Physical therapy- Continued | Open

[Admin]

Continued from:

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"Is that a first name or a last name?" Its what you can call me. Hawkins didn't normally like to be cryptic, it was usually a waste of time and ended up just getting people agitated. Besides that nobody had called him by first name in many years, it felt strange to even think about having another person say it aloud. He couldn't help, but feel like a jerk, Lin had to be worried. Who knows she might have a family waiting for her, kids... She was just trying to make the situation more habitable, he didn't really need to give her the one word, silent treatment. Although, it didn't feel right to strike up a conversation at this point, he had too many things running through his mind, to bother with small talk.

The strong smell of salt water washed over Hawkins, he hadn't realized they were so close, only a few blocks away. She turned a corner and he could see the bay, a ton of a small pleasure boat all surrounded an iron gated dock. A large sign with a weathered looking anchor hand painted on it, accompanied by some small lettering beneath it, looks like a small boat club. The car slowed, they drove past the boat club, there were still a lot of people walking around the docks. They headed past the pedestrian side of the docks and neared the commercial shipping bays. Less people were around, most now were workers. Dressed in utilitarian overalls, a few of them gave Hawkins and Lin strange looks as they drove past.

"There!" Hawkins pointed to rather small white boat, the white paint was flaking off baldly, revealing the weathered wood and fiberglass underneath. It had a single cabin, with a small glass window. It was located passed most of the large buildings and ships, tied off to a small unstable looking dock that consisted of a few old boards bolted to the concrete pier. There was no activity around the boat, it was unusually quiet, which bothered Hawkins, the boat grew larger as they approached it with the car. They were a couple of feet from the tie off point, when Lin stopped the car. Hawkins shot her a serious glance before getting out of the sports car. "Look, I need to get a bag out of the cabin on that boat, please stay here with the car and keep it running."

[Lin Minanino]

Lin blinked once, and then again. Wait... what was going on now? He wanted her to wait? He really wanted her to wait?! What the hell was he thinking? And what made things worse was that she hadn't already stepped on the gas and left him there, stranded. Mental head slap. It wouldn't be right to leave him stranded, even if he could be a serial killer or something. Darn her moral compass anyway, for not allowing her to just leave him there and get back to more important things. So rude. She sighed and shrugged. "Do what you want," she murmured coolly, hoping her dispassion may tell him just how much she didn't want to do what he was saying. From her experience men weren't the best at understanding things like that though, as subtleties weren't their strong suits. She just hoped that maybe 'Hawkins' was actually smarter than some of the others she had dealt with in the past. For some reason that she just couldn't fathom, she doubted that her hope would be anything more than for vain, though.

And for some reason she kept getting the urge to go drinking. Now Lin had never been much of a drinker. In fact, the only time she had ever gotten drunk had been less than a year before. She had been at a party with some friends, and had drunk a lot more than she should have, and hooked up with a friend's boyfriend. She had been ashamed of what she had done the next morning when she was sober, and had sworn the guy to secrecy, not wanting to hurt his relationship with her friend. But then three weeks later she found out she was pregnant. Oh yes, drinking had been such a great decision. Not. So why did she want to drink something now? Possibly because she was just nervous and thought that maybe a drink or two would help calm her nerves. Somehow though she doubted that would actually make things better. "Just... hurry. I have other things to do."

[Admin]

Ha, Lin was pissed. "It should only take a second." Hawkins hid a slight smile, he pulled the door latch and slid out from the car seat. He started walking towards the boat, when he heard "Just... hurry. I have other things to do." Her tone was filled with insecurity and irritation. Turning back, "I'll be back in a second, don't worry." This time, he gave her a nice big grin. Hawkins shouldn't piss off his driver too much, there was a good chance she'd speed off with out him, although something about Lin, reassured him that she wouldn't do such a thing.

He slowly crept towards the boat, trying to keep from looking so obvious, even though in his current attire it was really pointless. Might as well been wearing a big bulls eye target around his neck, never the less he still tired to be sneaky as he approached the single dock. There was no other way that Hawkins could see other than jumping from the pier to the boat, placing one foot on the dock, the creaking sound was a good indication the thing was ready to let loose any minute, and Hawkins wasn't wearing his swim suit. He stepped back, readied himself and jumped from the concrete peir to the deck of the boat, luckily it wasn't more than a couple of feet. Landing on the boat caused it to shake slightly back and forth. Hawkins regained his balance and took in his new surroundings. Next to the steering wheel and dash, was a small door with a locked latch, his bag was in there! A swift kick made short work of the cheaply made wood door, he crawled into the small cabin.

