2.08.2 – Practice makes perfect

2.1 - Edited by: Rellawing, AlliterativeArts - 1/22/2021

Leona and her Goonie scrounged through the house quickly, getting blankets and first aid supplies just in case. Her aunt practically grabbed everything she could lay hands on from a flashlight and batteries to any other emergency items that seemed potentially useful. Soon she had such a huge pack that Leona could only gape at it wonderingly and laugh. She was glad that Goonie was getting so into this training thing. For her part, Quinn watched from her room’s doorway with a sly little smile.

“Good luck!” Quinn smiled and called out to the two before the front door closed. Hopping into Goonie’s car, they headed towards Port Howard, one of San Isidro’s larger ports.

“There’s a place out near the port where we won’t be bothered. Used to be a makeout spot, actually,” Goonie said with a nostalgic grin tugging at her mouth. Leona couldn’t imagine Goonie ever having a make-out session despite her being a beatnik, but since she knew the place so well, it had to be true.

Come to think of it, Quinn had had a rave out around there last year. Leona had to wonder if they were going to the same location or not.

After a half-hour’s worth of driving, they arrived at what looked to be a dilapidated, weed-ridden field. Goonie parked a little bit away and guided her over to the gate before helping her to slip through the chained gate. Passing the supplies to Leona, Goonie joined her on the other side in short order.

Rummaging through the pack briefly, she produced the flashlights she’d brought, handing one to Leona who grinned, shaking her head. Her transformed body would work better than any flashlight, but also felt it wouldn’t hurt to have them just in case her powers cut out on her. Goonie took the lead and guided Leona to a stacked group of rusted shipping containers.

“Okay. This will do. Can you transform now?” Goonie asked.

Leona nodded. “All I need to do is will it… This is the first time I’ve done this on purpose in pitch darkness, so just in case, don’t stare at me, Mom. You might get blinded.”

Goonie nodded emphatically, averting her eyes. Leona formed the image of her heroic form complete with costume accompanied by a bright flash of light. When the transformation was completed, Goonie opened her eyes and smiled, then pointed at her wings. “They really glow! You’re beautiful at night, honey,” she exclaimed as she tightly hugged Leona. There were little motes of yellow lights rising off her wings, looking a bit like embers from a flame or lazy fireflies.

Leona smiled happily at the compliment. “I FEEL beautiful Mom!” Leona said with Aurora’s beautiful voice. “Even if I can’t ever be a real girl aside from my transformed form, I can experience it all I wish like this.” Leona twirled and giggled. “I think I caught a glimpse of these lights that first night after it happened, but I haven’t seen them quite like this.” Like water to a fish, Leona hadn’t really noticed the motes until Goonie had explicitly pointed them out.

Goonie smiled and reached out to touch one of her wings, noticing the warmth it emitted. Gently caressing the feathers for a moment made Goonie’s hand feel even more warm. “They’re soft and warm, too.” She smiled at her daughter. “You’d better be careful to not injure them.”

“That’s why we’re here, isn’t it?” Leona smiled. “I can form a field that seems to protect me when I need it, and it seems instinctive to use. A pretty good thing too, ‘cause, y’know, it’s pretty scary when bad guys shoot at you. I reacted and my power automatically surrounded me. It was clumsy at first, the forcefield went all the way around me like a capsule. But when I focused more, I got it to cling to my skin, like a second tougher skin. I think I can protect myself in most circumstances like that, though I really don’t want to think about a situation where I might not be able to do it.”

“It really is a good thing you have a force field… and that you can fly as well. What else are you able to do?” Goonie asked.

“I can augment my strength a bit. Or maybe I negate gravity or weight itself, which I guess is the same thing.” Leona nodded. “Anyhow, when my power surrounds an object, within certain limitations, I can lift it. I seem to be able to punch people pretty well too. Plus, I blast things.”

“Well,” Goonie thought for a moment and cast her eyes around with a mischievous smile as she looked at the stack of stacked shipping containers. “You can practice on these shipping containers here. Let’s start by having you lift one and test your control of that aura of yours. If you run out of energy, we’ll better know your limitations.” Goonie stepped away and waited.

Leona turned her gaze to the top-most crate on the stack and flapped her wings to float up. Touching the container, she cradled it with her aura as much as she could but the membrane couldn’t completely engulf the object, maybe only a third of its surface.

Grunting, she tried to lift the whole container all at once, but it wouldn’t budge. She experimented more; things like spreading the field thicker around a smaller region or as thin as she could. When she went super thin she managed to cover about half of the crate. With extreme effort, she was able to lift one end for a second, but it dropped back down when she crossed a line and reached the limitations of this power.

