Last Call! (Raikou)

The ball against the door chimed eagerly as another drunk stumbled up the "Forget-me-not Stairs", called affectionately by Theory, who firmly believed the stairs that led to down to the entrance of the little Brooklyn bar that very few people had ever heard of had been designed to intentionally make guys who went a little to heavy on the cheap bear and knock off Scotch but still planned to drive back home, fall back down and knock them out for a peaceful sleep in the doorway. Designed not to make them fall too far to cause any broken necks and giving you bruises instead of broken... Everything? That's what got broken in a crash right? Well anyway, Theory praised the architectural wonder of this bar that many claimed only had "cheap, rickety stairs" because they couldn't afford anything else. Some people just didn't get it.

Crackling jazz floated throughout the bar, which was pretty full considering it was the middle of the week. Well, full for them was half a dozen people so... But still! Any business was good business! Even when the half the business didn't pay their tabs at all. But why hark on about all the negatives! Theory hummed happily as she wiped the inside of a glass, which she had been doing for a good solid ten minutes now. Her black coat and gloves were flung lazily on one of the stools at the bar, with no one having any real reason to touch them. But fitting black t-shirt, black and silver belt, army print jeans and grey boots? No doubt that was Theory Elroy. She just had to slip on an apron and she was a bartender once more! This was her favourite gig. She had met all her favourite people at bars. Interesting people. And besides, guys who were drunk off their ass had the most hilarious stories. But influential guys drunk off their asses? Gave the most deliciously valuable pieces of information. God, she loved bars. Also, they had alcohol! Anywhere that had alcohol was immediately a bonus!

"Elroy! Turn tha' jazz crap off would'ja?!" a slurred moan from the back called out and others gave incoherent groans of agreement. Theory scowled and shouted back in a thicker than normal Brooklyn accent, "No I ain't gonna turn it off and we're all gonna sit and listen to it until you all get cultured, a'right?" They all groaned, reluctant, but hey! What were they gonna do, huh? Theory wasn't a fighter, but she could take some drunk guys with little to no co-ordination at all.

"Okay, you're all annoying me, so last call you bozos." She grinned and her ears were already prime and ready for the protests.

"Oh c'mon man!"

"Don't make me go back Elroy, I can still see my hand!"

"I can still see these ugly faces! I need another American scotch! American scotch from Scotland!"

Theory laughed, flicking back her tied up burgundy hair and fluffing up her fringe and making sure it was set down perfectly so that it just about covered her eye. She loved how much more understandable they all were now the minute their precious elixir of life was under threat. Throwing her apron the floor she knocked on the wooden countertop three times, "What the hell? It's my last night in New York, so drinks all night.." Theory waited for the cheers to start, "And on the house!" Those cheers became roars and Theory laughed manically, putting her hand down on her arm and slapping her hand down. Oh god, she loved it! She just loved bars!

Filling up whatever she could with whatever she found, she slid the glasses down each end of the bar, now caring what got caught and what fell. Her eyes glistened brightly, propping herself up on a empty shelf behind the bar. She kicked her legs back and forth happily. Tomorrow she'd be heading out to Chicago to try and pick up some of her lost clientele. She just wanted it to be business as usual. Rolling her neck and shoulders, her bones clicked and cracked. She frowned. They weren't supposed to do that. It was probably was because had been on her feet for the past 24 hours. But hey. She did what she came to New York to do. There was nothing else to look for... Well... Unless something interesting tried to find her.

Rain. It was almost as bad as snow, especially when it was in a city like Brooklyn. Alex pulled the hood of his red hoodie tighter over his face, his only respite from the cold water that seemed to fall down in curtains from the dreary grey sky. The leather of his jacket, soaked from the rain, seemed to shine with a light of it's own as it was illuminated by the street lamps that guided his way. Inside of his breast pocket was the address of his destination, Puzzles bar in downtown Brooklyn. He would probably never understand why most of his assassinations seemed to be in bars, or that of bartenders. Perhaps the places just gathered in the seediest members of society. Or, perhaps those that committed these sins against humanity needed to wash away their regrets in the forgiving embrace of whiskey. Although Alex enjoyed his alcohol as much as the next, he would never understand the need to get drunk to forget. For Alex, killing was a way of life, and something he rather enjoyed. He would never regret what he did, that would be childish.


As he approached his location, he gave it a weary glance. The rickety stairs stairs were the first sign that this was potentially a 'dive bar', a home to criminals and vagabonds alike. The whole bar seemed rather cheap to Alex, who often enjoyed the comforting lounges of five star establishments, on his clients dime of course. Regardless, he took the stairs slowly, fearing they would collapse under him at any moment. The first thing that hit him upon opening the door was the smooth jazz that played, rather out of place for a bar like this. Though, as far as tracks for a murder went, it could have been far worse. Pulling back his hoodie, he shook out his messy tangles of brown hair, and ran a hand through them, trying his best to get them as dry as possible.

