Chapter 2: Good Intentions and Bad Karma

Cleaning up the remnants of Femt's latest mess took well into the afternoon. K.K. had shown up in the middle to lend some much needed long-range assistance but by the time the last demon-beast was subdued and put down the city had taken a decently heavy blow. By the time everything was said and done it was well past noon and the necessary clean-up work had taken another hour on top of that. Leo staggered into the office and immediately threw himself face down onto the office's couches to rest. A low groan of exhaustion and discomfort from all the new bruises and scrapes he accumulated escaped his lips.

"Of course those freakin' things didn't have eyes. That would be too damn easy," Leo mumbled into the fabric of the couch with an irritated tone and frown. As he lay there for a moment of silence the sound of the door opening and several footfalls entered the room. Before Leo could turn his head to see who had entered a heavy weight landed on top of his head practically smothering him into the couch. As he flailed and uttered muffled protests and curses a familiar voice spoke up.

"You know if you leave yourself open like this it just gives me clearance to mess with you right," Zapp remarked with a tone of cockiness. Reacting on instinct, Leo dug his palms into the fabric and using all of his adrenaline-fueled strength managed to lift himself up enough to take a short breath only for his strength to give out and Leo face-planted into the couch again. Finally another voice spoke up.

"Enough already Zapp. You don't want to be the cause of him actually suffocating again do you?" Steven said in a flat tone. Zapp clicked his tongue but relented and got up off him just as Leo was on the verge of passing out. With a gasping breath Leo launched himself up from the couch before turning fuming to the white-haired Big Dipper Style user.

"Are you trying to kill me twice you jackass?" Leo snapped.

"Geeze kid, what's got your panties in a twist?" Zapp questioned indifferently as he pulled out a cigar from his vest pocket and stuck it in his mouth.

"Don't act like you don't know!" Leo retorted sharply. Zapp just looked at him blankly while Leo elaborated.

Flashback:

Leo weaved in and out of lanes on the abandoned roads on his scooter as a horde of demon-beasts tailed him getting dangerously closer.

"Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap!" Leo repeated to himself as he narrowly avoided getting chomped. "Why do I have to be the bait for these things?" A slight shift in the weight on the back of his motorized scooter answered his question.

"Because these things possess no eyes for you to control, which unfortunately limits our options," Chain replied calmly as she narrowly avoided one swipe from a creature that got too close before kicking another limb away. "Just keep driving towards the designated spot."

"R-Right," Leo agreed as he focused on the road. As the duo reached the upcoming intersection, several large blood crosses rained down safely cutting off the demon-beasts from further pursuing Leo and Chain as well as cutting off the other exits trapping them within the abandoned intersection.

"I've boxed them in. Commence operation!" Klaus spoke through his earpiece to the rest of the Libra team.

"Roger!" K.K.— a tall, thin woman with chin-length blonde hair & blue eyes, clad in a red trench-coat over a black crop-top, shorts & thigh-high high-heeled boots and wearing an eye-patch over her right eye—responded from her knelt position on top of the adjacent building's rooftop before cocking her hi-tech automatic sniper rifle and letting loose a spray of electrified bullets as she began sniping the robotic limbs rights off the demon-beasts bodies leaving them practically limbless and immobile. "God what a pain. I could easily snipe these things and take them out right here."

"But if you do then their corpses will detonate, which could prove problematic for us," Steven's cool voice came through her earpiece.

"Tch! Just shut up and do your part Starphase," K.K. snapped in irritation.

"With pleasure," Steven replied as he shifted his stance and allowed his ice powers to flare out in a cold mist. "Esmerelda Blood Freeze: Viento del Cero Absoluto!" Immediately the cold mist expelled outwards in a sub-zero wind that froze the wriggling demon-beasts solid.

"That should hold them for the time being until we can figure out a way to safely transport them away from the city," Klaus remarked.

"Let's just hope these things don't die in the ice otherwise it'll cause more collateral damage," Steven chipped in as Leo slumped against his handlebars in relief and Chain still hung out on the back of his scooter in her usual crouched position.

"I thought I was going to get eaten for sure," Leo sighed to himself. However before anything else could be accomplished the building just behind Leo erupted in a spray of rubble and dust as a rogue demon-beast smashed through with its sights focused on the young holder of the All-Seeing Eyes of the Gods. Leo screamed in panic while Chain just immediately diluted herself to escape. Just as it looked like Leo would wind up the creature's latest meal, multiple blood threads ensnared Leo as well as his scooter and yanked him backwards into the air just narrowly avoiding the beast's maw.