She dropped down, thinking. Goonie smiled comfortingly as she consoled Leona, “That’s a shame, but now we know that you aren’t a super-strength type hero. Try other objects you couldn’t handle normally and ramp up. There are some crates, barrels, oil drums and other bits and bobs around here. Some of those things might be beyond your power to comfortably handle though, don’t hurt yourself.”

Leona rushed to an oil drum and touched it, surrounded it easily with her aura. She then lifted it effortlessly with a giggle. She did it with another barrel before moving on to some of the other objects Goonie had suggested one by one, all of which were within her limitations. She was even able to throw a few barrels into the air and clumsily juggle them. Goonie chortled gleefully and clapped. “Careful! Don’t whomp me with one!”

“Alright, let’s test your strength. You said your punches were pretty effective. Try hitting these and see what kind of damage you can do,” her auntie suggested, indicating the objects Leona had begun her experimentations with. “The shipping containers first.”

Leona winced. She didn’t want to hurt her hand, but it would give a good benchmark. She drew her arm back, approaching the nearby crate. She slammed her fist into it as hard as she could... Without any noticeable result. It did absolutely nothing. Actually, while there wasn’t even a dent, it did hurt.

Leona cradled her hand. Goonie was about to rush forward to check her hand, but she waved her Mom back. She was fine. Thinking it through, she surrounded her fists in the aura and struck the glorified crate again repeatedly. She wasn’t hurting herself, but it also didn’t look like she was much stronger than a non-powered athlete after repeated impacts.

Goonie stepped close and examined her hands, this time not allowing herself to be shooed away. She nodded after being satisfied nothing was injured and checked the container. “You’re not able to punch through steel, it looks like. But I’d say you’re at least making dents.” She smiled and shrugged.

Leona’s jaw dropped and she checked it again, seeing that her repeated blows had indeed dented it. They weren’t especially significant nor obvious, but she’d successfully inflicted minor damage to them!

“I’ll need to play with my aura a bit more later, but now I can see what I can do if I attack physically. We can safely say that super strength is not my forte. Well, athlete-level or a bit higher isn’t bad. I guess all that’s left are my force fields and blasts.”

“Now step back, Mom, I’ll blast this container next. Let’s see if that does something more.” She stepped back and Goonie scurried away.

“Be careful!” Laguna cried over her shoulder.

Leona considered the situation and heeded the advice, coating herself with a barrier. Shrapnel might spray all over, which was part of why she told Goonie to get clear.

Reaching her hand towards one of the containers, she willed one of her beams to charge and lance at it. The resulting energy shot out like a laser and struck, weakly at first, but she ended this attack, increased the power, and hit it over and over, amping up the energy imbued with each consecutive blast.

As she continued blasting, a beam eventually penetrated the side of the container. The blasts appeared to be concussive rather than thermal, meaning they had more punch than heat. Her continued practice eventually narrowed down to more precise aiming and further adjusting her power on the fly.

It was getting to be pretty fun, beating up old unused containers on the dock. After a while, though, Leona stopped blasting and Laguna rushed back up with a comment, “Trigger happy, much? Tell ya what, if you want to practice your aim a bit more, I’ll set up some targets for you over there. Take a break for a moment.” Leona nodded and settled down, wondering about how she was able to exert herself so much when the sun wasn’t up. She didn’t feel drained yet.

Leona eyed their car while Goonie was setting things up. “Can I try lifting the car? It’s smaller than the shipping containers. It’d give another benchmark.”

Goonie hesitated but nodded. “Any damage you do you’re going to have to go to work off in the cafe, got it?”

Leona nodded, taking the threat seriously. She walked over to the car and gently placed a hand on it. She didn’t try to lift it right away, starting by just trying to surround it with her aura to see how much she could spread around it. How much purchase she got would tell her in and of itself whether she could lift it or not, she reasoned. Plus, she could gauge how dense the aura was. Too thin and the effect would be proportionally weak.

Her aura spread over the car slowly. It managed full coverage, but was thin. Taking a deep breath and tightening her core, she reached down to lift it. Grunting at the exertion, she managed to actually lift it off the ground! It was heavy, but she was doing it!

Leona whooped and grunted simultaneously, sweating. “Now…” She panted and gently set the car down. “I have a good idea of how much I can lift now, and how much effort it’ll take.”

Leona smiled happily, feeling accomplished. She’d learned another new thing. “But I don’t know if I could fly with that much weight… It was hard enough just holding it up. I’m certainly not going that far to experiment with your car.” Leona giggled.

“Good girl.” Goonie again approached and hugged her daughter a little awkwardly so as not to harm her wings.

Leona returned the hug with her gale of giggles turned to a simple impish grin since an impetuous idea had occurred to her. She surrounded the two of them with her aura and swept her mom into her arms as she leapt into the air, making sure she held her tightly. “I know I can carry a person, but I’m not sure how long. How about a nice flight over the bay?”

