Apology: To the few of out there who read this story, I'm sorry for not updating this in so damn long. But my real life leaves my time very limited. I'd like to give a shout out to Knighte for the PM which made me realize that some people are actually reading this and deserve to get more story out of me. Since I have some free time nowadays, and I still have my notes and had this chapter half done, I finished it up, pushed it out, and I'm already working on the next chapter.

Chapter 6

Chris, Sarah and Ikaros returned to their apartment building that evening and bid each other good night in the hall before going to their respective apartments. But Chris noticed immediately that his door was slightly ajar, he called out to Sarah in a loud whisper and shoved Ikaros towards her and gestured for them to go into her apartment.

He went into his photography bag and pulled out a taser while gently pushing open the door and stepping into his apartment. There he reached over to flip the light switch and found his apartment in an even worse state of disorder than before Ikaros arrived. "Fuck my life..." he groaned to himself.

"Chris, what's wrong? You're scaring me what happe-"

"Damn it Sarah. I told you to go inside your place... But whatever, it seems clear in here."

Sarah stepped into the apartment and looked around, "This seems clear to you?"

"Yes! Perfectly clear!" he exclaimed with indignation as he threw the taser across the apartment shattering it against the wall.

Sarah sighed and stepped up closer to Chris and put a hand on his shoulder. Much to her dismay, his happy demeanor was completely gone and he was headed right back to being his usual self.

Chris shook her off and started wandering his place looking for anything missing. He noticed his computer was on, and all of his notebooks, newspaper articles, and spare memory cards were gone. "The military did this. Ransacked the place. Probably copied over everything on my computer and took whatever they thought was suspect."

"Anything on your computer to worry about?"

"No. But if they're into Dakota Skye or Lexi Belle they totally lucked out with my porn. They've also got about a hundred gigs of decent music and a metric shit ton of comic book scans. Including rare issues."

"Is it bad that I know who those porn stars are?" wondered Sarah while looking around through the mess.

"No it just means you have good taste. Worst thing they can slap me with is illegally downloading music, comic books, and porn once they're done throwing up."

"Why would they be throwing up?" asked Sarah.

"Two girls one cup is in there. It was a trap I set for you. I named the file 'Sarah in the shower' just in case you ever decided to go through my porn."

"Why would you think I would go through your smut?"

"You took a picture of my ass and posted it to Twitter. Who knows what else you're capable of?"

"Alright... I get it... Do you want me to apologize for that for the millionth time?"

Chris didn't answer he just walked into the bedroom where he found Ikaros looking around curiously. She had something in her hand which made Chris' heart skip a beat when he realized what it was. "Ikaros... Listen to me. I want you to give that to me, right now," he said with his hand held out.

Ikaros looked at him blankly but complied and placed a pistol in his waiting hand. Chris immediately sighed with relief before ejecting the magazine and checking the chamber to ensure it was clear. "Chris... Why the fuck do you have a gun in your house?!" scolded Sarah.

"This isn't just a gun. It's Colt 1911 which is a perfect recreation I made of the ones used by Frank Castle in the 2004 Punisher movie."

"You and your fucking obsession with comic books! Get an air soft! Why do you have to have an actual fucking gun in your house?!"

"Well... Normally, this thing is under lock and key in the case and never comes out unless I'm at the shooting range." Chris picked up the protective hard case of his handgun and showed it to Sarah, gesturing to the broken lock on it. "But I guess those fuckers decided to take a look and messed with it. Why the fuck professionals would load a gun then leave it on the floor like this... That's really what's infuriating."

"No... What's infuriating is that you even have a gun in the first place! Get rid of that stupid thing!"

Chris groaned in irritation, "What the hell does it matter to you if I have a gun or not?"

"Because the first time I found out about it was because Ikaros was holding it! It's irresponsible for you to keep a gun in your house now!"

"That... Is a very good point. I'll go sell it tomorrow. Will that make you happy?"

"Yes. Very much! Anyway. You wanna crash on my couch tonight? I'll help you clean this up tomorrow."

"Naa. It's cool Sarah. Maybe you should just keep Ikaros with you tonight, there isn't really anywhere for her to sleep anyway," said Chris while dropping himself down on his bed and tucking the gun under his pillow.