"Zapp! Zed!" Leo exclaimed in grateful relief as he looked over his shoulder to his rescuers. "Thanks for that!"

"Don't thank us just yet!" Zed replied as the demon-beast recovered from the miss and immediately refocused its attention towards the hovering Leo's general direction.

"These things don't seem to be very picky eaters if they're actually trying to go after such a scrawny, pube-covered snack." Suddenly something seemed to dawn on him before a mischievous smirk appeared on Zapp's face. "Which gives me an idea."

"What are you—" Before Leo could question Zapp's apparent idea and not liking the look on Zapp's face one bit, Leo suddenly found himself, still essentially strapped to his vehicle by Zapp's threads, thrown through the air and towards the charging demon-beast. As Leo let out another horrified scream as he saw the beast's gnashing teeth and gaping mouth another set of blood threads, courtesy of the quick-thinking Zed, wrapped around his waist and torso and yanked him off just in time for the creature to chomp down and swallow Leo's scooter whole with Zapp's threads still attached. With a feral grin Zapp flicked open his blood lighter.

"Seventh Hell!" Zapp declared as he flicked the ignition and his blood threads ignited traveling down straight into the beast's jaws, which were connected to the fuel tank and exploding both it and the demon-beast from the inside out in a spray of viscera and purple blood as well as taking out a good chunk of the street and sidewalk the beast had previously resided. "Heh, piece of cake," Zapp declared cockily as he flipped his lighter into the air and caught it. Zed however looked a bit put off by Zapp's tactics and poor Leo could only sit on the pavement with his mouth hanging agape in disbelief.

"If you're going to resort to those kind of tactics you could at least warn someone! Of all the reckless stunts you pulled, chucking me at that thing like I was a freaking baseball is one of the worst things you've ever done! And not only that but my scooter got completely destroyed because of you! Not only was I still paying it off but do you have any idea how long I'm going to have to work to afford another one you inconsiderate asshole?" Leo ranted as Zapp looked completely unashamed by his actions as he cleaned out an ear with his pinky.

"Yeah, well maybe next time I won't even bother to save your scrawny ass the next time you're about to get eaten then," Zapp waved off dismissively as Leo seethed.

"A work order for your vehicle's replacement has already been put in," Gilbert notified Leo the moment there was a lull in conversation as he stood stoically by the observing Klaus' side. Immediately Leo's anger was replaced with surprised confusion as he looked back to the observing pair.

"Wait, really?"

"Considering your scooter is a necessity for your part-time job and because of your involvement in today's efforts, Libra will gladly take care of the expenses," Klaus informed before adding one last thing. "Though it might take some time for the work order to be completed." Regardless Leo gave his boss a relieved and grateful smile.

"Thank you very much Klaus. I promise I'll work hard to pay back however much it'll take," Leo said instantly feeling self-conscious.

"Think nothing of it," Klaus assured returning the smile with a faint one of his own.

"Well now that that's settled, we can finally have our official meeting for the day, even if it is several hours overdue," Steven voiced as he glanced towards the wall clock.

"Oh yeah, I'll get the donuts," Leo said as he made his way over to where Gilbert had last set them. However as he approached he noticed that all three boxes were slightly opened and upon looking inside every single pastry was gone. "HUH?"

"Man, Crimpy Crème really does have the best donuts don't they?" Zapp declared unabashed as he picked his teeth with his fingernail. The other Libra members sent him disapproving glares as Leo slowly and robotically turned his head towards him with another seething scowl before launching into his second rant for the day.
_

Several hours later, Leo was walking his usual route home from Libra's Headquarters as the sun had almost entirely set and the streetlights had yet to come on. He let out a discontented sigh as his shoulders sagged slightly thinking back to the day's events.

"And I had such high hopes for the day. First a creepy nightmare and then my scooter gets trashed by a reckless monster who devours everything in sight and a demon-beast with no eyes. It's like I just can't catch a break today," Leo mumbled as he ran a hand through his messy hair. "Well whatever, at least the day is almost over and I can go home and relax." As Leo passed by the opening to an alley several voices coming from the depths caught his attention.

"What'd you say you old geezer?" Immediately Leo stopped and glanced behind him to the alley opening. Cautiously he approached the entrance and peeked around the corner where sure enough he saw three Alterworld thugs dressed in various gangster style clothing surrounding what to be an elderly Alterworld woman who was literally backed against the wall. She was a short humanoid woman, about half a foot shorter than Leo with silver, unruly and slightly frayed hair. She was dressed in what appeared to be old yet luxurious robes and possessed a closed third eye in the middle of her forehead and faint blue skin with horns similar to a ram's protruding from her skull as one hand clutched a intricately carved wooden cane and the other was positioned behind her back. However despite the three thugs surrounding her she stared at them with a sharp and defiant gaze.

