Spectrum ⇒ Avengers [ 1 ]

Your friendly neighbourhood...

As it turns out, forty dollars can be spent very quickly in New York.

I spend two hours in a tiny little bistro with no security camera and only three other customers, enjoying a breakfast of croissants, Nutella, and the most excellent cup of coffee I've had in a long, long time. This I make last the longest, to give me time to try and plot out a day.

The obvious course of action is leave the city. Every minute I stay here is risky, and I know that rural areas are the best bet to avoid detection. Unfortunately, I also know that if the bike does have a tracker, they know I'm in the city, and can probably guess I'm thinking about escape. And that means they'll be monitoring all the exit routes- buses, trains, and the road. Well, the road wasn't an option anyway- I don't have the bike, or even the legal ability to drive it, and I'm not going to steal a car. Trains and subway stations are crawling with cameras, and I'm pretty sure S.H.I.E.L.D could shut down the whole system if they wanted to. Same with the bus routes. Looks like I'm stuck, unless I hitch a ride. But I'm not doing that, because I don't have a death wish, which leads me to the conclusion I don't like- I'm going to have to stay in the city.

I stare at the map, my coffee growing cold. The best idea now is to find somewhere to stay. This, I know, will be difficult. A big population also means a big homeless population, so finding somewhere uninhabited will be near impossible. I also don't know where gangs and drug dealers frequent, which means I'm flying blind in terms of safe spots. Wonderful. The last chunk of bad news? There was no way I can risk a shelter. S.H.I.E.L.D would be all over me.

I drain the last of the coffee and stand, tucking my new-found money down my shirt (always the best place) and waving at the waitress behind the counter. She pops her gum and waves back as I leave, back into the street.

Avoiding public transport, as it turns out, involves a lot of walking. I criss-cross streets, go up and down alleyways, duck behind people, pose behind statues, and find myself humming the James Bond theme, the Mission Impossible theme, and the Great Escape theme at various inopportune moments.

Lunch happens when a small child drops their subway sandwich, which I save with a truly heroic dive, only to find said child screaming it was 'tainted'. Dusting myself off, I don't wait around to find out if they change their mind, and swoop off with it. For a while, I feel bad, until I discover that the sandwich has pickles, and that said child nearly pulls her brother's ear off when I pass her later. The ear pulling is forgivable, the pickles are not.

It's not until the sun begins to go down, giving way to the famous neon lights and billboards, that I begin to worry. I really, really don't want to have to sleep on a park bench- a teenage girl out in the open is way too much of a target. And somehow, everywhere I've seen that looks like it could do is sprawling with security cameras. It probably makes many rough-sleepers feel safer; it used to for me. Unfortunately, I need to be completely isolated.

Finally, a brainwave hits me- alleyways are out. Subways are out. Parks are out. But I'm in the city of skyscrapers, the city of immense buildings. What about a rooftop?
I have to look for a while, but a lot of the old buildings have old fire escapes attached- and soon enough, I find the perfect one. There's a discount shoe shop on the ground floor, a few low-income apartments, and a beautifully empty roof. I climb up the slightly rusty fire escape as quietly as I can and look around proudly, my feet aching from the sheer amount of movement I've done in the day. I stumble onto the roof, which is flat, bar a few ventilation shafts that open into the sky, cubes of metal and stone on the roof.

I go up to the largest of these cubes and curl up next to it, feeling strangely proud of myself. I've really, truly done it. I've got away from S.H.I.E.L.D, I've got money, and I've found somewhere to sleep. And I haven't felt a single panic surge all day- I wouldn't have needed the watch anyway. In fact, I can almost forget what's inside of me, pretend I'm the same homeless Brynn before the captivity. The only thing that could make this better would be Jake.

I sigh, looking out over the city. Even here, nowhere near the centre I was in earlier, it's loud. The lights are incredible. "I wish you were here, Jakey." I whisper to myself. "I hope you're okay." And despite the noise, and the colours, and the lights, I feel myself drifting off. "Goodnight, Jake."

