Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Gaijin ❯ Chapter 30

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Gaijin

Part 30

The Meeting.

++++++++++++++++++++++

"You've got to help me!" cried Mei Lin in horror as she clutched onto the boy's shoulders and shook him. The boy had just walked back in the door and seemed irritated and tired as usual.

"What? What is it?" he grumbled as he looked down at her.

"It's after me!" she latched herself onto his waist and burst into tears.

"Shit. Gia, could you help me please?" he called.

The woman poked her head out of her office in the back of the room. "Huh?"

"A little help please?" said the boy as he pointed down at his problem.

"She wouldn't say anything," said the woman as she walked over to her. She's been quiet all night up to now.

"What have you gotten yourself into? This had better not be stupid reporter crap. I told you to stay out of the middle of fights. I don't have time to be saving you all the time."

The saddened look she got in her eyes when she stared up at him. "No! Please!"

"I didn't say I wouldn't help you damn it. Stop looking at me that way! I'm just not gonna be happy if this is something you got into because of that job of yours. Who the hell is it? Yakuza?"

"No. It's him!" she cried as she clutched at his collar and shook him violently.

"Cut that out!" he snapped angrily.

She stopped and glared at him. "Carnage! He's trying to kill me and I know who he is!"

"What?" said the boy as he stared at her.

She sighed and handed him a newspaper. "It's going to be tomorrow's headline. The bastard is getting what he wants."

"What's that?" asked the boy as he frowned at her seriously.

"The front page," she said quietly. She still had him in her grip and could feel her shuddering.

"Who is it? Have you told the police?"

"Of course I told them," she snapped. "He worked with me. The editor fired him."

"I can guess what happened after that if you're right about this."

She stepped back from him a little. "I found the bodies. If I live through this, I get to write a piece on it."

"Good for you," muttered the boy lamely. "Got a name for this guy?"

"His name is Yamada. I sort of got stuck with him when I first started. He was there when Venom escaped."

Carrot was hitting his skull against a wall. "These are the kinds of things you're supposed to tell me about, before, they become problems."

"Oh. I didn't figure it out until I saw blood on my shoe after he passed me. Everything sort of fell into place while he got away."

"Be glad he decided to wait," said the boy with a heavy sigh. He was leaning against his forehead on the wall. "Does he know where you're staying?" he asked.

"No. I used the phony address you gave me," said the girl with a small shrug.

"That's not a phony address. It's the back up place I've got. Just in case anyone blew this place up or something."

Gia was looking quite interested in all of this. "So we know who he is now?"

"It won't do us much good. His home hasn't been used in weeks. Yoshi says..."

"What?" growled the boy as he glanced back at her.

"Oops," she muttered under her breath.

"Stay away from Yoshi," he snorted.

"I gave him my number. He knows I'm with you," said the girl calmly. "He needed someone to unload on, said it was driving him up the wall."

"And naturally, he decided to talk with a reporter," grumbled Carrot irritably.

"Sorry. I'm using what I learned to do proper research at work." She grinned at him. "Just knowing about things isn't part of the rules. I can't help but be a little curious, that's why I love my new job!"

"Fine," he relented. He wasn't in the mood to argue with her about it. "What was this thing he told you?"

She beamed at her victory and started talking. "He probably isn't sleeping much anymore. If he doesn't kill something every few hours or so, the suit will turn on him and kill him. He probably knows about that."

"What?" muttered the boy in horror. "He's some kind of prisoner?"

"No. He's definitely a homicidal maniac now. Yoshi said that was certain."

"How would he know?" muttered the boy as his eyebrows furrowed. "I wonder if they tried going ahead with human testing? Venom was surprised to see Carnage on a human though. Something about it being too small I think. His eyes widened, Spiderman's enemy was probably pretty close to what he was facing. "It's in his blood. That's why he's red instead of black."

"Wow!" said Mei Lin as her eyes widened a bit. "That's just what Yoshi said!"

The boy frowned at her and pushed her aside when he realized he was holding her shoulders. "I haven't seen him anywhere but the city itself."

"Yamada lived in the city. It's the area he knows," said the girl as she shrugged her shoulders. She looked slightly annoyed with him.

"I'm going to have to get with some of the others on this one I think. We know who we're looking for, but with that thing he won't be easy to find. He could pretty much just walk into anyplace he'd like."

"So my situation has not improved," said Mei Lin with a heavy sigh. "I'm on assignment by the way. I'm not allowed to go back to the building until I have Carnage's death or capture to report. On the plus side, I get direct deposit now. I would have had to wait another year if it hadn't happened."

"Yeah. Look on the bright side," said Carrot with an annoyed frown. "I can't hang around you all day. You're sure he doesn't know this address? Does anyone you work with know this address?"

"Just Hibiki," she muttered nervously.

"I'll be back," he said as he turned towards the door.

"Wait! Where are you going?" cried the frightened girl.

"To get Hibiki I imagine. I suppose having another houseguest is better than that thing showing up here," commented Gia. "Come on. I'll make some tea and we can relax for a bit. It looks like I get to have my little foreign assistant back again for a little while."

"No! Absolutely not! I pay rent now!" she cried in protest.

"Come on. It will be fun!" said the woman cheerfully.

"Go to hell," said the girl as she stuck her tongue out at the woman.

"All right," muttered the woman in defeat. She'd figure out a way to coax her into it again. It brought in droves of minor injuries in young men. With herself as the Doctor, she couldn't go wrong. She never did understand why her sister wanted to work in the hospital. The real money was in the private sector. Her looks would fade, but her reputation would remain.

"I know you're plotting to get me to do it. I'm not," growled the girl as she focused her glare back on the woman.

"We'll see," said Gia as she narrowed her eyes at the girl. "Carrot is in danger every time you go out of the house. Do you really think he's going to let you wander around outside while this is going on?"

Mei Lin froze. If she wasn't careful, she could end up chained to a wall. "Damn. So that's how it is?" She focused her glare on the woman carefully. "I won't. You can't make me."

"As I said. We'll see," said Gia as she calmly walked back to her workstation. "The clinic opens tomorrow."

"No!"

+++++++++++++++++++++

As he had suspected. Carrot stood in front of the remains of his second hideout. It had been torn to shreds. There was police tape everywhere. He stood calmly staring at the scene. Carnage had come, and ripped the place apart in frustration. Fortunately, the information he'd given the Real Estate agent was all completely false, except for the financial end. Spike was a good man to go to if you wanted to get things done. He basically was the middleman, and knew who to go talk too. He never had inquired just how high up the man was. He seemed to have a lot of connections, but also seemed restricted to grunt work.

