Running into the construction zone was the first mistake she made. The uneven muddy dirt beyond the chain-link fence was cruel on her sprained ankle, which was now swollen as she limped between the heavy machinery and forklifts. The Witch Hunters were hot on her heels, and despite the heavy ache in her lungs, she could not afford to stop running. So, as she reached the other side of the chain-link fence, she had two options. She could either attempt to climb the fence to the newly constructed apartment building on the other side and flee back out into the city, or she could run into the dark, rust-colored warehouse to her left and hide.

Winona knew that her chances of survival were higher on the other side of the fence. However, once she spotted the barbed wire that kept the construction zone secure from outsiders, the idea of getting caught in its mess of razor blades just to get shot down by a barrage of arrows gave her cold feet. She also had her injured ankle to consider- and so, she came to the conclusion that this option simply wasn't realistic given the circumstances.

That's what led Winona to her second mistake. As she darted from behind an empty white pickup, she was immediately spotted. When she passed under the open garage door of the warehouse, an arrow flew past her and grazed her cheek. Caught off guard, she gasped and spun around to face the Ringleader, who was now only a few feet away.

He was the tallest of the three and by far the scariest. Though she couldn't see his face, she could see his aura. Although it wasn't nearly as frightening as the massive black mist that she'd seen hovering around Klaus just an hour ago, there was a lot that she learned from the thin red line of light that outlined his body. Red was the color of fury and fierceness. This to her meant that the man she was now facing was a dominant character, and she knew better than to underestimate him.

His partners appeared from out of the fog, and she was now cornered by all three Witch Hunters, who had their weapons prepped and pointed directly at her. She continued to back away from them toward the wall of the warehouse until the heel of her shoe was caught on the edge of a brick on the ground, and she fell backward onto her rear. Winona let out a whimper as she inched toward the wall and put her hands up, hoping that they wouldn't shoot.

Klaus's silhouette appeared behind the Witch Hunters for a brief, cruel moment. She reached out to him with big eyes that pleaded for his help, hoping that he would somehow find it in his heart to forgive her for what she did to him. He looked at her as if smug and scoffed, shaking his head. She felt something inside of her chest rupture like a bursting water pipe. Her silent plea to her former partner was no use- whatever empathy that the Demon might have had before was now gone. He made a look of contentment before he disappeared, leaving her to face her fate at the hand of the Witch Hunters scared and alone.

"Sir." The masked man on the left stopped his leader with a firm grip on the shoulder, "Shouldn't we proceed with caution? We don't know what she might be capable of, what if there's something crawling out there in the fog? Like, a familiar or- or a demon?" This Witch Hunter seemed to be the only one amongst the three to express any reluctance when it came to confronting her. He was the weakest of the three- she knew this because his aura wasn't visible at all. He must have been young and inexperienced compared to his two comrades who stood with their crossbows aimed at her with zero hesitation.

The Ringleader scoffed at his cowardly partner, "Look at her, dimwit. She's practically pissin' herself. If she was going to fight us, she would have done it already. Now, let's do what we came here to do- the boss wants her blood." Winona whined in fear as the leader took another step toward her, "We can kill her and drain her of everything she's got. All we have to do when we're finished is doodle some stupid pentagrams on the ground- we won't even have to take care of the body. Stupid feds will just think it was another one of those cult murders."

She shook her head and sobbed. It was a confirmation that she never wanted to hear. She had been in denial the whole time- but now that they had admitted that they were interested in harvesting her blood, she knew for certain that she was looking at three modern-day Witch Hunters. They weren't affiliated with her brother, nor did they have any knowledge of the demonic possessions- and somehow, that made them even more frightening.

The leader approached her and kneeled beside her, lifting her chin to force her to look at him. She was so close to him that she could see his dark eyes behind the reflective goggles of his gas mask. He stroked the blood and tears off of her cheek and she shivered under the touch of his cold black leather gloves.

