Chapter 2: Heist

Empress stared at the entrance of the Yoro Bank, a look of intense concentration was evident in her eyes. Yoro Bank was the only bank in the beginner area completely run by players. All the members, from the guards to the bankers, were super-powered individuals. Empress was attempting a heist.

For the past month she had successfully maintained first place on the beginner leaderboards, increasing her overall power by leaps and bounds. However, there was one problem. She was almost level 10, at which point she would be kicked out from the starting area.

She had been so focused on maintaining first place that she neglected to consider what resources she would need once she left. One important aspect was money.

The currency in Dawn of Gaia was called credits. Credits were extremely vital in being a successful player. They could be used to buy armor, hideouts, minions, and various other items.

Empress had neglected to amass a lot of money, which was why she planned to rob the bank. She was examining her options. One option would be to storm the bank by force using her superior powers. The only problem was the leader of the bank, Rai. Rai was ranked number two on the leaderboard. He could have left the starting area a long time ago, but instead decided to run Yoro Bank and collect a fortune. His power was negation.

If Rai decided to fight her, he could destroy her barriers and cancel her teleportation. She would be forced to resort to using her pistol and rapier. She shook her head. Her greatest advantage was her powers; she couldn’t afford to lose them.

Empress drummed her fingers on the steel rail that separated the roof she stood on from thin air. She had seen people attempt to rob the bank before. Super villains assisted by invisibility or camouflage were all exposed in front of Rai. Groups of villains became sitting ducks in front of his negation. There was a reason why he was number two, but Empress was going to show him why she was number one.

She unslung a sniper rifle she had bought earlier. She hoisted it into position over the rooftop’s railing. She inserted a glowing bullet. All the money she had collected up to this point had gone into purchasing this bullet. The bullet was imbued with telekinetic control and a negating effect. It would allow her to steer the bullet as it traveled, in addition to negating any barriers that might exist

She just needed one chance. As soon as Rai appeared she would shoot him.

The respawn system would cause players to revive in their base, which in Rai’s case was the bank. However, there was a minute-long time limit before players could come back to life. That would be all she needed.

She patiently waited atop the roof, staring down the rifle’s scope. Every few days, Rai would transfer money to a base his friends had created outside the starting area. Although the pattern of dispersal was seemingly random, Empress felt she had cracked the code. According to her calculations, he would expose himself at some point today.

Seconds turned into minutes, and minutes turned into hours. Empress remained motionless, her finger hovered of the trigger the entire time, unmoving. 

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Eventually, uncharacteristic movement appeared at the entrance of the bank, signifying Rai’s arrival. Three individuals emerged first. One glanced around with hawk-like eyes, scoping out the area. The other two men held their hands out by their sides, creating barriers. The hawk-eyed man’s gaze passed over Empress’s position. 

She froze temporarily, hoping that her judgement had been correct. After a few moments, the man looked away, unsuspecting.

Empress let out a breath of relief, glad she chose a rooftop out of range of the man’s sight powers. 

The men gave a signal, indicating that the coast was clear. At their confirmation, a brown-haired man emerged. He had doe-brown eyes and a gentle smile on his face. It was none other than Rai.

Empress smiled evilly, concentrating once more. She would only have one shot.

Rai walked forward towards an armored vehicle that was parked nearby. However, before he could get in the car, Empress pulled the trigger.

The enhanced bullet shot outward, causing the sniper rifle to disintegrate at the power. It flew through the air, cutting through the sky, headed towards Rai.

Empress immediately took control of it, steering it as it traveled. It dodged out of the way of the hawk-eyed body guard who jumped in front of Rai, smashing into Rai’s forehead.

Rai’s head exploded with a bang, splattering the sidewalk with blood and gore. Before his body could fall to the ground, Empress was already moving. She employed her teleportation, closing the distance between the roof and the bank in a matter of seconds. She activated the barrier enhancer she had purchased during character creation and waved her hands forward.

Her barriers slammed into the three bodyguards like a wall, crushing them into a red pulp. She didn’t hesitate, dashing through the entrance of the bank.

The bank tellers and customers gaped at her in shock. One of the tellers went to press the emergency button under her desk, but before she could press it, an invisible forced crashed into her, killing her.

Empress teleported into the next room, standing in front of the vault. She would have teleported inside, but she could only teleport to places she could see. She whipped out her barrier pistol.

Barrier pistols were supposed to be used for defensive purposes. By shooting a bullet, you would deploy a barrier, allowing people to create barriers on the fly.

However, Empress had a different purpose. She shot the vault door with her pistol, causing the bullets to imbed themselves inside the steel. Then, with a thought, she activated them, causing a barrier to materialize, ripping the vault open. 

Inside of the vault were dozens of bags filled to the brim with thin, crystal like cards.

Empress didn’t hesitate. She opened her inventory and absorbed all of the credits. In a matter of minutes, she had become one of the richest players in the starting zone. However, now she had to be careful. She had to return and deposit the credits in her base. If she died while carrying them, all would be lost.

Just as she was about to step outside the vault. A brown-haired man materialized out a thin air. An ugly look was on his face. It was Rai.