Footsteps filled the calm night air as the young girl ran for her life. Two men in light blue uniforms ran after her, over their hearts were Gs with a cross behind it… the symbol of the House of Gale. “Stop her! She’s violating curfew.” The second one lunged forward tackling her. He extended his metal baton striking her several times before forcing her to her feet. “Got her…” He chuckled the girl in to much pain to even cry… blood streamed down her face. “Curfew violation… resisting arrest… a month in shock therapy…” The two began to drag her towards a patrol car as rain began to pour down lightning flickered as thunder roared. “God dam it… was hoping to get home before it started raining… and I would have if not for this runner… make it two months…”

There they were, two House of Gale soldiers, just standing there for the easy kill. Silently moving to where he could take both of them by surprise, Cyrus was only too happy to oblige his need for these men's blood. "Too easy..." he whispered under his breath, but he spoke too soon. A young girl just had to come into view of the soldiers, prompting them to chase her for breaking some stupid rules they thought they could enforce on anyone. Almost. "Damn girl!" Cyrus whispered to himself. Then he got a brilliant idea, one that might turn the tide of this war, if done properly. As much as he had slipped into his shell, somewhere in him still resided the caring person who once walked this forsaken place.

Keeping to the shadows and alleys, Cyrus kept up with the men almost stride for stride, albeit about 100 yards back. Gripping his combat knife so hard his knuckles turned pure white, he slowed when they finally caught the girl. Wiggling his way ever closer, he crouched a mere 20 feet behind them, in an alley.

“Curfew violation… resisting arrest… a month in shock therapy…” The two began to drag her towards a patrol car as rain began to pour down lightning flickered as thunder roared. Cyrus looked up at the night sky, thanking the heavens for just one more thing to distract his targets. “God dam it… was hoping to get home before it started raining… and I would have if not for this runner… make it two months…”

Chuckling and walking towards the men Cyrus taunts the men, "You might want to let her go and focus on someone a little more....dangerous." Flashing his knife so they could make no mistake about his intentions, he awaits their obvious move.

One of them drew a revolver pushing it against the little girl’s head while the other drew a SMG that fully extended until it had a small shield on its front and two barrels. “You picked the wrong people to screw with boy…” He pulled down on the trigger the gun’s barrels turning bright blue as it sent forth energized bullets.

As the barrels started to flash blue, Cyrus, as quick as he could, threw his knife at the man holding the revolver to the girls head. With his next movement, he turned towards the alleyway, a long 15 feet away, not knowing the result of his throw. Something was wrong his mind told him, but he ignored it as all he was worried about was getting to some cover. He jumped behind a large dumpster glad to be out of sight of the SMG.

As his back hit the wall of the building, pain seared through his left shoulder and arm. Finally having the time to pay attention to the warning from his mind, he looked for the source of the pain. What he saw surprised him more than those two men pulling out guns, three bullet holes in him, one in his shoulder, one through his upper arm, and one just below his elbow. "Damn, they are getting smarter," he thought to himself, expecting them to charge him, like they had always done in the past. Knowing his blood would leave a clear trail, Cyrus began looking around for anything he could use to either fight back or enable him to get far enough away to plan his next move.

"This is what I get for trying to help. Should have used my usual methods..." he thought to himself, but knowing he did what he had to do.

The knife pierced the soldiers right eye. He screamed out in pain holding onto the dagger he motioned the other man to follow him as he breathed in deeply cursing and screaming as he pulled the knife out. He began to give chase after the other soldier.

The first one drew his metal baton thinking having only his SMG ready would be foolish with the possibility of a close range ambush. He began to fire at any hiding spot he saw. Several bullets ripping through the dumpster as he opened it to look in.

Elliot loved a good show (and by good show, one that she can hear at least) while enjoying some candy she took from a candy store. With each bite she took from the candy, it made a small crunch that was barely audible to anyone while her little canary tweeted. She noticed that there wasn't much noise after the bullets and stabbing so she whispered something very soft to her little canary. The canary responded in calm tweets, three of them as Elliot smirked in all her remarks. "Time to play..." she whispered and jumped down into an alley way, walking out so that she was in view of the two policeman, then took out her two swords. "Come on boys, I know your not that hurt to play around some more!" she challenged them like they were her own toys to play with, but that's what made the game so enjoyable.

