The skyline of the holo-generated city made it look massive, much bigger than Amethyst Harbour. As usual, it was all just a very high-tech illusion generated through hardlight and holograms, but it was a very realistic illusion. The underground holo-training rooms might be massive, but they were not nearly big enough to hold an entire city, which meant that the ‘supervillain’ we were trying to find would likely be within a couple of blocks of our starting location, something which was quickly confirmed by the coordinates that I had been given.

“Hmm… It looks like it’s practically straight north of us, probably a shop somewhere along this street,” I told the others as we made our way down the alley that we were in and toward the street in question. I flitted ahead to get a good look around, and it looked like a busy thoroughfare, with a lot of foot traffic and old-fashioned ground vehicles moving in both directions. The vehicles weren’t too surprising since, in most big cities, the poorer residents couldn’t afford hover-jets like the upper middle class or the wealthy.

There were also a lot of shops along the streets that seemed to be doing pretty good business. I guess that was to be expected as well, given how busy the street was and the fact that the sun was high above us in the holographic sky. Something about this place, the unfamiliar skyline, and the busy street was putting me on edge, though.

My heart was beating as fast as it had at any point during the day as I flew back to the others to land on Kelly’s shoulder, which said something considering all the brutal training we had been put through. Something was bothering me, but I couldn’t consciously put my finger on whatever it was. It felt like something was off, like there was a big trap that Sergeant Vale was just waiting for us to fall right into, and that made me nervous.

Yes, we needed to accomplish our mission goals, but Vale didn’t say how we needed to go about doing so. The feeling of wrongness made me feel like we should exercise caution, though. It was as I was considering how to complete our mission as quickly and quietly as possible that I figured out what was bothering me. Now, I just needed to test that theory.

“Everyone, wait here, and stick to the shadows. I’m gonna go scout ahead, I need to check something,” I announced, even as my breath caught in my throat and my heart thudded wildly in my chest at my suspicion.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Ainslee asked in concern. “No offense, Lily, but you and Poppy are the most vulnerable of all of us.”

-Shall I come with you to keep you safe and out of sight?- Moonlight added, sounding just as concerned as my best friend.

“Yes, but I’m also the one who can get out of there the fastest if it’s a trap or I do get in trouble,” I countered Ainslee, and then I thought to Moonlight, "I appreciate the concern, but I sort of need to be seen to test this theory. If it goes like I think it will, then I’ll be ready to teleport out of there in an instant."

I took off without another word, high into the sky, and once I felt I was high enough to not be easily seen by people on street level, I kept an eye out for avian predators and flew back down to street level from a different angle so I wouldn’t give away my teammates’ hiding spot in the alley. Fortunately, humans don’t really seem to look up unless they’re daydreaming or cloud gazing, and the people on the street below seemed too driven and busy for such distractions. So, thanks to my small size, I wasn’t really noticed until I was around eye level for people of average height.

“Fucking freak!” someone shouted, a man’s voice, I thought, and I had to avoid a hand that was trying to swat me out of the air like a fly. That quickly brought attention to me from others, and more shouts, slurs, and curses joined the first, as well as some thrown trash. Rather than take the abuse, I shot right back up into the air and well out of reach.

It was just as I had feared, and the skyline said it all. This city was not Amethyst Harbour; it was a foreign place that I could not count on to be friendly, or even ambivalent, toward Altered. That was why I had been feeling so nervous and scared, just like when I teleported back to the ranch where I grew up. Our safety was not assured here like it was in Amethyst Harbour, where most of the residents were either Altered or had friends or family who were, and where the Vanguard was running things.

In an Incursion, we seldom had to deal with people in the place it was happening, that had been very clear in Rio. Most of the people were either running away from ground zero or hiding in shelters, and those we did see were somewhat glad to see the Vanguard because we were there to stop the Titans and save their asses. That didn’t mean that they liked us, though, or even that they were grateful.

I had seen enough with my family growing up that I knew that the general population didn’t trust Altered. In fact, we were largely hated and feared by most people, or at the very least, misunderstood. I had seen hints of that in some of the new students at the University who weren’t from Amethyst Harbour. Sure, most of them were just curious, and had come to Vanguard University in part to learn more about us, but some looked at us like we were waiting to murder them in their sleep, and that was what I saw here. I let out a long sigh and teleported back to the others.

“It’s as bad as I feared,” I told the others as I reappeared in the alley. “We are not going to be popular out there, and since we need to avoid civilian casualties or damage, we’re gonna need to keep out of sight or keep a low profile.”

“And how the fuck do we do that? Moonlight can’t carry all of us.” Karen hissed while glancing down the alley toward the busy street.

