Crossed Paths

Astroblaze

Astroblaze

Traverser#824|The Ally|Autobot|Knight of Doom
Original poster
FOLKLORE MEMBER
Invitation Status
  1. Not accepting invites at this time
Posting Speed
  1. 1-3 posts per week
Writing Levels
  1. Intermediate
  2. Adept
  3. Adaptable
Preferred Character Gender
  1. No Preferences
Genres
fantasy, sci-fi, superheroes, action, adventure, combat, science fantasy, supernatural, hurt/comfort, modern fantasy
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Eve
Eve Rowley/Ether
late spring | late afternoon | Manhattan, NYC—unspecified large building

"I felt the air rise up in me, kneeled down hm-hmm hmm hmm hmm hmm..." The redheaded teen murmured along with the melody she was jamming out on her ghostly-patterned electric guitar, singing and humming in equal parts. She appeared to be a normal girl, dressed in a purple-toned plaid jacket over a white v-neck with jeggings and short brown boots, except for fact that she was sitting on top of a multi-story building with absolutely no indication of how she got there.

She abruptly stopped singing as her pick hit a chord drastically wrong. "Wait." She tried again but only made the issue worse. "Wait no." She frowned, continuing to try and find the chord she was looking for and getting increasingly frustrated as she kept missing. "Agh, no, f-frick," she grumbled, hastily catching herself before she used a more familiar and less innocuous curse. "I am having a lot of trouble remembering this song right now..."

A couple more cautious strums later, however, her mouth curved into a grin as she finally remembered what she was trying to do. "Oh, there it is." That rough patch gotten through, she continued playing as though nothing had happened, one leg swinging slightly where it dangled over the edge of the slanted roof.
 
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Nightshift...not always the best option but sometimes you had to take some hits when you ran your own dive bar. It was enough to pay the bills and allowed for flexibility when it came to other lives. The brunette walking across the sidewalk had her hands shoved in the pockets of her faded black skinny jeans. Her top a grey, low cut, tight fitting t-shirt and a dark black and grey plaid button up over that. Stepping into the bar she greeted her staff before moving to the back and then coming out to the bar area. Making her way behind the thick wooden counter she glanced up at the TV's before she was ready to dismiss her current bartender. Clenching her jaw at the flashing transition that state 'breaking news' she exhaled heavily. Are you fucking kidding me? She spoke internally.

The front door to the establishment chimed and she looked up, relief came across her features as her nighttime server walked in. "Okay, Alyssa, cash out and settle things with Cass. I gotta go." The woman standing in front of her looked confused as she raised a brow and glanced at the approaching staff member. "Sorry." She grimaced. Turning around she was swift in her retreat. Once out of view she bolted up the stairs to her apartment that was just above the bar. Changing into the skin tight suit flawlessly, she launched herself out of the wide open window of her apartment and shot across the city to the scene of the dangling truck and teetering car.

Were these bridges not made to withstand blows like this and prevent accidents such as these. Flying under the bridge she came up on the other side, slowly, steadily and carefully she started pushing the sedan back onto the road.
 
Eve
Eve Rowley/Ether
late spring | late afternoon | Manhattan, NYC—unnamed multistory building
Andrew (mine)
Aegis (@Huntress)

The girl had just finished playing through another song when a chirp sprang from her pocket. Letting her guitar rest against her body, she pulled her phone out of her pocket to find a text from one of her friends.

Andrew: Eve, we have a problem.

The text was accompanied by a picture of his television screen, which was displaying a breaking news segment about a crash on a nearby bridge.

Eve: woah shit
Andrew: EVE
Eve: bruh I'm sorry, that's worth an actual word
Andrew: Can you handle it? I won't be able to get away in time and we both know Carson can't fly.
Eve: ye sure I got it

Slipping her phone back into her pocket, she returned her guitar to its case where it waited a bit higher on the roof and stood, slinging case and amp over her shoulder and casually stepping off of the roof. Barely had she begun falling when a ring of blinding white light materialized around her waist, splitting and sweeping in opposite directions along her body and turning her auburn hair white and deep blue eyes a brilliantly glowing aqua green and exchanging her casual clothing for a formfitting black and white skirted bodysuit with matching boots and gloves as it passed. Immediately in control of her descent, she clutched her gear close to her body and gracefully arced downward, ponytail whipping in her draft. Slowing as she crossed over top of a silver coupe, she let the straps fall from her shoulder, the gear phasing through the roof of the vehicle and dropping perfectly into the backseat even as she was already whipping off toward the scene.

