The Heist [Closed to Smoke, Anime]

Broad daylight. This was a very stupid idea, according to the white haired woman who walked towards the bank doors. Besides the fact that this was a very unintelligent way of robbery, Arizona was at least pleased that she could work with radio silence in this case, as opposed to other missions that she had been involved in. As she approached the stairs, she took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. The metal detectors would not likely detect the explosives in her holster, but they might detect the detonators. It didn't really matter though. At some point in time, she would have to go in head-first, lasers blazing...

So as not to attract suspicion, Riz was covered from head to foot in a rain coat, as it was raining. She had also specially chosen this time to go on the mission (a good thing she was given the leave to select when she would carry it out), so as to improve her chances of success. She couldn't afford to fail. Failure would incur punishment, or she might be arrested by the police, and that would mean certain death. Instinctively, she ran a hand across the collar that was fastened to her neck. Her 'superiors' were using this thing to keep a tab on all she would be doing... she even had suspicions that it could take track of her discussions, as well as whatever she could see. That was some dandy technology, and she would have been genuinely impressed, had it not made her feel like a dog on a leash.

"Here goes...", she thought as she walked up the steps and to the bank doors. They were some of those automatic ones that disallowed people with metal objects to gain access into the bank. She placed a hand gently on the button that would open the door, then suddenly drove her right foot into it, forcing it open, and of course, damaging it beyond repair. In the same heartbeat, she skipped into the bank, throwing off her rain coat to reveal a black spandex catsuit, and spreading her hands, as water rushed from the streets and towards her hands. It was not surprising that the bank security quickly shook off their shock at such a blatant entry and were already drawing weapons. Guns, mostly. Riz was aware that they would have less qualms shooting at her, since she was a metahuman, and most mainstream humans feared her kind. With a gesture, the water already swirling round her arms whipped out, detaching into about three baseball sized spheres that drove themselves into the guards' midriffs. Three more guards were coming in through another door, and they would have made Riz have to dive for cover or something, but a harmless water dispenser standing by provided enough water to ensnare their feet and cause them to come crashing down on top of each other. Riz quickly used ambient water to disarm them of their weapons, paying little heed to those who were brave enough to attempt running past her for the safety of outside. She was more interested in the ones who were likely to leave last. In a sudden swift motion, Riz lurched forward and grabbed an entire counter, tossing it against the door to stop any further escapees.

"Alright, ladies and gentlemen, as most of you are aware, I'm a criminal. And I need hostages, so please, sit quietly around and just watch my little drama unfold. Now, I'm sure that some of you smart guys have already contacted your police and stuff, but I won't hold it against you. All we'll do is play a little game..." she said loudly, as she retrieved one of the firearms of the security personnel whom she had incapacitated.

"You, you and you,", she said, pointing to three people, "please be nice and help me draw all the curtains over the windows..." she suddenly fired off a shot, causing most people in the bank to cringe, and stopping some brave punk who was trying to sneak about. "Don't even think about pulling off any smart stunts; I've got eyes in the back of my head, see?" Riz paced to and fro, as she ensured that all the blinds had been drawn over the windows.

Plan A had been executed almost perfectly. Now for plan B. With any luck, the people she was after would not have found a way out of the bank just yet.

"Please, where's a manager or something? I suppose I need the keys to the vault... I mean, why else would I be here?"

It was a surprisingly rainy day in Los Angeles today, Sam had already completed his morning routine and was eating his breakfast on the couch with his cat/roommate Amber, the pair had a lot on their mind recently and they found it best to vent it all to each other. The conversation was cut short however when Sam's phone began to vibrate across the room, he stood up and wiped the toast crumbs on his jeans before heading over to the table. He flicked his tank top up to rearrange it to a more comfortable position before lifting up his phone and flicking it open. It was a news story about the local bank, apparently the details were sketchy but the blinds had been pulled and the front desk was jammed in the front...door... This clearly wasn't an ordinary street thug trying to make himself some extra money, this was more serious.

