Seeing Pink (Closed RP IC)

@sahi_:

Amy Earheart listened to the echoing ruckus around her. 3 PM was a wonderful time at the mall. Hundreds of bodies rushing around, doing their business, buying anything from clothes to electronics to greasy food. If she washed her face, she could blend right into the crowd, oblivious to her presence and intentions. Of course, she was far from oblivious to them. More than one person had "misplaced" their wallet in this mall, and Amy made quite a living working here. She focused on the basics, shoes, clothes, the odd headband to keep her somewhat shaggy brown hair out of her face. She'd been here a few days ago and still had extra money in her pocket for food. She needed to save a little, however, and so despite the twenty or thirty bucks burning a hole through her most recently acquired wallet and the satchel over her shoulder, she was back for more. She stood outside a GameStop, window shopping, sincerely interested in going inside and checking out Pokemon Sun and Moon or a used version of Mystery Dungeon. She didn't, however. Instead she kept an eye and ear out for distracted passers-by, waiting for an opportunity to pick a pocket or two.

@amyearheart:

The fact of life was that even Time Siphons had basic needs and now that The Artist had been paid for her last list of assassinations, she had money to spend on those needs...and a few desires or two. The woman known as The Artist was beginning to grow a bit of a reputation, so when people recognized her in the mall they tried to give her a little space...just on the off chance she was here for violence.

Sahi smiled to herself, walking through the crowd towards the various electronics stores that occupied the other end of the mall. She was oblivious to the little pick pocket, her mind focused on less serious things than the idea someone might reach into her back pocket and take some of her money. Oh, I should make a detour and buy Rogue One...after I buy something to watch it on...

@sahi_:

Her. She's perfect. Aside from the sidelong glances people gave the woman, and the small amount of space surrounding her, she was perfect. Amy didn't know a thing about the Artist, nor did she care. With how much space the woman's personal bubble took up, the rest of the path was more populous. Amy slipped right into this crowd, following her mark at an appropriate distance, now looking for an opening. The advantage to being five feet tall with generic hair and eyes was that few people gave Amy a glance, and even fewer wasted a second one on the small, average-looking teen.

@amyearheart:

She soon had her chance, Sahi was paying no attention to her when she reached a shelf. Sahi herself wasn't very tall and she had to stretch to reach one of the shelves she was interested in, leaving her completely exposed for a skilled thief. She'd noted the girl earlier but without any reason to suspect her she'd simply assumed her another mall rat teenager out to find boys.

@sahi_:

Amy saw her chance and didn't waste time taking it. Pretending to play on her phone (another acquisition from a previous mall trip), she "accidentally" brushed against the stranger as she reached onto the shelf. It wasn't an uncommon occurrence, and as Amy slipped the wallet into a pocket in her satchel, she wondered how long it would be before the woman realized the difference in her pocket's weight.

@amyearheart:

It actually wasn't the difference in weight, which might have taken Sahi forever to recognize, it was the incidental contact. Common enough for most people, it was rare for The Artist, who had been carefully avoided by most people in the mall since she'd arrived. She turned and her temporal vision spotted the wallet's unique temporal line. You little thief!

Sahi placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. "I think you and I should take a little walk."

@sahi_:

Amy glanced innocently over her shoulder, her big brown eyes naive as ever. She made an instant of eye contact with her prey now likely turned predator...then ran. Her Run Away ability kicked in, giving her the small boost of speed and camouflage needed to slip back into the crowd no matter how fast or attentive her opponent was. She had no idea about the Time Siphon's secondary sight, but even if she did she would've tried escape over a fight anyway.

@amyearheart:

ugh. Sahi took off after her, she wasn't a match for her speed but was willing to bank on the girl running out of endurance or running out of places to run to. She kept track of her using temporal vision, the girl's unique temporal line allowing Sahi to follow her through the crowd without difficulty. Good lord she's quick, must be some sort of meta...that or an olympic sprinter.

The two of them wove in and out of foot traffic with grace and speed, Sahi began to run faster, realizing the girl might be able to slip away if she also had enhanced stamina. Unfortunately without tapping into her temporal abilities she'd have no way of going any faster than she already was...except one. She leaped into the air above the crowd and activated her armor's anti-gravity systems. The system was boosted by a back mounted jet pack that sent her flying over the crowd at much faster speeds.

@sahi_:

If it wasn't for her Ability, Amy wouldn't even had made it this far. Now she sensed the woman gaining on her, and this was confirmed with a glance over the shoulder. Amy couldn't go any faster and was in fact slowing down, and so she changed tactics. She dropped to the ground and rolled underneath her flying opponent, towards the wall. Thank goodness, she saw what she was looking for. One of those electrical outlets installed for the cleaners and for mall rats with dying phones. Of her three choices, stamina, speed, and attack, speed was the best bet at the moment. So, she stuck her finger in the outlet. Immediately, her body started glowing, then positively lit up. She was moving before the light faded to reveal her Thunder form racing towards the mall's main entrance, far faster than most humans could ever hope to go.

@amyearheart:

Oh for crap's sake. I just want my money back, it took me weeks to get that money together. She pushed the limits of her temporal armor's anti-gravity systems and rocket boost pack to try and match the girl's speed, now relying on temporal vision not only to track her but to track anything ahead of her so she wouldn't smash into something on accident.

Those doors are a problem, but if I cause a bigger scene than I already have cops will be swarming this place. Best to keep the pistols in their holsters. Following the girl was putting a strain on her systems, her armor was never designed to travel at high speeds for prolonged periods. The booster pack certainly helped but it's fuel wasn't exactly limitless.

