=== Don ===

I got a call in the middle of the night. I opened my eyes slowly and winced at the harsh light from my phone. Reaching over, I picked it up and tried to understand the number. It was private. I grimaced and answered, “Hello.”

“Mr. Lawin?” The voice asked, static, almost making their voice unintelligible.

“What is it!?” I demanded angrily.

“There’s been an issue down at the prison.” The prison? I thought. This must be Jenkins. I gritted my teeth and tried to take a few deep breaths.

“Then take care of it,” I said through my teeth.

“Mr. Lawin,” Jenkins began. He was scared. He’s just a kid, barely in his mid-twenties. Doesn’t know a damn thing. “One of them died.”

“Died?” I asked, sitting up in the bed. We had gone forward with the experiments that Alexander had devised. To see if we could get the cure going. We were moving faster than the scientist was comfortable with. “Which one?”

“Slab,” he said solemnly. “Richard Martin.”

“Ah. The concrete villain that gave Smash Gal her name,” I said the supposed hero’s name with as much vitriol as I could fit in the two syllables. “Dispose of it.”

“How are we supposed to dispose of him, sir?”

“Figure it out. I can’t be seen having any connections to this. I’m sure Alexander can come up with something.” I hung up the phone and stared at it. 3 am. I’m never going to fall asleep, I thought, laying back. The next thing I remember was my alarm going off. I got up and got dressed. There was a text message waiting for me when I checked my phone.

< Jenkins

It’s taken care of.

4:07 am

Good, I thought. All the boy needs is a little confidence, and he can take initiative. There were no other details. I made sure to check the news periodically throughout the day to see if there were any updates. Apparently, that same night, Thunderblast had broken into an evidence warehouse chasing some criminal. I tried to convince Alan Crane to pursue charges against him, but he refused. “He was helping us out.”

“He let the criminal go! Apparently, he can’t even capture a literal child!”

“A child who stole an ancient magic sword that shoots fire,” Crane replied, grinning. “We live in strange times, don’t we?”

“That’s an understatement,” I muttered bitterly. I checked Curatio’s bank account.

Available Balance: $642,904.79

It’s really not enough. Not if we’re going to expand further. Not if we want to solve this problem. Curatio wasn’t public yet. We couldn’t be. The degenerates had fooled everyone. But the people would see them for what they actually are soon. That didn’t really change what I needed to do. We needed more funds to expand. The issue is that I couldn’t take any more from crime scenes. That had helped some, but it had raised a lot of suspicions, and the police were investigating the bank employees, assuming it was one of them. No one suspects me, of course, I reminded myself.

Alan Crane burst through my door, destroying my train of thought. I suppressed a grimace. “Don, you’re never going to believe who they just arrested?”

“Did they catch the child that Harold couldn’t catch?”

“Nah, better. They got Johnny Rolls!” He exclaimed.

“Rawlins? Marcelli’s second in command? Thought he went underground after Reese disappeared, his boss.”

“He did, but Rolls did something real stupid. He tried to dig through and grab some of the product the cops had been keeping an eye on. Guess they thought that Marcelli or one of his guys would go after it eventually.”

“Looks like they were right.”

“I want you on the case. See if you can get him to give up Marcelli.”

“Unlikely,” I said evenly. It’ll never happen. Even if it did, Rolls would be shanked when it got back to Marcelli. There’s no way we can keep him alive. “How much was he trying to get?”

“3 mill,” Crane said, awe in his voice. “Mostly in cocaine. Would’ve been quite the payday.”

3 million dollars . . . The number echoed through my mind. With that, we could buy some anti-military tech from Israel and Russia. Both countries had taken a hardline stance against the impurities. Russia invented the original anti-meta cuffs that had become standard during the Cold War. An American spy was said to have stolen the design and brought it back to America. Since then, they have also developed several conventional weapons to fight powered dissidents. The Gaza Strip had been the site of several attacks against Israel by Muslims with destructive abilities. In response, the Israel Defense Force invested heavily in anything to neutralize or kill freaks who dared stand up against them. I had spent a lot of time researching their methods. The Russians overwhelmed these monsters with raw power. The Israelis had very precise, capable ways of taking them out. I spent a lot of time watching videos of both groups enacting God’s Will on these degenerates. Former communists and Jews were willing to do what America refused to do. It’s disgusting how far our country has fallen. The number repeated in my mind again. I pursed my lips. There might be an opportunity here.

