Criminal Element [Chapter 8 Up!][Not Accepting]

[PikMan]

I should've given up now, but I came up with an idea for a fanfic (well, maybe just "fic") that I know is probably going to suck, but I couldn't resist. Revie[color="#4169E1"]O[/color]

[spoiler=Chapter 1: Crime and Car Chases]
Ace looked up from the driver's seat of his parked car. He had fallen asleep a while ago, but woke up to the sudden noise. A police car sped by after a motorcycle. The guy riding it wore a blue jacket and jeans. Ace laid back down on the seat, wiping his messy black hair off his face. [i]Things like this happen all the time[/i], he thought. [i]If there was an explosion or something, I might pay attention.[/i]

BAM.

[i]...That'll work.[/i]

Ace drove over to follow the police car. Mesa River City seemed normal enough- The apartment complex was a shade of red that Ace liked to refer to as "Puke Red", and the nearby power plant gave off smoke that filled the sky above the city with dark clouds. Soon he saw three or four police cars parked around a large hole in the wall of the bank. He noticed an officer talking with the chief, and rolled down his window to hear.

"...and just like that, no evidence whatsoever."

"Hm... That's the third time this year. Something's going on, that's for sure..."

So there had been a bank robbery just now. There had been two more this year, and it was just April.

Driving back to his apartment, he looked over to the side and saw a motorbike parked in an alleyway. It was the same one he saw earlier, he was sure of it.

He pulled over to get a closer look. He heard someone load a gun, and he froze, praying that it wasn't aimed at him. He tiptoed closer, and he observed the scene.

He could see the biker holding a handgun, pointing it at a red-haired kid roughly 11 or 12, in a black sweater and blue jeans, who was holding a camera.

"Alright, I'm not going to say this again: Hand it over", said the biker.

"You wouldn't shoot a kid," replied the boy.

"You're right, I wouldn't. That sort of thing is reserved for my boss."

So this was a criminal organization that the police were dealing with. Interesting...

Just then, the biker whipped around. "Shooting college-age people", he added, "I can do!"

Acting quickly, Ace shot his foot forward, right into the criminal's crotch. He dropped the gun.

"Come on!" Ace yelled at the kid while picking up the gun. He obeyed, and hopped in the car as the biker got back on his motorcycle.

"So tell me", Ace asked, "What's your story?"

"Well, my name's Oliver. I was just walking by that bank when that biker showed up. I recorded the break-in on this camera that I got just now, and I got his face on film, but he caught me."

A gunshot interupted the conversation. The criminal was giving persuit.

Ace looked back in front of him, and 2 cars with people dressed like the biker were blocking the road. Ace whipped the car onto the road leading to the nearby desert.

The biker, as well as the 2 cars, followed Ace.

Ace drove off-road to throw them off. The persuers, unfortunately, continued to give chase. Then, BANG. The biker had shot the front tire of the car, and it went flat.

He and Oliver jumped out and hid in some bushes. The 2 cars passed, but the biker noticed them because of Oliver's black sweater and Ace's black pants.

Oliver noticed a cave in a cliff nearby, and ran towards it. Ace followed.

The biker passed.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Ace noticed that the back of the cave had a metal wall with a door in it.

"Hey, Oliver, why don't we go check that out?" He asked.

"I dunno... Um, what's your name?" Asked Oliver.

"Ace... Well, that's what my friends call me."

"Oh, OK. Ace, I we already dodged at least 3 gangsters today. Why don't we call it a day?"

"I haven't really had a very exciting life, and this looks too good to resist."

They went through the door.[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Chapter 2: A Moral Event Horizon]
The door led to a building that was built inside the side of the cliff. Oliver walked behind Ace, who had grabbed the gun from that biker in the alley.

The room looked like a prison cell. It had doors on the back wall, and an air vent on the ceiling.

"I don't like this place", Oliver said. "Could you hold the camera for a sec? I chew gum when I'm nervous and I have some in my pocket."

"I don't see why not."

Oliver handed over the camera and pulled out a piece of gum, popped it in his mouth, and whipped around at the sound of a door slamming shut.

The person who shut it wore a bandana on his head, and had an eyepatch over one eye. He was wearing a brown leather jacket and jeans.

"I must say", he said as he lit a cigarette, "Thanks for helping me dispose of that evidence."

Ace and Oliver looked at each other in confusion. "How did you-"

"Turns out you get good cell service out here", the guy said in response. "I should introduce myself. I'm Cecil Blackwood. Now that that's outta the way, give me the camera."

Ace shook his head.

Cecil grabbed Oliver, pulled out a gun and said "Let me rephrase: Give me the camera or I'll put a bullet in this kid's head and call it macaroni!"

Ace reluctantly threw the camera on the ground.

"That's more like it" said Cecil. He cocked the gun, put it to Oliver's head, and added "...Sucker!"

Ace picked the camera up and chucked it at the gun before Cecil could fire it off. Oliver hid behind Ace.

