Piper lowered into a fighting stance. She extended her left hand and beckoned to Nico. Her eyes gleamed with mischief.

Nico’s training had begun.

“Alright, one more time! Try again!” Piper challenged.

Nico nodded wordlessly. The pinstripe button-down’s sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. He let out a long, steadying breath. Tux eyed him closely from her perch atop Piper’s hat, which was sitting on a short rooftop ledge beside Mr. Wyatt. The tabby cat shook her head.

“Piper wins again,” she murmured to the old man.

Gramps, who had taken to the talking cat quite easily, replied, “How do you know?”

“Was I wrong the last four times?”

“No, but-”

“Watch.”

The rooftop of Gramps’ building became very still. Even the sound of the occasional cars that soared overhead seemed to fade away. Nico and Piper stared at one another. Nico’s fingers twitched. A muscle in Piper’s calf flexed. The moment seemed to last forever.

They both moved at once.

Nico dashed at Piper head-on. His torso twisted to the left as he brought his arm back, slamming his right foot into the ground. Then, with a hoarse shout, he spun forward, left hand slicing through the air like a blade, directly into…

...Empty space.

Piper had seen it coming a mile away. She rolled forward, cartwheeling into a two-legged kick that struck Nico full force in the chest with both feet. Nico gasped in surprise as the wind was knocked out of him, then he staggered back and dropped to the ground with a heavy thud.

“Glad I didn’t bet money against you,” chuckled Gramps. Tux just meowed in response.

Nico scrambled to his feet. “Again!” He coughed.

“Nah, not today,” Piper replied. She looked thoughtful and a little disappointed. “We both need a break.”

“Ah, come on! Just one more, I know I can beat you this time!”

Tux sauntered toward them. “No, Nico. You can’t.”

Nico looked down at the tabby cat with a look of deep confusion and anger. “Yes I can!”

“No, you can’t. Not as you currently are.”

“Nico,” Piper said, “it’s okay, really! You’re getting better. Let’s just try it again tomorrow-”

“C’mon, dammit!” Nico shouted. The distress in his voice alarmed Piper. “I don’t have time to wait for tomorrow! I’ve gotta get better now!”

Piper nodded and turned away. Her breath was quick and shallow.

“Why?” Gramps interrupted. He slid down from his seat on the ledge and walked toward Nico.

“Because I have to, okay? I have to beat her! I have to beat Elizabeth, or I’ll never become the CEO!”

Gramps folded his arms. “Of course you do. But why do you have to do it today? Why can’t you wait to get stronger tomorrow?”

“Because… Because…” Nico stammered, but he couldn’t find the words. All he knew was that everything in him was screaming. He couldn’t stop. Not now. Not after getting beaten by Elizabeth. Not after getting beaten, five times in a row, by Piper.

“Listen to an old man’s advice, Nico,” Gramps growled. “You want to get stronger, you want to chase your dream, that’s fine. That’s damn great, matter of fact. And you’ve got all of us on your side to help you. So listen to us when we tell you, you’re not going to get any stronger by beating your head against a brick wall. You gotta rest. You gotta pace yourself.”

“But the stripes!” Nico blurted out. “If I can just get more of them to appear, they’ll make me stronger right away, right? And to make that happen, I have to keep training!”

“Not like this, you don’t!” said Gramps. “Remember what I told ya? You learn a hell of a lot more from your failures than your victories.”

“All I’ve done today is fail!” Nico cried. “Over and over again!”

“And what the hell have you learned from it, huh?!” Gramps roared. “Nothing! Jack shit! You want to learn from your failures, then figure out WHY you failed, and LEARN from it!”

There was a long silence. Nico felt like he’d taken more of a beating from Gramps’ words than from any of the blows he’d been dealt by Elizabeth or Piper. He was stunned.

Gramps’ voice was softer when he finally spoke again. “Listen, Nico. You’re lucky. You have a chance to learn from your mistakes right now, while you’re still young, while the stakes are still low. Some people - like me - don’t learn how to do that until it’s far too late. Don’t be like me, kid. Trust me.”

