Collaboration between YoshiSkittlez, The Roman07 and Ghost Shadow -------------- When Jack woke up he felt good having a bit of peace and quiet. Last night was so hectic that he was sure that those two would never stop. Looking around he noticed that he was on the couch and not in his own bed. Not the first time that has happened but unusual since he couldn’t remember how he got there. Giving off a long yawn and stretch, he got up and started to make himself a pot of coffee. "Kate you up yet?" He yelled towards Michelle’s closed door. Guess not, no matter since they did stay up past 4am. Sitting back on the couch he gathered his thoughts from the other night. The minor headache and dry mouth reminded him that he was drinking. The silent apartment felt good and hoped that Kate or Sektor wouldn’t wake up until at least another hour. "Wait a minute... does that robot sleep?" He asked himself curiously. Groaning at the minor headache as he got back up off the couch and hobbled towards the door where Kate was. "Hey Kate, do you want some coffee?" No answer. "Kate? Toaster?" He followed with a knock.... nothing. Placing a hand on the door knob he pushed in slightly so not to make a noise if they were still sleeping. "Kate? You’re not naked again are you?" He joked. Peeking inside there was no sign of either of them. Flinging the door open he noticed the bed was made and the room was cleaned up. "You fucking didn’t!" Jack yelled to the empty room. "Jesus Christ Kate!" He started pacing back and forth through the apartment. Passing by the crudely fixed door of the bathroom and checked every inch of the small apartment. "Where did they go?" Asking himself. He couldn’t put a call out since they were obvious fugitives and he wasted every favor yesterday extending her deadline. He walked back in Kate’s room and looked for anything that could be of use. Checking the computer proved useless, everything she did she cleared from the memory and he didn’t think a GPS would be even possible. Nervously looking around the room he saw the tiny crumpled paper of the number her mother gave her to see that guy... "Nooo she’s not that crazy." He muttered to himself, But maybe... Her parents. Probably not to stay there, but she most likely wanted to tell them she won’t be around for a while so they don’t worry. It was a sketchy hunch but he really had nothing else to go on. Unless she went to see Deon, but its doubtful she even knows where he is most of the time. Jack ran and put his gear on as fast as possible. Taking both his standard issue pistol and the revolver fully loaded with whatever ammo he had left. Jack was about to rush out the door but stopped dead right when he passed the syringes. Staring at them intently... "The Lucid." He muttered, snatching the cigar box and shoving it in his coat pocket before heading out the door. Jack called in for the parents address on the way towards district 4. Arriving at the fairly nice house he instantly realized the type of childhood she grew up in and somewhat envied her. Making himself more presentable and making sure his guns weren’t showing he gently knocked on the large ornate door. It was only a matter of moments before the door swung open, showing a service droid light-years behind Sektor's own programming. "How may I assist you Sir?" The droid asked in an almost creepy monotonous tone. Jack watched as a drone answered the door, part of him wished it was a human not a damn robot. "Yes hi is this the Saunders residence?" Jack said in a very polite and professional manner. "I was curious if the owners are home?" Jack looked and noticed the drone was holding a repair man’s shoulder bag. It didn’t look like a repair bot so he must have picked it up somewhere. "Chief Saunders is away at w-w-w-work." The bot stuttered. "However I would gladly assist you by seeing if Mrs. S-S-Saun-ders is available." And with that, the door had closed on Jack's face as the bot scurried away to locate Kate's mother. Minutes went by before the door opened again, this time a woman looking to be in her mid-forties (as she had some work done to look younger) answered the door with a bright smile on her face, but the smile faltered a bit when she saw who it was, almost as if she had been expecting someone else. "Yes?" Jack straightened up when he saw Mrs. Saunders. He could see the family resemblance. "Hi, Mrs. Saunders I presume? I’m actually a friend of Kate’s." He put out his hand to shake hers. "You see, she left something of hers at my apartment last night and I just wanted to get it back to her. She told me that she may pass by and i was hoping I would have been able to catch up." Jack gave a polite smile as he scratched his head. Acting