Orange fingers stretched along a somewhat overcast sky. The light gray clouds were painted over in hues of crimson and tangerine, much like the idyllic scenes from a classic landscape portrait. Far in the distance a big red sun lay as a semi-circle upon the horizon. If one looked long enough, it was almost possible to track its movement.

Ayda stood in uniform—a black tank top and matching jeans along with her usual jacket, boots, and sunglasses—upon the rooftop of what she assumed was a moderately tall apartment complex. The building to her right rose even further into the air, while the view to her left was mostly unimpeded. This was more or less the edge of the industrial district, the point where large structures became less common.

Though it were considerably earlier than she normally went out, this was par for the course as of late. It had been two weeks since her icy showdown with Tahoe, and in that time she'd been going on patrol before the sun went down. It felt more efficient, somehow, despite the fact that most gang crime didn't start until later.

Patrol. Ayda ruminated on that word for a moment. It was a funny thing to have cross her psyche. She'd been doing it for months, but it wasn't until recently the irony of it dawned on her. It was a little bit cliché. She operated much like a police officer, yet worked firmly outside the bounds of the law. In that way, she acted like a classical superhero, though she would never attribute that word to herself. It seemed a bit too generous.

A breeze kicked up and knocked some of her hair out of place. Absently, she tucked it back with one hand. The other fiddled with her staff, drumming fingers upon its metal face.

"Is it windy out there?" The voice of Elliot suddenly intoned in her ear.

"Sort of," Ayda responded. "I'm standing on top of a building, though, so that might have something to do with it."

"Why are you on top of a building?" A note of worry wormed into his tone, and Ayda couldn't help but smirk.

"I don't know, I thought it looked cool. Kind of a Spider-Man vibe, ya know?"

"Sure. Is it a good vantage point?"

"Not really?" Ayda raised a cursory eyebrow. "I mean, I guess I can see a little further up the road, but everywhere else there's a building in the way."

"Now—important question—can you get back down?"

"Of course. I used the fire escape to get up, so I can probably go back down it. And, if not," Ayda peered over the edge, "it's not a very far fall."

"Ayda…"

"I'm kidding. It's fine, El," she insisted. "I know what I'm doing."

"I know. Just—" He cut himself off. "I know." Elliot had been like that ever since their little argument a couple weeks ago. It was sweet, but also frustrating. He didn't need to worry about her. She was fine.

Another breeze blew, but this time Ayda didn't correct her hair, instead allowing it to jostle along her face. It was getting just a little bit long. She'd probably have to get a trim in the next few days. Maybe this coming Saturday. She didn't have any other plans. Perhaps Elliot and Rudy could be convinced to come along, make a day of it. That sounded nice. She hadn't hung out with Rudy for a long time.

A beep sounded from within her right pocket. Her phone; the news app, more specifically. Ayda ignored it. Probably a weather report, something about the clouds turning to rain later in the night. As much as the city needed a little water, it wasn't something to concern herself with.

Another beep. A bit odd, but not necessarily uncommon. Ayda was just contemplating whether or not to check on it when a third sang out. And then a fourth. A fifth. Alright, that was certainly worth investigating. She switched her staff from one hand to another and used the newly freed appendage to extract the troublesome device.

It went off again. Several notifications showed in her alerts menu, all from the news app. She expanded them. A seventh headline joined the triage. They were short and hastily written, each with timestamps at the end. One even had a typo. Ayda skimmed over them, and felt her very blood run cold.

"El…"

"I know. I see it too."

"How long has it been going on?" There was a frantic edge to Ayda's voice.

"I don't know. It depends how long the vetting process for all these news sites is. I don't know enough about these sorts of things to make a guess. Sorry."

"It's alright." Ayda looked left, and then right, trying to see anything amiss. A trio of gunshots rang out somewhere in the distance and a woman screamed, just barely audible from the perch. "I'm gonna move. I need you on cameras looking for Tahoe and anywhere that needs my help."

