The slums were always alive in a way the Metropolis could never uand. Not in the shiny, overstimuted way of neon lights, but in a kind of stubborn hum, like an old mae refusing to die. There was rhythm here, the syncopated noise of creaking pipes, distant ughter, and voices shouting over the rumble of a passing sger cart. It was a melody stitched together from the struggle and persistence of people just trying to get by.

  Fii crouched over a length of cracked, rusted pipeline, hands smeared with grease and grime, her white hair stig to her fa damp strands. She wiped her forehead with the back of her wrist, smudging dirt across her temple like aint. A thin trickle of water dripped stubbornly onto her sneakers, adding insult to the general state of disarray, which had her teeth grinding in irritation. If this were a normal day, her mood would have beehan stelr.

  "Hold it steady, Quinn," she said, gring at the makeshift cmp in her panion’s hands. "If this thing slips one more time, I’m calling it a day aing the whole block learn how to swim."

  Quin beside her, his pale face framed by the mess of shaggy blond hair that ayed out of his eyes. His hand, shaking a little from the straihe cmp in pce. He g her and chuckled, his voice filled with a id-back ease that was typical for him.

  "Aw, don't be like that," he said, fshing a lopsided grin. "Remember that one summer where the block was without water for three weeks? Good times, huh?" He ughed at that, as if this were the best joke he'd heard all week.

  Fii looked at him with a deadpan expression, pausing her work. "When you drink good memories, let me know."

  "See, now that's edy. Better watch it, your face might get stuck that way. Wouldn't want to miss out on scowling at all the joy in the world."

  "Quinn..."

  "Yeah, yeah, okay. But try not to look so miserable ime," he said, fshing another disarming smile. "Besides, I know you wouldn't dare leave these people high and dry. Not our Fii. Who would keep this pce from falling apart?"

  A soft sigh escaped her lips, and her frown softened a little.

  He wasn't wrong. It wasn’t just the g of wrenches or the way his grip faltered every few seds—though that was irritating enough—it was the faces. A couple of kids hovered nearby, their wide eyes watg her every move like she was doing something miraculous. It wasn’t easy to disappoint an audience like that.

  "Guess you got me there," she murmured.

  "That's the spirit," Quinn quipped, adjusting the cmp with a grunt. "Now, let's show these pipes who's boss, shall we?"

  Fii turned her attention back to the stubborn leak. "You sure you've got the cmp secure?"

  "Steady as a rock, boss." Quinn's words were u by the tremor in his hands, but his smile never wavered.

  "Good, because you're paying for damages if you slip again."

  "Hey now, don't go threatening my ent purse," he joked, but she could hear the edge of pani his voice. "I'm pretty sure I have, like, ay er in there or something."

  "Just focus. You drop it, I'll toss you in that leak, uand?"

  He chuckled. "Tough crowd. Don't worry, I'll keep my end up."

  As Fii started to reseal the pipes, she found herself smiling, even though the old rubber was hard and cracked, the metal joints stiff and uncooperative. There was something oddly f about the stubborn, messy reality of fixing things. Maybe it was the satisfa of knowing that even though the slums were a shabby patchwork of dysfun, they were still standing. Still managing, still breathing.

  And every small, dirty repair she could manage helped keep the lungs of this pce clear.

  She brushed the sweaty hair from her face, her fingers raw from the effort, her clothes damp. Even though the sweat dripped into her eyes, stinging and blurring, she kept w. One more twist, one more cmp, one more seal to keep the water flowing.

  "This'll only st a week, maybe less," she warned him. "We're cooking with spare parts here. We'll need better material to make this a proper repair. All I'm doing now is stalling."

  "I'll start digging around the depot. Bet there's something usable buried in all that chaos," Quinn said with a hint of enthusiasm. "If there's ohing lenty of in the slums, it's junk to repurpose."

  Fii felt the pipes give a creaking protest as she adjusted aubborn joint, her lips pressing into a thin lioo bad you 't just sp a cmp on the bigger problems around here, huh?—Okay! Think that's done. Now hahe seant."

  Quinn rummaged through the bag and passed her a battered tube of adhesive, its bel worn to the point of illegibility. "You know, you could just use your... thing," he said, making a vague gesture with his hands. "Cmp the crack shut or whatever."

  Fii shook her head. "If I mess up, I'll make it worse. Besides, I 't babysit this leak forever. Gravity powers aren't a fix-all. Now pass me that piece of scrap."