"Master. I am not actually programmed with any sort of sleep function. If you desire it, I could clean your home for you again?"

"You don't sleep? I envy you. But no. I don't want you to clean the apartment like that again. We'll do it the old fashioned way tomorrow," said Chris.

"I don't understand. Why not?" asked Ikaros.

"Because I've been lazy enough this past year and doing the cleaning properly. Manually. Myself. With my own hands is just better."

"I still don't understand master. Why is it better?"

"I'll explain it to you tomorrow. Right now. I'm going to sleep. If you want to stay with Sarah tonight. Feel free. If not. Feel free to use my computer or... Do whatever you want to do."

"Yes master."

"Alright. Good night Chris."

"Good night Sarah."

Christopher found himself laying in a grassy field with the sun on his face. His head was resting in a woman's lap. Everything about the environment was familiar and welcoming to him so he allowed himself to smile contentedly.

"Your Angel, how is she?"

"Ikaros? I don't honestly know what to make of her. I don't know what to do with her. Everything is just such a mess right now."

"Please take good care of her Chris. I beg of you."

Chris looked up at the woman, her face was obscured by her long blue hair and the sun sitting just behind her, "No matter what happens, you can be sure I'll do that much at least. I mean. I don't dislike her or anything. I just-"

Suddenly the sky itself seemed to open up behind her and suck the woman up into it.

"Please be careful!" she yelled down to him as the sky pulled her up to it.

Chris tried to reach out and grab her in a panic to keep her there but his body was just too slow.

"No! No! Come back!" yelled Chris as he quickly sat up in his bed and reached up to the roof of his bedroom. He then sighed in frustration. "That dream again..."

"Good morning. Master," Ikaros said to him from beside the mattress.

Chris slowly turned his head towards Ikaros and looked at her with his groggy eyes. "Good morning Ikaros... What are you doing in here?"

"I've been waiting for you to awaken master," she answered in her emotionless voice.

"You didn't go with Sarah last night?"

"Correct."

"You didn't find something to entertain yourself with while I was sleeping?"

Ikaros stared at him blankly.

"Right... So you just sat there and watched me sleep? Any reason why?"

"You said I should do whatever I wanted master. I wanted to stay by your side."

Chris sighed and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "That's sweet and all... But it's improper. You're a woman. You shouldn't be sitting by a man's bed and watching him sleep like this."

"I don't understand," she answered plainly.

"No. I don't suppose you would. And I'm not sure how to explain it to you," Chris reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He hadn't even bothered to undress before going to sleep. He checked the time and groaned in annoyance. "It's still early... But I don't want to go back to sleep. I'm going to go take a shower. Just wait for me in the living room. I'm sure Sarah's going to bring us breakfast soon."

"Yes master."

Chris, Sarah and Ikaros sat around his dining table and had their breakfast together in a comfortable silence. But Chris eventually broke the silence when he realized Sarah was still half asleep. "You know, if you're tired, you could just go back to sleep. You didn't have to wake up and make us breakfast."

"If I don't who will? You'd probably just end up taking Ikaros to McDonald's for the worst possible breakfast in existence," she said groggily.

"There's nothing wrong with McD's for breakfast. You can even get it at any time of day now," answered Chris.

"Yeah. I'm sure your big belly has nothing at all to do with subsisting on fast food and energy drinks for the past year..." she said and then yawned loudly.

"Damn it woman! I'm getting sleepy just looking at you. Your counter had no bite to it at all. Eat up and go back to sleep!"

"Fuck you Chris. I've done more on less sleep than this!"

"Why didn't you sleep? I mean, you went to bed like right after I did, didn't you? So why do you look like an extra in a zombie flick?"

Sarah put down her utensils and took a sip of her coffee. "I really don't know. I went to sleep, but when my alarm went off it was like I got no sleep at all. Guess I just had a restless night."

"That's not like you. I still think you should go back to sleep and get some rest. But if you don't, what would you like to do today?"

Sarah looked around at the state of Chris' apartment. "I said I'd help you get this mess cleaned up today. So I will."

Chris nodded, "Alright then. We'll start with that. After we're done I'll treat you both to lunch."

"Don't forget you promised to sell that stupid gun... Yes. I remember that," said Sarah with a death glare.

"Awww... But mom..."

