A Meeting of a Lifetime​

Michael smirked as he walked along, slowly glancing about before he made his way over to the next block. He saw some police off to the side, but they were of no concern. He found the trick to be that you just had to act like you belonged. That was really it. As long as you didn't immediately freeze up, stammer, or run off like a maniac, then you could pass by, even say something along the lines of 'evening officer'. He found it humorous to do so. It was actually a bit like giving them an invisible middle finger. Hello, I'm a murder who has been killing politicians here and there, how are you? Good? Great! See you around later!

He made sure not to whistle since that would probably drag some attention and once more he looked down at his phone. He was almost at his meeting place, thankfully it was nowhere around Sparky's. In fact, as he walked along he passed by another man on the street, but as soon as he passed he heard some footsteps behind him. Aw great, someone trying to very badly trail him. Well... he could always find an alleyway and deal with him there if need be. He walked a bit further then quickly turned into an alley, making sure to head in a way while as he turned about and waited for his stalker to come in.

It was only a moment before the man appeared in the alley behind him. Before Michael could do anything, the man held up his hands in a sign of surrender. "Not here to get into a fight, man. Just here to deliver a message."

The man tossed a letter to Michael, turning to leave the moment it left his hand. "It's from a friend of mine. Take my advice: don't ignore her summons." With that, the man had disappeared as quickly as he had come.

Michael quickly picked up the letter and tore it open. He opened it up, only seeing three lines, but as he read them he could feel his body shaking with excitement. H-had he finally gotten through to Phoenix? Well, he didn't know HOW they contracted anyone who had potential, given that they were an underground operation and all. But... but maybe his last job had finally shown them that he was obviously someone they needed? Yes! This had to be them! But... it could also be a trap... what if that guy was an undercover cop and was only checking to see if he was who he thought he was?

Michael pocketed the letter as he made his way down the way he had been coming from. He could feel his heart beating as he got closer and closer to the meeting place. On the one hand, he was disguised... but there were so many cops. He had to act cool. Remain cool Michael.

He slowly opened the door as he glanced about before heading inside. It was nothing like the other clubs he had been to, but thankfully it WAS peaceful. No loud music banging in his sensitive ears. He made his way off to a empty table and sat down. No doubt if that guy had managed to discover who he was, then whoever this 'J' was would be able to spot him from a mile away.

And just like that, Agent Monroe was upon her prey. Kind of. She set down her cup of tea and walked up to Michael, being as inconspicuous as she possibly could.

"Mister Miller." she stated quietly, not making immediate eye contact with him. "Glad that you came. Now, would you like to know why you're here?"

As she came upon him Michael could see that she might have been a bit out of the element. He had talked about certain measures of business publicly before, he found it fun to tease the guards in a way they couldn't quite understand, as well as the rest of the public.

"Jessica!" He said as he got up and shook her hand. "Well it's been some time hasn't it?" He asked as he ushered her into her seat and he took his, "I have to ask, how has that television been? Any other problems or such? I hope not, you know how easy I'm able to solve problems. In any case, I got your message. Need me to fix something huh? Well, you know how busy I can be, but give me a idea of the job. Are we looking at fixing a toaster? Something bigger like a stove? Or is it something rather impossible?"

Michael was hoping that this 'J' person would play along and get his idea of asking for how hard the job was. As long as they talked and didn't whisper all the time or draw any attention such as NOT sharing eye contact despite them having a conversation... well it would make things easier.

Jenilee gave Batman a quizzical expression. He was certainly one for show, but she already knew that. She wasn't exactly new to having to blend in with the crowd, though, and his tactics weren't exactly her style. Not when it came to first contact, at least. This place may have been surrounded by cops, but that didn't mean they had to put on a play for their enjoyment.

Despite that she decided to play along, figuring any other way futile now that he had already set the mood. "Well, depending on how you go about it, it could either be quite easy or incredibly difficult to fix, Mikey. I have a few tools ready to get the job started. If you want to try those out, I'm sure it'll make your time a lot easier to manage."

He nodded, "Well, that'll be good. Are we going to talk business with some dinner or did you have something else in mind?" He asked. "Personally, I'm intrigued to see what the problem is. Your message didn't give that much information so I'm guessing the best thing to do would be to head over there and you can give me a step by step. Tell me what exactly isn't working and I can look inside and see if I can get it working for you. I'm a great mechanic you know, so I think I can get it working, even if it proves to be stubborn."

"Yeah, I wasn't exactly sure how to describe it in a short note. It might be best if you just come with me and check it out. We can take a shortcut through the park." Jenilee stood up and grabbed her laptop case, swinging the strap over her shoulder. She motioned for Michael to follow her as she exited the building.

Once they had gotten a fair distance away and were about to enter the park, she spoke again, a bit more tacitly. "It's not going to be an easy job, but I think you can handle it. Or at least, I certainly hope so, because I would hate for another supposedly Gifted talent to disappoint me again." She reached into her pocket and clicked a button on one of her many gadgets. This one specifically prevented any outside bugs or machines from listening in, and with no one else in the immediate area that gave them plenty of room to speak openly.

"Let me start off by introducing myself properly. The name's Jenilee Monroe. I'm the kind of person that likes to keep an eye on things, specifically the comings and goings of promising individuals, such as yourself." She pulled out her laptop and opened it to one of her many camera feeds. "And I'm very good at what I do. If I'm correct, you are as well."

Michael smirked, "You already know who I am, though I hope you weren't too offended that I went with Jessica. It was the first one that hit my head given the J." He chuckled a bit, "Well, before we truly truly begin I'll go down the list. First off, my rules. I never ask WHY specifically you are doing something. Second rule, I never ask for a real name so I'm hoping what you gave me was an alias. Third rule, if you have any other jobs lined up for me let me know once I do complete the current one and only if you like how I did. Fourth rule, given my status if you do want to check out my... other form you may. I've had many clients who were interested and want to see a sort of demonstration."

He brushed back his hair a bit, "Now, I'm not sure how you found me, but I'm assuming from your note that if you were able to find me... then the police will very well be on my trail next. If you really do have an eye on things, then I'm sure you can keep them off my back too. How about we do a question on question basis?" He asked, "I ask a question, and you can ask a question back, nothing about current living quarters or previous clients mind you."

He smirked, "Sound like a deal? If so I can ask the first question, how exactly can you keep me safe? I'm assuming you can provide just a speck of evidence that is untraceable but also shows that you intend to keep your promise."

Jenilee smirked. "Alias or not, you'll find that people only hear of me when I want them to hear of me. I can easily do the same for you, so long as you show that it's worth my time. No, I don't need to see your other face, as I've seen it in action more than once already. And that leads me into an answer for your question. Yes, I can keep you safe. Well, not really 'safe,' but I can give you a better chance at staying alive." At this, Jenilee turned her attention to her laptop, typing away at the keys.

"If you want a demonstration . . . this is the best one I can give in this setting." A moment later one of the street lamps illuminating the park flickered, briefly glowing almost as brightly as it would during the day, but not so much as to alert anyone in the vicinity. A second later it went off completely. "I can do that and more with the entire city. Most of my talents aren't really something that you can see, but I assure you that they're just as helpful as anything else in this city, if not more so."

Jenni grabbed something from within her bag. "If worse comes to worse, however, I have a few more . . . direct tools that can help you. A wide array of gadgets and gizmos that will leave anyone you use them on a bit, how should I put it? Shocked. Or worse, if the need arises."

He crossed his arms, "You can still ask a question you know. Of course the questions rules don't apply to the job itself, so I think I'll move over to the job myself. When you want to use your question, sure. In any case regarding the lights... that would work well. If you have already seen my form I'm assuming you've at least recorded me somewhere. You know I have a use for the dark so if say... some very specific people had to go missing and the lights turned off... you get the idea. Anyways as to the job itself, is it easily accessible? Most of the jobs I got in my early days were fly up to a roof or in a window, so is it that easy or more along I have to walk around a bit to get to where I need to go?"

