Chapter One: Just Another Monday

Just like always, Monday mornings are absolute chaos. All of the people who had a nice weekend off, are all swarming out, trying to shrug off their dread for the week to come. Unsurprisingly, this leads to everyone running a bit behind, which of course will cause issues that are completely typical for mondays. And of course, i am having the most monday monday one could have,

Unlike most others, I don't have the luxury of working a nine to five job. Nor do I really get weekends off. Instead, I work my night gig, then have to rush through the busy morning streets, just to get to my side job. Normally this isn't too bad, but Monday's tend to be a little different. My gig was unable to pay me last night, as the truck transporting their cash was going to arrive on Tuesday, and the bank's online services were down. This isn't the first time this would happen, so rather than putting up my normal fuss, I decided to take an IOU and be on my way.

Now I originally left with more than enough time to get to my side job. But of freaking course, there were going to be delays. And it being Monday and all, those delays were going to be ridiculous. The first delay was the morning of the walking coffee addicts. Hordes of grumpy, irritable people roamed the streets, awaiting their coffee joints of choice to open, so they could be fictional members of society. Somehow, I managed to get through the crowds, only getting into three fist fights. The next delay was by far the most absurd. For whatever reason, once a year there is a very odd event, where platypuses that were imported from earth, march through the streets. Supposedly this has some historical significance, but I just think the Forge Master is off his rocker. It took a whole two damn hours for the platypuses to pass, causing me to be half an hour late.

I finally managed to reach my side job, and the boss was visibly upset. I can't blame him, I normally run late on Mondays. "Where the hell have you been?" He croaked. He was a gross old man, who seemed to eat his own weight for breakfast. His white collared shirt was mostly clean, save for giant sweat stains that originated from his pits. And it was clear by the smell, these were not recent.

"Sorry sorry, there were some odd delays this morning." I responded, trying to sound somewhat remorseful.

"Bah! I should fire you right here and now!"

This wasn't the first time he would threaten me like this, and it probably won't be his last. But unlike others, I tend not to put up with his shit. "Oh really now, and where else will all my adoring fans eat their crappy pancakes?"

It was clear I struck a nerve, as thick meaty veins seemed to try and bust out of his head. "Now listen here you little damn slut! You are lucky I took you in at all! If it wasn't for me, you would probably be out banging strangers for cash!"

Most other days, I would have taken this insult with a smile, and make a sarcastic remark. But today, I just was not in the mood for bullshit. I took a deep breath, and looked the slimy old man in the eyes. "Don't you remember our little conversation a month ago? About minding your damn manors? I let a lot of your shit slide, but you do remember who you are dealing with right?"

It took a few moments for the slimeball to realize I was not being sarcastic. And like a puppy doing something it knows it shouldn't, he began to tremble. "R...right. It was all in good fun right? You know I was just joking around right?

I hate spineless men. They are no fun at all. Shifting back to my normal sarcastic tone, I responded. "Of course you were joking around! A smart, buisness savy man like yourself wouldnt be dumb enough to piss me off right? Especially before opening! Think of all the property damage. What would the customers think?" It was sad, as this slimy asshole nodded his head, and tried to slip back into the cafe. "Oi! I'm not done with you!"

Like a startled animal, he turned back expecting a car. "What.... what is it?" He whimpered.

"My pay. You will have it today right?"

"A...about that..." He tried saying in the most pathetic tone.

"Let me guess, business is tight eh?"

"You know how it is Moe, all the bills, the insurance, and of course the constant fines..."

"Maybe you should control your libido and anger."

"I try! But these damn cameras track every damn thing!"

"How sad for you." I responded dully.

"How the hell do you manage? I don't see them constantly fining you! And you are the most angry person I know."

"Aww, are you trying to butter me up now? I didn't know you had this sweet side."

"Ah whatever. Listen, I'll let you keep all the tips you get today alright?"

Holy hell. For once in his life, he actually managed to surprise me. "W..well that's unexpected."

"It's just this once. I'm sorry that I still haven't been able to pay you is all."

I sighed. "I understand. It's rough for everyone right now. Even my night gig is feeling it. How about we get to work huh? I'll even be a little more peppy than normal, just this once of course."

He managed to give a faint smile. Though he was a rotten old pervert, he was still a good man deep down. Though admittedly, you would have to go rather deep. "Do your best." And with that, he opened the door and we made our way inside.

Now unfortunately, of all the cafes that I could have worked at, I ended up at one with a damn uniform. I would much rather stick to my jeans and hoodie, but apparently that's not professional attire. Instead, I was to put on a frilly pink maid outfit, paired with cat ears and tail. I went over to the mirror to make sure everything looked right. Honestly, I can't understand why the guys are constantly swooning over me. I looked rather slim, though I hid some serious muscles underneath. I had a young face, though it was covered in bruises and scratches. Though the most striking feature was my scarlet red eyes, and snow white hair, which I kept short. But other than that, I looked more like a guy than a woman. Though I guess that's how I prefer it. Men tend to be taken more seriously. I took a deep breath, and braced myself for the hardest part of my day.