Nico didn’t speak for a long time. Gramps turned and looked out over the city skyline, petting Tux, who had returned to her perch atop Piper’s hat. Nico’s mind was reeling. He paced back and forth for a while, heart racing.

What if he couldn’t do it? What if he couldn’t get stronger? What if he couldn’t ever beat Elizabeth, rise through the ranks, become the Business King? What if - the one who can make dreams come true - his singular goal, the thing that had become his very reason for living, never came true?

But wasn’t Gramps right? Wasn’t it foolish to push himself to endlessly train, to never learn from his mistakes, to place his faith in the chance that the button-down really would gain more stripes? What if that was wrong, too? What if the button-down never got stronger, what if he couldn’t ever afford better business attire, what if the power he held now was all he would ever have?

He looked out, past Gramps and Tux, to the city skyline. The three of them took in the view of the city. A city ruled by Aleph Corporation. A city whose every business and every building was dominated by those who wore the fashion statements powerful enough to win them the power they sought. A city whose streets once rang with the clamor of car horns, and whose skies were now full of headlights.

Nico’s eyes alighted on the distant tower that was the local corporate headquarters of Aleph Corporation. Inside that building turned the gears that kept this city going. Elizabeth, the Regional Director, the local Human Resources department, and numerous other formidable foes worked there. Powerful foes, each of whom would wear business attire more powerful than the last. Foes who possessed the resources, the power, and the business knowledge to rule this city with an iron fist.

“What a dump,” Gramps chuckled. Tux arched her back under his hand, purring loudly as he scratched her.

Nico smiled slightly. Sure, it was a dump. This city was a terrible place to live. But it was home. And he supposed it always would be.

He turned to look at Piper.

But she was gone.

***

ohgodohshitwhatdoidodamnitshitshitshitcomeonpullittogethergodjustbreathebreathejustbreathe

Piper was curled into the smallest ball she could manage, knees pulled up to her chin, arms covering her head, her blazer pulled up to cover her face.

okaycomeonnotabigdealjustneedtocalmdowneverything’sfinedon’tfreakoutitwillallbeokayshitshit

She was squeezed into a small corner of Gramps’ workshop, covered on three sides by walls and furniture. Safe. Bolt-hole. Safe. Secure. Safe.

onebreathinonebreathoutonebreathinonebreathoutslowlynowthat’srightjustslowdownit’sokay

The trembling came in staccato waves. She was quaked to her core, her arms flexing tighter over her head, her body tense. Her face, hidden behind the blazer, was screwed up in soundless screams. Hot tears streamed down her cheeks.

shitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshit

She was fighting. Hard.

slowdowncomeonyou’vedonethisamilliontimesgetagripgirleverythingwillbefinejustgetagripokay

The problem was, her body was fighting back.

shhhshhhshhhshhhcalmdownquietdownsoothingsoundsthinkabouttheskyorsomethingohgod

The battle was fierce. She would gain the upper hand for a moment, and then her body would throw her down once more. They grappled in the mud, a vicious fight, a dirty fight, a fight to the death. There was nothing glamorous or heroic about this battle. It was savagery.

rrrrrgghhcomeonalrightcomeoncomeoncomeonyes okay alrightherewegojust a little more thank god

Her fingernails left bloody scrawls across the face of her opponent. She’d jammed a thumb in its eye, and now its eyeball hung by a fleshy rope from its socket. Her enemy’s mouth leered in a hideous predatory grin. But it was losing. And she was winning.

Just a little more… there… okay… right… whew…

She wasn’t shaking anymore. The tears were turning cold on her cheeks. She was panting for breath. She felt like her blazer was a sauna. Her breath was hot as it bounced back onto her face. She sat there for a long time. Her legs were cramping, but she didn’t care yet. This was a safe place, this bolt-hole. It wasn’t the first time she’d used such bolt-holes to “come down”, as she put it.

Her heart panged in her chest as she heard the workshop door open on the other side of the large room. Her friends had returned from the roof. Probably wondering where she was. Probably worried. She fought back the fresh wave of panic that threatened to overwhelm her. This time, she succeeded.

