Cullen couldn't care less about the gaping bullet wound in his shoulder. Instead, he was busy yelling at Arbor for being a complete moron.
"How the hell did you manage to lead us to that man!? You have one job; is it that hard to do?"
Screaming somehow took his mind off the pain.
"I made one small mistake. When was the last time my information was off? None of us got killed, so just shrug it off already!"
Charlotte, who had been tending to Cullen's wound, finally decided to chime in.
"One small mistake? Ha! How could you not have known she was Gifted? She shot bullets out of her fucking fingers! Do normal people do that, Arbor?"
"Listen, it's not like they go around revealing their powers to everyone; how was I supposed to know? He looked like a normal businessman who seemed like a good target; we just got unlucky."
Cullen would have started screaming again, but the pain from the needle in his arm forced him to keep his words to himself.
Just got unlucky? This guy is a madman. There's no way he's the same age as me... was he dropped on his head as a kid?
The door suddenly slammed open, interrupting his thoughts. Darron walked through, looking… mad? He could never tell what was going through his head.
Darron was the leader of their group and the oldest. Cullen assumed he was around 30, but they never got a clear answer from him. His tall, muscular appearance saved them in many situations, along with his distinctive features: short, white hair, and greenish eyes.
Charlotte usually planned their missions and helped communicate with each other during them. She was 22, with striking silver hair and warm brown eyes. She also served as a doctor in some cases, like when bullet-shooting Gifted tried to kill them. They targeted wealthy individuals whom Arbor scouts out. Once the prey was found, they set up a trap and robbed them. They weren't proud of it, but it's not like those scumbags deserved it more than them.
"All of you stop bickering; what's done is done. Arbor, if you don't wanna eat nothing but soggy bread for the next month, I suggest you get out there and find us a new target."
Arbor suddenly grew pale, which brought some satisfaction to Cullen.
"Y-Yes, sir... I'll get right on it."
As Arbor left, Darron sat down and closed his eyes, as if keeping them open was a challenge.
"How's the wound, kid?"
"N-Nothing I can't handle, of course."
In reality, the pain was terrible, and the stench of the place didn't help.
Their hideout was in an abandoned building that was destroyed by an Abomination; no one bothered to rebuild it since they lived in the poorest area in the country.
They lived on the fourth floor of an old apartment building, infested with mold and crawling with insects. The Abomination that destroyed this place was a powerful one, as you can tell by the wreckage all over their living room. The open walls allowed freezing air in during the winter, but they had to stay far away from the edge anyway. They would be kicked out and hunted down if someone in the streets below saw them.
"Alright, then, let's just relax for now until our next mission. We can't afford another screw-up. We were lucky that man was only a Gifted Soldier."
When Gifted gained their powers, they were given an ability, as well as power, speed, endurance, and more. Even the strongest normal human couldn't match one in a fistfight, especially if they used their ability. It was a miracle they were able to run away before things got worse.
The Gifted could also enhance their abilities and strengthen their bodies, but Cullen didn't know much about that. He wasn't sure, but someone said that they could destroy entire buildings in their fights, so Cullen didn't want to aggravate one. Ever.
They were running low on food and probably needed to move into a new place. Hopefully, Arbor would do his damn job for once and find them a filthy rich guy begging to be robbed.
Cullen looked at Charlotte but couldn't tell what she was thinking about.
"Hey Char, if you were chosen… what ability would you want?"
It was a stupid question, but he knew that. People like them would never be picked. The God only chooses those who are worthy, respectable, and at the top of society. Criminals like them would flip the world upside down if they became Gifted, but it's still fun to imagine.
She seemed surprised at first, but then let out a little chuckle at his dumb question.
"Let's see… I would probably want to fly."
He was shocked to get an actual answer.
"…The world is wonderful in some places. Flying through canyons, up mountains, across oceans… it sounds like a dream."
Cullen couldn't help but laugh.
"How generic! Why does everyone wanna fly? It's not like you can go someplace without monsters. You'll never find peace on the planet, let alone the city."
He turned to Darron, who was sitting so still you would've thought he had died.
"What about you? The ability to summon cigarettes with the snap of your finger?"
"Unless you want your face to be my new ashtray, I suggest you shut up and get some sleep."
Cullen laughed nervously, but he couldn't tell if he was serious.
'Maybe flying isn't so bad; I could get away from him before he kills me.'
