Dark smoke began to swirl around me, and my blood boiled. Chaos erupted within me as Maki struggled to take control of my body.
"He must be killed!" he repeated, pushing harder to overpower me.
If I let him take control now, it would blow my entire cover. Even though Maki had revealed the powers I possessed, I haven't mastered them enough to challenge humans armed with advanced weapons.
'Calm down right now, Maki!' I commanded silently and instantly, my body relaxed. The chaos died down, and Maki fell silent.
"You'll remain calm," I warned. "We're not making any move until I say so. Am I clear?"
"Yes, master," he replied in a shrill whisper, his energy dimming slightly.
I exhaled slowly, then turned my attention back to the newcomer, Hugh. His piercing blue eyes were locked onto mine, filled with something between curiosity and suspicion. His messy curls gave him a disarming, harmless appearance, like someone new to the world and fascinated by it all.
We held eye contact. He was probably wondering who I was, if he had sensed Maki's energy. I was also thinking the same, wondering who this guy was that got Maki disturbed.
"Another newbie who's a Delta?" Carson grunted. "What is the commander up to?"
Hero said nothing at first as his eyes flicked between me and Hugh. Maybe, he sensed it too.
"They're going to make our jobs more difficult," he finally muttered, glancing away. "I hate this."
"These losers will just get in the way," Maya snapped and everyone turned to her.
"Losers?" Samara raised an eyebrow. "They're both level six, and we're level seven. We're the real losers here."
"Stop embarrassing me in front of the juniors!" Maya barked, standing up. "You just had to tell them what level we are, don't you?"
"Oops," Samara replied with a playful pout. "Couldn't control my mouth."
"Enough, both of you," Carson interjected and they both sat properly, facing him with all seriousness. "We don't need this kind of drama in front of the new recruits. Higher level or not, they'll follow orders or face the consequences."
Did they forget we were still standing in the same room? Talk about being insulted to your face.
"This should be a wake up call," Hero said, leaning on the table. "It's time we start succeeding in our missions."
I raised a brow and faced him. "If I may ask, how successful has the squad been? Any accomplishments?"
They all went silent for a few seconds before they burst into laughter. "Dude, we've never completed a mission successfully," Carson said, still laughing. "We're basically the rejects of the CSS."
"But we do have one record, though," Maya chimed in. "The achievement of not having one successful mission. Failure itself!" They all laughed again.
Are they actually proud of it? These people were crazy. The whole squad was insane.
Just then, Hero's phone buzzed and when he read the message, his smile faded from his face.
"We've got a mission. Local bank robbery in thirty minutes. Our job is to stop them and make the arrests," he reported. "Let's move!"
As I turned to leave, I came face to face with Hugh. His expression had changed and the innocence in his eyes was gone. He was staring at me darkly. I couldn't read his mind, but one thing I was sure of was that, he don't mean well.
"Let's go!" Hero barked and we broke eye contact. He walked out first and I followed him out.
…
We pulled up in front of the bank in the squad's vehicle and Hero leaned forward, trying to survey the environment.
"Here's the plan," he began, eyeing Hugh and me. "This is your first mission. You don't need to do anything. Just observe."
The rest of the team huddled, discussing their plan while Hugh and I were left out like background noise. When they finished, Hero turned back to us.
"We'll move in right after the robbers enter," he said confidently. "They won't suspect a thing and that's to our advantage."
"What if they're armed?" Hugh asked quietly, eyes fixed on the bank across the road. "They'll see our van so it won't be a surprise anymore."
"Are you saying the captain's plan is stupid?" Maya snapped, her eyes narrowed. "You're new here. Stay quiet and follow orders, kiddo."
"Why not go in now as customers?" I offered. "Blend in and wait for the right moment. That would actually be a surprise attack," I suggested and got their attentions drifted to me.
"And pretend to be customers?" Hero sighed. "Why waste time? Besides, we need to catch them in the act to make the arrest valid."
Valid? They're literally robbing a bank.
"Put on your buds and wait for our signal," Hero said, then led the team out. As they crossed the road, the robbers entered the bank, just right on schedule.
Now, it was just Hugh and me. Realizing the absent of everyone except us, my stomach tinged in excitement. Finally, I was alone with him. The time to know who he truly was.
I turned to face him with a crooked smirk forming on my lips. He met my gaze with a neutral expression, clearly wondering what I was up to.
Suddenly, a big bang echoed and we both turned to the bank. People were running out but there was no sign of the team.
"I think they're in trouble," Hugh called out. The thieves ran out with some of them carrying bags of money. They were getting away.
"Feast!" Maki spoke, and something snapped inside me. A force so strong and it overpowered my reasoning. All I could think about was devouring the men.
"I… want… their… souls," I slurred, dragging each word. My eyes turned a deep, burning red, and all I could see was myself taking their souls.
"REALM OF DOMINANCE: EXTEND!" I chanted.
"DOMAIN OF SUPREMACY: REVEAL!" Hugh echoed, and immediately the earth quaked, expanding outward for five kilometers, toppling everything in its path, except us. We stood unshaken in the midst of the rubble.
"Who are you?"