WORLDThe year 2500, technology has completely overtaken the globe. Trees and plants are scarce, biological life in general functions properly thanks to technology in large concentrations of people called Zones. Everything in these Zones are automated, from vehicles, to sidewalks and even hospitals, all powered by large batteries called lanterns . Despite incredible advancements in science however; all isn’t perfect, utopia comes at a cost.Lanterns are powered by a supernatural power source scientists have harnessed titled
‘ Chi ‘. This energy source does have a significant drawback that equals if not outweighs the positive use; Chi is generated through data stored in a digital cloud based on positive emotions sent through a Zones network, if people are generally happy , that Zones Chi is in a ‘ Yin’ state and it’s lantern illuminates, producing limitless energy. On the other hand if a significant event of negative emotion transpires and becomes the majority of data in the cloud, that Zones Chi will switch to ‘ Yang ‘ state. In Yang state, a lantern dims, becomes unstable and uncontrollably releases energy into it’s designated Zone; this event is known as a ‘ Breach ‘ .During a Breach , the energy that leaks from the lantern manifests into large cybernetic creatures called Misfortunes. When a Misfortune runs rampant, that Zone is put in a lockdown, forcing everyone to stay indoors, if a human being comes in contact with a Misfortune they will be entirely consumed by their negative emotions leading to a self inflicted death but if that person’s emotions are powerful enough they may even become a Misfortune theirself, unable to reclaim humanity.In order to combat Misfortunes the government formed a special division of soldiers called Fortuna, equipped with an assigned experimental micro lantern that allows contact with Misfortunes for durations of time based on it’s user’s emotional stability, the more optimistic, the longer you can remain in combat . To directly confront the beasts, weaponry called Talismans that conduct Yin energy have been created. When immense Yin Energy comes into contact with immense Yang energy the two nullify one another, this allows the Misfortunes to be purged and after all Misfortune’s have been cleared out of a Zone, it’s lantern will return to a neutral state and deem the mission a success. Fortuna agents are also left in charge of cleaning damages caused by Misfortunes, a clean environment leads to happier citizens.

Alarms blaring, the corridors lit an eerie red hue, the sound of multiple sets of doors parting in unison echoed throughout .Fiery red hair tousled only momentarily upside down,
a matching in color slender tail gripped firmly around the railing of the metal bed post as the aforementioned owner of the tail let out a loud yawn; with urgency somehow as he flipped directly into yellow sneakers below .
An emblem crested coat's sleeves slipped across his arms as he headed for the electronic parting door, reaching to the nightstand first to grab the most unnecessary piece of his ensemble a practically useless pair of goggles that he insists are a good luck charm, albeit tacky .Just ahead of the red haired boy, a blue antenna sprung from a slightly shorter girl exiting her room, a similar coat to his own but in a much more pastel variety giving her difficulty as she attempted to get the sleeves above her slender shoulders while multitasking an urgent jog . " Having a hard time ? " the red head mused, hands gripping onto sturdy wires that ran across the ceiling of the hallway he used as monkey bars while his tail swayed down to dab a set of potato chip crumbs from the corner of her lips, a playful wink of his own met with a scowling pout from her and an almost growling response " Now isn't the time Xing ! " .With nothing but a smirk and a roll of his eyes, he'd landed next to her just in the nick of time for an even larger set of glass doors opened to a pristinely white room that you'd see in a sci-fi movie, yes it was exactly that. Both members of the pair were quick to grab a ' weapon ' from a cylindrical shelf, designated by the crest that matched the emblems on their jackets. A large red and yellow staff spun across the simian boy's shoulders in an overly flashy manner before condensing to a small pill shape at his lower back. At the same time, the blue haired girl had picked up a bulky and impractical device that snappily was thrown out to show an electric blue thread before snapping to her hip; This weapon could only be described as a Yo-Yo, but with the technology behind these things in the right hands was not a toy by any means . Continuing to look around the room , Xing began to account the other weapons still resting in place while the duo ran towards the dispatch chamber, proudly flexing his chest with a confident grin ." Well Ahi, looks like another table for two. I'll try and save you some spotlight, on the bright side you don't have to share the second 50% with the others, now we've both got an even 50/50. "A bit of a devious grin accompanied by a smug glare from Ahi was thrown his way ; the weapon she had was casted in front of him, entangling his body all the way to his legs in the blue thread, and quickly retracted to send him spiraling like a spinning top just as the dispatch chamber began to glow, leaving him staggering in a daze as they were transported to the mission location . The yo-yo wielding girl happily skipped forward from dispersing blue particles, sticking her tongue out at the disoriented