The crash was even worse in person. Slowing as she soared a couple thousand feet over the bridge, her eyes darted between the two precariously balanced vehicles before she dove toward the dangling end of the truck. Taking note in the corner of her eye that another hero was already present lifting the sedan to safety, she hooked her fingers under the truck's bumper, slowly and steadily using all of her superhuman strength to ease it back onto the roadway.
 
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Once the sedan was safely back on the road, Anastasia, or well, Aegis made sure to check up on the family within the vehicle. Other than shocked they seemed to be okay. Helping them out of the car and getting paramedics to them she made sure they were in safe hands before hovering off the ground and floating over towards the silver haired woman working on getting the truck back on the road. "You're new." She raised a dark brow, arms folded across her chest. "Have you ever tried to maneuver a trailer before?" Another question. "It doesn't really go in the direction you want it to. It kinda goes a little all over the place." She explained. "Since you've got a good grip on this though, I'll leave you to it." Smirking she slowly floated off and watched from above the scene, making sure that the new face didn't hurt anybody in an attempt to get that truck back on the road.
 
Eve
Eve Rowley/Ether
late spring | late afternoon | Manhattan, NYC—bridge
Aegis (@Huntress)

The spectral mutant snorted, quirking a dark eyebrow at the other heroine. "Lady, I'm not much for search and rescue—more of a 'beat up the bad guys' kinda gal—but I know how to get a truck back onto a road."

Although it was a bit awkward maneuvering a vehicle trying to go two different directions without help, with some finagling she did manage to get it securely back on the bridge. Using her intangibility to unlatch the door, she helped the dazed driver stumble out of the cab to the pavement, leaving him in the care of the paramedics who the other had called. With him taken care of, she turned back to the heroine with thin lips quirked in a lopsided grin, one hand on her hip and the other offered to her.

"I don't think we've met. I'm Ether."
 
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Slowly making her way back down to the road she had a raised brow, face stern, arms folded across her chest. With a little bit of struggle in directing the truck, it was successfully put back on the road safely. She watched, unmoving from her position as the young heroine also helped the driver out of the truck and handed him to paramedics. Feeling a slight nudge against her hip the brunette raised a brow and turned to look towards the sensation. The little girl from the sedan was staring up at her in awe. Looking towards the parents who were attempting to gather their daughter, Aegis smiled. Kneeling down to come to eye-level with the little dirty blonde girl the heroine chuckled. "Hi." She waved at the girl. A shy wave back came from her. "What's your name?" She asked making direct eye contact with the girl.

"Tamara." She looked away and giggled.

"Nice to meet you Tamara. Are you—"

"Thank you f-for helping me and my mommy and daddy." The little girl clutched at her doll as she swayed from left the right, her little cheeks blushing. Bright, pale blue eyes looking up and directly meeting the amber irises that were opposite her.

"You are very welcome." She said smiling brightly with a nod.

Rushing forward with arms wide open the child attempted to wrap her little arms around the heroine's neck. Hugging her back with a chuckle she let go as the girl pulled away and ran back to her parents. Her father took hold of her as they both looked towards her. The father was rather serious looking, a small nod coming from him and the mother verbally thanked her as well. She responded with 'you're welcome' and 'not a problem' before watching them walk off. Turning around with a sigh she looked down slightly, glowing eyes meeting hers. Amber irises flicked to the extended hand then back up. "Now we have." She stated simply. Taking the hand she shook it. "Aegis." Her alias was spoken before she let go and turned away. Glancing over her shoulder she nodded as a 'thank you' for the unnecessary assistance before launching herself up into the night sky.

Gazing down at the glowing city she flew slowly, taking in the bright lights, listening to all the sounds of the city, it was a whole different place at night. Since she was in the suit and the bar was covered, she had time to spare in case anything else decided to spur up. Hovering in place with her arms across her chest several thousand feet in the air she closed her eyes and just listened.
 
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Eve
Eve Rowley/Ether
late spring | late afternoon | Manhattan, NYC—bridge
Aegis (@Huntress), Andrew (mine)

Ether returned the nod, one corner of her mouth quirking upward in a flash of her trademark grin. Watching as the other heroine flew off, she humphed thoughtfully to herself. "Aegis huh..." It was a cool alias—origin in Greek mythology if she recalled correctly.

She drifted backward and upward into the air, watching the scene unfolding at the site of the crash for a while before turning and gliding from the scene to sit on a nearby streetlight, legs swinging idly as she pulled her phone from a hidden pocket in her suit.