“Piper? You here?” Gramps called.

Piper sighed, but didn’t move. She didn’t know what to do. She was still angry with Nico, but she didn’t have any fight left in her to deal with his impatience right now. Why didn’t he understand?

She felt a soft brush of fur against her leg. She peered out from under the blazer. Tux had found her, probably by using her feline sense of smell, Piper figured. Her heart sank for a moment as she prepared herself for the tabby cat to announce her presence to the others, but Tux didn’t say a word. She simply climbed into Piper’s lap, curled up, and purred softly. Piper belatedly noticed that Tux had brought her hat to her as well.

“I guess she went home,” Nico said. He sighed.

Gramps grunted.

Piper was fully back in control now, but she didn’t feel like announcing her presence just yet. She contented herself with petting Tux on her lap. She was warm and cozy in this little corner. She didn’t want to leave its safe embrace.

“She’s mad at me,” Nico said. It was just a statement of fact. Piper quietly nodded.

“You did make an ass of yourself, kid. That’s the quickest way to earn a woman’s ire.”

“Right.”

“Listen - don’t worry about it too much. Piper’s a good kid too. She’s your friend, she likes you. She’ll come around, ‘specially if you apologize.”

“Yeah. I guess so.”

They were quiet for a while. Nico sighed again. “Alright, well… Guess I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Alright, kid. No new stripes, huh?”

“Nah.”

“Hm. Alright. See ya.”

“See ya.”

Piper heard the door open and close. Nico was gone. She rested her head against the wall.

“You can come out now, Piper. He’s gone,” Gramps said.

Piper started. “How’d you know I was here?” She demanded, leaving her corner. She winced as her cramped legs extended.

“Just a feeling,” Gramps shrugged. “What happened tonight? You up and vanished. Don’t get me wrong, Nico was acting like a jackass, but you don’t seem like the type to get your feelings hurt so easy.”

Piper gave the old man a withering look. “I’m not.”

Gramps smirked. “Yeah, I didn’t think so.” He sat on the couch.

Tux sprang to the armrest and looked hard at Piper. “You felt hunted?”

“Hunted?” Piper repeated.

“Yes,” the tabby cat said. “Your heart was racing, your breathing was quick. You were hiding in the corner, as though you were a hunted mouse. Are you alright?”

Piper tilted her head at the cat. “I’m not a mouse, okay? I just… I had a panic attack. It happens.”

The cat blinked. Gramps frowned a bit. “Panic attack, huh? Sorry, I didn’t know.”

Piper shook her head. “It’s fine. Like I said, it just happens sometimes. It helps to… get away from everyone. For a while.”

Gramps nodded. “Right.”

“You are strong, Piper,” Tux said. Her voice was unusually serious. The contrast struck Piper; she realized that the cat’s tone was normally somewhat sarcastic.

The cat continued, “The greatest hunters can defeat their own bodies. Only a few of my people are strong enough to overcome their instincts. You are strong, indeed.”

Piper smiled a bit. “Thanks, I guess, Tux. You’ll have to tell me more about… your people… Soon.”

The tabby cat nodded once, then flitted out of the workshop without another word. Gramps yawned and stretched.

“Alright, girlie. Time to let me get some sleep,” the old man groaned. “Gonna get up early tomorrow and keep working on that business attire for ladies that I promised you.”

“Any luck so far?”

“Not yet. But soon. I feel it.”

“Okay.” Piper stretched, feeling the cramps in her legs ease. She straightened her blazer. “Alright, I’ll see you later, Gramps.”

The old man nodded. Piper crossed the room, feeling oddly lonely. As she opened the door, Gramps called out, “Hey, you sure you’re okay?”

She looked back over her shoulder. “Yeah. I’m fine.”

Then she slipped out of the workshop, closing the door quietly behind her.

***

Thompson, the employee who’d gotten so annoyed at Nico’s fight against Elizabeth, was watching the video of their battle on his phone over and over again.

