“Run!” Kayden screamed as the three heroes before us approached, hastened by Kayden’s sudden outburst. Kayden bent down and grunted fiercely as ripples spread across their body, shrinking them down to the size of a mouse. The ripples halted their wave across Kayden’s form and they stood back up. With a wink, they took off towards a rain gutter.

I stared in disbelief at the absurd display. “You can shrink yourself!?”

“Don’t worry about it!” they squeaked, jumping through the gutter entrance. “Just run!” I turned my attention back on the heroes as they rushed forwards. 

Verdant jumped towards the gutter, plants flowing from her hands down after Kayden. “Oh no you don’t, not like last ti--Ow! Don’t you bite me you lil’ shit!” she snapped. Starburst and Bittinboulder still had their eyes trained on me. Another bolt of energy ran over Markus’ form, forcing him back on his knees. He quickly raised his hands.

“I give up! I give up!” He looked at me with a sad almost pleading expression, hoping I would do the same. I shook my head and reached deep into the buzz of energy within me and took off. Gravel  kicked up in my wake and I barrelled from the rooftop towards the street below. densely packed with emergency response vehicles. I hopped off a granite gargoyle facade a story below the roof and pushed myself towards the face of a nearby brick building. Friction came surprisingly easily as my body moved down the side of the building towards the alley below. Once the ground began to loom ever closer, I turned sharply and ran across the building face horizontally before launching myself off the wall. I grinded along the handrail of a low-hung fire escape and burst out of the alley at considerable speed. The street was filled with emergency personnel battling the apartment fire Hexecute had caused. Firefighters and paramedics paid me no mind as I raced past.

I leapt over an ambulance blocking the road and caught a glimpse of my reflection in amongst the flashing red and blue lights around me. A third light, golden and oscillating was racing just behind me. My stomach dropped as I identified the source of the  light as a familiar blonde with a “bright complexion”. Starbust was flying after me, her intense bright aura reflecting on the metal of the vehicles nearby. I dipped across the front of the ambulance to put some distance between us. She seemed thrown off, but recovered sooner I’d hoped for, quickly gaining on me once more without much adjustment. I buckled down and pushed harder, more and more speed rushing into my veins at my beck and call. I weaved and grinded on car hoods through the traffic, never truly gaining any ground on Starburst who was consistently my reverse shadow, a light trailing me wherever I went.

“Do not run! You’re not under arrest, friend,” she called to me.

“Then why are you chasing me with clelium in your hand?” I called back. I dove through an opening in a water fountain statue and juked back in the direction I’d come from to confuse her. Unfortunately she turned on a dime, zooming right back after me.

“Okay, it looks bad, I’ll give you that. But I promise we just want to talk!”

“Sorry, running is kinda my thing at the moment. If my superpower ever becomes talking, then I’ll be your girl,” I laughed. I wasn’t quite sure why I found this to be a humorous experience, but I couldn’t deny flexing my full abilities like this was simultaneously terrifying and exhilarating. I bit down and turned onto a more crowded street, traffic seemingly backed up due to the fire. My body moved gracefully through the masses of steel and glass, forcing Starburst to bob and weave with me. I could sense that I was finally gaining some ground and she was struggling to keep track of me as I weaved between cabs and box-trucks, though that didn’t last long as a taxi door swung open ahead of me before I could react to it, sending me bouncing across the hoods of several cars onto the slick pavement towards the wall of a rather large building. I pushed myself back onto my feet quickly before she could corner me. A sharp ache rang through the arm that had taken the brunt of the fall, warning me not to take a tumble like that again.

Starburst floated mere feet in front of me with a concerned look. “I hate to say I told you so…” she trailed off.

“What? A dude opened a door in front of me, anyone would’ve ran into it.” I crossed my arms.

“Well, either way, this chase is over, zippy.” She raised an eyebrow. I sensed a slight rumble in the wall behind me and smiled. “What?” Starburst asked.

“I don’t think it’s over just yet,” I said with a wink. A huge vine burst forth from the building behind me as a familiar white and black blur jumped from building to building with Verdant in hot pursuit. Rubble showered over Starburst and me, an opportunity I used to quickly race away towards Kayden. Unfortunately, this brought me closer to Verdant who was making plants sprout up all around us.

“Hey!” I said cheerfully as I slid around a large green vine protruding from a manhole. “She’s really causing a lot of collateral damage!”

“I know, isn’t it so fucking cool?” Kayden squealed as they vaulted over another vine. “She does that all the time, or at least all the times I’ve ran into them before.”

“You’ve met them before?”

“Yeah, we’ve got a storied history,” Kayden shouted as they vaulted over another vine whipping past us. “Those two really don’t like the whole ‘unlicensed vigilante’ thing.” Kayden gave me a funny look. “Wait, can’t you run way faster than this?” 

“Well, yeah, but who else am I going to fan-girl with?” I replied in a matter-of-fact tone. As if on cue Starburst dove towards us making a grab at me. I managed to avoid her grip,  thanks in no small part to Kayden throwing a panicked punch at her, pushing her back and causing her to falter for a moment.

“Holy shit, I just punched Starburst!” they screamed. A vine ahead burst from a garden planter and quickly shot straight for Kayden. I reflexively yanked them out of the path of the vine which instead grabbed at Starburst by mistake.

“Watch it!” I admonished Kayden.

“Heh, owe you one!” they called back. We didn’t have time to fraternize further before a blue energy field attempted to encircle us as we passed through an intersection. I grabbed Kayden and sped us through the other side before it could form a full barrier. Bittinboulder entered into the fray behind us riding on a levitating orb of blue energy. She quickly pushed through the others and barrelled towards us.

“Stop!” she called out in her grizzled voice.

“Oh, sure thing, ‘Shield Mistress’,” I snarked. “Seriously Bittinboulder? What kind of supernym is that?”

“I knew you were one of the students!” she growled.

“Yeah, okay you got me there,” I replied as I slid over the roof of a box truck. “But honestly, ‘Shield Mistress’?”

“Just use the god-damned supernym!” She jerked her arms out toward us, causing blue light to shoot from her fingertips in our direction. Kayden gasped and jerked their body into mine, knocking me off course onto the sidewalk in front of a nightclub. They were caught in mid-air by shimmering blue light which quickly ensnared them in a small blue orb floating above the horn-blaring cars cars. They were suspended in the orb in some sort of zero-gravity state. After assessing their surroundings, they looked at me gravely.

“Run, zippy,  just run!” their muffled voice screamed at me. Bittinboulder slowed her advance, focusing instead on Kayden while Starburst and Verdant continued towards me. “Run!” Kayden repeated in a harsh tone. I hesitantly took a few steps before looking back. The Capes were getting closer now, I didn’t have any time to lose. The road ahead was still too crowded to hit full speed, so in a moment of quick thinking I ducked into the doorway of the nearby club and rushed past the waiting patrons and the bouncer at the door, a particularly burly man who seemed rebuffed by my intrusion.

Neon lights illuminated the otherwise warm, crowded and dim room and caused me to wince. I pushed forward into the smokey expanse, weaving between extremely intoxicated people as they danced and raved to the thunderous electronic beats from a DJ on stage wearing some sort of costume animal head. I turned to look back at the entrance once I was submerged amongst the crowd and groaned. Starburst and Verdant had followed me inside and were looking through the crowd for me. It was only a matter of time before I was spotted, especially with Starburst surveying the crowd from above. With only one other option left, I quickly turned into the men’s bathroom and sped into a stall to avoid any uncomfortable exchanges.

