Bounty Fight: Hiro Protagonist Vs The Humble Sage (PvP)

[Hiro Protagonist]

Hiro used the same speedy method of urban travel he'd experimented with in Costa, leaping from rooftop to rooftop in long, floating bounds. Sailing over the streets and business below, he got a feel for the city. Not too different from the dockside districts of Costa, but far more primitive. Everything here was built out of brick, stone, mud, or wood; arranged into stout blocky designs. No distinct architectural styles that he recognized. As he sailed through the air, he could see pokemon and other types of people going about their business, unaware of the wuxia hacker floating above their heads.

Nearing the site of the explosion, he activated his goggles scanning mode, and dropped down to the plaza. Everyone had vacated and he could see something large and glistening, curled up on it's back and smoking, the nasty smell of charred flesh wafting into the air. Next to it was a bleeding heap, which upon scanning revealed itself to be a body. Hiro rushed over to help but the man was already dead from his wounds, his skull caved in by a blunt instrument, and his body wrecked by long claw marks. 

There was a piece of tech on the man's wrist that he quickly matched to a collar on the smoking thing's neck. It took him a few seconds, but the cyber samurai realized it had been one of the unseen bioweapons employed by Coruscant, the man most likely it's handler. Something had caused the weapon to attack it's handler, who fried it in self defense, then died of his wounds. But the skull fractures...where did those come from?

Almost as if to answer his question, the door to a nearby building burst open and hurried ejected an old man. The Sage. And he was holding a walking stick with a rounded end...covered in blood. Hiro felt a hot anger rise in his chest, as he pulled out his EPD badge and held it out towards the Sage, his long, shiny katana outstretched towards the man as well.

"Still killing Imperials, Prime? Stop right there. You're under arrest by the authority of the Empire Peace Division for crimes of escaping custody, damaging the nexus gate, and murder of Imperial stormtroopers. And diplomatic agents now, too."

The hacker's goggles blazed with a blue light that hid his eyes as he waited for the Sage to respond to the charges. "Your move, Old Man."

[The Humble Sage]

The Sage blinked in surprise and looked down, noting the gray patches starting to show on his otherwise dark beard. He shrugged. “That’s fair I suppose.” Glancing back at his challenger. He took in the variety of weapons and devices, and noted the strange spectacle-like device. This man was clearly outfitted quite well. He looked young, not inexperienced, but early enough in his career that he still believed he was doing good by hunting down whatever petty criminals those empower felt threatened by. Of course, The Sage thought to himself as his gaze strayed to the carnage between the two of them. Murder is hardly a crime to be described as “petty”
 
“I hope you understand that this situation is deeply regrettable for all of us involved. I had no desire to harm either of these beings. However… other factors were and are at play. A situation is rarely what it appears when one is dealing with ‘diplomats’ Young Ronan.” Hiro simply grunted, clearly unimpressed. The Sage looked around at the deserted street. I imagine it can’t be too much longer now… he thought idly, that explosion may turn out to be fortunate after all…
 
 The Sage sighed and held his dueling cane out in front of him. “How do you wish this to go Hunter? A clever man would accept his opponent’s surrender and count himself fortunate that his life was not threatened in the fulfillment of his tasks. But I see in your gaze a fury, drawing near perhaps to bloodlust? That is not your desire. You want me to fight back. You wanted the challenge of the pursuit. And now you want the challenge of the kill.”
The Sage stared directly into his opponent’s eyes, the Samurai remained unblinking, eyes intent behind his goggles, prepared for the Sage to make the slightest of movements. The Sage smirked at his pursuer and dropped the dueling cane onto the road below him. To his credit, Hiro did not jump, though the darting motion of his eyes betrayed his expectation of an attack. Despite himself, the Sage let out a short laugh. Still grinning he extended both hands, palms out and empty.
 
“I have just surrendered, young Hound of the Empire. Will you fetch me quickly like your masters wish of you? Or will you slake your thirst beforehand, and bring back the lifeless carcass of an old dead man?” The Sage waited, his gaze scrutinizing the Hacker Samurai, attempting to discern which choice he would make.

