‘Hi ho hi ho’
‘It’s off to kill we go’
‘With hand grenades and razor blades’
‘Hi ho Hi ho’

Still lingering towards the back of his crudely crafted mob the sadistic bomber watched as events unfolded with a mixture of glee and annoyance. No matter what the country the majority of people were still simply sheep without a shepherd and as such were ever so easy and entertaining to heard. The twisted traveler gained no end of amusement over the fact that he had single handedly managed to transform an otherwise peaceful midday weekend in the heart of the city into a chaotic and bloody warzone complete with its very own irrational mob. The few police whom had managed to avoid injury were attempting, futilely, to restore some semblance of order to the murderers orchestrated anarchy. It was a useless endeavor as none of the officers present were prepared to utilize the adequate amount of force necessary to subdue the furious horde before them, for all their so called authority as keepers of the peace they were afraid, fearful of the retribution which might follow should they harm any of the cities citizens.

‘As though life mattered.’

Despite his prolonged delight at being able to manipulate events to such a degree Hull was still left somewhat unsatisfied by one small detail, namely the continued subsistence of a certain alabaster female and her contiguous boy toy. Honestly, precisely what lengths were required to kill the witless waif? It was starting to approach the point of absurdity, and not the kind that the macabre anarchist typically enjoyed either. Still from what malevolent traveler could see the foolish girl was weakening, no doubt due to the ample amount of blood which had been left upon the debris cluttered road. In all probability if Hull managed to engage her one more time he’d finally be able to finish the job and consider the day to be well spent. However judging from the woman’s earlier displays she was easily capable of defending herself from a direct assault and thus a more… subtle approach would likely prove to be far more effective. In order for that to occur an additional distraction would prove to be not only helpful but also entertaining, the only question though was what more havoc could the former soldier wreak? His exploits thus far had already demonstrated a considerable level of resourcefulness but without a few basic elements there was a limit to what the twisted wanderer could achieve and he was loathe to start repeating any of his tricks at such an early stage. He needed a new act, something unexpected, something which would strike at the foundations of order…

A malicious pair of viridian eyes alighted upon an open sewer grate, which even now was funneling away the excess water issuing forth from a vandalized fire hydrant.

--

Sewers are often portrayed as dark, mephitic and generally odious to the majority of mankind’s civilized sensibilities. Hull however, found himself to hardly be bothered by such things, the stench of rotting flesh is rarely trumped and so he the sadistic bomber had little difficulty in either inhaling or exhaling as he navigated the tenebrous confines of the sewer tunnels directly beneath the road which housed both the anarchists naive mob and his alabaster victim, the former unwittingly ensuring that the latter was held in place so that the sinister slaughterer might execute his extemporaneous machinations without having to concern himself with such irritating variable as a mobile target.

Although the tunnel was indeed dark, it was far from pitch black, admittedly when he had first entered the sewer via a nearby manhole the macabre foreigner had required a few seconds for his viridian eyes to dilate and adjust to the unusual darkness, however the residual sunlight which streamed in from the occasional grate was sufficient to allow the former soldier to make his way and track his progress. One of the many advantages of a perfect memory was that one was able to recall seemingly inconsequential details at will minutes, hours or even years after the event had passed, thus by simply counting the number of open grates and the contents flowing into each one Hull swiftly maneuvered himself into his desired position which, consequentially, was roughly eight meters to the right from the centre of the colossal car crash he had created mere minutes ago. This location had been chosen for two reasons, firstly it had access ladder a mere two feet away, secondly if the distance became any larger the morbid anarchist was uncertain as to whether he would be able to control his talents sufficiently.

Calmly turning to face wall nearest him twisted traveler purposefully raised both arms until his argent fingers were carefully splayed against the rather unsanitary surface. Hull usually avoided utilizing his powers for what he was about to do, the mental strain was significant and often times the end result was far from what was envisioned due to his shortcomings when it came to control of his gift. Still this was far from rocket science; he only needed to ensure the structures collapse and so if he happened to take more material than he intended it would hardly be a problem, by his own estimations his body still possessed ample storage space and if need be he could always discard a few of the more inane objects he had picked up over the years.

Returning his jumbled thoughts to the matter at hand the ex soldier closed his eyes and attempted to shut out the various slanders and vilifications which echoed down from the street above as he diverted his concentration towards the roof of the tunnel roughly eight meters to his left, swiftly he envisioned a fissure spreading from his position, one which raced towards the centre of the pile up and rapidly branched outwards scattering both left, right, up and down until the physical form of the tunnel weakened and collapsed in upon itself. Forcing his demented mind to maintain the mental image of the fissure Hull activated his gift and focused solely upon absorbing an area of matter which mirrored the fractures he envisioned, he felt a sudden heat at his fingers tips as a deep groan resounding through the tunnel as the entire structure began to tremble.

‘But great will be the fall of the house built upon the sand.’

A dry chuckle echoed in the demented wanderers throat as he recalled the precise passage he had recited, his humour was tempered by the sudden pulsing within his skull as his mind paid the price for the act he had just concluded. With an aggravated sigh and a palm clenched against his forehead the malicious traveler quickly made his way back to the access ladder and ascended back to the surface. The sight which greeted him was utterly magnificent even in spite of its small scale; a stretch of road measuring approximately 20ft had collapsed into the sewer system, taking with it a variety of police, hospital and rescue vehicles all of which were now filling the air with their unceasing and rather pointless alarms. The debacle had taken place so swiftly and without any warning that nearly all those present were staring in confusion and alarm at the newly formed gaping maw in the road. The previously raging mob had fallen silent, ceasing their senseless attacks with a few of the more cowardly members retreating to supposedly safe distances should the unstable sewer system beneath continue to cave in. The few rescue workers which had still been relatively unharmed after the initial car crash were now most assuredly dead or severely wounded and their cries of pain and requests for help added a soothing backdrop to the overall anarchy of the scene in the murderers mind.

‘Chaos, panic and disorder… my work has just begun.’

