Alldust: Vanguard

A lone van crawled through the worn streets of a shady area carrying along with it the smell of magik and exhaust smoke. It was not yet night but the sun hung low in the sky as its journey into the horizon was ending for the day. The occupants of the van were a strange bunch much like the town they just drove into. The two of them were Espers, humans with extraordinary abilities only a few could dream of having. These two put their skills to use as Vanguards; an elite group that stood at the veil that separated our world from unimaginable evil.

"Hey Sunny, sure about settling in Oldhaven?" said one of them.

His hands wrapped around the steering wheel making it look like a plaything within his grasp. Stretching his spine slightly to get a better look at the rearview mirror forced the seat embracing his massive figure to groan. He wore black slacks tucked into his combat boots and a dark long sleeve sweater.

"It'll be fine Locke." A smaller male than Locke responded from the passenger seat.

Sapphire eyes in a violently handsome face stared back at Sunny as he looked at the side mirror. He wore stylish clothes befitting of someone his age. New blue pumps covered his soles and ran up his ankles. His skinny jeans were held up with a fashionable belt that was covered by a loose multicoloured graphic tee. The dark circles under them spoke of long nights without sleep and a state of persistent caution. One didn't get much sleep as a Vanguard. To make matters worse he was struggling to write lately. He had been creating stories for as long as he could remember but an unusually large lack of inspiration had him in a slump. Funny, considering his day to day activities with the Vanguard. Sunny fidgeted with a plush cat face he fixed to his new home keys.

Nineteen years in age Sunny was much stronger and wiser than many of his peers. To be fair he had seen things that would make grown men tremble in fear and wish for a quick death. Most would do anything to escape from the horror's Sunny vanquished in the middle of the night. He ran a hand through his mass of shocking red hair leaning into the seat, his nostrils twitching and his skin tingling. He closed his eyes and inhaled gently, getting himself accustomed to the scent of the town.

"Sure does look old, I'm not sure about the haven part though," Locke grumbled, looking around the buildings with distaste. "You didn't see anywhere better to move to?"

"It was up for grabs, and for that price? I'm lucky I got it before someone snatched it up."

"I hope you don't regret this, Sunny. This town is shit as far as I can tell."

"It may be that." Sunny said, inhaling deeply, "but you can also feel it, can't you?"

He opened his eyes and turned to his friend. They shared a look and Locke said, "Yes, Sunny. Magik, raw and untamed."

Locke wasn't wrong, the Magik hung in the air like smoke, Sunny could almost taste it. There was a feel to it, dark and decadent. Oldhaven was steeped in Magik, and it wasn't entirely the benign sort. The both of them lapsed into silence as they drove deeper into Oldhaven. The homes seemed to become more decrepit and the people that walked the streets were nestled in shadows. Their auras hanging around them like halos encompassing the entirety of their bodies.

"My, what a mess," said Locke, slowing down to get a better look at the inhabitants of the strange town. "You know, the offer still stands for you to move in with me."

"And I'm refusing, Locke. I appreciate the gesture, regardless. How soon until we get there?"

Locke looked at the GPS, "It says in a couple minutes. Relax Sunny. That eager to move into that piece of shit complex?"

"Language. You can't say that Locke. Don't let Garland catch you talking like that." sighed Sunny. "Besides, you haven't even seen the place."

The big man scoffed and his laughter rumbled from deep within his chest. "Those twits should be more worried about the state of the veil than how I express myself." Locke nudged Sunny. "I don't have to see it to know what it would look like lad."

"Well, we'll be there soon," Sunny said, pulling out a sleek red phone with a big "V" etched into the titanium back.

He began to check the images of the house sent to him by the owner. Locke was right. Looking at the pictures it wasn't anything to be proud of. But it was affordable, and something he could call his own. Locke swerved the car to avoid an errant driver then leaned out of the window to cuss at them. "Get off the fucking road ya crazy bitty!"

To Locke's amusement the woman flipped him off and gunned her car faster. She proceeded to begin swerving in and out of traffic like she was in a street race.

