Leona had only the loosest idea what her super powers were, a she charged into the fray because her gut told her things would work out. Her whole body emitted light, which suggested she trolled light in some way. She remembered the feeling when she fired a bst from her hand. If she could do that enough, what she knew about her powers might be enough, but she had to wonder how tough she was. She felt very strong, but was it bullet-bouncy strong or slightly-more-papercut-resistant strong? What kind of a superhero was she - A frontlitle-caster, a utility support, a midrange mage?

  There was only one way to find out.

  She swept up above the nding, wings fring wide, and smmed down dramatically, crossing her arms. Her boots hit the roof with a solid thud that echoed through the air. The vibratio a couple of screws rattling loose from the nearby blimp m.

  The armed men stopped iracks, staring at the radiant figure standing before them. The eerie glow she cast illumiheir fused, partially masked faces. One of them whispered to another, “What the hell is that?”

  Leona racked her brain for a clever lihe kind of snappy one-liner every ic book superhero seemed to deliver with ease. The sileretched, awkward and heavy, as she stood there trying to look imposing. Finally, she decided to borrow from the tless ics she’d read, but what came out was a bit less impressive than she’d hoped.

  “Hey boys. I wonder what you guys are up to here?” she asked pyfully, her smile faltering slightly as she tried to sell the act.

  Her tone carried a breezy fidence she didirely feel. In part, she was mimig her sister’s pyful, rger-than-life attitude. The way her sister could walk into a room and instantly domihe energy sometimes intimidated Leona, but maybe—just maybe—it could work on these guys too.

  “This couldn’t possibly be an eborate robbery or theft of some type or another, could it?” Leona tilted her head, her glow pulsing faintly as she chuckled. “I mean, a big blimp like this parked up here is like saying: ‘Please, superhero… please notice me.’ Plus, you know, the guns and all.”

  The men exged gnces, clearly caught off guard by her approach. One of them muttered, “She’s glowing like a damn Christmas tree.” Another jabbed him in the ribs, whispering harshly, “Focus, idiot!”

  Leona, sensing their hesitation, took the opportunity to s the rooftop. Her eyes darted to the open rooftop door nearby. The edges were scorched and still faintly smoking, likely from the blowtore of them held. Her stomach ched. They’d already broken in.

  She stiffened as one of the men stepped forward, leveling his submae gun at her. The barrel gleamed menagly under her light.

  “Why don’t you just keep on flying, hero,” he said, his voice dripping with disdain. “This ain’t any of your business, and it’d be a shame if you ended your life now and ended your… erm… career? Before anyone even knows who you even are.”

  Leona’s glowing aura faltered momentarily. She stared him down, her pulse quiing. A submae gun, she thought, swallowing hard. Although she didn’t know much about guns, even she could reize this one articurly lethal.

  This wasn’t how she’d imagi would go. She thought they’d see her light show, realize they were outmatched, and flee before she even had to fight. She had envisioned a dramatic victory pose and triumphant musi her head—not this kind of a standoff.

  Time to test out my powers, she thought nervously.

  Leona forced herself t nontly, hoping her light didn’t flicker again. “Here I was thinking you were gonna say, ‘Oh crap… We really woto this time. The day we tried our hair-brained scheme an actual superhero ACTUALLY caught us. Woe is us.’ I mean, you get it, right? The heroes still e by San Isidro despite the city being a bit of a cesspool filled with, um... shit like you.”

  DID I ACTUALLY SAY THAT TO THE GUY WITH HIS GUN POI ME?!

  She ughed nervously, her glow intensifying involuntarily as her panic surged.

  The man’s lip curled in a sneer, and without another word, he squeezed the trigger.

  Leona gasped as the first sh out, the bullets streaking toward her. She dove sideways with surprising agility, her wings fring wide to stabilize her mid-dive. Her heart pounded in her chest as she nded in a crouch, eyes locked on the gunman.

  “GO, FINGER!” she shouted, thrusting her hand forward dramatically.

  Nothing happened.

  She waggled her glowing finger for emphasis. Still nothing.

  Her voice cracked as she tried again, louder this time. “GO. FINGER!”

  The gunman bli her, momentarily dumbfouhen his fusion turo amusement, a cruel ugh bubbling up as he shook his head.

  “You’ve gotta be kidding me,” he said, raising his gun again.

