Chapter 19

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

". . . the flow of vehicles on the interstate. . ."

The morning of Monday.

People could be seen stretching and waking up all across Digital City to the sound of their alarm clocks. However, one citizen of Digital City utilized a very unique method as her alarm clock: her heightened auditory sensitivity.

"Everyone on the floor right this instant! Take out your wallets and purses, or I'll start shooting! "

Helena Sakura rubbed her eyes before opening them and rising from the bed.

Bank robbers.

And they couldn't even wait till she'd finished her breakfast and her morning tea before approaching her.

She cocked her head to the side and strained her ears in an effort to pinpoint the location of the heist by listening for additional sounds. It was located close to a pet store because she could hear dogs barking and cats meowing, and she could also hear music coming from the Cathedral of Saint Gideon the Divine. Because of this, the criminal activity was confined to a single place.

Helena yanked herself out of bed and exclaimed, "Apple Bank for Saving!"

In a matter of moments, she was adjusting her red and yellow tight costume, as well as her blue cape, in order to transform into her alter ego, Soul Sakura. After a further ten seconds of falling, she landed on the sidewalk in front of the bank.

Soul Sakura focused her vision and used her Digital Wall Hacks ability, which allowed her to see past the stone facade and into the lobby, which was vacant. Despite this, she was able to make out sounds of crying and terrified whispering.

When she looked around the interior of the structure more carefully, she noticed that one of the corners had a floor ceiling vault. Its door was open. Soul Sakura was certain that the robbers and captives were concealing themselves inside.

Soul Sakura was able to hear the chaos that was occurring within the bank through the walls as pedestrians sped past it in their busy lives. They were unaware of the panic that she could hear coming from inside. She walked up to the entrance of the bank and tried the front door rather than bringing pandemonium out onto the street because there was no reason to do so. A number of pedestrians halted their stride and looked at her in a confused manner as they did so.

She smiled and let her a tiny giggle as she explained, "I need certain data files for another suit."

The people walking past gave her a startled look, and Supergirl felt an instant pang of guilt for making the joke. She was well aware of the headline that will appear in the Microsoft Digital City Tribune: Soul Sakura Broke! The next destination: a shelter for the homeless?

She heaved a sigh as she gave the door handle a yank, but she detected no give in it.

She believed that it was locked from the inside.

Soul Sakura turned the handle in a clockwise direction until she heard a metallic creak and the lock sprung open. She walked in just as the door was swinging open, and then she quickly locked the door behind her.

This girl, who was just 14 years old, crept around the wallets and purses that had been thrown across the floor while counting them as she went. Her feet were as light as feathers. At least fifteen hostages are currently held.

Coming from within the crypt, voices could be heard reverberating off of the far wall.

You should have known by now that I am unable to access the deposit boxes!

"The woman's voice was trembling as she spoke. "Because the locks are activated by an eye scan, only the bosses are able to access them."

A man let out a snort. "You are telling a lie. There needs to be a way around this."

Another man said, "Yeah," before adding in a frightening tone, "Otherwise, what happens when someone loses their fingers?"

Someone whimpered, and shortly thereafter a youngster began to sob.

That was far more than plenty. Soul Sakura knew that she had to put an end to this, but the vault was too packed for her to take the chance of charging in. It was imperative that she bring both the robbers and the captives out from hiding.

When Soul Sakura looked up, she noticed that the ceiling of the foyer was covered in fire sprinklers.

Sprinklers were almost certainly installed within the vault as well.

She soared across the room and landed gently behind the open vault door after she discovered a mirror among the purses that had been thrown away. Supergirl angled the mirror so that she could see what was happening within the safe as she held it at eye level. There were two violent robbers, sixteen hostages, and one additional person. . . a sprinkler.

Soul Sakura aimed the mirror at the sprinkler and focused her attention on the reflecting surface as she did so. After then, crimson beams of thermal energy flew out of her eyes and impacted the mirror in rapid succession. The hot beams were then reflected back into the vault by the mirror, where they were directed into the sprinkler.

A simulated downpour was precipitated by the sprinkler, which made a hissing and sputtering sound.

The hostages shouted their surprise as they ran out of the vault, and the thieves followed closely behind them. When Supergirl took a quick head count, none of them noticed her, but when the three-ton vault door slammed shut and she leaned against it, everyone noticed her.

"Don't you think the maintenance that's been done to this building here is rather impressive?" was her question.

The mood of the hostages immediately improved when they caught a glimpse of Soul Sakura, which brought a smile to many of their faces. They huddled together and excitedly muttered her name while giving each other bear hugs.

The robbers were fooled by her beauty in the exact opposite way.

"It's a Celestial Wielder by the name of Soul Sakura! Run! " Yelled the first thief who had broken in.

"Sakura who?" inquired the second while casting a sidelong glance towards the first. Or, more specifically, in the spot where his companion had been standing. The first thief had made a mistake and dropped a bag of money before following his own advise and running toward one of the exits. Soul Sakura debated giving chase to him, but she could not abandon the prisoners in their care. In addition to that, it is quite possible that Robber 2 will give up his accomplice in exchange for a shorter sentence for himself.

Soul Sakura said to Robber 2 with a grin, "It seems as though you are unfamiliar with this sector of the digital world." Why don't we meet at the station to talk about this? "

When Soul Sakura moved closer to the thief, he pulled something out of the pocket of his jacket and pointed it at her. "Take a step back!" I'm armed, and I intend to use it on everyone in this room!"

The hostages let out terrified screams.

Soul Sakura strained her eyes as she peered at the thief's jacket. Her wall-hacking vision was able to pass through the thin fabric to reveal a hand that was clenched but was empty within the thief's pocket.

"You don't have a gun. "You have a fist," she remarked, drawing forward to him in an effort to close the gap. "And what else do you think? So do I."

When Soul Sakura's arm jerked back, the thief's pupils drew farther apart.

She said, "You might want to close 'em for this," and I did as she suggested.

Pink energy surrounded her arm, allowing her to punch him across the room as it solidified around her.

The captives erupted in cheers, and Soul Sakura acknowledged their joy by flashing a grin and waving as she sped out of the bank. She was already running late to meet her best friend, Isaac, and while she wished she could have stayed until the cops arrived, she simply could not.