"If only it were so easy as making a few people vanish. If that were the case, I might well be able to do it myself. No, it's a bit more complex than that. Likely one of the more difficult contracts that you'll have taken on, I'm sure." Jen paused for a moment, placing her laptop beside her. "I assume that you've at least heard of the Jakobs and Dahl families?"

He nodded, "That I have. I have to watch the news, especially if there are heavy police movements. At times I do watch for senators too. Yes... sometimes I get contracts to kill them, but it helps no one if those who want to say... raise a whole lot a trouble for gifted are elected. But last I heard, someone died and there is animosity all around."

"Yes, there was a rather unfortunate death in the Jakobs family very recently. They've put the blame on the Dahls, which is probably exactly where they should be putting it. Regardless of right or wrong, this has left the two families in what I'd like to call utter chaos. They're basically at each others' throats and, with a little provocation, they're primed to explode. What I'd like to do is take advantage of this chaos and blindside them. What I need you to do comes down to simple theft, but not of a person. I need you to acquire a certain program from the Jakobs family. Allen Jakobs, to be specific." Jenilee typed a few things into her laptop as it sat next to her. A moment later, a photo of Allen Jakobs was on the screen, as well as information regarding his establishment. "As I'm sure you're aware, Mister Jakobs runs a low-class casino. What you might not know is that it doubles as a storehouse. Inside is a program that the Jakobs very recently acquired from the Dahls. I need you to get into that casino and retrieve this program. If you can do this, I can get the authorities off your tail entirely, for the time being."

He smirked, "I see..." He thought for a moment, "Okay, so head in and get it. Got it. Any security measures in place? Also, any potential distractions or should I just make one up?" He chuckled, "I could always cause a bit of chaos. Now, for the program itself, is it where I open a crate, see hundred of disks and just grab them all or does it have certain markings?"

Jenilee turned her attention entirely to her laptop, surfing through numerous screens and files as she prepared to explain her plan to Batman. "As far as security measures go, I can handle all of the mechanical ones. There'll be guards, though, and it'll be up to you to avoid them. I can give you a hand with that, but I can only do so much without it being overly conspicuous. Hopefully they won't pose too much of a problem. Most of them are pretty stupid anyways. As far as distractions go . . . it might be best if you can just remain hidden the entire time. If you need to, well, it is a casino. Just use some wit and gambling motive to get a few of the patrons to make a scene for you." Jenni turned the laptop so that Michael could see the screen once more. "The program itself isn't just something that'll be lying around. The Jakobs stole it from the Dahls for a reason, and it's certainly not something that they want to let anyone else get their hands on. Allen Jakobs doesn't keep it on his person, as that'd be too risky. It is, however, locked away tightly in a vault deep in the casino. I can hack the vault so long as you can get this to it." She pulled out a small data chip and handed it to Batman. "That'll give me remote access. Place that on the safe and I can get it open for you in no time. Once that's done, be ready to grab it and get yourself out of there." Jen paused for a moment. "As far as that one question I have goes, the only thing I have to ask is can you do it?"

He took it and nodded, "Yeah, I can do this. I imagine once I get in the vault then alarms will start going off. I'll need to move quickly but no worries, I can get out if need be. Now, where will we rendezvous? I imagine you'll find a way to contact me after this."

"I'll try to avoid tripping any alarms, but I'm sure there'll be some that will go off without Allen Jakobs being the one to open the safe. As far as a rendezvous point, how does the West Library sound? I do quite enjoy books, and it's a quiet place with little security. Well, little security that I can't turn off in a moment's notice." Jen shut her laptop, placing it back into its case. "And don't worry, if it comes down to it, I can easily find you again."

He smirked, "Sounds like a date. I'll get ready then." He began to make his way along, "I'll make sure to impress!"

BATMAN & ORACLE VS THE GHOST, AND THE UNFORTUNATE FATE OF ALLEN JAKOBS​

Michael walked along the sidewalk, whistling a small tune under his breath as he looked over at the casino. Getting in would be easy enough, just act like someone who wanted to gamble. He would have to play a few games no doubt, maybe just seem down on his luck, then he would have to raise a distraction. He would have to be quick in acting in case a distraction of some sort happened. He could always try picking someone's pocket and placing say, their wallet next to someone else and using that to slip into the back of the casino, but from there he would have to do his best to find the vault and get out with no one seeing him—or if they do, taking them out quickly.

He slipped on into the casino, doing his best to look like a patron as he went up to a slot machine and put a few coins in it. Just time to chill and relax for now.

"Where's my bodyguard?" a loud man called from a private room in the casino, looking around frantically behind a bulletproof window. Allen Jakobs was ostentatious and obnoxious, but he was the only man who was perfect for the job of sitting back and doing absolutely nothing while everyone else shipped things of varying legality in and out of the basement under the casino. Sasha had been told to "protect" him after the mess he'd caught himself up in not too long ago.

"I haven't moved," Sasha replied. He was standing right next to Allen's cushy seat. Honestly, he did move, but that was just to scratch his nose and check the black leather holster attached to his nice white suit. He hoped he didn't have to get it cleaned again any time soon.

"Good. God knows what the rest of my family would do to you if you let me die."

"I'm not here to save your ass."

"You're right; you're not. You're here to make it so I don't need saving, you emotionless piece of trash." Sasha never changed face. That lack of reaction made it sweeter, as well, when Allen couldn't get a rise out of someone. It made him give up much faster, too.

As Allen continued to count his blessings money, Sasha and two other bodyguards in the room kept an eye on the casino's guests, and ensured that no one had tried to open the vault directly behind them.

At the same time, Jenilee Monroe was back in her base of operations, watching the casino after having hacked into its many camera feeds. She had no way to directly contact Batman—she'd have to work on making communicators later—but for now she could at least keep some heat off of him.

"Okay, Bats, I hope you're ready for this." She glanced at the feed that displayed Allen Jakobs. He had a few guards around him. She was pretty sure one of them was a Gifted. Her scanners could tell normal humans from Gifted, but they weren't entirely perfect yet. "We'll have to get you down there, but we'll have to clear it out first."

She reached into her bag of goodies and pulled out one of her newer toys. "First thing to do is make a distraction." She placed the device on her laptop and homed in on one of the slot machines off to the side of Michael. Some unsuspecting patron was about to hit the jackpot—something not really seen in Jakobs' little playhouse, and it was certain to give Batman a small window of opportunity.

As Michael was about to put in a few more coins he suddenly heard a loud ringing noise that caused him to twitch a bit.

"Engrad! Look I won!" An elderly man began to dance in front of a machine that was spitting out coins.

Now was his chance. He didn't put his coin in as he walked off, making it look as if he was going to try a gambling table next, but instead he glanced back and saw the man was making a scene out of winning...

He slipped his way to a door and pushed inside. It said only employees... but he would act like he belonged. That always worked, at least he hoped it would work here.

"Good boy, Bats," Jenni murmured to herself as she began to make her way into the casino's security systems.

Michael was making his way along the hallways for employees only when, of course, he was eventually stopped. "Excuse me, where's your uniform?"

Michael turned around and smiled weakly, rubbing the back of his neck, "Hey there! Uh... yeah, I got here a bit late and I sort of... forgot it at home. Look, I'll just pick up another one! No big deal."

The actual employee however frowned, "Who are you, by the way? I haven't seen you around before."

"Oh... I'm new here." He said, "I was hired last week. Which of course explains why I don't have my uniform. I was half way here when I facepalmed and realized I left it at home. It's not wired into my rou-"

"We haven't hired anyone new yet. I know we've actually been cutting down on employees. Where's your badge?"