  Leona’s eyes widened as he took aim once more. Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap…

  Leona filed her hands wildly, twirling and stomping as if enag some bizarre bination of interpretive dand desperate pleading at no one in particur from their perspective. Her glowing form, bined with her exaggerated movements, turned her into an almost edic spectacle.

  The men, already unnerved by her presence, burst into ughter at the sight. One doubled over, spping his knee, while another leaned against the blimp for support, wheezing.

  “Are we being punked?” one of them gasped through his cag. “Is she seriht now?”

  The man with the gun wiped a tear from his eye, uo tain a smug grin. “What are y to do, hero? Summon a disco ball?”

  Leona scowled, her cheeks burning with embarrassment. But before she could retort, the man straightened up, his grin vanishing. He cleared his throat, and his voice hardened.

  “Well, that’s enough funnin’ around,” he said coldly, raising his on again. “Goodbye, little miss hero-wannabe.” His fiightened origger.

  “No way a goof like her could be bulletproof!” another man jeered, still chug.

  Leona froze, heart pounding. The ughter turo a blur of sound as panic gripped her. Her wings quivered, and every instinct screamed at her to dodge, but there was no way she could avoid all the bullets that were about to tear into her.

  “NO!” Leona shouted, throwing her hands up in front of her.

  A shimmer appeared in the air between her and the gunman—a faint, wavering struct that seemed to glow with the colors of the aurora borealis, just in time to intercept the gunfire. Greens and purples swirled in mesmerizing ribbons, as though the northern lights themselves had desded to protect her.

  The gunman fired, and their bullets smmed into the shield, fttening and tumbling harmlessly to the rooftop. A metallic plink-plink-plink echoed as they scattered around her feet.

  “OH SHIT!” one of the men shrieked, stumbling backward.

  “BULLETPROOF!” another yelled, pointing at her shield with wide eyes.

  “You lugheads, it’s just a shield!” the leader barked. He snapped his fingers, regaining trol of the group. “It ain’t gonna st if you just SHOOT! Fan out!”

  Leona’s breath hitched as the men started moving, spreading out to encircle her. She widened her starying to match their movements with her hands. The aurora field expanded, f a shimmering dome around her.

  Oh… oh… oh crap… how does this even work?!

  The gunfire resumed, a relentless barrage of bullets striking her shield from every side. Each impact sent ripples through the struct, and though it held firm, the noise was deafening. Leona’s legs trembled as she struggled to maintain the dome.

  The bullets that didn’t hit her shield zipped past, smming into the building behind her. Windows shattered, raining shards of gss onto the streets below.

  The men yelled, their voices blending with the chaos as they unloaded their magazines. Leona ched her teeth, her glowing eyes narrowing.

  “STOP SHOOTING AT ME!” she screamed, her voice reverberating through the rooftop.

  The meated, startled by the sudden outburst, but only for a moment. Their leader snarled, “Keep firing!”

  Leona’s frustration boiled over. She gred at them, her fists g. “I’ve freaking had enough of this…” she muttered. “Finger bsts, work!”

  She focused with all her might, p her energy into her outstretched hand. The air around her seemed to hum, and suddenly, a burst of light erupted from the dome.

  The bst hit the group with a shockwave, sending five of them hurtling backward into the wall by the door. They crumpled to the rooftop in a groaning heap. The remaining few were less fortuhe force flinging them over the edge of the rooftop.

  Leona’s eyes widened in horror. “Oh, hell no!”

  Without hesitation, she leapt off the building, her wings snapping open to catch the air. She angled herself downward, her glowing form cutting through the darkness as she dove after the falling men.

  She reached the first one in moments, grabbing him by the arm. The sudde dragged her downward, and she fpped her wings hard tain trol. Her eyes darted to an ornate gargoyle jutting from the ledge below. With a burst of speed, she reached it and wedged the man’s belt into the gargoyle’s mouth.

  “Sorry about the mega wedgie!” she yelled, grimag as the man yelped in disfort.

  Two more men remaiumbling through the air below her. Leona gritted her teeth and poured every ounce of energy into her wings, pushing herself faster.

  Not fast enough. Not fast enough!

  The men g to each other in terror, and Leona barely mao grab their hands just as the ground loomed dangerously close. With a grunt of effort, she hauled them upward and deposited them unceremoniously on the roof of a nearby police car.

  “Stay put,” she snapped before taking off again.