"I believe I told you my answer you damned miscreants. Unless your ears are worse than my own," she snidely remarked.

"Why you! Just shut the hell up and fork over your money you old hag!" One of the Alterworld brutes spat. Leo's brows furrowed in both worry for the woman's safety as well as vexation at the callous hoodlums.

"This isn't going to end well. I have to do something!" With that he took a deep breath and emerged from around the corner and strolled into the alley as confidently as he could. "Hey, you!" Immediately the thugs as well as the old woman, whose third eye even opened in surprise, looked to Leo with shock evident on their faces, though in the thugs' cases it didn't last long before annoyed and aggravated expressions quickly replaced the surprise.

"What do you want pipsqueak?" one thug snapped who had a slender humanoid form but looked almost like a cross between a frilled lizard and a Crocodilian judging by the snout and tail.

"Yeah, can't you see we're in the middle of something?" Another thug with a praying mantis-like face and mandibles and an oblong-shaped head with blunt spike-like protrusions garbled while the third one, a portly slug-like being with multiple beady eyes on eyestalks and an impossibly large mouth, sneered menacingly at the young interloper. Leo felt his resolve slip a little but stood his ground even as he stumbled a bit over his words.

"L-Look, just leave her alone all right. I don't know what led you guys to this point. Maybe you're down on your luck and going through a rough patch or maybe something happened between you all and things just got out of hand. But doing something like this isn't right!" Leo expressed with sincerity trying to talk the brutes down. "She's just an elderly woman. She could easily be someone's grandmother. You wouldn't do something like this to your own grandmother would you?" The three thugs exchanged looks to each other before they busted out laughing.

"You're kidding right? How freakin' naïve can you be?" the reptilian thug questioned mockingly.

"Yeah, if it were my grandmother, I'd have done the old crone in myself," the slug-like thug added.

"YOU'RE HORRIBLE!" Leo exclaimed unable to help his outburst. Before he could react further, Leo then found himself being grabbed by the collar of his shirt and pulled upwards slightly to stare up into the Alterworldly slug creature's face.

"Yeah, well what are you going to do about it huh?" The slug-like thug questioned getting his face close to Leo's in a clear intimidation tactic. Leo grunted and wriggled in the hooligan's grip.

"I knew this was going to end badly," Leo mused inwardly. "I have to convince the old woman to—" However as Leo turned his head to look back to the old woman he found that she had disappeared from sight. "SHE'S ALREADY GONE?!" Leo exclaimed in shock. This however caught the thugs' attention as well.

"What? Damn it! There goes our pay out!" The mantis thug cursed.

"Tch! Guess that means we'll have to settle with the next best thing," the slug-like brute replied as he lifted Leo up off the ground and socked him hard in the gut causing him to gasp and double over as he was released and fell to the ground. As Leo coughed and tried to catch his breath they each took turns kicking and punching him mercilessly while Leo tried his best to shield himself from the blows by curling into a ball and covering his head with his arms though not before a number of solid hits hit their mark. After what felt like fifteen minutes of the endless assault, the brutes finally stopped before Leo suddenly felt one thug's hand reach into his pocket and pull out his wallet.

"Tch! This isn't even enough to pay for a good bottle of booze," the reptilian mugger growled as he flipped through it.

"Forget it, let's just get outta here before the Police Suits come snoopin' around," the slug-like being shrugged off. As the battered and bruised Leo began to relax he was suddenly greeted with one last parting shot kick to the side by the reptilian causing him to cough from getting the wind knocked out of him yet again before the three ruffians finally stalked off. Leo lay still for a moment longer to be sure they had actually left before he slowly pulled himself up from lying on the ground into a kneeling position on his hands and knees. As he moved he could feel the new bruises on top of his old ones from the day's events. He raised a hand to his head and face to tentatively inspect the new bumps he acquired and wipe off the blood from his split lip with the back of his hand before looking at the blood smear and letting out a sigh.

"Ugh! And I thought I would be used to these sorts of things by now," he couldn't help but mutter to himself before raising his head only to be greeted with a face only a few inches from his own. Crying out in shock Leo practically threw himself backwards to gain some much needed space before realizing it was the old woman from before.

"Oh, it's you," Leo said instantly calming down. "I thought you were long gone by now. Are you all right? Those creeps didn't hurt you did they?" The elderly Alterworld woman however didn't say anything or even move for a solid minute. The only indication Leo had to the fact that she wasn't a statue was the fact that her beady eyes, including the third eye positioned in the middle of her forehead, was focused entirely on him almost as if studying him intensely. Before Leo could ask if something was wrong, the old woman finally moved only to raise her cane and whack Leonardo firmly on the top of his head.