Sarah continued to glare at him. "Do we have to go over this again?" she said while gesturing to Ikaros. "And don't give me any second amendment bullshit! Besides. When was the last time you actually went to a shooting range? And answer me honestly!"

"Six months ago..."

"Exactly! So what the hell do you need a weapon for?"

"It's not a weapon Sarah. It's a toy. Don't mix the two up. A weapon is tool for war, a weapon is meant to kill and has no other purpose."

Sarah noticed out of the corner of her eye, Ikaros looked like she was in pain. She was so emotionless and expressionless that it was impossible not to notice such a change in her overall demeanor.

"A toy like mine is meant for recreation. It's for fun and nothing else. I had fun building it, I had fun shooting it. At paper targets. A weapon is not something you keep for fun. I would never keep a weapon in my home. That's not what my gun was for."

"Alright. I get it Chris. But you still can't keep it," she said before sipping more coffee, making a mental note to discuss this with Ikaros later.

"I already said I would get rid of it. But this raises another question. When did you become my wife, lord, and master that you can start dictating what I can and can't have in my own home?"

"Pretty much the day you stopped giving a damn about your own life and I had to take over making sure you ate, slept, and got enough work done to avoid getting fired."

"Touché..." said Chris while he stood up and put his plates in the sink. He then went over to Sarah, put both hands on her shoulders and bent down to kiss the top of her head. "You're an angel. One day I'll find a way to properly show my appreciation."

Sarah blushed hard at his bold gesture. "What the hell?! Who are you and what have you done with Chris?!" she asked incredulously.

"I'm headed out to the gun store now. I won't be long. So just do whatever you want until I get back."

Ikaros carefully put away a stack of papers into the desk and then turned to Sarah who was busy putting away all the cutlery. "Miss Sarah?"

"Just call me Sarah. No need for the 'miss' it makes me feel old."

"Why did master stop caring about his life?"

Sarah put the last few items away and took a deep breath, "That is a very hard question to answer. It wasn't any one thing that made him give up. It was a lot of things that just came on too fast for him to deal with. Everyone has a breaking point. He just reached his. He made a decision to join the Army and become a soldier. He was good at it, very good. But when he left the service, things started to fall apart for him. Kathy, our boss, threw him a life line and put him to work,

"He was good at his job. He was one of the best, everyone agreed he was going to have an amazing career. But then things happened. First his mother passed away. Then his father shortly after. Then the owners of our newspaper decided they were unhappy with things he was investigating. He was 'upsetting the establishment' but they couldn't fire him because of how bad it would look. So they started giving him really horrible assignments to cover that just destroyed his credibility as a reporter at a time when he needed to build it up. After that he just felt like he had nothing to work for. Nothing to strive for. And ultimately, nothing to live for."

Ikaros looked at her blankly and Sarah just smiled at her.

"It's nice that you care. But. I'm not sure you're really able to understand how hard these things affected him, or even why they're significant at all. If there's one take away from this explanation, it's that Christopher Murrow believes the only thing he was ever really good at was hurting people. Our society just didn't reward him for anything else. It's just a sad truth. So if you want to help him at all. Just be around. Just be yourself. Just the fact that you need him, I hope, will be enough to show him that there are things worth living for if he just opens his eyes and looks around. That you'll help him to understand that he's good at something other than killing."

Ikaros looked down at the floor and slowly nodded.

"And I think you, probably more than I, can understand what that must feel like."

Ikaros looked up at Sarah with a confused expression.

"Yeah. Don't worry. Your secret is safe with me. Though don't assume Chris is an idiot and won't eventually come to the same conclusion I did. As soon as I saw Sugata's data I knew. You weren't built to be a pet, or a servant, or anything of the sort."

"Master said he would never keep a weapon in his home... If he finds out he-"

Sarah cut her off by placing her hands on her shoulders and giving them a gentle squeeze. "Ikaros. His argument had one fatal flaw in it that you need to recognize. His gun was a weapon. It was designed to be a weapon. But he didn't think of it as a weapon, and he didn't use it as a weapon. The difference between you and that gun is that you can actually think for yourself. Make your own decisions. You have high reasoning and complex problem solving skills. You're fully capable of independent thinking. The fact that you call yourself something you're not is proof of that. You made a decision not to tell him something about yourself. His gun can't do that. His gun is what he makes it. You, are what you make yourself. Don't ever let anyone tell you anything different."

