Do you have an appointment? (open)

*Jackel didn't feel too bad letting her go alone. He would be near by just incase, for at least a day or two. Just to make sure it wasn't her they were after, if they were even there at all and it wasn't just his paranoia acting up.
He remained on the corner in plain site looking around for anyone looking like they were coming for either himself or the girl he just met. He did this for two reasons. the first was to draw anyone away from her and the second was so she would know he was still there if she turned around. As soon as she was out of eyes sight he'd Start his watch over her.*

Zinc didn’t head home immediately afterward. She wanted to have a little bit of fun first. Nonchalantly heading over to a video game shop, she stood by the windows to look at some of the game demos. It was something to keep her preoccupied with her time since she wasn’t planning on hunting anyone. Ever since someone had started competing with her(were they even competing?), the number of her human trophies had remained the same for quite sometime. That meant no more dangerous or deadly hunts, and she had no intention to waste her time on weaklings.

The screens switched to a more exciting game, making her eyes gleam. Now that was a game she could buy. A few minutes later, she had her video game and was slightly over reacting by hugging it the way a child hugs their blanket.

*As soon as Zinc was out of sight he bolted up the side stepps of an apartment complex until he reached the roof. He sprinted across the roof tops until he had caught up with Zinc again. he remained cautious enough to keep his shadow out of sight as well. He was constantly scanning the crowd for peole with similar faces and hair cuts to make sure no one was following Zinc. Zinc herself stood out quite a bit so it wasn't too hard to keep track of her unless she went inside a building, then he would have to wait for her to come back out again.*

Tossing the video game up and down, the young woman made her way down the street, humming to herself. Unexpectedly, she saw someone dart in front of her and felt something snatched away. “What?!” A sudden step back as the thief got ready to run with her money pouch. She liked to call her wallet her money pouch. It sounded cute.

Thick fingers wrapped around his forearms and the talons stabbed his flesh and curl viciously to hold him fast. He cried out and dropped her wallet. The moment it fell, was the moment Zinc yanked his arm back and to the side, tearing gashes into his arm before releasing him to pick up her wallet.

As calm and collected as she had been working, her voice held a threatening tone, “Don’t ever steal from me again.” That was absolutely pointless. Her claws weren’t very bloody, she didn’t hit any of the major arteries. Just caught muscle and ripped it open to cause pain.

The boy nodded violently and ran off, probably to the nearest hospital. There was a snort of disgust that came from her but she continued onwards to her destination; home.

*When she started tossing the item in the air Karim could no longer sprint ahead of her. He would have to follow behind. When the boy attempted to steal Karim almost jumped in but She had caught him almost effortlessly. He did not agree at all with the way he had been treated but he could not really say anything at the moment.
Karim noticed three men in suits coming from three directions toward Zinc. One from the back one from the front and one from the right. Now was the time to see what would happen, would they grab her in an effort to get to him? Had she put on a convincing enough preformance back at the food place? Were they even after her or were they just regular people? Karim started rubbing his fingertips together from his nervousness. He watched all three carfully as they began getting closer and closer.*

She stopped walking for a moment, to pull out a think red handkerchief to wipe off some of the blood off her clothes. Zinc was a very clean and neat person. As she began to clean off her fingers, out of her peripheral vision, she noticed three, similarly dressed persons walking in her general direction. Perhaps these were the men that wanted Karim? There was a sudden spark of over protectiveness as her lips twitched. Her hair just by a fraction appeared to rise, making her already layered hair look thicker.

The air carried a kind of tense forbidding, making it heavy. Yet, her heart rate increased the tiniest bit as adrenalin started to seep into her veins. It was not a lie to say that she was getting the slightest bit afraid but that was pushed down when she recorded their positions by ‘accidentally’ dropping her game and squatting to pick it up, turning around in a full circle to see.

She inhaled, her shoulders raising as her rib cage expanded and her lungs filled with oxygen like balloons. Blending in with the crowd and disappearing in places was her skill.

