For one it was far larger than Washington D.C, skyscrapers competed with one another on every block almost. Each one attempting to pierce the clouds. Huddled beneath the steel giants, smaller buildings bullied for little space was provided. 

He aimlessly rode the bus and train to various Burroughs and other popular places in the city composing a mental map as he went. By noon he found himself sitting outside a popular corner coffee shop, enjoying a sandwich and drinking a Pepsi; watching as people went about their lives. A group of people in their twenties about his age walked past, smiling and laughing. He could briefly overhear them as they discussed their day and where to get drinks. He thought about the conversation he had with Monahan as he watched them. Outside of fellow soldiers and comrades he realized he has never really had friends.

"Excuse me sir will there be anything else?" The voice of the barista pulling him from his thoughts. She was young and cute dressed in khakis and a polo covered by an apron.

"No, this will be all thank you.." he replied, his accent catching the young lady's attention.

"OMG I love your accent, where are you from?" Her voice speaking slightly with excitement as she smiled in anticipation.

"Africa." He said proudly yet red and black viper eyes locking with hers, as he turned his body to better face her, offering a practiced smile. It was his first conversation of the day, hell since he arrived in this city really. Outside of necessity he hadn't really conversed with someone up until now. But he and Monahan had rehearsed it plenty of times.

"That's so cool, what part?"

"Central Africa." He replied with practiced confidence. 

"Really, which country?"

"I don't know…" he said calmly. 

"Oh, so you were born here?"

"No, I was born in Africa."

"Well, where are your parents from?" She asked puzzled.

"I don't remember." His foot began tapping anxiously on the concrete. As his confidence dwindled. 

"Oh...you're adopted?" She could tell that she had stumbled into a sensitive topic. He lacked the ability to navigate a conversation a basic conversation. 

Samuel could feel the sweat forming in the creases of his palms. "No, I am not adopted. And you are asking a lot of questions! My check please!" He barked, frustrated at his inability to answer. It's not like telling everyone you were a child soldier who had his mind played with was easy, nor had he worked on a back story. And yelling didn't help, causing the girl to flinch slightly turning the heads of the other patrons and a few pedestrians. 

A few facial expressions let him know they didn't take well to his outburst, so more upset than others.

"Oh…" She smiled softly, clearly hurt and walked away. 'Maybe Monahan was right…' Sam thought.

Placing his money on the table he followed  suit.

(OOC: Got lazy here)

Seconds later a small group of up to no good mutant hating fellas start to follow……

Aura had been walking aimlessly through the city. It was a strange feeling for her to not have an actual set goal other then trying to get use to the presence of so many humans. Some of them may have been mutants, but she knew likely most of them were human. She was still not quite past the concept of humans touching her skin and it took effort not to pull her aura up, but she had promised she would be good, or at least hide her identity if she did decide violence was needed. Her hands would always be submerged in blood, their was no changing her past but she also knew she needed to grow.

She had been passing in front of a coffee shop when she heard a raised voice inside and stopped but before she could look for the source someone came out the door. Aura would of moved on but she caught a glimpse of the mans eyes. Mutants, more so viable ones were something that fascinated Aura. She loved to see the different powers each one had been gifted by nature. Even then she had always found beauty in those whose power would never let them hide. She had never found two quite the same, even with a pair of twins she once knew with sound powers back from her days with the order. Like so many she had no idea where they were now, she could only hope alive and well.

The pull to investigate and find about a new mutant pulled at her mind but as she saw a small group of men begin to tail him her mind was made up. She knew the anti mutant symbol several carried with them, small and easy to hide, but they were focused on their prey. Pulling the strings of her hoodie tight her hand went to her purse extracting a pair of to big gloves she slipped on. She slipped the mask on next, it was the face of fear, a face that would have caused a panic had she showed it. Her old face had been all over national news many times though not nearly as often the past few years. She had her old face 3 d printed for that very reason. The process had given her a quite realistic mask.

