Cassia Emmo, the tan-skinned redhead, had left school premises since lunchtime. She carefully looked over her shoulder, peering out for any suspicious activity. So far she’s only seen normal passersby, still, she could’ve missed something and it would be safer knowing that there was no one around her.

She couldn’t go back home, at least not directly. She was being followed, at least at some point she was. She had felt something amiss during lunchtime, someone had entered the school and followed her. She couldn’t gauge who, just that there was someone out there.

Admittedly the safer option would have been to simply stay in school. There was no way she would’ve been attacked so blatantly there. Though that would only buy her a few hours and it gave whoever was following her time to set up a trap when she left, so perhaps this was better.

Besides, this was clearly her mess to deal with. Whoever was following her was clearly doing so due to her part-time job as essentially being a henchwoman. She went into the job knowing that her life was going to be in danger, no need to involve anyone else. Least of all someone like Rosaline whom she nearly got killed.

Again, it wasn’t anything personal, Cassia just got the job to help the Canolia gang corral a few victims that fell for their scam. Unfortunately, it ended up being her fellow Trinity Academy students. Cassia was expecting lowbrow criminals, not people she had a correlation with. It had always been the former in the past, but taking people her age to do who knows what? That crossed a line.

After that event Cassia made sure to stop taking any Canolia gang jobs. Though apparently that was fortunate for her as the Canolia gang began coming under fire by some vigilante right after. Perhaps it was the same person who had first battled with Cassia and saved Rosaline and the other students. Whatever the case was it was no longer an issue for Cassia.

Well, that was until now. With someone following her she did wonder who it was. The stranger she battled before? The vigilante that’s declared war with the Canolia gang? Or perhaps a member of the Canolia gang themselves?

These were questions that she hoped to have answered soon, as she was planning to catch whoever was following her. She just needed to set up a trap first. Going down a street that she recognized she then slyly took a look around her surroundings. There.

The street she was currently on was a quiet one, a place where mainly the elderly resided. So the few passersby that she would encounter here would be north of half a century in years lived. So then why was someone closer to her age sitting at a bench then?

Got you. Cassia thought as she quickly studied them. They wore a simple gray hoodie with the hood drawn up. But the body shape and what little she could see of their face betrayed their age. To add to suspicion it wasn’t like they were doing anything, simply sitting there and waiting for something.

She recognized the body shape as well of whom she thought was following her around school. Though then they had a uniform on, though unfortunately she couldn’t recall their face right now. Making sure to keep an eye on him, she then purposefully navigated her way over to a back alley, empty with only one real exit and waited.

***

Sneaking out of school was easy enough for Archer. His F-rank status meant that no one really missed him, and with his afternoon class being a dungeon run, it meant that even less people were able to keep track of him. Finding where Cassia and whoever this new school intruder was a bit more difficult.

Cassia left during lunch through the front gate, that was easy enough to gather. But which direction she then went became the question. Thankfully she kept her school uniform on and before long after a bit of combing, Archer found her. Additionally, he also found someone else following her.

They were trying their best to keep themselves hidden but it seemed that Cassia caught on to them as their movements became far more erratic. She moved herself to less-occupied areas, where anyone following her would look more and more conspicuous.

Archer in his school uniform would eventually get noticed. So he was forced to peel back and observe from a distance. He was able to keep track of the person following Cassia easily enough, he was trailing Cassia which allowed Archer to stay even further back. Also unlike Cassia, her stalker changed out of the school uniform they stole to look more inconspicuous.

Annoyingly though, it meant that Archer had to stop and pick up the discarded clothing and stuffed them all into his backpack. He was going to return the stolen things back to the school after all, it was school property. He had already messaged Professor Phil of the situation in case something went awry and Esme knew of his current antics.

While he was confident that he could handle whatever came his way, it was still better to be safe than sorry. Especially considering that he was walking around still in his school uniform, he couldn’t risk it being damaged. Still, this precaution made it difficult to follow Cassia and he had no idea what she was planning, as clearly Cassia knew that she was being tailed. Archer hoped that she had only spotted the stranger and not him but prepared for the worst.

As Archer continued to follow the other two he did wonder what might happen. He doubted that the person following Cassia would have no idea of her capabilities and with Cassia aware of being tailed, she was going to try something. It could get big and it could get really messy.