***
A couple of days later, Cullen moped around with nothing to do. Charlotte and Darron were out trying to restore power to their place after it mysteriously stopped working a while back, but they didn't seem to be getting anywhere.
'Should we celebrate… no, celebrate probably isn't the right word. Ah, I don't even know anymore.'
It was the 10th anniversary of The God and The Devil's arrival in their world.
People had different opinions on whether it was good or bad for humanity. Some argued that it was the next step in evolution, while others said it was the end of all life on Earth. For him, it was a little bit of both.
All of humanity was now located on one continent; the rest were lost once Abominations started appearing. There were extremely powerful ones right from the start, but it took time for the Gifted to learn about their abilities and grow stronger. Now, the balance isn't so one-sided anymore; some of them are trying to retake what was lost at that time.
The sudden gap in power between normal humans and Gifted meant doom for all who couldn't adapt. Ordinary people could not have the luxuries that Gifted did; all they could do was accept being inferior. On the other hand, it made his life of stealing much more profitable.
The Devil approaches people who are depressed, lonely, and suicidal. Because of this, the value of antidepressant drugs skyrocketed. Pharmaceutical companies became filthy rich, and the drug economy changed drastically.
At the time, antidepressants were categorized as stages 1-5. People who took stage 1 pills were only 30% likely to get better, and that chance dropped dramatically as the medication got stronger. If you're prescribed stage 4 pills and don't show signs of improvement, the government will take you away.
What they actually did to you is a secret, but it was most likely an execution.
Stealing these pills is his job, more or less. Since antidepressants are extremely valuable, many employees at pharmacies will steal them, and those are his primary targets. Sometimes, his crew even attacks shipments of them, but those are usually guarded by Gifted… which is a death sentence.
Once they have the pills, they can sell them and profit considerably. That was how the four of them made their living, but they had to be extremely careful. They are criminals, after all, and Gifted wouldn't have thought twice about attacking them if provoked.
Interrupting his thoughts, Arbor came back with good news. The wait was finally over, because he had found a new target.
To put it simply, it was a jackpot.
Arbor was ecstatic while trying to explain how he stumbled across this guy.
"Alright, get this: I was sitting outside the factory building on Marvin Street, where the medication is produced and shipped to hospitals and pharmacies. That place is locked shut; the guards have guns and everything. I even thought I saw a couple of Gifted walk in there as well. Obviously, we won't be able to steal directly from the place, so I was about to leave... but then I noticed something weird."
His eyes lit up. Cullen had never seen him so excited before.
"Some dude who looked like a factory worker was walking out of the building, carrying a briefcase. He was rushing to get out of there; I could practically feel him sweating from across the street. I thought it was probably nothing, but I followed him anyway. On the way back, he made a random turn into an alley, ensured no one was watching, and opened the briefcase. I couldn't get a good look since he was hiding it, but I definitely saw at least one container of stage five pills."
Cullen couldn't believe his ears. He looked around and saw Charlotte and Darron's shocked expressions, then finally said something.
"W-What? How is that even possible? Are you sure they were stage five?"
"I'm positive. It was a black and red box with a locked combination on it: that's what they're always carried in. That guy must have stolen a whole briefcase of them somehow. I did some research on him afterward; his name is Arthur Holland, and he's a worker in charge of the packaging process. He's probably selling them to a dealer and making millions."
Stage five pills were the highest dosage. They weren't given to everybody, only the higher-ups who were "needed" by society, like government officials or politicians. The only way for someone like them to acquire those pills was through the black market, so you can imagine how much they're worth. Still, something didn't make sense.
It was nearly impossible to steal these. They were locked in vaults, guarded 24/7. Gifted would surround any shipments of them; Cullen had only seen a few in his entire life. Even if someone were working in that factory, it would be a death sentence to try to take some.
'Yet Arbor claims he had seen a guy with an entire briefcase. He must have finally lost it... maybe it's time to start looking for a new teammate.'
Darron finally spoke, a little skeptical of the whole situation.
"Alright, it sounds promising... but too good to be true. What if it's a trap? I've never heard of the government doing something like that, but it's possible."
Arbor shook his head.
"I highly doubt it's a trap. There's no way that guy was acting; he was scared shitless. Listen, I know the path he takes and what time he leaves work. If this works, we could be seriously rich... we gotta at least try."