It was something to think about later. That wasn't the sort of question you just popped on someone either. He had to find Hibiki. He and Mei Lin worked together a lot. That would be the first person he'd ask if he didn't know. He flipped open his cellular phone and dialed the clinic's number.

Gia picked up. "Hello?"

"Put Mei Lin on. I need to know this guy's address. It might be too late already." He berated himself for not asking sooner as he gazed out on the rooftops. He had climbed up one of the walls while waiting for the girl to pick up.

He heard the girl come onto the line, but interrupted her before she spoke.

"Where does this guy live? I'm about ten blocks south of the clinic. I need to hurry."

"Oh shit," muttered the girl fearfully. "It's west of where you are. You're actually right on the street if you're directly ten blocks south.

+++++++++++++++++++

"Damn," Carrot looked around the room. Hibiki was gone. His apartment door was torn off and the walls inside were ripped to shreds. All of the man's belongings were laying about the home in pieces. "No blood." His senses were quiet as well. He walked around the room slowly, looking around for signs of a body. The home was free of blood. Everything was destroyed. He stepped back outside and glanced around. The van was gone.

"He may not have been home," He grumbled to himself as he looked towards the buildings surrounding him. "Is he patient enough to wait for him?" Did he want to risk it? He didn't have Usagi to back him up at the moment.

He walked away from the scene unobstructed. If Carnage was there, he wasn't budging to come after him. "I don't think he's here anymore." Muttered the boy. He growled as he started walking a little faster and spoke into his phone. It wouldn't work if he was swinging with it. "Damn it. Mei Lin, do you have any idea where Hibiki might be right now? He's not home, and he's very lucky he wasn't."

"Oh shit," muttered the girl. "I think I know where he might be. Remember Jiro's place? He's been hanging out there a lot lately. I don't think Yamada knows about it either."

"Are you sure? If he isn't there, I might not be able to find him in time."

"No, but it's the best guess I can give you. He's got a girlfriend, I think he said something about taking her out after work tonight. He'd stop by Jiro's place for sure if he did."

"Great. I take it Yamada knows who this girl is?"

"Uh, yes?" said the girl sheepishly.

"GOD DAMN IT!" screamed the boy angrily. He hung up the phone. "More goddamn people!? I just want some god damn peace and quiet!"

He jumped into the air and started swinging back towards Jiro's place. The entire trip he'd just taken was pointless and dangerous. He was going to have a serious talk with her about how she needed to divulge information a bit more freely.

After about ten minutes of travel he landed on the rooftop of the building and moved towards the service entrance to the building while lighting a cigarette.

Everyone turned to face him as he strolled down the stairs. He calmly moved up beside Hibiki and put his arms around both the man and the woman sitting next to him. "You kids are goin on a ride with me."

"What?" said the girl in horrified shock.

Jiro arched his eyebrow at the boy and looked slightly annoyed.

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but Carnage, that monster thing from the newspaper? He's decided he wants Mei Lin dead. No one knows where she lives from her job but him. The address she supplied was fake."

The man was looking at him with his jaw hanging somewhat slackly. "Yer kiddin, right? This isn't funny."

Carrot squeezed his arm a bit tighter. "Yamada knows who your girlfriend is Hibiki. If he can't find you, where do you think he'll go next? As I recall, you two were living together?"

The girl looked very afraid, and her boyfriend's face was not helping matters. "Do something! This is creeping me out!"

"Your house is destroyed," said the boy as he glanced over at her. He had taken his arm off her shoulders already, but kept Hibiki's head in a firm lock. "I just stopped by there."

The man smiled weakly at his girlfriend. "Um. He's telling the truth."

"What!?" screamed the girl in shock.

"Um, can I?"

The boy rolled his eyes at the request. "On the way there. She'd better be able to keep quiet. I've got ways of getting rid of people too." She huddled up close to Hibiki and tried to hold him back.

"What are you doing?" she squeaked nervously. "I don't like this. Who is that?"

"Someone I know wouldn't lie to me about this," replied the man calmly. "If he says we need to go with him. I believe him."

"Spike here?" asked Carrot as he finally turned his attention towards Jiro.

"Yes. Is there going to be some sort of trouble?"

"Not if we work quickly enough. That van out front. Get rid of it, I'm going to call Spike for a ride. I think he can manage something."

"What?!" cried Hibiki in shock as Jiro motioned for him to hand over his keys. "No!"

Carrot glared at him over his shoulder for a minute and sighed. "All right. I'm kind of in a hurry here. I don't want you to die. Mei Lin seems to like you for some reason."

The man turned white as his arm was suddenly stabbed ten times.

"She's just a friend from work! I've told you about her!" cried the man fearfully as he turned to face her glare.

"Point is, I'm not going to have that giant thing sitting around in front of where I live. Got it?" He looked very annoyed. "If Carnage catches you, he'll torture you to death, but not before he makes you tell him where she's at."

"Right," said the man as his face fell.

"I've got to work tomorrow!" cried the woman.

"Your job or your life, your call." Carrot was not in the best of moods. This was exactly the kind of situation that usually blew up in his face. "I'm taking you to the place I'm staying. Hibiki knows where it is."

The man nodded. "I've got a few friends there. He's not a bad guy really, just seems that way."

"He is positively evil!" hissed the girl angrily into his ear. "We have to get out of here!"

"Ride is out front kid," said Spike as he poked his head out the back.

"What the hell did you get me into?!"

"You sure you got da money?" asked Spike. Jiro had filled him in on the current problem. "A delivery like dis is expensive."

"Yeah. I need a car anyway. Is this a hot ride?"

"Naw. Dis stuff is after market. We already chopped it up and built custom stuff out of em. Got some nice stuff. I could prolly get you a mini or somthin fer cheap."

The boy was looking at the man rather dumbly. "Um, hold on a sec. What are we talkin about here? What kind of cars..."

"Well, we got small cheap stuff for us grunts like da minis. Den dere's da bosses cars. It's open market if we can sell em, easy to replenish stock." The man rubbed his hands together. "Lowest one o dem cars is fifty thou American."

"What will two hundred thousand American get me?" asked the boy. "I might even go even higher if you catch my interest."

Spike simply stared at the boy for a moment. "Y...yer kiddin right?"

Everyone around him was frozen in a sort of surprised stare.

Jiro chuckled.

"No," said the boy as he glanced around the room.

Hibiki frowned down at his girlfriend as he realized her grip on his arm had loosened considerably. "Hey! What the hell are you looking at?"

"Nothing," she grumbled as she clutched his arm again. He did look a little young anyway.

"Um. I dunno, let me go check wit da boss o dat place."

