The distortion

“This entire district's been cleared out for the last week or so. It’s been a huge problem not just for the residents of this area, but for the economy. This place is like a time capsule, bringing in lots of business. Couple that with the fact that this distortion could be the work of the shadow beast, and you've got yourself a high-priority contract straight from the higher-ups.” The man started to blabber, mostly to himself near the end, scratching the back of his spiked hair with a long, exasperated sigh. He turned to face the two, Junepai and Yuya, both of them staring blankly.

“Were you two paying attention?” As he spoke, the cigar in his mouth nearly fell; he managed to catch it with his tongue. “Close one.”

“Uh-huh,” Junepai mumbled.

“Good, you two get to handle the ‘easy’ part of this job, all you’re meant to do is remain stationed on the outskirts of the distortion to ensure no monsters go rogue. Those earpieces we gave you earlier should be connected to the others stationed around the area. All you gotta do is tap the button on your right earpiece, and you can say whatever it is you need to say.” He held a finger to his chin, losing himself in his own thoughts, “yeah, yeah, that should be about it.” He continued to hum silently.

“Hey, I’m ready to go.” A calm, yet intense voice chimed from behind. Walking along the empty street was a woman not much taller than Junepai, her golden-brown eyes devoid of any soul, her face home to no expression. She had a bulkier figure, with brown-tan skin and dark-brown hair that was cut to her nape. She wore a wrinkled black button-up with equally black slacks

She’s beautiful. Junepai thought. Then his mind flashed to a different image, the image of Yuya back when he thought he was a girl.

“Totally not my type.” He said aloud.

The other three turned to him with a confused gaze.

“Sorry, I was day-dreaming.”

“Right.” The short-haired girl scoffed, “ You two cowards just maintain the perimeter while we handle the hard part.” She walked forward, straight toward the plethora of closed-off shops and abandoned cars, her hands clenched tightly at her side.

“Right, sorry about her, despite her attitude, she’s a great asset on the field.” The man gave a half-bow and scurried off behind her.

“Was that comment necessary?” Yuya took a couple of steps backward before plopping down onto the ground, hands wrapped tightly around his knees, “It’s things like that that’ll keep you from having a girlfriend.”

“Whatever, I doubt you have a girlfriend yourself, you... Catfish!” He settled, plopping down right before Yuya.

“You catfished yourself, you thirsty perv!”

“I am not a perv!”

“Says the guy who only goes to maid cafes and cat-girl cafes.”

Junepai's mouth hung agape as if he were going to blurt out another mindless comeback, but nothing came out. His expression softened, and his body went limp, his eyes now stuck on the clouds above him.

“You just wouldn’t get it.” He grumbled.

“What wouldn’t I get?”

“Those places are great for guys like me to find love.”

Yuya let out a boisterous laugh, holding his gut and falling backward.

“Seriously?”

“See? I told you, you wouldn’t get it.”

Yuya seemed surprised at the genuine sadness laced in his tone, standing abruptly and patting down his clothes.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean it. Come on, stand up, the concrete isn't very comfy.”

“Right.”

They stood side-by-side once more, staring onward at the barren city.

“So, can you explain it?”

“Huh?” Junepai cocked a skeptical eyebrow.

“The whole looking for love in a maid cafe thing.”

“Now you’re interested?” He looked away and pouted like a child.

“Well, if we’re going to be working together, we might as well get to know each other a little bit.”

Junepai looked down at the floor, watching as a small ant carried a crumb by itself. He fell into a crouched position, his arms wrapped around his legs.

“It’s cause everyone there treats me so nice without expecting anything in return, you know? I remember the first time I stumbled into a maid cafe, it was like heaven to me, cause I always had trouble making friends. You probably aren’t very familiar with the K-Corp youth program and all that, but when you’re working for guys like them, you don’t really have time to kick back and relax with kids your age. I guess the reason I like those places so much is because the women there are always nice to me, no matter what. But I guess none of it really mattered since it was make-believe or whatever.” He quickly stood, looking away from the ant and staring into Yuya's eyes.

“Since I answered your question, I want you to answer mine.”

Yuya was stunned by Junepai's previous answer, a strange sense of guilt wrapping around his heart.

“Huh?”

“Why do you like to dress like a girl?”

“Huh?”

“Are you deaf or something?”

“No, sorry, your question just caught me off guard.” He held his fist below his chin, “I can’t really give you a straight answer, it just feels good, and I’ve always liked doing it.”

“And you don’t like dudes?”

“No, I don’t like dudes.”

