[Rui Matsui]

Once monsters started appearing in Tokyo Bay, she simply had to be where the party was. It wasn't just an opportunity to get to spectate some fights, it was also the perfect place to make a quick buck in her line of work. All she had to do was evade the odd hero or vigilante here and there. Unless of course they were already injured, then they were just easy pickings. What was better than taking down a hero on her own? Stealing all the credit from sea creatures.

She had been walking alone on this street for a while, the odd monster flying above or slithering between alleyways. It was weirdly serene when nothing was chasing her. Finally, what looked to be a man was limping ahead of her. ''Hey!'' She called out to him. He suddenly collapsed when she was just about to catch up with him. His hands were stained with blood, clearly from a wound in his midsection that was now leaking onto the sidewalk. ''Dude, you're totally going to bleed out.'' She said casually, squatting next to him as she unraveled the skin around her hands and wrapped it around his upper body. Her pulsating healing powers fixed up the wound in no time, but he still wasn't waking up. Wrapping her skin back around her own hands she started searching his pockets, smiling when she came across his wallet and pocketed it. With a groan the man came to. ''Where am I?''

''You're gonna die if you don't get outta here, bestie.'' She said it so matter-of-factly.

''You... Did you?''

''Did I what?''

''Never mind, thank you young lady!'' Then he took off running again, this time away from the bay which was probably for the best.

Whistling something to herself, she waited until he was out of sight before taking out his wallet and sifting through its contents, tossing stuff like IDs and photos so she could keep the hard cash. It was the perfect crime and no one saw her commit it! The guy probably wouldn't even think to check for his wallet until he was safe and sound in one of the evacuation zones and he could have lost it anywhere.

Morgana Moriarty

[Morgana Moriarty]

THE WATCHER

FOREVER IS COMPOSED OF NOWS

Most people ran away from danger.

Most people also weren’t immortal.

Morgana wasn’t most people.

They had packed up their field gear within their trusty tactical bag once they had heard reports of monster attacks coming in over the scanners at the Sentinel Independent Press newspaper station. The editor popped his head out of his office. “Aha! I knew you’d be headed off to chase fish. You’re terrible at staying put!”

“Kinda my job, boss.”

“Oh. Right. Well. Don’t get eaten!”

Morgana didn’t bother to say that even if they did get eaten, they’d still be at work on time tomorrow morning. Probably. Unless they got stuck in the literal belly of the beast in a cycle of death and rebirth.

It wouldn’t be the first time.

The Hyundai Grandeur, at least, had lived to see another day. It sputtered its way into a parking spot at an otherwise abandoned lot. Everyone else with common sense and a natural lifespan had driven off as far away from the shoreline as possible already. Morgana continued to do the opposite by sliding out of the car, bag draped over their shoulder and an old school film camera in hand.

They expected to see mutated animals laying waste to beach-side attractions. There was certainly evidence of such, but the sand and sea beyond the street where Morgana stood were deceptively placid for the time being. Morgana’s attention shifted across the horizon until they settled on something out of place amidst the desolation—a person. Much like themselves, only they were preoccupied with a wallet while Morgana was busy bringing the camera up and snapping a picture of them before calling out, “Hey! You probably shouldn’t be here. It’s not safe.”

Notes & Tags: Rui Matsui

[Rui Matsui]

She wasn't the best at counting, but even as she skimmed through the yen in his wallet she was a little disappointed he wasn't carrying more. He looked like the type who wouldn't shy away from carrying money, or maybe he had just locked them all away safely within his credit card? She looked at it for a moment before tossing it too. She was definitely getting paid for coming out here, but if this guy's wallet was all she could get her hands on it wouldn't be nearly as worth it by the end of the day.

''Hm?'' She looked up as someone called out to her. Were they a journalist? A concerned partner or parent looking for their loved ones? She didn't pay much mind to the photo being taken, heck she didn't even register it was happening as all she could focus on was whether they looked wealthy or not. ''Maybe for you it's not! I'm fine.'' She replied, standing up and stretching her arms above her head before very not-so discreetly stashing the stolen wallet away in her hoodie's pocket. ''Who are you anyway? Are you the police? If you don't look like a cop no one's gonna believe you when you tell them to get out of here.'' First she wanted to determine who they even were, were they worth trying to rob, or should she just go with the flow and gauge how dangerous Morgana was before doing anything.

Morgana Moriarty

[Morgana Moriarty]

THE WATCHER

FOREVER IS COMPOSED OF NOWS

The initial insistence that this stranger was fine amid a war waged by watery wildlife wasn’t technically a red flag for Morgana. Perhaps they had stumbled upon a Hero doing patrols and misjudged her based on almost childish appearances alone. Morgana of all people should have known better, but something wasn’t sitting right in their mind. Their investigative instincts and long history at the fringes of conflict were throwing up warnings. The little imp’s second claim did nothing to dismiss Morgana’s suspicions. Nor did the evaluating look she was currently giving Morgana.

