Episode 2: Shifter for Hire
If one had to admit it, Caesar felt great. Jumping and flipping over buildings was a nice new change of pace compared to what he was doing before landing in Hekesville. One thing he always hoped to do is this. Simply being him, totally oblivious to surroundings. A little... "too" oblivious.
"Hey!" A voice called out from below, waking Caesar from his thoughts mid-flight. He looked down to see just a police officer waving him down with what looks like his partner.
"Yeah!" he called out to the officer. Hekesville's police uniform consisted of a blue uniform, grey outlines rums of the suit to show where each layer overlapped and a police hat in two varieties. The one who called him down was wearing the type of hat a lead marching band player would wear and the one accompanying was wearing what seemed to be the standard police hat with goggles that shielded his eyes.
"Come down here! I want to ask you a few questions." he says.
He lowers himself down and sees the guy beside him raised his left hand ever so slightly near his hand gun.
'Oh... so it's gonna be something like that huh?' he thought to himself; his visible demeanor changing from curious to bored. A look both officers took notice of and scowled, but still kept their composure.
"What can I do you for?" He asks hands in his pockets.
"We got a report yesterday about a mugging and one of our officers reported your exact description." he stated.
"Was it by a guy with white hair, amber eyes reporting about four guys in an alley, then yes, I was there." Caesar snuck a peek over to the officer's partner and he saw an all too familiar glare.
"Good. With that settled, I need you to come with us then." he says as he pulls out a pair of handcuffs; his partner came walked behind Caesar, his hand still on his pistol holster.
"Under what charge?" Caesar was quite shocked at the predicament he was in. Day 2 and he was already having problems with the cops for something he didn't do.
"For assault and mugging on the four individuals, which you just confessed. To this, Caesar scowled at the man. Remembering Syd from before. 'Oh that sleazy, son of a goat...' his inner insult rant was cut short when the officer behind decided to draw his gun on him.
"You're under arrest, understand! Now turn around and remove your hands from your pockets. Slowly." he commanded. Caesar internally sighed at the ridiculous situation this all was. Lucky for him, this wasn't the first time this scenario happened so he decided to fall back on his getaway plan. Unlucky for the boys in blue, his plan would have them being on the receiving end of it.
"Alright, alright." he removed his hands and they were forcibly placed behind his back and had the hand-cuffs locked around his wrists. "Where is your animal?" the one with the gun demanded. "Out somewhere doing his thing." he answered. 'And now part two of my master plan.' he declared in his mind. As they were walking everyone was watching the whole scenario go down, making their own side comments.
Some of them voicing their pity for the teen to have his powers while the others voicing their praise for the cops for taking him away. 'Oh good. And audience too. And now...'
"OH!" as he was *slowly* walking, making the angry officer push him and allow him to trip over his feet and land on his stomach. This brought out a few audible chuckling from the onlooking crowd as the two guards lifted him up by the back of his arms. They got Caesar to his feet, but before taking more than a few steps after the stumble, they heard an audible click and the feeling of metal on their respective wrists.
They look down to see that they've been handcuffed to each other; the officer on the left side of facing Caesar's back had his right hand cuffed to the left hand of his partner. To add to more of their shock, they see Caesar turn around on them.
"Aw~. You two just look so adorable together. Bye.~" he merrily said as whistled for his partner, having Pit appear on his shoulder and take off from the ground. He also dropped the keys to the handcuffs and flew away leaving the dumbstruck officers, as well as the surrounding crowd, too look up as the teen seem to *magically* get out of the cuffs.
~Pleajeune~
There was always something about Pleajeune that always drew Caesar's attention. Was how dark it always was? No. Was it the college sized campus that was Arquebus Academy? Again, no. It was much more public and out in the open.
"This is the creepiest looking Ferris Wheel I've ever seen." Caesar says out loud. He was floating in the face of the grinning face of the contraption, taking a picture of it from his phone.
After evading the cops, you would think that most people would continue hiding, but Caesar was feeling way too good about himself right now. Even if the people below was staring up at him, the attention did not deter him in the slightest as he took a picture of himself with the face.