Laguna shrieked the moment her feet left the ground and clung to Leona. For Leona’s part, all she had to worry about was to hold onto Goonie because she herself felt like she had next to no weight.

Flying around with a gleeful laugh, Leona learned something else as she flew with someone in her arms. She hadn’t noticed it before, but the extra mass did throw off her maneuvering a bit. She had to be mindful of compensating for it.

Continuing to practice for a time, she only belatedly noticed how terrified Goonie was. Contrary to all the joy and wonder she herself felt at flying, Goonie was filled with a dread of falling instead. Leona stopped the more advanced maneuvering and made a note that flying evasively while holding someone might be challenging in a pinch. “I’m sorry you got scared, Mom. Is it okay we did that?”

“Y-yes…” Goonie stuttered, eyes shut tightly. “Don't talk, just concentrate on your flying, got it?” She really was panicking.

“I promise I won’t drop you, Mom.” Leona giggled and flapped a bit higher so she could show her the skylines of both of the two cities.

They found themselves in a good place for such sightseeing. She was determined to show Goonie something of the wonder she was filled with. “Open your eyes and look. It’s beautiful, Mom.” Leona said gently, hugging her tightly to reassure her. “Trust me, you’re as light as a feather.”

Goonie eventually opened her eyes slowly and she caught sight of the cities and gasped.

Seaside City shone like a distant collection of jewels, reflecting on the bay. San Isidro was a bit dimmer but had its own grace and beauty by night, the lights from the windows and fixtures were still quite breathtaking regardless. “Oh my goodness! It’s beautiful! Spectacular!” She laughed now that they weren’t moving. “Thank you, honey. It’s a million-dollar view.” She hugged Leona a little tighter.

Leona smiled warmly and glided slowly on the night breezes. “I’m glad I could share this with you, Mom.” Leona’s smile was a happy one. She carefully circled downwards towards the shipping containers where they’d stood before and landed lightly, setting her Goonie down.

“I think I’m really happy.” Leona said softly, “I don't know if these powers will always bring me happiness, but I’ll take these moments when they come… and treasure them.” A contented sigh escaped from her lips.

“I can’t think of another girl so deserving.” Goonie beamed at Leona. “Do you want to test out anything else?” She asked, her legs a little wobbly from her experience.

Leona giggled as she supported her mom. “No, there’s nothing left except for the force field to test. I don’t know how we could test it though. When they were firing a bunch of guns at me during the blimp heist nothing got through. With the first type of capsule shield, they were stopped dead, and with the second, bullets were bouncing off as though the shield had a rubber-like quality.”

“I could throw things at you, I guess,” Goonie suggested.

Leona considered and smiled. “I got a better idea… we’ve got a decent body of water right here… so let’s see…” She walked to the water and concentrated on her field, surrounding herself with it and stepped off the edge of the pier to float over the water. She experimentally dipped her toe into the cool water with caution and noticed that the forcefield rejected the entrance of water.

Aurora tilted her head and smiled, sinking more and more of herself beneath the waterline. Even when she was neck-deep, she was sure she was quite dry.

Plunging all the way into the water, she noticed right away that the air was getting a little thin. She could breathe well enough at first, but this wouldn’t do.

After propelling herself back up when her head resurfaced, she opened the field at the top and widened the gap around her body to become the capsule-type variety.

After a moment of adjusting just how far she was pushing the field out, she dipped back underwater and found it more comfortable. Before she felt the chill of the ocean, but now she was quite warm.

She played and experimented some more, ‘flying’ through the water. She could take a supply of air with her, but did that mean it was finite?

She tested to see how much she had to take with her in reserve to be effective. Though the brightness of her wings conveniently marked her location, she surfaced periodically to reassure Goonie that she was safe.

Interestingly, she never actually swam at all. Her powers or the capsule propelled her forward underwater, so flight wasn’t quite accurate either. It was more like the classic superhero flying for the types without wings.

When done, she breached the surface and launched into the air again, dropping the shield, looking a bit like a glowly dolphin breaching the surface of the bay. Laughing joyfully, she glided to the dock to land beside her Auntie. “Wow, that was so fun! After a bit of experimentation, I didn’t get cold or wet at all.”

Goonie rubbed Leona’s back and grinned. “Well, I think we’ve exhausted the possibilities for now. At any rate, if we keep this up we might get spotted so let’s go.” She led the way back.

Leona ran beside her easily and took her hand. “When we get to the gate, no need to take turns squeezing through. I’ll float us over. You’ve seen magical movies where people held hands and floated together. I did that with an officer earlier, so don’t panic.” She winked at Goonie. When they neared the obstacle Leona flapped her wings after extending her aura around her mom. They danced in midair and floated just as Leona had foretold. Goonie barked a laugh and her face scrunched at being airborne again, but she was happy they came down gently, still walking.