He didn’t particularly know why he was doing it. He was just irritating himself more and more by watching the video, seeing the dust and debris that had once been an office wall, seeing the fluttering white papers that had once been his report, seeing the hubris of his superiors as they showed off the power of their expensive business attire.

Miss Regal was untouchable. He felt sure of that. And even though she had told him this fight was her fault, he didn’t really believe that. After all, Nico was the common denominator between today’s brawl and yesterday’s defeat of Rudy. Not that Thompson minded much that Rudy had been beaten, but it was the disturbance that he found unacceptable. People had to work here, after all. He had to work here. And as easy as it might be for people obsessed with climbing the corporate ladder to see him and his fellow employees as mere background detail, he wasn’t going to take that lying down anymore.

The video played again, the sounds of blasts of wind and shattering office furniture distorting the audio on the phone’s somewhat tinny speaker. Thompson grinned with satisfaction as he watched Nico defeated once more.

Then he had an idea.

He stopped the video, and pressed the button to send it in a message. He felt a thrill of vindication as his eyes finally landed on the contact he was looking for.

Human Resources.

Thompson quickly typed out a complaint message to the HR department, attaching the video of Nico and Elizabeth’s fight. Sure, such fights were allowed, even encouraged. Aleph Corp. wanted only the very best. The strongest. The most ambitious.

But surely, Thompson reasoned, that didn’t mean the higher-ups would be pleased to know that the productivity of their employees was being constantly disturbed by upstarts.

He nodded in satisfaction as he sent the message to HR. Now, surely, something would be done.

***

Piper paused as she reached the bottom of the stairs. She could see Nico through the glass of the front doors, sitting on a low brick wall near the street. His back was to her. She hesitated, then shrugged. She had to see him sooner or later.

He glanced back as she opened the door. He looked surprised.

“Hey! I thought you went home,” he said.

“Nope,” said Piper. “Just needed some space, that’s all.”

Nico nodded. He looked at the ground, unable to meet her eyes. Piper fidgeted awkwardly, then sighed.

“Alright, guess I’ll see you tomorrow,” she said. She walked past him, heading toward home.

“Wait, Piper,” Nico said. She heard his feet hit the ground as he scooted off his perch on the ledge. “I need to talk to you.”

Piper turned back with an aloof expression. “Okay.”

Nico shifted uneasily. “I… Look, I owe you an apology. I acted like a jerk tonight. I kept pushing and I got mad at you. I should have listened to you. I’m sorry.”

Piper nodded slowly, her arms folded. She looked Nico in the eyes. He seemed to have softened, to have changed. At least a little bit. She took a deep breath, then let it out.

“It’s okay,” she said. And she meant it.

Nico looked surprised, then he smiled widely, obviously relieved. His smile was so genuine that it startled a giggle from her.

“You dork,” she laughed.

Nico was laughing now too. “I just, I’m glad, you know? I felt really bad.”

Piper waved a hand dismissively. “Wanna walk me home? I don’t feel like being alone right now.”

Nico nodded.

***

They walked together for a long while, talking occasionally, but mostly just enjoying one another’s company. There weren’t many other people out and about right now, but that made sense. Over the years, the city’s nightlife had transitioned from the ground level of the streets to the top level of the rooftops. Now the only people trawling the bottom levels of the metropolis’ streets were the poor, the criminals, and the occasional employee who’d been unlucky enough to miss their sky bus.

Nico found that it was easy to be with Piper like this, just walking together. Just being. The longer they walked, the more of her Piper-ness she regained, until soon enough she was back to normal. She snarked at the various advertisements that glowed down at them from enormous screens and signs. All sorts of products produced by the thousands of Aleph Corp. subsidiaries screamed their own importance at the occupants of cars flying by.

“Whoa, look at that!” Piper said, pointing at one screen in particular. Nico looked.

It was an advertisement for a new line of budget slacks by The Clothiers. The model in the pictures looked very fit and very successful. The screen flashed through a series of several images, showing off different colors and powers. There was a navy blue pair that enhanced number crunching ability. A tan pair that reduced back strain from long hours working at a desk. A brown pair that gave a slight boost of speed, allowing the wearer to navigate large offices with greater speed.