Sam didn't have much time to explain nor change, he slung his, now signature, black and red hoodie on, flipped up the hood and ran out of his apartment complex and down the street to the bank that was having trouble.

The front door was surrounded with police cars, all of the officers were standing by their cars with their guns aimed at the door, no one was attempting to gain an entry point, it looked like they were waiting for the criminal to just leave into their trap, other people were trapped in there too and Sam wasn't going to wait around. With the blink of an eye, Sam teleported into the bank just by the front door to see a woman with bright white hair wearing a tight black spandex suit and holding a firearm holding up the joint, all of the eyes of the hostages, who had scared expressions on their faces, pointed to Sam as he entered. His body dripping wet and forming puddles around his feet, he pushed his hand through his hair and made it all stand up, "How is it going guys, did I miss anything? Excuse me miss, I've been told someone was robbing this place, it wouldn't happen to be you would it?" Sam already knew the answer, but he was rarely serious about these things, he did find himself to be quite cocky at times.

OOC: Feel free to pop in Anime, whenever you're ready... just don't come in after the fighting is over. You'll miss all the fun...

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Arizona felt a little irritated, despite her pleasure at successfully breaking in (if you could call her dramatic entrance breaking in... well, it was, literally), when she heard the police sirens wailing outside the bank. That, of course, would make escape a lot more difficult, but she was sure her sharp mind could work something out on the go. For now, she would ignore the cops and focus on why she was here. After a little extra pointing the little gun around, she managed to find someone who would fit the role she wanted. She looked him in the eye, trying to look as mean as possible, for a few seconds, and then she suddenly laughed and shook her head.

"Sorry. I'm sorry. I was trying to look intimidating, you know... as the baddie and stuff. Ah well, guess I'm too unimposing for that. So, since you're not scared of me, which is a nice thing, by the way; I mean, how could you face your kids and tell 'em that you peed your pants because of some girl?; um could I ask you a teeny-weeny favor?" She clasped her hands together in front of her as a sign of petition. "I need the keys to your vault. I forgot my phone in there yesterday, and i just want to check if it's still there."

From the look in the man's eye, she could see that he was wondering whether to take her seriously or not, due to her behavior. It looked like she would have to frighten him a little more, before he had any strange ideas of trying to disarm her or something. So, she continued, "Now, I know you're obliged to refuse, but you could do it out of the goodness of your heart, or...", with a sudden flick of her left wrist, a small glob of water, which had been floating nearby suddenly streaked across his face, giving him a very small cut on the cheek, "you could waste my time, and I'll make sure that this day is the worst, and of course, most harrowing day of your little life... if you live beyond today. So, what do you say?"

The man, faced with a power he was unfamiliar with, lost no time in playing to Riz's tune. He quickly fetched the keys, and she hurried him to where the vault was located. She was starting to feel that she'd better get a move on, before someone, or something came that she couldn't handle. She wasn't the only metahuman in the world, after all. The manager opened the vault, and she pushed him in ahead of her, so that he wouldn't try locking her within it, if she entered alone. Ensuring that no one was sneaking after her, she quickly explored a particular section and came to what she was looking for. In a black case was a long, colorless, artificial gem. It fit all descriptions perfectly, so she put the case in her holster. The boss had said that that was her target, though she had no idea what it was for. And it wasn't her business, anyway. her job was to follow orders, until she was able to get away from the M.A.S.T.... if she was ever able.

Herding the frightened manager back into the main banking hall, she fired off another shot into the ceiling to still some of the hostages, who had been trying, in her absence, to move the obstacle away from the only means of escape. She then giggled apologetically.

"Sorry. My finger twitched. It does that a lot, especially when people are being unreasonable, and I might just want to 'twitch' it in someone's face, if the lot of you don't shut up. So, take a cue and behave," she said, wagging the gun menacingly at them. And then, things rapidly started to get very interesting.

