It’s a short run to the cafe, and the bell on the door rings as I step inside. Blake and Damien are sitting in a corner, watching a video on Blake’s phone.

  Damien notices me first, and waves me over excitedly.

  “Look at this.” He says, as I move over to see what they’re looking at.

  He rewinds the video and presses play.

  The video has a time stamp in the left corner, making me think we’re looking through a video camera of some kind.

  The video shows a back alleyway between two stone buildings. It’s a clean alleyway, with barely any trash or graffiti. Snow falls lightly, turning the ground white.

  A woman steps into frame, a hoodie and scarf covering her face. She stops in the middle of the frame, and says something that isn’t picked up by the camera.

  Frustrated by something, she turns around, only to be brought up short as two men enter the alleyway. Two more men approach from the other direction.

  She stands still, strangely calm as the men approach her. She says something, and a thin rapier appears in her hand from seemingly nowhere.

  An inventory.

  She says something again, and the wall next to one of the men reaches out, grabbing the man and wrapping around him. A glow surrounds her similar to the Beta Tester I’d killed who worked for Doss.

  She moves, and her sword cuts through all three men as she covers space faster than a normal human should move. Every man falls to the ground, bleeding out.

  She looks at something outside the camera’s view. She says something else and walks out of the alleyway.

  The video ends, and Blake sets down his phone. “I’ve been looking everywhere for people like you. There are a couple other videos that look like they could be real, but she was the only one that had the same glow as that guy.”

  “It looked real.” I say. The video had been gory.

  “It did.” Damien says, letting out a sigh.

  “So what did you call us here for?” Blake asks, sitting up in his seat.

  I move around to the other side of the table, and sit down. “Let’s wait for Rose before I answer that.” I pull out my phone and msg her. “She says she’ll be here in about thirty minutes, so I’m gonna grab some food. You guys want anything?”

  Both of them chime up with requests, happy to eat off my dime.

  I stand up, and walk over to the counter.

  The woman in that video moved with a speed that I could barely match with my supposedly “unmatchable speed” spell. Whatever power she and that guy glowed with, it obviously gives them a physical advantage.

  I order a sandwich for myself, and something else for the boys then hand over some cash.

  Enhance Body and Unmatchable Speed are strong, but I don’t doubt that the others are also improving their skills.

  I return to the table, and the three of us talk about a show that’s coming out until the food arrives.

  Rose arrives right at the thirty minute mark, and sits down next to me.

  “Hey guys, sorry for the hold up. Dad decided it was a good time for a lecture.” She steals a fry from my plate, taking a bite.

  “S’all good.” Blake says, then turns his attention to me. “So are you going to tell us the mysterious reason you brought us here?”

  “So you guys all believe in magic now, right?” I ask. I grab one of my fries, and take a tiny bite as I think about how I want to phrase what I’m going to say.

  A series of nods answers my question.

  “What if I told you that monsters are real too?”

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  I get some disbelieving stares, but no one argues.

  “I think that most people can’t see them, but I have a way to fix that. And… well, I’m going to hunt some of them.”

  “And you’re not planning on doing that by yourself, right?” Damien asks.

  I lean forward with a smile, “Gentlemen and gentleladies, the mission I suggest is a dangerous one, not for the faint of heart. Are you willing to join me?”

  The three of them share a look.

  “Absolutely.” Rose says.

  “Are you kidding?” Damien asks.

  “You’d be lost without me.” Blake adds.

  “Alright, well, I’m going to try something a tiny bit experimental, so uh… stay safe?” I stand up and walk around to the two boys. I place my finger against Blake’s forehead, and send the smallest bit of my psi into him. His psi, although small, is immediately identifiable. I find the third eye chakra, and gently stimulate the flow of psi.

  A third eye opens on his forehead.

  I move my hand away.

  “What did you do?” Blake asks.

  I pull out a small hand mirror and show Blake. His eyes open wide.

