As Casper headed toward the laundromat, Matthew grabbed a folder from underneath his chair before propping his feet up on the dashboard and opening it. Inside, there were photos, detailed reports, and a general layout of the building Casper was sent to. It was all vital information, but Matthew withheld it from Casper for reasons unknown, whatever drove him to do so was likely related to his hostility toward the latter.

He grabbed another apple from the fruit basket and enjoyed it while musing over the contents of the report.

“Casper Clay,” He seemed to scoff just saying the name.

Suddenly, his phone rang. He gave a cursory glance, appearing to ignore it, but then read the caller ID and immediately changed his stance. He removed the communication earring he shared with Casper and gave his full attention to whoever was on the phone.

“Ma’am?” He answered with a ruly tone, unlike his previous behavior.

“How’s it going?” The voice on the other side was none other than Alexandra Hallworth.

“Well, very well,” Matthew replied.

His tone did anything but inspire confidence as Alexandra let silence sit between them for a few seconds.

“You recall what I said earlier?” Alexandra asked, his voice cold and stern.

“Yes, Ma’am,” Matthew replied, his voice quivering as his forehead became slightly dampened.

“And just what was it, Matthew?”

“I’m supposed to ease him into what we do.”

“Exactly. You volunteered to help me on this one and I trusted you, but I swear to whatever god there is, if you fuck this up, you’re gonna really, really, regret it, Matthew.”

“But, you’re my-”

“Aunt? Is that what you were gonna say? Oh boy, I really hope you weren’t gonna say that. If that’s what your next words were it really makes me wonder if you tried something like rookie hazing. I told you that Casper Clay isn’t like the rest of you. He is more of a partner than an official member, you understand? That means pulling any type of childish shit like that would be really upsetting to me.”

“I know, ma’am, that’s why I didn’t. It’s just– what makes him so special? I mean, I’ve got greater prospects so why is he-”

“Is that jealousy I hear, Matthew?” Alexandra chuckled. “You know what, where is he?”

“Who?” Matthew answered with a tinge of nervousness.

“Casper Clay,” Alexandra spoke slowly, making her annoyance clear.

“He said he needed some air after I told him about things… I think he’s the over-emotional type.”

“Is that so?” Alexandra asked doubtfully.

“Yes, Ma’am. I wouldn’t be surprised if he stormed in there on his own and did something idiotic.”

“Oh? You wouldn’t? Well, it’s your job to prevent that.”

“I’m doing my best-”

“Are you? You know what– I’ll be there in ten just to see how much of a good job you're doing, just stay where you are.”

“Ma’am, I really don’t think that’s necessary, I can handle any–”

A click ended the conversation before Matthew could convince Alexandra not to head over.

“Fuck!” Matthew drove his fist into the car’s dashboard, denting it, but it was sturdy enough to hold up against an undisciplined blow thrown in anger. In fact, it could hold up to much more since it was no ordinary car, but that was of no concern.

Matthew frantically ran his hands through his hair before inhaling deeply.

“It’s fine,” He told himself, calming down. “Just how much trouble could he have caused already?”

He fixed his suit and pressed the communication earring, “Casper?”

When he was met with silence, Matthew immediately got out of the car.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” He swore as he ran for the laundromat, but just as he reached it, a body came flying through the window.

A short groan came from the victim who coughed up some blood before rolling over and letting out his last breath.

“Just what-” Matthew came to a stop as he stared at Casper Clay, kneeling on the floor while cradling someone in his arms.

“You…” Matthew could only gape at the scene, severed body parts littering the building along with seemingly endless blood splatters.

…

20 minutes earlier.

...

I landed on a rooftop across the street from the criminal front. I wasn’t going to rush in without a plan, even if that’s what Matthew seemed to want.

‘Is this a test?’ I wondered, as I sent out a crow to scout the area surrounding the building. There were empty shopping lots and residential buildings bordered by tall fences. Signs indicating the properties were purchased were attached to the fencing, but they didn’t seem new. So, whoever had brought the places around this lone laundromat had done it long ago and didn’t seem to be ready to renovate.

I moved away from the obvious conspiracy and focused on the laundry building as a whole. It was in general disrepair on the outside. I began to use my spirit sight, I could immediately see a dozen shapes inside and about three more below it.

‘A basement level,’ I quickly returned my vision to normal and unsummoned the crow, contemplating a route to the doorway.

“Was there a boss around?” I asked, pressing my finger against the earring beneath my mask.

I waited for Matthew to respond but it never came.

‘Did something go wrong?!’ I reactivated my spirit vision and looked in the direction of the car, but I could see Matthew’s presence, as clear as ever.

“So you’re just ignoring me? Just how am I supposed to do this? Are these guys even guilty of anything or is there some specific person I’m aiming for? Is this a test of judgment and then at the end you'll say 'there was no wrong answer'? Do I just go with my gut and hope I kill the real bad guy? What’s the plan?” I let out a torrent of questions but nothing came back in reply.

