> Chance in Plureality 6

January 12th, ????

I'm leaving this floating in the stream. I still don't understand it, but I've come to feel its pull from time to time. The Angel and the Demon tried their best to explain it, but it's never fully taken hold.

I've kept moving like they suggested, never stayed in one place too long, never made waves; just observed them.

I can't count the number of places I've been in, nor the number of 'instances' I've participated in... I usually know when a jump is coming though. It's like a tremor, you could be doing anything, then you notice it. Things just seem off, or far too clear. Police describe the adrenaline rush they get as heightening sounds or sensations, things are louder, clearer... More focused. It's a shame I've never been able to adapt to it and use it like I feel I should be able to. I just get lost in it, fall into the life I've taken on during that instance... Try to cling to it, like it'll make a difference this time around...

I've made my way by assuming lives. Easiest way to start, gather up some money... Starting from the bottom in some instances, beg, borrow, steal... Get some bankroll. After that, hit up a storage auction. You'd be surprised what kind of a start you can get from that... Little bits of a person or a family, all conveniently stowed awaiting retrieval. You can use that, set yourself up, assume a life. 

I know I'm supposed to observe, and wait... For what I still don't know, but I see them sometimes, during those tense moments. The kid and the girl with feathers in her hair. Often the man with the amusing or ironic t-shirts is there. Sometimes others... Recurring characters in a story I'm not allowed to know, but I play a part in apparently nonetheless.

I'm writing this now because I don't want to do this anymore.... I'm tired... I wish I'd never taken the time to listen to those two. Maybe I'd still be bouncing from cube to cube, making my ends meet, instead of digging through other peoples forgotten life fragments, trying to make some facsimile of a life. 

I want the meaning I was promised by those two that day over breakfast... I'll even take part of that meaning... Something will be better than nothing... And yet... I still gets that feeling... Like the other night in that noodle shop. 

There was a car accident outside, I'd swear that happened in slow motion... A white car narrowly avoided the wreck... It sped off into the night, leaving one of its passengers behind. I'd never met him, but he had that feeling about him, as I watched from the sidelines as I usually do. I knew this man somehow. He walked in the same stream as we do, and if you're reading this you know what stream I mean. 

While onlookers swarmed the car crash, the suited man from the car stood staring down the street, all but unnoticed by the onlookers. He had a worn out look to him... He looked like I feel. Tired... Worn out... Just done. 

Another man came out of the crowd then, also seemingly unnoticed by any of the onlookers. He walked with him and led him to a bench, where they sat down. It was then the scene enveloped me as they usually do... I could hear the sizzling of the kitchen behind me... The rustling of the man across from me as he turned to look at the chaos taking place in the streets, the overhead fans thrummed in tune to the footsteps of the people crowding the accident outside.

The two suited figures on the bench talked, the scruffy and worn man in his dirty suit and pristine crucifix; His head slowly leaning to one side. The old man in blue beside him, shaking his hands at him in an almost chiding manner, leaning on a cane, as if to reiterate a point already discussed. Still, no one but I seemed to notice them.

This carried on for some time, until the police showed up outside. A recurring character, the large detective among them this time for some reason. It was then the man in the blue suit took notice, of the detective I assume... When he placed his hand on his listeners shoulder and patted it. It felt like goodbye from where I was seeing it.

A man rose from the noodle counter inside with me and headed out to street. I'd seen him before... I'd recognize him every time, the angel mentioned him a lot, made a point of it even, he wore a black t-shirt this time with a large yellow infinity symbol on it. He rushed out to the nearby bench to the suited man's side, whom now alone raised his head to look at him with a smile. Then he closed his eyes and let his head sink into his chest. 

The normal merge feeling I get turned to nausea then, and I felt like I couldn't breath... I knocked over my noodles when I ran to the bathroom, and once I hit the door I shifted... I'm leaving this letter on the typewriter I found amongst the clutter in the old shop I ended up in...

If you're riding the same stream... Please... I'm done... I want to go back to how it was... Before the man on the bench... Before that morning in the diner... Hell. I'll take getting fired, I'll even take getting creamed by that white Buick that morning instead of missing it. Just let this all make some sense...

Signed... KEANE.