  “What do you see?” I ask.

  “A- an eye.”

  “Good! Your turn Damien.”

  I move to him, then Rose, and finally myself. Everyone stares at each other, able to see the third eyes on the other people.

  “Well, you guys ready? Let’s go hunting.” I stand up, scooting my chair back.

  “That’s just a little cheesy.” Rose says, shaking her head as she stands up. I do see a small smile that she tries to hide. “Do you know where exactly we’re going to hunt these monsters?”

  Huh. I uh, I didn’t really think about that.

  She laughs at my expression, and sits back down at the table. “You’re lucky I’ve been practicing.”

  She pulls out one of those maps of the city that you used to be able to find in every gas station. I didn’t know we still had those with the invention of phones. She unfolds the map and unclips her necklace. She dangles the necklace over the map, then looks at me, “What are we looking for exactly?”

  I tilt my head with curiosity, “Red Caps.”

  “Let’s see if this works. [Scry Monsters: Red Caps]” The pendant at the end of the necklace moves, and her hand moves with it. She moves her hand until the necklace points directly at a small park near my sister’s school.

  Blake and Damien look at Rose with wide eyes.

  “You can use magic too?” Damien asks.

  “Yep.” Rose picks up the map and it disappears into her inventory. She picks up her purse and stands up. “You driving us Blake?”

  “I guess I am,” He stands up and pauses, “Unless any of you have a car?” At our vacant stares, he shakes his head. “Come on. ‘Let’s go hunting’”

  I frown. How is it somehow cooler when he says it? This is unfair.

  We leave the cafe, and I shiver as a small breeze pushes past me. Winter’s coming soon.

  “Why’s this the first time you’re casting magic?” Blake asks Rose, pulling his coat tighter around himself.

  “I just figured out magic recently… Whoa. That’s weird.” Rose says, blinking rapidly.

  “What’s weird?” He asks, opening the back door of his car for the both of us.

  Wow, sometimes I forget why Blake had so many girlfriends. He’s far too gentlemanly for his own good.

  “I don’t want to tell you the whole truth, like my very thoughts are affected. It’s weird.” Rose moves into the car, and I follow her in.

  The two boys take the front seats.

  “I’m all for making an entrance, but how are you guys expecting to fight the Red Caps? Guns are a big no-no for a public park.” Rose asks.

  “Not sure. I have a crowbar in the back, but that only works for one of us.” Blake says, pulling out of the parking lot.

  “That reminds me!” I say, reaching into my inventory and pulling out a wooden box. I hand it over to Rose.

  I’ve never thrown a knife accurately in my life. I’d probably be more of a danger than a help with Throwing Knives.

  Rose opens the box, then looks at me curiously.

  “[Identify] them.” I say.

  “[Identify the box?]” She moves her head back as a screen only she can see appears in front of her.

  I look out the window, my eyes going to the sky. Dark clouds move in on strong winds, turning the world gray. “I hope you guys brought umbrellas.” I say, smiling as the first drop hits the window.

  I love the rain. Something about it brings out the child in me. I’ve caught more than a few colds just sitting in the rain. It reminds me of laughter, play, and a young man’s smile. A smile that I’ve forgotten in a lot of ways.

  “I have one umbrella, but we should be fine.” Blake leans past the wheel to look at the sky.

  Rose lets out an appreciative noise, and Damien turns around in his seat to look at what she’s holding.

  Four throwing knives are in the box, covered in the same hieroglyphics that cover my gloves.

  “Where did you get those?” Damien asks.

  “Elena.” Rose says.

  “I stole them off a dead guy.” I add.

  “Not funny.”

  “I wasn’t trying to be.” I shrug, my gaze returning to the sky as more drops start to fall.

  Blake pulls into a parking spot. The park we stopped in is a large one, with a playground sitting in front of a decent sized wooded area. Little paths go through the woods, leading to other parts of the park.

  I take a deep breath, then let it out.