Out of the corner of her eye, a man suddenly materialized out of black smoke and nothingness. Her eyes widened in surprise as she stared at him, although she managed to give him a quick once-over with her eyes. He asked a funny question; certainly he was being ironic... or he was just dumb. And from his looks, he didn't seem like the dull type. When he asked about the robbery, she glanced down at the gun in her hands, then thrust it away from her, like it was a plague infested material. She fell to her knees and clasped her hands again, her expression intensely earnest.

"Oh my gosh! My hero! It's that bad man who's doing all the robbery and bad stuff. He's been so baaaaaaaaaad, but you've come to save us right?", she 'pleaded', pointing at the same manager she had just harassed. While she was putting up a good (but of course, unconvincing) act, her mind was thinking of the possibilities. If he could teleport into the bank unannounced, it would mean that he had the penchant to use an abrupt and instantaneous combat sense. And if he just waltzed into a hostage situation alone, it meant that he was certainly proud of his power. That would put him in the place of "dangerous". That, or he was an idiot. And since the latter was unlikely, she would have to prepare herself.

She suddenly gave him a demure grin. "Um, could I ask for your name? It's for the autograph."

Anya was a hostage… who would have guessed that this would happen to her? However, this little hold up wouldn’t keep her from getting what she wanted. Anya was very good at that. So she pretended to be a meek little thing, huddled next to the wall beside a very pregnant woman.  While the crazy woman with a gun was in the back room Anya and the woman, Hellena, made a plan.
However, when she came back and fired shot, things became a little topsy turvy. A man materialized in black smog, he was decent looking. Clad in a super suit and very muscular from what Anya could see. Slowly she got to her feet, her eyes fixed on the mad woman. Then, to her pleasure the gun was tossed away sliding to stop at her booted foot.

A gun. How cute. Anya picked it up and turned it over in her hands, still not being noticed before sliding it into the waist band of her jeans; clicking off the safety.
Upon hearing the superhero’s name she grinned… Smoke indeed.
That was when she broke the silence.

“I hate to interrupt this little acting game she has going on here but she has something I want. You, Sir Smoke are going to help me get it.” Anya sauntered over, not even wielding the gun at this point. The Unicorn was a very cunning creature… very cunning. “You’re wondering why you’d help me? Well, I will tell you. There is a little lass who goes by the name Zoe. Don’t worry she’s fine for now. Bright red hair, freckles… a stinging bite… You see we have her knocked out in one of our facilities. She was sniffing around the otherday on our property. Poor little creature.” Anya grinned crookedly, showing white teeth. “We don’t like nosey beings… mortal or not. You can have her back if we get the gemstone hidden in little miss fakers pocket. “

Anya waited before jerking her head to the side and Hellena stood, hand on her belly. The color had drained from her face. “Now, my friend here would like to go to the hospital. Her baby seems to have the idea that being early is better than being late.” With that Hellena darted to the side and out the emergency exit.   “See? I am not a bad person. I melted the chains on that door when you were gone.”

Zoe said all this in a sickly sweet tone, completely relaxed at seemingly at home in this situation.
“It appears we are going to have a bit of a Mexican stand off until Mr. Smoke here makes up his mind.”

After watching this woman's acting lesson, she asked for his name which was for an autograph apparently, "The name's Smoke, who should I make it out to?" he said jokingly, the hostages looked scared out of their mind, but the robber and Smoke seemed to just be having a laugh, they pair of them knew how this was going to go, she had what she wanted and she wanted to leave and Smoke was there to stop her from doing so, what happened next would probably be decided by a fight, but this time it was different...

Sam watched as a hostage casually stood up and joined in the conversation, apparently this woman in the black suit had something this woman wanted, which meant she was probably in here to rob the bank too, how funny. According to this woman, Smoke was going to help her get it, why should he listen to her? Any hostage could stand up and say "Err, yeah I want that too, get it for me" which meant Sam was far from listening. Sam wasn't listening until she mentioned Zoe's name, he turned to look at her as soon as she said it with wide eyes, how did she know Zoe and how did she know I know her too? For someone who claims to be powerful, she apparently had gotten herself knocked out in one of their facilities, whatever that meant.