Eve: hey Andy, you ever heard of an Aegis lady around here?
Andrew: Oh my gosh, did you seriously meet Aegis?
Eve: only long enough to shake her hand and get her name but ye, why? you know her?
Andrew: Ugh, I wish! She's a huge name around this area, and she is SO COOL. I've seen her a couple times, but only from a distance. I would do just about anything to be in your place right now!

There goes the excited child side of Andrew. Ether shook her head with an amused smile, wondering at how her friend could be older than her and still so childlike.

Eve: well maybe we'll cross paths again sometime before the night is over
Eve: I'll be sure to name-drop ;]
Andrew: That would be awesome. Do you think she knows about Pythagoras?
Eve: who knows? maybe
Eve: you've been on the news a couple times before
Andrew: Yeah, I guess I have.
Eve: you're the local chosen one boyo :D
Eve: I'm sure she'll at least know you exist
Eve: well I'm gonna get going, got a lot of ground to cover and I'm feeling a lil feisty after this early start
Eve: you'll be coming out soon right?
Andrew: I'll join you as soon as family night is over.
Eve: sounds like a plan

Slipping her phone back into her pocket, she lifted from the light head and ascended into the darkening sky. She knew her two allies and closest friends would join her soon, but until then she had the night to herself. Well, except for this "Aegis" lady. She wondered where the other heroine went and if they might cross paths again.
 
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Eve
Eve Rowley/Ether
late spring | evening | Manhattan, NYC—northern region - southwestern region
Cecelia (mine), Shockwave (mine)
Andrew (mine), Carson (mine)

After the bridge incident that had started off Ether's patrol early, her evening stayed relatively quiet, which the teen hero guessed was okay but the lack of activity didn't exactly help with the eagerness with which she had started out her evening.

As she glided over the northern section of the city, however, her phone buzzed in her pocket. The ghost mutant slowed, pulling up to hover in midair as she retrieved the device to find a text waiting from Andrew's tech-savvy best friend.

Cecelia: Eve, sensors just picked up a massive spike in sonic activity in the southwest area, and it ain't no rock concert
Cecelia: I think he's back

Ether's eyes widened. Immediately she twisted in the air and shot off toward the area she had named, continuing to text the other teen as she flew. She knew exactly who Cecelia was referring to, and if he really had returned, things had just gotten substantially more serious.

Eve: oh shit omw
Eve: tell Andy to get his butt out here asap
Cecelia: I already have but he doesn't know how long he'll be
Eve: damn his family game night and inability to tell them about his alias
Cecelia: I know, it frustrates him too
Cecelia: fyi I texted Carson and he's en-route
Eve: good
Eve: I'll go try and stall for time
Cecelia: be careful
Cecelia: you know how deadly he is
Eve: yeah I know, I'll be alright

All the same, if it really was him, she would make him regret showing his ugly face again.

Sure enough, when she reached her destination, her eyes were met by the sight of an all-too-familiar armor-clad humanoid form. Slowing to a standstill, she drew herself up high above him, folding her arms across her chest with her lips sealed in a thin smirk.

"Hello there, Shockwave," she called down to him, thinly veiled enmity clear in her tone. "I was under the impression you skipped town."

At her greeting, the humanoid turned, featureless black eyes narrowing as they met the hero's glowing aqua ones with a sneer that exposed too many of his sharklike teeth.

"Of course not," he called back to her in a voice deep and rough but surprisingly human for his appearance. "I like it too much around here."

"Well, if you're back in business, we got problems."

The mutant just scoffed at her threatening words. "If you know who I am, you know that you don't want to get in my way."

Now Ether's lips did part, jaw tight as she bared her fangs in an aggressive grin. "Oh, on the contrary, I think I very much do." Barely had she finished speaking when she snapped her arms out of their folded position to free her brilliantly glowing hands, twisting her body for extra momentum as she threw a bolt of volatile ectoplasm straight at him.

Unable to evade quickly enough, Shockwave gritted his teeth in a snarl as the blast slammed into his shoulder, staggering back a couple steps under the force of impact. The angular shoulder pad was smoking when he rolled his head back to cast her a hateful glare, teeth bared now in wrath.

"You asked for it," he snarled, posture hunching as his clawed hands clenched at his sides. Ether felt as much as heard the near-subsonic thrum as he suddenly launched himself at her, claws reaching to strike. Still grinning, she nimbly propelled herself backward just out of his path, hands again alight with deadly energy. Now to keep him occupied until her teammates arrived.
 