I stood awkwardly in the graffiti-laden stall as I willed myself to relax, but I couldn’t seem to untense enough to change back. The consistent beats of the DJ shaking the stall walls around me paired with the specter of discovery proved to be nearly insurmountable stumbling blocks. How could I possibly calm down at a time like this? I could hear a commotion outside, likely signalling the heroes’ approach. I didn’t have any more time. I closed my eyes and clenched down with everything I had, willing myself to change back at all costs. A flash of light filled the stall and left me standing in a dirty club bathroom, now boobless and wearing incredibly tight leather and spandex. I unzipped my jacket and tied it around my waist wearing only my black t-shirt as a top. There wasn’t much I could do with my pants and boots, but I hoped the meager disguise would work.

Realizing that hiding in a bathroom stall probably looked just as suspicious as being in my alter form, I forced myself out of the stall and approached the doorway while I stuffed my goggles into my pocket. A quick reflection check showed slightly visible marks on my face from the mask, but nothing too noticeable. I rubbed my fingers at the impressions around my eyes, but they wouldn’t seem to fade away. 

“Whatever,” I groaned and made my way toward the bathroom exit. “Guess this is good enough.” The crowd undulated and shifted around me to the EDM music as I shoved my way through. Even with my new height it still felt impossibly tight in here, too many elbows digging into my sides and drinks spilling near me. My heart stopped as Starburst hovered over me, her light illuminating myself and several others as she scanned the crowds. Believing my best shot at not being discovered lay in looking as inconspicuous as possible, I looked straight ahead and continued through the crowds to a fire exit nearby. Thankfully Starburst was looking for a 5’6” redhead instead of a nearly 6’ tall guy or or I’m sure she would make me. The music abruptly changed to a 90’s throwback, causing some jeers and applause to swell in the crowd. Verdant stood up next to the DJ’s table, headphones around her head as the DJ dangled from dancing vines. Starburst shook her head and flew over to her, giving me a window of opportunity to escape.

The night air was cool against the nervous sweat that had collected on my forehead as I leaned against the metal of the fire door. I was alone in the alley, though I could still faintly hear the beats of the club even out here.  I cautiously made my way to the edge of the alley to look for Kayden, but I didn’t see them out on the street where they’d previously been caught. I sent them a quick text asking where they were, figuring it was innocuous enough that even if they were captured nobody who’d seen the text would think it was from me.

Once I was out of sight of the bar I switched back, tugging the wrinkled jacket on as I sped toward home. I checked my pockets and hopped around awkwardly as I looked for trackers on my boots, half expecting to see a blinking light screaming "Here I am! Come grab me!" I couldn’t have them following me back home no matter what. 

It felt like an eternity waiting for any kind of message from Kayden to reach my phone. Kayden and the Capes apparently knew each other, though I couldn’t judge how well. I just hoped they were okay. Leaving their hanging fate aside, I still had what Hexecute had said on my mind, plus the fact that Markus had seen my face and had used his powers alongside me. Did that mean he would have a stronger connection towards me? Did he know who I was? I cursed into the wind with reckless abandon. Why couldn’t I have someone I could field questions to? Then there was that rogue thought that had raced through my mind when Hexecute was throwing me around like a paper-mache doll. Did I really want to be Gabrielle full time? Was that even possible?

A flash struck the road ahead and caused me to veer wildly off the road. I landed in the weeds lining the roadside and tumbled head over heels before coming to a stop on a patch of exposed clay in the ground. Bolts of energy shot through the air as the same glowing silhouette I’d encountered a few weeks previous rose from the ground and looked towards me intently. Small spatterings of rain fell onto it, causing an eerie sizzling sensation to fill the air around the being.

“What?” I groaned as I pushed myself into a sitting position. “Has tonight not been fucked enough? Now you have to show up again?” I spat in anger. Unlike before, it didn’t speak. It instead considered me from where it stood, unmoving and stoic. “Come on! Say something! Tell me, what might you have planned for me? Am I just another cog in whatever the fuck your machinations are, too?” Kayden got picked up by the Capes because Hexecute had stalled us and now this thing was fucking with me again. It had to be related somehow, I just didn’t have the pieces to figure it out yet. Seemingly sensing my frustration, it moved forward quickly without seeming to make any physical movements. It was almost like it was teleporting across the sizzling pavement. It rapidly approached me and stood over me in an instant. I raised my arms in defense, hoping to avoid any direct harm it might want to dole out. 

The nerves in my arm cried out as it wrapped it’s hand around me, gripping tightly as the flesh of my forearm bubbled and burnt among the crackling air above them. The pain lasted only for an instant before my mind was thrust elsewhere, outside of myself. Darkness suddenly surrounded my vision while the sound of cracks of lightning and it’s subsequent thunder raged all around. In a burst of light, images began to rapidly flash in front of me.

Alter Academy. Two figures cloaked in shadow. Amethyst-tinted goggles. A train-yard. A storm, large and ferocious, devouring anything and everything in its path. 

They continued to flash in a loop, repeating the same pictures again and again as if in some sort of message. The images abruptly began to intersperse cuts of the being as it stared down at me, roaring once more in an incoherent manner. Tears rolled down from my eyes and pooled at the bottom of my goggles as I came to the realization that for the second time tonight I feared I was about to die. A scream pierced through the night, through the roars of this being and the storm it was showing me. It took me a moment to realize that that scared, shrill voice belonged to me. 

The being vanished as quickly as it appeared, leaving only a few wisps of energy in its wake and me sitting in a near fetal position on the side of the road in the dark. I didn’t move, too shaken to come to my senses. I fell to my side, my head coming to rest in the dust and clay beneath it. My lungs couldn’t seem to take in air, instead gasping uselessly while my fingers desperately clawed at the grass surrounding me. What did that thing do to me? The loud blaring of a car horn from the road roused me from my shock. I clawed towards a tree and pulled myself up, a deep gasp allowing air to once more flow into my lungs. I surveyed the scene. A car was stopped on the road, it’s headlights highlighting something ahead of it. The man in the car had stuck his head out and was yelling at me, but I wasn’t listening to him speak. The monster wasn’t anywhere, and I saw no tell-tale energy bolts either. I slowly made my way up to the road and looked down at what the car’s lights were illuminating. Carved into the asphalt was a word, smoke still rising off it’s surface.

Bleeding.

 

* * *

 

Sitting still in Catarelli’s class the next morning was probably the hardest thing I’d ever forced myself to do. Other students were milling around, still talking about the fading weekend and what they’d done while I steeled myself against my desk, willing myself to keep my eyes off my phone. Kayden never called me back the previous night after I’d dragged myself home. I had collapsed on my bed in my alter form, too tired from the night’s events and in too much pain from my arm to risk slowing down my healing at all. At one point I even wrapped myself in blankets and grabbed the rest of the calorie bars Mel had given me. I’d eaten them both in approximately seven seconds. 

