maneuvering through

A Job Well Done

*This arc is ending after the next chapter. Yeah, after 40+ chapters.

Minutes after the pro-heroines dinner and a walk later, Saya spotted a poster of an ice cream brand, promising a chance of winning a limited edition action figure of a hero based abroad. The hero that motivated her to become one herself. The heroine kept a collection of the said hero's novelty items, from pens, bobbleheads, and action figures to her slippers when she had to slip out of her boots.

Saya turned towards her with sparkling eyes, palms clasped asking for her permission to stop by for a moment, to which she nodded with the same degree of eagerness.

"You're not coming?"

"I think I'll just stay here."

"Okay, I'll be quick then! I'll grab two so we can pig out in your apartment." She excitedly leaped into the store and disappeared between the stocked aisle. Momo stood next to the windows where she can see the cashier. The store was mildly crowded with five people waiting in the queue.

Another minute expired as passers-by subtly throw her curious side-glances, attempting to peer on her faintly familiar face before shrugging the notion. Being aware of herself, she turned a glance forward and on her back, ensuring she was not being followed.

The location didn't bring a lot of crowds, considering they have decided to eat dinner in a much-secluded area so as not to attract attention. The konbini itself sat amongst a modest neighborhood.

Momo spied a leaning figure fixed beneath the wash of the spotlight. The silhouette gave off a stance that was of a man. He wore a brown hoodie, hands buried in the pockets of washed-out denim pants. His face was hidden overshadowed by his hood, except for his lips wherein she could make out the lopsided smile riding there. Momo wondered what could have made him smile when there was nothing across him but a concrete wall and his shadow.

She allowed herself to make deductions inside her head until she realized she had been staring, chiding herself for being rude.

Momo looked away and left the guy in his solitude and peered through the glass walls in search of her company. Making two steps forward searching for her distinct pink curls, finally coming to the edge of the aisle where the freezers aligned. She found her low on her waist and a finger on her chin, skimming for flavors she desired. Her brows knotted in disgust when two youngsters were checking her friend's butt, oblivious to who the woman was, and began snapping photos of her in the position. Momo pivoted on her heels to reprimand the teenagers when a deathly grip kept her in place. Reflexively, she turned and was met first by a sinister grin and a red-laser-like left eye.

Her eyes were wide in recognition. 'It was the guy from before'.

Allowing a gasp for milliseconds, the offender, with his steel, artificial fingers, clenched her wrist, squeezing it as though holding a weighty sword. Wincing at his tight grip, she didn't have the reaction time to retract. Widely, he swung his arm and hurl her like a baseball towards the spotlight where she last saw him. Momo rolled and chafed the fabric of her coat into the rough street before skidding into a screeching halt.

Her head caught in a daze, as a throb of pain began to pound. Her mouth tasted rustic and she smelt blood. A few drops of red stained the dusty concrete as she pulled her head up.

Only the souls present were those inside the konbini and coincidentally, a pair was stepping forth from the sliding doors. The villain looked away from her and into the couple who were supposed to take the route her way. Nevertheless, they took the opposite way with terrified faces. Momo hastily picked herself up. The assailant returned his attention to her and cleared the distance between them with a smirk. His hood was keeping away most of his bodily features but there was no question the hand that threw her was made of hard steel.

'Could he possibly be her... stalker?'

"Creati..." Alerted, Momo watched him take off his hood and showed his left eye as red as blood.

"Do something stupid and I'll blast this konbini to debris..."He flexed the arm that roughly held her. He didn't only have one artificial arm but both of them. He too looked youthful as the female villain. "...if you know what I mean..." The said arm mechanically rearranged itself into a certain armory she was yet to be introduced to and aimed it towards the glass walls. "Now....Run!"

He screamed gruffly.

Momo was left with a choice to run instead which led him somewhere favorable. There was no way she was allowing him to overpower him, with the weaponry he had, she'll have to find a place with less possibility of casualty or property damage.

'But where?' Huffing shallow whiffs of air, zipping her coat open and her palm began to gleam.

She had no time to look back and think of something extravagant. She needed her reserves for something more elaborate. And if she had to do it, she must expand their distance to buy her time. She could only think of one practical escaping route that wouldn't take much time and lipids to create. As a simple yet proven idea sparked inside her head, Momo prepared to vault, a pole protruded from her palm, after reaching the desired length, she slammed it on the concrete with deft force, accelerated the creation process, and hurled herself several feet above the ground, swooshing in the air and prepared to land.

After finding her footing, she didn't waste time delaying. She could hear the heavy footfalls his modified legs following behind, glancing back, he was feet away from her. An arm extended, aimed at her.