"Note-to-self, to make a place creepy, have a Cheshire smiling face and unsettling atmosphere." he says before landing and walking away. "What'cha think Pit?" his simian companion materialized on his shoulder, making incoherent squeaks and grunts. Not knowing of the presence coming behind them.
"Well sorry for asking then." he retorts with before turning into an alley. "Excuse me young man." a voice spoke behind him. This voice held a much more mature, feminine tone towards the holder. He turns to see a very attractive blonde women wearing what he could guess to be a dress in the latest fashion, especially in this neck of the woods.
"Can I help you?" he asks.
"As a matter of fact yes, and maybe I can help you." she says in a flirtatious tone.
"Just to be clear, I am not desperate to get laid or have fun." he deadpanned.
The woman laughed at this and responded to his comment. "Smart boy, but no. I have a different proposition for you. You see, lately a club I've been running have been lacking security and some of my staff haven't been very honest with me. Letting unwanted patrons in for example. So, seeing in how gifted you are, why not have a shifter as my bouncer as extra precaution. What do you say?" the woman hands him a business card for the club: "Oasis."
"Tempting, but sure. I'd work if you don't mind the police to come knocking down your door to find me. I've seen the wanted posters. Won't be long before I get one for myself." Caesar said. He doesn't particularly hate clubs himself, but while he wasn't a fan of them, he had enough respect as to not be the reason to directly cause problems to people who didn't deserve it.
"Oh, let me worry about that, you just need to do your job, little magician."
"Magician?"
"People have been talking about a little someone trapping police in their own handcuffs just today."
"That was an *hour* ago. How do people know that so fast?" he asked, a bit incredulously.
"Words travels fast around these parts. Buh-bye now." she waves goodbye before stopping. "Oh, and before I leave, lets make one thing clear." she turns to give him a sideways glance. "You never met or heard this from Ivana. Are we clear?"
"Who~?" he replies as he turns around, playing along to the implication.
"Good boy." she smiles before exiting the alley.
"Pit." the monkey appeared on his shoulder. "I should follow my own advice and stay out of alleyways." Pit only responded with a chirp before ascending up the building.
~Later that Night~
"Next." At the request, a man wearing a nice looking suit, minus the blazer, walked up to the front of the line.
"ID." the bouncer took a good look at the ID before returning back. "Enjoy." the man took his card back and smiled before walking in.
"*yawn* Next." the bouncer called out next.
"Getting sleepy my little magician?" Ivana voiced over his earpiece.
Caesar raised a hand to his ear and responded. "No Ma'am, all is quiet here. Next." Caesar was now wearing match black shoes, jeans and black shirt, but instead of a black t-shirt, his was long sleeves with the added addition being a masquerade mask. This way the police won't suspect him being employed here and he had to hand to Ivana, despite how simple the solution was, it was really effective. Though he did think it was a bit contradictory to hide himself if he was hired because of his abilities.
"Good. You'll transfer to insides duties in a few minutes. Due try not to cause a fuss." Ivana instructed.
Caesar proceeded to let people in. "I'll try, but I hope that doesn't deduct my pay." he said as he denied entry to someone who was too young.
"Very well my little magician. Ta-ta." With that the line cuts out, leaving Caesar to his works.
'Wonder what Pit is doing? He better not try to cause trouble while I'm away.' he thought. A co-worker came to his side and told him to switch shifts so now Caesar was responsible of handling what goes on in the bar.
The interior of the club didn't match the exterior whereas outside you have a generic, dirty street alley, but inside was way more appealing. Inside, multi-colored lights flashed, a bar with the barista serving *very* expensive drinks, and many table and seat surrounding the dance floor.
Sure, it might sound generic, but the overall look, feel and popularity of the club made the Oasis an obvious hot spot for either the party-goers or the regulars.
While keeping on guard, Caesar's eyes trailed onto one particular patron sitting on the far end of the bar table. Some who looks vaguely familiar.
'Wait... is that...' Caesar walked to a position where he can better get a look of the guy to confirm his suspicions.
"Well I'll be damned." Getting a better look at man's face, Caesar confirms that it was one of the four muggers who confronted him in the alley yesterday.
