Without thinking, Zac grabbed Blitz's arm and yanked him to the floor, but it was too slow to completely save Blitz from the bullet.
In the panic, the gangster took the opportunity to aim and fire at Zac. Hearing the gunshots, Zac shifted his arms and chest, covering them with scales just before the bullets crashed into him. They bounced off, cracking some of his scales.
Blitz screamed out in pain. "Fuck!" He quickly shot the last gang member with his demonic pistol.
Moxxie shouted, "Sir, are you okay?"
Blitz grunted, "What do you think, smooth brain?"
Zac asked while looking around, "Anyone left?"
After a short search and Blitz wrapping some cloth around the hole in his arm Millie shouted from another room, "It's clear!"
"Let's get the fuck out of here!" Blitz shouted with relief, opening a portal to Hell before jumping through it.
"Well, we did good out there. Nice job, Zac, for your first time," Blitz said as he headed to his office to grab a bandage.
Loona looked up at Blitz. "Are you good?"
Blitz scoffed. "Yeah, I'm fine, Loony. One of the idiots up there just got lucky."
"Loona, can you contact the client and tell them it's been taken care of?" Blitz said before closing his office door.
"Sure," she replied, using the company phone to text the client.
"Do we have any more hits, hellhound dear?" Millie asked.
Loona checked the phone again, scrolling through the schedule. "Nope."
Moxxie opened the office door. "Sir, are you " He froze after hearing Stolas's voice messages playing, then quietly closed the door.
"Yeah… nope," Moxxie whispered, looking traumatized. Millie bent over laughing.
"Babe, you should see your face," she said before pulling him into a kiss.
Zac turned his attention elsewhere, eventually landing on Loona behind the reception desk, focused on the computer. Deciding not to interrupt, Zac sat down in the only waiting chair in the IMP reception, settling in and letting his tail rest alongside him on the red cushion.
Then a ding sounded.
"Notice: Congratulations, Host, for completing your first contract. You have earned a roll."
Zac used it immediately. The screen changed to a cosmic scene, with two stars racing across it. One turned gold.
"Congratulations, Host, for winning: Parallel Thought."
As the message appeared, Zac was hit with a terrible migraine that slowly faded away. His thoughts felt clearer, sharper he could visualize perfect three-dimensional shapes. His control over the void improved, granting finer precision.
Holding his hand out, Zac conjured a ball of void. It shimmered, sucking in all nearby light toward its centre before he absorbed it back into his palm, reclaiming some energy.
"I'm going to head home and heal," Zac said. "Bye, everyone."
Moxxie and Millie waved. Loona glanced up and gave a small wave as well.
Zac waved back before conjuring a portal to his nest and stepping through. He was surprised by how quickly it formed. As the portal shrank and absorbed into him, his injuries healed slightly.
Deciding to walk around town for a bit, Zac headed out. Out of curiosity, he messaged Blitz:
"Hey Blitz, who's the current overlord that owns this territory?"
Blitz replied five minutes later:
"Oh, he was a piece of shit taxing us and acting like he was above everyone. Lucky bastard died in the last extermination."
"Cheers for the info," Zac typed back, a plan slowly brewing in his mind like fine wine aging.
Suddenly, a blimp approached the territory. A speaker crackled to life.
"Attention, everyone. This territory now belongs to yours truly Sir Pentious."