Mercy's Limit: Chapter 2 – Mind Broken and Spirit Breaking

Chapter 2 – Mind Broken and Spirit Breaking

Part 1

The men and women who guard the house give me the pleasure I crave, but never satisfy it as my beloved does. When they’re gone, I watch the entrance of our house, hoping to see their car coming from the distant city of Meridian, which almost looks like it’s on the horizon. I need more pleasure! The people here can only give me so much of it until they get tired or annoyed, and pleasing myself gets boring after a while. Something is happening in the Meridian that’s making them stay there longer. I hope it’s nothing too serious and something my beloved can solve quickly so they can spend more time with me.

Oh! Here they come, and it looks like they brought company, and the best kind as well. They’ve brought their horned friends from the city. The guards around here are afraid of them, but I’m not because they know how to treat me right, which is exactly what happens. I have more than my fill of ecstasy since they are especially rough with me, and I pass out for several hours afterward. Waking up at night, I get out of bed and sneak downstairs to see them having a party without me with other men and women.

Going up to my beloved, I say, “How could you have this party without me?”

They laugh at me and say, “I thought you had your fill of pleasure for the day.”

“I’m never satisfied.”

Again, they laugh. “That’s good to hear. Nevertheless, let’s see if we can satisfy you tonight.”

What follows is a night of drinking and seemingly never-ending love and pleasure that passes just as soon as it arrives. When I wake up in the early hours of the morning in a bed full of people, I head downstairs and start to clean up the blood, other bodily fluids, and mess on the floor, as it is my duty to my beloved. While cleaning, I can’t help but feel strange. Huh? What is this? Where am I? What am I doing?

 

Part 2

“Are we getting closer, Penelope?” Zahara asks.

“Yes, we are. I can already hear the demonic whispers and screaming that sounds like scratching a chalkboard in my head,” I say.

“Stay strong and keep praying,” Raziel says with his scythe alight with supernatural flame. “God has not abandoned us, and our guardian angels are hard at work, my angel says.”

Despite Raziel’s comforting reminder, the screams still scratch at my mind. Those damnable screams. I hear them when I enter the minds of the members of the sixth family, and when I do, I hear not only one voice but also one or more voices that must be demons, voices that sound like a reverberated male and female voice combined, along with their screams. Right now, the Compassionate and I are exploring the underground city beneath Meridian, where it’s said more members of the sixth family are hiding. We had an escort from the seventh family who kept the sixth family in check, but when we reached the meeting point, we found only their desecrated remains decorating the walls and warnings not to follow them written in blood.

Still, for the sake of justice and finding Polina, we continue forward, following the trails of blood that will probably lead to a trap. We can’t stop now after weeks of effort. Polina would’ve spent days without a moment’s rest to find us, and would’ve found us already knowing her intelligence and unstoppable will. Her pursuit of me is the reason why I’ve changed. When we first met, my grief of being a disposable tool of the government was being used by Lily, and I let that grief aid in the assassination of the previous mayor, his deputy mayor, and so many other innocent people who supported them, but when confronted by Polina, she showed me mercy, helped me overcome my grief, and gave me a chance to make amends.

Zahara was almost manipulated by Lily into doing the same, and is motivated in the same way I am, due to the same kindness shown to her. Even now, she uses that memory to push herself forward and motivates her to find our best friend. Raziel is containing a passionate, burning rage within himself. I can hear the whispers of the guardian angel; only he can see and talk to him, and even though I can’t hear the exact words, I can tell that the angel is doing a lot to keep him calm. I’m certain that when we find her alive and she recovers from what was done to her, he’ll propose.

The whispers and screaming keep bothering me, even as I try to keep my mind off them, so I ask Raziel, “This is where the majority of them used to reside, and you and Polina drove them out of?”

“Yes, it’s where we first met. Under the guidance of the dark hero, L’Obscruite, the aid of my brother, Kane Mundr, and the help of the seventh family, we ended the sixth family’s supernatural hold of Meridian,” Raziel explains.

“It seems like you missed a few,” Zahara comments.

“We didn’t. If anything, the members of the sixth family we are facing are those we converted, but have reverted to their sinful ways. The demonic influence that has scarred their souls isn’t something that can be easily removed. Look at Lily. Even she has to spend most of her days isolated in prayer and penance to keep herself away from sin.”

“Raziel, can you intensify your flame? It’s getting darker in these tunnels,” I say.

The flames on Raziel’s scythe burn brighter. As the light increases, I see some dark things creeping away at the edges of the shadows.

“What was that?” Zahara says with her sniper up and ready to fire.

“Devils or demon-enslaved souls. Did you think they wouldn’t keep a close eye on us?” Raziel asks.

“I expect you both to let me know when you see them and start fighting them because I don’t have any psychological or supernatural powers like you do.”

“Get ready then. The whispers and screams are intensifying,” I say.

Raziel’s flames continue to intensify until they explode from his scythe like a volcano, spreading around the area and homing in on several people around us, killing most, and sparing a few. Among the few, I’m surprised to see one of their leaders surviving, who has more horns on their body than the others, and I say “they” because I’m not completely sure if this person is a man or a woman. This mixed sex appearance is unique to the leaders we’ve come across, and another show of the sixth family’s perversion of God’s original design and making themselves look like their false god.

The leader says, in a distorted male and female voice, “Thank you for freeing me, but my demons will chain my mind to my sins again. You have to kill me before I cause more suffering!”

“We can help you, but you also have to help us,” I say.

“It’s about Polina, isn’t it? She tried to help me…but…but.”

The whispering and screaming of demons is coming back.