@sahi_:

Amy just needed to get outside. The more space for a fight, the better, and worst case scenario she could make a better prepared run for it. She made it through the front doors and halfway across the parking lot before stopping for a breath. Very worst case she'd devolve and select one of er other forms for the coming fight, but she waited to see what her opponent would do next.

@amyearheart:

Sahi slowed up as the girl came to a stop. She watched her and slowly came to a halt about fifty feet away from her. After a few moments The Artist landed on her feet and deactivated her jump pack and anti-gravity systems. "Before you take off again, I just wanted to talk. You stole some money from me that I worked very hard to get and took me a long time to pull together. I don't appreciate that one bit...although I do like guts and moxy when I see it. So, chill out on the super powers and let's have a conversation and you give me my money back."

@sahi_:

Amy carefully watched Sahi, wondering what to do next. Thunder form was fast, sure, but only in bursts like a cheetah. Her stamina was lacking, and she knew it. So she devolved.

"What if I don't give it back?" She asked, partly curious and partly trying to buy time.

@amyearheart:

"Well that's kinda up to you kid." Sahi said with a smile. "But you have more to gain by giving it back than you do by not giving it back. You've got some moxy but once this stops being entertaining for me, it'll get a lot worse for you. So let's just giev me my money back and then we can talk about how we might be able to help each other out."

@sahi_:

Amy bit her lip, careful not to draw blood. Shadow form was probably her worst bet right now. Fire gave her no choice but to fight...water was going to be tough to assume but it was her best option. She could always give back the wallet...but the thing weighed a ton. If her estimate was right, she could live comfortably for months on that money.

People were afraid of the woman, and Evio respected that. But while it was easy to spook her, it wasn't so easy to intimidate her. She nodded at Sahi, before opening the satchel as if to retrieve the wallet. Her hand brushed the condensation on the outside of a water bottle in there. There was another flash, and Amy's form changed to water. Before the flash even died out Amy had opened up her bike and ran alongside it, gaining speed before she mounted still without a word, focused on keeping up a good pace before the Artist could realize what happened.

@amyearheart:

Sahi sighed and shook her head as the girl took off on her bike. And there goes my patience.

The Artist pulled one of her pistols from its holster and tracked the girl by following her temporal line. Focusing on the little thief's line and adjusting her aim to avoid hitting anyone or anything else she fired three shots in rapid succession. The plasma pistol kicked and smoked in her hand as it sent three devastating orbs down range at high speed. Her shots weren't aimed at the girl, but rather at her bike and the space directly in front of it. The first of the shots would hopefully strike directly in front of her and reduce the pavement to molten slag, creating a pothole large enough to throw the bike to the ground if she didn't avoid it. The second shot was aimed for the front wheel and the third for the back, hoping to completely destabilizing or otherwise ruin the bike's ability to flee the scene.

@sahi_:

Amy sensed the heat coming from behind. The trajectory was aimed for her bike, which was almost as important as her own life. It was one-of-a-kind, and valuable beyond compare to the now blue-haired girl. Water form sure didn’t last long in this fight, she thought to herself as she braked hard, leaning the vehicle so that it would crash to the ground and skid away. At the same time she devolved, and the plasma hit and burned through her skin. All this evolving and devolving was taking its toll on her energies, but if it meant she could get away with the cash it would be worth it. A bright flash of light, and there was orange-haired, Flame-Form Eviolite, casting off her satchel and dropping it casually near the bike. Might as well push herself to the limit. It had been a while since she’d had a good fight, anyway. Amy’s now flaming brown eyes turned up to the woman as Eviolite walked towards her, unsure what to say, if she should say anything at all.

@amyearheart:

(Sorry for the long delay)

"Come on kid, you've taken this far enough." Sahi said and holstered both of her pistols, though her hand remained near a different hilt entirely on her belt. "Just give me the money back and we can both go our separate ways...without needlessly fighting each other in what is now the middle of the street." She gestured around with one hand. "Look around, we're gonna have witnesses, someone will call the cops, the whole thing will be a big mess and no matter what happens, you'll leave without the money."

Ok kid, my patience is just about at an end here. Keep pushing and they'll be sweeping your dust off of the pavement when the cops arrive.

@sahi_: (No worries)

The transmutative metahuman stopped several paces from the Artist and looked around. Sure enough, there were people watching. A few had phones out already in case a metahuman battle did erupt, but nobody had done anything stupid, like try to video tape the confrontation. Better than ever. Amy could walk away. This was her last chance to do so, based on the woman’s behavior. Eviolite’s next move could be life or death for her. She glanced over her shoulder at her bag, her bike. She could just go back to her daily routine and life. Why take so much trouble for money that wasn’t even hers?

Simple. That cash could give her a temporary job, refuge, food to last months. Could she really give that up? No. This was her chance to escape. Her chance for a new life, a clean slate. A fire ignited the hem of her dress.

“I’m sorry, Ma’am, but I need the money.” It was every street child’s go-to response to situations like this. She felt all eyes on her, then turn to the Artist. She didn’t care. She turned away, calmly this time, arrogantly, and went to the bag. She slung it over her shoulder and collapsed the bike before putting it into the satchel. She kept one eye on the enemy in her peripheral vision, but she was making her point painstakingly clear: the rest of the world might fear the Artist, but Eviolite was different. She didn’t fear anything, anyone. She’d been through hell and back. She had powers beyond most people’s wildest imaginations. And death? Her body automatically saved her from death, any kind of death, adapting to survive as humanity itself had over thousands of years. She emphasized her fearlessness and probably idiocy by devolving again. Evolving one more time could knock her out, but her body language showed no sign of concern. She carefully skirted the lava pit that was once road, and walked slowly, calmly away, prepared for…well, nothing really, but nobody could tell that by looking at her at that moment. All they’d see was an overconfident urchin trying too hard to make her way in the world.