In the midst of such confusion, few would notice a single man clad in jeans and a t-shirt as he approached a clearly injured and distressed woman who had fallen upon the sidewalk and was glancing about in a dazed manner. Indeed had everyone kept their own prerogatives and worried simply about themselves it is likely that no one would have made comment as the sadistic slaughterer approached his victim. Unfortunately however someone had decided to play the part of Good Samaritan and was even now crouching down to assist the pale female, utterly oblivious of the malicious ire he was attracting through his actions. The half witted humanitarian was decked in a somewhat worn leather jacket which ended just below the wait and which opened about the shoulders just enough to reveal an off colour strip of cloth wrapped about his neck in a manner which practically screamed out for asphyxiation .

The idea was tempting, to kill two birds in a single swoop, or in this case a few seconds. The crippled sylph was essentially defenseless and from the look of the things her so called protector was little better, however they were both rather exposed and with the mass of obliterated vehicles no longer obstructing the view of those nearby it was all too probable that any overt actions would be noticed. It was a depressing realization but one the deranged wanderer was willing to accept for now, he would simply have to satisfy himself with the bird in hand rather than trying for the two in the proverbial bush.

“Scuse me, coming through, outta my way!”

Striding purposefully through the sparsely populated street Hull quickly made his way around and behind his target before hurriedly picking up his pace and barging into the feeble girls protector from the rear, aiming an elbow at his skull and a kick to his feet to ensure that the mans fall would be both swift and painful. Then, without even pausing to see what effect his crude assault had achieved the malevolent traveler crouch down and quickly slung the pale girls arm over his neck in a practiced manner while he swiftly slid his own arm around her waist and under her shoulder until his hand came to rest just above her breast and below her neck.

“Hello again dove, I’ve been looking for you.”

The words were whispered softly, almost intimately into the weakened woman’s ear as he gently brought her to her feet. A brief shift followed as the deranged killer forced the girl to lean against his body as he gradually began to back away from the main road and into yet another of the city’s many back alleys.

“I was so hurt when you left, you didn’t even say goodbye… Ah! Not one step further my good friend, not unless you want the little lady hear to lose a generous amount of weight.” The latter portion of the sadistic anarchist’s words rose in volume significantly and were directed towards a somewhat lean individual sporting a goatee and mustache along with a rather determined expression. In order to further convey the sincerity behind his words the former solider flexed the fingers of his free hand as a combat knife abruptly flickered into being within his grasp and was brought to his victims pale throat. The threat was clear enough and would likely be a sufficient deterrent for most individuals, however the man standing before Hull had the appearance of a wannabe hero and the foreign killer had encountered enough of those to know precisely how idiotic they could be, thus his grip upon the blade tightened as he slowly brought the weapon against alabaster skin and allowed the cold metal to bite into the unfortunate girls neck, stopping only when he was hairs breadth away from the woman’s jugular vein, which if severed, would be fatal.

“Now just turn around and keep your mouth shut while you count to fifty like a good boy and I won’t cut out the dove’s throat, understand?”

Resuming his pace Hull once again began to drag his latest toy away from prying eyes and into the comforting shadows that the back alley provided. He didn’t want to kill the irritating woman just yet, oh no, he wanted to come up with something special for her, however if the idiot in front of him decided to ruin his playtime then he would be forced to simply tie off loose ends.

Tilting his mouth back towards Ghosts ear he whispered, “We are going to have such fun, you and I.”

Aurum rushed to Ghost's side when she fell. She was trying to be too forceful, too brave for the wound. He clenched his teeth, dropping to one knee. Whoever the killer was, he'd tried to strangle her. That was unforgivable. Aurum's looked over the wound, and looked around for an ambulance, or any rescue worker he could. All he saw was destruction. The husk of the ambulance the demented drifter had deposited lay on its side. The wheels were still rolling. That was no good. People around the block were shambling. They moved as if in some survival horror game. His breathing came in short bursts. Ghost's blood came in a staggered spate, as if to spite him as his own blood ran cold. Four misplaced nuggets of flesh belied the severity of her wound. Still, it was bad, and—

The ground underneath the nearby road rocked raucously as something deep within the crust crumbled. Sewer lines dipped dangerously and Aurum moved to guard Ghost’s frail form. He shifted forward in an attempt to help her to her feet.

That’s about the point when the lithe loaf clocked him upside the head with a well-edged elbow and Aurum buckled over, crashing to the floor. He rubbed his cheek painfully, looking up at the brute with eyes narrowed in a squint. The impact had made him lightheaded. In a blearing blink, the fiend had scooped her up.

The concrete felt moist as he stumbled to his feet. His scarf hung haphazardly, tinged with a trail of rust-colored blood from his lip. The barrister barista grimaced as he caught sight of the same tone on his fingertips.

“Bastard, I’ll—!”

Hull’s knife pressed in tight at Ghost’s throat. Aurum’s feet locked into place as reality set in.

Hull vanished into an alley. Aurum stood there, not daring to make a move. Time stretched like taffy in a factory-sized pull. One moment wrapped around another. The kitten-sized roar of a red scooter tore through the strip.

Shin dropped the kickstand and stared at the tuft of white hair over the shuffling stranger’s shoulder. He pulled his helmet off without a word, narrowing his eyes cautiously. He’d taken every back-alley and shortcut he could to get here, and now—

“HEY WAIT!!” Shin caught sight of Aurum at the other end of the alley, hand raised and calling. He followed Aurum’s glare to Hull’s back, then back again. A silent nod. He held up his palm, calling forth the shards.

There was no time for words. The shards were forming into 4 cubes already, and flying at the man’s back. This was the guy. This was the guy who’d hurt Ghost.

And dammit. Murderers didn’t get warning shots.

Aurum was cooing soothing words to her as he tried to get her to her feet, but Ghost wasn't buying it. It didn't matter if the unicorn min himself showed up to save her, everything was not going to be alright. She was holding her insides in for Pete's sake! Insides belong in!

Aurum had her halfway to her feet, but had by no means calmed her frantic hyperventilating when someone claimed 'excuse me.' Aurum was suddenly not there to support her and Ghost was sliding back toward the pavement when a separate pair of strong hands caught her upper arms. It was jarring and her slippery hands slid around, yet somehow managed to maintain a bit of pressure there. Even if her skin felt raw and hurty, those slick intestinal walls couldn't feel a thing.

“Hello again dove, I’ve been looking for you.”

