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Tales from Tama Town

Third District Arc

Chapter 11

"So, mister." The warehouses were dark and lonely this time of the year. Higanshima's industry died down around year end as folks readied for the holiday season, tax and inventory counts, audits, and all manner of adult bullshit. The city lights were thin and sporadic this time of the night, leaving this corner of Tama isolated and barren. It was a cold building, filled with pallets upon pallets of soda and medicine, all stamped with the Antaeus Conglomerate logo. "Tell me about my friends. I know you were a part of it." Her voice was soft and airy. Her hair was arranged in long twintails and she wore a frilly ice-blue ensemble with snowflake patterns and sapphire gems. She walked along the concrete floor with her hands clasped together behind her back and a sweet smile on her face; it was the expression of a ditzy, naive little girl.

She stopped before him and conjured up her wand with a flourish. The magical girl aimed her wand at a middle-aged man in a pinstripe suit tied to a metal chair. His white shirt was stained with blood, sweat, and dirt; his balding head bore deep cuts and gashes, and his swollen eyes were little more than red-rimmed slits. "I kill monsters, mister. Sometimes, those monsters happen to wear a human body." She jabbed her wand into his forehead and held it there, waiting for him to flinch. "But I'm a nice girl." She giggled. "So I'll give you one last chance! Tell me what I want to hear! Tell me about my friends! Tell me about Milkyway! Tell me about the Sweepers! Tell me about the others!"

"I-I-I have no idea wh-what you're talk-talking about, little girl. Please, just let me go and I won't report this. I promise. No one would believe me anyway." The man was on the verge of tears; it was so pathetic that the magical girl felt a swell of pity rise up within her breast. He was a company man, and those kinds of people never stood up for themselves or others. "Just let me go, okay? My family needs me. My kids need me. My little girl—" She grabbed her wand with both hands and smashed his kneecap with an audible crunch. He let out a bloodcurdling scream as he doubled over and sobbed; she hated when they got emotional.

"Oh, but mister... I'm not finished yet!" The little girl tutted as she booped his nose with the tip of her wand. "I want information." The magical girl licked her lips as she leaned forward and forced her wand further against his skin; he cried out as the tip began to radiate a soft blue light. "Ever drink a slushy too fast, mister? On a hot day? Brain freeze can be quite an ordeal, you know." The wand drifted up, between his eyes. Her voice was pure saccharine; there wasn't a single trace of venom in it as she applied gentle pressure to the wand's tip and watched the man's eyes widen in fear. "You won't die. But I can make you wish you were dead."

"Wait! Stop! Please! I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about! My own daughter's missing too, you sick freak!" The man shouted as tears streamed down his cheeks; a set of black leather boots approached from behind the girl. "Oh thank God! Someone's come to rescue me!"

"Is that so?" The voice was firm and authoritative, though unmistakably young. A pair of soft hands settled on the magical girl's shoulders and squeezed them. "Mel, hun. This was a bad idea." Melanie sighed as she took a step back and lowered her wand. The company man looked visibly relieved when he realized he was freed from her clutches. "Boys! Round him up with the others. We'll do a follow-up interview tomorrow morning." His relief turned to horror once again.

The man's screams echoed through the warehouse as more figures revealed themselves and marched towards him. There were five of them: they wore featureless masks and dark bodysuits. They were like living shadows as they hoisted the man to his feet and dragged him out of the warehouse, ignoring his cries for mercy.

"Sorry, I couldn't help myself..." Melanie sighed as she looked up at the figure before her. "Do you think he's telling the truth, chief?" she craned her neck back to lock eyes with the young man she built this uneasy alliance with. He was wearing a suit that was just a touch too big for him. His hair was impeccable, combed and styled until it shimmered with iridescent hues under the low warehouse lights. His green eyes were locked on Melanie's icy blue orbs; he gave her a tired smile as he reached down to caress her cheek.

"Gosh, I hope so. I'd hate to drag child-killing filth into my place of business." His words were sharp and calculated; Melanie felt herself relax under his touch. "Don't worry, Mel. For the time being, the company will help you on patrols. Okay? They may not 'see' them like you do, but I'll provide the funds, the excuses, whatever else you need. Third District's being kept safe thanks to you. All thanks to you, Melanie." He moved his hand up to play with her hair. "You're too good for us, Mel. Don't lose sight of that. When the time comes, I'll treat you right."

Melanie melted under his praise; she just couldn't say no to her new friend. "So uh... have you heard about the disturbances over in Fifth District? Not magical girl stuff, just like, missing grown-ups and stuff. Rumours are starting to surface about PMCs showing up at some random lady's house, too. Like, should we be concerned?"

"I've heard all about it." It was an understatement: he was the one who ordered the job. Her companion smiled and offered her his hand; Melanie took it and squeezed it tight as they walked out of the warehouse together. "Why? Are you afraid they're looking for you, Melanie?" He whispered those words with a teasing edge in his tone; Melanie shivered as they left the warehouse behind.

"Well, um..." Melanie looked up at him with a nervous smile on her face; she watched as he pulled out his cell phone and shot off a message with his left hand, his right hand never letting go of hers. "I'm friends with a couple of kids over there. There's another girl like me there, she goes by Nighty Knight. Oh, and a cute older boy who thinks he's hardcore named Keichi." She hadn't spoken to them in a few months, but then again they were all so busy between school, hunts, and the ceaseless bullshit Tama threw their way. "I should reach out to them and see how they're doing."

"You know, maybe you shouldn't. Things are going to get pretty ugly, Melanie." He offered her a sympathetic smile as he scrolled through his messages. "What's worse: they spotted your little kidnapping attempt this morning, that guy you roughed up before we arrived. But don't worry, we own the building. We own the local PMC. And I'll die before I let anyone hurt you, okay? Just stay in the compound tonight, hun. Stay safe."

"You're always so nice to me, chief." Melanie beamed as she followed her mysterious benefactor out of the warehouse. "Anyways, I can sense activity tonight. Do you think it's worth patrolling?" She prayed he would say yes; she always had fun patrolling with her friends. It was a guilty pleasure for her, one she would cherish until the day she died. And given the drastic decrease in Sweepers overnight, they could use a morale boost from working beside a de-facto Magical Girl.

"Fine, go have fun." Her boss nudged her in the ribs and winked. "It's why we pay you so much. Anyways, it's Friday night. Your curfew is midnight, so don't stay up too late! You don't wanna miss the Antaeus Talent Show on Sunday afternoon!" That was it! Melanie couldn't believe her luck; she leapt forward and wrapped him in a big hug before she ran off into the night, eager to enjoy what time she had left with her friends. It was all going so well! And yet... something still didn't feel quite right about it all. She pushed those feelings aside as she flew off into the city.

"You're a sick fuck, know that?" an angry, lilting voice reached his ears. The young man looked over his shoulder at the woman in the red suit as she walked out from behind one of the shipping containers; she wore a bored scowl on her face as she picked at her fingernails and maintained perfect posture. "Seems she knows absolutely NOTHING about our involvement though. Congratulations, kid."

"Listen, Taz. Yesterday was a disaster. Overall, the plan is working fine. Better than fine! She's doing everything I hoped she would. I know it's not..." He groaned as he slipped his phone back into his pocket and adjusted his cuffs. "I don't need more shit from you right now! The plan's working, and that's all that matters." He couldn't stand his strike team's captain. She was an upstart asshole with no respect for her superiors. Granted, he knew she hated taking orders from a kid half her age. Still, they both had the same end goal in mind: save Tama Town from the monsters that roamed its streets. Even if their definitions of 'monsters' were different. "Look, she's going on patrol tonight. If she's out with the Sweepers tonight, then let's keep a low profile. Besides, old-timer, you can't see shit. I still can. So for now, quit bitching and stick close to me."

"Sure thing, kid." She grumbled as she brushed past him. "Oh, by the way: I went over some of the data you've gathered on Melanie. The girl's been lying through her teeth about a lot of shit." Taz laughed as she opened the passenger door of their car and flipped him off. "She's got secrets, kid! I don't know who's playing who here, but this won't end well. For anyone."

"Yeah, yeah." He rolled his eyes as he slid into the back seat. "We'll figure something out. Anyways, drop the attitude. We're gonna get a debrief on our prisoner's interrogation tomorrow. Higgs, drive." He sat back as the car's engine purred to life and they pulled out of the docks; there was always more work to do. Always more information to gather and filter. This city was sick, and he was the cure. While he still had the Sight, that was. He just had to believe he would see this thing through to the end.

"Wonder if Melanie's close to that 'Nighty Knight' she mentioned." He mused. "Think she can convince her to join our cause?"

"Nah." Taz guffawed. "Magical girls are pushovers once you peel back the glitter. They're dumb as bricks. You get too many of them in one place, they all start fighting over who's the prettiest, who gets to be the leader, that whole routine." She rolled her eyes and took a long drink from her flask; the liquor burned in her throat as she gulped it down. "These kids can't get enough attention from each other, and their elders sure as hell don't care about them. So they find each other and fight about who's the best. Gets in the way of everything else."

"I dunno." The driver, a researcher by the name of Higgs, hummed as he thought; he kept his eyes on the road and his lips pursed. "Kids today are smart enough to figure out how to work together. They gotta, right? Clearly they're learning something we haven't."

"I'm sorry. Are you SPEAKING to us?" Taz snapped. "Did I actually hear some words come out of your mouth, Higgs?! Really?!" She tugged at her seat-belt and slouched back into her chair; he didn't answer her and instead turned up the radio, drowning out her complaints with trashy pop music and a small smile. The two passengers stopped talking after that. It was for the best.

At least their headquarters was beautiful. He had to admit that much. The Antaeus Conglomerate did not neglect their own facility while investing in Higanshima; their public-facing cafeteria alone was worthy of a Michelin star restaurant, with ornate chandeliers and decorative relics from around the world. Their floors were polished marble, their doors and railings made of stainless steel and oakwood. They had art pieces from around the world; from tribal totems to world-renowned contemporary pieces, the walls were adorned with beautiful works of art. As Higgs parked in front of their building, he couldn't help but admire how the moonlight played along the buildings, how their silhouettes framed the imposing tower that loomed over Tama Town from within its city limits.

"When did my life turn into this?" The young man whispered those words under his breath as he left the car; the city was full of ghosts and monsters. It was up to him to fight them. He couldn't complain. It was just... What else was there for a kid with the Sight? What other option was there but to fight? He graduated years ahead of his peers, top of his class. He had an intuitive knowledge of how stuff worked; it was a simple matter of reverse-engineering his own dreamed-up little inventions to bring them into reality. The more he fixed the city, the worse things got for him. His allies could never see the things he saw: the beasts in the shadows, the ooze between cracks in the pavement, the waves of static and unnatural sensation that enveloped the city whenever he stepped out. They called him insane. Called him a lunatic. They wouldn't listen to him, not unless he showed them the truth. "Time's running out."

Chapter 12

The Sweepers met at a new diner on the south side of the district. It was a middling establishment, with middling quality food, middling beverages, and middling clientele. "Ah! Mel-Belle!" one of the four survivors waved her over. They were sitting at a table by the far corner; Melanie felt herself shiver at the sight of him. "Over here!"

"Hey, guys!" Melanie beamed as she slid into the booth; her friends gave her a warm smile as she made herself comfortable and draped her blazer over her seat. "I'm thinking Tsukaima today. You in?" They were all Sweepers from Third District, her classmates and friends. Two were rugby players named John and Ricky, one was a wrestler named Kam, and the youngest one, Felipe, played with knives. Each of them were as tough as nails and had a quiet strength about them; she trusted each of them with her life.

"Hell yeah!" The knife-kid laughed and picked up his glass of coke; Melanie held up her own glass and grinned at him. "If not us, then who'll shank 'em?"