"OW! What was that for?" Leo asked incredulously and a bit exasperated as he cringed and nursed the newest bump on his head. Finally the old woman spoke.

"That was for insinuating I am old enough to be someone's grandmother," she replied as she thumped the tip of her cane on the ground pointedly. "I may be old but I'm not that old." Leo could only gawk at her unsure of how to react before she continued to speak this time in a bit of a more curious tone. "Why would you do that anyway?"

"Huh?" Leo uttered. "I mean I just assumed you were at the age where—" Another swift whack upside the head stopped Leo mid-sentence as he yelped and recoiled once again from the impact.

"Not that! I mean why would you willingly get involved with those boorish imbeciles?" As Leo slowly recovered from the second blow from the wooden cane he only looked at her as she elaborated. "Most people in this city are only concerned about themselves. Whether it's taking whatever they please from those they consider weak like those miserable louts or surviving day to day from all the chaos of this city not caring about what ill fate befalls other people. So long as it isn't them, what do they care? Not only this city, but this whole word and even the Alterworld beyond, is full of ignorant, self-absorbed cretins," she finished bitterly with a visible scowl on her face before she collected herself and glanced to Leonardo. "So why didn't you do the same?" This time Leo was the one who was silent for a good moment still seated on the ground before he finally responded.

"I didn't think I needed a reason." Immediately the woman's judging expression fell into one of confused surprise before Leo continued. "I mean isn't it common sense to want to help someone you see is in trouble? On one hand sure, I admit it may have been the smart thing to do to just walk away and gone on pretending I didn't see anything. If I had I could've kept my money from being stolen and not have gotten beat up because like you said, it didn't involve me so why should I care? But…that way of thinking just doesn't sit right with me. Maybe I'm a bit selfish or self-righteous for doing so but if I see something wrong, I just want to do whatever I can to try and help make things right even if it might not be much." The Alterworldly woman's three eyes simultaneously blinked in clear disbelief at what she had just heard before she quickly recollected herself.

"In all my years of frequenting this city I have to say I honestly never expected anyone to still have those kinds of feelings. I always assumed the line between right and wrong was lost ages ago between both Huma and Beyondian alike. It's admittedly a refreshing thing to see," she articulated with surprise evident in her tone as well as perhaps even a twinge of approval. However it did not last long before it quickly disappeared and a look of irritation took its place and she thrust her cane out pointing to Leo. "However, having those kinds of feelings are pointless if you don't have the power to back them up." It was at that point she revealed her other hand that Leo just now realized had still been behind her back the whole time. In it were three miniature half-formed clay dolls that almost had a striking resemblance to the three robbers from earlier.

"Are those—"

"I know full well the true intentions of most inhabitants in this city and planned accordingly. I had every intention of seeing that those three got their just desserts but then you came along right before I had the chance to finish. Pity; I thought I could rid this city of three less wretches." Leo barely managed to suppress a shiver at the genuinely threatening implication behind her words before she spoke again and put the dolls away into her cloak. "But you should have at the very least attempted to fight back; throw a punch or something or if nothing else come up with some sort of plan that didn't involve getting the snot beat out of you!" She articulated jabbing Leo in the chest accusingly with the end of her cane. Leo simply rubbed the back of his head before responding.

"I suppose I could have done that but what would have been the point if I did? Physically speaking three against one is way out of my league and what little options I do have to defend myself are…" Leo paused for a moment as he thought about the possibility of using his eyes to skirt the bad situation. "Not plausible," he finished before continuing. "And even if by some miracle I did manage to fight them off what would have happened then? They would have eventually retaliated and come back at me even worse the next time and it would have just needlessly escalated. It's just easier to let them do as they please then shrug it off." The elderly woman's expression however showed that she did not agree in the slightest before Leo said something else that once more caught her off guard.

"As for not having a plan well…" Leo finally got to his feet before removing one of his shoes and lifting up the inner sole revealing a false bottom with more money tucked away. Leo then turned his pants pockets inside out revealing hidden inner pockets along the seam with even more cash safely tucked away out of sight. "I'm unfortunately kind of used to this sort of thing so I came up with this system a while back to spread out the cash on me and it works pretty well. The wallet is just a decoy with small change, though it is a bit of a pain to have to keep buying new wallets every time one gets taken," he explained with a small grin as he readjusted his pockets and slipped his shoe back on. Stunned for the second time that day, the Alterworldly woman gaped at Leo like he was an oddity before her face relaxed into a small smile and she suddenly started chuckling lightly much to Leo's confusion.

