More Than Heroic

Bella would back up directly in to Dressler, his hands still firmly planted on her shoulders from behind her. She was nervous, frightened, apprehensive. All of this was expected. Dressler knew that the young girl had an aversion to killing, even to causing harm. Though that hadn't seemed to apply to them in the ally when she decided an Anklyosaur's tail to the face was what he needed. And here werewolf form, it seemed odd to eve think that was a plausible thing, was fine with killing indiscriminately. Because to this, Dressler knew the killer instinct was inside of her. It simply needed to be nudged in the right direction. They'd start off slow, with this man, a killing for all the right reasons.

Does this man need to have done something to you to be worthy of death. Is that where you draw the line? Dressler was pressing her, his hands now gripped more firmly on her shoulders. What if a friend was struggling, in excruciating pain, the kind that only death can alleviate. Would you deny them that relief? Is killing in that kind of situation wrong as well? The question was pointed, sounding more like an accusation than an actual question. This man is going to live his life in eternal pain I can guarantee you that. He wasn't lying, one look over the man and you could see that a good portion of his skin was covered in third degree burns. And that was only the visible damage, underneath he had a slew of internal injuries both from the extreme heat and the beating he received. This man has no life Bella, nothing but to bounce from hospital bed to hospital bed as a burden on an already taxed populace. Killing him now would be doing him a service, a kindness really. Moving now, Dressler would remove his hands and glide calmly over to the bedside. Gently he'd put his left hand on the man's, just adjacent to the call button. He'd then turn and look at Bella. But ultimately the choice is yours. Do you condemn him to a life of misery or release him in death?

Bella felt her hands tingle, verging on tremble, but as Dressler spoke, she focused on his voice, always calm. Anchoring her thoughts on it, calming herself down, what he said in so many ways sounded right but to kill him, consciously. She didn't know if she could do it, she wasn't confused or angry towards this man. He was just someone who's body didn't give out but was damaged too much to properly function. He would remain in a bed for most likely the rest of his life if he was unlucky.

But what stuck her most, were his last words, that in the end, this was her choice. She didn't know that if she decided not to he'd do something, she just knew that she had a choice. Sagging her shoulders before bringing them upright and straight, she'd take steps till she made it to him, turning to the ventilator that kept the man alive. Taking a deep breath, she told herself that this was better for the man behind her, that he wouldn't suffer anymore and with a still mind, turned it off. Allowing her breath to slowly come out, she wouldn't turn to the man or Alex, she just kept staring at the machine, her hands finally started to shake. Was it that easy just to take his life, a flip of a switch. She couldn't quite believe it, his only life line was a machine that had a off switch. "There. You happy? He's.." Bella couldn't quite finish the word, it felt like a lump at her throat, one that couldn't escape.

The familiar sound of an electrocardiogram beeped in the background as Bella moved from Dressler to the ventilator keeping the man alive. So many machines kept this man alive, he found it fitting that Bella choose the ventilator to take life from him. In a way she was playing god, taking the last breath from a man, choking the very breath of life from his lungs. It was poetic really, a poem set to a heartbeat. But of course it had to end and as the drone of the flatline pierced the room, Dressler pressed his hand to the call button. The hospital being worth its salt would send out a Code Blue and every doctor in the place would be rushing to this very room. After all there was a man to be saved...well that and the other bit that Dressler had planned.

As Bella rose and spoke Dressler gripped her arms and lowered his head to hers. He would not give her the silent contemplative time that she wanted. Time for your next lesson young one! No longer was he clam but more manic, somewhere between a hunting predator and a caged animal, the excitement was clear on his face as the droning in the room seemed to grow louder. Killing is not always mercy. More often, its survival. Rapidly he'd spin her around to face the door. An anonymous tip was called in that the man in that bed would have an attempt on his life. Because of this, security in the hospital has been upped and you're the one who pulled the plug. This is your moment Bella, the time when I push you from the nest to see if you fly or fall. Do you lay down and accept a fate that is unjust against you or do you fight for your life against the people who will be here any second to arrest and possibly kill you. The choice is yours, but you'll have to act fast. I'll be watching. Without warning he'd push hard against Bella's back, likely pushing her to the door as the first wave of a handful of doctors, nurses and three security staff breached the room. Dressler in turn was a gecko, clinging to the underside of the bed, watching to see what his young one would do.

Bella was a little surprised by the sudden grip on her arms as Alex lowered his head to hers, she didn't really know what she wanted him to say but most of all it she didn't want it to be something about another lesson. Sadly, it seemed the fates taunted her as Dressler's usual calm was replaced with a manic look on his face, one that was also filled with excitement and that was enough to tell the young shape shifter she would not like what was about to happen. Soon enough, he would give a lesson of how killing was not always mercy but also survival, something she could have told him, a lot of people already knew that but usually all of them wished to not have to be put into a situation like it. Including her most of the time.