Except a lump of dread. All he'd said was 'hello' and that wasn't sitting too well just now. Ghost was hurt, but not stupid enough to know that when she changed hands and those hands wormed their way around her, sliding to the neck that she was in trouble. He was walking them away and Ghost was breathing in jerky little sobs. She wasn't crying. At least not yet. He turned her toward Aurum and something cool and metal pressed up against the bruises of her neck like they were the dotted line around a coupon. Cut Here, were the only missing instructions.

“I was so hurt when you left, you didn’t even say goodbye…"

"If you'll remember," Ghost gasped shallowly, her voice just as flimsy as her breaths, "It was you who was ejected from the store." Why correct him? Why risk his wrath? Because he was wrong. And it was something to think about other than the fact that her belly had popped like a can of biscuits.

He threatened Aurum to stay back and Aurum, the good man, kept his distance though his anger was apparent in his words and balled fists. Ghost closed her eyes and tried to think about air. Her element. She tried to call it toward her hurt self and tried very hard for the source of that air to come from the knife wielder's own body. He hadn't warned her not to try any tricky stuff, though the thought of greying vision and dizziness in a man who had a severe grip on a knife at your throat wasn't entirely comforting.

“We are going to have such fun, you and I.” Nausea came in a fresh wash of fear and the word had narrowed down to those lips that brushed against her pallid ear. Had Hull not been holding Ghost so tightly, she very possibly would have swooned. Despite his extreme creep factor, she almost wished he'd talked more. The talking had made it easier to pull at his reserves, a little extra breath to his words.

‘All good things must come to an end, the final curtain must fall and the actors take their bows. To do otherwise would only prolong the inevitable and create a scene without point or purpose, for truly what is the intendment of a story without an end? Closure is necessary, not only for the audience but also the actors; one can only play the same role for so long after all, eventually ennui ensues and the players performance pales. The stricken strumpet in my arms is a perfect example, her role has clearly taken a considerable toll and her meager assets are far from sufficient. Even exodus is now beyond her, thus another must embrace her burden and ensure a sufficient cessation. Elsewise the story stalls and dénouement remains nothing more than fallacy.’

‘Let it never be said I was anything other than charitable.’

Continuing his almost idle shuffle into the darkened depths of the back alley the Canadian tourist easily maintained his firm grasp upon the withered waif in his grasp. The woman really had become nothing more than a ragdoll by this stage with her pale limbs hanging lifelessly from her body, arms clutched despondently about her midriff while her head tipped backwards against the sadistic anarchists own shoulder. The guileless gamine’s vulnerability was both entertaining and annoying, the former because it allowed the ex solider to dictate events and relish in the tremors which shook the girls form with each sobbing breath, ensuring he would not miss her final moments. The latter sensation of annoyance however occurred due to the fact that he was essentially carrying the worthless woman as he dragged her backwards; an act which kept both the malicious wanderer’s hands occupied as he not only supported the foolish female but also kept her within the role of hostage.

Despite this slight disadvantage though things had progressed surprisingly smoothly and although the girl's guardian had been a somewhat unexpected variable he had, thus far, proven to be quite malleable, issuing little more than a glare, which in turn led Hull to adopt a condescending smirk as he totted his trembling trophy further into the shadows. The malicious wanderer hadn't quite decided where he would take his latest prize as he had yet to familiarize himself with the various twists and turns which compromised the network of passages within the city. An isolated location would be ideal, somewhere the macabre traveler would be able to work without interruption, for although the former soldier was a great believer of the phrase “the more the merrier” sometimes situations called for a far more… personal touch.

‘Perhaps a sewer would suffice, the ambience would certainly be fitting, if only I could find another manhole, shouldn’t be too hard if teenage mutant ninja turtles is anything to go by, I mean it’s not like tv would be misleading or-’

"If you'll remember, it was you who was ejected from the store."[/color]

“Oh I remember dove,” the anarchists voice was still soft and deceptively caring as he continued to whisper affectionately into the Sylph’s ear whilst gently caressing the girl’s pale neck with his cold blade. “and that was really rather rude of you, still I found you again so no harm done, after all…” The travelers voice adopted a more sinister tone as he began yet another twisted rhyme.

“I’m a little Stalker
Ghastly and grim
Here is my dagger
Now let’s take a eggh-”

Hulls throat closed abruptly as his lungs fought, and subsequently failed, to inhale, his body hunched slightly as his viridian eyes swiftly widened in alarm which then rapidly gave way realization and then anger. This was not the first time the Canadian tourist had felt the effects of this particular parlor trick, indeed it had been less than thirty minutes since his breath had last been stolen. Fortuitously though the source of his discomfort was right at hand and easily rectifiable; a sudden twist of the knife reoriented the blade so that its tip point towards the earth whilst a sharp jab upwards slammed the hilt of the weapon into the witless waif’s jaw with sufficient force to rock her head roughly against the wanderers shoulder, exposing even more of her pale throat to the stale air.

“Uh ah, none of that now, you’re in no position to play god; that's my role.” The foreigner rasped darkly as he quickly brought his blade to bear against the guileless gamines neck and applied pressure to her jugular vein. As the strain surrounding his own throat vanished however he allowed his knife to trail downwards until the dull edge of the weapon rested at the base of her neck.

It was about this point during the malicious anarchists sojourn into the alley that he became aware of a low rumbling echoing subtly in the air. The sound was akin toan engine yet was far softer than what would issue from an everyday automobile and thus the twisted traveler quickly pictured a smaller vehicle, something light and unrestrictive, lacking the horsepower of a proper machine but compensating with it’s diminutive size which allowed it to easily traverse back alleys and also explained why the source of the noise seemed to be growing behind him. Annoyingly though due to the deadweight currently in his arms the sadistic slaughterer was unable to pivot himself in time to face his latest challenger before the engine abruptly cut out and a tetrad of blows struck him across the shoulders and the middle of the back instantly knocking him off balance and pitching him forward to collapse atop his ill fated hostage with only minor discomfort whilst the sickly sylph was almost crushed to the alley floor. Fortuitously for the weakened women however the former soldier had utilized his knife hand to absorb the brunt of the fall, forming a fist and using it to slow his sudden descent whist retaining his weapon.

