Roland had made a dire mistake. In order to find new contacts and erase old threads, he had chosen to take his dry cleaning to a new shop. It seems they had lost his favorite coat. Lost it. He was on the phone explaining the sentimental and financial attachment to the coat to the store manager, who seemed to believe he was talking to just any other disgruntled customer.

" In the bag. All of that. Keep your hands above the counter as well. I may not be able to hear a silent alarm but I damned well know what the motion to push one looks like." His attention returned to the man on the phone, who now seemed confused, silence interrupting his explanation of store policy. " Sir? Are you robbing someone right now? What's that noise on the other end?"

" You're robbing me with your incompetence. Don't point fingers so soon, Sir." He saw the motion out of the corner of his eye, the telltale attempt at misdirection as the jewelry store owner waved one hand while the other one retreated beneath the counter. A long sigh left Roland's lips. " I'll have to call you back. Find my coat or you're next." The phone closed and disappeared from his hands, the gun on the counter replacing it.

"Any good stories you want to tell me before I shoot you? About why it was so important to blatantly ignore my warnings? If it is a good enough story, I might just shoot you in the arm or leg, give you a chance. Though, I must admit, my aim seems to tend toward arterial wounds." The old man just looked at him, hands raised and face frozen in horror. yeah, yeah, the victim. Had he not done what Roland told him specifically not to do, his face might be frozen in fear rather than death.

The smell of fresh gunpowder was in the air as Roland stepped over the body into the back, finding the vault. The lock disassembled itself piece by piece, a practiced routine by the man. Many times over. The locks disappeared from each box, uncut stones pouring into the bag along with the pieces from the front. The alarm was already going, albeit with no clanging and lights flashing, so he just opened the door into the alley and stepped out into the light.

" Police!Don't move! Drop the bag and put your hands in the air! Now! You will only get one warning, Pruitt! They knew his name. That meant every boy in blue did. Roland imagined the press conference after, each doughnut inhaler clapping the other on the back. As if they really had a chance. Roland dropped the bag as requested, his back turned away from the officers. Not so much as a drop of sweat rolled over his brow. He could put every single one of these little soldiers in early graves in a moment.

" Don't try any mutie tricks either. We know you have a mutation, judging from reports from the ferry. So keep your eyes facing forward. And get on your knees. This will be your last warning."

Deirdra had been walking home from work. It always seems to start that way. She had a long, uneventful day and was excited to get home. She wore a skirt that came about mid-thigh and a lowcut shirt. Her venture home continued until she heard shouting. She turned to see a group of police officers around a jewerly store, yelling for some guy named 'Pruitt' to put his gun down. The woman raised an eyebrow and inched a little closer to the scene. The next thing that caught her ear was something about 'mutie tricks' and 'mutations'. Her eyes narrowed slightly. Hmm...This could be interesting.

She walked up behind one of the police. "Excuse me, what's going on here?" The cop turned and looked at her and then glanced at her bare legs. He looked to be in his late 30s and had a tired look in his eye. "Some guy's robbing the store. He's a mutant that's caused some trouble in the past." He sighed and turned back to the 'Pruitt' man. Deirdra glanced at the mutant in the alleyway. So he's a mutant too. An image of the mutants that had helped her when she needed it popped into her mind. What if he needed help?

The woman took a deep breath as her legs began to stretch out and expand into a hard, outershell with many legs. After having a moment to harden even more, the lower half of her body turned a deep black and a tail appeared. She looked half scorpion and half woman. Her skirt now lay on the ground in shreds, but it didn't matter. This wasn't the first or the last time, she suspected, that this would happen. Her mutation was different and powerful. She wouldn't stop using it because it ripped her pants here and there.

One of the cops turned around and yelled. The blond grinned and hit him with the tip of her tail, releasing toxins into his body. It would paralyze him for at least 10 minutes and the effects began to show. The man turned pale and fell to the ground. A female officed pointed a gun at her and Deirdra jumped onto the hood of one of the cars. The secretary from the dentist's office swung her tail around and knocked the gun out of the other woman's hands. Turning to the other mutant, she tilted her head. It was her way of telling him to go.