Bullets came flying by, just inches within penetrating Cyrus' skin, again. He frantically looked around for anything, knowing the soldiers were just feet away. Something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. It looked like someone with a ponytail, but he wasn't entirely sure. The pain coursing through his arm and into his chest was almost unbearable. He tried to move his fingers, which was practically useless, as they just barely quivered at the attempt. Slowly getting up to a crouch, he was ready to throw his life away so that the little girl might have a chance. That's all any innocent deserved, right?

But suddenly, he heard a thud, muffled through the pain making his head pound, and saw a young woman step into the alleyway, challenging the soldiers with her two swords. His heart skipped a step and he almost threw up from the needed help. Instead, he gathered his thoughts, putting the pain to the back of his conciousness, ready to engage in close quarters combat with the soldiers when they showed.

He wasn't sure if the woman saw, but he gave her a nod and a slight wink, trying to let her know he wasn't going to just watch her have all the fun.

Her canary tweeted in alert looking around at the man behind her and the two soldiers in front of her. One injured and two soldiers, I won't be able to have my fun for now... The two soldiers shot at from almost every direction in front of her as she block them all with her two swords, unbelievably throwing some of the bullets back at them so that they injured them merely. With that in hand, she took her chances and ran down to the man, looking him in the eyes, though she couldn't tell if she was or wasn't. Grabbing his injured shoulder and wrapping it around her neck and shoulders, she carried him, having enough strength to at least run away from the soldiers and go to her abandoned apartment. Using two smoke bombs as their way to escape from sight, she carried the man down the alley way from which she had first came from and to an old apartment that was ruins from the outside but underground looked like a comfy nice home. Tired from walking and having so much weight on her back, she laid the man down onto her beat up couch, the canary seeking shelter in its little cage just nearby the couch and she slumped down into her comfy master chair, the dim lights from the candles lit brightening up the room. It wasn't too bad, pretty beat-up though, the sink was a bit rusty but no dirty dishes, the bathroom looked nice, the living room was considerable the only place where she slept in. "Right...you're going to have to tell me where your wounds are, I don't want you to turn my couch into your death bed," she said sarcastically, reaching under the master chair and taking out a fairly large first aid kit. Kneeling down beside him, her hands searched around his chest area and she found a wound on his left shoulder that seemed to be pretty deep in. There was another on the same side on his arm and one just down on the elbow. Searching around for the alcoholic pads, she simply looked straight because she was blind in the first place. Her little canary took out the tie in her hair and flew off to its cage again, Elliot's hair flowing down like a river. Her gray eyes weren't the only attractive thing about her.

Standing on the roof of a building about a one hundred yards away, Ronin quietly watched the whole scene unfold through the scope of his rifle. Things were getting out of hand quickly, and if he didn't act the Gale soldiers would surely die. Leaning his rifle on the building, he steadied his aim, keeping the cross-hair lingering between the soldiers and the woman with the swords. He pressed a button on the side of his helmet.

"Tiberius, are you in position? I'm taking the shot. Get ready...."

He slowed his breathing, taking perfect aim. His finger gently squeezed down on the trigger, but before he had completely pressed down on it, the guards opened fire. In the conflict, the woman was able to escape, carrying an unknown figure with her. The guards appeared to have been killed by ricocheted bullets, and lay in pools of their own blood at the mouth of the alley. Ronin swore under his breath, taking his finger off the trigger.

"Damnit, she got away...Tiberius, I need you to follow her. I'm going to report back to the boss."

Tiberius Jumped into the alley way, quick to follow the pair. His thermal sensors able to track the two through the dense smoke. Tiberius made sure to stay just out of sight. With every step of his foot he got closer and closer. He had followed them to an old ruined apartment. It was quite a site to be had. Most of these places had been stripped down and turned into factories or other industrial complexes. Tiberius decided to wait this one out

"Come in Ronin...I have followed these bastards into some old residential area. I think this might be a bit too dangerous."

Coiling his muscles, preparing to pounce on the soldiers, Cyrus was completely taken off guard by the woman grabbing him. As she pulled him up and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, he suddenly realized he was getting weaker by the second, obviously from the loss of blood he was suffering. Expecting the woman to collapse under his weight, he was surprised that she instead took off running, practically dragging him, so he mustered every ounce of strength he had and tried to keep his legs moving with her.

His head was fuzzy and he tried to keep track of where she was leading him, but it was difficult as it felt like he was about to pass out every couple seconds. All the training he had put himself through didn't prepare him for what being shot would feel like. Cursing to himself for allowing this to happen, appearing weak and helpless, he set his mind to what lay ahead. Strangely, it felt good to have a woman in his arms again, even if it was someone he hadn't even said "hello" to.

