Chapter 6: Funny Story, I Punched Daredevil
Aura knew absolutely nothing about hunting down gangs.
The destruction part she could handle. Kick ass, take names.
But how did you get to the bad people in the first place? Finding enemies had never been a problem for Aura before.
The only line of investigation Aura could think of was finding out how Daredevil knew where they were. It was worth a shot at least.
She knew that he was out and about for at least several nights every week. All she had to do was find him and hope he was willing to chat.
…
"Daredevil! Do you have a minute?" She asked, coming up next to him.
She had just seen him win a fistfight with someone. The man was laying on the ground, unconscious.
Daredevil turned towards her. "I guess so. Do you need help?"
"Sort of. We should go somewhere more private."
…
Aura followed Daredevil through an apartment building she didn't recognize up to the roof.
Was it the smartest idea? Probably not. But Aura barely even considered not doing it.
When they got to the top, they both stood around somewhat awkwardly.
"So. I'm going to help you with the gang situation."
She couldn't see the top half of Daredevil's face through the mask, but he didn't seem very happy about the idea.
"I'm not interested in help, but thanks."
"And I wasn't asking. I'm going to anyway. I just thought it might be easier if we collaborate on information, since you seem to always know where they are."
"No. Go home, kid. Vigilantism isn't a game."
Aura was getting impatient. She was a generally chill and untouchable person, but being treated like a little kid always annoyed her.
"Look, we don't have time for this. I'm not a kid. I know this isn't a game, which is why I'm here. Nothing you say is going to change my mind, it's not worth trying. People are being hurt and something big is going on, and I'm equipped to handle it," she crossed her arms.
Aura didn't look very threatening. She was muscley, but in the way that a gymnast was, lithe and tough. She was wearing an old black Elton John shirt tucked into gray jeans, an army green work jacket, black combat boots, and her tactical fingerless gloves. She had dark brown hair in a braid over her shoulder and two small silver hoops in each ear.
The only thing about her that hinted at danger was her eyes. They, like every child of Apollo that could summon and manipulate sunlight (or so she was told, they were always generations apart), were molten gold. An impossible color. On a different person, they might be beautiful, warm and inviting. But on Aura, they were cold and powerful. The eyes of a god on the face of a sixteen-year-old.
Daredevil seemed to be considering her statement.
"I'm sorry, I just can't take a teenager with me."
That wasn't exactly a no. "What if I prove to you that I can handle it?"
"What can you do, anyway? That sword was impressive."
Wait. Sword? Why could he see that? Aura wanted to drop-kick her life into next Tuesday.
"Let's just say that I'm capable of handling myself."
"I can't morally bring a kid along with me. I wouldn't care if you were Captain America, I would feel responsible for you."
"I'm going to do it anyway. If you don't help, I'll be doing it alone."
Daredevil stared at her. Aura stared back.
Daredevil eventually dropped his gaze, muttering something under his breath. "What are your abilities?"
"I'm sure you'll get the chance to see a few."
Aura wasn't going to show a mortal her powers without a good reason. If it came between death (of her, Daredevil, a civilian) and showing off a power or two, she would pick using her powers, no hesitation. But if she listed off her powers (sunlight summoning and manipulation, the ability to imbue power into music, soundwave manipulation, healing magic, and the ability to get people sick) Daredevil and anyone he might tell could easily connect the dots.
"I'm not going to let you tag along unless I know what you can do."
"How about this: If I beat you in a fight, we work together."
Daredevil seemed to stare at her again. "I'm not going to attack you."
"That's fine," Aura said, and ran at him.
She swung. A sparring throw, mind you. The kind that would bruise a bit but not hurt much.
He took a step back and she took a step forward, stomping (lighter than she would in a real fight) on his foot and slamming her elbow into his stomach.
Daredevil seemed to realize that she wasn't going to back down, and started fighting back. He didn't throw any hits that had even a chance of actually hurting her, but as she sped up he was forced to.
In less than a few minutes it was an actual contest. Daredevil was strong and steady, but he wasn't a match for a trained demigod.
Demigods were faster, more agile, stronger, and had faster reflexes than mortals. Not enough to provide a huge advantage, but it counted. But their training was truly special. Always fighting like your life depends on it makes a big difference. You learn fast and get it right faster. Aura moved constantly, hitting fast and hard and getting out of the way. She used every opportunity, never faltering. Someone who trained in the streets didn't have the same level of energy and vigor. A mortal might pause and try to recuperate when they weren't doing well, a demigod just fought harder. Enjoying fighting made a big difference too. Demigods prized and cultivated their skills. Aura couldn't count the number of spars she'd been in, the number of fun fighting-related games and obstacle courses. Aura loved the adrenaline of monster fights, the way her whole body felt electric and her sword moved like an extension of her arm. But mainly, fighting and agility were important to survival. There was no "good", only "getting better". Aura finally made it to the top of the lava rock wall in under three minutes? That's great, now do it faster.
Aura wasn't sure if Daredevil knew that she was holding back. She didn't like to brag. Being good at fighting wasn't about pride. But if she fought like she meant it, even if she didn't use any powers, the fight would be over in seconds.
They matched each other's pacing well. Aura let the fight drag on longer than she would a normal spar, letting Daredevil see her skill. They moved like a dance, weaving across the rooftop.
A minute or so after Daredevil started throwing actual destructive punches that would really hurt if Aura was too slow, Aura finished the spar, knocking him to the ground and leaning on him so he couldn't get up.
A demigod would have fought like hell to get up, only ending the spar once they were unquestionably "dead", but Daredevil, ever the gentlemen, accepted his loss.
His mouth tugged into a smile and she let him up.
"You weren't kidding. Where did you learn to fight like that?"
"I can't quite say," Aura pulled a folded piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to him.
Written on the paper was her phone number, first name, and the words "I'm usually free from 1 PM to 5 PM and 8 PM to 3 AM."
Aura wasn't sure how she felt about working with a mortal, but this was the start of something big.
Hello! As always, thanks for being here. I'm trying to work on longer chapters, but for whatever reason I have a hard time staying focused on writing longer chapters. It's way easier to break it down into little pieces. Updates may start to become pretty random as the bulk of the school year starts and I have more homework and less motivation, but I'm serious about updating at least once a week. If for whatever reason I won't be able to, I'll tell you beforehand.