As he looked around the bar, a few things popped out to him. One, was the bartender. The girl didn't seem to capable of fighting, and looked rather plain to him. Not much of a threat. The seconds, was the man in the high class business suit at the back of the bar, sipping on what appeared to be a yellow liquor, possible limoncello, a popular Italian liquor used to follow a meal and cleanse the palletes. Alex had heard of enjoying the comforts of home before, but, he would have thought an Italian mobster would be smart enough to at least act American. Then again, someone in the mob probably didn't have much to fear. Alex was about to show him how wrong he was, however.

"Ah, amico, è bello rivederti." (Ah, friend, it's nice to see you again.)

Alex said in nearly flawless Italian as he approached the man. Italian was one of his worst languages, though, his accent had been improving over the years, and he could still fool most people into thinking he was in fact Italian. It became even easier when they had been drinking. For a moment, they man seemed to be apprehensive of Alex, but, gave him a warm smile nearly as quickly.

"Amico? Da dove posso ti conosco giovane?" (Friend? From where do I know you young man?)

The man spoke in a slurred voice, making it harder for Alex to understand his Italian, especially through his slick accent. As the man spoke, he continued to sip on his drink, before pulling out a flask, and refilling his glass.

"Beh, si vede, abbiamo un socio reciproca. Mr. Hong non apprezza i problemi che state dando i suoi uomini." (Well, you see, we have a mutual associate. Mr. Hong doesn't appreciate the troubles you have been giving his men.)

The man's eyes opened in fear as he seemed to realize what was going on. Alex just smiled, taking a seat across from him, and kicking his feet onto the table. For now, he would wait, see what the man offered to him to keep his life. Then, once he got the money, he would explode his heart. Simple business.

"Hmm.. My Theory senses are tingling"

"Wha' was that Elroy?"

"Hmm? Oh nothing, just drink your Canadian whiskey."

But it wasn't just nothing. Theory could always tell when something was going to happen. Not just anything. Something interesting. Something exciting. Theory didn't try and hold back the grin that slipped onto her lips. First that earlier encounter and now this? Someone up there liked her and wouldn't stop until she had a very memorable last night in her home state.

Then it happened. Theory would hear the fast paced creaked of each stairs. It was like controlled enthusiasm. It would be someone young. When the little bell rang, Theory's reaction was as steady as she could get. Looking over, her senses kicked in and everything seemed to slow down as her eyes fell on the kid who had entered. A smirk hit her lips. Right on the money. He was tall, lean, but still well built, with a mess brown hair and blue eyes. Good lookin' kid, she had to admit. He was around 19 to 21, but not any older. His posture was alert and calm. He was here to do something. He was assessing his surroundings, so he obviously wasn't familiar. And with that, it meant assessing the people. Theory's eyebrow cocked up in fascination. She had caught his eye. Judging by the little amount of time he spent on her, it was obvious he had underestimated her. She held in a laugh. She loved how just because she didn't have muscles she was deemed no threat, when really, she was probably the biggest threat you could ever face. The threat you never expect.

A few seconds had only gone by, but Theory had a good idea about what that kid was. She had seen that behaviour before. Hell, she had worked with guys who had that behaviour before. But that wasn't the important thing. She knew what that kid was by analysing him. However, she already knew who that kid was.

Quietly, Theory snapped her fingers and immediately, the "file" that her memory had stored was out in the surface. He called himself Raikou, The Lightning Devil. When metas first noticed her, one of the first major, six figured payments she was ever offered was for finding out where the young metahuman had gone and giving the group the right information to find him, tag him and snatch him. What were they going to use him for? Well if what she had been told about the state wide murders was true, Theory presumed they weren't going to keep him for ornaments sake. She never got the chance to find him. Those were back when her phone went off every few minutes and Theory was easily distracted. What were the chances that same picture she had set in front of her of the dishevelled kid would walk into one of her bars? This was just delicious. Absolutely delicious.

Hopping down off the shelf, she looked round and saw ol' Raikou walking towards one of the customers she had been talking to the night before. Now Theory wasn't one to reinforce stereotypes like Italians are garbby, but yeesh! Took a lot of time before she got him talking about some very private. Seems like he wasn't doing to well with a lot of the wrong people. Well looks like Theory had her reason. What a shame. For a perv with very fractured English, he seemed like such a nice guy.

