As the flames perished, Itachi turned back to the front of the ship. With a sigh he started taking pictures of the ship and the people on it. His contacts had provided him with some crucial information, but knowing them, they'd expect a report accounting every molecule involved. Such a pain. Passing by a spooky albino girl (Lilith), he took a picture and reached out his hand. "Hmm? Why aren't you evacuating, there's a small army approaching. Are you alone here? What's your name?" Itachi listened impatiently for her response, wanting to get away from this boat as soon as he could.

Directing the girl North-West with the other people, Itachi was slightly disappointed to see the young man with the katana jump overboard, now he'd have no picture for his report. Turning to the other people still onboard, he quickly made pictures of as many people as he could, taking individual pictures of those who were helping the evacuation or using septima. Aww man, this'll be a pain to report, so many people, and adepts too.

With all due haste, Itachi made pictures until he had most of the deck and everyone on it. He directed a few more members of the crowd away from the ship before turning to Gavin and Hiroki. With their pictures taken, Itachi once more tucked his phone into his pocket. Without bothering to address the two, Itachi spoke loudly, a serious expression plasted on his face. "You guys have been a great help, but it's time for you two to leave the ship as well. I'll stay here until everyone has left, so hurry on out of here."

The shockwave of the explosion pushed Joseph forward, however he was able to regain his balance using the sudden change in momentum caused by the boat crashing onto shore. The only immedeate danger was the fire, he decided to take a bit to recharge his EP, which had gotten a bit low.

That Sumeragi forces would be arriving soon was both a curse and a blessing. They were his target, so he should get as close as possible, however Joseph had to remain able to get away too. As such, Joseph began looking for a place where he could safely watch the events to be unfold, preferably a high vantage point, such as the roof of a skyscraper, if one was sufficiently close.

In any case, staying on the wreck would not do him any good, so he pulled his luggage towards him with his septima, after he let his EP charge a bit.

While once more focussing on regaining EP, such that he could safely fly onto the roof of the trainstation, above the people trying to evacuate, Joseph noticed someone was taking pictures of the people present. He didn't like being photographed without being asked first, although now his objective also meant he should avoid being photographed, so he used his septima to move his suitcases in the way, such that his picture could not be taken.
Half a second later, he was ready to take off, and thus ascended, softly landing on the rooftop of the trainstation, while his suitcases still covered him from the view of the camera.

Once on the roof, Joseph continued looking for safe lookout points. If he found one, he would move to it; if he found none, he would continue recharging his EP and then fly towards his hotel on the quickest route possible.

At that moment, a dull droning of an engine cut over the noise as cinders began to glow at the impact of the train station. From above, six figures dropped from the aircraft, sliding down cables. With a loud crash, they burst through the glass skylight at the far end of the station. Five figures in white skin-tight uniforms with black visored masks with bright red armor pads deftly landed upon the tile floor. Following that, a large slam could be heard, as a middle aged man in a similar uniform, piloting a machine with mounted guns on its arms, and supported in much the same way as a roll cage, landed among the middle of them.
"Anyone with a weapon is a suspect," the man barked, "Secure hostiles, then affirm the safety of civilians! Sumeragi Active Security Force C: Move out!"

As the soldiers entered the scene, Itachi sighed. "Guess I wasn't in time, huh? Too bad I can't do anything here. They practically own this place." Dejected, Itachi threw up his arms, in proper surrender this time. Still, he couldn't help but whistle as the man barked his orders. Easily said, easily done, Itachi's sharp whistle soon pierced the air. Speaking loudly, yet nervously, sounding similar to a fresh recruit in the army, Itachi yelled "Um, sir, the assailants have already left, it's just citizens now.

Carefully placing himself between Hiroki, Gavin and the soldiers, he whispered between his teeth "Go on squirt, beat it, get outta here. I'll hold them off." Turning his attention back to the soldiers, Itachi smiled and chimed "It's a lovely day, isn't it? The sun is shining, birds are singing...

Gavin had holstered his weapon, and taken Hiroki's wrist, allowing the boy to use his Reversal powers to heal the Navy SEAL by touch. He then, after seeing Itachi try and hold off the soldiers, would tell the boy:

"3...2...1...run." And the both of them, with Hiroki unsure about what was happening, would begin to sprint, sprint in the other direction of the Sumeragi forces. Running as fast as they can, Hiroki barely noticed his smartphone beeping. Nevertheless, when they had passed a block, he would, against Gavin's wishes, take it out, and say:

"Hello? Is this extraction? If so, help us!"