"I am what I make myself?" she wondered.

"Exactly."

"But what does Master want me to be?"

"That's not how he thinks. He doesn't want you to be anything but yourself. He wants you to be happy."

"My purpose is to serve my master. I was not built to seek my own happiness. But to make him happy."

"I don't think that's true Ikaros. I look at things rationally. I base my conclusions on evidence. And the evidence tells me that if your only purpose was serve and obey, nobody would have ever entrusted you to Christopher Murrow of all people. Honestly. I feel it in my gut. I feel it so surely that I would bet my life on it. Whomever sent you to Chris, did it because they knew beyond all doubt that the two of you together would find your true purposes."

"How can you be so certain?" asked Ikaros.

Sarah smiled sincerely at the angeloid. "Because if I were them. I would have done exactly the same thing. As long as you keep an open mind. You'll come to the same conclusion. For now though. If you want to make him happy. Let's start by turning this pig-sty he lives in into an actual home. Use your card thing."

"But master said-"

"Chris says a lot of things. Yes he'll be a little upset that we cheated. But when he gets over it he'll realize that it doesn't matter how it gets done, just as long as it does get done."

Ikaros pulled out her transport card and considered Sarah's words for a long moment before she put the card away again. "No. Master said he did not want me to use the card. I must respect that."

Sarah raised an eyebrow at that. "Is that because he ordered you not to and you're compelled to obey. Or because you think he had a good reason for what he said and you trust his judgment?"

The angeloid's eyes shifted from left to right and then back and forth for a few moments. "I am uncertain..."

"Uncertain... I suppose that's good enough. But one thing I do want you to do is to question everything. You didn't tell him what you really are because you didn't want to be that thing for whatever reason. You wanted to be what you said you are. That shows me you're capable of self determination. So I want you to always exercise that ability. I want you to decide for yourself what you will and will not do. But more than that, I want you to understand why you're making the decisions you make. Do you understand?"

"I will try my best," said a nodding Ikaros.

"That's all I ask. Now. Why don't we start putting his cloths away?" she said while gesturing towards the bedroom and walking towards it.

Chris pulled up to the front of the gun store on his motorcycle and flipped up the visor on his helmet. The first thing he saw outside the door were a couple of Asian men in dark suits waiting outside and looking out for trouble. It could only mean one thing... Well, actually it meant two things. First that his bike would be safe there and he wouldn't have to lock up the wheels. And Mikako was probably inside shopping.

He got into the store with no problem, then he saw that she had a couple more goons standing around keeping a look out as she set down whatever rifle she was looking at and waved at Chris excitedly.

"Chris! Good morning! What brings you here?"

Chris rolled his eyes and walked up to her and looked over at the nervous storekeeper and then back to Mikako. "I'm looking to sell a gun. I see you're looking to buy. So maybe you'll be interested in a decent handgun?" Chris then reached into the back of his pants and pulled out his pistol. "If I have to part with my pony, I'd like to know it's going to a good home with someone who'll love it like I do."

Mikako looked at the pistol and took it from his hands, she expertly performed a function check on it and even knew how to assess the quality of its construction. To his surprise she even checked to make sure he didn't put an idiot scratch on it which had him nodding with an impressed look on his face.

"I see you know your way around a 1911."

"This isn't just a 1911 Chris. I like what you've done with it. When that movie came out I watched it at least a hundred times. Sugata was so sick of the soundtrack. I'll give you two thousand dollars for it!" she said excitedly.

Chris choked on that. "That's way too much. I can't rip you off like that. Tell you what. Why don't you just take it? Consider it a thank you present."

"Are you sure?" she asked with skeptical eyes.

Chris pushed the pistol towards her and took the magazine out of his pocket and handed it to her as well. "It's yours now. Just look after it and give it the love and care it deserves."

"I will. Thank you Chris. This means a lot."

"One Punisher fan to another," said Chris with a wink. "So what else were you looking at here?"

"Oh, I'm just looking for something fun to play with. I like shooting guns," she said while picking up an AR-15.

"Yeah. As unpatriotic as this will sound, that thing is a piece of shit. You don't want it," said Chris.

