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Evening was fast approaching. The normal staff had long since retired, and the building was closed for the day. However, the guards' jobs were far from done. It had been a long time since anyone had burgled the place, and it was about time for it to get hit again. The guards were on edge; there were rumors that someone had been running surveillance on the compound. There was going to be a large shipment coming in that night, so a lot was at stake.

One of the guards was patrolling the hallway between the safety deposit boxes and the ATM control room. He started off applying for the security firm of the week, and soon enough he found himself on the inside. He knew the emergency shut-off codes and had the perfect disguise, but even then he didn't know about all the security systems. That's why he had planted those cigarette butts and camera lenses in strategic locations around the bank. If anyone suspected a robbery, they'd look at people on the outside.

He walked under the security cameras with little worry. His cap was pulled over his eyes, and the rest of him looked absolutely average. Identifying him would prove quite difficult. He wore gloves for the same reason, though he didn't realize that cloth gloves left impressions anyway. He walked calmly through the hallway, tugging on the leash of the company bloodhound from time to time. The dog responded with a gruff, quiet bark, weakly protesting the human's haste. After about thirty minutes, he walked into the bank's vault, with a nod from the two guards posted at the door. Once inside, he made his way to a dead spot he had found and began helping himself to the riches within. As he made his way to the other side of the room, the dog began to bark wildly and scratch at a small white box low on the wall. "Silent alarm" was a misnomer; the mutt had heard it just fine, though the owner was oblivious to it. He figured something had gone wrong, so he quickly took a jewel encased in a strange gold frame and tucked it under the dog's collar, hiding it between the droopy dog's folds of skin. As the other guards rushed in, he flagged them down wildly. "Hey, this dog's gone crazy on me! What's going on?" he asked, feigning innocence. His acting lessons seemed to be paying off.

The guards were in a heated discussion amongst themselves, but the sudden appearance of the Phantasm startled them. "Huh?!" The counterfeit guard whirled around, facing the superhero. "Oh, thank goodness you're here! There's a large shipment of bullion scheduled for tonight. We think someone may have tripped the alarm on their way to the vault. The dog heard the silent alarm and came running."

"But," challenged one of the true guards, "how did he get past all four of us?"

"And why did he come through here? This isn't anywhere near the supply point?" added the fake guard.

"Somebody needs to go check on the vault... and the camera room, too. Surely the security system picked it up," suggested the other real guard.

The first honest security officer put his hand to his chin in contemplation. "Maybe we can track down the burglar with the dog?"

"No, he can follow a trail, but only if he knows what he's supposed to be looking for. We'd need a possession with his scent on it for reference," corrected the criminal in disguise.

"Umm, maybe you can help?" requested the fake guard.

"No," replied one of the other guards. "He had this hallway here. If he were going to the vault, Sam over here would've seen him."

The other guard nodded in concurrence. "It's been quiet all night for me, up until I heard the dog barking. I came running over here, and Donald and Aaron were over here looking at the silent alarm. Then I told 'em what it was."

The first man continued, "You see, we all work for different security companies. So, we don't always know where all the alarms that the other companies have set up are. Maybe Aaron or I tripped it by accident, but on a night like this, I DON'T want to take any chances. We need to figure out if there was anybody else here."

Aaron's brow furrowed. "Say, Sam, how long have you been over here? If the thief's still in the building, he may have gone down your route."

Sam straightened up, obviously looking a little worried. "Shoot! I gotta get back to my post!" He took off running down the hallway, disappearing behind a corner on the left.

The dog began to dig at the floor and whimper. "Ah, no. I think he needs to go," Aaron said, gathering up the leash.

"I'll take him out for you. It's not that far for me, and you took him last time," offered Donald. He took the leash from Aaron and began walking off toward a side door.

The thief remained behind with the superhero. "Let me know if there's anything I can do to help, too. I should probably head back to my route," he stated, pointing off toward the hallway behind him. He truly hoped the super would leave him alone after this; he didn't want to deal with the good guy any longer than he had to.

