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Post by cadillac on Apr 16, 2011 23:49:04 GMT -5
Out of all the places this idiot could have hidden, it had to be here, in the middle of probably the most dangerous place on earth for a mutant to go. Then again, Johnny had to respect the man for that in some regards. It was a clever way to keep hidden from the bounty on his head... But not that clever. John had been here for weeks, stalking him, learning his habits and following him...
Outside a small diner sat a man reading a newspaper, obviously American. His name was Sam Whitacre, he was a mutant, and a very dangerous one at that. Wanted in more than twenty countries, he had a bounty on his head that would definitely pay for Johnny's extravagent desires... at least for a time.
As he drank his coffee, the man had no idea the events that were about to play out before him. Then again, neither did Johnny as he walked up to the diner and sat down opposite of the man.
"Good day, hope you don't mind me sitting here... It's not often I see another American around here." The latter part was a said a bit more quietly, as Johnny settled into his seat, dark sunglasses hiding his pale eyes.
The man chuckled nervously, "I understand, no it's no problem." The man was wary, and for good reason, he was a runner. The kind of bounty that knew how to run and was good at it, he never trusted anyone. Which made it harder for Johnny, but the man already let him sit at his table... This was going to be the easiest bounty Johnny had collected in some time, or so he thought.
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Post by mero on Apr 17, 2011 0:18:13 GMT -5
Ah, the Middle East. If you wanted to disappear, this was the place. Unless, of course, you ended up getting a bounty on your head. Then no place was safe. Especially when it was a kill order... Which happened to be Merfonde's specialty.
Merfonde had only taken the job a week before, and decided on one thing. Instead of spending countless hours learning his behavior, she focused on finding the one place he visited most, and set up to wait for him.
The woman had rented an apartment in one of the buildings overlooking the diner that he went to almost every day. From there, she waited, a pair of binoculars raised to her eyes. And... There he was, newspaper and coffee in hand. Spotting him, she dropped the binoculars into her bag, scooping her her rifle. Raising it, she stared through the scope, slowly making adjustments. Suddenly she stopped. Someone had approached him, another Caucasian man... A few moments passed, and she dismissed his presence. It made no difference to her. She returned to her adjustments, and finally... She was ready to take the shot.
She waited several moments, her breaths even as her finger curled over the trigger....
bang!
Merfonde didn't miss, the bullet hitting her target square in the chest. She didn't wait to see what happened. Quickly and efficiently she disassembled the weapon, stashing the parts in her bag, and then left. She didn't want to be here if they figured out where the shot came from. And anyone questioning the landlord would only learn that a woman had rented the place, paying in cash.
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Post by cadillac on Apr 17, 2011 0:37:18 GMT -5
Johnny and his mark began to chat for a few minutes, Johnny was making him lower his guard; which the man was doing easily. This was the way Johnny played, he had gotten the codename "Spectre" when he worked for the agency because of his powers, but in reality, the nickname stuck because it fit his behaviour.
He was a ghost in every way. When he hunted a target, he was quiet about it, doing it with words rather than bullets. So when the job was done, no one knew he was there, because there were no clues that he left behind. He was an expert at this, and always quiet, always in control of the situation.
In the street, a few cop cars stopped and the officers got out and began arguing in Arabic with a group of men. It was obviously some sort of gang, and whatever was being said was starting to get more aggressive as time passed. Johnny ignored this though and focused on his mark.
"Looks like things are starting to get a little shady... Looks like it is time to go." Johnny said as he stood up.
"Yes, don't want to be around here if the bullets start flyin-" Before the man could finish there was a loud bang. Blood spattered Johnny's face and the front of his clothes as the man's chest seemed to explode from a gunshot.
Most people began screaming and running, but Johnny was livid. Someone had stolen his bounty! Immediately his head turned to where the shot came from, judging by the entry wound it was shot from a short, elevated, distance. There weren't many tall buildings around and the only one Johnny could see behind him was an old dirt motel. He watched it for a moment, and saw some faint movement in the second window and if he wasn't mistaken... the glint of the sun reflecting off a gun, that was the him. That had to be the guy that stole his bounty.
