Night. A time when everything slows down—silence ran on every corner and the chilly air blowing. But every night, strange things came and left. Some leaving a bigger print or none at all.
Yet one particular part of silhouette was ignored as if it was never there. Or maybe no one could it even though it was in plain view, people walked passed him as some left buildings carrying bags or went into other buildings, cars lined the street as the light posts lit up the ground beneath them.
For the most part it was qu-
"Hh'ktshh!"
This time though, some people looked his way while others didn't bother paying attention to him. He was an average person, his brownish white dog ears and tail barely noticeable, his ears barely poking out from the top of his beanie. Fluffy ears that bounced with each step he took towards his destination.
He didn't stand out much when other had Feline ears, other Perro ears, he was nothing special really. Just another face.
"pinche mocoso, que no hay frío...liar!.." Someone muttered as cold air left said person's mouth.
The inside of his pants buzzed, breaking his pace. He pulled out his phone before turning it on, only to be wince by its brightness. The sudden glare forced him to throw his head back, almost letting out an embarrassing sound. He quickly lowered its brightness as he unlocked his phone, and pressing the messages icon then opening the most recent person.
「Did you do it yet? 」
He was about to type when another message came in, this time with a photo of two people.
「Otra foto pa que sepas.」
Walking distracted, he nearly collided with someone. The stranger snapped at him, "Mira dónde pisas, guey!" He only smiled sheepishly and kept moving.
Checking his map, he realized he was close to his destination. A bench sat empty nearby, and he quickly sat on it, pulling the image back up.
It was a man who was wearing a cap atop his dark blue hair, and a woman with purple hair.
"Ah?"
He squinted his eyes at the photo as he rubbed a smudge on the phone, where the top of their heads would be, it would not come off no matter how much he rubbed the screen.
"Did...they take a photo with shaky hands?"
He put his phone away but not before receiving another message them him the pair was almost there. He hand felt like it pulses, he looked around softly before spotting his 'targets' so to speak.
The taller of the two had a hoodie on under a jacket, his face obscured as the woman linked arms with him. The woman was talking, evident by the puffs of smoke leaving her mouth.
The woman had a scarf, with a tan cardigan with a jacket and her hair up in a bun. He took a deep breath as his hand tingled, as if countless critters crawled all around it. "I really shouldn't ignore this feeling..."
But it wouldn't be the first time he did. In the end, food still had to be put on the table.
He watched them enter a store as he felt the air blow harder as he took buys backpack off and putting it to his side before unzipping it and pulling a thicker jacket and quickly putting it on. He looked back in the bag before looking inside and spotting a pretty big device.
It was folded up but it still took a large chunk of his space, and big enough that the tip of it poked out.
And yet again, people walked as if they could not see it—
Deeper in the bag, his fingers brushed against something small. He pulled it free, a bracelet. A red line of light ran around the middle, a white circle with a missing piece set in the center.
He slid it on as a dim screen popped above it, a single bar nearly full. Behind him, a voice murmured before fading into quiet.
"Ma...es...n....ca...t....r."
The bar filled as he patience slowly drained. The red line turned white. He let out a slow breath as the screen vanished.
Damn thing...updating now of all times!.. I should really get a better one. He looked back in the bag once more as he took out a small bottle of pills before popping the cap off and taking a pill. He took the pill before leaning forward, then covering his mouth.
The bracelet on his wrist chimed softly as a small amount of water filled his mouth before talking a gulp. He closed his eyes for a moment, even the moment felt like it last a long time.
Yet that long time only lasted twenty minutes, the longest of his life as he saw the pair leave the building with a few bags. Oh finally...
He looked up at the two closest light posts near him as the bracelet light blinked on and off as the lights dimmed. Alongside the familiar chime, his figure obscured as his vision was filled with soft shifting particles peeling off him.
The street lights flickered back to life as a different person was where he was, with brown hair, round Mustela ears, and a different backpack slung over his shoulder.
This person stood up before waiting for the pair to put some distance between them as he pulled out his phone and seemingly wasting time.
This Mustela boy—Gutierre—opened his messages and typed, as if he was just wasting time.
Don't get to close...don't stare at them...
He walked across the sidewalk, and across—the pair kept their pace. The chilly night didn't help in any way, sometimes it made it difficult to do his job.
Hhuuuhhh
Gutierre squinted his eyes before looking down towards the ground, his eyes moved towards his phone as he shut it off, then slid into his jacket. His ears twitched as the wind blew of them repeatedly—even though he had only been following them for a couple minute, it still felt like forever.
