161 Smoke

Ori stops on the sidewalk and glances down the alleyway, locking eyes with one of the three drivers. The burly man glares at him but he just smirks, causing the man to scowl deeply. The guy's expression morphs however when Ori begins stepping into the alley.

"Oi... Are you stupid or just insane, friend?" he growls as he rolls the window down.

Ori shrugs, "You tell me, you're the ones eying me up like I'm a doll whore. I don't swing that way and you lookin' at me like that pisses me off." he rolls his shoulders before cracking his neck and knuckles, "So, any of you man enough to settle this? Or are you the prissy sort of fags?"

"Gonk fuck-head, you see who you're talkin' to!? Shit, I'll beat your skull in myself." the driver angrily says, getting out of the car and slamming the door.

Almost a foot taller than Ori, the guy would've scared off most others with his physique alone. Unfortunately for him, in this case he was all bark and no bite.

When the guy stops in front of Ori his head is thrown upwards by a hard uppercut that launches his bottom teeth up fast enough that it shears through the ones above them. Blood and tooth fragments spray out into the air, and the guy slowly topples backwards, landing in a heap as all the animals watch in surprise.

Ori drops a foot on the sleeping guy's face, "That all you got? Should've figured, a guy your size is only good for giving, not taking..." he glances at the other Animals, "The rest of you are the bottom I assume?"

"Oh hell no! I'm not taking shit from this rat!"

"I fucked more girls than you've seen bitch!"

"You'll be the bottom when I'm done with you!"

With that, the Animals all jump outta their cars and charge Ori, swinging fists, bats, and other weapons to bring him down.

Ori blocks the first bat with an arm, snapping it as he counterattacks, bringing out the elbow spikes as he strikes the man in the chest. The bone goes straight through the man's shoulders, forcing him to the floor as Ori continues the movement.

Dodged kicks, blocked punches, and returned headbutts, the brawl quickly became bloody as Animals slowly started dropping. The fight had gotten deep enough that even if the scrambler hadn't been set up, none of them would have realised their target had shown.

-------------------

"Do you think she suspects anything?" Fae questions Sheila as she savours her salad.

Sheila shrugs, "Doubt it, you saw how clingy she was. Probably thinks we're best friends." she sniffs derisively.

"I don't know... Maybe it was an act...? We did the same-, and she wasn't that friendly before then."

"Pfft, she's probably just scared, she's got no one else to talk to about the 'attacks'."

"Yeah... I guess you're right. Whatever, things should be done today." Fae mutters, glancing out the window and straightening slightly as she spots Christy. "There she is... Any moment now..."

...

"Why haven't they moved yet...?" Sheila questions, referring to the Animals.

Fae frowns, "I-I don't know... Wait... Doesn't Christy look..." she trails off, focussing on the singer.

She wasn't wrong, Christy was taking small, tentative steps with a look of apprehensive fear on her face. But wait, if she knew about the ambush why would she show...? No... That isn't right...?"

"Do you hear something... Buzzing...?" Sheila wonders aloud, and Fae quickly pales.

"WE NEED TO MO-"

*BOOOOOOOOM!!!*

The restaurant explodes, all the windows shattering simultaneously as the few customers present are thrown out of their seats. The distance between them and the bomb was close enough to grant horrific injuries, but most would survive with help of the many Trauma Teams that'd been sent.

The same could not be said for the two BD Stars, who were almost directly in the centre of the explosion. There was a better chance of turning a man into a pickle than restoring their warped, mangled, and misshapen bodies. Even then, their careers would be over, as they would be too grotesque to show on any screen.

Christy, of course, is also caught by the explosion. Glass fragments and fire catch her, peppering her with lacerations and burns. All were non-lethal however. She lets out a loud cry as she tumbles to the ground, people around the street stopping to observe the terrorist attack that'd just occurred.

Minutes later, before the police sirens could even sound, multiple AVs flew down from the sky, one hurriedly loading Christy inside to be treated. The others dropped off many Trauma Teams who sprinted into the burning building and dragged out their clients, taking them directly to the Med Center.

[Targets Eliminated.] Sasha reports over the group chat before glancing over at Rebecca, "Let's grab Ori, we need to leave before the NCPD can lock the place down."

-----------------

Ori blocks a kick and grabs the offending leg, throwing the Animal into the ball hard enough to crack their skull. He then turns his attention to the three men remaining out of the group, who were having to step over their unconscious comrades to reach him.

Two of them were already looking at one another, deciding that it'd be better to escape than try and fight the maniac before them. Their hands end up getting cut off at the wrists as they reach their cars as Sasha and Rebecca finally arrive.

"Time to go."

Ori snaps the bone spikes from his elbows and discards them, "I need a couple of these guys to interrogate. Kill the rest.

"Grab some then." Rebecca remarks, shooting a silenced shot into the head of one of the screaming cripples.

Ori nods, throwing two of the Animals who he suspects are the leaders of the group over his shoulders. He makes his way to the car as Rebecca finishes off anyone who wasn't already dead.