Ducking her head, she lowered herself to look short as she slipped into a large thicket of people. As she predicted, the suited persons followed, nearing her. There was one up in front who wasn’t moving. Possibly waiting for her to come to him. She neared and seemed to disappear. In reality, she crouched so low and skirted to his side, getting a few strange looks in the process but successfully passed him. She stepped out of the throng of people into an alley out of the general traffic looking very smug as she started up cleaning her claws again to feel a presence behind her. Her hair suddenly stood up to make her look bigger. How could she have been so careless to forget about the other two?

An arm wrapped around her throat harshly and squeezed as she felt the gravity shift to drag her back deeper into the alley. A choke escaped her throat as she dropped her video game and handkerchief to grab at the arm holding her, her talons eager to sink into flesh. Only the skin was tough and grainy like, and she couldn’t feel it give into her sharp claws. Her claws scratched against it for a few seconds until she realized that this person must be a mutant who maybe had stone skin or had unnaturally tough skin to begin with. Her mouth dropped open to yell for help as she started to thrash, only to have a hand clamp over it, muffling her cries. Strange to say that she didn’t exactly feel very panicky. Yes, she was afraid, but she knew if she got loose, she’d be able to kill them just by running to the shadows. But for now, Zinc had to concentrate on getting free. She couldn’t risk being kidnapped; she had a video game to play when she got home!

(ooc: uuuuhh... Actually i was gonna have those guys walk right past you and have absolutely nothing to do with anything. But hey that's what being in a forum is about. Just gotta ad lib your way through alot of stuff. so here we goooo.)

*Karim watched her moving through the crowds from above He had to cross the street a couple times, not an easy task, just to keep her in sight. When she reached the alley way he saw the other two come from both ends and snag her. He would have yelled out to warn her but he had a better idea.

Karim aligned himself over the one with a grip on Zinc. He knew that a sudden neural shock from an unexpected event always weakened rationality for a few moment, or to say it basically, A surprise attack would bring down the mans defenses for a few seconds. A few seconds would be all Karim needed to break the man's grip on Zinc, it may even surprise her as well. The second assailant would be a little more tricky. He would surly surprise him as well but he would have a small amount of reaction time. This was one of the few occasions when he needed to fight without releasing the Jackel.

Karim Dropped from the roof of the building and landed on the larger man's shoulders, who felt the impact and released the grip ever so slightly. Karim pulled his feet together as much as he could to clamp them around the man's jawline and neck. He then twisted his body and torqued it to break the man's neck and turn the head completely around, as the former man's nervous system released freeing Zinc from his grip. The other man who was slightly smaller Had a "Scared out of his mind" look on his face as Karim faced him on his partner's shoulders and then launched at him. He grabbed the second man by the shoulders and planted his feet in the man's abdomen and kicked off, forcing the air out of his lungs and causing the man to vomit. As the man leaned over to release his bodily fluid through his mouth Karim kicked a foot out from under him causing him to fall and then abruptly stomped his neck to crush the wind pipe.

*Karim controlled his breathing to slow it from the adrenaline of what just happened. He looked back to where Zinc was to see if she had seen the act or if it happened fast enough that he could still make a getaway with out her knowing it was him.*

((Oh... Oopsy ^W^)

A vague feeling of being watched crept up her spine, but she dismissed it, believing that it was just the being observing his bigger partner do the work. Her feet kicked as she doubled her efforts to escape and break a few bones.

There was a sudden jolt and his hand dropped from her mouth and the arm around her neck loosened but didn’t give. There was a loud crack and her would be kidnapper fell. Cause of death: broken neck. Unfortunately, she was leaning backwards when he was hit, so she collapsed along with him. Her vision flashed white for a few moments as she grabbed the back of her head and rolled over onto her belly, hearing the tell tale sounds of a fight behind her.

Zinc pushed herself off of the ground, shaking her head from side to side. “Ouch..” She grumbled as she rubbed the back of her head, feeling a bump. The claws on her feet scrapped against the ground as she got to her feet, still rubbing the back of her head. At least it wasn’t serious. And she could breathe again and no one was holding her still. Still, time to thank her rescuer, although she had a pretty good idea who it might be as she turned around quickly to make sure whoever they were didn’t get away before her mind alerted her to another presence. The third goon!

