Yakuza Runner

I had my hands in my pocket as I followed the tall guy into the back room. My eyes narrowed as I glanced around the building. It was a front, that was obvious, but still, it was something I had to deal with. If I was going to make a name for myself I was going to have to start somewhere. And I was lucky enough to have gotten a meeting with a lieutenant or some such big shot in the area. It wasn't the guy in charge but it wasn't a low level thug either. Entering the room I looked around as several people turned to me. Three of them stood and I took my hands from my pocket.

One stepped in front of me, holding a hand up. He signaled for me to raise my arms and I did. They patted me down, checking my pockets when they found something before tossing my wallet and pocket watch on the table in the middle of the room. The guy with the most tattoos just took a drag on his cigarette as he waited. When they were done he motioned for me to sit and I did, bowing my head to him in silent acknowledgment. The guys at the table dealt cards dealing me in as I picked up my wallet and watch. I glanced at the two cards they'd dealt me and quirked an eyebrow.

"You came to us for a reason. And reluctantly, I have accepted you here to hear why we shouldn't just kill you. So please, explain." the man across from me said.

"I don't doubt that your men could kill me any time they wanted. They're all ready to die, and kill for you." I said, smirking.

"You're not making a good case for not killing you." he joked.

"But try as they might I wont go down easy. I'm not some stupid kid that thinks he can kill everyone here. But I would take at least one of you with me. The only question is who will it be. But I'm not here to make threats, and please forgive me if I overstepped my bounds here. Merely making my case for not killing me. But besides being a hard son of a bitch to take down I'm pretty skilled. I can fight, run, and even get through a few scenarios that others would never make."

"Alright. We'll give you a test. If you pass you'll be allowed to run some more for us, but if you fail you die. Understand."

"Then I guess I have no choice but to pass."

"I like you boy. You certainly don't lack confidence. Give him the package."

Another man nodded, and moved toward me, putting a package on the table in front of me. Quirking an eyebrow I wondered what it was, but then again I probably didn't want to know. It wasn't going to be easy but they wanted me to take it to one of their other 'offices'. It wouldn't be simple but it wouldn't be all that difficult either. Nobody knew I was doing what I was doing for them yet. Standing I picked the package up and tossed my cards on the table revealing the pair of kings I had before I smirked and left.

Walking through the building I smirked, several people watching me as I went outside. Glancing around I frowned. There were some cops sitting in their car off to the side, trying to hide in an alley. They were probably going to follow me, unless they were going to just follow the guy that was likely to come out, just a minute after I did. It wasn't unusual for a package to be delivered by a runner and a fake. It threw the cops off, but there were likely to be more cops waiting for the guy that was coming behind me. The cops could be stupid, but experience usually made them wise enough never to fall for simple tricks.

Ducking into an alley I smirked. I let the world shift red as I drew on my inner strength. Nodding I smirked and began running. It was probably the cops or a Yakuza runner that wanted me dead but someone was running after me. I simply walked down the street, my eyes hidden behind a pair of sunglasses. I smirked when I saw the knife swing out from the alley ahead of me. Smirking I tucked the package under my arm before catching the wrist that came at me. Twisting it with a jerk I heard it snap before my hand shot up in a quick strike to his jaw, throwing him aside.

"This will be fun." I said, as I entered the building they'd told me to deliver the package to.

802/750

I waited outside the club while the bouncer called in. He had his hand up on my chest, and it took everything I had not to break it off. I wanted badly to hurt this guy, in front of the crowd no less. I wanted to make him look weak, or make myself look strong. But this guy worked for the boss, which meant that I couldn't hurt him. I had to wait until they had someone come get me. The bouncer motioned me past as the door opened, one of the boys coming out. I walked through the club, following my escort toward the back rooms.

Frowning as we came to the door to the back room I raised my arms, glaring at the jackass in front of me. He ran a wand over me, the thing beeping at my belt buckle so I lifted my shirt to show them. It went off over my ring, the Growlancer, and that was it. They patted me down after, checking for any kind of non-metallic weaponry that I might have hidden on me. Finding none he nodded, letting me pass him.

I entered the back room, looking around as my eyes narrowed. They were playing cards again, but this time they didn't let me sit at the table. Instead one of them moved me with him to the back of the room. He handed me a package, holding it out to me.

"Take it. We need it delivered to this address. Memorize it and destroy it. Burn it, eat it, do whatever you have to but don't let the cops find out where it's going." he said.

"None of you trust me, so back off. Please, don't take me for a fool. Last time you guys had me do a job you sent someone to kill me. How do I know you wont try to kill me again?" I asked.

"You killed one of ours. You're in. Now go." he said.

"Blood in, blood out. Got it." I said, before tucking the small thin package into the bag at my side.

Walking out of the club I turned down the street heading for the next site. My eyes narrowed as I walked. I could hear the car behind me, which was strange. Hearing a car is nothing unusual, but the slow moving kind on a street like this meant it was going to stop or following you. The problem was that looking meant that you were on to someone. But no cars that were going to stop followed you farther than a few feet. And this one seemed pretty intent on doing just that.

