ANOMALY (The Elements)

Anomaly - n. (pl. anomalies)

Something that deviates from what is standard or what is normal.

Racing through the dark sewers beneath a metropolis with a bag full of irreplaceable jewelry in her hand.

The clatter of her shoes against the hard cement while she ran; water splashing as she strode across shallow puddles.

It was dark, yet she could see. Escaping her pursuers and baffling them with her precise movements and wicked speed advantage over them… this was truly a rush for the girl cloaked in darkness that was escaping with her latest claim in a series of thefts.

"Get back here, you damn thief!" a guy's voice cried out after her. She, of course, wasn't going to listen. The two guys trailing her weren't regular cops, they were something above and beyond: a special task force designed to deal with unique criminals like her.

If they caught her, it would be all over... permanently. She was in her element however, surrounded by rushing water that - to her - was as in tune with her body as the air she breathed. Alexis-Lynn Carlyle was no ordinary human, no, she was…

"An Anomaly, just as we thought," the task force member on the pathway to the left of the rushing water down the center spoke both to his partner and into his communicator, "it's probably the same one who hit the museum three nights ago."

"You can't be sure of that, Collin," a voice spoke back to him and his partner through an earpiece, "the effects on the surroundings of each of the crime scenes have been different: different elements."

"This one was Vapor for sure," the boy racing along the right side of the sewers spoke into his communicator as he looked ahead and began to pick up his pace, "I can hear her footsteps. I'm rushing forward to get her!"

"Roy, wait!" Collin cried out as his partner ran as fast as he could, increasing his speed beyond what a normal human could attain. Collin wasn't sure if this was a good idea; they had no idea what their enemy was capable of and in this dark setting their flashlights only gave them so much light to work with.

He noticed however, that their perpetrator didn't even need a flashlight to navigate the sewers. She was using her Affinity, her elemental power she had been gifted with, in a special way that gave her knowledge of her surroundings. He wasn't sure how she was doing it but that put them at a huge disadvantage!

Roy dashed down the tunnel, his dirty blond hair tied up in a ponytail whipping out behind him as he ran, chasing down the girl he sought to capture. He was running with ease in his large army boots, losing no traction even on this slippery path. He was also wearing black jeans and a heavy green vest that seemed to be part of his military attire. As part of APS - the Anomaly Police Squad - his job was simple: to capture any and all Anomalies before they could use their powers to upset the natural balance and expose the existence of these mysteriously powered beings to the world.

Anomalies were to be kept a strict secret; the government was trying to make sure of that.

"Here I come!" Roy yelled out as he bounded forward through the air at top speed, reaching both of his hands over his head and brightening up the whole sewer as he did. Collin watched from behind as Roy had literally formed a sword out of pure light with his Light Affinity. The wide sword extended upward from his right wrist as he gripped that wrist with his left hand; trying to keep it steady.

As Roy lit up the area with his shining weapon, the girl they were in pursuit of stopped running and turned to look up at what was causing such an effect. Collin narrowed his eyes at her, homing in right on her face to try and get a good look at their thief.

"Curses… she's wearing a mask! I can't identify her!"

Suddenly Alexis cast out her right hand and materialized a weapon of her own within it! Collin knew that every Anomaly was able to form a weapon of choice to aid them in battle but he didn't expect her to be wielding such a dangerous one! Roy's eyes widened in alarm as he flew toward Alexis, unable to stop himself now!

"Uh-oh."

Alexis thrust her long trident up toward Roy and blocked his sword with the three-pronged tip of her extended weapon! Roy was surprised she didn't simply skewer him with her longer reach as his sword slid downward and locked into the base part of the trident where the three blades were extending from. He pulled back and took a leap to get some distance from her; just in time to notice her wearing a smirk on her face.

"Haah!" she cried out as she slashed the trident in front of herself. the blue pearl that was protruding from the shaft glowing a serene blue color, and unleashed a massive wave of water from the center of the sewers at him! Roy was alarmed as this water rose up out of the pipeline in the center and began to freeze; becoming multiple spikes of ice bearing down on him with malicious intent!

