[h1][b][i][color=FF9A4F][center]Leah Jordan[/center][/color][/i][/b][/h1][center][img]https://i.imgur.com/ktEJkOK.png[/img][/center][center][/center][hr][center][color=FF9A4F][b]Location[/b][/color]: Training Room B
[color=FF9A4F][b]Gear[/b][/color]: Combat armor, rune pouch
[color=FF9A4F][b]Skills[/b][/color]: Battlefield Manipulation, Area Denial
 [url=https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2Foriginals%2Fde%2Fda%2Fc5%2Fdedac51f8c5ff1cd7eb1ad2e154ed6e8.jpg&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=25f8efd3be0a99fda7bde9aeacbe5725cd92cea092c495c177d4acebab00eaac&ipo=images]Today’s Fit[/url][/center]
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[center][youtube]https://youtu.be/4ULZ-eRNlus?si=uNken9wUIKi_LlUt[/youtube][/center]

Leah was already awake... For the last two and a half hours. 

For the first hour, she was in the gym as usual, hammering away at a steel fibered punching bag and getting her blood rushing with some tungsten-clad weights that clocked in at about 700 pounds minimum. High-energy metal blasted from her phone as Leah prepared for the long and heavy day ahead of her. Leah didn't even care about the contest itself. For her, this was actually a rather lightweight workout, she usually went to 1,100 pounds minimum, and a vibranium-fiber punching bag. But right now, she just needed a warmup. Being a hero was never the point of Margaret Carter for her, so much as having a roof over her head and moving on with her life. Of course, Leah was all for saving lives, but unseated some baby Avengers was the least of her concerns in that. Sure, the money would be nice, but it was just that. [i]Money.[/i] Despite this, Leah knew that others cared, and genuinely believed in the Contest of Champions. They trained and damn near broke themselves to live up to the challenge, so Leah saw this as a matter of obligations. An obligation to the team she had been training with and trying so damn hard to resonate with, an obligation to April and Sabine to be her real self and not a flunk just for the sake of it, and an obligation to Victoria, who would feel very disappointed if she didn't show up. Leah was doing this because it would be stupid not to do it, and because she didn't like to lose, Young Avengers and popularity be damned.

By the end of it, the punching bag's outer sleeve was starting to split, so she called it there, and Leah considered herself thoroughly warmed up and awake. She put everything away, drank some water and got changed. She then spent roughly 40 minutes combing out knots in her hair with her hands. Most of them were because she always tied her hair back when she worked out, but Leah was also doing this for a special occasion- Her hair was a [i]weapon.[/i] Adamantium would struggle to hold together against the coarseness of Leah's hair, and the curls, along with the sheet volume of the hair that draped to her ankles meant that it tangled very easily. If someone were to swing a weapon, or even their fists at Leah from behind, it wouldn't do to have it clumping together. Leah would consider it bonus points if she were moving quickly in the fight and her hair whipped out to flay someone by mistake... At least on the enemy team. After that was taken care of, Leah's hair was as smoothed out as she could get it, like a thick curtain that chewed up metal like moldy, wet cardboard. 

Leah grabbed her phone, having taken care of that, and texted her girlfriends. By now, they'd be deep in their preparation. 


[hider=@April, @Sabine]
[color=ff9a4f]Earthbender: Today is the day. Go, and make them tremble in fear. I want you both to know that whatever happens today, I'll still love you both all the same. I hope you both shatter them like glass. But this is just a contest, so don't use this to judge your self-worth.

Earthbender: Both of you. <3[/color]
[/hider]

Knowing April, she was [i]terrified[/i] right now. Sabine was probably pressed, but not stressed. Hey... That rhymes. She quickly shot a text to Victoria as well. It was partially a joke, but realistically, Leah and her entire team knew it was pretty damn accurate.


[hider=@Victoria]
[color=ff9a4f]Earthbender: On my way, team leader.[/color]
[/hider]

She then left her phone on her desk, and fished something out of the drawer. It was a pouch of carved stones, engraved with magic runes. Agatha gave her these. She had vaguely studied them, but Leah never could get them to do much. She'd draw them on paper and try to make some effects come about, but the best she could do was make the paper [i]smell[/i] like it was burning. They were permitted to bring anything they needed to take the win, but would these [i]really[/i] help her? 

Even if she couldn't make their magic work, she was holding a bag of small, uniform rocks. They could be used to make some pretty good shotputs if Leah was particularly desperate. With that decision being made, she left for the armory.

[hr]

Shortly after, Leah appeared in the training room, surrounded by her teammates. She was dressed for the occasion, wearing [url=https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2Foriginals%2Fde%2Fda%2Fc5%2Fdedac51f8c5ff1cd7eb1ad2e154ed6e8.jpg&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=25f8efd3be0a99fda7bde9aeacbe5725cd92cea092c495c177d4acebab00eaac&ipo=images]combat armor[/url] somewhat similar to Arcade's, only it covered Leah almost completely, and was much denser than most armor, to compliment Leah's incredible strength. She didn't wear a helmet for obvious reasons, and the armor would likely be ruined after the fight due to that reason. Surrounded by this group of chaotic dipshits, and Victoria, Leah thought about their chances. They knew how to deal with each other, and that meant they knew how to deal with teleporters, technopaths, gadget-happy cowards, super strength and aerial assaults. Though they didn't know how to wark as a team overall. Sure, Leah and Vicky could work well together if they tried, but Leah wasn't so sure when it came to the others. Zarina might just rush them, and Diana might flank. It wasn't such a big deal if they knew their roles, and didn't need to be told how to proceed, but it meant they weren't used to communication. They couldn't call out a certain phrase unique to their tactics, they had to say their plans out loud and tip the enemies off. It was a small thing, but everything mattered here. 

So, in the interest of not needing a verbal order to do what she needed to do, Leah already made her plan under the assumption that the enemies would not hesitate, and that the UA knew absolutely nothing about them. 

[color=ff9a4f]"If you've been holding back, now is the time to stop,"[/color] Leah commented to the group, standing directly in front of the golem. 

And then the lights fell. The only light was a glowing... Girl? Soaring towards them. Leah could vaguely catch that the bird motherfucker took flight too. [color=ff9a4f][i]Leave them to Shieldmaiden.[/i][/color]

Light flickered off of metal as someone went Colossus, and then lasers blasted Diana and Ed back. They had air superiority, a tank, and a sniper. [color=ff9a4f][i]Varied. Just like us.[/i][/color]

[color=ff9a4f]"Up there!"[/color] She barked, quickly crossing her arms in an "X" as the ground behind her swelled into a cage, completely sectioning off the fake hostage from anyone who might grab it. Now, if someone wanted to get through the rock, they had to use their powers. Blasting through it with lasers risked blasting the hostage, and punching through would sling shrapnel that could injure it. Leah uncrossed her arms into a "U," and the floor erupted again, raising up high into the air to form a barricade. The foot soldiers were now cut off. The two fliers were able to get over, making this effectively a five on two battle. Artemis could teleport to the top of the wall and start blasting people if she wanted... Or if she could see past her damn face. This also meant that Arcade could fiddle with all those trinkets of his without being sniped from across the arena..

Now, all they had to deal with was the glow-in-the-dark target, and the bird they couldn't see.

So naturally, Leah started looking for signs of the bird motherfucker's presence in the dark. 

[color=ff9a4f]"Where the fuck are you..."[/color]