Who Wants to Live Forever? -- RP

The city of Rankenopolis. It is a place where opposites attract. It is a place where some of the most advanced technology exists; light bulbs that never burn out, guns that can fire unlimited ammo made of energy, cars that can hover off the ground, and in the middle, a magnificent white skyscraper that towers above the rest of the cityscape, almost reaching into the heavens. And yet, beneath the surface of this grandeur lies an unseemly sight. Gangs populate much of the city's slums; individually, each member is weak, but they remedy this with sheer force of numbers, and because there is more then one such gang, gang wars are not an unfamiliar sight to the fair city. And if one looks further still, into that which seems unblemished, there exists corruption and decadence within office; politicians and other such officials, such as the Rankenopolis Police Commissioner, vie for a level of control themselves, even going so far as accept bribes from, and cut deals with the various gangs; the only counter forces that exist are the politicians and officers in the force that try as they might to work against such corruption... as well as Dino Connections, owner of the previously mentioned white skyscraper, and benefactor of the advanced level of technology that exists within the city. They posses a level of control themselves thanks to their resources, and it's this that prevents the city from spiraling into utter chaos. But Dino Connections may not have the noblest of intentions themselves... yet despite this, the city is yet even more then that; it is a place wherein there exists those whose lifespan is merely finite, and those whose lifespan is infinite. In short, it is a contrast between those who live... and those whose state of living is put into question... ______________________________________________________________________

Monday, December 17, 10:00 PM, 2012. It is cold in Rankenopolis, but not so cold as to elicit freezing conditions. And because of that, it is raining. It comes down hard upon the city, pouring down like a hail of bullets. And yet, that does not stop those who lurk in the shadows from engaging in their activities; in fact, tonight is a very special night. In a private bar, two top-dog gangleader's and their bodyguards meet to discuss a truce; perhaps even a merger. The leaders have a few smokes, a few drinks, state how they hate the other's guts, compliment each other for being so forthcoming, and then get down to buisness. But just as they are about to make full their agreement, something goes off... and the bar explodes. Literally.

And upon the rather unexpected death of the leaders of the two biggest gangs in the city, two forces prepare to go to war. And as they do so, a force of a scale larger then anyone can possibly imagine lurks in the depths of darkness...

___________________________________________________________________

9:45 PM.

It begins...

edited 26th Dec '11 12:14:18 PM by kkhohoho

Raining...

She decided to take it as a good sign. Elena Morrison had always loved the rain, found it refreshing and calming. However, now more than before she found the rain as a good omen.

After all, the rain would wash away the evidence of her crimes.

When growing up Elena never expected that she would end up as a serial killer. And indeed, nobody would have ever expected such out of her. She had always been a good girl, a dreamer, a laid down child who would never hurt anyone.

And yet... her she was. Wearing a red jacket in a novice's attempt to mask the bloodstains, cultivating a defenseless girl look to embolden her victims and with her sharpened knife waiting for her on the table.

Elena walked over to the knife and picked it up, its weight on her hand slowly becoming familiar and comforting to her. Something which, on the back of her mind, scared her.

If its raining maybe I won't find anyone today She briefly thought, immediately regretting it.

There was a reason why she was doing this. Instead she should wish for all the scum of the city to find her. Each night should be more bloody than the last until nothing remained but her remained to stalk the night. That was her task, her responsibility, her purpose.

Filling her mind with the images of that night, Elena Morrison steeled her heart for her night's work. She put on her headphones, grabbed her red umbrella and whispered goodbye to her small dorm room.

Today she headed to walk a new neighborhood. There was no lack of bad neighborhoods in Rankenopolis and each of them would suit her purposes. She just needed to walk, undefended and alone through the worst of the city as a little lost lamb... and wait for the darkness of the city to come after her.

9:45 PM...

Robert Mc Kenzy was a man of 34. He had a stout jaw, and pitch-black hair, but aside from that, there wasn't really much to speak of when it came to him. He didn't think much himself, and preferred to let others, preferably his boss, do the thinking for him. Besides, when your boss is one of the biggest gang-lords in the city, chances are, there's not really much that can go wrong. It hadn't occurred to him that in 15 minutes, he would no longer have anyone to think for him.