The anti mutant gang were not entirely stupid, they waited until their was almost no one around to reach for a knife, Aura drove her fist into the man's back and just before she connected with his spine, she called to her power. "Behind you!" she said hoping he would hear her. The pink energy flickerd into existence and just forming the point of the dagger ahead of her knuckles as her fist struck cutting his spine in two. Hoping the other mutant could defend himself at least until she could get to the ones who had advanced, not noticing their friend no longer with them

Before he had realized it Samuel had wandered at least two or three blocks in an unknown direction. His mind distracted with thoughts of the incident that had just occurred. Not that it was anything big, nothing that would get him in trouble with Monahan. But it was a bit of a wake up call. Maybe he did need more time to adjust just new normalcy. If he struggles with basic social interaction such as that perhaps he could you a bit more...socialization. To him it made him sound like some form of wounded animal, or a child.

Conveniently pulled from his thoughts, he finally realized how far he wandered as his bladder beckoned for release, like most New Yorker's he headed for the mouth of an alley. Figuring he'd get back on track after a quick piss. As he pulled himself from the confines of his clothes, he caught the glimpse of one or two shadows out of her peripheral, he didn't pay them much attention until he heard the familiar locking of a switchblade. 

"Behind You!"

A feminine voice warned, instinctively his hands shielded his junk, diving forward and rolling further into the alley to space. He now faced his attackers. The three men blocked the exit, and he couldn't see  if there were more or the location voice.

"Attacking a man while he pisses, cold killer shit man." Samuel spoke, nodding his head in approval, finally able to properly dress.

"I killed plenty of men the same way…"

The slits of his eyes narrowed as he charged forward, both stingers extending out of his wrist. The left one harpooned outwards to strike one man in the throat, connecting with an audible wet fleshy pop, splattering blood in the face of the other. Temporarily blinded by his comrade's DNA, he stood defenseless as Samuel's right stinger slammed through his solar plexus, his face contorted unnaturally before slumping onto the bloody sidewalk. The third man had been backing out of the alley when Sam's assault began, preferring to live. As he turned to run he froze in sheer terror. Sam was still blocked from seeing who was out there but was quite curious.

 "You killed Luke!?" The many yelled at the unknown party.

Aura grabbed luke, ripping his wallet and phone from him, as her other hand quickly formed an axe shape a few inches infront of her fist, casually beheading the man with the swing of Aura's concern faded as she saw the man move like liquid. The sheer beauty of the movements gave her confidence that this guy so long as he was ahwere knew his way around the dance floor. Had the third man advance she had been prepared to let the other mutant eliminate him as well but the coward lost his nerve as his friends died easily.

Aura's reply to the man was far more freighting then any verbal answer she could have given. Transparent pink energy came into existence just over her skin. From both sets of finger tips her aura stretched out, quickly forming a pair of eight inch swords, the width of her hand. She rushed forward extending her arms out at her side and as she came within less then half a foot from the man, brought her arms together like a pair of shears, carving through flesh and bone easily. The resulting trisection was ugly and not efficient, but Aura had indulged herself with this one. The man did not scream, shock, blood loss and a lack on intact lungs all correct reasons.

"I woulda helped with those two, but you seemed to have it handled. she said the sword seeming to melt back until it reached her fingers then her aura faded til it was a faint outline of her body. Her eyes looked over the other mutant, the smile on her lips and in her eyes left no mistake, that the five dead men around them meant little to her. She glanced at the one struck in the solar plexus maybe four.

" Your power is beautiful, I don't think you even needed me. The name is Aura, Defender of Mutant kind, can i ask yours my friend?" she said calmly, not advancing on the man both so he did not view her as hostile and so that she would have the room and time to defend herself.

She bent down next to Luke's friend, taking the wallet from his pants, and the mans cell phone with it. "Please, my friend, we should not stay here, I know a place we could go that's close. We really do not want SUPER to find us here, their not quite as kind as our former dance partners. Ask questions as we go" she said shaking her head. She wanted him to follow her of course, visible mutants did sometimes disappear these days and she did not want harm for her new friend

Aura began to move not raising her aura but moving further down the alley. Aura had a number of warehouses throughout the city, in real but unrelated names around the city. It had been one for the few things Aura spent money on, specifically for times like these.