Sunny took a look at his friend's face and couldn't help but smile. "Nice town, isn't it?"

"Yep." Locke said, glancing once more in his rearview. "Very nice town with cheery people, and safe drivers."

Sunny chuckled again and replied quietly. "I really appreciate you coming Locke. It means a lot to me."

"Oh please Sunny. Don't get sweet on me, you're going to make me hurl. Do you want me to make rubbish out of my new shirt" Locke tugged at the tight black cloth covering his burly chest.

"Okay, fine." Sunny said, glancing at his friend for a moment.

Heavily muscled and slightly shorter than Sunny, thirty four year old Locke Errandael was Sunny's mentor and friend. With dark hair that was sculpted into a faux hawk of sorts, and strange orange eyes that blazed whenever he was angry, he had a unique air to him. Locke was made up of striking features that stuck in one's mind long after he left the premises. A cross-shaped tangerine earring on his left ear was the only accessory on his person that served an aesthetical purpose. Whatever was found was simply connected to his job as a Vanguard. A job that he had been doing since before Sunny was born.

"We're here." Locke said, stomping on the brakes.

The big van full of all the few things important to Sunny clattered in the back. BANG! A loud crashing noise made both of them instinctively reach for their weapons.

Sunny's shoulders relaxed as he sighed. "Jeez Locke, warn me next time before stepping on the brakes so hard would ya?" Sunny grumbled.

But Locke was already out of the van and sauntering towards the front. Sunny rubbed his temples before hopping out of the van to follow the stout man. He glanced around as he walked keenly aware of the tingling at the base of his spine. One of the first lessons all Vanguards had to learn was to trust one's instincts. A cold shift in temperature, tingling body parts and unexplained goosebumps were a few indicators of paranormal activity. Times like this he had no doubt Locke was watchful too. It was pretty much the sum of their lives as Vanguards. You didn't know when a phantom or even worse, a Kinshi would break past the veil and take a swipe at you. Turning his head like a swivel he noted the streets were deserted. Sunny suspected that the hint of danger in the air had something to do with it.

He remembered back to the records of Oldhaven from Vanguard HQ…unnaturally high crime rate, supernatural happenings and low population. He wanted to be prepared coming to a town from a super city that had everything. I'm lucky HQ and my favourite coffee shop are both close to my new place, Sunny thought.

They had felt the decrepit Magik, yes. But nothing had come for their throats yet. Sunny crossed his fingers mentally because wherever Vanguards were found, trouble often wasn't far off. They stood in front of the van and looked up at the towering apartment complex. It was four stories up and had numerous large square windows that lined the front visage of the building.

Locke whistled low under his breath and nudged Sunny, "Bet you a thousand bucks there's some paranormal shit going on in there."

"Language. I'm thinking that's a bet I would lose, Locke. Now let's get at it before I change my mind." Sunny felt dizzy as he looked up at the massive building; its old brick was discolored. "I think my room is on the third floor."

"Third floor? We have to climb the damn stairs?"

"Might not. Oldhaven may be old but it has elevators and electricity." Sunny joked, turning and walking towards the rear of the van. "I also thought someone was supposed to be here to welcome us or something."

"Well, I don't think that person got the memo. Plus I thought you checked out the apartment online?" Locke said following Sunny watching him twirl his keys.

"I did but just the interior." Sunny said dryly.

"Knobhead." Locke grumbled and flung the back doors open. "See, nothing's broken."

"Nothing you can see, Locke. I didn't know I bought so much stuff." Sunny said. He reached into the space and lifted a chipped mug still with the price tag on it. Sighing once more he mumbled. "Yeah, not broken."

"Huh?!"

"Nothin', let's go."

"Let's?" Locke said, giving Sunny side eyes

"Yes, let's. You're going to help me take all this stuff up. Right?"

"Right."

Sunny chuckled and pulled out the smaller boxes, leaving the heavier ones for the much stronger Locke.

"I understand why you had to move Sunny. Still, I'm sorry for burning down your old home. It was the only option to vanquish the Kinshi I saw at the time."