“Don’t listen to the demons! Pray and talk to us while we get out of here.”

“You can’t escape the immaterial. Polina tried to help me, but the demons were too strong! They have an eternal hold over my soul, and there’s nothing I can do about it. There’s nothing you can do about their influence. We’ll all be damned.”

The screams of the demons are all we hear and somehow shake the ground, walls, and ceiling. Raziel’s scythe flames go out as the ceiling collapses on us, knocking me out. When I wake up, I don’t see any debris on or around me.

“Zahara? Raziel?” I call out.

I don’t see either of my friends here, and the bodies of the members of the sixth family are gone. There’s nowhere else to go but up to the surface, so I climb up the debris and find myself back on Meridian’s streets. Hearing gunfire in the distance, I run to it, hoping to find one of my friends or some help. For some reason, when I arrive at the source of the noise, I see Zahara shooting people who are already dead, with bullet holes in their heads and bodies.

“Get away from me! I’ve already changed! I’m not the same person I was before!” Zahara says.

“Zahara, who are they?” I ask.

“People I’ve killed. Help me get out of this, Penelope! This has to be some kind of mind trick.”

Right. This has to be some kind of psychological trick. Using my powers, I am immediately met with more demonic scream that feels like fingers tearing at my mind. Regardless of the pain, I fight through it to try to push through this spell; however, I am only met with laughter.

“Do you think your powers have any effect on us?” the demons say.

“We are eons old, while you are a newborn in comparison.”

“You are no saint or angel. You’re not a virtuous woman of any caliber.”

“Polina thought she could save the sixth family, but we reminded them that they’re beyond saving. They’re ours, and you are, as well.”

I’m not. I know that. Remembering Raziel’s advice, I offer up my pain as penance for my sins, the sins of others, and those in Purgatory. This makes the demons stop laughing and go back to screaming. The air around me feels like it’s vibrating, and I feel like my entire body and head are going to explode. Flames start to engulf my body, but they don’t hurt me. In fact, the flames empower me and allow me to shatter this illusion. A loud glass breaking sound breaks my concentration, and I see that Zahara, Raziel, and I are back in the underground city in the area we entered it in. Raziel’s body is engulfed in flames, and Zahara is drenched in sweat and struggling to stand up.

“It…it looks like we haven’t gone anywhere. Did anything we went through even happen?” Zahara asks.

“It happened on a spiritual plane,” Raziel says as the flames on his body die down. “Let’s go see our escorts. Hopefully they’re alive in reality.”

We go to the meet-up location and thankfully find them alive. We explain to them what happened, and they don’t seem all too surprised.

“The powers of the sixth family are terrifying, yet not absolute,” one of the members of the seventh family explains. “It is only through God we can beat them, and God is the reason why their powers are limited.”

“Never give in to doubt or weakness, and if, or rather, when you do, don’t allow your failures to drown you in despair,” the other seventh family member says. “That’s how they had control over me, and as a former member of the sixth family, I can confidently say that they can be redeemed, and aren’t invincible.”

Continuing, we find a strange sight. The area that Raziel previously lit up in our shared hallucination, but the allies and members of the sixth family here are either already charred corpses or writhing in silent agony with flames burning on their bodies.

“Impressive. What happened on the spiritual plane carried over to reality. God has blessed you with a truly good friend, Raziel,” the seventh family member says.

We all thank God, each of us grateful that we don’t have to go through another shared hallucination. Interrogating the repentant members of the sixth family, we find that they’re keeping Polina and others they consider valuable in the suburbs of Meridian. They don’t know her exact location, but the information we do get is invaluable now that we have a general area to search. We’re so close, yet so far, and I pray that we’re able to find Polina soon. If what we went through is a taste of their true power, Polina must be going through the same daily.

Mercy's Limit: Chapter 1 – Loss of Self and Loss of Self-Control

Chapter 1 – Loss of Self and Loss of Self-Control

Part 1

“Polina. Walking around the house half-naked, and making me breakfast early in the morning again?” my beloved says.

“Of course. I know it’s what you like,” I say. “I know you love seeing me in this light blue, see-through apron and eggs in the morning before you go to work.”

My beloved holds me from behind and smells me.

“Your red hair is a mess, and your tears still stain your face from last night,” they say.

“That’s all your fault. Don’t blame me for it.”

“You’re right. I shouldn’t.”

“What you should do is reward me.”

“For doing what you usually do?”

“Or you could punish me for asking for more of a good thing. Both are the same to me.”

“Hmm. I think I will.”

My beloved has their way with me on the kitchen floor. By the end of what feels like hours, I’m unable to move, and the ecstasy of it paralyzes my head. Like every morning, I lie on the floor as my beloved fixes their suit and looks at me, an artist satisfied with their work.

“Remember, to have dinner for me when I return. Also, if you miss my touch, the guards outside will satisfy your craving, but clean yourself up if you have the dogs pleasure you. I’d rather not touch something ravaged by an animal. I have standards, after all,” my beloved says before walking away and out the door.

“Yes…my beloved,” I say, convulsing on the floor. “I can’t wait…for when you come back…”

Part 2

“Where is she?! Where is Polina?!” I yell out at the retreating criminal scum while firing the sniper attached to my left arm.

My shots are more unfocused than usual. I try shooting off arms and legs, but end up missing and killing my targets more than I’d like. When all the retreating criminals are dead or injured, I put my boot on the throat of one of them and reiterate my question, which I’ve been yelling at them ever since I ambushed them in this alleyway.

“Zahara, calm down!” Penelope says as she and Raziel catch up with me.

“I’ll calm down when these scum answer my question,” I say. “Out with it! Where is Polina?”

