Flames.
Everywhere.
As far as the eye could see.
A towering inferno completely engulfing everything in the area, the skeletal remains of the building which served as its origin the only thing not yet completely consumed.
Amidst the sea of orange was a lone, black figure. A man, completely shrouded in darkness, save for an eerie, white, soulless pair of eyes staring right this way.
.....Rage.
There was no better way to describe the overwhelming emotions he felt upon seeing that man. Pure rage, even more empowering than the surrounding blaze.
He lunged forward, no longer in control of his own body, his lust for the figure's blood completely taking over. As the other figure charged to intercept him, gliding as swiftly as the wind, a single thought overpowered his mind.
Kill.
Kill.
Kill.
".....Mnnngh..."
Just before the two clashed, Reece woke up, still groggy from sleep as the familiar shrill sound of his alarm pierced his brain.
"...Unngh...Did I really leave that stupid thing on?" he mumbled to himself as he moved to shut it off. "...Oh well. Whatever. About time I got up, anyway." He shuffled on out of bed & got changed...completely ignoring the dream he'd just had. At this point, it was a fairly common occurrence, & as such, it didn't really bother him anymore...much...
After slipping out of his pajamas & into his normal attire - glove & cloak included - he headed downstairs to grab something to eat...only to remember he ran out of his standard breakfast yesterday.
...Oh yeah...It's Sunday... Given the rude awakening he'd just had, Reece's mind was still a bit frazzled. As such, something minor like the fact that he needed to go shopping had slipped his mind. Couldn't be helped, though. All Sunday mornings were spent out & about gathering supplies & the like, anyway, so he slipped into his shoes & stepped outside into the brisk, April air.
Thankfully, it only took him about an hour to traverse the city & procure all the materials & groceries he needed...&, most importantly, this week's supply of bagels. It was always a highlight of his week whenever he'd walk out of the shop carrying a bag full of these golden delicacies, including a pair freshly toasted & buttered that he sank his teeth into as soon as he could.
...Mmmmmmmmnnnnn~..........Hmmn? As Reece walked back home, finally enjoying his breakfast, something out of the corner of his eye caught his attention.
.....Really? Are we really doing this now? A sigh escaped his lips as he passed by a bank & noticed some sort of commotion going on from within involving several masked men standing behind the counter & berating some other guy. ...Well, not exactly how I wanted to spend the rest of my morning, but oh well, then... He begrudgingly stashed his bagels away inside his cloak, stepped out of view from the glass doors, & got in contact with Serah.
"Hey, Reece."
"Hey. You up?"
"Well, technically no, but if you're calling, it must be something important."
"Bold of you to assume I'm not just suddenly pulling a prank call." A few agonizing seconds of silence followed that remark. "...Alright, alright. Look. Something's come up that I need to take care of. Think you could hop in the car & pick me up at the nearby bank in, say...30 minutes?"
"...You really have to do this, huh?"
"Well, I guess not really, but you know me."
"True.....Alright, fine. I'll be there."
"Thanks...Oh, & don't call them now, but make sure you contact the police & get them to show up around that time, too."
"Yeah, yeah. Will do." Following that, she hung up.
...Alright, time to get to work, then... Reece thought to himself as he began to put his plan in motion.
The clear, automatic doors of the establishment slid cleanly open as a man covered completely in black stepped through. He took a moment to survey the inside of the building, noting the three masked men, now looking over towards him, seemingly somewhat surprised, the other man, probably an employee, & a bunch of other assorted people, sitting against a side wall with their hands bound behind them. ...Alright...Now to hope they play along... After this brief pause, Reece continued on & made his way towards the counter.
"Hey! I thought you said you locked the damn door!" one of the supposed thieves yelled at another.
"...I swear I did, though..." the other said, somewhat dejected.
"...Whatever." the first man annoyingly said as he raised up his pistol. "Freeze." he called out to Reece, pointing the gun at him...but he ignored this warning & walked up to the counter. "...Hey, what do you think you're doing?"
"Hey." Reece reached the counter & addressed the employee, still completely ignoring the deviant trio. "Look, I'm in a bit of a hurry. Here." He pulled out a small slip of paper, both sides covered in numbers, & placed it on the desk. "I need the thing in this safe box with this passcode immediately, please. It's urgent." The employee simply sat there in silence, not quite sure what to do.
"Well now, ain't this our lucky day?" the third & final thief happily said as he pulled out his own gun & pushed the muzzle right up against Reece's neck. He sighed & put his hands in the air, not really in a position to do much else at the moment.