=== Kari ===

I wanted to be flying around the city. I wanted to be on patrol. Instead, today, I needed to be somewhere specific. But I might be able to help people. Really help them. Not like I have been. Jenny had set up a meeting with Metas are Humans, and that’s where I was heading now. I hesitated. I was wearing my hero clothes. It’s who I am. But I’m going to see professional activists. Should I be dressed formally? Most street clothes couldn’t really survive the speeds I usually flew out. They just haven’t made clothes for the super gal on the go. I passed over the river that separated the inner city from the outlying areas. I was running a little late, but it wouldn’t matter. I’ll just speed u-

A loud, whining groan echoed over the city, and I froze, looking around and focusing my senses. Thousands of heartbeats and breaths, tires screeching, brakes crying out, car crashes and yelling, and every other sound. But I heard the groaning again and blasted off the air around me towards the sound. There was a bridge with large metal wires keeping it up. But one of the wires had snapped. I looked around, trying to see who had done it. But I heard more people cry out as another line snapped under the strain of the extra weight. And then another. Cars were speeding past me.

One side of the bridge shifted, and several cars were tossed up. The bracing on one side started tearing apart. Then the other side of the road rose up, throwing more vehicles as it went. Steel cried out. I don’t see who’s causing this, but I gotta do something! I flew down and caught one of the cars bucked up into the air. I set it down as gently as I could, and it immediately started driving off. Sections of concrete fell into the river below, cars tumbling after them. People were screaming. Speeding down, I caught one of the cars but didn’t brace myself properly and slammed into the water hard. I groaned, water pouring into my mouth. I coughed and threw the car into the air, sending the screaming civilians high. I blasted out of the water and caught the car again. More sections of the bridge were falling. I need to go faster.

And my phone started ringing. With the car in hand, I flew over and caught another car in my other direction before blasting to the shore and setting them down. I need to be faster. And I sped up. My phone started ringing again. I didn’t bother ignoring the call. I focused on everything in front of me. Time slowed down for me. Cars and people were raining from the sky. I flew around falling concrete and caught another few vehicles, but for every one I grabbed, five or six would slip through and slam into the river. I’m not fast enough! I thought, trying to speed up even further. My heart pounded as I caught cars and dragged them from the river. The bridge was destroyed. There was nothing I could do, I tried to tell myself. I can’t lift an entire bridge. I fished people and cars out of the river. Other heroes and emergency services were on the scene. They helped as much as they could. People still died. I could only lift two cars out at a time. And I could only go so fast. People thanked me, and I tried to smile at them. I tried to stay optimistic about what was happening. I had helped save so many people. But I couldn’t rescue them all.

Reporters were barely being kept at bay by the cops at the scene. They would shout questions at me like “Smash Gal, several people died. What can you do to prevent this from happening in the future?”

I froze. That question shook me. There were people I hadn’t saved before, but I’d never failed like this. Never so hard. The reporters, sensing my hesitation, pounced and barraged me with questions. “What would you like to say to the families of the people you couldn’t save?”

“Why did this happen? Why didn’t you save more people?” I tried to answer the questions, but I hadn’t been this flustered on screen since the first time I’d been in Avalare. A policeman pushed me back and frowned back at the reporters.

“Jackals. Blaming you at a time like this.” I looked at him.

“Y-you don’t hate me?” The cop met my eye. He was a little shorter than I was. He screwed up his mouth and shook his head.

“I don’t agree with everything you do, but I don’t think you’re trying to hurt anyone. Besides,” the officer paused for a moment, shaking his head. “Without you, a lot more people would’ve died today.”

I checked my phone afterward. It had managed to stay alive despite all the dips into the river to dredge out cars. There was a voicemail. I listened to it. “Hey, this is Kevin with Metas are Human. We had an appointment, but I can see on the news that the bridge collapsed. Call me to reschedule when you can.”