Screams. They weren't coming from inside the shop nor down the street. They were coming from behind Roland. As he turned, his mouth turned to a grin. There was a verifiable creature attacking the police. Her legs skittered over the car, his eyes widening in pleased amazement. Unfortunately for the police, they were all distracted and looking at her. Who wouldn't be? He watched as her scorpion stinger pierced one and sent him down for the count. next it was a gun being knocked from a hand. His savior then took a moment to give him that nod that criminals tended to give each other. He returned it, feeling he should do his best to repay the favor.

The gun knocked free never actually hit the ground, finding Roland's hand a more suitable sanctuary. All he had to do was squeeze the trigger a few times. Double taps in the torso and then the head. It finally got quiet again. He reached down and picked up his bag of sparkling loot, walking toward the great creature still mounting one of the cars. The guns went into his waistband as he tossed the heavy sack on the hood. His free hands now clapped slowly. " Very nice. Take your pick out of the bag. You certainly saved me from a long boring day in an interrogation room. Roland Pruitt's the name. And yours?"

As she could choose to grab loot or not, Roland noticed the remnants of her skirt on the ground. He bent down and began to strip the female officer of her pants and gear. His head craned into the open police cruiser and various items followed his gaze until they sat in a neat pile before him. Shotgun, shells, police scanner, taser, handcuffs. So many toys, it was quite exciting. He looked behind their vehicles to the old Ford Bronco in the alley he had borrowed on the way here.

Looking up at her, assuming she had taken what she liked, he put his new toys in the bag with the loot. Standing, he passed her the officer's pants. " I suspect there will be more of them here soon. Why don't you get in the back of the SUV over there as you are and you can change into these pants as we drive. Deal?"

Deirdra watched as the mutant man caught the female officer's gun and shot all of them. The blond was a bit startled and glanced at him. Did he really just kill a group of cops? She blinked and felt a small smirk crawl onto her face. She wasn't quite sure why it was there, but it just was. There was nothing funny about the situation and her life was probably going to be over now, at least the life she knew. She made a decision that she couldn’t go back on, but she supposed that was life. The smirk was more out of shock.

With a sigh, she glanced at the bag he offered to her. It was all the things he had stolen. Deirdra looked up into his face and then shook her head ‘no’. “Thank you for the offer, but I helped you because I couldn’t watch another mutant get killed. Not because I wanted something from you, but really, thank you.” The blond nodded when he said she could change in the back of the car. “That would probably be best. I’d prefer not to get in trouble for this. I was leading a normal life with a normal job, but that ship has probably sailed.”

The woman crawled into the back of the SUV and motioned for Roland to pass her the pants. "Come on. I really want to get out of here." There was no way she would even begin to turn back into her other form without having the bottoms within arm’s reach. She could just see that ending badly, not to mention that she noticed that the man was handsome. The presence of handsome men and with Deirdra being a flirt, well, she just needed some pants.

Roland was surprised that the creature had passed on the loot. Someone who had no compunction about stabbing a policeman with a stinger found it troubling to steal? It was a strange world he lived in.“Thank you for the offer, but I helped you because I couldn’t watch another mutant get killed. Not because I wanted something from you, but really, thank you.” Ah. She was one of those. This particular type of mutant was popular in his current organization, at least from a level of propaganda. Perhaps they could head that way and talk it over.

“That would probably be best. I’d prefer not to get in trouble for this. I was leading a normal life with a normal job, but that ship has probably sailed.”

Roland shrugged as he entered the Bronco's driver side, holding the pants in waiting for her to climb into the back. She managed it surprisingly well, though he believed it might be an awkward fit for her. How could he guess at the ergonomics of such a thing anyway? " I don't see why you can't still work your day job. Though, if you didn't mind bending the rules occasionally, I'm sure I could find you some work that would fit you better. You would also be surrounded by other mutants who felt like you do about the mutant...situation." Let the flag wavers wave their flags, as long as it produced results.

"Come on. I really want to get out of here."