Without a moment of hesitation, Johnny jumped up and ran for the building. Unfortunately, the gunshot made the cops think they were being shot at, and made the gang think THEY were being shot at; so both opened fire on each other. It was absolute chaos in the streets, but calm and collected, Johnny moved carefully through it. Johnny was going to spill some blood, but it wasn't going to be Sams... it was going to be the dirty dog that stole his bounty.
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Post by mero on Apr 17, 2011 1:00:03 GMT -5
Merfonde knew all hell was about to break out. What with the Police officers and gangs arguing so close, but she really didn't care. The Government here was already corrupt, and a gun fight would have broken out in the end either way. Her actions just... sped things up.
Once the shot was fired, she had to get out of there fast, and leave no trail. She left through the back entrance, ducking into the fleeing crowd. No one was going to pay any attention to a random foreigner running from the scene of a gun fight, considering she wasn't the only foreigner around. To everyone else, she was just one of them, trying to get as far away as possible. As she fled, she smirked, pleased with the all to easy kill. How could a man like that have such a high Bounty? Oh well, that was probably the easiest money the woman had earned in quite some time.
The farther from the scene she got, the more relaxed she became. Of course she didn't expect any sort of retaliation. Why should she? She'd made a clean kill, left no trace at the hotel room, the landlord didn't even know her real description. She grinned then. Anyone that questioned the landlord would get a rather generic description, blonde haired, blue eyed with an Australian accent.
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Post by cadillac on Apr 17, 2011 1:17:21 GMT -5
It took a few minutes for Johnny to cross the short distance to the hotel, he probably would've made it a lot faster had it not been for the war breaking out in the streets. Sure, he could've used his power and been to the hotel in only a few moments, but he didn't want to risk exposing himself as a mutant yet. This city obviously hated itself, but it would rally together if they knew a mutant was among, they hated them far more.
Johnny burst into the door of the hotel, the manager was cowering behind the desk. The normally calm, cool and collected Johnny walked over and grabbed the man by his shirt collar and roughly lifted him up. Nobody messed with Johnny's bounty, nobody.
"Did anyone leave here in a hurry just moments ago? A tenant, not from around here?" Johnny's slight British accent shone through now as he spoke to the man. Though his voice was calm, it was laced with threats and anger, enough to scare the man.
""Ye...yes. An... Australian I think, left through the back door seconds ago." The man spoke with broken accent, but Johnny picked up enough to understand what he said.
Without wasting another moment, Johnny ran for the back door, busting through it and out into the street. An Australian, figures, those men seemed to make some of the best bounty hunters. Johnny scanned the fleeing crowd, not knowing what to look for, but assuming it was a man. All he looked for was someone that was walking calmly, it was a far shot to hope to see that, but it was worth it.
On the far side of the street, where the crowd thinned out, he saw someone walking very calmly; almost relaxed. He couldn't make out what they looked like, or even what gender they were, but it was his best shot for now. He ran into the crowd, running as fast as he could to close the distance; not caring who he ran in to. In his frantic pursuit, he looked just like the rest of the crowd that was fleeing.
As he got to the other side he stopped running and paused in the middle of the village street. He was a ways from the fighting now, so the people here weren't panicking as badly, but he could hear it getting closer. His mind began racing as he tried to think of where to go to find this person, then it donned on him... A phone, if they were any kind of bounty hunter they were going to try and call this in as soon as possible. This village was too far out to get any kind of cell phone service or internet, so it was going to be a landline phone... Which gave Johnny an idea of how to mess up his bounty stealers plans. With a grin, he ducked into a back alley and toward one of the powerlines that ran through town...
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Post by mero on Apr 17, 2011 1:31:05 GMT -5
Merfonde was careful. Even relaxed her senses were on high alert, her gaze scanning for anything that was out of the ordinary, well out of the ordinary for a slowly panicking crowd. Every so often she would look over her shoulder, checking the crowd for anyone that had been there the last time she'd checked, a sign of being followed. So far... Nothing.