'That's one of the guy's from yesterday! Why isn't he locked up!? Okay. As soon as my shift is over, I'll have a little chat with him to explain himself.' Caesar walks back to is original spot and continues keeping a look out.
'Really wish Pit was here. He can follow him in case he leaves early... which is right now. Great...' he sighs. The man was leaving now and and Caesar didn't know how he was gonna tail him And not lose him job.
'Next time, makes sure Pit is kept close by.' he reminded himself. This was a perfect opportunity to clear up why those two cops tried arresting him. besides, y'know... Obvious Reasons like having powers.
Caesar leaned against the wall and flexed his back, but was actually stretching his tail out under his shirt. Sometimes he forgets he still has the appendage when he's out in public and its tucked away. Going back to his duties, his attention, as well as the other staff's were turned towards the door that was harshly kicked open.
The man who kicked the door open looked like a man of average height wearing a Halloween styled suit being purple and orange. (Do people here celebrate Halloween?) His companions with him were rotund men who easily towered over the colored individual; his bodyguard it looks like.
"Hey, Ma'am. Are we expecting someone to kick your door down cause someone just did." Caesar called on his headpiece. "*sighs* I'll take care of it. Make sure he doesn't see you." Ivana ordered. He noticed her tone switched to a more serious tone. As if on cue, his boss came marching down from her upstairs office and towards the man in question who barged in. She gave him a stern look, silently telling him to get a move on.
'Oh boy... If she's dropping the mood then it must be serious.' Caesar thought this and decided to head into the changing room just as Ivana reached the suited man.
"Ivana! How's my favorite woman been huh? You've got my favorite drink in-stock?"
"Not in the mood Simon. What do you want?" Ivana says as she crosses her arms.
Said man named Simon, held his heart in feigned a pained look. "Oh! Ivana! So callous. And here I thought we had something special together." He said this whole spiel as he sat waiting for his drink from the bartender.
"Nothing special about you being here Simon." She fired back. Caesar cracked the door open just a bit to hear the conversation play out. It was easy to hear with how loud the man was.
Simon groans, "God you're no fun. Y'know maybe if you lightened up a bit, you'd finally be able to settle down with someone by now. Lord knows you're not what you used to be." Simon finishes with a light chuckle at his comment and the reaction he can see surfacing on Ivana's face.
'Oh... he did not just talk about her age.' Caesar thought. And the fact that his boss isn't doing anything about it is pretty worrisome as they followed her upstairs.
'Crap. I'm not gonna listen from her office. At least not from here or outside the door. Pit should be hanging around the club waiting for me.' He checked the changing room to see if he was alone. Seeing as the coast was clear, Caesar brought his fingers to his mouth and whistle out for his guardian. Right on cue, Pit materialized on the floor of the changing room.
Peeking out the door to see the other staff working as they should, Caesar quickly flew up near the top of the steps and out of sight. Peeking from the corner of the steps. One of Simon's bulky bodyguard was standing outside the door to Ivana's office, with the other likely inside.
"Alright Pit. Make some noise." he whispered to the guardian. Pit disappeared in black motes and so the shifter waited for the chimp to do something.
Crashing supplies sounded down the hall, averting the attention of the guard long enough for Caesar to reach a window to open and float out of. No one ever bothered to look up above them as Caesar flew over the edge of the city and right out side of Ivana's office window.
"No. Way. The police are "this" close to finding me out. You know this Simon! They'll know it's me helping him for sure." Ivana protested.
"I need to use *that* building again. A good friend of mine needs it pronto and when this is over then you'll be completely off the hook." Simon tried bargaining. "How many times now?! Huh? How many times have you told people this shit!? People in debt to him "stays" in debt. You think I don't know that man does? What he-" Caesar heard a loud thump, like something heavy had been dropped.
"Y'know... it's unladylike to swear." Simon said sternly. "Now how many times have I told YOU, that you put yourself here because you couldn't keep your damn doors closed AND that we're doing you a favor for not cutting you off early on." Simon gets up from his seat opens the door. "Unless of course, you WANT that to happen. No?"