Xing trying to keep his balance." Hmmm, how about I take 75% and ill give you the remaining 25% . ~ By the way, the news cameras are already here and you just made quite the entrance. " She pointed at a drone already filming the scene, that was pointed directly their way with a telescoping lens. The red haired boys' eyebrow twitched, standing upright with an adjustment of his goggles trying to play it off as if nothing happened . Showboating for the cameras was something that really only mattered to Xing, the others only began to feed into it upon noticing the increase in effort he'd give in the spotlight . And now of course, the reason they were here — a large, predominantly white monster with blue accented ridges spewing an aura of binary code ricohed around the corner, this one resembling a shark as it's tail whipped through a large building, crumbling it to a pile of debris. Stuff like this was routine to them, Xing remaining street level with his fingers to his ear activating their communication device. A small holographic hud, accented with a chibi of the speaker appearing to the receiving parties ( An Ahi enforced design) being cast to Ahi who'd used the yo-yo as a makeshift grappling hook to get to high grounds on the rooftop ." Streets clear of civilians ? " the voice inquired while she surveyed the area." All clear ! " it only took a few moments for her feed to reach back to him with a full x-ray survey of the immediate area, another perk of their communications system that had been developed by a genius within Fortuna ." That's all I needed to hear. Get the net ready, we're going fishing. " Xing's fingers gestured at his ear, closing the communications. They wouldn't need them, after all they'd worked together enough to be almost perfectly coordinated without a gesture or sound. Reaching at his waist the pole fully extended to regular size, roughly matching his height, add a few inches or so. The moment it had been deployed, he tucked it firmly beneath his arm. Facing the approaching beast head on as the same binary aura emulated a tidal wave , shattering windows in it's wake. Xing hadn't budged however, he had no need to worry . With perfect timing the blue cord appeared, leveled above the apex of the wave, of course Ahi had made it in time just as he knew she would." Seriously, going fishing was the best you could come up with ? " Ahi mouthed with a shake of her head that could only be noticed out of the corner of Xing's violet gaze mid pole vaulting with his weapon, gripping the cord and swinging over the beast with his tail. " Now, let er' rip Ahi ! " He shouted loudly, and on cue she'd tug on the long plasma like thread causing it to gyrate in a circular motion, sending Xing spiraling around it at a comedically high speed . With what he'd define as terminal velocity reached, his tail uncoiled sending him spiraling like a buzz saw with the staff held above him like a throwing axe " ROLL-XING STRIKE ! ". With a loud KERPLAM , the staff glowing bright made contact with the snout of the creature; causing a blood curdling cry as it thrashed about.Blinking mid air, the boy looked at the ground beneath him and the creature to see an intricate web of Ahi's spinning yo-yo cord while being doused with the downpour of ones and zeroes shaped water ." AHI, WAIT, REEL ME IN FIRS—
CASTING NOW ! " Ahi was quick to interrupt Xing's objection, saluting him as she tugged the yo-yo back to it's home position at her side, tightening all the cords it had left behind into a pendulum of netting , securely binding the Misfortune . . . and Xing, face crammed against the side with a snarl aimed at her just as the drone circled his face, now burning red with a mix of frustration and embarrassment." Whoopsie.~ " was all that left her mouth as the net compressed, tighter and tighter until the creature exploded into chunks of data , the net popping like a balloon and leaving one Xing, face planted against the ground below, butt raised to the air and drenched in water, meekly raising his thumb to sign for a job well done towards the proudly boasting tealette, hands planted on her hips . Thankfully, this one was a much weaker incident, and minimal damage to boot. A couple of buildings is a small price to pay for the guaranteed safety of the many residents of their district. With the advancements of anti-misfortune technology, reconstruction would be a few days tops.A large sphere distinctly prominent in the center had made a loud hum, the translucent shell shifting the color inside from predominantly black with a white dot at its core, to the inverse . Functioning both as powerplant and beacon to the city, seeing it glow brought a small grin to Xing's face as he stood back up on the paved roads beneath him. ' Good Fortune', the featured motto the Fortuna agency brands across all digital billboards begin to appear, and as if nothing had happened at all vehicles and people immediately head back to the streets, resuming their daily lives. With a small sigh, hands in pockets, the red headed boy scales the side of the building with ease, using his tail to leverage and swing upwards to greet his partner with a quick fist bump; his jacket still damp and dripping while she chuckled." You know, you don't do that to the others. " His eyes glared as the fists connected, his lips still curled from her small prank.
Still laughing, she elbowed his side with what he'd call an adequately punch-able face " There's no proof of that, we'll see when they're all back from dispatch."
