"Martial, I think I've got this sword figured out. Come in here" I hear Matthew calling for me from his workshop.

"Aw, can't it wait, gramps? Cousin here was getting ready to tell me what it's like in the red light district." My cousin can hardly contain her laughter. Her black hair is tied into a bun, a color that matches her four eyes. Sticking out from her shirt are eight legs, four on each side, which she is currently standing on. Her name's Marissa, and she can transform into arachnids.

"She's lying, I promise!" Despite being fourteen, around nine years younger than me, she seems to have a way of pulling the strings on the people around her. She's a witch in an admittedly adorable body.

"Just get in here." His exasperation is understood fully. She really is a handful.

"I can tell you're acting holier than thou in that skull of yours." She threatens me with her sharp fangs.

"You don't know what you're talking about."

"And there you go proving it! I ought to bite you and send you into your golden coffin, your highness!!"

"That's an adorable thought, but maybe you should focus on not cheating on your girlfriend."

"I'm gonna fucking kill you!" I'm thrown off my seat by an enraged spider-human demon.

"Hey, I'm just stating-You fucking bit me! What the hell's wrong with you?!" I try pushing her off but she's sunk her teeth deep into my shoulder, making it impossible to pull her off without losing my arm.

"Apowogeeze, bith!" It's not like it actually hurts, but the realization that losing an arm would hurt makes me give in.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, now get off!" Satisfied, she pulls her teeth out of me.

"Not gonna mess with me again, are you, cousin? Ow!" Grandpa smacks her in the back of the head with a newspaper.

"The next time I see you biting someone, I'm gonna switch to a fly swatter, ya hear?!" My cousin nods, skittering away.

"Thanks, gram-"

"And what did I hear her say about the red light? You think I took you in to raise a damn hooligan?!" I feel the newspaper smack against the top of my head. My pride is hurt more than my body. "The next time I hear about you going near that place, you're gonna be my new test dummy! Capiche?!"

"Capiche!" He seems satisfied with my answer and motions for me to follow him. I and Marisa share a look and I can tell there's one thing we agree on.

Grandpa is not to be fucked with.

…

"Have a good day." I bid the customer farewell and watch them leave. By now, the sun is starting to set, and the streetlights are turning on. As I start to relax, the door opens-

"I tried to make him go to the hospital, but he won't let me take him. He's insisting I take him here." -and in walks Roxas, covered in the blood of the dying farmer hanging off him that's hardly breathing.

"Matthew! I need your help!" The farmer lets out a raspy yell.

"Gregory?! What happened?" Grandpa runs out of his workshop and cleans off the sitting area's table, laying the farmer down on it. "Marissa, get me my first aid!" I walk up to see what's going on. Gregory's right arm is completely gone, and three long slashes appear to have gotten close to tearing his heart to ribbons.

"Damn lizard jumped me. Froze my arm and ripped it off."

"We don't have enough here to treat him. Grandpa, we need to take him anywhere more prepared than we are." Matthew seems to agree. Gregory reaches up and grabs grandpa's shirt.

"You can't. If they find out that my farm had a lizard in it, I'll be done for. I'll just have you make me an arm, I'll even go somewhere else if you want, but please. This is all I have." Matthew gives his friend an understanding look. The shop is silent for about half a minute before he turns to me.

"Go get your sword. I have fire canisters in the third cabinet. Roxas, you go with him. If it gets too hairy, call for backup, but only if it is absolutely necessary. Understand?" Seeing that there's no way out of it, I nod my head and walk into the workshop. Lying against the wall is a hefty sword in a strap sheath. I grab it and my coat, making sure to pick out the canisters he told me about.

"You ready?" Roxas asks. I give him a thumbs up and we both take off running.

Gregory's farm sits just outside the city's perimeter. Thankfully, grandpa's shop sits near the perimeter as well, so by the time we turn the corner, we're already almost there.

"Ow! Hey!" I bump shoulders with a passerby and throw her a quick apology. "Asshole!" I do my best to ignore that last part. Once we reach the end of the street, we see the farm. Sitting just outside the farmhouse is a giant, light blue creature. The creature's body is covered in scales and its eyes are dark purple. Gregory's blood seems to have stained the thing's mouth, and every few seconds its long tongue pops out and runs across its chin, probably savoring what it has left of its prey.

"We can't fight it too close to his farm, otherwise this will have been pointless." Roxas points out. I agree.

"I have an idea." I pull out the fire canisters I threw in my pocket before leaving. "How quickly will these blow up after you charge them?" I ask.

"Ten seconds," Roxas answers, summoning a small bolt from his finger.

"Alright, that'll work. When I say charge, charge and aim for its mouth." I hand him a canister and unsheath my sword. After taking a calming breath, I slide down the hill leading to the farm. Once I reach level ground, I let out a loud scream. It turns to look at me and screams back. It charges forward and I hear Roxas making his slide down.

"Charge!" I watch Roxas as his hand is engulfed in electricity. Once he touches the ground he takes aim and throws the canister into the thing's mouth. We watch with relief as the thing explodes into thousands of pieces.

"Alright, let's go tell Gregory-" the ground quakes. I fall on my ass and look around. "What's going on?!" I yell out, hoping maybe Roxas sees something I don't.

"I don't know! Could there maybe be more?!" His suggestion gives me a headache. The shaking starts getting stronger and cracks in the earth follow soon after.

"Climb, climb!" Roxas yells out before starting to make his way up the hill. The shaking reaches its climax as a giant leg rises from under the earth. It's comparable to the lizard we'd just faced off with, save for the fact it could crush us to death.

"Oh god." We reach the top of the hill in time to watch the thing pull itself out of its hole.

"That's a surprise. I wasn't expecting a king to show up." I turn to see a girl with short brown hair wearing a black skinsuit under a red jacket and skirt. She holds a sniper over her shoulder, watching the scene with amusement.

"What are you two doing sitting there?" I feel her lightly kick my back. "Let's go kill that thing."