Aaron frowned. "That's an odd request. I'm the one who works here; for all I know, you could be the culprit. All I know about you is that you can run fast. What are you doing here in the first place?"

Outside, Donald walked the dog over to a spot of lawn around a corner, out of sight of the public. The mutt seemed to be getting a bit antsy; it was walking circles around the man. The leash began to wrap around the man's leg. "Hey, cut it out!" he insisted. He tugged at the leash, but the dog dove between his legs. The man tripped over the leash, hitting the ground with a solid thud. As the man unraveled his confines, the dog took off running. "HEY!" he exclaimed, the leash slipping through his hands. He crawled for a short distance, grasping out toward the rogue chain, but he couldn't quite reach it. He clambered to his feet, but by then, the dog was gone.

After a minute of running, Bloodbeast transformed back into his human state. He reached up and unlatched the collar that was now snug around his neck, gasping for breath. Once his respiration stabilized, he looked out, making sure nobody saw him. Then, he grabbed a couple vials from his wrist and prepared a device attached to a vein near his elbow. "You're up, my love," he whispered softly, injecting himself with the first vial...

Aaron was about to point out the fact that the silent alarm was, indeed, silent. However, when the superhero's attention was distracted, he saw a potential opportunity. "Both of the others went out that way. Don took the dog outside, and Sam was headed back to the vault. If either one of them screamed, we're in trouble no matter what. But if both of us leave, the bank's other assets will be vulnerable. One of us has to go check..."

Meanwhile, outside, Don rounded the corner and sprinted off. He looked around in the side streets and alleyway for any sign of the dog. He made it half-way around the bank's perimeter before running out of breath.

Bloodbeast stood up, shaking violently. The transformations were never easy; it felt like his bones were melting. He braced himself against the nearby brick wall, his nails scratching and then digging into the solid earth. His spine lengthened considerably, and the front of his face began to bulge out. An itching sensation spread across his skin as his new coat of fur came in. In a matter of less than a minute, he had changed almost entirely. He was the spitting image of his best mate, Nikolai... only, instead of walking on all fours, Bloodbeast stood on two. He scratched behind his pointed ears before looking around. Thankfully, his night vision was enhanced in this form, and the sun had finally set. He spotted a ladder used to access the roof of the bank. Looking across the way, he figured that with his new-found feline agility he'd be able to cross the rooftops. He bent down and picked up the golden scarab before wrapping one claw-tipped hand dexterously around the ladder.

Don panted heavily. On his fourth attempt to talk, he managed, "That dumb mutt!" He breathed in again, starting to catch his breath. "He got all wound up and got his leash all tangled up. I got it off my legs, but then he took right off. If I don't find that stupid dog, I'll have to explain to my boss why I lost him!"

Aaron the thief watched the superhero as he took off to go check on the source of the noise. Meanwhile, he crept off toward a side exit--definitely off of his route. He knew where most of the cameras were, but he stayed in the blind spots as much as possible, just in case. He deactivated the door with his security badge before slowly cracking it open, making sure that the coast was clear.

Bloodbeast made it to the top of the ladder and swiftly pulled himself up over the edge. He moved closer to the center of the building before sprinting back toward the edge. He sailed clear over the building to the rooftop on the other side of the street, tumbling a little bit from the distance. Though his focus was on getting to the other rooftop alive, he could've sworn he saw a couple people down in the alleyway below. Cursing under his breath, he palmed a second dose of serum. He watched over his shoulder as he ran away, jumping from rooftop to rooftop.

Bloodbeast: Next >>>

"Hey, wait! What about my dog?" objected Donald. He tried to follow, but being out of shape as he was, he could not follow. He walked back to the building but froze. There, discarded behind a few trashcans, he saw something small and red. As he pushed aside the garbage, his suspicions were verified. He pulled out the leash and collar, now left empty. "There goes the wedding ring I was saving for," he moaned.

Aaron saw nothing out of the ordinary out in the street. A wide grin spread across his face. He reached down and padded his pockets, by now full of valuable jewelry from the deposit room. Seizing this opportunity, he dashed out the door and escaped into the night.