The criminal under my boot laughs and says, “They could use you three.”

“What do you mean?”

“Heh, a woman like you? One who wears hot pink, has pink and black hair, and fine, brown skin. Oh, you’re in high demand, and you two,” the creepy criminal says as she turns her head to Raziel and Penelope. “People like weird women like you, Penelope, with blonde and purple hair, a purple eye, and a spiral for another eye. Some men will make you a woman, Raziel, and would love to pull on that blonde hair of yours and look into your fiery eyes and make you their bit-”

I blow the criminal’s head into pieces with my sniper.

“Piece of shit,” I say as I move on to questioning the next criminal.

“Zahara! We aren’t going to get answers out of these people if you keep killing them!” Penelope says.

“Fine. Since you’re an expert in this, you do it!” I say as I walk away.

The leader of our group, the Compassionate, and our good friend, Polina, has been missing for over a week, and we’ve been scouring the city to find her. Nothing has come up so far, until now, as the group of kidnappers we’re investigating may be behind her disappearance. Penelope is using her psychological powers to interrogate one criminal after another and seems to be getting frustrated with it because of their resistance to her. I’m beyond frustrated by this situation, and what frustrates me more is looking at Raziel, who hasn’t said as much as I expected to, even since Polina first disappeared. Even now, he blankly stares at Penelope, as if he doesn’t have a single thought in his mind.

“Hey!” I say as I snap my fingers in Raziel’s face. “You awake in there?”

“Yes,” he plainly says.

I slap him.

“Don’t answer me like that! We’re after Polina. I know you love her, so why don’t you act like it for once and stop being so monotone?”

Flames spew out from Raziel’s eyes, mouth, and hands as he yells out. The flames engulf some of the dead bodies and living criminals, turning them to ash, while also keeping the surrounding area intact, and making some of the other criminals alive, but in agony.

“I’m just as upset as you are, and trying to keep my mind focused on the task at hand so we can find her faster and don’t make an emotional mistake that would jeopardize our search for her!”

“Raziel! What you’re doing is working!” Penelope says to our surprise.

As the flames calm down around us, so do the criminals who were wrapped in its embrace. The one that Penelope was questioning looks like someone who had just woken up from a nightmare, and yet, she thanks us.

“I was under the control of horrible people! They made me do disgusting and sadistic things to people and had the same things done to me, just because I wanted to make a living!” the criminal says.

“You wanted to make a living as a criminal, which is no living at all,” Penelope corrects.

“Whatever.”

“Your indifference to your sins is how those people were able to claim your mind since sin already has dominion over your soul.”

“Okay, I get it. I’ll change, I swear it!”

The other criminals give the same story of a group of people with horns on their bodies using their powers, and the criminals’ want for money and possessions to make them do their dirty work. One of the most surprising things we hear is that these same horned people were responsible for what happened to Lily, a nun turned villain who used Penelope and me to kill the previous mayor, his deputy mayor, and many others. Since we’re already in the center for rehabilitating criminals and villains, and where Lily is located, Raziel, Penelope, and I immediately go to question her in her cell. The ex-nun is finishing her daily prayers, and the horns on her body are almost non-existent.

“Did you tell anyone about the horned people?” I ask her.

“Aside from the role they had in corrupting my life, no. I didn’t think it was necessary. I was so focused on fixing myself and confident that Polina and you, the Compassionate, would find them and bring them to justice without my help,” Lily says.

“Well, we need your help now. No one knows where Polina is, and the sixth family has something to do with her disappearance.”

“She’s missing? Oh no. They’re probably corrupting her the same way they did to me. You have to hurry and find her!”

“That’s what we’re trying to do!” Raziel yells out before calming himself down. “Everything you can tell us will help, so please, tell us what you know.”

“I…I can point out to you where some of their hideouts were. Besides that, the only other thing I can tell you is to guard your mind and soul. They take advantage of your weakness to take control of you.”

“We’ll deal with them when we encounter them. I’m sure my psychological powers and Raziel’s fires can counteract them,” Penelope says.

Lily takes one look at us and decides, “Okay. I’ll pray for you more and do penances, so that you’ll be able to overcome your coming challenges. Show me a map of the city.”

We give Lily a map of Meridian, and she points out where the sixth family would conduct their dark, corrupting rituals and human trafficking. She then blesses us before we leave and expresses her hopes for Polina’s safety.

“If I could be saved, I’m sure Polina can be as well,” Lily says.

I hope that’s the case, and Polina can bear with the Hell she’s going through. She’s already gone through so much because of recent events, the drama in becoming mayor, the fight between two groups of cops, and then some in between. It’d be enough to break anyone, but I’m confident that if anyone is strong enough to make it out the other end, it’d be Polina. I share this sentiment with Penelope and Raziel, who agree with me. We then go to each location, scout it out, and find people in most of them, with some of the others being abandoned.

The Compassionate and I handle this the same way we’ve been doing. If I can offer sniper support, I do so from a distance, but if I can’t, I head in with Polina and Raziel. Many of the locations are strategic, and some are underground, making them ideal for the sixth family’s secret meetings. In these areas, we find desecrated corpses, leftover symbols and materials from blasphemous rituals, and what feels like a haunted building because of the tempting whispers I hear. After we defeat the scum, Raziel uses his flames to purify the area, and the whispers scream, then go silent.

We don’t find out much, and most members and allies of the sixth family kill themselves, but the ones we do manage to take alive and bring to their senses tell us about other locations the sixth family deals in and that they, in fact, have Polina alive somewhere. Her location is a guarded secret known by few. Still, it’s a relief to know she’s alive and gives me hope that we’ll eventually find her. Hang in there, girl. We’re coming to save you. I still owe you for changing my life.

