The year's 2010, and things are kind of freaky in the city-state of Chalk...

... it is literally a melting pot for everything: We've got vampires, demons, half-human hybrids, dragons, monsters of all kinds, people of all kinds... think of the United States, and add a 'magical' flavor to it...

... it's not limited to just that, though. Chalk harbors one of the country's biggest scientific facilities; it's been abandoned for years, though... or has it? Some people have 'theories' that Chalk's military force is up to something in there...

... and of course, no city is free of crime... in fact, most people know very well that Chalk has been home to a mafia, running for at least five generations by now...

It's not all bad in Chalk, though... after all, there are two sides to every story...

... a team of anarchists who would do to oppose the government and their military, sabotage their plans for war...

... the men and women in the local police force, who try so hard to keep the peace...

Which side is good? Which side is bad? Or do they all have varying degrees of good and bad to them? It's all up to you...

~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

PM me if you'd like a more prominent position in one of the sections.

The Military:

A near omnipotent force in the city-state of Chalk. Their technology is several times more advanced than that of the common folk's. There are rumors about their newest project, Azrael, and how human lab rats are being used in said project... it doesn't hurt that there have been mass disappearances...

Characters in this society:

- Samuel Hazzard
- Elaine Becker
- Sinclair Wicker
- 'Leech'

The Mafias:

While there are are rivals for everything, the main family would be the 'native' mafia to Chalk, led by an unsympathetic young man. This mafia is just like any other; they want money, turf and power. Most importantly, they want to steal the military's status as top dog in the city...

Characters in this society:

- Elias Ophir Vera
- Charon Argyros
- Anna
- Raphael Creed

The Police:

The hard working men and women of the city, trying very hard to keep the peace. But there's always a rat...

Characters in this society:

- Cedric Donovan

The Anarchists:

These people are highly unorganized, have no particular grouping, ranking or order and want nothing to do with either the military, the mafia or the police - and sometimes, not even each other. They oppose everything for the sake of opposing everything, and so far, they don't seem to have gained anything from it...

Characters in this society:

- "Red"
- Robert James

The People:

The common folk. Some are complacent to the city's situation. Others aren't. Sometimes their families get caught up in all the chaos of the major forces in the city, and they aren't all too happy about being indirectly involved...

Characters in this society:

The Creatures:

Despite having their rights, they are still outsiders. They seem to be just as lost and guileless as human being can be, but who knows if they might have an ulterior motive...

Characters in this society:

- Clarence Taylor
- Simone LeRoi
- Leon Allard
- Roma Valerios
- Orestes Valerios

~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

Story:

~ Arc I~
It starts when the project leader of Azrael, Samuel Hazzard, is approached by the fidgety (and mentally unstable) but talented Sinclair for something of a 'promotion', which is given, but under the penalty that if he fails, he will be handed over to their cruel overseer, the Brigadier General Becker. Meanwhile, in a bar downtown, Elias, the mafia boss, gives a pair of his underlings a mission that starts out being a cruel joke, but ends up being something that will risk the jobs and well-beings of both Raphael and Anna... not to mention, he is not aware that he's currently being tracked and observed by the wicked Brigadier General. Not too far from that very location, two policemen seem to be on the tail of a ghoul, who attracted the presence of Simone, the witch. After telling Robert (the ghoul) that he was being followed, the policemen were outed, where the rookie sadly, lost his life... to his very partner. Things are getting really chaotic now...

Any suggestions, PM me. Also, 'arcs' will take place every 6-10 pages.

~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

Rules:

- Basic laws of physics apply. However, if your character is non-human, try to put limitations on whatever special power they may have. Such as, if your character can fly, there is a limit to how high he/she can go, and how long he/she is able to fly.
- There exist other 'dimensions', as demons have to come from somewhere. However, try not to make posts such as 'and then he got bored and warped to the demon realm,' unless the specific power of your character would be to warp through dimensions/space/time. If they don't, though, make it more logical, like perhaps they have jewelry, a spell, or there is a portal that can allow them to do this.
- There is absolutely no limit to what powers, abilities or species you wish your character to be. If anything, the only thing that -can't- qualify for the RP would be an android. Cyborgs are allowed, but only if they are more realistic, like for example, they may have mechanical limbs, but they cannot run or jump very well because their parts are heavy/slow to respond.
- There is no limit to how many characters one can have.
- No god-modding.
- No double, triple, or quadruple posts.
- Don't use anybody else's RP characters unless you've been asked to take up their role (unlikely, but entirely possible).
- Keep things generally PG-13. Violence, swearing and romance is all allowed.
- On the opposite spectrum of things, light-hearted humor and comedy is allowed and greatly supported.
- Do not kill off somebody else's character unless you have made an arrangement with the person to do so.
- New characters can come and go on a whim. You don't have to use the same character for the entire RP if you get bored of them; switch it up, have fun.

~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

Character Profiles:

- That One Dude

Name: Elias Ophir Vera
Age: 23
Gender: Male
Species: Half-Human Hybrid.
Appearance: Click here to see
Personality: Arrogant, stubborn and selfish. Has a surprisingly strong willpower.
Special Abilities: Can withstand intense heat and bend the element of fire to his will. Has amazing sharp-shooting abilities.
Weaknesses: Is 'allergic' to water, has little to no tolerance for the cold. Suffers from mild homophobia and moderate anthropophobia (fear of people). Has little to no close-combat experience.
Preferred Weapons: Crossbow, handgun
Profession: Assassin.
Position: Head of Chalk's 'native' mafia family.
Miscallenous: He has a giant pet 'rat' named Chompy and is fond of setting him loose on prisoners and traitors.

Name: Charon Argyros (pronounced KAH-ron)
Age: 57
Gender: Male
Species: Human
Appearance: Click here to see
Personality: Patient and calm. A tad shy.
Special Abilities: Excellent observational skills, is good at tracking and hunting.
Weaknesses: Is old and not quite as nimble as he used to be. Has a wound in his leg that hinders him from running or jumping.
Preferred Weapons: Gladius
Profession: Swordsman/Hunter, mentor to Elias.
Position: Advisor to Elias.
Miscallenous: Has a crush on Elias.

Name: Cedric Donovan
Age: 44
Gender: Male
Species: Human
Appearance: Click here to see
Personality: Quiet. Irritable. Has hidden depths to him.
Special Abilities: Good observational skills, has a heightened sense of justice and is incredibly resilient to pain since his body perceives it as pleasure.
Weaknesses: Is missing his left eye and has a lack of depth perception because of it. Has little to no patience for people and suffers from mild haphephobia. Easily deterred when he's caused pain precisely because it causes him a pleasant sensation.
Preferred Weapons: Handgun
Profession: Policeman
Position: Lieutenant/Detective
Miscallenous: Often goes off on dangerous missions just to get hurt. Has an adopted catgirl daughter named Fido.

Name: Clarence Taylor
Age: 72-73 (looks about 19)
Gender: Male
Species: ???
Appearance: Click here to see
Personality: Carefree, outgoing, and definitely can't keep it in his pants.
Special Abilities: Can 'transform' into a hideous monster that dines on the flesh of humans. Impervious to death (immortal), can heal quickly.
Weaknesses: Is a bit dumb, has no way to defend himself against any kind of threat.
Preferred Weapons: None.
Profession: None.
Position: Just a normal 'human' being.
Miscallenous: He likes being called 'Claire'.

Name: Elaine Becker
Age: 38
Gender: Female
Species: Human
Appearance: Click here to see
Personality: Stoic and tight-lipped. A hard*ss when she needs to be.
Special Abilities: Has heightened dexterity.
Weaknesses: Only the normal human ones.
Preferred Weapons: Handgun.
Profession: Army Officer
Position: Brigadier General and secondary commander of the region. Oversees several different projects.
Miscallenous: She enjoys watching 'experiments' go on, even though they can, at times, make her superior officer sick to his stomach...

Name: Roma Valerios
Age: Unknown, over 50 (looks about 20)
Gender: Male
Species: Devil
Appearance: Will be up soon.
Personality: Nice. Very nice. Until you get him mad.
Special Abilities: Can redirect energy, manipulate fire, has a thousand little tricks up his sleeve from the useless to the incredibly powerful, but does not use his powers often. Can also transform into a strange-looking creature.
Weaknesses: He's not very smart, and he's far too trusting of strangers. Gullible, naïve. Has virtually no resistance to the cold.
Preffered Weapons: A long-sword with a hilt engraved with rubies.
Profession: Shopkeeper/odd-job specialist.
Position: Owner and sometimes manager of Valerios' Trinket Trade
Miscallenous: He's very fond of witches.

Name: Orestes Valerios
Age: 382 (looks about 20)
Gender: Male
Species: Devil-Demon Hybrid
Appearance: Will be up soon.
Personality: Stoic and not very sociable. Keeps to himself and likes to keep it that way.
Special Abilities: He's an expert with a spear. Can suck the energy out of someone within contact.
Weaknesses: Lazy, doesn't like following orders, has very limited vision due to the fact that he was born with only one eye.
Preffered Weapons: Spears.
Profession: Shopkeeper/odd-job specialist.
Position: Manager and occasional guard for Valerios' Trinket Trade
Miscallenous: He can best be described as a cyclops.

- The Mad Bomber

Name: Samuel Hazzard
Race: Human?
Age: Above 20
Gender: Male
Job: Leader of Project Azrael (Military)
Personality: Stoic, private person, who takes great pride in his work.
Strong points: Calculative, unpredictable
Weak points: Over-zealous about his work, lack of empathy or reason at times.
Weapons: Test subjects, drugs.
Abilities/Skills: An expert in the field of bio-genetics thus proficient in medicine and has great knowledge of the human body. Capable of creating/always equipped various drugs to aid him or his `comrades`
Appearance: Tall, skinny. Dark short hair, greyish eyes.
History: Samuel Hazzard was born in a military base and has spent his entire life within the military, at a young age he was trained by the military as a soldier under unknown and questionable conditions. As he matured however it appeared, that his own interests were inclining towards science and the field of bio-genetics. At the age of 20 he was signed to project Azrael as an assistant researcher under doctor Morrisson, who from the very start appeared suspicious of the new arrival, whose doctors certificate had been forged by the military. Hazzard would spend the following years as an assitant researcher despite growing concern about his true role by his superior. Eventually Morrison went missing and the military assigned Hazzard as project leader of Azrael. After these events Hazzard began to exhibit a compulsive need to wear a gas mask, those working for him or with him can only guess what brought this about tough there are stories flying about.
Picture: Click here to see

Name: Robert`Shooting Gallery` James
Gender: Male
Species: Undead-Ghoul
Age: Appears to be at least over 20.
Appearance/Clothing/Accessories: Click here to see
Position/Society: Anarchist
Weapons: Six guns, two colts, two uzi`s, a sawed off shotgun and a grenade launcher.
Abilities: Able to withstand obscene amounts of punishment due to his undead state tough he does not have regenerative abilities, expert marksman and experienced soldier.
Personality: Robert is a quiet man by nature, only speaking when spoken to and when he feels it is necessary. He seems very calm and calculative at first, but scratch the surface and beneath lies the heart of a gun maniac, who enjoys nothing more than instigating and enganging in a fire fight. Whenever in battle or near a battle, he gets wound up and only seeks to concentrate empty his guns at his opponents regardless of the damage to himself. His philosophy in `life` is that doing things half-way comes across as unacceptable.
History: Robert formerly served in the army in a secret project as an enforcer of sorts, but he met his untimely demise at the hands of a rebellious necromancer, who he had been sent to detain for information. Revived as an undead by the necromancer, due to the backlash of his failure, Robert was quick to gain his freedom and abandon the army. Ever since then he has been wandering around, participating in shootouts, duels and even turning a market into a shooting gallery for no apparent reason. He just recently sneaked into Chalk.