The ignition turned, the pants passed, and in a moment they were out in traffic. Roland turned the mirror slightly to attempt to seem passably chivalrous, though once she started to change, the mirror found itself moved back to its original position, hands-free. " The place I speak of is called the Sanctuary. It is a haven for wayward mutants like ourselves. Maybe you can have a look around there, see if it fits for you. Also, I can arrange an alibi for you as far as today. If you are so worried about your day job." Roland hoped she would go down the path. Maybe the wrong one for her, maybe not. Definitely the right one for the Order.

Roland mentioned something about a place with mutants more like themselves. She listened as she turned back and slid into the pants he had stolen from the officer. She wondered if he could see her at all, but didn’t really care either way. Deirdra wasn’t the type of woman to disapprove of any sort of attention. Besides, if he could see her, that’d only give her more reason to try to hit on him. Peeking at someone was a type of flirting, in a way. Kind of creepy, but still, it showed one had interest in another person. The blond wasn’t into serious things anyway, so if someone liked her just for her looks, that was fine with her.

When she was finished, Deirdra looked over the side of the seat so she was able to see him as they spoke to one another. The Sanctuary? Interesting. An image of Meld entered her mind. “A woman told me about a group called the Order. She went by Meld. I had never seen anything quite like her before. She seems the type to go around getting into a bit of trouble.” The blond smirked and leaned back in one of the rear seats. She had found the cyborg-looking woman very impressive and quite honest about the things she had done, even if they were illegal. She did what she thought was right and Deirdra had to admire that.

He said that he could help her maintain her regular job. Deirdra sat straight up again and glanced at the back of his head. [i[He could really do that? That would be amazing, not to mention he offered a new kind of job.[/i] She smiled. “Actually, if I got a new job, I wouldn’t really need to continue my current one as a dentist’s secretary. So if what you’re saying about me being able to do something else is true, I’m in.” The woman looked down at her bare feet and then glanced out the rear window before letting out a sigh. I can never wear anything nice with this power.

Multiple thrashing legs became humanoid as she changed. It was a whirlwind of chaos and while roland had initially wished to catch some skin, he thought twice on it now, preferring to keep his eyes on the road. Her face appeared at his side and he looked over when he could, the vehicle making its way toward the Sanctuary. Listening to her tale about someone named Meld, Roland found it a bit unsettling that there was someone going on about the Order, talking about it so obviously. He'd have to talk to this Meld person. " Tell me more about Meld."

“Actually, if I got a new job, I wouldn’t really need to continue my current one as a dentist’s secretary. So if what you’re saying about me being able to do something else is true, I’m in.” Dentist's secretary? Really? It seemed like this little lamb was very lost. Good thing she had such a good shepherd to help her. He looked at her, smiling and patted the seat next to him. " Hop on over. I think you can sit in the front now." Reaching into his pocket, he pulled a clip containing about three thousand dollars in hundreds. The clip disappeared and returned to his pocket, the large wad of cash neatly folded in his hand.

" See if this can hold you over until we can find some work for you. There's no strings to this money. If you get to the Sanctuary and decide it isn't for you, that's fine. Keep the money and I'll still manufacture an alibi for you. If you choose to stay, we can find things for you to do that are better suited to your gifts." The large cathedral looking structure appeared, coming up on their right. Roland took a sharp right into the alley adjacent,then turning right again into the back lot of the Sanctuary. he turned the truck off, the keys disappearing from the ignition. It was quieter and definitely more cozy. "So, what's your answer?"

He said he wanted to know more about Meld. Is this going to get her into trouble? Deirdra glanced away from him. “She had some robot-looking parts and she said she used to work for the Order. I doubt she goes around talking about it all that much.” The blond looked back toward the man and smiled. “She said she prefers to work alone and I don’t think she talks to people much. She seems pretty dedicated to what she believes and she seems to have a lot of respect for the Order.” Deirdra gave a small laugh. “I don’t know what more to tell you. The robot parts were very unique and I’d never seen anything like it. I think you’d know her if you saw her.”

