The streets of Milestone were uncharacteristically still, the late hour and unforgiving rain kept most of its inhabitants holed up inside. One lone figure made its way down a dark alley, hiding underneath an umbrella to stay dry. The young raccoon took his time strolling through the desolate path, one paw holding up a phone with his thumb deftly typing a message out. The boy appeared to be about ten years old. His clothing was finely tailored and expensive, looking consisting of an immaculate white button down shirt, black blazer jacket, matching dress pants, and well polished brown loafers. The outfit accentuated his chubby frame, showing off the cub’s curves.
His lavender eyes flitted from his phone to the alley ahead of him, and a smirk crept onto his face. Ahead of him, a stranger, wearing a full-bodied, hooded raincoat, stepped out to block his path. Under their hood, they wore a strange mouthless white mask with a Z on it, completely concealing their face.
The adult before him reached inside his coat, drawing a large knife, and brandished it. “Hey kid…” the figure said in a calm, menacing tone. “You know what this is; give me all your money and that phone,”
The cub regarded the adult for a moment. He switched his phone off and tucked it back into his pocket. “So you’re just some mugger, huh?” the cub spoke calmly, a tinge of disappointment in his voice. “Am I your first victim today?” he continued as casually as if he were asking for the time.
The adult raised his free paw, a hazy transparent orb materializing between his fingers before exploding in size until it engulfed the alley. Eric flinched, but nothing happened. Taking stock of his surroundings he noticed the droning sound of the rain had faded away, replaced by an eerie silence.
“Nobody can hear you call for help now. This is your last chance to hand over everything,” the masked man grunted, his voice muffled but still audible.
“So all you can do is muffle sound? Perfect power for someone in your line of ‘work,’ I guess” he said mockingly. He lowered his umbrella, and blocked the adult’s view. “But unless you have another trick up your sleeve, you’re going to regret targeting me,” he warned. He dropped the umbrella, and the adult froze in his tracks. The boy had vanished!
“What?!” the mugger exclaimed, his head swiveled from side to side, scanning for the cub. He should have seen the kid hide somewhere, even in the dim light. Had He underestimated this kid? Did he have a power too? Was it invisibility? Super Speed? Either way, if he caught him he’d have a fight on his hands.
A tap on his back caused him to jump, how did the kid get behind him?! The adult spun around and thrust his knife at the boy as fast as he could manage. The knife slid into the cub with ease - too much ease; he didn’t feel anything at all when he made contact. The raccoon dissipated in a cloud of vapor. The mugger reached out with his free paw, meeting only open air. The thug’s mind raced to make sense of what he was seeing.. His power isn’t invisibility or speed, he absolutely sunk his blade into the kid.
Scanning the alley in front of him the mugger tried to find any evidence to explain the cub’s power. Shit, he’d have to drop his own power and see if he could hear the kid’s movements.
As he started to will his power away, he felt a slimy something make contact with his wrists. Before he could make a move they tightened their grip. The mugger yelped in pain, his knife crashing to the concrete.
“Your power is great for keeping your targets from crying out for help. But it also prevents you from hearing footsteps. Not a good idea to limit any of your senses” the cub explained. His voice now audible once the orb around them faded..
“What the hell?!” the mugger shouted, thrashing against the black tendrils holding him in place.. The appendages lifted him off the ground leaving him kicking his legs impotently.
What was this kid?!
The tendrils spun him around to reveal Eric stepping from the shadows, paws tucked into the pockets of his shorts. The two black tendrils had emerged from his back. “You thought because I'm a cub that I’d be an easy mark. You were sorely mistaken” he said with a malicious grin. His eyes took on an unearthly glow, and the two purple streaks in his black hair raised up into pointed tips.
“I wish I had more time to mess with you, but this will have to do… Sleep.” His voice resonated with authority; the word echoing with an unearthly cadence. The mugger’s thoughts grew sluggish, his consciousness faded and his body fell limp
The raccoon crouched next to his mugger-turned-victim and rummaged through his pockets and fished out a small wad of cash and several wallets. He confirmed each wallet had its respective ID and stuffed them into his pocket and collected his discarded umbrella.
