A Guide For The Outsiders

Chapter 3: What Makes a Vigilante?

TW: hinted abuse, hinted experiments, PTSD,
Please let me know if I missed any

He collapsed on his mattress, his eyes drifting shut.

● ● ●

Another day. The ender-ghast stood up from where they were brushing their teeth. The ruby earring the only resemblance the enderian had of his vigilante counterpart.

For he was, or at least looked like, a full enderian. He would take the train to work that morning like any other person. The smudges under his eyes just a bit darker than the average morning commuter.

He was a half Netherborn which meant they could fully operate on no sleep for days on end, then they'd grow weaker and collapse at some point.

It was very good for his line of work.

Ranboo stepped off the train and walked the rest of the way to work, the keys jingling as they unlocked the back door. They stepped in and threw on an apron, Niki had banned them from baking, so they fixed up the displays as they waited the three minutes it took for the Cafe owner to arrive.

A young woman with pink hair put her hands on her hips and sighed. "Early as always, Ranboo."

The enderian shrugged. "Better than late."

"Not if you're banned from baking, you literally have nothing to do for the next 20-30 minutes, we always clean up before we lock up."

Ranboo grinned, "Well, the commute is always unpredictable, and long."

"Again, I offer you to come live with me, three minutes away from work, I may add." The young woman said, walking into the break room.

"Mmmm, sorry I'll have to decline, my night job is the Border."

"Mhm, night job, like the one on the news?" Niki asked, fixing up her own apron.

"Sorry, what?"

"You haven't seen the news? I'll put it on so you have something to do."

Ranboo snorted, "thanks."

"We have a very special report tonight, JayV, infamous villan, has a protégé, or a sidekick. Now publicly known as Toxin, this young boy has been indoctrinated and conditioned to be a villan. Boasting quite unique traits or a Saytr and a Bee, this boy seems to have been abused, as he is missing most of his left horn. As if it were snapped off in a threat. Toxin's power is quite unique as well, suggesting it was more than the luck of genetics.

To add to this, the SBI's newest hero trainee was set to fight the conditioned protégé. A well known vigilante who goes by the alias ERROR intervened, fighting off Toxin, but allowing him to live, and even helping him up, showing further, the unpredictable nature of a vigilante.

Ranboo turned the TV off. It took a good amount of self control to not hurl the remote out the window. He stood up, and walked to the kitchen. "Same as always." He said, hopping up on the counter.

Niki hummed. "We can't expect much more from them, all we can do is our part."

The enderian sighed. "I guess you're right."

"So why'd you help him?" Niki implored.

"This is going to sound stupid."

"Not as stupid as the broadcasters."

"I feel like I shouldn't fight him, that we're in this together, and maybe I saw some of myself in him, a fight for survival, to be something more than just another person."

"Yeah, I take back what I just said."

"Niki!"

"Kidding, kidding, that actually makes some sense." Niki put her hands up in mock surrender.

She took out the bread and the first batch of muffins, and Ranboo flipped the closed sign to open.

A few minutes later the hero trainee walks in, looking a bit worse for the wear.

"Hey, Ranboo." He said, squinting at their name tag.

"Hey, what do you need?"

"Uhhhhhh." He stared at his list. "Will you help me bring them all?"

Ranboo blanched. What. The hell. Was. That?

"Hello? Ranboo, Ranboo? Hey ENDERBITCH!"

"Yeah, I'll bring them to the tower with you." He said and took the list.

Trapped, sit down, shut up, do what you're told.

"I'll get on it right away." He muttered while working on the order.

______________________________

I found my motivation! It was buried in a box of random shit!

Have a great day/night my friends💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