  The remaining crooks had scrambled into the blimp by the time she returned. One of them spotted her a out a high-pitched shriek. “She’s fug for real! MOTHERFUCKER!”

  “RUN!” another yelled, scrambling to unmoor the blimp.

  The leader snarled, raising his gun once more. He opened fire, but the bullets bounced harmlessly off her shield.

  Leona grinned, shaking her head. “Nuh-uh.”

  She raised a single finger, feeling the familiar energy build. With a brilliant fsh, a bolt of light shot out, striking the man square in the chest and sending him flying into the blimp’s railing.

  Meanwhile, another crook fumbled with the ropes anch the blimp to the rooftop. Leona’s glow intensified as she turned her attention to him, a determined smirk spreading across her face.

  Leona crossed her arms and gri their desperation. “Guess you lost yambit, huh? Well, it’s on you since you practically wrote me a bnk check your butts couldn’t cash. So let me think… how about you guys just spend the … Actually, will they ever let you guys out of prison? Does anyone here know how long attempted sky plunderis you in jail?” she asked jokingly. Her grin grew wider as she tilted her head mogly. “Right, anyway, if it’s even a possibility, it’s best if we get you all started on your time as soon as possible, no?” She pointed an arm at them, her fingers glowing faintly.

  “No! No no! No no, no?” One man, clearly panig, waved his arms frantically in a futile attempt to stall her.

  The others weren’t as passive. Without hesitation, they opened fire.

  Leona barely flinched as the bullets smmed into her shimmering aurora shield. The light coiled around her body, this time not just stopping the bullets but sending them careening off in random dires. Gss shattered, ricochets sparked against metal, and the men started to shout in fear.

  “BULLETPROOF!” one of them screamed in a manner far more shrill than the previous crook, his voice crag as he stumbled backward and nearly tripped over a coil of rope. He dropped his on, wide-eyed and trembling.

  Leona rolled her shoulders, the movement casual but clearly intimidating. She picked her arget—the maling with the air ditioner’s knots—and raised her arm. “Let’s see how that knot holds up.” Her finger glowed brighter before releasing a sharp, focused bst of light. The man was thrown backward as the rope snapped, his body flipping over the air ditioning unit before crumpling onto the rooftop with a groan.

  “NO NO NO!” Another shouted, his voice rising in desperation. This one, however, had e prepared. With a grim expression, he hefted a bazooka onto his shoulder and took aim.

  Leona’s eyes widened slightly as she took in the size of his on. “You y with some big guns? Okay!” She shifted her stance, raising her hand and mimig a pistol with her fingers. With a wink, she snapped her thumb forward like the hammer falling.

  The bazooka recoiled violently from the force of her light bst, the entire on spiraling up into the air before cttering over the railing. Its wielder staggered back, clutg his wrist as he screamed in agony. His hand hung limp, the wrist clearly broken.

  “You FREAKING BIRD-BEAST THING! YOU BROKE MY WRIST!” he roared, his pain-fueled anger evident in his voice.

  Leona smiled sweetly, her tone dripping with mock sympathy. “Aw, that’s gotta hurt.” Then, without missing a beat, she snapped her thumb again. A smaller bolt of light shot out, smming into his chest and sending him sprawling against the deck. His head lolled as he slipped into unsciousness.

  Suddenly, the low rumble of the blimp’s engines grew louder. It jerked forward, and the air ditiroaned uhe strain. The metal twisted and screeched, teetering on the edge of giving way.

  Leona rolled her eyes. “Like that’s going to work.” She extended her wings with a flourish and unched herself into the air. Within seds, she was by the man she’d fluhe air ditioner. With surprising ease, she hoisted him over her shoulder, then hurled him onto the blimp. As she did, her aurora around her fred brighter for a moment, theled bato its usual glow.

  The remaining men scrambled for safety, rushing ihe and smming the door shut behind them. Leona nded lightly on the baly, brushing shards of broken gss from her shoulders. She rapped her knuckles on the door with exaggerated politeness. “Hello? Anybody home?”

  When no one answered, she shrugged and hovered to a nearby window. With a single, powerful shove, she smashed through, nding ih a cascade of glittering gss.

  “SHE’S IN!” the nervous one shrieked, his voice high-pitched with terror.

  Guns were raised, but the sudden lurch of the blimp threw most of them off bahe pilot shoved the throttle forward, determio break free from the tether. The air ditioner screeched louder, its base twisting dangerously.