“Moonlight isn’t the only one with skills,” Kelly replied. “I can shapeshift to look human, and probably keep an illusion on me and one other person without straining myself too much, and can’t you Dark Elves just disappear into the shadows?”

“It’s like fucking noon here, there’s fuck all for shadows to hide in, and that shit is much easier to do when I’m staying still or at night. With this much light, there is no way I can move down a busy street in the open without being spotted,” Karen immediately countered in complaint.

Naia raised her hand uncertainly, as if wanting to ask a question in class, so I asked the still somewhat nervous Siren, “You have an idea, Naia?”

“Yeah, those of us with wings can travel along the rooftops. If I keep low enough, I can mostly avoid being seen and watch the streets for any trouble, too. You and Poppy are so small that you shouldn’t be noticed by anyone on the ground, and if you stick close to me, I can help you if any birds or anything else tries to make a snack of you,” the Siren suggested.

She made a good point. Unless we needed to go right out in the open sky to cross a street or something, it was probably the best way other than Moonlight for us to keep out of sight until we needed to go into action. I had already noticed that these people didn’t look up unless there was a reason to do so. Part of our value as fliers was the ability to keep a lookout for danger from above, and with a bird’s eye view, we might be able to get sight of our target earlier as well.

“Okay, here’s the plan then,” I announced, gesturing to each of my teammates in turn. “Naia, Poppy, and I will stay on the rooftops and scout things out, as Naia suggested. Sis, take a form that will let you blend in and make some illusory clothes for you and Ainslee, and try to conceal Ainslee’s hooves and ears as best you can. Karen, you’ll be with Moonlight, and you two will closely follow Ainslee and Kelly in case anything happens. Everyone, keep your eyes open for any Altered that fit the description we were given or anything suspicious. There’s no guarantee that he’ll hit the target we were told about, and he may know that the Vanguard is on to him. If shit goes south for those of you on the ground, then I’ll collect you, and we’ll reassess things.”

As Moonlight appeared and Karen mounted up, Kelly shifted her features into something that very closely resembled how she looked before becoming Altered and produced some illusory clothing for herself and Ainslee. For herself, Kelly had come up with a simple outfit consisting of a t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers. Ainslee was soon sporting a long green dress like those that she usually favored to hide her hooves, and a sun hat that covered her pointy ears and would obscure her gorgeous face with shade.

While the pair stepped out into the street with the now ethereal Moonlight and Karen tailing them, Poppy, Naia, and I flew upward to land on the top of the building to our right. This would take us in the direction that we needed to go, and while Naia tried to stay closer to the center of the rooftops so she couldn’t be accidentally spotted by anyone on street level or in buildings across the street, Poppy and I kept to the building’s edge so we could keep an eye on what was going on in the street, both directly below us and ahead of us.

We had traveled just over a block when Poppy asked, “Do you see that, Love? There’s some kind of commotion ahead of us.”

I had been keeping an eye on Kelly and Ainslee, who so far weren’t having any trouble blending in on the street, so I turned my gaze forward and saw a small mob ahead of us on the opposite side of the street. There were raised voices and the occasional shouted slur against Altered that made me pretty sure that we were heading toward the right place. “Naia, please pass this message on to the others: Be alert, everyone. Something is happening up ahead of us, and I think it’s our guy, so keep an eye out for anyone matching the description we were given. Comms on, and Naia will keep contact with Karen for now to keep her in the loop.”

“On it, Lily,” she immediately responded.

We were nearly to the scene of the crime when Ainslee’s voice came over comms, -= I think I found our guy! He just walked right through the side of the building and fits the description: dark clothes, and he’s pale and looks like a Fae. He’s got a backpack, and he’s making a run for it while everyone’s attention is focused on the front and inside of the jewelry store up ahead. =-

-= Yeah, I see him too, =- my sister agreed. -= Wait a minute, he just stopped. That’s no Fae, it’s some kind of shapeshifter. He just totally switched up his appearance and cast an illusion to change his clothes as well. We’re looking at a brunette teenager now, female, and wearing a white dress. The backpack with the loot is slung over her shoulder. She’s turned completely around and is passing the crowd and turning to head southward back down the street. =-

“I see them; they’re directly across the street from our position. We’re moving into position to cut them off,” I announced before tagging Poppy and Naia and teleporting us all almost directly into their path to shout, “Stop right there, playtime is over. You’re coming with us!”

The girl who was now in front of us didn’t stop; in fact, she ran right through Naia and kept on running, only turning her head to blow a raspberry at us. Poor Naia squealed in surprise as the criminal passed through her, “Eep!”

“Keep eyes on her, everyone, don’t let her shift again without us knowing about it!” I called out to the others as I started to pursue, with Poppy close behind. “Moonlight, you and Karen stay hidden, but get ahead and try to cut her off!” The chase was on.