"You…are a surprisingly normal young man," she couldn't help but declare with a much lighter tone in her voice than Leo had yet to hear from her.

"Is that strange?" Leo asked with a slight questioning tilt of his head.

"For this city it certainly is," she simply retorted. "Tell me, what's your name?"

"Leonardo Watch. But my friends call me Leo for short," Leo replied as he cordially extended his hand. For a moment Leo was unsure if the old woman would return the favor but surprisingly she did as she placed her wrinkled hand in his.

"Pascia Okieelv," she replied before they promptly released their grips and she continued. "…Of course that's just an alias."

"Huh?" Leo articulated with his brows furrowing in confusion. "Wait you mean that's not your real name?"

"Of course not," she replied. "I never tell people my true name. Don't you know there's an old saying that names have power? So it's too risky to tell anyone."

"So then why tell me at all?" Leo deadpanned sweatdropping.

"I don't normally tell just anyone my name, alias or no. But you…" she paused to briefly scan Leo from head to toe. "You're an exception. So honestly you should feel honored that I even decided to tell you even that." Leo could only gawk at her incredulously before deciding to just go along with it.

"Uh, right. Well thanks for that, I guess. So…what were you doing in this alley anyway when those guys jumped you? Were you headed someplace?" Leo asked curiously.

"No, I was simply passing through," the woman more or less known as Pascia replied. "As I mentioned before I occasionally frequent the city from time to time and I often like to take strolls during the twilight hours. This time however I just so happened to bump into those blockheaded imps as I was passing by and they somehow convinced themselves that I was an easy but lucrative target."

"I see," Leo responded with a slight frown.

"What about you?" Pascia asked with an arched brow. "You seem more like the type to spend your time in the comfort of your own home than be out in a place like this especially now that the sun has set and the more disreputable characters come out." Leo couldn't help a small chuckle.

"Well you're not wrong about that," he replied with a sheepish grin. "I was actually just on my way home from my job when I overheard everything that happened." Leo then crossed his arms and continued speaking under his breath more to himself then anything else. "One thing's for sure, I'm going to sleep like log once I get home after everything that's happened today. Provided nothing else happens on my way home and I don't have anymore creepy dreams." Pascia's formerly relaxed expression promptly changed into one of piqued interest.

"Creepy dreams you say?" She repeated questioningly. Immediately Leo blushed slightly feeling a bit overly exposed at the slip of the tongue.

"Ah, no. I-It's nothing," he insisted waving his hands in a dismissive gesture however Pascia didn't buy it as she studied him for a moment before gaining some kind of look of understanding causing her third eye to widen ever so slightly. For a split second a look of actual dread appeared on her face before she quickly replaced it with a hardened expression of seriousness. Leo caught the split second look but before he could question it, Pascia spoke.

"You know there's another saying that dreams have their own meanings. You Huma only consider dreams to be subconscious representations of thoughts, desires or fears but sometimes they can provide insight to things you might not even be aware of. You shouldn't always dismiss them so lightly." Leo grimly thought back to the crimson-clad figure in his dream and gulped.

"I-It was just a dumb dream probably brought on by stress that's all," Leo said with a slight stutter sounding like he was trying to convince himself more than the woman before him. "I'm sure it didn't mean anything and that a decent night's sleep is all I need. Of course knowing my rotten luck with how today's gone I probably will just end up not getting any rest at all tonight," Leo said grumbling the later part under his breath. However Pascia heard the last part and glowered as a result before she promptly tapped her cane hard on the stone ground underneath getting Leo's attention.

"You shouldn't say things like that so lightly!" She aggressively asserted. "Just as there is power to be had in names, this is true for words as well. Not only that but negativity more often than not brings about bad karma so saying such pessimistic things like that only invites disaster!" Her expression turned from gravely serious to a bit sullen as she briefly averted her gaze and muttered. "But I fear that it is probably already too late for you." Leo however heard this clearly and felt dread creep into his being.

"Uh, what do you mean by that?" he asked a bit stiffly. She however did not reply as the streetlights from the main roads came on one at a time. Instead she redirected her gaze back to his direction.

"Never you mind," she said hastily. "The sun has completely set now and it's getting late so you'd best hurry back to your home."

"Uh, yeah. I guess I should," Leo agreed a bit numbly. "Will you be alright on your own?" She gave him a wry grin.

