//Warning: Graphic Content//
"I don't think you've told me about yourself growing up," Jade said, munching on a roach.
"There isn't much to say..." Noland shrugged, swallowing his own. "I would train, study, eat."
Jade and Noland were on their first patrol. Four people. At the front was Jack and an icy, blonde-haired lady at the front. Apparently, her name was Alice.
She refused to interact with them after when they met that morning, briefing them on their procedures and positions with no small talk.
"But what about your father? Or mother?" Jade asked, tilting her head.
Noland paused before answering. "I don't know who my mother is. My dad wouldn't talk about her either. And the most compassion he ever showed was asking how I felt after training my magic."
"What about you?" Noland asked, his gaze shifting to her.
Jade's eyes scanned their surroundings. Smog-filled streets with acidic puddles dotting the ground. "I guess I'm the same. My dad was excited when he discovered my unique power. It changed though when he discovered how weak I was."
"Huh...He never followed up? You've grown strong since we first met."
"He did," she smiled faintly, but her eyes remained cold. "But his reaction... He didn't care for me, only my strength. Hah, and filling out those stupid papers again."
"Papers?" Noland frowned. The mention of paperwork triggered memories of his father. "How do you feel, do you feel different, did your sleep worsen or improve, any pain?" He quoted the lines, having read them hundreds of times.
Her gaze slowly drifted to him, a faint twinkle of disdain in her eyes. "You too, huh?"
Meanwhile, at the front, Jack and Alice slowed to a halt, staring back at them with wide eyes.
"What kind of upbringing is that?" Jack asked, bewildered, exchanging a glance with Alice.
"It sounds more like a hospital visit than a family," Alice mused, her cold stare bouncing between them. "But you should leave that behind before starting patrol."
"Hey now," Jack sighed, raising his hand in an open, calming gesture.
Alice scowled, "You're the one who taught this! Somebody could die if we aren't focused!"
"Back there, sure. But here?" Jack asked wryly, gesturing ahead of them.
Behind them, rusted, broken-down metallic shacks with loose hinges lined the path. But ahead?
It was a sea of toxic, bubbling chemicals and waste. Pools of green, blue, and murky colors stretched out endlessly to the towering walls beyond. Jagged chunks of metal and exposed pipes jutted from the ground, dripping harsh chemicals into the pools below.
Steam and vapors rose, but not all of it was heat.
Leaning forward, Noland grimaced. He had only visited here once, but the chemical levels weren't as high before. When he was younger, the outlets for these chemicals had a few feet of clearance. Now, there was less than a foot before the pipes would start backing up.
You didn't want to breathe the fumes in either, yet people lived here. Between this pasture of toxic waste, metallic houses scattered the sea with raised pathways connecting the structures.
Copper pipes crisscrossed the sky, clotheslines stretched between roofs, and makeshift walkways linked the roofs of houses clustered closely together.
Next to him, Jade sucked in a deep breath of the toxic air before sighing.
"I still don't understand why people choose to live here..."
"Or why it isn't being drained," Noland added, still grimacing.
"The academy didn't teach you this?" Alice asked mockingly.
Jade blinked, her emotionless expression returning. "They taught us there were fields and outlands beyond the city to be reclaimed. Why don't we dump the waste outside the city instead of among the poor?"
"Monsters. What is the reason we haven't begun cultivating outside the city?" Jack asked patiently.
"Monsters."
"Exactly," Jack sighed, his gaze drifting out to the fields. "Outflows are entrances for those creatures."
"Wouldn't it harm them though? We burn just by touching it without gloves."
Jack chuckled and gave a wry smile, his expression darkening. "They're monsters. That's all I can say."
Crackle-Crackle
"Demonic Dogs-! AAA!"
A sharp electric noise crackled behind them, interrupting their conversation. Noland's head snapped around just in time to see a figure flying toward them. Without hesitation, he dove into Jade, pushing her to the ground.
Jade's eyes went wide, locking with his momentarily before the figure flew overhead.
"Cover!" Jack yelled as he and Alice backpedaled.
A teenage boy, mid-air in a reckless flying dropkick, whizzed overhead. His defiant cry morphed into a terrified shriek as he plummeted into the sea of toxic chemicals.
