This is just to give a glimpse into some of the larger story arch that I am attempting to do here. Also, this is just a one-shot as opposed to a multi-chaptered story because some of the characters, like Kira, are going to appear mainly in the stories of other characters, but I still wanted to delve into them, even if it was just for a little while.


Foxfire

Kira Yukimura ran down the street, turning sharply down the alley that her target had run down. Looking at her, no one would suspect her for what she really was, not in the artfully torn tights, Catholic-school-girl skirt and Converse sneaker, not to mention the anime-themed shirt she was wearing. No, to the public who looked at her strangely as she ran passed, she was just a typical Asian-American girl who obviously was in a hurry to get somewhere. Honestly, that's how she preferred it.

People stayed out of her way this way.

Popping out of the alley, she turned the corner and nearly ran down a handsome young man exiting a dry cleaners, a suit bag held over his shoulder. He jumped back as she raced pace.

"Watch where you're going!" Kira shouted over her shoulder before racing across the street, in front of oncoming traffic and down another alley.

"What's your location?" A gruff, male voice barked over the comm in her ear.

"Alley from Baxter to Sullivan." Kira said back, leaping over a fallen trash can and continuing flawlessly after her target, who she'd just seen whip around a corner. "He's heading toward the docks!"

"You're supposed to wait for back-up." The voice growled again.

"And let him slip away?" Kira questioned. "I don't think so." Whipping around the corner, she saw the man she was chasing disappear in between the numerous freight containers waiting on the docks to either be shipped off or unloaded. Just before he disappeared from sight completely, Kira reared back her arm and thrust her palm forward. Something that looked suspiciously like lightning shot forth from her hand and arched across the space between them, striking the man in the back and setting his jacket on fire. The man yelped, alarmed, before twisting around, flinging off the burning article of clothing. Throwing a terrified glare he way, he disappeared into the metal maze. Before she could start her pursuit again, a non-descript black sedan screeched up to her right, three of the doors opening and three individuals getting out. Two men and one woman.

The woman was petite, not much taller than Kira, with darker skin and a shining curtain of straight dark brown hair. The almond-shaped dark brown eyes were set perfectly in a face that looked perpetually bemused and never seemed to age. Seriously. Morrell had been with the Company at least as long as Kira had been alive yet she didn't look much older from when she had started. The men were both tall, dressed in bland clothing any civilian might be wearing, but if one were looking close enough, one could see the holsters beneath their jackets and the back-up guns at the small of their backs. The first man was taller than the other, with wild black hair and eyes.

"Procedure says we do this as a team." the other man snarled, his close-cropped silver brown hair glinting in the sunlight. The palest blue eyes that she had ever seen glared in her direction, as harsh and cold as glaciers.

"Screw your procedure, Argent." Kira shot back.

"When you work with me, we follow the book." Argent snapped back, pulling out his gun and checking the clip before pulling back the hammer and turning off the safety. Without sparing Kira another thought, Argent turned toward the other two agents. "Finstock, you and Morrell go around, try and cut off any paths of escape." He turned that cold stare back toward her. "You're with me."

"Better you than me." Finstock checked his own gun, with Morrell doing the same thing silently at his side. "The last time I had a partner that didn't follow procedure, I lost a testicle to exposure." He looked up, first at Kira then at Argent. "I don't want that to happen to you."

"I think we're safe from the cold, Bobby." Argent replied as he checked his backup weapon. "That's not Barrow's ability." Replacing the spare gun at the small of his back, he cast the other man a rare grin. "Besides, Greenberg apologized. Got you a card and everything."

"Greenberg." Finstock hissed under his breath, like the name alone was something he'd stepped on.

With that, the four of them moved into the metal maze of containers, splitting up at the first junction. Moving slowly and cautiously, Argent and Kira moved down the the aisles, gun and hand up and ready to fire at each open passage. Kira knew better than to speak now. Argent was one the best agent the Company had on it's roster, so it was his show. Just as they hit a dead end, their heard Finstock shout and then a quick burst of gunfire that echoed through the metal corridors.

Kira and Argent were immediately on the move, heading in the direction they'd heard the shots come from. Several twists and turns later, they came across their target running toward them, Morrell and Finstock at his back, guns out. Argent immediately planted his feet, with Kira skidding to a halt a few seconds after him, his gun pointed at the man they'd been chasing through the city.

"Freeze, Barrow!" Argent's bellow echoed between the containers, magnifying its effect. The gaunt, almost skeletal man skidded to a halt, gazing down the barrel of the gun pointed at him. Looking over his shoulder, he saw the other two that had been chasing him no longer running, but creeping forward cautiously.

"You people have no right to arrest me!" Barrow shouted. "I have rights!"

"Not with us you don't." Argent said back calmly, trying to keep Barrow's attention on him. Twisting to keep all four of them in his sights, Barrow backed up toward one of the metal containers, protecting his flank. Once he was close enough to the metal, Kira decided to act, with or without Argent's permission. Creating another charge with her hand, she held her palm toward the end of the container she was closest too, tendrils of electricity jumping from her fingertips to the metal. With a burst of energy, she poured electricity into the container, semi-electrocuting Barrow further down the container when the charge reached him, also throwing him forward, his clothes now smoking. With a primal roar that started Kira, who had expected him to at least be unconscious, Barrow pushed himself to his feet, the bare skin of his hands and face now flashing a dangerously bright orange color.

He was going nuclear.

"Oops." Kira muttered when Argent threw a dirty look her way. Argent raised his gun again, ready to put the target down, which drew Barrow's attention. While he was distracted, Morrell got closer, still silent and dark. With each step closer, the glow Barrow emitted lessened until he was just a normal man again. Not understanding what was going on, he turned around, only to receive Morrell's small hand over his eyes and forehead. All the fight immediately left his body as he sort of deflated, Morrell and Finstock's quick hands the only thing keeping him from dropping bodily to the ground. When Morrell finally drew back her hand, Barrow was unconscious. Checking his pulse, the mute woman looked up at Argent and gave a nod.

The tension left the agent, who deftly holstered his gun with a practiced hand before he rounded on Kira.

"The point of this assignment was to take him in alive!" His voice didn't really rise in volume, but his rage came across clearly.

"And he is alive." Kira pointed out.

"By dumb luck." Argent shot back. "If Morrell hadn't been here to keep his powers in check after you set him off, this entire bay would be a nuclear crater right now." He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, as if to ward off an oncoming headache. "This is why you're mother doesn't let you go on field missions." His hand moved away. "You're reckless and don't think about the consequences of what you're doing. There's a reason we have procedure's for missions like this. Shaking his head, he turned his back on her and focused on the other agents. "Bobby, go back to the car and see if we have anything to get him out of here with. And call this in to HQ."

"Sure." Finstock holstered his weapons and made his way down the corridors of metal toward the exit while the other three stayed with their target.

"Can you keep him down until we can trank him?" Argent asked and Morrell nodded, silent as always.

"What about me?" Kira spoke up, trying to keep her voice light.

"Stand there and don't touch anything." Argent snapped, not even sparing a glance her way. Kira scowled and crossed her arms, glaring off into space. This benefit tonight had better be worth it. Hopefully she'll meet someone cute to make out with, because these political things her parents kept dragging her to were boring as hell.


See if you can spot Scott in there. If you don't, go read "Meant For Something Greater" and then see if you can find him.