The next thing Cyrus remembers is being laid down on a couch, worn out maybe, but it felt like the most wonderful couch at the moment. He heard a strange sound, almost like a bird chirping. Craning his head, he saw the source, and it was indeed a bird, a canary. Trying to adjust his eyes to the light of the room, he saw the woman who had probably just saved his life. She had asked where his wounds were, but words would not come out. As she got closer, he was able to focus, and noticed her gray eyes that seemed to penetrate his soul. As she felt around for his wounds, he noticed her eyes did not move and realized that he was saved by a blind woman. "Great, a blind woman outdid you back there" he thought to himself. Flinching as the alcohol pads touched his wounds, he found his voice.

"Thh....Thank you. You should have killed them though. I needed their blood to...." Cyrus couldn't say the rest. The woman standing before him was very attractive. It had been a long time since his family had been murdered, years it had seemed, although he knew not exactly how long. He licked his lips and started over. "What is your name?" He asked as he stared into her beautiful eyes, knowing she could not see him doing so, making her that much more attractive.

Damn it, I was followed! Elliot thought in her head, able to hear from above ground while her canary chirped suspiciously as well. "What is your name?" she heard from the man and didn't look up, just moving into a position where she could sit him up. "Elliot...just call me Elliot..." she said, sitting him up. "Do I have permission to wrap your wounds in bandages? I need your shirt off which is why I'm asking you..." she asked, very much alerted and a bit tense since she had no choice but to heal this man's wounds first before even trying to say hello to the person who followed her to her home.

Tiberius mustered up every ounce of pure carelessness he had in him, and continued into the building. He held his bolt pistol out in front of him, covering any position somebody could ambush him from. All was expected from the building. Old torn walls, the occasional rotting plank, but one thing was different. He could see a warm glowing light coming from a staircase. He moved up, careful to not be caught off guard. The silent chirping of a bird could be heard from the bottom of the stairs. He silently crept down into the candle lit room. He saw the woman leaning over the couch caring for the man.

"whoa! sorry!" Tiberius exclaimed while he turned his head. "Didn't mean to barge in on you."

Sensing her become a little tense, he replied "Yes, as long as you know what you are doing." With his good arm, Cyrus took his shirt off. "The faster this gets done, the better." The sudden roughness in his voice surprised even him, but he didn't care at this point. He just wanted his arm to work again and be able to think clearly. Looking around, he took in the rest of the room. Pretty nice setup, much nicer than his. His bed was an old military cot and his "home" was just the corner of an abandoned building about a mile away.

Then, a man holding a piston appeared seemingly out of nowhere. "Seems we were followed," Cyrus said, stating the obvious. Too bad he didn't have his knife handy, or he would be ready to hurl it at this man, just like the soldier. When it rains, it pours...

Damn it! Elliot threw a knife at him, missing, but at least closing his pathway so that he wasn't able to get away. Her canary almost screamed in song as Elliot threw her other sword at his shoulder, he was pinned down hard, the sword must've gone through his shoulder because she made sure he wouldn't be able to move from that spot. Standing up from her kneeling position, she walked towards the man and took the other sword that blocked his way to the exit. "Stay there or die..." she threatened, she never bluffed, never at all. Taking out her sword and placing it back where it belongs, she began taking the man's shirt off to put on the bandages. "If you don't escape soldier, I'll heal your wound next," she compromised with him now. She was so mysterious is was actually a bit humorous.

Tiberius grunted from the pain of the knife flying into his shoulder. He flew back hitting his back on the wall. Sliding his back down the wall, he slumped down into a sitting position.

"you don't need to worry, I'm just running recon. My partner is the one that's going to kill you two." He said, half ignoring the knife in his shoulder.

Tiberius slowly reached his hand over the hilt of the blade and pulled it out of his body, making it clear to the woman that he wasn't going anywhere with a quick gesture of his hands. To seal the deal, he sheathed his gun into his holster. He may be here for a while, he thought.

The speed with which Elliot threw her swords was amazing, much less that she could hit the man, and made him wonder how she did it. When they both put away their weapons, Cyrus began to study the man's clothing. Clearly not House of Gale, nor their counterpart. It was evident this was a hired hand, for which side though, he didn't know, and maybe didn't care. Why oh why did he not just take out the two soldiers like he normally did. Now look what mess he has gotten himself into, much less brought into this woman's home because he had to go and get shot.

Cyrus just laid there while Elliot put bandages around his wounds. For once in how long he could only guess, he was going to just relax, letting his mind and body heal, and refocus.

