I entered the door of the small restaurant, and immediately saw the thin figures of Greta and Blue. I sat down in front of them.
"Hi," I muttered, looking at their stoic smiles.
"Hello, Yasssi Anne," Greta said. "Are you-"
"-Ready for your initiation?" Blue finished his sister's words.
I nodded slowly. "I don't really know what to prepare for, but I'm ready, I guess."
""Then, eat."" Their voices mixed together, forming a harmonic tone.
I stared at the large plate of red pasta in front of me. I glanced around the restaurant, wondering if there were hidden Vigilantes inside. There were none. Only an old couple sharing a bowl of pasta with some shrimp and anchovies.
I turned my gaze back to my own plate, obviously meant to be shared by a large group, and then back up at the twins. "… I should finish this all by myself?"
They both nodded. ""Yesss.""
I gulped. I was thankful I decided not to eat any breakfast earlier. Two weeks after meeting the Vigilantes, I finally got the call from Zero. During a certain weekend, I was now going to undergo my initiation.
'I doubt this is the real test, but thankfully I have a deep stomach,' I thought, bringing up my fork and I started digging in.
Slurp. Slurp. Gulp. Slurp.
All the while I was stared at incessantly by the slit-eyed twins.
When I was done, I made sure not even a single strand of pasta or a piece of meat was left on the plate. I held back from licking the whole plate empty, as I sat back down and stared back at the twins.
"Done," I announced. "What next?"
Both of them stood up in sync. ""Follow usss.""
I stood up while hastily wiping my mouth with a napkin. The twins led me to a small truck, parking at the side of the road. They opened its rear door and gestured for me to go in. I got up and stared at the interior. There were no seats and it looked more like an empty room than a vehicle. The windows were completely tinted in black, and the driver's compartment was closed off from my sight with a solid partition. I was alone.
"Where are we goin-" I asked, but the door suddenly shut behind me, completely blinding me. "… Okay."
I took a deep breath and tried to calm my heart down. I knew it was a simple test, and even if I get injured, it probably won't be too serious.
'You want this, don't you?' I asked myself. 'You want to change this cruel world. You want those policemen to pay, don't you?'
I felt the truck start to move, and I found myself grasping at the sides so I wouldn't fall down. I was finally getting used to balancing myself when the truck stopped, throwing me forward and onto my knees. I sighed, knowing there will be a flowering bruise the next morning.
The door opened behind me, and I looked up, squinting in the light.
Before I could even move, the new arrival had grabbed onto my clothes and my hair and forcibly dragged me out of the truck and unto hard, dusty ground.
I gasped as we finally stopped. We were at a deserted dirt road, probably miles away from the city. I could just barely see houses from the distance.
I looked up at my assailant and saw a familiar and unwelcome face.
"Imelda," I spat at her. She only smiled sweetly.
She was dressed in a tight, black tank top and brown, camouflage pants. She had held up her short hair in low pigtails. Looking down, she wore nasty, fashion combat boots with three-inch heels. I hope she'll trip on them and break an ankle.
"Fight me, sweetie," she told me, getting into a low stance. "Let's see what you're made of."
I got up hastily, and cracked my head from side to side, readying my stance as well.
'So, this is what it's gonna be,' I thought, feeling my lips curling up into a smile. 'Too bad they didn't know I could fight like hell.'
"Oh, you'll see." Then, I attacked first, aiming to box her ears. She looked surprised at my speed, but she was good. She quickly retreated back before I could land my punch.
"Ho! You're fast," she told me, smiling irritably. "But I'm faster."
She came at me like a whirlwind. I couldn't smile anymore as she managed to graze me a few times. Also, I felt myself being slowed down by the heavy meal I just had. She suddenly bent down while I still had my hands up in a block, and she swiped at my feet before I could do anything. I felt my ankle twist.
'Fuck,' I thought, hurriedly getting up. 'And here I thought she'd get her ankles broken.'
I didn't mind the pain as I launched an attack again. This time, I aimed for her eyes. It's a nasty move, one I knew from the streets, but I didn't hesitate to do it.
Imelda was fast, though, and she knew what I was trying to do. I only managed to scratch the side of her eye, drawing out blood.
"Mother-" Enraged, she came at me again, this time her punches swifter and harder. She grew a little more reckless though, because I managed to hit her squarely on the jaw. I smiled triumphantly as she wobbled and spat blood onto the dust.
I shouldn't have just stood there, because a moment after, she brought up a nasty uppercut. Before long, I was bonked out on the ground, grasping my jaw and coughing out blood.