"... No..."
"No, WHAT?" he pressured.
"... No... Sir." she relented, now looking down as her balled fist.
"Atta' girl. Now you keep, doin' what you doin', without so much of a peep. Understand?" requested.
"No sir." Ivana sighed. She was no longer looking at her hands, but now at the picture frame on her desk.
"Hmph!" the door closed with a slam as now Ivana was left alone. She reached over to the frame and turned it facedown before next reaching for the mic on her desk and pressed down on one of the buttons. "To all staffs. Closing is in 15 minutes. Start filing the patrons out." she said this as she tried to hide her exasperated tone.
After her order, Ivana slumped into her chair. She gets up and pours a glass of whiskey and brought the glass down to her lips, but stops.
She stares down at the alcoholic beverage in her hand and grimaces. She walks over to the open window behind her desk and throws the whole glass out and down into the void.
She slammed the window, leaving Caesar to contemplate on Ivana's position.
'Ivana... Just what does he have over you?' Caesar flew to the top and looked over the edge on the other side in hopes of finding where the sleaze went. Surprisingly, it wasn't that hard to spot him in bright and vibrant color scheme. He was getting in one of the air boats along with his bodyguards.
He was about to follow, but he hesitated for a bit. Pit looks at him from his shoulder and squeaks in confusion. "N-Nothing Pit. Let's go." He waved it off and flew down below the platform.
The air boat's engine hummed to life as it began to take off. Unknown to the driver and occupants, Caesar was trailing not far from them, far enough not to attract too much attention. The purplish night sky made for perfect cover to fly as his aura blended with the surrounding. The ride traveled all the way to the factory district of Endestria.
The airboat descended and landed at a port , the occupants exiting to meet someone wearing working clothes.
'This late? And who's this friend your meeting?' Caesar took out his phone and took a quick picture of them meeting. Simon departed from the man and walked off to the next location.
As he tailed him, Caesar's thoughts wondered back to the conversation with Ivana. 'I don't get it quite yet, but whoever this Simon guy is, his boss seems to need something from one Ivana's buildings. I'm gonna need to have a talk with her. Boy... that'll be a real conversation starter.' he thought to himself sarcastically.
'Hey boss! Why're you with the local mafia? What's this special building you were talking about? Don't mind how I know. I was just eavesdropping on your conversation. What? You don't want me getting involved? But that's...not...wait.At that moment, Caesar stood there before screaming off in his head.
'Why AM I getting involved?! This literally has nothing to do with me!' He raked his hands through his hair, trying to make sense of himself.
'Why should I concern myself with other people's lives? I'm not responsible for them?' He sighed to himself. 'Sometimes I hate what Mom teaches me.'
"Help!" A cry broke Caesar out from his mental ramblings. Losing himself in thought, Caesar lagged behind Simon and now had to catch up before he loses him completely. He couldn't find a trace of Simon anywhere, but instead he was treated to quite an unsightly scene.
Simon might have been gone, but one of his huge looking bodyguards stayed behind and had someone crawling and screaming away on the ground. He must've been the one to cry for help. But what unnerved Caesar was the sight of three of Hekesville's police officer standing by avoiding attention to the assault.
"Seriously..." Caesar mumbled quietly.
"Someone! Help me!"
From the perspective of the policemen, they only had a short time to register a purpler blur zoom past them. In shock, they turned to see someone cloaked in a purple aura in front of the now hunched over brute. What shocked them more was to see a clawed, starry hand clutch the brute's head and slam him into the wall.
The downed man looked up to see the collapsed brute head cover by a clawed had. He followed the hand slithered back to the owner's balled fist and disappeared. He looked up to see Caesar with his hood over his head, but can still make out his amber eyes.
"Hey. You're okay now." He says as he crouched to try and help the man up, who was thanking him repeatedly. The three officers who were standing at the entrance of the alley stupefied, chose now to intervene.
"Halt shifter! You're under arrest!" one of the officers said. By now all three of them held their guns up and were aiming at Caesar. They all knew about how dangerous one shifter could be so they were pretty on edge to see what else this new one did.
