Reducing her death count was proving to be more difficult than Meld had anticipated. She was rather proud of herself that she hadn't gone on any massacres since the church incident and her subsequent vow to try and stop killing, but that was hardly complete success. Twice she had killed since that date. Only twice, which was a marked improvement from her usual actions. In fact, those two incidents were also the only times she had engaged in any real acts of violence period. So maybe it wasn't cause for celebration, but at least it was something of a minor victory.

The first killings had taken place over the course of a job she had taken with a mutant going by the name of Worms. It had been, all things considered, an incredibly successful mission resulting in not only a great deal of money for the both of them, but also a potential ally that could prove useful in the future. The few deaths that had been her direct fault had been those of bad men, mobsters involved in organized crime and so even the most innocent of individuals would surely see that they were no loss to the world? In any case, she didn't feel bad about them and their deaths had, as she had known they would, remained under the radar.

The second death had been an act of self defense. How was Meld supposed to have known that an innocent trip to the theater was going to result in several men taking the place over with machine guns intent on killing her? Only one person had died that day and, given that it was self defense with the added benefit of having helped save the life of a fellow mutant, she didn't feel the least bit of guilt or regret over that death. In fact, the mutant she saved now considered her a hero which, if not a title she was completely comfortable with, was one she was willing to accept.

Meld's internal musings were abruptly interrupted by a scream of obvious terror coming from nearby. She tensed and began running in that direction. If it was a human victim of a human crime she really couldn't give a damn but if it was a mutant victim then she had to do her part.

It had been a busy day at work, people had been in a rush for roses, and Alisa had been forced to head home early due to the sudden onset of a cough. She had just gotten the place cleaned up, lights off, and the door locked, when she had first noticed a group of people across the street. One of whom she recognized... the man had been in the shop earlier that day, and Alisa had been forced to ask him to leave. He had gone on a rant about Andrea working there... something she had only heard parts of from the back room. She had heard enough though, to be wary. He has called her man awful names, and had more than once told Alisa that there would be consequences if "that Mutant' was not removed from her place of business. Andrea was happy and all that her boss had stood up to the man... but now that she was alone, in the dark, and very much outnumbered, she was starting to think kicking the guy out had been a very bad idea...

She stood and stared at them for a moment, until one of the guys in the group noticed her and elbowed the man who she had seen earlier. Andrea slipped her keys into her pocket, and turned to hurry down the sidewalk as fast as she could without obviously running. "Hey! She didn't need to turn in order to figure out that the group was chasing after her. The loud clattering of feet on pavement heading her way enough of a warning. She sped up her pace into a dead run, clutching her purse to her chest. She could feel them gaining on her, a terrifying thought, and took a desperate turn- straight into a dead end. Her head nearly stopped, as she crashed into the wooden fence at the end of the alley, and she turned to face her followers. They looked so angry... but for what reason? "Wh-What do you want?"

They advanced on her without so much as a word, only menacing grins and an evil twinkle in their eyes. She let out a shrill scream, dropping her purse, and was lifted off her feet by one of the guys in front. He had a hold of fabric of her coat and her shirt at the side of her neck. The hold left her dangling, with her feet kicking, and her neck cranked to the side at a painful angle. She kicked uselessly, until one of them grabbed her ankle and twisted her foot to the left roughly. She screamed again, but was quickly silenced with a swift slap. "We want you gone, Freak. You got that?" The owner of those words clenched a fist, and pulled it back. He was intent on showing her and the old bag she was friends with that mutants of any kind were not wanted in their neighborhood. Andrea squeezed her eyes shut and turned her head, her hands clinging uselessly to the arm that held her....

Meld ran as fast as she was able towards the sound of the scream, which was faster than any mere human could possibly run. She was no speedster able to run at the speed a car could drive, but she was no slouch when it came to running either. Her speed combined with her ability to climb walls and jump long distances had saved her from the cops more times than she really cared to count.

Finally coming into view of the situation, it was immediately obvious what was up. A mutant, the fact obvious by her greenish blue skin, was surrounded by 5 guys who seemed intent on beating her up, or worse. They were cowards, every single one of them, and Meld let out a low growl, deep in her throat. These were the types of humans she hated, the type that gave all humans a bad name. Not all humans were bad, she knew that, maybe not even most. That was the reason she didn't go simply looking for trouble. These were the sort, however, that sometimes made her rethink her determination to kill only those who had proven themselves to be against mutants. These cowards didn't even have the integrity to fight the poor mutant girl one on one.

With one final burst of speed Meld was upon them. They didn't notice her immediately and she had time to strike once with her tail, its pin point accuracy plunging straight through the fist of the main who holding onto the mutant girl and trying punch her. She was supposed to stop killing and thus the wound was meant to cause him pain and, with a little luck, prevent him from ever using the hand again. There was a lot she could do even without ending their miserable lives. The man screamed in pain and dropped the girl, clutching at his bleeding mangled hand.

She was dropped abruptly. Her butt met the pavement and as the man who had been holding her reeled back, she instinctively threw up a foot and kicked him square in the dangly parts. He dropped to his knees with a "oowf!" and buckled over.

