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Another bar crawl, another wad of cash and star seeds. Tonight had been a good night for both of those things and she hadn’t had to use any magic this time. It had been a spooky-themed crawl for Halloween in August so she blended in easily in her powered form as she popped between alleyways to siphon some energy off of the ones she was targeting. Her M.O. was the same as usual, picking off the frat house douchebags who were nothing but trouble to the local college population. She had picked off three especially rich-looking ones tonight, leaving each in a separate dumpster after raiding their pockets for cash and car keys. She wouldn’t steal a car but it looked less suspicious going through one of you had the keys to open it and lock it back up afterward.

Heaving the last guy up and over the edge of the dumpster, she stood counting the hundred dollar bills before putting it into her subspace. She felt a few auras around from both sides but they didn’t feel terribly close or powerful. She was still just the tiniest bit gun shy after being decked by a princess so this had been the first big run for money in a few weeks so she hadn’t tried ripping any powered starseeds again. It was ballsy to begin with but she really wanted to find out what reward came with that added risk.

The alley she stood in was just off the main bar crawl strip of bars so she took a moment to watch people, looking for the various signs of new money showing off god-awful branding and bling. It was obnoxious in its own way but made it easier to pick people out of the crowd.

As she watched the crowd, she felt that order vibe getting closer. Pressing back into the shadow cast by the fire escape on the building that made up one side of the alley, she changed her focus from looking for a target to looking for the enemy. They felt about the same in power level, she thought, but other than that she wasn’t sure what to look for in the crowd. They would probably stand out at least with all the lighter-shaded colors if they were a senshi. It was a toss-up if they were a knight, she had memorized most of the flavors they had come in from the study guide she had gotten from Chrys.

They all had some sort of symbol plastered all over so she started looking for something she recognized in the crowd. It was easier than trying to pick out someone being suspicious because that could just be another drunk a*****e coming up with a scheme. Thinking about it, she pulled out a starseed from her subspace and placed it in the alleyway before she stepped further in and behind the dumpster she had dumped the dudebro in. It was a Looney Tunes sort of plan but if it worked it worked. At least that’s what she hoped.

Bingo. Her trap had worked and if she was right, the girl was just barely in range for her magic. Without getting out from behind the dumpster, she cast her magic and smiled as the fog rolled out from her. Her Dullahan would appear near them but she took the opportunity and cover of the fog to her advantage to get in closer. With the edge of her heel, she knocked the starseed back away from her opponent and picked it up. That would be turned in later for her quota or she might try something she had heard about if it really came down to it.

Apparently, these things were like those beans from DBZ and gave you energy and stuff for a bit if you weren’t hurt. She was a bit proud of the information she had learned now that she was actually trying to put in the effort. Stepping back just a bit, she waited to see what her creature did.

Every time she saw it, her heart fluttered. It was her monster and they were amazing. Taking no chances, she went straight for their face with her fist. If she could daze them she could try and nab another starseed. It really helped that the dullahan kept that girl mostly restrained. She wasn’t about to have a repeat of bitchy princess wings McGee interrupting her again. This one definitely didn’t have the same color palette as the poor b*****d she had almost stolen a starseed from so at least that meant that it wouldn’t be the same princess that showed up if one even did.

The more she thought about it, the more she wondered what starseeds tasted like. It had been an odd curiosity at first when she found out they /could/ be eaten and now she had started thinking about how there were different starseeds and if they would have different flavors. At this point, she was looking for an excuse to try one out. Maybe tonight would be the night, as long as it didn’t taste like that douchebag’s last bender.

The vase thing barely got her in the shoulder as she stepped back from the punch. The blood spit landed on her outfit. Gross. There was enough time left on the first magic for her to pop the forbidden candy in her mouth and crunch down on it. The flavor… was weird? She wasn’t really sure about it but that would be something to figure out later. Feeling a boost of some type she moved in close and went for a haymaker on their right side. Did she feel faster? But she wasn’t sure if that was just in her head or not.

“Try me.” She was up for a fight tonight, she was super pissed still about how things had ended last time. If needed she had 4 more uses of her different magics. She was going to win this fight tonight and then go back to draining frat boys and making rent.

Each kick stung a bit but she had done her best to block them so she didn’t get knocked back as much. There was a bit of space between them as she saw magic pour out of the other’s vase thing. It had created a bit of an area around the knight, which meant she had an advantage. Running through the color palettes in her head, she borrowed it down to the one that had a deadbeat prince. That was a plus at least, it meant that if any backup showed up they would only be one level above her.

The next kick had more power to it but the knockback wasn’t enough to knock her down. Maybe it was from her training, maybe it was from the forbidden candy that she had munched on, who was to say? It didn’t dissuade her as she kicked back at the girl’s legs with her heels. She wanted that starseed bad. She could take a few more hits and if needed call upon her Dullahan to lash out or grapple the other again. Though it probably would be best to hold off on the grapple until she was ready to rip out their starseed.

She wasn’t sure if the magic puddle would do anything negative to her so even as she made her move, she tried not to touch the stuff. It was bad enough she had gotten blood on her, not that it would be there when she powered down and back up, but it was the thought of it. She had to keep the pressure on regardless and started to formulate a plan on how to get them out of the area of their magic.

Smiling as she took the first hit in the shoulder, she reached up and grabbed the girl and tried to throw them back behind her and out of the magic. She had already put a lot of motion into the punches so she hoped that redirecting it would work. The hit had gotten her and it hurt but she was too focused on getting that starseed. She would deal with the bruise later.

She wasn’t sure how long the boost would last but she hoped she could get another hit in or two before she started hitting like a wet noodle.

It had half worked, they were both in motion going away from the magic circle. Except now she was trying to reach for her face. No way was she going to claw at Bea’s eyes. Mentally preparing for what she knew would hurt, she let herself go partially limp to flip the other the rest of the way over and into the metal of the dumpster. Time felt slow for a second as she knew the ground approached.

This was as good a time as any, she willed her magic to work. For the dullahan to appear and grapple that knight. Fog rolled out from her as she hit the ground, a cracking echoing from her shoulder as it gave to the unforgiving pavement. It hurt but she would be fine after another starseed. Laying there for just a moment, she looked up and behind, waiting for the telltale signs of her monster.