Finishing with the shot man, Elliot crawled her way to the man she had wounded, having the first aid kit at hand and cleaning up his wound which wasn't as bad as the other man's. "I would like to see your partner kill me, I've had too many mercs on my head lately that I decided to just kill them all at once and stop having them watch me naked in my own quarters," she smirked, tying the bandage and standing up, the little canary chirping happily as it perched itself on the man on her couch's head. "Everyone call me Elliot, its not like I'm going to be getting to know you better anyway," she said, walking over to the sink to wash her hands.

Mercs. Cyrus hated mercs. Feeding off the war, benefiting off other peoples suffering, making money off killing. Glad to be done being bandaged up, he put his shirt back on, and sitting up on the couch. The tension in the room was almost thick enough to swim in. Suddenly, Cyrus had an idea, hopefully better than his last one, which ended him up here.

"How much are you getting paid to kill us? Want to make even more? Hell, want to run the city?" he asks the mercenary while Elliot tended to his shoulder. He kind of liked the feel of the canary on his head, it almost made him at ease in the current situation. Almost.

"So." Tiberius said, trying to start up conversation and ignoring Cyrus. "Who are you working for girl? Cydren? Unknown men in business suits? rebels?"

Tired of sitting down, Tiberius got on his feet. He rubbed his shoulder in discomfort, and walked over to the bird cage.

"Nice bird you got here." He said pointing at the bird on Cyrus' head. "A serinus canaria I presume?"

Tiberius stealthily slipped his hands to his sides and unclipped the holsters for his two bolters. He walked up behind Elliot while she was washing her hands and placed the gun on the back of her head, the other gun pointed at the bird perched on Cryus' head.

"Now this will be very simple." Tiberius tightened the grip of his gun. He had seen what this woman could do, and he didn't want it to happen again. "You will let me leave your house, and give me at least a five minute head start. I would also like to warn you that my partner is a very good shot, and he hardly ever misses."

Elliot smirked when she felt the gun at her head and her little canary tweeting in fear. She turned around, putting the gun to her heart and approaching her killer, "I like that bird, and I like how you can go behind a woman and make a cheap shot to the head." She was so close to his face that she could feel him breathing. Biting his bottom lip in one sharp movement, she kicked the gun that was pointed to the bird away from his had so that it landed on the other man's lap and the other gun was still pointed on her head, she let go of his lip now. "I'd love to see you kill me like others have tried to," she showed him the marks on her neck and wrists.

It was like slow motion. The guns coming out of the mercs holsters, one at Elliot, the other pointing at the bird, or his head, he wasn't sure. But just as quickly, Elliot got real close, kicked one gun out, the one pointing in his direction, and it flew threw the air, landing on Cyrus' lap. Stunned for a second, he grabbed it, feeling the warmth of the man's hand still on the metal. Standing up, he points the gun at the merc's head. "Alright, that's enough. Put your gun away before you die where you stand. Typical merc. Again, who are you working for? I can promise you more money than you could ever imagine. Seeing as money is the only thing that could ever motivate someone like you, I should have your attention now."

Tiberius laughed awkwardly as he backed away.

"Well I see you got me in a rut."

It looked down at his watch.

"Well, I'd like to stay, but I have a life to live."

Tiberius strapped his gun back into his holster. He twisted his waist around and looked at the back wall of the apartment facing the outside. He gave a thumbs up, and looked back at the two people ready to kill him.

"Like I said, my partner is a really good shot..."

Ronin readjusted his helmet, turning on the thermal sensors on his goggles. Looking through his scope, he could make out three people in the room; one lying on the couch, and two standing very close to each other. He recognized his brother from the blinking IFF located in his suit. He smirked, focusing his sights. Two shots burst from the barrel, travelling across the empty street. They exploded through the wall, one hitting the woman in the shoulder just below the collar bone and the other hitting the man in the knee. His hand shot into the air, catching the shells as they flew through the air.

"Now get out of there Tiberius."

Tiberius rushed for the exit in all the commotion. He jumped up the stairs and ran out into the back streets. Meeting with his brother on the rooftops.

"I think we should get out of here before I get kidnapped by that girl again."

Tiberius gestured towards the pack sitting next to Ronin. Ronin opened the bag and threw Tiberius another bolt pistol.

"I really have to stop losing these things."

Tiberius dashed across the rooftops and disappeared into the fog as the lightning casted his shadow on the walls and cement of the alley ways and streets.