Glancing back I looked at the car, which immediately came to a stop, the driver and passenger getting out. Looking back in front of me I continued to walk, several people around us. They were cops, nobody out here was that well dressed or clean cut. There had been cops there the first time I'd left to run something, and now they had likely seen my photo from surveillance and decided to follow me. Which meant I was set up, or someone inside was a rat. Or a cop undercover. But I didn't care. Anyone trying anything was on my bad side. Ducking into an alley I walked away, frowning when I hit a fence.

Turning I frowned, watching them approach. One of them flashed a badge, smirking as he approached. I put my hands up, frowning at them as I stood there. My eyes narrowed as the partner stayed back. No guns were drawn as it didn't appear I had a weapon. The first cop moved up to me, patting a few key places before reaching for my bag. Stepping back I hit the fence, growling as they laughed. Frowning the other guy approached. I let the first guy take the package from my bag before I knocked it from his hands, my hand coming up as the Growlancer turned into my pistol, the ammo locked in place.

My hand came up under the first cop's chin, the roar of the bullet signaling the death of the first cop as my body turned. The second cop was going for his gun, but I wasn't about to let that happen. My hand came out, knocking his hand out wide, helping him to draw his gun. He fired once into the ground probably out of reflex, but the shot was way off. My hand came up, smashing the ivory handle of the revolver against his chin. His head went up as my hand twisted his arm back behind him. Putting my gun to the back of his head I kicked his knees, forcing him into an execution position. Firing once I watched his face explode outward away from the rest of him before I picked up the package.

I wiped some of the blood off on the first cops shirt, before releasing the Growlancer into it's ring form. Jogging away I looked around. In this kind of neighborhood, gunshots were common. But that didn't mean that the police would not be called. I jogged off, a few feet before calmly walking away. Running often implicated guilt. And when moving with a group, you never wanted to be moving faster than an average person. It made you stand out in a crowd when you pushed through it. But if you just flowed with it calmly you blended in.

909/750

I walked toward the guy I was supposed to meet up with. My eyes narrowed, the place crawling with people so it wasn't likely something would happen but I still had to be careful. My body was covered in black jeans, matching turtle neck, and tennis shoes. I wasn't happy about being called out by this guy but they needed me to run something so I didn't have a choice. I never asked too many questions, I didn't want to know what I was taking or who was supposed to pick it up ultimately. Everyone I'd taken packages to so far had been second hand runners, people that took it from where they were to where it was supposed to go, people that were higher up in the chain than I was.

Frowning I looked around, quirking an eyebrow, as I came to a stop. Looking at him I waited for him to say something my hands in my pocket. He just smiled at me and nodded gently before he said something that sent up red flags.

"Here. Take this." he said, handing me a small metal tube. "Runner."

No buttons, no flashing lights, no fuses so I stuck it in the pouch at my hip. Frowning I looked up at him as he smiled and walked away, several people coming right for me through the crowd. Looking around me I backed up before rushing forward, my body ducking into an alley. Kicking off the ground I turned my body, my left hand slapping down on the lid of a trashcan, my legs coming up over a few milk crates.

As soon as my feet are back on the ground I charged forward, pumping my arms as I went. I didn't see any exit down this way except up. Running forward I kicked off the ground, my legs coming up to my chest as I brought my arms up. Pushing with my hands on the lid of the dumpster I pushed myself higher. My legs kicked off the dumpster and my hands reached for the bottom rung of the ladder. Pulling myself up I heard them coming after me from behind.

"FREEZE! POLICE!" one of them shouted.

I pulled up from the top of the ladder onto the first flight of the fire escape before I began running up the flights. I heard the gunshot before anything else registered, my body ducking on instinct as I moved. The bullet missed me before I'd ducked but there was no way I could move as quickly as a bullet could. I continued to rise running as quickly as I could my head lowered.

"FIRING AT AN UNARMED SUSPECT?!" I shouted back at them.

Leaping to the railing on the top of the fire escape I jumped back, pulling myself up over the lip of the roof. Climbing to my feet I ran forward, panting lightly as I heard the door to the stairs burst open. Turning I began running again, my eyes turning red as I put everything I had into my speed. My adrenaline pumped through my system as I came to the edge. Throwing myself forward. Coming down in a roll grunted, my back arching as I lay there for a second. I heard them still coming and growled, forcing myself to my feet.

Running across the roof I jumped, my hands slapping along the air conditioning unit as my legs came up to my chest in a monkey vault. I threw myself over it and kicked my legs out, my upper body leaning back as I slid under a raised set of pipes. I found myself wondering who the fuck invented those things! Weren't they supposed to be low so nobody would trip over them? Then again if they were at waist level then nobody could ever trip over them, though it would still hurt. I heard them coming after me, my body jumping off the lip of this roof, though it wasn't a leap outward, just a hop off. My body came down my wings forming as I got closer to the ground, slowing the fall to keep from getting injured.

Moving from the alley I slipped into the crowd, trying hard to control my breathing. I walked patiently with them as I looked around. My eyes narrowed as I walked with the crowd, most of the people following along. Walking along I smiled, as I went, happy to be free of those damned cops. Last time they take me lightly though. But I was going to fucking kill that guy when I next saw him.

768/750