Deadly Duo

By the time Sunny opened her eyes, she was across the street where she and Benji had been waiting minutes prior. Sunny looked over her shoulder to see a set of razor-sharp teeth and two large, beady yellow eyes.

"Ahh!" Sunny squealed.

"Calm down!" Benji said. "I think it's here to help us."

"Down," the beast snarled. "Safe."

The creature set Sunny and Benji down before returning to leap into the fray with the Denizens.

"W-What is that thing?" Sunny stammered.

'Werewolf' was the first word that came to mind as Sunny observed the monster. Long brown fur covered the beast from head to toe. It wore a tattered gray hoodie and black shorts that cut just above the knee. A long tail extended from the end of its spine, swaying side to side as it entered combat with the herd of Denizens.

What really caught her eye, though, was the tombstone it carried on its back.

"What if we're next?" Sunny trembled, the adrenaline in her veins dulling the pain around her shoulder blade.

"I don't think we are," Benji said as he put his eyepatch back on. "Wouldn't it be smarter to run away with us if that was the case?"

It was becoming more and more difficult to form words. Sunny replied with a shaky "Uh-huh," her eyes glued to the fight—no, it was no mere fight. It was a bloodbath.

The beast howled as if it reveled in every second spent drawing blood and flesh from its next target. One minute the creature would have a Denizen pinned by one of its obsidian-black claws. The next, its head would be flying into the air. Park benches and nearby buildings were painted in scarlet, its attention never on Sunny or Benji for more than a split second.

"Do you hear that?" Benji asked.

Sunny struggled to answer, mortified by the amount of blood she was seeing. "H-H-Hear what?"

"It's a whisper. A song? No… I can't make it out, it's too loud."

Sunny shut her eyes and tried to listen. Perhaps it would help alleviate her pain and the horror she observed. After a time, she could hear it too. It was sporadic, with no particular rhyme or melody. Benji was right—it did sound like a song. At least, at first, it did. But as Sunny listened, it started to hear less like a melody and more like someone was speaking into a cup. But just as Sunny felt she was beginning to understand it, the sound became haphazard again.

Meanwhile, the slaughter continued. One of the Denizens—named verlghasts, if Sunny remembered correctly—bit the forearm of the werewolf-looking creature. Blood oozed out, and the werewolf roared, spittle spraying from its fanged teeth. Tearing the beast away from its wound with seemingly no effort, it spun on its heel, swinging the Denizen like a club and knocking two more advancing verlghasts away into a nearby wall. The beasts hit the wall with a crunch, splattering blood and brain matter onto the structure until collapsing to the ground.

"What's wrong with this thing?" Sunny asked, her eyes growing wide. There'd been a lot of blood when Ren lost his arm, but that was nothing compared to this. What they were watching was no better than a meat grinder. Sunny could barely watch when the werewolf started to dismantle the bodies and use their limbs as makeshift baseball bats. "Benji, this isn't right."

"Sunny," Benji said, grabbing both of Sunny's shoulders. "I know this is hard to watch. I don't like it either. But if we run, and even a single one of those things follows us… we're dead." Benji bowed his head and swallowed hard. "We have to stay here. It's… it's safe."

"Safe?" Sunny squeaked, tears falling down the sides of her cheeks. "Look at what it's doing. It's not just killing them! It's tearing them into pieces! The thing's a butcher!"

Sunny and Benji struggled to think of things to say. What else was there to say? All they could do was watch this thing tear every Denizen apart and hope they wouldn't be next.

"It's going to be fine," said Benji.

Sunny shook her head. Did Benji believe the words he was speaking? Was he saying that to delude himself?

"G!" a feminine voice cried.

The werewolf turned to face Sunny and Benji, and as the children raised their heads, two verlghasts were galloping in their direction. They'd barely had enough time to gasp before the werewolf leaped into the air and came crashing down on both of them, one beneath each foot.