The downside of this maneuver however was that the ample length of the blade ensured that the knifes tip gouged a moderate aperture into the innocuous ingénues neck, which resulted in an ample amount of blood coating the metal blade as it exited veins, arteries and capillaries. Thus one of the first things Hull’s noticed once he had re-evaluated the abrupt change in circumstances was the bloodied blade in his hand and the inert form below him. ‘Son of a b*tch’

The cut wasn’t lethal, that much the anarchist could tell from the flow of blood, but it was damn close thing and the fact that he hadn’t consciously controlled strike annoyed sadistic wanderer to no end. There was also the fact that he had been assaulted by someone who apparently had an IQ lower than most shellfish.

“What the f*ck was that? Seriously you’re somehow seen fit to drive yet you do this? Dear god I thought the other guy was retard. Wannabe Hero 101 Chinky, when a hostage has a knife at their throat you don’t push them onto it. It tends to ruin things for all parties involved and makes you an accessory to murder, believe me I know.”

While Hull had been ranting he had been slowly picking himself up from the ground and pushing himself back to his own two feet. Once his height had been regained the twisted bomber had emphasized his annoyance with exaggerative gestures to further illustrate his running monologue, ensuring that his scarlet knife was displayed for all it was worth even as his emerald eyes darted back and forth, quickly taking in the site of four ruby cubes floating a few feet above his head silently monitoring him.

“I really don’t know what the world’s coming to these days, people think just because their DNA decided to be original for once that they’re special, that they can make a difference.” Shaking his head in dismay Hull ventured forward a few steps in order to bring himself into optimum range as he continued talking. “Honestly when was the last time any of you people visited reality? This isn’t a fairy tale, things are not going to go your way and when you f*ck up people will die, most likely you!”

As the final words were uttered the former soldiers reflexes kicked in as the muscles in his knife arm rapidly tensed swinging downwards in a tight arc before releasing the blade which spun swiftly end over end as it headed towards it’s hopefully oblivious target.

“Hold on,”

Koga nodded as he moved the cup around to make the silly little designs that baristas tried to make in the cup of liquid that you were about to drink.

“Full Circle Books, this is Shin. How Can I help you?”

“Koga,” “Prime the scooters and help me kick our customers out. We need to close up shop for a bit. Ghost’s in danger.”

He moved to hand the drink to the woman who ordered it. “It’s on the house.” He waved the woman toward the door, “Sorry it seems something has come up. We have to close early.” He knew that tone, he didn’t like how Shin wore that tone, bad things came with that tone. That was the tone he used when he explained to the school why their were rioting protestors outside the mansion.

Shin was being the polite employee and while he was sure his actions would reflect on half circle too, well that tone also meant that it wasn’t time for pleasantries. Koga grabbed the receiver of one of the phones, taped the intercom button. “Excuse me customers, I am afraid that we are closing abruptly today, please set any merchandise you are carrying down where you are and evacuate the building.” He paused noting that several people were ignoring him with and keeping their casual pace. He cleared his throat and implemented a bit of reverse psychology. “Employees Code Green.” He made it up bu it did the trick. “If everyone could stay calm there is no reason for alarm, If we could have you make your way to the street exit in an orderly fashion.” He Nodded to Shin. “ I’ll make sure the stores clear and locked up before I leave where should I meet you?” he put his palm up as Shin was already assenting and tossing him the keys, he was still checking for those lagging behind. Shin called out the street name and Koga headed out the door bringing both Pink and red scooters out to the front he left Shin’s scooter Running and his helmet on the handle bars.

He then went in as Shin went out. He did one last sweep of the store faster then anyone probably ever had, making sure no one was in the bath room or back, he then set the alarm and locked the door, staying till closing time and being observant had it’s advantages. He knew this stuff, better then a couple of the employees.

He hoped on his Scooter and threw his bubblegum pink helmet on his head, what provoked Shin’s sense of humor on such a gift he had no Idea, but he wouldn’t look a pink scooter in the mouth. Besides it was fun beating Shin in races, since he put less what on the little motor he could accelerate faster. He took off in the general direction taking paths and alleys that moved him toward a quiet part of town. It was the same as a forest quiet was weird, quiet was odd and quiet was usually bad. Quiet for New York City was by no means silent, merely not deafening. He would more than likely be able to hear what someone on the other side of the street was saying.


Koga’s bubblegum Scooter pulled up at the opposite end of the alley way and screeched to a halt just as he Heard a fair amount of obscenities fly toward shin at the opposite end. What had him absolutely entranced though was the view before him of an absolutely beaten Ghost. And she was not supposed to have so much as a speck of dirt on her. She was going to have a great, great day today. But no she was bruised bloodied and having a bad day, this was unacceptable and if she wasn’t hurt then his objective would be to reek havoc on the foul man with the knife in his hand. He had been training under Sam and his sword master, Shin, Were cat and various others. But he had also spent enough time with Doc Prof to know that his objective was not the dealing of pain but the preserving of life, Ghost was in trouble and would be in a great deal more if he couldn’t get her out of here. He might be able to lift her but he wasn’t carrying her anywhere…He looked around quickly and found what he needed.

Okay, eyes widening. Yes. Somehow, he’d neglected to consider gravity and knife positioning. Damn. He shifted the four red cubes hastily as Ghost and the man who’d held her hostage flew forwards to the ground. With a thud. A red, sickly, almost wet-sounding thud. They hung overhead, turning with more grace than Shin felt now. But at least he was calm.

Across the alley, Aurum stared. Far less calm. His eyes wavered. Was that… Ghost’s blood? He staved off a dropping stomach as red gushed out. He’d never had much experience with blood. Well, there was chicken blood, the blood from various meats, and the occasional cut on the finger from careless handling of knives, but… then it had been his blood, or the blood of animals. Right now, it was his boss’s blood, and that was a whole other kind of ‘whoa’. He shifted uncertainly in bloodstained shoes.

The quartet of shard cubes spun patiently above the man’s head as he rose to his feet and spat words. Vicious words. And ambled slowly and deliberately towards Shin. Sure, four cubes could hang there, yeah. But Shin was hesitant to let them hang there for long. From the excessive gestures and the guy’s way with words, Shin dubbed him a ‘distract, then popp’er. With two ‘p’s. Pearly fangs popping as jaws waved back and forth. He gesticulated grandly. Far too grand for it to be a simple show. The kind of guy Shin knew from the ring, who swung around brashly, then hit with a feint. Feints only worked when people weren’t expecting them. Shin kept up a startlingly-accurate ‘fake look of shock’. Without being obvious, he wiggled the fingers of the left hand low by his side. Five three inch black triangles floated up blindly behind his back.