  Quinn reached for a corroded scrap of metal, its surfaarked and discolored, and ha to her. "Here. One sad excuse for a patch, at your service."

  Fii used a rusty pair of pliers to curl the scrap into a sembnce of a circle and secured it over the patched-up crack. Then she applied the seant, her fingers leaving behind smudges of bck goo oal. She leaned back to look at her work and frowned. It was hideous, asymmetrical, aogether more by hope than by skill.

  Quinn looked at her with a half-apologetic, half-amused grin. "Not too shabby. Looks almost like a professional did it. Maybe in the dark. With their eyes closed."

  "Oh, shut it, Quinn. This is supposed to be your job," Fii said, chug the empty of seant at him.

  He caught it, still ughing. "I told you what to do didn't I? You're the only orong enough to hahe harder stuff."

  Fii sighed and gave the pipe o, firm twist. "All right, that'll have to do for now. Let's test it."

  She stood up ao turn oer source. The pipes groaned and wheezed as water trickled through the work of a plumbing, hissing and rattling their pints about age and . For a tense minute, nothing much happehen, like a weary sigh, a stream of water began to flow out of the faucet. It was brown at first, but then ran clearer and clearer until a kid was able to jump iream, whooping and h in the spray.

  Fii watched the water gurgle to the ground, and then stood up with a groan. Every muscle in her back protested the movement. She brushed a stray strand of sweaty hair from her fad stretched, trying to work out the kinks in her shoulders.

  "Well, we didn't drown the block, so I'd say that's a win," Quinn said, patting her shoulder. "Seriously, you're doing great. Could've been a disaster here. Someone else might have really messed this up."

  Fii grunted and shot him a pointed look. "You owe me a massage after this, I swear." She jabbed a fi his chest.

  Quinn held up his hands in mock surrender, his eyes twinkling. "Don't threateh a good time."

  Fii rolled her eyes, her gaze drifting to the cluster of kids perched on a nearby stack of crates. Their wide eyes followed her every move, a mixture of awe and curiosity etched into their dirt-streaked faces. One of the younger ones—a boy no older than seven—gri her, his missing froh making the expression all the more endearing.

  She waved back, a small smile tugging at her lips. Theossed the wrento the air a her power around it, spinning the tool around her a few times before she guided it bato the toolbox with a faint k.

  The kids gasped in unison, their eyes as wide as saucers.

  "Do it again!" one of them shouted, g his hands with excitement. "I wanna see you float, too!"

  "Yeah, fly!" another chimed in, boung on his feet.

  "Only if you stay out of trouble," she replied with a pyful wink.

  Fii leaned forward slightly and adjusted her stance, letting the familiar feeling of her power wash over her. In the moment, she was several meters off the ground, h effortlessly. The group of kids whooped and cheered as she zipped around the area, perf an aerial dahat was half-ballet, half-silly antics.

  She did barrel rolls and loops, her feet trag invisible patterns in the air while she ughed, caught up in their iious enthusiasm. Finally, she let herself drop back down to the ground, her feet toug the earth again with a geap.

  Quinn was leaning against a wall, arms crossed, watg her with a smile. "You know they're lying, right? Trouble’s the only thing they’re good at."

  "Pot, meet kettle," she quipped, him a pyful nudge. She grabbed the wrench again and twirled it in her hand, using her ability to spin it around her wrist and fingers in an effortless dispy. It glided over her skin like it was skating on ice.

  The kids ooh'd and ahh'd, g and giggling at the show.

  "Wow, I want gravity power too! I'm tired of running," one of the boys cried out, reag up as if to catch the wrench mid-air.

  "Yeah, me too. And I want a cake shop," a girl added, crossing her arms.

  The wrench's gentle cirg came to an abrupt halt as a sharp, unnatural sound shattered the moment. It was like gss breaking in reverse—a crystalline crackle that set Fii’s nerves alight. The kids fell silent, their ughter repced by the scuffle of shoes as they backed away from the sound. Fii turned her head slowly, her muscles tensing as her eyes sed the alley for its source.

  A wall of shimmering golden light materialized at the alley’s entrahe glht and jarring against the gloom. It stretched upward, cutting off their exit like a radiant guillotihe air buzzed faintly around it, a soundless hum that tickled the edges of her hearing. Fii’s heart sank.