Name: Azrael Subject Number VII, Leech.
Race: Genetically modified human
Age: 2 years old, but appears to be 20 years old.
Gender: Male
Classification: Genestealer
Personality: Silent, practically a mute at this point, inquisitive.
Strong points: Quick to adapt, tireless, straightforward.
Weak points: Little to no understanding of the world, impulsive, naive.
Weapons: Natural fighting ability
Abilities/Skills: Able to adapt and consume vast amounts of knowledge in a matter of days(mainly meant to bring him up to speed about the world), capable of stealing features and memories of living beings via consuming their flesh.
Appearance: Pale, blonde haired youth with sharp features. The roman numeral VII branded on his palm.
History: Contained in the heart of the military facility, Subject number VII is the first Azrael subject deemed sane and capable of functioning outside the tank. Leech as he is referred to, has merely opened his eyes a few times before falling back to hibernation, but soon he is about to plunged into what will be a bloody and cruel existance.
Picture: Click here to see

- MaiShadowAlchemist

Name: Anna
Gender: Female
Species: Demon
Age: Unknown
Appearance/Clothing/Accessories: (Including the red marks) Click here to see
Position/Society: Professional Assassin Working For Chalk's "Native" Mafia Family
Weapons: Click here to see
Abilities:
-Enhanced speed
-Ability to influence human minds (to an extent)
-Healing factor (speed of healing depends on the wound and/or method used)
Personality:
Usually showing a stoic and nonchalant manner, Anna is far from being any of that. Given to cruelty and sadism, she can only be described as a manipulative demon who likes to be in control. Her daily acts include: identity theft, assault, arson, and cold blooded murder. Acts that (as an professional assassin) she finds totally justified. Yet, despite what might seem as a "troublesome-persona" she's always serious when it comes to business, never failing to complete any task.
History: Unknown

Name: Simone LeRoi
Gender: Female
Species: Witch/Bokor (Voodoo Practitioner Who Uses Black Magic)
Age: Unknown (Looks 20)
Appearance/Clothing/Accessories: Click here to see
Position/Society: The Creatures (Has no official profession but she's usually seen reading other people futures, brewing potions/poisons and creating curses under requests)
Weapons:
She carries several poisoned needles and talismans with her. Click here to see
Abilities:
-The ability to use black magic
-Read the past and see the future (though with her scheming nature this ability is seriously questioned)
-Communicate with the dead (There several rumors that say she can also control dead corpses to certain extent)
Personality:
Simone appears to be quite enigmatic and eccentric, often described as being crazy. Her personality is playful and sneaky and she likes talking in riddles, perhaps taking joy in allowing people to figure things out by themselves. Despite being a scheming bokor who tricks her victims into making deals with her, she isn't exactly dishonest as she does give them exactly what she promises, even though it isn't what they have in mind.
History: Unknown

Name: Raphael Creed
Gender: Male
Species: Vampire
Age: Unknown (Physically looks like he's 24)
Appearance/Clothing/Accessories: Click here to see
Position/Society: Works As A Thief For Chalk's "Native" Mafia Family
Weapons:
He prefers hand-to-hand combat, but when the situation calls for it he's willing to use any weapon that's close at hand.
Abilities:
-Enhanced strength and senses
-The ability to drain the life-force of other beings (not to the point of death but to the point of collapsing)
-Hypnosis
Personality:
Raphael can often appear cheerful and friendly at one moment, but vindictive and cruel the next, hinting he most likely puts up a fake persona depending on the situation and/or person. It is almost impossible to know what's going through his head since he presents a calm demeanor in all situations.
History: Unknown

Name: Unknown (People call her "Red")
Gender: Female
Species: Hybrid
Age: 20
Appearance/Clothing/Accessories: Click here to see
Position/Society: Anarchist
Weapons:
Pair of modified Barrett M82 rifles that can be used as scythes. Click here to see
Abilities:
-Can handle pretty much anything that fires bullets.
-Extensive hand-to-hand combat skills
Personality:
As a proud anarchist Red enjoys any kind of ruckus...even more when she's the one creating it. But while displaying a crude, punkish, immature behavior, and being especially cruel toward any figure of authority (specially the police and the military) she displays a normal and even decent behavior towards her "comrades". She might appear childish and oblivious at first, but when she wants she can be quite cunning and smart, always planning ahead for everything.
History: Unknown

- Razzy

Name: Sinclair Wicker
Age: 25
Gender: Male
Species: Mostly human, though he has the slightest bit of demon in him.
Position: Military; currently working on Project Azrael as a scientist
Skills/Abilities: He is a very talented scientist. He can also have short bursts of energy, in which he has inhuman speed and strength.
Personality: His behavior is extremely erratic and seemingly senseless. He is a hard worker and easily becomes absorbed in his work, though sometimes to an unhealthy extent (as in, going days without sleep, etc.). Friendly toward most people. Usually very calm, though easily angered. Easily offended.
Appearance: Click here to see
History: Sinclair has spent the last two years as a patient in Chalk’s psychiatric hospital. He had been working for the military previously, but he suffered a mental breakdown at work (Sinclair has always been secretive of his personal life, so one could only guess what exactly triggered it), followed shortly by his vicious, random murder of one of his co-workers with the use of scientific equipment. He seems to be in denial of the whole incident. However, when Project Azrael started up, Sinclair was released from the hospital, at the military’s request (only so he could be recruited as a scientist for the military once again, and working on Project Azrael).
Family: none to speak of
Other: He is a germaphobe. He avoids physical contact with others as much as possible, and on occasion will go out of his way to disinfect things.

Name: Leon Allard
Age: 24
Gender: Male
Species: Human/Animal hybrid
Appearance: this
Abilities/Skills: Is physically stronger than the average human. Can also run faster and jump higher. However, this causes him to exhaust himself quickly; he has to eat and sleep a lot, but barely does either, and this neglect for his well-being has worn down his physical and mental health.
Personality: Careless, outspoken, short-tempered, aggressive. He has his moments of naivety. Usually says what’s on his mind. Self-indulgent, self-destructive. At times he can be surprisingly sympathetic.
History: Not much is known about his past. However, he apparently did suffer abuse as a child, and that is probably why he is always quick to distrust and get frustrated with both himself and with other people. Due to some kind of gene splicing project, he is part animal; it is unknown as to what kind of animal he partly is, but it seems to be some kind of predator. Currently he is busy being a lazy good-for-nothing.
Family: no one important
Other: He is addicted to caffeine, and can barely function without it.

~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

The melting pot is boiling over...

Anarchism and Mafias? I'm in! (Just give me time to come up with something good XD)

Great. Thanks for joining~

I'll join! I'll just need some time to make a profile and whatnot.

Awesome! :B! If one other person joins, I think I'll feel secure enough to kick off the plot, once the profiles are all up. XD

Here's my character profile:

Name: Sinclair Wicker
Age: 25
Gender: Male
Species: Mostly human, though he has the slightest bit of demon in him.
Position: Military; currently working on Project Azrael as a scientist
Skills/Abilities: He is a very talented scientist. He can also have short bursts of energy, in which he has inhuman speed and strength.
Personality: His behavior is extremely erratic and seemingly senseless. He is a hard worker and easily becomes absorbed in his work, though sometimes to an unhealthy extent (as in, going days without sleep, etc.). Friendly toward most people. Usually very calm, though easily angered. Easily offended.
Appearance: Click here to see
History: Sinclair has spent the last two years as a patient in Chalk’s psychiatric hospital. He had been working for the military previously, but he suffered a mental breakdown at work (Sinclair has always been secretive of his personal life, so one could only guess what exactly triggered it), followed shortly by his vicious, random murder of one of his co-workers with the use of scientific equipment. He seems to be in denial of the whole incident. However, when Project Azrael started up, Sinclair was released from the hospital, at the military’s request (only so he could be recruited as a scientist for the military once again, and working on Project Azrael).
Family: none to speak of
Other: He is a germaphobe. He avoids physical contact with others as much as possible, and on occasion will go out of his way to disinfect things.

Alright... all that's left is Mai's characters and we're ready to go.

Sorry for the delay! I couldnt make up my mind of which group to choose so I decided to make more characters XDXD (Please tell me if anything is wrong >-<)

Name: Anna
Gender: Female
Species: Demon
Age: Unknown
Appearance/Clothing/Accessories: (Including the red marks)

Position/Society: Professional Assasin Working For Chalk's "Native" Mafia Family
Weapons:

Abilities:
-Enhaced speed
-Ability to influence human minds (to an extent)
-Healing factor (speed of healing depends on the wound and/or method used)
Personality:
Usually showing a stoic and nonchalant manner, Anna is far from being any of that. Given to cruelty and sadism, she can only be described as a manipulative demon who likes to be in control. Her daily acts include: identity theft, assault, arson, and cold blooded murder. Acts that (as an professional assasin) she finds totally justified. Yet, despite what might seem as a "troublesome-persona" she's always serious when it comes to bussiness, never failing to complete any task.
History: Unknown

---------

Name: Simone LeRoi
Gender: Female
Species: Witch/Bokor (Voodoo Practitioner Who Uses Black Magic)
Age: Unknown (Looks 20)
Appearance/Clothing/Accessories:

Position/Society: The Creatures (Has no official proffesion but she's usually seen reading other's people futures, brewing potions/poisons and creating curses under requests)
Weapons:
She carries several poisoned needles and talismans with her.

Abilities:
-The ability to use black magic
-Read the past and see the future (though with her scheming nature this ability is seriously questioned)
-Communicate with the dead (There several rumors that say she can also control dead corpses to certain extent)
Personality:
Simone appears to be quite enigmatic and excentric, often described as being crazy. Her personality is playful and sneaky and she likes talking in riddles, perhaps taking joy in allowing people to figure things out by themselves. Despite being a scheming bokor who tricks her victims into making deals with her, she isnt exactly dishonest as she does give them exactly what she promises, even though it isn't what they have in mind.
History: Unknown

-------

Name: Raphael Creed
Gender: Male
Species: Vampire
Age: Unknown (Physically looks like he's 24)
Appearance/Clothing/Accessories:

Position/Society: Works As A Thief For Chalk's "Native" Mafia Family
Weapons:
He prefers hand-to-hand combat, but when the situation calls for it he's willing to use any weapon that's close at hand.
Abilities:
-Enhaced strenght and senses
-The ability to drain the life-force of other beings (not to the point of death but to the point of collapsing)
-Hypnosis
Personality:
Raphael can often appear cheerful and friendly at one moment, but vindictive and cruel the next, hinting he most likely puts up a fake persona depending on the situation and/or person. It is almost impossible to know what's going through his head since he presents a calm demeanour in all situations.
History: Unknown

----------

Name: Unknown (People call her "Red")
Gender: Female
Species: Hybrid (Human/Demon)
Age: 20
Appearance/Clothing/Accessories:

Position/Society: Anarchist
Weapons:
Pair of modified Barrett M82 rifles that can be used as scythes.

Abilities:
-Can handle pretty much anything that fires bullets.
-Extensive hand-to-hand combat skills
Personality:
As a proud anarchist Red enjoys any kind of ruckus...even more when she's the one creating it. But while displaying a crude, punkish, immature behavior, and being especially cruel toward any figure of authority (specially the police and the military) she displays a normal and even decent behavior towards her "comrades". She might appear childish and oblivious at first, but when she wants she can be quite cunning and smart, always planning ahead for everything.
History: Unknown

Add this one to my characters.

Name: Robert`Shooting Gallery` James
Gender: Male
Species: Undead-Ghoul
Age: Appears to be at least over 20.
Appearance/Clothing/Accessories:



Position/Society: Anarchist
Weapons: Six guns, two colts, two uzi`s, a sawed off shotgun and a grenade launcher.

Abilities: Able to withstand obscene amounts of punishment due to his undead state tough he does not have regenerative abilities, expert marksman and experienced soldier.

Personality: Robert is a quiet man by nature, only speaking when spoken to and when he feels it is necessary. He seems very calm and calculative at first, but scratch the surface and beneath lies the heart of a gun maniac, who enjoys nothing more than instigating and enganging in a fire fight. Whenever in battle or near a battle, he gets wound up and only seeks to concentrate empty his guns at his opponents regardless of the damage to himself. His philosophy in `life` is that doing things half-way comes across as unacceptable.