He prowled around the city slums, as he usually did at this time of night, looking for a bit of 'fun'. He made sure to bring his umbrella, seeing as it was pouring down in buckets. A nice purse would be enough, but if he could get, say, a bit of action out of it too, then all the better. And coming just around the corner was his chance; a nice pretty girl, young but not too young, carrying a bright red umbrella. He formed a sly smile on the left corner of his lips, and sure enough, he walked over to the girl, slowly, but not too slowly.

"Hey there," he called out, "what's a nice thing like you doin' out on a night like this?" He coyly looked around, his eyes never quite matching with hers. "You could get one hell of a cold." He started walking ever closer to the girl. "I bet I could make you feel real nice..." By this point, he was only a foot away from Ms.Elena...

edited 26th Dec '11 12:16:54 PM by kkhohoho

That's my cue.

Paul took this moment to slip out of the shadows, wrapping his arms in a chokehold around the man's neck. He hadn't expected to run into any scum today, to be honest; his buddies were expecting him. But he thought he'd comb the city once or twice...

"You're gonna make me late, buddy. You know how much that fucking sucks?" he was aware of how deranged he sounded, but he didn't care; to him, it just added to the effect. "So if you wanna keep your head, I suggest you leave this young lady alone."

Here it comes...

Elena never acted right away. She thought that she should give those people a chance to back down, to stop before they crossed the line.

When she heard his voice she turned around, her face filled with a mix of confusion and fear. As she saw the man's eyes stare straight at her she retreated a couple of steps towards a nearby alleyway, to the eyes of anyone a scared creature trying to escape but too afraid to take her eyes off from a predator "Please... no. I have to get home soon... so please..."

However her nervous pleas were cut off by something that never happened before in her days of stalking the streets. A guy came over to... defend her?

9:47

"Hgghg..." Try as he might, Robert couldn't quite get himself out oh his mysterious assailant's hold, regardless of how much he struggled. At this point, it seemed like there was only one option.

"F-Fine! I give up! Ya' happy?!" He waited for his attacker to release the hold. But when he got far enough away...

edited 26th Dec '11 12:32:40 PM by kkhohoho

"All righty," the boy replied with a laugh, releasing his hold. "But if I catch you doin' anything fishy, you won't get a second chance." He tapped the blade of his knife against the man's neck to prove his point. "Run, dirtbag."

9:48

Robert, appearing to be frightened, ran away from the man, straight around the corner. But when he got out of sight, he sidled around the back of the building on the corner. Making sure he wasn't seen, with as much silence as he could manage, he reached into his coat-pocket, and got out his trusty Charley, which was actually just a regular old handgun. He would wait until the man's head was turned to strike...

edited 26th Dec '11 12:32:21 PM by kkhohoho

This was quite unexpected... A flurry of different emotions ran through Elena at that instant. Frustration at not being able to bring her mission to fruition, relief at not having to use her knife that night, surprise at the recent events and... happiness? Yes, she was happy to learn that there was people that would take their time to fight the crime of this city even though they didn't have the gift with the which she fought.

"Thank you. I... you saved a life tonight. Really... thank you for being here" Said Elena after spending a moment to gather her thoughts.

Paul sighed dramatically. "Aw, he's gonna shoot me, isn't he? Dammit..." Brushing it off with a shrug, he turned his attention to the young lady he'd just rescued.

"Hey, don't worry about it. Are you all right?" he asked, trying to be as gentle as possible. "Were you hurt?"

edited 26th Dec '11 12:39:08 PM by spiralalg

"He didn't lay a finger on me... so yes. Just a little shaken that's all" replied Elena, managing to put forward a very small smile as she answered.

9:48

...And with the man's head turned, Robert saw his chance. He quickly turned around the corner, and shot at the man: right in the back of the head.

Aw, fuck.

Even if he'd be back in an instant, it still hurt. He fell like a rock.

Four routes home. One blocked by a gang, the other by cops. Cops who'd stop him for the 'suspicious' package of his. Arc could trust them as much as he could a ruffi- gangster with a gun. He sprinted to route number three, holding his groceries close to his chest. Not much longer now. Two more blocks and he'd be safe. And dry. It was truly idiotic of him to forget to bring an umbrella after seeing the state the sky was in.

He turned a corner, accidentally stepping in a puddle and sending water splashing up his ankles. He didn't notice though, for a man with a gun had stolen his attention. That was bad. Very bad. He hadn't noticed Arc, but there might be more, just waiting to ambush a defenseless, seemingly young little kid. Letting out a scared little whimper he backed up slightly, trying to calculate, no, think of the easiest way to get to route four from here.