"Don't you worry about me; just get going already," she urged with a small shooing motion of her hand. Leo complied but as he turned to exit the alley one last comment made him stop and look back. "And Leonardo, I advise you stick to the main roads on your way home. I believe you know as well as I do there are far worse things than muggers prowling around out there." A loud humming followed by a pop and flash of light made Leo practically jump out of his skin as he whirled around to find the source only to see the flitting sparks of a burst light bulb from the streetlight just beyond the alley's entrance. Relaxing a bit Leo glanced back to Pascia only to find much to his shock that she had once more disappeared completely. He scanned the area around him, even going so far as to crack his All-Seeing Eyes open a little to see where she had gone but to no avail.

"How does someone her age move so damn fast?" Leo muttered to himself as he scratched his head in confusion. However as he stood in the alleyway by himself he began to feel anxiety creep up his spine as he shivered a little before he promptly turned and speed-walked out of the alley continuing on his way home. As he stuck to the main sidewalk, which was surprisingly and unnaturally void of other people for that time of night, Leo's gaze kept darting to every flicker of light and movement of shadow until finally he was less than a block away from his apartment. "Calm down Leo," he thought to himself inwardly. "You're just being paranoid but you're almost home now. Nothing is going to happen!" Suddenly the clanging of a trashcan once more startled Leo out of his skin as he let out a yelp and his eyes nearly shot open in surprise. He turned his entire body to the source of the noise, which just so happened to come from deep within another darkened alleyway just as a trashcan lid rolled unsteadily out of the darkness before falling over and rotating a few times before landing with a clatter.

"Ahahaha, yeah, no thank you!" Leo laughed nervously as he slowly turned to walk away until the sound of something fast approaching him struck his ears. As he grimly recalled Pascia's warning Leo felt himself begin to sweat as he fearfully contemplated what he should do. With a nervous gulp he mustered his courage and turned back to the alley. "Oh screw it! Just bring it on already!" No sooner had he said these words than a dark blur jumped out of the shadows and Leo cried out in fear as he shielded his face as the thing landed in front of him. For a split moment Leo held his pose until he took a chance to peek and saw much to his relief that the culprit was none other than Sonic, a small white Alterworldly hybrid monkey with a large head and thin body with big yellow eyes, who simply gazed up at him with silent curiosity. Nearly face vaulting out of the immense relief and anticlimactic turn of events Leo released a breath he didn't realize he was holding as he placed a hand over his heart.

"Goddamn it Sonic! You nearly gave me a freaking heart attack!" Leo chastised after he regulated his breathing. The little Sonic Speed Monkey merely tilted his head in clear disinterest before jumping and climbing up Leo's body and perching himself on his shoulder. "Where have you been all day anyway?" As expected the little monkey did not answer aside from a few blinks but Leo still felt a sense of comfort nonetheless. He gave a light sigh and smile before turning to continue down the sidewalk. "Come on, let's go home." Sonic glanced to Leo before his large eyes widened and he began chattering incessantly motioning to something right behind Leo. Faster than Leo could react, he felt slender yet strong hands clamp down on him and he felt himself get yanked forcibly backwards into the dark alleyway with a startled yelp. After getting whipped around like a rag doll, the firm grasp on Leo was released as he was tossed hard to the ground where he rolled over a couple times before coming to a stop and Sonic, who had clutched to Leo during the terrifying ride, bolted off into the depths of the alley to hide. Leo shakily tried to get to his feet but was stopped halfway by a suave yet menacing voice.

"Don't bother getting up boy. I'll only knock you back down again." The kneeling Leo craned his head up to look at the culprit and his blood instantly ran cold. Before him stood what appeared to be at first glance a normal yet tall, well-built man wearing a simple yet pristine grey long coat with a red belt and black business slacks tucked into black boots. He had long, spiky black hair slicked back into a ponytail but his wild bangs were parted to the left side of his face and despite his composed body language and calm tone of voice, the man's piercing red eyes were crazy and slit-like much like a serpent's as he grinned menacingly showing his sharpened canines. However what Leo was panicking over was not the man's eyes or teeth but the distinct crimson aura that largely flared out from him like wings.

"Blood Breed," Leo realized mentally as he shook in horror. Doing the only thing he could think of, Leo turned and tried to scramble to his feet to run but the second he took his first step he felt a hand swiftly wrap around his ankle and pull him back causing Leo to crash to the ground before he was flung back and slammed hard into the stone wall of a building. The air was knocked out of him for the third time that day but before Leo could even slump down, the Blood Breed was on him in a second. The same slender yet strong hand with sharpened fingernails clamped firmly over Leo's mouth and kept him pinned against the wall hanging a few feet from the ground. Leo let out muffled whimpers and protests while attempting to pry the ironclad grip off of him as he tried struggle out of the monster's grasp.