I finally relented to the pressure and checked my phone. Still nothing from Kayden, though. No calls, no texts, nothing to let me know they were okay. I ran my fingers through my hair and exhaled heavily. I’d blurted their name out to Hexecute last night, what if the Capes let Kayden go and Hexecute swooped down and took them out right then and there? What if they were in league with Hexecute? Was it already too late to save them?

“...Mr. McArthur,” a shrill voice from the front of the class called. Ms. Catarelli and the rest of the class were staring at me, the latter stifling giggles as they watched with interest.

“Huh?” I asked in a confused tone.

“I’ve called your name three times now. Are you okay?” she asked, genuine concern slipping into her voice.

“Y-yeah,” I replied hesitantly. “Just stuff on my mind.”

“Okay,” she replied, sounding unconvinced. “I was asking if you had any partner you preferred for the trial patrol today.”

“Trial patrol?”

She rolled her eyes. “Really not with me today, are you Mr. McArthur? Okay, for the last time, class; today is our class’ turn to run a trial patrol with the Crescent City municipal government and law enforcement so we can all get a chance to experience what hero work is really like. As I’ve said before, a great deal of you will find that it doesn’t suit you, pardon the pun.”

“When did this get planned?” I asked in confusion. After everything that had gone down the previous night it felt like we should all be on lock-down, not making ourselves more vulnerable than ever before.

“Mr. McArthur, I announced this event yesterday. Learn to pay more attention in class, or you may find that life will pass you by without your knowing it,” she said solemnly. “Now, who do you want to be partnered with today? Everyone needs to have patrol-buddy.” She held up a clip board with a pen at the ready.

“Uh… Cass?” I replied. Cass gave me a sick high-five as thanks.

“Ah, Cassandra Carmen. Noted.” She scribbled onto the clip-board and smiled. After gathering the rest of the patrol buddies, she described what a “Test Patrol” was comprised of. Essentially they were pre-scheduled days when certain groups of students from Alter Academy, in this case our home room, would forgo classes for the second half of the day and would instead patrol for several hours in the city proper and several other districts, all ideally aimed at helping students get a feel for the idea of what being a licensed hero is. Essentially it was a mock situation where we experience the realities of licensed hero work like long night hours and less- than- ideal conditions. We would be leaving at the end of our next period so we were instructed to grab our gym equipment and meet back here shortly.

“But wait, how will that have us experience night hours if we start in the middle of the day?” I quickly asked. Ms. Catarelli pursed her lips.

“It will be a simulation of working during the night,” she replied tersely.

“But we’re still only doing it for like four hours--”

“It. Is. A. Simulation. Gavin. It doesn’t have to be exactly the same.”

“Okay, then do we have matching outfits?” I laughed quietly to Cass who snickered as well.

“Yes, actually,” Catarelli affirmed with an exhausted sigh. “Your gym uniforms will mark you as trainees. That should keep us from seeing any actual heat. Most folks in the community, even the bad ones, know that the trainee designation means that you are ‘off-limits” as it were.”

“Great, so training wheels basically?” I slumped in my chair. I’d been seeing actual action all month. Regardless of whether I wanted to experience the level of crazy I’d seen last night again today, it still rubbed me the wrong way that they were babying us. To add insult to injury, I wouldn’t be able to do anything while on the patrol since there’d be witnesses everywhere. Cass patted my shoulder comfortingly.

“Don’t worry, Gabs. I’m sure it’ll fly by,” she said, correctly guessing the source of my frustration. I hadn’t told her about what happened with Hexecute and Kayden out of fear of how she’d take that information. Hopefully once I heard something from Kayden I would feel differently. 

A buzz ran through my desk, bringing me back into the moment. I ripped my phone from where it sat on my desk and examined the notification.

 

UNKNOWN NUMBER:

Gabby. It is Mel. Kayden is here being interviewed. I am running interference. They should be back on the street in a day or two. Thank you. Signed, The Mechanic.

 

Relief flooded my veins like a drug injection, causing me to relax every muscle in my body. Kayden was okay. They’d be okay. I placed it back in my pocket. Once they were out I could explain what Hexecute had said the previous night about Kayden and we could figure out our next steps. The class began to vacate as Ms. Catarelli cleared her throat a final time.

“Oh, one final thing. Cinney Arello, Anastasia Carel, and Macie Mural please report to the gymnasium immediately after class,” she called out in a reserved voice. Cinney, a thin waifish girl with her hair piled high on her head, frowned. I didn’t know her or the other girls beyond a first-name basis, but Cinney definitely seemed to have a penchant for gossip judging by the amount of time she spent huddled with the other two whispering in hushed tones before an occasional squeal rang through the room.

“Why?” she replied.

Ms. Catarelli looked somewhat tired rather abruptly as she let out a deep sigh. “Because all young women in the school who have not exhibited alter abilities are required to report to the gymnasium. You don’t need to know more than that.”

“Ugh, but I have Bruddeger’s class next! I have to get a seat in the back so he doesn’t pick me for the hard questions,” she whined in a nasally voice.

“Sorry, but you have no choice in the matter, Cinney. Rules are rules. You can still come today, so nothing to worry about.” Catarelli returned to her chair behind her desk. Cinney stormed off into the hallway towards the gym, her two friends in tow behind her. Cass and I exchanged a look.

“Gabs…” she started.

“Listen, I can explain--” I tried to interject, but she was having none of it. She pulled me out into the hallway and whispered fiercely into my ear.

“What did you do last night?”

 

* * *

 

Cass and I peered into the window slotted in the gymnasium doors at the small line of girls assembling inside. We still had several minutes before our second period would begin, allowing us to watch as several students were gathered in the gym. They were lined up in a path heading towards several teachers and faculty members including Mrs. Bekker, Nurse Prim, Mrs. Bittinboulder, and Mr. Garrison. Nurse Prim was holding an odd device in her hands that she was waving over a girl standing in a T-like pose. The device looked incredibly familiar but I couldn’t seem to put my finger on exactly why.

“Geez, Gabs, what the hell were you thinking? Now they know it’s a student here,” she hissed under her breath.

“I know, I know. I was an idiot.” I rolled my eyes. “What is that thing they’re using?”

“I think it’s supposed to be a scanner… thing? It looks like the tech they use to find the alter-echos before we have our alter-cation,” Cass replied, sounding unsure. “I guess it’s something that tells them if a person has an active alter form?”

“I still think ‘alter-cation’ is way to dorky to be a real scientific term for turning into an alter for the first time.”

“Well tough, it is science.” She stuck her tongue out at me.

“Why are they scanning only the girls?” I persisted. The anxiety running rampant was keeping me amped up.

She shrugged. “I dunno… cis-normative bullshit? Still, it’s only a matter of time before they realize none of the cis girls are the speedster and wise up. What are you going to do?”

“I… haven’t gotten that far, yet,” I admitted. Sammy was in line behind Cinney, who was currently being scanned, and she looked as pissed as I’d ever seen her. She looked more tired as well, it was clear she’d gotten almost no sleep recently. Judging by the beeps we could hear from behind the doors, that scanner sounded as loud as the school bell. It probably didn’t help that Cinney seemed to have been talking incessantly since we’d gotten to the door, likely placing Sammy in her own personal hell. Prim began to run the scanner over Cinney, who in turn did not appear to have an active alter form like the other girls before her. Prim straightened out her posture, placing a hand on her back and arching it while she yawned. As she did, her head turned in our direction. She curiously eyed us for a moment as Sammy stepped up to her scanner.