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A protest of police is leaving Meridian without some of its most valued protectors. Two of the opposing groups are nicknamed by the public. One is called the Pigs, who want reasonable pay and better guns and armor to beat the superhuman criminals, while the other, called the Dogs, argue with their colleagues that they should deal with how things are or find a different job. Meanwhile, the new mayor of Meridian, Polina, is overseeing this all and hopes to bring it to a quick resolution, knowing that a new threat will come along to exploit a distracted city.

Dogs and Pigs: Chapter 3 – Forcing a Resolution

Chapter 3 – Forcing a Resolution

Polina and I have been hard at work interrogating and putting down the cybernetic criminals that have been attacking the city with our psychological powers. The information we found out revealed to us what we feared, that a group of criminals would target the city while they were distracted by the police drama. We also found out where the leaders are residing. They plan to attack the city hall from the underground, and move to stop them, and we do by catching them in the act, just as they’re starting to plant explosives under the foundation. I manipulate them by getting into their heads and forcing them to fight each other. While I’m in their heads, I see their ambitions to take out most of the police force.

They planned to do major damage to the city by taking out its police and possibly killing Polina and the Compassionate along the way. They had hoped to blow up City Hall and send another army of robots to attack us while they set up their base in the underground city, but since we’ve stopped them here and have the location of the rest of their friends, we’ll make sure all their plans are stopped here and now. With the rest of the criminals dead or incapacitated, we take them into custody and send a squad of superhumans to take care of the rest. During this whole thing, Polina was upset with herself and the two police groups, and I didn’t need to read her mind to tell that. She was rushing her interrogations, making people bleed from their eyes and head, and causing people to die painful deaths from the inside. Even after everything is done, I can still tell she is mad and helping everyone she can to take her mind off her anger.

When the injured are taken care of, and we’re able to sit down back at city hall, I’m about to say something to Polina, but she says something to me first, that being, “You were right, Penelope.”

“Huh?” I say.

“We should’ve used our powers to calm things down. If we did, then these criminals wouldn’t have attacked us, and all this death and tragedy wouldn’t have happened.”

“I thought you said it would’ve made things worse?”

“At this point, I would’ve taken any other problem than this.”

Polina and I suddenly get a call from Raziel that Tanimura and Munakata are at it again, arguing about what just happened and what could’ve been done to prevent it, with each side’s officers backing their side up and arguing with the other.

“Stubborn bastards,” Polina spits out. “We’ll be there soon.”

Polina and I get in a police car, and she speeds us to the Dominion office, where the drama is happening. During the drive, I see an anger in Polina’s eyes I don’t think I’ve ever seen before. When we get to the scene, we see Raziel and Zahara trying to get the two groups to back down from one another, but they don’t listen until Polina screams at them to stop and uses her psychological powers on them.

“Go ahead and do it, Penelope. We’re more than justified in using your powers on them now,” Polina commands.

I do as she says and use my psychological powers on both police groups to force them to stop fighting. In their minds, I see they’re beyond upset at one another and at themselves for what has happened.

Polina scolds both groups by saying, “This is beyond disgusting behavior from both of you. The bodies of the dead are still on the streets, and you’re here arguing with one another. Tanimura, I want you back patrolling the streets and giving your people a break, and you should expect more from the people who write your checks and arm you. Munakata, I want you to stop this useless protesting. I’m getting what you people need, and causing all this drama to try to make things go faster is what left us open to being attacked today. I expect you to do as I say, or I’ll make sure you get thrown in the same jail as the criminals we faced today. Do you all understand me?”

A majority of them agree with the rest, too scared to speak. There’s no arguing that Polina is right to do what she did in this situation, but still, even I’m a bit frightened by this turn in her personality. The police officers apologize to one another and Polina and promise not to cause any more unnecessary trouble for the city before leaving the scene to help clean up the mess the city is in. Later in the day, the news reports about what happened, and includes what Polina did to the police, which has become national news. Most people in the public say she did the right thing, some say she should’ve done it sooner, and others say she shouldn’t have done it at all.

The next day comes, and we all get back together at city hall, where it’s ominously quiet and not much is happening. Raziel comes up to Zahara and me and says we should comfort Polina, who still seems to be upset. We both agree and enter Polina’s office.

Polina quickly lifts her head from the desk as if pretending not to be lying down, and says, “Yes? Is something wrong?”

“Nothing is. That’s why you need to take a break,” Zahara says.

“I can’t take a break. There’s still so much to do after what happened.”

“They’ll always be more work to do, but there’s a time and place to do it in,” Raziel says. “If God wants us to get it done, it’ll be done, and right now, you need to rest after all that’s happened.”

“Polina, please,” I say. “We’re worried about you. What happened yesterday was unlike anything I’ve ever seen from you.”

Polina sighs and turns her chair to look out the window.

“Okay…okay. I guess you’re all right. I have been letting all this work get to me.”

That was easier than I thought it’d be. Still, when we take Polina out for lunch and to walk through the city, stopping at parks and shops, she looks like her mind is back at work, something that all of us see.

When we stop at a restaurant for dinner, I say, “You haven’t stopped thinking about work, have you?”

“Yeah. It’s still bothering me,” Polina says.

“Then you need to take another day off since your mind is still at work,” Zahara says.

“No, I’m fine. Being with you all has given my mind some needed rest, and I’ve come to some conclusions on things. I need to be more active, taking situations into my own hands so that what happened doesn’t happen again. I was too soft on those officers before, and look where it got us, and I do need to take more breaks. I get so focused on work that I miss the forest for the trees. I tire out my mind, and it makes me make stupid mistakes. I also neglect the people closest to me because of it, so I’m sorry to have worried you and ignored your advice.”