Sam listened to this woman explain how a lady in the corner was close to having her baby, the woman stood up and ran out of the emergency exit, this apparently meant that this woman was not a bad person, although she just explained how she knocked someone out and captured them because they were snooping around.

The decision was up to Smoke, he had so many questions he wanted to ask both women, but not enough time. He couldn't let the woman who had the gemstone steal it for herself, and as much as he wanted to, he didn't want to decline this woman's offer, he had feelings for Zoe that couldn't be ignored, he liked being in her company so much that he didn't want to lose it... but the main thing here is to make sure the civilians trapped in this bank get out safely, by any means.

Sam watched the ground as he was making this tough decision, he looked to this mysterious lady and said "If you promise Zoe will be given back when you get the gemstone... I'll get it for you..." The woman nodded, the jokes were over now, humorous Smoke became serious Smoke and he was intent on getting that gem back one way or another even if it was for a selfish gain.

"Smoke? Well that's..."

Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly as someone else joined the conversation without being invited. Unknown to Anya, Riz was all to aware that she had the gun; after all, she had the ability to detect vibrations in her immediate vicinity. Nonetheless, she made no moves to stop her, for curiosity had gotten the better part of the Wraithe, and she wanted to see just what the woman would do with the gun. However, when the woman walked up to them and began talking casually, an alarm bell went off somewhere in Riz's head. Most likely, she was up against two very powerful individuals. Fighting against both of them was likely going to yield some very low chances of success, if she was not going to underestimate them. But perhaps she had a trump card. Already, Rizzie knew what the best possible option of success was, and a plan was already taking shape in her mind.

She rose from her kneeling position, as Smoke considered the woman's proposition. Of course, Riz had no idea who this Dr. Zoe was, but since it seemed that Smoke knew this doctor, it was certain that the brunette had him in her pocket. Riz had made no move to stop the pregnant woman either, even though it would have been too easy, but she didn't want the woman to suffer any more than was needed. The other hostages could wait a while, and watch some live action, however.

"I suppose you'll just trust her, since she's got your lovely Dr. Zoe kidnapped somewhere, but would you be that naive? Besides, 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend', as they say, so why don't you let me keep the gemstone, and I'll help you defeat her, then we can cough the information out of her. I know a good many ways of breaking humans."

With a sudden hand gesture, a large wall of water flooded through the doorway of the bank, from the drenched streets and raining skies, forcing any hostages who had any ideas of swift escape to forfeit them. The bulk of the water sat in the doorway, while the rest danced around her thick boots. "Somehow, Smokie dear, I get the feeling that you will spurn my offer... but you shouldn't! I'm cuter and more fun to be with. Don't make a choice you'll regret," she crooned, in a similarly sickly sweet tone, just like Anya had used.

"And you, miss Blackie-locks, um, I won't ask for your name, because that will give you the chance to say something very rude to me and break my tender heart, so I'll just jump to the point. Go get yourself your own gemstone. You can easily get one on Ebay. And by the way, didn't mommy tell you that it's wrong to take what doesn't belong to you?"

She gave a self assured smile, but her mind was working frenetically.

Anya watched as the water rushed up around the chick’s feet.
“Cute,” She told the wraith, “But he happens to like demons more; especially the kind with fangs. But as far as humans go,” Her eyes flared to a blue white for several seconds. “I am far from one.”

The water began to hiss and crackle until it evaporated. Anya’s blue eyes darkened back to their
original color. The sparkly rock however was something she needed in order for her plan, in the grand scheme of things, to work. Anya reminded the hostages of a cat playing with a mouse, patient and seemingly lazy… but in reality very dangerous and fast.
The strap of the bag began to hiss and smoke, becoming very hot.