How the hell is he so cavalier about it? I sighed and got up. Emergency vehicles were clearing out slowly. I caught up to a paramedic before he left. “Hey, do we know who caused the bridge collapse?”

“What do you mean who?” The man asked. “It was the mayor. Fucking thing has been about to go for like ten years.”

“What? If it was that bad, why were people still driving on it!?” I demanded incredulously. The paramedic stared at me like I was the dumbest person on the planet.

“Because it’s the best bridge to get downtown, and the rest of us can’t fly.”

“Oh. Right.” I deflated. “Do we know how many casualties there were?”

“Only a guess, right now. At least fifty.” I nodded, trying to suppress my frown. The man closed the doors to his truck and drove off. I flew off into the air. It was cold. I was still soaked through. I flew to the closest place I could think of, landing on the zen garden rooftop. A couple of the acolytes nodded at me. A few smiled. Suiren came running up to me immediately afterward.

“Kari!” She tackled me. Well, she slammed into me face first and hugged me. I grinned down at her. “Are you here for some more training?”

“Training? No, Ren. I just needed to see a friendly face. I . . . It’s been a hard day.”

“It’s only eleven am.”

“Yeah. And it’s been a hard day.” The little girl looked up at me, considering.

“Maybe some training or meditation will do you some good. It’s been so long since you’ve done either.” She turned her back to me. “I’d hate to see you become sloppy. Again.”

“Alright, master. You want to train pretty badly. What do you have in mind?”

=== Cindi ===

Curt and Tierra went about planning the job. He had gotten the schematics for the building, and they were strategizing. I could have joined them and learned their ideas, but honestly, I didn’t see the point. It would all change the instant we got there anyway. And besides, Curt knew what he was doing. I just reminded him that he needed to stop and think. Instead, I sat next to Des on their sofa, and they looked over at me. “Shouldn’t you be planning with them?”

“They’ll fill me in later. Besides, I wanted to catch up. You are my favorite doctor, after all,” I said with a small smile. “Besides, if we whisper, I can make Curt think I’m talking about him, and he’ll realize he’s not paying me enough attention.”

“Have you ever considered just getting his attention?”

“You’ve seen how I dress. I have his attention. But I need him to remain obsessed.”

“Cindi, you’re nuts, you know that, right?”

“Is that your official diagnosis?”

“I’m not a shrink,” Des said, holding up a hand. “So, other than your husband, what do you want to talk about?”

“Your future wife,” I replied blandly. They jumped and shot me. I grinned at them. “Oh. There’s a nerve. Interesting.”

“I-we are in the early stages. We don’t have any concrete plans. And she’s a thief, and I don’t know if I can date a thief.”

“Oh, Des, darling. You are already dating a thief. And your best friend is a thief. And your other best friend.”

“Other best friend?” They asked. I clutched a hand to my chest and did my best to look scandalized. They rolled their eyes. “You’re so much. I don’t know how Curt deals with it.”

“I’m very pretty and willing to be naked around him. For that, he’d brave just about anything.” I watched the two at the table. They were having a heated discussion. Well, Curt was heated. Tierra was closed off but not budging an inch. I couldn’t quite make out what they were saying, but they would work it out. “What about the world’s third-best thief? How do you deal with her?”

“She’s super easy to deal with. She really gets me, and we just fit together. And I know a little about her life.”

“Yeah, it’s why she and I never got on more than a night or two.”

“What?”

“Oh? You didn’t know? It’s nothing, Des. Just a one-night stand or two.”

“Why didn’t you work out?” Des asked, feigning half-hearted interest. But their hands gave them away. They were clenched tight, and I could see their knuckles stretch out their skin.

“She’s very low energy. Low-key and constantly aware of me. I got bored.”

“You got bored of her knowing what you needed?” They asked incredulously.

“Yes,” I responded, scratching my nails together.

“But I thought you wanted people to pay attention to you.”

“I do, but I want it to be a challenge. For them to work at it. Tierra just knows. It’s boring.”

