It was days like this when Silver lamented her choice of supervillain outfit. Hot, dry, and utterly cloudless, the air felt like an oven which cooked her alive in yhe black leather ensemble. If only it didn't look so damned good on her. Perching on a rooftop probably didn't help matters much, either. Cool points were worth almost as much as style points, and she had no interest in squandering either.

She watched the cars on the road as they passed by a few stories below her. Just watching them made her glad she didn't drive. Tangling with superheroes and committing various crimes were fine, but she wasn't nearly insane enough to operate one of those screaming metal deathtraps. Unless, of course, there was some profit to be made. Sanity always took a back seat to cash.

The commuters went on with their afternoons, blissfully unaware of the terror looming just overhead. Not that they were in danger, of course. NAAME liked to describe all villains as constant threats. Silver resented the notion, personally. Most good people of El Puerto had nothing to fear from her. She was an upstanding citizen... most of the time.

However uncouth it may have been, the disposition of NAAME toward people like her did instill a sense of expediency. Her entire motivation for taking to the rooftops was to keep herself mostly out of sight. People never thought to look up. Eventually, though, someone would. She'd be spotted sooner or later, and then things might get interesting.

It was lucky, then, that after a few minutes more her quarry came into view. An armored car hung a right turn and headed her way. Painted green with a broad white strip horizontally down the middle, the monstrosity lumbered amongst the lesser traffic. It was big, loud, and took up entirely too much space. Silver looked down at the watch she'd purchased for this occasion. Right on time. Everything was going exactly as planned.

Silver crouched lower on the roof as her target approached, for what little good that did. The roof didn't have a lip on it, so she couldn't exactly hide. She felt oddly like a tiger ready to pounce, which was strange because her theme was decidedly not animalistic in nature. Maybe an electric eel?

Closer and closer did it creep. All the while Silver kept an unblinking watch on it. She hadn't realized how unbearably slow the traffic moved until just then. Since most people were at work during this time of day, the conditions weren't exactly gridlock. Yet, these drivers seemed to be taking their sweet time. A part of her subconscious knew this was just adrenaline making time seem to slow. Weird how that never happened when she actually needed it to.

If things didn't speed up a little, the anticipation might actually kill her. Yet, a smile spread across her face. This was, after all, part of the fun. The buildup before the strike was maybe the best part of an ambush. All she had to do was wait for the right time.

When that time came, and the armored car finally was about to reach her, Silver pounced.

The villainess held out both hands toward the encroaching vehicle. Blue streaks of lightning issued forth from them. With the speed of light they hit their target. The armored car crackled with azure streaks as a charge visibly ran through it. Silver didn't keep up the attack for long. She only needed a couple seconds to disable the vehicle.

People on the sidewalk screamed and scattered. The squeal of tires on pavement tore through the air as the doubtlessly panicked drivers slammed on their brakes—not just the armored car, but the people behind it. Vehicles skidded and swerved, to avoid the out of control beast. Most came to an abrupt halt somewhere behind it, while others managed to swing around and keep driving. The light traffic kept anyone from a collision with either the buildings or other drivers. The armored car came to rest just before Silver's perch.

After a moment to admire her handiwork, Silver jumped from the building. She fell free for a split-second before shooting a hefty amount of lighting straight down. The resulting equal and opposite upforce slowed her gradually until she landed on the ground with a great bend at the knees. She straightened up and walked toward the now disabled vehicular hulk.

One of the commuters stopped behind it had gotten out of his car to inspect the situation. The moment he saw Silver drop down, he jumped back into his driver's seat. A rev and protest from the tires saw him curve around the big green vehicle and shoot past her down the road. Silver let him go as she continued to walk.

The driver of the armored car got out. His hat and bulletproof vest were painted to match the vehicle. By his posture, he quite obviously reached for a pistol on his belt. Silver raised a hand to shoot a bolt at him. Lightning from her palm hit him like a freight train. He lifted up off the ground and flew back several feet to land in a motionless heap.

The passenger also hopped out, except he brandished a submachine gun. He was about to point it at Silver when she hit him with lightning as well. He met the same fate as his compatriot. His finger slipped. A burst of automatic fire lit up the afternoon as he hurtled up the street. The sound echoed of the buildings and down the alleys. Bullets pinged off the structure to Silver's right. One of them broke a window. More still went up in the air. The pedestrians who hadn't vacated the area screamed. They darted down alleys and side streets, or ran the opposite direction from Silver. They traffic was strangely unaffected, though. People already in their cars were probably smart enough to stay there.