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Her hovering position had shifted throughout the night, different districts, uptown, downtown, the burbs, anywhere there had been potential for something to go wrong. On the way Aegis may have chosen to stop in some specific areas that were a little more close to home and personal. Watching from the skies, just keeping an eye out for those few people that mattered, whether they knew it or not it didn't matter to her, she would keep them safe even if they didn't want it. She was closer to the rooftops and buildings than usual. When she flew around to listen and keep an eye out for potential crimes or anything of the sorts that she could help with Aegis liked to stay up high, it was easier to locate wherever the issues might be.

This particular person she had been checking on was extremely important to her. The closer she could get without being spotted the better. Had she fucked up? Damn straight she had, Ana had fucked up with this person big time but she still cared, she cared so much that on the off chance that she ever saw this person, in a city of millions, it almost physically hurt her to lock onto those disappointed green eyes. Anastasia more often than not went out of her way to make sure she didn't, except today she wanted to see, to look. Her hope had never faded, it was dim but it still burned. She never had a chance to apologize, she never had a chance to fix anything, she had just ran, disappeared, never showed her face again despite having watched the other search in confusion and seek answers.

Slowly she flew over towards one of the large windows on the top floor. An old industrial building that had been turned into lofts. The penthouse belonged to her. Looking in through the open concept kitchen she watched. Two people were on the couch, the TV flashing brightly, one was laying down, the other was in the corner, half sitting half laying. Aegis clenched her jaw and sighed. There was a small shake of her head with closed eyes before amber's gazed back into the home. Her eyes grew wide as the person laying down sat up. There was a brief glance towards the window and Ana was gone before the double take could be made.

Shooting up into the night sky, far enough to not be spotted by human eyes she looked down towards the building. She caught the sound of the sliding door that lead to the deck. Hovering around the building, still out of sight she watched the blonde step out and scan the skies. Opening her senses up she listened. "If you have something you want to say...then come say it..." The whispered words rang loud and clear in her ears.

Aegis' eyes closed once again as she exhaled sharply from her nose. Launching herself into the sky with a loud bang she flew off. Purposely causing the disturbance in the sound barrier, making sure that it was known that she had indeed been there. As she flew she caught the sounds of a struggle, much louder and more intense than what a typical fight among humans entailed. Stopping suddenly mid flight she squinted, a small flash of light coming from a specific rooftop. Shooting down towards that direction she watched for a moment as there were blurred motions, a dark figure darted around along with a brighter smaller one. Watching the movements she studied for just a second before shooting into the fight. Reaching forward in her rapid motion she took hold of the fabric and yanked back her right arm was quick to wrap around the inhuman attackers neck, her grip tightening as she looked to the humanoid in her arms and then other metahuman that had been fighting.

She recognized the young woman from the bridge accident, the name not coming to her just yet, but the was a smirk across Aegis' lips, happy to see someone she assumed was a good guy. "Capes...They're always a problem. I'd reconsider the design." She spoke to the one in her arms, grip tightening further. "What's going on here new girl?" The brunette asked as she looked towards the white-haired heroine.
 
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Eve
Eve Rowley/Ether
late spring | late evening | Manhattan, NYC—southwestern region
Aegis (@Huntress), Shockwave (mine)
Andrew/Pythagoras (mine)

Nimbly evading Shockwave's swipe, Ether lunged forward to return fire but jerked backward as her enemy was suddenly snatched from her grasp. Skidding back a few feet, she flexed her hands as she prepared to fend off a second attacker but soon let the deadly glow wreathing her gloves fade as she recognized the other heroine. She returned Aegis' query with a lopsided grin, folding her arms and shrugging casually.

"Oh, nothing really, just a friend of a friend who decided to show his ugly face again." She turned her glowing eyes to the humanoid in question, grin tightening as she observed how his claws dug viciously into the arm around his neck, eyes narrow and the corner of his mouth drawn up in a hateful glower. "Isn't that right, Shockwave-"

She stopped short, eyes widening as she recognized the glint in his eye and the increased glow within the glasslike pods on his forearms. "Oh shit- Get back!" she shouted urgently at Aegis, thrusting a hand out toward the other heroine as she hastily formed an ectoplasmic barrier between her and Shockwave and physically shoved her away, her other arm pulling close to her body as she formed a shield around herself and threw herself backward. Fuck, Shockwave still had a grip on Aegis' arm. Desperately the ghost mutant poured energy into the shield protecting Aegis, hoping it would be enough.

It wasn't.

