Moonlings: A Clash of Meteors and Mages

"Sir Tanori, are you sure you want to take in the grueling task of teaching the basics? You already have a lot on your plate," asked a lady in a black and purple corporate attire who was standing in front of Tanori's table.

Tanori looked at the office clock first. There were only a few minutes before midnight. He then turned to his messy desk with papers, pens, notes, and coffee sachets. His mouth made a tsk sound. Looks like he won't be able to guide that part-timer again because the stack of papers were keeping him glued to his seat.

"I have to do it, Ammie." The secretary raised her brow at the mention of her nickname and she cleared her throat while her eyes moved around the office to see if the others had heard it. Tanori immediately realized his mistake.

"Amethyst, I mean." The lady then acknowledged it by nodding her head in approval.

Geez, women. Now, I don't feel like I'm the boss.

"Why the sudden need? You have competent mentors under you who can do it for you. Or are you not satisfied by their performance?" asked the woman.

"No, that's not it. The mentors are great teachers. Their trainees are strong. If anything, I want to congratulate them for being able to train a new breed of moonmages."

"Then what is bothering you that the boss himself has come to this humble place of ordinary workers?"

His memory was triggered. Tanori could remember it well. Last month, he was the one on duty. He had felt it and he was sure of it.

"I just need to do it. I feel a meteor crashing."

The clock's hands struck midnight and the intercom buzzed. Then, a woman's voice filled the office.

"Next shift, please enter."

Quickly, the yawning workers got up from their computers while the next batch took their seats. In no time, the office was again busy with the sound of typing hands, assistants walking and shuffling papers, cabinets of files being opened and closed, and the unending blaring of the printing machines.

Tanori now looked at Amethyst whose eyes were widened at the phrase he just mentioned. She knew it wasn't literal. It was a code they used when something big was about to happen.

"Did you tell it to headquarters?"

"Yeah. I hope they do respond quickly. That's why while waiting, I want to prepare."

Amethyst then folded her hands as if to fix herself like she was not just shaken up a while ago.

"Where do you want to start, then?"

Tanori looked at the rows of 2x2 ID pictures pinned on his mini-bulletin board hanging on the wall just beside his desk. All of the faces were young, in contrast with their codenames.

"Arrange papers for Regina," he finally said.

When Amethyst didn't reply, he looked at her.

"You are sure of this, right, sir?" Doubt was not hidden in her voice. She didn't mean to question her boss' decisions but she was just surprised.

"What? Got any problem?"

"I mean, I have a list of our trainees with great potential. Don't get me wrong. Regina is a good girl."

"If she is, why are you doubtful of her?"

"Sir, she's just a part-timer," Amethyst said softly, fearing that the other part-timers there would hear her.

"Exactly. All the more reason for me to be her mentor."

***

Her battle ax plunged into the monster and some silver blood splattered on her face. 

When the body dissipated, she collapsed to the ground, holding on to the handle of her weapon which she stuck on the ground for support.

"Raii."

The familiar voice made her turn around. But there was no one there–only a dark alley and the big moon in the skies.

Hmph. That's not my name here.

She stood and wiped out the monster blood that dirtied her face. Her breathing was getting heavier each hour and her strength was already failing her. But one look at her reflection in the metal of her weapon made her regain her composure.

Fight, Regina. She scolded herself. There was no room for complaints. She chose this herself and she should not bring shame to those who had her codename before her.

But that whisper…when did she get so delusional?

Human footsteps rounded about the corner. Two drunk men were holding each other by the shoulders. They just walked past by her, the decaying bodies of nightspawns and her weapon invisible to their eyes.

The north side of Jazel which she was assigned to was always lively and never quiet.

Regina then also started to walk to a nearby bench and sat her tired body. Few more hours before daybreak and day one of her work will be over. She should be focusing on meditating since it helps with replenishing her strength but the voice earlier distracted her.

It annoyed her how it does that to her every single time.

Regina touched the stone pendant around her weapon. It glowed and sent electricity to her nerves, forcing her to shut her eyes in a little pain, making her concentrate for a while. The stone was a gift from the boss of the agency where she worked. They say every moonmage under his command had one. 

It acted as a pain detector. It locates which part of your body is the most damaged because more often than not, moonmages are not aware that they are wounded because they are too focused on their mission that they forget their bodies are only human, not robots. According to statistics, moonmages die due to overwork more than actual fights. 

The stone pendant was meant to keep their bodies in check. Regina never met their boss in person but if she did, she would like to thank him.

The source of her pain was from her fingers. True enough, she tried gripping her ax but saw that her hands were shaking. She had no choice but to keep her weapon and use magic for the next few hours. It would take a toll on her body but it was her fault for not conditioning her body well.

Speaking of conditioning, she had PE tomorrow. 

Regina had no time to lament for her nose picked up the scent of nightspawns in the area.