“Oh--Gabs, is she--” Cass began, though a new, much louder beeping sound erupted from Nurse Prim’s handheld device. She snapped her attention towards Sammy as her device flashed red warning lights.

“She--she’s transformed right now?” I could make out Nurse Prim’s voice echoing through the large empty room. The other staff members scrambled to her.

“What? No I ain’t,” Sammy snapped, her expression quickly shifting to confusion. Mr. Garrison and Mrs. Bekker both stepped in front of her and began to speak with her, however their tone was too low for me to make anything out. Mr. Garrison reached for the copper bracelet on Sammy’s arm, causing her eyes to widen in an almost green-tinted illumination. 

“It’s mine! Get the fuck away from me!” she screamed in an unsettling voice, almost sounding as if multiple people were speaking at once. She pushed him back roughly and caused him to fall backwards away from the others. He slid roughly across the ground towards us before he hit the doors with a loud rattle. Sammy recoiled in horror, staring at her hands like they were knives protruding from her wrists. The copper bracelet began to glow a sickly green color as it slowly expanded over her arm, first forming some sort of wrist-guard before expanding into a shining metal pauldron and bracer. Mrs. Bekker wasted no time in rushing over to a box held amongst some medical equipment that Prim had brought with her and retrieved a clellium sphere, likely the same one Cass and I had witnessed her use the other day. Mrs. Bekker quickly pressed it down onto the bare skin of Sammy’s other arm as her eyes began to exhibit more and more green light. A mass of smoke to erupted from where Sammy stood, quickly filling most of the area around the staff and Sammy.

Mr. Garrison pulled himself up using the door as a crutch before catching us gawking in the window. 

“Get back to class, now,” he angrily barked, slamming the door open to the extent it’s hinges would allow. Other students quickly filed out through the opening with panic in their eyes. He looked back towards the dissipating smoke cloud where it looked like Sammy had collapsed onto the ground. Her armband was back to it’s normal size, though it still faintly glowed green. 

“What did I say?” Mr. Garrison groaned. “Don’t worry about her, she’ll be fine. Just a class-O alter, nothing we haven’t seen before.” Something about the way his voice dropped when he said class-O caught my attention, almost as if he was masking revulsion in his voice. 

“Class-O?” Cass persisted, rigid in her fear for her friend. 

He glared at us intensely. “It means object-granted alter-cation. Listen, kids, this school is full of experts who actually know what we’re doing. Your friend will be fine, just get back to class.” Mrs. Bittinboulder joined Mr. Garrison at the doors and pulled them shut, leaving Cass and I outside in the empty hallway. We looked at each other nervously. 

“What the hell?” I whispered as we began to head away from the gym and towards our respective second periods. 

“I know! What was that?” she replied. “Something about a class-O alter? Do you think her bracelet--?”

“No, Cass, it's just a perfectly normal bracelet that started growing into a suit of armor through completely normal and not at all alter-related means.” I muttered sarcastically. “Can we help her?”

Cass bit her lip in concern. “I don’t think we can. I mean, all those teachers are with her now. And isn’t that what this school is for? A safe place to, you know, be an alter?”

“I guess… I still don’t feel good about leaving her.

Cass shook her head. ‘Yeah, me neither.”

 

* * *

 

We gathered back in Catarelli’s classroom after our third period class. She was wearing a suit similar to our gym suits, however hers had notable blue markings running over it’s length.

She cleared her throat and addressed us as we wandered back in. “Alright, guys. You should all have your gym suits. Bathrooms are down the hallway, get changed and make your way back here. We’ll leave in about 30 minutes.” The class groaned in shared displeasure at the prospect of changing in the small bathrooms she was referring to and the inevitable lines that we’d have to endure. The men’s room only had two stalls which meant that I’d definitely would have to change in front of the boys in class if I didn’t want to wait for a stall. The oddity of that thought made me chuckle to myself. So much for being one of the guys. I looked between the boys leaving the room and the girls trailing after them let out an emotional sigh. I couldn’t deny what I’d caught myself thinking last night. I… I was a girl. At least I thought I was. But… yeah. I was a girl. 

The odd thing about accepting a fact so simple about myself was how profoundly it altered my perception of behaviors and thoughts I’d had in the past. Why I was always so jealous of clothes other girls got to wear and why I stole Jules’ clothes. Why looking at my reflection was a dice-roll on whether my day would turn out positively or not. Why I learned to hide my flinch when people called me ‘young man’. In short order, a lot of things about me suddenly made a lot more sense. What that meant moving forward I wasn’t ready to sort out yet, but if anything else, a newfound sense of peace permeated from my core. Cass looked annoyed as she trudged out towards the hallway. I asked Cass how many stalls the girls bathroom had, figuring the line was probably going to be long, but she gave a non-commital shrug.

“You don’t know?” I asked quietly.

“I only use certain bathrooms in the less-trafficked areas. I don’t want to cause any scenes or have someone yell at me,” she answered in a quiet, sad voice.

“Seriously? Cass…” I rubbed her shoulder reassuringly.

She shook me off. “It’s fine The school isn’t as supportive as I’d like, but I guess they’re indifferent to most stuff.” She glanced at the clock and groaned. “I need to head to the bathrooms over by the history hallway, so I have to leave now. Meet you back here?” She walked out the hallway keeping her eyes on me.

“Yeah, definitely,” I replied. She nodded happily and turned around, nearly bumping into two approaching figures as she left. I let out a small gasp as Nurse Prim entered the room with Markus in tow. She scanned the room for a moment before approaching Ms. Catarelli. Markus looked… tired. His hands were stuffed into his basketball shorts and his hair was clearly unwashed, greasy, and hanging in his eyes. He caught sight of me and scowled, fury overwriting even the exhaustion he previously exhibited. A small snap of light, likely no larger than the width of a hair, cracked in front of his left temple, causing him to wince and groan inaudibly. What the hell was that?

“Hey Nora.” Prim smiled weakly. Ms. Catarelli looked up from her clipboard and smiled, though she seemed confused to see Markus tagging alongside her.

“Hey Eliza, what’s up?” she asked cautiously.

“Something new, for a change. I’m sure you’re well aware of the ‘incident’ last night…” Nurse Prim began.

“Oh, I got the phone call at midnight, yes.” Ms. Catarelli replied, a hint of fatigue creeping into her voice as she ran a hand through her hair.

“Well due to another ‘incident’ earlier today, I need to make a run into the off-site lab for school business,” Nurse Prim sighed. “Mr. Garrison believes that having Markus tag along with your group today would be a constructive way to help correct Mr. Miller’s belief about vigilantism in regards to his actions last night.” Markus let out an indignant moan.

“I already told you, I wasn’t being a vigilante or anything. I was out looking for that speedster girl,” Markus snapped at the two teachers. Nurse Prim rubbed at the bridge of her nose while Ms. Catarelli looked somewhat shocked at his outburst. 

“I can retrieve him at some point today once I’m finished,” Prim continued, seemingly unperturbed.

“Sure,” Ms. Catarelli hesitantly replied. “We can take him. You’ve got my cell number, right?” 

She looked over to me as I continued to stare at them and frowned. “Gavin, go change already. And take Markus, he’ll be coming with us today,” she commanded.