Time spiraled around Morgana. The present moment came undone in thousands of strings that formed the tapestry of her timeline. One in particular began to glow with the intensity of the sun. A strand that connected two periods of Morgana’s personal chronography. The very first time Morgana had died was during a mugging gone wrong. Similarities flagged themselves in keenly remembered seconds that Morgana was submerged in.

On the outside, Morgana was unmoving. A statue frozen in place as their past played out in their mind unseen by anyone else. They were completely vulnerable to this thief of opportunity—and to the things that lurked in the backdrop of the ocean beyond the street.

Notes & Tags: Rui Matsui | One of Morgana's Quirk drawbacks triggered.

[Rui Matsui]

She frowned and stared at them for a moment longer before shouting back. ''You didn't say who you are that means I can't trust you!'' It was childish, most people hardly had the time to stand around and chit-chat like they were in an area this dangerous. They could most certainly be concealing some kind of weapon on their person, or worse yet, handcuffs, but none of that stopped Rui from standing up and slowly approaching them while she continued talking. ''That's rude, but maybe you never learned any manners so I'll start, my name is Rui!'' She beamed up with a smile as she said her own name. ''What's yours?'' She raised an eyebrow as she got closer, talking at a much more conversational volume. ''This is where you're supposed to say your name.''

Wait. Were they ignoring her?

She stood on her tippy toes and held a hand up to gently wave in front of their face and somehow still couldn't reach. No reaction though. She looked behind her to see if maybe they had gotten so scared from seeing a monster that they froze. Nothing. It was a puzzle for the ages, but she was fully ready to take advantage. ''I'm a villain.'' She said bluntly, they still weren't moving. ''Where's your wallet?'' She drew her knife and pointed it at them threateningly. ''Gimme, gimme, or I'll make you hurt!'' There was something less fun about trying to rob a person who didn't even react. Not even a mocking laugh and an insult? She pressed the knife up to their midsection. If she pressed it would probably stab her, but she kinda secretly hoped they would wake up any second now.

A loud roar echoed out above them as some kind of winged lion-shark flew overhead. Rather than be startled or scared, Rui withdrew the knife and wildly swung it up at the monster which was far out of reach. ''Back off, this one's mine!!'' She sneered, grabbing Morgana by the wrist as she tried to tug and pull her into an alleyway with her. ''Come on bestie, I can't rob you out in the open!'' She needed proper time to go through every pocket, visible or hidden. Not to mention that fancy-looking tactical bag.

Morgana Moriarty

[Morgana Moriarty]

THE WATCHER

FOREVER IS COMPOSED OF NOWS

Their body offered no resistance to being herded away from the open space and toward the confines of an alley. It was almost like leading a sleepwalker away from the dangers of their own wanderings. Except Morgana was being moved away from one hazard and directly into another.

“Huh?”

Morgana finally snapped back to the present amid the mad dash away from the flying fiend. Topaz gaze darted around, taking in the mouth of the shadowy backstreet they were being tugged toward, the woman tugging them, and the fish monster overhead. Reality began to click back into place with a sense of urgency—Morgana might survive, or die to then revive from, an attack by a mutated sea creature, but the person leading them (as far as they knew) wouldn’t be so lucky.

“Don’t worry about me,” Morgana said, woefully misinterpreting why they had been led to some semblance of cover. Hastily made assumptions had been their downfall more than once. “You need to get out of here though before that thing attacks.”

Notes & Tags: Rui Matsui

[Rui Matsui]

It was already awkward to try and lead them out of the way. Mainly because of the size disparity between them and the fact that she had zero muscles to boast of thanks to her quirk. She was relieved to finally hear them speak, to know that they at least hadn't slipped into some kind of weird trance, or fallen asleep standing with their eyes closed. ''But I do worry about you!'' If that monster swallowed them, how was she going to be able to rob them herself? She wasn't worried out of the good of her heart, it was a conflict of interest and these monsters had no concept of first come first serve. She had met this person first, that meant they were her target, it was her right to attack and possibly kill them, not some fish mutation. ''Because you look like you have money.''

If she was still holding onto them, she would finally let go and reach for her knife. ''Me? Bestie, I'll be fine. Don't know you who I am? I don't get hurt.'' She said with an air of confidence. ''Now, what are you carrying? A wallet? Expensive jewelry? Maybe if you cooperate I won't kill you. ~'' She had no way of knowing that the person she was threatening had something in common with her, even if it manifested itself in very different ways. As the seconds passed she was starting to wonder whether it would just be faster to search through their pockets after she had killed them. That way she might be able to escape the flying fish monster too.

Without warning she dashed forward, trying to stab Morgana.

Morgana Moriarty