[Hiro Protagonist]

Hiro's fingers tightened around the grip of his katana, tensing slightly as the Sage dropped his weapon and surrendered. Goddamnit. The old man was some kind of empathic expert. He'd read Hiro's attitude near perfectly, and there was a tense few seconds after the Sage's statement before he let go of the sword and started to walk closer, reaching behind his belt for a pair of plasteel cuffs. "....fine. Your surrender has been accepted and I am taking you into custody. We will leave aboard the next Imperial Transport and you will be handed over to EPD Central in Coruscant for sentencing and judging."

The Sage just gave him another infuriatingly calm smile, extending his hands outwards for Hiro to cuff him. Just then, the Hacker recieved an odd feeling in the back of his head and the phantasmal machine spirit zipped back and forth around him, pointing at something. "Hu-ooof!"

Hiro felt the Sage's knee slam into his gut, followed by a surprisingly strong heel, forcing him backwards a few paces. Before he could drop the cuffs, his target had executed an interesting step kick advance, crippling Hiro's opportunities for counterattack as he stomped on his cane, sending it flipping into the air and right into his hand. Clever old bastard. "Now, defend yourself, young one! There is no honor in combat, just victory! Ha!" He jabbed and swung with the heavy cane, Hiro grimacing with pain as he took a few stinging blows to the forearms as he tried to draw his shortblades.

"Enough! Dishonorable murderer!"

SHING

Hiro brought the double tanto out of their shoulder sheaths and sliced the air, deflecting the Sage's strikes. He grimaced, narrowing his eyes, and parried his next few blows, the heavy cane having a hard time blocking two blades at once. The omnilium threaded tanto flashed through the air, Hiro realizing he had a significant speed advantage over the trickster. He spun to side, feinted high and scissored low, anticipating the Sage's movements. The man saw the barely disguised feint, and hopped up to dodge the two blades at his calf. Hiro cut his swing early and followed him with a hop of his own, assisted by the antigravs on his legs, crashed his dreadlocked head into the Sage's jaw with a nasty sounding -klik- and an ringing pain in the hacker's own head.

They were both launched several feet in the air, the Sage coming down on one knee and holding his jaw, spitting out a broken tooth. The cyber samurai came down similarly, bleeding from a cut on his forehead as he stood up and stowed his tanto, hand gripping his katana hilt. "[Prepare yourself, old man.]" The hacker muttered in Nipponese, before dashing forward and drawing his sword for a clean, fast strike. He felt the edge of the glass katana slice through flesh and pivoted on his heel to face his opponent, sheathing the blade and bringing the entire scabbard up to block the Sage's counterattack, feeling the impact of the heavy blunt instrument rattle down his arms.

They fought like that for another thirty seconds, Hiro outmatching the Sage's speed, the wily scholar managing to outfox his with a clever defensive technique, or catch him on the ribs with the thick end of his cane. Until finally an edge was gained when the Sage feinted an opening, and Hiro went for it like a novice, catching a sharp, ringing blow to the skull that sent him reeling and his thoughts fuzzy.

The Humble Sage used Perturbing Blow

600 words exactly.

[The Humble Sage]

The Sage disengaged, and dropping backwards spots dancing in his vision. he growled and his hand strayed to his side. His hand came away redder than he was expecting, that weapon was no laughing matter. He returned to his stance as the Hacker Samurai cleared his head. The plan had been for a swift and decisive victory, but his hunter had proved too resilient for that simple a tactic.  The Sage continued to back up, reaching into his satchel as he eyed his surroundings, “Hope you don’t mind me making you work for your living there, Boy. I don’t think highly of free-loaders.”
 
The hunter seemed to be recovering quickly, and the Sage set off down the street. He turned down the nearest corner and pulled out a set of bolas. He stopped running and began to build up momentum as he swung the bolas above his head. The Ronan of the internet rounded the corner at an impressive pace. Lights flashed in his goggles, as he sprinted, and the Sage could see what he guessed was an alarm flash in the mans’ face as he let fly the bolas. The leather cord streaked through the intervening space, weights swiping through the air at neck level. Without breaking pace, the hacker bent backwards, the bolas swishing through the air above his face. The Sage followed the attack almost immediately with a charge, bringing his dueling cane down low in a sweep. Somehow his opponent registered the attack, and dove over the cane, turning the desperate leap into a roll, and coming back to his feet, one hand ready on his katana’s hilt.
 