"What's going on here?" asked Hibiki's girl firmly. "I'm getting tired of this. If this is a joke, it's not funny."

"In a nutshell, a crazy monster is trying to kill you," said Carrot as he leaned against the bar. "I'm the only hope you have to survive. I'm trying to get us a ride home, because I can't carry both of you all the way back and walking is too dangerous with me around. I've been thinking about getting a car for a while anyway. Spike told me to come talk to him whenever I felt like buying one. He knows some people."

"I think Spike knows a lot of people," muttered Hibiki dumbly. He recognized the situation. This kid had Yakuza connections, good ones.

"It is better if you don't voice your opinions on such matters. Especially someone like you," commented Jiro as he cleaned the glass in his hand continuously. "The wrong ears hear something like that out of a reporter's mouth, and they start to get nervous."

"I'm just a camera guy," replied the man lamely. Two of the other patrons of the bar had already gone to dispose of the vehicle.

"There isn't much difference," replied the man with a small shrug.

Spike had waved Carrot over to the phone. The boy was deep in conversation with whoever was on the other side of the line.

Jiro chuckled as the boy dropped the phone. "Something wrong?"

"Yeah. I got a break," said the boy quietly. He slowly hung up the phone and walked over to the bar to sit down. "I need a shot. This is gonna be a long night for me I think."

Jiro calmly placed the glass on the table. "Are you certain you can afford this? It could be dangerous. I recall you mentioning something of just getting out of a similar mess.

"Huh? What are you kidding me?" said the boy. "Do you really think I would do that to myself now? Do you have any idea how much worse my life has gotten since that mess ended?"

"Not really, no," replied the man honestly.

"My roommate has that thing from the papers personally hunting for her tonight. It took a stop by Hibiki's place earlier tonight as well. He's lucky he wasn't home. I think we've cut him off, he doesn't know about this place according to Mei Lin. If I can stash Hibiki and his girlfriend away for a while, I should shake him off the trail. He might lose interest until we catch him, or it might draw him out where I can have some friends of mine help me deal with him. That's gonna take a little time and planning though. I'm stuck supporting two useless human beings until this is over. The only way they can do any good is by staying put and out of the way."

"I am not useless!" snapped Hibiki's girlfriend angrily. "Are you going to stand there and let him talk about me that way?!"

"He'll kick my ass!" said the man quietly through the side of his mouth. "Honey. Trust me, once we get out of the bar I'll tell you everything I know about him. Right now isn't a good time for that. There's too many people around."

"Damn it! You'd better tell me something! I'm not staying around here much longer!" The woman was clearly upset and wanted to flee away from what was going on. It felt so wrong, she knew it couldn't be legal. "I'm getting scared."

The man grabbed her into a rough hug and pulled her ear up to his lips. "That guy over there, the one giving orders." She nodded slowly. "That's not a Yakuza, that's Spiderman. You have to keep quiet, he's fought with that thing before, and what I do know about him tells me he isn't lying. Please, calm down and keep quiet. We'll know more when we get where we're going. I promise. The people he stays with are easier to talk too, and a lot nicer. We'll be fine with him. He's one of those heroic types."

The woman was staring at him in disbelief. "What?"

"He's..." She narrowed her eyes at him as he quickly planted his hand firmly over her lips.

Jiro seemed quite disinterested in the conversation as he watched it happen in the reflection of the glass in his hand. The bottom of the cup had a mirrored surface. He kept it behind the counter as his special glass. It helped him keep an eye on things while giving the place a more relaxed feel.

"So, the kid is Spiderman is he?" he muttered under his breath as he glanced over at him. "I'm not all that surprised really."

No one noticed this. Carrot was sitting on the barstool staring at his reflection somewhat flatly. Hibiki had finally managed to calm down his girlfriend. He was watching her argue with him on the other end of the bar by themselves. Jiro was watching them closely with that trick glass of his, and Spike was sitting next to him. "You gotta pay em by tomorrow."

"No problem," said the boy. "Who do I pay?"

"You can drop it off here in the next few days or so. I can take care of it," said Jiro quietly. "Do try to have it here tomorrow though. I can probably give you a few days if you really need it considering the sum."

"That's mighty convenient," said Carrot.

"Yeah," said Spike. "Dat should do it. Jiro knows who ta get da money too. Dat's all ya need to know."

"I wasn't asking," replied the boy simply. He turned his head as a light smile formed on his lips. "Hey. It's here."

Cocked his head at the sound of the engine outside. "What the?"

Carrot seemed somewhat reluctant to step out the door. "I don't know why I did it. Probably won't even survive the damn night. I know I shoulda held out, this is just asking for trouble."

"What is it?" asked Hibiki as he and his girlfriend stepped out the front door of the bar and into the street.

Both of them were staring at the vehicle in front of them with slacked jaws. Jiro was scratching his head at the doorway. He seemed worried about what was happening, but he also seemed to accept it.

The boy was looking at the care with a sort of glazed look in his eyes. It was as if he had accepted the fact he was doomed. "A Porsche 911. Nice paint job too." The car's red and blue color seemed to swirl in and out of itself as he looked down the length of the polished vehicle. "I didn't think this kind of paint existed yet."

A man stepped out and calmly walked over to the boy. He glanced up at the door and saw Spike standing there. "You Spike's friend? I hope you can afford it."

"Can I go now? There's a monster after that guy. One of the ones from the paper." The boy pointed back at Hibiki. "I'd rather try to make it home before it finds us."

The man tossed him the keys and shrugged. "Your ass kid. There's a registration in the glove box. Ain't you a little young for something like this? I mean, the boss told me it was approved, but... I ain't sure I like this much."

Carrot glanced over his shoulder at the man as he pressed the button on the key chain that turned the alarm off. The doors popped open and the engine started as well. "Get into the car please. She's gonna have to sit in your lap."

"Thank you," said Hibiki as he rushed up next to the boy and pulled his girlfriend forcefully towards the vehicle. She still seemed somewhat reluctant about the whole situation, but didn't struggle against him.

"Are we going to get arrested?" she whined finally as the door closed.

"Who cares? This is a Porsche!"

"Yeah," agreed Carrot. "If we're lucky, we won't have to walk far at all when it gets destroyed. I've never gotten this lucky and made it home safely." He revved the engine a few times and shifted into reverse.

"What!? Oh god! I'm gonna die!" cried the girl.

"Nah. I'll get you there alive, and hopefully in one piece."

"Please stop comforting my girlfriend," said Hibiki nervously.

"Sure, whatever," replied the boy as the tires on the car squealed as the boy burned out in the road before flying forward into the streets.