“Ironically, that stone does belong to me,” She said with a smile. “Now, we’d like it back.”
The stone seemed to pulse and throb with life from within the bag and Anya smiled again. Bracing for an attack of some sort.

((Sorry for the short post as i was pressed for time))

"Look if I as doing this my way, I would take that gem you have there and return it to the bank... But these certainly are some strange circumstances and for the safety of the people you have on the floor over there, I'm going to have to help this lady and take that gem from you" He gestured to black haired woman beside him to make it clear who he was working with. "Besides if they are so easy to get a hold of on eBay, you shouldn't have any trouble finding a replacement right?" With that being said, Sam teleported in front of the robber and attempted to grab the bag from her shoulder, his reflexes were not quick enough however as the woman managed to pull away, denying Sam the bag.

"You could just make it easier for all of us and hand it over, you are clearly outnumbered two to one, I'll even let you leave without any hassle from the police if you hand it over, what do ya say?" Sam tried to make the offer sound as amazing as possible, as if he was some kind of game show host explaining a prize, he didn't see it working but it was worth a try to see if she would make his life a lot easier and hand it over.

Riz stared at Anya with wide eyes, as the water around her feet evaporated. The woman's eyes had flared with some sort of other-worldly blue flame. So, she could use fire? And she wasn't even human, either? "Well, screw this! Now I get sent on the 'X-Files' missions because my name is Wraithe or what? I swear, I'd give anything to retire..."

Rizzie suddenly felt very tired... tired of everything. She had never wanted to be reduced to this: a common thief, using her powers to hurt innocents. But no one would understand. They wouldn't care. All they would want would be to see her behind bars, so that they could add another score to their All Points Bulletin boards. Besides, there was a lot at stake, in her opinion. Her expression darkened, though she chuckled.

"The stone belongs to you? 'We'd like it back'? You and who?" Outside, the water had started building to alarming heights around the bank windows and door. And it was at that time that the strap of the bag began to sizzle. Before she could react to it, Smoke had tried to snatch the bag from her, but fortunately for her, he hadn't used his teleport trick to get to her blindspot, and due to some sheer stroke of luck (or maybe it was extra-jumpy nerves), she managed to pull away in time. They were getting too cocky for her liking. Guess it was time to let all hell break loose. With a mental flick, a huge wave of water cascaded into the bank from all areas wherein water could be allowed, flooding the hostages and everyone else who could not defend against it. All, except Riz. Standing in the center of the malevolent maelstrom of mayhem, the water surged about Riz's body, cooling the overheating bag; the intensity yet unable to knock her over. It was time to hatch her plan... now, though she was still curious about something.

"Your little firecracker party trick won't work with all this water, I suppose... what's your interest in this stone, anyway? Why does everyone want it so badly? It looks useless to me... at least for an ornament. And Smokie dear, I really would have loved to make it easier for you, hand the gem over and ride with you into the sunset, but that can't happen. I cannot afford to fail here." Her expression gave way to something more snide. "But you've got little to lose, so be nice and let me keep it. Besides, even if I gave you the stone, I'm not sure that miss Blackie-locks would let me keep you for myself."

She paused. "Wait! Why the heck is your eBay junk collector's item pulsating?" The first thing that came to mind was "bomb", which would be very deadly if it went off that close to her. Honestly, though, she was worried that the reaction she would face, if she failed to bring back the gemstone, would take more than her shoulder and hip from her.

Anya grinned lazily, “Me and my other side of course. You see when a cursed being such as myself needs their gem back. I come to get it… and if I don’t. My other me will haunt you until death.”

True, she had done that. She had chased Icobod Crane to the point of insanity after all as well as several other people who had all died, claiming that they were being chased by a black fire breathing horse. Heh, but mortals didn’t know any better, considering they couldn’t see the horn.

