Disclaimer: I don't own Blade or any of its characters. I do Max, Xavier, Rev, and Cam, so no stealing!

Chapter 8: Meeting the Rookies

Max walked up to the deserted docks in confusion. She looked down at the piece of paper Whistler had given her, checked over the directions written there, and looked around her once more. These docks were definitely the place. What was it lately with hunters setting up shop at docks?

Grabbing the keys out of the ignition of her pitch-black motorcycle, which Whistler customized with a shot of nitro, she started walking towards the building. Max was very aware of the cameras on the roof, following her every move. Perhaps this place wasn't as deserted at she originally thought. The question as to whether or not she was alone would have to wait until she was inside. After that, she could properly access the situation and make sure Whistler hadn't sent her to some vampire nest. She wouldn't put it past him to "help" her in that twisted sense.

With that in mind, she thought it best to go in the back. Max moved along the docks until she found a long set of stained windows in the back. Smiling, she climbed up the various crates and made her way inside the building as quietly as possible. The window had led her directly to the rood, a high vaulted ceiling with a series of bar, poles, and ramps. If she fell, which she was certain that she wouldn't, she'd be killed on contact from the concrete floor. That, or the unusually placed basketball court.

She was going to kill Whistler.

"Oh, this is gonna suck," she told herself as she looked at the bars grimly. "I haven't had to do this kind of shit since Snowman!"

At the sound of voices, Max leaned over the ramp to look down and saw two men pass under her. One was a tall, muscular African, who Max thought Blade would probably look like if he was a normal human. The other was a short, stout Caucasian. He looked like a Star Trek geek to her, but she knew from experience that bad things could come in unexpected packages. Sighing, Max looked back up at the bars. She found the perfect one to start off with and had one foot on the railing when she heard a gun cock to her left.

"Wander off the beaten path on the way to grandma's house, Red?"

The tone of the man was one of both humor and sarcasm. His joke, on the other hand, made Max roll her eyes and look over at him. If she was stunned by how gorgeous he was, she didn't show it. He had a mess of choppy brown hair with an even messier but trimmed beard and mustache to match. Baggy cargo pants with gun holsters strapped on either side, combat boots, and a plain white wife beater. The gun he had aimed at her head and his dark brown eyes rounded out the bad-boy package quite nicely.

"There is a door, you know, in case you wanna go out and come back in the polite way," he told her with a quick, mocking smile.

"I'm quite comfortable where I am, thanks," she retorted easily. "You?"

"I'm good," he replied with a slight shrug. "I could stay up here all day."

"That a fact?" she asked with an impressed and challenging tone.

"No. I have to go make breakfast."

"It's almost twelve," she told him, narrowing her eyes confusedly.

"Exactly! I have to hurry," he replied seriously.

"Well, then, I'd hate to make you late, so…"

Before he could even react, Max kicked his gun out of his hand and over the edge of the railing. While he was mourning his loss, she dove off the railing, grabbing onto her earlier bar of choice.

"Damn it!" he cursed as he grabbed his second gun, and started to shoot at her. The only problem with his plan was that she was swinging to other bars as if she was some sort of gymnastics athlete. "Intruder's up here!" he called down below, ceasing his gunfire since, one, he wasn't hitting her and two, she was only getting further away from him. "And she's a fucking monkey!" he added, cocking his to watch her. Max smiled at his words but continued to swing away.

As she was making her escape, her attacker ran down to the ramp and back to the ground level towards his partner, Abigail Whistler. She was a true warrior and hellion, as he liked to call her, and she already had her bow in hand, ready to fight.

"Where'd she go, King?" she asked, cocking her bow and looked up.

"Um…I don't know exactly," he admitted, and Abigail lowered her bow to give him a withering look. "What? I was waiting for you and that mighty ass kicking bow of yours to shoot her down!" Abigail sighed and trained her eyes towards the ceiling once more. Max was nowhere in sight. Growling in frustration, Abigail looked back at King, hands on her hips. "Okay, this might be my fault."

"You think?" she retorted. "Dex, anything on the cameras?" she shouted down below.

"Nothing here, boss lady," he called back, shaking his head from his spot with Sommerfield and Zoë. "Monkey girl must've left!"

""Monkey girl"," King chuckled, but it faded when Abigail glared at him. "It was funny. I laughed. I'm terribly sorry for letting Monkey Girl get away."

"Stop calling me Monkey Girl, please."

King pulled out his gun and Abigail raised her bow again as they turned to find Max walking in through the front door.

"Where the fuck did you go?" King asked gruffly, gun still aimed at her head.

"I decided to take your advice and come in through the front," she replied, walking towards them. "You guys aren't a nest, so the old man didn't steer me wrong like I thought. Are you the Nightstalkers?"

"How do you even know about us?" Abigail asked, lowering her bows to her side.

"Whistler told me," she replied simply and King proceeded to holster his gun.

"You're Max?" he asked, eying her up and down skeptically. "You're Max," he repeated with an appreciative nod.

"Down boy," Abigail told and stepped towards Max with an outstretched hand. "We were told you were coming, just not that you were a girl. I'm Abigail Whistler."

""Whistler"?" she echoed, shaking her hand. "Any relation to the old man?"

"His daughter."

"He told me his family was murdered."

"They were. He had me later, out of wedlock."

"Oh," she said, accepting that answer. "And you are?" she asked, crossing her arms as she looked at King with a cross of annoyance and disgust on her face.

"Hannibal King at your service," he greeted, sticking out his hand but she only stared at it. King looked between the two cross armed women and pulled his hand back, shoving them into his pockets and shifting on his feet. "Heh, well, this is awkward."

"Sorry. Forgive me if I'm not too welcoming to the man who aimed a gun at my head," she stated. "If you were a Vamp, you'd be ash."

"HEY! You're the one that broke into our place!" he argued.

"Oh, what are you, two?" Abigail stifled her laughter as she pat King's shoulder before smiling at Max.

"Welcome to Headquarters. Call me Abby," she told her. "Let me give you the tour."

As Max and Abigail walked away from King, he stood there, dumbfounded. Hedges and Dex walked up to him, patting his shoulders as they past him. King looked around and saw Sommerfield walk away with Zoë, shaking her head as she went. Sighing deeply, King slowly walked up to the blind technician/mother.

"This new girl, she hates me, doesn't she?" he asked.

"Yeah," she replied with a nod.

"No worries," he said, moving to follow Abigail and Max. "I'll wear her down with the old Hannibal charm soon enough." Sommerfield just scoffed in disbelief behind him.

P.S.: Four pages total.