"On it. I'll keep you posted," Elliot agreed. "Stay safe out there."

"I'll do what I can." With that, Ayda stepped off the building.

She plummeted all of six stories. Ayda made sure to orient herself in a belly flop posture. It provided the most drag and made the best catch for her powers. Wind deafened her hearing and whipped her hair in a way which was almost painful. She'd jumped from buildings before, but not one this high. It was surprising how much she accelerated in such a short time. Not good. The timing for this had to be absolutely perfect.

When she was only a few feet from splatting into the sidewalk, Ayda swept her staff downward. It's tip just barely avoided scraping on the concrete. A blast ensued from it, and Newton took over. She normally had some resistance to her own power, but the air around her did not. Just as the force she created pushed down on the world, it also shoved back upward against her. Ayda's descent slowed to almost a complete stop. She righted herself just in time to land on two feet. Perfect. The moment Ayda had her balance, she took off to the right.

"Ayda, I don't want to harp on you," Elliot began, "but do you have your freeze bombs?"

She hesitated. "No. I didn't expect to run into Tahoe."

"Well, come back and get them, then."

"No, I don't have time. The city needs me now."

"What?" Elliot breathed into the phone. "Ayda, are you crazy? You have a zero percent success rate without the freeze bombs. You can't fight him empty handed."

"I don't need to beat him. I just need to stop him. That, I've done once before."

"No you haven't!" Elliot insisted. "Are you talking about the meth lab? You lost that fight. Yes, you destroyed the lab, but—"

"I'll figure something out." Ayda shouted into her headset. "Just, trust me, Elliot. I know what I'm doing."

"No you don't!" Elliot yelled, and then sighed; a long, drawn out breath. "But, I know there's nothing I can do to stop you. Just promise me you'll run if things get too dangerous."

"Hey, running and fighting are the two things I'm really good at." Ayda tried to comfort him with humor, but even from the other side of the line, she knew it failed. "I don't think he can heal the damage I already did to him. I can use that to my advantage."

"You don't know that."

"No, I don't." She paused for a second. "If I'm wrong, I'll retreat and get the freeze bombs. If I'm right, then I'll be back home as soon as this is all said and done, okay? I promise."

"Okay." Elliot went eerily silent, after that. There wasn't even anymore background noise. Ayda would have to apologize to him later. For the time, she had bigger concerns.

She was a whole block away when Ayda shot around a corner and found her motorcycle parked in an alley. Though necessary, hiding her bike could be a major hindrance. She all but jumped on board, feeding her staff through its old loop on the saddlebags. A push of the ignition brought the engine roaring to life. Ayda wasted no time in bursting from the passage and merging with what little traffic blocked her path.

As she weaved through the cars, pushing her own vehicle to progressively faster speeds, Ayda ran through the headlines she'd seen. Rioting. Looters. Gang activity. Armed individuals. Active shooters. They all painted the same picture, one of violence in the city. Ayda did her best to work out any details relevant to a location, something more specific than just the industrial district. It was in vain. They were written to be cautionary, not informative. Until Elliot chimed in, she was flying blind.

Another gunshot. Ayda hung a sharp left and sped off toward it. However alarming, it was the best and only lead she had. In the blur of the city, Ayda caught glimpses of people responding to the chaos. Cars—doubtless soon to be abandoned—sped along much faster than legal in places where they weren't jammed up together on inaccessible roads. A few people scurried along the sidewalks, while others shuttered windows. From what she could tell, this was still the outskirts of the action, at least for now .These people wouldn't be getting involved.

Ayda weaved her way through an intersection, and in doing so realized she actually had no idea where the gunshot she was chasing came from. The way sound tended to echo off these buildings, all she knew was it happened somewhere far off. She cursed under her breath. Flying blind again. Still, she continued on her way toward the violence. In theory, that would put her closer when Elliot finally found something. It also presented the chance, however slim, of running across a situation on her own.

"This is bad, Ayda," Elliot said in her ear. "It's spreading really fast."