"The last time I fought one of your kind fifteen years ago, she put up much more of a fight." He said in a quiet gruff voice. Winona gulped, she had no idea that Witch Hunters even existed during her lifetime. This news made her think of all of the cautionary tales that her mother had told her about the Witches who had disappeared without a trace from the Kingdom when she was just a child. Winona wondered just how many Witches might have fallen victim to these Hunters before the fall of the Kingdom. But, also, it made her question how Klaus knew about said Witch Hunters- she was a fool to have ignored his concerns, and now it seemed that she was going to pay for her ignorance. "I expected a whole lot more from the Aetherborn Princess…" The man continued as he caressed her stained cheek, "You're a pretty one, it's a shame that I'll have to put you down." He stood and loaded his crossbow, then pointed it directly between her eyes. She looked at him fearfully while he spoke tauntingly, "Any last words, little Witch?"

Winona said nothing. She refused to answer the masked stranger. She bit her lip, squeezed her eyes shut, and began to pray. She could do nothing else. She was far too exhausted to make any more magic happen. Even though she knew that Angels had never before answered her prayers, it was the only thing she could do. With no other hope left, she sent out her desperate pleas into the universe, begging for an Angel to come and save her.

Then, she waited. The seconds felt like hours and she was beginning to wish that he would just put her out of her pathetic misery.

But, death didn't come as suddenly as she thought it would. She expected to hear the click of the trigger- but that didn't happen. Instead, the Witch Hunters were alarmed by the sudden sound of shattering glass emitting from the fog outside of the warehouse. She blinked her eyes open to look at the Ringleader, who pointed at his cowardly partner.

"Go check that out." He ordered.

The cowardly Witch Hunter hesitated as if he was going to argue with his leader, but then sighed and instead pointed his weapon out into the fog. He tip-toed out of the warehouse, allowing his body to be swallowed by the white void. The silent one of the three on the far right kept an anxious eye on the fog outside while their partner was absent- but the Ringleader kept his eyes focused on Winona so that she could not move.

"Hey, uh, guys? I'm hearing things out here." Spoke the cowardly Witch Hunter from the fog.

The Ringleader sighed and rolled his eyes, "Probably just an animal, secure the perimeter, and get back here."

"N-No, I'm hearing footsteps- I-I really think there's somebody else out here-" There was an audible squeak from the Hunter's boots against the pavement, "Holy shit, there's somebody out here!" The silent masked man pointed his bow out into the fog, and the Ringleader cleared his throat, speaking with a hint of anxiousness in his voice.

"Go see what he's freaking out about, please."

The silent one nodded and jogged out of the warehouse, leaving Winona and the Ringleader to sit in silence as they waited for his return. He kept the crossbow aimed at her- however, it was now wobbling in his shaking hands. He was nervous now, she could tell. His red aura was disappearing now that he was beginning to lose confidence. A few minutes into his second partner's absence, he began to call out to him in a language that she couldn't understand.

But there was no answer. Instead, his partner's body was suddenly thrown back into the warehouse by a force unlike any other. His back hit the wall and slumped into the ground just a couple of feet away from Winona. She yelped in surprise and scooted away from the Witch Hunter, who groaned beside her and fumbled on the ground, reaching for the arrow that was now sticking out from his back. He must have been disarmed and shot with his own weapon. Winona felt a sliver of hope- however, it was short-lived. The Ringleader twisted around toward her and lifted his crossbow as if he was going to swing it at her.

"What the hell just happened?! Is this some sort of spell?!"

She raised her fists defensively and shielded her face, "N-No I- I didn't-"

"Liar!" He lifted the weapon even higher as if to warn her, prompting her to flinch, "Is this fog enchanted or something?! What's out there?!"

"I don't know!" She screamed, "I didn't do anything!"

"Then what's happening?! What happened to him?!"

From her view on the ground, she could see something materialize behind the Ringleader. She squinted at it, trying to make out what it was through her blurry vision. Shoes? -No, there were legs attached to them. It was a person that just appeared out of thin air. She only knew one person who was capable of such a thing. Her prayers were answered, but not by an Angel.

"We happened." Said the Ninja. As soon as the Ringleader heard Espio's voice, he jerked to turn and face him, but the Chameleon halted him, poking him in the back of the head with the crossbow that he'd gotten from the man on the ground. "Don't move."