Luck must of been on his side, he reached under the shelf on the right side, feeling the familiar texture of his lucky pack, he gave it a quick tug and it was free in his arms. Yes! Finally something was going as he planned, he quickly opened the packed and made sure all his belongings were still present. Hawkins stopped his rummaging, when his hand slid over the cold steel of the Sigma, he pulled it out and tucked it under his Hawaiian over shirt, making sure the safety was on. A friend of his had a really bad accident, when shoving a gun into his pants, without it being locked in safely, the incident scared his mind, he'd never forget to put it on safety after that... "Alright, time to get back to Lin" Hawkins whispered to himself.

[exmachina]

Odd...
That was the thought that passed through the homeless boy's head as he watched a man and woman pull up to a nearby boat. The one eyed boy had been situated at the dock all day, finding the sea breeze and the sound of the ocean to be an interesting sight. He had been there for what must have been hours, his worn hoody clinging to his body and it's fur lined hood draped over his head, obscuring the ornate eye patch that covered the empty socket. Masa could only guess at what the two were doing. The situation seemed strange. A woman driving a nice car was dropping off a large man at a crummy boat house. Catching the last bit of the sentence that the man had spoken about waiting made it all the more... strange. As soon as the man made his way into the confines of the boat house Masa was up making his way from his small hiding place.

The boy wasn't very intimidating, standing at a lanky five feet ten inches, but he wasn't very noticeable either. He waltzed passed the men that walked by and made his way toward the car in a short amount of time. Most hadn't even seen him move from his hiding spot between two warehouses that were spaced to close together. His ragged clothes bellowed out behind him as he walked with a quickened pace to the side of the car. The only sound that resonated from him was the soft shuffle of his boots against the pier. He lightly rested his hand against her door. "Hey," he said in what could only be described as a sympathetic tone. "Are you all right, miss?" he asked, his single amber eye trained upon the door that had been kicked in by the man.

"That man... Are you with him?" he asked, not sure how he could phrase what he truly wanted to ask. Asking if someone was being kidnapped was bad enough, but doing it and being wrong lead to an incredibly awkward situation. Masa would know. Being as naive and dense as he was he often believed that anyone looking unhappy with a strange looking man was being held against their will. It was the small heroic voice in him that always told him to ask, just to be safe. "Cus he doesn't look very friendly." he said. Instincts that he inherited from the Ultimateblade told him that the man had seen battle and plenty of it. Masa hoped that he hadn't fought for the wrong reasons.

[Lin Minanino]

Lin blinked up at the boy who appeared next to the car, wondering where he had come from. He couldn't have appeared out of nowhere -- that was simply impossible. And yet... she had seen things that made her doubt just what 'impossible' was. Are you all right, miss? What a question. She had absolutely no idea what the answer was. Well, actually, now that she thought about it, she knew exactly what it was. She was hardly what could be described as being all right. She hadn't been 'all right' in so long that she didn't even remember what that status felt like. Raising a hand she placed it on her forehead, in an almost-salute, so she could block some of the sun from her eyes so she could see better. The boy quite obviously didn't have a home to go to, otherwise he wouldn't be wearing the type of clothing he was. She felt her heart clench painfully in her chest as it went out to him. Fighting the desire to spill her true feelings as she gazed into his eerily colored eyes, and also fighting the pity she felt, she shrugged. "I'm... fine." What a pathetic answer, and she knew it. 'Fine' was what a lot of people said when they were the exact opposite of 'fine', but just didn't want to admit to it.

That man...are you with him? Lin had to fight a grimace at the question. However, she couldn't fight the sigh that escaped from her lips. Shrugging again she ran the hand that was on her forehead through her brown hair, tangling it further than it already was. "I guess you could say that," she responded vaguely. She wished she wasn't with him, but that was another story entirely. Cuz he doesn't look very friendly. He could say that again. Hawkins hardly looked like a friendly person; at least not by her standards -- or apparently the standards of this boy. She wanted to smile, or nod in agreement, or something, but manners prevented her from doing so. "He..." She just couldn't bring herself to lie to the boy and say that Hawkins wasn't anyone to worry about. Especially since she didn't even know if that was true or not herself. She hoped it was true, as she really didn't want to be associated with a bad person, but she just didn't know. Lin's eyes softened and she gave the boy a tiny smile. Thank you for your concern, but it's all right. You don't need to worry about me." Hopefully, anyway. Tilting her head to the side she had to work to keep a look of pity from coming to her face. "You know, it's dangerous to be out alone. What's your name, if you don't mind my asking?"