"Hey son! There's nothing wrong with the AR. I'm so sick of internet commandos coming into this shop and bashing everything with anec-"

Chris gave the man a stern look that silenced him while he picked up the rifle and proceeded to fieldstrip it without even looking at it. "The M16, AR15, and M4 all have the same flaws. They hate dirt. And guns get dirty after you fire them. They get dirty from their environments. I've seen a lot of these malfunction during actual firefights. Anything that malfunctions when you need to rely on it is a piece of shit that nobody should invest a single cent into," he explained while reassembling the rifle and function checking it. He then handed it out to the storekeeper and pointed to the AK-47. "Give her that one."

"Kalashnikov?" asked Mikako with a raised eyebrow while she took the rifle and held it. "It's a lot heavier than it looks..."

Chris took the rifle and checked its weight and construction. "That's because the receiver on this one is milled instead of stamped. But that's not a bad thing. Unless the weight is an issue for you. Both methods of production are good. Every chance we got, we'd ditch our own guns and pick up one of these. Doesn't matter if they're full of water, full of sand, or full of shit. They will fire. They will not jam. They're not very accurate. But they will work without fail. They're idiot proof to the point that a child could pick it up, use it, and maintain it. And they do. This design created in the late 40's is so good that even in the new millennium, nobody seems to be able to match or exceed it. An AK-47 was made in 1949, the year my father was born, that's still kicking ass somewhere in the world. Meanwhile we've gone through the M1 Garand, the M14, the M16, and all its bastards, and we're still looking for a new gun."

"You seem to know your stuff Chris. You're very passionate about this," she said with a bright smile.

"Passionate? I don't know. I just hate people who think that just because it's American it must be good. It's not true at all."

"Well. I'm not looking for something to take to war Chris. I'm looking for something fun to shoot on weekends," she explained.

"If you want an assault rifle. This is the way to go. They're low maintenance and they'll outlive you. If you want something that just looks cool..." Chris said while looking around the shop. He then pointed up at another assault rifle and gestured for the shopkeeper to bring it to him.

"The Tavor. Standard issue for the IDF. I haven't had much experience with it except for a few shots at the firing range. But it's light, comfortable, and bullpups always look cool. You'll already be turning heads with your good looks, but this rifle will turn a few more."

Mikako picked up the rifle from Chris and examined it carefully, she felt the weight, tested it against her shoulder in the firing position. "I'll take it!" she quickly concluded.

The shop keeper nodded while taking the rifle back from her, "Alright ma'am. We just need you to fill out some paper work for a background check and then we need to-"

"I thought this country guaranteed the right of everyone to have a gun?" she protested.

"We do ma'am. But there are laws in this state which we have to follow, even if we disagree with them. I'll need some ID to start the paper work."

Mikako fumbled around in her purse for a moment and then pulled Chris aside and away from the shop keeper. In a hushed voice she pleaded with him, "Buy it for me! Please!"

"Oh fuck no! You're hot, but you're not that hot. Why the hell do you need me to buy it for you anyway?"

Mikako lowered her voice even further, "I'm not a citizen... And I'm not going to pass any kind of background check..."

"Why did I already know that?" wondered Chris aloud.

"Please! I really want it!" she pleaded.

"If you do something stupid with that thing it's my ass that'll be on the line as much as yours!" he protested in a hushed voice.

"Why would you think I would do something like that to you?!" she asked him.

"How would I know? I barely even know you woman!"

"But you trust me with your Colt!"

Chris smacked his face with his palm. "Fuck... This is all Sarah's fault... I know I'm going to regret this..."

Chris came out of the store with a very happy Mikako stuck to his arm. "Thank you so much Chris! I really appreciate it!"

"You can show me your appreciation by paying my legal fees when my ass gets locked up for this. I would also appreciate it if you would have your goons put the word out that my asshole is marked 'exit only' because I don't feel like being fucked in the showers."

"Don't be so pessimistic. I won't betray your trust."

Chris turned his head to Mikako and looked down into her eyes. She seemed sincere enough about that but she still managed to manipulate him fairly easily. Before Chris could say anything he heard the sound of tires screeching loudly which drew his attention. There was an old model car rushing down the street, the rear window rolled down and someone stuck a gun out of it. His eyes widened and dove for the ground and pulled Mikako down with him as the car drove by spraying bullets all over the store front and the bodyguards she brought with her who tried to shoot back but were gunned down.

