One Year Earlier…

The sun would be setting in one hour and forty-five minutes.

It was an event that occurred every day, or more specifically at the end of one, and yet fear still gripped the populace.

They sat in traffic, rushing as fast as they could to the safety of their homes, tension rising for each second they remained outside.

Exposed.

All whilst another group travelled the other direction.

To instead stand defiant in the darkness.

To go to work.

The Island of Cirland was home to fifty-five million people (as of the last census) with its nation capital of Shordon boosting approximately ten million living civilians.

It was a grand city of history and culture, it was the home of the Royal Family, the Government, where celebrities opted to reside and where great events took place every day. It was associated with its fashion, its music, and was home to the latest trends in food.

It was also the home of the headquarters for the nationwide government funded Dental Service, which stood proudly in the borough of Nesis Grove.

It’s tall and imposing structure stood in the spot where, it was rumoured, that the first creature of the night had been slain nearly four hundred years prior.

Built like a fortress, it had been expanded upon over time with new additions that made it the ideal location to train as well as deploy against the Enemy. The Undead. The Fanged. Nosferatu.

Vampires.

Unlike the other ten million people in the city who were watching the darkening sky or checking their watches with creeping terror, their protectors marched proudly into this building. They were fully aware of what tonight would bring and were prepared for all eventualities.

At least, that’s how it looked from the outside.

***

Ashyer Zephro felt like he was going to throw up.

The night before he hadn’t slept well.

His mind had instead been flooding itself with everything he had spent the last thirty weeks learning.

He recalled, stifling a yawn, that he had gone through a stretch of waking nearly every twenty minutes and had stared at the ceiling trying to imagine and work his way through hypothetical scenarios.

On more than one occasion he had gone for a walk through his apartment to tire out his restless legs, or simply sat with a textbook in front of him desperately trying to remember the different sections of teeth just in case it popped up.

Between the tossing, turning, and panicked staring at his phone, it was frankly amazing that he was also afraid that he would accidentally end up somehow oversleeping.

In truth, he likely slept a grand total two hours and forty-six minutes, and that was accumulated.

Mercifully, his shift was due to start at 14:00hrs, though of course this didn’t stop him from waking up just before 6am and spending the remaining hours of his day checking that his uniform was spotless, his equipment was prepared, and that he knew precisely the route he needed to take to get to the station.

He had also left early. Because of course he did.

Now, standing in the locker room with other individuals whom he did not recognise, he caught sight of the slight green in his cheeks and the bags under his eyes and realised that despite his best attempts he still looked nervous.

Ashyer Zephro tried to push down on his light red hair in a desperate attempt to keep it under control, but it resisted his attempts with an almost cartoonish springing sound as it bounced back into place.

He sighed.

“Okay,” he muttered; “I guess my hair didn’t get the memo that today was about professionalism… but if that’s the hardest thing I have to deal with today, I’m lucky… ”

He sighed, sliding his t-shirt over his head-

“Hey, hey!”

A voice and a body crashed into him from behind and, before he could react, he was lifted into the air and slammed backwards into the ground. His eyes swirled in a daze and shock, and then were replaced with daggers.

Jumping up, t-shirt still covering his head, he was still able to grab the figure who had so swiftly disrespected him and prepared to throw a punch.

“How you doing?” His attacker said, grinning from ear to ear as Ashyer pulled the shirt away and glared at his classmate.

He resisted the punch, releasing him. No sense getting kicked out on the first day.

Second day, maybe…

“Dragonick…” He muttered, grabbing his own black uniformed shirt; “Is there a reason you decided to give me a concussion today?”

“I was feeling tense, so figured I would relax with my old pal.”

“Okay, but.. how was that meant to help me relax though?!”

Dragonick shrugged, that appeared to not have occurred to him.

“Dunno. I figured you’d have tried to sock me at least once though. That would have probably felt good for you.”

“I’m… rethinking my choices- and did you have to do this in the locker room!? Everyone is staring at us now!”

Ashyer gestured around at the other men and women who, sure enough, were observing whilst in the process of getting dressed.

The uniform was fairly consistent, with the colour Black showing prominence from the shoes and socks all the way to the coat, trousers, and shirts. The only thing that varied was in the individuals who were lucky enough to have a customised uniform, though they were few and far between in this space.

The idea was that when dealing with creatures of the night there was no uniform that could be worn that would provide you with the appropriate camouflage. Black had been chosen (by a committee, in truth) specifically because it was felt that when hiding against Vampires, it made sense to blend into the shade as much as possible

Though, given his own pink mohawk and bright green eyes, Dragonick had either not received the memo or decided that it didn’t apply to him.

Sitting down on the bench next to Ashyer, who continued to get changed, he muttered; “I guess I’ve got other things on my mind than what other people are thinking, you know?”

Ashyer understood that feeling.

“I hear you; I didn’t sleep well last night- or, really, since our training started.”

“Oh really? Those bags under your eyes aren’t just more attempt at camouflage? Or are you trying to develop a face pillow to sleep on during your shift?”

“Yeah. I think I will sock you.”

“Threatening to do so makes you feel better, right?”

Ashyer sighed again with exasperation at his classmates phrasing but couldn’t help but admit that there was a comfort in this conversation.