 The Sage whirled in surprise, “You scamper like a goblin. Are you truly planning to…UHN!” The Sage’s words were cut short as his foe drove a shoulder directly into his chest.  The Sage reeled backwards, trying to recover from the overbalance. Pressing the advantage Hiro drew his katana and swiped at the Sage’s arms. The Sage managed to deflect the katana away with one hand, but a similar attack from the man’s scabbard sent the dueling cane flying from his hands. The Sage’s eyes widened as he saw the last swipe coming, and in a desperate effort he flung himself backwards as the glass katana slashed forward. Searing pain streaked across his throat, and as he fell he could see his own blood gleaming on the glass of the katana.
 
The Sage fell to the hard road, hardly breaking his fall. He coughed and blood spurted out onto the street. Hiro recovered his balance and wiped clean his blade. “Have you had enough yet, murderer?” he asked pointing his weapon at the Sage. The Sage’s breath wheezed as he forced out a reply through a nearly slit throat.
 
“I have had far more than that. But we are not done just yet.” Hiro’s goggles flashed him a new alert. Some kind of strange black goo was leaking from his target’s satchel, coursing up his body towards the open wounds. The Samurai swiped forward quickly, attempting to finish the fight for good. Somehow the Sage rolled away from the swipe, snatching his discarded dueling cane as he came out of the roll. The ronin growled in frustration and swung in again. The Sage brought his dueling cane around. The weapons clashed, and the Sage forced his foe’s more fragile weapon towards the ground. With a pained grunt, he lashed out with his foot, stamping down on the blade, shattering the glass weapon. The Sage huffed and got back on his feet. This was far from over.

The Sage has spent one SP on healing, and used bolas,
Hiro used Rashōmon Rush.

597 words according to MS word.

[Hiro Protagonist]

Hiro paused for a split second to stare at the shattered remains of his sword, and the Sage took the chance to rap the hardwood cane against his ribs with a short -crack-. The hacker grunted, stepping backwards out of the way of another swing and sheathed his sword hilt, the scabbard locking into the repair cycle and emitting a red, blinking light. Drawing his dual tanto with vigor, he parried the Sage's next three blows in succession. Maybe it was good that the Sage had broken his sword. Two blades versus one staff was a more advantageous matchup for the street ronin, he'd already proved that earlier. He'd let his penchant for theatrics get the better of him, even though he'd already showed the old man that he was far more than a boy or a thug.

He dashed forward, putting on a surprising burst of speed and began a renewed assault, coming at the Sage from all different angles with the light shortblades. To his opponent's credit, he managed to parry and block a good number of his shots but the effort was taking it's toll. Hiro scored several solid slices that shredded the Sage's vestments before getting whacked solidly over the head once more.

Stumbling backwards and feigning greater injury, he leapt back with his increased jump height, holding his head with both hands. As he landed, he surreptitiously punched in a few commands to his wrist comp, then shot his palm out, open wide, the tanto already stowed during his leap. The Sage's eyes widened curiously as spiky red orbs formed around the hacker's palm. "Magic? Or something more technologically sinister?"

The hacker smirked as the final orb dissolved into being. "Take a closer look, Grandpa." All five orbs surged forward, one after the other, and the Sage's expression turned from curiosity to panic as he maneuvered down the street, Hiro following him as the orbs chased their locked-on quarry down the alleys. Suddenly, as hunter and bounty turned the corner, there came an amplified voice from a marked car about fifty yards ahead of them. "HALT! CINNABAR POLICE!"

The Sage put his head down and nimbly hopped over the makeshift automotive barricade, the orbs following right behind, one of them getting caught on the car and exploding shortly after. Hiro saw this and decided to take some drastic, if possibly needlessly destructive action. Pushing himself with another burst of speed, he sailed along the air and kicked off of walls, landing ten feet in front of the car as the Sage vaulted it. "My apologies, Officers! You might want to get out of your vehicle!" 