Her pupils narrowed as she caught him pointing something at her and the person behind her. There was no time to worry about her rescuer. Possibly a dart gun? No time to guess, get to the shadows, the shadows! The gun was fired as she leapt to the side and behind one of the large dumpsters the businesses used. Not the best kind of place to hide behind but she was in the dark for the most part. Now, she could disappear. It was a great skill to have; to be able to walk in the dark without being seen. But the sun was still up, the shadows were faint and not as dark as they were at night. It would be difficult to attack from them.

*Karim Saw Zinc get to a hiding place and disappear. It was good know she was out of harms way at least. Karim saw the third man and slowly turned his head to look at him. He couldn't runn from him in a straight away alley, especially since he was in the dead center of it. If he tried to run the man would have shot what ever he was holding, and the same would happen if he tried to rush him. So Karim stood there statuesque trying to stare the man down.

Karim looked down to the big man laying on the ground with his head backwards and then to the little man on the ground in his own vomit as if to wordlessly say "You see what i have done to the other two." The third man got the message and lowered his now shaking hand. He turned and ran just to ensure his own survival, leaving the bodies of his compatriates in the alley.

He breathed a sigh of relief as the third disappeared from sight. Doubtless Zinc had seen him by now so he walked to the end of the alley and picked up the bag and clothe she dropped earlier and turned around. to face the place he saw her last.*

"You can come out now."

Zinc poked her head out from where she was currently at, which happened to be very near to where the young man had stood before fleeing. She was planning on kicking his rear out all over the place for trying to ambush her, but he left. Her eyes darted from left to right, sniggering quietly, yet annoyed that the last of the three men was such a coward and left his fallen comrades. Of course, there was also the possibility that he would call for backup and bring even more powerful people.

Eyes resting on her rescuer, her teeth were bared in a huge grin. She bounded towards Karim, and tackled him in a tight hug. “Kaaaaarim!” She laughed playfully while being careful to not catch any skin with her talons. “Thank you for saving me.”

Offering a good smile and closing her eyes in her mirth, a few thoughts ran through her head. Seeing that he rescued her, she’d have to delay hunting him for his skull. Or until she could return the favor. Then they would be even. Until then, Zinc couldn’t even try to claim his skull as hers.

“Hah! Really. Thanks.” There was a sheepish smile as she rubbed the back of her head. “Seriously,” Zinc pointed to him with a thick finger, “I thought I was a goner.”

*Karim Caught her from her jump and put her back down quickly. He wasn't used to people showing so much affection for something that would, or at least should, come naturally. He held out the items for her to take. It wasn't gonna take her long to figure out how he got there so fast but he'd deal with that conversation when it came up.*

"I'm glad your alright... It looks like they assume your with me. Or maybe they are after you. Can you think of any reason why they would want you?"

Zinc eagerly took her video game, practically beaming as she inspected it. The light that entered the alley glanced off the cover in a faint sheen as she gave an approving nod. “Good. Not damaged. Still fine to play.”

As she was putting it back in the bag, Karim expressed relief that she was fine and took the moment to ask if they would have any reason for wanting to snatch her.

“Hmmm…” It was punctuated with a finger tapping her chin as she looked up. “Maybe because I’m a mutant?” Her right hand waved in his face, possibly a little too close for comfort. “Crow genes. Talons. Tough skin. Skills to jump into the shadows and disappear. That sound like a good scouting and spy job. But,” She looked at her feet then at her hands, “The tall ratio and hair style choice wouldn’t go unnoticed. Maybe assassination work?” She wondered aloud. It all sounded like logical reasons, so why wouldn’t they want her? It could be looked at as two birds with one stone. Kidnap her, get Karim to volunteer to work for them and hell, they already had her. A scenario played in her head.

