Lily had no idea what was happening, but she hated it. She felt like she was going to puke, but if she did, she would have to wait until the next day for anyone to clean her up… so she held it back. She could no longer tell what the men were saying, and her eyes were filling up with tears. Through the haze, Lily saw the last of three guards get impatient and unhand her. He unbuckled his pants…

The immense crash shook the whole room, and the 10cm thick glass exploded outwards from the observation room. Through the crystalline shards, a humanoid shape could be made out covering its eyes. It took a good five seconds for the glass to finish chinking to the floor and sliding around. The intruder stood up and grimaced, clutching his shoulder. After a few moments, he withdrew a long, jagged sliver of glass, and discarded the bloody shard on the floor.

The three guards all but forgot Lily at this point, and rushed to deal with the intruder. Of course, the one who had removed his belt tripped and slid face first into the glass, screaming as he did so.

Lily had never seen anything like what happened next. The man waited patiently for the guards to get closer before leaping forward. He became a blur of flips and somersaults, his feet connecting solidly with the chins of his two targets, and they simultaneously fell to the floor, unconscious.

Scanning the area for any other threats, and seeing none, the man relaxed and approached Lily, stepping hard on the head of the sniveling guard who had fallen in the glass. Silence enveloped the room; he somehow walked without creating a sound whatsoever. The chains jingled lightly as Lily shied away, and she tried fruitlessly to shove him aside with her invisible arms, her vectors – the strange drug was still active.

He was now hardly a meter away, and stopped. The red light above the door lit up, and a good dozen or so security filed in, along with three men in lab coats. The armed ones formed a "V", and crouched, aiming down their sights at Lily and her savior.

"Now, now, lads!", The man finally spoke, slow and calm, "I was just preventing an incident… by causing a somewhat larger one!"

"Would you just get away from her!" One of the scientists shouted, beckoning angrily towards Lily's savior.

"I think I'll stand here for a few more minutes… until you tell me what my next job for you is?" The man shielded Lily from the view of the security. Sighing loudly, the scientist stomped into the red ring for some heightened privacy.

After drawing close, he muttered, "I'll provide more details later, but there is a very special Diclonius who recently escaped from this facility. She is on the loose in the town across the water. We want you to… capture her."

"What is her name?"

"Does it matter?"

"Very much so."

"Her name is Lucy. Anything else?"

"Why capture…?"

"She is… special."

"And how are the rest of these women NOT special…?"

"…They are mere pests. Vermin. Lab rats for experimentation. Expendable."

This visibly angered Lily's hero, who took a deep breath, and turned to look at her.

"And what's her name?"

"I already told you, her-"

"Not my mark, you idiot. Who is this?" He laughed, smiling gently at Lily with a glance out the corner of his eye.

"Uhh… room 308? She goes by 'Lily'."

The man turned, and she finally got a good look at him. He wore strange clothes – a white shirt with a black coat, and dark blue pants with some bright red visible around the waist. His skin was light, and his dark hair short and spiky.

"Lily, it's a pleasure. My name is Leon." He closed his eyes and took a deep bow. Lily responded with a confused stare, but he simply chuckled and rose back up after a few silent moments had passed.

"The pay will be ten times the standard, which I think we can all agree is worth the extra effort required to capture an individual. We shall provide several cases of the paralyzing agent, to render her arms, her vectors, useless against you - all you have to do is find her and alert us. Alright?"

"I have a counter proposition." Leon was suddenly turned around and grasping the scientist's shoulder, "You can keep the twenty million… but you let me take Lily here off your hands."

The man's eyes widened and he scoffed disbelievingly, "You would honestly turn down that much? And what the hell? This isn't some sex-slave shop! Do you think we'll actually let you take this fucking beast outside?"

"First off; I plan on simply giving her a home where she can live with dignity… Secondly; Yes. I do think you'll let me leave with her. I can get her out of the country in a few days, once I capture this 'Lucy' girl. Then Lily here will no longer be your, or anyone else's, problem… mmkay?"

The man shook his head in astonishment, but waved his hand and spun around. He and the security forces left in unison, no doubt willing to let this slide if only so that the twenty million could instead filter into their own pay…

Smiling, Leon took a good look at what bound Lily. The thick chains were heavily bolted to the walls, and the cuffs dug into the girl's wrists, where the skin was rubbed raw. Stepping back, and assuming a combat stance, he inhaled deeply.

With a small hiss as he exhaled, Leon thrust his foot full force into the wall where the bolts met the concrete and metal. There was a loud cracking, and several small bits of cement broke away through a large dent in the steel. Groaning in pain, Leon hopped once or twice and held his foot.

There was a metallic jingle, as a pair of keys was flung through the air. With a flick of the wrist, Leon snatched them out of the air, and proceeded to undo the locks the easy way.

The chains fell away, and the girl stood up. Leon, of course, was still on his knees fiddling with the shackles, and got an… 'invigorating' view as the girl stretched her legs for the first time in weeks.

Coughing nervously, he bolted upright and did his best to keep his eyes on hers. Lily's face was aglow; she was confused, and still lightheaded, but she hadn't had the freedom to move around in so long.

"How do you feel?"

She tried taking a few steps but ultimately fell forward, and her legs splayed, again giving Leon another show he was not accustomed to. He removed his jacket, and wrapped it around her as she regained her balance.

"Here, put thi-"

She yelped in surprise, falling into him. He caught her, of course, but the proximity of their faces only served to redden his more. She looked into his eyes… a little scared, and completely clueless, but overwhelmingly grateful.

"Thank you…"

xxxxx

D'awww. So this chapter is where I left off last time when I became... unexpectedly distracted. Ya know, silly personal life and all. HOWEVER, the next chapter is ready, and shall be up tomorrow. Aren't I amazing? Yes, I am. You should leave a review telling me so. It can also have any questions, concerns, suggestions, or political leanings. See ya tomorrow!

-TN