He didn't wait there for long. As soon as the sound of a gunshot tore through the air he screamed, performed a one eighty and dashed into the nearest alleyway.

And in a single moment, her source of happiness was gone and the little light she saw in the world was snuffed out by the ever present darkness. The young man... someone who has selflessly come to her rescue now lied on the floor in a pool of his own blood.

It wasn't fair, dammit! His life snuffed out just because he tried to help someone in distress. Elena felt bitter tears rise up to her eyes and before she knew it she was resting her weight against the brick wall behind her, her legs feeling incredibly weak all of a sudden.

... And inside her pocked she gripped the handle of her knife so hard her knuckles turned white.

Moments later, he groaned. "Hey, hey, relax. I'm fine..." he got to his feet, laughing a little to himself. "Fuck, no matter how many times I get shot, it still hurts."

Noticing her distress, his tone changed. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. Are you okay?"

9:50 PM

Robert took one good look at the man, before ultimately dismissing him, and turning his attention to the girl.

"Now," he said to the girl, keeping his gun pointed straight at her, looking at her with a crooked grin, "since that little... distraction, is out of the way, how about you just come along nicely? Or else, maybe you'd want to join him, huh?" He kept walking oh so slowly over to the girl, keeping his eyes fixated right on hers...

Of course, this was before the man seemingly got up right before his very eyes. He stood there, gaping in astonishment, with all he could say being "You... you're dead!!"

edited 26th Dec '11 1:03:53 PM by kkhohoho

Paul grinned maliciously. "I got better," he replied, casually twirling his knife. "Shame the same can't be said for you."

He struck, slashing at the man's throat.

...And with one last "Urk!", Robert Mc Kenzy fell to the ground, grasping at his throat as he went, and soon, was no more.

The man was back. He had not only targeted her... he had lurked in the shadows to kill one of the few brave enough to confront the darkness of this city.

Upon seeing him walking over at her, his gun held just like that one man had a month ago... It just made something snap within her. A change that was apparent in her eyes as her expression relaxed and all warmth fled from them. She became oblivious to the world, to everything happening around her. She dropped her umbrella and in a single moment sprung to action.

Elena knew how to run. Before her life had changed a month ago she had been a runner for her school. Her body remembered how to move fast and so it didn't take but a moment for her to cross the distance between the two of them, knife held in her left hand as she stabbed for the man's heart, right hand ready to push the knife further in the moment she struck.

"Hey, hey!" Paul's eyes widened, and he wondered whether interfering would be too dangerous. "He's already dead, kid!"

Only after the deed was done did Elena snap back to reality. Knife in hand she heard a voice calling at her... however it was a voice that should not be able to do so.

However... there he was, standing nice and healthy in front of her and like the image of some sort of twisted mirror he too held a bloody knife in his hand. Now, Elena wasn't in her best mental state right now and seeing as this was the first time somebody else had caught her murdering someone, not to mention that someone being somebody that shouldn't be alive... The young woman did the only thing which made sense in her mind.

She turned tail and ran, barely having the presence of mind to slip her bloody knife in her pocket... leaving the horrible scene behind with her discarded red umbrella.

"Ah, hell, wait!" Paul called. Great, you upset her. He swiped the umbrella and ran after her.

9:54 PM

As Paul chased after Emily, she had gained enough distance that by 9:55PM PM, she had already crossed an intersection, and, as luck would have it, as soon as she crossed, the lights changed, and as soon as that happened, quite a few cars started blazing through the street. And so, Paul found himself at quite the impasse.

edited 26th Dec '11 1:50:36 PM by kkhohoho

Monday, December 17, 09:52 PM, 2012

And there she went. Off into the night like a madman chased by the devil himself. Classic newbie. She'd even left her umbrella. Careless, careless, careless. For someone like her to still be running about, killing with such sloppy form... Well, let's just say the ineptness of the police force truly boggled his mind.

Well, whatever. Johan quickly vacated his position adjacent to the alley, slipping into the shadows. Time to pursue. It was the only fitting course of action for a private eye, right? And so, five minutes later, after a series of twists and turns through various back alleys, backdoors, and backyards, Johan managed to place himself in position for intercept. If he was right... One, two, three. There she was, just across the street. And heading his way. Let's have a chat with little miss killer, shall we?

edited 26th Dec '11 2:10:17 PM by KSPAM