  "You've gotta be kidding me," she muttered, l her hand to her side, the wrench still firmly in her grip.

  From behind the glowing barrier stepped a familiar figure an iridest body suit. Glimmerstrike. Her high ponytail bobbed with each fident step, and the self-assured smirk on her face was as sharp as the barrier she had just jured. Her drones, sleek and discreet, fnked her, their cameras ready to record every moment of the enter.

  Fii felt a surge of irritation coupled with a twinge nation. Just when she was starting to feel good again. So much for that.

  "Lookie what I caught," Glimmerstrike purred, the mog edge in her voice loud and clear. She paused to sider the dirty faces and ramshackle surroundings before tinuing. "Sging tech from the block? Are you that desperate for scraps to sell? Or perhaps there's a more sinister motive at py."

  Fii had a retort oip of her tongue, ready to throw it ba her face, but the words died before they could form. Instead, she just stood there, watg the kids scatter to the shadows like mice from a hawk. A sigh escaped her lips.

  "I was fixing a pipe! And why oh would I do that if I was stealing stuff?" Fii shot back, waving her wren a small, frustrated arc. "You know, just because you're a Super doesn't mean you've got to show up and ruin my day."

  "Here we go again. I 'till proven guilty, right?" Glimmerstrike's smirk never wavered as she g the mess of pipes behind Fii and Quinn. "We skip this little charade, you know. Just admit it and I'll call it a day. Wouldn't that be so much easier?"

  "I'm telling the truth!" Fii's voice echoed slightly off the high, grimy walls of the alley. "Unlike someone else here, who's just making things up!"

  "Deny, deny, deny. Just like a true slummer. Chat knows, though. They see right through your lies. Right, chat?" Glimmerstrike said with a giggle, winking at one of her drones.

  Quinn piped up from beside Fii, whispering from the er of his mouth, "Is she the one you've been talking about?"

  "Sadly," Fii mumbled back.

  "I'm thinking she's kinda hot. And also a bitch."

  "What did you say?" Fii whipped her head around to look at him, but before he could reply, Glimmerstrike was talking again.

  "Didn't anyone ever tell you it's rude to whisper in front of others?" she said, clig her tongue in mock disapproval. "I'll go easy on you today, though. sider it a favor. After all, you gave me such a thrilling chase that other day. Had us all on the edge of our seats, didn't it, chat?"

  Glimmerstrike winked again, this time towards the camera. She was enjoying herself. As always.

  "So," Glimmerstrike drawled, sauntering closer, "shall we pick up where we left off?"

  "You mean after I smashed your fato one of your own walls?" Fii quipped, a dangerous edge to her tone.

  Glimmerstrike's smile wavered for a brief sed, a flicker of anger crossing her face, before smoothing out again.

  "Now, that wasn't very nice, was it? And after I was just about to cut you some sck." She gave a small, sharp gesture with her hand and another barrier materialized, cutting Fii off from her path to the streets. "'t let my fans think I'm going soft, right?"

  "You're a real piece of work," Fii scoffed, her body tensing, the wren her hand seeming suddenly useless. She was aware of the cameras capturing her every move, every expression. "Alright, if we're gonna do this, we at least go somewhere else? There are kids around here and I just fixed this block's water system. I'd like it to stay fixed for a while."

  Glimmerstrike cocked her head to the side, her eyes taking in the surrounding alley. Then, a small smile tugged at the er of her mouth. "Fair enough. Let's find a more suitable location. You seem to know this pce better than I do. Lead the way."

  Fii turo Quinn, leaning close to him. "Think you keep yourself busy for a while? I'll try to this up quickly."

  He shrugged, scratg the back of his neck. "Yeah, whatever. I'll go scout for parts to reinforce that patch-up job. Meet you at the usual spot ter?"

  "Sounds good." Fii nodded and turo the Super, who was still looking at her with that annoyingly smug smile. "You wanna dance, sparkles? Alright, let's do this."

  Fii unched herself up towards the rooftops. Glimmerstrike followed closely behind, using her structs of golden light to form stairs under her feet, her drones swarming around them like er fireflies. The chase led them down a byrinth of alleys, over piles of scrap metal and rusted-out car frames.

  Eventually, they arrived at the Rusted Colosseum. The building was a massive, decrepit structure that had once served as a baseball stadium before being repurposed as a makeshift eai hub for the slums' less savory crowds. Its crumbling walls loomed rge over the surrounding structures, casting long shadows across the ramshackle neighborhood below.