Silver cringed. That wasn't supposed to happen. This mission was meant to go off without a hitch, with no collateral damage other than the intended target. Such ruckus would draw both police and heroes. Silver quickened her pace toward the armored car. She needed to get out of there quickly.

She made her way around to the back of the vehicle. Its doors were held shut by an electronic lock mechanism, a classic keypad-based system. Just like she'd been told. Why anyone still used them was beyond her. They were beyond easy for an amateur hacker to get past, and offered no protection at all against Neos. Silver pressed a finger to the keypad and ran a current through it. The thing fizzed and popped, and then clicked a moment later. Silver turned the handle and opened the rightmost door.

Inside was almost empty, save for a simple metal briefcase. It was up on a raised platform and set into a foam dais, which Silver knew from her day's worth of research was usually used to transport things either made of glass or otherwise overly fragile. Was there something glass inside the briefcase? That was one piece of information she hadn't been lucky enough to receive. But, her job was to steal something, not to know what she was stealing.

To that end, she grabbed the briefcase and headed out. The plan was to go back around the front end and dart through the alleys. She made it about halfway up the length of the car.

"Silver!" A very familiar male voice called out to her.

She stopped in her tracks. The villainess allowed herself the smallest of sighs before turning to the source of the voice.

"Sweetie!" Silver addressed Bronze Knight. "How nice of you to join me!"

"Cut it out," Bronze Knight said. "I'm not your sweetie."

"Not for lack of trying, on my part." Silver rolled her eyes, then let her gaze fall upon him. The bristling muscles, those broad shoulders, the hints of a handsome, clean shaven face beneath his helmet, the heavy shield and spear he bore as if weighed nothing, he surely was a sweet sight to behold.

"Just put your hands up and drop the briefcase," Bronze Knight instructed.

"In that order? I don't know what's in this, but it might break if I dropped it from that far up."

"You know what I meant. Stand down, and you won't get hurt," Bronze Knight said. Silver narrowed her eyes at him. Something wasn't right.

"What are you even doing here, anyway?" Silver took a step back toward the armored car. "Seriously, how are you heroes always around whenever I do something bad?"

"You tripped an alarm in the truck when you disabled it. And, I was nearby."

"Oh, how convenient," Silver mocked. She took another step back. "I bet it's more like you were watching me, just waiting for me to step out of line."

"Unauthorized surveillance is illegal, even of supervillains. I'm sure you know that." Bronze Knight made no move on her. Silver hummed under her breath.

"Oh please, don't talk to me about that. Ask your fearless leader if the law ever meant anything to her." Silver stepped back again, a shorter motion this time as it brought her to rest back up against the vehicle.

"That was a different time. Things have changed," argued Bronze Knight.

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"They sure have," nodded Silver.

She placed her hand flat against the armored car. Current from her fingertips flowed through it. Blue lightning crackled inside and out of the reinforced hull. Some split off into the air, though those that did only made it a few inches. The area near it noticeably headed up. Silver felt the electricity move through her body and into the car, as well as the static charge that worked its way into the air around her.

"I don't think it's too late for you to change, either," Bronze Knight said.

"Great, this again." Silver rolled her eyes.

Almost immediately after charging up the vehicle, she felt a disturbance. A human-sized object pushed through the static close to it on the opposite side. Its advance was slow, an obvious attempt to minimize the noise from footsteps.

"I'm serious," Bronze Knight said. "I know Kindle gives you this line all the time, but it's still not too late to join us. You gave us the lead on that opium shipment. That must mean you have good in you."

"Just because I hate drugs doesn't mean I want to join your merry band," Silver said.

Whoever was walking on the other side of the armored car turned and continued around the back. Silver glanced at the ground, the gap between the car and the road. She should've been able to see the person's shoes at the very least, and yet hey eyes beheld nothing at all. Even though someone clearly walked through the static field, Silver couldn't see them.

"This could be your last chance, Silver. NAAME will run out of patience eventually," warned Bronze Knight.

The encroaching figure rounded onto the same side Silver was. She still couldn't see him, despite feeling his every move. He approached.

"Jeez, you guys must be really desperate if you keep trying to recruit me," Silver said.