He glanced back up and saw them enter another store, a clothing store to be precise. It was slightly large going by the windows, illuminating the sideway and the cars that drove past it. He slowed down before pulling up his phone then opening his map, he place two fingers on the screen to zoom in and saw the street was like a web.
Main street here...some smaller ones branch out but its mostly just turns and corners. If I go up some more, They'll walk to me and we can go from there.
He talked to himself for a moment longer, and then putting his phone away.
Gutierre continued walking for a few minutes, hearing the sound of the city still at work as he shoes left a thud for each step before stopping at a crosswalk.
He yawned as he pressed the crosswalk button near him, waiting for the indicator to turn on.
They look like normal people to me. Why'd I have to come and find some stuff off them for? I mean, its not like I c—
Ding~!
He looked up at the small person above become white as a countdown began. He soon crossed the street alongside other people as he then took a left towards a nearby bench a few feet away from the street.
The tree's in front of him stopping the glare from a nearby light post from hitting his eyes, but not enough to stop him from looking back at the street he walked from, he stretched his legs as he saw people walking all around, some moved aimlessly and some with purpose.
"This district is as busy as ever."
Gutierre looked at a large screen to his right as it switched to a news anchor, a screen that was plastered on a building. It was a serious faced Coelhinho, his tall ears pointed upwards with a lean towards the left.
This person spoke with a voice as if he was never wrong.
「Buenas noches, y Bienvenidos. Hoy al las once de la mañana, había dos personas que estaban conectado con el homicidio de un oficial—」
Gutierre while he could not hear, and from the loud noise of passing cars and people talking. He could reads the subtitles.
Gutierre snorted. Bah. Pura mierda. Always something.
Gutierre grabbed his phone from his jacket and opened his contacts, he quickly scrolled down to an icon with the picture of another Perro before calling the number.
Riiiing…
Riiiing…riiiiing…
"Holy shit, answer the phone." Gutierre sighed deeply as he waited for the person to answer, it turned from a few seconds, to a couple more until it became a minute of frustration.
He ended the call as he scratched his head in resignation. I hope i'm getting paid overtime for this, this one is the worst one yet. It has zero action at all.
He looked back to the entrance of the store the pair went into and saw nothing at all, he was about to stand up but the buzzing from the phone in his hand pulled his eyes.
「Whatchu want.」
His brow furrowed as he quickly responded, his fingers leaving an audible tap.
「Took you long enough, are you sure their still inside?」
The text was sent as he glanced up again before the person answered him back. It was a short video with a text underneath.
「Their still inside, see?」
He clicked the video. From up the corner in the store, it showed them walking up to the counter with a few things.
No wonder, they were buying clothes...but for a kid?
The clothes they got were too small for them, it was that obvious, even if the video wasn't the best quality.
Ding~!
A notification slid across the top of his phone, he pressed it and got ready once more.
「Their leaving, apúrale.」
Gutierre sent a thumbs up before grabbing his bag, his hand searching inside before pulling a wrapped sandwich. He put his phone next to him as he started to unwrap it and taking a large bite out of it.
He scanned with his peripherals. A few seconds later, he spotted them near the storefront, standing still. The woman lifted her wrist to her face and spoke.
He swallowed his bite of the sandwich before taking another mouthful as the pair started walking towards his direction while the woman continued talking to someone.
He grabbed his phone as he checked the time while waiting for the pedestrian light to turn white, Gutierre once again took another bite as the light turned white after a few long moments of waiting.
The woman with her hand around the man's arm continued talking through her bracelet as they crossed the street, Gutierre took one last bite to finish his meal as the pair took a left.
He crunched up the sandwich wrapping paper before putting it in his bag, he stood up after a few seconds of waiting. Gutierre grabbed his bag and slinging it over his shoulder, then grabbing his phone.
Tup~
Vamos a ver...this street has a curve and a smaller alley that should meet up a few blocks up ahead. bueno!
He put his phone away before looking up ahead and was barely able to see the pair, he quickly trailed them up until he found the alley's entrance.
A sigh left his mouth as his shoulders dropped a little, he soon picked up his pace as he looked at the well maintained alley. Movie's always make this look worse than it is, trailing people isn't as suspenseful. The only good thing is the money and the perks it gives. Hubiera estudiado otra cosa.
His pacing slowed down before he shook his head quickly, his bracelet light flicked as it chimed—
Particles jumped off him as his appearance began to change rapidly again. In less than a few seconds, his stature changed to a noticeable degree.