"Do you have anything I can use?" She shouted over the motorcycle's engine. "It doesn't need to be anything big, just somewhere I can make a difference."

"Uh…" Elliot trailed off. "Yeah. Yeah, I do. There are some rioters standing off with police over on Lord Street. There aren't very many, but they still outnumber the cops, and none of them are in riot gear."

"Are any of the rioters armed? Are they Triad?"

"I can't really tell. This camera is kinda shit." Elliot paused. "No, wait, one of them definitely has a pipe of some sort. Maybe a piece of rebar? I don't think they're Triad, though. They'd probably already be fighting, otherwise."

"Alright, that makes sense. I'm going for it, keep me posted." Ayda gave her throttle a twist and accelerated toward the scene.

Lord Street was mostly a straight shot from her current location. It was also much closer than she would've liked. Assuming this started nearer the center of the industrial district like Ayda thought, then that proved Elliot quite right. This was spreading fast. Ayda leaned forward and let her machine move even more quickly. She had to do something about this.

Along the way, Ayda found a trio of men trying to break into what looked like an electronics store. One of them threw a brick at the big display window, but it only bounced off. The others tried to use their bodies to bust through. Why they thought that would work better than the brick was beyond her.

Ayda brought her bike close to the sidewalk. They doubtless heard her approaching, but cared only to continue their lecherous task. When Ayda got a little too close, one of them turned his head toward her. He seemed to finally recognize the threat, as he frantically patted the man on his left.

It was far too late. Ayda stuck out her right hand as she passed. The blast she created was paltry, barely enough to ruffle a jacket. Her velocity, however, amplified its effects. The sudden gust bowled over all three men. They crashed into each other as they fell. One of them let out a scream, likely from a broken arm or leg. Another shouted after her.

As Ayda left the men behind, she realized there was nothing to keep them from picking right back up from where they left off, but she hoped her presence in the area was deterrent though. They might even spread the word around. It was a longshot, but every little bit helped.

Lord Street rapidly approached. As it did, the congestion grew. There were abandoned vehicles all over the road as people chose the easier rout of fleeing on foot through the chaos. It made driving difficult. Throngs of people migrated here and there, but her speed allowed Ayda only a glance. As such, she couldn't tell if they were nefarious or not. The only exception was a tiny brawl over a few stolen items. No time to manage them, not when her destination was so close. She'd have to trust they wouldn't do much harm in the meantime.

Ayda parked her bike in an alleyway just shy of her destination. It would only get in the way if she rode all the way there. She would've liked to hide it from prying eyes, but there simply wasn't enough time, as was the constant theme. She prayed the coming darkness would shroud it. She hopped off and sprinted to Lord Street.

She came up behind the police. As Elliot said, they were just regular beat cops, slightly outnumbered by the aggressors who stood several feet opposite them. They'd managed to form a little barrier with their cars, which led Ayda to believe the rioters had found them, instead of the other way around. Some of them had guns drawn. One shouted at the masses with a megaphone. Most just watched tensely. They had no semblance of control over this situation whatsoever. If Ayda knew, then so did the looters. It was a ticking time bomb. She had to act.

The battle line formed by the cops was formidable, but thin. This played to her advantage. Propelled by blast beneath her feet, Ayda ran full bore straight toward it. The sudden noise obviously drew the looks of more than a few startled officers. One of them pointed his gun at her, but a cop next to him—an older woman—pushed his muzzle down. The veteran shook her head, and the rookie holstered his weapon. None of the others met her with aggression of any sort, just tentative curiosity. She assumed the entire force had been briefed about her. They recognized Pulse. Ayda seriously hoped that was a good thing.

When she was still a few feet away, Ayda leveled a powerful blast into the pavement. She kicked off of it and soared the air. Like a super-powered Persian bird, Ayda flew over the cops and their cars, passing over them with little effort. She twisted once in the air, then struck a three-point landing on the ground, dampening her impact with a blast. A circle of asphalt cracked around her. She stood up in the center of it. Her eyes locked with one of the looters. He backed away, clearly alarmed and frightened by her sudden appearance.