A nagging feeling pinched her. Her eyes went to trail over to the dead body of the bulky man to the tiny one. “Maybe it’s an entire mutant company. But if they were looking for you, they should have obviously sent strong fighters. So why were they weak? No, they could be pawns; expendable.” Despite her better judgment, she crouched over the little man, observing his disgrace with a hidden admiring. “How’d you kill this one?” She asked as she lifted a limp hand while setting her game down. Her fingers were placed over his wrist where a person would feel a pulse and felt movement. “Shit, you didn’t kill him completely!”

The man’s other hand lifted up and latched into her wrist with enough pressure to break it. She returned the grip, obviously not as strong, with her free hand. “Ow, ow! Let go, leech!”

(ooc: try not to use such naughty filthy bad language okay... the admins might be listening)

*It was fairly obvious that she wasn't as others like to say "Full human" *Karim crossed his arms and bit the inside of his cheek as he thought about what the game plan could have been. What was the long term goal... and what was with the suits?

"An assassin... possily a theif... possibly a leading decoy. There has to be some reason these people would willingly work for this man to do such things. I wonder if they think i am one as well. I don't think i am, but if i wasn't then why would they be after me? This is so confusing."

*karim was still lost in thought when he heard her cry out. He looked over to him and smirked he must have just caught her off guard. He was still weak and he guessed just trying to finish the job no matter the cost.*

"Go for his joints. Like the thumb or the elbow. Just break him off, he'll let go."

((ah; Oops… Alright))

“And go that easy on ‘em?” There was a scoff in her voice and her upper lip curled back as she stuck out her tongue. “You go for the belly.” To demonstrate, her foot lifted exposing each digit as they curled and flexed open before it was brought down with force. If it were on the ground, it would have made a thud as she stomped. Her toes curled, the claws catching the fabric of his shirt and skin as she raked her foot back, yanking her hand free. The fabric tore and shown a darker shade in some parts. It exposed his belly and without hesitation, her taloned fingers plunged into his flesh to rip themselves free, dragging a few internal organs with them and dripping with his life fluid.

For few seconds, her eyes gazed at her fingers before registering what she actually did. Zinc just got caught up in the moment; maybe her sudden ferocity could be covered up in a self defense excuse?

With a quick movement, a finger slit his throat to kill him within a few seconds, a minute at the most. Then, on his clothes, she wiped off her claws and, with a few steps, leaned her back against the far side of the alley’s wall to lift one foot at a time to ensure nothing got on them. Her left had the most blood on it, to which was promptly removed as she fished out a handkerchief to clean them.

*Karim Watch the presicion of her attack with a bit of suprise. She did not seem like that kind of person that would ruthlessly kill a person, of course then again neither did he. He took a step back purely out of cautious instinct.*

"when these bodies are found it won't take long to figure out how he died. We should leave soon, obviously not the way we came in. Any suggestions?"

Zinc noticed Karim take a step back. Assuming it was out of surprise and caution, the latter seemed most appropriate, the air around her shifted to something less hostile and more welcoming.

Stating something that one could easily figure out just by looking at the scene, she pointed a talon upwards, her eyes resting on Karim. “Up.” She replied simply. She scooped up her video game and climbed up onto the closed lid of the dumpster to jump and haul herself up the fire escape. Flexing her fingers out of habit she grasped the railing to cock her head in his direction, similar to a curious bird.

“Ya comin?”

*Karim looked at the walls distance from one building to another and began stretching his legs to let her get a head start. He hadn't done wall kicks in a long time and figured it would be a good way to stay in practice.*

"I will. Go on ahead. I just want to try something."

The young woman shrugged. “Alright then. I’ll be seeing you on the roof then.” With a wave of a talon, Zinc made her way towards the roof in a brisk and important walk. She kept glancing down at Karim to see what he was going do. Perhaps teleport? Jump? Or maybe he was about to show off. It was worth a few guesses to mull over and think about. That only made her tap the pads of her fingers against the cover of her game going back to thinking of whether or not to consider him as a trophy. Perhaps not.. Seeing as they were getting along, and he was good company since she hadn’t really socialized in a while..