"YOU SAID-" started Ace, holding the gun. He was rediculously mad- Not because Oliver was his friend or anything, but because he was disgusted that someone would shoot a kid.

"Well, being leader of a criminal organization is admittedly pretty boring. Besides, I haven't murdered someone for over a week."

This made Ace even angrier. "I should just shoot you right now."

"I figured you'd say that. There's just one problem, though..."

At that moment, a man holding a machine gun popped out of the shadows. He had brown hair, was wearing the same jacket as Cecil, only a different color, and black pants.

"This is Lector, my bodyguard. Not that I need one, of course, but it's all the more entertaining watching a Mexican standoff."

Ace decided not to waste his time with a Mexican standoff. "Look, if you don't mind, we'll be going now."

"Hold it", Cecil said. "How do we know you're not going to try to rat us out again? Lector, if you please."

Lector aimed his gun at Oliver.

"Not at him!" Cecil yelled. "Only I may shoot children. Shoot the camera!"

With precision accuracy, Lector blasted the camera which was lying on the ground after Ace chucked it.

"All right. You may go now, all of you. And if I catch you in here again, I won't waste my time messing with your minds!"

Lector went through the door behind Cecil. Oliver made haste leaving the building, and after flipping off Cecil, Ace followed.[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Chapter 3: Oliver's Tale]
"So Oliver, where do you live?" asked Ace on the way back.

"Oh, to be honest... I don't really have a home."

"Wha- But you have parents, right?"

"Nope. You see... I've run into Cecil before."

"Oh really? Tell me about it. It's personal though, right?"

"Nah. I'll tell you." And he began to tell his tragic tale...


Oliver was around 8 at the time. His parents were being nervous on that particular day for a reason he didn't know at the time.

"Oh no, he'll be here any minute! What'll I tell him?"

"Tell him that you'll have the money soon, and when he leaves, we can leave!"

"Are you kidding? The guy's merciless! I've heard from my friend who also owes him money that he murders children! FOR FUN!"

"Well, now that you mention it, we should hide Oliver."

Even though Oliver had no idea who they were talking about, he hid in no time. He didn't even remember where he hid, as he expained to Ace.

Then there was a knock at the door. Oliver didn't see who it was, but he heard of it.

"Hey, Cecil! Heh heh, what a suprise."

"So, did we bring something green and wrinkly?" asked a voice who Oliver
guessed must be Cecil.

"Well, I'm doing something next week, and by then I should be able to get it..."

"The point is that I don't see it. And you know what happens when I don't see my money?"

Silence.

"This."

Oliver heard a gunshot, and his father screaming. Then there was another shot, and he could hear his mother dying.

"Search the place, Lector. Make sure there's nobody else home."

When he was sure they had left the room, Oliver took it as his cue to run. He put his ear to the door and listened. After a couple of minutes, he finally heard them.

"Well, it looks like there's nobody here", Lector said in his heavy British accent.

"We can't be too sure. Burn the place down! Or better yet, stuff it full of grenades!"

"Jolly good."


"...And I've lived like a hobo ever since", Oliver finished.

Ace felt genuinely sorry. But, being the cool fellow he was, didn't bother to say it.

"Well, you could stay at my place if you like", Ace offered.


"Solrac, I'm home!" Ace called.

"Solrac? Who's that?" Oliver asked.

"Oh, he's my brother. His real name's Carlos, but we call him by his name backwards. I'm not sure why."

Solrac was slightly taller than Oliver. He had brown hair, wore a black coat and a red shirt, and jeans.

"Hey there, Ace. Who's that kid?" asked Solrac.

"This is Oliver. If it's all right with you, he'll be staying here a while."

"Fine by me."[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Chapter 4: Cecil's Conference]
Cecil called Lector and the other leaders of his organization together for a secret meeting.

"My good friends, there are two issues that I wish to speak with you about today. As you all know, we've recently had a pair of intruders. Although their names are unknown, the security cameras have caught photos of them. I was able to dispose of this camera, which contains footage of our own motorcycle expert Lance Taylor robbing the national bank."

He tossed the remains of the camera onto the table.

"However, after discussing the incident with my right-hand man Thadeus Lector, I realized I overlooked one minor error."

The group whispered for a moment, and went quiet a moment later at the sight of Lector holding out his machine gun.

"You see... These two are the only people outside our group who know the location of our hideout."

Some more whispering.

"If word gets out that a national criminal organization is hiding just outside a populated area... DISASTER!"

The group was startled by the sudden shout.

"However... I intend to do something about it. Any ideas?"

After about 2 1/2 minutes of whispering, someone raised their hand.

"What if we get a professional assassin?"

Cecil pondered this. "Y'know, that's not a bad idea. Lector!"

Lector jumped to attention.

"I need you to help me round up some assassins."

"With all due respect, Blackwood", Lector said in reply, "If we were to notify more people of our location, that'd be pushing our luck even further!"