  As Fii nded, a cloud of dust kicked up around her, and she squinted against the harsh sunlight.

  Glimmerstrike desded a few moments ter, casually f a barrier underh her to break her fall, which immediately dissipated once she was safely on the ground. Her drones hummed arouheir cameras ao catch the best possible angles.

  The inside of the colosseum was just as dismal as the rest of the slums. Large patches of the bleachers were missing, leaving gaping holes that revealed the metal skeleton underh. Graffiti and stains of unknown in spttered the walls, while trash littered the ground. The field itself atchwork of dead grass and packed dirt.

  "This is y idea of an arena?" Glimmerstrike sneered as she surveyed their surroundings. "What a dump."

  "If you wanted luxury, you should've stayed iropolis." Fii took a step forward and dropped her hands to her side, g them into fists. "This is the slums, princess. It's not supposed to be pretty."

  Glimmerstrike merely rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Just remember, chat's watg. Let's make this fun." She snapped her fingers, and the drones around her buzzed to life, their lenses zooming in owo.

  Fii smirked, raising a hand auring with two fingers in a 'bring it' motion. "Let's see what you've got."

  Glimmerstrike lunged forward, f a barrier in her palm as she swung at Fii's face. Fii ducked uhe attack, dodging to the right as the barrier passed harmlessly over her head. She tered with a kick aimed at Glimmerstrike's ribs, but the hero formed another barrier just in time, defleg the blow.

  Bad forth they traded blows, cirg each other in the dust and debris of the colosseum fllimmerstrike would strike with quick, precise attacks, while Fii danced around them with acrobatic grace, using her powers to deflect or redirect the blows.

  "You really love the sound of your own voice, don't you?" Fii quipped between strikes, defleg a punch with a small burst of gravitational force. "I'm surprised you breathe with how much hot air you're spewing."

  Glimmerstrike sneered, tinuing to press forward. "Better thaening from this pce." She feinted left, then unched a flurry of kicks, f Fii to backpedal. "All this talk must be exhausting for you, living in this squalor."

  Fii grunted, defleg another blow and tering with a strike of her own. "You'd be surprised how much stamina you build up when you're not being pampered all day." She grinned, tinuing to dodge and weave around the attacks. "Not that you would know anything about that."

  Glimmerstrike huffed, clearly starting to lose her patience. She feinted low, then spun around to deliver a roundhouse kick, her heel surrounded by a shimmering golden aura. Fii couldn't dodge this one and was forced to block it. The impact sent shockwaves up her arm, nearly knog her off bance.

  "Ooh, did that hurt?" Glimmerstrike taunted, pressing her advantage and raining down a series of blows, each surrounded by her golden aura. "Why don't you give up and admit defeat, slummer?"

  Fii gritted her teeth, feeling her arms starting to ache from the barrage. She was already tired and sore from her m work—and the work she did yesterday, and the day before. It all seemed to pile up.

  Sure, she could easily end this fight in any number of ways if she used her powers fully, but part of her wao win this the old-fashioned way. The hard way. It was the best way to remind herself of what she was capable of, with or without powers. It kept her ho, grounded.

  It kept her human.

  Glimmerstrike seemed to see the fatigue on her fad ughed. "Getting tired already? What, no powers to bail you out this time?"

  Fii shook her head, her breath starting to e in ragged gasps. "Nah, just enjoying the workout."

  With a surge of effort, she lunged forward, catg Glimmerstrike by surprise with a straight punch to the gut. The air left the hero's lungs in a whoosh, and she doubled asping for breath. Fii didn't relent, following up with a swift ko the jaw, sending the hero sprawling onto the dusty ground.

  Glimmerstrike y there for a moment, stunned, before slowly pushing herself up onto her elbows. A trickle of blood ran down her , and her hair, once immacute, was now disheveled and dirty. The golden glow around her seemed to flicker, dimming slightly as she gred up at Fii.

  "To hell with this. You're done." With a swift motion, Glimmerstrike sent a barrage of glowing orbs hurtling toward Fii. She narrowly dodged them, the orbs embedding themselves in the wall behind her with loud, eg thunks.

