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Well, finally got it out! I apologize for the long wait, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

I would like to thank Midnight Fox for beta reading for me, he made quite a few suggestions that helped make this chapter even better. I hope I can count on his help again in the future ^^.

The Tale Of Lyncelia - Chapter 4

Wayne's life slowly went back to normal after Lyncelia's disappearance, although his memories of her were always somewhere in the back of his mind. He had a deep desire to meet with her once more, so he could at least apologize for what had happened to her family. However, eventually he had given up on ever seeing her again...

**************7 years later...****************

_Riiiiing.....Riiiiiing.....Riiiiing.....Riii-beep. "_Uuuuuhhh....Hello...?"

"Bruce, get up....we found it..."

"Are you sure...?" the man replied in a deep voice as he slowly sat up in his bed, scratching his head.

"Positive...we will brief you once you get here...click."

_ _

"So they finally found it huh..." He said as he tossed the cell phone aside. "Looks like today's gonna be a busy day!"

He got up and stretched his arms, walking towards his bathroom. After a quick shower and some breakfast, he walked over to his closet and pulled out a plain white T-shirt, along with some black cargo pants and combat boots.

Once those were on he walked over to his bed, knelt down, and pulled a large case out from underneath, putting it on top of his bed. He unlatched it, opened it and looked at the contents inside. A vest marked with the letters ACRS, a USP pistol, a holster, silencer, and a few extra magazines for the weapon, and an HK MP5 with an attached laser sight. Upon seeing that everything was in order, he closed the case with a satisfied smile.

Taking hold of the cases handle, he made his way to the door. However, he stopped and turned, surveying his room. After only a moment, his scanning eyes finally found what they were looking for.

"There you are..." he whispered as he walked back to the side of his bed, finding his cell phone teetering on the corner.

"Knew I was forgettin somethin'." He stated as he once again made for the door. After stepping outside, he took in a deep breathe of the fresh air, looked around at the quiet, spacious field surrounding his house, and smiled.

"Finally, I get to have a little fun!" he shouted, running to the sleek, black corvette parked outside. Without another word, he got in, started it and sped down the street.

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Wayne slowly looked around the strange room. He wasn't sure where he was or how he got there, he just woke up on the floor to find himself in a plain white room, devoid of anything but a single window. He crept towards it, constantly looking around and checking his back. After finally making it there, he was shocked to see that the outside was just as empty as the room, nothing but an endless sea of white, devoid of life. That is, until he saw a tiny dot in the distance. He couldn't tell what it was, and he squinted in an attempt to see it clearly.

Suddenly, something pushed him forward, forcing him to crash through the window and tumble to the ground outside. He winced as he slowly got to his feet, looking at the many cuts covering his body.

"Uhhhg. What the hell was that...?" he muttered as he looked around once more. Remembering the dot in the distance, he scanned the horizon to see if it was still there. After a few moments he gave up, unable to see anything, and turned to survey the rest of the area. However, as soon as he turned, a figure stood before him. His father.

"Dad! Where are we? What's going on?" Wayne asked, although his father showed no signs of noticing him.

"Hey! Dad? DAD!" he shouted, grabbing his father's shoulders. The man just stood there with a blank stare, not even acknowledging his son.

Just then, a loud howl echoed throughout the "field." Wayne turned to see where it came from, but could see nothing.

"Dad, did you hear tha-..." Wayne started to ask as he turned back to face his father, but there was nobody there.

"WAAAAAAAYNE!!!" came a voice from behind him.

That sounds like dad! He thought as he quickly turned around. About ten feet ahead of him, there was a door, which was slightly open, but not enough to see inside it. He ran toward it without any hesitation and swung the door open. He was immediately overwhelmed by a blinding light, and was pulled into the door.

After a few moments, his vision finally cleared.

"What the..." he whispered as he looked around. He was in a forest...and there was a cliffside nearby.

"Wayne!" He heard coming from ahead. Through the foliage, he could barely make out his father, running towards him. He looked panicked, as if he was being chased...

"Dad!" Wayne yelled as he ran to meet his father. However, he was suddenly pushed off his feet, landing haphazardly on the rough ground. When he looked up, he saw his father standing above him.

"Son, are oka-" he asked, but was cut off when a brown furred hand grabbed his neck from behind. He was slowly lifted off the ground, blood trickling from where its claws met his throat. The figure lifted his father out of the way, revealing itself to him.