*Karim Cracked his knuckles to get hs fingers ready for their work out. He ran up a wall as high as he could and grabbed the window sill. He looked behind him for the next window sill and kicked of the wall to the opposite wall and grabbed at the sill. He continued this for about four stories before his fingers started aching. He jumped over to the fire ladder and came over the rail. He was looking up and down to se if he had passed Zinc of if she was already topside. Either way he knew he should have been able to do more.*

Zinc paused to watch, having seen those in higher rank than her in martial arts class perform such a feat. Being weaker in strength deterred her from ever trying to attempt to leap from wall to wall, but her talons sometimes aided her. It blunted them greatly though. Their sharp tips would be round and ground down, and blunted talons were never good self defense.

She clapped, soft thuds coming from her thick skinned hands. “Bravo! That was amazing,” she complimented as the last thud rang from her hands. “Didn’t even strain a muscle or anything else, no?”

"It does get more difficult the longer you do it. That is why I could not ascend the full height of the building."

*Karim shook his hands to let the blood rush back to them. As he did he fingers became hot with the blood trying hard to restore the balance in his body. He clenched his fists tight to force some of it out and then relaxed them. The other reason he did not go all the way up was because he was out of practice, but she didn't need to know that.*

"Well enough playing. We must still leave."

*He headed the rest of the way up on the stair taking them two at a time.*

Zinc was very tempted to poke him with a curved talon, remarking that he should have tried a little harder. What use was it to have such a skill that nearly no one else had and not make good use of it?

As he moved past her, the muscles in her shoulders drew them in, the feathers on her shoulders and upper arms fluffing slightly as her eyes followed him. The appearance she gave off was that a sulking kid only to be shed as her fingers flexed her talons in front of her face, her eyes seeming to admire her black talons for a few seconds to slip after him.

She wanted to show off a little. This woman, however, was against showing off, thinking it as a selfish and attention grabbing act. These thoughts were countered with the rationing as a game and practice to test her vanishing skills with a trained fighter. Maybe he wouldn’t be able to hear her run up right behind him on these noisy stairs that clanged and sent vibrations when stepped on.

A smirk slipped on her face as she slowed her breathing and quickened her pace, focusing on keeping as silent as possible, using his steps to mask any noise she would be making as she silently, stalked a short foot behind him like a living shadow. Never mind he could possibly sense her; the point was not that, it was to see if he could even hear her. Not sense her. Although she’d have to work on that..

*karim SUddenly got a chill on the back of his neck that he knew far too well. It was the feeling of being stalked and watched. His body reacted automatically and ceased all movement to allow him to listen to his surrounding. It was right behind him he knew that much but was it his compnion or possibly another empowered person. He put his hand up to siganl for Zinc to stop her movement as well.*

"Is that you I"m picking up or someone else?"

The young woman watched smugly, the smirk pulling at her lips. She was spooking him, which greatly amused her while tempting her to grab his shoulders, shouting “Boo!” just to shake him up a little. As always, scaring others was always the best kind of fun there ever was. Especially when that fun consisted of jumpy people that spooked easily.

Zinc was just about to scare him for laughs when he stopped walking and put his hand up. The smirk died on her face as her hands that were raised to push him squarely in the back were lowered.

In response to his question, she raised a brow. She twisted slightly and lifted her foot to pat the stairs, making a soft scuffle as the tough skin brushed against the metal.

“Boo. Is that an acceptable answer?”

"Boo? What does this mean, Boo? Is that who is following us?"

*Karim had never head the term before and had no idea what it meant. He had after all come from a different culture and language. Sure htere were ghost stories but they were more out of respect for those who have pasted on rather then to fear their spirits. They had been taught if they ever saw a spirit to do what they could to help ease it's path to the other side.

Karim looked around them at the other roof tops and below them to see if he could see anyone. There was a hard look on his face, almost protective. Everytime a close by sound was heard his neck would make a shape turn in that direction, not to look but to hear better. His eye constantly move but never really focusing on anything, more like trying to take everything in at once to look for things that were out of place.*