The man had led Apricot upstairs to the second floor of the bank. Over the mezzanine, the over-watch gave a view of the outside. While uncomfortable with the anxiety of having a barrel pointed to her head. Apricot felt more at ease with him than with that lady downstairs; even still, the gun to her head told her otherwise. “So, just down the hall. I don’t want a sniper to blow my head off so please walk in front of me?”

Huddled next to her the man presses himself into Apricot’s backside. She blushes feeling his chest against her rear as they inch towards the door. Outside she can see several police with their guns drawn while others walked around casually holding papers. The crowd of people had mostly dispersed.

Inside the room, there is a girl in the corner with tears streaming over her face. She sobs to herself while a man sits in front of a computer. A pistol rests on the desk along with a camera setup with several cables stretching from his hands and tiny metal pieces spread out of his fingers. They clicked on the keys typing at a fast rate. Apricot immediately felt sick to her stomach. This twisted form before her was once human. Now he looks as though he was something artificial, like a monster out of a horror film. “Hey, Diego, you almost done? You pissed off the cops with that light show of yours.”

“Did I?” he chuckles. “I wasn’t aware.”

The man beats his fist on the table “Yeah, now get your ass in gear cause we sure as hell are running out of time and I don’t intend to die here.”

“What? But the party has just started.” He snickers. “They got impressive countermeasure electronics. I got through the first couple phases. Think they got a real nice buried treasure. The downstairs vaults are unlocked anyway, load up what you can. I will have all the tunnels open for you in a few. Was not expecting this stuff ya know. If you give me some time though… I think I can find something more valuable. They equipped this place with naked body scanners. Bet that is worth something too.”

“Listen, pervo, get us a freaking bank train so we can get the hell out of here.” the handsome man hollers.

“Tanj! You ain’t no fun.” Diago grumbles. “Including where you gonna go? You don’t think the tunnels are swarming with police by now?”

“Just get it done.”

“Are you a runner?” Apricot asks. The black-haired lady in the corner looks up with plain shock. Apricot had heard about people who did this sort of thing. It was not the normal kind of theft but rather they needed certain location to get into closed systems. These people often left slaughter in their path. The need to remove witnesses is of the upmost importance. However, like wizards the machines used to surveil the people could not track them. They vanish from recorded footage and with some knowledge of tech they could move in ways most others could not. Most of the time selling their goods on the black market of the black market.

Diago glances from his screen at Apricot. “The eyes, they are wrong,” Apricot thought to herself. “Like the dolls in the shop windows of Akubashi street.”

“Who’s the girl?”

“Hostage like your‘s.” The handsome man says patting Apricot on the butt with his hand. A chill ran down her spine. She wanted to slap him but resists the urge. “A reporter.”

“Huh, shit man, if you don’t get that one creased soon, I’ll reconfig her myself. Expert witness, you know joy boy.” She didn’t understand all the words but gathered the jist, he wanted her dead. A threat Apricot wouldn’t take lightly. The other girl’s wide eye’s gave Apricot the impression she thought much the same.

Apricot can feel the handsome man press the tip of the cold barrel through the back of her uniform. “You worry about our getaway.” Apricot is not entirely sure how to take the situation. The handsome man appears to have morals. At least he did not seem like he wants her dead. Then again, she knew her emotions are twisted up into a knot. He drives her towards the hall “You know the drill girl, don’t let them yellow boys blow off my head now.”

From the ground floor, a deep voice thunders “On your knees!” followed by a retinue of commands.

“Ta hell is that!” shouts Diago. The handsome man pushes Apricot onto the floor holding out his gun.

Several ghostly figures drop through the marble ceiling onto the floor. The cloaks they wore bend the light to mirror the surroundings. If not for the shimmering the cloaked figures would be invisible Apricot thought. They throw off the cloaks to show themselves as armored police pointing their guns to the criminals. “Got ya.” a mechanically synthesized voice calls.

“You did.” replies the handsome man. He swivels his body drawing a blade from his spinning torso and stabs the knife against the thick armored collar. The blade scrapes against the black Kevlar. The butt of the officer’s rifle impacts into the man’s head knocking him to the floor.

Diego jumps onto the table, knocking the seat into the wall. He swings his arm sending the computer smashing into an officer. The cables whip back into his left hand. He meets the rifle of an officer as he points his right hand in their direction.

“You son of a bitch!” Diago howls. His forearm splits open with a mechanical groan revealing a hidden uzi. “Ratatat!” the gun roars. Apricot covers her ears with both hands dropping onto her knees. To her horror, she watches a smoking bullet land between her knees. She lets out a scream of her own crescendoing the many ricochets.

She kicks away from the smoldering bullet into the wall getting as far from it as she can. “Ah-ahahahaa!” Diago cackles. She screams as her back sank into a pair of arms. She looks up to see the gray and blue hosed mask of an officer covering her within their cloak. Inside the cloak is bright. The fabric became a screen showing bodies around the room and making the walls appear translucent.

Apricot watches as the red silhouette of the handsome man swept his foot knocking the other officer onto the floor. “I got you honey!” says a muffled female voice. The officer leans back lifting her through the bank’s wall. An intense tingling sensation came over Apricot as they do the impossible. The officer plummets as a swooping bird with Apricot as her prize clutched in her arms. Landing with a heavy thud on the pavement below she realizes she is thrashing and screaming.

Her mind is racing with questions the largest of them is “What just happened?“ Did they jump through a wall? Cradled in the officer’s arms Apricot looks up into the iron blue mask. The eye shields shine a bright red color. Two air hoses run along the sides of the solid neck shields.

“It’s all right mam, you are safe now.” The police officer set Apricot to her feet. She rose to her full stance gripping a clip on the side of her mask. It clicks with an airy hiss as she lifts the helmet off allowing her long black hair to come cascading out. She has white irises, how unique Apricot thought to herself. “Are you ok? Hun?” she asks with a rural mainlander accent. Apricot looks on wide eyed with a slack jaw. “I got to thank you. Your little sneaking escapade allowed me to get inside the backdoor without anyone noticing,”

She watches another officer jump through the wall with the black-haired lady. He unfurls her asking “Mam, do you need medical attention?” The lady just wails in his arms.

“This is the life police have, so dangerous.” The words came off her tongue without intending to.

“You are lucky to miss. I have not seen many kids walk out of something like that.” The officer says to her.

Apricot broke out of her trance before turning to the armored woman saying “Forgive me.” She bows as low as she could “Thanks for saving me. I am in your debt.”

“All in a day’s work miss.” The officer says with a smile.

A man in uniform walks towards her holding a clipboard. “You’re a student, huh?” He says looking at Apricot’s tattered uniform. “What were you doing inside the bank?”

Apricot’s heart sank knowing full well she is on camera. “That is a funny story…” she says biting her nails. She relayed the events that lead to her becoming a hostage. Much to the officer’s amusement.

“Press huh, well, I will have to report this to your superiors and let them decide what is to be done with you. Understand me.” The man says waving a finger at Apricot. She nods. “Good girl put in a good word. Got it, girl? Now would you come with me? We need to get your account on record so you can be on your way.”