Eric took his leave of the unconscious man and made his way to the street. Spotting a mailbox he discarded the wallets inside, keeping the cash for himself. “That’s enough fun for today” he muttered to himself, pulling his phone out of his jacket pocket. With a few taps he made his call. “I’m in front of the antique store on 33rd.” the cub simply said after the call went through.
“I’ll be there shortly” replied the much older voice at the other end of the line before Eric ended the call.. Moments later an expensive black town car pulled up in front of the boy. He opened the passenger door and climbed inside after retracting his umbrella.
Greeting him was a middle aged lion with gray fur. He eyed the cub in the rearview mirror. “You’re wet, did something happen?” the lion asked as they drove off down the mostly empty streets.
“Oh yeah, I was mugged.” He smirked, pulling out his phone and looking through it casually.
“I wish you’d allow me to accompany you on your walks, Master Eric, I worry for your safety. What if you can’t handle the next person to accost you?” The Lion’s amber eyes met Eric’s with concern in the mirror. “I was charged with your care; I’d never forgive myself if something happened to you”
“It was fine, I’ll be fine. I know how to handle myself,” Eric responded with exasperation. “People who target cubs aren’t going to be strong. It’s good practice and I get some enjoyment out of it”. “The legendary Hell Knight Grey worried about a lowly incubus cub. What would the other demons say?” He said with a smirk.
“I’m not interested in their opinions; I’m interested in keeping you from getting yourself injured. Or worse” Grey said sternly before Eric’s phone began to ring.
“We’ll pick this up later” Eric said, eyeing the caller ID with a sigh. “Oh great, it’s Benedick,” he groaned before reluctantly answering with a disinterested, “Yeah?”
“We have a new assignment for you. Meet me at the usual place as soon as possible,” Benedick ordered before suddenly hanging up.
“As boring and brief as ever,” muttered to himself with a frown. “I swear they assigned me the most boring liaison they had on purpose.” He tucked his phone back into his pocket. “Hey, we’re headed to the meeting spot” he spoke up to Grey, who nodded in response.
Several minutes later they arrived at their meeting spot, a popular coffee shop. Eric hopped out of the car, instructing Grey to wait. “I can at least spare you the pain of having to listen to him,” Eric smirked at the adult.
“I don’t like working with these Angels. I know it’s necessary if we want to remain in the mortal world without being harassed, but it still leaves a bad taste in my mouth.” Grey frowned. He shifted the car into park and left the engine running.
“I don’t like it either, but like you said, we have to play by their rules or we don’t get to play at all,” Eric responded with a wink.He shut the door and made his way inside.
The coffee shop was quiet; the rain having spooked most of the usual clientele. It took no time at all for Eric to spot his handler seated in the corner booth at the back of the shop.. “Way to be conspicuously inconspicuous,” he scoffed to himself as he approached the Angel.
“Yeah Ben?” he asked, collapsing into the seat opposite the chocolate lab.
Benedick wore a plain blue blazer, khaki pants, and basic dress shirt. His eyes regarded the demon with a hint of disdain.
“We have reports of a demon infiltrating Wildstar Elementary, we’ve enrolled you into the school and you’ll be starting Monday. After you apprehend the demon you’ll be allowed to drop out quietly” He explained in a monotone voice akin to a reporter stating sports statistics.
He slid an envelope over the table towards Eric. “Here is your usual fee plus some extra for school supplies and some uniforms. You’ll have the support of the Principal, but the other faculty won’t be informed of the true nature of your presence there. Try to blend in with the other students”
“Fine, but I want to be left alone for a while after this, this is the third job this month” Eric complained, taking the envelope.
“I’ll pass the message along to my superiors.” Benedick replied coldly.
“Yeah, yeah. Is that all you needed?” Eric stood up from his seat, envelope in paw.
“For now, I’ll call you if anything else comes up” Benedick responded dismissively before turning his attention to his phone.
“Right, later Ben” Eric said with a smirk before walking off to the counter to address the Fox girl at the register. “One medium coffee with extra cream and sugar” he ordered, offering her a $20 bill in payment. “Keep the change”
Once he had his coffee he made his way back to his car, taking a sip before opening the door and climbing inside. “Guess I’m going to school” Eric told Grey with a smirk.
Little did Eric know this seemingly mundane assignment would be a major turning point for his time in the mortal realm.