Her heat whipped around as the wall of water hit her and several other people, knocking them back off their feet. Then an equally powerful wall of fire collided causing the water and fire to hiss out of existence. If anything, Anya looked pleased with herself. It made her feel even smugger that the gem pulsating with blue light was causing the girl panic.
“Because I’m close, “ Anya explained tiredly, as if growing bored. “Now, don’t touch it or you’ll burn your hand.”

It seemed to pulse a brighter blue as Anya drew nearer, air still hot and foggy with steam. “Hand it over and I will show you. I bet that collar around your neck is bothering you… is it not?”
Anya’s eyes dropped to her throat, pity crossing her face. The mortal was being tethered like an animal.

Sam watched as the water rushed in from all possible angles, he snapped his head over to the hostages who were sent back from the force of the water hitting them, Sam was also pushed forward as he didn't see the wave of water coming. Sam was not a terrific swimmer, but he was not bad, the woman who claimed to have Zoe looked like she was having a casual conversation with the bank robber, Sam saw this as an opportunity to herd out the hostages. This bank robbery seemed to have gone too far now for the robber to care about the hostages that remained in the bank, so Sam tried his best to release them.

Most of the hostages were swimming up for air before they fell back down to the ground after the water seemed to be evaporated. The fire lady was up to her old tricks again as she fought water with fire and saved the hostages life, as well as maybe even his. Sam fell back down onto the marble floor on his chest, if only the ground was made of a softer substance it wouldn't have hurt as much. Sam sat up and noticed the two women were still talking, he looked over to the hostages who were mostly trying to cough the after out of their lunges, Sam motioned to the fire exit that the pregnant lady had escaped from earlier, the hostages slowly rose into a crouched position and hugged the wall to stay out of sight. Sam looked at the door and noticed the lock had been melted off of it, he kicked the door open and held it open to allow the hostages to escape. When every man woman and child was free he slammed the door shut and moved back towards the centre of the bank, trying to see what these two women were bickering about.

This woman's heat ability was becoming a nuisance, and she still seemed to be underestimating Riz, although it was obvious she was not a patient one. Riz, on her own part, could have stood toe to toe with her all day and throw back snarky comments, but there was the problem of the gem in her bag. Inasmuch as the situation was getting more and more dire by the moment, Riz couldn't help but respond, when Anya talked about her other self.

"Like, seriously? You have an imaginary friend? That is so nice. I'd like to meet your other you... maybe it will inspire me to get me another me." She crossed her arms defiantly, eyes locked with Anya's, while water continued to seep into the bank quietly and flow over to where Riz stood. She could sense all the hostages making for the exit, no doubt being aided by the chivalrous Smoke. In other circumstances, she would have liked people like him, but being at the wrong end of the law, and being the selfish creature that she was, his considerate behavior was cloying to her. instead of trying to stop them, however, she let them run, just like she had let the pregnant woman escape. Maybe she was getting too soft. But that was hardly her problem, until Smoke decided to actively involve himself in her affairs. For now, it was Blackie-locks and her heat-crystal-thing.

As Anya walked closer, Riz backed away slowly, hoping to keep her distance, so that the crystal wouldn't get any hotter than was bearable. In a surprising flash of insight, Anya seemed to know that Riz was actually in captivity, thanks to the collar. "Perceptive, aren't we? However, I'm afraid I can't let you do me any favors concerning it." The collar had just buzzed ever so slightly, but she knew the indications. The M.A.S.T. were watching her. If she spilled any beans, they'd spill her brains. Besides, Riz was not sure if Anya knew how to take it off without causing any damage. She could remember the last time one of the captive metas had tried to yank off the collar. The result was ugly, for lack of a better word.

The water in the bank, still being fueled by the rains from without, was beginning to wrap itself around her, like a semi-sentient blanket. Riz gave Anya and Smoke a strained smile. "I'd have loved to stay and chat, see, but you're no fun anymore. Soooooo, I think I'll be on my way now. I'll return your gem-thing later. I promise." The water had gathered into a massive heap behind Riz, towering above her to the ceiling above. Riz couldn't afford to wait much longer, because of the crystal, and she sure as heck was not willing to be caught off guard by either of them. Besides, she had let go of her bargaining chip: the hostages, and there were people outside with guns, waiting for her to walk out and get killed. It was time to do something desperate.