"Didn't I just tell you not to bother getting up," the Blood Breed said with an over-exaggerated sigh and shake of his head. "You Huma are just so pitiful I swear. But then again, I suppose it's only natural for prey to try and run when cornered by a predator. They are especially painfully aware of their own mortality when they realize exactly what manner of beast is before them. You know exactly what I'm talking about don't you…Leonardo Watch, holder of the All-Seeing Eyes of the Gods." Leo's breath hitched as a muffled gasp escaped him as he went completely rigid.

"No! How does he know?" He thought as he quivered in panic and sweat dripped from his brow. A feral grin stretched across the Blood Breed's face as he seemed to revel in the lad's fear.

"Yes, I know full well who you are and what those blasted eyes of yours are capable of," he began. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am known as the King of Pain, one of the Thirteen Kings that rules over this Godforsaken city as well as a humble Elder Class Blood Breed," the self-proclaimed king introduced with a mock bow. "Pleased to meet you. I've been observing you from afar for quite some time now just biding my time until the right moment to strike." He gave another menacing grin. "And now I finally have you right where I want you." Leo's heart was pounding so painfully hard in his chest that he could barely hear the Blood Breed before him.

"This is it then. I'm going to die," Leo realized as he trembled, cold dread washing over him and a few more drops of sweat ran down his temple. However what the Blood Breed said next caught him completely off guard.

"Relax. Believe it or not I don't plan on killing you…anytime soon anyway." Leo made a muffled sound of confusion before the King of Pain elaborated. "You see I have some pretty big plans in store for this city and while I could easily kill you and take out one of the biggest thorns in my—our side, that wouldn't be nearly as fun as what I have planned. And you get to play a big part in it, aren't you lucky?" he asked with a sickeningly sweet smile as he raised his other hand to Leo's face to pry open one of his eyes so he could get a better look at the godly orb as his smirk grew. "It's actually a bit ironic when I think about it, that the very eyes that are our biggest harbinger of misfortune will soon become our greatest source of freedom." With a sinister chuckle he removed his hand from Leo's pried open eye allowing it to close before he brought his index finger to his mouth and bit down hard enough to draw blood as it trickled down in dark drops. Once a good amount of blood had been drawn the King of Pain motioned to place the bloodied finger between Leo's eyes.

"This won't hurt a bit. But then again, maybe it will," he chuckled. Unsure of what the Alterworldly bloodsucker was trying to do but unwilling to find out, Leo consumed by panic resumed his muffled protests and struggles once more attempting to try and pry the beast's clawed hand off of him and even going so far as to lash his feet out to land a few well placed kicks to the Blood Breed's torso to get him to release him. However the well-bodied vampire didn't budge or even flinch and the only thing it served to do was cause the grip on Leo's face to tighten painfully, fingernails digging uncomfortably into the sides of Leo's face as he was forced harder into the brick wall behind him.

"Oh please. Quit your squirming and just accept your fate brat," the King of Pain said unamused as he pressed the tip of his finger firmly to Leo's forehead and closed his eyes in apparent concentration. To Leo's fear, the crimson aura that surrounded the monster before him flared up aggressively as the Blood Breed began to chant in an Alterworldly tongue that he had never heard before. Almost immediately a mild burning sensation made itself known to Leo that started from the spot on his forehead that the Elder Class Blood Breed was touching and spread out and traveled over almost every inch of him as he felt something begin to form over him. Leo let out another muffled cry, this time of discomfort the mild burning grew into a sharp searing pain. Sonic, who had taken to hiding behind a nearby dumpster, poked his head out and watched in both fear and worry as he watched his human friend suffer as strange red, glowing markings briefly appeared all over Leo's body. This seemed to go on for what felt like an eternity for Leo until finally both the chanting and the burning stopped as the strange runes dissolved into his body. Leo slumped in the King of Pain's grasp as the Elder Blood Breed panted slightly from exhaustion before giving a satisfied grin.

"That's step one down, now on to step two." Leo cast a nearly spent glance of fear up at the Blood Breed anxiously wondering what he had in store next. Once more the King of Pain began a different chant as Leo felt an unusual shift in energy that pooled out from the Blood Breed's hand that circulated down around his face as this time green runes appeared around Leo's throat. The chant this time around however was much shorter and with no accompanying pain so the second he finished the chant and the strange sensation encircling his throat disappeared, Leo was surprised when the Blood Breed suddenly released him. Leo winced from the rough landing before he rubbed his neck to see if he could feel anything there.

"W-What did you just do to me?" Leo asked shakily as he stared up at the madly grinning monstrosity.

