A/N: Thanks to everyone who has reviewed, I'd have finished this part faster, but I got distracted by reading everyone else's stories, and trying to think up witty things to say in my reviews. Oh and if you're anything like me and constantly have to have music playing I was listening to Massive Attack - Mezzanine/100th Window while writing this.
Chapter 20: The Gauntlet
Ian watched Cyan put her bag and rifle into the trunk of her car.
"How did you find me anyway?" she asked closing the lid. It had begun to snow and her breath came in short puffs of white smoke.
Ian's eyes narrowed slightly. "This is my car," he said as he began to walk around it.
"You mean you bugged it?"
Ian grimaced at a large dent on the right side door. "All of Mr. Irons vehicles have been fitted with tracers, it is a safety precau…" Ian fingered the scrape that went from the front left light across the bottom left of the sedan. "Cyan, what have you been doing to this car?"
"What?" she asked innocently. Ian raised his eyebrows. "So it has a few scrapes" she continued, opening the driver side door. "It's my get away car…whatayagonnado?"
"It is a $90,000 piece of art Cyan, and must be treated with respect."
"Alright, alright" she said getting in. "Are you going to follow me, or should I follow you?"
Before he could answer, Ian's "spidey sense" kicked in and he looked up just in time to see a motorcycle leap from the building behind them and land on the front of the car. The back wheel spun noisily and the bike sped off the hood and down the street, turning into a clean brake about 50ft away from them.
"You gotta be kidding me" said Cyan, as Nottingham quickly pulled her from the car and threw her to the ground a few feet from the vehicle. Less than five seconds later the car erupted into a ball of flame as, the mini rocket the biker had launched hit it's target.
Cyan struggled to catch her breath and sat up to look at the burning wreckage. "And you were worried about a few scrapes."
Nottingham leapt to his feet, staring at the biker through the flames. Her blonde hair whipped in the wind from underneath her shiny black helmet. 'So he has enlisted as well' he thought bitterly. "Come on" he said to Cyan running to his car. "It begins."
Cyan jumped up and ran after him, hoping that what was beginning… was not her final hours on earth.
Genesis stepped quietly into the darkened room, his scattered thoughts making him quite uneasy. How much longer would she remain like this? Had he made the right decision or had he erred in his impatience. Her scream had indeed frightened even him, and for a brief moment he had doubted, as her body slumped to the ground, so entirely still. Stepping over to the bed, he clasped his hands in front of him. 'To whom does one pray, for the recovery of a deity' he thought, dropping to his knees, his head bowed against his chest. But as he looked up to regard her unconscious form, he saw that the bed was empty. Quickly rising to his feet, he anxiously scanned the room and saw that it too was empty. Genesis dashed into the hall, frantically searching each of the few rooms in the loft space for any sign or trace of her; stopping as he saw it, at the top of the stairs leading to the roof. The door swung back and forth, obviously left open in haste. Running up the stairs and out onto the rooftop he saw the small footsteps in the snow leading towards the edge.
"No" screamed Genesis, "I've come so far…" His cries of anguish whipped around the rooftop in the wind and snow. "This cannot end like this" he shouted, heading back towards the stairs. "My will, will not… be… denied."
Ian and Cyan sped after the woman on the bike.
"She's with him, I'm guessing." said Cyan.
Ian nodded. "And there will probably be more."
Cyan smiled, and opened the glove compartment. She removed the gun from inside and checked the clip. "Of course," she said, "there's always more."
Ian slowed down and then pulled over. The motorcycle was parked a few feet in front of them at the entrance to an alley. They got out of the car and opened the trunk. Ian strapped on his katana and several guns under his coat. Cyan chose her weapons and was surprised when he handed her his wakizashi sword. She nodded as she took it, not quite sure what to say. Ian closed the trunk and they moved to the entrance of the alley.
The snow was coming down quite heavily now, and it looked quite beautiful as it danced around in the moonlight.
"How many do you think there'll be" asked Cyan looking ahead into the darkened alley.
Ian began to move forward. "Not nearly enough."
Jake had just reached his apartment when he got the call about the explosion near Vicky's place. After a few properly placed calls he found out that a car had been hit with a rocket and that the car had been registered to Kenneth Irons.
'Nottingham' thought McCarty. 'What the hell was he up to?' He called Sara's cell again, but still got no answer. 'Something is going on' he thought 'I can feel it.' Turning on his police scanner he decided to wait, eventually he'd get his clue, a building explosion, or shots fired…with Nottingham involved, it was just a matter of time.
Ian grabbed the forearm of his attacker and pivoted, bringing his left fist up into the man's chin. The man slumped slowly to the ground and Ian stepped over him. Two more men appeared in front and behind him, dressed in the same black leather as his other attacker had been. The front one swung at him, but Ian blocked the blow with his forearm and drove his stiffened fingers into the man's chest simultaneously back-handing the man behind him and kicking him in the stomach. Both men collapsed quietly as Ian continued forward.
Cyan had climbed the fire escape at the front of the alley and was moving across the rooftops. Her first attacker pulled a knife, and as Cyan stepped closer, jabbed at her chest. Cyan dodged the thrust easily, grabbing the man's wrist and bringing her right elbow down on his arm. The bone snapped loudly and Cyan forced the attacker to his knees finishing him off with a blow to the base of his skull. "Easy as pie" she said, looking up as a gleam of light caught her eye.
At the edge of the roof stood a woman with a sword. She nodded at Cyan and raised the blade in challenge. Cyan slowly drew Ian's sword from it's sheath and bowed in acceptance.