Since a lot of the drunken crowd had gathered at the bar, it didn't look suspicious for Theory to mosey on over to where she could get a better view. His back was turned anyway, so that was a bonus. But Theory knew what he was now. The way he held himself, the way he walked, the way he analysed his environment? Theory knew someone who was out for a hit a mile away. For the mob? For a personal client? It didn't matter. They all acted the same, whether they meant to or not.

As she wiped down the bar, she didn't seem to be listening at all, but anyone would be surprised how well sound carried in that bar.... Italian. That's what they were speaking, but Rai over there was definitely not Italian. That would have pointed near the mob, seeing as it could have been a nice little bonus on a hitman's application... If they gave those in. I mean they had to right? Theory decided to chuckle at a fantasy of mob bosses sifting through job applications and planning interviews later.

It was amazing how many words people with such amazing memories could learn. Especially foreign words. You read a few dictionary's, go get some "Learn To Speak Whatever in 12 Weeks!" books and even if you weren't fluent, you had all you needed. So pulling all she had on Italian out of her files, Theory could get a least every other word. That and a name. Mr. Hong. Theory allowed herself a winning grin. Client? Check? A chance at some information? Check, check and check again for good measure, because this was gold. Snapping back a hand to grab a scotch glass and a bottle of the bar's finest, Theory poured in a sufficient amount and smiled happily.  She didn't just love bars. She adored them.

Shooing some drunks to the other side, Theory lifted up that section of the bar and turned through it, catching it just as she turned to face it and lowering it, scotch still perfectly in hand. With no hesitation, she walked on over to the table, noticing immediately how terrified the man was. She also noticed how relaxed the little Lightning Kid was. Oh she really didn't like stereotypes. The "In it for the thrill as well as the money" type? That was even worse than "In it for the thrill, not the money" type! Her disappointment was hidden perfectly though, as she set the glass down in front of Raikou.

"Per la casa e non ultima chiamata."(On the house and no last calls) Theory smiled naturally, as if there was no real relevance to her speaking Italian. She gave him a wink, half as part of the act and well..

"Godetevi, fulmini diavolo." (Enjoy, lightning devil)

Half to let him know there would be interference. She was a business women herself and who was she to judge someone who had a little taste for killing? Her moral compass didn't exactly point due north. Looking over at the older man, she lifted a hand and patted him on the shoulder, looking at him with genuine condolence. With one last smile, she turned on her heels, walked away and casually jumped over the bar. Walking back to her original position, one of the guys leaned over to her.

"Mob hit?"

Theory just pursed her lips and shrugged, as if she hadn't really paid much attention despite walking all the way over to them, "Something like that."

Theory continued her happy humming as she resumed her wiping of the glass. She stopped a unsure frown flickering over her lips. She hoped he wouldn't make a mess. Blood was a bitch to clean off those seats..

Raikou had a large smile on his face as he watched the man sweat, thinking of every possible way to avoid Raikou slaughtering him. Of course, there was no way he could, but, every man thought there was some way to avoid certain death. It may have been a bit sadistic, but, the fear before the kill was Alex's favorite part of the job. It was then, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the bartender walking over to him. She carried a glass of scotch in her hand, and seemed pleased to see him.

""Per la casa e non ultima chiamata."

The bartender spoke such natural Italian, it caused Raikou to raise an eyebrow at her. Though it wasn't odd for someone in Brooklyn to speak Italian, growing up in the Bronx, which wasn't too unlike Brooklyn, he had heard plenty of people speaking the language. Though, that wasn't the only thing that gave him pause. In his years of assassinations, very few people had ever smiled at him, and the ones who had usually wanted him dead. Still, the girl showed no outwards signs of aggression, and anyone who knew his methods should have come at him with full power while they could surprise him. Alex had raised the glass to his lips, and was about to take a drink when the girl said,

""Godetevi, fulmini diavolo."

There it was. Raikou held the glass frozen, with the rim of it touching his bottom lip. Had she not said that, he would have never suspected her of anything. But now, it would be a fool who sipped from a drink given to them by someone who knew of the moniker 'Lightning Devil' and kept such a calm face. Chuckling to himself, Alex stared at the girl for a second. After killing this man, he would definitely have to find out more about her, she might even be able to help him with a little project he had going.

"Qualunque cosa si paga, io pago doppio!" (Whatever they are paying you, I'll pay double!)

The man near screamed at him in panic, but, Alex paid him no mind. With a flick of his wrist, he sent the contents of his glass over the man's face and upper body, covering up the smell of lemon that coated his breath, with the thick scent of scotch.

"It's a shame to waste alcohol, but, never trust a clever woman."