the part of a friend... technically it wasn’t an act but he’s played the part before none the less so he’s gotten quite good at it. Mrs. Saunder's began to eye Jack immediately once he brought up her daughter’s name, scanning him like a predator would its prey. "Oh?" She asked upon learning that he was a friend, the look on her face indicating that she was not at all impressed. "Last night?" Her eyes shot back up to Jack, an obvious panic in her voice. "Oh...not her virginity I hope...not to you..." She mumbled under her breath. She cleared her throat and went on smiling. "I'm sorry, but you've just missed her. She's out. On a [i]date[/i]. A very handsome fellow I might add, good with his hands. A match made in heaven if you ask me." Her smile then faded as she wore her more...obviously unimpressed face, now being done with politeness. "Now you listen to me...mister...uh..." "Jack...Detective Jack Roman." He said bluntly realizing the polite friend routine wouldn’t work. "Oh? Detective?" She eyed him again. "More likely for the Beta Districts am I right? Hardly a title to be proud of." She scoffed. "Stay away from Katie Mr. Roman, she has no time to be...meddling with people like you. Her studies are very important to her and I'll be damned if you bring her down to your level." The door then suddenly slammed shut, only to be opened again just a second later. "And you're far too old for her anyway." She added and then slammed the door shut once more, a series of lock clicking could be heard from the other side of the door almost immediately. Jack couldn’t help but give a slight smirk. "Well Miss Saunders... I’ll have you know that I’m actually here investigating a potential crazed stalker that has been following her as of late." Jack quickly tried to remember the man’s name. "I believe his street name is Marcus the Mangler... A long time fugitive that likes to stake out entire families and kidnap their children for ransom." Jack leaned against the door as he shouted it through the solid mahogany. "We have a lead stating that your daughter was his next victim." There was a long, quiet pause on the other end of the door, until finally, one by one the locks clicked back open and Mrs. Saunders cracked open the door just a bit to look at him once again. With a dejected sigh, she opened the door the rest of the way and rested her head against the door jam. "That is so like Katie, always using her money to help out the lower class." She shook her head and let out another sigh. "I'll have you know right now, you've got the wrong boy. But if you really are who you say you are...you can find them at Munchies Breakfast Nook, down the road a ways. Now please...if you're done ruining my morning, I would like to get back to my yoga..." "Thank you ma’am oh and if you ever see Marcus the Mangler please DO NOT let him in. He is considered highly dangerous." Jack gave a nod and ran off into the opposite direction. Quickly looking up on his GPS where that exactly was. "C’mon Kate really? A date now?" He couldn’t help but imagine Sektor scanning him and giving him percentages of his "sexual platform" or something of that sort. That’s assuming she even brought him along for the date. -------------- Marcus saw Kate off with a short wave and a friendly smile. He stepped into his own car and started it, staring at the steering wheel, unsure of what to do. Suddenly the ringing started once more; this time far more intensive than before. He clawed at his hands, snarling frenzily as the pain would not subside. He reached for a syringe but fumbled and dropped it, in too much pain to think about picking it up again. Then, it happened again; the harsh command issued by the omniscient voice that resided inside his head, [i]'fiat justitia ruat caelum...'[/i] Marcus' pain stopped and he felt himself fading away, into nothingness... Cypher drove home silently, preparing for his next mission. After equipping himself with all his tools he connected himself to Base, receiving orders. A box appeared in the side of his helmet's HUD, [NEW MISSION: ABDUCTION AND INTERROGATION OF KATHERINE SAUNDERS - STATUS REPORTS CONFIRM SHE IS IN POSSESSION OF UNIT 0.18462958. LETHAL FORCE: NOT AUTHORIZED, INJURY IS ACCEPTABLE SO LONG AS IT DOES NOT IMPEDE HER FROM SPEAKING COHERENTLY] Cypher nodded curtly, wordlessly accepting his new mission. He began the slow mission of trailing her... About an hour had passed; Cypher had been trailing the duo patiently, using any and all leads. Finally, he found them in the distance, walking along the nearly vacant streets where civilization began to get more and more tattered and broken. "Katherine Saunders." Cypher called out in a blunt, authorative tone, standing