"What you mean to say," One of the rugby lads quipped, "is, 'if not Tsukaima, then who will I shank?'" Felipe spat out his drink and threw a french fry at him. Melanie couldn't help but laugh; she missed this, just kicking back with her friends and shooting the shit. Given the tragedy that transpired a day earlier, she knew they were all probably numb. In denial, in shock, something like that. She wanted to make the most of her time with them; even if the Otherside was waiting for her tonight, she was a Magical Girl! She was sworn to defend her district; Tama Town was her home, and her friends were her family. They deserved better than the bleak existence they had been trapped in.

"Thanks for agreeing to meet up tonight." Ricky muttered between bites of his over-cooked burger. "You've been taking far more risks than usual lately, Mel."

"Hey now..." Melanie frowned as she tilted her head towards him. "It's not like we can't take care of ourselves. I just got a little lucky." She caught sight of a pair of PMC officers speaking to the owner of the diner; Melanie perked up and smiled at them. "Oh, hey! It's our private security! How have they been treating you, guys?" She noted a sharp decline in 'mundane' crimes ever since they showed up.

"Really well." The knife-kid chimed in as he helped himself to the other guy's fries. "I guess that new conglomerate ain't so bad. They're actually helping clean up the streets." Melanie beamed at her friends and nodded her head in agreement.

"I've been seeing them more and more often these days." Melanie nodded and toyed with her hair as she spoke. "The regional chief is such a nice young man, too. He's maybe a year or two older than us, but he's so insightful and knowledgeable." Melanie blushed as she reminisced about her sponsor; her friends noticed it and traded amused looks. "He even mentioned I could intern with him and his staff someday. Isn't that awesome?"

"Oh yeah." The other rugby kid, John, swallowed his fries and scoffed. "Guess your tenure as a sweeper's coming to a close in a couple of years. Best to start networking before you graduate, huh?" He chuckled; Melanie frowned and squinted at him. "What? Don't look at me like that! It's not like you're gonna be hunting Othersiders forever, you know."

"Whatever!" Melanie huffed. "Aren't we gonna patrol tonight? You guys? Kam?" She turned her head to face the last member of their little party; he was a strong-jawed wrestler with a lean physique and a fierce competitive spirit. He wore a sleeveless hoodie that exposed his impressive arms, and the grey t-shirt underneath looked a size too small for him. He was a class act, a total hunk, and a secret softie. "So...?"

"Mel..." He sighed as he placed his burger down. "Listen: we need to be careful. You know how things went down last night. Our friends are gone! I mean, really fucking gone! You... you don't have anything to prove, okay?" Melanie could see the sincerity in his eyes; it wasn't enough to change her mind.

"I do." Melanie crossed her arms over her chest and slumped back into her chair. "It's not like they were careless, either. It's not like my fucking partner was careless." She remembered the battle. It was burned into her brain: Milkyway's gruesome demise and her own fumbled rescue. "The Youma were tougher than usual. Much, much tougher than usual." She wasn't sure that thing leading them WAS a Youma, though she did not know how else to describe it.

"I know..." The knife-kid murmured and squirmed in his seat; he looked like he wanted to crawl under the table and disappear. "B-but... but we thinned 'em out. That's why we survived, right? That and help from Central." He shrugged his shoulders and dipped his head. "Besides... I wanna talk to Lin's boyfriend before we hit the streets." Melanie cringed at those words. The dude barely had the Sight, and Milkyway kept him in the dark about almost everything. Talking to him would be a waste of time.

"Go do that." Melanie rose and made for the door. "I'll get started, you just catch up after you've had your dumb little chat." Her icy blue eyes scanned the street outside the diner; Melanie shuddered as she felt the knot in her stomach return. Something was definitely wrong: she could feel it in her bones. "See you around!" She called out as she left the diner behind her and made for the rooftops.

She closed her eyes and focused on the sounds of Tama. There were distant screams of people in need, the howls of Noroi prowling for prey, and the cacophony of humanity pushing forward and losing themselves to their mundanity. A mist of ice-blue light lit the sky as she transformed. It was like someone flipped a switch and turned on a spotlight as the aura faded from her body and Melanie became Magical Girl Mel-Belle!

The hilt of her wand felt cool to the touch as she gripped it in both hands and spun it around; it wasn't necessary, but it added to her mystique! And people loved a girl who had style! "Don't worry!" She called as she descended into the alleyway and faced off against the figures waiting for her; it was a pack of three punks that had cornered an office lady on her way home from work. "Freeze, punks." She made a show of spinning around as she pointed her wand at trio and struck a heroic pose. The light from her wand reflected off the nearby puddles and created dazzling prisms of colour that danced along the brick walls of the alleyway; Mel-Belle didn't wait for them to react as she darted forward and parried the lead punk's knife with a conjured icicle before she thrust it into his thigh with a low chuckle. "You know, I'd apologize for stabbing you, but I'm not really sorry."

"F-fuck!" The lead punk howled in pain as he fell to his knees. She swung her wand like a tennis racket and slung a frost-hex at the second punk that pinned him against the wall. "C'mon, man! Help me out!" He squealed as he writhed against the wall and dropped his gun; the third punk raised his baseball bat and rushed at her, roaring like an animal. "This little bitch's gonna kill us!"

"Oh, chill out!" She loved tossing puns as she worked her magic. It helped to build rapport with the locals! "This is no way to treat a lady! Don't you think so?" She giggled as she traced a glyph on the air and set a trap in front of her attacker: an ice-slick that set him tumbling face-first into the concrete. Mel-Belle wasn't merciful; she marched forward and delivered a swift kick to the ribs and took him out of the fight before he could recover. She was ruthless. She was primal. She was a force of nature, and she would sweep the streets clean!

"Now then, let's get you home." She knelt before the terrified office lady and offered her hand; the woman trembled as she clasped her hand around Mel-Belle's. "You'll be safe with me! I promise!" She trilled as she helped the poor lady to her feet and led her out of the alleyway. "Call the cops if these idiots try this again, okay? Tama's too big for me to always be there!"

"Thank you!" The office lady sniffled and bowed her head in gratitude. "Th-they tried to corner me again and... and again! I can't walk home alone anymore! My boss didn't even care, I can't... Thank you so much!" She wiped away her tears as she took deep breaths and tried to calm herself; Mel-Belle watched with a weary smile as the woman jogged home and disappeared into the night.

"Good..." She whispered as she turned around and headed back into the alley. The punks were all accounted for, still unconscious against the brick walls; they were still alive too. She made sure of that. Mel-Belle went through their pockets and found their cells. She called the local rent-a-cops and reported them before she snapped their phones in half for good measure. Crime was way down, but not gone.

That was a quick fix to a minor issue, but it still felt good. It didn't make a dent in the Otherside activity, but it meant one less family had to wake up to their daughter's funeral tomorrow. Mel-Belle jumped into the air and took to the rooftops; it was easier to see the city from up here. Easier to plan out her patrol route and even easier to pick out the high-intensity areas that needed her help. "Alright! Let's get to work!" She beamed as she slid down a drainage pipe and landed in the alley below; the sudden drop made her knees ache as she braced herself against a dumpster and rubbed her ankles. That little maneuver went way better in her head, of course.

A few minutes later, she honed in on a flophouse where a Tsukaima fed on unsuspecting tenants; it was a scraggly old beast that took on the form of a mottled sewer rat that ran along the alleyways and sewers in search of easy prey. Its body was surrounded by a vile, viscous cloud of violet fumes that followed its every move; it was a horrid creature, but Mel-Belle had put many of them to sleep. "Oh, come on! Enough of this junk food, little guy." She felt disgust at the state of this sad little building. Its tenants were listless husks who slept through life without any regard for the world around them; the Tsukaima wasn't picky, and that was perhaps the most damning fact about the situation.

"It's time for bed!" She called out as she sliced through the air and fired an icy shard at its back; the beast squealed as it turned around to face her, its bulbous head bobbing up and down as its slavering maw clicked its yellowed fangs at her. "Oh, don't look at me like that. Sooner or later, you're bound for the great beyond. Look at you: you're disgusting!" She had no sympathy for the depraved or the pathetic; these vermin were leeching off humanity, draining its soul-stuff one sip at a time. There was no reasoning with Tsukaima. Only purging.

She dodged the Tsukaima's lunges as it propelled itself towards her, its long fangs and curved claws gleaming in the moonlight as it fought to reach her and dig its teeth into her neck. She thrust her wand forward and conjured an ice-lance; it pierced through the creature's torso and sent it flying back into a wall. The anguished squeals that spilled out of its mouth were like music to her ears. "Now then." The lance shattered into mist as she released the spell and walked over. "Let's get you back where you belong, yeah?"

With a flourish, she flicked her wrist and turned the beast into a frozen statue; she dashed forward and swung her fist at its torso. It shattered under the impact; Mel-Belle danced back as the purple miasma cloud dissipated from its body and faded away into nothingness. "Good night, sleep tight!" She blew a kiss at it as she turned away from the scene and continued her patrol. One by one, she would silence the screams. Maybe she could silence her own, too.

Her friends had regrouped in another alleyway a few blocks away; their backs were turned to her as she approached from above, and she could tell by their conversation that they hadn't spotted her yet. "—seemed pretty harsh back there. Think she's doing okay?" Felipe quipped as he kicked a soda can across the alley and watched it bounce off a fire escape ladder; Mel-Belle was poised to jump when she overheard that part of their conversation.

"Dunno." Kam shook his head as he jogged off to recover the discarded can. "She's definitely stressed though, and... fuck, maybe she needs to vent?" He tossed it in a trash bin, never one to condone littering. "Should we call it quits early tonight and make sure she's okay?"

"Listen." Ricky held up his hands in surrender as he addressed the others. "I know she's mad. But there's something seriously wrong with her behaviour. She's never gone this hard on you guys before." He bulldozed through before John could say what the others were thinking. "Yeah, I know. We can't afford to bench her. The four of us TOGETHER would hardly stand a chance against a single Tsukaima, I know that." He wasn't wrong there; Mel-Belle frowned as she cleared her throat and descended from above.

"So. You guys gonna gossip about me all night? Or are you gonna get to work?" She wanted to hurt them. She wanted to hurt someone so bad. Melanie wasn't stupid, nor was she self-centered or self-loathing enough to think she could shoulder this burden alone. The four of them could sense the tension in the air, see the strain on her face when she gave them a weary smile; they returned her gaze with looks of their own.

Kam approached her cautiously, his hand outstretched to help her down; Melanie ignored him and vaulted over the railing on her own. "Hey, hey." Kam reached out and wrapped her up in a tight hug; she stiffened for a moment before she relaxed and leaned into him. "It's okay. Just breathe, alright?" Mel-Belle shuddered as she squeezed her eyes shut and did just that. She breathed in. She breathed out.

"Fuck you, Kam." She grumbled as she leaned into him and pouted; Felipe and John tackled them from behind, while Ricky shrugged and joined in the group-hug too. "I'm still your boss, you know?" She giggled as she pulled away and pushed them aside. "Alright, alright. Let's sweep some streets!" It was well past midnight by the time she decided to call it quits; they managed to pacify four more Tsukaima and rescued a dozen innocents from being devoured during their patrol, so it wasn't a total waste of time.

She'd do better. For them, for herself, and for the friends they all lost.

Chapter 13

"This is... not how I expected things to go." The girl was hunched over a desk in a well-lit room. It was an office within the shrine complex; incense wafted in from the hallway and filled the space with its woody musk. "Well?"

"Well... what?" The group from Fifth District didn't know how to proceed either. When they showed up all gung-ho and ready to help patrol, they expected a warmer welcome. But the Third District's new miko seemed to be about as helpful as an umbrella in a hurricane; the older boy leading the pack huffed and glared at her from across the room. "Look, lady! We're here to help, and we don't take no for an answer! We wanna join up and clean out this district's Otherside problem!"