History: Robert formerly served in the army in a secret project as an enforcer of sorts, but he met his untimely demise at the hands of a rebellious necromancer, who he had been sent to detain for information. Revived as an undead by the necromancer, due to the backlash of his failure, Robert was quick to gain his freedom and abandon the army. Ever since then he has been wandering around, participating in shootouts, duels and even turning a market into a shooting gallery for no apparent reason. He just recently sneaked into Chalk.

((Well, Mai, 'Red''s weapons are a bit of a stretch with the realism of the technology, but I'll let it pass, since they look plausible enough to have been some type of experimental weapon. :B;

And, of course, the first post was updated accordingly. I'll be kicking off the plot right now.))

~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

"General Becker," a voice called out to the woman in the observation room.

"I'm busy, Lieutenant." She spoke softly, peering down with morbid curiosity at the dissected human body down below.

"It's important, Ma'am..." the young officer declared in a steady, but still uneasy voice. "They've been spotted in the city again. The boy with the dire rat."

This seemed to catch Elaine's interest, as she actually turned to face the Lieutenant. "Really? Where?"

"Downtown."

~o~o~o~

In a seedy bar someplace in downtown, Elias was relaxing a bit too much with a few of his 'co-workers', as he liked to refer to them. Due to the fact that it was still midday and that Chompy the dire rat had the tendency to scare people away, said bar was half-empty except for a bartender, a few lurkers, some sad drunks and the tinny sound of music through some battered speakers.

"Charon, see if you can get me a drink; my mouth's getting dry." He commanded with the utmost tone of superiority.

Without a nod or even a quick glance, the older man silently stood and headed over to the counter to get his boss's favorite drink.

Meanwhile, the redhead complacently stroked behind his massive 'rat''s ear, putting his feet up on the table. He didn't particularly enjoy his job, or the people he worked with, and it showed. With risky behavior like his, he wasn't exactly respected among the 'family', even though he was head. But then again, Elias didn't quite care about anyone, or anything, but himself.

~o~o~o~

"I'm sooooooooooo hungry." The young policeman whined in the toasty car, which had the air conditioning turned off. "Why does this car smell so much like Fruit Loops, sir? It's killing meeeeeee..."

"Shut up, Johnny." Cedric murmured irritably, peering at the bar entrance through the windshield. "We're supposed to be monitoring this guy. Focus."

"But I haven't had a healthy breakfast, sir!"

"Suck it up!"

Samuel Hazzard stood on a ledge over looking a room filled with a huge number of man-sized test tubes, most of them holding something that was more or less human. Within these tubes lied the genetic stock of project Azrael tough it would be frivolously careless not to have stored samples of their dna elsewhere. Project Azrael was, first and foremost, created to produce superior soldiers for the military yet for Hazzard it was more than that. It was his life`s work, his baby, his legacy, that he had created from scratch and he saw no end to the possibilities of the project. All the creatures within this world held impecable abilities, that could provide answers to whatever plagued humanity. Yet then again Hazzard was hardly keen on saving humanity, more akin to seeing it transcend it`s own limitations.


His steady, heaving breathing through the gas mask oppressed the athmosphere of the room as he observed the view as, if patiently waiting for something. An assistant came to him, fidgeting nervously as he handed down a clipboard filled with test results. Hazzard stared at the assistant for a few seconds with his other eye, making him more nervous than he was, but then turned to eye the results. Hazzard coughed loudly, disgrutled by the bad news and slaming the clipboard against the assistants chest before turning to eye the view again.

"Procceed as planned with test batches 1, 2 and 3. Place test batch 4 under survaillance, exterminate number 5 and harvest whatever you can from them..."

As the assistant hurried away Hazzard witnessed a group of workers transporting a number of bodies towards a room at the far end of the hall where they would be made better use of than when they were alive. Despite all the progress Hazzard had to admit Azrael was not without complications, test subjects minds were unable to handle all the genetic modifications or they died during the operations themselves. They had yet to produce a pure specimen, one that trumped the abilities of all others. Yet in order to accomplish, that Hazzard was in need of a variable, a catalyst, that could held him adapted his test subjects to his liking with no consequence to the health of the subject.

Certainly they had toyed with hybrids and the like, even making a number of them useful as cannon fodder or soldiers yet at the end of the day they were not what Hazzard wanted. He wanted a masterpiece, a creation that triumphed over whatever beasts lurked deep within the darkness of this city.

-------------

A man dressed in a long white coat, which covered his entire body, sat at a bar downtown. Whirling his whisky in the glass with a sour expression on his face, there appeared to be no interest in him to consume the liquid, that he had purchased. He simply kept whirling it in the glass staring at the sight, lost in his thoughts it seemed, but anyone sharp-eyed enough would have realized that his eyes occasionally scoured the bar, evaluating those near him.

Truth be told, the liquid wouldn`t do him much good. Whatever he ate, tasted, drank tasted like pouring salpenter down his throat at best save for the flesh of other beings. Yet he had never seen the point in indulging in his cannibalistic instincts, maybe because had another kind of drug, a way of living that involved him blasting away till he fell apart and collapsed as a dead limp of flesh. However such desires proved hard to fill for he was already wanted for spree killings in four towns and he could only suspect, that this cities authorities wanted nothing more than to make it harder for him. In contrast this city was qite large and there seemed to a lot going, which would come across as more important, no doubt.

It was not difficult for Sinclair to find his boss: “that freak in that mask”, as Sinclair was known to openly refer to him as (though never directly to Hazzard’s face, obviously). Of course Sinclair never once realized he irony of his name-calling, seeing as how he himself was always picking up freakish habits, not to mention where he had been living for the past two years.

Although he worked hard and worked well, Sinclair was never one to take initiative in figuring out what needed to be done after he was done with his part of a job. It seemed as though he was more interested on the small jobs he was working on, rather than the whole of this thing called “Project Azrael” itself.

And so Sinclair was done with his task; which had taken him just around three monotonous hours to complete: identifying and organizing DNA or some other nonsense. He wished to work on something more challenging, though he supposed that because of his little episode he had when he last worked here, he was confined to work on these simple tasks by himself. He was angry that his talent was wasted here; this was child’s play: work for lab assistants, not for a skilled scientist who Sinclair knew himself to be, and he had had enough. He was going to Hazzard and demand to be given a more rewarding- or at least more challenging- job here.

He picked up whatever information he needed to report, and left his station. After wandering about for a few minutes, of course he found Hazzard on that ledge again.

For a second, Sinclair looked up; he didn’t know whether or not his boss could see Sinclair glaring up at him. Either way, Sinclair was just trying to figure out how he would get access to get up there, since he mostly just saw assistants wander on and off to report things. And if anyone was to be allowed to talk directly to Hazzard, Sinclair may have been the least likely to do so. Afterall, most areas were restricted to him without proper supervision, considering the lack of trust he was given here.

As a nervous tic, he started scratching the side of his neck. He set off to find the stairway leading to that ledge. He knew where it was, behind some door. But he had trouble getting through the door without anyone else demanding what the hell he was doing there and to get back to work, to which Sinclair just spit out lies, saying, “But I have something urgent to speak with Hazzard about. Very urgent! I swear!”. Though someone, one of Hazzard’s assistants on his way up the stairs, after arguing seemed to take the slightest bit of pity on him, and escorted him up.

At the top of the stairs, Sinclair was told sternly to “Wait here” (which he did, of course) and the assistant went through the door. Sinclair hoped the assistant was going to Hazzard to tell him that Mr.Wicker was requesting to speak with him. Then again, Sinclair wouldn’t be surprised if he was shooed away like some kind of stray cat begging for food. But still, he hoped for the better.

Before he could have a moments peace another troublesome assistant rushed to him and informed him, that Mr. Wicker was at the door, demanding to see him about something urgent. Wicker, he had heard the name somewhere and may have passed it as trivial information, he was not very keen on personnel nor was he responsible for managing them, there were people specifically for that. All Hazzard wanted was capable underlings, who understood his orders to the letter. Honestly he could not fathom what this Wicker wanted to tell him, but he supposed this fellow might have come something interesting to have conjured the courage to demand an audience.

"Guide him in."

Hazzard instructed non-challantly and crossed his arms behind his back as he turned to admire the view as the new batches of test subjects were being prepared for deployment. These beings were designed originally as superior soldiers, but due to a few dumbs in the road they were reduced to nothing more than cannon fodder. Apparently their excessive genetic over-writing had caused their minds to destabalize and reduced them to nothing more than animals, human beings with nothing more than an instinct to feed, that and predatory claws, razor sharp teeth and amazing wall crawling abilities. These `Berserks` as he had dubbed them would be deployed in places where it was imperative to cause casulties to the enemy at all cost in order to soften them up.

Naturally one would think these beings would be incredibly dangerous in captivity, but a bit of technology and surgery admitted the planting of a small micro-chip, that was able to control their basic natural instincts. If the chip was not active these beings were as harmless as sheep, but upon activation they would seek to rip anyone near them to shreds. Hazzards thoughts were cut short as some stepped near him and he even barely acknowledged the man`s presence, he merely glanced at this Wicker character from the corner of his eye. For a few seconds Hazzard stared straight ahead with his heavy, raspy breathing dominating the athmosphere in the room.

"I understand that there is something important you wish to bring to my attention Mr. Wicker."

Hazzard said with a calm, collected voice.

Sinclair could not help but flash a brief grin, both delighted and incredulous that he was able to make it up here at all. Still scratching his neck in that obsessive, twitchy way, Sinclair spoke up, “Yes.” He was not in the least bit intimidated, though that may have been because he was still in a state of disbelief.

“I think you’ve got me working in the wrong place- eh, sir. That is, I think it would be beneficial to both me and you if I was put to work on something less…” He quickly glanced down at the papers in his hand with complete disgust. “… insulting.”

He cleared his throat, trying to think, since he was never very good at speaking. He usually ended up just saying whatever first came to his mind.

“To be frank, I don’t think my talents are being used as they should. I mean, really sir, it’s unfair to hold me against whatever happened all that time ago. Everyone seems to think I'd start slashing throats if I'm not confined in some cozy little room by myself, doing research or whatever. But that's simply absurd. See, I have the experience. I have a lot of it, in fact. I can handle bigger jobs…” He trailed off, and waited for a reply nervously.

Hazzard did not seem amused nor concerned by Sinclair`s attempts to promoto his skills and to downplay the critisim directed towards him. Hazzard ignored Sinclair for a bit longer as he was passed down what appeared to be a report, his demeanor seemed to change a bit as he read what was written on the paper. He finally turned half-way to face him, glaring at him with certain degree of amusement, that what he was saying was quite out of turn and considering his checkered past, the logical choice would be to do otherwise.

"Oh yes, why don`t you just step into my shoes and take over, I am sure you`ll manage."

Hazzard remarked sarcastically, but he was hardly laughing as he eyed Sinclair`s resume. He took a long, whizling breath, that ended with a cough as he finished reading the report and carelessly folded the paper into a tiny layered square, which stucked away into his pocket as tough for safekeeping.

"I am certain there is someone in human resources, far more wiser than I, who saw it fitting to place you in your current position due to your checkered past. It was logical, a wise decision from a managment viewpoint.... But I am not here to concern myself with managment of my personnel, I have absolutely no interest in it as long as people do their jobs as per instructions. Yet then again I do appriciate initiative and talent in my subordinates. If you so desire I may have a bit of tinkering for you, shouldn`t prove too hard for your overwhelming talent.

Follow me."

Hazzard said with a voice filled with sarcasm and yet he was actually being quite sincere at the same time. He walked past the assistants labouring in the room and exited the room with Sinclair on his heels. They walked some 50 meters on the long hallway before Hazzard stopped by a door, he input a password and swipped his indentity card in the slot in order to gain access. He led Sinclair into a nearly pitch black room tough there appeared to be a light source further ahead. Hazzard filled the room with light, revealing a neglected work station with equipment spread all over. The space overlooked what appeared to be a holding area of sorts, filled with test subjects, who all appeared to be human. They were all dressed in white pants and t-shirts, they also had metal collars wrapped around their necks.

Hazzard walked up to the ledge, that was seperated by a reinforced glass window from the space opening downwards.

