Being Human Read online

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  Deadguy and Valkadaidan pushed the desks away from the center of the office to make more room. "Are you sure about this," Jim asked, a little worried.

  "Sure I'm sure," DG answered. "Just a sparring session to teach you a few moves."

  Valk cracked his neck. "Don't worry. It won't hurt."

  Jim looked over at the Dragon-Blooded. "He looks like he wants to kill me."

  "That's just his default expression," Our Hero said, putting his hand on the Shifter's shoulder. "Now, first lesson: How to avoid a punch." Deadguy ducked out of the way as Valkadaidan struck Jim clean on the jaw. He spun around and staggered back.

  "Ow," he exclaimed. "Feels like getting hit by a bus."

  "Yeah. I'm well aware," DG assured. "Now, watch his movement, and try to move out of the way." He pushed the Shifter back at the Dragon-Blooded. "Keep your guard up," he shouted. Jim complied, waiting for the next strike. Valk threw another punch, and Jim moved back to avoid it. He snapped back and tried to hit Valk, but was blocked before he got close. "Alright, getting better."

  "Again," Valk growled. The two blocked each other's punches as the ladies came back in from the roof. Kiri walked along, not paying attention until she crashed into the corner of her desk.

  "Hey," she exclaimed. "Who moved my desk?"

  "Sparring session," Deadguy answered.

  "Who's Sparring Session?"

  Our Hero shook his head. "Nevermind." He strapped on his fighting gloves. "Alright. Second lesson. Fighting two opponents at once."

  "What," Jim exclaimed, turning his attention away from Valk. It was a mistake, as he nailed the Shifter in the jaw again. "Ow. Will you stop that?" He steadied himself, then quickly blocked Valk's next attack. Deadguy went in for a hit, but Jim blocked that attack as well. He turned to face Our Hero. His eyes began to turn white. His face became stern and emotionless.

  "Uh, Jimmy," DG said. "You in there?" The Shifter reached over with his hand and grabbed Deadguy's neck. "Little tight," he gasped. His fingers started to stretch, interlocking with each other. "Okay, he's gone into constrictor mode." Valkadaidan grabbed him from behind and tried to pull him off, only to end up pulling him a few feet back while he was still clamped around Our Hero. "That's not helping," he gasped.

  "I'm going to try something," Valk stated. He slammed his fist onto the back of the Shifter's neck, right on the spot where the three lines were. Jim blinked, his eyes returning to normal.

  "Wha...what happened," Jim asked. Deadguy started pointing at his neck, but slowed down, then stopped. He collapsed onto the floor. "Did I kill him?"

  "Looks like it," Valk said. "Give him a moment."

  Suddenly, Deadguy gasped for air. He breathed deeply a few times and blinked rapidly. "Guh," he remarked. "That was...[breath]...something I don't want to do again."

  "Ah," Kiri yelled, interrupting the conversation. They looked over to see her trying to pull her tablet away from the hungry wires of Xenio's neck. "Help! It's trying to eat my tablet.

  "Valk. Jim. Grab the head," Deadguy commanded, rushing to Kiri's side. He grabbed Kiri as the other two grabbed the head. DG and Kiri pulled in one direction while Valk and Jim pulled in the opposite direction.

  "Don't eat my tablet," the Techie yelled.

  "Pull harder," Valk yelled to Jim.

  "I. Am. Trying," he yelled back.

  Kiri put one foot on the base of the head, trying to get some leverage. Deadguy followed her lead.

  "What's going on," Jill asked as she came out of the break room.

  "Don't ask. Just pull," they all yelled at the same time. She slammed her coffee mug on the desk and started pulling Valkadaidan. The tablet snapped, causing the Heroes to fall backwards. The piece of the tablet that the wires held were quickly consumed.

  "That can't be good," Kiri said. Our Hero shook his head. There was silence for a few moments. The Heroes waited with baited breath. "Well, I guess that wasn't so-"

  The computers in the office came alive. Each screen had a digital version of Xenio. "Yes," he exclaimed. "now this is liberating. All of the Internet is my domain. All of humanity is at my mercy."

  "Yeah, but I bet you don't know why kids like Cinnamon Toast Crunch," Deadguy said.

  "The best part of all of this is that I am free of your incessant prattling," Xenio replied.

  "You'll never be free of my incessant prattling."

  "No. Bad Xenio," Kiri fussed. "No invading the Internets."

  "Enough," the image roared, causing an ear-piercing sound to echo throughout the office. "You 'Heroes' will be the first to fall. Nocturnal. Activate!"

  The three marks on the back of Jim's neck lit up. His eyes became pure white. "Here we go with this again," Deadguy remarked, ready for another fight. Nocturnal's fists grew large as he swung for Our Hero. He was able to duck and dodge the first few attacks, but one hit landed and sent him flying into the wall. Valkadaidan ran in, katana drawn. He took a sizable chunk out of the Nocturnal's arm, but it quickly sealed up. The two started fighting. Katana met with malleable flesh as each combatant tried to get the upper hand.

  A few shots were fired, but the bullets just bounced off and scattered about the office. Nocturnal turned, facing down Jill and her gun. "I'm so sorry," she whispered. She fired a few more shots, starting to back away from him.

  "Yo, Jimbo," DG exclaimed, throwing a notepad at him. "Over here."

  Nocturnal charged at Our Hero. The two collided and rolled out into the parking lot. They traded punches while Deadguy started backing towards the busy street. Deadguy threw a punch, but Jim grabbed it and kicked him in the stomach. The attack sent him stumbling into the road. Nocturnal leapt into the path of an oncoming SUV. It skidded to a stop and honked it's horn. He reached out and clutched the hood, his skin started to consume the metal.

  The mother and children inside started screaming as Nocturnal began to rip the vehicle in two. "Get out of the car," Deadguy yelled. The family quickly scrambled and fell out as he finished ripping it apart. He held one part high above his head, about to smash it onto Our Hero. "Yeah, no," he said, rolling out of the way as it came crashing down.

  Nocturnal took in the torn car pieces, starting to grow in size as the mass became part of him. He was towering over Deadguy. He held his hand together and high over his head. Our Hero jumped out of the way just as they came crashing down onto the street. Cars came screeching to a halt, some crashing into each other. All were honking at the commotion. Nocturnal turned and started wrecking the vehicles. People ran, screaming in fear. He watched for a moment, then walked back into the office as Valkadaidan and Jill came running out.

  "You're late," he commented. "Jim took off."

  "You're a little too casual about it," Jill berated.

  "Yeah, because I'm not fighting him without the aid of Masamune," DG replied. "Besides, it's not like we're going to lose him. Just follow the trail of destruction."

  Valkadaidan looked out at the wrecked cars. "It's like Tennant Tower all over again."

  "Ow," Our Hero remarked, remembering that night. "How many robot minions did we have to take down?"

  "Eighteen thousand, Six hundred and Five," Valk answered with a growl.

  Deadguy walked up beside him, holding Masamune on his shoulder. "Alright, let's get this party started."