Neo Static: The Permutation Particles Polka - End

Aqua was in the middle of the tunnels; she was cut up and badly bruised but she kept swinging. It wasn't long before Suki was with her and she let her know that the job was done.

Darius, Twofeathers and Suki ran through the complex as Ul'ran zombies clambered after them. Wanting them to join the party.

Frank looked at the countdown on his chronometer. Only 18 more seconds to go before they were all aligned.

Angst, Ruffo and Angelissa sat at a table sipping tea as others walked past.

Max hovered off the floor, his fingers moving about seeing the data-streams of timelines before him and shaking his head 'no', dropping a few strings and gathering more and shaking his head 'no'.

Dan picked up the dice once again as everyone around the table waited for what was going to happen. It all resulted in this dice roll. It was all or nothing on this one.

"It's about time you joined the fight," Aqua shot at Suki.

"Sure thing, girlfriend," Suki said. "You think what I was doing was a picnic?"

"Yeah," Aqua replied. She took out a huge beastie with a punch, sending it sprawling back into its buddies. "Now, let's see if we can hold them off!"

"Madness," Twofeathers replied. No matter what corner they turned or what room they entered it seemed that the Ul'ran were already there. "This is madness."

"You don't know the half of it, sister," Suki said. She was rubbing her elbow; her arm was sore after dispensing a lot of charges with the Godhammer. She hoped Max was correct with whatever he was doing since it seemed like it was going to be the end.

Darius took out his cross necklace and gave it a kiss for luck. Twofeathers did a double-take at him and then she let out a chuckle.

Frank checked the shotgun and was about to join Suki and Aqua in the tunnels.

"There's nothing you can do there," Max said to him.

"What?" Frank looked at him. "You're kidding right?"

"Frank, when have I ever misled you?" Max asked.

"The question is when haven't you misled me," Frank said. His impulse was to go and help the kids out in a overwhelming battle. But he trusted Max to the very end of his life.

"Can I get you ladies anything else?" the waiter asked.

Angst nodded and flashed him a smile and the waiter turned a little shade of red.

"Mom," Angelissa said.

"I'm not your mother," Angst said to her, "Well, I... I could be your mother... Wait... I am your mother?"

"What are we doing waiting here?" Ruffo asked. She had a sound of agitation in her voice. She didn't know where they were and what they were doing but it was nice just to sit and catch their breath for a little while. "What are we suppose to be waiting for?"

"You will know when you see it," Angst said. She leaned over and gave Angelissa a kiss on the cheek, letting her know full well that she would be the mother she would never know.

Max's fingers were moving across like he was playing a huge harp. That's when he noticed blood on the tips of his fingers.

"Now you know how Bryan Adams felt," Maggie whispered.

Max noticed that his fingertips had thin slices like papercuts but it wasn't stinging at all.

"... and that's when you notice the cuts on Max's fingertips, each finger that he's been weaving with has left tiny droplets of his blood in it..." Tim said.

Dan's mouth dropped and everyone around the table looked up and he added, "You mean?"

"Yep," Tim stated with a sly smile. "Exactly. Now make your roll and let's just see how well the code was written."

Dan shook the dice in his hands and let them drop onto the table. They did their dance: the negative dice landed on a 1 (which was good to see) and the positive dice landed on a 6 and this meant he rolled it again and added it to the total.

Dan picked up the die to roll, Tim turned his attention to Peyton.

Aqua had taken a critical wound to the neck. Blood was pumping out due to her adrenaline being pushed to the limits, but she cracked a smile since she was going out on her own terms. She grabbed the huge beast in front of her and with all her might snapped its neck like a twig, letting out a primeval scream of victory before she staggered back.

A wall of beasties swarmed toward her.

"Nooo!" Suki screamed and that's when her face changed from a tween to a woman of rage. Mustering every ounce of strength she had she took the Godhammer in her hands and snapped it in two. "She you losers in hell!"

The explosion ripped through the tunnel.

"What is it?" Darius asked of Suki. She stood still for a second and let out a gasp.

"I don't know," she replied honestly. "It just .... I don't want this to sound corny... but I felt like something bad happened."

There was the sound of an implosion echoing off in the distance. A ripple and a wave of energy began washing through the area.

"Sweet," Twofeathers said. "Now what!"