“Yeah, well, fuck you too,” I cursed, feeling the urge to strangle my unfriendly companion on the spot.

I gave it some thought for a minute before gathering my head. If there is a boss, he’d be hiding in the basement, petting his hairless cat while smoking cigars in a big comfy chair, no doubt. I hadn’t killed a person before, but I killed things, living things. I could do the same to a person if need be… At least, I felt like I could. I had seen a lot of death after all.

“Please just be a puppy murderer and make this easy for me. That’d really be enough,” I mumbled before crow-shifting.

A group of birds descended toward the slightly ajar door of the building and squeezed in before erratically circling the cramped area before finally resting atop the lights.

“The fuck is this?!” A man shouted, much to the chagrin of his companions.

“What, what, what? What the hell are you so loud for?” Another man stomped out before going speechless. “What is this?!”

“They just got in, I don’t know!”

The two entered a shouting match before more arrived.

They all seemed pretty shifty, dark clothes, even darker gazes, with an anti-authoritarian air about them. However, their apparent delinquency didn’t garner a death sentence.

As if to spite that line of thought, one drew a gun and immediately fired a shot toward me causing several of the men to duck in surprise. The bullet struck the light and made me take to the air almost immediately. Almost forgetting that I was wearing armor that was supposed to be bulletproof. Still, that didn’t mean I could wait for him to hit me, being abruptly forced out of the flock by a strong impact would still hurt like hell.

“Fucking cut it out!” Someone snatched the gun from the trigger happy man who seemed angered by it.

“And just how do you bastards know that isn’t some spy artifact? A bunch of fucking crows really found their way into this building all at once? You idiots! Shoot the damn thing or we’re all fucked!”

A look of realization seemed to fill the faces of the men and they all began to draw their weapons.

‘That's not good!’ I flew toward them in the form of the flock, narrowly avoiding their attempts to swat me out the air and headed into a back room.

There was a large metal door left open, no doubt from one of the men running up to check the noise. I headed right for it before a bullet struck one of the crows and forced me back into my human form. I tumbled right down the basement stairs while suppressing a grunt before crashing into the floor.

“Ow,” My head felt as if it were split open even though the armor I wore did more than enough to protect against the bullet which put me in this state.

My vision cleared as I recovered my footing, looking around the dimly lit and filthy basement. The mask did more than enough to filter out what was likely to be a putrid scent. Dried bloodstains all led to a drain that was dirty with strands of hair.

“What is…” As the faulty light above me buzzed, I could make out a few figures.

A sickly feeling filled my abdomen, but I suppressed it.

“You said they’re selling illegal shit, but these are people down here, Matthew!” I shouted pressing my hand against the earring.

I didn’t care if the men upstairs heard me at this point.

In front of me were three restrained and bloodied figures. The dozens of cuts decorating their bodies were left to fester. It was the result of an act cruelty, one that I didn’t expect to see firsthand.

One of the men, reached toward me weakly, muttering softly as he did so, “Please…”

I rushed over to them and cut the chains apart with a scarlet blade.

“Easy now,” I was careful as I handled them.

Luckily, the boy was in the best condition, having only bruises when compared injuries than the two other men. However, he was clearly starved and dehydrated.

He tried to say something to me, but as his cracked lips parted, I couldn't bring myself to let him force the words out.

“Hold on, I'll get you out of here.” I quickly turned around and searched for at least a bottle of water, but the only thing of notice was an ashtray filled to the brim with cigarette butts.

When I turned around again, there were people standing behind me. People that weren't really there anymore.

“Will you bring us with you?” A bright-eyed woman asked with a sweet smile, her voice trailed off as her image faded.

“I need to get back home. I promise to play baseball with my son,” A man interjected with a soft tone.

“So, will you help us?” A boy asked in a tiny voice.

More and more people began to pop up and it dawned on me that whatever happened here had been going on for a while.

“You're dead.” I cautiously stepped backward. “It's too late, even if I wanted to, I can’t save you anymore.”

I felt the ivory ring on my finger began to ache as I finished speaking. I was half-afraid they would ask for my coin, but I tried not to let it show.

“But you can help us, can’t you?” A small hand reached out to touch me.

A flash of visions poured in from different eyes. There was a man, a tall, thin man, who smiled with pleasure as he cut people.

“Stop!” I shouted as my mind became a garbled mess.

Anger, fear, sadness, all sorts of emotions that weren’t mine began to pour in without restraint. I was forced to see the last thing they saw, the man who killed them. No, not all of them died, they were forced to watch as a lucky few were taken somewhere else.

“Why?” I felt tears flowing from underneath my mask as I asked a pointless question.

Part of me felt bitter, the spirits hijacked my mind and filled me with emotion that I couldn't control.

“So will you help us?” Someone asked me once more.

And they still asked me for help, despite that.