Tadashi Moritomi//the_C0rsair
Boardwalk

---

Tadashi restrained a relieved/exasperated sigh as his target answered his phone. He'd hate to have to try and hack the PA system at this range. In milliseconds, Tadashi entered his "Business Mode." It was time to work.

"All right, Sparky, I'm gonna level with you. You're in a bad situation right now. Fortunately for you, your dad and your boss hired me to get you out of it. And no one's better at that than me. But you're gonna have to listen to everything I have to say, or you're done for, and I'm out of a job. Got it? Good." said Tadashi, not waiting for a response as he moved a few drones into position.

"Look up. You see that drone above you?" he said, hoping the kid would notice the mechanical stingray floating some meters above his head. "That's your motherfucking North Star. You keep an eye on that and you do not stop following it until I say you're safe. Got it? Great. Cover your ears, by the way- I'm about to get loud."

With that, two other stingray-shaped drones sailed over the Adepts' heads in the opposite direction, hatches opening in their bellies, and dropping something out of them. A split-second before they hit the ground, the flashbangs exploded, blinding and disorienting anyone without the proper shielding measures in place. One could only hope it was enough...

@Letter Bee

@EnterTheHero

"I echo the guy's orders!" Gavin shouted to Hiroki as the two kept running, following the drone to the destination pre-arranged by Tadashi and the members of MALTA.

Hiroki then said as the duo began to navigate the streets and alleyways, occasionally using Gavin’s portals to skip dead ends and other obstacles: “I think I now know why Sumeragi are going to chase us. They’re enforcing the law, aren’t they? And I’m technically part of an illegal organization.”

“Yes,” Gavin nodded. “And they will not go easy on you even if you’re a kid. Anyway, how much do you know of Sumeragi?”

“Not much; Dad and The Wizard say they’re not to be trusted, but we have other conflicts to intervene in, and The Wizard says that he has a plan to ‘take care’ of Sumeragi -” Hiroki was pulled through a portal by Gavin as they avoided another dead end; they can hear the sounds of people chasing them now.

“Well,” spoke Gavin, “let’s just say that I have a mission, straight from the CIA itself, with vague parameters, but with Sumeragi seen as a threat.”

“Cool!” spoke Hiroki as it seemed to them they were nearing the destination...

When the law enforcement dropped in, Joseph was on the other side of the roof of the trainstation.
With none of the law enforcement landing on the roof, but simply dropping through, he guessed he was not spotted yet, giving him a bit of time to recharge even more.

A bit later Mr. Leidner heard the flashbang grenades going off, however as he was on the roof, he could not see who had thrown them, but was also protected from the bright flash. Regardless who threw them, it meant the situation either already has or will shortly escalate, which would be bad for him in any case.

Thus, Joseph began to hop from roof to roof towards his hotel using his ability to fly, emphasizing speed on the first few hops to get to a relatively safe distance. The flashbangs from another direction should also provide enough of a distraction.

If he was sure his escape was not noticed, he would stop after a couple of hops to look back and observe the scene unfold.

As most of the effected civilians evacuated, and still some others boarded their train as though nothing had happened, there was a flash and a puff of smoke, followed by a loud sound from the dock. The armored leader pointed towards it, gesturing to two of the operatives. They began to head towards the crash site, ready to investigate the explosion and to make sure no civilians were hurt. All seemed to be going well, when suddenly-
"Sir!" one of the operatives called out, pointing past the tracks, where they saw a man jumping incredibly far.
"Bag him!" the leader called, and with that, his subortinate shouldered what looked like a rocket launcher, and fired it, only to release a rather rapid heavy duty net instead.
The net sailed at the flying man, set to make its mark.

Lilith stood limping out, her sword sheathed on her hip and her gun holstered. She stood watching the scene unfold before her. She frowned and took out her sidearm, ready to fire. She walked and was ready to fight some more. She got to the outside and she jumped down, grunting as she hit her injured leg. She hoped to slip by unnoticed.