“F-fine,” I stammered, hurrying to collect my suit before Markus, king of scowls and apparently energy blasting, could do whatever he had planned for me. I quickly walked down the hallway, peaking over my shoulder as I went, hoping Markus would stay away from me for the time being. My hopes were dashed as a minor flash of light illuminated the hallway and a hand roughly gripped my arm and yanked me away from where I stood. The hallways blurred as Markus hauled me towards an unknown destination. I would have expected to feel ill moving at this pace in my default form, but strangely it felt just as natural as in my alter form. Markus ripped a door nearly off its hinges and threw me into a familiar broom-closet, the very same one Cass and I had encountered each other in not-so long ago. The door slammed shut, leaving Markus standing in his speedster form angrily staring me down, blocking the exit. I rubbed at my butt, still sore from landing awkwardly on the cement floor.

“What did you do to me, McArthur?!” he growled.

“W-what?” I replied, stumbling over my words as he slowly walked towards me.

The knuckles in one of his fists cracked threateningly. “My powers, dumbass. Ever since you showed up I’ve been feeling exhausted and my powers have been acting up.”

“I have no idea what--” he grabbed a fistfull of my suit and yanked me to my feet.

“Cut the shit! I know you’re a fucking mimic!” he hissed as he leaned his face close enough to my own that I could feel his breath on my nose. Mimics were a certain kind of alter that could replicate the powers of another individual by coming into physical contact with the subject. Usually this allowed the mimic to copy the original alter’s powers for a limited time, however it always passed along the quirks of that power to the new user, meaning if you copied someone with a debilitating quirk you would end up with that same quirk for as long as the powers remained in your system. I recalled hearing that this was the reason why mimics were usually kept separate from other alters, they were too volatile to keep around any large groups of powered folk. Their effects on other alters did indeed include fatigue and glitching if I remembered the biology chapter I’d read last week correctly.

“What?” I mumbled in a confused voice. Markus let me go, dropping me back onto my feet. 

“Still playing coy, dude? I know you’ve been copying my speed.” He began to count on his hand. “There was that time playing dodgeball a few weeks back when you somehow dodged out of the way of a speeding ball I threw using my powers. That shouldn’t have been possible in the first place, but then once you noticed me watching you, you put your head back in the path of the ball like you were trying to hide. Then there’s that weird faint connection I keep feeling around you like… like…” he trailed off.

“Like what?” I spat as I dusted myself off.

“Like you’re my speedster pair,” he grunted. “Which, considering you don’t have boobs, is pretty impossible. Kip also told me about when you dodged out of the way of his punch like I can and shrugged it off like it was no big deal. And finally, there was the mall last weekend.”

Shit. I knew that was going to bite me in the ass. “Last weekend?” I said quietly.

“Last weekend,” he repeated tersely. “When I saw your stupid ass at the mall, just after someone used super speed to fuck with my boys.”

“Listen, I know that this seems like too much to be a coincidence, but believe me, you have the wrong idea,” I insisted.

“No, I don’t think I do.” Markus roughly shoved me backwards. “I know exactly what you are, McArthur.”

“You really don’t,” I pleaded with him, hoping he’d waver in whatever burning passion was fueling him.

“I do, and I’m going to make sure everyone knows.” He took another step forward. “You’ve been hiding up until now, content to take my powers like a little thief. Well, that’s over--” he yelped sharply before doubling over as more energy discharged from his body. One of his hands began to vibrate quickly, something I deduced he had no control over judging by his panicked expression. “S-stop it, McArthur!” he groaned.

“I’m not doing anything,” I stressed. “I’m not a mimic!”

“Then w-what are y-you?” he looked up at me as the tremors running through his body began to slowly cease once more.

I hesitated to answer. For each second I held my breath Markus’ expression grew more and more frustrated. He really would tell everyone about my powers, that much was clear even if he was wrong about what my powers actually were. My fists clenched and my body tensed all over. I’d have to tell him. If they had any hint I was a mimic they’d immediately test me. I didn’t have any other choice. 

“You don’t even know what you’re asking me to confess, Markus,” I whispered quietly. He slowly  began to pick himself back up. “What?”

“Just… promise me you won’t tell another soul what I’m about to show you,” I sighed, resigned to my fate. 

“Ugh, no promises, mimic.” He stepped back. I closed my eyes. The energy within me was never too far, and unfortunately I found it again this time without any trouble. Every other time I’d felt it running through my veins, it had felt happy and alive. Now only shame and anxiety seemed to register. A flash filled the room, leaving me in my alter form and standing in front of Markus as he hurriedly rubbed at his eyes in total disbelief. We stared at each other for a long time, neither of us really needing to speak. A tether-like connection bound us and allowed our energies to ebb and flow against each other like the two pieces of a forked river flowing back into one whole. 

“So you’re… her…” Markus muttered, his eyes transfixed on me.

“Yeah, I’m her,” I confirmed. “I’m a speedster, Markus. I’m no mimic.”

“Duh,” he chuckled nervously. “A mimic can’t copy something so…” he paused as our energies invisibly lashed against each other again. “Real.”

“Two sides of the same coin,” I stated. He nodded quietly looked pensive. “You’re not upset or weirded out?” I asked cautiously.

“Oh, hell yeah, I am. When I saw you the first time a few weeks ago I got all these ideas in my head, for sure. I thought you were smoking hot. Definitely wanted to ask you out.”

“Uh…” I shuddered, uncomfortable with the mental image of Markus and I dating floating around my head. He shrugged.

“It’s fuckin’ weird that your alter form is a girl, that’s for damn sure. But beggars can’t be choosers. You’re what I’ve got. It’s going to take some adjustment getting used to the fact that the dude I’m working with has boobs, but that’s not that big a deal I guess as long as I remind myself that you’re a guy inside of there.”

“What?” I asked sharply. Did he just say what I thought he said?

“You know, like a reverse jawbreaker. Sweet on the outside, sour on the inside.” Markus shifted back into his default form. “Sorry for thinking you were a girl, bud.”

“Markus,” I inhaled deeply, puffing myself up as I walked towards him. “I’m not a guy. I am a girl.”

“You sure about that? Cause I saw you in the locker room. Pretty sure there was a dick there,” he glanced down at my crotch.

“What? Yes, I’m an inverse,” I answered sternly. Markus stepped closer waving his hands as if to yield.

He brushed me off with a, “Sure, sure, whatever. I mean that makes sense now. You can swap back and forth. That’s cool, that’s cool.” I was beginning to get the sense that he wasn’t taking anything I said seriously. 

“Do you promise to keep my secret, Markus?” I asked.

“What? Oh, that you turn into a girl? Yeah, sure. That’s probably pretty embarrassing. I may be a bully, but I’m not a dick,” he grinned.  Remembering that Catarelli had said we only had a limited amount of time, hesitantly I returned to my default form.

“Beg to differ.” I rolled my eyes and brushed past him. 

“Where are you going?” he asked.

“Anywhere but here,” I replied coldly as I opened the door and left the small room. 

 

* * *

 

Our group was gathered on top of the school building while Ms. Catarelli ran through a roll call on her clipboard. The sky was overcast but light in color, likely indicating that it wouldn’t rain for the duration of the day. Mr. Bayes stood next to Ms. Catarelli with a similarly blue-marked suit to her own looking extremely confident. We were all wearing our gym uniforms with a mask wrapped around our faces similar to the domino mask I’d used before getting my new suit. Cass had arrived back from the bathroom just in time and out of breath, having had to run to the other side of the school and back to change. I was still bristling about how unfair it was when Catarelli finished the roll call.