"L...Lyn...? Is that you?" he asked, seeing the wolf-like figure before him. She snarled at his words, then turned her attention to the writhing human in her grasp. After tightening her grip, she slammed him into the ground with a sickening crack.

"DAD!" Wayne shouted, unable to move his legs to get up. Lyncelia looked back to Wayne with a look of pure hatred.

"Now you will know the pain of losing a father..." she said in a cold voice as she raised her claw above Wayne's dad, preparing to end his life.

"NOOOOOO!!!!" Wayne shouted, reaching out to his father. Right before she brought down her claws, Wayne closed his eyes, unable to watch his father be so brutally slaughtered, and waited for it all to be over...

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Beep...Beep...Beep...Beep...Beep

_ _

Wayne slowly lifted his head, acknowledging the annoying beeping from his alarm coming from behind him.

"Uuuuuhh...what a weird dream......Lyn..." he mumbled, still half asleep.

Yawning, stretching, and scratching his eyes, he started to fully wake himself up. Once he was wide awake, he looked down at the desk that he fell asleep on. There were books scattered everywhere, and a few papers. However, his eyes went wide at seeing the paper right in front of him. Take Home Test was written at the top, but all that followed was numbers with empty spaces for answers.

"Oh Crap!!!" he yelled as he realized that he fell asleep before he even answered one question! "Okay...class starts at 8...I can rush through it...right...?" He got up from his chair and looked at the alarm beside his bed, which was still beeping.

"7:32!!! I overslept too!?!" he yelled as he ran to the alarm to turn it off. He began pacing, thinking about what he should do.

"Shit! Shit! Shit! Shower? No time, I can smell for one day. Cloths? I definitely need those. Breakfast? I can wait till lunch to eat. Okay! Get dressed, run to school, and rush through the test!" He said to himself, already halfway dressed. Once he was finished getting dressed and getting all his stuff ready, he took one last glance at the clock before dashing out of the house.

"7:41...I can still make it with some time to spare..." he whispered once he took off down the stairs and out of the house.

"Wait!" he heard come from behind him once he left the house. It was his mom, asking him to come back.

"Sorry mom! I'm really late! Whatever it is will have to wait! Bye!" he shouted while jogging away, then started to sprint towards his school, backpack shuffling uncomfortably along his back.

"Sigh... That boy can't ever be on time, can he...? Oh well, I'll just tell him once he gets home." She said to herself, then walked back inside, closing the door behind her.

As Wayne ran, he looked around the city, seeing a few other people running towards the school. Sigh...this place sure is different than Ellenwood... he thought, looking across the street where a beggar was asking for money.

A few years ago, Wayne's father was given a job opportunity that required him and his family to move to a city called Greenville, which was quite a ways away from Ellenwood. This city, however, was anything but "green". Unlike his old home, Greenville was a moderately big city, which is a drastic change from the small country town that he grew up in. The only "green" to be found here was the peoples' yards of urban areas and a small forest near the city outskirts. He adjusted, and life returned to being "normal" after a while.

"Hey Wayne!" came a nearby shout, snapping Wayne out of his revere. He looked to the source of the shout, seeing Derek running to catch up with him.

About half a year after the move, Derek and his family also moved here. His mother was "tired" of the country, and wanted to live in the city. Oh, and Derek was expelled from the school there for something involving fireworks.

"Wait up!" he yelled to Wayne

"Sorry, but you're gonna have to catch up! We're late, and I have the WHOLE test from first period history to finish!" Wayne shouted back, not slowing down at all. At that, Derek sprinted forward to catch up to his friend. It didn't take long, since Derek was a really fast runner.

"You serious!?! You do know how much that test is counting towards our final grade right...? Derek asked with a surprised look once they were running side by side.

"YES! I know! Why do you think I'm running as fast as I can! Maybe I'll have a little time to rush through it once we get there." He replied between breathes.

"Well lucky for you, I finished it. Although...I forgot my lunch money today...someone is gonna have to give me a small donation of saaaay...10 bucks?" Derek said with a sly smile.

"I'll pay for your lunch for the rest of the week if I can have those answers!" replied Wayne in a desperate voice. They shook on it, and continued on their way to the school.

They finally arrived at the gates leading into Greenville High School, and spared no time as they rushed in and found a bench near their first class.

"C'mon c'mon, hurry up! I only have 4 minutes!" Wayne said as Derek dug through his backpack for the test.

