Payback from Paragon [Open]

[Nobu]

Nobu had been performing is usual routine of running to school, and was now jogging in order to regain some energy to sprint. Just as he was about to sprint across the street, a green sedan made an extremely sharp turn, leaving black skid marks on the road and cutting off Nobu's path across it. The Japanese youth had noticed the car following him earlier, but paid it no mind. He figured it was just another student driving down the street to Hircine, or the new high school next to it, Paragon.

Immediately after the car had stopped, four students that looked to be Nobu's age emerged from it, each one of them wielding a weapon. The car was left running, and the two boys that got out of the side of the car nearest to Nobu approached him while the other two made their way around the car and joined their buddies. The student that had gotten out of the backseat stepped forward, and Nobu stepped back in order to maintain a comfortable distance, the wooden baseball bat he was wielding indicating bad intentions.

"Ol' Sam back here tells us that you roughed him up yesterday and took his money. Would that be correct?" the student with a baseball bat said, gesturing to the boy behind him who was wielding what looked like a broom handle. Nobu actually did recognize him, the black eye, busted lip, and cut cheek that he wore on his face a result of picking a fight with the pseudo-samurai. He had been on his way home from school, when all of sudden, just as he passed the Paragon Institute's campus, the boy he now knew as Sam approached him and asked him if he went to Hircine. Having no need to lie, Nobu said he did, and Sam clocked him in the face. The Japanese fighter made quick work of him after taking the blow, and it seems like he didn't take that hit to his ego very well. The cash in his pocket was just a bonus.

Nobu responded to the question with, "Yes, but--" but he wasn't even given enough time to finish his response.

"Wrong answer, punk!"

There was a wall right next to Nobu on his left, so the student wouldn't be able to make a right-handed swing. Like he predicted, the student made a left-handed swing, which Nobu easily dodged by stepped back and letting the wooden bat crack against the wall. The bat literally did crack, but it remained intact for another swing, which was a downward vertical strike. Nobu simply moved back again, and the bat cracked even further against the sidewalk. Out of his peripheral vision, Nobu noticed the other three students approaching, so he decided to take care of the bat-wielder while it was still one-on-one.

Before he took another swing with the bat, Nobu swung out his right arm from his chest, the hard bone of his forearm finishing up what the concrete was doing, smashing the weakened wood and breaking the bat in half. Bending his right arm following the swing, he used the few moments his opponent was stunned to send a right elbow crashing into his temple. The student dropped like a sack of bricks, but his fellow Paragonites had already closed in on the Japanese Hircinian, and he felt the cold metal of the driver's baton collide with the side of his head, sending him reeling back a few steps and making him dizzy for a good twenty seconds.

"You know, we don't like you punk-ass Hircinians. You think you're all hard shit, transferring into our school and acting like you run shit. Paragon is, and always will be superior to Hircine." the student swung out at Nobu with his baton, but he found it easy to avoid such wide swings. He was too dizzy to effectively counter-attack. "I'm not even a transfer," Nobu said, "I still go to Hircine."

"You're all the same. There's no difference between a Hircinian attending Paragon and a Hircinian attending Hircine. You embarassed us by beating up ol' Sam. We can't let that go unanswered. Consider this as a little payback from Paragon." Nobu had regained his composure, and as the baton came in another time, he stepped to the side and delivered a heavy one-two to the boy's left eye. He recoiled from the strikes, and seemed hesitant to swing again. When he did, Nobu avoided it and sent out a left-handed bomb that split his area above his left eye open.

Blood was getting into the Paragonite's eye, and he had to clench it shut. He swung his baton blindly, and Nobu was about to knock him out when he caught Sam's thick broom handle in his ribs. It hurt like hell, but it probably didn't even fracture anything. Still, it caused the Japanese fighter to hop back and create more distance between him and the posse. With a quick glance behind the approaching Paragonites, he noticed that they had moved several metres away from their car, and that the student who was wielding a baseball bat was slowly pulling himself up to his feet using the wall.

Nobu had no idea why the Paragon Institute had beef with Hircine High. Perhaps it was because of the proximity between the two high schools? That would be for another time, however, as it was the least of the Japanese student's concerns at the moment. Any normal person faced with three assailants wielding weapons would run, but Nobu wasn't a normal person. He was a warrior, and he'd fight to the death.

Man, I wish they hadn't taken my sword at the airport. It would've made this situation so much easier.

[I know I didn't state what weapon one of the students was wielding, but you could determine that yourself. Use your imagination! :D)

[Kyukaku]

It was one of those rare night when Kyukaku went to bed at a decent time, soon falling asleep as he put the thought of his roommate Zeniro killing him in his sleep to the back of his mind. So he slept a full eight hours, waking up early enough to work out. It wouldn't be a simple run and calisthenics this time though, unlike most days, Kyukaku would have enough time to actually go to the gym.