The net flew through the air; unobstructed and on target.
Joseph hadn't been able to notice it in time, and was thus unable to dodge it.

As the net began to close after hitting his back, the weights on its corners came into Joseph's field of view. Should they come sufficiently close to another, their rotational inertia would tangle up the net, preventing an easy escape from it.
However the net had no properties that interact with septima, so Joseph could simply use his frequently used gravity slingshot to push them apart before it was too late, which he successfully did.
This resulting in the net simply falling off his back shortly before he landed on the target roof, on which Joseph immedeatly took cover.

Since it would take a bit for the ground forces to get to the roof, only the VTOL in which the forces arrived presented an immedeate threat. To prepare a bit for its arrival, Joseph opened one of his suitcases to find and take out a set of boules he originally brought for entertainment.
He didn't expect them to do much against the hull of the VTOL, however they should be able to wreak havoc inside its engines, if he could get them there. Besides, some long-range projectiles are better than none.

The reinforced cable wheeled and whined as it was drawn from the shouldered device. The impact with the somewhat thick glass had done a great deal to visibly slow the motion of the heavy net. Fortunately for its target, it would prevent the impact from being lethal. The whizzing sound of the cable was all but muted by the wind, as the net spread out. As it struck the man's back, the net's edges spiraled and whipped around, snaring the man quickly before he could see it.
"Target secured," the agent stated, flipping a large switch on the weapon, which began reeling the cord back, drawing the man rapidly to the agents.

The agent near the wreckage raised a weapon, "Hands where I can see 'em!" she announced to the pale woman with the katana.

Lilith was walking when she heard the agent yell at her. She looked at the agent with rose-colored orbs and her eyes narrowed. "Are you REALLY going to shoot an injured, cranky woman? It was bad enough those assholes invaded the ship!" She folded her arms over her chest, glaring at the agent.

One portal jump through a wall later, and Gavin and Hiroki found themselves in a safehouse underneath a building perpetually marked 'For Sale'. This safehouse was a small set of basic rooms, one containing a bed, another containing a toilet, a third containing food supplies, and a fourth, from where a communications screen can be glimpsed.

"Now," spoke Gavin once they were safely inside, "basic introductions. My name is Gavin Prince, Navy SEAL with a vague mission. Basically, investigate a potential threat that may or may not come from Sumeragi. Of course, to maintain plausible deniability, I only have a few assets, namely those one person of average resources can purchase." He then looked at Hiroki, and asked, "So, your name, kid?"

"Boy Wizard," Hiroki Hibiya didn't give his full name right away; he was average, not dumb. "Yours?"

"Horizon Cartesius," Gavin was impressed that 'Boy Wizard' knew discretion. "So, you're part of MALTA, as you said in the station. And it seems you know 'The Wizard' personally. Must be because you're part of a small group?" Discretion or not, fourteen-year olds liked to blab, and Gavin was playing to that trait.

"I am not telling classified information to a Navy SEAL; you're technically supposed to catch me as well as those terrorists," Hiroki then pursed his lips, before looking at Gavin's eyes. "You know, you don't seem like a bad person. But then again, it's not as if good people haven't slapped my hand away when I tried to help them..."

Gavin would nod, resisting the urge to violate secrecy himself; sad backstories from kids were his weak spot. "Boy Wizard, sometimes I doubt if I am a good person myself. After all, I am a murderer and sneak and thief and liar and I chose a group that does morally grey stuff at times as they work for provable greater ends. But all right, I'll share non-classified information with you, so you can share yours'. Oh, and don't worry about me arresting you for now; it's not as if I'm not allowed to choose allies during the course of my mission. In fact, I can even get you off with a slap on the wrist, after all, you're an illegal doctor, not a terrorist."

The Navy Seal then paused, before saying, "As you know, I am an Adept with the power to create portals. Some can be as small as a fist, others, as big as a door."

Hiroki would clear his throat, "You know, non-classified information seems like it just means stuff I should know already, from looking at how you do things. But basically, I can project fields that reverse the physical state of a person or object, and can project that power with a touch."

The boy decided to conceal his ability to blast people with reversal as well; it's not as if he didn't spell out how 'valuable' he was already. Briefly, he thought of Horizon deciding to kidnap him for experimentation and use as a free hospital and mechanics shop.

