Axion ducked and weaved, dodging a flurry of punches and kicks aimed in her direction. She threw herself forward, landing a solid uppercut to the gut of her attacker, causing him to stagger back. She spun, kicking her leg out, catching him in the side, and sending him sprawling to the ground.
What the hell's been going on in the past few days?! she thought, jumping over a bench that had been flipped on its side, narrowly avoiding another punch to her face. She grabbed her attacker by the collar and thrust her knee into his stomach.
He doubled over, clutching his stomach, gasping for breath.
Axion slammed her elbow into the side of his head, knocking him to the ground, unconscious.
Another gang member lunged at her from behind, wrapping his arms around her waist and pinning her arms to her sides.
"Goddamn it!" she hissed through gritted teeth.
She increased the gravity affecting him, forcing him to his knees as she broke free from his grip. She lifted her boot, driving her heel into his groin, earning a pained cry from the man. She kneed him in the face, smashing his nose and sending blood gushing from his nostrils. The man clutched his crotch and collapsed to the ground.
"Shit..." Axion muttered, panting heavily. She glanced around at the carnage she'd wrought. "What the hell is this all about?"
Three more gang members rushed toward her from different directions and dove at her.
She leaped, twisting her body through the air, narrowly missing one of them as she landed. She whirled, swinging her leg around, sweeping her foot under another's legs and tripping him. As he fell, she brought her elbow down on his face, cracking his jaw.
Axion swung her other leg around, kicking the third gang member in the face, splitting his lip. Blood spewed from his mouth as he reeled back, holding his hand to his nose.
One gang member jumped on her back, clinging to her like a monkey, his arms wrapped around her throat.
After lowering the gravity around him, Axion lifted him off her back, flipping him over her shoulder and slamming him to the ground. Before he could recover, she stomped her foot on his chest, pinning him in place as she raised her fist for a knockout blow.
"Why do you fuckers keep attacking me all of a sudden?" she demanded.
He flinched, trembling beneath her boot. "B-Because...there's a reward..." He gasped for breath, his eyes darting between her and his companions who were writhing on the ground.
Axion scowled and stepped harder on his chest, increasing the pressure. "A reward, huh? For what?"
He sputtered and wheezed. "For capturing you...alive..." He choked out the words between labored breaths. "You've...got..."
Two more rushed her from the side. One held a club while the other wielded a knife.
She leaped sideways, evading the attack, and slammed her fist into the knife-wielder's stomach. As he doubled over in pain, Axion spun, bringing her other arm around for a vicious chop to the back of his head, knocking him out cold. She whirled to face the final opponent. He froze, glancing between Axion and his incapacitated companion, dropping the club as he sprinted away screaming.
Several others approached cautiously. These ones looked hesitant to engage her, standing at a distance with their weapons drawn.
She huffed and crossed her arms, the LED eyes on her helmet narrowing. "Hey! It's not like I want to beat the shit out of you assholes either, okay?!" she shouted. "As long as you don't go after innocent people, I'll leave you alone. But you keep harassing me and you better bet your asses that I'll defend myself. Got it?"
They watched her warily, exchanging glances with each other. Then half the idiots charged at her anyway, waving their batons and pipes wildly.
"Come on, guys!" she groaned, exasperated.
With a burst of speed, Axion dashed towards a graffiti-covered wall. She leaped, feet first, hitting the wall with a thud. Her gravity field pulled her against the surface, altering her body’s relationship with the ground below. Now, the wall was her floor.
She sprinted across the brick wall while the gang members gaped, their shouts of aggression turning into exclamations of disbelief. She glanced down from her vantage point and flipped them off before scaling the wall, leaping to the roof, and disappearing from their sight.
----------------------------------------
Axion sprinted down the alley, her feet barely touching the ground. Behind her, the sound of engines revving filled the air, along with shouting voices. She glanced back to see a motley crew of thugs on mopeds and dirt bikes weaving through the debris-strewn streets, hot on her tail.
"Seriously?!" she exclaimed. "When I wanted action, I didn't think it'd be like this." She skidded around a corner, her boots skipping across the pavement. The wheels of her pursuers' vehicles screeched as they swerved and braked, trying to follow her.
The high-pitched whine of the motorcycle engines reverberated against the walls of the narrow alleys and decrepit buildings. Thick exhaust billowed from the mufflers, adding to the haze of dust and smoke hanging in the air.
Without missing a beat, she focused inward, feeling the familiar surge of energy as she tapped into her gravity field. Instantly, she felt the familiar swirl of energy beneath her feet. She bent her knees slightly, imagining the gravity forming a slippery field around her. Suddenly, the ground beneath her felt different—slicker, less resistant.