Roland gestured to crawl into the front seat and the woman did so. She watched as the man pulled out a wad of money with a clip on it. He offered the stack of cash and Deirdra grabbed it from him after glancing at his face. It seemed like she was judging his reaction to make sure if it was really okay to take it. After a moment of thinking, the blond slipped it into her purse. “Well thanks, but I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to pay you back. “ He said there were no strings, but still…It made her a bit uneasy being told to take money and then saying there were no attachments.

The truck pulled up into a parking lot and Roland removed the keys from the truck’s ignition and then turned to Deirdra. He asked what her answer was. With a smirk, the woman nodded. It felt a lot less awkward now that the vehicle wasn’t running. Maybe it was because she could see him better and make eye contact easier. She noticed that Roland appeared to be a bit older than herself, but still quite handsome. The blond leaned toward him slightly as she spoke. “It sounds like a very good idea. I appreciate your help and the very generous sum of money you passed to me.” She winked at him and gave him a small smirk.

“She had some robot-looking parts and she said she used to work for the Order. I doubt she goes around talking about it all that much.” Robot looking parts. Should be easy enough to ferret out such an individual. Roland appreciated the backpaddling that the girl was doing to try to cover for her friend, though it seemed odd that he was so transparent. He'd have to study his features in a mirror some time. Perhaps the old face had old tells that the newer faces had forgotten.

She had no problem crawling over into the seat next to him. She also seemed to slide in morality the longer she was in his proximity. First she had no desire for the stolen jewelry but a wad of bills freely given seemed to be A-OK. Roland wondered how much farther down she would slide. He'd keep her close for the results. " No strings is no strings. I think the sack of stolen jewelry will keep me covered for a while." The truck was off now and the two sat in the quiet, warm interior. He felt her move closer and he kept his face of benevolence on tight.

She agreed to look toward new horizons.“ It sounds like a very good idea. I appreciate your help and the very generous sum of money you passed to me.” She was close enough to touch. Not yet, Roland. Take her inside, offer her something cool to drink. " With the right connections, what I just gave you could be your daily allowance. There is plenty to do in the coming months. With your obvious talents and your attitude, I'm sure we can find a place for you."

Roland avoided the potential intimacy and opened the door, sliding out and retrieving his loot bag from beneath the seat. Looking over at her, he attached the smile. " Come inside and we'll find you a room to stay in, if you like. you are welcome to live wherever you like as well, but usually being closer makes it easier if we need to find you for work." It would also be easier to find her for extracurricular activities. " Oh, one last thing. I think there is one thing I need from you. Your name?"

The man assured her that there were no strings attached. Deirdra smiled and nodded, as if accepting what he was saying. He also added that what he had just handed her could be what she made all of the time. The blond woman gazed at him for a moment. ”That’s a very good amount of money.” She bit the inside of her cheek as she thought about what she should do. Deidra also couldn’t help but notice that Roland seemed to be complimenting her. If he trying to win me over, or just being honest? She knew that she had talents, but that didn’t mean everyone would see them. Others may look upon her with no admiration at all. That was fine with her because she didn’t like those people anyway.

Roland opened his door and exited the vehicle. She watched him grab the bag from beneath his seat. He looked at her with a smile on his and then said something about finding her a room. A room? It seemed a bit odd to just move into another place when she already had an apartment. Though, her apartment wasn’t really the best and it wasn’t as if she had an emotional attachment to the building. With a smile, the woman opened her own door and stepped out onto the pavement. “I think I’d like a room. I’m sure it’s a lot nicer inside here than it is at my building.” An image of the small bedroom she stayed in entered her mind. “A lot, lot nicer.”

The man asked for her name. She turned to him and laughed. “I’m so sorry. That’s so rude of me. I’m Deirdra Sykes. It’s very nice to meet you, even if I had to watch you kill cops.” She shrugged with a small smile on her face. “I’d never seen anyone do anything like that before. Your aim’s incredible.”

She was on board with the money, no doubt there. It was interesting to Roland how easily morality could slide in the presence of currency. In his opinion, lose the morality and there are no more prices. Everything became currency, even lives. They tended to be more valuable than a sack of cash any day. He watched her step out of the truck and come around to his side. Even in the wrong sized pants, he couldn't quite imagine how such a nice shape turned into scorpion legs. Probably best just to see her this way.