"This is test batch number 4, the very same people, whose dna samples you have been so busy archiving and sorting through...." He introduced the sorry bunch of skinny experiments to the apparently eager scientist before heading to the work station. He opened the computer screens on the station and displayed a number of test results with a dna strain anomally highlighted in all of them. "A curious develoment to say the least. These test subjects were simply one variation of experiments we modified at the beginning of the project, they`ve gone through extensive genetic modification and luckily, retained their minds tough they are a bit.... mellow, but I blame the medication we feed them.

However, two other batches, who shared similiar characteristics taken from demons were unable to amount to nothing more than insane abominations. It was impossible for us to control them in any fashion so we had to put them down, however these slugs appear to have retained their humanity and appearance... the latter to a degree.... I`d like you to find out what that something is... needless to say you are looking for a needle into a haystack... and before you ask, you`ll have a few helping hands around here when you need them.

Any questions?"

Hazzard led Sinclair through the steps taken to arrive at this point and explained his duties, he remained straightforward and to the point yet he had a certain degree of amusement mixed in all that. Tough he had not said it, he took it for granted that if Sinclair managed to mess this up somehow, he would be skinned for having dared to bring up lowly working conditions.

Sinclair could barely contain his excitement as he, like some eager little kid, nearly hung his whole upper body over the ledge, looking down at this “test batch number 4”, which he was glad to call his responsibility. Listening to Hazzard, he realized this would prove to be a challenge, though that was exactly what he wanted.

Any questions? Sinclair stood up straight again, and thought for a moment. Really, he did not have any important questions. Though he was, in his state of giddiness, debating whether he was going to be so bold as to ask his boss why he wore that mask. Sinclair figured it couldn’t possibly be comfortable in any sense of the word.

But instead of further looking like a fool, Sinclair simply said, “No, I… think I’m fine.”

(Sorry for the random posts >.< and dont worry about the riffle, more than anything is all about esthetical modifications XD)

Nails tapping the counter and a bored expression in her face, Red just looked at her half-empty glass of...whatever she had been drinking for the last 10 minutes, not really being able to taste the difference anymore. She looked at Robert for a second but then went back to her glass, knowing he wasnt really fond of chatting. While her fingers started fiddling with her messy hair, her eyes casually went from the bartender to the door...and in one of those "rare-coincidences" the door opened, and Red's glance met with a pair of eyes she could recognize anywhere...demon eyes.

------

With a steady step, and silent black figure at her back, Anna walked down the street with the composture of someone who knew others would AND should step out of her way. Swiftly avoiding and pushing aside the grimy hands of a what she thought was a beggar, she pushed the bar door open...
With a quick glance around Raphael spotted their "comrades", and proceeded to walk toward them...while Anna calmly took a second to return the glare of a red-haired half-breed, and then ignore her just as quickly.
Both Raphael and Anna just nooded as a greeting, and then went right into business "You wanted to see us..." Anna said to Elias.

------

Roughly pushed aside by a white-haired demon, Simone's eyes flashed in anger and then in amusement as she looked the demon enter a nearby bar. "Watch your back..." She said, leaving the treath hanging in the air as she turned around and walked away, her hands dirty from dealing with potions and concotions all the time but her complexion and physic being far from someone who was dying in the street....

((Alright, then. No worries. ;p))

Oh, right... this was what I was here for. Elias thought indifferently to himself. But then again, Elias only ever seemed to have two moods around most people: indifferent and angry. Given the redhead's inability to control his outbursts, indifference was the preferred mood.

"Yeah, uh... there's been this punk making tags on our turf." He waved his hand lazily, hoping she could fill in the blanks for herself. He wasn't a lover of demons unless they actually looked gruesome; he preferred a nightmarish-looking Medusa to a cute girl any day of the week.

Charon, however, did not like that his boss was so unclear with what he understood was a dedicated 'employee'. So, from within his robes he produced a photograph for the young-looking woman.

"This would be the target. He's been seen in this area during the nights, at this locale in particular. Best of luck, miss." With a small bow, he stepped away from her and handed his dear boss the drink he had asked for, which was unceremoniously chugged down.

"The pay's... fifty dollars." Elias quirked up an eyebrow slightly, as if the thought of losing that particular amount of money stung. "He's only small fry, after all." He snorted with amusement.

Before Elias could speak again after that, though, he interjected. "Elias is being... unfair. We didn't call you out just for you to get rid of some punk." He muttered under his breath, for he knew that the place they had chosen to meet in was hardly safe.

~o~o~o~

"Sir! You saw that, right?"

"Yes, I saw it, Johnny." Cedric mumbled irritably as he saw the pair walk into the bar. For someone with only one eye, he was keen. "They're probably here for the Vera. We are not here for the Vera. The Vera will take forever to take down, and I've already outlived two generations without making so much as a dent in their structure. We are here for the one with the bounty on his head." He murmured, his tone concealing some hidden excitement.

"... Which one is that, sir?" The somewhat incompetent boy asked.

"The ghoul, Johnny. The ghoul."

Hazzard remained silent for a moment before starting to walk towards the door, but briefly stopped where Sinclair stood and glanced at him with a sour look in his eyes.

"Succeed and you will be rewarded accordingly... fail and I`ll hand your sorry carcass over to the Brigadier General to toy with."

He threatened with a rasping voice before walking out of the room. He did not need anymore failures and if this man supposedly was as talented as his resume let onto believe, then he would not have to worry about it, but failing meant far worse than being demoted or fired. Then again Hazzard did not have the slightest clue whether his little experiment would be a success tough logic wagered against it, but not all of things in this life were solely governed by reason alone.

There were anomalies, exceptions to exceptions, and for Sinclair`s own well being he`d do well to prove himself as one.


-----------


Robert eyed the new arrivals suspiciously and for a second broke his attempt to remain inconspicious as he lowered his hand beneath the table, grabbing his sawed-off shotgun by the handle, but made no attempt to draw it out. All of his weapons were concealed beneath his long overcoat, but they were also easily accessible in case he had to quickly draw them out. As he eyed the new arrivals and suddenly everyone around him, he felt the sudden urge to just jump up and unleash hell on all these unsuspecting sheep. The little voice in the back of his head told him to pull the trigger and splatter the bartenders head all over the wall, but then he reminded himself that his goal had been to blend in and let whatever suspicions were surrounding him fade away.

Robert snickered at the prospect of later returning to this bar and turning it into yet another shooting gallery, the walls ridden with bullet holes and the air filled with gun smoke. He slowly raised his hand and dropped the entire contents of his glass down his throat. Without batting an eyelash, he walked out of the bar and turned immidiately to the closest alleyway he could find. He didn`t really have a purpose at the moment nor a destination, he simply thought of walking around until he came upon something interesting, like place to stay or wreck.

Red watched Robert walk out of the bar but, opposite of what was expected, she stayed. She looked around once more before she lazzily rested her head against the counter, clearly waiting for something to happen...

------
Anna frowned softly, and quite darkly at both the prey and the pay. "This has to be a joke..." She whispered in disbelief, clearly used to more "complicate" jobs. Yet, despite all odds, before the demon was able to blatantly reject the job, the vampire had already grabbed her arm, signaling her to close her mouth. "We're listening" He said.

------
Leaning against the dirty wall of the alleway Simone raised her eyebrown curiously as she heard the sound of steps coming closer, and the smell of blood reached her nostrils...for any witch, specially for bokors, the presence of an undead couldnt be more obvious. "Looking for somethin' mister? Tarot readings, charms, potions...Dreams made real?" She asked carelessly as she gave him a sly smirk.

Robert had noticed the figure before and seemed alert as he approachws, but seemed to relax a bit as she seemed far less dangerous than he had hoped for. As he was walking past her she posed a question on, whether he required her services. A sly smirk flashed on Robert`s face, but disappeared the second he turned to face her with a rather deadpan expression on his face.

"Haven`t got need for em, lady."

He bluntly informed her because there was very little in the way of dreams or fortune, that he was seeking. TRuth be told he did not know what he was seeking, maybe nothing, he simply knew that he could not stay in one spot for long and that enganging in a firefight was a hell lot of fun. Robert stood still glaring at her for a while before glancing at the alleyway whilst stucking his hand in his pocket. Tough had she known this pocket had no bottom and allowed Robert to covertly grab one of his uzi`s.

"This is one strange city... everyone I meet seem to be on guard... unlike you.."

Robert commented with a cautious tone in his voice, there was something about her that was different and he did not like it. That talk of tarot cards and her entire appeal reminded him of his creator of, whom he had not been very fond of.

The girl didnt seem to react much as her eyes just went calmly from his face to his pockets "No need for those mister..." She whispered, the smirk never leaving her lips as she extended her empty hands to prove her point. "Just a question..." She was saying when she suddenly stopped, looked around and then stepped back in the exact same second, almost as if trying to hide in the shadows of the alley. "Now dat was careless from me...you're bein' followed" She whispered, pounting lightly in reproach.

And now he liked her presence even less, she was telling him that someone was tailing him. True enough he himself had been feeling rather on edge as of late as tough waiting for someone to point at him and scream bloody murder. Robert disregarded what the woman was going to ask first as much as she had and turned to stare at the entrance of the alley with dual uzi`s drawn with a grimace on his face. From the corner of his eye Robert could still see the strange woman beside her, but she did nothing to aggravate an attack.

"Miss unless you are looking for an early grave then I`d suggest you take a hike cause once I decide to spraying led all around, there tends to be collateral damage."

Robert informed her with a lowered voice as tough mildly expressing his gratitude for informing him of his tail all tough he suspected he would have discovered it soon enough by himself.

A small chuckle escaped from the girl's lips as she looked at him in a mixture of bewilderment and amusement "Someone like you cant hurt someone like me...your creator should've told you dat much" She said as she shrugged carelessly, looking quite unimpressed by the weapons.
"Anyway, see you around mister..." She whispered before she turned around and walked away...as smirk of interest slipped into her lips, showing that she planned on staying a little longer to watch.

"This has to be a joke, nya nya nya..." Elias mocked the demon under his breath, still distractedly scratching the large beast's ear. As if she were that important. Hmph.

"Some of our recruits have been disappearing." Charon said, struggling to keep his voice low enough not to be overheard, but loud enough so that the other two could hear. "Old, young, male, female... the disappearances have been indiscriminate in regards to victims. We've found some of their bodies, but... it's not pretty." He paused, as if the thought made his stomach turn. "The only lead we have is this tagger, who started appearing shortly before the disappearances began to occur. Our suspicions might be wrong, though; in any case, we want you to investigate what would be the... 'bigger picture'." He rubbed at his chin, lightly scratching the thick stubble. "We'll keep you updated if anything comes to our knowledge."

"The pay will obviously be bigger than fifty bucks, plus a little 'promotion'." Elias interjected dryly, with a small smirk on his face. "... Provided you can actually uncover what's been goin' on, that is. If you can't, you'll be demoted and won't receive a single penny." He cupped one of the rat's ears. "And if any of you have any complaints about those conditions, then you can take it up with Chompy." He nodded slightly over the enormous rat.

Chompy stared up at the two, his huge teeth sticking out of his craggy face. While a rat's eyes are normally blank, his seemed only incredibly hungry...

((Just as a note, Chompy is roughly the size of a small horse.))

~o~o~o~

And sure enough, just around the corner were nothing more than the two policemen, finally outside of the car, ever so silently attempting to sneak up on their perp. While the new blood was mostly excited and just a mere loud noise away from starting to put holes into people, the veteran was calm and cool, his remaining eye reflecting a level of iciness that would give strangers shivers.

He knows. Was all the older man could think. He knows. It was a bad idea to bring the kid along. He freakin' knows.

"Sir," the younger man whispered hoarsely, actually starting to tremble. "Should we go?"

Cedric couldn't think of a response. A great part of him wanted to continue on with their job, especially since they had been found out, while another wanted him to go back for the safety of the boy... so all he could do was stand there, wondering.

((You can kill off Johnny if you want to. He isn't a major character.))

As the silence weighed heavily over the alleyway, Robert contemplated on his choices at hand. He could turn tail and run, try to loose these pursuers, but truth be told that would put him at a distinct disadvantage. He was a stranger to this city and he did not have an inclination of the enemy numbers. Other hand he could face what was to come, guns blazing and maybe go down in a blaze of glory should the opponent prove too overwhelming. Robert closed his eyes for a second and drew deep breath, albeit there was no need for him to breathe. With steel in his eyes he raised his guns forward.