Her relief manifested into a wide grin, "Espio?!"

Espio was grateful that they had arrived when they did. Winona was in a sorry state- cuts and bruises lined her arms and legs, and there were even a few sizable pieces of glass protruding from her skin. She sat against the rusting sheet-metal wall of the warehouse, shivering and wheezing. She looked up at him with beaming, grateful wet eyes. As the stranger felt Espio pressing the tip of the loaded arrow in the crossbow against his skull, the man responded by dropping his weapon and putting his hands in the air.

Vector appeared behind Espio, cocking the pistol in his hands and laughing boisterously, "Hey, did you see me launch that guy? He never saw it comin'!"

Winona squinted past Espio, "Vector is that you?"

"Winona-? Jeez!" Upon seeing the Princess's weather-beaten and bloodied face, the Crocodile rushed over to her side. "What in the hell happened to you? Did he do that?" As Vector helped her to her feet, she looked at the masked man spitefully.

"He's a Witch Hunter," She spat in a nasty tone as Vector assisted her to Espio's side. The Ninja noted the way she limped and leaned her weight on his partner- she must have hurt her ankle pretty badly to have to rely on Vector's help just to walk. "He intended to drain me of my blood. The same way one would skin a snake for their skin. He's rotten to the core."

"Your blood, huh…?" Espio narrowed his eyes at the man, "You, turn around and face me." He demanded.

Winona was certainly right about the man's evil nature. Espio had dealt with this type before. Just from looking at him, the Ninja could tell that the stranger had military experience. He was disciplined and headstrong like a proper soldier, and thus refused to answer the Chameleon's command. He stood relaxed, as if he was hardly concerned at all about what they might do to him- though, there was a subtle shake to his palms as if Espio's dramatic entrance had made him uneasy. Good. It satisfied the Chameleon to see that man tremble.

Something about seeing Winona's dainty figure so beat up like that made him feel disgusted. What they had done to her was disgraceful- the way she had described their motive to kill her made them sound bigoted, and something about the hurt in her eyes made the Ninja feel enraged. It was much deeper than just his responsibility to keep her alive, and he didn't quite understand it. All he knew was that he was angry and didn't appreciate the man's smug and careless attitude. So, to show the Witch Hunter just how serious he was, he swiftly kicked his feet from under him, causing his legs to buckle. He grunted as he landed on his knees and struggled as Espio grabbed his mask from behind and pulled it right off of his head.

The dark-furred Jackal refused to face them. Instead, he kept his head down and stared straight ahead, resting his raised, shaking hands on his head. Even though he wouldn't face them, Espio could see a giant burn scar that obscured the growth of fur on one half of his head and face.

"Who are you, then?" Asked the Jackal, glaring at Espio cautiously, "Police? Are you with the feds?"

"No, but they're on their way." Vector answered, "You and your buddies are going to have a helluva time in prison."

The Jackal chuckled and answered the Crocodile sarcastically, "I can't wait."

"Vector, go ahead and take Winona back to the car. I'll make sure they all get booked." Said Espio as he extended an open palm to his partner, who set the pistol in his hand so that he could get rid of the crossbow. The Chameleon now stood tall, holding the cold barrel of the gun to the back of the Witch Hunter's head.

"Sure thing," Vector replied.

"Are you sure it's okay if we leave you here all by yourself?" Winona asked Espio, her eyes glinting at him with innocent concern as she clutched onto the Crocodile's extended arm.

"Respectfully, Princess, you're in no position to be worried about me. Go on ahead, I'll meet with you both when I'm finished." He smirked, "This clown can't take me down, anyway."

Vector rolled his eyes and cringed at the Chameleon's words, which was a reaction that he typically received whenever he spoke with such confidence. However, instead of making a snide comment about his ego, Winona responded in a way that he simply wasn't used to. She beamed at him with an appreciative smile and nodded at him, waving as Vector led her away into the fog.

"Aw, that was cute."