“It’s okay. We just want to make sure you’re not pushing yourself too hard,” I say.

“It’s only going to be okay if she treats us to drinks with that mayoral salary of hers,” Zahara jokes.

“Polina, we’re the Compassionate, the merciful arm of the Dominion in Meridian, a team that makes the city a better place to live in, and we all have each other’s backs, so if you need anything, we’re here for you. I’m here for you,” Raziel says.

Polina smiles and thanks us. We have a nice rest of the night. Even so, I sense the same thing Polina does, the looming presence of future challenges that will test us in ways we’ll find uncomfortable or impossible to overcome. It feels like my life has been nothing more than challenge after challenge ever since the government experimented on me to give me my powers, but after meeting Polina and seeing everything she’s done, I’m confident that we’ll make it through whatever comes our way next, even if it doesn’t end well, just like the situation we’ve gone through. I’m sure that, in the end, everything will be okay.

 

The End

Dogs and Pigs: Chapter 2 – What We Signed Up For

Chapter 2 – What We Signed Up For

“So, when are you going to ask her out, Raziel?” Zahara asks me.

I sigh and say, “Can we just focus on the task at hand?”

“If not now, then when?”

“Later, when we have time. Right now, we’re supposed to be watching this protest between the Dogs and Pigs for signs of trouble.”

“When’s later going to be? Tch. Polina said the same thing, and later came and went. You both said you’d spend more time together if you had it. When’s the last time you two went out?”

“Not long after she became mayor.”

“Was it the party that we had for her?”

“…yes…”

“See? As mayor, she’s busier than she’s ever been and has to take time off for herself so she can better lead the Dominion and the city. You have to ask her out soon. Heck, I’ll help you if you want. Maybe I can hold your arm or give you a little kiss on the cheek in front of her to make Polina feel like she’ll lose you if she doesn’t reveal her feelings. Actually, if I dye your hair partially red or black so you have two different colors for your hair, she’ll probably find you more attractive.”

“That won’t be necessary. We’ll be with one another when the time is right.”

“Ugh. You two are so dense.”

Focusing back on our task, Zahara and I keep an eye out for trouble around another police protest between the two groups. We’re dressed casually to fit in with the crowds, while having light armor under our clothes and weapons by our side. Zahara’s cybernetic left arm can transform into a sniper or blade at a moment’s notice, but she’s always dressed so eccentrically with her pink and black hair and color-matched clothes, which make her look like she’s going clubbing. Meanwhile, I’m dressed in a crimson jacket, orange sweater, black pants, and black boots. Still, her words and thoughts echo some of my own. Is she right, my angel?

“It is not the right time yet,” my guardian angel says.

My guardian angel is the source of my power and can only be seen and heard by me and those versed in the spiritual. He looks like a knight dressed in flames with wings on his back, an appearance that I try to replicate with my hero outfit. When I’m lost or in need of direction, prompted or unprompted, my angel lets me know what God’s will is for me or simply tells me that I’ll find out the answer later. Even though his answers give me some peace, they don’t always give me comfort. Despite his answers, I always ask the same questions and wonder about the same things.

Am I truly doing God’s will? Am I being who God made me to be? Is there a reason why the answers I seek aren’t given or given vaguely? Have I done something wrong to anger God or my angel through actions, sinful or ignorant? These are the questions I constantly ask myself, ask my angel, and meditate on in prayer, all the while hoping that I’m not being untrusting of God or ungrateful for what I have.

“Raziel, are you mentally praying again?” Zahara says, interrupting my thoughts. “If you are, pray for peace between these groups. They’re getting louder and more in each other’s faces.”

I was praying, but I’m not unaware of what is happening around me. A true servant of God must make every action, thought, and word a prayer, an offering to Him, and I might be offering violence as my next prayer since the two groups of police, Dogs and Pigs, are pushing and yelling at one another like groups of teenagers at school. Should the flames be unleashed, my angel?

“Not yet,” my guardian angel says. “But soon, they will be.”

That’s always the answer I get when violence is about to be my prayer to God. I can already feel the fires of justice burn within me and beg to be let out, like hands reaching out from within my skin.

“This is a disgrace to watch. The police should be fighting crime and protecting the public, not fighting each other, one side protesting their work, the other side trying to push them to do their job,” I say.

“The police have changed since we were last on the force, haven’t they?” Zahara says. “The presence of superhumans does that. It makes me wish Polina and Penelope were here to intervene and use their powers to calm people down.”

“They’re busy interrogating the suspects we found, who were conspiring to start trouble. Polina already used her powers on the leaders of these groups yesterday, anyway, and couldn’t get anywhere.”

“I hope they get something out of them. Something bad is going to happen, and I don’t need an angel on my shoulder like you to predict that.”

As things continue to heat up around us, and Zahara and I are about to intervene, something bad does happen. A whistling sound precedes an explosion that blows up a majority of the police in the crowd. What comes next is a wave of armed criminals with cybernetics who indiscriminately shoot into the crowd in the direction of the remaining officers. Zahara and I immediately get back on our feet, activate our weaponry, and I am finally able to let the fires of justice burn. They envelop me and spew from my mouth and hands, and seek and melt their targets to ash. I then unsheathe my scythe, it lights up, and I start cutting the attacking criminals down, and as a catalyst that my fires also shoot out from.