Smirking again, she started for another shop on the other side of town, far from the scene. She'd already scouted the place, and decided that when she'd killed the man, she'd call it in there. Of course she was going to call it in while she was still here, the sooner she did, the less likely someone would try to claim it as their own. Sure, it was rare, but it happened between Bounty Hunters sometimes. Actually, Merfonde herself was guilty of doing this quite a few times already.
In the cafe she put on a fake smile and greeted the man behind the counter. She wasted no time, asking the man if she could use his telephone. And how could he say no to her when she was being this polite and charming?
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Post by cadillac on Apr 17, 2011 1:42:28 GMT -5
Johnny glanced around him as he moved closer to the telephone pole, no one was around here. It wasn't on a street, but in one of the back alleys, so it was away from the screaming and frantic crowd. He slowly reached into his suit jacket's pocket and pulled out a small package, plastic explosives... He always came with a few, just in case.
He attached it carefully to the bottom of the wooden pole, sliding a tiny, blinking red rod into the package. Then he carefully stepped back into the alley and headed to where he last so the calmly walking person. As he made his way back into the village, he pulled out a small handheld remote and hit the button on it.
BOOM!
The sound blended in well with the war going on in the lower village, however, to a well trained ear they would be able to tell that it was closer than the fighting. Despite the fact that the fighting was obviously moving closer.
As he stepped into a small plaza, surrounded by bars and cafe's, he had an idea. Cell phone service didn't work here, but if this bounty hunter couldn't make his call, he was going to be looking for any chance to call it in before someone else did. So, calmly, Johnny pulled out his cellphone and very blatantly began talking on it. No, it had no service, no signal, and was actually turned off, but if there was a chance his bounty stealer saw him... Well... Things would get very interesting.
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Post by mero on Apr 17, 2011 2:00:33 GMT -5
Merfonde was, quite literally, only minutes away from claiming the bounty. The number dialed, she held it to her ear, listening to it ring. On the third ring though.... It suddenly went dead. The woman froze as a new sound reached her ears. Something that wasn't caused by the her assassination. Suddenly she realized what it was. The power lines.
Holding back a curse, she returned the phone to the owner and left in a blind fury. Really, what were the chances of the landlines going down? No, this couldn't be an after affect, not that quickly at least. Someone had taken them down.Why? Well she could come up with plenty of reason. But she couldn't dwell on it. She had to get somewhere with a working land line, or cell service.
She was heading for the road that left town. No point staying here if she couldn't get a call out. Suddenly she stopped. She was in the same plaza, when she spotted something rather.... well odd. A man on a cell phone? But how was that possible? There wasn't any cell service here! Even worse.... It was that same man as before, the one that had been talking to her target when she shot him.
Merfonde rolled her eyes as a plan came to mind. Great. She approached, putting on that cute, charming smile of hers, looking just like any other tourist that had been caught up in the whole mess. "I didn't think anyone could get service way out here. Who's it with?" Her accent was different, German this time. She wanted to know, right here and now, why this man had service....
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Post by cadillac on Apr 17, 2011 2:12:58 GMT -5
It hadn't been long that John was on the phone before someone approached him, in fact, he hadn't even been on it long enough to start wondering if the plan would work when a voice behind him spoke over the chaos. John wasn't surprised the planned worked, however, he was very surprised that the voice was... female? German as well, judging by the accent.
He turned around to face an attractice woman, glancing over her from behind his night black sunglasses. She was definitely not from around here judging by the way she dressed, but then in his black armani suit, neither was he. For a moment he would have assumed she may just be a tourist engaging him in conversation, had it not been for the fact that absolute chaos was going on around them and she was totally calm. As much as Johnny wanted to believe the bounty hunter was male... This woman had to be the one who pulled the trigger.
"It's a satellite phone actually, I get coverage everywhere, costs a lot but it is worth it. Especially with my business." Johnny didn't hide his british accent, no, in moments he was going to kill her so it didn't matter anyways.