"You freaking-" She kicked me hard on my stomach, and I curled up from the pain. Then, nausea hit me and I puked some pasta on her boots. "… Just die, puta."
She kicked me again. This time on the head, and I saw nothing more after that.
I groaned into consciousness, feeling the few dozens of bruises around my body. I coughed, and tried to open my eyes but I felt my left eye was swollen. I brought up a hand to touch it, feeling the sensitive lump.
'Fuck,' I thought. 'She really came at me even after I fainted…'
Closing my eyes, I assessed my body, thankful that I didn't seem to have broken bones. I tried turning my right foot and I gasped in pain. Sprained, no doubt.
I groaned yet again, and then realized I was sitting on a hard, solid seat. I forced my good eye open and looked around me.
'Where am I?' I stared around the room. It was dimly lit, but still bright enough to read. There were desks around with papers and a few monitors. It looked like an office room. Then, a woman came out from a spring-hinged door. "Ho. You're finally awake."
She turned back and disappeared before even giving me an explanation. The door opened again after a while, bringing in two police officers, the same woman from earlier and a man with an obvious potbelly.
He came closer to look at me in the eyes. "You feeling okay there? We found you knocked out from outside the station. You didn't seem too bad that you needed to be hospitalized. Anyway, boss wanted to wait 'til you woke up. So, feeling alright there, miss?"
I struggled to open my mouth. The movement probably reopened a wound and I tasted blood. "Banged up, but fine, officer."
"Hmm." The woman behind him made an unimpressed sound and peered into me. "What exactly happened, kid? You still have your wallet on you. So, you don't seem to have been robbed."
I still remember the stupid smirk in my upperclassman's face. I wonder what she'll look like when she's behind bars. Then, I remembered the reason I was even here in the first place.
'Did I fail my initiation?' I wondered, suddenly filled with despair. 'No… If I really had failed, I would have been sent to the hospital or even back home, but definitely not the police station…'
"So, what happened, kid?" the woman stared at me, and although she seemed concerned for me, there was also a hint of suspicion on her face.
'It's a test,' I realized. 'They want to know if I'll snitch on them.'
"Where… am I?" I croaked out.
The officers looked at each other before the man answered, "Central City Police Station. Just by the Square. Did you have a concussion? Do you not remember what happened to you?"
I slowly shook my head, careful about my expression. "No, no… I remember. I was just walking around… and some thugs… suddenly attacked me. Probably robbers… They had these black cloth masks on… but I screamed so loudly I probably had them running…"
The woman squinted her eyes at me. "You seem too bruised up for that."
"I… I fought back. They grew… annoyed," I answered, sporting a fearful expression.
She snorted. "Those damn thugs. Probably the Vigilantes again."
I almost flinched before I stopped myself. They asked for more information and I did my best to give them cohesive answers.
"You're lucky they didn't rob you," the man said gently. "Though, you're still pretty hurt. Some Samaritan probably just saw you and left you in front of the station. Be thankful you didn't get robbed or worse back then."
I nodded, making sure to look pitiful.
"Anyway, you should probably call someone and visit the doctor. Our medic here did the best he could for first aid, but it wouldn't hurt to double check," he continued.
I looked down and saw that, in fact, I was bandaged up and tended to. "Thank you," I muttered.
"That's the least we could do in CCPD." The man smiled brightly, and then tapped my head lightly like I was a child before getting up and leaving after a few words with the woman.
I searched my pockets and found my phone. It was cracked, but still working.
'Geez,' I thought, caressing the damaged screen. 'Imelda might hit me, but why my phone too…'
I sighed as I typed in a number. I was surprised I already memorized the digits. The call came through.
"Hey," I managed to say after a long silence.
"Hey there to you too, Yassi Anne," his familiar voice sounded through the line.
"I'm done here," I muttered quietly. "I'm leaving the station."
There was only silence and then the line was cut. I sighed, and found the woman officer staring at me. "Who was that?" she asked me, almost looking like it came just from curiosity. But I knew better.
"My boyfriend," I answered matter-of-factly. "He's coming to pick me up. We won't be pressing charges on the unknown anyway."
"Uh huh," she answered, doubt in her eyes.
"Don't worry, I'm fine. I'll just treat this as a particularly bad day. Anyway, I've still got my phone and my money."
She only nodded before escorting me out of the station. "You sure you're gonna be okay? It won't take much for us to call an ambulance."
