FALTER

CHAPTER 9: Adrenaline.

Imti strained his eyes to focus on the man standing about ten feet away from him. The light shone so on top of his head such that shadows masked his eyes, sending a chill down Imti's whole body.

But Imti, with a silent breath under his scarlet mask, harnessed the adrenaline. He had learnt to control his fight-or-flight response to his advantage; a skill he was thankful to the detective for whenever he got into a fight. Calm wins fights, and right now, every neuron in the young man's brain was screaming that there was going to be hits traded.

However, just as Imti prepared to speak up, Mr. Green lunged forward. To say 'lunge' would be an understatement, as what Imti saw through his yellow lenses was nothing more or less than a blur. The next thing his body experienced was the wind being knocked out of it as a fist made contact with Falter's armour and pushed him back. Imti dug his boots into the ground and was surprised to feel his boots dig into the very concrete of the street to keep him grounded. Before he had another second to think, Mr. Green jumped in the air with a deafening crash, leaving a trail of broken rubble where his feet were planted.

This time, Imti was far better prepared. His eyes darted and locked onto his assailant's right leg as it tore through the air directly at his helmet.

That was the only thing seperating Imti from Rachel's father in this tussle. Whatever psychotic implants and/or drugs he was on was more than enough to match Imti's enhanced speed, but speed wasn't the only thing the Drive provided a boost in. Pain didn't even make him flinch anymore due to the security of the device's healing and thus, all his energy was efficiently pooled to focus on his instincts. Conversely, Imti's strength remained human, and while it was still augmented by his own years of training, it seemed the Drive's magic did not extend to his power output. All in all, the combination of the Drive on his waist, and his own mind and body made Falter an imposing opponent in any fight.

Mr. Green's trajectory of attack was blocked by Imti blocking with his gauntlets. The older man had no time to predict it; Imti had moved faster than a hummingbird could flap its wings once. In the nanosecond that the attacker was stuck in the air, his blow having been interrupted prematurely, his hazy mind registered that there seemed to be a gleam coming from inside the horrid crossed eyes of Falter's helmet.

Imti uncrossed his arms with all the force he could muster, transferring his energy from guarding to flinging Mr. Green across the width of the street. The momentarily loss of balance that his attacker experienced allowed Falter to close the distance with a dash and deliver a punch directly to his face. Right before it made contact, however, Imti hesitated, allowing Mr. Green to step back on his feet, then drop down to the floor to deliver a dropkick to Falter's calves. Instead, his leg met the solid metal of the hero's boots and fractured. Falter quickly turned and grabbed Mr. Green by the collar of his shirt, holding him at arm's length like one would a rowdy cat. They made eye contact and Imti realized his eyes weren't as brown as his wife or daughter's. No, on the other hand, they were black, and currently contorted in a sort of animalistic rage. This was reflected when he started speaking, and just like before, his voice was at a delay with his lips.

"You took my daughter." He growled as he grabbed onto Falter's arms and tried to free himself. "I swear to Azrael, if you do anything to her, I swear it right now..."

"I didn't take your daughter, I'm trying to help you find her," Imti replied coldly. There was a low level of scathing attached to his tone. "And anyways, what are you even on right now? This..." He gestured at the man with his free hand. "This isn't normal."