A few days had passed since Katorasu’s previous encounter with the mafia and the police, since then nothing had really happened. He hadn’t come across any dealings, any suspicious persons, or even any petty crime being committed. Either he was scaring the organization that had moved into town, or letting that one man go to send a message to his boss only made them decide to play their moves more carefully.
All of that was on his mind as he walked down the sidewalk, conscious enough of his movements that he was able to move out of the way of fellow pedestrians. As to why he was outside in broad daylight, in all honesty, the nephalem wanted to experience what it’s like to just go outside and buy groceries like a normal person; he had only been out the one time before, with that ending in a strange fight against a skilled thief and him coming home covered in all kinds of dirt. What are the chances that something disruptive would happen again in the middle of the day?
Pretty high apparently, at least for the black hedgehog.
As he made his way through the town square, his ears flickered wildly as the sudden sounds of cars crashing into each other occurred. The sound of steel being crushed and scraping against one another caused Kato to wince at the discord. Immediately, his eyes wandered across the scene just to his left, as cars were backed up from the sudden flash of chaos.
He watched from afar as two groups emerged from their separate cars— one a crimson red and the other a golden yellow— and began to aim smaller firearms at each other. The nephalem’s heart began to beat loud within him, as he simply stared at the sudden gang war that was about to ensue. He knew these two groups to be part of the trio of petty gangs within Station Square, red was the Chaos gang and blue was the Arc gang. Like everyone else, he thought the gangs were harmless, though now watching them point their guns at each other he wasn’t so sure of that.
Katorasu’s eyes scanned the area beyond the oncoming violence, thankfully people were making the good decision to quickly flee before things turned ugly. However, there were people hunched in their cars or unconscious from the sudden crashing. He knew he had to do something— before anyone had gotten hurt— yet he was in his civilian clothes and no shadows were around to hide him in. The sun was practically a stage light, shining down on the protagonist of the story, as the nephalem couldn’t simply let violence take its natural course.
Until it clicked that he didn’t *have* to use his powers, it would be a handicap on his part but he knew he could pull it off. Maybe some crappy lie would cover his display of fighting skills, at least he hoped so.
Quickly hugging the sides of the cars that were part of the traffic jam, he moved from one vehicle to another as he covered his presence with them. As he focused on keeping a low presence, he could barely hear the yells and shouts that were sent back and forth between one misguided group to another. Initially, he thought that perhaps he could mist through the underbellies of the cars and just move forward as quickly as possible; the only thing stopping him was the chance that perhaps someone would see him.
With that in mind, he moved from cover to cover faster, before reaching a car that was the closest to the scene. Though in truth, that wasn’t all that close in the first place. Peering over the trunk of a taxi cab, both his eyes and ears caught the view and sound of police cruisers coming from the opposite direction. Things were escalating fast, as the officers slammed on the brakes and stepped out of their vehicles with firearms ready, in case their attempt at talking both sides down didn’t succeed.
In his mind, he hoped that the law would successfully do its job and all would be fine. That hope was dashed away as the sound of gunfire began to ring out on the streets, Katorasu would have to intervene to ensure zero casualties on either side. Immediately running out of cover and towards the group he was closest to— the Chaos gang— the vigilante kept a low stance to the ground as he moved. For a second, he swore that he heard a bullet whiz past his head. There were many things that Katorasu could walk away from, but a bullet to the head was not one of them.
Up to this point, Katorasu had always held back his strength so that he only did the bare minimum required to knock someone out without hurting them too badly; by no means was he hiding a godly amount of strength, though he did have a decent amount within him. All of this was evident as— in one flow— the ebony rogue quickly delivered blows to each gang member: a right hook across the cheek, a straight jab to the chest, a knee to the stomach; one move for one target, all without stopping for a single second to think.
It did sting Kato how he had to knock out a handful of teenagers, even if he knew that there was no easy workaround to the situation. Still, that performance caused the other side of the firefight to consider their actions— at least for a moment— which in turn allowed the cops to rapidly push forward with caution. Taking advantage of the brief window as well, Katorasu quickly moved towards the remaining gang as they tried to figure out whether to run or shoot at the oncoming police or the nephalem.