Cecil thought of the logic of Lector's statement. "You're right. In that case, we'll meet somewhere else. Go use that computer and find the locations of some assassins."

Lector left immediately. Cecil turned his attention to the group.

"Now for the other issue. In the aforementioned robbery, we acquired 4.2 million dollars. It will go into funding for our little project."

More whispering ensued. Since Lector wasn't around to threaten them, Cecil fired a warning shot into the air, and it had the same effect.

"You see, I have been working with professor Richard Snook..." He noticed that some people were snickering at the mention of the name Snook. Cecil fired off another shot.

"I have been working with him and we discovered an unusual variety of sound wave that can kill a man if strong enough, and yet does no structurul damage. We have called it the Limited Supersonic Wave. I have already begun developing Sonic Grenades that produce these waves, but I have been planning on something quite interesting."

He pulled down a slideshow sheet, started a projector, and on the sheet was an image of a rocket-like object.

"The Sonic Heavy Bomb. It will produce LSW's so strong, it could obliterate Walt Disney World, and the surrounding 20 miles. With firepower like that, our organization could finally take over the world, and nobody can stand in our way."[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Chapter 5: The Assassins]
Cecil looked over the gang that Lector helped him pick out. They were hidden in a log cabin some 100 miles from Mesa River City.

The first in line was a mercenary named Shadow, so named because he was born with a rare condition where his iris was all black. He was roughly 22, had black hair, and wore a blue hoodie with kahki pants. He had a whip on his belt.

Next was a blue-haired young woman named Lucille, age 19, who was wearing a red scarf, wearing a green jacket, white shirt and black sweats. She wore a pink backpack which Cecil noticed was full of shurikens.

Third was a 17-year old named Randall. He had blonde hair, a red shirt, brown pants, and a blue bandana around his neck.

Last was a man named Zachary. He had brown hair, wore a grey vest and a blue shirt, and carried two pistols on his belt.

"I have gathered you here for a very important task. Nobody is to know about it- Not a soul!"

He paused for dramatic effect. Then he continued.

"Lector tells me that you are all ruthless, merciless, and very, very dangerous. The task I have is very simple:"

He held out photographs of Ace and Oliver that his security camera took. It is worth noting he did not know their names, or that Oliver was related to the couple he killed 4 years back.

"These two are the only ones outside my group who knows where my hideout is. My top scientists are working on a devastating weapon, and if our secret is revealed to the public before it's complete... That is why we are gathered in this particular location; To avoid further risk. You can thank my bodyguard for considering that. Your job is to kill the older one, but bring the child alive."

"Oh yeah?" Shadow inquired. "Why should we?"

"Y'know... I was hoping you'd ask."

Cecil held out a briefcase. "Whoever completes this task shall be awarded 1 million dollars."

He opened it and, sure enough, it was chock-full of 100 Dollar Bills.

Randall shook his head. "I don't work for money, Cecil. Just the thrill of the hunt!"

Cecil simply pulled out a handgun and shot him.

"He shot him!" Lucille whispered.

"Yes, so I did. Simply because assassins who work for the thrill of the hunt are the most likely to give their target a sporting chance, and therefore, most likely to fail me. You wouldn't want to fail me," He added, cocking his gun sinisterly. "...Would you?"

All 3 shook their heads silently.

"Wonderful. Any further questions?"

Shadow raised his hand. "Um, yeah, I have a question. Why do we have to bring the boy alive anyway?"

Cecil grinned sinisterly. "Because murdering children is a favorite hobby of mine."

As he opened the door to let them out... "And remember... Bring the boy... ALIVE!"

The group left, still in shock from the murder of Randall. His remark about child murder, unknown to Cecil, started to give Lucille second thoughts...[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Chapter 6: The Encounter]
At that time, Ace was blissfully unaware of their imminent danger. He, Solrac, and Oliver were just hanging out at the apartment Ace and his brother lived.

Oliver shared a room with Solrac, much to the dismay of the latter. Solrac liked his privacy, and to have it invaded by a complete stranger was not his idea of a visit.

Ace, on the other hand, got along with Oliver pretty well. As it turned out, they both had similar taste in video games, and having survived an encounter with a criminal mastermind together certainly helped.

"Hey, Ace", Solrac said some 3 days after Cecil's meeting with the mercenaries, "We're out of soda. And take Oliver with you, I need to clean my room and I'd appreciate some privacy while doing it."

"Whatever", Ace said, shutting off Goldeney 007. He and Oliver hopped into Ace's pickup truck and went to get some.


As they left the store, Ace ran into somebody.

"Oh, I am very sorry", said the man. He had black hair, wore a blue hoodie, and for some reason his irises were pitch-black. "Let me help you with that."

Oliver glanced at the whip on the man's belt. "So what are you, a lion tamer?"

"Not really, this is my good luck charm. I got it from my father."

After loading the stuff into the truck, Ace looked over and said "Thanks for helping, but we gotta go."

