A Change of Pace... (Open)

[wastelandwheelman]

Issaic sat alone outside of one of the many small shops, sipping a bit of herbal tea. He had hoped to come here to people-watch, but figured the drizzle outside caused a lot of them to stay inside.

...Yep. Another boring day, he thought, tired of the same old song and dance. Just ONCE, he wanted a change of pace from his routine. A crime, a fight, an accident, hell, a girl, even. His routinely stroll around the city was almost predictable...

With a sigh, he finished his tea and walked along the plaza back towards West Lucent. He saw no point in finishing his route today...

Issaic stepped out into the rain, walking along the plaza towards the nearest tram station, which was still a good ten minute walk through some rough neighborhoods, but he could handle himself, being an Odyssian and all. Hopefully, he wouldn't draw any attention from the inhabitants of East Lucent.

Still, he felt an uneasy chill creep up his spine, making his hackles stand on end. He quickened his pace, hoping to find asylum on the tram.

[girlie]

Armand had been in a sour mood all morning. Business had been slow and his mother had come close to finding some of his products in her own. After getting into a fight with her, he began to realize that she was losing faith in him. All the cat did all day was sit in the shop and scare away potentially honest customers with his morbid attitude, according to his mother. Indignant, Armand has spat his distaste of her lifestyle in her face and stormed out, hoping to recover what was left of his pride.

The ebony cat briskly walked down the street, away from his mother's shop and relishing in the solitude of the abandoned streets. The further away he got from the shop, the more his anger bubbled, his mind racing in all different directions. When the young cat saw another, walking in the general direction of his mother's shop, he sighed. "

"So much for a quiet, rainy day."

The feline's typical skinny jeans and underarmour conformed to his body, showing off each muscle as it worked to propel him forward. That is, until the cat took a second glance at his passerby. There was something... not quite right about this individual. Uncertain about whether he wanted to front or not, Armand stopped dead in his tracks, tracking the stranger's movement, and finding something suspicious about them. Being one used to suspicious activity, the cat found himself rather unsettled.

He was tempted to run back to his mother's and warn her, but then he'd attract attention if in fact it was nothing but paranoia. What do i do? What do i do? The cat's mind warred, panicking, but also wanting to stand his ground. Should he continue walking? Should he turn around, apologize to his mother, and hide?

Finally, the cat beat his cowardice back, opting instead to follow the stranger and perhaps find out more about who he was. Turning around in circles, pretending to be lost, Armand headed back in the same direction as the stranger, dropping back like someone who was looking really hard for a specific building would.

[wastelandwheelman]

Issaic's sense of paranoia only grew worse after seeing the shady-looking cat pass by him. His heightened senses allowed him to smell all sorts of poisonous chemicals on the feline's person, most likely a drug dealer or maker. The scarier thing was that he almost didn't see the passing cat until he smelled the chemical fumes. These furres could easily blend in to the dismal scenery and dark alleyways.

His nice tan suit made him stick out like a sore thumb. The hybrid figured the locals might see him as some rich furre who obviously got lost in the wrong part of town. In truth, Issaic hardly carried any money on him. It was the fear of being discovered that he was an Odyssian, and at the moment, he was in the lion's den.

He needed to disappear, and fast.

The wolf/ hyena hybrid donned a pair of dark shades he would normally use to hide his icy blue eyes and rounded a corner, giving one last glance back down the street. He saw the cat, looking around 'lost,' but a lot closer than he should've been... A tactic all too common to him.

Damn! he cursed to himself.

His heart rate quickened, because he knew he was being followed. He also knew these locals tend to be close knit, so if there was one, there'd definitely be more, and he was not up for a fight, if it could be helped.

[girlie]

Armand eyed the hybrid from the corner of his eye, auds pointing in the direction of the stranger as he rounded the corner. Dropping the "lost" act, the feline ran to the end of the block, peeking around the corner to see where the stranger disappeared to.

Passing a paw across his stomach a few times, he stuck his maw up in the air, still able to smell the stranger and having little need to see him at this point. He could smell the fear rolling off the stranger.