On the ground below them, Ian slowly wiped the blood from his nose on the back of his glove. The man who had put it there stared at his fist and then at Nottingham's face, not quite able to believe he had actually made contact. Perhaps he would have been proud if not five of his teammates were lying dead or dying around him. He might even have smiled and raised his fist to hit him again. But the look in Ian's eye as he flung the blood to the ground, told him either action would mean immediate death.
At that exact moment a body descended from the rooftop and landed messily between them.
"Watch that first step," a voice called from above. Cyan waved down at Ian and then stood up to wipe her sword on the sleeve of her coat. "It's a killer," she muttered, leaping to the roof of the next building in front of her.
The man in front of Ian began to shake visibly, and not from the cold.
"Your mistress awaits at the end of the gauntlet?" Ian asked quietly.
The shaking man nodded, briefly looking down the alley way, and then back at Nottingham.
"You will not see her again, I should think," said Ian, following the man's gaze. "But I wish you to deliver a message to her master." He leaned in suddenly and whispered something into the terrified assassins ear. Then raising his head he grabbed the hilt of his katana and leapt forward, disappearing into the darkness. His messenger watched him go, and when he could no longer see his outline, he ran.
Ian pressed on swiftly disposing of each new threat he met on his path. Occasionally a body would drop from the roof along with a smart remark, reassuring him that his partner was still with him, but inside he could not help but feel this was a ruse. 'His attackers were good,' he thought…
"But not quite good enough?"
Ian looked up to see he had reached the end of the alley, and was now standing in a small round enclosure lined with back doors. The blonde woman that had ridden the motorcycle stood a few feet in front of him, smiling at him with cold blue eyes.
"Relax," she said suddenly. "I'm not a mind reader… just very intuitive."
Ian shifted his body into what anyone would think was a relaxed position, and crossed his arms against his chest. She noticed it right away, and wondered how many others had been fooled by the "sleeping" dragon.
"You're right of course" she continued. "I just wanted them to soften you up." Her eyes flashed humorously. "Even tire you a little."
Ian looked utterly bored. "Why did he send you?" he asked, his eyes tightening a fraction.
"He's quite busy…" she said. "I volunteered." At that Ian smiled and the woman smiled back. "And when I have disposed of you," she added, "he will reward me greatly."
Ian slowly shook his head. "Some rewards mistress… are not worth the risk."
She drew her sword and slashed at him, but he solidly held the blow against his quickly unsheathed blade. Her eyes narrowed in annoyance and she pulled away from him, turning into a back flip, her right foot connecting with his chin. Once again advancing she sliced at his neck and then kicked at his chest. But Nottingham dodged the slash and slapped her foot away, retaliating with a blow to the neck that caused her to stumble backwards clutching at her throat. He moved in swiftly, striking at her with his sword while she blocked and countered all his movements. After regaining her momentum she dropped to elude Nottingham's blade, kicking him in the knee and following through with an upwards swipe. Ian felt the sharp burn as the metal sliced through his flesh. Dropping his katana he fell to one knee, her harsh laughter ringing in his ears. She stepped around him slowly, kicking his blade out of his reach.
"I know what you're thinking" she said, still a little breathless from their duel. "How easily you could end this if you just reached for one of your guns." She laughed again as she stopped in front of him. "But your useless sense of honour, won't let you…now will it?" Nottingham closed his eyes and seemed sway a little in the snow fall. "A fight that begins as a sword fight, should end as one huh?" She tapped the end of her sword on her gloved palm. "Well let me tell you what I think" she said leaning in close. "There is no honour in killing" she whispered, "so just get the job done anyway… you… can."
Ian's fist enclosed tightly around the blonde woman's neck. Her eyes bulged with pain as she dropped her sword and clawed at his hand, gasping for air. "You should be happy, that I do not agree" said Ian as the woman began to black out. "For if I did," he whispered softly, "you would already be dead."
Cyan entered the alley behind him, sighing as she saw the knocked out blonde on the ground. "Damn, I missed all the fun."
Ian regarded his blood splattered friend carefully. "You seem to have had enough fun on your own."
Cyan laughed, feigning false modesty. "Yah well, you know…I do what I can."
Ian picked up his blade and threw the unconscious woman over his shoulder. "And I appreciate it" he said to her earnestly.
Cyan followed him out of the alley and back towards the car. "Hey, what are friends for?"
Ian bound the woman and placed her into the trunk, careful to move all his "instruments" to the back seat.
"You taking her back to Iron's?" asked Cyan. Nottingham nodded opening the driver side door. Cyan whistled softly, "I feel sooorry for her" she said.
But Ian wasn't listening. Ahead of them he saw a figure approaching through the ever thickening snow. Her long auburn locks tossing carefree in the wind, her arms clutched around her in some effort to keep warm.
"…sara?" whispered Ian, causing Cyan to follow his gaze.
He stepped around the car door and began to move towards her, his pace quickening as he made out more and more of her features. The figure not far from him collapsed and Ian ran towards her dropping to his knees in front of her and pulling her into his arms. He could not speak, but to say her name over and over again, holding her tighter against him, afraid to let her go…afraid… of something else as well. He tried to push the thought away and find solace in the softness of her hair, to find comfort in her gentle breath against his neck. But his mind would not let him. Closing his eyes tighter he forced himself to acknowledge the truth. That while he could see her, and feel her weight in his arms, while he could even smell her scent as the tendrils of her hair teased his nostrils in the wind….he could not sense her…she was still in essence…gone. Pushing back from her slightly, so he could look into her face, his hand gently lifted her chin. But when she raised her eyes to look at him, they were not the brilliantly green crystal orbs, he had become lost in more than once…but two dark black pools that neither shone nor reflected the light. Ian suddenly heard a scream break against the silence of the night. Then in terror realized it was his own.