So, to the gym he went, able to get a full workout in the morning to get a better start to his day. There was still about half an hour before school started, and Kyu thought he was making good enough time to run back to his dorm to shower and get his books without being late. Alas, fate wouldn't have it. Driving down the street in the car Taiku had given him, he would be taken slightly off course. With the windows down Kyukaku heard faint yelling up ahead. His hand went to the knob, turning down the music of Chevelle as he slowed down.

Kyukaku drove by, looking out his passenger's window as he saw someone swinging a baseball bat at someone else. Assuming it wasn't a new form of baseball, Kyukaku looked back in his mirror as he slammed on the breaks. Throwing the car into reverse, Kyu ignored the rules of the road as he moved back to the scene. Quickly shifting into park, Kyukaku jumped out his door as he pulled the keys out of ignition.

He didn't exactly know what was going on, but working on basic assumption he decided that the group of kids with weapons would be the ones in need of the ass-kicking. Approaching them from behind, Kyukaku would place the group between himself and Nobu as he moved in.

"Hey."

Kyukaku nodded upwards as he got within distance, causing the group to turn around. The second they did, Kyukaku shot out his left fist, striking the one with the broom handle in the chin, making him stumble backwards. Immediately following another one, this one with a knife, slashed at Kyukaku. Catching the hand at the wrist with his left, Kyukaku punched forward with his right, striking with the keys hidden in his palm and stabbing into the boy's bicep. Following up Kyu's right hand would slide up, striking him in the side of the face in a hammer strike.

[Sathanas]

((AP Tests are over! Huzzah!))

Spider walked without hurry toward school. It was a Tuesday. Spider hated Tuesdays.

'Goddamn worthless day. Red headed bastard step-child of the cycle is what it is.' He thought to himself as he scowled. He thought about his classes, particularly the quiz in science he was going to have in English. It wasn't an issue, just an annoyance.

Suddenly somebody sprinted past him, and in the flash he had to see his face, he recognized him.

'That's that crazy Japanese Motherfucker from earlier. Well, I guess he goes to school here too.' Spider thought, 'Unless he goes to that new school they just opened. The one for nutjobs. Paragon, I think its called.'

And with that thought a green sedan slowly drove by him. It looked like it was shadowing Nobu, or whatever the fuck his name was. Spider narrowed his eyes and quickened his pace a bit. It was only a handful of instants before he heard a screech of breaks, shouting and the dull cacophony of combat.

"Shit!" He hissed, running forward. He spun left and rounded the corner to see a group of weapon wielding youths striding forward toward a bloody Nobu, when all of a sudden, someone he'd never seen before suddenly ran in and began wreaking havoc.

Damien purposefully strode forward, looking down at the bat wielder, who had now picked himself up off the ground, and was muttering obscenities as he hefted his damaged weapon. Spider tapped him on the shoulder.

The boy stopped for a moment, then the tap became a strong grip that spun him around, with Spider roughly 6 inches away from his face, inside the threat range of the bat.

"Sup." The Journalist said before popping his head forward into the surprised, still somewhat concussed, boy's face.

The combatant's nose crunched inward, and warm blood smeared along Spider's forehead. With that his knee shot upwards into the stunned boy's groin. He launched a wet groan, then collapsed, and lay very still.

The Baton wielder, hearing said groan, tore his gaze from Kyukaku, looked to see a dervish, grinning like a madman, walking quickly towards him. With a growl of "FUCKING HIRCINITES!" he charged the remaining distance and launched a strong horizontal slash aimed at Spider's head.

Spider, however, had spent a fair chunk of his life tangoing with the Oakland Police Department, whose skill with Baton's was well known and feared throughout the area. Thus Damien's skill at avoiding said Batons was also quite impressive.

He ducked quickly, the metal whistling over his head, and as the boy reached the end of his swing, Spider slid forward, inside his now overbalanced guard, and stabbed forward with his elbow, planting it solidly in the boy's solar plexus, before popping his hand upward and into the poor bastard's temple. He reeled backward, launching another cut at Damien, trying to fend him off.

Spider slid out of range this time, his right arm shooting out to capture the boy's Baton hand at the wrist. With a grunt of exertion he stopped the swing, and with another one he turned and shoulder-threw him to the ground.

The boy groaned and kicked out, catching Spider in the arm, and forcing him to release the Baton hand. The journalist sprang forward, attempting to take advantage of the prone position of his target, but received a Baton-stab to the gut for his troubles. Pain and old memories flooded through him, but he grinned a little wider and said "Gotta do better than that," as he once more grabbed the Baton hand. Spider pulled up as he chambered a kick, then launched it, taking the boy upward and into his boot, stealing his breath. A rib cracked and Spider released him. The Baton rolled out of his hands as the spasmed with a paroxysm of pain. Spider released him, and he rolled backwards, curling into the fetal position on the cement.

Damien kicked him twice more for good measure than turned to see what else was happening. ..

[Nobu]

It all happened so unexpectedly.

Just when Nobu believed he was in for the fight of his life, a car that had been driving by suddenly went in to reverse. Nobu's attention, of course, was fixed on the three students approaching him, but he never failed to take note of things going on around him with his ears. The car's driver jumped out of the car and placed himself behid the trio of Paragonites, giving them a greeting which caused them to turn around. As if this wasn't surprising enough, shortly after another boy, who seemed vaguely familiar, emerged and finished the Paragonite that Nobu had knocked down previously.