You could tell a lot from blood splatter, lethality of the strike, speed, weapon used. Sometimes the killer's mental and emotional status at the time, but you didn't need to be an expert to know that man was dead the moment she made contact. He admired her work as the sections of the man fell to the floor in a bloody heap like bad livestock. He could taste a hint of pennies in the air as the mess they created began to spill into the streets. Cautiously he stepped to face the woman, observing her body language and maintaining a defensive angle. They both were being careful, clearly respective of each other's skills. Samuel half listened as the woman spoke, more focused on her hands and power than her words. Their eyes met briefly and to Sam's surprise the woman smiled. He raised his brow puzzled.

"Your power is beautiful, I don't think you even needed me. The name is Aura, Defender of Mutant kind, can i ask yours my friend?" 

Samuel hesitated for a second, not quite sure how to interpret this Aura woman. For one she seemed totally fine with killing, yet her pleasant tone and demeanor were very disarming. Of the two this one bothered him most. Not that she did anything wrong, he just didn't know how to perceive her.

"Sam.." He responded as she knelt to search the bodies. He watched her before doing the same to his two victims. He didn't know why this was done but figured he should do the same.

"Please, my friend, we should not stay here, I know a place we could go that's close. We really do not want SUPER to find us here, they're not quite as kind as our former dance partners. Ask questions as we go."

Nodding, he followed. She spoke like a leader, telling him rather than asking, qualities he respected. Besides, he had no other options.

'Super?' He thought to himself unsure as to why that name sounded familiar. He almost repeated it again before he remembered. 'Super, Government Agency…...Government Agen..'

"Fuck!  Monahan!" Sam exclaimed aloud, before looking back at the scene they were leaving behind and following her into the darkness.

"I'm guessing you're not an X-Men?"

Aura gave no notice she heard Sam as she moved to the end of the alleyway and made sure no one was coming before waiving her new friend to follow. She crossed the street moving into another alley making sure to keep an ear out for sirens. Sam reaction to her and his actions spoke loudly to Aura on the type of man she had found. He had killed two men and did not seem phased by it at all not the ones she had killed, even the last one. The wounds he had inflicted had been precise kill shots and the fact he had not struck again meant he knew they were dead.

"No the X-men are decent, human loving fools. I'm the monster our people need" she said glancing back at him as she cut another alley before reaching a warehouse door. "I have killed a lot of people, so if you are questioned at any point just blame me for the deaths. Police won't question it" she said with a small shrug as she took out a key and unlocked the warehouse door.

"You mentioned a Monahan as well Sam, can i ask who that is? If he is a threat to you, i can fix the issue" she offerd unsure if his earlier outburst was because the man was with Super or something else, but Aura's first concern was always to her people.

She moved into the warehouse and if followed would shut the door, flicking the lights on."I'll be blunt, my hands have oceans of blood on them. I was kidnapped, my memories altered and trained for that task since my powers emerged at thirteen. I have killed hundreds much as we did today she said wanting him to know exactly who and what she was.

"Please tell me about yourself friend" she said to give him a good opening and because she enjoyed hearing about mutant she did not know. She loved how different all their powers were and she was quite curious on anyone who openly killed like that.

Her ears perked as she heard sirens in the background, it told her someone had likely discovered their work. Given the neighborhood the response was a bit quick but it hardly matterd now. The warehouse was filled with box's but it was obvious no one had been in the place in a long time from the layers of dust that lay on them.

Her movements were careful, smooth, and decisive. She moved with the grace and precision of a dancer or an  assassin. In truth Sam had a bit of trouble keeping up, forcing him to push his other thoughts aside. She was definitely in a class above him with more skill and more experienced. 

"No, she X-men are decent, human loving fools. I'm the monster our people need." Her words were delivered like an undeniable truth, and a passion. 

"I have killed a lot of people, so if you are questioned at any point just blame me for the deaths. Police won't question it" 

"Thank you….." he responded, still trying to take this all in. By now he was sure she didn't wish him harm, she could have easily done that by now. But outside of a "name" and her purpose she was still a stranger. He followed into the warehouse door watching as she secured it behind them.

"You mentioned a Monahan as well Sam, can I ask who that is? If he is a threat to you, i can fix the issue."

"No, he isn't a threat….but I appreciate your offer. Monohan is a friend, one that won't be happy about our dance." He spoke with a natural grin rather than his practiced smile. As she moved to turn on the lights he stared at the mask on her face, he had questions but didn't know where to start. His face must have told on him.