Frank let the shotgun drop to the floor and he hung his head in shame. "Was this all for naught?"

The waiter placed another round of ice tea in front of the ladies, and they all smiled and raised their glasses in a toast.

"Ha! I win," Morganfokker whispered. "You lose, like the failure that you are!"

"Would it kill you to know that this was the game plan all along?" Maggie said with a knowing smile. "A sleight of hand so simple that you'd not be paying attention to what the other hand was doing."

"What?" Morganfokker said. "No, it can't be."

Max let the strings go from his bloody fingertips and let out a sigh of relief.

"Game. Set. And Match, Morganfokker!"

It was a sound like someone receiving a call on their cellphone, a little ding that seem to echo about the realms. Max hovered off the ground, light shining around him like beams from multiple lighthouses as cracks began to appear across his body. The ultimate sacrifice, he turned to the apparition of Morganfokker and lifted up a hand and simply waved at him, like he was waving to a friend who was moving away... and that's when Max seemed to implode on himself... creating a black hole sucking in the streams, data, and other realities with him.

Before everything went dark...

Neo Static: The Permutation Particles Polka IX

Long way from home
Welcome to the Pleasuredome

Suki slipped the flash drive into the slot. Her fingers danced over the keypad like a spider crawling across hot pavement. Aqua activated her gloves as she heard the sound of ripping and space and time began to fold down the passageway.

"Max was right," Aqua muttered. "It wasn't too long before they'd be onto us!"

"You do what you are paid to do, Aqua," Suki said. "I just need to finish coding and I will join ya."

"I got this," Aqua said as she made her way up the passageway.

Shooting stars never stop even when they reach the top
Shooting stars never stop even when they reach the top

Beads of sweat ran down from Frank's forehead as he closed the laptop.

"Done," he said to Max.

Max let a few strings go while grabbing a few more and moving them about his fingers like someone weaving a tapestry would do. Max could see the results unfolding in the infinite as his fingers were working, creating a better possibility.

There goes a supernova what a pushover-yeah
There goes a supernova what a pushover

Angst, Angelissa and Ruffo were rushing through the complex. Ruffo had thought it was her base of operations but it wasn't actually her base. It looked like everyone there was going about their business and paying no heed to her as she ran through the corridors with two cheerleaders.

It looked like they were late going to the prom. Ruffo was trying to fathom what was going on and how what they were doing was related to her own homeworld being invaded by an alien race, and how that seemed to be of no significance at all.

"Is this always like this?" Ruffo asked.

"And then some," replied Angst.

We're a long way from home
Welcome to the Pleasuredome

Suki, Twofeathers and Darius where in the middle of a huge battle with 13 foot tall mechanical robots. There was a dozen of them still left while a huge pile of scrap metal was scattered about. Suki's Godhammer made it very easy but it was still a nuisance, like mosquitoes at a summer camp as you try to enjoy the campfire.

"GOT IT!" Darius shouted. He threw the item into a rucksack and then lifted his weapon.

"It's about freakin' time!" Twofeathers said. She was tired of being swatted around.

"SUKI, WE ARE LEAVIN'," Darius shouted.

"Awww." Suki seemed saddened by the fact that she had to break from battle. "Just one more?"

Neo Static: The Permutation Particles Polka V

Darius skateboarded down the ramp with Twofeathers flying a little ahead as a scout. Suki kept up with them as she jogged, making sure the Godhammer was on and ready to sing a song of death or two. Darius held a three dimension projection of the area in his hands, casually pointing to the direction they needed to go.

"Why is this Ul'ran invasion important?" Twofeathers asked as she flew back. She was bored and just wanted to talk. "We've seen a few timelines crumble in our journeys - what makes this one special?"

"Everything and nothing," Darius replied. "It's all part of the plan. What we are doing has to be of great significance or.... it could be a set point in time as well as..."

"I've learned a long time ago to just go with the flow," Suki chimed in.

Twofeathers drifted over to Suki and looked her over, as if checking for defaults. After all, hadn't they been talking with another version?

"I never thought there were any other versions of me out there," Twofeathers said. "Maybe I'm a mighty dragon in one of them."

"Or a bug on a windshield in another," Darius quipped.