He's afraid of me? Of me?? Armand was not only shocked, but flattered that the stranger felt endangered enough by his presence to fear him.

Scenting the air, the feline kept his eyes down and decided to follow the stranger simply by the scent of his fear, and being certain to keep his distance based on the strength of said aroma. Inhaling deeply, he almost relished the thought that this stranger who had set off alarms in his head was afraid of him.

"Alright Mr. Stranger," Armand murmured under his breath, "let's find out what you're up to."

[wastelandwheelman]

Issaic kept an ear swiveled back, listening. He wondered if the cat was still folowing. Instinct, logic, and his senses told him he was. Issaic was a little annoyed by the persistence of his follower, and strangely... a little impressed. Even if he were normal, Issaic was still a strong furre. Either his follower was really desperate, really brave, or very stupid.

Then again, there were his motives to consider. Issaic's first instinct was that he wanted to rob him, but maybe he was curious, maybe even seeing if he needed help. Naturally, Issaic would say no if he did. He knew where he was going. He knew the city like the back of his paw-

"Don't move," a sudden voice snapped him out of his mental wandering. He felt the barrel of a gun press into his back. Fuck... He had yet again failed to notice another furre! Must be an off-day for him... "You make a sound, I'll kill you."

Pfft, yeah right, he thought. He raised his paws yieldingly, not wanting to blow his cover. The mugger grabbed the back of his jacket and pulled him back into an alley. An evil grin spread across his muzzle. Trying to rob him was the robber's first mistake, dragging him out of sight would be his last...

[girlie]

Armand hadn't even noticed that they had company. He'd been so distracted following the trail of the stranger that he'd nearly walked himself into the the attention of the mugger who'd so rudely disturbed his pursuit.

Dropping back, he watched as his prey was forced into an alleyway, held at gunpoint. "I'm just going to step back from this one," the feline muttered to himself, sensing that the stranger could handle himself. Armand's craven nature forced him to turn around and stroll back the other way, trying to shake away the sense of forboding that rattled his senses and told him to run. Running would make him look suspicious, and with two individuals that were equally dangerous to him, the cat had no choice but to leave.

I guess I'll find out about that guy another day he thought to himself, shivering lightly as a result of nerves instead of the wet rain and nearly soaked him to the bone.

[wastelandwheelman]

Just from the size of the pressure on his back, Issaic could tell the gun had a sound suppressor. He kept his hands up as he turned around. His assailant had an oversized hooded sweater and a bandanna covering his face. His weapon was a .45, a bit overkill for a mugging, but whatever.
"Look, if it's money you're after, I'm afraid I have none."
"Then there's no point in you living, is there?" the mugger aimmed the handgun at Issaic's head. Perfect.

It was faint, but three sharp cracks echoed over the rain, and a cut-off scream. It came from the alleyway the two furres disappeared into. Dare he go back and check?

[sinatra]

A figure walked through the crowded plaza, walking through the district with hardly any problems, his enhanced genes enabling his to move about the crowd without hitting any other furre. A-023 smiled, his eyes glancing at everbody, noticing their walk, their look, and their imperfections. Unlike him, of course. Xander, as he was more commonly called, flicked his ears, the ferretcoon hybrid listening to every small or large conversation going on. Wether they be price deals or drug deals, he could understand them all and pick them out from among the mass of colours, clothing and fur. Today was one of the Aaron's days off, and he planned to enjoy it at a bar, drinking himself to the impossible drunk. Though he had learned to perfect the act. His perfect raccoon looks prevented him from being identified as a hybrid, and his glowing eyes protected by one way contacts.