Zahara’s left hand transforms into a sniper that she uses to take out multiple criminals at once, and she uses the sidearm with her right hand to shoot at the others coming for us that get too close. Meanwhile, the civilians run away in terror, and the police struggle to get back on their feet and join in on the fight to defend themselves. My flames grow stronger and spread around the area, supernaturally burning some people, while leaving others alive and shielding them from harm, and leaping from the ground and those they protect onto our attackers. By the time all the criminals are dead, Polina and Penelope call Zahara and me through our earpieces about more attacks and robberies happening throughout the city.

“This cannot go on for any longer than it has,” my angel says. “It must end now.”

Telling Zahara what my angel said, she tells me, “Go ahead and fly off! I’ll stay here to help everyone. Just make sure those people pay for all this.”

“I will.”

Wings of fire spread out from my back, and my angel lifts me into the air. He leads the way to our target destinations where we rain fire from the sky and descend down the cut the criminals to pieces. These people are attacking all kinds of banks, jewelry stores, and police stations. We thought a group of criminals would take advantage of this situation, and we were right. Thankfully, I see the two opposing groups coming together to defend the city as I see the leaders, Tanimura and Munakata, fighting alongside one another.

After helping to defeat their attackers, I fly down to them to check on them. I say, “Are you two okay?”

“I’m fine, but we need to get out there to protect the public,” Tanimura says as he rushes off to the nearest police car.

“With what weapons?!” Munakata says as he throws his empty gun to the floor. “They blew up our armory, hundreds of our people are dead or injured, and we’re all running on empty and fighting with batons and fists. There’s hardly anything we can do! My God, it’s happening again…”

Tanimura gets up in Munakata’s face.

“We can’t give up because we’re outgunned and outnumbered! We can ask the Dominion for weapons and support. They have to give it to us.”

“And then what? These criminals are after us. We’ll only get in their way. We have to help the civilians while the Dominion takes care of this.”

“We can do the same while protecting the public.”

“You’re going to throw your life away for nothing!”

“You’re underestimating the police!”

A wall of flames bursts between the two officers as I say, “Enough! Both of you! You can’t be at each other’s throats while the city is in danger. Both of your goals can be true. We’ll arm your forces so you can defend yourselves and the public, while you save and get them to safety, okay?”

Both men look at each other.

“He’s right,” Munakata says. “Truce?”

“As long as you do the job you signed up for,” Tanimura says.

“Deal.”

They shake hands, and I direct them to the nearest Dominion office. Together they drive in the same car with those they lead driving behind them, and I fly above them. Munakata and Tanimura call the other stations to spread the word about getting guns and armor from the nearby Dominion offices and going out to protect the public and each other from these attacks.

“This is no time to work separately. We must work together for the sake of the innocent,” Munakata says.

“It’s time to do what we made a vow for, to protect Meridian with our lives, and I'd better see all of you on the front lines,” Tanimura adds.

When we arrive, the officers arm themselves, and the building comes under attack by more criminals with cybernetic enhancements and aided by their robotic companions. The superhumans and heroes of the Dominion protect the building until the police come out better armed and armored than before to help us out and secure the building. Once the building is protected, the police head out to help the public, side by side with one another as they should. Even though the city is still under attack, we should be able to get it under control now. I just hope that Polina is okay, and the chaos of this situation will end the conflict between the two groups of police for good after peace returns to Meridian.

Dogs and Pigs: Chapter 1 – The Pains of Dual Loyalties

Chapter 1 – The Pains of Dual Loyalties

I sit on the sidelines, watching the people I love and support be at each other’s throats, yet again. Out in front of a police station, two opposing groups of police are debating one another, with groups of people watching them from a distance, supporting their side with protest signs. One side has been nicknamed the Pigs by the public. They are called that because they want better pay, better physical enhancements, and see hero associations, like the Dominion, as a threat to their relevancy. The other side is called the Dogs, and they relate to the concerns of their colleagues, but don’t think they should be protesting about it and causing a scene, leaving the city of Meridian without a large majority of its police protecting it.

“We can’t leave the city lacking its protectors,” one of the officers says.

“Why not?” an opposing one asks. “It was superheroes who cleaned up its reputation, and the Dominion who does more for it than the police. Why does it need us anymore? In fact, a high-ranking member of the Dominion is running this city and uses the Dominion more than its own police force.”

They’re talking about me again, and never fail to bring me up in every debate.

“Mayor Polina helped L’Obscurité save this city from the demons within it, and continues to put her life on the line to help others, even though she could easily stick herself in an office all day and let others do the work.”

“What she’s done is give more help to ex-convicts and so-called repentant villains than the police force she used to serve. She’ll even give them jobs for the Dominion she works for as an easy way to escape prison.”

“It’s a better solution than what we previously had, where the justice system used to be a revolving door. The people she reformed have become upstanding members of society and are helping the people they once hurt.”

“Let’s not forget that one of the women whose organization was supposed to help orchestrated the assassination of the previous mayor and his deputy mayor and caused a massacre at a city festival.”

“One bad example doesn’t invalidate all the good work she and her people have done.”

“One bad example has led to her being put in power, and the Dominion and their allies in the Coronamento Corporation taking over a majority of the city. Don’t we matter? Shouldn’t the police force have its share of advancement and pay raise without having to switch to working for them?”

“Polina has been trying to raise wages for all people, superhuman and normal humans, equally. She just became mayor not too long ago. Give her some time to enact changes, and you’ll see that Meridian will equally value its hero associations and police.”

“How about we look at the situation in the rest of the country where this exact thing is happening. In most cities and towns, their police forces are often overlooked in favor of supporting their hero associations, especially the Dominion, which is currently taking over the world bit by bit. Those who don’t support the Dominion aren’t helped as much as those who do, and the relevant police forces have become subsidiaries of the Dominion. As far as we’re concerned, the Dominion and our mayor don’t care for anyone who doesn’t support them or their agenda to the letter, and this must change lest the rest of us fall to poverty to ruin.”

