the stars as if about to deliver a word of great importance “Being outside gives it a taste of.... freedom”
Aj just smiled and let him have his moment of being a philosopher.
That moment dragged on into an ambient silence only broken by the sound of Kit’s chewing.
As Kit’s 6th stick of jerky ended, Aj also ended the silence between them.
“Are you happy Kit?”
Kit stopped chewing, his mouth slightly agape in response, giving a heavy pause before he replied.
“Uhh yeah, I think so” He started, “It’s hard to say though for sure you know?”
“Yeah, yeah no I get that” Aj replied looking at the stars
“It’s hard to say though honestly, I don’t know if I’d be happier out exploring the world or the Underworld’s” Kit continued “Because I’ve barely left the house” Kit stopped and then realized how it could come across and started up again very fast.
“And that’s not me saying that I want to leave the house and never look back, I love the house….. I just need some time outside every now and then” He paused “Maybe once a month”
“So I guess what I mean to say is… Yeah, I’m happy” Kit finished keeping his face mostly pointed towards the sky, but his eyes now on AJ.
Aj’s face was stoic and contemplative, unchanging. He was taking it all in.
It was a lot to process, Kit had fully grown up and become an adult in under a year, which made Aj feel like he’d gone through being a single father, to teenage rebellion in record time.
“I’m glad your…” Aj began to say but was then cut off as Kit’s ears perked and he rapidly turned into a coalescence of green and red smoke. That smoke then rushed into Aj’s chest, disappearing inside.
Aj stood up and quickly glanced behind him where Kit was looking before “doing the thing”. He saw a man in a hoodie with a knife outstretched in his hands.
“Where the fuck did that guy go????” the man said frantically his eyes darting back in forth to Aj and the bench
“Uhhhh” Aj replied slowly backing away in shock.
“Don’t Move!” The man said inching closer. Aj’s eyes widened as he felt the point of the small knife stop at his chest.
“Okay! Okay! CALM DOWN, everything’s gonna be fine” Aj stammered
“Shut up! Just give me your wallet” The man replied. Aj simply nodded and began to reach for his wallet, taking care not to move too suddenly. He only had maybe 50$ in his wallet and that sure wasn’t worth getting stabbed over.
“We can’t give him that wallet” Kit’s voice slammed into Aj’s head
“What the fuck are you talking about” Aj thought, “And how are you speaking to me”
“I don’t know man I just am, we can’t give him that wallet though seriously”
“He’s about to stab me dude”
“No he won’t dude”
Aj felt a sharp twinge of pain as the man dug his knife slightly into his chest.
"Ooof" Kit communicated mentally
“Stop stalling and hand me the fucking wallet!” The man said irately
“I’m giving him the wallet dude, this isn’t up for discussion,” Aj thought to Kit as he fished out his wallet and handed it to the man.
The man slowly removed his knife from Aj’s chest, the entire time giving these crazed eyes. Then he wordlessly turned around and began to sprint away. Or at least he would have sprinted away if not for the 2 foot wide, red and green, thorned hand that gripped him around the waist.
Aj looked on in horror and awe as the large arm erupting from his own chest picked up and slammed the robber into the ground.
“He’s alive, he’ll be fine,” Kit said to Aj, his viney hand now picking the wallet off the ground and putting it delicately back into Aj’s pocket. “Had to protect the AD Coins”
“Wait, wait, wait, you did all this” Aj said gesturing to the crumpled (but breathing) man on the ground.
“All this for 50 dollars worth of AD coins, bro this was not worth it” Aj continued his adrenaline subsiding into annoyance.
“That’s enough currency for a year of premium vault access and have you seen the mounts available in that vault? The gilded phoenix man? It’s sick!” Kit replied mentally
“Yeah man it’s sick, but…” Aj replied, he had seen that mount and it was undeniably extremely cool, but he was shocked at Kit’s willingness to put him in danger and at least a little bit at his brutality in taking care of his assailant. “Tch, We need to get out of here,” Aj said mentally.
Without another word between the two Aj quickly left the park and began to speedwalk home. It only took 15 minutes, but it was the longest 15 minutes of Aj’s life. Kit seemed to realize the gravity of the situation because he was silent the entire way home. As they appeared at their home Aj quickly opened the door and slipped in locking both locks behind him.
Without a word, Kit again materialized from Aj’s chest into the green and red coalescence forming into his full normal self and then plopping himself onto the couch which groaned against his weight.
“Hey, I’m sorry about how that turned out, you okay?” Kit asked looking up at Aj
“We’ll talk about this later man, I think we should take a second apart. I’ll go upstairs you stay down here” Aj said looking at Kit on the couch who was already nodding and turning on the TV.
Suddenly the top of the stairs creaked and boomed as if a heavy dumbbell had been tossed on it. Aj and Kit both froze, their eyes widened in fear. Then a sharp and whispery voice cut through the air.
“Actually I think we should all stay here and have a chat” Descending from the stairs came a being made of wrapped shadows and cold black chains, in contrast to its arrival its glide down the stairs was fluid and silent as the end of times.
A face appeared from the shadow, its face reminiscent of chiseled onyx. Its lips in a tight humorless smile as cold black chains erupted from the figure wrapping around Aj and Kit.
“You boys have no idea the predicament you’re in”