A single snowflake drifted through the air, landing softly on the cigarette held between Razor's lips. He held out his hand, watching a few more white specks melt against his palm. He looked up at the gray sky, then back at the empty space where the building had stood just moments ago, "I need to practice how to do that."
A dark, swirling cloud materialized beside him. Naoa stepped out of the shadows, stretching his arms over his head with a wide yawn. "That's was a lot of work," he complained. He looked at Razor, who was still staring at the barrier with the unlit cigarette in his mouth. Naoa reached out, a small flame igniting on his fingertip, and lit the cigarette for him.
Razor took a long drag, the tip glowing orange, and puffed out a cloud of smoke. "You took longer than usual," he said, tapping the side of the cigarette to drop ash onto the ground.
"I had to make sure nothing was left, bones or ash," Naoa replied. Razor stepped toward the barrier. "Alright then, my turn."
Naoa waved his hand, opening a passage in the barrier just wide enough for Razor to walk through. Inside the dome, the scene was dark. There were no traces of bodies anymore. Instead, the building looked scorched, as if a massive fire had broken out.
Razor wore black gloves on both hands. To a stranger, it might look like he was just trying to keep himself warm, but the truth was more dangerous. The gloves were special, there to keep his ability under control. When Razor touched matter with his bare hands, he destabilized it, making the molecules vibrate until they lost their form and ceased to exist.
He pulled the glove off his left hand. Stepping up to the scorched remains of the building, he placed his palm against the wall. The building began to vibrate violently, then crumbled into fine dust.
Razor stepped back out through the hole Naoa had made. His shoe sank deep into the fresh snow. He looked to the sky and took a deep breath of the cold air before walking toward the car. Naoa was already there, lying lazily on the hood. Seeing Razor approach, Naoa jumped down.
"Razor, can we go grab lunch?"
Razor opened the car door and sighed. "Sure." He slammed the door shut.
Meanwhile, Lin was sitting behind the wheel of his newly fixed car. He gripped the steering wheel, inching forward in heavy traffic. He was heading to the pub to meet Chen, and he was already an hour late.
"Why is there this much traffic?" he murmured, checking his watch. "I'm sure Chen's with a girl and is probably telling one of his stupid stories." His mind flashed back to the System's yellow screen specifically the tab that said Date 50 Girls. He groaned. "I better get to finding dates soon if I want that XP."
He finally arrived at the pub. He stepped inside, squinting through the dim light and the smell of fried food. He couldn't spot Chen in the crowd, so he pulled out his phone to call him. As the phone rang against his ear, he scanned the room until he saw a hand waving energetically from the bar.
It was Chen. Lin walked over, a tired look on his face.
"Look who decided to finally show up!" Chen laughed. They shook hands firmly.
Lin chuckled and sat on the stool beside him. " Joe finally brought my car back, but I got stuck in traffic."
"Forget about it," Chen said, leaning back. "Let's just catch up and have some beers." It was the first time they had truly hung out since the bloody incident at the Christmas party. Chen signaled to the bartender by raising two fingers. "Two iced beers, please."
The bartender brought the frosty glasses and dropped them onto the wooden counter with a dull smack.
At base of the Order, in the dimly lit room where Bras sat meditating. A stream of energy leaked from his body, taking strange, fluid shapes in the air in front of him.
A soft knock came at the door. Yanda stepped inside. Bras didn't open his eyes.
"Come in," Bras said.
"What you requested has been set," Yanda reported, sitting down across from the old man. He hesitated for a moment, then spoke again. "Was it a good idea to send Naoa and Razor together on a mission?"
Back at the car, where Razor was staring at the road while driving.
Bras's voice continues in the background: "They are the two most skilled, if not the strongest, in the Order. They need to learn to work together for the future of the world."
Inside the car, Razor glanced at Naoa. "How did you come to the Order?"
Naoa leaned his head against the window. "I was found by Bras when I was a child. I was an orphan. He helped me and told me I had the potential to do great things." Naoa's expression turned flat. "I have no sense of justice for what I do, Razor. I don't care if a lot of people die when I have a job to do."
Razor blinked, taking a quick glance at him before looking back at the road. "I hate your guts and I don't really like the way you do things," Razor said bluntly. "But I'll say I like the fact that you're an ally and I don't have to go against you."
Naoa laughed, a mischievous glint in his eye. "So you admitted I'm strong?"
Razor frowned, his grip tightening on the wheel. "Shut up."
They arrived at the restaurant and walked inside, ready for a break.
At that exact moment, miles away on the empty land where the building had been destroyed, the ground began to tremble. Red flames sprouted from the dirt, glowing with an unnatural light. A deformed, terrifying face pushed its way out of the earth with a piercing, inhuman scream.
Back at the restaurant entrance, Naoa and Razor both froze. Their heads snapped toward the direction of the empty lot. They sensed it instantly.
Naoa slumped his shoulders in pure exhaustion, letting out a loud groan. "Right as we want to eat."