only about a yard from her. "You are under arrest." He said, quickly shooting a fist out in a punch. Sektor turned sharply upon hearing the armored man and growled darkly as he approached. The armored man lunged quickly, but Sektor was quicker; grabbing his fist mid-punch and sending down its other hand in a swift chop where the man's forearm met his elbow. A sickening *crunch* was heard as bone and sinew tore and the man let out a low grunt of pain, but he wasn't deterred, using his free hand to launch Sektor back with a single thrust. Cypher looked down at his broken arm, a grimace hidden behind his enclosed helmet. It twisted awkwardly, the sound of bone sewing itself together at an enhanced rate was heard and he squeezed the fully-healed fist in preparation. Cypher wordlessly drew his machete, ready for combat. Sektor stood from where it was thrown, unharmed. "Preparing for combat, initializing optical sensors for most efficient reaction time." Suddenly, Cypher lunged at an inhuman speed, swiping his machete sideways towards Sektor's torso. The robot was faster and dodged back just in time, grabbing Cypher by the neck and throwing him through the brick wall of an adjacent building. Cypher crashed through completely, leaving a large hole in the wall. He stood up quickly, twisting his head to clear up the stiffness in his neck. "You shouldn't have done that..." He warned in a dark tone and tackling Sektor to the ground. Cypher kept him pinned down, grunting with effort; the robot *was* strong. He reached for his fallen machete, which lay only a few feet from him. Cypher stretched out and managed to get a grip on it, plunging the blade into Sektor's torso to keep him pinned. White fluid, most likely to simulate blood leaked out from the robot's torso and Cypher stood, using this small distraction to his advantage. He approached Kate slowly, intimidatingly, his boots echoing with every step. "You're coming with me." He stated, kneeing her sharply in the stomach. "You're a criminal, Ms. Saunders, and your robot is too. They want me to bring you both in and that's what I intend to do..." Upon hearing her name, Kate instinctively turned around, figuring that Detective Roman had somehow pin-pointed her location. She opened her mouth, ready to spew out a bull-shit excuse she had been working in her head for quite some time, but instead saw not Detective Roman...but someone else...and his fist coming straight for her. She closed her eyes tightly, hands instinctively going out to protect her face, awaiting the impact that was sure to follow...but it never came... Opening her eyes slowly, peeking out of the corner, she saw Sektor break the man's arm clean in half. What really got a gasp of sheer terror out of her, however, was the fact that his arm seemed to 'mend' itself back together. She looked at the nearby alleyway, if only she could move her feet and start running. Sektor could take care of himself, he had proved that countless times. This man wanted to arrest her, and it could have been on a number of different things, though if she had to pick, she would rather this man be from the Science Agency to collect her for that update that was administered too late...but something in her gut told her otherwise. Unable to move as she watched the spectacle in front of her, she let out a scream when the machete found its way through Sektor's abdomen, pinning him to the ground, her mind immediately going to ways on how she was going to fix that, and was thus caught completely off-guard by the knee to her stomach. She doubled over in pain, her knees hitting the concrete beneath her as she clutched onto her stomach. She glanced up at the man, her teeth grit in pain. Fight or flight? Well...she couldn't fight, she never had the need to in her sheltered life. So with shaky legs she brought herself back to her feet, and bolted as fast as she could. Cypher growled in irritation and ran after her, his enhanced speed making it easy to catch up to her. "Maybe this will make you listen." He stated before shoving her to the ground with a rough push, a single foot landing sharply on her femur, undoubtedly breaking the bone. Kate flew to the ground, the asphalt eating up her hands and knees as she skidded to a stop. Tears streamed to the corner of her eyes as she rolled over onto her back, only to have her leg break bone shatter into hundreds of tiny pieces. She screamed out in pain, the tears she had been holding at bay streaming down her cheeks before she was able to calm herself back down, whimpering out a quiet "Roman..." Before Cypher could continue this beating, however, he felt an excruciating sharp sting in his chest. Crying out in a tone that boded