I shook my head, already getting sight of a far-away figure on the street. "It's fine. My boyfriend's already here."
I managed a smile and waved towards the figure. He approached us in a light run.
"What happened?" He held me gently, worry on his face. "I just heard-"
"It's fine," I said, and probably because my head wasn't right, I leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. "Just some random thugs."
If he looked surprised at all, I didn't see it. He only smiled wearily and took hold of me, aiding me down the stairs. At the bottom, he looked up towards the officer. I saw him reading her tag. "Thank you so much for helping her out, Officer Freeman."
The woman only nodded with a stiff smile, still looking at us in suspicion. "Go on then, boy. Bring her to a doctor while you're at it."
We smiled and waved back, listening to her mutters as she went back inside the station. When we were alone, I leaned my back unto his chest, already tired from standing on one foot.
"Did I fail?" I whispered, feeling how gentle his arms were as he wrapped me closer towards him. I could feel his steady heart beating through my back.
He only tightened his grip for a little bit, as though to comfort me, but it only succeeded to hurt my bruised up body.
"Let's go see the doctor," Zero said, helping me limp towards a side road.
I looked around. "… But, the nearest hospital is on the other-"
"Sorry, Yassi," I heard him say before a piece of cloth was shoved against my mouth and nose.
Cursing softly, I blanked out yet again.
~~
I woke up to the sight of a stranger, sitting with her legs crossed in front of me. I was seated on a chair facing the girl. It seems like I could now open my left eye ever so slightly. We seemed to be in a plain room with no windows.
The girl smiled upon seeing me wake.
"Hi, Yassi." Her smile was sweet and her button nose made her look like a doll with her bangs and her brunette hair brought up in a high ponytail. "I heard you passed the two tests."
I only looked at her blankly. Every inch of my body hurt, and I didn't give a damn about the new face in front of me.
Seeing my disinterest, she tilted her head slightly. "You must be confused. I'm Jenna Swift. I lead a group of vigilantes."
I stared at her. She looked nothing like a leader of a criminal group. Looking at her pastel orange button down, vintage dress and buckled cream-colored shoes, she hardly looked anything but a common rich girl.
She smiled again upon seeing my incredulous stare. "Yes, Yassi. Now, I'm going to supervise you in your third and final test."
She stood up from her chair gracefully and approached me. She grabbed my right hand with her gloved one, and promptly placed a gun on it with her other hand.
She smiled at my shocked expression. Then, she turned towards her right like a hawk seeing a nearby prey. I followed her gaze and found that we weren't alone.
There was a man, tied up and gagged, struggling on his seat. He had a wild appearance and an even wilder pair of eyes. He seemed to be screaming but his gag muffled the sounds. He tried to stand or move or run, but both his hands and feet were tightly tied to the legs and rests of the chair. Looking at his dirty clothes, I realized he had soiled himself. Probably many times.
I couldn't look away from his eyes, pleading and crazy with desperation.
"Shoot him." I heard Jenna's order.
I felt gloved hands wrap both of mine around the heavy gun. She gently urged me to get up and face the man.
I couldn't look away.
"Shoot him," she ordered again. Then, she whispered into my ears, and I smelled cinnamon from her breath. "He knows our secret. If he gets out and reports us, all of this will die for nothing. The world will forget us, and the government will continue to fuck us over. And we'll all be in jail, rotting with our ideologies. Just a bunch of crazed out college students."
I shook my head slowly. Then, she started spitting out in anger, "Don't be a coward, Yassi Anne Sorento… See, now he knows your name and your face. Are you really gonna let him go?"
I breathed out shakily, my knees about to give in. I don't remember pointing the gun at the man, but here I was. My bruised hands ached in agony as I kept my hands still.
"I'm not going to shoot him," I found myself saying. My headache was getting stronger.
"Really?" Jenna asked sweetly. "He's nothing but a corrupt police man. He's killed dozens of innocent lives in the name of his own personal justice. He's raped countless women, and girls not even twelve, and he so easily got away with it. Yassi, he deserves to die, whether he found us out or not."
'He has killed… and has raped…' I thought, my mind growing hazier by the minute. And when I looked at his face, I saw it was a familiar one.
"He won't hesitate to shoot if he found you spraying paint on some walls," I heard Jenna whisper. "… He'll even shoot you and your friends just for the heck of it."
'Jesta,' I whispered her name in my mind, and aimed the gun at the man's face. I knew that face.
"Shoot him!" she screamed.
'You killed Jesta,' I told the man with my eyes, and then I pulled the trigger.