Along with listening to every conversation, comes the ability to hear every robbery in the alleys. His eyes briefly looking across a nonconspicuous male feline, and turned to the alleyway that he had heard a gun click from. He ran down another alley, making sure nobody followed him. His skinny jeans and black t-shirt stayed with his body, reducing any air friction or resistance that may have occured. Tightening his paws into fists, he tested the fingerless gloves he had on. Xan looked up, and jumped alongside a wall, just to kick off of it. Folling the math he had done in his head, he reached out a paw and as expected, grabbed onto a fire escape railing. He quickly climbed up it on the outside, and launched himself onto the roof. He ran to the side of the building which had the alley he heard the click come from, but by the time he got there, the assailant was already on the ground. "But by who..." he breathed, looking at the remaining furre. Sniffing the air, Xander smirked and jumped down from the alley, landing right beside the downed body. "You could have just scared him, y'know?" he muttered, smiling softly to Issaic. Grabbing the gun, he discarded the clip and emptied the barrel, taking the bullets into a paw and pocketing them. "Good job either way. Might want to hide the body, though."

[wastelandwheelman]

Issaic glared at the newcomer, but relaxed, immediately recognizing him as a fellow Odyssian. He had braced himself against the wall, holding his shoulder and favoring his right leg. He had been shot three times with the powerful handgun. Fortunately, he was hit nowhere vital, just his thigh, his arm, and somewhere in his abdomen. He was so amped up on adrenaline, he couldn't feel where exactly.

It happened so quickly. He managed to grab the gun away, but at the same time, the robber fired trying to stop Issaic. Instead of letting the terrified furre go, Issaic had killed him out of rage in a very brutal fashion...

Issaic stood upright, limped over to the dead furre, and rolled him over with his boot. Where the mouth had been, was now a gaping hole of broken bone and ragged flesh. Issaic had shoved the gun's barrel into the furre's maw, killing him instantly. He reached down, dragging the body with his good arm to a storm drain, and forced the body into the hole.

"Nice of you to show up, Brother," Issaic said, leaning against the wall again.

[abrax]

Abrax had a particular fondness for Lucent's Eastern half. The people were, well, interesting. Not to say the West end wasn't bad, by no means, it was just more entertaining over here.
Though, from Abrax's current perspective, you wouldn't be able to tell.

Perched atop a record shop (if memory was the least bit competent it made itself out to be), Abrax was able to see it all! If by 'it' you meant an alley... and by 'see' ignore. The Furre was still some what hungover, and though he enjoyed people watching, staring at an empty alley was not fun. Nor was staring at a crowd at his distance. Instead, he just lay under the half-wall bordering the roof top; sunglasses removed and an arm draped over his eyes. It was admittedly a careless move on his part, but really, he didn't quite care. Unless someone was on the roof with him, he was fine. Plus, he was listening to what was going on around him. And there was a whole lot of nothing going on.

The feline was used to nothing; Hell. For the last week that was all he'd done. The unrelenting, almost insufferable boredom was tolerated as always. Frustration and a feeling of insignifigance held at bay by sheer devotion; Hidden behind an insincere smile and tinted lenses.

Oh well.

Hey now- What was this? Gun noises, screaming? The faint scent of iron in the air? Abrax's ears perked and so did his interest. The sound was close, oh so very close. He figured the sounds in question had originated in an alleyway, as such things usually did. Hence why he'd chosen to loom over one. Actually, the sounds were very close... He donned his sunglasses and looked down into the alley. Lo and behold the scene had gone on near the wall furthest from him; Right under his nose!

How oddly convenient!

Damn.. this must have been an off day or something. Abrax felt too bloody stupid for missing this. Maybe he'd fallen asleep.. yeah.. that sounded good. We'll go with that...

Peering in on the two (three if you count the formerly living) and putting one and one together, Abrax repressed the ever tempting urge to laugh. Good god! In all his years Abrax had never seen one's face that.. well, gone! Torn up, decimated!

He'd decided to be yet another to drop in on the killing scene. The only reason for doing so was he knew the pair living were Odyssians. (he'd seen them around before, and though it would have been more of a wild guess under different circumstances, one had referred to the other as 'brother' otherwise he probably would have been able to tell)

Abrax made his position obvious by not only speaking, but leaning over the half-wall, grinning wildly.

"It seems you've made quite the mess there... Despite that, I'm going to have to commend you on the manner in which you dealt with it" He paused, allowing for a laugh, but kept it brief. Might have lost himself upon seeing how the body was disposed, "..Creative."