The nearly subsonic blast that roared from Shockwave's body shattered both shields with impunity, slamming into the two heroines with the force of a train as the humanoid finally released his grip on Aegis' arm. Ether gritted her teeth, a pained grunt forced from her throat as the blast sent her flying several feet before she was able to regain control. Righting herself in the air, she skidded to a halt, shaking her head forcefully to clear the ringing in her ears before opening her eyes to affix the humanoid with a black glare, lips pulled back far enough to expose her fangs over teeth gritted in a snarl.

Meanwhile, Shockwave had dropped the few feet to the ground with a thud that sent tremors through the concrete, the humanoid himself unphased by the impact. Adjusting his cape with a sharp tug that set the heavy fabric flaring around him, the audiokinetic curled his lip, glancing between Ether before him and Aegis behind him with eyes narrow before his mouth widened in an ugly sneer.

"Two on one—hardly fair," he growled at Ether, but his tone was more arrogantly mocking than genuinely frustrated, the voice of a man who had total confidence in his own abilities.

Ether huffed a harsh laugh, snarl turning to a tight grin. "Yeah, well, never too much help when it's you, you son of a bitch." Snapping out fists again alight with deadly energy, she leaped at him with a yell, propelling herself forward through the air at inhuman speeds as she pulled back one fist to strike.
 
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"Doesn't sound like a friend to me. Obviously you guys have some issues here." Aegis spoke simply as she looked up towards the other hero. The, what she assumed was a villain, held her tightly. The metallic, pointed gauntlets he wore scraped against Aegis' skin. It was currently more of a nuisance than anything else, like an eager dog trying to climb into your lap, or those annoying scratches you got when you walked by something a little too fast. "So tell me cape dude. What's the deal here, why are yo—" Looking up as the young heroine called out to her she furrowed her brows in confusion. What was going on that Ana hadn't realized? Before she could say anything in response a barrier engulfed her, it was enough to raise a brow as worry came across her face. What was this? Would it affect her? Giving it a moment she was relieved that whatever this energy was, wasn't being absorbed into her system.

Being able to bring her attention back to whatever was happening Aegis continued to look around in confusion. The white haired woman flew towards her. One person was pushing the other was pulling and Ana was hella confused. The events passed so quickly that all she could do was wait it out and have some words after the whole situation been dealt with. Turning her attention back to the cape-wearing, alien looking guy Aegis bared her teeth and growled. "Okay tin can—" Her words were cut off as an invisible force collided with her chest.

A nauseating feeling followed as she flew through the air. Realizing what was happening and how quickly she was about to slam into the rooftop of a building Aegis shook her head mid-air and shot up into the sky. As she hovered her body trembled, arms out to her sides, fists clenched. The nauseous feeling still lingered. Her lips were pulled back into a snarl as she glared. She could feel the force from the impact cycling through her body, from limb to limb, waiting to be expelled. Her jaw was tightly clenched, her teeth threatening to crack, nostrils flared as she tried to keep calm with heavy breaths. Her eardrums pulsated, the painful high-pitched squeal had turned into a low thrum that shook her whole body, it rendered her sense of hearing null, almost. Sounds were warped, distorted. As she narrowed her amber gaze her head tilted to the left, almost like a twitch.

She could hear the distant sounding voice, the words distorted but clear enough. Aegis growled at the mans mocking words, her head snapping up towards the young heroin as she watched her charge the villain. There didn't seem to be a plan of action, going with the flow wasn't a problem for Ana, as long as they managed to get him down before another one of those hits. The only downfall to being a physically enhanced mutant was that you had to get up close and personal and sometimes that wasn't the easiest thing to do. To be fair, Ana hadn't wanted any of this to begin with, but you have to make the best of what you're dealt. Choosing not to linger on the thoughts that would only cause her to keep spiraling downwards, Aegis watched and waited.

She would hold her position, once the white-haired woman hit the enemy, Shockwave, Aegis would take hold of him and release this excess force that was building up inside her. She would make sure not to kill the man...if he was a man, but she wasn't guaranteeing that he wouldn't be severely injured. Should the other hero's hit not connect...she'd come up with a new plan. For now she was hopeful, her body trembling more intensely, small ripples of little shocks spreading across every fiber of every muscle in her body. It needed to be released from her system and soon. Taut and tense, she had no choice but to flex and stiffen herself up as she waited. The sound of her heart thudding in her chest was loud as she exhaled heavily through flared nostrils.
 