The figure came closer.

"Am I kicking your ass that badly?"

Closer.

"Not only that, but you keep coming up with new strategies to fight me. It's almost like you don't think you can win."

Closer.

"I like it, though, the thrill of trying something new. It was a nice try."

Closer still. Just two more steps and he would be in arm's length.

"I don't know what you're talking about," claimed Bronze Knight. Silver shook her head.

"Sure you don't."

She put out her left hand beside herself against the truck. Her hand met with something firm, mostly flat, and just slightly warm, something she couldn't see. The figure that had been sneaking up on her stopped in its tracks at her touch.

"Sorry, kid," Silver said. And she really meant it.

A bolt of lightning shot from her left hand, directly into the invisible figure. He gave a horrible cry and flew back. The cloaking dropped to reveal the form of Flashbang sailing through the air. Lingering bits of electricity arced off him. He flipped over once before crashing right-side up into the front of a parked car. Silver grimaced. He was such a sweetheart. She always hated hurting him.

No time to worry about that, though, as Bronze Knight took up the initiative. He charged straight at her, shield up, spear pointed toward her over top its rim. Unfortunately, bronze is an decent conductor. Silver put both hands out in front and fired a bolt at him. The electricity passed cleanly through the shield and into the body behind.

This attack had a bit more intent behind it. Bronze Knight's body seized up as the current took him. He couldn't even cry out while his paralyzed form hurtled toward the buildings across the street.

She didn't stick around to see him land. The villainess turned tail and ran through the nearest alleyway. She ditched her wig almost immediately, allowing the brunette locks beneath to flow freely in its place. She'd dodged these heroes and their intel team many a time before. She knew exactly what routes to take in order to avoid them.

…

Silver's path brought her through a twisting labrynth of alleys and back streets, so complex it may as well have been nonsensical. It probably was, in all honesty. The only reason it made sense to her was because she came up with it, kind of like how students never understand each other's notes.

Her first—and only intermittent—stop was by where she'd stashed her street clothes: a worn-out blue duffel bag stuffed behind a dumpster near an apartment complex. Inside was a grey hoodie, navy wind pants with a white stripe down the side, alcohol wipes, and a spare wig just in case.

Silver found an alley. Step one was to remove the grey body paint. The alcohol wipes smelled awful, but they cleaned off her arms, face, and cleavage well enough. Next, she slipped on the loose clothing over her villain outfit. The wig stayed where it was. She put her hair in a ponytail. The briefcase, thankfully, fit inside the duffel bag.

When she set out again, she looked just like any normal woman either going to, or on her way back from, the gym. Not the most stunning ensemble, but if any one could make it look cute, it was her.

Once in her street clothes, Silver took a slightly augmented path. She still stuck to alleys and side streets, but kept a more modest pace. The goal was to look like someone taking shortcuts, not running from The Man. She considered herself good at this part of the job, and she must've been, because no heroes nor cops harassed her along the way. In fact, she didn't see any authority figures at all.

Eventually, she reached her destination. It was one of the many abandoned buildings in the Industrial District. This one had been a small apartment complex, only big enough for a quartet of units. There was nothing left of it. Literally everything had been either looted or sold. It was just a bunch of lonely walls, now.

Silver stopped in what used to be apartment number one. It had the only door still standing in the place, which she closed behind herself. She set down the duffel bag and pulled out the briefcase, holding it at arm's length before her.

A few seconds passed by before a hydraulic exhale filled the room. A round hatch in the middle of the floor opened up away from her, taking a perfectly cut circle of ratty old rug with it. While it did, Silver put her bag back over a shoulder. The hatch finished opening a moment later. It revealed a steel ladder and a deep dark hole in the ground. Case in one hand, Silver descended into the depths.

After what must've been three whole stories, Silver touched down into a long concrete hallway, dimly lit by yellow bulbs in sconces along the tops of the walls.

There waiting for her, stance cocked, arms crossed, tail swishing, was Liandra, A.K.A Raptor. She wore the same all-encompassing black rags Silver had only ever seen her in. Her amber eyes with those weird vertical pupils shone in the shadowy corridor. Silver met those eyes and paused for a moment, honestly surprised to see her so soon.

"You couldn't wait for me to take my shoes off?" She joked.

"Do not take your shoes off in here," Liandra said. "There are nails and broken glass all over the place."