Honestly, he didn't know what hurt more at the moment, his battered genitalia, or his mangled hand. Andrea peeled her eyes fully open, finally spotting the bloody mess of a hand that the guy sported, and shifted her gaze around for the source of the injury. She saw a tail first... metallic and deadly looking, and then she saw the woman it was attached to. All scariness aside, Andrea thought the woman looked very much like an angel. An angel with a deadly tail, who showed up out of nowhere, but still and angel all the same...

The other men turned, pushing back against the fence that Andrea had her back to, and shook in their boots. Mutters, as if she couldn't hear, were passes between them about another freak showing up, and something about how 'that all travel in packs'. The once strong and fearless leader was all but forgotten, as his group of rag tag mutant haters tried to decide it it was worth it to stay and fight. Unluckily for them, their ego's didn't allow for much time to actually think.

"Rush her, she can't fend us all off at once! Jim, Tod, you get a hold of that damned tail!" They all nodded at each other, but hesitated for a moment before sprinting into action. Jim and Tod split from the others and circled around in hopes of getting the woman's tail under control, while the other two went straight at her.

Andrea watched from behind, her eyes wide and horrified, and clutched her hands over her wildly beating heart. It was around that time that the guy with the mangled hand groaned and reached of her, probably to beg for help. She panicked, and planted her foot in his face, before scrambling away on her hands and knees.

Meld spared a brief moment to nod her satisfaction at the blue skinned mutant as she kicked her culprit straight in his most sensative area. So many mutants were too terrified to stand up for themselves that it was refreshing to see someone who wasn't. She returned her attention back to the thugs.

Why or why were humans so very stupid? Was it a condition that all humans suffered from or did she just have the misfortune of repeatedly encountering those who suffered from it the most? These fools didn't even have any weapons and they expected to take her and survive without injury? Sure there were four of them and if they were anything other than idiot thugs that would be enough to be a threat, but she could tell by the way they acted and moved that they weren't anything more than they appeared. The real challenge was not going to be in defeating them but in defeating them without ending their pathetic lives permanently.

As the four men rushed Meld all at once, she tensed, preparing to jump. At just the right moment, just as the thugs got into range, she leaped up and over their heads, vaulting to the other side, leaving all four thugs on one side of her. Being surrounded, no mater her natural weaponry, was a sure way to get herself injured or worse. The solution, naturally, was to prevent herself from being surrounded. The moment she spun to face her attackers, who were now milling and confused. She grabbed the nearest one by the arm, her metal claws digging into his arm, causing five streams of red to begin flowing. She pulled him close, using him as a shield against the others. "Are you willing to sacrifise one of your own?" His death meant nothing to her and his suffering even less. No, not less. His suffering was desired. He had earned it through is actions.

Sharp pains in his arm, blood, and a short gruff scream as he was dragged away from his comrades. They turned too late, spotted him once he was already captured- and very near wetting his pants. The woman's threat hit home, and they stood, frozen- simply waiting. Andrea turned once she made it to the brick wall of the ally, and her eyes landed on the grim scene. One mad was down, in a lot of pain, and barely moving due to it. The other, the one the woman had in her grasp, was shaking and clearly terrified. The gorgon's shielded gaze landed on the womans bloody, dangerous tail again. She felt her heart skip a beat, and flashed back to a multitude of memories. "S-stop!" While her voice was weak with fear, she forced some energy into it at the last moment and leaned forward, desperation on her face. "Don't... don't hurt them...."

The men exchanged glanced, pretty confused with how things had turned out, but didn't budge. They weren't about to risk the man's life... not if it could be helped. While thoughts of darting in to save the guy were on nearly every guys mind, they managed to keep them stifled for the moment. "Eh... we're good. Ain't gunna do nothin. Just... just let Billy go, will ya?" His voice, while shaky, still managed to convey a certain anger. None of the men were all to happy with how the situation had turned out, not even the ring leader of the group. Who... was currently getting to his feet. He swore under his breath, to distracted by the pain from his hand and his groin to really make much more of a fuss. The man staggered over to the alley wall, and shuffled along until he was past Meld and her terrifying tail. "Lets... just leave....guys." One of them helped him by looping his injured arm around his choulder, and then they turned... and waited to see what the mutant would do.

Meld approved of the fact that the humans were not willing to sacrifice one of their own because it meant that there might be some small amount of hope for them yet. "Learn from this," Meld commanded. She didn't let go of her victim, not quite yet. Her eyes met those of the person who chose to speak for the group. "Learn and remember that hatred begets hatred and violence begets violence. Learn to accept those of us that are different than yourself and you'll find that we're reasonable people. Remember that your actions and your actions alone caused this."

Meld's tail came up and, before her hostage had a chance to react, it cut the face of the man she was holding, an inch long cut that began bleeding immediately. It was not, however, deep and she knew it would heal but the healing would leave a scar. Her mark made, she let him go and watched as the mob fled from the pair of them. Only when they were gone did she turn to the mutant she had saved, a look of concern on her face.

"Are you all right?" Meld asked the mutant woman with concern. She hated to see her people made victims of. "I didn't hurt those men too bad. They'll heal and when they do they'll remember what caused this. I couldn't simply stand by and watch you get hurt." Maybe not killing was the better option, when possible. After all, with the lives of those men spared, perhaps they would learn the error of their ways and in so learning pass the knowledge onto others.