“Okay, glad to see all these happy faces today,” she said robotically, almost as if she was reciting from a script she’d memorized. Mr. Bayes elbowed her.

“C’mon, Nora, relax. The kids are going to be fine.” He smiled his perfect smile at us. God, he was so hot. Ms. Catarelli forced herself to take a deep breath.

“Right, right. Everything is going to be fine,” she exhaled softly. “Patrol day always winds me up. Okay kids, today is patrol day. That means that we will be travelling all over the city so you can get a feel for the reality of hero work on a day to day basis. Generally speaking, we have seen that most students at Alter Academy, after coming to understand the reality of the job, prefer a calling in life more mundane in nature than heroics. It’s not an easy or glamorous job.”

“Were either of you heroes when you were younger?” someone in the back of our group asked.

“Mr. Bayes was. I was not,” Ms. Catarelli answered.

Cass raised her hand. “Why weren’t you a hero? And why did you stop?” 

“Because as you’ll see today, in the real world licensed alters must work with the police if they wish to continue a symbiotic relationship with our community leaders. That means paperwork. That means taking responsibility for unnecessary collateral damage. That means explaining to the people that hold us accountable why an innocent life died on our watch. That was something I didn’t see as fitting my mold,” Catarelli explained.

“I stopped because after a few years I decided that it wasn’t something I was cut out to shoulder myself. Personal entanglements always take secondary priority to hero work, and that began to have a severe impact on my friends and family. I felt that I wanted to be more available to them, and so I gave up my license,” Mr. Bayes added. He pulled out a bangle from a pouch on his suit and slipped it over his arm. It flattened against his skin immediately and began to emanate a brilliant yellow glow. A quick flash indicated he’d entered into his alter form, now showcasing a much more toned physique. His face was very similar to his default form with the exception of his smile. It was almost magnetic in its brilliance. A circle began to carve its way underneath our feet as he concentrated. It filled in with the same yellow hue his bracelet was emanating.

“Holy crap! Mr. Bayes, you’re a Yellow Beacon?” I exclaimed. The Yellow Beacons were something of a pseudo guardian force around the planet and in the surrounding space. Their bracelets emitted yellow light and took shape of whatever their imagination commanded, allowing them to throw an anvil at you or trap you in a bubble similarly to Bittinboulder’s apparent power. His glowing bracelet began to remind me of what I’d seen Sammy wearing for the past several weeks. I wondered if it was related?

“I was,” he corrected with a laugh. “Now I’m just an incredibly handsome guy with a cool accessory.” A railing rose up out of the yellow surface beneath our feet, connecting each pole of yellow light until we were standing on something more akin to a platform. 

“Okay guys, alter forms on,” Catarelli called to us. Without missing a beat, flashes began to light up the yellow platform in alternating patterns. Everyone shifted into their alter states barring myself, Cinny, and a few others. I rolled my eyes as Cass looked down at me sadly, her wings twitching and hungry to take off into the sky. Catarelli transformed as well, becoming thinner and lithe in physique, somewhat similarly to my own alter form. She looked at us with a coy smile. “What? You didn’t think my alter form was cat-related, did you?”

“You owe me fifteen bucks,” I whispered to Cass who let out an annoyed mumbled. We began to lift up off the roof and drifted through the air above the city streets. Subtlety was definitely not a strong suit for the Yellow Beacons. In the distance I could see Crescent City Tower. Kayden was probably inside, waiting to be released. No chance they were sharing anything with the Capes, they were far too proud to let outsiders work on leads they tracked down.

“Nobody lean off the side,” Ms. Catarelli said as she walked over to Mr. Bayes and showed him something on her phone. “I don’t want to have to blink down and catch you.” She pointed to Markus who was leaning against the railing disinterestedly. “I’m liable to let you fall, mister, so no funny business.”

He looked at me and smiled. “Nah, I think I’ve had my fill of ‘funny business’ today.” A quiet tremor ran through his arm as he smiled. He quickly moved it behind his torso to keep it from view before anyone else could notice. We soared over the city methodically as Ms. Catarelli provided steering direction for Mr. Bayes. Judging by the path we were taking, we were purposely avoiding densely crowded areas and were mainly sticking to the sparser parts of town like the docks and trainyard. We spent around a couple hours floating around the city while Ms. Catarelli and Mr. Bayes pointed out hotspots and points of interest that would be useful on a patrol. However, each time I looked where they were pointing I only saw vacant lots and empty gas stations. The two burglaries that Kayden and I foiled happened clear on the other side of town from this area. While there could certainly be other meet-ups and criminal activity on this side of town too, I wasn’t familiar with any of it and these places certainly didn’t look like crime dens.

“Is there a reason why we aren’t closer to downtown?” I asked as I approached Catarelli.

“Sure is. Most parts of the downtown area have already been cleared out these days,” Mr. Bayes interjected. “The seedier side of Crescent City pretty much spread out further and further over the years into the city outskirts, development sites, and the industrial areas. Sometimes they’re even in the suburbs.”

“Really?” I asked, amazed by his display of experience.

“Oh, yeah, you’d be surprised what folks can fit into an empty house,” he laughed. A near-silent ding rang on Ms. Catarelli’s phone while Mr. Bayes and I laughed together. She read the notification with a growing concern in her expression.

“Hey Gavin? Can you walk away for a moment, please? I need to speak with Mr. Bayes privately,” she asked me.

“Sure,” I nodded. I walked a short distance over to Cass, but kept my eyes on the teachers and struggled to listen over the ambient conversations of students and the wind rushing past.

Catarelli showed her phone to Mr. Bayes who gave her a bewildered look. She shrugged and pointed to the east. Mr. Bayes obliged and began to turn the platform in the direction she’d specified. Where were they taking us? 

It seemed that our destination was Simmons train-yard, a small collection of cargo cars and trains under maintenance were littered across the railroad speckled grounds below us. As we hovered a flash of light shined below us followed by the sound of a small explosion. Bayes and Catarelli gave each other a knowing look. 

Alright, kids. It’s showtime,” Mr. Bayes called to us. Cass and I exchanged concerned glances.

“Showtime?” One of the students asked as we lowered onto a patch of dirt and gravel at Ms. Catarelli’s request. 

“Yes, that’s right.” Catarelli nodded. “Hero work.” Excitement rang through our group at the prospect of seeing actual action after the long wait on the platform had proven to be an excruciatingly boring affair. Cass, too, seemed particularly jittery, her wings were twitching and a playful smile etched clearly across her face. I couldn’t say I was anticipating what came next to the same extent as my classmates, however. How could I? I would have to let them do whatever the teachers would direct them to do while I stood back knowing I could end whatever we encountered in the blink of an eye. I looked to Markus. I wasn’t exactly sure why beyond, perhaps, a longing for understanding. Instead of sharing in my frustration, he looked troubled as small glints of electricity were slipping off him again. He had accused me of being a mimic and regardless of the fact that I wasn’t, he was still glitching. That meant that someone who was one had mimicked him recently. I’d need to ask him about that later so Kayden and I could follow it up.  