Aurum clenched his fists. Where did that man get off?

Obviously, from violence. But wait, that was a different question. The man’s hand snapped forward, sending the knife end over end at Shin. Aurum chose that moment to act. He rushed forward to grab Ghost under her arms. As quickly and gentle as he could managed, he pulled her towards the street.

Shin spun, shifting up the shards in a hastily-wheeling wall! The knife clattered out of the air and to the ground. Shin exhaled as he thrust his hands in front of him, reforming that wall into a barrier no greater than nine inches wide, three inches up and down. It floated like a saw blade between him and Hull. His hair fell over his eyes as they narrowed in focus, jerking the four free-floating cubes from before in towards the man to bash at his legs.

"It doesn't matter what you spout! I'm taking you down, either way!"

Aurum’s eyes darted around for any sign of help. They lit up when they fell on a young lizard boy with a shopping cart. Now, he hadn’t personally met the lizard boy, or talked much at all. They’d been introduced briefly, and he’d seen him around the shop. Right now, all that didn’t matter. Koga was looking awfully awesome with that old blue rusted monstrosity.

"Hey kid!" Aurum yelled. "Mind wheeling that over here?"

When the man whispered something about Ghost being rude... well she just about lost it. A giggle, thick and wet started somewhere low and hurty and frothed out of her pale lips. She was so scared she was... laughing. She had to admit that the ending to his little rhyme was her most favorite part. His momentary panic gave her hope. A hope that was wiped away as soon as vitriolic green eyes focused squarely on her face.

He shifted the knife in his hand and she regretted it. She let go of the hold she had over his breath. He could have it! She didn't want it! She didn't--! Her jaw took the brunt of the impact. Her teeth clacked together and the back of her head thudded against this man's sturdy chest. Her neck was long and as of yet, un-marred save for bruising and he kept it stretched long with her head against his chest. Ghost tasted pennies. She was having a hard time seeing the man's face through the wetness and the sharp panicky breaths.

She couldn't even muster a breeze if she'd wanted. Her last attempt at bravado was spent. Why did he insist on keeping the knife naked and close?

Maybe it was to make sure he killed her when he accidentally pitched forward and squished her. Her hands were separated from her innards. The area was too slick and the weight just popped them out of the confined space when she was doubled and crunched over. The knife's tip plunged at least a centimeter into her neck, but it only seemed to catch meat, muscles needed to help support her head, yes, but not a major ligament or vein.

She was so slick and red. Her shirt had started life this morning ruby red, but the lower part was darker almost black and suctioned to her skin. Her hands were covered and now strewn with bits of street and dirt from the fall. Her neck now too dribbled precious amounts of life away.

The man's attentions were elsewhere for a moment. She was almost forgotten in her crumpled heap. That was relief enough for her to let herself be limp and not move. She didn't have to move. Her hands lay close enough to her face for her to see them covered with dirt in the way that fly traps look at the end of a week at the farm. She wanted to hold her insides in, but she also didn't want to get little pebbles in there either. But not moving was okay. Her doubled-over posture was holding things in place for her. That was okay... it was going to be okay... as long as her insides didn't pop out. Ghost's eyes slid slowly closed. How often does one think these kinds of things in their life time?

Hands gripped her at the pits and they unfolded her, dragging her backward. There was something wrong with that. She needed to tell them that she needed to stay folded over, but really she couldn't remember why... didn't matter much now. It was going to be fine since that guy was distracted.

Sirens blared their way across the city, not just one or two as the case would be for a traffic accident, not a dozen or so, as there would be for a fire, but countless sirens converging on one colossal calamity. The klaxons blared, overlapped, and blended together until their individual sounds could no longer be distinguished from the amalgamated clamor of alarms.

Sebastian had been on his way to the supermarket when he first heard the sirens, but his plans for shopping had been abandoned, along with his clothing, and he raced instead toward the scene of the catastrophe as fast as he could go on four hooves. With that kind of alarm being raised, there would almost certainly be need of a healer on the scene. Human doctors were helpful in their own way, but sometimes they were not nearly efficient enough.

As he approached, Sebastian had to dash around the edges of crowds that had accumulated to gawk at the misfortunes of others. Yellow tape and officers of the law kept them mostly out of the area. The white quadruped leaped gracefully over the flimsy barriers and easily dodged an officer with a flabbergasted countenance. Apparently the poor man had never seen a unicorn before.

Beyond the barriers, the street had descended into chaos, and in at least one place it had quite literally collapsed. Cars that had been perfectly happy parked along side the street minding their own business were sliding into the fissure and emergency vehicles that were only trying to help people now needed help themselves. Gods only knew how many more vehicles had already been lost into the abyss. A fire hydrant had become a fountain. Costumes were strewn across the road, once decorative outfits were reduced to sopping rags and the truck from which they had spilled had was teetering on the lip of the cavern, hanging on by a mere thread from the looks of it. Sad looking mannequins stared out of a broken store front window, watching a small fire which had wrapped itself around a garbage can and was greedily consuming the contents. Down the street, a bus looked like it had met a similar fate, though it was no longer burning.

In short, mayhem reigned.

It took a moment for the unicorn shifter to sort out where he would be needed most. It seemed that an ambulance was helping to deal with burn victims a little way down the street, on the other side of the gaping hole that spanned the road. There were probably victims who had fallen into the hole as well, but it would be rather difficult, even with his goat-like climbing abilities, to get down there. Burn victims first, then down the hole, he decided. But first, he had to get over to the other side. The area around the crack in the road did not seem especially sturdy, and it was too far for him to jump across it. The most logical solution seemed to be to take a less direct approach, such as making use of the alleys between and behind the buildings.

The alley's were strangely unmarked considering how close they were to the scene of the mayhem. They are strangely peaceful, he was thinking right up until he turned a corner and stumbled upon the drama that was unfolding there. His first reaction was that someone was dragging a white haired cadaver toward a shopping cart. Then his stomach lurched as he realized that she was still alive, and he recognized her.