The girl had started screaming as soon as she felt herself rocketing through the middle of Tokyo at high speed. It was late, and the streets were relatively empty. That didn't mean there were no cars though. The boy slid over the white line between a bus that was passing a semi. They were doing well over a hundred miles an hour.

Carrot could sense the slightest danger to himself. If the car was in danger of crashing, he could actually feel it, and his reflexes were fast enough to keep up easily. "Oh yes," he said as he realized this. The gas pedal hit the floor.

Hibiki had his back pressed against the seat as his eyes went wide. His girlfriend was screaming as she nearly choked him with her arms.

Carrot grew annoyed and cranked the radio quickly to the maximum volume. He was blasted with a hyper J-pop tune and spun the dial around feverishly without taking his eyes off the road. In a few seconds, Billy Idol began to sing Rebel Yell and quickly drowned out the screaming girl. The boy was pleased with this.

Headlights flew by them as they roared through traffic at top speed. "The car had obviously been toyed with. He was doing almost a hundred and twenty in traffic with little difficulty.

Predictably, the familiar flashing of police sirens lit up his rear view mirror.

"I don't want to go to jail!" cried the girl fearfully.

Hibiki had yet to move. He was simply frozen in his seat.

"Shut up will ya?" said the boy as he pulled on the hand brake and swerved around a corner, narrowly missing having his rear end torn off by a small truck. He squealed down the road and noticed three cruisers making the turn behind him. They were all quickly being left in the dust.

"Heh," he said as he ignored them and continued tearing across the asphalt at full speed. Horns blared at him as he passed from all sides, but the music killed all of the noise. Well, it muffled them anyway.

The girl's eyes rolled up and she slumped down in her boyfriend's lap.

"Finally," said Carrot as he chuckled and turned the steering wheel. A large hill appeared before them and the Porsche caught air as it sailed over the street, clearing two cars in the process. Hibiki muttered a fearful squeak as they landed and glanced back at the two cars behind them as they both braked hard.

The boy didn't seem particularly concerned as he started to slow down a bit. "Hey. That was faster than I thought it'd be."

He squealed down a deserted street and pulled up in front of the clinic. A large wooden fence surrounded the tiny back yard of the building. He opened the door and stepped out of the car long enough to open the gate before jumping back behind the wheel. He pulled into the back yard and shut the car down. "We're here."

Hibiki nodded. "Um, can we do that again?"

"Maybe later," said the boy as he opened his door and lit a cigarette. He put his keys in his jacket pocket and started walking. He made it about ten feet before he slowly turned to look at the car.

It was still there, and he was still alive. He didn't even need a bandage. Something wasn't right.

He simply stood there looking at the car as Hibiki walked up with his girlfriend. He had managed to wake her up, but she was still disoriented. The man paused and waved his hand in front of the boy's face.

"You all right?"

"Not really no. Things have been going a little too well for me today."

That confused both of them and he turned towards the back door. "Come on. We should get inside. It's dangerous out here for me."

+++++++++++++++++++++

"Who's this?" asked Gia as she frowned at the girl standing in the doorway with Hibiki.

"Hibiki's girlfriend," said Carrot. He pushed by her and started walking into the building.

"Where are you going?" she asked him.

"I'm gonna go lock myself in the bathroom again," he said as he turned the corner and vanished.

"What?" muttered the woman dumbly.

"Hey. There's no food in my bowl!" cried Luna as she chased after him.

"You're smart enough to figure that out on your own," said the boy just before the door closed behind him.

"What's wrong with him?" asked the girlfriend.

"Hi. What's going on?" asked the man cheerfully.

"I'm not sure," said Gia honestly. "I just run this place."

Mei Lin bounded out of one of the other rooms and grabbed the man around his neck. "You're alive! When Carrot told me about your house, I thought you were..." She cut herself off as she realized that the man was receiving a rather serious glare from the woman at his side. "Um, hi."

"This is Mei Lin," said Hibiki nervously. "I work with her..."

"I can see that," grumbled the woman irritably. "I'm Nuriko."

"Sorry about this," said the girl as she bowed to them both. "It's Yamada, he's after us."

"He's after you," grumbled Nuriko angrily.

"He'll kill you two if he finds you," retorted the girl angrily. "After he makes you tell him where I am. Carrot says he'll handle it."

"I don't trust him," grumbled the girl.

"You don't have a choice," commented Gia. "I'm not about to let you out of my sight. I don't want that thing showing up at my house if I can help it. I'll bet you didn't even know about this place did you? He did you a favor by bringing you here. We've been watching the news, things have quieted down, but four reporters have been killed in the last three hours, three of them died with their families. Your house and the homes of five others were destroyed; four of them lost family members. I imagine bodies will be found in the next few days or so. The ones he missed, their families were tortured before they died."

That quieted her down a bit.

"Oh god," muttered Hibiki in horror. "No."

Mei Lin didn't look pleased at all. "I just wish I'd figured it out sooner. Maybe we could have done something."

"Where is Carrot?" asked the Chinese girl as she glanced back at Gia.

"He's locked in the bathroom again," replied the woman.

"Really? Why?" asked Mei Lin.

"How did you get here so fast? He called to tell us he'd found you twenty minutes ago. Jiro's is over an hour from here on foot," asked Gia.

"You're right. I don't think he could carry both of him just swinging around," agreed Mei Lin.

"Oh. That," said Hibiki as she scratched the back of his head.

His girlfriend seemed to pull up against him a little tighter for some reason.

++++++++++++++++++++

"What the hell is this?" asked Gia. She was staring at the car behind her house with wide eyes. "He bought a car?" She couldn't really tell what it was in the light she had.

"He bought a Porsche." Mei Lin looked up with a rather haunted look on her face as she turned her head away from the logo and towards the clinic.

"What?" said the woman. Hibiki and Nuriko were both standing by the gate watching the scene with a sort of lazy interest.

"A...Porsche?" asked the doctor. "You're kidding."

"Brand new," said the girl as she looked up and down the length of the vehicle. "He's rich?"

"How do you buy a car this late at night?!" cried Gia angrily. "That jerk stole it didn't he?"

"Um, no," muttered Noriko softly. "He bought it. I was there."

"We really can't say more than that," interrupted Hibiki quickly. "Trust me."

"Fine. I give up," growled Gia. "What's he doing here if he can afford this?"

"I'm glad he's around!" snapped Mei Lin.

"We should go inside. He said it was dangerous out here," muttered Hibiki's girlfriend fearfully.

"This is a nice neighborhood," said Gia flatly. "He's just paranoid, he's always been that way. We can't do anything else out her tonight anyway. We're gonna have to force him out of that bathroom tomorrow. It won't be easy. He can stay there tonight for all I care."