"Keichi." The miko sighed and set down her pen; she set aside her paperwork and turned her seat towards the six Sweepers standing at attention before her desk. "I'm not saying it's impossible, I'm just... Look, things are bad right now! And I know that your intentions are good, but..." She huffed and rolled her eyes as she locked gazes with Darryl. "Well, the kids that made it through are a prickly clique. Frankly, they don't like me. So the idea of a new gang from the neighbouring district waltzing about might ruffle feathers."

"So?" Keichi scoffed. "That's none of our business! We just wanna help! Your boss said you'd love to have us, too! So what's the holdup?" He knew he sounded arrogant, but his desperation made him bold. The reports coming from Third District were nightmarish: rumours of a new kind of Youma roaming the streets, rampant Youma activity that swept through the districts in recent months, and the increasing difficulty of even surviving each hunt. Those last two points were ones Keichi took to heart: there was an unspoken agreement that they were understaffed. "So just let me and these volunteers here have a look about from time to time. Let Darryl help find new Sweepers in the district. Then we'll fuck off back home. Not like we want to risk our lives for you ingrates!" He wasn't wrong there; Sweepers weren't inherently selfless people. But Darryl was more diplomatic than his friend.

"Look, miss." Darryl cleared his throat and took a step forward; he had a stern expression on his face as he stood in front of his teammates and addressed the miko. "I understand that this is an odd situation, but I am speaking from experience here." His voice was calm and collected, and it eased the tension in the room. "We're a veteran team from 5th District, and we know how to train Sweepers. I've done my share of mentoring in my time as a Sweeper, and my companions here have sharpened their skills under my guidance." He was reaching the end of his tenure. In a few months' time, he'd likely lose the Sight. And when that happened, he'd pass the torch down to his proteges. "So let us help."

"Far be it from me to stop you. I'll call in Mel-Belle and the remaining Sweepers. The may not like me, but I still represent Central." She smirked as she picked up her cellphone and sent off a text message. "They're not gonna like this though. Just a fair warning."

"Mel-Belle..." Petunia hummed as she crossed her arms over her chest and pursed her lips. "Hey, Darryl? Do we know a 'Mel-Belle?'" It was a cute name, that much was for certain. She'd have to remember to ask about it once their work was done.

"I've heard of her." Darryl nodded his head and answered her query. "She's special, like Nana. Word is, she was close with Milkyway before the incident." He rubbed his chin as he thought back to their conversation with Central. "Melanie Harrington: she's from 3rd District, a socialite kid with a fucked-up background."

"You sure have a lot of faith in the likes of me." The door creaked open as the voice reached their ears; the miko squirmed in her seat and giggled nervously as an ice-blue blur breezed into the room and planted itself at her desk. "So, you're all here for recruitment purposes? Am I right?" Melanie rested her chin on the desk as she squinted at the new arrivals; she wore a shimmering blue dress with an oversized hoodie over it that hid most of her figure.

"We're here to help, yeah." Petunia nodded. "I'm Petunia! Kind of a part-time miko? Oh, Yuki might get mad if she heard me say that though." She couldn't help but giggle as she thought about her 'boss.' "Anyways! What's going on?" Petunia strode forward and held out her hand for Melanie to shake; the girl in blue did not reciprocate.

"Oh, Keichi!" Melanie recognized the fifteen-year-old. "It's been so long! How are you doing?" She rose to her feet and hugged him before he could dodge her; he squirmed in her embrace as she stepped back and appraised him. "So, how can we help you?"

"I think it would be better if I explained things." Darryl waltzed over and leaned his baseball bat against the wall. "Third District has been facing a lot of problems lately, hasn't it?" Melanie scowled at him and moved to sit on top of the miko's desk. "As the eldest Sweeper in Fifth District, it's sort of become my responsibility to take care of newbies over there. It's tough work, you know?"

"Oh, I get it." Melanie's tone was insincere as she gazed upon her interlocutor with narrowed eyes and pursed lips. "You're here to save us, aren't you?" She had nothing against the Fifth District crew. She liked Petunia well enough. But the sudden intrusion from next door grated at her nerves. "Fine, fine. Save me the trouble. But we don't NEED your help. Understood? We're doing just fine on our own!"

"Melanie... are you alright?" The miko moved to stand by her side; Melanie flinched and winced at those words. "Look, I know this has been tough on everyone, but we've all been through the same thing. Is there anything we can do to help?" She was talking nonsense: this newcomer clearly had no idea what they were in for! Hell, she hadn't even bothered to learn the new miko's name. What a useless bitch!

"Peachy. Just fine. My friends all DIED and now I have to deal with a bunch of outsiders snooping after the fact." She glared at her new miko; it was a shame Melanie never learned the girl's name, or she'd be screaming it at the moment! "If you wanna help so bad, then stay out of my way! I'll purge these streets clean by myself if I have to!"

"We'll give you time to calm down." Darryl crossed his arms over his chest and gave her a curt nod. "I'll do a loop 'round the clubs and liaise with the shrine. Sound okay to you, miss Mel-Belle?" Melanie hissed at him, like an angry cat caught in a corner; he ignored her as he shouldered his bat and made for the door. "Stay safe out there. And kid..." He stopped and turned to face Keichi. "Watch yourself. Okay?" He opened the door and left, followed by his teammates; the door slammed shut behind them, leaving Melanie with Keichi, the miko and the weight of her sins.

"Sorry... guess I got a little carried away." Melanie's anger faded as she slumped back against the desk and heaved a heavy sigh. "God... I hate them already, and they didn't even do anything wrong!" She clutched her chest and tried to calm herself down; Keichi sat in front of her and locked eyes with her. He was pale, his hair messy and unwashed. Dark circles adorned his eyes. "Kei... You've been through a lot, huh?"

"So have you." Keichi had a way with words, but he wasn't direct. "I lost just one friend. My neighbour and childhood friend, Mary. She was one of us: a Sweeper. Just up and vanished one night. I couldn't save her." He grimaced as he balled his hands into fists. "Her parents... didn't turn up either. Whole household just went missing." He rolled his shoulders back as he forced a smile. "I don't know what happened, but... I wanna find out the truth."

"Oh... So that's what you're after." Melanie threw her head back and laughed. People went missing all over the place! "Tama's Tama, Keichi. you know that!" She hopped off the desk and plopped down on the chair next to him. "Life goes on, and death waits for us all." She glanced back at the miko; the young woman was busy on her cell phone, and didn't seem to be listening in on them. "How's Nighty Knight, by the way?"

"Oh, Nana? She's good. Um... you two should meet up again sometime! You haven't hung out in months, and I'm sure she'd love to see you." Keichi shifted in his seat as she changed the subject; Melanie chose to ignore that tell for the time being. "Look, um... do you have a place in mind for us to start? I know we're outsiders and all, but we want to help. Really." Melanie could see the determination in his eyes; she wished she felt it too.

"Dockside." Melanie clapped her hands together as she rose to her feet and stood at attention. "Me and mine will stick to the residential areas. You and yours can clear out the industrial side of Third." She glanced back at the miko. "The new Central representative will coordinate things for us! Won't you..."

"It's Karen." The miko directed her introduction to Keichi, to help Melanie save face. "Nice to meet you!" She beamed at him and bowed her head. "And um, Melanie? Are you sure that's wise? Dividing our forces like that?"

"Hell yeah!" Melanie giggled as she slung her backpack over her shoulder and made for the door. "Think about it: we'll be doubling the coverage. Plus, our district's mercs are amazing. Oh, and we're already familiar with the residential areas. And the industrial ones are safer for the outsiders." She paused in front of the door and stared at her reflection. She hated who she saw in that mirror. "Besides, if we gotta fight... maybe it'd be easier not to get in each other's way."

"Alright." Karen bowed her head in acquiescence. "I'll let Central know. I'll contact you if they have any issues." Melanie nodded before she turned the doorknob and left the room.

"Well... Guess it's time to sweep some streets!" Keichi proclaimed as he made for the exit; he grabbed his bag from a coat hanger and offered a lazy wave to Karen as he made his way out. "That went better than I expected." He called, not bothering to turn his head.

"Y-yeah..." Karen closed her eyes and focused on her breathing; that wasn't how she imagined her first official task as Central's proxy would go. She was a liaison, an information broker for the Sweepers; she didn't know what to expect, but it certainly wasn't that! She pulled her cell phone from her pocket and looked over her messages; there were new reports from across the city about attacks and Otherside creatures on the loose.

"Alright." She muttered as she flipped through the data. "So far so good. Gotta keep people informed though." She shook her head as she dialed in a number on her cell phone. "Hi Yuki. Yeah, I met with your 'away team.' Uh..." Karen winced as she held her phone away from her ear. Yuki had a temper on her, and it was never more apparent than in this moment. "Yeah. Okay. I'll do that! Fine! See you later!" She ended the call and set her phone down on her desk before she buried her face in her hands and took deep breaths. "This is not how I expected things to go at all."

Chapter 14

"Fuck, I need a smoke." Taz cursed under her breath as she hobbled into the compound and flopped into her seat. "What'd I miss?" She shouted in the direction of the fridge, knowing full well Higgs would be hiding out there; they kept their beer stocked there. She was tired, and her frustration was bubbling up to the surface. She didn't like drinking on the job, but today was an exception.

"You're the one who's always saying we can't smoke here." He hummed as he passed her a bottle. "The kid came up with some fresh new horror. Honestly, I don't want to know how his mind works. But it turns a profit, you know?" Higgs settled into his chair and winced at the sound of static from the surveillance system; he slid back in his seat and put his feet up on his desk. "Anyways, he's got some big plan in motion and wants to show it off to the head honchos tomorrow."

"Oh?" Taz uncorked the bottle and took a swig; the chill burned down her throat and warmed her stomach. It tasted good after a long night of running errands. "This have anything to do with our little guest? He was working on her when I left." She cast a lazy glance over her shoulder at the cameras. A blonde girl was asleep inside some cell, curled up into a ball in a corner. It didn't look like she had been fed, given fresh clothes, or treated with respect since she was dragged in the night before.

"Maybe." Higgs shrugged as he spun his chair around and checked on the monitors; it looked like she hadn't budged an inch since she arrived. "Hey, the kid said she's got a 'magical' something in her body." He made quotation marks with his fingers and giggled. "He wants to study. That's why we brought her in. Thoughts?" He knew his partner well enough to know that she had misgivings about this. Frankly, he did too; something didn't feel right about the whole scenario.

"Yeah. I've been known to think from time to time." Lately, their targets have been getting younger. She didn't like that. And he started targeting whole families, workers, white-collar folks just looking to make a living. She didn't care for that either. But she got paid to run ops, not to ask questions. "I think he's insane. I think 'magic,' as he put it, is a load of bullshit. Whatever tech she got jabbed with is probably some black-site secret from one of our many competitors. Or it's nothing at all and he's fucking with us." Taz shook her head as she downed her drink and set the bottle aside. "Whichever way the pendulum swings, he's crazy."

"Sure is!" Higgs guffawed as he turned back to face his partner; his shit-eating grin irked her even more. "But the pay's good! We're all crazy here! And not in the cute way!" Higgs had no desire to live forever: he was a devout nihilist. If the afterlife existed, he'd be happy to have an eternity with nothing to do but numb his senses and wait for his mind to dissolve. "Besides, we're almost done! I bet when this is all over, we'll get paid handsomely! Then we can retire, buy some land in the middle of nowhere and grow old together. Won't that be nice?"

