Nightfall cast a heavy silence over the slums as the four of them regrouped at the orphanage. Shadows stretched long across the room where they gathered, the weight of the day’s discoveries evident on everyone’s faces.

  Rel: “So... who wants to go first?”

  Neither Jargen nor Punjo spoke up, their expressions unreadable.

  Rel: “Not much luck either, huh?”

  Jargen shook his head.

  Jargen: “All we managed to find out is that Cabdan’s not gonna be around here for a while. The guard near his ring said so himself.”

  Punjo smirked.

  Punjo: “And we made sure he was tellin’ the truth, trust us...”

  Rel and Virno exchanged uneasy glances, not entirely sure they wanted to know what "made sure" entailed.

  Virno: “Well... at least that’s something. We checked out the arena -- turns out Cabdan’s handed it over to his goons to run wild. But the worrying part? One of them warned us to stay indoors tonight.”

  Rel: “Apparently, things are about to get a whole lot worse after sunset.”

  At that, Punjo and Jargen looked at each other, their faces hardening.

  Rel: “You two -- your families safe?”

  Punjo: "All good on my end."

  Jargen: "Same here, thankfully."

  Rel let out a relieved sigh.

  Rel: “Good. Virno’s already warned his mother, and we told as many people as we could, though... most didn’t seem to believe us. Which is why...”

  Rel turned, shutting the door tightly behind him, and gestured for Virno to unveil something in the corner of the room.

  With a flourish, Virno pulled back a sheet, revealing a pile of improvised weapons. Most were tools repurposed into crude armaments -- wooden bats with nails hammered into them, planks lined with razors, and poles tipped with sharp scrap metal.

  Virno: “It’s not much, but it’s better than nothing. We whipped these up earlier today -- take your pick!”

  Punjo grinned wide, stepping forward.

  Rel: "... We'll patrol the streets tonight, keep the slums safe. If we can't keep people away from the danger, we'll have to keep the danger away from people."

  Punjo: "About damn time we get t'have some fun..."

  Jargen: “You said it. Tearing and nailing planks all day gets dull... Let’s see how these hold up.”

  The two grabbed the largest mallets they could find, inspecting them with the eyes of seasoned craftsmen.

  Rel: "Can't say I'm surprised you'd pick those..."

  Jargen smirked, giving the mallet a test swing.

  Jargen: “I’d rather use my fists, but this’ll do the trick. Better safe than sorry.”

  Rel armed himself with a nail-studded bat, while Virno selected a plank fitted with razors along its edges.

  Punjo: "Laddies... Be ready for anything tonight. Alright?"

  Punjo's question sent shivers down Rel and Virno's spine, but they nodded anyway.

  Virno: “So, where do we start?”

  Rel gripped his bat tightly.

  Rel: “The arena. That’s the source of the rumors -- if there’s trouble brewing, it’ll be there.”

  The streets were eerily quiet as they made their way to the arena, the usual noises of the slums replaced with an uneasy stillness. Upon arrival, they were greeted by an empty ring, the stands deserted.

  Virno: “Nothing.”

  Rel shifted uneasily.

  Rel: “I don’t like this.”

  Jargen: “You sure you heard right?”

  Punjo: “Maybe they were just tryin’ to scare ya...”

  Virno shook his head firmly.

  Virno: “No... No chance the guy who warned us was joking -- we could see it in his face.”

  Rel clenched his fists.

  Rel: “If the arena’s clear, there’s one other place we need to check. And if they’re there... it’ll be bad. Really bad.”

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  The group followed Rel through the narrow back alleys until they reached a modest building. At first glance, it looked untouched.

  Virno: “Your family’s store?”

  Rel nodded grimly.

  Rel: “It’s the only place in the slums where people can get supplies. I didn’t think even Cabdan’s men would be stupid enough to hit it, but...”

  A noise from inside cut him off -- the faint sound of shuffling and muffled voices confirmed his fears.

  Rel: “Goddamn it... Ready your weapons.”

  The group tensed, gripping their makeshift arms as Rel approached the door. The lock had been forced. He kicked it open.

  The store was turned upside down. Three men inside had ransacked the place, and were gorging themselves on the food and liquor within. It was a mess. They hadn't yet turned their heads to see who entered.

  Goon: ”They're back!”

  Gorilla: ”Took your sweet time! Were the wenches more rowdy than usual?”

  Ruffian: ”Maybe it was their men who put up a fight...!”

  Rel: ”Animals...”

  As they hear Rel's unfamiliar voice, they turn to look at him.

  Gorilla: ”Oy... That's not them! ”

  Ruffian: ”You gentlemen walked into the worst place you could have tonight...”

  Rel raises his weapon in their direction.

  Rel: ”Tell me about it, motherfuckers!”

  One of the men runs towards Rel, knife in hand.

  Ruffian: ”Sorry, kid. Wrong place at the wrong time!”

  He attempts to stab Rel, but Rel sidestepped with precision, deflecting the blade with one arm. His other arm swung the bat upward, driving the end cap into the man’s chin with a sickening crack.

  Ruffian: ”SHON OHF A...!”

  The attacker stumbles backward, spitting his broken teeth to the side. Before he could gather his composure, Rel's bat was already coming for him in a wide, horizontal swing directed straight at the side of his head. The last thing the man sees is Rel's wrathful expression, before the bat's nails make contact with his skull, piercing his brain and popping one of his eyes. He drops to the floor motionless, as a growing pool of blood forms beneath his head.

  Punjo: ”Oy, leave some for us!”

