Hierarchy

At William's retort, Chetan Ambani gave a mischievous smile and then left the line.

Marlon burst out laughing. "You're acting like a Brawler yourself, William! A guy butts in front of you and you challenge him to a duel!"

William's face had gone peculiarly pale in the moments after Chetan Ambani left. He put a hand to his forehead. "I don't know what came over me. When he stepped in front of us, this incredible surge of anger filled my body. It was all that I could do to avoid striking him right in the face!"

Marlon kept laughing. "I guess we'd better be careful, huh, Alexandre? If we don't keep the apartment nice and tidy, this little bastard might headbutt us in the face. He's like a goddamn pit bull!"

But Alexandre wasn't smiling. He said in a serious voice, "I wouldn't joke about it so lightly. This is a very serious matter. Haven't you heard about Hunter Syndrome? When a human turns into a Hunter, there's an intense hormonal shift that seriously affects the frontal lobe. It makes both men and women more aggressive, violent… and, well, it increases the libido. But there's a decrease to the patient's perception of morality, leaving them with less remorse after committing violent acts. This is why Hunters have ten times the violent crime rate of humans. The more your body evolves, the hotter your temper will run. You both need to learn to control your rage before it's too late."

William looked shaken. "What? You're saying that I'm becoming a more physically violent person due to my transformation!? But I feel perfectly fine! This is absurd."

Alexandre shook his head. "We're being injected with the same substance that causes Zombies to go berserk. Why are you acting surprised?"

Marlon interjected, "Damn, if you're right, we're gonna be in some deep shit. And by 'we,' I mean everyone. The stuff people were doing in the exams are gonna look like Sunday dinner compared to what's coming."

Alexandre replied, "Don't worry too much. We're at Hunter Academy. It's in their best interests to help students retain their sanity. They'll teach you to control your emotions, so just try to avoid murder or sexual assault until then."

Marlon bursts out laughing. "You don't need to worry about that second one. It'll take more than one shot for William to grow a pair of balls and become a man."

Despite himself, even Alexandre couldn't keep the grin off his face as Marlon doubled over in laughter.

William rolled his eyes. "Well, if you're done acting like a pair of immature children, maybe we should sign up, drop off our things, and rejoin the group before it's too late." He stepped up to the receptionist's desk. "We're here for a room."

"Student ID," the receptionist demanded in a very bored voice.

The three young men did as they were told and produced their student IDs.

The receptionist looked them over, nodded, and asked, "What kind of room do you want?"

William replied, "The cheapest!"

The receptionist raised an eyebrow. "You sure? Cheapest is $600 a month."

William nodded, not giving it another thought, but Alexandre stepped in. "Wait, what exactly are we getting for that cost? We're not going to sleep in a basement or anything like that. We need something clean and comfortable for three inhabitants."

The receptionist seemed annoyed. "Well, make up your damn minds. The classic common rooms are $1,200."

Marlon didn't seem happy to hear this. Of course he had less disposable income than either Alexandre or William. "Come on, I don't mind the cheap one," he said.

Alexandre ignored him. "We're taking the classic room."

The receptionist shrugged, then turned and took a key from a huge board where hundreds of them were hanging. Each had a number written in white on the top. This particular key was labeled "195." She spun the key around her finger. "Scan your fingerprint to pay."

Alexandre did so. A moment later, the message "Payment accepted" appeared on the screen.

The receptionist slapped the key down on the counter. "Next!"

Alexandre picked up the key, then turned to William and Marlon.

Marlon said, "What the fuck, man! We're gonna be roommates to save money but you rent us a goddamn hotel room!?"

Alexandre replied, "Use your head. The academy encyclopedia says that first-rate shared rooms are at least $1,200. It didn't even mention the possibility of a tier lower than that. We'd have ended up somewhere very unpleasant, I promise you."

Marlon didn't seem convinced. For him, even $600 for a room was unthinkable. He'd lived in a working-class neighborhood his whole life, and that amount of money wasn't exactly pocket change.

William said, "I agree with you, but you could've told us before you paid! It was an assholish move to just butt in like that without asking first."

Alexandre pointed to the sky. "We're almost out of time. That stuff about your duel ate up all the time we could've otherwise spent arguing. Strike while the iron's hot! When you're a real Hunter, you'll understand that."

William gave a growling sigh. He seemed like he wanted to keep arguing, but instead said, "Alright, whatever! Let's go drop off our luggage. You're right, we only have ten minutes left."

The three men headed for their apartment. Tensions were high, but Alexandre felt confident that they'd taken the first steps in the team dynamic that would be their weapon throughout the coming school year. A weapon that Alexandre would wield with brutal efficiency whenever the opportunity arose.