Second Moon

"He's getting closer you know" a voice drolled "Only a few more steps.. and then we're done"

The place was dark and hazy, an ember emblazed in the dark - a silhouette sucked in quickly and sighed - a thick smoke spread accross the room. It was a quiet club, with old wooden panels and gothic rails - they sat in a still corner, tiny voices muffled - the sounds of popping cases and strings plucked silently as the man fiddled his fingers on the table. There was a sharp smell of warm food, a mixture of freshly cut fruit and delicately cooked meat, it crisped the nose just at the thought.

"Look, its not our job to stop him" tapping his cigarette in a bowl "You know why we are here"

"The money" the other voice said, suddenly quiet "Its always about the money with you, what do you need all this for anyways?"

The once quiet plucking melted into a melodious orchestra of sounds - the kind played in old lounges

"You must be silent, hes coming to join us for dinner" the voice said, another suck on the cigarette

"I don't see why I have to be here, I have nothing to do with this dealing"

"Oh but you do.." the cigarette burned out, he flicked it into the bowl "You just don't know how you fit in yet"

"And I am supposed to just know where I am going?" the other voice, annoyed "I am not psychic, nor are you"

The other man took a glass and downed it in one go, he breathed out in satisfaction

"Look I am just gonna cut away the middleman, I will slit the kids throat"

"You'll do no such thing, the client specifically said to take him alive if needed" the man said, calmy - he picked out another cigarette and lit it

"I don't know why your smoking those damn things, theres a reason the humans banned the stuff" said

The night, while blocked by the monolitihic buildings around the lower wards still managed to touch the skin of my arm. My eyes shaking as I looked upon the various lights ahead of me, glares from passer-bys as I shambled past them, my arm felt numb and as I looked down shined off a reddish glow - blood. As I continued to stumble past the crowd into the main street, it fell in front of me, a lumbering black form with appendages spread as it landed

A balverine, a 6 foot tall beast with glowing red eyes which pierced the very souls of man, its fur gleaming in the orange light of the walkways and its muzzle flashing stone-white fangs. The crowd that had once glared at me, began to panic and ran in all different directions - creating a circle of fluttering legs and waving arms. It began to slowly pick its weight, evidently coming from the hulking muscles it had once hidden under its fur now bulging and showing the roots of each hair. It lifted its two front limbs and came to a more humanoid stance as it continued towards me. I pulled a syringe out of a pouch I held on my belt and stuck it in my arm, the numbness trading for a sharp pain and then a quick stillness - thank the gods for medicine.

I gathered my senses as it began to close in to me, I reached behind myself reaching for my gun - it wasn't there. A voice drawled out its teeth without moving

"Your weapon has escaped your grasp once again, false son of Vael" a conglomerate of voices peered out, all speaking in unison "Once again Xet favours me"

I reached into my mind and began to focus my thoughts on the beast, I lifted my hand in front of me and conjured a dark purple flame in my palm, the beasts eyes widened - shimmering with the energy I had conjured

I am a psionic, I had power over a latent energy that fills Fyrea - it is creation incarnate and allows those who have balanced their mind and soul to form phyiscal representations of thought. I at the time thought roasting a balverine would be needed and my natural reaction was to create blazing hot fire. My years of experience forged into a single moment, a single thought as the flame delicately flickered within my grasp, its hot lick barely felt upon my fingers.

I leered at him, his dark eyes did not falter. He began to pick up the pace, and I simply held out my hand and shot a concentrated fire ball towards the balverine, a large grunt of effort escaped my mouth. It hit it directly in the chest, a scream of pain and terror erupted from the still un-moving teeth. Purple light flickering in all directions, shadows dancing as I threw another one.

"You may be an abomination" a said in a low voice "But you are new to this sort of thing, I came here to help you and you refused - this is your last chance to repent your wicked ways"

I drew a long, thin blade from its scabbard on my left hip - it made a sound that made angels cry and demons weep as it burnished against the walkway - the purple light overshone. It looked straight into my eyes, the beast made a loud snarling sound. I held the blade out in front of my and took a great swipe against the wounded beast

It shimmered in golden light as it cut through not the flesh, but any evil within his body. If he was innocent in any way his soul would be free from harm, only the Balverine will would be carved out. The sword looked as if it was gliding through water, creating a light scar on the skin as it continued its way - I preformed a quick flourish and whipped the blade gently against a piece of cloth I pulled out of one of my pouchs, wiping off the thin coat of blood. As I finished the Balverine began thrashing as if something pulled out its eyes, a tingle went down my spine and the hideous form molted into a simple, naked being.

I looked towards where the buildings began to curve towards the horizon, a fleet of patrol vehicles we're coming towards me. I knew that they would pull me in and the victom, I would have to save this man from the fury of the local justice system. I grabbed a banner that had been ripped down in the ensuing panic, and wrapped it around his cold exterior.

I garnered a look at his sleeping face.