As Alex spoke, he stood from his seat, leaving the man soaked and wondering. As he began to walk to the bar, however, he snapped his fingers, creating a spark near the man. And, as most people know, alcohol is a highly flammable liquid. The man burst into flames, his upper body igniting nearly instantly. He began to run around, screaming madly, begging someone to put him out, but, it was already too late. The flame had already passed the point of no return, in seconds the remaining amount of flesh on his face would be gone, and his brain would begin to liquefy. Alex sighed as the screams began to wear down, no one ever faced death like a man. They always left this world with fear in their eyes, and terror dripping from their voices.

CRASH!!

As he approached the bar, the sweet sound of the man's body giving out, sending it crashing into a bar table hit his ears. But for the first time, Alex wasn't smiling after a kill. This girl had ruined half of the fun for him, she had cut his play time in half, and lost him out on a bit of money. One way or the other, he was going to make her pay for that. His eyes were in a tight scowl when he reached the bar, all the humor and levity they held before gone.

"So, tell me, how does a nice lookin' girl like you know about me?"

"I used to be in the mob."

"Sure you were."

"I got a lotta blood on ma hands too."

"Sure you did."

"You gotta any of those bar peanuts left?"

"I live for these conversations of ours."

"Of course you do."

It was as if nothing had changed. This was still her last night in her home city and she was still recklessly giving out alcohol that wasn't hers to give out for free. It's not like she hadn't been in a bar while a hit was going on. Sometimes she'd step in and take the target away to safety, not because she had an overwhelming surge of "compassion" as the Oxford dictionary called it when she had looked it up, but because she always found ruffling the mobs feathers could be hilarious  from time to time. She could always make it up to them and besides, they eventually got their hit after a while. Honestly, some people could just not run away fast enough. There was stupid and then there was that. So now, because an interesting payment on legs waltzed in and also because that old guy kinda had it coming, Theory was choosing not to do anything. In fact, she wasn't even watching. Killing didn't "creep" her out at all, but no one likes it when people watch over their shoulder.

Suddenly, that set off another thought for Theory. Was it obvious that the kid was carrying a weapon? She didn't pick up anything with her senses, but then again, they weren't supposed to catch stuff like that with a first glance over. Nothing stuck out, so either he was hiding his weapon pretty damn well or he didn't have a weapon at all. Well, that latter made a lot of sense and Theory had in a loud and long "Ah" of realisation. She had just called him his little title after all! Maybe she had just gotten into the part too much, but oh well! What was fun was fun... Did electric shocks make that much of a mess? Theory scowled and it took all her restraint not to snap her head back over. If she had to clean up insides from that booth, she swore to God-- But then a loud screech of absolute horror and pain blocked out the smooth alto sax and Theory blinked rapidly. That wasn't a very good sound. She didn't need to turn her head all the way back round to see the booth as the man was up in flames screeching madly, his arms flailing wildly.  When Theory looked, that half a dozen had been halved, those men being the rare kind of drunk where even the bright burning of fire couldn't arouse them. They were all pretty passed out in their own booths, ignoring the burning mans pleas. Theory's eyes finally settled on the man, but now he was on the ground and not even seconds passed before everything started to.. Uh.. Melt. Theory watched the man stop screaming altogether, crash down loudly and winced.

"Uh... Eww.."

Was it too tame of a response? Well, Theory was looking down as if she had just watched a bug being squished between someone's fingers and then it's carcass being rubbed  and squashed further, making sure it was dead. Patting under the bar, Theory pulled out a half empty bottle of water, twisted and threw off the cap and poured it on the body, frowning at the small sizzling sound that came from the body. Well, he was dead alright. Throwing the empty bottle behind her, she shrugged, "Well it's not that much of a mess, so that saves me some time." Burned alive... Yet she could still catch a whiff of scotch. She began to chew on her lip in thought. She wasn't sure if this was interesting or gross? Some people would argue that it was supposed to be "terrifying" or "disgusting", but hey. Theory had seen and even pictured a lot worse.  

Setting down the glass she had still been cleaning without really meaning to, she caught the eye of her little fire starter. Oh she just couldn't help the tiniest of smirks crease her lips as she scowled at her and glared red hot daggers at her. Somebody wasn't relaxed anymore. She loved rapid swings of mood. Made the analysing that much more fun.

At his words, Theory burst out laughing and grinned at him. Setting her hands on the bar, she stretched her arms and rolled her shoulders back, "Girl? Kid, I have at least five years on you." Moving over to the side, Theory used the support of her arms to jump over the bar once more. Walking to the door as if she hadn't just been confronted by a Meta hit man who had set a man ablaze not five minutes ago. Opening the door, she brought the thumb and index finger of her right hand and brought them to her lips, letting off a shrill, loud whistle that made the three remaining men jump and stagger to attention.