The platform faded from view, leaving us standing in the middle of the eerily empty trainyard. The sun was beginning to lower behind the tall buildings in the distance, causing shadows to elongate across the ground and bathe quite a few areas in darkness.

“Okay, guys. Stay behind Ms. C and I, okay?” Mr. Bayes commanded. We all sheepishly shuffled behind him and Ms. Catarelli as they took point and continued into the train yard. They began lecturing us about the importance of being aware of one’s surroundings as we slowly made our way further towards the sound of the explosion, crunching gravel beneath our feet as we moved. I couldn’t help but groan indignantly. Catarelli and Bayes weren’t being quiet or concerned with the amount of sound both they and we were making upon approach at all, something that struck me as odd. Considering they were leading mostly untrained kids into a dangerous situation, you’d think they would be more focused on being as efficient and thorough as possible. 

We entered a small clearing where cargo containers were lined up for loading, judging by the crates and pallets of goods left out next to them. Why were there bundles of goods just waiting out in the open without any workers around? They didn’t look as if rain had touched them recently, so they weren’t old as far as I could tell from a distance. All ambient conversations had died out in our group when we landed, letting silence dominate the air around us save for the occasional call of a nearby bird. Something about this didn’t feel right, and judging by their troubled expressions, Bayes and Catarelli were feeling it too. A silhouetted figure stepped out from behind a cargo container a bit ahead of us. Strangely, Bayes and Catarelli seemed to visibly relax.

“Halt,” Mr. Bayes called to the figure. The figure turned towards us and quickly threw a ball shaped object in our direction. Mr. Bayes wasted no time and conjured a shield of energy around us as the ball exploded in mid-air. 

“Explo-Dirk. Shouldn’t you be in prison?” Mr. Bayes laughed heartily, letting the shield recede back into thin air. The figure stepped forwards and entered into the light. They were tall and cloaked in a bulky red robe with a hood drawn up over their head, concealing their face. The figure didn’t respond and instead stood still. Mr. Bayes seemed thrown off. “Because they called, they want you back,” he continued. The figure shook its head and threw another bomb in our direction. Mr. Bayes threw up another shield quickly to catch the resulting explosion, though not as fast as he had done previously. “Hey, didn’t you hear me, pal? I said the jig was up.” He looked back toward us for a moment before continuing, “Come quietly and we can get through all of that police work.” Ms. Catarelli stepped forward and stood next to Mr. Bayes.

“Dirk?” she called to the figure with a cautious voice. The figure replied by tossing another bomb in our direction. This one detonated much closer to us as Mr. bayes was even later in catching it than he was before.

“Dirk! Remember the rehearsals?” Mr. Bayes whispered loudly. The figure continued to stand still away from us while Mr. Bayes and Ms. Catarelli tried to talk to him. Something about the figure was catching my attention, however. Mr. Bayes began to seethingly walk towards the figure, shouting at him to stand down when I recognized a familiar amethyst glint quietly shining beneath the hood the figure wore. 

Oh my god.

Out of nowhere a speeding blur blasted into Mr. Bayes, knocking him onto the ground. Another shape dove out of the air and into Ms. Catarelli, driving her roughly into one of the cargo containers. She fell limply to the ground as it retreated and hovered above the red-hooded figure. He removed his cloak, proving what I’d already concluded. Hexecute, with his goggles and mask stood before us. His shining metal armor, now with more plating and coverage than he wore previously glinted in the waning sun. He flicked his wrist and several more drones flew out from behind containers toward the struggling Mr. Bayes on the ground. They slammed into his writhing form, causing him to cry out in agony. 

“Y-you!” Markus shouted, fear resonating through his voice.

“Me,” Hexecute replied robotically. “Hello, Markus Miller.” Cass surged past me, her fist raised to strike as she flew towards Hexecute.

“And I’m Sulfur, nice to meet you!” she screamed. Hexecute gestured towards her but remained where he stood. Two more drones flew out from the containers and each shot a bola in her direction. They whipped around Cass’ wings tightly, cutting them off from any movement. She fell to the ground roughly and slid past Hexecute who stepped out of the way as she passed him. She slid into some trash cans near a light pole which knocked over onto her. Anxiety began to rip through me with astonishing force. He was hurting my friends and teachers, I couldn’t let him get away with this. I looked back towards Cinney, Markus and the other students watching this unfold with horrified expressions. Unless I ran behind one of the cargo containers and transformed, there’s no way they wouldn’t see me turing into Gabby.

“Nice try, Cassandra Carmen,” he cackled. Yet another few drones approached us from behind and grabbed on to Markus with iron claws around his wrists and dragged him forward with them as they approached their menacing master. 

“Markus!” I screamed. Had this been Hexecute’s plan all along? To kidnap Markus? How did he even know Markus would be here? Several of the other students vollied their own attempts at resistance towards Hexecute, but each of their efforts were summarily foiled by the enormous amount of drones now swirling around us. They raised their hands as a sign of surrender as the drones took closer and closer swipes past the students. Curiously, not many drones surrounded Cinny and I. There were still enough to stop me from running away and out of sight, but not enough to stop me from making a break directly towards Hexecute. I tightened my fist. There had to be something I could do!

“I told you, Markus Miller. I told you that I would be coming for you,” Hexecute mocked Markus as he was dragged before him.

“Bite me!” Markus screamed back. He spat onto the goggles of Hexecute and laughed in a roaring tone.

“And that’s what the goggles are for,” Hexecute groaned as the spit slid down the lenses of his goggles. “Let’s make this quick, child. Once I’m done with you I’ll be moving on to a lead regarding your little girlfriend’s shape-shifting partner. With any luck, by the end of the week I’ll have what I need from you both and the world will be a little more complete again.” He pulled Markus up close to his mask.

“W-why? Why would you want both of us? You’d already have speedster powers after one,” Markus nervously replied.

“Because you need a complete key to open a door, Markus. Not half of one,” Hexecute corrected him. “It’s time for me to collect the rest of your essence, child.” Hexecute raised a glowing gloved hand to Markus’ face. What did he mean by ‘the rest’? Had he taken some of Markus’ powers already?

“No, wait no hold on! Please just stop--” Markus tearfully pleaded with the villain before him, but it was to no avail. Hexecute quickly grabbed ahold of Markus’ face, placing his hand over Markus’ mouth with his thumb and fingers wrapped tightly around his jaw. Markus began to scream in agony as his body shimmered brilliantly, golden particles danced around him to a furious beat before their movements shifted and began to flow upwards. Up and up they flew, straight into Hexecute’s gauntlet. 

All of the remaining students around me had either been taken out by the drones circling us, or were kneeling on the ground with their hands raised in the air. I was the only one still standing. The drones still circled us, cutting off any chance I had of transforming unseen. I willed myself to take a step forward. I couldn’t watch this any more. I had to do something. Another step forward. And another. The anxiety began to bubble away in place of something else; something new.

Hexecute eyed me in a languidly. “Gavin McArthur. I would advise you to join your friends in kneeling on the ground. You are no threat to me,” he growled. I continued forward, determination rushing like a torrential river through my body. I could feel the energy burning white-hot in my chest. But I held back. Just a little bit longer. The particles of light surrounding Markus’ form were sparse now, only a few remained in orbit of his body. If there was any chance to save him, it was now. 