“I think I’d like a room. I’m sure it’s a lot nicer inside here than it is at my building. A lot, lot nicer.” Roland smiled and agreed." It's settled then. We'll have lisa fill out some paperwork and you can have someone go out and get your things from your apartment if you like. Or you could just leave it all behind and start fresh with us. You may also decorate and furnish your room however you see fit. "

At last, the name. Deirdra Sykes. The name filed itself away with other names to be researched in the future.“I’d never seen anyone do anything like that before. Your aim’s incredible.” The smug grin of satisfaction and fully stroked ego painted the man's countenance as he began walking toward the building, beautiful girl in tow. " Well, I have a couple of decades experience in marksn=manship, but I wouldn't be staying here if I didn't have tricks of my own. " he stopped as they neared the doors, punching a code in. Turning to her, he showed his hands and waved them in the fashion of a stage magician. "Nothing in my hands." He glanced down to see his boot knife. it appeared in his hand and then promptly found its way to his other his hand before finding its nest in his boot again. " Magic. Or not." He opened the door for her and they entered the halls of the Sanctuary.

Roland told Deirdra that she could leave everything behind and get all new things. The woman bit the inside of her cheek in thought. There isn’t anything I can’t live without, but even if I do make a good deal of money, will that really be enough to pay for everything I need. She looked at the man and smiled. “I think I’d like some of my things, but just my clothing and a few other random things, like my jewelry.” She laughed as she glanced at his bag full of shiny treasures. “Looks like you have yourself a lot of fine pieces to choose from.” The woman smirked at him, to let him know she was kidding.

She watched as the man’s expression turned very smug. It made him look even more handsome, she noted. Deirdra listened as he Roland talked about his experience with marksmanship. “Well, it’s very impressive. I don’t know how to shoot guns. I suppose I’ve never really had the chance to try it though.” She realized that good aim must not have been his mutation. She had heard of mutants having perfect aim as a mutation before, but when he made his boot knife move around without touching it, she knew there was much more to him than being good with guns.

Right before the door popped open, Deirdra gave him a small smile. “I don’t suppose you’ll tell me how you do that. They do say a good magician doesn’t reveal his tricks. I bet you’d be great at children’s parties.” After the door was unlocked, the blond took a step inside the door and then waited for Roland to come in after her. She thought it best that he lead since he actually knew where he was going.

“Looks like you have yourself a lot of fine pieces to choose from.”

Indeed he did. Oh, she meant in the bag. "You are still welcome to anything in it. I'll more than likely split the stones and smelt the gold. As for the rest of your stuff, feel free to do what you like. That's what most of us do here." Though Roland initially felt fenced in at the Sanctuary, it was becoming clear that it lived up to its name, as he was immune from raids and searches there. Cops had better things to do than get killed.

She didn't seem to know her way around guns. this was one of many things that Roland could help her with. " I'm having a shooting range installed in the lower floors. Once it gets underway, I'd be happy to teach you a few things." As they entered, she asked him about how he did what he did. If Roland was akin to a stage magician, it was mostly in the art of misdirection, which is vital to any prestidigitator. " Children's parties. No, I don't think so. I do this the same way that you become a scorpion. What does the transformation feel like? Is it painful?" More intimate questions could come when she inevitably knocked on his door.

The pair walked up some stairs and came out into the main thoroughfare of the Sanctuary. Some doors were open, some closed. Eyes were set upon the lovely blond, but only until Roland's eyes snuffed their glances. Alphas generally liked the pups to know who belonged to who. It didn't mean she couldn't see who she liked. He certainly would. A flash in Roland's head of blue eyes crossed his mind briefly. Perhaps he'd see those eyes more often. In the meantime, he was as free as a bird, like everyone was.