"Alright you bums, get gone. Come on, hop to it!" she called out, still with a grin on her lips. They all groaned in protest, but Theory just gave another whistle and slammed her other hand down on the door, "You've all been here for half the day and you're all dying of scurvy by this stage! Get up and go, the sun will be out in a few hours, so go wait for your vitamin D."

Slapping each of them on the back as they left, she called out to them just before she closed the door, "And watch your step!" When the door close, Theory heard about six different stumbles and she exhaled loudly but still smiling. She was gonna miss those idiots. But for now, she had a Devil to deal with.

Lifting herself up on top of the bar and yawning, she stretched out her arms. When she let her arms flop done, she told him, "I didn't do anything to that scotch you know." She looked at him with her cool, ice blue eyes, resting her elbow on her knee and her cheek in her palm, "But something tells me that with no identification, Mr. Hong might just think this was any poor bastard, right?" Theory sighed heavily and rolled her eyes, continuing, "You think I don't know why you're giving me that look? You probably wanted to have more of a "thrill" right? You're one of those, right? But hey, you could have. I just gave you scotch on the house and even if you did think I did anything, all ya had to do was not drink it."

Pushing her hand back up and resting her hands on her knees, her expression of what seemed like annoyance vanished and became an amused smile, "Wanna see somethin' cool?" Leaning down and swooping up her coat on the stool next to her, she rummaged around an inside pocket until she found her phone, Unlocking it and opening a very special programme, Theory began murmuring what she was typing, "Lightning Devil: Bar in Brooklyn, downtown. Is anyone even still interested?" Theory smirked at him and turning her phone around, she let Rai watch her hit the send button. Turning it back around and locking it, she drummed her fingernails on the counter.

The phone vibrated. Theory smiled satisfied and sat it down. It vibrated again and a minute hadn't even passed. Halfway through the next minute it buzzed again and it wasn't even halfway through the next minute that it buzzed again. Now, most likely it was only two or maybe three of the same people contacting her frantically, kind of like trying to get the last bid in.  But Raikou didn't know that. Even as she lifted it up, it was still buzzing like crazy. She shook it gently with a look of utter calm on her face, "This is how I know about you."

"I know you because all those vibrations is someone branding you with a new value. Well, not you per se, but information on you. Now, the last time this happened, which would have been about a year and a half ago, I got a very, very handsome offer to find out what state you were going on sprees in and what exactly you could do with your shock system you got in your genes there. But I didn't take it... Because then  I got a cold stone fox of an offer from the other side of the city is all. But now.." She gave him a grin, a grin that almost everybody should be suspicious of... Then Theory ripped the battery out of her still buzzing phone and dropped it in a left behind glass of bourbon. She turned to Rai and laughed, "Sorry, I felt like pretending to be "evil" or something for a split second." Peeling the sim card out and stuffing it in her trouser pocket, she threw the body of the phone behind her. Blinking, she realised he may want an explanation.

"I don't like going back to old jobs Raikou. That's for desperate people who have no imagination. Now logic dictates that over time your "value" as I call it should have gone through the roof, kinda like how you leave a single malt scotch to mature in an oak case to get just the right taste. But I abhor logic and frankly, I don't need that much money right now. So yeah." Her tone was even and actually quite friendly, as if this wasn't a very rare occurrence for her.

In a split second, Theory had leaned down and grabbed the glass she had been cleaning and another bottle of scotch. Damn, this bar had a lot of this in here. Pouring it out, she set the bottle down and offered him the class with a reassuring quirk of her lips, "You didn't see me do anything to it, so just take it, but try not to set me on fire. I've got plans." she chuckled. Still holding out the glass, she reached up and pulled out her hair tie, letting her burgundy hair come free and drape around her shoulders.

"I wouldn't want you feeling at any disadvantage since I know quite a bit about you, so just to say: I'm Theory and I'm not a bartender. I pick up an apron and start serving drinks is all. There. A name and a trivia fact! Godetevi."

Alex leaned onto the bar, crossing his arms over one another as he listened to the girl talk, and boy did she love to hear herself speak. As she spoke, Alex began to snicker internally to himself, for as much information as she had, there was twice as much that she lacked. It was amusing to Alex, someone who had never once tried to hide his identity or his powers, how little information was readily available about him. Then again, who would suspect to look for information on an American born meta in Japan, the place where he started his 'crime spree' as it could be called.

"That's a very adorable little speech you gave there, Theory was it? It doesn't really matter, but, getting names right is this little tick of mine. You say those vibrations are someone branding me with a price? Well, here's something you should know."

