I wanted to go for Alabaster, the Empire would be causing more general destruction by virtue of simply having more capes to field. While harder to put down he was also the easier one to actually confront, as while bullets were deadly, grenades were much deadlier. Plus he was a neo-nazi. Maybe one of the more sympathetic of his group but still part of an organization that iconiffied and emulated genocidal madmen after the true horrors of their acts were revealed. Committing great crimes in the name of a cause that had long since died, primarily for fear and hatred's sake.
What I did was instead go for Lee. I'd watched him long enough now, and saw his tactics. He was darting around the cover constantly, moving from one space to another sending in clones each time he jumped. The switch was instant, but it took a half second for him to find a new point to shift himself too. That was my opening.
The reasoning for this was even simpler. Oni-Lee had and made use of explosives. Explosives made collateral. Plus I could actually put him down and keep him down if I managed to tag him before he teleported. That left me free to move on after. Also unlike Alabaster Oni-Lee was a mover, if he wanted to escape me, he could.
I could take on Alabaster next.
The downside of all of this was that I had no idea what location the teleporting cape would move to next.
Once again I focused power to my eyes, my vision tanging just slightly green as they burnt away all obstruction to my understanding.
Oni-Lee was a parahuman, his supernatural presence was minor, normal for that of a mortal, except that it was also linked to something else. His shard, his power. A colossal construct so big it beguiled imagination to be something carved by purely mundane means. A living factory the size of a continent.
That needless to say, had a lot more power running through it, if only by it's sheer mass. And a river of it flowed through to Lee to grant him his powers.
It was almost like a living hearthstone connection, and that was something I could track.
More importantly his movements, his actions became clearer to me. His face might be masked but he still used his eyes to see, he wasn't transporting blind, and all his attention not on finding his next spot to move to was on Alabaster, completely empty of focus to any other thing.
No, not completely empty. He still held situational awareness, but it was limited. He discarded anything not an immediate threat.
That was my opening.
I coiled my legs, getting them out under me, toes digging right into the pavement as he flashed from one spot to the next.
Then I saw him look at a car maybe ten feet in front of me.
And then another him was suddenly there.
I burst into motion, arms pulling ahead, and feet shooting out in a maddened lunge, as I dashed down the street, crossed the gap in less then a second. At the last moment shifting my momentum and balance to kick up across the wall as his head flashed to look at me.
I reacted immediately, my next step launched out in a violent knife kick to the chest.
He went down... ribs cracking but not shattered, as I landed clean on my feat. He let out a voiceless bark of exhalation as all the air was driven from his lungs.
But his eyes...
My neck twisted already in motion. And sure enough another Oni-Lee stood just beyond me, already turning in place.
I lashed out again, in a flurry of movement, this time striking out with my arm. And struck into his collarbone with an echoing crack.
And this time there was no victory in his glare, only surprise, pain, and absolute focus.
Embers lit my view again, and I knew this one had become a doomed and hollow self as he fell.
My head snapped again and I saw another Lee crumple opposite the street, but even as I caught site of him, I could see the embers of his life suddenly cut short again.
But he was wounded and running. One down.
One to go.
Then I heard the copy beside me bark a sudden muffled laugh, and I looked at him again,
Just in time to see the pins drop from his hands.
Oh shit!