Johnny hung up the phone and slid it in his pocket, he had her hooked now. Now it was just the task of getting her to tangle herself up in the web he had weaved. "Well, I should be getting cover indoors. This is the third fight this week and it sounds like it will be a long one, I would suggest you do the same. Good day." He said with a nod, and began walking toward a small hotel, the actual hotel he had been staying in. Though he walked slowly, he knew she was going to follow... Like a snake waiting for his prey to get close.
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Post by mero on Apr 17, 2011 2:34:11 GMT -5
Merfonde wasn't the only calm one, apparently. This man didn't even seemed worried about the fighting. The red flags in her head instantly went up. Interesting! He looked like a regular business man, suit and all, but something was off. Maybe she was imagining it, maybe not.... But now she was curious.
She waited patiently for a reply, that sweet smile still on her lips. And when she got it, she held back her glee. Of course. Now she just had to get that phone... "Sounds pretty useful. Must come in handy." She would have 'left' then, but he'd gone on to say more. Faking interest once again, she feigned concern. "Well, I'd hate to get involved with any of that. See you around." Oh, he'd definitely see her.... Very soon. She watched him leave, her eyes like a big cat that had spotted it's prey. After a few moments though, she left herself. She wouldn't follow him directly, but that didn't mean she was going to let him out of her sights for more then a few seconds. She needed that phone if she wanted to call in the bounty before someone else tried to claim it.
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Post by cadillac on Apr 17, 2011 2:44:57 GMT -5
Johnny didn't glance over his shoulder as he walked to the hotel, he knew she'd be watching and he had to act normal... Well, as normal as he could considering a war was going on. As he walked into the hotel, which many people were hiding inside, he made his way to the stairs. Checking the cellphone in his pocket, he smirked to himself, it would be funny when she realized it was just a regular phone with no service.
He walked up the stairs and made his way to his room, leaving the door cracked just a little bit. Casually, as if still in the act, he tossed his phone on the bed, where it could be seen very easily. Though he took off his jacket and laid it by it as well so it didn't seem like it was bait and looked natural. Then, he closed the bathroom door, but he wasn't inside.
Instead, behind the door that lead into the room, he waited in the darkness. He blended in perfectly, making it almost impossible to see him, and making it look as if he was in the bathroom. There he waited for his prey, and to soon exact his revenge.
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Post by mero on Apr 17, 2011 3:07:00 GMT -5
He was heading for a hotel. She stayed hidden though, a safe distance away. Only when he was inside did she start to close the gap. Couldn't lose track of him, now could she? If she did she'd be forced to check all of the rooms! That did not sound appealing in the least...
She would have confronted him on the stairs, but had to pull back from another guest coming down. Dammit... It was to open. Someone would see her if she tried to take it there. She'd have to get into the room and take it by force, or with out him noticing.
Spotting what room he was in, she waited, and plotted. How should she do this? Pick the lock? Convince someone that worked here to give her a spare key? He'd been in the room for a few minutes when she finally approached. It was.... open? Of course it happened sometimes, but this was to good to be true. Something was up.
She thought for several moments. To just use the door, or come up with some sort of plan. Ugh, but another plan would mean wasting time! Time that she didn't have to spare! Curse her impatience.... With a sigh, she set her pack just outside the door, yanking one of her concealed daggers out of it's sheath, and slowly, carefully, pushed the door open.
The first thing she noticed was the closed bathroom door. It was possible he was in there, she didn't see any movement in the room from outside... And there was the phone, along with the man's jacket, on the bed. A cautious moment passed, before impatience urged her to move. Slowly and silently she slipped inside.
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Post by cadillac on Apr 17, 2011 3:32:06 GMT -5
As soon as the door beside Johnny started to move, he knew he had been right. He pushed himself back into the darkness further, letting it engulf him. As she entered the room he couldn't help but smirk. So... A female bounty hunter? Didn't see many of them around, but she was good enough to steal his bounty so who was he to be sexist? Well... try to steal.
