The Return of Raymond West.

Chapter 2

A piercing siren tore through the silence, echoing off the walls and ceiling. Red lights flashed along the checkpoint barriers. Within seconds, police officers and armed military personnel swarmed the area. Boots pounded against the floor. Guns were drawn. More than fifty officers surrounded Raymond, their weapons raised, fingers on triggers.

“Don't move!” one of the officers shouted. “If you move, we will shoot!”

Raymond didn't move. He just stood there, arms still spread, his face completely calm.

“Why are you pointing guns at me?” he asked. His voice was low, steady. “What's with the noise?”

The female officer stepped forward again. Her hand was trembling slightly, but her voice stayed firm.

“I'm Chief Victoria Kane, head of the police force in this city. This scanner is indicating that you are carrying something extremely dangerous. I'm going to conduct a thorough check. Do not resist.”

Raymond didn't say anything. He just nodded.

Victoria pulled on a pair of rubber gloves. Around her, the officers tightened their grips on their weapons. More than fifty barrels were pointed directly at Raymond's chest and head. One wrong move and they would fire.

She stepped closer.

Her hands moved to his coat. She pulled it open slowly, carefully, watching his face for any reaction. He didn't give her one. She reached for the hem of his black shirt.

“I'm going to lift this,” she said.

Raymond didn't respond.

At that moment she lifted the shirt.

Immediately her jaw dropped.

The officers behind her stiffened. A few of them sucked in sharp breaths. One cursed under his breath.

Raymond's torso was covered in scars.

Deep, jagged scars that crisscrossed his chest and stomach like a map of violence. Some were thin and precise, like knife wounds. Others were round and puckered, like bullet holes that had healed over. There were dozens of them. Maybe more. His entire body looked like it had been torn apart and stitched back together over and over again.

Victoria stared at him. Her hands were still holding the fabric of his shirt, but she couldn't move. She couldn't speak. Her mind was racing, trying to make sense of what she was seeing.

“This... this can't be real,” she whispered.

One of the officers stepped forward, his face pale. “Chief, the scanner... it's reading the metal inside him.”

Victoria's eyes widened. “Inside him?”

“Bullets,” the officer said. “There are bullets still inside his body. Hundreds of them.”

Victoria looked back at Raymond. Her voice came out shaky. “You... you have bullets inside you?”

Raymond looked down at his own chest, then back at her. “Yeah. I haven't had time to take them out yet.”

“You haven't had time?” Victoria repeated, her voice rising slightly. “You need to go to a hospital. Right now.”

Raymond shook his head. "No need."

“No need?” she said, her disbelief clear. “You have bullets in your body. High-caliber rounds. How are you even standing?”

Raymond didn't answer. He just clenched his fists.

His muscles tightened. His chest swelled. The scars on his skin stretched and shifted.

Then the bullets started falling.

One by one, small metallic fragments began to push through his skin. They dropped to the floor with soft pings, like rain hitting metal. More fell. Then more. The sound grew louder, faster, until it was a constant stream of metal hitting the ground.

The officers stared in horror.

The bullets kept falling. Ten. Twenty. Fifty. A hundred. They piled up at Raymond's feet, a growing mound of shrapnel and casings. One of the bullets shot out with more force than the others. It ricocheted off the floor and hit a glass panel on the wall.

The glass shattered.

Then another panel cracked. Then another. Five panels in total shattered and fell to the ground in pieces.

Raymond flexed his shoulders one last time. The last few bullets dropped.

The sound stopped.

The airport was silent again.

Raymond looked down at the pile of metal at his feet, then at the broken glass. “Sorry about that. I'll replace it when I have time.”

At that moment Victoria couldn't speak. She just stood there, staring at him, her mouth slightly open. Blood was trickling down Raymond's chest and arms from the small wounds where the bullets had come out. He didn't seem to care.

“Scan me again,” Raymond said.

Immediately Victoria blinked. “What?”

“Scan me again,” he repeated. “They're all out now.”

She fumbled with the scanner, her hands shaking. She brought it close to his chest and pressed the button.

Nothing.

The device stayed silent. No beeping. No flashing lights.

Victoria lowered the scanner slowly. Her voice came out barely above a whisper. “You... you need a hospital. You're bleeding.”

Raymond looked down at the blood on his skin, then back at her. “This is normal.”

“Normal?” Victoria repeated, her voice cracking. “How is this normal?”

Raymond didn't answer. He just pulled his shirt back down, then slipped his coat back on. He buttoned it slowly, methodically, like nothing had happened.

Victoria was still staring at him. Her mind was spinning. If this was the Supreme Lord, he wouldn't be on a commercial flight. He would be on a military transport with a full escort like they were told. But this man... this man was alone. And he had just expelled hundreds of bullets from his own body like it was nothing.

“Are we done?” Raymond asked.

Victoria nodded. She couldn't find her voice. She just nodded.

Raymond started walking.

He made it a few steps before Victoria called out. “Wait.”

He stopped and turned back.

“We don't even know your full name,” she said. “Where are you going?”

Raymond looked at her for a long moment. Then he spoke.

“You can check the passenger list if you want my name. As for where I'm going, that's none of your business.” He paused. “But you did good work today. I appreciate it.”

Then he turned and walked away.

Victoria stood there, watching him disappear into the empty terminal. Around her, the officers slowly lowered their weapons. No one spoke. No one moved.

She stared at the pile of bullets on the floor, then at the shattered glass, then at the spot where Raymond had been standing.