"...Hmph. Teach you to ignore us. Especially on our first day here." #1 cockily said as he pocketed the piece of paper. "Put 'em with the rest." #3 complied & began binding Reece's hands with rope as he headed into the back of the building, #2 following behind him.
"...Sorry you had to get involved in this..." the employee apologetically remarked as the two of them were forcefully led over to the area with the rest of the captives by #3, who afterwards turned his back to them & took to keeping watch of the entrance.
"Shhhh." ...Alright. Now then... After giving the order to keep quiet to the others, Reece got to work. A faint clicking sound emanated from somewhere on his person, after which, following a bit of shaking & fidgeting, his left arm spilled out of his sleeve. While his hands were still bound together, he was able to use his dislodged, mechanical arm to help prop himself back onto his feet. As swiftly & quietly as he could, he snuck over to #3, gripped his arm, & used it to administer a powerful, paralyzing tase, knocking him out instantly. Thankfully, he managed to scoop up his body before it crashed to the floor & set it down quietly before getting to worn on actually unbinding his hands.
"-cocky little shit." The moment Reece freed himself, reattached his arm, & pocketed his glove, #1 & #2 returned from the back room, the former clearly very annoyed at having been so easily tricked. "...Hey!! What do you think you're doing?!" He quickly noticed his incapacitated ally & Reece standing unrestrained nearby & immediately trained his handgun on him.
"Oh, y'know. The usual." With that, Reece reached into his cloak & pulled out his signature longsword, Wyrmlysp, unsheathing it in all its glory. "...but you're new here, so I wouldn't expect you to know that."
"You stupid-.....Just-..........Graaagh!!!" #1's aggravation got the better of him as he snapped & pulled the trigger. Reece anticipated as much & steeled himself accordingly. Within milliseconds, a piercing clang rang out as the bullet collided cleanly with the flat end of his blade & pinged across the floor, leaving him & his sword completely unharmed.
".....What the....." #1 was left completely stunned at what exactly just took place.
".....Heh....." A smirk spread its way across Reece's face as he sheathed his blade & dashed forward like lightning. Before #1 could really react, Reece raised his covered sword & bludgeoned him in the head, knocking him out cold in one fell strike. As he stored his weapon away, he gave a menacing glare over at #2, the only ruffian still standing. He wasted no time comically stumbling over the counter & running towards the exit. Meanwhile, Reece fiddled with his robo-arm & brought up the holographic interface linked to the building's security he'd prepared beforehand. A few quick button presses later, he relocked the doors, leaving #2 to hard slam against them & crumble to the ground. Even Reece couldn't hold back a chuckle or two at such an idiotic display on incompetence.
~~~~~~~~~~
...Ahh. Right on time. Sirens blared outside as Reece finished untying the last of the captives. Thankfully, everyone in the building remained unharmed...aside from the criminals themselves, still unconscious yet now restrained. "Guess my work's done here, then...Oh, & remember to feel free & call me at some point to help you improve your security." he said, addressing the building manager before taking his leave.
"Whoa, whoa, calm down, guys. Everything's okay. Crooks apprehended. Everyone's safe. You're free to go in & do your thing now that I, the Black Dragoon, have done mine. Good day to you all." Upon exiting the building, he gave a quick statement to the officers gathered outside before hopping into the familiar vehicle waiting for him & riding off.
"...I take it things went well, then?" Serah inquired from the driver's seat.
"Yep. Pretty much perfectly...Feels great." Reece replied as he finally finished up his long-desired breakfast...Of course, by now it was cold, but thankfully not much less delicious.
"Good to hear everything worked out, then."
"Mmmmmnnn~...Hmm? Oh, yeah. It's definitely quite nice. Means I can get back to work sooner."
"Ahh, yes. Improved nanobots, right?"
"Yep. Should be able to get that all finished soon, too."
"Great! Means you can spend more time actually taking it easy."
"What the heck's that s'posed to mean?! I take it plenty easy now!"
"Sure, sure. Just be sure not to make that much of a mess. You know whose job it is to clean that up."
"Yeah, I know, I know, but as I keep telling you, that's not your job & you don't have to keep doing it."
"& as I keep telling you, I don't mind doing that job at all!"
"Well then why are you complaining about it?"
"I-I'm not complaining! I just...y'know..."
"Yeah, yeah, I know...but still...Gotcha~" Reece smirked at his remark.
".....Grrrnmrrngh!!" Serah's face turned red as she cut off the conversation. The remainder of the ride was spent in relative silence, the pair ready to get back to the manor to enjoy the rest of their day in relative peace.