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Eve
Eve Rowley/Ether
late spring | late evening | Manhattan, NYC—southwestern region
Shockwave (mine), Aegis (@Huntress)

Eyes narrow and mouth tight in a disdainful frown, Shockwave stepped one foot back and thrust a hand out toward the rapidly approaching ghost mutant, launching a blast of sound at her. Ether twisted in the air, propelling herself sideways in an attempt to evade, but was clipped by the edge of the expanding blast, sending her skidding sideways with a grunt and almost slamming into the brick wall of a nearby building.

Disregarding her, the humanoid then turned menacingly toward Aegis. "I'll wear what I want," he growled at her, but then his glower widened into a ferocious grin that bared too many sharklike teeth. "And as you can see, the cape hasn't been that much of a problem for me." Barely had he finished speaking when he suddenly spun to face her head-on, bracing his feet against the road and throwing his torso forward and fists out he let out a massive roar that rippled through the air like thunder, racing toward where she hovered.

Meanwhile, Ether had rapidly recovered from the temporary loss of control. Noting in a glance that her fellow heroine seemed a bit out of it, she shot forward, twisting in the air to plant both heels in the small of Shockwave's back before he could turn to meet her. The humanoid stumbled forward, head snapping back and sending the tail end of the sonic scream wild as he spun to face her after the momentary shock, gritting his teeth with an inhuman growl. Landing lightly on the balls of her feet, the teen felt her mouth pull up at one corner in a snarky grin as she spun to face him, utilizing her momentum to send the heel of one hand into the corner of his jaw in the same movement.

Thrown off his balance by the power in the blow, Shockwave staggered back a couple steps, his pale green skin scorched where the ectoplasm-charged hand had hit, but he seemed little bothered by the burn as he rolled his head back to glare at her. Rolling his shoulders with a deep inhale, he snapped his head toward her, letting loose another thunderous shout at nearly point blank range.
 
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Aegis watched. She could move, attack, help in some way if she wanted to but she was afraid. They were near people's homes, and if the noise hadn't woken them yet the chance of her loosing control of the lethal force coursing through her system certainly would, when ceilings and walls caved in. The shitty part was that this was one of the uncontrollable aspects of her capabilities, in truth there were a lot of things about what she could do that were difficult to control, she had been trying her whole life, but some things simply could not be tamed.

Clenching her jaw the brunette watched. The villain released a projectile attack that had the hovering woman wince as she tightly shut her eyes and gritted her teeth against the piercing sound that registered in sensitive ears. Opening her eyes she glared at the thing that had turned to face her. Unclenching her fists she tightened them again as she practically snarled at him. "I'm no fashion police here bud, just pointing out the flaws." Her words were gritty as she swallowed back, eyes studying the being across from her. She could see the movement, she could anticipate that there was an attack coming and yet she still chose to stand there and take the blow. As she flew back with a grimace Aegis fought against the thrumming pain in her head, the ringing in her ears and the rattling of her bones. The collision almost happened, saving it by a hair, quite literally, the air from the force at which she flew towards the building stirring up a small dust storm behind her.

A deep irritated breath escaped her as she glared towards the villain who continued to fight the white-haired heroine. Ether had managed to get a hit in as he prepared for another blow. Growling at herself Aegis exploded through the air towards him, inhuman speeds that broke the sound barrier and rivaled modern human technology.

Her right arm came out to her side as she gripped the cape and pulled up as she flew towards the stars. New York was a spec of dust below them as she let him dangle from the piece of fabric. Taking hold of one of his arms, Aegis gripped tightly, armour, tech and probably bone crunching within her grasp.
 
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Eve
Eve Rowley/Ether | Shockwave
late spring | late evening | Manhattan, NYC—southwestern region
Shockwave (@Astroblaze), Aegis (@Huntress)

The moment his head began to move, Ether leaped over Shockwave's head, dodging the blast with so little room to spare she could feel the vibrations up her legs. Glancing to see what Aegis was doing, she abruptly changed course to whip off to one side and out of the way, spinning to watch the other heroine snatch up Shockwave and yank him high into the darkening sky with a merciless speed that far outmatched her and her usual companions combined. Folding her arms, the ghost mutant quirked an impressed eyebrow. "Damn."

