Just before class ended, I asked Luna to meet me on the rooftop. She looked as if she was about to refuse, but when I told her I wanted to discuss that thing with Mia, she nodded her head and quickly agreed.
"Alright, I'll meet you there," she nodded.
I then sent a text message to Kai, telling him to meet Luna on the roof. The two of us had exchanged phone numbers to make conversing easier. Kai sent another message in return, thanking me for my help, saying I owed him one and that I was a real friend.
After classes ended, I watched as Luna packed her bag, and Kai soon followed after her. I waited a few minutes before getting up from my seat and following them.
...
Luna tried to calm the nervousness inside her as she went up to the roof. This was her first time on the roof, and the moment she saw it, she was in awe. Down below, she could see the entire campus.
A breath of wind brushed against her face and swayed her hair, causing a small smile to appear on her face.
CRACK.
Just then, she heard a sound behind her. Thinking it might've been the person she was waiting for, she quickly turned around, but all her hopes were shattered when she saw the face of the person standing behind her.
"W-What are you doing here?" she stuttered out, instinctively taking a step back.
It was Kai.
She panicked. She felt her chest tighten. His sudden appearance made her want to run.
Luna wasn't good at talking with others. Her past experience made her a bit fearful when interacting with humans. She was only comfortable talking with one person. The boy that saved her all those many years ago.
"I just want to talk to you," Kai said, taking a step forward but there was something about his demeanor that made her even more terrified.
His sudden move forward caused Luna to take another step back, but this time, her back hit the fence meant to shield students from falling off the roof.
"Please, I-I… have to go."
Luna tried to run, but suddenly, she felt Kai grab her wrist and pull her back.
"Just wait!" he shouted.
When he shouted, she felt as if her heart had stopped for a second. She also felt that something was off. Kai was normally persistent, but he was never this aggressive with her. If anything, he always tried to greet her with a smile, but she was too cowardly to face him.
But now…
Something wasn't right. She felt it in her gut. Her need to escape rose even more.
"You're hurting me," Luna said, trying to pry Kai's hand from her wrist, but that seemed only to infuriate him more.
He shoved her up against the fence.
"What is wrong with you!" he shouted.
"I'm sorry," Luna squirmed.
"Because of you, my family is being threatened. If you just stopped for a moment and listened to what I had to say, then it wouldn't have come to this. My family wouldn't have been threatened!" Kai shouted, and just for a moment, his eyes turned blood red before reverting to their usual ocean blue color.
…
From a crack in the open door, I watched as Kai manhandled Luna, who was too terrified to do anything. Kai's anger was being fueled by my curse. The more stressful a situation he's in, the angrier he gets.
If his anger persists, then he could end up hurting her or worse.
Luna's timid personality and lack of self-esteem have always been her weakness. It's the thing that has been limiting her for so long.
Sighing to myself, I took out my phone and sent a message to my dear sister Sophia.
'I need your help! It's an emergency. Meet me on the roof.'
After clicking send, I placed my phone into my pocket before pushing the door to the roof open and closing it after stepping onto the rooftop. The loud creak the door made caused Kai to quickly turn in my direction.
"What are you doing here!" Kai snapped.
For some reason, I felt a bit satisfied seeing the curse at work. This was my first time actually using it. Kai was clearly angry, but he wasn't at his limit yet.
"What's going on? You're hurting her," I said as I took a step forward, which caused him to panic.
"Stay back!" he roared.
Luna stared at me as her only hope, tears lining the corners of her eyes.
"This isn't right. I'll go get the teacher," I said, and the moment those words left my mouth, Kai's anger exploded. His ability activated and there was a crackle of electricity in the air.
He forcefully shoved Luna aside and charged at me, but just then, I activated my ability.
The moment he stepped forward, he began coughing heavily. He clawed at his throat as wheezing sounds escaped his mouth.
"What have you done to me?" he gasped, but at that moment, his legs gave out, and he collapsed to the ground.
Feeling satisfied, I slowly approached the dying human writhing on the ground and stopped just above him.
"This is carbon monoxide. It's a dangerous gas to inhale," I explained casually as I got down to meet his gaze. Once again, I wanted to see the look in the eyes of the first human I would kill.
Carbon monoxide was a poisonous type of gas, so dangerous that it was nicknamed the 'silent killer.' It replaces oxygen in your blood, leading to severe organ damage and eventual failure.
To create this gas, the process was simple in theory but hard in execution. The reason is that the air is 99% nitrogen and oxygen, so it doesn't contain a lethal concentration of carbon monoxide.
This meant I had to get creative.
I had to strip the carbon atom from the carbon dioxide present in the air, then force a triple bond between the carbon atoms and the oxygen atoms present in the air.
The only downside was that I was also affected by this, but I could feel my body adapting; my lungs stretched and grew inside of me, and I even grew a new organ to excrete the excess carbon monoxide through my skin.
"The first effect is confusion and disorientation as the gas infiltrates your system, binding to the hemoglobin in your blood more effectively than oxygen," I said, watching his fear grow as I spoke.
Kai's body then slowly began showing signs of distress. His once vibrant skin began taking on a pallid, ashen tone, reflecting his loss of vitality. His breathing was labored as he clawed at his throat, tearing his own skin as he gasped for air.
The gas overwhelmed his respiratory system, and due to the lack of oxygen, his organs began shutting down one by one.
I watched as the life slowly drained from his ocean blue eyes. He was someone's son, someone's brother, and someone's boyfriend.
But to me, at that moment, he was no better than a goblin.
Kai Morgan had a promising future as a hero. I knew how his story would end: loving kids and a beautiful wife that loved him dearly. But that was all snuffed out the moment I watched him take his last breath.