She hated his sense of humour. "Don't make me call HR. Or kick your ass." Taz groaned as she rose from her seat and marched towards their fridge; Higgs said nothing as he watched her select another bottle from their stash and make for the door. "I'm gonna hit the hay. G'night."

"See you tomorrow!" Higgs chirped as he swiveled in his seat to face the monitors again. "Time to drown out the voices in my head!" He called out, hoping Taz was still within earshot; she wasn't, but that didn't stop him from rattling off some half-joke-half-confessions about the horrors of his mental state. He couldn't see himself aging and dying; a bullet in the brain or a knife through his skull would be preferable to a life spent waiting for the reaper.

"Hm..." He studied their sleeping guest one final time before he cracked open a beer and returned to his work. The green light of his computer monitors cast a gloomy pallor over his face; shadows danced across his features as he typed away on his keyboard. There was more to this girl than meets the eye; it was a shame Higgs couldn't pry her secrets loose. "Ah, fuck it." Nothing he did mattered, right? So it wouldn't matter if he brought her a decent meal, a book to read, and a blanket. "Might as well enjoy our hospitality." He rose to act on the impulse.

Higgs had no regrets.

Chapter 15

"We're gonna die." One of her schoolmates muttered those words as he tore through his burger. "You heard about Fourth District, yeah?" He scoffed and gulped down a soda; his friends laughed nervously as they listened to him. "Things are falling apart out there, man. The rumours are true!"

"We'll be fine." Nana insisted, her face a stoic facade for their benefit. "Besides, you've got the rumours mixed up. Fourth District is doing just peachy." She wasn't lying; the 'rumours' were about the Sweepers disappearing from Third District. "As for Third District..." Nana winced as she recalled that conversation. "Well, I'll let you guys decide for yourselves. But I'm telling you: things are gonna work out just fine." Her words were insincere: the Sweepers in Third were losing the fight against the Othersiders, and kids with good Sight were a rare commodity. Nana didn't want to worry them; she wished she could do something for them, but she wasn't exactly a people person.

"Man..." A girl with braided pigtails sighed as she took a sip of her coke and gazed at her plate of food. "I mean, when I asked my parents to buy me a yumi bow, I never expected that I'd be using it to hunt monsters after school." Her name was Tomoe, and she was the shy, timid type from across town who'd rather bury her face in books than risk her neck in combat. "I miss it when it was just creepy noises and glowing eyes at night. I miss when archery was just a silly hobby. I miss not being able to sleep because of those, um..."

"Noroi?" Nana finished Tomoe's sentence as she looked at each of her friends; they all nodded and went quiet for a few seconds. "We're in it now though, aren't we?" Nana gave a weak chuckle as she finished off her burger. "We can't let our fear get to us. Besides, you're a much better shot than me!" Nana favoured the halberd, but her magic let her conjure any armament. Thus, it paid to dabble in a bit of everything. "We'll get through this. You'll see." She didn't know if they believed her, but they were all too hungry to speak up. "Anyways, I'll be going on ahead. Bye-bye." Nana flashed them the peace sign and ran off; they watched her leave before they turned back to their lunches.

It was a Saturday, which meant she could spend the whole day putting her life in danger if she felt like it. And, given Mary's disappearance, she did feel like it. So she hustled off to keep Tama's sins at bay. "Let's get this over with." She muttered before the brilliant flash of light heralded her transformation. Nighty Knight was ready to save the day!

"No Noroi." She mused as she leapt from building to building and made her way towards her destination; the Othersiders were being unusually active nearby, so she had to find where they were and root them out. "Huh... Doesn't seem like there are any problems in our area." Nana was beginning to lose hope when she spotted the shadows in the distance. They were hard to see in the dim light, but they were definitely there: looming over someone like a predator stalking its prey.

She landed in the alleyway with a thud; her heavy armour echoed as she stomped forward and twirled her halberd into a battle stance. "Mind if I 'cut' in?" Oh god. She hated the quips that seemed to come with the transformation. Those were terrible, even by her standards. "Leave this innocent alone!" She pointed her halberd at the shadow; it hissed at her before it rushed forward with surprising speed.

It looked like a human, but it was cloaked in shadowy vapours; the air around it smelled sour, like rotten eggs and spoiled meat. She stepped out of the way as it lurched at her; its fist sank into a dumpster before it yanked its hand free and recoiled away from her. Nana knew humans were at a disadvantage when fighting an Othersider: they were tougher, stronger and faster. They also seemed to have preternatural senses. She sized up the enemy; it lacked the cold cunning of that mystery beast from the prior night. No, this was likely a standard Tsukaima with a bipedal configuration.

She swung her halberd in a wide arc and sliced through the shadowy cloak surrounding her foe; a mass of tentacles spilled forth from its body and slammed into her, forcing Nana onto the defensive as she batted them away and stepped back from the monstrosity. "You won't win!" She swore as she conjured a shield from the air and blocked its next flurry of blows; she was outmatched in speed and size, but she was armed to the teeth. She smirked as she began to swing her weapon in earnest; it howled as she slashed it in half and decapitated it. "And, done."

The body dissipated into mist as she walked over to the would-be victim; he was a university student, judging by his bookbag. He looked rather shaken up by the encounter. "Thanks. Just... mind giving me a sec to gather my things?" He was shaking, but he still had some wits about him. Nana nodded her head as she watched him kneel down and stuff his belongings into his backpack. "What was that? I suddenly felt so... cold. And then you came, twirling that axe around and..." He zipped his bag shut and glanced up at her. "Does this happen often?"

"More often than you think." She sighed and leaned against her weapon. "But don't worry about it. You'll be safe from here on out. Just be careful not to be out after dark." He nodded his head and hurried out of the alley; Nighty Knight felt proud of herself. Soon enough, he'd forget all about the encounter; the Otherside was like that. "Not a bad night!" She chirped as she surveyed her surroundings. Something was off, she could feel it...

A pinprick of heat ignited on her back as she turned around and saw three more figures emerging from the darkness. She could tell right away that these weren't Tsukaima; they were hulking beasts, nearly three meters tall and all muscle. They had bestial maws and shaggy manes, with wolf-like faces and leathery skin. These Othersiders were Youma. And they were charging towards her with murder in their eyes!

"Holy crackers." Nana screamed as they collided with her shield; the sheer force of the impact sent her tumbling across the pavement, and the shield shattered on impact. She gasped as she rolled with the fall and leapt back into the fray; her halberd swished through the air as she deflected their attacks and danced with the three monsters. They were slow, but their claws and fangs were sharp enough to chew through steel!

"No... Not like this!" Nana gritted her teeth as she backed away from them; her legs burned and her muscles ached as she poured her magic into her movements. "You're not taking me down tonight!" She released her armour and switched to the longbow. Speed and reach were all she needed. She ducked and dodged their attacks as she fired at their heads and chests; each shot left a trail of moonlight in its wake as she battered them back with her spectral arrows.

It took quite a while and a lot of mana, but she eventually managed to fell one of them. "Gotcha!" she hopped on top of one and rammed her arrow into its neck; the Youma went limp under her as she rolled off its carcass and limped back to the closest wall. "Just two more, huh? I can handle this!" Her vision swam as she conjured a spear. The projectiles took a toll on her reserves, so she'd have to finish them off the old-fashioned way! "Come at me!"

The second Youma snarled as it ran towards her, its paws slamming against the concrete in heavy, thunderous steps; Nana clenched her jaw and waited for it to get within range. "Here we go!" She leapt into the air and slashed its chest with her spear before it could collide with her. A shower of blood sprayed from its wound as the monster wheezed in pain and collapsed before her; she planted her feet on its corpse and charged at the remaining Youma, intent on finishing this fight with style!

The Youma was wise to her tricks though; it dodged her charge and tackled her from the side, sending them both tumbling across the concrete. "Crap!" Nana hissed out as she switched to a curved dagger and rolled away from its claws; she pushed herself up on one knee and swung her blade at its exposed neck, aiming to end the battle in one final strike.

"Welp. I guess that's that." Nana flopped back onto the ground as the Youma's corpse sank into a puddle of tar and faded away. "Fuck." She knew she was pushing her limits; the dagger dropped from her hand as she rose to her feet. She still had to clear the rest of this district before dawn broke, and that wouldn't be easy in her current state. "Now then, where to next?" She hopped back onto the rooftops and bounded across town; she needed to focus on the mission, if only to ignore the weariness that consumed her mind. "Looks like things have quieted down tonight. Well then! That makes one less thing to worry about!" She had to report what happened to Central; if word got out about Youma appearing in any District, they liked to be kept informed. Map it out, look for patterns. Three at the same time? That was too many for a coincidence.

Nana was no expert on Otherside monsters, but she didn't think it was a coincidence that the Youma infestation increased during the Sweeper shortage. Something was behind these developments: something sinister, malevolent, and possibly intelligent. "I don't like this." Nana sighed as she turned around and made for home. But who was it? And what did they want? What was their goal? Was there someone pulling the strings from behind the scenes? Someone with ill intentions? Nana had so many questions, yet so little to go on. And as much as she wanted to believe that everything would work itself out, she doubted things would resolve themselves in her lifetime.

She huffed as she surveyed the horizon and planned her next move; maybe it was time to swing by Third District and see how Mel-Belle was faring. Maybe she could grab some curry buns on the way, too! She was famished! "Gotta keep myself busy... Never know when things will go south." Something bad was brewing in Tama. She thought of that PMC she saved, Nowak. Wondered if he was still critical in the hospital. She wanted to call the guy, maybe ask him if he knew anything about Mary's whereabouts. But she didn't think it wise. Besides, what would she even say to him?

It wasn't long before she reached Third District, but when she did, she could see that it was in a sorry state. Sweepers were hunched over and worn out; Central was giving out aid packages to the few kids who stuck around past dusk. And there were Sweepers in other districts who showed up to lend their support too. "Hey Darryl." She jogged up to her mentor and offered him a curt nod; he was chatting with Central's new liaison when he saw her arrive.

"Oh! Hi Nana. Been peepin' out new recruits. This is Karen, by the way. She runs the shrine here." He gestured towards the miko; Karen was a quivering little thing with a pouty face framed by long black hair; her blunt bangs barely reached her eyes; she tilted her head and gave a shy wave. She wore a white hakui and red hakama, and carried a cheap-looking naginata. "Karen, this is Nana! She's a—gosh, I hate saying it out loud!"

"Magical Girl." Karen finished as she bowed her head and smiled at Nana. "Hi there!" The miko's cheeriness set Nana off... she wasn't used to seeing happy shrine maidens. "Anyways, Fifth District is dropping by to lend us a hand! Isn't that nice?" She sounded tired, but her enthusiasm was admirable.

"Sure is." Nana beamed at the pair before she glanced around and scanned the courtyard. "They're all beat though, aren't they?" Nana had nothing but respect for Mel-Belle and her crew, but... "So, how are things? Training newbies yet? Or are you just running our kids from Fifth ragged?"

"We're keeping busy, but not like you. You know somethin'? This little shrine maiden can fight! We gotta swap her out for Yuki. I'm liking this one." Darryl patted Karen on the shoulder as he cracked a smile. "Anyways, you seen anything weird lately? Cus' I can't put my finger on it, but something ain't right." He had a serious look in his eyes as he studied her; Nana didn't like where this was going, so she shrugged and turned away from him.

"Nope." Nana lied with practised ease; her mentor and Central's liaison weren't buying it, but they didn't press her either. Besides, she somehow felt that reporting the Youma trio to Fifth's rep would set Yuki off on another tirade. So it was best to let her know in person once things were resolved. "Well then! Gonna head off. There's still more to do! Don't stay out too late, you hear?" She gave them a jaunty wave as she turned on her heels and skipped off into the night; Darryl watched her leave with a weary sigh and Karen watched her go with a cautious eye.