"These are the nice people you were telling me about?" asked Nuriko as she grabbed her boyfriend's neck rather forcefully. "What did you get me into?! You asshole!"

"It's not my fault!" cried the man defensively.

++++++++++++++++++++++++

Carrot had no intention of staying in the bathroom forever. It was tempting, but he knew he'd be forced out sooner or later. As it was, he simply sat on the toilet with a sewing kit and the costume he'd started making earlier. He'd decided to go with the red and blue look this time. He'd chosen dark colors, but had basically constructed an almost professional looking outfit, nothing fancy really. He'd removed the body armor from his first costume's remains and put it into the new one as well. "I've got a feeling I'm gonna need it pretty soon."

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

She landed on a rooftop in a deserted area of town and crouched on the corner of the building as she stared down at her target. A skintight bodysuit covered her body barely as she smirked down at the small clinic below. "This is odd."

A small mask covered her eyes and long white hair flowed around her body. Long white gloves covered her hands as she plucked a pair of complicated looking binoculars off a utility belt that hung around her waist. The belt had chord dangling from it and a small set of grappling hooks was hanging from her left side.

"A clinic?" She zoomed in and smirked. "A clinic with a Porsche parked out back? How quaint, this is the place all right."

She bounced off of the top of a light pole and landed in the street skillfully. There was no one around and it was easy to slip back into the shadows once again. It didn't take much for her to hop the fence and move around the back of the building. She landed crouched in the dirt on the other side of the gate and peered at the window beside her carefully. It was dark inside, and no one was awake. "Perfect. This will be simple." She slid up against the wall and walked around to the corner. A quick peek around told her all she needed to know. A small back door with a simple lock on it kept her out of the building.

"Too easy," she muttered with a small chuckle as she walked over to the door and slid a small length of metal that was hidden away in her glove into the keyhole.

++++++++++++++++++++++

Carrot frowned. He was standing in front of the bathroom Mirror looking at his finished costume. "Gotta start on the spare later." A familiar tingling made him slowly turn towards the door behind him. "What the? Aw man! I just finished damn it!" He flipped of the light switch and opened the door. Whoever it was, they were sneaking around the outside wall.

"Kei?" he grumbled irritably. She was the only one he knew who would try and sneak up on him that way. They were getting closer to the door. He turned and swiftly jogged towards the front door. "I knew that car was too good to be true. Damn it."

+++++++++++++++++++++++

She smirked as she popped the lock and the door creaked open slowly. "Got ya."

"Yeah. That's great. Wanna tell me why you're sneaking into the back of a clinic in the middle of the night."

The woman whirled around with a shocked look on her face that quickly changed into anger. "Spiderman?"

"Yeah. I've got a shiny new costume too. I'd rather not get it all dirty if I can help it." He was dangling from a web line off the edge of the roof and looking her dead in the eyes, she thought so at least.

"Back off. You don't know what you're doing," she growled.

"Looks like I'm busting a common thief," he replied simply. "Nice lock pick."

She smirked at him. "This man is scum. He's a worse criminal than I could ever be. I don't steal from anyone else."

"Know him real well do you?" asked Spiderman. He had yet to move his position and simply stared her down so far.

She put her hands on her hips and glared up at him. "Maybe." She noticed that when he narrowed his eyes, the eyes of the costume seemed to as well. "I'm small time anyway. Why do you care?"

"Care? Who said anything about caring? I'm only interested in what this is about." Spiderman seemed quite content to sit there and watch her.

"You're not going to try and stop me?"

"I might decide to leave you alone if your reasons are good enough," he said simply.

"I already told you why! This man is scum, of the worst kind."

"How do you know?" He recognized this girl. She was the one he'd set up with Yoshi at the strip club.

"That's my business!" she replied firmly. Neither one had raised their voice yet.

"Fine," he replied as he stuck her arm to the wall with a bit of webbing. "You can sit there until the cops show up."

She glared at him angrily as she tried to rip her arm free. It wouldn't budge. "You asshole!" Her arm slipped out of her glove and she jumped at him in a skillful kick.

Spiderman dodged nimbly aside and back flipped a few times away from her. "You know. I'm sure a nice looking girl like you can find a better career than burglary."

"What I do with my life is my own business," she snapped angrily as she spun into a kick at his head. He ducked under it and took a punch in his chest as she spun around and pushed her weight forward.

Carrot was surprised at how much it stung as he staggered back. "Ouch. You're gonna hurt someone if you aren't careful."

"Leave!" she snarled.

"I thought you were the uninvited guest here?" he replied as he fired a bit of webbing at her. She dodged and rolled across the ground. She landed with one of her legs extended and placed her hands on the ground.

"Damn." She launched herself into the air as he approached her and spun around in a kick aimed for his head. He dipped out of the way skillfully and saw her launch a grappling hook onto the roof the clinic. She pulled herself up quickly and retrieved it while running across the top of the building.

"Oh no you don't!" cried Carrot. If he let her go, she'd come back later and he knew it. If he wanted to keep his identity a secret, popping up repeatedly as Spiderman whenever she decided to try and raid him wouldn't be a good idea. "Damn. I've got to catch her." He wasn't particularly worried about this one, he knew who Black Cat was. He was also aware that while he had similar enemies, they were all a little different than the counterparts he remembered.

She bounded across the rooftops with surprising speed and kept just ahead of him. He bounced from wall to wall just behind her as she twisted through narrow passageways and walkways across the rooftops. It was obvious she knew the area very well.

Then again, so did he.

The woman stumbled back as he landed in front of her at the end of one of the narrow passages. "Why the hell are you following me?!"

"I'm the heroic guy, and you're the criminal. You should know how this works."

She started to back away a bit and tensed her body. "I'm not easy to catch."

The boy crouched low as he realized she was going to try and go through him. She burst forward with a flash of speed. Her strikes were all quick and skillful as she punched at him. His reflexes were a little too quick for her and he shifted around most of the blows. Her leg hooked up and came across his waiting forearm hard. He didn't budge and sent his palm into her stomach.

The woman fell flat on her rear and started coughing. She growled at him as she stood up again. "You're good enough to hit me."

"That surprises you? Have you seen the papers lately? Talk about ego."

"I prefer to see things for myself." The woman actually smiled at him somewhat seductively. "I'm actually impressed."

"Yeah. I've still got to take you in," he said with a small shrug. "That's the breaks lady."

Her smile fell away. "You can try."

"Great," he muttered as he jumped over her head as she kicked at him. She pushed off one of the walls and forced him to twist out of the way as she hooked her leg at him as she flipped over. Both of them landed on opposite one another. The woman looked surprised that she had missed.