After helping the beaten up man to his feet. Caesar spoke in a low tone. "What were you doing? Didn't you see he needed help?" Being closes to the teen, the now saved man could actually feel the rage coming from the quiet boy.
"Get down on your knees with your hands on your head! I will not repeat myself!" the same officer shouted again. As a response, Caesar swiftly turned around and stomped on the ground hard with his leading foot, using his powers to crack the pavement and kick loose dust gathered at his feet.
"Why didn't you help him?" This time, wasn't asking them to answer, but demanding them too. With his patience already running thin, Caesar flared his aura and swiped both his arms side to side. The officers slammed into an adjacent wall and dropped theirs guns on impact. Caesar brought one up to him gripped with his starry claws.
"You're job is to protect people, make them feel safe. So why did you let this happen!?" he asked the officer remained silent, too unnerved to respond. With a grunt, Caesar tosses him with the rest.
Walk up to them Caesar took a picture of them with is phone, being sure to get their badge number before turning towards the man he helped. Still too shaken to respond or act, He takes a moment to breathe and calm himself down before asking: "Do you which way is the nearest hospital?" he asks.
"Y-yes. Thank you. Thank you so much! I-" He wanted to say more, but noticed how one of the downed officers managed to grab his gun again and tried to aim at the back of the teen shifter.
Pit screeches in Caesar's ear and he turns his to see a gun being point at his back.
BANG!
The a shot rings out and echos in the metal district. The injured man stood in shock as what just transpired. The officers laying on the ground were just as dumbstruck as each other. Especially the one who fired the gun, which was now missing from his hand. Said gun clattered on the ground away from him, past the still standing shifter. His furry tail waving in the air having smacked the gun away in a split second.
It was a strange sight to see an animal appendage attached to a person, yet move so naturally. The teen let out a breath of relief as he turned away from the downed officer and smacked his tail against his face.
"Now then, where is that hospital?" he ask the man as they took off into the air.
"Vendecentre..." he managed to speak out. Still staring at the boy who curled his tail under his shirt.
The rest of the downed officers could only stare as the two flew away before one uttered to his associate. "Wha... What just happened?" That was the big question on all of their minds.
"I don't know.. but that shifter is just as dangerous as Raven. We need to get him on a wanted poster. Fast!"
I don't know how I got myself into that situation. One thing seemed to lead into another. I get offered a job, I find my new boss being under the thumb of some douche nozzle's, and then I even come across dirty cops doing what they do best. Nothing.
Caesar arrives at said hospital in Vendecentre, leaving the man he just saved to be taken care of by the doctors. Seeing no reason to stick around, he exit the building and found some late nighters staring at him. He didn't pay it too much mind. He flew off into the cool night air.
It's funny, yet weird how life works sometimes. I don't know what I'm doing here or why I'm here in the first place, but... I felt different after being here.
Caesar watches as Ivana exits The Oasis in her coat, before flying back to her office window. Entering through the window, Caesar shined the room with his flashlight to find the picture frame from before. He turned it over to reveal a picture of Ivana holding baby wrapped in a bundle She looked genuinely happy in the photo.
It slowly began to sink in. Unlike back home, I didn't need to feel scared to use my powers anymore and I didn't have to worry about someone's approval that I did something good. And the best part...
Caesar returns the frame to how it was before, leaves Ivana's office and returns to the rooftop. "Well Pit," he starts as he walks to the edge of the building, looking over at the rest of Pleajune and then to the World Pillar. "Might not be home, but we can still make the most of it."
Pit squeaked excitedly at this as he hops up and down on his shoulder.
The best part... I can feel proud of who I am and what I can stand for. And nothing was going to stop me from living my life to the fullest in Hekesville. Sure the world has its fair share of problems. Luckily, I was just the kind of guy for the job.
Author's Note: So what do you think of this chapter. Good? Bad? Somewhere in between? Let me know if you can.
On a side, but sadder note. A great man has left us only a few days ago. Stan Lee, comic book legend, has passed away Nov. 12, 2018. Even if he left us, we will always treasure was he's done for us and will never forget him. Rest in Peace. Excelsior.