Neo Static: The Permutation Particles Polka I

"... now you understand what must be done," Max said to them all. He had turned to the three-dimensional projection of Suki and Aqua hovering before them. "Time is of the essence, though the essence of time is not up for question. Comprehend?"

Aqua nodded as if she understood. She banged the battle gauntlets she was wearing together to activate them.

Suki just shrugged, lifting her hands in a 'comme ci, comme ca' motion. Her 13 year old brain was still trying to wrap around the fact of seeing herself, or another version of her, in the room with Max while he was giving them their task to do. And she was still trying to figure out if this Max was the Max.

"You got it, dude," she finally said. Then the holographic projection disappeared.

Max turned to the others he had gathered; a cup of coffee materialized before him and he took a sip of the elixir.

Suki glanced up at Max and smiled; same old Max. Then she looked at the others in the room where they had gathered:

Darius and his sidekick, Twofeathers, resting on his shoulders.

A much older version of Frank, his hair grey and his face clean shaven standing with what she had first thought was a version of Angst but turned out to be her daughter, Angelissa. Suki presumed the various strings in the plex intertwined and changed and off-shoot to various other alternatives which were endless and constantly changing like waves on a beach. 

And standing beside them was the Angst that she knew and loved but it wasn't her Angst, or maybe it was but it was not too easy to tell these days.

And then there was the Suki and Aqua which Max had contacted, wanting them to...

"You sure you are up to this, Suki?" Max asked her.

"You got it, dude," she told him.

Neo Static: What May Be, What Might Be, What It Is VI

Darius and Twofeathers were resting against a tree; well more like Darius was resting while Twofeathers seemed to fly from branch to branch looking for a particular roost that seemed comfortable. It was spring in New York City and Central Park was lovely this time of the year. Darius had only been here once before but that was New Year's and he really didn't have time to enjoy it due to the circumstances that were happening at the time.

"Damn it to hell," Twofeathers replied.

"Just get some shut eye will ya," Darius told her. '"We've got a big job to do tomorrow."

"How bout a big job right now," Max said, sending Darius out of his slumber.

"What the hell?"

Max was hovering one metre off the ground before them. "I got a job for you guys."

"Sweet!" Twofeathers stated. "But, who the frak are you?"

"This is Max," Darius told her.

"Max?" she repeated. "You mean the Max?"

"The one and only," Max answered. "And I need your help... Well, not me but some people that are going to need some help."

"You don't need to explain anything to me," Darius stated. "I'm in."

> Chance in Plureality 5

Keane sat in the booth on the quiet side of the diner. With this layout it was almost as if the other side didn't even exist, which suited him fine. He didn't really want to talk with anyone at the moment anyway. The day had gotten off to a rotten start. Slept in, burnt his breakfast (which is why he was finally getting around to it now at 2 in the afternoon), topping that off with nearly getting sideswiped going by the off-ramp on Clergy Street earlier. 

Of course that wasn't anywhere near the end of the day either. By 11am he had been called into the boss' office and had been fired. Big show of things, too - his boss must have also had a rough morning, the way he went at him. On the other hand he just might have been the kind of boss who enjoyed firing people. Didn't help that Parsons, the douche-bag from near the water cooler, had to feign concern while Keane was cleaning out his desk. That kind of rising bile feeling, makes you wish you had super powers enough to knock a person through a wall. 

It would all be alright though, he thought. Once breakfast finally came. Breakfast, especially a diner breakfast, always made him feel better. Besides, he always felt that he was meant for something more than cube work. The waitress arrived with his meal. The whole shebang! Pancakes, hash browns, toast, eggs, and a massive pile of meat. Toss in a nice cuppa java and a tall glass of OJ. This is what his day was missing from the get-go. This would make it all better, and THIS would allow the whole day to settle and make sense. 

About 3 or 4 sips into his coffee, and a bite or two into the hash browns, a lithe woman with what appeared to be feathers in her hair slid into the booth across from him. 

"Uh... Excuse me?" Keane looked up. "Can I help you?" She just smiled and pulled some of the brown curls back and tucked them behind her ear, the feathers brushing across the table. 

"There's not much you could do to help us at the moment actually..." said a young man in a long coat (who wears one of those in this weather?) as he slid in beside the woman with feathers in her hair. A silver cross jangled on a chain around his neck. "'I always liked diner breakfasts too. Guess we have that in common... But you want a really good brekky? You gotta hit those little mom and pops... Just saying," the scruffy cross-bearer said. 