"Hey, don't mention it. Hey, could I talk to you in private? For a second?"

"What for?" Ace asked suspiciously.

"Oh, just because, I noticed that you have bullet holes in your truck, and I wondered if it was anything bad, so I could report it to the police. You never know who could be listening, you know?"

Ace remarked, "Well, it is worthy of a mention..."

The three walked into an alleyway, and Ace told him the whole thing.

"And then we got away, and then..." Ace was about to get to Cecil, but was interrupted by a whip crack.

"Thank you. That's all I need to know", the guy said, coiling the whip.

"Who- who are you?" Oliver asked.

"The name's Shadow. Now hold still so it'll be easier for you."

"Why are you trying to kill us?" Oliver asked, frightened.

"I'm trying to kill him, I'm leaving you alive. Cecil's orders."

"Cecil..." Ace muttered under his breath, and narrowly dodged the whip again.

"So you're planning on resisting, huh?"

Ace bolted further into the alley, with Oliver trailing behind him. After realizing what had happened, Shadow gave persuit.

Oliver noticed a ladder leading to the rooftops. "Up here, Ace!" he called.

[i]So that's his name. Ace...[/i] Shadow thought. He couldn't risk being seen, so he continued through the alleyways.

Ace and Oliver ran over the rooftops, and jumped down to the next alleyway.

Unfortunately, Shadow was there waiting for them.

Eventually, the three of them reached a dead end.

"There's no escape this time, Ace. You are about to die", and turning to Oliver, Shadow added "And you'll die in a couple of hours, um... What's your name anyway?"

"Oliver."

"Oh, OK."

And as Shadow raised his whip, a shuriken sailed past them and hit the wall.[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Chapter 7: Zach Attack]
It was a young woman who Shadow immediately recognized as Lucille.

"What? What're you doing here? Are you rebelling against Blackwood, or trying to get the reward yourself?" asked Shadow.

"I dunno", Lucille replied. "I haven't figured that out yet."

She tossed another shuriken at Shadow. This time, it scratched his arm. Shadow retaliated by striking with the whip, but Lucille was too agile. She threw yet another one, and it slit right through Shadow's whip, cutting it in half.

"Once I replace this, you'll all be sorry! That goes for you too, Lucille!" With that, he stormed away.

Lucille looked back at Ace and Oliver. "Listen... In case you haven't noticed by now, both of you are in danger."

"That whip looked pretty harmless to me", Ace snarked. "Anyway, how can we trust you? We've nearly been killed once before, and now we got attacked by Indiana Jones's evil twin."

"Ah- that's a good question." Lucille realized that she hadn't decided to rebel yet. She didn't know if she'd try to kill them later or not. So she took the most reasonable course of action.

She tossed her backpack of shurikens onto the ground. "There. I'm handing you my only weapon."

"Well, I'm convinced", decided Oliver. He stuck the piece of gum he was chewing behind his ear and grabbed it.

They all headed back to the apartment.


"WHAT!" Cecil shouted. "You failed?!" He pulled out his handgun.

"It wasn't my fault! Honest!" cried Shadow. "That other assassin Lucille went disloyal!"

Cecil pulled his hand away from the trigger. "So... one of the assassins went and joined the other side?"

"From what I can tell."

Cecil pondered this excuse. "All right, I'm giving you another chance. And if you fail me... You'll end up severely injured, dead... or worse!"

Shadow was initially terrified, but then considered the logic of this statement. "Worse? Really? What's worse han death? Overkill, maybe?"

"All right. But I'm not paying for your new whip."


"So let me get this straight", Solrac said. "You two ran into a psychotic criminal mastermind, and said psycho just sent paid assassins after you?"

"Haven't you been listening?!" shouted Ace.

"To be honest, no. But I got the gist of it, I was just staring at the ceiling fan."

"And that's not all", Lucille brought up. "Cecil mentioned that he's building a weapon of some sort."

"We should go and check it out", Oliver suggested. "But not now... After that attack, we never know if some lunatic with a gun could come crashing into our apartment."

Just then, some lunatic with a gun came crashing into the apartment.

Ace grabbed the handgun he stole from Cecil and fired.

The assassin ran behind some furniture and continued attacking. Then he pulled out another gun and fired both of them.

Solrac had a pocketknife stashed in his room somewhere. He grabbed it and slashed the attacker across the leg. It didn't phase him one bit. He just pointed a gun at Solrac, and that scared him off.

Lucille grabbed the backpack and threw a shuriken at the attacker. He dodged it, and it stuck to the wall. He threw it back to Oliver, who held up the case for some Wii game in defense.

Ace then got an idea. He shot the ceiling fan, which crashed onto the assassin.

"Who are you?" asked Solrac.

"I'm Zachary, one of the assassins that Cecil sent after you."

Oliver noticed that Zachary was reaching for one of his guns, and got an idea. He took out the piece of gum in his mouth and stuck it in the barrel real tight.