Reaching into his own pocket, Alex pulled out his own phone, before sliding it across the table to Theory. It had no screen lock, no protection, not because Alex was overconfident, which he was. No, the phone had no protection, because there was nothing on it to find.

"Go ahead, call them up, tell them exactly where I am, make your money. But the question is, who are they gonna send? There's a handful of people on this planet capable of actually killing me, and those goody two shoes are either too rich to be bought out, or their moral compass points far too north. Regardless, I wish they would send men here after me. You have no idea the thrill killing a man who is confident they're going to live is, even after all these years the rush still comes to me."

Alex still didn't touch the scotch, leaving it sit on the table. Sure, he didn't see the girl do anything at that point, but, that doesn't mean she hadn't tampered with it before. Casually, he began to eye the girl up and down, assessing any weak points he could find, as well as trying to get a read on her. The former being much easier than the latter. He couldn't even draw an ancestry from her, the only thing he could tell was she was Caucasian, which was easy enough to change with the right make up and latex accessories.

"You wouldn't have found me a year and a half ago, if you were wondering. I wasn't in the states. I was in the Shibuya prefacture of Tokyo, then I spent the remaining time travelling between Norway and Italy for work. And 'shock ability', really? Girl, let me tell you something neat about me. My power isn't to shock, my power is to create and manipulate the very element of Lightning to my will. To hold complete and utter dominion over it. But, the real question burning in my mind is, why aren't you scared of me?"

Oh.. He was one of those.. Theory didn't hide the utter disappointment on her face. In a certain book Theory was planning to write half out of amusement and half to help the con men, women and those who wanted to be able to assimilate into any social group in this world without exactly having the power to do so, Theory would write about certain types of people who weren't going to give you any trouble because they put up a damn good fight, but because they just couldn't listen and talked the biggest load of bull. They were like the jocks of the outside world and they bored Theory to death, be they Metas or not or if they thought they could get under her skin so easily.

Theory looked down at the phone he had slid over wearily and picked it up, browsing through it aimlessly. She just didn't care anymore. Besides, she knew for a fact he wouldn't give her a completely unprotected phone. There was nothing interesting on here. There was nothing on here at all. Of course there wasn't. Calmly, she opened the back, popped out the sim card and snapped it in half, and then took the battery and dropped it lazily into the same glass of bourbon her battery had gone into.

"I just... I don't even care. God, I didn't think it was possible to run into someone so boring!" she moaned, sliding down from the bar and getting to her feet, beginning to throw on her coat. Tugging it closer to her chest, she pulled out her black gloves and as she put them on, she turned round to him to give him a blank, soulless stare as she didn't even take in anything he was saying anymore.

"I had high hopes for this evening, I really did. You just had to go and ruin my last night in my city didn't ya?" she drawled, even yawning by the end of her sentence and that was genuine. Not to annoy him, not to get under his skin. She really just yawned out of pure boredom.

"I told you, I'm not going to ring them up." she gave an exasperated sigh, not believing she had to spell this out for him, "Do you understand how valuable information is? I'm bursting at the seems with the money I make, I honest to God do not want let alone need any more of it. Simple as that." She turned her back as he started talking about where he was that time she had gotten the request and how his powers worked, but Theory's mind had drifted away and she was walking towards the back of the bar. He would probably follow her and even try to stop her. Try and make her jump with a bolt maybe? It wouldn't surprise her.

Then she heard his last question and she stopped, inhaling deeply. Slowly, she turned around to him and her eyes slowly scrolled down him from top to bottom, "Should I really be? You kill people? So what? A lot of people kill people, be it for money, survival or just for fun. It's in a human's nature, some of 'em just can't release the urge. You have powers over lightning? Have you seen the rubble of the Big Apple out there, kiddo? You're not the only one with powers Rai. Hell, I saw you trying to read me. Could you really not see that I'm a Meta too? That's just a basic analysis. I'm not scared of you because I've seen worse, I've heard worse and I've even dreamed a hell of a lot worse." Then suddenly, a grin appeared on her lips and she laughed out loud, "You can't spell scared without cared you know? I'm only realising! And in case you haven't noticed Rai ol' buddy;" Her eyes lowered and darkened, her lips became a flat line. It was if she was looking right through him when she clicked out her words slowly, not even bothering to add tone or any kind of emphasis.

"I don't care."

Turning around, she walked behind the bar until she found the back door, a fire escape that led to the alley way. Scuffing her toe on the ground as soon as she let the door hit the back of her heels as it closed and felt the chill on her neck and sifting lightly through her hair. Theory started to walk away, a slight spring in her step, almost forgetting completely about what she had left behind. But he was sure as hell going to follow her. In the very back of her mind, she was hoping this wasn't going to really be her last night in New York.