When would that be though, they could only ponder. With a final sigh, Xing removed the damp coat, tossing it at Ahi, the bundle engulfing her chest, nearly staggering her." Until then, you owe me dinner for what you put me through back there . Non-negotiable for making me look bad on the camera . " Ahi's cheeks inflated with a grumpy pout kicking him in the rear, just as a ray of light would return them home from the end of another successful mission.

The night before Halloween, the alarms sounded. Nothing out of the ordinary, a typical Misfortune attack.
Xing groaned a bit grabbing his equipment for the dispatch, weapon secured on his back. The month was busy, the Fall season while arguably the most tranquil of seasons brought a certain somberness to the world; the Misfortunes fluctuated this time of year and Fortuna was a bit undermanned to say the least." What are you groaning about.~ " The sound close to Xing's ear made him jump , quickly gripping at his chest as he saw the familiar bluenette Ahi, giggling & coming up beside him. " I hate when you do that." Xing mumbled with his lips curling into a smile , his fist raised to his side for her to connect with her own in a quick bump before they headed out . " It's nothing, just tired of being busy. Let's go ahead and knock this one out so we can finish getting things set up for the kids tomorrow. " she stared at him as their hands lowered with another small giggle accompanied by a sly smirk " Look at Xing being mr. responsible, who're you trying to impress? " The red head's hand instinctively fidgeted with the eyewear atop his head, snubbing his nose a bit at the comment. " Don't worry about it, now let's wrap this up quickly. "It wasn't long until they arrived on the scene, the streets already evacuated, of note were the sidewalks lined with carved pumpkins.
Street posts coiled top to bottom with orange and green lights, and then the large looming full moon with a faint glow of red, Ahi fixated on it with an aloof stare.
" Ahi . Ahi ! " Xing gripped her shoulder, shaking her before she blinked a few times with a simple " Hm ?"
" I know it looks pretty, but right now, mission! You go check that way ! " He called over his shoulder, pointing the opposite direction. "Sorry about that ." She hummed, taking one more look at the moon, she turned and sprinted the opposite way.With a quick surveillance of the area the duo regrouped, nodding their heads in unison both shouting out "All Clear!"
Just as they'd made their confirmation, both sets of eyes widened as the ground quaked slightly and a loud thumping occurred, garnering their attention towards the direction of the sound with a looming figure impossible to miss.
The misfortune bore the resemblance of a Dullahan, a giant humanoid torso with the lower body resembling an equestrian, and lastly a large Jack O' lantern for a head with a cape fluttering at it's neck.Xing's eyebrow twitched , seemingly unamused. " How festive. "
Ahi only smiled at it , readying her weapon. " Look at the bright side, it could have had a scythe. "Without even a second after her lips closed , the centaur like creature had reared on it's hind legs, arms extended outward as a giant scythe manifested in a cloud of smoke and immediately full speed ahead charged them.
" WHY DID YOU HAVE TO MENTION THE SHARP BLADED WEAPON !? " Xing cried out , deploying the large staff and taking a defensive stance. " I DIDN'T KNOW THAT WOULD HAPPEN ! BUT ANYWAYS GOOD LUCK ! " Ahi shouted, her tongue stuck out at him mockingly as she'd already gained distance and took her self to a safer elevation. " Hey, wait a minute, come back he— ! " Xing couldn't finish his sentence, pivoting his neck away from his partner and focused back on the charging beast that took a broad swing of the crescent shaped blade. Purple hues tracked the approaching swing and with a quick step to the side , he held the staff perfectly vertical planted to the ground in a small crater from slamming it down so hard. The scythe had hooked to the side of the staff, giving Xing the opportunity to pluck it back out of the ground and use the momentum of the headless horseman to swing it around like a horseshoe around a post. The centaurian lost it's footing, becoming airborne as it was tossed back the direction it came from, skidding across the ground on it's side. Xing grinned, pumping his fist in triumph thinking it was that easy "Did you see that Ahi !? You didn't even have to do anything ! ". His head turned towards the roof he'd last seen her, but there was noone there. " Ahi ? " He questioned loud enough she'd be able to hear if nearby, and his body rotating around to inspect the surrounding area. She was nowhere to be seen, perhaps she was caught up making an intricate web with her Yo-yo similar to their last mission.Scratching his hair, Xing turned back ready to finish off the opponent when the sound of loud galloping was already at his back, it had already gotten back up while Xing searched for his teammate. Ducking, just in the nick of time the scythe swung, grazing a few strands of crimson hair, making his chest pound with adrenaline. Using the muscle in his tail, he gripped the front leg of the Misfortune that worked as the pivot for it's swing arc, pulling enough to turn himself around with a wide sweep of the staff beneath the hooves, crumpling the front of the Dullahan's' body to the ground a small chunk of the pumpkin falling off from the impact earlier, core spotted. " So that's the weak point, bright and Orange, should have known. " Wiping his forehead with the sleeve of his jacket, he quickly raised the staff, the center of which opened showing a red like glow, the battery that made their weapons capable of dealing damage to Misfortunes and also made their attacks far stronger when activated. Inhaling in, he shifted all of his weight forward, bringing down the blunt object upon the Misfortune's head. Pumpkin splattering about, including all over Xing's clothes and hair " Ugh, come on now, last time it was just water now this!? Oh well, at least its done." the body of the creature had vanished, the city's glow becoming brighter as the center Lantern turned back to white."Ahi!" Xing shouted one more time, alot more concern in his voice, still no response. Tapping his earpiece, the hud pulled up ' No Signal ' covering the screen when connecting to Ahi, tugging his lips into a strained expression.