"Do you guys mind? I'm trying to eat here, and I think you've got me confused with someone else," Keane pleaded. He only wanted his breakfast, even if it was 2pm. 

"Oh I wouldn't dream of stopping you from eating - in fact you're gonna need it," the man in the long coat informed. 

"It's going to be a looong day," the smiling feathered woman said.

"Look... What do you mea-" Keane started. 

"Have you ever felt like you were meant for something more?" the young man smirked. 

Keane felt something odd about that look, like these two knew more then they were saying. "Go on..." he said, slowly picking up another mouthful of hash browns with his fork.

> Chance in Plureality 4

The full moon danced off the hood of the speeding white Buick as it raced through crowded streets. Pedestrians hurled insults and dove out of its way. 

“I don’t even know what street this is!” Darius screamed, slamming a palm off the steering wheel. 

“Well, it’s not like we’re looking for a spot for dinner, right…” Two-feathers chimed. Her braids flying in the wind passing through the missing wind-shield. 

“I should know this place… That’s what’s getting to me… None of this is right…” Darius' voice shook. The screaming from the backseat broke through the chatter as another hail of bullets took off the driver-side mirror. Darius wrenched the wheel right, taking the Buick through a red light and causing a domino effect of scattering cars. The black van followed; making it through unscathed. 

“Am I…. Is he okay?” he asked. 

Two-feathers climbed over the seat, sending a few rounds back at the van. Curled up in a ball in the back seat, a young teen in a ratty trench coat screamed in pain; he was holding his face in his hands, which were covered in blood. 

“Oh…. No god… Darius, he’s hurt bad… “ Two-feathers reached a hand to Darius’ shoulder. 

“How bad?!” More gunfire from behind chewed into the trunk as Two-Feathers lay over of the boy to protect him. Darius winced, and put a hand to his face. “This isn’t right at all…” 

“It’s his eye… glass everywhere.“ Tears streamed down her face. More screams. More gunfire. The Buick screeched around a corner onto an empty street. Darius pushed the pedal even further to the floor as two sets of headlights rounded the bend coming straight for them…. 

They made it through the racers, but the van wasn’t so lucky. The tuner turned a pop can with a bone crushing smash, the van lurched over its own front end, but not before one of the Hunter team ejected through the window and out into the street. Darius slammed on the break. It hit him then, like the car wreck behind them. 

“Why are you stopping? There could be more coming… There are always more coming!” Two-Feathers panicked, one hand holding the young man, the other waving around the hand cannon. 

“I know.," Darius said slowly as he climbed out of the car. He opened the back door and leaned in over the pair, his hands emitting a soft glow. “And I think I know why.” The screaming had stopped, the boy passed out from the pain. Darius moved his hands away to check his wounds. “I can’t save the eye, but he won’t bleed out," he said placing his hands gently on the young man's face. When he took his hands away the glow was gone, but so were the wounds. Pock marks and scars remained. 

“So we go now Darius? We go?” Two-Feathers still struggled with the language in tense moments. She shook visibly, the gun wobbling in her hand. 

“Not all of us, my dear, No.” He frowned. Tears welling up in his eyes as he slid her braids aside and put a hand on her cheek. Tears ran across his hand. 

“Why… we keep running. We always get away. Right? We find Max. I said I help you find Max!” Two-Feathers dropped the gun; it clattered off the young man’s skateboard next to the seat. 

“They’re after me, love. Not you. Not him. This is what I have to do this time, you see.” He brushed some of the tears from her cheek and pulled a necklace from his neck. 

“Darius… Two-Feathers doesn’t want to lose you again.” She sobbed. 

“That’s just it, sweetheart… you aren’t losing me. This is not how you lose Me.” Taking his hand from her face he gently lifted the young man’s head and placed the necklace around his neck; the silver crucifix resting on his chest. He picked up a small battered bible from the floor of the car and put it into a pocket of the tattered long coat. Two-feathers watched this and, between sobs and wiping tears, a puzzled look replaced the pain in her eyes. “This is not losing me. This… Two-Feathers… is how we meet.” 