  Leona g the struggling mae and smirked. “You know, yoing to make a huge mess… why don’t I give you a bit of a hand?” Leaning halfway out the shattered window, she poi the straining rope and fired a focused beam. The line snapped with a sharp twang, and the blimp surged forward.

  The sudden movemehe nervous man stumbling directly into Leona’s path. She sidestepped ly as he filed past her. “Careful there, buddy.” With a quick chop to the back of his neck, she sent him crumpling to the floor.

  Her gaze shifted to the pilot, who was frantically attempting to stabilize the trols. “Not so fast.” With another snap of her fingers, a bolt of light struck him square in the chest, knog him off the pilot’s chair. He groaned as he hit the floor, clutg his ribs.

  At that point, the remaining men had had enough. ons cttered to the floor as they raised their hands in surrender.

  “WE GIVE UP!” they yelled in unison, their voices a mix of relief and fear.

  Leona exhaled, relieved that the immediate threat of munfire had ended. However, as she gnced out the window, her relief evaporated—the blimp eeding straight toward another building. Its looming silhouette grew rger by the sed, threatening to turire situation into a catastrophic mess.

  “Good, I’m gd you’ve e to your senses,” Leona said, her voice calm but firm. She fshed them a disarming smile, wings fring slightly to emphasize her authority. “But someone please turn this blimp so we don’t crash and go up in fmes!” Her tone softened just enough to coax pliance. “I expect good behavior.”

  The men exged nervous ghen one of them—scrambling to suppress his rising pani to the trols. “Throttle back, throttle back…” he muttered under his breath as he worked, his hands trembling. The blimp groaned as the throttle ulled back, slowing its speed. With a sharp turn of the wheel, he narrowly steered the craft away from the oning building, the windows of which passed mere feet from the blimp’s hull. The entire lurched as the maneuver ended, and the blimp finally stabilized on a safe, open course.

  “There! See?” the stand-in pilot said, his voice tinged with a mix of pride and desperation as he raised his hands in surrender again.

  Leona smirked, clearly unimpressed. “Not bad. I’ll admit, you might’ve just saved your own skins.” She cpped her hands together, her tone shifting to somethiively pyful. “Alright, now for the fun part. Everyoand back to back. I want to try something.”

  The meated, their eyes darting nervously between each other, but a gre from Leona had them shuffling into position. “Form a riangle,” she added with a grin. “Hands at your sides, no funny business.”

  Ohey plied, Leona held out her hand and focused. A golden ring of light shimmered ience around the three sen. It tightened slowly, binding their arms snugly to their sides. The glow reflected in their wide, uneasy eyes.

  “Hey! We’ve got hts!” one of them yelped, squirming against the luminous restraint. “You ’t do this to us! It’s unwful impriso!”

  Leona tilted her head, pretending to sider his argument. “Not really… This is what superheroes dht? Capture the bad guys, stop the mayhem, save the day?” Her smile was so sunny it could’ve been mistaken for sincere.

  The man opened his mouth to retort but shut it quickly as Leona strode toward the unsen scattered across the . She began humming a cheerful tune as she dragged their limp forms into a group. “Now, let’s make sure everyoays nid secure.” She repeated the process, creating anlowing ring to bind the unscious ones.

  When she was satisfied with her work, Leona dusted her hands theatrically. “That should be all of yht?” She wihough her expression faltered as she noticed the first ring beginning to flicker and dissipate. “Oh… there are limitations.” With a frown, she pointed back at the sen to rehe fading ring, but as she did, the newer one binding the unsen flickered out instead.

  “Hmm. Guess I’m still w out the kinks,” she said, her voice thoughtful.

  The man who had protested earlier seized the opportunity. “Hey, you ’t just—”

  “Shut up, man!” hissed one of his panions. “Do you wan bsted in the face?” He gave Leona an exaggerated shrug. “I mean, I’m good with a girl tying me up and all, but maybe she should just bst him if he keeps running his mouth.”

  “You ass! Why you tellio bst me!?” the first man spat, turning on his panion.

  “Because you keep screaming in my ear!” the other shot back. “If she’s gonna do it, might as well be now and spare me the headache.”

  Leo out an amused giggle, uo hide her enjoyment of their bickering. “Okay, okay. Enough. You all just sit tight. And quietly.” Her voice carried an edge of warning that instantly silehem.