For a moment, Sunny thought she sensed a hint of humanity in the creature. It bore cat eyes, its pupils long and thin. Its hair was equal parts black and blue, tied into matching braids that flanked its cheeks. It briefly regarded her with curiosity before stepping off the verlghasts and pulling each one up to eye level by their snouts. The werewolf turned around, smashing the two verlghasts' heads together, spraying blood and flesh onto the streets.

Two verlghasts remained. Pinning one of the dead verlghasts with its foot, the werewolf tore a hind leg from its body, marching toward the remaining Denizens with slow and heavy footsteps. The severed limb dripped with life's essence, droplets landing on the friendly Denizen's feet periodically.

With a single swing of the verlghast's leg, the werewolf sent the two remaining Denizens soaring into the park bench. The bench snapped as if made of toothpicks, scattering wood and splinters around the area. One had died instantly, but the other was limping away.

"No," the werewolf growled. The ground trembled as it made its way over to the verlghast, sweeping up it with its spare hand and holding it at eye level. A puff of hot air escaped the deepest regions of its throat as it growled. The verlghast snapped its jaws in retaliation shortly before the werewolf threw it to the ground.

"What is it doing now?" Sunny asked as she fell to her knees. The pain in her back was returning, and the sight was becoming too difficult to bear.

Stomping on the gut of the verlghast, the werewolf tore the head from the creature's body, blood pouring freely onto the grass as he held it up. A sickening smile twisted the lips of the werewolf as he muttered a single phrase. "Batter up." He tossed the head straight up, underhanded, before clasping both hands around his budget baseball bat and striking the lump of flesh. A disgusting crunch followed, but the object went flying. It was hard to see from where she was, but Sunny was convinced she heard the creature chuckle.

Its attention back on Sunny and Benji, the would-be hero dropped the limb it'd been using and approached with slow and steady steps. It stopped when it was a mere few feet away. As it extended one black nail, Benji moved to stand in front of Sunny.

"You'll have to go through her first to get to me," Benji said, his arms extended at his sides.

The creature retracted its nail, electing to scratch the bottom of its chin instead. It grunted, then, at last, said, "You. Safe. Yes."

"You can talk," said Benji.

"Why are we still doing this?" the same feminine voice from before asked. The voice was now crystal clear without the sounds of battle to disrupt it. It still sounded like it was echoing through a cup, but the words were unmistakable. "G. I don't understand. What is it you see in him?"

"Good. Good," the beast replied.

The disembodied voice sighed. "I don't understand."

"W-Who's there?" Benji asked.

"You understand me?" the voice asked.

"Y-Yeah. I do." Benji looked down at Sunny. "You hear it too, right?"

"Mhm," Sunny replied in a tone barely audible. "I hear it."

The voice gasped. "No one has been able to hear me." A transparent figure appeared in the form of a young girl. She wore a white T-shirt and short shorts. Her hair was emerald in color, bearing hints of pink at the roots. A black band of velvet covered her eyes. "Then… you. What is your name?"

"I think I should be asking the questions," said Benji. "What the heck was that all about? Why did you help us?"

"Good," the monster grunted. "Good."

Benji frowned.

"G, please." The girl put a see-through hand on the creature's shoulder. "Allow me." As the girl floated toward Benji, Sunny rose to her feet, her stare glued to their new friend. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Kiska. And you are?"

Benji swallowed. "Benji."

"Sunny," Sunny said, tipping the front of her cap down.

"What nice names." The girl smiled. "I'm sorry if we caused you any undue stress. That must have been quite the sight to behold." When Sunny and Benji didn't reply, Kiska continued. "G has taken interest in you, Benji."

Benji frowned. "Why?"

Kiska shook her head. "I do not know." Kiska looked at G. G had kept his attention on Benji since the fight had ended. "There is something about you that he finds appealing. I am unsure what it is."

"I'm not going to be a meal, am I?"

