Alex Reij
an ImproFanFic by Deiru



     After being on the force for nearly seven years I was still
considered a rookie, but I had been too successful for the others
to treat me like one.  I was one of them now, a full fledged
member of the Tokyo Police, even though some of them had been
around for twenty, even thirty years.  It never really occurred
to me that when I joined, back in the year 2028, that this was
more than a job, especially since it was never easy, boring
sometimes, like when we would be doing an all night stakeout, and
frustrating other times when after doing that all night stakeout
we'd come up dry, but never easy.  Still, even in the worst of
conditions out on the field, it was ALWAYS better than the
dreaded, office job.  Even the paperwork was a pain in the ass,
but worth it if that's what being in the field called for.
     So, here I am, out on the field.  It's 11:30 p.m. and I've
got my back against a brick wall and my gun in my hand.  Around
the corner is a maniac wielding a very powerful and very illegal
gun.  My partner is up on the roof of the same building that's
also keeping my ass from being blown off.  I'm extremely grateful
to this stone and concrete wall, as you can imagine, but while
I'm down here being grateful, my partner is dodging plasma shots
and trying to snipe this mental case.  Time for Alex Reij to move
into position. 
     I've got him in my sites, I can only hope he doesn't get me
in his.  The words of my father come back to me, "Keep your arm
stiff and gently squeeze the trigger...".  My father had taught
me how to shoot a gun, but my experience taught me how to kill
without emotion.
     It's either him, or me, and now it's "GO" time.  My mind is
clear as I concentrate on the target, yeah, that's what I see,
nothing more than another target.  If I see a man I may hesitate,
if I see an enemy I may still see a man, but if I see a target, I
just fire away.
     The maniac is standing on the roof of a car across the
street from the building I'm hiding behind.  I'm at the corner
and this guy is in plain view, nothing is in my way.  What luck
I'm having tonight!  No innocent bystanders, no traffic, nothing;
just him, me, my partner and the moonlight.  We've got him
trapped in this alley and there's no way out.
     "What could be more perfect?" I say under my breath.  So
full of confidence I get cocky as I think to myself, "Hmm, it's a
little chilly out here, good thing this will all be over in a
matter of seconds..."
     Trying not to get too cocky, I clear my mind of all
conscious thought.
     "It's 'GO' time." I repeat to myself.
     I aim for his head, not procedure, but this isn't time for
procedure.  Three rounds bark out of the gun.  His head jerks
back three times,  I nailed him!  Two left in this clip, but it's
over, so who needs 'em?  No, wait, damn, it's not over, it's just
beginning!  This guy ain't human and he ain't goin' down, but I
might, he sees me, and he's pissed.  How can this be?  Three
shots to the head and he's still standing!  Did I miss?  Or,
wait, he could be on BLAST, if he is then this is a whole new
ballgame.
     BLAST, one of the great products of the 21st Century.  Able
to enhance a mans strength over that of 50 men.  It also makes
'em very invulnerable, almost nothing can stop 'em except for
maybe a StrongSuit, and they've all been called out already. 
Every other lunatic on BLAST is causing a serious riot in this
already chaotic city.  Our department could really use a few more
of these mechanized wonders, too bad they cost over a million
credits.  Ahh well, without a StrongSuit I'm just gonna have to
do this the old fashioned way, with a gun and my wits.
     "Die, pig!" he yells out.
     I watch as he takes aim.
     "Shit!" I yell out as I realize I'm sitting here watching
this man aim a very large and powerful gun right at me, and what
am I doing?  I'm sitting here watching!
     "Run you idiot!"  I think to myself as I dart backwards
landing on my ass.
     The wall disintegrates with every shot he takes with that
evil weapon.  The gauge on that thing was designed for taking out
tanks.  I'd probably get a medal just for finding out where he
got it.
     "Yoshi, what's your situation up there?" I yell into the
radio.
     "Oh man, this is impossible!  I hit him like five or six
times, I think he's on BLAST." a nervous, yet confident voice
calls back.
     "Yeah, that's my assumption as well." 
     My eyes widen as the hole in the wall widens about six
inches.  He's knocked the corner edge off this building, I've got
more room left.  Hell, I've got the whole damned city to hide
behind, but we've got to take this guy out NOW!
     "Damnit Yoshi, when's that backup going to get here?"
     "I don't know, Alex, but we may have to do this ourselves."
     Ourselves?  Just great, just what I needed to hear.
     "Argh!, out'ta juice, got'ta get the next supplement out. 
You pigs just sit tight!"     Masume Kintaki yells out as he
grabs another vial of BLAST and replaces the now empty vial
currently residing in a small metal box embedded into his side. 
The glowing blue liquid swishes around inside the glass vial as
Masume shakes from the shock you get at first after loading up on
BLAST.
     "Now you pigs are in for a ride." He says under his breath.
     "Yoshi!  Did you see that?? He just popped in another dose
of BLAST!  We definitely need backup now!" I yell into the mic.