"Why is there broken glass everywhere?" Silver lifted one foot and looked down, just to be sure.

"Did you get the package?" Liandra ignored her.

"What?" Silver looked back up. "Oh, yeah, I got the package," she said in air quotes.

Liandra held out her hand, and Silver gave her the suitcase. Without another word, Liandra turned and walked down the hall away from the other woman. Silver jogged a few steps to catch up with her.

"No, but seriously, why the broken glass?" Silver insisted. "I didn't think there was any glass in here to break."

"There is plenty of glass," was Liandra's simple response.

"But why is it broken?"

"Were there any complications?" Liandra changed the subject with a barely concealed sigh. "Did the police get in your way?"

"No cops, but a couple heroes showed up." Silver shrugged. "No big deal."

"Hero intervention is not a big deal?" For the first time, Liandra showed an emotion other than blatant impatience. In this case, confusion.

"It's usually not. Bronze Knight and Flashbang tried to stop me. They had a good plan, but I knew they were up to something when Bronze Knight kept talking to me instead of just attacking. I put up a charge in and around the truck and, sure enough, Flashbang went invisible and tried to sneak up on me. Neither of them has any defense against my powers, so once I beat their trap they were easy to take down."

"That's... very impressive," Liandra said.

"Thanks. I thought so, too." Silver couldn't hide her satisfaction at the compliment. No one ever said anything good about her nefarious schemes.

They walked on in quiet for a moment. It didn't last long, though. Silver absolutely refused to share an awkward silence with this strange woman she barely knew. If Liandra wouldn't fill the space, then she would have to.

"Soooo, you gonna tell me what's in there?" She pointed at the suitcase.

"It is an experimental processor, supposedly the fastest in the world. My employer has been trying to acquire it for a while, now."

"Processor?" Silver raised an eyebrow. "I did all that for a computer chip?"

"It is integral to my employer's research. They can finally move forward."

"Your employer, huh? Am I ever gonna meet this mystery man?"

"Continue to prove yourself, and you just might."

Silver sighed. Nothing but riddles and mystery with this woman. It was exhausting. She much preferred the bluntness of Anna and Pulse. At lest she knew what those two were thinking. Liandra? Not so much.

Another lapse in conversation came about, one Silver almost immediately squashed.

"You know, I've never robbed an armored car before," She said.

"No?" Raptor responded in a way that was only half listening.

"Yeah. I don't know what's in them, so it's too much of a crapshoot," Silver went on, uncaring for her less than interested audience. "I could find, like, a pig, or something, and what would I do with that?"

"You could eat it," Liandra suggested.

"What!?" Silver played at being shocked "I could never eat Wilbur!"

"You already named your fake pig?"

"You will refer to him only as Sir Oinkins Wilburstein the Third, Lord of the Mud Hole, first of his name." Silver did her best pompous voice.

"How can he be the third if he is the first on his name?" Liandra asked, hanging a right.

"Is that what that means? I thought it meant he was, like, the best of the Wilburs, or something. The number one Wilbur."

"No." Liandra swished her tail. "That is what it means."

"Huh. Learn something every day, I guess." Silver shrugged.

Liandra came to a sudden stop. Silver carried on for a step past her before halting herself. She looked back at Raptor.

"If you would like to rest, you can do so in there." Liandra pointed at a dim, doorless room Silver hadn't noticed.

"Rest?" Silver puzzled.

"Yes." Liandra dropped her hand. "I will take this to my employer and report of your success. I will come find you when you are free to go."

Silver recognized this as a cue to get out of Liandra's hair. She could've argued, but decided against it. These people were a good opportunity for her. Best refrain from ruining it. The phrasing of it was strange, though. As if one woman could keep her there.

"Alright, then. I'll be here, I guess." Silver walked into the room. Liandra carried on her way, disappearing behind the wall.

There was a table with a few chairs inside, as well as a sink and a refrigerator. It felt suspiciously like a break room. Silver tried the sink. Amazingly, it worked, though the water was a bit brown. The refrigerator was also functional, even if it was disappointingly empty. This place was weird.

Silver took a seat in one of the chairs. At a lack of anything else to do, she pulled her smart phone from her left wind pants pocket. Somehow, she had service this deep underground. She opened up her web browser and began thumbing through the news in search of breaking headlines about the armored car heist. It was always a great ego boost to read about how she'd beaten the heroes once again.