With that he would spin her before she got the chance to argue till she was facing the entrance to the room and as he spoke, her calm dulled into a rising anger, his words obvious and his true nature shown. He had planned this for a while, otherwise that anonymous tip would not have upped security for a while but how would they have known the man inside was dead unless... Unless someone alerted them and their were only two people currently alive in this room. "You.." Bella wouldn't be able to finish as she was violently pushed towards the door that moments after would burst open with people who started to flood the room, the mess of bodies stunned her for a moment when a sudden hand griped her shoulder hard. "Get your hand off me!" Bella would almost hiss the words as she looked to the staff member who grabbed her and shifted into a massive Gorilla with a equally massive Roar, using her massive arm to bat away the security staff that had grabbed a hold of her. Using the starting panic of her sudden shift, Bella changed back to her human form before running out the door and down the hospitals hallway, avoiding confused and scared patients and doctors as she heard the cry's of screams and yelling to chase after her.

In her Panic to escape, Bella had almost run into a blockade of men who all held strange baton like weapons, and hadn't thought to shift as she turned tailed and ran, only to see those who were chasing her before had caught up. Surrounded and scared, Bella looked left to right and let out a scream before shifting into a Large Gorilla again and punching the wall beside her, creating a large hole into the open air to which she could escape from. Shifting back to her Human form, Bella would run and jump out the wall before beginning a shift into the flying dinosaur that had began there Journey, opening her wings to glide towards the ground. Upon making it to the ground, Bella would shift back into her normal self. Her hands shaking from the experience, what happened? It was just meant to be a simple lesson, why had he done that, betrayed her. Bella was asking these questions to herself, and she knew what she would do when he came, because he would, it wouldn't be like him to leave her alone after that, he would come... He will.

Dressler looked on gripped by suspense and expectation as he waited what actions his protege would take. Her initial reaction was to be expected. Confusion, anger, apprehension a whirlwind of emotion had to be going through her head. Dressler had never been a real bird, but he anticipated that these were the emotions felt by a young fledgling. Bella was pushed from the nest, now it was her turn to fly and he so looked forward to seeing her soar. But first he'd have to catch up to her.

Scurrying out from under the bed, Dressler would dart between the stampeding feet of the hospital staff crowding the entrance to the room. A giant gorilla obviously drew more attention then the tiny gecko so he was mostly free to move as he pleased. And considering four legs could carry him faster than the two that Bella was on he had little trouble keeping up. But he soon had to move to the ceiling I avoid storming in security as they narrowed in on Bella. His excitement only buoy as he saw the second group approaching from the other direction. She was cornered, trapped. This was it, her moment of truth, surrounded on both sides by those wishing to do her harm for all the wrong reasons. She would lashbout he was sure as he watched once more shift into the large gorilla form. He practically buzzed with excitement as she let out a guttural roar and reared back for a punch. Yes YES, DO IT! he screamed in his head, eyes wide as he awaited the death to be brought by her hand. But to his disappointment there was none and instead his excitement was replaced by sudden fear.

She was trying to bust out, breaking a hole in an exterior wall and leaping from the building.NO! Dressler commanded, his form rippling and growing, his hind legs becoming those of a flea and his back and arms sprouting a thick armored shell. Already he was the size of a large humanoid as he reached the hole and sprang out after the youngling. Escape had been his next step, one he had intended to help Bella with after she had proven herself inside. Now she was out in the open, exposed to the anti-metahuman forces who had no doubt already surrounded the place.

His heavy body collided with the ground on that far side of Bella. His eyes clambering to find her as he rose. BEL-- he began to yell before a shot rang out from above them. Suddenly Dressler was sent flying on to his back an immense pain radiating in his shoulder. In shock his mind tried to process what was happening as he looked down. His eyes went wide as he looked upon the carnage. A sniper bullet from the roof had penetrated his unarmored front side, leaving little more than a rapidly bleeding stump where his right arm had once been. Pain and rage overwhelmed him and his terrible gaze fell upon the roof.

Standing to his feet once more, the fuming doctor coated himself head to toe in the limpet teeth armor as the remaining muscles in his body swelled. The expansion putting more strain on his bleeding stump and Wendi g waves of agony through his body. Constructing the muscles around the location harder he'd staunch the flow of blood but let out a grunt through his teeth as he was nearly seeing red.

Stay down he commanded to Bella, moving to put himself between her and the roof as a few more bullets collided with his back from the row of police cars behind him. Each would collide harmlessly before exploding sending Dressler crashing once again to the ground. This was bad, very very bad. He had not been prepared to put up a fight against these kind of forces, not in this kind of situation anyway. Caught off guard, tossed about and in pain he lifted himself on his remaining arm and pulled himself closer to Bella, wrapping his body around hers. Hopefully it would be enough to shield her from the gunfire while he took a second to collect himself and catch his bearings.

Bella's patience rewarded her as she heard the traitorous man yell her name partially before the shot rung out, cutting him off and surprising Bella. She gasped as she looked up too see the shooters, her gaze puzzled as she stared at them, body paralyzed. "How.." Bella almost whispered, she didn't understand why.. how there were snipers already, did this man really matter, did Dressler sign her up to kill someone important...