  Turnitention to the sole, Leona leaned over the trols, squinting as she tried to decipher their funs. “Let’s see… throttle, altitude… hmm…” Her fingers hovered uainly before she began fiddling with the dials and levers. The blimp groaned in protest but eventually slowed to a manageable hover.

  It took some trial and error—and more than a little muttering under her breath—but by the time she figured out how to nd the craft, fshing lights appeared in the distance. A police dirigible closed in rapidly, its spotlight bathing the in harsh white light.

  Leona stood at the trols, keeping a wary eye on the restrained men. The blimp’s dest was careful and trolled, ing to rest on the roof of a nearby building.

  “e out with your hands up!” barked a anding voice from the police dirigible.

  Peeking out the jagged edges of the broken window, Leona smiled cautiously, her glowing aura still faintly illuminating the . “Hey guys!” she called out, raising her voice to be heard over the whir of the blimp's slowing engine. “It’s safe in here. The criminals are all subdued!” She gestured with a calming wave, her tone bright and reassuring. “I’m gonna step out a you see me, okay?”

  She moved deliberately, unbarring the door with an audible click before stepping out into the cool night air. Her wings folded ly behind her as she beamed at the gathering officers, her adrenaliill surging.

  The cops’ reas ranged from stunned sileo audible gasps. One officer, a young man with wide eyes and a nervous smile, stepped forward hesitantly. “Wow, a real-life superhero’s here again!” he excimed, his voice filled with awe. “You passing through, or will you be in town for a while?”

  “I live here,” Leona replied with a broad, radiant smile that seemed to light up the rooftop. “You’ll be seeing a lot more of me iure. This…” She paused for effect, her chest puffing up with pride. “This was my very first bust!”

  Her enthusiasm was iious, and a few of the officers exged impressed gnces. “I hope I did okay by you guys!” Leona tinued, her excitement bubbling over. “I mean, I’m still figuring things out, but…”

  She raised her hand, and with a graceful sweep, jured the shimmering shield of light she had used during the fight. The aurora-like colors danced across its surface, mesmerizing everyone who looked. “I’m not sure what I want to call myself yet,” she admitted, “but I think… I like the name Aurora. Does that sound nice?”

  “Sounds good to me!” the same young officer said, grinning widely. “Miss Aurora, please don’t fet to stop by the prect so we get your statement.”

  Leona blinked, momentarily caught off guard by the idea. ht. Paperwork. She hadn’t sidered the logistics of being a hero. Still, she nodded eagerly, her smile undimmed. “I’d LOVE to!” she said, practically boung on the balls of her feet.

  Her gaze softened as she added, “I do want to keep some things private, though, y’know? To protect my family. You get that, right? But I definitely want everyoo know that I’m fighting for justice!”

  As she spoke, her wings spread out majestically, catg the light from the police dirigible’s spotlight. The officers stared, clearly captivated by her presence.

  “Well,” Leona said after a moment, folding her wings back, “I o head home. The binding I put ohree scious ones inside should fade soon after I go. They’ve been quite well-behaved sihey got all the shooties out of their system.” Her lips quirked into a pyful grin.

  With that, she gave the officers a cheerful wave before croug slightly and ung herself into the air. “WHEEEEEE!” Her joyous whoop echoed through the night as she soared above the city, her golden aura trailing behind her like a et.

  She circled once, surveying the streets below, before speeding off. The officers stood on the rooftop, their heads tilted skyward, watg her disappear with bemused expressions.

  As she flew, Leo her earlier excitement waver slightly. Wait… which way is home? She slowed to a hover, reag into her protective pocket for her phone. H above the city lights, she unlocked it, quickly cheg her location against her surroundings. Satisfied, she tur off again food measure. Just in case they could track me through this thing somehow, not that they know what to look for yet.

  It wasn’t long before the familiar sight of her inium group came into view. She angled herself toward it, desding gracefully. As she hough, she realized the risk of being spotted by a neighbor or passerby. She sed the area, deg on a safer approach. Angling her flight, she dropped into the sparse woods at the back of the plex, her glowing aura dimming to blend into the shadows.

  On the ground, Leoated, her wings folding around her instinctively. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Alright… time to ge back.”

  Except… nothing happened.

  Her eyes popped open, a flicker of panic creeping in. She g her hands, still faintly glowing, and flexed her fingers. Her wings shifted behind her, rustling slightly. Oh, crud…