I wish I could intervene in the conversation, but there’d be no point. I wish I could show everyone what I see in people’s souls, the mercy they deserve despite their sins, but that’s a power I don’t have. Instead, the only thing I can do is pray and hope this situation reaches a peaceful resolution where both sides are satisfied. As the new mayor of Meridian, I’ve been trying to focus on the poor and those who have been struggling to get by. Sure, I don’t employ the police force as much as the Dominion. Still, because our enemies are either low-level crooks or powerful villains who want the honor of making a home for themselves here, I have no choice but to have the heroes of the Dominion take care of it.

I’ve tried to get the police more funding and better equipment, and physical enhancements to put them on par with superhumans; however, that requires government approval, which takes forever, given similar requests like mine being submitted to them. There is also the consideration of making them part of the Dominion, but a corporation and a hero association can’t be a city’s official protector. The police are meant to make sure the hero associations are following the law and aren’t given special privileges. Besides, trying to make them part of the Dominion wouldn’t help the fact that people think we’re trying to take over the country, when we’re actually just trying to help. Everything feels like it has a caveat to it, making compromise seemingly impossible.

From the room I’m sitting in with bulletproof glass in front of me, I see my reflection, my red hair that’s been combed a thousand times to keep up appearances, my red eyes, and paler-than-usual face. Looking at my image overlaid on the scene before me makes me feel like I’m responsible for it all. Nothing I’ve done has seemed to help the situation and only looks to inflame it. A sudden grab of my shoulder pulls me out of my thoughts and planning, as I turn around to see Raziel. He looks at me with his compassionate red, orange, and yellow eyes with a look of quiet concern on his face.

“I’m fine, Raziel,” I say.

“Are you, Polina? I know that look on your face. You’re overthinking this situation again, aren’t you?” he says.

“…maybe,” I say, trying to be as honest as possible.

Raziel sits back down behind me. He’s wearing his usual modern-day, medieval knight in crimson armor with his crimson scythe by his side. Behind him are my other two bodyguards and fellow members of the Compassionate, a subsidiary of the Dominion, Zahara and Penelope, both of whom are waiting for Raziel and me to get together.

“There’s nothing else you can do besides do what you always do, help people as best you can. There’s nothing else to plan or think about,” Zahara says.

“We can get directly involved by influencing people’s thoughts with our psychological powers, Polina,” Penelope suggests.

“That’s too extreme a solution. We can’t use force to bring calm to this situation. It’d only make things worse.”

“It’s already bad the way it is. What does worse look like?”

“She’s right, Polina,” Zahara says. “Crime in the city has gone all but completely quiet, meaning there’s likely to be another attack on the city, especially with this golden opportunity in front of them.”

“We have to do something to hasten the peace between them,” Raziel adds. “A city’s police force can’t spend this many days fighting each other rather than patrolling the streets.”

I brainstorm for a second and come up with a singular solution.

“I’ll tell the heads of both groups to have a one-on-one conversation with me. They can’t say no to me and have to hear me out, at least,” I say.

“Do you want us to be with you?” Raziel asks.

“No. It’ll be off-putting, and make it look like I’ll be expecting trouble. I want you three to continue patrolling the streets for any signs of trouble and stomping it out if you have to.”

My three friends agree and wish me luck. After the debate between the two sides, I call each of their leaders and arrange for us to meet. The leader of the Dogs agrees to meet the same day as soon as possible, while the leader of the Pigs wants to do the same thing, but at the end of the day. Thankfully, the times are easily arranged, and the meeting is happening as soon as possible. I meet the leader of the Dogs, who is in the police station he commands. He’s a young man with scars on his hands and face named Tanimura, rushing to finish up his work and clean up his office.

“Come in and take a seat, Ms. Mayor, and please excuse the mess. I just finished up my work for the day,” Tanimura says.

“Thank you, and please. Just call me Polina. We don’t need to be formal about this,” I say as I take a seat in front of his desk.

“Sorry, Polina. I can’t thank you enough for meeting me about my concerns with my colleagues who are causing a stir in the city and leaving it lacking a majority of its police force.”

“What do you think I should do to appease them to bring peace to Meridian?”

“I think you do enough. It’s them who are the problem. Their expectations for what they deserve are out of proportion and need to humble themselves or switch jobs.”

“That’s a harsher opinion than I’d thought I’d hear. Even I agree that the police aren’t paid as much as they should and need to be better armed to keep up with superhumans.”

“The job is what it is. A humble profession. You sign up to put your life on the line with the equipment you’re given, and you’re paid a certain amount. We work to protect others, and if that means living in the lower-middle class, then that’s what we have to deal with.”

“I agree, but officers should be paid more than office workers and at least be paid above or on the same level as other government employees.”

“It’s nothing I mind. I don’t even mind when officers quit to join associations like your Dominion.”

“You don’t mind much at all from what I’ve heard of your history.”

“It’s the way my parents raised me, my faith, and how the world is. You take what you can get and appreciate it, and if you don’t like it, then do what you can to change it or suck it up. Life is difficult, and complaining about it doesn’t help anyone, especially if that complaining ends up risking the lives of the civilians signed up to protect.”

“That’s why I’m here. I need you to help me talk down our colleagues so that they stop protesting.”

“I’ve talked to them day after day and got nowhere. You know it. I’m sure you’ve seen it on the news, and if trying to give them what they want ends up in them still complaining, then there’s nothing more that can be done. If you want my opinion, you should fire them.”