Carrot was simply surprised he'd managed to avoid the kick at all. His mask hid this from view though.

"I'm Black Cat. Are you going to keep chasing me?"

"Charmed. Yeah."

"Well, lets be off then," she said as she flipped back out onto the open rooftops again.

Carrot muttered under his breath as he followed after her. "Great. This is just what I need. Another woman who wants to kick my ass." He seemed to attract scantily clad women who wanted to hurt him in various ways for some reason. While he was thinking, she was swinging away. He reluctantly pushed off the wall and followed.

It wasn't like he could do anything anyway. Michiru would shoot him.

+++++++++++++++++++++++

The girl swung across the rooftops and glanced around. Spiderman wasn't within sight. All she could see in any direction was the night sky and rooftops. It was peaceful and quiet. "I think I lost him. I should be ready if I meet him again. That was too close."

"You're going to stay away from him. I won't have you getting in my way."

She spun around and turned to face the voice. A young girl stepped out of the shadows. She had dark rings under her eyes and short brown hair. "Spiderman is mine."

"What the?" muttered Black Cat in shock. The girl had appeared out of nowhere. "Who the hell are you?"

"I am Kei. I'm going to kill him. I know that look in your eyes; maybe it's better to just be rid of you now. I saw him chasing you across the city."

"That's nice. I've gotten away in case you didn't notice. What do I care what you do with him?" replied the woman coolly.

Kei merely smiled. "I see. I can tell you're going to become an annoyance." She pulled out a wicked looking knife from behind her back and flipped it around her wrist skillfully.

"Hey! Easy now!" cried Black Cat as she stepped back. "I don't want any more trouble tonight!"

"That's too bad. I was hoping you'd have a bit more fight in you," replied the shinobi.

The cat burglar jumped onto a giant air conditioner and started rushing away.

"You won't escape," growled Kei as she hooked her wings into place and launched herself off the side of the building. She quickly regained altitude and started gliding after her target.

++++++++++++++++++++++

Haruka frowned as she walked down the street with a pair of sunglasses over her eyes. She was dressed casually, in very masculine looking clothes. It made her look like an incredibly beautiful man. It was early in the evening, and things were quiet all over town in the wake of the disaster. It gave her a bit of breathing room so to speak. The monster had vanished, but it would be back. She had to find it before it found her and destroyed half the city in the battle again. It had gone underground, into the sewers probably. That was a lot of area to cover underground. It could hide easily in such an environment, and would know them well probably.

Something caught her attention a little to her right. Down a long series of alleyways to the east of her. She could see movement, and it looked like fighting. She couldn't see it very clearly; there were walls and other obstructions between her and what was going on. She frowned as she ducked into the darkness of the alleyway; it was linked to several others creating a path through a large part of the city. She calmly swerved through traffic at high speed as she took out her pen.

++++++++++++++++++++++

It had been months now. No sign of her sister could be found in the foreign world. Mao Lin was beginning to lose hope. "Where is she? Why haven't I heard from her?"

She frowned deeply as she stomped down the alleyways.

Things were not going well in her search. No one she spoke of at any of the holy places knew of the girl. That struck her as very odd, it was exactly the sort of place the girl should have gone.

The man she wrote home about worried her a lot. She hadn't received word of any other letters for some time. She would find her sister, or at least her remains. She swore that much at least.

Something familiar passed quickly over her head. She caught only a fleeting glimpse of it, but recognized the way it moved. Her search would have to wait. She had duties to attend. She tensed up her legs and shot up onto the rooftops after the evil creature.

+++++++++++++++++

Black Cat gasped as pieces of air conditioner fell to the ground just behind her as the flying woman made passes at her from the air as she ran. She stopped cold just as the woman dove at her directly from behind.

"I've had enough of this crap!" she screamed as she flipped onto her hands and pushed both of her feet firmly into the girl's gut as the blade narrowly missed.

Kei had the wind knocked out of her and rolled across the thick tiles of the rooftop. It was a large temple roof. "Heh." She slowly stood up and stared at the girl with a cold looking grin on her face.

"I might enjoy your death."

"Not likely," growled the thief nervously. She stood waiting and ready for the shinobi's attack.

"Come on then!" Kei charged with the knife held underhanded as she slashed at her target and charged.

The leather clad girl blocked Kei's arm and slugged her in the gut before throwing her over her shoulder. She seemed to grow more confident as she jumped in place and waited again.

"I see," said the shinobi calmly as she rose to her feet again.

"Back off!" snarled the young woman angrily. "Little brat! You can't be older than fifteen!"

Kei ignored this and reached into her shirt. Five shining throwing knives appeared in her fingers as she pulled her hand out.

"Uh oh," muttered Black Cat as she stepped back.

Kei went airborne and launched the shuriken at her opponent. "Die!"

The Thief nimbly flipped out of the way and gasped as a small scar appeared on her cheek as Kei slashed at her with the knife as she landed.

She flipped back again quickly and growled as she glared at the girl.

Kei was stone cold. She strolled closer and readied herself for another attack.

Black Cat grumbled under her breath. "Screw this." She kicked three of the tiles directly at the girl and turned to rush away.

Kei chuckled to herself and watched her for a moment. She calmly put her wings back on and strolled towards the roof's edge.

+++++++++++++++++

Mamoru Chiba walked through the streets of Japan in a heavy looking coat. He had lost everything, all because of the damned memories. They weren't his. He was beaten, scarred, and not entirely sober at the moment. He'd never really been this drunk before. As it was, his hair was nothing more than stubble and a glassy look stared out at the world around him. He hadn't seen Usagi in weeks, every time he went to find her, she was gone. Judging by what he'd seen in the family, she hadn't been home in a while.

"What should I do? What can I do?"

He had no direction, no future anymore.

"Mamo-chan!"

The boy froze in the empty street. It was late, and the area he was in wasn't well lit. He didn't like the sound of that voice either. "Wha?"

He found himself taken roughly into the arms of a gigantic monster. It had rows of sharp teeth and dead white eyes. It hopped a bit as it lifted him into the air lovingly.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!"

The monster seemed to react to that as it stopped swinging him around. "Where have you been? I haven't seen you in weeks! Oh! I missed you."

The boy's body began to go into strange convulsions as his eyes rolled back into his head. He was barely aware of what was happening to him at this point.

"Oh. Ooops," said the monster as its skin started to melt off. The boy could do nothing but watch as his girlfriend's form emerged from inside the beast.

"Oh shit!" he cried as he ripped himself free of her grip and tore into a dark alleyway. He stopped cold as he glanced around and realized he was standing in front of a large warehouse. The building loomed over him and hundreds of barrels were stacked for loading the next day around giant truck bays. He stumbled forward with a panicked look on his face as he rushed fearfully away from the monster.