more irritance than pain, looked down to see the blade of his machete sticking out in front of him. Sektor grabbed Cypher by the neck and lifted him straight up into the air. "Target will be eliminated." Sektor stated, its voice full of resolve and anger. "I don't think so..." Cypher returned, grabbing the arm that was holding him where it met at the shoulder. With a sharp yank, the arm was completely separated from the body. Cypher backhanded Sektor to the ground with his free hand. Wordless, he went after Kate once more, walking at a casual, almost nonchalant pace; as if this was simple everyday work. He grabbed her by her hair and lifted her up with one arm, forcing her to stand on her now-fractured leg. Exhaling softly he delivered a sharp, enhanced punch into the side of her face, sending her to the ground once more. Kate let out another scream, this time twice as loud as her last in both a mixture of pain and praying to God that someone would hear her. Having fallen to the ground again, her arms shook violently as she tried to get up again, but the muscles seized up and forced her to the ground once again. Her lip had split clean open from the hit and a sickening crunching sound came from her nose, and the blood began to pour from both areas. "STOP! PLEASE!" She whimpered out, her entire vision blurred from the tears and black vision that came with the blinding pain. Sektor got up wearily from where it had fallen, carefully stalking up to this enforcer. Sektor plunged its remaining arm completely through Cypher's torso, leaving a gaping hole behind. Cypher sputtered and coughed, the injury healing itself at a rapid pace. "My turn." He breathed out wearily, grabbing his stun gun from his belt and hitting Sektor with as much power as the handheld device could emit. Sektor sputtered and twitched, its photoreceptor blinking rapidly. Eventually it fell, completely deactivated. "SEKTOR!" Tears continued to stream down her face. This wasn't just some normal arrest, this man was a hired killer...and in that moment Kate knew she was going to die. "Please! I'll do whatever you want...just no more..." "What I want.." Cypher began cooly, approaching her slowly, "Is you in bindings." He said, standing over her, domineering. He knelt down slowly, crouching above her. "He loves you, you know? The weak little whelp. I see his thoughts. He finds you..." he slowly trailed a glove-clad hand down her dirty, bloodied cheek. "ravishing." He finished. "And once he awakens, he shall see my...[i]his[/i] good work." Cypher said, remaining purposefully cryptic. Jack got an eyeful as soon as he passed the diner. Some guy dressed up in an assault suit crouching over a very messed up Kate and an armless Sektor. "KAAAAAATEEE!" He screamed running into a full sprint towards the man in body armor. Pulling out both pistols and unloading both into his target. Once he got close enough, he dropped the guns and used his momentum to push the man clear across the street and through a glass window. Jack rolled onto all fours as he tripped up during the push and glanced back towards Kate and Sektor hopefully seeing any signs of life. "Kate get up! get the fuck up!" Rushing to pick up his gun he kicked the other over towards Sektor. Kate's eyes shot up, hearing her name being called once again, and caught onto the quick blur that she knew immediately was Detective Roman. For a moment, her heart soared...she was going to be okay, he was going to save her...he promised. She watched through tearful eyes as the man in the assault suit was launched away, and for a moment she had forgotten all about the pain she was in and moved to get up, immediately crashing back down onto the pavement in a crumpled heap. "I...can't..." Before Cypher could finish his speech he heard a roaring voice cry out Kate's name. Turning around with a growl, Cypher could do little before he felt 3 bullets puncture his torso. Suddenly, a man dressed in black sprinted in, drop kicking Cypher through a store window. He crashed through, getting up rather quickly. He growled as he felt the bullets be forced out of his flesh by his healing factor, casually stepping up to the now-empty window frame. "Detective Roman..." Cypher began, his cool tone never wavering. "I figured it was only a matter of time before you showed up..." He hopped down from the pane onto the ground, cracking his neck. "I hate it when they interfere." He said dismissively, sprinting at inhuman speeds while Jack was facing away from him. Suddenly, Cypher had him in an iron grip; his hand grabbing Roman by the torso and lifting him into the air. Without a word he sent a flying punch upwards, shooting Jack out of his hand and onto the ground with a [i]thud[/i]. Cypher drew his machete in waiting, using his other hand to draw a single pistol. Jack instantly felt a rib crack with the punch the guy gave him and the wind knocked out of him when he hit the concrete. This guy wasn’t human.... He was strong, but Jack was sure he was stronger. "Ya know what they say about someone who wears body armor…" Jack grunted as he spit out a little blood on the floor. "They can’t take a hit." Jack rolled forward and kicked off the ground leading forward with a balled fist attempting to close the gap between. Feigning a punch he kept up his guard from the machete as he shot out the built in Taser from his sidearm. The tiny hooks punctured right under his left side as he gave a full jolt of 40k volts through the wires. circling around the man while using the wires to try and trip him up. Cypher ignored his comment, preferring to focus on the battle rather than trade petty verbal blows. The mock punch fooled him and he stepped back, horribly unaware until the Taser punctured his left side. He dropped his weapons, snarling as he felt the electricity jolt through him, but he stood his ground, slowly approaching Jack, though his movements slow and strained. He grabbed onto the wire, smoke rising up from where his hand was suffering severe burns. He ripped the hooks out, blood releasing in a few droplets as he did so. Taking a few seconds to recover he was back at it again, somersaulting forward he sent a single fist out, colliding it into Jack's chest with great momentum and force. Jack flew back with immense force, rolling him end over end before his body flattened to a stop. Spitting out yet another mouthful of blood. "Heh, you call that a fucking punch? Kate’s mother slammed the door on me harder. Maybe I should send her here to fight." "Your use of insults only demonstrates the lack of combative ability." Cypher's simple response was. Jack hammered down on the concrete with his fists, breaking off chunks and tossing them towards the man as he got up onto his feet. Cypher attempted to roll out of the way, but Roman was throwing the rocks quick. Cypher could only dodge so many. The wind was knocked out of him as a single one being thrown at about 90 miles an hour collided with his stomach, another in his leg. Vaulting forward he grabbed his machete again, slicing the rocks into pieces where he could. "Now if you’re REALLY ready to fight... let’s go." Jack ran straight at the man once again, pretending the feign a punch again but this time connected right into the man’s helmet taking it clean off. Using the momentum he grabbed the man by the collar and rolled with him as he grabbed hold of his arm and squeezed the bone into powder. Cypher was taken into the air; Roman tackled him with enough speed and brute force to knock his helmet off and his own person into the air. Cypher snarled, as he hit the ground hard, the weight of the cyborg atop him. Seething as he felt his arm shatter. Using his free hand he reached for his Taser, quite literally stabbing it into Roman using his enhanced strength and squeezed the trigger so hard it nearly broke in his hand. His broken arm twisted and contorted gruesomely as it knitted itself back together with amazing speed, almost fully healing within seconds. Words couldn't even begin to describe the horror Kate was witnessing, and not only that, but knowing she couldn't do a damn thing to help...even if she weren't a broken and bloody heap right then. The helmet came off, and Kate's jaw dropped. She noticed the hair first, having had to pay somewhat more attention to it earlier during their 'date' as Sektor had brought it up questioning his gender, and therefore there was no question as to who the man underneath the suit was. "YOU BASTARD!" Kate screamed out as loud as she could, uncaring if her voice went hoarse. She tried getting up again, if only to punch Marcus in the face herself, but her muscles simply wouldn't give. "YOU LIED TO ME!" Jack screamed in pain as the Taser went off right in his side. The scream echoed throughout the empty streets. For a moment all he saw was pure white. Lying flat on his back he let out a growl mixing pain with anger as he saw Kate screaming over in his direction. Sadness fell over his face as she screamed "YOU BASTARD! YOU LIED TO ME!" Jack thought to himself. He wasn’t lying, he promised he would protect her. "I’m not lying!" He shouted in a delusional state. "I... I made a promise." He muttered before reaching into his coat and pulling out a syringe. "I’ll kill them all!" He screamed jamming the syringe into his own neck. The Lucid quickly filled his veins and got to work instantly. All his pain increased tenfold momentarily letting out