With an earsplitting blast, the iridescent pod on Shockwave's forearm exploded under Aegis' merciless grip, the massive wave of sound spraying shattered glass and metal into both figures as it launched the two in opposite directions. Recovering his composure after a stunned moment, Shockwave caught himself mere feet from the unforgiving wall of a nearby building, propelling himself off of it with a blast that shook the brick. He hit the ground with a thud that fractured the pavement, stumbling several feet before his momentum ran out. Ignoring the white-haired heroine nearby, he turned his attention to the deep, piercing pain that shot all through his forearm, lifting the limb to study the mutilated remains of its gauntlet. Most of the glass storage unit and a large percentage of the gauntlet itself had been blown away in the explosion, and what little remained was twisted and shattered, glass and metal shrapnel embedded deep into his flesh all along where the middle section had been, leaving the black bodysuit underneath shredded and soaked in his own blood. He gritted his teeth. Those storage units were the most valuable piece of his entire suit and incredibly difficult to construct, and now he was down to one.

Unphased by the maroon blood running hot down his arm, he plucked the shrapnel free from his skin, discarding each fragment disdainfully at his feet. Once his skin was cleared of unwanted debris, he dug a claw into the seam of what remained of the upper gauntlet and tore the abused metal apart with an awful shriek, letting the tapered elbow guard fall to join the shrapnel on the pavement. Returning his attention to the deep lacerations crisscrossing his forearm, he seized the edge of his cloak in both hands near a lower corner and yanked one hand toward himself with a harsh ripping of heavy fabric. Clenching the free end of the dark fabric strip in his sharklike teeth, he wrapped the makeshift bandage around his bloodied forearm, knotting the ends together with a rough jerk of his head. Letting both arms drop to his sides, he turned back to the two heroines, empty eyes narrow and mouth drawn tight as though scoffing at their feeble attempts to harm him.
 
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The shockwave was massive and she had been at the core of it all with him. She felt every bit of force against every inch of her being. Her face twisted into a pained grimace as it took her a moment to catch her breath. Gasping with a groan as she shot through the air Aegis attempted to fight the nauseating feeling that was pitting in her stomach. It felt like her eardrums had exploded, she could hear nothing but the internal working of her own body. Time almost seemed to slow as she continued to fall from the sky amber eyes watching the stars. Her slow and steady heartbeat began to quicken, forcing blood to flood her veins. There was another gasp as a skull splitting squeal erupted within the confines of her cranium. A pained moan escaped the brunette as she opened her eyes, the pavement grew closer with passing second.

Turning around mid air and doing her best to ignore the blaring squeal in her ears she controlled her body until she was once again hovering over the street. Feeling warmth trickle down on either side of her jawline she viciously glared at the thing that was the cause of this whole ordeal. She never touched the pavement, she wasn't sure what would happen if she did. Aegis knew for a fact that her current level of discomfort had definitely become visible. Every fiber of her existence was tense, every muscle flexed. The ringing in her ears was still strong, although it was something she was getting used to. Her body was dangerously trembling. All that force needed an escape and this wasn't a safe place to do so. She bared her teeth as she practically growled at him. Her breaths were raspy and heavy, she wasn't tired or fatigued though, she was simply struggling to hold it all back.

With flared nostrils she tried to pace her breathing, eyes never leaving their opponent. Her fingernails were starting to dig into her palms, she could feel the crimson warmth starting to pool around her nail-beds. Bearing her teeth once again she exhaled sharply in a hiss-like sound. Every pulse of her beating heart, thrummed through taut muscle. Did he deserve death? She wasn't sure. Aegis wasn't one to kill, but the soldier in Ana was familiar with such territory. At this point she wasn't sure he'd survive if they started throwing fists again. The more he used his abilities on her, the worse it would get.

Deep down Aegis wasn't a fan of allowing sinister beings like this to get away, but her options were dwindling. It would either end with his death, or his escape.
 
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Eve Rowley/Ether
late spring | late evening | Manhattan, NYC—southwestern region
Aegis (@Huntress)
Shockwave (@Astroblaze), Andrew (@Astroblaze), Carson (@Astroblaze)

Even with the distance between her and the other two, Ether was forced back several feet in the wake of the blast, visibly tensing and guarding her face against the raw energy. When she was able to reopen her eyes, she looked up to find her fellow heroine plummeting for the ground at an alarmingly uncontrolled pace. Immediately she shot forward to intercept, ready to catch her before she hit the pavement, but stopped short when Aegis regained control on her own. As the ghost mutant pulled up to hover near the other heroine, the stream of crimson trickling down her jawline drew a hissed gasp from the teen. "Oh shit you're bleeding. Are you okay?"

Casting a concerned eye along Aegis' form, she noticed that the older heroine seemed to be struggling, every muscle taut and trembling like she was... oh. So that was what she did. Several things suddenly made a lot more sense, and honestly the teen felt a bit stupid for not realizing sooner.

