Welcome to Gaia! ::

Coming back to DC was easier than Auriga had expected. Maybe it was her new life experiencing what her super strength felt like, maybe it was actually getting to do senshi stuff after two long years. Whatever it was, the Super Sailor of Pestilence was happy! She loved the idea of being a superhero, of making a real difference in a city where people often felt so hopeless.

Some of her old friends had moved away, but she still had her core group of high school buds. It was one of them, Megan, who had proven to be especially ace. See, Megan was dating a college boy, something her parents would never allow, and so Maggie had taken to helping her conveniently invent well-constructed lies about where she was staying, normally involving Maggie, that had allowed the relationship to continue without interruption.

But Maggie Lawrence believed in reciprocal back scratching.

So Megan, in turn, had become Maggie's excuse. They had a standing "girls night" once a week, but in truth, Maggie spent that night going on patrol, doing her civic duty, and then crawling in through Megan's window much later in the evening. Megan was discreet and asked few questions, but Maggie loved a well-spun lie and had invented a secret boyfriend of her own. Oh, but he's much older... you really shouldn't meet him. And because she couldn't help herself: His kids would be mortified.

That evening had been exceptionally productive. Sailor Auriga had dusted three youma AND rescued a rather cute DCU student from some low-level Nega who had scrammed when she saw the Senshi of Pestilence approach. It gave Auriga a swell of confidence, even if she hadn't raised a fist. It didn't hurt that Crawford -- what a dreamy name -- had been singing her praises for the last two blocks as she escorted him home.

"That was insane!" he continued, beaming at her. "Look, I knew DC had gangs and stuff, but that lady reached into my chest. It's real, you know? All the rumors. This s**t is real."

Auriga nodded sagely. "We senshi are the protectors of the city and this planet, sworn to keep civilians like you safe from the forces of Chaos. Your thanks is unneeded; just doing my job." Her voice was more than a little practiced, like she had been wanting to give this speech for awhile. And she had. It's why she practiced it in the mirror.

As they neared the street where Crawford's dormitory was, Auriga had another goal: to glean as much information about him as possible so she could stage a totally accidental meet-cute as her civilian self later that week. "You said you major in sports medicine? That sounds impressive." A beat. Crawford was still looking dazed but amazed. "I'm sure your girlfriend is really proud of you."

Hint. Dropped.

Crawford smiled, flashing Auriga a pair of sparkly baby blues, and added: "Oh, I don't have a girlfriend."

Thundercats are go! The love story of the century, impending!

Auriga had just lifted her hand to place a casual touch on Crawford's shoulder -- initiating intimacy, you know -- when an aura thick with Chaos presence snapped across the area. It was hard to pinpoint where exactly, but Auriga's fingertips had gone cold, her expression dropping. Whoever this was had more power than her, and she already felt tired from the earlier fight. This was not a fight or flight decision; the only choice was flight. There was a subway nearby, but trapping yourself could be dangerous. Granted, if the train came quickly, they could be zooming away to safety in a second.

"Uh, Crawford, we should--"

But he was already here. Too late. She'd been too late.

Maybe he would be the kind who would banter? The scythe appeared. That felt like a capital NO. Auriga took a step in front of Crawford, her lips drawing together with determination. They just had to escape. Not win. Just get out of there. "Is this your friend?" Crawford said, confused.

"No," she said. Remarkably monosyllabic for her.

If she had a power that could be thrown, maybe she could cause a diversion. But her power required direct physical contact, and getting anywhere close to him meant getting close to that scythe. That was not something she thought intelligent to do. Crawford, however, would be even less equipped. Both of them running in the same direction meant both of them getting caught -- of that, she felt certain. Her only hope was confusion. Separating and hoping he went after her.

For all her vanity and obsession, Auriga did have a heart of hero, most of the time.

Drawing in a breath, Auriga tried to look casual. "You're a general, aren't you? Do you really need a weapon against me?" There weren't many options for projectiles around her, just a trash can, gross, and some scattered trash. She smiled at the stranger and flipped her hair over her shoulder, as much as her hood would allow, adjusting the bandages near her throat a little lower -- and then, as fast as she could, snatched the thin metal can from the ground and winged it as hard as she could at the general.

Trash tumbled out of it as it flew. "Crawford, RUN!" she shouted.