Boring? Alex had been called many things in his life, sociopathic, mentally insane, but boring? This was a first for him. He watched with angry eyes as the girl headed out the back of the bar, and for the first time in a long time, something akin to an actual smile came onto his face. This girl was interesting, maybe even worthy of being his second kill of tonight, a rare thing for him to indulge in. Usually his nights were planned around one kill, keeping each kill a special trophy of his. But this girl.... Well, she may have more worth than the thug he had killed earlier.

"Well Ms. Theory, time to show you the lightning devil."

He smiled as he discharged a small amount of lightning from his center of mass, blowing the door clear off it hinges. He didn't just destroy the door, the heat of his lightning nearly incinerated it to nothingness. With his power, he could have easily leveled this entire bar. The amount he had to hold back astounded him, he had really grown in power of late. Stepping out into the alley behind the bar, he grinned wickedly as he crossed the distance between the two metas quickly.

Placing his hand on Theory's shoulder, he quickly spun the girl around, throwing his free hand into her throat, choking the girl. Lifting her up, slowly, he began to laugh. His eyes seemed to glow a bright blue, and lightning crackled over his body.

"Are you afraid now Ms. Theory? Do you know how easily I could crush your wind pipe right now?"

As if to prove his point, he tightened his grip around her throat, cutting off even more air.

"AM I BORING NOW?!"

As he screamed at the girl, his lightning crackled and sparked more. Behind him, the lightning began to form into a tail like shape, and on his head, two demon like horns grew on his head, though to some, they could be perceived as feline like ears.

Feeling that he proved his point, he dropped the girl, letting her fall to her knees.

Theory's fingertips drummed against her palm as she walked slowly, but only slow enough to make sure it didn't look like she was waiting for something. Seeing as that actually was the case, it was a lot harder to do than to think about. Also, she was a little busy focusing on the fact that she wasn't sure if she really should be waiting for the thing she thought she was waiting for... That hurt her head. It took a lot of restraint not to look back or turn back. She really didn't want this to be the ending to her last night in the city. It was such a bummer. If there was another luxury that Theory liked to try to indulge herself in, it was "going out with a bang"... Or a fizzle at least. She'd work with anything as long it was the least bit exciting and she was desperate. Right now, Theory was pretty sure she was bordering on desperate. It wasn't until she was desperate that she waited for her possible death.

The loud, explosive sound behind her didn't catch Theory completely off guard, but that didn't mean it didn't still scare a fraction of hell out of her. She felt her heart try to burst out of her chest, but somehow, she managed to control herself well enough to stop herself turning around. But, that wasn't a problem. Before she could even think about what that Lightning Devil had done, she was facing him and a hand was at her throat. She fought every survival instinct not to throw her hands off in a pathetic attempt to scratch his hand away. Instead, her fingers twitched and fidgeted at her side as she struggled to breathe, at first only making spluttering gasps.

Then...He began to glow. Oh God, since when did lightning make people who control it glow? Why couldn't Meta powers just be straightforward like hers, and not so damn blinding?! She winced and blinked, that being the last of her problems as she started to take in even less air. Afraid he asked her. Was she afraid? No.. No, she wasn't. That was because of a promise she made a long time ago. If she was ever in a situation like this, (or one that was more "normal" in the spectrum of danger) she had to feel no fear. No anger, no panic, nothing. So that's why, each time, her splutters sounded broken apart and almost out of tune, it was because she was trying to laugh. All that ran through her head was strange ramblings of the danger she was:

Wow, grabbed by the throat by strange semi-people who change their appearance ever so slightly in the same night? Must be good fortunate! Or... It could be completely unfortunate, but hey! Why frown at the grey clouds when you could be smiling at the silver linings, right? No matter how impossibly thin and flimsy they are.

His grip got tighter and she couldn't even try to wheeze out any attempt at a chuckle. He screamed at her. Wow, she really had hit a nerve. Good. Smug bastard deserved it. Oh, that was negative. She couldn't have that. But really, since her head was starting to swim as the night got a little darker than it was supposed to be around her, her thoughts were starting to fade. She just let one more, conscious and coherent feeling slip through her system.

Relief.

Honestly, Theory always thought about death and the relief that came with it. That's how she was able to let that genuine emotion flood through before she was sure to see if there was a God up in the sky or not. Then Jonah would know she was okay. She wouldn't let her dad feel any sadness or fear. He always knew. No matter how far away he was, he knew.

