The Conceptual Deck

The next day was a rather simple one. I woke up early and attempted to go for a run. What actually happened was a series of jogs connected by breaks to lean against buildings, sit on benches, and single break under a tree. It wasn't pretty, but it honestly went better than I thought it would, all but convincing me that the ring was helping me change my body. When I got back Ema wanted to run her scan, but I convinced her to wait until that night, so we had a full twenty-four hour difference. She relented eventually.

Once I recovered from my morning exercise I began my stretches and practice, running through various forms and movements to help my body get used to the movements I now knew thanks to my ring. I even put on my armored suit, getting to know how the movements felt while I was wearing it. After that we had a lot of nothing to do and a lot of time to do it in. Ema spent her time using my laptop, watching news broadcasts and the like. She seemed to be taking her task of compiling a file on Stark pretty seriously. I watched tv in between stretching and practicing my various martial art forms.

Eventually it started to get dark again and we both prepared to head out. I rode my bike around with Ema in my pocket, taking our time to try and find a good spot to hide, somewhere we could keep an eye out. Eventually, around ten o'clock we settled on the rooftop of a sandwich shop, watching down a long street with an alley and another street behind us. It was just enough room to practice while waiting. I didn't climb up immediately however. Instead I rode my bike a bit farther away, changed into my suit and walked back. I easily got up onto the roof by jumping up and off a dumpster.

"Those free running books are really paying for themselves." I said to Ema as I popped out my chair and took a seat.

"I can see that. Now sit still while I scan you."

I relaxed back in the chair while Ema slowly scanned my body. A soft white scanning beam slid over me as she performed the most detailed scan. I sat up when she finally finished my head.

"Give it to me straight, doc. "

"Hmm… from what I can see you were correct. Your ligaments and muscles show significant change." She answered, before adding. "Well significant for twenty four hours at least. In truth the change is small but noticeable"

"That's good. I'd be more worried if it was a massive shift" I admitted, scratching my face after pulling down my scarf. "How does my brain look?"

"Your brain is active but not overly so. Slight changes in the areas related to motor control and reflexes but that's it. Nothing you wouldn't expect to see if someone took up martial arts as a hobby…. For a few weeks or so though."

"Good. I was kinda nervous with the few biographies we mixed in. Thought maybe they would be changing my brain or something." I admitted. "It's why I picked a ring and not a pill to take or something. I'm worried about unforeseen conceptual mixes popping up changing me permanently."

"Oh… In truth I hadn't considered what an effect those would have." Ema responded before continuing. "We will be repeating this scan every 24 hours. At least."

"Yeah, good idea."

After a few more minutes we went to either side of the building, watching the streets go from almost completely empty to empty. I alternated between practicing and stretching, doing basic bodyweight exercises and sitting in my chair. Even when I was busy I was keeping an eye on the streets.

It was frustrating, watching the clock on my phone go, knowing I was basically wasting time until I gave up and went to Stark for help. The chances of someone randomly commiting a crime on this street were tiny, and the chances that they could lead me to something useful was even smaller. It was annoying knowing that being there was almost certainly pointless. I should probably just-

"Carson, there is someone cutting through the alley." Ema whispered into my ear.

I hadn't noticed her coming closer in the slightest, and I almost yelled out in surprise. I managed to bite it back however, if barely. I sat up out of my chair, simultaneously pulling it into a card and pulling my scarf up over my face as I crept over to the edge, Ema following alongside me. I didn't want anyone to know I was up here, even if I was considering leaving soon.

A man, hood up and dressed in a dark brown jacket was walking through the Alley, stopped at the entrance. He looked down the street for a while before pulling out his phone.

"Hey man, the boss was looking for one of those newer Chevy trucks right? Ask him if it matters that there's one of those things on top…. No? Alright I'll be right back to the shop with one in a bit."