“Curt’s smart enough to figure it out.”

“Ah, but he has to figure it out. There’s a chase. And I also have to figure him out. It doesn’t feel so one-sided.”

“I’ll say it again, you’re certifiable.”

“Maybe. But you’re not a shrink, remember? Perhaps I’ll ask Professor Mind for his opinion when I see him next.”

“You’re planning to see Professor Mind? As a patient or . . .” Des let the question hang in the air. I laughed and shook my head.

“He and Smash Gal are dating. Undoubtedly, we’ll run into each other again when that woman tries to take Curt away from me again. And we can have a nice chat.”

“During the battle where she tries to take your husband in. Right.” Des looked out to the pair at the table. They had relaxed some and had moved past whatever disagreement they had been having. “Why do you guys do that?”

“Do what?”

“Put yourselves in so much danger? Curt’s gotten shot how many times just stealing stuff? He fought with Smash Gal that night outside the police station and the wedding. He got caught by that Thunderblast guy. Why don’t you both just hide away and lay low? As thieves, shouldn’t you be trying to not be found?”

“Curt and I do it for different reasons. Mostly. I do it because I love the attention. I’ve hidden most of my life. Whether it be because that’s what the job asked me for or because no one wanted to see me, or if they did, they wanted to hurt me. But now, I have all of the power. I control the narrative. I control how I’m perceived. At least more.” Pinikir’s voice in my head echoed out. YOU COULD CONTROL IT FULLY. WE HAVE THE POWER. I pushed the invading words away, shaking my head.

“And Curt?”

“He’s an idiot. But he’s my idiot.”

“Cindi, seriously.”

“He grew up poor and doesn’t want anyone to live like that.”

“That explains why he steals. Not why he doesn’t run away.”

“That is because he’s stupid. Well, not just that. But it is a part of it.”

“I don’t think that’s it. Because he’s not. Not really. He’s reckless and can be bullheaded. But more than that, I think he just wants to prove his point to the world.”

“That’s part of it. My husband thinks if he backs down, it’ll show the world he’s wrong. That his ideas can’t stand up to scrutiny. And he can take people mocking him. Jeering him. After all, it’s what both of our relationships with him are based on. So, when Smash Gal comes around, doubting his ideas, standing in direct opposition to him, he can’t take it and fights back.”

“And gets hurt.”

“That’s where the stupidity comes in. Curt doesn’t care if he lives or dies.” I swallowed hard, trying to suppress the thought. When did I become so attached to him? Part of me wanted to run at that moment. I knew he wouldn’t chase me. He’d let me go. It’d kill him to do so, but he would.

“He’s not going to die,” Des said matter-of-factly. I looked at them.

“And how are you so sure?”

“You won’t let him die. Neither will I. I don’t care how stupid and bullish he’s being. I’ll drag his ass back from hell if I have to.” They looked back at me. “Cindi?”

“Yes, Des?”

“Make sure Tierra doesn’t get hurt. I . . . I’d like to keep seeing her. If I can.” I glanced up at the table and caught the empath staring at their significant other when they weren’t looking. They sure fell for each other hard and fast. Another thought followed that one. Not everyone takes three years to admit they have feelings for people. I smiled softly at my Curt.

=== Kari ===

Suiren and I circled around each other in the room. She brandished one of the swords she got for her birthday. It was still too large and looked too heavy for her to wield correctly. “No superpowers. Just normal human abilities.”

“I can’t exactly take away my durability,” I replied, grinning.

“Maybe I can take away some of it for you,” she retorted, smirking. The nine-year-old girl dashed forward and slashed out. I spun out of the way and went to trip her. She jumped over my leg and slammed the sword into my head, but it rebounded, and she landed hard on her back. I went to help her, but instead, she launched herself up, sword and all. My teacher seemed upset by the event and glared at her sword.

“You’re not going to earn your right like that, granddaughter,” an elderly woman said, hunched over a cane.

“I’m not going to use it. Not until I can beat her without it,” Suiren muttered petulantly. I looked between the two of them, frowning.