“You really think I should do that?”

“They’re refusing to do their jobs, while being paid by the tax dollars of their citizens, so they should face the consequences. We’re cops, not normal workers at a corporation, and our absence on the streets leaves it undefended by possible attackers, criminals, and villains.”

“So, that’s it then?”

“There’s nothing else that can be done. I’m sorry. I wouldn’t even mind it if you ordered me to get them arrested so the rest will either get back to work or quit, because I’m tired of dedicating my people’s time and mine to arguing with them to do their jobs.”

Using my powers, I look into Tanimura’s soul. He’s a rigid man, and yet, it’s that rigidness that makes him such a dedicated police officer. I can complain about him not giving himself a break, and that self-abuse bleeding over to the other officers who look up to him, but I don’t think that’d do me any good. Even though he’s young, he’s set in his way like an elderly man due to the traditionalist mindset he grew up in, and is unwilling to budge at the moment. I thank him for the conversation, and go to leave to see the next leader, hoping that what we will talk about can be used on Tanimura.

The leader of the so-called Pigs, Munakata, is at his police station, which he leads. Unlike Tanimura, he’s not rushing to do anything as his office is neat and in order.

“Mayor Polina, thank you for taking the time to talk to me. Please, take a seat,” Munakata says.

Munakata is an older man than Tanimura is with some noticeable white hairs and the same amount of scars as the leader of his opposition.

Taking a seat, I say, “Thank you. Please, just call me Polina. After hearing what’s usually said about me by your allied officers, I’d expected a less than warm welcome.”

“Don’t mind them. They don’t actually mean the words they say or let their emotions use less-than-favorable words to express their concerns. You see, we’re all stressed out because of our job, and just want the right tools to accomplish it and reasonable pay for it.”

“I understand and agree. That’s why I submitted my request for exactly that to the government. I’m sorry it hasn’t been fulfilled yet, since they’re busy with similar requests.”

“You can’t get your allies in the government to make the process go faster?”

“No, unfortunately, we can’t.”

“Heh, I find that hard to believe given how much change the Dominion and Coronamento Corporation have indirectly done just through their actions.”

“The Dominion is a hero association, not a political party. We can only do so much.”

“You say that, but the Dominion has changed the world through its efforts, and you’re telling me that you can’t get the government to give some papers their stamp of approval?”

“…yes.”

Munakata is silent for a moment before laughing and taking out a piece of gum to chew on.

“Do you want a piece?”

“No, thank you.”

“I chew this instead of smoking. Gotta kick the habit.”

“I can’t force the government to do anything, despite being mayor and the Dominion’s reputation and allies.”

“I know. That’s the government for you. Always willing to take, but never willing to give. Believe it or not, it’s why I respect your hero organization and Coronamento. You both take what’s rightfully yours and worry about legalities later.”

“What can I do for you then so you can stop your protesting?”

“Just hear me out and listen to my story. Do you remember when a mad scientist and engineer teamed up to make cybernetic men to steal from the hospitals, factories, and police stations? Each one of their soldiers took more than three assault rifle clips to put down, and the specialized bullets we had dried up early in the fight because we had to use them in a previous one.”

“I remember. You put in the request for more and had to wait six months to get it. I was still just a cop at the time, and not a superhero.”

“Nevertheless, we had to make due. I got these scars during that fight. Lost a lot of good friends and failed to save civilians that I tried my best to protect. I remember waking up in the hospital, wanting to be dead if it meant that everyone else would be alive, but here I am still alive today.”

“Munakata…”

He wipes his eyes and says, “You know it’s funny to me that people in the government have secretly funded people like them to gather wealth, materials, and people for them, rather than funding the force that protects the public? There was a time a friend offered to have Christmas at his apartment. The place was run down, but he did his best…I’m sorry. That last part was sort of off topic. I forgot the exact reason why I told you the story and started the next one. Maybe it’s because it always pops up in my mind and feels like it happened yesterday, and I want to share it with someone, but I’m sure you understand me. Your powers allow you to do it, right?”

“They do. More than you know.”

“Then you know how I feel and why I have to continue this protest. If I don’t, then more tragedies like that one will happen again.”

“It’s going to happen again if you don’t tell your supporters to get back to work.”

“No, it won’t. The Dominion is doing a good job of keeping the streets safe. At this rate, it’ll be the country’s official police force or even military. I can see it now. The Dominion, the world’s first superhuman army, brought to you by the Columbian Union.”

“Munakata.”

“I’m sorry, Polina. I trust that you’ll give us what we want, but you know as much as I do that we need to speed things along, and making a scene is the best way to draw attention to the issue. Am I wrong?”

I can’t argue with him. His past trauma and the suffering of others are motivating him to continue the protests, so there’s nothing else I can say. I thank Munakata for his time and leave to go home. My parents have left me dinner and are watching the late-night news like usual. I hardly have the energy to tell them how my day was, and I don’t have the will to go into detail because not much was accomplished. After eating, I take a shower and hit the bed.

As I’m about to fall asleep, Raziel, Zahara, and Penelope all text me in our group chat about the meetings I went to. With so much to say but being too tired to go into detail, I simply text back that I’ll tell them tomorrow. It’s then that I realize I have to say my nightly prayers, so I do and hope that my prayers will be answered. Both Tanimura and Munakata are good people, as are the people they lead, making this situation harder to deal with than the usual ones I face with criminals and villains. It makes part of me regret becoming mayor to begin with. I want to give them both what they deserve, but with no apparent way out at the moment, I can only hope that it works itself out or that an answer will come to me soon.