"I know Locke it's in the past. Besides, I don't blame you for it. I should have been there to help. Those strange phantoms were a handful though."

Some weeks ago, Sunny and Locke had battled a crew of phantoms headed by a Kinshi. Phantoms are trouble enough but when someone's gate is corrupted by one they become an abhorrent monstrosity, a Kinshi. The Kinshi was formerly Sunny's neighbor but she was possessed after being involved in an accident. Sunny had messed up routing the phantoms away from the designated area. His mistake turned into a long drawn out battle and they were outnumbered. Unfortunately the drawn out bout caused the two Vanguard to run low on mana, the energy that allows them to use their powers. Sunny was trying to fight off his phantoms in a bid to go help Locke tackle the newly formed Kinshi but instead the night lit up in bright gold flames. The shriek of the vanquished Kinshi reached Sunny's ears as he watched his home turn to ashes. Luckily for him he didn't have much stuff to begin with, so it wasn't a hard loss. But he could still remember the heat from the flames of the fire that night. He had checked the internet for houses not too far and he'd happened upon this place. The price was as low as Sunny wanted it and it was just an hour's drive to the Vanguard HQ.

"Alright, grab those and come with me." Sunny said, gesturing at two boxes that looked heavy and were sealed with Sellotape.

"Sure, leave the heavy stuff for me," said Locke good-naturedly. He lifted his sleeves up and flexed his scarred muscle-bound arms and went after the boxes.

Sunny chuckled and led the way to the entrance. The sun had set just a moment ago and the only lighting was from the headlights of the van paired with a lone flickering lantern on a post by the side of the entrance. They went past the lighted area and stepped into darkness.

"I don't think there's a light switch, Locke," Sunny said, running his hands over the walls leading to the stairs.

Locke grunted in response and shuffled his feet where he stood. Sunny could feel moisture on the walls and he withdrew his hands quickly. He pulled out his phone and fiddled with it until the flashlight came on.

"There, let's go. I think it's Room 305. It should be the room recently renovated."

They reached the top of the stairs and turned the corner. A hallway stretched far into the other side of the building and there were doors on each side. Behind Sunny and Locke was what seemed to be an elevator. The glow of yellow tapes didn't need someone with their observational skills to clue them in on the status of its operation.

"Great, stairs it is." Locke said with faux cheer. His boots made loud booms on the stairway as they made their way up.

"The place is oddly quiet, not even the squeak of a mouse. You think we should do a sweep to find out if there's something we need to exorcise?" Locke joked. "I'd hate to have to set fire to this place too."

"No," Sunny chuckled, "It would be rude to knock at this hour. Besides, we're almost there."

They took two more flights of stairs admiring the lack of upkeep done on the place. Cobwebs swam through the air and dust lined all surfaces. They remained silent until they were at Sunny's floor. "I can't believe we'll have to go down and then come up again Locke."

"Don't tell me, I could simply unload the van and drive off."

"Ha, very funny."

"No, really. Remember I have the lake thing to handle," Locke said grimacing.

"That's true, I almost forgot. Do you want me to come along? Soon as we bring in the boxes, I can lock up and we'll handle business."

"Nope, you're just about to move into your new place Sunny," Locke said seriously. "Let's keep Vanguard business aside for now, alright?"

"Right."

"Now, show me where to drop these fu— damn boxes."

Sunny walked from door to door, pausing intermittently to check with the light from his phone if he was at his door.

"301, 302, 304..."

"Are we there yet?" Locke said, his baritone echoing along the damp space.

"Almost." Sunny replied. They reached a door with a plaque on it, the numbers 305 were engraved on it. The format was old and cursive. "We're here."

"Well, get it open then," Locke said, dropping the boxes by the side of the door. "You have the keys, don't you?"

"I have the building key. Someone was supposed to meet us here and give me the master key. Wait..."

Sunny huffed and scrolled through his phone. "Piece of shit supervisor," he said a moment later, glancing at Locke to see if he noticed him cursing. "He texted me saying he can't make it but the key is under the carpet."

"What carpet?" Locke asked.