He pressed one simple side button on his wristcomp marked "Emergency Data Burn: DNT" and held his hands together in a somewhat animesque gesture. The compact black computing device flashed red and there was a smell of burnt metal, numerous spiky orbs forming around the hacker as he jumped again and landed on the roof of the car. Below him, two pokemon and a human police officer ran for it, sensing the impending devastation. Hiro aimed his palms at the fleeing Sage, and all 70 of the red orbs rushed forward with a skittering, digital sound, combining into a rollicking, surging beam of red energy.

"CHERNOBYL WIPE!"

558 Words
Hiro used Chernobyl Packet
Hiro used T1 Super Attack: Chernobyl Wipe 1SP (2/3 SP Remaining)

[The Humble Sage]

The Sage’s eyes widened as orb upon orb flowed out of Hiro’s arms, widening into a daunting array of crimson spheres. With a signaling swipe, the collection of mines began to flow together, concentrating before the hunter. On instinct, the Sage pulled a book from his satchel. The beam of spiked globes rushed towards him, only gaining speed as it went. The first globe neared, and he swung his dueling cane in a futile attempt to knock it away. The miniature explosion flung his arm backwards leaving him wide open. Orb after orb struck him, detonating as the small explosions went off. The Sage stumbled, the book flying backwards out of his hand as spheres continued to batter him. Then the main portion of the beam hit.
 
 The Sage’s front was riddled with packets, detonating one after another as they peppered his body. He felt himself lifted off the ground by the collective blasts, more missiles connecting as he fell. The last salvo hit at once, their combined blast sending the Sage backwards and down, skidding as he impacted with the road. His tunic hung in smoking tatters as he attempted to focus on his enemy. He had to get back up, but his body refused to listen. His eyes glazed and he slumped his head to the side. The book he had held was splayed nearby, spine creased and pages badly bent as it lay on the road. He was unable to protect them… The words, they needed him. Or rather they needed the potential he possessed…
 
Hiro allowed himself a satisfied grin as his opponent collapsed. Ignoring the myriad alerts that were pinging, he dropped his arms and straightened, “Didn’t expect that one, did you, Old man?” he chuckled. Hiro scanned the nearby area, the policemen would be back shortly, he needed to make sure the job was done. As Hiro approached, the Sage’s body tensed, his back arching as some kind of force surged through his body. Hiro frowned and rushed forward, “Just stay down, Murderer!” he shouted in frustration. Drawing his tantos, he neared his foe as the Sage’s body slumped again. Hiro looked with confusion. The Sage seemed to have aged decades, the black hair gone stark gray and the beard lengthened and unkempt. The wrinkled face opened its eyes and squinted in the glare of the police lights. Hiro looked down at him with disdain, “Now, why did you go and…”
 
His words were cut off as a gnarled hand gripped his ankle, pulling him off-balance with uncanny strength. The elderly Sage rolled back to his feet and snatched up his dueling cane as Hiro managed to convert his momentum into a backflip, landing ready with tantos in hand. “come and you may see.” The Sage muttered, Hiro scoffed slightly and rushed into battle, tantos whirling in a blazing flurry of blows. The Sage stepped into the assault, dueling cane snapping back and forth to deflect and block each of the incoming attacks. Hiro grunted in surprise as the momentum put him on the defensive. “You have many tools, young Ronin,” the Sage mused as he struck, “and the raw skill of a born warrior” The Sage danced left, away from a tanto swipe, and with a sharp descending strike forced Hiro’s other attack downwards, the glass blade slicing into his own leg as it went. Hiro winced in pain, his concentration breaking. “But you are lacking in experience.” the Sage brought his cane around, smashing it into Hiro’s left forearm, the tanto flying through the air. “And that will be why you lose.”

no reaction to the Supermove, I'll just take the hit.
The Sage has activated T1 Power-up: Borrow the future (2/4 SP remaining) This will still be active for next post.
600 words exactly according to MS word.

[Hiro Protagonist]

Hiro winced in pain as the Sage kung-fu'd his tanto right into his hamstring, then smacked it out of his hand. This wasn't how this should go! The guy had aged decades in a few seconds and was suddenly stronger? Maybe people from his world worked like that, getting more powerful with age, but Hiro had another, more impressive method. He'd show the old scribe what a power up -should- look like...as soon as he got clear of that fricken' staff.

"Oof!"

