I sigh, looking down at the streets as I fly overhead in my costume. It was DEFINITELY a good call on my costume designer's part to add shorts under my skirt. At least five times I've done my patrols and managed to catch perverts trying to get upskirt shots of me. I would be far angrier about that if I didn't find it so sad.

I come to a stop as I spot some activity below: A pair of cars speeding along Main Street with cops having some trouble catching them. As I fly in closer, I can hear the sound of gunfire, and it becomes clear that these two cars are filled with mobsters.

"Starslip to base," I say into my mic. "I got mobsters in a car chase shooting at each other."

"The SJPD has been getting rumours of a possible gang war," I hear Geoffrey say over the mic.

"Some rival group coming in on the Sharks' turf, Mugsy?" I ask with a smile.

"Use extreme caution, Starslip," my mentor replies, sounding unamused. "They might be run of the mill mobsters, but they can still cause some havoc if you give them the chance."

"Got it," I respond. "I'm gonna try the ol' scare tactic first, see if that rattles 'em enough."

I fly down to one of the cars, making my body intangible  After a few moments, one of the mobsters in the car notices me. I give a motion for them to open the window, and find myself amused when they actually do so, looking half astonished and half terrified.

"Yes, I'd like the three-piece chicken nuggets with a side of PULL OVER AND STOP SHOOTING LIKE MANIACS!" I demand.

And out comes the tommy gun, and it's at this point that I'm glad I'm intangible as the bullets whiz past harmlessly. Knowing I have to put a stop to this before someone gets shot, I do a barrel roll over the car and, focusing all the mass that I can into my fists, I punch through the front hood of the car, spooking the driver just enough to lose control and crash into a pole. Part one accomplished, I fly ahead of the other car full of mobsters, solidifying as much as I possibly can, letting the car crash hard into me. The driver looks up weakly at me, and I just give a cute peace sign.

"Can I get a whoop-whoop for girl power?" I ask, letting loose a little giggle for the sheer cheesiness.

I don't see it coming, and I damned sure don't hear it coming either. It isn't until it rips right through my shoulder, a spurt of blood and a scream of pain going with it, that I know the bullet was ever coming. I collapse to the car hood, panting hard, and it only now occurs to me. My God. I've been shot.

I fall to my knees, panting and wincing in pain as I feel the bullet wound burning in my shoulder. I look up as I hear the click, seeing one of the mobsters from the first car holding a magnum in front of my head. At this point, I SHOULD be thinking 'Oh God, this is how I'm gonna die. Gunned down by some no name mobster'. And yet, all I can think is 'I'm sorry, Olette. I'm not gonna make it to the slumber party'.

The gunshot never comes. Instead, I see a blur and a flash of silvery light slash past as the barrel of the gun is cleanly sliced off. I look up, seeing a girl in a red and white mask, tank-top, spandex pants, and boots. She has a brown ponytail coming out the top of her mask. Her green eyes are glaring a hole through the mobster. But most intimidating of all is that four foot long katana that slashed through the mobster's magnum like it was barely even there.

"M-Maple...!" I stammer.

I hear one of the doors of the car behind me open, and luckily so does Maple as she turns and and begins deflecting shots from the tommy gun wielding mobster. I hear a loud thud and look back, seeing the man fall to the ground after getting el kabong'd in the head by a girl in an outlandish looking pink hat, cloak, and sunglasses.

"...Bard too?" I exclaim in shock.

I hear the other nearby mobster go down when Maple hits him in the collarbone with the hilt of the katana. "We were coming down to visit for the weekend. We weren't expecting you to be knee deep in tommy gun wielding crazies."

I smile weakly, still feeling the burning sensation in my shoulder. "Y-Yeah, things are kinda nuts these days."

"You've been shot!" I hear Bard cry as she scrambles over. "Hang on...!"

Bard reaches behind her, pulling off the large guitar case slung over her back. Opening it, a bright glow radiates from the inside as she reaches in and pulls out a silver ocarina. Holding it to her lips, Bard plays a soft melody that sends a small glittering breeze from it to my shoulder, and I feel a soothing aura as the bullet wound shrinks and eventually vanishes.

"There," she says, the ocarina vanishing in a small flash of sparkles. "Better?"

I nod, rubbing my shoulder. "Yeah. That magic case of yours is a miracle worker."

Helping me to my feet, Bard takes a scan of the area, hearing the sirens of police cars incoming. "We should get out of here. Might be best if these guys didn't have costumed vigilantes to blame this damage on. Any place safe we can hide out?"

I sweatdrop, letting out a nervous giggle. "...Umm, actually..."

Olette stands slackjawed in the doorway to her apartment, looking at the three superheroines before her. "...Uhh..."

I smile nervously. "...Hey Olette, good news. We really ARE gonna have more than two people...Great, eh?"

And judging from how in shock and awe Olette is, how uncomfortable Maple and Bard look, and how nervous I am, I can just tell right away that this is going to be a LONG night...