Archer then thought that perhaps that was the main concern there then. Stop everything from breaking into chaos in this small neighbourhood while at the same time he couldn’t draw any attention to himself. That was simple enough, Archer supposed.

Okay, how do I break up a fight between two potential monsters without causing a mess? He thought as he pulled his phone out. Looking towards Cassia’s stalker he could see that he had stopped and was now sitting down at a bench while Cassia was moving towards what looked like an alleyway. He couldn’t come in with his costume, too convenient, and also he didn’t have it on him. Why would he? He was going to school.

Oh great, they're going to fight. Archer thought as he quickly browsed social media. Then he finally spotted something, “Oh yeah. He’ll do.”

***

Cassia stood there waiting, casually pulling out what looked to be a simple ballpoint pen and twirling it between her fingers. A few minutes later the man in the hoodie entered the alleyway with a bemused look on his face.

“So, you spotted me.” He said casually. He looked to be around Cassia’s age, curly black hair, lean, and stood about five-foot-ten, “Here I thought I was doing a good job.”

“You’re pretty sloppy.”

“Still managed to get you here alone didn’t I?” He said with a cocky smile.

“I led you here.” Cassia said as she clicked her pen and it warped itself into a long slender blade, “I need to hide your body.”

 “Ooh, intimidating. I thought that you were the silent type.” He said with a scoff, “Are you going to try and stick me with that toy of yours?”

“Come a little closer and I’ll show you just how dangerous this ‘toy’ is.” She spat.

“Well, let me test it out. I have a toy of my own.” The man leered as he pulled at something underneath his collar.

He then paused, standing in place before his face contorted into one of annoyance, “Damn.” He cursed, “You got lucky. I’ll see you soon.” He said.

Cassia was confused for a brief moment and then understood. There was someone coming, and they were arriving fast. Tapping her sword it turned back into a pen, and she stashed it away as the man in the hoodie vanished around the corner.

Mere seconds later, a blue blur flashed past Cassia only to immediately return and stop before her. It was an A-ranked superhero, the Diamond Blitz. Dressed in his modified blue tracksuit, his blue, diamond-lined visor gazed at Cassia, he bottom half of his exposed face was scrunched into a frown.

“Aren’t you a student of Trinity Academy? What are you doing here? It’s a school day.” He said seeing her.

“I uh… ditched.” She said.

“Don’t do that.” Diamond Blitz said, “Did you see anyone here? I got a message that something was in trouble.”

“Uh, no, I never saw anything out of the ordinary here.” She said.

“Well, get back to school and don’t let me catch you out here again during the school day.” He ordered before disappearing in a flash again.

Cassia breathed a small sigh of relief. Both due to avoiding getting caught by Diamond Blitz and also because with him nearby, the person after her also will be forced to retreat and leave her alone at least for the time being.

Archer from the distance watched the blue-clad superhero leave the alleyway and back out onto the public streets. With that issue dealt with, Archer was tempted to follow the one in the hoodie, but with a super running around, he would risk getting caught. Though that was an issue that he caused himself.

Following the man’s social media, Archer saw that he had been making posts of how he was on patrol. It was a lot of bragging and trying to show off how perfect his life was. It was a bit eye-rolling for Archer, as it felt that the only reason that Diamond Blitz was a superhero was for fame and attention. Rather ironic that someone with powers that made it hard to keep track of was trying to get everyone to keep track of him.

Still, it was thanks to those posts that allowed Archer to stop a fight. But what now? As he thought, he messaged Professor Phil of the updated situation. He very quickly received another reply, this time from the school’s principal, Electa Cowen.

You found Cassia? – Electa

Yup – Archer

She’s being chased? – Electa

By someone, yes – Archer

Where are they now? – Electa

Cassia just roaming around – Archer

Other dude ran – Archer

Next time you see the both of them together. Catch Cassia and bring her to me. – Electa

Alive. – Electa

Why do you think I would kill her? – Archer

Sorry, force of habit. – Electa

Who works for you? – Archer

Dangerous people. – Electa

True – Archer

Anyways I think the two will clash later today – Archer

I’ll make sure to intervene before anyone gets hurt – Archer

Good, keep me updated – Electa

Oh yeah, I’ll go get my stuff, can you cover me for my lack of attendance? – Archer

That won’t be an issue. – Electa

Archer covertly made his way back to his apartment to grab his equipment. After that near miss with a superhero, Archer was sure that whoever the black hoodie guy was, they would try again when the sun was down. Harder to spot and more appropriate time for a fight. Which meant that Archer needed to prepare accordingly as well.