[exmachina]

Masa looked over the woman with his amber colored eye and then frowned. Her response wasn't exactly what he had hoped. There was hesitation in her tone and her eyes were filled with an emotion Masa rarely saw; pity. Most simply saw him as a menace or a street urchin, very few seeing him as he was, a child that had been cast aside.Though, the story of how was very confusing and the memories scattered throughout the boy's psyche. He reached up and twirled his finger through a lock of his red hair as he thought about it. He should take her word for it and just leave her, but something prevented him from doing so. It kept him rooted to the spot, his eye glancing toward the boat every so often. His eye darted back toward her when she spoke up.

He saw a smile on her face but he wasn't sure if it was real or not or if it was pity or relief that had caused it too form. His lips pursed together as he figured that there had to be something wrong, even if she was with the male. Most people didn't act like that when they were fine. Masa shoved his hands into the pocket of his hoody, his thumb poking through a hole near it's top. Dangerous, he almost scoffed at that. Everywhere was dangerous. There were only places were it was a little safer. At least, that was how Masa registered everything. When she asked his name he gave her a smile, revealing rows of pearly whites. He pulled one hand from his pocket and pulled back his hood. For once his full face was in view, no longer hidden beneath the fur covered hood.

Several girlish features were present on it, but he was obviously male. Where his left eye should have been there was instead an ornate eye patch, covering a black socket where another amber eye once was. Long red hair draped around his face and every so often fell in front of his face. He was dirty and grubby, but not so terrible that he was repulsive. He looked like a child who had been out playing rather than a boy who had been with out a home for years. " It doesn't bother me too much. I've been alone for as long as I can remember. Anyway, my name is Masa, Masa Nanahara. What about your name miss?" he asked as he put his hands back in his pockets.

[Lin Minanino]

Alone for as long as he could remember... Lin felt another stab of pity, and this time also of guilt. Guilt that she had been wallowing in self-pity for her own pathetic life, when there were people who had far more problems than she did wandering about the city. Not just the city, but the world as well. She wanted to help this boy, Masa, but she didn't know how she could. She could hardly help herself, let alone another person. Sure, she seemed to be helping Hawkins, but that was simply because she owned a car. Any other gullible person with a car could have done the same. He probably could have just taken public transportation or walked, if worst had come to worst. Actually, that probably wouldn't have been the worst case scenario. The worst would be if he resorted to thievery in order to get to the bay. She mentally sighed. She wouldn't put that kind of thing past the gruff man; not at all. He definitely seemed like the type who would steal a car if he really needed one. A part of her knew that she was being rather rude to think so poorly about him, but in another way she hardly even cared. Why should it matter to her whether or not she was rude or polite to him? He had virtually dragged her into who-knew-what kind of dangerous situation, so why should she be nice? No reason she could think of. "It's very nice to meet you, Masa. I'm Lin Minamino. But please, just call me Lin. 'Miss' is a lot more formal than is necessary." She gave him another smile -- or what could, in the vaguest sense of the word pass as a smile. "Masa, you should go before Hawkins gets back. I'm not sure how he would react to you being here."

[exmachina]

Masa put on what most would call a goofy grin as he smiled at Lin. "It's nice to meet you Mi- I mean, Lin." he said, catching himself before calling her miss again. Masa was used to calling men and women older than him by their honorific titles. He thought of it as rude otherwise. When she mentioned the man, now known as Hawkins, he puffed up his chest and lightly slammed his hand against his chest. "He's not so scary. He just doesn't look nice is all." he said as he looked toward the boat for the third time. Masa was sure that he could take the man. He glanced toward the ornate bracelet that was wrapped around his wrist and nodded. He wouldn't fight though unless he had to protect Lin, but for all they knew Hawkins was a nice guy, albeit very strange and gruff. The boy was adamant about staying with her until he could confront the man himself. What was the worst that could happen?

As if the Ultimateblade knew it flashed several images in Masa's head of "worst" case scenarios. Though Masa sensed that blood-lust and it's love of battle meant that those were it's ideal scenarios. "If he'd react badly to you talking to someone then you probably shouldn't be with him." he said as if it was something everyone should know, there was no malice in the way he said it. "Either way I think I should stay." he said, not giving a reason as to why. Though it was obvious that he had intentions to talk with Hawkins whenever he did come out.