a yelp as a mixture of fear pain and hatred took him over, but within seconds it all went mute. Jack got up casually and raised his fists. Listening to his own blood flow, feeling the wind sweep against his hair and smelling the sweat and blood mixed with the fluid pouring out of Sektor. Time slowed down and Jack just stared and smiled at Cypher. "One more round asshole." He whispered. Jack felt nothing... all emotion gone from his state of mind, just pure focus. Cypher rose with a groan as Jack rolled off of him. He punched a toppled bus, a large dent being made where his fist was. "I'm...not...Marcus." He managed to breathe out, grabbing his head with a single hand and groaning. "I am...better. My name is...Cypher - Agent Cypher." He approached her slowly, though his posture was idle. "Marcus is my decrepit other half, the one *you* know. The one who loves you." He said mockingly, continuing to groan in severe pain, his hand not leaving his head. "I'm what he tries to forget...the half he buries under all his emotion, turning me into nothing more than a fantasy-GAHH!" He fell to his knees, both hands now at his head. "As a matter of fact; there he is now..breakin-urggh free. Your boyfriend packs...quite a punch." He breathed out, managing a pained laugh. "Don't hate him. He won't remember any of this." Was all Cypher said before collapsing on the ground. [i]Memories jumbled, images shattered. Everything was different, so wrong; the ground, the sky, the air, the...feel.[/i] Marcus looked up slowly from his position, gasping frantically as if his lungs would not accept the air about him. "Wh-where am I?" He asked, slowly and shakily standing to his feet, using his other hand to place on the fallen bus to support himself. "Why...why am I dressed like this?" He looked up, vision blurry. "Oh God, Kate!" He cried out, running towards her. There was a distinct voice difference between himself and Cypher: Cypher's was cool and arrogant, seeping with suppressed rage and venomous power. While Marcus' was concerned, charismatic...human. "Kate, what happened? Where are we?" He asked, attempting to support her with his arms. Jack crouched down and sprinted full speed into Marcus. "You’re not fooling anyone." Grabbing the man and running with him, slamming him straight into the side of the bus full force. Jack took his hand and slammed an open palm right into his throat. Pressure squeezing slightly until he felt like his head was about to pop. "Don’t fucking bullshit me! Who are you and who are you working for?" Turning his head to see if Kate was unharmed. For all he knew it was a trick, But Jack noticed the fear in the man’s eyes. He was either actually scared or a really good actor. Either way he wasn’t dropping him anytime soon. Kate blinked, using her good arm to wipe away the tears, smearing the blood and tears together rather than wiping it away as she had intended. "Roman, wait..." Kate said loud enough for him to hear. Something Marcus had said earlier stuck into her...something about...not being himself? Something...pertaining to his injury. As much as she wanted to just hate Marcus for the rest of her life...but he seemed so genuine back at breakfast. Call it a curse of her kind-heart, but maybe there really was something to this whole thing. "He's telling the truth..." She said after a moment, feeling the anger in her shift from Marcus to Detective Roman. She had seen what he did, and now that damned drug was running through his blood stream, the stupidest thing she had ever seen and all just to... [i]save...me...[/i] The lump came back into her throat and she rested her head back down on the ground, her neck muscles unwilling to hold its weight any longer and her eyes slowly flitted closed as the pain had once again returned, taking over her at last. Marcus could barely breathe, better yet breathe. He felt the cold metal arms clutch around his neck and applying horrible pressure. His pleading eyes looked down towards Kate. He was confused, disoriented, where the hell was he? Finally he heard her weakly speak in his favor, he looked to Jack now, mouthing out, [i]"Please..."