Then.. She felt something else. Something else at what she saw. Awe. She watched the lightning create the image of a demon around him. Image was everything to kids, even murderous ones with very easily bruised egos. Although starting to lose complete control over her thoughts, she knew what awe felt like.. Well, it was a strange emotion, but anything was better than fear. Well.. If this wasn't going out with a bang she didn't know what was.

The minute her knees hit the ground, reality was a few hundred bullets right in her chest. Her body kicked in and she started to cough hugely, tears springing to her eyes because of the force of her spluttering gasps for air. She gulped back enough air to take long, deep, calming breaths. Then, her body started to quiver and shake. To him, it'd most likely seem like tears he could laugh over; extra salt to rub into a non-existent wound.

Theory laughed. She laughed hard. A mix of pure relief, happiness and electrifying entertainment. Pun intended. She wiped the tears out of her eyes quickly, still hollering with laughter. God knows how she supported herself with a trembling arm, but she did and managed to push herself upwards. She coughed her laughs down to chuckles and ran a hand through her hair, hiccupping back down to speaking level.

"I'm alive! Whew! That was pretty interesting, I'll tell ya that! But I will tell ya, each time I have a brush with Death, I swear he's gonna get me! You had me thinkin' I was near arms length there! Woah! Phew.."

Theory's breaths were shorter and her speech was rushed, but that was her body taking on the toll her mind wouldn't. She rolled her shoulders and ignored the shaking, putting a smug grin onto her lips, "Finished with your rant?" she looked over his shoulders and pursed her lips, noticed the lights from the bar because of the lack of a door on it's hinges. She shrugged, "You're lucky I don't know the owner of that place and that I don't even really work there, or I'd have some serious explaining to do."

Giving him a beam-as if he hadn't almost killed her- Theory had to lift each knee up one by one and shake them off, as if she had pins and needles. She really just needed to make sure she could walk alright. Turning around, she began to walk away and as soon as she was at the mouth of the alley, she turned back to face him.

"I can't stay still for very long, so you up for walking and talking Devil? If you're finished with me, then that's fine. See you when I see you."

So turning around, she took a deep breath and walked on, taking a sharp turn to the left with no destination on her mind. She honestly couldn't stay still. She didn't deny the fact that she wanted him to come along. Some people really could surprise you. Especially if they were Metas.

As the girl hit her knees, Raikou watched with mild interest. Was this girl some sort is masochist? Did she enjoy the pain he was causing her? That was an interesting thought. Even the masochist Raikou had 'been with' weren't able to handle the fear and pain the lightning devil was capable of. Smiling, he did go after the young woman, closing the gap pretty quickly by jogging casually after her. As he caught up, he reached out for her wrist, trying to grab her and pull her towards him.

"Are you some sort of Masochist? Are you enjoying the pain? I really don't get you."

Theory found herself coughing a little more than usual and she couldn't exactly put it down to just clearing her throat. After you're almost choked to death, a few coughs were to be expected. Why? Ugh, some science reason. Theory didn't have the brain power to think about that now. She was pretty sure some of her brain wasn't coming back online after half losing consciousness.

A smile came over her lips as she heard quick footsteps behind her as she walked, quickening her pace just a little. Oh good. The games may continue yet! He was faster than she expected and she blinked rapidly when her wrist was grabbed and tugged from behind. She frowned slightly. She had decided that she wasn't a huge fan of being man handled my people younger than her. It was happening too often for her tastes.

"What? Masochist?!" Her burst of laughter she released resulted in a spluttering of coughs, which she still chuckled through as she hit her chest in order to clear them away, "It was worth it." she coughed out quickly, shaking her head and then grinning at him, cocking her head to the side.

"You're not supposed to get me. I take that as a huge compliment and it means that I have been successful. How could anyone enjoy that? .. Well I guess Masochists could, fair enough, but still.. Lightning choke holds? I don't suppose that's a check box on a pleasure form of sorts. But hey! Lots of weird people out there! I once met a guy with a water board fetish, true story!"

Theory rambled on happily, having broken from his wrist and then beginning to walk backwards, a slight skip in her step as she faced him. She doubted very much that she'd bump into anyone this late at night. Or early in the morning. Whatever floats your tea set.

"But yeah, I was terrified, but I don't make it seem like I'm terrified. There's a reason, but I'm not going to tell you because really, it's none of your business. And I'm in the business of giving away business, so I think I know a thing or two about what business is appropriate to give away."

She stopped for a second and craned her head back to look up at the starless, black sky. It was a kind of soothing sight for her. Something to calm her down. She took another deep breath and let her eyes fall back down to Raikou.

"It's my last night in New York, you know. What about you? Once you report back to Mr. Hong, where are you off too next little Devil?"