Zachary got up from the fan and prepared to fire, and when he pressed on the trigger, the bullet got stuck. He whacked it on the table a couple of times. Then it backfired, killing Zachary instantly.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Ace looked into the gun. "Nice thinking there, Oliver."

Solrac thought of something. "If they want to kill us that badly, then whatever they're planning to do must be pretty big."

"I agree", Lucille said. "Since two of the assassins are dead and the other one's probably getting yelled at be Cecil, we're probably in good shape to stop whatever they're doing."[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Chapter 8: Captured]
"Well, that's the place", Ace said as they approached the cliffside. Solrac and Oliver were still shocked by Zachary's sudden attack, so they didn't answer.

"So this is the headquarters for Cecil's operations?" asked Lucille. "Looks like an ordinary cliff to me."

"Yep. If we just sneak in, nobody should notice". Ace briskly approached the passageway. Then Lucille remembered something.

"Wait, they have security cameras!"

Ace froze in his tracks. "And how would you know?"

"Because when Cecil hired me, he said that he got photos of you and Oliver from them."

Ace peered cautiously around the passage. Sure enough, he noticed two tiny black domes on the ceiling. He simply shot them.


"Lector! We have a problem", said the guy at the control panel.

"Yes, what is it?" Lector replied.

"Two of our security cameras just went out."

"That definitely means somebody knows our secret location." He pulled an intercom from the control panel.


"Attention all guards! We may or may not have intruders, but two of our security cameras went out!"

"Great", Solrac said, facepalming, "Maybe shooting them wasn't a good idea."

"What was I supposed to do?! There were two of them!"

"Well, you have to give those guys credit, that was really smart of them, having pairs of cameras."

"Hopefully we can dodge those guards", Oliver said.

They were immediately surrounded by guards upon entering. Solrac doubled back, hiding just outside the cave entrance. When the noise died down, he peered into the cave. "I've gotta save those guys."


"Well, well, well", Shadow said to Lucille, as she was being tied to a wall. "So you were defying Blackwood earlier. Well, Blackwood doesn't take kindly to traitors. Normally, he just kills them, but he gave me special permission to do something that I've always wanted to do."

With that, Shadow struck with the whip. Lucille screamed in pain. Shadow did it again until her screaming made his ears bleed. "That should be enough for now. I'll go check in with Cecil."

As he left, Solrac came into the room silently. "Hey, I'm going to get you out of here."

As he finished untying Lucille's left arm, guards flooded into the room. Lucille managed to grab her backpack, which was on a nearby table. A shuriken dropped out of it, but she couldn't reach. Solrac picked it up and sliced the ropes holding Lucille.

She threw them at the guards until they left the room.

"That should take care of them", said Lucille triumphantly.

Then, Shadow entered the room. Taking one look at Solrac, he smirked. "Cecil is going to forgive me when I bring you in", he said.


Ace looked up as Lector entered the prison cell. "So I finally managed to catch you. Well, make yourself at home. It's not like you're going anywhere." He held up the stolen handgun. "You want this?"

This angered Ace so much that he burst forward despite knowing that this was a fake-out. He was right, of course, and Lector simply held the gun away.

"Give me that so I can shoot your-"

"Tsk tsk tsk. Is that really how you expect to get things? You need to be more polite."

"All right- PLEASE give me the gun."

Ace then kicked Lector super-hard in the crotch, picked up the gun, and busted out of the cell. Then he looked back, stole some ammo from Lector, THEN he walked out.[/spoiler]
[color="#FF8C00"]O[/color]ws are welcome- Whoa, what am I doing down here?!

[.Hendrix]

Brief Summary for readers and author:

The main character ‘Ace’ packing a powerful yet somewhat cheesy name is a streetwise character. The character could be somewhat further developed and have more description. The overall grammar and spelling needs work and it needs more of a structured plot line, leaving it on a cliff hanger is just the way I like to go, thinking “what’s going to happen next?” good work, keep it up.

[PikMan]

Thanks for the input. Anyway, I have the need for new characters, because I could only come up with Ace, Oliver, and the two antagonists that appear next chapter.

[TheDarkKingBringerOfDark]

Name:Solrac
Age:13
Gender:male
Appearance:he has brown hair, with a black coat, and a red shirt and blue jeans
Affiliation hero

[PikMan]

[s]Well, it would be good, but the name seems out of the ordinary. I'm not trying to be rude, but I don't think the name would work.[/s] But I'll accept it anyway. Expect him somewhere next chapter.

EDIT: I'll just have it as a nickname

[PikMan]

Warning: Contains spoilers
[spoiler=I Need Villains]
If you've read Chapter 4, you should know that Cecil is hiring assassins to go after Ace and Oliver. It doesn't matter the gender, just make the ages reasonable, K? I need at least 4.[/spoiler]

[TheDarkKingBringerOfDark]

[quote name='PikMan' timestamp='1292810474' post='4866243']
Warning: Contains spoilers
[spoiler=I Need Villains]
If you've read Chapter 4, you should know that Cecil is hiring assassins to go after Ace and Oliver. It doesn't matter the gender, just make the ages reasonable, K? I need at least 4.[/spoiler]
[/quote]
name:Shadow
age:22
villian

[PikMan]

Accepted!