He smiled and wiped his own tears away, before leaning in to gently kiss her forehead. Screeching tires killed the moment. 

 “Go. Now!” Darius said, stepping back out the door and slamming it. “Drive, and keep your eyes on him. Everything will work out, trust me. Just keep him safe. Look out for him, like you always did me.” 

More tears, but in a rush of braids and feathers, she hopped into the front seat. “I love you, Darius…" she chimed in, with a sad smile from amidst the bullet-ridden Buick. 

“Remind me later, love," he says with a smile and a nod, as the Buick tears away. She watched him turn towards the wreckage of the cars in the rear-view. The young man stirred in the backseat, the chain of the necklace rattled. The rear-view caught the reinforcements arriving, the dark streets lit up with a white glow. She pushed the car harder, and the view disappeared around a corner. Then the sound of gunfire echoed into the night, along with the tears, and the feathers on the wind.

> Chance in Plureality 3

Temporal distortion detected.

And they danced....

Feathers and red hair sway. Black shoes glide quickly and deftly across confetti covered concrete. The green dress twirls past colored lanterns and crackling sparklers. The band plays, faster. Every phrase echoed in their movements.

Pulling her arm just so, the fire-haired woman with the feathers in her hair darts back towards him. He steps to one side, as she floats by, one long slender leg with a stiletto-tipped heel reaches out. A flash of light followed by cheers, that nearly drown out the crash of wood and paper. The band begins to slow.

Back together now, the pair sways from side to side, locked closely together. The two stare into each others eyes for a momentary eternity. He presses his lips to her forehead.

The back of his jacket explodes, as the band quiets. The crowd screams, and the panic starts.

Darius looks down to the smoking gun in Twofeathers' hand. She smirks. Glancing over his shoulder, the man with the shotgun falls backwards into a plastic table with a sucking chest-wound.

Strewn about the street are the barely conscious bodies of the hit squad. Some crumpled in heaps amidst paper lanterns and tables. Others inexplicably dangling from awnings overhead.

"You sure know how to show a lady a good time." Twofeathers smiles with intoxicating radiance as she slides the cannon back into the holster under Darius' arm. 

Darius pulls a stray coil of hair from Twofeathers' face with a hand that carries a fading glow of its own. "You said you wanted to go dancing after all..."

"Not quite what I had in mind." She wraps his arm around her and tucks herself under it.

"We should probably get out of here..."

The pair calmly make their way out of the square, leaving the hit-squad moaning in the wreckage of the nightmarket. As the paper lanterns sway on into the night.

> Chance in Plureality 2

Professor, we're picking up the Angel and the Gargoyle again....

The rush of air blasted by, sending Darius' coat in wild waves of movement. His arms remained crossed, propping him up on the edge of the bridge. He stared over the ledge down below.

A clattering noise echoed out of the empty canal and rose up to disappear into the evening traffic of the streets.

Darius wrapped a hand around his face, and realized he needed a shave. Though he still stared down with an odd look of bemusement. A small green piece of what could have been stone moved nearby on the bridge ledge. Twofeathers sidled up to Darius, climbing up his arm to perch on his shoulder with her small claws. The passing cars splayed his hair into a tangled mess around her. Which she, amidst coughs and sputters, managed to get free from.

"What are we doing here Darius?" the little gargoyle chirped.

"I had to check on something... part of the reason I need to find Max," Darius answered, pointing down into the canal, as he reached into his coat for a pack of cigarettes.

Twofeathers leaned out from her perch on Darius' shoulder; waving smoke from the cigarette he was lighting away from her face with a clawed hand.

"Wait.... is that?" She stared with some amount of shock.

The clattering noises rose up from the canal again. As a car zoomed through a puddle behind them.

"Yes, I do believe it is..." Darius said, turning from the railing.

"Oh... " Twofeathers said quietly.

Down in the canal, a scruffy looking kid rolled back and forth through the canal on a skateboard. He wasn't pulling any tricks, just rolling back and forth, occasionally skidding to stops here and there before changing his direction. All the while flipping through a black leather book he carried.

A strange sense of deja vu took the young man at that point. He stopped the board, and looked up upwards to the bridge overhead.
 
Seeing nothing, he tucked the book into his long, worn trench coat, figured it was time for lunch, and rolled off down the canal.