Chris pulled out the Colt from the back of Mikako's pants and chambered a round. He told her to stay down as he returned fired on the car as it came to stop which made the driver press down on the gas and speed off instead of stopping to finish the job on them.

"Mika! Talk to me! Are you alright?" he didn't wait for her answer though as he was already checking her for wounds.

"I'm fine Chris. Really," she answered without hesitation or even fear in her voice.

It was obvious to him this wasn't the first time she'd been shot at, and given her choice of career, it probably wouldn't be the last.

"Sorry... Doesn't look like your guys made it," he said while looking around at the four dead bodyguards bleeding all over the sidewalk.

Mikako slowly sat up and looked around. "Damn it... When I find out who did this I'll-"

"It's not the time Mika! Let the cops deal with this. We need to get you out of here before they find their balls and try again! Come on!" he said while pulling her up by the hand towards his bike where he made her put on his helmet and quickly sped off.

"So let me see if I have this straight... You went down there to sell your gun. But instead you ended up giving your gun away to Mikako as a present. You bought her an assault rifle... And then you got into a firefight in the middle of the street. Is that more or less what happened?" asked Sarah while staring down at Chris who was chugging down a Red Bull on his couch.

"That's pretty much what happened yes," answered Mikako for him.

Chris crushed the can in his hand and threw it across the room into the garbage. "It's exactly what happened," he answered with fury in his otherwise soft voice.

"Do I need to make you a list of all the things you did wrong to get into this situation?" asked Sarah with her arms folded under her large breasts.

"The only thing I did wrong, was let her manipulate me into buying that gun for her. Getting shot at had nothing to do with that. Or anything else I did. That's all on her. But those bastards shot at me too and I don't appreciate that. And like it or not Mikako and Sugata, for all their flaws, have been good to me, and you, and Ikaros."

"This better not be going where I think it's going Chris..."

"If you think I'm going to help her find the scum that tried to murder her, and me just now. Yes. That's exactly where this is going."

Mikako shook her head, "No Chris. You don't have to get involved in this anymore than you already have. I have professionals who can deal with this."

Chris shook his head in return, "You've been in this city for what... Three months now? You've taken over the top tier. But do you have connections that can lead you straight to the shooters? Or are you just going to have your guys tear this city up until they find out who did this? Or are you going to let me come with you, and we can get this taken care of, today."

Mikako considered it and shrugged, "One of the first things you said to me was that you didn't want to know about any of my other affairs, and you didn't want to be involved in any of my other affairs. Now you want to get involved in my affairs. Are you sure about this?"

Sarah glared down at Chris. "Don't you think you've been through enough in the last two days? Why do you want to just rush off into this? Just for revenge?! Or is this something deeper?"

Chris looked up at Sarah with a curious look in his eyes, "What do you mean?"

"The more shit hits the fan, the more alive you seem to be. I think that's what this is about. This is about your need for danger or something stupid like that!"

Chris sighed and sat back in his sofa while he considered Sarah's words. "You might be right. The truth is, as much as I hate everything that's happening. It does have me feeling alive again. You once said to me that if you want to understand something, you have to break it down to its simplest elements. In this case, the fact of the matter is, I need her. In this situation I'm pretty short on people with power I can trust to keep Ikaros a secret and protect her, and you, and me. I can't trust the police. I sure as fuck can't trust the military. At least Mikako actually wants to earn my trust. If nothing else, when she says that to me I see the sincerity in her eyes. Well. I'd like to give her the chance to earn my trust. So yeah. I'm not gonna let her get killed. And I'm certainly not gonna let anyone get away with shooting at me. So yes. I'm going to help her."

Sarah looked at Mikako and locked eyes with her, "Promise me one thing. Don't get him into a hole he can't get out of."

Mikako smiled at Sarah and then gestured toward Ikaros, "I think he's already there. The only promise I can give you which I can actually keep is that I won't betray any of you. For any price. I didn't survive in this business for as long as I have by forgetting who my friends are. That's not how my father runs his business, and it's not how I'll do mine."