P.S. I'll just do an appearance myself.

EDIT: I just need one more villain for now

[PikMan]

Since I decided to just finish making the assassins myself, I am no longer accepting. I have enough characters.

Also, Chapter 5 is up!

[TheDarkKingBringerOfDark]

[quote name='PikMan' timestamp='1292719102' post='4863147']
I should've given up now, but I came up with an idea for a fanfic (well, maybe just "fic") that I know is probably going to suck, but I couldn't resist. Reviews are welcome.

[spoiler=Character Form]
Name:
Age:
Gender:
Appearance:
Affiliation (Hero/Villain)[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Chapter 1: Criminals and Car Chases]
Ace looked up from the driver's seat of his parked car. He had fallen asleep a while ago, but woke up to the sudden noise. A police car sped by after a motorcycle. The guy riding it wore a blue jacket and jeans. Ace laid back down on the seat, wiping his messy black hair off his face. [i]Things like this happen all the time[/i], he thought. [i]If there was an explosion or something, I might pay attention.[/i]

BAM.

[i]...That'll work.[/i]

Ace drove over to follow the police car. Mesa River City seemed normal enough- The apartment complex was a shade of red that Ace liked to refer to as "Puke Red", and the nearby power plant gave off smoke that filled the sky above the city with dark clouds. Soon he saw three or four police cars parked around a large hole in the wall of the bank. He noticed an officer talking with the chief, and rolled down his window to hear.

"...and just like that, no evidence whatsoever."

"Hm... That's the third time this year. Something's going on, that's for sure..."

So there had been a bank robbery just now. There had been two more this year, and it was just April.

Driving back to his apartment, he looked over to the side and saw a motorbike parked in an alleyway. It was the same one he saw earlier, he was sure of it.

He pulled over to get a closer look. He heard someone load a gun, and he froze, praying that it wasn't aimed at him. He tiptoed closer, and he observed the scene.

He could see the biker holding a handgun, pointing it at a red-haired kid roughly 11 or 12, in a black sweater and blue jeans, who was holding a camera.

"Alright, I'm not going to say this again: Hand it over", said the biker.

"You wouldn't shoot a kid," replied the boy.

"You're right, I wouldn't. That sort of thing is reserved for my boss."

So this was a criminal organization that the police were dealing with. Interesting...

Just then, the biker whipped around. "Shooting college-age people", he added, "I can do!"

Acting quickly, Ace shot his foot forward, right into the criminal's crotch. He dropped the gun.

"Come on!" Ace yelled at the kid while picking up the gun. He obeyed, and hopped in the car as the biker got back on his motorcycle.

"So tell me", Ace asked, "What's your story?"

"Well, my name's Oliver. I was just walking by that bank when that biker showed up. I recorded the break-in on this camera that I got just now, and I got his face on film, but he caught me."

A gunshot interupted the conversation. The criminal was giving persuit.

Ace looked back in front of him, and 2 cars with people dressed like the biker were blocking the road. Ace whipped the car onto the road leading to the nearby desert.

The biker, as well as the 2 cars, followed Ace.

Ace drove off-road to throw them off. The persuers, unfortunately, continued to give chase. Then, BANG. The biker had shot the front tire of the car, and it went flat.

He and Oliver jumped out and hid in some bushes. The 2 cars passed, but the biker noticed them because of Oliver's black sweater and Ace's black pants.

Oliver noticed a cave in a cliff nearby, and ran towards it. Ace followed.

The biker passed.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Ace noticed that the back of the cave had a metal wall with a door in it.

"Hey, Oliver, why don't we go check that out?" He asked.

"I dunno... Um, what's your name?" Asked Oliver.

"Ace... Well, that's what my friends call me."

"Oh, OK. Ace, I we already dodged at least 3 gangsters today. Why don't we call it a day?"

"I haven't really had a very exciting life, and this looks too good to resist."

They went through the door.[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Chapter 2: A Moral Event Horizon]
The door led to a building that was built inside the side of the cliff. Oliver walked behind Ace, who had grabbed the gun from that biker in the alley.

The room looked like a prison cell. It had doors on the back wall, and an air vent on the ceiling.

"I don't like this place", Oliver said. "Could you hold the camera for a sec? I chew gum when I'm nervous and I have some in my pocket."

"I don't see why not."

Oliver handed over the camera and pulled out a piece of gum, popped it in his mouth, and whipped around at the sound of a door slamming shut.

The person who shut it wore a bandana on his head, and had an eyepatch over one eye. He was wearing a brown leather jacket and jeans.