"Of course not," Kiska shook her head. "I would never allow that. G is not that kind of person. He… struggles to speak. He understands what's happening, but oftentimes I work to soothe him." Kiska paused to regard G. "I communed with him years ago. He and I have been together ever since. We mean you no harm."

"Y-You don't even know why he wants Benji?" Sunny's tears returned. "What's even going on here? I don't understand anything anymore. This didn't turn out right at all."

"I am most sorry," the specter apologized, "but I mean what I say. G means you no harm. When he saw what was happening, he could not ignore it. G has never taken an interest in anything or anyone. This is a new experience for me, too. But one that is not unwelcome." She sighed. "I understand that this is a great deal to take in."

"So… what happens now?" Benji asked, his arms falling to his sides and the tension in his muscles easing up.

"If you would not mind it, I would much prefer to continue watching you," the ghost continued. "I understand it is a discomfort, but you will not see us unless we want you to." She giggled. "After all, you hadn't noticed us until now."

"Just don't get me into any trouble, please."

"You have my word."

"Still… kind of a weird name. G?"

Kiska pointed to the collar around the creature's throat. The letter G was burned into the leather. "That's all he had when I met him. He does not seem to recall his name. Not that it would matter. He's barely capable of speech."

G's nose shot up, sniffing at the air. The friendly Denizen looked over his shoulder, eyes narrowing on something back where the fight had concluded.

"What's wrong, G?" Kiska asked, her form disappearing.

"Bad. Bad," he grunted. The tombstone on his back shifted side to side as he approached remnants of battle on all fours, the stench of iron permeating the air. G continued to sniff the air the entire time, moving from verlghast to verlghast. Sunny and Benji followed at a distance, their bodies trembling. It took great effort to walk around the mess that G had created. The smell was enough to make them gag.

"Here," G grunted. "Bad." A single verlghast lay at the foot of a bush. G tilted his head with curiosity before quietly shredding open the gut of Denizen.

"What's going on?" Benji asked, leaning to his right to see around G.

Benji and Sunny neared while G reached into the Denizen's body and plucked a sphere-shaped object from its stomach. G suddenly dropped the thing into the grass, making a strange noise between a growl and a whine. "No! No!" he cried, reeling until his back was against a tree.

"What's wrong?" Benji asked. He and Sunny jogged over to where the object fell, frowning when they saw what was there. A single eyeball sat in a mess of dirt, grass, and blood. Worse yet, the eyeball looked like it belonged to a human. At least, that's how it appeared to Sunny. As Benji reached down to grab it, Sunny pulled him back.

"Don't touch it!" she said. "You saw what it did to him!"

Benji sighed. "But Sunny, what if it's important? Look at it."

A black substance covered the object in a series of streaks and splatters. At a certain angle, the streetlights revealed an iridescent coloring within. It looked as if someone had covered it in gasoline. But the distinct scent of the chemical was missing.

"A Denizen was able to eat this," Benji muttered. "So why couldn't G touch it?"

"What are you mumbling about?" Sunny asked. "Just don't touch it!"

"I must agree with Sunny." Kiska's form reappeared. "Touching it could be dangerous."

"Don't worry. I have an idea." Benji drew a deep breath, guiding a finger down where his blue-green tears had fallen minutes ago. "It should only take a second." Benji widened his eye and tilted his head to one side, concentrating on the eyeball. The bizarre scent of pool chemicals filled the air, the space surrounding them growing cold. A crackling noise followed, and moments later, the eyeball was in a solid block of ice. "T-There you go," he said, sucking in his lips, his voice shaking.

"Are you all right?" Sunny asked, her hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah," he whispered, wiping away an errant line of blue-green fluid from underneath his eyepatch. "Really. I'm fine."

"Incredible," Kiska marveled.

G returned and reached down to pick up the block of ice. With a grunt, he monkeyed his way over to where Sunny and Benji stood, extending the block of ice out to Benji. The faintest hint of a smile stretched the beast's lips, and although Sunny still felt scared, she detected a hint of kindness in the creature's movements.