Michael looked as if he was to say something before his hand swung out and slammed into the man's throat. Of course any shouting was now much quieter as the employee instinctively gripped his throat to try and protect it. Of course, Michael couldn't resist following up with a kick to the knees, then another fist to the head. The man ended up collapsing in the hallway as Michael quickly glanced around before reaching down and starting to drag the body along, "Just how my bloody day starts." He muttered to himself as he made his way to a janitor's closet.

"Oh sweetie, you're day's not going to be getting much better if you continue down that path." Jenni tapped a few keys on her keyboard and a door to Batman's right swung open with a mechanical click!

Michael of course took the new door as he pulled the body in and settled it down on the floor. He grabbed the employee by the head and twisted the neck, hearing a loud cracking noise rather easily. Now he began to strip off the uniform he wore and searched his pockets, just in case he missed anything. It was just a bit uncomfortable in placing the uniform over his own clothes, but it was better than leaving more evidence around here. After hiding the body as well as he could he stepped out of the room and resumed his walk along the hallway. Now... to find this vault and get out of here. Obviously someone would recognize the badge after a while and realize he wasn't a real employee. He would have to get out BEFORE then.

It wouldn't be long before Michael was in the store room, which meant that he was also getting closer to Allen Jakobs and his bodyguards with every step.

"Get ready, Bats."

It was hard for Michael not to be at least a bit jumpy. Most of the time he would simply go in, kill someone, get out. This... was something different. He really had no schematics, so as he went along he made sure to take in every possible window and doorway he could use to fly out from if need be. He made sure to take in deep breaths to keep himself calm as he kept moving. He was almost there! He just had to find the vault and hope to God that no alarms went off, otherwise he would just have to grab whatever was there and quickly flee.

Allen Jakobs paced back and forth, thinking FURIOUSLY, and in all caps. Because his thoughts were so intense. He invited his new emotionless imaginary friend of a bodyguard to play chess with him, and out of four rounds, the Gifted of the two won them all. You're not supposed to beat your charge! Isn't that against the rules? So, he was doing his best to plan his moves very carefully, as loudly in his head as he could.

They were on their fifth game, and Allen had managed to take three of Sasha's pieces: two pawns and a rook. Of course, this was after losing both of his knights, his bishop, one of his own rooks and his queen, along with all but four pawn.

"Checkmate," the bodyguard stated, with both knights, bishops and his remaining rook in position for a mass assault on whatever was left of the Casino King's ragged army. Sasha hadn't even moved his queen except in the first round.

"F***!" Allen shouted, flipping the table off to the side. Sasha left his seat and took note of the area again, as well as the rest of the casino.

Someone was missing.

"There's supposed to be another box," Jakobs yelled. "There's specific boxes for use against specific members of the Dahl family, and someone is missing! And weren't there more guards here a moment ago?" He scratched his head, looking around once again. "Whatever."

Jenni sighed, taking in the glorious stupidity of Allen Jakobs through a hacked camera feed. And who was that guy Allen was playing with? He was too composed through the Jakobs' enraged rambling to be normal. Whatever, she could worry about him later.

"Somehow you're a decently large player in the Jakobs family, and here I was thinking you wouldn't be just another jacka—oh, I think I've got it!" Batman was getting close now, but he was still sorely outnumbered. Jenni decided a few alarms would actually be helpful about now. Small ones, though. She hacked into the fire detection system and set off a few sprinklers in the warehouse, causing the guards to be momentarily caught off guard before they scrambled to shut of the water. Sadly for her, it wasn't long before the strangely calm man in the dapper white suit had begun rotating his fellow bodyguards toward the vault.

Michael couldn't help but flinch as he heard the alarms going off. He had to discreetly move his ear plugs back into place as the various employees likewise glanced about. However, the noise was not too loud for them of course and he kept on moving. The alarms were where he had to go, which meant the warehouse was nearby. If that was the case then the vault was there too. He only had to get past a few doors and hopefully the alarm wouldn't make him too deaf.

He knew there were some eyes on him but that didn't stop him from still moving on, getting closer and closer. Just one door at a time. He went on up and pushed it open, flinching as the sirens dug into his very skull. Great, he would be deaf after this! He stayed near the wall as his suit quickly began to get pelted by the drops of water.

"Okay, the Bats is in the room. Good." Jenni shut of the alarms so that Michael wouldn't be left incapacitated by the sound. The sudden silence confused the guards just as much as when the alarms and sprinklers started, giving Bats another moment to get closer to the vault. "You can't get anything out of the vault while those guard are still there, though. Good thing this is an illegal storehouse."

Jenilee altered the frequency of one of her remote hacking devices, seeking out a new little gadget within the storehouse. "This should leave them a bit startled." She tuned the frequency a bit more and suddenly a whole shelf in the storehouse had exploded. "I love bombs!"

The explosion knocked other parts of the storehouse around, spreading more illegal products across the floor. A few of the guards had been incapacitated, possibly killed, and the rest were now taking cover. "Go my Bat, find that vault!"

As the siren died down Michael made his way forward, the explosion though caused him to grip his ears in pain as that, unfortunately, toned out his hearing for a while. He rubbed at his ears frantically but it seemed his hearing wouldn't be coming back for some time. F**king fantastic. Still, he could SEE the vault and quickly made his way over, using the distraction of the explosion to quickly get what he needed.

Okay... well the vault door was big and he had to search a bit before he could find an insertion port. He pulled out the chip he had been given and slipped it in. "Hurry up, hurry up." He muttered under his breath as he squirmed a bit anxiously.

"Okay, this should only take a second." Jenilee's hands moved over her keyboard with astounding agility. It only took about forty-five seconds for her to get past the major security measures on the safe. Once she did, however, an electronic pad emerged from the safe, requiring a fingerprint scan from none other than Allen Jakobs. This would be the annoying part. She could hack her way past this in no time, but not without setting off some major alarms.

But before she could do that, a guard had noticed Michael crowding himself around the safe.

Michael looked back at the guard and he quickly turned around, "So... fine weather huh?" He asked with a weak smile before he decided to play keep away in a way... which was quickly running to the inner half of the vault as soon as he heard the door open and the alarms fly. He was stuck here... but not for long. He took in a deep breath and then hunched over a bit as he let out a cry. His body slowly began to expand, the clothes along his upper body starting to shred as his wings grew along his arms. Fur quickly began to cover his body as his face pushed out, a muzzle forming as his teeth became far sharper. HIs ears shot up in length as even his feet began to burst through his shoes as his clawed feet came out.

He panted as the transformation finished and his eyes narrowed while a smirk formed along his muzzle. Oh yes... those guards had no idea what they were stepping into... if only he wasn't deaf right now! "Hey you! Come out from there!" Just as the approaching guard turned that corner a big black shape flew out, slamming into the guard. Michael wrapped his wings around the guard as he opened his jaws wide and bit down deep into the guard's throat. Naturally the guard's screams soon became nothing but gurgles as Michael twisted his head away, pulling off skin and muscle as the man bled out on the ground.

He suddenly twisted his head to view the other guards at the entrance to the vault, who seemed to be frozen in shock. His smirk widened as he spat out the flesh in his mouth and leapt at them next. A few bullets were shot out with one managing to hit him in the stomach, but that did nothing to sway his hunger as he bit into the next one while using his powerful wings to hit another guard into the wall. He twisted his catch to face toward the remaining guards as a majority of the bullets fired instead dug themselves into his new meals.

Then... that lovely motion of the trigger being pulled but no bullets coming out. A need to reload. It was delicious. He dropped the now dead body and slowly made his way forward, "Think you all can reload in enough time? Hehe.... I wonder... how you all taste." And with that, he leapt.

Almost immediately after diving, Michael found the odd sting of a bullet in his side, just to the right of his spine. The man he'd just bit through had been the last guard as well.