The next thing I know, someone's hand is over my mouth, and I'm being heaved to my feet.
"Someone found our turf-"
"Look at her, little pretty thing-"
"I think we need to teach her a lesson about where she can and can't go, am I right?" I snap awake, struggling against the arms holding me, panic exploding over my mind. "Hey, sleeping beauty's awake!" There's a chorus of laughter, and the grip over my mouth tightens. "Shh, shh, don't struggle, you'll enjoy this!" That's what does it for me. I'm running away from the most powerful organisation on earth. I will not go down like this.

I bring my foot down with a stamp, right on whoever's holding me, and he growls in pain. But his hands loosen for a fraction of a second and I'm off, wriggling out of them like a loose fish. It's too dark to see properly, so I push blindly, ducking and covering my head to avoid their grabbing hands. I run smack into one of the ventilator blocks and scramble on top of it, blinking rapidly to try and adjust to the dark, when someone grabs my ankle.
"Get off!" I shriek, almost toppling straight over. If I fall now, it's game over. I spin, staring at the dark shape of the man looming up in front of me. Just like a punchbag, I tell myself. Push off your back foot and snap out quickly, Natasha's voice rings in my ears. I gasp a breath, and slam my fist in the direction of the shape's face, and by the feel of it, hit him right in the mouth. He staggers and trips, and I hear a crack as his head hits the roof.

I don't hang around to see what happens to him. I turn and jump down from the cube, dashing across the roof as quickly as I can in my befuddled, sleep-deprived state. Thank The Lord, I've run in the direction of the fire escape- but it looks like the devil is still on my tail, because I can hear running footsteps behind me. Almost squeaking in fear, I clamber down the ladder as quickly as possible, my feet missing rungs in my panic. I crash down onto the escape-balcony area of the floor below, making the whole structure shudder, and I can hear them, right above me.

"You slippery little whore!"
I really hope there aren't children in any of these apartments. Whoever's in them isn't in for a quiet night. I carry on climbing, my hands slick with sweat. I fell asleep with my rucksack on, and, thank goodness, they didn't have the sense to grab it, so it bounces on my back as I clumsily make my way back down to the ground.

I'm about to make a break for the alley entrance, lit up by streetlights, when there's an almighty crash and a roar of effort- and one of the men leaps from the fire escape, jumping from the first floor vantage point. The other follows suit, jumping down behind me, and I'm stuck between the two of them in the half-darkness. I swallow, turning side on so I can keep an eye on both of them, backing against the wall. Can I make a run for it?

"Going so soon? We didn't even get to say goodbye."
"C'mon over here little girl, I swear I won't hurt you." Instinctively, I grab the round lid of one of the trashcans and hold it in front of me like a shield. Both of them laugh, getting closer, and closer, and closer-

I smash the lid into the one on the left, catching him in the jaw and sending him stumbling back. I then rush towards him, braced with the metal lid, and hit him square in the chest, knocking him to the ground. He tries to grab me but I pull my makeshift shield back, punching him straight in the head, and scramble to my feet, panting, searching the dark for the other one.

He's nowhere to be seen.
Thwip.
I take a step back, clutching my shield closer.
Thwip.
What is that noise? I glance back down at his friend, unconscious on the ground.
Thwip.
It sounds like it's coming from... My eyes turn skywards, and I gasp as I see a shape, illuminated orange in the streetlight. It's a... A cocoon, of sorts, hanging from the fire escape, made of what looks like... Webbing? And in that cocoon is a very beaten-looking man, apparently unconscious. It can't be anyone other than my would-be attacker.

Thwip.
Suddenly, someone drops in front of my eye upside down, their head level with mine.
"Wow, you sure went to town on-" I smash the trashcan lid into his face instinctively, emitting a small shriek of surprise. "Owww!" I take a nervous step back. It's a figure in some kind of... Spandex suit? A mask covers their face. "Hey, what did you do that for!?"
"You crept up on me!" I snap. The figure drops to the ground.
"What, don't you recognise me?" He- the voice is definitely a he- asks. I tighten my grip on my lid.
"Should I?" Despite the mask, I'm pretty sure he's rolling his eyes.
"I," he says. "Am your friendly neighbourhood Spiderman."