As soon as the boy that hopped out of the car popped Sam in the face and caused him to stumble back, Nobu was there to catch him from behind and throw him to the ground by making a sudden one-eighty degree turn and releasing his body from his grasp, sending him to the cold concrete of the sidewalk. The Japanese student bent down and picked up the fallen Paragonite's broom handle. Turning around just in time to witness the knife-wielding student recoil to the side from the other boy's strike, Nobu swung the broomstick out, striking the Paragonite in the side of the head, causing him to stumble in the opposite direction and slump to the ground against the face of a building.

His fingers began to relax, and the broom handle casually fell out of his hand and clattered against the sidewalk. Nobu surveyed the scene, and took note of the two that helped him, as well as the faces that attacked him. He approached the boy nearest to him, who was shorter and more built, while the other was taller and more lithe, and gave him a small, respectful bow. "I owe you, big time." the Japanese student said as he rose from his bow. In Japan, Nobu was considered average height; in America, Nobu noticed, everybody and their adolescent sister was taller than him.

"My name's Nobuo. As for the name of the one whom I owe my life to..?" he said quietly, introducing himself to the slightly taller American.

[Kyukaku]

Do something nice for someone, and it'll cause a domino effect. Soon enough, more people would willingly help out others. Luckily for Nobu and Kyu both, this seemed to happen very quick as the third Hircine Student came in. With Kyukaku's entrance, it seemed that everyone suddenly began syncronizing their movements. With Kyu's first punch, the japanese kid threw him to the ground, finishing him before turning and finishing the other one Kyu was fighting with.

As Nobu delt with the last one of the pair, Kyu's eyes shot over the smaller man's shoulder to see the other one finish the last one of the whole group. He turned his gaze back to Nobu as he caught motion in the corner of his eye. Kyukaku nodded at the gesture, appreciating it but feeling too rushed to return it at the moment.

"You can call me Kyukaku." Kyukaku nodded towards Spider afterwards, getting his attention as he spoke up once again, this time to both of them.

"How about we get out of here," He started, gesturing to his car. "You know, before they get up...or before we get arrested. I'd rather not stick around to see what happens first."

(OOC: Short. Dependent on reactions.)

[Sathanas]

((Short, to the point))

Spider walked back, cleaning his hands on the legs of his jeans as he did so. He was still grinning.

"You and I have met already...albeit briefly," He said to Nobuo as he arrived, then turned to the other Hircine student and said "However, I have not had the pleasure of meeting you Kyukaku. I am Damien, but you may call me Spider."

He listened to Kyu's suggestion and nodded sagely, replying, "I'm all for it...the less number of batons I have to dodge the better." He gently probed his abs with a finger, and winced. 'That's gonna bruise...' He thought.

Then looking at the other two he added "I assume we all go to Hircine, so we're all heading to the same place... Shall we go?"

[Nobu]

[Hope you don't mind the puppeteering. I want to wrap this thread up and begin the follow-up thread. I made the mistake of making this thread in The Streets instead of where it was supposed to be.]

Kyukaku?

Nobu stood there silently as he studied the boy infront of him, and tried to connect him to his name. Strange. He doesn't look Japanese. Maybe it's not his real name? I've known some Japanese with American names, but never the other way around. Shrugging off the thought, he turned to the new arrival; the other person that had assisted him. He mentioned that they had met briefly, and it took a few moments before Nobu fully recognized him. "Oh, from that time. My apologies for causing trouble."

The ruffling of clothing caught the Japanese student's attention, and he turned to the side to see Sam writhing around a bit to peek over his shoulder, then letting himself go limp again when he saw that the trio of Hircinians was still there. Probably didn't even get hurt. Just played dead because he didn't want to get beaten up by me again. Nobu grinned mentally at that thought, and was a bit surprised when Damien said they all attended Hircine. Now that he thought about it, he's seen Kyukaku quite a bit in the hallways, but he had never stood out enough for the Japanese student to take note of.

"Yeah.. we should go." Nobu knew from experience that whenever you've done something that could land you knee-deep in shit, you better leave as soon as possible. Immediately after is usually best. Nobu couldn't help but mutter "Nice car..." as Kyukaku slid over the hood of his ride to get to the driver's side. Opening the passenger side door once Kyukaku had unlocked it, he moved the seat forward so that Damien could squeeze into the back of the sports car. Nobu took the passenger's seat for himself (shotgun!) and closed the door just as the engine roared to life.

The trio of Hircinians began to move out, and while peering out of the window, Nobu noticed Sam had propped himself up and was now speaking on his cell phone. What is he doing? Calling the police, or maybe more of his Paragon buddies? Of course, Nobu wouldn't know who Sam was really talking to, but whatever they were talking about gave the Japanese student an unsettling feeling.

"I think we should hurry to Hircine..."

[THREAD COMPLETE, unless either one of you have something else to say.]