"Wait!" cried Usagi as she chased after him tentatively on foot. "We're sorry! We didn't mean to scare you!" The boy found himself trapped in the middle of a large stack of barrels. He whirled around to see the girl moving slowly towards him.

"It's me! Usagi!" she said with a confused frown on her face.

"Get away from me!" he cried as he held his cane up in front of himself defensively.

She stepped forward a little more and reached for him. "If you'll just listen I can explain!"

The boy lunged forward pulling a sword from inside the tattered cane. He slashed at the girl as she jumped back.

"Wait! Mamoru!"

The boy didn't hear her. He was clutching at his eyes in agony. His sword slash had cut a gash in one of the barrels and splattered some of the unknown liquid into his eyes.

He collapsed into the asphalt face down.

"No! Mamoru!" cried the girl as she rushed up to his side. Slowly she turned her head towards the liquid and gasped. "Subject blinded" followed a lot of technical data that she didn't understand about the liquid.

"No!" she whispered in horror. "What have I done?"

What indeed? ^_^

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Carrot frowned as he glanced over his shoulder. Someone had started tailing him after they spotted him above. He recognized the gigantic mace hanging off the woman's back as soon as he saw her. "What now?"

"Demon!" screamed the woman as she pushed herself off a wall and pulled her weapon from her back. It was just enough to force him to stop and land on a nearby wall. He looked up at her just out of reach of the weapon.

"What the hell are you doing? I'm busy!" he snapped.

"I shall thwart your dark plans!" she hissed angrily.

"Yeah. Look, I'm a superhero nimrod. I thought we covered the whole I am not a demon thing a while back. You know, defender of justice, bane to criminals, all around nice guy."

"What?" muttered the woman dumbly.

"Don't you read the newspapers?" he asked her irritably.

"I have no need to read them. My mission doesn't involve such things."

"Yeah? And what exactly is this stupid mission of yours? How does attacking me do anything to help?"

"I am a priestess. I must hunt down demons wherever I find them and destroy them. It is the way of our clan."

"That sounds familiar. Look, lady, I don't particularly care what you're doing, as long as you stop doing it to me."

"Your foolish if you think I'll believe such lies," snarled the woman. As she jumped down and tried to clobber him with the mace. He bounced further down the wall along side her blocking and dodging strikes all the way down the alleyway. Both of them landed on the pavement several feet away from each other. "I don't have time for this. That stupid thief is getting away."

"So, that girl stole something from you did she?" asked the woman irritably.

"Yeah. Stick around," replied Spiderman as he simply squirted webbing at both of her feet and stuck them in place.

Mao Lin stared at this in shock and struggled to release her feet. "For god's sake. It's not that difficult to find out what's been going on around here. Go and find an old paper somewhere. It shouldn't be that hard. One of the articles by Mei Lin should fill you in pretty well. She's the one who saw most of the action first hand."

The woman had frozen in place and stared at him with wide eyes. "What?"

"Later!" he chimed cheerfully as he crawled up the wall.

"What the hell is this stuff?" she snarled angrily.

"It'll weaken enough for you to get out of it in an hour or so. Relax, enjoy the solitude." He hopped over the wall and looked out over the city, ignoring the loud streams of Chinese vulgarities that was now behind him. "I think I lost her. Damn." It wasn't that big a deal, he could catch her again at the same place at least once more without being too suspicious. He glanced over his shoulder and snorted angrily at the angry Chinese woman.

"You're just going to leave her there? All alone?"

The boy looked up to see Uranus floating down towards him from above. "She can handle it."

"Met before have you?" asked the woman with a slight smirk on her face.

"She got it into her head I'm some kind of demon," he replied with a small shrug. "Haven't seen much of her lately."

"I see," said Haruka as she finally landed beside him. "I take it you're after those two monsters?"

"Just one of them. I've kind of made an agreement with Venom about catching it." Carrot popped his back and grunted. He calmly hopped onto the side of a wall and sat down. "How did it go?"

"You read the papers," she snorted irritably.

"I prefer first hand accounts thanks," he replied simply. "Where?"

"In the sewers I think. It's too dangerous to go down after her where she can hide so easily. I haven't heard any reports of anyone being killed down there either."

"Nine, that name sounds familiar," said Carrot with a small sigh.

"Really?" asked the woman.

"Don't worry about it. It's not involved. I'm pretty sure."

"Oh." Haruka frowned and glanced over her shoulder at the boy's red and blue costume. "Nice outfit."

"Who the hell are you to talk? You've got a miniskirt and a cape."

Haruka blushed slightly at this. "How's your end going?"

"Carnage is in the sewers too," said the boy calmly. "I think it's how he gets around, he hides out down there. I'm not about to go in after him with the two of them running around down there."

"Maybe they'll kill each other?" said Haruka hopefully.

"They might decide to help each other," responded the boy calmly. "Or they could ignore each other."

"I don't like the sound of those two getting together."

"Neither do I," agreed Carrot. He paused suddenly. "Shit!"

"What is it?" asked Uranus as she turned her head towards what he had seen. "Hey..."

"Get the hell out of my way!" screamed Black Cat as she bounded over the both of them in a mad dash away from the bat like creature that was flying after her.

"Stay out of this. Kei is a personal problem," growled Carrot as he took off after them.

"What?" asked Uranus dumbly as he rushed away.

"That little bitch is becoming a big problem. I need to deal with it once and for all."

++++++++++++++++++

Mai stood alone in an open area of the apartment she and Minako now shared. It was a large place. He was putting a lot of money towards this. Probably the clan's money, she didn't like thinking about that.

She pulled her sai out from behind her back and glanced around the room. Minako was in her own room. She was in the living area. There was no real furniture to speak of other than a few cushions a small television and a phone. The kitchen was fully stocked though. A tiny table rested in the corner that they could eat off of.

She spun them skillfully around her wrists and slashed at the air around her as she started a complicated kata with the two weapons. She spun around and kicked into the air while guarding her body with several skillful spins of the dagger like weapons. Several stabbing strikes accompanied this followed by more skillful slashing and blocking.

"I'm glad someone has something to do around here," grumbled Minako.

"You should be training as well," replied the shinobi irritably. "You need to be ready for the battles ahead. This task will not be easy. If we are to face this evil head on, you must be ready."

"I'm in good shape!" snapped Minako angrily. "I take good care of myself!"

The shinobi frowned at her and stabbed at the air quickly. "It's time to go beyond that. You are a warrior, magic or not. Taking care of yourself must go beyond mere upkeep. You must always improve your mind and body if you are to fight against such an enemy."