She leaned forward and pushed off with her foot, initiating the slide. The soles of her shoes barely touched the asphalt as she zipped along the ground, her momentum carrying her swiftly past piles of rubble and rusted debris.
Using her gravity around her palms as rudders to steer her trajectory, she maneuvered her way through the maze of shacks and shelters that lined the slums, using the thin structures as barriers to block off her pursuers. She slid under a tattered awning, sending strips of canvas flying into the air as she exited the other side.
The bike riders weaved through the obstacles, their tires skidding against the pavement as they struggled to maintain their balance. Some crashed into each other, while others jumped over the wreckage and continued their pursuit.
Axion accelerated, pushing her slide to its limits. She could feel the strain in her legs as she adjusted the gravitational field to her liking, ensuring that her feet would maintain the slick surface.
She zipped around a corner, the mopeds skidding to keep up. Her eyes darted, searching for an escape route.
A man pulling his cart loomed ahead, blocking her path. She ramped up the alley's wall, using her gravitational field to orient herself as she launched into a graceful arc above the cart. She caught a glimpse of the man's face, his eyes wide with shock as she flew past him.
Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.
Landing back on the street, she banked hard left, almost running into a woman carrying a large basket. She veered away and slid to the right, her boots tapping rapidly as she moved from the wall to the ground.
[TFSI: 0.53]
She winced from the strain of using her power in a few different ways at once, especially when combined with the stress of making split-second decisions to avoid collisions.
Pedestrians jumped out of her way, yelling angrily as she shot through the crowded thoroughfare.
"Sorry! Sorry! Excuse me! Coming through!" she called out.
Axion slid through a narrow passageway, barely wider than her shoulders.
The mopeds struggled to follow, their handlebars scraping against the walls. Sparks flew, and several thugs fell from their bikes, crashing into the side of a building. A wheel went loose, bouncing along the road and toppling over a fruit cart. Fresh produce scattered everywhere, drawing additional angry cries from the surrounding vendors.
The alley opened into a small square, littered with cardboard boxes and stray cats. Axion's slide took her straight through, scattering felines in all directions.
The remaining mopeds emerged from the narrow passageway, their engines roaring as they tore after her.
Axion spotted a clothesline strung between two buildings. Perfect. She angled her body, using her hands as rudders to steer towards it. As she approached, she leaped, grabbing onto the line. Her momentum carried her forward, swinging her through an open window on the second floor of an old apartment building.
She rolled as she landed, surrounded by surprised faces. An elderly couple sat frozen, their card game interrupted by her sudden entrance.
"Sorry, grandma, gramps! I'm in a bit of a hurry, but I'm sure you two can catch up later. Keep on playing! Okay?" she blurted, waving apologetically to the pair as she made her way to the opposite window. Axion shoved the glass panes open and threw herself out, initiating her slide as soon as her feet touched the ground. The angry cries of the moped riders echoed as they rounded the corner, chasing after her.
The chase seemed never-ending, but Axion managed to keep a safe distance ahead. She weaved between the dilapidated structures, moving further and further away from the crowded neighborhood.
Something weird was going on. None of them were using any guns. Sure, word might have gotten around that she could deflect bullets, but she'd expected at least a few shots or pellets to come her way. Instead, they only chased her relentlessly like a pack of hunting dogs.
Were they hoping to take her in alive? That guy earlier mentioned something about capturing her for a reward...but she hadn't pissed off any of the big syndicates. At least, not yet.
"Hey, uh, Edith? You there?" she asked over the comm-link, keeping her pace constant.
"Yeah, I am. About that though, you wouldn't happen to know if there's some kinda bounty on my head, would you? These guys are being extra annoying today. Plus, I overheard someone mention something about a reward."
Axion cut through an intersection, sliding under an abandoned vehicle before resuming her dash through the slums. "Not to mention," she continued. "These guys chasing me right now look like they're ones from the Carnage Collective, and I'm sure I hadn't crossed them, either."
Fii sighed and hopped, gliding along a narrow railing that ran along the wall of a decrepit shack. "Okay, good idea. Thanks, Edith." She jumped off the rail, accelerating into a smooth slide that took her across an open courtyard and between the legs of a startled guy who'd been squatting beside a fire pit.
"Uh, excuse me!" she yelled, banking to the left and heading down another alley.
Edith was right. There was no point fighting them off if she didn't need to. Although, the prospect of a real challenge was tempting, given how boring her last few fights had been.
Axion shook her head.