Ayda scanned the crowd. They were a colorful bunch, both in terms of dress and skin color. This was a mob formed impromptu in the interest of mutual gain, not a through a suspicious sort of scheme. In other words, normal people spurred on to bad deeds through the chaos around them. Ayda's spirits soared. They'd be much easier to deal with than actual criminals.

Ayda held her staff horizontally in a wide grip behind her back. She addressed her captive audience.

"I'm sure you know who I am, which means you already know how this ends." She waited for some sign of dissonance. There was none. "Put your weapons down. Go home. Wait for this all to blow over. No one has to get hurt. Not you, or anyone else."

Silence reigned. The crowd remained, but made no violent gestures. Ayda scanned the faces. She saw mostly apprehension, with anger and fear sprinkled in. One blond boy about her age looked like he'd just seen a ghost. Probably star struck. It was almost endearing. Almost. Those all were things she could deal with—had anticipated, even—as long as this didn't come to blows.

All at once, that hope was shattered as a man took a step forward from the crowd.

"You're not a cop! You can't tell us what to do," he insisted.

"You're right, I'm not a cop." Ayda shoved a thumb over her shoulder. "They are. Notice how they haven't shot me yet? That means they're on my side. I can't arrest you. They can."

"This is stupid," another male voice rang out. A moment later, he stepped up to join the first detractor. "She's just one girl. Come on."

He burst from the crowd, running straight for Ayda. A quartet of other men followed, including the first who stepped forward. One of them had a pipe wrench, but the others were unarmed. The police raised their weapons. Ayda put her fist up, and was amazed when they actually listened, lowering muzzles to pose a lesser threat. The men advanced, unabated, with just one girl the only thing between them and innocent police officers.

Ayda waited until the perfect moment. When it came, she barely even moved. The teenager flicked her staff out in front of her, jamming its far end into the pavement at the same time. A blast radiated out from the point of impact, cracking pavement as it went. The man out in front almost made it within arm's reach when the shockwave hit. His feet were knocked out from underneath him, and he fell forward on a shoulder. Like dominoes, the other four aggressors followed in short order. One smacked his head on the ground and blood instantly gushed from a broken nose. While the others were uninjured, they stood not.

Ayda did her best to not lean too heavily on her staff. Sending blasts through the ground like that still took quite a lot out of her. It was worth it to get her point across, though.

"Anyone else?" She said, an eyebrow raised behind her sunglasses. Most people actively avoided her gaze. No one spoke. "That's what I thought. Now, disperse. Seriously, just get out of here, unless you want to end up like them." She tilted her staff toward the defeated men, just for emphasis.

Even after all that, there was still a moment's hesitation. The air wasn't quite as tense as before, but the people were in no hurry to comply. Ayda shifted her staff from one hand to the other. It was probably the most placid thing she could've done, but the sudden movement spurred them on.

Like roaches in the light, they scattered. Most disappeared down alleyways or into buildings, while a few went back up the street. Ayda watched them go, keen on any signs of disobedience. There were none, as the people cared more about clearing out than anything else. She sighed. Hopefully, they wouldn't just decide to loot elsewhere. It was infuriating just how powerless she was here. An individual, no matter how awesome, couldn't curtail an entire city. Not for lack of trying, of course.

When they were gone, Ayda turned back to the officers. She hadn't actually looked at them since this all began. She'd no idea where their heads were at. In their faces was a similar sort of worry to that exhibited by the rioters, but this felt different. They were unsure, not nervous. She probably would be too, in their shoes.

Ayda let her staff rest against a shoulder. "Are we cool?"

"Yeah," a cop said. "Yeah, I think we are." It was the same older woman from before.

"Ok, good." Ayda walked toward the woman, who also took a few steps in her direction. "Are you in charge here?"

"I'm the highest ranking officer present." The woman held out a hand. "Lieutenant Amanda Barnes."

"Pulse." They shook hands.