     "Yeah, Alex, I read you loud and clear, we're in deep now."
     "This is Officer Alex Reij requesting backup immediately. 
We got a guy on BLAST with illegal firearms, he's resisting
arrest and is firing on two officers.  We are on the corner of
67th and Kain, again we are requesting immediate backup."
     "Officer Reij, your request is being filled but we have a
standoff at a bank with hostages, you're either going to have to
take care of it yourself or back off."
     "Have any other officers returned any StrongSuits?"  I ask.
     "Negative.  All StrongSuits are currently in use, except for
one which was returned highly damaged and is currently being
repaired."
     "Aww Christ, Yoshi, did you hear that?"
     "Yeah man, I told you we'd have to do this ourselves..."
     "Great, outstanding odds against us, life just gets better
and better.  Well, on the bright side it might be all over in a
matter of minutes.  Ack!  Bright side?  What's that?  There is no
bright side..." I think to myself.
     Just at that moment, when all hope seemed utterly lost...
     "CLICK, CLICK" the gun sounded
     "Click, click?  What happened to BOOM, BOOM?" I say to
myself.
     A grin gleams across my face, "Well, well, well, looks like
we might be out of power!"
     "DAAAAAAAAAAAAAMN!!!"  Masume's voice echoed throughout the
alley for what seemed like ten minutes.  A warm feeling developed
deep inside me as I heard him cursing and smashing something.
     A quick peek through the hole in the wall revealed a very
irate Masume mercilessly beating what once was a car but now is
nothing more than dented up trash on wheels.  That's when it hit
me, if he can do that to steel with his bare hands, just imagine
what he can do to flesh!
     I gulped hard as the grizzly truth awakened my senses,
specifically, the senses that are more closely affiliated with
fear and pain.  I loaded a new clip and said a little prayer,
than I wondered why I hadn't packed a larger gun like a Solar
Cannon or something slightly larger.  Sure, it would be pretty
hard to haul around a huge weapon like that, but it's capable of
burning a hole into the ground the size or a city block with one
shot, I think it would be worth it.  Too late to worry about that
now though, I had to act now, it was my move.
     "Where'd you pigs go?  Huh?  I'm all out of power!  I need
to recharge my gun if I wanna burn you pigs to a cinder, but
since I don't have any batteries I guess I'm open game!  Aren't
you going to come after me, now that my toy is useless?  Well?"
Masume called out, mocking us.     He knew this would be our most
opportune moment and that we would be coming in full force.
     "Yoshi, I'm moving in." I called into the radio
     "OK Alex, I got you covered."
     I stepped out from the safety of my hiding place and fired
at his head twice, he took both shots.  Then before he could make
a move I darted out of his reach and behind another parked car as
a the entire alley lit up like it was day.  Yoshi was firing his
Photon Accelerator and the blast was bright enough to blind a
man.  He got him six times in the back, but it did nothing but
lurch him forward.  The smell of burning flesh filled the alley,
but Masume was still standing.
     "I'll get you later prick!" he shouted as he pointed up at
Yoshi.  "Right now, however, I'm gonna be busting up your
partner."
     I got ready while I was behind the car, then I rolled out,
popped him a couple times in the chest and gut, than ducked
behind a dumpster.  This time he came running.
     Yoshi was repelling by rope down the side of the building,
it was too late to go inside and come down, I needed help now. 
He got to the ground without alerting Masume and charged up his
Photon Accelerator for another attack.  It took a moment to reach
full charge but he was about ten feet away from the juggernaut
when he released a full power shot.
     Masume screamed bloody terror as he went into berzerker
mode, flailing his arms about.  His clothes were on fire and he
had a gushing wound the size of a softball on the upper part of
his back.  The projectile didn't reach full penetration, which
was very odd, but it did burn several layers of flesh away.  He
was as a raging bull charging down a matador, but unlike a
matador, Yoshi couldn't dodge this brute.  He got knocked clear
into the side of the building.  He hit the wall with a dull thud
and came falling down about six feet to the ground.  He was
unconscious if not dead, but I didn't know, there was no way of
telling without closer observation, meanwhile all of this insane
beast's attention was on me.
     There was nothing I could do, he was after blood, my blood,
and I stood there with my pea-shooter praying to God and
everything else Holy that a miracle would take this man out
before he took me out, but there was nothing doing, I had to
handle this myself.
     "COME ON!" I called out. I stepped out and threw down my
gun.  
     "You wanna fight man to man?  Ha, at least I see you are a
man, a real man, a real DEAD man! Hahaha!" he laughed as he
mocked me.
     The fight was on, I dodged everything he threw at me, his
arms like great blades of a giant windmill swiping at me.  I
could tell just by the wind generated by those hulking appendages
that if he could make contact I would be left on the ground like
Yoshi.  
     "YOSHI!" I thought to myself, "You could be dead now and it
would be the ultimate sacrifice, your life for mine!  Well if you
are indeed dead than I will make sure it is not in vain.  I'll
take this take this guy out, I swear it!"
