A Job

With everyone healing up nicely Xilo joined in on the conversation before going to bed. Once it was time to sleep everyone went back to their rooms. Xelfia was going to go back to the infirmary just to be safe but Tearia assured it would be fine. With Tearia's approval they all went to their room and slept for the night. Yulrin sat in the back area and kept an eye on Hunter and Hazel. "She still hasn't woken up yet." With the smell of blood still in the air Yulrin wondered if Hazel was even alive for a moment. She heard her breathing though so she quickly dismissed that thought.

"Hopefully Vandor comes back soon."

Yulrin didn't want to spend any more time here then she had to. Leaning back against the wall Yulrin felt herself growing tired. With a few hours passing Yulrin could barely keep her eyes open as a pair of footsteps approached. Perking up her ears Yulrin looked at the door as Vandor walked in. Standing up, Yulrin stretched her body as Vandor swapped places with her. Saying goodbye to him Yulrin left for her room, she wouldn't have to come back until the morning to take his place again. "Only a few days." After that these watch shifts would be over.

"Hello again Vandor, good to see you."

"Shut it."

Sitting down Vandor heard Hunter's annoying voice ringing in his ear.

"So heartless, I'm just looking for a bit of conversation in this boring place. That other girl won't even respond to me."

"She made the right choice, there's nothing worth talking to you about. Just make this easier on the both of us and be quiet now."

"I'll think about it, old friend."

Scowling Vandor couldn't hide his disgust hearing Hunter calling him, his old friend. "A mistake." Blocking out Hunter's stare Vandor closed his eyes while doing a bit of training. It had been almost fifteen years now since the day he had become "friends" with Hunter. At that time he didn't know what kind of person he really was, looking back on it now though he knew he was a fool. That job was where his life of crime had truly begun until Katrin eventually dragged him out of it all. "I killed thirty people back then." He was only sixteen when he had first killed and he remembered each and every single one of their faces. The feeling of someone's life slipping through his fingers and falling to the ground.

He was young and poor, living on the streets at the time. He survived by using his muscles that he developed through street fights and scuffles. By the time he was sixteen he had made a name for himself around the town. "The Rabid Dog." He was known for leaving his opponents with multiple broken bones and bruises. One day after he finished a fight a man who called himself Hunter came up to him. Sweaty and full of anger, Vandor barely listened to the man talking to him. Until he heard him mentioning something about being paid for his work. That had caught his attention enough to agree without hesitation, without even knowing the details of the job.

Following Hunter back to his place Hunter had left his hometown for the first time in his life. Without a care for anything else Hunter gave him food and proper clothing. It felt like he was getting treated like an actual person for once in his life. It was an experience he wanted to indulge in and never forget. Eventually they arrived at a small city nearby and after chatting with Hunter a bit he had warmed up to him. "His soft voice and nice words are deceiving." Entering the town Hunter took him to a house on the outskirts of the town. Once they got there Hunter told him to simply beat up the person there and he would get paid for it. Without even questioning anything he willingly broke into the house and dragged out an older man.

"He couldn't even fight back, he had no Astral Energy...I just sat there and beat him up. I didn't care, I just wanted the money. To feel like I was being useful."

Hunter had even thrown some money his way, which only made him fight more aggressively. Ignoring the sound of bones breaking as the older man cried, Hunter eventually told him to stop. Getting off the man, Vandor backed away like he was asked as Hunter walked up to the man and whispered something in the man's ear. Once the man heard it, he shot up instantly despite his broken bones and limped away. Their little group followed the man until eventually they reached another smaller house that was run down. The man he had beaten up knocked on the door and invited himself in, collapsing in their house. Vandor remembered hearing the family scream as a stranger fell into their house. What stuck out the most to him though was something else.

"A small little girl walked up to the man despite her parents' wishes. Her small body seemed so frail in comparison to that man."

Watching from outside their group stayed hidden as the girl placed her hand on the man's body. Even now Vandor would never forget seeing that small flame ignite in her palm. At the time he thought the girl was going to kill him but he was wrong. After a couple of moments the flame surrounded his body, engulfing him. Bathing in flames they eventually faded to reveal the same man in perfect condition. All of his wounds had disappeared and his bones were healed. He stood up like nothing had ever happened to him. "Her flames healed him." At a loss for words the man thanked the girl and the family before walking away just like that. Hunter had seen it all with his own eyes and already left to meet up with the man.

Following Hunter they met up with the man once more. "That's when it happened." Hunter asked him once more to beat the man up and after seeing what happened Vandor didn't feel bad at all doing so. He figured Hunter would just let him go get healed again by that girl's magical flame. "How wrong I was." After beating him up again Vandor looked up at Hunter who wasn't holding money this time. Instead he was holding a rusty old sword. Remembering that sword still sent chills down his spine. Hunter placed that sword in his hands and smiled at the young teen.

"If you want more money than you'd ever know what to do with, then join me. All you have to do is stab that man and it'll be done. No more life on the streets or fighting for survival. People will beg you for their lives instead or you can leave and continue rotting away until someone decides to kill you for knowing too much. What is your choice, Vandor?"