"...What?" Simon feigned unconvincingly. The man scrutinized him for a moment longer before nodding his head, and his face and manner became businesslike once again.

"You, sir, have been listed as a federal fugitive in the cortex for months. Thankfully, officials like me have arrest powers; and I'm afraid I'll have to use them. Put your hands behind your back or I will resort to force."

Feeling more scared shitless than if he had been caught transgressing school rules by MedAcad's headmaster, Simon complied. Meanwhile, the elevator continued its downward slide….

The man reached into his coat pocket, and this blue-hand trademark Simon had no trouble remembering at all - he pulled out one of those "disruptors," those horrifying but effective weapons that caused hemorrhaging from every orifice. But he couldn't use it; they needed Simon alive.

When the man held it out, he gasped and backed up against the doors. "Shit!"

A bell dinged to signal their arrival at his destination and Simon staggered backwards, no longer supported, before recovering his balance and shooting off towards the cafeteria. His pounding footsteps and patient gown elicited a few head turns, but the cyborg-guy had not given chase - he would likely call in back-up rather than try to detain Simon himself.

Luckily, he spotted a restroom in mid-flight and dodged inside, slamming himself inside a stall. He needed to wrest someone's card and uniform off them as he should have done earlier, and this was the best place for that - where potential victims would be alone and distracted. His head was starting to clear, and it was an enlivening feeling despite the ongoing panic attack.

But wait…

Was this a woman's restroom?

A high-pitched cry of alarm confirmed this right away. "Sir, what are you doing?!" the hand-washing woman yelled irately, coming over to bang on the stall door.

No point in replying. Simon jumped up onto the toilet and vaulted himself over the door's edge, landing behind the woman then taking her down with the same jab behind the collarbone.

She collapsed writhing to the ground and he pinned his knees to her stomach (covering her mouth to muffle her screams) while removing the ident card from her shirt pocket. Unfortunately, she was petite even for her gender, so there was no use pilfering the uniform. I need a man's. Oh, MAN...do I have to do this again?!

Simon's heart rate doubled as a man's voice (speak of the devil) suddenly cleared its throat at the entrance. "Excuse me, is everything alright in there?!" it called. "I heard screaming."

Simon placed his other hand on the woman's throat as though threatening to strangle her. "Say you're fine," he hissed, then cracked his fingers enough that she could shout back.

"I-I'm alright!" she called hoarsely, still in too much shoulder pain to resist.

Alas, something in the tone betrayed that indeed, the screamer was not alright. The man strode in swiftly but froze in his tracks when he saw Simon, his hands deliberately tight on the woman's neck. Realizing that strangulation could take minutes and the threat would probably not keep the man away, Simon hoisted her up in his arms and grabbed a fistful of hair, holding her head against the stall door. "I'll smash it!"

"Don't come any closer," he said quietly, and the man was patently not a cyborg; he shook and stared wide-eyed at the scene before him, only muttering, "I won't."

"Now," Simon said, nodding at his clothes, "take them off or she dies."

A/N: I've been posting every day, but it's a little hard to pull off, so please don't expect it! I hope the story entertains you, and again, am thankful for the reviews.