With a look around the man confidently walked out of the alleyway, pulling a slim jim out from his belt. He made his way to one of the closest vehicles, a black truck. I looked over my shoulder at Ema, my eyes wide before I reached out. She bobbled and flew into my hand, letting me put her into a card. I jumped off the roof, using the other side of the alley to slow myself down. I landed heavily and rolled, getting up quickly and walking out into the poorly lit street. My heart was beating fast as I waited, listening to the man fiddle with the truck door before it popped open. Taking a risk I peeked around the edge of the truck and could see the man leaning in, fiddling with something. Realizing he was trying to jumpstart the vehicle, I weighed my options. I had no idea where this guy was going to take this truck, though I assumed it would be nearby. My decision was made for me as the truck started up and the man climbed into the driver's seat. I took advantage of the movement he made to hop up on the trailer hitch of the, my hands grabbing the ladder bar above.

The truck pulled out of its parking spot smoothly, picking up speed quickly. As I hung on I chewed my lip nervously, looking around to see if anyone could see me. Thankfully the streets were still empty, even as we turned the corner into a new street. I hung on as the truck made several turns, eventually pulling down into a large work lot.

Feeling him slow down and pull in I hopped off and rolled with the impact. We were in a small parking lot with a few dark warehouses around it. Cars were lined up everywhere in different states of repair, or disrepair. There was one building still lit up, which the truck seemed to be heading straight for. I quickly made my way around a rusted car before pushing Ema out of her card. For a moment she just swiveled around in place, before floating closer.

"That is very disorienting." She whispered. "Where are we?"

"I hitched a ride." I explained, my stealth suit muffling it down to a whisper. "Pretty sure we found a chop shop."

Slowly Ema floated above the car before sinking back down.

"I agree." She responded simply.

"Okay… Here is the plan. I want you to get closer and watch the front. Get a good angle and let me know if they start panicking or anything weird. I'm going to sneak around the back and see if there is another way in."

As I explained the plan I pulled out my Bluetooth earbud, putting it in my ear and adjusting my stealth suit. I pulled out my phone and accepted the call when it came through. Now when Ema talked her frame was silent and I could hear her through my ear.

"I'm going, be safe. I should be able to make enough noise to get them out here if you get stuck."

I nodded and gave her a thumbs up, and she turned to float away. I could barely see her when she eventually stopped, having found a good position to observe the interior of the shop. With another nod I slowly made my way around, using the various broken down cars, trucks and vans to hide as I went. Eventually I reached the side of the building, my back pressed against the wall.

"Carson, there are four of them that I can see, inspecting what I assume is the truck you rode here on. I don't know if anyone is in the back though."

"Okay, I'm heading around the back." I whispered, crouch-walking under a newspaper covered window.

Slowly I made my way to the back, avoiding a few obstacles as I went. Eventually I peeked around the corner, only to immediately pull back. Around the corner was another man, slowly smoking a cigarette as he checked his phone. I paused as I tried to think through my options. I could have Ema cause a distraction, then sneak in and out, or I could-

"Hey boss!" Someone called from inside the shop. "Jack found one of those trucks you were looking for, come check it out!"

The man cursed quietly, flicking his cigarette before turning and heading back inside. I could hear him yelling back as I peeked around the corner to find the door still open. Slowly I walked around, making my way to the door before pausing to peek in. Through the doorway I could see a short hallway. It branched out to the side but directly in front was some sort of office.

"Another man is up front now, he is inspecting it with the others." Ema confirmed.

"Gotcha. I found a door and I'm heading in." I responded before standing and walking around the door, stepping into the building.

The hallway was poorly lit, but as I got closer to the office it got brighter and brighter. Slowly I made my way into the well lit room, crouching down as I did. The place was an organized mess, like four offices stuffed into one. Model cars, paper work, bobble heads, coffee mugs, all sorts of stuff filled the desks and shelves. Examining the room I paused before starting to go through and loot it. In quick succession I pulled in a computer tower and monitor, a laptop, two cell phones and two office chairs. I made my way deeper, quickly snagging the charging cables for three phones as well as a good sized tv that was on but muted. I snagged a printer next, followed by a dozen books about mechanic work and car repair. I grabbed three decently made flashlights before I checked in with Ema.

"How is it going up there?" I asked, scanning the room for anything else.

"They are looking under the hood and examining what's in the back." She answered. "But it might be time to play it safe."

"Yeah, I think you're right." I agreed, slowly making my way out of the office.

As I crouch-walked to the hallway I scanned for anything else worth taking. Snagging a few of the cooler looking models I stopped and focused for a moment. Tucked under the desk was a locked box that looked suspiciously like a cash box. With a smirk I pulled it into a card before peaking around the corner and darting back into the darker hallway.