He looked to the vault's interior and found a particularly angry man inside; a man who was impatient and armed, and seemed to have no concern for his own safety, shouting expletives in force. Did he sneak in to protect the briefcase inside while Michael was dispatching the security? He was in a fancy black suit, so he wasn't a guard; Allen Jakobs, maybe? No matter. Michael had already been shot at... and he figured if he didn't take everyone out now then he would just get shot more and more. Besides, if he didn't want to get his throat ripped off then OBVIOUSLY he wouldn't have shot at the crazy giant bat, right?

Then he'd taken another bullet, in one of his forearms. Where was it coming from? He glanced about, but saw no one around. Not only that, but his hearing was still s**t. Was there a hidden gun somewhere? A small turret shooting out bullets?

"It's the Gifted," Jenni realized. Watching through the security cameras, she found the man in the white suit walking around the vault, firing bullets freely. How was Michael unable to react? He wasn't shooting too quickly; one every few seconds at best. Was he invisible? That wouldn't explain why the security camera could see him, though, or why Michael didn't hear any gunshots.

Michael had to hold up his wings as another shot flew into his wings. Thankfully it missed his body, but that didn't dim the pain that his wing now had. His eyes narrowed as he ground his teeth together. He spread his wings and let loose a powerful flap as he sought to try and knock over whatever, or whoever, was shooting at him, as he leapt forward. He reached out to the enraged casino owner and spread his wings wide, "Hehe, hey there." He wasted no time in batting him to the side with a wing as he grabbed the case, "Sorry, but I need this." He then quickly grabbed Allen Jakobs, and held him out like a meat shield as he began to back away, "Best drop your weapon," he shouted out, "lest you kill this g—gah!" Without hesitation, Michael had taken a third bullet, this time in the thigh.

He kept on backing away and then he smirked, "Want to play like that? Fine!" He reached up and gave the man's neck a sharp twist. Just as the body fell to the ground the bat was already flying out, and through a window as he soared into the night with the briefcase held in one hand as his wings flapped. He glanced back down as he huffed a bit. Blood leaked out, but he had to keep flying. Whatever invisible gun they had in there... well, it would kill him if he sat around. Besides, he got what he needed.

---

"It looks like it went well," Jenni said, a bit of sarcasm dripping from her tone. "I see you at least got the program?"

"I did," Michael snorted, tossing the briefcase to Jenilee. She caught it and set it down on her lap before opening it.

"Oh, it's gorgeous. I think this is it. Only one way to find out, though." She picked up a flash drive from inside and inserted it into her computer, allowing the code to appear on the screen for her to examine it. "Whoa. With this, I can . . . whoa." She turned back to Michael, a broad grin on her face. "You did well."

"Yeah I know." Michael said as he his arm hung against his side. It was a bit of pain, but back when he was more along an assassin he hadn't really been bothered by getting shot once or twice, so he was more along used to it now. "It wasn't easy, that's for sure."

"I didn't say it would be easy," Jenni stated flatly. "But trust me, this program is well worth the trouble needed to obtain it."

"I hope so." He said as leaned against a wall, "I do have a feeling I'll be seeing that one guy again. Well, not really 'seeing' but I have a feeling their invisible man will be tracking me down. Given I killed a family member right in front of his face I assume the family might be more than willing to place a lot of the blame on him."

"Invisible?" Jenni asked, a look of confusion on her face. "He wasn't invisible. I could see him clear as day on the camera feed."

That confused Michael more than his invisibility comment had confused Jenni. "... You could see him?" He asked slowly, "Look, after that explosion you pulled I couldn't hear ♥♥♥♥ at all. All I knew was that there was something firing at me. I first thought it was some hidden gun, but the way the shots were being fired only confirmed to me that it was someone."

Jenni shrugged. "Yes, he was a person. Clearly visible, easily heard, but perhaps not by you in the state you were in. I suspect that his ability had something to do with avoiding your senses. That would be why the cameras could pick him up: machines don't have senses."

Michael stared at her for a moment, before nodding. "That's interesting... well, I'll have to be careful then. Hopefully he doesn't have the resources to find me. In any case... you mentioned something about getting the police off of my trail right? Uh... will it be that easy?"

"Piece of cake!" Jenni said gleefully, a look of sheer childlike wonder in her eyes. "With this baby I can do so much more than that. But yes, I'll get the police to back off of you. Their presence in this area is troublesome for everyone." She turned back to her computer and began to navigate the networks once more. "It'll take me a few minutes to completely clear everything."

Michael stood in silence as Jenni worked, still hugging his arm. He glanced around her little "laboratory" once more, taking in all of the gadgets and tech she had amassed. "Done!" Michael turned back to Jenni, surprised that she was already finished.

"That's it? No more police?"

"No more police!" Jenni clapped once, resting her chin on her clasped hands. "Just be careful, though. It's not like I can go and delete peoples' memories—still working on that—so anyone particularly close to your case that has an idea of what you look like might still recognize you. Other than that, you're good to go!"

Michael smiled a bit at that. "Thanks. So... anything else I have to do? I mean... it was only one mission and I'm sure you'll have need of me sometime."

"I expect we'll meet again. I'll be keeping an eye on you."

Michael nodded and began to make his way to the exit. "Yeah, thanks again. So, I'll catch you later and if you could spread some word along the grapevine of how well I helped, I would appreciate it too." He gave one last wave as he stepped out and disappeared from sight.

Emil "Nex" Nexis​

Abandoned Apartment, Room 304​

Nex let out a long yawn, opening his eyes. But much to his horror, the girl from before was sitting there, staring daggers at him. He looked away from her and rose from his pillow, stretching and opening and closing his right hand. It was still somewhat stiff from the previous night, having turned to iron after Emil swallowed the switchblade. He looked back over at the girl, who still had her eyes locked onto him. She seemed to be either annoyed or angry. Probably both. Of course, Nex didn't feel too much sympathy. After all, she did try to kill him the previous day. But at the same time, he saw no reason to make an enemy out of her. He needed to give her a reason not to run back to Cassino.

"So..." He discarded his shirt. "Did you sleep okay?" The girl remained silent. He looked at her, but looked away right after. She had quite the intimidating stare, so it was difficult for Emil to maintain any sort of dominance over the situation. He placed his shirt in a cracked bin and opened the dresser. This was something of a task, as the dresser's handles were gone. Nex always said that he would fix them or make it so it would be easier to open them from the underside, but never got around to it. He picked out another shirt and a pair of pants, hanging them over his left arm.

After getting his clothes ready, he opened his fridge (which was unplugged, considering the apartment didn't have power) and brought out the bread from the other day, heading over to the girl and handing her half of a larger piece. Again, she simply stared, but Nex wouldn't have it. "Don't act like you aren't hungry. You haven't eaten yet, so don't be stingy." The two seemed to be locked in a staring contest, a clash of wills. Still, Nex wasn't willing to relent, and he wasn't going to let the girl starve herself and die in the corner of his apartment.

The girl clicked her tongue and snatched the bread from Emil. "There we go," he said with a smile. He lounged back on his bed and bit into the bread. His eyes practically glimmered as he bit into the ciabatta. He'd never tried this specific type before, it was quite the wonderment. Even though it wasn't straight out of the oven, it was easily in his top 3 of the Diner's courses. The girl didn't seem as thrilled.

There was a pall of silence thereafter, with each party silently eating their food. Nex didn't particularly mind, though, as there was something that had been bothering him since he woke up. Why is the girl still here? He thought to himself. It didn't make any sense to him because, despite her being a hostage, he didn't have a lock for the door. He didn't even constrain his hostage. There was nothing keeping her from escaping his apartment. Of course, he did have a plan to prevent her and however many of Cassino's goons she brought with her from finding him. On his way there, he blindfolded the girl and took several wrong turns and repeat directions so that she would have no idea how to get there. It helped that the apartment wasn't exactly the center of attention. But despite all of this, she could have easily left the apartment. She had no reason to stay.

But keeping the question inside didn't do him any good. He decided to voice it, although he didn't expect to get any sort of answer. "So...why-"

"Lina." She interrupted. "My name's Lina."