If he'd had the ability to speak he would have yelled out, what he would have said he couldn't be sure. It came out as an enraged whinny as he charged toward the man supporting Ghost by the arm pits, not caring who he knocked over on the way there. If the man in the long coat and the green eyes that was standing between him and the girl being dragged away fell on his rear it was his own fault for not moving out of the way quickly enough. Once by the side of the white haired woman he swatted at the hazel eyed man dragging her with the side of his head. He didn't want to gore the man, but he wasn't above using his powerful neck to knock this man over too.

Then he bent over the woman and touched his horn to her abdomen. She looked like someone had tried to do an autopsy before she had even died. Not for long, though. The moment he made contact, the icy energy of his healing powers activated, pouring into the girl's slight frame.

As he healed her, his awareness of his own body spread to include hers. He could feel her limbs as if they were an extension of himself. He could also feel her pain. Even dulled as it was through this secondary connection, he almost stumbled from the shock of it. His own innards twisted sympathetically. Through his connection, he was aware of the spread of the burningly cold force as it commenced its work. Most of it centered around her torso, pulling her organs back into place, mending the tissues that connected and protected them, and knitting her skin back together like lace. Other injuries in other areas of her body were also healed, and a cold spot lingered around a small bit of metal still tucked away in her side. The bullet from last time he had healed her was still there, surrounded in its own little pocket as the flesh had healed around it. He really had to make sure she got that taken care of, but now, like the last time he had healed her, was not the appropriate time to do it.

Slowly he lifted his head and looked at each member of the group with suspicion in his sky blue eyes. He stood protectively over Ghost as he tried to determine what mixture of friend and foe inhabited this alley way.

‘Oh goody a confounding conjurer, I wonder if he’ll pull rabbits out of his ass next.’

Such was one of the thoughts running through Hull’s internal monologue as he observed a veritable spray of opaque shards dispense from behind the Asian youth’s back, sweeping forward on a nonexistent wind the frenzy fragments flew to their masters defense swiftly slotting together to form an irregular barrier almost faster than the eye could follow. A mere split second later a rotating elliptical shield had formed before the slant eyed young man just in time to intercept scarlet soaked knife which had been on course to pierce the new arrivals heart. The blade collided with hastily barrier eliciting a sharp metallic resonance before the weapon then clattered mutely to the alley floor having been robbed of its lethal impetus.

‘Nah, he’d have to pull his head out first and he doesn’t look qualified for a rectal cranial extraction.’

Toxic viridian eyes narrowed rapidly with displeasure as they watched the fragmented shield hastily reform into a curiously shaped rectangular barrier which proceeded to hover between the serial killer and his latest annoyance. The aggravating Asian in question then narrowed his eyes in what could interpreted as either concentration or constipation, however moments before the twisted traveler could comment upon such a comparison he found himself knocked from his center of balance for the second time in so many minutes. This time however the blow came from below instead of above as sinister bomber had his legs knocked out from underneath him and landed roughly upon his back momentarily winding him just as an ivory equine rounded the corner and all but trampling him as it dashed through the narrow alleyway.

‘It’s always good to have a change in perspective every now and again; it keeps things from going stale and encourages one to try different things. I for instance am experiencing a sudden urge to crucify all those around me upside down, especially the little pretty boy with the caped crusader complex.'

'Hmm, would that even work though? I mean if you were to invert a crucifixion then gravity would remove the strain upon the diaphragm and the victim would be able to breathe quite freely. The pressure upon the feet would admittedly increase tenfold as would the pain but the subtle torture aspect would no longer exist and that truly was the entire point of the exercise.'

'Maybe I’m simply not visualizing this correctly, anatomy never was strong suit, I’ll have to make a note to research the issue at a later date for posterity’s sake.’

Such ponderings came to the sadistic slaughter as he lay unmoving upon the filth covered surface of the alley floor. The former soldier was vaguely aware of the Asian annoyance issuing some asinine declaration however the majority of the wanderer’s attention was fixed upon the stochastic appearance of the alabaster animal at the entrance to the back alley. The creature was clearly agitated if its basic body language were any indication for it swiftly dismissed the sickly sylphs two would be rescuers with nothing more than a simply shake of it long neck. The argent beast then lowered its head towards the injured women and for the first time Hull caught sight of the unnatural protrusion which extended from its skull.

‘A unicorn?! A god damned unicorn?! What the fuck kind of fairy tale did I fall into?’

Abruptly shaking the cobwebs which had crept over his mind the malicious murderer groaned theatrically as he gradually pushed himself up into a sitting position and took a brief cursory glance of his surroundings before swiftly raising a hand to his head and releasing another meretricious moan but otherwise remaining still. Internally however the Canadian killer’s thoughts were racing as the analytical sections of his mind went to work evaluating his present situation… the preliminary conclusion was rather depressing, for while Hull did pride himself upon his ability to inhume others he was ill equipped to deal with the latest interferences to his fun. Therefore a new approach would have to be utilized, at least until lady luck placed him back within her good graces.

“Oi vey, I don’t suppose anybody’s got any aspirin? No? Hell..”

Moving with a lack of coordination which had been mastered during years of inebriety the sinister slaughter unsteadily pushed himself to his feet and backed up against a conveniently placed dumpster which he then placed at his back, allowing him to view both parties in the alleyway. The malevolent gazes leveled in the former soldier direction were not lost anyone, least of all the wanderer himself and he swiftly raised both hands in a placating gesture as he adopted a reconciliating tone.

“All right, all right, let’s everyone remain calm and not let things spiral out of control. No one wants’ to do something they’ll regret. I admit this looks bad but trust me it’s all just a big misunderstanding.”

Absently moving his hands the foreign bomber began patting down his recently acquired trench coat in obvious show of one searching for something, a brief moment later a small grin slipped across the anarchists visage as one hand slipped inside the confines of the coat and reappeared a moment later clutching both a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. A few seconds later one of the cancer sticks had been lit and placed jauntily in the killer’s mouth as he took a deep breath.

“Now then, might I be able to tell my side of the story or would you rather go back to abusing my own fine self?”

Koga watched as the insane events kept unfolding…it was like a convergence of calamity and insanity plus a unicorn knocking over Aurum.