No. She was done giving these idiots the satisfaction of a fight, even if they'd spent the past hour chasing her. While it was still annoying, if this was the worst that would happen today, she could count herself lucky. At least this kept them occupied and out of trouble. Plus it gave her a workout in the process.
"Axion! Hey!"
She heard Quinn's voice call from behind a building. She turned around to see him frantically beckoning her to enter a shanty. Without slowing down, she glanced around to make sure she wasn't followed, then turned and entered the narrow gap between the lean-to and the adjacent building.
The cramped space led to a small room, the area dimly illuminated by natural light shining through the gaps in the planks and metal sheets that made up the structure. At the center lay a table covered with tools and junk, with a rusty toolbox on one side and a pile of salvaged mechanical parts on the other. A ladder led to a second-floor hatch. Several thick ropes and cables hung from the ceiling, each with various items tied to them.
Axion looked around, taking in the chaotic mess. "This your deck?"
Quinn plopped down on the lone chair, brushing aside several pieces of scrap metal that had been cluttering the seat. "Yep. Not much, but home sweet home, right? Saw you being chased by a bunch of thugs and figured you might need a place to hide for a while. What'd you do to piss 'em off enough this time?"
Axion leaned her shoulder against a support beam and stretched her legs, finally able to rest her exhausted muscles. She pulled her helmet off and set it on a shelf full of spare parts, breathing deeply and massaging her aching thighs. "I didn't do anything to them today, but thanks for the save."
She noticed the faint smell of something burning. Glancing at the bottom of her shoe, she saw a slight charring on the sole."Aww man. Maybe sliding around so much wasn't the smartest idea." She frowned and stomped a few more scraps of burnt rubber off her shoes. "Damn it."
"I still don't really get how your power works," Quinn remarked, scratching his chin. "That gravity thingy or whatever."
Fii shrugged. "Apparently it's very complicated. I'm barely even a beginner at it myself. I just kind of do things, and sometimes I get stuff right. I still haven't got the hang of it, but I'm getting better with practice."
Quinn snickered. "Cool. Still impressive, though." He picked up a spanner, casually spinning the wrench in his hand. "So, what's your plan after taking a breather? Just hiding out here till sunset, or you got somewhere else to be?"
She smirked and ran her fingers through her hair, mussing the sweaty locks. "Edith told me to lay low for a while until they figure out who put a bounty on me. So, I'll have to stop patrolling as much—especially during the day." She kicked at a screw lying on the floor before nudging the item closer to the pile with her shoe. "Looks like I'll have a bunch of free time coming up."
Quinn stopped twirling his tool and dropped it on the table. "Free time? Nice." He grinned, rummaging through his pocket to pull out a pair of metallic tags with etched letters, which he dangled in front of her. "Does that mean you're up for going?"
Fii's eyes widened in recognition of the event tickets. "You got tickets for a concert? Who's the band?" She leaned closer to inspect the metal tokens, taking in the scrawled lettering and intricate artwork embossed on them.
"Shunkashūtō." Quinn wiggled the stubs. "Kenzo's group."
Fii covered her mouth to muffle her squeal of excitement. "No... No freakin' way!" She gasped and reached for the tickets, but he moved them just out of her reach, grinning.
"Big fan, eh? I remember you mentioning him. Managed to get these tickets as payment for helping fix up some of the lights on the stage. It's nothing fancy, but I guess we could go to the show together." He shrugged. "If you're not doing anything." He jerked the tickets away as Fii reached for them again.
"Yes! Of course! Are you kidding me? I'd love to go with you!" she said enthusiastically, practically bouncing in place as she reached for them a third time, her hand darting quickly to grab the prize.
"Haha. Alright. Cool. That settles it then." He handed Fii one of the tickets before putting his own back in his pocket. "We'll head there tomorrow night. We can meet up at Rao's shop first, then get some Grub'n'Guzzle before going to the venue."
"Awesome," Fii gushed. She beamed, her smile practically glowing as she gripped the ticket tightly in her palm, unable to contain her delight.
Kenzo was her favorite musician. His songs always spoke to her, as if the lyrics and the melody expressed exactly what she'd been thinking or feeling at that moment. Most of the time, she couldn't afford the price to enter the Tower of Songs to hear him live, but every once in a while, he played for free outside the walls.
This was one of those rare opportunities she didn't want to miss.
"Thanks, Quinn," she said gratefully. "Really appreciate this. You're the best." She grinned widely, giving him a playful punch to the shoulder.
Quinn smirked. "Don't mention it. I've actually been wanting to check them out for a while, and this gives me an excuse to use those tickets." He shrugged and flashed another toothy grin. "Anyways, it's a date then. Looking forward to it."