5.12 – A friend indeed
Bombshell and Redline Racer continued to softly talk amongst themselves.
Meanwhile, Mocha grabbed Aurora’s arm to ask, “Are you sure it’ll work out between them and me?”
Aurora smiled reassuringly. “As long as you take what I said to heart and avoid talking about politics… if you try to get to know them as people and not heroes, I think things will work out just fine. Can I trust you to not escalate this kind of bickering while I’m away? They won’t hurt you. It doesn’t hurt that Redline thinks you’re adorable.” Throwing her arms around Mocha, she continued, “Maybe Bombshell will see the cutie in you like I do. Respect them, and they’ll return it.”
Aurora stood to look down at Mocha and winked. “I need to be off. Maybe I’ll doze in-air, but then, crashing wouldn’t be fun.” She laughed and looked to Redline and Bombshell. “Take care of her, please,” she asked as she dashed up the passageway leading out from the clubhouse-to-be.
Aurora did doze a bit, but thankfully her natural autopilot took over and when she overshot the precinct, she collided with Vanguard’s bulky chest when he materialized in front of her.
She shook her head and rubbed her eyes as he put an arm around her shoulders to steady her.
“Are you alright?” he asked, seemingly worried.
Aurora laughed and shook her head. “I’m fine. I just needed to recharge. Sorry I took a bit to get here. I was gliding. That earned me a ten minute snooze’s worth of rest.
Vanguard smiled. “Are you able to perform your duties?”
Aurora nodded. “I am. What do I need to do?”
“Come down to the rooftop. M.A.’s waiting there.” He gestured and Aurora followed to wing down with him to land, but the Midnight Avenger was nowhere to be seen. Aurora scanned the whole rooftop and shrugged.
The Midnight Avenger finally dropped down beside them seemingly from nowhere. “Aurora, good to see you,” he said.
Vanguard chuckled. “Is this an odd compulsion?” He looked at M.A. and then focused on Aurora. “I have to say this, Inspector Ruffino is quite a handful.” He grinned ruefully. “Frankly, I’m shocked that her attitude was so strong even in my presence. She was embarrassing herself a little in the end with her hardline arguments. In the end it wasn’t too bad. I personally guaranteed you results and I know I can expect the same from you.” He extended a hand to her and she took it to shake it.
“Yes sir. Thank you!” Aurora chuckled after responding seriously, “Now you know why I don’t work with Ruffino. I simply don’t trust her. It’s mutual. You saw Dynamech wandering around you said. He’s helping me with a different case. Redline and Bombshell are standing by with Mocha in the Clubhouse-to-be.”
Vanguard blinked. “Bombshell? Why’s she in San Isidro?” The Midnight Avenger’s lips twisted.
“Redline got Dragonmage to port her over so I could heal her. When I found out she was injured, I offered to relieve her of her pain at least, but it turned out better than I expected. I don’t know how good of a job I did, but she wasn’t in pain as far as I could tell and her mood improved when she realized it.”
“Good woman.” Vanguard clasped a hand onto her shoulder to squeeze. “Just what I expected of you. I intended to whisk her here when this was completed when I learned of your power profile, but this case takes the priority. I’m pleased that you’ve resolved the matter in your downtime.”
“You’ll make an excellent field medic if your healing is effective,” The Midnight Avenger mused.
“M.A., Vanguard…” Aurora smiled, but shook her head. “I’m worried about Mocha’s future. She’s almost certainly a robot and… we can’t let Extensive Enterprises get her. If she went to jail or prison… she’d become a true supervillain and many would…”
Vanguard interrupted, laughing softly. He patted Aurora’s head as he said, “Don’t worry, Aurora. I--”
At that moment, the rooftop door opened and Kirby stepped out. Aurora gaped and fidgeted a bit. To cover, the Midnight Avenger stepped forward as Kirby greeted them, “I see that the gang’s assembled. I’ve got a lot of people looking my way at the moment. I hope there’s good news since so far it’s been nothing but bad.”
The Midnight Avenger answered him, “Detective. We’re working on this issue. We need your cooperation a little longer.”
“Unless they fire me, you have it,” Kirby said. “Aurora’s been good for this city. The least we can do is help her out.”
Vanguard interjected, “I’m happy to hear it. Inspector Ruffino and I have come to somewhat of an armistice. The Society has twenty-four hours to work through this. Can we count on the same allowance from you?”
Kirby crossed his arms and pursed his lips. “Like I said, so long as I’m not fired, you can take as long as you want, but if they dump me over this, I can’t promise the next guy will be lenient.”
“I’ll make sure any pending reassignments get lost in the interim,” the Avenger said.
Kirby chuckled nervously. “Wow… well, that’s good to know, I guess. A little scary, though. Was there something else you need, or is that it?”
“That’s pretty much it, Detective,” Vanguard said. “Thanks for your support.”
Kirby nodded and looked at Aurora to offer a smile and turned to head inside.
Aurora called after Kirby, “Thank you for being a great friend.” Kirby raised a hand and left the rooftop, closing the door behind him.
--- A true friend will risk much for your sake.