[Admin]

Hawkins closed his pack and crawled back through the tight opening, careful not get hung up on the splintered wood that surrounded and reinforced the small cabin door. Making it through unscathed, he slowly poked his head above the boat's railing, in the direction he remembered Lin's car being parked. Quickly he ducked his head back under the boat railing, from the short glance he saw that someone had approached the passenger side of the Lin's car and from what he could tell was engaging her in conversation. Hawkins didn't hear Lin make any signs or notions that she needed help, so he relaxed a little. He sneakily poked his head up for another glance, the figure was small, judging by the size of the car in proportion, the guy or girl was only 5, or 5 and half feet tall roughly speaking. It was hard to tell the gender, with the shaggy hoody and all, although the figure seemed to carry itself like a male. Mystery man number one, Hawkins thought to himself, his build was that of a younger man, maybe 18. The mystery boy was definitely homeless, Hawkins had seen that type of clothing so many times before. The character must of been hiding near one of the large warehouses that lined the commercial side of the docks, Hawkins didn't remember noticing any movement. The kid must of made his move when Hawkins jumped into the boat, in any case the kid wasn't a threat. Although a bit unnerving seeing how it was hard to tell who was and wasn't a threat, he hadn't done anything aggressive to Lin. Judging by this, the kid must of just wanted some spare change or some food, seeing the type of car Lin was driving, Hawkins figured the kid thought she would be willing to spare some money.

At any rate Hawkins needed to get the hell out of the boat, kid or no kid, the good doctor was definitely awake by now and probably contacted the local fake cops to retrieve him. He was sure they'd figured out that Hawkins had left something on the boat and check there first. He had to make his move. Hawkins's years of stealth training kicked in, he quietly made his way out of the boat, narrowly escaping almost falling into the water, he pulled himself up on the concrete pier, slowly and quietly he walked towards Lin's car. His approached hadn't been detected by Lin or her visitor, which surprised Hawkins, they must of been talking about something of great interest. Hawkins could clearly see that it was indeed a young boy, 18 or 19. He had a patch over one eye and wore ratty street clothes. He also had some kind of weird bracelet on his arm. Hawkins was right behind the young kid before he even realized it, he could see the shocked expression on Lin's face, she unknowingly gave his presence away to the boy, who turned to face Hawkins. The top of the kid's head barely reached Hawkins's lower neck, he was much sorter and from what Hawkins could tell pretty thin, which was expected. Hawkins glared at the boy, not that he was mad, just inconvinced by the kid's appearance. Hawkins couldn't really think of anything clever and it seemed that Lin had befriended the boy, he didn't want to be an ass, so he shot Lin a questionly glance. "I've got what I needed, time for us to go."

[Lin Minanino]

Either way I think I should stay. Lin's eyes widened. He was going to stay? What? Why? She mentally groaned. This was getting infinitely more complicated by the moment. Why, oh why did things have to be so complicated? Once again she wondered why she had even bothered to get out of bed today, as it was obviously shaping up to be just one big headache. Hearing footsteps on the wooden planks that made up the dock she turned her head slightly and sighed. Great, Hawkins was back. She had partially hoped that he would have forgotten about her while retrieving whatever it was he had come to get. That was obviously too much to hope for though, since he made his way right over to the car. I've got what I needed, time for us to go. She sighed again. Was she supposed to be happy he got what he needed? Actually, what had he even got? Her brown eyes gave him a fast once-over, but she didn't see anything particularly suspicious or different. Except... what exactly was that bulge in his shirt? It looked sort of... gun shaped. Just perfect. A gun? Why would he need a gun? Why did she have to get involved with someone who carried a gun? She was really starting to hate her life. Not that she already hadn't, but it seemed that the hatred had increased exponentially since going to the hospital.

Her gaze drifted back to Masa and she wondered what she should do about him. He said he should stay, but did that mean he wanted to... go with? She couldn't see why he would want to. He didn't know her, nor did he know Hawkins. Plus she thought it may be safer for him to not get involved further with either of the two of them right at this moment. Though she wasn't entirely sure why, she had a feeling that this was going to become one long, dangerous day, that she would normally much rather avoid altogether. Too bad she didn't actually have much of a choice. Or really any choice for that matter. But... it wasn't as though she had any right to stop the boy from coming with he really wanted to. Technically she could say no since it was her car, but... no, she couldn't say no to him. "Masa, do you want to tag along? We could go get something to eat after I finish driving Mr. Hawkins around," she offered, hoping the offer wouldn't be taken as an insult. "And Mr. Hawkins, I think you know perfectly well that I cannot drive you anywhere until you tell me where you wish to go. I'm no mindreader." Thank God. She was almost certain that she had absolutely no desire to know what was going on in his mind.