The boy looked confused and didn't move, so she threw a wad of trash at him, sending him scampering in the opposite direction. Hopefully sports medicine meant he ran fast for a human. Auriga, meanwhile, grabbed the metal lid and sent that sailing through the air at Labyrinthite as well. Bobbing back and forth on both feet and dashing back and forth like a wide receiver trying to catch a ball, she tried to move as erratically as she could. Moving objects were harder, no? And harder to predict. Once he moved, she would know which way to go, or at least commit to her own sprinting path.

At least, that was her hope.

The joy Auriga felt at seeing Crawford dart away and the Nega not pursue him was short-lived. Her plan had worked -- which meant she was now in danger. The sound of metal on metal itched in her ears, but she was moving, sprinting as fast as she could. For a brief moment, she wished she were one of those mirror senshi. Then at least she could find a safe haven in a mirror. As herself? Her options were to run and think on her feet. Even if she was good at it, the general's bag of tricks went deeper.

Her heels clicked noisily, but she didn't bother to look behind her. It would only slow her down. She needed to go somewhere that the general couldn't see, somewhere he couldn't freely teleport within. So long as they were out in the open, she was in trouble. She also needed help. A storefront loomed up ahead. Dangling chandeliers, luxurious ottomans -- but no security gate? The glass had to be bulletproof. Across the way, there was a Chinese restaurant. Cooked ducks hung from hooks in the window, but its gate only covered the lower half of the windows.

Running out of options, Auriga made a risky choice. Crossing her arms over her face, metal cufflinks out, praying for a security system, the Senshi of Pestilence dove forward, shattering the glass mostly -- but raking her left side hard on jagged glass. A wail of pain slipped from her lips unbidden. She fell unforgivingly half on the metal serving station and flopping to the floor with a roll. The roll was maybe the only part that saved her from worse damage. She didn't stop, leaping over the curved plastic sneezeguard and tearing into the back of the shop, clutching her left side.

Her free hand slammed open the swinging door to the back as, mercifully, an alarm begin to hiss and ring. An alarm meant cops. Cops meant guns. He maybe be able to overpower her, but Negas weren't bulletproof. A wet sluice of blood seeped through her fingers, and Auriga cursed, a real curse. She couldn't keep running, not like this. Her options were an open pantry, the walk-in freezer, and a low set of metal cabinets. She took a moment to circle the room, flinging blood with her fingers, hoping to create a confusing trail. She flung the backdoor open with a smear of blood to suggest she had left and then ducked into one of the hiding spots.

For ******** sake.

Auriga was more of a tall than a venti when it came to her choice of internal cursing. But how else was a girl expected to react when her attacker moved directly toward the one place she was hiding? Maybe they both had the raptor attack from Jurassic Park on their brains? Auriga certainly bore the wounds of some type of claw, sort of, and this dude seemed like just that kind of animal.

Crawford was safe, which was totally totally good... but what about her?

The sound of footsteps approaching made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. If she stayed still and waited, it wouldn't end well. Her binding wraps hung loosely around her neck. The good thing about being a little known senshi was that little was known about her magic. It may be the only tiny edge she had at all in this match. Auriga practically held her breath as she whispered the words of her attack, a green glow starting dully around her lips and palms.

Summoning every ounce of her speed, Auriga darted from the cabinet, grabbing at the Nega's ungloved hand and using her other to tear at the buttons on the side seam of his buttons, aiming to tear open enough skin to bite his outer thigh. She clamped down with her teeth, such a classy attack, and then scuttled backward like an animal thing, praying her attack would take hold and spinning to head toward the door.

When the general got his hands on her face, Auriga felt her blood run cold. Her attack required close proximity, but it never felt good. Not once. The clank of his scythe dropping did little to soothe her -- she had seen too many Negaverse weapons return. Wide, frightened blue eyes met his as his hands found purchase in her hair and then... he stumbled back. He didn't look so good.

Victory clenched in her chest, as Auriga wrenched herself free, giving him a shove as best she could for good measure. The splash of vomit on the floor was a welcome sound, something she was still getting used to. There was no catchphrase or bragging to be had today though.

Vaulting forward, Auriga sprang back the way she came, shoving open the door and making her way back outside through the shattered window. Sirens whirred in the background, but they were still too far away. Her only prayer was he was too disoriented to find her worth the trouble of a chase.

She winged the opposite direction that Crawford had run, and it brought her to some unfamiliar streets. Wildly, she moved left and then right, before spying a ladder and climbing up it to the roof of a five story apartment building, hoping a high perch would give her some degree of hiding.