Locked Away

"Yes, officer. This is the boy that stole a ring from my store. Please, have him taken away. But, get him to return it first" The worker explained to cops, standing over the boy.

"I already told you...I can't give it back to him." Riley said wearily, looking up to the police.

"Whaddaya mean, kid? Just give the man back his bloody ring and we won't put you up for too long. You're already screwed. If you were over eighteen, you'd be executed. Stealing is a national offense, you should know."

"Ya gotta understand...I can't quite explain it but...I can't give him back his ring! It's not something I can do on command, okay?"

The officer kicked the boy in the face, making him fall to the ground loudly.

"Tike doesn't want to give it back. Send him down to the precinct and have him chained and locked. I'll get a report ready." The officer barked, turning around as a few other officers grabbed hold of him, dragging him away. As he was loaded into a carriage, all he could see was the building, it's flames dying out.

All Riley could think then was about the ring he had taken, and the woman he planned to give it to. His life, for as far as he was concerned, was over.

********************************************

Orrevile Station, Downtown Liverpool

Cell 13

It was cold and dark, almost as cold and dark as the streets he ran through before. But it was also incredibly silent, a feeling that made the boy uncomfortable beyond any standard. He was pressed up against a large brick wall, surrounded by two long fences of metal bars. His arms, which were up in the air, were shackled to the bricks with chains. Riley's head hung downward, the uncomfortable feeling in his arms beginning to surge to the rest of his body.

The grumbling of guards could be heard down the hall, Riley trying to make out what they were saying. He came to no conclusion.

"If they really are dead...if...if...if I couldn't save them...then...I need to make up for it. I can't sit here and just die. As much as I want to see them now...it makes no sense for me to sit here and mope. My mother admired my father for his strength in situations like this. I was born with his strength! So I have to suck it up and grieve later. If my wits are about me, I could figure a way to break out of these shackles." Maxwell plotted, observing his surroundings.

A small metal bench was off to his right side, help up to the wall with a smaller metal bar connected to the bench and the brick. Maxwell began to inspect the metal bar further, looking for any signs of weakness. To his avail, the bolt connecting the bar to the bench was loose.

"Got it." He thought, a spark of his intelligence beginning a process in his mind. Immediately he began to plot a way to break the bench and get the bar.

Riley shifted his body so that it was entirely against the wall. Now that he was in position, he began to press his boot against the bar, feeling for the bolt with the rubber end of his shoe. Flicking at it ever so lightly, he began to apply pressure as he felt and heard the bolt slip off the screw it was attached to. With one well placed kick, the bolt gave out, the bar now protruding out from the brick wall.

"Got it! Now I just gotta pull it out from there…"

Maxwell then carefully wrapped his legs around the bar, tugging at it with the rubber soles of his boot. Each pull had more grip and strength to it, and to his luck, the bar began to shake loose.

As it was about to slide out of the hole, Maxwell stopped quickly. The chatter of the guards down the hall got immensely louder.

"HEY, WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DO—"

Silence. The chatter stopped. Maxwell, now scarred for his life, waited a few minutes for a clear coast. When it was safe to, he continued to pull the bar out. With one last tug, the bar gave free, and Riley slid it over across the ground in front of him, careful not to let it roll away.

"Okay, now just to get this to my hands."

Riley put the pole between his legs, hunching over so he could grasp it with his mouth. His lips and teeth were now firmly around the cold metal, giving him quicker incentive to get it into his hands as fast as possible, as his teeth were sensitive.

With one upward motion, Riley flung the bar upwards, catching it perfectly in his hand.

"YES!"

Maxwell stuffed the metal bar in the space between his hand and the shackle, pushing it forward so that the latch would break open. With enough force and a few grunts, the lock gave out and Riley's left hand was free. Now repeating the same action with his right, the boy stopped suddenly when he heard footsteps echoing forward. The guard approaching was whistling lightly, flinging his keys around as they jingled. The sound grew closer and closer, and the fear in Maxwell's mind began to grow.

Riley now frantically continued to break the other shackle, the lock giving in as before. Now rising to his feet, Maxwell dove into the dark corner of the cell as the footsteps approached the bars.

A tall guard peered into the cell, recognizing the boy hunched over.

"Hey, get up, kid." The guard ordered.

Reluctantly, Riley rose to his feet as he peered over at the broken shackles, hoping the guard wouldn't notice.

"What is it, officer?" Riley asked innocently, trying to draw attention from his deed.

