The shop was dimly lit, filled with the faint buzz of flickering lights and the lingering smell of burnt oil. Assad was slumped in one of the cracked seats in the corner, his gaze fixed on the flickering glass window.
Every few seconds, he found himself hoping to catch a glimpse of her Mischa and just the thought of her made his jaw clench.
His mind raced, replaying the chaos inside the restaurant, even if he didn't witness it all. He still saw a small glimpse of destruction, the flames, the screams, and the horrifying sight of guards meeting their end to a very powerful foe.
"Damn it…" he muttered under his breath. Every single part of his body wanted to be there with Taura to at least try to defeat Mischa but his main priority was the briefcases, which was also a failure as it resulted in someone being very young dying and it being the sister of the guard that was sitting in front of him.
Maybe Kiichi was right. Maybe he really was too weak.
He stared at his hands, the same hands that brought destruction, no matter how good his intentions were.
Outside, the afternoon leading to night was eerily still. The silence stretched on, with only the faint hum of the broken ceiling fan filling the air.
Finally, the guard broke the quiet, her voice soft and uncertain. "...Are you okay?"
Assad blinked, snapping out of his thoughts.
"Huh? Yeah… yeah, I'm fine," he replied, though his tone revealed more exhaustion than truth.
Another wave of silence settled in awkward and heavy and neither of them knew what to say next. Assad leaned back, rubbing his temples before glancing at her.
"Don't you think it's time we… introduced ourselves?I'm Assad. What's your name?" he suggested with a faint smirk, trying to lighten the mood.
The guard hesitated, looking down.
"Mya," she finally said, her voice barely above a whisper.
Assad nodded slowly. "Mya, huh… that's a nice name. Doesn't quite fit a guard, though."
She let out a nervous chuckle, almost forgetting her fear for a moment.
Assad caught a glimpse of a soft chuckle escaping her lips, a genuine sound that felt almost out of place given everything they had been through. For just a moment, he let a smile break through.
"You should do that more often," he remarked.
Mya blinked, a bit puzzled. "Do what?"
"Smile. It looks better on you than fear does."
She turned her gaze away, a hint of color rising to her bruised cheeks. The warmth that had briefly sparked between them faded as Assad's expression turned serious once more.
"I'm sorry for prying into your life but I have a question." he said softly, leaning forward with his elbows resting on his knees.
Mya narrowed her eyes slightly, sensing the gravity in his voice. "About what?"
Assad paused, gathering his thoughts before he spoke.
"Do you remember when your sister mentioned that those briefcases could save your families?What did she mean by that?" he asked cautiously.
Mya went still, her face darkened, and the light in her eyes dimmed, replaced by a heavier weight. Assad noticed right away and raised a hand.
"Hey, if you don't want to talk about it, that's okay. Just forget I asked."
She shook her head slowly.
"No… it's alright, you have a right to know. It's fine that you asked." she replied, her voice more composed than before.
That took Assad by surprise. For someone who had been on the verge of breaking down just moments ago, her calm demeanor now felt… odd. Almost rehearsed. He leaned back a bit, studying her features.
There was something in her tone, the quiet acceptance, the weight behind each word that told him there was much more to this story than she was revealing.
Mya opened her mouth, ready to say something. "Those briefcases… they—"
But then she stopped, her breath catching in her throat, her eyes going wide with sudden fear.
"Wait…" she whispered, clutching her chest. "It's… not time yet."
Assad frowned, confusion etched on his face. "What do you mean 'not time'? Are you okay?"
"Don't look!" she hissed, trembling now, her voice cracking with panic.
"Mya, what's going on?" Assad stepped closer, trying to steady her shaking shoulders, but she flinched away violently.
"I said don't look!" she screamed.
He froze, but it was too late and his gaze dropped, and what he saw made his stomach churn.
Her legs were changing, the skin shimmered and warped, turning slick and scaled — blue-green light rippling across her flesh as her feet melded together into a tail. A mermaid's tail.
Assad stumbled back, his mind racing to comprehend what he was witnessing. "What the hell—"
Before he could finish his thought, the transformation flickered like static, the scales dissolving, the glow fading away. Her legs returned to normal, though faint traces of the scales still shimmered in the dim light of the shop.
Mya gasped for breath, drenched in sweat. "You… you weren't supposed to see that."
Assad stood there, frozen, his eyes wide, words caught in his throat.
Assad let out a slow breath, his gaze locked onto Mya's trembling hands.
"…Should I even ask?"
Mya averted her eyes, her voice barely rising above a whisper. "No."
A faint smirk tugged at Assad's lips as he shook his head. "You know you'll end up sharing anyway."
For a brief moment, she hesitated, then nodded, gripping the edge of the table tightly. "Those briefcases you're carrying… one of them is packed with cash."
Assad raised an eyebrow. "And what about the other one?"
Her eyes darted to the floor, her voice dropping even lower. "…JABE."
At first, the name didn't register with him. "What's JABE?"
"I don't know everything," But from what I've heard… It's a drug. One that can turn us beastkin into humans." she replied, the weight of her words hanging in the air.
Assad's expression shifted, his grip on the briefcase handle loosening.
"Turn you into… humans?" he echoed, disbelief creeping into his voice.
Mya nodded once, guilt flashing in her eyes. Then it struck him that a vivid, violent memory surged through his mind.
He remembered walking through the streets that night, sticking to the shadows, when a man in the crowd suddenly began to convulse. Skin rippled, bones cracked, and fur erupted in jagged bursts.
In mere seconds, a tiger-faced beast replaced the man, its voice a twisted mix of human and monster.
"GIVE ME THE DRUGS!"
Assad's eyes widened, the echo of that growl reverberating in his mind. The same desperation. The same demand.
He muttered under his breath, almost to himself. "So that's what he meant…"
His gaze returned to Mya, her eyes still haunted by the past.
Mya swallowed hard, her voice quivering as she began to share her story.
"I… I came to the human world with my older sisters. The one you… killed… that was Molly. We had two other older sisters — Nui and Ano."
Assad's eyes widened in shock, but he remained silent