Though that in itself did little to help him, or rather 'her'. Her steps were rather hard and wide, a shiver ran down her spine as someone opened a door which nearly caused her to panic.
She then changed her pace as her steps took a softer tone as her stride alongside a different expression on her face.
I wanna kill myself! Fuckin' embarrassing, I said softer features...notagirl! qué pena me da!
She exhale through her nose as she could feel a gaze on her back, she reached for her pocket and pulled out her phone.
She was only a few meters away from the street as she opened her camera, making sure the camera light would turn on before making a face.
Tchik!
The flash must've told em off right? While the flash wasn't bright, it should've done the trick.
The girl turned around and looked over her shoulder and saw that the person was no longer looking at her.
She sighed, her head dipping forward before bouncing back up with a little forced pep in her step. At the corner, the streetlights were bright, and she raised a hand to cover her eyes.
She looked to her right and then her left, the pair were still there—even if she could barely see their heads.
Her soft steps blended with the rhythm of others, steady and quiet. Thirty minutes of pure nothin. The most bored I've ever been.
Tzzzt~
The girl looked at her hand, the feeling of her hand tingling made her cautious as it made its way from her hand, through her arm and then across her spine.
The girl pulled her phone as she opened her messages and sent a text to the first person on her list.
「Manda alguien. Don't like the feeling I'm getting.」
Looking back up—nothing. She could no longer them up ahead. She spun her head left, right, again, clutching her phone.
Fuck! I cant see em!
She took a deep breath before she did anything reckless, the roundish ears on her head twitched as she walked a bit faster.
She opened her phone before she started to type, while keeping her eyes peeled open.
「lost them...」
She looked back up across the street as a thought passed through her head. She walked towards the curb before looking both way.
The girl quickly bolted crossed the street before the lights turned green, and a few seconds later—she got a response.
「...」
"Tch."
She shut the phone off, her steps landing heavier now. She glanced at the opposite sidewalk, her eyes scanning for them. A sudden sneeze escaped her, drawing stares from nearby pedestrians. She waved her hand dismissively, forcing her nerves back down.
she pulled her phone back up, opening her map with swift fingers.
Hijo de—why'd they have to walk right fucking next to an infected street!? I didn't bring any with me!
She almost tugged at her own hair, fighting the urge to scream in frustration. Her once soft steps turned heavy. Not loud enough to draw attention, but enough that she felt every thump rattle through her chest.
Her bracelet flickered—her eyes shutting tight for a second, and when they opened again, the world lurched—her vision dragged upward, like being yanked by invisible hands.
—then she was above, looking at the street and crowds below. A sea of bodies flowing through the street. And there she was, a single figure fighting against the current, running through the crowds.
I hate the dizziness I get from this.
Her head churned as she tried to look for the pair from up above, all of the pedestrians head blended into a single color.
I cant look at them directly either, I do that and they'll know I'm looking at them.
She slowed down to a jog as she took a more methodical observation, her eyes roamed throughout the street—she continued looking for minutes that felt like for eternity.
One minute turned into two, and soon those became five minutes of nothing. She stopped jogging and took several deep breaths, she rubbed her arm befo—
Tzzzt~
Everything blackened for a second before her vision returned to normal, she closed her eyes as her head spun. The girl stopped moving as she held herself up, making sure to grab onto anything to prevent herself from falling.
I should really fix this thing...its making more problems than it did before.
The girl opened her phone and tapped on the message that appeared at the top of her screen. It was an address alongside a picture of a store—Tzzzt~
Another message popped from above, her lips curling in disgust.
They were infected this whole time?! And they went through the street—what the fuck!
Her shoe scraped the sidewalk as she struggled to find the will to continue her pursue, knowing she would have to follow the pair towards the street as she read another text.
She clenched her teeth, scanning for a patch the streetlights didn't reach. Before moving, she fired off a quick text to a certain someone.
There.
She checked the map again as she slipped towards a dimly lit patch of the street, the girl looked at the two nearest light post—
She stared at them until they buzzed and flickered, dimming just long enough for her figure to blur—peeling into someone else. That alone however, did not stop people from staring at the obvious change.
This man however had a very rough appearance with an average build, his Mustela poking through his beanie with two hole at the top. A sightly worn down jacket that made him look bigger than he was.
A gaiter placed around his neck and a straight jean with a few cuts and stains. The grime around my face should blend me in, hopefully.
It was closer to what he'd worn at the very start, stripped-down and forgettable. Or so he hoped.
He followed where his map took him, walking for ten minutes as he contemplated his decision.
