"Gah, useless!" Adam cursed as he was locked the door to the store and put the keys in his pocket
The city was calm, and a gentle hum of activity filled the air as the stars sparkled in the night sky.
It was roughly around 10:30pm and Adam had just closed from work. Usually the store would close around 9:00pm but his generous boss decided to punish him for being two minutes late earlier that morning, making him work and extra hours and a half
Adam didn't know why his boss was always so hard on him, he's always in a bad mood and would punish Adam for making most simple mistakes.
The worst part about it was Adam's salary.
Adam's salary was way below average even though he worked really hard around the shop, and that annoyed him every time he thought about it.
He has tried asking for a raise on several occasions, considering the hours he dedicates to working, but every time, Mr. Brook either yells at him, or just ignore him, saying that he'll get a raise once he awakens his curse factor
"I really need to start looking for a new job" he muttered to himself " my rent is almost due and I still don't have enough money saved up yet"
Adam felt drained, his arms were throbbing from excessive mopping and his back ached from carrying heavy boxes the other day, right now he just wanted to get back home and give his bed a big hug
While carrying two trashbags, he groggily walked towards the dumpster at the back of the store to dump them in.
That's when he heard some laughing off in the distance, causing him to turn sharply
The area was dark so he couldn't make out who it was coming from, but narrowing his eyes, he could see two figures slowly walking towards him
"Awwn, would you look at that, it's the null boy again" A man said, stepping out of the shadows." Tell me, have you awakened your imaginary powers yet" He was quite muscular, his bald head , had dark circles around his eyes.
His stylish silver ring adorned his finger, adding a touch of elegance to his otherwise rough appearance
" Hehehe, hey loser, did you miss us" The second figure came into full view. Unlike his counterpart, Stick didn't look intimidating at all, he was very skinny, which contrasted with his baggy shirt and blue jeans.
However on closer inspection, his teeth looked jagged and sharp, almost like that of a shark
A bead of sweat trickled down the side of Adam's face, his heart was racing,and his legs trembled with fear
He'd seen these guys around a couple of times,mostly during the day. They would casually laugh at him for being what he was. A person without a curse factor. Adam always tried to ignore them,he didn't want any trouble so he always shrug his shoulder and leave. But for some reason, they'd decided to attack today
He wasn't much of a fighter and he didn't have a curse factor to defend himself against these guys. He had to think of something.
"L-listen, guys, we're closed for now. Why don't you c-come back tomorrow? Hey, I'll give you a discount if you'd lik—"
" Cut the crap" the bald one interrupted" Keep your stupid discount, gimme the damn keys"
As they closed in, Adam's gaze locked onto the bald man's hand, and his heart sank. The man's fingers had elongated,stretching into nearly eight inches in length and had transformed into razor sharp silver claws
The sight sent a clear message,these men weren't here to negotiate
Panick-stricken, Adam hurled one of the trash bags at the pair, a desperate attempt to buy time
Logan—the bald one, slashed vertically, ripping through the trashbags like they were nothing, and causing the trash to scatter everywhere
Adam was now cornered
"Nice try you son of a bi—"
Stick punched Adam in the face before he could finish his own sentence, causing Adan to stumble onto the floor
For someone who looked like a small gust of wind could blow him away, he was a surprisingly heavy hitter. Adam didn't know if it was because his arms looked practically like bones,but it felt like he had been hit in the face with a steel pipe
"Gah,it broken. Yup,it's broken" Adam rasped touching his nose,as he felt blood trickle from his nostrils
Stick proceeded to lift him of the floor holding Adam by the collar. Looking at Sticks fists,they were completely dark silver, almost like metal, no wonder his punch hurt so much
"Ugh" Adam struggled to break free, but in the middle of the struggle,the keys fell from his pocket and unto the floor
'shxt,the boss is gonna kill me for this'He thought
"Oow, would you look at that," Logan said, picking up the keys " we got what we wanted after all"
He casually dangled the keys in Adam's face,almost as if taunting him to take it back. A sick smirk formed on his face
"Haha,looks like the kid's got something to say. Isn't that right null boy?" Stick mocked, still holding onto Adam
Adam gritted his teeth in anger, but didn't want to say anything that would aggravate his situation. After all, he was outnumbered, and he didn't posses a curse factor to fight these guys
Deep down, Adam felt that some people were squandering their potential, undeserving of the gift of awakening. Why were they blessed with extraordinary abilities, only to use them for selfish ambitions? They had the potential to become elite Reapers, vanquishing ghosts and protecting the innocent, yet they chose to waste their lives on petty thievery
Wham!
Adam's face flung to the side as Logan connected with a sickening punch. A searing pain shot through Adam's jaw and he felt disoriented momentarily
"Useless" Logan muttered, his voice full of excitement as he looked at the defenseless Adam, like he was enjoying this mm
"I swear," Adam said in a shaky tone "one day, I'm gonna make you all pay for this"
He looked dead in Logan's eyes as he declared
Suddenly, the alley fell into an eerie silence. The distant city noice faded,swallowed by a creeping tension that settled like a heavy fog
Adam froze, his breath caught in his throat, and a cold sweat broke across his brow.
He wasn't sure at first,but he knew something felt wrong
"W-what...is that?" He stuttered
Logan and Stick,sensing it's presence, turned sharply, only to see an ominous figure staring at them
They had seen creatures like this before in the news,but never encountered them face to face
"I-It's...a ghost"