As the duo were just about to turn the corner metal flashed, a gun roared it`s deadly wailing as it let loose a dozen bullets. The spree grazed the older detective, but unluckily pierced the younger man in his knee cap and lung. The young man fell like a rock, gasping for air and grasping with his hands for his throat as, if there was something choking him. Robert let loose another spree of bullets from his uzi with murderous glee in his eyes as the older man managed take cover.

Robert ceased did not continue firing at the duo, judging from the overweighing silence, that was all there had been to it. Two people tailing him, one down, choking in his own blood and the other covering behind a corner, unable to aid his friend. The young man was done for, they both knew it, the pursuer and pursued.

"All there was to it huh?" Robert exclaimed, intent on making the man behind the corner hear him. "Too bad, your friend got hit, but hey you probably know how good I am at my trade.... well maybe you could save him still, if you hurried him a hospital. Maybe if you forget we ever saw one another, you could have a chance at saving his life." He teased his opponent with a slimmer of hope as he swapped his uzi away and drew a colt tucked away in the back of his belt. He aimed the colt at the writhing man on the ground whilst he kept his uzi trained on the corner.

They both knew better than that.

".... Or do I just give him a bullet between the eyes? Would you like to give him the last rites then as he looks at you with pathetic eyes, weeping and begging for his mamma?"

He inquired as he aimed for the young man`s head with the colt, hoping the draw the nuissance out. Maybe this fool would be sentimental enough to step out to save his friend or try to get a shot at him, either way Robert would win.

The frown never left Anna's face as her glare went from the picture, to Charon, and then to Elias...truth be told, she didnt like Elias, not even a bit, not even at ALL, she actually respected the old man more than her actual boss. *Two rats...and they actually make a good pair...* She thought -allowing herself one second of private negligence- as she looked at Chompy in cynic curiousity.
"We'll take care of it" Raphael stated calmly, almost as if unaware of Elias treath to them. He looked at the picture one last time, taking one second to save the image in his memory, knowing he had seen that tagger before...but as the assasin and the thief were ready to take their leave, the smothered sound of gun shots reached them...
------
Seconds before the gunshoots were heard, a red figure got up from it's chair, slid some money in the counter, and started walking away. Red tried to mantain a serious and collected image, fighting the irritating urge to look back at the vampire when she felt his eyes following her...
------
At the top of an abandoned building Simone tilted her head lightly at an scene she found quite strange and curious. But while a part of her felt responsible for the boy's soon-to-be death, the other ached for the momment when his heart stopped beating...

"Good luck." Charon said his farewells with a hint of sympathy in his voice to the two.

Not seconds later, gunfire was heard. As soon as the sound reached them, his very first instinct was to grab his much younger boss and tackle him to the ground in an effort to keep him protected. An effort he knew that no one else in the mafia would share, and that Elias would never appreciate; but he did it anyway.

"... Nice to know you're so devoted to me." The redhead merely rolled his eyes as Chompy turned to stare down at the two in confusion.

~o~o~o~

Cedric had a different plan in mind. It was painfully apparent to him that Johnny wasn't going to make it. So, he put a bullet in his brain himself. While it could cost him, not only his job, but half a lifetime in prison, he could quite as easily say that it was the perp they were chasing. He had killed plenty of men before; killing what he considered to be an incompetent boy with no business in the force, who was already dying, he figured it would only be merciful.

"Problem solved." He yelled out to the 'man' right around the corner. That way, Robert was left with no genuine kills to claim, and one very much alive veteran.

The middle aged man was stubborn as a rock, and he wasn't going to let some undead, bitter creature get into his head. He had been in far, far worse situations; hell, the situation where he lost his eye didn't even compare to worse situations.

"You wanna try and freak me out - it's useless."

As the bullet penetrated the young man`s head, an expression of annoyance and anger registered all over Robert`s face. Yet as soon as, that expression had appeared it was drowned by a maniacal laugter that escaped his lips. For a second he had found the old man`s determination and stubborness infuriating, but in another he found it hilarious as he knew he had been there before. With a smirk on his face Robert once again swapped weapons and began to slowly back away along the alley. He drew the largest weapon at his disposal, the grenade launcher and aimed at the corpse of poor ol Johnny.

"I am sure you two will have plenty to discuss once you follow him to the netherworld, one way or another. I`ll save you the pain of dealing with the body and give him a proper cremation. I`ll see you around."

Robert said with a normal voice, not even attempting to make himself heard and almost muttered the last words with a sense of excitement behind them. He felt, that maybe he had found someone to play with for a while, until he killed the fool. He fell onto his knee and took the shot, the grenade whizzled across the alley and landed in an arc onto Johnny`s body, tearing it into bits. The explosion rocked the ground and shrapnel flew around as the undead culprit fled into the alleyways of the city.

Anna and Raphael...and pretty much all the bar just looked at them with what could only be described as plain bewildered expressions. "I'm pretty sure the gunfire is too far away to reach us..." Raphael stated sheepishly as he tried to help them up. "We'll go take a look" Anna said as she raised her eyebrown curiously, almost as if excited with the possibilities.
-----
Not even blinking with the hot air in her face, and the floor trembling beneath her feet, Simone cursed softly as she turned around and walked away. She clearly handnt expected that from the policeman. "...to kill the boy like dat...it takes som' guts" She whispered, dark amusement in her eyes, now seeing a whole new side to the situation.
-----
Dodging and pushing away the people than ran around in panic, Red finally managed to reach an empty car parked infront of the now burning alley. She knew enough to recognize the car as one of those the cops used to follow people around, but she just shrughed aside the fact, quickly smashing the window and getting inside in less than 5 seconds. Without even thinking about it, and without any delicacy, she tore the cables, got the engine running, and cursed softly at her shaking hands.
She now knew for sure the Mafia was looking for the tagger...and sooner or latter the city would have more nameless corpses laying in the street....

In the heart of the research facility laid a triangular room, hidden away past three massive armoured doors and extensive security measures. The only people authoritized to enter were a few hand-picked doctors, the top echelon of the military and the project leader himself, Hazzard. Hazzard slipped through the narrow gap in the third armoured door and stepped into the triangular room. The walls were covered with tanks filled with some putrid liquid and in the middle there were a few work stations along with operation tables. In the very center stood a tank filled with some strange liquid and in that liquid floated a young man. The test subject had a mask over his face in order to keep him breathing and a myriad of wires were sticked onto him in order to monitor every aspect of the subjects condition. An assistant sat near the tank, filling in a report on his laptop. He did not glance at Hazzard as the project leader walked over to the tank, stretching his fingers as tough he was excited about something.

"How is he Mr. Reeve?" Hazzard inquired.

"Not taking into account a few signs of awareness, sleeping like a baby. Well, I guess that is what he technically is tough his frame doesn`t really let anyone onto that." Reeve responded in a casual manner, clearly pointing to the fact that the two had known each other long enough not to stick to formalities, or Reeve at least did not seem to.

"Appearances are unimportant considering, that he is to be the first, sane, of his kind we are going to release from their tank. I need not remind you what happened with the last one`s when we awoke them within the tank." Hazzard pointed out with a dose of venom in his voice.

"Then we`d better hope it doesn`t come to that." Reeve said with a grin on his face.

Hazzard walked over to the control panel next to the tank and inserted a key into a fitting spot before turning it. Hazzard had always been fascinated by evolution theories, but today he was about to embark upon creating his own with this test subject.....

--------------

Robert ran through the alleyways even tough there was very little his pursuers could do now to find him. He had managed to escape, but he felt as tough his pride had been a bit tarnished as the old man had survived yet then again it might prove entertaining, this game of cop and criminal. He had no illusions about taking on the whole city however, that is why he chose his battles well and would continue to fight another day. That incident just now was not planned, it was simply a spontaneous kill and as he had very little information about where he stood, he did not want to risk being cornered.

Robert was still grabbing one of his colts and smirked as he reloaded the gun. There would be a better time for a battle, on his terms where he would emerge victorious and he always won, in the end.

Not a moment after, General Becker somehow found herself inside that triangular room, her face the same emotionless mask as ever. While she wasn't quite yet near the tippy top of the militant pyramid, she did in fact have enough pull to access deep into the underbelly of the facility as one of the main project overseers.

Just one quick stop for her before she set out to find what she really wanted.

"I guess you're having fun, pretending you have that much pull in this facility, if you think you can promote Wicker like that."

How news of that got to the General's ears so quickly, no one would ever know. It was improbable, practically impossible, but the woman was the eyes and ears of the facility, not to mention, the law when the commander wasn't around.

"When exactly were you planning on asking your superiors if such a thing was authorized?" Her voice was soft and emotionless, but it held a hint of venom in it. "Or did you merely think we would let it slide, like always?" Her eyes narrowed slightly, her calm demeanor not at all changing. "I don't appreciate the way you think you can undermine the commander's authority, Hazzard, and I doubt he does, either."

She eyed the tank with the subject inside with what seemed to be both curiosity and disdain. "If this happens again, you can make sure that the plug will be pulled on your little project. Don't think yourself powerful for a second; you don't even have a rank."

While her words were still with an eerie calmness, the very last word seemed to sting with very unexpected contempt towards the doctor in the gasmask.

~o~o~o~

The redhead merely brushed himself off as the older man bowed his head slightly in shame. "Pardon... my hearing's not what it used to be." He admitted, rubbing at his forehead. "Just-- go." Now he was the one to 'shoo' them away; mainly because, thanks to his little stumble, they had attracted the attention of everybody in the bar...

Which meant that it was as good a time as any to leave.

~o~o~o~

Even after deftly avoiding the shrapnel, save for a new nicks here and there, Cedric found himself at a loss; his car had apparently been hi-jacked as he was making his escape. No doubt, some low-brow crook trying to make a quick getaway, assuming the bullets and the explosion must've been meant for them. But, while his first instinct was to blow out the tires, he was... torn.

Get his car back, or keep trying to find the ghoul?

He opted for the latter, but another day. It was still far too early, and his daughter would worry far too much.

Suddenly, the screech of a forced engine, and the smell of burnt rubber broke the apparent calm of the street...
Just a few blocks away an apparently normal car did a full 180º spin and started racing back...at a pretty dangerous speed. Before Cedric could blink twice his own car had raced past him, the red haired girl at the wheel not even giving him a glance...mainly because she was too busy focusing on the accelerator and the closed door at the bar.
----
Without even looking back Anna just started walking away as Raphael gave them an understanding nod before following. The demon waved the folded photo infront of Raphael's face as a light smirk creeped into her lips "A tagger...you know what that says to me? It says "punks"...or better yet, it says "anarchists" She hissed, almost as if spitting the words out.
The vampire opened his mouth to answer, but then closed it just as quickly, almost as if having second thoughts.
"It's time we give them a little visit..." She was saying as they both walked out of the bar, but before she could finish her sentence they both noticed a car racing down the street toward them. "Hey...isnt that one of those cars cops use to spy people?" The demon asked blankly as she looked down to grab an almost empty pack of cigarettes inside her pocket...and as she raised her hand to put the cigarette in her lips, she noticed the driver in the car...and how said driver sharply turned the wheel towards their direction...
----
Red felt her pulse building up as the bar got closer and the door opened up. "Perfect timing..." She whispered, before she suddenly opened the door of the car and jumped out...
----
"F*!@..." was all that came out of Anna's lips before she suddenly felt herself being pushed out of the way.
Cigarettes flying in the air and her skull hitting the cold concrete was all she managed to notice before a deafening blast of fire, metal and glass made her body fly through the air again...
----
Simone stopped and turned around in puzzlement as she heard another blast. For a second she looked interested, but then shrugged and started walking again into the maze of dark alleys...

