Reginald was squatting down, bored out of his mind.
'The lad still isn't coming out, huh?'
Looking at the storm of light sparks at the street's end, he sighed.
'Maybe I should go help the kid out. He really showed some grit back 'ere, even if he lost. That's Constantin's sonny right there!'
In the next moment, his face morphed, breaking his countenance apart.
Mass and fat moved, solidifying into teeth.
When flesh stopped writhing, the man had a second mouth where his right cheek once was.
"Scatter."
The newly formed mouth screamed, and the very world shifted as if following his command. The remnants of the cage dispersed, leaving only a male figure to behold.
Jani was dragging a mutilated body across the floor. The vestige's limbs were missing, the cut seeming as clean as that of a surgeon's.
The creature was spitting out blood as it produced painful cries, its tongue removed.
Jani's gaze was downcast as he dragged the creature by the shoulder.
'Ho-lee crap! Little bastard's tougher than stale bread!'
By the time Jani's gaze moved up, Reginald's cheek was back to normal.
Jani looked at his uncle, his almost healed wounds stinging.
"How the everlivin' hell did you not die in there, lad?"
Reginald asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Not to offend my nephew dearest, but you got hit nasty back there. How didn't you bleed out?"
Tossing the body over to Reginald, he showed off his rapidly healing wounds.
Stitches made of solidified shadows held them together, dried blood covering their edges.
Not letting Reginald speak any longer, Jani stated:
"I don't kill, so please handle the rest."
Going to the car while Reginald stared him down, Jani opened the passenger compartment, fishing through it until he found a small, antique canteen.
Taking a swing of the opulent alcohol, Jani's face relaxed.
"Knew you were the type of man to drink while driving."
Reginald shrugged.
"I just wear my 'eart on my sleeve. Besides, what are the Megtex enforcers going to do? Arrest their superior?"
Wetting his lips as his mouth burned, Jani leaned against Reginald's car.
"Aunt Maggie wouldn't like to hear that."
Jani downed all the alcohol in the canteen, then tossed it onto the backseat.
It bounced back, clanging as it hit the floor.
"Too damn bad, 'cause she isn't going to hear it."
Looking back down at the half-dead vestige, Spectre said only a singular word.
Everything became colder, his presence almost tangible. Everything stalled; the clouds stopped moving, the air suffocating. The word's uttering lasted only a brief moment, but it felt eternal.
"Die."
Then, for just a moment, the world returned to normalcy. It even seemed brighter than before, perhaps just due to the contrast. The peaceful instant was then violently ripped away from Jani.
The vestige's face contorted into agony as its existence itself obeyed the command, the mutilated body failing as blood poured from swiftly degrading tissue. In just a few seconds, all that was left of the being was dust.
Reginald turned around, slapping the boy on the back.
"C'mon lad, I'll give you a ride back. You start working Monday, 8 AM sharp!"
Jani stared at the dust dispersing, coloring the air grey.
He was shaking.
'Just what is his ability?'
He couldn't process just what a being he will have to fight soon.
The long-haired man didn't know whether his heart rate increased due to dread or reluctant excitement.
Sitting in the car mildly dazed, Jani fished for more alcohol in the glove compartment. He couldn't find any.
"Oh, want to drink more, laddie? Why don't I take you to get some drinks, the two of us? My treat, of course."
Denying with a wave of a hand, Jani looked at the road, stunned.
"No, no, it's fine. Just say hello to Aunt Maggie for me."
'Can't risk being drunk around him. That's a death sentence.'
Reginald's lips twisted into a smirk as he drove with one hand and ruffled Jani's long, jet-black hair with the other.
"Will do. Hey, and can I ask you somet'in', laddie?"
Letting the car go into autopilot, Reginald stared the younger man down.
"Why'd you join the special operations?"
Jani's breathing stalled. His throat moved as he swallowed, saying in the calmest tone he could muster:
"I just found Dad's old note."
Reginald's smirk disappeared, his hand lightly tapping the steering wheel, the other one going to Jani's nape.
His large fingers wrapped around the back of the boy's neck, squeezing it gently but threateningly.
"See, laddie, if there's one thing I hate, it's when a youngin' like you who hasn't seen a tenth of the stuff I have is trying to deceive me like he's the avatar of lying 'imself."
Jani's mouth dried.
"Now, where do you think people I hate end up?"
Jani already knew the answer, as this was one of the Megtex propaganda campaigns.
"What you don't like ends up in the cemetery."
"See, you get it; you're not an imbecile. Wouldn't expect one, coming from your daddy."
Sighing, Reginald shook his head and then turned back around. He stared out the window, as if pondering just how he should deal with the situation.
Jani's heart was hammering, ready to summon his cleaver and shadows at the drop of a dime.
'Just escape if he does something. Let's not fight him right now.'
However, the man's gruff voice appeared instead of an attack.
"In a couple of seconds, I'll say the word 'truth.' Then, you will tell me why you really joined. Are we clear?"
Jani, surprised but not complaining, nodded.
"Crystal."
"Truth."
The world froze, Jani's thoughts slowing down, his mind unnaturally sluggish.
He blinked, his mouth opening on its own accord. The boy fought to phrase it in a way that would not secure him an unmarked grave.
'Think, think!'
His lips were already moving.
"I joined because I need the position to hunt down a certain person. This is all a means to an end."
Reginald stared the man down for a few seconds.
Every muscle in Jani's face turned to stone, unyielding.
"See you Monday."
A loud click was heard as the car doors unlocked in unison.
Walking into his apartment, Jani dismissed the shadows stitching his almost healed wounds, walking directly into the kitchen.
He grabbed his small kitchen table, fingers digging into the cheap plastic. His head was spinning as his breath came out in short pants.
After a few minutes of calm, deep inhales and exhales, he moved towards the nearest cabinet.
The sounds of a phone clicking and a bottle opening overlapped.
"Hey Liz, sorry to be like that, but have you run those checks on Reginald yet?"
Jani had confirmed that Spectre was the avatar of commands, but the glasses didn't tell him anything else, sadly.
"Okay, great, thanks."
Downing a large amount of alcohol, his throat burned and sinuses worked overtime. Jani smiled as he opened the folders sent by Elizabeth.
Nothing of note was within them, except his address. The man that had killed thousands in Megtex's name was a ghost in the system.
'Makes sense. If you saw his powers, you're either dead or know you'll die if you talk.'
Sitting down in front of his TV, which played ads on repeat for ten minutes before being usable, Jani attempted to set his phone down so he could focus on drinking.
Instead he looked back as he felt a vibration on his skin.
On the shining screen was a notification from Jaxon, the message reading:
"Emergency, quick."
A few seconds later, he got a location text too.
Sighing, Jani stood up, begging the day to be over soon.