I snuck back, peeking down the hall that I had skipped before, before creeping further into it. I pushed the partially opened door that blocked the way, opening it slowly and peering inside. It was a long room filled with tools, parts and other repair shop stuff, with aisles running down the room, hiding some of it from view. I quickly pulled in four heavy boxes of tools as I walked deeper, turning the corner and freezing as I spotted the holy grail.

"That's… a big-fuck off safe." I cursed in amazement.

"Can you grab it?" Ema asked. "Otherwise you should just leave it."

I looked down at the legs of the safe, checking to see if they were bolted to the ground. With a smirk I answered.

"I can grab it. Do me a favor and hang up and call the cops. Tell them you think you found a chop shop on a walk and that you think they are armed. Then tell them you're not sticking around and hang up. I'm going to jump the fence behind the building and escape that way."

I put my hand on the safe and pulled, the safe disappearing into a C ranked card. Surprisingly I could feel the effort required to pull it in. It wasn't much but it was noticeable. My mission accomplished, I walked out of the hallway and noticed a well made leather jacket hung on the wall. I reached out and moved the jacket around, trying to see what condition it was in.

"Hey! What the hell!?"

I turned to see another man, coming in from the back door. The man looked confused and uncertain, but realized I was checking out the jacket with the intention to take it.

"Hey, that's my jacket, get your fucking hands off it!" He shouted, his face clearing into anger.

He took a step towards me while reaching to his hip to pull out a knife, flicking it open and holding it out threateningly. I slid into a combat stance easily, keeping my eyes on the knife while listening to the people in the front of the shop calling out.

Before I could respond the knife wielding man advanced again, taking my silence as non compliance, getting ready to slash at me. Instinctively I stepped into his advance before lashing out with a low kick to his leg, pulling him off center and opening him up for me to block his arm with my left forearm. I fired off two quick punches into his chest before bringing up my knee to pummel his side. He stumbled back against the wall, the knife still held up, though with much less confidence.

"Jesus, what the fuck?"

I turned to find three more people, one armed with a large wrench, all of them looking pissed. I looked back over my shoulder, checking the guy I had just hit as he struggled to get back fully upright. Before I could turn to leave past the still staggered man, one of the guys from the front came at me, swinging his fist.

My hands were already up by the time his telegraphed punch made it to me, his fist slamming into my forearm. I could feel the impact with my armor but it wasn't even enough to bruise. I countered with a fist to his shoulder, followed by a low kick to his knee. It popped out and the man crashed to the floor, screaming even as the next man stepped over him.

By now the knife wielding man was standing behind me, lunging at me with a straight stab. I stepped back into the blow, letting the knife skitter off of my armored stomach while firing my elbow back at his face. I felt his nose crunch, before grabbing his off center body and pulling it forward, kneeing him in the stomach and shoving him into the hallway I had just come from.

Turning back to the other criminals I had just enough time to duck under a wide swing of a red monkey wrench. It smashed into the wall, leaving a large hole in the drywall. The man, a muscular guy with a scar on his chin, sneered and yanked the wrench from the wall, swinging it again. This time I stepped forward, pulling both arms up to block the swin and hooking my foot around his and pulling him off center before laying a devastating series of blows against his chest and side. He grunted and stumbled back with a shove, giving me enough time to lift both of my hands up.

With a gesture I filled the hallway with thick white powdery smoke, spraying constantly as I walked backwards, only stopping long enough to card the leather jacket as I went. When I was outside I held the spray down for another few seconds before slamming the door shut.

"Carson?! Are you alright?" Ema asked, floating down to me. "The cops are only a minute out or so."

I nodded, pulling some scrap from a nearby pile and wedging it against the door before climbing up and over the fence, landing easily on the other side.

"I'm fine, just hit a little snag, nothing I couldn't handle." I explained, running away from the garage.

Ema floated down next to me as I ran back into the shadows. I made my way around, staying in the alleyways before finding one that could just barely see the entrance to the small parking lot. Not thirty seconds later two police cars pulled into the parking lot and out of my view. After a moment I could hear shouting in the distance.A few minutes after that I turned and walked away, fading completely into the darkness of the alley.