"She lied to us. Plus, she's exhausted." Karen whispered. "Did you notice?" Her voice was barely audible as she addressed Darryl. "Something's worrying her. Should we be worried too?"

"Of course we should." Darryl rolled his shoulders back and cleared his throat. "But! If she's lying, it means she can still handle it. The real time to panic is when Nana actually thinks something's worth telling us about." He sighed and took a swig of water from his flask; his back ached and his limbs burned from the day's exertion. "We should have coffee, Karen. Do you drink coffee?"

"No. Not really." Karen shook her head as she tucked her hair behind her ear and flashed him a sheepish smile. "But I guess I can make an exception, if you're paying."

"Oh ho! Feisty, aren't we?" Darryl guffawed as he tugged his wallet from his pocket and headed off in search of a cafe; Karen followed him closely as the two Sweepers walked under the starry night sky. They had to trust Nighty Knight to deal with whatever troubled her. But they didn't have to like it.

Chapter 16

"Don't you think it's too early, kid?" Higgs kept his eyes glued to the monitors as they awaited Mr. Hoshino's arrival. Taz pouted as she watched Yoshi pace across the room and fiddle with his tie. He looked good in that suit; despite his youth, he carried himself like an executive. Higgs had no idea how he managed such poise, but he didn't question it. "You're sure about this, huh? Not worried that the 'big boss' won't approve?"

"Mr. Hoshino will love my plan!" Yoshi grinned as he placed his hands behind his back and took slow, deliberate steps towards the doors. The compound was dismal and dreary; its fluorescent lighting did nothing to lift his spirits. The neighbourhood was a shithole, the area was seedy, and the buildings were crumbling apart. This was their 'secret headquarters.' Higgs found the whole thing amusing; Taz just wished Yoshi would leave them out of his machinations. "And don't call me kid. It's bad enough when Taz does, I can't have you doing it too!"

"Yoshi is a kid though." Taz yawned as she lounged on the couch and folded her arms under her head. "We're not gonna start taking you seriously until you grow some facial hair or get your first tattoo. You've got a lot to prove, kiddo!" She flashed him the middle finger and went back to her nap; Higgs cackled in amusement. Yoshi's jaw dropped as he glared at his subordinates, his fists clenched and his face flushed scarlet with indignation.

"I won't miss you when this is all over." Yoshi spat through gritted teeth. "And what's that crap about facial hair, anyways? Why don't you grow a moustache, Taz?" He turned his back to them and walked towards the exit; he needed to keep his head if he wanted to survive this meeting with his dignity intact.

"Pfft." Higgs didn't care one way or another, but the sight of a middle-aged woman trading barbs with an entitled young punk never failed to amuse him. "Smooth, Taz." Higgs chuckled as he moved to sit next to her; she didn't respond to his words. "Rough night, huh?" He set his elbow down on the sofa armrest and rested his chin on his palm; she grumbled and kicked her legs out as she closed her eyes and tried to relax. "I brought her food, you know. Gave her some blankets, a book or two."

"Spare me your morals. Aren't you supposed to be the cold-hearted bastard in this outfit?" Taz retorted as she cracked open an eye and glanced at him. "That kid is fucked in the head, Higgs. And I'm not kidding. I know he says it's for the greater good, but damn it! I'm so sick of hearing people scream for help, beg to be let go, cry over lost loved ones..."

"Tama's Tama." He wouldn't make waves. He didn't care how it ended. But bringing out a blanket or handing someone a beer took no effort. It wasn't like he was getting any less cold-hearted or heartless; he was doing things at his own pace, with no intention of changing his ways. "Honestly, I don't want to live forever, Taz."

"Not this crap again." Taz got up and tried to brush the wrinkles out of her red jacket. "Whatever. Let's head out and play our part. Stand by the kid and make him look good for when the boss's boss arrives." Taz sighed as she strode out the door. Higgs shrugged and followed suit; he'd be glad once all of this was over with. Then he could go home, toss a steak on the grill and watch some dumb movies until he passed out on the couch.

"Sure." The walk was brief, and the silence between them comfortable. Taz hated small talk; she had no idea how Higgs managed to put up with her for so long. He was the closest thing she had to a friend, but she wasn't good at handling those kinds of relationships. "Thinking steaks tonight. Wanna come by and drink with me?"

"Damn. Now I'm hungry too." Taz grumbled as they stepped outside and took their place beside their charge. "All ready, 'sir?'" She addressed Yoshi with exaggerated decorum; he turned to face her as he adjusted his tie.

"Gosh, I hope so." He responded. "But first, a question. Do you... feel anything? Like, something off?" He spoke with a practised cadence, like he had rehearsed these lines for weeks on end; his expression was thoughtful as he looked between his companions. "No wrong answers. Just curious, that's all."

"Hm..." Higgs considered the query before he answered. "Just a sense of foreboding, I guess. But it's been that way ever since you hired us." That was a bit of an exaggeration: Higgs had been feeling off-balance about a week after they moved all that gear into the compound. In the past week or so, it became far worse than ever. "So yeah, nothing too strange." He could feel it more acutely now, though; there was an oppressive weight in the air around them, as if something was bearing down on them with unrelenting force.

"Yeah. Well, it's to be expected." Taz added, thinking about the neighbourhood they hid this lab in. Between the cartels and the rival corporations, this area was crawling with heavy hitters who played rough. "I get goosebumps whenever I have to report in. Working for a little shit like you would grind on anyone's nerves." She did not want to admit it, but this week she felt as though there were eyes on her. A hundred eyes watched her... and a thousand claws reached out.

"Yeah, I'm really not going to miss you when this is all over." She was assigned to him. Competent, creative, well-connected and experienced. But their mutual disdain was becoming a problem. Once he finished his work, they wouldn't need to play this charade anymore. He just had to grit his teeth and bear with her a while longer. "Anyways, the show is about to begin."

Higgs straightened his posture and squared his shoulders; Taz's expression was serious as she crossed her arms over her chest and stood at attention. Their boss arrived: Mr. Hoshino. He was an imposing figure: a man in his mid-fifties with a meticulously groomed beard and a tailored suit. His mere presence exuded an air of menace; there was something about him that struck fear into Higgs' heart. Perhaps it was his soulless, lifeless eyes; perhaps it was the cold-blooded killer hidden beneath his professional demeanor. Higgs wasn't sure, but he couldn't shake the feeling that something was very, very wrong about the situation.

"It's been a while." Hoshino approached Yoshi and placed a hand on his shoulder. "You're looking well, son." His tone was polite as he offered the boy a warm smile; Yoshi shifted under his gaze, like a child caught in the middle of mischief. "So, what have you been working on? Anything good?" Hoshino knew Yoshi well enough to guess that this would be important; his tone was light, but his mind raced through possible outcomes.

"Too long, father." The kid responded, gesturing towards the compound. "I plan to revolutionize private security and corporate espionage overnight. So I'd say I've been doing quite well." Yoshi met his gaze head-on as he locked his arms behind his back and squared his shoulders; the old man recognized the pride in his son's tone and his smile faltered for a brief instant.

It was in those moments, overcome by passion and a love for science, that Yoshi's green eyes and winsome smile reminded the older man of the boy's mother. His heart felt heavy as he pushed those thoughts from his mind. He had work to do; family was secondary to the pursuit of profit. "Then please, entertain me."

Chapter 17

"Alright, bit of a false start. But we're getting back on track, lads!" Kam chuckled as the Third District Sweepers patrolled. They weren't having much luck: just one measly Noroi on their way into the residential district, and that was it. "Don't sweat it though! We'll find something sooner or later!" Kam preferred not to let things get to him; life was easier that way, and he enjoyed an easy life!

"Maybe we should split up." John sighed and shook his head as he tried to focus on the task at hand; Kam was being obnoxious, and it was starting to wear on him. "I'll head west with Felipe. You guys take east." The other Sweepers were shocked by his proposal: they lost almost a dozen people just a couple days back. "What? It'll cover more ground. And the Antaeus security teams are handling things on the docks, right? So it should be fine."

"You guys don't feel that?" Felipe fiddled with his knife as he looked around. "Like... there's something watching us?" The others raised an eyebrow as Felipe shivered and forced a smile. "My spidey-sense is tingling." Ricky groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head. Felipe was superstitious: he saw omens in everything and his nerves were fraught with anxiety and paranoia. Still, there was definitely a new kind of tension in the air. Dilute, yet omnipresent, like a million small things.

"Maybe it's just all the fucking cameras, bruh." The PMCs were thorough. Kam's smile faltered as he marched along the road; he couldn't see the cameras, but he knew they were there. "It's fine! They're helping us out." He didn't trust them though. "Look, let's head north. There's more trouble up there." John nodded his head and followed Kam down a side street. "And hey, if we run into trouble? We can always call for help!" Felipe and Ricky trailed behind him, their shoulders tense and their minds alert. "It'll be fine, boys. Honest!"

Melanie had brushed them off—something about a talent show the next day. They had her number, but they knew better than to bug her unless they needed her. A loud commotion interrupted their thoughts; Kam peered around the corner and spied a crowd of people gathered in front of an apartment building. "Check it out, boys." He whispered as he turned down another street. "Something's going on..." Kam had a bad feeling about this, but he wasn't one to abandon others in need. "Best get in position, you know?"

Kam hung back as Felipe and Ricky led the way towards the building; there was sound coming from inside. Screaming, and shouting. It didn't sound like the usual gangster shit though. Kam couldn't make heads or tails of it, but he knew it wasn't a random shootout; there was an air of desperation in those voices, something wild and chaotic. Something otherworldly, Ricky wondered as the Sweepers stormed into the lobby; their weapons were drawn and their bodies taut with tension. They weren't ready for what came next.

The walls were painted with blood; it was smeared across the floor, splattered across the ceiling by something very tangible and very pissed. A creature they had never seen before, all sharp angles and twisting appendages, tore through a body as the Sweepers arrived; the cacophony of screams grew louder as it looked at them and snarled. "S-Shit! Not an Othersider." They were in way over their heads, but the Sweepers weren't about to back down. "Steady there, lads! Steady..."

Heavy boots clacked against the tile as men in masks moved towards them; Kam thought nothing of it until one of the newcomers opened fire on the monster. "Stand back!" Bullets slammed into its skull; the creature screeched as it recoiled from the blow and staggered back onto its haunches. It lunged at them, but before it could reach its targets, more rounds tore through its torso; it crashed to the floor with a pained howl. "Clear!" One of the masked men barked as he lowered his weapon and stared at them.

"Are you hurt, kids?" The masked men surrounded them; Kam had never seen their uniforms before. "We're with Antaeus Conglomerate Private Security Services." Their voices were distorted by the masks they wore, but their tone was polite enough. Kam studied their uniforms for a moment: they were all wearing dark bodysuits, complete with full-face masks that obscured their features. They weren't armed with standard-issue firearms either; Kam couldn't tell what they were packing, but he knew they were overkill. "Just routine patrol."

"Ah... okay." Kam relaxed as he looked at the others; Felipe and Ricky were still shaking in their boots, but they didn't seem injured. "What... What happened here? Who was that monster?" He didn't want to push his luck, but he figured it was a fair question. "Did you kill it?" The masked men didn't reply; instead, they kept their guns trained on Kam and the others as they reached for their radios.

"Delta 09-2, the area is clear." This whole situation was weird. They watched the heavily armed men in the nondescript masks bag the monster and comfort the family; they were oddly efficient for mercenaries. Kam's mind raced through different possibilities: these guys weren't your standard rent-a-cops. "How's Beta 02 doing? Any casualties?" Kam tried not to stare, but it was difficult; there was something unnerving about these strangers. Something uncanny... "Kids, clear out. We'll handle this. Tama's... Tama." Kam raised an eyebrow; their stance was confident, yet their speech was restrained and guarded. These people were professionals, not yakuza thugs.