“I’m afraid that without it, I don’t think you have much of a chance.” Her grandmother closed the distance between us and hugged the preteen.

“What’s going on? Were you trying to actually fight me?” I tried to keep the heat out of my voice. And I think I mostly managed it. The older woman looked up at me.

“You hadn’t heard?”

“Heard what?”

“It’s probably for the best, then.” I let out an exasperated sigh.

“Kari,” Suiren began. “I need to tell you something. But you have to promise to hear me out before reacting.”

“I’m not going to like whatever’s happening, am I?”

“You will not. I didn’t. But Ren explained her reasoning, and I came to see her side of things,” her grandmother said. The nine-year-old went to the sidelines of the match and took out another sword in a sheath. It seemed somehow familiar, but I couldn’t quite place how.

“I took this from the police warehouse. I fought one of your friends to do it.” My eyes widened.

“You stole Lady Blade’s sword from the police? That’s evidence!”

“It wasn’t safe there. Anyone could’ve taken it.”

“No, it was confiscated by the police. It was as safe as it could be.” I leaned down to be at eye level with Suiren. “You need to return it. The trial hasn’t happened yet. They might need that to prove that Lady Blade did all those murders.”

“Is her being caught in the armor after attacking a party full of people who will all testify insufficient?”

“I don’t know. And that’s the problem, Suiren. She could be found not guilty and then be back on the street.”

“Then maybe you should’ve killed her,” Suiren’s grandmother said somberly. I frowned at her.

“I’m not a killer.”

“But she is. And she doesn’t stop.”

“I don’t want to become a killer.” My voice was small. I curled in on myself. Images bubbled up in my mind. Of what I had done to Buck Cherry. Of what I had done to Curt. To Doc Oak. You are already a killer. It’s a fluke any of them survived. Suiren put a hand on my shoulder. I looked up. “Why were you trying to actually fight me?”

“You are the rightful owner of the sword. You defeated her in battle. So it became yours.”

“That’s stupid.”

“These things are often stupid,” the elderly woman replied, smirking. “We don’t know why the weapon works on this weird system it does. But defeating you is necessary for her to fully control it.”

“What will you do with it?”

“What do you mean?” Suiren asked.

“Let’s say you defeat me. You lay me out. What then? You’ve been seeking this sword for how long?”

“Th-three years.”

“That’s a long time. A full third of your life. What do you do when you have it? When all of that destructive power is yours?”

“I . . . I don’t know.” I looked over to her grandmother.

“What about you? What will you do when your granddaughter wields a weapon of mass destruction in her hands? A weapon capable of glassing a city block?”

“I will give her guidance. Encourage her to use it wisely.”

“And if she doesn’t? If she can’t?”

“I can!”

“Everybody thinks that!” I snapped at my teacher. She took a step back. I took a deep breath. Tears ran down my cheeks. I didn’t bother to wipe them away. Today has been too much. I came here to see my friends. To unwind. And here I am, yelling at them. I turned to her. “Suiren. I came here because I have too much strength. Too much power. And I couldn’t use it right. And I’m not saying that you can’t. I’m just saying that when you have power, real power, it’s incredibly easy to abuse.”

“And you think I will.”

“I . . . don’t know.” I stared at the wooden floor panels.

“Why aren’t you just taking the sword, then?” Her grandmother asked. “It’s rightfully yours. You could return it to the police and be done with it.”

“Because Ren would just steal it again. She’s as stubborn as I am a lot of the time.”

“Am not!” She retorted.

“Am too!” I replied, then stuck my tongue out. “What if I just throw the fight?”

“What?”

“To control the sword, you have to beat me, right? What if I let you?” Suiren looked disgusted by the thought. Her grandmother looked thoughtful.

“That is an interesting question. It’s never come up.”

“I’ve beat you before. I can do it again.”

“You beat me when I wasn’t using my powers. If I’m not using my powers, isn’t that basically the same as me throwing the fight in the first place?”

“I-” She began. Then she flopped on the floor, sighing dramatically. “You metas make everything so complicated.”

“Tell me about it.”