“Hm,” Junepai grumbled silently and turned away from him, a gentle red playing on his cheeks.

“Hmmmm.” He grumbled louder, “hmmm.” And louder, his hands finding their way into his hair and ruffling through it wildly, another groan escaping his lips as he tossed the upper-half of his body backwards in an exaggerated motion. Unable to maintain his balance, he fell back onto his head, his vision flashing black and white, a throbbing pain swelling on his scalp.

“What’s wrong? Is something attacking?” Yuya looked around frantically and backed away.

“No, sorry.” He stood back up and shook his head, his fingers held gently on the bridge of his nose, and his expression darkening, “It’s just, I can’t stop thinking about how damn cute you are when you cross-dress.”

There was a loud silence held between them.

“Are you serious?” Yuya stomped forward and clenched Junepai's collar tightly within his grasp, “What type of pervy things are you getting at? I already told you I ain't into dudes!”

“I’m not into dudes either, alright! I could never date a disgusting dude!” Junepai clenched Yuya's collar in his grasp, the two of them tugging on each other endlessly, fire burning in their eyes.

“Yeah? Well, it’s hard to think that when you keep saying weird things.”

“It’s not my fault-” Junepai was cut off by the abrupt feedback playing from his earpiece, a frantic voice shouting from the other side.

“This is a code-red! A high-level monster is fleeing the distortion from the south side!” The voice immediately cut out, leaving the two in another silence.

“Aren't we- the south side?” Yuya's question was answered in a way he wished it hadn't been.

The sound of something loud boomed not too far from their position, a shrill screech echoing.

“Move, Yuya!” Junepai tossed him aside like he weighed nothing.

“Ke! Kekekeke!” A grating voice shrieked at them, a strange figure rapidly approaching from a cloud of dust. Junepai held both his arms in an X-position before his face in preparation for its arrival. A powerful pressure swelled on his forearms and pushed his body back through the concrete.

“Meat meat! Me want human meat!” An ugly and foul beast stood before him with its scaly green fist planted on his forearms. Its skin, like its fist, was green, strange saliva-like gloss coated it, its eyes were yellow and thin like diamonds. What was meant to be its nose had only two jagged holes in its face, and where its ears would be sat two large lumps. When it spoke, Junepai could see its long-thick tongue coated in saliva, drool pouring from the sides of its lips, blood and cloth stuck in its blade-like teeth.

“Lots of talking monsters lately.” Junepai struggled to remark, “damn, your breath is horrid.”

“Meat!” It pulled its hand back and charged forward, attempting to grab him. Junepai took a quick step back, just out of its range, then took a diagonal step forward, catapulting a strike straight at its chest. His face winced with disgust as he came into contact with its slippery skin, his hand failing to make a powerful connection.

“Seriously?”

“Meat!”

“Watch out, Junepai! It’s growing something out of its butt!” Yuya shouted.

Junepai hopped back, a blur of black whooshing past his vision. As he settled, his eyes fell onto its tail. It was long, and the tip of it was pointed like a blade.

“Am I seriously going to have to try and manifest it?” He mumbled, agitated. He held out a hand in front of him, a gentle blue light gathering around his fist.

“There will be no need.” The sound of an unfamiliar voice tickled his spine. Suddenly, a black shadow charged in from his peripheral. That shadow ran right past the strange creature, a strange light gleaming at its side.

“Done. See?”

A waterfall of green began to pour from the monster's neck, its body wobbling from side to side and loud squeals escaping from its mouth, until finally, it tumbled. Thick green liquid poured from the open gash on the side of its neck and bled atop the pavement.

“Thank you for distracting it; otherwise, its neck wouldn’t have been so exposed.”

The way he spoke sent chills down both their spines. It contained zero expression. It was perfectly calm, as if he’d recited every single word he’d ever spoken.

He turned to face them, his near-black eyes piercing into their souls. He was tall, and his skin was dark, contrasting the hot pink of his braided hair, which tied into a bun on the back of his head.

“What? Do I have something on my face?” He looked between the two with a confused expression.

“Actually, there is something-” Yuya slowly stood, pointed at his cheek, which had been stained by that creature's green blood. The man wiped the side of his face with the sleeve of his black overcoat, holstering his blade inside the sheath clamped at his lower back.

“Guess there was. Anyway, hello. I believe your name is Junepai Nakamura. I’m not too sure who the weakling beside you is, but that matters none. I’m with K-Corp International. I’m here to make you an offer.” He stepped toward Junepai, his face still devoid of any expression.