  Punjo and Jargen rush forward, to protect Rel from the other two men. They didn't seem too keen on attacking, however, after seeing what Rel could do...

  Gorilla: ”Wait! We surrender!”

  He drops his weapon, kicking it away from his reach. The other one does the same.

  Goon: ”Just let us go... We promise we're done, we won't ever mess with you again... Please have mercy!”

  Virno lowers his weapon. Rel seems undecided. Jargen looks at the two boys.

  Jargen: ”You two really do have a lot to learn still...”

  Punjo smiles.

  Virno: ”They surrendered... We shouldn't kill them. Rel, c'mon.”

  Rel gripped his weapon tight, looking at the floor with fury still flashing in his eyes.

  Rel: ”But after what they've done to our store... I can't just...”

  Punjo: “Don’t be naive, boys... Ya think they’d show ya any mercy?”

  Jargen strode forward, grabbing one of the men by the throat.

  Jargen: ”Right. Did you forget what they said when we came in?”

  Punjo walks towards the other one, as the man steps backward, terrified.

  Punjo: ”They were expecting their buddies ta come through that door, not us. So this is all just a sorry attempt ta buy 'em some time... Ain't that right, little man?”

  The man's back hits the wall behind him.

  Goon: ”Please, they're still a ways off! Just let us --”

  Punjo: ”DON'TCHA LIE TO ME, LADDIE!”

  Goon: ”PLEASE...!”

  The man closes his eyes, in fear. Punjo raises his mallet high overhead, then brings it down on the man's skull. It bursts like a watermelon, as the swing sends the rest of his body crashing down into the ground.

  Jargen: ”We'll have company any time. We should head outside and wait for them, if they get us when we're inside we --”

  A warm liquid hits Jargen on the side of his face, interrupting him. The man had spit on him.

  Gorilla:” YOU'RE FUCKED! YOU'RE ALL GONNA DIE, YOU HEAR ME YOU CUNTS?! YOU FUCKED WITH THE WRONG PEOPLE YOU --”

  Jargen grips the man's neck tighter, feeling the cartilage break under his grip.

  Jargen: ”Shut it.”

  As the man chokes, Jargen pulls back his other arm, which is holding his mallet. He then swings it forth, directed at the man's nose. As the wooden weapon crashes against it, the sound of cracking bone is heard, and blood comes spewing forth from his nostrils. He releases the man, who falls onto his back, still conscious.

  Gorilla: ”MERCY... Please, have mercy...!”

  Jargen: ”I said shut it.”

  Jargen grabs the man by the leg, and starts dragging him out of the store as he wails in pain. A trail of blood follows behind.

  Virno: ”What are you guys doing...?”

  Rel: ”Aren't we going a bit too far?!”

  Punjo grabs the other man's headless corpse, carrying it over his shoulder. He follows Jargen out.

  Punjo: ”We're not going far enough, boys... If we don't stop them today, it'll only get worse.”

  Punjo spoke as if it wasn't the first time he had dealt with something like this.

  Jargen: ”You two, grab that other guy. Let's get them all outside.”

  Begrudgingly, Rel and Virno do as Jargen instructed, putting their faith in their two more experienced comrades. They make it out the front door.

  Virno: “W-what now?”

  Jargen: ”Now it's time to do some redecorating.”

  Punjo: ”Just like any other day at the orphanage, eh Jargen?”

  Jargen: ”Right... Same shit different scenery. Smash away, Punjo.”

  Punjo raises his mallet high overhead, and sends it crashing down onto the corpse he was carrying. The sound of bones cracking is heard as his mallet gets bloodier.

  Rel: ”Guys... What the fuck is going on...?!”

  Jargen looks at Rel, stopping his mallet high overhead.

  Jargen: ”What's going on is that Cabdan decided that he doesn't give a shit about the slums anymore, so he's using them as a playground for his men. It's our mission to send a very clear message to these fellows: fuck with us, and we'll fuck with you ten times as hard.”

  He sends it crashing down onto the man's head as he squirmed and cried. After the mallet hits, he finally stops moving.

  Jargen: ”This is a test.”

  He looks at both Rel and Virno.

  Jargen: ”If we succeed, Cabdan's men will learn to fear us and back off, letting us run the slums ourselves. If we fail...”

  Punjo stops pounding the man with his weapon, wiping the sweat from his brow with his bloody hands.

  Punjo: ”... They will kill, rape and take everything we own until they've had enough.”

  Jargen nods.

  Jargen: ”These aren't people we're killing. They're predators. Monsters. Parasites. So you two need to stop seeing this as murder, and start seeing it for what it truly is:”

  Punjo: ”Pest control.”

  Says Punjo, as he brings his mallet down onto the lifeless body once more.

  Jargen: ”So mangle these bodies as much as you can. Paint the streets red with their blood, scatter their limbs across the slums... Show these bastards what they get for wrecking our home.”

  Rel and Virno looked at each other, nervously.

  Virno: ”I don't know if I can...”

  Rel: ”Y-yeah... This seems way too much...”

  Jargen and Punjo keep crushing the bodies.

  Jargen: ”That's the whole point.”

  Punjo: "Don'tcha worry. The two of us will do the dirty work if ya can't handle it. Ya can keep watch instead --”

  The sound of distant shouting cut through the air.

  Goon in the distance: ”HEY! WHAT THE FUCK...?!”

  Punjo grinned, gripping his mallet.

  Punjo: ”Ah. Guess it's a tad too late fer that...”