Gavin was able to read Hiroki's expression. "Come on kid, I'm not someone who would take kids against thier will and use them as weapons. You're not a bad sort, and right now, we need each other."

Hiroki nodded, then changed the subject. "So, why don't we see what that communications screen has? It's probably one of The Wizard and Dad's contacts."

"Speaking about your father..." Gavin was dusting himself off, "did he bring you to MALTA?"

"It's the opposite," Hiroki was walking towards the communications screen. "That's non-classified information as well."

Gavin nodded, then walked to Hiroki's side, waiting for the comms screen to activate...

@tobiax@EnterTheHero

Oh. Really nice. Itachi thought to himselfas the net soard after the man with the suitcases. There was something marvelous about science. Even a netcannon like this found its origins back in the days of old where they were used to catch fish. It also pleased him he might be able to get a picture for his report, after all--no, scratch that. The risk in staying here is too high, I should get moving.

With a reluctant sigh, Itachi was about to turn and leave, when suddenly he heard a soldier yell "Hands where I can see 'em!" That...was just great. It was the girl he'd told to evacuate, earlier, but this time she was carrying a weapon. Just... Great. Just very, very great. He would've taken a moment to think of a plan first, but frankly, he didn't believe he had a moment. Itachi walked over, faster than his normal, sauntering pace, but not quite running yet. He stepped up next to the girl and put a hand on her arm. "Please don't make a scene out of this. I'm sure they'll listen to your story once you put down your weapons. We can tell them all about the assailants, without needing to resort to a brawl."

Lilith sighed. "Yeah yeah...I wasn't gonna shoot them." She shoved her gun into its holster and she looked up at the face of Itachi, the man who told her to evacuate. Her leg was still bleeding and she said, "So, whatcha gonna tell me next? I've been trying to evacuate but this bleeding injury is making things difficult to do." She was quippy, as she was cranky from not having eaten much all day and then she was injured. She held her hands up where the agent could see them.

The visored helmet tipped back slightly as the agent's eyes rolled.
"Fine. Come with me. We'll debrief you in the airship," came the slightly perturbed voice of the agent, gesturing with the grip of the gun towards the broken glass ceiling where a steel cable hung down.

From behind the walls of the breached train station, the pink haired individual had been watching for a short time. However, with the other adepts now accounted for, and moreso, with Sumeragi agents on the way, it was time for an exit. Palav reached a hand towards solid ground. It felt good to be on land again. For a moment, the ground shimmered, then, a large tree sprung up against the building, causing a slight trembling. Wasting no time, the pink coated adept mounted the tree, before jumping off over the street, the leafy fronds offering cover while the pale girl and wind wielder spoke with the soldier.

Looking at the Sumeragi soldier, Itachi hestitated for a moment. Is this the best course of action? It'll surely delay me, which might not please the boss... It can't be helped, I can't just leave her like this. with a short sigh, Itachi did some quick stretches and turned to Lilith. "I could tell you a lot, but even if I don't I'm relatively sure you shouldn't be walking on that leg, so... Excuse me." After saying this, Itachi kneeled, and looked at Lilith over his shoulder. "It might be presumptious of me, but I ready don't want you to worsen that injury by overexerting it, so I'll carry you. His stoic expression quickly turned into a scattered one, before he hastily added "Uhh, if you'll let me, of course."

The SASF agent was rather helpful, albeit begrudgingly, in the evacuation of Lilith and Itatchi. She did, however, ask that they board the airship for questioning, as they were witnesses.

A few minutes after submerging, Itou's communicator would begin to chime. An incoming message from ARCHON appeared, the voice of the dispatch agent coming into his ear piece.
"Gensai, do you read?" there was a moment before a reply was confirmed, "I've got some intell' you may be interested in. You were at the shore, right? Well, turns out Sumeragi didn't make a tribute, and the local Yakuza wannabe's didn't take too kindly to it. I'm guessing you engaged, so be advised."

Lilith nodded, allowing Itachi to pick her up and she gasped a bit. "Uh....thanks..by the way." It would now become quite apparent she wasn't used to being treated kindly and was more used to lashing out. She sighed a bit. She clung onto the man from behind and she looked down, embarrassed.