> Chance in Plureality

Once Upon Times Past

The eagle feathers swayed back and forth, attached to the long red braids of hair. The shards of light of downtown's neon glow and moonlight reflected off the green pools of Twofeathers' eyes.

She enjoyed these evening walks when she could take them. Only under the full moon glow could she experience it like this. She had hoped she'd see him tonight. It had been years since Rome, and even longer since that night in Time's Square. She had not seen the others either, but she felt them from time to time.

With a smile and a last glance up at the moon, she turned and headed through the bustling Saturday night streets. She occasionally wobbled on the new high heeled shoes; she still hadn't gotten the hang of them. Not that she really needed to walk but it kept up appearances.

As she made her way past the clamor of movie-goers exiting a nearby theatre she took note of a black boat of a car sliding slowly down the street next to her. That was when she felt the Fear.

"Their auras.... aren't in sync..." she whispered aloud to herself. She was watching the two men in the car, who in turn were watching her.

It pulled to the curb and stopped.

Twofeathers stopped as well.

The two men got out of the car, almost perfectly in sync with one another; they looked at the young woman with the feathers in her hair.

"There's the reality deviant... " said one. The other checked what looked like a smartphone. 

"Twofeathers..." he finished.

"Um... Hi!" she said with a quick smile and playful wave.

When the men reached into their coats she reacted... The time for blending in was gone and she made for the subway. Her heels didn't click and she didn't stumble, she wasn't walking anymore, more of a glide.

The thugs gave chase, knocking aside the people leaving the theatre in a hail of insults and popcorn. Twofeathers neared the stairs leading down to the platform underground and vaulted over the railing leaving only a quick glimpse of the eagle feathers trailing behind her.

"Quick before the train arrives!" Their voices carried over the sounds of car-horns and down the stairs after her.

Unfortunately the platform was all but empty as she leveled out. Her eyes darted left and right looking for somewhere to hide herself. The graffiti on the wall taunted her. "No Place To Hide". Her hands shot to her chest where a third feather hung from around her neck. This one white... almost so white that it cast a glow into the surrounding gloom of the dank and dimly lit platform.

Hurried footsteps sounded at the bottom of the stairs as the two thugs caught up.

"You've got nowhere left to go, Deviant..." one started.

"Come with us and you don't have to get hurt. The Outlander wants to have a word with you," the other finished.

"I don't know who this Outlander is... but I'm pretty sure I don't have anything to talk to him about. If he's anything like you guys seem, he can't be very nice," Twofeathers said softly, with a chime of innocence.

A low rumble began to rise around them. The thugs approached slowly, each drawing a stick-like object from their coats.

Twofeathers held up her hands in front of her, her fingernails elongating slightly. "Guys... didn't your dads tell you not to hit girls?" She began backing away, as a rush of warm air swept past, strewing the braids and feathers around wildly. Bits of discarded papers and other debris rolled past; Twofeathers noticed the white feathers that were mixed within them. The low rumbling grew louder, as light began to glow from behind her.

"Look freak... we're to collect you... as long as you can answer questions after, it doesn't matter how..." 

"We know you know how to find the Angel. This can be easy or hard, but Goddammit it's happening one way or another," the two threatened.

The rumbling quickly shot to a deafening roar, and a quick flash of white as the train hurtled down the tracks, but it didn't deafen the sudden clicking of footfalls. White feathers collected around the thugs' feet along with scattered newspapers. 

Twofeathers smiled. "You guys are in for it now." She turned her head slightly, as a figure stepped out from behind a column. She expected boots, but saw a shine of sleek shoes, where jeans should have been, pressed pants. The coat was still long, but had a more professional feel to it... a few feathers drifted out from under it. The cross hung from a chain and rested across a white shirt. His face was older than she had thought it would be... covered in stubble, but with that same cocky smirk. His hand rose and pulled some hair away from his face.

"Threatening a woman... AND blasphemy... You two aren't reeling in the points right now, I don't mind telling you."

"The Deviant... Angel..." 

"Darius... " They checked the smartphone-like object again, and took a step back.

"You... you came back!!!" Twofeathers dove into him, gleeful tears down her cheeks. "What happened to your face?!" she asked, puzzled.