Tapping one more time, he stood in place, staring up at the full moon."Yeah, mission complete, send me back."—The return back didn't feel as rewarding as usual, taking off his gear and placing it back into the sterile white vault.
Closing the glass of his personal weapon storage, he looked to where Ahi normally stood putting away her equipment, but strangely... her things were already in their place.
So she must have already returned !? Xing thought excitedly to himself, turning to sprint through the corridors towards Ahi's room where he skidded to a halt as the door opened just as he approached " Ahi you're safe! "It wasn't Ahi that walked out, the click of heels indicated that, she never wore heels. Instead of the short blue hair, a woman with long black hair down her back resting over a long white lab coat staggered backwards as Xing quickly threw himself around her stomach." Xing, let go. " she said calmly, yet with a venomous bite behind it, clearly having dealt with this before. And as he breathed, he quickly let go, hands at his sides. "Sorry professor Kusuri ! Couldn't help myself. But more importantly have you seen Ahi!? We were just out on a mission, there was a scary pumpkin horse monster and he had a big scary scythe and he was re— " Xing began speaking in mumbles as she pressed her hand to his lips, holding until he finally stopped speaking." Ahi got back about 5 minutes before you. She nearly collapsed when I ran across her in the hall. But no need to worry, I did a quick check up, she's just fatigued so let her rest. Now if you excuse me, I need to get back to work. "
With a quick pat on his arm, she briskly walked by while Xing watched her over his shoulder, the woman's palm raised to her neck like she'd swatted a mosquito. A bit strange since the building was as sterile as could be, bugs had a 1 in a million chance of making it in there. He shrugged it off , practically lunging to open the mechanical door to Ahi's bedroom and standing in the doorway. The light was dim in the room from the corridor, but it was enough to see the girl clearly resting with eyes shut and tucked beneath a plush pink blanket. Smiling, he pressed the switch for the door, mechanical slate closing behind him. "See you tomorrow." he whispered.—Relieved, a job well done. Xing had returned to his room , nestling himself into bed to get well rested to make sure he didn't have bags under his eyes for the cameras.
Tomorrow was a big day. Every year Fortuna sponsored a big Halloween event for publicity akin to a street carnival. Halloween was important, they'd be dressed up and giving out autographs for fans and candy for the kids to generate publicity, that meant more sponsors, and more sponsors obviously meant more funding for Fortuna. Research and development of new anti-misfortune equipment wasn't free after all.The simian tailed boy drooled from the corner of his lips, hand rested across his stomach in blissful slumber. A momentary flicker of light made him wrestle a bit, but it disappeared as soon as it came and he went back to his tranquil rest, wiping away the saliva that coated his chin. There was a sudden feeling of the fabric of the collar of his shirt moving, frigid air hitting the exposed area and alerting his eyes half lidded awake, he groaned a bit squinting towards the shoulder, two red gleams standing out in the dark at his bedside. The sudden sight pulled his eyes all the way open, scurrying with his back pressing against the headboard. "LIGHTS ON!" he yelled in a panic, his voice cracking amidst the pressure.The lights turned on in that same moment, and there sat Ahi, eyes covered from the flash and laughing with an unfamiliar black dress. "You sounded like a child waking up from a nightmare!" Xing's chest rapidly rose and fell with heavy breathing until he could finally talk. " What are you doing in here, and what are you wearing!?" With a grin, Ahi's mouth opened showing a pair of fangs, and raised her nails in front of her imitating a monster. " I was just trying on my costume for tomorrow and stopped by for a quick bite. Did I scare you ?~ " she asked teasingly with a wink as she headed to the door. Xing still struggled to talk after catching his breath, staggering out "OBVIOUSLY." Letting out a final laugh she jumped at him one more time for one final quick attempt at startling him. "Good. You should be scared." the door closed soon after as Xing shouted after her. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN?" It was just a friendly prank. he convinced himself. Although she was extremely in character which he found quite unsettling.—It took a while to get back to sleep after that incident, but after managing to shrug it all off he eventually had fallen back into slumberland and before he knew it Halloween had arrived.