"Simple, I cursed you." Leo felt his blood run cold as his face paled.

"Cursed?" Leo repeated numbly. "What kind of curse?" The King of Pain's already wide grin just stretched a fraction wider that, along with his widened creepy red slitted eyes, made him look absolutely terrifying.

"Now why would I tell you that and go and ruin the surprise. Not like you can do anything about it now anyway." Leo felt his fear shift slightly and a well of defiant anger sprung up in him as he rose to his feet.

"You won't get away with this! My friends and I will figure out a way out stop whatever you're planning!" Instead of getting angry the black-haired Blood Breed merely gave a knowing smirk.

"Oh, and what will you tell them?"

"That you—" a sudden painful squeezing sensation around his throat caused him to break off mid-sentence as the green runes appeared around Leo's throat. His hands flew up to his neck and he fell to his knees choking and gasping before the squeezing sensation wore off and he coughed trying to catch his breath. "W-What…what was that?"

"Oh that? That was the second hex I placed on you," the King of Pain said nonchalantly as he kneeled down to Leo's height. Leo gaped at him as the vampire elaborated. "See I know full well that those blasted Fang Hunters will stick their noses in this matter if they're ever made aware of it. So I simply made it so that you can't tell them or anyone else about what happened here. If you try to do so then that hex will activate and silence you before you can even say a single word." Leo swallowed but tried to retort back anyway.

"T-then I'll find a way to break it! You won't have any power over me!" The King of Pain simply let out a barking laugh.

"You honestly think I didn't think of that? The remedy for that particular problem should be starting shortly." Before Leo could ask him what he meant a wave of dizziness suddenly started to overcome him. He swayed slightly before placing a hand to his head to try and gather his bearings. "You see the initial curse I placed on you is a formidable one but in its early stages it is far too fragile. If it were to be discovered before it had a chance to mature then everything I planned would be for naught. That's where this second part of the hex comes into play. By forcibly suppressing your memories of everything that happened here, not even you will be aware of anything amiss while the curse matures and does its job." Another wave of dizziness nearly knocked Leo out for the count as his vision began to swim.

"The only downside is that the memory suppression is only temporary but it is of no major consequence. By the time you fully remember everything it will be far too late." Leo's strength gave out and he collapsed onto his side as darkness began to creep into the sides of his vision as he struggled to stay awake. The cocky Blood Breed rose to his full height as he observed the lad for a brief moment longer. Before Leo's eyes shut fully the last thing he registered was the King of Pain's piercing red eyes and manic grinning face staring down at him.

"I look forward to seeing how things will play out once the curse has reached its peak." With that last sentence Leo's consciousness was soon swallowed whole.
_

Furry paws and worried chattering slowly roused Leo from his unconscious state. Leo groaned before opening his eyes only to see Sonic's worried face hovering inches over his own.

"W-wha? Sonic?" Leo uttered starting to come out of his daze. Slowly he sat up and shook himself awake before taking in his surroundings. "What the hell am I doing here?" He asked in mild confusion and panic. "The last thing I remember is you jumping out of the alley and then…" Leo trailed off at a loss as he looked to his furry companion who glanced back up at him with worry evident in his large eyes. "Did I get mugged again?" When Sonic gave no reply Leo mulled over the possibilities that could have happened to explain the sudden lapse in memory but came up empty. Feeling unsettled, Leo pulled himself up onto his feet and scratched his head. "I don't like this. But I think the best thing to do right now is to just head home." Sonic immediately perched himself on Leo's shoulder once more, concern still etched onto his primate face as Leo mechanically made his way out of the alley and back onto the street. However unbeknownst to the two, the responsible Elder Class Blood Breed sat perched on the rooftop's ledge just overhead.

"I wonder just how long the boy will manage to hold out before the burden gets to be too much for him," the King of Pain asked aloud with an ominous smirk before large blood-red, leathery wings sprouted from his back and he leapt into the air and soared off into the night.
_

Author's Notes: Another chapter down and now things are getting interesting. Some things in this chapter I'm rather satisfied with but others I'm wishing I had done better with but please I'd like to know what you all think. I'm also still having considerable difficulty with editing these chapters in Doc Manager (seriously, if anyone can tell me how to properly do the spacing and horizontal line edit instead of these stupid dashes or it automatically defaulting PLEASE PM me!) but hopefully it's not as distracting to others as it is to me. That being said I hope to get some constructive feedback about what you all think about the story itself, even one comment would go a long way! As for the next chapter, it's going to take a while before it's posted as I'm still working on it (finding time and motivation to write has been difficult) but I suspect maybe two or three weeks as it is going to be a fairly longer chapter. Until next time!