"I must say", he said as he lit a cigarette, "Thanks for helping me dispose of that evidence."

Ace and Oliver looked at each other in confusion. "How did you-"

"Turns out you get good cell service out here", the guy said in response. "I should introduce myself. I'm Cecil Blackwood. Now that that's outta the way, give me the camera."

Ace shook his head.

Cecil grabbed Oliver, pulled out a gun and said "Let me rephrase: Give me the camera or I'll put a bullet in this kid's head and call it macaroni!"

Ace reluctantly threw the camera on the ground.

"That's more like it" said Cecil. He cocked the gun, put it to Oliver's head, and added "...Sucker!"

Ace picked the camera up and chucked it at the gun before Cecil could fire it off. Oliver hid behind Ace.

"YOU SAID-" started Ace, holding the gun. He was rediculously mad- Not because Oliver was his friend or anything, but because he was disgusted that someone would shoot a kid.

"Well, being leader of a criminal organization is admittedly pretty boring. Besides, I haven't murdered someone for over a week."

This made Ace even angrier. "I should just shoot you right now."

"I figured you'd say that. There's just one problem, though..."

At that moment, a man holding a machine gun popped out of the shadows. He had brown hair, was wearing the same jacket as Cecil, only a different color, and black pants.

"This is Lector, my bodyguard. Not that I need one, of course, but it's all the more entertaining watching a Mexican standoff."

Ace decided not to waste his time with a Mexican standoff. "Look, if you don't mind, we'll be going now."

"Hold it", Cecil said. "How do we know you're not going to try to rat us out again? Lector, if you please."

Lector aimed his gun at Oliver.

"Not at him!" Cecil yelled. "Only I may shoot children. Shoot the camera!"

With precision accuracy, Lector blasted the camera which was lying on the ground after Ace chucked it.

"All right. You may go now, all of you. And if I catch you in here again, I won't waste my time messing with your minds!"

Lector went through the door behind Cecil. Oliver made haste leaving the building, and after flipping off Cecil, Ace followed.[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Chapter 3: Oliver's Tale]
"So Oliver, where do you live?" asked Ace on the way back.

"Oh, to be honest... I don't really have a home."

"Wha- But you have parents, right?"

"Nope. You see... I've run into Cecil before."

"Oh really? Tell me about it. It's personal though, right?"

"Nah. I'll tell you." And he began to tell his tragic tale...


Oliver was around 8 at the time. His parents were being nervous on that particular day for a reason he didn't know at the time.

"Oh no, he'll be here any minute! What'll I tell him?"

"Tell him that you'll have the money soon, and when he leaves, we can leave!"

"Are you kidding? The guy's merciless! I've heard from my friend who also owes him money that he murders children! FOR FUN!"

"Well, now that you mention it, we should hide Oliver."

Even though Oliver had no idea who they were talking about, he hid in no time. He didn't even remember where he hid, as he expained to Ace.

Then there was a knock at the door. Oliver didn't see who it was, but he heard of it.

"Hey, Cecil! Heh heh, what a suprise."

"So, did we bring something green and wrinkly?" asked a voice who Oliver
guessed must be Cecil.

"Well, I'm doing something next week, and by then I should be able to get it..."

"The point is that I don't see it. And you know what happens when I don't see my money?"

Silence.

"This."

Oliver heard a gunshot, and his father screaming. Then there was another shot, and he could hear his mother dying.

"Search the place, Lector. Make sure there's nobody else home."

When he was sure they had left the room, Oliver took it as his cue to run. He put his ear to the door and listened. After a couple of minutes, he finally heard them.

"Well, it looks like there's nobody here", Lector said in his heavy British accent.

"We can't be too sure. Burn the place down! Or better yet, stuff it full of grenades!"

"Jolly good."


"...And I've lived like a hobo ever since", Oliver finished.

Ace felt genuinely sorry. But, being the cool fellow he was, didn't bother to say it.

"Well, you could stay at my place if you like", Ace offered.


"Solrac, I'm home!" Ace called.

"Solrac? Who's that?" Oliver asked.

"Oh, he's my brother. His real name's Carlos, but we call him by his name backwards. I'm not sure why."

Solrac was slightly taller than Oliver. He had brown hair, wore a black coat and a red shirt, and jeans.

"Hey there, Ace. Who's that kid?" asked Solrac.

"This is Oliver. If it's all right with you, he'll be staying here a while."

"Fine by me."[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Chapter 4: Cecil's Conference]
Cecil called Lector and the other leaders of his organization together for a secret meeting.

"My good friends, there are two issues that I wish to speak with you about today. As you all know, we've recently had a pair of intruders. Although their names are unknown, the security cameras have caught photos of them. I was able to dispose of this camera, which contains footage of our own motorcycle expert Lance Taylor robbing the national bank."

He tossed the remains of the camera onto the table.

"However, after discussing the incident with my right-hand man Thadeus Lector, I realized I overlooked one minor error."