Anya arched an eyebrow and grinned, “No, sadly I am not imaginary. Otherwise, My life would be much, much easier.”

Her left hand had formed some kind of fist while resting on her hip while the other hand was splayed in a, ‘come on’ motion. As if trying to call to the calmer kind of Arizona; but when she tried to vacate the bank’s premises Anya snarled, a deep inhuman snarled. Fire shot from the palm of her hand at the base of the water spiral, causing it to become unbalanced. While that was going on the hand tightened into a good and proper fist. The gem turned white hot and began to burn through the bag until it clattered onto the floor, still pulsating with light.

Anya dove forward to at least touch the gem. Once she touched it, the gem would turn a deep blue and become fused to her skin, allowing no one to take it from her. After all, the gem had once been part of Anya’s body.

Sam stood in awe as the spiral of water grew to the height of the bank itself, he was wondering what it's use was. The two women stood staring at each other in silence, like some kind of mexican stand off, Sam did not want to intervene so he stood and watched to see who was going to make the first move. The black haired woman seemed to have her fist clenched by her hip, ready to send out a punch if she had to, she also seemed to be trying to tempt the robber into doing something she would regret. The robber didn't look like she wanted to be here, she didn't look like she wanted to come here at all to be honest, she seemed very unstable and perhaps tempting her into making a mistake was the best way to go.

Fire flew out of the black haired woman's hands, inevitably striking the water tower's base, it wobbled and was tumbling down like a large tree that had been hacked by an axe, he watched it tilt over and then noticed movement back on the ground. The gem had burnt its way through the bag it was being held in, the bag could have been set alight by the heat the gem was releasing. The black haired woman dove onto the ground in an attempt to stop it bouncing around on the marble floor, she must have really wanted this gem. The gem found it's way to Sam's feet, he carefully lifted his foot and placed it on the gem to stop it from moving, the woman was practically laying by his feet as he stopped it, he looked down to her with some slight regret, but he eventually lifted up his foot to let her pick it up.

Okay now, cards were being played. The brunette fired a searing blast of flame at the base of the water tower that stood behind Arizona. of course, it was like hacking a tree at the base. The tree would come crashing down, preventing any means of using it to attack for that split second. Riz only gave a cheeky grin in reply. Whoever said she wanted to use the water to attack? As the water crashed down, Riz thrust her hands forward, causing it to surge towards the front door. And then, the crystal, being too hot for its bag, burned its way through and fell to the ground.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me...!"

Matters made worse, it didn't just behave like a nice crystal and stay put where it fell. No, it instead bounced over to Smoke, who was certainly not going to give it back to her. The brunette was already going for it, and Riz knew that she would not be able to get to the crystal in time, if she dove also. With a mental flick, the water that seemed to want to make its exit suddenly banked sideways, washing around Smoke's feet with almost enough force to knock him over. That was hardly its purpose, though. When Smoke lifted his boot to allow Anya pick the crystal, the water would most likely push the crystal away from him.

"Honey, I thought you were chivalrous. Next time, pick the stuff for the lady, okay?" she joked chidingly. Then, she strained. Real hard. All the water outside the bank, everything that she could muster with her powers would crash into the bank, through the windows, doors, every single opening, with enough force to throw humans about. If Anya hadn't managed to get to the crystal, Riz would herd it further away with water currents, constantly pushing it with 'new' currents of water to douse its annoying heating effect.

If all this was successful, the deluge in the bank would flood with one accord through the fire escape door, forcing it open with very high velocities as it went along, taking Riz and the crystal with it. Anyone who tried to put their hand inside such current was rather very stupid, or had a very able trick up his or her sleeve, that would prevent them from being smacked dangerously against the wall.