The evolution of Ari (Solo)

He was normal as could be to the naked eye well normal in his own way one could say, his appearance was more of a young delinquent looking to settle a score with someone rather than a productive member of society. Messy caramel colored hair with a large blond streak in the middle that was pulled back into a crude looking ponytail, his eyes a chocolate brown that were rather warm rather than the cold fierce look most people would have if they looked like him. He was young looking but he did not look like a teenage anymore, most would have guessed young to mid twenties at best, his clothing baggy jeans with a red tee shirt though his body was deceptive in it's own ways. His body was that of a runner's rather than a body builder's, with clothing it seemed thin almost weak to most yet underneath the clothing was a lean muscular form that most would never suspect him of having, he may or may not have been encouraging the weak look by wearing such baggy clothing. His shoes were not shoes at all but instead a pair of flip flops that made a little smacking sound with each step he took, a soft tinkling of metal could be heard as his revolving iron ring spun around a bit.

It was mid afternoon and everything seemed to be going okay as Ari walked down the sidewalk ever so calmly heading to the bank, he had a couple of checks he wanted to deposit directly because he had heard of the ATMS not putting stuff through lately. Plus with all of the super abilities going around these days it was better to talk to a real person than use a machine that could be easily manipulated he thought to himself as he walked into the bank calmly now. He stood in line and waited his turn like any other person would and as he got to the female teller she gave him a real smile rather than the fake smile that you always saw on bank workers face as if they had to act cheery all the time. Just as he was about to pulled out the checks from his pocket there was a commotion at the front door which was six men rushing into the bank with ski masks on. Ari could not believe his luck for a second as he watched the security guard go to pull his pistol only to be struck in the head with the butt of a shotgun from one of the robbers. The older man crumpled to the floor like a bag of rocks and then came the gunshot that got everyone's attention, it rang through the air like the sound of death as usually the sound of a gun brought such a thing.

Ari's entire form was tense as he looked towards the exits but already the men were spreading out with their weapons and blocking them so the people within could not get out. If Ari were to transform he could get himself out of here with just his iron form but as he glanced around and saw the terrified faces of the others around him he could not even stomach the thought of abandoning them. The men were already gathering the people up towards the center of the bank now and Ari complied without a fight as he knew he he tried to take them all the innocent people would be caught up in this as well and he couldn't have that. So for now he sat down with everyone else and gave up his cellphone as well, he watched carefully to see what they were after but it seemed like they were just here for the money as they got to work on the vault in the back quickly. Two stood guard over the hostages while the other four were working on the vault with a practiced efficiency, he could hear the soft whispering of someone behind him and as he looked back he saw the slightly attractive teller that smiled at him whispering to the children that it would be okay.

She really was a good person he thought to himself before his head snapped towards the main doors of the bank as he heard the sirens, shit one of the workers at the bank must have tripped the silent alarm he thought to himself. It was their job and all but now that the cops were outside waiting things were going to get a lot uglier with hostages in the middle he thought to himself, his fists clenched and unclenched as he tried to think of a way out of here but there was nothing that came to mind. What good was his ability if there was nothing he could do to help himself and those around him he thought to himself in a angry and worried fashion that must have been sensed by the woman behind him. Her hand came to his should comfortingly as if he were one of the children and she whispered "everything will be okay, just relax" her voice so soothing actually did seem to relax Ari as he nodded while a bit calmer now.

Time seemed to tick by ever so slowly as if someone were intentionally slowing down time so this stressful encounter lasted longer, Ari knew that was all in his mind but every time he looked back at the clock on the wall he couldn't help but notice that the hands barely moved. The men were still working on the vault and it had been nearly an hour since then, the cops had been outside for just as long waiting for demands from the would be bank robbers. Ari could tell that others around him were getting nervous as well, an older gentleman continuously tapped his fingers against his knee, the sound was soft but Ari could still hear it and it began to annoy him a bit though he said nothing. The police outside were doing nothing but sitting there waiting still as if that would do something, where were the heroes Ari questioned mentally as this was definitely not a small little thing, if one of them didn't show up twenty or so people could just be killed outright he thought grimly. The self doubt of his own abilities was what led to his inability to do anything, his ability was nothing more than a danger to those around him and if he used it those people wouldn't thank him they would fear him or hate him instead he thought with the same grim mind set that came with thoughts of his powers.

His thoughts must have translated onto his face as the woman behind him once again placed a comforting hand upon his shoulder while giving him a gentle smile, he couldn't understand how she could remain so calm under such pressure. With every movement of the men Ari felt his body tense and he felt the urge to leap forward and tackle the man so he could beat him into the blackness of unconsciousness yet he did nothing of the sort even as the men got annoyed as well. They weren't expecting an extra lock in the vault system so it was taking more time than they originally planned but they continued though it was far riskier than before it seemed the payload was worth more than they wanted to leave. Finally there was a cheer from the vault room ten or so minutes later as the men managed to cut their way through the vault door and got their first look at the millions that was stored there. With this done Ari had to think positively as they would make their escape with the money in some crazy fashion he thought to himself as he watched them bringing out bags and bags of money before placing it on the floor in front of the hostages.

