"Agent 7000, get ready."
"Yes, Miss V8, we've got it."
At the Blue Fire food stand, just like every day, the regular customers were enjoying the delicious food.
"She's moving, ma'am, she's going to escape," said a man wearing a strange white suit.
The initials XCP-Association were clearly visible on his back.
"Damn it, don't let her escape. Initiate the attack and protect everyone," ordered a woman as she descended from a tree.
One of the men in the strange outfit rushed toward the food stand at high speed while pulling out a kind of electric baton.
Everyone looked at him in fear, and that fear grew even stronger when the man raised the weapon and pointed it at someone's plate of food.
"Hey, please, help!" the owner of the plate screamed desperately.
Clack!
The man ignored the woman's screams and struck anyway, and to everyone's surprise, a massive eye emerged from the plate.
"Now!" shouted the man in strange clothing, and seconds later, the woman known as V8 and several others dressed the same appeared on the scene.
"Activating soporific," said one of the members, throwing a smoke bomb into the air.
Their companions put on masks as they watched the customers fall asleep.
The one-eyed creature burst forward, revealing its true form.
A kind of viscous mass filled with eyes—an XCP.
"Alright, everyone, you know what to do," said the woman in charge as she drew her weapon.
Her companions followed the order and went straight for the monster.
XCP-Association.
What is their mission?
Secure.
The monster tried to escape, but it was struck, blocking the attempt.
Contain.
The monster fired several beams from its eyes, but another agent blocked them with a strange shield and launched a counterattack.
Protect.
With no other option, the monster attempted to flee through the center, but the woman in charge intercepted it with a pistol.
Ah, right… there's something else now.
XCP is the new name.
Bang!
Without giving it time to escape again, the shot destroyed the creature's entire body.
S>X – Eliminate.
***
"Fuck… I fell asleep playing video games again…"
Through the halls of Blue Petals High School walked a slim, brown-eyed, somewhat tall boy. Although he was actually 1.70 meters tall, when introducing himself to girls he liked, he usually claimed to be a bit taller.
After all, what harm could a small lie do?
"Good morning…"
With a visibly tired face, the boy arrived at his classroom.
"Oh, if it isn't Snow. Late to my class again. That video game that came out yesterday must have been fun, right?"
Without a doubt, his most distinctive trait was his peculiar snow-white hair. Not even his own parents knew how he had acquired it; according to doctors, it was an anomaly out of the ordinary.
Because of that peculiarity, some of his classmates often called him Snow, even though that wasn't his real name.
"Actually, yeah. Yesterday I leveled my character up to level 50, I even got a rare item," the boy replied mockingly as he sat down.
"Did you do the assignment?" the teacher asked, visibly annoyed.
"Here you go, vegestorium, stop bothering me," the boy scoffed, tossing his notebook to the teacher.
The man caught it and began reading. After a second of pause, he spoke:
"You barely passed again. Seven out of ten exercises—one more than last time. I'm still surprised video games haven't eaten your brain," William said, throwing the notebook back to the boy, who caught it without any trouble.
"Come on, professor, that's why Jasper is so smart. Science approves video games as a learning system. Besides, they say they work as practice in case you ever run into an XCP," said Michael, the classmate sitting behind Jasper and one of the few who called him by his real name.
But Professor William made a disapproving expression before responding:
"Come on, Michael, don't make excuses to justify Snow. Video games are a waste of time. And I thought I already told you in another class that XCPs don't exist. That's just an invention of the internet."
"On that, I agree with the vegestorium, Michael. I thought you were already bored with that XCP nonsense—it's ridiculous," Jasper added in a nonchalant tone.
"Oh, come on, Snow, don't be like that. Didn't you see what happened yesterday at the Blue Fire food stand?" began Laura, the classmate sitting next to Jasper.
"They're known for their strict hygiene standards, but yesterday everyone—including customers and workers—got sick… and none of them remember what happened or what they ate! It has to be the work of—"
"And do you have proof that it was an XCP?" Jasper interrupted calmly.
Laura, clearly embarrassed, fell silent and lowered her head.
"Exactly. Why has there never been a single image of those creatures called XCPs? And if there really is a group that deals with them, why keep it a secret? What would they gain from that? Let's leave that as fantasy and get back to class."
With those words, Professor William continued with his lesson.
***
"Come on, is that all you've got, Chris? I thought you'd practiced."
After classes ended, they went to the gym. Jasper was playing basketball with Chris—it was a common routine for the two of them.
"Damn it, Snow, you don't even practice. How the hell are you so good at this?" Chris said, exhausted.
"Come on, I told you—it's part of my genius," Jasper replied egotistically as he spun the ball on one of his fingers.
"To hell with your genius. Your reflexes and physical condition aren't human, and all you do is play video games!" Chris complained, sitting down to rest.
"Jasper has everything it takes to be an XCP, don't you think, Chris? What if he's been fooling us this whole time?" Michael joked, joining the conversation.
"And there you go again with the XCPs. Looks like you and Laura don't have any other topic to talk about. By the way, where is she?" Jasper asked as he drank some water.
"RUN!!!"
As if the universe itself had answered his question, everyone in the gym heard a scream. Everyone recognized the voice—it was Laura.
"You have to run, he… he's coming!"
Laura burst into the gym shouting those words, leaving everyone in shock. She was hyperventilating, her body completely drenched in sweat, and her face showed an expression of pure panic.
Something was wrong.
"What's wrong, Laura? Are they thieves or criminals?" another girl asked as she hugged her.
"No… no. I… this morning I saw something strange and decided to investigate. I didn't think… I didn't think that…! It's an XCP. There's one in the school—we have to get out of here!"
Terrified, Laura ran out of the place.
The other students froze, processing what they had just heard.
"Wow… I have to admit, they set the scene really well. William, Laura is an amazing actress," Jasper said, breaking the silence.
"You… you don't believe her?" Chris asked, fear visible in his eyes.
"Come on, Chris, are you seriously going to believe that farce? I'm sure she and Michael planned it. Come on, Michael, admit it—it's a joke!" Jasper said, placing his hand on his friend's shoulder.
But unlike what he expected, Michael's body was trembling, as if he were standing at the North Pole.
"What the hell…? Come on, you believe in that setup too? I'm going to prove it's fake. If Laura came from that direction, then that supposed XCP must be there."
Jasper walked toward the gym door with his usual confidence.
But the moment he stepped outside, the entire world seemed to freeze.
The air, once warm and filled with the smell of sweat and burnt rubber, was now cold—a deep chill that froze him to the bone. The fluorescent lights in the hallway flickered weakly, as if even the electricity sensed danger.
And then he saw it.
At the end of the hallway, moving with unnatural motions, stood a person.
No—it wasn't a person.
It was tall—absurdly tall. Its white skin looked like wet paper, hanging in thin folds. It had no mouth, no nose, only two plate-white eyes fixed on Jasper.
An instinctive warning surged through Jasper's body. His mind screamed: run. His legs barely responded.
"Shit!" he exclaimed, his heart about to burst from his chest.
He tried to turn back toward the gym, but there was no time. One of those whip-like limbs stretched out faster than any human could perceive, striking him head-on.
Jasper was sent flying, his back slamming brutally against the metal lockers.
Clack!
From inside the gym, the screams of his classmates could be heard:
"Noooo, help!!! It's a… it's a…!"
"It can't be! It killed Jasper! That thing killed Jasper!"
Without wasting a second, the monster twisted its head impossibly toward the gym door.
And with a single long, grotesque step, it turned its attention to them.