[/i] Jack let go of the man’s neck and watched him drop with a satisfying thunk. The mass of senses flooding over him like a large wave pushing on his very brain. Kate’s whisper felt like a sonic book and the thud of the man sounded like a crashing dump truck. "He tried to kill you..." Jack whispered attempting to stop the booming noise. Turning his head felt like a panoramic view in his brain. The mass amount of senses taking in everything it could. He tried to walk over to Kate to see if she was okay but collapsed onto himself as the adrenaline wore off and the multiple broken ribs jabbed at his lungs. Blood pouring out of his mouth by the cupful as he reached over and pulled the broken Taser out of his side. He tried to stand once more but collapsed once again. Was he dying? He couldn’t tell... His brain felt so alive yet his body was falling apart from the seams. Jack let go of the mans neck and watched him drop with a satifying thunk. The mass of senses flooding over him like a large wave pushing on his very brain. Kates wisper felt like a sonic book and the thud of the man sounded like a crashing dump truck. "He tried to kill you..." Jack whispered attempting to stop the booming noise. Turning his head felt like a panoramic view in his brain. The mass amount of senses taking in everything it could. He tried to walk over to Kate to see if she was okay but collapsed onto himself as the adrenaline wore off and the multiple broken ribs jabbed at his lungs. Blood poured out of his mouth by the cupfull as he reached over and pulled the broken tazer out of his side. He tried to stand once more but collapsed once again. Was he dying? He couldnt tell... His brain felt so alive yet his body was falling apart from the seams. Marcus exhaled deeply, offering a series of coughs as the cyborg dropped him; bruises were already beginning to form on his neck. Recovering quickly, not even noticing the bruises already fading away, he walked over to where Kate was, kneeling down in front of her. Turning to the cyborg his face turned into one of surprise, then shock, then horror as realization hit him. "I...tried to kill her? What are you talking abo-...No...no, he...he doesn't exist." Slowly Marcus looked down, recognizing the black armor, the same black armor worn by the man who plagued his every waking nightmare, the man who's only mission was whatever the Districts told him to do. The man who would...kill women, smother babies in their cribs, massacre an orphanage if it fulfilled the order he was given. And he was wearing it... His mind went back and he remembered a dream he had just the night before. His 'doppleganger' spoke cryptically in odd words and illusions.... [i]Marcus woke up...somewhere. It looked like a forest, Elevated platforms were hung on trees above a toiling, white, foaming river underneath a raging waterfall. He was dressed like he usually would, wearing his regular t-shirt with a shoulder holster, jeans, and leather combat boots. The left side of his face felt cool upon the metal, but the warmth of his breath met him as well; he was still alive. He slowly began to stand up, feeling sore for reasons he didn't know. A figure was standing in front of him, but he did not see his face yet. But there was a certain...realization; he knew who the figure was. The black armor, the helmet, he knew. Marcus finally stood, his eyes meeting the front of Cypher's visor. The men stood at completely equal heights, down to the centimeter, their builds were similar; corded muscle lined their tall frames with broad shoulders. "Hello Marcus." Cypher greeted in a civil tone, yet it was marred with poison. "Come to chat with me once more?" He asked, his gauntlet-clad hands cupped behind his back. "Cypher." Marcus bid curtly, grimacing as though he was looking at a mass murderer, which Cypher was. "I've come to stop you..." He swore aloud, his tone equally as casual. "Does your ignorance know no bounds?" Cypher began, his true, vile tone coming out. "You still believe yourself the true man, Marcus? That *I* am the facsimile? You are so completely wrong." Cypher said with a short chuckle, slowly reaching for his helmet. A sharp hiss of air sounded as the helmet finally freed itself from the rest of his outfit. Cypher pulled it off slowly, dropping it on the metal ground where it clattered ominously. "What is this?!" Marcus demanded, furious. "You...stole my face. Trying to steal my personal dignity as well?" He spat out, pressed with rage. "I *share* your face, Marcus. We are one and the same." Cypher informed, pacing about nonchalantly. "I am perfection...you are the part of me who is blinded to the lie programmed within you. You're not who you think you are, I am not who you think I am...I am what you were made to be." It was at this that Marcus awoke in a cold sweat, the memories fading until this moment had occurred...[/i] Marcus fell to his knees, defeated. "But...he's not real, he's not me...is he?" Marcus asked, tears beginning to flow from his eyes. "I...did this to her?" He asked, his composure failing as he began losing control of his emotions. "I'm...I'm a monster." Was all he was able to say, his entire body was broken down, wrought with the pain of emotion. He could have sworn he heard Cypher laughing within him...