Lucas’ knuckles turned white as he held onto the frame of the red Porsche where the door had recently been. He tried to pull himself inside but what remained of the vehicle juked and spun through Manhattan rush hour traffic so vigorously. All he could do was hold on for dear life as his legs dragged along the asphalt. His arm muscles strained under the exertion and he gritted his teeth as he was pulled outwards while the car banked left for a steep left turn.

The damaged car careened around the corner and straightened out. It seemed to understand Lucas’ situation suddenly and stopped weaving for a moment. An arm reached over from the driver’s seat to help pull him back in. With this help, the young man clambered through the hole and quickly fastened his seat belt to avoid being thrown from the speeding sports car again.

The arm belonged to Shin, a young Asian man that Lucas had just met. He seemed a friendly, gregarious kind of guy and quite likeable at the time. Now, he was almost emotionless, the previous jovial attitude washed away by the imminent danger of the situation. His concentration was complete. The man in the driver’s seat seemed absolutely unphased, like he did this every day, as he casually shifted gears and steered through the treacherous streets. Shin never took his eyes from the road despite his lightly highlighted hair flipping about his head as the wind rushed through the shattered window. He gave the impression of someone who did this every day.

Smoke had started to billow out of the bullet holes that littered the hood of the vehicle but the engine refused to die and continued to roar onward despite the punishment it had taken. Its sound almost drowned out the thumping of the helicopter following behind or the constant beeping of the timer in the back seat as it counted down.

Looking back over his shoulder, Lucas spotted the huge chopper as it rounded an office building and continued its pursuit of the pair. The muzzles of its twin machineguns flashed madly as it sprayed another burst of death towards them. Sparks flew and the vehicle rocked violently as a fresh trail of holes tore through the back bumper and trunk. Shin pulled the steering column hard to the right and the Porsche responded by leaping the curb and continuing its flight along the sidewalk.

“I don’t want to be a backseat driver but I am betting bullets and explosives don’t mix.” Lucas yelled nervously over the sound of the car’s hum. The incessant beep of the timer continued and he glanced over to see that less than 3 minutes remained before the bomb it was wired to in the trunk would explode.

‘How did I get myself into this?’ he wondered to himself as a fresh spray of bullets tore a path along beside them, glass and shrapnel filling the air.

Emotionless. Unfazed. Casual. A good driver of red sports cars at high speeds in dire situations. These were all things Shin was not. Any one who thought such things needed to spend less time hanging around outside of moving cars.

If the driver had been good, there would not have been a missing door. If the driver had been anything but a ball of frantic nerves, shuffling, the passenger would not have fallen out of the moving vehicle. If the driver had been emotionless, unfazed, or casual, there would have been far fewer bumps and jarring dents.

Shin was a roiling ball of worries. In dangerous situations, it was always like this. Like the hero in a cartoon for young boys, Shin's emotions gave him strength. Like a cartoon hero, they usually stood out on the edge of his sleeve. Friendly, sweet, caring. These were things he was on a day-to-day basis.When danger struck, these retreated inwards, while his concentration struck outwards. He focused. He did what was right. What might not have been brilliantly wise, but was right, for friends and family. For pedestrians on the street. Like a cartoon super hero, he tried to protect everyone with the best weapon he had on him: His mind. And like a cartoon super hero, he was a ball of nerves while doing so, making enemies take this, his love, his anger, and all of his sorrow. So, yes. Any and all opinions stating that this Asian was emotionless, calm, cool, or collected were anything but the truth. It wasn't like he was a spirit detective with a six inch wall of crap between him and his emotions, or anything. He didn't need something drastic to unlock his potential. It just sorta happened.

How had this happened? Shin didn't usually drive red sports cars. He stuck to motorcycles and motor scooters. To city buses and public transit. To flying green triangles that cut through the night sky like UFOs. How had it come to bullet holes, bombs, and helicopters? He didn't do this every day.

There were several questions Shin had to ask himself as he drummed up his concentration to summon a fresh wall of lime green squeaky-clean triangles in the air above their heads. Statements, really, that led to questions. Er. One question.

It was like he was living in a shotgun shack.

Behind the wheel of that Large Automobile.

In a beautiful car with some guy he didn't know.

And he had to ask himself, 'Well, how did I get here?'

Once in a lifetime, you get a free pass to do something stupidly heroic. This was not that time. How did he work this, with time holding them back? With time after them. How had he even gotten here in the first place!?

Bullets hit the lime green shield overhead as they turned a corner and swerved to avoid traffic. Shin tried to recall the events leading up to this 'stupidly overwrought with peril' situation....

His hand slammed down on top of the alarm clock as the annoying sound drilled into Lucas’ brain. It ceased immediately but the damage was already done. Dreary eyes fluttered open and attempted to focus on the digital display.

4:30 am

“Ugh….” Lucas moaned as he rolled out of bed and walked about the small room like a zombie, collecting and putting on his clothes for the morning jog. Each piece took more effort then it ever should have but it was part of the daily ritual now and he went through the routine on auto-pilot. Seeing the sun rise while running in the fresh spring air of the harbor was a part of his every day life now. Ok…maybe fresh was the wrong word.

His head clearing, Lucas made his way to the kitchen and grabbed a banana as a quick snack before getting started. He had a busy day ahead of him. McMillan expected his fighter to keep up with his regiment, even when he wasn’t there to push him. It was part of the new deal to live here now. The coach had been understanding and accomadating to Noel despite the initial displeasure at the idea of her moving in. Lucas had to make some concessions so that the young woman could stay but he didn’t mind. Helping his friend until she could get on her feet was the right thing to do. He owed her that much at least. Of course, that didn’t mean Lucas could push his luck. He needed to stay focused and complete the tasks before him every day. If he had personal matters to attend to, he had to find a way to fit them in on his own time. It was secondary to the training.