***

Hours later as the sun had now set, Cassia sat waiting in a restricted area. Standing in the empty streets, she was dressed in her full combat uniform. A sleek set of clothes that were enforced in order to handle any type of attack. The silver comedy mask was adorned over her face as her blade was fully drawn as she waited.

It didn’t take long before she was joined by someone else, the man with the hoodie arrived with a bright smile on his face. He casually walked down the street towards Cassia, removing his hood to reveal his grinning face. It was odd, he looked a bit familiar.

“So, Cassia’s the name right?” The man asked casually, “You know, I get why you let them call you the laughing blade.”

“Who the hell are you?” Cassia said annoyed, “One of Canolia’s stooges?”

“Canolia? No.” He scoffed, “Though my brother did work for them I guess. Until you got him locked up.”

“You’re Fucidin’s brother?”

“Who’s Fucidin? I’m talking about Edgar!” The man roared.

“Edgar?” Cassia paused and thought for a moment, “Oh right. The one with the suitcase.”

“Was that all you thought of him?” He said upset, “Well then let Stu Clancy be the one to destroy you Cassia. You see, I was given a gift from an old friend to deal with you!” He shouted, taking off his hoodie to reveal a strange contraption attached to his neck and chest.

“What is that?”

“Oh, you’ll see.” He said as he activated the device. It lit up a dark red and there was the sound of whirling that quickly filled the air before going silent. Right after Stu began to change, his face turned bright red before he seemed to swell. Hair began to cover his body, his face began to elongate into that of a snout.

“What the hell.” Cassia said eyes widening, seeing the man turn into a beast right in front of her very eyes.

Stu with a monstrous howl, screamed up at the quarter moon. Large claws now flexed and stretched as Stu turned himself into a werewolf.

“I’m going to eat you alive.” He growled out charging towards Cassia.

Clicking her tongue in frustration, she quickly dove out of the way. As big as the werewolf was, it was slow and clumsy. Or at least that’s what she initially thought right before a large claw came swiping at her. Barely able to bring her blade up, she managed to successfully block the strike with her sword.

Though frustratingly, the edge of her blade barely embedded itself into the monster’s skin. As Cassia slid backwards, Stu the werewolf checked his hand. The cut was already healed and no blood leaked from the cut.

“You need a sharper blade.” Stu chuckled as he prepared to charge again.

As Cassia prepared for the second go-around, she noticed Stu pause for a brief moment. More than that, she could see his hairs standing straight up as if statically charged. Stu then quickly began to whip his head around looking for something as he sniffed the air.

Then the street lights, long dead, sprang to life for a second before flickering dead again. Stu now completely ignored Cassia as he began to turn in circles before he saw it, a large old bus came rolling down and crashed straight into Stu and carried on forward with Stu stuck to the front.

“What?” Cassia said aloud, completely taken aback with what happened in front of her. As her guard was down, Archer had crept up behind her and with one quick swipe, knocked the sword out of her grip.

Cassia in reaction whipped around, trying to hit Archer with a backfist. But Archer had long ducked the blow and with a black-gloved hand grabbed Cassia by the mask, crushing the thing easily as he slammed Cassia backwards into the ground.

As the last of her mask cracked, she looked up at Archer wide-eyed seeing the faceless man. She didn’t know why but dread hit her. How the hell did he sneak up without her noticing? How the hell did he disarm her? How the hell was he so strong? What was this thing? These thoughts poured through her head as she stared up at the faceless monster. She was going to die. This thing was going to kill her.

***

“Who threw that?” Stu howled as he tore the bus in half in anger. He had been sent travelling over a kilometre after being hit by that bus. By the time he was able to stop it he got so angry that he spent the last minute shattering every piece of it.

“I’m going to kill everyone here!” He roared as he bounded back to where he was fighting Cassia only to find the place completely empty, “Shit.” He muttered. Gone. Fine he would just need to find them again, he could start back at the school. He could wait a little longer.