  "Scared you'll lose in a fair fight?" Fii asked, panting heavily as she leaped aside, using her power to shift the trajectory of the orbs in mid-air. But she fot that she didn't know how to properly manipute Glimmerstrike's hard-light structs.

  Before her power could even take hold, the orbs phased through her pull and smmed into her, oer another, each impact sending shockwaves of pain through her body.

  "Ugh!" she cried out, doubling over, clutg her side where the orbs had struck. Pain throbbed along her ribcage, but thankfully nothing seemed to be broken. Grittieeth, she stood upright, her hands raised defensively.

  "Did you expect me to go easy on you? Get real," Glimmerstrike hissed, her hands blurring as she tio create more orbs, sending them careening toward Fii in rapid succession.

  Fii knew she had to move, had to dodge, but her body felt sluggish and heavy, every muscle screaming in protest. The orbs kept ing, eae hitting her like a battering ram, knog her bad sending fresh waves of pain c through her.

  "You know, you're really starting to get on my nerves," she growled, taking a step bad quickly gng around the stadium, trying to formute a pn. Her eyes nded on a pile of junk in the er. Bingo.

  As Glimmerstrike tio close the distance, Fii dashed towards the pile, using her gravikiic powers to pull pieces of scrap metal and debris from it and hurl them at her oppo. Glimmerstrike quickly formed a barrier to shield herself, and the makeshift projectiles bounced off harmlessly.

  She kept pulling more and more pieces of junk from the pile, keeping Glimmerstrike on the defensive while she inched closer to her target. When she was close enough, she grabbed the rusted engine block at the base of the pile and flung it tlimmerstrike with all her might.

  The Super mao deflect it with another barrier, but the force of the impaocked her back, giving Fii the opening she needed. She charged in, dug low to avoid a hastily-erected barrier, and delivered a powerful uppercut to Glimmerstrike's , sending her reeling.

  Fii didn't let up, following through with a series of rapid-fire puhat forced Glimmerstrike to keep bag up until she was ered against one of the crumbling walls of the colosseum. With a final, powerful strike, Fii smashed Glimmerstrike against the wall, causing the crete to crack behind her.

  Glimmerstrike slumped down, her breathing ragged, her eyes gzed over in pain. She struggled to stand but could only mao lean against the wall.

  Fii took a deep, shuddering breath, her chest heaving from the exertion.

  "You done?" she asked, wiping a trickle of blood from the er of her mouth. "Or do you want more?"

  Glimmerstrike coughed, spitting out blood onto the dusty ground. "B...bitch," she croaked, her voice hoarse.

  "That's me," Fii smirked, leaning forward to offer a mock bow. "Your friendly, neighborhood bitch." She winced, feeling the bruises and scrapes along her body fre up in pain.

  The drones buzzed around them, capturing every detail of their fight. Glimmerstrike's fans were probably going crazy right now, but Fii couldn't care less.

  "So, here's the deal, sparkles," she tinued, standing up straight and looking at the other Super pointedly. "You leave me alone, and I'll fet this little i ever happened. Deal?" She held out her hand, waiting for a response.

  Glimmerstrike looked at her hand disdainfully. "As if I'd ever agree to that."

  "Look, I'm being nice here. Take it or leave it."

  "I don't take deals from criminals like you."

  "Okay, fine. Have it your way." Fii sighed, dropping her hand. "Just remember, I went easy on you."

  With that, Fii lifted Glimmerstrike off the ground with her powers, suspending her in mid-air. Then she flew towards The Wall, carrying the struggling Super with her.

  "I swear, if you drop me—"

  Fii looked at her ftly. "I'm not going to drop you. e on, gimme some credit here. You're just going on a little trip. Far, far away from me."

  She reached the security checkpoint at the base of The Wall and llimmerstrike to the ground in front of a group of startled MetSec agents. They quickly scrambled to surround the two, ons drawn.

  "Delivery for you guys," Fii quipped, giving them a cheeky salute before ung herself into the air and speeding off, leaving a speechless Glimmerstrike and bewildered agents in her wake.

  Once she was out of sight, Fii touched down on a nearby rooftop and slumped against a broken air ditioning unit, wing in pain. She was battered, bruised, and ag all over, but at least Glimmerstrike was off her back. For now, anyway.

  Every inch of her body hurt, and she was sure she'd have some impressive bruises to show for it ter.

  "God, she pisses me off," Fii muttered, closing her eyes for a moment aing the cool breeze wash over her.