Adding another character…
Name: Leon Allard
Age: 24
Gender: Male
Species: Human/Animal hybrid
Appearance: this
Abilities/Skills: Is physically stronger than the average human. Can also run faster and jump higher. However, this causes him to exhaust himself quickly; he has to eat and sleep a lot, but barely does either, and this neglect for his well-being has worn down his physical and mental health.
Personality: Careless, outspoken, short-tempered, aggressive. He has his moments of naivety. Usually says what’s on his mind. Self-indulgent, self-destructive. At times he can be surprisingly sympathetic.
History: Not much is known about his past. However, he apparently did suffer abuse as a child, and that is probably why he is always quick to distrust and get frustrated with both himself and with other people. Due to some kind of gene splicing project, he is part animal; it is unknown as to what kind of animal he partly is, but it seems to be some kind of predator. Currently he is busy being a lazy good-for-nothing.
Family: no one important
Other: He is addicted to caffeine, and can barely function without it.

---
Sinclair was quick to dismiss Hazzard’s warning as nothing to worry about; Sinclair had been through hell for the past two years. True, he barely remembered the worst parts of it, but since he was released, he was barely afraid of threats of any kind.

He watched Hazzard leave, as though contemplating whether or not to shout a quick ‘thanks’, but he quickly turned back to his work. He was thrilled to be given work again- real work. But it seemed there was a lot to do. He muttered to himself as he examined the area, “Now, where to begin…”

---

There seemed to be a commotion outside near Leon’s apartment. ‘What the hell is that? Gun shots?’ he thought in his half-conscious state as he woke up.

“Trying to sleep… in this city? Ha. What a joke,” he mumbled to himself.

Then he heard an explosion, which successfully woke him up and made him jump out of bed. “You’ve gotta be kidding me…”

He was annoyed at the noise, but curious as to its source. He quickly got dressed and stuck his head out the window, planning to head back in and down the main stairwell and watch the scene (if there was any) like some kind of sports game. However, he was surprised to see some gunslinger in a white coat coming from the direction of the smoke. Leon could only suspect that his guy was partly responsible for the ruckus, and swung out onto the fire escape. While he hastily and skillfully climbed down the fire escape, he shouted with a slightly malicious tone (since he was still angry about being woken up, and was ready to blame anyone he could) to the stranger:

“Hey buddy, what’re you running from?”

Just as he was about to flip the switch, Hazzard was interrupted by the meddeling General Becker. At first his hand wrapped into a fist as above all he hated anything, that impeded his work, the time and effort he put into this was too valuable to be wasted because of petty byrocratics. Taking a deep breath, Hazzard calmed himself and unfolded his fist before turning to face Becker with an attitude, that seemed almost jovial to an extent to countermeasure her icy calm. At the same time he drew they key from it`s slot and slipped it in his pocket.

"Ah General, excellent timing I was just about to tell you regarding the changes I made involving Mr. Wickers position...." Becker did not even flinch at huis jovial tone, most likely it only made her ever more suspicious and let her think he was planning something behind her back.

"... I wasn`t aware that Mr. Wicker was promoted at all general, merely reassigned to another work station. Considering his former talent and accomplishments I thought of making the most of him by placing him in charge of a test batch, that warrants little to no interest to myself. Besides it was my impression, that I am the leading scientist on this project and it fell under my jurisdiction to run it as I saw fit. I tend to think it does not seem so unreasonable for me to take a little initiative nor can you dispute the progress we have been making."

Hazzard flip flappantly explained his standing, tough clearly hinting that Wicker was clearly being taken for a fool by him.

----

The sound from above did little to startle Robert, he turned to face the stranger, but did not say a word as he put away the gun in his hand. The least he needed now was more attention and another racket to guide those chasing him.

"Not something you would like to know about."

Robert shot back at the stranger with an unhospitable tone as he pulled aside the other side of his coat, revealing his pistol.

Judging from the guns and the stranger's suspicious attitude, it was clear that he had been a part of whatever woke Leon up earlier. He slid down the ladder and casually hung on the bottom rung like a kid on monkey bars.

He almost laughed, "Well, actually, it is something I would like to know about, since it seems that a guy can't get a little shut-eye in this city since freaks like you just love to cause a commotion wherever you go." His voice got louder and angrier as he spoke until it reached a point where he was shouting. He finally let go of the ladder and dropped to the ground. It occurred to Leon that he may have been picking a fight with this guy who was carrying a gun- multiple guns, actually- but then again, Leon was never one to let his common sense get in the way of his bad temper.

Robert folded his coat back over his guns as he realized, that he was not getting anywhere with this idiot, who just crawled out of his appartment and started picking a fight with a stranger. Why should he concern himself with the business of others and place himself in danger when he clearly has no part in it. Robert chuckled briefly and shrugged, clearly not interested in continuing the argument with Leon.

"Then go back to sleep, I do not have time to waste on a bum, who just crawled out of the gutter."

Robert said back at Leon before turning around on his heels and starting to walk away, but his other hand was in his pocket and grabbing one of his uzi`s in case the idiot tried to jump him from behind.

----------

(Another character of mine, add this one to the military for now)

Name: Azrael Subject Number VII, Leech.
Race: Genetically modified human
Age: 2 years old, but appears to be 20 years old.
Gender: Male
Classification: Genestealer
Personality: Silent, practically a mute at this point, inquisitive.
Strong points: Quick to adapt, tireless, straightforward.
Weak points: Little to no understanding of the world, impulsive, naive.
Weapons: Natural fighting ability
Abilities/Skills: Able to adapt and consume vast amounts of knowledge in a matter of days(mainly meant to bring him up to speed about the world), capable of stealing features and memories of living beings via consuming their flesh.
Appearance: Pale, blonde haired youth with sharp features. The roman numeral VII branded on his palm.
History: Contained in the heart of the military facility, Subject number VII is the first Azrael subject deemed sane and capable of functioning outside the tank. Leech as he is referred to, has merely opened his eyes a few times before falling back to hibernation, but soon he is about to plunged into what will be a bloody and cruel existance.
Picture: http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e60/cjbl...Male/ECP-05.jpg

---------------

Voices in the light.

Annoying, not now, go away, still sleepy.

Again, waking me, bothersome.

It thought with a frown forming on it`s face. It, Azrael Subject Number VII, had only as of late become self-aware. Slowly, but surely it had come to acknowledge the tank as it`s natural habitat for it was the only thing he had ever known. Yet it knew that there was something out there, something beyond the confines of his little world, a place shrouded with light, free of the liquid in which he floated and inhabbited by hazy figures clad in white. They all looked the same to it, save for the one with a dark face or was that a face? How did he even know a face was? As much as it wanted to sate it`s own inquisitive nature, it had an equal desire to be left unperturbed within that, which it acknowledged as the world. Yet it had no strength to break free like a hatchling still contained within it`s egg, unable to free itself, merely at the mercy of it`s creators.

The voices faded away and the dark face turned away from the window peering into his world.

Still sleepy..... maybe later...

It mused silently as slumber overtook it`s conciousness once again.

((The opening post has been updated.))

"Don't twist my words. You know exactly what the issue is." She remarked coolly, lifting her head ever so slightly to observe the humanoid within the tank. "Wicker is not emotionally stable. We had him where he was for a reason..."

She turned to look at Hazzard again, this time with a slightly less cold expression. "Whatever little mistake he might make, it will fall on you."

One final glance towards the tank, and she slowly strode away from the room.

With her absence, a chill seemed to be lifted from the very atmosphere.

~o~o~o~

Luckily for Elias and Charon, with Chompy in tow, they were already out of the bar by this point, having used instead the back entrance. However, they were still close enough to hear the blast from the vehicle in the bar...

"Crap. That was my favorite hangout!" Elias snarled under his breath as he broke into a light jog.

Charon, struggling to follow, merely chuckled. "Perhaps for the best, sir. You're far too young to die of liver failure."

"Ha ha. That was so funny, I almost forgot to laugh." He remarked bitterly, taking a detour through one of the alleys.

~o~o~o~

After seeing his own car whiz by, Cedric was... stunned. The day had taken the weirdest turn of events for the middle-aged man, and he wasn't really in any mood to deal with what was going on. But, seeing the damn thing crash against the bar like that, he was forced to check it out now...

Walking into the bar through the gaping hole in the wall, he stumbled a bit. "Is anybody hurt?" He called out, briefly flashing his badge to the patrons. "Is anybody injured?"

He spotted the apparent corpse of what seemed to be a young woman with silver hair, and frowned. "Somebody call nine-one-one, right now!"

~o~o~o~

What a ruckus. People just aren't being quiet today...

After the several explosions, gunfire, and yelling, Clarence was roused to wake as well. And even though he was irritated enough to gnaw someone's head off, he was calm. So, stumbling out to the fire escape, he peered down at what, to him, smelled like a cat and a zombie arguing loudly.

"Keep it quiet, would you, sirs? I'm tryin' to catch a few winks here, and you boys aren't helping." He narrowed his eyes slightly. Oh, testosterone was heavy in the air... in his half-asleep state, he really should've reconsidered stepping outside.

But when a careless little playboy like Clarence was granted the inability to either die or age, his self-preservation withered until it was non-existant.

~o~o~o~

((I'll be adding two new characters of mine.

Name: Roma Valerios
Age: Unknown, over 50 (looks about 20)
Gender: Male
Species: Devil
Appearance: Will be up soon.
Personality: Nice. Very nice. Until you get him mad.
Special Abilities: Can redirect energy, manipulate fire, has a thousand little tricks up his sleeve from the useless to the incredibly powerful, but does not use his powers often. Can also transform into a strange-looking creature.
Weaknesses: He's not very smart, and he's far too trusting of strangers. Gullible, naïve. Has virtually no resistance to the cold.
Preffered Weapons: A long-sword with a hilt engraved with rubies.
Profession: Shopkeeper/odd-job specialist.
Position: Owner and sometimes manager of Valerios' Trinket Trade
Miscallenous: He's very fond of witches.

Name: Orestes Valerios
Age: 382 (looks about 20)
Gender: Male
Species: Devil-Demon Hybrid
Appearance: Will be up soon.
Personality: Stoic and not very sociable. Keeps to himself and likes to keep it that way.
Special Abilities: He's an expert with a spear. Can suck the energy out of someone within contact.
Weaknesses: Lazy, doesn't like following orders, has very limited vision due to the fact that he was born with only one eye.
Preffered Weapons: Spears.
Profession: Shopkeeper/odd-job specialist.
Position: Manager and occasional guard for Valerios' Trinket Trade
Miscallenous: He can best be described as a cyclops.))


They were nearly halfway across the city, but they still heard. Both of them did.

"What do you think the body count will be?" the cyclops remarked, picking at his sharp teeth with his spear.

The much more normal-looking man furrowed his brow slightly. "... Thirty."

"So few?" The older laughed a bit. "Let's bet on it."

"How much?"

"Ninety gold conquistador coins."

"You have yourself a deal, cousin."

They shook hands, and waited.

"Calm down gramps, nobody's dead...at least no yet" The "corpse" grumbled as it literally rose from the ground. The girl looked down, just to notice her right arm bending in the opposite way, and the skin in her legs having some nasty second degree burns. "Hey Raphael...you alive?" The girl asked as she looked around. "Yeah..." A muffled voice said, apparently coming from under some fallen debris "Good cause you owe me a pack of cigarettes you f*!@er" Anna hissed sharply as she managed to get up. Without giving it a second thought she grabbed her arm, pushed the displaced bone back to it's original place and then turned around to look at Cedric...almost as if wondering what should they do with him. "Got any cigarettes officer?" She asked politely, her words loaded with sweet poison.
-----
Running into the maze of alleys Red only stopped when the sound of the sirens had completly drowned out. As she sat down and took a deap breath, a smirk of satisfaction creeped into her lips. She knew EXACTLY what would be the consequences of her acts, but she also knew it was time she DID something...besides, they couldnt possible find her. "Is not as if dem kno' who did it, right?" A voice asked behind her. Red turned around quickly just to find Simone looking at her.
"No way...uh uh...not in the mood for your crazy sh¡t Mo" Red groaned as she got up and started walking away. Having know the witch for a while now (they met when Simone tried to swindle her and in return Red tried to beat the sh¡t out of her...both of them ending in jail) she knew exactly what sort of stuff crossed her mind
"Why not? 'Cause you know I'm right?" Simone asked as she followed calmly. "Dont you have some creepy talismans or stinky potions to sell?" Red mumbled as she gave Simone a skeptic glare. "I do infact...I just thought a piece of advice to da fool was needed" The witch said as she pouted resentfully "Listen...I'll be honest: I dont belive in your hoodoo or voodoo or whatever you call it...so thanks but no thanks" Red stated sharply before she turned around again and walked away "Ok...fair enough...remember Red: I warned you" Simone said as she snickered softly "Yeah, yeah...I'll keep it in mind" Red mumbled as she shook her head.