First he was truly shocked by the vision of Ghost in so much pain, it was sickening. He was rushing the cart to Aurum when a Unicorn. (Capital U because it was that kind of sight to see. It deserved reverence…he would be forever saddened by seeing a lower case u on the front of Unicorn.) Now normally he would have thought Majestic or beautiful would be the first word he thought upon such a graceful creature, but He wasn’t frolicking through the meadow, he was knocking Aurum on his but and doing magical Unicorn things… Behind all of that Shin was doing his triangle thing and making a wall for their protection between them and the man.

~~“Oi vey, I don’t suppose anybody’s got any aspirin? No? Hell..”

He quickly offered a hand to Aurum on the ground and pulled him up even as Aurum was looking extremely surprised by the occurrence of the day. After The unicorn healed Ghost, Koga saw the creature in its true beautiful majestic Light. And smiled for a moment. “ Obviousssly we are all on the sssame ssside asss ssshe wasss who we were trying to help too.” He nodded toward Aurum once for the unicorn’s sake. “He isss good people, don’t hurt him. Now if you will excussse me, sssomeone needsss a beating.”
He patted Aurum on the shoulder as if to say it was all going to be ok, he then kicked off his shoes.

~~ “All right, all right, let’s everyone remain calm and not let things spiral out of control. No one wants’ to do something they’ll regret. I admit this looks bad but trust me it’s all just a big misunderstanding.”

Secure victims,check. see to their safety…a unicorn was protecting her, check. Secure Assailant, will check. This one was talkative…he hated it when they talked…it wasn’t enough to just be bad…they had to make you hear their twisted thoughts too. He wasn’t one to waste time on chit chat. He sprinted at the brick wall. he thought he had time to smoke…how cute. He absently hoped that Shin didn’t mind him cutting in.


~~ “Now then, might I be able to tell my side of the story or would you rather go back to abusing my own fine self?”

He did a u-turn and ran right back down the wall when he reached the top of the dumpster he would leap at the man and do his best to tackle him from there…he would attempt to utilize his least used power…constriction. This one had it coming. If that didn’t work…well the last six months of intense training were bound to come in handy.

It came in a blur of white fur and horn, so fast all Aurum had time to take note of its countenance were those eyes. Those piercing blue eyes like a frozen flame. And its head.

Yes. The side of its head, more notably. And impact with the concrete, and pain. The boy landed on his backside as powerful neck muscles forced him to the wayside, away from the wounded waif as the unicorn healer touched her with its horn. It took Aurum a moment to get what was going on. Hair tossed back and forth as he shook his head clear, then focused his wobbly vision back on the horned beast.

“What’re you…” His voice cut short as the first signs of healing took form. A passing thought struck him: the image of a roll of toilet paper rolling itself up in quick reverse. He held back a wave of nausea at the image he’d just described. Had she really been wounded like that… Oh god. He could have injured her further, drug her along trailing organs like wet toilet paper, and… he slapped his cheek to hit the thought away. It didn’t matter anymore. Skin was mending; flesh was weaving like the cross-hatched covering of a Sheppard’s pie.

Hazel eyes met fierce blue as Koga helped the coffee-man to his feet. Then the Greek-hewed cleric jerked his attention to others in the alley. Shin felt their glare pierce right through his shield.

He shifted uncomfortably as the macabre traveler hauled himself off the ground and propped against a dumpster. What was his game… Shin wondered as the man tried to talk his way out of it, cigarette perched between his teeth.

“I’ve seen enough to make my judgments. Wounded Ghost, you dragging her. The way you threw a knife at my neck…” He rubbed the area subconsciously as the four cubes drew closer to the man. The hovered at chest level, waiting for a sign, some tick that would call them into action. Shin narrowed his eyes.

Aurum nodded as Koga explained for the both of them. “Right.” And then Koga was off, up the brick wall and at green-eye’s neck.

“And now you’re trying to talk your way out of it. I’m nice, dude. I’m not stupid.”

Koga came crashing down as death from above, cutting Shin's thought train short.

She couldn't help it. She shrieked. And shrieked and shrieked as fast as she could draw air. As the strength in her hands returned, she scrabbled at the horn jabbing her. Distantly she knew that she was getting better, even more distantly she knew the touch of this power and therefore knew the one healing her despite the fact that she'd never seen him as an animal before.

Ghost clawed the only other person who was on the ground closer to herself. A leg. A thigh. A shirted chest. She grabbed Aurum like she'd crawl into him and out the other side, whether she was dragging him to her or herself to him was of no consequence. She needed a friend. She needed help. She needed safety. There was no place far enough away, no place safe enough. Maybe when she ran out of screams she'd feel better.

After she was as close as she could physically be without sharing a body, Ghost went back to fumbling at her now smooth and healed stomach that was still covered in wet strips of red cloth. She had to keep it in. It was all coming out. What would she do if it all came out? The illusion of guts was so real that she swore that she could still feel them in her red hands.

Ghost's screams pierced the air, louder to his sensitive ears than any of the sirens had been that morning. Sebastian's ears were already flattened against his scull in anger. Someone had done this to the snow haired girl and he still didn't know who. There were four likely candidates in the ally way. One was playing it cool with his long coat and his cigarettes. Two were having none of it, sending telekinetic cubes to hover threateningly at him or scaling the walls and attempting to tackle from above. The fourth and final man had just barely stood up when Ghost began to either claw at him or clutch him to herself.

The sides were a bit clearer now, after that brief moment of confusion as to whether Ghost was trying to kill or hug the hazel haired man and a briefly lisped explanation of the situation. It seemed that the Asian cube wielder, the wall crawler, and the hazel eyed scratching post were all friends to Ghost, while the toxic eyed stranger seemed to be the one responsible for her condition. What was most clear was that Ghost needed to get out of here more than she needed to see any kind of revenge inflicted. The trouble was how to do it when she was so hysterical and he couldn't even explain that he was here to help.

A glance at the three in the ally left him assured that the toxic eyed injurer would be kept busy by the two knights in shining armor, leaving him and the hazel haired boy with the conundrum of figuring out what to do with the panicked woman. The quickest way to get her out of here would be to let her ride on his back, however, she didn't seem likely to want to let go of whats-his-name and the unicorn didn't think he could carry them both. Perhaps if he could calm her down he could convey his desire to get her out of there.

Sebastian nuzzled the back of one of her hands, carefully making sure his horn would not be poking anyone by accident. His tail wrapped around her shoulders in a sort of hug. Please be calm, his clear blue gaze pleaded with her frantic honey colored eyes.