"HA! Even Angels grow up pretty lady..." Darius laughed, and wiped a few of the tears off her cheek while returning the hug. "...and fall down."

"These guys were going to kidnap me for someone named the Outlander..." Twofeathers pointed accusingly from under Darius' arm.

"Well, we should probably teach them some proper manners then, shouldn't we... But after that, I need to find the others... Where's Max?" he continued.

Twofeathers smiled wide and cracked her knuckles while eyeing the thugs... "Sure, as soon as we handle these guys... we'll take a trip... Lucy should know where they are."

The Nook

The skateboard rolled down the sidewalk, its passenger a young kid in a overcoat; he was dressed in black jeans and had on a white shirt. Over the shirt was a necklace with a cross dangling out from it. He had several buttons on the overcoat, and he really looked like a scraggy haired kid, but he had that wise-beyond-his-age look about him.

Darius stopped in front of the Neve's Nook and kicked up his skateboard. He tucked it underneath his arm as he strolled in. Neve's Nook was a breakfast place; it opened early and closed just before lunch.

"Morning Darius," the waitress said as she saw him step through the door. She grabbed a paper off the counter and handed it to him. "You want the usual?"

"Sure thing," he replied, sitting at a table. "I want to shake things up this morning and start with some toast."

"Living dangerously, are we?" the waitress joked and gave him a wink. She turned behind the counter and hit the order's up bell.

Darius opened up the paper and began reading the morning headlines. He thought that he heard the sound of stone on glass, and he glanced around the Nook. That's when he spotted Twofeathers outside the window, looking in, like a ceramic gargoyle. He gave her a concerned look and she motioned her head to the back door.

Darius got up and said to the waitress, "Be right back." He left his overcoat on the chair and the paper unfolded on the table as a sign to others that the table was occupied. He headed for the back door.

"What's going on?" Darius asked as he stepped outside and saw Twofeathers perched on a garbage pin.

"I really don't know," Twofeathers replied. "Just that I have a sense of foreboding."

Darius' eyes widened; he knew when Twofeathers had an uncanny knack of predicting danger. He nodded at her, "What about the others?"

"I haven't contacted them yet," she replied. "I was just about to head over to Dex's."

"Well, let me finish my breakfast and we shall round them up," Darius stated. He turned back to go inside - Twofeathers was just about to ask something but before she could open her mouth, Darius finished, "And yes, I will save you some of my hashbrowns."

Twofeathers' Impromptu Meeting

Twofeathers was knocked for a loop, sending her crashing through a wall and she skittered across the floor. The little imp took a hit and she was feeling no pain whatsoever. It took her a few seconds to shake off the dizzying effects.

When she opened her eyes to see, standing over her with a concerned look on his face, a man in a white robe and a tall hat, looking very surprised indeed. The man's men stood around him to see a little demonic beast picking herself up. All of them looking very much shocked by what they saw.

"We could use some help here, Two!" Dexter's voice could be heard from the other side of the hall. It sounded like all hell had broken loose.

"Don't worry," she said to the fellow in the tall hat, "I'm turning Catholic."

And then she took flight and back out through the wall that she came through.

When Seconds Turn to Moments and then Memories

Dexter Washington swung the club about, hitting the hell-hound right in face and sending it sprawling back to where it belonged. He didn't know how much longer he would be able to keep this up, but he knew he was having one hell of a good time.

"These beasts just keep coming and coming," he shouted to the others and then added as a wry joke, "We need to reach a save point."

"Well, we can hold them off as long as possible," Wraith replied. She was flipping and weaving amongst the group, tossing shurikens like m&m's at a party. She was doing her best to keep each and everyone of the beasts that surrounded them at bay. "I only hope the others made it through safely."

"... and lo though I walked through the valley..." spoke Darius with bible held high in his hand in front of him keeping the demonic beasts away, and the book began to shine a very holy light all the while he was reciting a passage.

"There he goes again into his thumper mode," the demonic imp Twofeathers commented as she flapped her wings about Dexter, trying hard not to get caught in his swings and trying to stay above the snapping jaws of the hounds of hell that were waiting to rend her limb from limb.

"It just might be our saving grace," Dexter replied. He had swung his bat again and took out another beast that had made a mad lunge at him.