This caught Nex off guard, but it seemed that the cork was loose. Somehow. Maybe his method of hospitality was actually paying off. "O-okay, Lina. Why did yo-"

"What, you're not going to introduce yourself?" She retorted in a rather snarky voice. "You think you're so high and mighty because you're a freak?"

That was the first time Nex had ever been called a freak. Not many people knew about his power, so he was pretty much treated like an average human most of the time. Being called a freak really did hit him, and he had to pause for a moment to process it. But given her situation and what happened to her the night before, it was no surprise that Lina would say such a thing. Nex did his best to write it off as an outburst of frustration than anything else.

"Call me Nex. Now, as I was saying, why are you here?" He asked.

"Oh, so I have special permission?" Lina said with a sarcastic smirk. "Well thank you, you're highness." This was becoming annoying, but Nex half-expected it. It only made sense that she would act that way, all things considered. Lina looked to the side and tightened her expression. "...The truth is, I did leave last night." Nex barely stopped himself from jumping from his seat and jetting towards cover. "I did leave, but...I didn't make it far. Other than not knowing where I was, I wasn't aware that this place was so dangerous. Makes the Metro seem like an amusement park."

Nex raised an eyebrow. "Are you serious? I mean, this place can be a little dicey at times, and sure it's a bit shady around here..." Nex looked out of his cracked window. "But I've never really considered it to be dangerous." He turned back to her. "Why, did something happen?"

Lina hugged her legs as she had been doing previously, looking at the floor. She paused before speaking, as if she were about to recount a particularly difficult story. "After I went outside, there was a guy. I don't know what was wrong with 'im, maybe he was crazy or high or something, but he straight up killed a guy and..." She stopped for a moment. "...I don't know what he was doing to 'im, but even after the guy he was attacking was out, he kept on cutting him. I tried to sneak past the guy, but...I dunno, they musta' been some kinda gang. I ran into one of 'em and..." She shook, unable to talk about the subject anymore than that.

Nex walked over the the fridge and brought out a bottle of warm water. He only had one, he didn't really expect to have any guests. "Here." He handed her the bottle and returned to his seat, crossing his arm. "Well at least you got away."

Lina took rather healthy gulps of the water, leaving no room for modesty, and set the bottle down next to her. "They musta' been on some crazy stuff, though. These guys were fast. Really fast. There were a lot of 'em, too. If it wasn't so dark when I left, I don't know if I coulda' made it out o' there."

Nex looked out the window again, this time trying to see if there were any of the gang members still out there. Interestingly, there wasn't a body out there, though he couldn't see if she "It's weird, though. There wasn't anyone outside when I got here, yesterday. And I definitely haven't seen anyone that dangerous around here before..." Nex shrugged. "Well, if you're sure about this then it still might not be safe out there. For now, you should just shower. This place still gets running water in some of its bathrooms. Just stay on this floor and don't go down to the ground floor. I have clothes that might fit you. As for towels...just take the one in the bottom right drawer." He pointed to his dresser.

Lina looked up at him and, without a word, did just that, grabbing some of his clothes and a towel and heading out into the hallway.

Buh Buh Buuuuuh. If anyone else wants to join the expedition, just ask. (And as greiger said, get on da pad)

Event 3 – The Raid
The previous day the body of a local gangster was discovered in an alley outside of the Metro, his neck crushed by an inhuman strength. Whilst the loss of a mobster is no great damage to society, the authorities have now got enough evidence of dangerous unregistered operating around the Metro to launch a large scale raid. The raid will be very sudden, and cover not only the Metro but a large area around the shady club as well. Unregistered discovered are to be captured for processing, those who resist are to be killed without further consideration.

Katie Bloom – Katie has unknowingly walked into the raid zone near the Metro going about her daily business. Now stuck in a dangerous situation, she too will need to escape undiscovered if she can -unharmed if she wishes to remain alive.

People brushed past her shoulders and occasionally made accidental eye contact, sometimes she would halt and wonder if they would say something, anything that would cause a conversation, she hadn't spoken anything to anybody but shop clerks and people she accidentally bumped into for weeks, and even then, all she say was 'thank you' and 'sorry', she wondered if she would soon forget how to talk to them altogether. The lack of conversation had also bought her a lack of work, she hadn't done any jobs since the pretty boy who didn't know her name, and even he didn't give her the right amount of money. She looked into her little pouch of coins, she only had three left, she cursed out loud and got a few displeased stares. At least she knew she wasn't invisible now. As she ambled about the town (and accidentally into the raid zone near the Metro) she imagined classical music playing, it would be a nice change from the huffing and puffing of people stomping past her, or the eerie silence of a sad city. Perhaps she should bring up the idea to whoever was in charge of the music aspect of this post-apocolypse dump, just casually slip it into conversation, subtly enough so they'd think it was their own idea and be more comfortable with the suggestion. She began to hum to the imaginary music, then stopped, and stared, at the excessive number of policemen around her, she remembered an article she had read about the killings and later raid in the metro, and looked around, realising she'd stumbled yet again into a spider's sticky web, cursed once more, but this time only in her head.

She was lucky they hadn't seen her yet, although thinking about it more, she realised they could never know she was gifted in the first place, unless they had some spy ♥♥♥♥ that could detect her powers, she just had to hope they weren't really that clever. Thinking she could pass off as the common confused pedestrian, she walked with a real purpose, straight towards the gates out of the raid zone, where hopefully she could escape unscathed, and undetected. She slid her hands into her pockets, and pretended to chew gum, in an attempt to look less-supicious, and maybe even a little cool, just because, she was a little bored, and when that got her stares, she decided she had pushed it too far, and returned to her normal, awkward, walking posture, which seemed to earn her a little less glances.

Just as she approached the exit, a mean looking man with hairy arms and real gum stopped her. He was a proper scary gentlemen, and she wouldn't be surprised if he was some sort of cruel army general who said things like '50 press ups!' or 'I hate you!' or just generally mean things. He looked at her out a stale eye, and sniffed real hard, like it was how he was sizing her up., then he said with an excessive amount of anger and loudness, 'Excuse me, miss, we'd like to ask you a few things!' ♥♥♥♥, she thought. 'There's been some suspicious behaviour round here recently, and some things even worse than that, as I'm sure you're aware, and I'd,' he coughed, and even the way he cleared his throat sounded threatening, Katie wondered if he could see the tears blotching up her eyes, or if he was just ignoring them. 'We'd, like to know if you've seen anything.'

'No, sir. Nothing. Nothing but what the papers said.' She replied, in a very honest-sounding and believable way.

'Thank you, continue.'

And Katie had the sudden urge to march furiously out the gates, like a soldier would. She began on her way, just walking though, when she felt an alarmingly warm hand on her shoulder, she didn't really want to know where it'd been.

'One last thing please miss.'

A very smart and important looking man behind a computer screen took a device that resembled a remote and beeped it in the direction of Katie, it made a funny sounding ting, and then the man looked back at the computer. He narrowed his eyebrows and waited a few minutes too long before he looked back at the scary man with his hand on Katie's shoulder, then he looked at Katie's big doleful eyes like she was a dear in headlights. He shook his head to the loud man, and suddenly it was like safety had been dangled in front of Katie's nose, and just as she was to reach for it, it was torn away from her.

'Sorry, looks like you're going to have to go with us.' But he didn't sound very sorry, at all. He handcuffed Katie's wrists together, and she wondered how he just conveniently had a pair of handcuffs at the ready. Then, she was told to wait with the computer man, and not talk, resist, or attempt to bargain or escape of her own accord in any way. Katie, being the meek little dear in headlights she was, did not see much other option, so obliged, and sat with the man, remaining very quiet and still, a part from when she had to scratch her head. Around 30 minutes later she began to grow tired, and asked with her eyes why she was here. The loud man, having some sympathy for her, as most people did, said that tomorrow she was to be taken for questioning, and Katie still didn't move.