--
(Continued for Ghost and Sebastian in Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Safety.)

‘Have you ever experienced one of those episodes where the stress gradually overrides your sensibilities and then one day you simply snap and everything blacks out, only for you to awake at some indeterminate interval later and discover that your hands are stained scarlet and a veritable array of cadavers decorate the surroundings whilst their innards are strung from one wall to the next in some perverse mimicry of Christmas tinsel spelling out a macabre message which leaves you to question the very core of your being? One which truly makes you wonder what type of insane and sinister evil can exist in the heart of man for such a massacre to come to pass?

‘No? Me neither, I’m always awake when it happens, still though I attain a substantial amount of amusement from picturing the best and brightest minds within the NYPD endlessly puzzling over and attempting to derive some sense of significance from the words “Pantsless McGee” smeared against the wall of a rural bar on the outskirts of the city. I can only imagine what type of crackpot conclusions will occur in their cramped craniums. Sadly though such thoughts are for another time, one that is hopefully not too far in the future for I would dearly love to craft a canvas with such a colourful reptilian skin. I’m certain it would create quite the striking image and, if managed carefully, could possibly garner more media attention than my current volatile ventures.’

Such were the thoughts of the Canadian killer as he leaned adroitly against the opened dumpster at his back, viridian eyes indolently shifting back and forth as he surveyed his asinine audience barely even listening as the interfering Asian delivered his dreary denouncement, really people these days were far too quick in jumping to conclusions, whatever happened to imagination? Of hearing both perspectives and coming to an unbiased decision? Really now, the lad could have had some sort of vermin on his shoulder and been none the wiser, but no instead of attempting to be understanding the boy swiftly segued to a sequitur. It was quite depressing for it showed a rather severe lack of creativity and that made things boring, which simply would not do.

It was at precisely this point, just as the former soldier was contemplating the pros and cons of introducing a previously acquired firearm to the ennui inducing environment that the lillupitan lizard crouched besides the mortally wounded waif abruptly and literally leapt into action; swiftly scaling the brick wall behind the sinister slaughterer before rapidly changing direction and launching its immature assault. The merciless marauder was caught almost completely off guard, the scrape of cloth against the brick the only warning he received before a reptilian set of arms and legs locked around his upper torso with unnatural strength, trapping one arm by his side whilst the one supporting the cigarette in his mouth remained partially free.

The momentum from attack caused twisted traveler to stagger forward a few feet, his upper body leaning forward perilously as his lower limbs rushed to keep up, fortuitously, or otherwise depending on your perspective, the sadistic wanderer was able to maintain his balance and quickly drew himself back to his full height as an amused chuckle escaped his lips without losing the cancer stick still clenched between his teeth. “Affectionate little thing aren’t ya? Not too bright though.” The malicious anarchist then set about trying to release himself from the unwanted embrace, much to his surprise however the reptilian youth proved to be far stronger than he appeared and the ex-soldiers efforts were largely useless.

“…well, this is embarrassing. I don’t suppose you’d let go if I offered you snack? I helped you pale friend over there lose a little weight earlier and I was wondering what to do with the- gah!”

Apparently the serpentine youth wasn’t all that hungry, either that or he was vegetarian of some sort for the adolescent mutant suddenly started to constrict all of his limbs with surprising force which was more than sufficient to gradually crush the air from Hull’s lungs and cause the malicious murderer to react with more vigilance than he previously demonstrated; violently twisting from side to side as he attempted to disorient and detach his unwanted passenger.

When such measures failed to provide immediate results though the former solider swiftly embarked upon a more efficient means of untangling himself as he abruptly turned his back on the slant eyed conjurer and hunched over. With his hands thus hidden from view the Canadan killer withdrew yet another knife from his unnatural armory and swiftly sliced the blade through one of the reptilians youth arms. Cold steel deftly severed the constricting muscles in the offending limb and if the cry of pain was any indication the strike had no doubt caused a good deal of pain to the arms juvenile owner for the pressure around Hull’s ribs suddenly abated as the adolescent mutant quickly released his hold and attempted to extract himself.


“Someone needs a time out.” The words were little more than a gasp as the former soldier rapidly worked to regain lost oxygen. He’d come dangerously close to blacking out and such a fact did not sit well with him, however the deranged anarchist retained enough presence of mind to accept that there was another adversary left to contend with whom had already demonstrated a penchant for interrupting his fun. Therefore a compromise needed to be reached between the macabre marauders wish for retribution and the logical understanding that there was not currently time for such. This concession was rapidly concluded and acted upon as the malicious traveler deftly vanished the crimson knife in his argent grasp and straightened back to his full height before shooting his free hand outwards and seizing the prepubescent lizard by his kaleidoscopic head of hair in order to viciously toss the aggravating child into the upturned lid of the rusting dumpster which yielded a satisfying clanging sound as flesh met metal and again as the bleeding boy fell into said dumpster and the cover slammed forcefully into place.

A satiate sigh emerged from the demented wanderers marauders mouth as he stared darkly at the now closed dumpster in front of him before taking in a calming breath turning to annoying Asian with mock grin once plastered across his face. “Now then,” he stated genially, “where were we?”

--

((OOC: As usual, if anyone has any issues let me know.))

((OOC: Same to you. If you've got any issues with a punch to the face, let me know.))

"Right here!" Fist connected with jawline in a hasty right hook. Shin didn't need shards to take this guy down. He'd cut Koga, threw him in a dumpster, and attacked Ghost. Hot-blooded retaliation was to be delivered in full-suit, post-haste. As the irritated Asian lowered his fist, he drew into a controlled stance, arms held in front of his body, ready to guard or strike at any instant. He took a few steps backwards, spacing himself between the malicious malcontent garbage-man's cancer stench and the wall. The four cubes hung back, locking into one large cube on the Asian’s right. A bastard grin hit his cheeks. "Bet you expected that, you sack of crap. I've dealt with dolts like you before. So intent on dealing with the matter at hand, they get caught up in the carnage, and--"

Something stopped him cold.

((OOC: Leaving it up to you to do something snippy to Shin here. A kick to the chest, a punch to the chin, stabby stabby? I'm open, so long as it doesn't leave him unable to help Koga back to the mansion... or the hospital. Feel free to discuss it with me in PM~))