Bella looked around and noted the police cars that almost surrounded them, the policemen that stood there, guns aimed right at the two shifters. And all Bella could do was stare, scared. But then, Dressler's voice cut though the fear that paralyzed the young girl and she did what he asked. dropping to the ground with her hands covering her ears to drown out the sound of gunfire and following explosions. All of a sudden she felt small, scared, but there was Dressler, close, comforting. And all of a sudden she felt.. safer.

But even then she knew they were not safe for long, Dressler was hurt, and if they stuck around it would only get worse, much worse. Taking in a deep breath, Bella lowered both her hands to the ground and looked at Dressler, focusing on her form she was about to take. She screamed at the top of her lungs. "HOLD ON!" Before shifting into an extremely large Wolf, a Dire Wolf. Enhancing the speed and durability of the form along with the strength somewhat so she could carry Dressler's form. Bella took off into a blurring speed, the from of herself and Dressler just a blur to the surrounding police force as she sped though and away.

Running for what felt like minutes but was only seconds thanks to her increased speed, Bella stopped at the base of the building they had started this horrific journey at, the sound of sirens far off into the distance as she panted, shrugging Dressler off and shifting back into her human form. Bella simply sat in place and held her arms close to her chest, taking long, deep breaths. She hated today, wanted today to be over, wanted to go... home...

Dressler's mind reeled as he collapsed into the alley where Bella had taken the two of them. He had never expected the situation at the hospital to get that heated, not that quickly. Nor did he expect to be put in such a vulnerable position. The sensation was new to him, of vulnerability. In that moment where he lost arm he had felt entirely helpless, unsure of the world and everything in it. Now he lay with his back on the pavement, eyes staring straight up into the sky. Thank you Bella he awkwardly spoke. He was essentially admitting that in that situation her help had been needed. That was another new one, and Dressler wasn't quite sure that he liked the way it felt.

Lifting his remaining arm into his vision, Dressler stared at it intently. He had no idea what would happen with the stump where his right arm once was. He'd suffered from some minor wounds, mostly cosmetic in nature, and had recovered from all of them eventually with no scarring or long term damage. But this was different, a potential permanent imperfection on his otherwise immaculate appearance.

Slowly his form receded back into a human appearance except for the tightened ring of muscle keeping him from bleeding out from his wound. That was an impressive use of your abilities Dressler said, turning his head to her from his prone position. He was trying to save face, turn what was almost a very bad situation into a lesson somehow. Obviously he couldn't admit that he was just in a highly compromised position.

Bella would look at Dressler as he spoke, taking a long, deep breath and letting it out like a sigh. She was tired, and she was sore and really hungry, something that tended to happen when increasing her speed. Looking to Dressler as he spoke his thanks to her, Bella only looked at him, he had gotten her to kill a injured man in an effort to kill more with intent. She once again had found a reason to hate him but... She looked to his stump, where his arm once belonged and knew that happened because of her. Knew that in his own strange way.. Maybe he did care.

Bella stood up as he also made note of her ability to which Bella scoffed at him. "My ability allows me to enhance core strengths. Strength and durability are not my only tricks." Bella said as she walked over to him and offered a hand to help him up. "No more tricks Alex. You want my help, then you have to be honest with me. I'm not stupid." Bella said in a low voice, seeing that his.. sacrifice made up for the offense that got them into this situation. It also allowed her to realize that he did care about her, you don't just do what he did if you didn't care. And she had to thank him for that at least, even if she would not say so in words.

Im well aware of what you're capable of Dressler huffed, an unamused scowl wiping his previous concern from his face. Reaching up he grabbed Bella's and with a quick heave lifted up to his feet. Quickly he brushed the debris from his back with his remaining arm before adjusting his suit accordingly. Once more he became aware of his missing arm. Angrily he looked down to his tump, willing a new arm to grow. A tremble ran through his shoulder but no new arm was produced. It seemed he had discovered a limit to his own abilities, something he would have to take note of in the future. The idea of being so vulnerable only further serving to boil his blood.

I have been nothing if not honest with you Bella he spoke plainly, somewhat annoyed at her assertion that he had lied to her. So be honest with me, if I had told you exactly what you were going to be put through today would you have come along? Better yet, if you had known what was coming ahead of time, would the impact on you have been the same? I suspect not he concluded, seeming to answer his own question before Bella could even speak. The point of this was to teach you, push you along the way to a brighter future, in order to do that I did not reveal to you exactly what we would be doing. But I assure you that otherwise I am an open book. He spread out his arm as he said this, a sly grin on his face.

Bella's rage grew for a acute second before settling down, her fingers grasping at the hem of her shirt tightly to help with her heated mood, she knew he was a troublesome thing to converse with, so she just had to accept that her words would go unheard, or at least forgotten. "I didn't say you lied. Tricks and lies are very different but.. We can have this conversation later can we not? I want to go home."

Bella stated so as she looked around, the distant sound of the police siren a reminder that as long as she called her home a home with Dressler, things would never really be too peaceful. But it was a home none the less. Looking back to Dressler, Bella stepped back for him to lead the way, in case he decided to shift, but with his arm the way it was now, maybe they would be walking, a walk would be nice.