"This one," Sunny said. He pointed the light at a square piece of carpet at the foot of the door. It had clearly seen better days. "I'm not touching that."

"Well, I'm not touching either," Locke said, grinning. "I'm going to get the rest of the boxes."

"Wait Locke, don't you need the light.?"

"I've got a phone too, remember?" Locke said and whistled away cheerily.

Sunny sighed and bent at the waist. He lifted the carpet with his fingertips and fished out the single key from underneath it with his other hand. The irony was not lost on Sunny, he and Locke had fought off abominations that came with the night but they drew the line at touching a dirty carpet. He shook his head and chuckled softly. He fitted the key to the lock giving it a gentle twist generating a satisfying click from the lock. The door groaned in protest but gave way nonetheless. A wave of Magik hit him gently in the face from the gap and he took a wary step back. He pushed the door open a bit and peered inside. There was definitely Magik in Oldhaven, but this one was different.

"Strange," he muttered to himself.

He walked into the apartment and the Magik seemed to hide itself. He fumbled the wall for the light switch and turned it on. A warm glow emanated from the lightbulb on the wall opposite him. Maybe I imagined it, Sunny thought. He took a step backwards and another one forward quickly. He could still detect the Magik present in the room. He shrugged and started pushing the boxes in. It was probably residual Magik from the previous occupant. He heard stomping coming from the stairway and Locke materialized some seconds later with boxes in his hands.

"One last trip and we're done, Sunny."

"One second Locke. Can you...feel something?"

"Hell, I've been feeling something since we drove into Oldhaven, Sunny."

"Yeah, that's true. It's just...something feels different in here. The Magik, it's different."

Locke looked around the room, shrugged and then left to get the last of the boxes.

Sunny sighed and stepped out to pick up the box Locke had just dropped when a discomforting sensation came over him.

"What the hell?" Sunny whispered, turning around quickly to search for the source of the feeling.

He stood directly in the ray of light from a set of battered windows and his shadow grew long and thin behind him. Darkness owned every inch of the home around him. Without thinking he pulled out his phone to turn on his phone light again. He searched in the dark gloom until he reached a doorway that seemed to be without a door, just endless darkness that the light from his phone couldn't penetrate. The disconcerting sensation threw Sunny off for a moment and he stood in front of the darkness, puzzling over the strange phenomenon. Where there should have been light, there was none. And where there was meant to be a door, there was this gaping darkness that sent waves of discomfort down his spine. He blinked and in place of the darkness was the door.

"Strange," he said again and turned to carry the boxes in.

He paced the length of his apartment, eyes scanning the nooks and corners of each room. He remembered that the owner was quite a strange one and in a hurry to sell. Could it be that he witnessed the strangeness and couldn't deal with it any longer? Sunny shrugged and moved towards the window. He remembered the photos the man had sent to him. There were three windows that looked out into the city. Sunny would check it out after he was done unpacking the boxes. It was possible not all the listing information was accurate. No chance such a beautiful view would remain in this dump. He took a deep breath and the image of his recent battle with the phantoms flooded his mind. He exhaled and decided to keep his mind away from phantoms and the like for the time being as Locke had suggested. He didn't want to think of his job now. Especially since he had to deal with moving in, unpacking, and organizing his belongings.

He could already envision the placement of his belongings in the empty spaces he counted off in his head. Maybe a pile of books there, or a colourful flower to breathe life into the room. He pictured a large shelf to house his books and magna. Oh I can put my frog collection on the left half of the top row and cat collection on the right. Sunny started to get excited. The room as it was seemed near featureless. It was a lifeless walk in the living room and he had his mind set on changing that. Maybe I can make some new friends out here and maybe… His imagination ran wild with ideas of socials at his place. I think Yuna would like the place if I tidied up. Sunny thought about one of his only non-work friends remembering their conversations fondly.

The more time Sunny spent in the room the more attached he grew to it and he hadn't been to the bedroom, kitchen or spare room yet. He made his way towards the area where he thought it would be. Warily pushing the melrose cherry door forward. His gate surged to life and Sunny gasped in shock.