The hacker bent forward as another blow caught him in the solar plexus, and the follow up cracked him under the chin and sent him literally flying backwards. "Experience triumphs in matters such as these, oh dog of the Emperor." The Sage quipped, barely breaking a sweat as he prodded and poked at the prone pursuer. "Do you yield, to return in shame?"

Hiro shook his head and thumbed a button on his still smoking wristcomp. "Nope. Not yet." His form blurred and he zipped backwards, using his burst speed to scoot away from the Sage. Retreating into a side alley, he kicked his heels together and leapt up the wall of one of the buildings, crouching low and keeping out of the Sage's sightline, working quickly as he ejected the melted databoard from his computer and slotted in a new one. His display lit up once more, and the update flashed across his goggles - FULL FUNCTION RESTORED.

The hacker snuck a look over the side of the building to see the Sage starting to climb up the building across the street, surprisingly nimble for his advanced age. Hiro swore, and looked down as his sheathed katana, the light on the sheath blinking green. Reforged. Excellent. 

He input a series of commands in his wrist device, his goggles overlaying a tactical readout on his vision, locking onto the Sage and analyzing his gait, bodily structure, movement, and patterns. "Are you afraid of me, bounty hunter?" The Sage called across the street from his own building, sounding bemused. 

The hacker-ronin stood up, sheathing his remaining tanto as they faced off across the gap between buildings. "I'm not afraid of much anymore, oh Sage. And I have a name. It's Hiro. Hiro Protagonist." He gripped his katana hilt with his left hand, and felt his previous command activate, wreathing him in digital fire and lines of code, forming an impressive overlay of samurai armor made out of green mesh. Although it felt different this time, not the rush and mad adrenaline of his first usage of the power. More controlled, more refined. The green slowly changed to blue, the armor crackling with lines of power that sparked and spat.

Hiro extended his free hand, pointing at his opponent. "Woo! Oh, man! You ever power up so hard you feel like you gained a level?" The Sage just stared at him, and reached behind him for his bolas, starting to twirl them around his head. Hand atill gripping his katana, stock still, Hiro focused on the highlighted part of the old man in his goggles, gritting his teeth and the electricity surge through his blade.

The old man let the bolas fly after a few more seconds and just as they were three feet from Hiro's face, the hacker disappeared. Completely, the only trace of his presence a fading blue line that went right through the Sage and led twenty feet behind him. The hacker's sword was out, dripping extended, the cyber samurai panting as the Sage turned to face him. "I believe you missed, bo- HURGH!"

A spray of blood erupted from the old man's chest.

Woo! 619 words, I couldn't cut any more out without losing some impact.

Hiro used Power- Up: Ronin of the Metaverse (2 SP, still active next turn. 0/3 SP remaining.)
Hiro used Yojimbo Style: The Cinematic

Bring it home for round three!

[The Humble Sage]

The Sage watched his enemy blink out of existence, followed the pale streak as it flashed towards and then past him. Hiro was there, a short distance away, chest heaving. His reformed glass blade gleamed, glowing in the last fingers of the fading sunlight. The Sage realized he was holding his breath, that was flashy, boy, but you botched it. The Sage thought with a hint of contempt. As soon as he opened his mouth to taunt the lad however, he realized his mistake.
 
His lungs all but collapsed as the slash made its presence known. He hacked, dropping to one knee, heaving as he tried futilely to force air back into his lungs. Hiro turned, swiped a rag down the length of his katana, and re-sheathed this. “Are you done yet, Gramps?” the hacker grunted with exhaustion. He’s near the end of his rope as well.
 
 The Sage grit his teeth, growling in defiance he forced himself up onto one knee and then staggered into some semblance of a fighting stance. Hiro groaned, “Would you stop fighting already!”  He shouted in frustration. “Just accept you’ve lost!” The Samurai drew his remaining tanto, and dashed across the rooftop to prevent the battle from restarting.
 
The Sage swiped upward as Hiro neared, sending the tanto sailing away into the air. The glittering blade arcing over the edge of the roof and out of sight. Hiro hopped back, katana flashing back out of its scabbard, “It’s time we finished this, Murderer.” He muttered, and brought the katana down in a blazing-fast overhead slash. The Sage jerked left, one hand reaching into his pouch and dueling cane placed carefully. Wood peeled as the glass blade scraped along his cane’s length. As the katana slid towards his hand, the Sage let go of his weapon. The wooden stave spun in the air as Hiro’s strike flashed down.
 
