l1ttle_billy | New Jersey, Thursday Morning Part 2

	The ninja in white ceased writhing in pain, and rose, shedding the head set. His eyes were narrowed at Cassandra, who currently was standing between her and the Commander.
	She shifted slightly to take herself out from between the two of them and carefully positioned herself to watch them both as she circled around to the Commander's side.
	Snake-Eyes charged at the Commander, kicking the gun out of his hand. Even as the blue cowled megalomaniac backed away in fear, the ninja's sword was swinging for his skull. Only to be blocked by Storm-Shadow's own blade. The stared at each other over Cobra Commander's shoulder. From the set of their shoulders, they were both straining.
	While Cassandra understood the term 'fair fight', she didn't think it had any place in real combat. She continued to circle, trying to position herself to take Storm-Shadow out from behind.
	Had he known what she was thinking, Cobra Commander would have approved. He didn't believe in the concept of a fair fight either. That's why he punched Snake-Eyes, distracting him enough for Storm-Shadow to get the upper hand.
	It took a single striding leap to close the distance and allow Cassandra to aim a kick at Storm-Shadow.
	Cobra Commander saw that his guards were pretty much gone. "Storm Shadow! Get me out-aagh!" he ducked away from Cassandra and towards the door. Storm Shadow whirled around to grab her foot and twist, while Snake-Eyes blocked a backhand punch from him.
	Cassandra pushed off with her other foot to twist with Storm Shadow, bringing her knee up and around to simultaneously catch him in the head and break his grip.
	Storm Shadow's answering gambit was the grab Snake Eyes and flip him at the girl. "You have been trained well child." he said respecfully.
	Banter was a weapon not to be underestimated, but Cassandra wasn't any good at it so she was silent as she ducked the incoming ninja. Then she began circling to her left. She could take him down if she had to, but all she really had to do was keep him distracted while everyone else did their jobs.
	Storm Shadow had his own job to do. Never taking his eyes off of Cassandra, he helped the commander to his feet and ushered him to the stairs.
	That was just not on. Cassandra rushed forward, throwing a few probing punches and kicks in an effort to keep him off-balance.
	Storm Shadow blocked or dodged most of the attacks, but it did delay him. When she managed to connect with a punch, Cobra Commander drew a knife from his boot and threw it at her. He'd clearly had extensive training himself with such weapons.
	With a slight grin, Cassandra surged forward. By now they should know she can dodge the blade, and probably expect her to. So instead she takes it in the shoulder and drives a kick forward where they hopefully won't expect one.
	That was indeed what they were expecting. Storm Shadow took the kick, and shoved the Commander towards the stairs. "Get out of here!" Snake-Eyes came to join Cassandra in the attack, but fighting two skilled opponents at the same time was not new for Storm Shadow.
	Cassandra had already seen that Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow were pretty evenly matched. So she didn't see any point in staying. She darted to the side, planning to get around the two of them while they fought.
	He wasn't having that. His primary concern was to get the Commander to safety. Kicking Snake-Eyes, he drew his sword and swiped it down before Cassandra. The Commander was halfway up the stairs. "Your friend is bleeding to death." he mocked her, pointing at his son.

	Oh, no. Hell no. John tried to artfully apply his kneecap to the chin of Mr. Bloody nose.
	The knee caught him in the jaw, but his momentum carried him forward anyway.
	John was off-balance and crashed to the ground, trying to keep away from Evil Biker and his Evil Biker Funk. He kicked at his new friend, trying to keep him at arm's length. Er. Leg's length.
	He grunted, and grabbed for John's leg.
	John let him grab it. It's much easier to kick them in the face if they're already holding his leg. Which is what John is trying to do. He didn't really need a nose, right?

	The sword didn't really slow her down, all it took was an odd swaying step to avoid it, but Cassandra did glance back at Billy who was, in fact, bleeding to death. Her eyes scanned the room and everyone else was occupied. With the Commander running and Snake-Eyes able to cover Storm Shadow, that left her as the only person free to do anything about it. With an abrupt motion she changed directions, abandoning her pursuit to take care of Billy.
	Snake-Eyes pursued Cobra Commander and Storm Shadow up into the Video arcade, where he focused on subduing his sword brother. Cobra Commander might get away. Then again he might not, given the people Billy had brought with them. That was not his concern at the moment however. He had come to rescue Storm Shadow from the Commander's control, and he meant to do just that. With Cassandra taking care of Billy, he was free to give all his attention to Tommy. The battle destroyed several video games and pinball machines, but finally he had Tommy down, and unarmed. Channeling his energy into the secret ninja technique he'd been taught years ago, he held his hands in the secret formation in front of Storm Shadow's eyes, guiding him into the Arashikage mindset. The one thing that could free him for good.
	His eyes at first were narrowed with rage and hate, but gradually they cleared, replaced by determination, and weariness.