"Got it!" he cried out triumphantly, handing the paper over.

"Thanks so much, you're really savin my ass here." He said as he started to write in the answers on his own test.

"Yeah yeah, and you're really savin my wallet, er, my stomach!" he replied with a laugh.

A few minutes later the bell rang, just as Wayne filled in the last answer.

"Done!" Wayne shouted after a relieved sigh. They both got up, and started heading to class.

"I wrote down a few wrong answers so the teacher won't get suspicious. Sacrificing a few points is nothing after getting this close to failing..." he said with a smile, handing back Derek's test. They walked the rest of the way there in silence, both still moderately tired from their morning run.

Once they made it to their class, they both waved to the teacher, Mr. Drax, on the way to their seats. Just as they sat down, the bell rang once more. Mr. Drax wasted no time, and immediately walked to the front of the class, eyeing several students before he spoke.

"Well, good morning everyone. I assume there was no trouble with the take home test?" he asked, smirking as he saw a few students sighing in frustration. "Don't expect any sympathy about failing grades or late work, which I will NOT accept. After all, I allowed you to take the dang thing home and use the book, your notes, and any other resources you have." He continued, slowly pacing around the room.

"SO!" he suddenly shouted, slamming both hands on a nearby table. "Please come forward and place your test on the table."

Derek and Wayne immediately stood up, followed by the majority of the class. About 7 students remained in their desks, either staring blankly at the ground or sighing into their arms. Mr. Drax took note of which students remained seated, snickering at how he guessed almost perfectly which students didn't do the test. The only surprise was that Wayne got up, with a smile on his face even. As he approached, he stared at him, analyzing his approach. Wayne noticed this, and hesitantly stepped forward to place his test on the table.

"Here you go sir." Wayne said, tossing the paper onto the pile.

"Well, I'm glad to see that SOMEone finally decided to do some work for a change." Mr. Drax stated bluntly, continuing his analytical stare.

"Yeah, I had my face buried in books all night long." He replied with a smile, technically telling the truth.

"Well, we shall see if it paid off or not." He said, waving him off. Wayne took his seat again, taking out his book and pen in preparation for the days notes.

The rest of his classes were relatively uneventful and boring, and soon Wayne was on his way to the cafeteria for lunch. As soon as he walked through the doors, Derek stopped him in his tracks.

"Okay! Let's get me my lunch!" he shouted, then lead the way to the line.

Sigh...a deal's a deal I suppose. Wayne thought, walking over to get in the line with his friend.

Once they got their food, they sat at their usual spot, where Mathew was already waiting. Mathew is one of the first friends that Wayne made upon moving here, although he's only a junior, while Wayne and Derek were seniors. The three became quick friends, and frequently hung out together.

"Hey guys." Mathew said as Wayne and Derek took their seats at the table. They both replied with a "Hey" of their own, and started eating.

"So, either of you guys up for hanging out after school?" Wayne asked after a few minutes.

"Where did you have in mind?" Mathew asked, taking a drink of his milk.

"We could go see a movie, or maybe go to the arcade." Wayne replied, looking to Derek for his approval.

"You guys can go ahead, my new girlfriend wants me to meet her parents." Derek sighed, finishing up his free meal.

"Aw, sounds like a drag. Have fun!" he replied jokingly.

"Hey, at least I have a girlfriend, unlike SOME people." Derek mocked.

"Hey, we know Wayne just hasn't found the right girl yet, right Wayne?" Mathew stated, laughing with Derek.

Wayne laughed along with them, knowing that they were just messing around with him. It's not that he hasn't had any opportunities with women, he just has yet to meet one that he felt affection for.

"Anywho, what about you Mathew?"

"Sure, I got nothing else to do. The arcade sounds fun." He said, standing up.

RIIIIIIIIIING, the bell sounded, signaling the end of lunch.

"Okay, so I'll see ya after school." Wayne said to Mathew, who walked away with a wave. "Later Derek!"

"See ya." He replied, walking off in another direction.

The second half of the school day was just as uneventful as the first, and Wayne was patiently waiting for the last 5 minutes to finish, staring at the clock as the seconds slowly crept onward. Even the teacher was standing by the door looking bored, waiting for her own freedom.

Finally, the bell rang, and the hallways were instantly flooded with students rushing to the outside. Wayne steadily followed the crowd to the school gates, finding Mathew already waiting there.

