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bounces into a run up the wall and
packs her hands and forearms with telekinetic power, ready to
attack with one of her favourite moves. She invented the technique
when she was twelve, and around ARC it’s called the Serena Slam – a
strike where she wraps her bones and sinew in Talent, bracing them
and increasing their strength. When he rounds the corner, only
inches from her, she smashes her fist into his face. Perfect timing. The operative’s shields deflect the force of the blow, or she’d
have torn his jaw clean off, but the muted power is still enough to
cause his eyes to roll up in his head. He slumps to his knees and
sideways into a messy heap. One
down.
    Sudden gunfire cracks through the air, making
her flinch, and she realizes there are already other operatives
headed toward her. The first guy must have sent out a telepathic
shout. Her cover blown, she dashes through the shadows, tearing
round the corner to take cover as the bullets tatter the air behind
her, several spun away by her shield, which she pushes outward.
Skin-tight armour is useless against projectiles, as it can’t
absorb that much energy directly, but she now has a protective
globe surrounding her, and charges forward, thoughts of stealth
mostly forgotten.
    She almost runs into two more black-clad
figures as they close on her from the gloom, raising their hands
for a telekinetic attack. Screaming defiance, she mirrors them,
searching mentally for the best route away. They’ll drag her out of
the air if she leaps, so instead she calls her power in, letting it
fill her, and then unleashes it in a powerful wave, surging forward
in its wake. It rushes ahead of her like a tsunami – a moving wall
of energy, meant to sweep them out of her way.
    The operative on her right is so
distracted by the brute force approach of her telekinetic attack
that he fails to react fast enough, and she delivers a sloppy
flying roundhouse kick, her foot slamming into the side of his
knee, and sending him to the ground. Before she can knock him out,
the other is on her from behind. Abial, her awareness tells her as
their shields and bodies crash into each other. Serena pours
everything she has back into her skin for protection, not allowing
Abial to find a weak point, or slide through her barrier with any
nasty, distracting surprises. Their powers push against each other
as they grapple, each trying to force the other away. Struggling
for a grip against the more powerful hands of her opponent, Serena
takes a chance and jerks her head backward, her skull colliding at
top speed with the bridge of Abial’s nose. There’s a satisfying
crunching noise, and the girl’s grip slips.
    She always forgets to anchor her
shield around her face. Twisting sideways,
Serena hammers at Abial’s shields with all her strength, aware of
footsteps closing on her.
    Breaking loose, she bends her
knees and leaps up, using Abial’s head as a convenient boosting
point, the blow sending the other girl to the ground. Unable to
suppress a cocky smirk – aw yeah – Serena dashes away
across the rooftop, scanning her surroundings. Rapidly figuring out
her new position, she senses movement and twists sharply to the
left, just in time to avoid another spray of bullets, which
whistles past. Two of them clip her shield, sapping more of her
strength as she absorbs the powerful blows. Nuke, snipers on the roof.
    She leaps from roof to roof,
barely pausing to balance, jinking left and right with
preternatural speed and grace to avoid the continuing gunfire. By
the time she approaches the edge of the building that guards the
exit to the Arena, she’s running at full speed. Heartbeat pounding
in her ears, she throws herself forward into a handstand and grabs
the edge of the roof. Her momentum carries her legs out over the
empty space below. As soon as her body is horizontal, she pushes
out from the wall, uses telekinesis to guide her into a perfect
gymnast’s landing, and sprints flat out for the end of