	Thrasher had had just about enough of these new Joes. And when did the army start recruiting teenagers? Cranking up the engine, he opened fire with the gattling gun on the hood, blasting away at, well, pretty much everybody who wasn't wearing the Dreadknock insignia.
	Tori managed to evade the punch at the last minute, staggering backwards a bit from the attack and pain. Gaining her balance once more, Tori retaliated with a punch and a couple of kicks.
	The other girl, wearing a blue shirt that looked like it had been stolen from a cop, dove forward, seemingly to attack Tori.
	Tori saw the other girl and did a back handspring to avoid the attack. That move? Hurt her leg, but Tori just gritted through it.
	But the dive turned out not to be at Tori at all, but at the other girl. "Get down!" she shouted, shoving her friend to the ground as the chain gun on the hood of the Thunder Machine opened up on the area.
	Tori's eyes widened as she hit the ground and rolled to the side, in an attempt to avoid the spray of bullets. Thankfully, none of them hit her dead on. Her cheek was grazed by one, but it was nothing she couldn't handle. She raised her head up and scrambled to get out of the way, feeling something hit her in the shoulder. Looking behind her, and feeling her shoulder, she realized it was a piece of brick shrapnel from the bullets.
	Oh like he'd never had his nose broken before. It built character. However before he could retaliate, heavy machine gun fire peppered the brick wall above their head. "Damnit! Thrasher you lunatic! Later kid!" He backed off, keeping his head down.
	John flicked him off and ran towards the sound, pulling his pistols out of his jacket.
	Cobra Commander burst from the building and beelined for the car, keeping his head low to avoid the gunfire. When he reached it, he opened the driver's side door, and tossed Thrasher into the street.
	Liz screamed as she found herself unable to contain her fire surge and suddenly and without little warning there was an explosion as her power let loose.
	"Aaaagh!" The Commander was thrown clear of the blast, and stared in shock. The Thunder Machine was a flaming ruin. Zartan wouldn't be happy about that. Flames from the wreckage spread as they found pools of deisel from the gas tank. He had to give his son credit. He had made some impressive friends. Who, were currently out numbering his own men.
	A very pissed off Snake Eyes stalked out of the arcade, ignoring the pools of fire scattered about. He made a beeline for the Commander.

	Billy had moved from where he'd fallen. Not much but it would seem he was trying for his gun. He hadn't made it though.
	Cassandra didn't say anything as she knelt beside him. She just pushed his gun a bit farther away and started looking him over. She didn't want him trying to shoot anyone while he went into shock, after all.
	cough"Hate him."
	"Seems mutual," she suggested as she reached out to probe the wound.
	He hissed with pain when she came in contact with the wound, but he did not flinch. "C-can't believe was...that stupid." he gasped.
	She nodded as she applied pressure to slow the bleeding. "Should have dodged."
	"Should have shot him first." he growled, then trailed off into coughing. Blood flecked his lips.
	"Should stop bleeding," she added as she pressed down hard and looked around for something to use as a temporary bandage.
	"Right, I'll work-" Again he hissed in pain. "I'll work on that."
	Not finding anything better, Cassandra decided to just rip Billy's sleeve off and tear it into strips to use as a bandage. Not a perfect solution, but workable.
	It's okay, Billy wasn't too attatched to the shirt. And he fully understood the need for improvised bandages. "Thanks."
	She frowned down at him. "Shouldn't stand up yet," she decided. Not that she expected him to listen.
	He'd actually been too busy cursing his own naivete to think about standing up. "Okay." He really would like to get out of here. If nothing else the curiosity about what was going on upstairs was killing him.
	After a moment Cassandra decided that he wouldn't bleed to death if she moved him. "Wanna leave?"
	"Yes please." He nodded. It was depressing down here.
	Without saying anything, Cassandra lifted Billy off the ground. She was fairly small, but she didn't have any problem carrying his weight.
	Despite the circumstances, and his injury, he couldn't resist a smirk. "Totally hot."
	Cassandra didn't stop moving, but did blink down at him in confusion. The expression was pretty much useless since she was wearing a mask.
	If he'd known he'd confused her he'd have offered to explain later. As it was, it was a passing comment and was done now.
	They make it to the door in silence. Well, except for the shooting going on around them.

	Adam circled the guard, not taking his eyes off of him for a moment. There was a voice nagging at him, to make sure Billy was all right. Taking a chance, Adam stole a glance towards his friend, before reverting back to the guard.
	Perfect. The minute Adam's eyes left his opponent, he surged forward, punching and kicking in quick succession.
	Adam turned just as the guard attacked. Managing to block a few of the blows, Adam staggered back, wincing in pain. Managing to regain some semblance of balance, Adam attempted to fight back, launching a couple kicks and punches of his own. Though, damn, was he hurting from those blows.
	The Guard had the advantage of wearing body armor. But at the same time, his helmet restricted his vision somewhat. He found himself driven back by Adam's assault.
	Adam continued his assault, hoping to take the guard out with his attack. He needed to get to Billy.
	When the Commander and Storm Shadow made their escape, the guard decided it was time for him to leave as well. "See ya around kid." he said, giving a mock salute. Stupid ninjas. Give him a nice clean political assasination any day.
	Adam went to follow the guard, when he heard the explosion. All thoughts of pursuit erased from his mind, Adam made his way outside.