Before Leon could respond, make a grab at, or possibly attack this first stranger, a voice from above distracted him- which made Leon all the more irritated. He looked up to see this other person who Leon ironically found no sympathy for, even though he himself had been in a similar situation just a minute ago.

"Hey, mind your own business! But, y'know, if you really wanna yell at someone, you can blame this a*shole over here." He gestured toward the gunslinger.

Although Leon was distracted for the moment, he still made sure this gunslinger would not leave his sight.

(No one is posting...)

Both Simone and Red stopped short when they hear angry voices. But while the red haired girl seemed troubled -knowing that after her little "act" it wasnt wise letting herself be seen- the witch just looked curious, as she stepped forward carefully, having heard two familiar voices.

(I was on a trip, didn`t mention it, but now I am back.)

Spinning on his heels Robert drew his sawed-off shotgun and aimed it square at Leon`s face whilst holding the other uzi low in case the troublemaker would prove more quicker than anticipated. Robert face was shadowed by a grin as he had hoped to avoid conflict, but as soon as he realized that Leon was about to tail him, he took swift action.

"I gave you a fair chance to just walk away punk, a chance to save your sorry arse and now I am going to give you the chance to meet your maker."

He said with an athmosphere of bloodlust about him and a piercing look in his eyes.

----------

Hazzard glanced quietly at the brigadier general as she left the room, but turned away as soon as she had left. He turned to the tank and began inputting codes to secure the tank for transfer, it was about time to set things in motion, events that the brigadier generals measly vision of a research facility hardly warranted. After inputting the codes the tank suddenly sank into the floor from whence it came and disappeared out of sight. Hazzard turned to Reeve, who seemed unphased by the brigadier generals visit.

"We are starting the experiment, have you chosen valid candidates?"

"I managed to round up a feasibly suitable group, given the fact that they are just waste with some potential I think we can use them without presenting any risk at all to Number VII. These guys are from Sinclair`s test subjects, he won`t be missing them anyhow."

"Well that`s a nice co-incidence.... send him a message to transfer the subjects and arrive at `The Pit` himself."

The Pit was where actual combat tests took place, pitting experiments against one another like gladiators of old with an entirely different purpose or various other tests. However it appeared that only a meager minority of the personnel took any pleasure in vitnessing these experiments. Reeve nodded and in a minute a message flashed on Sinclairs workstation to bring four designated subjects to The Pit. Hazzard had an almost joyous mood as he made his way to The Pit.

------------

The world was moving, occasionally shifting. Something was happening, something new, it did not like the situation. After minutes of moving, the world stopped and silence descended upon Leech`s tank. It did not know whether it should remain on the lookout for an attack or whether it should merely assume, that it was something temporary. Instincts took the better of Leech as it began feeling out the lines of the tank, which now seemed to be attached to something. In that split second, the liquid began to the drain out of his world and the space began to fill with it. Leech`s immidiate reaction was panic, attempting to claw it`s way out of the odd thing that pushed the familiar liquid away from it.

As the water cleared everything through the glass was clear and bright, almost blinding to Leech. It dropped on all fours as the water no longer held it within it`s embrace and the mask withdrew forcing Leech to frivolously gasp for air, with heavy heaving breaths. Inside it`s head Leech was screaming and terrified out of it`s mind, with it`s eyes darting back and forth. After a moment of sprawling it accustomed to the new enviorment and pushed itself up to face the opening doorway of the tank, uncertain yet curious Leech hesitated before wandering out of the tank into a cylinder room. The room was empty, white walls surrounded Leech all around, only a pile of clothes were laid before the tank.

For some strange reason it knew what these things were and what they were meant for, it dressed on the white pants and loose white shirt. Leech assumed these were necessary in this new world and like a child in wonder, kept staring at them as well as his surroundings. As soon as Leech had absorbed the changes to it`s habitat, the time was extensive, it simply sat down before the tank and waited for something new to happen.

To a normal person, a gun aimed at the face might mean that it was time to give up. However, Leon was not normal (to be specific, he was just stupid, and not to mention in want of some sleep) and saw this as an open invitation to further antagonize.

Leon simply raised an eyebrow as though incredulous. "You don't have to aim that thing at me. What the hell am I gonna do, anyway? I'm just a 'bum', right? But, y'know, this 'bum' has half a mind to fetch the police." He glanced around quickly, figuring out how much space he had in which to run. He figured he could outrun an attack, even move out of the way of gunshots if he needed to, but once he was shot in the right place, that was, like any human or animal, the end for him.

"Though, now that I think about it, I'm not so sure they'd fare well against a psycho like you.”

Leon quickly moved so he now was behind the stranger. He kicked him square in the back; it wasn't a strong kick, just enough to make the gunslinger’s balance falter. Leon really didn’t have the energy for an all-out fight, but he was angry enough to annoy this guy as much as he could. As soon as Leon had done that, he jumped back and onto a dumpster, pretending to not be prepared to run from gunfire if necessary.

"Seriously, man. What are you gonna do? Kill me and let that guy sleep? That's so unfair. You could just apologize for being so loud. Y'know, you can conduct whatever 'business' you have quietly," Leon was really just trying to provoke at this point, and he would have found it hilarious had he not had guns pointed at him.

---

When the unexpected message came up, Sinclair- being momentarily startled- jumped.

“Alright, then,” he said to himself as he calmed down.

So with the subjects properly transferred, he found Hazzard and Reeve (with some difficulty, seeing as how Sinclair was unfamiliar with this place, brought out of the loathsome workspace of that morning and now free to walk about- like some skittish animal taken out of a cage but, having been caged so long, had already lost its familiarity with the wilderness).

Sinclair was feeling the need to defend himself, as though he was going to get in trouble if he didn’t lie and say to Hazzard as he approached, “I’ve been making progress… uh, sir.”

This was not a complete lie, but it was not a complete truth; Sinclair had only been left in there long enough to organize his files and his thoughts. It just seemed like something he felt he should say to avoid disapproval. With this sudden feeling of paranoia he thought it strange, but he never questioned or worried over it.

“What’s this?” he asked, immediately dropping his formal tone and looking around.

At the mention of the "police" Red instantly stepped back and hid behind the wall, signaling Simone to close her mouth and get out of there "No way...if someone dies here, that's luck for me" The witch mumbled nonchalantly as she waved the idea aside.

As Robert felt the kick connect, he rolled through and stopped in a kneeling position with both guns pointed at the bum sitting on the dumpster. Sneaky bastard, Robert had a hunch that this one was not what he seemed to be at first sight and he was more troublesome by character than most. Not to mention, that pointless prattle, which had little to no effect on Robert for he had heard too many akin this this guy. They were all talk, even dared to claim to know everything and seemed to be thinking, that they exclusively had some rights. Yet when they were faced with a true horror or a challenge, they faltered or fled, garbage all the same.

Robert slowly rose to his feet with his guns still pointed at Leon, but he did not even pull the trigger. The fool at least had one point, he could fetch the police and the police were no match for him, but Robert would be long gone when the police got there. Robert suddenly chuckled a bit and put his guns away, like he had intended before, he was not interested in this fight. To be provoked by this idiot would certainly had consequences in, which Robert was mot very keen on taking part.

"And I guess you would know a psycho when you saw one?"

Robert asked with an amused tone in his voice before starting to walk away again without even giving Leon the chance to retort. If Leon seriously thought that kicking and punching Robert was going to have an effect then he`d have to think twice, but if the fool came close-range, Robert would be sure to use his shotgun to blast the idiot away.

------------

Hazzard glanced quietly at Sinclair as the man mumbled something at first and then inquired the reason he was invited to The Pit, clearly Reeve had been minimal on details and it was for the best. Hazzard pointed at the round space below them, beyond the windows. The group assembled out of Sinclairs test subjects was being led into the area and they all seemed nervous about the reason as to why they were there, tough much more so than Sinclair. Hazzard flip flappantly tossed a memo about Leech to Sinclair without even looking at him.

"I thought you would like to take part in a live demonstration, I have released Azrael subject number VII, or Leech as we call him for the sake of simplicity, from his tank. Also considering, that these are your test subjects you would appriciate to know why they were taken from you, no?"

Hazzard explained with a certain degree of jovialness in his voice before he stepped up to a monitor and opened an audio channel to the space below them. His voice startled the subjects, but they soon threw angry glances around as they were unable to see where the windows were hidden.

"Good day, test subjects. As much as I hope, that you have enjoyed your accomodations here at our meager facility. I am afraid it has come time for us to part ways, how that ends up however is entirely up to you."

As Hazzard spoke another door opened to the round room and figure emerged. Clothed in pale white clothing, a skinny, pale young man with blonde hair emerged. He seemed completely oblivious as to where he was and gazed around silently with his eyes a bit too wide from wonder or curiousity. The young man`s eyes locked first onto the researchers as tough he had seen them all along and then at the test subjects in the space with him. For a minute or so, he examined them from a far and Hazzard remained quiet, allowing the tension in the room to build. Suddenly Leech simply sat on the floor with his knee`s against his chest and his arms wrapped around them like a newborn babe.

Hazzard would have been smirking visibly, if he had not worn a mask, as he leaned to speak once more.

"This is a simple test, there are four of you and he is alone. All you four have to do is to kill him and I will set you free from this place, no strings attached. Like snapping a baby`s neck, he is a human and malnourished as where you have been modified to be superior.... However, hesitate and suffer the consequences."

A glimmer of hope could be seen in the test subjects eyes, but as much as they wanted to believe they could escape this nightmare, they suspected a trap ecspecially because of the small praise Hazzard had given them. Leech did not even flinch as the four test subjects seemed to be heatedly debating their next course of action amongst themselves. After a moment one of them took reigns and persuaded the others, that their freedom was a hair breadth`s away.

-------

Footsteps, four of them, the voice from the wall spoke no more. Leech raised it`s hazy eyes to face the four subjects bearing down on him with malicious intent in their eyes. It could feel their desperation, the anxiety and bloodlust. Two with clawed hands, one built like a battering ram and one thin like a twig. Slowly it rose to it`s feet and out of nowhere began stretching it`s limbs as tough not concerned by the four test subjects approaching it. Apparently one was not able to keep his cool and charged forwards, slashing with his claws. It did not comprehend why these beings akin to it yet different wished him harm, but it had an inkling how to act in this situation. How it knew it all of this, it did not know, simple instinct guided it for now.

Before he knew it Leech was already gone, leaping over the man`s shoulder with his hand grabbing on it. Leech came down with a kick into the face of another one following the first, sending her stumbling to the ground with a broken nose whilst still grabbing onto the man`s shoulder. Shifting it`s feet Leech took a firm stance before procceeding to toss the man over his own shoulder onto the woman on the ground. A fist, the size of a bowling ball, came flying at his head and by a hair`s breadth Leech moved his head, but was forced to stagger back a bit, loosing it`s balance for a moment. The twig of a man charged at Leech and grabbed onto it`s shoulder with the intent of biting Leech with his razor sharp teeth.

At that moment Leech knew very little of sustanance, but it figured that one of these might do. It grabbed the subject by the chin to avoid being biten and sunk it`s own teeth into the deliciously bare neck of the attacker. The rest of the test subjects were taken aback by this sudden display of brutality as their companion graggled his last breaths with blood gushing from his torn throat and mouth before falling face first to the ground. Leech licked it`s lips, that were now stained in dark red blood along with it`s shirt and arms.

The trio closed ranks and began to circle around Leech as it`s seemed none too concern with the threat they opposed, merely blankly stared at them and at his blood covered hands with a sense of curiosity, even excitement.