Sarah looked deep into her eyes and then groaned in frustration, "Damn it... I see why Chris wants to believe you. Fine... I'll trust you for now. If Chris comes back home in one piece I'll trust you more."

Chris stood up and smiled at Sarah. "This won't take very long. Just look after Ikaros for me alright?"

"Master..."

Chris looked over at Ikaros while she held out a card to him. "Take this and use it if you need it."

Chris shrugged and took it from her, "How do I use it?"

"Just tell it your wish and it will grant it," she answered.

"So if I say something like... I wish Sarah was topless right now It'll- What... The... Actual... Fuck?!"

The card started glowing and Sarah's shirt and bra ripped themselves off her body. Chris' eyes widened while Mikako started snickering. "Oh. So you're a closeted pervert?"

"Nothing closeted about my perversions..." he said while Sarah covered herself with her arms.

"Chris... I'm going to scoop out your eyeballs with spoon if you don't make this stop!"

"Ikaros? Can I undo this now?"

Ikaros nodded. "Wish for it."

Chris nodded, "I wish Sarah's cloths would fix themselves."

The cloths repaired themselves on the floor and then she knelt down. "Turn around you fucking perv!" she yelled.

"How many times do I have to tell you this Sarah? I am immune to your magnificent maguffies!"

"You obviously think about my breasts enough to come up with a new word for them every time you mention them!"

"It could just be that the only thing more impressive than your bodacious fun bags is my huge... monstrous... throbbing-"

"CHRIS!"

"Thesaurus?" he said while ducking under the blunt object she threw at him.

"GET OUT ALREADY!"

"You do know I live here right?"

"OUT!"

Mikako was in hysterics while she pulled Chris away with her laughing all the way to the door. "Oh you people entertain me like nothing else ever could..." she finally said while Chris shut the door behind him.

Chris drove the SUV with Mikako in the passenger seat and two of her men in the back seats with matching MP5s at the ready. Mikako was closely examining her new Colt 1911 with a bright smile.

"You happen to have a gun I could use?"

Mikako opened up the glove compartment and pulled out a Beretta M9 which she then handed to Chris once they stopped at a traffic light. Chris performed the mandatory checks on the gun before replacing the magazine. Then he set the safety and tucked the pistol into the front of his pants.

"If you want the Punisher back, just ask."

Chris shook his head, "Naa, it suits you better than me. Besides, I promised Sarah I'd get rid of it. So you keep it."

Chris drove up the street for another few kilometers before he pulled over in front of a store where there was a group of young people sitting around smoking cigarettes. He opened the window and looked one of them in the eyes. He was a young black man in his early twenties, wearing a suit and a tie. The group with him were all mixed races and all well dressed as well. After a moment of recognition he walked up to the side of the car with a swagger in his step and a bright smile.

"Hey Murrow! Long time no see man. Looking for a little somethin' to take the edge off or are you fishing for another story for the paper?"

"Neither. But that's a nice suit. Business must be good,"

"Hugo Boss man. Business has been damn good since your girlfriend there took down all the big players in town. So what do ya need man?"

"You heard about the drive by earlier today?"

"Fuck man... Talking about shootings in this town is like talking about the weather. If you're looking for a headline that's pretty weak newsboy. But I do got a scoop on this crazy guy who ran around the mall in his birthday suit yesterday."

"Don't fuck me around right now. I'm not in the mood for it. These bastards tried to do me and my friend here," answered Chris with a harsh voice while gesturing to Mikako.

"Don't give me that shit bro. You know how this goes. You wanna know something I know, you gotta grease my palms. Know what I'm sayin'?"

"Alright. You tell me what I wanna know and I won't beat your ass like a runaway slave in front of your little girlfriends. How's that?"

"What the fuck did you just say to me bitch?!" he yelled and then started to turn around and call over his men but Chris reached out and grabbed him by the tie and pulled him into the car to trap his head in window which he rolled up to trap and choke him. His friends stood up and reached for their guns but the back window opened and the men in the back seat aimed their weapons at them and they put their hands up in surrender.

"You comfy there? Very ironic that your recent business success earned you the tie that's now got you into this little predicament. Why don't we go for a little ride and talk this out," said Chris while putting the SUV into gear and then let it roll up the street. The man in the window had to move his hand to the roof of the SUV to grab onto the rails and put his feet up on the footsteps to keep from having his body snap off his head.