[exmachina]

A small eep sound escaped Masa's lips as he heard a voice behind him. He spun around and came face to face with Hawkins or rather face to neck. Masa took a look at Hawkins and took in his appearance. He was a good deal taller than him and probably more muscular than the scrawny teen. He pursed his lips together as he sized him him up, not noticing the strange gun shaped lump that Lin had seen. Masa tilted his head to the side as he realized that the man had glared at him and while it didn't seem to be an angry Masa did sense some irritation. He glanced back toward Lin for any sort of clues as to why the man would be irritated with him. If she gave him any they were lost upon him as he shifted slightly. As he shifted from foot to foot a question was asked that sent a pang of hunger through his stomach. An audible growl answered for him.

The boy laughed sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. "Sure, I promise I won't be too much of a nuisance." he said as he flushed, obviously embarrassed about the fact that his stomach had growled so loudly. It had been a few days since he had been able to make his way into the soup kitchen to get a bite to eat and he didn't have it in him to steal food. It was a miracle that he was still upright in his mind. By himself Masa could put away more than most men but the added appetite of the Ultimateblade made him a walking black hole. Masa turned toward Hawkins and smiled at him before he hopped into the car, taking up a spot behind the passenger's seat. Masa wasn't so interested in going with them out of curiosity but more out of an urge to guard Lin. Something in his gut told him that being around Hawkins could be hazardous to her health. Though, to be fair being around Masa wasn't the safest thing either. He rested his hands on the passenger seat, the silver bracelet on his wrist gleaming in the light.

[Admin]

"And Mr. Hawkins, I think you know perfectly well that I cannot drive you anywhere until you tell me where you wish to go. I'm no mindreader." Argh! That tone again, Hawkins couldn't help but role his eyes. He shifted his weight and slung his new found pack over his shoulder, He watched Lin's eyes scan his body closely and just for a monument hesitate over the location of his gun. Her eyes suddenly shot back towards the kid who decided to jump in the backseat a look. "Masa, do you want to tag along? We could go get something to eat after I finish driving Mr. Hawkins around." Ah wonderful, Hawkins had to fight from rolling his eyes again, lets give every homeless kid a ride and free meal. Hawkins knew he was being a bit cold blooded, but he couldn't help it, the tension was building inside him.

He understood that somebody was after him, some one with enough power to have bought a doctor and hire some chumps as fake cops. What they wanted with Hawkins, was still a mystery. Hawkins scanned over Lin and her new found companion, who sat happily in the back seat. The docks had calmed even more, it was starting to sunset more of the workers who were was scrambling around were now gone. Hawkins gave his surrounds a quick look, the docks were basically dead, except for the three of them. Other than the splashing of water against the docks and Lin's car quietly idling, Hawkins couldn't hear anything else, shrugging off a nervous feeling he reached for the car door.

"Hawkins, Stop or we will shoot!" Hawkins quickly jerked his head around in the direction of the shout. It was coming from one of the large warehouses, a side door had flew open a group of people shuffled out of the opened door way. In the failing light it was hard to tell, but Hawkins swore it was the first policeman who stuck his finger in his face. However the guy wasn't alone, stepping out beside was five more guys. Each was wearing a police riot squad gear; heavily armored face shields blackened out, as well as black Kevlar suits that covered them from head to toes. Although none of them were carrying patons, each of them had an automatic weapon, they were standing at least twenty five yards off, the guns looked like MP5's. It was a stand still,

Hawkins froze he didn't even bother to look at Lin, he had to be smart, this could turn into a blood bath real quick. "I don't want to kill you Hawkins, just come with us!" Without taking his eyes off the group that now approached his position, Hawkins barked out an order to Lin, "Lin, drive! Get out of here!" Hawkins then dashed towards one of the closest warehouses for cover, when he was a few yards away from Lin's car, he heard shots ring out and swore he felt bullets whizzing by. Hawkins reached for his gun, just before diving behind the ware house wall for cover, he aimed and squeezed the trigger of the Sigma back a couple of times, just before making it behind the wall. Hopefully Lin did as he said, he hadn't bothered to look her way and make sure everything was alright.