I stopped my hands from shaking and looked up to face them. I had no words, no promises, and no guarantees that could possibly satisfy them, but I nodded. It was a stiff and solemn nod as I was partly unwilling, but that was enough for them it seemed. Smiles of relief filled their faces as they began to fade from my sight. I could no longer see them, but I felt a warm breeze that went straight through my armor and crept over my skin. I inhaled deeply as I felt something move inside me.

Regaining my senses, I checked the stairs, my eyes flickering as I activated my spirit vision. I could see the men waiting for me in ambush since there was only one way out of this basement.

Turning back to the three victims in all of this, I tried to reassure them.

“Please, just wait here for a moment,” I spoke as gently as I could.

“D-don't–” The youngest of the three cried out, but I ignored him, I had too.

I put the mask back on and drew the spectral bow, watching as it formed in my hands. I softly plucked the bowstring before pulling it back which caused an arrow to appear.

…

As the men waited for whoever had broken in to emerge, they could hear indistinct shouting that caused some confusion. Checking the cameras which covered every corner of the building, they could see just one person who stood in the middle of the basement speaking to himself.

“Is he fucking crazy?” Someone whispered, flipping off the safety of a sub-machine gun.

"Maybe he’s just panicking cause he knows he’s fucked.” A heavy set man with a cigarette in his mouth was as calm as ever. He drew a knife instead of a gun like his companions. “Anyone of you ever killed someone with a gift?”

“No, we don't have a gift like you. Why ask?”

“My gift isn't anything special, I'm just a bit stronger than the average guy, but I killed a few of 'em in a fight. Here's the thing, there are a bunch of gifts that don't do shit. If that guy had somethin' strong, you think he would've tried to disguise himself as a bunch of birds? The only thing we need to watch for is if he has an artifact of some sort. If we see him try to call someone or he doesn't come up in time, we'll rush him.”

“He's doing something!” One man shouted, glancing at the security console.

The men watched as the intruder in black lowered his posture and took up a strange position. Pulling one of his arms back while the other remained outstretched as if he held something within it.

“Is he- Is he doing yoga?” One man uttered a taunt before a dim blue light shot pierced through his torso and knocked him onto his back. He let out a terrible scream as his skin quickly withered up as if someone drained all the water from his body.

Following up, Casper rushed up the stairs like a blur, stabbing his scarlet blades into the man who stood closest to the entrance.

It didn't take long for the bullets to start flying after that, but the armor worked as intended and kept Casper safe. The impact, however, was still partially transmitted to his body.

“Ah!” A scream came from another victim screamed as the blades lopped his arm off before one found its way into his throat, silencing him immediately.

Casper lifted the now dead man up to act as a human shield while charging into the hail of bullets.

“Kill him!” The heavy-set man cried out as his friends ran out of ammo. He discarded his knife and ripped a loose pipe from the wall, brandishing it as a weapon.

Seeing him do so, the other men joined in, grabbing whatever they could as a weapon before rushing toward Casper who discarded his human shield in response.

His footwork was almost mesmerizing as he gracefully retreated, deflecting the makeshift weapons before going on the attack.

Soul Siphon gave him a burst of strength and he had already killed a few, so he when he delivered a sharp kick to the sides of one unlucky man, it was no surprise that something burst.

The man let out a strange cry as he fell forward, landing directly on one of Casper’s blades. While Casper was briefly distracted, a pipe struck his head with so much power that it bent on contact.

Casper’s head jerked to the side like he had experienced whiplash, but he continued moving as if nothing happened. His skeleton has been strengthened greatly so blunt force trauma was hardly a worry.

When it was all finished, there was a lot of carnage left behind and in the center of it, Casper stood to let out rough breaths from underneath his mask. A sense of shock overcame him, as his he felt much weaker than before, but made sure not to collapse.

“You don’t know who you fucked with…” The heavy-set man who lay slumped against a defunct washing machine spat toward Casper. The man, whose hair and face was wet with blood and viscera, seemed to have the energy to smile, even though everyone around him had already been killed.

His words served to sober Casper up.

“Yeah, I don’t know, but I’ll figure it out soon enough,” He replied listlessly, extending one of his scarlet blades once more before stabbing it deeply into the man.

A flash of memories came in as the last man was killed. Casper, feeling disgusted, tossed the body as hard as he could, sending it crashing through a window.

Letting out a deep sigh, Casper turned around and saw that the boy he released had made his way upstairs.

“Mister?” He slipped in a puddle of blood fell forward, but Casper caught him.

“You really shouldn't look.” Casper put on a smile beneath his mask.

“You–” Matthew’s voice came from behind, “Just what did you do?” he asked in sheer disbelief.

“Get this kid some help first,” Casper replied, just barely looking over his shoulder.

“Yeah... I'll handle it,” Matthew answered back, putting aside any other thoughts he had. He immediately dialed up Alexandra and attempted to explain the situation.

Meanwhile, Casper let his empty gaze rest on the bodies of the men he killed. From the memories he gained, they weren't the perpetrators, but they didn't care what went on a floor below them.