Although it only took a few minutes, the number of people had lessened to some degree. What was once crowds of people became sprinkles of pedestrians. The street had also changed, while still clean—trash had gathered in small piles. murmurs bounced around as a few figures sat slumped against the walls.
Twenty minutes. Too damn long. Who'd want to be alone here? I don't even want to get close to them.
As he looked back up, blue and red lights flashed ahead—illuminating and bleeding across the street.
Oh shit...wait...I didn't hear any sirens...
He looked around, before he spotted a figure coughing several times—He sounds alright...so...I'll use em as cover.
He nodded to himself softly as he walked towards the figure slumped on his side, the person let out a "huh?" before the man sat a few feet a away.
"Ever heard of personal space..." The slumped figure spoke in a low tone, either to weak or strong.
Gutierre looked with a side glance as the figure spoke again. "Even if we're both infected—" A harsh cough ripped through his chest, "—I don't want you so close to me...making me more sick by the...second!"
The person spoke with pain in the latter half of his sentence, as he coughed several times over.
"Eres un estupido if you believe that tonteria, that isn't how its works."
Even as he responded, Gutierre pulled his gaiter up to his mouth and nose as he relaxed his posture before taking a seat on the sidewalk. Though his ears flicked at the faint wail of sirens creeping closer.
As the sirens got closer, Gutierre opened his messages one last time as he sent a quick text.
「CECOF's here...few cars too, here a picture.」
He quickly took a few pictures before sending them as well, he waited a few seconds when a reply buzzed
「Thks, help will be running late...traffic hit hard for some reason.」
He felt like punching the person on the other side of the screen as he closed his eyes in frustration. The backpack dug into his back, uncomfortable but he didn't dare take it off as three blaring cars came close with their sirens running loud and bright.
He kept his eyes closed as he slowed down his breathing while slumping his head forward, brakes scream hard as the smell of burnt rubber permeated the air.
Gutierre heard doors open as a rough voice spoke, the sound of boots slamming into the pavement could be heard.
"Check em, find what you can."
He fought the urge to move as the steps of a few people coming closer to them reverberated. He felt someone poke at his shoulder before someone's hand smacked the side of his head—Gutierre could feel his anger poking through.
"This ones out."
He could feel their presence around the two of them as another voice spoke back, a softer voice.
"This one is awake, grab the dirty fuck."
He could hear the sounds of struggle as a loud thud followed suit.
"Let...go! Fucking pendijos—HEY!..Dont touch my shit—"
A loud thud rang across the street as the strangers knee was hit, his scream ripping through the street—curses were sent flying as one of them searched his things.
"Speak old man, I'd rather not put my hands on you infected folks." He voice full of distain.
"Wha—"
BZZZZHHHhhht!
Gutierre almost twitched at the sound coming from where he first spotted the blaring lights.
"Well fuck. Oi, grab your shit! Ándale! You two stay and make sure no one comes close." The one spitting out orders was a Feline, short light beige ears with a stripped tail. He would be threatening if not for his slightly shorter than average height.
Gutierre could hear the sounds of stuff hitting the ground and short conversations that were of no importance.
"Ey!—" The head of the group turned with a questioning look. "— Que hacemos con este viejo?"
The short feline clicked his mouth before speaking. "Don't care, es solo uno nomas. Its just an infected like every other poor fuck here."
Before anything else happened, the head whistled to catch their attention. "Leave one alive yeah?"
"Orale"
Gutierre stayed put while the old man was quiet. The group of seven quickly left as the last two stayed behind.
The two snickered as they rifled through the old man's belongings, pocketing anything worth a damn.
"Ohh...what's this?" One of them said in a teasing tone before he snickered. The old man looked up and saw a worn down photograph, before the old man could say anytho—
BANG!
The last thing he saw were the faces in that photo. His head dropped down, hitting the ground straight down. No dramatic fling. This wasn't a movie.
OHSHIT! Its a gun gun!
The perro stared at the the feline that shot the old man with a skeptical look before asking after a second of contemplation. "You're not doing what I thi—"
Their conversation was cut short as the sounds of a fight rattled the street, they both looked at each other as both of their radios buzzed to life.
〈Oi! One of you come! Two are down...〉
The feline looked down at his gun before pointing it to the perro, the feline faked a surprised expression as if it was no matter. The perro however, had a deadpan expression before quickly going to a car and grabbing his gear and sprinting towards the group but not before shooting the feline a look.
"Tch, now I'm here alone." The feline put his handgun away, sighing as he turned his back toward the others. "I'll just cuff him, in case he wakes up. Yeah."