Noland tucked his head down and hunched his body over Jade, using his gloved hand to cover the back of his head. His jacket absorbed the incoming spray as he shielded her face.
He felt the spray hit his back, and heard the sizzling, but thankfully the material held its own. Jade remained unscathed beneath him.
Scrambling together on the ground, shifted and skirted their bodies in tight motions away from the source. They heard the violent shrieks of this young boy, desperate and guttural.
When Noland felt they were far enough, he glanced back. He gritted his teeth in anger too though. They had a split-second to react, and he forgot to use magic in the heat of the moment.
The boy's flesh was burned and seared, deformed beyond recognition. His fingers stuck together, only to break apart in sprays of blood as he clawed for a way out, eyes clamped shut.
While the boy still shrieked, though his convulsing was less violent, Noland stood and summoned a small fireball in his hand.
Jack and Alice watched with darkened expressions, while Jade looked on with wide eyes. Horrified emotion flickered across her face- a rarity- and she stared as he hurled it at the kid. It struck the writhing boy just as he managed to crawl out of the toxic cesspool.
And in the distance within the smog and broken-down buildings, desperate and muffled cries rang out, prompting them to turn their heads.
One final, violent gurgle emitted before the boy laid still as an unidentifiable corpse, covered in gray and red scraps of clothing. Noland couldn't tell if the red was cloth or blood.
"Why did you do that..." Jade whispered, her voice soft and shaky before turning her head to vomit.
'For someone who looks emotionless most of the time, she sure isn't.' Noland thought. He responded in a hushed voice. "He tried to kill us."
"Yes, but," she sputtered between coughs, "he got out, he could've-"
"Lived very painful final days before he died," Jack interrupted, stepping forward with a colder gaze. "He did the right thing, even if it was brutal."
Jack nodded at Noland, and the two shared a moment of silent understanding- a colder acceptance.
To the side, Alice was helping Jade rise to her feet. "Careful. Don't let it get on your skin," Alice said gently, wiping some of the chemicals away with her glove.
Noland tilted his head, 'Her attitude has changed. I guess I misunderstood her personality.'
"This was my fault," Jack sighed, his voice heavy with guilt. "You were right, Alice. I taught it for good reason."
"This boy was probably a vigilante. I doubt they're using kids yet," Alice said softly, her tone comforting as she tried to console Jade.
Pointing at the body and the red cloth, Jack's voice became colder. "Those are Revenant colors."
"There are two other rebel groups, but they use shades of gray and black. Revenants are the only ones that use red."
"Why are they rebelling?" Noland asked, his gaze fixated on the corpse. He couldn't place the feeling stirring within- it wasn't pity or sorrow, but it lingered.
Jack stepped up next to him, though his wary gaze cast back toward the streets. "They believe we're animals, and that the city is evil... I guess these kids don't want a round two."
Blinking, Noland realized what he meant and turned his head, but there was no one in sight.
"The shock of losing their friend must've scared them off," Alice said grimly.
Jade didn't respond, her face reverting to its usual cold, detached expression. Alice looked at her with concern, leaning closer to whisper.
"Burying it won't help..."
"I don't know what you're talking about," Jade muttered, shrugging Alice's grip off before stepping beside Noland.
Giving one final glance of concern, Alice sighed before returning to Jack's side.
"If no one's injured, let's keep moving." Jack's gaze swept over the group. "Stay alert. You've just witnessed what happens when you fuck up."
His gaze lingered on Noland before pointing directly at him, his tone unforgiving. "Don't freeze up again."
"I didn't freeze-"
"Did you forget you have magic?" Jack cut him off, his sharp words silencing Noland's protest. "This isn't the academy. Use it, and don't worry about the consequences. Life is too short here to care about every passing asshole or lawyer that wants to take a swipe at us as we do our duty."
He paused, his voice lowering but no less cold.
"The officials above don't give a shit, and there are plenty of these bastards. Keep people close, keep them safe. Regardless of the consequences."
Jack let the words sink in, his intense gaze passing between them.
Jade and Noland exchanged a glance. They both froze as Jack's cold voice cut through the momentary silence like a blade.
"Kill him before he reaches you next time."