He was a of mixed blood, half-human and half-Phoenecian. His ears were not pointed like his Phoe side, but his skin was the palest of colours - implicating his place of power within the rich, upper class. His hair was a fine, deep brown color - strands of grey dotting the front. His face was clean shaven and had jagged features, his family was of Final Stage and for many generations. He had a large scar accross his forehead, where I had cut the Balverine from his soul, it had already cauterized but was still warm to the touch.

I cracked my fingers in one swift action and began dragging him away to my ship. Luckily the panic had cleared the once empty alleys and walkways. I dropped him for a moment and walked towards a glint in a shadowy corner

"There you are" I muttered as I picked up my gun - it was a simple machine with a red glow emitting from the barrel.

I continued down the walkway to a large circuler platform

She stood around 6 metres tall, 30 long and 24 wide with large door on the rear. On the outside it was one of the most high-tech ships available, resulting in stealth-resistanted curves and cuts. Its upper profile resembles an elongated crescent moon, with 2 jutting engines that looked like they would turn into ships themselves if you added wings.

The middle of the craft was a large rounded cylinder with a rounded-square bridge - a single, long glass view port accompanied the small room. It was painted a dark, shiny grey and had various blue lights indicating the various shield points.

I went inside and looked around as the wide service entrance opned, a square room with tapered edges and a single, large scout vehicles and an assortment of lockers - holding my weapons and any stuff my future passengers may have. The walls in the cargo room were an industrial greyish-white with a long, single light eminating from the roo, they were also littered in various posters I had accumlated in my various escapades - ranging from propaganda to 'wanted' posters.

The floor was rough, good for holding vehicles with rough traction and made large clanking sounds when I stepped. I continued dragging towards the opposite side of the bay, where the wall opened up to reveal a hallway, doors littered each side and the end hid a ladder.

I clapped my hands and the lights in the hallway blinked for a second or two, a golden glow now eminating from the floor. It was cylindrical, with a flat floor around 3/8s up the circular shape, the floors were covered in simple, clean white metal and translucent glass. I could see what looked like pipes and wires, but it was hard to see past the blurry glass and bright light.

I picked up the man and walked towards a door on the left side, I pressed a button. The door opened and showed a dark room littered with old clothes and garbage. Its walls were littered with maps, ship diagrams and weapon schematics. A lone messy bed and metallic container were stuck in the far right corner, and a desk of blinking lights and robotic servos whizzed and rumbled as it was creating something.

Operating the orchestra of machines was my chief engineer and pilot, his face gleaming as sweat dripped off his chin. His body was almost half-metal, half-man with one arm completely gone in favour of a dextrous limb - its thin synthetic layer revealing hundreds of moving, working parts under his arm that made a sharp ticking sound every few seconds. His face was all human except for the one eye he had cut out, its glossy layers rotating and buzzing as he contiued his work. His features were smooth and to the untrained eye may appear fat, but had enough strength to take me down with some effort to spare. His hair was a mess, like it had been shocked multiple times with loads of energy. His clothes were simplistic, a large orange jump suit with a metallic case on the chest - it had a few buttons and meters. A long puccoon coat draped him - the kind you would find in a frontier city, it had large lapels with four gold knots on each side. His skin was the kind of shade you would find in a boiler room for twelves hours.

I dropped the man on the floor, the engineer startledly looked behind himself

"Uhhh" he said, trembling slightly "I told you boss, not into that kinda thing"

"Look Teil" I replied "You try lugging 200 pounds of person that far"

His servo-eye rotated and made a sound that resembled gas a pipe, he turned around and continued his work.

"Why do you sleep in this dump anyways"

"I like being close to my machines"

"Ahh now I know what you mean't by 'not into that thing"

"Look boss, I am not here making sexbots or anything, I have a job"

Teil Zinnober was one of the hardest workers I have ever seen, we had managed to repair the entire engine - while being shot at - without autopilot and still managed to get away. His intelligence and diligence however was his only upsides, he was a rather brash man with a voice that would deafen small children. His repitoire includes a bad-attitude, cowardice and a womanizing nature, its because of him we do not stay long in Entertainment districts.

He paused again, and looked back at the body - eyeing it for around 20 seconds

"What?" I wondered

"I am not a doctor boss, thats Nienna's job and all" he said as he pointed his fingers at invisible places "But judging by the distance from that star to the moon... I don't think that guy is breathing"

I looked back to see the mans color go from pale to paler, his chest completely motionless

I sighed and looked around the floor

"I am looking for a piece of paper or metal or something" I said quickly

"Ahh, I get it" he replied "There should be some metal templates on my floor, look in the corner"

I ran over to the corner and picked up what looked like a square piece of thin steel or titanium, I drew my sword and carved a fairly good circle.