The advertisement read:

YOU DESERVE TO BE CUT SOME SLACK

THE LATEST IN BUDGET-FRIENDLY TROUSERS FROM THE CLOTHIERS

REMEMBER, THE CLOTHES MAKE THE MAN!

“The clothes make the man,” Piper repeated softly.

Nico sighed, looking down at the pinstripe button-down. “Wish that were true,” he grumbled.

Piper looked at him with a slight frown. “You know, Nico, Elizabeth beat you without using her high heels.”

Nico raised an eyebrow. “Well thanks, I feel loads better now.”

“No, I mean, yeah, she used the high heels, they were what made her so fast. But I don’t think they gave her future sight or anything. She predicted your moves the same way I did today.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re pretty easy to read, Nico. Your movements are too predictable. But I think it’s more than that. I think Elizabeth… understands people. I’m not sure how, maybe it’s her earrings or something, but I think she just saw you better than you even saw yourself today.”

Nico nodded slowly. He remembered Elizabeth’s parting words. No, Nico. It’s not the heels. Was Piper right, then? Was there some other power Elizabeth possessed that went beyond a powerful fashion statement? Or maybe, was her business attire simply an amplifier that made her natural ability even stronger?

The advertisement screen glowed brighter as the ad copy shone out once more.

YOU DESERVE TO BE CUT SOME SLACK

THE LATEST IN BUDGET-FRIENDLY TROUSERS FROM THE CLOTHIERS

REMEMBER, THE CLOTHES MAKE THE MAN!

“The clothes make the man,” Nico mused.

Was that true, really? He supposed he believed it was true, but why? Wasn’t there more to it? Didn’t he make the decision to become the Business King before he ever had the pinstripe button-down? And what about Elizabeth? Was she made by her clothes, or was there more to her?

“I don’t want to lose again,” he said softly.

Piper looked at him. “Then learn from your mistakes,” she said. “You can’t keep doing the same thing over and over and expect it to work.”

Nico returned her gaze.

The clothes make the man…

“What kind of business wear do you think the Business King has?” he asked. He hadn’t thought much about the question before asking it - it had just popped into his head.

Piper smiled. “Really nice business wear, I bet.”

“Yeah.” Nico smiled back. “I guess so.”

They looked up at the advertisement again. It looped over and over. The Clothiers logo in the bottom right corner, the coat of arms, stood out in stark crimson against the whites, yellows, and pale blues of the picture backgrounds.

“I’m going to become the Business King,” Nico said firmly. “And I’m going to do it without The Clothiers.”

Piper’s eyes flashed with mischief. “So you’ll do it all with Gramps’ button-down, huh? You won’t buy powerful fashion statements from The Clothiers at all? The clothes make the man, y’know.”

“Yeah, that’s right,” Nico said. “The clothes may make the man, but their clothes won’t make me.”

Piper laughed. “Sounds good to me!”

Suddenly, Nico saw a flash of brilliant light to his right. He glanced over, and realized that it was coming from his right sleeve.

“Whoa!” said Piper.

Was this really happening? Nico watched, amazed, as the light slowly faded, leaving behind a single pinstripe on the right sleeve, perfectly mirroring the one on the left sleeve. He caught his breath. He felt… something. What, he wasn’t sure. But he felt like something had changed. Not just the pinstripe on the button-down, but something about himself. Like something had fundamentally been…

Altered.

“That’s crazy,” Piper breathed. “That’s so cool! So it really works! We have to tell Gramps! Are you okay? How do you feel? Do you feel stronger?”

“I… I don’t know,” Nico said. “I think so?”

“Well come on!” Piper beamed. “You want to try it out? Let’s see what you can do now!”

Nico nodded automatically, but then something gave him pause. He smiled at Piper. “Nah.”

“Huh?”

“It can wait until tomorrow. For now, we need rest.”

Piper laughed. “Fair enough.”

They walked down the street, leaving the glow of the Clothiers advertisement behind.

[End of Arc 01!]