A.N. - This is my least favroite...okay, honestly I hate it. I just needed to get it done so I coudl move on. I donno why I had so many problems...but whatever.

Also, I don't know Griffin's eye color so I guessed. Fell free to correct me if I'm wrong.

Eight of Spades

Never let your guard down. That was the first rule of being both a Jumper and a Paladin. Sadly for them, these three forgot that rule. It only took a few moments for Griffin to…"dispose" of the Paladins, much to their distress. Because Griffin had taken the "long" way these (a train) they hadn't even known he was in the area. The Paladins probably assumed they were alone so they had taken a little break. Bad idea. Their break was interrupted by Griffin walking up to their card game and swinging his bat as hard as he could. Now two of them probably had broken skulls and the third his skull intact but that was one of his only bones in one piece. The Englishman jumped away before anyone showed up at the abandoned table so that he didn't have to deal with the cops. It had been a bit of a reckless attack (he hadn't planned on running into them at the food court) so he would have to check back later to make sure all three were dead and see how many more Paladins were in the area.

He jumped "home" to quickly change into clothes that didn't have blood on them and then into a small inlet in the local train station that no one ever seemed to notice, just far enough away from his victims that other Paladins wouldn't know he was there. It was still a little risky jumping so close but he needed to see the results of his attack. The twenty minute walk was basically a straight line but in a small city like this he knew he had to keep his guard up. Anyone could be a threat. Being so accustomed to absurd paranoia, the brunette Jumper could watch his surroundings and let his mind slightly wander at the same time. Three dead, that meant he would probably only run into one or two, if any, other Paladins if they did show up at their comrades' deaths. Unless there was another Jumper around…then there could be a few more. Nothing he couldn't handle.

By the time Griffin brought himself back to reality he was only a few feet from a rather large crowd of people. The fact that at least two police cars were parked off to the side told the Jumper that the bodies of the Paladins had been found. It looked as if the results had only been found recently for a truck labeled "Coroner" was pulling away. The brown eyed Griffin wanted to chuckle but he knew that any Paladins in the crowd would suspect him if they didn't already. Keeping a straight face, he started to walk away from the mass. He thought that no one would notice a single boy's arrival and departure but he was wrong. Looking back Griffin knew he was being followed. Four Paladins in one place (three dead, one following him) was odd. There must be another Jumper in the area or some kind of meeting.

The man following him made no attempt to hide as he trailed Griffin through every twist and turn. The young Jumper smirked. Obviously this guy wasn't very smart. Following the very person that had just killed three of his companions was no the best of ideas. The brunette paused in an empty park just long enough to jump behind the follower and swing his fist at the man's head. It connected with a loud cracking sound as the Paladin fell forward. The British man's intent was to take the other to some secluded place to question him but a popping noise and metal whizzing by his face made his decide otherwise. There were even more Paladins here then he thought. After the metal bolt missed, the brown eyed man started to turn towards the direction that it had come from. Mid-turn he jumped a few feet away from the origin of the attack and found tow men very intent on killing him. That made it…six. Six? There had to be something major going on. Even when they had come after him and killed his parents there were only four of them. Jumping away from another potentially painful attack, he reappeared behind his trailer from before who was attempting to stand. As fast as his body would let him, the Jumper grabbed the semi-conscious man by the shoulders and jumped, stopping atop a building. He "dropped off" the Paladin, which brought the count to four dead and two to go.

Another electrified cable shot towards his head only to miss because of a split second jump.

"Nice try, be a lil'l faster next time and ya might catch me." He smirked as e decided to play with them a little more. A whizzing sound and intense pain throughout his body with its origin in his back changed his mind. The two from before were still in front of him which meant…

He jumped a few feet back, although surging electricity made it a little more challenging. He landed right behind the Paladin that had managed to nail him in the back. Fortunately for him his death was short and not very painful. The Jumper pulled off the cable just fast enough to disappear before he got into a worse situation. He hadn't really been thinking of where to jump just about getting out. He ended up at a train station by his current hideout. He took a few moments to catch his breath as he hopped onto a train to throw off any possible pursuers. Some how the Paladins must have found out where he had been scouting. There was no other reason for eight Paladins to be in one area. His back still burned from both the impact of the metal and the shock of the current but Griffin was too preoccupied to notice. He had to see if he was being followed again. Four train stops and three annoying passengers later the English Jumper got off at the station that he had started on. He walked "home" and jumped into his hideout, in pain, annoyed and tired. Eight Paladins in all, five dead and three still kicking and probably annoyed that their prey had gotten away. With this in mind he wandered over to his bed and laid down (more like fell down), looking at the wall across from him. Only one of the dead Paladins was on his wall but it was better then nothing. Before he drifted off to sleep, the brown eyes wandered to the floor. A playing card with a few drops of blood on it was in the middle of his room. It was an eight of Spades. He must have accidentally brought it with him from the first three…