"Mind? I have to study too?!" cried Minako in horror.

Mai smirked; Minako had taken her advice as a command. That suited her just fine. "It would definitely help you improve your patience. We haven't even been here a single night yet. I'm skilled enough to train you fairly well. There are things that I cannot teach you, but your magic will more than make up for that I think."

Minako stepped back from the look in her new trainer's eyes. "This is going to hurt isn't it?"

"Oh, yes. Very much so, after all, pain is weakness leaving the body."

Minako swallowed hard and stepped back a bit more. "Hold on a minute, maybe I should rethink this whole thing?"

"It's too late for that I'm afraid. You're already in far too deep," responded Mai calmly. "The only path for you, is forward."

"Damn," grumbled the girl as she hung her head.

++++++++++++++++++++++++

Ami Mizuno sat in silence. She wasn't entirely comfortable with her situation. She was alone, with a boy that looked only slightly older than she was. They were in an almost empty apartment with four rooms and one bathroom. Hito was quiet and didn't talk much, he seemed pretty happy to keep to himself and guard her just by being around.

Of course, they hadn't been here that long either. Not even a full night yet. He was rather handsome, but cold and distant. He was also a lot stronger than she was, and she knew it.

He was simply sitting in the middle of the living area meditating. His legs appeared to be twisted into a nearly impossible position with little discomfort on his part.

She was sitting in the corner by the television. She was just watching the movement with the volume turned all the way down. She didn't have any books with her. It was driving her mad. She wanted to read something, anything. Something she could use to take her mind off the situation.

"You're awfully quiet for someone who looks so upset," commented Hito with a heavy sigh. "I cannot harm you. I've been ordered to protect you, my honor is my life. I will not fail." He seemed reasonably calm as he said this and opened his eyes. "Our clan has many hidden secrets within its disciplines. We are strong enough to help you defeat this evil."

"You sound confident," muttered the girl. "I'm not much use in a fight. I can barely keep up with the others sometimes. I'm just support, and I'm afraid that's about all I'm good for." She thought back to the night in the hospital and closed her eyes. The thing there had been far too strong for her.

"I'm not sure I understand what you're getting at?" said Hito with a slightly confused frown.

"It's nothing. I just need something to read," muttered the girl as she hugged her knees.

"If you're having trouble keeping up. I can help you with that," said the shinobi calmly. "I can help you train your body, if that is what you think you need to succeed. I should warn you, it will be difficult."

She looked up at him with a slightly blank look on her face. "What?"

"I'm not offering to make you a ninja girl. Relax. I can teach you to fight a bit better, and help you get in shape. If we're fortunate, this will not last long enough for me to do more than that."

The girl nodded slowly. "I'm not very physical," she muttered nervously.

The ninja sighed. "Yeah. I know. Come on, get up. We might as well start tonight."

"How long is this going to take?" she asked.

"Why? Do you have something else to do? I'm sure staring at the television is quite interesting."

She blushed and stood up slowly. "All right. Sensei?"

"Maybe this won't be so bad. You seem to catch on quick."

That didn't help the girl's nervous feelings much. "What now?"

Hito sighed. "Then again..."

++++++++++++++++++++++

Makoto Kino was kicking at a duffel bag dangling from the ceiling. She was dressed in sweat clothes and had basically stuffed every cushion, cloth, and article of clothing she could find into the bag. A length of rope hung from a heavy-duty ring that had been bolted to the ceiling crudely. She grunted as she slammed her knee into the bag repeatedly as she gripped it firmly to hold it in place. Finally she snapped a kick that knocked the rope out of the loop and sent it crashing to the floor. She was gasping for breath and staring at the floor.

Kenshi was sitting across the room watching her emotionlessly. He said nothing and simply stared forward in a sort of daze.

"Got any pointers?" she asked him.

"No. I cannot help you. I'm not permitted to train anyone. You're doing fine on your own. Just remember to keep it up. We've got a hard road ahead of us it seems."

The girl hefted the bag over her shoulder and clumsily hooked the rope back into the ring after a few failed attempts. She stepped back and sat down against the wall on the opposite side of the room from him. "Why not?"

Kenshi frowned at her. "I've become too strong."

"What?" said the girl dumbly.

"I cannot touch another person, I would...hurt them." He continued to stare forward. "I am not permitted to attack anyone I do not intend to kill."

"What?" gasped the girl in shock.

"We're probably going to have to replace the doors around here pretty regularly, doorknobs, light switches, that sort of thing." He sighed heavily and hung his head. "This is why I don't do outside assignments. I'm an assassin damn it. I'm not cut out for this sort of thing."

Makoto was quite surprised and went silent.

The man seemed very sullen about his problems. It reflected in his attitude pretty clearly.

"Damn, he's really cute too," thought the girl to herself angrily. "She wasn't about to risk her life over it."

The man closed his eyes and lowered his head a bit. "I'm going to sleep. Keep training. You'll need it."

++++++++++++++++++++++

Aman stared down at Rei Hino. The girl was awake again, and she looked more aware than ever before. "So. It seems you have returned to us."

"Where am I?" she asked as she turned her head towards him painfully. Her head was throbbing. The room was dimmed and the shadowy figure standing next to her simply looked down at her emotionlessly.

"A hospital. You were injured."

Rei stopped moving. Memories flooded back to her, she closed her eyes and whimpered under the stress her head seemed to have on it suddenly. Gasping for breath her eyes fluttered for a moment. She simply stopped moving and stared at the ceiling. "I can't move my legs, can I?"

"I'm afraid not. Your back is broken."

"I see," said the girl as she stared at the ceiling. "I can feel my arms."

"That is good to hear."

Tears flowed down the girl's face. "Who are you?"

"I am Aman. I am here to guard you. There are many powerful beings who wish you dead."

The girl slowly nodded her head. "I know."

"Your identity has been revealed as well. You are safe here, until the doctors release you. After that, we have a place for you until this is over."

"Can I have a few moments alone?" she asked him.

He turned towards the door without responding and walked out. He didn't seem upset, but the girl didn't particularly care. She simply started crying and screamed painfully.

Aman waited just outside the door and leaned his head back against the doorframe. Doctors rushed into the room quite suddenly. The monitors around her had come to life quite suddenly as she began to realize what had happened to her.

"She is awake," he said softly to them as they stopped in front of him with confused frowns on their faces. He turned away from the door and walked over to sit down and wait for them to finish their duties. He turned his head towards the glass wall and watched them closely from the corner of his eyes as he waited patiently for things to calm down again.

++++++++++++++++++++

TBC...

Next Time: Carrot gets even more annoyed!