He then added quickly, taking note of the limp in the more canine of the two,"You all right, Brother?" Seemed like a good thing to do.

[sinatra]

Watching the cat hybrid shove the body down a drainage pipe, he smirked, instead deciding to load the .45, and pocket it. Putting the bullets back into the clip, he glanced at the Odyssian, sighing at the common name of their kind. "I would," he said, cocking the gun and aiming down the sights. "Prefer just to be called Xander. Or A-023. Either one will work. None of this 'Brother' nonsense." He stuffed the now safe gun into the back of his jeans. His ears twitched, and he heard a voice from above. Looking up, he sighed, noticing it was another Odyssian. What is this? A meeting? he thought to himself, crossing his arms over his chest. He paid attention on the way the new hybrid spoke, and realized something. He was their leader! His eyes widened for a moment, and he bowed his head. "It is good to see you, sir." he said, looking at the wounded Issaic. "His body should start healing soon. The later projects are tougher than the earlier batches. Or so they say," he said, smirking to the canine.

[wastelandwheelman]

Issaic, looked up at the newcomer perched atop the wall. Two high-class Odyssians in one place, one being his leader... just perfect.

Abrax Aaron always made Issaic a little edgy. He wasn't sure if it was Abrax's strange personality, (not that any Odyssian was considered normal...), or how he could seem so... happy all the time... It could have been both reasons. In truth, Issaic resented the Council for making Abrax the leader, instead of him. They claimed his health as a liability, and demoted him to the Baker family. At first, he was fine with it, but over time, he gradually began to resent the Council's decision, but he'd never let them know that...

Issaic smirked a bit. He would have his opportunity, someday...

"Uh, I'm fine, er, Xander." He nods at Abrax. "...Sir."

[abrax]

"Good to see you, too. Although, it's an unexpected encounter." Abrax said, casually adjusting his jacket's collar in the process. Considering the circumstances to their "meeting", as it were, it came to him that it was kind of odd. To come in contact with two other Odyssians, with nothing but coincidence behind the situation.

The caracal hybrid searched the building wall for a suitable route down. He hadn't any desire to leave the roof, really, he was quite comfortable. But it was rather unconventional to shout from a building top to people down below. Abrax settled for a fire escape. He was a bit wary of climbing it, the rusty metal frame didn't look like it could support a child's weight, let alone his own. He managed to get down without any harm done.

Abrax glanced once again at Issaic, trying to speculate how badly he was injured, and then at Xander whilst responding "Glad to hear it; our numbers are few enough as it is." He said, speaking with almost a teasing tone. Not that losing an ally was funny, "They cheated the early projects, that's for sure. Hadn't much idea what do with us, I guess".

"So, what happened here," Abrax's gaze was unwavering, it was a good thing he wasn't looking at anyone or thing in particular, "If you don't mind me asking."

[wastelandwheelman]

Issaic did't want to answer, out of fear of sounding weak, but being a subordinate, he was obligated to report, especially because he was hurt. He cleared his throat, "Well, this thug tried to rob me, and I killed him. Plain and simple." Another thing crossed Issaic's mind: his original follower. Was he still there? He looked back down the alley, sniffing and listening intently.

[Sorry, VERY tired]

[sinatra]

Nodding in agreement with Abrax, he sighed, seeming almost depressed about something. But of course, it was how he lived his whole life. Bored and/or sad looking, and he quite enjoyed it that way. It made him looks less dangerous, which left the enemy to use less skill so the Odyssian could surely rip their head off. Literally. "True, while they did cheat us. They also made us technically more strong since they weren't sure what they were doing. But with of course, the drawback of being unstable." He gave a crooked grin, leaning back against the wall of the building he had jumped from. "So, Brother," he said the name with some disgust. He didn't like the use of it, since he didn't like being associated with some of the failures that had managed to live. "You killed him, and got rid of his body. In any time of this imminent killing did you bother to check if you were being watched or spyed on?" He glanced at Issaic, before looking down and starting to bite on a claw casually.