"I won't speak for everyone else," Lieutenant Barnes said as she let her hand fall, "but I'm glad you're here. Hopefully you can help contain the situation."

"That's what I'm here for," Ayda said. She walked past the Lieutenant and toward the officers. "Do you have any idea what's going on? The information I have access to is a bit limited." She gave a silent apology to Elliot.

"It's fucked, is what it is," a young officer spoke.

"Marley!" Amanda chastised. Ayda put up a hand.

"I don't need to be here if you're just gonna waste my time." Ayda addressed Marley directly before moving on to the others. "Does anyone have a more worthwhile contribution?" There was a beat of silence before one officer spoke up.

"Yeah, um, maybe." He paused. "One of the guys at my precinct said it started over on Carmichael."

"I heard the same thing," said another. "Apparently, Triads started smashing stuff, scaring folks. There were people flocking to them, helping them out."

"That doesn't make sense," Amanda said. "People run away from gang violence, not toward it."

"I was about to say that," Ayda agreed.

"Maybe the Triad paid people off," said Elliot in her ear. "Get people to run around and spread the word."

"That's a good point." Ayda responded without thinking.

"What is?' Amanda asked. Ayda's eyes tripled in diameter, and her face heated up.

"Oh, nothing. I just had an idea." Ayda gave a sweet smile, an attempt to deflect. "Maybe the Triad paid people to help spread the chaos around."

"That's certainly possible…" the Lieutenant mused. "Doesn't matter now, though. We need to contain this thing, no matter how it started."

"Agreed." Ayda nodded. "The point about Carmichael is good. I think I'm gonna head over there, see what I can find." As the words left her mouth, it dawned on her she actually had no obligation to tell them any of this. Still, it felt like the right thing to do. Mutual trust.

"You'll need backup," Amanda said before anyone had a chance to move.

"Are you sure?" Ayda asked, partially to be positive she'd heard that right.

"Until I get other orders, yeah," confirmed the Lieutenant. "My job is to protect and serve. I think my best chance of doing that right now is with you." A murmur of general acceptance ran through the officers. Ayda saw more than a few of them nod.

"Ok." Ayda looked briefly over the volunteers. "I won't tell any of you what to do, but you should know what my plan is. I'm going after their leader."

"Tahoe," one of the cops supplied.

"Yeah, that guy," confirmed Ayda. "You probably know what he can do?"

"We've been briefed," said Amanda, "but we really only know what you said on the radio."

"That's the gist of it. I… I failed to bring him in last time we fought. He's still out there, and I'm the only one who can stop him. I won't stop any of you from coming along, but you need to know what you'll be up against."

There was quiet over the gathered police, but it didn't last nearly as long as Ayda anticipated. It was only a few seconds before one of them spoke up. Marley.

"What, and miss seeing a real superhero in action? No way in hell. I'm in."

He stepped forward. One by one, the others followed suit. They walked as one undulating mass, moving just one pace down the street, and yet it meant so much more than just that. The last to join them was Lieutenant Barnes. She stood before her constitutes, directly in front of Ayda. Their eyes met, and the officer nodded.

"Thank you," was the only response Ayda could manage. Overwhelmed didn't even begin to describe how she felt. For El Puerto's true defenders to support her, even if unofficially, in some way validated everything she'd done up to that point.

"Lead the way, Ma'am," said Barnes.

"Please don't do that. Just call me Pulse."

"Alright, Pulse."

"Come on," Ayda recovered quickly. "Carmichael is this way."

Ayda turned and walked up the street, in the direction the rioters had been. A squad of police officers—who likely all knew quite well where Carmichael Street was—fell in behind her. Together, they made their way toward their destination.

It would not be a quiet journey, however, as Elliot found it appropriate to break the calm.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" He asked over the Bluetooth headset. He paused. "I just realized you can't actually respond to anything I'm saying. I'll just assume we're thinking the same thing." Further hesitation. "I'll… look for any cameras on Carmichael." He shut up. It took all of Ayda's willpower to keep from snickering.