"Right... Sorry for causing trouble." Kam bowed his head and gestured towards his crew; Felipe and Ricky hesitated before they turned to follow him. "Thanks for taking care of it." Kam flashed them a smile as he made for the exit; Felipe and Ricky tried to hide their discomfort, but it was a struggle for them to remain calm. "No need to worry! Just gotta stay focused on our job!"

"Right..." Felipe mumbled as he fell in line behind Kam. They walked a few blocks before they stopped; Kam took a deep breath as he studied the street around him. "What was that?" Felipe felt faint; the tension was slowly draining from his body, but his heartbeat refused to slow down. That feeling again, foreign but familiar... It wasn't the Otherside's malice, yet it was akin to the odious aura of their foes. "Man..." Felipe sucked in another lungful of air and tried to steady himself. "Let's find something to smash. I'm on edge."

"Don't think it'll be easy, man." John grumbled as he leaned against a lamp post and rubbed his temples. "It seems like everywhere we go tonight, those fucking mercs are already on top of it." He didn't like this one bit: not the mercenaries' efficiency, or the monsters' timing. It was as if someone planned this out!

"We've had a drop in incidents lately." A sharp one! John grimaced and looked up at Kam; the older Sweeper was deep in thought as he tapped his foot and pondered their options. "Think it's those mercs that dropped in last week? Maybe they're doing their jobs?" The Antaeus PMCs were in the neighbourhood to monitor the local gangs, and maybe protect corporate assets. "Still..." Kam glanced back at the apartment complex; the masked men were carrying out their duties with an unnatural degree of skill.

A peel of gunfire from down the road stole their attention; the Sweepers shared a grim look before they took off running towards the commotion. John hissed as he and his friends rounded a corner; a fight between an Antaeus security team and some street thugs had ended in three young punks face-down and bleeding on the pavement. Kam noted that one of the goons was holding a silver pistol , a weapon too expensive for his ilk. "Clear the area, kids. Don't you have schoolwork or something?" The mercenary captain turned to face them; he seemed unconcerned by the Sweepers' arrival.

"Yep. Have a good night." Kam smiled and waved as he led his crew away from the scene; the mercenaries were quick to finish up with their business; they weren't taking prisoners. Kam's smile faltered as he listened to the muffled shots ring out behind him; the gunmen were efficient, even ruthless. "What is this shit, guys?" Something felt off. Kam let out a long sigh as he cast a worried glance over his shoulder; they were heading towards another disturbance, albeit much quieter than the others. "Looks like a normal Noroi this time." He muttered as they saw a pair of the shadowy monster. "Finally, something they can't handle." Kam chuckled as he twirled his billy club in his hand; the Otherside's nightmares were a foe beyond even the most seasoned soldier, by virtue of being undetectable to adults. "Go time!"

The Sweepers charged at the pair of Noroi; they moved in unison, like a pack of wolves descending upon their prey. Their first strike caught one of the monsters unawares, sending it reeling from the blow; Kam leapt towards it and threw his billy club at its head. "Gotcha!" He grinned as the monster shrieked and buckled under the blow; Felipe and Ricky smashed its back with their steel bars before John cracked its skull with his baseball bat.

"Heh." Kam couldn't help but laugh; they'd taken the first one down in seconds. It was an easy fight. "Why is everything so quiet tonight? Everything seems like a breeze lately." He scooped up his club and turned towards his teammates; their backs were to him as they eyed the second Noroi; Kam watched as the bastard slid between them and began to flee. "Hey!"

"Shit!" Felipe cursed as he stabbed the little creature through the back; it howled in agony before it dissipated into mist and vanished from sight. "Because the real problems are still being handled by grown-ups." The Antaeus security forces seemed to be everywhere, and the Sweepers were nowhere near done with their patrol. "I think we should just head home for tonight." They were tired and dejected; Kam frowned and shook his head in response.

"Not a chance." It was an easy patrol. The PMCs cracked down hard on crime, and the Othersiders had become increasingly rare. Why did things feel so tense, then? "Let's just finish our sweep. Things have gotten better lately! Isn't that what we all wanted? An easier life?" Kam didn't like their defeated expressions; he could tell that something was weighing on their minds, but he wasn't about to press the issue.

"Sure." John's tone was dry and impatient as he stomped down the road and surveyed the streets for signs of trouble. It started with a chill, like the warmth of life draining from their bodies. Then a stifling oppression, as if the air itself was smothering them; Kam shuddered as the hairs on his neck stood on end. "That's not a Noroi..." John stopped in his tracks and turned to face the other Sweepers; his skin was pale and his hands were trembling. "Is it one of those Tsukaima?"

"Did Central warn us about this?" Kam's blood ran cold as he tried to recall the briefing; the Noroi and Tsukaima weren't terribly dangerous on their own, but they were only the beginning of Tama's woes. The Youma were worse, but thankfully rare. And then there were those creatures with a human form that struck terror into the hearts of Sweepers and gangsters alike. Kam gulped as he recalled the reports of a monster on the loose the prior week: one of those Othersiders was roaming the streets! He checked his messages. "Shit, reception's out!"

"Not that I know of." Felipe's grip tightened on his knife; he had a sinking feeling in his gut that they were in over their heads. "You feel it too, Kam?" He couldn't ignore that overwhelming sensation of dread. "Something's—" There was a hollow thud as Felipe's head hit the ground and everything went black. Ricky dropped to his knees and reached out to drag his unconscious friend to safety. Kam's vision swam as he tried to suss out the threat; there was someone standing across the street from them: tall and lean, with piercing yellow eyes. He was cloaked in shadows and his body warped like mist, but Kam could see him clearly enough.

"The fuck..." Kam winced as pain flared through his skull; his head spun and his vision blurred as he fought to keep his bearings. "Ricky, grab Felipe and run." Kam wheezed as he rose to his feet and brandished his billy club; John doubled over and vomited as Ricky tugged Felipe behind a car and tried to hide.

The thing before them looked human; its face was inhuman though: a deathly visage that lacked a proper mouth, nose or ears. Its body rippled and flowed like smoke, yet its movements were oddly stiff and robotic. Its voice was a twisted parody of speech! Kam shuddered as it spoke, a disjointed series of sounds and grunts that defied comprehension. As if a hundred anguished screams clashed with a hundred euphoric cries.

Chapter 18

"We're glad to have you here, father." Yoshi fiddled with his tie as he led Hoshino deeper into the compound. "So, is there anything in particular you want to know about our research?" His heart fluttered in his chest; there was an unusual confidence in his stride as he headed towards the elevator; Hoshino was impressed by his son's poise, and surprised that he could talk business without stumbling over his words.

"Just give me a rundown." Hoshino was an intimating figure who knew his size alone commanded respect. They walked past rows of workstations and racks of equipment that Hoshino couldn't name. Each station had monitors and screens displaying graphs and charts, and the whiteboard walls were covered with formulas and calculations. The air smelled of chemicals and cleaning solution, and there were workers moving about in lab coats and scrubs. "What have you been up to these days?"

"Well, we're working on a few things! High-tech security, augmented weapons and armour, specialized consumables for the military, biomedical, software engineering..." Yoshi listed off each project with a prideful grin; he felt lighter than ever, as if his whole body was weightless. "Nothing too crazy though, nothing that would bring unwanted attention. We want to be seen as a credible research firm, not a mad scientist's lair." The boy had inherited his mother's stubbornness, which was both a blessing and a curse. And her love for the sciences, her flair for drama, her lovely green eyes... "Mr. Hoshino?"

"Indeed. Please continue." Hoshino cleared his throat and shook those thoughts from his head; Yoshi's enthusiasm was contagious, but Hoshino was all too aware that his son was prone to fits of childish whimsy. Something felt wrong about the whole situation, like the air was too heavy, too stagnant. Like the earth itself was pressing down on him. "I'm listening." He assured Yoshi as they reached the elevator.

"This is where my main focus lies." Yoshi explained as they stepped onto the lift; Taz and Higgs followed behind them, their shoulders hunched and their gazes wary. The sense of unease was growing stronger now; Hoshino could smell something odd: a sharp scent, like burning ozone or melting plastic. Yoshi could see that Mr. Hoshino's demeanor had changed. "Father?" It was like a switch flipped in his head; his whole body tensed, and his eyes lost their spark. "Is everything alright?"

"Mm." Hoshino nodded his head as Yoshi pressed the button for the sub-basement level. "Continue, please." He didn't like this. It was familiar yet strange; it was subtle yet undeniable. The air around them felt dense, like it was bearing down on him with unseen force.

"Well." Yoshi paused for dramatic effect. "You know about the Sweepers, right?" He'd been obsessed with them as a child. "With them and their little monsters?"

"Sweepers, hm?" Hoshino could tell where this was going; he narrowed his eyes as he glared at his son. "This shit again?" All that money spent on psychologists and therapists, all those years spent trying to guide him towards a stable lifestyle... Hoshino thought the boy had moved on! "I thought you got over this?"

"They're real." Yoshi stated as if it were fact; there was no doubt in his tone and his voice didn't waver. "But fine—let's put that on the backburner." A different approach then! He knew better than to push his father too hard; Mr. Hoshino was not a man to be trifled with. "You've seen the numbers. More people go missing than can be explained by gang violence or drugs." People who disappeared without leaving a single trace behind; it was as if they were spirited away. "Remember the census we dumped millions into?" Hoshino gave him a noncommittal grunt in reply; Yoshi took it as a sign to keep going. "We tracked every player in Tama, big and small, legal and otherwise. Just observation, no intervention. And do you know what we found?"

"Of course I know, you idiot!" The revelation had come as a surprise to everyone involved. "That people go 'missing' ALL the time! So fucking what? People are getting kidnapped, murdered, trafficked..." Yet their census was thorough. They had video feed of every road, street corner and back alleyway, thermal cameras placed in key locations, satellite footage for remote areas, and a comprehensive list of places people frequented. Bodies would vanish, or get torn apart by nothing at all... yet viewers didn't seem to react to the incidents at all! It was as if they weren't there!

"I posit that there must be another party involved." The elevator doors opened and Yoshi led Hoshino out into the sub-basement level. "Capable of manipulating mass perception." It was frustrating to coat his firsthand knowledge of the Otherside in layers of scientific jargon; Yoshi knew that 'magic' was real! The closest thing he had to peers were Sweepers and Central, and they weren't exactly receptive to new ideas. "I have a theory, but that's not important."

"This better be good." Hoshino gritted his teeth as he followed Yoshi down a brightly lit hallway lined with cells on either side; the walls were made of reinforced steel and the ceilings were covered with pipes and conduits. "We're investing in this fool's errand because of a hunch? I didn't take you for a gambler!" His patience was wearing thin; he'd never admit it aloud, but the idea of magic and monsters made his skin crawl.

Yoshi offered a sad smile. After all, they just crossed one of the only occupied cells in the hall: an Othersider Mel-Belle managed to wrangle up last week, when their unsteady alliance first formed. A creature with four long tentacles sprouting from its back, with two more on its face acting as arms; a large mouth filled with teeth dominated its head, and its tiny eyes sat above its slimy nose. Yet Taz, Higgs, and Mr. Hoshino passed it by without even noticing it; it howled and rattled its cell door, but its efforts were futile. "It's a long shot, sure. But that's what research is all about! Discovery!" Yoshi was unperturbed by the thing's cries; his voice was calm and steady as he looked at his father and flashed him another winning smile.

Higgs and Taz were unnerved; it was impossible for Hoshino to miss their discomfort. The pair's eyes darted left and right, their hands twitched like they were desperate to reach for their guns... This was wrong. Terribly wrong! A pit formed in Hoshino's gut as he followed Yoshi further into the basement; he could feel it now, a tingling sensation, like a phantom limb. He didn't like this one bit.