"Fuck you Murrow! Lemmie outta here!" he tried to yell but could barely get his voice out.

"Tell me who ordered the drive by."

"Fuck you!"

"There's a lady present. Mind your language," said Chris while stepping on the gas.

Mikako crossed her legs and leaned back against the door to watch with a smile on her face.

"I'm gonna fuck you up man! Your life is over! I'll have everyone in this town after your ass!"

Chris looked over at Mikako. "You got any music to play here?"

Mikako shrugged and turned on the stereo which started blaring some J-pop which had Chris head banging. "I love this music!"

"Fine! Fuck you! I'll tell you!"

"What's that? I can't hear you!"

"The Russians man! It was the fucking Russians! They put the hit out on your girl!"

"Have you been using bullshit for tooth paste? Because you stink."

"It ain't no shit! It's true! They did it! They got a place downtown. A club-"

"Yeah I know it. If I find out your lying to me I'll be back, and I'll make Abu Ghraib look like day care before I'm through with you," said Chris while lowering the window to let him fall out before speeding up to drive away.

Mikako leaned over and put her elbow down on the center arm rest and smiled up at Chris. "If only I wasn't engaged already. You make me so wet..." she said to him in a lustful voice.

"You are a sadist... You know that?" he asked while looking her in the eyes.

"Yes I am. But is it bad that I can name every movie you just ripped off?"

"No. It just means you have good taste," he answered while looking ahead at the road.

"It was badass while also being a little stupid with a total lack of originality. But it was good."

"Yeah. But the situation was set up perfectly for it, and it worked."

"You do know he'll retaliate for that right?"

"Not unless he has a death wish. He knows damn well who you are and after I finish making Solyanka out of these Russians he won't ever think about fucking with me."

"You're very confident in that statement. There's four of us, and however many of them. I'll call in some more men. Where are we going exactly?"

"Wrong. I'm going in alone. You're staying here," Chris said as if it should have been obvious.

"Oh? That's very arrogant of you. Normally that's a trait I find attractive. But that's a little too extreme."

"Call it whatever you want. I'm still going to deal with this on my own. They'll shoot you on sight. But they don't know me."

"What kind of a club do they have?"

"A pretty fancy night club. But it's a front for prostitution. Every girl in there is an import from mother Russia and pretty much every eastern European country."

"So I don't suppose if I offered you a better plan than just going in and shooting everyone that you won't change your mind about how to handle this?" asked Mikako with a smirk.

Chris bobbed his head along with his thoughts and pressed his lower lip into his upper for a long moment, "Probably not. But I'll hear you out..."

That evening, Chris returned home and found Sarah and Ikaros sitting on his couch. Sarah was talking animatedly to the Angeloid until they both looked to the door and welcomed him home.

Chris had a rolled up magazine or some such in his right hand, and with his left he pulled the transport card out of his back pocket as he walked over to the pair, he then held out the card to Ikaros with his two fingers. "Please take this back. Take it, and never, ever, give it back to me, or to anyone else. Keep this thing close to you at all times, and don't ever let anyone or anything take it from you. At all costs, we can't ever let this get into the wrong hands."

Ikaros nodded her head, "I understand, and I will comply, Master."

Sarah stood up as Ikaros took back the card. "Chris? Are you alright? You look like you've seen a ghost!"

"Turn on the News..." he said while setting down the magazine on his dinner table and then walking off into his bedroom.

Sarah went over to pick up the magazine which was next to the TV remote, while turning on the TV she scanned the cover and found it as actually a Comic Book, first issue of The Punisher, and its cover was autographed with the name "Frank Castle."

With a bewildered expression she turned on the TV and widened her eyes at what she saw.

"...the popular night club became a scene of carnage this afternoon after what police are calling a vigilante went on a rampage and killed dozens of armed Russian Mobsters. CCTV footage shows the suspect, a look alike to Tom Jane from the 2004 Punisher movie, walking into the club and firing indiscriminately on everyone inside. Authorities have begun a city and state wide man hunt for the suspect."

Sarah switched off the TV and set down the comic book. "Yeah... Ikaros... I agree. Never. Ever. Ever. Let that card out of your hands... He seriously actually used it to wish for The Punisher to deal with the people who shot at them?!"