She wasn't really that scared though, she had been more scared before, and they seemed nice enough, the loud man and computer man, she was just a bit disheartened to the fact that she still was unable to have a conversation, or talk at all. Should she have been able to speak, she probably would have been perfectly pleased with the whole situation. And she had room for being scared later.

She looked at the remote-scanner device and the computer screen, and then the computer man, and then the remote again, she realised it was a power detector, some spy ♥♥♥♥ that could detect her powers. They were much cleverer than she'd hoped.

Emil "Nex" Nexis​

Abandoned Apartment, Room 304​

Nex placed he head against his pillow and cradled the back of his head with his hands. A gang? Here? He thought to himself. That doesn't make sense. Some shady things happen around here, but gang activity and murder isn't one of them. He raised himself and looked out the window again. This incident bothered Emil as much as it did because he'd lived a moderately safe life for the years that he'd been in the apartment. Save for the odd curious wanderer in and the occasional scavenger, there was hardly any activity around the apartment. There were other "tenants", though. Not too many, though, and they were all aware that there were others that lived there, but they all had a common desire to be left alone, so the apartment kept itself from becoming a hotspot for any sort of activity.

Nex left the room and went down to the first floor. He looked around. There was no one in the would-be lobby or even the lounge area (if it could even be called that), and that was to be expected. He was just being cautious. He walked up to one of the windows next to the front door and peeked out. It wasn't much of a window, really; it didn't have any glass and the frame was slightly cracked. During the colder parts of the year, the window was boarded up, for the sake of preserving heat, but at the time it was just a hole in the wall.

Save for rare passerbys, there didn't seem to be anyone out there. Nex began to wonder whether they were after the guy Lina mentioned specifically. But as long as they weren't stationed in the area, he was fine with it. He let out a sigh of relief and returned upstairs. He returned to his room to find Lina, who was clad in his clothing and wore his towel draped over her head, sitting on his bed. "So, how was it?" He asked.

She glared at him from the side. "'How was it?' I'll tell ya how it was, you ass. First, the water was colda' than ice. It was so cold that I screamed and some guy ran into the bathroom, saying that I surprised him!" She stood up and started walking towards Nex, who found it difficult not so smile. "Plus, this place has a lotta rooms, so it took me a while to find a bathroom that worked." She was now upon him, with her accusing finger practically stabbing into his chest. "And all the while, you was just sittin' downstairs, laughin' your ass off." Nex, unfortunately, didn't hear any of what she mentioned, which was unfortunate, because it sounded absolutely hilarious.

"I..." he bit his lip to stop himself from laughing. "I didn't mean for you to go through that, honest." He waved his hands about as he pleaded innocence.

"Oh yeah?" She gritted her teeth. "I tried to kill ya' yesterday and you just forget that there are otha' people in the apartment? AND that the water is cold as sin?"

"Y-yeah." He said, somewhat siding with her considering she was right. "I've been living here for years and haven't had any guests. I don't really have he opportunity to tell people that the water's cold or that there might be others in here. I didn't think about it." Nex was surprisingly calm, considering that she was about to give him what for, but it was the truth; he didn't really have much of an excuse other than that.

Lina took a step back and sighed. "Whateva." She continued drying her hair and returned to his bed. "So, what's the agenda for today?"

Nex scratched his head in thought. "Well...uh..." He knew what he was planning to do, but he hadn't even considered the fact that he had a hostage to take care of. "I was planning on going to the library. I have some...some business to take care of there."

"And what about me?" She responded, continuing to dry her hair. "You're not gonna leave me alone here, are ya? I don't really feel safe here when you ain't here."

Nex raised an eyebrow. "Is that why you came back here last night? I mean, you could have just run back to the restaurant."

Lina turned to him. "It wasn't like that. I know I didn't paint the best picture for ya, but these guys were really fast. This was the only place I could get to, everywhere else was too far. And seeing as you're a freak and all, I thought you might be able to take 'em." She removed the towel from her head and looked down. "After all, you seem pretty brave. You took my knife ate it, which was pretty damn ballsy. Stupid, too. So I trust you fo' that much."

Nex was surprised how much Lina seemed to trust him, and she didn't beat around the bush, either. As such, it probably meant that she was lying in some regard, and him being hospitable was probably a sign of his trust to her. In other words, he knew that she was untrustworthy. And she was a good actor, he knew that from experience. But he knew he could trust her because she allowed herself around someone who threatened to kill in a vulnerable state. She could have gone into another room and gotten a knife or used any number of weapons, but she didn't. It was that vulnerability that gave him any token of trust in her.

"Alright," Nex started, "we're going out." Lina remained silent, almost defiantly so. "Look, I know you don't want to stay here in this apartment filled with unknowns, and you're not even armed. And I understand that you're afraid to go outside because of your attack earlier, but aren't you Cassino's sentry? I would think that his goons would be stronger than that, especially after getting away without a scratch."

This seemed to wake something up in Lina, as she lit up with some sort of determination. Then, all at once, she deflated again. "Actually, I'm..." She started to speak, and but she stopped herself, seemingly contemplating whether she should say what was on her mind. "...Nevermind. You're right." She stood up with the same sort of determination as before. "Let's go." Nex nodded, and the two left the apartment and headed towards the library.

Harry - Metro Raid, Chapter 2

Harry leaned back, cradling a cup of alcohol against her lips, as she watched the entrance to the Metro with dull eyes. All about her the writhing bodies of dancers, bumped and swayed, shielding from direct sight as the music continued to pulse on. From her spot, draped in shadows, the girl observed the scene unfold about her. Of course, she knew what was going to happen. Thirty seconds from this exact moment the front doors to the underground club would burst open, the men behind their destruction almost ripping the things off their hinges, before storming in, the thunder of military boots crushing broken needles and plastic cups beneath their feet.

The music would pulse on but the shrill concerto of people's screams would begin to rise. Panic would spread like wild fire as The Raid began but Harry would stay. Panic wasn't her style. In the next few minutes she would see her escape before anyone knew what was going to happen. So for now, she would continue to enjoy her drink.

Tick Tock.

There it was. The distant sound of the outer most doors the club being burst open.

Another second ticked by and the distant sound of the small sweep squad was closer now. Carefully, Harry tipped her glass over her bottom lip, lapping up the last bit of alcohol infused water. The real stuff was for the upper circles only. Tasted like ****, but the buzz which she got from even just a tiny sip was worth every sour note this foul liquid trigger on her tongue.

Running a gentle finger along the rim of her glass, Harry, licked the residue off her digit before pulling back her arm and throwing the glistering, transparent thing towards the door.

As the glass sailed, her aim proving true, the door to the club was slammed open, just as the glass connected with the wall next to the entrance. The thing shattered, falling into a thousand glittering pieces in the dim light of the club, as suddenly, from the door and soft 'pop' of broken tumbler, the dancing stopped.

Everyone, even those too far gone to stand by themselves, turned sweat covered faces towards the entrance and right on cue, the first scream sounded.

Chaos erupted, squad flooding forward with small fire arms raised as the leading few bellowed for the music to be stopped and for everyone to 'remain calm'.

Harry snorted, the sound odd to such a situation, before the girl stood, pausing for a brief second as her eyes glazed over. Here, her lids fluttered uncontrollably, while beneath their protective layer, her eyes rolled back, disappearing into the back of her skull. Harry's lips parted, her tongue nervously flashing out to slip across alcohol burning lips, before as quickly as the vision had arrived, it went.
Harry refocused onto the present and began to walk. Mouthing as she went, her movements.

"Two steps forward. Stop."

She halted just in time, as a man jumped from the upper balcony and landed in the direct spot where Harry would have stood. He bolted to the left. Harry nodded, then continued on. Counting each step, every now and then skipping one way, or stopping to let a hurrying pair of frightened unregistered flee by.