With the money in front the men were now willing to talk to the police only to demand that they would be given a bus that would drive them and the hostages to the airport where a plane would be waiting to take them and the hostages to a non extradition country. Ari's face paled when he heard the leader talking about doing something like that as that meant this ordeal was far from over, of course the police refused to do such a thing at first but then negotiations were opened up when the threat came to the hostages. The leader sounded like a cold man that was willing to do anything to get out of here with his crew and the millions that they now had that could be carried out by the very people they held hostage at gun point. The negotiations went back and forth as the police tried to get some of the people released as a sing of good faith but the leader would not let even one person go as he knew the police just wanted less collateral damage in case they tried to storm the place which everyone knew they eventually would. It seemed like the police could never comply with the demands of criminals or terrorists yet if they came in here it was obvious that someone was going to get hurt whether it was the robbers or the innocents was yet to be known.

It was as if every brick within the good luck wall had been smashed because just as the bus arrived to take the hostages out the police tried their attack, flash bang grenades came in and everything seemed to go white. He could barely hear anything now and he simply sat there as gun fire from both sides rang in his ears, at some point the police managed to make it to the hostages but only long enough to grab the mother and her two children before taking heavy gunfire from the bank robbers. Now that negotiations had broken down the men were furious that the police dared tried to test them, with the next phone call the leader screamed into the phone furiously before saying that he would use an example for his wrath now. No one knew what he meant right then but when he pulled out his pistol and began walking towards the hostages it was clear what he was going to do. Ari could practically taste the fear from the others. No one who the man would choose and that was actually worse than the fear of dying as this would be the death sentence, he stopped right in front of Ari and for a moment everyone felt relief as it seemed the delinquent would be chosen. But instead he pointed to the comforting woman behind Ari and demanded that she come with him.

"Wait a second there is no reason to take out your anger on us it was the police that broke the agreement not us" Ari said quickly trying to diffuse the situation as fast as he could without getting himself shot at. For his words Ari got a nice smack to the face with the back of a shotgun that split his cheek open quite a bit, he could feel the warmth of his blood flowing down his cheek right away as he looked up from the ground. Before the caring calm woman was taken from them she reached down and pressed her handkerchief against the wound and gave him a warm smile "everything is going to be okay" she said in such a confident tone that Ari almost believed her. Once again Ari could not imagine how this woman who was being taken away to die could be so strong in the face of death, it was as if her spirit was unbreakable though her body was not. In a way one could call it inspiring but at the same time it was like the woman had come to terms with death as there was no escaping it at this point and that was worse.

Suddenly it seemed like things were in slow motion to Ari as he watched the men lead her to the main window by herself and then it happened, like a wave of death they shot her right in the back for everyone to see. The news camera, the reporters, the police, and of course the hostages all got to watch as the woman was basically executed because the police were not willing to negotiate properly. Ari could not believe what he had just seen, of course he heard of people dying and he had even seen it happen once yet this was something completely different, this woman hadn't died she had been murdered in front of him. The piece of cloth in his hand held against his cheek now fell as his hand was limp from shock, suddenly the world was a much more dangerous place than he thought and he was going to become just as dangerous. Ari reverted back to his old self in the moment, the excitement of possible death causing his hair to stand up, his lips curling up into a wicked almost evil smile.

Now came the Ari that was used to hurting people because they had wronged him in any way, "bastards!" he suddenly yelled as he got up from his kneeling position and slammed his right fist into an unaware robber. The force of his blow doubling over the man as his breath expelled from the forceful punch to his stomach, then came up a vicious knee that slammed directly into his nose breaking it. The soft crunching sound was like music to Ari's ears as he turned towards the second guard who was bringing up his pistol, his first shot rang through the air yet those that expected to see Ari die instead got a surprise. Within the time that the man brought up the gun Ari showed that he was not human but something else, his flesh had become a dark grey, his clothing, his hair, even his eyes were all the same color now. He was a living statute of iron, the bullet hit him squarely in the cheek yet ricocheted off without Ari even blinking, the man had no idea how to react as Ari approached him slowly savoring the fearful look on the man's face. When he got close enough Ari suddenly spun around and drove his heel into the man's mid section, with the force of his blow and the new hardness that he had Ari easily shattered multiple ribs.

The robber sank to the ground like a puppet with it's strings cut gasping for air while clutching at his ribs pointlessly, now the other were aware that something was going wrong and came back to find Ari standing over their comrade so of course they opened fire on him. But the small caliber rounds did nothing more than bounce from his iron body as he walked towards them just as slowly, he took his time letting them unload every round that they had. What happened when he got close enough was almost a recreation of his past, the men were on the floor in a heap with bones broken, teeth broken, flesh split with blood pouring from wounds upon the face yet this time Ari did not feel as if he were in the wrong. Sure he had enjoyed beating them down but this had been justified because they were nothing more than worthless murderers to him, he could hear a commotion from the front and caught site of the police and hostages moving now. Ari let his transformation disappear so he remained normal and he ran up to the back of the hostages line as they got out, he did not take his time he pushed through the crowd and managed to get away from the police and hostages before they could question him or arrest him for his deeds.

(Exit)