They eventually arrived at the foyer, where the golden doors waited to usher in most of the rabble, or prospective members. Lisa typed away until Roland stood before her. She looked up at him, waiting for him to speak. Roland respected Lisa. She had seen just about every kind of mutant pirate and scumbag and she had never so much as flinched as far as he knew. " New resident. Deirdra Sykes. Give me the master keys and a list of unoccupied rooms. I'll take a map and some information forms while you're at it." Lisa was not very pleased, but she did as she was told. It was good for workers to remember their place in the world. While she might have been the most bad-ass human secretary alive, she was still just a human secretary. She'd hate to have her own files rummaged through, he imagined. The requested paperwork was given to him and Roland stepped over to the plush furniture in the foyer, beckoning Deirdra with a gesture of his head. " Please, have a seat. This isn't an interview of any kind. I'd just like to get to know you a little better and we need the information for the desk should there be any emergencies and the like."

Roland offered to help her learn how to use guns later. She nodded. “That sounds very nice. I think it’d be a good skill to have and be able to use when necessary. It sure seems to come in handy for you.” Deirdra smirked at him. It really did at the time. It may have been a bit of a shock to see him just attack all of those police officers, but she admired the talent it took to have such perfect aim. It wasn’t that the blond liked cops, it was quite the opposite in fact. She didn’t really believe they made much of a difference and she didn’t see the need for humans with guns running around when mutants were gifted with their own, natural weapons. But still, seeing a group of people shot in the head so easily and without any sense of remorse, it was different for her.

The woman looked at Roland when he question what it felt like when she transformed. He wanted to know if it was painful. Deirdra quirked her lips as she thought about. “Well, it is painful, but I’m so used to it that the pain doesn’t really bother me anymore. It seems to get easier each time I use that form.” How do I describe the feeling? It’s not like anything else I’ve ever felt. “Hm, I guess it’s a bit like feeling like your skin is being smelted and then molded into something else. My bones also disappear and that feels a bit like it’s melting and then being flipped to the outside, since I have an exoskeleton when I’m a scorpion. Technically, my bones kind of turn into the shell. It’s very hard to explain when I’m not even sure exactly how it happens. Either way, growing a tail hurts the most.” She blushed and looked away. That’s so awkward.

As they walked along, Deirdra noticed a few people glance at her through their doors. She scrunched her eyebrows together, confused. They all looked away when they saw her with Roland. She glanced at the man who was escorting her and his gaze was on her. It was as if he was their superior. They did look a bit younger than him, and maybe that’s why they respected the fact that he was with her currently, even if it wasn’t like that. It reminded her a bit of animal packs, like lions or wolves. The alpha got the female. Deirdra felt a cross between flattery and anger. The flattery came from all of the attention from Roland and the anger, well, that came from the fact that they seemed to think she was owned or something. It didn’t bother her enough to be upset visibly and besides, she was getting a new room and Roland seemed to be interested in her. Nothing bad about either of those things.

The two arrived at a desk where a woman sat at a computer. Roland told her Deirdra’s name and requested keys and a list of rooms with no one in them. He motioned for the blond to follow him and told her to sit. She did so and he explained to her what was going on. The blond nodded and crossed one leg over the other and smirked. “Alright, what would you like to know?”

Roland perused the forms in the folder in his lap. The filling out of documents was nothing new for him, but he never considered filling anything out with legitimate answers. As far back as he could remember, it was always aliases and fake lives. How would he fill something like this out? The short answer was he wouldn't. He passed the folder to her and the pen passed itself over via his mutation. Talking was more Roland's cup of tea, especially when the other person was so easy to look at.

" Fill those forms out as you see fit. On the map, you'll see the available rooms. They are the ones not shaded in. They are all basically the same when you first get to them. How you make it your own is up to you." His room there wasn't much to look at in the aesthetic sense. A small metal frame bed, weapons on the walls, plenty of floor space to exercise. Room to relax and space for his trophies remained at the estate near the Mansion. He felt he should return there soon for some spring cleaning. That was for tomorrow. Today was for recruitment of a valuable resource.

" Tell me what you think of mutants and humans. Their roles in society. Also, what do you think you could bring to our little family here? What can you do and more importantly, what are you willing to do for us?" It wasn't a loaded question. Merely a straightforward one. It also seemed as if this was an interview after all. Lori could interview all the men. That seemed to be the best strategy.