He certainly wasn’t panicking at the concept of his first shift as much, nor the magnitude of what tonight was in the grand scheme of things.

He was just… a bit more pissed off.

“Oh, hey, I thought I heard a commotion.” Another voice said as, from around the corner of the locker room, a woman approached buttoning up her top buttons.

“Scarlet,” Ashyer said, to which she nodded in greeting whilst Dragonick jumped up for another hug. This one didn’t involve a flying tackle or wrestling throw, though that was because Dragonick knew better.

She accepted the embrace and, upon letting him go, he asked;

“How did you sleep last night?”

“Well, I did twenty press-ups every time I felt anxiety.”

“…so how many?”

“I lost count after five hundred… mostly because I stopped counting.”

“You’re obscene.” Ashyer said with a laugh, which she copied nervously.

“I guess it was a bit over the top, I was hoping to exhaust myself into unconscious, but… well, it didn’t work. Now I’m just sore.”

Scarlet Aizen was just a few inches taller than her other classmates and was athletically slender with toned arms and legs. The uniform tried to hide it, but such material was incapable of hiding such gains.

She was- out of the original classroom of twelve- the strongest.

Her pale blue hair was tied upwards, whilst her faint yellow eyes scanned the pair before settling on Ashyer.

“So you didn’t sleep great either, I take it?”

“I’m pretty sure what I did didn’t classify as sleep so much as a form of self-inflicted psychological torture…”

“A bit unnecessary to do to yourself given we’re going to be working for nearly sixteen hours tonight.”

The reality of their evening shift pattern seemed to vibrate through each of them with uncomfortable honesty, and Ashyer said after a half second of seeing his life flash before his eyes;

“Yeah, I’m fairly certain if we survive that I’m going to sleep for at least twenty hours.”

“Aren’t we on duty tomorrow as well?” Dragonick asked, to which Ashyer felt his last remaining spirit crumble away.

His classmate, not realising the emotional damage that had just been inflicted, instead stood beside Scarlet and said;

“Let’s not worry about all those things, though! I mean, hell, this is everything we’ve been training for, right? Today is where our dream comes true!”

“It’s a night shift.” Ashyer corrected, though he wasn’t sure why.

“Tonight is where our dreams come true! Tonight is when we finally get to enact sweet vengeance upon humanities most vile foes in the most ironic of forms. Tonight is when we implement the plan we had back on that one day off in Week Four!”

Ashyer pondered as he laced up his black boots, trying desperately to recall what he meant, until the memory suddenly clicked. It had been hidden behind multiple exams, but he did recall the conversation.

“Wait- are you talking about-.”

“Operation Reverse Fang! The plan where we come across a Vampire and proceed to bite him- or her- on the neck. This will surely cause the blood sucker to experience the pain it has enacted on so many others, which will then mean that said Vampire will be more inclined to accept a path of rehabilitation! Possibly by becoming an accountant, or the keyboard player in a band that doesn’t need one.”

“Is that what you guys used to talk about it in the mess hall?” Scarlet wondered, adding quickly; “Wait- I mean, kidding aside, isn’t there a notable biological risk associated with placing your mouth and puncturing the skin of an undead humanoid who famously weaponizes its own fluids for the purposes of transforming a living person into a Vampire?”

“Don’t worry.” Dragonick said, flashing a thumbs up; “I’m gonna wear protection.”

“Eh?” They both said, concerned.

“A gum shield. Or maybe some of those novelty vampire teeth that those costume shops sometimes sell to the “edgy” parents who want their kids to be a “true monster” on Halloween. I haven’t figured it out yet, but I do know I want to do it at some point.”

“Well, the only harm in trying is in what could happen, I guess…?” Ashyer said, chuckling as he finally slipped his arms through the long black coat that the others were wearing and looked at the figure in the mirror once more.

It had been a hard thirty weeks, the bags were proof, but the reality was that this was an incredibly difficult profession to get into.

The training alone was designed specifically so that everyone who graduated was considered the best of the best, with his own classroom starting out with twelve who all decreed at the very beginning that they would all make it to the end.

Three had dropped out within the first ten weeks, two had become seriously injured and the final one had had a psychological breakdown.

Ashyer had made it through sheer perseverance, with his darkest moments reminding himself of his one true desire- to reduce the number of deaths at the hands or teeth of Vampires.

He stared at himself for a bit longer, feeling in that moment that he was a child playing dress-up in a uniform he wasn’t fit to wear comfortably just yet.

He wondered if perhaps, in a years’ time, he would remember this moment and the person standing opposite him.

He was less nauseous at least.

“Hey, I want to get all self-reflective in front of the mirror as well!” Dragonick said, pulling Scarlet and Ashyer together so that they all fit in the reflection, with himself proudly in the centre.

“Look at us!”

He beamed, forcing the other two to awkwardly smile as he held them in place for those final few moments. As the other bodies in the room began to walk away, Dragonick held on for a second longer. Their pre-shift briefing was about to begin, but this was important for them.

“We actually did it, you guys.” He said; “We actually made it here.”

“We did, didn’t we…” Scarlet agreed.

Ashyer stared at himself, tensing, but finally relaxing with a deep sigh.

“Yeah,” he said; “We’re… Dentists.”