"I'll be blunt, my hands have oceans of blood on them. I was kidnapped, my memories altered and trained for that task since my powers emerged at thirteen. I have killed hundreds as much as we did today." She said without a blink or second thought, again pure honesty.

The similarities between them were striking, he thought. He had no reason not to believe her and he was pretty certain she wasn't reading his mind. "Please tell me about yourself friend." 

He glanced around the old dury warehouse and sat upon one of the crates laying around. He parted his lips to speak before the sirens wailed past, choosing to wait once they passed to begin.

"Same as you really… I don't remember when I was taken or from where. I've been killing men since the age of seven according to the record. I do know I was a child soldier under a man named Koffi back in Africa. He fucked my head too, made us do terrible things." He chuckled slightly. "I don't know my birth name, or my age. The UN gave me an identity and sent me to America for rehabilitation. Now I am here." He pointed to her masked face. "Why the mask if it's a print of your face?" The man from the alley recognized her, and she said she was well known in the city. "And that thing, your power, what is it?"

He clenched his fist allowing his stingers to be visible. The off white, bone- like weapons were straight and flat ensuring clean entry, yet barbed to make removal difficult and cause more damage.

"I produce and absorb toxic substances, and deliver itl with these." He did a few mock jabs in the air to demonstrate, although she had already seen what he could do. "I was very proficient." He said proudly, finally able to express the pride he had in his skills. Monohan and the others did not condone it.

She was relieved Monahan was no threat to to Sam and what sounded like maybe somebody who might be concerned. She could understand someone not being happy about the mess they had made. She would have to ask Chrys if clean up teams touched things like this. Since it was her own dance her guess was not. It had been almost a year since she had been seen much in NYC and her actions would prove as a reminder she still haunted the city.

She had no wish to scare Sam, but she wanted him to understand exactly who she was and what she did. Aura was proud of her actions for the most part. One did wnat to be seen as working with her if they valued any sort of positive reputation with the police. Aura herself believed the real danger was not killing for a cause, but when those deaths stopped having any impact anymore. Aura no more cared for the people she had just killed then she would have a hamburger. She decided admitting the two had been one in the same was best left buried deep. People frowned on human consumption for more reasons then they tasted bad.

Aura was a warrior, a filler of grave yards, a veteran of more battlefields then she wanted to recall. She had heard countless horror stories in her time saving Mutants shunned by their families, assaulted as they just had been. Kidnapped and experimented on like lab rats. Sam's story however hit Aura like a brick however. His words ripped and pulled buried memories from their graves. People screaming, her friends dieing all around her and the music of gunfire all came back freash. She barely noticed the tremor that puled through her body and truly had no idea weather it was out of ear of her own past or anger at Sam's. Their was also an odd Happyness in that Aura felt like for the first time she had found kin. For Aura humanity was to blame. if Koffi was human, we was scum to be killed, if Koffi had been a mutant, the humans were still at fault for forcing Koffi to make Sam that weapon.

Her lack of focus caused her aura to fade entirely, random wisps of it appearing and fading as her emotions played out as much on her face as in her aura. He was right in that his story was but a mirror of her own. Aura also believed she knew what this meant for the man. Could one ever return from such an abyss, she had failed to do so. Part of her wanted to hug the man and cry, but she knew she needed her strength, it took her several minutes to answer his next question.

"I began hunting in this city over a decade ago. My face became a symbol of terror and fear to the Humans of the city. Quickly i became a symbol of death to Human gang members, a Light for mutant kind even if some of our kind feared me. She said pausing a second. "A few years back a company tried making a cure for Mutant kind. So I began attacking their sites at random, killing the scientists and destroying what equipment and paperwork i could, trying to slow or halt their progress. Me and a friend of mine attacked a site, almost routine by that point. The pharmaceutical company thought so to as security was vastly improved. We succeeded however on our escape, one of the Security agents fired an RPG. I took the hit for that friend in my shoulder blade, my power was overwhelmed, it saved my life but my back was ripped and torn, the blast, heat and shrapnel left my face badly burned and scarred. My friend hulled me out, but i was in a coma almost eight months. she said which was a ahlf truth. She had taken the rpg and it had left her back a network of scars and skin grafts, but her face was fine and while it was not the same as it had been, it was becuse her orders were to maintain public image as an actual member of sociaty.