"Took ya long enough." He said as Wayne made his way through the gate.

"Hey, my last class is farther away than yours." He replied as they started walking.

"Nah, you're just slow." He countered, laughing.

"You're just impatient." Wayne said, laughing with his friend.

The two continued on into the city, arriving at the arcade shortly after. However, it wasn't long before they ran out of money. They decided to leave, trying to find something else to do to kill time.

"So...what now?" Mathew asked, putting his hands behind his head as they started to aimlessly walk around.

"I don't know. I guess we could play some games at my place or somethi-*boom*!" Wayne said, but was interrupted by a loud noise.

"What the hell was that...?" Mathew asked, looking around. They both waited to see if they could hearing anything else.

Boom, boom, Tatatat, boom...

"Sounds like gunshots!" Wayne shouted, trying to decipher where they came from.

"I wonder what's going on...maybe there's a cop chase or something..." Mathew stated.

Wayne ran ahead, calling back "Let's check it out!" Mathew chased after him, hoping that they weren't getting involved in anything. Along the way, they heard a few more gunshots, and they were getting louder. Just as they turned a corner, Wayne ran right into someone, nearly knocking him off his feet.

"What the hell?" he screamed, pushing away the kid that just bumped into him.

"Woah..." Mathew said as he slowly backed up, staring at the man. He was dressed in all black, including a heavy vest with the letters "ACRS" on the front. However, it was the gun in the man's hands that caught his eye.

"S...sorry sir, I didn't mean to run into you." Wayne said in apology.

"What are you kids doing? Get outa here! It's dangerous, and you're gonna get in our way!" he yelled, slinging the gun over his back.

"What's going on here?" asked Mathew, feeling safer now that the man put his gun away.

"We're the ACRS, Abnormal Crisis Reaction Squad." The man replied, giving a cold stare. "Something that we've been after has made its way here, and we're here to find it and put it down."

"What is it that you're after...?" Wayne asked, stepping forward. He had an idea of what it was, but he had to be sure. Lately there had been rumors all around the city that a "monster" had been seen in several areas. Most of the time, it was spotted fleeing from a restaurant or grocery store on the outskirts of the city, near the forest.

There's no way that it's her...she's probably long gone...if anything, its someone else of her species, but even that is pretty unlikely......still...I have to find out...

"I'm afraid that's classified information, but it's a bloodthirsty monster. Now get going, and watch your backs." He said with nod, starting to turn away. Just then, another man wearing the same uniform ran up to them, giving the two kids a weird look.

A second later, he turned his attention to his comrade. "Bruce, it seems to be heading towards an abandoned warehouse just outside of Greenville Forest."

"Good, let's go cut it off!" he said, and the two ran off without another word.

Mathew and Wayne just stood there a moment, taking in the situation. Without a word, Wayne took off in the direction that the two men went.

"H-Hey! What are you doing...?" Mathew called after him, sprinting to catch up.

"Going to go check it out! Sounds interesting, I wanna see what they're after!" he yelled back.

"Uuhhh...he always has to get himself involved in things that don't concern him..." Mathew whispered to himself, keeping pace with Wayne.

After a few moments, they found themselves hiding behind some trash cans, a little ways away from a large building. Surrounding it was a large number of people in the ACRS uniforms, all aiming their guns towards the entrances and exits. Wayne was scanning the exterior for some way to get in unnoticed, but couldn't find any unguarded doors or windows.

"C'mooooon there has to be SOME way to get in..." he whispered, watching the ACRS moving around outside. "Hmmmm..." He looked to the closest window, which was open and being watched by two of the soldiers.

"Hey, if we can distract those two away from that window, we should be able to make a run for it and make it inside before anyone can notice." Mathew said, trying to think of a way to make them move. "Hmm, if we can find a rock, we can chuck it at a nearby closed window to break it, and those two will go running towards the sound!" He turned to see what Wayne thought of the plan, but was surprised to see that he was already about to throw a rock.

CRACK! "GO!" Wayne whispered, seeing that the two guards went running in the direction of the window that he broke. They both moved from behind the trash cans and sprinted towards the now unoccupied window, leaping in once they reached it.

"Ooooohh...what a hard landing..." Mathew said, slowly getting to his feet. Wayne got up soon after, and surveyed the area. It was a large room, full of old abandoned boxes and crates. There was one door on either side, one of which lead outside to the ACRS. With only one other option, they slowly made there way to the door leading further inside.