Espio ignored the Jackal's cheeky comment and kicked the Witch Hunter to the ground as soon as Vector and Winona were out of sight. He then crouched beside him and narrowed his eyes, speaking menacingly, "Who. Hired. You?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

Espio regretted allowing Vector to call the police as soon as they found the first Witch Hunter out in the fog. He would have liked to have a few hours to properly interrogate the man so that he had the information he needed to keep Winona safe from whoever else was after her- but the approaching police sirens and flashing blue and red lights cut him short. He loosened his grip on the Witch Hunter's collar, allowing him to flop onto the concrete floor.

"Hmph. Doesn't matter." Said Espio, "I'll find out eventually."

"I'm sure you will, buddy. Say, who are you, anyway?"

The Chameleon didn't answer. Instead, he propped himself up against the wall of the warehouse, casually aiming the gun at the Jackal as he patiently waited for the police to find them there. The Jackal didn't seem to appreciate the Ninja's silence, however, and continued to speak tauntingly.

"Well, prison won't keep me for long. Whether I get to that girl today, tomorrow, or a month from now is irrelevant. I will be the one to get to her. You see, I'm determined to reap my reward. It wasn't just money I was promised. No, I was guaranteed a lot better than that."

Espio bit his lip and shook his head, restraining the urge to strangle the Witch Hunter as the policemen approached, "Well then, let me offer you a formal warning." He pocketed the pistol in his hand as the police drew their weapons. The Chameleon momentarily crouched and whispered so that only the Jackal could hear him, "Princess Winona Aetherborn is under the protection of the Shinobi Clan. Let me be the first to tell you: you do not want to challenge us. If you threaten that girl one more time, I am obligated to wipe you out and I promise I will do so mercilessly. Do I make myself clear?"

The policemen cuffed the Jackal, who didn't resist and simply allowed them to pull him to his feet. He looked at Espio with eyes full of vindictiveness, speaking in a challenging tone and winking at him, "Crystal clear. See you soon."

As the police lugged him away and cuffed his collapsed, unconscious partner, Espio stepped out into the thinning fog. The rain had ceased, and the clouds above him began to part away from each other, allowing the moon to shine alongside the shimmering stars in the sky. He looked up at them, his thoughts occupied by a growing list of people that he'd soon have to eliminate. Varrick, Klaus- and now a troupe of Witch Hunters. Though, he wasn't sure if he should take the Jackal's threat to bust out of prison seriously or not. He was just going to have to keep a watchful eye on the Jackal and his two comrades.

Or, he could just kill them in their cells while they slept. Crossing the Jackal off of his list early would certainly put his mind at ease- however, he couldn't justify leaving Winona's side now that he knew exactly where she was. He intended to keep it that way. Perhaps now that Klaus wasn't holding her back, she'd agree to joining the Chaotix. That would be the ideal scenario. That way, he'd be killing two birds with one stone. They could make use of Winona's powers, solve the "cult" killings, and help her take care of her brother all at the same time. But that still left Klaus. He was a problem, that one. A problem that Espio just couldn't solve at the moment.

'One thing at a time,' he told himself as he approached Vector's little grey car, which was idling at the curb where they'd left it. His partner stood outside, leaning on the driver's side door while puffing on a cigarette. As he got closer, he could see Winona's head resting on the glass window from inside the back seat. Her eyes were closed, but it didn't seem like she was actually asleep.

Vector greeted him with a wave, "Hey, so we've got a problem."

Espio sighed, "What now?"

Vector began to rant, "Well, I got most of her all bandaged up, yeah? But then we got around to this one big piece of glass lodged in her thigh. I told her that we're probably going to have to swing by a hospital to get it removed and stitched up, but then she just started freaking out."

The Chameleon looked over to Winona, whose eyes darted away as soon as he caught her looking at him. "Vector, speak quieter. I think she heard you." He scolded his partner, watching Winona as she looked down at her lap with a blank stare. Her melancholy was infectious- she was no doubt in a lot of pain and incredibly exhausted. The trauma in her eyes reminded himself of a time where he wore a similar expression on his face. What she needed right this minute wasn't a doctor, but someone who would hear her. Someone who could listen. He sighed and nodded, circling the car to the passenger side door.

"Let me try."