As soon as I stepped into the serving room, I had too many damn eyes on me. There were ten patrons for now, and all of them were eyeing me top to bottom. All of them men, and all of them had stupid grins on their faces. Like always, I would go to a customer, and introduce myself in a cute manner. This was a maid café, themed around cat girl waitresses, and the customers paid for a show. It wasn't all just horny old men though, as the occasional writer and manga artist would come in. I would tend to give them special treatment, especially if they slipped me an early release copy of their latest work. It's going to sound childish, but this was the main reason I took the job in the first place. The morning went on like normal, the men tipped well, and I had three new manga chapters to read tonight.

I was set to head out, I just had one last patron to handle. Normally, we mostly deal with regulars. So a new face was definitely odd. I approached the man, and gave him a very tired "Good Morning Master~" When he looked up from his menu, his content look soon turned to pure dread. I was taken aback, as this was not the look I was expecting. But when I looked closer, this man did seem a bit familiar. I scanned his person, and noticed that he was rather beat up, and even had a broken arm. That's when things clicked into place. "Oh shit, I broke your arm last night!" I said happily.

The man's face turned a pale white, as it looked as if he wanted to hurl. "I... I didn't know y...you worked here...." He sputtered out.

"Well yeah, gotta do something to make it seem like I'm not a merc."

"It's just so... so..."

"Weird?"

"Y...yeah"

"Yeah, I can see that. Especially after I killed all your friends, and broke your arm." I said casually. "On that, how the hell are you alive?! I could have sworn I shot you! Like six times at least!"

He winced when I mentioned that. He rummaged in his coat, and pulled out a book. "I guess this saved me."

"What the actual hell? There is no freaking way a book could have stopped my bullets."

The man started to open it, and turned a few pages. He wasn't reading it, just looking at the pictures. "Well, it's not a normal book." He showed me its contents. It was a bunch of circles that had intricate drawings inside them. "It's a spell book. You can tell by the rune..."

"Of freaking course it's magic. I was told there were no mages in your group. Bad intel?"

The man looked sheepish, still in clear fear. "Uh no. I'm just kinda interested in that old stuff, even if I can't cast any spells myself."

"Oh... So you're just a dork?"

He winced, almost as if I hit him. "Yeah, I guess you could say that."

"That would explain why you went to a cat cafe, especially after nearly dying."

"Y...yeah..."

"Oh come on, relax. I'm not going to kill you." I said, getting tired of the guys cowering. "I was only there to recover the asset your boss stole. Basic merc work. You know how it is. Somehow you lived, and since I wasn't paid to kill you, you are free to go as far as I care."

"R,,,Really?"

"Yeah really. Dont work for free and all that. Plus I cant kill you now, you're too much of a damn dork." I laughed.

The man laughed as well. "Well that's good i guess..."

"But."

"B...But?"

"But, you better tip me really damn well. After all, not everyone gets to see me in this outfit, especially the ones I kill."

"A...alright I think that's fair." He said, fumbling into his wallet, and placing a large stack of cash on the table.

I took the man's order, and served him his crappily made pancakes. I swear, if it wasn't for the cat maids, this place would be obliterated for its sad excuse for food. After collecting my tips and manga, I changed and made my way out. The boss man waved goodbye, and I waved back. As much shit as I give that place, there is a part of me that does like it. Before heading home, I made my way to a nearby convenience store, where I stocked up on all sorts of junk food and drinks. I was taking the next two days off, and I am definitely not leaving my apartment. It was still a weird feeling actually paying for my food, as I was so used to just stealing it. But as I actually had money, I wouldn't feel right stealing. I paid for my food, and made my way home. It was nearly noon, though it was hard to tell. The sky was normally covered in a thick layer of smog, all coming from the factories that kept most of the people on this planet employed. And if the smog sky wasn't depressing enough, the buildings were the sad whipped cream. Almost all the buildings were in shambles, and run down. Many were outright abandoned, while others looked as if they were torched. The only things that even remotely looked clean were the Mana Cameras, which helped ensure a "stable, healthy society". Though I think we all know that is bull, especially when the whole planet looks like this. But I guess that's what you get for being born on a Class E planet, absolute poverty.

And as much shit as I want to give the people in charge of this hell hole, even they aren't well off. I mean, they are more well off than us, but compared to other leaders in the Alliance, they might as well be peasants. Besides the cameras, the only things that look remotely new are the factories. And that's cause they are the only hope of improving this planet's classification. Not that it would matter, as we will probably be taken over by the Empire in ten years. I stopped for a moment to sigh. I really gotta stop with all this politics. It's just too depressing, man. I would continue my walk, until I reached my front door. In front of it was a small little package. Upon seeing it, I nearly dropped my groceries, and I dove down to grab it.

"Hell yeah! It finally came in!" I exclaimed, as I kicked open my door, which I never locked, and threw my groceries to the side. I quickly opened the box to reveal a video game case. It was a retro game, from nearly five hundred years ago. But as retro things are the new trend, companies were cashing in by reproducing them. As I was about to go and put the disk into the system, I tripped over a rather large pile of trash. I looked at the trash bump, and saw that it used to be a part of a larger pile of trash, which had collapsed overnight. "I guess I should clean up a bit." I admitted. I went over to the food I just bought, and put it into the refrigerator, which was surprisingly clean and empty. I have been working jobs for a month straight. I would just come home, eat, and pass out. I proceeded to grab a few trash bags, paper towels, and cleaning spray and got to work. After about an hour, my apartment was looking rather good, and I was tired as hell. The next thing I know, I was collapsed on the floor, as my TV flashed a bunch of colors. And like that, I fell asleep.