Going Once, Twice…
“Villain teams are surprisingly rare. A lot of enhanced who choose to become villains are too egomaniacal to actually work together. The exception to this is, almost universally, heist gangs. They hit high profile and high threat targets for top end loot and try to do it fast enough that neither police nor heroes can respond.”
“The best of them have started getting hired to perform jobs, often for more powerful villains. I am afraid this is a trend we will have to expect to continue.”
Thoth, in a presentation to the other Guardians, 1949.
It was comforting every time Solaris found something familiar, and shopping on Fifth avenue was still shopping on Fifth avenue, Nahoa was getting fitted for work clothing. And she decided to walk around instead of waiting. Her blond hair pulled into a tail dressed in jeans and a comfortable Tankman t-shirt, and white jacket
The Diamond District was, strangely, fairly unchanged compared to the rest of the city, and gems were on heavy display. She'd recovered her personal collection of jewelry, but window shopping was relaxing, and if she saw something she wanted, she could get it.
She looked in Tiffany’s window wondering if it was too early to shop for Christmas. “No better wait. You don’t want to look pushy. And most of the designs are a bit austere.”
Crossing the street, she found a store she wasn't familiar with, but advertising absolutely fantastic looking strands of pearls. "Mikimodo...." she mused. "Sounds Japanese. You really can’t go wrong with pearls”. She went into the store, thinking about a nice pearl ring for Granny Ruan, her eyes a bit dreamy, she loved Christmas.
Just as she crossed the threshold, a sound like an explosion ripped through the normal sounds of the city, from down the block. “What in God’s name!” Solaris said spinning around and running outside. Flying up a bit to give herself a better view.
Outside a man wearing a suit was wielding what appeared to be a sword against another man, who was obviously enhanced, his body seemingly made of rusted iron, with a shredded black and red shirt and loose pants.
Solaris looked around one eye on the fight looking for the explosion wanting to make sure bystanders were out of the way as much as possible.
The cause of the explosion appeared quickly, popping out the shattered door of Bonhams Auction house, the woman wearing an almost violent blue bodysuit, bringing up her hands and letting loose a burst of electricity which hit the man with the sword, sending him spinning through the air, twitching and screaming. A third man, carrying a leather case, followed the woman. "Fuck, Cape! Ferrous, move your ass!" he yelled, running towards a car just across the street from the door.
“Seriously! My first day in the city in a week and this happens” she landed in front of the car. “Hey Siri, message Penny. Villains on fifth ave. Very irritated. Send.” She put her hand on the hood and pressing down. I really need to find my super gear. She thought to herself. “I do believe it is time for you to stop and surrender.”
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The car leaned forward as she pressed down, though the hood strangely didn't crumple like she'd expected. The man carrying the case cursed and a glowing aura formed around him. "Fulmina, get rid of her!" he ordered as he dove into the car.
The woman turned, and again threw lighting from her hand, a coruscating ball of plasma slamming into Solaris's chest, causing the powerful woman’s body to jerk, pain ripping through her nerves, completely out of line with the actual damage the unyielding heroine could take.
Solaris staggered back from the car, clutching her chest, gasping for breath. She hadn’t felt pain like that in years. “Well now I’m upset.” She stepped forward and dug her hand into the hood of the car, ripping it off with her other hand grabbing and ripping the bumper off, stabbing it into the engine and the concrete beneath it. “Alright lightbug, let’s play.”
A small man burst out of the driver’s seat as she turned towards the woman, just in time for the nitrous-aero gas mix he had been using in the engine to explode into flames, the car and Solaris quickly becoming consumed in flames.
"Well shit... Do you know how much our tech is going to bitch about his car?" Fulmina groaned.
“Less than me about my damn wardrobe!” Solaris patted herself out, walking towards the woman.
"Fine, but before you pick on me, you might want to look behind you.”
Solaris frowned, and instead of looking back she leapt forward towards Fulmina, intending to swipe at her with the hood of the burning car
The wind of a near miss to her head, and a slight tug on her hair Drew her attention even as she slammed the hood into the cocky woman, the AR-500 steel flexing around the woman who could only grunt as she was sent flying, leaving a cracked shape in the wall of Trump Tower.
She spun, coming face to face with the one called Ferrous, who threw a roundhouse at her head.
She threw an arm up to block the kick, while sending her own kick at the inside of his opposite leg. Her body moving with countless hours of training, under Camp X’s most brutal trainer.
Both blows hit at almost exactly the same time, and neither combatant moved, the shockwave of the impacts rippling out from them and shattering car windows, setting off car alarms for half a block. The man did stagger back, limping and gripping his leg. "Who the hell are you!" he growled.
Solaris smiled, and it was not a nice smile, he was tough enough she didn’t have to hold back as much. She swung for his head. “Solaris.”
"Damn, I'd heard you were back, but didn't buy it. I'd ask for an autograph, but I'm a little busy." His hand shifted, growing spikes, and he threw a jab at her chest, once again achieving nothing but causing a shockwave. "Well crap."
Her smile didn’t change, as she spun with the strike her leg snap kicking into his side.
He brought his arms up to take the hit, and while he succeeded in blocking it, the strange sound of metal rending and his cry of pain and falling to the ground, clutching his right arm suggested it didn't work out well for him.
"Damn it, Ferrous, run!" the glowing man, clutching a leather case and climbing out of the burning car yelled, showing no damage. Solaris watched as he slid more than stepped away. "Fulmina! Any minute now!"
"Shut up Tef!" The electricity wielder brought both hands, glowing painfully bright, together and fired a focused beam of energy, her gaze and focus showing she was pushing every bit of power out of her system as she could.
Solaris let out a scream as the electric feeling ran through her with the force of what felt like a dozen lightning bolts. Her eyes teared up, and she slumped to a knee. Gasping, she could feel her skin resisting the burning of the lighting, but something about it seemed to drive the arcs of electricity right into her nerves, a near perfect pain. She struggled to move, her limbs not obeying her.