Today was one of those days. Lucas needed to figure a time to swing by the bank and get an account opened up. Maybe even enroll for a credit card if they would give him one. Having been employed for over a month now, it was possible that he would be accepted for a small limit at least. Lucas was far from financial independance but it was definitely time to start getting the basic building blocks in place. If would probably take a second run later on in the morning to get to the banks when they opened up.

The banana finished, Lucas grabbed a couple of granola bars and his water bottle and bounded up the stairs to Front street. The road seemed deserted, as if he was the last man left standing after an apocolypse. The eastern sky had already started to turn a pink color, a prelude to the sun’s inevitable rebirth. It was so peaceful this early in the morning. A contrast to the regular hustle and bustle of every day New York life. The crowds of commuters would start to trickle out of bed soon but for now the city belonged to him.

(( OOC: Kealey bits written by Kealey. ))

Angry. Red. Bunnies. Shin swatted the nightmarish dream away. As his hand moved through the air in front of his face, he rolled in the bed. His arm took the natural path of motion and went down, too. Right over the edge of the bed, left to dangle coldly with its twin.

That word. Cold.

Shin dragged his arms back in and tossed and turned again. This time, his arms went the opposite direction in their bed, to the left. They wrapped around Kealey as they fell. This was warmer. Of course. This didn't necessarily save anyone from angry. Red. Bunnies. Shin gave a squeeze.

Kealey didn't usually have much trouble sleeping, but since her powers worked whether she was awake or not, if someone was having a bad dream, sometimes the emotions bled over. Especially if that person was right next to her in the bed.

Shin's tossing and turning reinforced the emotions, and by the time his arms fell to wrap around her, Kealey's eyes flew open and she gave a startled little squeak as he squeezed.

"Shin. I think you're having a bad dream." she mumbled a moment later, snuggling back, now that she was sort of awake. Bad dreams often fled in the face of a good cuddle.

The bad dreams fled. "Right." The corners of Shin's mouth pulled into a dream-filled smile.

The smile vanished as the alarm clock blared '5AM', '5AM'! Shin's eyes snapped open. He reached forward and knocked the 'off' on the alarm.

"Sorry." He said by her ear. The Asian broke away from the snuggle reluctantly. "Morning run."

He fled the warm comfort of the bed, silently cursing what it took to keep looking so good.

Kealey snuggled back under the covers. At least she didn't have to go running to keep cute.

Out the front of the apartments Shin went, on his way to Central Park. A water bottle was in his hand, a song in his heart. The song was Crystalanthemums.

Long shadows stretched across the sidewalk as the young man travelled north along his usual route. The sun had already risen but the skyscrapers blocked its warming light and gave the city a gray and sleepy feel. It was reflected in the tired and dreary eyes of the people Lucas passed as the residents of New York began to venture out of their homes to start their day. Up ahead, Central Park beckoned the runner and spurred him on. It was a refuge for the daylight to gather and peak in through the canopy of foliage that covered the acres of green space. It was so peaceful there and Lucas always tried to run through the park whenever he could manage it. The natural oasis in the heart of Manhattan helped make him detach from the bustling metropolis that surrounded it, and he wasn’t the only one. This early in the morning, the park would already be alive. Dog walkers, early commuters and other runners gravitated towards its scenic beauty as they started off their day. It was like a strange religious Mecca for the early riser and Lucas was one of the faithful.

A couple more blocks and the street opened up to nature as Lucas crossed the road and made his way into the lush, green center of the city. The eerie echo of his footfalls bouncing back from the cement buildings drifted away to be replaced by birds singing a welcome to the morning sun. The serenity of the moment was indescribable and always lifted the young man’s spirits as he came here.

Normally, he would take a quick rest and soak in the scenery somewhere in the park. Today was no different. Lucas scanned the benches as he ran along the path, trying to find one that was unoccupied so he could catch his breath before the long trek back to Brooklyn. It didn’t take long to spy an opening and he parked himself on the wooden slats to engage in a five minute rest as he caught up on his people watching.

This particular bench was to close to the street for Lucas’ liking and he made a mental note to move farther into the park tomorrow. A parking garage and a tall grey stoned bank peaked in through the outstretched branches of the trees, ruining the feeling of escaping into nature. The thought to move did cross the young man’s mind but he wouldn’t be here long so it wasn’t a big enough problem. Reaching into his kangaroo pouch, Lucas pulled out the bottle he kept there and took a long draught from its spout.

Usually, the Asian would go for runs with his ever-reliable Siberian Husky, Thor. In New York, there wasn't much one could do for exercising doggy legs. Central Park offered a beautiful getaway for the pooch and his owner. Something this morning had caused Shin to settle on the idea of going alone. He wasn't sure what. Perhaps, the serenity.

New York attracted all sorts to the part. Morning joggers. Mothers, pushing strollers, jogging along with them, getting their exercise. Older couples, doing the morning rounds. Playing chess or talking on benches. Maybe even feeding the birds. Since it was summertime, kids that had managed to wake up early were getting an early start on their day, on skateboards and bicycles.

Shin ran, bobbing along the path. He was but one of the many in the park that day.

The smell of the fresh cut grass and the morning sun was amazing.