The feline walked up to Gutierre and pulled him to his side to put the cuffs off. Gutierre's time was running out as he waited for the operator before him to grab his cuffs.
As soon as the cuffs rattled, Gutierre snapped his eyes open, he planted his palms on the concrete, kicking off the ground—driving his boot at the operator's knee.
"Fu—"
The feline quickly jumped back, pointing his palm open towards the mustela in his path. Gutierre didn't hesitate as his used his hands to push himself forward, He hauled the old man's corpse up in both hands, shoving it forward like a shield.
ZHHHhhht!
The blast tore through. A searing flash lit the alley, frying his vision white. The body jolted violently, convulsing as he let body go, the stink of burnt flesh hitting his nose. He shoved harder, forcing the corpse into the feline's space as sparks hissed off the charred cloth.
His ears rang as he shook himself steady, as his hands buzzed. He cursed himself before yanking his knife from under his jacket and sprinting forward.
The feline's hand came up, clutching a cluster of rectangles put together, a small device floating near it.
The stave's indicator flickered as Gutierre felt his chest becoming heavy, his knees bending under invisible weight, his bracelet flickering widely as he put his right arm next to his head. Finding himself being pushed as his eyes locked on with the felines own.
Gutierre eyes snapped to where he once stood—a rhombus, circle and a mess of patterns was on the ground before it quickly disappeared.
Bangs could be heard alongside the sound of fighting as neither of them looked away. Gutierre ripped his knife free from under his jacket and hurled it towards the feline, jumping towards the left,his body disappeared into particles.
The blade spun, whistling through the air. The feline twisting as he created some distance, the feline grabbed his short stave from his carrier with a hard yank.
His blackened feline ears twitched, tan-dotted as he looked towards one of the cars, he pointed his stave towards it as a series of patterns appeared next to the vehicle—
Then the vehicle lurched, screeching as it skidded sideways like it weighed nothing.
"Tu puta madre!"
Gutierre's voice cracked from the haze. The feline's ears twitched, swiveling toward the sound.
A barely noticeable puff of dust flew up from the ground—
"Enough!"
KRRZZAAAKK!
Bolts of light slammed into the ground, cracking the pavement as heat licked the air. The feline clenched his stave tighter before he slammed his heel into the ground. A pulse rippled outward from him.
He felt several shift a moment later.
He snapped his stave to his right. The strike converged on a storefront, the ground splitting into an uneven trail. He didn't hesitate to yank his handgun free before shooting in a small area.
The feline stopped his assault for a second as he tapped his heel again, something was slowly movi—
"Timeout!"
The strained voice cracked out. He ignored it. A figure flickered in and out, stuttering like bad static. Then solid—Gutierre, hunched on one knee while holding his stomach, coughing as he dragged himself backward.
Pressure bore down on him, crushing his back, his limbs barely holding his up.
The feline stalked forward, displeasure carved across his face, his short stave pointed lower and lower. Gutierre couldn't move any direction other than down.
"What… are… you waitin' for… little cat…" He forced a chuckle, coughing wet "…heh… agh…"
〈...〉
Static could be heard before a voice full of anger and frustration spoke.
〈They got away...we're done here.〉
The feline let out a snort, Gutierre grinned as the last thing he saw was the stave moving quickly towards his head.
The person's figure flickered, the disguise unwrapping in stuttering bursts, particles burning away until floppy ears and a tail lay bare.
"Fucking dog."
The feline crouched, searching the pockets of the perro before finding a phone, the screen was partly cracked as he turned it on. He pressed something as a quick view of a message showed.
"Hide huh?" His lips making a simple line.
Footsteps scraped together, he straightened himself as he stood up while turning to face the people coming closer.
His ears twitched as his tail moved about softly, his eyes only catching four figures.
"Where's the....rest" His voice questioning as he saw his battered comrades. The shortest of the group answered back, his team leader. One was carrying another comrade on his shoulder. the person waved weakly.
The shortest stepped forward—their leader. "One dead. One critical. You can see the rest." His chin tipped toward Gutierre's body. "So… who is this?"
The feline glanced down, gave the Perro a light kick. "A nobody. Had buddies on the way. Told him to hold out."
"Let's go. we'll block of the road up ahead...we cant be too obvious." The leader's gaze cut across them before he limped off, favoring his right leg, heading for the cars.
"Leave the dog be. He wont be talking anyway."
Boots scraped, doors slamming shut. Engines rumbled low as they began to pull away before anyone could spot them.
A nobody… huh…