Jack opened his old black suitcase. It contained many different things, everything from clothing, to books, to strange pieces of technology. He rummaged through the contents, eventually finding what he was looking for.

He hurriedly removed a small black box. He opened it to find a set of small metal discs, each about the width and thickness of a dime. They each had a small red light on them, as well as three small metal claws.

In a compartment next to the discs, there was something that looked very much like a cufflink, but also very different. The main part of the object was hexagonal, and from each of the item's six sides protruded tiny leg-like structures. A thin metal tube projected from the back of the object, stopping just short of an inch long.

"What's that?" April asked.

Jack removed his overcoat, answering, "It's called a Multi-sensory Artificial Specialized Cover device, or a 'MASC.' Something a friend made for me."

April was nervous. She couldn't yet hear the approaching military vehicles, but she knew that they were coming. "What's it do?" she asked, her voice trembling.

"No time to explain." Jack began to unbutton his shirt, but stopped in the process. He looked at April and gently commanded, "Turn around."

She did as he told her, and he immediately disrobed. He stood naked, and began applying the discs to his body. He placed the first one on his left forearm, and as soon as it came in contact with his skin, the tiny claws dug into his flesh, holding the device tightly in place. A second later, the disc's tiny LED glowed to life.

He continued attaching the tiny pieces of technology to his body, first his arms, then his shoulders, legs, chest, and lastly, his back. He then removed the "cufflink" from its case, and brought it to the back of his neck. He slowly drove the needle-like tube beneath his skin and into his spinal cord. His body twitched slightly, and then tensed as the object's legs burrowed into his flesh.

The small devices on Jack's body all hummed in unison as clothing was projected around him. He looked almost exactly as he did before removing his clothes and affixing the discs.

He threw his suitcase into the back of the large truck. He turned to April and commanded, "Get in the back of the truck and stay down. If there's any shooting, you should be safe."


Several well-armed men silently approached Jack's truck. They were cautious, but not so much that it interfered with their mission, which was to apprehend the two mutants known as Jack McGregor and April Keith. Their alternative objective was to kill the two young people if they posed too great a threat.

The infantrymen stopped about thirty yards from the seemingly vacant vehicle, where they set up an L-shaped formation. To most people they would have seemed invisible in the brush, their camouflage serving them perfectly, but Jack could see each one of them. He saw each cold metal weapon. Each green helmet. Each soldier's fearful, yet determined expression.

The soldiers were silent; they spoke not verbally, but with hand signals. Two of them nodded to their superiors, and then stood quickly. They approached the old truck rather rapidly, but very silently and with great caution.

Every man in the area jumped in surprise as an orange and white cat dropped out of a tree and landed gracefully on the roof of the truck. Their instincts had momentarily told them that something was wrong, but what they saw with their eyes had told them that all was fine. Jack heard a couple men chuckle softly; they must have felt so stupid to be frightened by the feline. The animal was harmless, or so they thought.

As the two soldiers neared the truck to secure it, the cat leapt off of the vehicle toward them. In mid-air, it transformed, becoming larger and much darker. Now a huge panther, the feline landed on top of the men, simultaneously forcing them to the ground and knocking them unconscious. Then, as easily as it had tackled the two men, it leapt up into the trees, disappearing in the shadows.

The remaining soldiers couldn't believe their eyes. How had this harmless orange tabby changed into a huge black killing machine? They were confused and afraid, and Jack knew this.

The soldiers stared up into the trees, trying to find the beast that had instantly disabled two of their comrades. But before they even found a trace of the animal, another great black creature fell from the trees, landing on two more men. It was not a panther, but a gorilla. With its mighty forearms, it backhanded two nearby weekend warriors, throwing them nearly twenty feet. Then, before anyone could react, it jumped, and like the small cat had previously transformed into a large one, the huge primate morphed into a smaller, but still very dangerous ape.

Now a chimpanzee, it gracefully flew through the air and descended upon two more victims. The ape landed on their shoulders, grabbed them by the necks, and bashed their heads together. Before their limp bodies had even begun to fall to the ground, the chimp jumped, flipped in the air, and landed near another group of potential prey.

The remaining members of the platoon were in disbelief of the goings on. Some seemed shocked, others confused, and some were angry. But all were fearful as their strange enemy performed one more act of transformation.

Before them stood a giant white bull, which scratched at the ground with its hooves. It snorted, and all of the men stood and dropped their weapons. Knowing what was about to happen, they turned and began to run, but this was futile. The large animal charged, plowing through the retreating party like a bowling ball through all ten pins. Each man was knocked around by the creature's head, each one thrown through the air, and each one pounded into a painful dreamland.

When the bull was content that all of its targets were down, it stopped and quietly surveyed the damage. He snorted and closed his eyes, and when he reopened them, he found himself in the form of a human. Even before his body was completely transformed back to its normal form, a holographic set of clothing appeared, covering his nakedness.

Jack ran toward his truck. April was peering out the vehicle's passenger window.

"I thought I told you to stay down!" Jack yelled to her. Adrenaline was still pumping through his body.

"Oh, my God," April muttered. She was still trying to understand what had just happened. "You were amazing out there."

"No time for compliments," he returned. "I noticed a Humvee coming this way. I'm pretty sure it has a rocket launcher mounted on top."

April was barely listening to him. "You were so fast. They didn't even get a single shot off."

"They'll probably try to kill us now. I made our intentions of not going peacefully pretty clear." He climbed up into the bed of the truck and rummaged through a toolbox, shoving some of its contents into a small duffle bag. Content with his selections, he swung the bag onto his shoulder.

Jack peered out the window of the truck's camper shell. He saw the Humvee driving up, stopping about one hundred feet away. The soldier manning the vehicle's rocket launcher took aim.

"Come on. Time to abandon the truck. We'll use alternative means of transportation." Jack grabbed April and forced her onto the red motorcycle standing in the center of the bed. This was the precious cargo he had so jokingly asked Floyd about at the mechanic shop days ago.

Jack mounted the motorcycle, sitting in front of April. He extended his index finger toward one of the cargo straps holding the two-wheeled vehicle secure, and his fingernail slowly transformed into a long, razor-sharp claw. He effortlessly sliced through the straps.

"Hold on tight," Jack yelled

A rocket blazed from the Humvee, hitting its target only moments after being fired. It struck the old truck's side and exploded, instantly igniting the flammable liquid inside the truck's fuel tank. The vehicle erupted in a blinding explosion, and the occupants of the Humvee didn't even notice as the red motorcycle shot out of the truck's bed and sped away at exactly that moment.