Excursion 1: Small-Town Happenings

"Black Hawk reporting, I sense energy coming due East, I'm approaching it alone. Keep on standby Doc, we might need your expertise in a minute." Black Hawk said in a calm voice.

This wasn't his first hunt, but he was always nervous about his timing. He approached a shaded alleyway, the sensation of energy intensified. He knew his target was in sight.

"Hahaha what do you think asshole! How do you like me now!" Said a relatively tall man, while kicking another guy, on the ground in fetal position.

"Damn Jasper… Is that all you've got? My girlfriend kicks my ass way better than you—"

"Shut up you bastard!" Yelled the man as he slashed him more with his knife. The cuts were shallow, as if especially designed to maximize pain.

Suddenly, the imposing man, knife in hand, felt a tap on the back of his shoulder, "hey there lil buddy, knives aren't toys you know? Kids like you shouldn't be playing with such a dangerous tool." Black Hawk said, clad in all black gear.

But Jasper was too surprised. He turned around and swung his arm, attempting to slash the man; Black Hawk jumped a few feet away, dodging it.

"So you're the one they sent, a new playmate, yippee," Jasper said as he cracked his neck and shook his hands, readying for battle.

"Damn kid, you must be new to this game. Gifts ain't for threats buddy," he said. He put his thumb atop a red button at the bottom of his knife handle, and pressed it. Suddenly, ten shallow cuts emerged on Jasper's back, causing him to stumble a few steps forward, "you should have come at me as soon as you could."

* 30 minutes before *

Robert Fyky was an ordinary college student in Florida State, he was studying physics, but he was bad at it. He struggled really hard, like he did with most other subjects, but he was decent at math, so he thought he could do it. He had some interesting hobbies, he enjoyed knitting surprisingly; often going to class wearing hand knitted vests. He also enjoyed a good amount of fighting, having conquered the territory of almost every gang in town.

He was an amazing fighter, participating in several fight clubs all the way up to his senior year, but fighting constantly like that comes with it's own baggage.

An old enemy Jasper Long came by, and while Robert was on his way to class, slashed him, inflicting a wound of middling depth. He passed out from the wound and Jasper carried him.

Next time he woke up, he found himself hunched beside a dumpster in some obscure alleyway, brick walls entrapping him here. And as he looked down at his limp body, he saw blood dripping down from several nicks and slashes.

The biggest shock in his life came however when he looked down to the floor, where his left hand was supposed to be, and saw nothing there. His hand was missing.

"Thanks Fyky! My new toy loves the taste of your blood," he said as he was stroking the blunt edge of his knife.

For the first time ever, Fyky felt fear.

There was a saying in his hometown. His dad would always say, "listen, you might not like our boy, but when you're back's against the wall, and some scummy asshole's looking to eat you up, you're gonna wish Fyky was with you." He had never lost a fight and never fell to an ambush. And so tears started rolling down his eyes.

Jasper was mad. "You ruined my life jackass, I got kicked out cause a' you, you aren't ready for the kind of hurt I'll give you!" And Jasper began viciously slicing Fyky's flesh, and kicking him with military cleats. Such rage was fueled by Fyky's tears.

* Present *

Black Hawk cut Jasper ten times, though all light cuts. He didn't want to kill him just yet, feeling that he need to ask him some questions about his gift.

"Ahhh so you've got one too!" Said Jasper, "finally! My blade's been starving for some blood."

Jasper runs up to Black Hawk, unleashing a flurry of slashes, but Black Hawk masterfully contorts his body, narrowly dodging the tip of his blade each time. After unleashing thirty slashes, the Mad Jasper calms down, his hands grasping his knees as he's hunched over, panting out of breath.

"You did well beansprout. With a little more training I can see a future in you—" suddenly Black Hawk disappeared from his spot and reappeared behind Jasper, squatting on the ledge of a dumbster, "unfortunately, I need to do my job." He presses the button again and several cuts open up on Jasper's torso.

Jasper asked himself, how'd he do it? I didn't feel anything touching me, no slashes, no contact, I dodged a couple of swings… Maybe that's how he does it.

Jasper sought to test his hypothesis, so he took a small blood pack from his back sitting at the corner of the alley.

He stabbed his knife through the pack, and suddenly, the blood drained into the blade, and it changed from a stainless-steel grey, to a dark blood-red. Black Hawk wasn't scared at all though.

Black Hawk wondered what Jasper would do next, curious about how he would use his gift, he simply waited squatting atop the dumpster ledge.

"Hmm that's an interesting blade you got there. Say what's your name kid?" Asked Black Hawk.

"They call me Mad Jasper, but you can call me your killer!" And he swung his blade ahead of, from his blade came a wave of densely packed blood. It was moving at a blinding speed towards the squatting man, but he simply jumped and dodged. The wave hit the dumpster slicing it clean in half.

"You're an interesting kid, I like you, but it's almost five, and I wanna clock out soon, so I'm gonna have to end this now, byeee," he said, moving his hip to the right and waving at him with his left hand, a shit-eating grin on his face, as he pressed the button with his left hand and suddenly ten slashes, causing deep wounds in non-vital areas popped up on Jasper's body, tearing apart his clothes and skin. The shock knocked him out.

"So little man, you good enough to stand?" He asked Fyky, while he was in fetal position wanting to go home.

" I guess…" he said shakily as he lifted himself up on the ground, and the two walk out of the alleyway, with Black Hawk carrying a tied up Jasper over his shoulder.

… To be continued.