Keeping an eye on Shockwave, she continued, "Okay, we need a better plan. Uhh, shit I suck at plans," she muttered. This was why she left the strategy to her two companions and just obliterated whatever they pointed her toward. Unfortunately, said companions were still en-route, so she would have to manage for the time being. "Okay, uh—" she pointed to Shockwave— "you charge him, I'll cover you. He just lost, like, ninety percent of his reserves, so that helps." If her suspicions about Aegis' powerset were correct, all it would take to end this fight would be to enable her to get ahold of him. Maybe. If they were lucky. Damnit, what the hell was taking the other two parts of Xenostorm so long?

"Come on, Andy, any day now..." she muttered through a clenched jaw as she wound up before leaping at Shockwave once more, hands at the ready with charged energy while leaving Aegis a clear shot straight for him.
 
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The young woman's voice was distant and muffled, Aegis was barely able to make out her question. Turning to look at the white-haired heroine, her teeth still bared, she exhaled sharply. "I'm fine." It may have sounded like a yell but it wasn't intended that way. The woman was simply compensating for her muffled sense of hearing. Ether spoke again, Aegis closing her eyes momentarily as she turned her head to the right and tilted it slightly in an attempt to better hear what was being said. 'This is frustrating,' she told herself. Opening her eyes, she flicked her gaze towards the alien looking being as she snarled. "Do you want him to die?" She muttered. At this point, Anastasia couldn't guarantee making contact with him wouldn't shatter his bones.

Gritting her teeth, she glanced towards her current ally as she moved to initiate her plan. Aegis took a deep breath, attempting to analyze what she could do to not break him, as much as she would've liked to end him then and there. Bursting forward towards him she took hold of that cursed cape. Fabric tore against the force, no resistance felt by Aegis. As he fell from the slight elevation she had jerked him up towards, she was quick to reach for his ankle. She attempted to be as gentle as she could in her actions, but it was a difficult calculation to make. She felt something give way and hoped that it was just his armour and nothing more. She couldn't even guarantee being able to knock him unconscious and be over with this whole ordeal.
 
Eve
Eve Rowley/Ether | Shockwave
late spring | late evening | Manhattan, NYC—southwestern region
Aegis (@Huntress)

Shockwave smirked at the red trails framing Aegis' face, empty black eyes fixed unblinking on the older heroine, envisioning an invisible field surrounding her, closing in... The alien attempted to sidestep her lunge but couldn't make enough distance without the sonic energy to throw himself out of her path, gritting his teeth as the crushed metal dug into his ankle and surrendering his initial plan in favor of absorbing her collected sonic energy into his single remaining unit. Yanking his captured leg back into his chest, he kicked out at her gut with the other.

Meanwhile, Ether had swung around Shockwave opposite where Aegis had him, twisting to hover upright in the air. Her jaw was tight in a ferocious grin, flexed hands hovering at the ready, but she was unsure how to strike out at him without hurting Aegis in the process. Now able to respond to the other heroine's earlier comment, she released a sharp, huffed chuckle.

"Nah, he won't die. He's already proven how resilient he is. Not that I'd care if he did." Well, maybe she would care, if only because she didn't want to have a death on her conscience, but for Shockwave she could make do.

Her casual comment drew Shockwave's attention to her. Throwing back his head, he let loose a charged shout at her, then threw himself into a roll in an attempt to yank his ankle out of Aegis' grasp.
 
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Taking the hit to her gut with a grunt she bared her teeth at the being and tightened her grasp in the most miniscule way she possibly could. Coming to the ground as gently as she could, the concrete below her still cracked and dented. He flopped around in an attempt to form some sort of escape. This only frustrated the heroine further as she pulled him in close. Dragging him across the pavement with a screeching that was audible enough for even her to hear, she took hold of whatever parts of his armour she could grasp, pieces groaning, bending and clanking under her hands until they were eye to eye. Her right hand gripped his face and jaw, her palm covering his mouth. The rage was evident on her features as her nose was wrinkled, lips pulled back into an almost feral snarl. Her hand was trembling as she was trying not to crush his face. Her breaths heavy, as if she had just run a marathon. In this instance she could destroy him. Literally crush him, but she had to hold back. The urge was strong, scraping it's way up to the surface and Ana almost didn't want to fight it. She growled at him, her body still tense and trembling. "Give me a reason not to crush you right now!" Her words were a vicious hiss mixed with a growl.
 
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