"Tell me...and be honest. Did you just break those shackles?" The officer asked, leaning up against the bars. He was very relaxed and casual, the visor of his hat covering most of his face. From what Maxwell could make out though, a small smile seemed to shine through.

"Y-yes officer...that was me. I'm sorry, lock me back up again."

"Heh, as if! That's impressive, man! Now I see why they wanted you out so bad."

Maxwell raised an eyebrow as he inspected the officer further. His uniform was badly wrinkled, his name tag and badge missing. If one didn't know any better, some could assume he was wearing a faulty costume.

"They? Who's they? And why do they want me out of here?"

"We've been hearing some rumors of this special kid with a very...unique talent. But the fact that you can offer some escape skills as well only adds to the value. You were made for this kind of stuff."

"I'm asking some questions here, mister. I don't think you're an actual guard."

"Good. If you believed the getup, you wouldn't be worth our time. That's not the case, though. You're smarter and more capable that what we've been told. Boss will be happy."

"Look, man! I don't know what the hell you're talking about!"

"Right, sorry about that. I tend to ramble. Allow me to explain. The name's Takeshi Tanaka, captain of squadron 4 of the Spectre guild. You must be Maxwell Riley, the boy with the black hand?"

"Yeah, that's me. Wait, how do you know I have a black hand? And what exactly do you want with me?"

"You see, we're part of a massive thieving guild...the biggest and strongest in the country. We're scouting for new members...people with odd abilities and stand out skills. When we heard rumors of people losing their things mysteriously to a boy with a black hand, we looked further into it. That brought us to where we our now. You see, we were planning to recruit you normally. But since you're locked up in here, it seems to me we have a bit of a bargaining chip now."

"Look, I'm no thief. My hand has always had that strange ability to take things from others without me or them knowing, but it's not something I can control. Besides, whatever I take, I cannot bring it back out from wherever it goes anyways. Things that I accidentally steal just turn up when they want to from god knows where. I'm not looking to join a guild, anyways."

"Let's make a deal, Maxwell. If I break you out of this jail cell and give you a place to stay tonight, will you agree to a meeting with our guild leader? Just a very brief conversation, nothing big. That's all I ask."

Riley pondered the thought, wondering if he could trust the man. He began to open himself up to the reality of his situation, really thinking about what was going on.

He refused to return a stolen item. Broke free from a jail appliance. His family passed away in a fire, his home gone. The money in his pocket seized, his status as a criminal now burned into his record. It made no sense to refuse the offer. Riley was in a different world now, one where he could not afford to play things safe and act as if nothing was wrong. This was his chance to find some sort of salvation and hopes to build a new, possibly better life. He was in no position to turn the man down.

"You got yourself a deal, Takeshi. Now, break me out." Riley said as he shook hands with the guard.

"Sure thing. I'll let my muscular friend handle that."

Takeshi pressed his hand against his temple, closing his eyes as he turned away. Ripples began to form in the air around him, Riley dazed by the thought.

The brick wall before Takeshi suddenly shattered open, debris and smoke rolling in from all angles. Then, from the hole he created, he emerged.

The man was incredibly tall. He had a magnificently combed head of hair, his bangs slicked upward in a perfect curve, complimented by a massively well groomed brown beard. His build was incredibly impressive, being ridiculously muscular from his arms to his chest. He was not wearing a shirt, which signified how much he liked showed off. As he entered, the man flexed in every possible position, the sheer glistening brightness of his skin sparkled in the low light.

"THAT'S WALL NUMBER 845! IT ONLY GETS EASIER EVERY TIME!!!!!!" The man shouted, bashing his arms against his chest like a monkey.

"You could've just taken the front door...why do you always have to make an explosive entrance?" A girl emerged from the hallway.

She was a tad shorter than Riley, and had long flowing white hair that almost glowed. Her complexion was soft and her eyes seemed to match her hair in terms of color. She wore a fusion between a formal dress and a combat getup, which seemed to confuse Riley. At her hips rested two blades, one being a longer, normal sword length, the other being about the size of a dagger, if not a bit bigger.

"BECAUSE…I AM OXFORD CUNNINGHAM! THE STRONGEST MAN ALIVE! also one of the most handsome." The man winked, a sparkle from his eye.