The clock was later than he anticipated, and it seemed the rest of the Fortuna staff had already left to set everything up. Grabbing a very quick breakfast, he rushed back to his room and dug through his closet to scavenge out his costume, a Red Oni. Ahi said it would be a good fit since all he did was blindly hit things like an Ogre with a club, in retrospect it may have been an insult but hey it looked cool, and that's all that mattered to him.There was no one at the base that could give him the shortcut there, and he had no idea how to properly use the dispatch system, a mental note was taken to get someone to teach him how it works, that seems pretty helpful. Especially the fact he had to travel on foot, taking a while to show up to the festivities that were already in full swing. And there in the center was a large line of people, branching off to different teams of Fortuna with all sorts of merchandise representing their favorites. They were idolized like super heroes and everyone had their personal pick. To no surprise his blue haired teammate's line was one of the longer ones, the cutesy pastel colors and rabbit theme drawing the eyes of girls and guys and everyone else. Next to her seat was his own, noted with a sign that read 'XING'. The signage was removed and replaced with the real deal as Ahi dressed in the same costume was handing a handful of candy to a young girl, and snapping a quick picture with them. "It's about time you showed up. Have a tough time sleeping ?" She said mockingly with only a glance as she handed out another handful of candy. Xing gave one of his younger fans a handful of candy and signed a Balloon animal to replicate his staff before sending him off. "Yeah I did in fact, it's like someone woke me in the middle of the night for no good reason." The two continued on and off with the playful back and forth, many of the people mentioning ' Wow, they're actually like that ' in the mumbles of the crowd. Xing stared over at her momentarily, particularly at the eyes, noticing the usual blue. " Last night, how did you get your eyes to do that glowing thing, that was scary as hell. And the fangs too, they looked so real."Grinning and signing another autograph, she stood up after one of the people in line made a large donation. There was a photobooth sat up next to their display that you could get a personalized photo with enough donated.
Taking the donor by the hand, she quickly leaned by Xing's ear " Contact lenses are a lot more advanced now, and it's amazing what you can do with a simple understanding of makeup." whispering loudly before pulling the fan into the booth . " Nothing funny in there. " Xing taunted as he got back to signing and passing out treats. With the seat vacant beside him, he looked towards the booth curiously before feeling a tap on his shoulder that gained his attention.
" Oh, what are you doing here professor?" The woman from yesterday grabbing him by the hand and pulling him out of the seat quickly dismissed the comment speaking abruptly " We need to talk." Xing shouted and raised his index finger to the line " We'll be right back ! "With a frustrated sigh behind their booth, she swept her air across the shoulder, and rolled down the collar of her labcoat to show him a clear as day bite mark. "WHOA, PROFESSOR, YOU CAN'T SHOW ME STUFF LIKE THIS."
another irritated sigh, she covered it back up. "It was Ahi you — UGH. NOT LIKE THAT." Xing's cheeks were as red as his hair, triggering that response. "Last night, that's why she was tired, she got BIT and by this I assume infected. I guess when I was doing the check up she bit me at some point. From my research it's common with Misfortune infections that you don't remember it happening; but more imprtantly to undo it you have to kill the source." Xing looked skeptical, arms folded with a raised eyebrow. "Haha, very funny, you guys are in on the whole vampire thing together, gotta admit im impressed." The professor gave a final scowl, walking away.Laughing to himself at the whole situation, he returned back to the booth, bumping shoulders with the same man he'd seen entering the photobooth.
The familiar man's hand resting on his own shoulder like the professor had yesterday, mumbling excuse me in passing.Ahi had already ready returned to her seat, turning to greet him with a sing song voice. " Welcome back Xing.~ "
Sitting, his eyes fixated on her lower lip, a smear of red, but she wasn't wearing lipstick. "Oh did I miss something? Whoops."
The way she spoke, she heard the conversation. Xing stared dumbfounded, muttering out loud." We have to kill a Dracula !? "TO BE CONTINUED . . .