Luckily, in all the confusion there were no shots fired at either advancing force, as the nephalem quickly slid across the hood of the car that the Arc gang used as pseudo cover. With an elbow across the chin, Katorasu had knocked down another gang member, though was quickly met with a handgun aimed directly at his face. Narrowly avoiding a haphazardly shot round, by pulling his head back towards the side, Katorasu quickly snatched the firearm away and delivered the butt of it onto their face; practically smacking them down onto the asphalt road.
After dropping the pistol with a clatter, his eyes locked onto the last Arc member. From the way they practically shook in place, wobbling their amateur grip on their gun, the vigilante easily took the weapon away from them. Propping it up against the car, the nephalem watched as two officers came from behind the young man and promptly handcuffed his wrists after their typical procedure.
His golden eyes slowly scanned around the area, he watched how other uniformed men and women had already started to handcuff and take away the misguided youths.
“Those were some impressive moves out there, son,” An older officer spoke to Katorasu, as it was just the two of them alone on this side of the street, “Doesn’t exactly excuse you from being reckless and probably almost getting yourself killed in the process.”
Calming down from the mix of feelings he had about this situation, the nephalem put on a smile as he responded, “Well, I didn’t, does that let me off the hook?”
Quickly assessing the cocky hedgehog, the officer made a mental note about his appearance as his eyes narrowed, “You did help… but where’d you learn to move like that?” He questioned.
His smile became a little sheepish, before he answered with, “Y’know, night classes? Took a couple of self-defense lessons and practiced it at home from there.” Katorasu hoped that lie was convincing enough.
“Fair enough, but why’d you run in like that? I’ve never seen anyone pull a stunt like that in all my years; one shot is all it takes sometimes, don’t you have a family, or anyone, that would worry about you?” The officer asked, as he pulled out a notepad and began to jot down several notes about the ebony and emerald Möbian.
For a moment, Katorasu thought back on the adoptive parents that were assigned to him after his birth, how only his mother was the one who cared about him; his mind then went to the border collie— Jamie— that he paid monthly rent to, the only person in this realm that cared about him.
“No, not really, sir,” He answered, trying to not let his demeanor drop as he did so, “I don’t really have anyone that’ll miss me if something happens to me, I guess that’s why I didn’t mind charging in like that. Well, also that and I didn’t want anyone to get hit in the crossfire, would suck for their families to deal with that.” There was both deception and honesty with that answer.
As if the officer was puzzled by Katorasu, he pushed the brim of his hat up with his pencil as he spoke, “Even if you’re alone, don’t think you can easily waste your life.”
This elderly male continued to jot down detail after detail on his notepad; if this had been any other Möbian than a black and green hedgehog, he wouldn’t care as much to pen down every note that came across his mind. While he wasn’t entirely sure about this specific one being the vigilante who gave his department trouble, it didn’t hurt to keep him in mind when it came to narrowing potential suspects down.
“What’s your name, son?” He asked, placing the notebook in his police shirt’s breast pocket.
Without even thinking about a response, Katorasu answered with, “James.” It was an alternate name given to him by his mother so many years ago.
“Well, James, I’m Elliot. Normally there’s a bit more of a procedure to all this but… considering how you helped us out, perhaps reducing potential casualties to zero, I’ll cut you loose early to get back to your business,” He gave a warm smile to the nephalem, which was returned gladly by the vigilante, “Oh, one last thing— if you ever want a family of your own— feel free to give the department a call, I’m sure you’ll pass the physical easily with skills like that; I’ll even vouch for you.” Officer Elliot chuckled, waving a friendly goodbye as he returned to his cruiser.
The offer to join the police honestly tempted Katorasu; he would have back up, some resources, and it would all be completely legal. One problem: he doesn’t exist; specifically in government documents and whatnot. All of that would be a pain in even trying to get an ID.
Letting out a sigh, whether out of relief of getting past all that or from the frustration of losing out on a niche opportunity already, Katorasu made his way back to the sidewalk. To think, all he wanted to do was at least buy a gallon of milk. Though considering the danger that just passed, Katorasu now knew that the mafia was stepping up their game quietly, it was time for him to do the same.
Starting tonight.