"Shut it, Oxford. This is supposed to be a semi stealth mission, but ya bust open the wall like a madman and scream like wun too." Another man emerged from the hole in the wall, this time being about the same size as Takeshi in height. He wore a light brown trench coat and a newsie cap that was something of a tweed brown. His face was freshly shaven, the shadow of his stubble clearly visible. He had a sharp, almost jagged face with deep dark eyes and an intimidating vibe to him. Across his cheeks were many cuts and scars, the biggest and most notable one going down his left eye.

"DO YOU DARE CHALLENGE ME?" Oxford shifted his attention to the man, flexing before him in a fit of very unusual poses.

"Maybe I do, tough guy. Let's go around so I can knock some sense into you. God knows you need it, you beast."

"YOU'LL REGRET THAT YOU CAPPED BUFFOON! NOW BARE WITNESS TO MY AMAZING STRENGTH!" Oxford shouted, flexing in a very questionable position.

"Excuse my friend here...he's just very...animated." Takeshi explained, awkwardly grinning at the sight.

"CUT IT OUT YOU TWO!" The girl shouted, slamming both of their heads in a flash of light. The two quarreling men were on the ground now, rubbing the comically large bumps on their heads. The girl stood over the men like a mother and her children, a vein popping from her forehead, her eyes large and demonic.

"I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO START ACTING LIKE GROWN MEN! WE'RE ON A MISSION FOR GOD SAKES! OXFORD, STOP ACTING GAY! CUTTER, SHUT YOUR TRAP! SHEEEESH!!!!" The girl shouted, finally calming down.

"Now Akemi...I can't help it if I am incredibly handsome...but I suppose I can control my will. I apologize."Oxford said sorrily.

"I'm not sorry for shit. Oxey here deserved a reality check."

"LANGUAGE, Cutter. Sorry, Riley. Herrick swears like a sailor, so we're getting him on a recovery regiment. That'll be 1,000 yen in the jar when we get back, you hear me?" Takeshi snapped.

"Yeah whatever." Cutter grunted, crossing his arms as he sat up against the brick wall.

"Alright, everyone. This is Maxwell Riley. He's the boy with the black hand I'm sure you've all heard about. This is our payload. Everyone introduce yourselves." Takeshi demanded.

"Hello, Maxwell Riley! I am Oxford Cunningham, strongest and most handsome man in the world! It's nice to meet you! Say, I don't see that black hand of yours. Is it under this glove?" Oxford asked, beginning to peel back the leather glove on Riley's hand.

"DON'T TAKE IT OFF! Thank you...sorry. I'm not particularly comfortable showing it to anyone just yet." Riley gasped, pulling his hand away.

"Oh, I'm sorry my dear boy! Do forgive me. I can be a bit inquisitive, you know." Oxford explained.

"It's fine, it's fine." Riley replied.

"I'm Akemi Satō, descendent of the legendary Satō clan from Osaka, Japan. I have been trained to kill a man in more than 300 different ways. Don't give me a reason to use one of them on you." Akemi said coldly, pressing herself up against the wall.

"All you have to know is that my name is Herrick Cutter. You might only see me for the rest of the week, or maybe a few years. Whatever it is, the pay has to be good. I'm a mercenary. I'll be working with these guys as long as I see sum' checks. That is all." Herrick spoke, not looking Riley in the eye once.

"And, as I may have already said, am Takeshi Tanaka, ex Japanese military soldier and current captain of the squad you see here. I'm working with Spectre to make things in this country right. That's what we're all here for, except Cutter, I suppose. I'll save the inspiring schpeel for Maddox, he'll fill you in on everything himself. Anyways, let's get this thing open, Oxey!" Takeshi commanded, stepping aside as the large muscular man popped his knuckles.

"Step back for me, Maxwell. You'll admire the strength of the strongest man alive first hand!" Oxford said courageously, gripping the jail cell bars. Riley did as he was told, stepping back quickly as Oxford pulled the bars apart with ease. It seemed as if there was no resistance to it, as if the bars themselves were made of rubber.

"Come on out now! Let's head back to base before the authorities realize we've broken in!" Takeshi barked, commanding the others to follow him as they made their way out of the precinct. Following such an odd group of individuals felt foreign to Riley. He felt out of place among them, seeing them as strangers to a world they didn't seem to fit into. They were societal aliens, nothing like the calm, poise people of United Japan, and certainly nothing like the mostly posh society of Liverpool.

But there was a sense of endearment to them. Although they felt foreign and obscure, Riley seemed to like the dynamic they portrayed. They were all incredibly distinct and great in their own right, of which he began to pick up on.

Now, all Riley could think of was if the entire rest of the guild was just as crazy as this.