[Lin Minanino]

The woman wasn't particularly worried about the child causing trouble. No, in fact she was far more worried about the odd foreigner causing trouble and dragging her into it. Why had she agreed to drive him around again? There was no real answer save for one: she had had a temporary lapse in common sense and good judgment. Maybe she had even had a momentary stroke that had somehow altered her senses. What else could it be after all? There was one other answer, the most logical one, but that was something she just wasn't very keen on. Being in the elevator had made her nervous and weak. When the man had reappeared and asked for her help she had been so vulnerable at the time that she couldn't help but agree.

Mentally shaking her head she forced these thoughts away. She shouldn't even be worried about herself now that Masa was in the car. It was him who she should be concerned for. No child should be around an unsuitable influence such as Hawkins. However before she could do a thing to change the situation she heard someone shouting. "Hawkins, Stop or we will shoot!" her eyes widened in horror. It was just as she feared, this man was bringing nothing but trouble into her life. "I don't want to kill you Hawkins, just come with us!" Would he do as the man with the gun commanded? Although Lin didn't know much about the stranger she had picked up something told her that he wasn't planning on obeying.

"Lin, drive! Get out of here!" The smart thing for her to do would be to do exactly as he said and drive off without looking back. But could she really do something that might end up killing the man? If she left and he was shot and killed it would be on her head. She quickly shook her head. No, that was foolish of her. She was no fighter, and there was no way that she could do anything to stop those men; whoever they were. And she still had Masa to worry about. Could she risk his life as well as her own just to save a stranger? Swallowing she turned the key in the ignition and placed the car in gear before flooring it, driving straight for the armed men. "I'm sorry," she murmured to no one, before calling out, "Stay low, Masa! Do not raise your head!"

[Admin]

Hawkins' heart was pounding, it felt as if his heart might burst through his chest. He felt the cold steel against his palm as he squeezed the sigma in his hand. Steading himself, Hawkins eyes darted side to side, scanning his surroundings. The roaring of a sport car's engine filled his ears and the blur of what appeared to be Lin's car shot by, panic struck Hawkins like a lightning bolt. "What was she thinking?!" He quickly poked his head around the rusty steel wall of the warehouse, Lin was heading dead on at Hawkins attackers. Hawkins couldn't help but start grinning, "Shes got guts".

He quickly darted out past the cover of the warehouse sprinting towards Lin's direction, aiming to the best of his abilities while running, squeezing the trigger of the sigma, blasting a few rounds off towards the group of heavily armed men. Who dove and ran trying to avoid being plowed into by Lin or hit by any of Hawkin's poorly aimed shots. A look of disgust crept onto Hawkin's face, as far as he could tell not one of his bullets had hit their target, lucky for him that Lin decided to stay, he'd have been in a world of hurt.

"Lin! I need a pickup!" Hawkins roared, he was running out of gas, diving behind obstacles to avoid gun shots as well as trying to follow Lin in her sport car/tank was wearing him down. Hawkin's lungs burned, he was getting short of breath, and he wasn't even sure Lin had heard him!

[exmachina]

The world was a blur of activity around the young man. In a matter of moments things had gone from being relatively normal and quiet to complete chaotic. No more than a few seconds after the gruff and tumble Hawkins appeared several armed men sprung up from out of the boat. Masa wasn't too sure about what happened next. All he could hear over the roaring gun fire and the whir of the engine was the sound of several voices. The suggestion to get down wasn't needed. The force of the car rocketing forward flung the unseatbelted youth to the floor of the car with a thud.

He let out a soft groan as he could feel the world moving beneath him. He closed his eyes as he heard a voice in the back of his head and a fit of laughter. Kekekeke, I say this is a pretty good turnout. The Ultimateblade seemed to be pleased with the violence that was whirling around them. Masa forced the voice back and pushed himself as best he could. His long slender fingers grasped the edges of the door and he attempted to peek at what was going on. A bullet almost found it's way to his head, narrowly avoiding his right ear. With a yelp he jumped back down.

Why did it seem that his day's always seemed to end like this? He let out a sigh as he glanced down at the tarnished, silver bracelet that was wrapped around his thin wrist. Changing now seemed like a good idea, but then again, if he did that he would have to let Lin and Hawkin's in on their little secret and there was no telling what they might do. For all he knew they might be part of the group that had given him these strange powers.

No, Masa would have to wait. If things truly got bad he would change and not a moment sooner. He gave himself a small nod as he rested against the passanger's seat back. He looked toward the driver's seat. "What's happening?" he finally asked, his voice much calmer than it should have been, especially for someone that acted as young as he did. "Why are these men after Hawk?" he asked, giving the strange man a nickname, which Masa would use mercilessly. It seemed fitting in a way.