     The flames on his clothes were slowly going out, but the
burning he felt was still there as he swiped at me again and
again.  I stayed low and hit him low.  I was backed up against a
wall and he plowed at me, missing, but hitting the wall.
     My eyes were saucers as I beheld the wall cracking and
giving way to his large muscular fists.  Every vein in his arm
was popping out, his nostrils flared, anger and insanity written
all over his face, yeah, he was much more than pissed, he was
mentally gone!
     While his hand was plunged into the wall he seemed startled,
like he was as amazed as I was by his great hulking strength, and
that's when I noticed it, the vial of BLAST supplying him with
his inhuman strength.  I saw it for only a second but it seemed
as though time had stopped so that I could fully appreciate the
meaning of that moment, and yes, I did.  I knew exactly what I
had to do.  The beast's one weakness was there in that moment,
and I had an opportunity to exploit it to the fullest.
     As he broke his arm free, I pulled back and fired my fist as
hard as I possibly could into that small box.  The glass
shattered and time just about stopped as the giant realized his
demise.  I pulled my fist back and looked at it.  The glass had
cut deeply into my flesh and the blue liquid was soaking into
every wound and pore on my hand.  My hand felt wet at first, but
now it was dry, and feeling very, almost numb.  A great wave
washed over me as I felt a strength like never before.
     Only moments ago my lungs were burning as I ran out of
breath, my body was heaving and my heart was severely pounding,
but now I was energized, ready to go, feeling like I could pick
up the earth.  My muscles rippled as they built up, I could feel
my body's strength rising.
     "Is this what BLAST does to you?  Is this the effect it has? 
I had read in-depth journals on the effects of this narcotic but
never could I have gotten to understand it like this.  I like
this.  I like this A LOT!" I thought to myself.
     It was only a few seconds but it felt like hours as I
transformed into this super-self.
     Then he looked me straight in the eyes, white as a ghost,
and said, "From all those gunshot wounds I took, I'll die within
the next fifteen seconds if I don't get another hit of BLAST, but
that's still one second longer than you're gonna live!"
     He came at me again, madder than Hell this time.  I ducked
and dodged every swing he took at me and then all of a sudden I
lost control, he took another swing at me and I caught it.  I
gripped his fist, crushing it, pushing him down.  I couldn't stop
myself, then he broke free and swung at me again, this time I
ducked clear under him as he flew past me.  That's when I struck.
     His back was turned towards me and he was hunched over. 
Before he could turn I poured all my strength into that one
punch.  I struck hard thrusting my fist into his back.  It was a
direct hit to his spine.  As I pulled my fist back I realized
that I had broken his spine with my bare hands.  I couldn't
believe it.  One time I had broken a man's jaw with a punch, but
I NEVER broke a man's back!
     He collapsed, hitting the ground with a dull thud.  He let
out a slight groan as he died.     Whether I had killed him with
that fatal blow or all the gunshot wounds finally got him now
that the effects of the BLAST had worn off, I'll never know.  The
coroner told me sometime later that he wasn't quite sure, he said
a little of both, but even if he had gotten another hit of BLAST,
with that severed spinal chord, he couldn't have lasted much
longer.  As for me, the fight was over, I needed to check on
Yoshi.
     "Yoshi, buddy, you all right?"
     I put Yoshi into a more comfortable position while I felt
the effects of BLAST wearing off.
     "What a rush!" I thought.  I wished somehow it could have
lasted longer.
     Yoshi was coming around.  By this time, the BLAST had
completely worn off.  I felt cold as my body was begging for
more.
     "Did you get him?" Yoshi asked, wearily.
     "Yeah, he's dead.  The uh, BLAST, um, wore off I guess.  I
must've broke his supply vial because it was all over him.  He
only lasted a few more minutes, then all those gunshot wounds
finally overtook him." I lied through my teeth.
     Something was coming over me, I had to keep the fact that I
was high on BLAST a secret from Yoshi.  I needed to get more of
that stuff from somewhere and I needed it soon, but I couldn't
let Yoshi know.  What was happening to me?  I NEVER kept secrets
from my partner before!  "I'll call for an ambulance, you look
terrible!"  I changed the subject.
     "Thanks buddy, you don't look so good either, you OK?"
     "I'm FINE!  Why would you ask a question like that?"  
     "Hey!  Sorry, must've hit a nerve.  I was just making a
comment, that's all.  Ugh, where's that ambulance?"
     He drifted off again.  But why did I snap on him?  I never
touched a drug in my life, why this sudden urge to get more BLAST
all of a sudden?  Is it that highly addictive that only a little
bit will drag you in and pull you under?  I couldn't think
anymore, my head hurt and I needed to call an ambulance. 
Everything would be fixed tomorrow, right now I needed to help my
friend.

================================================================

(Alex Reij  Copyright 1998 by Dale Culp)