"Well, I think it's best I show you our discoveries firsthand." Yoshi gestured towards the door at the end of the corridor; they came to a halt and waited for their escorts to catch up. "I know it's a lot to take in." Yoshi sounded worried; his voice quivered as he spoke. "But trust me! Please, father... Have I ever lied to you before?"

"Never." Yoshi always followed through on his word, even when things went sideways; he had a determination and sense of duty that Hoshino knew would one day land him in hot water. "But just because you don't lie doesn't mean you don't hide shit." The kid's mind was a damn mystery; he was an open book, yet he kept secrets that even Hoshino couldn't pry loose from him! His innovations were half-formed memories from dreams, his research built off inferences from theories... "It's fine." Hoshino would never understand him.

"In here, father." Yoshi smiled as he scanned his hand and pushed open the door; Taz and Higgs squeezed past him and walked in first. "Please, watch your step."

Chapter 19

Melanie gasped as she woke; her eyes snapped open and she lurched forward, her fingers digging into her mattress. She tried to breathe, but the air refused to enter her lungs; she blinked and struggled to adjust her eyes to the darkness. She was home. It was late at night. "Another nightmare." She groaned as she flopped back down and stared at the ceiling. The images were still fresh in her mind: a bloodstained street corner, a hole in a girl's chest, a lonesome park bench... The sights and sounds of death and despair. "Another bad omen." Melanie frowned as she wiped the tears from her cheeks and ran her fingers through her hair; something was wrong. She could feel it in her bones!

Melanie reached for her phone and flipped through missed messages from Central; Sweepers in the area were reporting a lack of activity, while others were complaining about a severe increase in PMCs in the streets! Her friends were late to report in, too. "What's going on?" She leapt from her bed and tore through her drawers; she threw on her pajamas and shoved her feet into her boots, though she was too far to be of any assistance. She called Kam's number: there was no reception on his end. She had no idea how bad things were.

Meanwhile, on a quiet Third District street, her friends were fighting for their lives.

It happened so fast. That vague, omnipresent sense of dread that had been looming over them burst forth, surging through the area like a malignant haze. Its tendrils darted across the pavement and carved out a bloody path in their wake; its murderous intent hung over them like a thunderstorm brewing above their heads. This wasn't a typical Othersider! Noroi were hard to detect, but weak. Tsukaima were easy to spot if you knew what to look out for. And Youma could not conceal that overwhelming sense of dread before they attacked; it was like a searing needle in your spine, a flash of warning that signaled impending death!

Kam grit his teeth as he wrenched a manhole cover from the street and hurled it at their enemy, only for it to bounce off a wall of shadow and come crashing down. He wasn't ready for this kind of confrontation: the overwhelming strength of this monstrous being. Even in Tama's prime, when over a dozen magical girls roamed its streets, this would have been a challenge. "Fuck it." Kam braced himself as he steeled his nerve and charged at their adversary.

The mysterious figure was barely visible in the dim lights of the alleyway; it shifted in form and density like a living shadow, with slender limbs that stretched outwards as it prepared to attack again. The only thing Kam could make out was its two glowing eyes. He swung at the Othersider's neck, hoping to end this conflict with a single blow, but it raised its arm and blocked his swing. Kam jabbed at its solar plexus with his club; the creature hissed and backhanded him with enough force to dislocate his arm from its socket. Kam screamed as he kicked at its feet and forced it off balance. He wasn't sure if it was the adrenaline pumping through his veins or if it was fear that gave him the strength to do it, but he managed to buy a reprieve.

The thing's attacks were clumsy, but it moved with preternatural speed and strength. It adapted, too: Kam had no trouble avoiding its punches and kicks, but it kept finding new ways to block his own strikes! He had never been in this kind of fight before! John seemed frozen with indecision and nausea; Felipe was out of commission—Ricky managed to hide him, but he wasn't waking up. Kam doubted he could take this thing on alone! More daunting than all were the noises that thing made. Was it laughing at them? No, those weren't human sounds: they were the inhuman roars of a predator tearing its prey apart.

Kam roared as he leapt back and dropped into a defensive stance; this was no Tsukaima, this was something far worse. His first ever Tsukaima had been a walking mountain of muscle; it lumbered across the ground in thunderous steps as it knocked over lamp posts and crushed cars beneath its feet. He remembered being in awe of its strength; he remembered how it manhandled him before it could be brought down by Milkyway. This thing was more than a match for that monster! "F-fuck..." He struggled to breathe; the air around it reeked of sour milk and decay.

"Take your friends to a hospital." With supernatural speed and ethereal grace, a Magical Girl leapt between the Sweepers and the thing, shielding Kam from its attacks. Pieces of silver armour and sapphire gems adorned her battle-ready form. She held a shield and an elegant rapier in hand; her long black hair billowed behind her as she landed in front of her foe. She was a sight to behold; the last bastion between Kam and certain death!

"D-do you need backup?" Kam was not optimistic, but he had to try! "I... I can help!" He didn't recognize this girl, but she seemed calm and collected. She had to be someone from Fifth District. "Please!"

"Somehow, I'll manage. Look after your friends." The girl flashed him a neutral glance before she snapped back to the task at hand. "This isn't my first rodeo, bud. Now leave! Before it's too late!" The thing lunged at her and she ducked under its attack; her blade sliced through the air and raked its chest with a shallow gash. Kam could not believe his eyes! The thing staggered back as she delivered another slash; this one cut deeper, drawing more blood as the monster howled in pain! The girl didn't slow down, though: her next strike slashed its belly open and sent blood splashing across the concrete; her rapier traced lines of crimson across its abdomen as she carved into it with increasing ferocity! "Go! Now!" She commanded, and Kam complied without hesitation.

"F-f-found you. Found you found you found you." The thing cackled as it wreathed itself in shadows and screamed in a legion of voices. "Found you found you found you!" Its form rippled as it vanished into the darkness and reappeared behind her, its arm extended out for a devastating backhand. Evidently, Nana thought, it had new tricks up its sleeve.

Chapter 20

It was a cramped room with rows of monitors and stations set up at intervals; each desk was equipped with a small printer and a webcam. Taz looked anxious while Higgs seemed bored. "Sorry for the mess." Yoshi apologized as he gestured towards the chaotic arrangement of cables and keyboards; Mr. Hoshino had a high standard of cleanliness that Yoshi did not meet. "We're still working out some bugs with this setup." Hoshino's eyes fell on a discarded beer can on one of the desks. "That's not mine." Yoshi flashed him a nervous smile as he straightened his tie and led him towards the screens on the wall.

"Fine." Hoshino rolled his eyes as he studied the monitors; each one displayed a different camera feed. "What am I looking at?" Hoshino was not sure what Yoshi expected him to do with this information; this was a surveillance room, not a research lab! "Spit it out, son." He tapped his foot on the ground and tried to hide his impatience.

"These are our guests." Yoshi explained as he pulled up the system's menu and adjusted the camera feeds onscreen. "From various labs around Tama Town." Each one was focused on a different subject: a man in a lab coat pacing back and forth in his cell, a woman crying on a cot, a family huddled together in the corner... "Some are experts in their fields. Others are subjects. Others are... insurance?" Yoshi shuddered as he recalled the missing children and kidnapped gangsters that Antaeus used to coerce the black market and underground syndicates into compliance. "We keep them here for observation."

"You're fucking insane." Hoshino spat as he glared at his son. "And you think this will help?" He couldn't believe it! Yoshi was kidnapping people from labs around Tama Town? "What kind of twisted monster are you turning into?" Yoshi looked hurt by his words, but Hoshino couldn't care less. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't call the authorities right now!"

"Because this will make us the ONLY game in town!" Yoshi argued, his voice trembling with a mix of excitement and desperation. "This is it, father! This is the secret to everything!" He pressed a button on the keyboard, and the camera feeds were replaced with live footage from the sub-basement level. "Adults can't see them, which means I can place them anywhere I need them! A private security force that can infiltrate anywhere at any time! Infiltrators, spies, assassins, bodyguards... you name it. What's more: if I can CONTROL them, no more missing people, ever!" His eyes were wide with enthusiasm as he spoke; Hoshino could feel his head spinning.

"Tama's Tama..." Higgs murmured as he stepped away from the monitors and shook his head; Taz seemed unfazed by Yoshi's madness, but Hoshino could see the worry in her eyes. "Can't change that." His tone was lighthearted, but he couldn't hide the tremor in his voice. "I mean, it's crazy, but..." Higgs took a deep breath as he glanced at Yoshi. "It's just crazy enough to work."

"And this is just the beginning! You haven't seen my real work yet, father!" Yoshi clasped his hands together and flashed Hoshino a victorious smile. "I know you have your reservations, but trust me!" A few clacks of the keyboard, and the camera feeds were replaced with footage of a darkened room: the room had been emptied, save for a single figure in the center.

The blonde girl glared up at the camera as her lips curled back in a feral snarl. She was young, maybe a few years younger than Yoshi. Hoshino furrowed his brow as he studied her face; there was something familiar about her eyes. "Oh. She was in the news a few days back." Hoshino recalled a missing persons case: a brilliant researcher and her family went missing under mysterious circumstances. "Is she someone's daughter? Whose child is this?" He couldn't put his finger on it, but he knew he'd seen her before.

"Dr. Kozlova's daughter." Yoshi shrugged. "We wanted her data, which will prove helpful for the next step." As it turned out: her daughter possessed the Sight. Just a happy coincidence. Hoshino eyed the girl as Yoshi explained what was going on; the girl seemed aware of their attention, even though she couldn't see them through the camera. "Mary here... How should I put this..." Yoshi paused for a moment; he searched for the right words. "She can see them, father. And thanks to a bit of gene therapy and some new toys... she can do so much more."

"It's insane." Hoshino blinked in disbelief as he stared at the screens. "Are you sure it's safe? Because... She looks a bit feral, doesn't she?" The girl bared her teeth like an animal; her eyes were wild and her hair was a tangled mess, and there were needle marks down her arms and along her neck. "Is she mentally stable?" Hoshino had seen children suffer in the name of progress, but this was... "You have to stop this, Yoshi!"

"I'm so close!" Yoshi insisted. It was like the universe had aligned with him! The researcher they pinned the incident on earlier that week, the man Melanie captured and planned to interrogate, was an egotistical idiot with a big mouth. He spilled his secrets in exchange for his life. "I swear it: soon, we will become the face of security, biomedical, and... who knows what else! Don't you see? Imagine a PMC branch staffed entirely by invisible agents! We could wipe out terrorists, rival cartels, anyone!" Hoshino didn't know what to say. It sounded like his son was going through with this, no matter what he said or did.

"So... what does she do?" Hoshino cleared his throat and studied the screens. "She's locked up in that room, isn't she?" Mary hadn't moved an inch since the camera switched to her cell; she stood motionless, glaring at the camera with a deep scowl. "Can she even talk?" Hoshino watched her expression; there was an intelligence behind those eyes.

"Turn on audio." Yoshi whispered to Higgs; Higgs complied without question. Mary's voice filled the room: it was hoarse and raspy, as if she hadn't spoken in ages.

"Find them... find them... find them..." Mary's voice was barely intelligible; her words were little more than incoherent growls and sputtering rasps. "I'll find them. I'll..." Hoshino grimaced as Mary broke into a string of broken laughter; she struggled against her restraints as she tried to break free. Yoshi smiled as he patted his father on the shoulder and gestured towards the exit. Mary's shoulders shook as she sobbed and struggled against her restraints; the madness in her eyes sent a chill down Hoshino's spine.