"How do I let you talk me into these things...?" Mathew huffed, looking around the room with a slightly scared expression. "Who knows what it is that they are after."

"First off, I don't talk you into anything, I just act and you follow." Wayne replied with a laugh. "Second, that's what we are here to find out."

They reached the door, and as Wayne tried the handle, all it allowed was a jiggle. "Damn, it's locked."

"Oh c'mon! Look at this door! Its old as hell and covered with dust" Mathew said, before taking a step back, bringing his leg up, and smashing his foot into the door, effectively kicking it open.

"Well I coulda done that!" Wayne said with a smirk.

"Why didn't you?" Mathew chuckled.

"Didn't feel like it." He answered, walking into the hallway before them.

The hallway was long and narrow, and had only two other doors. One was at the end of the hall, and the other was in the center to the right. Wayne and Mathew continued making their way through the hallway, with Wayne leading the way while Mathew watched their rear. It was getting darker as they went in, but they could still see enough to make their way through.

Just as they crossed the middle door, they began to hear noises.

"You hear that...?" Wayne said, and Mathew put his ear to the door.

He heard a voice coming from the room beyond. "Go! Move in, and switch to night vision! Sweep the area, shoot to kill!"

Mathew's eyes went wide, and he immediately backed up from the door. "Run!" He said to Wayne, but before they could act, the door burst open, a swarm of laser sights flooding into the hall from the room. Wayne ran as fast as he could to the door at the end, while Mathew ended up running back to where they came from. They each made it into their respective rooms before the ACRS could get a glimpse of them, but they didn't have long before they would be found. They had agreed earlier to meet outside in the forest should they get separated, so that's what they would try to do.

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Mathew closed the door behind him once he was back inside of the room that they started in, but the door swung open again. Damn! That's right, I broke that door... he thought, looking around for something he could use to block the doorway with. However, there was no time. He heard footsteps coming from behind him, and he decided that he had to hide somewhere, fast. He sprinted to the nearest crate as fast as he could, ducking behind it just as the first of the ACRS walked in, his laser sight moving all across the room.

If I can manage to slowly move through the boxes and crates, I just might be able to make it back to the window that we came in from. He thought, slowly inching further from the door under the cover of the stacked crates.

"Move in! Alpha Team is already inside!" a voice came from the other side of the room. A new wave of men swarmed in from the door leading to the outside, spreading out to cover the entire area. Mathew was trapped, and he knew it. He figured that his best option now was to make his presence apparent, so he wouldn't get shot.

"Heeeeelp! I don't know where I am, whats going on...? He cried out, and immediately every laser in the room pointed in his direction.

"Don't shoot! I'm just a kid! I don't know what's going on here, I just wanna go home..." he whined, knowing that they wouldn't open fire on a "helpless kid." A few of them stepped forward, slowly making their way towards him. He put his hands up, waiting for the lasers to be removed from his chest.

A young girl, no older than twenty-five faced him, a very serious look on her face. "What the hell are you doing here? Are you trying to get yourself killed?!?!" she shouted, grabbing his shoulders.

"I was just...um...exploring. I was just bored, I have no idea what's going on..." he replied, looking at the many guns still pointed at him.

She stared into his eyes for a few moments, then sighed as she made a hand sign, signaling to everyone that he was no threat. They all lowered their weapons and continued to search the area.

"Come with me...I'll get you out of here." She said, turning away to lead him outside.

Mathew turned to look at the door behind him as the ACRS started to rush in. I hope you can get out of this Wayne... he thought, then looked forward, following the girl.

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Wayne slammed the door behind him, and continued to run through the labyrinth of hallways. After a few more turns, he came across a door. With no other options, he made for it, but as he shook the handle, it refused to budge.

"Dammit! Why is everything locked around here...?" he said to himself, cursing his luck as he looked the door over. After a moment, he took a step back, lifted his leg, and quickly brought his foot down upon the door.

Thump "AH, damn it!" he shouted in pain, grasping his leg and staring at the unwavering door. "Sigh...damn you Mathew, you just got lucky...how am I supposed to...oh..." he said, suddenly feeling stupid as he finally noticed that the lock's latch was on his side of the door. Click. He unlocked the door and stepped through, only a slight limp in his step.