“I know you do not have powers, boy, just like I know how to beat all of your little friends here. Stand down. You will receive no further warning!” he screamed at me. I began to sprint forward, kicking up loose gravel as I ran. Hexecute gestured towards me with his free hand. One of the drones circling the others broke free of its formation and began to pursue me at alarming speed. The final particles surrounding Markus flew to Hexecute’s gauntlet. Markus didn’t turn back to his default form in a puff of smoke and light as usual, instead his form just shrank in upon itself like a deflating balloon. His hair lost all of it’s additional color and his body went limp.  I closed my eyes and let out a sharp breath. I gripped the energy, sharp and volatile and powerful as ever, and felt it explode outwards into the rest of my body. I burst out of the resulting flash in a dead sprint, everything around me a blur except Hexecute and Markus. 

“It was you!” I heard him shout in a low-robotic town as I barrelled into the two, knocking Markus limply to the ground as I tackled Hexecute into a shipping container. 

“Hexy? Do I need to get a restraining order on you?” I smirked as I launched several punches at his face, knocking those damn purple goggles askew. He caught one of my fists and pulled it up above my head before gut-checking me into the cargo container next to him. I angled my legs up to land my feet onto the container. I pushed off the metal surface in a flash and launched myself back at him. “C’mon, you’re going for him?” Why not try on the newer, smaller model? I hear I run faster, anyway!” I dove between his legs and hopped up on his back as the drone from before barrelled towards us. It clipped off Hexecute’s shoulder armor and sent us both tumbling to the ground.

I spun myself across the ground and jumped back to my feet only to see Hexecute running at me. If he landed a few more hits like that last one on me, I wouldn’t be on my feet for long. I ducked away from the reach of his glowing glove and dropped to the ground. I caught myself on my hands and quickly extended my legs into his crotch. There was the sound of crunching metal as his whole body shuddered and faltered. He stumbled back and dropped to a knee.

“You dirty little--”

“Believe me dude, I know what it feels like,” I replied. He screamed and jumped towards me. His hand wrapped around my neck like an iron vice and slammed me into another cargo container. He pulled me back and continued to slam me against the hard metal exterior several more times, each bring new, fresh pain more excruciating that the last. My back and skull screamed with pain, but I held onto his arm tightly. Without my goggles, things were beginning to blur together again as I gasped for air.

“You little inverse bitch! I should’ve known,” he barked. “No matter. This will be over sooner than predicted.” He raised his gauntlet and lunged toward me. 

“S-stop!” I pleaded, his grip around my neck growing ever tighter as I desperately pushed back against his gauntlet. Even though it wasn’t on my face like it had been for Markus, I could still feel it feasting on me. The raging, volatile bubble of energy in my chest started to grow quieter and quieter. As they had with Markus, particles of golden light began to appear in the air around me. His gauntlet flashed hungrily and began to inhale the particles into a ruby red crystal in the center of his palm.

“I assumed those idiotic teachers and guardians were only partially inept with how easy it was to get to Mr. Miller. But to think they never noticed you, despite the plethora of coincidences that surround you? You do not keep secrets very well, Mr. McArthur. I’ll make sure Kayden learns that lesson, too,” Hexecute laughed.

“Stop.. monologuing… dude,” I groaned as the particles around me danced upwards faster and faster to an increasing tempo. I could feel myself growing exhausted in a way I hadn’t felt since I got these powers. I couldn’t stand much more of this. Soon he’d have my powers and… soon he’d have my only chance at being Gabrielle, too.

Three pairs of blue-grey arms wrapped around Hexecute and yanked him off of me. As he was pulled backwards, I reflexively threw a punch towards his face and nicked his goggles, the smallest crack forming across the amethyst-tinted glass. I  gasped for air and looked up at my saviors. Cass was floating triumphantly above three cambions, eyes ablaze with fury, as they began to thrash away at Hexecute. Cass rushed to my aid and helped me up. 

“Thanks for the save, Cass,” I coughed. She smiled.

“No problem, Gabs.” An unholy screech erupted from the pile behind us. Hexecute currently had his fist buried in one of the cambions and was gesturing at the drones swirling in the distance. The cambion with his fist through it’s midsection burst into smoke with a final whimpered groan.

“To me! Eliminate these pests!” he shouted. 

“Oh no you don’t!” Cass countered. She raised her hands and willed fire to swirl around her before it danced from her arms into the air in front of her palms. A glowing red line began to form within the flames before it suddenly expanded into an opening. Something dark and full of flame burned through the portal. A single, pungent smell was immediately evident. 

“Sulfur,” I whispered to myself.

 “To me, my imps!” she screamed. “Stop those drones!” A swarm of dozens of imps flew out of the portal like a plume of smoke, each and every one screaming in their tiny voices. They flew in furious formation directly into the approaching drones, tearing into the metal casing of each and every one with relative ease.Small razor sharp teeth glistened in the dusky glow of day as they chomped away at their technological prey. The drones halted their advance as they dealt with this new unfamiliar threat.

“You aren’t supposed to be able to summon that many minions!” Hexecute screamed as he ripped into another cambion.

“Looks like you failed this pop-quiz then, Hexy!” I hollered back at him between breaths. I still wasn’t recovered from the close encounter with his gauntlet, but I had enough gas in the tank to throw one more attack his way. I took off towards him in a dead sprint, everything slowing to a crawl as I moved. I used the smoke from the recently-deceased cambion as a cover and pushed toward him with all of the energy I had left. He made another attempt to grab at me, but I dodged past it and buried my shoulder into his chest. The metal plating gave way to my momentum, denting heavily inwards as Hexecutev g sailed backwards through the air. Cass slid to my right and grunted as she volleyed a large ball of fire at him which exploded on impact. Several of the cargo containers rumbled with the shockwave created by the blast and the smoke surrounding Cass and I was blown away. 

We paused for a moment to survey the scene. Flames licked at the exteriors of the cargo containers, pieces of which were scattered around the cold gravel and asphalt. No shape rose from the flames, nor could we see a body lying upon the ground. The remaining drones to our left crumpled away at the combined might of the near-feral imps, pieces of scrap falling to the floor like food scrap you’d find underneath a child’s chair at the dinner table.

“Did we do well, Miss Cassandra?” they squealed in unison.

“You did well, my friends. Thank you for your service,” Cass smiled.

“Yay! Extra ice-cream for all of us!” they cheered.

“Wait, no, hold on,” Cass protested, but the imps disappeared in a poof of smoke before she could reason with them any further. Silence descended on us, nothing more than the sound of flames dying down filling the night air. I rushed over to Markus’ motionless form on the ground and carefully checked him. He wasn’t conscious as far as I could tell. His skin looked oddly pale, and he felt abnormally chilled. I checked his pulse. A faint beat registered, but it was very, very weak. I looked back at Cass with a fearful expression.

“Cass… I think he drained Markus…” I said in a weak voice. Cass didn’t move from where she stood, instead pointing to her left at the teachers and our classmates. Ms. Catarelli was shaking her head and rose to her feet slowly. She looked past Cass and settled her gaze on me. All of the students, both the ones Hexecute had restrained and the ones who surrendered, did the same. Ms. Catarelli cleared her throat as she held a hand to her bloodied forehead.

“Gavin?”