Catching the top of his cane, the Sage whipped out another set of bolas, swinging two of the weighted ends into Hiro’s face, smashing into his goggles, and shattering one of the frames. The Samurai shouted in pain, twisting his katana as he stumbled back and cutting a gash in the Sage’s leg. Both combatants stood there, barely able to fight. Lacerations covered the Sage, and although veins of ink snaked over him to knit the wounds, blood continued to seep from his injuries. Hiro was little better off, large bruises swelled on his body, and his one eye squinted shut to avoid the slivers of glass in his shattered lens.

As the sun continued its descent they stared each other down, “You have fought well, Hiro Protagonist. The Empire should be proud of their pawn.” The Sage grunted, “But this fight is soon to end.” He began pacing left, circling towards Hiro’s blinded eye. “You fight with purpose, and that is admirable.”  The Samurai watched him, shifting stance, katana held ready for an attack. “You fight with power, and that is enviable.” The Sage continued as he paced, his foe a silhouette against the setting sun. Without warning, The Sage dashed further left, circling inward towards Hiro’s exposed flank. The Samurai jerked around to face the incoming attack, but the sudden light of the sun in his eye caused him to squint. His guard dropped and the Sage seized on the moment, leaping into the air and bringing his cane down in a double-handed swipe. “But you fight unaware of your surroundings, and that your mistake.” Hiro brought his katana up as the Sage’s strike came down, and the weapons clashed with an echo of finality.

exactly 600 words.
Sage used dueling cane.
Hiro used Regretful Tanto and glass Katana.
Left the fight in a state of flux, so the judge can decide who wins.

[The Humble Sage]

The glass Katana shore straight through the dueling cane and the Sage had to arch his back as he landed to avoid Hiro’s follow-through. He had an opening however, and thrust the stump of the dueling cane forward striking the Hacker Samurai in the throat with the heavy wood. Hiro staggered backwards, coughing hard, to lean against the edge of the roof-top. The Sage could feel his power waning, his energy fleeing his form as he began to regress in age again. It was time to end this, and fast.
 
Dashing forward, he snatched up the second end of his dueling cane, and wielding them both as impromptu billy clubs, smacked them together into the sides of his opponent’s head. The Ronin’s eyes rolled backwards and he fell backwards over the edge of the roof into the alleyway below. The Sage winced at the resulting crash and peered over the edge. The lucky man had landed in a pile of trash bags, but he didn’t seem like he’d be getting up quickly.
 
There was little to be proud of in this victory. The bounty hunter had been right about his accusations; the Sage had the blood of multiple Imperial agents on his hands. Even the man he had killed them to assist seemed unappreciative of the help he had given. It seemed the Kingdom was no more appreciative of assistance than their rivals. The imperial agents he had slain may not have deserved their fate and he doubted that the semi-conscious man in the alley below him did either.
 
The sound of police sirens brought the Sage’s attention back to the situation before him. There were numerous witnesses to his fight with the Bio-weapon and its handler, and he needed to get away from the situation before things got particularly messy. Tossing the broken ends of the dueling cane over the edge after his erstwhile foe. The chatter of Cinnabar’s law enforcement grew louder still; he would need to make himself scarce. Turning he started to rush towards another roof top, but pain arched all across his chest and he dropped to one knee clutching at the deep wound. He was still way to close to the crime scene, they would be sure to find him here.
 
With a growl of determination, The Sage struggled to his feet, and reached the edge of the roof. The back alley was a good fifteen feet below him, but there was little choice now…  he needed to get away. With a heave he pitched himself over the edge, holding onto the lip, before dropping the ten or so feet to the ground below. His ankle rolled painfully under him as he landed, and he had to stifle a cry of pain. Slowly, he began crawling down the alley, he needed distance. He needed to heal. He needed to think. He needed time.