A concentrated mass of energy whizzed past her, blowing her coat in all directions at the force it possess. Blowing up a distant wall, dispersing dust and chunked cement at the impact. Momo did not have the luxury of the moment to inspect the damage dealt and had to make a turn. The blast would sure attract both a curious and nosy audience.

Her phone blared, snatching it from her pockets and accepting the call, she heard the frantic questioning of her partner.

"Momo! Where are you?! I heard a blast!"

"Saya-san," she muttered catching her breath, "I'm being pursued." She strained, "I'm looking for a place away from the neighborhood..."

"What?! The explosion?! Was that meant for you? Okay, I'm alerting other heroes I'll chase after you." She heard the end tone and knew right away her friend was tracing her tracks.

She felt relief finding a spacious vacant lot merely keeping away trespassers. The woven wire was rusted and deformed from breaking in, the fence already lost its purpose over years. Momo crawled beneath one of the hollow spaces, the rusted sharp edges catching on the fabric of her coat as she eased in, propping her elbows and lowering her head to avoid puncturing herself. Sneaking then into one of the abandoned culverts, finally finding rest and time to plan.

It'll be in no time heroes patrolling the neighborhood will arrive at her location. Saya was on her way, but as Creati she must make a stand for herself. Crawling to check on her surroundings, he didn't fail her when she found him already outside the fences. Just like before, his arm rearranged again to suit his desired function, akin to a pocket knife. This time a circular saw emerged from his right, easily cutting through the feeble defense.

"I have a feeling you can hear me Creati..." He strutted over the dilapidated measly defenses and into the middle of the yard. "I can smell the fear in the air..." Without warning, he blasted another energy ball towards the piled culvert, blowing the hollow concrete to crumble.

"Doc says to bring you in one piece, but..." he announced all too loud, just like any stupid and haughty villains do, typical of a pompous youngster. Another blast curled Momo behind the human-sized shield that defended her from the first, squeezing her eye shut as particles of dust and chunks of concrete debris splashed in all directions. Even breathing had been difficult, coughing over the stray particles she inhaled after the first blast. "I got to save my girlfriend right?"

From her distance, she could hear another metallic whirring drifting in the atmosphere.

'How many weapons can he alter his arm?'

Taking off her coat, Momo took hold of her creations, one over her shoulders and several items by her utility belt. She pulled over her night goggles and fired a bullet tracker on his flesh shoulders with precision, where blood began to gush out. He howled in pain, clamping his artificial hand over it. Seething in anger, he looked around the vicinity like a maddened dog. Momo then tossed a smoke grenade detonating into a colorful puff of fog to obstruct his vision. Activating her receiver, she could now detect him, soon the cloud of smoke thinned. Revealing herself from her confines Momo armed herself.

Swiftly, his arm recoiled, turning into another form of advanced weaponry. He didn't waste time and set it to fire, releasing shrapnel after a sharp metallic blast, plunging to the ground like rain. She yanked her shields together to defend herself. The pointed obsidian slivers ricocheted from her shield, but there were still pieces that pierced and got caught in her skin.

Her ear registered a growl that could only be made by her partner.

'Saya!'

Her phone blared again. Biting back the urge to answer until the coast was clear. Surmising that the storm of debris desisted, she stood out of her shields and found Saya fighting hand in hand against the humanoid, barely matching his firepower with her agility.

"Saya-san! Move away!" She called out an order. Momo, after a swift swirling of the modified gun, pulled the trigger, and out came a jelly-like slab projectile, firing consecutively. The released trickles of projectiles splashed and dispersed into tiny pebble-like spheres raining toward the villain.

The villain, angered, aimed another blast at Saya.

"Saya-san! Get over her!"

Quickly as she could, the heroine leaped towards her and held on to one of her shields, the shrapnel fired constantly against their joined shields. It took more seconds before they could be assured of safety. And when they looked back, he was gone.

Saya attempted to run after but she stopped her, showing her the receiver. Her eyes glowed.

"Brilliant, Creati-san!"

"Out of practice." She smiled, oblivious still at the trickling crimson from her face and exposed skin. Saya bit and wince at the cuts on her bare skin where most blood dripped. Momo was still caught observing her receiver and Saya hesitated to alarm her of her injury lest she collapses. But, Momo had gone through the worst, so how should gashes like this affect her?

"Momo-san, you're... bleeding..."

"Hmmm..." She spared a glance at the flesh on her arm where a cut embedded with a sharp protrusion lounge. "Oh.." Was her nonchalant reaction, pulling it out. "...That explains the dull sting..."

"Momo-san..."

"I'm fine. It's fine... got used to it. Besides, they're shallow."