I put my hand out, expectingly

"Your etcher thing" I said harshly "Bring it here"

"What happened to your knife?" he replied, worry in his voice

"I don't know, its somewhere" I said as I held the etcher, scribbling various markings "Alright... this should work"

I gathered my thoughts and slammed my right palm flat onto the circle, a sharp blue light piercing through my hand. I slowly pulled my palm back up, making sure to slowly curve the light as it slowly flew towards my hand. I moved my hand in a quick florish and held it in front of me - an even brighter light eminating from within. I quickly moved towards the body and pressed it against his chest - it passed right through the skin and his torso began to shake.

His eyes shot open and he gasped for air, he pulled himself up and held his chest

"What the hell!" he yelled, clearly in shock "Whats going on!"

"I saved your life you ass, you were about to croak or were in the process" I replied calmly

"I don't want to be here, I don't want to be here, I don't want to be here, I have seen His face"

"Whos face?"

"The face of the master, the bringer of change, the strange warm breeze in winter - Him"

Teil glaring at the man, evidently unamused shook his head and went back to his work

"Why do I always get paired with nutcases" he muttered to himself

I watched the man as he breathed in and out many times, he eventually settled on the floor with crossed legs

"Can you walk?" I said to the man "Are you still hurt, because I can cal-"

"I will be fine, I don't need any help" he said angrily, staring at the ground "Expecially from your kind"

"My kind? I saved you from killing hundreds of people" I snapped "Besides you didn't do any of the work, you were just a puppet - with someone elses hand up your ass"

"What did you say, you half-witted idiot" he said as he stood up, his then lanky body now bulging with musscle "I will crush you like the feeble being you ar-"

I didn't notice Teil, but he picked up a small pipe and whacked the man in the back of the head

"Why do I always get paired with nutcases" he muttered to himself again

"Great, look what you have done!" I said with a grin "And we were getting along so well!"

He turned his head to look at me and snorted

"Well since you knocked him out, your helping me carry him"

"You know how busy I a-"

"It wasnt' a suggestion, it was a command - or do you want me to bring you back to Uinol Station?"

"I.. but...fine" he said, defeated

I grabbed the shoulders and he grabbed the legs, and we took him down the hallway into another room.

The doors opened to a spotless, shiny white room with 4 beds. It had various clean, sleak machines near each - blinking and blooping in quick succession. Another door was on the side of the far left wall, it opened

She walked in with a quiet sense of gentle authority, her face was pale, rounded and was dotted by deep-sapphire colored eyes. Her hair was a deep black, medium length swath of purposely messy hair, it had flowed when she turned her head like water in a stream. Her outfit was very professional, a simple pair of form-fitting dark pants with a simple white blouse with long sleeves - black bands wrapped around the elbows and upper arm. A leather strap encompassed her waste and held a fairly hefty pistol, it was likely a keepsake from old family.

"No changes in the victim Jonotan" she said calmly, simply breezing past the beds like she would every other time

"Thanks Nienna" I replied, sighing "Well we have another patient to admit, this time hes alive"

She walked towards a chest near the door and pulled out thick pieces of rope

"Well I was going to say sedate him" I remarked "But I guess that works too"

She looked at me and smirked, then grabbed a box near one of the beds.

The box held various pointy tools used by surgeons with an almost comedic sized syringe sticking out. She pressed it into a tiny clear container, the needle sucked in the clear liquid.

She flicked the tip and walked towards the man and jabbed his arm.

"Alright.." she said, as she violently pulled out the needle "..,hes gonna be out for a few hours, in the meantime you should call up the station - they have been asking for you alot today"

I huffed a breath, and began towards the ladder. The room was a small, half circle with a ring of consoles in the center. The rooms light came from a single, glowing globe decorating the midpoint - it had dots of various colours indicating jobs of various caliber. The walls were simple, semi-reflective sheets of metal with 4 metal struts at appropriate areas. The floor was much the same as the hall way, except there were more cables snaking around. I poked a few buttons and waited, a few moments later the globe formed into a square with a single line. Two doors dotted opposite sides of the room

"Greetings Brother Jonotan" a booming voice eminated from the box, the line now a tsunami of movement

"Good day, or whatever it is on the station"

"Yes quite, anyways we require a status on your recent investigations"

I picked up a thin piece of plastic, as it touched my hand it begun humming and glowed a screen, I flipped through a few things and brought up my report

"So far it seems that activity around the second moon of Gran Metro has spiked around 5%, with more cults springing up everyday"

"Hmmm it is as grim as I thought"

I could hear the faint sound of someone stroking there beard in intrigue

"That is not all of it, is it " he rumbled "No...there is more to this then meets the eye"

"Well in the last few days we have had a concentration of activity in an area called..." I said as I scanned my notes "... a residential district called 'Erad No.4510'"

"Hmmm" he pondered "It may be an Alpha or some crazed idiot with enough power to summon the Balverine here"

"We could send in a strike team?"

"No, we are spread thin as it is - we would need identifcation of an Alpha or surrogate to send a team in" he said in a pondering tone "No.. no.. you can look further into this yourself, your already there why waste more men"

I sighed, walked towards one of the doors and the door slid. He spoke just as it opened

"Oh and Mr.