This was the Magik he had felt, the one that had cloaked itself so expertly even Locke hadn't picked up on it. He had never reacted this way to anything before, be it a phantom or a Kinshi. His years of grueling training immediately took hold of his body forcing him to take deep calming breaths to still the rush of his gate. After a few moments of deep breathing he recognized what appeared to be a face peering back from the darkness. He felt a touch at his back and he jerked and spun around clenching his fists.

"Locke! What are you doing sneaking around?!" Sunny's muscles relaxed.

"I'm not sneaking around, you're the one lurking in a room with no lights on. Aren't you supposed to be unboxing?"

Sunny sighed and ran his hands over his face. He must have hallucinated the face in the dark. It's getting hard to tell if I'm too sleep deprived or there is something here. Usually by now I would have been attacked if there were. He thought to himself.

"Right, unboxing. Lead the way."

Locke led him back to the living room and crashed into the couch. It looked worse for wear as it squeaked under his weight.

"So, I got all the boxes in," he said to Sunny. But Sunny's back was turned and he was staring at the door of his bedroom. He looked back at Locke then returned his gaze to his new room.

"Sunny, are you alright? It's like you've seen a phantom. Anyway, those damn boxes are heavy! What do you have in them?" Locke said. He pulled a box close to himself and began to peel off the Sellotape.

"My bad, I was just…examining my new home. The place sucks, but this is all I can afford with how things are within Vanguard. Plus, it's an entire apartment all for myself? Maybe it could help bring back my drive to write or something, I don't know. As for the stuff in there? Come on, man, you know what it is."

Sunny gave the door a quick scan, and again he saw no sign of that face he discovered. Rather than bring it to the light he turned to look at Locke. Sunny's eyes widened at the sight of his boxes stacked carefully in a pyramid.

"Are these all the boxes? Di-did you carry them all at once?"

Locke glanced to his left and chuckled, "Got wax in your ears? I just said so. Yeah and good luck with the organization," Locke said, putting away the box cutter. "Try to get some fresh air too. This place looks like it could kill someone with the look it's got going on." His eyes shifted from side to side examining the room.

He shook Sunny's offered hand and left the apartment in quick order, whistling as he walked. Sunny shut the door after him and turned to survey the room. He contemplated for a moment and then he made up his mind.

It could have been an image he conjured but Sunny was no novice. Just trust your gut. Unfortunately, he had been in the game longer than most. Even if he didn't have an impressive tenor with Vanguard he would have known better than to ignore his first instincts. I know a phantom when I see one. If it was violent I would have been assaulted once Locke had left, Sunny admitted to himself. Instead, he stood unharmed. This doesn't make a lick of sense. He felt his gate swell from the Magik around him. He could feel the phantom's gate warbling close by.

"You have one chance to show yourself, just one." He declared in a calm, powerful voice.

He jolted back when a phantom glided out of the wall and came towards him. It stopped short to hover over the few opened boxes on the floor. What struck Sunny was how the phantom's hair gleamed with life. A human girl? No wait…definitely a phantom. Sunny marveled at her wavy green hair with her bangs tucked up and over her noggin exposing her forehead. The way it playfully hung down and framed her face added charm to her overall look. Sunny knew that if she were alive her hair would pop.

Wait, is she human? Sunny's inability to make a clear decision started to get on his nerves. Distracted by her figure he noticed she was slender but toned, adorned in what appeared to be a plain white summer dress with a ribbon. She was absolutely stunning. Her topaz-like eyes were fixated on Sunny. Yeah I need to get out more. Sunny thought to himself. The phantom pushed a lock of hair behind her ear before leaning closer to Sunny. Shocked, he couldn't move his eyes from her face. Ironically, despite the fair distance separating the two he could still feel her gate's mana glistening back at him with life. It was as though she were in a suspended state between life and death.

"You can...see me?" Her voice was soft, intoxicating to his senses.

Sunny let it fill the silence. Somehow regaining his composure he responded confidently. "Yes, I can. Now tell me why you're in my house."

***