"As for my power? she was glad to have an invited outlet for her anger at sam's treatment. Unlike the alley Aura put more show into this. Her aura seeming to leak out of her eyes as it moved to coat her face and only then did the transparent pink energy move down her body to coat her entirely. she extended her fingers and the aura around her seemed to flow out from it until it was about a foot from her fingertips in a long thin sword like object but before the tip was formed, the a word seemed to melt the blade getting shorted but forming an axe like head and then the axe melted as well and formed a hammer like object, then she concentrated harder and the hammer reformed until it looked much like a chainsaw might complete with moving teeth. It was a hard thing to maintain and Aura rarely used it for that reason but it had a use. "My Power is a weapon and a shield but it has it's limits and one day i wont be as lucky as i was back with that rpg" she said knowing it had well been luck. Had the blast struck her head, the Doctors had told her even if she lived her brain would of been pudding.

She listens to him talk about his power the way a school girl might follow every word of a crush. "I could tell, your moves and where you struck, the lack of need to check your targets. You are as beautiful as you are sad. Your are the first i have met who shares my story. she let out a soft sigh. "No one should ever be forced to be a mere weapon my dear friend. That realization when you wade through the bodies and feel nothing for those you just eliminated.....perhaps you are stronger then I, maybe you can be more then a weapon" she said using the formed aura chain saw to swiftly cut the top from a crate.

From the crate she took out, papers that smelled a bit of Mildew. Aura had not been to this warehouse in almost two years. The papers had a list of locations, Phone numbers and a few support groups. She handed them to Sam. " I have listed the address, Phone number and a brief description of some places that may be useful. Xavoirs, a mutant school that teaches humans and ani...humans can get along. Sanctuary, my old stomping ground and former home. It was a mutant only shelter but they let Humans in there now to." she said her disdain clear in her voice. " The last is my number. Leave a message expressing your condolences on the passing of Solkat. I will call back" she said. Aura would offer her aide or an ear to talk but had to be sure it was not a trap.

His words affected her deeply, even from behind the mask he could tell there was residual pain. Sam had spoken about his past before. Most are sympathetic to his past, very few can say they know what its like. Sam felt the two had bonded over more than common origins, and battle prowess, he would to even go as far to say they were friends. The two continued their conversation for a while,  the sounds of sirens fading more and more as they spoke. It was clear the police were giving up on their search.

He watched as she chopped open the wooden box, and handed him a few contents. Hopping of the, crate he had been sitting on he took the papers, listening to her every word.

" I have listed the address, Phone numbers and a brief description of some places that may be useful. Xavoirs, a mutant school that teaches mutants and ani...humans can get along. Sanctuary, my old stomping ground and former home. It was a mutant only shelter but they let Humans in there now too. The last is my number. Leave a message expressing your condolences on the passing of Solkat. I will call back"

Hoping off the crate he had been sitting on He reached a hand into his pocket. 

"I don't know how to thank you…" he pulled the man's wallet and phone that he had taken earlier. " here, for you. I don't know what to do with them anyway." He reached out to hand them to her. "Consider it a trophy from our encounter. I do hope to see you again...my friend." Offering his hand and a friendly smirk. 

After their exchange of formalities Sam would make his way back to his hotel.

She took the wallet and the phone. "I Like to keep the ID's i can then see where they live, and from there their friends and family or find out whose actually in these groups. She had collected the money as well but had never used it for much until Abyss had adopted her and then she had starting storing it in her hidden bank account. Since most of that time she had not known her age or actual name and lacked real id, a bank account was impossible. She had also never expected to still be alive.

She took his hand. "I Hope to see you again as well. You remind me of myself and that, even in the sea of mutant of this city is a very rare thing. You are the first i know with my story and their are things i think only you may understand" she said hoping to hear from him again.


She considered following him, but instead waited twenty minutes, removed the mask and made her way back to the Dojo, she had a life to pretend and the guy she felt did not need her help defending himself, he was quite good at that on his own.