	With Cassandra's help, Billy staggered out of the building. Just in time to see Storm Shadow once more come to Cobra Commander's aid. Sirens could be heard in the distance, approaching. The wreckage of the Thunder Machine blazed, the fire spreading.
	"It is over brother." Storm Shadow insisted, standing between Snake-Eyes and the Commander. As he spoke, his hands visible only to Snake Eyes, he signed a short message to his old friend. "Get William to a hospital before it is too late."
	It took all of Billy's energy to even stay concious. All he could do was stare in shock at his old teacher.
	"Good bye William. You have impressive friends."
	"Another time, 'Son'." Cobra Commander sneered as he and Storm Shadow backed away. He always had a way out. It was time to make use of it. He had won.
	As the Blue Bastard was busy making his 'strategic withdrawl', John heard the explosion and came running. It's okay, most of the blood wasn't his. Really. "Oh, shit." He continued running, towards Billy. "Dude, what the hell happened?! Ane! Somebody!" John shucked his jacket and pulled his shirt off and wadded it around Billy's chest. "Fuck, must have hit every goddamn organ," he muttered to himself as he applied pressure. "I need help here! Medic!" he yelled.
	Anemone had come out of the arcade right behind Cassandra and Billy, lingering back by the entrance to guard against anyone coming from behind. "I'm right here," she said calmly, waiting until the blue-man retreated to lower her weapon and move over to John. She had considered taking the shot, but Billy might not like it if she killed his father. Some people were funny like that. "What do you need?"
	"Left thigh pocket, med kit. And a full surgical hospital unit if you have one handy," he said. "Remind me to give you a 'thank god you're safe' glomp later," he said, trying to flip his hair out of his eyes, both hands on Billy's chest. "Just hold on, dude," he said. "Help's coming."
	Still holding Billy, Cassandra scanned the area for threats before turning to John. "One bullet. May have clipped an artery. He's lost a lot of blood and shock is setting in." Most of that was pretty obvious, really.
	"Of course I'm safe, don't be silly." Kneeling, she retrieved the kit and handed it to him, still watching the arcade. "We need to go, I don't think we want to explain this to the police."
	"Police ask a lot of questions and we can't ask any back. It's unfair," John said, trying to keep his tone light. "Cass? How's your first aid?" he asked, releasing the pressure and opening the kit. Okay, where's the "Sucking Chest Wound Slash Heavy Torso Bleeding" section? Ah, here.
	"Get him somewhere quiet and I can fix it." A temporary fix, of course, but at least he wouldn't die. Probably.
	"I hope you're better than I am," he said, working on a field dressing. "Not letting this peg-leg bastard die. You hear me, One-Eye?" he said at Billy through gritted teeth. "Not gonna happen." He finished the dressing. "Where to?"
	Adam, his last opponent running away, made his way outside, having heard the large explosion. Seeing the gang, he rushed over to them, taking in Billy's condition. "What can I do?"
	Tori appeared, a little worse for wear, what with the car having blown up in front of her. Spotting Billy, she immediately shed her uniform top, a blue t-shirt beneath it, intent on draping it over Billy to keep him warm until the medics arrived. If only she knew how to heal with water like Katara did. Silently cursing, Tori kept an eye out for the EMTs and any other enemies that might've somehow still been around.
	Snake-Eyes stood a little off to the side, exchanging messages with someone. Soon enough he approached the group, looking down at Billy in concern. Help wold arrive soon. All they needed to do was stay put and keep him going till then. The louder the sirens got, the better he felt.
	"Police are coming," Cassandra told Snake-Eyes with a frown. It was clear that she considered this a Bad Thing. Especially if they were supposed to stay here.
	"Let's not be here. Handcuffs hurt," John said totally not looking at Anemone. Nope. Not at all.. "We need a hospital. Or at least a vet clinic."
	The black clad Ninja held out his hands reassuringly. Billy, during a bout of lucidity said; "Trust him."
	Cassandra's eyes flicked back and forth between Billy and Snake-Eyes, then she shrugged. If it came to jail she could always break out.
	"Carry him. All of us. Help me." John directed those present how to carry Billy. "Hurry. Be careful." He was worried.
	Anemone inched behind John and Cassandra, eyes slightly wide. The louder the sirens were getting the more visibly twitchy she was getting. Swallowing nervously, she glanced over at Snake-Eyes. "Some of us can't be here if the police come," she said softly. "What are we waiting for?"
	At that moment, two ambulances, one fire truck, and five police cars arrived on the scene.