Ah My Goddess Fan Fiction ❯ Rind, the Ring, and I ❯ Moonlight and Mall Security ( Chapter 2 )

Two Days Later

Burnout. As he drove fifteen miles an hour through the mall parking lot, that's what twenty five year old Daniel Rice felt both mentally and physically. He envisioned a warm king-sized bed and sleeping until he wasn't tired anymore. No alarm clocks, not having to rush into work eight hours after a double shift would have suited him just fine. Working eighty hours a week in a dead end job took its toll, making him forget what day it was, what time it was, made him teeter on the edge of sanity. Daniel worked in the lowly profession known as contract security, in other words, "rent-a-cop". He had no more power than the average citizen and less respect.

As he pulled the Jeep Cherokee to a tempory stop to drink his third cup of coffee in an hour, there was a shimmer of light that came from the driver's side window followed by the presence of another person.

"Mr Rice?" a serious, breathy voice asked.

He dropped the cup of coffee, almost spilling the entire contents in his lips. Luckily, most of it got on his lower leg then the floor. Still, it burned like hell.

Wincing, he looked over to see a lithe fair skinned woman with lavender/blueish hair and matching eyes. Three dots decorated her forehead, one each under her eyes. She wore an extravagantly tailored white jumpsuit like outfit and smelled of sweet jasmine.

Daniel reached for the radio knob to turn his blaring Linkin Park CD down.

"May I help you?" he asked, dumfounded at her presence. Perhaps he was so tired, he didn't realize she had entered his vehicle the normal way.

"No, the other way around," she answered matter of factly. "I am here to help you."

"Help me do mall security?" he asked. "Are you a newbie?"

"You protect people, I see," she noted, running a gloved hand over a pair of fuzzy dice hanging from the rearview mirror. "You watch over them."

"I collect a paycheck," he replied sourly. "Comes with the costume."

He pointed to his light blue uniform shirt with square metal bade and cheap nameplate.

"What you do is commendable."

Daniel sighed. "If you say so. But you have me at a disadvantage. Who are you? How do you know me?"

"I am Rind, Goddess of the Axe, First Class Special Catergory…."

"Are you an anime cosplayer or something?"

Her expression remained serious and stoic causing him to wonder if she was disturbed or setting him up for a practical joke. Disturbed she might be, but there was something about her that attracted him on many levels.

"I answered you already, Mr Rice. It may be hard to accept, but nonetheless is the truth."

"So you've come from the heavens to help me?" he asked incredulous. "Wait a minute, I got a email and a message on my answering machine from someone with your name. Was it you?"

"Yes, why didn't you reply?"

"There's all kinds of wackos on the internet these days," he explained.

"Well, I have come to mentor you as you have been chosen to a higher calling."

He felt more than skeptical. "Surely you jest."

Rind grabbed his arm. "I urge you to trust me. You, Daniel Rice have been selected to be a protector of your kind. These are troubling times, the need for a hero has arisen."

"A super hero?" he asked with a grin. "Pinch me now, I gotta wake up."

"I am serious," she looked him straight in the eyes, her face only inches away.

"Sorry," he said, looking away from the intensity of her gaze. "But can you provide proof of your claim?"

She nodded and stuck her arm through the passenger window. It came through the driver's side and tapped him on the left shoulder. "Will this suffice?"

He had to admit she had seemingly materialized out of nowhere before to begin with.

"Okay, goddess Rind," he nodded warily at her. "I don't want everything on a need to know basis. Will you answer all my questions fully?"

"If it is relevant to your training," she replied.

"Hey Rice, what's your twenty?" a voice squawked over the radio.

"Lot 3F," he responded.

"Just makin' sure you're alive and well."

"I'm going to swing by the cinemas to make sure no one's loitering," he announced then turned back to Rind. "Will I have to be a working super hero like Spiderman or Superman?"

She didn't take his quip as a joke. "I think it would be best to keep your identity a secret. As far as keeping this job, do you truly want to?"

"In a pig's eye," he replied. "But what I'm worried about is compensation. I still have bills to pay."

"I will help you with your finances as I will be dwelling with you during my time here."

He stared open mouthed at her. That could have its drawbacks and its benefits. But looking at her longer only made him think of the benefits.

"I'll take off from work tomorrow, but I can't pack it in just yet," he said to her. "There's a lot of questions I need to ask."

"Well enough," she agreed.

"I get off duty in an hour. Will you rematerialize in my car at 23:05?"

"Of course."

He blinked once and then she was gone as quickly as she came. Things like this only happened in make believe, he thought to himself.