He was in a large room, much like the one that he started off in, except it was much darker, and had a few hallways branching from it. He slowly crept onward, constantly shifting his eyes. "Hello...? Is there anybody in here...?" he hesitantly asked. Just then, he heard what seemed to be footsteps, but the echoing walls made it impossible to tell where they came from. He looked around as he continued walking deeper into the room. A few times, he thought he saw a shadow moving, leaping around.

After a few moments, he heard a creaking sound coming from above him. However, as soon as he looked up, all he saw was a dangling overhead light moving from side to side. Hearing footsteps again, he decided that he had had enough. He dashed toward the nearest hallway leading away from that room, hearing clicking sounds following him, but he couldn't see anything when he turned back.

Making it into the hall, he skidded to a halt, almost running straight into a wall of crates and desks that blocked the way. Just as he turned around, he was tackled to the floor by something moving unnaturally fast. At that moment, all he saw was a clawed, brown furred hand reaching back, about to strike. He brought his hands up in a futile attempt at self defense, but as he did so, he got a look at the creature above him, who seemed to be hesitating, with a surprised expression on its face.

"Lyn...? Lyncelia...is that you...?" Wayne asked, bringing his hands down to get a better look at her.

For the most part, she looked like she had all those years ago, except of course for her size. She was about the same height as Wayne, maybe a little bit taller. Also, her chest was a bit more prominent, her hips were a bit curvier, and she had a wicked scar across her left side.

"Wayne...?" she asked in a high, feminine voice, although a bit deeper than when she was a kid. She slowly brought her claw down, meeting his gaze.

"Those beautiful blue eyes...just like I remember them..." he said, a smile slowly forming. She just stared back at him, slightly blushing at his comment, before remembering her situation. She quickly got off of him and stood up, still staring into his eyes.

However, before she could say anything, a loud CRASH came from the room behind them. As Wayne got up, Lyn turned to see a large number of ACRS soldiers rushing into the room, treading over a door that was knocked off of its hinges.

Lyn quickly turned to Wayne, sparing only a second to look at him, before leaping through a hole in the ceiling.

"Lyn! Wait!" he shouted, but was already too late. The group was quickly advancing on the dead-ended hallway, and Lyn was no where in sight. He decided to follow her, and used a crate to reach the ceilings hole. He reached up, grabbing the sides and heaving himself up into the hole. As soon as he got his leg up, he saw the space he was just in occupied by a sea of red lasers, made visible by the heavy dust in the air. As he held his breath and slowly edged away from the opening, he heard the soldiers whispering orders and comments to each other.

Once at a suitable distance, he looked around the small space, finding only one way out, other than the hole he crawled through. There was a ladder on the wall nearby, allowing access to a variety of ventilation shafts. At the very top, there was an open grate the lead to the roof of the warehouse. That must be where Lyn went... he thought as he began his climb.

Once he finally made it to the top, he squinted as his eyes slowly adjusted from the dark depths of the building. The roof was deserted, the only signs of life being the birds flying overhead.

"At least it's nice to get some fresh air..." he said as he walked to the edge of the building. "Wait a sec..." He looked into the trees of the nearby forest below, seeing Lyn leaning on a tree, looking back at him. A second later, she ran into the depths of the forest, her image being lost behind the trees and foliage.

CRASH!

Wayne quickly turned around, seeing the door to the roof flying open, a group of four ACRS soldiers immediately taking aim at him as they walked out into the sunlight.

One of them stepped forward, lowering his weapon. Wayne recognized him as Bruce, the guy that he had run into earlier in the city.

"What the hell are you doin' here kid?" he said, surprised to see him of all people up here, signaling the others to lower their weapons as well. "And how did you get here...?"

"Um...well, me and my friend got a little curious about what the ruckus was all about...so we decided to follow you guys..." he explained, slowly walking away from the edge of the roof. Bruce noticed this, and moved to look over the edge, seeing only the forest below. He then looked back to Wayne, staring into his eyes.

"How did you get here before us...?" he asked in a low voice, getting uncomfortably close.

"Well...we snuck in the building while everyone was outside..." he admitted, backing away slightly.

"You're telling me that a couple of high school brats snuck around a large group of highly trained professionals and avoided detection?" he said in a rather sarcastic voice, pacing around the roof. "And just where is this 'friend' of yours...?"

"I don't know, we got separated inside..." Wayne answered, now slightly worried about Mathew.