"Thanks," Benji said, taking the block and pocketing it. He zipped the pocket shut and leveled his gaze on Kiska and G. "I need to get Sunny to safety. She's still hurt."

"Yes. I do not detect her life is at any risk," said Kiska, "but that wound should be looked at."

"F-F-Friend," G growled. "Friend."

Kiska looked at G briefly before addressing Benji. "We will be in touch."

"Yeah." With a motion that barely constituted a wave, Benji wrapped his arm around Sunny and began to lead her down the street.

The sooner they got away from this mess, the better.

---

Ten minutes had passed since they left the scene. While Sunny didn't seem any worse for wear in terms of walking, the blood around her shoulder looked thick and sticky. The sight was rough for Benji, and part of him blamed himself for letting it get as bad as it did.

"It hurts," Sunny whined through stifled sobs.

"Don't worry," Benji said with a shaky voice, "we're going to get some help soon. You're going to be fine."

"Sunny!" a voice cried out. "Sunny!"

"Benji, where are you?" an accompanying voice screamed.

A panting Ren appeared beneath a lamp post down the street. He gaped when he caught Benji and Sunny staggering toward him. "Lyro! They're this way!" he called down the road to his right. Ren barreled down the night's sidewalk, stopping short of running into Sunny and Benji. "Fuck, do you know how long we've been looking? Do you realize what—" His voice caught. "Sunny? Are you okay?" His eyes widened, and he pulled Sunny's jacket down to reveal the blood smear. "What the fuck happened?"

"S-S-Sunny—" Benji started.

"God damn it! This is why you don't take shit into your own hands!" Ren positioned Sunny behind him and lifted her onto his back so she sat piggyback.

"Benji!" A stern voice followed, and soon a man who looked just under twenty appeared, his hair and eyes the same colors as Benji's. "Where have you been?" He frowned, raising a hand to silence Benji before he could even speak. "What's wrong with her?"

"The fuck am I supposed to know?" Ren balked, standing up. "All I know is that I gotta get her help." Ren shot Benji a glare, clenching his teeth before running off, Sunny bouncing on his back.

The stern man crossed his arms, regarding Benji with a disapproving glare. "Care to explain to me what you've been up to, young man?" Despite his youthful appearance, Lyro possessed sharp features and perceptive eyes. His was the stare of a man who implied he knew more than he led on. He adjusted his glasses. "Well? I'm waiting."

Benji couldn't bear to get Sunny in more trouble than she was already in, so the solution was simple for him.

"I, uh, thought a camp-out would be fun," he lied. Benji avoided his father's stare and tucked his arms behind him.

Lyro shook his head. "And yet you lie. Fine. We'll discuss your punishment tomorrow morning." He paused. "Are you hurt?"

"No. I'm fine."

"Good. Come along now. It's late."

"Sure."

---

"What the hell is this supposed to be?" Scales asked as he observed the eyeball encased in ice.

"Beats me. Sunny and her friend found it," Ren supplied, irritation in his voice. "Figured you'd probably want it since you're good with this shit."

"Am I being paid for this?"

"I thought you'd be paying me."

Scales raised a judgmental brow. "Fine. Ten percent of what I usually give you." When Ren opened his mouth, he continued. "Twenty. And not a single penny more."

"Fuck, man. Fine. Whatever." Ren fell into the recesses of Scales' sofa as the doctor walked into another room to observe his new item. Ren grabbed the remote off the coffee table and turned on the TV. As soon as the news anchor began talking, Scales's voice pierced the room again.

"I didn't say you could stay here and make this place your home. Get out of here!"

"Jeez, fine. I'm going, I'm going."

"The authorities are still investigating the strange occurrences of NEON in the area. With local law enforcement on the case, there is—"

Ren turned off the TV, sighing. Whatever the eyeball was, Scales would know soon enough.