“Nice job, girl. Which of the San Isidro precincts are you going to tomorrow?” she asked as she moved to the car. Leona let her transformation dissipate and got in. Laguna started the car after stashing the backpack in the back.

“Oh gosh, the targets you set up! We totally forgot them, Mom.” Leona’s head hung over as she dryly chuckled.

“It’s fine. I think you have that ability down pat.” Goonie put the car into reverse and headed back to the frontage road to head home. “You didn’t answer, are you going tomorrow?”

“It seems only right to do that,” Leona replied. “I’m thinking I might also sneak a peek at Sarah to reassure myself too later on.”

Oops, crud… Quinn said to not mention it, but oh well.

Laguna took an exasperated breath. “You have to be careful, dear. Someone might take it the wrong way if you’re not clear about your intentions,” she warned her. “But maybe we can decide on a way to do it in such a way that won’t offend anyone.” She reached over and teasingly tousled Leona’s hair.

“I had hoped you’d be able to help, Mom.” Leona smiled even more. “I said the same thing to Quinn. She doesn’t think about things a superhero shouldn’t do… and what they should really worry about, like reputation and stuff. I know it’s inevitable that some people won’t like me… like that grumpy detective over in Seaside, but I don't want to actually bring that on myself purposely.”

“That’s because you’re a good girl,” Laguna smiled and sighed in relief. “Do you feel any weaker after all that? I know you were worried about being less powerful at night.” She eyed Leona. “I can stop if you want to check it more.”

Leona frowned thoughtfully. “That’s true, but how about this. You drive home, I’ll fly overhead, not too close, but enough to where I can pull in if I need help. I’ll call you on my phone if I feel like I’m in trouble.”

Laguna nodded and pulled over. When Leona stepped out, she transformed and quickly rose into the sky, watching her Mom pull off again and continue home. She considered the situation and decided she didn’t feel any weaker. In fact, she did a few aerobatics for fun since she had to go slower than usual to match the car’s pace.

When they got home, Leona went to the usual copse and reversed the transformation. She leapt over the wall and headed to the front of the condo to wait at the front door. In the meantime, Goonie parked in the driveway and carried the supply pack up to the main entrance in time to meet her. “Well, how did it feel?” Goonie asked.

“It felt fine, actually. I feel more relaxed. It’s true that I have an affinity for the sun, but maybe it’s not the only source for my power. Maybe I take in light from the stars above, or maybe some other particle. I hear there’s even stuff that goes right through the whole planet like it’s barely there. Anyway, thanks for taking me tonight, Mom.” She hugged Laguna tightly. “I think I have a better idea of what I can do now.” They hugged inside the doorway and she patted Leona on the back.

“Okay, get some sleep. I’ll bring you to the station early tomorrow if you’d like. Or, to a private place where you can transform if you’d rather,” Laguna said, warming Leona’s heart that she was so supportive.

“A private place would be best. I don’t want anyone seeing you and getting a clue about who I might be.” Leona affirmed her own thought with a nod.

“They might even take me less seriously if they knew I was a kid. Plus, the comic books show what happens when you aren’t serious about protecting your identity, particularly the darker comics. I don’t want my family to ever be at risk just because I’ve decided to be a superhero.”

Laguna nodded, smiling wryly. “Ah, I didn’t think of that. Good idea. Sounds like you’re well on your way to being a real superhero; you have such a level head.”

Leona smiled at the compliment. “The future can always be found in fiction. I suppose that’s why they say there is truth in fiction.” Leona philosophied. “A person’s imagination is oftentimes able to foresee what something will be like without having to experience it firsthand. That’s why I don’t think comics are just frivolous silliness. They’re just like any other stories. The wisdom is always there for the reader to pull out for themselves. I know that’s just a theory and I can’t go into much more detail, but anything is possible, really. That is, if you think more about ‘how’, instead ‘what’ or ‘when’.”

Goonie rolled her eyes. “All right, Plato. Scoot! You have a big day tomorrow and I want you to get a good night’s sleep.”

Leona rushed ahead upstairs so that the predictable swat of her backside wouldn’t land. Quinn was nowhere to be seen downstairs so she was likely already sleeping. Upon entering her room, her eyes opened in horror.

Black Angel herself sat on her bed, smiling slyly.

She waved glibly, but when Leona blinked, she was gone. As though she was never there in the first place.

Leona’s bedsheets weren't disturbed nor was there any other trace of what she’d just seen, but she was still terrified by seeing her again.

Sinking to her knees, Leona took some deep calming breaths. She was scared of what it meant that she saw her. Would she have to fear that the dark being might take control someday?

Black Angel wanted to be reborn as her… wanted to replace her or use her somehow. She didn’t know what to do about it.

Leona could only pray that Black Angel’s good side was still around and could help her.