With a quite literal police escort, Ayda walked down the street. Or, maybe she was the one escorting them. Regardless, they traveled together, one mass set on a singular goal.

Ayda physically shook her head at the notion; working with the cops, instead of running from them. What's more, they willingly gave themselves over to service. They followed her out of necessity, yes, but volunteered to do so.

In a way, it was everything she ever wanted, exactly what she'd been working toward since taking up the mantle of Pulse—to be accepted as a fellow keeper of the peace. On the other hand, it was terrifying. These people's lives now depended on her in a very tangible way. She even knew a couple names. And here she was, leading them to real danger, a situation where normal humans had no chance of success. However, they were still police officers, still trained operators. Ayda had to trust they could handle themselves. If not, her job became much harder.

They turned a corner. Carmichael was a good distance away, but not insurmountable by any means. Ayda would've jogged there, if not for the folks following behind her. Judging by the chaos and varying degrees of blockage on the road—broken glass, discarded loot, the odd vehicle—driving the cop cars would've been mostly impossible. So, walking was their only option, as much as she disliked it.

Though the area looked to have been mostly looted, there were still pockets of people going through the wreckage. They stood out in the streetlights which were just coming on wherever the noise and motion didn't give them away. Some groups were rather large, strangers working together for mutual benefit. It would've been inspiring, under different circumstances.

Ayda expected to confront them, to either talk or fight. Neither happened, to her astonishment. Apparently, a known super-powered badass leading around a bunch of cops was quite the imposing scene. It never even occurred to her how that would look. In the moment, she was glad for it.

The first group of looters they came across, one of the larger ones, literally panicked when they saw her approaching. They dropped whatever goods were in their arms and scurried away, leaving behind whatever weapons they may have carried as well. One man tripped and a load of jewelry scattered along the sidewalk. With an expression of terror in his eyes he looked over at the girl only a few feet away. Ayda smirked at him. He scrambled to his feet in a most undignified manner and ducked into an alleyway just before Ayda was close enough to give him a little push.

Her squad progressed down the street in much the same manner. They'd come across some ne'er-do-wells, who would disperse without confrontation. The running must've alerted other conglomerates, because those they hadn't even reached yet vacated the area. No one wanted to tangle with the cops, but even fewer had any aspirations of fighting Pulse. An unforeseen advantage, but one she would absolutely leverage.

They were almost to the end of this street when Elliot spoke up again.

"He's there. Ayda, he's there!" He practically shouted. "Just like we thought, Tahoe is on Carmichael."

Ayda felt her heart simultaneously drop and beat twice as fast. Since she couldn't very well talk to Elliot with an audience so nearby, she drew out her phone and texted him.

"What's he doing?" She typed before hitting the send button.

"He's just standing there," Elliot said. "There's people all around him. Most are milling about. I think he's giving orders or something."

"Gang members?"

"It's too dark, so I can't tell, but probably. It's definitely him, though, unless someone who looks just like him decided to paint themselves silver," Elliot joked. Ayda smiled at his humor, not because it was particularly funny, but because it didn't seem impossible.

"Thanks, El. I'm on my way."

"There's something else," Elliot said. "He only has one arm. I think you were right. Either he can't heal, or he chose not to."

"That's good news." Ayda let out a little relieved sigh before sending another message right after the first. "Let me know if you see anything else."

"I'll keep an eye on him. Stay safe out there."

"I will. What about you? Are you safe?"

"Yes, I am. I can hear what's going on outside, but it's not very close."

"Ok. Make sure you get out of there if things get too crazy."

"I will."

"Ok. I'll see you when this is all over."

"Yeah. See you then."

Ayda slid her phone back into her pocket. She'd made another promise to Elliot, to see him again. Not a force in the world was strong enough to keep her from fulfilling it.

With a newfound determination, Ayda quickened her pace just a tad. There were people depending on her. Every second she spend in transit was another business robbed, another person injured or far worse. No time to waste. She had a supervillain to fight.