Roy immediately disassembled his light sword and fell backward, hitting his back against the floor of the pathway before one of the ice spears rammed right into his chest! Alexis stared from the other side at the wall of ice she'd created, taking a few stunned steps back, before she turned and continued to flee.

"Whew…" Roy gasped as lay sweating on the ground, surprisingly unharmed, "if I hadn't armored up I'd be quite dead right now."

In addition to shattered ice lying across the ground, Roy was also laying there with his body now coated in a black and silver armor that was similarly designed as Alexis's trident. He was glad for the strong chest plate he wore as one of the massive ice spears was pressed right against it, having shattered upon impacting the stronger material.

"Now…" he muttered as he tried to get up but was subsequently pressed against the ground by the ice pillar, "… I'm a little stuck. Yo Collin, you mind-"

Collin leapt right over him, ignoring him, as he smashed through the ice with his own weapon in hand. Roy wasn't freed by this though and simply glared after his squad leader.

"Yeah, thanks."

"If we don't catch her now we might not get another chance!" Collin yelled back at his partner. The more slender boy with short brown hair was hot on her trail now after Roy had delayed her, especially now that he was on the same side she was on. He was dressed similarly to Roy with the green vest and was gripping his weapon: a rather thick knife whose blade flipped out from the grip.

Collin scanned his eyes along the wall, hoping that as they dashed, he'd see what he was looking for. He could hear her running ahead of him, so he knew he was close to her, but he wasn't going to leap in recklessly like Roy. Finally he saw what he desired: a fuse box!

"Hey thief, time for you to see what the Plasma affinity can do!" Collin yelled out at her as he slammed his palm against the metal box attached to the wall. Sparks flew everywhere as he sent an electrical current through the wiring and caused the ceiling before her to explode! Alexis slid to a halt as debris and electrified wires fell before her, barring her path.

"Nowhere to run now!"

"You think so, huh?" Alexis responded in a rather arrogant tone, speaking to them for the first time, "you're so naïve, no wonder APS is useless."

"What!?" an annoyed Collin yelled out at her.

"Ciao," she said, waving at him before diving straight into the waterway! Collin ran over to the side of the pathway, quite befuddled by her swift escape. With her Vapor affinity, she could probably breathe underwater and swim fast even with the current… they'd never catch her now.

"Ahh… damn it," he muttered, falling backward and sitting down to catch his breath, "she got away again. Who IS that girl…?"

"Why didn't you just fry the water?" Roy asked, approaching his partner after he'd finally freed himself. He was still wearing his heavy armor, which was the form of his materialized weapon, so it took him a little bit to catch up.

"We aren't trying to kill her. That's not how APS works."

"She sure tried to kill ME."

"You know, if she wanted to kill you, she'd have skewered you the first time she had you with her trident," Collin noted, quite confused with their mystery girl, "… yet she gave you a moment to back off and even protect yourself."

"What are you getting at?" Roy wondered, staring down at his exhausted ally. Collin shook his head, de-materializing his knife as he didn't need it anymore and wiping the sweat from his forehead.

"I want pizza is what I'm getting at."

"Well I want tacos."

Collin stood up and began to search for the nearest ladder out of this smelly underground hell, "Well you're getting pizza if you want me to pay for it."

Roy hesitated for a moment before following his leader, "… yeah, I'm down with that."

As the two APS officers made their way out of the sewers, Alexis emerged from the water at the same point she'd dove in from. As her soaking wet body crept back up onto land, it dried almost instantaneously thanks to her manipulating the water molecules. She looked down in her right hand, she still had the jewelry; she'd won.

"Men. So pathetic."

Alexis turned and disappeared into the darkness, leaving behind a battlefield beyond what any normal human could comprehend. As children, the three of them could never have imagined they'd eventually possess these amazing powers. Now they were caught up in the power struggle that reigned over this city; between two forces seeking these mysterious Anomalies. One side to contain them and the other to use them; and thus the stage for our story is set. Now begins...