I ran through the streets of Westchester. The darkness was smothering and my heart beat frantically as fear pounded through my body.
A bullet whizzed past my head and smashed into the wall beside me, sending shards of brick everywhere.
Forcing myself to keep going I turned down another street and kept running. The pounding of the feet of those that were hunting me echoed the frantic thump of my heart.
Making a split second decision I turned down into an alleyway. Skidding to a stop I stared as a small glowing spot of light at the end of the alley grew. It was the end of a cigar.
"Looks like you need some help kid." A deep gravely voice said from the darkness.
"I'm not a kid." I scoffed pushing away my fear.
The figure stepped out of the shadows and I froze. It was a man. He had scruffy facial hair which melded with his dark brown hair on each side of his face. He was wearing a leather suit and the hand that was hanging down at his side had three long blades which seemed to be growing from between his knuckles.
My gaze flashed back up to his face just as a gun went off behind me. The bullet ripped through my back, through my chest and hit the stranger in the chest. His eyes rolled back into his head and he collapsed onto the wet ground.
I pressed my hand to my wound waiting as the blood flow slowed to a stop and the pain receded.
Turning slowly I stared at the mercenary who had shot me. He was dressed completely in black and was holding a machine gun. I smiled.
"Give it your best shot."
The merc raised his gun and pulled the trigger. The night was lit up by the flash of the gun. But anyone who was watching would have seen the glint of metal bullets frozen in the air in front of me.
When the gun's clip had finally run out the hunter lowered his gun.
"You missed." I said raising an eyebrow.
The mass of bullets hanging in mid-air suddenly dropped, ringing out as they hit the asphalt.
The mercenary panicked. Fumbling, he searched his pocket for another clip only to feel his gun disintegrating in his hand. He looked up to see it re-materialising in my hands.
"Leave. Before you end up dead." I snapped. The mercenary stilled for a moment before scurrying away like a scarred rabbit.
Sighing I let the bullets and gun turn to dust before I turned to study the man behind me. Before I had decided whether to heal him or not, his body twitched. As he started to move some more I turned to leave. My exit was blocked by another man. He was wearing a similar suit to the man who was now standing up behind me as well as a red visor over his eyes.
"We mean you no harm." He said putting up his hands to show he was not armed.
"Speak for yourself One-Eye. She got me shot." The deep voice behind me became dark.
"What do you want then?" I asked, moving so that my back was to a wall and the two men were on either side of me.
"We've come to offer you a safe place to stay. A place where we can help you understand the potential of your powers and how to control them effectively."
I smiled. "You have no idea what I am, do you?" I asked them. When they looked at each other confused I sighed, "I'm not coming with you. If I do you will be as much of a target as I am now. I will not do that to anyone."
"We can handle whoever's followin' you darlin'." The darker of the two said.
"Says the man who was shot a minute ago," I smirked before turning to the other man. "Leave now. I can draw them away but if they realise that you are both mutants I don't know if I'm strong enough to hold them off."
"Look kid. Just come with us and you'll be safe." The cigar smoker said running short on patience.
I shook my head already hearing the mercenaries' footsteps as they tracked me. Swearing, I used my powers to push both men back into the shadows just as the mercs rounded the corner and filled the mouth of the alley, cutting off any means of escape.
"You really shouldn't have run, girl." One of the mercs growled as the group raised their guns as one. I squared my shoulders. There were too many and they knew my weakness. Half of the group were holding tasers.
I took a breath as the enemy pulled their triggers.
I was able to stop the first wave of bullets, but the tasers got through with the second wave. I fell to my knees as wave after wave of burning electricity ran through my body.
The next moment I lost control of my powers and fell unconscious.