"I'm not done yet. This is just the beginning!" Yoshi assured him as they left the surveillance room. "But I just need a little more time!" He pleaded, his tone heavy with desperation.

Chapter 21

"Found you."

It felt as though time stopped for the Magical Girl as the events leading up to this moment played out in her mind. The motions she made, the words she spoke, the feelings she felt... It was like watching a movie and wishing to turn back the clock.

Nana was beyond tired. She had spent the past few hours wandering from Ninth, through Third, home, and back to Fifth. Exhausted but restless, she fought until her mana reserves ran dry; then she'd retreat to recharge before going back out again. But when she sensed that insidious presence once again, she rushed to its source as quickly as her legs could carry her. It was a fool's errand, but she had to try! She didn't want to lose anyone else to these things!

She saw them: the boy with a manhole cover in his hands and a fire in his eyes; the others, desperate and afraid, clinging to life against impossible odds; she saw the Othersider's arm slice through the air as it ambushed them from the darkness. Nana wasn't sure what she should have expected, but there was no time to hesitate. Her blade sang as she slashed its chest open; her shield reverberated from its counterattack; its rage-filled screams echoed through the night as she carved it apart!

Its discordant, polyphonic voice shook her back to reality.

"F-found you." The thing warped behind her; she was too slow to parry the blow. "Found you found you found you." Its strike landed on her shield, sending her flying into a building across the street. Her head hurt from the impact; her lungs burned from exhaustion. Nana knew that she couldn't keep this up! But she didn't care!

"Oh?" Nana flipped back onto her feet and leveled her sword at its face. She was a Magical Girl! Knighty Night! This monster could not win against her! "Was I always so popular?." She charged forward again, her rapier swinging wildly at her enemy; its deformed maw twisted into a cruel grimace as it evaded her attacks and retaliated with a haymaker. Nana spat blood as her side flared with pain; she leapt backwards and grabbed her head in agony.

"N-not..." Nana groaned as she lowered her arms and raised her shield again. "Not over yet..." Her limbs trembled as she forced herself to move; the Othersider had no mercy left in it as it dashed towards her and tackled her through the building's wal. The girl's armour, battered and chipped, cracked under the force of its impact; Nana gasped as the air was forced from her lungs by the blow. She knew better than to give up, however.

Her shield and sword faded into mist as she opted to conjure the familiar halberd instead; she slammed the butt of her weapon into the ground and evoked a vortex of wind and dust to push her attacker off of her. "Fast," She coughed as she stumbled forward and jabbed at its abdomen; it howled in pain as her spear pierced its guts and dug in deep. "And strong," She could taste copper in her mouth as she pushed its arm aside and spun around for another swing, "But not stronger than me!"

Nana's cry rung out throughout the night as her halberd's edge tore through its torso, its arm, and its throat. The monster staggered away from her as she continued her assault with a flurry of attacks! Its every movement was painfully slow, now that she had the advantage! And now, even those were becoming sluggish and hesitant!

"Found you found you found you—" Nana's heart skipped a beat as her foe teleported behind her, but this time she anticipated it. Her calm facade was replaced by a savage grin as she pivoted on her heels and countered its punch with a brutal thrust to the chest. The creature's cries of pain filled the night sky as she drove her halberd into its heart. Its blood spilled upon the concrete as Nana pressed the attack, its ichor leaking from its mouth with every ragged breath. "Not strong enough. Not smart enough." Nana panted as she stared into its eyes and gripped her weapon tight.

Nana did not think it would be this easy; perhaps the thing's wounds were taking their toll, perhaps its previous fights weakened it considerably. Nana did not care for answers, though; all she cared about was ending this creature's life! "Don't you worry, you big, ugly, nasty little bastard." Perhaps she was overflowing with energy, powered by that strong desire to protect those Sweepers who risked their lives for the sake of others; perhaps it was vengeance, for all those it had slain and eaten during its time in Tama. But Nana's focus never wavered as she tore its head from its shoulders with a graceful flourish.

She did not feel pride as she watched its body crumple into a lifeless heap; she did not feel relief or satisfaction. She merely stood there, halberd in hand, panting and watching the Otherside corpse dissolve into ash before her eyes. "F-found you..." The head managed to say before it too dissipated into nothingness. Nana sighed as her halberd dissolved away; she couldn't hold back her tears anymore. She allowed herself to fall to her knees as sobs racked her body.

"So... tired..." What happened to a Magical Girl who ran out of mana? Nana didn't know; she never asked Yuki. It seemed limitless: it ebbed and flowed along her strong emotions and heightened states of mind. "B-broken..." She choked back a sob as she closed her eyes and tried to forget what happened tonight; she wanted to curl up and cry forever. "W-What's that..." she whispered as she felt something stirring; a sensation, like an invisible hand reaching out from somewhere far below. Nana's heart sank a little when she recognized the feeling. She wiped away her tears and scrambled to her feet.

It seemed her night wasn't over yet.

Chapter 22

Hoshino had left without another word. Yoshi's expression soured as he leaned against the doorframe and closed his eyes; he did not regret his actions, but he had hoped that his father would at least try to understand. "I can't believe how poorly that went!" Yoshi was not expecting his father to be supportive, but he had hoped that the results would speak for themselves! "Oh well." He couldn't complain: Mr. Hoshino could ruin him with a snap of his fingers.

"Could've been worse, kid." Taz chuckled as she rested against the wall nearby. "God, I wish I could've taken a picture when he delivered that fucking line, though—how was it? 'We're professionals. So I'm going to pretend this conversation never happened.' Amazing!" Taz had never seen her boss look so helpless! "Really though, kid..." She laid a hand on Yoshi's shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze. "It went as well as it could have! I mean, you pissed off the most powerful man in town, but..."

"Fuck off." Yoshi's expression softened as he cracked a smile; he didn't want Taz to see how upset he was. Her lips curled into a mocking grin as she looked at Yoshi. "Just means we're not shut down yet. He wants plausible deniability. He'll sit back and wait for us to fix everything." Mr. Hoshino had a habit of doing that: wash his hands of bad deals and problematic ventures and let them either succeed or fail on their own. "We just have to stay on our toes."

"Plausible deniability, eh? Fair enough." Higgs muttered as he clacked away at one of the keyboards, his eyes darting back and forth between the different feeds onscreen. "Maybe we can give Mary some time with her parents? That should make her happy." It was ugly, the way she howled and thrashed about in her cell when that Othersider was killed, but they had no way of knowing the cause of her pain.

"Maybe." Yoshi nodded; Higgs had a point. "I'm going to grab a snack from the kitchen. You guys want anything?" Taz gave him a noncommittal shrug in response while Higgs continued working; Yoshi figured he would be fine on his own. "Fine. See you in a bit." He was hungry, but that wasn't his main motivation for leaving the surveillance room.

Yoshi couldn't shake off the dread that weighed on his mind. This was his chance to prove to his father that his ideas had merit. To corner the market on a bleeding-edge new technology. To safeguard the city and monopolize both security and espionage. And above all, he wanted to avenge his mom. His biggest regret was not being there to kill that monster when it happened. He would do anything to turn back the clock. Anything to try again and take it down! But first, he had to work with what he had.

He made his way to the break room and poured himself a cup of coffee; he could feel his mood souring as he drank his beverage. Was he a mad scientist? A villain? Maybe! Yoshi wasn't sure where he fell on that spectrum. He just knew that he'd do whatever it took to achieve his goals.

His phone buzzed as he sat down to rest; he picked it up and read through his messages. "Jeez." Yoshi gulped as he tried to process what he just read: Melanie was having a meltdown and messaging every Sweeper in her contact list. Kam had missed his report-in, and he wasn't answering his messages. Of course, Yoshi suspected that he knew the cause. His mercenaries were probably out of contact as well.

Yoshi frowned as he decided to call her; he already knew Melanie well enough to predict her reaction. There was no sense in avoiding this conversation. "Hey, Mel! Everything okay?" His attempt at sounding cheerful fell flat; Melanie did not respond at first. Then she screamed.

"There's a fucking Othersider on the loose! I don't know if Kam is alive, but—" Yoshi held his breath as he listened to her rant and rave. "What the fuck are you doing? Why aren't you out there trying to help? What's going on?" She snapped; Yoshi could hear her breaking down through the phone. "You promised support! You said we could count on your people to—"

"Mel, I don't think it's—" Yoshi tried to explain the situation, but Melanie refused to let him get a word in edgewise; she continued to shriek and curse as Yoshi failed to appease her anger. "I just need more time!" His PMCs couldn't see the Othersiders yet, and the experiment was so close to bearing fruit. Mary's predecessors had less control than she did! "Please, let me explain!" Yoshi pleaded. "I need more time to fine tune my end." he would NOT have a repeat of the Wednesday incident.

"Are you kidding me? Are you fucking serious?" Melanie snarled as she screamed into her phone. "Tama Town is in danger! A powerful Othersider is on the loose, and you're telling me that you're going to FINE TUNE YOUR END?" Her words dripped with venom; Yoshi had never heard her speak this way before. "What is WRONG WITH YOU? Are you even—oh god! Talk later." The call ended as abruptly as it started; Yoshi stared at his phone in shock as the weight of her words sunk in.

"Shit..." Yoshi's whole body trembled; he could feel tears welling up in his eyes as his brain began to process everything that had happened that day. It wasn't supposed to be this way! He couldn't help but imagine all the ways things could go wrong if Melanie got killed. Or worse: lost her faith in him. "Shit, shit, shit!" He hated himself for that! He hated himself for so many things! He hated that Othersider for causing problems that he would have to deal with. He hated that Sweepers didn't want anything to do with him or his employees. He hated that the adults couldn't see them, couldn't TRUST him. He hated his father for his overbearing presence, his callous attitude, his lack of confidence!

"Calm down." Higgs' voice came from behind; Yoshi's head snapped around to see him leaning against the doorway with a blank expression on his face. "Everything will work out. Trust me." Higgs strolled over to Yoshi and grabbed a juice box from the fridge; Yoshi stared at him in disbelief.

"Are you... Do you really believe that?" Yoshi scowled as he glared at Higgs. The man did whatever he wanted whenever he pleased! But somehow, Yoshi found himself comforted by his words.

"Sure." Higgs shrugged; he was indifferent towards the outcome of any given situation. "No matter what, sir, it all works out in the end." Higgs took a sip from his box and headed towards the door; his hand rested on the handle as he turned back to look at Yoshi. "Now if you'd like to get back to work, I think we should check on Mary. Maybe conduct an interview if she's lucid."

"Right." Yoshi nodded as he followed Higgs back to the surveillance room. "Thank you." It was like his mind cleared itself from all of that angst and anxiety. Higgs was right: no matter what happened, Yoshi could figure something out! No matter how bleak things seemed, there was always a solution. He would succeed eventually. He would find a way to deal with the Othersiders and secure his district by the year's end. "Back to work."

Cast

(in order of appearance)

Melanie

Capricious, bubbly, broken. A mercurial Magical Girl with a chip on her shoulder.

Yoshi

Calculating, haunted, creative. A child genius who dreams of fixing the world, no matter the cost.

Taz

Stern, condescending, capable. A rising talent among the PMCs, she hates her boss.

Higgs

Indifferent, impulsive, impassive. A nihilistic researcher who follows his instincts more than orders.

John

Skeptical, rational, mellow. A young man of few words, yet a voice of reason.

Ricky

Nervous, amiable, chatty. A lad who hides his insecurities behind jokes and smiles.

Kam

Gentle, quiet, undaunted. A natural-born leader who prefers to follow others.

Felipe

Superstitious, friendly, aggressive. Loves knives and conspiracies, hates his chronic insomnia.

Karen

Dispirited, stressed, idealistic. An outsider assigned to the district, she tries her best.