Each move was timed perfectly, until at last the girl arrived at the door. Here, stationed next to enterance and exit, stood two tall men. On her arrival, they both swirled their heads to look at her, Harry knowing that behind mask covered faces there was a look of confusion.

"Hi!" Harry waved, smiling.

One of them stepped forward.

"One." Harry whispered.

"Miss. Remain calm and line against the opposite wall please."

"Pardon?" Harry replied, cupping a hand to her ear. The guard grunted in annoyance then stepped forward.

"Two."

"Please proceed to the opposite wall." The man repeated, his voice straining to keep its volume.

"Line up where?" Harry queried, arching a fine eyebrow before taking a step forward towards the guard. The man in question did the same and as he shifted into position, the girl grinned. Time to play.

She lunged forward as two young men emerge from the scream throng behind her. In absolute terror, they ran head long towards the door and pretending as if she had been shoved as the pair brushed by, Harry lunged.

The two guards had momentarily lost focus on her, and using this perfectly timed event to her advantage, Harry set into motion the club's escape.

Her fist connected with the guard's neck with a soft 'thunk' before a gasping, gurgling noise bubbled up from beneath the mask.

The guard lifted his arms to clutch at his own throat, swinging his head back to stare at Harry with a look of sheer betray and realisation, as Harry lifted one hand, almost lazily and pushed. The man stumbled, still gasping for air before tripping. His feet crossing over one another and making him fall, his greater body mass rushing back and slamming into the other guard and catching him off guard, preoccupied with the two young men he now held at gun point.

On connection, the first guard's head knocked the second and slammed it back against the wall and knocking him out cold, while the first still struggled for breath as he slid down the wall, eyes still glued to Harry's poorly light face.

The two young man gawked, eyes darting between Harry and the guards. Behind her, the rest of the squad was too busy trying to preform crowd control to pay much attention.

"After you." Harry gestured, before raising her arms and throwing back her head to call, "Entrance clear!" Before strolling by the two guards, now sprawled across the floor and quickly retrieving something from one of the guard's vests. After this, the girl then smiled at the still gawking men, before setting aside and waiting for the inevitable rush of terrified teens and adults to swarm, using them to shield her own escape into the outside world.

Part Two

As Luna looked the kid over, she signaled to Slide for his opinion. Slide looked critically at the kids every feature, noting the glasses, shortness, hair, and lankyness. Zander being annoyed at this entire ordeal, just sat back and attempted to take a nap. "The rest of the group might not accept him... what do you do, weapon-wise?" Luna asked. Slide was unimpressed, but waited for the answer.


Alex looked to the female of the group, the one who had spoken. Was she the leader? No... It didn't seem so. In any case, he had a question to answer. But.. Weapons? He usually didn't carry more than his small pistol... Well, he might as well show them.

He slowly pulled out the homemade gun, displaying it. "I am a reasonably good shot... And I'm handy enough to use stuff around me. But I'm no weapons master." He shuffled in place a bit as he returned his pistol to its hip holster, hidden by his slightly long shirt. By the looks of things, it was a rather bleak situation. He was at least five the younger of everyone there... How could he tell them what he really could do without endangering himself..?

Xero was carefully examining how things were happening. This little man was potentially a threat and he didn't certainly feel like dealing with other people. Also not everyone could spy people with bugs. At least, he could take him out easily if the need arose. A small pistol wouldn't be enough to stop him. But still, he had to be sure. "Just that pistol? Nothing else on you?" The way that this boy was acting didn't particularly put him at ease.


Alex nodded. It was as simple as that. There was no need to endanger himself by revealing everything now. Besides the fact that one of them didn't seem all too ready to be nice to him. It was time to leave, and soon. He was putting himself at enough risk even being here so late.

"Listen," he began, looking towards the door, "I have some other places I need to be... Where should I meet you once you are ready? Well, if you will have me, that is."

He had already had to duck his head to avoid meeting the gaze of the burly biker in the far cornerof the cafe. He definitely knew the man. He was one of the people that had been a co-worker with his father, and it was no secret who had turned in the late drug lord. If he discovered that he was here... It would be quite the gristly end for the small Russian kid.


Luna thought for a minute. She realized he was weak, but the more support the better. She sighed, and gave Slide a subtle thumbs up. "Alright kid, meet tomarrow, 3:00 pm, behind Steins Pub." Slide explained. "You might want to tell him where that is, not even I remember where that shack is," Zander said, suddenly waking up. Slide sighed, "It's a bleach colored bar near the edge of the city, if you go to the Metro and then go south you'll get there eventually. But don't go inside, Steins' a shifty man, and less than undesirable things go on in that place, thanks to lack of police patrol." Nodding, Alex hurridly walked off.


As Zander drifted back off. Slide looked to Xero. "So, I'd imagine you have plans?"


Yet another nuisance, where did all of those guys come from? Well, it just makes more people to take care of. More people that would have to shut up. Or maybe if the other kid was a Gifted, the could probably split up the treasure money. Not hat he wanted to be generous but this was better than a ruckus anyway. He looked at the other guy who spoke to him. "Yes I do. Do you still have something you need of me?"


"No, not at all. I will be taking my leave shortly as well to check the status of the rest of the crew. Just be there at Steins Pub, and we will continue there," Slide explained, standing up, and walking towards the door. Zander remained sleeping, and Luna showed no sign of moving.

This chapter is split into five events, each focusing on a serious conflict (either directly or by relation to happenings elsewhere). This chapter will introduce a large amount of NPCs and, following the same vein as Triggers, continue to see tensions in Heliopolis growing as we gradually move towards our climactic conclusion.


Prologue One


Prologue Two



Event 1 – The Infiltration: Shortly after her meeting with Raine, Jenillee sets about contacting four unregistered whom she wants to comprise her team of. The mission she assigns them is to break into the large Heliopolis military base and steal the hard copy file entitled "Project Shadow". Many of the base's personnel are currently involved in the hunt for those involved in recent major crimes – an attack on The Shining Penny casino leaving several men including the owner, Allen Jakobs, dead and another attack at the Midnight Grand Hotel or chasing a Gifted in the north, however it is still not going to be an easy feat to infiltrate the facility. High tech surveillance equipment, armed patrolmen and possibly Employed are awaiting those who try to break in.

Dean Andrews and Michael Miller – Dean and Michael are to act as a diversion, attacking the outer rim of the base in an attempt to pull attention away from possible intruders as long as possible whilst simultaneously damaging the base.

Aleksander Silayev and Alex Knight – Aleksander and Alex are the actual infiltration team. Despite her new hacking program, Jenillee lacks the resources to fully access the highly encrypted network of the base and retrieve the computer copy of the file. Jenillee will shut down as much of the surveillance and security technology as she can; meanwhile with security minimalized Alex is to transport Aleksander through the base so that he can use his ability to breach the security systems guarding the archives allowing the pair to make off with the file.

Event 2 – The Gathering: In light of the growing power struggle between the Jakobs and Dahl families, the higher-ups of the Jakobs family have called for an emergency meeting to discuss their plan of action. The Dahls are prepared for this however, and have arranged a large scale attack on the meeting having hired powerful gifted and skilled assassins for the job… and yet the Dahl strike force might be far from the worst thing lurking in that area.

Jace Caradoc – Still working under the Jakobs family, Jace has been called to the meeting as protection and to report on his conflicts with the opposing family.

Emil Nexis (with Lina) – As she is a member (albeit a low-ranking one) of the Jakobs family Lina has also been called to the meeting. She brings Emil with her intending to get him work in order to repay him for his treatment of her. This will lead to Emil being caught up in the Dahl attack.

Event 3 – Scents: Samuel Ilic is an Employed in the service of the military police. Belonging to a category of Gifted called Sniffers, Samuel has the ability to identify people by scent and can differentiate between Gifted and non-Gifted through smell. During the raid on the Metro an Unregistered managed to garner his attention, a woman who was somehow evading him at every turn despite his tracking talents.