The group whispered for a moment, and went quiet a moment later at the sight of Lector holding out his machine gun.

"You see... These two are the only people outside our group who know the location of our hideout."

Some more whispering.

"If word gets out that a national criminal organization is hiding just outside a populated area... DISASTER!"

The group was startled by the sudden shout.

"However... I intend to do something about it. Any ideas?"

After about 2 1/2 minutes of whispering, someone raised their hand.

"What if we get a professional assassin?"

Cecil pondered this. "Y'know, that's not a bad idea. Lector!"

Lector jumped to attention.

"I need you to help me round up some assassins."

"With all due respect, Blackwood", Lector said in reply, "If we were to notify more people of our location, that'd be pushing our luck even further!"

Cecil thought of the logic of Lector's statement. "You're right. In that case, we'll meet somewhere else. Go use that computer and find the locations of some assassins."

Lector left immediately. Cecil turned his attention to the group.

"Now for the other issue. In the aforementioned robbery, we acquired 4.2 million dollars. It will go into funding for our little project."

More whispering ensued. Since Lector wasn't around to threaten them, Cecil fired a warning shot into the air, and it had the same effect.

"You see, I have been working with professor Richard Snook..." He noticed that some people were snickering at the mention of the name Snook. Cecil fired off another shot.

"I have been working with him and we discovered an unusual variety of sound wave that can kill a man if strong enough, and yet does no structurul damage. We have called it the Limited Supersonic Wave. I have already begun developing Sonic Grenades that produce these waves, but I have been planning on something quite interesting."

He pulled down a slideshow sheet, started a projector, and on the sheet was an image of a rocket-like object.

"The Sonic Heavy Bomb. It will produce LSW's so strong, it could obliterate Walt Disney World, and the surrounding 20 miles. With firepower like that, our organization could finally take over the world, and nobody can stand in our way."[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Chapter 5: The Assassins]
Cecil looked over the gang that Lector helped him pick out. They were hidden in a log cabin some 100 miles from Mesa River City.

The first in line was a mercenary named Shadow, so named because he was born with a rare condition where his iris was all black. He was roughly 22, had black hair, and wore a blue hoodie with kahki pants. He had a whip on his belt.

Next was a blue-haired young woman named Lucille, age 19, who was wearing a red scarf, wearing a green jacket, white shirt and black sweats. She wore a pink backpack which Cecil noticed was full of shurikens.

Third was a 17-year old named Randall. He had blonde hair, a red shirt, brown pants, and a blue bandana around his neck.

Last was a man named Zachary. He had brown hair, wore a grey vest and a blue shirt, and carried two pistols on his belt.

"I have gathered you here for a very important task. Nobody is to know about it- Not a soul!"

He paused for dramatic effect. Then he continued.

"Lector tells me that you are all ruthless, merciless, and very, very dangerous. The task I have is very simple:"

He held out photographs of Ace and Oliver that his security camera took. It is worth noting he did not know their names, or that Oliver was related to the couple he killed 4 years back.

"These two are the only ones outside my group who knows where my hideout is. My top scientists are working on a devastating weapon, and if our secret is revealed to the public before it's complete... That is why we are gathered in this particular location; To avoid further risk. You can thank my bodyguard for considering that. Your job is to kill the older one, but bring the child alive."

"Oh yeah?" Shadow inquired. "Why should we?"

"Y'know... I was hoping you'd ask."

Cecil held out a briefcase. "Whoever completes this task shall be awarded 1 million dollars."

He opened it and, sure enough, it was chock-full of 100 Dollar Bills.

Randall shook his head. "I don't work for money, Cecil. Just the thrill of the hunt!"

Cecil simply pulled out a handgun and shot him.

"He shot him!" Lucille whispered.

"Yes, so I did. Simply because assassins who work for the thrill of the hunt are the most likely to give their target a sporting chance, and therefore, most likely to fail me. You wouldn't want to fail me," He added, cocking his gun sinisterly. "...Would you?"

All 3 shook their heads silently.

"Wonderful. Any further questions?"

Shadow raised his hand. "Um, yeah, I have a question. Why do we have to bring the boy alive anyway?"

Cecil grinned sinisterly. "Because murdering children is a favorite hobby of mine."

As he opened the door to let them out... "And remember... Bring the boy... ALIVE!"

The group left, still in shock from the murder of Randall. His remark about child murder, unknown to Cecil, started to give Lucille second thoughts...[/spoiler]
[/quote]
i like chapter 5 aytleast my character didnt die

[PikMan]

[quote name='The darkknight2' timestamp='1292874877' post='4868175']
i like chapter 5 aytleast my character didnt die
[/quote]
Glad you like it. Shadow will be in the next couple of chapters.

Also, Chapter 6 is up!

[PikMan]

Bump!

Chapter 8 is up. Sorry that my writing sucks by now, I might do a remake.

EDIT: I just spotted an incroyably obvious plothole that ruins the entire thing, so this is over.