"Hm...must be the kid that Alpha squad found." He replied, seeing relief wash over Wayne's face. "One more question..." he said, once again getting uncomfortably close. "Did you see anything inside other than us? Hear any strange noises? Anything?"

Wayne shifted a little, then responded "Nope, not a single thing. This place was completely abandoned, except for you and me that is."

He kept as straight a face as he could manage while Bruce stared directly into his eyes, deciding whether to trust him or not. After a few moments, he straightened up and walked over to one of his comrades.

"Get him outa here, and let him and his friend go home. They've been through a lot." He ordered.

"Sir, yes sir!" the man answered, and waved Wayne over to escort him out. Once they were down the stairs and out of sight, Bruce walked over to the remaining two soldiers.

"I want that kid followed for the next few days...he knows something..." he muttered in a low voice. "I also want his friend tailed; he may be involved as well."

"Yes sir." They both replied in unison, walking off to join the others downstairs.

Bruce walked to the edge of the building, staring down at the forest below and taking in a deep breathe.

"We will find you. It's only a matter of time before I hunt you down." With that, he turned to the stairwell, and proceeded downstairs.

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Once Wayne made it outside, he was met by a young girl in an ACRS uniform, followed by Mathew.

"You two are free to go...just please try to stay out of our way from now on, okay? We are after a terrible monster, who has already claimed the life of one citizen. We don't need any more potential casualties." She said, waving them off and going back to continue her business.

The two nodded and turned to return home, exhausted.

Already claimed a life...? There's no way that Lyn would...no, she wouldn't do that...there has to be some kind of mistake... Wayne thought, not able to accept that she would take someone's life.

Mathew patted Wayne on the shoulder, snapping him out of his thoughts. "Hey, glad to see ya got out okay man."

"Yeah, you too. Had me worried when you ran off back to where we came from." he replied, giving a faint smile.

"Hey, I didn't have time to think, I just ran!" he defended, laughing.

"Oh you know what...?" Wayne asked. "I tried to kick down a door."

"And...?" Mathew stated, arching an eyebrow.

"I hurt my leg..." he admitted, and they both shared a good laugh.

"Oh, I forgot to ask, did you see anything inside? And did you find out what they were after?" Mathew asked, wondering what had Wayne looking so out of it once he got out of the warehouse.

"Oh, um, nope. I thought I saw something moving in the shadows, but I think it was just my mind playing tricks on me. It was pretty dark where I ended up." He answered, looking down as thoughts of Lyn crept back into his mind.

"Oh well... Anywho, I think I'm gonna head home, it's getting a bit late." Mathew said, looking at the orange tint that was cast throughout the sky from the sunset. "Later dude."

"See ya" Wayne replied, giving a wave before turning to make his way home.

Lyn...I knew that I would see you again someday... he thought, looking up at the sky. But did you really kill someone...? No, I don't believe that you would do that...but I don't know...It's been seven years...Where have you been? What happened after...your father was murdered? I hope we can meet again, so I can get some answers...

His mind was silent for the rest of the way home, and once he walked in the door his mother approached him with a worried look.

"Where have you been...?" she asked.

"I went to the arcade with Mathew, why?" he replied, wondering why his mom was worried.

"The news said that there were gunshots reported in the city, but the cause and area was unknown. You didn't hear anything while you were out?"

Wayne put a hand on his mother's shoulder. "Nah, this is the first I've heard of it. If I heard anything like gunshots, I would have rushed home."

"Okay...you look tired." She said, giving her son a tender hug.

"Yeah, I plan on goin to bed, I'm exhausted." he admitted, trudging up the stairs to retire for the day once he was out of his mothers grasp.

"You want me to warm you up some dinner? I made meat loaf." She asked in a caring voice.

"Nah, I'll heat some up in the morning." He replied, not feeling very hungry.

"Okay. Oh by the way, you're father won't be home for a few days, he was sent somewhere for a business meeting. I tried to tell you this morning, but you ran off." She called up the stairs.

"Oh, okay, good night mom." He replied, opening his door.

"Good night." She answered, returning to the living room.

Wayne instantly tossed himself onto his bed, marveling in the comfort it provided after his long day. After a moment, his thoughts yet again returned to Lyn.

Hmm...perhaps I'll explore that forest after school tomorrow to try and find you...heh, it'll be just like old times...I'd really like to know about where you've been...and if you really did kill somebody or not...

With that lingering question in his mind, he yawned, moved to get comfortable, and fell asleep.