------------

"Wonderful isn`t it?"

Hazzard inquired from Sinclair as he had expected his subordinate to have look at the memo and then witnessed the gory scene.

((Sorry I haven't replied much, guys. College stuff.))

Elaine was no fool. She knew that the scientist would never listen to her command; he only seemed to work by his own rules. If she were the regional chief, she would've done off with the man ages ago, in favor of someone that would genuinely follow protocol. But, she wasn't...

Not yet, at least.

Like all those whose main goal was to seek power, Becker plotted. Becker plotted and planned and schemed like a thief in the night, waiting for all the lights to go out so she could sneak inside and take what she wanted.

And she knew that her ticket to the top was hiding within none other than a certain mafioso. Him, she would keep as far away from Hazzard as possible; not that it mattered, for she had very different plans for the Vera than to turn him into another brainless super soldier (or to get him killed in the Pit five minutes after the deed is done, either). No, it was something that even Hazzard shouldn't know about... only her and her direct superiors.

~o~o~o~

With an annoyed groan, Cedric placed his gun back on his waist-strap, glaring briefly at the girl before he turned his attention to something that caught his eye.

Claw marks, on the ground near to the back exit of the bar. Well, it was confirmed; the mafia leader was, in fact, there. Yet, he couldn't do a damn thing about it.

Clenching his teeth, he tried to figure out what to do. The ghoul's trail was probably lukewarm by now, he wouldn't be able to handle the don by himself, and his help was not needed in the bar, despite the crash.

He decided to report back to the precinct.

~o~o~o~

Now that they were quite a distance from the bar, Elias stopped his jog so that Charon could rest his leg for a moment. While waiting, he heard voices growing louder and louder.

Three men, he decided, and two women that were not directly involved in the scene, but seemed to be just around the corner.

"Charon... rest quickly." He muttered, his voice low. "I hear others."

~o~o~o~

Clarence was... irritated. Not intimidated nor frightened, merely irritated.

"Seriously, now you're just going to walk away like nothing ever happened? I would've been happy if you just took your little spat elsewhere, but this is just plain dumb."

He licked at his own teeth, vaguely wondering if his interruptions would get him in trouble.

~o~o~o~

"Cousin, do you think we should do something?" Orestes cooed slightly, balancing his spear on his foot. "Just to, you know, make sure the bet goes well."

"Afraid you'll lose, eh?" The devil chuckled slightly, puffing out a little ball of smoke after having taken an inhale from his cigarette.

"Not at all." He huffed. "I don't trust the news. I need to see the toll of the dead with my very own eye."

Roma raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you being a bit extreme?"

"I don't think so. Besides, I think we might be get some better business out there if we actually try to sell our customers on the store..."

The younger of the two scoffed. "Oh, please. Who's gonna want stuff like monkshood except for the customers we already have? Gardeners?"

"More like witches, if you ask me..." Orestes cooed.

This caught Roma's attention. "You think they'd come here?"

"Maybe... if you bothered to advertise your shop." He grumbled.

"Grab your coat! We're going out."

Smirking softly in contempt as she saw the policeman was about to leave, Anna calmly kneeled and rescued an intant cigarette from the floor. "Guess that's it..." She mumbled as she light the cigarette, and looked at the spot where Raphael's voice had come from. A light crack interrupted the silence before the fallen debris was pushed to the side, and the vampire emerged from the rubble...aside from his torn clothes, looking as fresh as a penguin. "You ready?" The demon asked as she started walking away -clearly not expecting an answer- "Officer" The vampire said, nodding in acknowledgment toward's Cedric's direction, before he followed Anna.
But before Raphal could even close the door behind them, Anna had already thrown the cigarette against the pavement and stepped on it viciously. "We are gonna find her and we're gonna kill her" She hissed in a blunt whisper. "What about the tagger?" Raphael asked calmly "Oh, she knows something...and I'm gonna rip the words out of her troath if necessary" The vampire stated coldy, as almost in perfect synch, both the demon and the vampire started walking toward the maze of dark alleways.
-----
Simone ignored Red's protests and simply leaned against the wall "Well runnin' right now would not be wise...friends of yours are here" The witch whispered in soft amusement. For the first two second Red raised frowned in puzzlement, but after the third second she got the hint "Oh sh¡t ..." She mumbled, her voice loaded with both defeat and pleasure. *The mafiosi from the bar...* She thought sheepishly, the reckeless part of her knowing she would enjoy some ruckus if it came.

Name: Erykon (Eric)
Age: Unknown no way to tell, newborn in this world but mind is older
Gender: not applicable, considers itself a male
Species: unknown - appears as a dark and shadowy lob, but shapes itself into a humanid, but changes for battle.
Appearance: now (unknown reason)
Personality: confused, doesn't understand this world, wants to be friends but often gets mad. generally very passive.
Special Abilities: can adjust his shape but retains the same colours and pattern, prefers a humanoid figure. Is able to shape it's body with transmutation circle like patterns that are different by channeling the power of his homeworld into this one. also can understand any language, and chooses the most dominantly spoken one as its thoughts. takes in information from peoples heads by looking at them, but doesn't always make sense to it.
Weaknesses: is very emotionally fragile, will get mad/sad very easily
Preffered Weapons:itself, shapes arm into spear
Profession: wanderer
Position: no position in society, feared
Miscallenous: has a grudge against simone (appears later after learning what she did), in homeworld he was very different, but never talks about it (might later). has little memory about who he was exceeept his name despite vivid memories of the world he lived in.

[Edited: Deleted paragraph with Simone and Red.
~Razzy]
[Edit 2: you guys forgot about in the appearance how simone's spell backfired, just fixed that up.
~Nature Path Alchemist]

The creature couldn't remember anything, not where he was, not what he was, not a name. No, a name did come to him. Erykon. Not realising it'd spoken aloud it noticed the scared faces of the people around itself. It saw the figures cowering in fear from itself, too small, or was it too big, it didn't know. it felt sad that it'd suddenly caused so much distress, it didn't like being this way. as if its body was listening to his thoughts, it shrank down to size of the others. realizing nothing had changed, it ran, or rather it fell over itself, until it was sliding away as a blob again, into the forest. as it rolled into a dark shadow it tried to classify itself. It went through the information it had just received, and then thought: 'a - monster? they think of me as a... monster? I don't want people to hate me, I just, i... need to be...' scrolling through the info aimlessly until it found a suitable word for itself. 'a man, so people won't hate me, people don't mind a man in the world.' his form adjusted to that of a humanoid male in a cloak, all in the jet black that made its, no, his form. People won't like me unless I do what they do, people...' as he searched for an appropriate action, 'Sleep! If i sleep, then i rest and be ready for the next day, but only when it's dark, and it's dark here' looking up at the dark shroud the leaves presented, and he rested himself at the base, and his mind slipped into an equivalent to sleep.

(^ Naturepathalchemist, not sure whether you`ve asked about using Mai`s character, but in case you haven`t, don`t use other people`s characters without their permission.)

Leech had not felt anything like it in the tank, a sheer rush of warmth throughout his body, the blood pounding in it`s head and the taste of flesh still lingering on his tongue. Enchanted by the new experience, Leech took a moment to enjoy it, but never stopped taking note of the remaining three, who seemed hesitant. The hesitation of the trio would cost them dearly as Leech pounced into movement, it did not comprehend the intent of these beings, but it knew this much, they were sustance to be fed upon. It quickly slid under the punch of the large man to trip him with it`s own feet, but before it could move in for the finishing blow the four clawed hands were aiming for it`s head and throat.

Leech rolled backwards onto it`s feet, moving away from harm`s way. As the other came forward again, Leech side-stepped the creature and grabbed the one following by the arms using the second one`s own movement speed to send the duo colliding onto the floor. Leech quickly leaped onto the two of them, kicking the second one in the forehead, knocking it out cold and grabbing the first one by the head to snap it`s neck. It`s enthusiam to deal with the duo cost it however as it was sent crashing against the wall from a crippling tackle delivered by the remaining, large, test subject.

Leech could feel it`s back screaming in agony, the spine almost snapping as it collided against the wall and fell whimpering to the floor with a expression of horror on it`s face. In the tank it had been floating in peace, in here it was beset by bright lights and hostile beings. It could not understand why, but somehow it knew what was required of it and how it could accomplish it. Leech sluggishly sat against the wall, breathing heavily and holding it`s ribs with the mind-numbing pain coursing through it`s mind. It seemed as tough Leech was screaming admist it`s breaths, but there was no sound, a muted wail. The large being approached with malicious intent and raised it`s hand to crush Leech`s head like a bug.

Out of instinct Leech mustered whatever strength it had left and threw itself onto the being, sinking it`s teeth into the arm with animalistic rage and burrowing it`s fingers into the man`s eyes. In blind rage the large man delivered a blow with his other arm to the ribs of Leech and it almost let go, but persisted long enough to poke out the other eye. Both of the combatants scrambled back with grievous injuries, Leech with crushed ribs and the large man missing an eye along with a small bit of his arm, now in Leech`s belly no doubt.

Leech did whatever it could not to fall onto the ground whimpering, but finally it`s other knee buckled and it fell onto the other. The large man roared victoriously as he charged forward and grabbed Leech by the throat. It struggled to break free, grabbing the man`s arms as hard as it could. The man seemed relieved now, that his freedom was a matter of choking his opponent.

"You poor bastard probably don`t have a clue of what`s in store for ya, all I am doing is a favour for ya, hell it`d be a wonder, if you understood me."

The man said with a hint of relief and anger in his voice. Leech may not have been able to understand speech yet, but it understood intent and expressions. As a final act of defiance Leech lashed out with all of it`s strength, back by the overwhelming fear of death. Small dart like thorns emerged from Leech`s hand and needled the man`s face, who shrieked in pain as they sunk into his flesh. For a second the grip tightened, making Leech gasp desperately for air in a matter of seconds the grip broke off completely and Leech slammed to the ground. It breathed quickly, coughing and gasping for fresh air. After a moment of rest Leech turned to stare at the man, who was basicly drooling on the floor with a dumb-found expression.

Leech turned to stare in wonder at his arm, which had suddenly developed tiny, barely detectable glands. The small thorns appeared to be formed out of bone, or something akin and contain paralyzing poison as the man laid, helplessly on the floor. It could not comprehend where this function had come to be, but it certainly was glad it`s skin was intact. Leech slowly sprawled to it`s feet and slugged to the man on the ground. With a merciless, empty gaze in it`s eyes Leech placed it`s foot on the man`s throat and pressed as hard as it could, choking the man as tough responding in kind to the earlier attack. They both stared back at each others in disquiet as the life faded from the man`s eyes. After a moment Leech seemed to realize he had done enough to kill the man, it sat onto the floor next to the man with a curious look in it`s eyes. It knew these beings were a source of sustenance and it felt overwhelming hunger, depraved of the tank`s supply it required a new one. Leech sank it`s teeth into the man`s flesh without a second thought as, if it had been the most natural thing to it.

Leech had survived, to the victor go the spoils.

-----------

In the overlooking observation room Hazzard was practically giddy about how well the experiment had faired despite the what had at first appeared a momentary set back, Leech had excelled in it`s new habitat and even adapted far more quicker than Hazzard had ever dreamed possible. Tough he suspected, that the heightened senses during battle had a hand in it, but nevertheless Leech had survived it`s birth struggle as it were. Hazzard mused silently to himself before turning to the monitors and bringing up a file of the first man Leech had killed, all tough he had read it and knew what had happened, he wanted Sinclair to realize what had come to pass.

"Look at this, Leech`s first victim posessed highly poisonous neural toxins in his body yet not only was it immune to them, but it managed to win the fight by using, that very same venom, albeit modified, to kill the last one.... Of course I could not have expected him to have coped as quickly as he did, but I suspect this was merely plausible because of his recent ejection from the tank and heightened functions. In the future his adaption will be much slower, but... the possibilities are endless...."

Hazzard mused with an overjoyed voice.

(^.^U Nature Path Alchemist, Mad Bomber is right, you cant use other people's characters like that without their permition. There's no problem if you want your character to have a grudge against Simone, but please dont use my characters)