[Hiro Protagonist]

The two broken halves of the Sage's cane crashed together on either side of his skull, and Hiro's world went black with an oddly comedic coconut sound. Blood leaked from his ears as he lost consciousness, falling out of reality and also out of the sky as the Sage tossed him off the roof. His prone form hit the garbage bags with a loud whump, one hand sticking out between the soft trash. Unbeknownst to the comatose hacker, several police cars pulled up in the general vicinity within moments. The Sage was long gone from the site of their battle, and the Cinnabar police were cordoning off the area. One particularly burly human officer saw the hacker's bloodstained glove jutting from the trash heap and lifted him out, one handed.

Upon spotting the Imperial crests on Hiro's vest lapels, he signaled to his fellow officers. "Imperial! We have an Imperial at the scene, which corroborates the other evidence discovered. This is not going to make Mewtwo happy." They locked the cyber samurai in cuffs and threw him in the back of a patrol car, head lolling and bouncing off the window as they hauled him away from the scene. Which is how he woke up, shards of plastiglass poking him in the tear duct.

"Ow, shit!"

The patrolman, a wispy mustached brown fox type thing, rapped on the cage separating the back of the car from the front. "Keep it down there, Imperial." Hiro ignored him, and gingerly lifted his left arm. A shooting pain struck him and he swore again, dropping it. Well, that arm was useless. He tried with his other one and found enough dexterity to brush the shards away from a swollen and bleeding eye. That goddamn old man had gotten the better of him and escaped. So much for Hiro Protagonist, Agent of the Empire. He was rusty, his skills had softened. He'd taken it too easy after Dante's Abyss, gotten pudgy and slow building that car with Madotsuki. No longer.

He sat there while the ride continued, hands in cuffs, completely disarmed. His tanto had been knocked away, he'd have to summon them again. They'd confiscated his sword and wrist comp, but ignored the half shattered goggles. Maybe they didn't see the harm in leaving them on his head, or they were afraid of countermeasures. At least he still had his badge, although that would probably serve to implicate the Empire further. Shit. Well, he would get out of this, he had no doubt. There were diplomatic negotiations going on, so neither side could really afford to be too aggressive.

He knocked on the cage divider again. "So, where are we going?" The driver answered this time. "Cinnabar Central. You're needed for questioning." They didn't talk to him again after that, not for the duration of the ride, not when they took him out of the car, and not when they brought him inside the marble building, half carrying half leading him past rows of desks and wooden doors. Finally, they brought him into an interrogation room, and handcuffed him to the table, one bare bulb swinging above it. It lit the concrete room just enough to see, but not enough to prevent shadows from clinging in the corners. The hacker had no idea what to expect. This was like something out of a freakin' holovid.

A small yellow rabbit Pokemon, dressed in a brown trenchcoat and wearing a plaid sherlock holmes hat walked out of the shadows and hopped onto the chair facing Hiro. He had to try and stifle a laugh, which the Pikachu noticed, since it's next move was to reach across the table and smack Hiro across the mouth. The hacker winced with pain as a broken tooth ground into his jaw. "Jesus, fuck! You freaking things don't believe in prisoner rights?"

The thing lit up a cigarette and inhaled, before blowing the smoke across the table. "Not for enemies of the state, which is what you are, kid." Hiro was stunned. He was being talked down to by a bright yellow rodent with a voice like Humphrey Bogart. The thing had bright red cheeks, for Uncle Enzo's sake! It continued, pulling out a sheaf of papers. "Hiro Protagonist, agent of the Imperial Peace Division. Admirable service, so far. But to come hunting a bounty in the middle of peace talks? Tsk, tsk, Mr. Protagonist. Stupid move." Hiro stayed silent and sullen as the Pokemon went on. "You're being released, in return for certain concessions from the Empire. The bio weapon they brought with them certainly didn't help matter either." The Pikachu leaned across the table, a spiteful leer on its features. "So enjoy your freedom. But I don't envy the consequences you'll be facing from your own people." It stubbed out it's cigarette and gestured towards the door, which opened. "Now get the fuck off of Cinnabar." Two other officers came in and unlocked Hiro's handcuffs, leading him out of the room to the front lobby of the station house, where they returned his items, along with a Notice of Banishment from Cinnabar. 

As Hiro trudged out of the building and tried to find transport back to the docks, his glasses brightened blue, the micro computer on his wrist flashing with a message....from Commander Caasjuun.

".....fuck."

Consequences