When she began to cautiously approach the bed, he slowly and very silently pushed the door shut. Closing it and locking it without a sound. Then carefully he stepped behind her, raised his foot, and slammed it into the hand that was holding her knife. Once he had knocked that loose, he reached from behind and grabbed her hair, pulling on it.
"You know it's polite to touch things that don't belong to you." With that, he pushed her forward onto the ground. Once she hit the ground he began to unbutton his vest, staring at her on the ground.
It looked as though he was stripping as he pulled off his vest and tossed it aside, then began to unbutton his cufflinks. Then his tie, tossing it aside, "I really don't like when people touch my things." He said, as he began to unbutton his shirt.
As he finally unbuttoned it, he slid it off and tossed it aside, revealing another black shirt underneath. Over that black shirt however, was a chest harness with throwing knives and two holstered pistols. The sleeves of the black shirt were rolled up, revealing a retractable blade on both forearms, "I dislike it more when someone takes my bounty from me." He said with a smirk, pulling out a pistol and pointing it at her head, "Well... tried to take my bounty at least." He said with a charming smile.
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Post by mero on Apr 17, 2011 4:01:49 GMT -5
Entering the room, she heard nothing out of the ordinary, but she didn't relax. She just had to get the phone, and then get out. Sadly... That plan was obviously foiled. She didn't hear the door shutting or locking, but she did feel the sudden kick to her hand. As a reflect she dropped the weapon, and turned to attack her assaulter... who suddenly had her by the hair. What was with men and pulling on a women's hair?! She had absolutely no reaction to the hair pulling, which might be a little shocking to some.
The man was stronger then her, but that wasn't that unheard of, Mero unable to do anything about the shove to the ground. Instantly though she turned to shoot him a venomous stare. She didn't do anything yet though. Just let the British man ramble on and on. At one point she actually rolled her eyes, as she hopped back to her feet. He was to busy stripping down to his undershirt, after all. It wasn't like he seemed to care what she did. But, it seemed impolite to just attack him while he was in the process of undressing.
The weapons harness didn't seem to phase her, she didn't even blink when the pistol was pulled out and pointed. Suddenly though, she was smirking. "All is fair in love and war." Her fake accent had been dropped, replaced by... Well a rather odd one that could have come from just one nation. It seemed to be an interesting mix of several European accents. "And seeing as you were to busy cozying up to him, it's your own fault you lost." Suddenly though she didn't look all that humorous, she looked dangerous, much like any angered bounty hunter. "I don't plan on handing over that reward to anyone, especially if that someone is you."
She rushed forward, ducking low in case he decided at that moment to shoot her. First things first, that pistol had to go. She kicked out at the weapon with enough force to send it flying.
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Post by cadillac on Apr 17, 2011 9:58:10 GMT -5
"Well, I've never had love, but war is quite nice." John said with a smirk, when she spoke about not handing over the reward Johnny acted as if she had hurt him. "Someone like me? I'm actually quite a nice guy, or so I've been told." He said with a grin, raising the gun slightly and squeezing the trigger.
Just as he did so, however, he felt her foot slam into his hand. This both caused him to pull the trigger, wildly missing her, and drop the gun. He quickly took several steps back though, putting some distance between them. With a flick of his wrists, the two blades on both forearms slid out. Both of the blades were a little over a foot, thin, and razor sharp. When they were used with Johnny's powers, he became a force to be reckoned with. For now however, he would let her think he was just a regular person. Well... Regular for being a bounty hunter.
Behind his black sunglasses, which were somewhat odd he was wearing such dark glasses inside, but he had his reasons, he stared at the woman. "I promise that I'll try not to cut that pretty face. I'd hate for such a beautiful figure to get ruined." Johnny said as he clicked the blades together. It was a little amusing that even now when he was about to kill someone, he had time to flirt with them.
Without warning he lunged forward, slashing one arm down at an angle across her chest and trying to plunge the second blade into her heart at the same time. She was quick, he had to admit that, faster than any human he'd seen before; but most were fairly surprised with how quickly Johnny could move as well. That's how he fought though, speed and grace over brawn and rage.
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