Harriet Smith – Harry is the unfortunate Gifted that has attracted Samuel's attention having been able to avoid him at every turn using her ability of foresight to predict his movements. In this chapter Samuel has picked up Harry's trail and intend to capture her.

Tyler Wolfenden – Tyler will find himself in a "wrong place, wrong time" situation, running into Harry not long before her encounter with Samuel. Despite Tyler not knowing of his Gift, Samuel will immediately recognise him as a Gifted through his scent and include him in his pursuit.

Event Four – Turf: Small street gangs are even more common than crime families in the west of Heliopolis. This means that feuds between these groups and turf wars are also extremely common, often resulting in bloodshed and even fatalities – especially if unregistered happen to be involved.

Jan Tarkov – Jan is going to find himself in an unpleasant situation. Whilst out and about in the slums of Heliopolis he will find himself caught in the middle of two highly feared street gangs known as the West Demons and the Street Kings.

Zander Hyral – The Street Kings are known for their weird tendency to carry out-dated melee weapons like spears, swords and the like (although they also use guns… frequently). Unfortunately for Zander, he also has the strange tendency to carry a sword despite the era. Being caught in the large-scale turf war between the Demons and Street Kings, it stands to reason he'd easily be mistaken as a Street King and attacked.

Event Five – The Marathon: Unlike the poverty stricken west of Heliopolis, the north of the city is high class and heavily policed. That makes it both risky and stupid for a Gifted to go running through there at top speed, and yet…

Timothy Vernaro – Approached by a shady looking man wearing sunglasses and a black hoodie Timothy was given an offer he just couldn't refuse - $1000 dollars, half straight up and then half later, to lead the authorities on a wild goose chase through the north of Heliopolis. Timothy needs to keep his pursuers after him for three hours before losing them and collecting the other half of his fee at a safe house back in the west.



Things to know
• The lamp is gradually brightened to full illumination between the hours of 9:00 am and 12:00 pm. It is then gradually dimmed between 12:00 pm and 3:00 pm. This chapter begins at 7:00 pm and ends at approximately 3:00 am. This means that most businesses will be closing at the beginning of the chapter and all but a select minority will be closed by the end. Despite the chapter beginning relatively early, it will seem as though it is late at night.
• Generally only those with a lot of money will own vehicles.
• You can interact with NPCs and each other at will, please only do so if it will make sense though.
• Significant NPCs (such as Samuel or Jenilee) will generally be played by GMs
• With GM permission, all bar those in Event One are able to come into contact with Wraiths.
• Refer to the OP or contact the GMs with any queries about Wraiths.
• This chapter takes place approximately two days after chapter two. Prologue two occurs the day after chapter two.

Notable Locations
Below is a list of notable landmarks you will have access to. You are welcome to come up with any other locations you wish, but these are places you may want to use or mention.

• The Metro - The Metro is a popular haunt for criminals and Unregistered. It's a large, seedy club that is usually packed to the brim with loud music blasting throughout the room. Blue and green neon light-ropes adorn the walls and faint light fittings illuminate as much as they can leaving some areas pocketed in darkness. At The Metro it is easy to blend in with the masses in the dark and the haze of cigarette smoke and the noise of shouting individuals an incessant music make it easy to have conversations you don't want the authorities hearing. The club is heavily watched from outside.
• West Library - An old, two-story concrete building that has been vandalised beyond help outside. It is relatively clean within and is home to a decent selection of books (instructional or otherwise) as well a free internet access if you can find a working computer.
• Oak Park - A small area where grass and tree seeds were planted several years ago. Now the haunt of teenage gangs and drunks primarily it is still an integral part in maintaining clean air in the city and serves as a temporary guard should the filtering system break down.
• Sparky's - A small wooden tavern located not far from Oak Park. It's more off the map than the Metro. Lately there has been a greater police presence in this area.
• Cassino's Diner – A diner owned by an offshoot of the Jakobs family. Often burglarised by Emil Nexus it was also the location of the shooting conducted by Kyle Dahl and is currently closed temporarily as a result. It is a useful cover for illegal operations.
• The Midnight Grand – A classy hotel that serves as something of a bridge between the seedy West of Heliopolis and the Northern, middle and upper-class suburbs. It is owned by the Dahl family and often used as a safehouse for Dahl assassins.
• The Shining Penny – A low class casino operated by Allen Jakobs. It serves both as an effective business venture for building funds as well as a temporary safehouse for illegal goods. Closed due to the discovery of large amounts of illegal goods during a murder investigation.
• Warmsun Bakery (West) – Located a ways from the small stall they own by Oak Park is the larger bakery franchise which sits close to the Metro. The west Warmsun bakery looks nothing like a business that should be claiming its food is as pleasant as real sunlight being damaged and vandalised. The staff inside are surprisingly good-natured and they produce some of the only decent baked goods in the western suburbs of Heliopolis. They are well known for their pies, tarts and brownies.
•Heliopolis Military Base - A large military complex located in a smaller cave not far from Heliopolis. It is connected to the south-west of the city by a major tunnel although smaller passages to other locations are also present.

New Glossary Terms
Sniffer - A category of Gifted who possess the ability to detect others with a Gift. Although this ability can be scent-based, this is frequently not the case. Many Employed are sniffers.
Dark Sonar - A military technology that is still in development. It is used to detect those who possess a Gift. It is probable that the device used to detect Katie Bloom in Triggers was a test model.

Emil "Nex" Nexis​

Outside​

"Jesus!" Nex exclaimed, "Stop squeezing my hand so hard, feels like it's being crushed!"

"Oh! Sorry about that," Lina apologized, somewhat letting up on the vice grip she had on his hand. "I'm just...still a little shaky, y'know?"

Nex sighed. He knew all too well how frightened she was, barely able to move without the comfort of knowing that she wasn't alone at all times. He thought it a bit ridiculous, a paralyzing phobia existing on this level despite the fact that she the little that she saw. But he came to realize that if she truly was so scared that she was practically turned to stone once the sunlight touched her, what she'd seen must have been truly horrifying, especially for someone as courageous as she seemed to be prior to the incident. As a result, Nex decided that he would her hand as a means to give her some sense of comfort. It was platonic, of course, and Nex didn't really have any ulterior motives. She was simply his hostage and he didn't really have any interest in her as a girl. He did, however, enjoy her presence; he wasn't much of a talker, usually, and the other residents of his apartment didn't really speak too often, so having someone he could not only talk to, but also relate to to some extent, was refreshing.

"Yeah, I get it," He responded. "...I think. Was what you saw really that scary?"

"Well..." She paused for time before speaking again. "Workin' with Cassino, I seen a lotta guys kick the bucket. I don't go with the guys to do the killin' or anythin', but dead bodies don't exactly hit me like a right hook anymore." She paused again. "...But y'know, it wasn't how they killed the guy that got me. It freaked me out, but it was nothing compared to when they chased me. It was like...like I was bein' chased by the shadows themselves. Like there was no way I was gonna make it outta there. If this place wasn't so close, I'd o' just like that guy." She paused again, biting her lip this time as if to restrain some type of inner pain. "But what really sealed it for me was when I looked out the window about an hour later. The guys were gone and...so was the guy they were mackin' on. It didn't even look like there was a fight, almost like-"

Nex looked at Lina for a moment before interrupting, "Are you about to say that they ate that guy?" Lina simply looked back at Nex, and that was all the affirmation he needed. "And you thought this was a gang? What type of gang eats people?"

Lina angrily barked back, "What typa' thief eats knives!? Look, I dunno, I was scared. Maybe they was a gang o' freaks? You don't think one o' them couldn't be a cannibal? Maybe it makes 'em stronger or something." She clenched her free fist and rambled on about what the gang might have been, with Nex, the captive audience, thinking, Man, those picture boxes with the monster shows must be pretty interesting, because this girl thinks up some pretty crazy stories.